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Nao dragged his feet with each step he took. Sweat slithered down his skin, accelerated by the sweltering sun. Practice was over, he had no reason to stay at school any longer. But just thinking about being at home felt…suffocating. It was just too much for him right now. Coming to a stop under a tree in front of the school, the shade gave Nao some much-needed relief from the heat. The voices of fellow students swirled around distantly as members of other clubs trickled out. He laid on the grass and curled into the fetal position.
"Nao?"
He lifted his head. Taiyou stood above him, wringing his hands. "Are you okay?" The concern in his voice was evident.
"Never better," Nao chirped. "Just taking a nap."
"There are better places to nap than on the ground, you know?"
Nao raised both his hands. "Help me up?"
"Oh, Nao." Taiyou giggled as he grabbed Nao's arms, missing the devious smirk on his face. Instead of getting up, Nao pulled Taiyou to the ground with him. The smaller boy yelped as he flopped on top of Nao. "What'd you do that for?"
"The view's pretty neat down here! I just thought I should share it with you."
"View?" Taiyou crawled off of Nao and laid next to him. Glancing around, his eyes eventually landed on a ladybug crawling across a blade of grass. "Oh!" He let it crawl onto his finger, smiling sweetly at the tiny creature. "You're right!"
Cute as the ladybug was, that wasn't the view that caught Nao's attention. With Taiyou's face so close to his, he couldn't help but stare. He unconsciously reached out to touch him, tracing his freckles with his thumb like he was mapping constellations.
"N-Nao…?" The skin under Taiyou's freckles turned pink like a rose in bloom, entrancing Nao even further. Gazing at him with curiosity in his wide brown eyes, Taiyou whispered, "what's going o-"
"Would you run away with me?"
"Huh?"
Nao blinked, just as surprised as Taiyou. The words had left his mouth almost involuntarily. He let his hand fall from Taiyou's face, the tranquil moment shattered.
"Have you been thinking about running away from home, Nao?!"
"No," he lied, clutching his chest. "I was just wondering how you'd react if I asked. Hypothetically."
Taiyou sat up and hugged his knees. He stared at the sky, deep in thought. "…Where would we go?"
"What?"
"Well, hypothetically speaking, I wouldn't be able to come with you if I didn't know where you're planning to run away to, right?"
"Oh, yeah." Nao sat up as well, listening to the sounds of cicadas. "How about the woods?"
"The woods? How are we supposed to live there, in a tent?"
"Nah, I'd build us a house!" A grin took over his face, widening when Taiyou laughed.
"Then, why don't I grow a vegetable around our house?"
"Sure! I'll go fishing in the nearest river, and every day we'll eat our own home-grown food together!"
"That sounds wonderful! We should invite the rest of the team over to eat with us!
"Yeah! And no one could stop us from spending time outside of practice, or tell me how to eat…or tell me to quit…" Nao's consciousness spilled out of him until his train of thought derailed completely and he trailed off. Wordlessly, Taiyou scooted towards him and rested his head against Nao's shoulder. Their hands drifted closer and closer, fingers tangling as naturally as a vine curling around a tree.
"I think that's my favorite fairy tale you've told yet."
"…Me too."
Nao's phone buzzed in his pocket, blending with the buzz of the cicadas. Without even looking, they both knew who was calling.
Every tale must come to an end.
"Are you ready to go?" Taiyou whispered.
It was still a daunting thought. The magnetic pull of Taiyou's hand compelled him to stay. But the warmth remained on Nao's palm even after separating, and with just that he felt like he could hang on another day.
"I'm ready."
He'd keep writing their story until they reached the ending they wanted.