Chapter Text
Sakura’s heart pounded as he hovered over Togame, breathless from the fight and the heavy emotions coursing through his veins. His fists were still clenched in Togame’s top, his mind swirling with words he didn’t know how to say. The tension between them hung thick in the air, the weight of everything unspoken pressing down on him like a vice.
He took a deep, shuddering breath, his eyes locked onto Togame’s. “You don’t get it, do you?” Sakura whispered, voice shaky but fierce. His usual bravado was nowhere to be found, replaced by a raw vulnerability that scared him more than any fight ever had. “I didn’t mean any of that. I—”
Sakura’s chest tightened, and his words faltered. “I don’t know how to handle this. You… caring about me. It’s not something I’m used to.”
Togame remained still beneath him, his calm eyes soft but unreadable, as though he was waiting for Sakura to continue. That only made it harder for Sakura, but he forced the words out anyway.
“It’s not your fault.” Sakura’s voice dropped to a frustrated mumble, eyes darting away as heat crept up his neck. “It’s Suo’s damn fault. He’s the one teasing me about all of this.”
Togame blinked, his eyebrows lifting slightly in surprise. “Suo?”
Sakura grunted, embarrassed to be talking about his feelings, let alone admitting how much he’d let Suo’s meddling get to him. “Yeah, that idiot. And all I could do was yell at him, I don’t do well with romantic things—” His voice caught again, his face burning with the weight of his confession. “I’m sorry, okay? I just… I didn’t want to mess things up between us.”
Togame’s expression softened, and for the first time since this whole mess had started, a small, gentle smile crept onto his face. “You could never mess things up between us, Sakura.”
That smile—Togame’s smile—made something inside Sakura break, but in a good way. The tightness in his chest loosened, and the tension he’d been carrying for so long seemed to dissolve. But it also made something else stir in him. Something unfamiliar but warm pulled him closer to the man beneath him.
His breath hitched as he realized just how close their faces were. Togame’s eyes, calm yet intense, never left his own, and Sakura could feel the heat between them. For a second, Sakura’s brain short-circuited. He wanted to kiss Togame. He needed to kiss him.
But, in typical Sakura fashion, he acted before fully thinking it through.
He leaned in too quickly, their noses bumping awkwardly, and then their teeth clacked together with a painful thud. Sakura immediately pulled back, wincing and clutching his mouth, cheeks burning red with embarrassment. “Dammit!” he muttered, mortified by his own impulsiveness. “That was—ugh!”
Togame chuckled softly, and the sound sent a wave of warmth through Sakura’s chest. The older boy’s hand gently cupped the side of Sakura’s pouting face, guiding him back with a patience that made Sakura’s heart race even more. “Slow down,” Togame whispered, his thumb brushing lightly against Sakura’s cheek. “We’ve got time. Let’s take it slow.”
Sakura swallowed hard, his face still burning, but he nodded, trusting Togame’s guidance. Togame tilted his head slightly, closing the distance between them with a deliberate slowness that made Sakura’s pulse quicken. Their lips met, softly at first, testing the waters, and Sakura felt his entire body tense, unused to the overwhelming sensation of being so close to someone like this.
The kiss was gentle but electric, sending a jolt of warmth through Sakura’s veins. He pressed in slightly, his inexperience making him clumsy, but Togame didn’t mind. He guided Sakura patiently, lips moving with his in a rhythm that felt both unfamiliar and natural all at once. Sakura’s mind was a blur, unable to focus on anything but the sensation of Togame’s mouth against his. The softness of the kiss, the warmth of their bodies pressed together—it was all so foreign to him.
His heart raced in his chest, the unfamiliar sensations overwhelming him. He felt restless, jittery even, as though his body didn’t know how to process the tenderness of the moment. It was too much, but at the same time, he didn’t want it to end.
Sensing Sakura’s nervousness, Togame broke the kiss slowly, his forehead resting against Sakura’s as they both breathed heavily. “It’s okay,” Togame whispered, his voice low and soothing. “Take your time. You don’t have to rush.”
Sakura nodded, his breath still ragged, trying to calm the rapid thudding of his heart. He hadn’t realized how fast everything had felt until now, and Togame’s calming presence grounded him in a way that nothing else ever had.
They stayed like that for a moment, catching their breath, and Sakura could feel the weight of the world lifting from his shoulders. He wasn’t used to this—this kind of intimacy, this closeness—but with Togame, it felt right.
And then, just as Sakura was about to lean in again for another kiss, the door to the stage burst open with a loud bang.
“Sakura-chan! Kame-chan! What are you guys doing? Are you fighting Kame-chan without me?!”
Choji’s voice rang out, booming with excitement as he practically hopped into the room, oblivious to the situation. Sakura froze, his eyes wide as he turned to see Choji bouncing over with the biggest grin on his face, clearly misunderstanding everything.
The shock of Choji’s sudden intrusion and appearance startled Sakura, and in his haste to pull away from Togame, he tries to get up from straddling Togame’s torso but his feet tripped on Togame’s thigh, he accidentally knocked his head right into Togame’s. The sound of the impact echoed painfully, and Togame slumped back onto the floor with a dazed smile on his face.
“Togame?!” Sakura’s voice was panicked as he scrambled to check on the older boy, his face burning red with embarrassment. “Togame, hey, wake up! Don’t just lie there with that stupid smile!”
Togame’s smile didn’t fade, though his eyes were closed, clearly out cold from the hit. Sakura frantically shook his shoulder, trying to wake him up, but Togame remained blissfully unconscious, a faint blush still on his cheeks.
‘UGH!!! Why even know does he have to look cool too!’ Sakura’s hand itches to punch that stupid smile off of his face but decides not to.
Choji, completely missing the awkwardness of the situation, bounded over with a laugh. “Whoa, what happened to Kame-chan? Did you win Saku-chan?! Can I join the fight?!”
Sakura, mortified and frustrated beyond belief, turned to Choji with a bright red face and shouted, “Shut up for a second!”
“Ah! Sato-chan is calling me! Bye bye, Sakura-chan! Take care of Kame-chan for me!” Choji waved off bouncing down from the stage to the door.
“That idiot,” Sakura mumbled, he looked down at Togame’s pass-out body that still had the stupid goofy smile and the red mark on his forehead. Sakura feeling shy about what he was about to do, slowly pushed away, Togame’s bangs.
Placing a soft kiss on the red flush skin, Sakura’s smiled.
“I love you, Togame”