Archive of Our Own

Yoshiki feels the muscles on his left side tense, a reflexive balance to right himself as the train picks up speed after completing another passenger transfer.

He checks the map on his phone every few minutes. No matter how many times he checks, there are still two more stops until their transfer. But if he doesn’t check, he fears he’ll lose track of time and miss it.

Two more stops.

Two boys next to him.

One seat away.

Yoshiki blinks in their direction, forcing his dry eyes to better define the contours of their white hair blurring against each other.

Two clouds that the wind has forced together.

A cumulus and an altostratus, entirely different shapes meant to exist on separate planes of the sky, yet the atmosphere seemed to have different plans for them.

All water returns to the sea.

Just as they are, today.

“Do ya think we’ll see any dolphins?”

The monster known as Unuki-sama taps away at his phone, excitedly perusing the extensive wildlife of the Pacific Ocean.

“They prolly won’t come that close ta shore, so I wouldn’t get yer hopes up,” Hikaru pragmatically retorts, his half-hearted gaze fixed on the innumerable rice paddies outside the window. Yoshiki wonders if he’s counting them.

“We saw one a’ these huge sea snakes last year, it was at least this big,” Unuki outstretches his arms as far as they will go over both Hikaru and Yoshiki at his sides, bumping each boy in the chest.

“It was’t that big” Yoshiki rolls his eyes as he chuckles, gently pushing the monster’s hand away.

Hikaru snickers.

“Bet that got Yosh’ki real excited, he’s a freak who loves weird critters an’ shit like that.”

“Right??? Before we go ta the beach Kaoru told ‘im ta get the cutest pool floatie in the store fer hangin’ with her friends, an’ he went an’ picked out this weird lookin’ orange salamander pfffft,” Unuki can barely get through the anecdote without bursting out in laughter.

Yoshiki thinks he catches Hikaru’s eyebrow twitch before he mirrors Unuki’s levity. Yoshiki looks away before he’s caught staring too long.

“He’s always goin’ around doin’ stuff like that… the king of weirdo selfish dumbasses if you ask me,” Hikaru bites.

“Oi” Yoshiki squints in disapproval at their joint mockery. “I can hear ya, ya kn-.”

Unuki jabs Yoshiki in the ribcage with his elbow, causing him to interrupt himself with a huff. Yoshiki jokingly pushes him forward by the shoulder in retaliation, smirking as they engage in an amicable bout of combat.

“He took ya in the summer then, I take it? Least he gave ya that much…” Hikaru listlessly leans his head back against the window, eyes to the handlebars lining the ceiling above the opposite row of seats. “We went in the winter. What kinda trip ta the beach is it if ya can’t even go swimmin’?”

Hikaru side-eyes Yoshiki, as if to see if he’s listening. He pauses his battle with the monster to pay him some mind.

“Oi, that was yer idea ta go after school that day… don’t go knockin’ me fer it,” Yoshiki defends flatly. “Yer goin’ in the summer now, so ya ain’t got room ta complain.”

“I’ll complain all I want, thank ya very much,” Hikaru stings. “Last time I checked only one a’ us missed out on a whole year of livin’ their life.”

Yoshiki brings a finger to his lips, signaling the bitter boy to quiet his grievances. Hikaru folds his arms and groans.

“We’ve been over this,” Yoshiki reprimands in a hushed voice.

“I miss when ya didn’t talk back ta me,” Hikaru hisses before whipping out his phone, excusing himself from the tenseness of the conversation that he initiated.

“Hm? Why’re we bein’ quiet?” Unuki ponders, whispering in Yoshiki’s direction.

“Cuz there are strangers on the train, this is a weird conversation ta overhear,” Yoshiki whispers back.

“Ohhhhh…” Unuki affirms. “Can I have yer phone? What’s the name of the ryokan we’re goin’ to again? I wanna see if they have a dinner menu.”

Unuki’s volume returns to normal with the new conversation topic.

“It’s Matsushima-so in Furusato,” Yoshiki answers as he hands over his phone to the monster. “We really should get ya a phone a’ yer own.”

“Thanks!”

Unuki begins excitedly tapping away on Yoshiki’s phone while swinging his feet, leaving Yoshiki alone with only his mind for company.

Is it really ok to have both of them out in the open like this?

What if we run into someone we know? We can’t just play off like Hikaru had a secret twin brother the whole time…

Yoshiki’s facial muscles tense into his hand as he leans up against the window.

He feels terrible for putting Hikaru in this situation, living alongside a copy of himself. But it isn’t like Unuki asked for his permission before ripping Hikaru’s soul back from the other side during the final hole closing ceremony.

It plopped back into his body, now riddled with spiritual scars, like a plug right into an electrified socket.

And so Hikaru came back.

If Nuki-chan had asked first, would I have even said yes?

Yoshiki closes his eyes to block the thought out. It’s not like it matters now, anyways. Hikaru’s back, and he’s not going anywhere.

He has no say over whether the dead should stay dead.

Who is a teenage boy to play god?

Who is god to play a teenage boy?

Yoshiki exhales sharply through his nose for a half-second at his ironic epiphany, eyeing Unuki at his side who is carefully browsing through images of unfamiliar ryokan delicacies like nothing else in the world matters.

Yoshiki smiles out of eyeshot.

He is happy, at least, that giving Hikaru his body back didn’t expel Unuki completely. The monster’s shape shifting abilities are limited, but it was somehow able to regain a hold of the contours of the body which it had grown so familiar with over the past year. And suddenly ‘Hikaru’ was back, not as a monster inhabiting a corpse but as a monster through and through.

The three had agreed to set up a system, where Unuki would remain hidden while in Kibogayama to avoid the confusion of there being two Hikaru’s. He transforms into his incomprehensible nature and spends most days tucked away in Yoshiki’s uniform pocket with his other half so he can continue attending school.

Some days when Hikaru isn’t feeling well or just doesn’t feel like going, Unuki will step in and go for him.

It didn’t take long for Yoshiki to notice that Hikaru always seems to get “sick” on exam days, but it doesn’t seem like Unuki minds.

Only Asako and Yoshiki know when they switch places, though he can’t help but wonder if anyone else is starting to catch on.

Yoshiki glances at both of their phone screens. Hikaru is watching a highlights reel from a recent international soccer game with a deadly focus. Unuki has switched from menu browsing to playing Plants vs. Zombies, his face wrought with analytical frustration followed by a grin of assured victory.

I’d be surprised if anyone hasn’t caught on, Yoshiki posits.

“Asako’s textin’ ya,” Unuki alerts as he shows the phone screen to Yoshiki, a LINE banner notification across the top.

‘Hang in there this weekend, let me know how it goes!’ - Asako

Yoshiki, in a sudden rush of adrenaline, grabs his phone from the monster with as much composure as a mother ripping a foreign substance from her baby’s mouth.

“What does she mean ‘hang in there’? Ya not feelin’ well today?” Unuki questions with a twinge of concern.

“Nah, she’s just bein’ Asako… y’know… always concerned with other people’s business,” Yoshiki shrugs off with an unconvincing waver to his voice as he opens the chat.

Please don’t let Hikaru have heard that…

Yoshiki quickly types out a response before putting his phone in Do Not Disturb to avoid the monster seeing any more potentially revealing messages.

‘Thanks :)’

He hands the phone back to Unuki.

“Ya an’ Asako have gotten real close too, huh,” Hikaru adds bluntly, jealousy coating his tone. He keeps his eyes glued to his phone to feign a clear lack of interest.

“Ya got the hots fer her er somethin’? That new haircut finally kick ya inta gear ta get a girl?” Hikaru side-eyes his friend to gauge a reaction to his probing.

But instead of the embarrassed stuttering mess he expected, he simply catches Yoshiki side-eyeing him and sarcastically smirking. He looks confident - unfamiliar and unpredictable.

It makes Hikaru’s arms bristle.

“That fall on yer head make ya forget who yer best friend is?” Yoshiki snorts.

Hikaru rolls his eyes and turns away.

“I could ask ya the same,” the bitter boy mutters, but the sound is all but carried away by the ambient clamor of the train car.

“Hm?”

“Nothin’.”

Yoshiki drops his eyes to his sandaled feet in contact with the linoleum floor.

Hikaru’s right, I have gotten real close with Asako.

If only I wasn’t a monster… then it might’ve been easy…

He straightens his legs and leans up against the window, smiling bittersweetly in memoriam of a normal life.

It started that fateful night at the hospital when Yoshiki first confessed to her about his feelings for Hikaru. Since then, she’s been his number one supporter, and the only one he can go to about the intricacies of managing his new life; the only one who knows what kind of situation he finds himself in, lost between two equally confusing paths.

He knows he has grown. The influence both Unuki and Asako have had on his self confidence are readily apparent. The scar on his arm and the fresh field of view beyond his bangs are a wealth of proof.

But just as he started to adjust to his new self, suddenly the person he wanted to hide from the most was back.

And that Hikaru is still the same as he always was - a ghost of the past.

Yoshiki wishes his hair would grow back faster.

Maybe it could hide his shameful glances at the contours of Hikaru’s calf muscles just below the hem of his shorts. How his collarbones peek out ever so slightly under his stretched neckline.

Yoshiki closes his eyes lest he let them wander too far.

He silently wishes more than anything that the feelings would just disappear.

He eyes Unuki next to him, now playing a rhythm game he downloaded with a moderate degree of success, as a lump begins to form in his throat at the purely innocent sight.

He feels guilty, but for what exactly he can’t put his finger on.

It’s not like I’m dating either of them…

The lump stings.

Seeing Unuki always puts a smile on his face - the comfort he feels alongside the monster is undeniable.

Isn’t that what love should be like? Smooth and easy - not wrought with bitter, unspoken truths?

The bond they share is real, and raw.

But is it love?

Yoshiki thinks himself a masochist for chasing after something he can’t have.

He rubs his thumbs over one another, lost in pensive thought as his eyebrows furrow.

But suddenly he’s smacked to attention by Unuki.

“Look! I got a new high score!” Unuki beams with pride, shoving Yoshiki’s phone into his face mere inches away.

“Good job,” Yoshiki’s expression softens. Unuki, whether he means it or not, always knows how to snap him out of his spiraling.

“What are ya, a kid?” Hikaru smirks as he jabs Unuki in the ribs.

Unuki laughs before latching an arm around Hikaru’s neck, pulling him down into a headlock.

“I am only one and a half, ya know,” Unuki snickers, fingers firmly running teasing circles through Hikaru’s hair.

“Not you too… it’s bad enough that Yoshiki always teases me like this… ya aren’t even taller than me!” Hikaru protests, wriggling and grasping at the monster’s reinforced limbs.

“Nah, I think I’ve got at least a few inches on ya,” Unuki teases back, digging a knuckle into Hikaru’s scalp.

“Yeah, right,” Hikaru latches a hand onto Unuki’s stomach, tickling him as a last resort and forcing him to release the headlock.

Yoshiki keeps his eyes locked forward, sneaking peaks at the ghostly projection of the tousle in the window opposite him.

He smiles.

Maybe this is all he needs.

———————————————————————

“Whoa! The waves are even bigger than last time!!” Unuki muses. The twinkling shine of the sun on the water reflects as a near-perfect copy in his silver irises.

Hikaru wastes no time, kicking his sandals off, dropping his bag, and running ahead of the other two boys until he meets the precipice of the shore, letting it wash gingerly over his bare feet to cleanse the damp sand that had accumulated on his 30-meter journey.

“Oi! No fair!” Unuki protests as he follows closely behind, both eager boys now leaving their shoes and overnight bags behind haphazardly on the beach for Yoshiki to pick up and carry.

Yoshiki sighs in defeat.

Since when did I become their mother?

He carries out his duty nonetheless, grabbing both of their cargo awkwardly. He lumbers everything to a spot mostly free of ocean debris about 5 meters from the shoreline, where he sets out a towel to sit on.

They didn’t feel like carrying an umbrella in addition to their bags, so Yoshiki prays that the sunscreen he packed will be enough to protect him from the harsh summer ultraviolet. He quietly wishes he could tan easily like Hikaru instead of dealing with the uncomfortable greasy texture that somehow makes the sand stick to him even more.

I really wasn’t built for country life… Yoshiki laments to himself.

He gets to work lathering his face and arms, not bothering to take off his T-shirt since he still isn’t sure he wants to go swimming.

He’s happy at least that Unuki finally has someone who can keep up with his energy.

Maybe he only has that energy to begin with because of Hikaru’s influence…

Maybe I only ever thought I liked Unuki because…

No.

They’re too different.

Who knows…

Yoshiki interrupts his own thought process and opens his phone camera to check and make sure he rubbed all of the white substance into his face properly. The last thing he needs is the both of them teasing him for looking stupid.

But the summer sun is a potent adversary to phone brightness, so he can’t quite get a good handle of it. He gives up after about 30 seconds of trying to get a good shaded angle, his phone screen appearing completely black.

No matter what direction he tilts it, his reflection evades him entirely.

Giving up, Yoshiki returns his eyes to the shoreline where his two friends are already waist-deep in the water, diving and splashing each other in a heated rivalry.

They shed their shirts at some point when Yoshiki was preoccupied, both garments crumpled in the sand mere inches away from getting soaked by the impending tide.

I’ll pick them up later.

Yoshiki spends the meantime watching the two boys from a safe distance, hugging his knees tight to his chest. He squints, trying to define the outline of the spiritual scars on Hikaru’s now-damaged body.

From here, I almost can’t tell them apart.

Hikaru pushes at Unuki’s chest. Unuki braces himself, not willing to go down so easily. But Hikaru is conniving, slipping a leg around Unuki’s calf and wrapping his arms tightly around his waist. He pushes and pulls with all his strength until the monster splashes down ass-first into the shore.

“O-Oi! No fair!” Unuki laughs.

Hikaru doesn’t let up, cutting him off by diving on top of him, grabbing him sharply by the shoulders. He rakes his chest against the younger twin in a sudden collision, using him for leverage as he climbs and sits right atop him, asserting a facade of dominance.

“Gotcha, ya slippery little fish” Hikaru beams.

His fingers bear down deep into the flesh of Unuki’s pectoral muscles. He traces his fingers up firmly as he can to not allow the monster any wiggle room, studying the shapes of his own body that he’s still unfamiliar with seeing and feeling from a third-person view. His fingers eventually find their end goal as he takes Unuki by the throat with both hands.

He pushes the monster’s legs down by straddling them firmly, locking the monster in place before bucking his hips forward once into the boy below him in a pronounced thrust.

Yoshiki doesn’t miss a millisecond of it.

Did Hikaru just-

Surely not.

Unuki does everything he can to keep his head above water, sputtering and laughing with every struggled motion, seemingly oblivious to every sliver of Hikaru’s potential malintent.

The reaction only causes Hikaru’s resentment to grow, as Yoshiki watches the human boy lean in, the monster’s head falling under the surface for longer and longer periods at a time, Hikaru’s grip refusing to let up.

Without any survival instincts, Unuki doesn’t think twice about the roughness of the play, fully embracing it as he continues his cacophony of laughter every chance he gets to breathe.

“Hik- Don’t-“

Each time Yoshiki thinks to yell something to tell Hikaru to stop, he’s interrupted by Unuki’s cackling.

At least he’s enjoying himself…

Yoshiki recoils back into himself, still full of unease.

Hikaru gets frustrated eventually, unable to break the creature’s steadfast smile. He lets go and permits the monster to stand seconds before crashing down into the shallow breaking waves himself.

In a split second, Unuki has tackled Hikaru by the knees, holding on for dear life as Hikaru tries to kick him off with minimal success.

At least now it seems things are ok.

Yoshiki exhales.

For posterity, he takes out his phone once again. He shades it from the sun with his hand to the best of his ability as he navigates to LINE and opens Asako’s chat.

He taps the faint outline of the camera button, quickly snapping a picture of the two boys splashing each other. He hopes it turns out ok.

He presses “send” and types out a message one purposeful tap at a time.

‘Going well so far’

He closes his phone once again and thinks back to the last time they were here, when Yoshiki took the time to snap a picture of Unuki’s awestruck reaction to seeing the ocean for the first time. Even though it was only a year ago, it makes him feel nostalgic.

So much has changed since then…

Yoshiki decides to occupy himself by lying on his back, stretching his arms and relaxing into the contours of the sand under his towel.

The sun is a welcome blanket, its heat loosening the muscles from his neck to his abdomen like a soothing salve. It warms his fingertips and cheeks, forcing his blood to circulate loosely, temporarily calming his racing thoughts.

It’s perhaps too bright; he deeply regrets not remembering his sunglasses. It nearly burns his retinas even with his eyes closed, so he retracts one of his arms to act as a temporary shield.

It does its job well enough, the rays beginning to swaddle his every nerve ending in a beckoning promise of rest. It’s like an interrogation lamp, unrelenting until he admits to the severity of his exhaustion.

He takes the sun up on its offer, allowing himself the freedom to let his mind quiet. Comforted only by the sounds of two boys with the same voice laughing gleefully amongst the rhythmic crashing of the waves, he falls quickly into a deep sleep.

———————————————————————

Nearly drunk in his groggy and half-conscious state, Yoshiki can barely make out the voices echoing over him, much less understand what they’re saying. The energy to care feels like it’s a long haul from returning to his body.

But the two voices can hear each other perfectly.

“Ya sure this is a good idea?”

“He’s gotta wake up one way er another, I think it’ll be perfect. Lift with me, ok?”

“Seiiiiiii no!”

Yoshiki’s subconscious suddenly tunes into the fact that there are damp, cold arms locked under his armpits, and even colder hands wrapped around his ankles.

And suddenly there is no sandy towel supporting his lower back.

A rush of cortisol breaks through his sleepy daze.

“God… did he get even heavier?”

The voice above his head grunts in frustration.

“I think he said he grew 2 more centimeters since last summer.”

“God, will he ever stop? He’s gonna be 3 meters tall at this rate.”

“Pfffft, that’s what I said ta Kaoru, too.”

Yoshiki opens his eyes wide, blinking them into focus. The brightness of the reflective sand is unrelenting, making the adjustment take far longer than usual.

He sees Unuki grinning and laughing above him, his hands locked tightly around his ankles which are now suspended above ground.

Looking straight towards the sky, the crown of his head butts up against Hikaru’s torso. He glances up at the boy’s chin in sheer panic.

Hikaru looks down.

“Aw man, ya weren’t s’posedta wake up yet, dumbass.”

“The hell?” Yoshiki startles, eyes wide in terror.

“Plan B! Charge!” Hikaru shouts at his counterpart.

The cackling white-haired boys take off in a clumsy staggering sprint towards the shoreline before Yoshiki has any time to fathom breaking free.

He writhes and tugs the best he can in the seconds he has to spare, but the hold they have is too great. The backdrop beneath him changes from damp flattened sand to frigid salt water before he can even count to three.

“Seiiiii no!”

“W-wai-Ack!”

Yoshiki splashes down into the tide as the four hands supporting him suddenly and completely let go.

The water acts as a minimal cushion - his ass hitting the ocean floor in a jolting collision that makes his teeth clash together. He’s lucky he didn’t bite his tongue.

His head is caught swiftly under an impending wave, drowning out every noise save for the panicked thoughts in his own head.

He gains his bearings once the wave subsides, sitting up and wiping the stinging salinity from his eyes as he coughs out the mouthful of ocean that somehow made it into his esophagus.

He’s completely drenched. Water floods his sinuses and ears, sopping cotton clinging to his torso. He truly looks and feels like a wet blanket.

“Phase 2, go!” Hikaru shouts from behind the boy still sitting in the shallows.

Unuki nods and approaches Yoshiki cautiously, like he’s a stray cat that could run or scratch at any moment.

Yoshiki looks up at the monster approaching him as he slicks his hair up and away from his eyes with one hand. He looks entirely unamused, like he’s already resigned himself to whatever fate awaits him.

It’s two versus one, after all, and he’s already soaked.

“Sorry, Yosh’ki!” Unuki halfheartedly apologizes, though the eager smile on his face and wiggling maniacal fingers tell a different story.

Unuki pounces, his fingers grasping the hem of Yoshiki’s shirt and raising it over his head, stripping him. He throws it somewhere onto the beach behind them.

Yoshiki watches it fall with a distinct

.

“Ugh it’s gonna get all sand-“

Before Yoshiki can utter his grievance, Hikaru’s arms are under his armpits again, lifting him up and out of the water to the best of his ability. He clearly strains, shaking slightly before getting his legs underneath him for leverage, pulling the taller boy up the rest of the way until he’s almost standing.

“Man… ya didn’t keep up with yer arm exercises in my body much, did ya-“ Hikaru manages through clearly strained breaths.

“Arm exercises?” Unuki tilts his head. “I thought ya played soccer?”

“No that’s- Ferget it- Get ta work before I drop the damn giant,” Hikaru laments.

“Heheh,” Unuki approaches Yoshiki with a devious smirk.

He latches frigid fingers into the space between Yoshiki’s ribcage and hips, tickling him relentlessly.

“Ack-Assholes-Pfff-Ahahhahha.”

Yoshiki can’t maintain his air of resentment for long before he starts laughing, the tingly and prodding sensation of Unuki’s hands far too distracting.

“This is what ya get fer bein’ a prude,” Hikaru chastises with false authority, still firmly locking Yoshiki’s writhing body in place. “What kinda beach day is it if yer just gonna sit an’ fall asleep? I thought ya wanted ta have fun with us.”

“I-hahah-I do-pfft, stop it already! Uncle! Ya win!” Yoshiki pleads, tears coating his lower lids from both the salt water and his unwelcome punishment.

“Nah, I think ya need some more convincin’,” Hikaru decides, much to Yoshiki’s dismay.

Unuki raises one hand to Yoshiki’s neck while the other continues tickling his midriff, now assaulting him from two directions.

“S-stop! Gahahah-“ Yoshiki smiles, despite his clear discomfort and glimmer of fear in his eyes.

Unable to raise his arms in self-defense, Yoshiki instead tries to find any other way out of the situation by lashing his shoulders back and forth to try to catch Hikaru off-balance.

Eventually Yoshiki manages to get his feet underneath him, using his full weight for leverage as he pushes back against Hikaru. Hikaru stumbles with the added force that he was barely maintaining upright before, tripping in the sand and falling unceremoniously onto his ass.

Yoshiki lands almost directly on top of him, causing the smaller boy to huff at the impact. Before Yoshiki can make sense of the situation, though, Hikaru peels himself out from under him and clumsily flips himself over to Yoshiki’s front, straddling and conquering him just as he did to Unuki earlier.

Hikaru blocks out the sun above them. Yoshiki can see every detail of him perfectly.

The way his usually-poofy hair flattens against forehead and ears from the weight of the water saturating them.

The slightly-indented dueling scars that line his neck, the slash that spans the front of his torso and arm; badges of honor from a battle he was never meant to be a part of.

Tiny droplets of sea water condensing and dripping down his cheeks and shoulders.

The way his chest rises and falls heavily, pumping oxygen through his once-lifeless body.

Squinted eyes framing the shameless, toothy grin on his face.

And suddenly Yoshiki’s mind short-circuits.

How long have I been staring?

Hikaru’s on top of him. Touching his chest, pressing into it with his hands to force Yoshiki down. Shirtless, and panting. It almost looks like he’s-

Don’t get hard… don’t get hard… don’t get hard…

Yoshiki closes his eyes and says a small prayer of thanks to whatever god rules the ocean for keeping the water so cold.

That is, until Hikaru leans forward slightly.

Yoshiki’s eyes jolt open.

Perhaps it was just to readjust his position.

Perhaps it was to get better leverage to keep him held down.

But either way, the readjustment revealed something to Yoshiki that he would have much rather remained oblivious of.

Hikaru is definitely hard.

Surely it’s just from getting riled up, right?

Wrestling requires a lot of physical contact.

Surely it’s just an accident.

He probably doesn’t realize.

Act normal… act normal…

Thankfully, Unuki always seems to interrupt at the best moments.

“Whoa! Hey guys! Is that a sea turtle?”

Both boys’ attention immediately shifts to the horizon line, where the monster is pointing.

Sure enough, there is a large angular turtle head poking out above the shallow waves every few seconds, only about 10 meters in front of them.

“Damn! That thing’s huge!”

Hikaru immediately peels himself off of Yoshiki, standing up and walking a few paces towards the aquatic creature to get a better look.

“I’m gonna catch it!” Hikaru eagerly declares.

“Absolutely do NOT,” Yoshiki shouts back with transparent urgency, scrambling to stand back up and stop his friend. Any lewd or unsavory thoughts he may have had moments before are thankfully washed away in the panic.

“Huh? Why?” Hikaru turns his head back towards Yoshiki, eyebrows furrowed in clear skepticism.

“Fer one, touchin’ ’em is illegal,” Yoshiki begins to retract his outstretched hand that he just noticed was feebly attempting to stop Hikaru’s momentum, although he’s already far out of arm’s reach.

“So? Ya ain’t gonna tell on me,” Hikaru rolls his eyes.

“Touchin’ ‘em is illegal cuz they’re endangered, dumbass. If humans touch ‘em it disrupts their mucous membrane that covers their whole bodies an’ it interferes with their immune system so they can get sick an’ die-“ Yoshiki sympathetically explains.

“Tsk-,” Hikaru clicks his tongue in disappointment. “I’m sure just a pat on the back wouldn’t hurt ‘em. They do that all the time in aquariums, right?”

“Do NOT touch it, Hikaru,” Yoshiki firmly maintains, unwavering. “Besides, that thing’s probably like 150 kilos. No way ya’d be able ta catch it without gettin’ messed up yerself.”

“Ugh…” Hikaru groans. He lets his voice get carried away in the echoes of the waves.

“I really do miss when ya didn’t talk back ta me with that smart mouth a’ yers…” he mutters.

“Huh?”

“I said it almost weighs as much as you do,” Hikaru annunciates, turning back to his friend with a bitter squint.

Yoshiki can sense it’s not what he said the first time, but he can’t be bothered to ask Hikaru to repeat himself.

Hikaru kicks the water aimlessly, splashing Unuki in the side.

Unuki remains unphased, fascinated gaze tracing the turtle’s every movement through the water.

“Whaddaya think it’s doin’ out here?” Unuki wonders.

“Based on the head shape it looks like a Loggerhead. They tried some conservation tactics a few years ago by releasin’ some into the wild around Japan. Since it’s July it’s probably their nesting season - I can’t tell if it’s a female, though. But if it is, she’s probably lookin’ ta get ta shore ta lay her eggs,” Yoshiki reasons.

“Whoa!! That’s so sick!! I wanna see some sea turtle eggs but… we should probably leave her to it, then, huh…” Unuki rationalizes, eyes falling in disappointment as he remembers his many independent YouTube lessons on egg laying.

“Indeed, we should,” Yoshiki smiles, though Hikaru seems to take his innocent agreement as a targeted attack as he shuns away Yoshiki’s gaze.

Hikaru clicks his tongue again.

“Y’all’re no fun.”

“Oh! Why dun we go check out that tidepool we saw last year? There’s probably a whole herd a’ crabs an’ we can leave mama turtle ta’ her business!” Unuki gleefully suggests, ever excited by the promise of an alternative serendipitous wildlife encounter.

“Sounds good ta me,” Yoshiki smiles.

He looks back to Hikaru for confirmation. The white-haired boy crosses his arms.

“Fine.”

———————————————————————

“Whoa!! Yosh’ki!! This one’s bright blue!” Unuki shouts from across the rocky terrain of the tidepool.

In his hands, Unuki sports a hermit crab with a tan and brown striped shell, its blue body a stark contrast to the pale peach and red of the common species. He holds it up for Yoshiki to see as the taller boy carefully makes his way over, trying his best to not step on any sharp rocks or unassuming creatures underfoot.

“Nice find! That’s a Coenobita purpureus, though most people call ‘em blueberry hermit crabs,” Yoshiki’s eyes dazzle at the sight of the rare specimen. “They’re native ta Okinawa, I’m shocked it found its way all the way up here. People usually keep ‘em as pets. I’ve only ever seen ‘em at the pet store.”

“Whoa! Do ya think a seagull er somethin’ caught ‘im an’ brought ‘im up here? Like a free ride?” Unuki posits, enamored by the tiny enigmatic creature.

“Not impossible, though also not very likely. I’d say it’s more likely it hitched a ride stuck ta the bottom a’ a boat er somethin’,” Yoshiki thoughtfully reasons.

“Goooooood why’d I hafta get stranded on the beach with a couple a’ fuckin’ nerds,” Hikaru groans, over-exaggerated.

“Last I remember, bein’ a nerd stopped ya from illegally harming an innocent endangered animal,” Yoshiki half-sarcastically bites back with a cocky smile while continuing to brush his fingers through the sand in search of more specimens.

“Oh, shove it up yer ass,” Hikaru spits from his own island of sand in the center of the pool.

“Nuki-chan! I found a jellyfish!” Yoshiki exclaims, keeping his distance yet pointing it out eagerly to his curious friend, not paying Hikaru’s jab any mind.

“Whoa! What kind is it?” Unuki gazes upon the faint outline of an opaque white blob floating at the top of the water, laughing slightly. “It kinda looks like a see-through potato.”

“I think it’s called a comb jelly- they aren’t particularly remarkable, but definitely don’t go touchin’ it,” Yoshiki forewarns.

“Oi-“ Hikaru cuts in before Yoshiki can start another nonconsensual science lesson. “How long are you nerds gonna be diggin’ around in here? The sun’s startin’ ta go down,” Hikaru aptly notices.

“Ah yeah… I guess we should check inta our ryokan, huh…” Yoshiki turns to Unuki, his eyebrows upturned as if to say that he’s sorry for cutting the fun short.

Unuki nods, solemn yet understanding, as the two boys trudge their way out of the shallow pool. They each use their towels to dry off their feet before slipping back into their sandals.

All three of the boys’ shirts are drenched in salt water and sand, entirely unwearable. They resort to putting on their pajama shirts early for the short walk, figuring it’s better to have a shirt on to check into a hotel.

The room is under Yoshiki’s name, since he’s the only one who is technically an adult. He takes the lead in navigating the three to their lodgings with Unuki close beside him.

“Did ya find anythin’ worthwhile on the menu?” Yoshiki prompts the monster.

“Super spicy katsu curry!” Unuki boldly proclaims, eyes sparkling, freshly excited for the rest of their evening after remembering that a tasty hot meal awaits him.

“I can see myself on the toilet fer the rest a’ the night just thinkin’ about it… ya sure ya can handle that?” Yoshiki chuckles.

“Mmhmm! Ever since I left Hikaru’s body my sense a’ taste is really weak… all my senses, really… cuz my body’s not human anymore, I can only try ta recreate the sensations I remember…” Unuki explains, half-bittersweetly, like he’s talking about an old friend.

“Well, ya can have my serving too, then,” Yoshiki offers.

The creature immediately lights up.

“I’ll give ya one of my sides as repayment, whichever ya’d like,” Unuki agrees.

Yoshiki smiles kindly.

“Thanks.”

Hikaru coughs behind them, purposefully reminding them of his meager existence in the middle of their heartfelt conversation, causing Yoshiki’s heart to jolt as he snaps back to reality.

Yoshiki’s eyes drop to the pavement of the country sidewalk.

Two years ago, when we first came here, Hikaru chauffeured us around everywhere… but last year I had to take the lead.

Yoshiki looks back at Hikaru.

He is pacing behind the two of them with his eyes glued to his feet, excluding himself yet still doing his best to be remembered, like a child throwing a tantrum.

He’s changed a lot… Yoshiki thinks.

Or maybe we both have…

He remembers Hikaru’s solemn stare out at the vastness of the ocean from their first visit. How he seemed to express so much distance without saying a word, and how sad he was that they couldn’t go into the water.

It was fun, but it wasn’t as fun as it could have been.

It was frigid.

But today, he got to see what that day could’ve been like if they planned correctly.

And it was fun.

But it never would have been this way without Nuki-chan, Yoshiki realizes.

Hikaru probably wouldn’t have been able to carry me into the water alone…

He wouldn’t have had someone to play around with if I was still the way I used to be, and Nuki-chan wasn’t there…

It might’ve been just as frigid as the first time.

Maybe it was only so fun today because I was there with both of them…

The conclusion makes Yoshiki’s heart clench.

I’m such a selfish asshole.

Flashes of unwelcome memories of his and Hikaru’s wrestling match earlier suddenly permeate his head.

Hikaru’s bare form on top of him, his toned muscles rising and falling with each breath.

Hikaru’s erection pressing against his crotch amidst the chaos of salt and sand-

Yoshiki forces his brain to stop before it goes too far.

“I wonder what kinds a’ teas they have…” Yoshiki forces a new topic into his mouth, exhausted with reminiscing.

And before he knows it, they arrive at the front gates.

They sit down to their dinner in the dining room, thankfully included in their stay. Yoshiki and Unuki trade dishes as previously agreed, smiling and laughing about their day through servings of freshly grilled fish and pickled seasonal vegetables.

Yet Hikaru stays uncharacteristically quiet.

Both other boys pick up on it, inviting him to join the conversation, yet they are only met with curt one-word responses.

He’s not even teasin’ me… Yoshiki concerns.

And suddenly they find themselves in their room; a modest tatami-style lodging with a small table at the center. A floor-length mirror rests in one corner, a tiny entertainment system with a TV screen that looks like it hasn’t been updated since the 90’s in the other.

They find their futons and lay them out in the center of the room, moving the small coffee table to make space.

Unuki places his bed in the center of the two boys, just as he did on the train earlier. It’s become their default setting.

Yoshiki glances at himself in the mirror passively in the process of setting up his bed, and notices a distinct pink hue peeking out just below his short sleeves.

He peels at his neckline and raises the bottom of his shirt to confirm his suspicion, finding the same misfortune covering his entire stomach and chest.

“Shit… I fergot ta put sunscreen on under my shirt after ya’ll ambushed me…” Yoshiki concedes, squinting in disapproval at his own stupidity.

He presses a finger to his abdomen, pulling it away and watching the faint yellow outline of his fingerprint quickly form and dissipate before his eyes. He winces at the stinging sensation.

He’s burned, bad.

Even in his sour state, Hikaru can’t help but stifle a laugh at his friend’s mishap.

“Pffft… dumbass,” Hikaru mocks before returning to his silent treatment.

Yoshiki feels a wave of relief that Hikaru is at least not mad enough to avoid making fun of him for something as dumb as this.

He pretty much deserves it.

“I’m gonna go ta that konbini we saw on the way here an’ see if they have aloe er lotion er somethin’… do y’all want any snacks er drinks?” Yoshiki prompts.

“Flamin’ hot Cheetos an’ Fanta!” Unuki excitedly shouts.

“Yer insides are gonna turn orange,” Yoshiki snidely pokes. “Hikaru?”

“Nope,” Hikaru snaps, not looking in either of their direction.

Yoshiki quickly reaches into his pocket to grab Unuki’s other half, placing it on the TV stand before turning his back to the other boys and peeling off his still half-wet swim trunks. He replaces them with a pair of much more comfortable boxers and dry gym shorts for his journey to the store.

“Ugh… ya still have that piece of my bones? Fuckin’ gross, dude,” Hikaru repulses.

“We’ve been over this, Unuki needs someone ta keep it safe er he’ll be in danger… it’s not like I can get rid a’ it, an’ we can’t exactly put it back, either,” Yoshiki attempts to explain, unamused by Hikaru’s continued complaints.

“Whatever, jus’ keep it away from me… makes me sick jus’ thinkin’ about it, nevermind lookin’ at it,” Hikaru pouts. He returns to scrolling through his phone, though the poor ryokan wifi makes it quite the arduous task.

Yoshiki wonders why he looked over in the first place if it makes him so uneasy.

He puts the fragment back into his pocket along with his wallet as he makes his way out of the door to their room.

“Be back in 20 er so,” he adds before sliding the door shut behind him.

———————————————————————

Hikaru and Unuki take a quick moment to change into the provided bathrobes in the closet, eager to get out of their damp swim trunks.

Yet after they settle down, the silence persists.

“Are ya mad at me?” Unuki questions once he is sure Yoshiki is out of earshot.

“No,” Hikaru responds, not looking up from his phone that he has been vigorously trying to refresh for the better part of a minute with no success.

“Then why are ya so quiet? Not feelin’ well?”

“I’m fine.”

“Ever since we left the beach ya barely said a word,” Unuki aptly recalls.

“I said I’m fine,” Hikaru digs his heels in.

“I know yer memories, ya know. Every time ya an’ Yosh’ki would fight ya’d get quiet like this and go home all sad. Ya don’t gotta be like that anymore,” Unuki offers with a kind smile.

“God, do ya ever shut up? I dun wanna talk about it-“ Hikaru bites back.

“So there is somethin’ on yer mind…” Unuki corners.

“God yer jus’ like lookin’ in a mirror… so fuckin’ annoying…” Hikaru grumbles.

An awkward silence extends between them for a count of 30.

“Are ya mad at Yosh’ki?” Unuki cuts in, still persistent.

“Mm.” Hikaru half-agrees.

“Why?”

“Just cuz…”

Unuki tilts his head, confused.

“That doesn’t sound like a reason ta be upset.”

“Look, I dun’ gotta explain anythin’ ta you, ok? Jus’ drop it… I’ll feel better if we just stop talkin’ about it.”

Hikaru clenches his chest, forcing the negative feelings deep down where they belong.

And the silence returns, for a minute this time.

“Why do ya like Yosh’ki so much?” Unuki questions, pensively curious and trying to half-pivot the topic.

“I don’t,” Hikaru snaps back, perhaps a little too fast.

“Then why are ya always hangin’ around with ‘im? Why hang with someone ya don’t like?”

“Cuz… it’s just easy, I guess…” Hikaru mutters.

“Huh… Well, I like Yosh’ki cuz he’s kind. He has such a beautiful, kind soul. He’s always thinkin’ a’ other people, like when he just asked if we wanted anythin’ from the konbini! He’s always doin’ stuff like that! He has taken me so many amazing places since I’ve been here… the movies, the beach, so many new restaurants I’ve always wanted to try… he’s so smart too, I feel like I never woulda learned half as much about the world as I know now without him. He’s so accepting too, he never judges me for those times I can’t control my monster side… I really do love Yosh’ki,” Unuki smiles, blushing slightly.

Hikaru stares, flabbergasted. Hearing the words come from his own mouth, in his own voice, nearly makes him want to throw up.

“Yer so fuckin’ annoying, ya know that?”

Hikaru bites his lip anxiously. He feels his defenses breaking down, a brittle castle wall that stands no chance against the monster.

“Sorry… it’s just… I’ve always wondered… why I’ve always been so drawn ta him… An’… why did ya make the wish ya did when ya were dyin’ if ya dun like him?” Unuki reasons.

“I-…” Hikaru chokes. “It’s not that I don’t like ‘im… I got off on the wrong foot… I dun want ya goin’ and tellin’ him I dun like him…”

Unuki tilts his head again.

“Truth is…”

Hikaru sighs. Telling the truth to a being that already has access to all his memories should be fine, right? As long as Yoshiki never finds out-

“He’s like the only constant in my entire life. He’s cool, an’ collected… an’ he never seemed ta change… that’s what I liked about ‘im… until now,” Hikaru’s throat gets caught slightly on the last words.

“Until now?”

“Ya’ve gotta have noticed it too, right? How he carries himself now, how he speaks. He’s not the Yoshiki I knew… he seems happy, sure a’ himself… I guess I just feel like I’m gettin’ left behind in the fray,” Hikaru admits, eyes locked on the weaved tatami pattern of the floor before him.

“I dun think he’s leavin’ ya behind… I think yer leavin’ yerself behind,” Unuki soberly and bluntly analyzes, not realizing the impact of his own innocent words.

Hikaru snickers to himself slightly, a faint puff of air through his nostrils.

“Ya really are like lookin’ in a mirror… can’t hide anythin’ from ya…” the white haired boy yields.

He wonders if the secret he’s suppressed from even himself all these years is as well-kept as he had assumed.

The creature seems to know everything about him already.

“How much do ya know about my feelin’s fer him?” Hikaru probes, poking the bear.

“I know ya think about him a lot, especially when yer alone. That ya had a ton of fun hangin’ with him as kids. That he was always there fer ya when the worst things happened, like yer Pa dyin’. That ya secretly would always look ta make sure he was watchin’ ya when ya were out playin’ on the soccer field, whether he had a camera with him er not. An’ I know whatever feelin’s came with yer wish made me wanna be by his side forever… that’s about all I can remember…” Unuki scratches his chin, deep in thought.

“Did ya know that… that I liked ‘im?” Hikaru forces out before he can think better of it.

The momentum is already there, why not push it all the way?

Unuki is the one to remain silent, for once.

“I… I dunno… I always had a feelin’, but it was a vague one. Cloudy an’ hard ta latch onto, ya know? I jus’ knew I had a natural attraction ta ‘im… I know I love ‘im in my own way… but… I still dun really understand what it means ta like someone the way a human does…” Unuki explains, his tone crestfallen and frustrated.

“Don’t go tellin’ Yosh’ki any of the stuff I said, ya hear? It’ll go straight ta that big head a’ his,” Hikaru quickly qualifies before continuing. He takes a deep breath. “I s’pose I dun really know what it means ta like someone either… there are girls in our grade who I think are cute, but there’s no one in the world I’d rather spend time with than Yosh’ki… realizin’ that, well, it’s a scary, vulnerable feelin’… but ya jus’ can’t help feelin’ it.”

“Yer sayin’ it just comes naturally, whether ya want it to er not, right? That’s the part that gets me… I’ll never have that feelin’… I’ll never understand what humans have between each other an’… I guess it just makes me… frustrated? The bond ya two have an’ all…” Unuki articulates, his words getting slightly caught on a lump in his throat as he realizes he isn’t truly conveying what he feels.

“Jealous?” Hikaru proposes.

“Is that what this feelin’ is? Jealous?” Unuki lights up at the thought of having a new word for the feeling in his chest.

“Ya’ve never been jealous before?” Hikaru scoffs in disbelief.

“Never of a human… I get protective over Yosh’ki from impurities sometimes but it’s more like a territorial instinct… I guess… not wantin’ anythin’ else imprintin’ on ‘im…” Unuki carefully analyzes.

“But yer just jealous of me? Not Asako er Maki er Yuuki?” Hikaru double-checks.

“I…. I think so,” Unuki nods.

Hikaru suddenly bursts out in triumphant, or perhaps defeated, laughter.

Unuki’s brow furrows, utterly confused.

“Is bein’ jealous funny?” Unuki double-checks.

“No, no…” Hikaru finally quiets his outburst.

“It’s just… lemme tell ya another secret, y’hear? The reason I’ve been actin’ up all night is cuz, well… I’m jealous a’ ya and Yosh’ki, too…”

“Ya are? Why?”

“Are ya really that clueless? Jus’ look at the way he looks at ya- I’ve never seen the guy smile so much in his life, ever since ya came along… He clearly likes ya… Ya clearly make ‘im happy… much happier than I ever did… so yeah, m’jealous…” Hikaru huffs.

Unuki stays silent, processing the revelation with wide eyes.

“I just… I wish he’d look at me the way he looks at ya…” Hikaru adds, glancing down and curling in on himself. “Human bonds aren’t all that matter, ya know… especially ta Yosh’ki… he’s always been a freak like that, preferrin’ spendin’ time with animals an’ bugs over dumb humans,” Hikaru smiles in defeat.

Why am I comfortin’ him? Ain’t I s’posedta be mad?

His eyes fall to the floor.

“Well… I wish I got ta experience life alongside Yosh’ki from the beginning like ya did… it’s like ya’ll have this invisible communication with each other from knowin’ each other so long… like an inside joke that I’m not part of… I sometimes wonder if maybe I spent more time with ‘im if I’d understand what it means ta be human… ta joke around with ya both… er ta like someone, like y’all do… like a human…”

Like a human, huh…

What does that even mean?

Hikaru takes a thoughtful moment to reflect on the definition, though he is only met with flashbacks of earlier in the day when he let his feelings, or rather, his unresolved carnal urges, get a bit too out of hand.

Yoshiki under him, flushed and panting, entirely helpless and pathetic like a shaking wet dog.

His glistening hair couldn’t shield the way his eyes glared at Hikaru like perfect silver diamonds refracting the light in every direction.

If Unuki is a mirror, then Yoshiki is a prism, breaking him down to his most fundamental wavelengths.

What I wouldn’t do to get my hands on Yoshiki fer real…

Lay inta ‘im… press our bodies together jus’ ta feel what it’d be like… kiss ‘im like there’s no tomorrow…

A sudden, dastardly idea crosses Hikaru’s mind as he feels a familiar twitch below the fabric of his robe.

Who’s ta stop me from teachin’ Nuki-chan a thing er two?

He’s askin’ ta learn, right?

An’ it’s my body, after all…

It’s basically no different than touchin’ myself….

Hikaru licks his lips.

“Ya know, I can teach ya about the physical side a’ human attraction, if ya want… Ya don’t gotta learn everything from Yosh’ki,” Hikaru teases.

“Really? Ya’d teach me? I thought ya hated teachin’?” Unuki reasons.

“I do, but this is somethin’ fun ta teach,” Hikaru snidely smiles, leaning forward towards the creature in front of him. “‘Specially through example.”

An’ I can steal all his precious Nuki-chan’s firsts in the process…

Left alone in the safety of their room, two pairs of twin lips find comfort in each other.

Hikaru pushes his head forward, deepening the kiss and coaxing a surprised, halted moan from Unuki’s throat.

Unuki’s eyes remain open, shocked by the seemingly unprompted intimate contact from his usually-reserved friend. He leans back in a slight panic, unsure of what he’s supposed to do, until he finds himself laying flat against the tatami floor.

Hikaru closes any distance between them before it can be formed, following Unuki all the way down until he is perched atop the monster, caging him in.

Unuki remains in petrification as Hikaru laps and moans into his mouth, using his lips and tongue to force the monster’s oral cavity open ever further.

Unuki has no flavor. He has no breath nor taste buds to retain it. Hikaru isn’t even sure if his saliva is real or just a synthetic extension of his body like everything else; it just tastes like water; an reflection of his own essence.

And if the kiss has no flavor to remember it by, then it may as well not have happened, right?

Hikaru pulls away to regain his bearings, shifting his position so he is sitting atop Unuki’s heat once again.

Unuki shivers.

He notices Unuki’s rigid disposition in the process, looking down in disappointment.

“What’s wrong?” Hikaru squints. “Isn’t this what ya wanted?”

“I… I jus’ dunno what ta do… my insides are goin’ crazy but I know ya dun like when I let ‘em out… so I’m tryin’ my best not ta lose control,” Unuki winces, shutting his eyes tightly.

Damn… he’s adorable…

Hikaru clicks his teeth.

“I see why Yosh’ki likes ya so much…”

Hikaru lurches himself forward to continue devouring his prey, pressing their lips to one another with a newfound motivation. He grabs Unuki’s hair at the crown of his head and tugs it back, forcing his chin and neck up into the air. Hikaru locks their mouths together in a 90-degree angle, protruding his tongue down as deep as it will go into the monster’s throat.

The kiss is carnal and ravenous. Hikaru only lets up to take short breaths into the softness of Unuki’s lips before diving back in, thoroughly addicted to the lewd sensation his body had been craving all day.

The kiss drives the heat in his core mad with pleasure, his face flushing with a guilty lust that only seems to make his erection worse and worse by the moment.

The hell am I doin’ gettin’ this turned on makin’ out with myself… Hikaru’s voice of reason attempts to chime in.

But the unbearable pressure in his groin makes a far more compelling argument as he allows himself the freedom to grind his crotch down into Unuki. The thin fabric of both of their bathrobes provides little resistance as Hikaru groans into the contact, just potent enough to send jolt after jolt of pleasure to his already well-developed erection.

But I’m not makin’ out with myself… I’m makin’ out with Nuki-chan… an’ he doesn’t even really look like me… he coulda looked like anyone if he wanted to…

Hikaru suddenly halts his motion. A thought makes its way out of his drunken mouth before he can even think about the implications.

“Do ya think ya could transform yerself inta’ Yosh’ki?” Hikaru proposes.

Unuki gulps. His face, too, flushes bright red suddenly.

“I… I think so… I’ve never tried, but…we’ve mixed enough times that I’ve probably memorized the shapes a’ him…” Unuki postulates. “Is doin’ it with me lookin’ like this not… good?“

Hikaru clicks his teeth yet again.

Whether it’s from jealousy of Unuki modestly flexing his connection with Yoshiki or disappointment in himself for unintentionally hurting the creature’s feelings, he isn’t sure.

He chooses to pursue the ladder.

“It’s just, it’s kinda weird doin’ this when ya look jus’ like me. People ain’t often attracted ta themselves, ya know,” Hikaru explains, somehow maintaining a false air of confidence.

“Mm… that makes sense! If it’ll help ya, I can definitely try,” Unuki suddenly brightens up at the opportunity to please his dear Hikaru.

Suddenly, the mirrored form beneath him entirely melts away in a flash of abstract colorful fractals.

The sight causes Hikaru to reflexively avert his gaze, like he’s watching himself die again right before his eyes. A swell of stomach acid threatens to purge through his esophagus at the thought. He often forgets what an enigmatic - not to mention terrifying - monster Unuki is.

When Hikaru opens his eyes, though, the sight below him is entirely different.

There lies Yoshiki, peeking out below pristinely-cut shortened bangs, looking pensive and wide-eyed as if expecting Hikaru to chastise him. It’s not a face he’s ever seen Yoshiki make before.

“Did I do ok?” Yoshiki’s voice questions, head tilting to the side. “Whoa, my voice is so different-“

Hikaru nods once in affirmation, his eyes perusing the otherworldly sight laid out before him. A sight he just saw earlier at the beach, yet it carries so much distinction.

He traces over Yoshiki’s adam’s apple with his thumb, fingers running over his collarbones that peek out beneath the deep cut of the robe’s neckline. He moves his thumb to Yoshiki’s twin neck moles, not a millimeter out of place.

Hikaru then moves his attention to the thick, dark scar covering Yoshiki’s right hand and wrist, all the way up to his bicep. He runs his left palm over the imperfections in its rough surface, losing himself in the sharp pang of resentment he feels for letting someone else tarnish his prize.

Hikaru suddenly feels something inside him snap.

He latches onto Unuki’s throat with the hand that was caressing his best friend’s moles, wretching a sound from the monster’s trachea. He carries out the action with even more purpose than their scuffle at the beach.

“H-Hikar- AGH-“ Unuki tries to force out, only to be met with even more pressure from the older boy’s grasp.

“Stay still fer me, yeah?” Hikaru demands urgently.

“Mm-“ Unuki manages voicelessly, not wanting to displease his teacher.

Hikaru lets up, trusting that the obedient creature will follow his orders, as he shifts down Unuki’s body and positions himself between ‘Yoshiki’s legs.

He peels back the cloth folds at the bottom of Unuki’s robe, exposing the bright green boxers he changed into after the beach. He squints disappointedly at the loss of immersion, confident that Yoshiki wouldn’t be caught dead wearing something so gaudy.

Better take these off, then, huh…

Hikaru snakes his fingers under the waistband of Unuki’s undergarments, pulling them down until ‘Yoshiki’s full length is on display, flaccid and pathetically dangling between his legs beneath a wealthy forest of hair that extends like a mountain peak all the way up to the base of his bellybutton.

“Ya even know what he looks like down here, huh?” Hikaru interrogates.

“N-not totally… m’just improvisin’…” Unuki defends.

“Mm… that so?” Hikaru’s heart skips at beat at the new knowledge that at least this level of intimacy hasn’t been surpassed between the two of them.

Hikaru begins to absentmindedly snake his hand beneath the fabric flaps at the front of his own bath robe, not needing to paw around for long before latching onto his rock-hard erection. He parts the fabric curtain and pulls it free, unable to withstand the temptation to pump himself two, three times in succession.

He exhales in three short huffs each time his hand slides towards his tip, tightening along the way.

Holy shit.

I dun think I’ve been this hard in my life.

Even just the thought of how turned on he is by something so unorthodox makes the feeling even more potent, like a lust-filled positive feedback loop.

Yosh’ki’ll probably be back soon… better make it quick…

“I’m gonna put it in now, ok?” Hikaru warns, not looking for permission.

His weeping dick burns red-hot in his hand as he lines it up to Unuki’s hole. He presses the tip to the entrance; ‘Yoshiki’s entrance, the gates to nirvana and the prize he has sought ever since he can remember. He surmises he still hasn’t quite hit the mark, but settling for a near-perfect copy is good enough.

What he needs more than anything is to fuck out his resentment, leave Unuki so brain dead that the only thing he can remember is Hikaru’s name.

Not Yoshiki’s.

His.

Hikaru presses forward, allowing his full girth to spread Unuki’s entrance until his head finds its way inside. He savors every millimeter as he then pushes in the length of his shaft, watching as ‘Yoshiki’s hole swallows him ever slower with each second as it slowly fills to the brim.

Greedy bastard.

As soon as he bottoms out, Hikaru immediately tunes into an unfamiliar and abrupt cold and squelching sensation around his dick, which he can only assume are Unuki’s monstrous fractals.

I guess it makes sense he can’t mimic his insides an’ stuff… Hikaru reasons.

He clicks his teeth, again, unsure if he’ll be able to get off knowing that his dick is being swallowed in a vast ocean of otherworldly, terrifying goop.

He tries his best not to think about it, zoning in on the view of ‘Yoshiki’ before him, biting his own fingers with his eyes shut tight, writhing his back slightly into the tatami mat.

“So… hot… Hikaru…” Unuki heaves between deep, controlled breaths.

Hearing his name fall from ‘Yoshiki’s lips in this state causes a pulse of prerelease to drool from Hikaru’s tip, leaking deep inside the monster.

Unuki moans at the hot dripping sensation, loud and unfiltered, deep and full-bodied.

Shit.

Hikaru loses control.

He bucks his hips forward sharply, slowing down to pull out before thrusting in full-force once again, over and over, grunting each time his full length is swallowed, surrounded by ‘Yoshiki’ from all sides.

He angles his hips up to reach even deeper, maximizing the wet friction by pushing Unuki’s legs up above his torso as he continues his torturous rhythm.

He becomes addicted to watching their point of contact, how he disappears entirely into ‘Yoshiki’s body with each thrust of his hips, swallowed by an impossibly tight ring of muscle.

Though even with the licentious imagery, Hikaru can’t seem to shake an impending feeling of unease; knowing that his most intimate parts are exposed to the inner workings of an eldritch horror. He can feel the bizarre shapes sliding, squishing, and caressing their way all over him, cold and soaked in an intangible slimy residue.

It’s certainly not what a human should feel like.

Not what Yoshiki should feel like.

He fears he won’t be able to finish like this if the thought is constantly scratching at the back of his mind.

“Oi,” Hikaru voices between slaps of skin-on-skin.

“Mm?” Unuki barely manages.

“Can ya make yerself… look like the old Yosh’ki?” Hikaru calmly asks, a stark contrast to the rough nature of his movements.

Maybe if I can distract my brain enough I’ll stop thinkin’ about the monster shit. Hikaru instills.

“I… can try…” Unuki winces.

Hikaru closes his eyes preemptively this time.

He feels a light shifting tickle over his length that sends an electric wave up his spine directly to his brain stem.

When he opens his eyes again, he finds that he is now fucking ravenously into a much more familiar boy. One with long hair that covers his bounty of shame and no unsightly blemish on his forearm.

The shaded prisms of these eyes can refract no light.

Perfect.

The boy he dreamed of on every lonely night, fucking into his hand with a tissue box by his side, is finally beneath him.

Where he’s supposed to be. Tame and obedient and quiet.

He exists again, brought back to life by the monster.

And it’s almost real.

Fuck… he’s beautiful.

Hikaru lets his thoughts get away from him as he continues his mad writhing.

“Think yer better than me… don’tcha?” Hikaru challenges.

“N-no,” Unuki squeezes out.

“Not you… jus’ lemme get this out, ok? I’m almost there-“ Hikaru qualifies, grunting as his pace hastens.

Unuki nods once, eyes beginning to glisten with pleasure-filled tears.

“Ya think ya can go an’ grow up without me? Ya’ve always been a pathetic little whimpering faggot, ever since we were little- Ungh-“ Hikaru’s hips stutter as he curls in on himself, nearly tipping over the edge but choosing to still himself instead, milking the dominant feeling for all it’s worth.

“Yer quiet an’ ya do what I say. Only what I say. Cuz no one else can make ya feel good like this, ok? Only me. Yer mine… my Yosh’ki… Yosh’ki… god Yosh’ki…” Hikaru drones as he pushes deeper and deeper into Unuki with every thrust, eyes locked on ‘Yoshiki’s perfect face. Unuki’s eyes are soaked with tears, glazed over and squinting with pleasure - another face he has never seen Yoshiki make before.

Hikaru commits it to memory.

“Ya drive me fuckin’ crazy, ya know that? Actin’ like yer better than me. But just look at ya, moanin’ like a pathetic whore cuz ya can’t get enough a me. How many nights did ya spend jerkin’ off thinkin’ about me fuckin’ ya like this?”

Hikaru slowly raises his voice with each sentiment, unable to reign in his emotions or the growing intoxication in his shaft as it continues leaking a steady stream of prerelease into Unuki’s depths.

Until suddenly a pair of heavy footsteps speeds up and stops right outside the door.

Oh-

“Guys? I heard shoutin’- What’s wrong?”

Yoshiki opens the door, fully expecting to see the twin boys locked in an intense wrestling match over something inconsequential.

Instead he finds… himself(?) laying half-naked, on the floor, bathrobe askew, face flushed and panting like he has a fever.

And Hikaru sitting right under his legs, leaning forward and-

He drops his bag of goodies from the konbini straight onto the floor with a compounded thud.

Oh.

“Fuck… I was just about ta come… ya really do show up at the worst times, dumbass,” Hikaru bites.

“N-Nuki-chan?” Yoshiki stammers, still trying to process if the sight before him is real or some kind of cruel illusion.

Was I drugged?

Yoshiki rubs his eyes.

“Mm,” Unuki affirms before Hikaru picks up an even rougher pace, clearly frustrated by the loss of his hard-earned buildup, causing Unuki to scream and moan loud enough that Yoshiki is positive their neighbors will hear.

In his own voice.

“That’s right, I got ta claim yer precious Nuki-chan before ya got yer selfish little greedy hands on ‘im,” Hikaru brags while purposefully slowing and building his pace in a delicious cycle, still not meeting Yoshiki’s eyes.

“Hikaru? The hell are ya doin’ ta him?” Yoshiki suddenly smacks some sense into himself, barging his way into the room and slamming the door shut behind him in anger.

“Ya know he can’t feel things like we do, the fuck is this Hikaru? Are ya hurtin’ him? Did ya force yerself on him?” Yoshiki demands urgently, voice firm and unwavering.

“Nah, he asked fer this himself,” Hikaru mutters, eyes still locked on the picture-perfect Yoshiki before him. He worries tuning into the real thing with snap him out of his lust-filled bliss.

“Are ya sure?” Yoshiki retains his skepticism.

“I-I did- I wanted ta… know more… about it…” Unuki cuts in, mediating the situation before Yoshiki can get more upset.

“It… feels… Hikaru’s makin’ me… feel real good…” Unuki drunkenly adds, words dripping with lustful moans.

Hearing it come from his own mouth, the one that he’s stifled more than a handful of times, immediately brings a wave of heat from Yoshiki’s gut to his face.

And then another, embarrassingly obvious epiphany hits him, only deepening the flush.

“Wait… since ya look like that… did Hikaru ask ya to… change inta-“

“Ya can stop right there,” Hikaru cuts in before Yoshiki can finish.

Yoshiki can see the bright contrast of Hikaru’s ears turning red against his white hair.

He’s been caught.

Unuki stifles a snort, which is the only answer Yoshiki needs.

Hikaru wanted ta fuck me?

Yoshiki quells the burning anxiety in his stomach with a chuckle of his own as a wave of relief fills his chest to the brim.

Maybe I wasn’t reading too much into the situation at the beach, then…

Yoshiki exhales.

“Do ya really hate my haircut that much?” He jeers. “Ya coulda just told me-“

“God, shut the fuck up an’ get over here, ya cocky asshole,” Hikaru dismisses. Despite his disapproving grimace, his entire face burns with the clear flush of his exposed shame.

Hikaru reaches up from his position seated on the floor and grabs onto the front of Yoshiki’s shirt, yanking him down to their level.

Yoshiki lets it happen, falling to his knees with all the grace of a resigned marionette.

And suddenly Hikaru’s lips are pressed to his own.

For the first time.

It sparks like electricity on Yoshiki’s tongue.

Light and a prism colliding in an illuminated spectrum, every one of their truest colors on full display.

Yoshiki presses in, his throat moaning into Hikaru’s mouth like it’s all he’s ever wanted.

The soft, hot sensation on his tongue makes Hikaru buck his hips forward reflexively before shifting around in circles, his dick craving stimulation from Unuki on all sides. It pairs perfectly with Yoshiki’s flavor, his scent; the only things Unuki was missing. Things that only belong to the real Yoshiki. It sends Hikaru’s imagination into overdrive.

Hikaru pulls back to make a demand.

“Take yer shorts off.”

His words drip with urgency as he paws at Yoshiki’s waistband before letting Yoshiki take the lead on the task, kneeling forward and peeling them off along with his boxers.

Yoshiki looks down at his already half-developed erection, hanging out slightly over his thighs. Hikaru latches onto it with one hand as he grabs Yoshiki’s collar with the other, pulling and clashing their lips together once more.

There’s nothing in the world either of them could imagine needing more in this moment.

Before Yoshiki even has a moment to prepare, Hikaru begins to tug at him and pump him to full mast. Yoshiki breaks the kiss to look down at the sight, a thin strand of saliva drenched in hot breath still spanning the space between them, keeping them connected.

Hikaru looks down too, captivated by the way Yoshiki fills the entire space between his fingers.

“Yer even bigger than I remember…” Hikaru exhales mindlessly, his tone coated in succulent honey.

“Ya’ve never seen me hard before… an’ we haven’t bathed together since we were kids…” Yoshiki cockily smirks.

“God, shut the fuck up,” Hikaru rolls his eyes as he tugs Yoshiki forward again, pressing their lips together.

Hikaru takes careful note of the way Yoshiki’s pubic hair tickles over the front of his hand with each pump as he continues the ravenous kiss. Yoshiki can’t curb his own urge to push his hips forward every time Hikaru tugs over his base, pushing the pleasure ever deeper into his abdomen.

The large vein on the underside of Yoshiki’s length lights up like a fire as he feels his tip begin leaking. Hikaru’s hand gets swiftly caught up in the mess, smearing the thin opaque fluid over Yoshiki’s shaft with each stroke.

Yoshiki groans at the false sense of release as the pleasure continues building with each bead of precum. He opens his eyes to see Hikaru senselessly fucking into Unuki like he’s intoxicated, grinding and writhing and losing all sense of rhythm as his hand gropes over Yoshiki’s cock simultaneously like he’s trying to start a fire. Yoshiki nearly feels himself push over the edge just from the sight.

And then Unuki starts moaning again.

The sound takes a fast track straight from Yoshiki’s ears to his dick, not needing to work hard to imagine the pleasure of his own body getting pleasured senselessly by Hikaru like he’d always dreamed. Unuki looks fucked out of his mind, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as his mouth lolls open.

His own eyes. His own mouth.

A mirror straight to his deepest desires.

Yoshiki feels his own ass ache as he visualizes the sensation, his internal muscles tensing and contracting involuntarily as his eyes glance over Unuki from top to bottom and back again. He’s snapped out of his hypnotic trance by Hikaru suddenly squeezing around his shaft, a little too tight to be an accident.

“Look at me,” Hikaru implores, drooling. “Touch me.”

Yoshiki nods once, blinking himself back to reality.

He reaches a hand around Hikaru’s back, tracing a line down the contours and ridges of his spine and back muscles.

He drops his hands lower, cupping around the top of Hikaru’s butt. He runs over the swell of his asscheeks, groping slightly before sliding two of his fingers gingerly between.

He grazes them around, scanning and prodding for their final destination.

Hikaru exhales as Yoshiki teases, clearly apprehensive yet even more curious to push his current pleasure to a level even further beyond nirvana.

Hikaru leans into Yoshiki’s chest, wrapping his arms around his back, beckoned by the tight pressure of his fingers probing for entry to Hikaru’s depths. He locks his chin around Yoshiki’s shoulder, taking in his entire being; his warmth, his scent, the pounding of his heart.

Yoshiki finally breaches the barrier with one finger as Hikaru moans, nasally and unhindered. He slaps a hand to his mouth immediately in embarrassment.

Yoshiki chuckles.

“Ya sound like Nuki-chan when we’re mixin’.”

“S-so full…” Hikaru’s voice wavers into his fingers, no longer able to maintain his usual cocky, sarcastic persona through the potent stimulation.

The sudden change in sensation throws Hikaru into an entirely new plane of pleasure as he starts fucking Unuki slowly and purposefully, allowing Yoshiki’s finger to explore at his own pace from his backside.

Yoshiki presses deeper, driving his digit into the tight fleshy muscle until it hits a particularly soft, spongey niche.

He paws at it, curling his fingers and carefully analyzing the way Hikaru’s thrusting syncs pace with each beckoning gesture, controlling him like a puppet.

“More-,” Hikaru chokes out, his lower body picking up pace as Unuki joins in on the fun, shifting his lower body down so Hikaru can fuck him even deeper.

Unuki lets out another stifled moan at the new fullness, greedy and hungry for more. It’s music to both of their ears, echoing the deepest trenches of sensuality they are both in the throes of.

Yoshiki obliges, adding a second finger slowly and carefully, twisting the two digits around each other to properly stretch Hikaru’s opening.

Hikaru continues watching the way Unuki swallows him, submissive and desperate to be filled. The sight of Yoshiki’s familiar form being fucked senseless combined with the scent and heat of the real boy before him make Hikaru feel like he’s going insane; living out the greatest fantasy of his entire life.

“Y-Yosh’ki…” Hikaru moans, shifting his motions back and forth between grinding down into Yoshiki’s fingers and slowly fucking in and out of Unuki like he’s milking himself dry.

It’s all too good, pleasure coming from every direction no matter which way he moves, unable to escape the perpetual hurricane of escalating buildup.

Yoshiki thinks the white haired boy looks ethereal, losing himself to his lust and the desperate need for release stuck between two versions of his very self.

The selfish, possessive side of Yoshiki thinks he’s right where he belongs.

Yoshiki suddenly tunes into the throbbing between his own legs, his dick harder than even he can recall and still steadily leaking fresh prerelease with each delicious dose of lewd imagery and sounds. He misses the stimulation from Hikaru’s pumping, but from what he can tell the boy is far too preoccupied to continue.

Yoshiki decides to kill two birds with one stone, peeling Hikaru off of his chest as he removes his fingers from the whimpering boy’s thoroughly stretched hole.

Hikaru’s ass follows him, protesting the loss of stimulation before his dick tempts right back, urging him to thrust forward into Unuki’s depths once again lest he be left out in the open.

Yoshiki kneels forward and shifts his body around to Hikaru’s backside, finally lined up with his end goal.

He grazes his tip over Hikaru’s entrance, causing it to pucker involuntarily. The sight nearly makes Yoshiki pass out from the rush of blood from his brain straight to his dick, somehow hardening him even more.

“Fuck…” Yoshiki seethes.

Hikaru leans himself forward to give Yoshiki easier access, fully resting his body on Unuki’s cool and half-clothed chest. He continues bucking his hips in a slow and sensual gyration, not wanting the pleasure to end. Yoshiki has to grab his ass from both sides firmly to get him to stop moving so he can enter properly.

The pressure from Yoshiki’s dick pushes Hikaru down into Unuki as far as he can go, and both the boy and the monster release a sharp whimper simultaneously from the new, deepened weight.

Hikaru twitches, begging to move but thoroughly unable, caught sandwiched like he’s in a Yoshiki panini press.

Yoshiki makes it about halfway in, stalling the motion to drive the greedy pleasure in his core as crazy as possible. Every millimeter brings with it a new wave of heat, a new rush of dopamine straight to his synapses.

And suddenly Hikaru can’t take it anymore.

The white haired boy shoves his ass back against Yoshiki urgently, pushing him in the rest of the way all in one go.

“ACK-Hhhh—haahh-“

Yoshiki is the one to scream this time, the sudden stimulation completely unexpected.

Yoshiki catches his breath, trying his best to still his movements, cockwarming Hikaru for all he’s worth as he curls in on himself, panting.

The three stay there, connected, basking in the guilty bliss of the moment they have created together, before Yoshiki breaks the silence.

“I… never thought… I’d be on top…” Yoshiki admits, smiling slightly.

“Ya… aren’t…” Hikaru snidely and sarcastically retorts, eyes locked on Unuki below him, who he is now caging in with his arms.

Unuki remains silent, eyes slitted behind a curtain of hair, biting down on his own hand and twitching like he’s trying his best to not explode.

Yoshiki locks eyes with Unuki, face to face over Hikaru’s shoulder, as he smiles kindly as if to remind him that he’s safe and grounded. Unuki’s red pupils glimmer slightly at the gesture.

Yoshiki begins to move, thrusting his hips forward and backward slowly into Hikaru beneath him. Hikaru resigns himself to being pushed in and out of Unuki, letting Yoshiki take control of the pace.

With each thrust, Hikaru feels the fullness in his ass amplify simultaneously with the tightness surrounding his dick as he’s forced to fuck into Unuki, his nerves in both locations overstimulated and on fire yet desperate for more.

He could stay here like this forever and die happy, he thinks.

“Hnnnnhhh… Yosh’ki…” Hikaru moans into Unuki’s chest. “So big… shit…”

The compliment sends a shiver through Yoshiki’s tailbone, his abdominal muscles contracting as he feels himself picking up speed with every thrust. He stares Unuki down from above, a bit embarrassed to be looking at a version of himself he’d rather forget, but even more enamored with the monster he knows resides within.

Unuki is the only reason he’s ever felt comfortable facing himself.

Yoshiki loses control, fucking into Hikaru with abandon as he resigns himself to his most carnal urges. He feels the hypnotic pull of Unuki before him as he guiltily leans down, over Hikaru’s shoulder.

He brushes his lips against the monster’s.

And it’s all over for him.

Yoshiki licks a stripe over Unuki’s mouth, ravenously biting and sucking at the monster’s -his own- lips. They moan together, echoes of each other, mad with desire. The wet sounds of saliva and smacking lips permeate and assault the space right beside Hikaru’s ear as Yoshiki continues fucking into him.

Hikaru turns his head towards the spectacle to be met with Yoshiki making out with himself, sloppy and starving. A mess of pale, mole-dotted skin and silken ebony hair, lips locked together in a delicious tug of war that they are both winning. They both moan in a deep, sensual voice into each other’s mouths.

“Fuck… that’s… so hot,” Hikaru forces out between sharp, deep bucks of Yoshiki’s hips.

The guilty sight of it is enough to finally send Hikaru over the edge after his excessive buildup.

“C-coming…” Hikaru urgently warns.

Yoshiki groans, feeling Hikaru’s hips stutter against him as he begins to take some control back and fuck himself through his orgasm.

Unuki feels his insides flooding with even more hot fluid than he ever thought possible as Hikaru’s dick shoots spurt after spurt of cum. The sensation brings Unuki to tears as steady streaks of salt water trickle down his cheeks, only to be lapped up by Yoshiki’s tongue.

Yoshiki feels Hikaru’s insides squeeze and pulse against him as he loses himself in the pleasure, causing Yoshiki to follow close behind as he feels the pressure in his tip begin to teeter past the precipice.

“S-shit-“

Yoshiki’s orgasm flows out of him before he can brace for it, suddenly stuffing Hikaru full as his dick shoots its first contractions of hot fluid. Yoshiki immediately increases his rhythm as he begins fucking Hikaru ravenously, determined to milk as much out of himself as he can as he feels each spurt deliver a shockwave of intoxication. There isn’t anything in the world that could make him stop. He wants to stuff Hikaru until he leaks.

Hikaru, overstimulated and spent, feels himself involuntarily scream as his voice bounces with each thrust, addicted to the hot and wet fullness of Yoshiki permeating his own insides. He feels the ample volume of Yoshiki’s release begin to drip out of him and down his taint with each thrust, increasing the ease in which Yoshiki can slide in and out and driving them both to another plane of bliss.

A few prolonged moments pass in erotic silence once the two have come down.

And suddenly Unuki breaks.

“I-I can’t anymore- m’sorry Hikaru-“

Unuki’s face begins rapidly leaking an explosion of abstract shapes and colors from every orifice until they have swallowed every one of ‘Yoshiki’s features.

The tentacles enclose around Hikaru’s head before he can even make sense of what’s happening, engulfing him in a sea of fractals that overtake each of his five senses.

It sounds like being beneath the ocean, a dull and deep echo all around.

It pulls a repressed, familiar memory from deep in his synapses.

One of the moment just before he died.

The last time he felt this sensation.

And the white haired boy starts to panic.

“Both… souls… so pretty…” Unuki echoes through the incomprehensible space in a voice neither boy recognizes as he engulfs both Yoshiki and Hikaru together.

Hikaru immediately brings his hands to his ears to block out the sound, shaking in terror as he feels his vision start to blur, consciousness fading.

Yoshiki aptly senses Hikaru’s demeanor, however, pressing himself down into the boy beneath him and bringing a hand to wrap around his chest. Yoshiki squeezes, trying his best to calm Hikaru through a compressing embrace, feeling his heart racing in his palm.

“It’s ok, jus’ breathe through it… he’s not gonna hurt us,” Yoshiki comforts, pulling Hikaru close. “Trust Nuki-chan, ok? He feels good in his own kinda way-“

Hikaru continues tensing while blocking his ears, though allows his upper back to relax slightly into the sensation. He nods.

Unuki’s being grazes over the two boys from all directions, caressing over the contours of their souls.

“So… warm…” the voice echoes, enraptured.

Hikaru shivers at the sensation.

“Try ta relax inta it, like yer gettin’ a massage,” Yoshiki suggests. “It can feel kinda nice.”

His calm demeanor given their current predicament pisses Hikaru off about 20%, but 80% of him is glad he’s there for emotional support. He is sure he’d have a panic attack and pass out if the other boy wasn’t there.

I wonder if the old Yosh’ki would be this confident in this situation…

Maybe this one ain’t so bad.

Hikaru forces himself to take a deep breath, removing his hands from his ears as he permits Unuki to explore him inside and out.

He can’t seem to bring himself to open his eyes, but slowing his heart is progress enough for now.

He decides to analyze the feeling. Acknowledging it might make it less scary.

It’s cold, slimy, and vibrates slightly with each motion and sound. It crashes like waves, rolling over itself and echoing at every point of contact.

But it doesn’t hurt, nor sting, nor burn. It doesn’t quite feel good either, like Yoshiki said.

It just simply is.

“Nuki-chan-“

Yoshiki cuts through the enigma, figuring that it’s had enough fun.

And slowly, it begins to retract. A Pavlovian response to hearing its own name from the person it loves most.

One of the people it loves most.

A few moments pass, and Hikaru suddenly notices he is freed from the goopy encapsulation, opening his eyes back in the safety of their tatami hotel room.

And beneath him he finds Unuki, looking like himself again -or rather- looking like Hikaru.

Unuki smiles up at him, devious snaggletooth peeking out as if to say ‘Gotcha!’

Hikaru feels every muscle in his body relax at the familiar scenery.

Thank god that’s over…

Until Yoshiki starts pulling out, and he feels his abdomen immediately tense again. He winces.

Yoshiki slips out unceremoniously with a slight ‘shlop,’ Hikaru’s ass leaking Yoshiki’s spent jizz slightly as it reflexively twitches at the loss of pressure.

Hikaru, now embarrassed by his compromised position, immediately follows suit as he sits back onto his heels, his dick leaving Unuki at long last. He feels like he’s been inside forever.

And suddenly the three boys are left in silence, all half-naked, with nothing but their post-nut clarity to comfort them.

The same thought echoes in Hikaru and Yoshiki’s heads simultaneously.

What the fuck did we just do?

Yoshiki and Hikaru both stare in a deadlock at Unuki, entirely expecting him to break the ice.

Thankfully, the monster never disappoints.

“That felt sooooo good… I’ve never had two souls inside me before! It was like havin’ two different flavors of ice cream at the same time- but like, both of my favorite flavors- like Pappico and Gachigachi-kun together! Wait- that wouldn’t taste very good- this was like that but if it tasted really REALLY good,” Unuki clarifies, eyes darting up to think through his absurd point.

Hikaru and Yoshiki laugh in unison at the concept of being compared to ice cream.

“Ya sound like yer actually gonna eat us some day-“ Hikaru jests, his voice half-shaky.

“S-sorry- I didn’t mean ta scare ya… It was jus’ too much feeling ya inside me like that… with both a ya so close… I might not be able ta feel that same human pleasure like ya do with my body like this, but, havin’ two souls in me was like heaven in itself, so… thank ya… I haven’t lost control a’ myself like that in a long time…”

Yoshiki nods thoughtfully at Unuki’s rambling.

“I’m glad ya were able ta feel good, too,” Yoshiki smiles.

But the levity and adoration for the monster suddenly brings a familiar guilty thought to the forefront of his mind.

He decides to voice it aloud for once; to bare his soul to the two who deserve to know the most.

“I… I’ve been havin’ a real tough time recently… thinkin’ that I have ta choose between the two a’ ya,” Yoshiki starts. “So comin’ back ta ya both, well… like that… was kinda like a dream come true, in a way,” Yoshiki chuckles, his eyes falling to the floor.

“Selfish bastard,” Hikaru jabs.

Despite his angry tone, Yoshiki catches the tips of Hikaru’s ears turning red again out of the corner of his eye.

“I s’pose I am…” Yoshiki smiles in defeat.

One of ‘em is a dude, the other is a monster, an’ I love both of ‘em at the same time…

What the hell is wrong with me?

Yoshiki laughs at his own absurd inner dialogue, prompting Unuki to tilt his head.

“What’s funny?” the monster inquires.

“Nothin’… jus’ never expected my life ta turn out like this,” Yoshiki listlessly reminisces.

But I don’t think I could imagine bein’ happier…

“Also, Hikaru has a mark on his dick now,” Yoshiki adds, pointing at his still-exposed friend.

“WHAT?”

Hikaru looks down, and sure enough his dick is covered in the same dark cross-hatch scarring pattern as Yoshiki’s arm.

“FUCKIN’ HELL?!? I’M GONNA KILL YOU!”

Hikaru lunges at Unuki by the throat and begins pinning the monster down, choking him just as he did at the beach, but this time Yoshiki can tell there’s no actual anger behind it, despite it now being justified.

Unuki starts cackling at Hikaru’s misfortune. Hikaru smiles right back.

It’s refreshing. Music to Yoshiki’s ears.

I gotta remember ta text Asako an update in the morning, he thinks.

Yoshiki lays back onto his futon next to the wrestling twin boys, stretching his arms above his head before re-adorning his thankfully still-clean boxers and gym shorts from earlier to get ready for bed. He turns onto his side, appreciating the view before him without shame for the first time.

And he thinks himself the luckiest boy in the world.

~Fin~

(P.S. Hikaru and Unuki make up but then immediately start fighting again when they have to decide who gets to put the aloe lotion on Yoshiki.)