Fangs (Leon x Raihan)

Chapter 7

Taken by surprise, Leon didn't respond for a few moments. When he did, his nerves were apparent.

"Well, I mean," he stuttered, "Yeah, of course-"

Raihan didn't wait any longer. Pulling Leon close, he leaned down and their lips touched.

Surprisingly, Raihan's lips were quite soft.

Finally, Leon realized that this was what he had wanted- Raihan with him, so close that Leon could feel his heart beating. Almost disappointed that it had taken this long, Leon decided to just enjoy the moment while it lasted. He leaned into Raihan's embrace, leaned into the dream. At that moment, the kiss felt like it would last forever.

Unfortunately, it was cut short by an indignant purple-haired teen.

"Get a room, you two!"

Breaking away, Leon drew breath and paused. It hit him- what he had done- Arceus, he had just kissed Raihan. Oddly, he had the thought to apologize.

"Sorry,"

And there was barely a tenth of a second before Raihan snapped back.

"The hell are you apologizing for? Except for maybe being bad at kissing?"

Leon didn't know that it was possible for his face to get more red. Raihan laughed at his bewildered expression.

"Well, you'll get better. I'll make sure of it."

A Month Later

Leon had been worrying about this day for what felt like a long time. Actually, it had been about a week since he started planning this. All of the gym leaders would be in attendance, as would Sonia and Magnolia. Hop, Gloria, and the other Galar kids insisted on coming along as well. In fact, the only person he'd invited that wasn't coming was Chairman Rose.

Grabbing his coat and tossing it on quickly, he picked up his Rotom Phone and slipped it into his pocket. Then, he set out to meet the rest.

When he got to Hammerlocke Stadium, he waited outside the door for a moment, then summoned up his courage to enter. He walked inside to find that almost everyone was there already- only Sonia was missing.

"Hey-hey, the man of the hour!" Raihan greeted him with a cheeky grin and a hug. After a few minutes of pleasantries, Raihan waved Leon up to a makeshift stage that he had set up earlier. Everyone's eyes turned to him.

"Ah- Hi, everyone. I'm so glad you could make it. I-"

And then the words left his mouth. Funny, he could make a speech in a stadium full of people from across the entire region, but he couldn't manage a tiny sentence to his close friends.

He felt a touch on his shoulder. When he looked over, Raihan was smiling at him.

"I've got it," he whispered, then stepped forward.

"We're dating."

The only person who seemed genuinely surprised was Milo, whose jaw dropped immediately.

"I'm shocked," Piers muttered, his voice dripping heavy with sarcasm. A few other leaders nodded,

"Oh, so you-"

"Of course we knew, you bloody idiot! You're not exactly good at hiding it!"

Before either one of the couple could get a word in, Milo wrapped them up in an almost suffocating hug. "I'm so happy for you!"

After the hug ended, many customary congratulations and compliments were passed around. Make no mistake, Leon was wonderfully happy, but something felt off without Sonia there. He figured he'd ask.

"Has anybody seen Sonia?"

The other gym leaders seemed at a loss. Nessa shook her head, snickering.

"Always running late, that one. She'll be here any minute."

A few seconds later, the door slammed open, and Sonia burst in, breathing heavily.

"Speak of the devil," Nessa said, smiling.

"What'd I miss?"

Before anyone could fill her in, Raihan leaned over and kissed Leon, quick and sweet. Surprised, Sonia gasped, which quickly turned into a giggle and then a full blown laugh.

"Took ya long enough!" she cried, obviously overjoyed.

Leon smiled, the kind of smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes. The party continued around him. Hop was talking to Gloria about the gym challenge. Piers and Nessa were discussing the various ways they knew of Raihan and Leon's relationship before it was announced. Milo was hugging anyone nearby.

At that moment, with his friends celebrating around him and his boyfriend so close, everything felt just right.