I wrote a lot. And it took me a while too. My brain hurts, but hey, I finally got the time to write for once. Hope you enjoy it, though there isn't a lot of plot moving forward here. I promise that next chappie will push the story along a little faster. Anyways, I have followers, which is a first for me. I love you guys, cookies for everyone!
Special thanks to my beta-reader: Know-Your-Place
Anyways, kiss-kiss, enjoy the chappie
Disclaimer: Don't own Free!, just sayin'
Chapter 3 - Double Date?
"What's that?"
"Cotton candy, it's pretty much sugar wrapped in a ball."
"How about that?"
"That's a dream catcher, people think that if you hang it over your bed, you can protect yourself from the nightmares."
"Oi, oi! What are you two whispering about over there? You aren't talking about naughty things riiight?" Nagisa's face was suddenly much too close for comfort. The brunet yelped, and jumped back with his arms up to guard his face.
"Nagisa-san! There's no need to be up so close!"
"Oh Mako-chan, you're so easy to scare though!" Nagisa laughed, "It's no fun if I don't try to tease you a bit here and there, right Rei-kun?"
"Look Nagisa-san, maybe you should cut Makoto-san some slack," the aforementioned teen pushed up his glasses, "Besides, it's not beautiful to speak of such vulgar things in public."
Nagisa pouted. "But, Rei-kuuun, I thought you said you wouldn't mind what I said because my voice was very beautiful!" Nagisa's flashed a coy smile at Rei, "At least, that's what you said last night…"
Rei flushed, "I-I, that's not…This is different!" he spluttered, getting redder with each passing second. Makoto wondered when the blonde lost that innocent persona he had as a child.
He tuned them out as the bickering ensued, or more like a one-sided scolding from the bespectacled teen while the other laughed shamelessly. He shaded his eyes against the blazing sun. It was only 10 o'clock and already the heat had settled in. It didn't help that the beach was crowded as well. But the brunet supposed it wasn't too bad, at least Haruka seemed to be enjoying himself. The boardwalk was lined with quaint shops and the fairgrounds at the pier seemed to be in full-swing.
At the moment, the merman was tugging his sleeve and pointing at the nearby ice cream shop.
"What's that?"
"Ah, that's ice cream. People usually eat it when it's hot out…um…Do you want to get some?"
The other boy blinked, which meant probably meant 'yes'. The green-eyed teen smiled, it seemed Haruka communicated mainly in stares. It was funny how he usually managed to guess correctly what the other was thinking, though that might just be luck on his part… They wandered into the ice cream parlor, while the other two trailed behind, still squabbling.
The taller male sighed contentedly, thankful that the shop still had good air conditioning unlike some stores. Haruka was surprised by the bell that rang when they entered, and then was quickly preoccupied by the store's décor. It was designed like one of those vintage ice cream parlors with the tiled floor and neat little island with bright red barstools. The other tables were thin, wired chairs with small doilies on the table tops.
Makoto led the merman away from the entrance and to one of the seats at the counter. "So, do you like the place Haruka?"
"It's fine…what's-"
"Welcome! I'm Matusoka Kou and I'll be your server for-" the red-head squealed at the sight of the green-eyed male and jumped at him from behind the counter.
"Agh, G-Kou-chan, you're suffocating meee…" the brunet wailed as Gou hugged him tightly across the counter.
"Ah, oops! Don't want to make your date jealous no don't we?" Gou batted her eyes at the clueless Haruka, who seemed to be engrossed in the menu.
Makoto groaned and dropped his head on the counter. "He's not my daatteee…he's just a friend! Why does everyone say that?" He lifted his head up to see Gou more clearly. She was dressed in a striped pink apron with a nametag with a puffy button-up shirt underneath. The apron and hat she wore had "Sweet Cream" written on it in swirly font. "Since when did you work for this place?"
Gou raised an eye at him. "Weren't you listening to me at all last week?"
"Er…no?" Makoto rubbed the back of his head abashedly. He knew he didn't have the best memory, but one would think he would remember something like this.
"Well, I-"
"Gou-chan! How come you're here?"
Gou stamped her foot on the ground and pouted, "It's Kou-chan to you! K-O-U, Kou! And I told all of you last week! Remember when we went to the mall on Saturday?"
Nagisa had the gall to smile in her face and say in his usual sing-song voice, "Not at all, Gou-chan!"
"You…" they could practically see the dark aura surrounding the girl.
Sensing danger, Rei stepped in-between the two. "Anyways! S-so how's your job G-er-Kou-san? I bet it's a lot of work ahaha…"
The girl brightened immediately, "Yep! The job is great and I get paid $10 bucks an hour for eating ice-cream!" She put her hands on her cheeks and swayed from side-to-side, "Ohhh, and I just met this guy the other day and he's totally hot! Ahhh, he's from Samezuka High and he's on the swim team! Just imagine those abs…"
The rest of them let out a silent sigh of relief. If Gou was obsessing over guys then it was fine, considering that the girl was about to go into a rampage. The redhead had quite the temper, and they all didn't feel like dying today.
"Neeee, Gou-chan! What's with all the ruckus?" a familiar woman walked in wearing a similar uniform to Gou's.
Makoto choked, "Amakata-sensei?!"
"Eh? Tachibana-san, what are you doing here?..." she trailed off and hazel eyes shifted to the raven-haired boy. "Ohhhhh, you're on a date!"
"We're not-…why do I even bother?" Makoto placed his head back on the counter. Why did people come to that conclusion every single time? He shifted his head to look at Haruka. The merman was no longer fiddling with the menu and was being bombarded with questions by Gou and his teacher. Today would be a long day. Honestly, the teen wished he hadn't gotten up this morning…
"Ne, Ama-chan, why are you here anyways?" Nagisa said, jumping into a seat next to Haruka.
"Hmm, well a friend of mine actually owns the store, but she's out of town so I'm just stepping in for her for a few weeks. Speaking of stepping in, Matsuoka-chan, why haven't you served the cute couples yet?"
"I got it, I got it!" Gou replied, pulling out the ice cream scoop and walking over to the ice cream display case.
The blonde followed Gou, dragging his bespectacled partner along, "Ooh! Rei-chan let's get that one! Oh, and the mint too!"
"But, Nagisa-san, you already had-"
"You can never have too much ice cream, Rei-chan," and Nagisa yanked the taller boy along with even more enthusiasm than before. Ms. Amakata walked off into the back room, saying something about cleaning out some stuff in the freezer. Makoto sighed and sat up. "Sorry, Haruka. It's a little too hectic isn't it?" Haruka didn't answer, opting to stare at the counter instead. Did he say something wrong? He shifted his gaze to the store window, hoping he could find something to talk about with the quiet boy. He couldn't exactly ask anything mermaid related, considering present company.
As he fiddled his thumbs, Makoto failed to notice that Haruka's gaze was now focused on him. Just when the merman was about to tug the human's sleeve, a loud clang sounded on the counter in front of them. The brunet was jolted out of his thoughts and looked up to see Ms. Amakata smiling brightly.
"There you go! This is what we give to couples. It's on me today, considering how cute you two are together!" Before Makoto could try to protest, the woman waltzed off towards with the others. Nagisa was sitting next to Rei a little away from them with a large bowl of ice- cream. Gou had a stopwatch in hand while Ms. Amakata picked up a checkboard and pen.
"Okay, so if you can finish the Titanic in thirty minutes, you don't have to pay for any of it and you get a free tub of any flavor you want for free. But if you don't finish it, you're going to have to pay double," the brunette recited from her check board.
"You ready, Rei-chan?" the blonde asked excitedly. Rei nodded, but already looked like he was turning green from the ridiculous amount of ice cream piled into the bowl.
"Ready…Start!" Gou began the stopwatch and Nagisa dove into the ice-cream with his spoon. The black-haired teen beside him, on the other hand, gingerly took several scoops. Makoto shivered. He liked ice cream as much as the next guy, but anyone would feel sick upon watching someone eat that much. He would stick to nice single scoops thank you very much. Speaking of ice-cream, Makoto turned his attention to the bowl in front of him.
The traditional Neapolitan flavors were there, drizzled in chocolate syrup. On top were red, heart-shaped sprinkles and a single Maraschino cherry on top. There was only one spoon.
…
Makoto turned pink. He looked at Haruka, who seemed unfazed. "I'll go get another spoon, I think it's-" Haruka stuck the a spoonful of vanilla in his mouth before he could say more. He turned redder at that and swallowed the dessert down. Haruka pulled back the spoon and scooped some for himself, completely unaware of the flustered air around the brunet.
Was that an indirect kiss!? Makoto thought frantically to himself, before calming down. But, I doubt Haruka knows anything about that kind of stuff. Ugh, I shouldn't worry so much about these things! Stupid hormones, stupid brain…
As he slapped his cheeks together in an effort to get the blush off his face, Haruka fiddled with the spoon. He dug into the ice-cream, fascinated by the strange dessert. Ice-cream? How strange. When the merman tried to get a bigger scoop, he pulled the spoon out a bit too fast. The spoon was fine, but the ice-cream wasn't there. Where did it go…?
Makoto yelped when he felt something cold and wet slap onto his face. He reached up and wiped off the glob of whatever-it-was onto the floor. Tasted like…strawberry? He looked at Haruka, who had quickly turned away from him.
"H-Harukaaaa….that's not funny!" the brunet puffed up his cheeks in indignation when he saw the amusement in the merman's eyes. He was going to scold the other teen again when he felt another glob of ice-cream smack his face.
"You're right Mako-chan, it's not funny. It's hilarious!" Nagisa laughed, clutching his sides. Gou seemed to be trying, and failing, to hold in her laughter as well. Ms. Amakata put up her clipboard to hide her face while Rei simply gaped, his head swiveling between the blonde and the older brunet.
"Why you…" Makoto glanced at the ice cream bowl. He plucked the spoon out of Haruka's hand, scooping out ice cream and promptly throwing it at Nagisa.
Unfortunately, Makoto didn't have the best aim. Especially with a face full of ice cream. Rei cried out when the ice cream flew into his face, falling out of his chair from the sudden shot.
"Heh, missed me Mako-chan!" and the blonde jumped up, carrying the bowl and spoon with fiery determination.
"Hey! Don't forget me!" Before Ms. Amakata could stop her, Gou vaulted over the counter and pulled off her apron and hat. "You're going down, Makoto-san!"
"In your dreams! Prepare to be ice-creamed!" Makoto yelled, all while pulling Haruka aside and tilting up one of the tables as a shield.
And so began the ice-cream war. In which Ms. Amakata wailed in the background as ice-cream flew over her head and the teenagers shot cheesy one-liners at each other. After a good ten minutes of ice-cream slinging, their generally amiable teacher flipped.
"THAT'S ENOUGH!"
Before he knew it, Makoto was cleaning up the floors with Haruka and the rest while Ms. Amakata tutted them disapprovingly.
"I hope you learned a lesson from all this! As the great Oscar Wilde said, 'Work is the curse of the ice-cream classes.'"
Rei pushed up his glasses, "Amakata-sensei, I don't think that's what he said…"
"Get back to work!"
"Ow!" The teen rubbed the back of his head. Ruler sure did hurt.
After cleaning up the shop and apologizing for the mess, the group wandered off towards the fairgrounds near the pier. It was already late afternoon and the heat went down to more bearable levels. For a while, they amused themselves by exploring the colorful booths around the area. Haruka was particularly fascinated by the fishing game, and Makoto would have stuck around the booth longer if the merman hadn't tried to jump into the pool with the fish.
They meandered through the remaining booths. Nagisa had struck a bet with Rei earlier, saying he could win more games than the other. As the two started playing a shooting game, Makoto noticed that the merman was staring at something in the distance.
"Ah, Haruka?" The boy in question turned and pulled at Makoto's sleeve, pointing at the ferris wheel.
"What's that?"
"A ferris wheel, people ride it for fun. Do you want to ride it too?" Haruka blinked at him, bright blue eyes looked at him in expectation.
After ushering the gang to the ticket booth and waiting patiently in line, Makoto ended up in a cart with only Haruka. Apparently, Nagisa and Rei felt that the two needed to relieve some sexual tension. Makoto ignored their catcalls when they stepped into the cart. As the wheel began to move, Haruka moved over to Makoto and clung onto his arm for dear life. But as soon as the ocean came into view, the boy pressed himself against the window. As if he could melt through the glass and jump into the ocean. From up here, the sea never looked so amazing. The sun reflected off the surface, making the waves shimmer and glow.
In the reflection of the window, Makoto could see the longing in Haruka's face. The merman looked so sad, being away from the water. This person he was searching for…was he really this important for the merman to leave the ocean that he loved so much?
"Ne Haruka, do you love him a lot? The person you're looking for?"
Haruka didn't reply immediately. In fact, he acted like he hadn't heard him at all, choosing to watch the ocean instead. Makoto didn't press him. It was probably very personal for merman. It'd be rude of him to push, especially since they just met. But to his surprise, the reticent boy answered.
"Yes, I did." Makoto felt his heart wrench when he heard that. He didn't understand why he would feel this way. Perhaps it was…pity? Yes, it probably was. Makoto didn't miss the past tense Haruka used. Did this person leave? It seemed so sad, a romance that didn't seem to come to life he supposed. The raven-haired boy turned to look at him, those brilliant blue eyes filled with sadness. Makoto wished he could make it go away, replace it with the joy and wonder that had filled them before.
"Oh, I…I'm sorry for asking," the brunet said, looking down at his hands.
"Don't be." Haruka turned away and stared back at the ocean. He sighed softly and then leaned onto the taller male.
"…Ah, Haruka are you tired?" Makoto asked quietly.
"No." But blue-eyed boy continued to lean on him, resting his head on the brunet's shoulder. Makoto stayed silent, trying not to blush as the merman nuzzled into his shoulder while trying to get comfortable. Haruka's hair tickled his cheek and he fought the urge to run a hand through those silky locks.
"H-Haruka, ne, this is a little…i-inappropriate between us…" Makoto struggled to keep from stuttering. It must be the heat that was making it hard to think. And He didn't get a lot of sleep last night after all, must be fatigue too.
The other only huffed, "But we're friends," he lifted his head to look Makoto in the eye, "aren't we?"
"A-ah," the teen rubbed the back of his head with his free arm, "I guess we are." Haruka grunted and placed his head back in the crook of Makoto's shoulder.
"B-but, because we're friends we shouldn't be so, so…" he yelped when Haruka flicked his forehead. "Harukaaaa," Makoto whined, "that hurt!" He rubbed at the spot and puffed his cheeks. A lot like a child really. Haruka cheeks turned slightly pink and he looked the other way.
"Rin said it was okay for friends to do this…" the merman trailed off, feeling rather nostalgic and remembering all those old memories of that particular summer.
"Rin?" the brunet knew someone named Rin…but it probably wasn't the same…
"Yes, Matsuoka Rin," Haruka turned to him, a twinge of hope entering his voice, "do you know where he is?"
Makoto gritted his teeth. "He's not here right now. He's studying abroad and I don't know if he'll be back anytime soon. I'm sorry." He tried to keep his voice as light as possible. He remembered Rin. And on the day of his farewell, it wasn't as peachy as everybody thought it should have been. Just thinking of the boy, the gap he left, depressed him.
The anger must have shown on his face because the brooding male felt another flick on his forehead. "You're making a weird face." Haruka was sitting up; staring at him with the usual blank expression, but his eyes looked worried.
There was also a bit of disappointment in those blue depths. His voice softened, "I'm sorry Haruka."
The other said nothing. He leaned back onto Makoto and closed his eyes. This time, the brunet did too. They leaned on each other and stayed that way until the ride was over.
Nagisa practically squealed when he saw the two lean into each other. Being in the cart right above Makoto's, he had a pretty good view of what was happening. Bringing binoculars was a good idea after all.
"See? I told you it was a good idea to bring these!" Nagisa nudged Rei in the ribs.
The raven-haired teen grunted, "I don't think you should be watching them like that, Nagi. They deserve some privacy." Nagisa pouted, but eventually turned away from watching the interesting development.
Rei sighed, "Honestly! Nagi, you don't need to watch Makoto-san all the time. He can take care of himself."
The smaller boy sighed, "I know, it's just that…Makoto just seemed a bit lonely earlier and now that he's got Haruka I…" he bit his lip, "I just don't want him to get hurt again. Like with Rin…"
Rei wrapped an arm around the blonde. "I know."
Nagisa laughed gently, "Heh, you know just about everything, don't you Rei-chan?"
Rei puffed himself up, and pushed up his trademark, red glasses. "Of course! And according to my calculations, the two will most likely start their first date in approximately 15 hours from now."
"Ehhh? Where'd you get that?"
"Obviously, from taking the atmosphere and measuring the…" Rei was cut off when Nagisa placed his lips over his. He would have protested, considering that he didn't even get to explain, but he let the matter slide. He eased into the kiss and let it all disappear. All that mattered was Nagisa. He wondered vaguely if Makoto was happy, if Makoto was able to feel this warmth in his chest. Rei certainly hoped so. Even if it had only been a few hours since they officially got together, Rei couldn't bear the idea of Nagisa not being there, not by his side to keep the little fire in him warm.
He barely even noticed that the cart had stopped. Meh. The other people could wait in line for just a little longer.
I hope this wasn't too long for you. Thanks for reading and please drop a review on your way out. If you've got Q's for me to answer, just drop a review/PM me and I'll get back to you soon. As in right when you reply. Because I'm a creeper like that.
~Ciao