Onions

Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King

Summary: After reminiscing about Hao's pain, Yoh came home in time to see a tear-marred Hao. HaoxYoh fluff

Warning: Light twincest, shounen-ai, and a bit of OOC-ness

Notes: I wanted to write something on the twins, but I can never finish multi-chapter projects. A one-shot drabble-ish. Spread the Asakura love! I think this is my first kiss-fic.

Asakura Yoh made his way home slowly. The breeze was playful and chilly. It brushed past his short brown strands and made him shiver. His light jacket did not provide enough thickness to prevent his body heat from escaping with every gust of the wind.

It didn't bother him as much as it should've. Although his fingers had dug into the depths of his pockets searching for the little warmth they provided, his mind was elsewhere. He was thinking of something else. Something else that was more important than his freezing hands. It was something that concerned his twin.

Asakura Hao

What kind of pain that the other boy experienced, he may never know. Hao would give him a general idea of how his pain is, perhaps by saying that they felt as heavy as the world's burden, but he would never go in depths of how it really felt. He neither had the strength nor courage to describe it.

I'm happy now, and that's all that mattered, so said Hao when he moved in with Yoh. Not everyone was happy with this, but Yoh was determined to make everything all right. All Hao needed was a second chance. Everything will work out okay.

Still, the younger boy couldn't get rid of the nabbing feeling that Hao deserved more than this. He went though all the pain and was willing to sacrifice his revenge just to be with Yoh. It felt unfair. But the most Yoh could do right now was to stay with him and live happily with him. Hao didn't ask for much. He gave up his goal of his three lives just so his twin could be happy.

It made Yoh feel guilty.

When Yoh entered his home, the heat of the house immediately rid the constant blowing cold air from flowing in, although the sensation of being in the cold lingered on his body. The scent of vegetables cooking could be smelled in the air. The first logical answer to who could've been cooking came quite obviously to him.

Tamao and Anna had gone away soon after Hao moved in. Although Anna's excuse was that she was no longer needed after the Shaman Fights ended, it was clear to see that it's really because both had moved onto new relationships. The engagement had been called off when both of them came to recognize their loveless future.

With Anna leaving and Tamao following her steps, it left Hao to do all the cooking in the house, not that he was bad at it. To be truthful, Hao could cook much better than Yoh. He learned fast even when it came to modern dishes and appliances. Hao has a picky taste when it comes to having things prepared his way. Although he sometimes set his standards behind when it came to Yoh, burnt food, even if it's just burnt slightly in the edge, irritate the pyro-holder to no end. So he took it to his own hands whenever it came to cooking over the fire, which usually leaves Yoh the simple job of preparing the salad.

Yoh walked towards the kitchen following the scent of cooking vegetables. Making a turn and stepping into the kitchen tiled floor, he began his regular greeting to his brother, "Tadaima…"

His voice was cut off abruptly in his throat.

Hao had turned away, his back facing him. He was looking towards the window with his arm by his face. From Yoh's point of view, he could've mistakenly thought that Hao was brushing his hair away from his eyes, but the reflection on the window proved differently. Hao was wiping tears away from his eyes.

"H-Hao…" Yoh didn't even have the chance to say the next word before his twin spun around and gave him a wide, not-so-Hao-like grin. "Oh! You're home! Sorry, I didn't hear you coming in. Welcome home!"

Yoh wasn't that dense to know that Hao was trying to cover his previous expression. He was definitely crying, Hao's eyes were red and evidence of dried trail of tears remained on his face. The guilty thought came over to Yoh of how Hao was sacrificing so much. His brother was trying to cover his sadness and look strong so Yoh didn't have to worry. He was always trying to pretend to be stronger even in front of Yoh, the person he probably revealed the most to. Hao patted his apron and blinked at the absent of reply, by doing so, another two drop of tears streamed down his cheeks, "What?"

Yoh narrowed his eyes in pain. Hao barely had time to react before Yoh grabbed his shoulders and pulled him in a deep embrace. The older twin widened his eyes at the unexpected action as his face was buried into Yoh's shoulder that was still cool from contacting with the outside wind. Softly, Yoh spoke, "Don't cry."

"Yoh?" Hao blinked towards his younger sibling, confused.

"I won't leave you." Yoh whispered into Hao's long locks of auburn hair. He pulled back slightly so he could see his twin face to face. He pushed back a few strands of hair from Hao's red, widened eyes. Seeing the new drops that had spilled from the older one's eyes, he leaned forward and kissed them away, licking up the trail of tears. "I won't ever leave you."

Moving forward, he captured Hao's mouth in one motion, he pressed against the soft lips gently before pulling away. It was a simple, promising kiss.

"So don't cry."

Hao's surprised eyes returned to normal. His eyelids drooped over slightly as he smiled and murmured, "Arigato. You know, now that I'm hugging you, you do feel kind of cold, ne? I could warm you up."

It made Yoh feel as if he had suddenly lost all dominance. A small red blush colored over his cheeks as he tried to hold onto the little advantage he has, noting that Hao now had his arms wrapped around Yoh's body and was starting to lean towards him.

"S-so why were you crying?" It was starting to get warm, especially on his cheeks as he tried to avert Hao's eyes.

"I was actually just cutting onions, but this is a nice turn of event."

Owari