Chapter Thirty-Eight: December 29th

Incessant pounding on the bedroom door jolts Makoto awake, and the first thing he sees when his eyes fly open are a pair of baby blues, studying him curiously.

The noise that instinctively flies out of his mouth is both extremely girly and extremely embarrassing, and it seems to amuse Haruka greatly.

"You snore when you sleep," He announces matter-of-factly, a smirk curling on his lips. Makoto realizes he's still pressed up against Haruka, and he appreciates the sharing of body heat, because the house is clearly not heated. The moment Haruka pulls away the comforter, a chill hits Makoto's body and he shivers.

"Yo, bitches! We're having breakfast now, whether you're awake or not!" Asuka shouts from the other side of the door, her voice slightly muffled. Haruka snorts at her words. "We're having blueberry pancakes!"

"We're coming!" Haruka shouts back impatiently. "Calm your tits, Asuka!"

"Yeah, I bet you are," She mutters, but it is loud enough for Makoto to hear. He ignores it, however, and dares to ask the pressing question on his mind.

"What are pancakes?" Makoto echoes in confusion, and Haruka's eyes go wide in utter shock.

"Never ask that question again," He threatens in a deadly serious tone. Makoto blinks, unfazed.

"What?"

"You're disgusting," Haruka dismisses him with a disappointed click of his tongue. "Blueberry pancakes are the best thing to ever exist." He shakes his head.

"Come on, let's go downstairs. Well...." His eyes cast downwards for a second. "After you deal with your problem," He smirks. Before Makoto can say anything, Haruka slides off the bed and trods out of the bedroom.

Makoto looks down.

Fuck.

- - - -

After taking a much-needed shower, Makoto wanders downstairs fifteen minutes later, in a fresh change of clothes and a towel around his neck. He feels more refreshed now, lucky that he's adjusted to the new time zone so quickly.

By the time he heads down the downstairs hallway, a wonderful, but unknown scent hits his nose. He rounds the corner, seeing the entire family bustling around the kitchen to get breakfast. Albert is at the stove, pouring running batter on a griddle with one hand and flipping a flat-shaped disc with a spatula in the other.

Suzuka is situated next to her mother at the dining table, who is cutting up the same disc with a knife and dousing it in sticky brown syrup. Mr. Amakata is at the head of the table, sipping a mug of coffee and reading the newspaper.

And of course, Haruka and Asuka are bantering, seemingly fighting over who gets a certain seat. They're arguing in French, so Makoto doesn't get what they're saying, but he hears his name mentioned a couple times, which makes him anxious.

Instead, he moves towards the food, grabs a plate from the stack on the kitchen island, and awkwardly approaches Albert. He notices Makoto's presence and gives him a warm smile, gesturing to the discs on the griddle.

"You want...?" He asks slowly, tripping over his Japanese. Followed by: "Pancakes?" in a thick French accent.

Makoto nods quickly. "Oui," He smiles kindly. That's probably one of the three French words he does know, so it's a relief to finally know what to say. Albert nods, flipping two pancakes onto his plate. He points to the kitchen counter, where other food awaits to be eaten. It's all extremely uncommon for a typical Japanese person, but he doesn't complain; instead of the standard rice and miso soup for breakfast, there is sliced-up fruit, croissants, jam, and a large pot of black coffee.

Makoto goes for the coffee and piles some strawberry and apple slices on his plate. He fills a mug with coffee, not knowing where the milk was but not knowing how to ask either, and takes a seat at the other end of the table. Haruka and Asuka look at him incredulously, and then at each other, before scrambling into the two seats next to him.

"How do I eat this?" He asks dumbly to them, ushering to his pancake.

"With your mouth, preferably," Asuka jokes, mouth filled with food.

"Ha, aren't you hilarious," Makoto rolls his eyes. "I mean do I eat it plain? What is Suzuka having on hers? This is all so strange to me."

"Pancakes are pretty popular in Western countries," Haruka explains. "You can serve pancakes with anything. Butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar, hazelnut spread, anything, really."

Makoto goes for the stick of butter and cuts himself a small slice with his fork, dropping it on the pancake. He cuts into the pancake and takes a small, tentative bite, not expecting much from what was a gross-colored lumpy blob before it was cooked.

After a moment, he quickly realizes how wrong he was to prejudge the pancakes.

Haruka was right. Well, he usually was, but this was different. Pancakes are the best thing to ever grace this planet. He shovels more bites into his mouth, hardly slowing down to cut proper bites.

"Woah there, slow down!" Asuka tells him as he chews happily. "Drink some coffee or you'll choke."

Makoto swallows some of the coffee, the bitter liquid burning his tongue but he doesn't care.

"This is amazing!" He exclaims, voice muffled by all the food in his mouth. He turns to Haruka, grinning. "Thank you for opening me up into this new world of wonder."

"What did I say?" He retaliates proudly. "They're the best."

By the time the kids have finished breakfast, the whole family is lounging around the downstairs. The adults are still at the kitchen table, sipping coffee and talking amongst themselves, while the kids amuse themselves with a board game.

"That's my property," Asuka beams when Haruka moves his piece onto Marvin Gardens. "That'll be $360, please."

"Are you kidding me?" Haruka shouts. "It's a yellow property! Those are hardly worth any money."

"Yeah, but I have the whole color set," She smirks, gesturing to the square on the game board. "And -" She draws out the word, just to tease him, "I have two houses. So pay up."

"Ugh," Haruka grumbles, tossing her the bills. She collects them happily, tucking them into the piles in front of her lap. She hands Makoto the dice, her fingers brushing against Makoto's palm as she drops them. "Your turn, Makoto."

Makoto looks at Haruka, who is staring at their hands. When he notices Makoto is staring back, he looks away, biting the inside of his cheek.

The game lasts for another hour until Asuka falls back on the carpet, sighing in exasperation.

"I'm bored," She announces loudly, as if she expects the rest of the family to cater to her excitement level.

"Hey bored," Mr. Amakata says from the table, a grin on his face. "I'm Dad."

Asuka groans again. "Can we do something?" She whines. "I'm tired of Monopoly."

"That's only because you spent all your money on hotels and now you're broke and about to lose," Haruka retorts, casually counting through his hundred dollar bills.

"Details, details," She dismisses him. "Mom, can we go somewhere?"

"Your father, grandparents, and I are going to the flea market around the corner," Miss Amakata explains gently. "You can come if you would like."

"Ugh, the flea market is so smelly," She wrinkles her nose. Suddenly, her eyes light up when an idea pops into her head. "Hey! Maybe Haruka and I can go show Makoto the downtown area? We're old enough to walk there, right?"

The parents share a look, and Mr. Amakata shrugs aimlessly, seemingly indifferent to the idea. "I don't see why not," Miss Amakata says slowly, looking to Makoto to make sure he's interested. Makoto shrugs, smiling, and she nods. "Sure. Just stick together. And take Suzuka with you."

"Will do!" She leaps to her feet, grabbing Makoto's hands and yanking him off the floor. "Let's go!"

"Hey! Help me clean up the game first!" Haruka barks, and she rolls her eyes, kneeling back down and tossing game pieces messily into the box. Haruka, however, takes his time putting the cards in color-coded order and tucks them neatly into the corner, alongside the board. By the time he covers the box with the lid, Asuka is jumping out of her own skin to get out the door. She races to throw on a coat and eggs on the others to get ready as fast as her.

Finally, finally, they get out the door and start walking through the village. Asuka launches into an explanation about the village's history that Makoto only half-listens to; he's more focused on Haruka and the way he lingers behind, not really involving himself in the conversation.

The walk to the downtown area takes about fifteen minutes. It's a quaint little town, with just enough to do to keep you interested, but small enough for everyone to know everyone. Most of the citydwellers walk the streets instead of drive, but the occasional car or motorcycle breezes by. The wintry wind nips at their noses as they weave through the streets.

Suzuka takes Makoto's hand as they cross the street, and doesn't let go once they cross. Makoto thinks she looks adorable, bundled up in her coat, cat-shaped earmuffs, and fuzzy mittens.

They explore all the little wonders of the village, from bookstores to cafes, vinyl shops and ice cream parlors, even a large shopping center with high-falutin department stores and luxury name-brands.

"Ooh! Let's do some shopping!" Asuka gushes, pointing to the outlet center.

"I don't know if that's a good i- woah!" Makoto's sentence is interrupted by a shout of surprise as Asuka grabs his hand and yanks him towards a teenage clothing store.

"Asuka! Slow down!" Haruka shouts from behind, dragging Suzuka along, who seems to be mystified as to why three grown teenagers are running towards an H&M.

The store is all fluorescent lights and too-thin mannequins, but Asuka seems to be in her element as she guides Makoto through the store and up an escalator to the men's section. "You need a fashion upgrade," She tells him seriously. "I mean, basic long-sleeve tops and old jeans? Could you be any more boring?"

"Hey!" Makoto shouts defensively. "I happen to like my sense of style, thank you."

"We're going to fix this," Asuka shakes her head. "Ooh, this would be good on you. What size?"

"Large," Makoto looks down at the clothing rack Asuka is currently flipping through. She grabbed a denim-colored collar button up, and then another in black. They cycle around the store, Asuka grabbing different items so quickly Makoto quickly loses track of them all. Before long, she has a pile of garments tucked in the crook of her elbow, and is dragging him to the changing room.

The pile is shoved in his chest. "Try these on," She demands, practically kicking him into the dressing room. Nodding meekly, Makoto pulls back the curtain, sighing when he's alone. The wrath of a teenage girl in a shopping mall is unmatched, he thinks wearily as he peels off his jacket.

Each opinion of Asuka's is immediate as he shows off the different clothes.

"Wrong color."

"Too short."

"Nah. Pass."

By the fourth time he comes out of the changing room, Haruka is situated on the waiting chair next to Asuka, Suzuka in his lap and tapping on his cell phone happily.

"How's this?" Makoto holds his arms out. He's wearing the black button-up, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, paired with a pair of cranberry-colored pants.

"Yes!" Asuka shouts. "Finally! That outfit is a definite yes. What do you think, Haruka?"

Haruka doesn't answer; he's too busy staring. This goes unnoticed to Asuka, however, and she smiles, waving him back into the dressing room.

Next is a grey knit sweater and black ripped jeans that are so not his style, but based on Asuka's excited clapping, they look good enough to buy. "Plus, they're on sale! How could you pass up this opportunity?"

Before he goes back in the dressing room, he leans into Haruka's ear and whispers "Careful, Haru-chan, you're drooling," In a teasing voice that makes Haruka shiver. Pleased, he practically skips back into the dressing room.

He tries on a flannel shirt after that, but it's a size too small. Poking his head out, he asks Asuka, "Will you go get me a large? You accidentally grabbed me a medium."

Asuka disappears into the store, and with Suzuka occupied with the phone, Haruka takes the chance to enter the changing room, drawing the curtain back. Makoto whirls around, taking in his usual scowl but noticing the mischievous glint in his eyes.

"What are you doing?" He asks quietly.

Haruka steps closer, grabbing his hands and guiding him back until he's against the wall. Makoto flushes at the close proximity to Haruka; it feels so different than the playful teasing when he held Haruka's sketchbook last night.

One hand stays on the wall to block him in, but Haruka's other hand comes to lightly stroke Makoto's cheek. His toes automatically curl and he stiffens under the delicate touch, and Haruka bites his lip, trying not to smile.

"You look really good in the clothes," He whispers, even though no one is around to hear. "Like, really good. But you'd look even better while I'm taking them off," He says slowly, sliding one hand under the too-small flannel and sliding his fingers up the Makoto's stomach, tracing constellations wherever they touch.

"Haru..." Makoto whispers, and Haruka's eyes only light up brighter. "We can't... Not here..."

Haruka makes him shut up by pressing his mouth to the sensitive skin of Makoto's neck. Makoto gasps, biting his lip to keep from making any noise. Just the gentle movement of his breath sends his body into overdrive.

Haruka knows this is his weak spot. He knows that once his lips make contact, Makoto's resistance will crumble, sending his head spinning and removing all thoughts but Haru, Haru, Haru....

He feels like a piano, as Haruka sings a melody into his skin and presses chords into the dips of his stomach.

"Makoto, I got the large," Asuka shouts from outside the curtain. Makoto tenses up and nearly squeaks in surprise, but Haruka seems unfazed and continues to work Makoto's skin.

Makoto's breath curls against the skin just beneath his ear as Haruka's hands scratch down Makoto's sides. Hands curled tightly in Haruka's hair, he prays his voice will sound level.

"Okay, give me a minute, I'm trying on something else," He calls out.

She silently tosses the shirt over the changing room. It falls to the floor, forgotten. Haruka nibbles on his ear, and Makoto squeezes his arms, struggling to stay silent.

"Make sure you get the jeans," Haruka whispers into his ear. "They make your ass look amazing."

Makoto feels his face turn bright red as Haruka pulls away, leaving one last lingering kiss before leaving the changing room. He vaguely hears Asuka and Haruka talking, but can't focus on anything but the feeling of searing heat on his skin.

Damn it.

- - - -

Eventually, Suzuka gets too tired and wants to go home to take a nap. After much complaining (and a lot of glaring on Haruka's end until she gave up) Asuka agrees to walk her home, while Haruka and Makoto stay out. Haruka says he wants to show Makoto another place before they go home for the day.

The moment the girls round the corner, Haruka locks his hand with his.

"What's up with you guys?" Makoto asks in slight worry when they're out of earshot.

"I don't know what you mean," Haruka huffs in his usual unemotional way.

"Oh, well," Makoto gesticulates, searching for the right words. "I guess I've just noticed there's a high amount of tension between you and Asuka-chan?" He forms it as a question, not a statement. "More so than your usual banter."

"Nothing," Haruka grumbles quickly. "She just won't give up."

"Give up on what?"

Haruka looks at him incredulously, not believing he's actually serious. When he sees the genuine confusion on Makoto's face, he shakes his head. "Just forget about it, Makoto," He finally says. "It's not important."

Makoto doesn't really want to forget it, because clearly it's bothering Haruka, but he drops it anyway. Instead, he diverts the topic. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

They walk down a separate road that diverges from the main network of roads in the town. The unpaved path eventually becomes a sandy trail. The unmistakable fragrance of saltwater hits Makoto's nose and he knows they're at the beach before he even sees the ocean.

"So," Haruka begins as they walk through the sand closer to the shoreline, "I'm sure you remember this from World History class, but the Normandy beaches are world famous because the D-Day landings were the key to liberating France and the rest of Europe from years of Germanic military occupation."

Makoto nods along, having forgotten the World War II lessons the moment they finished the test but not willing to admit it.

"My great grandfather was a photographer in World War II. He actually took some of the famous aerial shots of the Hiroshima bombings, some of which are good enough to be displayed in national museums."

"That's so cool!" Makoto gushes as they approach the sea. A strip of icy blue is in view now, a sliver of crystal just out of reach.

Haruka nods. "It was also how he met my great-grandmother. She ran away from home and met him in Japan when he was taking photos of the remains of the atomic bombings. After the war, they decided to get married."

"That's cute," Makoto smiles.

"Yes, I suppose it is," Haruka agrees. "Everyone has their own little stories that don't sound like much to others, but it completely transforms their lives."

They're walking along the stretch of sand by the beach now. To his left are the beautiful, sky-high cliffs, to the right is a sparkling ocean that draws back and forth, nipping at their shoes.

"The little things count the most, right?" Makoto muses.

"Yeah. They're what you remember."

"What do you remember the most about us, Haru-chan?" Makoto asks.

Haruka seems slightly taken aback by the question, but he's quick to answer nonetheless. "Like you said, the little things. The swingset. Giving me your scarf. Cooking me breakfast. Convincing me to stop smoking. Peach tea and coffee. Your smile, when you think I don't notice-"

"Wait, back up," Makoto said, trying to ignore the feeling of his stomach swelling like a balloon from sheer happiness. "What was that about smoking?"

"Oh," Haruka says, but doesn't elaborate.

"Have you quit?" Makoto presses.

"Trying to," Haruka shrugs.

"Why the change?" Makoto asks. "I know it helps with your, uh-"

"This really annoying guy told me it was disgusting," Haruka interrupts, a small smile on his face. "Somehow, he got to me, and convinced me to change my ways."

"Haru!" Makoto cries, stopping to throw his arms around Haruka's shoulders in an excited bear-hug. "That's great! Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Because I knew I'd get this kind of reaction out of you," Haruka groans, allowing Makoto to squeeze the life out of him. Makoto practically twirls him around in the air, he's so overjoyed.

"I'm so proud of you!" He exclaims, so hysterical that he's close to tears.

"Yeah, yeah," Haruka rolls his eyes. "Ugh, remind me to never be sappy around you. I can't breathe."

Makoto lets go, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry," He giggles.

"It's okay," Haruka smiles. "I like it."

Makoto feels his face break out into a grin and he can't help himself from placing a finger under Haruka's chin and tilting his head up so he can press their lips together. Never mind the fact they are currently in the middle of a public beach with plenty of people walking along the sand. He sure doesn't mind the stares.

The only reason why they stop is because Haruka's phone begins to blast an annoying ringtone, and judging by the way Haruka huffs as he pulls away, he finds it just as irritating. He flips open his phone and starts speaking in French, so Makoto stands by his side awkwardly and watches as his posture goes rigid and his dreamy smile morphs into a frown.

After saying something else, he ends the call and pockets the device. "We have to go back," He announces suddenly, letting go of Makoto's hand and starting to walk in a different direction, but not towards the entrance, either.

"What's wrong? And where are we going?" Makoto calls behind him, quickening his pace to catch up with him. Haruka says nothing - typical - and continues to march away, refusing to look back.

Makoto is worried, to say the least. It's normal for him to overthink these things, but when it comes to Haruka, it's like his anxiety has reserved a large chunk of his anxiousness just for Haruka-related problems.

Luckily, the walk home from the beach isn't that big of a deal. Haruka shows him a secret way up a few flights of stairs hidden by some large ferns. Out of breath by the time he reaches the top, he's relieved to see they're already in the right neighborhood.

As they walk down the road, Makoto keeps sneaking side glances at the shorter boy. Based on the way Haruka's shoulders are tense, how he's clenching his fists in his coat pockets, and gnawing at his lip like a piece of chewing gum, lost in thought, something bad is waiting for them at home.

They get to the house and walk up the front steps. Makoto tries to take Haruka's hand and squeeze it supportively, but Haruka yanks it away quickly.

"What's wr-" Makoto tries to ask again, but is silenced by the front door opening, and then he's face-to-face with a familiar woman. Her lipsticked mouth upturns into a forced smile.

"Hi, Haruka," She deadpans in a fake-cheery voice.

"Mom."