It was four years since Shindou had last been in this extravagant Victorian manor. It was much larger and fancier than his own home even, and instead of pearly white, it was decorated with warm wood colors. Such a elegant place was only used for special occasions, like a family gathering in today's case.

The event was always hosted by his grandfather on his mother's side. They were even richer than Shindou was, believe it or not. So, being the head, he called for all of his siblings, their children, grandchildren and even now great-grandchildren to all stay in his home for a two day reunion of the entire family. The original intention was to discuss finances with the adults, but since they had to bring their children, this is what it's become.

The last time he had been in this warmly lit guest room, he was only thirteen. It was during events like these when he noticed how large his family really was. Most of the time it was only him and his parents, perhaps a maid or a butler was lingering around too. With only a few people in such a large mansion, it would have been easy to become lonely.

But then, whenever he went to these gatherings, suddenly his family grew ten times in size. There were aunts and uncles he'd sworn he never seen before yet knew him well, and brand new little ones to meet. Everyone was family, so naturally he wanted to get along with them, spend time with his grandparents and make friends with all his cousins. But at the same time, they were all strangers to him, regardless of blood relation. Those little kids were no different from the ones he would see in school, so the old fear of being shunned or excluded still remained. With so many of those feelings it would have been easy to be overwhelmed as well.

Shindou never felt either of those things however, because he had Kirino next to him the entire time. After a bit of begging to their parents from when they were five, he'd finally gotten to bring his best friend along. Eventually it had just become expected for Kirino to come with him to the gatherings, and some people have even started seeing him as part of the family. When he was there, it was easier to play with his twelve cousins, or if not, they could just hang out together on their own, away from the rest of the family. He remembered sneaking off with Kirino to explore the mansion looking for maybe haunted rooms or hidden trap doors. The entire place gave off that vibe anyway.

Leaning against the doorway Shindou watched his friend on the other side of the room. Things between them since the last reunion had changed just a little bit, they'd grown a lot closer than ever. And being together at this gathering meant the exact same thing it meant whenever he and Kirino were together at any other recent family event and even sometimes in his own home if his parents were around. That's just the way it had to be, right?

He was looking in the mirror brushing his hair. He had been for a while now. Before, he would ask why Kirino became so unusually meticulous about his appearance whenever they went to these gatherings but he knew very well why.

"I don't want it to be obvious that I'm not part of the family," he'd told him before when they talked about the gathering. As if he wouldn't be the only person there with pink hair. But it was more than that. Being surrounded people all of a higher economic class made him incredibly self conscious, afraid the entire family would chastise or judge him for using the wrong fork for his salad at dinner. No matter how many times Shindou reassured him that no one cared, Kirino never changed. However, it was a bit amusing to watch him try so hard to act refined and proper when being his normal, graceful self would be just fine.

So Shindou waited patiently, letting him take as much time as he needed to feel comfortable. Outside in the hall, he could see members of his family being escorted to their rooms by butlers, and maids similarly hard at work. Another thing he enjoyed about these gatherings, although only now was he consciously aware of it, was watching the maids run back and forth trying to please everyone. Today at this gathering of more than thirty people, every single one was their master, so it was certainly going to be one of the busiest work days they've ever had. Watching them bound around trying to complete eight tasks at once while also watching over three hyper kindergartners was, what he knew he probably shouldn't call it, cute.

"Onii-chan~" he perked up, snapping out of his thoughts and saw a small girl with grey hair just like his coming down the hall towards him, while other children just kept running pass. All of them were cousins, not that he remembered them all.

"Yes?" He watched her come up to him slowly, habitually clutching onto the hem of his suit. She didn't look up at him however, she was busy staring at the other kids still running down the hall.

"Mommy says she needs you downstairs." She spoke slowly, still getting used to talking. Her mother... Hazuki. Knowing her, she probably just wanted him to watch the rest of her kids and he was in no rush to do that.

"Ok," he said simply, and his cousin ran off, not concerned if he was actually going to do what she told. Instead he looked back at Kirino, who was still in the mirror bothering with his already perfect hair.

"Alright, alright," he said, knowing that was a sign that he should hurry up, still mildly concerned about his appearance. He finally managed to pat down that clump of hair he was worried about. "There's a lot of kids here," he turned to him, smiling. "Looks like you'll really have your hands full this time."

Shindou didn't reply though, he was too preoccupied with a particular detail about his friend. He looked dashing, especially in the expensive white suit he was given for the special occasion. But there was still something off. "...come here."

And the other did so. When he got closer, Shindou began messing with Kirino's tie. It was loosely knotted, that was how he always wore it. Only sometimes did Shindou try to fix it.

"I think I might tell them today," he said, deciding to completely undo Kirino's tie and do it over again. Kirino simply looked up at him, waiting for him to finish his thought. "About us."

"Are you sure?" Kirino was slightly surprised, Shindou hasn't mentioned anything like this the entire time. His voice was gentle with the subject. "You're not worried about what they'll think?"

"Not really," he replied, his voice soft as well. "I guess at some point I realized it doesn't even matter what they think, it won't change how I feel. I just don't want to spend the entire weekend pretending we're just friends." He decided on an Eldredge knot, and Kirino watched as he looped the tie around in an intricate fashion.

"But still, I mean... do you really think a family reunion is the best place for that? Shouldn't it be more personal?"

"At least we'll get a good idea of how some of my relatives really feel... is that OK?"

"...Yeah, that's fine," Kirino would go along with it, as long as that was what Shindou really wanted. He had no doubt he thought this through heavily beforehand, he wouldn't suggest this out of the blue. That didn't stop him from wondering what was going on in his mind. How he became so apathetic about a subject he used to stress over, even cry over. He wondered if he was OK now. Close enough to notice the gold flecks in his eyes, he also couldn't miss the dull way he stared at his tie, finally finishing the knot.

Satisfied with his work, his friend now looking sharp, impeccable, Shindou noticed his worried look. Kirino couldn't help but be concerned for him, could he? Even when things really were fine. That's how he's always been, even since they met. He was just that caring.

"Are you o--" before he could even finish, he tugged on the other's tie and pressed their lips together softly, making sure they fit together in the perfect way they always did. Any tension they weren't even aware they were holding melted away completely, and was replaced with a gentle warmth that kept growing. He placed his hands in his fluffy hair while the other gripped his coat around his waist.

They'd only pressed their lips together, nothing more. It was something they'd done at least a thousand times by now and yet they still found themselves blushing intensely, easily getting lost in the moment. Anyone could have walked past their room and noticed, but they weren't concerned about anyone or anything else at all.

When they finally parted and caught their breath after what felt like an eternity, Shindou smiled. Kirino was red as a cherry, still panting but smiling right back at him. Perhaps that was one of the things he loved the most about their relationship: being filled with excitement and bliss, and being able to share those exact same feelings with his very best friend.

"It'll be fine," He really did believe it, too.

"I should be telling you that," he held onto Shindou's hand, the one still resting on his cheek, positively glowing. Only after a while did they part completely.

"I'll go see what they need downstairs," Shindou grinned shyly, slowly heading out the doorway. "You fix your hair," and with that he disappeared around the corner.

Kirino let out a sigh, still a little out of it from their kiss. Only a second later did he remember.

"Taku! It was perfect, what the hell did you—" he went back to patting down his fluffy hair in the mirror, blushing even more whenever he noticed how red his face was. And he was really going to tell everyone about...

"Yeah, I don't think I can do this... not this year... no."