#a bit of fake extra lore that is nowhere in their backstory for funsies

[aesterblaster]

Reonagi, space <- for the ship prompt

"I just need some space Reo."

Nagi was blunt. That was why Reo liked him so damn much in the first place, but damn did it hurt when it was redirected. He had been trying so hard to make this work, to make everything perfect for his best friend's last year of high school.

"You've been running me around everywhere, it's fucking annoying. I can't stand it anymore." That much was true. They'd been to a concert, countless soccer matches, three school related programs, one semester school and god only knows how many study sessions. Reo was the type of person to push the envelope and Nagi thought it was nice having such a rich friend at first, but he just felt like a plus one, like a commodity.

The only reason the lazy teen managed to drag himself out to all those ridiculous events was because he knew deep down that if he didn't go, Reo still would. He knew that late at night he'd be all alone in his room, scrolling through Reo's socials and wishing he were there, squinting at the girls next to him in the photos clearly trying to feel him up, staring a little too hard at how good he looked in whatever he was wearing...

Reo made a face. "Oh c'mon dude. You know you don't have to say yes if you don't wanna."

"But doesn't that break our rule Reo?" he asked in that same matter of fact tone that managed to send a chill down Reo's spine every time anyway. "The one about me trying everything at least once for Senior year? Well, here I am, about to graduate and then go pro like you always wanted. And you're going to too right?"

A silence fell between them like a branch of a tree finally giving out under the weight of its snowy coat. Reo scoffed, "You know my dad would actually kill me if I didn't go to collage, Nagi. And you were accepted too, you have good grades."

"Only because you help me." Nagi quipped. What he refused to include was how much he enjoyed those study sessions, them sitting close together to pour over the same book, Reo's adorable explanations of concepts that even the best teachers struggled to portray, the way he'd praise him when he got things right.. Curse Reo and his addictiveness. That's exactly why he needed to get away, why he needed to start to cut himself off before he was inevitably heartbroken when Reo moved away. "And collages don't just let athletes stay when they're failing. I'll be kicked out in a year."

"You're always so pessimistic. What the fuck! Fine, if you want to sit in your flat and be a bum all day then go do it and see if I care! I've poured so much into you. You don't even know how many nights I've spent thinking about you and worrying about you." Nagi's face softened, Reo was thinking about him? "And your stupidity! It's like you can't see what's right in front of your face! How much I care about you? How much I want you to succeed? You're the one abandoning me! We could go pro together, become sensations and you want to leave that all behind because you're a little scared of collage?"

"Nagi, I don't think I could go that long without seeing you or playing soccer with you. It would break me, don't you get it?" Despite his better judgement, Reo took a few steps closer to Nagi. Closing the space between them with a few swift strides. He was so glad the yard was empty. It was just them. Practicing their passes, like always. Just them, as the sun set and spread arms of yellow and orange across the once blue sky.

"Reo..." He knew he should be angry at the way Reo broke his boundaries so quickly, the way he'd done it over and over and over again. Just pushed a little more when he should've left it alone. But the athlete just wouldn't stop talking, going on and on about how he was sure Nagi didn't even appreciate him.. So Nagi shut him up the only way he really knew how, the only way he had ever thought of during all those study sessions.

He grabbed his face and kissed him, suprisingly softly, like he was scared Reo'd melt away. After they parted Reo was stunned, flushed, and at first Nagi was worried that this meant he didn't feel the same, that he'd storm off and threaten him and never see him again. But then Reo pressed back against Nagi, feeling the space in his lungs get smaller and bigger and smaller again as he breathed like he just ran a marathon. "You have no idea how many times I've tried to get you to do that."