Chapter 50

"I need to take a shower," Tsuna says, but doesn't push his arms away from where they surround his form.

"And I need some of your expresso," he murmurs in the crock of his neck.

Tsuna shuffles awkwardly, a faint pink on his cheeks. "I did bring the stuff I need to make you a cup."

"You did?" Renato asks, lifting up his head to get a good look at him. When he nods, his answering smile is blinding. And real. It's so distracting he doesn't even react when he gives him a brief kiss on his lips, a peck that lasts. It's sweet in a way he didn't think Renato could be. Unlike his pushing nature, he's soft when he tries to coax his lips to part and follow his lead.

And god, but does he follow. He knows it hasn't been long since he was kissed, but this is relaxing without the possessive edge and awe he feels when kissing.

The lizard-primitive part of his brain he likes to call his self-preservation instincts screams, 'It's Reborn! I'm kissing Reborn!' It makes his head dizzy but so does the way Renato deepens the kiss, tongue coming in and licking the roof of his mouth. Calloused fingers tilt his head until it's at the perfect angle, pulling him close.

Renato unsurprisingly tastes like coffee, it's bitter like he likes it and Tsuna is drowning in it. His breath hitches when his palm cups the back of his head and he can soon smell his cologne this up close, barely strong enough to be noticeable. He likes it.

He hears a moan as Renato's other hand grabs his hip, their bodies now pressed together.

He yelps back when he realizes he's the one who moaned. Reborn lets him go but does it slowly, biting his lower lip at last. Tsuna takes a deep breath, feeling himself panting with one hand around the back of Renato's neck and the other pulling at his tie.

He steps away while trying to fix the other man's clothes, noticing how wrinkled they are. "Um."

"It was a nice thank you gift, wasn't it?"

Tsuna can't even look at him in the eye. He just kissed Reb—wait, no. Renato is not Reborn, he repeats to himself. So with a nod and a mental pat, Tsuna looks up at his friend and opens his mouth to clarify some things about the sudden turn of their relationship.

Sadly, Renato beats him to it.

"I didn't do it to Harmonize with you. I just wanted to kiss you. That's the only reason."

Oh.

His intention buzzes.

"You're lying."

The hitman shrugs lazily. "Well, I admit that I want you to stop looking to someone else when you're looking at me."

"What?"

"You do the same with Fong. Or did, at least. You just started doing the same with me before my trip. I don't like it."

Tsuna doesn't know what to say. It's obvious now that Renato would notice, he always knows. Fong is different as he saw Hibari-san in him before he learned to separate them (that their personalities are poles apart helped), but it's hard sometimes to look at Renato and not see Reborn, his tutor, and friend. He constantly wonders where one facet starts and where one finishes. And although Reborn had once been Renato, he suppressed his memories of his past self so they both are different people, he has to remind himself of that. It's not fair to Renato to try to find his tutor in him.

He looks at Renato, at his friend. "You're right. I'm sorry. If you catch me doing it again, you've my permission to knock some sense into me." He thinks his words over and adds hastily, "Be gentle though."

The smile he receives is predatory as he purrs, "I think I just showed you gentle."

He looks down, forcing himself not to blush at the reminder. Though… "The kiss kind of helped me separate you two," he mumbles.

"Ho? Does that mean that this person I remind you of is nothing more than a friend? Not a boyfriend?"

Tsuna goes white at even thinking of having a relationship with his future Reborn. It's not the baby form that disturbs him (not so much, at least) but the man himself. He can even think of them both dating without shuddering. There'll probably be chaos waiting for them at every turn.

"That's quite the expression you're wearing. And I remind you of this guy?"

He looks up to find an honest bemused expression on Renato's face. "He likes chaos."

Renato blinks. "Okay, I can see it now then. He must be super cool for you to end up this traumatized."

The heart-wrenching despair must be shown on his face because Renato laughs openly and ruffles his hair. "If you need help in distinguishing both of us then you just need to ask for help."

Before he can say a simple 'huh?', he's being pulled into another kiss, a short but still breathtaking one. It ends with Renato sliding his fingers across a flushed cheek, murmuring 'mine' right next to his ear as he leaves a small peck on his jaw.

Tsuna touches his lips when he steps back, feeling them tingly and wet in a nice way. Not that he would ever admit it.

Going on by Renato's face, he already knows.

Damnit.