Operation Love Life

Burning Waterfalls- Part 1

One thing Yoichi loved about sleeping was dreaming.

The act itself never failed to confuse him. It was like indirectly filming your own whacky Netflix series that you'll save to your Watch Later playlist and never remember it exists. Truly baffling.

Nevertheless, Yoichi dreamed.

He felt warm. Not the hot, sticky kind of warmth, but more like the soft, summer's breeze kind of warm.

Colours of all variety swarmed all around him, as if the horizon and the ground were attempting to merge into one. He couldn't exactly tell where on earth he was, or if he even was on Earth. All he knew was that he liked this place.

The ground he laid on was soft and solid to the touch, almost sand-like. He could hear the splash of waves, despite the lack of a water source. The smell of the air was fresh, familiar.

Yoichi hadn't even noticed a presence beside him until he looked the other way. Another man laid at his left, eyes closed as he basked in the invisible sun. Golden skin, forked eyebrows, vibrant red hair and yellow streaks.

Taiga.

Dream Taiga had noticed he was staring, fluttering his eyes open to stare back at Yoichi's violet ones.

They were the most unique shade of red he'd ever seen. Amber orange turning to a hot fire red and then a dark maroon, rings surrounding his irises. A heartwarming fire blazing in his eyes.

Yoichi couldn't bring himself to look away, or even say anything at all. He just stared. Dream Taiga chose to stay silent too, giving him an equally intense glare.

And despite the very... strange staring contest, Yoichi just felt calm. He listened to the crashing waves, the colours swirling on behind them as he kept his gaze deeply locked with Taiga's own.

Dream Taiga gave him a smile, the tip of his elongated canine extruding from the bottom of his lip. It was the smile he got when it was only him and Yoichi, those times when they had private talks in the safety of his cabin during movie night. Almost as if it was saved just for him.

A different type of warmth bloomed in Yoichi's chest. The feeling wasn't unfamiliar. He recognised it from when he was younger.

He got it when Yoshi played with him on the monkey bars. He remembered it when he and Aiden baked together. He felt it when he and Yuri filled in colouring books. He knew it from when Goro let him sit in his lap as they drove on his motorcycle.

He knew this feeling.

He felt... safe. With Taiga, he felt safe.

He saw could see Dream Taiga move his mouth, yet no sound emerged. Yoichi scooted closer.

Dream Taiga spoke again. Still no sound. Yoichi got even closer.

At this point his face was millimetres away from Taiga's. Yoichi zoned his hearing in, closely watching Taiga's mouth.

Dream Taiga inhaled a breath. He parted his lips.

"Wake UP, YOICHI!"

Yoichi startled awake, eyes shooting open as he struggled not to flounder off the bed. His blurry vision cleared, his gaze landing on the source of his abrupt awakening. Taiga hovered above him, a humoured grin spread across his face.

"Jeez, you sleep like a log. Get up sleepyhead! We got a camping trip to head to."

"Sleeping bags?"

"Check!"

"Tents?"

"Got it!"

"Cooking supplies?"