Work Text:
"Kaz, may I enter your room?" a very recognizable voice asked.
Kaz jumped in his seat and hurriedly turned off the holonet projector he was using to play ship repair tutorial videos. He wasn't used to having to learn anything. He'd failed pretty much every class at the Academy, including Field Repair. Ship History was the only one he was ever good at. It was his father that allowed him the leeway not to be thrown out after the first semester. So even after almost six months on the Colossus and many nights spent on the holonet, Kazuda was as good as a mechanic as he was a spy (meaning he thought he was good, but was only passable thanks to the help of his friends).
He looked up to see Neeku standing in the doorway to his small room. Well. room was being generous. It was really just a bed in the corner of the shop, with boxes roughly set up to provide a barrier. The "door" was just a gap in the barrier. The warmth Kaz always felt seeing Neeku returned, but this time it was tinged with embarrassment, after the almost confession of their most recent adventure.
"Uh sure, come in," Kaz picked up his holoprojector and put it on the floor, leaving enough room for Neeku to sit down next to him on the bunk, which he did.
"Kaz, I would like to apologize for how I reacted during our most recent escapade," Neeku said, his usual cheery candor replaced with earnest sadness.
"Uh, what do you mean?" Kaz stammered out. Against all logic, he had hoped Neeku would have forgotten that part. "Which part. Not the part about me wanting to kiss you, which never happened."
"Yes, I am referring to when you said you could kiss me, and then I replied that I do not feel that way about you-"
"Which is fine," Kaz cut in desperately, "you certainly don't have to. I don't even feel that way about you! It was a heat of the moment thing and-"
Kaz was surprised that such false denial of his own feelings caused Neeku to visibly deflate. Had he said something wrong? Did Neeku actually- no it couldn't be that.
"Is that true?" Neeku said, looking desperately into Kaz's eyes. He sounded on the verge of tears.
That really stopped Kaz in his tracks. "No..no it's not. I was just trying to protect your feelings." There was no need to mention that Neeku saying he didn't feel the same way about Kazuda had cut like a knife through his heart, until the whole "running away from the First Order" business was able to distract him.
"That is good," Neeku replied, his usual cheer starting to return, "for Niktos, such a confession of romantic interest from one friend to another is usually thought over for at least a day before a response is given. However, from watching human holodramas I understand that such waiting is not expected in the rest of the galaxy."
"Oh, then I'm sorry for putting you on the spot like that. Like I said, I wasn't really thinking."
"I responded in the negative out of panic. I also felt that it would be more respectful with Tam around, considering what she recently went through."
Unable to focus on the fact that Neeku might be here to confess himself, Kaz's brain seized on a much smaller and less important question. "Wait, what did Tam go through?"
"Oh, I thought you knew. Synara and Tam had been in a relationship for a while. She was very distressed when she realized that Synara had lied to us, and then had to leave the station."
Kaz thought of his other awkward attempts at flirting, and recoiled in embarrassment when he realized that Synara had already been in a relationship the whole time. And then he felt terrible about what Tam must be going through, and how he wasn't aware enough to help her.
"I guess she hadn't told me," Kaz admitted.
"She has previously told me that she doesn't trust you- oh no."
"What?" Kaz asked, panicked at the possibility of what danger Neeku could have just noticed.
"Tam told me to keep that a secret."
"It's fine," Kaz put his arm around Neeku shoulders. "I won't tell her."
"That is good, because I still haven't gotten to what I came here to say."
"Oh right," feeling it was proper, Kaz brought his arm back and sat up straighter.
Neeku turned to look at him again. "I have thought about how I feel about you and have decided, Kazuda, that I reciprocate your romantic interest towards me. I would also like to kiss you now, if you are okay with that."
It took a moment for Kaz to comprehend what Neeku had just said, and even then he still didn't react.
After staring expectantly at Kaz for a few moments, Neeku spoke up. "Kaz, are you okay? I didn't intend for my comments to cause distress."
"You really feel that way about me?"
"Yes. I am extremely sure about that. Would you still like to kiss?"
"Um, sure," Kazuda said, not really sure how to deal with Neeku's very frank style of courtship.
Moments after giving his consent, Kaz was still a bit surprised about how quickly Neeku shot forward to kiss him. He quickly leaned into, reveling in the scaly feeling of Neeku's lips. But between the two of them, it was still very awkward. But neither of them cared, it was still the best kiss both of them ever had, because of who it was with.