Chapter Twenty: December 17th

A/N: oh hey, December 17th. it's the day I asked out my boyfriend. Yippee. No one cares, Han.

"Damn it, Makoto! You burnt my freakin' hand!"

Makoto stares at Haruka in horror, clutching the coffee pot of hot water so tightly his knuckles are turning white. Haruka grabs onto his now bright-red hand, doubled over, hissing in pain.

Makoto tries to stammer out an apology. "S-sorry! I didn't mean-"

"You were supposed to change the coffee filter!" Haruka interrupts him, shouting angrily from his pain. "How the hell did you manage to spill boiling water on me?"

"I... I don't know what happened, I was just-"

Haruka cuts him off with a disgusted eye roll as he marches into the back room towards the sink. Makoto watches him leave, stomach twisting in frustration and worry. After a moment, he hears the rushing of water.

For a moment, Makoto stands alone in the bookstore, blood buzzing under his skin like pins and needles, stewing in his annoyance. He allows himself to collapse as his head falls into his hands, his elbows resting on the counter. He exhales frustratedly, trying to let the tension leave with the breath, feeling idiotic at his mistake.

It was funny, really; he initially thought this bookstore job would be easy. He did so well shelving books with Asuka - though, it wasn't that complicated to figure out - and he didn't mind the tediousness of it. He figured the rest of the job would be easy to pick up on as well, but that theory is being proved wrong with his lack of ability to make a cup of coffee. Or at least be able to change the filter.

The worst part is, Makoto had repeatedly told Haruka he was going to mess up working the coffee machine. A fair warning was given, and yet Haruka ignored him like the stubborn guy he is. Makoto isn't even sure if this incident is his fault or Haruka's.

Haruka returns after a few minutes, rubbing an ice cube on his palm. "One thing's for sure. You're permanently going to be on book-shelving duty."

"I'm so sorry, Haruka. I really didn't mean to pour the hot water everywhere," Makoto apologizes, feeling his face warm up with embarrassment.

"Whatever, Makoto," Haruka rolls his eyes. "I'll get it over it. It's not like I'm going to die or anything."

What did he just say?

Makoto stares at him in absolute shock, completely horrified at what Haruka had said. What exactly was Haruka playing at, saying something like that? His face grows pale and he has to clench his fists to keep them from shaking; surely Haruka was making a joke... but at the same time, he's not, and Makoto knows it.

"Makoto, stop spacing out," Haruka snaps his fingers in front of his face. "God, you're such a ditz sometimes."

"Yeah well," Makoto comes up with the best comeback he can without thinking, "Only around you, Nanase."

Wait.

It took a couple moments for it to register in Makoto's mind how stupid he was to say something like that.

Makoto quickly takes a step backwards and he turns around, suddenly very interested in meticulously arranging the pastries in the display counter He can feel Haruka watching him, and his face burns as he tries not to hyperventilate.

"What was that, Makoto?" Haruka sounds curious now, taking a step closer. He speaks in an airy way, like he knows exactly what Makoto had said and he just wants to see him squirm.

"Nothing," Makoto says quietly, moving onto washing the dishes. He wrestles with some coffee mugs and saucers, getting every speck of dirt off them. He scrubs at them so hard he's afraid they may shatter under his hands.

"Do I make you nervous, Makoto?" Haruka tries again, so close, and Makoto can't think of anything but his presence and it makes the hair on his arms stand up. He bites the inside of his cheeks to keep himself from doing something he's sure he'd regret later.

"No," He responds shortly instead.

"See, I don't believe you," Makoto can practically hear him smirking now, his voice teasing and amused. "I think you're lying."

"Says you," Makoto fires back, picking at a spot on the mug to keep his hands from doing anything but what he wants them to do.

But he doesn't have to, because Haruka does it for him; he takes the cup out of Makoto's hands and sets it in the sink, grabbing Makoto's wrists and pushing him back towards the counter. Makoto stares down at him in shock, knowing full-well his face is currently resembling a rose garden in full bloom. Haruka's skin is so cool to the touch it practically sears through him. Atoms crackle with electricity in the limited space between their noses, enough energy to run through his spine and threaten to electrocute him.

"Why do I make you nervous, Makoto?" Haruka asks, the playful smirk still on his face but an underlying worry in his expression.

"Why do you care so much, Haruka?" Makoto tries to retort, desperately hoping he doesn't shiver from the tension. "I never said I did."

"Hmm," Haruka hums, seemingly lost in thought. His voice is dangerously low as he takes the mugs out of Makoto's hands. "You practically just gave yourself away right there. The fact your hands are shaking tells me otherwise."

"Whatever," Makoto tries to act nonchalant, pulling his hands away from Haruka's grip. "Let's just get back to work."

"Just don't burn my hand again, okay?" Haruka jokes. "And hey, maybe if you do well enough, someday you'll be promoted to cash register duty."

"Can't wait."

- - - -

Nagisa's voice is staticky over the line as Makoto video calls him much later that eveing, his phone camera pointed towards his full-length bathroom mirror. "Let's see what you came up with."

"How is this?" Makoto asks nervously, fiddling with the hem of his t-shirt.

"Hmm," Nagisa thinks for a moment. "How do i put this... You look like you grabbed the least dirty pieces of clothing out of your laundry hamper," He finally says.

Makoto frowns at his brutal honesty, but after staring at the shirt a little bit longer, he notices a hole near the arm and an unknown stain next to the collar. "You're right," Makoto agrees sullenly, setting the phone down to pull off the shirt.

"What about that flannel you have?" Nagisa shouts from the phone. "You know, the red one."

"Good idea," Makoto dives into his clothes dresser and pulls a couple shirts out of the drawer before he finds the article of clothing he is looking for: a dark red flannel shirt. It is slightly wrinkled, but considering most of the people at this party will be drunk and won't recognize the person in front of them, it will do.

"Makoto-senpai, we have to go, Nagisa's driving and if he doesn't focus on the road he's going to get both of us in a car accident," Rei's voice echoes from the speaker. "We'll be at your house in about five minutes."

"Be ready, Mako-chan! We'll be at your house in about two minutes!" Nagisa shouts.

"Nagisa-kun, watch out, there's a squirrel in the road!" Makoto hears Rei's screech of horror. Screams and angry shouts follow, and the line goes dead.

Makoto stares at his phone, wondering if she should be worried. He supposed he'd find out in five minutes whether or not they'd made it to his house in one piece. Shrugging, he tosses his phone on his bed and pulls the flannel on, taking his time buttoning it up but leaving the top two buttons untouched. He fiddles with the second button for a minute, deciding if he wants to button it, eventually undoing it again and pulling the collar to lie flat on his chest.

After running his fingers through his hair and making it look perfectly messy, he decides he's content with his look. Usually he doesn't go out to huge social events, in fact, he can't even remember the last time he'll be around so many people from his school when they're not surrounded by the walls of Iwatobi High, so he wants to blend in the best he can.

His plan for the evening consists of staying close to the walls, talking with Haruka, and hopefully getting more answers straight from the source the moment he downs a drink or two.

Makoto pockets his phone in the back pocket of his ripped black jeans and grabs a drawstring bag, a prop he's using to fool his mother. He exits his room, knowing he has to make it through the kitchen (meaning passing his mother) before he can reach the freedom of the outdoors.

His hand is on the doorknob to the front door when the voice he wants to ear echoes quietly through the home.

"Makoto?"

Shit. Makoto sighs in defeat and turns around slowly, calling back. "Yes?"

"Are you off to Nagisa's house, honey? Do you want me to give you a ride?" He hears her offer. She sounds worried. His mother is typically docile in nature, but today she is quieter than usual, like something big is on her mind. Makoto would've picked up on it if he weren't so focused on getting out of the door and lying without her catching him. "Dad and I are going out tonight. The kids are at Grandma's. You'll be fine at his house for the night, right?"

"He's going to be here in a couple minutes to come get me, but thank you for the offer," He explains, keeping himself hidden around the corner. He hears footsteps, and he bites his lip to keep himself from staying calm. "And I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

His mother reveals herself, wearing a simple pink dress and her usual ruffled apron on top of it, her hair tied with a pale yellow scrunchie. She is the poster woman of a caring mother and housewife, holding a cooking spatula covered with tomato sauce in one hand.

"You look nice," She comments kindly, smiling at his shirt. "I hope you get a lot of studying done. Exams are next week, right?"

Amidst all the chaos, Makoto had completely forgotten about exams, and his stomach twists in fear. Just another thing to worry about, he thinks to himself. "Thank you. We will do our best," He forces himself to smile.

He hears a honk outside, which is his cue to leave. "He must be here," Makoto announces the obvious. He reaches for the door again. "Well, I better get-"

"Actually, Makoto, if you have a moment, I need to talk to you about something," His mother reaches out to touch his shoulder, her hand soft and delicate.

"Can it wait? Nagisa's here, it would be rude to keep him waiting."

"Please, Makoto, it will only take a moment," There is a fire in her eyes, and something in her voice that is laced with worry. She's practically begging. "It's something you need to know."

Makoto softens and he caves, sighing. His hand drops off the knob and falls to his side. "Alright. What is it?"

"Well first of all, I think you've learned your lesson, so I'm ungrounding you. I've been thinking a lot about what you said, and I just wanted to tell you about Har-"

The boisterous sounds of Nagisa slamming on his car horn cut off her sentence, and she scowls frustratedly.

"Mom, I really have to go now-"

"Okay. I'll tell you tomorrow, then," She sighs in defeat, letting the topic drop. "Have fun, honey."

Makoto throws her a small smile over his shoulder before finally opening the door and rushing outside, thundering down the front porch steps and heading down the driveway, where Rei and Nagisa wait in his older sister's light blue car.

Makoto jumps into the backseat, slinging his bag off his shoulder and tossing it to the seat next to him.

"What took you so long, dude?" Nagisa raises his eyebrow, glancing at him through the rearview mirror.

"Sorry, I had to escape my mom," Makoto responds, slamming the car door shut and buckling his seatbelt. "I thought she'd figure me out. She ungrounded me though, so I should be fine now, technically."

"You always have been a terrible liar, Makoto-senpai," Rei muses thoughtfully, and Nagisa hums in agreement.

"Believe me, I know," Makoto agrees with a nervous laugh. Nagisa adjusts the mirror and shifts the car into drive, taking off down the street. "Anyway, what was happening on the phone earlier? Something about a squirrel?"

"Oh yeah!" Nagisa laughs. "Okay, so I was just driving along, minding my own business like the good driver I am-"

"FALSE!" Rei shouts, interrupting him. "You weren't paying attention at all, talking to Makoto-senpai on the telephone! You're quite possibly the worst driver I've ever met!"

"Details," Nagisa huffs, waving him off. "Anyway, I'm driving when out of the blue, we see a squirrel in the middle of the lane. So naturally, I try to swerve around it-"

"And he nearly runs us off into the road! Into a ditch! According to theory, people stranded in ditches are four times more likely to be accosted!"

"I don't know your strange complex vocabulary, Rei-chan, but pipe down. This is my story!" Nagisa waves him off absentmindedly with his hand. "Right, so. As Rei-chan said, I swerved to avoid the squirrel, but turns out it was already dead! So I quickly manage to get us back on the road. We nearly hit two cars as well, who were not pleased, but I hit the gas and-"

Makoto slowly tunes out Nagisa's nonsensical babbling, but a small smile stays on his face as he says his "Yeah!"s and "No kidding, really?"s In all the right places. Nagisa is always so cheerfully rambunctious and filled with amusing stories, but in this moment he can't seem to get his mind off of what his mother wanted to tell him.

Perhaps it was something important, he thinks worriedly. Regret seeping into his stomach, he wishes he could've stayed to hear it.

Oh well, he decides, choosing to let go of it. Tonight is supposed to be a night of fun, not a night of worrying. For once, he'd actually like to have fun without anxiety plaguing his thoughts every damn second. No going back now.

The drive to the party didn't take too long. Yamazaki Sousuke lived in one of those three story farm houses, the original homes from when Iwatobi was old farmland. When Nagisa pulled up to the neighborhood, Makoto could already faintly hear loud music coming from the house at the end of the street.

"Seems like the party is already in full swing," Rei comments lightly as he parks a ways down the street, parallel parked between an old truck and a station wagon. They pile out of the car and Makoto immediately feels a chill from the December air. His flannel may be real material, but it didn't do much to keep him warm, not to mention the wind struck the skin on his legs where the holes in his jeans were.

They approach the cast iron gates, which were left open for guests rushing to the party. Ivy and ferns grow through the crevices of the old winding stone path, which leads directly to the colossal structure. The grandiose home is on a hill, surrounded by acres of land, with two winding driveways and a centerpiece fountain in the middle. Makoto resists the urge to laugh (or face-palm) when he saw a couple of guys jumping into the fountain, and other partygoers goofing around on the front lawn, classic red cups in hand. Toilet paper litters the trees in the front yard, draped between the branches like fairy lights, and an old couch sits on the front lawn.

"You guys ready?" Nagisa grins at his friends, looping his arms around them. Rei and Makoto share a nervous look, but they shrug in unison.

As they step through the front doors, Makoto's vision blurs into kaleidoscopic pinks and purples and he slips, unconscious to what was to come, into a world of wonder.

- - - -

A/N: i have terrible writers block aaaa hope you enjoyed anyway, press that star button if you want me to start updating more quickly!