Curious, this: a boy, and a girl--neither of them much older than he. Neither enemies nor allies, they are of no concern to Makubex. He could readjust the angle of his camera, and leave this moment unobserved. He does not.

Makubex is no innocent, but he feels his youth. His eyes are everywhere, and this is not the first time he has found himself seeing that which is not his to know. He has allowed his friends their privacy, and has observed strangers with clinical interest, and still Makubex does not understand.

He tilts his head, cheek pressed into the curve of his hand, chin sharp against his palm. His eyes burn, and he blinks too slowly for relief. On the edge of one screen: the girl's fingers are folded over the boy's shoulders. He angles his head, and Makubex sees that the boy's calculations are incorrect. His lips slide across the corner of her mouth, her cheek. The girl turns her face upwards, and she is laughing. She initiates the next kiss.

Makubex's lips pull tight. It makes no sense, Makubex thinks, and understanding is beyond his reach.

Sakura is quiet: she makes herself known only when she wishes to be. Cloth glides against cloth, whisper soft. Makubex realizes that he has been staring at this one monitor far too long. He hugs his legs towards his chest, chin hooked over his knees. "They should know better," he says, finally.

"We all desire happiness, wherever we may find it," Sakura says. She pauses; runs the tassels of her shawl between her fingers. When she speaks again, her voice is gentle, and the amusement so faint that anyone else might have suspected their own imagination. "And it feels--good," she says.

"Sakura?"

The corner of her lips curl, and smooth.

Curious, this: the sudden warmth in Makubex's cheeks.

--end

Written for fanfic100 (prompt: beginnings).