Riu wondered if he had spoken too haphazardly and gripped his hem, watching Matthew’s reaction.
“Riu.”
A tender voice brushed his ear. Like a setting sun, Matthew was looking down at him with a gaze warmer and gentler than ever.
“This must be why I can’t let you go. You’ve got something that drives people crazy.”
Riu’s eyes wavered at the offhand truth of Matthew’s words. He knew exactly what that meant, and he tightened his fingers.
“Fine. If that’s what you want, I’ll wait. As long as it’s waiting for you to come to me.”
Speaking in a tone tinged with self-mockery, Matthew lifted Riu up into his arms. A deep lust colored the corners of Matthew’s eyes.
The academy he hadn’t visited in a while was as noisy as ever. Spotting Riu among the crowd, Rene, who had been sitting there bored, waved his arms wildly.
“Riu!!”
As if he were meeting someone he had dearly missed, color flooded Rene’s face. Without even giving Riu time to set down his bag, he sat him in a seat and dragged a chair close.
“Why were you so out of touch? Do you know how long I waited?”
“Sorry. I had some reasons for a bit…”
Memories he had briefly forgotten surfaced, and Riu looked away, scratching his cheek. Just facing Rene made his conscience prick him.
“Anyway, I’m curious, but my story comes first.”
Rene looked oddly urgent, and Riu tilted his head. It seemed something had happened to Rene while he’d been absent from the academy.
“Something huge happened to me.”
“Something huge?”
“Yeah. Something really huge.”
His face, flushed with excitement, was tinged with a faint blush. Glancing around so no one would overhear, Rene leaned forward and whispered into Riu’s ear.
“I finally made a mess.”
Riu felt his heart begin to pound uneasily. It was only those two words—made a mess—yet his heart churned, and he carefully asked back,
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“A really big mess, too.”
“So what kind of mess?”
“Mm… I think I slept with Matthew that night.”
At the unexpected name, Riu’s eyes flew wide. As if he had heard correctly yet somehow not, his lips parted soundlessly.
“Did you catch that? I said I made a mess with Matthew Davir.”
As if to make sure Riu heard him right this time, Rene murmured the name right by his ear. His voice was so clear and distinct.
“…You mean the night of the masquerade, right?”
“Yeah.”
Whether from shyness or joy, both his cheeks reddened even more than before.
“Isn’t that absolutely huge?”
Riu wanted to ask if he hadn’t mistaken the person, but he couldn’t. Rene’s expression, already set on the fact that he had slept with Matthew, looked as if he had the whole world.
“Hey, Rene…”
“What’s with that sour reaction? Do I look like someone who disapproves of having slept with Matthew?”
“No, it’s not that. I just wondered how you were so sure it was Matthew.”
Above all, Matthew had been with him that night. They hadn’t even left the bed for two days… and now Rene had spent the night with Matthew? The situation didn’t add up, and Riu blinked, thinking hard.
“The person I brought to bed that night was a black-haired man. I remember it clearly. Honestly, black hair isn’t that common, right?”
Of course, everyone knew Matthew had black hair. But that night, Matthew had used a dye that changed the color for a while, so he hadn’t been black-haired. Even if only temporarily.
“But when I woke up in the morning, he was gone. Left no trace at all. Then what does that mean? He must have been scared and ran away because he knew me.”
It was a familiar sort of story. But if that person really had been Matthew, he might have chosen to stay rather than run.
“It’s a shame you weren’t at the masquerade. If you’d seen how incredible I was that night, you would’ve been amazed.”
“You’re amazing even now.”
“No. That night was different. How should I put it, everyone’s eyes were on me, looking up to me… It was beyond thrilling. It was ecstatic.”
Seeing him rejoice over a night he would never forget, Riu gave a clumsy smile.
In truth, Riu had planned to explain his situation with Matthew, at least a little, when he saw Rene today. But seeing him like this, it seemed he wouldn’t be able to explain anything, let alone speak at all.
“Honestly, who wouldn’t like someone like me? I’ve got money, I look good. Even my personality’s good, right?”
“…”
“Thinking back, I wonder if he liked me too. That’s why he acted hard to get. Don’t you think?”
Even though he had decided the person he’d slept with was Matthew, Rene still looked to Riu to reaffirm it.
“So, about that. Just this once, help me out.”
At the word “help,” Riu couldn’t help but knit his brows. Half expecting it, he tried to slip away, but as if reading his mind, Rene grabbed his wrist.
“This is the last time. I won’t ask you for help with Matthew again. Okay? Riu.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Whoa! You scared me!”
At Albert’s well-timed entrance, Rene flinched like he’d had a fit. Then, recognizing him, he scrunched his brow.
“You scared me.”
“What, did you do something guilty to me?”
With a roguish grin, Albert pried Riu’s wrist free from Rene’s. It happened so naturally that Rene grumbled at him with a slightly petulant look.
“What are you talking about? You barged in and startled me.”
Finding Rene’s reaction cute, Albert let out a bland laugh, then wedged himself between them and perched on the desk.
“So what is it? What’s with those pleading eyes again?”
“Listen up, Albert. I’m in a really serious situation right now.”
“Has there ever been a time you weren’t serious?”
“Don’t joke around. I mean it this time.”
At Albert’s words, Rene smacked his back. It was a sharp enough blow to make a crack sound, but Albert didn’t show a hint of displeasure.
“So, for the next art meetup, I want you two to skip.”
“I’m against it. I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“How is it not a good idea? If before I wasn’t confident because I didn’t know how Matthew felt, now that’s not the case.”
Perhaps recalling the time they had secretly skipped the art meetup to help Rene, Albert looked at him with pitying eyes.
“Your problem is yours to solve. Don’t drag us into it.”
Leaning back a little, Albert flicked a glance at Riu to gauge his reaction. Meeting Riu’s eyes, he gave a harmless smile, then turned back to Rene.
“If I could do that, I would’ve already. But he hasn’t been coming to the academy lately. Well, that’s nothing new, but he should at least give me time to talk.”
“Then you should go find him yourself.”
“Hey, Albert.”
“Let’s keep it reasonable. I know you’re obsessed with Matthew, but there’s a limit. How about just letting it go and meeting someone else?”
At Albert’s words, Rene huffed, on the verge of tears. He clearly didn’t like how things weren’t going his way.
“This really is the last time. I won’t ask you two to help me with Matthew again.”
Seeing Rene’s near-clinical level of fixation, Albert shook his head. At this point, it was almost pitiful.
“Why, are you going to confess or something?”
“Yeah. I will.”
“…What? Seriously?”
Rene’s response to the offhand question left Albert genuinely stunned. Riu was no exception.
“You’re really going to confess?”
Riu had many thoughts, but outwardly kept calm as he looked at Rene.
“Yeah. So if—unlikely as it is—I get rejected, you two have to comfort me. I’m really planning to let it go coolly then.”
Speaking as if he’d made a big decision, Rene sounded resolute, and Albert snorted with laughter. Then he gave a small round of applause and a thumbs-up.
“Yeah. Now that’s more like you.”
“So you’ll help, right? It’s my final resolve, after all. I should at least try confessing.”
Albert shrugged to show he would. Then he fixed his gaze on Riu.
“What about you, Riu?”
“I…”
Riu bit his lip mid-sentence. Judging from the mood, it felt like he shouldn’t refuse, but accepting weighed on him because of Matthew.
Maybe the problem was trying to hide things from the start. Small issues felt like they were surfacing and growing larger. In the end, Riu nodded and said,
“Okay, I’ll do that. But, you know, when that’s over, could you and I talk? There’s something I really want to say.”
“What is it? Can’t you say it now?”
“No. Right now it’s… a bit.”
Seeing that Riu looked troubled, Rene didn’t press. He just hooked his arms through Riu’s and Albert’s and said, as if delighted by the situation,
“Let’s go to a restaurant! My treat!”
On the way to the restaurant, Rene spoke endlessly about Matthew—how he’d confess, what he’d wear that day… Listening to Rene chatter without pause, Riu wished that day would come quickly.
Lately Matthew seemed very busy, and his visits were rare. If they met, Riu planned to give him a heads-up that he couldn’t attend the art meetup. He didn’t want any misunderstandings like before.
But in another sense, maybe saying nothing would be better. The original storyline was tangled beyond repair, but if the relationship between the two of them could be sorted out to some degree, then either way might be fine.
“I guess it’s just my greed…?”
With a sigh like a short breath, Riu set down his pen. Just then, a pigeon—who knows when it had arrived—rubbed its beak against the knuckle of Riu’s finger.
“You…”
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