Archive of Our Own

Sousuke stepped out of the gates and stretched. He hated planes, a little bit because he was apprehensive about flying, but mostly because they didn’t have nearly the leg room he needed. He hoped he wasn’t lost already. He’d followed the flow of passengers exiting the plane, assuming they were all going in his direction (which was usually a fair bet), but this was a very big airport. Sousuke scanned the crowd, trying to determine exactly where he was.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of red hair.

“Oi!” Rin called; it was unmistakeably Rin. Sousuke turned toward the voice and saw Rin ducking and weaving through the crowd, headed straight for him with the most ridiculous grin on his face. Sousuke dropped his carry-on bag on the ground to fold Rin into a bear hug, picking him up and swinging him around in a full circle.

“I’m impressed, you made it off the plane without a map,” said Rin when Sousuke set him back down on his feet. Sousuke smirked, and punched him playfully in the arm. “Come on,” said Rin, grabbing Sousuke’s bag, “I’ve got a cab waiting.”

Before they made it out to the cab, Rin got stopped twice by fans wanting to take pictures with him or shake his hand. Sousuke hadn’t realized it would happen outside of Iwatobi. But Rin had one gold medal and three bronzes, and during the Olympics he had been a household name in all of Japan. He and Nanase were the dynamic duo with seven medals between them, of course people would recognize him everywhere. Sou wondered if it bothered Rin; it would certainly bother Sousuke.

“Sorry about that,” said Rin as they climbed into the cab. He gave the driver an address, and they sped off. “It’s dying down now, for a while I had to wear a hat and sunglasses everywhere.”

“Must be hard, being so famous,” Sousuke said drily. “All that attention, how can you possibly stand it?”

Rin glowered. “Are you calling me an attention whore?”

“Aren’t you?”

“Shut up.”

Sou smiled and leaned over, cupping Rin’s jaw in his hand to pull him over for a kiss. He mentally apologized to the cab driver for the noises Rin was making in response.

“Missed me, didn’t you?” Sousuke said when they broke apart. He took Rin’s hand and laced their fingers together.

Rin looked up at him through lowered lashes. “Maybe.”

“Sure sounded like you did.”

Rin flashed him a wicked grin. “There’s more where that came from.”

Sousuke felt all of the blood in his body rush suddenly downwards.

“But first,” said Rin, checking his phone, “we’re going out tonight. I have everything planned. Haru’s at my apartment already, we’re gonna swing by and pick him up, and drop off your bags. We gotta stop at the college to get Makoto and Gou, and then…” Rin tented his fingers like a cartoon villain. “Then the fun begins.”

“Sure you don’t wanna just stay in tonight?” Sousuke let a bit of a low growl seep into his voice.

“Come on, it’ll be great! I wanna show you Tokyo, it’s super fun at night.”

“I’m kind of tired from the flight,” Sousuke whined.

“It was less than an hour,” Rin said flatly.

“I have jet lag.”

“Bullshit, you’re in the same time zone!”

Sousuke was out of arguments, and resorted to pouting. Rin threw up his hands in exasperation.

“You’re a big baby, you know that Sou? You’re coming out tonight and that’s final. You can sleep in tomorrow.”

Sousuke sighed and leaned back in his seat, thinking Rin might have missed what exactly it was that he wanted to do when they got home; it certainly wasn’t sleeping.

***

“Haru, get out of my bathtub! We’re going out!”

“I’m not in the bath, you ass,” Haru said, poking his head out of Rin’s kitchenette. His apartment was sparse and tiny, all white walls and IKEA furniture. Rin kicked off his combat boots in the corner, on top of a small pile of all of his other shoes.

Rin scoffed at Haru. “It was a fair assumption. Sousuke, you can leave your bags in the living room for now.”

The living room was also the dining room and the study, an overstuffed couch crammed between Rin’s tiny computer desk and a few potted plants that desperately needed watering. Sousuke hoped this didn’t mean he would be relegated to the couch, but he didn’t ask just yet. They hadn’t actually slept together, maybe Rin wasn’t ready. He’d feel it out later. They had a week.

“The fuck are you doing, Haru?” Sousuke could practically hear Rin crossing his arms. He was so predictable.

“You had saba in the fridge,” Haru responded, like it was a perfectly logical answer.

“Yes, I am aware of that. Why are you cooking? We’re leaving in like ten minutes!”

“I’m almost done.”

“Ugh, fine, whatever.” Rin emerged from the kitchen and flopped down on the couch. “You better be ready to go in ten,” he called over his shoulder, “or I swear to god Haru, we’re leaving without you!”

Haru came out holding a plate of grilled mackerel and set it down on the coffee table, folding his legs under himself on the carpet to eat. Sousuke didn’t ask why he was wearing only a swimsuit and an apron.

“I hope you at least brought pants this time,” Rin muttered under his breath.

“So where are we going tonight?” asked Sousuke, stretching his arms behind his head. He propped one elbow on the couch, close enough to Rin to feel his body heat. It made Sousuke tingle, like a tiny electric current.

“The Ultraviolet,” Rin responded, and Haru nearly choked on his mackerel. He levelled a menacing glare on Rin.

“No.”

“Oh come on,” Rin whined, “I know you hate clubs, but it’s just one night. Don’t be a baby, Haru.”

“I’m not going.”

“You are too. This is non-negotiable.”

“He’ll make me dance again.”

“Who will?” Sousuke asked.

Rin smiled. “You’ll see. And no one’s making you dance, Haru. Unless it’s Makoto, but he’s even worse at dancing than you are so I wouldn’t worry too much.”

Haru sighed, in what was probably a dramatic fashion for Haru. He looked a bit like an irritated cat. “Fine, I’ll go. For Makoto. But I’m not dancing.”

***

The drive to Makoto and Gou’s university was supposed to be ten minutes, though the rush-hour traffic made it almost three times as long. But Rin didn’t mind filling the space with stories about practice and new teammates and his crappy apartment’s heating problems, which were plentiful. He’d wedged himself in the middle of the taxi’s back seat, between Sou and Haru, to try to create some space between them. Neither one was very talkative to begin with, and now, forced into each other’s presence, both seemed to refuse to talk at all. It was almost as if they were competing to remain silent the longest, to see who broke down first. Rin filed the knowledge of their unspoken conflict away in his mind; he’d deal with it later.

They were almost at the college when Haru got a call form Makoto. Rin immediately insisted he put his phone on speaker. Haru rolled his eyes, but he complied.

“Hey Makoto!” Rin practically yelled into the phone. “Guess who’s here!”

“Hi Sousuke, how are you? Was your flight okay?”

“Fine, thanks.” Sousuke leaned over to talk into the receiver, pressing into Rin’s shoulder with his own. Rin felt a bit silly, being so hyper aware of the littlest things, like a lovesick child. But, to be fair, he’d been deprived; shoulder nudges were simply not possible over skype. Rin would probably need a lot of physical contact before he got it out of his system.

“Rin,” Makoto said, “I called because I’m not going to make it until later tonight. I’ve been asked to stay and help my professor, she’s submitting for ethics approval tomorrow for that survey study I was telling you about. Anyway, I can probably meet you guys there around nine, okay?”

Rin pouted for a second, then realized Makoto couldn’t see him. “Alright, but come as soon as you can, yeah?”

“Yes sir,” Makoto answered as the cab pulled to a stop just outside the campus.

Haru tapped his phone to turn off the speaker. “We gotta go, I’ll see you tonight. Okay, later babe.” Haru hung up and turned to look at his friends. “What?” he asked, brow furrowed.

Rin broke the silence first. “Babe? Seriously? Since when do you call anyone babe?”

Haru reddened. “I don’t know, it’s not a big deal or anything. Mako says it. Sousuke, would you stop staring at me?”

“Sorry man,” said Sousuke, “it’s just… you’ve changed a lot since high school, haven’t you?”

***

Rin paid the cab driver, and the three of them hopped out. After calling Gou twice with no answer, Rin made the executive decision to sneak into her residence building and go straight up to her dorm. It wasn’t hard to find a friendly student who would let them in the front door, and minutes later they were on the fifth floor outside Gou’s room.

“Gou?” Rin called, knocking at the same time. “You in there?”

“Just a minute!” called a sing-song voice from the other side. Gou said something else and giggled, like she was talking to someone. Maybe she was on the phone?

The door opened a fraction, and Gou’s burgundy head popped into view.

“Oh hey, Nii-chan! I’ll be right out, just give us a minute.”

Rin’s blood went cold. “Us?” He looked his sister over. That was definitely a guy’s shirt she was wearing.

“Have you got a boy in there?” Rin growled. Engage Protective-Older-Brother Mode. He pushed past his sister before she could respond, scanning the room until his eyes snapped to a head of bright orange hair-

Rin’s brain ground to a halt.

“Hey dude, how’s it hangin’?” Seijuuro started chatting nervously, but Rin had stopped listening. He wasn’t wearing a shirt. Oh for the love of god, he wasn’t wearing a shirt. Had he… Had they… Rin couldn’t even bring himself to finish that thought.

“I think you broke your brother,” said Sousuke from somewhere behind him.

“Rin,” Gou pleaded, “just calm down, okay? What are you-”

“I thought I told you,” said Rin, cutting her off, “to stay the HELL AWAY FROM MY SISTER!” He grabbed Mikoshiba by the shoulders and slammed him back into the wall. Despite the fact that Seijuuro was of a height with Sousuke, and could easily have overpowered Rin any day of the week, he looked totally terrified. Rin realized he was snarling, baring his teeth like an attack dog.

“MATSUOKA RIN!” Gou’s voice cut through the haze of anger. Rin dropped his hands from Mikoshiba’s shoulder and faced his sister, who was standing with her hands clenched into fists. God, she could be scary when she wanted to be.

“I’ll wait outside,” Haru said quietly from the corner of the room, and disappeared out the door.

Gou crossed her arms and stared Rin down. “What is wrong with you? I told you months ago that Sei and I were dating, you didn’t seem to mind it then.”

“You never told me that!”

“God, Rin, do you even read my emails?”

Rin scratched the back of his neck. “I… skimmed some of them. Hey, don’t look at me like that! I was training for the freaking Olympics!”

“He is pretty terrible at writing letters,” Sousuke put in.

Rin gritted his teeth. “Not helping, Sou.”

“It’s true though.”

“Okay, time out.” Gou put her hands up to silence the two of them. “Rin, Seijuuro is my boyfriend and I expect you to treat him with respect. If you can’t do that, I’m kicking you out of my dorm room. Got it?”

“Got it,” Rin mumbled. He slowly swivelled around to face Mikoshiba. This was probably the part where he was supposed to apologize.

“I guess…” Rin started. The words died in his throat. Gou was grown up and he was supposed to be okay with her dating and falling in love and all that, but she still felt like his baby sister. The little girl who cried because she didn’t want to put her head under the water. Rin remembered taking her hand and teaching her to hold her nose and blow bubbles until she wasn’t scared. He’d been absent for so long, busy with his own life and his own career, that sometimes he forgot that Gou was growing up too. Here she was, nineteen years old and having a stable, grown-up relationship, and he’d almost missed it entirely.

Rin sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess my sister is old enough to make her own decisions. Sorry man,” he said, meeting Seijuuro’s eyes and trying not to grimace. Seijuuro smiled in wordless thanks.

Gou huffed. “Well, now that’s sorted out, may we have a minute to get dressed? Rin, we’ll meet you in the lobby. Now.”

Rin let himself be shepherded out the door with Sousuke, before it shut rather forcefully behind him. Sousuke put an arm around his shoulders and steered him toward the elevators, where Haru was already waiting.

“You know,” said Sousuke, “of all the guys Gou could have set her sights on, I think Mikoshiba’s actually a pretty good fit for her.”

“Please don’t, Sou.”

“No, I’m serious. Did you ever see the way he used to look at her?”

“Yes,” said Rin, “and I almost punched him for it. Several times.”

Sousuke laughed, and squeezed Rin’s shoulder. “Admittedly, you would know him better than I do. But I’ve never seen him so starry-eyed as when Gou walks into the room. He worships the ground she walks on, it’s kind of obvious.”

Well, that was true.

“Fine,” Rin mumbled, crossing his arms. “He’s on probation. But he hurts one hair on her head and I swear to God I’ll rip out his windpipe.”

***

The five of them went out for dinner at a pan-European style restaurant. Haru was thoroughly displeased with the lack of salted mackerel on the menu, but in the end he was mollified by an anchovy-laden pizza. Rin ordered the weirdest thing he could find, a sort of pretzel-and-lobster salad concoction that looked horrifying but he seemed to enjoy, while Gou and Seijuuro shared an enormous plate of shrimp fettucine. Sousuke wasn’t very well acquainted with European food, and after blindly ordering the fish and chips, he really had to wonder at the quality of the average English person’s arteries.

Over the course of dinner, Rin seemed to soften toward Seijuuro, and Sousuke was secretly glad. He hoped Seijuuro wasn’t acting like the perfect gentleman just to please Rin, but Gou didn’t seem very surprised when he pulled out her chair and took her jacket for her, or when he leaned in to hear her tell funny stories about her friends from university (ones he had most likely heard before). Sousuke didn’t share Rin’s apprehension; he could clearly see that Gou was quite capable of choosing a man who would treat her well. Gou was never in danger of losing her heart to anyone; she was too strong for that, too sure of her own worth. If Gou had fallen in love, it was because she had made a decision, and gave herself willingly.

In that respect, Sousuke realized, she was much more mature than her older brother.

***

They met up with Makoto outside The Ultraviolet. Haru found him first, ducking through the small crowd in front of the nightclub to reach his boyfriend. They exchanged a quick kiss in greeting, and Sousuke was embarrassed to admit to himself how warm and fuzzy it made him feel. He wanted to get to that stage with Rin, the one where they were so comfortable with each other that they didn’t need grand gestures and dramatic make-out sessions in the middle of airports. Just a kiss here, a touch there. Of course, he would totally take dramatic make-outs too. He wanted all of it. To be crazy kids, passionately in love, and to grow old together at the same time. Was that possible? He’d have to find out.

“Hi guys,” said Makoto, smiling warmly as ever. He inclined his head toward Sousuke. “Good to see you again, it’s been a while hasn’t it?”

Sousuke returned his smile. Makoto was so easy to get along with.

“It has. You up for coffee sometime this week?”

“Sounds great! Rin, Haru, do you want to join us?”

Rin answered before Haru could get a word in. “Nah, thanks for asking, but we wouldn’t want to barge in on your bro-date. You two catch up.” Rin studiously ignored the look Haru was giving him.

“Man, how long is this line-up going to take?” Seijuuro said, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Sousuke guessed it would be at least a half-hour.

Rin flashed him a sharp-toothed grin. “No time at all, my friends. We’re on the list. Wait here just one minute.” He practically swaggered over to the bouncer, who looked him up and down like a pit-bull sizing up a chihuahua that had wandered onto his turf. After a minute, and some pointing at the bouncer’s clipboard, Rin waved them over and their group was let inside.

The change in atmosphere was jarring. It was dark everywhere except the dancefloor, which was lit haphazardly by shifting pink and blue lights. The music, as well we the smell of sweat and beer, was overpowering. Rin took Sousuke’s hand and led him toward the DJ’s booth.

“How did you get us VIP passes?” Sousuke near-shouted into Rin’s ear.

He just grinned. “You’ll see!” Rin yelled back.

They pressed through the crowd of scantily-clad bodies, and Rin marched straight up to the DJ. It was hard to see with the lights swinging wildly around the dancefloor. Sousuke just focused on the back of Rin’s head, the nape of his neck, the curve of his trapezius where his neck and shoulder met…

“Oi!” Rin practically screamed in the general direction of the DJ, who pulled off his massive headphones. The DJ’s hair sprang free, wavey and cowlicked and sticking out at all angles. He shouted something, flicked a couple of buttons, then came around and practically launched himself at Sousuke.

What the hell?

Sousuke pulled back, trying to focus on the guy. Then the light caught on his face for a second, and Sou realized who he was still half-hugging.

“Kisumi?”

“Yo, glad you could make it!” Kisumi’s voice carried well, probably from a lot of practice yelling over the deafening music. “It’s been so long, dude, haven’t seen you in ages! Rin said you two were banging now, nice going!”

Sousuke was suddenly glad for the dim light. No one would see him turn beet red. “We haven’t, um…” He trailed off, wondering what it was about Kisumi that always made him over-share.

“Really? Well, fuck, have I got a song for you then!” Kisumi swung back into his booth.

Rin gave Kisumi a friendly wave, then returned to Sousuke’s side. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

Sousuke shrugged. “I think he’s up to something.”

Rin snorted. “Kisumi’s always up to something. That’s why we can never introduce him to Nagisa.” He took Sousuke’s hand again and started moving through the crowd, back to their friends, when the music died.

Kisumi’s voice came loud over the speaker system. “Eyyy, how’s everyone doing tonight?” Cheers went up in response. Rin looked suspicious, and Sousuke felt the same way. “Now,” Kisumi continued, “I don’t usually do requests or dedications or anything like that, but some of my oldest friends are here tonight. And, after like ten years of dancing around it, they’ve FINALLY gotten together!” More cheering, louder this time. Rin and Sousuke cringed in unison. “So, for my two best buds, and all the other lovebirds out there tonight, this one’s for you.”

The song was in English. Sousuke didn’t recognize it, but Rin did. He groaned, and muttered something that Sousuke couldn’t hear, but was probably a promise to murder Kisumi the first chance he got.

“You wanna dance?” Sousuke asked, carefully keeping his trepidation out of his voice. It wasn’t hard when he had to yell to make himself heard.

“You dance?” Rin looked genuinely surprised.

“Never tried.” Sousuke grinned. “Want to find out?”

Sousuke led Rin to the middle of the dancefloor and rested his hands on Rin’s hips. It didn’t look hard, everyone else was either jumping around or gyrating, both of which seemed pretty straightforward. Then Rin swayed his hips, pushing into Sousuke’s pelvis, and he realized the danger of the situation. Hopefully it was too dark for anyone to notice if he got a massive boner.

Rin wrapped his arms around Sousuke’s neck and pulled himself in. His hair smelled like chlorine and Old Spice. They swayed with the rhythm, impossibly close and yet not close enough.

***

Rin wasn’t bothered by Kisumi’s aggressively sexual choice of music, or the fact that he’d announced the current status of Rin’s lovelife to the entire club. He wasn’t even bothered by the fact that he could see his baby sister necking his former team captain in a dark corner. Somehow, nothing could ruin this, not even the loss of his sister’s innocence (which, he kept having to remind himself, happened months ago. Maybe longer. Had she had boyfriends he didn’t even know about? That was a frightening thought).

Okay, maybe a little bothered. But it couldn’t last long, not when Sousuke was grinding against him like that. God, he wouldn’t last the night at this rate. He slid his hands over Sou’s shoulders, careful with the right one, and down his back. Sousuke was muscular as ever; though he had stopped swimming, he still exercised regularly, and it showed. Rin was getting dangerously close to doing something truly inappropriate in the middle of a crowded nightclub, and he didn’t fucking care.

***

Makoto slid into the booth next to Haru and handed him a vodka soda. He sipped his own beer thoughtfully, and let his hand rest on Haru’s thigh.

“I’m glad everything worked out between those two,” Mako said, glancing over at Rin and Sousuke. Kisumi was right; the more he thought about it, the more he realized that Sousuke and Rin’s relationship had been a long time coming. Makoto had missed the signs before, because he hadn’t known to look for them, and he’d been too busy looking after his own team to notice. But now he remembered the looks they used to share, and the way they seemed to know each other’s minds as well as Makoto knew Haru’s. He remembered the way Sousuke lashed out at Haru, and Makoto knew now it had been for Rin’s sake. Come to think of it, everything Sousuke had done that summer, it had all been for Rin.

“Rin looks happy,” Haru offered, poking at his drink with a straw. From Haru, that was an agreement, an acceptance of sorts, and Makoto broke into a big smile.

“Does that mean you don’t hate Sousuke anymore?” Makoto asked, gently.

“Tch,” said Haru, dropping his gaze to the table. “I never hated him.”

“No, I’m sorry, I know you didn’t.” You were scared, and you cared very much about Rin, Makoto wanted to say, but he stopped himself. It didn’t need saying. Sometimes, the simple truth was too much for Haru to admit, and Makoto didn’t want Haru to close himself up. Instead, he put an arm around Haru’s shoulders and drew him in, planting a kiss on the top of his head.

***

“You want to get out of here?” Rin purred into Sousuke’s ear.

He blinked. Oh god yes.

“What about the others?” said Sousuke, attempting to be considerate and pretending he wasn’t thinking entirely with his dick.

“They’ll be fine, I trust Makoto to keep an eye on Gou,” said Rin matter-of-factly. He fixed those wine-coloured eyes on Sousuke the way a predatory cat looks at it particularly juicy prey.

Holy fuck, keep it together Sousuke.

“Don’t leave me hanging, dude,” Rin said, and Sousuke realized he had not yet given Rin an answer. When had his throat gone this dry?

Sousuke leaned into Rin’s neck, partly to be able to talk over the music and partly because he wasn’t entirely confident he could control his own facial expressions.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

***

Rin had been too impatient to find Haru and Makoto before they left, so he sent a quick text from the cab. It was very hard to spell things correctly when he was semi-drunk and Sousuke’s hands were all over him, but Makoto would probably get the gist of it.

They managed to get all the way up the stairs to Rin’s apartment still fully clothed, which was a feat. Rin fumbled with his keys, like he’d forgotten how his own hands worked. He really hadn’t had that much to drink; he was just high on Sousuke, and it felt fucking fantastic.

Rin got the door open and they stumbled into his apartment. Sousuke kicked it shut and moved in to kiss Rin fiercely, pressing him up against the wall until Rin’s feet left the ground. It was exhilarating. Rin wrapped his legs around Sousuke’s hips, clinging to him for dear life.

Sousuke pulled a way, just a fraction, and Rin got a good look at his face. His cheeks were flushed, bottom lip red and a bit swollen. His blue-green eyes stood out, brighter than ever. Rin had never thought of Sousuke as beautiful before, but he was thinking it now.

“Holy shit, Rin,” Sousuke breathed.

“I know,” said Rin.

“Do you-“

“Fuck yes,” Rin said, cutting him off with a kiss. Sousuke snaked his arms around Rin and carried him over to the bedroom, nearly stumbling a couple of times because he couldn’t be bothered to break the kiss. Somehow, they made it to Rin’s bed, and Sousuke dropped him on his back onto the mattress. Sou climbed onto the bed, one knee on either side of Rin’s hips, and slid his hands up Rin’s shirt, trailing heat up his stomach in the most amazing way. Rin let Sousuke take it off entirely, and propped himself up on his elbows to watch as Sou fucking ogled his abs.

Rin allowed himself a moment of pride. He was pretty damn fit, and rarely was he so rewarded for showing off his muscles.

“Haven’t you seen me shirtless before?” Rin teased. Of course Sousuke had, hundreds of times. Hell, they had seen each other naked in the locker rooms more often than he could count.

“Not like this,” said Sou, his voice low and gravelly. He arched forward to suck on Rin’s neck, and Rin took the opportunity to grab the hem of Sou’s shirt and pull it up. Sousuke’s skin was incredibly warm under Rin’s hands, and he wanted to soak up all of that amazing, addictive heat.

Sousuke leaned back and dutifully removed his shirt. Rin had to pry his eyes away from Sou’s pectorals when he spoke.

“You’ve done this before,” said Sousuke. It wasn’t phrased as a question, but he still waited for a response.

Rin nodded. “A handful of times, yeah.” He didn’t mention with whom. “You?”

“Only with girls,” Sousuke admitted. “And that was before I came out.” Sousuke rolled over and lay down beside Rin, face to face, one hand still holding onto Rin’s waist, right under his ribs.

“Do you want to go slow?” It would take a lot of restraint on Rin’s part, but for Sousuke, he was willing.

“No. Yes. I don’t know.” Sousuke looked almost pained. “Fuck, I want you so bad.”

Rin smiled, shifting his weight until he was on top of Sousuke. He nipped at the line of Sou’s jaw. Sousuke whimpered and twitched his hips up into Rin’s. Well, that was interesting. Rin sucked at that spot, earning some more interesting noises.

Rin considered his options. He wasn’t sure if Sou was ready for a blowjob from him – that required a certain brand of bravery, considering Rin’s teeth. Rin was quite skilled at giving a classic handie, but he had a feeling he could get Sousuke to go further. And maybe it was selfish, but Rin wanted way more than that.

“Sou,” he whispered, grinding into Sousuke’s hips. “Sousuke.”

Sousuke seemed to like it when Rin said his name. Good. Rin liked saying it.

“Can I tell you what I want?”

“Oh my god, yes.” Sousuke’s eyes fluttered as Rin drove his hips down onto him.

God, Sou had the most amazing reactions. To pretty much everything. Rin bit his lip, savouring the moment, then said, “I want to feel you come inside me.”

Sou’s eyes flew open. He looked like a rabbit caught in a tractor beam. Rin started laughing so hard he fell off Sousuke’s chest, rolling around on the bed in hysterics.

“Oh my god Rin,” Sousuke said angrily, “you’re killing the mood, here.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Rin giggled, and wrapped his arms around Sousuke’s neck. “It’s just, your face, you should have seen it. It was fucking priceless.”

“Would you please shut up,” Sou growled.

Rin pressed his lips into Sousuke’s. “Ish that a yesh then?” he said, without breaking the kiss. Sousuke hummed and pressed into him in what could only be interpreted as enthusiastic assent. Rin reached down to fiddle with the button on Sousuke’s jeans, and savoured the hitch in Sou’s breath when he got it open. Rin sat up and pushed Sousuke into the bed on his back. With both hands, he slowly pulled off Sou’s boxers, and… wow. That was… Wow.

Rin felt his face turn red.

“You okay?” Sousuke asked.

“Yes,” Rin squeaked. He’d never seen Sousuke hard before. He was magnificent.

“You don’t look okay.”

“No, I’m just–”

“We can stop if you want.” Sousuke, you goddamn considerate bastard.

“No, no. I’m… impressed.”

It was Sousuke’s turn to laugh. “Think you can handle this?” he said, wiggling his eyebrows and grinning mischievously.

Rin swatted at him. “Is that a challenge?” he said, licking his lips. “Because I’m very competitive.”

“I know you are,” said Sou, guiding Rin’s hand down to the base of his cock. He was so hard, and glistening with precome. Rin gave him a few lazy strokes, rubbing his thumb just under the tip. Sousuke arched his back and moaned in the most delicious way.

With his other hand, Rin undid his own jeans, relieving the strain on his sorely tested zipper. He really needed to stop wearing skinny jeans when Sousuke was around. He stood up and peeled them off. The lube and box of condoms were under the bed; purchased very recently, just for the occasion. Rin tossed them both on the mattress next to Sousuke, who was currently drinking in an eyeful of Rin’s body with undisguised lust.

Rin climbed back on the bed and straddled Sou’s hips. He picked up Sousuke’s right hand and sucked at his middle finger. Sousuke watched, transfixed, like he had no clue what was happening but he wanted way more of it anyway.

“One of us,” Rin murmured around Sou’s fingers, “is going to need to finger me before I can take that.” He eyed Sou’s cock, heavy against his stomach, then trailed his gaze up to meet Sousuke’s eyes. Sou looked positively greedy, and it gave Rin happy little shivers.

“Can I?” Sousuke asked, eyebrows raised.

“Fuck yes, I was hoping you’d ask me that.”

Rin grabbed the lube and spread it all over Sousuke’s fingers, down to the knuckle, taking the opportunity to caress his hand in very suggestive ways. Then he let it go and leaned down on his elbows, bringing himself level with those brilliant blue-green eyes.

“You ready, Sou?”

Sousuke nodded, and Rin felt him, searching, caressing, and then letting his middle finger slide in. Rin’s breath caught.

“Fuck, that’s good,” Rin said, grinding down on Sousuke’s hand. He felt like he was melting under Sou’s touch. Tendrils of heat spread up and outward, engulfing Rin’s body and making him throb all over. He leaned down and kissed Sousuke aggressively, dragging Sou’s lip between his own. Sousuke tentatively added another finger, and Rin moaned into his lips.

“Sou,” Rin said, pulling back. His pulse raced in his ears. “That’s so good. Do you wanna…?” He mimicked a curling motion with his fingers.

Sousuke tried it, and Rin let out something between a moan and a yelp. Fuck, that was so, so good. He buried his head in the curve of Sousuke’s neck, to hopefully muffle his ridiculous moaning in case Sou tried that again.

“Like that?” Sousuke asked, and Rin could feel him grinning like an idiot.

“Like that,” Rin said roughly.

Of course, now that he knew the trick to Rin’s undoing, Sousuke wouldn’t leave it alone. With nearly every thrust he rubbed against the spot, reducing Rin to a quivering mess on top of him. His dick was painfully hard and dripping by the time Sousuke let his third finger slide in.

“Sou you’re, ah fuck, you’re gonna kill me.”

“Liar. You’re living for this.” Sou’s eyes flicked back and forth between Rin’s face and his own handiwork. Rin let him thrust in a few more times, then caught his wrist. Sousuke looked up at him, as if waiting for further instruction. He looked so earnest, so eager, and it flooded Rin with warmth. It was not a look he’d ever seen on Sousuke’s face before.

“You ready?” Rin’s voice was getting raspier and needier by the second. He tore open a condom with his teeth and handed it over. Sousuke rolled it down with quick, haphazard strokes, and added a big glob of lube. Then he grabbed Rin around the shoulders and flipped him on his back, positioning himself directly above. Rin pulled his knees up, breath coming fast. This was Sousuke; amazing, caring, infinitely patient Sousuke, staring down at him with raw, needy bedroom eyes, his pupils blown wide. God, he looked amazing.

And then Sousuke was pushing inside him and oh god jesus fuck. Rin let out a stream of curses, and pressed his palms against the headboard. The heat, the pressure filling him, it was almost too intense. Rin bit back a yowl. Sousuke’s eyes were on him, and he paused, giving Rin a chance to get a hold of himself. It took a minute.

Rin reached up and ran his fingers through Sousuke’s hair. He gently pulled on Sousuke’s neck, directing him downward until their lips met hungrily. Rin twitched his hips up, testing the feel of it. He caused just enough friction to make Sousuke moan into his mouth. Rin let go of Sousuke’s lips, breath still mingling in the fraction of an inch between their faces. Rin moved again, more forcefully this time, and Sousuke picked up the rhythm, starting agonizingly slow.

Rin was going to go insane if he kept this pace. “Come on, Sou, you can fuck me harder than that.”

Sousuke let his head fall, resting it on Rin’s chest. His breath was ragged. “I go any faster and I’m gonna come in about two seconds flat.”

Rin laid a hand on Sousuke’s chest, tenderly pushing him back. He let Sousuke watch as he wrapped his hand around his own dick and started stroking. “How’s this then?” Rin asked.

Sousuke swallowed hard. “Really fucking hot,” he answered.

“Just keep going slow then, I’ll tell you when I’m close.”

Sousuke got back into his rhythm, and Rin rolled his hips to meet him. Rin’s back arched of its own accord as the pressure ebbed and flowed in him. Sousuke watched him the whole time with half-lidded eyes, and Rin let him see the exquisite pleasure on his face.

“Sousuke,” Rin said, and Sou shuddered. “Sousuke, oh fuck, Sousuke.”

Sou groaned and rammed himself further in, hitting Rin’s sweet spot and making him cry out. His own hand faltered in its timing. Fuuuuuck that was so good.

“Now, Sousuke, fuck me hard, I’m so close.”

Sou caught him up in a sloppy kiss and started thrusting in earnest. His rhythm wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t matter, Rin as right on the edge with him and then-

Then he saw stars. His orgasm crashed through him in waves, and he was dimly aware of Sousuke following him over, biting down the urge to scream out of ecstasy. Rin came back into his body by degrees, riding the aftershocks as all of the tension ebbed out of him until he was spent and delirious and happy. Sou collapsed on top of him, still breathing hard, and Rin was perfectly content at that moment to lie in a messy, sticky tangle of limbs, Sousuke warm and heavy on top of him. It was so perfect.

Sou breathed in deep, and sighed contentedly into Rin’s ear. “I have… no words,” he said.

“I’m going to take that as a good sign,” said Rin, as he planted light kisses on Sousuke’s shoulder.

Sousuke pushed himself up and ever-so-gently pulled out. “Yes. Good. Definitely good.”

They cleaned up and cuddled in bed until Rin nearly passed out on Sousuke’s shoulder (the good one). Sou coaxed him to get up long enough to brush his teeth, and then the two of them collapsed into bed. Rin inserted himself into Sousuke’s embrace; Sou murmured happily and curled around him. Sousuke was a natural furnace, and Rin, cozied up in his warmth, fell asleep in seconds.

***

Sousuke woke up to bright sunlight and the smell of vegetables grilling. He sat up and stretched, rolling his shoulder experimentally. It didn’t complain, which was nice, given what he had put it through last night. He smiled to himself at the memory.

Sou had slept in only his boxers, and all of his clean clothes were in the living room. He gathered up his clothes from the night before and padded out of the bedroom. Rin was standing over a frying pan in the kitchen with his back to Sousuke, wearing low-slung Samezuka trackpants and a racerback tank. He had earbuds on, and was singing along to something or other in English. Sousuke leaned against one wall, still holding his laundry, and just listened. Rin had a good singing voice, gentle yet expressive, the kind of voice that was well suited to a love song and an acoustic guitar. Sou was almost jealous – he couldn’t sing worth spit.

Rin finally noticed him standing there, and abruptly stopped mid-lyric. “Hey, you’re up,” he said, trying to play it cool, but Sousuke saw the blush creeping over his face. Sou tossed his clothes in the general direction of Rin’s couch and moved forward, snaking his arms around Rin’s waist in a backwards hug. Rin tilted his head back into Sousuke’s shoulder.

“Morning,” said Sou. “You’re good at that.”

Rin chuckled. “The singing or the cooking?”

“The singing. I’m not sure I should trust your cooking.”

“Hey!” Rin folded his arms, nearly whacking Sousuke in the face with his spatula. “I’ve gotten way better at it, I’ll have you know. I’ve had to feed myself since I left high school.”

“I’ll believe it when I taste it.”

Rin scoffed. “Ye of little faith. There’s a coffee shop a block west of here if you distrust me that much.”

Sousuke sighed in mock resignation. “No, I’ll take my chances here. If you fall, I’m going down with you.”

“Oh my god Sou, would you let that go? One time I gave you food poisioning, one time, and you never let me hear the end of it!”

Sousuke chuckled, then cocked his head. Something smelled like… “Oi, Rin?”

“What!?”

“The onions are burning.”

***

Despite the fact that it was partially overcooked, Rin’s breakfast was actually pretty good. Rin did not have a dining room or a proper table, so they ate on the couch. Sunlight streamed across the room, tangling in Rin’s wild hair and turning it a rusty gold. Even with bedhead, Rin looked amazing.

“That song,” said Sousuke, “the one you were singing earlier. What was it?”

“Hm? Oh, that. It's Ed Sheeran. Gou showed me some of his music ages ago, he has some really good stuff.” Rin set his empty plate down on his desk and wiggled deeper into the couch cushions. “I’ve been listening to that song a lot, in the past couple of months.” He looked a little embarrassed to admit it.

“Yeah?” Sousuke waited for Rin to continue.

Rin stretched his legs across Sousuke’s lap. “Yeah, I dunno, it’s kind of… relevant. To us.” He looked into Sousuke’s eyes, searching, probably trying to decide how much he ought to say.

“Rin,” said Sou, pouring as much warmth into his voice as he could, “I’m not going to judge you for your taste in music. You can tell me.”

“I warn you, it’s cheesy as fuck.”

Sousuke grinned. “I can handle it, I promise.”

“Alright then, if you insist.” Rin got up and padded over to his bedroom. “I’ve got a couple of things I do,” he called from the other room, “that remind me of you.” Rin came back in, dragging last night’s pair of jeans behind him. He fished around in the back pocket. “I know you’re going to tease me for this, so don’t.”

Rin pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Sousuke, who smoothed it out on the table. It was a photo of the two of them, from the summer Sousuke came to Samezuka. Rin had one arm around Sousuke’s shoulder and was flashing a peace sign with the other. Sousuke wasn’t looking at the camera; he was looking at Rin. His face bore only the tiniest hint of a smile, but Sousuke figured that Rin knew him well enough to know how happy he was when the photo was taken.

Sousuke smirked. “As much as I’d love to, I can’t tease you about this.”

“Good,” Rin said, taking the picture back and tucking it away in his trackpants. “Why not?”

Sousuke stood up and found his wallet, then plopped back down on the couch and handed it to Rin. “Second slot from the front,” he said. Sousuke watched him, propping his elbows on his knees as Rin rifled through and found the picture.

Rin looked shocked. “I can’t believe you still have this.”

The photo was of Rin, Sousuke, and Kisumi, in the playground outside Sano Elementary. Rin had a bright green bandage on his cheek, and all three of them were grinning as bright as the sun.

“Look at the back,” Sousuke said.

Rin flipped the photo over. “Me and Sou and Kisu, best friends,” Rin read aloud. “I remember writing that.”

“I remember you giving it to me.” Sou watched Rin as he ran his thumb over the writing, done in teal ink from a Magic Marker.

Rin carefully refolded the photo and placed it back in Sousuke’s wallet. “I had no idea you’re such a romantic, Sou.”

Sousuke pulled Rin across the couch and into his arms. “Hypocrite,” he said, idly stroking Rin’s hair.

“Fair point,” Rin conceded. “We’re disgustingly cute, aren’t we?”

“No one has to know that,” Sousuke said, nipping at Rin’s ear. He giggled, but didn’t pull away.

“It gets worse, too.” Rin twisted around to look at him. “Remember when I got so mad at you I broke your goggles? They’re at my mom’s house.”

“I still have the magic party hat,” Sousuke countered, and Rin snorted.

“You’re not serious.”

“Am too. I wear it every time I get sick. Works like a charm.”

Rin curled around Sousuke in a fit of giggles. “That’s a mental image. You in a party hat.”

“I look sexy in a party hat,” Sousuke said with a completely serious air.

Rin couldn’t contain his laughter. To be fair, it didn’t help at all when Sousuke started tickling him. The Matsuoka siblings were both notoriously ticklish, a fact that Sousuke had nearly forgotten. He hadn’t taken revenge on Rin like this since they were ten. Now, of course, he had some catching up to do.

***

They spent the day in the apartment, playing video games and skyping with various former teammates. Momo was in Brazil, doing field work for his undergraduate thesis on something or other to do with stag beetles. Uozumi and Minami popped up on screen together; they were roommates now at a university in the south. Uozumi had a long list of complaints about his classes to relate to Rin, with Minami offering the occasional sarcastic comment, and narrowly avoiding being punched in the ribs for it. Sousuke was surprised to find that Nitori was still at Samezuka, teaching introductory math, and even more surprised to know that Ai was now taller than Rin. “Don’t remind me,” Rin had drawled, but it was plain that Nitori still very much looked up to him (metaphorically, at least).

When the sun began to set, Rin pulled Sousuke out onto his balcony to watch the clouds turn pink and gold. He had a great view from the sixteenth floor, overlooking the Arakawa River.

“I have news for you,” said Sousuke. Rin leaned against the railing and gazed at him, hair floating around his face in the breeze.

“News I’m going to like?”

“I think you might.” Sousuke turned to face him. “I got accepted. I start school in January.”

Rin’s face lit up. He stepped forward and took hold of Sousuke’s jacket, and Sou was briefly reminded of the way Rin had grabbed him at regionals three years ago. But this time, his grip was gentle, at peace. Rin pulled himself up by Sousuke’s lapels to kiss him, soft and slow.

“I knew you would, Sou.” Rin smiled, eyes shining. “Move in with me?”

“Really?” Sousuke’s brows went up. “We haven’t been going out very long, isn’t it too soon?”

“Fuck that, I’ve known you forever. And we’ve lived together already.” Rin gazed up at him with uncertainty. “But if you don’t want to-”

“I do. Of course I do.” Sousuke kissed him again, harder, and steered Rin back inside. God yes, he wanted to live with Rin. He wanted to spend every fucking second with Rin, discovering everything he never knew about the boy he’d always known. He didn’t want to go back to Iwatobi at the end of the week, not even with a promise to return. He buried his face in Rin’s silky red hair, breathed him in.

One more departure, Sousuke thought. One more time, one of them would have to fly away. One more time before Sousuke would no longer be cursed with a never-ending string of painful goodbyes. Before he could stop staring at a computer screen, or an old photograph that frayed at the edges, wishing he could reach right through.

One more time, Sousuke had to leave. One more time, and then he could come home for good.