Chapter Text
Yoshihashi wakes up with a sleeping Kenta curled into his side. It’s not a position he’s ever woken up in before, but somehow it doesn’t feel strange. Kenta is sleeping like a baby, breath puffing in and out of his mouth with a slight sound. Yoshihashi absentmindedly pets his head, working his fingers through Kenta’s hair. Kenta doesn’t stir at all, just breaths a little deeper. Yoshihashi feels a sudden wave of affection well up from his stomach like it’s going to come pouring out of his mouth. It surprises him a little. Sure he always liked Kenta, but something about last night, and about seeing him like this now, has changed that admiration to something deeper. “Kenta . . .” he whispers, half a question. He knows more about this man now than he did two days ago, but Kenta is still an enigma.
“mmmm.” The enigma is waking up.
“Good morning, Kenta,” Yoshihashi says softly.
“Taiji?” Kenta opens his eyes. “Eh? Oh shit. He didn’t come back in the middle of the night did he?”
A sleep blurred memory returns to Yoshihahsi’s mind. “Oh . . . I think he did and I woke up and we looked at each other weird for a long time and then he left.”
Kenta looks a little worried for a minute “I hope he found somewhere alright to sleep.” But the thought clears from his face quickly. “I had a great place to sleep!” He flops his head onto Yoshihashi’s chest. Yoshihashi just giggles. “A wonderful pillow,” Kenta continues. “Like the finest goose down.” He punches Yoshihashi’s stomach gently as if fluffing a pillow. Yoshihashi isn’t sure what to say but he looks at Kenta and smiles, and Kenta smiles back, something softer than he’s ever seen on Kenta’s face. He gets the sudden urge to kiss him and he does.
Kenta yields to him beautifully, like a flower opening, and when Yoshihashi leans back again Kenta is still smiling sweetly. “You look so nice,” Yoshihashi says stupidly.
“Now you know I wake up like this.” Kenta’s smile grows a bit cheeky.
“No I mean . . . You look like . . . You hide yourself just as much as I do, you just do a better job.” Kenta looks taken aback for a moment. “You’re so dramatic all the time because you’re trying to be cool and get everyone to like you. But I like you better like this. You’re kind of scary most of the time honestly.”
Kenta looks off towards the wall, thinking. “I wanted to be scary. It’s easier when I don’t have to . . . be my real self I guess.” He looks back at Yoshihashi uncertainly.
“Is this your real self?”
Kenta holds his gaze. “Yeah.”
Yoshihashi wonders once again, why him. Kenta said something last night about how he’s handsome when he’s not hiding it, but that can’t be the only thing that would prompt Kenta to be this open with him. “I’m not that much of a threat so it’s ok if I’m not scared of you,” he ventures, only half joking.
Kenta frowns. “No.” A few moments later he adds “Don’t take this as an insult. I’m letting you see this because I like you.” He looks like there’s more he wants to say, and Yoshihashi waits for him. “It’s that . . . I knew you wouldn’t think less of me . . . if you weren’t intimidated.”
“Why would someone think less of you if they knew you were a nice person,” Yoshihashi says, voice blank with confusion.
Kenta grunts in frustration. “It does sound like a silly way to think when you put it like that.”
Yoshihashi puts a hand on Kenta’s shoulder. Kenta’s looking at him with a soft light in his eyes that makes them even more beautiful, his hair a fluffy mess and his beard growing out a little more than it has in a while. “What did I do to deserve you looking at me like that,” he says half to himself.
Kenta puts his own hand on Yoshihashi’s shoulder and his face grows serious, more like Yoshihahsi is used to seeing it. “Don’t say things like that.”
“But I know what everyone says-”
Kenta cuts him off. “Don’t listen to what everyone says about you or about me. You’re a better man than I am.”
“So the scary version of Kenta is on my side too? I’m glad because he’s definitely way cooler than me.”
Kenta laughs a little at that but says ruefully “Being cool is the easy part.”
“For you maybe!” Yoshihashi says lightly.
Kenta puts his other hand on Yoshihashi’s shoulder, almost shaking him. “But I’ve messed up so much trying to be seen this way! If being a good person is the part that comes easily to you it’s just proof that I’m the one who doesn’t deserve this.”
“Thanks,” Yoshihashi says, not able to control his wide smile . “But you do deserve it. I never thought you were a bad guy. I just couldn’t tell when you were playing or not. And I want you to keep teasing me like you have been this whole time because it’ll only be more fun now I know how much you like me.”
Kenta looks away, a little embarassed. “So now you know it’s flirting you want me to keep doing it?” he jokes. Yoshihashi just giggles and looks at his lap. “Took you long enough.” Kenta drops his arms, as if signalling the end of a conversation. “Ok I’ve been way too sappy in the last 24 hours, let’s eat breakfast.”
“One uncool breakfast, coming right up!” Yoshihashi sing songs, picking up the hotel phone to request room service. Kenta tackles him affectionately and the phone chord gets tangled in both their arms so they have to spend a minute separating themselves before Yoshihashi can actually dial the number, but even when they do Kenta lies down again on top of Yoshihashi looking almost as peaceful as before he woke up.