"Why do you always wear that thing?" Gakupo asked with a raised eyebrow.
Kaito looked puzzled for a moment before looking down at where he was pointing. "My scarf?" he replied, instinctively gripping the fabric with both hands. "Well...I dunno, heheh. I've just always had it. It used to belong to my dad. My mom made it for him. When they died, I just started wearing it all the time." His face reddened nervously at the personal confession, and he prodded his ice cream with a spoon.
Gakupo's expression softened. "Oh." He ran a hand through his violet ponytail in embarrassment. "S-sorry. I didn't mean to…"
"Oh, no, it's okay!" Kaito interjected, holding a hand up. "It's fine, really. They died when I was a little kid; I've gotten over it now."
"Well, yeah, but…" Gakupo trailed off, now twirling his fingers through his hair. "It's nothing, never mind. Forget it."
Kaito sighed and rolled his eyes. "Gakupo, I refuse to believe that this is 'nothing.' What is it?"
The purple-haired man huffed haughtily and crossed his arms. "None of your business, that's what!"
"Well, it's clearly bothering you!" Kaito retorted, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Come on. Tell me what's wrong. I promise I won't laugh at you or judge you or anything like that."
Gakupo scoffed. "Yes, you will. Everybody does. What's the point?"
"That's them. This is me, Gakupo. You can tell me anything, okay?"
Gakupo sighed and hesitated. Kaito was his only friend, and he didn't want to lose him over something like this. He closed his eyes and looked away, uncharacteristically timid. "I know it might seem hard to believe, but my family is very wealthy."
Kaito's eyes widened. It was common knowledge to everyone who had even heard of Gakupo that he was a very poor man. He lived on his own, and the house that he did have was very shoddily put-together. Kaito would always offer to help him and lend him money, but his pride and stubbornness would always force him to refuse.
"We're the descendants of brave samurai." Gakupo continued. "When I was a child, I wanted to be...just like them." He winced after he said that, expecting laughter, but he was met with silence. He dared to look back at Kaito, only to see the blue-haired man listening intently. With a tiny shred of confidence, he went on. "But, of course, samurai don't exist anymore. My family thought I was being ridiculous for wanting to be one."
Kaito felt a twinge of sympathy upon seeing Gakupo's face. He looked sadder than he had ever seen him look before. "I don't think you're ridiculous!" he blurted out without thinking, but immediately blushed and played with one end of his scarf. Gakupo gave him a weak smile.
"Thank you," he said, "but I know they were right. They would always spoil me, but they never showed any real affection towards me, y'know? I mostly just hung out with the maids and butlers."
"You had maids and butlers?!" Kaito exclaimed in surprise. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly when Gakupo gave him a disapproving glare. Some of the people in the ice cream shop started to stare.
"Yes, I did. Funny, right? Haha, Gakupo Kamui lived the cushy life until he threw it all away for some dumb dream that will never come true!"
"No, wait, I didn't mean that!" the blue-haired man protested, waving his hands. "I was just-"
"Surprised that someone like me lives such a pathetic lifestyle. I get it."
"Gakupo, that's not true!" Kaito interjected, louder this time. "I never knew anyone who had maids or butlers or any of that stuff! You're the first person I've met who did. That's all."
"Well, it's not like I have them anymore, now is it?!" the purple-haired man wailed. "I ran away! I wasn't satisfied with my old life, so I ran away to pursue my dream of being a samurai."
There was nothing but silence after that. It was as if the entire shop had gone quiet just to listen in on their conversation. Kaito suddenly felt all the eyes burning into him and reflexively held his scarf up to hide his reddening cheeks.
Finally, Gakupo spoke once more. "I just...never felt loved. My parents gave me a whole bunch of material items, but never any actual affection. I guess...I just wish I had a real, positive thing to remember them by."
Kaito felt pity well up inside of him (well, more than it had already), when suddenly an idea occurred to him. Slowly, carefully, he began to unwrap the thick scarf from around his neck. Gakupo looked up in shock.
"Kaito, wait," he began, "you don't have to-"
"I want to." the other man interrupted, finally managing to remove the long strip of fabric and handing it over to his friend.
Gakupo was nearly speechless. "Kaito...I…"
"Keep it for as long as you like. I don't mind." Kaito smiled a gentle, comforting smile, and Gakupo found it rather hard to refuse the gift when he was looking at him like that.
"Th-thank you." he finally said in response, cautiously wrapping it around his own neck. It was soft and indeed very warm (much too warm to be wearing in this weather, he thought), but he loved it nonetheless. It really did feel like home, somehow.
"Aww," said a voice from nearby. "Look! They really do care about each other!"
Their heads whipped around immediately. Miku and Luka were sitting at a table just adjacent to them, and the teal-haired teen was cooing in delight.
"M-miku?! Luka?!" Kaito exclaimed, instinctively reaching up to hide his face in his scarf. When he remembered that it wasn't there, he simply cupped his face in his hands. "Did you follow us here?!"
"No." replied Luka monotonously. "We were here before you. You were so caught up in your discussion that you didn't notice us. Miku wanted to say hi, but we didn't want to interrupt."
The other girl nodded emphatically. "You two are soooo cute!" she gushed. "That was very sweet of you, Kaito! Wasn't it, Luka?"
The older woman's eyes drifted over to the two men. Both were blushing furiously, but she could see the lingering softness in their eyes from earlier. Luka wasn't the best at reading emotions, but she knew one thing for sure: they were undeniably gay for each other.
She chuckled. "Yes, Miku. Yes, it was."