Author's note: I just finished watching the anime, so I couldn't resist the temptation to write this little fanfic. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing it. Opinions would be great. The main characters are Sei (Sora's little clone in the anime) and Kano (the little black-haired boy, Ayano's adopted son). In this, Sei is about 17 whereas Kano is probably closer to 15. There will be slash if continued.
Disclaimer: Sei, Kano, Sora, Shiina, Ayano, Kitamura, and any other characters mentioned are not mine. I am not making any money from writing this. I do it purely for my own (and other's) entertainment.
Translations: -kun – a term used at the end of names. Commonly used with boys.
Onii-chan – an affectionate term, meaning 'brother'.
Left anything out? Please tell me and I'll add on whenever I can.
"Kano-kun is in his room, Sei. He probably won't be down for a while – he likes to put away two hours for study time – but he'll come running as soon as he starts getting hungry. If you could just throw something in the microwave for him, that would be wonderful. Other than that, just make yourself at home!" Ayano chirped.
Sei tilted his head to the side.
"Sure thing, uh…" he trailed off, watching the older man as he pulled on a yellow rain jacket. He reached up, compulsively combing his fingers through his blue hair. "Um…I don't want to sound rude, but…"
Ayano looked up with bright eyes and a ready smile. "Yes?" he asked.
Sei nodded, silently, to the stuffed pink rabbit he held clasped in his hands.
"Oh…well. Old habits die hard." He chuckled, holding up the faded old toy and looking it over. "He's certainly been through a lot, hasn't he…?" He lowered his voice. "I carry him more for myself than Kano these days, to tell you the truth. He reminds me of how far we've come."
Sei didn't get the full impact of those words. He had never hung out with Kano, really. The age difference had a lot to do with it. Plus, he had his own friends in Shiina and Kitamura. But…he did remember, a little bit, about the dark-haired boy who hardly spoke at all and smiled only for his foster father's antics.
"I understand." He said earnestly.
"Well then, I'm off. Have fun and make sure the house doesn't burn down!"
Click. The door closed behind Ayano, and suddenly Sei was alone. Well…not really alone, he mused, his blue eyes flickering towards the ceiling. Kano was up there somewhere.
Shrugging off the unease he felt, Sei removed his damp shoes and set them by the front door. He decided to explore and ducked into a hallway that was lined with doors. He could see the beginning of the staircase from where he stood by the entry-way, and he wondered to himself how just two people could live together in such a big house. He imagined Ayano and Kano having to use an intercom system just to keep in touch.
I'm just used to onii-chan's little place, he thought, snickering to himself. Sora made a song and dance about what a burden he was, visiting almost every day with his friends, but Sei wasn't fooled. He could tell his brother figure enjoyed the company. Except, of course, when company involved interrupting…something…Sei tried not to think of the time he had walked in on Sora and Nao…
Yuck!
He made a promise to himself to knock from then on. Some things just weren't meant to be seen.
Sei strolled along as he thought, came to the end of the hall, and backtracked. Coming to the idea that it was okay to further his explorations (it wasn't snooping, really, since Ayano-san had never told him he couldn't…), he pulled open a door on the right hand side and glanced in to see a little niche just big enough to hold a few shelves and a million towels on top of those shelves.
"Closet…"
He tried the next door. Inside, there was a sink, a shower, and one fine porcelain throne.
"Bathroom…"
Creak.
Sei jumped – it sounded close! He slammed the door shut and whirled around with a wild look in his eye, hands curling into fists as he prepared to take his attacker…
Who didn't exist. The sky outside was thick with rain clouds so the light that poured in through the windows was poor, but he could still see he was as alone as before.
"Stupid! It's an old house. Old houses are supposed to make weird noises…settle and crap." He muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. He eyed the darker shadows of the hall apprehensively. "Better turn some lights on."
He rushed to do just that, feeling like an idiot the whole time. His friends would howl with laughter if they could see him now. The Great Sei, whose favorite class was gym, who excelled at basketball and won his team several games each year…on a babysitting job and as freaked out as any heroine from one of those old horror flicks.
Still cursing himself, Sei found the living room; that was where he should have been all along, planted on the couch in front of the wide-screen TV, not poking around and freaking himself out. He grinned, forgetting all about feeling ashamed. "Sheesh! Wonder how much Ayano-san makes working at that clinic?"
"Do you make a habit of talking to yourself?" a voice deadpanned from right behind him.
Sei leapt to his feet, turned to face the speaker. Blue eyes met black. He gaped.
"Nice expression."
"Don't do that!"
"Do what?" Kano asked, stepping into the room. He glanced around, half expecting to see signs of destruction. He watched Sei at school. He watched just about everyone at school, in his defense. And he knew what a spaz the blue-haired upperclassman could be. Setting fire to the chemistry lab, getting viruses on all the school computers…on top of that, the librarian was his worst enemy.
"Sneak up on a guy while his back's turned. It's not right." He huffed, surprise giving way to anger.
"…? I didn't sneak up. If you were listening at all, you would have heard me coming down the stairs."
"Sure. Sure."
"You don't believe me." He stated, guessing by his tone.
"No, it's not that. It's just that…I've lost all interest in this conversation." Sei explained, flopping down on the couch again. He stretched out, barely suppressing a grin. "Hey, if you happen to go towards the kitchen, would you get me a drink?" he asked.
Kano glared daggers into the back of Sei's head. But just as quickly as it came, the anger faded. He smirked.
"Yeah, not a problem." He replied.
"Huh." Sei said to himself. He hadn't picked Kano out as one of the obedient types. He was still a bit on the quiet side, but…ah, well. He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Kano returned a few minutes later. He had a single bottle in hand when he sat down next to Sei.
"What's that?" Sei asked, sitting up.
"It's my father's," he answered, trailing a finger along the label. "He only drinks this when he wants to get really drunk…which is rarely."
"Put it away!" he said instantly.
"Hey, it's okay. He said it would be alright if I drank some. Said if I was going to get drunk, he wanted me to do it here and not where I'd make an ass of myself."
Sei relaxed a bit.
"Wish I had your dad."
"We can't all be lucky." Kano said dryly. He shot Sei a sidelong look. "So…you want a drink?"
"No, I'm good."
"Heh. Thought so…"
"What?" Sei said defensively.
"I figured you would say no. It's fine." He said, rising to his feet. "I'm going to go put this away and get you some apple juice or something."
"No! Wait…"
"What?" Kano asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sei held out his hand.
Kano gladly handed him the bottle. He bit back a smirk, imagining what it would be like when his babysitter was completely smashed. He had never slept with an older guy before.
Well.
There was a first time for everything.
Author's note: If there are any mistakes, I apologize. I don't usually read my stuff over after I've written it though I know I should start. I hope you enjoyed the story so far.