He was in Yuki's house. The redhead's grandmother had invited him in for tea after spotting the trio down at the docks, fishing. His first instinct had been to decline, of course, out of courtesy, and maybe out of the slight sense of unfamiliarity that he had always sensed around the Sanada household. It had always seemed like some place... warm. So much different from the home he was used to.
He had wanted to decline Kate's offer, to go back to his own home instead - that dreary, cold place where he faced his worst fears every single day - but Haru had been persistent. "Come on, Prince!" he had said with that ever-cheery smile, pulling on his arm, leading him up the little walkway and to the front door. Yuki had tried to show some consideration for him, tried to persuade Haru to leave him alone ("You can't just force people to do things, Haru!"), but in the end, here he was, sitting in the living room with a steaming teacup before him.
There was a certain feel about the air in Yuki's house, a feel that he hadn't felt in a long while. Haru and Yuki were seated at either side of him on the couch, Haru giggling and chatting away with Kate, who was seated on the chair opposite of them, and Yuki remaining silent, looking rather embarrassed and occasionally giving him apologetic looks, as if it were his fault that Haru was so stubborn and thick-headed. Occasionally Kate would gently probe him for conversation, try to make him feel more relaxed than he must look ("I hear people call you the Fishing Prince? You must be very talented!"), and each time he would give a short, curt answer, barely any recognition, and retreat once again into his shell, refusing to let the pleasant atmosphere around him have any sort of effect.
Yes, Natsuki thought, this place was pleasant. And he hated it.
"Does anyone want more tea?" Kate asked in that sweet, calming voice of hers. A voice the likes of Natsuki hadn't heard in such a long time.
"I'll get the dishes, Grandma," Yuki offered when Kate got up to put the cups away. He could be quite responsible sometimes, Natsuki thought. He had been like that once, too.
"I'll help, Yuki!" Haru shot up out of his seat, glad to be up and moving. Like an energetic little child. Natsuki wondered how long it had been since Sakura was that bubbly.
Kate let the two boys take the cups from the coffee table and into the kitchen, leaving her alone in the living room with Natsuki. She turned to him with that loving smile that he couldn't stand to look at. Why must she look at him like that? He was no family of hers.
"Do you like flowers?" she asked him, gesturing towards the glass door at the back of the kitchen. "I keep a pretty nice garden in the back here, if I do say so myself."
For a while, Natsuki couldn't answer her. He just stared at her with eyes that he knew must look untrusting, uncooperative, closed. He knew he must be looking at her in a way that would make anyone frown, think he was a brat, turn away. But she remained facing him. She kept smiling.
"Alright, then," she said, her voice never faltering, never taking on an accusing or hurt tone. She was as strong as a rock. "I'll be outback if you need me. You're welcome to join me anytime you like."
That pleasant aura still remained even after she had left the room, even after he was left alone on the couch, stewing in his own gloom. He felt more alien in the space than Haru, a foreign object, intruding on the peace and perfection that had already been long established. He was like a solitary, melancholy bubble floating through a thick mass of happiness, of warmth, of everything sweet and enjoyable that he couldn't bring himself to reach out and grasp. It was a miracle that the bubble could handle such immense pressure, but Natsuki was stubborn, and he refused to give in.
"Don't mess with that, Haru, you'll drop it." Natsuki could hear Yuki's voice emanating from the kitchen in a gently scolding tone. He felt a strong sense of nostalgia at the words.
"I'll be careful~" Haru sang, his response so similar to the one Natsuki had received, long ago. Even the little singsong was the same.
He could hear Yuki sigh now. "If you must. Just put it right over there-" His words were cut off by a crash. "HARU!"
Natsuki didn't know when he had reached the entrance of the kitchen, when he had been so drawn to the familiar scene that he simply could not stay away, but now he peeked out around the doorframe, eying the large broken plate on the floor.
He had known that plate was going to break. After all, Sakura had broken it, too.
"I'm sorry, Yuki," Haru whined, his head bent in guilt. Glass pooled around his feet.
"It's alright," Yuki consoled him, despite the tense undertone of his voice. He was a bit annoyed. "Just get out of the glass before you cut yourself - Oh, your leg..." The tension was automatically released from Yuki's voice as he eyed the bleeding scratch on Haru's leg. He led the blonde out of the glass, carefully, and sat him down on a chair.
"It hurts," Haru winced as Yuki dabbed a warm washcloth on the wound.
"It'll be fine," Yuki replied reassuringly, "Just has to be cleaned up. I'll get some bandages."
"Wait," Haru said, catching a hold of Yuki's sleeve as he stood. Then he grinned. "Kate says that a kiss makes it feel better~"
Yuki yanked his sleeve away from Haru's grasp. "No way."
"Please?"
"You're not a little kid, Haru."
"Please, Yuki? It huuuuurts."
Yuki tried to stare Haru down with a stern look. He tried to hold his ground, be an authority figure, but the adorable, pleading look Haru was giving him broke down all his defenses. He sighed. "Fine. But just this once, okay?"
Haru looked entirely pleased with himself, giggling as Yuki knelt down in front of him and placed a light kiss on the scrape on his leg. Both boys looked up in surprise when they heard a laugh coming from the kitchen doorway.
"N-Natsuki!"
Yuki was mortified. How long had Natsuki been standing there? Had he seen what Haru made him do? He must have, or else he wouldn't be laughing like that. Yuki's face burned up and he felt like he wanted to die, he was so embarrassed. He felt the water starting to drag him under until Haru gave him a slight nudge with his knee, pulling him out of it.
Natsuki was laughing. It was the best feeling he'd had in a while. It felt like a release of all the things that had been latching on to him since he entered the house, and he watched them all dissipate as the bubble around him burst, letting in all the wonderful feelings he had tried so hard to hold back. Tears were pooling at the corners of his eyes, a pile-up of all the memories that passed through his mind as he watched Yuki and Haru, all the similar little moments that had gone by in his life, moments that he had cherished.
Sakura had asked for a kiss, too.
Why had he forgotten that?
"I-It's not what you think!" Yuki said quickly, shooting up from his kneeling position on the floor. "I was... I-I was just...!"
"Yuki was giving me a kiss to make me feel better!" Haru explained, swinging his now-healed leg back and forth.
Yuki glared at Haru, and was about to babble something more to cover up his embarrassment, but Natsuki cut him off. "I think you still need a bandage on that, though," he said to Haru, smiling. He was actually smiling. He gave a nod to Yuki, and the redhead relaxed a bit, looking relieved.
"Um, yeah," Yuki said with a nervous smile, "I'll go get that!"
He moved to walk past Natsuki, eager to get out of that room and cool himself down. When he was around the corner, out of Haru's view, Natsuki spoke. "You act a lot different around him."
Yuki turned to Natsuki's smiling face in shock. "I-I don't!" he tried to defend himself. Natsuki just chuckled.
"Don't worry," he reassured his friend in a calm, friendly voice, so much different from his aloof tone from before. So much easier than what he had felt before. "I understand how it feels. You want to take care of him."
Yuki blushed and turned his face away from Natsuki's gentle gaze. There was something in his eyes that Yuki didn't recognize; he wondered what had happened to Natsuki since they had arrived at his house. He wasn't at all like this before. "I guess so..."
Natsuki just nodded and let Yuki go to fetch the bandages, an unfamiliar feeling warming his entire body. Actually, no - it was quite familiar, the more he felt it, just long forgotten. He glanced back over at Haru, humming a little tune and swinging his legs off the chair, with a warm gaze.
The next time Kate welcomed him in for a cup of tea, he wouldn't hesitate to accept.