I Grew Up at the Karasuma Distillery

Bourbon's seventh birthday present was a person.

Bourbon: "Mom, who is he?"

Vermouth: "Hiromitsu Morofushi, your new playmate. Bourbon, give him a name."

Little Bourbon tilted his head and thought for a moment, then pointed at a bottle of liquor beside him. "Let's call him Scotch."

When Bourbon was eight, Scotch spoke for the first time.

Scotch: "Zero, can I call you that from now on, too?"

Bourbon: "No! I'm your master. From now on, you have to address me respectfully."

Scotch: "Th-then, can I call you Master Zero?"

Bourbon: ...

When Bourbon was fifteen, he discovered that Scotch had secretly made some new friends.

Bourbon: "Hiro, who are those people?!"

Scotch: "Zero, these are my friends: Kenji Hagiwara, Jinpei Matsuda, and Wataru Date. We want to start a band together. I'm the bassist! Would you like to join us, Zero?"

Bourbon: "Hmph~ I'm not interested in music!"

Scotch: "But I remember you kept saying you wanted to learn guitar."

Bourbon: ...

When Bourbon was seventeen, he met Scotch's older brother, Takaaki Morofushi.

Bourbon: "Scotch, if you want to avenge your parents, go ahead. I won't fight back."

Scotch: "But I want to take you with me, Zero."

1. Plot-driven, serious tone, with Hiro and Zero as dual male leads. The main story is platonic, while the extras have an open-ended pairing.

2. The Black Organization setting is based on The Pause Button of Science. You can treat this as an IF story in a parallel universe.

3. It's a happy ending, but there are angsty parts along the way.

Theme: You must never lose the people you grew up with