the suns glare on soubi's large glasses blocked kyo's view of his friends eyes.

"soubi... why are you so cold?" kyo thought to himself. he figited alittle as he tried to invision the expression on soubi's visiage.

"stay still!" he demanded behind the canvas. He had been painting,looking down at the canvas, for so long that, Kyo was shocked that he even noticed the movement.

"uh... sorry..." soubi didnt respond. kyo began to get frustraited. it was getting late and he knew that his friend wasnt even acknowledging him but his body.

minutes passed slowly as soubi finally began to show signs of life. he poped his head up, like he was coming up for a breath. "kyo."

"yeah!" kyo said exitedly.

"tilt your head a bit." he said getting up and walking tward kyo. kyo's face lit up but then kyo turned and picked up the pack of ciggeretts on the table next to kyo.

"you moved out of the position i put you in" he said with the ciggerette in his mouth. then he walked back to his seat behind the large painting surface.

"oh..."he said a little dissapointed. he did so. "danmit soubi. your so hard to reach. why? is it that boy... ritsuka...? do you think of him only now?

before you were so cold... but now your just distant.!" kyo thought.

"kyo..."

the subject responded nonchallant." yeah?"

"you keep making sour faces."

"well maybe if you'd show me some feeling... " kyo thought out loud.

"what?" soubi asked.

"show me some feeling. some feeling! talk to me! arent we friends? you never tell me anything... do you even still like me?..." kyo's face began to burn. "you are arent you?-second guesing me to that little kid..." to kyo's shock, soubi's response had nothing to do with what he believed.

"like you?" soubi said agravated. "shut up. your ruining the portrait."

"...your so cold..." kyo wispered.

the rest of the night soubi kept painting. it had gone far past the point that he needed a subject to paint. he had gotten the outline, and filled in general colors. it was calm hues. light purple, and bright sky blue.

"if your so agravated at me then why don't you leave?" Soubi retorted. Kio wasnt even shocked that the man had heard him. He just responded by resting his head on the back of his hand and looking out of the classroom window into the night sky.

"why...?..." his voice trailed off some. Why indeed didnt he just leave there. What was he hoping would happen? He'd already lost his friend to a little boy. So why did he pose naked for this man? Why did he bare all for a painting by someone so secretive... so distant and morbid. Soubi was never one to show his feelings. never was. Suddenly soubi's cell phone rang, bringing kio out of his thoughts. He looked over to the table next to him where soubi's phone set, atop a pack of soubi's smokes. The younge man's curiosity took the best of him. "of coarse" he thought as he read the name of the caller that had appeared on the screen "its him..." ritsuka was calling.

"it's not nice to snoop" the sudden closeness of the voice frightened him. When had soubi-san gotten up from behind the canvas?
Soubi reached out his long rough fingers out for his phone. as he awnsered he breathed in his cigarette. "hello?" his face seemed to fill with mixed emotion. "sorry not tonight" then he said the child's name so lovingly, that it seemed the man before kio was antagonizing him. "good night" then he hung up, closed the phone and placed it gentally next to his smokes.

"you shouldnt have done that"

"its none of your buisness"

"why- how did your hands get all roughed up? What do you do when your with ritsuka! he still has his ears right?" kio was begining to get anxious. soubi made a sound that resembled a groul of a wild animal, and jumped at kio, starteling him almost knocking him out of the chair he had posed in moments ago.

"what are you my wife?"

soubi's face was so close to kio's that he could see his own reflection amongst soubi's angry eyes, in the glasses he wore. the persuer calmed some. Hot breath engulfed kio's face as his soubi spoke his frustrated words, so close he could almost taste them as they formed. i know im not- sociable. nobody likes me... no more like... everyone frears me?" soubi slumped some, leaning his head on kio's shoulder. it felt as if his silence was speaking: telling kio of his hidden pain. "umm..." kio hesitated. his hand almost instinctivlyreached up to the head resting on his shoulder, and started running his hand through the man's long blond hair. "its... alright" soubi shook his head on kio's sholder. "you have ritsuka..." soubi shook his head again.

"even he" soubi started to speak "doesnt know what to make of me. soubi wispered the last sentance again. a quiet ecco. "he doesnt know what to make of me... he fears me."

"sou-chan"

soubi then looked up at kio, frustrated tears filling his eyes. Kio gentally lifted soubi's glasses off, so they wouldnt get smeared with the tears he saw were coming. "danmit" soubi sobbed as he let the tears fall. it was so unlike him to accept his emotions like that. it almost hurt. "soubi..." kio wispered the name. kio then gentally kissed the lips of the frail man. he counted to five ... slowly. he took in the warmth and smell of soubi. he smelled of cigarettes.

hours pass. soubi back behind the canvas. painting the backside of kio. gentle colors fill his tatoo. he runs the paintbrush over each curve so caresingly. he snuck a peek over the canvas, at the real kio's back. kio was facing the other wall.

"kio?"

"yeah?"

hearing his voice brought back the memory of that kiss agrivated him. he was overjoyed when ritsuka's kissed were shared with him. but kio's were different. maybe because kio wasnt a virgin, more expirianced. although his kiss wasnt r-rated, but passionate.

he continued to paint flustered, his face burning red. "i have the general shape and colors. you can go home. i'll show you tomarrow."

"ok"

kio got dressed . slowly, for he knew the eyes that were watching him from behind the canvas had suddenly seen beauity in him. if invoked by the kiss from earlier.

when he left he didnt say goodbye. he felt that if he did soubi would forget all that had happened hours before.