5WIRL + Wanderer COLLAB!!!

Chapter 12

  Venti was napping on the beanbag, laying on his stomach. Xiao was sitting beside him holding an ice pack to his neck.
  Heizou was braiding Aether's hair as Aether was braiding Kazuha's hair. Everyone had collectively decided that they deserved a lazy day.
  Kunikuzushi was laying on his back beside Venti, his hands clasped over his stomach like he were in a casket.
  Xiao was also on his phone at the moment. "Have you guys looked at our ranking recently? Ever since we made the announcement about the collab our numbers have been going up."
  "Of course they would," Heizou flipped his hair dramatically, "I'm a genius!"
  Aether giggled and Kazuha held in a laugh.
  "I think people are onto Venti and I..." Xiao said slowly as he looked over at the dumb-dumb laying beside him.
  Heizou snorted, "I'm surprised no one's said anything about it sooner!"
  Xiao sighed quietly, "Venti needs to be a little more self conscious when we're in public... I know our company's small and probably can't afford to disband us, but still... I worry..."
  Aether reached over and put his hand on Xiao's arm with a bright smile, "I believe that Venti will do what's right."
  "You always know exactly what to say," Xiao squeezed his hand with a thankful nod.
  Kazuha wanted to let the wholesome moment wash over him. But he was so nervous. He had even taken an extra anxiety med this morning! And yet here he was, his right leg refusing to stop bouncing!
  Aether slid his arms under Kazuha's and hugged him tightly. He squeezed him as tightly as he possibly could, "think about happy things!"
  Kazuha laughed, "like what???"
  "Like puppies and kittens and children falling on their faces!"
  "That last one is a little concerning," Kazuha said nervously.
  "It's just something Lumine always says," Aether shrugged.
  "Hey, how come Kazuha gets all the hugs?" Heizou sounded offended and neglected.
  Xiao looked over at Kunikuzushi, then whispered, "do you think he fell asleep? He hasn't said anything in a long time..."
  "He looks dead," Heizou leaned over.
  "Don't say that," Aether giggled.
  "I guess even super stars get worn out," Xiao shrugged.
  "Of course, he's human too..." Kazuha said quietly.
  Xiao reached over Venti and poked Kunikuzushi's arm. He didn't react. Then Xiao smiled, "if Venti were awake he would say we should draw on his face."
  Heizou gasped, "we should!"
  "Absolutely not," Xiao pushed him off the bean bag.
  "Aw, come on! Why not?!"
  "Because it's rude," Xiao folded his arms.
  Heizou sighed as he stood up, "fine... Hey, Kazuha~"
  "What?" He worriedly turned to look at him.
  "You know, Kuni's sleeping right now..." he looked between the two of them as he sat back down.
  "Yeah..." Kazuha didn't like where this was going...
  "He's, ya know, *vulnerable* right now~"
  Kazuha instantly got three shades pinker.
  "Don't say it like that or I'll push you off again," Xiao threatened.
  Heizou laughed nervously, "okay, okay, I was just saying..."
  "Just saying *what*?" Xiao narrowed his eyes.
  "Just saying that a little kiss never hurt anyone~~~"
  Kazuha covered his burning face, unable to say anything.
  Aether pat Kazuha on the head, trying to comfort him.
  Xiao just sighed, "you're impossible. They aren't even together, Heizou. You shouldn't say things like that."
  Venti grumbled as he woke up, "say things like what?..." He smacked his lips as he rolled over.
  Xiao moved the ice pack to the side, "morning."
  Venti yawned, "what time is it?"
  Xiao looked at his watch, "time for lunch."
  "Yay... food..." Venti laid back down.
  "Venti, I was only saying that since Kuni is asleep that Kazuha has an opportunity to kiss him," Heizou explained.
  "Ohhh," Venti yawned again, "okay... Why can't Heizou say that?"
  "Because it's insensitive and perverse," Xiao folded his arms.
  "Hm? I don't think so? I kiss you all the time when you're asleep?" Venti tilted his head to the side.
  Xiao's eyes widened, "what?"
  "Yeah..." Venti started to get nervous, "is that bad?... you just have a very kissable face..."
  Xiao looked somewhat disturbed, "uh..."
  Venti buried his face in the beanbag, "just forget I said anything!!!"
  Heizou laughed, "wow, Venti! You really just snitched on yourself!!!"
  "Shut up!" Venti pouted.
  "I..." Xiao was at a loss for words.
  "Go on, Kazuha, your princess is waiting for her True Love's Kiss~" Heizou teased.
  Kazuha shook his head, "Kuni isn't the princess..."
  Heizou blinked, "huh?!"
  "I mean-" Kazuha shook his head, returning his face to his hands.
  Aether giggled, "Kuni does seem more of the knight type than he does a damsel."
  Heizou agreed, "now that I think about it, yeah. Kazuha, go to sleep so Kuni can kiss you!"
  Kazuha shook his head profusely, sinking into his sweater as a tactical retreat.
  "Aw, come onnn, it would be so cuteeee!" Heizou reasoned.
  "Yeah!" Venti sat up, "very cute and not creepy at all!"
  Xiao kneaded his forehead, "I..."
  Aether laughed, having to lay down to keep from falling off the beanbag.
  Kazuha felt like he was Alice falling into Wonderland... His mind kept spiraling...
  What was he going to do about this?! He absolutely could not kiss Kuni! That was not an option at all!!! But... would Kuni kiss Kazuha?... Kazuha wouldn't mind if Kuni kissed him... and Kuni did seem to like him back... Kuni had even suggested Kazuha should kiss his crush if they were so clueless... Did that mean...?
  No! No, it couldn't! Kazuha shouldn't think like that! But... If Kuni's hands were so soft and perfect...
  No! That was even worse!!!
  Aether rubbed Kazuha's back gently, "don't let Heizou bully you into anything."
  Kazuha peeked out of his sweater cave, "I won't..." He lowered his voice, "I've been trying to tell Kuni how I feel, but right when I'm about to I just freeze and can't do anything..."
  "Don't worry, I know you'll be able to say it when the time is right. Don't try to rush it," Aether smiled. "I know Kuni's got a lot going on right now, too."
  Kazuha blinked, "oh yeah, you guys are pretty close, right? Then..." He turned and took Aether's hands tightly, "please tell me how to win his heart!"
  Aether was shocked. "Bwa-huh?!"
  "I can't tell what he likes at all! And he's even told me that he's never been in love! I have nothing to work with, Aether!" Kazuha held on tighter, "please! Help me!"
  Aether paused, "oh, well, I don't think I'll be much help..."
  "Please, I'll take what I can get," Kazuha pleaded.
  Aether took a deep breath, "well... Kuni and I have never really spoken about romance, so I can't really say what he would like..."
  Kazuha melted into a depressed heap, "I'm doomed..."
  "But doesn't he like you already?" Heizou asked.
  Kazuha paused, "I don't know.... But he... he keeps calling me an Angel so..."
  "Bro," Heizou laughed, "he's mad flirting!"
  "That's what I thought... but we've not really had any... romantic moments... Or at least I don't think so..."
  "Everyone's got a different idea of what romance is," Venti pointed out. "And then there's the whole love languages thing. So he might be trying really hard to win *you* over!"
  Kazuha took a long moment to think. Had Kuni done anything that stuck out as romantic?...
  "I..." Kazuha got pink again, "well the other day he was playing with my hair..." He self consciously undid the braid and ran his fingers through his hair.
  "Has he touched you a lot other than that???" Heizou asked.
  "No, not really..." Kazuha shook his head.
  Venti shrugged, "maybe he only recently got courageous enough?"
  Aether smiled, "this is so cute."
  Kazuha felt so embarrassed, "I can hardly keep my head on my shoulders with the things he says sometimes..."
  Everyone froze.
  "I- That came out wrong!" Kazuha covered his face.
  Venti locked eyes with him, "what the heck has he said to you?"
  "If he's said something like that then how can you doubt he likes you?!" Heizou exclaimed.
  "Shh!" Aether shushed them.
  "Sorry," Heizou whispered, scrunching up.
  Kazuha took a deep breath, "it's not what you think... He's just very blunt and points out obvious things and it makes me embarrassed... and then he'll laugh when I get red... and then I feel like I'm dying..."
  "Wow." Venti blinked.
  Heizou and Venti shared a knowing look.
  "What was that for?" Xiao narrowed his eyes at his boyfriend.
  Venti and Heizou spoke in unison, "sadist."
  Kazuha shook his head, "he's not. He got really upset with himself when he hurt me."
  "HE HURT YOU?!" Everyone screamed at once.
  Kazuha cringed, glancing over at Kunikuzushi. The sleepy boi groaned softly and rolled onto his side.
  "He hurt you?!" Venti whispered harshly.
  "Not on purpose!" Kazuha whispered back, "but that isn't the point! He's not a sadist."
  "Then why would he enjoy teasing you so much?" Heizou inquired.
  Kazuha paused, "is that important?"
  He shrugged, "I dunno, I'm just curious."
  "Uhm..." Kazuha pressed his hands together nervously, "so..."
  "Come on, spit it out already!" Venti was pulling at his braids from frustration.
  Kazuha closed his eyes tightly, "he- uh- we- we've gotten pretty close as friends and I- I sorta held him in my arms..."
  "What do you mean by sorta?" Heizou asked as he and everyone else gave Kazuha skeptical looks.
  "Like- Like we were just sitting on the ground and I just- I just had my arms around him," Kazuha did his best to clarify.
  "Hmm..." everyone hummed in thought. It was a little bit creepy, actually.
  "Why didn't you confess then? That would have been adorable," Venti nodded to himself.
  "Beidou said the same thing," Kazuha sighed. "I just can't bring myself to say how I feel... Venti, how did you ever confess?"
  Venti shrugged, "I don't think I ever did? I think I just kissed Xiao once and that was it. I don't think we ever had a discussion about being a couple, either. It just sorta happened."
  Xiao nodded, "I'd known Venti was in love with me for a long time. Accepting it was the hard part."
  Kazuha looked at Heizou next.
  Heizou laughed nervously, "well... Call me old fashioned but when people can't take hints I just say it outright. For example:" Heizou turned Aether around and took both of his hands. He sighed dramatically, pretending to swoon, "Aether, you're so dreamy~"
  Aether giggled, batting him away.
  Kazuha shook his head, "that isn't helpful..."
  "Why not write him a letter?" Aether asked.
  Kazuha sighed, "at this point I might have to..."
  Venti let out a long yawn, "do you think he'd like the kinda letter that's simple and to the point, or one that's super detailed and flowery?"
  Kazuha put his face in his hands, "it's so hard to tell..."
  Kunikuzushi rolled onto his back again and rubbed his eyes.
  Everyone held their breath, watching him closely.
  Kunikuzushi blinked up at the ceiling, "sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep..."
  "You're fine, I just woke up, too," Venti smiled.
  Kunikuzushi sat up and stretched out his arms, "what time is it?"
  Heizou giggled, "we should probably get ready to go home. It's supposed to rain again later and we won't get anything done today."
  Kunikuzushi nodded as he yawned and reached into his pocket for his phone.
  Xiao stood and held his hand out to Venti, "up you get."
  Venti took his hand and pulled himself up, "good luck, Kazuha! You'll do great!"
  Kazuha smiled nervously as he got pink once again, "uh, thanks..."
  "That's right," Kunikuzushi looked up with a smile, "you're going to confess today, right?"
  Kazuha felt immensely embarrassed as all the eyes in the room fixed on him.
  Uh-oh.
  Heizou snorted as he got up.
  "Uh, well, I hope to..." Kazuha said quietly.
  Aether got to his feet, patting Kazuha on the head as he moved passed.
  Venti was giggling to himself as he and Xiao collected their stuff. "Bye! See you all tomorrow!!!"
  "Bye," Heizou started rushing Aether, "let's go, let's go, let's go!"
  Aether laughed, "okay, okay! I'm going! Bye, you guys!"
  Kunikuzushi raised his hand in a half wave, "bye."
  Kazuha shakily stood up. He needed to pull himself together. And fast!
  Kunikuzushi sighed as he got up and stretched once more. "If it's going to rain, do you mind if I stay at your place for a bit? Nahida won't be able to pick me up until later in the evening."
  "Of course," Kazuha smiled. He was so glad that Kunikuzushi felt comfortable enough to invite himself over.
  Kunikuzushi stifled another yawn as he walked out onto the balcony.
  Kazuha followed him, just trying not to throw up. "Have you been sleeping enough?" He asked.
  Kunikuzushi nodded, "yeah, I don't know why I feel so tired right now."
  "Maybe you just really needed a nap," Kazuha smiled.
  Kunikuzushi shrugged, "maybe... But I think you need it more than me. Are you alright? You don't look so great..."
  Kazuha held his hands out, "I'm alright, really." Now that he thought about it, he did feel a little lightheaded...
  Kunikuzushi grabbed his arm, easing him onto the ground, "you should sit down..."
  Kazuha had nothing to say. What could he possibly say in this situation?...
  Kunikuzushi looked at him seriously, all his tiredness disappearing. "Have you been skipping meals?"
  Kazuha blinked, "what? No. No-"
  Kunikuzushi squeezed his arm, "are you sure?" That's what he said but it was obvious he meant, "is that really true?"
  Kazuha nodded, "I swear. I haven't skipped a meal in..." He took a moment to recall, "since before we started the collab."
  "So you've done it before?"
  Kazuha shut his mouth tightly. He was happy that Kuni cared so much... but he didn't want to talk about this... He shifted his weight uncomfortably and pulled his arm out of Kunikuzushi's grasp.
  Kunikuzushi sighed quietly, closing his eyes for a moment. "Please don't do that."
  "I haven't in a long time..." Kazuha said.
  "But you used to," Kunikuzushi folded his legs to sit more comfortably.
  "Not anymore," Kazuha stared at his knees.
  "Was it also one of your exes that-"
  Kazuha sat forward, suddenly grabbing  Kunikuzushi's hands, "no, I-" Then he abruptly let go, "sorry..."
  Kunikuzushi slowly held his hands out.
  Kazuha hesitated before putting his hands in Kunikuzushi's. He really didn't want to talk about this.
  Kunikuzushi gently closed his hands around Kazuha's, speaking softly, "does Beidou cook for you often?"
  Kazuha nodded.
  "If I didn't know any better, I'd probably think she was your mom," Kunikuzushi chuckled.
  "Nahida seemed pretty motherly towards you, too..." Kazuha pointed out.
  Kunikuzushi smiled, "yeah, she is... My, uh, my actual mother started visiting recently..."
  Kazuha looked up. What was he doing?! Why was he sitting here wallowing in self pity when he had important things to do, like listen to Kunikuzushi speak?!
  "It hasn't been horrible..." Kunikuzushi said slowly, "I'm not really sure what to think of it... I mean, she's trying really hard, but I don't know if I can just accept her back into my life so easily..."
  Kazuha nodded, holding onto Kunikuzushi's hands.
  "Sorry for freaking out," Kunikuzushi chuckled sadly, "I didn't mean to back you into a corner like that..."
  "No, it's okay... I feel touched that you care so much about me, I just... It's something I've been struggling with for a few years, so it isn't easy to talk about..."
  "Does Beidou know?..."
  "Yes. She's been great help," Kazuha smiled, "I don't think I would have gotten this far without her."
  "I'm glad you have someone like her," Kunikuzushi turned his hands around and laced their fingers.
  Kazuha felt his heart skip a beat. They were Double Holding Hands... He started to feel his face heat up.
  "Do you- uh-" Kazuha cleared his throat, "do you not have someone you tell everything?..."
  "Well, I have Nahida, but there are things I don't tell her, too..." Kunikuzushi chuckled, "then, I guess it's you."
  Kazuha's throat caught. His mouth was dry and it was painful to breath. He felt like he couldn't function anymore!
  "Ah, sorry," Kunikuzushi seemed a little embarrassed, himself, actually. "I didn't mean to bring the mood down. Uh, right, you were going to confess today? Have you yet? Do you have plans to meet up?"
  Kazuha paused to try and breathe properly. "Uhm, well... not really a *plan*, but we are meeting up..."
  "Then don't feel pressured to let me come over," Kunikuzushi said, "I can always wait at a cafe or something nearby."
  "Ah- no, it's alright. It's... awfully complicated to explain..." Kazuha smiled nervously.
  Kunikuzushi nodded, "as long as I won't be in the way."
  "You won't..." Kazuha took a deep breath, "I..."
  "You?..." he squeezed Kazuha's hands.
  "I'm... I'm just going to tell him how I feel..."
  "Yeah, go for it," he smiled reassuringly.
  "Okay..." Kazuha took another deep breath. Then he held onto Kunikuzushi's hands as tightly as he could, "Kuni, I really, really like you."
  Kunikuzushi blinked. Then he snorted, "Kazuha, are you sure you're alright? You're confessing to the wrong person."
  Kazuha slowly looked down at his knees again, "no, I'm not..."
  Kunikuzushi's hands twitched. "Wait, so... So it really is me?..." he spoke in hardly a whisper.
  "I tried so hard to make it obvious," Kazuha pulled his hands back and pulled his knees to his chest, then pressed his eyes into his knees.
  "But..." Kunikuzushi paused to think, "I've never flirted with you..."
  Kazuha shook his head, mumbling, "then what would you call all the teasing and calling me an Angel...?"
  Kunikuzushi wasn't sure what to say. He looked to the side, "I'm sorry..."
  "What?" Kazuha looked up.
  "It's because of the way I have to touch you for the choreography, isn't it?" He shook his head, "and because you thought I was flirting with you..."
  "No-" Kazuha moved to sit on his knees, getting closer, "that's not why I like you at all! Sure, it might drive me crazy, but that isn't the main reason!"
  Kunikuzushi shuffled backwards, "then... what in the world is it...? I have like, zero redeeming qualities."
  "That's just it," Kazuha put his hands on Kunikuzushi's shoulders.
  "Gee, thanks," Kunikuzushi frowned.
  "You don't *have* anything to redeem, Kuni," Kazuha stated it as fact. "I love all of you. There's nothing about you that needs redemption. You're..." Kazuha's face was burning up.
  Kunikuzushi leaned back, "I'm...?"
  "You're perfect to me," Kazuha said as he closed his eyes tightly. "So please, even if you don't feel the same, at least just give me a chance..."
  "But wouldn't that be worse for you?" Kunikuzushi gently pushed Kazuha's hands off. "Being in a relationship with someone who doesn't love you back is only going to hurt you."
  "Please," Kazuha took his hands, "I promise not to touch you or do anything without asking first. And I promise not to pressure you into anything, either. I promise to-"
  "Okay, geez, give me a second. And chill with the promises, it's kinda creepy..." Kunikuzushi sighed. "... I was so sure you liked someone else..."
  "Did you really hate the idea that much?" Kazuha whispered, running his thumbs along Kuni's knuckles.
  "No, I just... When I started to suspect that you liked me I felt really bad... It was really cute how in love you were and how you just wouldn't do anything because of how innocent you are, but then it was me... and that just... It felt wrong. All those nice things you said about your crush..."
  "They're all true." Kazuha squeezed him.
  Kunikuzushi searched his face, "then I felt like I was lying to you... I'm not that... good..."
  "Kuni, you're way kinder than Heizou and Venti, and so many other people I know. You-"
  "Please stop," Kunikuzushi sighed, "it's so weird to be praised by you..."
  "Sorry," Kazuha whispered.
  "I mean, you're an Angel among Angels... I feel like I've done too many horrible things to ever atone," he smiled nervously.
  "Nobody is perfect," Kazuha assured him.
  "Then why'd you call me perfect?" Kunikuzushi's usual amused smile returned.
  "That's..." Kazuha looked around helplessly.
  Kunikuzushi chuckled, "you're so weird."
  "I... I've just got a lot of love to give... So... would you let me love you?... Pretty please?..."
  Kunikuzushi heaved as sigh as he closed his eyes.
  "With ice cream and a cherry on top?..." Kazuha winced.
  Then Kunikuzushi began to chuckle, his smile returning, "what the heck. Ah, why not? Life's about experiencing new things, right?"
  "Wait, really?" Kazuha blinked.
  "Uh, sure," Kunikuzushi seemed like he was rethinking his choice.
  Kazuha's face exploded in red and he just couldn't stop smiling, "really?! You..." Then Kazuha got ahold of himself.
  Kazuha sat back, "then let's set some boundaries."
  "I have literally no experience with this..." Kunikuzushi shook his head, "I don't know where to begin..."
  "It's like making a list of rules," Kazuha offered. "Like... If there are things that I do that bother you, it would go onto the list of rules not to do it."
  "Okay..." Kunikuzushi paused to think.
  "It's sort of like a guideline, too... It sort of sets up how far the relationship will go... if that makes any sense?..."
  "I think it's gonna be a while before I really understand any of this..."
  "That's alright, I don't mind explaining..." Kazuha sighed quietly, so relieved that he hadn't been blatantly rejected.
  "Uhm," Kazuha started, "I don't think we should kiss..."
  Kunikuzushi nodded, "I can agree on that."
  "Do you mind the hand holding?..." Kazuha stared at their hands.
  "No... I don't mind..." Kunikuzushi held on tighter, his cheeks dusted with the littlest bit of blush.
  It took everything Kazuha had in him not to scream, or cry, or throw up, or pass out. "Uh- uhm, what about hugging? And its okay to say 'no' to anything. Don't feel like-"
  "Hugging is fine," he said quickly.
  "Okay..."
  "You're stronger than you look..." Kunikuzushi said quietly.
  "Huh?" Kazuha got somehow even redder.
  "I noticed when... you were holding me..." Kunikuzushi was staring at their hands.
  "Oh." Kazuha didn't know what to say.
  Kunikuzushi moved on, "should we tell anyone about this?..."
  Kazuha paused, "well, they will probably figure it out pretty quickly. I... you know I'm a really bad liar..."
  Kunikuzushi snorted, "yeah, you're terrible. Oh, is that why you didn't try to hide your feelings?"
  Kazuha nodded, "I knew you would figure it out eventually... and then I thought you didn't, but you apparently did and then I threw you off and..." He sighed, "it was more complicated than I thought..."
  Kunikuzushi nodded, "and I'm... sorry that I didn't want to believe it was me..."
  "No, don't be sorry about that..." Kazuha let go of Kuni's hands, "I understand how that feels... You keep calling me an Angel but I don't deserve that title... not at all..."
  Kunikuzushi hesitated, "does... does it bother you that I don't want to be kissed?..."
  "Bother me???" Kazuha blinked.
  "I mean," Kunikuzushi looked away in embarrassment, "you seem to be... pretty physical..."
  Kazuha blinked again, "oh. No, no, I'm not bothered. I know that you have your reasons and I would hate it if I reminded you of something so terrible. I just know that everyone is going to be teasing us about kissing so we might have to come up with a compelling reason..."
  "Why? It's none of their business."
  "... you're right," Kazuha seemed surprised.
  Kunikuzushi looked confused, "have you felt like you need to justify the details of your relationships?... I'm gonna be honest, that doesn't sound good."
  "Well, I don't have the best taste," Kazuha said nervously.
  "Hey," Kunikuzushi frowned.
  "Uh- *didn't*. I *didn't* have the best taste..." he smiled.
  Kunikuzushi rolled his eyes, "uh-huh."
  "Sorry," Kazuha shrugged helplessly.
  "Well, it's not my place to judge what taste is good or bad, considering I don't have a type."
  Kazuha giggled, finally feeling relaxed for the first time in days.
  Kunikuzushi shook his head, "what do you even do in relationships?..."
  "Uh, well, you hold hands," Kazuha smiled, "and you share your feelings with one another... It's like friendship but closer..." Kazuha tried to explain.
  Kunikuzushi nodded slowly, "that doesn't sound too hard..."
  "I guess the hard part is making your partner feel loved," Kazuha said slowly. "I... I don't know how to do that for you... The only time I'm good with words is when I'm writing..."
  Kunikuzushi paused, "Kazuha, I don't know the first thing about loving someone... I haven't got a clue what it's like to be loved, either... Sorry, I'm no help with this..."
  Kazuha held his arms out, "just... I know this sounds super dumb and corny, but... listen to your heart."
  Kunikuzushi hesitated, "uhm, alright..."
  Kazuha held his arms out, "my heart says I want a hug."
  Kunikuzushi snorted, "what the heck?"
  Kazuha opened and closed his hands, "the heart wants what it wants."
  Kunikuzushi rolled his eyes, "uh-huh, sure." Then he sat forward and put his arms around Kazuha. "We should leave before the rain starts. It's already started drizzling."
  Kazuha looked over at the rail and sure enough there were already some drips forming. "I hadn't even noticed..."
  "You were too busy fawning over me," Kunikuzushi pulled back, "you act like I'm something special."
  "You don't think you're special?"
  "Not particularly," he stood up and helped Kazuha up as well. "I mean, I know a ton of people would love to be with me, but that's because all they know of me is that I'm pretty and can sing and dance."
  "But I know the real you and I know that you're special to me," Kazuha took his hand with a smile. Then he pushed the door open and pulled Kunikuzushi inside with him.
  "We should hurry," he chuckled, "or else we'll get soaked again."
  Kazuha got red at the thought of Kunikuzushi wearing his clothes again. He mumbled, "it wouldn't be so bad..."
  "Hm?...."
  Kazuha quickly grabbed his backpack and swung it over his shoulders before taking Kunikuzushi's hand again.
  "You're acting like I'm going to run away," Kunikuzushi laughed.
  "Well, you might..."
  "Why? Has anyone run from you before?"
  "Uh, no... but..." Kazuha paused, biting his lip, "this sounds so horrible.... But I know that you... don't feel the same, so I feel like you might run away..."
  Kunikuzushi blinked, "but I decided to... give you a chance..."
  "I know," Kazuha looked forward and started leaving, "I just don't want to loose you..."
  Kunikuzushi stared at their clasped hands and Kazuha led him down the hall. "I'm not going to run..." he said softly.