Windborne wanderers / kazuscara

16

'it should be quite obvious by now that neither of them are the saints and all-knowing people they thought themselves to be.'

"are you sure that it's okay to tell me this? i mean, don't you have to keep things confidential..."

"i know i do, but... it's just a bit too much on me, you know?"

"then why did you get yourself involved? you could've just told this kuni guy that you don't know anything about relationships. you could've just told him that—"

"aether. he is my friend. how can i NOT be concerned, when he is in such a dire state?!"

"it's alright to be concerned, but don't you think you're giving him answers just a bit too much?"

"..."

"let the two figure their feelings out themselves. kuni can't always have to rely on you. if the other guy actually turned out to be interested in kuni, you've got some explaining to do 'cause you and kuni established an exclusive connection that he and his love interest don't have. it's okay to have something special with your friends, but kuni would have to rely on himself more to understand both his interest and himself. you should encourage kuni to talk it out with his love interest instead of you, y'know. does he ask for your help often?"

"...not often, but he does come sometimes."

"which means you're constantly on his case even if he doesn't ask. the more opportunities you give him, the more cliffhangers you'll leave him on and the more he'll rely on you. that's a big no-no in a romantic relationship. relying on third parties too much is never a good look. if he seems like he wants to be left alone, leave him be. he will come to you when he needs you. encourage him to communicate with his interest instead. i'm not saying to cut off your special connection, but just alter the connection a little to suit his needs more, if you intend to help him. just try to manage that without completely leaving him in the dark."

heizou sighed in defeat. "alright, alright...! i get it now..."

"good," aether chuckled. he got up, patted heizou on his head and headed to the study hall.

"ngh..." heizou slid off his wall in embarrassment.

——

"i was meddling too much because i have problems of my own too, huh..."

——

it's been a full week since then, and the three haven't been talking much. kazuha was often found daydreaming on his seat during recess, and kunikuzushi skipped a few days.

"aether, what do i do?"

"hm?"

"it's just that... they're BARELY on speaking terms right now. it's like they've established a mutual form of hatred and left it at that! but i know both of them are hurting. why must they torture themselves like this?!"

"not everyone is as intuitive as you are, heizou. not every friendship shares the same openness as ours either."

"...i know. that's why i want to give them both a push."

"make the push small. just gently push them towards each other."

"...how do i do that?"

"here you are again, relying on me... aren't you the detective here? you can figure something out; i know it. i don't know either of them well at all, so i have no right to stick my nose into their business."

"fair point... argh, it's like you helped and didn't help at all at the same time."

"take your time. it's not long until the candle goes out, though."

"take your time my ass then! i gotta make this quick."

——

kunikuzushi knows his stubbornness is getting in the way. kazuha knows his carefreeness has now become a weapon against him. but neither knew what to do about it.

kunikuzushi was holed up in his room again, thinking endlessly and endlessly about the things he wanted to do with kazuha and what kazuha actually meant to him. also, the most important of all— what he even meant to kazuha.

kazuha was constantly hung up on how to face kunikuzushi's character flaws and how to face his own flaws. he was also on the brink of losing it just thinking about his feelings towards kunikuzushi. with every coming day, it gets worse. he has also established the fact that he knew absolutely nothing about kunikuzushi apart from how he grew up.

thing is, they both wanted to reach out but were too scared and worried about how the other might react. neither of them wanted to hurt or disgust the other.

and also— the first step is always the hardest.