Golden Boy // Free

•Chapter Three•

"Haru is wondering where I am..." Makoto said after his phone chimed with a few texts. They were a ways away from Samezuka already. Honestly Sousuke wasn't sure where he was leading him; he was just as lost about this teenage rebellion business as Makoto. Then again, Sousuke didn't mind improvising.

Sousuke took the phone from Makoto's hand. "Telling him where you are isn't really rebellious, is it?"

"No..." Makoto mumbled. "But I don't want him to worry, either..."

He had a point. Sousuke's phone was quiet, but he knew Rin might be texting him soon too. "Okay, fine. But be vague, like, 'I'm with Sousuke, don't wait up.' Or something like that."

Makoto nodded as he typed exactly what Sousuke implied.

"So, what should our act of rebellion be?" Sousuke asked. "Pull a prank on someone?"

Makoto scrunched his face. "Isn't that... mean?"

"Yeah, but rebellion is mean sometimes, right?"

Makoto worried his lip. "Yeah, but I don't want to be mean..."

Sousuke didn't either, to be honest. "Okay, we won't do that. What do you want to do then?"

"I don't know! I'm new to this whole rebellion thing!" Makoto cried to the sky with his hands above his head. Sousuke couldn't help but laugh, and Makoto gave him a glare that was softened by the smile on his face. "Well, I don't know, what do delinquents do?"

Sousuke shrugged. "Smoke cigarettes and get drunk?"

Makoto looked away for a second, but then surprised Sousuke by saying. "...yeah, but where would we get cigarettes and booze? And where could we do that without anyone caring?"

"I know a place that doesn't check IDs." That made it sound like Sousuke knew from first hand experience. Really, he just heard his floormates mention the convenience store whose owners couldn't care less if their customers were sixty or six. "As far as where... do you have the keys to the swim club still, Mr. Assistant Coach?"

At that moment Makoto's phone went off. He checked it again, and suddenly his whole face was blushing.

"What did Haru say -?"

"Nothing! Yeah, I still have the keys, let's go!"

———————

"God, these are gross," Makoto choked out, his words coming out covered in smoke.

"Here, give me that," Sousuke reached over and took the cigarette. If Gou was there, she would make a joke about indirect kisses, but Sousuke ignore that as he put the cigarette to his lips.

This can't be that complicated, right?

He took a deep breath of it, the smoke going right to his lungs and his lungs revolt back, forcing him to cough it back out.

Makoto was now laughing through his coughs. "See, they're awful!"

Sousuke took the bottle of cheap sake sitting between them and gulped down a mouthful. It helped his coughs, but now he was shuddering at the taste of the booze.

"Ugh, being boring is sounding so appealing right now," Sousuke grunted, handing the bottle to Makoto. Or, tried to. He swung his hand out and ended up bumping it against Makoto's knee, the half empty bottle making a loud swishing noise. Sousuke may be a big guy, but his lack of experience with alcohol was making him more of a lightweight than he cared to admit.

Makoto's coughs had lessened now, but he still eagerly took the bottle from Sousuke's hand, shuddering himself after swallowing a mouthful. "I guess. I still don't really feel that rebellious, though."

"You're tipsy on a roof smoking cigarettes with a guy you hardly know. Seems pretty rebellious to me," he mumbled, remembering to keep up with the conversation.

"I don't feel like I hardly know you," Makoto replied, looking off at the sunset through the railings.