La saison quand Pégase a visité
Title: La saison quand Pégase a visité ( The season Pegasus visited )
Chapters: Part 2 of 2
Author: candicecandy and venomousliberty
Genre: Romance and fluff
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None.
Pairings: Aoi/Uruha
Summary: Two souls from two different worlds, brought together by the mortal form of Pegasus.
Part One
Part Two
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Part IIA:
Snowflakes were falling gently on Yuu’s shoulders as he slowly made his way towards his car on the snow covered pathway, the graceful descent of the ice crystals reflecting exactly how he felt at that moment. His spirit was always light and free after a conversation regarding his precious steed, Cheerio. He never minded those conversations, whether his counterpart was sincere about the question or not. As long as there was a chance to talk about Cheerio, he would always gladly answer with a caring expression and a happy heart. The small talk he just had with that lady made him smile, maybe a little too much, he thought when he saw his own jolly reflection on the window of his fancy foreign car. As his bare hand reached the cold metal of his car’s handle, he suddenly realized he was so engaged in the conversation he had a while ago that he had forgotten his gloves at the arena. He immediately turned around, planning to retrieve those pricey articles of clothing in the shortest time possible since he did have something scheduled on his agenda later that evening. However, his stern footsteps gradually turned into a soft echo as he got closer and closer to the supposed-to-be empty field, until he was put to a halt by the sudden shock and surprise that ran through his brain. There, before him, was an image he had never expected to see, not in his craziest dream would he think of the possibility of this event, his disbelieving eyes were not just fixed on a gorgeous blond, but a gorgeous blond on horseback.
Kouyou was sitting on a white horse, his lean body looking elegant and frail under the contrast of the majestic animal, and as the pair cantered along the track of the arena, Kouyou’s golden strands flew in the most graceful movement, painting the trail they went by with his very own characteristic charm. However, what really took away the raven’s attention was the smile on the blond’s face. He was wearing a delighted mien, joy was written clearly in his beautiful aureate eyes, and his smile was so bright, so contagious that Yuu could almost literally see sparkles flying around the ethereal beauty. He couldn’t take his eyes off of the heavenly creature on the horse. As usual, the unbelievable beauty of the blond took his breath away, but this time it was the fact that Kouyou was capable of riding froze him into a statue with a dumb expression on his face. It had never occurred to him that Kouyou knew how to ride, yet he was wrong, completely wrong, because not only did the barn boy knew how to ride, he was, in fact, also a very good rider. Remembering the way he treated the blond back in October when he was competing for a horse show and Kouyou was obligated to help him despite his bad temper, Yuu wanted to smack himself hard on his head. How could he talk to this amazing rider as if he didn’t know anything about equestrian? And how could he think that the blond couldn’t afford riding lessons just because he worked in a barn? Not until now did Yuu realize how ridiculously stupid he was being and how incredibly little did he know about this mysterious young man. Determined to change that, he opened the gate of the arena and walked eagerly towards the fairytale-looking image of a blond man with a white horse settled in the center of the field.
“I didn’t know you ride as well!” The raven casually said when he reached the sturdy left shoulder of the imposing steed.
A surprised gasp escaped Kouyou’s full lips as he quickly spun his head towards the direction of the mysterious voice, his heart skipping a beat as he discovered that the person who had disturbed him from his supposedly private riding time was no other than Shiroyama Yuu, the person he most definitely didn’t want to see or be with in that moment. Through the few times he was left alone with the raven, he realized that he had the tendency to act like a fumbling idiot in front of him. As much as possible, he wanted to save what was left of his dignity and sanity by trying to avoid the other man’s presence. “I... well... I...” He stammered as he felt a wild blush coloured his cheeks, his aureate eyes shadowed with shame and panic as they constantly shifted from the handsome rider to the dirty ground, looking and acting pretty much like the fumbling idiot that he didn’t want to be. With his mind turning to complete mush, he clumsily got off his horse, only to realize that his knees had betrayed him by not being strong enough to support him. He stumbled, lost his balance and suddenly fell forward, but his seemingly inevitable clash with the ground beneath him was prevented by a strong hand that curled around his arm.
Kouyou immediately got back to his feet, thankful that he finally regained his balance along with some of his sanity, and looked at Yuu who was still touching him, a warm feeling blossoming in his chest as he gazed straight through the other’s onyx eyes. The last thing he wanted was to make a fool out of himself in front of Shiroyama Yuu and that just had to happen. How lucky of him.
Genuine concern flickered in onyx orbs as the raven glanced at the blushing face of the victim he just rescued. For some reason, this particular blond always acted like a deer caught in headlights in front of him, always stumbling, always stuttering and always blushing. It almost seemed like Kouyou was afraid of him to a point where even the sight of him brought anxiety into those beautiful tawny saucers. Had he lost all his charm? Since when did Mr. Popular turn into a terrifying savage? Suppressing down a wave of bitter laugh, Yuu allowed himself to return the frightened stare coming from the person under his firm grip with tenderness and asked, “Are you alright?”
Kouyou blinked and took a step away from the raven. The close proximity between him and the gorgeous rider was a little too much for him to take. He needed his own space to calm his messed up emotions and rush some much needed air into his constricting lungs. “Y-yes, I’m alright.” He stuttered as he tried not to steal glances at Yuu, but failed anyway. “It’s just that... you scared me. I mean, I was surprised to see you here because I...”
Unexpectedly, a light chuckle came out from the luscious lips of the handsome rider. “Calm down. You always act like I have a disease when you’re around me.” Yuu glanced at the blond who was fidgeting uncomfortably before him and he couldn’t help but feel a bit helpless towards this situation.
The blond immediately paused in his movements and just stared dumbly at the man in front of him. Yuu was right. Why the hell did he always lose his composure whenever this man was in front of him? Didn’t he just decide that he would never act like an idiot again in front of Shiroyama Yuu? What the hell was he doing? Finally snapping himself out of his reverie, he took a deep breath and straightened up. He then casted a casual look at the handsome raven as he tried to control the rapid beating of his heart. “I was just surprised. That is all.” He said, surprised and feeling a little proud of himself for mustering up seven words without his voice getting all shaky. “What are you doing here? Practice hours are done, isn’t it?”
“I came back to get something I forgot.” Yuu waved a pair gloves in front of those aureate eyes to prove that he wasn’t lying, very happy that Kouyou was finally talking to him like he was a human being instead of a monster. But this sudden change of the blond’s attitude had also awaken the playful side of him, feeling an urge that kept on telling him to tease this well-composed Kouyou. So, he mischievously leaned closer towards the gorgeous young man, “Why are your guards always so high towards me? It’s not like I would eat you alive, you know.” he added with a naughty wink at the end of his sentence.
Kouyou felt his face heat up again and couldn’t stop himself from looking away from the other man, attempting to hide the embarrassment that crossed his beautiful face. What the heck was up with that? How could he say such things and make it sound as if he was just talking about the damn weather? Sure, that’s exactly what Yuu Shiroyama made him feel, but he wasn’t going to admit that. Gathering his thoughts once more, he gazed at Yuu and tried to look as if he was truly unaffected by the rider’s words. “I don’t have time to fool around with you.” He icily retorted and took the horse’s reins. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have to get this horse back to the stables.” He spun on his heels and dragged the majestic animal with him, walking away from Yuu to avoid further humiliating himself.
“Wait! What? You’re bringing him back already? I thought you’re still not done riding!” Yuu called to the pair of beauty and the beast walking past him, but didn’t get any answer except from the steady footsteps of the horse’s hooves colliding against the solid ground. Of course Yuu wasn’t expecting the blond to answer him with much enthusiasm since they hardly knew each other, yet looking at Kouyou’s lean back slowly drifting away from him, a question suddenly popped up in his head. Would he really let this beautiful blond walk away from him without actually knowing him? No. Definitely not. He did not have a “friendly talk” with Kouyou’s boss about his employee’s schedule for no reason. Now was the perfect timing to get to know the blond and he would not waste this opportunity! “Hey, you haven’t told me why you know how to ride! So how did you know how to ride?” Yuu asked again while running up to the stunning barn boy, giving him a dazzling smile as if fearing his charm is not enough for Kouyou.
Meanwhile, Kouyou had the strong urge to run, quite surprised that Yuu was chasing him. He was hoping that the raven would give up easily on bugging him, but it turned out that the handsome rider wouldn’t just let him leave that easily. He took a deep breath and tried not to look anxious as he met the other’s face. “Why do you want to know? The last time I checked, you don’t care about a barn boy like me.” He replied, his voice heavy with irritation. He didn’t mean to be rude, but he desperately wanted to get rid of the other man, fearful that he wouldn’t last another minute being with him. But much to his dismay, a wave of guilt suddenly washed over him when he saw the brief disappointment and hurt that flashed in Yuu’s gorgeous features.
Oh, great.
He quickly stopped, the scowl on his face slowly morphing into an apologetic expression as he realized that he had definitely hurt the raven. He had intended to display hostility towards Yuu but as the naturally kind person he was, he couldn’t help but feel bad for showing such an attitude. Even though he had initially hated Yuu for being cold towards him, it didn’t mean that he should also do the same. He let out a sigh and in a weak voice, replied, “I learned when I went as an exchange student in New Zealand.”
“New Zealand!” Yuu couldn’t help but yelp in surprise. He had never imagined New Zealand to be the place where Kouyou learned his equestrian skills. Together with his disbelief, he also had an indea on how intelligent this young might be. Being an exchange student, now that’s not something everyone was capable of. To hide his astonishment and to keep the conversation going, the raven absentmindedly asked, “I thought you learned it here in this barn!”
A flash of hesitation crossed the blond’s face, uncertain if he should continue talking to Yuu. Honestly, he felt really uncomfortable talking to the usually cold rider, but if the raven wanted to talk to him, then maybe exchanging a few words wouldn’t hurt. “Well, um... if I learned in this barn, I would be a member or a customer instead of working here.” He hesitantly answered as he gave the other man a weird look.
Realizing how stupid his question actually was, Yuu almost felt his cheeks heat up a little, now that Kouyou wasn’t blushing anymore, it seemed as if it was his turn to borrow scarlet colour of an apple and act like a complete idiot. Although he was as embarrassed as a teenage girl for his stupidity, Yuu still kept his cool and proceeded to bombard the attractive blond with his endless questions. Only this time, he thought about his inquiry before he spoke, “So why are you working in the barn then?”
The light blush that crept on Yuu’s usually expressionless face didn’t go unnoticed by Kouyou. He actually thought it was cool to see the raven acting like a real human being for once. Still, he acted as if he didn’t notice it and just responded to the rider’s question, the hesitation that occupied his chest now slowly being forgotten. “I’m here because I’m currently studying in vet school and as much as I can, I want to gain lots of experience working with animals.” He explained with a timid smile. “You know, you’re suddenly being quite talkative. You can’t really blame me for wanting to avoid you.” He casually stated as his lips curved up to a full-blown grin.
The blond’s gorgeous smile never failed to shut down Yuu’s awareness to the world around him, but this time, he only had a split second to appreciate that angelic picture before Kouyou’s words sinked into his mind. Trying to maintain his dashing image despite the sudden insecurity of having his secret being discovered, Yuu replied with a light hearted laugh. “I am only talkative to those who are special.” He lowered his voice like he was going to tell the blond some confidential matter. “I am very picky when it comes to people that I talk to.” He added with another flirtatious wink.
Kouyou stared stupidly at the other man. Did Shiroyama Yuu really just did that? Spoke in a low voice and winked at him? Heck, if he was capable of reasoning in that moment, he would think that Yuu was trying to flirt with him. Wait. Was Yuu really flirting with him? Heat coursed through his entire body at the thought, causing his cheeks to burn up again. No, that was impossible. There was no way a person like Yuu would even try to do that. Maybe Yuu was just being playful... Yeah, that’s what it was. He fought the urge to melt like a useless puddle of goo in front of the raven and plastered an equally playful grin on his lips. “So, should I consider myself lucky that you’re finally talking to me?”
To see Kouyou putting on a playful mask was a complete astonishment to Yuu, but was he complaining? No, heck no! Not at all! Not even in a million years! It was like a pleasant bonus to him. Seeing this new side of Kouyou was just like a cherry on top of the icing. He never thought such a pretty face could have so many lively expressions like this, yet he wasn’t satisfied, he wanted to see more, see every single side of Kouyou. He wanted to see those lips curve to all the possible angles of each equally beautiful smile and he wanted to see all sorts of emotions fill those warm auburn eyes. With that realization, Yuu asked the blond something he had never said to a stranger before. “Yes, you are indeed very lucky to be one of my talking buddy, but you just got luckier than any of them because I’m asking you to join me for dinner tonight.” He kept the foxy expression on his face, but something in his tone sounded very alluring yet vulnerable, perhaps it was called honesty.
The blond gave the raven another weird look, his plush lips slightly parted in shock. Damn it. Shiroyama Yuu was really flirting with him! How did this even happen? They were total strangers a few minutes ago. How the hell did things between them suddenly come to this? His confidence slightly faltered at the sudden invitation, his mind suddenly blank as he attempted to comprehend and absorb the fact that the handsome Yuu, the usually cold Yuu, the unreachable Yuu just asked him out for dinner. Should he say yes? There really wasn’t a good reason to say no, was it? But why? Why would Yuu suddenly ask him out? It just didn’t make any sense. He felt his throat run dry as he tried to think of what to say. “I... Are you sure you want to have dinner with me? You’re acting really weird.” He honestly blurted. If that invitation was just a joke, he didn’t want to embarrass himself by just agreeing to it.
“I am very serious.” Yuu put away the playfulness he used to protect his pride and looked at the blond with earnestness that overflown from his ocean deep obsidian orbs. He gently voiced out his invitation once again. “Would you join me for dinner tonight?”
Seeing the truthfulness behind those onyx eyes, Kouyou seriously considered accepting the invitation. He was finished with his work in the barn. He didn’t have to finish any homework or study paper. He also hadn’t eaten dinner yet. There wasn’t any reason to decline and besides, didn’t he want to know more about the raven as well? This was his chance so why let it slip away? He stole a glance at Yuu’s handsome face and made a decision. He took a deep breath and put a gentle smile on his face. “I guess it’s alright.” He finally agreed, a spark of excitement filling his chest at the sudden thought of spending more time with Yuu, hoping that he wouldn’t regret his decision later on.
====
It wasn’t the first time Yuu had asked someone out for dinner. He was very used to getting the answer that he wanted, but sitting in front of the most beautiful man he had ever seen inside a high end Italian restaurant, the word yes, with three letters, and one syllable, never sounded so sweet to him. Nothing was planned tonight, everything about this lovely evening came to him like the unpredictable weather of early spring, not warm enough to shred the thick layers of coat, but the beams of sunlight and blue sky gave hope of a better tomorrow. This was exactly what Yuu felt towards the series of events that happened earlier today. From his careless little act to witness the fairytale-looking scene of Kouyou riding a white horse and to the first proper conversation they had, everything was spontaneous. Yet they were all so natural, not a single moment did he feel the obligation to appeal to the blond. Each little thing he did or said was out of his own will. He was just being himself. When did become so at ease at being around another individual? Yuu lightly chuckled at the thought. Perhaps, Kouyou did have some kind of magic. He lifted his eyes to look at the enchanting being of the gorgeous blond, only to see him staring out of the window while admiring the dance of snowflakes with a timid smile on his delicate feature.
For the hundredth time, Yuu was thankful for his bold behaviour earlier this evening. It really wasn’t rational for him to ask Kouyou out tonight, not only because they haven’t had a decent interaction until today, but also because Yuu was initially going to spend this night with his friends and the silliest men jokes they had. However, he instantly changed his mind the very moment he saw Kouyou’s naughty grin. Sure his friends would be upset if he didn’t show up at the bar and would probably make him treat them next time to make up for their “mortally wounded hearts”, but what were the chances that he could spend time with this particular breathtaking blond? There’s no way he was going to miss any opportunity of getting to know Kouyou. So, he gladly called his friends to inform them of his absence tonight when his date went to get his coat in the locker and finished the conversation in less than a minute before Kouyou returned. And that was exactly why he could now admire the elegance unconsciously shown in the blond’s natural movement.
While Yuu was busy appreciating the blond’s impeccable beauty, Kouyou was trying to busy himself or was at least trying to pretend that he was busy gazing at the beautiful scene outside the window. The city lights in Tokyo looked wonderful that evening, the various bright colors of the city was a deep contrast to the silvery blanket of stars that decorated the evening sky. In any normal circumstance, Kouyou would’ve truly appreciated the beautiful scene before him, but the pair of piercing onyx eyes that he knew were focused on him was bothering him. He could feel Yuu’s piercing stare drilling into his soul, as to why the raven was doing that, he didn’t know, but he desperately hoped and prayed that the rider would stop.
Oh god! He should seriously stop staring at me or I swear I’m going to evaporate here before I could even start eating my spaghetti.
Taking a deep breath and trying to keep his composure, he stole a quick look at the handsome male seated across him, his heart almost leaping to his throat when he discovered that Yuu was indeed staring at him. The raven wasn’t eyeing him maliciously or anything. In fact, Yuu looked as if he was mesmerized, hypnotized even, which only made him even more anxious. “Please stop staring at me.” He babbled accidentally voicing out what was on his mind. He fought the urge to slap his forehead for the blunder he had just committed and looked confusedly at the handsome rider.
Yuu blinked several times at the blond’s words, as if what Kouyou just said had woken him up from the spell that he was hypnotized from. He wasn’t expecting Kouyou to say such a thing, so straightforward and so simple, not even leaving any room for his pride, yet it was so cute. Kouyou seemed to do that to him all the time, accidentally blurt out things without actually thinking, the raven should have been offended by such incident, but he honestly couldn’t bring himself to get angry at the cuteness of the blond. He was just being true to his thoughts, so why should he be angry? Plus, it was always very amusing to see embarrassment flashing through that pretty face as his owner tried very hard to hide it. “Why not? It is very common for people to appreciate beautiful things.” He grinned somewhat mischievously, but the sincerity in his eyes revealed the true meaning of his words.
Kouyou’s entire body tensed at the nonchalant reply and for the umpteenth time that day, he felt his cheeks heat up again. He decided that being with Shiroyama Yuu wasn’t only bad for his heart, but also for his emotional and maybe even physical health. He wouldn’t be surprised if he would be down with a high fever when he wakes up tomorrow morning. “You should seriously stop making fun of me. It’s not funny.” He shot back, giving the raven a half-hearted glare.
“Don’t you realize how pretty you look?” Yuu faked out a surprised expression as if what the blond just said was the discovery of aliens on Mars. “You must have got stared a lot!” Pretty was an understatement, Yuu thought to himself, but he wasn’t going to further embarrass his date by telling him how incredibly beautiful he truly thought he was.
“How should I know? I don’t really make a hobby out of making sure if people are staring at me or not!” The blond huffed and cocked his head to the side, looking away from Yuu and his intense obsidian eyes. Actually, he did usually get stared at by people and he did always hear people complimenting him about his looks, but he wasn’t going to tell the raven that he was right. He began to nervously chew on his bottom lip, trying to figure out a way to distract the other man from making fun of him and the only way he could think of was to change the topic. With determination gleaming in his sorrell saucers, he returned his gaze back to Yuu and asked, “So, why do you like riding?” He said, or more like, demanded because of the particularly heavy tone his voice had possessed. His attempt to change the topic was very obvious, but he didn’t care. He wanted Yuu to stop paying too much attention on him.
Yuu was momentarily taken aback by the sudden change of topic, but he went with the flow, even knowing that this conversation might go into the direction that he had been avoiding. “It is a way for me to get away from my life.” He lowered his eyes to the empty table, careful not to show any vulnerable emotions to the blond sitting right in front of him, but somehow the bitterness of sadness still managed to escape from his obsidian orbs.
Kouyou missed the brief misery that crossed Yuu’s gorgeous features and voiced out the question that quickly popped in his head. “What are you trying to run away from? Don’t you have everything anyone could ever ask for?”
“Sometimes I wish I don’t have any of these.” Yuu murmured softly in a volume only the blond would be able to comprehend. He kept the faint trace of smile on the corners of his lips while various images quickly went past his mind. Soon, he realized that Kouyou’s question had invaded a region that had never been touched by anyone other than himself, knocking on the doors of his sensitive heart which he thought he had abandoned a long time ago. So Yuu looked up to the innocent blond before any of those thoughts sank into his brain, and gave his date a big carefree smile. “But they are not important, just some silly little things.” The smile was as attractive as it could possibly be, yet the warmth within the friendly gesture never reached his eyes.
Wide aureate eyes gleaming with surprise and sadness just stared at the vision of the rueful prince before him. Kouyou didn’t know what to do, how to react, what to say. Even though it was just a few seconds, he saw the flicker of different emotions in Yuu’s charcoal orbs, exploding in his eyes like fleeting fireworks, disappearing into the night sky even before one could make out their patterns and appreciate their beauty. It was obvious that there was more to Shiroyama Yuu than just the handsome face, the cool facade and the obvious wealth he possessed. Beneath all those layers, there was a side that the raven was trying to hide, a side that Kouyou was suddenly so curious and so intent to discover. He silently took a deep breath and leaned back on his seat, thinking. If he wanted to know more about Yuu, he should stop being so self-conscious and try to be comfortable being around the gorgeous rider. Also, the other man looked as if he really needed someone to talk to. Not that he was ‘that’ person or anything, but he would be willing to listen to the raven’s sentiments, lend an ear to his problems and thoughts and if Yuu liked, maybe even lend a shoulder to cry on.
He wiped the puzzled look he had off his face and gave the raven a gentle smile, his sorrell eyes glinting with honest sympathy. “After what you just said, I don’t think those are just silly little things, Yuu.” He stole a quick glance at his wristwatch, as if he was really concerned about the time and faced the raven once more. “I think I have time to listen to what they really are.” He casually suggested, hoping that the other man would give him a chance to take a peek under the layers that he was desperately trying to conceal.
“It’s the first time I hear you calling my name.” Yuu lightly chuckled at the thought that he just blurted out. Was it really bad to laugh in this kind of situation? When the blond was genuinely concerned about him? But he couldn’t help it, his emotions had been revolving around Kouyuu ever since they met. He was happy when he saw that infectious smile lingering on those rosy lips, he felt frustrated when he saw sadness shadowing those honey coloured irises and seeing the blond’s compassion directed towards him, all he could feel was the bliss running outrageously in his heart and the stream of warmth that submerged his whole being. Without the cold facade to deceive his true feelings, the raven put on the most sincere smile he had ever given, his midnight dark orbs filled with endless amount of adoration as he lovingly looked at the innocent beauty in front of him. “Thank you for caring.” As if hypnotized, or maybe just driven by his euphoric adrenaline, Yuu cautiously extended his arm to reach out to Kouyou’s lithe fingers, touching the flawless milky skin ever so softly, he tenderly whispered out his unfinished appreciation. “Coming from you, it really means a lot.”
The blond stopped himself from yanking his hand away at the sudden spark of electricity that tingled his skin, the momentary contact almost succeeding in turning his mind into mush, but luckily, it seemed he had gotten better at composing himself and keeping his cool in front of the enigmatic raven. His russet eyes glazed over those long, slim fingers that covered his skin before staring directly into a pair of sable saucers that regarded him as if his existence was the sun to the planet called Shiroyama Yuu.
Through the swirling snowflakes outside the glossy restaurant window, the pedestrians on the streets of Tokyo couldn’t see the overflowing affection that was silently traveling between two pairs of equally beautiful eyes, but the image of a perfect looking couple didn’t fail to put them in awe of how flawless Aphrodite’s plan seemed to be. The two strikingly handsome young men shared dinner, had a light talk and even tasted the richness of french wine, every single movement was in perfect harmony. As the stars slowly faded away from the navy night sky and declared the end of this peaceful night, the undefined relationship of these two had only begun.
Part 2B