Oh My God, They Were Roommates

[ 26 ] Smooth

Two days went by before Killua realized that Gon was intentionally avoiding him. At first he assumed Gon was sleeping in—the guy did have a car, anyway, so he could afford to take his time without fear of missing his bus—but then he came home from his second shift at the Phantom and caught the tail end of Gon escaping into his bedroom for the night.

Killua hesitated, half-inside the apartment, half-out. Clearly, Gon had heard his key turn and in the five seconds it took Killua to get inside, Gon had scooped up all of his class work into his arms and made a run for his bedroom.

It's fine , Killua told himself as he shut the door. In the end it was better that I got it off my chest—I just wish I would have let him know that I wasn't a creep. Not that... I should have to reiterate that...

He shook his head as he slipped off his shoes. He locked the door behind him and tossed his duffle near the laundry door. He felt greasy and crusty from work and shut himself up in the bathroom for a thorough fifteen minute shower. It was his usual timing, something that Gon knew all too well. It gave him approximately fifteen minutes to pack up the food he prepped that evening and stuff it into the refrigerator.

He wasn't fast enough.

Killua emerged from the bathroom before Gon could escape. Gon turned like a deer caught in headlights, but instead of headlights, he was caught in the angelic glow of Killua, freshly cleaned and sporting nothing but a black towel and his used clothes clutched to his stomach.

They both stared at one another until Killua did a habitual thing: He gestured to himself and said, "Like what ya see?" like he was in the locker room with Kurapika.

Gon went bright red. Killua had never seen someone's skintone snap like that before.

Gon nearly dropped the container in his hands on his way to the fridge, holding it up as he said, "TH-THIS IS FOR YOU!" before shoving it onto Killua's shelf and making a break for his bedroom, eyes on the ground.

Gon gasped in relief as he slumped against his closed bedroom door. His heart was in rapid motion the past two days, and the momentum with which it took off Sunday night sent it blasting off into space. And if Gon knew anything about the laws of physics, it was that his heart would keep going, spiraling through space and time, until it was caught in the orbit of something far greater than itself.

Or until it smacked straight into an oncoming object. That too.

There was only one person he could talk to about this, so he made plans with them that very next day. There, amongst the chaos of tourists and carnival games, Gon confided in Kurapika.

"I don't know how much longer I can survive this!" Gon whined, full of dread and sinking against the floorboards of Fisherman's Wharf. He had a funnelcake in hand and his fist raised to the clouds, crying, "Curse you, Aphrodite!"

"Yeah, fuck Aphrodite. Making two men fall in love with this bastard," Kurapika said, putting a middle finger to the Bay. He drank from his reusable coke bottle that was now tinged with Malibu on a Tuesday evening. He propped a hand behind him, crossing his legs at the ankles as he studied Gon's profile. Gon pouted, scowling out at the sea lions. There weren't as many out and about that early in the season, but those that populated the docks were barking and sunning themselves in what minimal light broke through the clouds.

It smelled like salt, sewage, and cotton candy, but at least the funnelcakes were oh-so delicious and powdery in Gon's mouth. He popped a piece in his mouth and sighed. "He has to be kidding, right? I mean, we're roommates and I'm... me . I'm not—I'm not..."