Behind Watanabe

Night Play (2).

That night was an unforgettable experience for Junkyu, but before he could draw any conclusions from that horrific and traumatic night, Haruto appeared and further made Junkyu bring more questions from his mind. Until that day, Junkyu didn't feel obligated to have any interaction with Haruto, other than to fulfill formalities and build good relations with members of the Watanabe family, because the one at the top of his priority was Hanami.

Their acquaintance a few weeks ago was Junkyu's first time in Haruto's room, since then, he never thought about going in there again. Well, for what? Junkyu thought he had nothing to do with Haruto until he had to enter his room, nor did Haruto often open his bedroom door wide and let random people in. But that night, Haruto didn't say a word when he brought Junkyu into his room and let him sit on the bed comfortably.

"Are you okay?" Haruto asked while placing a cup of tea on the table beside his bed, then sat beside Junkyu and looked at him with a very worried look. "Drink the tea first! You'll feel better after you eat something."

On the other hand, Junkyu's face remained looking pale and his forehead sweaty, he was still trying to catch his breath after the incident earlier. Junkyu was a brave young man, in the sense that he dared to challenge himself and was not afraid to face obstacles. Whether it was traveling alone, getting on stage, entering a haunted house, meeting new people, it sounded like a metaphor for the perfect human being. However, there was something inexplicable about Junkyu's fear earlier, how he suddenly broke out in cold sweat and felt threatened in his own room.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you like that." Haruto continued.

"It's okay. I just..." Junkyu took a deep breath. Seeing his worrying state like that, Haruto immediately brought a cup of tea that was still warm and placed it in Junkyu's hands.

"Drink!" Without a single thought, Junkyu slowly drank the tea Haruto had made for him.

"I heard something." Junkyu's trembling voice was rather much lower compared to his usual speaking volume, not to mention Haruto always saw Junkyu as a charming and cheerful person whenever he was playing with Hanami. Thus such inverted attitude from Junkyu was confusing and foreign for Haruto that he became unhinged to even take an action. "W-why did I hear something?"

"You've been working really hard to look after Hanami. It's fine if you want to rest." Haruto soothened his voice.

"But, there was a piece of paper..." Junkyu even had trouble talking.

"Could be the wind. The kitchen's window was open and here on the shore, strong winds happen all the time. Junkyu, you'll be fine."

Though Junkyu understood that Haruto's intention was to calm him down, but things still hadn't made sense, as he was completely sure that he was the last person to be on the ground floor, checking and make sure that everything was in order. After several weeks completing his jobs flawlessly, why should there a sudden, little mistake that he tended to never do? But again, Haruto reminded him with every possible logical explanation that he might undergo as a normal human being.

"Sleep here, if you want. I know, you must be in shock still and it's haunting to go downstairs. Don't worry, my parents won't find out if you don't wish them to. And if they do, they will understand." Haruto said.

Surprisingly, the cold and assetive young man Haruto could do something so warm and adorable, which Junkyu had never witnessed since their first interaction with each other. Let alone with Junkyu, sometimes Haruto refused to have a long and friendly conversation with his own family members.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to barge in like this." Junkyu kept his head low. "The laughter sounded so real, I didn't know where it came from..."

Haruto didn't answer again, but his action spoke thousand words, exceeding Junkyu's expectation as both of them barely a friend. Yes, Junkyu lived in their house, being present and communicating with everyoen in the house without a single exception, but approaching Haruto was a hard task for Junkyu in the first place, therefore it's tough to guess what kind of person Haruto was. Yet, there Junkyu was, witnessing something that would have never come across his mind, like when Haruto embraced Junkyu's shoulders and caressed them gently.