Chapter 1

"AT-CHOO!" A loud sneeze erupted through the Tachibana household.

Ran and Ren shot each other a glance, before realising what had happened. The twins ran upstairs, across the landing and threw open a door, all whilst screaming "ONII-CHAN!" Their eyes came to rest on their usually cheerful; smiley older brother slumped in his chair. Olive hair sprawled everywhere, his head rested on top of a huge pile of textbooks. In his left hand, Makoto desperately clutched a biro pen. Something was wrong, and the twins knew it.

10 minutes later the doorbell rang. "I'll get it..." Makoto said in a tired voice.

"It's okay 'nii-chan! We've got it!" Ran and Ren hurried to the door. Together they pulled it open, and found themselves facing a worried Haru. They saw his usually 'serious' blue eyes filled with worry. Haru looked dishevelled, as if he had just thrown on the first clothes he could find. One of his jeans pockets was out, and his t-shirt was half tucked in. His usually tidy hair was windswept all over his face.

"I came as soon as I could. I've got him some food."

"Thank you Haru-oniichan!"

Haru carefully removed his shoes and placed them gently next to Makoto's larger ones, like he always did. He then made his way towards the stairs. Mr and Mrs Tachibana had adorned the stair walls with an innumerable amount of pictures. Haru's eyes flitted from photo to the next.

Then they stopped. Haru smiled.

It was a picture from when the two of them were 9 years old. He and Makoto had split an ice-lolly and were sitting on a bench outside Iwatobi Swim Club. Makoto had his arm around Haru and had a large smile on his small face. Haru, on the other hand, was simply staring into space. He could remember the day of the photo vividly. It had been one of the hottest days in 10 years. School was closed because of the scorching heat. Both the boys' parents had decided to send them swimming so they could cool off. Haru could remember Makoto slathering both his and Haru's entire body with sun-block in the changing room after swimming. It was just like Makoto to worry about Haru before worrying about himself.

Not today, thought Haru. Today, I'm going to take care of Makoto.

"AAAAHHH-TCHOOOO!" A second eruptive sneeze blasted through the house, wrenching Haru from his daydreams. The plastic bag he was clutching in his hand felt heavier than before. Haru then hurried up the rest of the stairs and into Makoto's bedroom.

"...Haru?"

"Hey Mako."

Makoto lay on his front, limbs sprawled out, on his bed. Tissues littered the floor, and his blanket was in a heap by his feet.

"Haru... what are you doing? I... I'll get you sick! Go home!" Haru could hear an alarming amount of concern in Makoto's gentle voice. Haru smiled a little bit. Typical Mako.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine."

Makoto sat up, slowly. He turned his body around, so he could face Haru. Every movement he made seemed laboured. Then their eyes met. Makoto's usually emotive and bright green eyes were dull, and seemed to conceal a deep-seated fatigue. His nose had a red tinge to it, a sight that made Haru shocked. Makoto looked completely vulnerable. Haru was suddenly overrun by an urge to nurse him back to full health – it alarmed him to see Makoto like this. Heat slowly crept into Haru's cheeks as he realised that Makoto was only wearing his boxers. Even though they had seen each other in Speedos and other skimpy swimming costumes before, boxers seemed a lot more intimate to Haru. He felt a, not unpleasant, twinge in his chest. His whole body began to tingle, and Haru felt breathless. Makoto must have sensed something was off with Haru (It was like a sixth sense), as he got up and began to pull on a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt.

"Mako, wait here. I'll get you some soup."

"It's okay Haru," *sniff* "I can make it myself... why don't you go home, I don't want to waste your time..."

"It's not time wasting if I want to do it," Haru said in a voice that came out harsher than expected. Makoto, however, didn't seem to notice, as he sat back on his bed and closed his eyes.

Haru walked down the stairs and headed for the kitchen. He could hear Ran and Ren's voices coming from the living room – a sound that comforted him. There was something unnerving about Makoto being ill.

After putting the kettle on to boil, Haru took out a sachet of tomato soup from his bag. He hoped this would help Makoto to get better. He squeezed the sachet of soup into a bowl, and mixed it with the hot water from the kettle. As he did so, his mind returned to how he felt earlier. He remembered the burning sensation he felt in his chest at the thought of helping out Makoto and also the strange twinge. He and Makoto had always been best friends. People often remarked that the two of them were even closer than brothers. Haru had never thought of Makoto as anything else, well, at least not until last night. As soon as he started to think of last night, Haru's phone vibrated in his back pocket. He pulled it out. On the screen a notification read: MESSAGE FROM RIN. He raised an eyebrow, curious as to what Rin had said. He opened the message, and it read: tried anything yet, you pussy?

No, Haru replied, and don't call me that.

A reply came almost instantaneously. You know it's true.

I'm not scared – just unsure. Haru responded.

Sure you are.

Haru locked his phone and took a deep breath. Then, taking the plastic bag with him, he carefully climbed upstairs, carrying the bowl of hot tomato soup, and made for Makoto's room.

Just as he was about to enter, Haru stopped. His breathing had become faster, his hands were clammy, and his knees felt weak.

Am I nervous...? He thought. He shrugged it off, and tried to enter Makoto's room appearing as casual as possible. Deep inside, however, Haru could feel the butterflies.

A/N: MakoHaru for life wooo! Please R&R if you enjoyed it!