Yuuhei finally stayed the night at Ichirou’s, so they could be picked up by Masahiro together. Yuuhei was amazed at the size of Ichirou’s house, and spent a fair bit of time wandering about it with Ichirou. He lived in a studio apartment, so the amount of space was incredible to him. His mother was excited to meet Yuuhei, and she ordered that a large amount of food be put together for his sake. Despite protesting, Yuuhei ended up with a meal that consisted of several dozen side dishes.

They went up to Ichirou’s room after eating way too much, and Ichirou collapsed on his bed with a groan. Yuuhei plopped down next to him, lazily looking at his friend’s bedroom for the first time. Ichirou had made sure to clean it up before Yuuhei came over, but paranoia started to immediately seep in that he had perhaps missed a spot. So, he lethargically pulled himself up.

“What do you think?” Ichirou asked.

Yuuhei was quiet for a moment. “This looks like a little girl’s dream room.”

Ichirou huffed at that and laid back down. “I get called a princess for a reason.”

“I thought it was because you were so rich, but I can see now that there’s multiple reasons,” Yuuhei said with a firm nod.

“Shut uuup…” Ichirou groaned.

“Anyway, you went out with Masahiro on Thursday, right? What did you do? You usually text me after, but you didn’t this time,” Yuuhei said, folding his legs and sitting crisscrossed on the bed.

“Oh, I totally forgot to. We just went to a sushi place, it was nothing super special. We just hung out and talked like we usually do,” Ichirou said.

It was a calm date where nothing mindblowing happened, simply the two of them existing and enjoying food. Ichirou did learn that Masahiro highly preferred beef to any sort of fish, but that wasn’t that surprising to him. Ichirou personally liked seafood more than red meat, so they were a bit at odds there, but luckily, living in Japan, it was fairly easy for them both to find what kind of foods they liked. 

“You must be getting really comfortable with him if you’re not even texting me about it anymore. You two should just date for real,” Yuuhei said, grinning somewhat mischievously.

“Oh my god, shut up. You sound like my sister,” Ichirou groaned.

“How is she, by the way? She’s got that… that not actually a girlfriend but still a girlfriend, right?”

“Yeah, they’re doing good, as far as I can tell. Neither of them have confessed yet. Sort of like you with Oda-san,” Ichirou said, giving his friend a pointed stare.

Yuuhei flushed pink at that. “I- I mean, we’re not like that, though… this is an entirely one sided thing.”

Ichirou rolled over onto his stomach and screamed into his sheets, startling Yuuhei. “Whoa, what the hell?!”

Ichirou rolled back over, glaring at his best friend. “You and he had sex on Sunday again, right?” Yuuhei nodded. “And you went to dinner with him, right?” Yuuhei nodded. “And we decided that he was either going to dump you or date you, right?”

“Well, we never actually–” Yuuhei began.

“Oh no, you do not start that shit, we totally did decide that. He’s into you, he’s into you, he-is-in-to-you!! Just, I dunno, confess tomorrow or something,” Ichirou grumbled.

“I can’t, he’ll hate me!” Yuuhei cried.

Ichirou knew for a fact that Takeru was going to confess in much clearer terms tomorrow, but he also wanted Yuuhei to stop being a baby and just say how he felt. Ichirou couldn’t relate at all, he couldn’t see how Yuuhei couldn’t just see that he and Takeru were in love. Ichirou would know for a fact if he was in love with someone, and if that someone was in love with him as well. Yuuhei was just being silly.

Ichirou and Yuuhei stayed up late into the night, talking about boys, television shows, and fashion. Although Yuuhei mostly wore boring clothing, like a hoodie and jeans, he actually did surprisingly know a fair bit about clothing. He was also very supportive in Ichirou’s desire to be cuter and cuter. They spent a long time looking online at cute clothing, with Yuuhei insisting that this and that would be adorable on Ichirou.

Yuuhei ended up saying goodnight to Ichirou after midnight, and he went into the guestroom. Ichirou went to sleep soon after, dreaming that the beach was now closed to visitors because of a typhoon. Happily, when he woke up and checked the forecast, no such typhoon came up. Ichirou got dressed in his pink swimming shorts and a pale yellow, sleeveless zip up hoodie. They were a bit more snug against his rear than they had been in May, so he was admittedly a little concerned that he had gained weight. However, his stomach remained flat, so that was what was more important.

Ichirou looked at himself in the mirror, noting that his shorts did seem to be fitting a bit less well. While they always had been somewhat snug and covered very little of his thighs, the amount they were covering around his rear definitely seemed to be less. They rode up a little bit, and were tight around his butt. It almost looked like he was attempting to be sexy, which he was definitely not. He said a quick prayer in his head to whatever God there was that no alphas would hit on him.

Ichirou put on his slides, grabbed his bag filled with a large sun hat, sunglasses, and sunblock, and walked down to the kitchenette. Yuuhei was already sitting there in his own swimsuit and a tank top. Ichirou sat down beside him and they had a small breakfast, chatting about this and that. Ichirou got a text from Masahiro, surprising him that the other man was here early. They quickly scarfed down the remains of their breakfast and ran downstairs and outside.

“Hey, you two,” Masahiro said, just rolling down the window this time. “Are you ready for the beach?”

“Heck yeah!” Ichirou exclaimed, running to the passenger side.

“Same,” Yuuhei said, hopping into the car next to Takeru.

“Well, too bad, it seems like there’s some accidents along the way, so it’s gonna take us almost two hours,” Masahiro said, waiting for Ichirou and Yuuhei to buckle themselves up.

“Ugggh,” Ichirou groaned.

Takeru almost immediately put his hand on Yuuhei’s thigh, as though laying claim to the purple haired man. “Yeah, it sucks, but it’ll just be a good time for us to get to know each other, right?”

Yuuhei flushed as Takeru’s hand went to the inside of his thigh. “Uhhh, yeah…”

“You two don’t do anything lewd back there, or I swear to god, I’ll kick you out of my car,” Masahiro said, glowering at them through the rear view mirror.

“He’s not into that sort of thing, otherwise there would be no promises,” Takeru said with a wicked grin. “And you better not be too flirty with your boy either.”

Ichirou turned red at that and turned back to glare at Takeru. “M- Masahiro-san and I aren’t like that! Cut it out.”

“Sorry, I just think that you’d be a cute couple,” Takeru said mildly.

“Well, we’re not a couple regardless of what you think, so hush up,” Masahiro said.

The long commute was filled with chatter, as the men talked about what they were planning. Masahiro had brought a large blanket for them to sit on, as well as lunch. By the time they got there, grabbed all their things, and set up a spot on the beach, it would surely be lunchtime. 

Ichirou bounced a little in his chair in excitement. He loved to go into the ocean, and he wanted to splash around with his friends. He would have to be careful, as his skin was very pale and delicate. He burned very easily, so he needed to make sure he wore plenty of sunblock and reapplied it quite a lot.

“So, you two are going on multiple dates a week, now?” Takeru asked, sitting up a little, looking between Masahiro and Ichirou.

“Yeah, since it’s summer and we have more time. Don’t make it into something weird, Takeru,” Masahiro groaned.

“I’m just saying!” Takeru exclaimed. “If I had a fake relationship, I would be doing the minimum to make sure people didn’t find out!”

“And that’s why you would have failed if you were trying to make it with a fake relationship. Masahiro-san and I work really hard to make sure people don’t suspect us at all,” Ichirou said with a huff.

“Yeah, but you two did get really close, really fast,” Yuuhei offered.

Ichirou bristled a bit at that. “Th- that’s just because we have personalities that work well together! Not everything has to be romantic! Sometimes people are just friends.”

“Oh, I know that,” Takeru said. “But you two… well, I’m betting that within a year of them meeting, they’ll start dating. What do you think, Yuu-chan?”

Yuuhei nodded, squinting at the blond man. “I think within a year and a half. Ichirou’s too stubborn.”

“Hey, don’t bet on us like that! We’re right here!” Ichirou cried.

“What do you wanna bet? I don’t have a lot of money,” Yuuhei said, completely ignoring his friend’s words.

“Hmm, if you win, I’ll give you three hundred thousand yen,” Takeru offered.

“And if I lose?” Yuuhei asked, eyebrows drawn together.

“I wonder… well, how about I come up with something and tell you later tonight?”

“Whatever, but I might refuse, then,” Yuuhei warned.

“Fine by me.”

“You guys suck,” Masahiro said earnestly.

They arrived in an hour and forty-five minutes, a bit quicker than they anticipated. Masahiro parked a couple streets away from the beach, and they all got out with a hop. Masahiro grabbed a parasol he had brought specifically for Ichirou, Takeru grabbed the food, Yuuhei grabbed his bag and the blanket, leaving Ichirou only with his own bag. Ichirou, pouting a little bit, walked ahead of them a little bit. He didn’t like feeling left out of helping.

Masahiro, despite doing his best to keep his eyes literally anywhere else, found his gaze drawn to Ichirou’s long, pale legs and his ass. The shorts really were riding up a little in the back, revealing just the tiniest bit of ass cheek. Masahiro was doing everything in his power not to be turned on by Ichirou right now, but the pink haired man was not making it easy on him. He was just so naturally sexy.

Ichirou walked out onto the beach, unaware that Masahiro’s eyes were burning a hole into him. He breathed in the salty sea air, feeling the warm sun on him and the sand between his toes. It was already quite a warm day, and the sounds of the ocean were calming. The sky and the ocean were both extremely blue. Ichirou was already quite excited to get into the water, but he knew he had to hold back.

The beach was quite busy, as it was a Sunday and this was the closest beach to Tokyo. The smells were a lot for Ichirou, and he found himself slowly getting closer and closer to Masahiro. His pheromones were, after all, quite comfortable for Ichirou. Ichirou ended up walking side by side with Masahiro, breathing in his scent.

They found a spot fairly quickly and laid out both the blanket and the parasol. Ichirou retreated under the parasol, already feeling the heat of the sun burning his skin. Masahiro sat next to him on his left side, Yuuhei sat on his right, and Takeru sat across from him. Masahiro pulled out the bentos, revealing a wide spread of salad, karaage, bean sprouts, katsu, berries, tamagoyaki, potato salad, sausage octopi, cherry tomatoes, rice, edamame, apple rabbits meatballs, carrots… anything you could wish for in a bento, Masahiro had put in there.

“Thank you for the food!” The men all said before digging in.

Ichirou covered his mouth, making happy noises. “It’s so good, Masahiro-san!”

“It really is,” Yuuhei said with a big nod.

“Eh, it’s okay,” Takeru said with a grin.

“Shut up, Takeru-san,” Yuuhei groaned.

“Aww, honey, you love it when I’m being annoying, though,” Takeru said with a laugh, his arm wrapping around Yuuhei for a brief moment.

“Keep the PDA to a minimum, boys,” Masahiro said, an eyebrow cocked.

“You’re just jealous,” Takeru said, sticking out his tongue as he picked up a piece of squash.

As much as Masahiro wanted to fight that claim, some part of him was slightly jealous. It was true, he was perfectly happy being Ichirou’s friend, but there were times when he wanted to hold Ichirou. And, like earlier, there were times when he wanted to do more than just hold Ichirou. However, he couldn’t, and so he chose to ignore those feelings, and focus more on the joy that Ichirou was in his life at all.

“Hey, will one of you guys help me with putting sunscreen on my back?” Ichirou asked.

“I’ll help,” Masahiro said, volunteering immediately.

Yuuhei’s eyebrow went up at this, and he gave a questioning look to Takeru. Takeru grinned and gave his not quite yet boyfriend a look. Ichirou honestly couldn’t tell what was going on, but it seemed like they were having a telepathic conversation. Ichirou really couldn’t tell why, Masahiro was just being nice.

After they finished eating, Ichirou began applying sunscreen vigorously on his body. After he got the majority of his body done, he handed off the sunscreen to Masahiro. Ichirou wasn’t expecting it to be a big deal that Masahiro was putting sunscreen on him, but it strangely turned out to be. The feeling of Masahiro’s rough, huge hands rubbing sunscreen into Ichirou's small back, the feeling of his hands stroking his waist, the feeling of him massaging the cream just above his ass… Ichirou felt weird about it. His heart wouldn’t stop fluttering, and his stomach was doing flips for days. He couldn’t begin to tell you why he was feeling this way, but as Masahiro’s strong hands pulled away, he felt strangely disappointed.

“All done,” Masahiro said, turning away from Ichirou. It was all he could do to keep calm. Touching Ichirou all over his back had felt like a dream, specifically a wet one. Ichirou’s pale skin was incredibly smooth and soft, and it, paired with the sight of Ichirou’s ill-fitting swimsuit would certainly be on his mind tonight when he attempted to go to sleep.

“Then let’s go to the ocean!” Ichirou exclaimed, standing up.

“You all go ahead, I need to digest this food for a little longer,” Takeru said, waving them off.

“You okay?” Yuuhei asked, kneeling by him and touching his shoulder. “It doesn’t hurt, right?”

“No, I’m just really full. Don’t worry about me, just have fun,” Takeru said in response, smiling warmly at Yuuhei.

Yuuhei nodded, and Ichirou was fairly certain that was the first time he had seen them care for each other like that. According to Yuuhei, it was happening all the time when they were alone, but Ichirou honestly hadn’t completely believed him. Seeing it here and now, however, changed his mind. They were probably super lovey-dovey behind the scenes, but being in front of their friends and strangers, they acted a bit more goofy.

Masahiro pulled off his tank top, while Yuuhei chose to keep his on. Ichirou, a bit shyly, took off his hoodie that he had just put back on and the three men made their way into the water. The waves washed up against Ichirou’s ankles, then his knees, then his hips. It was hardly past one, but the summer heat had really started up already. Ichirou was certain that if he didn’t put on all that sunscreen, he would have been fried to a crisp by now.

For the first time, Ichirou really got an actual look at Masahiro’s body. His breath caught a little bit in his throat as he looked at the well defined abdominal muscles, his huge biceps, the big, meaty pectorals… he was extremely hot. Ichirou swallowed and he looked literally anywhere else, his face red. He couldn’t be thinking these kinds of things about his friend! Masahiro was just a good friend, just a good friend… just because Ichirou had the urge to touch his friend all over, did not mean that he was sexually or romantically attracted to Masahiro! There was simply no way!

“Whoa, the water’s pretty warm today,” Masahiro said, grinning.

“It feels good!” Yuuhei exclaimed

“Y- yeah, it does,” Ichirou said, attempting to pull his mind out of the gutter.

“I think there’s only one thing we can do now that we’re in the water,” Masahiro said solemnly.

“Oh?” Ichirou asked, eyebrows raised.

Masahiro, using his long arms, splashed Ichirou, garnering a shriek from Ichirou. Ichirou brushed the water from his face, glowering at Masahiro. He then struck back at Masahiro with full force!... not that that was saying much, considering how skinny and weak Ichirou was. Masahiro laughed and jumped back a bit, hitting Ichirou with more water from a distance. Ichirou chased after him, yelling and attempting to splash him. Yuuhei just kind of stood there awkwardly in the water, realizing that the “lovers” were off in their own world.

Ichirou and Masahiro eventually came back to Yuuhei, both equally wet and having called a truce. Ichirou wrung out the hair in his ponytail and pushed his bangs out of his face. Every part of him felt salty and wet, and he was breathing kind of heavily, but it was fun to goof around like this every so often.

“So, Yuuhei,” Ichirou started, a naughy smile spreading across his face. “Are you gonna confess today?”

Yuuhei made a choking sound and looked between Ichirou and Masahiro several times. “I- you- I- you can’t say that in front of him! He might tell him!”

“Please, I’m not gonna tell him,” Masahiro snorted, lowering himself into the water so that his chest was covered, much to the disappointment of Ichirou. “Trust me, if I was gonna tell him, I would have already.”

Yuuhei turned to glare at Ichirou. “When did you tell him?!”

“Like, a week ago. I trust Masahiro-san, though! He’s so nice!” Ichirou insisted.

Yuuhei grumbled a bit under his breath, until he looked up, determined to bluster a bit. “Yeah, I like Takeru-san! So what?! I know a lame beta like me doesn’t deserve him, but I can’t help it!”

“Whoa, that’s not where I was going,” Masahiro said, standing up tall again. “I think he doesn’t deserve you, if anything. All the money in the world can’t buy you a nice personality, and by god does he suck ass. He’d be the one stepping up if you two dated.”

Yuuhei slowly turned more and more red. He looked down, embarrassed. “Th- thanks, I… I don’t agree, but that’s nice of you to say.”

“Oh my god, I’m starting to burn, I can feel it,” Ichirou said, looking carefully at his arms with concern. “I’m gonna go back to the blanket.”

“I’ll come with you. How about you, Yuuhei-san?” Masahiro asked.

“I’ll come back, too.” 

Ichirou, Masahiro, and Yuuhei returned to their spot on the beach. Takeru appeared to be taking a nap in the sunshine. Masahiro and Yuuhei sat on either side of Takeru, both chatting to see who would wake the peacefully sleeping man. Ichirou quickly retreated under the parasol, rubbing his warm arms. Even though he got extra water resistant sunscreen, it still barely lasted over an hour. He didn’t want a repeat of Golden Week, when he had burnt to a crisp. 

“Ugh, whadda… whas goin’ on?” Takeru asked groggily after Yuuhei and Masahiro both poked him. He sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Did I fall asleeb…?”

Yuuhei leaned over to him, nodding. “Yeah, you did.”

“I was just wanting to wake you up so you and Yuuhei could go to the convenience store and get us some drinks,” Masahiro said.

Takeru’s eyes went down to Yuuhei’s crotch. “Can I get my drink fro-”

“No.” Masahiro said it very firmly, refusing to even entertain the dirty joke. “Please just get us some drinks.”

“Okay, okay,” Takeru grumbled, grabbing his shoes that he had flung off. “What do you two want?”

“Cola,” Masahiro said.

“Strawberry milk!” Ichirou called, rubbing off the seawater in preparation for another round of sunscreen.

“Okay, come on, Yuu-chan,” Takeru said, standing up and holding out his hand for Yuuhei to take. “Let’s go. And maybe let’s get some cold treats for us.”

“Y- yes,” Yuuhei said, grabbing onto Takeru’s hand and hoisting himself up.

While Yuuhei may have expected Takeru to let go after that, he didn’t. Takeru held his hand, guiding him through the groups of people and back up onto the road. Ichirou watched them go, slightly rolling his eyes. They were so obviously into each other! Why couldn’t Yuuhei see it? Did he just not have the brain cells available? Or maybe something about love just made you extra dumb.

Masahiro watched as Ichirou rubbed in more sunscreen onto his pale, slim arms. Although he had been doing his best not to stare, he couldn’t help but note how fragile and almost doll-like Ichirou was. Perhaps it was due to his status as an omega, or perhaps it was just because of how genetics played out, Ichirou’s body had soft curves, just enough fat not to look underweight, and his chest was… really nice looking. His pink nipples had perked up now that they were under the coolness of the shade. Masahiro was trying very hard to keep his alpha instincts in check.

“You’re trying to help them get together by making them go together, right?” Ichirou asked, not noticing the internal struggles that Masahiro was going through.

“I, uh, yes, I am,” Masahiro said. It was partially that, but also partially that he wanted to be alone with Ichirou.

“You’re such a good friend,” Ichirou said with a soft smile. “Can you help me with my back, again?”

Masahiro nodded, his mouth drying up. He was not feeling like a very good friend at this moment. His lust for Ichirou was really driving him up the wall today. If he had known it would have been this bad, he wouldn’t have agreed to go to the beach.

Masahiro squirted some sunscreen on his hand as Ichirou laid down on his tummy. Masahiro took in a deep breath before pressing his hands carefully on Ichirou’s neck and back. His eyes naturally stared at his bare neck for a moment. Although he had great control of his desires, the desire was still there to lay claim to his fake boyfriend. He quickly pulled his eyes away, putting more screen down Ichirou’s soft and smooth back, gently massaging it into the omega’s body. 

Ichirou’s lower back was probably the hardest for Masahiro to deal with. It would be so easy for his hands to wander down just a bit further, but no. He couldn’t do that to Ichirou. He promised himself that he would always be beside Ichirou, whether that was a friend or something else. Right now, being something else was not an option. He had to be a friend to Ichirou. He couldn’t get sexually aroused by this.

“Okay, I’m done,” Masahiro said, closing the lid of the sunscreen. He sat a bit aways, purposely sitting so that Ichirou would not be able to see his crotch. Although he had told himself he couldn't get aroused by that, he sure had. It would go down in a few moments. He just needed to make sure his friend didn’t see.

Luckily for Masahiro, Ichirou didn’t notice at all. He sat up on his knees, then plopped back onto his butt under the shade. Masahiro’s hands felt good, almost like a gentle massage. He wondered if he could ask Masahiro for a back rub later on. Masahiro was always so careful with Ichirou, he felt fortunate to have his friend near.

Yuuhei and Takeru returned within a half hour of them leaving, with Takeru excitedly announcing that he bought some fireworks as well. Ichirou was excited for this summer fun, and eagerly clapped his hands. The four men chatted as they drank their various drinks. Takeru had got a beer and Yuuhei had chosen an iced tea. Yuuhei and Takeru had apparently held hands all the way to the convenience store, much to the embarrassment of Yuuhei. It seemed that he still didn’t fully get it. 

“So, Oda-san, what do you do for work? I know you’re the heir to that banking company, but I don’t know much else,” Ichirou asked curiously, the strawberry milk held close to his lips for easy access.

“Oh, it’s super lame. Right now, I just follow the vice president around to try to learn how to be an effective leader, but I think that guy’s embezzling, so he’s not the greatest to learn from,” Takeru said with a shrug.

“Uh… shouldn’t you tell someone?” Masahiro asked, his eyebrows raised.

“What, like my grandpa? That old man doesn’t listen to anything I say. If anything, he’d think I started embezzling,” Takeru complained.

Ichirou slowly nodded. “That sounds kind of terrible.”

“None of them listen to me. My closest relative is my mom, but she’s not super smart and always puts me into stupid situations I shouldn’t be in. My dad is always yelling at me to be better… ugh, they’re so annoying. I have no control of my life outside of you guys,” Takeru said, slumping down a bit. 

“I wonder what they’ll think of you da- I mean, having sex with a beta,” Ichirou said, quickly catching himself.

“They aren’t gonna think of anything, because they won’t find out,” Takeru said, folding his arms and closing his eyes. “And if they do find out, I’ll just marry Yuu-chan really quickly so they don’t have the opportunity to do anything about it.”

Yuuhei turned bright red. “M- m- m- m- m- marriage?! What?!”

Takeru winked at Yuuhei and stuck out his tongue, clearly showing that he was teasing. “Who knows, maybe I’ll marry you even before they find out?”

“Okay, stop flirting, or I’m gonna hurl,” Masahiro groaned.

“It- it’s not flirting, he’s just joking!” Yuuhei managed out.

“Oh, am I?” Takeru asked, scooting closer to Yuuhei with a flirtatious grin on his face.

“You two need to go to a hotel or something,” Ichirou said, looking between the two in disgust.

The four friends hung out and talked for several hours, enjoying the warm weather and the beach. It felt really nice for Ichirou to enjoy some time with friends. He had never had more than a couple friends at a time, because they would ultimately reveal that they were just hanging out with him for monetary reasons or to climb the social ladder, so it was really refreshing to be surrounded by people who seemed to just be together because they got along. With the comedy provided by all of his friends as well, he found himself never getting bored with these guys.

As evening began to set in, Masahiro and Ichirou went to a local family restaurant to order some food. Because they ordered early for dinner, they returned fairly quickly with some sushi, tempura, edamame, french fries, and yakitori. Ichirou carried the drinks while Masahiro brought the large amount of food. The men began to eat together excitedly. 

“Fish by the sea just makes sense, doesn’t it?” Takeru sighed as he bit down on his piece of sushi.

“It really does,” Yuuhei hummed.

During the time that Masahiro and Ichirou had gone to get the food, Yuuhei and Takeru had ended up leaning up against each other. It was like they were high schoolers who couldn’t get enough of touching each other. Ichirou, for one, wished they’d at least try to cut out the PDA. Several older people had already walked by and given them a nasty stare.

“So, Yuuhei-san, I have a question for you. You like anime, right?” Masahiro asked.

“Oh, yeah, I do. Why?”

“I was wondering what sort of anime you watch.”

“Oh, you watch mecha anime, right? I’ve watched a couple, like Rundam. I really like action anime, though. Things like Demon Fighter, or Naruki. I’m a bit of a normie when it comes to anime,” Yuuhei admitted. 

“Hey, it’s better than Ichirou-san. He and I are very slowly watching Neo Exodus Angelion. Speaking of which, Ichirou-san, you wanna come over sometime this week to watch it with me?”

Ichirou nodded. “Sure!”

“Wait, wait, wait, you’re starting him out with Angelion? That’s a goddamn wormhole of a series,” Yuuhei objected.

“Yeah, but it’s my favorite,” Masahiro said.

“I don’t know shit about anime,” Takeru casually said.

“Not everything has to be about you,” Masahiro said, glaring at his friend.

“Goddamn, okay,” Takeru said, holding up his hands in defeat.

Ichirou burst into a laugh at that. “Masahiro-san is choosing violence today, I see.”

“Only when it comes to Takeru,” Masahiro said mildly.

After they finished their food, Takeru asked Yuuhei to go on a walk with him to help him digest his food. Yuuhei agreed, and just as the sun was beginning to set, they started walking down by the shore. Before they left, Takeru had a somewhat nervous look on his face, which Ichirou could only guess meant that Takeru was about to confess to Yuuhei.

“Do you think Yuuhei will get it?” Ichirou asked Masahiro, hugging his knees as he watched his friends walk down the beach, their ankles occasionally being covered by water.

“I told Takeru to be super straightforward about it. I think he’s just planning on saying he likes him, so if Yuuhei-san doesn’t get it, I think that their relationship will be too dumb to make it anywhere,” Masahiro said, brushing some hair behind his ear.

Ichirou zipped up his hoodie. Now that the sun was disappearing over the land behind them, it was starting to get a little cooler. He watched as Yuuhei and Takeru seemed to stop, a distance from any of the few beach goers that were left. He held his breath, watching their figures. He wanted for them to get together. 

Yuuhei had always had bad luck when it came to dating. He would go on dates and dates and dates, hold a girlfriend for maybe three months, and when he couldn’t keep it up during sex, they would inevitably leave him. Takeru had been the first one to make Yuuhei finish, and it seemed like they genuinely got along. Yuuhei had been on the losing end for so many things, he deserved to have some sort of win. A boyfriend who had a similar sex drive and fetishes, a boyfriend who was rich, a boyfriend who was handsome, and, most of all, a boyfriend who was truly in love with him.

Ichirou watched as one of the dark figures, which he was fairly certain was Yuuhei, suddenly walked into the other, obviously hugging him. Ichirou pumped his fist, grinning.

“What, are they together? It’s too hard for me to tell at this distance,” Masahiro said, squinting.

“They just hugged, so I’m pretty sure they’re together now!” Ichirou exclaimed, allowing his legs to flop down from under his chin.

“That’s great! Now Takeru can stop talking my ear off about how he wants to kiss and hug and snuggle Yuuhei all the time!” Masahiro said, clapping his hands together.

“Oh, they’re still going to do that, I’m sure,” Ichirou responded drly. “The difference is that we can just tell them to go see each other, then.”

Masahiro nodded. “And hopefully they’ll listen and just… go do their weird ass thing at Takeru’s place.”

“Totally. Oh, here they come, holding hands now. We gotta congratulate them at the same time!”

“Oh, yeah? Okay! One… two… three!”

Both men shouted their congratulations as Yuuhei and Takeru made their way up the beach. Grinning like he had won the biggest prize in the world, Takeru held up both of his hands, still gripping Yuuhei’s hand. Yuuhei looked the other way, stumbling after his boyfriend. Takeru and Yuuhei sat down together, hands locked together and with Yuuhei leaning against Takeru.

“Congratulations, you two! I’ve been rooting for you since the beginning,” Ichirou said, smiling widely as he clapped for them.

“Th- thank you,” Yuuhei said, his voice barely above a whisper. Despite how dark it had gotten so quickly, Ichirou could still see how bright red Yuuhei’s face was.

“I was so scared,” Takeru sighed, looking relieved. “I thought for sure he was going to turn me down.”

“I told you that you had nothing to worry about,” Masahiro said, grinning a bit.

“H- how could I ever turn you down? You’re so incredible…” Yuuhei said, looking up at Takeru with wide eyes.

To Ichirou’s surprise, Takeru did something that Ichirou had never seen him do before: blush. He looked away from his boyfriend to hide it, but he had a pleased look on his face. Ichirou honestly didn’t think that Takeru could get shy, what with how completely shameless he was, but it seemed that Yuuhei being honest was enough to do the trick for him. It would be super cute, if it wasn’t so nauseating.

“So, then, shall we do fireworks as a celebration and definitely not because we just got them?” Masahiro offered, pulling out some sparklers.

“Hell yeah!” Takeru exclaimed, reaching over to grab one. 

Masahiro passed out sparklers to everyone, lighting each of them individually with a lighter that they got from the store. Ichirou wandered a bit down towards the ocean, waving it around at random to see the pretty sparks come flying out. He watched as Yuuhei and Takeru played with theirs as well, openly laughing and being flirtatious with each other. 

Ichirou got a strange pit in his stomach, watching them. It wasn’t that he was angry or grossed out or anything like that… no, this feeling could only be jealousy. As much as Ichirou was happy that Yuuhei and Takeru were a couple now, a small part of him wanted him to be in a relationship. He wanted what they had. Not exactly, obviously, but he wanted that joy and fun and trust and love…

Before he knew it, his sparkler had fizzled out. He dipped it in the ocean to ensure that any ember left in it would be destroyed. He then walked over to Masahiro, whose own was fizzling out. He smiled at Masahiro, who grinned back. His stomach did a strange flip-flop at that, and he shook it off. Weird.

“We got one more, a little fountain one,” Masahiro said, walking back up to the towel after dipping his sparkler in water as well. 

Yuuhei and Takeru followed after, walking back up to the blanket. Masahiro placed the fountain in the sand. He stepped back next to Ichirou after lighting it. Quickly, a red, sparkling glow overcame the men, and they all watched as the fire popped out of the small tube. It wasn’t anything crazy, like a fireworks festival, but it was cute and fun.

Ichirou glanced up at Masahiro, and for the first time, he allowed himself to wonder, what if. What if he didn’t have to date to marry? What if he just happened to meet Masahiro on the street? What if Ichirou was okay with dating to marry? What if Ichirou dated Masahrio? 

His chest tightened in a weird way, and suddenly he looked away, back to the fireworks, his whole face aflame. No, he couldn’t allow himself to think like that. If he fell for Masahiro, that would destroy the whole idea of fake dating. He would be losing out on fun in the future. If he really fell for Masahiro, then Ichirou… what would he become? A trophy wife? In just a few short years? No, he had so much to live for beyond being a prized omega. He would not fall in love with Masahiro.

The men cleaned up their blanket, their parasol, their trash, and the bento boxes. Ichirou was pleased to find that he had something to hold onto this time. True, it was just the bento boxes, but it was better than nothing. They walked through the quiet streets back to where they parked. After dumping everything in the back of the car, they all got into their respective seats. Although they had been loud and excited just a moment before, they were quiet now, exhausted from spending all day in the sun and all the playing they had done.

Masahiro began driving them home, and Yuuhei asked to be dropped off with Takeru. Masahiro agreed to do so with only the slightest roll of the eye. Takeru and Yuuhei held hands in the back, and, within ten minutes of the four men leaving, Yuuhei’s head was on Takeru’s shoulder, and both of them were asleep. Ichirou couldn’t help but smile as he glanced back at them; it was nice to see them both so happy to be together.

Ichirou turned back towards the road, letting out a soft sigh. He wanted a boyfriend. It was seriously unfair that Yuuhei had gotten into a nice relationship and he wasn’t able to without the pressure of marriage. He wanted to hold hands with a hot guy and fall asleep on his shoulder…

Masahiro glanced over to Ichirou. “You okay? That was a big sigh.”

“Oh, um… sorry, I was just thinking about something lame,” Ichirou said, playing with his fingers.

“What is it, if you don’t mind me asking?” Masahiro asked

“Oh it’s just… it’s dumb. I was thinking about how nice it would be to date like that. To not have to worry about anything, and just… just have fun with someone,” Ichirou said quietly. “I have this worry, to be honest, that my parents are going to start asking when we’re going to get married after you meet them. I love them, I do, but there’s so much pressure to be this perfect little omega… it’s exhausting. I just want to hold hands with someone I like.”

Masahiro nodded as he listened, before quietly speaking. “I totally understand what you’re saying. You just want to be a regular young adult.”

Ichirou nodded, looking tired. “I just… I’m only twenty-two. I wanna wait until I’m at least twenty-five to get married.”

“A reasonable thing to want. Twenty-two is really young,” Masahiro agreed.

Ichirou slowly nodded, and let out a quiet sigh. “But… even so… I want a boyfriend.”

Masahiro glanced at him. “Yeah?”

Ichirou closed his eyes and leaned back against the car seat. “Yeah. I want one. And it sucks. I want a hot, muscular boyfriend who I can joke around with, and who will understand me. But I don’t want to get married. And those things are so tied up together for me. It’s not fair in the least.”

Masahiro’s grip on the steering wheel tightened for just a moment. “It really isn’t fair. You deserve happiness, just like anyone else. I wish there was more I could do for you.”

Ichirou smiled at that and looked at his friend. “Masahiro-san, you’re already doing so much for me. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“But… you deserve someone who will be good to you. I want you to have a boyfriend who will love and cherish you more than anything in the world.”

Ichirou closed his eyes once more. “I will, someday. Thank you for caring, Masahiro-san.”

“Of course,” Masahiro said quietly in response as he looked at the long, dark road stretched out before them. The rest of the drive was silent as the two men who were still awake wondered if Ichirou would ever get the romance that he so desired.