featuring: rindou haitani x reader notes: nothing but pure fluff, friends to lovers, and rindou learning how to decipher his own emotions
Summary: rindou discovering what love is and how the object of his affection happens to be you
Rindou couldn't explain how it all started or what it was about you made his feelings evolve into something more.
When he first met you, all he could say was that he felt indifferent and you seemed like every other person he ever met. You weren't a fighter apart from any gang, just a regular person who lived a life so different from his own. You didn't like violence nor could he say you were comfortable with seeing people getting hurt. It made sense to him why it was the way it was since you were essentially opposites with no chance of getting along.
It was like fate was mocking him by letting you two meet everywhere he went. Not only did he attend the same school as you - you were his classmate by complete chance, thus increasing the likelihood of him seeing you. All he could do was ignore you whenever you attempted to talk to him every morning before classes would start. Why? He didnât know, but he also didnât know why you were so nice to him either despite him ignoring you. He assumed at some point you would figure it out; maybe you did but chose to ignore it.
However, over time, he just couldnât do it. You were nice and he could see it. He'd be an idiot to not see you were friendly because you genuinely wanted to be friends, and not someone approaching him with a hidden agenda. He already had enough of the unspoken competition between him and his brother. As much as he loved Ran, he grew tired of living in his shadow and just wanted to be his own person.Â
âWhy do you even bother with me? You know I deliberately ignored you right?â He remembered asking you one day when you both were eating ice cream together.
You looked over at him in surprise âHuh? What do you mean?â
âLike trying to befriend me and whatnot. Iâve never seen anyone as insistent as youâ He responded to you nonchalantly, though he would see you huffing in the corner of his eye. âWell excuse me for bothering you with my friendshipâ
Rindou snorted at the sound of you complaining âIâm not complaining now that I know you. Itâs justâŚâ he paused before looking down âIâm used to people approaching me because they need my strength, or theyâre just using me as a means to get to Ran and I didnât know where you were in all of that.â
He was being insecure. He knew he was in the way he was second-guessing his relationship with you. He also knew that saying it would sound as if he was accusing you; but at the same time, he wanted to protect the Rindou in the future; the Rindou who would end up getting hurt the most.
After a moment of silence, he looked over at you to see you in deep thought of yourself. He took that silence as admittance and it did ache him until you opened your mouth. âYou know RindouâŚI get where youâre coming from, I do. If I were in your place, I probably would be feeling the same way too.â You said with a shrug before you smiled at him, âCanât speak for others; but for me and Iâll be real now; if I wanted to befriend Ran, I just wouldâve done that already.â You continued, greatly emphasizing the âifâ. âI donât see why Iâd have to get through you to be his friend. Seems like a very roundabout way of doing things if you ask me. I wanted to get to know you because you seemed like a nice guyâ
Rindou frowned and scrunched his eyebrows. âYou are aware Iâm in a gang, right? Unless your standards are that lowâ to which you nudged his shoulder with a chuckle. âOh shut it. You know what I mean. As much as I donât like the whole gang scene, I do like talking to you. I donât like your taste in music either but I do like the way you get so passionate over it.â
Rindou scoffed as he nudged you right back âAnd now youâre bashing my taste in music? Has anyone ever told you that you suck at comforting someone?â You rolled your eyes as you laughed at him. âI never claimed to be good at itâ
âClearlyâ
âOi!â You huffed at him as you ate the remainder of your ice cream. âThe point is, even though we donât have too many things in common, I still consider you a good friend. You donât mince words. When youâre happy about something, you genuinely are, and I appreciate that about you.â You said softly, eyes averting away from him. âI feel comfortable around you enough that I can just be myself. Itâs usually so hard to have that with people, but it feels so easy around you because you donât judge.â
âI mean I judge your taste in musicâ
âRindou, shut the fuck up. Iâm trying to have a moment with you hereâ
âYou certainly became more foul after meeting meâ Rindou chuckled, his heart feeling lighter. He never knew how you did it but you always had a way of getting him to smile. When he looked over at you to throw in another jab, he could see the back of your neck and ears red. Were you feeling embarrassed? He never noticed it before but at that moment, you felt cute to him, not that he would ever admit it.
Over the months of getting to know you, he started noticing things about you: your taste in fashion; food you didnât like and tried to discard secretly, hoping no one would notice; your tells when you were put in situations you werenât comfortable it. He didnât know how he noticed it and made those connections in his head, but he did. He once ordered something for you before you could even tell him you wanted it. It was weird, and he didnât know what it was but he brushed it off as knowing you well enough.
Then there were days when he would feel bitter. He didnât know if it was directed at you, but he noticed the trend that it always seemed to occur when you happened to be around other people. It was weird to him. Since when did he start feeling bitter about you having other friends? He had friends of his own who had friends of their own but he couldnât really recall having similar feelings around them, so why was that the case with you?
One day he accidentally stumbled across someone confessing their feelings towards you, and seeing you getting flustered over it. From what normally shouldâve been a situation where he would use it as leverage to tease you, he could only feel bitterness grow as he stormed off. Rindou chose to pretend like it never happened as he never once brought it up to you, so he never knew whether or not you were already dating that person.
It was until one day when you had awkwardly brought it up to him during lunch, as you laughed about it, a blush showing clearly across your face.âSo are you dating that person now or what?â Rindou asked with an attempt to sound indifferent, trying to mask that bitterness festering again in him. âOh no, I rejected them. While I did feel guilty, I just donât see myself dating someone I donât like.â Rindouâs ears perked up at your words as his heart once again felt lighter. âOh really? Thatâs a shameâ he responded, this time unable to hide a grin from his face.Â
He didnât know what those feelings were anymore. Was it only because he considers you as a friend or was it something else entirely? He remembered asking Ran one night, who only laughed at him and told him heâd figure it out eventually. Certainly no help there in giving him answers.
Heading into the cooler months, as the seasons changed from summer to fall, he still hadnât figured anything out to his dismay. Damn Ran and his insistence to not tell him anything, yet did everything to make fun of him.
Rindou then heard a ding from his phone, snapping him out of his thoughts. He received a message from you asking him if heâd like to see the trees with you. He was amused at your timing, it was like you knew he was thinking about you. He responded with a âyesâ without hesitation.
The both of you had agreed to meet up at the park, and Rindou had arrived there momentarily so that he wouldnât keep you waiting any longer. Upon reaching you, he was surprised to see you already there with coffee in hand for both of you. âYou got here fast, and with coffee too?â He asked with a chuckle, taking the coffee from you. âI was already at the park when I messaged you, so when you said yes I figured I might as well get some coffee too as thanks.â Rindou hummed in response as he sipped his coffee. It was exactly how he preferred it.
As you both took a stroll around the park, he couldnât help but chuckle at seeing how excited you were over the leaves changing color. âDoes seeing trees make you that happy?â He asked with a tease. You shook your head with a sigh âGeez, itâs not just about the trees. Itâs about appreciating the way it looks. It can be pretty to look at if you give it a chance.â
Rindou turned his head in the direction of the trees, staring at the leaves. Some of them were still green, but you could see them slowly transitioning into a vibrant orange. âUh huhâŚI guess,â he said unimpressed by it. He wasnât someone who cared for nature all that much, but he did it because you liked it. As he turned his head to speak to you, he couldnât help but pause at seeing how enamored you almost seemed at the sight of the leaves.Â
Just then, he saw a singular leaf fall from the tree and land directly on your head. âLooks like youâre becoming one with nature already hmm?â He said with a laugh, as he plucked the leaf from your hair, handing it to you instead. His eyes widened as he saw your eyes light up, giving him a wide smile in return. He doesnât recall seeing you make that face, but it got his heart racing to the point he felt like time had stopped.
Oh shit
Suddenly everything made sense to him at that very moment. What those feelings were. It was love, wasnât it?
Rindou couldnât help but smile now that he found his answer. Not only does he want to see you smile more, he wants to see you smile at him specifically.
âI do see the beauty in it nowâŚâ he said with a mumble, his ears turning red at him vocalizing it for the first time.
âHey, Rin!â You called out to him, not hearing what he said earlier as you were distracted by the leaf. âI guess you could say it really is Fall huh?â you said with a grin on your lips.
Rindou let out a sigh hearing your attempt at making a pun, but that being said he still couldnât help but smile at you.
You really canât choose who you fall in love with huh?













