Beauty and the Geek (ch. 8)
Title: Beauty and the Geek
Chapter: 8/?
Author: socialriotbitch
Pairing: ReitaxRuki
Genre: AU, high school, humor
Rating: PG-13 (for now, though will be NC-17 in later chapters)
Warnings: MxM kissing, homophobia, loads of swearing (for now)
Summary: Everyone thought Suzuki Akira was the luckiest guy in the world.
Except Akira himself.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Comment: I have a lot of free time lately, so I'm trying to write more often. BatG is coming along nicely, I have most of the following chapters planned out in my head. Fingers crossed!
“You're late, Matsumoto.” Takanori looked up and sent the teacher an angry glare, and he furrowed his brows. “Just go find your seat and be quiet, please.” Takanori nodded and hoisted his backpack higher up. Feeling the stares of his classmates, he slumped further and walked slowly to his desk, ignoring the hushed whispers from the back.
He didn't really pay attention to the teacher. No matter how hard he tried to avoid thinking about it, he was constantly reminded of Akira, and it made his gut churn. Had he gone too far? Teasing him was one thing, but calling him a whore? He might have stepped out of line, but then Takanori remembered what had happened earlier and the anger was back.
That Akira would have the balls to lie to Takanori just like that... Takanori wasn't stupid. He had seen Akira in the lunch break, “hanging out” with Yuu and Kouyou, and it made him wonder, were they even mad at him at all?
The text messages they had sent to Akira in the weekend, they had been real. Takanori knew that, and he also knew that Akira had been genuinely scared to meet them, but now it seemed ridiculous. Had they simply forgiven him? Impossible. So, Takanori concluded, either they were trying to fool Akira, or they were trying to fool him.
And if it was Takanori they were after, that meant Akira couldn't be trusted. Most likely, they had some sort of plan, and whether they had told Akira or not, it couldn't be good news for Takanori. Those two were never good news. Either way, the smartest thing for now would be to just lay low, try to find out what they had up their sleeve, and avoid any possible scheme of theirs.
Then again, there was also the possibility that they actually believed Akira was still straight. Who knows, maybe Akira had managed to convince them? It wasn't unthinkable. They were stupid enough to believe something like that if he said it, but if that was the case, then there was a perfect counter for it.
Takanori grinned to himself, raising his head again to try to seriously pay attention. If Yuu and Kouyou genuinely believed Akira was straight, then all Takanori had to do was convince them of the opposite, even if it meant making out with Akira on national TV. Nobody could spoil this for him now.
~
It was five am when Akira eased his bedroom door open, peeking left and right before he tiptoed out of his room. Backpack hanging off his shoulder, he made his way down the stairs as silently as he could, stopping abruptly as one of the steps creaked, holding his breath and listening for any sounds from his parents' room. The silence remained unbroken, and he heaved a sigh of relief, continuing out the main door, locking it behind him as quietly as possible.
Once his feet hit the pavement outside, he took off in a sprint, running as fast as he could until he was far away from his house, not stopping until he reached a small park. He slipped in and fell down on the nearest bench with a heavy thud, panting heavily as he caught his breath.
His father was pissed. That was obvious enough. Where the hell should he go now? Not home. Not to Yuu's or Kouyou's. Which left only one option, and although it was a long shot, Akira was willing to risk it.
It was almost six in the morning when he reached his destination, and he was surprised to find that the lights were on already. He rang the doorbell and waited, bowing deeply when Takanori's mother appeared in the door, looking confused as ever.
“Akira-kun, what are you doing here at this time of day?” She smiled sweetly, and Akira noticed that she was already wearing her work clothes. He wondered briefly just how early she had to get up in the morning.
“My father is mad at me,” Akira said and bowed once more for good measure. A pitiful frown appeared on miss Matsumoto's features, and Akira wished it would go away. “I don't want to be there when he wakes up.”
“Well, come on in, don't stand there in the cold like an idiot!” Akira thanked her and followed her to the kitchen, taking a seat and yawning loudly, rubbing his tired face. “Did you get any dinner?”
Akira's stomach growled at the mention of food, and he hung his head in defeat as he realised that he hadn't eaten anything in over twelve hours. He shook his head, to which Takanori's mother clucked her tongue and went to look in the fridge.
“Well then you must be starving, poor thing! I'll make you some breakfast, how does omelette sound?”
Thus, when Takanori entered the kitchen almost an hour later, Akira was stuffing his face full of delicious, home-made omelette, happily chatting with his mother about some TV series. Needless to say, he froze in the door with an expression somewhere between disbelief and confusion, pointing an accusing finger at the still eating Akira.
“What are you doing here?”
Akira shrugged and swallowed down a mouthful. “Good morning to you too.”
Takanori's frown increased, and he was gripping the doorframe so tight his knuckles were turning white. “What are you doing here?”
“Eating breakfast. It's delicious, want some?” Akira nodded towards his plate, Takanori shaking his head. “What's the matter, sweetheart, aren't you happy to see me here?”
“His father was mad at him, so he came here in the grey of the morning, cold and hungry,” Takanori's mother supplied, completely oblivious to Akira's sarcasm. “I'll make bento boxes for the two of you, and then you can take the bus together.” She turned to Akira next, a concerned expression on her soft features. “And Akira-kun, if you don't want to go home tonight, you're more than welcome to stay here.”
She didn't see the furious glare Takanori sent her way as Akira bowed his head and thanked her.
~
“What happened?” The bus ride had been awkwardly quiet so far, Akira staring out the window and Takanori tapping his foot. He was chewing his lip and staring at the ground as if he was deep in thought, and Akira almost didn't register that he had said anything at all.
There was no point in lying to Takanori, so he didn't. For a moment, he thought that maybe, he would tell Takanori anyway just to have someone to talk to, but that sounded weak, and Akira wasn't weak. He just didn't feel like he could come up with any more lies in such a short matter of time. “My parents asked if I had been at a girl's place this weekend, and if I had used condoms.”
“I swear, if you told them you have a boyfriend-”
“I didn't.” Akira ignored the glare Takanori sent for interrupting him, sighing heavily as he chewed on his words. “I asked them what difference it made if I fucked a girl or a guy.”
“I didn't take you for an idiot, Suzuki. It seems I overestimated you.” Even through the spiteful words, Akira sensed the concern.
“I'm not an idiot.”
“Then why did you insinuate to your homophobic, straight-A parents that you might be bi? That's not exactly what I would call a smart move.”
Akira snapped his next words with such aggravation that even Takanori shut up. “I know that!” He took a deep breath, realising he shouldn't be yelling on a bus. “I don't know why I said that.”
“Why did you, then?” Takanori sounded reasonably irritated himself, and his knee was shaking so fast Akira clasped his hand over it to keep it still. Both he and Takanori stared at the hand, until Akira awkwardly placed it back in his own lap. “You are straight, right?”
“Of course.” Akira placed his elbow on the windowsill and rested his chin in his hand, looking out of the window. It had taken a lot of contemplation, but Akira had eventually figured out why he had pissed off his father like that. Somewhere deep inside he had doubted what Takanori and Yutaka had told him. He didn't think they would lie to him, but at the same time he didn't believe that someone would leave their own family over something like their son's sexuality. Sure, he understood that it was a big deal for people like Kouyou and Yuu, but everything was a big deal to them. They took everything they could use against someone and bullied them for it, no matter how small or insignificant that thing was.
Parents, however, were different. Akira always imagined they'd love their kids enough to look past minor things like that, so when he found out that Takanori's father had left both his son and his wife because Taka was gay, it had seemed unlikely to Akira at first. If you really loved someone, would you give them up over something stupid like that?
So maybe what he did yesterday had been his own little experiment. Sure, he knew his parents didn't care much about him anyway, but they didn't usually yell at him, or cause a scene at dinner. The amount of disgust he had seen on his father's face had scared Akira. He couldn't remember seeing him that angry since the last time he failed a test. And it had prompted him to ask the question; why? Why would he get so mad just because Akira was fucking a guy? No, he wasn't gay, and he didn't want to have sex with a man. The thought made him want to puke, but Takanori wasn't a horrible guy. Even if Akira didn't want to fuck him, it didn't mean he automatically hated Takanori just because he liked men. It made no sense and had no purpose, so Akira didn't understand it.
He wanted to understand. He wanted to understand how it was possible to hate someone so passionately for who they loved, but all he had achieved was piss his father off. He didn't understand any more than he did yesterday, but at least now he knew it was possible. For a brief second, he pitied Takanori, but it didn't last long.
The bus pulled to a halt, and Takanori jumped out of his seat. “See you later.” Before Akira could even reply, Takanori was out of the bus and on his way to school already, and all he could do was take his backpack and follow in the same direction.
~
Akira jumped in his seat when his phone vibrated in his pocket. Shit, did he fall asleep? He looked around the empty classroom, before his gaze stopped at the clock. He narrowed his eyes to see the time, yawning and stretching his arms, hearing the satisfying snap in his joints. He had slept through half of class and most of the lunch break, and for a moment he wondered if his teacher hadn't seen him, but he knew she must have. His Japanese teacher was a young woman who had a soft spot for Akira, and he didn't doubt that she preferred to just let him sleep rather than waking him up.
He fished his phone out of his pocket and checked his messages, frowning at the screen. His mother was warning him not to come home. His father was still pissed, and she thought it was better if Akira gave him some time to cool down. Great, that meant Akira had no place to sleep tonight. Sure, Takanori's mother had offered, but he would be damned if he stayed there any longer than he had to. Especially since Takanori seemed to be in a bad mood today.
Rolling his eyes, Akira started typing a message to Yuu. Yuu's family didn't seem to mind him, and after all, Yuu was still his friend, right? Akira shook his head and sighed at himself. Of course he was. Even with everything that had been going on lately, both Yuu and Kouyou were still his friends, as they had been since elementary school. They knew that Akira's relationship with his parents was strained, and probably wouldn't think too much of it if Akira said he had ended up in an argument with his father and didn't want to come home. It wouldn't be the first time.
Akira pressed the send button and tapped his fingers on the desk. Only a couple of seconds after he had sent the text, his phone buzzed with a reply.
24/03, 12:04
From: Yuu
No problem. I'll just pull out an extra futon or something.
Akira smiled to himself. Although a lot of things had changed in the past week, Yuu still stood up for him.
~
Akira walked out of the school, rubbing his face and looking around to see if he could spot Yuu. He had slept in his last class as well, but somehow he was still tired, and the week had only just started. He flinched when he heard a familiar voice right behind him, turning around and coming face to face with Takanori. “I didn't see you at lunch.”
“I was sleeping. Were you looking for me?”
Takanori raised a brow. “You should sleep at night, Suzuki, rather than sneaking into other people's houses.”
“I wasn't sneaking. Your mum invited me in.”
“At six am. Not exactly the most common time of day to come for tea.”
“Well I'm sorry that I'm not masochistic enough to want my father to beat the living shit out of me.”
“Then why did you provoke him in the first place?”
“I'm not gay.” The answer came so quickly that it startled them both, Takanori staring wide-eyed at him for a long moment before furrowing his brows.
“I never said you were.” Akira didn't reply, just turned around to avoid Takanori's piercing stare, but the stupid midget didn't give up. He walked around Akira to stand in front of him, crossing his arms over his chest. “People only defend themselves when they have something to defend.”
“Fuck you, I'm not gay.”
“You keep saying that. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“Hey, Aki!” Akira let out a relieved sigh as Yuu walked up to them. If Yuu could shut Takanori up, then he was more than welcome. “My parents will be here in five minutes, should we stop by the conbini before going home?”
“No thanks, I don't need anything.” He was pretty sure he still had a toothbrush at Yuu's place, if his mother hadn't thrown it out.
“Home?” Takanori grabbed Akira's arm, pouting up at him, and Akira had to force himself not to swat him off like a fly. “My darling is sleeping at another man's house tonight?”
“Wouldn't want to bother your poor mom any more.” Ruffling Takanori's hair, Akira turned around to leave, but Takanori pulled on his sleeve, turning him around and wrapping his arms around his neck.
“How about a goodbye kiss before you leave, then?” Akira wanted to slap him so bad, but he restrained himself. Rolling his eyes, he bent down and pecked Takanori's lips quickly, not missing how Yuu averted his gaze. Apparently satisfied, Takanori grinned and waved at him as he started walking to his bus.
“Fuck, that must be disgusting,” Yuu said as soon as Takanori was out of hearing range. “I have no idea how you put up with that.” Akira simply shrugged. “Well, should we get going?”
~
“You're not eating, darling.” Akira sighed and picked up his chopsticks, poking them around in the bento box Yuu's mother had made for him. They had been up almost all night playing video games, and it had been refreshing for Akira to have a night where he could pretend everything was normal. But inevitably, morning had come, and they had been shooed off to school. And if Akira thought he was going to get another lunch break without the annoying little midget, he was sorely mistaken.
“I'm not that hungry.”
“My hubby should eat more. If you don't eat your lunch, your blood sugar will be low and it will be difficult for you to pay attention in class. You want good grades, don't you?” Akira didn't want to see Takanori's smirk. He knew it was there, but if he didn't see it, he could pretend it wasn't.
“I need to talk to you after school.”
Takanori looked surprised for a second, but then he hid it behind another infuriating smirk. “Oh, honey, you don't need to lie. I know you just want to spend more time with me.” Takanori got off the bench just to sit in Akira's lap, starting to play with his hair. Akira resisted the urge to hit him. “You can come home with me, and we can do our homework together, sound good?”
For lack of any better option, Akira agreed, frowning when Takanori took his chopsticks, picking up a lump of rice and bringing it up to Akira's lips.
“Say 'aah'.”
~
Akira threw his backpack on Takanori's futon, turning around to glare at him. Takanori shook his head with a small grin. “You look like someone just stained your favourite shirt.”
“I look like I'm about to murder someone,” Akira corrected with a huff.
“Oh, I'm sorry, did I wound your masculinity? Would being annoyed by a stained shirt be too homosexual for you?” Before Akira had the chance to defend himself, Takanori waved his hand dismissively. “You said you needed to talk. Talk.”
Pursing his lips, Akira tried to think of a way to persuade Takanori to come with him on Friday. Easier said than done. Akira wouldn't be very eager to spend an entire evening with a bunch of people who hated him, either. He wouldn't blame Takanori for saying no. But then again, hopefully he would understand that if he didn't agree, Akira would be in trouble. “I need a favour.”
“Another one? Last time you asked me that, you ended up in quite the mess.” Takanori's sarcasm may have been there, but his annoying grin wasn't. It took Akira a while to realise that Takanori understood that he wasn't kidding around. He may be a dick, but he knew when to be serious, Akira would give him that.
“We're invited to a party on Friday night.” Out of the corner of his eye, Akira saw Takanori crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes. “At Kouyou's.”
Takanori shifted uncomfortably, glaring at Akira with suspicion and fear. “The hell do you mean 'we'? Last time I checked, he hated me and wanted me as far away from him as possible.”
“Well, I'm invited and he told me to bring you as my date.” Akira winced as Takanori growled and took a step forward, staring him down.
“What did you tell him?”
Akira's mouth narrowed to a line, and he stared unblinkingly at the wall. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”
“From what you're telling me, he knows we're a couple, and he is still your friend. Considering this is the same guy who sent you threats just for kissing me, I find it just a little bit hard to believe that he simply accepted the fact that you're gay. So I'll ask again, how did you pull that off?”
Several minutes passed, during which neither of them said anything. Takanori was staring at Akira with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer, while Akira stared at the wall. Eventually, Akira gave up and simply sighed, shaking his head. “Look, do whatever you want, but I have to show up, with or without you.”
Takanori chewed on his lip for a second before he unfolded his arms, picking Akira's backpack up and fishing out his maths book. “I'm coming.”
Akira snapped his head up to stare at Takanori in utter disbelief, Takanori handing him the textbook as if nothing was wrong. “Just like that?”
“You'll be in trouble if you come alone, right?” Akira nodded, and Takanori took a deep breath. “I may not like you, but I don't want you to end up I the hospital. I would feel bad annoying you if half your face was bandaged. Besides, I'm pretty confident neither Kouyou nor Yuu would try to touch me, and even if they did, I'll have you there to protect me.”
Bowing his head, Akira's voice was one of relief and gratitude. “Thank you.”
Takanori gave a satisfied smirk, adjusting his glasses and brushing a strand of hair behind his ear. “Now, let's do your homework.”
A/N: Didn't expect that, didya?
Chapter: 8/?
Author: socialriotbitch
Pairing: ReitaxRuki
Genre: AU, high school, humor
Rating: PG-13 (for now, though will be NC-17 in later chapters)
Warnings: MxM kissing, homophobia, loads of swearing (for now)
Summary: Everyone thought Suzuki Akira was the luckiest guy in the world.
Except Akira himself.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Comment: I have a lot of free time lately, so I'm trying to write more often. BatG is coming along nicely, I have most of the following chapters planned out in my head. Fingers crossed!
“You're late, Matsumoto.” Takanori looked up and sent the teacher an angry glare, and he furrowed his brows. “Just go find your seat and be quiet, please.” Takanori nodded and hoisted his backpack higher up. Feeling the stares of his classmates, he slumped further and walked slowly to his desk, ignoring the hushed whispers from the back.
He didn't really pay attention to the teacher. No matter how hard he tried to avoid thinking about it, he was constantly reminded of Akira, and it made his gut churn. Had he gone too far? Teasing him was one thing, but calling him a whore? He might have stepped out of line, but then Takanori remembered what had happened earlier and the anger was back.
That Akira would have the balls to lie to Takanori just like that... Takanori wasn't stupid. He had seen Akira in the lunch break, “hanging out” with Yuu and Kouyou, and it made him wonder, were they even mad at him at all?
The text messages they had sent to Akira in the weekend, they had been real. Takanori knew that, and he also knew that Akira had been genuinely scared to meet them, but now it seemed ridiculous. Had they simply forgiven him? Impossible. So, Takanori concluded, either they were trying to fool Akira, or they were trying to fool him.
And if it was Takanori they were after, that meant Akira couldn't be trusted. Most likely, they had some sort of plan, and whether they had told Akira or not, it couldn't be good news for Takanori. Those two were never good news. Either way, the smartest thing for now would be to just lay low, try to find out what they had up their sleeve, and avoid any possible scheme of theirs.
Then again, there was also the possibility that they actually believed Akira was still straight. Who knows, maybe Akira had managed to convince them? It wasn't unthinkable. They were stupid enough to believe something like that if he said it, but if that was the case, then there was a perfect counter for it.
Takanori grinned to himself, raising his head again to try to seriously pay attention. If Yuu and Kouyou genuinely believed Akira was straight, then all Takanori had to do was convince them of the opposite, even if it meant making out with Akira on national TV. Nobody could spoil this for him now.
~
It was five am when Akira eased his bedroom door open, peeking left and right before he tiptoed out of his room. Backpack hanging off his shoulder, he made his way down the stairs as silently as he could, stopping abruptly as one of the steps creaked, holding his breath and listening for any sounds from his parents' room. The silence remained unbroken, and he heaved a sigh of relief, continuing out the main door, locking it behind him as quietly as possible.
Once his feet hit the pavement outside, he took off in a sprint, running as fast as he could until he was far away from his house, not stopping until he reached a small park. He slipped in and fell down on the nearest bench with a heavy thud, panting heavily as he caught his breath.
His father was pissed. That was obvious enough. Where the hell should he go now? Not home. Not to Yuu's or Kouyou's. Which left only one option, and although it was a long shot, Akira was willing to risk it.
It was almost six in the morning when he reached his destination, and he was surprised to find that the lights were on already. He rang the doorbell and waited, bowing deeply when Takanori's mother appeared in the door, looking confused as ever.
“Akira-kun, what are you doing here at this time of day?” She smiled sweetly, and Akira noticed that she was already wearing her work clothes. He wondered briefly just how early she had to get up in the morning.
“My father is mad at me,” Akira said and bowed once more for good measure. A pitiful frown appeared on miss Matsumoto's features, and Akira wished it would go away. “I don't want to be there when he wakes up.”
“Well, come on in, don't stand there in the cold like an idiot!” Akira thanked her and followed her to the kitchen, taking a seat and yawning loudly, rubbing his tired face. “Did you get any dinner?”
Akira's stomach growled at the mention of food, and he hung his head in defeat as he realised that he hadn't eaten anything in over twelve hours. He shook his head, to which Takanori's mother clucked her tongue and went to look in the fridge.
“Well then you must be starving, poor thing! I'll make you some breakfast, how does omelette sound?”
Thus, when Takanori entered the kitchen almost an hour later, Akira was stuffing his face full of delicious, home-made omelette, happily chatting with his mother about some TV series. Needless to say, he froze in the door with an expression somewhere between disbelief and confusion, pointing an accusing finger at the still eating Akira.
“What are you doing here?”
Akira shrugged and swallowed down a mouthful. “Good morning to you too.”
Takanori's frown increased, and he was gripping the doorframe so tight his knuckles were turning white. “What are you doing here?”
“Eating breakfast. It's delicious, want some?” Akira nodded towards his plate, Takanori shaking his head. “What's the matter, sweetheart, aren't you happy to see me here?”
“His father was mad at him, so he came here in the grey of the morning, cold and hungry,” Takanori's mother supplied, completely oblivious to Akira's sarcasm. “I'll make bento boxes for the two of you, and then you can take the bus together.” She turned to Akira next, a concerned expression on her soft features. “And Akira-kun, if you don't want to go home tonight, you're more than welcome to stay here.”
She didn't see the furious glare Takanori sent her way as Akira bowed his head and thanked her.
~
“What happened?” The bus ride had been awkwardly quiet so far, Akira staring out the window and Takanori tapping his foot. He was chewing his lip and staring at the ground as if he was deep in thought, and Akira almost didn't register that he had said anything at all.
There was no point in lying to Takanori, so he didn't. For a moment, he thought that maybe, he would tell Takanori anyway just to have someone to talk to, but that sounded weak, and Akira wasn't weak. He just didn't feel like he could come up with any more lies in such a short matter of time. “My parents asked if I had been at a girl's place this weekend, and if I had used condoms.”
“I swear, if you told them you have a boyfriend-”
“I didn't.” Akira ignored the glare Takanori sent for interrupting him, sighing heavily as he chewed on his words. “I asked them what difference it made if I fucked a girl or a guy.”
“I didn't take you for an idiot, Suzuki. It seems I overestimated you.” Even through the spiteful words, Akira sensed the concern.
“I'm not an idiot.”
“Then why did you insinuate to your homophobic, straight-A parents that you might be bi? That's not exactly what I would call a smart move.”
Akira snapped his next words with such aggravation that even Takanori shut up. “I know that!” He took a deep breath, realising he shouldn't be yelling on a bus. “I don't know why I said that.”
“Why did you, then?” Takanori sounded reasonably irritated himself, and his knee was shaking so fast Akira clasped his hand over it to keep it still. Both he and Takanori stared at the hand, until Akira awkwardly placed it back in his own lap. “You are straight, right?”
“Of course.” Akira placed his elbow on the windowsill and rested his chin in his hand, looking out of the window. It had taken a lot of contemplation, but Akira had eventually figured out why he had pissed off his father like that. Somewhere deep inside he had doubted what Takanori and Yutaka had told him. He didn't think they would lie to him, but at the same time he didn't believe that someone would leave their own family over something like their son's sexuality. Sure, he understood that it was a big deal for people like Kouyou and Yuu, but everything was a big deal to them. They took everything they could use against someone and bullied them for it, no matter how small or insignificant that thing was.
Parents, however, were different. Akira always imagined they'd love their kids enough to look past minor things like that, so when he found out that Takanori's father had left both his son and his wife because Taka was gay, it had seemed unlikely to Akira at first. If you really loved someone, would you give them up over something stupid like that?
So maybe what he did yesterday had been his own little experiment. Sure, he knew his parents didn't care much about him anyway, but they didn't usually yell at him, or cause a scene at dinner. The amount of disgust he had seen on his father's face had scared Akira. He couldn't remember seeing him that angry since the last time he failed a test. And it had prompted him to ask the question; why? Why would he get so mad just because Akira was fucking a guy? No, he wasn't gay, and he didn't want to have sex with a man. The thought made him want to puke, but Takanori wasn't a horrible guy. Even if Akira didn't want to fuck him, it didn't mean he automatically hated Takanori just because he liked men. It made no sense and had no purpose, so Akira didn't understand it.
He wanted to understand. He wanted to understand how it was possible to hate someone so passionately for who they loved, but all he had achieved was piss his father off. He didn't understand any more than he did yesterday, but at least now he knew it was possible. For a brief second, he pitied Takanori, but it didn't last long.
The bus pulled to a halt, and Takanori jumped out of his seat. “See you later.” Before Akira could even reply, Takanori was out of the bus and on his way to school already, and all he could do was take his backpack and follow in the same direction.
~
Akira jumped in his seat when his phone vibrated in his pocket. Shit, did he fall asleep? He looked around the empty classroom, before his gaze stopped at the clock. He narrowed his eyes to see the time, yawning and stretching his arms, hearing the satisfying snap in his joints. He had slept through half of class and most of the lunch break, and for a moment he wondered if his teacher hadn't seen him, but he knew she must have. His Japanese teacher was a young woman who had a soft spot for Akira, and he didn't doubt that she preferred to just let him sleep rather than waking him up.
He fished his phone out of his pocket and checked his messages, frowning at the screen. His mother was warning him not to come home. His father was still pissed, and she thought it was better if Akira gave him some time to cool down. Great, that meant Akira had no place to sleep tonight. Sure, Takanori's mother had offered, but he would be damned if he stayed there any longer than he had to. Especially since Takanori seemed to be in a bad mood today.
Rolling his eyes, Akira started typing a message to Yuu. Yuu's family didn't seem to mind him, and after all, Yuu was still his friend, right? Akira shook his head and sighed at himself. Of course he was. Even with everything that had been going on lately, both Yuu and Kouyou were still his friends, as they had been since elementary school. They knew that Akira's relationship with his parents was strained, and probably wouldn't think too much of it if Akira said he had ended up in an argument with his father and didn't want to come home. It wouldn't be the first time.
Akira pressed the send button and tapped his fingers on the desk. Only a couple of seconds after he had sent the text, his phone buzzed with a reply.
24/03, 12:04
From: Yuu
No problem. I'll just pull out an extra futon or something.
Akira smiled to himself. Although a lot of things had changed in the past week, Yuu still stood up for him.
~
Akira walked out of the school, rubbing his face and looking around to see if he could spot Yuu. He had slept in his last class as well, but somehow he was still tired, and the week had only just started. He flinched when he heard a familiar voice right behind him, turning around and coming face to face with Takanori. “I didn't see you at lunch.”
“I was sleeping. Were you looking for me?”
Takanori raised a brow. “You should sleep at night, Suzuki, rather than sneaking into other people's houses.”
“I wasn't sneaking. Your mum invited me in.”
“At six am. Not exactly the most common time of day to come for tea.”
“Well I'm sorry that I'm not masochistic enough to want my father to beat the living shit out of me.”
“Then why did you provoke him in the first place?”
“I'm not gay.” The answer came so quickly that it startled them both, Takanori staring wide-eyed at him for a long moment before furrowing his brows.
“I never said you were.” Akira didn't reply, just turned around to avoid Takanori's piercing stare, but the stupid midget didn't give up. He walked around Akira to stand in front of him, crossing his arms over his chest. “People only defend themselves when they have something to defend.”
“Fuck you, I'm not gay.”
“You keep saying that. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“Hey, Aki!” Akira let out a relieved sigh as Yuu walked up to them. If Yuu could shut Takanori up, then he was more than welcome. “My parents will be here in five minutes, should we stop by the conbini before going home?”
“No thanks, I don't need anything.” He was pretty sure he still had a toothbrush at Yuu's place, if his mother hadn't thrown it out.
“Home?” Takanori grabbed Akira's arm, pouting up at him, and Akira had to force himself not to swat him off like a fly. “My darling is sleeping at another man's house tonight?”
“Wouldn't want to bother your poor mom any more.” Ruffling Takanori's hair, Akira turned around to leave, but Takanori pulled on his sleeve, turning him around and wrapping his arms around his neck.
“How about a goodbye kiss before you leave, then?” Akira wanted to slap him so bad, but he restrained himself. Rolling his eyes, he bent down and pecked Takanori's lips quickly, not missing how Yuu averted his gaze. Apparently satisfied, Takanori grinned and waved at him as he started walking to his bus.
“Fuck, that must be disgusting,” Yuu said as soon as Takanori was out of hearing range. “I have no idea how you put up with that.” Akira simply shrugged. “Well, should we get going?”
~
“You're not eating, darling.” Akira sighed and picked up his chopsticks, poking them around in the bento box Yuu's mother had made for him. They had been up almost all night playing video games, and it had been refreshing for Akira to have a night where he could pretend everything was normal. But inevitably, morning had come, and they had been shooed off to school. And if Akira thought he was going to get another lunch break without the annoying little midget, he was sorely mistaken.
“I'm not that hungry.”
“My hubby should eat more. If you don't eat your lunch, your blood sugar will be low and it will be difficult for you to pay attention in class. You want good grades, don't you?” Akira didn't want to see Takanori's smirk. He knew it was there, but if he didn't see it, he could pretend it wasn't.
“I need to talk to you after school.”
Takanori looked surprised for a second, but then he hid it behind another infuriating smirk. “Oh, honey, you don't need to lie. I know you just want to spend more time with me.” Takanori got off the bench just to sit in Akira's lap, starting to play with his hair. Akira resisted the urge to hit him. “You can come home with me, and we can do our homework together, sound good?”
For lack of any better option, Akira agreed, frowning when Takanori took his chopsticks, picking up a lump of rice and bringing it up to Akira's lips.
“Say 'aah'.”
~
Akira threw his backpack on Takanori's futon, turning around to glare at him. Takanori shook his head with a small grin. “You look like someone just stained your favourite shirt.”
“I look like I'm about to murder someone,” Akira corrected with a huff.
“Oh, I'm sorry, did I wound your masculinity? Would being annoyed by a stained shirt be too homosexual for you?” Before Akira had the chance to defend himself, Takanori waved his hand dismissively. “You said you needed to talk. Talk.”
Pursing his lips, Akira tried to think of a way to persuade Takanori to come with him on Friday. Easier said than done. Akira wouldn't be very eager to spend an entire evening with a bunch of people who hated him, either. He wouldn't blame Takanori for saying no. But then again, hopefully he would understand that if he didn't agree, Akira would be in trouble. “I need a favour.”
“Another one? Last time you asked me that, you ended up in quite the mess.” Takanori's sarcasm may have been there, but his annoying grin wasn't. It took Akira a while to realise that Takanori understood that he wasn't kidding around. He may be a dick, but he knew when to be serious, Akira would give him that.
“We're invited to a party on Friday night.” Out of the corner of his eye, Akira saw Takanori crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes. “At Kouyou's.”
Takanori shifted uncomfortably, glaring at Akira with suspicion and fear. “The hell do you mean 'we'? Last time I checked, he hated me and wanted me as far away from him as possible.”
“Well, I'm invited and he told me to bring you as my date.” Akira winced as Takanori growled and took a step forward, staring him down.
“What did you tell him?”
Akira's mouth narrowed to a line, and he stared unblinkingly at the wall. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”
“From what you're telling me, he knows we're a couple, and he is still your friend. Considering this is the same guy who sent you threats just for kissing me, I find it just a little bit hard to believe that he simply accepted the fact that you're gay. So I'll ask again, how did you pull that off?”
Several minutes passed, during which neither of them said anything. Takanori was staring at Akira with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer, while Akira stared at the wall. Eventually, Akira gave up and simply sighed, shaking his head. “Look, do whatever you want, but I have to show up, with or without you.”
Takanori chewed on his lip for a second before he unfolded his arms, picking Akira's backpack up and fishing out his maths book. “I'm coming.”
Akira snapped his head up to stare at Takanori in utter disbelief, Takanori handing him the textbook as if nothing was wrong. “Just like that?”
“You'll be in trouble if you come alone, right?” Akira nodded, and Takanori took a deep breath. “I may not like you, but I don't want you to end up I the hospital. I would feel bad annoying you if half your face was bandaged. Besides, I'm pretty confident neither Kouyou nor Yuu would try to touch me, and even if they did, I'll have you there to protect me.”
Bowing his head, Akira's voice was one of relief and gratitude. “Thank you.”
Takanori gave a satisfied smirk, adjusting his glasses and brushing a strand of hair behind his ear. “Now, let's do your homework.”
A/N: Didn't expect that, didya?