Chapter Text
The Vongola estate was quiet at night. Too quiet, Tsuna thought as he signed the last of the day’s reports. Silence weighed heavily here when the day was done, when the duties of Vongola Decimo left him alone with his thoughts.
He rubbed at his temples. The reports were endless: shipments, messages from allied Families, warnings from Reborn that required his personal attention. Ten years as Vongola Decimo, and he still felt the boy he had once been, that same awkward Tsuna who never wanted this life.
And yet, he carried it. The Family needed him, and he had become capable enough to be what they needed.
Still…
“Tsuna!”
The office door banged open, and in breezed Yamamoto Takeshi, smiling as if the world outside wasn’t weighed down by mafia politics and bloodshed.
Tsuna lifted his head just as Yamamoto leaned against the doorframe. Even after all these years, he carried himself like the baseball star he could have been, shoulders broad, posture casual, smile dazzling. But Tsuna knew better: Yamamoto’s easygoing exterior hid the sharp instincts of a swordsman who had killed, protected, and sacrificed more than most men could stomach.
And yet, when Yamamoto looked at him with bright-eyed, cheerful, Tsuna felt like a teenager again.
“You’re still working? You should take a break” Yamamoto said, strolling in like he owned the place.
Tsuna sighed softly. “There’s always more paperwork.”
“Paperwork can wait. You can’t.” Yamamoto crossed the room, leaned down over Tsuna’s desk, his face only inches away, his breath warm against Tsuna’s cheek. He grinned. “Come on, let’s get some fresh air.”
Tsuna’s heart skipped, then stumbled into an unsteady rhythm. Yamamoto had no idea, of course he never did. This was just who he was: friendly, open, affectionate in ways that made Tsuna’s pulse race and his thoughts scatter.
“I… I can’t. Not right now” Tsuna managed, fumbling to straighten the papers.
Yamamoto chuckled, straightening but still close enough that Tsuna had to tilt his head back to look at him. “You always say that. But I’m going to drag you out whether you like it or not.”
Tsuna’s lips twitched into a reluctant smile. It was always like this: Yamamoto pushing against the edges of his walls, coaxing out pieces of the boy Tsuna used to be.
And damn it all, Tsuna wanted, wanted more than he could ever admit.
The night air outside was crisp when Yamamoto finally did manage to coax Tsuna out onto the balcony. From this height, the estate looked like something out of a dream.
Yamamoto leaned against the railing, relaxed, gazing out at the stars. “It’s quiet tonight.”
“It’s supposed to be” Tsuna murmured, standing beside him. His hands gripped the railing tightly.
“Good quiet” Yamamoto said. He tilted his head, that same boyish grin lighting his face. “Means you’ve been doing your job right.”
Tsuna huffed out a laugh. “That’s… one way to look at it.”
“Hey.” Yamamoto’s shoulder brushed against his. “Don’t sell yourself short. You’ve carried the Vongola for ten years, Tsuna. That’s not something just anyone could do.”
Tsuna glanced at him, startled. Yamamoto was still smiling, but there was a certain warmth in his eyes. Tsuna swallowed hard, heart aching.
He wanted so badly to believe those words. He wanted to lean into Yamamoto, to tell him everything he felt, to confess that he only managed to carry this weight because Yamamoto was always beside him.
Instead, he smiled faintly and looked away. “Thanks.”
For a moment, silence stretched between them, comfortable yet filled with everything Tsuna couldn’t say.
Then Yamamoto’s laugh broke it. “Anyway, if you collapse under paperwork, Reborn’s going to kill me for not dragging you out sooner.”
Tsuna chuckled, unable to stop himself.
And just like that, the ache in his chest grew sharper.
Later, when Yamamoto finally left for the night, Tsuna sat back at his desk, staring blankly at it. His eyes strayed to the edge of the desk where Yamamoto had leaned so close earlier, when his warmth had brushed against Tsuna’s skin.
It was ridiculous. He was twenty-seven, the head of the most powerful mafia Family in the world. And yet, his heart behaved like that of a boy with a crush, thundering every time Yamamoto smiled at him.
But it wasn’t just a crush. Not anymore.
Ten years had passed, and through it all Yamamoto had been his constant, his rain, steady and gentle, soothing every storm. Tsuna loved him. Irrevocably. Entirely. Desperately.
And Yamamoto…
Yamamoto treated him like he was precious, but also like he was just Tsuna. A friend. A boss. Someone to protect. Someone to laugh with. Someone to stand beside.
Never more.
Tsuna closed his eyes, pressing his hands to his face.
“If only you knew. If only you’d stop smiling at me like that, if only you’d stop being so damn close …because I can’t stop wanting you.”