Chapter Text
Langa’s shoulder hurts.
It has for about three hours now, what with it being used as a pillow and all.
Reki has his almost his entire weight on Langa as he sleeps. His arms are looped through Langa’s too, putting them at a pretty weird angle.
When he’s pretty sure his arm is dead asleep, Langa grimaces. “Reki.” He whispers, shaking him a bit. “Hey.”
The latter doesn’t let go. Instead, he snuggles impossibly closer, eyes fluttered shut as he nuzzles his face into Langa’s neck. He’s smiling. He must be having a nice dream.
Langa feels himself smile as well and he decides that a little shoulder pain never killed anyone. Deciding to let it go, he leans back in his reclinable chair, that’s unfortunately getting kicked by a toddler from behind, as his eyes wander around the rest of the plane.
So, here’s the deal.
It’s been about nine months since Langa and his mom were supposed to leave for Canada. After managing to wave down the truck with all of their belongings in it, Langa’s mom assured them that they were there to stay.
Thankfully, Langa wasn’t the one who had to break the news to his grandparents.
They were crushed of course and Langa couldn’t help but feel guilty about that. That was, until they came up with a sort of alternative plan.
Instead of living out there full time, Langa and his mom would just have to visit more. Originally, the plan was to try and make it out once a month and stay for a couple days. But after a while, it branched out to two to three months but they would stay for an entire week.
Langa will admit that the first time they went, it was actually sort of nice. The immediate thing he noticed was how cold it was, even inside of the airport. He realized he actually kind of missed the chill.
Seeing his grandparents was great too, besides all of the big-life questions they asked, one being, “Do you have a girlfriend?” Langa’s mom had laughed so hard when he was pouty for the rest of the night. Once everything was all cleared up, his grandma smiled warmly and said she was really excited to meet Reki.
And Reki was so so happy when Langa told him that. They called nearly every night that Langa was gone and they would talk about everything they could think of until one of them would fall asleep.
On one night in particular, Reki had drifted off right in the middle of one of his own stories. Langa wasn’t sure what had happened until he heard quiet snoring on the other line.
With his heart swelling, Langa whispered, “Love you,” before ending the call.
The snow had come down pretty good back then. There was enough to actually snowboard if he wanted to. And Langa’s surprised to say that he did want to. He held back though. He had made a promise to himself that the next time he went, it would be with Reki.
Which is kind of why they’re on the plane in the first place.
After months of planning and begging their moms, Reki was finally allowed to come with. He figured it was about time they go together anyway. After all, Langa still owes him ketchup chips.
So here they are, on a flight with about seven hours to go. Langa somehow ended up in the middle between his mother and boyfriend, his legs crunched up on the seat in front of him. He groans but feels a little better when he lets his head flop onto Reki’s.
His mom’s asleep too, her head cuddled into her neck pillow. Langa isn’t sure how they can sleep so soundly like this. He took about a half hour nap before being awoken by a screaming baby and that was that.
So maybe Langa has a bit of flying anxiety. Just a small bit. He never really had to fly this much before and now, that newfound fear is catching up to him.
Just to make Langa nearly jump out of his skin, the kid behind him kicks the seat again really hard, sending him and Reki surging forward. Langa quickly catches his boyfriend, who barely even seems to notice that he’s falling, and settles him back into place.
After taking a few deep breaths to calm down, he turns up the volume of his music again. Instead of fixating on how cramped and hot and…well, just how overwhelming the plane is, Langa focuses on the lyrics playing from his earbuds. Cherry-coloured Funk by Cocteau Twins.
Reki has the other pressed into his own ear and he almost seems to be breathing to the beat of the song, which is almost comforting in a way and within minutes, Langa feels a lot better.
As he attempts to fall back asleep, he’s surprised to feel Reki shift until his amber eyes flutter open to meet blue. “Hi.” He mumbles.
“Hi.” Langa echoes and now that he has the chance, he massages his shoulder a bit until the aching feeling fades. “I don’t think I like being a human pillow for more than an hour.”
Reki’s nose scrunches up as he pouts. “Aw. But you’re comfy!” As Langa’s about to retort, Reki kisses him on the cheek, right where his dimples would be. Langa chokes a bit on his words before he’s just stuttering.
“W-what was that for?” He finally manages.
Reki just grins before kissing the spot again. He shrugs. “Just a thank you for letting me come with. It really means a lot to me.” Then, he sits up and pats at his shoulder. “Here. I’ll be your pillow for a while.”
Langa instantly accepts the offer and snuggles in close to the crook between Reki’s neck and shoulder. “Thank you.” Reki smiles and places a kiss into Langa’s hair.
“You’re so polite sometimes. Don’t worry about it. Why don’t you get some sleep?” Langa nods and shuts his eyes. “I’ll wake you up if the plane crashes.” Reki adds and Langa can practically see his smile from here.
“That’s not funny.” He grumbles and just as a little payback, Langa pecks at Reki’s neck until the latter’s kinda fidgeting.
Reki laughs but it comes out a little strained. “Hey.” He huffs. “That’s not sleeping.”
“It’s not.” Langa confirms, kissing the now flush red skin one last time before letting his head rest on his boyfriend’s shoulder once again. “It’s just funny when you get all flustered.”
“I’m not flustered!” Reki yells a little too loud, making Langa’s mom shift in her sleep, and Reki’s face turns even redder. He slumps down, taking Langa with him. “Fine. Maybe I am.” He grumbles.
Langa chuckles before letting his eyes fall closed. “Hah. I win.”
“Sore winner.”
“Sore loser.”
Reki grumbles some more before finally letting out a giggle. “Would you just go to sleep already?”
“Can’t sleep if you’re talking to me.” Langa mumbles, already beginning to feel his built up sleepiness take over.
“Okay okay. You’re right.” Reki mumbles, reaching for Langa’s phone to turn up the volume of the music once more. Then, he’s lacing his fingers through Langa’s and letting his eyes fall closed.
Langa’s chest aches and he can’t help it when he whispers a quiet, “Love you.”
“I love you too.” Reki mutters. It’s quiet for a moment before he adds, “But man, are you a brat.” He chuckles.
Already starting to nod off, Langa just smiles into Reki’s skin. He nods, making Reki laugh a little more.
“Such a brat.” Reki repeats dreamily, seeming plenty tired himself.
Within mere minutes, they’re both fast asleep.
______________________
“Look!” Reki exclaims as soon as they make it off the plane and into the chilly airport. He grips Langa by the arm before tearing away and running towards one of the nearest windows. He presses his nose up against the glass, attracting a few odd glances their way but Reki looks like he could care less. “It’s snowing.” He tells Langa, his face lit up with what almost looks like childlike wonder.
And sure enough, when Langa looks outside, the ground is dusted white and small flurries fall from the sky. The drift isn’t enough to delay flights but it still looks beautiful.
“Didn’t you make fun of me for looking that excited at the beach?” Langa asks, raising an eyebrow.
Reki laughs, his voice raising til it sounds kind of scratchy. “What??? I would never do such a thing.” He offers Langa a sheepish smile.
Langa raises his brow a little more before he finally cracks a smile. “Mhm.” He walks up to the redhead and hugs him from behind. “It’s pretty, right?”
He nods, overlapping his hands onto Langa’s. “Yeah.” Reki squeezes his hands. “Not as pretty as you, though.”
Langa’s honestly embarrassed how much that makes him blush. “Okay. That one definitely goes in the jar.”
For context: A few months ago, Miya told them they were being way too embarrassing in public with all of their cheesy one liners so he made them to start a “dollar a line” jar. So far, they’ve given up almost thirty bucks. Okay…maybe forty five.
Reki shakes his head, grinning. “I left the jar at home specifically for this reason. Miya never has to know. We can be as corny as we want and don’t have to spend a dime. Genius right?”
Langa laughs a little, squeezing Reki closer. “Yeah. Genius.” He kisses the side of his head before letting go, slipping his hand into Reki’s instead.
After retrieving their belongings from baggage claim, it’s practically impossible to keep Reki close since he’s already sprinting towards the exit, leaving Langa to carry both of their suitcases.
“Woah!” He shouts when he makes it outside, his sneakers nearly slipping on the icy ground. He does a little spin as he cups his hands to try to catch some of the snowfall. Suddenly, he turns back to Langa and smiles wildly. “It’s cold!” He says laughing, his teeth already beginning to chatter. Langa’s mom chuckles to herself before pulling out her phone to take pictures.
Langa just smiles before reaching into his backpack from the plane and pulling out a yellow beanie be packed specifically for Reki. He had a feeling he’d need it.
Smoothing Reki’s hair down, Langa puts the beanie on him, right over his headband. Reki giggles, pulling it even more over his reddened ears.
“You did bring warm clothes right?” Langa asks, starting to collect his own hair so he can make it into a low ponytail. His hair’s gotten a little longer over the past few months.
Reki grits his teeth a bit. “Well I brought like…every hoodie I own, mine…and yours, and sweatpants?” When Langa gives him a look, he cringes. “I don’t own a lot of warm clothes, okay?” He pouts a bit before he smirks. Then, he winks. “Can’t you just warm me up?”
Langa’s about to say that definitely goes in the jar when he remembers. So instead, he just sighs, nodding slightly. “We can buy you some more clothes too. There’s a little marketplace by my grandparent’s house. I’ll take you later.”
“Thanks.” Reki says, grinning.
“Boys!” Langa’s mom calls. She smiles, waving her phone around. “Turn around. Let me take your picture.”
Without a second thought, Langa wraps an arm around Reki, who snuggles closer in return, throwing up a peace sign.
“Say Canada!” Nanako instructs.
“Canada!” They both say, Langa attempting to smile naturally.
His mother beams. “Adorable! Ready to go? We have to head to the rental car place.” They both nod and they begin their very brief walk.
After a minute of silence, Reki giggles to himself. “Canada. Cana-duh.” He drags out the last syllable, laughing even more.
“You’ve been waiting to use that one since we got here, haven’t you?” Langa asks.
Reki nods, the gap in his front two teeth shining bright when he smiles. “Yup! I’ve been practicing my english more and I’ve been learning a lot of Canadian puns. I don’t really get most of them but maybe you’ll think they’re funny.”
“Like what?”
“No way am I selling you all my good material right away! You gotta wait it out and see.”
Langa chuckles. “Fine. Fine. Can’t wait to hear them.”
It doesn’t take very long to get a car once they reach the rental place and soon enough, they’re huddled up close in the backseat of a red Honda Civic and Langa’s mother drives towards his grandparent’s place.
Once they pull into the driveway, they’re instantly greeted with an open door as well as open arms. His grandmother, Claire, gets to Langa first. She pulls him into a hug, squeezing tightly before releasing him and turning to Nanako.
Then, it’s his grandpa, Mark’s turn. His hugs in particular always remind Langa of his dad. Langa tends to embrace those hugs a little longer. “How’ve you been, kid?” The man asks and all Langa can do is smile and nod in an attempt not to tear up. When they finally pull apart, the first thing Langa hears is Claire’s gasp as Reki gets out of the car.
“Is this him?” She asks, smiling like mad when Langa nods.
Reki extends his hand for Mark to shake and in an adorably sloppy english accent, he mumbles, “Ice to meet you.” He smiles and sends a knowing glance to Langa, who rolls his eyes in response. Reki begins to extend an arm to Claire as well and is incredibly surprised when the woman practically tackles him over.
“Sorry.” Claire chuckles. “I’m a hugger.”
“Oh. That’s okay. So am I.” Reki explains, laughing before he hugs her a little closer.
When they pull away, she pokes at one of Reki’s cheeks. “Oh. He’s just adorable.”
“I know right?” Langa finds himself saying.
And that just makes the grandparents even more excited. They quickly grab all of their luggage from the car and soon enough, they’re ushered into the house to escape from the cold.
Without even having to take five steps, Langa immediately notices Claire and Mark’s cat, Honey, weaving through his legs, her natural greeting.
“What?!” Reki exclaims, immediately kneeling down to pet her. She snuggles her little nose into his palm. “You didn’t tell me they had a cat.”
“Surprise?” Langa attempts even though in reality, he honestly just forgot to tell him.
They spend a little time petting her as Claire asks, “So how was the flight?”
“Tiring. But good.” Nanako explains. “Right, boys?”
Langa nods even as he slightly cringes. Reki on the other hand, throws up two thumbs up in response. “Yeah. It was great! That’s only like the second time I’ve ever been on a plane in my life so…”
“Really?” Mark asks.
“Really?” Langa echoes.
Reki nods. “Heh. I guess I didn’t tell you about that, did I?”
Langa shakes his head, equally confused and amazed that Reki could sleep that well on the flight.
“Well, now that you’re here, I should probably get dinner going. Mark, dear. Would you help me?” Claire asks, already heading into the kitchen.
“Of course, darling,” is Mark’s reply and he sends the boys one last glance before he follows his wife.
Once Honey prances away, Reki grabs Langa’s hand and squeezes. “Can we go play outside?”
Langa looks to his mom, who grins. “Yes.” She says, cooing when Honey jumps into her lap. She scratches her behind the ears before she continues. “Just make sure Reki’s warm enough. I’ll come get you when dinner is ready.”
“Thanks!” Reki yells as he’s already half way out the door.
“Hey. Wait. Come back.” Langa instructs. Reki practically growls in frustration but complies. Langa quickly drops to the floor to get to his suitcase. He unzips it, pulling out his scarf, coat, gloves, and boots. He stands, wrapping the blue fabric around Reki’s pretty neck. He hands him the coat and boots as well. “Put those on.” Langa swiftly slips the gloves onto Reki’s finger tips and slides them back until they’re settled, comfortably.
Reki throws his arms through the coat, which is far too big for him, making him look extremely adorable. He starts putting on the boots too, before he pauses. “What about you?” He asks Langa, who smiles.
“I grew up here. I’m used to the cold. I’ll live.”
After giving a reluctant nod, Reki’s all snug ready to go.
“Be careful!” Nanako yells as they finally make it outside.
There’s a bit more snow here than there was at the airport and Reki does a little twirl again before doing a little back flop into the snow. He waves his arms and legs around in an attempt to make a snow angel.
Langa joins him, the cold kind of knocking the wind out of him. Reki instantly pauses, seemingly to check if he’s okay so Langa offers a nod in reassurance.
“You’ll live, eh?” Reki says, sighing to himself.
But Langa can’t help but laugh. “Did you use that ‘eh’ on purpose?”
Then, Reki’s laughing with him as he nods. “Yeah.”
After they finish making their sloppy snow angels, they decide to make a snowman instead. Or at least, that’s the original plan.
As Langa is in the middle of constructing the bottom base, something cold hits him in the back. It takes a few seconds to click in his head that it was just a snowball. He turns around to face Reki, who’s holding one more in each hand, a smirk on his face.
“Woah. Reki wait.” Langa laughs. “We can-we can talk about this.” He places one of his hands up in surrender, the other of course, is already beginning to form a snowball of his own. Luckily he’s still being partly covered by the base of the snowman and Reki can hardly see him.
“Okay.” Reki grins. “Talk then.”
Langa quickly learns that it’s sort of difficult to form a snowball with one hand so he needs to stall. “Well,” He chuckles nervously. “I’m your boyfriend who brought you with me on a nice little vacation. Um…I was your pillow for like four hours. You’re the love of my life and…” he pauses, realizing what the hell he just said.
Reki freezes too, eyes wide before his smile becomes much much softer than before. “Really?”
With Reki distracted, Langa quickly finishes the snowball and he clutches it tightly. “Mhm.” He says, hesitant but honest. “You are. And that’s why I feel so bad about doing this.” He quickly throws the snowball in Reki’s direction. It smacks him right in the face. Bullseye.
It seems like the next fifteen seconds go by in slow motion. After he swipes the snow away and the initial shock washes over him, that smirk appears back on Reki’s face. But this time, there’s a more competitive glint behind his eyes. It’s the same look he gets when he’s skating at S. “Okay. So that’s how it’s gonna be? Langa, I love you more than life itself but you’re going down.”
Langa only lets himself blush for a second before his heart starts pumping with adrenaline too. “Bring it on.”
And that’s all Reki needs to hear before he’s throwing one of the balls of snow right at Langa. Fortunately, he’s still partly hidden behind the base and it barely grazes him. Unfortunately, the second one hits him head on. “Ow.” He says, forming a few more snowballs to keep near him.
Reki chuckles, finding his own spot to hide behind. However, all of the clashing color’s of Langa’s winter clothes makes him stick out like a sore thumb.
He throws one but it’s too hard of a throw and he misses by a mile. The second one hits him on the back but the third one barely grazes. Yet it still has Reki cackling maniacally. “Is that all you’ve got?”
“No.” Langa murmurs, picking up another patch of snow and hurling it towards Reki, the latter standing just at the right time. It hits him in his chest and he stumbles a bit.
“Oh. I’m gonna get you.” Reki swears and Langa doesn’t even process that a snowball is heading straight towards him until he’s hit hard in the face and he’s falling backwards. He lets himself breathe as he stares up at the blue-gray sky. “Shit! Langa, I’m sorry!” And suddenly, Reki’s practically on top of him. “I got you too good.” He giggles, slipping his hand until it cups Langa’s cheek
He nods, chuckling. “Yeah. You did.”
“I’m sorry.” He repeats, tickling Langa’s face as an apology.
“It’s fine.” Langa smiles, leaning into the touch.
“So do I win?” Reki asks, nuzzling his nose with Langa’s.
After a moment of pointless deliberation, Langa nods. “Yeah. I guess you do. Congratulations.”
“Thank you. Thank you. You’re too kind.” He laughs and then for a sweet little moment, they just stare at each other and Langa could have and would have looked at him for a lot longer if Reki hadn’t broken the silence. “So…love of your life, huh?” He curves his face into a grin.
Langa scrunches up his face but he nods. “Is-is that okay?”
“Stupid.” Reki mutters and Langa’s smile quickly deflates. “Wait. No! No no stupid. Stupid.” Reki says, placing his other hand on Langa’s face as well.
“Why do you keep calling me stupid?” Langa asks, unsure on if he should laugh or not.
Reki swoops down and quickly kisses his cheek. “Because you’re stupid.” He kisses the spot again and again before he pulls Langa closer until they’re basically just hugging. “Of course it’s okay. It’s more than okay.” He assures, squeezing Langa close. “You’re an idiot if you don’t think I feel the same way.”
Langa could cry.
Instead, he hugs Reki incredibly close, burying his face into his shoulder. Somehow, even now, he’s still warm. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. I just threw a snowball at you so hard that you fell over. I’ll feel bad.” Reki says, pulling away just enough that he can look into Langa’s eyes.
“I love you anyways.” Langa admits.
Reki smiles an amazingly soft smile. “Yeah? Well I…”
“Boys!” Nanako shouts from the house. “Food is ready!”
As if on cue, Langa’s stomach growls, making Reki chuckle way too sweetly. “Come on. We should head back.” He stands, offering his hand to Langa to help him up. They walk back to the house, hand in hand. “You wanna hear another pun?” Reki asks, squeezing Langa’s hand.
“Of course.”
“Okay. Ready?” Once Langa nods, he continues. “There’s snow place like home.”
Langa, unable to restrain himself, responds, “Icy what you did there.”
Reki smiles, shaking their interlocked hands around. “That’s a good one!”
“We’re intolerable.” Langa rolls his eyes, hardly laughing to himself.
“Yeah. There’s snow way these puns could get any worse.” Reki says like it’s nothing.
Langa laughs a bit. “Thought you weren’t wasting all of your material right away?”
“You think this is all my material? I’m just getting started.”
Nanako greets them at the door, immediately scolding Langa for going out in only a hoodie and jeans. After she notices his face is red from the snow, he instantly assures her that he’s fine.
His grandparents are already seated, a bowl of something steaming in front of each of them.
Reki and Langa find a seat next to each other and out of habit, they both say a quick, “Thank you for the food”.
“It’s no problem, darlings.” Claire grins, taking a spoonful of what looks like tomato soup. The rest of them begin to eat as well, the soup immediately warming him up.
“So Langa. How did you two meet?” Mark asks, gesturing at him and Reki.
Langa takes another sip of soup before fumbling for Reki’s hand under the table. “Mom and I had just moved into our apartment and we went to go get some ice cream to cool down. And that’s where I bumped into Reki. Well technically, Reki bumped into me. He made me drop my ice cream.”
“Hey! I bought you another one. I bought him another one.” Reki rambles, making the others laugh.
“That was the first time I met him. And it turns out that we went to the same school and had the same classes. And then he started teaching me how to skate.” Langa explains.
Claire nods, smiling. “That’s so great. We’re so happy for you. Right, sweetheart?” She asks her husband, who nods in response. “Just out of curiosity, Langa. How do you feel about snowboarding again?”
“Claire.” Nanako interrupts, shaking her head.
Langa offers her a kind smile as a thanks. “Actually mom, I am going to go again.”
“What?”
“Yeah. I told Reki I’d teach him how. We’re going soon but we have to go to the market first to get him some proper clothes.” He explains.
“Wait Langa. Baby, are you really okay with going again?” Nanako asks him. Reki squeezes his hand from under the table.
After a moment, Langa nods. “Yeah. I-I think I am. I’ll have Reki with me so I’ll be fine.” He squeezes Reki’s hand again, who immediately squeezes back. “And if not, we’ll just come back here. I promise.”
“That’s wonderful, Langa,” says his grandfather. “I think we have a couple of your father’s old boards in the basement if you would like to use those.” He offers.
Langa returns a smile, nodding slightly.
“That’d be great. Thank you.” Reki adds, scooting a little closer to Langa so he can lean against his shoulder.
The rest of dinner goes by relatively smooth. Reki and Langa talk about all of their skating adventures (okay not all of them) and Claire and Mark listen intently.
Just before they’re about to go to bed, Langa tells them that he’ll take Reki to the marketplace tomorrow.
“Oh. That reminds me.” Claire hums. “We set up some blankets and pillows on the couch for Reki to sleep. If you need more, just come get us.”
“Goodnight Nanako. Goodnight boys.” Mark adds, before they’re heading up the stairs and towards their bedroom.
“Goodnight.” They all say in sync.
Then, it’s Langa’s mom’s turn to say goodnight. “I’ll be in the guest room if you need me.” She hugs Langa, kissing his forehead. She does the same for Reki before she walks down the hall.
And then there were two.
Reki chuckles, waddling over to Langa until he’s in his arms. “They really expect me to sleep out here, don’t they?”
“It looks like it. Do you want to?” Langa asks, squeezing Reki close.
The redhead chuckles as pulls away and slides off his beanie, revealing how adorably messy his hair is. “Well obviously not. I wanna stay with you.”
Langa grins, reaching for Reki’s hand. He interlaces their fingers. “Come on then.”
“What about…”
“We can just wake up before everyone else and you can just act asleep for a minute?” Langa shrugs as he pulls Reki towards the other guest bedroom/Langa’s room (the room he was going to have if they moved in.)
Reki laughs a bit before flopping onto the bed as soon as they come in. “Sure. Sounds good to me.” He looks like he’s about to snuggle under the covers when Langa clears his throat.
“Do you want me to go get some of the pajamas you packed?” He asks.
The boy in question groans a little before sitting up and shaking his head. “Can’t I just wear some of your clothes? I always sleep better in them. It’s comfier that way.”
Langa debates it but who is he kidding? He can never say no to Reki. So he quickly finds a hoodie and sweatpants for each of them, already stowed away into the closet.
Reki giggles happily before slipping into the sweater. They both quickly get dressed before getting ready for bed completely.
Once he lays down, Langa finally realizes just how tired he is and his eyes nearly fall shut on the spot before Reki cuddles up next to him. “Hey,” he says, biting on his bottom lip a bit. “Are you sure you’re okay with going snowboarding again?”
Langa tilts his head to the side. “Yeah. Of course. Why do you ask?”
Reki sighs, fluttering his eyes open and shut. “I just- I don’t want you to do something you aren’t ready to do just because you want to make me happy. If you’re unhappy, then I’ll be unhappy. That’s just how it works dude.”
“Reki. I’m sure, really. Don’t be so worried. I’m
okay.”
It seems to take a moment and several reassuring nods to convince Reki to drop it and even then, he still has this protective sort of glint in his eye.
“When we go, if you don’t feel comfortable at all, just-“
“I know, Reki.” Langa says, the smallest of smiles tugging at him. “I will. Thank you.” Reki nods in response and Langa can’t help it when he pulls him closer. Reki rolls a bit until they can feel each other breathe.
Langa feels his eyes begin to close but they snap right back open when Reki shakes him. “Okay. I’ve got one more.” He says.
After rolling his eyes, Langa wraps his arm even tighter around Reki. “Alright. Go ahead.”
“Okay okay.” Reki chuckles. “You mean snow much to me.”
“If Miya were here, I think he would’ve killed us by now.” Langa admits. “I don’t know how you say those with such a straight face.”
Reki grins, snuggling close to use Langa as a pillow. Again. “Oh. He would’ve definitely killed us. And I don’t really know either man.” He says, sleepily. And then, after a moment of peace and quiet, he mutters an even quieter, “Good night, Langa.”
“Good night, Reki.” He mumbles and he’s pretty sure Reki’s already asleep, which Langa will never understand how he can sleep so easily in a place he’s never been before. After a minute, Langa seems to be nodding off himself when a thought occurs to him. “Reki. Did you set an alarm?”
He gets quiet snoring in response.
From the way they’re laying, it’s practically impossible to reach Langa’s phone without moving Reki. And honestly, Langa’s really comfortable himself.
Maybe they’ll just wake up early on their own?
______________________
Nope!
When Langa opens his eyes, the first thing he sees is his mom, holding her phone. “Mom?”
“Oh! Sorry, baby but you two looked so cute that I couldn’t resist.” She hands him her phone to reveal the picture she had just taken of them.
Reki almost looks he’s smiling in his sleep. “Would you send that to me?” Langa asks, handing the phone back.
“Of course.” She smiles, swiftly moving a strand of Langa’s hair out of his face. “Breakfast is almost ready. After you eat, you two should get going if you want to get all of your shopping done before it gets too crowded.” She says before leaving them alone.
It takes a minute or two to wake up Reki and even then, he sort of looks like a zombie with the way he’s walking.
They quickly get themselves settled at the table, saying brief good mornings to Claire and Mark, who definitely seem to be morning people. That, or they’ve had a lot of coffee already.
Langa pours a cup for himself while Reki sticks with a glass of orange juice but he keeps eyeing Langa’s coffee. Wordlessly, he scoots the cup closer to Reki, just in case.
When breakfast is decidedly ready, they each go and get a plate for themselves. It turns out they’re having eggs, bacon, and some toast. Langa finds it hard to break his old habit and pours a bit of syrup on the side for the bacon.
“Can I try?” Reki asks, already holding a strip of bacon. When Langa nods, he dips it into the syrup and takes a bite. His nose scrunches at the taste. “You like that?”
“You don’t?” Langa hums, dipping his own bacon into the syrup.
From across the table, Nanako laughs. “Oh. You have all of your dad’s weird eating habits, don’t you?”
Langa shrugs, taking a bite of his toast instead. “At least I don’t eat ramen right out of the package.”
“Very true.” She says, fighting a chuckle.
Once the two of them finish up their meals, they say their brief goodbyes.
Just as they make it to the front door, Langa’s mom hands him the keys to the rental car. “We’ll be careful, mom.” He promises after she pesters them about being safe for the fortieth time.
“We’ll call you if we have any problems.” Reki adds, nodding in reassurance. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep him out of trouble.” He playfully punches Langa in the shoulder.
“More like I’ll keep him out of trouble.” Langa mumbles before grabbing Reki’s sleeve and gradually pulling him towards the car.
When they arrive, Reki grumbles a little. “I still can’t believe that you can drive.”
“You’re just mad I got my license before you.” Langa chides, unlocking the car. They slide in and Reki immediately crosses his arms as soon as he sits down.
The redhead sticks his tongue out at him before laughing it off. “Maybe. But at least I can make you be my personal chauffeur until I get mine.”
Langa shrugs as he starts up the engine. “Put your seatbelt on.” He instructs.
“Woah! You sounded like Shadow there! That was cool. Do it again!”
“Reki-“
“You did it again! Maybe you can be an impressionist. We did it, Langa! We just found you a career. Now you can go out and make money for us while I just skate around all day.”
Langa grins when Reki grabs one of his hands as he starts the relatively short drive. “What if you end up liking snowboarding so much that you don’t even want to skate anymore?” He asks, just to see Reki’s reaction.
“Well I doubt that I will ever stop skating but I guess you never know. I could be a total snowboarding prodigy.”
“You could.” Langa confirms, lacing their fingers together a little tighter. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”
It takes about another ten minutes but sure enough, they reach the market in one piece. Reki bounces out of the car as soon as they park and he’s already looking like a kid in a candy store, with all of the shops and decorations, his eyes won’t stop wandering.
“We’ll go get you the clothes you need and then we can just wander?” Langa asks, taking Reki by the hand.
“Okay.” He nods. “Think they’ll have those chips here?”
“Hopefully.”
“Yay!” Reki whisper shouts.
Langa knows exactly where the store is. On their first visit, it was the first place him and his mom went to buy some postcards for Reki and souvenirs for everyone else. He’s sure he saw winter clothes in there as well.
When they reach their destination, Reki gasps at the name of the store, a cute little place called ‘Moose Tracks’. “Ah! I had another pun with the word moose in it. Hm…what was it again?” He asks, tapping at his chin.
“I thought you used all your puns yesterday.” Langa says, surprisingly kind of excited that there’s more.
“That was yesterday, Langa. This is now.” Reki claims, pulling out his phone. “Moose moose moose. I thought I had written it down. Moose wonderful time of the year or something? I didn’t really get that one.” He admits, chuckling to himself.
“That one’s for Christmas.” Langa explains.
Reki tilts his head to the side. “Really?”
He nods. “It’s a Christmas carol. I’ll show it to you later.” Langa promises before holding the door open for Reki as they head inside.
Luckily, Langa was right about there being clothes. There are many coats to choose from, as well as pants, hats, scarfs, and gloves and Reki’s face lights up when he notices all of the different options. He immediately spots a jacket he likes and already grabs it, without even looking at the size. Langa checks it for him.
The process is the same for the rest of the clothes and soon, Langa can barely even see with all of the fabric in his arms. He knows Reki’s still there because of how close his voice, though so at least he has that going for him.
As Reki piles on a bright purple beanie, he suddenly seems to realize that Langa’s struggling a bit, and takes half to share the load, seeming kind of embarrassed.
“We should go shopping all the time.” He claims. “It’s fun!”
Langa feels himself grinning as he nods. “Sure. How much is an impressionist’s salary? We’re gonna need a lot of money if you’re constantly going on shopping sprees.”
“Eh. We’ll figure it out.”
It sort of takes forever but Reki finally decides that he has everything he needs.
The line for the cashier is short so they start getting their items checked out right away. They walk out of the store, several bags in hand and their wallets feeling a lot lighter.
After dropping off the bags in the car, they do as they said they would and just wander. It’s nice, really. The shopping center has their Christmas lights still up. Or maybe they just leave them up all year around, but either way, it looks very pretty.
Every once in a while, something in a store window will catch one of their eye and they’ll head in to look around for a bit. In the end, the only thing they buy other than the clothes, is nothing other than a large bag of ketchup flavored chips that they found in a small convenience type store.
As they’re walking back to the car, Reki squeezes Langa’s hand in his own. “You know. I was thinking.”
“Hm?”
“Your grandparents always call each other cute little nicknames all the time. We don’t really do that.” Reki explains.
“What? Dude isn’t romantic enough for you?” Langa laughs when Reki flushes. After a minute, Langa shrugs, adjusting Reki’s new purple beanie so that it covers his ears a little more. “You called me baby once.”
“I did? Hm. Did you like it?”
“What?” Langa laughs, almost in disbelief. “Of course I liked it. Are you crazy?”
“Maybe.” Reki says. Then, after a brief minute of silence, he continues. “I feel like we should have something different.”
After taking a brief second to think about it, Langa smiles. “Like what? Sweetums? Or baby cakes? Ooh. Can I call you baby cakes?”
“What? No!” Reki laughs. “Those are too embarrassing.” He goes quiet again for a moment before lighting up with an idea. “How about Honey?” He suggests, a smile on his face.
“But then the cat will get confused whenever we call each other that.” Langa like it though. He likes it a lot.
“Hm.” Reki hums, finger tapping at his chin again. “Nope. I think that one’s the best option for us, specifically. It’s sweet. And you’re sweet. So boom. Honey!”
With Langa having no complaints, they decide that they’ve found their “official” nickname.
“I like that your grandparents call each other that all the time. It’s really cute. I want us to grow up and be like them one day.” Reki tells him, smiling when Langa nods in agreement.
“Me too.”
Reki smiles so hard that Langa’s shocked his face doesn’t hurt. Then, once he’s calmed down a bit, he continues. He looks a little more cautious than before. “Oh. Speaking of them, I just wanted to ask. Are you really fine with using your dad’s old snowboard? If you’re not, then we can find a rental place? Or…something? I don’t want to make sure you’re okay with it because-“
“I’m not sure.” Langa admits. “I’m honestly not sure. What-what do you think?” He asks Reki, cocking his head to the side.
“It’s up to you dude. You let me know what you’re comfortable with.”
Langa let’s those words sink in for a moment. He’s not even remotely sure how comfortable he is. A year ago, the thought of even touching a snowboard made him want to puke. And now, he suddenly wants to try it again? It’s weird how feelings like that can change.
Langa wishes he could talk to his dad again. He really wishes he could ask if all this was okay. He really wishes that he’d get an answer in return.
Even so, he still feels like he has to ask.
“Hey, Reki?”
“Yeah?”
Langa takes a deep breath, in through the nose, out through the mouth. “Would you want to visit my dad?”
______________________
The drive over to the cemetery is brief. There’s not much traffic. Reki clutches into Langa’s hand just a smidge tighter. You’d barely even notice if you weren’t paying attention.
When they find a parking spot, his heart does a little jump in his throat. Langa hasn’t been here in a while, not since the second or third time him and his mother visited.
Someone left flowers at his grave recently. They’re little pink peonies. Langa’s pretty sure he heard his grandfather mention that those were his father’s favorite flowers when he was just an elementary schooler. It’s sweet that they remember.
After breathing in deep, Langa gets down on his knees, bowing slightly. “Hey dad.” He mumbles. He hardly even notices when Reki joins him, bowing a little lower. “This is Reki. He’s the one I’ve told you so much about.” Langa says, smiling as he speaks.
“Hello, sir.” Reki murmurs, sounding kind of nervous, maybe even scared. “I um-I love your son very much. Probably more than I’ve ever loved another person.” He pauses, casting a glance at Langa, who’s watching with wide eyes and complete and utter adoration. “And I just want to let you know that I…I’m always going to be there for him. I’ll never let anything bad happen to him for as long as I live. That’s a promise.” He whispers that last bit but Langa still hears it. Suddenly he stands, leaning down to peck Langa on the cheek. “I’ll go wait in the car, okay? Stay here as long as you need to.” He murmurs, squeezing Langa’s hand one last time before he leaves.
Then, it’s just the two of them.
After a long moment, Langa sighs. “I really wish you could’ve met him in person, dad. I think you would’ve really liked him.”
Then, Langa finds himself rambling about…well, everything. All the drama at school, the drama at home, even the drama at S. He tells him more about Miya, Joe, Cherry, and Shadow, and all that they’ve been up to. And more about Reki. All the wonderful little things that make Reki, Reki. Langa talks about his mother a lot as well. Tells him that she’s happy. At least as happy as she can be.
Langa tells him that he misses him. So so much. He stares down at the peonies as a distraction, as a way of holding himself together. Luckily, it’s actually kind of working.
When he’s sure he can handle it, Langa continues. “I’m thinking of going snowboarding again. I just want to see if it, ya know…still feels like nothing. I know that’s a possibility. Believe me, I know that better than anyone…and that scares me so much. It really does. But if I don’t try, how will I ever know, right? So, I guess I’m just wondering if that’s okay with you? Is it…genuinely okay?”
He’s not expecting a response.
He’s not and that’s why it’s so surprising when a rush of wind ruffles his hair and clothes around wildly, almost as if there’s some kind of energy behind it. It almost felt like someone touched him his shoulder.
Langa instantly shatters, a smile forming on his face so quickly that it kind of hurts.
Maybe he’s optimistic for taking it as a sign. Maybe he’s just trying to see on the bright side of things, but in any case, in Langa’s mind, he has his question answered.
______________________
That night, Langa can hardly sleep.
He keeps tossing and turning, thoughts of snowboarding dancing in his brain. Luckily, Reki’s too much of a heavy sleeper to notice his thrashing.
Every couple hours, his eyes wander over to the clock and he’s pretty sure that the night will never end.
He snuggles closer to Reki at some point, hoping that will ease him into sleeping but no dice.
As soon as he catches the first glimpse of daylight through the closed curtains, Langa’s already shaking Reki awake.
“Langa?” He croaks out as his eyes slowly begin to open. “You okay?”
Langa nods, shaking Reki around some more. “Can we go snowboarding today?”
Slowly, Reki begins to sit up. Except he instantly leans on Langa’s shoulder. “You want to?”
“Mhm.” Langa nods. “Please.”
Reki chuckles a bit. “So polite. Of course we can go.” Then, he’s shuffling out of bed and offering his hands for Langa to take. “Come on. Maybe we can make breakfast this time.”
Langa follows close on his heels and once they find an empty kitchen, they get right to work.
It’s nearly half an hour later that everyone else gets up and by then, Langa has omelettes made for everyone. Reki made mini pancakes as well. Langa’s embarrassed that he nearly chokes on his food because of how fast he was eating and he had to be told several times to slow down but in this moment, he can’t help but feel excited. He just hopes it feels like this later.
After everyone has finished eating, Nanako decides that she’ll come with them to the slopes to take pictures and look after them and honestly, Langa’s thrilled.
Mark helps them load the boards into the back and then, they’re on the road.
On the way, Reki seems nervous. “Does it hurt when you fall?”
“You fall all the time when you skate.” Langa says, gripping Reki’s gloved hand tighter. “You’ll be fine. I’ll keep you safe, honey.” He’s honestly surprised that he doesn’t feel embarrassed saying that.
“See? I knew that it would sound nice coming from you.”
Once they get there, the first thing Langa does is take Reki to the bunny slopes, just to get him used to it. He already has pretty decent balance so that helps him out. The only thing he has to get used to are his feet not being able to move anymore. Langa’s not surprised when Reki makes it down all by himself in a little under an hour. They practice more and more until he can get all the way without falling.
“That was amazing!” Langa tells him, heart exploding with pride. “You wanna go higher?” He asks, practically bouncing with excitement.
“How much higher?” Reki asks, teeth chattering ever so slightly.
Langa points to the second highest slope and can’t believe that Reki actually says yes. After getting their photos taken for the hundredth time by Langa’s mom, they head for the ski lift line.
When they’re about half way up, Reki chuckles to himself. “The views here are unbe-leaf-able.”
“Is that your last one?” Langa asks.
“Heh. Not even close.”
The top is filled with other snowboarders. Some are obvious pros and Langa can’t help but feel intimidated now. Have these slopes always been so high? Now that he thinks about it, how bad does it hurt when you fall? Oh god.
“Hey.” Suddenly, Reki’s hand is on his shoulder, bringing him back to his senses. “How we feeling here? I know you were really excited about this earlier but we really don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. You know that, right?”
Langa nods, placing his hand on top of Reki’s. “I’m feeling good. Honest. What about you? Are you gonna be okay?”
Reki looks from the hill and then frantically back to Langa. “Can you hold my hand on the way down?”
“We probably shouldn’t. But I will. For you.” Langa assures him, smiling as brightly as he can.
“See? Now this is why I love you. Hey Langa.”
“Yes Reki?”
“I really love you.” Reki says. Before Langa can say it back, Reki interrupts. “Honey.”
And Langa can’t help but smile even more at the sight. “It sounds good when you say it too.” He leans closer, just so he can whisper into Reki’s ear. “I love you too.” Then, he holds his hand out, which Reki takes. “You ready?”
“Nope! But let’s do it.” Reki exclaims.
The two inch towards the start of the slope, holding onto each other’s hands tightly.
“You won’t let go?” Reki asks, his voice low in that way it gets when he’s nervous.
Langa squeezes his hand once and then again. “Never. One…”
“Two-“
“Three!” Langa shouts and just like that…they’re flying. Soaring.
And Langa feels it.
The excitement. The adrenaline. All of it. He feels all of it.
Reki’s laughing like crazy. He feels it too, doesn’t he?
It’s just like skating after all.
It’s Reki. As long as Reki’s around, Langa will always feel this way. He’ll always be flying.
As long as Reki’s around, Langa will be okay.
He’ll be okay.
Infinitely.
The end.