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Eventually, Kurosawa would have to meet Adachi’s family.
It wasn’t something he’d thought about, often. A passing thought, maybe, when Adachi would briefly mention them—his mother, stepfather, and two younger half-brothers. Over time he certainly began to grow curious over them a bit. What would his brothers look like, younger versions of Adachi? The idea would be adorable, really, if only he could imagine anyone being cuter than his angel is right now.
That didn’t make it any less surprising when Adachi suddenly brought up a family gathering.
“It won’t be serious,” he had said. “Only my brothers are going to be there, and I told them to bring a friend along if they’d like. Besides, we’re getting married one day, aren’t we? It’d be nice to meet with my brothers first so they can be prepared before we introduce you to my parents.”
The thought was nerve-racking. Kurosawa was going to meet Adachi’s family! It was only his brothers, but still. Making a good impression was absolutely crucial. After they both got home from work, Kurosawa immediately changed into his best suit—the one he saved for special occasions. It was a dark navy blue, and custom to fit exactly onto his frame, making his shoulders appear broader.
From the couch, Adachi sat in his plain white turtleneck looking amused, hair adorably tousled. “Isn’t that a bit formal? It’s just dinner.”
He glanced at the mirror thoughtfully. “Is it too much?”
“Maybe a little.”
Kurosawa stared harder into the mirror.
“Yuichi, I doubt they’ll care much how you dress. How about you save the formality for when you meet my parents?” He gently slipped the suit off his fiance’s shoulder, grazing bare skin, and Kurosawa shivered at the touch. “I bet Kouta and Souta will show up in hoodies and sweatpants anyway, so it’d be weird if you’re the only one wearing formal attire.”
He looked away from the mirror, instead turning to focus on Adachi which made him feel better. Of course. Seeing his beautiful angel’s face always made him feel better. Maybe he was just being too dramatic. “Is that what teenagers are into nowadays? Hoodies and sweatpants?”
Adachi gave him an offended look. “Don’t say that like we’re old.”
“We kind of are. Aren’t they half our age?”
There’s only been a few photos Kurosawa had seen of the brothers. They didn’t look much younger than Adachi, but that was only because the thirty-year-old man had such a baby face some people mistaken him for a college or even high school student. Multiple occasions when they went out Adachi had been misunderstood as Kurosawa’s little brother, which was a little disconcerting.
“Well, Souta is eighteen and Kouta is turning twenty. I wouldn’t say they’re half our age.”
While they were talking, he had successfully changed into a simple beige coat that was simultaneously casual and smart. He turned and came face to face with Adachi, who was smiling up at him. The younger looked so pure at that moment that Kurosawa couldn’t resist placing a quick peck on the corner of his lip, which turned into two then three. The wide doe eyes that Adachi casted at the sudden action got him showered with even more little kisses, until he had to shyly swat his fiance away.
Kurosawa’s pout faded away as soon as Adachi took his hand and led him out the door, as he thought of how grateful he was Adachi could no longer read his mind. It was embarrassing how holding hands with each other still made Kurosawa internally die of happiness.
Adachi’s hands were just so soft, and nice. But they were shaking. Kurosawa looked at his fiance, concerned. “Are you okay?” he said gently. “You can tell me if you’re nervous, Yoshi.”
At least he smiled at the nickname. It was months into the relationship before they started calling each other by their first names, since they were so used to being coworkers. When they did, however, was when the neverending stream of Adachi nicknames that Kurosawa had been holding back began to make an appearance in their daily life. Yoshi was one of his favorite ones.
“Is it stupid that I’m nervous? They’re just my brothers, and I know for sure that they’d never intentionally be horrible, but what if they’re homophobic? I’ve never mentioned anything about relationships to them. They don’t even know you’re a man! They probably think the fiance I’m introducing to is some woman. What if they don’t—”
He cut off when Kurosawa wrapped his arms around him and soothed down his hair. “We don’t have to go if you don’t want to,” he reminded him.
Adachi took a deep breath. “No, no, I want to! It’s just—I’m just nervous, that’s all.”
“We can take our time. There’s no rush.” After making sure no one was watching from outside the apartment, Kurosawa led him into a soft kiss. Their mouths slid together smoothly, mist forming between them from the winter air. It was his own personal heaven. When he finally pulled away, Adachi’s pupils were dark and dilated.
“I’m ready. Let’s go introduce you to them.”
Once they arrived at the restaurant Kurosawa was instantly relieved he had not chosen to wear the fancy attire. It was a small traditional-looking tonkatsu shop Adachi said he’d gone to often as a kid. The two people he assumed to be Adachi’s brothers were sitting in the corner, and bowed when they arrived, exchanging shocked looks.
“I’m Aoki Souta, and this is my… friend, Ida Kosuke,” the shorter one quickly said.
Oh. So this was Adachi’s youngest brother, and his friend. They were highschoolers for sure, still in their uniforms. Kurosawa’s gaze slipped to Ida’s hand, which was casually settled against Aoki’s thigh. Aoki seemed to follow his line of sight and visibly jolted, brushing off the hand and coughing loudly to disguise the action.
Kurosawa almost laughed at how Adachi-like that was. He held back a knowing smile and introduced himself. “My name is Kurosawa Yuichi, Kiyoshi’s fiance. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
With the confirmation they were engaged, Aoki spat out his water.
It was at that exact moment two others appeared. The person standing behind seemed shocked at Aoki’s display of being a water fountain, while the brown-haired one snorted and whacked at his forehead playfully. It was obviously Kouta, the middle brother. They both sat down and he simultaneously bowed and reached out to shake Kurosawa’s hand, then Ida’s.
“Fukuhara Kouta here. And this guy,” he beckoned the person who came with him, “is Shinomiya Naoya. What are your names? Kiyoshi-niichan, where’s your fiance? I thought we were meeting her today.”
Adachi shifted nervously in his seat. “Kouta, this is my fiance. Kurosawa. Uh. Yuichi.”
Fukuhara blinked once, then again. Next to him, Shinomiya shot them a curious look. He turned around and whispered something to Fukuhara’s ear, the receiver of which shook his head furiously. Aoki had not gotten over his initial shock and doubled over again, choking violently on air this time. The boy next to him—Ida, if Kurosawa remembered correctly—was still silently cleaning the remains of water Aoki spouted all over the table.
“Congratulations!” Adachi flinched at the heavy impact of the back pat Fukuhara landed onto his shoulder. “I can’t believe you were hopelessly single for twenty nine years, and you suddenly come out with,” he waved his arms around for dramatic effect, “this!”
“Right,” the oldest sibling offered weakly.
Underneath the table, Kurosawa inconspicuously laced their fingers together and gave an encouraging squeeze. They obviously weren’t trying to make him uncomfortable on purpose, but he could feel how restless Adachi was getting. He was probably second-guessing himself again. Not only that, but around the tables were two strangers, and although they seemed nice enough their lingering stares didn’t escape Kurosawa’s notice in the least.
“How did this happen anyway? Does he know about our family?” Fukuhara questioned.
All heads turned to him.
“Know what?” Kurosawa raised a dark eyebrow, concern etching onto his face.
Smiling down bashfully, Adachi revealed, “That’s actually the reason we got together. The magic, I mean. I don’t have it anymore though.”
With that, Aoki let out what sounded like a squeak. “You don’t? Doesn’t that mean—”
“—Yes. Yes I did. Do that,” Adachi finished for him. His words seemed to catch up to him and he buried his reddened face into Kurosawa’s shoulder, embarrassed at the implications. The older fondly shook his head, once again rubbing through his hair. The public display of affection didn’t go unnoticed, and the whole table erupted into teasing.
Other than Ida and Shinomiya, who sat there looking bewildered. “The magic?” Ida blankly repeated out loud.
“Wait!” Aoki suddenly stood up, eyes wide and rounding into circles. “Why hasn’t Kouta spilled anything yet? Or have someone trip on him? Or gotten into a car crash and ended up in the hospital with a coma on the way? Don’t tell me you also…” He trailed off in a questioning tone.
A smirk from Fukuhara was all the answer he needed apparently, because Aoki sunk down and tugged at his hair dramatically while wailing, appearing to have an existential crisis. Ida was clearly perplexed but patted his friend’s shoulder in encouragement. Adachi looked taken aback, mouth gaping wide and letting out an incredulous laugh.
Kurosawa himself was incredibly puzzled, and a quick glance at Shinomiya showed he was no different. This seemed to be something only the siblings themselves understood.
“I’m the only virgin in this family now?!”
The waitress serving their food let the tray down with a loud thunk on the table. Choking back a bewildered laugh, Kurosawa along with the others bowed to her in apology for having to witness the overly loud sentence coming out of Aoki’s mouth.
It was only when she left that Aoki took Fukuhara’s cheeks between two palms and squashed them together, looking in his eyes in an interrogative manner. He ignored his brother’s irritated noise, insteading asking, “So tell us. When was it? Who was it? How was it? Actually, no, please don’t tell us that.”
Fukuhara shook him off and stuck out his tongue at him. In response, Aoki made an ugly face back. Kurosawa watched them with mild interest. They were a lot less shy than Adachi was.
“Shouldn’t we maybe… explain to these three first?” Adachi beckoned to Kurosawa, Shinomiya and Ida. “Are you okay with them knowing?”
“Yes,” Aoki nodded, “I trust him.”
He and Ida exchanged soft smiles. Kurosawa nudged his foot with Adachi’s, lifting a shoulder at the pair and leaning into his ear. “Aren’t they cute?” he murmured under his breath.
Adachi flinched, just slightly. “Eh?” his fiance whispered back. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t really mind,” said a nonchalant Fukuhara. “Naoya knows about my bad luck already anyway. He just doesn’t know that it has to do with my family.”
Just as he stated, Shinomiya seemed startled by this. “It does?”
“I wanted to explain it with my brothers here as well. I’m sorry I never mentioned it to you either.” Kurosawa turned to see Adachi rubbing the back of his neck apologetically.
He shook his head. “Don’t be. I do have to admit I’m curious, though.”
“As you know, we all have the same birth mother but different fathers hence why our last names are different. Our biological mother that we share actually comes from a long line of magic-users. Over time however, the magic has diluted and it really depends on how much you inherited.
It can be unpredictable. I had no idea I was going to be able to read minds when I turned thirty, but I did. Aoki might be the same and develop powers later in life, or he might have not inherited any magic at all. There’s no sure way to tell. For Kouta, he inherited dark magic and hence has been unlucky since birth. It can be the opposite and you can be very lucky from excess white magic as well.
The thing is, the only way for the powers to fade would be to either lose your virginity or find someone with compatible magic, for example Kouta finding someone with a lot of white magic that would balance his unluckiness out. That would be temporary, however, so the only permanent solution would be to lose your virginity. It’s very complicated, so I don’t know how most of it works either and why it even has to do with virginity at all.”
After Adachi finished the speech on a breathless note, the table was deep in thought.
“That explains it.” After receiving everyone’s questioning looks apart from Fukuhara, Shinomiya continued hesitantly carrying on. “I don’t know about my family since I was adopted, but I’ve been unnaturally lucky since birth. Only after I started spending time with Kouta did my luck seem to finally even out. And after we slept together,” Kurosawa recoiled at the unexpected knowledge, “we didn’t need to be together anymore for everything to be normal.”
“Pause,” Aoki shrieked. “You two had sex?”
“You really need to stop being so loud,” Adachi scolded him, pressing a hand to his forehead. He then began to process what Shinomiya had just revealed and exclaimed in an even louder voice, “Wait, what?”
“Is everyone on this table gay or what?” muttered Aoki a little too loudly.
Dead silence hung still between them. Aoki looked mortified. Ida sat still as stone, gauging his surroundings for reactions just like Kurosawa was doing. Their eyes met briefly, and then proceeded to shift to Shinomiya’s casual nod and Fukuhara whose brain appeared to have gone into overdrive.
This time it was Fukuhara that stood up. “Don’t tell me…”
“I did not mean to say that.” Aoki dropped his forehead onto the table with a dull thud that honestly sounded quite painful. “Kill me right now. Someone. Anyone.”
He casted Aoki with a concerned look along with Adachi. “Are you alright?” Kurosawa inwardly wondered whether he was overstepping. Especially with the expression on Aoki's face when he looked up to see it was Kurosawa who spoke and his face scrunched in distress.
“So…” started Adachi.
“Let me get this straight,” Fukuhara interrupted. “Is everyone on this table in a relationship with each other?”
Aoki grimaced. “You worded that weirdly.”
“For the record, I am Kiyoshi’s fiance,” Kurosawa confirmed proudly. It was an exciting thing to say out loud. Even Adachi liking him back was an exciting thing. Wow. He was winning at life here, Kurosawa mused to himself. The smugness must have shown on his face because that caused Adachi to snort rather unceremoniously. Which, somehow, was cute as well.
“We’ve established that by now, Kurosawa-san,” the middle sibling said. “Souta, however, care to explain to your dear brother what you meant?”
There was a pause where Aoki took a deep breath, then became determined as he grabbed Ida’s hand and raised them up like a demonstration. “We’re dating!” he blurted. Ida went along with it, staring at Aoki with unconcealed astonishment. Kurosawa half-expected Aoki to go into another freak out mode and melt into a puddle on the floor, but their entwined hands lingered in the air—frozen at an unwavering, deliberate position.
“Oh,” said Adachi, stupefied into disbelief. “Really? You two?”
Had Adachi not noticed it before? His always perceptive, detail-oriented Adachi? Though, he was always clueless when it came to these kinds of things. An incredulous huff made its way out of his throat without really meaning to.
Aoki faltered, lowering their hands, and Kurosawa rushed to clear up the potential misunderstanding. “My apologies. I didn’t mean to be offensive. I was just amused that Kiyoshi didn’t realize.”
From the corner of his eye, Adachi shot him an accusing look. “You knew?”
Kurosawa shrugged. “I had a feeling.”
“How so?” Ida questioned curiously. To answer that Kurosawa gestured to his hand which had crept back to Aoki’s thigh like there was some sort of magnet there. This evoked the same reaction as the first time, however now everyone else witnessed Aoki flailing too. All Ida let out was an understanding hum, unabashed.
Somewhere in the background Fukuhara made a mock throwing up sound and everyone’s attention was instantly averted to him. “Both your couples are disgusting.”
The two other brothers simultaneously made squinty eyes. Kurosawa hadn’t noticed it too much before, but the resemblance between them—more so their mannerisms than anything else—was quite evident, even with the age gap. He could see Adachi’s clumsy, easily panicked side in all siblings. Still, his shy angel had a certain maturity and timidness about him that contrasted from the others.
Another feature that differentiated them was their hair. For Adachi it often fluffed in the back due to his bedhead. Kurosawa had always found it quite endearing. Aoki’s was longer and reached the nape of his neck, curling around its edges, and Fukuyama had his dyed a cinnamon brown color, swept lightly to the side. Then obviously there were Adachi’s brother’s boyfriends, both looking like they stepped right out of a popular boy band. He would be almost intimidated if not for the circumstances.
“Don’t think we forgot about you,” Aoki warned him. “So tell us about you, oniichan. Since when was this,” he pointed an indignant finger at Shinomiya’s direction, “a thing?”
“I’m curious to know too,” Adachi jumped in, no less puzzled than Aoki was. To be honest, there was no denying Kurosawa was also invested in this family drama. He watched Fukuhara with rapt attention as he stuttered his way through his answer:
“Well, I realised from the beginning he was very lucky, and that my bad luck went away whenever I was with him. One day I told him to stay with me forever which he interpreted as asking him out. That was just the beginning though. Over time I started to like him not just for his luck but for real and… and here we are?”
His boyfriend snorted at the explanation, but it was the endeared kind Kurosawa often found himself directing at Adachi. “He was like a puppy,” Shinomiya informed them, “so overager and cute. I couldn’t resist.” Now that he thought about it, there was something about Fukuhara that made him a bit puppy-like. It was a suitable contrast from Shinomiya with his sharp handsomeness.
“If your power was being lucky, aren’t you disappointed after losing it?”
Shinomiya shook his head in reply to Aoki’s question. “I was always taken advantage of because of my luck. People only hung around me because of it. So I’m actually happier being like this.”
Kurosawa could relate all too well. Not to the good luck part, but because he himself experienced being judged solely by his appearance. While he certainly noticed the blatant favoritism, it also came with those who underestimated his achievements due to it, and similar to what Shinomiya said, those who were superficial and only stuck around for that reason alone.
There was a brief silence where they all considered his words, after which Aoki asked carefully, “Kurosawa-san, how about you? How did you get with my brother?”
He thought back to the times he’d spent mulling over his infatuation with his coworker. The very first day Kurosawa took notice of Adachi was after the disastrous client meeting. Adachi had sat there comforting him, and patted his drunk self with such simple care that Kurosawa was immediately besotted. It was the first time he felt so appreciated, warmth lingering on his chest whenever he thought about the moment afterwards.
Little time passed before yearning led to deep affection, especially after he actually got to know Adachi and realized how incredible he was. The worst thing was that Adachi himself didn’t even notice it! His selfless nature, the pureness that exuded from him in waves—before he knew it, Adachi had already taken up a huge segment inside his heart.
Adachi was his healing presence. That was the best way he could describe it.
It took a while before Kurosawa replied. “Before we got together, I harbored a secret crush on him for seven whole years. Though, I don’t regret it one bit.” He looked straight at Adachi. “I thought it was a miracle when he started noticing me. I found out later it was because he heard my thoughts.”
Ida looked over to Adachi, impressed. “Reading minds does seem very useful.”
“Isn’t that cheating?” Aoki huffed, referring to Adachi. “Pity the rest of us for having to figure it out if they actually like you instead of just reading their mind.”
“Well, I can’t anymore,” the former telepath muttered, “and it was pretty hard to adjust to life without it after. It caused a lot of miscommunication as well. When I revealed my power, we actually broke up for a bit.”
Admittedly, it was something he didn’t like to remember. When Adachi left the room following their breakup, he’d broken down sobbing onto the tatami floor. More time was spent staring at the wall contemplating existence or answering his sister’s worried calls than actually functioning. Definitely was not dramatic to say those few days were an extremely low point in his life.
“That sure would’ve been useful for us though,” Aoki spoke under his breath.
Fukuhara nudged his shoulder. “Tell us how you got together then. Did you bribe him?”
A glare was sent his way. “Of course not! What, are you trying to imply something with that?”
Interrupting the two, Ida voiced, “If anything, I pressured him.”
“No you didn’t. It was a misunderstanding!” Aoki flew to defend his boyfriend. He looked offended that Ida even thought so. Kurosawa admired his enthusiasm. It was honestly refreshing, even though spending more than a few days with him would probably give him a slight headache.
“What happened?” Kurosawa tried asking.
Reluctantly, he began, “It started with an eraser…”
That earned a snort from Fukuhara and dubious eyebrow raises from both Kurosawa and Adachi.
Attempting to ignore them, Aoki carried on. “I didn’t have an eraser.”
“You could’ve just asked me, you know. I work at a stationary company,” Adachi reminded.
“That’s not the point, oniichan! Anyway, since I didn’t have one, I borrowed my friend’s eraser that had Ida’s name on it with a heart. It actually turned out she wrote Aida but I didn’t find that out until later either,” he grumbled, “so I really thought she liked him.”
“Ida saw the eraser and thought you had a crush on him,” guessed Fukuhara. Everyone chuckled following Aoki’s dismal nod. “That’s hilarious!” For the first time this evening, Ida actually looked vaguely embarrassed.
“I’m glad you all think so, because it certainly didn’t feel like it at the time.”
“Uwa, you know we’re just teasing.” Fukuhara swung an arm around his younger brother and fondly gave his hair a ruffle. Aoki—whose hair was now a mess—rolled his eyes but didn’t pull away.
“Kouta-kun, you've really changed a lot,” Adachi mused. “More confident now.”
“Well, considering I’m not in a constant state of worry that I’m going to get run over by a car or set on fire, I’d say that’s why," he explained.
The moment was disrupted by the ringing of Adachi’s cellphone. It’s our mom, he mouthed, flipping his phone to show the screen display of an incoming facetime call.
Panicked glances were exchanged by the siblings. Their parents knew they were meeting up today since they discussed it in the family groupchat, but had no idea they brought their significant others along. Scratch that, Kurosawa doubted they were even aware of his and Adachi’s engagement, much less Fukuhara’s relationship with Shinomiya, or Aoki’s with Ida.
Not knowing what else to do, Adachi beckoned the other three to go sit on the empty table at the side as he answered the phone.
They quickly made the appearance that it was a gathering of just them, and even though their mom commented on the ridiculous amount of food for a trio, she didn’t seem to suspect anything questionable.
“Either way, I’m glad my sons are eating well,” Kurosawa heard her say from the background.
He had awkwardly settled beside Ida while they waited for their partners, Shinomiya sitting across from them. Without the brothers being what connected them, they were practically random strangers. Kurosawa himself was used to conversing in this atmosphere in work functions and events, but these two appeared mildly uncomfortable.
“This is all a bit sudden, isn’t it?” he remarked in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Thankfully, both their shoulders seemed to relax. “Definitely,” Shinomiya agreed. “But I’m glad it turned out this way.”
“Aoki was very worried,” murmured Ida lowly, “so I’m also happy it’s going well. We agreed we were going to pretend to be friends in front of family. To see him open like this, I didn’t expect it at all.”
“I suppose seeing as we’re all in the same situation, there’s not exactly room for any judgment,” Kurosawa mused. He could feel it even now; the mutual understanding that arose from their similarities. They were three guys dating three guys who were coincidentally siblings. The situation was quite abnormal, all in all. Nevertheless, he was grateful he didn’t have to face scorning relatives, even if he would do it for Adachi in a heartbeat.
There would be enough of that with Kurosawa’s family, he brooded. It was no secret that Kurosawa’s parents were conservative—much more than most Japanese elders even. And that was saying something. Though his sister was unwaveringly supportive, he shivered thinking of their parent’s reactions. Even Mari wouldn’t be able to defend him from that one.
Shinomiya and Ida considered his words. “I guess you're right,” the latter concluded. He tentatively continued after a clear of his throat, “I actually want to ask something a bit off topic, if it’s not too forward.”
“I don’t mind,” Kurosawa assured him, wondering what it was that made Ida so on edge.
“I’ve been thinking a while since, well Souta and I have been together for a few months and I’m,” he lowered his voice, “not so experienced with, um, guys. Or anyone. I don’t know how it works and such and from what I’ve heard you two seem to be…”
“Proficient?” Shinomiya suggested.
Kurosawa chortled at that, but Ida nodded slowly.
“You’re asking us… for sex advice,” he confirmed.
Ida nodded, again.
Kurosawa balked, leaning back into his chair. “Huh.”
The other was unfazed. “I’d say just follow your instinct and do what your body feels like.”
He did suppose it was to be a given to not make a big deal of it. It wasn’t like Ida could go asking these questions to just about anybody. Maybe he should be pleased that he and Shinomiya seemed trustworthy enough to consult with. “What are your worries in particular?”
“That I’ll mess up, probably.” Ida thought for another moment. “Or hurt him. That would be bad.”
“It’s important to communicate outright. I recommend if it’s the first time, for you to talk all through it. Not excessively of course but ask him if it feels okay, what feels good, make sure to pay attention to any signs that could indicate anything other than pleasure,” he finished on a heartfelt note, wondering if he went too overboard.
From the approving looks on their faces, he didn’t. Shinomiya said, “I agree with that completely. His enjoyment is the priority for me. But, Ida-san, you shouldn’t worry too much about it. It’s okay to go slow. You’re still young.”
“I’m not going to hurry into it. I just want to be prepared for that day, eventually…”
“It’s up to your preferences how you prepare. Would you be the,” Kurosawa contemplated how to say it in a polite manner, yet found he couldn’t, “top?”
Shifting in his seat, Ida said uncertainly, “Yes? I guess so? Though I’d be fine with whatever he preferred. Are you, Kurosawa-san?”
Well. He had nothing to lose, he supposed. There was no being more open than this. “Most of the time. Usually I like topping, but sometimes it’s nice to lose control for a bit? Everything feels great, as long as it’s with Adachi. I think that’s the best part.”
“Me too, I used to think I would top exclusively, but—”
“—Naoyaaaa,” a loud voice wailed. Adachi, Fukuhara, and Aoki arrived just in time to hear the beginning of Shinomiya’s sentence. Fukuhara flung himself against his boyfriend’s body, mortified. “What were you talking about?”
Kurosawa was aware that he, Shinomiya, as well as Ida probably looked like deer in headlights at that very moment. “I was just asking them for advice,” the youngest said sheepishly.
“Ehh? What kind of advice?” Adachi queried whilst everyone was going back to their respective seats.
“I don’t think you want to know,” whispered Kurosawa to him privately.
Adachi’s eyebrows went up over his bangs. “I see.”
During when Ida fumbled for the excuse that he was questioning the two on university admissions, (“I was just saying I thought I’d get the top score,” Shinomiya explained), Adachi gave him an incredulous look. “You didn’t give my brothers’ boyfriends a, uh,” he hesitated, reddening slightly, “sex talk, did you?”
“Who, me?” Kurosawa said innocently, pretending not to notice his finance’s scoff.
"I can't believe you." Despite his words, Adachi wasn't mad. In fact, he looked fond. "While you were talking with them, I had a chat with Kouta and Souta. And... I think everything will be okay."
“Kiyoshi-niichan,” Aoki called, snapping the couple out of their conversation, “I think we have to go soon. Ida has to go back to his house before it’s late.”
“We’ll get going too. Since we both have a morning psychology lecture quite early tomorrow,” explained Fukuhara. “We should really do this again someday. It was nice meeting you, Kurosawa-san, Ida-san.”
Taking in a nervous breath, Adachi revealed, “That might be soon. I’m actually thinking of formally introducing mom to Kurosawa.”
“Ah, really? As more than friends?”
Fukuhara flicked at Aoki’s head again. “Of course as more than friends, Souta-kun, it’s a formal introduction! Hey, you know what, we should bring Naoya and Ida-san too, that would be funny.”
“I’d rather not give our mom a heart attack,” Adachi deadpanned. “Let’s take it one step at a time, Kouta.”
After they walked out the restaurant and said their goodbyes, Kurosawa and Adachi huddled together to stay warm as they strolled back to their apartment. The weather was wintery and crisp, and Kurosawa's phone buzzed with the notifications from their newly made groupchat of six. He noticed the pleased smile that graced Adachi’s lips and found his own stretch into an adoring beam.
“That was nice, wasn’t it?”
“It was. Thank you for coming here with me.” Adachi's eyes glittered under streetlamps. He was undeniably the most beautiful thing to exist. “I love you, Yuichi.”
Kurosawa’s heart filled with content.