We Are Never On The Same Page - Sk8 the Infinity [Joe x Cherry]

6. I Don't Mind

January 14, 2009

D̶e̶a̶r̶ ̶K̶a̶o̶r̶u̶,

̶H̶e̶y̶,̶ ̶K̶a̶o̶r̶u̶!̶

To Kaoru,

I'll just go out and say it, because I don't really know any other way to go about this.

̶I̶'̶m̶ ̶p̶r̶e̶t̶t̶y̶ ̶s̶u̶r̶e̶, I'm sure I'm in love with you.

You could make fun of me for this later, but then you'd be insulting yourself, too. Hah.

This is how I feel and I'm wondering if maybe you feel the same way?

We spend all of our time together and I can't think of a single other person that I am so completely, totally at home with.

I'm not telling you this to necessarily change anything about our relationship.

I'm telling you that I love you because I know even if you don't return my feelings like that, we won't stop being friends. It would hurt me more to be dishonest with you.

No matter what, we care about each other. That's the most important thing about you and I.

I'll always be here for you. And I know you'll be here for me.

Love,

Joe

Kojiro roughly shoved the letter into the back of his school uniform pocket. His hands were sweaty. He was completely sweaty. His whole body had taken on the quality of sweat and nerves and a general illness that made him want to stay in bed for weeks and never see his stupidly beautiful best friend again.

But even the sarcastic thought of never seeing Kaoru made his heart hurt.

It had to happen. Kojiro needed to tell him almost as much as he needed to breathe. His Kaoru Condition had only been worsening over the last couple months.

It had started one day when they were outskating some angry security guards with Adam, and Kaoru had turned back to smile at him. Kojiro had looked at his mouth, the movement of his lips, and thought, "Wow, I would totally kiss him."

The desire to kiss him was soon complimented by wanting to hold his hand, and the idea of holding his hand brought on some very embarrassing and questionable teenage boy dreams, which later evolved into purer but more elaborate fantasies about growing old together in the Italian countryside.

After Kojiro decided that it was, perhaps, not normal to want to makeout and start a vineyard with his best friend, his feelings became overwhelmingly clear to him.

The key statement was overwhelming. Kaoru spoke, Kojiro turned red. Kaoru so much as looked at him, Kojiro's stomach turned into complicated knots. It was embarrassing.

He was flying and he was falling. It was the first love of his life. He saw everything in shades of gold. The world ached with him. The songs on the radio made sense.

Each moment spent with Kaoru was filled with joy, possibility, the big "What If?"

Kojiro had really, truly, scientifically examined the prospect that Kaoru maybe, possibly could like him back.

Lately, Kaoru was more flustered, more giddy. He forgot things, even his schoolwork, but he would just laugh it off in a dreamy kind of haze.

The most suspicious change was that Kaoru was being nice. It seemed like he was over compensating, covering something up. There was some kind of secret buried in him, and it was making him happy.