Work Text:
The wood of the desk was barely visible beneath the swarm of open books and loose papers scattered overtop of it. Jo ran his hands through his hair for what had to be the tenth time in the last five minutes, his bangs a tangled mess on top of his head. He couldn’t even tell what homework was for which class anymore, the scribbled numbers and letters blurring together when he tried to distinguish them from one another. His brain felt like it had gone offline. He doesn’t hear the front door open or close, let alone the rustling of a paper shopping bag coming from the entryway.
“Jo? Are you home yet?” Yudai called out into the apartment as he made his way to the bedroom at the end of the hall. The voice sounded so distant and fuzzy that Jo thought he was imagining it, since Yudai usually didn’t get home from work until the late evening.
Jo looked towards the window and noticed how sunlight wasn’t floating through it anymore—how the only light in the room at all was his weak desk lamp. How long had he been studying?
“Baby?” Yudai called again once he entered the bedroom, finding Jo hunched over his desk in the corner of the room. His lips turned into a sad smile and he set the shopping bag on the dresser, shedding his blazer and tie shortly thereafter, leaving them on the half-made bed. When Jo didn’t turn around to greet him, still jotting down some kind of note from a textbook, Yudai quietly walked over to the desk.
“What are you working on, my love?” he asked softly, placing his hand on Jo’s upper back and leaning his head over his shoulder to see what he was writing down. Jo’s muscles tensed under the unexpected touch before relaxing all the same, his back straightening subconsciously to lean further into the warm hand running down his spine.
“Just math homework,” Jo said while gesturing to the sheet in front of him. Yudai’s eyes trailed along the smeared bits of pencil ink, the side of Jo’s left hand ash grey from brushing against the paper for so long. “It looks a little complicated this time, but my angel is so smart and figured it all out, hm?” Yudai pressed a kiss to the crown of Jo’s head, letting his lips linger for an extra second, just because. “Did you have dinner? Do you want me to make you something?” He ran his hand through Jo’s bangs, undoing the little knots with his fingers.
Jo looked up from his paper to see Yudai’s face, feeling his stress melt away in an instant. He shook his head, smiling when Yudai’s hand fell to cup his cheek instead. “You don’t have to do that. You’ve had a long day. Let me order something in,” he pouted, blindly feeling around his desk for his phone. Yudai’s thumb skirted around the edges of Jo’s puffed out lips. “On our anniversary? You just want to get take-out?” he joked, bright smile entrancing Jo and making him feel lightheaded. A year had passed since he became Yudai’s boyfriend—a year of him feeling so elated and loved had passed by in the blink of an eye. Oh, how time flew when you were in love.
“I don’t want you to spend the time making something for me when you were at work all day,” Jo emphasized, eyes following Yudai who squatted down in front of the chair he was sitting on to be at his eye level. Yudai leaned in and pressed a feather-light peck to Jo’s lips, pulling back just enough so he could whisper against them. “Okay. We’ll get take-out, then, but I’ll order it. Finish your work and clean up. I have a surprise for you, after.”
Jo’s cheeks warmed, head spinning wondering what Yudai could’ve possibly gotten him this time. Being that he was older, with a steady job, Yudai loved to spoil Jo with regular gifts. It always left Jo a little breathless, because everything Yudai picked out had a deeper meaning behind it—from the nice cardigan he got Jo to wear to his fall term classes to the onigiri plushie sitting on his nightstand.
Jo always wanted to reciprocate, and did so to his best ability—offering Yudai carefully crafted drawings and sculptures whenever he had the spare time. Yudai accepted each one and kept plenty of them in his office at work, but would remind Jo that him bringing home good grades and being there for Yudai to dote on every night was more than enough to compensate.
After reviewing one more formula, Jo tidied his desk up, leaving his books and papers in neat stacks at the center. He took a quick shower, dried his hair and did his skincare, putting on a clean pair of lounge clothes before he joined Yudai in the kitchen, where little boxes of dumplings from the shop down the street sat on the small dining table. The scent made Jo’s mouth water even more than it already was from the sight of Yudai scooping freshly cooked rice onto two plates. He was sure he looked like a little kid, standing in the kitchen while waiting for dinner to be served.
Yudai chuckled when Jo’s stomach grumbled rather loudly, the younger wrapping his arms around his own abdomen in surprise.
“My baby’s hungry, isn’t he?” Yudai smiled while laying the plates on the table along with the necessary utensils. Jo took his seat and waited patiently for Yudai to join him, nearly drooling from the heaping pile of warm rice on his plate. It dawned on him that he’d forgotten to eat lunch during his afternoon-long study session. “As always,” he mumbled, blushing when Yudai reached over the table to pat the top of his head.
They ate in relative silence like they did most nights, with a bit of small talk from Yudai about his day at work and Jo about his day at the university. Yudai did the dishes because that’s his chore, so Jo headed to the couch, nearly falling asleep the moment his body slumped against the soft cushions.
Soon enough, Yudai joined him in the living room, wearing pajamas of his own and lips shiny from the chapstick he always wore at night. He carried the same shopping bag he walked in with earlier, sitting down with it in his lap. Jo’s limited English skills were straining when he tried to pronounce the brand name on the bag in his head, getting no further than the pa sound at the beginning when Yudai interrupted his thoughts by pulling a box out from inside it.
“Now, this is something that we can add to whenever you want, okay? I only got a couple simple ones for now because I wanted to see how you liked the bracelet first,” Yudai explained as he popped open the box, revealing a shining silver bracelet adorned with two small charms, one of a J and the other of a Y.
Jo’s hand came up to cover his mouth in shock. The metal reflected the dim lighting of the living room, making it look stunning in the black felt box. It looked expensive, Jo could tell as much, but he held back his guilt since it was their first anniversary. Yudai took relationship milestones very seriously, so he must’ve been planning this gift for a long time.
“It’s… beautiful, really,” Jo was speechless, letting Yudai take his right wrist and carefully secure the bracelet around it. Jo held his arm up, letting the charms dangle against his skin. He felt a rush of love and adoration all of a sudden, and leaned in to wrap his arms around Yudai’s neck in a firm embrace.
“Does that mean you like it, Jo?” Yudai whispered, hugging Jo back with the same energy, sliding a hand up the back of his shirt to rest against his side. Jo tucked his face into the crook of his boyfriend’s shoulder, hiding his raging blush as much as possible. “Yes. I love it,” he muttered against the side of Yudai’s neck, heartbeat still thumping loudly in his ears.
–
The spring semester came to an end in late June, so Yudai took Jo on a trip for his birthday in July.
Humidity melted onto Jo’s skin as Hiroshima’s hot and sticky summer winds doused his face in water. Yudai didn’t look much better—his hair was curling up a bit, even.
“Okay- so maybe coming down south during the hot season wasn’t the best idea,” Yudai mused while walking hand in hand with Jo at a supermarket they ran into to get some air conditioning. Jo chuckled at his boyfriend’s visible distress, squeezing his hand in reassurance. “But I like it here. The mountains are prettier without all of the light pollution Tokyo has,” he shrugged, eyes wandering to a stand of apples in the distance.
“Still- I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable or getting sick from the heat,” Yudai said honestly, frowning when he saw Jo’s eyes focused elsewhere. He followed them towards the fruit, looking back at Jo curiously. “Did you want to buy some snacks for the hotel room?”
Jo nodded, hand sliding up Yudai’s arm to hold his arm at the juncture of his inner elbow. The charm bracelet brushed against the bare skin of his arm, making Yudai’s cheeks turn the faintest shade of rose. Jo doesn’t notice—he’s too consumed with the idea of fresh fruit after a long day in the sun.
Over in the produce section, Jo’s hunger wins over Yudai’s wallet, and they buy several kinds of fruit, chips, and candy. Jo hungrily eyed the shopping bags the entire walk back to the hotel, Yudai having to gently smack his hand when he tried to sneakily grab a pack of gummies.
Back in the hotel room, Yudai forced Jo into the shower immediately upon entry, helping them both scrub traces of dried sweat from their skin. Yudai sighed in relief when his temperature regulated, flopping his back down onto the hotel bed.
“It’s your birthday tomorrow. Is there anything special you want to do?” Yudai asked while watching Jo pace around the room as he bit into his third apple of the evening.
“Nothing crazy,” Jo hummed in thought. “We could go to the indoor mall during the day; someone told me about a good cafe there.” He paused to sink his teeth into the apple again, droplets of its juices sliding down his chin that he paid no mind to. Yudai refrained from getting up and cleaning them himself, knowing Jo was probably going to continue snacking and inevitably make another mess of his face.
“We can go there. I’ll take you stargazing at night, if you’d like. I know how much you loved it when we were in Jeju last summer.” Yudai groaned as he sat up on the bed, sore from all the walking they’d been doing the past few days on their mission to see all of the tourist attractions the city had to offer. Jo snickered at him, giving Yudai the look he always had when he was silently making fun of him for getting older.
“Really? I would love that,” Jo mumbled around the banana he was currently rapidly eating. Yudai just watched him, eyebrows furrowed and lips upturned in a lopsided smile as he noticed bits of banana stuck to the corner of his mouth. Jo was scrolling on his phone, even when he discarded the banana peel in favor of opening a pack of candy. Yudai let him be, knowing Jo needed his introvert-friendly moment of silence everyday.
When Jo had gone twenty minutes without grabbing another snack, Yudai assumed he was finally full. Jo had wiped his mouth with a napkin, but there was still a bit of blue dye from the candy staining his lower lip.
Yudai got up and brought a wet wipe to the bed where Jo was splayed on his back, phone still in hand. He reached around Jo’s arms to swipe the cloth over his lip, picking up some of the sticky residue the candy left. Jo giggled, dropping his phone to his side to watch Yudai’s focused expression, smacking his lips together when the older man deemed him clean enough.
“You look like you wanna kiss me.” Jo felt a bit shy under Yudai’s ever-thickening gaze, resisting any urges to turn away. Yudai hummed in agreement, fixated on the pink tones in Jo’s lips under the hotel lighting.
“I would love to, sweetheart—if you let me, that is.” Yudai was often a romantic in the way he spoke, and it made Jo feel so tiny under him every time, even though they were almost the same height. Yudai was poetic by default, painting a blooming picture with his words in the form of the blush on Jo’s cheeks. It was wonderful—frighteningly so. Jo wanted to fall in love with him in every lifetime.
“Go on, then.” Jo’s voice was barely above a whisper, pupils widening and eyes sparkling while they stared at Yudai’s lips, waiting for his next move. Seconds ticked on like hours in Jo’s mind as Yudai took his time leaning down, linking his lips with the younger’s gently.
Yudai and Jo were both gentle kissers, no matter who took the lead. Yudai would softly link his tongue around Jo’s, taking the chance to trace every curve and twist it had. Jo liked to follow Yudai’s rows of teeth with the tip of his tongue as if he was counting each one individually.
Today was no exception, and Yudai let Jo carry the kiss however he wanted it in the moment. Jo lazily suckled on his tongue, making the smallest moan that Yudai could feel more than hear. Jo tasted like a mixture of the sweets he’d been eating, but it somehow complimented his natural flavor. Yudai wanted to devour him whole.
He kept his hand lightly placed on Jo’s shoulder, keeping him pressed into the bed while he kissed him until neither of them could breathe. He pulled back, attaching his lips to Jo’s jaw and leaving a trail of wet kisses there while he listened to Jo’s pants as he tried to regain control over his breath.
Jo was exceptionally clingy for the rest of the night, back hugging Yudai while he answered emails on his laptop and laying his head in Yudai’s lap as they both posted their travel pictures. When the clock struck midnight on July 8th, Jo had his legs wrapped around Yudai’s head, muffling his moans in the back of his hand while the other took him apart with his mouth until the stimulation brought tears to his eyes.
The mall was thankfully not that busy given the lack of international tourists around, and Yudai’s worries about Jo being overwhelmed in a busy crowd subsided. The cafe Jo’s friend told him about was incredible, and Yudai took several pictures of Jo biting into his matcha cake.
After letting Jo lead the way into any shop that caught his eye, Yudai brought him to the jewlery store, letting him browse the bracelet charms. It wasn’t that Yudai hadn’t bought other charms yet, but he was waiting for the right opportunity to give them. Today, he wanted Jo to pick one out for himself, one that he could remember as Yudai’s token of devotion on his second birthday since they became a couple.
“This one looks so cute~” Jo cooed into the glass case, finger hovering over a charm of a small, green frog. The shade of green was rich, reflecting deep blue and yellow hues. Yudai couldn’t deny that it was quite the sight, wrapping his arm around Jo’s lower back. “Is that the one you want, darling?”
Jo nodded, fiddling with the bracelet on his wrist, probably deciding where would be the best place to put it. Yudai called the worker over to tell her which charm they wanted, swiftly paying for it and receiving it in a tiny box.
“Where do you want to put it?” Yudai asked once they were sitting on a bench outside of the store. Jo shrugged, holding out his wrist. “Just put it anywhere for now. I’ll rearrange them if I feel like it at another time.”
Yudai placed the charm beside the two letter ones, smiling at the pop of color it gave the previously all-silver bracelet. Jo pulled his arm to his face to look at the charm more closely, a subtle smile on his face. “It’s perfect.”
The green hues reflected the moonlight later that night as they laid on a picnic blanket, Jo pointing out constellations to Yudai with his finger, the small frog jingling with each movement of his hand.
–
Yudai arrived home one Friday night to the sound of soft music playing from the kitchen. He hung his keys on the rack by the door and took off his shoes, following the sweet sound of a pop song he hadn’t heard before.
He found Jo kneeling on the tabletop, foam replica of Jupiter in his hand, carefully trying to attach it to his solar system sculpture. Panic settled in Yudai’s chest when he saw just how close Jo’s head was to the chandelier, but knew better than to make any sudden noise. Jo seemed incredibly focused, ruler in his other hand, trying to make sure everything was to scale.
“Is this for the art gallery?” Yudai asked quietly only when Jo had firmly put Jupiter in the correct place. Yudai eyed the structure up and down; it was quite tall, and Jo had five planets situated on it already, along with the sun.
“Yes. I need to have it ready in three days,” Jo mumbled, not taking his eyes off of his work. He got down from the table to grab his Saturn that was still missing its rings—he hadn’t had the chance to make them yet.
“The event begins at six, right?” Yudai watched Jo fiddle with the plastic circles he still needed to paint. “I’ll tell my boss to let me go early on Monday.”
Jo looked up from the table, eyes widened in shock. “No, you don’t need to do that!” he shook his head, frowning. “Don’t get in trouble because of me- I swear this event isn’t that serious. I probably won’t win anything anyway,” he sighed, looking down at his feet. Yudai walked over to the other side of the table, hands finding both of Jo’s instinctually, holding them tightly.
“Oh, my sweet little angel~” Yudai grinned, thumbs running along Jo’s knuckles soothingly. Jo was hesitant to make eye contact, instead looking at the array of markers and paint brushes laying on the table.
“I would miss anything to be there for you on such a special occasion. This is the first time you’ve been invited to present your work at a gallery event. I want to be there.” Yudai’s voice was so calming and gentle—it made Jo want to give him the universe right that second, one much bigger than the one he was building. He hoped Yudai couldn’t feel his stammering pulse in his wrists.
“And for the record—I don’t care whether you win something or not. What matters to me is that you’ve worked hard on this and are happy with the end result.” He let go of one of Jo’s hands to gently tug his chin up, locking their eyes together. “No matter what happens, I’m so proud of you. I have the most talented boy by my side everyday… I got so lucky, didn’t I?”
Yudai’s eyes were full of love—Jo could feel it bleed into his body. He felt warm all over, weak in his knees, almost as if he was about to faint. He let Yudai thumb along his jaw, flicking each little mole he passed along the way. Jo squeezed his other hand tightly, unable to express in words how utterly thankful he felt.
“I love you.” Jo settled on instead, voice low from the ball of emotion forming in his throat. Yudai’s smile grew again, his teeth sparkling. He pulled Jo in by his hand until he could embrace him fully, hands and arms wrapping around his back. “I love you more than every star in the sky,” Yudai mumbled into Jo’s neck, peppering soft kisses anywhere he could reach.
With a newfound motivation to finish his project, Jo spent the majority of the weekend fixing the smallest of details until he deemed the replica perfect. Yudai kept him company from the couch in the living room, book in his hand while he listened to whatever playlist Jo had running off the bluetooth speaker on the counter.
When Monday came, Yudai got off early like he promised, driving straight to the university. He knew the way to the art building through muscle memory, having picked Jo up from there on several occasions. He entered the gallery and was greeted by the two students running the event, who handed him a pamphlet detailing each piece’s story and the artists behind them.
Yudai took his time walking through the first hallway, mostly filled with paintings and sketches from the drawing majors. When he reached the sculpture and 3D art row, his eyes scanned the space and landed on Jo, two stations before the end. He was talking to a professor about the materials he used for each planet and how he mixed the paint colors. Yudai stood behind the older man, acting as if he was just another visitor and pointedly ignoring the way Jo’s ears turned a deep shade of red when he saw him.
“Great job, Asakura-san. You’ve made a really nice piece. I’ll put your name down as a recommendation for the bigger event we’ll host this winter.” The professor and Jo bowed to each other before he walked away, leaving Jo standing like a statue in front of Yudai, an awkward smile on his face.
“Well, what do we have here?” Yudai teased, hands held behind his back with a small box pressed between his fingers. Jo reached over and lightly punched his shoulder, pouting. “That was so embarrassing… I hope Professor Tanaka didn’t notice I was blushing…” he grumbled, resisting the urge to hide in Yudai’s side. The event still had an hour left, and Jo had to stay by his work, even if his feet were getting sore and he really wanted to go home with his boyfriend.
“Even if he did, I’m sure he didn’t mind. You’re cute when you blush,” Yudai complemented, pulling the box out from behind his back. By now, Jo knew to recognize the color and shape of the box, and he gave Yudai a surprised look. “You bought another one?”
“I actually picked this one up a little after your birthday, but I waited to give it to you once I found out you were building a solar system piece for the gallery,” he explained as he gently opened the box to reveal a small rocket charm with red fire shooting from the bottom of it.
“I don’t deserve you-” Jo groaned, holding out his wrist for Yudai to put the charm on his bracelet that he still wore every single day. Yudai placed it next to the frog, smiling at how the bracelet was beginning to reflect more of Jo’s personality while still being a symbol of Yudai’s unconditional love for him.
“You deserve the world, Jo,” Yudai said under his breath, releasing Jo’s wrist so it fell back against his side. Jo’s ears darkened to an almost purple-red color, some of it bleeding onto his cheekbones.
The next morning, Jo woke up to an email congratulating him for winning second place in the competition among the art students. He threw himself over Yudai’s still groggy self, smiling so wide that his face was aching.
–
Christmas came sooner than expected, and Jo stood in front of the mirror, struggling to make his tie look right. He really had no idea what he was doing wrong, but every time he tried to tie the knot, the tie would fall straight again. He must have been taking awhile, because Yudai came looking for him, chuckling at the sight of the black fabric tangled around Jo’s wobbly fingers.
“Here, babe. Let me help.” He gently took the tie from Jo’s grasp, straightening it out again. He reached around the back of Jo’s neck, tucking it under the collar of his dress shirt. The action made him move closer, and Yudai could feel Jo’s nervous breaths against his skin.
“Relax, baby… It’s just me,” Yudai whispered in his ear, pulling back just enough to quickly style the tie, tightening it up at the end. Jo took a deep but shaky breath, exhaling through his mouth. “I know- I just want everything to be perfect.”
Yudai rolled his eyes, planting a loud kiss on Jo’s cheek, smearing some of his glittery lipgloss there. Jo grimaced, wiping his face with his hand.
“It’s already perfect. Every date with you is always perfect.” Yudai shrugged, looking into the mirror as he reapplied the gloss to his lips. Jo watched him through his reflection, traces of worry still visible on his face. “But we’re going all out this time. We don’t normally do that,” he protested, leaning his hip on the bathroom counter.
“It’s just dinner. Yeah, it’s a fancy dinner, but it’s still just dinner.” Yudai straightened his suit jacket and held out his hand for Jo to take. His phone buzzed in his pocket with an incoming notification. “The taxi must be here.”
Yudai held both the taxi and restaurant doors open for Jo. When he stepped into the restaurant’s entryway, he took in the scenery. It was a very nice restaurant, with ancient wood decor and the smell of expensive spices floating through the air. Jo’s appetite suddenly hit him with full force when he saw a waiter pass by with a tray full of delicious-looking food.
Ever the gentleman, Yudai had made reservations well in advance, having anticipated the rush of the Christmas season. He had requested a table that was relatively isolated from the main dining area so as to not force Jo to raise his voice above his natural pitch when he spoke. They ordered several different dishes, each looking purely immaculate when they arrived at the table.
Jo ate to his heart’s content, groaning and whining at how good every dish tasted. With the sparkling sake making his confidence soar, Yudai whipped the small box out of his suit pocket while Jo was still shoveling some fish into his mouth.
“Oh?” Jo nearly choked on his drink when he saw the box, turning his head to cough a few times. Yudai was laughing, placing the box in Jo’s hand once he stopped dying from sake inhalation. “Another one so soon?”
Inside the box was a silver snowflake, perfectly symmetrical and shiny. Jo plucked it from the box excitedly, kicking his feet under the table. “You got me a snowflake…” he said breathlessly, already maneuvering his bracelet off so he could add it to the band. Yudai just watched him, a smug look on his face. “You love the snow, so I don’t know how I couldn’t get you that one when I saw it.”
Jo clipped his bracelet back on and shook his wrist, the five charms clicking together. Jo looked so genuinely happy that it gave Yudai a bit of whiplash—he had never expected Jo to love the charm bracelet in the way he did. The realization made butterflies and warmth fill his stomach.
He called for the waiter to bring their check, wanting nothing more than to take Jo home as soon as possible.
–
Valentine’s Day fell on a Saturday for once, and Jo was honestly just excited to spend the day lounging around the apartment with Yudai in the absence of classes and work. It had been so long since they had the time to really just exist together, with the midterm exam season coming up and Yudai’s company getting a rather wealthy (read: demanding) client recently.
Jo had run to the bakery two blocks away to grab a few pastries that Yudai was whining about wanting after they woke up. He opened the door once he returned, finding the entire apartment weirdly dark.
“Yudai? Did you go back to bed?” he called out, trying to feel for the lightswitch. Once he found it, he turned on the lights, seeing nothing but a trail of rose petals leading into the hallway. Jo tilted his head in confusion, but followed the trail until it reached the bedroom door.
Inside their room, Yudai was sitting in the center of the bed, a big red bow pinned into his hair. He was holding a box of Jo’s favorite chocolates, and yet another tiny charm box. Jo set his bag down on the nightstand, giggling at how silly Yudai looked.
“You did all this for me?” Jo raised an eyebrow, gesturing to the piles of rose petals on the bed—and the pink rabbit plushie sitting on his pillow that definitely wasn’t there when he left half an hour ago. Yudai pulled Jo down onto the bed by his arm.
“Of course I did. I have to show my beautiful, stunning, gorgeous boyfriend how much I love him, don’t I?” Yudai set the items in his arms aside to climb on top of Jo’s body, cupping his cheek and hovering over his lips, just out of reach from where Jo wanted him most.
Jo’s cheeks were on fire, fuming, basically letting off steam—he felt like this whenever Yudai complimented him, no matter how much time had passed. He felt a warmth spread around his body, the core of it settling deep in his lower abdomen. Yudai must’ve noticed a pressure against his leg, because his soft smile morphed into a smirk.
“Do you like it when I call you pretty, Jo?” Yudai already knew the answer to this question, having asked it plenty of times before. Every time Jo sputtered an answer, trying to change the topic or appear less affected than he was. It made Yudai feel like he truly was the more confident and assertive partner in the relationship, even just for a short moment. He would honestly say he was rather weak when it came to Jo—more than willing to do anything for the boy that was currently a blushing, whiny mess beneath him on this frigid February morning.
“You- you already know that I do,” Jo said softly, watching the giant bow begin to slip off of Yudai’s head. He reached up and found the clip, carefully unpinning it from his boyfriend’s hair, tossing it towards the other side of the bed.
Yudai cooed, shaking his head to get his hair back into place. Jo smoothed it down with his hand, hooking it around the back of his boyfriend’s neck after. Yudai took that as the invitation to finally press his lips to Jo’s in a slow kiss, prying the plump lips open with his tongue right away, sparing no preamble. Jo sighed, threading his fingers up the back of Yudai’s head to grip at his hair, letting the older explore his mouth for a few minutes.
It was only when Jo started rutting his hips against his thigh that Yudai remembered he hadn’t properly given Jo the new charm yet. He made a noise of surprise into the kiss, causing Jo to pull back with a confused expression. His lips were red and puffy—Yudai had to practice strong self control to keep himself from diving right back in.
“Let’s put your new charm on first-” he muttered, fumbling around the scattered petals for the box. Jo whined, high-pitched and scratchy, clearly not wanting the interruption.
“I promise you’ll like this one. It’s very fitting,” Yudai chuckled, sitting up in Jo’s lap and opening the box himself. He could feel Jo try to push his hips up against him, choosing to ignore it in favor of shoving the charm into the younger’s face.
Jo’s eyes narrowed in on the charm that was shaped eerily similar to the box of chocolates laying somewhere on the bed. It had a few rose gold stones decorating it, and a little bow etched into the corner. Jo gasped, from a mixture of his budding arousal and in genuine adoration for the charm, smiling shakily.
“This o-one is very pretty,” he mumbled, voice slightly slurred. The charm bracelet was resting over on the nightstand, Jo having taken it off to clean it the night before. Yudai leaned over to grab it, securing the charm neatly next to all the others. Jo held out his wrist, letting Yudai put the bracelet back on him. The weight of it was starting to bring Jo comfort nothing else had before, not unlike the way Yudai brightened up his life in ways he’d never thought to be possible.
“There you go. Now the bracelet is looking so full…” Yudai ran his fingers along each charm, loving the way the colors contrasted with Jo’s natural skin tone.
Jo appreciated the attention—he really did, but he was starting to get antsy. In a bold move, he flipped Yudai onto his back, mirroring their previous position by straddling his lap. He tilted his head down, lips brushing against Yudai’s, voice thick with desire. “My mouth could also be looking ‘so full’ right now, if you were so inclined,” he whispered, connecting his lips to Yudai’s in another heated kiss.
–
April was in full force yet again, and Jo had been spending weeks creating a present to give to Yudai on their second anniversary. He finished the project just in time for Yudai to get home on their anniversary day—a knitted blanket using all of Yudai’s favorite colors. Jo took a month alone to pick out the type of yarn he wanted to use, opting for a thick, smooth blend in varying shades of green and blue. He had to work on it only when Yudai wasn’t around, meaning he was often knitting at school or even during his lectures.
The hard work would be worth it in the end, Jo knew for sure. When Yudai walked through the front door at 6:07pm, Jo ran to greet him with the blanket tugged around his shoulders. “Happy anniversary!” he said happily, puckering his lips out dramatically.
“Happy anniversary to you too, sweetheart,” Yudai leaned in to give Jo the kiss he wanted, unable to stop grinning against his lips. Two years of bliss—Yudai couldn’t understand where the time had gone. It felt like just yesterday that he was in a coffee shop nervously sliding his number across the counter to the young barista.
“I made this for you.” Jo smiled when he pulled back from the kiss, unwrapping himself from the blanket and handing it to him. Yudai took it into his arms, running his hand along the looped yarn, feeling the soft fabric against his skin. “Jojo bear… thank you so much,” he gasped, thinking about the amount of time and effort his boyfriend probably put into making the gift.
“Do you have another charm for me?” Jo asked once they finally walked away from the front door. He knew Yudai was planning on getting him another one to celebrate the occasion—and the full year of him collecting the charms for Jo, but he’d been secretive about which ones he was looking at.
“I do, in fact,” Yudai laughed, placing a bag with the familiar brand name that Jo had come to learn as Pandora over the months. Jo reached into the bag himself, finding a metallic red heart charm. The color was striking and bold, unlike any of the other charms Yudai had given him in the past. It demanded attention, harsh orange and purple undertones loud against the sterling silver border.
It was one of the prettiest things Jo had ever seen.
“This is the one..” Jo whispered to himself. Yudai tilted his head, raising his left eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
Jo quickly undid the bracelet and worked on changing the order of the charms. He placed the heart in the center, between the original J and Y charms Yudai got him today one year ago. Until now, Jo had let each charm be haphazardly placed on the bracelet, not particularly caring for the appearance of them in relation to one another. Deep down, he’d been waiting for one that struck him hard enough—one that he felt deserved to represent the bond he and Yudai shared. The heart was simple, but it did just that.
“Thank you. I love it so much.” Jo leaned into Yudai’s side and put his arms around his waist. Yudai’s arm naturally fell around Jo’s back, pulling him in even closer. Between them, Jo was twisting his wrist to look at each charm, thinking back to the days where he received each and every one of them. He felt thankful for the words they said that Yudai couldn’t—for the feelings they represented in them both.
Through the shades of color and the silver holding it all together, Jo now had a token of Yudai’s love that was one of a kind. It wasn’t like other gifts, which only represented a single memory. The bracelet held now an entire year’s worth of experiences with the person he felt so sure he was going to spend the rest of his life with.
Yudai’s free hand reached for Jo’s arm, pulling it up to his face. He placed a kiss to the heart charm, cementing its meaning further in Jo’s mind.
“Happy anniversary, Jo,” Yudai whispered against his wrist, turning his palm over and holding it against his own cheek. Jo’s thumb brushed along his cheekbone, lips turning into a fond smile. “Happy anniversary, Yudai~”