That Fateful Night
Wise x Asaba Harumasa (fanfic)
Synopsis: Both men are in love with each other, but neither of them has the courage to make the first move. Until one fateful night when Harumasa makes a plan.
Word count: 5,5k
Content warnings: explicit sex scenes, bottom Harumasa, top Wise, fluff, happy ending, set after Harumasa's agent story
I hope you like it!
It's tonight. Wise has been invited by Asaba Harumasa to a small party with his coworkers, and it's tonight. He can feel his stomach burning and he's feeling kinda nauseous, but he tries to breathe deeply while he waits for Harumasa to show up — the guy promised to pick Wise up, even when Wise insisted he could drive there.
After Wise saved Harumasa from that incident with Kirishima, they've grown pretty close. They often hangout at Lumina Square to have snacks or go to the cinema to watch movies together. They've even watched movies inside of Wise’s own room. And Harumasa has been asking Wise to accompany him to buy medicine at the pharmacy or to pretend to be his family member during calls with his doctor, claiming he trusts Wise and feels safe around him.
Wise thinks tonight it's one of the situations where Harumasa needs to be safe with him, but his sister Belle thinks otherwise. She claims Harumasa is into Wise and wants to take a step further.
“Wise, believe me, no one takes someone to these kinds of social gatherings as friends. Especially when he insisted on driving you there. He's totally into you!”
“I told you, Belle, this is just one more of those situations where he needs my support because he's nervous. That's all.”
“I highly doubt that. He flirts with you all the time. He hugs you frequently and touches you a lot when talking. He laughs a lot when you're around him. Hell, he's even been inviting himself to watch movies with you inside your room, and you really think he just wants to be friends?!”
“If he really liked me like that, he would have made a move.”
“Maybe he's afraid of scaring you away? Or maybe he has been making moves and you haven't noticed it. And, honestly, that seems possible, given how clueless you are.”
“Ouch…?”
“I'm not kidding, bro. I bet he's gonna make a move tonight. And if you push him away, I'll kill you.”
“How much do you want to bet?”
Before Belle can answer, they hear a knock on the door. A single knock, nothing more. That single knock is very characteristic, and has Wise jumping nervously while he feels his stomach turn upside down.
“It's him!” Belle says. “Ok, you've put on cologne and combed your hair nicely. You look decent.” She adjusts his shirt and hair, then punches him lightly on his shoulder. “Good luck, lovebird! He likes you, trust me!”
Wise rolls his eyes at his sister.
Belle has been trying to be their cupid for months now, ever since Wise told her about his crush on Harumasa. Or rather, ever since she lowkey forced him to tell her. Wise had been daydreaming about dating the executive officer frequently, and Belle noticed he'd been acting distracted, so she was worried and insisted on asking him what was happening, until he eventually had to admit it.
Wise is convinced Belle is just saying Harumasa likes him back because she wants to be nice. She worries about Wise because he's been a loner ever since his teen years, and hasn't been successful in finding a boyfriend. Yep, she's definitely just trying to be nice.
His phone vibrates. It's a message from Harumasa saying he's outside.
“Ok, I'm leaving now. Goodbye, Belle.”
“Goodbye and good luck! You got this!”
Wise opens the door and is surprised by a wonderful view. Asaba Harumasa isn't dressed in his usual work uniform. Nope, tonight he's wearing a brown suit and doesn't have his usual yellow headband on his head. He's still wearing a choker, though.
He looks stunning.
The gray-haired man can feel his face heating as Harumasa approaches him with that damned beautiful smile on his face. Wise extends his hand for a handshake, but Harumasa ignores it and hugs him instead.
Harumasa smells nice. So nice that Wise gets distracted in the hug and forgets about the world around them. He just wants this moment to last forever.
They stay there, hugging each other for a while until Wise comes back to reality and pulls apart.
“Ahem... Good evening, Harumasa.”
“Hey, Proxy!” The executive officer wraps his arm around Wise's shoulder. “You're looking good!”
Wise laughs awkwardly. “Um, thanks. You look good too.”
Harumasa smiles in a satisfying tone.
“You ready for tonight? As I told you, it'll be just a boring social gathering. Sorry to drag you into this, but you know the drill, I have no one to come with me and it'd be lame to go alone.”
“It's alright, I can handle it.”
I can handle anything if it means I'll be with you for a while, Wise tells himself.
“Cool! Let's go before it's too late, then,” Harumasa says as he puts his hand on Wise's lower back, guiding him to his car.
***
A moment earlier… [Harumasa's POV]
Harumasa has had a crush on Wise ever since he woke up on that hospital bed after he almost died and Wise was the first person he saw.
Harumasa has no family. No one to be with him during hospital visits. Still, Wise was the one who held his hand as he woke up there.
And, god, Wise is so extremely kind. He's genuinely a good person. He supports and comforts Harumasa no matter what. Harumasa knows can always count on him for anything. No wonder he feels so safe around Wise.
Harumasa likes Wise so much it hurts.
It hurts because such a nice and decent person like Wise does not deserve someone like Harumasa in his life. Someone who won't live longer, and who will definitely hurt him. Wise deserves all the best in this world.
Still… his heart and body speak louder than his rationality, and he can't help himself. He's been flirting with Wise for months now. And it irritates him a bit, because Wise seems to be so clueless. He even invites himself into Wise's room, and they watch movies together on the sofa, with their arms touching and everything…
Is Wise not gay at all, or…?
No, that can't be it. Harumasa's gaydar never fails. He’s seen the way Wise blushes around him, how kind and welcoming he is to him. He wouldn't hug Harumasa so often if he was straight, let alone allow Harumasa to get into his room.
Yep, Wise definitely likes him back.
So tonight, Harumasa has decided: at some point, he will take Wise to an isolated place and will make the ultimate move; a move so obvious that not even clueless Wise will be able to let it slide.
He just hopes his intuition is right, and Wise does like him back. If Wise responds positively to the move, Harumasa will take him to his apartment. For this plan to work out, Harumasa needs to drive Wise to the party in his own car. This means he cannot let Wise drive to the party by himself.
And he successfully managed to convince Wise to let him pick him up. Good. One step closer to victory.
Now, he has to take care of his appearance. He has spent a considerable amount of money on this stupid brown suit, so he sure hopes Wise will like it. He decided to ditch the usual headband he wears, it doesn't really go well with the suit. The choker, though… it also doesn't really go well with the suit, but unfortunately he can't ditch it. No, he can't risk people seeing the ugly scars on his neck.
Besides, he's wearing a cologne he thinks smells nice. He hopes and prays Wise will like all of his effort.
He looks at himself in the mirror and sighs. He has done his best, now it's up to the universe to make his plan work.
***
They arrive at the party. There are some people Wise recognizes, like the other members from Section 6. They spot Wise and Harumasa and greet them.
“Harumasaaa!!!” Soukaku comes running. “There are so many snacks here! Look!!”
“That's nice, Soukaku,” he kneels down and hugs her.
“Good evening, Asaba.” Yanagi says. “And Wise. I had a feeling Asaba would bring you.”
“Really?” Wise asks, surprised.
“Of course! He talks about you so often. He said—”
“Ahem!” Harumasa interrupts.
Yanagi seems to let out a faint “sorry!”
Then, Miyabi and Zhu Yuan come to greet them as well.
“So, you guys are dating now, right?” Wise said. “I'm happy for you.”
“Thank you,” Miyabi replies. “And I see you and Harumasa are also—”
“AHEM!!” Harumasa interrupts again. “Me and my friend Wise congratulate you on your relationship, girls.”
“Oh, so you're still friends…” Miyabi says.
“Still…?” Wise asks.
Before anyone else can say anything, Harumasa speaks up. “Anyways, Wise. Would you like a drink?”
“Hmm. A juice, maybe? I don't really drink alcohol.”
“I didn't expect that! I'll join in drinking juice, then. I don't drink alcohol either. You know, with all the medicines I take, I can't really do that, hah.”
They keep chatting and drinking. Wise doesn't really know how to talk much and spends most of the time just nodding and smiling. Harumasa, though, who usually is a very chatty person, is awfully quiet. Not only that, he actually seems nervous and stressed out, fidgeting the whole time and shaking his legs.
Is he okay…? Wise wonders.
When the conversation quiets down, Harumasa takes the opportunity to finally speak.
“As much as I'm enjoying this conversation,” he said, with a polite smile on his face. “I’m afraid you're gonna have to excuse us for a while. We’re gonna take some fresh air, but will be right back.”
Wise wonders who Harumasa was talking about when he said “we”, but before he notices, the other man is taking his hand and leading him out of the gathering. The sudden touch of Harumasa's hand sends a shiver down Wise's spine. His hand feels cold, but nice. He can feel his face heating a bit as they walk towards the elevator.
“Where are we going?”
“To the rooftop,” says Harumasa after a deep sigh of relief. “I just want to be away from these people for a little while,” he rests his head against the wall and closes his eyes.
At this moment, Wise realizes they're still holding hands. He clears his throat and runs his free hand through the back of his head in slight embarrassment.
As they get out of the elevator and enter the rooftop, Harumasa lets go of Wise's hand and stretches his arms.
“Ah, alone at last,” he says, then shoots a smile at Wise, making him feel butterflies in his stomach.
Harumasa looks marvelous under the moonlight.
“So, um…” Wise says, clearing his throat. “Are you okay? You seemed a bit stressed back there.”
“Yeah, I'm fine, I just… hate these social gatherings so much,” he looks at Wise with a smile and takes both of his hands. “That's why I brought you with me. I feel calmer when you're around. Thank you for keeping me company.”
Harumasa rests his head on Wise's shoulder, which makes the gray-haired man shake a little from nervousness. He can feel Harumasa's breath against his neck, and it feels so, so good.
Before he realizes, he's already running one of his hands through his friend's hair.
“I'm glad you feel better when I'm around you. I actually share the same sentiment. Being with you feels nice.”
Harumasa wraps his arms around Wise's waist, and they fall into an embrace.
“Does it? Hm, I'm happy you feel the same.”
Suddenly, Wise feels warm, wet lips landing a kiss on his neck. It startles him, making him jump a little. Harumasa notices the sudden reaction and backs off.
“Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to startle you,” he says, with an awkward chuckle. “It's okay if you don't want—”
“Don't be sorry,” Wise interrupts him, pulling Harumasa close again. “I apologize. I was just caught by surprise,” he strokes the other man's hair, while feeling his own heart beat so fast it feels like it might actually jump straight out of his mouth. “You can continue if you'd like. It feels good.”
Harumasa chuckles. “Feeling needy, are we?”
“Don't tease me,” Wise whispers, now caressing his friend's cheek.
The dark-haired man plants more kisses on Wise's neck; slowly at first, but eventually he intensifies them. Upon hearing Wise's faint moan, he then starts licking and slightly sucking his neck.
“Harumasa, this… this feels good…”
“Didn't take you for the kind of guy who enjoys neck kisses,” Harumasa teases.
“Shut up.”
Wise takes the other man by his chin and kisses his lips.
What am I doing? Wise thinks. And where the hell did I get the courage to do this?
As Harumasa tilts his head to deepen the kiss and buries his hands on Wise's hair, the gray-haired man feels his brain short circuit. When their tongues meet, Wise finally finds out what Harumasa's kiss tastes like. It tastes bitter. And it is so amazing. He never wants to stop it.
So Harumasa does indeed like him back. And Belle's guesses were right, she wasn't just trying to make Wise feel better. All those times Wise spent daydreaming about kissing the executive officer are now becoming true; not like he expected it would happen, but still, it's burning him up from the inside out.
He runs his hand through all of Harumasa's body. Both men keep getting their bodies closer and closer to each other, as if they can never get close enough. Before they realize, they are passionately making out as if their lives depend on it.
As if his body has lost all its commands, Wise pins Harumasa against the wall behind them, lifting him up by his butt. Harumasa immediately wraps his legs around Wise's waist. Slowly, Wise starts rubbing his growing erection against Harumasa's, paying attention to the other man's reaction. When his friend starts to faintly moan under the kiss, Wise smiles and rubs faster. Soon, they're dry humping like little rabbits, with Harumasa breaking the kiss to moan a bit louder on Wise's ear.
“Fuck, this… this feels so good, Wise. Keep going, don't stop… ah…”
The cries of the other man made Wise feel like he had died and gone to heaven. He would never expect Harumasa's feelings for him to be reciprocated, let alone hear him beg for more sexual intimacy like that. It almost feels like a dream.
Harumasa groans in frustration as Wise stops humping and puts him down on the floor, making the gray-haired man chuckle at how needy Harumasa is.
He kisses Harumasa again and grabs him by his ass. “You're so perfect, Haru,” Wise says in between kisses.
Harumasa breaks the kiss and guides Wise's hand towards his belt. “Can you…?”
Wise gasps. “Are you sure?” He looks around to make sure no one is watching them. “What if someone sees us?”
“No one will see us, they're too entertained at that lame ass party. It's ok if you don't want to, though.”
“No, I want to, I just…” Wise sighs. “I wasn't expecting to see a dick tonight. Especially not your dick,” he looks away in embarrassment, hoping he doesn't sound pathetic right now. “I didn't… didn't expect you to reciprocate my feelings. This is all happening so fast…”
Harumasa laughs. “Seriously, Wise? I've been flirting with you for god knows how long. You didn't notice I wanted you to bang me? Hah, you really are clueless.”
“I thought you were being nice to me…? Look, I'm not really experienced in this kind of stuff, okay?”
The other man laughs again, making Wise blush more and more by the second. Harumasa pushes Wise by his collar and kisses his lips tenderly. “Well, now you know I like you, Proxy. So, are you gonna suck my dick or not? It's ok if you don't—”
“I will,” Wise interrupts. “I'll gladly suck you dry, if that's what you wish.”
Without a moment to waste, Wise unbelts Harumasa's pants. He slowly starts masturbating the other man, then fastening his pace gradually.
At some point, Harumasa lets out the most erotic moan Wise has ever heard in his life, and he could feel himself dying right at that spot.
“Ah, gosh, it feels so much better when you do it, Wise,” Harumasa whines.
“God, Harumasa, you're gonna be the death of me if you keep sounding like that.”
Wise smirks and kisses Harumasa senseless. He can feel his friend squirming under his touch, and it feels so nice.
“You're so beautiful,” Wise whispers in his partner’s ear before finally getting down on his knees.
Harumasa gasps as he feels Wise's warm tongue licking his tip. This is too good. He covers his mouth with his hand to not moan so loudly as Wise takes his dick in his mouth, sucking slowly at first and gradually fastening the pace. To his surprise, Wise can deepthroat him easily, making his legs tremble.
“Wise, you're so good at this, oh my god…”
The gray-haired man suddenly stops sucking and grabs both Harumasa's hands and puts them on his head.
“Harumasa, fuck my face,” Wise begs.
God only knows for how long he has been wanting to say those words.
“Oh, are you— are you sure? What if you—”
“Please, Harumasa.”
Harumasa can feel his stomach turn upside down at Wise's begging.
“Okay, then. If you insist. Please tap my leg twice if you need me to stop.”
Wise nods and takes a deep breath to get himself ready.
Harumasa slowly inserts his dick inside Wise's mouth. First, just the tip, and then he gradually inserts more and more, still surprised by how deep Wise can take him.
He then starts fastening the pace, closely paying attention to his partner's reaction. Before he realizes, he's already facefucking Wise senseless. He can feel Wise moaning against his dick, the vibration making it even better.
Harumasa tries to hold back his moans so no one can hear him, but he still lets out a few moans here and there. This is too much. Wise’s mouth is so warm and wet, he's taking his dick so well, and looking down at him and watching him take him makes Harumasa reach his climax faster than he thought he would.
He comes inside Wise's mouth, his legs trembling as he can barely keep standing. Wise swallows Harumasa’s cum immediately, which makes everything even hotter.
Wise stands up and helps Harumasa clean himself with a few napkins he had in his pocket. He then opens his bag and takes a few sips of water from his bottle.
After Harumasa gets dressed again, Wise hugs his partner while he catches his breath.
“Thank you,” Wise says, kissing his friend's forehead. “You're amazing.”
“You suck good dick for someone who's allegedly inexperienced.”
Wise laughs. “I have my secrets.”
They keep hugging for a while until Harumasa breaks the silence.
“What about you?”
“Hmm?”
“You've pleased me. Don't you want to be pleased as well?” Harumasa says, lightly pressing Wise's dick through cloth with his hand.
Wise gasps in surprise. “Oh, um, I'm fine. No big deal. As long as you're satisfied, I'm okay.”
“That's cute,” Harumasa says after leaving a little peck on Wise's lips. “But I don't want you to feel left out…”
Wise can't deny that being sexually pleased by Harumasa is indeed a good idea. He wants it. Actually, he yearns for it really, really bad.
But…
“It's just that… we've been on the rooftop for too long. Someone might come after us to see how we're doing.”
“They won't, I always sneak out on these kinds of gatherings. People are used to it.”
“Fair enough. But… now you've sneaked out with me. People might be suspicious.”
“Oh, so you're afraid they'll find out we're together?”
“I don't have a problem with that! I just don't want you to become a subject of gossip.”
“I don't mind if I do become one,” Harumasa laughs. “But, well, if you're uncomfortable being here, we can go to my apartment. I can tell them I'm tired and leave.”
Wise thinks for a while. If he goes to Harumasa's place, he'll probably spend the night there. It would be nice to sleep with him, it's something he has wanted for a long time.
“Alright. Let's go to your place.”
***
The two lovebirds have barely stepped inside of Harumasa's apartment and they're already making out intensely, clumsily bumping into the furnitures and walls, laughing while they try to avoid stepping on the cat on the floor. They even forgot to take their shoes off, but neither of them seem to mind. They're just focused on each other right now.
When they get inside Harumasa's bedroom, they make sure to close the door so the cat doesn't intrude.
As they're taking their clothes off, Wise is still processing everything that is happening. It's unbelievable. He had thought tonight would be just a lame party he would attend with his unreciprocated crush, but now, he's inside his crush's own room, kissing him and taking his clothes off, probably about to fuck him. Or be fucked by him. He doesn't mind either.
“By the way,” Wise says. “Are you a top or a bottom? I'm fine with either, to be honest.” He realizes what he had just asked and freezes. “I— I mean, I'm not implying we should have anal sex, but, y'know, just in case—”
“Oh, boy, I'm strictly a bottom. Nope, no topping for me. It's too much work.” Harumasa runs his hand's through Wise's bare chest and kisses his neck. “And I do believe you should fuck my ass tonight, sir,” he whispers in Wise's ear and bites it lightly.
Wise breathes nervously. Oh, this man will drive him crazy. Just the thought of being inside Harumasa makes his legs tremble and his chest get heavy.
“As you wish, executive officer.”
Wise helps Harumasa get rid of the rest of his clothes and takes his own clothes himself. Although he notices there's something still missing.
“Won't you take your choker off?” Wise asks.
“Oh…” Harumasa replies, touching his choker with both hands. “I'm… I'm fine!” He smiles. “No need to take it off!”
“Are you sure…? It might get uncomfortable.” Wise kisses his partner’s jaw, slowly sliding down to his neck. “Besides, I want to have full access to your neck,” he whispers, reaching his hand towards the choker.
The other man slaps Wise's hand, startling him.
“Wise, I've told you before why I use this choker,” Harumasa says in a serious tone.
The gray-haired man suddenly realizes.
“Oh… oh! Right, right. The scars on your neck. Of course,” he pauses. “But, you know… I don't mind your scars.” He gets closer to Harumasa and caresses his cheek. “I think you look perfect the way you are.”
For the first time, Wise watches Harumasa blush quite a bit intensely.
“Th-thanks. That's nice of you,” Harumasa says. “But… I don't know…”
“Baby, it's ok if you don't want to take it off. I just want you to know you're safe with me, okay?” Wise kisses the other man's cheek and hugs him. “There's no need to be ashamed of yourself in front of me.”
Harumasa closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.
“Alright. Since you put it like that…” He takes the choker off and tosses it on the nightstand beside the bed, suddenly feeling embarrassed by his exposed neck.
Wise smiles and gets closer. “Good boy,” he reassures him. Then he turns Harumasa around and kisses the scars on the back of his neck, making the man gasp as he feels Wise's tongue on the sensitive spot.
“You are marvelous,” Wise's whispers in his ear. “Now, let's get started, then.”
Harumasa nods and quickly grabs the lube and hands it to his partner.
“Get on your hands and knees for me, baby boy.”
Harumasa excitedly does as Wise commands. Wise then inserts his lubed index finger inside his partner and immediately goes towards the prostate. A pleased, satisfying moan from the other man indicates he's reached it. He smiles and starts circling his finger around the entire perimeter of the prostate, fastening the speed and intensifying the pressure gradually.
“Does this feel good?”
“Y-yes… ah, it feels so good, Wise… please, keep going…”
Wise smirks and inserts a second finger. He keeps circling the prostate until he feels Harumasa is comfortable enough to handle a third finger.
“Wise…” the dark-haired man cries out. “I'm ready. Please, just put your dick inside me.”
Wise can't help but let out a brief laugh. “You're so cute when you beg for more.” He takes his fingers out and pours lube on his cock. “Lay on your back, please, honey. I want to look at your beautiful face while I fuck you.”
He immediately does as Wise commands.
“Are you sure you're ready?”
Harumasa nods. “As I'll ever be.”
Both men moan in tandem as Wise slowly puts his dick in.
“Ah, Haru, you're so tight…”
Wise makes sure to watch for Harumasa's reaction while he takes his cock and starts slowly thrusting.
“I'm not made of glass, Wise,” Hurumasa says. “You can thrust harder.”
Wise laughs briefly. “As you wish, sir.”
He does as Harumasa asked and starts thrusting harder and harder gradually, satisfied by his partner’s needy whines and moans. He then leans down to suck on the man's neck.
“Ah, fuck yes, you're taking me so well, good boy,” Wise whispers in Harumasa's ear, making sure to bite on the sensitive spots of his scars.
“Wise, hnng, this is so good… I'm so close… ah..!”
A few more thrusts and there you have it, Harumasa cums, for Wise's excitement.
“Come inside me, Wise… please…” Harumasa grabs Wise's hair as he feels the bites on his own neck intensify.
The begging alone is enough for Wise to reach his climax, and before he realizes, he releases it inside of his lover, both men groaning as it happens.
As he catches his breath, Wise takes his dick out and falls on the bed, hugging Harumasa until both of them come back to their senses.
***
Wise and Harumasa are bathed and well rested in bed, both enjoying each other's embrace. Wise is wearing the pajamas that Harumasa carefully separated for him beforehand.
“Just to be sure, I'm gonna stay the night, right?” Wise asks.
“Sure you are. Unless you want to run away from me in the middle of the night.”
“Of course not. I'd love to sleep with you,” he kisses Harumasa's forehead. “I just need to do something first.”
He sits down, grabs his phone and immediately sees a message from his sister.
[Belle]: Wise, are you okay? It's getting late and there's no news from you.
He feels slightly bad for forgetting about her.
[Wise]: Hey, Belle. I'm fine. I just have to let you know that I'm gonna spend the night here.
He gets a response almost immediately.
[Belle]: Huh? Here where?!
[Wise]: Harumasa's place. I can send you the address.
[Belle]: HUH
[Belle]: WHAAAAATT????
[Belle]: I FUCKING KNEW IT LMAOOO I WAS SO RIGHT
[Belle]: I won the bet, lil bro. You owe me one!
Wise rolls his eyes.
[Wise]: Sleep well, Belle. I'll see you tomorrow.
He tosses his phone away and goes back to Harumasa's embrace.
“Was it Belle?”
“Yep. Same old Belle as always.”
They keep chatting under the bed sheets, both too awake to sleep yet.
“How did you find out you were gay?” Harumasa asks at some point.
“Umm… It was in my teenage years. Every boy around me would drool over girls, talk about how hot they were and masturbate to them. I just couldn't relate, not even if I tried really hard, watching porn and stuff…” Wise sighs. “I thought it was a lack of libido on my part. Guys would call me gay as an insult because I was more focused on gacha games than getting a girlfriend, but I'd just say it was nonsense. Then… I had an online friend who was gay and was telling me his experience. I told him I related a lot to him. We had a brief online romance… I talked to Belle about it. She is bisexual, and she told me her experience of liking all genders, and I couldn't relate. So yeah, that's when I knew.”
He intertwines his fingers with Harumasa's, who is listening attentively.
“How about you, Haru?” He kisses the knuckles of Harumasa's fingers. “How did you know you were gay?”
Harumasa sighs. “I'm afraid it was much later than you. You know I had lived isolated from the world as a kid, due to my illness and stuff, so I didn't have time to think about my sexuality. I didn't think I would live much longer anyway, so yeah…”
He starts to avoid eye contact. Wise gets closer to him and kisses his forehead, as if trying to comfort him.
“Anyways. I got into college. There was this guy there, my classmate. We were close friends. I thought it was normal to like this friend in a way that I thought about him all day and wanted to see him all the time and got nervous around him.” He laughed. “I was so naive. And then one day, the guy kissed me, and I… I didn't want to back off? I actually liked it. We had a sort of situationship for a few months, and it was good while it lasted, but…”
Harumasa frowns, closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.
“I didn't tell him about my illness. And I didn't want to. So I ghosted him and we grew apart. I thought he would dislike me if he knew. I mean, who in their right mind would date a guy that won't live longer?” His voice starts to tremble.
“Don't say that,” Wise intervenes. “No one knows how much time we have left. You're already a miracle for living this long, and I know you're gonna live a lot more. I'll be by your side, ok?” He kisses Harumasa's lips and hugs him.
“I really like you, Wise,” Harumasa says. “Actually, I like you a lot.”
Wise smiles and caresses Harumasa's cheek. “I really like you too.”
“But…”
“But…?”
“I don't want to burden you. I'm not gonna live longer, we both know that. I'm gonna turn into an Ethereal one day, and you're gonna be hurt. I don't want to hurt you…”
Harumasa's voice cracks and a tear falls down his face.
“Hey, shh,” Wise says, hugging him again. “You’re not a burden, and never will be.” He kisses the other man's forehead. “The future be damned, I want to be with you now. Let's not worry about what happens after, alright?” He cups Harumasa's face with both hands and stares directly at his eyes. “You deserve to have a happy life, Harumasa. If you like me, then be with me. Live happily.”
They stay in silence, hugging each other, with their legs intertwined, only hearing Harumasa's sobs. Wise starts humming a song, and after a moment, Harumasa seems to calm down.
“By the way,” Harumasa finally speaks again after several minutes, with his usual cheeky tone in his voice. “The guy I mentioned earlier, my former classmate? You actually know who he is,” he giggles.
“What? Do I?” Wise giggles as well, happy to see his partner fine again. “Who is he?”
“Seth.”
“Seth…” He thinks for a while, then realizes. “Wait, you mean Seth Lowell?! THE Seth Lowell from PubSec? You dated him?!”
Harumasa bursts into laughter.
“You must be kidding me,” Wise says.
“I'm not.”
“Asaba Harumasa!!!”
The executive officer can't stop laughing. “Whaaat? Are you mad?”
“I'm not mad, I'm just surprised! I'd never imagine—”
“What, you think a guy like me couldn't pull a hot catboy with my irresistible rizz?”
“It's not that! You are irresistible after all… I'm sure you can pull any guy. I'm just… baffled, that's all.”
“Hah, don't worry. It was a while ago, and he's apparently got eyes on that Jane girl right now.” Harumasa caresses Wise's hair. “And I've only got eyes on you.”
Wise smiles and kisses the other man. “I'm glad.”
“What about you? Any past relationships you want to talk about?”
“Nah… I've never had serious relationships. Just one night stands here and there with guys I met on dating apps.”
“Ooh, it's good to know I'm the first one.”
“Wait… so we're in a relationship now?”
Harumasa frowns. “I mean… you don't want to?”
Wise laughs and hugs him. “Of course I want to, silly!” He kisses Harumasa on the lips again. “You're so perfect. I'll gladly be your boyfriend.”
“Good. It's settled, then. As of today, I'm officially dating the manager of Random Play video store from Sixth Street.”
“And I'm dating the hot and irresistible executive officer from Section 6. Wow, I'm so lucky. What will your fans think?”
“They can think whatever they want, I don't mind. As I said, I've only got eyes on you.”
They keep chatting, laughing and kissing into the night, until they eventually fall asleep in each other's arms.
