𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘 𝙠𝙞𝙨𝙨 (𝖻𝗈𝗄𝗎𝖺𝗄𝖺)

One | Pretty Boy

Akaashi Keiji hated packing.

It didn't matter how, when, or why—he just did. Ever since he was eight years old, he's despised it, which was ironic considering that he and his family took some sort of trip every summer. They were usually just small road trips around Japan, and they lasted anywhere from a few days to a whole month. No matter the length of their trip, though, Akaashi refused to unpack his bags. He had already packed them once before the trip, so why would he undo all of his hard work just to have to pack everything back up at the end? There was no use getting comfortable, anyway, since they would just be leaving once their time there had ended. It all sounded like a waste of time and energy to him, so he just didn't bother.

This trip was no different. In fact, Akaashi was even more inclined to leave his bag unpacked since he and his family would be spending the vacation at the beach. Beaches have sand, and sand always gets everywhere—even on things that don't go anywhere near the beach. Akaashi didn't like sand at all, so he felt much better knowing his belongings were safe inside of his bag rather than in the possibly sand-filled drawers in the house. This wasn't his home and that meant Akaashi had no clue whether or not the previous guests had gotten sand everywhere. Unpacking simply wasn't worth the risk or time.

In addition to that, it was just so much easier to leave when he didn't have to pack his belongings again. When he unpacked, wherever he was staying seemed to feel much more like a home, rather than just a temporary place to sleep during the trip. That made it harder to leave, which was not what Akaashi needed.

And so, a day after his arrival, Akaashi was practically tearing apart his bag trying to find his swimsuit. His mom was calling his name from her place at the front door and his little sister was running around the hallway, excited to go swimming. Akaashi was supposed to be ready five minutes ago, but he was still frantically digging through his bag to find something that wasn't there.

Another minute of searching passed before he finally gave up. "I forgot to pack a swimsuit," he said loudly enough for his mom to hear.

His sister, Akina, laughed and bounded into his room. "Did you really forget to bring it? We're at a beach! It's kinda important."

"At least I don't need Mom to pack my bags for me."

"Maybe you do," she teased, sticking her tongue out and blowing a raspberry. She left and Akaashi stood up to follow her through the hallway so he could talk to his mom.

"I'm sor—"

Akaashi was cut off by his mom shoving a few bills into his hands. "There's a store a few blocks away. I think we passed it on our way to the house," she said. "Go buy yourself a swimsuit, then meet us over by the beach. We'll be right outside, okay?"

"Thank you, I will." Akaashi took the money and briefly bowed his head in gratitude before walking out the door.

Akaashi's parents had rented a nice beach house for the majority of the break. It was almost directly on the beach, which meant the ocean was visible from the house's front windows. The sound of waves lapping the shore was the only thing Akaashi could hear other than the sand crunching beneath his feet and the birds chirping in the distance. While he walked, he sighed peacefully to himself and observed the beauty the area held: the soft, reliable sound of forever-moving, green-blue waves, the warmth emanating from the tan sand, the bright blue sky with barely a cloud in sight, and the smell of salt in the air. It was all so comforting, inviting, even.

It only took him a few minutes to reach the store his mom had mentioned. It was a small little building, barely ten feet tall while the length was double that. It was also on the beach, just like the house, only it had a small, sandy parking lot on the side with a few umbrellas set up by the entrance, and it was beige, making it practically blend in with the sand around it. A kid was playing a few feet in front of it, building a small sandcastle with their mother.

As soon as he walked through the door, he was greeted by racks of colorful swimsuits to his left. He immediately turned to see them and began sifting through the options, hoping to get something plain.

Akaashi wanted to find a swimsuit as fast as possible so he could leave and get back to the house. Even though he didn't look necessarily forward to the sand, he was eager to go swimming. It might not have been the most fun thing to do—in his opinion—but it was better than sitting around all day. Plus, he was going to be in that house for a whole month, so he might as well get used to the water—

"Are you finding everything alright?"

Suddenly pulled out of his thoughts, Akaashi jumped at the new voice next to him. He turned to face the employee, ready to say yes, but instead found himself at a loss for words when he saw him.

The boy's eyes were bright and golden, almost like they had captured the sunshine within them, and he was smiling, making the corners of his eyes crinkle slightly. His hair was standing up and it was black and white, making Akaashi wonder whether it was dyed or not. He didn't know who the employee was or what was so strangely captivating about him, but Akaashi badly wanted to talk to him (though he would never admit it). Something about his happy face and kind tone was intriguing.

He looked away, remembering the employee's question. "Yes, thank you—"

"Are you new around here?" he asked, looking at Akaashi with eager curiosity.

"I am, why?"

"Oh, that's so cool! You see, I looked at you, and I was all like 'Hey, I don't recognize him', and then I walked over to you and got a chance to actually look at you. Then I was like 'Oh, yeah, I would recognize that pretty face anywhere', but I didn't recognize it! And that's when I realized that you definitely aren't from around here!"

Overwhelmed by the speed at which the employee was talking, Akaashi took a few seconds to process everything before responding with a simple, "Right."

"Yep! I know everyone around here. Well, mostly everyone. That's the good thing about working at the best store around town and going to the beach pretty much every day!" he said energetically. "Anyway, I'm Bokuto Koutarou. Do you want me to show you around town once my shift ends? I still have about an hour left, but I'll be free all day after that!"

"Ah, sorry, I have somewhere to be today."

"Oh, that's okay! I can just show you around tomorrow. I'm off anyway, so we'll be able to take all the time we need!"

"Okay," Akaashi said in a monotone. Though his voice didn't show it, he was surprised to hear himself agree; In most situations like this, he would have said no since he knows he can figure it out himself. He prefers that, honestly, because he can go wherever he wants to when he explores on his own, instead of having to follow around a person like a lost child. In this case, however, Akaashi didn't mind the idea of following Bokuto around for a day. He didn't understand why, but he wanted to know more about Bokuto. He wanted to spend more time with him—maybe he could help make the trip a little more fun, especially considering Akaashi didn't know anyone else here besides his family.

This could be good.

"Here, I'll give you my phone number so you can text me when you're free tomorrow," Bokuto said. Akaashi handed him his phone and he quickly added himself into his contact list. "Anyway, what's your name?"

Akaashi held out his open palm instead of answering, and Bokuto placed his own unlocked phone in Akaashi's hand. The shorter boy went into Bokuto's contacts and added himself before trading back devices.

Bokuto stared down at the screen. "Akaashi Keiji. . ." he muttered, saying it slowly as if trying to get a feel for the name. "I like it. A pretty name for a pretty boy."

Akaashi felt his face heat up at the comment, but he looked away and brushed it off, feigning indifference. "I'll text you when I'm free tomorrow."

"Okay! I look forward to it," Bokuto said, grinning.

He walked away and Akaashi went back to searching through the racks of swimsuits. He grabbed a plain black one and paid for it quickly, then left the store after one last glance back at Bokuto, who smiled and waved goodbye.

As Akaashi walked back to the beach house, his thoughts kept wandering back to Bokuto; his energetic personality and charisma was so enticing that Akaashi couldn't help but wonder about him—plus, nobody had ever called Akaashi pretty.

He wasn't sure why, but Akaashi suddenly found himself wishing the next day would come much faster. He rushed home in hopes of passing the time quicker.