Nagisa had only cried in front of him one other time. It was during their training camp when they were first years, after Rei had almost drowned. He had been flapping around in the ocean, barely keeping his head above water, thinking that he just had to hold out until somebody came to save him. He was pretty sure he'd seen Makoto a moment ago; he could keep his head up just a little longer… That's when the giant wave hit. His already blurry world soon became dark, and his lungs filled up with salt water; he couldn't breathe; he couldn't think straight. He remembered reaching his arms up, searching for the surface, but only finding more water. What was the longest amount of time people could go without oxygen? How long did he have before he would drown? These were questions that had run through his head, but in the moment, he wasn't able to think of any answers; he couldn't think of any way to save himself with all of the knowledge, logic, and theories that were quickly slipping away as his air ran out.

He was sure he was about to die when he felt slender, yet strong arms wrap around his waist. These arms pulled him up to the surface, up to where there was fresh air, which came first in choking gasps, then in deep heaving breaths before he finally calmed down enough to open his eyes. Even without the help of his glasses, he saw the shock of blonde hair bobbing above the water and knew that it was Nagisa who was pulling him to safety. Soon they reached the shore, and Nagisa dropped him onto the sand. Rei had never been so happy in his life to feel solid ground. He was still dazed when he felt Nagisa latch onto him. "R-rei! Oh my god, Rei!" The small boy's words had come out in choked sobs, as he continued to hold onto Rei, running his hands up and down his back, feeling his soaked skin, as if to make sure he was really there and not stuck at the bottom of the ocean somewhere. "You're ok!"

"Yeah," he breathed. "I am… Because of you. Thank you, Nagisa-kun… Thank you for saving me…" But Nagisa didn't acknowledge his gratitude; he only continued to cry and rub Rei's back.

"I was so scared you were gone forever! We thought we'd lost you!"

And that was the moment when Rei realized that his actions hadn't just affected him that night. They had affected all of his friends, especially Nagisa. Rei's pride and insecurities had driven him to do something foolish, and everyone had suffered because of it- because of him. Because of him, everyone was up in the middle of the night, everyone was separated, everyone was scared… Nagisa was scared. Nagisa never got scared. Not until now, and it was all his fault.

"I'm sorry for making everyone worry," he said finally, wrapping his arms around Nagisa. "That was very selfish of me. I'm so sorry…"

"Please… please don't do that again… Don't leave me."

"Never," he had said. "I promise… I'm not going anywhere. I'm right here…"

The memory of that night remained fresh in Rei's mind after all this time, and now, as he heard those rare, but familiar choked sobs, it was all he could think about. Nagisa was crying, and once again, it was his fault. What kind of a best friend was he?

"Nagisa-kun… Nagisa… Open up." There was no response, only more muffled crying sounds. "Nagisa," he pleaded. "Let me in… Please." There was a long pause, some loud sniffling, and the click of a lock before the door finally opened, revealing a puffy eyed Nagisa. He gave Rei one pitiful glance, and Rei immediately pulled him into his arms. Nagisa struggled at first, fighting to get away, but Rei stayed firm and didn't let go. He figured the smaller boy would soon give in, and sure enough he was right. Nagisa gave up the struggle and buried his face in Rei's chest. He started crying again, even louder than before, and his slender arms wrapped themselves around Rei's waist. Small fingers gripped tightly to the back of his shirt. "R-rei… I-I'm sorry!" he sobbed. Any anger Rei had felt towards the blond instantly dissolved.

"Shhh, it's ok it's ok… I forgive you."

"But-"

"Shhhh…" Slowly, Rei walked them back to his bed to sit down, and Nagisa settled into his lap. "It's all right now."

"Rei! I…"

"Don't have to say anything yet. Take your time; breathe… I'm here… I'm not going anywhere." He continued to whisper soft, sweet reassurances in Nagisa's ear, as he rubbed small circles on his back. Gradually, Nagisa's choked sobs faded into whimpers, and his breathing began to even out. Once Nagisa was calm enough to lift his head, Rei tilted his chin up so that their eyes met. "Nagisa… I'm sorry too," Rei said calmly. "I've been too tightly wound this whole weekend, and I overreacted. I said things I shouldn't have. I don't really think you're stupid… Careless maybe, but not stupid." Nagisa shook his head; his eyes began to water again.

"No; you were right. I am stupid… So so stupid! Everyone knows it- my family, my friends, my teachers… even the people here. Nobody thinks I'm smart enough to go to college; not even me…"

"Hey… Don't say that."

"No, you don't understand, Rei!" he cried, his voice growing more hysterical again. "I sat in all those science classes with you, and even when I was paying attention, I didn't understand a word those professors were saying! I- I took that practice test today, and I failed! I spent an hour just staring at the questions because none of them made any sense, and then I turned half of it in blank!" His voice cracked, as he held back another sob. "And after that; I didn't care anymore… I didn't care what that guy at the party was gonna do; I knew he wasn't a good person, but it didn't matter anymore because… I realized that I'm going to lose you… I'm not smart enough to go to this university; I'm not smart enough to go to any university! But you'll be able to go to any university you want; you'll probably go to the best one there is, and after next year, you'll move far away and leave me all alone! You'll find someone better than me- someone smarter and nicer to hang out with- someone who doesn't tease and annoy you all the time… You'll forget about me…"

Rei stared at this crumbling shell of his best friend, his mouth agape. There was a long pause as he attempted to get the words that were circling around in his head to come out of his mouth. Finally, he asked, "Is that really what you think?"

Nagisa nodded. "It's true, and we both know it… It's why you've been pulling away all weekend, isn't it? You're moving on with your smart college life, and you're embarrassed to be seen with me."

Rei saw the pain visibly etched into Nagisa's features. He felt the other boy's trembling, as he held him in his arms. He listened to each shuddering breath; Nagisa was clearly seconds away from uncontrollable sobs once again, and at the thought of that brought tears to his own eyes. He didn't know why, but Nagisa in pain was one of the worst feelings he had ever experienced. No… he did know why; he just didn't want to admit it.

Because I love him.

"I- I- No!" Rei sputtered before he could think about what he was saying. "That's not true at all… That's not why I've been pulling away…" At Nagisa's confused look, he continued. "You are not stupid. Other people may think that, but I never will; I need you to know that, ok?… I know you're not stupid because I know better. I've seen what you can do when you really put your mind to something and truly focus. When there's no equations involved, you can write beautifully; you write better, more creative, insightful history papers than I ever could. You're a talented swimmer, and you've always tried so hard, not letting your size compromise your speed or your strength. You're a gifted speaker; the best I've ever seen. When you speak, other people stop and listen, and you have the power to motivate people to do anything… Even convince a clumsy, awkward physics boy to join the swim team when he can't even swim…"

Nagisa was blushing now; he looked as embarrassed as Rei felt, but now there was a small smile on his face, and it made all the awkward embarrassment worthwhile. "S-so… you're not ashamed of me?"

"Of course not. In fact, the only reason, I've been pulling away is because… because I didn't want to get too attached before you left me, before you found someone more interesting to talk to than me, more beautiful than me… Because being so close to you, but not actually being with you has been agonizing. Every time you hold my hand, or rest your head on my shoulder, or… mumble my name in your sleep as you lie next to me at night… it hurts because I have to hold back. I can't hold back anymore, Nagisa; I can't pretend that we're friends during the day and then have you crawl into my bed at night… If you're going to share my bed, then… I want to be with you, not just next to you… Because I love you. And up until now, I was so sure that you didn't love me back, but now I- well, I'm not sure of anything right now, but I think there… might be a chance that you… Nagisa-kun?"

Nagisa had been silent this whole time, but Rei had only just now noticed the tears streaming down his cheeks. "Rei-chan… Rei…" he whispered. "You might just be the dumbest smart person I know."

"Erg- Hey!" But Nagisa shushed him, bringing one of his delicate fingers up to Rei's lips as he shook his head.

"From the moment I first saw you on the train that day… You had your face buried in a physics book, but I still noticed you- how could I not? There was a tall, strong boy with gorgeous blue hair standing right over me. And then you looked at me, and I saw your eyes. Deep purple, hidden behind red glasses, but still… beautiful." He reached up and plucked Rei's glasses from his face. Rei reached out for them, but Nagisa tossed them onto the floor. "And then…" he continued, not missing a beat. "Then, you left me. You got off the train and started running, and I watched you go until the train sped past you… I thought, wow; this is a person worth chasing! And I was right… So I ran after you, hoping that you'd slow down, that you'd turn around and notice me… that one day, we'd run together… I love you, Rei-chan. You're smartest, kindest, most amazing person I've ever met. And I'm so happy that I met you… I've always wanted to be with you, not just next to you," he said, using Rei's words to get his point across.

"Me too," Rei whispered, and then his breath was taken away as Nagisa leaned in and kissed him. It wasn't perfect; it took him a whole twenty seconds for him to fully realize what was going on before he was able to kiss back, and he was sure that his technique was inferior to Nagisa's, and his angle was off, and they squirmed around on the bed for awhile, trying to find the perfect position… But that didn't make it any less beautiful. Rei ran his fingers through Nagisa's soft wavy blond hair. Nagisa, in turn, slid his hands under Rei's shirt, feeling his broad shoulders and muscled chest. Rei did the same to Nagisa's back and felt his smooth skin. It felt warm. It felt like home.

The kiss grew more heated, more desperate… It was obvious that both had waited a long time for this. Shirts and jackets were tugged off, pants unzipped and thrown to the floor. Legs entangled, lips locked, fingers exploring… It was just like in Rei's dreams, except this was real. It wasn't long before the warmth he felt in his face spread downward, but when Nagisa's hand started to slide inside Rei's underwear, he stopped him. Nagisa looked up at Rei, eyes wide and guilty. "I'm sorry… Do you not want-"

"No, no, of course I want to; just not tonight. Then, before he could stop himself, he added, "I don't want our first time to be in here, in this messy dorm room on this tiny bed. I want it to be somewhere more special."

Nagisa chuckled. "Ok, Rei-chan. I'm telling you though; we could have made this bed pretty special if you had just let me keep going…"

"Oh, hush." He rubbed Nagisa's hair affectionately before climbing underneath the covers, urging him to do the same. "Come on now; I think we could both use some sleep…" And so, for the second time that weekend, Nagisa burrowed under the blankets and snuggled next to Rei, resting his head on his chest. The difference tonight, was that Rei was expecting it. In fact, he welcomed it. He wrapped an arm around the blond boy's waist and pulled him in closer. He gave a light squeeze to Nagisa's upper thigh, and Nagisa let out a high-pitched squeak and batted Rei's hand away. Rei chuckled, and Nagisa pouted and told him not to do that again; he was very ticklish there. Rei shrugged and gave him a smug smile, that is, until Nagisa found his ticklish spot. He poked the side of his stomach, and a soft squeal and high pitched giggle escaped Rei's lips. He blushed. That was not beautiful at all.

But Nagisa simply smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "You're cute. I can't wait to find out the rest of your ticklish spots… I've known about that one for awhile!"

"Nagisa-kun!"

"Yeeees?"

"You- Y-you are- nothing… we really need to sleep. Come on, get comfortable…"

Once again, the two of them found their comfortable positions, this time much more quickly than before. Rei couldn't help but notice how well they seemed to fit together, and how having Nagisa so close to him, with his head on his chest, and their arms wrapped around each other, made him feel safe and secure. He sighed contently and closed his eyes. This was the most relaxed he'd been in a long time because tonight, he didn't have to worry about calculations or theories. He didn't have to agonize over hidden feelings or mixed messages. Everything was clear and out in the open. He loved Nagisa, and Nagisa loved him back. He actually loved him back… This sent a new kind of warmth through his body, a happy, blissful kind of warmth. He pulled Nagisa in even closer…

Rei was just about to fall asleep when he heard a quiet noise from the blond boy next to him.

"Rei," he mumbled.

"Yes?"

"Rei-chan… Rei-chan… Don't leave me…" Rei's eyes widened. He didn't know if Nagisa was asleep or not, but he did know now that he fully understood the significance of those words that the other boy had cried into his chest almost two years ago. And still, his answer was the same.

"Never."

A/N: Well, my dear readers, we have one more concluding chapter, and then this story will be complete. I hope you've all enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it! I will definitely be writing more Reigisa in the future (maybe some singing boyfriends? I wanna write Christmas, but god those Reigisa duet previews have destroyed me with feels; they are so damn cute 3) Thanks again for the reviews; it brightens my day to see them :3