3rd World Amano Yukiteru
"You can say my first name, y'know." Aru-san simply stated.
"W-what?" I was a bit irritated that he chose to ignore my question and chose to focus on the smaller part.
"Well we're not at work, are we? And besides, I don't really like my last name." I noticed that Aru-san crinkled his nose at this. It was interesting to see the other expressions of him, since all he did was smile that goddamn charming smile with his perfect teeth and rosy lips and-
"…so you can call me Akise-kun." That last bit was what brought me back to reality, making me recall yet again about the unspeakable horrendous act I committed in the morning. I swiveled my head around to face him, feeling the heat that had just managed to go down rise back up again. I must've pulled another one of my "classic faces" because Aru-san was having a hard time keeping in his laughter.
Way to go. Now Aru-san is laughing at you. I pouted, knowing it was very unlike me to act so nervous (I had a reputation of being Mr. No Fun [It was necessary to keep the bullies at bay]), but I couldn't stop my body from showing my inner feelings whilst I was around my albino co-worker.
"Does my first name really taste that bad on the tongue?" Aru-san finally said once he was done wiping his eyes.
"N-no! Not at all! I just…" I trailed off, wanting to clear the misunderstanding, but knowing I couldn't exactly say, Oh gee, I'm so sorry Aru-san, but when I was jacking off to you this morning, I came when I said your first name. So it's a bit embarrassing to say right now, so give me some time, please? No, I definitely wasn't going to confess to that. I had to go along with it. I would forget about it sooner or later, right?
"A-Akise-kun…" I managed to look him in the eyes, hoping to prove to him that I wasn't such a difficult person. To my surprise, Akise-kun only looked back, cheeks lightly dusted with a pinkish color. He was the first to break the gaze, turning and continuing to walk. I hadn't even noticed we had stopped, and ran to catch up with him.
"W-wait! Akise-kun!" The boy only glanced back the slightest, still obscuring his own face. I wondered what I had done to make him behave like that, but I pushed those thoughts away and continued. "Y-you can call me Yukiteru-kun, too.."I unintentionally lowered my voice a few degrees. I looked at Akise-kun's back, willing him to turn around and just look at me, because, well.. I didn't like that he was clearly trying to ignore me. He was my only friend nowadays, and I didn't want him to be angry with me because I wanted to keep up the formalities, even if I did have a good reason for that.
Akise-kun finally turned to look at me, and he must've seen the worry on my face, or something, because he suddenly pulled me into a hug. I let put a squeak of surprise, but nonetheless returned his hug, wrapping my arms around his middle. I ignored all the logical voices in my head, asking why Akise-kun would suddenly show such affection, and snuggled closer to him, inhaling his scent. He smelled like… Well, it was certainly refreshing.. and I recognized that scent.. I buried my head into the crook of his shoulder, trying to get a better whiff of it.
Ah that's it! He smells like rain! I finally figured out, smiling like I had just figured a big mystery out. Abruptly, I pulled back, wanting to tell Akise-kun of my victory, when I noticed that his usually pale face was completely red. Oh no. Did I do something wrong again? "H-hey Akise-kun... Your face is red. D-did I do something wrong?"
At this, Akise-kun's eyes widened, and he placed a hand to his cheek as if to test out if what I said was true. "We're almost there. Let's keep moving." He replied gruffly, once again ignoring my question. He pulled my hand and continued walking. The skin-on-skin contact surprised me, sending waves of warmth all throughout my body. I suddenly felt safe, as if nothing could ever get to me. The simple action felt so… right. So familiar. But at the same time, different, and exciting. I was disappointed once he let go, apparently satisfied once he noticed I had continued along beside him.
An awkward silence filled the air, the only thing to be heard was our footsteps, and the occasional whirl of wind as cars passed by. Akise-kun was the first to break it.
"Sorry, Yukiteru-kun. I don't normally act all that strange." He apologized, saying my first name for the first time. I thought it sounded better than Amano-san.
"Y-yeah, you're usually all cool and stuff." Oh no. Did I really just say that out loud? I winced, knowing Akise-kun was definitely going to think I was a total weirdo. I looked to the side, hoping he wouldn't see the blush on my face.
"So you think I'm cool, do you?" The albino chuckled. "Do you still think that after I pulled that creepy stunt back there?" Creepy? Did he think it was creepy? Did he think I was creepy? I must've accidentally voiced my own concerns, or Akise-kun could read minds (it was probably the former), because he only laughed harder.
"No, Yukiteru-kun, I didn't mean it that way. You're not creepy. You're the opposite of that. You're ador-" He quickly stopped talking, not finishing his sentence.
"H-hey! I'm what?!" I tugged at his shirt, putting on my most demanding face I could manage. My co-worker only looked down at me and smiled, before announcing,
"We're here."
I stopped pulling at him and turned to look at the striped sign in front of us, noticing the huge ferris wheel off in the distance and the multicolored tents littering a large field. The smell of sweet caramel and yakisoba came wafting in, assaulting my nose. There was little commotion to be heard, since Akise-kun had pointed out earlier that today was a weekday. I saw car of a rollercoaster come zooming right past me and go back up a hill. I couldn't wait to try some of the food! Having completely forgotten about the earlier awkward situation, I ran up the register and began to search through my pockets. I was quiet eager to get in; it'd been awhile since I was at a festival!
Come to think of it.. last time I attended one was with mom and dad.. before the divorce.. before my life took a turn for the worse…
"…will be your total, sir." Ah, right! I was paying for my ticket! I continued my search, coming up empty-handed. Shit. I hadn't brought much money for me. Only enough for the bus, and a little extra for if I got hungry or something after school. I didn't even get to start panicking when Akise-kun handed over the money and picked our two tickets up. He pushed me forward, ignoring my protests.
"Akise-kun! You didn't have to!" I pulled at his arm, again feeling the waves of warmth flow through me.
"I saw you search like crazy throughout your clothes, and I knew you didn't bring any money with you, so I decided to pay for you. Don't thank me." The white-haired boy winked at me, causing me to stumble over my words when I kept protesting.
"I had a-a little m-money! I could've paid for m-my own ticket!"
"And then have none left for any rides or food?" Akise-kun had a point there. I quickly shut up, deciding to show my gratitude by giving him a quick hug. He seemed a bit too shocked to return the hug. Well, or maybe I didn't give him the time to. It didn't matter, because I instantly smelled the delicious food coming from a stand beside me and walked over to it, Akise-kun soon following after.
"Now now, Yukiteru-kun. Save the food for later. We can't have you puking all over me when we ride that." Akise-kun pointed at the tallest rollercoaster at the festival. Just looking at the height of the hills, and all those crazy turns and loops gave me goose bumps.
"W-we're going on that one?" I asked tentatively.
"I paid for your ticket. Shouldn't it only be fair if I picked the rides?" He smiled mischievously, red eyes alight with joy.
"I didn't ask you to!" I yelled at the chuckling teen in front of me, vaguely aware of my red face.
"We don't have to go on that one right away. I know there's a pool around here somewhere.." Akise-kun suggested.
"A pool?" The thought of being half-naked around my fellow co-worker only made my face grow brighter, even if he was male like me.
"Yeah, to help beat the heat, y'know?" I dumbly nodded, caving in easily since the trek to the festival hadn't exactly been short, and the multiple layers I wore weren't helping.
"O-ok… But I'm paying for the rental shorts!" I agreed, which for unknown reasons caused Akise-kun to chuckle and pat my head.
"Sure thing." He then proceeded to walk away, leaving me and my heart to calm down a bit before I ran to catch up with him.
Once we arrived and had gone through the tasks of renting the swimwear, we went to go change. It took me a while longer than Akise-kun, since I had many layers of clothing on, and to tell the truth, I was a bit nervous to come out. I wasn't really sure why, though. Akise-kun was becoming a good friend, and he probably wouldn't laugh at my scrawniness like the others would… but still…
I was sitting behind a tree when Akise-kun found me. He startled me, coming up from around the thin trunk and seizing my hat.
"My hat! Give it back!" I pleaded with the albino, looking up at him from my hiding spot.
"Yukiteru-kun. You can't exactly go swimming with a hat on." I knew he was right, but I was feeling extremely insecure, and my hat always brought me a bit of comfort. I pouted, but let him keep it.
"We'll leave it here and come back for it later, ok?"
"…. Ok…" I reluctantly agreed. He then gave me his hand, which I graciously took as he helped me up. It was only until then that I really noticed him.
Akise-kun was sculpted, with perfectly pale muscles contracting when he moved. His periwinkle shorts hung dangerously low on his hips, and I was able to see two defined lines forming a "V" leading into the elastic waistband. I still continued staring after he'd jump into the pool and came up for air, wiping his now-soaked hair back and away from his face. I watched the multiple droplets of water run down his chest, over ridges and marble-like skin. He's so.. big..
I felt unworthy and puny in comparison. I knew I was a fragile little thing, and didn't want to be mocked. I covered my chest with my arms, though this only caused Akise-kun to laugh.
"C'mon Yukiteru-kun! The water's fine!" He called out. A pause. "Don't tell me you're.. embarrassed?~" Akise-kun taunted. No way was I going to admit that to him!
"Of course I'm not!" I immediately argued.
"Then come on in!" Akise-kun moved to make more space. As if it was needed. We were the only two there. I reasoned that it would be okay if it was just with Akise-kun, so I sat at the edge and dipped my legs in. I wasn't daring enough to jump right in like that cool albino. I guess he didn't really like that about me, or maybe he was just impatient, because he grabbed ahold of my legs and pulled me right in, without any warning.
I instinctively held onto him for fear of my life, screwing my eyes shut as my yelp was (quite literally) drowned out when we went underwater. Once we floated back up, Akise-kun started laughing loudly.
"N-not cool! That was sooo not cool!" I spit water out, trying to get a hold of my bearings. I noticed my hair had gone in my face, and was about to wipe it away when I saw, or rather felt, that I was still holding onto Akise-kun tightly. Instead, he was the one to pull my hair back, smiling ever so charmingly. His response was,
"Not cool? But earlier I thought you said I was sooo cool, and that I was so amazing and smart and handsome!"
"I did not say that! Akise-kun, you big liar!" I blushed furiously, instantly detaching myself from him, trying to get away. I was stopped when two wet arms circled my waist from behind. I felt Akise-kun's wet hair tickle my shoulder when he leaned in and whispered dangerously in my ear.
"Aww c'mon, I'm not a liar. You can't say that about me when we haven't even gotten to know each other very well.." I shivered, unsure if it was the cold water or if it had to do with my drenched back hitting Akise-kun's chest. I placed my hands over his own that were restraining me, and was barely able to breathe out,
"T-then let's get to know each other… t-twenty questions…?" I wanted an excuse to get away from my attacker. Well, I needed one to insure the fact that I was not into whatever the heck Akise-kun was pulling, because I was most certainly not gay. I-I had a crush on that Wakaba Moe! My heart was just going crazy because of the adrenaline of the fall, that's all!
"Good idea." Akise-kun whispered huskily before backing away. (and god, why did I want to be back in his arms? No, stop it!) He crossed to the opposite side of me and sat on the edge. I still stood in the water, not wanting to come back out so that he wouldn't have to see my pathetic body. I tried to calm my erratic breathing.
"Shoot."
AN: Hey guys! Sorry it's been awhile, but I've made a little trip to Mexico! I wanted to make this chapter a bit longer, but I don't have the time right now. I'll make it up to you in the next one, I promise! I'd really appreciate your criticism, so be sure to leave a review! Thanks you guys!