Safe

HE COULD HEAR lots of noise, but he didn't know who or what it was. Agito carefully reached out from his corner of the Wanajima boys' mind and nudged Lind. The older brother merely shifted in his sleep and sighed.

Agito growled at his unresponsive brother and reached out to Akito next. He was in control of the body. 'Akito, what the hell is all that racket?'

His lighter half didn't respond. Agito looked through Akito's mind and saw that they were at the school, surrounded by more faces than Agito was comfortable with. 'Akito!'

'Ah? Oh, yes?'

'What the fuck are all these losers here for?'

'It's a little get-together for all the friends we made!' Akito giggled. 'We couldn't fit them all in Ikki-kun's house, so we decided to all come to where we train.'

'Tell them to keep it down!' Agito snapped. 'I'm trying to sleep here. Fuck…'

'Actually,' Akito said, 'I was just about to wake you so that we could trade off.'

'Fuck, no!'

'Fine,' Akito sniffed, waltzing over to Lind's corner where he was quietly tucked away, sleeping. 'I'll just ask Lind. I'm sure he wouldn't mind seeing Nakayama-chan…'

Agito hated the fact that his ears perked up at the mention of Lind and the girl. Like he actually cared. He didn't care. It had been about a week and a half since he had…helped Nakayama carry her cooler home, and nothing had happened since then. So of course he didn't care. He didn't give a damn. And yet, when he watched Akito reach out to wake Lind, he snapped, 'Fuck, fine! I'll switch with you. Just don't wake the bastard up. I can't stand him being in control of this body. Who knows what he'll do…'

Akito switched the eye patch and Agito blinked a few times to get his bearings. What he saw pissed him off immediately. He was surrounded by people of the past that they'd met and fought. Sabletigers, Behemoth, Bulls, and plenty of other random idiots that Agito didn't remember. But that wasn't what caused his annoyance most of all. It was the fact that they were all sitting so close together that it felt like a heat oven. It was hot enough already because it was summer, but this was ridiculous.

A sweaty hand brushed against his bare arm and he finally noticed that someone's legs were swung over his. Obnoxious laughter sounded near him that belonged to only one person and Agito yanked his legs out from under the other person, ignoring his protests, and forced his way through the packed crowd to the crow.

"You idiot!" the shark snarled, grabbing Ikki by the collar and dragging him out of a conversation. "What the hell is going on?"

"Relaaax," Ikki crooned, waving a hand. "We're just having a little get together."

"Fuck, this isn't little!" Agito growled. "And why the hell are you all sitting together? It's like a fucking oven out here!"

"Don't be a wimp," Ikki chuckled, pulling Agito's head under his arm and ruffling his blue hair. "Come on and join us. It's a time to make memories with friends, and you're our friend."

Agito couldn't speak for a moment, warmth stirring in his heart. He almost smiled. But then the warmth of the summer got to him. He didn't like being packed in with people, especially with a bunch of idiotic, sweaty people. He knocked the crow over the head with a loud "Fuck!" and tried to make his way out of the crowd of people. He finally collapsed onto the sidewalk outside of the giant group, panting. His eyes closed wearily. What had Akito been thinking, letting them switch? Damn this heat… Where was Nakayama with her cooler when it was needed?

"Agito?"

He cracked his eye at the familiar voice and looked up. Speak of the devil.

---

YAYOI LOOKED DOWN at the shark in worry. "Are you alright?" she asked, swiftly crouching down to his side. "You look terrible!"

"Fuck, shut up." His voice was weak and his brow was lined with sweat.

Yayoi frowned and turned away. Fine, jerk. But she did sigh on the inside. Nothing had happened between them, despite the small kiss she had received a little while back. Maybe he really was doing that as payment for the water, she thought, taking a sip of her lemonade. She jerked when a hand clasped her shoulder tightly.

She saw Agito drag himself up to a sitting position and reach for her drink. She jerked away. "What do you want?"

"Just give me the drink," he growled feebly.

Yayoi held it out of his reach, annoyed. "No. Get your own."

Agito grimaced and made another attempt, but his arm dropped to his side and he slumped to the sidewalk once more. Yayoi ignored him for a few moments, but eventually the boy's shallow breathing caught her attention.

"A-Agito," she said hesitantly. He grunted in response. "Um, have you, by chance, had anything to drink recently?"

A pause, and then a hoarse whisper of, "No…"

Yayoi sighed. This boy… She nudged him and he looked up wearily. With a small smile, she held out her drink. Agito slowly sat up again and took it from her. He sipped through the straw and his eye went wide. Pushing the straw out of the way, he placed his mouth on the edge of the cup and took several gulps, downing the rest of it. He pulled the cup away, his breath hitching a bit, and turned to Yayoi. "More."

Yayoi blinked, and then nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure." She stood, and Agito got up too, though a bit more slowly. "Over here." The shark followed her over to the open window she had crawled through. Yayoi carefully entered the kitchen, followed by the boy, who dashed over to one of the large refrigerators and yanked it open. Yayoi giggled as she heard him give a loud sigh when the cool air washed over him.

Agito dug through the refrigerator and turned to her. "Where's the drink?"

"Huh? O-oh, yeah, well, I made it." At his confused look, she opened one of the cabinets and pulled out the giant can of lemonade mix.

Agito looked at it, and then said to Yayoi, "Make me some."

Yayoi rolled her eyes, but pulled out a plastic cup and filled it with ice, and then tap water. Agito came over to watch as she spooned some of the powder into the cup and mixed it. "Here," Yayoi said, handing him the drink. "If it's not sweet enough, you can add more." Agito sniffed its contents, and then took a cautious sip. He nodded and quickly gulped half of it down. Then he sank to the floor and leaned against the cabinets.

Yayoi also sat down next to him and hugged her legs. There was silence between them for a while, only broken by the loud and constant chatter of the crowd outside. Yayoi glanced over at Agito. He was breathing steadily now, his posture relaxed and calm. She smiled and suddenly the boy turned to her. They stared at each other. Yayoi held her breath.

Slowly, very slowly, Agito leaned in, his lips parted slightly. Yayoi sat frozen, not wanting to lose whatever was going to happen. Agito stopped an inch away from her face, and Yayoi wondered if he was going to back away. She stopped breathing when he moved a bit closer, their noses just about to touch and then…

"Nakayama! You there?"

She gave a small scream and jumped up. Kazu was looking for her through the open window. He smiled when he saw her. "Hey," he said. "We were wondering if you could whip us up some lemonade. Ikki saw you drinking some and, of course, now he wants some. And so we all took a vote…"

Yayoi sighed. "Yeah, sure. Whatever. How much do I have to make?"

Kazu glanced behind him and shrugged. "A lot, I guess. Enough for all of us."

"Gah, whatever. Go on, shoo," Yayoi grumbled good naturedly.

Kazu grinned. "Thanks, Nakayama." He left.

Yayoi rolled up her sleeves and began to rummage through the cupboards for the larges pitchers and containers she could fine. She glanced down at Agito. His eye was closed and his arms were crossed. His cup was empty. Smiling, she picked it up and threw it away. Then she got to work.

It was inevitable, she supposed, that nothing would happen between them. He was…well, him. And she? Just plain old Nakayama Yayoi. Maybe he hadn't been planning to kiss her. Maybe…maybe it was something else. Yayoi pushed a few strands of loose hair from her face just like she pushed the thoughts from her mind. Then she got to work.

---

AGITO COULD HEAR running water and dull clunks and slight splashes. Then, a while later, loud noises and chatter. Fuck. Am I going to get any rest at all? He could hear demands for drinks, and then he heard a timid voice, Nakayama, ask, "Please lower your voice. I'll get you your drinks."

The small command didn't help. If anything, the noise escalated. He shifted slightly, squeezing his eyes tighter together, though it didn't do anything to block out the noise. He heard a low growl from Nakayama, he supposed, and then shuffling noises that told him that she had climbed out the window. His eye flew open when he heard her voice shout loudly from outside.

"Shut up! I can't stand it anymore! Don't you idiots have any manners? Someone's trying to sleep in there. If you can't keep your mouths shut for a few minutes, then go somewhere else. If not, then shut the hell up! It's enough to make any sane person go insane! If I here anymore unnecessary noise from you guys, I won't give you your drink. Got it?"

There was silence, and then meek mumbles of, "Yes…"

Agito shut his eye quickly when he heard her climb back in. From then on, the girl was pouring drinks in comfortable silence, although there were occasional murmurs outside. Twenty minutes later, the noise started up again, but Nakayama must have made a gesture or something, because the sounds moved further away from the kitchen window until it was only a dull chatter.

Agito heard Nakayama slump down next to him with a sigh. "My gosh…"

"Now you see why they're a bunch of fucking idiots?" Agito asked, looking at her. The girl squeaked and a hand flew to her chest.

"You…heard all that?" she asked sheepishly. He nodded. "R-right. Sorry. I just…thought that they were disturbing you and…well, yeah." Silence. Nakayama had another drink in her hand and she sipped it. Agito watched her and she finally noticed that he was. "Um, did you want some?"

This girl… Agito chuckled. Maybe she's not so bad. He reached out a hand and brushed a few strands of hair from her face. The blush that adorned her cheeks was charming and Agito smirked. He drew closer and pressed his lips to hers. Her mouth was soft and she sighed a bit, allowing him to shift his head and deepen the kiss. Her moan caused him to smile against her lips. He felt…glad that only he could make her act this way.

The girl pulled away first, gasping. Agito raised an eyebrow. She looked down, obviously embarrassed. "I forgot to breathe…"

Agito bit back an uncharacteristic laugh, but a snicker slipped through. Yayoi squeaked and stood quickly, looking away. "It's not that funny," she mumbled.

---

AGITO STOOD TOO and said, "A bit."

Yayoi shook her head, still feeling that her cheeks were red. She finally noticed that Agito stood a good three inches taller than her. She looked down. Yes he was wearing his ATs. But if he took them off, would that make them about the same height? She said quietly, "You've grown."

Agito gave her a questioning look.

"Well, you used to be a little shrimp."

He scowled, though Yayoi thought she saw a hint of a smile behind it. "Fuck, I don't need to be reminded."

"Hm." Yayoi turned away and drank her lemonade to calm her nerves that were still quivering on a high end. Agito took her wrist and spun her around to face him again and his lips descended upon hers again.

---

SHE WAS SO soft and Agito loved it. He came from a world of ATs and violence, and never once had he ever considered romance. It was time to consider some, though. And perhaps Akito was right. Maybe it was okay to let her in.

He carefully took the cup from her and set it down on the nearby counter without breaking the kiss. His arms snaked around her waist and pulled her closer. She, in return, wrapped her arms around his neck and threaded her nimble fingers through his hair.

Now it was Agito who forgot to breathe. He pulled away, panting a bit. Yayoi giggled, though her breathing was heavy as well. Agito rolled his eyes. "Shut up."

He froze when several other giggles and bits of laughter reached his ears. He quickly looked to the window and saw Kogarasumaru pressed to the glass along with as many other people as could fit, watching their every move. "Fuck," Agito mumbled, not that he really minded. He cast a sidelong glance to Yayoi. She seemed to have frozen on the spot because of their audience.

Cat calls and wolf whistles sounded outside of the window from their friends. "Hey," Agito said, snapping Yayoi out of her trance. "Ignore them." He saw the familiar smile flit across her face and she relaxed and nodded. With a gentle tug, he pulled her towards him and kissed her again. "You taste like lemons," he murmured against her lips. He felt her smile in agreement and step closer to him.

The noise outside grew. Kogarasumaru gave the loudest hoots of all. Agito merely flicked them off.