From afar, a hesitant first year looked to his senpai's fleeting, taut figure as the last tuffs of his pink pigtails left the frame of the locker room door. Kariya was a vigilant boy. With eyes as careful and analytical as a feline on a hunt, he could detect an odd vibration when Kirino-Senpai was around Shindou-Senpai,not from the both of them, but Kirino-senpai in particular. An excitement from the pink ace that radiated an activity far from his two senpai's established range of friendship. Kariya could tell Kirino had feelings for Shindou, but couldn't figure the extent! In nights prior,Kariya rustled, restless in his bunk in Sun Garden with all of the other orphans as he tried to decipher not only what the ace defender was thinking but why exactly he was so interested to know.

When the conflicted defender was training with Midorikawa and Kira he, in a last attempt, tried to find his answer by consulting his seniors for advice.

" Ryuuji-san," he nervously spoke as he half heartedly blocked the soccer-mom-like figure's light advances towards the soccer ball by quickly maneuvering his balanced body, but due the green tea haired assistant's experience, he seamlessly stole the ball from the defender's clutches.

"Yeah Masaki-kyun. Is there something wrong? You're not playing like your usual self," Midorikawa placed his cleated foot on the tired ball as he caringly interrogated him. Kariya flinched at the use of kyun and blushingly shuffled his arms to his chest and then adverted his eyes and scratched his head, as he decided that it was better to address the raging problem with his senpai rather the choice of words that Ryuuji-san choose to use.

" Tsk," Kariya hesitated and then venomously seethed, "There's...someone on the team that's been on my nerves"

"Heh, when is there someone who isn't? Heheh," Midorikawa nervously stuttered as a bead sweat fell as an effect of his retort rather than from the training. Slightly offended, the intent filled defender replied, "Ha?..tsk..You're right...But that's not what I mean!" he pouted.

"Then," Midorikawa started to laugh. "What do you mean?"

"Um, well..you..see that..um,"he shifted, "There are these two guys that are really buddy-buddy and it's really annoying!"

"What do you mean by that?" Midorikawa giggled while rustling Kariya's flop of turquoise as embarrassed anger grew from the boy.

"Agghh! Stop it!" Kariya fluttered his hands over his head to cease Ryuuji-san's rubs, but it simply made Midorikawa's smile grow larger and slight convulsions of laughter more intense.

"These two guys are just always together and it grosses me out and I don't know why but i just wanna tear them apart so bad! And Kirino-Senpai just gives him weird looks and I want to know why! And! And. and…" Utterly flushed he turned his back to his amused senior and bounced the tips of his index fingers together. Midorikawa couldn't help but be reminded of his younger years with Kira, or what he was known as back then, Kiyama. Kiyama Hiroto. Reassuringly he placed his palm on the weighted shoulders of the conflicted adolescent.

"This seems to have been on your mind for a while now." Kariya lifted his head and redirected a shining intentful gaze back at Midorikawa.

"If it has been paining you for this long, why haven't you asked any of your siblings at Sun Garden," he caringly beamed.

"Tsk," Kariya's dark demeanor returned into his eyes as he shooed Midorikawa line of emotional passage.

"Like I'd ask those stupid orphans," Midorikawa cringed at Kariya's distaste at the word orphan and his smile plastered over by a neutral wall ;a boiling tea kettle yet ready to whistle.

"Those selfish little jerks all they do is think about themselves." The hot water was fully boiled as Midorikawa arched his shoulder back, and whipped his hand, leaving a stinging, pulsing red blow on the young cheek of the turquoise defender, the sheer surprise of the punishing blow brought him to the ground. Kariya sat, puzzled at the change presence of one of the few people he was willingly able to admire. Midorikawa stood, in a raging blaze, utterly steamed.

" Don't you ever call them that ever again. Do you understand! You can't just say those things when you're little brat who can't bring himself to believe that he's gay for someone on his mother fucking team.'Cuz whether you wanna believe it or not you're a fuckin' orphan too. And!-" Midorikawa stopped himself when he felt a familiar hand on his shoulder.

"Mi...Midorikawa," Hiroto concernedly reassured as he overheard what had happened, and opened his arms and allowed his distraught more than friend to the warmth of his chest. Midorikawa faced Kira Hiroto as angered beads of liquid overflowed from his eyes and pushed him away, furiously rubbing his face vainly, to cease the flow of his face as he stomped off the field leaving the two remaining males abandoned on the field, a situation that was familiar to the both of them. He needed to be alone.

"Masaki," Hiroto sternly said "If I was in the same situation as Midorikawa-san, I would have done more than just slap you." Kariya dug his nails into the skin of his forearm and refrained from eye contact. He didn't mean it. He didn't want his words to spill like that. The words he wanted to say didn't come out correctly. Was it because he was too afraid to say it? He wanted to but was it because he was always a coward? It..It wasn't supposed to turn out that way. Now he had offended the only two people who would be there for him no,matter what!

"I'd think you'd understand Ryuuji's feelings enough as someone whose parents abandoned him too." But Kariya did! He did understand!

"Even though you can't trust anyone at Sun Garden I'm sure everyone else acknowledges you as one of their brothers but here you are being selfish, not thinking about their feelings!" But Kariya knew how his fellow brethren felt about him at Sun Garden, although he acted like he despised them, he was just scared. Always so scared.

"And what do you have to say for yourself young man!" Kariya couldn't meet Hiroto's intense gaze. Unlike the field, he couldn't defend himself here. He tore into a sprint but the observative President of the Kira Company jerked his hand around the conflicted adolescent wrist. Just then the whites of Hiroto's eyes widened in revelation. Kariya's facade was completely demolished. His emotional scars he intensely hid dared to breach his eyes. His breaths became staggered and distraught. The offlantish boy's features reflected the vulnerability of an animal who had been caught by his predator. Hiroto threw him into embrace as he vainly fought against him.

"HIROTO! Let..LET GO! RAPE RAPE!" Kariya soon realized he lost an already won fight and let himself go, returning an embrace back to Hiroto. In between the staggered breath of his raining tears, he mustered a flurry of muffled apologies into the older male's jersey. Hiroto's attitude calmed as he ran his pale fingers through Kariya's jungle of turquoise and caringly patted his back in their standing position.

" I-it's..all right..Masa-Kyun," Suddenly the tearful defender removed his face from the wet mass of Hiroto's jersey.

"I'm..I'm sorry I like Kirino-Senpai! Hiroto-san!" he slurred

"Wha..I don't think you need to apologize for that?" Kariya replaced his sobbing mass back to the moistness of Hiroto's chest.

"It should be fine that you like someone. You're a that age and besides, isn't Kirino that pink haired girl on your team, right? She's really cute ya know." Kariya replied to the misinformed adult by an onslaught of more intense sobbing into Hiroro.

"Hey Masaki! C-calm down! Was it something I said?"Hiroto chuckled to himself, sometimes Kariya was too cute to handle