28 DAYS [MakoHaru]

thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Makoto is aware that he has two choices here.

One, make his presence known in front of the boy he'd been crying about just hours earlier.

Two, forget he ever saw Haruka standing by the beach, solemnly gazing at the tide, turn around, and never look back. He'd go back home, rush into his bedroom to avoid his mother, shut the door, and pour himself into his studies for as long as he could until sleep overwhelms him.

The choice is clear in Makoto's mind; option two seems to be the much safer route, and he chooses to go with the latter, promptly turning on his heel and walking through the sand as quietly as he can.

The universe, however, seems to have other plans for Makoto, or maybe he's just incredibly unlucky. Either way, his legs decide to fail at this exact point and he idiotically trips over his own two feet at the worst possible time

"Waaugh!" Makoto shouts in surprise as he launches face-first into the powdery sand. It does little to catch his fall and he sputters out a surprised breath, picking himself – alongside the little dignity he has left - off the ground and brushing off the sand on his clothes.

He peers over his shoulder to see if Haruka saw haw him, and sure enough, Haruka had drawn his eyes away from the ocean and was staring at him, a mixture of confusion and hurt on his face.

"I should go," Haruka mutters, just barely loud enough for Makoto to catch it, when he notices Makoto is staring. He steps away from the water, starting to walk away. Makoto watches him leave for a second before something kicks in his mind and he finds himself shouting out to the boy before he can slip from his fingers yet again.

"Wait!"

Haruka stops in his tracks. He doesn't turn around, but rather stays frozen in place, staring off towards the boardwalk. It is almost like he doesn't have the courage to turn his head to look in Makoto's direction.

"Can we talk?" Makoto asks him hopefully.

Haruka finally turns, his profile now in view, and Makoto finds himself immediately casting his eyes to the ground. He inspects his high-top sneakers like they're the most interesting things in the world, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets so Haruka doesn't see they're shaking.

Staring off into space, Haruka is silent for a moment, considering his options, and after a moment a dry sigh passes by his lips, which, if Makoto's eyes aren't failing him, are quivering slightly. "This better not be a waste of my time. You have ten seconds."

Haruka's voice is guarded and shows he clearly doesn't want to hear what Makoto has to say, but he stays, and that is what matters most to Makoto.

He takes a deep breath, trying to collect his thoughts in the short amount of time he's been given. Makoto can't stop his mind from whirling with all the things he wishes he could say, the things he wants to scream at Haruka just so he knows how much he cares. But Makoto can't do that, and his brain shuts down when he realizes he has no idea what to say.

The ten seconds dance in the air, swinging by slowly and painfully, and eventually Haruka clenches his jaw and begins to walk away again before Makoto finds the two words he figures are a good start.

"I'm sorry."

Haruka's body goes rigid, and the shoes in his hand would've dropped to the sand if he weren't clutching onto the shoelaces so tightly. He turns around completely now, approaching Makoto with a determined expression on his face.

"That's it?" He says. One eyebrow rises challengingly and his arms cross tightly across his chest. "That's all you have to say?"

"N-no!" Makoto waves his hands to stop him. "Let me finish."