to throw caution to the wind (is not necessarily to die)

Hau laughs, loud and clear, when Gladion tells him. The surrounding pikipek fly away at the sound of it, spooked. Gladion wishes he could do the same.

"Wait, what?" Hau says, even though he very clearly heard him the first time, otherwise he wouldn't have laughed so hard. Gladion rolls his eyes so far into his head he wishes they'd stay there, just so he wouldn't have to look at the way Hau smiles like he knows any better. Which he probably does, considering how popular he is with all types of people, whether that be the elders or the local children or girls.

"I'm not repeating it," Gladion grumbles, wishing he hadn't gotten a haircut so he could still hide behind his bangs.

"That's so—so—I just, what?" Hau chuckles and rubs the back of his neck. "Moon's not much of a planner. So it's gotta be all you, dude."

Gladion tries, "We agreed on a date, a time, and a place—" It even sounds ridiculous to his own ears, so he just gives up as Hau bursts into another fit of giggles.

"It's not like you're getting married! This is like in those movies, where married couples have to plan when they wanna. Y'know." Hau wiggles his eyebrows. "Around their busy schedules. But you guys haven't even kissed yet!"

Gladion rubs his eyes, wishing the ground would swallow him up like a guzzlord, just so he wouldn't have to return to this world. "No. We haven't. Hence the planning."

"Why don't you just do it? Just, y'know, swoop in there. Like that." Hau stops to point as a mandibuzz flies down, close to the ground, before it shoots back up, a wriggling yungoos in its talons. Before long, the yungoos stops struggling, and it's gone in an instant as the bird gobbles it up. "Or not. But you get what I mean."

Gladion does. "I can't."

"Why not?"

He shrugs, thinking of Moon, of her delicacy, of how she smiles at him like they're the only two in the world. Of how that's enough for him, but at the same time it isn't. And he feels selfish, somehow. "It's Moon."

"What about her?"

"She's so…"

"Innocent?" Hau throws it out there in the open, for the mandibuzz to catch and peck at.

Gladion sighs like it's the only thing he knows how to do. "Yes."

"Well...I'm sure she wants to kiss you, too. It's only natural. I mean, you two have been together for like, two months now? And it's not like you're doing it." Gladion sputters, but Hau continues as if he doesn't hear. "You're just, you know, touching her lips. With your own."

A yungoos screeches at its brethren in front of them before attacking with its gnashing teeth. Gladion's never related to the invasive species more. "It's not that simple."

"Have you two even held hands?"

All Gladion feels is red, from the top of his head down to his toes. "Not really. Maybe once or twice," he mutters, clenching and unclenching his fists.

He's surprised when he looks up not to the sound of Hau's laughter, but to his smile, both knowing and sympathetic all at once.

"Well, you better get on that, my friend. Or it's never gonna happen."

They're sitting on the edge of Hau'oli Marina, and she's so close he can feel her warmth and practically taste the malasada she's nibbling on. It makes him feel nauseous, so he looks out toward the horizon and the endless blue of the ocean.

Her hair's in a ponytail today, the dark strands taut against her head before spilling out of the elastic in a smooth line, creasing at her back. It's much longer than it was years ago when they were still children, and he wants to reach out and feel it between his fingers. But he doesn't, and resorts to staring down at his hands folded neatly in his lap.

"Are you okay?" she asks, looking up at him curiously. He jumps, meeting her eyes before his own drift down to the pink of her lips, still attached to the malasada, thinking of how stupid it is to be jealous of a food item.

"Yeah. I just have a lot on my mind, is all," he mumbles, and looks away, avoiding her carefully schooled expression. He envies her that, her constant calm like nothing at all worries her, even though he knows that isn't true.

So he glances down at her again, and she's picking at the malasada with a neat, unpainted fingernail and swinging her legs over the edge of the marina. She's wearing sandals today rather than sneakers; he takes note of the stark difference between her tan legs and her pale feet, untouched by the sun. Somewhere in the distance, a wingull squawks, and the captain of a ship deals out commands to his fellow sailors. A baby cries, a father comforts it, children laugh and splash on the shore.

"Gladion?"

"Yes?"

"Do you want to kiss me?"

He gapes at her. She looks up at him expectantly, the malasada forgotten in her lap, and to an untrained eye, she might've simply asked about the weather for the week. But Gladion knows better, knows her better, and his eyes rove over the twinge of red in her freckled cheeks.

Yes, he thinks, but all that comes out is, "Uh…"

"Okay," she says, brushing sugar off her fingers and throwing the malasada in her bag, making as if to leave. But before she makes any more movements, Gladion reaches out, his hand shaking. He's grasping her arm tighter than he probably should, but neither of them notice.

"Wait."

"I'm not—" she begins, but doesn't get to end as Gladion swiftly but delicately presses his lips against hers. He pulls away just as quickly, avoiding her eyes as his face burns from both the sun and his own embarrassment. But there's an unmistakable feeling in his chest, one that makes him think of victory, of freeing Null from its helmet, and his load feels significantly lighter, even if he can't look at Moon right now.

"Leaving," she finishes, and on impulse he glances up at the sound of her voice. She's looking out toward the sea, wide-eyed and blushing.

"What?" he asks, his hand itching to grasp her own.

"I wasn't leaving," she says, meeting his eyes, still looking shell-shocked. Doubt creeps into his brain and regret floods his entire being as he considers making the simple movement to sink himself into the ocean.

"Oh." He feels stupid and like tugging at his hair until it falls out, until he feels something warm and soft in his hand. He looks down to find that she's tangled their fingers together, his long, spindly ones dwarfing her smaller ones.

And then Gladion sighs with relief, and she smiles, resting her head on his arm as the waves lap against the concrete below them.

"Aue! He actually did it!"

"Of course he did. I know my brother, and if there's one thing about him that stands out, it's that he's impulsive when it counts."

"Took him long enough, though."

"I think it's sweet!"

"Aw, well, guess this means I owe you."

"Keep your money, Hau. I just wanted to see it happen."

"Alright! That's perfectly fine by me!"