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It had been an hour or so since the offcollab had ended. Enna and Kyo were sat on the couch together, a bowl of chips between them, the TV playing to itself as they both ignored it, each one quietly scrolling through their phones. It was a comfortable silence... Until Enna suddenly groaned, locking her phone and unceremoniously dropping it over the side of the couch.
"Enna?" Kyo queried, placing his own down.
She sighed irritably, her mouth pulling into a thin, unimpressed line. "Why did you do that?"
"Do what?" he asked, only to be met with a scowl. Enna mimed the small, affectionate hand hold Kyo had given her during the stream. "Oh. I don't know man, I guess I was just showing chat."
"Showing chat what? That you're stood in a room with me holding my fucking hand and they'll never be? That they have an excuse to go to dox sites and flame me now?"
"Jesus, Enna! Listen, bestie, anyone sane wouldn't think a hand comparison is--"
"They already are, and they're not sane!" Kyo was ready to rail back against Enna's interruption, ready to accuse her of overreacting, but her face betrayed something more complex... Something hurt. She continued. "Now I have to sit and look all day at hate posts accusing me of secretly being in a relationship with a guy who doesn't even like me back, all over a fucking hand squeeze."
The quietness was uncomfortable now, the ad on the TV murmuring away to itself not helping to fill the air at all. Kyo paused, taking it in; Enna turned away from him again, arms crossed tightly across her chest, almost defensively. Her eyes were wet, her cheeks mottled red from both anger and shame.
"Like you back?" He finally said.
She didn't turn to face him, but she untensed defeatedly. "I shouldn't have said that. Now everything's going to be weird."
"Enna," Kyo said, unable to stifle a soft laugh.
She turned to face him again, redder, pouting. "Why are you laughing, bitch? If you think my suffering is funny-"
"Enna, I've liked you the whole damn time," he continued, breaking into a wheezy laughter, "I thought you knew!"
"How would I know?!" She started. Her eyes widened as she processed what he'd actually said. "Wait, you do?! Fuck! Why didn't you say anything?"
"Who takes a whole damn plane journey to learn how to cook rice from somebody? I thought you knew and were being nice about it!"
"Oh, shit," Enna mumbled, and she too broke into laughter. "Oh, this is so fucking dumb, I swear to god..."
Their eyes met, both now grinning, red cheeked.
"So," she mused, playing with her hair nervously, "do I kiss you, or you kiss me, or do we just sit here for a bit longer?"
"Um, I'll kiss you, I guess."
Kyo shifted forwards; Enna closed her eyes preemptively, hands lowered to her lap and clutching at her skirt. He tilted her chin up, gathering the courage for a moment... And their lips met. Gentle, chaste and quick, but a kiss all the same. As soon as he began to pull away she clumsily stole one more.
"There. Now we're even."
"...I can't believe our first kiss was over chips, man."
With laughter, they continued as normal... But now with a certain warmth in their chests.