Chapter Text
It was Tachibana's 20th birthday, so the whole gang had taken advantage of the occasion. Rin himself had come back from Australia for some time, dragging coach Mikhail with him – why waste training time when your coach can take the chance to visit his favourite nephew? - and everyone had been invited. Hidaka, Shimogami, senpai and kouhai. Despite no longer being a competitive swimmer, Makoto's friendliness and his hard work to become a professional coach had endeared him to them all.
They had ended up crowding Nanase's apartment for dinner before heading out to a club. They had wanted to have dinner out as well, but after what had been dubbed the A.P.I. , or the “Alcoholic Penguin Incident” they just couldn't. The details, now shrouded in secrecy, had at the time reached even their universities, where they had all been officially reprimanded. Nowadays none of them could even look at sake without getting cold shivers. Luckily the freestyle fanatic hosting them was a good enough cook as to not make them regret it further. They had to thank Matsuoka though, as without his assistance in the kitchen their host would have ended up cooking only mackerel, and enough for an army.
The club they went to was a recent addition to the Tokyo night life, and it had been suggested by the Shimogami students, as their former captain, Hoshikawa, was currently bartending there; he had already been warned to not get alcohol even in the simple vicinity of Nagisa, and Rei and Gou were keeping an eye out for any attempt at drinking by the blonde. Despite being there as a group, they quickly separated, with some going to the dance floor, some taking a table, and some sitting at the bar. Hiyori went to the counter himself, talking to his senpai and paying for a whole tray of drinks that looked like they packed quite the punch. It should have been the first sign of the upcoming apocalypse, since there was no way those drinks were all for him, but nobody noticed. As a cry about a hour later demonstrated, that may have been a big mistake.
“HARUUUUUUU!” cried Makoto.
Haru, however, barely moved his eyes from his drink. It wasn't the first time his best friend had acted like that, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. Only after he had finally given his full attention to the aspiring coach did he notice that the expected anxious look in those emerald eyes was paired off with a full-blown blush.
“What happened?” sighed the raven-haired swimmer, accepting his fate.
Makoto was working himself to a frenzy. “It’s Kisumi! He found me, and – and, he was really drunk! And he told me he had another gift for me, and.... he kissed me! Oh my God! And he said that he really likes me!”
“My condolences”, deadpanned Haru.
“This is serious Haru!” complained the brunette.
“You’re right, you’re right… My heartfelt condolences? Is that better?” was the answer.
Makoto's savior suddenly draped himself all over Haruka. Matsuoka Rin, temporarily back from Australia, had a drink in one hand, while the other arm was hugging his boyfriend.
“Eh eh Haru, what did we say about mistreating Makoto? Stop it, look at him! He looks worse than Bambi finding his dead mother! Come on Makoto, tell me everything, don't know why you would confide in my boyfriend, you know he's emotionally stunted.”
And Makoto did tell Rin everything that had happened. The redhead, however, did not see the cause for such an anxiety attack, and said so to his old friend. After all, it wasn't exactly a secret among the former Iwatobi boys that the backstroke swimmer had been in love with the exhuberant Kisumi since they first met. The brunette, however, explained about his panicking and blank response to the confession; Rin now understood, but told Makoto to just give it a bit of time , to let his anxiety and the pinkette's hungover pass, before meeting Kisumi privately and finally confessing properly. The birthday boy took a deep breath and nodded.
Later on, after the group had parted ways, three young men stumbled their way home.
“This was a horrible idea”, grumbled Asahi, with Kisumi's left arm draped over his shoulder.
“Come on, you know it had to be done! How long has he been pining over Tachibana?” answered his boyfriend from the drunken boy's other side.
“Too much, ok, but making him confess to Makoto TODAY, of all days, AND while drunk?! Hiyori, that's too … that's … I don't even have the words!”
“I saw you laughing, you know you enjoyed it all!”
“I DID NOT!”
“You definitely did, don't even try to deny it!”
“Fine, it was funny, but THIS RIGHT NOW is not! Why are WE bringing him to our place?”
“Because we live the closest. What did you want to do, let him sleep it off at Nanase's? Or at Tachibana's? Well, that would have been funny now that I think about it....”
“You're evil Hiyori, pure evil”
“You still love me, so...”
The couple continued bantering all the way home, ready to get some rest and see what was going to happen in their friends' lives.