Disclaimer: I own nothing, I make no money ... etc.

A/N: Yay for a new Taito! This story idea came out of the blue, and I thought that I'd try it for size. I'm so excited to start a brand new story, and I ask for you all to review. Especially if you find some sort of fault with this first chapter – you should let me know!

Mild Misunderstandings

Chapter One: The Interview

"Um ... I guess your resume looks pretty good."

"Yes ... "

"So these references – any of them old roommates or something?"

I pointed to the name Takeru Takashi. "He's my roommate right now. But ... he's kind of my brother, so I don't know if you'd ... "

He nodded and skimmed through the others. "Who's this?" He tapped on the next name down.

"That's my boss."

"Hmm." He sighed and looked up at me. "Are you into any sports?

I shook my head slowly. "No, sir."

He raised an eyebrow, clearly disapproving, and I mentally kicked myself. He had posters of famous athletes and a jersey on the wall of the living room. Couldn't I have just lied and said I played a little?

"I mean, I used to play a bit of baseball when I was a kid."

His dark brown eyes were focused on my resume, and I could tell he wasn't paying attention to what I was saying at all.

There was silence in the room, and I took the opportunity to look around. The apartment was fucking huge, a lot bigger than the place I lived in at the time. The kitchen was big enough to put a large table in without any trouble. The living room was nicely sized, too, with a long couch and a small chair. I glanced down the hall at the bedroom doors and the small bathroom. It was definitely a place I'd enjoy living in.

"I love cooking, too," I decided to say, and it successfully caught his interest. "My dad taught me how to cook medium-rare stake, shake-and-bake chicken ... you name it."

"Really?"

I nodded.

He smiled to himself as he wrote something down in his notepad. "Oh, so you have a job?"

"Yeah. I work part-time at a bar downtown with a good friend of mine."

"So, you're nineteen?"

I shook my head. "I turn nineteen in December."

"Friends with the owner?"

I get that question a lot. The legal age in town was nineteen, but the owner of the bar, Kuro, was a really old friend of mine. We grew up on the same street together. Being seven years older than me, he played the role of my older brother for a while.

I nodded at Taichi.

"I'll bet the tips are good."

I laughed. "They are. I only work four shifts a week, but I have too much money to handle."

He nodded and wrote something else down. I was becoming a little too excited for my own good. The interview was going awesome, and there was something inside my mind telling me I was going to get it.

I was finally going to get a place to live.

"So, do you wanna see the bedroom?"

"Yeah, please."

He stood up and led the way. He opened the door and revealed the empty room. Dark blue was painted on the walls, old white carpet was laid on the floor, plus a small window was on only one wall.

But it was a lot better than the room I had at the time.

"I hope you don't mind buying your own furniture."

"That's what I was expecting," I replied.

He smiled. "All right. The rent isn't too bad, I promise. But you might have to buy some groceries."

"Okay."

I was trying to be a polite as possible. Usually I'm pretty laid back – that's what my friends tell me, anyway – but I really wanted this apartment.

"Then I think we're done. By the way, you don't have any medical conditions I should know about, do you?"

"Nope."

"Anything else?"

I pondered and sighed. "I'm a smoker ... "

"That's fine. You can stand on the balcony and smoke."

I was drawn back. "There's a balcony?"

"Yep."

The apartment was becoming more and more appealing to me. I wanted more than anything for him to choose me as his roommate. What wasn't there to like about me? I made good money, I could cook him food, and I could keep the place tidy.

"I'll give you a call, okay?" he said, opening the door for me.

"Yeah," I replied, offering a smile.

The interview, overall, was completely awesome. I was positive he'd give it to me.

But I guess what I should have told Taichi Yagami, though, was that I'm gay.

- - - - - - -

"How was it?"

I wordlessly threw my keys on the coffee table next to the door.

"Well?"

"C'mon, Mattie, tell us."

"Don't call me Mattie," I complained to Daisuke, who was lying on my couch with Takeru.

He shrugged.

Takeru, sitting on Daisuke's legs and skimming through the television with a remote, sighed with frustration. "Matt, just tell me how it went."

I nodded slowly, entering the kitchen. "Um ... fine, I guess."

"Who was it?" Dai asked.

"You wouldn't know him."

"Will you be moving out?" Takeru asked me with hope.

I ignored them and dug through the fridge. Takeru had been impatiently waiting for me to find a new place so Daisuke, his boyfriend, could move in. I wasn't too shaken up about it – the apartment was pretty shitty.

Dai groaned. "Maaaaaatt!"

"What?"

He didn't reply, but I knew what he wanted to know.

"The interview went fine. I really think he's gonna call me soon." I pulled out a frozen pizza and a bottle of soda.

"Really?" Takeru was facing me. "He didn't mind that you're gay or anything?"

"Uh ... no, not really, he just ... "

The blond threw his head back. "Fuck, Matt, you didn't even tell him?"

"Well, I ... "

Daisuke threw his hands in the air. "Are you serious? Matt, you're such a nervous wreck. I don't think you'll ever move out of here."

"Did you tell him about your job?" Takeru asked.

"Yeah."

"And about your cooking?"

"Uh-huh."

He smiled. "Then you'll probably get it. Honestly, though, when he calls you, you have to tell him."

"What happens if I don't?"

Takeru shook his head. "Don't even think about it."

"Well, he might just forget about accepting me," I argued. "It was a sweet place, Takeru. He doesn't even care that I smoke or anything."

Daisuke nodded. "That's a good deal. Did you tell him you smoke joints and not cigarettes?"

"No, obviously not."

"That's not a big deal," Takeru said. "But not telling him you're gay is, you fucking moron."

I snorted. "Don't swear at me, Takeru."

"Yeah, TK," Daisuke added playfully, and Takeru smiled at him. Then Dai turned to me. "We're going to a movie tonight, so you've got the place by yourself."

"All right. I'll probably have Mimi over or something."

"Riku called," Takeru said, and I completely froze.

I felt my stomach drop after a few seconds. "What? W ... what did he want?"

"Said to tell you to call him back."

I laughed to myself. "Well he can take his words and shove it straight up his ass. I am not gonna call him back, and I never will. He can wait all fucking day around his phone, for all I care."

"Yeah ... right."

I turned sharply and faced Daisuke. "What do you mean?"

"Admit it, Mattie, you're flattered."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes," Takeru said, his eyes on the television, "you are."

Ignoring the two, I picked up the kitchen phone and dialled a familiar number. The couple immediately looked at me with knowing looks, and I glared at them angrily.

"I'm calling Mimi," I told them, and they groaned and returned to the TV, suddenly uninterested.

- - - - - - -

The downtown area was always empty on Tuesdays. I was sitting on a bench beside some skateboarding store when Mimi came walking down the sidewalk. She spotted me and waved enthusiastically.

"How'd it go?" she asked, stealing my ice cream cone and taking a bite.

I snatched it back from her. "How'd what go?"

"The apartment thing," she replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh." I sighed. "That. It went okay, I guess."

"What was the name again?"

I shifted uncomfortably. "Taichi. Taichi Yagami."

She eyed me, surprised. "A male, by any chance?"

"Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean anything romantic's going on. Besides, he doesn't even know I'm gay."

Mimi's face quickly switched from surprised to angry. "What?!"

"What?"

"Yamato, you didn't tell him you're gay?"

"No, why would it matter?"

"Because!" she shrieked. "How do you think he'll feel once you're all moved in and suddenly he finds out? It's better he knows now. What if he's gay, too?"

I snorted. "Mimi, he's not gay. I could tell."

"It's like having a boy and a girl living together without them dating. It's weird, don't you think?"

"No ... "

She shrugged. "Whatever. Don't blame me when you get kicked out."

"He won't kick me out."

I wanted to change the subject. Mimi would probably lecture me for hours, so I decided to say, "Guess who called me?"

"What? Who?"

I hesitated. "Riku."

Her jaw dropped. "What did he want?"

"I don't know. Takeru took a message for me. It makes me fucking mad, since I know what he's gonna say."

"I wonder when he'll give it up."

I rolled my eyes. "Probably never. I'm sorry, Riku, but if you cheat on me and crawl back, I'm not going to take you back. What a dumbass."

"Well, your bitterness certainly hasn't gone down any."

"Why should it?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, Yamato. It's been a year since then, and he seems ... "

"I'm not forgiving him."

"He might have changed."

"I doubt it. Mimi, we dated for two years, and during that time he slept with four people. Four! Do you know how insulting that is?"

She was eyeing the store across the street with a knowing look. "If I didn't know any better ... I'd say you still had feelings for him."

"I don't," I immediately replied, as if a reflex. "I still have feelings for the relationship we had."

"Listen, Matt, I think you need to move on. If you don't, I don't think you'll ever really get over him."

"I can't just date anyone. I don't believe in looking for relationships. I think the relationship should come to you."

She smirked. "It's people like you who keep people like me single for some weird reason."

- - - - - - -

Even though Takeru wasn't home, Daisuke was at the apartment, digging through our fridge. I just rolled my eyes at him when I walked through the door.

"God, you're like a stray cat."

He shrugged at me. "What?"

I didn't reply and dropped myself onto the couch.

"Rough day?"

Again, I didn't say anything.

"You know, Matt, I can see right through you sometimes," he said randomly, and I just looked at him. "Like, how I can tell you've probably been thinking about Riku for the past forty-eight hours. Face it, Mattie, you're not over him. Why don't you give him a call?"

" 'Cause I don't wanna."

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, you do."

"He'll probably just ... convince me to ... "

As my voice trailed off, the telephone rang. Daisuke answered it, twisting the cord in his finger. I swear, it was like he already lived there.

"Oh? Yamato?" He looked at me. "Mattie, whoever's calling, it kind of sounds like Riku."

I panicked. "What?"

He shrugged as I jumped up from the couch, unsure of what to do. I grabbed the phone from him, breathing in deeply and, finally, answering the phone.

"Hey, Yamato."

That didn't sound like Riku ...

"It's Taichi, from the apartment."

Weight was immediately lifted from my shoulders. "Oh! Taichi." I hit Daisuke's chest as hard as I could. "What's going on?"

"Uh, well, I'm just looking over your resume, and it pretty much matches what kind of roommate I'm looking for. You're still interested, right?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Cool."

Daisuke was looking at me expectedly, and I turned my back on him.

"So, when can you move your stuff in?"

I shrugged. "Whenever you want me to, I guess."

"All right. How about on Friday?"

"Sounds great."

"All right. And I noticed you were acting a little weird at the interview – you're sure there's nothing I should know about, right?"

"Anything you should know about?" I repeated absentmindedly. Daisuke glared at me, mouthing something I couldn't make out. Smiling, I covered his mouth with my hand and replied, "Nope. Nothing I can think of, anyway."