LILAC ver. White | Joy of Youth

Yuri throws his backpack over his shoulder when his morning lecture ends. As he steps out into the open hallway, he sees Tsubaki’s back among the small crowd walking in the entrance hall. He raises his hand up, mouth opened as he’s about to call out to him, but he gets cut short when he sees Ren running up to Tsubaki's side. They exchange bright smiles while greeting each other, and Tsubaki playfully nudges Ren’s head, hooking arms as they walk out of the department together. Yuri still has his hand in the air, body, and expression frozen.

“…What just happened?”

Yuri is later seen eating his lunch as the sound of giggling and chatter fills the table. He glances up to see the same two living in their own world, paying the rest of the people at the table no mind—and by the rest, he means just him.

“I didn’t know those two were so close....”

During soccer practice, Yuri stands on the field during a brief intermission as he rolls the ball under his foot.

“I don’t particularly mind, but—” A cold sweat runs down his neck as Tsubaki glares at him from behind, and he can feel the holes being drilled into the back of his head. But when Ren suddenly appears for a visit and calls out to Tsubaki, his death glare immediately switches to a bright smile as he excitedly waves to the boy. 

Sweat drops from Yuri’s face as he can only glimpse at his friend from the corner of his eye, fearing to make any direct eye contact, as he profusely begins to contemplate himself.

“Did I do something wrong…?” 

It’s nightfall when Yuri returns to the dormitory. He climbs up the stairs and lets out a yawn. “How does Ren manage to always study in the library by himself? That place just makes me want to go to sleep if I’m alone....”

He rubs the back of his neck at the sudden thought of him. “Speaking of which, I didn’t see him at the library … I thought he’d be there.”

Feeling embarrassed at his own thoughts, he clears his throat. He gets to the door of his dorm and puts the key into the lock, but when it opens for him to see inside, his breath catches in his throat while standing there in shock.

In his dorm, he’s welcomed by the sight of Holly, Tsubaki, and Ren standing in the center of the room. Yuri’s eyes trail down a bit, then rubbing his eyes to make sure what he’s seeing is real—and sure thing, Tsubaki and Ren are wearing skirts.

Yuri hesitantly makes his way into the room. He stops next to his roommate, Sho, casually lying in his bed and twiddling his thumbs on his phone.

“Hey, man. What the hell is going on here?” Yuri questions.

With eyes that never averted from the mobile game on his phone screen, Sho responds in monotone, “Tsubaki and Ren are playing dress up in Holly’s clothes.” 

“But … why?”

“Why not?”

Yuri just turns away from his unbothered roommate and directs his confused stare to the trio in the room. There, Tsubaki stands, hands on his waist, in a white pleated skirt. Yuri blinks hard and sees Ren being helped by Holly to fit into a tennis skirt. 

He then hears the click of her tongue. “Why is your waist so small, Ren? I’m seriously jealous,” she comments exasperatedly, and Ren’s face can’t help but match the bright pink skirt he’s wearing.

Sho snorts, “How does it feel to be beat by two guys in a skirt?” 

“How does it feel to be beat?” she responds, and it’s too late when Sho sees the pillow being gripped in her hand, raised and ready to swing.

The room fills with the sound of plush smackdowns and pleading apologies yelled out over and over. The other three in the room slowly turn their heads to one another, and then simultaneously, they all burst out into laughter.

✻ ✻ ✻

It’s the next day as the group sits together for lunch before their afternoon lectures start. Yuri’s head tilts with furrowed brows when he realizes the conversation Tsubaki and Ren are having is no longer in Japanese.

He turns to Tsubaki. “You can speak Chinese?”

“The Mandarin dialect, yes. Actually, I can speak five different languages,” he states, holding up his hand while counting on his fingers. “Japanese, Mandarin, English, Korean, and Spanish. I’m also currently learning French.” 

“Wow! Tsubaki, you’re so cool!” Ren beams, eyes dazzling in awe.

Tsubaki lets out a sheepish laugh. “It came in handy while I was moving around abroad, is all.”

“Seriously, dude. I still can’t believe you’re the stepson of Koji Sano, one of the most notable CEOs in the global industry,” Sho says, shoulders drooping low to dramatize his statement. “It’s like I’m in the presence of a celebrity. Am I worthy?”

“No.”

“That hurts, Holly.”

A muffled snort was heard at the table, and four stares redirected to Ren, who had both his hands clasped over his mouth, his face reddening in embarrassment. Another snort left his mouth, and the whole table lost it. 

Yuri’s wheezing as he wipes a tear from the corner of his eye with his thumb, and he looks over at Tsubaki, who’s clutching his stomach and still shaking with laughter. 

Yuri was stuck in the moment, his mouth gently closed into a soft smile as he gazed at the scene of his university friends growing closer to his childhood friend. Even though it seemed there were still new things to learn about Tsubaki after spending all those years apart, he felt a sense of pride fill within him.

Tsubaki was a reserved individual, although not particularly shy like Ren, but rather stayed cautious of expressing himself around others. He was the kind of person who would give up a good opportunity if it meant someone else could benefit from it, like a kid who let another have the last toy on the shelf—even if they badly wanted it themselves.

Yuri couldn’t remember Tsubaki being open or close to anyone else but him during the earlier years of their youth. And sometimes, remembering those four years of silence between them scared Yuri deep down. 

But right now, sheer joy filled the table, as the thought of being with his dearest friend again, seeing the genuine smile light up on his face, put Yuri at peaceful ease. In the hope of every new day to come, the scar Yuri hides will continue to heal slowly, and those hollow years he feared so much would vanish in the presence of all his closest friends.