Chapter Text
Aoba went over everything in his head a million times but still couldn't seem to figure out why the blonde would leave. Two months had passed but the pain was still a little devastating. He went in search of Noiz's team and followed rumors all around Midorijima, but he kept coming up empty handed. He had no choice but to return to work and continue on with his life. He needed the distraction. Noiz had helped him to cope with losing Ren, Sei and the "other him", but now he was gone too. He felt hollow having lost so much in such a small amount of time. The people he had left in his life were very supportive and understanding, but for right now, the only thing that could help him to feel better, was time.
Aoba sighed sadly as he left Heibon and started a slow walk towards home. "Aoba-san!" He turned around to find Clear running after him.
"Hello Clear." He responded mechanically. He couldn't help but smile a little bit. Clear's constant upbeat attitude could be a little irritating at times, but Aoba had to admit that the albino's smile was contagious.
Clear bounced up to him. "May I walk you home Aoba-san?" He asked cheerfully, tipping his head to the side. Aoba gave him a nod and continued on walking with Clear happily following along beside him. He was telling Aoba about some shiny bottles he had found earlier and added to his collection, but Aoba was too deep in his own thoughts to really listen to him.
Clear looked down at his feet with a sad smile. "Ah, Aoba-san. Would you like to come over? I can show you all the new stuff I've picked up." He smiled one of his brilliant smiles at Aoba, halting his feet. Aoba had thought before that Clear was quite beautiful, but when he smiled like that it was so stunning he would sometimes be tempted to reach out and touch his face.
He quickly shook the thought from his head and returned Clear's smile. "Sure Clear. I would like that. Is tomorrow okay?"
Clear nodded enthusiastically. "Of course Aoba-san. I will come get you from home if that is alright?"
Aoba agreed and waved him good bye and for the rest of the walk home, he found himself thinking about the next day. Hanging out with Clear might be just what he needed. His cheerful attitude might be infectious enough to pull him out of his slump.
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Aoba was just finishing getting ready for Clear when he heard a knock at his veranda door. He let out a sigh and opened the door to let Clear in. "Good morning Aoba-san. Pardon the intrusion." Clear chirped as he stepped into Aoba's room.
Aoba rolled his eyes at him. "Clear, I thought I told you to use the front door." He was going to continue to scold him but it was a waste of breath. Clear would just whine like he always did when Aoba scolded him. "Just let me tell granny we're leaving." Aoba sighed as he left the room.
Clear took the opportunity to glance around Aoba's room. His eyes settled on the sleeping allmate body of Ren and he frowned. Aoba had it curled up on Ren's favorite pillow. It made him realize how badly Aoba needed to get out of his room. They had hung out a few times since the collapse of Oval Tower, but not since the night Aoba discovered Noiz had left.
The door to the room opened and Clear quickly pried his eyes away from the allmate before Aoba could notice. "Alright. I'm ready to go Clear." Aoba said flatly. Clear simply nodded in response to Aoba's emotionless attitude.
They walked out onto the veranda and Clear knelt down. "Hop on Aoba-san." Aoba climbed onto Clear's back and wrapped is arms around his neck as Clear stood. They had done this a couple of times now, so Aoba wasn't as nervous about it, but it still made his stomach lurch.
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Clear landed expertly in front of his home that he had shared with his grandpa and gently let Aoba slide off his back. Aoba took a few seconds to let his stomach catch up with him before he followed Clear inside.
Aoba stopped just inside the door and looked around. "Wow this place looks good." He had helped Clear clean the house a little bit. It seemed he had continued on with the cleaning on his own. They headed up to Clear's room which, while clean, was still cluttered with bottles and marbles and other shiny treasures that Clear was prone to collect.
Aoba noticed that several shelves had been hung up on the wall and he looked them over curiously. "You hung shelves?"
Clear followed his gaze to the wall. "Yes, so I have somewhere to display my bottles." He smiled brightly making Aoba's breath hitch. "Aoba-san, would you like to help me with that?"
Aoba stared at him quietly for a second, admiring his smile that felt like it was just for him, before forcing his eyes away. His chest tightened and he suddenly felt very lonely. He thought spending time with Clear would make him forget about Noiz for a little bit, but for some reason Clear was reminding him of Noiz. He couldn't figure out why, the two were nothing alike.
It took a moment for Aoba to remember that Clear was still awaiting an answer. He cleared his throat and looked back up at Clear, giving him a small nod. "I would like that Clear."
They spent a few hours sorting glass bottles by color and size and placing them neatly on the shelves. Not all of them fit but the room already seemed so much bigger with some of the clutter organized.
They plopped down on the bed and admired their work for a few minutes. Neither of them said anything and Aoba noted that this didn't make him uncomfortable at all. There were no awkward silences with Clear. He had a very pleasant, calming presence despite all of his energy.
The silence was broken by the sound of Aoba's stomach growling. Clear laughed quietly into his hand as Aoba blushed, embarrassed. Aoba sat up straight and let out a small cough. "Would you like to go somewhere to eat? My treat."
Clear abruptly stopped laughing and looked over at him nervously. "I couldn't Aoba-san. I should be the one offering since Aoba-san was nice enough to help me." He waved his hands frantically as Aoba stood from the bed.
He couldn't help but think that Clear was really cute when he freaked out like that. He shook the thought from his mind and gave Clear a small, sincere smile. "Please, Clear, it's the least I could do for getting me out of the house today." Clear whined at Aoba's insistence, but eventually relented.
After eating, they walked around looking at some of the shops. Clear never had the chance to really look around Midorijima despite having spent his whole life there, so he was in awe at all the window displays and such. Aoba got them both hot chocolate and they sat in a park and drank it.
Noiz was still on Aoba's mind, but it didn't seem to hurt as much to think about him. He couldn't help but wonder if that had something to do with Clear. He peaked over at him out of the corner of his eyes to find him happily sipping his hot chocolate and swinging his feet. Clear noticed him looking and smiled warmly at him. Aoba could have sworn he felt his heart start up again.
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Clear hopped down from the neighboring roof to Aoba's veranda and let him off his back. "Thank you for everything today, Clear. I really needed it."
Clear shook his head. "I should be thanking you Aoba-san." It seemed like he was going to say something else but instead he fell silent. He was watching Aoba intently.
A soft blush creeped across Aoba's cheeks at Clear's scrutinizing stare. He looked away to hide it but he could still feel Clear staring at him. It was making him anxious. "What is it?"
Clear blinked. "I had a lot of fun today......thank you Aoba-san." Clear's voice was soft as he spoke. He leaned forward slowly, making Aoba freeze. His eyes widened as he felt Clear's soft lips gently press against his own.
When Clear pulled away, Aoba's gaze dropped to his feet. "I'm sorry Aoba-san." Clear took a step back looking guilty. "That was cruel of me. I sho-" His sentence was cut short when Aoba pushed into him, pinning him to the railing. "A-Aoba-san?"
Aoba didn't know what he was doing exactly. Noiz crossed his mind for a split second as he kissed Clear. He poured all of his loneliness and sadness from the past two months into his kiss, hoping Clear wouldn't push him away. He never did. He accepted Aoba's feelings, even knowing they probably had nothing to do with him.
Aoba pulled away from the kiss and pressed his face into Clear's chest. His eyes stung as tears streamed down his face. Clear silently wrapped his arms around him and let him cry.