Chapter 4: A Walk in the Park

It was bound to be a beautiful day, if Ichirou said so himself. The sun was shining beautifully and he could hear the chirps of birds outside his window. It was the perfect day for a walk in the park, which was, incidentally, the plan. Masahiro would be here soon, and then they would be heading to Shinjuku Gyoen. Today they would also be alone for the first time, which Ichirou was a little bit apprehensive about. Since they would be in a very public area, he figured that it would probably be fine in the end. They had agreed to eat before they left, and after having his meal, his sister had asked to talk to him in private. So, that’s where he sat now, listening to his sister.

Ichika had been working extremely hard to find out more information about Masahiro. This was more likely to help her feel at peace with him dating than it was to actually help him, but it did help somewhat. He had learned that Masahiro had no publicly available social media, that his uncle was planning on handing down the hotel chain to Masahiro, and probably the most important fact: Masahiro’s parents died when he was eight.

In retrospect, it made sense; Masahiro hadn’t talked about his parents whatsoever during their time together, only his aunt. But it was also difficult to really see how that had affected Masahiro. He had acted like a somewhat goofy, normal guy. Ichirou wasn’t exactly sure how an orphan should act, but he had expected there to be some sort of hint.

“Hey, hey, are you listening?” Ichika asked, poking her older brother. “I want to run an audit on him. Can’t you give me his phone number?”

“You’re being too clingy, Ichika. There’s no way I’m giving you his number right now. You’ll meet him when you meet him.”

“But, here’s the thing!” She stood up, her eyes ablaze and steam pouring from her nostrils. “You’ve never had good luck with relationships ever! How can I trust this guy is the real deal just based on what you say?! All of the people you’ve met except for Akamine-san have been terrible! And every time you end up crying in your bed alone! I’m sick and tired of it!! Let me meet him!”

Ichirou rolled his eyes. “Not until you chill.”

With that, his phone let out a cute beeping noise, telling him that he’d received a message from Masahiro. He opened it up, and it simply read “I’m here,” with a sparkling car sticker. That was all Ichirou needed, so he stood up.

Before he walked out the door, he double checked his outfit. Today’s outfit was a short sleeved, white collared shirt, a pastel pink and purple ombre sweater vest with a cute moon decal above his heart, white dress shorts, a chiffon hair bow around his ponytail, a cloud shaped shoulder bag, and some simple pink and white striped trainers. It was a dreamy, slightly nerdy look. Doing a quick spin to ensure that everything looked correct, he quickly began walking out of his room.

Ichika chased him, begging him to let her meet Masahiro, but Ichirou decided at that point that he was not going to engage with her any further about this. His mother and father were waiting by the door, and gushed to him how happy they were that he was going on another date. He managed to quickly get away from them, and walked out the front door. He turned from the closed door to see Masahiro leaning against his car.

Masahiro’s outfit of the day matched a young business executive in the making a lot more than his previous outfit. He was wearing sunglasses, matching desaturated blue slacks and suit jacket, and a white button down that was unbuttoned just a bit more than would be considered appropriate in any business situation. To put it simply, he looked hot. Well, he was an alpha, so it had to be expected.

Upon seeing Ichirou, Masahiro sprung into action, opening the passenger door. Ichirou rolled his eyes. He was going to have to talk to him about that sooner or later.

“Good day, dearest omega of mine,” Masahiro said in a teasing tone.

Ichirou glowered at him as he plopped into his seat. Masahiro closed the door, still grinning. He lumbered over to the other side of the car, seating himself comfortably. Ichirou smelled Masahiro’s pheromones and felt any annoyance slide away. He knew he didn’t react like this to every alpha’s pheromones, but for some reason, when Masahiro put out those happy pheromones, it simply mellowed him out.

“So, how are you doing, Ichirou-san? Are you ready to see some spring flowers?” Masahiro asked as he pulled out into the street.

“Oh, I’m good, the same as this morning when you texted,” Ichirou said dryly. “But as for some flowers, yes. I’m excited to see them.”

“I’m hoping that now that the cherry blossoms are gone, the garden will be a bit emptier. You can’t expect much of that with the most popular park in all of Tokyo, though, especially on a Saturday,” he said jokingly.

Ichirou nodded, smiling slightly. Today, he was determined to figure out a bit more of who Masahiro was. He wasn’t about to probe the whole orphan thing, in fact he wasn’t sure if he ever would. Ichirou wanted to know more about his past, and why Masahiro didn’t want to date. Ichirou didn’t want to date because he didn’t want to get married, but alphas generally didn’t have the same pressure to hurry up and get married. So, why on earth was Masahiro not wanting to date?

“I’m kind of sad we didn’t do hanami, but we needed to get that first date out of the way. There is always next year, if we decide we want to hang out that long,” Masahiro said.

“Yeah, we could if you want to.” Ichirou didn’t want to tell him that he wasn’t planning on having this arrangement last more than six months. But, then again, maybe their friendship would bloom to the point where they were around each other that long.

They drove through the suburbs of Tokyo, the buildings slowly getting larger and larger. From Meguro, to Shibuya, and then Shinjuku. Ichirou had come to Shibuya and Shinjuku quite often, as he was an avid clothes and makeup shopper. However, this was the first time he had to park. He was usually just dropped off with a security guard that would inevitably end up holding one of his bags. Not only that, but they didn’t come here to shop, but to go look at flowers. It just felt a bit odd to be in an area that he usually did one thing in, but was now doing something else. 

The two men managed to get some parking about four blocks away from the park, which wasn’t too bad, all things considering. They walked through the crowds of people, occasionally hearing the blare of someone running for office on a microphone, or some van that was promoting a new idol group. The streets were busy, but not as awful as they could get on Sundays. 

However, for Ichirou, it was the scents that overwhelmed him. According to his doctor, his ability to smell pheromones at a higher ability than others was because of his dominant omega trait. What this meant was that the poor pink haired man would often go into sensory overload when he went outside. Unconsciously, his hand went over his mouth and nose, trying to keep the excess out.

The two men finally made their way out of the crowd and into the opening of the garden. Even despite the fact that they were at the entrance, it instantly gave Ichirou some relief from the smells. They paid for their two tickets and walked over to the map of the park. They hummed and hawed about where they wanted to go, before finally deciding to start with the Mother and Child woods. It was a much quieter area, as the trail partially became a dirt path and there were very few flowers.

As Ichirou walked into the trees, keeping pace with Masahiro’s long strides, he smelled the warm wood and greenery. It was definitely similar to Masahiro's pheromones, but there was something about Masahiro’s scent that was different. Ichirou couldn’t quite place it, but he supposed that it didn’t really matter that much.

“So,” Masahiro said as they walked down through the trees. “What do you like to do for fun?”

“Oh, I really like practicing my makeup, shopping, watching dramas, and reading novels,” Ichirou said. He purposefully left out the fact he enjoyed reading romance novels, hoping that Masahiro wouldn’t ask what kind of novels he liked.

“What kind of novels do you like?”

Shit, he asked the question. So, Ichirou decided to bluster his way through it. “W- well, it’s not like it really matters, but I like to read romance novels. Is there a problem with that?”

Masahiro chuckled, and Ichirou felt the redness of his face make its way to the tips of his ears.

“No, there’s no problem with that, Ichirou-san. I was just curious. I like to read science fiction books personally. We all can enjoy what we want without it being weird or embarrassing,” Masahiro said patiently.

“Whatever,” Ichirou grumbled, folding his arms. “What about you? What sort of things do you like doing?”

“I like reading, going for drinks, watching movies, and learning about business from my uncle,” Masahiro said.

Ichirou looked up at him doubtfully. “You like learning about business?”

“Yeah, I do. I want to be a good successor, so I study a lot about business. I mean, obviously, since I’m still in school, but I do a lot of reading up on how other businesses run outside of class.”

“Why? I don’t get it.”

“Ah, well, I just feel like it would be a good way to honor my family.”

As they walked out from the miniature forest into the Japanese style garden, Ichirou felt as though he understood what Masahiro was talking about. Ichirou had never been given any sort of meaningful position in the Kimura’s company, so he never felt any real connection. But Masahiro’s family had all worked on the hotel chain together, including his parents. It was probably a way for him to feel more connected to them.

Ichirou and Masahiro made their way past verdant, carefully sculpted bushes to a small bridge that meandered over the deep green water. Ichirou leaned over the short handrails to look into the water. As if on cue, several dark colored fish began swimming up to the surface. They were obviously looking for scraps of food, but Ichirou had nothing to give them. More fish began to appear, their little mouths opening and closing at the top of the water. Ichirou smiled slightly, watching them.

“What about things you hate?” Ichirou looked up in surprise at the question, just noticing that Masahiro was watching him.

Ichirou looked back to the fish, pondering for a moment before submitting his response. “I don’t like being put in a bubble, or having expectations forced on me. I don’t like alphas who claim that pheromones make them hurt omegas. I don’t like spicy things.”

Masahiro laughed a little at that, and Ichirou glowered at him. “Sorry, sorry, you had these serious things, and then something like spicy food… it really didn’t fit in. I don’t mean to be mean or tease you, it’s just…”

Masahiro trailed off, leaving Ichirou with a raised eyebrow. “It’s just what?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Masahiro quickly said, looking away. Ichirou wasn’t sure but he thought he saw Masahiro’s cheeks turn a bit red. “Anyway, as for the things you don’t like, I totally understand. Having someone else’s expectations be put on you really sucks. It can be super stressful. As for the alphas who hurt omegas… well, all I can say is that I hate them, too. They’re really gross.”

The two of them began walking across the bridge again, reaching a little island. It really was just a little intermediate place between the two bridges, but it was somehow cute. The only sound was that of gravel crunching beneath their feet for a moment before Ichirou decided to ask Masahiro.

“Then what do you hate?” Ichirou asked.

“My aunt, for one.” He paused after that immediate response, needing more time to think of things. “I hate when people make me feel inferior for liking certain things. I hate pretentious people a lot.”

The gravel’s crunch turned into the light tapping of the bridge. “I hope this isn’t too personal to ask, but why do you hate your aunt so much?”

“It is pretty personal, but I don’t mind telling you the basic details,” Masahiro said. Masahiro seemed to gather himself as they walked down the bridge, passing by a weeping willow and a short, pink tree. Ichirou considered taking a selfie by it, but he figured that probably wouldn’t be appropriate considering the timing.

“Basically, I had to live with her from the time I was seven onwards. She really pushed me to be a good student, which I naturally am. However, being in the top twenty of my elementary school wasn’t good enough; I had to be number one. She would yell at me for hours if I got less than a hundred on a test. She never let me enjoy anything, only study, study, study. One time I got less than a ninety, and I thought she was going to kill me. Long story short, in middle school, my uncle found out about what she was doing and he took custody of me. He’s always been really great to me, and with his positive support, my grades actually improved. I’m really grateful to him.”

Ichirou was silent for a bit as they walked, trying to come up with the proper wording. If that was the basic details, what was he not sharing? And thinking of it, he would have been thrusted into that right after his parents died. Ichirou felt very grateful for his parents at that moment, knowing that he could have had a situation closer to what Masahiro had to go through.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say other than the fact that that was awful and should never have happened to you as a kid,” Ichirou said quietly. He knew that it wasn’t enough, but it was the most he could do.

“Yeah, it shouldn’t have.” Masahiro’s eyes seemed far away for a moment as he looked up, towards the sky. He blinked a couple times and brought himself back down to earth. “But it is what it is. There’s nothing I can do about it now. What’s important is that I’ve taken back my life, and I’m happy.”

Ichirou nodded, and Masahiro grinned. They walked past a couple of ponds in silence, simply enjoying the good weather and nature. Despite the lack of cherry blossoms, the park was still beautiful. The Japanese garden truly was a testament to the style; green grass, carefully rounded out bushes, trees trimmed, rock pathing, and there was even a gazebo that had been styled to look like a home. Seeming to know the way, Masahiro guided Ichirou around the pond, through the trees, and into the cute little building that was surprisingly quiet.

The view was beautiful, much grander than Ichirou had been expecting. Across the large pond, all of the sculpting of bushes and trees really came together. There was another small island in this body of water, as well as a cute stone path that branched from the island to the mainland that people were not allowed to use, for fear of them falling into the water. Ichirou leaned against the guard rail, drinking it all in. Masahiro joined him soon after, gazing into the water.

“Ichirou-san, I hope this question doesn’t make you uncomfortable, but I’m really curious. Why don’t you want to get married?” Masahiro asked.

Ichirou expelled a breath, closing his eyes. “It’s not that uncomfortable. The truth of the matter is that I’m scared. I’ve never really dated anyone, and my parents want me to exclusively date to get married. I feel like I’m still just a kid. I’m really lucky that my parents aren’t more backwards, but there’s that social stigma that omegas should just hurry up and get married and marked. I don’t think those things are bad things, they’re just not for me yet.”

Masahiro nodded, pulling his gaze from the water to meet Ichirou’s eyes. “I understand. I don’t think it’s a fair expectation to have on omegas. People often told me as a kid that omegas cause problems for other people, but I always thought that was weird. Just because someone needs help doesn’t mean that they’re causing problems. You should be able to live your life just like anyone else.”
“Thanks for understanding.” Ichirou gave him a soft smile. “I’ll hopefully find my prince charming someday, just not today.”

“What sort of guy would you want to be your prince charming?” 

“Oh, um, ahem,” Ichirou coughed, face turning red.

Ichirou’s mind instantly turned to many, many years ago, when he was a child. He couldn’t remember any features any more, but he had hung out with a boy at that age who was determined to be his prince charming. They always held hands at that young age, and the boy would protect him from bullies, bugs, or scary adults. The kid even had a play cape and wooden sword, if Ichirou remembered correctly. The sort of devotion that kid had shown him was unparalleled, and Ichirou partially wished he could remember more about the kid and track him down. If he was even similar to how he was as a kid, he would be an incredible boyfriend.

“I guess,” Ichirou began, trying his best not to be too embarrassed at what he knew was going to be a slightly childish answer. “Well, my sister calls me a princess, and I can’t say I blame her. My ideal boyfriend would be really loyal to me. He would take care of me, give me a lot of compliments, and shower me in love constantly. He would protect me from the bad of the world and… I don’t know, just be really faithful to me.”

Ichirou said those last words kind of quickly, as he had realized his mind was going to a… different, but related subject. Ichirou would never say it out loud, especially to an alpha he barely knew, but he really craved someone who would kiss every single part of his body, someone who would dominate him in a non threatening way, someone who would attend to his every whim and need, someone who would worship his body and self. He was probably a bit of a pillow princess, but he hadn’t exactly had sex before, so there couldn’t be any way for him to know that for sure.

“Hmm, sounds like you have high standards. I can’t say I blame you, if I was a rich, beautiful omega who could get any guy, I would too.” Masahiro said the last part a bit teasingly.

Ichirou rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I know I have high standards. What about you? What sort of glorious person would you date?”

Masahiro hummed. “That’s a hard question. I think the most important thing to me is cuteness.”

“Wh- cuteness? Really?!”

“Yeah, I always get crushes on people who are cute. Like, physically cute is nice, but I think emotional cuteness is more important.”

“And how do you define physical cuteness versus emotional cuteness?”

“That’s easy. Physical cuteness are things like big eyes, wearing fashionable clothing, being well groomed, having long hair, a soft, sweet voice, things like that. For emotional cuteness, it’s a bit more complicated. Being kind is obviously cute, and a little bit of naivety is cute, but sometimes getting angry at being embarrassed is cute. Shyness is really cute, being gentle is really cute, and needing to rely on me is really cute. I don’t care about the gender, as long as they fulfill my need for cuteness.” Masahiro gave a firm nod, as though approving his own decision.

Ichirou took a moment to process that. As far as he could tell, he would definitely fall in line with Masahiro’s cuteness requirements. Was he saying this because he did like Ichirou, or was this some sort of weird coincidence? Once again, Ichirou felt a bit nervous about whether this fake date was actually Masahiro’s attempt to have a real date.

“Um, you aren’t going to fall for me, are you?” Ichirou said with a nervous laugh.

“I won’t, but if I do, I will absolutely never tell you, so you don’t need to worry about that,” Masahiro said, his expression completely flat. 

“Um, okay,” Ichirou said with an awkward laugh.

“No, but for real, I never want to make you feel uncomfortable. If I do, please let me know so I can fix it.”

Ichirou nodded somewhat hesitantly. He was, if he was being honest, feeling a little unsure about this whole situation. Ichirou really didn’t want Masahiro to fall in love with him, so the “but if I do” sentiment made him squirm a little. He stood up straight, stating that he’d like to move on from this place. Masahiro did not question him, following the other man out of the building and into the trees once more.

Due to the somewhat awkward atmosphere, Ichirou and Masahiro had fallen into a silence as they walked on the pavement. They passed by an old couple that were walking arm in arm, unobtrusively speaking amongst themselves. They looked like the sort of couple that had been together for fifty years that still were just as in love as the day they were married. Perhaps it was because of his age or his lack of experience, but Ichirou couldn’t picture that for himself whatsoever.

You are reading story The Pink Rose’s Promise at novel35.com

They turned a corner, and a moderately large field spread out before them. The field contained parents sitting on blankets, and children running around. Laughter sprinkled the air, as well as the occasional delighted shriek of a child who was playing a game. They needed to get through this area to get to their next destination: a coffee shop.

“What do you think of kids?” Masahiro asked, breaking the delicate silence.

“Oh, I… I don’t know,” Ichirou admitted.

“Really? I would assume your parents would want you to be a mom.”

“I mean, they do, but I’m not really around kids enough to know. I think kids can be really adorable, but they can also be really gross. Like, the giggles are just to die for, but then they also puke everywhere,” Ichirou said, letting out a tiny huff.

“I can see why you’d feel like that. I definitely want my own someday, personally. Imagine how cute a mini me would be!” Masahiro grinned, pointing to himself.

Ichirou rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you’d probably be an adorable kid, whatever.”

The two of them made it across the field, coming to the cherry blossom tree area that had been so vibrantly pink only a couple weeks ago. Now they had given way to small green buds that would eventually become leaves. It gave off a serene sort of feeling, especially since there were very few people around. 

Ichirou and Masahiro chatted about the garden as they walked moderately slowly by the cherry trees. Ichirou was relieved that the awkwardness had passed. He only really could hope that Masahiro wouldn’t fall in love with him. That would kind of defeat the whole point of this fake dating nonsense. Sure, Masahiro was physically attractive, but Ichirou was still unsure of his character. No, it wasn’t even that, it was that Ichirou refused to fall in love with Masahiro. He wasn’t ready for something like that.

They walked between a couple of ponds, and Ichirou once again leaned against the fencing to get a more comfortable look, with Masahiro following suit soon after. Another gorgeous view of a variety of well cared for trees and bushes extended before them. Poking out over the greenery were several tall buildings; the only signs that they were actually in the middle of a bustling metropolis. A slight breeze flowed through his hair, bringing with it the hint of the winter that had passed.

Ichirou turned around, pulling out his phone. “Come here, Masahiro-san.”

“Hm, what is it?” Masahiro said, turning around.

“Do you wanna take a selfie together, or take my picture?”

Masahiro blinked at that. “Oh, uh, let’s take a selfie, I guess. It’ll be good to show off to our relatives. Let me hold the camera, you can’t get both of us in it.”

“Shut up,” Ichirou grumbled as he handed Masahiro his glittery pink phone. 

Masahiro squatted down a little bit, as there was nearly a foot of difference in height between them. He carefully ensured that there was enough of the background showing, then snapped the photo. Afterwards, he offered to take a picture of just Ichirou, which the shorter boy gladly accepted. He posed as professionally as any online model, and Masahiro took several photos from multiple angles before handing his phone back to him.

As they walked up the trail a bit further to the coffee shop, Masahiro teased him about the pose. Ichirou rolled his eyes for what seemed to be the hundredth time, complaining that Masahiro didn’t get it because he didn’t have social media. After that, Masahiro began to tease him about Ichirou looking for his social media, which Ichirou couldn’t really fight back against. 

The duo walked past the outdoor benches into the small coffee shop. Ichirou had grabbed a specific coffee every day of his college life, and he wasn’t about to switch now. He ordered a strawberry creme frappuccino, and when he went to pay, Masahiro stopped him, ordering a matcha tea latte and handing his card over. Ichirou protested, but Masahiro ignored him. 

After they had got their drinks, they decided to walk over to the grass field that was just across the path to sit in the sunlight. They made their way closer to the middle of the field, Ichirou enjoying the beautiful green trees and occasional buildings that rose about around them. When they sat down, Ichirou immediately began sipping at his frappuccino; it was extremely sweet, but that sort of thing suited him. After a particularly long slurp, he asked the question that had been on his mind all day.

“So, why are you being forced into dating? Isn’t that something that’s only for omegas at this age?” Ichirou asked.

Masahiro hummed softly before responding. “I thought so too. I think my aunt is worried that I’m becoming unsociable, and obviously my uncle agreed enough to go along with it. I understand that they’re worried about me being a social recluse, but I’m focused on studying. That’s part of why I don’t really wanna meet more than once a week, too, to be honest. I’m really busy preparing for my master’s degree.”

Ichirou nodded. “That makes sense. But why don’t you want to actually date? You can see someone only once a week and be dating them.”

Masahiro opened his mouth and closed it a couple times before saying lamely, “It’s complicated…”

“Complicated? How?”

“I just… I guess I’m the sort of person who wants to shower his lover with a lot of attention and care. I wouldn’t be able to hang out just once a week if I was actually dating someone. That’s actually why my high school girlfriend broke up with me. She said that I was way too clingy, which I totally get now that I’m looking back on it. But I don’t think I’d be any different now, and I can’t do that while I’m in school, so…”

“That’s not that complicated,” Ichirou huffed, taking a long slurp of his strawberry flavored coffee. He did not see Masahiro sigh near silently in relief that his lie had been believed.

“Yeah, I guess it’s not. Um, lemme ask you another question. We’ve talked a lot about future relationship stuff today, so I wanna ask about something else. You seem to get along with your family. What’s that like?” Masahiro asked.

“Oh, I mean, yeah, I do get along with them. I mean, they irritate me sometimes, but they’re pretty great. My parents really embarrass me, which makes it impossible for me to ever bring any friends home. My dad is usually more calm than my mom, who’s pretty emotional. People don’t really believe when we say that she’s an alpha, but alphas can be super emotive, too. My mom hasn’t worked since she married into the family, but she makes going around and making a billion and one social connections a job. My dad is more reserved and cool. He’s going to take over for my grandfather at the Kimura company whenever he decides to retire. Meanwhile, my sister’s an otaku.”

“An otaku?! The heir to the Kimura conglomerate is an otaku?!”

“Oh, yeah. It’s something she tries to keep under wraps, but she’s a total weeb. She reads yaoi comics like her life depends on it.”

“Incredible, who would have thunk.”

“Yeah, she also really wants to meet you since she doesn’t trust you one lick,” Ichirou said, sipping on his drink and taking a long look at Masahiro.

“Well, I’m sure once she meets me and sees that I’m just a nerd like her, she’ll realize she has nothing to worry about. Anyway, what’s your grandfather like?”

Ichirou went silent for a moment. “Oh, he, uh. Well, I don’t think he likes me very much.”

“What? Why not?” Masahiro asked.

“Because, um. I think I remind him of his mom, and she died protecting him. So it’s not really that he hates me, it’s more like he can’t bring himself to look at me. And, like, I get it, because if you look at old photos of her, we’re basically the same person,” Ichirou said.

Masahiro nodded, taking a drink of his matcha latte. “I can understand that. Grief can make things difficult to deal with, even if they’re completely innocuous things.”

Ichirou supposed that Masahiro knew that better than he did. Ichirou had yet to really feel grief, except for when his childhood dog had passed away in his last year of high school. He wasn’t sure if that really could be counted, though, because as much as he loved that dog, the dog was not a human person. It just wasn’t the same thing.

Ichirou finished off his drink and stood up, stretching. “You don’t think that the roses have bloomed yet, do you?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Masahiro said, standing up and beginning to stride over with Ichirou to the trash bins.

“I don’t think so either. The ones at my house haven’t bloomed yet. So, let’s just skip the French garden for today and maybe go to the greenhouse?”

“Sounds good to me.”

The pair walked down a couple of paved paths, eventually ending up in front of a cute, round flower bed that held some cheerful red and magenta flowers. Ichirou naturally demanded another photo there, which Masahiro humbly took. After that, they walked over to the large greenhouse. Upon entering, Ichirou certainly felt a lot warmer, but it definitely wasn’t an unpleasant sort of warmth.

The greenhouse was filled with extremely lush plots, with a meandering path that went through it. Flourishing trees, abundant bushes, fanned leaves, dense moss, and soft grass brimmed over the edges of patches of dirt and onto the pavement. A cute pond had an overflow of lily pads, and even a small, fake waterfall that dribbled down into the water. A high bridge over the pond brought them back around to the main entrance, making the pathway a complete circle.

“Oh, I forgot to mention,” Ichirou said as they wandered slowly through the greenhouse, stopping here and there to look at the plants. “I’m going out of the country for Golden Week, so I probably won’t see you until the week after that, so long as my heat doesn’t come early.”

“You don’t take suppressants?” Masahiro asked, sounding surprised.

“Oh, I do take them for two months, and then I have one heat. That’s apparently the best way to keep my fertility in the best shape. That’s what the doctor says, anyway.”

“Well, just keep me in the loop with texts. I’ll be chill with whatever. Where are you going? Hawaii?”

“The Maldives, actually.”

Masahiro whistled in approval. “I’ve never been there before. Have you?”

“Once, but it’s been fifteen years. It’ll be fun, though, so long as I don’t get sunburnt.”

“Yeah, you’re so pale. I can’t imagine how easy it is for you to get burnt,” Masahiro murmured, gently brushing his thumb on Ichirou’s arm for all of a moment. Ichirou only felt his cool digit against his arm for a moment, but he felt chills go up and down his body. What a weird reaction to someone who was barely a friend just touching him a little.

“Y- yes, I am. Anyway, what are you doing for Golden Week?”

“Oh, my uncle and I are going to Shanghai. He’s got to work, so I’m just gonna play around a little bit in the city, so how well I can do with my crappy Mandarin,” Masahiro said.

“Ohh, that doesn’t sound like the most fun to me,” Ichirou mumbled.

Masahiro shrugged. “It’s better than staying here. I love Tokyo, but when you live here, the novelty wears off a bit. Oh, but make sure to send me photos. It’s so beautiful there, I wanna see it all.”

Ichirou nodded. “And you make sure to show me photos of whatever it is you’re going to end up doing in Shanghai.”

“You can bet your butt I will.” Masahiro grinned at this.

They made their way out of the greenhouse, then began to walk out of the garden entirely. The park closed at four, and it was fifteen minutes until then. As they walked down the paved path to the entrance they had come through several hours earlier, they occasionally brushed up on each other since they were standing fairly close. Being this close to Masahiro, Ichirou could smell those warm, inviting pheromones.

As the duo walked down the Shinjuku streets, Ichirou decided that he was fairly certain that Masahiro was a good guy. He still didn’t know if this was Masahiro’s roundabout way of getting Ichirou to date him, but he was fairly certain at least that Masahiro wouldn’t force anything onto him. Perhaps it was still too early to tell, but their heart to hearts from earlier that day made him feel that way. Masahiro had revealed a lot of his insecurities, and Ichirou had begrudgingly done the same. It definitely felt like they had grown a bit closer.

Ichirou finally insisted that he could open the door to the car himself, which Masahiro laughingly allowed him to do. They sat themselves into the car, Ichirou squirming a bit to get comfortable in the seat. Masahiro backed out of the parking spot and then pulled onto the street.

“So, did you have fun today?” Masahiro asked.

“Yeah, I did. I feel like we learned a lot about each other,” Ichirou said.

“I agree, but I’ve still got a lot of questions for you.”

Ichirou huffed and slumped in his chair a little bit. “I’m really not that interesting of a person, so I don’t know why you’d have that many questions.”

“Hush, you’re plenty interesting! I don’t even know so many things about you, like where you like to go shopping, what you want to do for work, where your ideal vacation would be, what you were like in school, and what’s your favorite flavor! I don’t even know if you like video games, for hell’s sake.”

“Oh, um, I haven’t really played many video games, so…”

“We should change that. See if we can find something you’d like. Since you like romance and dramas, maybe a dating sim would be good.”

“I don’t even know what that is.”

Masahiro laughed, although in a somewhat wicked way, as though he was really going to enjoy showing Ichirou these video games he was talking about. “You’ll see, don’t worry. There’s plenty of good stuff out there.”

“Well, you’ll have to butter me up a bit before I come over to your house,” Ichirou said with a huff.

“Of course, and we can invite Takeru, and maybe your sister or that beta friend you mentioned having, that way it’s a bit better for you,” Masahiro offered.

Ichirou smiled slightly. “That sounds fun. I’ll definitely think about doing that. I don’t think I’m ready to meet in private for now, though.”

“Understandable. Maybe in a couple months,” Masahiro said casually.

They made small talk for the rest of the way home, and Ichirou felt cautiously optimistic about this arrangement. He smiled a bit to himself, enjoying the ride home.

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