Work Text:
“It took you long enough to get here.” Said Shidou playfully, making a dig at Sae who had just entered onto the rooftop.
Sae spoke while he was climbing up the ladder to get to where Shidou was perched- the top of the building that hosted the stairwell that led to the rooftop- , “Be grateful I even came up here at all.” As he talked he looked down to watch his foot placement on the ladder.
“Oh come on don’t act like you don't care about me lashes~.” Teased Shidou, trying his best to get a reaction out of Sae.
“Whatever, just get on with it.” Sae was clearly trying to deflect the previous statement, as his bright teal eyes were pointing in the opposite direction of Shidou- which made him chuckle a little.
Shidou inhaled sharply before he started speaking, taking in the scene around him. Sae was sitting quite close to him on his side, his dark pink hair moving under the gentle breeze. He only looked at him briefly before he changed his attention to his other surroundings, like the sunset full of explosions of vivid oranges and pinks. It was summer, so bugs were chirping away and sweat had caused his hair to cling to his face. The humidity wasn't helping with the heat and gave the air this tense thick feeling. He himself has one leg over the ledge and the other tucked close to his body, and his pink tips were in need of a touch up. His blonde lashes fluttered as he thought of how to word his thoughts and express himself.
“So I know you’ve probably heard of the rumors.” Although it took him a while to formulate his thoughts, he got straight to the point when it actually came to talking.
Sae started to speak, not sounding out any real words before he paused. Then he spoke again, “I haven't heard any rumors.”
“Don’t play dumb Sae there’s no way you didn’t hear them.” Shidou said this rashly, putting his gaze back onto Sae- specifically his eyes.
Sae could tell that for whatever reason Shidou has wanted to meet up here, it was a serious one and his unintentional ignorance was causing Shidou to behave differently.
“I genuinely have no idea what you’re talking about.” His face was dead straight and the tone of his voice was flat as it usually was.
Shidou stared at him for a while, he seemed to be taking it in or rather trying to decide if he thought Sae was lying to him. He sighed and looked away, looking off into the distance as the sunset bled onto his face.
“Shit, well now I kind of have to explain it to you or this is gonna be really awkward.” He laughed dryly after he spoke, closing his eyes and radiating under the sun. “Just be glad you get to hear this from the source and not the rumors, ‘kay?”
Sae looked at him as he responded, “This better be worth my time.”
There was a brief pause before Shidou started talking or more so rambling, explaining where he came from, his childhood, sexuality, and many experiences he had throughout his life. Not once during his speech did he look at Sae, he kept averting eye contact. Sae didn’t mind though, he could stare at him in peace absorbing every detail about him. Not just story wise but also his facial structure, hair and even body language.
It had probably been close to an hour when Shidou had finished, finally looking back at Sae almost as if to seek approval. He ended his talk with something that really stuck with Sae, “Y’know, I don’t let those things get to me, I choose to be free despite them.” He had said this while staring directly into Sae’s eyes, the bright pink contrasting Sae’s swirling teal.
There was a thick overdraft in the air, clouding their lungs as they both anticipated Sae’s response. He thought for a bit- dragging out the silence- before he came up with an appropriate response. “I don’t think of you any differently.” He leaned in closer to Shidou as he said it, and instantly the tension dissolved, and both of them relaxed.
Shidou’s shoulders dropped and he leaned back, shifting his position and changing his way of sitting. He looked back away before he spoke, clearly showing with his body language he was relieved and had had a weight lifted off his shoulders. “Thank you for listening, I really appreciate it.” He ended their pretty one sided discussion off with a smile.
They both sat there for a long time, each soaking the other in. By this point, it was already dark out and the bugs became predominantly crickets. The heat had also subsided and with the slight breeze felt really nice in contrast to the early weather. Lights had also turned on leaving them illuminated under them, basking under stars and the moon. Maybe one day Sae could open up too.