Why was this any different?
I went to the small kitchenette, pulled the electric kettle from the cupboard, and filled it with water before turning it on. That seemed to do the magic trick of waking up my guests. When I turned back to look at them, Itsuki was sitting up and stretching his long, graceful arms above his head.
My eyes immediately dropped to his smooth, pale chest. He was so thin, but so perfect. His dusky pink nipples stood out against the rest of his skin. When he pulled his hair back from his face, it really showcased just how innocent he really looked. An innocence I knew was only for show.
“Morning,” he said as he looked around the room, then grinned at the man who was still sleeping next to him. Maybe Yasu was just a deep sleeper.
Itsuki crawled from the mattress, joining me next to the kettle just as I reached into the cupboard to pull out two cups and tea bags. I showed him the box. Itsuki nodded enthusiastically, sending his now black and pink hair flying around his face. It was a static mess in the morning. I liked getting to see this different side of him.
I poured the steaming water over the tea bags, and we both stood there for a moment in silence while the tea steeped. I pulled the bags out of the water, we raised our glasses to our lips, blowing gently on the hot water before taking a small sip.
“So... that happened.” A small, playful smile spread across Itsuki’s lips. I had to fight the urge to laugh. I did not want to spray my hot tea all over his face.
I set my cup back on the counter, leaning in, placing a chaste kiss against his cheek. “It did. How do you feel about it?”
Itsuki blushed as he looked over his shoulder only to see that Yasu was finally awake, watching us. His dark hair was just as disheveled, falling into his eyes. His posture was completely tense. I couldn’t blame him for still being a bit standoffish. I’d been more than a little rough with him the night before without establishing if that was completely okay.
I didn’t wait for him to say anything. All I did was reach into the cupboard for another cup and more tea. That seemed to be the peace offering he needed, as he got up to join us.
It should have felt more awkward to have the three of us standing there in nothing but our underwear as we sipped our morning tea. When Itsuki finally cleared his throat to answer my earlier question, both Yasu and I faced him.
“Last night was—it was more than I could ever dream of.” Itsuki closed his eyes as he took another sip of his tea, that same, dreamy smile from before spreading across his angelic face.
“Itsu-chan...” Yasu furrowed his brow as he picked up his cup, but set it back down without drinking any of it. “I’m just—I’m just confused about when this all started.”
Now I was right back to feeling like I didn’t belong in the picture. These two had been friends for years, but maybe I had finally been the catalyst for them to confront their feelings.
I should have known better. Itsuki could read the shift in my mood. Though he faced his best friend, he reached behind himthreading his fingers with mine as if letting me know he was there for me just as much as he was there for Yasu.
“I’ve always felt this way, and maybe…, maybe I finally got brave enough to do something about it.”
Long, slender fingers tightened around mine as Itsuki spoke. It must have been his way of telling me that he had me to thank for his bravery.
What had I really done, though?
I’d flirted, sure. Maybe pissed off Yasu... a lot. So why the hell was I getting any of the credit? Maybe Itsuki needed the third person in the picture to say something, finally.
“Itsu—Itsu, I don’t understand.”
Itsuki sighed loudly, finally letting go of my hand to cup Yasu’s face.
“You said it yourself the other day. There was always the fear there that acting on it would mess everything up. Who wants to be the one responsible for the downfall of the band? But then Ryosuke showed up…, something about all of it just felt right.”
Warmth spread through my chest listening to Itsuki talk. He was making me feel seen, like I did actually belong.
Yasu snorted, no doubt irritated by my involvement. It sent me catapulting right back to where I’d been. This wouldn’t work if one of us didn’t want someone to be a part of things.
But that was where the conversation seemed to stop. Yasu removed Itsuki’s hands from his face after placing a gentle kiss against his lips. He finally picked up his tea, taking a sip before leaning against the counter. His stomach let out a rumble. I immediately went to my fridge to see what I had for breakfast.
I never entertained guests, so there wasn’t much food in it. I frowned as I debated what to do. This whole spur-of-the-moment thing was a huge fuck up on my part. I wasn’t winning anyone over like this. With a heavy sigh, I closed the fridge door and crossed my arms over my chest.
There was something about suddenly being so exposed in front of these two when I couldn’t provide for them that made me uneasy. Not only was my place so much smaller, but I didn’t have any food? They had to think I was incompetent somehow. It wasn’t that I didn’t have money or make as much as they did. Coming from nothing made it so that I wanted to save it all. There were too many times in my life that I’d ended up close to losing everything that I had a huge stockpile in savings.
“I don’t know what you all want to do for food, but I don’t—”
“Let’s go to Denny’s,” Itsuki chimed in happily.
I looked between the three of us, still standing there in our underwear. While I had clothes for myself, the other two only had what they’d worn the day before. Logically, I could let them borrow something of mine, but Itsuki would swim in everything and Yasu had broader shoulders, so there was no guarantee that anything would fit him.
