Warnings : Crack, the universe doing its best to embarrass Daisuke, implied shounen-ai situations, Hiwatari being his slightly creepy self and some people being perverts.

As for spoilers, post Argentine arc with references to it and the Second Hand of Time arc, but it's been a long time since I read the whole series so I might have butchered up a few characters and events. (In particular, Dark probably should object more... to everything.)

And I uhm probably copy-and-pasted a bit more lines from the play than I should have. And I completely ignored all the other characters of the play but to be fair, Juliet doesn't interact with a great many other characters than Romeo.

"Romeo," Daisuke whispers, leaning against the windowsill. "Romeo !" Daisuke sighs, laying his chin on his crossed arms, gazing up at the night sky. "Wherefore art thou Romeo ?" Daisuke begs, holding out one hand, reaching up for the silent moon.

Below, in the gardens, Satoshi steps out of the shadow of the balcony and slowly reaches up in turn, but for the silhouette at the window.

"Aaaaaand cut !"

Daisuke's head drops to hide his face in the crook of his arms, sighing. "Saga-san, this is a play, not a movie."

"So ? It's lunch break time anyway." The older boy shrugs, then grins very wide. "Wanna eat together ?"

"Thanksbutsorry, no, I have plans already," Daisuke declines, cheerfully panicking at the mere idea.

Saga frowns. "Plans ? Like what ?"

"We're eating together," Hiwatari calmly informs him. Daisuke wishes he'd stop doing that. Stop talking to Saga-san at all. In fact, everyone should do that, never talk or even listen to Saga-san, ever.

Because as always, Saga-san seems to have got the wrong impression. "What ? Niwa, you're -"

Niwa prays he's not going to say something like 'cheating on me'. Dark chortles, but it's not funny. At all.

"Niwa-kun," Harada the youngest says, holding the stepladder to his balcony while he climbs down, "we've almost finished the ball gown."

Oh dear. The design drawings were bad enough, but judging by Saga's face, Daisuke bets the amount of lace has at least tripled in the transition from paper to reality.

"Ooh, great !" their pervert producer cheers. "We'll move on and do the ballroom scene this afternoon, then, and again tomorrow in costume ! That okay with you, ~*princess*~ ?"

"Juliet is not a princess," Funabashi remarks blandly.

Daisuke blinks at them, ignoring Saga's wink. "We don't need to rehearse in costume, do we ?"

"I think you'll find you'll need some time getting used to walking around in a dress," Risa says.

"It's not like I haven't done it before." Dark can stop laughing anytime now, really.

"Yeah, but the last one was much lighter and didn't have a corset."

Dear God.

No, Dark, that is not a flush on Hiwatari-kun's cheeks. ... Alas, there's no way the look on Saga's face is anything else than very, very excited.

"So you should probably take every chance you have to get used to moving around in it," Risa continues, absolutely unperturbed. "And by the way, on behalf of all the girls, I must inform you that if you get the slightest rip in this dress we all slaved on, you shall be emasculated."

That makes even Funabashi and Hiwatari cringe, along with all the other boys present. In fact, Daisuke might laugh at Dark's expression if he didn't feel the exact same way himself.

"Slaved on ?" he protests to divert her attention, cheeks bright pink. "But you girls enjoyed making it ! You all insisted on having the guys acting and the girls taking care of the preparations again ! And I bet it was all just so you could make me another dress, because I could hear you all giggle from the classroom and saying stuff about my mensurations !"

Risa doesn't look impressed. "If you make one little rip in the dress we lovingly slaved on, dedicating hours of our life to its designing and sewing, you shall be emasculated."

Daisuke sighs in defeat. "Yes, Harada-san."

o

Lunch with Hiwatari-kun is even quieter than usual, if only because this once Daisuke is forced into silence by the pressing need to get at least passingly familiar with the hundred lines he's still got, despite the drastic cuts Saga's generously made into the script (thank God).

Well, it's quiet to the rest of the world, anyway.

'Hist! Romeo, hist! O, for a falconer's voice,
To lure this tassel-gentle back again!
Bondage is hoarse, and may not -'

'Bondage ?'

'What ? Actually, just shut up.'

'Oh, Dai-chan.'

'... Bondage is hoarse, and may not speak aloud;
Else would I tear the cave where Echo lies
And make her airy tongue more hoarse than mine,
With repetition of my Romeo's name.

What the hell, seriously. Who's Echo anyway ?'

'Greek nymph. Cursed to only speak by repeating what other people said. Don't you know anything ?'

'Not about Ancient Greek stuff, no.'

'It's a big part of art, you know. Though those Hikari bastards tend to prefer obscure European fairytales... By the way, that Echo chick ?'

'Yeah ?'

'She fell in love with that Narcissus guy but he rejected her, so she ended up killing herself and cursing him so he'd die, too.'

'Nice.'

'I love tragedies. So funny.'

'You're sick. Oh God, I can't do this.

'Tis almost morning; I would have thee gone:
And yet no further than a wanton's bird;
Who lets it hop a little from her hand,
Like a poor prisoner in his twisted gyves,
And with a silk thread plucks it back again,
So loving-jealous of his liberty.

She's comparing him to a bird, for God's sake. I can never ever say that to Hiwatari-kun with a straight face.'

'No kidding. And he's gonna be leaning into you staring at you all the while and everything. Oh, and asking you to marry him.'

'Actually, I'm the one asking him to ask me, aren't you following ? Not that that's making it any better. ... Oh God,

Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing.

I hadn't even noticed. Crap. Mom would have a fit. Then she'd kill me or something.'

'You mean she will.'

'I think I'm gonna cry.'

'Try not to, that'd ruin your complexion, princess.'

'Not a princess. ... Not this once.'

'Bwahaha. You make it so easy, Daisuke.'

'O Dark, wherefore dost thou hate me so ?'

'I kid, I kid, I really love you Dai-chan~ But please don't get into the habit of speaking Shakespearian.'

'Good night, good night! parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Okay, whatever, we're done with this stupidity anyway. I need to read through the lines for this afternoon. They're not as long, I don't think...'

'Then move not, while my prayer's effect I take.

Wait. That's a pick-up line. How old is this thing anyway ?'

'I don't know. I don't know anything.'

'Don't get cheeky, young man. How's it go next ?'

'Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is purged.

Says Romeo.'

'... He got to kiss her, eh ? Woo, way to go Romeo !'

'Well of course he did, it's freaking Romeo and Juliet !'

'What next ? What's Juliet say ?'

'...

Then have my lips the sin that they have took.

I... think... she's... Well, Romeo answers -

Sin from thy lips? O trespass sweetly urged!
Give me my sin again.'

'Bwahaha ! She called it ! She totally called it ! The little sneaky thing ! Heee, what a girl. And then ?'

'...

You kiss by the book.

You're enjoying this an awful lot, aren't you ?'

'Woah. Say, that Juliet is such a slut.'

'Hu ? I thought you loved her.'

'Oh yeah. Totally my type.'

'... Thought so.'

o

"If I profane with my unworthiest hand
This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:
My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss."

Hiwatari-kun makes it look so easy.

"Goo-good pilgrim," Daisuke stammers, reading from his printed script, "you do wrong your hand too much,
Which... mannerly... devotion shows in this;
For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch,
And palm to palm is holy palmers'... kiss."

Holy strawberry pancakes Hiwatari is looming over him. Of all things for Dark to be right about.

I don't transform for Hiwatari-kun, I don't transform for Hiwatari-kun, he chants on and on.

They're standing close together, of course, this being the scene where they're about to kiss, and Hiwatari's holding onto his hand, though the squeezing mustn't be part of the theatrical directions.

Saga also mustn't have predicted that Hiwatari's hands should be this warm. Lukewarm, actually, would be cool for anyone else but Daisuke knows Hiwatari's body temperature is normally much colder. Knows from experience.

Cripes.

Half the class is watching and right now would be the worst timing ever to transform, oh God Dark please don't -

Hiwatari-kun breaks away. Drops his hand, steps back, turns away, breaking all contact between them and leaving Daisuke cold.

"... Hiwatari ?" Saehara calls from across the stage. "You okay, man ?"

"Hiwatari-kun ?" Daisuke whispers, reaching out - but the boy snaps his worried hand away, turns around and just - runs.

The entire class stares at his retreat.

"... Bathroom ?" Riku finally suggests.

Saehara grins like a fox, obviously jumping to lewd conclusions. Sometimes Daisuke wonders which is the worst between he and Saga. "In a hurry to the bathroom, eh ? Quite sudden, wasn't it ?"

"You are terrible," Sekimoto informs him, looking positively sick. Daisuke decides that before they're out of middle school, he'll need to give Sekimoto a massive present to thank him for helping survive Saehara all these years.

"... I'll go check on him," he says.

"Aah, Daisuke, I don't think that's a good -"

Daisuke doesn't wait to listen to his inanities.

He has a pretty good idea what's wrong with Hiwatari, and it is much more serious than what Saehara thinks.

o

He is in the bathroom. Boys' bathroom at the far end of the hallway on the first floor. The one with two of the three doors broken down and half the plumbing not working, only a few droplets of water ever coming out of the taps if you're lucky ; the one no one ever comes to except with the express purpose of being left alone.

Daisuke stops on the doorsill, carefully not touching the door covered in chewing-gum and other things.

Satoshi is breathing hard, braced with one arm against the cracked mirror and his other hand fisted in his uniform shirt, at chest level, as if he was trying to grasp at his heart.

He looks up, slowly, catches Daisuke's gaze through the mirror. His eyes are dark and slightly shimmering, as if from fever or held-back tears.

"... You are not making it any better, Niwa." His voice is rasp.

"... Sorry." But he doesn't budge.

Hiwatari-kun shouldn't be alone.

Hiwatari snorts faintly and his head drops back down, a light tremor shaking him. Daisuke can hear a gasping cough and the sound of something wet and thick splattering in the sink, but Hiwatari's shoulders are blocking his view and he can't see the color.

"... I think we're gonna need to rehearse our scenes together more. Alone." Hiwatari-kun doesn't look up, but it doesn't matter because Daisuke is not blushing anyway. "I - I mean, I'm probably gonna need it, too. Sooo... I guess, ahmmm, wanna come to dinner tonight ?"

"... Your mother -"

"Mom kind of loves you now. Sometimes." Daisuke scratches the back of his skull, making a show of being only a little embarrassed. "Just, try to act not-Hikari-like ?"

Satoshi glances up, meeting his eyes in the mirror.

"... Fine."

"Oooh, dinner with the parents already ? My, the lovebirds are moving on swiftly !"

"Saehara, please stop sneaking up on me !"

Hiwatari hasn't even jumped, of course. He picks up his glasses and slides them back onto his nose, and turns around, displaying strictly no emotion at the sight of Saehara sexually harassing Daisuke.

"Let's go back, shall we."

"You better, man ?" Saehara asks, conjuring up his kind of earnest concern that just comes and goes in his own special way. One word of reassurance and in two seconds flat he'll be back to his overly cheerful bugging ways.

These two seconds of Saehara Takeshi being a worried and dependable young man are the moments when Daisuke remembers why he's put up with being friends with the guy for so long.

"Fine. Just had to cough up something. I'm sure you don't need the details."

"Urgh. Naaah, thanks. Okay, then let's go back, my pretties !"

A new item on the very short list of things about Hiwatari Satoshi Daisuke and Dark agree on : no one should ever be this cheerful about calling him their 'pretty'.

Also, even if Hiwatari's face doesn't even twitch at being called someone's pretty, he has no right to look this expressionless while offering his arm to Daisuke.

"Shall we go, fair Juliet ?"

Saehara just about breaks his face in two grinning like an idiot. "Hurry now, everyone's waiting for you guys ! Show must go on and you two are the stars !"

"Star-crossed," Satoshi reminds him quietly as Daisuke gives up and grabs his arm.

He steadfastly sticks through the joke by keeping hold of it all the way back into the gym. He'd already made his mind about this less than an hour after the announcement of the cast distribution : if he's going to play a girl again, he's going to give it his all, and if his class wants to see him and Hiwatari play a pair of lovers, he's going to give them a hell of a show.

Of course he ruins their dignified entry into the gym-turned-theatre by tripping on his own foot. A large percentage of the female population of the class still squeal like anything when Hiwatari catches him.

o

Dinner is awkward, but Daisuke's mom cleared the traps upon hearing of the visitor, so he's not complaining. Hiwatari looked mildly curious about the ruckus, though ; Daisuke hopes he's not going to ask, because it'd make Mom so happy to have her efforts be appreciated, she might forget her paranoia and start explaining all about the Niwa security system.

Also, Towa-chan has confined herself to the kitchen and settled for Argentine's prolonged company as the lesser of two evils ; Daisuke doesn't think either of them resents Hiwatari or anything like that, but he does get that serving their creator and ex-master as the Niwa maid and butler would be just... even more awkward, and so for this he's grateful too.

His father looks just as anxious as he feels, but sends him a tentatively encouraging smile across the table, and although that doesn't do much to reassure Daisuke it's still nice to know his dad at least commiserates. 'Cause Grampa still seems stuck on trying to decide whether having the Hikari offspring over for dinner is heresy or just hilarious.

And Dark is just brooding.

"Thank you for the meal, Niwa-san," Hiwatari-kun declares, polite if not warm, as he hands his cleared plate to Emiko. "It was... quite tasty."

Emiko seems positively delighted. Daisuke's hope for Hiwatari-kun's taste buds is rekindled. All is well in the world.

Hiwatari-kun turns to him. "Shall we go up to your room now ?"

Daisuke sighs but gets up. "We need to rehearse for the play," he answers to his mother's raised eyebrows and suspicious look.

"Ooh, is it that time already ? You didn't say anything about this year's play !"

Because you absolutely adored last year's, except for the bit where Hiwatari-kun confessed undying love to me. "Yeah, um, well -"

"It's Romeo and Juliet," Hiwatari says. He seriously needs to stop doing this. "I'm Romeo." Really.

A beat.

"Did Dai-chan get to be the dazzling Mercutio ?" Mom's eyes are sparkling. Daisuke would hate to disappoint her and is all too willing to let her keep her delusions.

"He got voted as Juliet." Why, why tonight of all times did Hiwatari-kun need to turn into a blabbermouth. Daisuke hates his sense of humor.

Emiko's face falls and she stares at her son quietly. Daisuke smiles experimentally and valiantly ignores the way Daiki and Dark are laughing themselves out of breath in sync.

"... Dai-chan, my dear. You were marvelous in the play last year, despite being forced to play a girl. But... now this time as well... are you quite sure you were forced ?"

"Mom !"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, dear, but a mother has a right to wonder ! Is there - anything you'd like to tell me, my poor baby ? You know I'll give you my full support if -"

"If what ?"

Emiko sighs. "Never mind. We'll talk about this later. Up you go now, work hard, make your mother proud." She shoos them out the dining room with a radiant smile before Daisuke can comment on how he'd rather she wasn't proud of his forced crossdressing.

"Oh, and Dai-chan !" she calls from down the staircase. "You're not going to rehearse kissing scenes, I hope ?"

"Mom ! Of course not !"

Except they totally are.

Because, the play being what it is, Saga being the producer and their female classmates clearly being all shounen-ai fangirls, and also taking into consideration what Hiwatari pulled during the last play and Daisuke's usual luck, naturally it's been decided that they would be kissing. Or at least convincingly pretending to.

And this poses a slightly worse problem than hormones for both of them.

Which is the whole reason for this embarrassment in the first place.

"I can't believe you make him transform. I mean, that other perv Saga molesting him just freaked him out, you leaning in for a kiss makes him transform. What the hell."

"I think it's all a matter of context and being in character. He's supposed to be a blushing maiden."

"Ah ! Juliet, a blushing maiden ? Right ! I've done my research - now there's some girlie with guts. Yeah yeah, shut up Dai."

"... Saga's decided Niwa should be a blushing maiden. You're aware that he's got free reign over the acting directions, right ?"

"Pfffft. I should kick that creep's ass for unleashing his sick fantasies on Daisuke. ... Or maybe I'll thank him, 'cos this is hilarious. Except for the part where you get to kiss him."

"Unfortunately, I'm afraid it's an integral part to the plot."

"'Unfortunately', right. I know you enjoy it."

"I'll appreciate it if you'll please stop making me sound like an obsessed stalker. Can we please resume, now ? Niwa and I have some work to do."

"... I really hate this. Damn play. What about you, anyway ? You sure you can keep Krad in ? It'll kinda ruin the play if he gets out and starts trying to maim Juliet. Not to mention if you change here, Emiko will have your head and never invite you to dinner again."

"... I'll manage. It would be a terrible loss."

"Hmf."

"Shall we, now ?"

"Yeah, yeah. Have your Juliet back, snog to your heart's content again. Bwerk."

Dark grunts and closes his eyes, and Daisuke's back, flushed and sputtering and moaning, "Dark I really hate you Mom will kill me when she finds out Hiwatari-kun please don't go back into character."

Hiwatari snorts, almost inaudibly, and leans back in before Daisuke has even finished blushing.

"What, already back again ? What's up with that ? Daisuke, you wimp, take it like a man !"

"... If you could refrain from shouting this loud ? I'd rather not suffer Niwa-san's motherly wrath."

"Shut up. You're so enjoying this."

"... I might be a little amused."

By the time Dark gets fed up with Hiwatari-kun's 'sarcastic smirk' and kicks him out, Daisuke is thinking it's not so much a smirk as a real, open smile and it's rather nice to see on Satoshi's face for once.

(That train of thought is, of course, a tactical diversion to keep his mind from following the rail tracks to the destination called "fake-kissing practice with Hiwatari-kun".)

o

The next day, first thing in the morning, Daisuke finds himself putting the 'dress' part in 'crossdressing'.

"Here's the gown. You didn't forget the wig, did you ?" Harada the youngest asks.

"No, no." Daisuke takes it out of its plastic bag, attentively gathering all the long curls of the wig in his arms and taking care not to let them trail on the ground.

It's the same absurdly long red wig he wore in the Ice and Dark play. They can re-use most of the old props, in fact, which saves time and money - Saehara seemed alarmingly happy about donning his own old dress to play the Nurse - but since the Freedert dress got ripped during the show last year, the girls seized the opportunity to make a brand new one for Juliet.

And in Daisuke's opinion, they had way too much time and budget to spare on it. Well. Like. The result is really good, it's really a beautiful gown with amazing details - they really did go crazy with the lace and on top of the corset they even got a petticoat - but, well. It was made for a guy. It was made for him.

"... Harada-san. That dress is... beautiful work," Daisuke quickly adds just to get the girl to change her expression to a pleased smile, "but. You made it... so, em, complicated -"

"Sophisticated."

"- yes, it looks like I'll need help just putting it on."

"Yes. I told you. Take off your clothes."

"W-What ?"

"You can't possibly wear sweatpants under this one. You'll have to wear it properly, so take off all your clothes and I'll help you get in this."

Her eyes are shining and of course Daisuke can just feel Dark creeping in at the limits of his mind, cheering in anticipation, but no. She's getting all excited about the beautiful dress, not about seeing him in his underwear. He's not going to transform over her. He's over her. Transforming now would mean he lied to Riku-san, it'd be a betrayal on top of a load of trouble.

So Daisuke chases off the blush and just smiles desperately, and takes off his pants.

(He also tries very hard, once again, not to think about last night.

And no he doesn't care to hear what Dark thinks 'last night' sounds like at all.)

o

The most disturbing thing about the gown is that the only disturbing thing about it is how well it fits him.

In fact, it's so fitting that he's constantly worried about ripping it at the smallest of movements - which is why he is now trying not to breathe while Hiwatari-kun leans close to him.

Again.

Somewhere, Daisuke knows, the goddess of shounen-ai manga is laughing at him.

Satoshi takes his hands into his, lightly, lightly.

"O, then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do," he whispers, joining Daisuke's hands together, then clasping his over them.

Saga-san's nose is most definitely bleeding.

"They pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair," Hiwatari adds, raising a hand to Daisuke's cheek.

Daisuke breathes in and summons a coy smile, and breaks the prayer pose to lightly lay a hand on Hiwatari's wrist. "Saints do not move, though grant for prayers' sake," he whispers back.

Satoshi's eyes are dark and yet bright - just like yesterday, though he doesn't look in pain anymore - as he leans in. "Then move not, while my prayer's effect I take."

Daisuke braces himself, and makes the mistake of breathing in.

Please let Harada-san not have heard the deafening crack coming from somewhere around his back.

... Judging by her face, and Riku-san's, and everyone else's, either his ears were imagining things and the crack was only deafening to him, or everybody was too enthralled by the sight of Hiwatari-kun fake-snogging him behind the cover of their hands to notice it.

Daisuke hopes it was the former.

As they break away, for the second time in less than twenty-four hours, Hiwatari is just barely restraining a smile, which is his equivalent of being absolutely cracked up. Well, at least he's not clutching his chest and moaning in pain. Daisuke is grateful for small blessings.

o

"Harada-san, it's lunch break ! I'll need help getting out of the dress now !"

"I'm busy !" she shouts back unabashedly. "Ask someone else !"

Saga beams and opens his mouth, definitely leering by now.

"I'll help," Hiwatari says, suddenly in uniform, neatly folding his costume.

Inside Daisuke's head, Dark is commenting that he can't believe his idiot host is actually looking relieved at the prospect of having that creep undress him. Following the aforementioned creep to the classroom turned changing room, Daisuke retorts that Hiwatari-kun is a friend, if a sometimes weird one, whereas Saga-san is nothing but a pervert.

He doesn't mean for Dark to hear the rest of his train of thought - that the pervert part might be the reason Dark feels more of a bond with Saga-san than Hiwatari-kun, because they're so similar - but that's the problem with sharing your head with someone : no privacy.

Dark's got something to say about privacy, by the way, but Daisuke neatly shoves his voice to the back of his mind and beams at the boy who's just volunteered to undress him.

Even if they weren't technically enemies playing the roles of lovers and Dark weren't making lewd comments and the whole situation weren't already so damn awkward, this would be enough to make it so. As it is, however, it simply makes the entire thing even worse.

Still, much, much better than Saga-san, Daisuke reflects while he carefully takes off the wig, sets it down on a nearby desk and turns around.

Satoshi says not a word while zipping down the back of the gown. Too-cold fingers accidentally brush along his spine, making Daisuke snap his back up in an even straighter position than the dress is already forcing it into.

Then the corset starts coming off, and oh how he'd missed breathing. He sighs in relief, delightedly gasping for every huff of air he's allowed and distractedly slumping down - of course resulting in him, in essence, collapsing in Hiwatari's arms. "Oops, sorry." Hiwatari doesn't seem to mind.

"We don't need to do this," he randomly whispers above Daisuke's shoulder, leaning down slightly to tug at the reluctant piece of silken thread.

"What, the play ? No, we can't possibly let everybody down now."

"I mean the kissing part."

"... Saga-san's the producer. He insisted. Plus everybody's quite... enthusiastic about it." Mortifying, just mortifyingly true.

"Still, you could protest. They wouldn't force you, if you really didn't want to."

"They don't take me seriously ! Saehara's loving this, too, even Riku-san is ! You could tell them, though," Daisuke remarks, oddly calm even while automatically listing his woes, wiggling and twisting to cast a glance at Hiwatari over his shoulder.

Hiwatari's face was closer than he thought.

"... I don't exactly mind."

... Oh.

Errrm.

"Your face is about to match your hair."

Hiwatari-kun is no good for Daisuke's blood pressure. At all. "Duh !" he squeaks indignantly, whipping his head away again because he can indeed feel his cheeks burning. "Whose fault do you think that is ?"

This once he can feel Satoshi move closer, his hands falling away from the finally unfastened corset and breezing past the multiple-layered skirt, making the rich fabric rustle softly. It really is an incredible dress, a distant part of Daisuke's mind thinks again. However, the rest of his brain is focused on panicking and fervently praying that Hiwatari won't bring up the previous evening Daisuke basically spent transforming over him.

He blinks, prayers short-circuited, when a mass of red synthetic hair is dropped on his head, fingers brushing his scalp in the process and sending tingles all the way down his neck. Daisuke whips around, grabbing the top of the gown that's starting to tumble down, and graces his strange friend with the closest thing to a dark glare he'll ever manage ; meaning a look of weak and flustered distress. Of course, his still crimson cheeks don't add any credibility to his sad attempt at looking impressive.

The dress is also not helping, not to mention the wig.

Daisuke can't quite stop himself from jumping like a frightened rabbit when Hiwatari's fingers reach near his cheek - and grab a long curl of synthetic red hair, and he leans down to bring it near his lips.

"Did my heart love till now ?" Satoshi whispers, looking him straight in the eye, scarily grave. "Foreswear it, sight ! for I never saw true beauty till this night."

Hiwatari-kun is the champion of uncomfortable silences, all categories : causing them, letting them draw on absurdly long, and breaking them in the weirdest ways. Daisuke just stares at him, fighting hard to keep his expression blank as opposed to blushing a deeper shade than a tomato's.

"... Hiwatari-kun, please don't lapse into character with no warning."

"O, wilt thou leave me so unsatisfied ?" Satoshi continues, the sadistic idiot, and actually smiles. And not the I-am-secretly-cracking-up-internally kind, at that (though it's got shades of it, because Hiwatari-kun has a weird sense of humor) ; more like... soft. And it's like the umpteenth time in the last twenty-four-hours that Satoshi has looked happy, just to be with him, and unspeakably awkward as the whole thing may be it's making Daisuke pretty giddy too.

So he only scowls a little before sighing in answer, "What satisfaction canst thou have tonight ?" (And he'd like it to be noted and appreciated that he already knows that part by heart even though they aren't required to for another week.)

Satoshi raises an eyebrow and leans further in and is definitely smirking as he answers, "The exchange of thy love's faithful vow for mine."

Pfffrrrt.

'Keep this up and he'll be eating your face for real during the play. Not to mention the next few minutes.'

"Whaat ?"

Hiwatari blinks, then a look of comprehension passes over his face. "... What did he say ?"

"Nothing ! Nothing at all." Hiwatari-kun keeps staring at him, unimpressed. "... Something stupid." Absolutely no change. "... Hesaidyouweregoingtokissme. Or well eat my face, to be precise."

"Oh." Hiwatari-kun drops the lock of wig hair, straightens and steps back, and Daisuke has a weird sense of déjà-vu that runs deeper than just yesterday's rehearsal fiasco.

After all, it must have happened a thousand times now, Satoshi getting close as if he can't help it and breaking away brutally the second it's remarked upon. "What're you doing ?" Daisuke hears himself say, not thinking of anything except that Satoshi is always breaking away and it must feel horrible and he doesn't like it one bit.

Hiwatari avoids his gaze, the damn glasses a wall between them shielding his expression. "... I wouldn't want to give him more reason to want to dismember me -"

"Hiwatari-kun."

He falls silent.

"... Were you ?"

"Was I what ?" Stubborn, stupid Hiwatari-kun still looking away. Usually his stares make Daisuke want to crawl out of his skin, but somehow, right now, the fact that Satoshi won't look at him makes him want to scream.

"Were you going to kiss me, Hiwatari-kun ?" He can feel blood rushing to his cheeks again, can't help it, but he won't let it deter him. He won't be deterred ; he can't, won't allow Hiwatari or himself to run from this.

Hiwatari finally meets his gaze, and Daisuke can see how carefully he is keeping his face blank. "I wasn't going to."

Aarrgh, wording. Daisuke really doesn't feel like playing with words but Hiwatari-kun is obviously set on being stubborn. "Right," he sighs, yanking the wig off as a less-damaging substitute for tearing his own hair out, "did you want to ?"

"I don't want Krad to destroy you," he answers swiftly, smoothly, not a ripple of hesitation on his face.

"Hiwatari-kun, answer me -"

"Niwa." God Daisuke hates that expression. It's a mask, a carefully crafted shield to rebuff anyone that tries to get close, a placard that claims he doesn't need anyone to care for him and it's so fake, so fake. "I," he repeats, slowly, purposely, articulating every syllable, "don't want Krad to destroy you."

His voice is calm, but only on the surface ; there's a tension underneath, like a simple word could make him snap and crumble - but he won't let himself crumble.

Stubborn.

Daisuke lets his mouth, open and ready to almost yell in frustration, fall closed.

He can't claim this isn't an answer he can understand.

Hiwatari seems to gather as much from his silence, and takes another step back, turns to leave ; and every single one of those steps only makes Daisuke more enraged and hurt so he opens his mouth again and snaps, "Don't run, Hiwatari-kun."

Hiwatari stops at the door, glances at him over his shoulder, superficially, once more not really catching his gaze, everything in his body language screaming 'Why shouldn't I run ?' and Daisuke sighs.

"Oh, hell, if that's the only language you'll understand - therefore stay yet ; thou needest not to be gone."

Satoshi blinks, and then when he finally meets his gaze again he's smiling, almost, kind of.

"... I have more care to stay than will to go."

In the doorway he bows, and offers Daisuke his arm again ; and Daisuke scrambles out of the gown and back into his uniform too fast to leave himself time to be embarrassed, too fast to let Satoshi think better of it or get tired and drop his arm.

Those private jokes are really getting terrible, Dark informs him, and that's when Daisuke realizes, with a start, that his mind-roommate has been keeping mercifully quiet until now. He doesn't respond, focuses instead on buttoning up his uniform shirt and grabbing Satoshi's arm and clinging, and to hell with the awkwardness and all the reasons he isn't supposed to be hanging out with a Hikari, much less sticking to his arm like glue.

There's a fumble as he half trips over his pants because his left foot didn't quite make it all the way out, Hiwatari catches his arm and steadies him and Daisuke can't help flushing when his face ends up pressed against the other boy's chest, and then he remembers - "Ah ! The dress !" - and turns around, reaching out with only one arm to grab the gown he mindlessly let fall down to the ground.

"... Eeep ! There aren't any wrinkles, are there ? Do you see any ? Harada-san will have my skin if she notices I dropped this."

"I don't think she will. Come."

Daisuke glances and determinedly grins at him, slings the heavy dress over his shoulder and immediately attaches both hands to Satoshi's arm again. "Right. Shall we, Romeo my Romeo ?"

Hiwatari bows again, the slightly sad but not bitter and mostly amused smile still floating around his lips, and arm-in-arm they walk back to the gym to get their lunch-boxes.

Riku-san raises a quizzical eyebrow but simply reminds Daisuke to be very careful with the gown ; Saehara just wolf-whistles loudly as they pass him.