The first thing he remembered noticing about him was the bright fiery head of hair - tied back in a messy ponytail that seemed to make him a hundred times more attractive - that glistened in the late-afternoon sun. That person was jogging in laps around the park and each time he passed where the brunet was seated, emerald orbs never failed to leave the book in his lap to instead watch as the lean figure gracefully moved by. Idly, he wondered how someone was able to make running look so good.

This became a regular occurence. Makoto had been coming to this particular park to read since he was a child, and not once before the previous week had he seen this redheaded wonder. He must have just moved into the small city. As much as the orca tried to stop himself, his thoughts were plagued by the mystery man, and he was sure his staring was going to get him in trouble one of these days.

He didn't realise, however, that 'one of these days' would happen so quickly. After a little over three weeks of this routine, the smaller seemed to have gotten tired of the unwanted attention because he was now standing directly in front of the brunet, sweat trickling down his jawline. Green eyes followed a particular bead of perspiration as it disappeared under the low-cut neckline the other was sporting before daring to meet a gaze that had Makoto's heart in his throat.

"You got a problem or something? Why are you always watching me?"

As much as he hated it, he could feel the light dusting of pink taking over his facial features as he sat a little straighter, letting out a nervous chuckle.

"I'm sorry. I guess you just kind of captivated me."

Suddenly, the jogger was a spluttering mess, cheeks putting the colour of his hair to shame as he stared wide-eyed at the seated individual.

"I-Idiot! Who says shit like that with a straight face?"

"My name's Makoto."

The grin on the olive-haired male's face widened as he extended a hand in greeting, clearly amused at the other's reactions. A hand gripped his own briefly before the redhead scoffed and ran his fingers through his hair, letting it down from its usual up-do. The way his hair framed his face coupled with the lively shine in those ruby orbs had Makoto gulping. Oh, he was in trouble, alright.

"Hm. I'm Rin."

"You're hot. I-I mean! Ah ... You look o-overheated. Want to go grab some ice cream? My treat."

The offer was out in the open before he'd fully realised it was happening, and now it was his turn to stammer in embarrassment. Before he could say anything more to try and save himself, however, Rin was nodding with a smirk.

"Yeah, okay. Sounds good."

Well, this was going better than expected. Makoto stood then, marking his place in his book and slinging his bag over his shoulder.

"By the way, you're not so bad on the eyes yourself, Makoto."

Ten ice cream runs, seven lunch dates, four dinner requests, and one festival later, Makoto finally grew a pair and officially asked Rin if he wanted to date.

"For a twenty-two year old, you sure take your sweet ass time asking shit like that, don't you? Besides, I was under the impression we were already together."

The redhead's snarky remark had the taller's complexion turning an even darker shade of crimson as he reached out to bite a piece from the chocolate bar Rin was currently devouring. His gaze wandered anywhere that wasn't those lively eyes that would only make things worse with their intensity. Honestly. If he didn't like the guy so well, he'd probably have punched him a long time ago, with the endless teasing that always ensued when they were in each other's company.

"I was just giving you plenty of time to bolt if you wanted. You don't have to be such a jerk about it. But I'm taking that as a yes, and now you're stuck."

"Mm. Stuck with you, huh? That's alright by me. Really wouldn't want it any other way."

And there he goes, turning from a sarcastic asshole to the sweet romanticist in less than five minutes. How did he do that? In any case, the relentless hammering in the brunet's chest had slightly dulled with the acceptance of his offer and he felt as though he could breathe once more.

Six months. Half a year. That doesn't seem like much in the grand scheme of things, sure, but for Makoto, it was the biggest of deals for this particular reason. Maybe it wouldn't even seem like anything when they'd (hopefully, hopefully) been together for years. But it was six months ago today that he asked his boyfriend out and he's always been a hopeless romantic, to say the least, so of course he was going to make a huge thing about it.

To add onto the already stressful desire to make things perfect, today just happened to be Valentine's Day. Ever since the younger's birthday (which was even more stressful, but turned out great in the end), he's been planning nonstop. He'd made dinner reservations and gotten the perfect gift. Everything seemed to be going off without a hitch.

But there always had to be something in the way, didn't there? Rin was being held up at work, with no idea how long it was going to take. Apparently, there was a screw-up and he was the only one with the abilities to fix it properly. He'd called with a promise to be done as soon as possible. That was two hours ago. Already, Makoto had called the restaurant and tried to move the reservation to a later time, but they were all booked up now. It was a miracle he'd gotten in in the first place.

Nothing was going to get in his way of a perfect evening, though. By the time the redhead phoned him again, Makoto was just finishing up the last touches on Rin's favourite dish and informed him of the change in plans. The other sounded considerably tired and agitated, so perhaps the change to a more private venue was for the best after all.

Another hour of the train being delayed and the newly twenty-one year old finally trudged through the door, kicking his shoes off and tossing his coat aside before making his way further inside.

"Makoto? I'm here. The fucking train was delayed. I'm sorry it's so late."

His nose led him straight to the kitchen, a small smile playing on previously scowling lips as the scents filtered into his senses. The older had always been an amazing cook, and he found himself wishing to eat his food every day rather than going out to eat or suffering through his diet of anything microwaveable. It was while he was distracted that he suddenly found himself victim to strong arms wrapped around his waist from behind and a gentle kiss pressed to his cheek.

"No, no, there's nothing to apologise for. Would you like to eat now or take a nap? You sounded really exhausted over the phone so I set up the extra fluffy pillow you like."

It was things like this that had Rin wondering how on Earth he'd managed to find someone so incredibly kind and loving and as close to perfect as probably possible, and be able to call him his. It was unfathomable, really. But boy, was he grateful.

"Idiot. I'm not going to sleep through this day. It's important, right? And you put a lot of effort into it, so I want to spend the rest of it with you and then I want to go to sleep when you do because you're a better pillow, anyway."

Turning his head just so, the shorter let his lips mesh over their match, humming happily as the kiss was immediately reciprocated with a wide smile on his partner's lips. Much better.

They sat down to eat once everything had been reheated properly, conversing easily about their days and every so often Rin would praise Makoto's cooking, thanking him for making his favourite of all things. Dishes were dropped in the sink to be cleaned later on after they'd finished and they moved to the bedroom, changing into more comfortable clothes.

But as the smaller settled into the large bed with a content sigh, the gentle giant was rummaging through a drawer and pulling out a thin, rectangular box.

"Hey, I thought I told you no gifts. You already got me too much for my birthday."

"And you thought I was going to listen? As if. Here, please just open it?"

Makoto climbed in next to his other half, dragging the redhead's legs over his lap before covering both sets with the comforter as he watched with hues full of anticipation. With a sigh, Rin lifted the lid and looked over to his lover before back at the present in his hands. It was an intricate watch, wrapped in silver with a small shark on one side of the face and an orca on the other. Their favourite animals.

The taller reached for the item, clasping it carefully around a thin wrist and brought his hand up to kiss each knuckle affectionately before lacing their fingers together and curling in closer. Rin's lips raised into a full grin as he pressed his lips to the other's clothed shoulder, his voice quiet and soft with adoration.

"I love you, Mako."

"I love you more."