Day 3: Hearth
Done for @shouritshou and their Ritshou Fall Week!
It’s these two. Of course I was gonna write arson for the Hearth prompt.
The massive fireball erupting up out of the abandoned building pushes both their barriers back, belching smoke and lighter bits of debris into the chilly night air. ...Well, formerly chilly. It's pretty warm now.
"Ricchan, did you see that?!"
"No, Shou, I fucking missed it. What happened? Just how much gasoline did you use?!"
"Uh...like, two containers?"
"That shouldn't have-"
"And, you know, the three piled up in the middle room."
Shou is still laughing after Ritsu finishes a pretty impressive and imaginative string of curses. Sometimes he needs this, though. Sometimes it's cathartic to so completely and thoroughly decimate something in a single blast. It's different from just watching it burn (he likes that, too, though).
When he rolls out an old blanket, Ritsu gives up on his tirade and comes to sit next to him. It's quiet way out in the middle of nowhere, he can barely see the light pollution of Seasoning City off in the distance. Shou has been exploring the mountainside and all of its surrounding wooded areas since he was thirteen years old. He knows where all of the abandoned structures are and which ones are ready to be destroyed before they collapse in on whatever poor animals had been using them as shelter. This one had been an entire house, something old and full of rot and wasting away under the autumn sun (a damn good find).
He sneaks a sideways glance and tries not to stare at the way the firelight dances over Ritsu's skin. He's curled up with his chin on his knees, arms wrapped around his legs as he watches the flames. At least he looks more relaxed than he did earlier in the night and the day before that and the day before that. For weeks now, he's been tense and borderline avoidant, which was why Shou had brought him out here tonight. Nothing like a little arson to relieve the stress.
Ritsu stirs out of his trance and Shou quickly looks away before he's caught. He blames the heat in his face on the roaring fire in front of him as he throws a pinecone just far enough that it alights by proximity alone. And god, doesn’t that feel accurate. Being close to Ritsu is probably bad for his heart, it has been for several months now. Shou has never hesitated much for anything in his life, but this is a special case. He's never known Ritsu to have a crush on anyone, let alone another guy. Teru insists he can see it's requited, but Teru also dresses like a rainbow threw up on him, so clearly he can't see shit.
Shou distracts himself by digging through his backpack, pulling out a few cans of hairspray, the first of which he offers to the ball of blankets bundled up next to him. "Would you like to do the honors," he asks with a grin that shows way too much teeth.
Ritsu perks up slightly and Shou's grin only grows as he watches his best friend wind back and throw it as hard he can right into the heart of the debris. There's a moment before a miniature explosion sounds, puffing up a plume of fire and smoke before going still again. The extra light reflects off the red in Ritsu's eyes and Shou's heart swells with affection when he sees his lips curl up at the ends. He can't deny that this destructiveness is a huge part of Ritsu's strange charm. Neither of them ever have to worry about being judged by the other, they're both awful and perfectly fine with it.
(And that's why Shou can make himself be perfectly fine with never making a move. For once, he has something that he wants to hold onto, something he can't give up.)
"Why do we have to be up here? Wouldn't it be better to watch from the ground?" Ritsu hovers much closer than what is strictly necessary, causing Shou to swallow his heart and force it back down into his chest where it belongs.
"Tru-ust me, this one is, uh...special. For you. The trees would...would be in the way." Crap, he can feel blood rushing through his cheeks. He doesn't actually want Ritsu to move away, though.
Shou aims carefully and drops his own homemade creation into a segregated section of burning rafters far below him. As the package burns open, it dyes the flames blue and purple and violet. He carefully reaches out with his pyrokinesis, gathering the fire up into a ball before flinging it skyward past his and Ritsu's faces. It shoots up into the dark like a firework, spreading out with loud snaps and crackles like pop rocks. Shou snickers as he has it take the shape of a spoon, he can practically feel Ritsu's glare drilling into his skull. From there, it's their own personal light show and it's more a matter of what Shou can't do than what he can. He weaves it in impossible patterns across the night sky, resembling legends of old dragons and serpents. When the fuel begins to burn out, he brings it in closer, just so he can feel the warmth in his hands.
"So? I-I figured since...well, you've seemed really tense lately, so..." When he finally gets up the courage to look, Ritsu is staring at him with something unbearably soft in his expression. It's a little overwhelming.
"...You did that for me?" Shou doesn't trust his voice his not to crack, because Ritsu is swaying even closer, so he just nods. Smooth.
Ritsu gets right up into his personal space before grabbing the front of his jacket and dragging Shou forward until their lips touch. It's gentle and barely a brush and completely disproportionate to the way Shou's pulse skyrockets, heart hammering against his ribs.
"Thank you." Holy shit, he can actually feel Ritsu's lips moving against his as he speaks. "I love it."
He owes Teru so many apologies.
This time, when they curl up on their blanket in front of the burning house, Shou settles himself into Ritsu's lap. He feels as though he's going to burst, he's so giddy and excited. Because he definitely realizes it now, that if Seasoning City has become his home, then Ritsu has become his Hearth.
