If Ritsu ever found himself in need of a quick pick-me-up, all he needed to do was simply say "curry" to Shou and watch the grimace form. In all honesty, it was his own fault, and Ritsu would remind him until the day they died.

The flame-haired kid's educational background was, for the most part, unknown. Would that stop him from interfering with his best friend's education though?

"Like hell."

"Ritsu, quit pansyin' out on me!" Shou floated upside-down in front of his dark-haired friend, who tried - hopelessly - to fill the page with text. "This metal concert is going to be amazing! What's stopping you?" Ritsu's sharp glare could've cut glass, but Shou had long since grown used to the surprisingly murderous expressions his friend could make.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe… my homework? Have a little consideration, you ingrate." He pushed Shou up and away from his desk so he could continue writing. He wrote all of two words before the kid slumped against his back.

"Ritsuuuuu, why're you so booooring?"

A little more than just the tip of his pencil snapped against the desk, and he bit his lip in a desperate attempt to control his anger. Good things come to those who wait, Ritsu told himself, and with a sigh he turned to Shou.

"I WOULD try to use the argument that you're probably too young to get into that concert, but I know sneaking into inaccessible places is not beneath you," he pointed out, and received a hearty laugh in return.

"You know me too well!" Shou floated in the air and crossed his legs and arms, eyes closed in deep thought. "But what can I do to convince you to come? Say the word, and I'll do it!"

At this point, Ritsu almost felt bad for him. All the same, he didn't care much for music or illegal breaking-and-entering, but the offer was pretty good….

"...Buy me some curry afterwards and we're even."

He began putting away his schoolwork as Shou cheered and flew about the room erratically. It was a huge sacrifice for such little payoff. But he'd had an odd spice craving as of late, and what better way to satiate it with a free meal? He'd suffer for a few hours since he was already tight on money.

An abysmal three hours later proved to be more draining than he had expected, but his weariness was nowhere near what Shou was going through. Having cheered, shouted, whooped, and done anything else anyone could do at a concert, Ritsu had to practically carry his friend to the restaurant. As it was late evening - barely - on the cusp on night, the eatery was empty, save for one or two people in the corners of the dining room. The boys ordered their meals and waited in silence.

"So, the concert was… pretty good, right?" Ritsu forced a smile onto his face. Shou lazily grinned back, debilitation seeping into his expression.

"Ohhhh yeeeaahhh… let's go again."

"No."

"Booo…." Shou folded his arms on the tabletop and laid his head on top of them. Ritsu could only stare in awe. It was the first time he'd ever seen his friend so tired before - except, of course, that one time when said friend stayed up for nearly 48 hours straight playing a damn video game. So typical.

"Shou, stay awake. It's rude to fall asleep in a restaurant." He shoved him gently, but Shou lethargically waved a hand at him. He continued poking and prodding at him until Shou actually sat up, blearily glaring at him. Now that the tables were turned, Ritsu had to admit that pestering someone was actually kind of fun.

He was about to make a snarky comment about how his face would stick that way, but their meals arrived, so he held his tongue. Ritsu was about to dig in, but noticed that Shou hadn't looked away, still glaring at him, eyes squinting as though staring at the sun. Unimpressed, he simply stared back.

"You look stupid."

Shou's frown grew a little before one corner twitched upwards slightly.

"Yeah? Well, so's your… hair…."

And like a brick falling to the ground, Shou's head dropped face-first into his curry dish. Ritsu, slack-jawed, could say nothing for several minutes. He slowly began to reach out for his friend when he had remained unresponsive, but flinched back when Shou suddenly flung himself out of his food.

"OH GOD IT'S IN MY NOSE SHIT SHIT SHIT-"

It was the hardest Ritsu had laughed in a very long time. He would remember this particular meal for the rest of his life.