Seirin had just finished their time at the onsen, muscles relaxed and ready for a good night’s sleep. They had already divided themselves evenly to split up and go to their assigned cabins, eager to settle in and go to sleep. In each cabin there were 2 small bedrooms with bunk-beds. Mitobe shared a cabin with Koganei, Furihata, and Tsuchida, and a bedroom with his dear friend Koganei Shinji. Mitobe and Koganei were already in their bedroom, quietly situating and unpacking their things as the others in the cabin were winding down to sleep. In a loud whisper, Koganei complained about how their room didn’t even have television, but Mitobe was almost positive that none of the other rooms did either. Mitobe knew that Koganei liked to fall asleep with the television on, the noise somehow lulling him to sleep, but he speculated that part of it was because he still had a fear of the dark.
"I heard that," Koganei hissed, poking his head down from the top bunk (which he’d fought mercilessly for earlier). "I’m not afraid of the dark, you know, I’d just rather do without it!"
Isn’t that the same thing? Mitobe thought, To which Koganei replied with a firm shake of his head. He cried out loudly when his furious head-shaking had caused him to teeter over the edge, almost falling to the ground. Mitobe covered his lips with his pointer finger, as if to shush him. Why Mitobe let the clumsiest person in Japan sleep on the top of a bunk-bed, he wasn’t sure.
Mitobe got up to turn out the light, watching his friend’s stone-like expression as he flicked the switch. As it turned out, it wasn’t that dark; the rows of lanterns that lit-up pathways to the small neighborhood of cabins illuminated through the window, along with the natural light from the moon. He hoped this would make it easier for Koganei to fall asleep.
As Mitobe made his way back to bed, he covered himself with a blanket, slipping out of his Basketball shorts, and kicking them to the carpet. Mitobe liked to sleep without a shirt on, but in an unfamiliar surrounding like this, he wouldn’t dare. He could tell it was much easier for Koganei to make himself comfortable, as his shirt, shorts, and socks had fallen one-by-one from the bed above him, and down to the ground. Mitobe shook his head, exhaling through his nose in a sort-of laugh.
The room was quiet, and Mitobe focused his gaze above him, to the boards that held up the mattress of the top-bunk. He wondered what would happen if they broke. Did these things break easily? How badly could it hurt if the bed were to collapse above him? He thought about a test that was coming up in one of his history classes, and whether he had studied enough. He thought about their recent victory, and how great he felt at that moment. He wondered what the Winter Cup would be like. Could Seirin become a team like the Generation of Miracles? All of these thoughts came to a halt when Koganei’s arm had slid down the side of the bed, causing Mitobe’s heart to jump in his chest.
Koganei’s arm was hanging lazily, and he couldn’t tell if his friend was asleep or not. He stared intently at Koganei’s curled fingers, his heartbeat increasing as if he were watching a horror movie, or playing a game of hide and seek. It was true that Koganei and Mitobe had been close friends for a long time now, but Mitobe would be lying if he said his feelings for Koganei were nothing but platonic. He sometimes thought about kissing him, and holding his hand, and what it would feel like to be Koganei’s boyfriend. Without thinking, Mitobe had already began reaching out for his hand, his fingertips brushing against Koganei’s.
Koganei hadn’t moved or made a sound, and figured from this that he had fallen asleep. Mitobe gently wrapped his hand around his friend’s, closing his eyes. He pictured them walking home together, in the movie theater, a festival, any appropriate place to hold hands. This was the closest he’d ever be to feeling that closeness with Koganei, and as that thought dawned on him, the sweetness of his fantasies faded away, and Mitobe found himself opening his eyes again. He looked at their hands for a long time. Koganei’s were much smaller in comparison to his own, and they were soft and warm like a cat’s paw. Koganei’s fingernails needed grooming, but he loved them all the same. When Mitobe felt that he’d been blessed with enough time for this secret hand-holding, he gently pulled his hand away, rolling over onto his side.
Koganei stayed absolutely still, not wanting his friend to know he’d been awake this entire time. He was caught completely by surprise when Mitobe held his hand, and for such a long time. In those moments, his thoughts were jumbled, Mitobe’s own thoughts mixing in with his own. Upon hearing bits and pieces of Mitobe's romantic desires for him echoing in his brain, he felt dense, and couldn't believe he didn't catch on to something like this until just now. Koganei didn’t want to ignore Mitobe’s advances, and feeling confident, he rose suddenly from his laying position. Koganei crawled over to the bunk-bed latter, shuffling down carefully, and when he reached the floor, he looked over to see Mitobe with eyes clenched shut, his blanket covering half of his face. This was the worst fake-sleeping he’d ever seen.
Koganei planted his hand onto the small empty space of mattress in front of Mitobe, using his other to lift the blanket and snuggle up beside him, facing him in bed. Mitobe continued his horrible sleeping act with a completely red face, and did until Koganei had interlocked their fingers on one hand. Mitobe’s eyes fluttered open, his ears numb from embarrassment. In front of him was the boy he always dreamed about, looking up at him with doe-eyes and curled lips. They exchanged silent breaths and fond looks and Mitobe’s belly warmed with butterflies.
At almost lightning speed, Koganei had planted his lips onto Mitobe’s, and once again found himself closing his eyes. He was positive he was dreaming right now, but humored himself by wrapping his arms around the tiny shirtless boy. He’d be pretty disappointed when he woke up, because this felt so real, and so wonderful, and so nice. Koganei’s tongue swiped against his bottom lip, and the inside of Mitobe’s tummy turned like ocean waves. He timidly poked his tongue out of his mouth, Koganei immediately sucking it in between his lips. Mitobe tightened his grip on Koganei’s hips, his warmth supple in his hands. He wondered if Koganei had done this before, and with whom. Any tangible thoughts of his soon melted away as they exchanged awkward tongue-swirling, Koganei soon breaking their kiss.
Koganei wiped the slobber from his mouth with the back of his hand, Mitobe’s eyes fixed on each of his movements. He let out a quiet breathy laugh, pecking Mitobe’s lips a few more times in rapid succession, then nuzzled his head into his chest. Mitobe always fantasized about pausing time with a little remote, and being able to get more sleep, or shooting a basket during a game without anyone being able to intercept, but at this moment, he just wanted more time with Koganei. Right here, like this. Mitobe’s arms were going numb, but it didn’t matter to him; he wanted to hold Koganei for as long as humanly possible. Holding him until they grew old, he thought, would be ideal.
