The sparkle in his eyes

chapter 12

Akutagawa pov

It's been four days since I realized my feelings and ever since then, I've been walking around The agencies building in hope of "accidentally" bumping into Atsushi.

Maybe I truly am hopeless and pathetic but at least I'm finally happy after all this time.

My heart rate quickens once again as I finally see him walking down the street. I ran up to him as fast as I can and tap him on the shoulder, making him fling in surprise. 

He looks pale when he turns around to face me and realizes who is standing there.

"Are you okay?" I ask with a hint of worry in my voice, trying to sound casual.   

Maybe if he gets sick like me, I'll get to take care of him just like he did back than. My head spins just at the idea of it.

He lifts his head to look up at me but as soon as our eyes meet, he quickly lowers his gaze back at his feet.

"Uh... Yeah. Why wouldn't I?" 

"You're just a bit pale, that's all."

"I'm alright. More than alright actually. But what are you doing here?" Something feels off. Even his voice is shaking.

"I was just walking by and I suddenly saw you so I decided to say hello."

He seems to avoid my eye gaze at all costs. Was I that obvious that he saw right through me?

Suddenly, he lets out an exhausted sigh.                                                                             

"There's something I need to talk to you about, Akutagawa."

 My ears start to ring. Does he not want to see me ever again? He definitely realized my feelings. This is bad. Really bad.

Why am I suddenly acting like a fool?

He takes a deep breath but before he gets to say anything, I feel as if someone is pulling on my coat.

I look down, and for my surprise, there's a little boy.

He looks frightened as I look down on him and quickly hides behind Atsushis leg, who seems just as shocked as the boy hugs his leg tightly.

So kids like him much better than me, huh? I wonder why so.

"Um... Are you lost?" he asks in a soft, yet still shaking voice.

The boy shakes his head.

"I'm sorry to bother you, I just need some help." he points his finger at what looks like an unfinished snowman on the other side of the road.

"I can't pick up his head to fit in the right place."

I watch Atsushi as he takes the boys hand into his and kneels down to his level.

"I'll help you. And you know what? What about building even bigger one?"

The boys eyes sparkle with childish happiness as he hugs Atsushi even tighter. 

Didn't his parents teach him to not speak to strangers?

 He is a lucky one that he asked us and not someone like Mori.

I follow them across the street with something stirring in my chest. What did Atsushi want to tell me before that boy  interrupted us? He seemed serious as never before.

"So, what's your name boy?"

"Ryunosuke, but most people call me just Ryu."

"I'm Atsushi. Nice to meet you. And do you know who else is Ryunosuke?"

He looks at me, the boy following his gaze.

"That vampire look-alike?" he screams from the top of his lunges.

I think I just remembered why I hate kids.

Once we get to the other side of the road I stand aside as I watch Atsushi put the snowman's head  in its place.

"Done. Now you should give him some eyes and mouth as well."

Not needing to be told twice, Ryu storms off picking up small stones and various sticks while I wait besides Atsushi.   

I gather up all of my courage before I start speaking.

"So, what did you want to tell me before he came up to us?" 

His smile quickly fades and his eyes stay fixated on Ryu.

"It was nothing, really. You can just simply forget about it."

I can tell that he has a lot to say, but something is holding him back. 

Meanwhile, Ryu places the stones on the snowman's face, creating a smile and eyes out of them.

"I think he is missing eyebrows." Atsushi chuckles, stepping closer to Ryu.

"I don't think everyone has eyebrows." he says, looking at me with a smirk.

Kids these days are unbelievable.

"And how would you like to name him?" Atsushi asks, kneeling besides him as he tries to hold back his laugh.   

"Ryunosuke the third!" Ryu screams again, punching his fist into the thin air and smiling ear to ear, showing us the gap from his two missing teeth in the front.

A/N

Good luck in the new school year!