((CW: mature themes, sexual themes))

((Finally got round to re-doing this chapter, sorry for the long wait, I've been super busy so it's hard to stay on top of everything.))

Momentary Bliss~ Gorillaz

(Friday, 5.45pm)
(Arata)

I stood just outside the entrance to the ice rink with Josie as we waited for Aphrodi to show up. I looked down at my daughter and smiled lightly, she'd dressed up specially for my date; it took me almost an hour trying to do her hair in french plaits like she asked, luckily I was able to find a tutorial online.

"Can't wait to see Aphrodi again daddy!" She squealed and squeezed my hand tightly. I looked around at all the couples and families, everyone looked so happy, I couldn't help but think I might be happy like them too. My smile faded 'don't get too ahead of yourself, it's only the second date-if the first one even counted- it doesn't mean he likes you. It doesn't mean this will all work out.'
Joseline, Safia and I used to be like all these other families not even a year ago, and look how that turned out....
Josie was waving.
I quickly looked up, putting on a smile as my date walked over to us. "Sorry I'm late Arata, traffic was a nightmare." Aphrodi said as he reached us. "Don't worry." I said and he smiled at me before he gave me a quick peck on the cheek and smiled down at Jo. I wasn't expecting it, but it was nice all the same. Aphrodi had tied his hair in a low ponytail that hung loosely over his shoulder, he looked beautiful as ever.
"Shall we go then?" He stated, going over to the reception desk to get us all booked in.

Josie and I sat down on the bench next to Aphrodi as we put on our skates.
"Oh? She has her own skates?" Afuro asked and I chuckled a little. "Yeah, she's pretty good- this was her choice actually."
"Ah. I was wondering why you suggested ice skating for our first date." He mused, and I still couldn't get over how amazing his voice sounded, it was like smooth honey.
"Not that I'm complaining." He continued before lacing his other boot up "Not to brag but I'm pretty good myself, my friend Fubuki taught me. He teaches classes here on the weekends."

Fubuki...that was the guy who set us up wasn't it? It seemed like so long ago now. "Maybe I should enrol her?" I muttered.
"Hm?"
I scratched the back of my neck, going a little quiet "Oh, it's just...Safia thought we should have Jo take figure skating classes- said we shouldn't waste her talent." I sighed, looking over at my daughter who had since got up, walking around in her skates. "But I said she was too young, she needed to decide for herself what she wanted. It was one of the many things we argued about." Afuro didn't say anything and I looked up awkwardly "Sorry to bring the mood down!" But he wasn't looking at me, he seemed to be staring intently at someone on the rink. I followed his gaze but found nothing of interest or out of the ordinary.

"Umm, you okay?"
Aphrodi flicked his eyes over to mine "Hm? Oh it's nothing, let's go." He stated like nothing was wrong "Just thought I recognised someone." He continued before taking hold of my arm and heading over to the ice. Jo was so excited to start skating and set off immediately whilst I hung back a bit by the rails, trying to get used to the rhythm again. "Don't go off too far Jo okay?" I yelled and she spun around, giving me a big thumbs up. I sighed but found myself smiling, she loves ice skating, just like her mother... that's how we met actually, she was working at the rink and helped me when I fell and sprained my wrist, I was pretty pathetic about the whole thing really but she just found it funny...

...Aphrodi's great at ice skating too.
Speaking of which, I noticed that he had gotten a lot quieter as soon as we all got into the rink, something was definitely troubling him. "You sure you're okay? What's up?" I asked but he just shook his head and gave me a fake smile. Then he stopped and sighed "I'm sorry Arata, my mind's a bit...preoccupied with something..." he said sadly before patting my hand "But don't worry, it's stupid. Let's just forget about it and enjoy this date okay?" He continued. I nodded, feeling relieved that it wasn't anything I'd done to upset him. I watched as my date skated perfectly over to Joseline who giggled and turned to me, beckoning me to follow.

(Afuro)
Less than ten minutes into this date and I'd already lied to him. I just want to enjoy myself tonight but of course he had to come and ruin it. What cruel twist of fate is this? I just couldn't believe my eyes. Whatever, I'm not going to let the likes of him spoil this for me and Arata.
As the time passed I began to forget about him, I was going to enjoy this no matter what, plus Arata's skating makes me laugh, I've never seen someone fall over so much, it's hilarious, and cute too... I watched as Josie tried to help him up again and smiled happily. Just then, someone barrelled into me, catching me just before I fell. "Uh, I'm sorry!" I said to the stranger.
"No, it's me who should be apologising..."
I froze, that voice.

He was still holding onto me and he turned me around to face him "Heya blondie, what are you doing here?" He asked, clutching my waist so I couldn't get away, I felt his hand snake around my hips, pulling me closer towards him as I looked around helplessly for Arata. I couldn't see him anywhere and hastily pushed myself out of his grip. He just laughed at me "What's the problem, cat got your tongue?"
I didn't reply him, wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

He just laughed again, his bleach blonde hair bouncing lightly as he did so. Just then I saw a young woman skate towards us. "Hey baby, what's up?"
She looked at me before looking at him and sighed, grabbing his hand and skating away with him. I felt sorry for her. It seemed she'd made the same mistake I did. 'Though it seems she's a little more forgiving.'
As they skated past I felt his hand 'casually' touch my butt, making me shiver.
Matsumoto Masaki, the devil in human form.

I tried to compose myself a bit before looking around for Arata and Joseline. 'Oh please say he didn't see that...' I wondered before laying eyes on them, they were skating slowly over to me. "Daddy fell down again!" Josie yelled before she even reached me.
"Alright Jo, you don't have to shout it for the world to hear." He chuckled despite the clear look of pain on his face, his jeans were wet with ice, as was his shirt. He must've fallen on his face- ouch.
"You okay?" I asked but he shrugged his shoulders "It was bound to happen eventually, I'm more embarrassed than anything else."
Out of the corner of my eye I could see Matsumoto staring at me across the rink like a weirdo, there was no sign of the woman he was with.

'If he's intent on staring at me I might as well give him something to stare at...' I skated over to Arata, I was about to kiss him or something before thinking better of that. 'What am I doing? There's no need to stoop down to his level!' Instead I just placed my hand on his shoulder. "I'm getting a little hungry, should we call it a day?" It was better this way. Arata nodded tiredly "That sounds like an excellent idea."
I grabbed his hand and headed towards the exit, seeing Matsumoto coming back around.

There was a McDonald's next to the rink, I'm not usually a junk food person but Josie really wanted some and I just really wanted to get away from Matsumoto as quick as possible. Josie ran up and grabbed my hand, towing me over to a table whilst Arata queued in line.
"I hope I get a really cool toy in my happy meal, like a toy aewopwane!" Joseline mused, her emerald eyes shining in anticipation. "You like aeroplanes then huh?"
"Yep! I wanna fly one when I grow up!"
I smiled "I bet you'd make an amazing pilot Josie." I said and her face lit up "You really think so?! Daddy, daddy did you hear that, did you hear what Aphrodi said?"
"Sure did, and I totally agree." Arata said, smiling at me and taking the seat opposite me, handing me my food.

Joseline was happily colouring in and playing with the toy dinosaur she got, trying to feed it her fries as Arata and I talked. "I'm really glad we got to do this Aphrodi, it's not often Jo and I get to do stuff together like this. I hope you enjoyed yourself too." He said softly. I smiled at him "Yes, it's been really fun. Although I didn't expect you to fall down so many times." I laughed lightly.
"I'll definitely have to get more practice if I'm ever going to be as good as you two." He replied, laughing also.

It was strange, to an onlooker we must look like a typical family, well not typical but still, a family...
I reached over and held his hand, just a small gesture, but one I felt I needed to do. "I'm having a good time. Thank you Arata." I whispered, rubbing my hand softly across his skin. 'Shirou and Shuuya were right, maybe something good can come out of this after all...'
"Ooh ooh!" We we're both brought out of the moment by Josie bouncing around in her seat, clutching a piece of paper to her chest. Arata chuckled "What is it Jo?" He asked but she just grinned at him before getting up and walking over to my side of the table, plonking herself down next to me. "Here!" She just said before handing me the drawing happily.

"Oh...it's...that's really good Jo!" I laughed awkwardly, she'd drawn a picture of the three of us with the words 'My family' scrawled across the top. It was only the second date!
'She's a kid, it's not her fault she doesn't understand...'
Arata eyed the paper "What did you draw Jo?" But she shook her head at him, taking the paper back and holding onto it protectively "Not for you daddy! It's a secret!"
I felt a little awkward but tried not to show it. "Haha okay Josie, it'll be our secret." I said and she beaming a gappy smile at me and hugged me tightly. "Yay!"
"Jo don't jump on him like that okay?" Arata
warned and his daughter pouted but got off me "Sorry..."
"It's fine..."

Arata disappeared take take Josie to the toilet, I was just minding my own business when who should appear again but Matsumoto. His awful laugh gave him away instantly.
"Hey blondie, you miss me?" He said, draping his arms over my shoulders. I never understood why he called me that- his hair was blonder than mine. "What's wrong baby, aren't you happy to see me?" He asked, sitting down next to me, blocking my only exit. I turned around and faced the wall, arms folded.

"The silent treatment? Real mature Afuro." He inched closer, closing the gap between us and placing a hand on my thigh, I turned to him. "So you're stalking me now?"
He just scoffed at me "Nah, it's just crazy fate that we'd run into each other again, though I never expected to find you in here, what happened to treating your body like a temple?"
I tensed up for a moment before shaking my head, not letting him get the better of me. "Where's your girlfriend?" I spat, pushing him away from me.

He just shrugged his shoulders "Fuck if I know."
"She get tired of your bs too?"
Matsumoto let out a chuckle "Ooh looks like my little kitty's got claws now. What's wrong, you don't wanna catch up with me?"
I rolled my eyes at him "Can't you take a hint? I have a boyfriend you know?"
He just smirked at me "Yeah so?" He laughed, running a hand through his blonde hair. He looked down at the drawing on the table and smirked "Aww, how pwecious, you're a famiwy!" He mocked and I moved the picture away. Matsumoto tried to grab my waist only for me to slap his hand away, really hard.
"Ow, harsh. Don't be mean now Afuro!"
"What is wrong with you? Just leave me alone already!" I whispered-shouted, not wanting to draw attention. As much as I love being the centre of attention I really didn't want it right now.

He let out a low growl "You're being really annoying Terumi."
I just rolled my eyes at him. He didn't say anything else after that, just stared at me, baiting me to say something back. But I wasn't going to waste my breath on him.
"Sorry mister, that's my seat." Josie suddenly said, appearing out of nowhere and almost giving me a heart attack. "Arata!" I said breathlessly, glad he was here but really hoping he'd not seen anything.
My ex put on a fake smile before getting up and ruffling Josie's hair to which she pouted. "Ahh sorry kid." He turned to me, winking like a stupid teenager "This was fun, but I gotta bounce. I'll see you later Afuro."
'In your dreams asshole.'

"Um your name?"
I looked up from my phone calendar, we'd been planning our next date as Arata bundled his daughter into the car. "Hm?"
Arata waved his hand as if it wasn't important "It's just what your friend said- called you Afuro."
'Friend? My friend?!' I suppose that was a logical solution.

I cringed internally, really not wanting to have to explain the situation to him; it would surely only make things awkward. 'Besides I don't even want to think about Matusmoto right now.' Luckily I hadn't spotted my ex at all since the incident, but I couldn't help but feel on edge, he could be lurking anywhere. 'That stupid, slimy, rat of a-'
"The name I use here is Afuro." I answered, thinking it best to just move on. "Aphrodi is more of a nickname my friends use. I kept meaning to correct you, but never got round to it."

Arata let out a tiny gasp "And all this time Josie and I have been calling you by the wrong name. I'm very sorry!" I let out a light chuckle and waved my hand at him, it wasn't that big a deal to me. "No worries, I mean I respond to both."
Arata nodded "Okay. But I'll call you Afuro from now on." He gave me a soft smile before opening his car door and hopping inside. "Rolls off the tongue nicely."

And for some reason that little comment made my heart skip a beat.

(Itaewon 20 Cocktail bar, Shin-Okubo 'Korea Town', Tokyo~ many years ago)

"Annyeonghaseyo..." Afuro greeted the bartender- a friend of his- rather lazily as he sat down on a bar stool.
"Tough day?" The bartender asked, polishing a glass in her hand. Afuro had worked in the bar during university, but he'd quit after a month.
He huffed "Something like that. I need some alcohol in me."
This was becoming a trend with the blonde. Every Friday night he would drag himself into the bar, looking completely sorry for himself, and spend hours complaining to his friend how crappy his love life was going over an array of colourful drinks.

Dating was a lot harder for the blonde than he'd realised. Maybe he just wasn't suited to this whole dating thing after all. He wondered whether he should start with casual hookups instead... he shook his head, he wasn't ready for that.
"What can I get you today?"
The blonde sighed heavily "Either a Sazerac or a Singapore Sling, I can't decide if I want to feel sorry for myself or just get obnoxiously drunk."
He tapped the bar rhythmically "You know what? I'll take both."

She made a start on the drinks as Afuro looked around the dimly lit room. It was still rather early in the evening, so there wasn't that many people around, but they all seemed to be having a much better time than the blonde. He thought it would be fun, easy; he'd finally accepted himself, come out of the closet, yet he just couldn't seem to form any proper, meaningful relationships with people. There was always something off - it's not as though people didn't approach him, he was very attractive after all, and the dates always seemed to go pleasantly enough; but he always ended up getting ghosted, or if they did date he always ended up growing tired, there was always an annoying habit, selfish attitude or those just looking to hook up with him.

He didn't have a problem with hooking up, he just personally felt it wasn't the right time for that yet.
"Can I get Manhattan please?" A voice said as the blonde's drinks were slid across the counter to him.
"H-hey." The voice said, causing Afuro to look over, a little confused. He didn't think the man would be addressing him.
"Who me?" He asked, to which the mystery man nodded embarrassedly, sitting down on the next barstool. "This seat is taken?" He asked to which Afuro shook his head even though the man had already sat down.

Afuro analysed the man. He was short, with caramel skin and dark hair, looked to be in his early twenties. Although his Japanese was okay, his grammar was all wrong; his appearance and manner of speaking made the blonde think he may be Thai, though he couldn't be quite sure.
He seemed rather shy. Not like the kind of person Afuro would date at all. He turned back to his drink, hand hovering over the Sling for a moment before choosing the Sazerac, recoiling a little at the spicy, herby taste. He felt a tap on his shoulder.

"O-often you come here?" The man asked with awkward grammar, to which Afuro completely sympathised- speaking a different language is not easy, he found that out the hard way.
"I suppose." Was all he said, it wasn't a lie after all, though maybe that was not a suitable answer. 'Clearly he's trying to hit on you.' Afuro was not really in the mood.
The man's drink came but he ignored it, shifting on the stool so he was better facing the un-engaging blonde. "Uh my name is-"

"Pawit! Ryoma said I would find you here." A second voice came from behind the blonde. Afuro's suspicions were proven correct then.
The man slung his arm around the other, he was the typical tall, dark and handsome type.
"Oh h-hello Satoshi." The first man-'Pawit' replied, blushing deeply. 'Seems those two have something going on.'
"Yo bargirl, make it two." The second man boomed, slamming some money down on the bar like he was in a movie or something. Afuro rolled his eyes.

He turned to the blonde "So uh, who's your 'friend' ?" He asked.
"Uh this is-" Pawit started before the other interrupted him. "Hey you wanna make out or something?" He said bluntly and the other's face went as deep red as his cocktail.
"Come on then!" Satoshi yelled, dragging him away as the server desperately tried to remind them about their drinks.

"Tough break." Someone said suddenly, Afuro turned to his other side to see a blonde taking the stool next to him.
He was very handsome. Perfect body, perfect hair, perfect voice, just perfect. Afuro shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly "Not really my type. Though it's cute he decided to talk to me." He answered. He wasn't trying to sound conceited, but usually he only tended to attract confident people.
"Confidence, I like it." The other retorted "Anyway that works for me-I was kinda hoping I'd get to talk to you first actually. You caught my eye. My name's Matsumoto by the way, Matsumoto Masaki. What's your name?"

The blonde tucked a piece of hair behind his ear "You can call me Aphrodi." He stated simply, he wasn't in the habit of giving people his name right off the bat. Matsumoto smiled "I like your style. I have to say you seem pretty sure of yourself. Very attractive."
Afuro didn't quite know what to say; did the other mean his appearance or his personality? No one had ever called his personality 'attractive' before. 'Even if it's just a front.'

Matsumoto laughed before rubbing the back of his neck "Sorry, am I being too weird? I was just trying to act all cool really..."
Afuro couldn't help but smirk a little "We've all been there." If there was one thing Afuro was exceptionally good at it was projecting an air of confidence at all times.
"If that ain't the truth." The other blonde replied.

The two spoke for what seemed like minutes but was in actuality, hours. They spoke about all manner of things; favourite movies, favourite music, favourite colours even. It seemed they had a lot in common. Afuro found out that this Matsumoto guy's dating life had been just as disastrous as his own.
"They say there's always plenty more fish in the sea, but at this point it feels like I'm chasing after mermaids."
Afuro sucked the pinky-red liquid of the Singapore Sling through his straw, his other drink finished long ago. "Right?"
The two laughed.

It turned out Matsumoto was bisexual too; although their experiences had varied drastically. The blonde could relate to the self-loathing though.
"I hated myself, I thought there was something wrong with me." Matsumoto traced his finger around the rim of his glass.
Afuro never had to worry, he had good friends he knew would be supportive, and it helped that he'd lived with Suzuno and Nagumo when they were a couple. Matsumoto didn't have that. He'd lost all of his friends when he came out.
Afuro counted himself lucky.

Matsumoto rested his hand on his cheek, a little subdued. "You ever feel like you're being judged Aphrodi?"
The other nodded. "All the damn time."
"Tell me, what would you assume about me if you didn't know me?"
Afuro pushed his empty glasses away "Are you ready for some information that might hurt you?" He said with a light laugh. Matsumoto laughed too, but it quickly died down, both realising this was a serious conversation.
"People always judge me before they've had a proper chance to get to know me. They always think I'm just some fuckboy. That I just want to get people into bed. But I'm not that at all." He said solemnly.

Afuro felt bad, he actually had thought that.

He knew he shouldn't judge people, he'd made that promise long ago, he wasn't going to do that anymore. He took a deep breath "Matsumoto I-"
The other leaned forward, a nervousness in his voice "Aphrodi...I really like you..." He licked his lips, hand inching closer towards the other.
"I...like you too." Afuro replied, the word feeling redundant to him but right in this moment. His heart was beating, for the first time he felt he'd met someone truly special, someone he could actually be honest with, someone who understood him, someone who actually cared about him.

And then the dreaded question came.
"Would you like to come back to mine?"

That little phrase. It ruined everything. Innocent though it may have seemed the blonde knew what it meant, the secret code between adults.
He moved his hand away, wrapping it around one of his cocktail glasses even though it was finished. He tried to be polite about it. "Sorry, but I'm not looking for a hookup."

He expected the other to say something but Matsumoto just stood up from his stool, pulling his jacket over his shoulders silently. "Uh Mats-"
He spoke suddenly, a sad look in his eyes "That's not what I meant." He placed his hands into his pockets "I just didn't want this night to end. I'm sorry if I made you think otherwise."
He turned on his heel, about to leave when a hand grabbed hold of his arm. He turned back to meet Afuro's eyes swimming with emotion. How could he just judge him like that? The man he'd felt such a connection to. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the warmth of the room, but something told him he should not let this man just walk away. He couldn't deny it. There was a spark; in that one singular, beautiful moment. Was this the feeling Fubuki had spoken of? "When you know, you just know Afuro. You know they're the one."
He'd almost given up on love, but here he was, standing in front of the most perfect man, body moving on its own, capturing that man's lips with his own.
"I would like that very much."

Things had been going well for the two, Matsumoto had moved in with Afuro, and they had been dating for almost four months now. Matsumoto was all Afuro could've wanted in a boyfriend.
"Ooh Train to Busan is on, want to watch it?" Afuro hummed as he surfed through tv channels. His boyfriend chuckled "You know I hate scary movies."
Afuro laughed lightly "It's not that scary Matsu."
"Well, I can think of something else we could do instead..." his boyfriend whispered, hand resting on Afuro's inner thigh.
"You know...take our relationship to the next level?" He continued, Afuro's face began to heat up, but he tried not to show it.

"I mean it's been almost four months now...I think it's time..."
Afuro had always made excuses; he wasn't feeling well, he was tired, he had a headache- in all honestly he wasn't sure why he couldn't just tell the other he wasn't ready. If Matsumoto loved him then surely he would respect Afuro's decision? And he never seemed to have a problem with the excuses, he made jokes about it but Afuro never saw them as too mean-spirited. Except for the night before.
They'd almost crossed that line, but Afuro had pushed him away, saying that he was waiting for the right person- Matsumoto hadn't taken that well...

"I-" he swallowed thickly, his boyfriend leaned over him, combing his fingers through Afuro's long hair. "Don't you think I'm the right person Afuro?"
In his heart he knew the answer. He loved Matsumoto, truly, and wasn't sharing something as important as this-giving your body to your partner, the way love is shown between couples?
He sat up, heart beating faster than he thought it would, body shaking more than he thought it should. "Masaki." He breathed, hands resting upon the other's chest.
He stared into the other's eyes; pinkish-purple, the amethysts to his rubies. "I want to do this with you." He said as confidently as he could. "But I want you to understand, this is my first time." He continued, he was not embarrassed or ashamed to say it, but he knew it was important to say. His boyfriend raised his eyebrows "Oh? I wouldn't have expected that from you, I would've just assumed that-"
Afuro silenced him with a kiss. "Don't judge a book by its cover, remember?"
Matsumoto smirked.

Afuro went to South Korea for two weeks; one of his friends from back home had asked if he could do a photography job for them. The blonde didn't mind, it was good pay, and it gave him the chance to go home and see his parents- he hadn't seen them face to face since university.
"I'm gonna miss you you know." Matsumoto said, arms around his boyfriend's waist as the stood in the departure lounge.
"I know, but it's only two weeks, I'll be back before you know it." Afuro replied, kissing the other on the cheeks before departing.

The two weeks went by quicker than Afuro had thought they would, he'd been able to spend time with old friends, his parents; who he'd told all about his relationship- his parents had never been exactly thrilled with his choices, but supported him nonetheless. It was a good trip, but Afuro was glad to be back in Japan, a day earlier than expected. He bought some roses on his way back home in order to surprise his boyfriend.

He opened the front door as quietly as he could, smiling to himself in anticipation.
His smile fell however, when he saw a pair of shoes by the door. They weren't his, weren't Matsumoto's. And the way they were just strewn about, as if the person was in an incredible rush. There was a jacket too, dropped next to the shoes. Afuro bent down to pick it up before realising it wasn't his boyfriend's. More concerning was when Afuro lifted his head up, to his boyfriend's favourite pair of converses lying perilously across the first step of the stairs. The blonde stared at the shoes blankly, why were they not in the genkan?

That's when he heard it.
His heart started pounding furiously in his chest as he ascended the stairs, the sounds only getting louder and louder. His heart sank with each step he took. The door to their bedroom was open, taunting him. He stared at the open door for a good few minutes, still not being able to believe it. 'This must be a mistake, it has to be-'
"Masaki?" His body and voice betrayed him.

The flowers fell to the floor in a dull heap as tears pricked in the blonde's eyes.
His boyfriend and the other man (who barely looked eighteen) whipped their heads up at the sound.
The other quickly shot out of the bed, trembling hands pulling clothes on, his words a garbled mess. "Y-you s-said-single!" He yelled, fearful eyes meeting Afuro's for a second before darting away in shame. "I'm so sorry I really did not know I-" he began before quickly stopping himself, running past the shaking blonde as Matsumoto clambered after him unceremoniously. "Alexei! Dammit wait!"
He did not even acknowledge his boyfriend.

"Alexei he doesn't mean anything to me I promise!" The words floated up to Afuro's ears followed by the front door swinging shut.
The sound of Matsumoto's footsteps trudging back up the stairs got louder and louder, but Afuro did not move. Arms wrapped around his waist, his boyfriend's head rest in the crook of his neck, where it had always fit so well. Afuro did not move.
"Listen babe, I'm sorry about all that, just a stupid misunderstanding." He murmured against Afuro's delicate skin.

Matsumoto's tone lightened, one hand slowly caressing itself up his boyfriend's body to his head, embedding itself in that soft blonde hair, the way Afuro liked. "How was your trip? You must be tired."
It had taken only five seconds between that man running out and his boyfriend following after for Afuro to realise that this wasn't the first time. There were so many times, obvious signs but he just ignored them, how could he be so blind? Why did he ever think things would change? Why did he ever think he could be happy?
He should have expected this, something was always going to go wrong.

And now Matsumoto was trying to act like this was normal? Like it didn't matter. Like he deserved to be treated like that.
No.
Afuro was done.

"Get out."
He said it so quietly the other almost did not hear him.
"What?"
Afuro turned around in the other's grip, pushing himself away, no sign of tears, no shaking. He was done. "Get out of my house Masaki."
He didn't need to raise his voice, the tone was enough for that.
His boyfriend stared at him incredulously "Oi...babe you can't be serious."
"Ten minutes to pack up your stuff and then you're gone, understand?"
Afuro left the room, picking up the flowers as he did so "I guess I was right about you after all."