Oh my god I finished it! I was getting packed with assignments and tests that I thought I wouldn't be able to finish this for another three weeks or something but I did it! And I am so happy! So sorry for making you all wait but here you go! Just read and enjoy!
Disclaimer: Free! and it's characters do not belong to me and belong to the respected owners. I only own/made this story.
"Nanase! Have you brought this out to table twenty four yet?!" the cook yelled over the frying pan as Haruka walked into the kitchen.
"I'm just doing that now" he replied, grabbing the plate and walking back out into the small restaurant.
It was a Sunday, and he had been called into work. He worked as a waiter in a seafood restaurant near the beach that wasn't too far from his house. Usually he didn't work on a Sunday, but someone called in sick so he had to take their place.
He put the food in front of the customer and put on a fake smile as they thanked him, having to smile so much was probably the worst part of his job, considering he had to do it so much.
As he was about to walk back to the kitchen the manager stopped him. She was around her thirties and had short, light brown hair.
"Are you sure this is okay for you Nanase? It is exam season after all" she asked unsurely.
Haruka shook his head "It's fine, I am being tutored anyway, so I study all through the week"
The manager nodded and smiled "Good, good. I don't want to be in the way of your school life, so if you can't work at any time just tell me"
Haruka nodded, thanked her and walked back towards the kitchen. Although it was true he was being tutored, he hadn't actually had a tutoring lesson for a week. That's only because Rin was his tutor though. So since Haru didn't ask, Rin didn't tutor. But what was he supposed to do? Now whenever he was around the redhead, Haruka felt too nervous to do anything. Especially since he found out he is actually in love with Rin, well...he thinks anyway. Being alone in a house and sitting close to each other was the last thing Haruka needed.
One of the other waiters, who worked with Haru, came out of the kitchen and almost walked into the raven haired teen. He had messy blonde hair and was either twenty or twenty one, Haruka didn't really pay attention to any if his co workers.
"Oh, Nanase! Sorry about that! I got this one so how about you serve the customers at table fourteen?"
The teen sighed and nodded, it seemed to be busy for a Sunday...or maybe it was always this busy since Haruka has never worked on a Sunday.
He started walking up to table fourteen to see two people sitting together, two people with red hair, two people...that looked incredibly familiar...
No, oh no, he did not want to deal with this, he didn't have the strength to deal with this.
Haruka stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the two Matsuoka siblings, wondering what he should do. Business wise, he should walk up to the two and ask for their order. Personally, he wanted to run into the kitchen and stay there until they both left.
"Gou, stay away from Mikoshiba!" the redheaded teen growled, glaring at his younger sister
Gou rolled her eyes "But he's the one approaching me! Whenever he sees me he comes up to me, so we just hang out for a while. I can't do anything about that!"
Rin scowled "Well you can tell him to piss off!"
"Jeez" Gou sighed, turning away from her brother "you are so...hm? Haruka senpai?"
Rin instantly turned when hearing that name and crimson eyes widened when meeting with blue. Haruka completely stiffened, hearing sirens going off in his head. He should have run when he had the chance, now he had no choice but to socialise with the two.
Rin, on the other hand, couldn't stop staring at the teen. He was wearing the stereotypical waiter outfit with the buttoned up white top, a black tie, and long black pants with an apron tied around his waist.
In all honesty, he looked stunning.
"H-Haru, you work here? I thought Iwatobi didn't allow part time jobs" Rin smiled nervously, trying not to stare at the raven haired teen.
"We're not but…my parents asked the school if I could, considering they are away in Tokyo and I need to make some money for myself…" Haruka stared at the ground, not wanting to look into the redhead's eyes.
Gou looked at their exchange with a raised eyebrow, something felt off. Usually, Rin would be smiling and laughing and jumping all over Haru, but right now it just seemed…awkward. Was it because of what happened with Haru's parents? Was it that time when he came crying to Rin?...no, that couldn't be it. They were acting normal around each other after that, so it must have been a bit later.
Gou tried to think of what events could have led up to this sudden change in behaviour, but she couldn't think of anything. There was nothing out of the ordinary…except for Rin tutoring Haru. She remembered her brother came back one night looking very stirred up, and when she tried to talk to him he just brushed her off and went straight to his room.
Now that wasn't normal behaviour…but what happened to cause that behaviour? Gou knew she shouldn't involve herself in this, but considering this involved her big brother, how could she not be interested in it?
"A-anyway," Haruka stuttered, taking out his notepad and pen "what would you like?"
As both teens told him their order, Haruka wrote it down with shaky hands. There was no way the cook was going to be able to read this, why was he shaking so much anyway? So now it wasn't just when he was alone with Rin, but also when he saw Rin? So it didn't matter if he was a meter away or a mile away, if he saw the redhead then his awkward emotion switch would click? In fact, he didn't even need to see the redhead, just thinking about Rin triggered that switch.
"Uh, o-okay I got it. Your food will be out shortly" Haruka didn't bother faking a smile, and quickly turned and shuffled off.
Rin wanted to say something, but the teen was gone before he could. Gou took this opportunity to question her brother.
"So what happened between you and Haruka?" she asked, her eyes wide and curious.
Rin frowned at her "What are you talking about? Nothing happened"
"Shit, she notices the smallest of things" Rin thought, cursing under his breath for having such a nosy little sister.
Gou's eyes narrowed "You can't fool me brother, I can tell there's something going on"
Rin stared back at her, feeling his self-defence crumbling under her glare. He knew he couldn't hide anything from his little sister, and he knew she would always notice when something was wrong with him. God dammit women were scary.
"Fine! Something did happen, but I'm not telling you what!" Rin admitted, crossing his arms and scowling.
"Why not?" she whined, her mouth in a slight pout.
"Because it doesn't concern you! And it's personal too! I don't think Haruka would want you to know…" Rin trailed off, not planning to tell his sister anything.
Gou sat back, giving her brother a questioning glare. Something personal…how personal could it be? Did Rin walk in on Haruka having a bath or something?...no, that wouldn't make them act the way they were, as Makoto had told her that Haru always wore his swim suit when he bathed…she forgot how that kind of topic came up though.
A few minutes later Haruka came back with their food, and he said a quick "Enjoy" before turning to leave. He froze, however, when a certain redhead grabbed his arm.
"When are you finishing?" Rin asked, making Haru turn to the teen.
"Excuse me?"
"When are you finishing?" Rin repeated, but a little slower "I…I'd like to hang out with you after this"
Haruka's cheeks reddened as he quickly turned away, his blue orbs wide and shining. He blushed so easily now, it was annoying. He never used to be like this! Love was seriously a scary force.
"I…I finish in an hour" Haruka mumbled, trying not to look at the redhead
"I'll be waiting outside for you then" Rin smiled, letting his friend go.
Haruka just nodded and Rin watched as he almost ran off, the redhead smiling as he thought of how embarrassed Haru was. He knew the teen was blushing because Haru's ear were a bright red, which actually looked really adorable.
"What's with that look?" Gou questioned, staring at her brother
Rin snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Gou with a raised eyebrow "Hm?"
"That look!" Gou repeated "You look like some love struck fool"
"O-oi!" Rin exclaimed, slightly offended.
Gou continued to stare at her older brother, looking into his eyes to see if there was anything there that could give him away. She had one thought in mind, but surely not. Surely it couldn't be what she was thinking.
This thought had actually been on her mind since she was little, when Rin had just made friends with Haruka. He just continuously talked about this boy who she heard was very fast, incredibly talented, and amazing. So one day, she couldn't help but ask;
"Do you love Nanase san?"
Rin's eyes went wider than she had ever seen them go, and it was followed with a very quick "No way! He's a guy!" to which Gou just giggled at and continued to tease him about.
She knew back then that her brother definitely did not feel that way for Haruka, since every time she'd tease him about it he'd continue to deny it. But now that thought didn't seem so impossible. Now that thought seemed completely possible. She always knew the two of them shared a special bond, but this bond they shared could've been even stronger and much more special than she thought.
Gou remembered what Miss Amakata said when seeing pictures of Rin and Haruka as children, which was "Connected by the red string of fate" and Gou asked if that was how it worked for two boys. Now Gou had to wonder if that's how strong their bond really was, that maybe the two of them really were connected by the red string.
Of course it's nothing she discouraged, if anything she encouraged it. She would always love her brother and support him fully in anything he did, and if what she was thinking was true, then she didn't mind at all. From what she knew, Haruka made Rin happy, and Rin being happy was all she wanted for her brother.
So slowly, she took a deep breath, opened her mouth and asked;
"Do you love Haruka senpai?"
Rin's eyes grew wider than she had ever seen them go, and he instantly responded with "N-no way! He's a guy!"
Gou smiled when seeing the small blush on her brother's cheeks, the exact same reaction from when they were kids.
Rin frowned at his little sister "You're just teasing with me, aren't you Gou?"
Gou thought about how she should answer, but eventually just gave Rin a warm smile and said "Yep, just teasing!"
…
Rin sat on a bench outside the restaurant, waiting for Haruka to come out. Gou had already left, as she said they probably didn't want her around anyway. Judging from what she had asked inside the restaurant, no doubt she had figured it out.
He wondered if she thought it was weird for her big brother to feel that way for another guy, but he guessed she couldn't really care less. She never judged or criticised him in any way, and he never did that to her either. So he thought it must have not mattered to her how he felt towards someone, no matter who they were.
Why was he thinking these things anyway? He didn't know if she actually managed to figure it out or not!...but was it really that obvious? She said he looked like some love struck fool, which could only mean it was obvious. Sometimes Rin wouldn't even notice when he, himself, was staring at Haru. If he did that too much, then Makoto might pick up on it. That is the last thing he wanted.
As he thought about this, Haruka walked out the restaurant and froze when seeing the redhead. His blue orbs were wide as they stared at him. Rin couldn't help but frown when seeing this reaction.
Did Haru not think he would wait for him? Surely the teen had more faith in him than that.
"Hi" Rin greeted, giving Haruka a warm smile.
"H-hi" Haru greeted back, trying not to look into Rin's eyes "…why did you wait for me?"
Rin sighed and stood up off the bench "I thought I'd walk you home, isn't that what friends do?"
"Uh, I guess so" Haru said unsurely, still trying to avoid Rin's gaze.
Rin's eyebrows furrowed as he watched Haru look at anywhere but him, it was obvious how the teen felt about all this. Of course, Rin found it awkward too, and he knew he needed to fix this.
"Alright, fine" Rin confessed, now walking up to Haru "The real reason I was waiting for you is because I wanted to talk to you about what happened that night, because you and I both know we need to straighten things out about that"
Haruka visibly stiffened when hearing those words. He knew this would happen, he knew this was the real reason Rin waited for him, but he still wanted to avoid it. How was Haruka meant to answer if Rin asked why he had wanted to kiss him? What could he possibly say?
Haruka didn't even want to think about it, he just wanted to avoid it. He knew he couldn't avoid it forever but...well, he could still try.
"We should get going, the sun's going down after all" Haruka stated, turning and walking off.
Rin frowned when watching his friend walk away, but sighed and followed Haru anyway. He knew this was the only chance for him to confront Haruka, as it was one of the rare times when Makoto wasn't around. This was probably going to be his only opportunity in weeks, maybe even months, so he took a deep breath and decided to take action.
"Hey Haru, wait up!" Rin yelled out, slowly jogging up to said teen "You seem to be in a rush to get home, is there a reason for that?"
"No reason," Haruka replied "just going to get dark soon"
Rin noticed the raven haired boy still wasn't looking at him, he wasn't even sparing a glance at the redhead, just solidly looking ahead.
Rin had to get the conversation moving, he had to make it flow in the direction he wanted. So to do that, he needed to slowly bring in the topic at hand.
"Are you rushing home because…you want to get away from me?" Rin questioned, watching Haruka's eyes widen.
"N-no! I just…don't want to walk home in the dark" Haru confirmed, still fixed on the horizon.
"You know," Rin started, frowning at the teen "it's rude to not look at someone when you're talking to them"
"I don't have to be polite to you!" Haruka snapped, feeling his nerves start shaking
"Why not? That's so cold of you" Rin sulked "Well you could at least acknowledge my existence with just a small glance"
"I have no reason to do that"
"But it makes me think you're ignoring me"
"I'm not ignoring you!"
"Well, avoiding me then"
Haruka's eyes widened and he turned to the redhead "I-I'm not avoiding you!"
Ocean blue suddenly met crimson red, making Haru blush slightly and turn back ahead. Rin's eyes narrowed as he witnessed this reaction.
So Haruka was avoiding him.
When they were younger, Rin used to think Haru was exceptionally good at hiding his emotions. But, in reality, the teen just had no real emotion to show. Haru always used to look irritated and annoyed when Rin was around him, and that's because that was exactly how Haru was feeling.
When Rin realised this, he felt a little disheartened. What made Rin realise this was when he came back from Australia. Once Haruka saw him from across the railway tracks, he looked happy, and that's because it was exactly how the boy was feeling. Unfortunately, Rin didn't have the best mindset back then, so he told himself it was a lie. Although now he knows better.
The reason Haruka always looked so bored and uninterested is because that was exactly how he was feeling. So whenever Haru was having one of those rare moments where he felt happy, sad, or angry, it was very clearly shown.
Rin used to think Haru was someone that could easily hide emotion, when really, he was horrible at it.
The redhead thought carefully about what to say next, as this was a delicate situation, and sighed before saying "Haru, I understand why you're avoiding me"
"I'm not!" Haruka instantly snapped back.
He didn't want to talk about this, he didn't want Rin to start asking questions. He was confused himself, more scared than confused actually. He kept telling himself he didn't love Rin, but at the same time he told himself he was lying. Did he love Rin? Did he not love Rin? He didn't know, how could he know? He has never felt like this before in his life! The conversation had to stop heading where it was, and he had to either turn it around or stop it completely.
"U-um, you haven't tutored me in a while…"
"That's because you've been avoiding me" Rin stated, knowing Haruka was trying to change the topic.
Haruka clenched his hands and his brow scrunched up "Stop saying that! I swear I'm not avoiding you!"
"Oh?" Rin questioned "You're not? Well then, look me right in the eyes and say it"
"E-eh?" Haruka froze, Rin stopping next to him.
"I said; look into my eyes and say that" Rin repeated, now stepping closer to Haruka "Look at me and tell me you're not avoiding me, then I'll believe you"
Rin was now only inches away from the raven haired teen and Haruka could feel the redhead's gaze digging into him, he felt like he was going to break under it. Haruka wanted to move but he was immobilised, and it felt as though the redhead's stare was getting stronger and stronger.
Hesitantly, Haruka turned his head. Crimson eyes slowly came into view and as soon as they did, Haru quickly looked away again. He couldn't do it, there's no way he could do it, Rin would just see right through him.
"We need to get home, it's going to be dark soon" the raven haired teen stated, about to start walking again.
"Haruka!" Rin thundered, making said teen stop once more.
The redhead walked up to his friend, grabbed his shoulders, and span him to look straight into his eyes. Haruka was taken aback by how aggressive Rin was being, was he really that mad over this? But Haru was much more concerned about how Rin was looking at him, considering their close proximity.
He could already feel his body heating up as Rin's hands clenched his shoulders, his heart thumping loud and fast. He tried to keep his eyes away from the redhead's as best he could, but this was hard to do as Rin kept bending down in attempt to see Haru's face.
"Touch me more, touch me more!" Haruka's mind shouted, the thought going over and over like a broken record, but he continuously tried to push it back. He couldn't let his thoughts get the better of him now; they're what got him in this situation in the first place.
"Haru, look at me!" Rin demanded, now feeling annoyed and aggravated at how the teen was acting.
Haruka shook his head, his eyes squeezed shut "No!"
Rin could feel his anger rising. All he wanted was to solve this whole issue with Haru, but the teen was making it so difficult. How the hell was he meant to converse with someone who wouldn't even look at him?!
"Haru just look at me! All I want to do is talk to you about all this!"
Said teen shook his head and kept his eyes shut "Well I don't want to talk about it! What I did was stupid and I should have never asked you to do that!"
"Do what?!" Rin questioned
"You know what!" Haruka stated, knowing full well that Rin had the answer to that question
Rin frowned at the response. He did know the answer, but he wanted Haruka to say it. He felt he'd cool down if Haru said it, so he retorted with "I won't know unless you tell me!"
"Let go of me!" Haruka responded, trying to get out of Rin's grip.
That's it, Rin couldn't take it. He tried to handle this conversation delicately but it was going nowhere. So he decided to get to the question he'd been dying to ask through the whole week.
"Why did you want to kiss me?!"
Haruka's eyes widened when he heard the deathly question, that was the one thing he didn't want to be asked. He had no idea how he could explain it to Rin, mostly because he didn't really understand it himself. So Haru just stayed quiet and kept his head down and eyes shut, maybe Rin would give up if he did that.
"…Haruka" said teen stiffened when hearing his name "please, I just want us to go back to normal. I know full well you're avoiding me, and you have no idea how much that pains me. So please, tell me"
Rin almost sounded like he was crying, so just to make sure he wasn't, Haruka opened his eyes. He was slightly shocked when seeing crimson red staring into him, but he noticed Rin's eyes were shining slightly.
So he really wanted to know that bad…?
"…I can't tell you, it wouldn't make a difference" Haruka finally confessed, making Rin sigh.
It wasn't really the answer he wanted, but it was good enough. Even so, Rin still wanted to push it a bit more.
"So why can't you tell me? Is it too embarrassing for you or something?"
"Because I…" Haruka hesitated, looking straight into crimson red eyes "It's…complicated. I'm not too sure myself"
Rin nodded and took his hands off the teen's shoulders. Then did that mean Haru was experimenting with his sexuality? It was the only possible reason Rin could come up with, there's no other explanation.
"Alright then, I believe you…sorry I lost my temper there, I know you don't like me yelling at you"
Haruka shook his head "It's fine, I understand why you're so mad and…I'm sorry too"
Rin raised a questioning eyebrow "For what?"
"For getting us into this whole situation" Haru answered, a light blush on his cheeks.
Rin smiled at the shy teen "Hey, I could've just rejected what you asked me that night. The fault is on the both of us"
Haruka stared into those shining crimson eyes, those eyes that always seemed to mesmerise him and fascinate him. Those eyes that always comforted him with their strong gaze, making him feel as if he was safe and warm around Rin.
It made Haru wonder why he had chosen Rin to be his object of affection. Why he had chosen Rin to be the one that makes his heart speed up and his eyes shine like dancing water reflecting the rays of the sun. Was it even something he could willingly chose, or does it just…happen?
As Haruka thought this, he subconsciously started moving towards Rin. His eyes looking hazy and clouded over in pure lust. It felt as if his movements weren't his own, like his mind was going against his body and telling him to move closer to the redhead.
Rin realised Haruka was slowly stepping towards him, and he noticed the teen looked as if he was completely off earth. So he began to move back and slowly raised his hands. The only time he had seen Haru completely dazed and mindless like this was when he'd see a pool or a large body of water.
"O-oi, Haru" Rin stuttered, continuing to step back as the teen got closer "Are you feeling okay?"
Haruka didn't answer, he just kept stepping forward. His eyes getting cloudier and cloudier, the only thought going through his head was "I want to touch Rin, I want to touch Rin…"
Rin felt sweat drip from his brow, he knew he wouldn't be able to control himself if Haru got closer. But at the same time, he wanted the teen to get closer. So his head just became a foggy, confused mess as he stepped back every so often.
"Hey Haru, I'm starting to think you don't know what personal space is" the redhead joked nervously, his hands still raised.
"I want to touch Rin…" Haruka suddenly blurted out, his mind lost completely.
Rin's eyes widened "W-what are you-"
In that moment, Rin forgot to step back, but Haruka still stepped forward. So, with lustful eyes and a cloudy mind, Haru leaned forward to reach his one objective, to touch Rin.
Now the two of them were standing there in complete silence with their lips on the other's. Haruka's eyes were closed while Rin's were wide and shocked, but very slowly his eyes began to droop, and he placed his raised hands on Haruka's cheeks as they closed completely.
They stood there like that for a few minutes, as if wanting to preserve the moment and never let it end. Haru could see fireworks once again, his heart was beating at a rapid pace and he felt as if he would melt in Rin's arms. He didn't think anything of it though, he was too caught up in the thought that he was touching Rin again, and that it just felt so right.
Rin almost couldn't believe what was happening, he wanted to straighten things out with Haru yet it ended in said teen kissing him. He didn't know if this was a good or bad thing, but he decided not to think about it and just enjoy the moment while it lasted.
Haruka wanted to touch Rin more, he wanted to deepen the kiss, he wanted to be completely indulged in Rin. So he began to move his hands around the redhead's firm, clothed chest and gripped his T-shirt to push more into him. Rin happily went along with it and moved his hands to the back of Haruka's neck, pushing them even closer together and making Haru moan slightly. The moment they were in felt so good, so perfect, that they forgot where they were. So the moment was soon ruined as two younger bystanders walked past them.
"Hey! Get a room you fags!" one of them called out, the other snickering beside him.
This woke both of them up, making Haru's eyes widen and push Rin off him. His blue eyes were no longer clouded in lust, but were now only filled with shock, horror and what looked like confusion.
"I-I'm sorry…" he stuttered, stumbling back slightly "I'm sorry, I'm sorry…I'm sorry!"
It was like Haruka was stuck on replay and wouldn't stop apologizing, and Rin tried to say something but the raven haired teen ran past him before he could. Rin turned to see Haruka running down the path at a rapid pace with his head down and refusing to look back.
"Haru!" he called out, not sure whether he should run after him or not.
The two younger teens beside him kept snickering and Rin growled, showing his sharp teeth at them "How about you two piss off and go waste your lives somewhere else?!"
The teens almost squealed in fear and ran off, leaving Rin to stand there by himself and think about what just happened.
Haruka had definitely kissed him, he didn't kiss Haru, Haru kissed him, yet the teen still ran off in embarrassment. Rin thought Haruka would have been mentally prepared for it or something but…guess not. They had yet to kiss without it ending awkwardly and one of them running off…well, if they would ever kiss again that is.
Rin blushed at the thought and combed a hand through his hair. Right now wasn't exactly the time to be thinking about these things, with exam season and all. So he knew he had to wait until the holidays to be able to properly talk to Haru.
The only problem was, Makoto clung to Haru like a leech, especially now considering Rin was back as Makoto had put it. So Rin sighed and started walking home, maybe all he needed was a good night's sleep, then maybe his brain would function properly and manage to solve things out…but for now he decided it would be best to let Haru run off, as the teen probably had a few things to think about himself.
For Haru, this couldn't be truer, as he ran as fast as he could go and didn't dare look back. Why did this always happen? Why did he always make things more awkward between the two of them? They were just about to go back to normal and then he…
Haruka shook his head and continued to run, there's no way Nagisa could help him with this. He knew Nagisa didn't really know much about these things either, and he couldn't even explain what happened with Rin. He just completely lost control of himself and needed to touch Rin.
Love was scary, terrifying, and he wanted nothing to do with it. So Haruka decided the only thing he could do was avoid Rin, like he was trying to do before, except this time he had to. He had to force himself to. Maybe if he distanced himself from Rin, then these feelings of love would go away.
He didn't know if it would work, but it was the only choice he had. Even if it was blatantly obvious to everyone that he was trying to avoid Rin, even if it made Rin miserable or sad, he had to do it. It was the only way they would get back to normal.
No matter how much it hurt him or Rin, he had to avoid the redhead at all costs…and Haruka knew that would be much easier said than done.
Well wasn't that a fun ride? And I cannot get the thought out of my head of Haruka working at a seafood restaurant whyyyy?
I have already started writing up the next chapter, but I can make no promises on when it is going to come out. So you're just gonna have to hang tight!
Thanks for reading!