A/N: Definitely a fun one to write lol. 

Ollie's POV

It wasn't until I sat down on the couch and pulled out my phone from my pocket that I realized Haruto had kissed me. Haruto Yoshida-Sanchez had kissed me on my cheek. It was a silly thing to be gushing over and wishing to scream into a pillow—which I didn't do, but it was tempting. Although punching the pillows felt appropriate enough, I couldn't help but want to rant my heart out about it. Screaming from the rooftops felt too intense, but ranting to the girls was equally exciting.

Courtney picked up before the second ring could finish. "Yes?"

"So," I drawled out. "I have a question."

She hummed. "And I'd have the answer?"

"Maybe." I bit back a grin. "Just don't freak out too much."

There was noise in the background before she said over the phone, "you know I'm not one to be freaked out, but it is alarming if it's coming from you."

"Well, I did just come back from hanging out with Haruto. Again."

"Okay," she slurred, unable to contain the curiosity. "Tell me."

I gulped, almost afraid I shouldn't be hyping this up to them, especially if it meant a simple, friendly kiss. Taking the time to breathe in and out deeply, I said softly, "what does it mean when the person you really really like—who seems so out of your reach—decides to kiss you on the cheek after dropping you off from a day out?"

There was muffled screaming in the back before Courtney got on the phone again. "Bitch."

I stifled a laugh. "I—does that mean I'm the bitch, or are you saying he is one? You didn't answer my question."

"Bitch, you gotta give me a second to get my gay brain around this shit first. He fucking kissed you?" she practically yelled. "I can't believe your perfect prince has finally done it!"

"Done what? Courtney, I'm serious. What am I supposed to make of this?"

"Ollie," she sneered. "You can't be that stupid; he fucking likes you!"

"But—"

"I swear to all that is—"

Mahealani, presumably, took the phone as Courtney's voice quieted down. "Oliver, there's no way that he'd kiss you—cheek or lips—and not have an inkling of attraction to you in Haruto's world."

"Okay, but what if that's just a custom he had growing up? He did live abroad at some point."

"Give me the phone, babe," Courtney said before returning to the phone. "This is the first time you've seen him do that to anyone, and it's the first time he's done that with you. There's not a chance in hell that it's some kind of custom."

I grumbled in agreement. "Fine, I just can't believe it."

"Well, you better believe it, babe. We better be your bridesmaids at the wedding."

"Court," I chided. "There's no wedding. I don't want to think this silly little kiss will mean much and get my hopes up."

She scoffed. "I'm serious, Ollie. There's definitely a chance you will be dating the man of your dreams. Remember Mahealani and me? I called that shit. And remember my buddy Nova and their partner Stephen? I knew they'd date as soon as Stephen saw them at the gym. Have I ever been wrong?"

"No," I told her begrudgingly. "No, you haven't."

"Exactly. Now, don't go anywhere; we'll be right over." Her voice softened, directed to her girlfriend. "Grab some snacks and a jacket."

"What if I made plans to go out?"

She snorted. "You don't ever leave your apartment except for school and coffee dates with Haruto. We are coming over, and that's final. You want the spicy or cheesy chips?"

"Cheese," I said. "What if I wanted to binge a new show?"

"Too bad. We can watch it together," she said. "We'll be there in five."

"Fifteen," Mahealani corrected in the background.

"Ten if I'm driving," Courtney whispered. "I'll bring some seltzers."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "No, we both know that alcohol is not my friend."

"It's why I'm bringing it. It'll be so much fun. And we need to celebrate!"

"I'm only having two, Court. No more than two."

She laughed. "Sure, only two, party pooper."

I could hear Mahealani say in the back, "it's the three of us; I doubt you can call that a party."

"It's a party if there are drinks and us involved, right, Ollie?"

Letting out a disgruntled sound, I told Courtney finally, "fine. Just no karaoke. Wouldn't wanna hear my neighbor complain about your screeching."

She gasped dramatically. "Ouch, I can sing, dear Ollie. What do you mean?"

"Yeah, out of tune," I mused, smiling as Mahealani laughed in the background.

"Babe, come on!" She told Mahealani. "You like my singing, right?"

"I like your other talents more," she responded before a shrieking sound came through the phone. It sounded exactly like Courtney's failed high notes during karaoke, only more muted over the phone.

I cleared my throat. "Ew, enough with the flirting, or I'll go to sleep instead of letting you two come over."

"Alright, alright," Courtney rushed out. "We'll be there soon."

—

Herb didn't spare the girls a glance when I met them downstairs, already used to having them over at my place. Surprisingly, he didn't mention Haruto, but I guess that was a good thing; imagining the girls and Herb discussing how they wanted Haruto and me to be together seemed like a catastrophe.

Not that I'd disagree about wanting something with Haruto, but not a discussion I wanted to have in the apartment lobby.

Like every time they came over, Courtney and Mahealani packed giant duffel bags filled with snacks and drinks from Trader Joe's.

"Did you bring your whole house again?" I joked, watching as they dumped it out onto the kitchen counter. Courtney pulled out her Nintendo Switch and some cords. "Courtney, seriously, what the hell?"

"A party isn't complete without Mario Kart, especially when alcohol is involved. You know the rules," she said. "You fall off the map; take a shot. Come in last place, take a shot."

"I said two drinks. That's my limit."

"Yes," she implored. "But, we can't be drinking all of this. We still gotta get home after somehow."

I groaned. "You'll probably crash here anyway."

She shrugged before grabbing the case of seltzers and putting it in my fridge. "Besides, you said nothing about shots."

"Same thing," I quipped.

Mahealani set up the console to the TV before sitting beside me. "It'll be fun, we promise. I'll keep her in check if she gets out of hand, don't worry."

I rolled my eyes. "You drink as much as she does!"

"Yes, but I handle it better."

"Whatever," I nudged her arm. "Let's get started."

About fifteen matches in, the girls paused to get some snacks. I was already feeling the effects of the alcohol, even though it was mostly weaker drinks—aside from the rum that Mahealani loved to drink. The downside was that I was shit at Mario Kart, and the girls knew that, meaning I was on the cusp of being drunk—if it hadn't been for the insane amount of water I've been drinking every chance I got.

But as it turns out, tipsy Oliver Sullivan is already a mess. Aimlessly scrolling through my messages and contacts led me to stumble on Haruto's number. I had only messaged him a handful of times, too intimidated to say anything that would make our interactions at the café awkward. Even the last message had been sent a few weeks ago.

I wouldn't have been able to say why I did it or what series of thoughts my inebriated mind thought it was okay, but I distinctly felt the sense of dread and panic that washed over me when my thumb made contact with the call button.

What probably sounded like some inhuman squeal escaped my lips as the call connected. "Oh no. I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to press the call button."

"That's okay," Haruto said hesitantly. "Everything alright?"

I hummed, watching as the girls poured another round of shots. "Yeah, the girls are forcing me to drink."

"Forcing you?"

"Well, not really." It came off more like a question. "They're just really good at Mario Kart. Even when drunk. I agreed to drink; I wasn't expecting to drink this much. It's fine—plus, we're at my place."

Haruto lét a breathy laugh, the same type of laugh that made my cheeks flush when I was around him. "Sounds like fun. Maybe torture for you, though."

"They're kicking my ass," I told him. "I've lost every single round, and we've played at least ten rounds of Rainbow Road."

"Yikes. That is a rough course."

"I think they're cheating and bullying me off the course. There's no way that I can be the only one falling off this stupid map."

Courtney downed two shot glasses for fine—not as some punishment in Mario Kart. I scowled at her when she didn't even look fazed after setting the glass down. Mahealani, on the other hand, was sipping the shot glass like a glass of wine.

"Maybe try an easier course? You'd probably have better luck with that Yoshi course or one of the circuit courses."

I couldn't remember the name, but there were a couple I recalled being good at while sober. It was only a matter of convincing them to agree on a different course. "Yeah, there was one with cows? I don't know; I can only remember that one being relatively easy. I hate any of them with water, fire, or jumping off mushrooms or over cliffs."

He laughed. "I think they all have something like that, don't they?"

"This is why I don't play it, even when sober," I whined. "You'd probably be great at this. If you were here playing, I'm sure you could beat both of them on my behalf."

"Sober, for sure," he said. "Unless they're really that good at driving while drunk."

"I think the chances of me being just really bad at video games is higher."

I could almost envision the grin on his face, but it felt weird to think of the idea of seeing him in my apartment, casually playing Mario Kart with the girls and me.

"Maybe next time, then," he said softly and slowly. "I'd let you win, though, even if it meant taking a blue shell from your friends."

"Now, that's some dedication," I said, wondering if dedication was even the right word. Then again, I wasn't sure what I was saying half the time to Haruto; the effects of the dozen half-shots the girls had given me slowed everything down. Surely my words couldn't have been that incoherent if we managed a conversation, though, or he was just that good at figuring me out. And maybe Haruto was, sober or not.

I could hear his faint breathing on the other line before he cleared his throat. "Will I see you tomorrow? Or will you need time to recover?"

I hummed. "That depends. Are cold brews good for hangovers?"

"I guess we could figure that out tomorrow."

"True." I pursed my lips. "I... don't have any plans. And I doubt the girls will be able to function so that I could see you tomorrow."

"Okay."

"Okay," I echoed, turning back to the girls who had turned their attention to the bag of chips they brought. Mahealani had thrown a few chips in the air while Courtney attempted to catch them in her mouth. "I should probably let you go, I wouldn't want you to suffer by listening to Courtney trying to sing later on. She'll do that for hours after too many drinks."

He chuckled. "I wouldn't mind."

"Well, I'd rather spare your eardrums. She's definitely tone-deaf and doesn't understand the meaning of quiet. Besides, I'm sure you have better things to do tonight."

"No," he said. "I wasn't doing anything when you called."

"Plus, I'd rather not have the girls know I called you on accident. They'd say something embarrassing or try to talk to you about me." Courtney tilted her head when I glanced back over to the kitchen, her mouth full of chips, while Mahealani hid her face from laughing. "They can be very chaotic when drunk, would not recommend."

"I'll take your word for it," he said. "See you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah," I said, resisting grinning like an idiot. "See you then."

"Night, Ollie," his words were like velvet.

I only hoped Courtney was too drunk to see the blush on my face. "Night."

Waiting for him to hang up, I kept the phone against my ear before lowering it down into my lap. Calling Haruto had been but a dream a few months ago, and now—despite the alcohol—it had been surprisingly easy and less nerve-wracking than I thought. Of course, it still felt like a cliche teenage crush moment, acting flustered from just hearing his voice on the line, but it felt so real.

Although, now that I thought about it, there was still the elephant in the room about the kiss on the cheek he had given me earlier. Was I supposed to thank him for that? Express how much it confused yet felt satisfying and everything I could've hoped for?

But before I could think about what it all meant, the girls strolled over, plopping into the couch beside me with another drink in their hands. Courtney handed me one of the seltzers. "Last one, I promise. Then we can call it quits and watch Drag Race or one of those baking shows you love."

As much as I detested those flavored seltzers, it beat having to take shots for every race we played. "Deal, but I get to pick the season."

"Fine," Courtney mumbled.