Chapter 11. Boats + Fireflies = Romance

The mall was still (if not more) lively as ever. Little kids ran around the sitting area playing tag, causing a few elders to chuckle. They watched the energetic youths scurrying around the chairs. As they made a run for their "lives" from the older child who was "it", their thrilled squeals of terror filled the air. The sea of shoppers strolling by would turn their heads in the direction of the children. Some would laugh, while others would shake their heads disapprovingly (but not without an amused smile).

Suna and Ryuu walked out of the busy bookstore, each carrying a plastic bag filled with new, shiny-covered books.

"I'm assuming that you really like manga," Suna said, peering into Ryuu's bag and noticing that it was filled with at least ten comic books.

"Well... ever since I was kid, I loved flipping through the books and looking at all of the pictures. It was really cool to see the characters fighting and what kinds of super powers they had!" Ryuu explained enthusiastically, his face lighting up.

"What's your favorite manga?" Suna asked, curiously looking at Ryuu.

Ryuu answered Suna's question by clenching his right fist, thumping it on his chest, and loudly chanting a phrase (which sounded like German to Suna). Some of the passerby grinned at Ryuu, copied his gesture, or pretended to unsheathe imaginary swords and swing them at an imaginary foe.

Suna stared at Ryuu blankly, wondering whether he should understand the reference. Ryuu noticed Suna's confusion and explained to the other teen.

"It's a popular action manga, but I also watch the anime. It's about humans fighting these giants for the sake of humankind!" Ryuu summarized, a little shocked that Suna had never heard about it before.

"Ah, I see," Suna said, watching another group of little kids scrabbling on top of each other, trying to make a human pyramid in the middle of the mall plaza.

"Here," Ryuu said, rummaging through his bag and handing Suna a comic book.

"Thanks?" Suna said, accepting the manga and scrutinizing the cover, which had a drawing of a monstrous, fleshy monster with its mouth agape. It was trying to eat a human, who was about to slice the monster's face in half with what looked like two long knives. It didn't look like Suna's "cup of tea", who was mainly into mystery and historical fiction.

Even so, Suna carefully placed the manga into his bag, deciding that he would read it after he finished all of Nishimura Ryoko's latest novels.

Amidst the sea of shoppers, a group of gossiping girls walked towards Ryuu and Suna. The two attractive teenagers caught their eye. They almost immediately broke out into whispers and glanced over at Ryuu and Suna while blushing and giggling.

"Tell me what you think about it after you read it, OK?" requested Ryuu, glancing over at Suna and remaining oblivious to the girls staring and giggling at Suna and him.

"OK," replied Suna, ignoring the girls who were trying to catch his eye by twirling their hair coyly in their fingers.

Suddenly, when the girls were walking by, one of them walked way too close to Suna. Their shoulders brushed. Then she and her friends giggled. That's when Ryuu started to notice. He looked over at the girls and slyly slung his arm over Suna's shoulder, pulling the quiet teen closer to him (looking overly protective of the smaller male). It only took the girls a few seconds to the message, but they didn't look disappointed. In fact, some tried to contain their quiet squeals, while the others gave Suna a thumbs up or nods of approval. The girl who had bumped into Suna bowed apologetically with an embarrassed look on her face.

A little surprised (but nevertheless happy) that the girls so supportive, Ryuu broke into a grin and gave them a three-finger salute.

Realizing that they were drawing attention to themselves, Ryuu reluctantly slid his hand off Suna's shoulder. Ryuu didn't mind dealing with unwanted stares, but he knew that Suna would feel uncomfortable.

Suna turned away, trying to hide his small smile from Ryuu. There was a warm feeling spreading throughout his chest. He wasn't used to it, but he was growing to like this strange emotion that was gently tugging at his heartstrings.

Suna and Ryuu spent the rest of their day wandering around the mall. When they were walking by a clothes shop for little girls, Suna went in to buy some outfits that he thought that Manami would like. Afterwards, they went to the food court to sample some sweets and buy bubble tea. They found a pair of lost twins (a five-year-old boy and girl) and helped them find their mother. The last thing the two did was ride on the new roller coaster. Suna had to steady Ryuu on the way out. It turned out that it was Ryuu's first time riding on a roller coaster... and he also had motion sickness.

By the time the two made it to the main mall plaza, the miniature clock tower in the center had its short hand pointing to seven. Ryuu led Suna out of the mall to the bus that would take them to the river. He told Suna the name of the stop they needed to get out. They stepped into the conditioned bus and sat next to each other on the red, cushioned seats.

"Sorry... I'm really tired... Can you please wake me up when we've reached the stop?" murmured Ryuu, his eyes slowly fluttering shut.

"Sure, I will," Suna replied, resting his elbow on his armrest and his cheek in his hand.

"Thanks..." whispered Ryuu, dozing off then leaning on Suna's shoulder.

Suna didn't flinch this time, but he did look over at Ryuu.

The sun was starting to set, and the city lights were slowly coming to life. The only noise audible was the whir of the bus' wheels and the cars zooming past.

Suna watched the light and shadow pass over Ryuu's face. He had never noticed how long Ryuu's eyelashes were, nor how angelic he looked when he was at peace. There were a few strands of raven hair that fell across Ryuu's face, which would flutter slightly whenever Ryuu let out a little breath from his mouth. Suna didn't notice that his hand was moving of its own accord to brush away the lone strands of hair. Before his hand could do that, Suna took control and stopped his hand midway.

Suna decided that it was better to look out the window instead of watching the attractive teen sleep. He could feel his face heating up a little, and he tried to ignore the light weight of Ryuu's head resting on his shoulder.

Suna found that instead of watching the flashing lights of the cars and city signs passing by, he was looking at Ryuu's reflection from the window. Swallowing, he scolded himself. Suna didn't know how long the bus ride was, but it felt like an eternity of torture and bliss for him.

Suddenly, the driver's cheerful voice blared through the speakers of the bus, rousing Ryuu. The driver annouced that they had arrived at their destination.

"Ryuu, we're here," Suna said quietly, gently shaking the stirring teen.

"Wha... Oh," Ryuu sighed, letting out a yawn.

In his confused, drowsy state, Ryuu wrapped his arms around Suna's waist and nuzzled Suna's shirt. Suna stiffened, and he felt his heart rate increase.

"Oi, Ryuu, we're here," Suna repeated, blushing and trying to push the tired teen away.

Ryuu groaned in protest, but he blinked a few times and slowly straightened up. Standing up and stretching, Ryuu picked up his bags and waited for Suna to scooch his way out. The tall teen gradually regained consciousness as he followed Suna out of the bus. Suna and Ryuu thanked the bus driver, who bowed at them in return.

Their shoes crunched against the gravel, and water gently lapped against the bank. The sun had completely disappeared beneath the horizon, leaving the pearl moon and diamond stars to take its place. Up ahead, there was a little building residing next to a wooden dock with little canoes.

Suna followed Ryuu inside the small building. They were greeted by an elderly woman sitting behind an ornate, wooden table. On the table was a small lamp that emitted soft, yellow light, which washed over the room. In the corner of the room was a grandfather clock. Its golden pendulum swung back and forth steadily behind its glass frame. The plain, cream walls of the room were decorated with photos of the riverside and people sitting in a canoe smiling cheerfully. Beneath a framed photo of the river at sunset, there was an ebony cabinet with a paper sign taped to it that read "Please place your non-waterproof belongings here". Suna and Ryuu stored their shopping bags in the cabinet then closed its doors.

"Good evening, how may I help you two young gentlemen?" lady asked in a worn, warm voice, giving the two teenagers a grandmotherly smile, which caused wrinkles by her eyes to cease slightly.

"Good evening auntie," Ryuu addressed the elderly woman politely, "I would like to buy two tickets," Ryuu requested, raising two of his fingers.

"Of course," the lady answered, sliding open a drawer filled with tickets.

Ryuu paid the elderly lady, and she gave him two crisp, shiny tickets.

"Have fun, both of you," said the elderly lady, patting Ryuu's hand gently and smiling at Suna.

"Have a good evening," said Ryuu and Suna, walking out into the cool, peaceful night.

The crickets chirped their soothing symphony and a small breeze rustled the teens' hair. Ryuu smiled at Suna as they walked to the dimly lit dock. There was an elderly man sitting on one of the wooden poles of the dock. He was wearing a well-worn baseball cap, despite there being no sun. When he noticed the two adolescents walking towards him, he placed his hands on his kneecaps and stood up slowly with a little grunt.

"Hello there young lads, I take that you've decided to go canoeing on this fine night?" asked the elderly man in a gruff (but not unfriendly) voice, tipping his cap at the two.

"Yes, uncle," Ryuu said, handing the man the two tickets with a smile.

The man shuffled the tickets and looked at them briefly before nodding to himself with a grunt. He gestured for the two teens to get into the canoe.

"Watch your step and try to keep your balance, fellows," he grunted, watching over Suna and Ryuu and balancing the canoe so that the adolescents wouldn't end up tipping the canoe over and tumbling into the river.

Once Ryuu and Suna were seated safely inside the boat, the elderly man nodded at the two and pushed the canoe into the river.

"Have a safe ride, and don't forget to follow the red ribbons," the elder instructed, pointing at the red ribbons each tied to the stalk of a cattail. They were evenly spaced from each other every ten meters or so.

"Gotcha, thanks uncle," Ryuu said, nodding at the elderly man before taking hold of the wooden paddles and stroking the water.

The elderly man smiled warmly at the two before he walked back to his wooden pole and sat down. The dock and the man became smaller and smaller the further Ryuu rowed away. Soon, all that was visible was a small speck that used to be the elderly man and a miniature dock glowing faintly in the distance. They disappeared from view once Ryuu guided the canoe to the right, following the red ribbons.

Suna looked around, listening to the quiet splashing of the paddle and the frogs croaking their lullaby. Suddenly, Ryuu spoke.

"Look, fireflies!" he exclaimed in a hushed voice, carefully setting the paddles inside the boat then pointing at the magical little specks of light.

They floated dreamily in the air, like a troupe of fairies. One of them landed on the side of Ryuu's head, making him look like he was wearing a glowing hairpin. Suna laughed quietly.

"There's one on your head," he notified Ryuu, giving the tall teen one of his rare smiles.

"Eh? Seriously?" Ryuu exclaimed, lightly patting his head frantically until he caught ahold of the cheeky bug.

It stayed in Ryuu's hand for a few seconds before flying off to join its family. Suna watched the fireflies curiously. The expression on his face made him look so much younger and innocent. Ryuu felt his breath catch in his throat. Although Ryuu liked Suna, he had never felt so captivated by the other teen before. Maybe it was the way Suna's eyes were wide and filled with naive curiosity. Maybe it was the way his face was lit up with a seraphic smile. Maybe it was both.

Ryuu found himself leaning towards Suna with his eyes half-closed. Suna didn't notice until their faces were inches apart. Then Ryuu closed the distance between their lips. Wrapping his arms around Suna's waist, he pulled the other teen closer, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the warmth of Suna's body against his.

Although their they had kissed in the play, this was different. Ryuu wasn't Rosen, and Suna wasn't Samuel. Ryuu was Ryuu, and Suna was Suna.

Surprisingly, Suna didn't try to break away. He was a little shocked, but he allowed himself to relax and savor the moment. Suna felt unexpectedly good in Ryuu's arms. It was strangely comforting.

After what seemed like an everlasting moment, the two slowly parted. Ryuu still didn't let go of Suna, and he nuzzled Suna's neck.

"You know, you're a really touchy person," Suna informed Ryuu quietly.

"Is that a bad thing?" Ryuu asked, his voice was muffled by Suna's shirt.

Suna paused before saying, "Not necessarily." Ryuu could hear the smile in Suna' voice.

When the two finally returned to their apartment complex, they were completely exhausted.

"Did you have fun, Suna?" asked Ryuu, and managing to grin at Suna despite how tired he was.

"Yes I did," Suna replied smiling softly at Ryuu, "Thank you for today."

Ryuu hugged Suna, and Suna heard the sound of the shopping bags crinkling.

"Oi, Ryuu," Suna sighed, patting the tall teen lightly on the back.

Ryuu straightened up, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Sorry, I'll try to be less touchy," he apologized, backing away from Suna.

"It's alright," Suna replied quietly, "Anyways, here are some books and clothes for Manami," Suna said, handing Ryuu a bag filled with adventure novels and girl clothes.

Ryuu stared at the bag, pleasantly surprised.

"Thank you Suna, Manami will love these!" Ryuu said gratefully, carefully taking the bag out of Suna's hands.

"It's nothing, really," Suna replied, waving his hand.

There was a pleasant silence, and the Ryuu stared at Suna endearingly.

"Well, goodnight Suna," Ryuu said, leaning towards Suna for another kiss (despite his promise to "try" to restrain his touchiness).

Then a loud bang caused the two freeze. Takeo's booming voice resounded throughout the quiet night.

"Suna! Ryuu! Welcome back!" he roared, waving his arms in a frenzied and disorganized manner.

Suna noticed that Takeo was holding two books in his hand.

"Oh, hi Takeo," Ryuu laughed (a bit too loudly), blushing and rubbing the back of his neck.

"... Hey, Takeo," Suna greeted the giant flatly, concealing his emotions behind his placid face.

"I heard you guys outside, and I remembered that I needed to give you guys something!" Takeo bellowed, nodding his head furiously.

In about half a second, Takeo somehow appeared in front of Suna and Ryuu's faces.

"Here," Takeo grunted, thrusting yaoi manga in front of each of the teenagers.

Suna hesitantly accepted the manga with a shadow casting over his face. On the other hand, Ryuu's face was about as red as newly blossomed rose.

"Ah... Takeo, this is great and all, but I think that I'll pass," choked Ryuu, waving his hands in front of his face frantically.

Unlike Suna, Ryuu had no idea it was impossible to turn down Takeo's generous offers.

"Take it," Takeo insisted, pushing the book into Ryuu's hands.

The drawing on the cover portrayed a half-naked couple kissing passionately on a unmade bed.

"Eh..." Ryuu stuttered, looking uncharacteristically flustered.

Takeo nodded purposefully, gave the two a thumbs up, and started walking towards his apartment.

"Have a good night Suna, Ryuu!" Takeo grunted with a smile, disappearing behind the door.

Suna and Ryuu were left outside, wondering what in the world they should do with the books that Takeo had so kindly given them.

Review Replies:

a-faux-pas: I hope that this chapter was worth the wait *shifts nervously*. I'm really sorry that it took such a long time. I was being a lazy bum. I kept on telling myself, "OK, I'm going to finish this chapter tomorrow." Then the day after "tomorrow", I would tell myself the same thing. It was a really, really bad cycle. I'm super glad that I finally managed to finish this! I'll try to update sooner (let's hope that I don't jinx myself).

Stevenbomb2015: I'll try to plan ahead so that I can try to fit in Ryuu and Suna asking Yamoto/Takeo for relationship advice. Come to think of it, Yamoto's only made one appearance in this fanfiction... I feel like I need to write about her more... I'm planning on adding more "jealous bits" with Ryuu and Suna. I've never tried writing "jealous bits" before, so this should be fun.

All the best with dealing with the emotional crud, I believe that you can do it! Sometimes life may get messy (believe me, I'm dealt with a lot of crazy stuff in my life), but if you stay strong and pull through, things will get better. I promise.

Gabette Bomb-chan! :) And as always, thank you for your amazing ideas.

A/N August 11, 2015

I couldn't log into fanfiction yesterday... I stayed up until eleven to finish this chapter, and when I had just finished, fanfiction crashed... I was so frustrated because I didn't want this chapter to be any later than it already was...

Well guys, it's finally finished. Four hours of typing have finally paid off (I hope?). My main concern is that Suna and Ryuu are getting too "mushy". I blame that on my inner fujoshi... If you guys have any constructive criticism (that will help improve my writing), don't be afraid to shoot away. I promise I won't bite. Seriously.

Virtual cakes to those of you who can guess what Ryuu's favorite manga is! As much as I'd love to give you guys real cakes, it's physically impossible for me to transport a cake through my computer. Well, at least for now. Mwahaha. haha. ha. I'm too tired to do a proper evil laugh.

Thank you so much for reading, and may you guys have an awesome rest of the week!

-ShootingStar103