It was a perfectly normal Friday—until it wasn't.
Aoi was standing outside his classroom, talking to a classmate. A boy. A little too close. A little too smiley.
Shuu, now in his second year of college and visiting the school for the first time in weeks, spotted him from across the courtyard.
He blinked.
Then he squinted.
Then he frowned.
Who the hell is that guy?
He wasn't mad. Not really.
Just… confused. Curious. Slightly irritated?
Okay. Fine. Maybe he was a little jealous.
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Aoi noticed him a few minutes later, just as he waved goodbye to his classmate.
"Shuu!"
He lit up the way he always did, running toward him with that soft smile that always made Shuu's heart skip.
Shuu crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. "New friend?"
Aoi tilted his head. "Hm?"
"That guy. Tall, dark hair, laughed way too hard at whatever you said."
Aoi blinked, then laughed gently. "That's just Yuuto-kun. He was helping me find a club to join."
Shuu narrowed his eyes. "He always smile at you like that?"
Aoi gave him a look. "You're being weird."
"I'm not being weird. I'm being observant," Shuu huffed, turning away slightly. "I'm just saying, if someone smiles at you like that, they're probably into you."
Aoi blinked, then turned pink.
"…I don't think he is."
Shuu glanced back at him, eyes a little narrowed, a little pouty. "Well, he better not be."
Aoi laughed again, quietly, then leaned up to gently bump his head against Shuu's shoulder. "Are you… jealous?"
"Pfft. What? No. Me? Jealous of a teenage boy?"
Aoi just stared at him.
Shuu cracked. "Okay, maybe a little. I mean, look at you."
Aoi blinked. "What about me?"
"You're cute. Quiet. You look like a Studio Ghibli love interest. And you're mine."
Aoi blushed so hard he almost dropped his bag. "Shuu!"
Shuu stepped closer, voice low and teasing. "What? Am I wrong?"
"You're being embarrassing…"
Shuu smiled and brushed Aoi's bangs out of his eyes. "Good. I like embarrassing you. Makes it easier to tell when you're mine."
"I've always been yours…" Aoi muttered under his breath, looking down.
Shuu froze for a second, a little stunned by how soft that hit. Then he let out a slow breath and gently pulled Aoi into a hug.
"…You have no idea how much I missed you."
Aoi nodded into his chest. "I did too."
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Later, when they walked home together, Shuu made Aoi promise to always text him first if someone confessed.
Aoi looked up at him with a shy smile.
"Even if the only person I want to confess to me… already has?"
Shuu's ears turned red. "Okay, you win this time."