Second Serenade: Chapter 42

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The soft sound of rain nearby woke Aketo. When he checked the clock, it was exactly midnight. His back ached, so he’d moved to the bed, but couldn’t be bothered to take a shower.

Remembering that the window had been left open, he sat up. In the glow of the streetlight, he could see fine raindrops drifting through the air. After shutting the window, he returned to bed and slipped under the sheets beside his lover, who was sleeping naked and curled up. He pressed close against the slender back, wrapping his arms around him tightly, slipping a thigh between his legs. He liked the feeling of their bodies tangled together.

His lover’s face emerged faintly in the dim light leaking through the curtain. His nose wasn’t very high, and freckles were scattered from the bridge to his cheeks, like a child’s. Light, but unmistakable.

He reached out and brushed a finger gently along that face. When his thumb traced the freckles, the other gave a soft sigh and shook his head slightly—but didn’t wake.

Though his face was small, his earlobes were oddly large and soft, like… well, like that thing when it’s not hard. Aketo bit down lightly on one, and the body in his arms gave a little shudder.

Eyelids fluttered open, and a pair of not-so-large eyes looked back at him. They gazed at each other for a while, then kissed.

“Sensei, when summer break comes, let’s go on a trip,” Aketo said.

“A trip, huh…” Sunahara murmured.

“By car, to Kanazawa. I found this hotel with an open-air bath. The food is supposed to be amazing, too.”

“Sounds nice.”

“I got my license too, so we can take turns driving.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Let’s go, okay?” Aketo pressed.

After a beat, Sunahara replied, “Okay.”

“An open-air bath, huh…”

He didn’t sound completely against the idea. Aketo started picturing the two of them on the trip. The old car wouldn’t have a navigation system, so they’d have to rely on maps. They’d take lots of time off to make a leisurely journey, stopping at various places along the way—tourist spots, amusement parks.

At night, they’d relax at the hotel. Soak together in the open-air bath… The thought aroused him, and heat pooled in his lower half. It didn’t go unnoticed by Sunahara, who immediately grumbled, “Seriously…?”

“I was thinking dirty thoughts.”

He pressed his now-hard length against the still-warm cleft of the other’s backside.

“Don’t put it in. I’m still sore…”

“If I do, I promise I won’t move.”

Sunahara muttered in exasperation. “You think you can come without moving?”

“Let’s find out.”

Maybe the sex earlier had left him looser, because Aketo slipped in with ease. The soft sigh that escaped Sunahara sent a jolt straight to his hips. But of course, there was no way he could climax without moving at all—he ended up grinding his hips until he came. Even after the wave of pleasure passed, he stayed inside, feeling good just being there, until Sunahara inevitably said, “Pull out.”

“Ten more minutes…”

“You might be fine with it, but it just doesn’t feel like it’s over to me until it’s out.”

Mid-conversation, Aketo’s phone chimed with a text. He reached for it, and as he did, Sunahara’s hips tried to pull away—but Aketo pulled him back in.

The message was from the prettiest woman at the mixer, Okamura-san. Apparently, the afterparty had ended, and she was on the train. “I had such a great time today. I’d love to see you again, Aketo-san,” she wrote.

Aketo typed out a reply with one hand.

“One of the girls from the mixer texted me. So I wrote a response—what do you think?”

He handed Sunahara the phone. His face crumpled, like he was about to cry.

“Right now? Are you kidding me…”

“Just read it.”

Aketo forced the screen in front of him.

“I’m sorry. I actually have someone I’m seeing, so I can’t exchange messages with you.”

Sunahara gave a tiny nod.

“Then you press send. I won’t do it. But if we don’t reply, she’ll probably keep messaging me.”

Sunahara took the phone but didn’t move. Watching him hesitate, Aketo grew irritated. Why won’t you just push the damn button? Finally, his trembling thumb moved and tapped send. The moment it went through, Sunahara tossed the phone to the floor and buried his face, sobbing.

“…You’re the worst.”

He said it through tears—and seeing him cry only aroused Aketo more. The thing buried deep in that sweet, familiar warmth pulsed with joy. He pressed his trembling body even closer.

Why do I love him this much? Aketo wondered. He didn’t know. Sunahara wasn’t handsome. He was short. He didn’t show affection. He cried too easily. And yet…

“Hey, Sensei… Don’t let anyone else sit on this bed, okay? I saw one of your so-called friends sitting here, and it pissed me off like crazy. The only people allowed on this bed are you and me. Got it?”

A soft voice murmured, “You’re the worst…”

He almost said it: Yeah, but even if I’m the worst, you still love me, don’t you? But he held his tongue.

◇:-:◆:-:◇

Sunahara woke up just before ten. It was still dark outside—maybe because of the rain—so he hadn’t even realized morning had come.

His whole body felt sluggish, and his hips in particular ached. In the end, they’d done it four times the day before. It wasn’t that it hadn’t felt good—he wouldn’t have done it otherwise—but still. He was exhausted. Maybe being the one on the receiving end made it feel even more draining.

His body was tired, but so was his heart. In the span of just a couple of hours, his emotions had swung wildly from anger to tears, over and over again. He wasn’t usually like this. Normally, he considered himself pretty cool and composed. But with this man, his balance was always thrown off.

Seven years younger. A male lover. Aketo was still sleeping beside him. He always bragged about being popular with women—and maybe it wasn’t all talk. Even from another man’s perspective, his features were strikingly handsome.

He remembered what had happened in the middle of the night—Aketo going to a mixer without telling him, meeting a girl, and then forcing him to send the rejection text. The memory alone made his stomach churn. Who does something like that? And it wasn’t like Aketo had to give out his number in the first place. Instead, he handed Sunahara the phone, made him press send like it was some sort of twisted proof of their bond. It was rude to the girl too.

Still, no matter how many times he muttered “stupid bastard” at Aketo’s sleeping face, it wouldn’t change anything. He was the one who’d chosen to be with a guy like this. If he didn’t like it, he could always walk away.

He shifted slightly on the sheets. Aketo let out a soft yawn and slowly opened his eyes.

“Sensei… good morning,” he mumbled, his voice still heavy with sleep. Stretching, he pushed up to sit and leaned against Sunahara, like a cat seeking warmth.

“What time is it?” he asked.

“…Ten.”

“Hmm.”

Murmuring, Aketo wrapped his arms around him and nuzzled into his neck like a dog sniffing for comfort. Then he gently traced a hand down Sunahara’s back.

“Does your back hurt?”

“Not too much.”

“I was wondering if I overdid it yesterday. Sorry.”

He whispered it close to Sunahara’s ear, and the words made his chest flutter. That soft, affectionate smile—he found himself staring, then quickly looked away in embarrassment. Aketo’s hand reached up and tousled his hair playfully.

“You hungry? Want something to eat?”

He wasn’t particularly hungry. More than that… Sunahara slipped his arms around Aketo’s back.

“Can we just stay like this a little longer? Thirty minutes.”

He wasn’t really planning to fall asleep again. But somehow, saying I just want to keep holding you a bit longer out loud felt too awkward. Even though they kissed, even had sex—saying something like that was still too hard for him. Aketo nodded.

“Okay.”

They lay down again, tangled together in the sheets.

“Hey, Sensei. You’re still thinking about that trip, right?”

With his eyes closed, Sunahara gave a small nod.

“And don’t let anyone else sit on this bed, okay? Just you and me.”

He’d just said he wanted to sleep, but clearly had no intention of letting him. Before Sunahara could even sigh in exasperation, the childish demand made him smile.

“And don’t forget to reply to my messages the same day, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. I got it. So just be quiet for a bit.”

Finally, it fell quiet. But even as he drifted in that comfortable space between wakefulness and dreams, he heard his name again:

“Sensei… wanna eat my kiss?”

Their eyes met.

“…Yeah. I’ll eat it.”

As they kissed, Sunahara couldn’t help thinking the real problem was him. That he was the one who had fallen so hopelessly in love—with a man like this.

THE END

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