“It’s Ryu isn’t it?” he asked after a while. “You’re dating Ryu, right?”
I remained silent.
He scoffed. “I knew it. I was fucking right. I’ve known you since we were kids Aito. Despite the fact that you sleep around a lot, you actually do not socialize that much. You prefer to stay within our close circle of friends but one day, you just bring Ryu to the table. I was suspicious but I didn’t think much of it knowing how much you hate homos but then you suddenly start spending more time with him. You wanted him to stay with you in the infirmary the day you passed out. You went to watch a movie with him and neglected the fact that someone snatched my phone. The Aito I know would have called the police or do whatever he could to help me but instead, you went with Ryu. Hell I should have realized it when he punched me in the face and you didn’t even say a thing or try to defend me. You even went with him”
Hey he wasn’t at fault that time! You punched him first!
That’s what I wanted to say but one look at his heartbroken expression made me swallow my words. Ah I shouldn’t be thinking of defending Ryu at this moment. My best friend is hurt by my actions. I should console him but honestly, I didn’t know what to do. If he was heartbroken over a breakup or upset about losing something, that was different. I knew how to cheer him up but this… I was clueless.
“Do you like him that much, Aito?” Haruto asked. “Just now, when I said he punched me and you didn’t do anything, you looked like you were ready to fight me. Is that how much you like him? You would rather fight with me than lose him?”
I shook my head. “I’d rather have you both in my life. I-I can’t lose any of you. You’re both important to me. I’m sorry you couldn’t tell me about your feelings because of how stupidly close minded I was. I’m really sorry but I can’t do anything about it right now. I-I don’t know what to do”
Was it selfish of me to still want Haruto as my best friend even though I would never be able to give him my heart? Wouldn’t it hurt him to be by his side knowing I didn’t love him back?
He must have noticed how torn I was so he sighed. “Okay. Answer this honestly then. If you weren’t with Ryu, would you have given us a chance?”
I thought about it then spoke; “If I were still the old me, not a chance in hell but the me of now would have given it a try. You’re my best friend. Who would I rather spend the rest of my life with than you? Even though I can’t predict the outcome of us getting into a relationship, I would still accept you”
I guess that was enough for him for he engulfed me in a tight hug and I hugged him back, knowing that both of us were okay. We’ll always be okay. There were still a lot of things to discuss but we would do that step by step.
********
"And there you have it guys! Aito and Haruto are now friends again!" Toshiro shouted, focusing his camera on us. I shook my head. I should have dropped him home before going to meet Haruto. Turns out the whole school had been following his stories on Insta which contained information about our fight. The video he took of us was a confirmation that all's well now.
After we made up, I received a call from an angry Toshiro saying I ditched him and the girls didn't want to take him home because he was being pervy so we had to go back to school to pick him up and then he made us stop at KFC to buy him chicken as compensation. Now he was taking pictures of us which I'm sure will be on social media.
I sent Ryu a message, cancelling our plans for the night. I wanted to spend time with Haruto and make him feel important to me. He said it was okay and we'll just reschedule even though he didn’t really like Haruto. Hmm, wait till I tell him about the confession. I wonder what his reaction will be…
"How can you enjoy this shit?" Haruto said, slapping the phone out of Toshiro's hand. Unfortunately, it fell on the table. I was hoping it would crash to the floor and smash into pieces.
Toshiro picked it up, inspecting it thoroughly. "Phew. You're lucky it doesn't have a single scratch. I would have shaved your head!"
"Tch. You're so annoying!"
I just kept eating as I watched the two. Seeing Haruto smile again was like watching the sun rise. I just felt this happiness hearing him laugh, watching him eat and joke around as usual.
Toshiro's left brow twitched. "Like you're any better. No wonder you have no girlfriend. Girls can't put up with your boring nature"
Haruto scoffed. "Like you have any either. You've been blessed with the stupidity of a hundred idiots. The girls that sleep with you must be dumber than you.”
Whoa!
I burst out laughing.
"Hi guys!" we suddenly heard.
The lively atmosphere was broken by Sakura and Yua. They quickly grabbed vacant chairs and joined us. Lisa sat next to me and I inwardly groaned. Why was she clinging to me these days?
"How did you guys know we were here?" I asked.
Yua took out her phone and showed us Toshiro's latest status which showed Haruto and I eating in the restaurant.
Ugh I can't believe it. Toshiro had already posted it. No wonder they came. I gazed around the restaurant and realized that a lot of faces I recognized from our school were already present and the majority were females. Oh fuck.
"Really Toshiro?" Haruto said. "This was supposed to be just guys"
“How do you expect me to know that they’ll come?” he defended. “I only waned my followers to know that you two are friends again”
Sakura snickered. "Too bad. We're already here and we're not going anywhere"
"Why are you guys still in uniform?" Yua asked us.
"Long story" I replied, waving her off.
We ordered more chicken and drinks since Yua and Sakura joined us which of course, I would pay since I was the one who gave in to Toshiro's nagging. It was annoying having the girls there honestly because the topics kept switching to who's dating who and which couple would most likely win the prom King and Queen. Toshiro indulged them because he had a major interest in those kinds of things.