SK8: Stranger in a universe
authors note: I finally watched SK8 and i have to say its amazing. And since this is a blog about sports, I thought I would give it a try// y/n = your name// not proof read// GIF not mine // Have fun <3
pairing: Cherry Blossom (Kaoru Sakurayashiki) Ă Reader
summary: A funny, flirty, slow-burn story about a stranger in a universe full of skating, sweetness and fun.
genre: Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life, Slight Sci-fi/Fantasy (dimension jump)
word count: i am so sorry, it is kinda long and chaotic >_<
Being 23, sometimes overran you. University, living alone, working, it was all just too much at times. You urgently needed a holiday. Actually, you already had it, but you couldn't go away. Your job in the small sports shop was great, fun but only paid semi-well. You'd love to close the door to your small flat, pack your suitcase and set off. To get at least a little closer to that holiday feeling, you went to the swimming pool. on the way back, you slung your bag over your shoulder and bought yourself a bubble tea. Peach. The flavour of summer.
So you were just walking home with your bubble tea when you tripped over a glowing manhole cover and being too curious for your own good, you took a closer look. What was this thing??? âwell, physics stopped making sense, the moment you decided to investigate.
There was a loud snap, a flash of pink lightning, and the next thing you knew, was the feeling of passing out. When you woke up, you were lying in the middle of a back alley lit by neon signs, a bunch of weird graffiti, and the distant sound of wheels hitting asphalt. Everything hurt and the headache bumming in your head. Ugh, it hurt. Coming back to your senses, you looked around. Neon lights, loud noises that almost sounded like shouts. A mountain? No, more like a park? No, no...it looked more like a kind of quarry, an old disused site that now looked like a nature park that had been neglected. Thats when it hit you. Wait, This Isnât TokyoâŠ
So you decided to assess this new situation. To get an overview. Something was very wrong here. The closer you got to the supposed quarry, the louder the noises became: scratching, shouting and muffled cracking. When you reached the iron gate, you saw the huge âSâ. S? what was that supposed to be? Your eyes wandered. Two men, maybe security, were standing at the gate. They refused you the entry. Now even more determined to get to the bottom of things, you set off on your search and found a hole in the fence. You squeezed through with all your might. Your knees and upper left arm were scratched in the process.
Turns out, âSâ wasnât a weird dream or a music video shoot. As you had thought at first. It was a full-blown, underground skateboarding race with the most chaotic cast of characters you'd ever met. It felt so surreal.
You were quickly swept up by Miya, who thought your bewildered expression was hilarious. Joe offered you food (always food), and Reki dragged you to watch a race. Langa was, as always, quiet and emotionally magnetic. People, who you didnt know.
Thats when you met him. Kaoru Sakurayashiki aka Cherry Blossom.
When you first met him he was wearing a sharp kimono, standing next to a talking A.I. robot board???, sipping matcha like he was above everyone â including gravity â and judging you like you'd just insulted a haiku. It felt so surreal.
âAnother one?â he said flatly when introduced to you. âAre we recruiting people off the street now?â
You responded with the only thing appropriate in your head, âYou look like a cherry-flavored Bond villain.â
And just like that, you two were instant frenemies.
It took you a few days to process it all. Joe was kind enough to offer you the chance to stay in one of the few guest rooms in his restaurant. You had told him everything, how you had found the strange thing on the way home and now you were here. At first he thought you were crazy. But little by little, you realised that this was your reality and Joe wanted to help. To find answers and bring you home. Your life now included the following surreal truths:
You lived in the guest room above Joeâs restaurant, which constantly smelled like grilled fish and expensive hair products.
Miya had tried to recruit you as his âskateboard discipleâ twice.
Shadow scared you at first, but now regularly dropped off flower arrangements for your âroom vibes.â
You were definitely not in Tokyo anymore.
And finally: Everyone had made it their personal mission to figure out how you got here. Which you were very thankyful for. At least most of the time.
Which is why you were now sitting in the dustiest section of the Okinawan public library, surrounded by five of the most chaotic people youâd ever met.
âThis is ridiculous,â Cherry muttered, flipping through a book on quantum string theory like it was casual Sunday reading. âWeâre not going to find transdimensional answers in a public library.â
Joe leaned back in his chair,âYouâre just mad you havenât found a book smart enough for you yet.â
âYou brought manga, Kaoru.â
âIt was a commentary on multiverse theory in graphic form.â
âIt had a cat-girl with laser beams coming out of her ears.â
You sat across from them, trying not to laugh behind your hand.
Langa was quietly leafing through a book called âParallel Worlds for Dummiesâ while Miya sat beside him, bored out of his mind and drawing on a sticky note. You closed the dusty tome in front of you, sneezing,âHonestly, the last thing I remember before waking up here was stepping on a glowing manhole cover. Which makes zero sense unless I got hit by a radioactive sewer turtle. or something.â
Miya perked up. âWait. Thatâs how every anime portal storyline starts. Weird light, obscure object, boomâyouâre in a new world.â
Reki appeared with a stack of books labeled Folklore and Urban Legends of Okinawa, âMaybe it wasnât a manhole. Maybe it was, like⊠a sealed gate or something?â
âIâm sorry,â Cherry said, deadpan,âDid you say sealed gate? Are we pretending our lives are a shounen manga now?â
Joe grinned, âWell, she kinda did fall for into our world, soâŠâ
Kaoru shot him a withering look that couldâve melted steel. You kicked Joe lightly under the table. âDonât tease him. Heâs helping me.â
Joe held his hands up and laughed,âHey, Iâm just saying. Weâve got a classic setup: mysterious arrival, secret power maybe...that would be the chance to introduce a love storyline, dont you think?â
âI....Joe what are you saying?? I got transferred to another world and you think about a romance....,â you asked him and arched a brow.
Needless to say, you guys didnt find anything but it was a fun afternoon.
You werenât expecting anyone to come with you. After the hours of dusty research and teasing chaos at the library, you told the group you wanted to explore a bitâstretch your legs, clear your head, see this world.
Joe had grinned immediately. âGreat idea. Kaoru will go with you.He is very knowledgeable about our town.â
You and Cherry blinked in sync, âIâwhat?â
Joe just winked and shoved a bubble tea into Cherryâs hands like it was a legally binding contract, âDonât argue. Itâll be good for you.â
So now you were here. Walking through the quieter backstreets of Okinawa with a man who looked like he belonged in a calligraphy museum more than beside a vending machine. Kaoru sipped his drink with the delicacy of a monk. You slurped yours like a heathen.
âSo,â you said after a beat, âdo you even do casual walks, or am I corrupting you?â
He gave you a glance, unreadable and just a little amused,âContrary to popular belief, I do occasionally go outside. I just prefer to do so without a peanut gallery.â You grinned,âWell, sorry. Youâre stuck with me, Cherry Blossom.â
âYouâre never going to let that name go, are you?,â he sighed in defeat.
âNope,â you laughed. Mindlessly walking around town, the two of you ended up in a park with an open path and no one else around â just cicadas, distant ocean wind, and the sun starting its slow slide westward. You sat on a bench and nudged the skateboard you borrowed from Reki.
âSo,â you said, âif I want to survive in this world, I should probably stop riding this thing like itâs cursed.â
Kaoru raised a brow. âItâs a skateboard. Not a ritual object y/n.â
âTo me, it might as well be both,â you grinned. Remembering the time Reki made you try it. After a momentâs pause, he stood and stepped onto the board with effortless grace. The wheels rolled with a soft click against the pavement.
âWe should start with your footing,â he said, gesturing, âIf you canât stand on it still, you canât control it in motion.â
You blinked,âWait. Karou...Are you teaching me?â
âIâd rather teach you than see you attempt and sprain something important,â he denied quickly. You stood and stepped toward him, mock-scowling,âYour concern is so flattering.â
He smirked, faintly, then pointed,âBack foot here. Front foot angled. Balance your center.â
You did as told, wobbling a bit. Instantly, his hands were on your waist â steady, cool, sure.
âDonât overthink it,â he said quietly,âThe board isnât the enemy.â
You looked up, slightly breathless from how close he was, âWhat is the enemy?â
âGravity. Arrogance. People who think pineapple belongs on pizza.â
You snorted and promptly lost your balance, falling right into him. He caught you. Easily. And didnât let go right away. After skating (or âwobbling and not dying,â as you called it), the two of you walked along the coastal road, watching the waves crash below. Kaoru was uncharacteristically quiet, and the air between you had softened. No sarcasm. No teasing. Just wind and space to think.
âCan I ask you something?â you said. He nodded.
âDo you ever think about what youâd be doing in another life?,â you asked. He blinked,âAnother world?â
âYeah. Like⊠if things had been different.â
He was silent for a moment, then said, âSometimes. I think Iâd teach. Not in a dojo â too formal. Maybe a garden, somewhere peaceful. No noise. Just tea, books, and people who want to learn.â
You smiled. âThat suits you very well, even if i dont know you all that well.â
âThen lets change that. What about you?,â he replied. You hesitated, kicking a small stone,âI used to want to be an artist. Illustrations, stories⊠stuff like that. But then bills happened. Real life happened.â
âYou gave it up?,â he asked with a hint of curiosity.
âI had to,â you said, voice small, âSometimes dreams arenât things you chase. Theyâre things you set down quietly so you can keep walking.â
He looked at you then â really looked, âMaybe you were meant to find them again. In a different way. In a different place.â
You smiled sadly. âMaybe. Or maybe I just landed in a weird skateboard alternate universe to meet a man who speaks like a haiku and acts like a cat with commitment issues.â
He exhaled a laugh. It was soft and genuine,âTouchĂ©.â
The evening was nice. It was nice to talkt to someone like that. Even if it was a stranger.
Back in your room at Joe's, you'd showered and cleaned up your bruises. Skating just wasn't your thing. Bed ready, you let yourself fall into the fluffy pillows. Your eyes were still fixed on the duvet. You couldn't sleep, questions swirling in your head. And a thought you'd rather not have thought. the light had traced the contours as if the evening sun had been in love with him. his markless porcelain skin had shone. And had been stripped of its almost pink eyes when the light had fallen on the iris. His long pink hair had fallen so easily over his shoulders and the clothes he had worn today had looked good on him. He was attractive. Before your thoughts could go any further, Joe knocked on the door and came straight in. He had been looking for his charging cable and wanted to ask how the day with Karou had gone. Your ears had turned slightly red at the mention of his name
A little detail, Joe did catch.
With no solution in sight, you had no choice but to settle in. You found a small sports shop where you now work. Your boss was a big fan of your knowledge and customer friendliness. At the weekends, you helped Joe out in the restaurant or went to the skate park with the boys. And of course they dragged you to every S-event that came up. Even if you weren't good at skating yourself, you quickly became the boys' biggest fan. which quickly led to a funny argument about whose fan you actually were.
One evening, after a race, as the sky turned gold. You sat on a sea wall, legs swinging as the sun melted into a palette of orange and pink. Kaoru stood beside you, arms folded, hair catching the breeze. Little walks had become your and his thing.
âThis place is so beautiful,â you murmured,âBut I still donât know if it can be a home.â
âIt doesnât have to be,â he said,âNot yet. Maybe itâs just a stop along the way.â
You looked up at him, warmth settling in your chest,âYou donât talk like someone who crashes into things.â
He glanced down,âYou donât talk like someone lost.â
And just like that, the silence that always arose between you two, wasnât awkward anymore. It now was comfortable. Like a long pause between breaths. A quiet before something new.
Weeks had passed and you had often wondered whether you would ever come home. And if so, what would you come home to... your not so great job, your broken dreams???
The boys had realised that your mood had dropped. So they organised a beach day in no time at all and just turned up on Joe's doorstep, who was of course in on it. You shouldâve known something was up when Miya smirked at you at breakfast and said, âDonât make plans today.â
By noon, you were in Joeâs van, hurtling toward the Okinawan coast with your legs crammed between a cooler and a beach umbrella. Reki was humming obnoxiously loud, Langa was doing the most photogenic head-out-the-window pose youâd ever seen, and Cherry had already threatened to jump out of the moving vehicle.
âWould it have killed any of you to give advance notice?,âCherry snapped as he adjusted the towel over his lap, clearly regretting his life choices. Joe leaned back from the driverâs seat, sunglasses pushed up like a model out of a 90s cologne ad, âCâmon, Kaoru. Youâre always so grumpy until youâre shirtless.â
âYour obsession with my chest is disturbing,âKaoru replied. You bit back a grin. âI think itâs endearing.â
Cherry gave you a side glance. Just a flicker. But it stayed a second too long. The beach was golden and empty enough to feel private. The guys exploded out of the van like sugar-high toddlers. Within five minutes: Miya was building an aggressively competitive sand sculpture. Reki was trying to convince Langa to teach you how to skimboard. And you? You had just stepped out of the changing tent wearing your bikini and a light sunwrap as a cover up.
Thatâs when Cherry looked at you. Not lookedâstared. He was mid-sentence with Joe about sunblock ingredients when he caught sight of you walking across the sand, the sunlight dancing on your skin, your figure hugged in just the right places, confidence blooming even under self-conscious nervesâ
His mouth stopped working. So did his brain. Joe elbowed him hard enough to nearly knock the towel off his lap. âDude. You short-circuiting or something? Maybe Carla should help?â
âIânoâI justââ Cherry looked away sharply, âThe sun is aggressive today.â Joe cackled,âYeah, blame the sun for the full-body blush.â
Meanwhile, you walked up and handed Cherry a bottle of water with a teasing smile,âStill alive? Or should I have packed smelling salts?â
He took it, fingers brushing yours, and for some reason his stomach flipped. ââŠThanks,â he muttered, voice a little lower than usual.
The day unfolded in a whirl of laughter and salty air. You got drenched by a sneak-attack wave with Langa and nearly lost your wrap. Miya called you âa rookie water gremlinâ with genuine affection. Joe tried to teach you how to grill fish at some point (he failed). Then Reki and Joe launched into a beach volleyball match so intense it looked like it might end in a real war.
And Cherry? Cherry watched. He didnât skate. Didnât play. But he watched you with this odd, quiet concentration â like he was studying sunlight for the first time and couldnât decide if it was too warm or too dangerous. You caught him staring once. He didnât look away.
âHey, everything okay?â you asked, cheeks warm from both heat and attention. His eyes softened. âYeah. You lookâŠâ He paused, then cleared his throat. âYou look like youâre starting to belong here.â
You blinked. That hit deeper than you expected. âThank you. But I still miss home,â you admitted.
âI know,â he said softly.
âI donât want you to be stuck here,â he said quietly, âbut... selfishly, Iâm glad youâre still around.â You didnât know what to say. So you just smiled, touched his arm, and said, âThanks, Kaoru.â He didnât flinch when you used his real name. In fact, his ears turned red.
By the time the sun dipped low and the fireworks started (Joe had picked the beach because of this event), everyone was lying on beach blankets, full of grilled meat and sand-battered joy. You were curled in a towel, toes buried in the cool sand, sitting beside Cherry as the others howled over Joeâs attempts at ghost stories. Reki snorted. âYou call that scary? Langa falling asleep on his board is scarier.â
Cherry sat beside you, just close enough for your shoulders to occasionally brush.
âThanks for coming with us,â you said softly.
âYou needed a distraction,â he replied, voice low, âand I needed a reminder that life doesnât always have to be rigid to have meaning.â
You blinked, surprised. âThat was... poetic.â
âNot everything has to be an algorithm.â
Then, without thinking, he reached out and gently brushed sand off your knee. The touch was light. Careful. But intimate. You didnât say anything. Just leaned a little closer. Neither of you looked away from the ocean after that. But something between you had shifted â subtle and sure, like the tide.
You said you would make your peace with the fact that you would now stay here. But now you had made friends and it felt like a real life, one you had always dreamed of. Thoughts of Cherry, especially of him on the beach, kept running through your head more and more often. You started to stammer when you saw each other. But you loved spending time with Kaoru.
The others had left hours ago. Joe had passed out in the back room, snoring into a pile of invoices. Miya left after stealing half the dessert. Shadow had some wild night shift, and Reki and Langa had disappeared into the streets on their boards with promises to ânot die.â
That left you. And Kaoru. Alone.
The restaurant was dim now, bathed in the golden flicker of the streetlights through the front windows. You were perched on the counter, sipping something warm, watching him as he flipped lazily through a book with his hair tied loosely back. The silence between you wasnât awkward. Not anymore.
But it was⊠thick. Buzzing. Like static clinging to your fingertips.
âYou always read with that face?,âyou asked softly, teasing. Kaoru raised a brow, âWhat face?â
âThe âI just solved a murder but am too elegant to brag about itâ face.â
His lips twitched. âIâll take that as a compliment.â
You slid down from the counter, your bare feet padding softly against the warm tile. âWhat are you reading?â He held up the cover. Poetry. Of course it was poetry. You leaned in close to peek. Too close. Your shoulder brushed his, and you didnât pull back. Neither did he. Your breath fanned near his jaw as you murmured, âAny good lines?â
He turned a page slowly. âOne,â he said. Then, after a pause, he read it aloud.
âI do not know where I end and you beginâ
Only that your silence keeps me awake.â
The words hung in the air like incense. You swallowed. âThatâs intense.â
He didnât move. Didnât look at you. Just said, âSome feelings donât come with volume. Doesnât make them less loud.â
You turned to face him, standing between his knees now as he sat on the counter stool. Close enough that the thread between you pulled tight. Your voice dropped. âAre we still talking about poetry?â
Kaoruâs eyes finally met yours. Sharp. Soft. Like the edge of a rose petal, âI donât think we ever were.â
A beat passed. Then two. The quiet vibrated between you. He raised a hand, like he was going to tuck a stray hair behind your earâbut paused. His fingers hovered, inches from your cheek.
âI donât know what this is,â he murmured. âBut I know I havenât felt it in a long time.â
Your breath caught. You whispered, âMe neither.â
His hand brushed your jawâfeatherlight. You felt it everywhere. Just as his fingers began to drift down your neck, just as his body leaned infinitesimally forwardâThe fridge clanked. Loudly. Joe snorted and rolled over in the back room. You both jumped slightly, like you snapped from a dream. You stepped back, the air between you cooling but still charged. Kaoru cleared his throat, smoothing his hair like armor, âItâs late. You should sleep.â
You smiled faintly. âYou too.â
You turned to go. Then paused in the doorway and looked over your shoulder. âI like when you read to me,â you said.
He didnât look up. But he replied, quiet and certain, âIâll read more tomorrow.â
___ _ _ _ TimeSkip _ _ _ ___
The electric pulse of the S track buzzed through your skin like static. Lights flashed in neon bursts overhead, graffiti glowed under blacklight, and the crowd was a blur of bodies swaying to the bass. You leaned against a pillar near the race path, the night breeze tugging at your outfit â a curve-hugging, off-shoulder crop top paired with ripped shorts and just enough sparkle to catch every eye that dared to wander.
And wander they did. Even Reki did a double take before stammering out, âYoâuh, you look...cool!? I meanâawesome! I meanâYo Langa, back me up.â
Langa blinked slowly. âYeah. You look very⊠symmetrical.â
You laughed, âThanks guys....Iâll take it.â But the one you dressed up for? He hadnât seen you yet.
Speaking of the devil: Kaoruâs hair was tied high, his mask sleek, every line of his outfit sharp like the blade of a katana. He stood at the starting line like a man carved from grace and precision, hands loose at his sides, body relaxed.Until his eyes swept the crowdâ
âand landed on you.
Time. Froze. His gaze stalled, raked, lingered. His breath caught. He blinked, hard, like maybe you were a mirage. But no, you were laughing, wind teasing your hair, skin lit golden by the glow of a nearby lantern. You looked like you belonged. You looked like trouble. His opponent nudged him. âYou good?â
Kaoru tore his eyes away. Barely. âPerfectly.â
The race began. He didnât just win â he floated. Graceful. Lightning-quick. Fluid like a poem written in motion. He danced down that hill, flickering between angles and risk like a ghost in love with gravity. And when he crossed the finish line?
He looked up. And found your eyes again. You were clapping. Cheering. That wide smile â just for him. He forgot the world all over again. He forgot, that you dint belong here. And that this was the reason he didtn want to start something romantic...because eventually you would leave....leave him hurt.
Later, when the crowd thinned and the races died down, you handed him a bottle of water, hair tousled, cheeks flushed from the energy of the night.
âYou move like youâre not afraid of falling,â you told him. Kaoru took the bottle, his fingers brushing yours. âI fall plenty. Just not when anyoneâs watching.â
You gave him a grin that made his throat tighten. âI think you like the attention.â
âI think,â he said, quieter now, âI only care about one person watching.â
You blinked. His ears turned pink. Before either of you could speak, Joe appeared like a well-oiled wall of muscle, throwing an arm around Kaoruâs shoulder,âGreat race, blossom boy. Wanna do your brooding somewhere with less bass?â
You ended up at a quieter overlook near the edge of the lot. Reki and Langa were arguing softly in the background about some board mod. You could see them, silhouetted in the lamplight â close, always close, even when they argued. Joe noticed your gaze, then followed it to them.
âThey donât even see it,â he said softly. âOr maybe they do. Just too scared to admit it.â Kaoru watched them for a long moment. Reki leaned in, whispering something. Langa laughed, then nudged his arm â just a touch too long.
âI think Rekiâs terrified of breaking something thatâs already perfect,â Kaoru murmured.
âSound familiar?â Joe asked. Kaoru didnât answer. Joe looked at him, not smiling now, âYou know, youâve been off all night. Not in a bad way. Just⊠weird. Like your emotions are two seconds ahead of your brain.â Kaoru didnât deny it. Just kept his eyes on you â where you sat under the lantern light, tracing patterns into the dirt with your foot, hair glowing like fire.
âSheâs like gravity,â he said suddenly, âNot loud. Just always there. Pulling me in.â
Joe raised a brow. âThatâs not just a crush. Thatâs poetry, Kaoru.â
He exhaled, barely a sound. âI know.â
And that was it. The dam broke â not loudly, but inevitably. He liked you. Wanted you. Not just as a presence or a distraction. Not just as a momentary fascination. He wanted everything that came with you. Your sarcasm. Your warmth. Your stubbornness. Your laugh that still caught him off guard. And when he walked back towards you, slowly, the noise fading behind him, he felt itâthat pull. Like his center of balance had shifted. Permanently. You looked up as he approached, brows raised,âCome to gloat about your win?â
He shook his head, stepping closer, âNo. Came to ask if youâll watch me race again.â
You tilted your head. âIs this a trick question?â
His voice dipped, sincere. âBecause I think I only skate like that when youâre watching.â
That one hit deep. You stared at him, stunned for half a breath. And then you smiled â slower, softer, different, âIâll watch every time.â
Kaoru didnât touch you. Not yet. But his hand hovered near yours, close enough to feel the warmth, âThen Iâll never lose again.â
___ _ _ _A few weeks later_ _ _ ___
The cafĂ© was cute â a trendy rooftop place overlooking the city skyline. The kind of spot someone would take you to impress you. And honestly?
You were trying to be impressed. Your date â his name was Hiro, you think â was handsome. Polite. A bit too polished. He laughed a lot. But not at your jokes. More at his own. You stirred your drink with the little silver straw, glancing out at the lights of the city as he launched into another story about crypto or his protein routine. You tried to focus, tried to remember that this was a promise you made weeks ago, back when Kaoru was just a quiet enigma in a kimono who corrected your grammar and refused to smile unless Langa crashed into a bush.
Now? Now you could still feel the press of his words on your skin.
âSheâs like gravityâŠâ
You shook the thought away. Unhelpful. Unfair. And yetâŠ
Kaoru wasnât supposed to see you tonight. He was in the area for a sponsorship meet-and-greet â some awkward handshake parade with businessmen who didnât skate but wanted to slap logos on his gear. It was supposed to be a quick appearance. Until he saw you. On a date. With someone else.His blood went ice-cold.
You were sitting on the rooftop balcony just across the plaza, laughing â though it looked forced. You looked stunning in that dress, skin kissed gold by the warm patio lights, and the way you tucked your hair behind your ear? He knew that gesture. You were nervous. You werenât having a good time. And still, he burned.
Joeâs voice in his head:
âYouâre not subtle, Kaoru. Never have been.â
He excused himself from the business execs before he even realized he was moving. You saw the moment your date checked his phone, mumbled something about ârain checks,â and stood to leave â not even pretending to hide the disinterest. You sighed, stood, and reached for your bag whenâ
You turned.
And there he was. Kaoru stood at the edge of the rooftop stairs, hair loose, jacket crisp and open, eyes intense. A single earring gleamed under the terrace light.
You blinked. âKaoru?â
He stepped closer, âI was nearby. Saw you. Thought you might want an exit plan.â
You looked down the stairs, then back at your empty table. And smiled. âYouâre late.â
He raised a brow. âFor what?â
Minutes later, the two of you were speeding down empty nighttime streets, you clinging to his back on his board, your laughter ringing out as the wind tangled your hair. He was fast, but he wasnât reckless. You trusted him with your balance â with more than that. When he finally slowed to a quiet overlook just above the harbor, you both stepped off the board, breathless. The city stretched below you like spilled starlight. Kaoru turned to you, eyes dark and stormy,âYou didnât tell me you had a date.â
You swallowed. âI didnât think it mattered.â
Silence. He stepped closer. âI hated seeing you with him,â he said quietly. âNot because he isnât me â but because he didnât see you.â
You blinked. âKaoruâŠâ
His hand came up â this time, no hesitation. Fingers curled around your jaw, thumb brushing your cheek,âI see you.â Then his lips met yours. It was slow at first â careful. Reverent. Like he couldnât believe you were real, and didnât want to rush waking up.
But then you leaned in. And he melted. His other hand tangled in your hair as you pressed closer, the kiss deepening, turning hungry in the way slow burns always do when they finally ignite. The city spun below you. But all you felt was him. Kaoru pulled back just barely, foreheads touching, breath tangled with yours.
âYou donât owe me anything,â he whispered. You smiled, brushing your nose against his,âI know. I just want you.â
The ride to his home was nearly silent. Not tense â charged.
Kaoruâs hand never left yours as you stepped off the board. His jaw was set like he was holding something back, but his eyes told you the truth: he wanted you.
Every inch.
Every sound.
Every look youâd given him for the past weeks had added fuel to the quiet fire building beneath his calm exterior.
His apartment was minimal, elegant â soft paper lamps, a low table, clean walls touched by old poetry scrolls and pressed flower frames. But you didnât notice much. Because the second the door clicked shut, he turned to you. And pulled you in like heâd been waiting his whole life. The kiss was different this time. Hungrier. Less patient. His hands mapped your sides, your spine, your waist, like he was tracing poetry into your skin.
âAre you sure?â he whispered, voice rougher than youâd ever heard it.
You cupped his jaw, thumb brushing the high edge of his cheekbone. âI was sure the second you picked me up.â
That was all he needed. The night bloomed between tangled sheets and unspoken promises, a slow, sensual dance where Kaoru let himself feel for once â fully, deeply, without the usual walls. You learned how soft he could be. How commanding. How much he ached to memorize you.
Sunlight spilled in soft through gauzy curtains. Kaoru stirred beside you, bare-chested, hair unbound across the pillow, one hand resting over your waist like instinct. You were warm. Wrapped in a sheet. Wrapped in him. He blinked once, then again â and then smiled in a way that made you wonder why he didnât do it all the time.
âGood morning,â he said, voice deep, still sleep-rough.
You traced a fingertip over his collarbone. âThatâs one word for it.â
His smirk flickered, but then he leaned down and kissed your shoulder. âWhatâs the other?â
You leaned up, lips brushing his. âPerfect.â
Later that morning, Joeâs eyes immediately narrowed when you both walked into the restaurant ten minutes apart but glowing like a sunrise and avoiding each otherâs eyes.
âWell, well, well,â he hummed, arms crossed, âsomeoneâs got post-makeout hair and someoneâs avoiding eye contact.â
Kaoru gave him a death glare. You just smirked into your coffee. Reki and Langa exchanged a glance. Langa blinked, then leaned toward Reki. âSo theyâre dating now?â
Reki mumbled, âI mean⊠yeah. Finally.â Then he glanced at you â and for a moment, something flickered. A tiny stab of bittersweet admiration. You were brave enough to go for it. Brave enough to let someone see you.
That night, after the shop closed and the city quieted, Reki and Langa skated a lazy loop through the park. Not racing. Just existing side by side, like they always did.
Langa was the first to speak,âYouâve been quiet.â
Reki chuckled, pushing hair from his face. âJust thinking.â
âAbout Kaoru and Y/n?,â Langa asked.
âKind of,â Reki admitted. âMostly about⊠how long it took them to say anything. I mean Y/n is here for a long time now and we dont know when she goes back to her world....â
Langa glanced at him,"Yeah.â
Reki stopped skating, foot dragging on the pavement. âAnd how I think⊠Iâve been doing the same.â
The air tightened. Langa stopped, turning,âReki?â
Rekiâs voice was softer now. âI donât know when it happened. I just know that every time you smile at me, something in my chest feels like a firecracker.â
Langa stared. Reki rubbed the back of his neck. âI donât want to ruin anything. But I think I⊠I like you.â
A long pause. Then Langa smiled â slow, a little shy. âGood,â he said. And took Rekiâs hand.
Back at Kaoruâs place, he stood behind you at the window, arms around your waist as you looked out over the city. Neither of you spoke. You didnât have to. He pressed a kiss to the side of your neck.
âI donât know how long youâll stay in this world,â he whispered.
You turned to face him, resting your forehead to his.
âBut if you want I want to⊠I want to stay with you, collect every moment we can have together.â
From the window on the second floor, you could see two teenagers walking hand-in-hand into the sunset. Happy. Together. And in love.