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“Ah, crap.”
“Yes! You’re buying me lunch today!”
Kuramochi would’ve glared at his friend Miyuki for bragging, but his eyes were preoccupied with his midterm instead. He stared down at paper, a mixture of disappointment and frustration as the big red, circled ‘60’ stared back at him. He had high hopes for this one, even looked it over multiple times before handing it in. But apparently that still wasn’t good enough.
“You shouldn’t stress out so much,” his friend Miyuki replied. “The upperclassmen even told us that your marks often drop in the first couple of years.” He gave Kuramochi a gentle pat on the shoulder.
“That’s not really convincing coming from someone who is doing just fine in this class,” Kuramochi retorted. “And don’t try to console me. That’s weird and uncomfortable coming from you,” he said as he shook off Miyuki’s hand.
Miyuki shrugged. “Just trying to help.”
“Why do I even need to take math anyway? I’m a fine arts major!” Kuramochi complained.
“It’s not math, it’s economics. Business related courses are a requirement for an arts degree, regardless of your major. Plus, it’s just good stuff to know in general,” Miyuki reasoned.
Kuramochi scoffed. But of course Miyuki would have a logical argument.
“It’s not that bad,” Miyuki continued. “And it’s not like you’re failing either.”
“But I might be cutting it close,” Kuramochi countered.
“How close?”
“Can you not talk so loud?” Kuramochi asked as he jerked his head behind him.
Miyuki turned his head and saw a line had formed behind them. “Whoops, my bad.”
“It’s not like I’m expecting to be top of the class or something. I just thought I’d be better than this,” Kuramochi said as he gestured down to his paper. He shook his head disapprovingly as he folded up the test, tucking it away before any spying eyes got curious.
“I asked you if you wanted help,” Miyuki said as they approached the counter. “Can I have a set A meal?” He asked the employee at the counter.
“I refuse to sink that low,” Kuramochi immediately replied. He turned his head to the employee and said, “I’ll have set C please,” as he pulled out his wallet from his back pocket.
As they stepped to the side to wait for their food, Miyuki continued from where their conversation left off. “What about a tutor?”
“A tutor?”
“Yeah. You know all those bulletin boards in the main hall? The ones covered with ads and posters for clubs and research volunteers?
“Yeah?”
“Well there’s always a bunch of ads for tutors. You’ll probably fine someone who can help you.”
“Is there someone who’s tutoring for microeconomics?”
Miyuki shrugged. “Never needed one so I never checked.”
“Don’t pat yourself too hard on the back now,” Kuramochi sarcastically muttered. He could only roll his eyes as Miyuki shrugged. “But you know,” Kuramochi continued, “For a guy who doesn’t need a tutor, you’re awfully quite aware of how to get one.”
“Do I?” Miyuki asked. “Must be your imagination.”
“Miyuki-senpai!” Kuramochi and Miyuki turned their heads towards the voice and saw a cheerful Sawamura Eijun waving his hand like crazy as he charged towards them. He slammed his hands down on the table, making Kuramochi and Miyuki flinch. “I need to switch shifts with my co-worker so Friday doesn’t work anymore. Is it okay if we start tonight? Or tomorrow?”
“For what?” Kuramochi inquired.
“Miyuki-senpai’s going to help me with English!” Sawamura replied.
“Oh, is he now?”
“Yeah! I needed a tutor and Miyuki saw me when I was looking at ads. He said it’d be better if he helped me than some random stranger!”
“Is that right?” Kuramochi knowingly said, his amused face turned to Miyuki.
If Miyuki felt his stare, he sure didn’t act like it. “Only an idiot would plan on joining major league baseball without knowing any English,” Miyuki teased.
“Hey! You said you wouldn’t call me stupid while you’re tutoring me!” Sawamura whined.
“Yeah, but we haven’t started yet.”
“Don’t use loopholes to insult me, you jerk!”
“But you’re just so cute when you’re mad, I can’t help it.” Sawamura flushed deeply, the words caught in his throat. Sawamura’s blush only got darker when Miyuki rested his hand on top of Sawamura’s. “I’ll wait for you to finish class and then we can walk back to my place to get started. How does that sound?” Miyuki’s voice was soft and gentle, nothing like Kuramochi had ever heard from him before.
Sawamura vigorously nodded his head making Miyuki chuckle. They stared at each other with such tenderness…
Disgusting.
“Ahem.” Kuramochi loudly cleared his throat to get their attention.
Miyuki and Sawamura quickly jumped back from each other. Sawamura rubbed his arm while Miyuki suddenly became very interested in his lunch. Guess they really did forget Kuramochi was there.
“R-right. So um, I’ll see you later Miyuki. It was nice seeing you Kuramochi-senpai,” Sawamura said before he waved goodbye and took off.
“Was it actually a coincidence or were you stalking your own boyfriend?” Kuramochi asked once Sawamura was out of earshot.
“Yes, it was a coincidence. Now drop it,” Miyuki answered. “You on the other hand, need to look for one since you won’t accept my help.”
“But I just need someone to help me remember when to use each equation. I don’t need a full on private tutor for that.”
“Well, you won’t let me do it. For free I might add-”
“Don’t,” Kuramochi interjected.
“-But maybe one of them will be okay with a single session. Just cover what you want for a few hours, and then that’s it.”
“You sure they’d be okay with that?”
Miyuki shrugged. “Guess you’re going to find out.”
…
“Research…research…club…research…club…club…club…” Kuramochi had been scanning bulletin boards for a while now. Turns out, there were multiple ad boards in many different buildings meant for student ads like this. To increase his odds, he thought it’d be better to check them all out and was currently in the south campus main building. So far, he hadn’t had any luck in finding one. Too many students, clashing schedules, or just didn’t teach economics.
“Ah! Here, tutors.” He stepped closer to the ads to get a better look.
He couldn’t see one specifically for economics, but there was one for math. It was close enough for him. He pulled out his phone and typed in the number to start texting the other person.
Hi! My name is Kuramochi. I’m looking for a tutor and I saw your ad. I need help with the calculations in my microeconomics course. I know it’s not exactly a math course, but is it still okay?
Kuramochi frowned. The text said ‘read’, but there was no answer. At one point the other person started to form a reply, but then stopped typing. Did he say too much?
Hello Kuramochi. I’m Kominato. Yes, that’s okay.
Kuramochi breathed a sigh of relief.
Great! Would you be able to meet up later today?
My lecture ends at 2:50. Is that alright?
Mine ends at 3:20. Can we meet after then?
Sure. I’ll be in the library. Just let me know when you’re there.
Perfect. See you then.
Kuramochi pocketed his phone and dashed off to class feeling lucky. Economics was totally in the bag.
…
I’m by the windows at one of the tables. Look for pink hair.
Using the vague description, Kuramochi scanned high and low for Kominato in the library. Windows probably meant it was safe to rule out the basement, but the library had glass walls…everything was a window. Kuramochi walked around sticking close to the wall to make sure he covered all the window area and sure enough, he found Kominato at a corner table.
Kominato wasn’t kidding when he said ‘pink hair’. The soft yet vibrant pink locks on top of Kominato’s head couldn’t be mistaken. As Kuramochi got closer, he could see the fair skin that suited the calm and composed features of Kominato. Kuramochi didn’t know why, but he felt strangely drawn to this person.
“Kominato-san?” Kuramochi whispered cautiously.
Kominato’s head turned ever so slightly towards Kuramochi until their eyes met. His face broke out into a small smile, waving to confirm it was him.
“Thanks for doing this,” Kuramochi said as he sat down across from Kominato.
“Well, it’s not exactly for free,” Kominato chuckled.
“Right. You’re right.”
“So how many sessions did you want per week?”
“Sessions?”
“Yeah, sessions. How many times do you think we need to meet up?”
“Oh! Oh, no. I was just interested in a one time thing.”
“One…time…you mean right now?” Kominato questioned, raising his eyebrow.
“Yeah. I don’t need that much help so it shouldn’t take that long.”
“So…what exactly do you need help with?”
“I don’t really need a run down of the theory stuff. I just need help with the math related parts.”
“Is that so?” Kuramochi nodded his head. “You mind passing me your textbook?” Kominato asked, his arm outstretched towards Kuramochi.
“Yeah, sure thing,” Kuramochi answered. He sifted through his backpack until he found his textbook and passed it to Kominato.
“Okay…,” Kominato trailed off as he flipped through the textbook in front of him, quickly scanning the pages. “Do you know which equation you need for…this question?” He flipped the textbook around so Kuramochi could read the problem.
As Kuramochi read, he could feel his mind blanking out. “Uh…the impounding one?”
“And this one?” Kominato asked, pointing to the one a few rows down.
“…The budget equation?”
“And do you know what that equation is for?” Kominato pointed to an equation on the next page.
“I know it’s related to optimization curves…”
“Wow, you suck.”
Kuramochi’s head snapped up. Kominato was leaning on the table, his head resting in his hand as he looked at Kuramochi with an amused expression.
“Was…was that wrong?” Kuramochi asked hesitantly.
“Not even close,” Kominato chuckled.
Kuramochi paused for a moment. “…I didn’t get any of those right, did I?”
“Do you think you got them right?”
“…Yes?” Kuramochi said hopefully.
“Then looks like you need more help than you thought you did.”
Kuramochi groaned, catching his head in his hand as it fell. If that was the case, then forget doing better. He was lucky enough to even earn that 60 on his midterm.
“The theory is related to the math. My guess is that you’ve just been randomly choosing which equation to use without really knowing when or why you should be using them.”
Kuramochi averted his eyes. “Maybe...,” he muttered.
“Well, good luck to you,” Kominato said curtly as he stood up. He slung the strap of his messenger bag over his shoulder and started to walk away.
“Hey, wait!” Kuramochi shouted, only to flinch when he heard someone shushing him from behind. He turned around and sheepishly bowed in apology to the angry stares. Kuramochi swiveled his head back to Kominato only to see he had nearly reached the front doors of the library.
Kuramochi cursed under his breath, snatching up his backpack and textbook as he marched towards the exit. He slowed down his pace when the librarian started glaring at him but picked it back up once he was outside, running as fast as he could after Kominato. How on earth did those short legs get him that far so fast?
“Hey! Wait up!” Kuramochi yelled, but it Kominato didn’t hear him. Kuramochi saw Kominato stopped in front of a car in the student parking lot and used that chance to catch up. He felt a surge of adrenaline as he rushed forward, pushing the car door shut almost immediately after Kominato had just opened it. “What the hell was that?!” Kuramochi angrily huffed between breaths. “You said you’d tutor me! Why’d you leave?”
“I have no patience for people who only do things half-assed. You expected me to help you and yet, you couldn’t even answer those simple questions,” Kominato explained.
“But isn’t that the whole point of tutoring? Aren’t you supposed to teach me so I can answer those questions?” Kuramochi argued.
“Aren’t you the one who thought you only needed one session?” Kominato countered. “You’re going to preach to me that I should be teaching you when you probably just expected me to give you answers like a cheat sheet. What exactly did you plan on getting out of a tutor if you aren’t even aware of how behind you are?”
Kuramochi snarled and clenched his fists. There wasn’t anything he could say to that.
“If we’re done here, I’d like to get into my car.”
Unable to form anything else to say, Kuramochi reluctantly stepped away from the car. His downcast eyes refused to look up as he heard the engine roar and the car drive away.
He should’ve been mad. Frustrated even. Hell, he should’ve been a lot of things. What he didn’t expect from himself, was to laugh.
It started out small, just a short chuckle followed by a slightly longer one. He flung his head back as it became full blown laughter that spread through the parking lot, earning him some curious and concerned stares alike.
Done? Done? Yeah, right. Kuramochi was so far from done, he couldn’t even see the finish line. No…he’d show him. He would show that high and mighty Kominato just what he was capable of.
…
Kominato sighed as he sat down for his morning class. Yesterday had been a complete bust. He didn’t expect things to turn so sour within the first few minutes of meeting Kuramochi. But one session? When he was already guessing his way through the course? Kominato shook his head. Clearly that Kuramochi kid had no idea what hard work was.
“Yawn…good morning.”
“Good morning to you too, Jun,” Kominato smirked as his sleepy friend sat down. “You didn’t wait for Tetsu?”
“Tetsu said he could get here on his own so I didn’t bother. Chris isn’t here yet?”
“No, Chris isn’t here yet. But I bet Tetsu will call within the next 10 minutes and say that he’s lost.”
“1000 yen says he’ll text within 5,” Jun countered, holding out his hand.
“You’re on,” Kominato replied as he accepted the handshake.
“But that’s weird, Chris is usually here way before any of us,” Jun said as he rummaged through his backpack. He pulled out his notes and placed them on the desk. He looked towards the lecture hall door and said, “Oh, there he is…but who’s that guy with him?”
Kominato followed Jun’s line of sight and saw Chris standing next to a familiar face from yesterday. Said face began to glare at Kominato once their eyes met and stormed across the lecture hall until they were standing in front of Kominato’s seat. Kominato braced himself for whatever stupid thing this kid was going to chew him out for.
“Price elasticity,” Kuramochi said.
“…What?” Kominato asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Price elasticity of demand,” Kuramochi repeated.
“What about it?”
“That first question you showed me yesterday. I would use the equation for price elasticity of demand to solve it.”
“Okay…” Kominato was beyond confused. Did this guy really just hunt him down to tell him that?
“The second question was about the budget equation. It’s used to determine consumption probabilities, which can change based on a consumer’s preference or indifference to the products being evaluated.”
“Good to know…”
“Changes in price and quantity are determinates of supply and demand. Consumption choices are ruled by the laws of total and marginal utility. The total utility will always increase if a consumer buys more of the product but the marginal utility decreases as more of the same product is bought. This is because the additional satisfaction per unit decreases with each purchase. A Production possibilities frontier is a–”
“Okay, okay, I get it! You did your homework,” Kominato interjected. “Now what do you want?”
“For you to tutor me.”
“…And why would I do that?”
“So I can prove to you and your uptight, condescending ass that I’m not some stupid, incapable brat.”
Kominato blinked a couple of times before a smirk made its way onto his face. “You have guts after all. Or masochistic tendencies, I can’t tell.” Kuramochi didn’t answer him, choosing to uphold a stern yet powerful looking face instead. Kominato shrugged. “Alright, I’ll tutor you.”
“Good. I’ll be waiting in the library at 2:30. You better show up,” Kuramochi called out over his shoulder. And just as quickly as he came, he was gone. Staring at Kuramochi’s retreating figure, Kominato hummed in amusement.
“Since when do you tutor people?” Jun asked.
“Since just now,” Kominato replied.
“Well, that guy clearly has no idea what he’s getting into if he’s choosing you,” Jun said. Before Kominato could respond, Jun’s phone began to ring. Jun clicked his tongue as he tapped the screen to answer. “Damn it Tetsu! Why did you call?!”
…
“For the last time, no. The paradox of value is based on consumer surplus,” Kominato said, chopping at the back of Kuramochi’s head.
“Ow! Maybe I’d remember it if you’d stop hitting me!” Kuramochi argued.
“I wouldn’t need to hit you if you’d just get it right.” Kominato argued right back, giving Kuramochi another chop in the process. “And it’s not you. It’s Kominato-senpai, brat.”
Kuramochi snarled and bit back the retort on his tongue. It was too late to consider getting someone else to tutor him and his pride wouldn’t let him back down.
Their tutoring sessions had been going on for about a week and Kuramochi wasn’t seeing much progress. Or least, he didn’t feel like he was improving. Kominato blamed his effort, he blamed Kominato’s teaching.
“Fine, Kominato-senpai. This,” Kuramochi said gesturing between them, “is clearly not working. So, we’re going to have to try something else.”
“Oh? And what do you propose?”
“Instead of a punishment system, what about the opposite? Instead of hitting me when I get something wrong, why not reward me for when I get something right?”
“That’ll only work if you ever stop getting things wrong,” Kominato replied as he gave Kuramochi another solid chop on the head.
“I said stop hitting me!” Kuramochi grabbed at both of Kominato’s wrist, trying to hold him off for as long as he could. It was proving to be difficult; Kominato was a lot stronger than he let on. The two of them continued to wrestle for the upper hand when suddenly…
~Ahhh~
Kuramochi’s eyes went wide as the both of them stopped dead in their tracks. They stared at each other in silence, both wondering if they heard what they thought they did.
~Ahhh…Ahhhhh…Ahhhhh~
Their heads snapped over to the wall. There was definitely no mistaking it. Someone was moaning next door. Considering it was a university residence building, it wasn’t hard to figure out why. Kuramochi averted his eyes and rubbed at the back of his head, feeling extremely uncomfortable. As the moaning got more intense, so did his blush. Kominato on the other hand, was quite the opposite.
BAM!
“Shut up!” Kominato yelled at the wall. The couple on the other side clearly got the picture since all noise from their end came to a halt.
“Geez. Everyone’s knows the walls are paper thin,” Kominato complained.
“Y-yeah…,” Kuramochi trailed off. He fidgeted in his seat, trying to think of anything that could help take his mind off of his neighbours.
Kominato scrutinized him. “What are you getting all shy for?”
“Huh?”
“Shouldn’t you be used to naked people by now? You draw them in class, don’t you?”
“That’s different. The model doesn’t…d-do lewd things.”
“So you just sit there and listen to it?”
“No…I usually blast music through my headphones until they’re done.”
For a few brief seconds, it was quiet. Until…
“Pfft. What’s with that? How innocent for a guy your age,” Kominato asked through his laughter.
Kuramochi’s blush darkened as he looked away. “So what? The chance never came up, so I didn’t do things like that.”
“Bullshit. You must’ve at least jerked yourself off with an AV or a magazine at least once.”
“Well, yeah. I’m not that innocent.”
“Ohh, so it’s stuff like this that makes you squirm,” Kominato said as he took a seat in Kuramochi’s lap and wrapped an arm around Kuramochi’s neck.
“S-senpai?!” Kuramochi exclaimed. He held his hands up, unsure of where to put them.
“What’s the matter Kuramochi? Scared we might do something naughty?” Using his free hand, Kominato’s fingers walked up Kuramochi’s chest until they reached the zipper and began pulling it down slowly. “Don’t worry, it’s just a little fun~,” Kominato whispered into Kuramochi’s ear.
Kuramochi’s heart pounded in his chest. “L-l-like what?”
“Like…,” Kominato trailed off, his lips dangerously close to Kuramochi’s. Kuramochi was frozen as his brain tried to register what was going on. But instead of the kiss he expected, he received a flick to the nose. “Nothing. Get your mind out of the gutter.”
“Wait, what?”
Kominato removed himself from Kuramochi’s lap and began to pack his bag. “Gullible people like you are just so entertaining,” he chuckled.
“Glad this is funny to you,” Kuramochi pouted.
“Tell you what. Just for that wonderful teasing material, we can do things your way.” Kuramochi raised an eyebrow. “No more hitting. And I’ll even let you pick your prize.”
Oh, right. That. Kuramochi deflated, a little disappointed. Wait…what did he have to be disappointed about?
“We’ll continue your lesson on Tuesday after my shift at work,” Kominato continued as he put on his jacket.
“You’re leaving already?”
“It’s 8:30, Kuramochi. I’ve already been here for almost 2 hours.”
Kuramochi looked at the clock in disbelief. How did the time go by so fast and why did he feel like it was too short?
Kominato saw Kuramochi’s face and threw a smirk over his shoulder. “Don’t miss me too much while I’m gone,” he said before walking out the door.
Kuramochi grabbed a fistful of shirt right above his wildly thumping heart. Even though Kominato was only messing around, the image of Kominato trying to seduce him was still vivid in his mind.
Kuramochi didn’t know what was scarier: how he kind of liked it or the fact that he kind of wanted Kominato to do it again.
…
“In the short-run, the total product will always increase as you add employees because you’re making more product per unit of time, but the marginal product will reach a maximum before declining because the firm reaches maximum capacity and therefore the amount of additional product made per employee decreases.” Kuramochi turned Kominato, who was looking at his paper pensively. “Was that right?”
Kominato nodded his head, both surprised and impressed. “Yeah. You actually got that right. Not bad at all.”
“You doubted me?” Kuramochi said feigning hurt.
Kominato played along, placing a hand over his heart. “You’re right. I’m your tutor. Of course you got that right.”
Kuramochi snickered and Kominato couldn’t help but smile. They were approaching a month of their tutor-student relationship and Kuramochi had grown on him quite a bit. He would still tease Kuramochi from time to time, but for the most part it was playful banter between them. Kominato would even dare say it was borderline flirting. But Kominato didn’t mind, quite enjoyed it actually. It was nice having someone who could keep up with him.
Suddenly, Kuramochi’s cell phone rang. Kuramochi looked at the name on the screen and said, “Ah, I have to take this. I’ll be right back.” He tapped on the screen before bringing the phone up to his ear while walking to his bedroom. “Hello? Mom?” Was all Kominato heard before the bedroom door was shut behind Kuramochi.
Kominato let out a huff of air and began to drum his fingers on the table, unsure of what he should do while he waited. His eyes started to wander around the room, taking it all in. It made him realize that even though he had been to Kuramochi’s place often, he never really had a good look.
True to most university students’ apartments, it was quite barren and held just the bare minimums. The common area where they studied probably acted as his dining room as well since it flowed into the kitchen, but both rooms were relatively small. Made sense considering this was only a two-person apartment. Come to think of it, did Kominato ever meet Kuramochi’s roommate?
Though quite empty, Kominato did notice a small book shelf in the corner of the room. He walked over to get a better look, maybe find some material to tease Kuramochi about, but soon found that the shelf was only filled with art textbooks and sketchbooks.
Even more curious than before, Kominato pulled a few of the sketchbooks from the shelves and returned to his seat at the table. He flipped the cover of the first book and was welcomed by a detailed looking sketch of Kazuo Matsui at bat. He didn’t know Kuramochi was a fan of baseball…but then again, they never really talked about themselves when they were together. When Kominato thought about that, he was alarmed by how lonely it made him feel.
Shaking off the feeling, Kominato continued to flip through the sketchbook. It contained many baseball players, all in action poses. Some of them were unfinished and some of them looked so detailed that he couldn’t believe someone like Kuramochi was capable of something like that. He did know that Kuramochi was a fine arts major, but it only really sunk in with each page he turned.
The sketches stopped about halfway through the book and so Kominato moved on to the next one. This one must have been his first sketchbook in university because there were notes and practice sketches scattered throughout. Shading practice, point of view, and many other art techniques. This book was not quite as exciting, but Kominato kind of liked how he could see the improvement in Kuramochi’s skill. Guess Kuramochi did know a thing or two about hard work and dedication.
The third one was Kominato’s favourite. There was no clear theme to this one, but you could tell that these were the ones that Kuramochi paid the most attention to. A dove perched on a branch, a couple of kids playing soccer, different flowers including camellias, violets, and cherry blossoms, a portrait of a stern looking man wearing sunglasses and another one of a pretty woman with glasses and her hair up…
“Okay, sorry about that. We can contin—” Kuramochi trailed off once he noticed what Kominato was doing.
“You…you drew all these?” Kominato asked, raising his head to meet Kuramochi’s eyes.
Kuramochi sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, but that’s not the good one. That one’s just for things I like.”
Kominato turned back to the sketches in front of him. “Are these your parents?”
“No, but they do mean a lot to me,” Kuramochi replied. He sat down next to Kominato and pointed to the man. “That’s Coach Kataoka, my high school baseball coach. He was crazy strict and he’d push the team to insane limits…but I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. I really look up to him.” Kuramochi’s finger moved over to the woman. “And this is Takashima-san. She’s the one who scouted me in junior high to play baseball in high school.”
“I was…a bit of a problem child when I was younger.”
“A delinquent,” Kominato interjected.
“…Yeah, a delinquent. Every time rumours spread, my high school invitation would be retracted.” Kuramochi scoffed. “I say rumours, but they were all true. I don’t regret it though. It was to help my friends.”
“Eventually, I exhausted all the public schools in my hometown. My family didn’t have that much money, so I was ready to give up on high school. But, she came to my house with the intention of recruiting me. Maybe ‘cause she was from Tokyo and so she never caught wind of the rumours, but she took a chance on me and I’m grateful for that.” A gentle smile grew on Kuramochi’s face as he looked at the drawings.
“What about your parents?”
‘“My dad passed away when I was a kid, but the next page should be portraits of my mom and grandpa.”
Kominato flipped the page to find an elderly man with a boisterous, cheerful face and a beautiful woman with a small smile, but the laugh lines around her eyes were evident. It was clear to see they were a loving family.
“What about you? What’s your family like?” Kuramochi questioned.
“I have both my parents and a younger brother. He was really small and big crybaby when we were little, so he got bullied a lot. I wasn’t going to let some big-headed losers pick on my brother and so I got into a lot of fights as a kid. I wasn’t a delinquent per se, but I did make a name for myself with the neighbourhood kids.”
“I played baseball as well. But because of my short stature, I often lost out to the bigger guys for high school invites. I figured, if they weren’t going to choose me, then I would just have to choose one myself and shove my way in. I wanted to see just how far I could go, so I chose a private school in Tokyo as well.”
“Woah, we could’ve been on the same team,” Kuramochi said. “What position did you play?”
“Second baseman.”
“For real? I played shortstop. I bet we could’ve made a great team.”
“You think you can be my partner?” Kominato scoffed. “You flatter yourself too much.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. My teachers told me I was only good for baseball back in junior high.”
“I don’t think that was a compliment.”
“You get what I mean.” Kominato smirked causing Kuramochi to smile as well.
“Well, now you have 2 things you’re good at.” Kominato took one last look down at the sketchbook before closing it and handing it to Kuramochi. “These are really good.”
Kuramochi accepted the book. “Thanks. I’ve never had anyone see what I drew before, so it’s kind of embarrassing.”
For some reason, Kominato felt a little happy about that. It was like having a secret between them, which was kind of nice. In fact, just knowing more about Kuramochi in general felt kind of nice. Kominato wouldn’t mind getting to know him even better.
Kuramochi cleared his throat. “Well then, shall we get back to studying, Kominato-senpai?”
“…Ryousuke is fine,” Kominato replied.
Kuramochi eyes went wide. “R-really? Are you sure?”
“I don’t mind if it’s you.”
Kuramochi shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “It doesn’t feel right to call an upperclassman without an honorific.”
Kominato raised an eyebrow. “Oh come on, it can’t be that hard.”
“You can blame my high school baseball days.”
“Alright then, what would you prefer?”
Kuramochi paused to think. “Ryousuke-senpai? Mmm…Ryousuke-san? Nah…Ryou…san. Ryou-san.” He turned to Kominato. “How does that sound?”
Kominato chuckled. “Just right.”
…
2 months had gone by since Ryou-san began tutoring Kuramochi, and that moment of bonding started something between them. They were more than student and tutor, but not quite friends either. They started noticing each other outside of their tutoring sessions and off campus. The first time was by accident when they bumped into each other at the supermarket. But somewhere along the way, their meetings became on purpose. Kuramochi would come to Ryou-san’s to watch movies and stay the night, Ryou-san would arrive earlier than usual to have dinner together before their tutoring session, having late night texting conversations until Kuramochi accidentally fell asleep…just small things here and there.
The real catalyst was earlier today when Kuramochi was in his art class. They were going to practice sketching human bodies and so a boy about Kuramochi’s age came in to be the model. There were a couple of boys who were disappointed it wasn’t a girl, and Kuramochi thought he would’ve been one of them. Instead, Kuramochi found himself disappointed when the boy took his shirt off because his build wasn’t as nice as Ryou-san’s. Kuramochi began thinking about how much better it would be if Ryou-san was the model instead and got lost in his thoughts. When he took another look at the model’s face, he was shocked to see Ryou-san’s infamous smirk.
He was so startled, he accidentally rocked himself off of his stool thus startling everyone in the room. From the floor, he looked up at the model again and saw the real model staring down at him with wide eyes. Kuramochi shook his head and quickly stood up before reassuring his professor that he was alright and returning to his seat. For the rest of the class, Kuramochi had a hard time concentrating. His heart was pounding too loudly and his brain was all a mess trying to figure out why he thought of Ryou-san just then.
“Sounds like you like him,” Miyuki said.
Kuramochi blinked. “…Excuse me?”
“You heard me. You have a crush on your tutor like a little boy gets a crush on his nursery school teacher,” Miyuki said.
“I know I heard you. I was giving you a chance to correct yourself.”
“You saw a naked man in class and your brain defaulted to your tutor trying to seduce you. And I’m supposed to believe this doesn’t mean you’re sexually attracted to him?”
“Hey! Not so loud,” Kuramochi scolded. Truth be told, Miyuki wasn’t even speaking that loudly. Kuramochi just didn’t want to hear the reality he had been running away from since the day Ryou-san sat in his lap and made his heart skip a beat.
For a long time now, Kuramochi had ignored the things he felt when Ryou-san was around. How he liked it when Ryou-san genuinely smiled or how his heart would pound in his chest when they spoke over the phone and Ryou-san’s voice was one centimetre too close to his ear. They weren’t things friends would typically think about each other and it was relatively easy to ignore the signs. That is, until today it was.
“Is it really that bad you like your tutor?”
“Well…no…,” Kuramochi weakly replied, unable to come up with an argument.
“So? Are you going to do anything about it?”
Kuramochi glared at Miyuki. “Really? You of all people are going to tell me to act on my feelings? Shall I bring up the fact that you had a crush on Sawamura for 2 years before having the balls to say anything?”
“Don’t attack me just because you like living in denial.”
Kuramochi clicked his tongue. Miyuki did have a point, but that didn’t make it any less scary. He really like the way things were with Ryou-san. And yet, there was that small voice in the back of his mind whispering:
But what if you were something more?
…
“That’s wrong.”
“Huh?”
Ryou-san threw his arm around Kuramochi’s shoulder’s and leaned in. He pointed to the question that Kuramochi had just finished answering. “This answer is backwards because you’ve drawn the graph the wrong way. It should be like this…”
Kuramochi wanted to pay attention, he really did. But after accepting his feelings, he also became hyper aware of Ryou-san. How close he was, the gentleness in his voice, the way he smelled…he would forever curse Miyuki.
“Got it?” Ryou-san asked.
“…Yes?” Kuramochi said slowly.
“Can you repeat back what I just said?”
“You know I could…but you’re just so good at it. Why don’t you do it again, just for shits and giggles?”
Ryou-san sighed. “You know your next test is in a few days, right?”
“Can you at least pretend to be supportive in a non-condescending way?” Kuramochi whined.
“Whatever do you mean? I’m always nice to you.”
“That’s not how I remember our first meeting.”
“Your memory must be terrible.”
“You hit me…for a week!”
“Hmm…nope. Doesn’t ring a bell.” Kuramochi growled, making Ryou-san laugh.
Kuramochi cleared his throat. “Hey, Ryou-san?”
“Yes?”
“Remember how you said you’d give me a reward? And I could decide what it was?”
“Yeah?”
“Well…I…I know what I want.” Ryou-san didn’t say anything and waited for Kuramochi to continue. Kuramochi took a deep breath. “If I can get at least an 80 on my test, I’d like to add you to my sketchbook. The one with the things that I like.”
The deafening silence was killing Kuramochi as he waited for an answer. It was probably only a few minutes, but it felt like centuries. “Is that a confession?”
“…That depends.”
“On what?”
Kuramochi turned his head towards Ryou-san. “What’s your answer?”
Neither one moved an inch. Kuramochi could only hear his heartbeat as it echoed in his ears. He clenched his hands into fists to stop them from shaking, hoping that Ryou-san would say something. Anything.
Just then, Ryou-san leaned in and gave Kuramochi a quick peck on the lips. After the initial shock wore off, Kuramochi took the initiative and leaned in himself. This kiss was much longer, much more passionate. Kuramochi tilted his head to deepen the kiss and Ryou-san did the same. Kuramochi raised a hand to cup Ryou-san’s cheek and Ryou-san placed his own hand on top. Again and again, Kuramochi would pull away only to go back in for another. Ryou-san’s smell, his touch, his taste…everything was intoxicating.
Kuramochi and Ryou-san pulled away and rested their foreheads against each other, trying to catch their breathes. Kuramochi raised his eyes to look at Ryou-san and noticed Ryou-san doing the same thing. Kuramochi was suddenly overcome with a strong urge to kiss Ryou-san again…
Ding, ding!
The two boys jumped at the sound of Kuramochi’s phone. It was a text from Sawamura reminding him of their group outing that night. Kuramochi frowned. It wouldn’t hurt to just skip out this one time, but he already promised to come and knew he’d feel guilty if he backed out now.
“I have to head out now,” Kuramochi said. He slowly began packing his things as Ryou-san quietly watched. Kuramochi slung his bag over his shoulder and walked to the front door as Ryou-san trailed behind him. He was about to open the door but stopped and turned his head to face Ryou-san. “Please think about my request,” he said before he opened the door and left. Kuramochi calmly walked a few steps away from Ryou-san’s apartment before he picked up speed. He kept getting faster and faster and before he knew it, he was running like a mad man.
Kuramochi’s heartbeat was running wild as a huge grin broke onto his face. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to calm it down, but he didn’t think he wanted to either.
…
Ryou-san meant to lock the door after Kuramochi left but was frozen in place long after Kuramochi’s footsteps could no longer be heard outside his apartment. He lightly touched his lips, the feeling of Kuramochi’s kiss still lingering. Ryou-san frowned.
“Shit,” he whispered.
…
“Yes!” 2 weeks after his test, the papers were finally graded. A big 83% stared back at Kuramochi. He could hardly contain his joy.
“Ah, I just went easy on you this time,” Miyuki teased.
“Shut up,” Kuramochi said, lightly pushing him.
“But I’ll have to take a rain check on lunch. Sawamura wanted me to meet his friends,” Miyuki explained.
“Fine, but you better not forget.”
“Miyuki-senpai!” Kuramochi and Miyuki turned around and saw Sawamura running behind them. A tall, raven-haired boy and a shorter, pink-haired boy followed after him. “Did you just get out of class?”
“Yeah, it ended early today,” Miyuki replied. “Are these two your friends?” he asked, gesturing to the other two guys.
“Yeah! Meet Kominato Haruichi and Furuya Satoru. Harucchi, Furuya, this is Kuramochi-senpai and Miyuki-senpai,” Sawamura said introducing everyone. Waves and nods were exchanged.
“Will you be joining us for lunch, Kuramochi-san?” Haruichi asked.
“Nah, I’ll pass. I’ve got plans to meet up with Ryou-san later today,” Kuramochi replied.
“Oh! You must be the Kuramochi-san who is being tutored by my brother,” Haruichi said.
“Who’s you’re brother?”
“Kominato Ryousuke. He is about my height, has a lighter shade of pink hair and narrow eyes.”
“That sure sounds like him.”
“It’s nice to finally meet you! My older brother talks about you a lot.”
Kuramochi perked up. “He does?”
“Yeah, he says you’re a lot of fun to tease.”
“Oh.” Kuramochi’s shoulders drooped.
“But he also sounded kind of happy and he smiled a lot. It’s quite rare for my brother to speak of someone so fondly. It made me really interested to find out what kind of person you were.”
Kuramochi felt the heat slowly creep onto his face. This affectionate Ryou-san was foreign to him and it made him feel a little uncomfortable, but not unpleasantly so. Maybe it’s because he hadn’t seen Ryou-san since the day they kiss. Too much of a nervous wreck.
“But it was so strange when he first told me he was tutoring someone,” Haruichi continued. “With the way he is, it didn’t seem like something he’d do.”
“That’s…true,” Kuramochi trailed off.
“We should get going now, or the cafeteria is going to be full,” Miyuki interjected.
“It was very nice to finally meet you,” Haruichi finished. The group waved goodbye and continued on their way while Kuramochi got lost in his thoughts.
Ryou-san’s little brother raised a good point. Why would someone like Ryou-san want to tutor people? It didn’t make sense with his personality. And if he really thought about it, it looked like he was Ryou-san’s only student. Which means money wasn’t really his main goal either…
Kuramochi continued to think about it as he walked through the south campus building until something caught his eye…or rather, someone. He backtracked to the bulletin board where he found Ryou-san’s ad and saw a female student tearing it down.
“Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?” Kuramochi called out to her.
The startled girl looked panicked and confused. “I’m taking down my tutoring ads?”
“Those aren’t yours, they’re Ryou-san’s.”
The girl frowned. “I don’t know who this ‘Ryou-san’ person is, but these are mine. I wasn’t getting any students so I thought no one needed a math tutor.”
“But I did. I even texted the number you left.”
The girl shook her head. “I didn’t get any texts about tutoring. Are you sure you have the right number?”
Kuramochi pulled out his phone and scrolled down to Ryou-san’s number. “Here. See?”
The girl quickly scrutinized Kuramochi’s phone screen and pointed towards the right side. “The last digit is wrong.”
Kuramochi flipped the phone back towards him, looking back and forth at the poster and his phone screen. Just as she said, the last digit was different. The confusion left him tongue-tied.
“Looks like this ‘Ryou-san’ person was just messing with you,” was the last thing the girl said before she walked away, leaving a lost and confused Kuramochi by himself.
…
“Chi…ramochi…Kuramochi!”
Kuramochi snapped out of his reverie. “H-huh?”
“If you didn’t want to hangout, you could’ve just said so,” Ryou-san said disappointedly.
“No! No, I…I want to! I do!” Kuramochi said defensively.
“You don’t seem like it.”
“Sorry, it’s just...,” Kuramochi sighed and stood up from the couch. He turned his back to Ryou-san as he ran a hand through his hair. “There’s something on my mind right now.”
“Like what?” Ryou-san inquired. “About class?”
“No…”
“Is it about that friend you keep bad-mouthing?”
“It’s not Miyuki,” Kuramochi answered. “Or any other person for that matter.”
“Then what’s wrong?” Ryou-san probed. He stood up and reached for Kuramochi’s hand but was smacked away by Kuramochi. Ryou-san looked at him shocked.
Kuramochi was equally surprised with himself. “S-s-sorry. I didn’t…I mean I wasn’t…”
At a loss for words, Kuramochi did the next best thing: He picked up his bag and left. Once outside, he ran as fast as his legs could take him, as far away from Ryou-san as possible. Until his lungs felt like they would burst.
‘…Kind of happy and smiled a lot…Just messing with you.’
The words of both Haruichi and the girl swirled around Kuramochi’s head. Which one was real? Which one should he believe?
He was too afraid to find out.
…
A week had gone by since Kuramochi ran out on Ryou-san. They hadn’t spoken since then and Kuramochi’s was still in an emotional turmoil. He was at a stalemate and having never been in this position before, he wasn’t quite sure what to do. He missed Ryou-san a lot, more than he would ever let on. But the fear that he didn’t and never would mean anything to Ryou-san still loomed over him, keeping him in place. Part of Kuramochi wanted to just demand an answer from Ryou-san; there was a chance that he was wrong and Ryou-san did care. But a bigger part reminded him that if it hurts this much not knowing Ryou-san’s answer, just imagine how much it’ll hurt when he did know.
A knock at the front door snapped Kuramochi from his reverie. He didn’t feel like answering the door and figured if he ignored it long enough, the person on the other side would just leave. Unfortunately for him, the stranger was persistent and kept knocking. The noise became one continuous string of knocks that was making Kuramochi lose his patience. He angrily got up from the floor and marched to the front door with the intention of telling off the other person.
Kuramochi ripped his door open and was ready to yell, but the words got lost on his tongue when he realized it was Ryou-san at his door. In that brief moment of confusion, Ryou-san charged his way through into Kuramochi’s apartment and locked the door behind him. He then grabbed Kuramochi’s wrist and dragged him to the table where they sat down side-by-side.
Ryou-san crossed his legs and folded his arms. “You’re going to tell me what’s going on and you’re going to tell me now,” he demanded.
“Shouldn’t you be telling me?” Kuramochi muttered.
“And just what is that supposed to mean?” Ryou-san snapped.
Kuramochi didn’t realize he said it loud enough to be heard and instead just looked away.”
“Look. You’re not happy, and neither am I. If you would just talk to me and tell me why you’re acting like that, maybe we can work something out,” Ryou-san reasoned.
Again, Kuramochi said nothing and inwardly cursed at what a coward he was.
Ryou-san’s face filled with disappointment, but mostly annoyance. “Well then, you can just delete my number from your phone now. ‘Cause this is ridiculous.” Ryou-san stood up from the table and was about to walk away, but Kuramochi snatched his arm and held him in place. An awkward silence grew between them.
“Say something or let go,” Ryou-san spat.
“…Was this all a joke?”
Ryou-san whipped his head to look at Kuramochi. “What?”
Kuramochi looked up at Ryou-san, hurt in his eyes. “I met the real person who should’ve been my tutor. I know that I started texting you by accident.”
“…Oh,” was all Ryou-san said as he sat back down.
Kuramochi’s head fell; the floor suddenly became very interesting. “So you were just teasing me.”
“…That was the intention.”
Kuramochi gritted his teeth and clenched his free hand into a fist. “So what? This was just a source of entertainment for you?”
“…It was supposed to be.”
“Do you think anything of me at all?”
“…Not when we first met.”
Kuramochi couldn’t tell if he was angry or in pain, but when he looked up he could definitely say he was shocked. Ryou-san was resting his face in the palm of his hand, his elbow on the table for support. It was turned away, but there was no mistaking the bright red tinge to the cheek and ear of the half Kuramochi could see.
“Ryou-san.” No response. “Ryou-san, please look at me.” Still no response. “Do…do you still think nothing of me?”
“I came here, didn’t I?”
“That doesn’t really answer my question.” Ryou-san didn’t say more, so Kuramochi continued. “After that kiss, I was on cloud nine. I thought that meant we both liked each other, but then I found out that you might just be playing with my feelings. I didn’t know what to believe so I just ran like a coward.”
“I just…I need to know. Do you like me?”
“…I was bored,” Ryou-san started. “When you accidentally texted me, I thought it might be fun just to see what would happen. But then you turned out to be a brat so I made an excuse to get out of there quickly. And then you went and made a complete 180o, exceeding my expectations.”
“You were surprisingly easy to tease, and I meant to keep a distance so I didn’t get attached. But I…I miscalculated.” Ryou-san turned to face Kuramochi, revealing the blush that stretched across his face but still averting his eyes out of embarrassment. “I seem to like you more than I intended.”
That was more than enough prompting Kuramochi needed as he lunged forward, pinning Ryou-san down on the table and attacking him with his lips.
Ryou-san’s arms lock around Kuramochi’s neck as one of his own found a comfortable spot following the curve of Ryou-san’s hip. Ryou-san raised his leg to drape around Kuramochi, and Kuramochi’s hand abandoned Ryou-san’s hip to slowly trail down his thigh. Kuramochi liked the way Ryou-san’s hands tangled up in his hair and how Ryou-san nearly shivered at his touch. The vigorous rubbing against each other’s groins elicited soft moans that echoed so loudly in Kuramochi’s ears. The sensory overload of it all made it hard to determine who the moans were coming from, but that was the least of Kuramochi’s concerns.
Kuramochi slowly snaked an arm around Ryou-san’s back, preparing to change their position. As if communicating telepathically to the older man, Ryou-san’s legs wrapped tightly around Kuramochi’s torso as he was lifted off the table. Kuramochi backed himself into a chair and sat down, letting Ryou-san enjoy the new angle of being on top as he straddled Kuramochi. Kuramochi’s hands welcomed the freedom to fondle Ryou-san’s supple ass while Ryou-san also used the increased range in motion to his advantage, grinding even more intensely against Kuramochi. The delicious friction had never felt so good and Kuramochi had never hated clothing more in his life than he did right now.
Ryou-san pulled his lips away and began to nibble at Kuramochi’s ear, making Kuramochi let out a low growl in response. He was about to slip a hand into Ryou-san’s jeans but was distracted when he felt Ryou-san’s gentle breathe at the nape of his neck.
“Youichi,” Ryou-san whispered, sending volts of electricity down Kuramochi’s spine. “Bedroom.”
He sure didn’t need to be told twice.
…
Ryou-san woke up from a comfortable sleep by the sound of a pencil scratching against paper. When he looked up he saw Kuramochi was already awake, a sketchbook in hand.
“Rise and shine,” Kuramochi said.
“You draw after sex?”
Kuramochi shrugged. “This is my first time.”
“What time is it, anyway?” Ryou-san asked.
“It’s a little after 7.”
“In the morning?”
“Evening. If you’re hungry, it’s not too late for some delivery.”
“Curry sounds good right about now.”
“Curry it is then,” Kuramochi said as he smiled at Ryou-san.
“What are you drawing?” Ryou-san asked as he sat up from the mattress.
“Nothing,” Kuramochi quickly replied as he closed the sketchbook and pulled it into his chest.
“Now it’s just obvious that it’s something.”
“Nope, nothing to see here.”
“…Give me that,” Ryou-san said as he lunged for the sketchbook.
“No!” Kuramochi exclaimed. He used one arm to hold the book further away from Ryou-san and the other to block him from getting any closer to it.
“Youichi,” Ryou-san whispered in a low, sultry voice. Kuramochi was frozen in place as Ryou-san slowly and seductively ran a hand up his thigh. Kuramochi knew Ryou-san was only trying to manipulate him right now, but damn was it working. Ryou-san leaned in to give Kuramochi a long and sensual kiss, making Kuramochi’s defense crumble even faster. He didn’t even care when he felt the sketchbook sliding out his hand and instead put both his hands around Ryou-san’s waist to bring him in closer.
“You’re too trusting,” Ryou-san said when they pulled apart. He turned himself around so he could lean against Kuramochi’s chest.
“That’s cause it’s you,” Kuramochi replied as nuzzled Ryou-san’s head. He tightened his grip around Ryou-san and held his breath as Ryou-san opened the sketchbook to the newest page.
On the page was a sketch of Ryou-san asleep. It was much rougher and less detailed than his other work in the book, a clear sign that he just started that evening. Ryou-san was surprised by how serene and gentle he looked in the drawing.
“So? What do you think?” Kuramochi inquired.
“It’s a good start,” Ryou-san began, “But I don’t ever recall giving you permission to draw me.”
Kuramochi pouted. “But you said I could pick my prize.”
“Well then I guess you’ll just have to draw me again sometime.” Ryou-san looked up at Kuramochi and smirked.
Surprised was written all over Kuramochi’s face but was quickly replaced with a knowing smile. Kuramochi laid Ryou-san down on his back and hovered over him as Ryou-san’s arms snaked their way around his neck.
“Guess I do.”