#except wednesday

“Lost in thought?”

If Chad were someone else, he’d have jumped. 

Uryu stood outlined by moonlight; a glow not from reishi following him down the alley. 

“There was a cat,” Chad deflected. There really had been a cat, but it was the suffocating need to keep staring at his friend that actually sent him running for cover. Too bad said friend had drifted after him wrapped in a moonbeam. 

“Is it nearby?” Uryu stepped closer; he left the moonlight puddled in his wake. “We’ll have a better chance of catching it with two of us.”

“No.” Chad’s voice cracked. “It already ran off.”

They were quiet for a moment. Ichigo and Orihime had already left, wrapped up in whatever new pastime they’d stumbled upon. It was summertime after all, they were all graduated, and Uryu was on college break. If they were normal guys allowed normal lives, Chad thinks, now could be the time. 

“I—” Uryu started. He paused to brush his bangs back. 

<em>He’s pretty</em>, Chad thought again. <em>He’s so pretty.</em>

Uryua looked up, and it was like forgetting how to breathe. Chad couldn’t look away.

“Sorry,” Uryu said, “I’m not sure what I was going to say.” He raised his hand again to brush at his bangs in embarrassment. 

Maybe it was the moonlight, maybe it was the follow, or maybe it was just the beat of his heart, but Chad’s arm moved before he could stop it. Uryu froze as Chad grabbed his hand.

“I didn’t mean to startle y—”

“No,” Chad interrupted, “sorry.”

They stayed like that; awkward now. Chad knew he should let go of Uryu’s wrist. But there was still a wispy bang hanging on the wrong side of Uryu’s nose, and Chad’s other hand betrayed him.

He lifted it slowly, slow enough Uryu could pull away. Uryu wasn’t so weak that he couldn’t escape nearly any hold Chad put him in, and the thought passed as a comfort when Uryu made no move to do so. 

Chad felt his hands as Too Large, Too Present for the delicate task of brushing away a thread.  

He did it anyway, and those dark eyes were framed by a generous blush. Chad doesn’t really blush; it wasn't in his nature to be outwardly embarrassed. He felt it though, as a flame in his own cheeks, and a burn across his eyes. He’d never been so close yet so far away from asking for what he wants. 

Uryu’s eyes were wide, and his breath ghosted out like an arrow aimed directly at Chad’s chest: “Put it back.”

They were both off balance at the odd request, but Uryu wasn’t a quitter. 

“Put your hand back.” He cleared his throat. “Or don’t. Whatever you want.”

There was a light <em>plap!</em> as Chad, regrettably, lightly slapped him in his haste to obey. 

“Ow—!” Uryu whined, and Chad panicked. He dropped Uryu’s other hand to try and catch the other side of his face in the rebound off Chad’s stupid fat hand that was supposed to be cradling his friend’s face and instead just whacked him upside the head and this was almost so romantic and perfect and—

“Ah,” Uryu gasped. 

Chad had both hands on Uryu’s cheeks now. Uryu stumbled forward a little from having his head pulled, and he caught Chad’s wrists to stabilize himself. Chad had never felt braver in his life.