Sousuke's POV

My throbbing head woke me up along with a heavy feeling on my chest. Oh yeah, Makoto fell asleep on me. I groaned and I rubbed my eyes with a free hand. My other hand was on something. My fingers curiously ran up the surface and I suddenly felt Makoto shiver. That was interesting. I went further up and a soft murmur came from him. I lifted my head a little, realizing that my hand was under his tank top, my fingers crawling up his spine. I suddenly realized that I was touching him in such a way that he might not have been comfortable with so I quickly removed my hand, pulling his tank top back down to cover his back.

God, I could barely remember last night. I faintly remember discussing our pasts and relationships, but I couldn't think of anything else. Wait...wait a minute. We almost kissed last night. And I remember not pulling away...if anything I wanted it to happen. A flush rose to my cheeks, recalling the tingly feeling from alcohol and the warmth of his lips just barely brushing mine.

"Nghh…" Makoto groaned. "Gotta pee," he muttered. I watched him slowly hoist himself up, going slow and making sure not to get too dizzy. His tank top was twisted and one of the thick straps slumped off his shoulder. He rubbed his tired eyes with the heel of his palm, letting out a sigh. When his hand left his face he using the edge of the couch to help him get up. I probably looked like shit considering I felt like it, but Makoto on the other hand stilled looked as attractive as ever. I heard him finally get up and go to the bathroom while I rested my head back, staring at the ceiling.

Realizing this was my only opportunity, I quickly got out my phone and texted Keiichi.

[So Makoto and I got totally wasted last night.] I sent, nervous about his response.

The response was quicker than I thought it would be. [Omg please tell me some dirty, drunk sex occurred.]

I actually laughed out loud at his response. [lol considering I don't even know how gay sex works, no. But we almost kissed.] I heard the toilet flush so I quickly sent one last message. [and I actually wanted to.]

I slid my phone back in my pocket as I heard Makoto walking back from the bathroom. "Hey, Sousuke," he yawned. "Sorry I slept almost directly on you, I'm sure that wasn't comfortable." He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. I finally sat up and when my vertigo settled down I slowly stood up.

"Ugh," I groaned, my head throbbing. "No, you're totally ok. I actually slept like a rock last night." And I liked being so close to you. Those were the words that dared not escape.

"Good," he said in his usual twinkling voice. "So," he turned around with a carton of egg and a package of bacon in his hands, "are you ready for breakfast?"

I stretched my cramping muscles and I swore that Makoto was checking me out. Of course, that could have been my imagination. "Oh yeah," I responded as I walked over to the island countertop of his kitchen. I sat at a stool there, just looking at him getting out the pans he needed to use. He definitely didn't realize how attractive he looked even when doing mundane things. "Want me to cook? We can have a celebratory breakfast as well," I chuckled.

He smiled warmly, "No, that's ok, I wouldn't want a guest to have to do that. Plus, I don't think I can handle any more celebratory anything," he laughed. "Oh God my head hurts."

Although it hurt my aching head to laugh, I did anyway. "Same here. We may have overdid it."

"You don't say," he snorted, cracking four eggs in one of the pans. "You like cheese with your eggs?" He asked.

"I've never tried that, but I'd love to."

He nodded, grabbing some cheddar cheese from the fridge. "So I'm sorry if I did anything weird last night. I don't remember doing anything strange, but that doesn't really mean anything."

I blushed, thinking of our lips barely grazing. "No, no, you were a perfect gentleman as always."

"Good. I'm afraid I'm kind of a lightweight. You had like, what, seven beers?" He turned and gave me a look.

I just laughed, "Well, eight, but who's counting?" He shot me a smile which my heart was not prepared for. "I'm honestly surprised I can function this morning. I usually don't drink that much, but I felt so comfortable with you I figured I could let go."

As the bacon sizzled, so did Makoto's cheeks; although, he turned away a little, trying to hide it. "Yeah, me too."

I suddenly noticed how dark it seemed in the room. "Hm, it seems really dark outside. What time is it?" It must have been like 6AM, right?

"Um," he looked at the clock on his stove, "it's 10:03, actually.

"What? Wow. I haven't slept in this late for years. Well, I also haven't been that drunk in years," I admitted. "It must be stormy outside today. A perfect day for movies and games, if you ask me," I said suggestively.

Makoto chuckled as he separated two plates of food, bringing them over to the counter. He set a plate down in front of me and one for himself. "So a game and movie day, huh?"

"Yeah. Didn't you have those when you were younger?" I asked. I took a bite of the crispy bacon first. "Wow, this bacon is fantastic. Thank you for the meal."

"You're welcome," he bowed slightly as a dramatic gesture. "Well, my parents wanted me to be focused on my studies so I could become a lawyer someday, so I really didn't do a lot of fun stuff like that."

If my mouth wasn't full of delicious cheesy eggs and bacon it would have been hanging wide open. "Seriously? Well we have to do something about that. How about you come over to my place? I have tons of movies to watch and video games we can play." I suddenly realized I might have been sounding a little clingy so I added, "Ah, if you want to, I know you're probably a very busy person."

Makoto laughed, his mouth stuffed with food. He looked like a struggling chipmunk. Once he swallowed he said, "I'm not as busy as you would think," he chuckled. "But yeah, I would love to." His voice became softer and he looked more at his plate than me. He seemed to do that when he got embarrassed or shy, just another cute quirk.

"Ok, then I'd say we have a plan!"

After Makoto took a quick shower and got ready for the day, I cleaned up the beer cans lying around the coffee table and floor. Once he was ready we were off to my place, which was far less interesting than his apartment.

"So my apartment is more...dumpy than yours," I chuckled, unable to say it any other way. It was the way it was and I couldn't hide it.

Makoto gave me a yeah right, look and smirked. I had never seen that face before and it made my stomach tingle for some reason. Did he have a secret sassy side to him that I had yet to discover? "I'm sure it's wonderful. At least you have a car, I take the train to work everyday."

I smirked, "Yes I suppose you're right about that. This car is like my unofficial child," I patted the steering wheel. It was a used car, nothing special, but it functioned properly and could get me from point A to point B, so that was all that mattered.

We pulled into the parking garage in my apartment complex and I led him to the main building. Luckily, the rain started just after we got inside the elevator of the apartments. There was a brief moment of awkward silence as we rode up to the seventh floor, but it was quickly remedied when Makoto looked over at me and smiled.

The elevator dinged and I led him out of it. "Ok, 721 is my apartment," I walked side-by-side with him, kind of self-conscious about my living situation compared to his, but he seemed happy just to be next to me. I couldn't help but smile at myself. When we made it to my apartment I unlocked the door, swinging it open to allow Makoto to enter first. I prayed that it wasn't too messy, and luckily my prayers were answered.

I turned the lights on to reveal my living quarters. My apartment was a basic, one bedroom, one bathroom, livingroom and kitchenette. It had stark white walls and the floors were beige carpeting. It wasn't anything outrageously wonderful, but it wasn't horrible either.

A warm smile spread on Makoto's face as he looked around my apartment, "It's so cozy, I love it," he said.

"I'm glad one of us does," I chuckled. "Here, let me take your coat," I helped him take off his jacket, almost like he was my date in some old-time movie. I hung it on the coat rack right next to the front door along with my own. "Do you mind if I hop in the shower really quick and get changed? I'll only be a couple minutes."

"Oh of course, don't worry about me."

"Ok, great. The movies are on the shelf next to the TV and the video games are right under them. Take a look at them and you can pick out what you want." I began to make my way towards the bathroom and he nodded as he went to look at the plethora of movies and games I had.

While I was in the shower I had time to think about what was going to unfold. Did I have a master plan or even an idea about what was going to happen today? What if he turned to me in the middle of the movie and tried to kiss me? No, that wouldn't happen. That just wasn't like him. But what if we watched a scary movie and he clung to me? That seemed more possible. If that happened he definitely would find out how I feel about him just my hearing the racing of my heart. Video games put less pressure on us both, seeing as there were no awkward sex scenes or jump scares that would demand physical contact. I wasn't sure why I was so worried about this. If I were doing this with Keiichi there would be no problem. I wouldn't have given it another thought. But The more I hung out with Makoto, the more I realized that I didn't think of him as just another friend.

Thankfully, the steam helped my hangover and as I dried off I brushed my teeth. I checked my phone to see the time and realized there was a message from Keiichi. It was a response from earlier that I never read.

[Then you should kiss him.]

He idea of our lips touching made a nervous flutter go through my stomach and I quickly breathed calmly to regain my composure. I would not get nervous over this, it was simply a friendly, platonic day together with Makoto.

After slipping on some joggers and a T-shirt I made my way into the living room to see Makoto looking at picture frames I had on my shelves.

"So what did you find that you wanted to watch?" I asked.

He jumped a little, "Oh jeez, you startled me," he said breathlessly. He tried to hide the fact he was looking at the pictures on my shelf and I wondered why.

"You can look at the pictures, they're nothing personal." I chuckled, trying to make him feel more at ease. He smiled a little and brought over a movie and a game.

"Sorry, I don't want to seem nosy. I just like seeing family photos and stuff."

We both sat on the couch and he set the two choices on the coffee table in front of us.

"It's no problem," I assured him, "I wouldn't put the photos in frames if I didn't want to display them."

Makoto nodded and looked over at the picture one more time. It was a photo of my family at a time where we all got along. I was in my high school uniform, both of my parents at my sides. We were smiling and I distinctly remember having just told them a joke to get a genuine smile for the picture. I didn't remember what the joke was, though. "It's a wonderful picture." He said softly.

I felt bad for a moment. I realized that when I was over his apartment there were no photos of him and his family or even him and his friends. I never would have guessed that this innocent, happy-looking person was actually so lonely. It made me want to assure him that I would be there for him, that he didn't need anyone else as long as I was there, but I could verbalize those feelings.

"Thank you," I said. I realized how lucky I was. My parents and I were in an argument about the family business, something that I knew would blow over at some point, but Makoto's parents were upset at him for a thing he couldn't change, even if he wanted was a moment of silence that was only filled with the sounds of the pouring rain and occasional clap of thunder. Makoto looked like he was in deep thought so I asked him, "Are you ok?"

A little sigh came from him before he said, "Yes, I'm sorry. I was just thinking about the future of my family. I know I should just meet a nice girl and marry her and have kids for the sake of my parent's happiness, but," he turned to me, his brows furrowed, "that wouldn't be fair to me or my wife-and God knows that wouldn't be fair to our kids. I know I would just end up being unfaithful with a man which would only cause heartbreak and scandal." He looked down at his lap, his voice getting softer, "and I wouldn't wish those things on anyone."

Sweet, gentle Makoto was always thinking of other before himself, it seemed. I had never met someone so kind and selfless. "Makoto, I think-if I may say so-you are forgetting about your own happiness." This caused him to look up at me finally, our eyes locking. I sighed, my hand resting on his knee in a comforting manner. A little buzz shot through my fingertips. "A lot of times, parents think they know what's best for us and what will make us happy, but in the end, we create our own happiness and that is what they truly want. Even if it may not seem like it right now, when they find out how happy you are when you find the man you've been waiting for, they will forget their prejudices and realize that they were wrong in what they thought was best for you." I smiled, thinking of my own parents, "Parents really just want to see their children happy with their own lives." Makoto's eyes sparkled with tears filling to the brim. I suddenly panicked a little and quickly placed my hands on his shoulders, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset."

"No, no, I'm not upset," he laughed as he wiped a tear away. "I'm just happy that I've found someone who understands me and cares."

I couldn't help but smile, "Of course."

My body seemed to have a mind of its own for a moment and I pulled him into my chest, hugging him. At first I panicked because I wasn't sure if he felt awkward or wanted a hug, but the moment just felt right. Shy arms came around my waist and I had never felt someone touch me so gently yet yearn for my touch at the same time.

"Can we just stay like this for a while?" He asked, voice muffled by my chest.

I chuckled nervously, knowing he was probably reading me like an open book now that he could hear my heart. If he noticed he didn't say anything, which I was thankful for. "Sure," I answered, relaxing into the couch with my arms around him.

We laid like that for a while, just sitting together in content silence, which said a lot about our relationship. We were comfortable enough with each other to enjoy silence-or in this case, the sound of rain pouring outside and wind whistling. A clap of thunder caused us to jump, the lights even flickering. I prayed the power wouldn't go out. This wasn't the best apartment complex so the power went out frequently when there were storms, so it wasn't a surprise to me, but I didn't want it to ruin Makoto's and my day off.

"So what game did you want to play first?" He murmured, almost like he was beginning to fall asleep.

"Well-" I was cut off with another roar of thunder and the lights went out. Of course. I sighed in frustration. "Well...I guess our only options are card and board games now," I chuckled humorlessly.

Makoto pulled away from me, a surprising smile on his face. I figured he would be disappointed, but he took everything in stride. "Ok. Do you have any candles we could light? Is it quite dark."

"Um, I think so. I'll grab them. My board games are on the bottom shelf. I don't have many, but we can play multiple ones if you want," I said, getting up to grab candles from the kitchen junk drawer.

I heard him rustle around and move a couple things as I found matches and candles and brought them back to the table. He had set out a deck of cards, checkers, and Monopoly. Monopoly was a friendship-ruiner so I wasn't about to choose that game, so I chose checkers. Makoto set up the game as I lit some of the tea candles. They gave off a surprising amount of light, but they were still dim enough to be...romantic. How odd, it was like fate was setting us up on a date.

"Ok, you go first," he said happily.

Even just hearing his voice made me smile. I moved my corner piece to one of the safe side squares where he couldn't jump me. Makoto moved his piece accordingly and it continued on this way for a while. The game went on for a surprising length of time, but I supposed I should have been surprised, he seemed like a very smart person so this game was probably elementary to him. I tried my best, but I kept getting distracted.

"Aaaaand," he declared as he jumped over my last piece, "I win!"

"Now that's not fair," I argued.

"What? Why not?" He questioned incredulously.

"Because you distracted me all throughout the game!"

"Pffft how? I clearly was very focused on winning so I couldn't possible have distracted you," he crossed his arms over his chest, giving me a playful smirk.

I blushed a little, laughing with him. "Yeah, well maybe your face distracts me," I accidentally let out.

"Oh is that so? Well I may not be attractive to you, but at least respect the integrity of game," He asked sarcastically.

"More like the opposite," I muttered under my breath, beginning to set up my pieces again.

I didn't realize he heard me until I looked up and saw a shocked expression. I wasn't one to blush in these kinds of flirty situations, but I couldn't help but do exactly that.

"You think I'm attractive?" He asked softly, his eyes flickering up and down from the game to my eyes. He must not have remembered what I told him yesterday or this wouldn't be a surprise.

"I, uh, yeah," I stammered, rubbing the back of my neck embarrassingly. I couldn't exactly dig myself out of this one. When we were drunk it was one thing, but being completely sober, I didn't have an excuse. Realizing that the cat was out of the bag, there was no point in denying it now. "Listen, I'm not sure if I should tell you this because I don't want to ruin our friendship, but…" I licked my lips, trying to gain the courage I needed to confess. "I like you, Makoto." My cheeks burned with embarrassment and I couldn't look up at him, fearful for his reaction. "I'm not sure in which way, I'm just really confused. I've never liked a guy like this before so I don't know what to think," I admitted sheepishly.

Makoto's hand reached across the table and rested on mine. He squeezed lightly, causing me to look up at him. "I like you, Sousuke. I know how I feel about you, but I am used to feeling this way so it isn't difficult for me to identify. It may take more time for you to figure it out, and that's fine. We don't have to rush. I'm not going anywhere." He gave me a reassuring smile that made me melt. I didn't deserve someone as sweet as he was.

"Thank you," I said softly, turning my hand over to hold his properly.

We both had work the next day, so after a couple more hours in the darkness (when the lights came back on of course) we decided we should get to bed. I invited him to stay over and he accepted, but I of course did not have an extra bed. I mean, I wasn't exactly taking in the money. I decided I would take the couch and I brought my pillow and blanket out in the living room, leaving another set for Makoto on my actual bed.

"What are you doing?" He asked. I let him borrow some of my pyjamas and he looked beyond adorable. I could get used to seeing him in my clothes.

"Oh, just setting my bed. I want you to have the actual bed. You are my guest, after all." I set my pillow and began to fluff it.

"Why don't we just share your bed? I mean we're friends at this point, so does it matter?" He asked. I was surprised that he said that without any sort of hesitation or nervousness. In fact, I was the one who was getting nervous.

"I mean, I'm ok with it, I just didn't want to make you uncomfortable," I said a lot more convincingly than I felt. My heart was beating so fast. The truth was, I was hoping this would happen. Did it make me a bad person to want to sleep next to him? To want to hold him?

"Psh, don't be silly. Come on," he stretched out his hand to take the blanket I was carrying and I gave it to him as I grabbed the pillow I plopped on the couch.

Makoto didn't seem nervous at all which surprised me. I guess he was more confident than I was. What was I thinking? I didn't have any reason to be nervous. It wasn't like anything was going to happen. I was overthinking this.

By bed was up against a wall, so I crawled in first, wanting to give him space to get up in the middle of the night if he needed to. I laid down just as Makoto got under the covers and my body was already hyper aware of him. I could smell the faint remnants of his cologne and his shampoo. I wanted to curl up against him and hold him, but I couldn't. I was confused and I didn't want to make this harder for myself. Or was this telling me what I was trying to figure out?

Makoto turned off the light on the nightstand and covered himself up. "Goodnight, Sousuke."

"Goodnight Makoto," I said. At this point, I had called him by his given name for so long, I figured that dropping the "-kun" was fine. And he didn't protest.

I tried to settle into sleep, but no matter how much I tried, I kept thinking about Makoto. As I looked at him across from me, his eyes closed and his hair flopped over in his eyes, I thought of Keiichi's text.

[Then you should kiss him.]

I could almost hear Keiichi's voice egging me on as I stared at Makoto's face. But he was sleeping, I couldn't just assault him in his sleep. Or was he sleeping? What would he do if I just leaned over and kissed him? The question kept repeating itself in my head. The worst he could do is pull away...Or totally reject me as a friend and partner. I wasn't sure if my heart could handle that.

I licked my lips nervously, my heart rate picking up the more I thought about his lips on mine. Without realizing it, we were closer than before, not ten inches between our faces. I could feel his warm breath against my face, minty from mouth wash. I wouldn't have been surprised if he could have heard my heart at this point.

Suddenly, his eyes opened and I jumped back a little in surprise. I was thankful that it was ark or he would see my beet-red cheeks. "What's wrong?" He whispered,

"I uh…" I stuttered, "n-nothing."

I started to back up a little, but Makoto caught the front of my shirt with both hands. He scooted even closer, the tip of his nose brushing mine. I could see his brows furrowing, as if he was telling himself, no, you can't…

Sensing his own nervousness, I tried to relax. His eyes were closed, almost as if he was giving me free reign. This was my moment if I wanted it. My nervousness began to dissipate as I brought my hands to his waist a little more confidently. This time I purposely brushed the tip of my nose against his, tilting my head a little to the side. Makoto's grip on my shirt tightened, the cotton straining between his fingers. My own heartbeat thumped in my ears and my stomach was filled with excited butterflies. It was odd, I wasn't nervous as much as I was excited now.

My hand went curiously up his waist, the tip of my nose brushing his cheek and I wandered further away from his lips. I wanted to explore him a little, to find spots he liked and to gage his reactions. He let out a shaky breath as I pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. I lingered before moving to his chin where I pressed another kiss. His skin was warm and soft, trembling under my lips. I pressed one last kiss on the corner of his mouth, teasing him just a little. I felt his lips respond like he was trying to tell me to kiss him without using words.

I brushed my lips back and forth across his, an electric current zapping my mouth, my stomach flipping. I parted my lips a little more, finally applying pressure to his. At first it was just a soft touch, a curious experiment on my part. The hands that were clinging onto my shirt flattened on my chest. I was sure he could feel my heart pounding, but for some reason I wasn't embarrassed. I almost wanted him to know how he made me feel. I pulled away after a chaste kiss, trying to see what his reaction would be.

His eyes slowly opened, as did mine, and we looked at each other. Before I could comprehend what I was even feeling, I leaned in again and pressed my mouth against his. I parted my lips, pressing fully and wholly. His body cuddled closer to mine and my arm came around his back to hold him closer. Our mouths opened in slow, smoldering patterns, yet got deeper with every kiss. My hand caressed his face, my thumb admiring his cheekbone delicately then stroking lovingly. His mouth was hot and his lips were wet against mine, our breath mingling. I couldn't describe how good I felt to kiss him and hold him. I had never felt this way before.

My body began to react and I knew that I needed to stop soon or I would probably do something I would regret. Just as I began to pull away slowly, dragging his lower lip between my teeth, he let out a soft whimper. Usually noises like that had no affect on me, but my body sizzled in the strangest places when he released that noise. Our breathing was slightly heavier than normal, our bodies getting hot underneath the covers.

When our lips separated, our eyes locked.

"I-I'm sorry," I said softly, "I couldn't stop myself."

Makoto smiled in the darkness, his white teeth bright. "I'm glad you didn't."

A/N: hello everyone! So this was just another "progressing their relationship" chapter, but the next one will finally introduce some conflict (mwahaha!). I hope you enjoyed this chapter and don't worry, their future kisses will be hotter ;) I gotta save some stuff for later! Thank you to everyone who reads, comment, favorites, and follows!