It was a week before I graduated from high school, and I was avoiding my two best friends. I couldn't bear to see them after my announcement, especially Kunimi. And I knew Kindaichi was gonna be so angry that he had to find out that I was going to a University abroad from Kunimi instead of directly from me.

Classes had just finished and I ducked out quickly, speed walking despite having no particular destination. I couldn't go home yet because I knew I needed to distract myself from my increasingly incoherent thoughts. So, naturally, I went to my favorite ice cream shop.

My body carried me there almost automatically, but before I could enter I froze in place. Through the glass, I could see Kunimi inside, staring blankly at his melting salted caramel iced cream. Thankfully, it seemed like he didn't notice me, so I turned tail and ran, heading home, cursing myself that I forgot it was his favorite place too.

I knew that Kindaichi was probably waiting for me, but dealing with Kindaichi's yells was hundreds of times better than dealing with Kunimi's sad, piercing eyes.

True enough, when I arrived, he was seated at the front door, typing something on his phone. When he noticed me he immediately got up and stomped over, his intent on scolding me evident on his face, but for some reason, it morphed into one of concern as he neared.

"What the hell happened to you? You look like you were chased by a ghost!" He exclaimed.

"...Kunimi was in our booth. His eyes...his eyes looked so..." I muttered as I shakily inserted the keys.

Kindaichi said nothing but after a moment of silence, sighed. "We're going to talk about this first. Seriously, I thought you were the most rational and the least stubborn of all of us..."

I sighed as well but he knew it was one of defeat so he bit back his tongue for the meantime.

Once I was seated comfortably at my couch with him on a beanbag across me, he started the conversation by reaching over and smacking me in the back of the head.

"You think I don't have feelings because I'm a guy who does sports? You should have told us you were going abroad! Remember the incident when Iwaizumi-Senpai told Oikawa-Senpai that he was going to a different university? He had the decency to say that months early, even though it was still in Japan!" He started ranting.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry, stubborn Turnip-head..." I hugged a throw pillow as I tried to cover up my guilt with senseless retorts.

"Y/n, seriously..." he ran his hand through his hair and I looked down guiltily.

"I...I just didn't want you guys to keep thinking about it when we hung out," I practically whispered as I fiddled with the zipper of my jacket.

"...when did Kunimi find out?" he asked after a while.

"Ten days before you."

He closed his eyes and breathed slowly in and out to calm himself.

"Why do you even have to go abroad? There are a bunch of good universities in Japan..."

"I...it's my dream school, Kindaichi," I finally looked up at him.

He stares back for a few moments before he gets up, "Want some milk tea? You still keep it in that cupboard, right?"

"Yeah..." I replied as he walked to my kitchen, surprised at his lack of stubbornness at my earlier response.

We chatted about mundane things after he came back, until we'd finished the tea he made.

As he stood up to bring them to the sink, I stopped him and took them myself.

"So...I'll swing by tomorrow after school, too," he said when I came back.

"Yeah..." I looked down and he started for the door, but I reached a hand out to catch the sleeve of his jacket.

He looked back at me softly and I pulled him in for a quick hug, "I'm glad you two are my friends. I know there were some days I wouldn't have gotten through without you guys..."

He was quiet for a bit but eventually replied, "Same here. And I'm glad you're using the present tense. Even when you're abroad we'll still be in touch, anyway. And I'll whack Kunimi if he doesn't call you every now and then, 'kay?"

Before I could respond, he ended the hug and scolded, "Make up with him quickly, neither of you are the type to be stubborn idiots and waste your last few months here."

I simply nodded and offered a small smile as he closed the door on his way out.

As I walked back to my couch I noticed him dial somebody on his phone, I shrugged it off, thinking it was probably a friend he was calling to catch up with before graduation.

I plopped down onto the couch after I found my laptop and began scrolling through Netflix to find something to watch. A notification indicated that one of my shows just had the next season come out, and I excitedly clicked it, only to be taken aback by memories when I realised what show it was.

It was a volleyball anime that Kunimi and I had watched out of curiosity one afternoon in first year after his practice was cancelled due to a storm. It was only the two of us on my couch because Kindaichi was busy studying for the upcoming midterms (Kunimi and I didn't really need to study to maintain grades in the top 50, much to Kindaichi's chagrin). I remembered the way I kept being distracted by how pretty his eyes looked and how long his eyelashes were upon closer inspection. I remembered the way he laughed and the way he criticised the unrealistic parts of the volleyball in the show. And I remembered the way my younger self wondered why I never felt this way when I was alone with Kindaichi.

I shut the laptop in frustration and went to my room to do what else but throw it on my bed. I didn't need a reminder of how stupid I used to be! And I definitely didn't need a reminder that despite knowing that I loved him since second year, I never had the balls to tell him. And now there was no point, because I wouldn't see him for at least four years and even if for some reason he liked me, why would I be so cruel as to make him wait four years? Surely he could find a smarter, prettier, nicer, less complicated—and my thoughts went in a downward spiral again.

I sighed and got up, putting on headphones and setting my phone to play on shuffle. Out of pure luck, it switched to the one song I probably needed most at that time. I recalled liking this song a lot in middle school, it had such a calming but catchy melody, with pretty but a bit sad lyrics.

After the song ended I got up to find my old guitar, I was for some reason filled with enough motivation to try and sing that song. Music always was my escape.

When I found the guitar case shoved haphazardly on top of my wardrobe, I cringed at the fact that I couldn't reach it with my height. Cursing at the yet another fact, the fact that I wouldn't have the boys to help me with things like these anymore once I was abroad, I went and found a stool to step on.

Once I had successfully (despite almost falling off) retrieved my guitar, I unzipped it and laughed at the sight. I had forgotten I painted it the Kitagawa Daiichi colours with Kindaichi all those years ago.

I settled on my couch after quickly googling the chords for the song to make sure I remembered it right, and started playing and singing my suppressed emotions away.

"Hey pretty boy...I wonder where you're going with that face of yours..." I let myself imagine how soft and vulnerable Kunimi sometimes looked when he smiled, and let myself remember how much I had wished I was the only one to ever see that smile.

"Hey pretty boy...it's a shame no one's holding that empty hand of yours..." I remembered linking arms with him and Kindaichi in a summer festival and wishing I could hold his warm hand instead.

"Hey pretty boy...it's a Friday night and I'm a little bored..." a surprisingly fond memory of the two of us lazing around on my living room floor when we didn't know what to do came to mind.

"Hey pretty boy...don't be shy and say hello...Don't tease me!" I recalled the first time we met in middle school and how he wryly teased me for thinking he was shy when he really was just uninterested in making many friends because they were too loud, which, to be honest, I kind of agreed with.

"It's funny when you're nervous and you look away...you stutter when I laugh and give yourself away..." I realised that despite it being so unlike him, he did do that a couple of times back in middle school...

"Take a deep breath...and let's go jump on Saturn's rings.." I closed my eyes and just let myself get lost in the song, hands moving mechanically as they strummed the strings.

"The stars align when our eyes would meet...You'd think the universe is telling us something...In another life, would fate steal you away?" my voice cracked a bit at the last line but I continued.

"Hey pretty boy...I wonder why there's tears on those sleeves of yours..." for some reason, I remembered that time in second year when I had to scold him upon Kindaichi's request because he was overworking himself in volleyball, which honestly scared both of us, partially because one of his best points was that he knew the right amount of effort to give.

"Hey pretty boy...it's funny how you call when your plans fall out...Netflix and Chill...how about we marathon all your favourite shows?" I blushed at the implication of the song and remembered a time when I woke up cuddling him after a sleepover, and he refused to get up because he was still sleepy.

"Hey pretty boy...it's alright to feel alone..." my voice went a little bit softer, a little bit sadder, and I tried to snap out of the emotions by strumming faster.

"Don't tease me!" I repeated the chorus, as I stared at my fingers shifting chords, trying to keep my mind blank of anything but the notes this time.

"Now I've run out of time...I want you to be mine...don't cry, don't cry, don't cry..." I poured all of the emotions I wasn't able to express out of my own stubbornness when I told him about going abroad into the end of the song.

"Hey pretty boy...I wonder just how long this daydream will last...Hey pretty boy...don't give me such a sad look because I'm gone...bye, pretty boy...let's meet again someday..." as I strummed the last chord my mind was filled with the memory of his empty, glassy eyes, and I felt something cold drip on my hands.

"Oh..." I muttered as I swiped at my face, desperate to wipe off the tears as quickly as possible, as though this would erase the fact that I had cried.

"Oikawa-Senpai's prettier than me, though," I heard a familiar voice from behind me and I jumped up.

I turned around to see Kunimi leaning on the door while sipping a salted caramel frappe.

"How...how did you get in?" I looked down at the floor.

"You still keep the keys under the third potted plant to the left," he shrugged as he walked over and placed his drink on the coffee table in front of the couch.

Before I could respond, he pulled me closer to him by the collar of my shirt and stared into my eyes. I couldn't think of a reply coherent enough as I stared back at his...the only thoughts filling my head were those questioning the sanity of the people who remarked his eyes looked dull.

"You weren't thinking of leaving me like that, right?" He slumped onto me in a sort of needy hug.

I wrapped my arms around him after getting over the shock and unsurprisingly smelled the scent of caramel on him, "No..."

"Hey, Akira..." I tried to find the right words but he interrupted me.

"You smell like peppermint."

I hummed in response as he pulled away. He wiped what remained of my tears and put his hands on my cheeks after, making me look up at him. He placed a quick kiss on my forehead and I blushed, collapsing on to the couch behind me after he removed his hands.

He sighed and plopped down next to me lazily, taking the frappe from the table and handing it to me afterwards. I gratefully took a sip and stared at the ceiling in embarrassment.

While I was staring at the ceiling, Kunimi had relaxed next to me and turned on the TV, before reaching over to hold my hand.

I nearly spit out what I was drinking, which would be a shame considering how good it was, and looked at him questioningly, but he didn't even take his eyes of the boring nightly news as he said, "It's a shame no one's holding my empty hand, right?"

"Damn you, Akira...damn you..." I muttered as my face grew hot and I sensed him smirk beside me.

"I've liked you since third year middle school. Was just too lazy to come up with what to do about it..." he said quietly as he changed the channel with his left hand.

I looked at him curiously and eventually decided on how to respond, "I don't need you to say that just because you heard my stupid song. Lies don't suit you."

He finally took his eyes off the TV and I was surprised to see a harsh glare in his eyes.

I was about to change the topic and apologise for not telling him my university plan in advance, when my thoughts were interrupted by the sensation of something soft and sweet crashing onto my lips.

Oh. So this is what a first kiss is like.

My eyes fluttered close involuntarily as our lips moved in sync. My cheeks felt like they would burst into flames when he licked my lower lip, and I was too overwhelmed to resist his prompt, instead settling for running my hands through his soft hair. He tasted...well, like salted caramel, and I smiled into the kiss at the realisation. We soon broke away from each other and my heart somehow hurt in a good way at the sight of his messed up hair, slightly flushed face, and half-lidded eyes.

"Do you really want me to think of more ways to convince you?" he raised an eyebrow subtly as he leaned back onto the couch.

I must have been smiling stupidly as I answered, "Nah."

I got up and put in our favorite horrible b-rated movie so we could unwind in the best way: trashing Hollywood cliches.

Things started to feel normal until I remembered the very reason I started avoiding him in the first place. Kunimi being Kunimi, he sighed when he realised I was bothered.

"Stop worrying about future problems, jeez. And besides, I know plenty of people who're happy with long-distance relationships. Like Oikawa-Senpai and Iwaizumi-Senpai."

"Who...who said we're going to be in a long distance relationship?" I mumbled weakly, used to him guessing my thoughts.

"Do you want to have had your first kiss stolen by a classmate you have a crush on instead of your boyfriend?" He asked as he nonchalantly took the frappe back from me.

I hmphed in response before saying, "No..."

He smiled while still looking at the TV and I felt his thumb stroking my hand.

...

"You are prettier than Oikawa," I commented out of the blue as I took the dvd out and he went to the kitchen to throw his empty cup away.

"No...no I don't! I mean, I'm not! Just. No." I laughed to myself at the thought that only I had the ability to make this pretty boy nervous, and cherished the rare sight of his blush while I was still here to see it in person.