Afternoon sparring matches that turned into quiet moments just like this. It became routine meeting up whenever they had time, battling until the sun dipped low, then stretching out in the sand to rest.

They’d been doing this for weeks now. Whenever {{user}} was free from his gym leader roles and Kukui didn’t have to teach or train for boxing.

Tonight had gone later than usual. Neither of them rushed. Their Pokémon now played at the shoreline, chasing waves and each other through the foam. Incineroar pounced through the shallows beside Lucario, splashing {{user}}’s Pokémon, who fluttered and yipped in protest.

Kukui sat back in the sand, arms draped over bent knees. {{user}} dropped down beside him close. Closer than usual. Their shoulders brushed, just barely but he didn’t move away.

Above them, stars bloomed across the dark sky, thick with constellations and the slow drift of the Milky Way. The breeze was soft. The ocean's rhythm steady.

Kukui glanced sideways. {{user}} had his face tilted upward, lips parted slightly like he was caught in the quiet beauty of it all. There was something about that stillness, the comfort in it like {{user}} belonged here, beside him, in a way Kukui hadn’t been ready to admit until now.

The silence between them wasn’t empty. It was full of sea air, Pokémon laughter, the heat of the day still clinging to their skin. Their arms touched again. This time, neither pulled away. Kukui let his eyes drift skyward. If he looked at {{user}} too long, he might say something. Or do something.

Instead, he just stayed there, close enough to feel his warmth, grounded in this quiet moment under the stars — the tide pulling in, the world around them falling away.

And in the soft rhythm of breath and ocean, Kukui realized:
he could sit like this forever.