Disclaimer: ¨Only the Ring Finger Knows¨ and its characters belong to Satoru Kannagi. Any other works mentioned in the fic is not mine either.
First chapter of the sequel to ¨Play of Emotions¨. I did not intend to write again so early but it´s a long weekend and I´m insomniac. This time I won´t be able to update so quickly like last time because of my work but I would try to maintain an acceptable updating schedule and limit the mistakes (I´m still proofreading ¨Play of Emotions¨. Writing is fun, proofreading and seeing one´s own mistakes is not, hix). I already had the outline of the story typed down but elaborating on it takes time. So please be patient. And feedbacks are more than welcome as usual.
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¨Selfish¨ Children
Original concept by Satoru Kannagi
--A sort-of normal day--
Kazuki Yuichi impatiently headed to the infirmary. As the art club did not meet that day, he and his lover Wataru had agreed to meet outside the school so that they could go together to the bus stop where Wataru would go home and he would mount his bike to prep school. However, before the end-class bell, there was an SMS from the dark-eyed boy saying that Yuichi need not wait for him and ¨there is nothing to worry¨. The wordings were suspicious enough so the first place Yuichi wanted to check was the infirmary. Just as he dreaded, he saw Wataru sitting on a bed with his left foot bandaged. A crutch was leaning on the wall nearby. The scary nurse was not there, probably being on the way to get some supply. When he entered the room, a mixture of surprise and embarrassment but also joy emerged on the dark-eyed boy´s face.
¨Kazuki, what are you doing here?¨
¨That should be my question. Really! I look away and you immediately get into trouble. What´s it this time?¨
The boy scowled instead of answering, obviously displeased at being treated as a helpless child. Yuichi chuckled. His lover´s childish reactions to his comments were always a delight to him. He ruffled Wataru´s hair but the boy quickly caught his hand.
¨Stop treating me like a kid already! It´s nothing big. Just a sprained ankle.¨
The sullen face accompanying that speech just made Yuichi want to tease his lover more, but he was also worried. After all, whatever happened was serious enough to bring the one he cared for to the infirmary. He knelt down in front of the younger boy, gently lifted the injured foot and examined it. Wataru blushed and tried to pull his foot back but the position did not allow. He gave up and chose to continue his rant.
¨Why are you here? Don´t you have prep school now? Shouldn´t you prepare for the exam?¨
¨You dare to think I, the stud of the century, would need cramming like an idiot to get into university?" Yuichi grinned audaciously. His academic prowess was among his outstanding features and its fame had definitely reached Wataru. He was touched that his lover was worried about him, but slightly displeased that the dark-eyed boy was speaking so rationally even if it was done out of good intention. He wanted the boy to enjoy their time together without any restraint. He also liked to see again and again the manifestation of the fact that he was in love and the heart of his beloved belonged to him. Furthermore, though it was really childish, he did not like the fact that Wataru was behaving as if everything was fine, which made his presence appear unneeded.
The dark-eyed boy pouted. "You seem awfully cocky! Watch out or someday you'll be in trouble."
"Look who's talking. The one who is in trouble now is you." That retaliation was not enough to cause the grin to fade. Then with a gentler tone, Yuichi asked. "Does it hurt?"
"Not any more." Wataru shook his head and stated matter-of-factly. "Luckily nothing is broken. It will heal in two weeks so no need to fuss about it."
Yuichi frowned at the tone with which his lover talked about the sprained ankle. "Luckily? It's still an injury. Don't treat it so lightly!"
¨That catastrophe tune again!¨ The dark-eyed boy sulkily interrupted. ¨You act just like the old lady next door every time her dog does so much as sneeze!¨
The metaphor made Yuichi laugh and forget the rest of his lecture. ¨If I´m a squeaky old woman then you´re her little Pekingese! Ouch!¨ Wataru kicked him with the other foot and reached for the pillow. ¨I´m just kidding, you know.¨ Yuichi laughingly fended off the attack. Catching a moment of carelessness of his aggressor, he caught the slender wrists, effectively stopping the blows. The pillow fell down and the dark eyes widened a bit at the sudden turn of fortune. The pink lips slightly opened as if their owner was about to say something. At that moment, the boy looked so innocent yet attractive like a rosebud that had just opened. Unable to resist the temptation, Yuichi immediately leaned forward, pulled the boy into his arms and claimed those sweet lips. The boy stiffened in surprise but gradually returned the kiss.
Yuichi inwardly smiled. Three months ago, in a crazy series of events initiated by the unpredictability and innovativeness of their parents, he and Wataru had found each other. Of course before the happy ending, there was a mess of misinformation, misunderstanding, and confrontations. In his wildest imagination, he would not have thought that the girl he was practically forced to go out with and unexpectedly fell in love with was in fact a cross-dressing boy. Words could not describe his shock, anger, disappointment, and despair when he found out the truth. But his feelings were also made clear and he decided to forward against all odds. In the end, his tenacity was rewarded. How happy he was to discover that the boy had also harboured something for him and would willingly reciprocate his love!
There was the sound of footsteps and someone entered the room. Apparently Kazuki had forgotten to close the door.
¨Wataru, here is...¨ The intruder stopped short at the sight of the two lovers hastily parting from each other.
Yuichi and Wataru breathed out in relief to see that it was only Kawamura, Wataru´s best friend and confidant, who seemed to be embarrassed himself. Choosing to ignore Yuichi altogether, he directly addressed the dark-eyed boy.
¨Here is your bag¨. He lowered his voice and whispered into his friend´s ear ¨Are you crazy? Making out with him here! With the door open no less! What if someone else stepped in?¨
Wataru laughed nervously and brushed the topic aside with a joke about how flustered his friend was, to which the latter retaliated with a chiding comment. Yuichi kept his silence but could not help a dark glare at the uninvited guest. The cordiality of the interaction between him and his lover´s best friend stopped at the level of uneasy tolerance. This clown was one of the two people who knew of Yuichi´s relationship with Wataru from the start, the other being Wataru´s sister Karin, and to his credit, he remained the dark-eyed boy´s best friend without any prejudice in attitude, which Yuichi of course appreciated. On the other hand, he was always irritated by the fact that this guy always behaved too familiarly with his lover and was apparently the boy´s ultimate confidant, a privilege he was still striving for. His pride did not allow him to openly show his jealousy, especially when that was a best friend, but he did not bother to go beyond the civility required by common etiquette. On his side, Kawamura did not seem to exceptionally like this new addition in his best friend´s life either. His behaviours to Yuichi were always a weird combination of awe and defiance in the form of exaggerated formality or impersonal comments. Nevertheless, they shared some degree of protectiveness toward Wataru, and Yuichi knew that when it came to the dark-eyed boy, this guy could be the best ally he could hope for.
When he felt that the best friend was keeping his lover´s attention away from him longer than acceptable, Yuichi cleared his throat.
¨Well, your bag´s finally here! Shall we go home now, Wataru?¨ He intentionally treated Kawamura as if the latter were part of the furniture. It was just measure for measure. That guy was the one who was impolite first!
¨Er, that´s right. It´s nearly five now. You should have been at your prep school long ago.¨ The boy was a bit off guard. ¨Kawamura, I´m off with Kazuki now. Kawamura?¨
¨Sorry! I left my notes in the classroom. Just go without me. I´ll hand you the notes later.¨ Before five seconds elapsed, the guy already disappeared.
Finally left alone with Wataru, Yuichi voiced the suggestion that had been floating in his head ¨Shall I piggyback you?¨. It sounded like a joke but in truth he was considering it seriously. He preferred carrying his lover in his arms, though. Even if that was a more inconvenient method.
¨D-Don´t be ridiculous! I can walk just fine!¨ The child-like face was red as a ripe apple. ¨Just carry my bag for me. I cannot use the crutch with it.¨
Yuichi signed slightly. Despite his innocent and vulnerable features, Wataru was as stubborn as a mule and hot-headed like a volcano. Plus, the kid would fume over if Yuichi tried to spoil him a bit. The problem was he was so sweet and it was difficult not to act accordingly towards him.
¨Fine. Don´t complain if your ankle hurts¨ The elite student smirked. There was no way in hell he let it drop without compensation.
¨Who would complain about such tiny things?¨ Wataru showed his best pouting face, attempting to dismiss the pain as nothing. He looked so delicious that Yuichi would have kissed him if he had not kept an arm´s length distance between them.
¨Stop doing that already! What if someone sees us?¨
¨What are you worried about?¨ Yuichi could not help but be amused at Wataru´s flustering state. ¨There is no one here.¨ Dark cloud began to gather on the kid´s face. ¨Fine, fine, don´t scowl. But if you don´t let me kiss you, you must let me take you home!¨
¨What? It´s not....¨ The boy could not continue his protest because of a long finger on his lips.
¨That´s settled. Let´s go home.¨ Yuichi said cooly. His lover stared at him indignantly but he pretended not to notice. Letting Wataru take the bus with that sprained ankle? Hell would freeze over before that happened.
Perhaps the boy sensed Yuichi´s determination, for he obediently kept his silence despite his sullen expression. To console his lover, Yuichi lowered his eyes to the same level as the younger boy´s and parodied the latter´s frown, a trick he often used to sooth his little niece Takako. Wataru tried to scowl deeper but ended up burst out laughing. Yuichi smiled in his turn. It sounded bad but he was thrilled to have an excuse to drive his lover home on his bicycle. Although they had been dating for three months, he had not had a chance to be a prince on a white horse since Wataru hated being pampered by him.
On the way home that day, he felt as if his pedals had grown wings because slighly leaning on his back behind him was the most precious treasure in the world.