you made me hate this city (a story about renga)

chapter six: i love you more than you will ever know

Langa couldn't keep his head on straight if it weren't for his spine keeping him intact. The thoughts whizzing around his head terrified him to say the least.

What if he didn't make it out alive?

This was all his fault. If he didn't choose to go to 'S', then Reki wouldn't be lying in a cold and dimly lit hospital room right now.

"Reki, I don't know if you can hear me or not right now, but I have to get this out of my brain and into the open," Langa pauses while taking a deep breath before starting the next sentence.

"I don't know what he said to you, but the majority of it probably wasn't true," pausing once again, watching intently as a tear fell down his cheek for the hundredth time in the last hour, "I never told you the reason why I had left my last school. Wolfe had been a really good friend of mine ever since I was a kid. I had admitted to something that I regret every living moment going forward from the moment I said it. He didn't like the fact I said what I said and he decided to take it out physically on me," he trails off, eyeing the state Reki's body was in.

"To be honest, I think you're in an even worse spot than I was at the time," he contested with a forced giggle and teasing smile.

"Reki一my love一of the idea of skateboarding started with you, and your designs you thoughtfully bring to life," he wishes that Reki's body would be brought back to life, seeing as there is barely any color left to his figure.

A small twitch left Reki's hand. Langa couldn't tell if it was a hallucination from crying all of his fluids out, leading him into severe hydration; or if it was true he's starting to wake.

Another small twitch confirmed that he was trying to rise from his deep comatose state. His eyes slowly fluttered open, closing them due to the bright lights shining in his beautiful amber globes.

Reki realised that Langa was crying at the side of his bed. He winces out of pain but offers the palm of his hand towards the frail blue haired boy, begging to be held.

Langa carefully takes his hand, summoning a laugh from when he first shook Reki's hand. He was afraid he was going to break his slender hands back then.

Reki tries to speak, but only a grunt comes out from the dryness of his throat.

Langa had a feeling that Reki heard everything he said to him while in his senseless slumber.

"Did一did you like Wolfe back in middle school, Langa?"

Langa lays his head down in Reki's lap, tears about to fall from his long eyelashes admitting yes. Langa's worried he won't accept him for who he is, after being told the people he chooses to love is wrong in society's eyes.

Reki notices the worried look on his face and gives a soft squeeze to his hand in reassurance, wincing from the pain. Langa looks deeply into his eyes and nods his head, lip quivering beneath his weighted gesture.

Langa knew he would accept him for who he is. He only wishes he knew his true feelings for him.

Reki knew. Reki knew this was the perfect time to face his feelings, hoping that Langa would feel the same.

"Langa一" Reki starts, finally getting more words to flow from his mouth.

"Yes, Reki?" He looks up from their hands intertwined with each other, being able to feel every millimeter of Reki's skin on his hand.

Reki decided this is the moment. That this is their moment.

'I'm in love with you, Langa,' kept dancing around in his mind. He gathered his thoughts up and had the newfound courage to speak it into existence.

Taking a deep breath, "I'm in love with you, Langa."

He said it. He said he was in love with him.

Langa ogles into Reki's hazel eyes, stunned by the information that was brought before him.

Without words, Langa lets go of Reki's hand, sending Reki into a spiraling predicament with only the thought that he just got shot down from the secret he spilled moments before.

Langa crawls into the foot of Reki's elevated hospital bed, carefully lying his warm body next to Reki's cold one, instantly warming him up.

Langa meticulously wraps his arms around Reki saying the words, "I never thought I would get to hear you say that," as he rested his head onto Reki's shoulder while intertwining their hands again. Langa was being extremely careful of his broken ribs, swearing to never hurt Reki.

Reki just stares into Langa's eyes looking for the twinge of sparkle he grew to love so much. Without looking for long, there it was—glaring him in the face—causing Reki to grin from ear to ear.

Unable to speak without pain, Reki just wraps his free arm around Langa's snug embrace, rubbing small circles into the boy's toned back.

Actions speak way louder than words, but in this case these actions had screamed it from the rooftops.

"You need to get better so you can finish my board and officially start teaching me how to skateboard," Langa speaks, easing up the non-existent tension with the light hearted joke.

Reki painfully chuckles to himself for which Langa called him pretty for.

"Your laugh brings me to life," Langa whispered to him causing the color to rise back into Reki's cheeks.

They sit in a comfortable silence until they both start to doze in each other's arms.

Reki falling asleep a lot quicker than the latter because his body needs time to heal, Langa sleepily remains awake staring at his lover's olive stained skin.

He places a small peck on the tip of his freckled nose, whispering as to not wake the sleeping beauty.

'I'm in love with you too, Reki' were the last words he spoke as he followed his best friend and beloved into a light slumber.