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Humming a cheery tune to himself as the rain clouds diminished and gave way to the sun, Haibara strolled to the vending machine to grab a snack, breathing in the fresh air that rain always brought with it. Turning the corner, he saw Gojo sitting alone on a plastic chair with a bag of gummies in hand, basking in the warm rays.
“Oh, hi Gojo!” Haibara waved, skipping past Gojo and coming to a halt in front of the machine. “Can I get you anything?”
“I’m good, thanks,” Gojo smiled, raising his candy for Haibara to see.
Haibara nodded and smiled back, feeling his cheeks flush a bit. Gojo was always boisterous when other people were around, either constantly picking on Nanami or talking Geto and Shoko’s ears off, but when alone with Haibara, he tended to mellow out, all his words and actions turning soft and gentle. Haibara thought of himself as an idiot for reading too much into his upperclassman’s actions, but he couldn’t help how it made his nerves jitter every time, knowing he was treated a bit differently.
Turning his attention to the machine, he gave the selection a quick scan, eventually deciding on some banana milk. Putting the coins in and receiving his drink, he went to stand in front of Gojo, looking for the other chair that was usually there.
“Ah, Shoko stole it and took it to her smoke spot,” Gojo tutted, popping a handful of candies into his mouth.
Haibara crouched down to touch the cement. It wasn’t too wet, but it would definitely leave a stain on his clothes if he were to sit down. Seeing what Haibara was doing, Gojo patted his thighs, peering at Haibara from over the rim of his sunglasses.
“Sit here.”
Limbs going stiff, Haibara stood up and started fidgeting with the drink, picking at the plastic straw as his eyes shifted from looking at Gojo to the ground.
“Are you sure? I’m a bit heavy.”
“More to love!” Gojo beamed.
When Gojo kept signaling for him to come hither, Haibara gave a nervous smile and went to sit awkwardly on top of Gojo, not letting his feet leave the concrete and putting all his weight on them.
“Haibara, I’m not a chair. Sit like this,” Gojo snorted, pulling on Haibara’s waist to reposition him.
“Th-that’s not-“ Haibara squirmed, his protest lost in a gasp.
The speed with which Gojo effortlessly maneuvered him around left Haibara breathless, now finding himself pressed against Gojo’s chest with his feet up in the air, nestled securely in Gojo’s lap. As Haibara curled in on himself, Gojo craned his neck to look underneath Haibara’s bangs, offering a gentle smile.
“I don’t bite y’know, I’m not Nanami.”
“Nanami doesn’t bite!” Haibara perked up, the need to defend his friend far outweighing his nervousness.
Gojo laughed, then bringing his hand up, he prodded Haibara’s cheek with his index finger.
“You’re blushing so much, were you always this shy?”
Haibara put his chin down again and sat still in Gojo’s lap, feeling like his heart was going to jump out of his chest. It was always like this when they were alone, Haibara read too much into Gojo’s actions and found himself immobilized, a clear contrast to his otherwise cheery mood.
“Haibara,” Gojo murmured, “do you like me?”
What started out as a shake quickly turned into a rapid nod. Haibara had never been good at lying, especially not to people he thought of so highly. Gojo leaned back in the chair and Haibara heard him hum as if deep in thought. When Haibara dared to peek up, his eyes met Gojo’s, a look of tenderness that he’d seldom seen in Gojo before.
“Can I kiss you?”
If possible, Haibara became even more flustered, fingers digging into his thighs as he gave a quiet ‘yes’ in response. Gojo huffed, then captured Haibara’s face in his hands and leaned in, softly pressing his lips against Haibara’s. It was surprisingly tender for someone who could crush people with just a twist of his fingers, leaving Haibara’s pulse beating loudly in his ears when they broke apart.
“Oh man, you’re adorable,” Gojo snickered before he leaned back to stretch his arms out, giving a loud grunt. “Class is about to start, I should go.”
Haibara hopped out of Gojo’s lap and wobbled on the spot for a second. All the questions racing in his head made him dizzy, leading him to do nothing but stare blankly ahead of him as Gojo smoothed out his clothes. Noticing Haibara’s silence, Gojo brought his hand up and swept Haibara’s fringe aside.
“You don’t have to think so hard about it, okay?” Gojo reassured.
“Oh, yeah,” Haibara blinked, leaning into the touch.
“Cool, now let’s go before Yaga loses it.”
As if on cue, an angry shout was heard from somewhere on the premise. Gojo turned to where the sound was coming from with a frown, rolling his eyes and sighing loudly. Haibara couldn’t help but laugh at Gojo’s expression, and Gojo winked at him in return. Spinning on the spot, Gojo flung an arm over Haibara’s shoulders, giving him a tight squeeze as they started marching toward the main building.
“If he asks why I’m late, tell him I was teaching you something really cool.”
“I can’t lie to Yaga,” Haibara quipped.
“Not even for me?” Gojo pouted, batting his eyelashes.
“I’m really bad at lying.”
Laughing, Gojo pressed a quick kiss to the top of Haibara’s hair before ruffling it, making him giggle.
“Oh trust me, I know.”