Work Text:
A Small Winter Story Before They Realized
It- it can’t be…
Heavy breaths echoed throughout Miyano’s mind.
His hair clinged to his forehead as his eyes squinted against the harsh cold wind that blew against him. But the bite of the cold didn’t seem to bother Miyano even a tad. His corner of his eyes slightly red, he ran and ran, as fast as his legs could carry.
***
“Where are you going, Miyano?”
“Ah, Kuresawa! Sorry, I won't be walking home with you today…”
Kuresawa silently nodded, as Miyano stuffed his back with the rest of his textbooks.
It was a cold winter afternoon, the air dry and freezing as it trickles into your lungs. Hints of snow filled the air, as the high school students dispersed on the school grounds.
“...Is it with Sasaki senpai again?”
Miyano’s hand stopped at the name of the upperclassman. Slowly a pink hue appeared on his cheeks, as he tried to rub it off with a cough.
“Y-yeah… What about it?”
A small laugh came from Kuresawa, as he just patted gently on the latter’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry, good luck.”
“H-hey!!”
When Miyano turned around, his friend had already left the classroom. Letting out a sigh, he took a small plastic bag out of his bag and headed out the classroom.
If I remember correctly, Sasaki-senpai always waits for me at the gate…
His mind pondered towards the orange-haired senpai. Whenever Miyano talks to him, he always listens intently, as he rambles on about his manga and his favorite scenes, or just some day-to-day occurrences that didn’t matter at all. But Sasaki always listened, with that gentle, playful smile of his, a smile that could melt the entire world of Miyano.
It’s been so long since Sasaki-senpai confessed to me…
Miyano’s cheeks blushed again at the thought of the upperclassman. His mind has constantly been thinking of a response, and he was starting to come to terms with his feelings. But the moment when everything connects is a few days ahead.
By the time he got outside of the school building, Miyano’s heart was pounding from excitement. He couldn’t wait for Sasaki-senpai to read this next volume… and couldn’t wait to hear all the comments and talk about it after school-
Who is that?
A long-haired figure, with a beige blouse and a checkered skirt, talking to Sasaki-senpai by the school gate.
The bag nearly slipped out of Miyano’s hands, but with some struggle, he managed to catch it before it hit the ground.
Miyano tried to ignore the soft, smiling face of the senpai. Miyano tried to ignore the obvious, flowery atmosphere that radiated from the two figures.
But he couldn’t.
As soon as he came to from his haze of shock, he shook his head and ran towards the back gate.
It- it can’t be….
***
“Welcome home, Yoshi- oh my… what’s wrong, dear?”
Miyano just shook his head, as he stood there by the doorway, unresponsive.
The mother figure gently put her basket of laundry on the ground, as she walked over to Miyano, rustling the raven black hair.
“Did something bad happen? Are you hurt?”
Suddenly, something inside Miyano snapped. He stumbled to the ground as tears threatened to break out. Small sobs and breaths echoed throughout the small hall.
“Mom… what do you do when someone you love is taken from you?”
—
“I see… so that’s what’s got you so down…”
Miyano took a sip of the mug of hot tea as he nodded slowly. He shifted his weight on the sofa, with his mother on the other side of the table. He took a sigh as he looked out the window. The clouds looked as if it were going to snow any moment, as the wind outside brewed the chilly air.
“When I met your father, I remember I had a similar experience.”
“Y-you did!?”
Miyano’s mother chuckled slightly in the change of mood. She sipped her cup of tea and continued.
“It was a few months after I first met your father. I was walking home from a bookstore back to my apartment, when I saw him talking to another girl. Looking back, they were simply just talking, as friends, but when I saw them, my emotions just took off and I couldn’t get it off my head.”
“And…? What did you do…?”
“Well, I was curious if it was true or not. I remember being so nervous dialing his number… but when I spit out what I thought, he was quick to deny it and tell me it was just his childhood friend. That when I realized,”
“Don’t set your mind on it because you saw it once, walk back and think. Sometimes, the truth is hidden in plain sight.”
Miyano’s eyes widened.
That’s right, there’s no way Sasaki would simply betray him like this, especially when they have come so far. Sure, Miyano still hasn’t confessed his feelings, but at this point, he knew it would happen sooner or later.
Before he could react, he was dashing out the door.
“Thanks, mom! And for the tea!”
“Yoshi-kun? Where are you going?”
“School!”
Miyano’s mother just stood by the doorway, the door swinging right open. She lightly sighed with a smile, as she reached out to close the door.
“Ah, young love,” she whispered, “good luck, Yoshi-kun.”
***
Miyano ran and ran. But this time, his feet felt much lighter, as the surroundings around him became a blur.
If he was correct, Sasaki was near here… somewhere…
Miyano bent down to catch his breath. He felt his pulsating through his body, and his hands shaking on his knees. But that wasn’t important right now. He needed to find him. To tell him.
What did he want to tell him? …Well, he didn’t know, but he was sure when he saw the orange-haired senpai, everything would come to him; like it always does.
Have I really fallen in love with a boy? Just like a BL troupe?
“Myaa-chan…?”
“!?”
Before he could say anything, his gaze fixed onto the owner of the soft, calm voice.
Sasaki-senpai, the person he’s wanted to talk to for so long, was right in front of him.
“S-Sasaki-senpai? What are you doing here?” Miyano shook his head furiously, regretting the words he said. “I-I mean, that’s a question you should be asking me haha… ha…”
“Uh-huh…?” Sasaki raised an eyebrow, as he walked closer, “what are you doing here, Myaa-chan?”
Miyano didn’t realize he had started fidgeting with his hands, but with a gasp, he hid his hands behind his back.
Calm down Yoshikazu, just tell the truth…
“I… I can see you, Sasaki-senpai!”
“M-me…?”
Good job! Now, continue… Miyano thought, as he cleared his throat.
“I actually wanted to find you after school to give you the comic I promised,” Miyano explained, his gaze gradually lowering, “but I- I saw you with a girl and… I…”
“I got... envious…”
Miyano struggled to look up towards the latter. But when he did, the orange-haired male’s cheeks were burning red, with his hand covering his mouth.
That’s what Sasaki-senpai does when he’s happy…
“...I’m really happy, Myaa-chan. That was just my friend from middle school- she just wanted to talk to me about… her feelings.”
Huh?!
So what Miyano thought was right. Did Sasaki lie to him about his feelings? He couldn’t help but close his eyes and fear for the worst.
“...But of course, I declined everything. She was heartbroken, yeah, but I also have what I want to do.”
A warm pair of hands cupped around Miyano’s. The black-haired male’s breath hitched, as his eyes met the sharp, yet warm gaze of Sasaki.
“I’ll keep my promise until the end, Myaa-chan, until you’re ready.”
“Sasaki-senpai…”
That’s right. Sasaki-senpai always cares for me so much. My hearts and thoughts have been wandering for a long time, but I think it all comes back to one thing.
I really, really care for him.
Just then, snow started falling, as the pair looked up at the sky. Millions of cold, white specks lingered in the air, slowly carving the nearby surroundings into a tiny winter wonderland.
“I’ll send you home, Myaa-chan, you look super tired~”
“I-I’m not that tired I swear! …But yeah, that would be great.”
“That’s the way, Myaa-chan~”
Miyano knew, and he always will, that he would do anything to make Sasaki Shuumei smile.
Let the snow slowly envelop to protect the love, and bury it deep into the snow.
And when spring comes, may it flourish into something beautiful.