[Uraboku] Stalemate
Title: Stalemate
Author: masanami
Character(s): Senshirou/Kuroto
Word Count: 1,235
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None.
Summary: Senshirou and Kuroto play shogi and try to ignore all the problems between them.
Author's Note: My first attempt at some Senshirou/Kuroto ♥ We'll see how this goes...I'm still figuring out their characters^^
It was midnight.
It didn't take a genius to tell when the day was shifting to night or when night was giving away to day, but Senshirou felt quite clever in his declaration at this very moment one day had relinquished to the next. He liked new days, they reminded him of new beginnings and change. Like the stroke of a brush, a new day added a layer to life, a chance for morph the picture that life had taken and create something completely new out of the old.
More so...he liked being able to count another day with Kuroto.
He had learned about the precious and fleeting nature of life and every day he spent with Kuroto was another silent tick mark that he kept to himself. The first mark had been made over nine years ago, when the raven haired boy had first come to his home, in that single moment when Senshirou had first fallen in love.
At first he had thought it was just mere infatuation. How could he-a normal person-ever garner the interest of someone as important as a Zweilt?
It made Senshirou wonder if it was always like this...was he destined to love Kuroto the moment he gazed upon him? Or was it something that had been in the works far longer than anything he could ever knowingly understand and imagine-was it more like destiny or fate? Or was there really any difference between the two in the first place?
"It's your turn."
Blinking back his thoughts, Senshirou smiled sheepishly at the man sitting across him and all the perfectly lined pieces upon the game board. "Oh, sorry." He reached for his next game piece, carefully studying each intregal detail of the battlefield. He wasn't very good at this game but practice made him better, and he knew it made Kuroto happy to play so mostly he did it for that reason...he liked to make Kuroto happy.
But Kuroto didn't look very happy when Senshirou placed his piece down on the board, a light clip resounding against the darkened room. Only the pale moonlight streaming in from the open shoji doors illuminated their playing field and even from the dim light Senshirou could see the downward curve of Kuroto's pursed lips.
Something was bothering him and it didn't involve the game that Kuroto was easily winning.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Senshirou asked as he watched Kuroto place down his next game piece.
“No.”
Kuroto never did like to discuss things even with Senshirou’s careful suggestions. He made decisions on his own and acted by himself, always thinking that by acting alone he wouldn’t hurt anyone. The day before Senshirou had finally earned his place as Kuroto’s partner Senshirou had awoken in the morning to find Kuroto gone. He still remembered the panic that had seethed through his chest when he had run through the gates of the main residence to find Kuroto sitting on the bus bench just outside the house.
The bus had already come and gone, but still Kuroto couldn’t bring himself to move from that spot.
He didn’t move until Senshirou slung his arm around Kuroto’s shoulders and led him away.
“Focus, Senshirou.”
Senshirou smiled and looked at Kuroto. The smaller man had his arms crossed over his chest and his lips pursed into a straight line. Senshirou wanted to tell him how beautiful he looked with the moon’s light reflecting off his ebony hair but he didn’t think Kuroto would appreciate the comment.
“Tch.” Kuroto was getting annoyed and Senshirou was growing tired of playing this game.
The small game pieces tumbled to the ground as Senshirou leaned across the shogi table and steadied his hand upon the wooden game board. The pieces splattered across the tatami mats, their careful placement dislodged by Senshirou’s sudden movement.
“Kuroto.” Even in this impasse, in the sudden movement, in the hand he reached up to place on the side of Kuroto’s face…even in this his partner did not blink or flinch. He was an impenetrable wall that he could not conquer no matter how hard he tried.
“Talk to me. I am here for you.”
He’s not here anymore.
He wanted to say those words but the cruelty of even mentioning Kuroto’s former partner was something that Senshirou would not do-no matter how much that invisible ghost haunted Kuroto's memories of the past.
Kuroto’s golden eyes stared beyond him, fixated on something on the wall, something beyond his reach. Senshirou imagined he was thinking of his partner and the battles and the loss he had felt on the day his partner had died. Senshirou had seen this gaze more and more lately. His eyes had a lost daze, a blurry shadow that hid all the fears and anguish that Kuroto tried to keep from him.
“Kuroto, I-“
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The steady chime of a cell phone resounded through the room, interrupting Senshirou’s words. For the first time since Senshirou's sudden movement, Kuroto moved. He didn’t swipe away his hand from the side of his face, but he did dig his fingers into the pocket of his pants. The chiming ended with a click of a button as Kuroto brought the phone to his ear.
“It’s Kuroto.”
A soft, gentle voice was on the other line-far too muffled for Senshirou to pick up anything other than a vague familiarity.
“I can’t really talk right now.” Kuroto’s eyes never left Senshirou’s own.
Kuroto didn’t say much else before hanging up the phone after a promise to speak again soon. He was busy, Senshirou was waiting for him.
Sighing, Senshirou dropped his hand and let himself fall back into his seat opposite Kuroto. The game pieces littered the floor around them but all Senshirou could see was the person sitting across him-a person who refused to budge an inch. Senshirou’s fingers balled into helpless fists at his side, their struggle an ignored existence by the one person he wanted to take notice.
“Who was that?” Even Senshirou could hear the defeat in his own voice.
Kuroto began to pick up the pieces that Senshirou had spilled on the floor. They collected in the center of the game board with small clicks. “Shusei,” was Kuroto’s single-worded response.
“You both talk a lot.”
“I suppose.”
“I guess it makes sense.” Something bordering curiosity flashed in Kuroto’s eyes and he met his gaze in trepidation. “Shusei who constantly worries about losing the person most close to him, you who…”
He stopped himself.
He hadn’t meant to say that-Kuroto would take it the wrong way.
But it was too late. The look in Kuroto’s eyes was enough to tell him that the damage had been done. “I didn’t mean-I meant to say that-“
“Enough.” Kuroto collected his legs underneath him and in one swift motion was standing. “You can pick these pieces up by yourself.” The heavy thud of his pounding footsteps reverberated against the tatami mats as he left the room. If shoji doors could slam, he was sure Kuroto would have done that as well.
“Damn.” Senshirou sighed and leaned back against the ground. He stared up at the ceiling and the shadows that danced through the pale moonlight.
When was he ever going to get this right…and when would Kuroto ever fully accept him?
At least…tomorrow was another new day.
Author: masanami
Character(s): Senshirou/Kuroto
Word Count: 1,235
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None.
Summary: Senshirou and Kuroto play shogi and try to ignore all the problems between them.
Author's Note: My first attempt at some Senshirou/Kuroto ♥ We'll see how this goes...I'm still figuring out their characters^^
It was midnight.
It didn't take a genius to tell when the day was shifting to night or when night was giving away to day, but Senshirou felt quite clever in his declaration at this very moment one day had relinquished to the next. He liked new days, they reminded him of new beginnings and change. Like the stroke of a brush, a new day added a layer to life, a chance for morph the picture that life had taken and create something completely new out of the old.
More so...he liked being able to count another day with Kuroto.
He had learned about the precious and fleeting nature of life and every day he spent with Kuroto was another silent tick mark that he kept to himself. The first mark had been made over nine years ago, when the raven haired boy had first come to his home, in that single moment when Senshirou had first fallen in love.
At first he had thought it was just mere infatuation. How could he-a normal person-ever garner the interest of someone as important as a Zweilt?
It made Senshirou wonder if it was always like this...was he destined to love Kuroto the moment he gazed upon him? Or was it something that had been in the works far longer than anything he could ever knowingly understand and imagine-was it more like destiny or fate? Or was there really any difference between the two in the first place?
"It's your turn."
Blinking back his thoughts, Senshirou smiled sheepishly at the man sitting across him and all the perfectly lined pieces upon the game board. "Oh, sorry." He reached for his next game piece, carefully studying each intregal detail of the battlefield. He wasn't very good at this game but practice made him better, and he knew it made Kuroto happy to play so mostly he did it for that reason...he liked to make Kuroto happy.
But Kuroto didn't look very happy when Senshirou placed his piece down on the board, a light clip resounding against the darkened room. Only the pale moonlight streaming in from the open shoji doors illuminated their playing field and even from the dim light Senshirou could see the downward curve of Kuroto's pursed lips.
Something was bothering him and it didn't involve the game that Kuroto was easily winning.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Senshirou asked as he watched Kuroto place down his next game piece.
“No.”
Kuroto never did like to discuss things even with Senshirou’s careful suggestions. He made decisions on his own and acted by himself, always thinking that by acting alone he wouldn’t hurt anyone. The day before Senshirou had finally earned his place as Kuroto’s partner Senshirou had awoken in the morning to find Kuroto gone. He still remembered the panic that had seethed through his chest when he had run through the gates of the main residence to find Kuroto sitting on the bus bench just outside the house.
The bus had already come and gone, but still Kuroto couldn’t bring himself to move from that spot.
He didn’t move until Senshirou slung his arm around Kuroto’s shoulders and led him away.
“Focus, Senshirou.”
Senshirou smiled and looked at Kuroto. The smaller man had his arms crossed over his chest and his lips pursed into a straight line. Senshirou wanted to tell him how beautiful he looked with the moon’s light reflecting off his ebony hair but he didn’t think Kuroto would appreciate the comment.
“Tch.” Kuroto was getting annoyed and Senshirou was growing tired of playing this game.
The small game pieces tumbled to the ground as Senshirou leaned across the shogi table and steadied his hand upon the wooden game board. The pieces splattered across the tatami mats, their careful placement dislodged by Senshirou’s sudden movement.
“Kuroto.” Even in this impasse, in the sudden movement, in the hand he reached up to place on the side of Kuroto’s face…even in this his partner did not blink or flinch. He was an impenetrable wall that he could not conquer no matter how hard he tried.
“Talk to me. I am here for you.”
He’s not here anymore.
He wanted to say those words but the cruelty of even mentioning Kuroto’s former partner was something that Senshirou would not do-no matter how much that invisible ghost haunted Kuroto's memories of the past.
Kuroto’s golden eyes stared beyond him, fixated on something on the wall, something beyond his reach. Senshirou imagined he was thinking of his partner and the battles and the loss he had felt on the day his partner had died. Senshirou had seen this gaze more and more lately. His eyes had a lost daze, a blurry shadow that hid all the fears and anguish that Kuroto tried to keep from him.
“Kuroto, I-“
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The steady chime of a cell phone resounded through the room, interrupting Senshirou’s words. For the first time since Senshirou's sudden movement, Kuroto moved. He didn’t swipe away his hand from the side of his face, but he did dig his fingers into the pocket of his pants. The chiming ended with a click of a button as Kuroto brought the phone to his ear.
“It’s Kuroto.”
A soft, gentle voice was on the other line-far too muffled for Senshirou to pick up anything other than a vague familiarity.
“I can’t really talk right now.” Kuroto’s eyes never left Senshirou’s own.
Kuroto didn’t say much else before hanging up the phone after a promise to speak again soon. He was busy, Senshirou was waiting for him.
Sighing, Senshirou dropped his hand and let himself fall back into his seat opposite Kuroto. The game pieces littered the floor around them but all Senshirou could see was the person sitting across him-a person who refused to budge an inch. Senshirou’s fingers balled into helpless fists at his side, their struggle an ignored existence by the one person he wanted to take notice.
“Who was that?” Even Senshirou could hear the defeat in his own voice.
Kuroto began to pick up the pieces that Senshirou had spilled on the floor. They collected in the center of the game board with small clicks. “Shusei,” was Kuroto’s single-worded response.
“You both talk a lot.”
“I suppose.”
“I guess it makes sense.” Something bordering curiosity flashed in Kuroto’s eyes and he met his gaze in trepidation. “Shusei who constantly worries about losing the person most close to him, you who…”
He stopped himself.
He hadn’t meant to say that-Kuroto would take it the wrong way.
But it was too late. The look in Kuroto’s eyes was enough to tell him that the damage had been done. “I didn’t mean-I meant to say that-“
“Enough.” Kuroto collected his legs underneath him and in one swift motion was standing. “You can pick these pieces up by yourself.” The heavy thud of his pounding footsteps reverberated against the tatami mats as he left the room. If shoji doors could slam, he was sure Kuroto would have done that as well.
“Damn.” Senshirou sighed and leaned back against the ground. He stared up at the ceiling and the shadows that danced through the pale moonlight.
When was he ever going to get this right…and when would Kuroto ever fully accept him?
At least…tomorrow was another new day.