The late afternoon light filtered in through the light cream coloured curtains, showering the living room in a golden glow. Through the open windows, the sound of passing cars ; apparently few at this time of the day ; flowed through the flat. Yuu could only assume the roads to be more busy in the early evening. On the white walls, a few black and white photographs, probably of shoots the red haired man has been to.
"Seat, please." Nathaniel offered in a clear voice, gesturing to the table in the open kitchen. The black haired male considered the proposition a few seconds before reluctantly taking a seat. He hadn't planned on staying for long, but refusing would have been rude and probably set the other male on the defensive.
"Anything to drink ? I've got-"
"It's fine. I came to talk." The black haired boy interrupted directly, crossing his arms over his chest and resting back in the chair. He wanted answers. Not water, coffee or whatever this guy had to offer.
Nathaniel frowned, scratching the back of his hair and leaning on the kitchen counter. "Okay, let's talk then." He waited patiently for his unexpected guest to continue.
"I'll be clear, stop flirting with my sister." Yuu exposed curtly, locking eyes with his interlocutor, "I don't know what your intentions are. Maybe you love her, maybe you consider her like another one night stand. But all I know is that you'll hurt her anyways and I can't let that happen." He frowned sternly, "And if you don't listen, be sure that the first you make her sad I'll bury you six feet underground." He finished, observing the other male's reaction intently, ready to punch him in the face in case things got heated. Although judging by what he knew of the boy, fighting probably wasn't his thing.
Nathaniel stood there, trying to process what he had just been charged with. He would have laughed if the slight reminder that (Y/n) was taken by his best friend didn't hurt so much. He hadn't been flirting with her, of course he hadn't. He respected Mia way too much for that. And even if Mia had been out of the picture, (Y/n) deserved way more than his usual playboy act. She could never be a one night stand in the boy's mind simply because he couldn't dare think about her sexually. No, he wanted to smile with her, laugh with her, hold her and kiss her brow. Spend early mornings to late evenings with her, nestled in his arms as they watched some silly romance movie. And these were things he'd never envisaged before, in fact the boy never thought he'd fall in love one day. He had been perfectly content with girls like Trisha, or so he had thought.
'And now I could never go back to this. I'd throw it all away for her without a second thought. If only it would make me deserving of her love.'
"I haven't been flirting with her." He finally exposed in an exhale, fingers drumming on the wooden counter as he threw the other male an emotionless smile.
Yuu averted his eyes, a frown crossing his features as he recalled his sibling's attitude as of late. No, something was definitely up... But then the boy before him sounded honest, or like the most skilful of liars. So who could it be ? He had thought of everything and this guy had been the most probable possibility. He combed his hair back and away from his eyes.
'No, you can't give up now.'
He let out a decisive sigh, pushing his disappointment back in the pit of his stomach before looking up straight at the boy.
"Who is it ? I know something's up with her, I know her like the back of my hand. And I have a feeling you know." He interrogated sternly, not blinking once as he stared at his interlocutor.
The red haired male frowned lightly, fingers curling on the hard surface of the counter behind his back.
He could end it all now. Tell (Y/n)'s brother about her relationship with Mia and judging by the older male's obvious overprotectiveness the two girls would probably not last long... Yes, this sounded like an awfully tempting possibility and his tongue tingled at the thought.
But he couldn't and wouldn't do that. (Y/n) had confided in him, she trusted him. He couldn't go around spilling her secrets like that. She'd never forgive him and she'd be right. So instead he kept silent and opted for a different answer which would perhaps satisfy the brunet.
"You should ask her yourself, don't you think ? If she wants you to know she'll tell you." He exposed clearly, a small smile with a tinge of pride curving his lips. "You're her brother after all, right ?"
The dark haired boy frowned at the other male's remark. He knew he was right. But then why hadn't she spoken to him about it ? Why would this guy she had known for weeks know about what was up when he had been there her whole life ? What was he doing wrong ?
He plastered on a smile and got up, letting out a quiet sigh of resignation. "You're right. Well, sorry for the disturbance." Nathaniel opened the door for him.
"No problem. Nice evening to you, and tell (Y/n) I said Hi." He demanded, knowing full well how to get on his guest's nerves. Of course he wouldn't tell her.
Once the older male out of the way Nathaniel closed the door swiftly, a heavy sigh falling from his lips once he stood alone in the entrance of his home.
He carried himself to the couch, falling down on the soft cushions. He looked up to the ceiling, running a hand through his locks.
He would have liked to be her secret romance. Unfortunately he wasn't.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He didn't have to take a look at the screen to know who it was.
Trisha, probably coming back for her shoes.
The (h/c) haired female giggled as she read her last text, laying on her stomach in her bed.
I tried baking again, with the recipe we followed last time. Turns out it was still a disaster.
- Mia
She wasted no time to type down her girlfriend's number and bring the phone to her ear. She didn't have to wait long before someone picked up.
"You are a lost case." (Y/n) exposed, amusement ringing in her voice.
"Yes, but I am your lost case then." Mia replied, to which the other female chuckled. Silence occupied the line afterwards, none of them speaking a word, just enjoying the breathing of one another.
(Y/n) had never enjoyed phone calls, in fact she would run for the hills whenever her phone rang. She never thought she'd be the one to make a call, nor had she thought that one day she'd be this comfortable with someone.
"I didn't know you and Nathaniel were friends." She ended up voicing calmly, idly twirling a lock of hair in her fingers.
"You know Nath' ?" The green haired female queried, her surprise evident in her voice.
"Yes, he's working for the model agency I'm in." (Y/n) explained.
"(Y/n)...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have talked about us without asking you first but-" Mia started, brows furrowed in regret.
"It's fine." The other girl interrupted. "In fact I quite like the idea of you talking about us to your best friend." She smiled sweetly.
"You do ?"
"I do." She replied confidently, reassuring her lover that she hadn't done anything wrong. "Plus, I'm going to tell my family soon. And then we'll finally be able to hold hands in public." A soft smile curved her lips at the thought of them finally embracing each other in the open.
"Hey, you don't have to rush things. If you need more time I understand." Mia offered gently. She loved (Y/n) and wanted the world to know they were a thing, of course she did. But it is precisely because she loved her that she wanted her to take things at her own pace. It was (Y/n)'s first relationship after all, and she had just realised she swung both ways. Things must have been confusing for her.
The green haired girl remembered the day she had acknowledged her homosexuality, it had taken her years to own it with confidence.
"I know. I'm really grateful for your consideration, but really it's fine. I want to tell them." The (h/c) haired female replied determinedly. She just had to find the right moment to pop the thing.
"Okay."
The sound of the front door opening and footsteps ascending the stairs reached her ears. Probably Yuu.
"I don't know how you messed up the cakes after we did it together. I literally showed you every step of the recipe !" She changed the subject swiftly, joking about her girlfriend's two left hands.
"Hey, I tried ! I don't know what happened. The kitchen must hate me or something."
"Yeah, sure." She chuckled, a mischievous grin curving her lips.
Then the door to her room opened, the black haired male leaning casually on the threshold. She locked eyes with him and knew he needed to talk to her.
"Okay, I need to go. Talk to you later." She explained softly, desperately trying not to sound rude.
"Good, I'll see you tomorrow anyways." The other female answered kindly, easing (Y/n)'s tension.
She hung up, placing her phone down before glancing at her sibling, head tilted to the side.
"Is something wrong ?" She queried, sitting herself on the covers.
"Who was it ?" He asked back as calmly as ever. Features still like the surface of a lake waiting for ripples to animate it.
"Mia." She explained, the unwavering gaze of the male pushing her to reveal more. "We were talking about her baking incapacity." She hated how it took only one stare from him for her to unveil all her secrets.
He visibly relaxed at her answer, a small smile curving his lips. "Okay." He let out a quiet sigh and turned around, ready to go back to his room.
You should ask her yourself, don't you think ?
He stopped in his tracks, turning back to observe his sister. She tilted her head to the side, silently waiting for anything he had to add.
"If something important, like a boyfriend, had come into your life recently, you'd tell me, right ?"
A short silence ensued. The girl's eyes averted to the covers on her bed as she fiddled with the fabric. Then she gazed up at him, a smile which didn't reach her eyes drawn in her features.
"Of course." She answered quietly.
And his heart cracked loudly in his chest for he knew she was lying. He'd have to figure it out on his own.