BELOVED BY THE TWINS

CHAPTER 23

"BELOVED BY THE TWINS"

by: Dark Flame Master

"Shin, wake up. It's Saturday today," Ruka said, his voice soft but insistent.

"Come on, Shin," Luca added leaning closer to the bed.

Shin groaned and pulled the blanket tighter around himself. He was too embarrassed to face them after what had happened the night before. He could still feel the warmth of their kisses on his cheeks, a memory that made his heart race. The thought of seeing them now after that moment was too much. So he hid under the blanket.

But the twins weren’t giving up so easily. They crawled onto the bed and hugged him through the blanket.

"Shin, come out from under there," Ruka said, his voice playful.

"N-no, I won’t!" Shin mumbled from under the blanket, his face burning with embarrassment.

"Why not?" Luca asked, though he already knew the answer.

"If you don’t come out I’m going to touch you and I won’t stop," Ruka teased, his tone both light and mischievous.

Shin’s eyes widened in shock at Ruka’s words and without thinking he quickly threw the blanket off of himself and his face blushed as he sat up.

"Good morning, Shin," the twins said in unison, grinning down at him.

"G-good morning," Shin mumbled, still flustered. He couldn’t meet their eyes, his mind flashing back to the kisses from the previous night. He felt as though he might melt under their gazes so he quickly stood up and shuffled towards the dining table.

The three of them sat down for breakfast but the air was thick with awkwardness. Shin kept his head down focusing on his food while the twins exchanged amused glances. The tension was broken when Luca decided to speak up.

"Shin, your birthday is next week, right?" Luca asked casually as he took a bite of his toast.

Shin nodded, grateful for the change in topic. "Yeah, next Saturday."

"Well," Luca continued, "you’re free to spend the day with Juri if you want."

Shin froze for a moment, his hand holding his fork in mid-air. He hadn’t expected that. He looked down at his plate suddenly feeling a little sad. Of course, Juri was his friend but deep down Shin had hoped to spend his birthday with the twins. The idea that they might not want to be with him on that special day made his chest tighten with disappointment. He didn’t realize that his feelings were written all over his face but the twins certainly noticed.

Ruka leaned forward, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Shin. "Why do you look like that? Is something wrong?" he asked, his voice gentle but curious.

"Nothing," Shin quickly said, trying to avoid their eyes.

But before he could get too deep into his thoughts, Luca spoke up again. "You can spend the day with Juri or anyone you want but at night make sure you come back and spend it with us."

At that, Shin’s mood instantly lifted. He glanced up at the twins feeling a wave of relief and happiness wash over him though he tried not to show it.

"Okay," he replied, his voice a little brighter now.

Ruka smirked, noticing the change in Shin’s expression. "Is that a smile I see?" he teased, leaning closer to Shin.

"Huh? I’m not smiling," Shin said quickly, looking down at his food. "Maybe you’re just hungry and imagining things."

The twins exchanged glances grinning at each other. They knew exactly how Shin felt even if he wasn’t saying it out loud. The atmosphere at the table lightened and Ruka decided to push things a little further.

"You’re going to be 18, right?" Ruka asked, his tone playful.

"Yeah," Shin mumbled, blushing slightly. "I’ll be 18 next week."

Ruka and Luca both reached out and grabbed Shin’s hands holding them gently but firmly. The gesture made Shin’s heart race and he couldn’t help but remember the kisses from last night. He blushed even deeper and his face starts turning red as the memories flooded back.

The twins exchanged another glance clearly enjoying the sight of Shin’s flustered expression. They leaned in a little closer, their voices dropping to a softer tone.

"So, you’ll be 18 in a week," Luca said with a teasing grin.

"Yeah," Shin said softly, "I’m going to be 18."

After breakfast, Shin got up to wash the dishes and clean the table. He was grateful for the distraction as his mind was still swirling with confusion and embarrassment. But just as he finished tidying up he felt two pairs of hands grab him from behind. The twins pulled him towards the couch causing Shin to stumble and fall between them his back pressing against the soft cushions.

"W-what—" Shin began, but his words were cut off as he looked up. The twins were sitting on either side of him and their eyes locked onto him with an intensity that made his heart skip a beat. It was clear they were thinking something and it wasn’t just casual.

Luca shifted making Shin sit more firmly in the middle of the couch, his arm resting comfortably around Shin’s shoulders. "So, what do you want to do today?" Luca asked, though his tone suggested that they already had their own ideas.

Shin blinked trying to focus on the question. "Um… can we visit my mom?" he asked. Then… we can do whatever you guys want."

Ruka, sitting on Shin’s other side grinned mischievously. "What if we want to go to a hotel?" he said, his voice was low and teasing.

"H-hotel?!" Shin’s face turned bright red as he almost yelled out the word. The very thought made him panic. "What did Ruka mean by that?" His mind raced with all sorts of possibilities and none of them are innocent thoughts.

The twins burst out laughing at Shin’s reaction clearly enjoying how flustered he was. Ruka patted Shin’s head, still chuckling. "I’m kidding, Shin. Relax. We can just go for a picnic."

Shin exhaled, feeling a wave of relief wash over him. "O-okay," he mumbled, still feeling a little embarrassed.

He stood up intending to head to the bathroom to take a shower but before he could move more than a step the twins grabbed his arms again pulling him back down between them. Ruka turned Shin’s face towards him, his eyes locking onto Shin’s in a way that made Shin’s heart pound in his chest. Then without warning Ruka leaned in and gave Shin a light kiss on the lips.

Shin’s eyes widened in shock, his mind going blank. Before he could even process what had just happened Luca did the same and gave Shin a kiss on the lips as well.

"W-what…?" Shin started to ask, but his words trailed off. His brain was struggling to catch up with the sudden kisses.

The twins both smiled at him clearly pleased with his flustered reaction. "Go take your bath now," they said in unison, their voices teasing but affectionate.

Still dazed, Shin stood up and stumbled towards the bathroom. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. The warmth of their kisses still lingered on his lips and he didn’t know how to feel about it. His heart was racing, his face was burning, and all he could think about was how close they had just been.

As he stepped into the bathroom and turned on the shower the cold water hitting his skin helped calm him down a bit. But no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t stop thinking about the twins. He couldn't stop thinking about the way they had kissed him, about how close they always were, and about how much he cared for them. He didn’t know if he liked them in that way or if he was just confused because they were the ones who had always been there for him.

All he knew was that the twins were everything to him and the thought of losing them or of not being with them scared him more than anything else. Whether it was love or something else Shin wasn’t sure. But one thing was certain he wanted to be with the twins forever.