Near to You [Makoto Tachibana x Reader] 4

“Makoto?” you stood outside his door, picnic basket in hand and blanket tucked over your arm. You bounced on the toes of your feet, waiting a bit impatiently for your green-eyed boy to open the door. Well, not your boy, but it was hard not to think of him that way, especially after the festival at New Year’s. You smiled to yourself, thinking of that night after the festival, and feeling a faint heat touch your cheeks

You sniffed, the heels of your hands pressed against your eyes to try and stop the tears, but it was a useless attempt. Your cheeks were covered in salty tears, nose running and arms a mess from constantly wiping at your eyes. You were certainly you looked terrible, but at least now he knew the truth. Makoto knew all there was to know about you know, at least when it came to the reasons you were here, and you found it suddenly hard to look at him. Sweet, kind and gentle Makoto. How would you look him in the eyes now?

“[Name]?” his voice was soft and low, a tentative whisper, so you looked up at him, terrified of what you might see, but your fears were for not. He was looking at you with those green eyes, those eyes that you loved, with nothing but warm acceptance. A small smile touched his lips. “Thank you for telling me.”

“You’re not, um, bothered?” you asked, raising a brow at him and Makoto shook his head.

“Why would I be bothered?” he asked, turning a bit so he faced you better, so you did the same, your knees touching and the two of you now completely facing each other. His hair was still damp, you noticed, letting your eyes fall from the brown stands all the way to where it hands rested in his lap.

“Because it’s not a good thing I’ve been through,” you answered, “I never told you because I didn’t want you to think different of me.”

“Why would I do that?” he asked and, for a moment, your eyes flickered up to his face in annoyance. Did he just not get it? Was he just that innocent? No, you realized, he was asking you to make you answer. To hear how silly I probably sound, you thought.

“Since I’m broken,” you answered quietly, “I wanted you to think I was perfect.”

“You’re not broken or perfect,” Makoto shook his head and, with a sudden boldness, reached out to take your hands in his own, so they held yours on top of the cushions between you. “You’re [Name] and I like that.”

“Makoto…” you stared at him. Had he just confessed to you? Was this what it felt like, to be truly loved by someone? No, there was still something missing, a small piece that you couldn’t name, but there was something. What was it? You vowed to find out, so you have this boy before you, so you could love him completely, and you wouldn’t stop until then. “What about my scars?”

“What about them?” he asked, looking away from you then. You noticed the touch of red across his nose and smiled, wondering if he was thinking about your heated moment in the bathroom. His blush deepened. Yes, you decided, he most definitely was. “You’re beautiful, scars and all.”

“Mako,” you whispered his name to yourself, still smiling and you were so lost in your thoughts that you nearly fell back when his siblings, Ren and Ran, latched onto your legs.

“[Name]! [Name]!” they shouted in unison, clinging to your and bouncing around. You laughed and wrapped an arm around each of them.

“Ren! Ran!” you greeted the duo, letting Ren take the picnic basket from your and Ran take the blanket, the two chattering on about how exciting it was to be going on a picnic with “big brother and his girlfriend”. You blushed at their words. “Ah, M-Mako’s not my-“

“Hello, [Name],” you spun around to face him, his voice making your heart flutter and, without thinking, fell forward to put your arms around his small waist and press your face against his chest. You nuzzled your cheeks against his shirt, inhaling his warm scent and sighed to your eyes. Makoto seemed to misunderstand, but hugged you back anyway. “Ah, [Name], are you okay? You’re feeling okay, aren’t you?”

“Absolutely!” you pulled back and smiled at him, happy to see the dusting of pink on his cheeks. He smiled in relief. “It’s just always nice to see you, that’s all,” you said, turning and clasping your hands behind your back, rocking a bit on your heels. You heard him laugh and gave him a smile over your shoulder.

“Come on! Hurry!” Ran shouted from the end of the sidewalk and you called back to her, waiting until Makoto was at your side to catch up. You wanted him at your side always, you thought, excited to spend the summer with him. You were done with the cold weather and you knew Makoto, along with the other Iwatobi boys, were as well. Plus, their tournament would be soon! “Come faster!”

“We’re coming! We’re coming!” you shouted back, laughing and staring to run ahead to catch up with the two of them. You paused and looked back at Makoto, but he only smiled, so you took his hand to pull him along too, smile growing at the sound of his laughter.

—

“Seek us now, [Name]!” Ran told you, sitting you down the tree and lifting your hands so they covered your eyes. You laughed and nodded, obediently staring to count to twenty. The two siblings raced off, but never farther than Makoto could spot them. He was protective of them, you found, enjoying watching him play and interact with his siblings. He was good with children.

“They’ll have you seeking all day if you keep this up,” Makoto said from where he sat beside you, a big smile on his face. “They won’t ever let you go home.”

“Maybe that’s a good thing,” you answered, laughing at his blush before you ran off after the twins, laughing at their screams and giggles. The four of you had finished all the food an hour or so go, leaving only some chilled green tea leftover to drink, and the twins had started this game of hide and seek tag right after and they showed no signs of tiring.

You chased the twins all over the park, Makoto joining in at the younger kids’ urging, and nearly three hours after leaving for the park, you were all laying out of breath on the blanket. Grinning to yourself, you rolled over and propped yourself up on Makoto’s chest, so you look down at his face. His eyes were closed, cheeks slightly flushed from all the running, and if he noticed your actions, he paid you no mind. Makoto, you had learned long ago, was not always the innocent cutie he was perceived to be and had a teasing side to him that you liked more and more every time you got to see it. Ignoring the hushed, excited whispers of the twins, you sat up a little higher so you were looking down at Makoto, your face hovering over his. “Makoto.”

“Hm,” he hummed, still not opening his eyes. You poked his nose, trying to elicit a response from him, but nothing.

“Makoto. Look at me,” you commanded, tapping his nose again. Nothing. You puffed your cheeks and shifted a bit, unknowingly pulling yourself farther on top of him, and took his face in your hands. “Makotooo,” you whined, pouting a bit when he still refused to look at you. His ears had turned a pretty pink, though, so that was something. “Don’t you want to see what I’m about to give you?”

“Hmm,” he hummed again, but this time you saw the grin pulling at his lips. You knew he couldn’t resist! Besides, he looked so much cuter when he smiled. “What’s that?”

“This,” you gave him a soft peck on the lips, finally earning the reaction you’d wanted. His eyes flew open, his ears turned a deep red to match his cheeks and he let out the cutest noise you’d ever heard. Ran squealed in absolutely delight.

“Ehh! [Name]!” he shouted, sitting straight up and pushing your back, his hands on your shoulders. He hung his head, hair falling into his face, and hunched his broad shoulders. “Don’t embarrass me like that!”

“But you look so cute!” you giggled, your own cheeks painted a faint pink. You’d noticed a few couples look at you as you walked by, but you were too amused by Makoto to be very embarrassed. “Was it that bad that it embarrassed you?”

“No,” he answered, finally lifting his head and giving you a look that stopped your heart. You didn’t Makoto could make a face like that! He wasn’t capable of such a look!

“M-Mako…”

“[Name] kissed Makoto!” Ran cheered, her small hands on her face as twisted around, a giddy look on her face and a dreamy gleam to her eyes. “We’re gonna have a big sister, Ren!”

—

“Let’s go again tomorrow, big sister!” Ran and Ren called from the doorway, waving at you. You smiled and waved back.

“Okay!” you answered, even though you knew you probably wouldn’t go again as soon as tomorrow, but you couldn’t bear to squash the girl’s excitement. You wouldn’t mind making it a weekend thing, though. “Bye bye!” you called, watching them go inside and latch the door before looking up at Makoto, who was waiting to walking you home, despite how it was just a few doors down. “Ready?”

“Mhm,” he nodded and you took his free arm, letting your head rest against him as you walked, the two of you just enjoying the peace. It had been a long afternoon. Not that you didn’t enjoy the twins, but their energy was endless! You needed a nap! “Those two really like you.”

“I’m glad,” you answered, “I like them too. They’re fun.”

“That’s good because you’ll probably be seeing a lot them,” Makoto laughed, smiling down at you. You just smiled back and pulled him a little closer. The walk to your house was much too short and soon you stood on your doorstep, Makoto reaching around you to put your picnic basket and blanket inside. “Thanks for coming today.”

“Thanks for inviting me,” you answered, looking up at him. His eyes flickered from your face, his ears already turning red, before he had you by the shoulders and his mouth was on yours. Your eyes went wide, face instantly flushing with heat, but you kissed him back, putting your hands on his forearms to pull yourself up and closer to him. You pushed back against him, internally cheering when Makoto met your silent challenge, his lips working against your own. He drew back a moment later, his panting breaths hitting your damp lips, and your heart sped up when you noticed that the surprising look from earlier had returned to his face. His normally bright eyes were dark, shadowed slightly by his hair, staring down at you with such intensity that your mind completely blanked. You licked your dry lips, unable to think of anything but the boy in front of you. When had Makoto become this way? Did you…did you do this him? “Makoto…”

“Sometimes I don’t understand this,” he murmured, swallowing hard and you watched his face return to his normal, gentle expression. You had to smile. You supposed he wasn’t capable of maintaining such strong, desirable feelings so that long! He lowered his head and let it rest against your shoulder, his large body hunched over yours and his hands still holding onto your shoulders. You put your arms around him and patted his back. “These things you make me feel.”

“I know what you mean,” you answered, “No one would believe you act this way.”

“It’s your fault,” he murmured, “It’s frightening.”

“It’s love,” you answered with a shrug of your shoulders, so casually that it surprised you. It definitely surprised Makoto because he straightened up suddenly and quickly, a look of pure shock on his face. He blinked, but then he only stared at you. You stared back, more conscious of him, of his presence in front of you, his hands on your shoulders, than you had ever been of anyone in your life. You entire body felt like it was buzzing, your skin prickled with goosebumps, and you felt it suddenly very heard to breathe.

“L-Love?” he asked, “[Name], do you…do you-“ the shrill ring of your phone cut him off and  broke you from your trance. You jumped, so startled that you briefly thought you had a heart attack, but it seemed the spell was broken.

“I should, um, get that,” you said, pointing over your shoulder and swallowing hard, trying to calm your bounding pulse. Makoto nodded, suddenly flustered and turned to head back down your sidewalk.

“Yeah, I need to get back. I shouldn’t leave the the twins alone,” he said and you nodded, finally calming yourself and smiling at him. “Do you, uhm, wanna have dinner later? Maybe we could go out with everyone or…”

“Yes, that’d be great!” you nodded quickly, half hidden behind the door, “Yes, I’ll text Gou! Bye, Mako, I’ll see you later!” he waved and you shut the door, running to grab your phone and flip it open. “Hello?”

“[Name]?”

You froze, nearly dropping your phone but you managed, reaching up to hold it with both hands. You didn’t realize how tightly you held on until you noticed your knuckles turning white.

“[Name]? Are you there? I know this is weird and you probably don’t want anything to do with me, but please, answer me. [Name]? Please.”

You steeled yourself and squared your shoulders, as if just standing straighter would give you more power than you felt. “How did you get this number?”