#I fucking love when people call him out for being a pathetic lovelorn little guy

[clownprince]

Starting a collection. Please feel free to add

[elaineintokyo]

Final (maybe) thoughts - the Light (good) side.

OTHER RESOLUTIONS:

There were a lot of things I really really started to hate about the episode after rewatching it more and more. It’s like the more I watched it, the less it made sense, the more I felt the episode COULD HAVE done things better. But that said, I do rewatch the movie to see if I can get a different take out of it, so here are some resolutions I kinda got after some rewatch.

These parts cover the things I first hated about TROS, and then somewhat found resolutions within myself for them.

Finn

- In Episode 7, there most likely wasn’t any inclination at all by the creators to make Rey and Kylo a romantic thing. Most likely, they were probably more interested in a darkside-lightside struggle and battle. It’s really, in this case, Rian who made it a tad bit more interesting by putting in a romantic aspect and then with J.J. having to justify and to use Rey-Kylo’s connection by making them a force dyad.

- So then, which left us with Finn. Poor guy. I think he really got sidelined with Rey. Whether it be racism or just out of a story necessity, while Rian is popular with fans for his “support” of minorities in leading roles, there was a definite move to separate Finn and Rey in Episode 8, so that Rey and Kylo’s relationship can be developed.

- so that said, Finn was FUCKING ANNOYING in Episode 9. Like seriously, it made him like this guy who’s constantly chasing after a dog in heat. Seriously. INCREDIBLY fucking annoying. His character could’ve been used to do so much more! (Like in Episode 8!), but instead he was just made to be like this lovelorn guy WHILE the whole time, Rey is battling this demon inside her while being egged on by her jerk ex-crush whom probably she knows as much as she hates him, he’s probably the only one closest to understanding how she feels.

- While some people said that Rey pushed Finn back with the force (more like shoved!) to protect him, I didn’t feel that way. Not even after watching so many times. It was clear she was angry with Kylo and this was between HER and KYLO and she was clearly telling him to BACK OFF!

Resolution:

I talked to a friend and told him about how I hated that Finn was soooooo pathetic and annoying for chasing Rey, but he told me that he was chasing after her to prevent her from falling to the dark side.

That actually made A LOT of sense to me and I really think so. Finn was trying to tell Rey the whole time that he’s force sensitive, so he probably understands her feeling and he knows what she’s going through. So he’s trying to stop her from going to the dark side.

He said it to Poe

Finn: We need to go after her. She’s not herself. You dont know what she’s going through.

Poe: And you do?

Finn: Yeah I do. And so does Leia.

I think he says “and so does Leia” because it implies force users.

And when he goes to the Death Star, she’s already possessed at that point and completely giving into the dark in her rage to hill Kylo, and that’s why he keeps going to her.

Then she fucking shoved him away, like, it really shows she’s in the dark now!

So Yeah... looking at it from the point of view that he’s trying to protect his bestie, not from Kylo Ren, but from herself, I think his whole fucking REYYYYYYY!! REEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYY! REEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!! the whole episode ain’t that annoying afterall.

Dark Rey

- I think this one I kinda blame not just J.J. and the team but I also think part of it is due to Daisy too.

- Firstly, seriously, Rey is lightside as fuck! Like okay not lightside, but she really DOES have the purest of hearts and there is NO WAY IN HELL (or Exagol) that she would EVER turn dark.

In her lowest of low, saddest and loneliest moment, she had REJECTED Kylo and his proposal to rule with darkness.

It was COMPLETELY unbelievable and so so so so shallow that she would ever turn to the dark side just because she finds out that she’s a Palpatine.

Haaaaa? WHAT?????? Completely unbelievable! Utter rubbish!

So anyway, to leave the whole Palpatine Sith thing aside, and let’s just talk about “dark side” of force fighting, Rey has always been fighting with dark side haha.

Rey is always emotional in her fights, always charged with some kind of strong emotion (whether trying to defeat Kylo in Ep 7 or wanting to KILL SNOKE in ANGER Ep 8, or knocking Luke down and almost killing him in Ep 8), she’s always fought with emotions, which is NOT the way of the Jedi.

So that aside, to talk about the context of Episode 9 and Rey’s struggle, which is why I think Daisy is definitely an inferior actor compared to Adam.

I think Daisy plays anger and sadness well (Ep 8 in all her loneliness and also in the throne room when Kylo breaks her heart), and she does strong emotions very very well, but she doesn’t play subtleties well, and absolutely not to the degree that Adam mastered it with Kylo.

Like you can’t tell the difference between Rey’s emotionally charged fights/moments in the past, with her seemingly becoming more and more dark in Episode 9. They all seem the same to me.

Except for that scene in the ship when she talks to Finn after killing Chewy where she did fear incredibly well, in the other scenes you can’t tell if Rey is feeling anger or fear or what? How is she turning dark? You can’t see the change.

This is unlike Kylo where Adam’s slight relaxation in his expressions show hesitation (Kylo not blasting his mom away), or even just the slight quiver in his voice when he says “(you can’t go back to her) just like I can’t”, or the desperation is Adam’s little “please”. A fleeting moment, so subtle, yet so powerfully conveyed.

Sorry, but Daisy didn’t deliver Rey’s conflict anywhere close to that of Adam with Kylo.

I think the biggest failure of this were in BOTH of the MOST CRUCIAL scene for her character’s development.

The first: in the hangar where Kylo tells Rey her parentage.

Yes, you could see first the shock in Rey, and when Kylo gives her his hand (not again) and says “you know what you must do, don’t you?”..

Then the camera is on Daisy and Rey is thinking, then she says “I do”.

Then she flees.

Like, firstly, her expression when Kylo offers her his proposal was unclear. Was she conflicted? Did she want to give in this time? Was still still in shock?

Then when she changes and says “I do”.

You can see her facial expression change, but it’s not clear enough to convey Rey’s decision to kill Palpatine.

The “I do” felt more like “yeah I do know I don’t want to fucking take your hand so goodbye!”, instead of the life changing decision of “I’m gonna kill that motherfucker who killed my parents and robbed me of a family!! Die you fucking asshole!!”

Nope.

Totally not obvious in that scene.

Took me like 3 watch to figure out that OHHHHHH she meant she knows she have to kill Palpatine! 🤦🏻‍♀️

The second failure: In the confrontation with Palpatine.

I don’t know but maybe Daisy AGAIN didn’t convey the weight of that moment subtly but powerfully enough (sigh.....), so it’s really unclear what drove her to say okay. I think Daisy’s acting, as I said, is not at all on par with Adam’s level when it comes to portraying a change of emotions at the turn of a coin.

Actually maybe actually in this case I lay the blame on J.J. who was probably horrendous in conveying to Daisy what her character was feeling. So as a director it was HE who fucked up directions.

Coz I thought Daisy played a conflicted Rey well in the love-disappointment-hate really, really, really, well in Episode 8’s throne room scene between and unrepentant Kylo and a heartbroken Rey.

Butttttt the ENTIRE ending sequence dialogue between Rey and Palpatine was sooooooo vague.

The entire sequence where she looks up at the Rebellion fleet being destroyed, you can’t tell if Rey is angry? Sad? Desperate? Devastated? Fearful?

The emperor mentions hate hate and anger first but when she first saw the emperor I felt Rey’s feeling was FEAR.

Then when she really defiantly says “you want me to hate you but I don’t”. Like it just takes away the anger motivation.

Which is when the emperor opens up the roof to show her the rebellion and she has some sort of reaction. But the look on Daisy’s face is not of anger or hate but more of like fear and heartbreak and sadness that her friends are in trouble and are dying.

You can’t tell at all, whether Rey indeed was hating the Emperor but it was CRUCIAL to know her feelings because it’s the impetus that drives her decision to be a Sith or not, and according to Sith/Jedi ways of fighting, the emotions behind the kill is what differentiates the two.

If she kills in fear to save her friends- it’s self defense is it not? Hence how can the sith posses her then?

But if she strikes in anger, then the sith can.

But it’s incredibly vague what she was feeling and NOT AT ALL CONVINCING that Rey is being engulfed by darkness.

Unless of course it’s despair, which leads to the darkside, and I think like if that was indicated, Rey’s pull to become the Sith would’ve been clearer and more convincing.

At last, it ALSO rang cheap and hollow.

🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

Resolution (somewhat)

So watching and rewatching the episode again, I realized that.. Rey was super angry with Kylo... lolololll

I’m not sure if this is considered Rey becoming Dark, but she was super pissed with Kylo, and he always drives (hm!) the anger in her tempting her to the darkside, somwhat almost succeeding this time.

So in their first showdown in the second force tug-of-war over Chewie’s transport, it was when Rey got super angry with her asshole ex-crush that she unleashed her darkside force KABOOM!

Then, in the second showdown his his quarters (sexy), the moment he called her name “Rey”, fucking hell, she drew her lightsaber immediately andddd instead of reacting in FEAR “oh shit! Supreme leader found me!” it was more like “not you fucking asshole again! Fuck off!!!!”.

And the more he talked, the angrier she got. And like, I don’t think Kylo was taunting her like he did in TLJ when he called her nothing, he was trying to get her to accept what she is, but she’s the one who’s in denial and got more and more angry with him trying to tell her to face the truth (albeit for selfish reasons of his own to make her realize she can’t resist the dark side).

So at that time, you kinda feel Rey’s angry and she’s just attacking Kylo. That totally not fucking Jedi way of fighting! But then again... she was just trying to shut him up???

And finally, the Death Star scene, which is pivotal to say the least! (for both Kylo and Rey!)

I’m still not too convinced that meeting Dark Rey in the imperial vault was Rey’s turning point to the darkside. I felt the vault is like the dark cave in a Jedi’s training when they face their worst fears. Dark Rey is Rey’s worst fear. So I don’t think it’s what she has become.

That’s why when Kylo says “look what you have become” and “you can’t go back to her (Leia) now”, I don’t think it’s too true. Not yet anyway.

But I do think that Rey was fucking pissed off at Kylo from the get go and when she snapped “Give it to me”, it was pure anger and Adam inserted a slight reaction there which I still interpret as “oh shit scarryyyy!!”. Haha.

Scary!Rey!

Then, when he crushed the Sith Wayfinder, I think that’s when Rey really fucking snapped!

I’m not sure if she snapped because (1) fucking Kylo Ren ruined my chance to find and kill the emperor!! Or (2) fucking Kylo Ren give up already! Do I have fucking kill you to break up with you??? Fucccckkk dieeeee!!

From then on, you can really see that she’s fighting with hate and anger towards Kylo.

Will probably write a separate thing about Kylo-Rey fights but Rey hasn’t really fought will Kylo with totally intent to kill. She’s always been fighting him off to FLEE, but on the Death Star, at the beginning, she was really fighting to kill him once and for all.

And in the part where she force pushed away Finn, her last thread of sanity to the lightside, she’s really warped in the sole intent to kill Kylo in her anger and hate.

And she DOES fucking stabs him to death when after he INTENTIONALLY dropped his own lightsaber and was technically HEY! **UNARMED!!!**

So basically Rey killed an unarmed person in anger and hatred.

And if you look at her facial expression when she stabbed the fuck out of Kylo, it was anger!

Anddddddddd it’s only when she sensed Leia’s death that she snapped out of her trance and realized OH FUCK! What have I done?!?! Oh shit!! I killed her son!!!!!!!!!

Anddddddddddd which is why I think her reaction after that was soooo extreme that she decided to run off and become a hermit in Ahch-to, coz she knew what she could become and HAD BECOME indeed in that fleeting moment.

Kylo on the other hand, I think at first, he was not intending to kill her (the only way you’re coming to Exagol is with me), but the last part where Rey flies above the waves but then Kylo just comes through the wave MASSIVELY (as Daisy would put it ;) ) and walked directly to her, I think Kylo did decide to kill her at that time and which is why FINALLY he got the upper hand.

Rey’s reaction to Ben’s Death.

Ive already touched on Ben’s death in another post, so I’ll touch on her reaction (or lack of one) instead in this post.

Many maaaaaannnyyy people were complaining and upset that Rey didn’t even so much as shed a tear when her force dyad died. No mourning or anything at all. In fact she was even sadder when Finn was almost killed!

Which is allllllll true and valid arguments which added to my feeling that Ben Solo the last true Skywalker was completely discarded.

Resolution

I’d like to think of her reaction, firsr when he falls, you can see that she was about to cry, then suddenly she relaxes and looks relieved holding on to his hand as his body disappears and becomes one with the force.

I want to believe that Rey could feel his presence in the force, even though his physical body vanishes. And, being a dyad in the force, and also since he did transfer all his force energy to her, perhaps just perhaps, his half of the dyad force reunites in her at that moment, which is why, she doesn’t feel sad, and which is why his force ghost doesn’t appear. He is now part of her, technically, recombined back together in her.

Also like.... I think... Ben would not have wanted her to be alone and lonely, because he know how lonely she has been her whole life.

But making the choice to give his life to her, he wanted her to be alive.

And I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have wanted her to be alone. So, I’m sure she still feels his force connection somewhere in the force. Plus remember the force voices telling her “alone never have you been” (Yoda).

Or so I want to think.

(My heart is going with oh please just let them fuck and have babies instead and combine their force in them babies instead!!! Bleh)

Other Observations/Realizations

Kylo’s transformation into Ben Solo

So a lot of people have already pointed out how Kylo’s demeanor had changed 180 degrees after he became Ben Solo.

There’s a whole brilliant thread somewhere here on Tumblr or Twitter (I think it’s Twitter), that analyzed Adam’s facial portrayal of Kylo and Ben. How Kylo is always wearing an expressionless unnatural mask even without an actual mask on but how his espressions completely relax and become natural after he comes Ben Solo again.

(Dude if this theory is true, just adds another feather on Adam’s hat! Seriously!)

And of course, there are also other similarities between Ben and the Solo moves he pulls, like using his blaster without looking, and how he’s like “heh, bring it on” with the Knights of Ren.

But I think, one of the biggest change in Ben that can be seen was Adam’s very last line: “ow” when he lands on the chain after jumping into the hole in Exegol.

Like everyone was saying in Episode 7, that even after being blasted by Chewie’s bow, Kylo toughens himself up by hitting his wound and seemingly showing no signs of pain.

But here, just with one word: “ow”- Ben Solo reclaims his humanity.

Brilliant!

Ben Solo’s arrival to help Rey

In the end, I would like to think that.. haha.. Ben defied his father’s advice to return home and “what she stood for, what she fought for, that’s not dead”.

I always wondered about that line, like was Han asking him to go to the rebellion base to help the Rebellion? Like isn’t that home? Or was he asking Ben to help the rebellion.

I think it’s the latter of course, but of course by help, he races to find Rey. Lolololll

On the first watch, I always thought that Rey didn’t sense Ben’s presence right until before they force connected themselves when Rey was holding the lightsaber.

But on second watch and subsequent viewings, I realized that she actually felt his presence the moment he landed.

The introduction of Ben Solo on Exagol was a side profile shot of Adam coming into frame, then he runs into the massive building.

The side profile shot of Ben cuts to a side profile shot of Rey, who until that moment was frozen in terror of the choice she’s being forced to make.

But once Ben arrives, she just turns to the emperor as if nothing and just nods her head like “yep ok sure let’s go with what you just said” and easily agreed.

And if you look at Daisy’s acting and how Rey turns to face the emperor when she senses Ben’s presence nearby (but not her ForceTime her) .

And remember every time before they actually ForceTime connect, they sense each other’s presence FIRST, then only connect and exist in the same space together.

So this was the moment they felt each other before, they finally dailed into each other’s physical presence later here:

I don’t know but maybe Daisy AGAIN didn’t convey the weight of that moment subtly but powerfully enough (sigh.....), so it’s really unclear what drove her to say okay. I don’t think Daisy’s acting, as I said, is to Adam’s level when it comes to portraying a change of emotions at the turn of a coin.

Actually maybe actually in this case J.J. was also probably horrendous in conveying to Daisy what her character was feeling.

The entire sequence where she looks up at the Rebellion fleet being destroyed, you can’t tell if Rey is angry? Sad? Desperate? Devastated? Fearful?

You can’t tell at all, and I think it’s so important to know because it’s the impetus that drives her decision to be a Sith or not, and according to Sith/Jedi ways of fighting, the emotions behind the kill is what differentiates the two.

If she kills in fear to save her friends- it’s self defense is it not? Hence how can the sith posses her then?

But if she strikes in anger, the the sith can.

But it’s incredibly vague what she was feeling.

But anyway, whatever it was, I feel on more viewings, it’s clear she probably felt Ben’s presence, coz she turned around really quickly and like hiding a secret, to keep the emperor from realizing, she just nods “yes”.

And then she gets more and more and more fearful and worried as she moment approaches to kill the emperor but her boyfriend’s late.

So I think when she finally feels him close enough and the opportunity is there, and their FaceTime finally gets through, she completely relaxes and knows it’s gonna be okay.

Transferring the lightsaber via their upgraded ForceTime2.0 was a brilliant move.

And I really really like that after Ben defeats the Knights of Ren, he like snaps out of it and you can see him “oh no! (My girlfriend) Rey!” and anxiousness floods his face and he quickly runs to the sith throne room.

TIE fighter & the X-Wing

While some Reylo’s read this one specific shot of Ben’s TIE fighter and Rey’s X-Wing being side by side as proof that the both of them were meant to survive and go back together, I didnt think nor feel so.

I think the shot was representation of the decades-long fight between the empire (the TIE fighter) and the rebellion (the X-Wing) parked side by side, coming together, UNITED and AT LAST fighting side by side together.

Kylo-Rey Battles

I realized that Kylo never really seeks to kill Rey EVER.

ALL his fights were to actually get her to join his side.

Even from the very first fight in the forest, her tells her “you need a teacher. I can teach you the ways of the force”.

And from then on, he never actually kills her.

Even after his vow to destroy Rey and the rebellion at the end of Episode 8, does he actually goes out to kill them? NO. Instead he’s hunting for Palpatine. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Except for the lightsaber tug-of-war, there’s no Kylo-Rey battles in Episode 8.

Which leads us to Episode 9, where they had a total of 4 confrontations.

The first transport tug-of-war frigging Rey’s the one who slices his TIE fighter. Then he doesn’t kill her or tries to fight with her, instead they engage in a toy-fighting. What.

Then second in his chambers and Kajimi. As I mentioned in an earlier post, SHE was the one striking him, and he merely just wanted to talk. What!

Then the third in the hanger, AGAIN, ample opportunity to fight, but instead, they just talk AND he proposes marriage, AGAIN!

Then finally at the Battle on the Death Star wreckage, it was REY who drew her lightsaber AGAIN first!

And you could see Adam doing Kylo like dropping his hands “not again girl, aren’t you tired of fighting??”

Anddddddd so on the Death Star, as I had mentioned, I don’t think Kylo wanted to kill Rey at the start of the fight, which I felt was the usually defensive fight.

But, at the very end when Kylo is walking determinedly towards Rey, he FINALLY makes up his mind to kill her, which is why FOR ONCE he actually got the upper hand and was able to overpower her.

BUTTTTTTTTTT watching and rewatching the episode, i also think that it’s possible that when Rey cried after being disarmed, Kylo hesitated for a moment to deal the fatal blow and it’s in that split second of an opening that Leia reaches him. And he completely senses his mother and discarded his saber..... 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭💔💔💔💔💔💔💔 so sadddddddd so in the end he’s just mommy’s boyyyyyyyyy wanting to be loved by his mommmmm!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭💔💔💔💔💔💔

[nerdytooru]

How It’s Done

Tendou Satori/Sugawara Koushi

(read on Ao3)

“This was a mistake,” Kuroo groaned dramatically. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

Suga took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Why is that, Kuroo?” he asked against his better judgement. He knew Kuroo would just sigh obnoxiously until someone asked him what was wrong.

“He’s wearing gym shorts, Suga. Gym shorts.”

Suga was very familiar with the sight of Daichi in gym shorts, so he had a little bit of sympathy for Kuroo. But only a little bit.

“You are a grown-ass man, Kuroo Tetsurou. If it’s driving you that crazy why don’t you go over there and ask him out?”

Oikawa scoffed audibly.

“What?” Suga asked.

“You say that like it’s easy,” Oikawa said.

“Maybe it would be easy if you guys just got over yourselves for two seconds and asked!”

“It’s not the asking,” Kuroo said. “It’s the part that comes after. It’s fucking terrifying, dude. It is so not easy. Besides, you can’t just up and ask someone. You have to do it right.”

“Is that so?” Suga asked, an idea forming in his mind. It was maybe, possibly, very probably a bad idea. But he was really sick of his friends being moping, lovesick idiots.

“Yeah,” Bokuto said, jumping in to agree with Kuroo. “You have to approach it right. Be romantic and shit.”

Suga raised a challenging eyebrow at the complete losers he called his friends. He took a deep breath, giving himself one last chance to reconsider what he was about to do.

“HEY. TENDOU,” Suga shouted across the room.

“WHAT?”

“I THINK YOU’RE CUTE. WILL YOU GO OUT WITH ME?”

“ALRIGHT.”

“GREAT!” Suga called back, and then turned to Kuroo, Bokuto, and Oikawa. “And that, my pathetic, lovelorn friends, is how it’s done.”

“Oh, fuck off,” Kuroo said.

“It’s totally different. You guys have been doing your weird mating dance for ages now,” Oikawa protested.  

“Still, my point stands,” Suga said. “Hey, so when are you free?” he called over to Tendou again.

“Free right now,” Tendou replied with a crooked smirk.

“Right now it is,” Suga said. “Bye losers,” he added, giving a mock salute as he grabbed his bag and turned to follow Tendou out. He could hear Oikawa spluttering indignantly behind him.

“Wait, Kuroo, you don’t really think that could work, do you?”

“If what you’re asking is if you should ask Akaashi out by yelling at him from across the room, the answer is no.”

“Damn.”

---

“Hey, so,” Tendou started a bit hesitantly as they walked down the hall toward the elevators, “we don’t really have to go out or anything. Like, I get it if you were just doing that to make a point. I’ll tell everyone you showed me a great time and all.”

Suga stopped abruptly, grabbing Tendou’s wrist and yanking him down to look up into his eyes, which widened comically at the expression on Suga’s face. Not breaking eye contact, Suga slowly raised a hand and flicked Tendou in the middle of the forehead. Tendou blinked twice, his brow crinkling in confusion.

“Don’t be stupid,” Suga said. “You’re too cute to be stupid.”

Tendou nodded sharply. “Yes, sir,” he said, cocky grin sliding back onto his face.

“So, where do you want to go?” Suga asked, sliding his hand down Tendou’s bony wrist to weave their fingers together as they resumed walking.

“What is this? Pretty boy doesn’t have a plan?” Tendou said, feigning shock.

“Well believe it or not, that wasn’t actually how I was planning on asking you out,” Suga replied with an exasperated huff, reaching out to press the elevator button. A moment later the doors opened with a ding and they stepped in.

“So you were planning on it, then?”

“Well, yeah. I like you, you dummy,” Suga said, scratching the back of his neck and suddenly feeling like he’d been spending a bit too much time around Asahi.

“That’s super gay, Sugawara.”

“Yes, I am.”

Tendou chuckled and the sound did things to Suga. He’d managed to keep his cool, collected appearance in front of their friends but now that he was alone with Tendou he felt like a blushing mess.

“You didn’t answer my question, by the way,” Suga said as they left the building.

“Huh?”

“Where are we going?”

“Oh, right,” Tendou said. “Hmmm…” he pondered aloud, tapping his chin with one (absurdly long) finger. “Ice cream,” he declared. “I require ice cream.”

“Ice cream it is! Do you have a place you like?”

“Do I… do I have an ice cream place I like? What kind of question is that?”

“A… pretty reasonable one, I thought?”

“Suga. Suga. I have sampled every ice cream shop and cart within a five mile radius. I have ranked them based on the following,” he announced, holding up a hand to count off on his (absurdly long) fingers, “creaminess, variety of flavors, quality of cones, availability of toppings, and, most importantly, chocolatiness of their chocolate ice cream. And you ask me if I have an ice cream place I like. Of course I do.”

“O-okay then. Um, lead the way.”

Tendou grinned and took off, dragging Suga along by their still joined hands. After a few blocks his pace slowed, and Suga spotted a sign shaped like an ice cream cone. Tendou led them inside the ice cream shop; it was tiny, and the walls were violently purple. Suga had to blink several times to adjust to the color.

“So what flavor do you want? My treat.”

Tendou blinked at him. “What flavor?! Chocolate, you heathen.”

“Oh, right. Chocolatiness,” he said, recalling Tendou’s impassioned spiel about ice cream shops.

“Can I get an extra large one?” Tendou asked tentatively.

“Yeah, of course,” Suga said, grinning. Tendou gave him an uncharacteristically shy smile in return. Something in Suga’s chest squeezed uncomfortably, and part of him wanted to forget the ice cream and just pull Tendou into a tight hug and never let go.

“One extra large chocolate cone, and a regular matcha please,” Suga said when the lady at the counter prompted him for their order. Tendou muttered ‘wrong’ under his breath as soon as the word matcha passed Suga’s lips. Suga couldn’t help but giggle. They both got their ice creams and elected to carry them outside to eat them.

“There’s, uh, there’s a park nearby. If you wanted to, y’know. Walk,” Tendou said.

“That sounds great,” Suga replied.

“Cool. It’s this way.”

They walked in relative silence, focused on eating their ice cream before it melted. Tendou’s methodical ranking of ice cream shops had apparently paid off, Suga thought, because this ice cream really was good. He wasn’t usually much of an ice cream person, but it did hit the spot on a warm day like this one.

“Thanks for the ice cream,” Tendou said.

“Yeah, anytime.”

Tendou cackled. “Oh, Suga. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

“Okay, as often as my wallet can handle, then.”

“It’s a deal.” Tendou grinned, popping the rest of his cone into his mouth and proceeding to suck the melted ice cream off his fingers. Suga very quickly averted his gaze so Tendou wouldn’t notice his blush--though judging by his soft chuckle, Tendou definitely did notice.

“You’re blushing,” Tendou said.

Dammit. Of course he couldn’t just let that one escape.

“Does pretty boy like my fingers?”

“Are you gonna keep calling me that?” Suga asked, hiding his embarrassment behind feigned irritation.

“Well…” Tendou said, drawing out the sound, “you are a boy, and you are pretty. So, yes. I think I will.”

“Alright, just don’t go taking your nickname too literally, heartbreaker. Hm, maybe I should think of a new one for you, come to think of it.”

“I wouldn’t,” Tendou said. “The taking it literally, I mean. I wouldn’t do that.”

Suga looked up at him, and was kind of glad to see that Tendou was as red in the cheeks as he was now. The effect was a tiny bit comical with Tendou’s flaming red hair, though.

“Good,” Suga said, grabbing Tendou’s hand again and giving it a squeeze.

“Such a sap, Suga,” Tendou teased.

“You started it.”

“I recall no such thing,” Tendou said, putting on an exaggeratedly innocent expression.

“You say that, but I know the truth now.”

“Yes, but no one will ever believe you,” Tendou said with a slightly evil grin.

“I don’t need them to. Knowing is enough. Tendou Satori is a closet sap.”

Tendou blushed again, and it was unfair how adorable it was. Everything about him was unfair, honestly. Looking back, Suga honestly had no idea how he’d gotten here, on a date with Tendou Satori of all people. He couldn’t even say when he’d fallen for Tendou, because it was like his brain had forgotten what it was like not to be harboring a huge crush on him that may or may not be slowly encroaching on ‘love’ territory.

“The answer is yes, by the way,” Suga said.

“Hm?”

“I do like your fingers.”

“Ohoho!” Tendou crowed. “I knew it! What exactly is it you want to do to my fingers, hmm?”

“Why don’t you buy me dinner first?”

“Okay,” Tendou agreed quickly, and dammit, Suga was blushing again.

“Oh. Okay. It’s a date,” he said, though his voice lifted at the end, half turning it into a question.

“That it is, pretty boy.”

“Hey, Tendou?”

“Yes?” Tendou replied, drawing out the vowel.

“I’m going to kiss you now. If that’s okay.”

Tendou just nodded, staring wide-eyed at him. Suga slipped a hand around Tendou’s neck, leaning up and at the same time pulling him down until their lips met. It was--it was soft. Suga wasn’t sure what he expected kissing Tendou to be like, but he kissed gently, almost hesitantly, like he still wasn’t sure it was really happening. Suga leaned up into the kiss, adding more pressure as their lips slowly moved against each other. After a moment he pulled back, looking up into Tendou’s eyes as he traced soft patterns against his neck with his thumb. He grinned when Tendou shivered lightly at the touch.

“You know what?” Tendou said quietly, a grin slowly spreading across his face--a grin that told Suga he had an idea.

“What?”

“You asked me out in front of everyone to show them how it’s done,” Tendou said, “but they might not be really motivated to do something about it if they don’t properly see the benefits of getting their shit together and asking out the objects of their affection.”

“Are you suggesting we go back and engage in a gross show of PDA in front of all our friends?” Suga asked.

“That’s exactly what I’m suggesting.”

“I like the way you think, Tendou Satori.”