Hetakuso || ギヴン

Part Two

The day seemed to go by fairly slowly - he hadn’t seen Uenoyama yet, and his thoughts were consumed by curiosity and anxiousness. Finally, the lesson ended. Usually Mafuyu would take a nap over breaktime, but right now he just wanted to find his partner. He headed straight to the classroom, peeking in. Yet the seat where Uenoyama sat lay empty - even the bag was gone. He felt his heart sink, before letting his mind wander to what his boyfriend may be doing. He turned to leave when Ueki noticed him, and came walking over. Mafuyu plucked up the courage, before talking to his companion.
     "Have you seen Uenoyama-kun? I haven't seen him all morning."
      Ueki looked confused for a moment, before shaking his head. Mafuyu's freshly risen hopes fell once more - where exactly was Uenoyama, if not with his friends or Mafuyu?
     "We all thought he was with you - he came in late this morning, which is most likely why he didn't see you earlier. He muttered something about music before he left, so we all assumed he was with you."
     Mafuyu thanked Ueki, turning down his request to sit with Ueki. Uenoyama was clearly busy with something, and so maybe it was best to leave Uenoyama alone to work. Clearly it was important, otherwise Uenoyama would have waited for Mafuyu. The latter gave in, walking back to his classroom and resting his head on the table - sleep was drowned out by anxious thoughts, and so Mafuyu simply rested until the teacher returned, and the lesson began once more. 

Uenoyama looked at the clock, realising with a jolt he was late once more. He quickly gathered the notes he had scattered haphazardly around the music room, stuffing them into his bag in a disorderly fashion. He ran to class, sitting next to his classmates as quietly as he could so as not to disturb the rest of the class. He sighed, feeling his heart slow down. 
      Now he was in class, he silently cursed himself - he had been planning on talking to Mafuyu, as he was still worried after the pale-looking photo he received, but his boyfriend had already left by the time he made it to his classroom at break, and he had got so distracted with his music that he ran out of time to find Mafuyu before lessons began once more.
    He realised he was being kicked under the table - he glared at Ueki, before realising the teacher had asked him a question. Ueki was trying to warn him.
     "Sorry teacher, can you repeat the question?"
     Uenoyama translated the phrase into English after being scolded by the teacher, and sat down once more. He slightly turned to Ueki, who was whispering.
     "You've been out of it all week. Are you okay?"
     Uenoyama nodded, indicating that everything was okay. He checked the teacher was occupied before returning to the conversation.
    "I've been busy with a… project, is all."
     Ueki looked at his friend with a scrutinising gaze for a moment, before accepting it as the truth. Uenoyama was a bad liar, he was telling the truth - at least, some of it.
     "By the way, did you find Mafuyu? He was looking for you."
     Uenoyama looked surprised for a moment - it made sense. Mafuyu must have left to find him, and they somehow passed each other. He shook his head at Ueki, which his friend sighed to. The project must be very consuming, Ueki thought, to keep the two lovers apart. The boys then returned their attention to class, with Uenoyama now feeling more concerned about Mafuyu, and determined to find him.

It had finally reached lunch, and Uenoyama set off, taking his food with him to find his boyfriend. He hadn't been able to concentrate in class, and his desperation to make sure Mafuyu was okay was ever growing. Once again, the light-haired boy was missing from the classroom, so Uenoyama asked one of his classmates if they'd seen him.
     "Sorry, he left on his own earlier - he seemed pretty tired. I hope you find him."
     An idea suddenly stuck him - whenever Mafuyu was tired, he always went to one spot. He bowed in thanks, before walking down the corridor, hoping his instinct was right. He found himself speeding up, until he arrived, breathless, before the stairs. There at the top was a sleeping Mafuyu, holding the guitar close to him, just like that day they had first met.
     He slowly walked up the stairs, careful not to disturb his boyfriend, who seemed to be sleeping so peacefully. He sat down, unintentionally staring at Mafuyu's restful face. He didn't realise how much he'd missed his boyfriend until now. He gently brushed away some hair that had fallen onto Mafuyu's face, then stroked the side of the sleeping boy's face. His mind wandered to the day Mafuyu had a fever after their performance - he'd been so flustered that day, and never imagined he'd be where he was now. 
     He was snapped back to reality as Mafuyu's eyelashes flustered, before looking up at Uenoyama. Mafuyu slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes a little. He gave a small smile, which made Uenoyama's heart race a little faster.
     "Hello,. Were you looking for me?"
     The person in question felt flustered for a moment, covering his face with his hand in a subtle attempt to hide his sudden, aggressive blush. 
     "I couldn't find you at break - then someone said you looked sleepy, so… I looked for you here. Is everything okay? You could've messaged me if you wanted to find me."
     Mafuyu looked surprised, still looking quite tired. He opened his messages, before looking embarrassed for a moment.
     "You didn't reply yesterday and I… um…"
     Uenoyama took the initiative right away - very rarely had the boy looked like this - whenever Mafuyu was anxious, his speech broke off, and he seemed uncomfortable. Uenoyama hugged Mafuyu, feeling the latter relax and almost melt into the hug. After a moment or two, they separated, Mafuyu looking considerably happier.
     "I didn't want to disturb you - I thought that you'd be busy if you were already gone from the classroom, and that you'd need to focus. You seemed like you didn't have much time to spare so…"
     Uenoyama looked flustered once more, but a flick of determination came across his concerned eyes.
     "I'll always have time for you, no matter what."
     Mafuyu looked almost instantaneously at ease, although some doubts still stuck in Mafuyu's mind. After what happened with Yuki, there'd always be some hesitation within him, but his heart was put at ease for now. Meanwhile, Uenoyama was now blushing, surprised at his own confidence. Part of him still retained this energy, and he utilised it, leaning in to kiss Mafuyu, who was surprised but still pleased regardless. 
     The two ate their lunch together, enjoying the time they finally had together. It put Mafuyu's heart at ease, and his fears seemed to disappear. The firey loneliness he felt had quenched significantly now. 
     "What work have you been doing? I'm sure it's good."
     Uenoyama looked thoughtful for a moment, before shaking his head.
     "I can't tell you yet, but you'll find out soon enough."
     Mafuyu looked curious, but decided not to press further. He trusted Uenoyama completely, even if there was the occasional doubt. 
     Finally, lunch break was almost over. The two boys stood up, before Mafuyu turned to his boyfriend.
     "Are you free after classes?"
     There was an almost childlike innocence in Mafuyu's eyes, an excitement in them that Uenoyama cherished. The latter blushed a little.
     "I have plans for later, but why don't we go out for dinner for a few hours?"
     Mafuyu nodded, positively beaming, accepting the proposition. He felt much more confident as he walked to his classroom, even though there was a nagging doubt, one which would soon come to overtake him.