Return to Enoshima

It's raining in Enoshima. The streets are deserted and quiet. Shops are closed as everyone is at home, huddled together in their family rooms, keeping dry and warm. Yuki Sanada lays on his back, arms limp at his sides, staring up at the white ceiling of the living room. Yuki heaves a great sigh, turning onto his side and curling in on himself. He grabs a piece of bright red hair in his fingers, smoothing the section of hair until it slips easily through his fingers.

"Obaa-chan..." Yuki whispers into the quiet of the living room. The only sound is the buzzing of the muted television in the background and Yuki's own breathing. "Where are you?"

Yuki flips over onto his backside once more, reaching into the nethers of his jeans pocket to retrieve his black, replacement cellphone. He tapped through to his contacts, scrolling through the now noticeably larger list and smiling faintly as his finger taps past Natsuki's name. Yuki clicks his grandmothers name, quickly tapping out a message to send, when suddenly the doorbell is ringing.

With a jolt, Yuki drops his cellphone to the floor with a dull clacking sound, jumping up from his laid back position on the couch. He bristles for a moment in the way people do when confronted with unexpected situations, then quickly shakes out his hair and scampers to the door.

Yuki turns the knob, already speaking.

"Obaa-chan," he whines, swinging the door open. "Where were you - "

Yuki's breath catches in his throat. It is not his grandmother that stands at the door with a bag holding two Enoshima bowls from Natsuki's father's shop. It is Haru, the fish alien that flipped Yuki's world upside down half a year ago and left all too soon.

"H...Haru - "

"Yuuuukiiiii!" Haru shouted gleefully, flinging himself forward, latching his arms around Yuki's neck and locking his legs around Yuki's waist.

Yuki shuffled backwards from the force of impact, but he found himself worrying less about falling down and knocking himself out and more about wrapping his own arms around Haru's back, squeezing the alien fish tightly in his arms.

"Haru," Yuki choked out, a smile on his face, tears forming in his eyes.

Haru leaned back so he could catch a glimpse of Yuki's face, and when he did he frowned, confusion coloring his expression.

"Yuki?" Haru questioned, perplexed. Haru removed a hand from Yuki's neck to swipe at the lone tear that tracked halfway down Yuki's face.

"It's nothing," Yuki said, setting Haru on the ground so he could use the palms of his hands to mop of the tears. "What are you doing here, Haru?"

Haru grinned. "I wanted to see you!" Haru walked in past Yuki, leaving Yuki standing near the open front door.

Yuki slammed the door quickly, rushing into the living room after him. Haru was walking around the perimeter of the living room, touching things, making noises of amusement or interest, reacquainting himself. Yuki watched all of this, missing Haru's quirky mannerisms and innocent glee. It'd been so long since he'd seen him and obviously they both had grown in the half year they went without any contact at all.

Haru had gotten taller, though not too much, only an inch or two. His face was still slightly effeminate, his clothing decked out in vibrant pastels; the most noticeable change was the length of his hair which had grown from the bottom of his ears to just brushing his shoulders, the same cowlick sticking up in the middle. Yuki felt a smile sneak onto his face. He really had missed Haru.

"Where's Keito?" Haru inquired, blinking his violet eyes almost owlishly at Yuki.

Yuki padded into the room, taking up his previous seat on the couch.

"Obaa-chan went to visit Tamotsu,"

"Oh, Tamocchan!" Haru giggled, clapping his hands together, nodding his head twice. Then softer, "I missed everyone."

Yuki smiled softly. "Everyone missed you, too,"

Haru beamed and laughed, shooting forward with his hands out on either side, swerving around the coffee table and the couch, making buzzing noises. Yuki laughed while Haru buzzed around the room, jumping off the furniture and creating a raucous. Suddenly, Haru froze before Yuki. Yuki stopped laughing abruptly, watching his friend with a worried gaze.

"Haru?" he questioned. Haru stiffened then took off running for the kitchen.

Yuki could feel an old feeling blossoming in his chest, a feeling he hadn't had in half a year since Haru went away - panic. It dribbled cold and shocking down his spine and set his skin erupting into gooseflesh. He nearly took off running when Haru returned, his green squirt gun in hand, water dripping from his face and the ends of his hair onto his shoulders.

"Ahh," Haru breathed, stretching. "I was drying out."

Yuki stared for a moment. A drop of water dangled from Haru's too long bangs for a second, suspended in time, then dripped on his nose and slid down, taking one last fall from the tip of Haru's nose and landing on the floor. When Haru blinked at Yuki, tilting his head to one side like an inquisitive dog, and asked, "Yuki?" Yuki completely lost it.

He rolled around on the floor, clutching at his sides as laughter and tears spilled forth from his body. He had been so scared, he reflected as he reeled, releasing bursts of laughter into the floor. And what was he scared of? Urara was no longer controlling people, he knew that for a fact. In fact, if he'd met Urara before the incident, he never would have suspected someone as timid as that could cause such chaos and destruction. But this was the truth of the matter; Yuki was scared that something horrible was happening again.

And to realize that it was just Haru being Haru, it was absolutely relieving. So relieving that Yuki had broken down into laughter to sort of expel all of the adrenaline and energy he'd built up in that moment while Haru watered himself.

"Yuki," Haru groused. His cheeks had puffed out as he glared at the red haired boy peel apart into laughter on the floor. Haru stomped one pink flip-flopped foot. "Yuki!"

"S-sorry, Haru," Yuki choked out. His sides were splitting.

Haru nodded, still pouting, but he came closer, perching on a couch cushion. He waited for Yuki to be done laughing before he spoke again.

"Yuki," he said quietly.

Yuki chuckled a bit. "Hm?"

"I missed you, Yuki." Haru stated. Yuki froze, but Haru carried on. "I missed going fishing everyday and laughing with everyone. I always wanted to talk to you and see your face because it makes me happy. Especially when you're happy too," Haru looked into Yuki's eyes earnestly. "Were you happy while I was away?"

Yuki blinked multipled times. His mouth opened and closed. Had he been happy? While Haru was away, did Yuki laugh and smile and play? The answer was yes. Because he still had Erika and Sakura, Obaa-chan and Tamotsu, Misaki and Ayumi. And when he was feeling lonely, Yuki called Natsuki in America to ask him about his fishing and to reminisce, or Akira to ask where his new assignment was. Yuki also had a new fishing companion in Urara.

Yuki smiled. Nodded once.

"Yes,"

Haru smiled so brightly that Yuki was nearly blinded from its sheer volume.

Haru sank back into the couch, both hands clasped at his chest.

"I'm happy," Haru breathed.

Yuki crawled onto the couch. Haru moved almost as soon as Yuki had situated himself against the arm rest. He moved closer until his side was pressed completely up against Yuki's. Yuki swallowed thickly and averted his gaze to the ground. Haru had always been a touchy-feely sort of individual, it just made Yuki uncomfortable when they were alone together. He couldn't contain his rapidly beating heart and conflicting feelings without the distraction of other people around.

Haru snuggled even closer if that was even possible, nuzzling his face in Yuki now slightly shorter red hair.

"I love Yuki's hair," Haru stated joyfully, his breath brushing the shell of Yuki's ear. Yuki shivered, ignoring the zinging up and down his spine.

He sat as still as possible, hands balled into fists with the fabric of his shorts clenched within them.

"Where's Koko?" queried, his voice cracking with the effort to remain nonchalant.

Haru hummed into the skin of Yuki's throat.

"Home," he responded, climbing into Yuki's lap. Haru sniffed along Yuki's throat, his nose skimming along the sensitive flesh.

"W-why didn't you bring her with you?"

"Koko wanted to stay home," Haru said, his hands slipping down, playing at the hem of Yuki's black t-shirt. "Koko loves Enoshima but she missed her friends."

Yuki opened his mouth to respond when he felt Haru's soft, cold hands probing lightly at his stomach. He reached for Haru's hands, stopping them in their tracks with his owns hands wrapped around Haru's thin wrists.

"Haru!" Yuki shouted.

Haru leaned back to blink at Yuki.

"What?"

"You can't do that!" Yuki was shouting even louder now, his face contorting, the feeling of water coming up from the floor surrounding him. Haru wiggled his wrists free from his hand and flicked his forehead. Yuki let out a big breath and the water around him lowered until it disappeared.

"Don't make that face, Yuki!" Haru reprimanded.

Yuki ignored him. "Haru, you can't do that. You have to keep your hands to yourself."

"Why?" Haru asked.

"Because..." Yuki wracked his brain for some sort of answer, any answer that would suffice. "Because you just can't." he ended up blurting out lamely instead.

Haru pouted, his cheeks puffing up once again.

"Hm," he huffed, moving forward so his chest rested atop Yuki's own. Haru leaned his face even closer to the red head, breathing on him, placing his palms onto Yuki's shoulders. He was purposely invading Yuki's personal space now.

"H-Haru," Yuki tried in a chastising tone of voice. Nothing worked.

Haru leaned in close enough now that their lips were centimeters apart. Yuki was breathing Haru's breath and Haru was breathing Yuki's. Yuki found himself staring at those nude lips, at the slight curves at the corners, the supple skin, then he glanced up and lost himself in the vibrant violet color of Haru's eyes. Yuki's hands moved as if of their own accord, grasping Haru by the hair and pressing his face impossibly closer to his own and then their lips were touching.

Yuki didn't have time to process the fact that he'd only just acquired the skill to make friends half a year ago, so any information beyond that point was completely foreign to him. But he kissed Haru anyway, kissed him the way that felt good, the way that felt right, the way that made him happy.

Haru's mouth was as soft as it looked and when Yuki felt Haru's wet, silky tongue prodding at his lips, he opened his mouth without preamble and accepted him in. Their tongues twined wet and hot, breath gasping in puffs as neither of the two boys knew anything about pacing themselves. Yuki's hands trailed down from Haru's hair, down the back of his neck, over his back, fingers following the gentle ridges of his spine, and finally to the small of Haru's back where Yuki hiked up Haru's sweatshirt and ran his fingers over the soft, warm skin there.

Haru's breath hitched, his hips jolted forward, and Haru released a sound quite like a squeak. Yuki found this adorable and cute and incredibly...sexy all at the same time. Heat jolted where it had never really jolted all that much before, sending his stomach into a swarming, confused mixtured of butterflies and molten lava that fed a fire Yuki had never had the desire to feed before.

Haru clung to Yuki like a life jacket and Yuki felt himself feeling as if he were falling into something. Into unknown territory. And he wasn't altogether sure if he didn't like it.

Finally, when both boys needed air, the two broke apart, gasping for breath. Yuki breathed raggedly, watching as Haru also struggled to breathe. Haru held a pale hand to his chest, one pressed flat to his forehead like a wet towel. His face was flushed and his hair in the back was sticking up and all askew. His sweatshirt had been rucked up and had fallen back into place over Yuki's hands. Haru's skin felt like it was on fire.

"Yuki," Haru began, glancing down at Yuki with big, wide eyes full of innocence and confusion and some other emotion Yuki could probably guess he was feeling for the very first time. Yuki already knew what he was going to ask.

"It's called a kiss," Yuki explained, his face burning up with embarrassment.

"K-iss," Haru said, trying out the word.

Yuki nodded, glancing away. "It's what people do when they..." he trailed off.

"When they what?" Haru asked. "Yuki!" he yelped when Yuki failed to respond quick enough.

Yuki felt like he was going to explode any second if Haru didn't remove himself from his lap. And he was also replaying their kiss over and over in his head, feeling his heart ready to jump free of his chest every time he thought about his tongue touching Haru's.

"When they..." Haru swallowed. "When they like each other."

"Oh!" Haru looked pleasantly surprised. Then positively gleeful. "I like you a lot, Yuki!"

Haru leaned forward, lips puckered, but Yuki put a stop to it quickly with his palm to Haru's forehead.

"Haru!" he shouted, trying to shove the alien fish away.

"Yuki!" Haru whined. "I like you! Let me kiss you!"

And it was that scene Kate walked in on. Her grandson on the couch with Haru in his lap, puckered lips trying to attack Yuki's face. Kate let a small smile slip onto her face as she watched the two boys for a moment before walking away quietly, heading off to her bedroom. Haru's joyful noises and Yuki's embarrassed shouted hitting her ears like music as she closed her bedroom door.

Enoshima had been fine before Haru arrived. Then Enoshima had gotten lively after Haru arrived. And when he left, things had not been the same. Kate figured that after this return to Enoshima, things were sure to change again.

a/n: This was inspired by my anxiety at the end of the twelfth episode. Urara walked in and no one else did and I was so freaked out, but then after the credits and stuff Haru appeared and everything was okay. But this is set sort of in an alternate had Haru not come back.