Chapter Text
Mitsuki balanced a pencil on his knuckles as he watched the boy across from him attempt to solve the math equations on his homework sheet. The afternoon sun slanted through east-facing windows, painting the walls golden, and Mitsuki couldn't believe the sheer amount of body-building paraphernalia crowding the small room. No wonder they always met at his place; there was nothing here. Well, maybe that was an exaggeration.
The room was sparse, almost spartan, but there was a distinct flair of Tsugeura Taiga everywhere, from the exercise equipment organized in the corner beneath the window sill to the portable DVD player tucked in a crowded shelf filled with self-help and at-home workout videos. The wrestler figurines and piggy banks atop his dressers were admittedly cute—niche, but cute—like their owner.
Mitsuki propped his elbow on the table, resting his cheek against his hand with a smile as Tsugeura quickly scribbled down an answer before turning the page toward Mitsuki with crinkled eyes and a cheek-raising grin. Tipping his head against his palm, Mitsuki slanted a roaming eye across the handout, counting the eraser markings with a throaty hum.
At least Tsugeura was learning to use his attention to detail for something other than formulating next week's workout regimen. A smile quirked at Mitsuki’s lips as he flipped his pencil into his hand with a flourish, then drew a lead flower next to the problem before handing it back to him.
"Good job, Taiga-chan."
It took a second, but something warm curls in Mitsuki’s chest when those brown eyes stared at him like he was the center of the world. "Did you just.."
Mitsuki teased, "Well, we are dating. Do you think we're not close enough for that?"
"That's not it," Taiga-chan said, turning his face away slightly while scratching his cheek with one crooked finger. "It's just different coming from you, is all."
Mitsuki opened his mouth to ask when he noticed the slight flush to the tip of Taiga-chan's ears. The little curling warmth in his chest roared like the thrill of finding a hidden side mission promising to grant him a wonderful reward. And he’d never been one to shy from a challenge.
Over the next few days, Mitsuki tried every manner of Taiga-chan's name he could.
On Monday, he came over to sit beside the window sill where Taiga-chan did his morning pull-ups and yawned, "Good morning, Tai-chan.."
Sandals slapped against the floor, and when he looked up, Tai-chan stared at him with open wonder and a slight flush to his cheeks. They weren’t alone; a few stragglers trickled in before the morning assembly, but it was sparse enough that Mitsuki didn’t feel too bad about sharing Tai-chan's dazzling grin as he said, "Morning, Kiryū-kun."
On Tuesday, Mitsuki offered one of Cactus' yakisoba. Tai-chan's eyes lit up as he opened the packaging after giving him a loud thanks. While watching his boyfriend eat, Mitsuki figured there was no one around to potentially interrupt him while they hung out behind the utility shed near the gym, so he leaned his head against Tai-chan's arm and said, "You're welcome, Tacchan."
The sudden hiccough jolted him upright. Tacchan beat his fist against his chest before desperately grabbing his banana milk, and Mitsuki did his best not to laugh at him for the rest of the day, remembering his scarlet-red face.
On Wednesday, Mitsuki sidled close to Tacchan during the break with a cheerful call of "Taiga!" snickering at the sputter from their class captain. And Taiga's face would deepen in color around his nose, mouth going slack around the water bottle he held. Then, he would smile in that adoringly gentle way he did when it was only the two of them. If Mitsuki had been less of a person, he might have asked him never to show that face again in public - but he didn't care too much.
Seeing Taiga smile was a gift in itself.
But once Thursday rolled around, Mitsuki realized his classmates had finally caught on to his little game. After all, no one could miss the way Sakura-chan was acting around the two of them lately. But to his dismay, Taiga had yet to show, and while he answered Mitsuki’s texts - there was no sign of him. It wasn’t as if Mitsuki couldn’t handle a bit of teasing; after all, he knew many of the class’ secrets, too - but he at least wanted to see Taiga's face.
The classroom door slid open, and he glanced up in time to see Taiga step through. A little disheveled, with light scratch marks on his calves, he was beaming from ear to ear as he greeted everyone. Immediately, the tide of attention shifted to questions of his whereabouts, and Mitsuki caught bits and pieces of a story about rescuing a cat and being attacked by strays.
Before anyone could ask why stray cats would attack Taiga, of all people, Taiga searched the room and locked eyes with Mitsuki.
"Morning, Mitsuki!" He called, and somewhere nearby, Sakura-chan sucked in a hoarse gasp.
Mitsuki felt the eyes on him, the snickering imitations of his name, but they diminished immediately. In the back of his mind, he knows it's likely because of Suo-chan. Who else could effortlessly control a room full of rowdy, immature boys?
But —
"Mitsuki, you feeling alright? Your face is red."
Mitsuki startled at the hand on his shoulder, looking into Taiga's concerned gaze. When was he quiet enough to sit beside him without him noticing?
Taiga cocked his head, worry twitching at his lips. “.. Mitsuki?”
Mitsuki sighed, his chair scraping against the floor as he wrapped his fingers around Taiga's and stood up. “Let’s go treat your legs, Taiga.”
“Huh? Oh, right.”
Thankfully, the cuts on Taiga’s legs were so shallow that antiseptic and bandaids were all they needed. But no one else needed to know that; after all, Mitsuki was savoring his reward in private as he kissed Taiga thrice while sweetly mumbling his name.