Archive of Our Own ^beta

Lori

Lori knew. Because, honestly, how could she not know? It had been pretty obvious to her since the moment that she had noticed that out of every ten words Rin said, seven were 'Haru.'

Rin was an extroverted, talkative kid and he had been eager to tell her and her husband, Russell, everything about himself when he had arrived at their house.

"I have got one mother and one sister. No father. I love swimming. I can swim very well. I have got four friends, Sousuke, Haruka, Makoto and Nagisa," Rin had told them on their ride from the airport. Lori supposed that those details must have been very important to him if he was using them as his introduction.

Of course, Lori already knew some of those things. If Rin hadn't loved swimming, he wouldn't have come to Sydney to improve and work for his goal of becoming a pro. Lori had read about it on the application form Rin's mother, Miyako, had filled when looking for a home-stay family.

She also had heard about Rin's deceased father, because she had talked to Miyako on the phone and she had considered it was better that Lori and Russell knew.

Lori, however, decided it was better to let Rin tell them whatever he wanted them to know and chose to keep quiet and just listen to the boy speaking.

Rin's knowledge of the English language was quite limited, but he was a fast learner, and Lori took it upon herself to help him improve so that he could make friends more easily, as she had noticed after a few days that he felt lonely.

She used to ask him about his life in Japan, thinking that if he talked about it with someone who was interested in listening, he would deal with homesickness better.

That's how she learned that Sousuke, the kid Rin got letters from, was his childhood friend, that he also loved swimming and that they used to be very close.

Best friends, she thought, were the most important people in the world for kids that age.

And that's why she was mildly surprised when she started to pick up on things like the fact that little Rin spoke much more about another friend than he did about Sousuke.

At first, it was just small details, like the time when she had wanted to prepare Rin's favourite dish after a particularly hard day at school. She had asked him about his favourite food and, while she was cooking, Rin, who was perched on a stool next to the countertop, had announced out of the blue that 'Haru's favourite food is saba,' which she later learned was mackerel.

Or that other time when Sousuke sent Rin a picture of him in a competition and she had commented on how tall she thought he was going to be when he grew up. 'Yes,' Rin had replied. 'I think I will be tall, too!' he had said, proud. 'I think Haru will be shorter,' he had added with a giggle.

Granted, that could be some kind of competitive spirit. Perhaps for Rin being taller than Haru was like winning a race against him.

She doubted that was the case, though. Somehow, one way or another, Haru's name always came up in every conversation, no matter the topic or the situation.

"Haru didn't use to go running before, but now he does sometimes," Rin had explained when he announced that he would like to jog to school in the morning.

OK, it was something related to competition again.

*

"Haru likes dolphins," he had stated when they visited the aquarium.

Right, nothing to compete about there…

*

"Many times, Haru doesn't wear a cap when he is swimming," was Rin's reaction when he had lost his cap and wasn't very interested in going to buy a new one. "His hair just floats on the water," he had said.

"Then it will get very wet," Lori had tried to reason with him. She didn't think it was a good idea to let Rin go around with his head soaking.

"It doesn't matter! He just shakes his head to get rid of the water!" he had giggled.

Well, kids tended to imitate their friends sometimes. Maybe Rin just found Haru's nonchalant attitude cool. No need to read much into it.

*

"Haru doesn't speak much," Rin had mentioned for no apparent reason when Lori had said he was very talkative and that was good because it was helping him to improve his English faster.

Lori had just smiled to herself.

*

"Haru has the bluest eyes I've ever seen. They are bluer than the ocean!" Rin had said with a smile that Lori found somewhat shy when they were having a walk on the beach. The sunlight made the water shine a particularly beautiful shade of blue, so it was not surprising that it had caught Rin's attention.

But, really, what kind of boy noticed another boy's eyes in such a way, and talk about them with such a smile?

*

"Haru doesn't smile much, but when he does, he has the most beautiful smile in the world!" Rin had explained with enthusiasm when Lori had commented on how pretty one of Rin's classmates was and had asked him if he liked her when the girl had left after working on a project together.

What was left to say when you try to make a boy notice a girl talking about her physical appearance and the first thing that comes to his mind is another boy's beauty? Especially if he spoke about it in such a confident way, not minding at all if it sounded sappy, as naturally and assertively as if he was just stating one of the deepest truths of the Universe?

*

Yes, Lori had always known, and that's why she was not surprised in the slightest when an older Rin knocked on her door years later to visit them, accompanied by a silent, blue-eyed teenager.

"Is that Haru?" she asked after greeting Rin, already sure of what the answer would be.

And Rin didn't seem surprised that she had guessed the identity of his mysterious companion so easily, as if he had just assumed that Haru's side was his place in the world and he somehow expected everyone to realize it too.

He just beckoned Haru and introduced him to the couple with a smile, placing his arm around Haru's shoulder, a gesture that Lori soon learned was almost second nature to him.

Haru was a bit shorter than Rin, just like he had predicted. He was quiet, polite and more handsome than Lori expected.

And, just like Rin had said all those years before, his eyes were bluer than the ocean. What Rin hadn't mentioned back then, probably because he had never noticed, or maybe because things were different when they were children, was the way those eyes shone with the intensity of sapphire when they rested upon Rin.

She would have teased Rin about it if it wasn't for the fact that something in Haru's demeanour suggested that he was tense, and even though she was pretty sure it had nothing to do with her or Russell —as Rin had offered some vague explanations about the reason for their trip and the rough patch Haru was going through— she still considered it would be a mistake to do something that might make Rin feel self-conscious and uncomfortable around his friend. The last thing she wanted was to make things more strained between them.

Haru didn't speak English beyond very basic words and structures, so Rin did most of the talking and patiently translated the conversation for Haru if he noticed that his friend was lost.

Truth be told, he seemed reluctant to translate Lori's words when she said Rin used to talk about Haru all the time. Granted, Lori had been a tease when she had mentioned that Rin had always said Haru was cool and his eyes were as clear as water knowing very well that Haru might understand.

And sure, she could have kept quiet about how much Rin looked up to Haru. Certainly, she could have just NOT winked at Haru when she said it.

But Rin's face had been priceless.

The fact that Russell proved they knew a lot about Haru when he asked him about his preference for swimming free didn't help Rin to feel any less embarrassed, and even though Lori didn't understand Japanese, save for the very basic structures she had learned to communicate with Rin at the beginning of his period in Australia, she was pretty sure that Haru wanted Rin to explain how they knew so much about him.

Rin's faint blush as he looked away almost made her giggle.

Another highlight of their dinner, just because of the innocent fun it had brought to Lori's heart, had been Russell asking Rin if he had a girlfriend already.

The face Rin had made was quite comical, and Lori hadn't missed the glance he had cast at Haru before replying.

Not that he had given an actual reply, mind you.

It was clear that he felt awkward and, by offering an elusive answer, he expected Russell to drop the topic.

Russell, however, was not the kind of man who could take a subtle hint, and he kept pressing the matter until Lori decided that she didn't want to ruin Rin's mood.

She did her bit by kicking her husband under the table, suspecting that Russell would have no idea of why she was hitting him, but he would at least get the more obvious message that he needed to shut up right then.

Even Winnie seemed bothered by the question, or at least that's what Lori thought when she started to growl under the table as soon as the word 'girlfriend' left Russell's lips.

Rin had seemed so relieved that she almost felt bad for having talked so much about his more-than-evident admiration for Haru.

To be honest, she was surprised that Haru hadn't noticed anything strange in Rin's behaviour, because she found it quite revealing. Haru, however, hadn't seemed to give much thought to the whole conversation.

Well, if he was very concerned about his future, he probably didn't have the time or the energy to worry about things like teenage crushes, anyway.

But still, Rin's heart-eyes, whenever he looked at Haru, were just as clear as day, and Lori supposed it was just a matter of time until Rin finally mustered the courage to confess his real feelings.

It probably was quite a bad idea to do it now if Haru was in such a state of anxiety, but, if Lori was right about the nature of Rin's feelings, even as a child —and she knew she was— Rin had been waiting for years already, so he probably wouldn't mind waiting a bit more if it was the best for Haru.

Of course, the fact that he didn't say anything about it didn't mean that he wasn't showing what he felt, even if he was, most likely, unaware of how obvious his infatuation was.

Later that night, Lori wasn't surprised when she phoned Rin to make sure they had got to their hotel safe and sound and Rin explained in a tired voice that there had been a mistake and the room only had one bed, but he was going to talk to the receptionist to sort it out.

Lori smiled, wondering if maybe, just maybe, booking a room with a single bad had been a slip of the tongue on Rin's part when he had made the reservation and he had only spoken a truth that his subconscious desired.

Secretly, she wished that the hotel couldn't give them another room.

And four years later, when she opened the door to take the rubbish out and she found Rin, one hand in the air, ready to knock, and the other one holding Haru's, their fingers intertwined, and his face showing real panic at being caught before he had had the time to let go of Haru's hand, the only thing Lori could do was to drop the bag, put her arms around both of them and squeal: 'About time!'

.

.

.

Russell, four years later

Russell had never seen it coming. When Rin was a child and stayed with them, Russell had never seen him show any kind of preference one way or the other.

It was true, though, that he spoke a lot about his friend Haru, but Russell never thought much of it. Kids of that age tend to get a bit… intense regarding their friends, after all. Especially if they have common interests, such as swimming, that they can obsess about together.

But it was also true that he had seen Rin with a female classmate, and he had had the impression that they were pretty close.

Was Russell really that… basic? Well, it seemed he was. He had heard Rin talking non-stop about his male friend and he had assumed that it was just ordinary friendship between boys. He had seen Rin interact with a girl once and, just because he was polite to her, he had been completely sure that 1. They were close, 2. Rin might have a crush on her.

In his defence, the truth was that he had grown up in a very traditional family, living in a quite isolated farm, and the only cases he had seen that countered the typical 'boys-like-girls-and-girls-like-boys' idea had been some implicit-more-than-explicit romantic relationships between very secondary characters in random TV shows.

If he thought about it now, it was a miracle that someone as chill and adventurous as Lori had fallen in love with someone like him, who didn't know much about the world outside his family farm and had never been much interested in learning more.

He was grateful that Lori's van, with which she was travelling around the country, had broken down near his family house. Otherwise, he wouldn't have met the love of his life, and the person who had taught him how interesting and diverse the world was.

Russell had grown by her side in every sense of the world, and he prided himself on being a quite open person.

Still, some ideas are ingrained in your mind since you are a little kid and are not that easy to change.

The idea that he had been so narrow-minded didn't sit well with him, and even though he knew that having that classic mindset wasn't bad per se, he still wished that he had been more open to the possibility of Rin having a thing for his male friend.

If he had, maybe what was happening right before his eyes would have happened four years earlier and, perhaps, that would have made some things easier for Rin. Some secrets were hard to keep and put a very heavy weight on a person's shoulder.

Rin and Haru's second visit to their home in Sydney had started in a pretty conventional way. Russell was working in the garden when the doorbell rang, and by the time he washed his hands and got to the entrance, Lori had already opened the door and had welcomed the pair inside the house.

Truth be told, they hadn't acted like a couple at all for the first hour they were there, and even during the first part of the dinner, there was nothing in their attitude that seemed to suggest they were more than friends.

And if there had been some lingering touch here or an affectionate gaze there, Russell had just overlooked it, perhaps because he wasn't expecting to see something like that, so his brain hadn't registered it.

The only thing he had perceived as different from the other time they visited was the fact that Haru was much more fluent in English and he seemed confident enough to have a conversation with Lori or with him without Rin having to come to the rescue and translate things for him every two minutes.

If someone had asked Russell about his impressions on the first part of the dinner, he would have said that there was nothing out of the ordinary.

They had just finished their second dish, enjoying the anecdotes Rin and Haru told about their lives as professional swimmers, and they were just letting their full stomachs get some rest before dessert when Russell asked Rin if he had finally found the time to get a girlfriend.

Three seconds after the words left his mouth, just as his mind began to register the grimace on Rin's face, just as he felt the touch of Lori's toes hitting his shin, just as Winnie started to growl in what seemed genuine anger and, just as he thought that he was experiencing a déjà vu, asking the same question and receiving the same reaction, his guts finally told him that something big was going to happen.

Because, for him, it felt like a replay of the conversation they had had four years before, but somehow the air around the others had changed in a transcendent way, and the quick, almost furtive looks between Lori and Rin that Russell caught just by chance told him that he was right in being suspicious, even though he didn't even know about what exactly.

"Honey," Lori placed her hand in his arm, but her eyes didn't leave their visitors. "The dessert will still take some minutes. Why don't you show Rin the rose bushes you planted last month? Haru can help me in the kitchen," she smiled, and that was all the evidence Russell needed to confirm the other three were up to something.

He could have argued that Haru was a guest and it was not polite to make him cook while Russell, as a host, was fooling around in the garden, but what would be the point?

"Ok," he said, too curious to resist the invitation to solve whatever mystery was unfolding before his eyes.

Rin stood up at the same time as him and followed him out to the garden.

None of them said a word until they reached the bushes by the furthest fence in the garden. Russell could feel the tension oozing from Rin's body, which in turn made him feel tense as well.

"Well, these are the roses…" Russell said, hesitant, pointing at the new bushes.

"They are very pretty," Rin smiled, and did his best to seem interested, but it was just too obvious that, at least at that moment, he couldn't care less about the flowers.

Russell sighed and turned to Rin. After some seconds of apparent indecision, Rin moved in slow motion until they were face to face.

"What's going on, Rin?" Russell asked, unable to hide his concern any longer. "And don't tell me that it's nothing. I'm not that naïve to believe you have developed a sudden interest in gardening… Is everything alright?"

"Yes, yes… Everything is fine, but…" Rin fidgeted, playing with the hem of his T-shirt.

"But?" Russel urged him to continue with a questioning gaze.

"Well, there's… there's something I've been meaning to tell you, but I couldn't find the right time, or the right words," Rin started. Russell had the impression that his hands were trembling slightly.

"Hey," he said, placing a hand on Rin's shoulder. "You know you can talk to me about anything," he used his best reassuring tone. Rin seemed a bit distressed, and Russell was worried that whatever he was going to tell him were bad news.

"I know, but I'm scared…," Rin paused as if he wasn't sure of whether he should elaborate or not.

"Rin, I really mean, it. About anything, ok? Whatever it is, you have no reason to be scared of telling me," he smiled at Rin.

"I'm just scared that, if I tell you, you won't see me the same way anymore, or that you will be disappointed," Rin looked at him with bright eyes, and for a second, Russell saw again the vulnerable, lonely kid he had seen all those years before, begging to be accepted and loved.

"Nothing you ever say or do will make me feel disappointed," he replied. Russell was very fond of Rin, more than Rin would ever realise, probably.

Russell and Lori had never been able to have a child of their own, and little Rin's presence in their home had been a blessing. Russell had never told Rin because he didn't want to make him overwhelmed, but he considered him the son they never had, and he couldn't be any prouder of him.

Perhaps if he had told Rin this before, he wouldn't be so scared of Russell being disappointed in him, but Russell had never been the kind of person who felt comfortable talking about his feelings.

He just hoped that Rin hadn't got in trouble. Even if Russell was pretty sure Rin wouldn't get involved in anything stupid like doping or gambling (Russell had heard of professional sportspeople who bet against themselves in betting shops and then lost on purpose), he couldn't help but worry about what could make Rin feel so scared of disappointing him.

He pressed Rin's shoulder, just enough to let him know it was alright, that he wanted to hear whatever Rin wanted to tell him.

"Ok, I…" Rin started, but he seemed to doubt, undecided on whether he had the courage to look at Russell in the eye or not. In the end, he seemed to consider Russell's new roses a safer place to let his gaze wander. "I'm…uh… I'm gay," he said, stealing a very brief glance at Russell, "and… Haru and I are together and… uh… well, yeah… I wanted you to know," he finished, the last part almost a whisper.

"Oh?" was all Russell could say. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it surely wasn't that, firstly because he had already painted a lot of terrible scenarios in his head, and secondly because he had always imagined that someone as handsome and charismatic as Rin would grow to become what Russell had always perceived as a 'ladies' man'.

Rin seemed to misinterpret his unenthusiastic response, and he seemed to lower his eyes even more. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to upset you," he mumbled, and Russell could see the unmistakable brightness of forming tears.

That brought him of his stupor, and he quickly got a bit closer and grabbed Rin's face.

"Hey! I'm not upset, ok? And I'm sorry if I gave that impression. I was just surprised, that's all. When you said you thought I might be disappointed, I was worried that you might have got yourself in some kind of trouble, you know?" he laughed, feeling a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Rin was safe. He was not in trouble. He hadn't put his life or his career in danger. Everything was fine.

"Thank God… I'm so relieved…" Rin said, leaning his forehead on Russell's shoulder, the tears he had been fighting back finally rolling down his cheeks.

Russell wrapped his arm around Rin's shoulders, feeling a bit awkward, but hoping that Rin would find the gesture comforting anyway.

"It's alright," he whispered, patting Rin on the back. "I just want you to be happy, ok? Why would I be disappointed in you for being gay?" he asked, even though it was not a real question, but a way to reassure Rin that everything was fine.

Rin , however, seemed to consider he should answer, so he straightened up again and looked at Russell directly for the first time since he had admitted being scared of revealing his secret.

"I don't know if you remember this, but the first time I came here with Haru, you asked if I had a girlfriend," he made a pause and Russell just nodded. "At that time, I didn't know for sure if I was gay, but I already suspected I had a thing for Haru…" he explained while his eyes moved towards the glass sliding door behind which Lori and Haru were pretending to take care of the dessert.

Russell remembered then the subtle kick under the table, courtesy of his wife, four years before. Did she know back then that Rin was gay? Why didn't she tell him?

Rin focused his attention on Russell again.

"I hadn't told Haru how I felt back then, and none knew I was, well, you know… questioning my sexuality," he continued, and even though he tried to hold Russell's gaze, the soft pink of his cheeks showed that he felt shy when talking about the topic. "The thing is, when you asked that, you seemed so... I don't know, so happy about the idea of me getting a girlfriend, and I just thought, if I told you it wasn't going to happen, I thought it would be like letting you down…" he finished.

Russell felt bad for that. It was true that he had asked about it, and perhaps he had made it a bit too obvious that he would have liked to hear an affirmative answer, but it had never been his intention to make Rin feel that Russell had expectations about what he should do with his life that would be crushed if Rin didn't live up to them.

He started to remember other instances in which he had asked Rin about his love life in phone calls or e-mails, always taking for granted Rin was heterosexual.

He just wanted Rin to be happy and because of his traditional upbringing, and also due to a lack of sensitivity that he hadn't thought about until now, he had assumed that said happiness would require a girlfriend to settle down with at some point.

"I'm truly sorry, Rin. If I'm disappointed in anyone, it's in myself. I never meant for you to feel that way," he apologised, shaking his head.

"No! Please, don't feel bad about it!" Rin said very fast, sounding slightly panicked. "It's not a reproach. It's just…" he tried to explain, but he seemed to be having issues to find the right words.

"It's fine, really, I shouldn't have considered your heterosexuality a given, and I'm sorry that-" Russell started to apologise again, but Rin didn't let him finish.

"It's not that!" he exclaimed, exasperated. Then, he sighed. "Just, please, give me a second to collect my thoughts," he begged.

Russell just nodded, fighting the urge to say again that it was fine and he was sorry.

Rin closed his eyes and exhaled heavily through his nose before speaking.

"I hope what I'm going to say doesn't make you feel uncomfortable. You know I lost my dad when I was just a little child, and… well… there have been times in my life afterwards when I have needed a father figure," he said, almost timidly. "I was a kid when I met you, and ever since then, even after I left, you have always been there for me, phoning and writing e-mails, showing that you care, even in the distance," he continued, and his voice broke slightly at the end.

Russell remained silent, a heart-clenching feeling washing over him. He gulped, waiting for Rin to finish.

"I once asked Lori, shortly after I arrived here, why you didn't have children if you liked kids enough to be home-stay parents, and she told me you couldn't." He offered Russel an apologetic look to let him know he realised now how insensitive that question had been. "I was just a silly child back then and didn't think much of it, but then, as time went by, I grew to love you two a lot and…"

Russell felt his eyes burning and stared at Rin while he took a much-needed break in his explanations.

"Look, Russell, you are like a second father to me. And I know I'm not your son, but somehow I've always had this feeling that I would like to… make you proud of me, to bring you all the kinds of joy that a child can bring to their father. But I know a lot of parents get upset when they find out their children are gay, and I know you're not the kind of person who would be against homosexuality, but when you started talking about me getting girlfriends, settling down… I just realised that you would like that life for me, that it would make you happy… and I couldn't give it to you," he finished, and he seemed defeated, as if he had let down his real father regarding something very important.

Russell hadn't felt more touched in his whole life. He hugged Rin taking him by surprise, if the way Rin gasped was anything to go by, and started to cry.

"I'm so proud of you," he managed to say between sobs, "and I won't let you feel otherwise," he added, taking a step back and clapping Rin on the shoulder.

"Really?" Rin asked, his voice soft and his eyes hopeful.

"Yes, really." Russell smiled. "You always were a sweet kid and have grown up to be an amazing man. Rin, if we had had a son, I would love for him to be like you." He felt his eyes welling up with tears again.

"Thank you, Russell," Rin said, wiping away his own tears that had started flowing after Russell's words. "That means so much to me," he said, his voice clear and honest.

Russell just smiled and nodded, a bit overwhelmed by the intensity of the emotions he had just experienced.

He looked towards the house, where he could see Lori and Haru smiling through the glass.

He wondered since when Lori knew about Rin's secret, and he realised he was not upset about the fact that he had been left out of the loop; the heart-to-heart conversation he had just had with Rin, not only about Rin's love life but also about what they meant to each other, had definitely been worth it.

"Let's go back inside," he said as he started to walk. "Those two must be looking forward to having all the details about our chat." He looked at Rin over his shoulder and winked.

When Russell opened the sliding door and they crossed the threshold, Haru appeared by Rin's side in the blink of an eye, as if he had teleported himself there, and murmured something to him in Japanese, to which Rin replied with a nod and a smile.

Russell supposed that Haru was checking that Rin was alright, and he felt his appreciation for him increasing tenfold. He was glad that Rin had someone who cared so much about him.

While he was watching the lovebirds, Lori wrapped her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek.

"So?" Russel asked before pecking her on the lips. "Since when have you known it?"

"Since forever," Lori rolled her eyes as if he was teasing him about his obliviousness. "No, seriously now, I always had some suspicions that it might be the case, but I didn't have the confirmation until today when I opened the door and caught them holding hands. You should have seen their faces!" she laughed.

Russell smiled and shook his head. His wife could be such a tease sometimes.

They all came back to the table, where four delicious-looking desserts were waiting for them.

The atmosphere was relaxed and lively, and Russell, who had never considered he was the gossiping kind, found himself wanting to know more about how the romance had started, and about whether Rin knew Haru's parents already, just like any father would want to know when their child introduced him to a new partner.

He didn't have the chance, though, because Lori, who seemed to be feeling the same curiosity about the details of their relationship, was faster than him.

"What did your mother say?" she asked Rin. Russell thought he could discern a tinge of concern in her voice. Japan was not Australia, after all.

"Well, that's quite a funny thing…" Rin replied with a bright grin, and even Haru smiled, albeit in a softer way. "After I asked Haru out, she sa- " he started, but Haru interrupted him by subtly raising his hand.

"Actually, it was me who asked you out," he said. "You were too scared," he added, and even though his tone barely changed, the look in his eyes was one of pure teasing.

"It was not like that! I was… ugh, it doesn't matter," Rin mumbled. "The thing is, after Haru and I started dating, I sat down with mum and my sister and told them that I was gay, that Haru was my boyfriend and that, if it was ok, I would like to invite him over for a family meal. Haru had been in my house before, of course, but never as my partner. When I told them, my mum just looked so shocked that I thought she was upset and for a second I thought our relationship would be damaged beyond repair."

Rin made a pause and Russell worried about Miyako's reaction. He had always considered her a very kind woman, but who knew how she would feel about such a revelation.

"But then, to my surprise," Rin continued, "she said that she believed that the last time Haru had been having dinner with us we were already a couple —which we weren't— and that I was kinda introducing him officially in the family!" he laughed. "So she was shocked to learn that we had started dating just recently because she had just assumed we were together for a long time!" he finished, and he sounded a bit incredulous, as if he couldn't believe for real that they had been so obvious about their feelings for such a long time.

Well, Russell had been oblivious, that was true, so maybe Rin was not entirely wrong in thinking that people wouldn't notice. But now that he saw them together, he couldn't help but wonder how he could have been so damn blind.

The evidence of their love was just everywhere around them.

It was in the way their hands accidentally brushed when they reached out to take something from the table, as if there was some kind of invisible force pushing them to search for permanent contact even if they didn't realize.

It was in the intense way each of them stared at the other when he wasn't looking, which made Russell think of the typical heart-eyes in cartoon characters. Whenever their eyes met, the temperature in the room seemed to rise several degrees.

It was in the soft way their names fell from each other's lips as if they were savouring the word, like an exquisite delicacy.

"It turned out that, apparently, everyone was aware of our feelings for each other except us," Haru added his two cents to the story while he played absent-mindedly with the fine hair in Rin's nape. The loving gesture surprised Russell, who had imagined that Haru would be the timidest of the two regarding public displays of affection.

"Exactly!" Rin laughed. "Even our friends were surprised when we told them, because they had assumed we had been together for ages! I mean, I had always had a tiny crush on him," he started, and Russell heard a soft, satisfied sigh coming from Lori. "I didn't even know for sure that I was head over heels in love and I wanted to be with him until my birthday!"

"Oh? What happened then?" Russell asked, leaning forwards over the table. He was dying to know.

"Haru couldn't attend my birthday party because he was at a training camp, quite far away, but… " Rin started and cast a sideways glance at Haru, the corner of his lips curling upwards. "He sent me a wood owl he had carved himself. Even though he was very busy and focused on something else, he still took the time to make something special for me and I just…" He gesticulated trying to express something that he probably felt he couldn't convey with words.

Lori giggled, seeing him struggle to explain what that owl had meant to him. Certainly, Russell wouldn't have expected a wooden owl to bring them together, but it was clear that he was in for another surprise.

"When I had it in my hands, I knew it. I couldn't help wondering what he was feeling when he carved it, what he was expecting me to feel. I could only think of his dedication, of his determination, of that… that lovely weirdness of him," he said, and even though Russell wouldn't usually consider 'weird' as the kind of adjective you would use for you partner, how Rin said it and, most of all, the way his gaze rested upon Haru when he said it, made it impossible to perceive it as anything other than a compliment.

"What? What did you know?" Lori asked, eyes wide with interest, and Russell was sure that she was just pressing to make Rin say the words, probably because watching the way even the tips of his ears were reddening was, indeed, quite fun.

"That what I felt was more than a crush… Or, well, not exactly. I mean, I know it may seem it doesn't make much sense, but I think that I had always known that I was in love but I didn't know that I knew?" he said, and his frown showed that even he realised how strange his explanation was.

"And then you say I'm the weird one…" Haru sighed and rolled his eyes, a soft smile dancing on his lips.

"Hey, you are the one who carved an owl and sent it to one of our friends for him to act as a delivery man so that you wouldn't have to answer any questions about it!" Rin placed a hand over his chest, feigned to be indignant.

"It was supposed to be a good luck charm," Haru murmured, blushing a little, as if he still couldn't believe what that simple piece of wood had triggered.

Russell thought that it was funny that he didn't deny Rin's insinuations that he had avoided giving him the present in person on purpose.

"Yeah, well… I guess you didn't expect it to make me realize that I wanted to marry you one day!" Rin chuckled. His hand found Haru's on the table and gave it a playful squeeze. His eyes, however, didn't seem so carefree.

Russell realised that his laugh was just an attempt to act as if he was joking, but he knew better.

He knew that homosexual marriage was not legal in Japan, but he was pretty sure that Rin was testing the waters anyway, and even though Russell was now certain that Haru was deeply in love with Rin, 'marriage' was quite a big word for two people who were so young and were just starting their relationship.

But Rin had always shown an affinity for romance, so it was not surprising that he would decide he wanted to marry Haru after getting a hand-made gift, or that he would just say it aloud and check whether Haru seemed horrified at the idea or not —he didn't, by the way.

Russell supposed that they could just cross that bridge when they got to it, but if he had to give an opinion based on what he had seen that day, he would bet all he had on a wedding.

"Well, you know what?" he said, clapping once before standing up and going to take four glasses from the sideboard. Then, he walked to the bottle rack to retrieve a bottle of the finest Australian wine they had, which they been saving for a special occasion. "This deserves a celebration! And, frankly, we're dying to know more about that story of who asked who out!" he grinned while he uncorked the bottle, and soon the sound of laughter filled the room.

.

.

.

Bonus: Winnie

Winnie had always suspected it, but she had no way of confirming it by herself, and she had to rely entirely on the conversations she overheard or the pictures that she could get a glimpse of when her humans received some message from her Rin.

When Rin was living with them, Winnie could read him like an open book. She had always had an animal instinct to know when Rin was happy or when he was upset, and it hadn't been difficult for her to figure out that, even in the kid's darkest times in Sydney, he had always felt at least a bit happier when he was talking about that 'Haroo.'

It was as if she could hear Rin's heart fluttering whenever that name was brought up —usually by Rin himself— and Winnie, being a dog, knew everything there was to know about puppy love.

Her suspicions grew when Rin visited them on his last year of high-school, accompanied by a handsome stranger who smelt good and made Rin's heart drum wildly against his chest, which she noticed when he picked her up to say hello and introduced the boy to Lori and Russell.

Winnie was happy to meet 'Haru' at last (she had finally learned the right name after years of seeing it written in Rin's e-mails), and she couldn't wait to test her theory about Rin's feelings.

She was a bit upset that she would have to reduce slightly the time spent with Rin, but besides being a loving pet, Winnie was a fujoshi at heart, and she couldn't miss the chance to play some role, no matter how small it was, in the potentially blooming romance of two cute boys.

Sadly, they were only staying for dinner, so she wouldn't have as many opportunities as she would like, and she knew she would have to use all her means to get the confirmation she wanted, which happened sooner than she expected.

She was outside sniffing Haru, trying to assess one last time if he was a good enough suitor for her Rin, when Rin appeared in the threshold to announce that dinner was almost ready.

Winnie jumped at the chance to make Haru drool over her and Rin drool over Haru and rolled on her back, exposing her belly and sticking out her tongue.

Haru just looked at her in confusion and, at that moment, Winnie envied humans for being able to roll their eyes.

"I think she likes you," Rin said, coming to the rescue, and Haru's eyes softened as he mouthed a small 'oh' before smiling and, finally, getting to work.

His hand was warm and smooth, and his gentle moves were clear evidence of how experienced he was in giving pets what they wanted.

She wagged her tail a bit —which was quite difficult to do in that position, but the effort was worth it— to make sure Haru didn't stop his coddling.

Because Winnie knew that a dog receiving a belly rubbing was not only adorable in the eyes of the rubbing performer, but also in the eyes of any human being who was lucky enough to witness it.

She was sure that, if Rin saw Haru rubbing her belly in such a cute way, his heart would melt at the sight and, maybe, he would be more inclined to act on his feelings for him.

The look of utter adoration in Rin's eyes while he watched Haru pampering Winnie proved her right, at least as a confirmation of his emotions.

However, to Winnie's surprise, the scene before his eyes wasn't enough to convince Rin to kneel in front of Haru and declare his undying love.

Winnie would have to step up her game if she wanted to get them together.

The occasion to start her plot presented itself when they went to the bathroom to wash their hands before dinner.

Taking advantage of the fact that they had closed the door, Winnie used her snout to push the coat hanger with all of her might so that it felt in front of the door, effectively blocking the doorknob.

Winnie loved watching movies with her humans, and she had seen many scenes in which the main characters were locked inside a room, by accident or by other meddling characters, and were forced to talk and confront their real feelings.

She was sure that it was a bulletproof plan and her heart was already racing with anticipation at the idea of Russell or Lori removing the coat hanger and opening the door just to find them kissing against the sink. And perhaps that would give her the chance to finally see what 'tongues battling for dominance' —an expression she had often seen in Lori's novels for adults when Winnie was pretending to be sleeping on her lap while Lori read— looked like.

But her hope was short-lived, as Russell just happened to notice the 'fallen' coat hanger and removed it from the door just when Rin was opening it to get out.

Her second attempt was a bolder move, but she knew she didn't have much time, and the outcome would be worth it.

When the boys were entering the dining room, Winnie snuck up behind them and, bracing herself for any potential pain caused by an accidental kick, she placed herself in front of Haru's leg when he was about to take a step, effectively making him trip.

Fortunately, and as she had predicted, Rin's quick reflexes avoided Haru's fall. He turned around just in time to put his arms around Haru, who fell against Rin's broad chest.

Winnie ran and hid behind the couch to watch. She was happy that she had paid attention to Rin's explanations when he was a child and insisted on teaching her Japanese, and that she had learned how to use the remote so that she could watch anime on satellite TV when she was home alone.

"Careful…" Rin whispered when Haru raised his head and looked straight into his eyes. "Are you ok?" he asked, his voice an octave lower than usual.

"Ye-yes," Haru replied, and showed no sign of moving away.

Ok, Winnie was ready to accept that maybe the violin music and the blurry background full of sparkles and heart-shaped bubbles was a figment of her imagination, but the blushing and the rapid heartbeats were very real.

"I hope Winnie is alright," Haru said suddenly, straightening himself properly and taking a step back. Rin seemed torn between being disappointed because the spell was broken and being even more infatuated after seeing how considerate Haru was.

He cleared his throat. "I'll check on her," he said, looking around him to find her.

Winnie got out of her hiding place wagging her tail, just to show she was fine, but Rin scooped her up anyway and brought her closer to Haru so that they could inspect her more closely.

"Dinner is ready!" Russell said to get their attention, and they sat around the table and focused on their meal.

Winnie believed that it hadn't gone too bad, but her good mood got ruined when Russell asked Rin if he had a girlfriend. The mention of any random human getting in the way of her OTP annoyed her to no end, and she felt impelled to show her displeasure by growling as threateningly as she could, just to make it clear that no Rin's girlfriend would ever be welcomed in their home.

She felt relieved when Rin (kind of) denied the existence of that girlfriend, and she could continue listening for more clues that revealed the true nature of his feelings for Haru.

However, much to her dismay, Rin didn't end up confessing that night, and she had to wait four long years, which felt even longer in dog years, for her dream to finally come true.

Winnie, four years later

Winnie was elated when Lori appeared in the living room followed by Rin and Haru. She would have liked to meet them at the door, but she was not that young anymore, her hip was hurting a bit and she preferred to wait for them laying comfortably on the couch.

They had taken only one step inside the room when Winnie's instinct immediately told her that the energy between them was different than last time.

They had wasted no time in walking to her side to pet her and rub her belly —and Haru was just so good at that as she remembered—, and the way they smiled at each other every time they hands brushed when they happened to stroke the same area of Winnie's fur was like having the word LOVE written in giant neon letters over their heads.

Surely, the fact that Haru squeezed Rin's hand for a few seconds just before Russell appeared in the room was quite revealing, too.

In her mind, she could already see Rin announcing their engagement, and to be honest, she was a bit disappointed that Rin hadn't carried Haru bridal-style inside the house.

But, for some reason that she couldn't understand, Rin didn't even mention that they were a couple, and Winnie started to wonder if perhaps she had been wrong all along and she had been seeing clear hints where there was nothing.

Perhaps Japanese humans were different from Australian humans and body language just worked differently.

For the first time since she had started shipping RinHaru, Winnie felt that maybe she had been imagining things and the ship would never become a reality.

Winnie was happy for all the attention she got over the first hour they were there, but when they moved to the table to enjoy dinner and she couldn't use their coddling as a distraction, she felt distressed.

She followed them and laid down under the table, hoping that at least they would have the decency to share some of their mouth-watering human food.

Everything was going alright, and Rin had even given her a couple of pieces of chicken when Russell's words caught Winnie's attention.

"So, Rin, have you finally got a girlfriend?" he asked, and Winnie felt the tension filling the room. She didn't like the question and she didn't like the atmosphere. She growled.

Rin didn't reply, but Winnie could see that he was tapping his foot, a sign that he was nervous. Haru squirmed on his chair.

Lori kicked Russell. It was discreet, although it was clear it was intentional. Before Russell had the chance to question her actions, Lori suggested that he should show Rin the rose bushes he had just planted.

Winnie didn't understand why Lori would say that, especially in the middle of a totally unrelated conversation, but it made her happy because she loved those bushes and wanted Rin to see them too.

She was about to follow Russell and Rin outside when Lori closed the sliding door behind them.

"Not now, dear," she told Winnie, crouching by her side and petting her head. "They need some privacy," she winked.

"Will they be alright?" Haru asked in that soft voice of his that Winnie liked so much.

"Oh, they will. Russell was raised in a very traditional family, and he might be a bit shocked, but I'm sure he won't have any problem with it. He loves Rin very much, and he just wants him to be happy," Lori explained as if she didn't have a care in the world, taking the dessert spoons out of a drawer and handing them to Haru.

Winnie didn't know what they meant, but the idea of a potential confrontation between Russell and Rin didn't sit well with her. Whatever they were talking about, Winnie just could hope that Lori was right and Russell and Rin were fine.

Haru , for his part, didn't seem as chill about what was happening outside as Lori, and he kept looking out of the glass door, concern marring his features.

Lori walked to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Haru seemed to relax slightly under her touch.

"Don't worry, it's so obvious that you make Rin happy, it's impossible that Russell is not ok with that," she said, and, after noticing Haru's blush, a new hope came to life in Winnie's dreamy heart.

Were they implying what she believed? Her heartbeat sped up when she imagined Rin asking Russell for his blessing to ask for Haru's hand in marriage. Or, wait, shouldn't be Haru the one to ask? Human traditions were confusing for her sometimes.

Well, it was irrelevant, really. The only thing that mattered is that she was now pretty sure that Rin and Haru were a couple. She was so happy that she couldn't stop herself from running in circles (and she got distracted by chasing her tail a couple of times in the process, but she couldn't help it).

"Rin seems uncomfortable," Haru said with a frown, and he seemed ready to run to the garden. Winnie ran to the door and pawed the glass trying to open it, as if she could help Haru come to the rescue of his beloved.

"Don't go out," Lori gently placed a hand on his arm before he could grasp the handle. "Haru, I know you are concerned, you care a lot about Rin, but I promise you, it's alright. They need to have this conversation on their own," she said in a soft voice. Winnie realized then that what was happening in the garden meant so much for Lori too.

"Ok," Haru sighed. "It's just that this is very important to Rin and I don't want him to regret… coming out to you," he finished. Winnie thought that those words were the most personal thing she had heard him say, but she was not surprised. Lori had the ability to make people and pets feel comfortable around her.

"He will have no reason to. Rin is family to us, and now, so are you," she smiled.

"Thank you," Haru said with a small bow before smiling back at her.

Winnie felt the irrepressible urge to rub her snout against his leg to let him know that she considered him family too, and so she did.

Haru kneeled beside her and rubbed her behind her left hear. Honestly, could that man be any more perfect?

"Oh, here they come," Lori exclaimed with a clap. Winnie turned her face to the garden just in time to see Russell and Rin opening the door with big grins on their faces.

Haru was immediately on his feet and by Rin's side, and Rin's smile when Haru placed his hand on his lower back made Winnie wish she was tall enough to grab their heads and push them against each other shouting 'Now kiss!'.

She spent the rest of the evening sitting on the floor between Rin's legs, enjoying the rush of her ship becoming canon.

And just when she thought she couldn't be any happier, the day brought her yet another surprise.

"Oh my goodness! It's so late!" Lori said looking at the wall clock.

The four humans had been celebrating the good news with a couple of bottles of wine, and not only was it quite late, but Rin and Haru, who obviously were not used to drinking alcohol, seemed a bit too tipsy to go anywhere on their own, and neither Lori nor Russell seemed to be sober enough to drive them.

Winnie wouldn't say they were completely wasted, but she was glad they realized it wouldn't be very wise to take the car.

"I think you should stay the night," Russell suggested with a big smile.

"We don't want to be a bother, we can take a taxi," Rin said, but the way he slurred his words made it clear that it would be safer for them to stay where they were.

"Nonsense," Lori protested. "You can stay in your old bedroom, just give me five minutes to make the bed," she said, already walking towards the door.

"No, please," Rin went after her, wobbling slightly. "You don't have to do it. Just tell me where the bed linen is and we'll make it, don't worry," he said.

"Aw, you're so sweet," Lori said, pinching his cheeks as if he was a little kid. "You'll find everything on the top shelf of the wardrobe," she said just before yawning.

"Wine makes her sleepy," Russell laughed standing from the couch. "I think it's better if we all go to bed," he added gesturing with his head towards Haru, who was sitting down with his eyes closed.

Rin smiled and walked back to the couch to shake Haru's shoulder.

"Goodnight," Russell and Lori said before leaving the room. Winnie decided to stay behind.

"Goodnight," Rin replied while Haru mumbled something unintelligible.

Once they were alone, Rin leaned forwards and placed a soft kiss on Haru's forehead.

Winnie's heart melted at the sight and she was glad that she had chosen not to follow Russell and Lori to their bedroom, which also happened to be her usual sleeping spot.

She was sure she would sleep just as comfortably in Rin's old bedroom, where she had spent so many nights as a puppy.

"Hey, sleeping beauty," Rin whispered against Haru's lips. "Come one, let's get you to the bed," he said, placing Haru's arm around his shoulder.

"Don…wanna" Haru murmured, and refused to cooperate. Winnie felt tempted to bite his trousers and pull in order to help Rin, but she didn't have the chance.

"Ah, well, that's a shame," Rin said. "I had thought that we could snuggle up together in bed, but if you prefer to sleep here on your own…"

Haru stood up so fast that he almost knocked Rin backwards.

"Let's go," he said, sounding much more clear-headed.

Rin giggled at the reaction and Winnie was about to bark in joy because she was happy to hear it, but in the last second, she decided it wouldn't be wise to attract their attention if she wanted to get with them into the bedroom.

They made their way mostly in silence, except for a couple of trips followed by hushed laughs and something that Winnie supposed were curse words in Japanese —Rin never taught her any swear words.

The pair entered the bedroom. Winnie didn't spend much time in that room anymore, but she played there whenever she felt nostalgic.

She liked to keep there a couple of toys, which she promptly retrieved from their hiding place under the desk to chew on them while Rin and Haru made the bed.

She had just started gnawing at her shoe-shaped toy and was enjoying the relaxing feel of the rubber in her teeth when she heard the rustle of sheets and raised her head just to find that Haru had already undressed down to his underwear and was lying on the bed.

She remembered Lori and Russell talking about an anecdote Rin had told them on the phone that involved Haru's unparalleled ability to remove his clothes at the speed of light at the sight of bodies of water of varying sizes.

Apparently, the ten seconds he had needed to undress now were a sign that his ability wasn't limited to the presence of bodies of water, but it also worked in the presence of any other bodies Haru might be interested in.

And he was very interested in Rin's body, if the hungry look he was giving him while Rin removed his trousers was anything to go by.

Winnie was glad to have her face covered in fur because she would have blushed at the sight of such an intense stare if she had been a human being.

She realized two seconds too late that perhaps something was about to happen in the bedroom, and she panicked: she was perfectly fine with public displays of affection, cute kisses, cuddling and homoerotic subtext, but she had never been one to enjoy super explicit, 'in-your-face' smut.

To her horror, she noticed that the door was closed and it was not possible for her to run away and give the couple the privacy they would surely prefer.

To her relief, Haru didn't seem eager to remove his boxers, and even though it was clear he was enjoying the view while Rin kept undressing, what shone in his eyes was deep love, rather than uncontrollable lust.

"I'd say it went well," Haru said, suppressing a yawn. Winnie could finally relax knowing that the possibility of wild sex was more and more distant with each passing second.

"Yes, I think so, too," Rin replied with a smile, placing his shirt on the back of the chair.

He sat down on the bed and sighed contently.

Winnie loved the soft atmosphere in the room, and she decided that she wanted to experience it first-hand.

She realized then that Rin wasn't aware of her presence, or, probably, of the fact that she couldn't jump onto the bed on her own anymore, so she started to whimper and poke his leg with her left paw.

"Hey, Winnie! I hadn't seen you! Wanna sleep here?" Rin said with joy, scooping her up and placing a soft kiss on her head.

Winnie wished for a second that she was a cat so that she could purr like crazy and let Rin know how happy she was to be pampered by him.

Rin placed her in the bed and, knowing that she had already won his heart, she walked to her next target, Haru, feeling her paws sinking in the soft mattress. She even had the nerve to get under the duvet.

She nestled against Haru's bare chest and he didn't show any sign of wanting her to move away.

The summer temperatures and the wine made his skin hot and sticky with sweat, but Winnie didn't mind. She had experienced worse in the streets she was used to walking around.

"I was a bit worried for a moment, you know?" Rin admitted, laying on his side. "I wasn't sure they would be ok with it, especially Russell."

"But in the end it was alright," Haru reassured him. "And besides, if they had reacted badly, you could have said it was all a joke," he shrugged, stroking Winnie's fur absent-mindedly.

"No way," Rin frowned, displeased by the idea.

"You don't have any obligation to tell people about us," Haru sighed. Judging by his tone, and his resigned face, Winnie deduced that it was not the first time they had a conversation about the topic.

"I know, but I want to!" Rin exclaimed, moving to a sitting position. "When Russell asked if I had a girlfriend, I just realized I didn't want to lie. I won't act as if I was ashamed of us. I don't want to pretend that I'm not in love with you," he said, staring at Haru.

Winnie looked at him holding her breath. From her privileged position against Haru's ribcage, she could feel his heart literally skipping a beat.

"You know you will have to hide it from the public eye, though," Haru countered, and Winnie could detect a trace of sadness in his voice.

"It's not the same. Rin Matsuoka, the swimmer, just wants to focus on his races and is not going to talk about his private life because it's nobody's business. But I'm Rin Matsuoka, the man, and what I want is to shout it from the rooftops! I know that is not possible," he smiled, but it was far from happy, "but, at least, I want all the people who are important to me to know that love you," he caressed Haru's cheek.

Haru's heart started to beat faster.

Winnie wished she had popcorn and a box of tissues because it was like watching a romantic movie.

"I love you too," Haru said, and Winnie could almost hear his struggle to swallow the lump in his throat.

They didn't say a word for a few minutes and just laid on the bed, looking into each other's eyes.

After a while, Rin moved and picked Winnie up with the utmost care.

"Ok, lady. That's my spot," he said before placing her delicately over the duvet by Haru's feet.

Then, he got back in the bed and snuggled up with Haru, just as he had promised when he wanted to make him leave the couch.

After several seconds of silence, Winnie was starting to fall asleep when the sound of Haru's voice got her attention.

"Hey," he said in a voice so low that Winnie was afraid that Rin's human ear might not hear him. "Did you really mean it?" he asked when Rin stirred.

"Mean what?" Rin asked back, his voice a bit groggy.

"That you want to marry me one day," Haru answered, and Winnie's ears perked up, waiting for Rin's reply.

"I do," he said, suddenly sounding very awake. The determination in his voice reminded Winnie of the little kid who appeared at her house so many years ago with a dream to fulfil and with fire in his heart.

"…I should have carved you a ring," Haru said with such tenderness that is was impossible to take it as a joke.

Rin just leaned forwards, wrapped his arms around Haru and kissed him on the lips.

Winnie was happy that they had let her stay in the room because otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to spend the night fandogging over the cute scene in front of her.

She curled up again between the boys' feet and finally fell asleep, having whispered sweet nothings and passionate promises of eternal love as a lullaby.