Hey there! Late chapter is late...but it's here nonetheless :) I just couldn't post this chapter if I didn't credit FifthDayOfMay. Certain parts of this chapter were heavily inspired by their story 'Delayed Confessions.' Make sure you check it out everyone and enjoy!
The same night that Chapter 2 ended on...
Tsuna sat on Haru's bed, out of breath and panting. Haru, however, sat across the bed with a disappointed look on her face.
"So...tell me again what happened?" Haru asked slowly, not sure if she wanted to hear it one more time.
"I said-" And Tsuna re-explained what had happened earlier that night after Haru went home from the cafe. How he'd held hands with Reborn and then practically ditched him.
Haru sighed, and put a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "Sounds to me like you're playing hard to get. Though I don't understand why." She raised an eyebrow at Tsuna, demanding an explanation to her unspoken question.
"You already know why." Tsuna rolled his eyes.
"Right, right, right- the mysterious angel of confidence you met in the park that day!" Haru jumped off the bed and danced around the room dramatically.
Tsuna blushed lightly at the obvious teasing. "Yeah, him." He crossed his arms and pouted in playful anger. "Mock me all you will, but I was never the same after that day. He's the only reason I even had the courage to befriend you and Takeshi." Tsuna reminisced.
Haru tackled him into a hug, both of them falling back onto the bed. "Ah, that's right! My little Tuna was so shy!" Haru backed off of Tsuna and sat again across the bed. She pouted and made her bottom lip quiver. "P-Please...can we be friends?" She then burst into laughter, kicking her legs around wildly and holding her stomach.
"Haru!" Tsuna shouted at her. He only vaguely recalled asking Haru to be his friend, but he didn't doubt that her depiction was accurate. "Fine then, I take it back! I take it all back! We're not friends anymore so you better...um...forget all the secrets I told you!"
Haru's laughter slowed to a stop as she wiped away a tear that wasn't there. "Ok, I'm done geez. You're so dramatic."
Tsuna scoffed at that. "You're one to talk."
Haru sat up and inched closer to Tsuna so that their thighs were touching. "Anyways, I'm just confused is all. You say that you're upholding what you learned that day by rejecting Reborn?" Haru asked, pointing a finger at Tsuna.
"I'm not rejecting him." Tsuna reasoned. "I'm keeping my options open, I don't want to accidentally sell myself short."
"Pfffft!" Haru had to cover her mouth to prevent another outburst of laughter. Tsuna didn't look amused. "But Tsuna, no one else is pursuing you." Haru mentioned.
"I know that..." Tsuna flopped back onto the bed. "But someone might, and what if they're better than Reborn?" Tsuna countered, even though he knew he was being a bit silly.
"Tsuna," Haru gave a heartfelt smile to her friend. "I think you should give Reborn a chance. It seems like he's really interested in you, and if the right person does come along- then you can drop him like a hot potato."
"The same way Kyoko dropped me after she was bullied for dating me? I didn't even know secondhand-bullying was a thing..." Tsuna closed his eyes and tried not to think about that day.
"I just can't take it anymore!" She'd screamed at him, tears streaming down her face. Tsuna reached out to comfort her, but she'd violently flinched away. That stuck with Tsuna the most. Haru's voice shocked him back to reality.
"That was her loss!" Haru insisted. Tsuna's past reputation had seeped into his and Kyoko's relationship. They'd only been together for a few weeks before it became too much for Kyoko. Haru didn't fault her too much. After all, the news that the infamous 'Dame-Tsuna' had a girlfriend had even spread to her school. Though Tsuna was rarely made fun of anymore, it was apparently still unthinkable for someone to date him. "And that was...different." Haru tried to find the right words but failed.
"That's an understatement." Tsuna laughed weakly. "I'm pretty sure she only dated me out of pity since she knew I'd liked her since elementary." Tsuna opened his eyes and sat back up. "But never mind that, I understand what you're saying Haru." He scooted towards Haru and hugged her tightly. "I'll let Reborn know what I'm feeling once I'm sure of how he feels."
Haru hesitated to hug back, but eventually did so. "Okay...I guess that's the best deal I can get right now, huh?" She smiled when she heard Tsuna chuckle and felt him nod. "Now hurry up and call your mom I'm sure she's worried. You plan on staying here tonight don't you?" Haru assumed.
"Yeah..." Tsuna admitted and let go of Haru, reaching into his pocket to get his phone out. Haru got off the bed and went to her closet, searching for something Tsuna could wear. "Mom? I'm sorry about the late notice, but I'll be staying over Haru's house tonight."
"Eh?! Were you followed by a predator and had to throw them off again? Oh, my Tsu-kun..." Nana asked, worry clear in her voice.
Tsuna hurried to correct her. "No, no! I just, um, craved a sleepover suddenly." Tsuna lied, mentally promising to tell her the truth later.
"You're calling me for permission but it sounds like you've already made up your mind, Tsu-kun. You're growing up so fast!" Nana sobbed, though Tsuna could tell she was faking. "Alright then, have your sleepover." She giggled at the idea of highschoolers doing something so childish. "But I'm warning you, since you're further away from school, you'll have to wake up earlier, okay?"
"I will mom, and thanks." Tsuna put another hand on the phone, pulling it closer to his ear. "For everything."
Nana smiled, hearing the smile in Tsuna's voice. "You're welcome, I love you Tsunayoshi."
Tsuna blushed lightly, he knew his mom meant what she said when she used his full name. "I love you too mom, goodnight."
"Goodnight."
"Thank you Mrs. Miura, really thank you." Tsuna said to the older woman, who yawned and waved a hand in response. She had just put his uniform in the washing machine and offered to stay up to dry it as well, but Tsuna managed to change her mind.
"It's no trouble Tsuna, you've been putting up with Haru all these years with her..." Mrs. Miura gestured to what Tsuna was currently wearing. "Well, you know."
Tsuna blushed deeply, looking down at the nightgown Haru had given him to wear for the night. He was sure that she had pajama pants, but he was too grateful to the family to complain about anything. "Yes, and it's scary to think that I'm almost used to it now."
Mrs. Miura laughed heartily at that statement and said goodnight, heading up the stairs to her bedroom.
Tsuna and Haru sat in the living room doing a combination of the homework Tsuna forgot he had and chatting about random things until Tsuna's uniform was done washing. Tsuna put it into the dryer, and the two went to bed.
Shhhhh...
Tsuna awoke to the faint sound of running water. He blinked slowly, becoming conscious of where he was.
"Oh that's right, I slept at Haru's house last night..." Tsuna yawned and wiped his eyes, trying to force them to stay open. He sat up and saw he was on Haru's bed, his back against the wall. This came to no surprise, as that was how they usually slept- in one bed that is. When Takeshi was there, well that was a different story. What did surprise Tsuna was that Haru was not in the bed beside him.
Getting off the bed, he was able to locate the source of the water that had woken him up. Haru's bedroom door had been left open and she was in the bathroom across the hallway, once more with the door open.
"Haru?" Tsuna called out to her, walking towards the bathroom.
"Eeep!" She jumped in surprise, almost choking on the toothbrush in her mouth. She spit out the toothpaste and rinsed her toothbrush under the sink's water. "Geez, you scared me Tsuna. I was just about to wake you up, I'm running late." Haru put her toothbrush in a cup full of similar ones.
"You missed a button." Tsuna pointed out on Haru's uniform's shirt. "Wait, why are you dressed so early?" Tsuna questioned since she was usually late. He was pretty sure that's what he, Takeshi and Haru all truly bonded on.
"Oh really?" Haru turned to look in the mirror and quickly corrected her error. "But I'm not early," Haru giggled to herself, still looking herself over in the mirror. "I'm actually quite la...te." Haru had finally turned to look at Tsuna and saw his gaping mouth and wide eyes.
"Haru...you r-realize that my school...it starts before yours does...?" He stuttered out, sure that he was having a dream- no a nightmare.
"What?" Haru cocked her head to the side. "No it doesn't. My school starts before yours." Haru held her ground.
"No! It doesn't! I know when my freaking school starts Haru!" Tsuna darted down the hallway and down the stairs, seeking the laundry room where his uniform would still be. "Ah, I don't have time to iron it." Tsuna stared at it for a moment, trying to decide if Hibari would be more upset if he was extremely late, but well dressed- or not that late- but with raggedy attire. Sweat drops formed all over Tsuna's head.
"Ah, whatever!" Tsuna shouted to himself and rushed into the bathroom that was already downstairs. When he was done changing, he headed for the front door, planning to leave immediately, however, he was stopped.
"Tsuna, dear, you should eat breakfast before you go." Mrs. Miura prodded him and gestured to Haru and Mr. Miura at the kitchen table, the former of which ate quickly while the latter waved briefly.
"I'm so sorry, I don't have any time. But thank you, thank you, thank you for everything Mrs. Miura! Oh, and you too Mr. Miura!" Tsuna swung open the front door and dashed out quickly, unintentionally slamming the door as he closed it.
A few seconds passed before he came back through and glared at Haru. "Haru, your stupid dress is on the bathroom floor. Make sure your sweet mother doesn't have to pick it up." He said as quickly as possible, before fleeing once again. This time, for good.
"Stupid...Haa Haa...Fucking...Distances...Haa Haa..." Tsuna panted as he half ran and half jogged. He'd run out of breath a long time ago and he didn't have much energy to begin with. He was forced to take a break when he felt like he'd collapse. "Geez, I need to work out." Tsuna put his arms behind his head as he'd seen Takeshi and other athletes do to catch their breath.
I can't believe Haru, she knows that my school starts before hers does. Tsuna thought angrily as he began to walk a steady pace. He knew he should've set an alarm on his phone, but his eventful day rattled his mind. Tsuna passed what he considered a 'place-marker' from his to Haru's house, a neighbor with flowers hanging over the walls that surround their lot. That meant he was, give or take, 10 minutes away from his house, and therefore, 15 or so minutes from school.
"I don't even want to see how late I am..." Tsuna reached for his phone, but opted not to look at it.
Someone turned a corner sharply, bumping into Tsuna and interrupting his stride.
"Oops, sorry-" Tsuna began, knowing that these things were usually his fault. The person he bumped into felt like a rock and he had to look up to see who it was.
"Someone's on the wrong side of town." A familiar deep voice muttered to Tsuna, who immediately recognized it.
Reborn was staring down at him, like a cat cornering its prey. Tsuna shuddered and got the notion that he'd be doing that a lot more in the future.
Tsuna gave a shy smile. "And someone's late. I always took you for a student who really cared about their education."
"What gave me away?" Reborn snorted. "But you're one to talk, school for you started- what? An hour and a half ago?" Reborn brought his watch to his face and smirked at Tsuna when he saw he was correct.
Tsuna began to sweat nervously, thinking of his impending doom. "I-uh...well I have a perfectly good explanation for that..." Tsuna lied through his teeth.
"Enlighten me."
"I slept in." Tsuna said bluntly.
Reborn brought a fist up to his mouth to shield his laughter. He didn't really expect much better of an answer than that.
"Yeah, yeah, hardy-har-har*." Tsuna mocked him. "I fell asleep at Haru's house and she thought my school started after hers so she didn't wake me up." Tsuna almost pouted, but remembered everything that happened yesterday and instead, blushed. "By the way...I'm sorry about calling off our, arrangement I guess, and not telling you that I'd found a new partner sooner." Tsuna scratched the back of his head, wondering if he made the conversation awkward.
Reborn shook his head. "It's fine, I shouldn't have misplaced your phone number." Reborn mentally cursed, he hadn't meant to reveal that.
"Oh you did?" Tsuna asked, naive of Reborn's mistake. "Here," He extended a hand out to Reborn. "I'll give it to you."
It took Reborn a few moments to actually process what Tsuna was asking for. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Reborn went to the page where you add new contacts and placed it into Tsuna's hand.
Tsuna typed a few things before handing it back. "There you go, no problem at all." Tsuna's face then showed genuine concern. "Just text me if you ever need me."
Reborn's face didn't show any expression. Instead, he looked down at his phone and began to type a message.
"Um...?" Tsuna said, backing away thinking that the conversation was over. His phone buzzed in his pocket. He looked at Reborn to see a smirk on his face. "Really?" Tsuna pulled out his phone and checked the message:
I have an assignment that I could use your help with. Meet me outside of Maid Latte this Saturday.
Tsuna giggled at Reborn's oddity. "Ok, I don't know how much I can help out with an upperclassman's work but I'll try." Tsuna stepped towards Reborn, intending to give him a hug goodbye. Wait, what am I doing?
Reborn raised an eyebrow, but then understood what had happened. "See ya, make sure you get the work from the classes you missed." Reborn advised him.
Tsuna 'eep'-ed, having even forgotten that he was in the middle of a crisis. "Yeah, sure thing mom." Tsuna muttered as he waved 'bye' and turned around to walk to school, having to hide his blush and act as if he didn't hear Reborn's response.
"I prefer daddy."
The week passed by quite uneventfully. Tsuna and Reborn ran into each other occasionally, but usually stuck to texting one another when they could. Tsuna discovered little things about Reborn- his obsession with espresso, his 'lucky' fedora, and he liked to tease. Tsuna had already assumed that last one from previous interactions, but it was now confirmed. He also found out that Reborn was adopted and lived with his adoptive mother and, also adopted, brother. Reborn also had the pleasure of meeting Nana Sawada, Tsuna's mother. She was excited to meet him, but even more excited to bring out the baby pictures. Tsuna was sure that he saw her slip some into Reborn's wallet before he left. Afterwards he had to swear on his life to her that they weren't dating...but he was forced to admit he was interested.
The two could feel themselves getting closer, so much so that Reborn even revealed to Tsuna that 'Reborn' wasn't his real name- though he refused to tell him what it actually was. The date, Saturday, that the arrangement had been set for soon arrived...
Reborn swiped aimlessly around on his phone, trying to fill the idle time as he waited for Tsuna's arrival. He doubted he'd be stood up, and if he was, he'd go to Tsuna's house and drag him here.
"Hey, Reborn!" Tsuna's familiar voice shouted from quite a distance away. Reborn saw his unique hair popping up and down in the crowd of people as he waved and jumped excitedly.
Reborn tried to suppress it, but smiled nonetheless- a giddy and bubbly feeling in his stomach had forced it out. "Hey." He replied casually, as the brunet came closer to him.
"You're early," Tsuna looked him up and down briefly, taking in his casual attire instead of his usual school uniform. "Or am I late?" He asked, head cocked to the side.
Reborn shrugged and pushed off the wall he'd been leaning on. "A little bit of both." He responded and motioned for Tsuna to follow him. "But let's go somewhere quieter." Reborn led them away from the tourist center into a more secluded part of town that locals enjoyed. It was, or at least known as, a 'smart park'. Essentially a park with outlets and charging tables everywhere. It wasn't very populated at the moment, mainly groups of two huddled together looking at one screen.
Reborn and Tsuna sat down at an empty table in the shade.
"So..." Tsuna began a conversation. "How about that assignment?" He inched closer to Reborn, feeling a little awkward. He still had no idea what they'd be working on today.
"Oh, that's right." Reborn reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Tsuna looked curiously at it and watched Reborn unfold it. The title read 'Advanced Geometry' and it seemed that most of the problems were already solved. Tsuna wasn't sure, but they looked right.
"If you really want my help I'll do my best..." Tsuna muttered to Reborn with uncertainty.
Reborn chuckled a little bit and Tsuna suddenly felt warm and fuzzy inside. He liked that feeling Reborn gave him. "I need you more than you realize," Reborn said while glancing over the problems he'd done, knowing exactly what he'd said and what it was doing to Tsuna. "To help me complete this assignment." He teased.
Tsuna blushed deeply, almost pouting. "Alright, alright, I get it. How can I help you?"
"Well," Reborn pointed to the last problem on the page. "What's 2+2?" Reborn didn't acknowledge Tsuna's confused expression.
"Umm, jeez I don't know that one always gets me." Tsuna feigned ignorance. "2? 6? 4?-"
Reborn cut him off. "Yeah, 4 I think that's it."
"I'm not confident, though."
"It's ok I believe in you."
Reborn wrote a '4' on the last problem and folded the paper back up again. Tsuna stared at him, perplexed. "Wait, what?"
Reborn slipped the paper back into his pocket, and grinned at Tsuna. "Believe it or not, that is the answer. Took a lot to get there, but that part really stumped me." Reborn stood up and stretched. "Well that's over with so let's go." He nodded his head towards the park's exit.
Tsuna raised an eyebrow but stood as well, both beginning to walk out of the park. "What do you mean? Where are we going? What's going on?" Tsuna badgered Reborn with questions, much to his irritation.
"You ask a lot of questions." Reborn frowned at him, grabbing his hand because he knew that'd make Tsuna be quiet. "Just live in the moment."
Tsuna blushed and muttered something that sounded like 'Okay' and 'Whatever.'
Reborn and Tsuna strolled back into the tourist center, with Reborn agreeing to Tsuna's pleas of letting go of his hand. They walked past Maid Latte, popping in to say hello to Haru for a moment but exiting immediately after. The two chatted lightly, but were mostly quiet as they took in the chaotic scenery. People rushed in and out of stores and employees called out to potential customers on the street, yelling about sales and deals. Some people tried to get Tsuna and Reborn's attention, but Reborn would give them a dismissive wave and they would turn their attention elsewhere. Soon, the pair was out of the tourist area and wandered around the neighborhood until they stumbled upon a small festival.
"Hey, a festival!" Tsuna said excitedly, and raced ahead of Reborn to see what was going on. There were food stalls, games, and a large area where people danced to music and others sat and watched them. "Do you want to hang around here for a bit?" He asked Reborn, who walked up behind him.
"I'm up for whatever you are." Reborn shrugged and slid a hand down Tsuna's lower waist, using it to push him forward towards the festival.
"Ok, then…" Tsuna scanned the area, looking for something that they both might find entertaining. He spotted one he thought they'd both like. "Goldfish scooping it is." Tsuna grabbed Reborn's hand and dragged him over to the stall.
They greeted the man working there and asked for two nets. Tsuna reached into his pocket, attempting to retrieve his wallet but-
"I've got it." Reborn was faster and got his wallet out, handing the man payment for two nets.
Tsuna huffed a little and turned to face Reborn, prepared to protest his net being paid for, but he decided against it. He blushed lightly. "Thanks." He mumbled and took his net from the stall owner.
"Don't mention it." Reborn smiled at Tsuna, who was too busy focusing on the scurrying fish to notice.
Tsuna lead Reborn around to all sorts of stalls- all of which Reborn paid for if needed. If not, then he'd hold the prizes that Tsuna won and give the ones he won himself to Tsuna (although he held those too). There were so many prizes that Reborn had to buy a tote bag to hold them all properly. The two played ring toss, which resulted in Reborn having a slight bruise on his cheek from one of Tsuna's tosses gone awry. He didn't seem to mind much, or at least had enough strength to "joke" that a kiss from Tsuna would heal it. Tsuna didn't find it very amusing, and instead blushed a deep crimson as they moved on to eat something. Reborn bought fried noodles for himself and a red bean Taiyaki for Tsuna, whilst playing on the fact that 'Tsuna' reminds him of a certain fish. They ate and chatted between bites, watching others dance and play games. Tsuna told Reborn more stories about himself, Takeshi, and Haru and Reborn listened intently, laughing every now and then and truly enjoying himself. Tsuna made him feel like a little kid- giddy for no reason and excited to see what happens next. Also confused, but mostly exited. He couldn't believe things could go downhill so quickly.
Reborn opened the bag of prizes, momentarily peering in to see all of the childish toys inside. Tsuna shoved a stuffed lion in and Reborn crossed the straps to close it back.
"And that's one more for me, earned by me." Tsuna bragged, literally holding his head up higher than usual.
"Yeah, 12 more of those and we'll be tied." Reborn countered, smirking since he knew he was right.
"Why can't you just let me have my small victories? Why?" Tsuna made a miserable expression. He pretended to gasp to hold back tears.
Reborn raised an eyebrow at the dramatics. "You've been hanging around Haru too much. Besides, that wouldn't be any fun for me."
"W-what?!" Tsuna yelled at him, shocked (but not too shocked) that he was being used for the other's enjoyment. "How could you! I thought we-" Tsuna was cut off by nearby conversation clearly directed at them.
"Isn't that Dame-Tsuna?"
"Huh? Oh yeah it is…but who's that guy? He's so cute!" Two girls squealed, aware that their conversation wasn't private.
"Ew is he friends with Dame-Tsuna, I hope not. Then he'd be ruined, like Kyoko- remember?" One of them put her hand on the other's shoulder and began to snicker, the other following suit.
"Yeah, yeah! I remember she dumped him after what? A freaking week?!" Both girls now howled in loud laughter, bystanders staring to see what was so funny.
Reborn immediately understood the situation and turned to walk towards them, hate in his eyes, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.
Reborn turned around to see Tsuna hanging his head lowly. Tsuna lifted it and Reborn wanted to scream and hold him tight. The happiness Tsuna's eyes had shown only moments ago had drained away and what was left was only a shell. A weak smile lightened his expression. "Let's go…I want to go home now."
Reborn nodded and turned Tsuna's body away from the girls so that it faced the exit. He turned back once to glare at the girls, but they'd already left.
The walk to Tsuna's house was quiet. It was nearing evening, about 5 o'clock, so there was some hustle and bustle but not a bothersome amount. Since Tsuna and Reborn walked the neighborhood route, other pedestrians were rare. Tsuna said next to nothing, but Reborn would sometimes look down and see his fists clenched tightly and he'd grab and hold them until they released their tension. The two arrived at Tsuna's house in good time since there weren't any distractions, but when they made it back Reborn sensed an odd feeling in his stomach.
"We're here." Reborn nudged Tsuna, who looked like he would've kept walking if Reborn hadn't said anything.
"Huh? Oh…" Tsuna looked around and relaxed. "Oh ok…"
He didn't move, just kept staring down the road as if he didn't believe that his house was right next to him. Tsuna looked at the ground now, or his feet- Reborn wasn't sure.
"It's just…" Tsuna tried but laughed weakly. "I thought I was over it, ya know? I thought that hearing that…that name wouldn't mean anything to me now and yet-" Tsuna choked back a sob, painfully gasping for air as tears slid to the ground. "And yet I'm like this-" The floodgates opened, so to speak, and Tsuna tried to wipe the tears away as quickly as they came but it was futile.
Reborn brought Tsuna's face into his chest, dropping the bag of toys and wrapping his arms around him. "You're suffering from trauma, it's natural that you can be easily triggered. It's natural and it's ok. It's great even- if it never bothered you then you'd be repressing it, not recovering." Reborn brought Tsuna's face off his chest, tear stains left behind. He held Tsuna's face between his hands, making eye contact with him. "I don't know what you've been through or what you're going through. Maybe I'll never know. But I know you can get through it. It might be in 5 minutes or 5 years but you can do it. I believe in you." Reborn smiled tenderly.
The tears coming from Tsuna's eyes slowed and he sniffled heavily, breaking into a smile of sorts. Reborn released his head and Tsuna wiped more tears away, this time none immediately following after. "Who are you and what have you done with Reborn? Or whatever your name is-" Tsuna joked, trying to change the subject.
"It's Renato." Reborn said plainly. "But that's only for when we're alone."
Tsuna blushed, wondering what Reborn, or Renato, meant by 'alone.' He nodded to show he understood. Blushing deeper, he mumbled. "Thanks for everything today…" He played with his thumbs to avoid looking at Reborn's face in fear of what he was about to do. He gestured for Reborn to lean in close, and when he did- gave him a quick peck on his cheek. Tsuna could've sworn that he saw Reborn blush but he ran away so fast he wasn't sure. "Okaybye!" Tsuna nearly yelled as he left, but his hand was caught and pulled back. "Wah!"
A bag's handles wrapped around Tsuna's hand. "You almost forgot." Reborn whispered in his ear, reveling in how Tsuna blushed when he did so.
"O-Oh, thanks." Tsuna muttered, once again cursing his stutter. "Hope I didn't forget anything else…" Tsuna patted himself down with his free hand.
"Just this." Reborn said, making Tsuna look up and wonder why Reborn was kissing him.
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