This story has three parts (not chapters, mind you). The first part is between Soubi and Ritsuka, the second is between Soubi and Yuiko, while the third is between Soubi and Ritsuka. I am only putting Soubi as a character since he is a constant throughout. There are hints of BL, but not much.
I don't own.
/GG/
Retaining Her Innocence
Mobile devices really are a marvel in technological advancement. In the palm of a hand, at the touch of a button, a person can browse the Internet, purchase stocks, talk to a friend, send an E-mail, or even partake in various forms of entertainment. These little devices can be seen on people who are both young and old. Said devices can be complex or simple. Either way they are still a marvel.
The twenty year old artist kept his phone right near his heart. He didn't expect it to ring all that much, but on occasion he would receive a text from the only person he really cared about. Normally if the phone did ring it was Kio wanting to get together or asking for a favor. Soubi didn't turn the other down unless he felt he would be needed somewhere else. Today was one of those days, so when his phone beeped to indicate there was a text waiting, he half expected to tell a whining Kio that today wasn't going to happen. Instead he got the text he'd been expecting.
Ritsuka – Can my lab group and I work on our science homework at your place?
Soubi – You just order me to do whatever you want.
Ritsuka – I am not going to order you to do that. I am asking since the place is yours.
Soubi – You are more than welcome to come to my place at any time, Ritsuka. You know that.
Ritsuka – I know that, but this time Yuiko has to come. She, Natsuo, Youji, and I ended up working on this together. I think the zeros messed with sensei's head again to pull that one off.
Soubi – I have no problem if you want to bring her to my place. Natsuo and Youji already live there most of the time anyway. You, of course, are always welcome.
Ritsuka – Thank you. We will be there around 3 pm or so.
Soubi – I love you, Ritsuka.
Soubi could see the blush on the young boy's face as he read that last part, even though they were not really connected and he was miles away. The older man knew exactly which buttons to push to cause the young man to turn into a tomato. Such a thought always made him smirk.
/GG/
At just after three there was a knock on the door followed by Youji pushing through the door without waiting for anyone to answer.
"What are you knocking for? You just about live here you know?" The snarky boy asked, waltzing in and raiding the refrigerator without even acknowledging the owner of the apartment.
"It's called having manners." Ritsuka answered with a roll of the eyes.
"You don't need to have manners when you live in the place. What's the point of calling it home if you need to have manners anyway?"
"Let's just get this done so you can go back home."
Soubi watched the two argue while Natsuo played referee. It was a normal site in his place, to see the three dancing around each other like they might on the battle field. He knew they'd never really hurt one another so he rarely intervened.
"Hi, Soubi-san."
The older man looked at the fourth party of the science project group.
"Hello, Yuiko-chan." He said smoothly. "How are you today?"
"I'm fine. It's beautiful outside and that makes it all the better." The perky girl answered.
"Do you want to tell me what this project is about since it seems the other members of your group are otherwise occupied?" He pointed to the three who appeared to be arguing over who was going to write.
"Oh, we got chosen to do a project on the human reproductive system!" Yuiko chattered excitedly. "We need to draw out the internal and external reproductive organs and show it to the class in a week."
She was so innocent. Soubi chuckled; this was obviously the work of the two zero boys.
"Soubi, since you don't have them anymore, maybe you can answer this question. How do our ears and tail connect with the reproductive system? Is it physical or psychological?" Yuiko asked without any hint of embarrassment.
Soubi thought for a moment. He'd never really thought about how a 'virgin's' cat-like appendages worked when it came to the reproductive system. It was obvious they were connected in some way as after the first time a person had intercourse they (the tail and ears) were no longer there.
He recalled his first time with a slight shudder. He had been penetrated from behind, so that caused his ears to be taken. It was different for a girl though as if two girls were together there was no way for one to penetrate the other with a reproductive organ. So maybe the connection was more psychological than physical.
"Did you love the person you lost your ears to?" Yuiko continued asking innocent questions.
Definitely not! He said in his head. "Something like that." He said out loud. Soubi didn't want the girl to think it was okay to be with someone in that sense if she didn't love that person. Since he didn't love the man who took his ears, maybe it was physical. Or the more likely candidate was a combination of the two.
The conversation was actually starting to get to his fragile psyche and he kind of wished Ritsuka would stop arguing and come rescue him. If she continued on this line of questioning then there was no telling what information she would end up with. Or how much Soubi would be yelled at in the end.
"Soubi, when do you think it's okay for a girl to lose her ears?"
"I think this question is better left to your parents, Yuiko-chan." He answered calmly.
"But I don't want to ask my parents such a question. You're an adult, so it's okay to ask you too."
"Just because I am an adult doesn't mean I am the one you should ask. You should talk to teachers, parents, and grandparents about these topics, not me."
"Is it because you don't know?"
He turned to look at her. She had her eyes open in curiosity, just like a two-year old child might look when asking the mountains of questions children such an age asked. The wheels in his head tried to come up with a good answer.
"Lately I've been thinking I want to lose mine to Ritsuka." She continued talking.
This news made Soubi look at the girl in another way. Of course she was at an age where she was curious. It was also clear to him that Ritsuka was in her sights, he was an adorable person. Soubi loved the boy more than anyone else in his life.
"I would really like to lose mine together with him, but I think he has someone else in mind."
The older man listened intently as she continued to ramble on. She was innocent enough to not even realize she was talking to the person Ritsuka was curious about. Soubi knew Ritsuka thought the loss of his ears was something Soubi would handle, but not until he was ready. He'd not considered that the boy may want to lose them with someone else.
"Do you know who the girl is? The one Ritsuka always has on his mind. You're his best friend, so you would know, right?"
"That is something only Ritsuka knows, and if I did know it wouldn't be my place to tell."
"Do you think he loves her?"
Soubi knew there was no girl and that he was the one on the boy's mind. "I can only hope he does."
"When will I know it's the right time to lose mine?" She asked.
The college student took a deep breath. It was obvious the girl didn't care whom she spoke with, as long as it was someone she trusted. In a way he was flattered that she trusted him enough to ask him these sorts of questions.
"Yuiko-chan, there is no set age when a person should lose his or her ears." His eyes were trained on Ritsuka as the younger boy argued over inappropriate size for the male reproductive organ. "The act of losing one's ears should be done with someone who you love. It should take place when both partners are ready and comfortable with one another. That time is going to be different for every person. Since I am not you, I cannot speak for you. I also cannot speak for Ritsuka, Natsuo, or Youji." He pointed to her heart. "Only you can tell when you are ready and when you are in love enough to give up your innocence."
This seemed to satisfy the girl and she went back to the group to work on the project. Soubi watched the four with amusement, only stepping in when Youji tried to whip it out to show the proper size for the male anatomy. Or when the pervert in training tried to get Yuiko to share her chest for proper female measurements. In the end the project turned out well and completely appropriate since Ritsuka insisted on putting black bars over certain parts of the human anatomy similar to how television shows blur certain things.
Yuiko took off with a wave and a smile and the zero boys decided to battle it out over a game on the television. Soubi started to cook some sort of food since he was sure there would be two obnoxiously hungry boys in a short time, probably an obnoxious art student pounding on the door, in addition to himself and Ritsuka to feed. In other words, it was a full house.
"I heard what you told her." Ritsuka said shyly as he stood next to the older man. "I like Yuiko and all, but I'm not sure how she doesn't have more information on the subject, especially with all the mediums one can obtain information from."
"She's doing the right thing by retaining her innocence as long as she can. Children grow up so quickly these days. I had to."
"Do you regret losing your ears to someone you didn't love?" The boy asked softly.
"Yes, which is why I want to protect you, so you can lose them to someone you love." Soubi replied without missing a beat. Whether it's me or not doesn't matter as long as you love them, my Ritsuka. He didn't add that last part because while he hoped the boy might grow up and choose him for that honor, he wasn't going to take it like his tad been.
Soubi did love the boy. That much was a certainty. Ritsuka had some more growing up to do before he would know that true love really was.