Sorry it's so late! Bit busy and behind... also not my best, so I'm so sorry about that :( I still hope you guys like it though!
Day 3: Post-Grad
"Tachibana?"
Green eyes lifted from the page he was hovering over widening at the sight of the young man that looked down at him in surprise.
"Yamazki!" Makoto announced, "I didn't know you were coming to Tokyo?"
"Same here," the other nodded as he sat down next to the brunette, "so, what are you taking?"
"Hm? Oh, early childcare development," the young man explained, "you?"
"Physiotherapy," Sosuke stated bluntly, his own blue notebook taken out for the lecture, "so, how's it going?"
"Pretty good!" Makoto couldn't help the smile that fell on his lips, "classes are hard, but I really like them, and Haru's here too!"
"Oh?" the dark eyebrow couldn't help but twitch at the mention of the name, mentally chastising himself for forgetting the closeness between Makoto and Haruka.
"Yeah, he's doing well," the brunette pressed on, "working hard, so we barely see each other, but that just makes the times we do all the more special I guess," his green eyes, lit with excitement, turned to Sosuke, "what about Rin? How's he?"
"Uh… he's fine," the question seemed to catch him of guard, "practicing too, keeping busy," he shrugged, "seems to really enjoy it."
"The time zone difference must make it a pain to talk to him," Makoto commented, "though, it's only about two hours, so I guess I can't be that bad."
"It isn't," Sousuke agreed, "internet helps a lot."
"That's good," the young man nodded, "how's your shoulder?"
"Healing," the elder informed him, surprised that Makoto remembered at all.
"Good," the head of brown nodded, "it looked pretty bad in our last relay…"
Sosuke was silent as he watched the other turn to the front of the class, their conversation silenced for the presence of the professor.
The lecture was about as thrilling as muscle and skeletal anatomy could be, the black-haired young man finding his eyes wandering to look a Makoto seated next to him, the green-eyes having glasses slipped up his nose, his face set in determination. They never talked much during the year the two teams trained together, but Makoto seemed like a sensible young man, always appearing to be simultaneously encouraging his friends and being the voice of reason with that kind smile of his.
A smile that never seemed to have an end.
"I'm always nervous about this class," Makoto admitted after the two slipped out the door, "having to do a bell-ringer with all the bones and muscles seems really daunting."
"It can't be that bad," Sosuke commented, his hands in his pockets, "just use flash cards."
"That was my plan," the brunette mumbled, "hey, what are you doing now?"
"I've got another class in about an hour, so pretty much nothing," the young man shrugged, "why?"
"Well if you're free, would you like to join me for a coffee?" Makoto asked innocently, his head tilted in curiosity, "I'll buy."
"Don't you have to meet with Haruka or something?" Sosuke asked as calmly as he could, trying to keep the bitterness out of his voice.
"He's busy with training right now," the green eyes didn't seemed to falter at the explanation, "so, would you like to?"
Sosuke didn't know why he said yes, nor why he began to hang around Makoto outside of other classes or join him for free swim down at the university pool, he just found it fun. He enjoyed Makoto's company, was amused when the brow scrunched in frustration, thought it funny when he freaked at the tiniest sound, liked the smile that was flashed to him from across the table as they sat over steaming cups of coffee.
They grew close, closer than Sosuke anticipated in three months; eventually, neither was seen without the other, the two constantly meeting up on or off campus for studying or to just hang out. It wasn't uncommon for Makoto to pass out over his textbooks, his chest rising and falling with silence while the other looked over him with almost adoration, tugging at a blanket to throw over the shoulders or carrying him when they were at Makoto's. They were good times, some of the better Sosuke had.
That is, when Makoto was free.
It was the one topics of conversation Sosuke actively avoided, one thing that kept him from Makoto, one thing that separated the two of them.
Nanase Haruka.
Makoto still saw his friend from high school almost once a week, the two doing not much more than chat, though they went back to Iwatobi as often as they could. Together, alone.
It made Sosuke's blood boil in his veins.
Haruka had Rin, the blue-eyed swimmer the one the red-head, and his best friend, was entranced with, as was Makoto. A nerve twitched beneath the teal eye; how much more did the young man need to be satisfied, how much more of Sosuke's happiness did he need to be content.
How many more people was he planning on taking away from him.
Makoto was something he'd never had before; a smile that was always happy to see him. Rin used to smile for him, but it always seemed out of excitement and the thrill, never out of joy, and it never filled him with happiness like it did with Makoto. His eyes lifted to look at the young man who was pulling a small child along in the lanes, laughing along with the boy. Knuckles tightened on the railing, turning the tan skin white; he'd already lost one smile thanks to Nanase, and he wasn't about to lose this one.
"Oi, Yamazaki!"
Sosuke looked up from his thoughts to the young man who was smiling up at him, his hand raised as he waved to his friend sitting there on the bleachers. Smiling back, the other returned the favour, his hand greeting the other.
He couldn't bear to lose it, to lose the smile that made him forget everything negative in the world, that made him feel warm and cared for.
That made him smile.
Why had he waited so long, why had he not discovered Makoto earlier, why hadn't they been friends?
It could have saved him.
"Alright kids! Time to leave!" the voice echoed in the small pool center, "pack up!"
"Aw!" the children all chorused in unison, their faces frowning while Makoto laughed .
"Come on," the young man told them, "you've gotta get home; I'll see you guys in the new year!"
"But that's too long!" a boy whined, "we wanna swim!"
"And you guys can, but with your families," Makoto argued, pushing them all to the stairs, "now go go!"
Giggling in happiness, the children sloshed out of the water, their arms held aloft and their smiles bright. It was at this time that Sosuke decided to sneak down to the pool's edge, his eyes looking into the blue depths, his heart aching at the sight. He missed swimming terribly, his shoulder only hurting terribly if he over did it.
"Feel up for a swim?"
The black hair turned upwards at the voice, Makoto smiling down at him.
"My shoulder's still acting up somewhat," Sosuke confessed, his body standing tall, "but I've got a doctor's appointment on the New Year's break," he smirked, "but we'll see after that."
"Sounds good," Makoto nodded, his bare feet padding to the end of the pool, "are you coming up to Iwatobi at all to see Rin?"
"I'll… consider it," he admitted quietly, "you looking forward to going home?"
"Hmm? Oh yeah," the green eyes seemed to shine, "Haru's looking forward to it too! He's really excited to go for a swim at the community pool, he keeps saying-"
"Haru's… going back too?"
Hands pulling up the ropes for the lane swim, Makoto seemed to smile even wider at the mention of his friend.
"Yeah," the brunette nodded, "you know he's in Australia for a competition now, but he and Rin plan on coming back together."
"Ah," Sosuke nodded, his heart sinking. Nanase would have Makoto at his beck and call all during the break, all while Sosuke was unable to be there to keep him from getting his heart broken.
"I… don't think you should go."
The sentence was short, but the impact wasn't lost on the emerald-eyed young man. Slightly in shock, he turned to the other, his jaw slacking.
"Wh… What…?"
"I said, don't go," Sosuke repeated, his body now standing in front of Makoto.
"Wh-What!? Why!?" Makoto asked his new friend, "I-I'm going home to see my family! My friends! Rei, Nagisa, Rin, Haru-"
A fist slammed against the top of the lane ropes hard enough to make them shake, Makoto flinching in response.
"Haru, Haru, Haru," Sosuke seemed to get angry with each word that left his lips, "why is he the only thing you talk about!?"
"S-Sosuke!?" Makoto defended, "because he's my best friend! We've been together since kindergarten!"
"What is so damn special about him!?" the other pressed, "why are you so attached to him!?"
"Why does this bother you!?" the brunette shot back, "I've talked about him before!"
"And it's bothered me!" Sosuke snapped, "he's nothing but cruel! He's destroyed Rin's heart and he doesn't care who's-"
A slap echoed in the pool area, water sloshing around the edges filling in the void both Makoto and Sosuke left, the green blazing in anger with his arm still across his chest.
"Don't," he warned, "don't talk about Haru like that…"
Sosuke stilled, his face tilted to the side with the red still on his cheek. Lips twitched only once, before a hand shot out and gathered the front of Makoto's shirt, the green eyes scrunching for the punch he expected to receive.
Their splash in the pool was all that someone from the outside would have seen, missing the two young men sinking to the bottom, the raven-haired young man's lips pressing into the shocked ones. A hand moved to cup the lightly tanned cheek, his teal eyes slowly opening to meet the stunned emerald, pulling gently away from the shocked lips.
As if they remembered to breathe, both young men broke the surface for air, Makoto hacking and coughing as he bowed over, his body swimming to the edge.
"S-S-Sosuke!?" Makoto asked, shocked, his eyes turning to the young man that surprised him, "wh-why did you-"
"Because you're so in love with Haru, you'll never know how I feel unless I did it," Souske whispered hollowly, the brunette silently pleading for him to continue. Slowly the teal eyes lifted to meet the green, Makoto feeling his heart hammering at the sight. "Y-You… I can't lose that smile of yours," the young man confessed quietly, "I don't know what will happen if I did…" his head hung low, "I wish I got to know you during our high school year… then maybe… I could get over this."
"G-Get over…" Makoto started, his eyes widening slightly, "Sosuke…"
"You don't even know me," the young man interrupted, "not like Nanase… I can't even compete…"
"Then don't."
Shame was rampant in Sosuke's face as he looked back towards the other, the green eyes slowly moving closer to his.
"Do you… still hate Haru because of what happened?" the brunette asked weakly, the teal looking away from him.
"Or… is it because you think he's going to take me away from you?"
A scoff came from the large chest, the grin on his face both miserable and confident, "isn't that obvious?"
"Sosuke…"
It was Makoto's turn to kiss him, his hands reaching to touch the upper arms; surprised at first, Sosuke relaxed into the touch, taking the lead while his hands splayed on the lower back and shoulders.
"I wish we had met in high school too," the young man confessed, smiling warmly, "because then I could fall in love sooner."
"You… already were-"
"Not with Haru," Makoto shook his head, "because with Haru… he needs confidence, needs to know he's not the black hole he thinks he is," a smile finally broke out on Makoto's face, "he's got Rin now… and I… I need someone else," his fingers stroked the spiked hair, "someone like you."
"M… Me?"
"I like being with you, Sosuke," the brunette pressed on, "I feel… the best I ever had," his forehead lowering to touch Sosuke's, "so… I'll make you a deal…" he swallowed thickly, "if you… can find it in your heart to forgive Haru for… everything… I'll stay by you."
"Yeah?" the lips curved into a cocky grin, "then I've got one more condition," his thumb jerked back at the starting blocks the children had been jumping off of, "beat me in front crawl… and I'll apologize to Haru."
Green looked towards the blocks, his own eyes shining as he smiled to Sosuke.
"Sure," he nodded, "and I'll show you… why we should've met in high school."
"Idiot," Sosuke teased, "weren't you listening? I already told you why we should've."
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