Notes: Sorry for the late update, this is a newly written chapter. Enjoy! :)
Extra 2: Uneasy
Clean glasses, check. Light dash of cologne—check. Best butterfly-print shirt, ironed to perfection—check. Neatly brushed hair—well, save for the impossible cowlicks at the back—check. Fresh bouquet of daisies—check.
Two weeks after Nagisa's confession, Rei found himself back before the door of his now-boyfriend's apartment. He remembered all too well what'd happened the last time he was here—but now, instead of his stomach sinking, it was flipping around behind the deceptive sturdiness of his abs. Swallowing, Rei lifted his finger and pressed the doorbell. Immediately, he could hear hurried footsteps and loud miscellaneous sounds from the inside.
"Ah, Rei-chan! I'll be there in—ouch! Just a second!" Once he heard Nagisa's voice bellow back at him, Rei's shoulders relaxed a bit. There was no reason for Nagisa to shut him out again, of course—that was an obstacle they'd thankfully overcome in the end. But still.
When the door swung open and Nagisa beamed up at him, Rei smiled back—albeit somewhat nervously.
"Sorry for making you wait, Rei-chan!" Nagisa's hair smelled faintly of strawberries. The shirt he was wearing was a lovely peach that brought out his eyes. Their burgundy irises lit up when they noticed the bouquets. "You brought daisies—again!"
"I—well." With his free hand, Rei fumbled with his glasses. "Since you mentioned wanting to plant them, I thought—"
"Yeah, that's perfect!" chirped Nagisa. "We can do that right now—or we can watch the movie first, whichever way you want." Taking the bouquet with one hand, he tugged on Rei's arm with the other. "C'mon in, Rei-chan!" The taller man staggered into the genkan, Nagisa pulling the door shut behind him.
Just as Rei managed to catch his balance, a pair of arms circled around his midriff. When Rei looked down, Nagisa was looking up at him—face rosy, chin resting partially on Rei's chest, lips stretched in a wide smile.
"Thanks for the flowers, Rei-chan—and for coming here today." His eyes twinkled warmly, and all Rei wanted to do was lean down and—shaking his head, the taller man hastily redirected his thoughts to their conversation.
"N-no," he managed to stutter. "I'm the one intruding in your home. It's really the least I can do—" His hands hovered in the air, before settling gingerly on Nagisa's waist.
"So polite, Rei-chan!" After smiling up at Rei for a few more seconds, Nagisa released him and cradled the bouquet in his arms. "I kinda forgot that I don't have dirt or flowerpots ready, though—maybe we can go get some later, after you've had a drink and rested up awhile."
"That's fine with me." Nodding his acquiesce, Rei's eyes traveled beyond the genkan. "S-so this is what your apartment looks like." Trying to distract himself from blushing, the younger man observed the small living room and kitchen area before him. Sunlight from the veranda and windows filled the room, decked out in colorful curtains and rugs and mismatched but comfy-looking furniture. Many of the objects had a duck or penguin motif on them—Rei also noticed a fair number of strawberry patterned items. His eyes landed on a familiar mug hanging on the rack above the kitchen sink—a white one with a splash of red and green paint, creating an abstract-looking strawberry—and he smiled.
"Yeah." Next to him, Nagisa laughed sheepishly. "I was doing some major last minute cleaning before you came, so it's not super-tidy or anything—" So that explained the small commotion Rei had heard through the door.
"It suits you," Rei said, with a fondness in his voice that made Nagisa feel warm. "I'm assuming all the penguin and strawberry patterned things are yours? And don't worry, I didn't expect your home to be perfectly tidy," he teased.
"Heyy, what's that supposed to mean?" The blond pouted. "I do clean! Occasionally. With Ai-chan—we did some spring cleaning a few weeks ago, but a small place like this gets cluttered quickly, you know?" He grinned. "But yep, all the penguin and strawberry stuff is mine! Ai-chan brought all the duck stuff when he moved in."
"I thought so." A thought occurred to Rei. "Speaking of your roommate, was he all right with me visiting today?"
"Oh, I already told Ai-chan a few days ago that you were coming!" A faint pink dusted Nagisa's face, but his smile grew somewhat mischievous. "He won't be coming back til late, so—the only rule is to keep all the steamy action confined to my room." He winked cheerily, and Rei seemed to choke on his own breath.
"A-action—just what did he think we'd be doing?!"
"Aw, you mean you're not planning on making out with me, Rei-chan?" When Rei's flush traveled to his neck, Nagisa took pity and poked him playfully in the side. "I'm kidding—I'm not gonna jump you without warning or anything!" With warning, maybe, he almost added. "Anyways, want something to drink?"
"Water, please." Rei coughed—and realized how his throat was a little dry. "Or barley tea, if you have it—"
"Rei-chan's like an old man!"
"Wha—!" Giggling, Nagisa swept towards the kitchen.
"Don't just keep standing in the genkan, Rei-chan—make yourself at home!" He opened the refrigerator and rummaged for the water pitcher, humming a random pop song. Blushing at the way his hips moved, Rei quickly tore his eyes away.
"I'll be intruding, then." After toeing off his shoes and setting them straight, the brunet entered the living room and sat gingerly on the lime green couch. It looked second-hand, but Rei found that it was very cushy and comfortable. He sat and fiddled with his hands until a glass of water was plopped down on the coffee table.
"There's some fruit in the fridge if you want some." Nagisa was also plopping himself down next to Rei, the strawberry mug in his hand full of orange juice. "If you want me to prepare some—I haven't gotten out that kitchen knife in forever but I'm pretty sure I can butcher that pineapple Grandma sent—" After picturing Nagisa trying to slam a knife into a pineapple, Rei shook his head firmly.
"I've had plenty for lunch, Nagisa-kun. Perhaps later—and I'll be the one preparing the fruit," he added.
"Aw, Rei-chan, you don't trust my mad kitchen skills?" Soft blond curls nuzzled against Rei's shoulder. "I've been living on my own for over two years now!"
"Do you know how much work goes into preparing a pineapple?" Turning, Rei squinted suspiciously. "And you just said you haven't used a kitchen knife in a—" His speech was cut off when something warm brushed against his thigh. Rei's eyes dropped down to see Nagisa's tan leg against his own. "—wh-while—" Seeming deaf to Rei's stammer, Nagisa puffed his cheeks up.
"That's not fair, Rei-chan—you're underestimating me just because you're like, the Iron Chef of bentos!" He nestled against Rei's side in protest, making the taller man swallow.
"I—I am not," he mumbled in response to both claims, face turning a nice shade of pink. "E-even I would have difficulty preparing a pineapple—and you really flatter me too much, I've only ever made use of basic skills in the kitchen—" He tried not to squirm in his nervousness, at least not noticeably.
"Are you kidding? Your egg rolls and fried chicken were amazing," sighed Nagisa. "Oh! I know!" His eyes lit up, and he propped his chin on Rei's shoulder to make eye contact. "We should make dinner together later! And I can be your test subject!"
"Um—but you and I will be the only people eating in the first place—"
"So? All the more food for me!" The blond plopped his head down on Rei's shoulder, with an anticipatory smile. "I get to have more of Rei-chan's amazing cooking—hurray!" With these words, Rei's eyes softened with affection, and so did his posture. As nervous as his current setting made him, he found Nagisa's warmth against his side pleasant.
"Honestly…it's just a matter of mastering simple recipes…" Subconsciously, Rei's arm was reaching around Nagisa's back. Just when he was about to tug his boyfriend closer, Nagisa shot off the couch with a loud gasp. Instead of the blond's shoulder, Rei's arm met air and he fell sideways onto the couch.
"I just remembered, Rei-chan—the flower shop closes early on weekends! We'd better hurry and—" When he saw Rei lying on his side, glasses askew, Nagisa cocked his head curiously. "Why're you lying down, Rei-chan? Are you sleepy?"
"N-not at all! I was just—doing one-arm pushups!" Hastily propping himself on his arm, Rei began demonstrating, laughing awkwardly. "It takes effort to keep fit in these modern times!"
"Hmm—" Nagisa smiled flirtatiously, with a glint of mischief in his eyes. "It doesn't look like you're having any trouble with that, if you know what I mean." Then, his expression averted into a cheery smile. "Now let's go get a home for those daisies!"
"Y-yes. Let's…" Placing a hand over his red glasses and face, Rei trailed after his boyfriend towards the genkan.
They spent a fair portion of the afternoon planting the bouquet of daisies on the veranda. Or rather, caught up in activities that preceded the actual planting. Even under the summer heat with a heavy bag of pots and soil in tow, Rei found that Nagisa got distracted easily when he was outside—by anything from a stray cat to an advertisement flier for a grotesque-looking horror-themed hobby shop. After pulling Nagisa away from those distractions, and having the odd snack or two from street vendors (which Rei couldn't pull Nagisa away from, no matter how hard he tried), they were finally back at the apartment. Not that Rei had minded too much—over the two months or so that he'd grown acquainted with Nagisa, he had grown to enjoy such spontaneity in their dates.
Of course, that wasn't to say that the actual planting wasn't fun. It was hot out on the veranda, of course, but working and chatting with Nagisa under the sun was worth it, even in the middle of summer. Before, Rei might not have thought that toiling in such a way, with sweat running everywhere and dirt smudging his skin and clothes, was beautiful. But even with sweat beading on his forehead and a smudge of dirt on his nose, Nagisa was beautiful. In the way the sun lit his skin and golden hair, made the light in his irises dance as he planted and talked about nonsensical things. In the way he beamed when their work was complete, a row of potted daisies lining the veranda wall with their bright colors. The only thought Rei had about the dirt on his face was that he wanted to reach over and wipe it away, feel the warmth of his boyfriend's sun-soaked skin against the tips of his own fingers.
In the end, Rei had used a handkerchief. But even so, the gesture felt unexpectedly intimate. Perhaps it had something to do with the two of them being in Nagisa's apartment, or the way Nagisa smiled and nuzzled Rei's hand with his nose afterwards. The gesture reminded Rei of the Pomeranian they'd encountered at the pet shop on one of their dates. Though the dog had overwhelmed Rei with its enthusiasm and licking, it had also nuzzled him with its nose in a sweet, affectionate way. The moment on the veranda left Rei with a sudden rush of fondness for Nagisa, along with a sense of wonder. Two months ago, Rei hadn't even been on speaking terms with Nagisa—and now, here they were, together in a romantic relationship.
Rei didn't realize he'd been staring, until Nagisa spoke up.
"Earth to Rei-chan?" Though the blond was still smiling, his cheeks were starting to dust a light peach. "Is there still something on my face?" Snapping out of his reverie, Rei blushed and looked away.
"N-no, um, I was just thinking—" He scratched behind his ear while smiling shyly. "That it's kind of amazing how we are right now. Two months ago, I thought our first date might be our last." He laughed a little. "Actually, I couldn't believe I even worked up the nerve to ask for that date. I don't think I was even thinking straight, really, I was in such a nervous wreck." His smile grew reminiscent. "But you were kind about it and helped me relax. And to think that we were able to see each other again and again, until today—it makes me pretty happy." Laughing sheepishly, Rei's hand traveled to the nape of his neck. "Although it's a little embarrassing to say out loud—"
"I'm really glad you did." Rei's mouth fell open slightly. Nagisa was now fumbling with some leftover soil in a pot, the shovel in his hand scooping and unscooping the earth. "I know I took a while to come around—you were the one who was kind about it, and patient." His cheeks were an apple-red now. "That's one of the things I really like about Rei-chan."
For a while, save for the sounds of idle digging, there was only silence. Rei watched Nagisa's ears turn pink, and felt his own ears do the same.
"O-Ohh!" Unable to stand the embarrassed silence, it was Rei who shot up first. "S-since we're done, we should head inside, Nagisa-kun! To avoid a heat stroke, yes! You, er, mentioned that you had fruit in the fridge? Haha, let me prepare some for you!" Hastily opening the veranda door, Rei practically bolted inside, hand pushing his glasses up even though his face was turned away.
On the veranda, Nagisa dropped the shovel and shrank into himself, hiding his face in his hands with a small whine.
The thing was, Nagisa and Rei hadn't had their first kiss yet. They were now two weeks into their relationship, and as much as Nagisa had wanted to fling his arms around Rei and kiss the breath out of him before, he knew this was Rei's first time dating someone. He also knew that Rei wasn't as comfortable with physical affection as he himself was—Rin had also dropped some un-subtle hints that it might take time for them to 'advance bases on the field'. And while Rei now seemed comfortable with hugs and holding hands (maybe just because of how touchy-feely Nagisa usually was), he and Nagisa hadn't really discussed boundaries yet. Because Rei didn't tend to initiate such conversations, the blond had no idea what his boyfriend was ready for at this point. And Nagisa hardly wanted to scare Rei away or turn him off over something like too much skinship come too soon.
But it was kind of hard, restraining himself from getting too close. Especially since Rei was in his apartment—and now, after what he'd said on the veranda, Nagisa was feeling the strongest urge to kiss Rei. Brush his slightly chapped lips against Rei's thinner smooth ones, mesh them against each other as they exchanged breaths, run his tongue along Rei's as he pushed their warm bodies together and—
The sound of Rei sniffing next to him brought Nagisa back to earth. And that was when he remembered that they were sitting in his bedroom, watching The Life of a Mouse which, while it offered a tear-jerking lesson adults and children alike could learn from, was hardly an appropriate movie to play in the background while battling sexual frustration. Especially when Nagisa's own boyfriend seemed engrossed in the movie—Rei's violet eyes were glistening with tears, his hands trying in vain to keep them from overflowing. It made Nagisa feel kind of guilty.
"H-How could Mickio d-do such a thing?" Rei was sniffling. "He's so brave!" The rims of his eyes were rosy from crying—his dark bangs fell over one eye, and he hastily pushed them up with his palm as he sniffed again. He was adorable, so, so adorable—Nagisa wanted to run his thumbs over Rei's cheekbones, trail his hands down to his neck, pull him down and lock their lips together—
When he realized he was literally an inch from Rei's face, Nagisa froze. He let out a breath of surprise against Rei's cheek, and the brunet turned with wide eyes. They stared at each other in silence, mouths slightly open as The Life of a Mouse played in the background.
It was Nagisa who dropped his head first. Burying his burning face in Rei's shoulder, the blond murmured, "Let's make omurice for dinner, Rei-chan."
"—Eh?" Nagisa could feel Rei exhale slightly. "Ah, er—sure. Of course, Nagisa-kun." When he heard Rei's signature awkward laugh, Nagisa groaned to himself silently.
Maybe it was a mistake, inviting Rei into his apartment. Because restraining himself was turning out to be way, way harder than he'd thought.
Be a gentleman. Be a gentleman. Be a gentleman—
As they stood next to each other in the kitchen, weirdly silent, Rei kept chanting this reminder in his head. Just being in his boyfriend's apartment didn't give license for his hands to wander—or his thoughts, for that matter. So what if Nagisa had brought his face up close—there might have been something on Rei's face that he was checking out in the dark of the bedroom. Or any other of the fifty different explanations Rei's brain had churned out in an attempt to restrain himself from leaning down and—
A loud crackling sound from the pan made Rei jump. Realizing that he'd put the fire on too high, he hastily turned the burner knob to medium. The olive oil in the pan hissed as its sizzling grew to a minimum, and Rei sighed out in relief.
"Ah, um—do you have eggs in your fridge, Nagisa-kun?" Beside him, Nagisa also seemed to snap out of his daze.
"Oh—yeah! Of course!" The blond laughed, voice a little higher than usual. "Wouldn't want the eggs to be kis—missing! Missing from the omurice!" Rei blinked as the blond skipped hastily towards the refrigerator. "Um, what else do we need again, Rei-chan?"
"Er—" Now that he thought about it, Rei realized they hadn't gotten any of the ingredients out. "Do you have any cooked rice on hand? And anything else you'd like to go in the rice?"
"Yeah! I think we have some rice in the cooker—oh, and there's strawberry syrup and whipped cream and marmalade—"
"Why would any of that go in omurice?!"
"Why not? It's the same stuff that goes in Iwatobikkuri bread, it'd be delicious! "
"We are not whipping up some kind of diabetes-inducing dessert, we are cooking a meal!" Before Rei, Nagisa pouted a little.
"Boo, Rei-chan!" He stuck out his tongue and whirled around. "Guess I better see what there is, then!" He went to the fridge and rummaged through it, eventually emerging with half a head of cabbage, some bacon, a pack of mushrooms, and five eggs. "Here!"
"Aren't you going to use the bell peppers in there?" asked Rei, peering at the still-open refrigerator.
"Nope!" With a light prod from his foot, Nagisa closed the fridge door. "Don't you know the fourth commandment, Rei-chan? There shall be no bell peppers in edible food, ever!"
"Really. The fourth commandment," repeated Rei, with amusement.
"It's all written in the Hazuki code," Nagisa said solemnly. "No onions either!" And that was when Rei privately decided he'd come up with a special recipe using both those ingredients, for the sake of his boyfriend's health.
"Very well then. Do you have another frying pan for the eggs?"
"Yep—just a minute!"
After some coordinating of duties—with Rei handling the chopping and dicing and tossing while Nagisa had the job of handing utensils to him—they had the decent beginnings of fried rice cooking in one pan. It was all Rei could do to keep Nagisa from wolfing down the entire portion—the eggs were still left to cook, after all.
"Nagisa-kun, you did say you wanted omurice, remember?" With a wary hand, Rei gingerly pushed against Nagisa's insistent face. "And it's dangerous to be so close to the burner, please back away!"
"Fine, fine!" Puffing his cheeks out, the blond reluctantly drew away. "…Just one more spoon? Please?" Under his doe-eyed stare, Rei eventually caved.
"Fine. Just one—but no more!" From the way Nagisa's face lit up, one would've thought he was tasting the rice for the first time. Shaking his head in fond amusement, Rei scooped another spoonful of rice and held it towards Nagisa. Smiling, the blond only moved forward and opened his mouth. Starting a little, Rei flushed—he'd expected Nagisa to take the spoon from his hand instead. Recollecting himself, Rei fed Nagisa with the spoon, and the blond began chewing happily. He swallowed, and his shoulders shrank a little with contentment.
"It's sho good!" His cheeks were a pleased pink, with a few grains of rice stuck to the corner of his lips. Rei could practically feel his heart melting.
"You should really chew your food longer, Nagisa-kun," he admonished gently. Before he knew it, his hand was reaching out, fingertips brushing the rice off Nagisa's mouth. It was only when he saw Nagisa's wide eyes that Rei halted.
"—Ah. Um. You, er—you had some rice, stuck to your—" In his embarrassment Rei's voice petered out. Again, that same feeling of tension was back—his pulse began skittering as Nagisa just stared back at him for some time. And then he laughed, in that voice that was two tones higher and, if Rei wasn't mistaken, with a hint of self-consciousness.
"Ah! I just remembered something, Rei-chan! There's parsley or something like that in the pantry, I think we can add a pinch of that too!" His cheeks were flushed, and his curls bounced over his cherry eyes as he turned. Rei couldn't even comment about the oddness of putting parsley in fried rice, because of the sudden urge that made his throat stick and his gut flip with terror and excitement.
If he didn't act now, he thought he might pass out.
Swallowing, Rei strode forward and placed a hand on Nagisa's shoulder. The blond turned immediately, eyes startled.
"Nagisa-kun," Rei breathed out hoarsely. "May I kiss you before I lose my nerve?"
When Nagisa's stare grew wide, Rei almost did lose his nerve. Oh—oh god, what was he doing? He was supposed to be a gentleman—this was not supposed to happen, he was not supposed to corner his boyfriend of two weeks against the kitchen counter in his apartment and corner him like this—
"Yes," a voice breathed out, a touch shaky but eager.
For a moment, Rei thought he was hallucinating. Now his own eyes were wide as they swiveled down towards Nagisa, whose entire face was a gentle pink. Their eyes locked for a moment, enough for Rei to realize this was really going to happen. And then, Nagisa's eyes fluttered closed, and he tilted his chin up slightly. Other than that, he didn't move—knowing his boyfriend was waiting for him, Rei took a deep breath and began leaning down—
POP!
The loud sound of oil popping made both men jump. Equally loud sizzling followed, and Rei's head jerked around towards the second pan on the stove. It was then that he remembered—they still had to cook the eggs, but had only coated the second pan with oil.
"S-sorry—" Not sure why he was apologizing, Rei hurried over to the stove and turned off the burner. He felt a little frazzled. "I forgot—about the—" He felt a new wave of heat wash over his face. "M-maybe we should finish cooking first? Um—"
"Sorry, Rei-chan."
Huh? Before Rei could process Nagisa's muttering, he was yanked around by the arm and pulled down swiftly. He barely had time to register Nagisa's arms wrapping around his neck, before his breath was stolen away by warm, slightly chapped lips.
Rei's eyes widened and his mind began swimming for the first few moments as the blond took charge, brushing their lips together, coaxing Rei's open to slot their mouths closer. Fleetingly, Rei's registered the faint taste of fried rice—his hands, hovering in the air, slowly landed on Nagisa's shoulders.
For a moment, Nagisa thought Rei was going to pull away—but then, he felt himself being pushed against the door of the pantry. And then, Rei's hands were traveling down against his sides, caressing the dip between his waist and hips. The blond inhaled with surprise, but not for long—because Rei was starting to kiss him back, fumbling with an inexperienced uncertainty that Nagisa found endearing.
They broke apart now and then, to catch their breaths, but once their eyes locked they were drawn back towards each other, without fail. In fact, Nagisa thought they were getting pretty close to making out—it was a little dizzying how quickly Rei's kissing was improving, and with Nagisa's hand fisted against his chest and Rei's hand trailing up beneath his shirt, the two of them were getting rather warm and cozy.
Feeling drunk in the moment, Nagisa teased Rei's mouth open—his tongue slid across Rei's teeth, making Rei gasp a little. But then he surged forward, reciprocating the gesture. Their tongues slid warmly over each other, once, twice, thrice, before Nagisa began feeling light-headed. With a gasp, he pulled away from the kiss, arms loosening around Rei's neck as he did. Immediately, Rei pulled back as well, pupils shrinking from their dilated state.
"I'm—oh god—" he breathed out, sounding as faint as Nagisa felt, but also a little panicked. To Nagisa's great disappointment, Rei's hands lifted away from his body as he backed away. "I'm sorry—th-that was awfully forward of me—I don't know what I was thinking, I just—" For a moment, Nagisa felt his stomach drop, scared that Rei regretted the whole thing.
"—just because I've wanted to do that for a long time doesn't give me the right to—" Blinking, the blond looked up at Rei, who was now hiding his noticeably red face in one hand.
"You wanted to?" Nagisa breathed out. Seeming surprised by the question, Rei peered at Nagisa between his fingers.
"Of course—I asked just now if I could kiss you, didn't I?" He buried his face in his hand again. "Only I didn't mean to—to come onto you in a place like your apartment—and after I wanted to act like a gentleman—" Now his ears were also a tomato red. "Please forgive me for my inappropriateness—"
"How long?" Stepping forward, Nagisa tugged gently on the crook of Rei's elbow, making him look down with some reluctance. "How long have you wanted to kiss me?" In response, Rei gaped back for some time before averting his eyes.
"W-well—remember that I've liked you for a long time, Nagisa-kun—b-but it's not like I was going to force a kiss on you before you were ready! Definitely not before you accepted my feelings!" Now Rei's face was practically on fire. "I was going to wait longer—a-and I was going to look up some theories before I—and it was supposed to take place somewhere else, somewhere romantic and less suggestive—" The more Rei tripped over his tongue, the more relaxed Nagisa grew. Eventually he began to giggle, before he burst into cheery laughter.
"Na—Nagisa-kun!" Rei wailed miserably, as the blond doubled over before him. After a few more moments, Nagisa collected himself. Eyes crinkled and cheeks pink, he looked up at his boyfriend with a smile.
"You didn't have to wait longer, Rei-chan." His hand reached over to hold Rei's, fingers squeezing Rei's fondly. "Your timing was perfect." Could've been a little earlier too, he thought, but didn't say so out loud. The important thing was that Rei had wanted to, as much as Nagisa had. And now that it'd happened, they didn't have to hold themselves back anymore. "And you don't have to worry so much about the setting and all that," he teased. "I know you're not the type to try and throw your boyfriend into bed, not after two weeks of dating." Choking a little, Rei colored and turned away.
"Th-that's good, then," he mumbled shyly. Grinning, Nagisa inched closer to Rei and looped his arms around his waist.
"C'mon, Rei-chan—hug me." He rested his cheek on Rei's chest, and Rei only took a moment to oblige. With his boyfriend's arms around his own waist and his chin resting against his hair, Nagisa felt content—he snuggled closer, a warm sensation blooming all over him. He could feel Rei melt into their embrace as well, and he curled a little with happiness.
"Um—I was wondering, Nagisa-kun," Rei spoke, voice muffling little against Nagisa's blond locks. "Why did you say 'sorry' just now? Before you, um—"
"Before I pulled you down and started making out?" When he felt Rei's skin radiate heat, Nagisa giggled. "Kind of the same reason as Rei-chan, I guess. I've wanted to kiss Rei-chan for a long time, too—but Rin-chan told me you probably needed time to get touchy-feely." He pinched the skin above Rei's hipbones lightly, and laughed when Rei jumped. "And I was kind of scared that you'd change your mind, so…"
"Hardly." Rei's voice was firm, and Nagisa's heart thumped happily in his chest. "I was only nervous. That um, that my inexperience would…make things terribly awkward. Or un-beautiful."
"Aw, Rei-chan—how can kissing you ever be un-beautiful?" Nagisa nuzzled his head against Rei's chest affectionately. "You're the most beautiful person in the universe. I even had dreams about kissing you, too!" he remembered suddenly. "And that was before we started dating!"
"Nagisa-kun…" Rei sounded surprised and embarrassed and pleased at the same time. "I…really?" Nagisa wasn't sure what part he was trying to confirm, but he nodded. Everything he'd just said was true anyways.
"Really!" Feeling a little mischievous, the blond batted his eyes up at Rei. "If you want proof, we can start mastering those theories of yours now." Not for the first time, Rei seemed to choke on thin air. Nagisa was starting to giggle when a loud rumble came from his stomach. "Well—maybe after dinner?" he said sheepishly, with a twinkle to his eye. And though he was still red, Rei couldn't help but smile.
"We'd best hurry before the fried rice gets cold. Let us finish the perfect meal!" With all the flamboyance of a gourmet chef, the brunet released Nagisa and swept towards the stove with a flourish of his apron. Laughing, Nagisa skipped after Rei, with a new lightness to his footsteps.
Once dinner was complete, they sat closely at the small kitchen table, feeding each other what Nagisa swore was the best omurice he'd tasted in his life. After cleaning up together, they spent quality time talking and cuddling on the sofa.
It was here that they had a small talk about skinship and what each of them were comfortable with—apparently, Rin had exaggerated a little in his advice to both of them on the topic. In the end, they agreed that as long as they were considerate of each other and willing to communicate, they would be all right down the road. Somehow, they'd diverged from that topic to Nagisa's dream about being kissed by Rei—a conversation that made Nagisa relive his own awkwardness after their pool date. But maybe the embarrassment had been worth it, because soon enough Nagisa was coaxing Rei into talking about some of his similar dreams. And then—as a byproduct or not—they'd proceeded to master some kissing theories, as Nagisa had suggested earlier.
By the end of their date, whatever background tension that had hung between them had long vanished—replaced by a warm and thrilling feeling. Anticipation, of the things to come in their still newly budding relationship. It was amazing, Rei thought, how Nagisa could make him feel comfortable about a topic like skinship in a relatively short amount of time. Of course, Nagisa was also the cause of much of Rei's nervousness these days—not that that was a bad thing at all. As they stood together in the genkan, Nagisa reaching up to peck him on the lips, Rei decided that Nagisa himself was just an amazing person.
"You sure you don't want me to walk you to the station?" Smiling, Rei shook his head.
"It's late—and the station's only a little ways from here. I'll be fine." Nodding reluctantly, Nagisa reached over to squeeze Rei's hands with his.
"Text me when you're home, okay?" His eyes glowed warmly as he smiled up at Rei. "Thanks for coming over. I had a great time today." His tone grew mischievous. "One of these days, you should sleep over." Predictably, Rei made a sputtering noise and reddened.
"P-perhaps sometime in the future. The far future." In response, Nagisa laughed, and Rei watched, violet eyes softening fondly.
"You know something, Nagisa-kun?"
Nagisa looked up. "What is it, Rei-chan?"
"You have a knack for making me feel at ease and not. But being around you always feels natural." Rei smiled, returning Nagisa's words from earlier. "That's one of the things I like most about you."
He saw Nagisa's eyes round, and his face growing pink. And then, he was burying his face in Rei's chest, hands fisting in his butterfly-print shirt.
"This isn't fair, Rei-chan," Rei could hear him mumble. "Now I really don't want to send you away." Laughing softly, Rei reached up to stroke Nagisa's hair with his fingers. And his spare arm was wrapping around Nagisa's waist, tugging him back for a last hug, because now there was no reason not to, no reason to hold back—
Until the sound of the doorbell made Rei near jump out of his shoes. His head whipped around, eyes wide as if they'd already been walked in on. In contrast, Nagisa didn't even budge from his position.
"N-Nagisa-kun! Isn't that your—I should really be going now—" When Rei tried to detach from him, Nagisa whined in protest and tightened his grip.
"It's just Ai-chan being a dick—he's not actually gonna barge in—"
"Perhaps not, but that does seem like my cue to leave—"
"If you guys are making out in the genkan, could you please wrap it up?" Hearing Ai's voice, Rei froze with mortification. "Maybe sometime in the next three minutes?"
"Oh my gosh, Ai-chan, could you not—" With a loud sigh and a pout, Nagisa reluctantly released Rei. "Guess you have to go, Rei-chan."
"Good night, Nagisa-kun," Rei replied, with an uneasy glance back at the door. "And um, sweet dreams." With Nagisa's giggle, Rei promptly remembered their conversation from earlier and reddened. Still, he pressed a quick peck to Nagisa's forehead before he turned towards the door.
"Good night, Rei-chan!" With a smile, Nagisa watched as Rei walked out the doorway, ducking his head in embarrassed politeness towards an amused-looking Ai. He trailed out after Rei, propped his arms on the railing and watched as his boyfriend made his way towards the station. When Nagisa went back inside, Ai gave him a half-amused, half-thoughtful look-down.
"Remember, Hazuki-kun—keep it inside your room."
Nagisa thought about it—making out in the kitchen wasn't that scandalous, was it? In the end, he just smiled sweetly and threw a slipper at his roommate.
Maybe next time, he thought, he could visit Rei's apartment instead.
End Notes: The dream Nagisa talked about was mentioned in Chapter 5.
So there were only going to be two extras for this fic, but someone might've said they wanted to see how Nagisa and Rei's first kiss went, so...I see it happening something like this (it was really supposed to happen during the movie and a lot shorter but I can never write drabbles that are actually short lmao)
Next up is the last chapter, based on Rei's POV (which I had a ton of fun writing!) Thank you for reading as always, please tell me your thoughts :)