Chapter Text
"Nanami!" There it is. That joyful voice approaching to him once again.
"Haibara."
"How did your last mission go? Was it too hard?" He seemed excited to know about it. Well, the brown haired boy was always happy to learn and fill himself up with more experiences that might be useful to deal with his own missions. And also because he was a good friend who would always gladly listen to whoever wanted to talk.
"Not so difficult. It was okay." A simple, plain answer. Nanami wasn't much of a talker anyway.
"I thought so! Nanami is such a strong sorcerer after all!" He playfully poked the boy's shoulder. "Let's go get something to drink. My treat!" He grabbed his arm for a moment and both of them walked up to the nearest vending machine.
As they walked, Haibara started to talk about his upcoming missions and how he was finally mastering his own technique. He seemed so happy about it, like a kid telling their parents about a new bug they found or showing them a drawing. That particular shine in his eyes was such a gift to observe. His fatigue faded for a moment and the only thing is his mind was Haibara's comforting smile and voice.
A cold can of Cola on his cheek interrupted the wandering thoughts of his mind.
"Nanami? Are you okay?"
Crap. For how long exactly has he been staring at the boy right now?
"U-uh. Yeah, I'm alright. Just a little tired." It wasn't exactly a lie, but it's not like he was distracted by that.
"Have I been talking too much? You should rest, I can take care of you for now, I'll make sure to save your Soda!" Haibara gently patted the blond's back.
"No, it's okay Haibara. I can rest later." He said, taking the drink.
Nanami sat down on the floor, opening his soda and taking a short sip from it, but felt the weight of Haibara's eyes on him. He looked up, and saw a pouting expression on his face. Frowning, hands on his waist and the can on the edge of his fingers, barely holding it.
"...Will you, Nanami? You never rest when you say you will! I realized, you know." The boy wasn't mad, just worried. And Nanami knew there wasn't a bit of anger on his tone. Haibara was just worried. The blond had to contain a smile.
"I'll rest. I ensure you I will. Sit down, Haibara."
Haibara obeyed. Opening his own drink, the pouting transformed into preoccupation. He eyed the man on his right, sparkles on his eyes despite his current feelings. The young sorcerer really admired his fellow classmates and teachers, but Nanami was a bit special. He wasn't innately talented as Ieiri and Gojo, nor did he have such a technique as Getou. Nanami's way of fighting was simple and straightforward, and that was what Haibara found oddly impressive and kinda cool if you asked him. Nanami, on the contrary, never thought he was as amazing as Haibara saw him. Haibara returned his vision to the can, finally savoring the sweet taste of the soda in a long sip. Sometimes their lives were simply this; early warm evenings after school or missions, both of them having cloying sodas as one talked and the other heard.
A few minutes passed, and Haibara already finished the Cola. As he was just about to get up, he felt a light brush on his shoulder. As if something was about to hit him but went back. He looked at his side, Nanami was rubbing his eyes.
"Sorry, I almost fall asleep on you." His voice was relatively lower than the usual and it sounded almost nervous. Haibara didn't notice the later though.
"N-no, it's alright!" Did I stutter? His smile crooked.
"Well, let's get going already." Nanami tried to get up, but the brunet young man stopped him by holding tight onto his arm before he could even stand. Kento looked at him. Yu's eyes were shivering and his face flushed like a tomato - somehow keeping his smile.
"Nanami, I-I'm actually kind of tired from training today." Oh, how easy it was to tell he was lying. "Why don't we stay here for a while? I wanna sleep." It wasn't even a good lie, but the blond didn't have the guts to mention that he could go to his dorm to nap instead of doing it on the dusty, cold floor of that hallway. He realized the boy was probably doing it for him, Haibara was just that sweet. The blond allowed himself to tenderly grin for an instant.
"Fair. We'll stay here then."
Nanami closed his eyes, brief memories of his day crossed his mind replaying in flashes. Bitter swings, distorted voices coming from Curses and the salty taste of metal and sweat on his mouth. His thoughts were stained of gray, so colourless and harsh. All so distant to the Soda, warmth and honeyed scent on the hair of his friend, feeling the fragance on his nostrils as he inhaled. So soothing, it might actually dooze him off. The thought made him smirk. The minutes passing and the birds chirping through the windows, Kento slowly fell into slumber.
Something bumped on his side. It was Haibara who, in fact, fell asleep before the blond. It woke him up, effectively dissipating his exhaustion.
Oh Gods, he was so close. He could almost feel his breath on his throat, his fingers were almost touching his thigh too, his hair tickling his cheek, and Christ, the aroma of honey was flooding his head. The shock took him out for a solid minute. A rush of different feelings flew in his heart.
Why am I so worked up about this? Am I blushing? What if he notices my heart is beating like crazy? God, he smells so fucking good-
Suddenly, he became aware of his thoughts.
This isn't like me.
Nanami had to cover his face with his free hand. He was so embarassed. He has been thinking about Haibara in this way for so long he feels stupid he hasn't caught up until now. He never realized how much he dreams about every single aspect of him, and figuring it now is driving him crazy. But damn, how could he focus now? His respiration felt heavenly on his skin.
"Mhmm... Nanami...?" The boy stood up so quickly it dazed him.
"H-Haibara." He shouldn't splutter. Not now. "You're tired. Go to your room." Nanami offered him a hand, begging to whoever was watching upon him that his face didn't look like it was burning.
"Mmh..." The brunette rubbed his eyes and yawned, accepting the help. "Are you okay though? Your face is kinda red..." Now standing, he started stretching. "Did you rest a little bit, at least?" The boy beamed at him.
Please, don't look at me like that. Don't smile at me like that. I can't deal with it right now.
"Yeah. I'll go to my own dorm though. Make sure to catch a break."
"Got that!" The young man charismatically saluted him. "See ya' later, Nanami!" Haibara turned around and ran off waving goodbye.
Finally alone, Nanami allowed himself to fall on the wall and let go of a heavy sigh. He covered his face still blushing, feeling the candied aroma of his friend slowly fade away. It seemed enough to drive him crazy. Not here though, who knows who might appear. Dealing with Gojo now would be his end, and he wasn't gonna take the risk. At a slow pace, he decided the best place to break down thinking about his just-realized-crush-after-possibly-months was his room.