Perfect Life, Perfect Love || NagiReo/ReoNagi Story

Part 3

Two weeks after that night, Nagi finds himself in the kitchen, rinsing plates that are already cleaned just so he can have an excuse not to sit in silence with Reo, who's busy typing on his phone and seemingly fails to register Nagi being there.

Something flashes in Nagi's mind. A calendar. A date. A silly little promise to stay together forever that was uttered by a drunken Reo and himself who for some reason decided to let loose that day. And the morning that came right after that night; the day Nagi had his proper first kiss.

There's a date circled with a red pen on their calendar; the date that they had since celebrated every single year to remember that particular night. Remembering it all again brings a blur to his vision. Nagi pauses, blinking rapidly to keep his unbidden tears at bay. But it's no use.

The plate slips from his hands. Nagi jumps, startled. Worried that the pieces might clog up the drain, he quickly gathers them with his bare hand.

That attempt soon turns into a vain as his wrist is wrenched harshly. Reo stares at his hand in horror.

"What are you doing, you idiot?! You're hurting yourself!"

True that there are trails of blood visibly running on his hand. Nagi was too preoccupied thinking about what their relationship had become to fully pay attention to himself.

Noticing Nagi's teary eyes, all the anger drains out of Reo in an instant. "Does it hurt that much?" Reo asks softly. "Come on, you're not a baby. A little bleeding is not that scary. Here, let me patch you up."

Reo leads him to sit on the dining table. He rummages through one of their kitchen cabinets and emerges triumphantly with a first-aid kit in hand. Nagi didn't even know it was there.

"Do you still remember our anniversary?" Nagi asks quietly.

Reo pauses in the middle of cleaning his wounds. He looks at Nagi weirdly. "Of course," he says slowly. When Nagi doesn't elaborate immediately, he hesitantly adds, "Why do you ask?"

"Are you..." Nagi crumples his shirt nervously. "Are you planning to break up with me?"

Five seconds pass in silence. Five agonizing seconds pass, and just when Nagi is convinced that Reo isn't going to give him an answer, the sound of bottles hitting the ground as Reo's arms hang limply on his sides has Nagi instantly on alert.

"Reo—"

"What are you talking about?" Reo interrupts, voice tight, his eyes seemingly hollow. It has been years since Nagi last saw Reo looking like this. He can't say he's fond of it.

"Do you want to break up with me, Nagi?" Reo whispers quietly.

The answer is immediate: "Of course, no."

Unless Reo wants to break it off. Unless...

"Do you? "

As soon as those words leave his mouth, his tongue feels heavy. Nagi bites his inner cheek to force himself to keep going. "You make me happy, Reo. You've made me the happiest. You've introduced many things to my boring life and it's—it's all beautiful. But if that's what you want, then... Then, I..."

Nagi can't bring himself to actually say it. Even though he realizes now that it might be the truth, there's still a part of him that just can't accept it.

But it's true, isn't it? Why else would Reo avoid him that much?

He was Reo's precious treasure, but no one ever said that he would hold that spot forever. Reo is amazing, popular, not to mention charming. Someone like Reo would be able to find another treasure easily. There's always a possibility of Reo stops being interested in him, of his existence eventually becoming meaningless in Reo's life, and it takes Nagi embarrassingly almost a decade to arrive at this point of realization. And now it's all too late.

He's no longer valuable enough for Reo to keep around. Now, Reo is going to leave him for someone who's better at football, or perhaps someone who's just as equally charming and manages a family business well just like him.

Having this particular realization suddenly dawned on him is akin to rubbing salt on his unbandaged wounds.

"I can tell that you're going to break up with me." Nagi sighs resignedly. He keeps his gaze down, unable to look Reo in the eyes when he's all too aware that this might as well be their last conversation. "You've been avoiding me a lot...and I guess it's alright. If you're happier with someone else, I guess it's alright."

It's not alright. Nagi feels as if someone just stabbed a knife right into his heart.

That person is Reo.

~~~

Oops, sorry I'm posting a little late today!

This chapter is a bit longer than usual to make up for that ^-^