#wafflesex

Sousuke had noticed that something was off the night before when Rin returned home from training. His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes and whenever he spoke, his voice was much more subdued.  Chalking it up to exhaustion from Rin’s constant swim training, Sousuke said nothing, glad that Rin had the next day off.  He figured that Rin would be alright come morning and they would spend the day relaxing.

However, when Sousuke woke up to find Rin still in bed instead of up and about, he knew something was wrong.  

Rin was lying on his side, back facing Sousuke.  If he didn’t know Rin as well as he did, Sousuke would have assumed he was still asleep. But having been together as long as they had, he picked up on the slight shake of Rin’s shoulders and the almost silent hitch of his breath.  Rin was trying not to cry and the sight broke Sousuke’s heart.

Rolling onto his side, Sousuke wrapped an arm around Rin’s waist, pulling him back against his chest.  He pressed a kiss to the back of Rin’s head, trying to let him know that he was here for him.

“Hey,” Sousuke said softly, nuzzling the back of Rin’s neck. “You know it’s okay to cry, Rin. I can stay here if you want or I can go make breakfast.”

Rin shifted a bit, pressing his face into his pillow as he mumbled, “Breakfast.”

Smiling slightly, Sousuke pressed one last kiss to Rin’s head before disentangling himself from the sheets.  “Okay,” he said, tucking the blankets back around Rin before shuffling out of the room.

As soon as Sousuke had stepped out into the hallway, the sound of muffled sobs came from the bedroom and he had to fight the urge to run back in there.  For now, he would give Rin some space and make breakfast. Once they had eaten and Rin’s tears had subsided, they could talk about what was bothering his boyfriend.

Shuffling into the kitchen, Sousuke thought about what he should make.  Rin never had much of an appetite on days like this, so that limited what they could eat.  Deciding to stick to something simple, he got started on making an omelet, popping some bread in the toaster as well.

Sousuke kept his hearing focused on the bedroom as he cooked, a sigh of relief escaping his lips when Rin’s crying finally died down.  He hated it when Rin cried, especially when he was unable to do anything to immediately fix what was wrong.  It made him feel weak and useless, which is why he didn’t mind helping Rin in whatever way he could when things got like this.

Once the food was finished, Sousuke dished it up and grabbed a tray to carry everything into the bedroom.  He found Rin sitting up in bed, face puffy from crying but there was no sign of any fresh tears.  Relieved, he set the tray on the bed before climbing in next to Rin.

“I wasn’t sure what you wanted to eat, so I hope this is okay.”  Sousuke waited until Rin picked up a plate before grabbing his own and digging in.

“It’s fine,” Rin said softly.

They ate in silence, though Sousuke wasn’t about to complain because at least Rin was eating. Besides, even in times like this, the silence between them was never uncomfortable.

Sousuke’s focus on his food was interrupted when Rin set his plate back down on the tray.  The omelet was only half eaten but all the toast was gone, so Sousuke wasn’t going to complain.

“I’m sorry,” whispered Rin, shifting so he could lean against Sousuke’s side.

“What are you sorry for?” Sousuke asked, setting down his empty plate.  “You didn’t do anything wrong, Rin.”

“For always making you take care of me when I’m like this.  You shouldn’t have to,” Rin said, words muffled as he turned to press his face against Sousuke’s arm.

Immediately, Sousuke wrapped that arm around Rin and pulled him into a hug.  “You’re not a burden, Rin.  We promised that we’d get through these things together.  I’m not going to abandon you.”

Rin shifted closer to Sousuke, wrapping his arms around Sousuke’s middle.  “I still think you do too much…”

“I’m not the one who skipped school and slept at the hospital because my boyfriend was having surgery,” Sousuke said, unable to stop the smile that crept across his lips.  “The nurses practically had to throw you out to make you go home.”

“Well, I had to make sure that you would be okay!  I would have stayed longer if I could have but they wouldn’t let me,” Rin huffed, pouting up at Sousuke.

Smiling about how damn cute Rin looked, Sousuke leaned down to press a kiss to his forehead.  “And now it’s my turn to make sure you’re okay.  I want to do this for you, Rin, because you mean the world to me.”

Rin’s face flushed and he hid face against Sousuke’s chest.  “Idiot…  But thank you,” he mumbled, refusing to look up at Sousuke as he spoke.

“Of course,” Sousuke said.  He made no comment on Rin’s embarrassment, knowing that it was still hard for him to ask for help, even all this time later.  “Can you tell me what happened, though?  If anything did happen.”

With a sigh, Rin shifted in Sousuke’s arms, no longer hiding his face but still refusing to look at his boyfriend.  “My times are stagnating again and I… I guess I just started thinking that I was no good again.  That trying to be better isn’t worth it.”

The soft tremble in Rin’s voice made Sousuke pull him even closer, until Rin was in his lap, back against Sousuke’s broad chest.  “You are good, Rin.  I know it’s hard but you’ve always gotten through this in the past so I know you can get through this again.  You’re the strongest person I know.”

Rin turned his head to look back at Sousuke, eyes watering at his words.  “I don’t know how you can believe in me so much…”

“Because I love you, Rin.  And you believe in me just as much,” Sousuke said, smiling softly at Rin.  Leaning down, he pressed a kiss beneath Rin’s eye before wiping away his tears.

Shifting in Sousuke’s arms, Rin turned to face him so he could wrap his arms around Sousuke in a tight hug.  “I love you too, Sou,” he whispered, leaning closer to kiss Sousuke gently.

Sousuke kissed Rin back, running a hand through his beautiful red hair.  Pulling back, he smiled softly at Rin.  “Do you want to just stay in bed all day?  We can just cuddle or watch movies or something.  This is your day to rest, Rin.”

“Cuddle and movies?” Rin asked, finally smiling as he pressed another kiss to Sousuke’s lips.