11. Distance (ft. Sakusa and crackhead Komori)

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Word Count: 2260

Whoops lmao. If you appreciate the fact that 2+2+6= 10 and 10 is a satisfying number, please bless your hardworking author with a vote! ❤️ ily
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I wake up to find myself still seated against the wall, snack wrappers scattered atop my blanket like rose petals. My back pops like fireworks as I slowly stand, sleep clouding my vision. One quick glance at my phone tells me it's 8:00 AM, which is really damn early for the weekend. Only after staring mindlessly at the screen for a good thirty seconds do I finally notice Sakusa standing by the door.

"You're finally awake." He states.

"Wow, you've... seen better days." I blurt out. "You might as well do cocaine." Sakusa's dressed in a plain black t-shirt with gray sweatpants that hug his toned legs nicely, but my eyes are immediately drawn to his red rimmed eyes and unruly curls.

"...Might as well." Sakusa replies, the words blurring into an incoherent mess. He returns the favor and gives me a once over. His eyes glance over my disheveled clothes and atrocious bedhead before flicking back to mine, eyebrows lifted in the nonverbal equivalent of an offhand remark. I'm about to remind him that I've only just woken up when I somehow notice his hand resting on the door knob, fingers hesitantly gripping the cool metal.

"Wait- were you going to leave without me?" Sakusa tenses up almost instantly, his hold on the door knob tightening and loosening in quick spasms before his hand drops to his side.

"I didn't want to wake you." Sakusa explains a beat too late.

"But you always do." I counter, daring him to disagree. And he doesn't disagree, just shrugs and breaks eye contact as if to end this particular train of thought. By now, I'm starting to feel a little worried. Being secretive is uncharacteristic, even for somehow as guarded as him. Shaking off my concerns, I decide to blame his odd behavior on a severe lack of sleep (or cocaine) before proceeding to get ready for our morning walk. I know Sakusa will wait, so I don't interrupt the silence to ask.

Morning walks are our thing. Like, our friendship ritual or something along those lines. For a whole month we've spent our mornings together, and at this point it's futile to deny that they're a routine. But this tradition of ours means more to me than getting up early to appreciate the stillness that precedes a new day. It's my time with Sakusa, our time together; when it's just us and the sun and the sky and whatever's on our minds.

I have a lot of friends, but something about Sakusa exempts him from that common category. Perhaps it's his cool demeanor that makes him so different from the high energy idiots I'm usually around, or how he listens instead of ranting about his problems, but he's undeniably special. If my other friends are roller coasters and water slides and VR games, (cough KENMA) Sakusa is a walk in the park.

Amusement parks and online games are fun for a while, but I'll always end up returning to the park, even when it doesn't feel like talking.

...

The park still doesn't feel like talking.

Sakusa seems to be lost in thought as we trudge towards the dining hall, which serves breakfast at a later time during the weekend. Any attempts at conversation seem to go in one ear and out the other as my comments are met with one sentence responses- at best. By the time the dining hall emerges into view, I'm more concerned than confused.

"Hey, are you feeling alright?" I can't help but ask.

"What do you mean?" Sakusa's blank expression doesn't even waver, and he seems completely unfazed by the question. He just sounds... tired, or maybe even resigned.

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