With the summit in sight, the two of them dragged themselves up to the mountaintop, where Shin and Maki were. Joseph stumbled forward like a man on a mission, while Abdul looked like he was thinking of rolling down the mountain just to be done with it.
"Almost there…." Joseph said breathlessly. "We'll be... heroes..."
Abdul grumbled, "We'll be good as dead if Shin saw us…..."
Joseph gave him a grin. "If we die, at least we die as legends…"
"Legends?" Abdul scoffed. "Legends don't get arrested at pyramids and stalk their friends on dates..."
"Depends on your definition of legends…" Joseph replied with a wink.
Back to shin:
Below, the sea shimmered under the moonlight, each wave reflecting fragments of the star-filled sky. The night air was crisp and cool, and a gentle breeze whispered through the trees, rustling the grass around us…
I turned off the engine of the bike. The silence settled between us like a comforting blanket. For a moment, neither of us spoke. We just sat there, taking in the sight of the glittering ocean below and the vastness of the sky above…
"This..." Maki whispered; her voice soft, almost reverent. "This is... beautiful…."
I smiled, glancing over my shoulder at her. "Not bad, huh?"
Maki let out a soft laugh. Her soft laughter made my heart feel a little lighter. "No... It's more than that…"
I swung my leg over the bike and turned to her, the moonlight catching the soft curves of her face, making her look like she belonged to the stars themselves. She sat still on the bike, her arms resting on her lap, her dark eyes glimmering under the silver glow.
Without saying a word, I reached out and took Maki's hand and I gently pulled her toward me. She looked at me. She looked a little surprised, but she didn't resist…
"Shin...?" she murmured, her voice hesitant and filled with uncertainty.
I didn't say anything… I only acted by my will… For the first time without overthinking and hesitating, I moved closer, wrapping my arms around her waist and pressing her tightly into my chest. Her warmth against mine made the world around us distant-like, only two of us under the sky, floating in our tiny universe…
Maki's eyes had widened slightly at the sudden change in me, her lips parted as she tried to catch her breath.
"Shin... What are you doing?"
I gave her a small smile, my voice low and steady. "Just... holding what's mine…"
Her heart was racing… I could feel it in the way her body trembled slightly against mine, the way her breath hitched in her throat. For a moment, she looked like she didn't know how to react, caught off-guard by the way I had acted out of my usual shy, hesitant self…
And, for once, I felt like a man who knew exactly what he wanted…
Maki blinked, her hands pressing lightly against my chest. "Shin… You're... being weird…" she whispered, though her voice betrayed the nervous excitement building beneath her words. "Where did this come from??..."
I grinned, tightening my hold on her just enough to make her heart skip a beat.
"Maybe I just realized I can't waste another moment not showing you how much you mean to me..."
Her cheeks flushed under the pale moonlight, and she looked away, trying to hide the way her lips curled into a shy smile.
"You really are an idiot..."
"Maybe…" I leaned down, brushing a strand of hair from her face, my thumb lightly grazing the soft skin of her cheek. "But I'm your idiot…"
Her breath hitched again, and for a second, I could feel her heart pounding so hard it felt like it was echoing through both of us.
"Shin..." she whispered, her voice shaky but filled with something tender. "You're really... acting different tonight…"
"Is it a good different?" I asked, grinning.
Maki bit her lower lip, trying to suppress the smile threatening to break free.
"Yeah... Good different…"
I didn't wait any longer. Gently, I tilted her chin up, and my eyes locked with hers in that soft moonlight. Then, time seemed to stand still, everything did just that one heartbeat. just the two of us, in a timeless suspension.
Then I leaned in and captured her lips with mine in a kiss that felt like a promise…. a promise to never leave her alone again, to always be by her side, no matter what happens….
Maki melted against me, her arms slowly sliding up around my neck as she kissed me back, softly at first, and then with a kind of urgency… like she had been waiting for this moment for a long long time….
Her fingers curled into my hair and I pulled her closer, deepened the kiss, as if I could erase every moment of doubt she'd lived through this past month, every second of loneliness she had felt while I was away…
When we finally pulled away, both of us were breathless, the night air cool against our flushed skin. Maki stared up at me, her eyes filled with something soft and vulnerable, but also fierce…
"Don't ever make me feel like that again…. you idiot…" she whispered, her voice trembling slightly. "I was scared... scared that maybe you didn't need me anymore..."
I cupped her cheek, brushing my thumb across her skin. "You're the only person I'll ever need, Maki. I swear..."
She gave me a small, bittersweet smile, her fingers tightening around the collar of my jacket.
"Just... don't look at anyone else like you looked at me tonight..."
I smiled, pressing my forehead against hers. "Never. No one else but you... I swear…."
Maki exhaled slowly as if releasing the last bit of worry she had been carrying. Then she gave me a playful nudge.
"You better remember that, Shin Takamiya."
We stood there for a while longer, wrapped in each other's arms, the soft sound of the waves below us blending with the night breeze. The sky above was vast and endless, filled with countless stars…. each one of them a silent witness to the promise we had made under the moonlight…
For the first time in a long while, I felt whole. Complete. This was where I was meant to be… right here, with Maki, under the open sky….
As the silence wrapped around us like a blanket, Maki rested her head against my chest, her breathing calm and steady.
"I love you, idiot," she whispered softly.
I smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I love you too, Maki."
On the side of Joseph and Abdul:
Joseph and Abdul crouched awkwardly in the bush, trying to remain absolutely still as they watched Shin and Maki share an intimate kiss under the moonlight. Joseph's grin stretched ear to ear. He was clearly enjoying the moment. Abdul, on the other hand, looked like a man who had been dragged into a war zone without any safety gear….
"This was a terrible idea from the beginning…" Abdul muttered under his breath, sweat beading on his forehead…
Joseph gave him a quick glance, barely containing his excitement. "Terrible? This is amazing! Just look at them… our little boy Shin's finally growing up. The romance… the passion... It's just beautiful."
Abdul frowned. "This isn't beautiful—it's creepy. We're literally hiding in a bush, watching them make out. If Shin finds out, we're both good as dead…"
Joseph snickered. "Relax. We're just... documenting the moment…."
Abdul shot him a sharp look. "Don't even think about it…"
But Joseph had already pulled out his phone, adjusting his baseball cap with a mischievous grin. "Just a quick snap. For good moments… just look at them… sitting on the bike…wrapped in each other arm… a full moon in the sky… a perfect harmony…"
Abdul's eyes widened. "Joseph, no!! Put that away! This is a new low even for you…"
"I'm just capturing true love…" Joseph whispered dramatically, his phone aimed at the kissing couple. "You'll thank me later…"
Abdul groaned. "I'm going to die. This is how it ends…"
Just as Joseph angled his phone to take the perfect shot, he accidentally shifted his foot on a branch. The snap of the twig was followed by a loud rustling noise as the bush shook suddenly...
Abdul froze, his heart dropping into his stomach. "Oh no. We're dead…"
Joseph blinked while grinning like a child caught stealing cookies. "Oops."
Back to Shin:
A few feet away, where I was sitting with Maki, I instantly realized something was not right. Things are going a bit too smoothly for someone like me. I turned my head toward the sound of the rustling bush. My eyes narrowed suspiciously as I looked at the bush…
"Who's there?!" I called out while taking a cautious step toward the bush.
Maki crossed her arms, glaring at the bushes. "Shin. What was that!!! was that just a snake or any animal…"
But my gut was telling me something else…
"Come out… Whoever is there!!!" I demanded, moving closer.
Knowing they were completely busted, Joseph and Abdul exchanged looks…
"Well…" Joseph said with a shrug. "It was fun while it lasted…"
Abdul groaned quietly. "This is all your fault…."
With no other choice in hand, Joseph and Abdul came out of the bush, their arms raised in mock surrender. Leaves clung to their clothes, and they both looked thoroughly disheveled—though only one of them seemed remotely guilty about it.
"Hey there, lovebirds!!!" Joseph said cheerfully, grinning ear to ear like a man without any regrets.
Abdul, on the other hand, immediately pointed at Joseph, throwing him under the bus.
"This was his idea all along!!! I told him not to do it! I said it was a terrible plan!"
"Liar…" Joseph shot back, still grinning. "You were having fun."
Abdul glared at him. "I was not having fun! I've been regretting every step of this disaster…"
I folded my arms. I tried to look stern but failed miserably as a grin tugged at the corners of my face. "Seriously? You two followed us all the way up here?"
Maki shook her head, though she couldn't hide the amusement in her eyes. "You guys are the absolute worst..."
Joseph gave a casual shrug, his grin never faltering. "What can I say? We're dedicated. Friends don't let friends go on romantic dates unsupervised…"
"That's not a thing!" Abdul hissed, glaring at him. "You're making that up!!!"
At this point, me and Maki couldn't hold it in anymore. we burst into laughter, our voices echoing through the night air…
"I swear..." I said between fits of laughter, doubling over slightly, "I seriously can't believe you two…"
Joseph grinned, unrepentant. "Believe it, baby. We're always watching."
Maki rolled her eyes, her smile wide. "You two need a hobby."
Joseph gave a mock bow. "This is the hobby…"
Abdul sighed dramatically, rubbing his temples. "I'm officially disowning you, Joseph…"
Joseph nudged him with his elbow. "Come on, you had fun. Admit it..."
Abdul shot him a death glare. "No!!! In fact, if Shin decides to throw you off the mountain right now, I'll help…"
I crossed my arms, still smiling. "You're both lucky I'm not angry…"
Joseph winked. "That's the magic of friendship, Shin. We annoy you, but you can't stay mad at us…"
Maki chuckled, leaning into my side. "Well, at least you can say your friends are consistent…"
"Yeah," I muttered, wrapping an arm around her. "Consistently terrible…"
Joseph grinned. "And yet, you love us…"
"Barely…" Abdul muttered, glaring at both me and Joseph like a man contemplating his life choices.
The four of us stood under the stars, laughter filling the cool night air, the earlier tension replaced by the familiar chaos that always seemed to follow us around.
Maki rested her head on My shoulder, still smiling. "Your friends are unbelievable…"
I let out a sigh, though there was affection in my voice. "Yeah... but they're my idiots…"
Joseph gave an exaggerated wink. "And proud of it..."
Abdul groaned. "One day, Shin... one day you'll thank me for putting up with him…"
I chuckled. "If we survive that long."
And with that, we all collapsed into laughter again, knowing that no matter how ridiculous life got, this was exactly how it was meant to be…. Filled with love, laughter, and the kind of friendships that could survive anything….
TO BE CONTINUED