Sigma had completely forgotten that Fyodor and Nikolai would be there on their date. He felt his stomach churn, and on instinct, he turned and ran down the corridor.

Fyodor wasn't expecting to encounter Sigma there, and seeing him in front of him made him feel even worse for yelling at him that he was a bad friend, despite his efforts to bring him and Gogol together, despite his feelings for the latter.

And he felt guilty for kissing Nikolai.

"Sigma, wait!" he yelled and turned to his companion to hand him his ice cream. "Excuse me for a moment."

The albino didn't have time to say anything as Fyodor ran after Sigma and left him behind with the words on his lips and the ice creams in his hand.

"Sigma! Stop!" he pleaded, trying to catch up.

Sigma slowed down but didn't stop.

"Stay away, Fyodor," he said, with a stern tone. "And don't touch me. I'm all sweaty."

"And why should I care!"

He did care, a lot. Given how squeamish he was, when he grabbed Sigma's arm to stop him, he could see that he was indeed very sweaty and sticky. Ew.

Nevertheless, he kept his face calm not to offend Sigma more than he already was.

"Let's talk," he requested.

"You should go back to your date."

"I'll go back when you and I talk."

Sigma pulled away from his grip.

"There's nothing to talk about, Fyodor," he replied with annoyance. "You love Nikolai. Nikolai loves you. I have nothing to do with you two, and that's fine, okay? Go back to him."

"I'm sorry I yelled at you like that," Fyodor insisted. "You're my best friend, you're my only friend. And it's foolish to throw that away for a guy."

Sigma smiled faintly.

"He's a handsome guy," he commented.

"He is," Fyodor admitted, with a smug smile on his face, remembering the kiss Nikolai had given him at the arcade. "But if I have to choose between that handsome guy and you... I choose you, Sigma."

The mentioned one huffed.

"I'm not a Pokémon," he protested, and Dostoyevski laughed.

He reached out his hand toward him, and Sigma shook it.

"Friends?"

"Friends."

They smiled at each other, and Fyodor wiped his palm on his pants as it had become sticky from the contact with Sigma's hand.

"Are you leaving Chuuya alone?"

"Yes, I think so. I've lost my appetite for ice cream. How about you? Are you leaving your ice cream for Nikolai?"

Fyodor gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"See you later?" he asked.

"You can count on it," Sigma agreed.

He wanted to give him a hug, but he found it disgusting to touch him while being so sticky, so they simply said their goodbyes with a smile.

Fyodor returned to Nikolai, who handed him the ice cream as if it were radioactive and took three quick steps back.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry!" he apologized. Fyodor looked at him without understanding.

"What?"

"I didn't knew Sigma and you were dating. I'm so sorry."

"Eh?"

Gogol had misinterpreted the situation and thought that Sigma had felt jealous of seeing them together. It had never crossed his mind that Sigma might have feelings for him, as he had always seen him with Fyodor. He had long wondered if they were a couple, but he believed the answer was negative when Sigma invited him to go out with Fyodor, not once but twice.

But now he wasn't so sure.

"Sigma and I... Sigma and I are not dating," Fyodor clarified, confused.

"Oh... But... Do you like him?"

He blinked a couple of times. Like Sigma?

"No, I don't like him," he thought, "I like you." But he didn't say it out loud. "Although, truth be told... I used to like him a lot."

"Really?"

Nikolai approached him, feeling more confident now that Fyodor had told him that there was nothing between him and Sigma.

"Well, yes. I mean, it's Sigma. I've always been attracted to his personality, so kind and outgoing... Completely opposite to me," he smiled slightly. "He's fantastic. And I get along with him really well. He's been my best friend since kindergarten."

Nikolai nodded slowly.

"Does that mean you're not attracted to him anymore?"

"I guess not," Fyodor shrugged. "Now I like someone else."

He didn't intend to be so obvious when he glanced at the Ukrainian out of the corner of his eye, but the bright blush he noticed on his face made him realize that Nikolai had probably already figured out his intentions.

He blushed too and looked away, while making sure the ice cream didn't spill.

"Well, since we're confessing things..." the albino said, still with a rosy face. "I used to like Sigma, you know?"

He sighed. He expected him to say that, he didn't even have to be angry about it. After all, Sigma and he had made amends and were friends again.

"It wouldn't surprise me," he commented. "Sigma is great."

"Yeah, he is," Nikolai looked at the sky and sighed. "But I didn't think he was interested. He's always so busy, right? After a while, after getting to know him better, I realized it was just a crush, and that, in reality, Sigma is not my type."

"Oh, really?"

"No, he's not. He's great, but he's not the kind of person I would want to date."

"And what's your type, then?"

Without needing him to say anything, he understood it. The look he gave him made his heart beat faster, and his face turned a bright shade of red.

"Well, you know," Gogol said, with a mixture of shyness and boldness, "someone with black hair... Russian... With violet eyes that when they look at you, it makes you believe they're angry and could kill someone without any inconvenience... And who calls you a rat when he gets nervous."

"You're a sap."

He had to look away because of the nerves, but Gogol took his chin and forced him to look at him.

"And you, Dos-kun?" he asked, with coquetry. "What's your type?"

He just smiled.

"Brazen rats who kiss me without permission after winning at the basketball machine."

Nikolai blushed this time and looked away. Then he stood up and extended his hand.

"Shall we? It's getting late, we should head back home."

Fyodor accepted his hand.