Chapter One

-Uraboku-

Shuusei leaned against the wall with his arms folded over his chest. Hotsuma's words still rang sharply inside his head:
'How dare you consider marrying her?! Don't you care about me at all?!'
The brunette closed his eyes and shook his head. Sure, Tooko was a wonderful friend. Sure, Tooko was his age. Sure, Tooko was beautiful and a Zweilt like him. However, it wasn't what he wanted. His marriage to Tooko was what Takashiro wanted.
To make matters worse Hotsuma had found out in the worst possible way: from a frustrated Tsukumo. Of course, he was probably just as upset as Hotsuma if not more.
Shuusei knew how Tooko felt: disagreement yet obligated to do so. A tear slipped down his cheek as he slid down the wall to sit on the floor. His knees curled against his chest and he buried his face in them. He didn't want to lose Hotsuma. That was his greatest fear. The mere thought of it made him sick to his stomach. His grip tightened around his arms and he choked out a sob.
"Shuusei?" The door opened a crack, letting a thin beam of the light pour into the room and shine up into the brunette's eyes, "What are you doing all alone in the dark?"
Shuusei looked up to meet the speaker's eyes. Yuki was looking at him from the door with a worried expression on his face.
The older boy wiped the tears from his eyes with his shirt sleeve, "It's nothing you should worry about, Yuki."
Yuki stood at the door, shifting from foot to foot as if he were deciding if he should intrude or not, "Takashiro said dinner was ready."
"I'm not really hungry," Shuusei stood and walked to his bed.
"Are you sure?" Yuki's concern was beginning to show in his voice, "You're not getting sick, are you?"
Shuusei shook his head as he sat on his bed, "I just really need to rest."
Yuki paused than started to shut the door, "Alright Shuusei…"

-UraBoku-

By the time Hotsuma got back to his and Shuusei's room, his partner was curled up in own bed. The brunette lay uncovered; his chest slowly rising and falling with his back to Hotsuma.
The blonde paused before he sat down, his eyes tracing his partner's figure. The fabric clung to the small of his back as her continued to breathe slowly in his sleep. The younger male pulled the quilt from the end of his bed up over his partner.
"Nnn…" Shuusei's eyes fluttered before opening partway, "Hotsuma?"
"Go back to sleep," Hotsuma muttered before moving back to his own bed, "You shouldn't sleep without your covers. You'll catch a cold."
Shuusei was silent. He didn't turn to look at Hotsuma, just curled under the quilt. Despite its warmth, he felt frozen inside. His fingers were shaking as he clenched them into fists at his chest.
"…I'm sorry…"
Shuusei's eyes went wide as he turned to look at his partner, "What?"
"Don't make me say it again," A faint blush had begun to lick at the blonde's cheeks, "I shouldn't have acted the way I did. You should do whatever makes you happy."
Shuusei chuckled and sat up, his body convulsing with laughter.
"Why are you laughing at me?" Hotsuma's voice suddenly became offended, rising almost to a shout.
"I'm not! I'm not!" the brunette insisted, his laughter dying down.
Hotsuma moved over to Shuusei's bed, "Then what was that all about?"
Shuusei's voice dropped, "It's nothing…"
"Don't make me tickle it out of you."
"Oh please," The older male rolled his eyes, "We aren't children anymore. That doesn't work on me."
"Oh really?" Hotsuma raised his eyebrows and poked at Shuusei's side, "Not even a little?"
Shuusei stifled a laugh, "Don't do that."
"Tell me and I won't."
"But I don't want to," A shadow of a blush crossed the brunette's face, "It's embarrassing."
"It's can't be that bad," Hotsuma poked at his partner once more, "You laughed."
"But I shouldn't have"
"But you did."
"That's not the point."
"Just tell me."
"I don't want to," Shuusei pulled his quilt around him, "Stop touching me."
"Aren't partners supposed to tell each other everything?" Hotsuma lay back on Shuusei's bed, the mattress sinking beneath his weight.
"Last time I checked," Shuusei sighed, "It wasn't a requirement."
"Fine," he was silent for a moment, "Aren't friends supposed to tell each other everything?"
Shuusei sighed, "Hotsuma—"
"Don't."
"Don't what?" Shuusei rolled to look at him.
"Don't sigh and say my name like that," Hotsuma kept his gaze locked on the ceiling, "I feel like you're going to scold me when you do."
Shuusei was silent as he looked at his partner. Hotsuma wouldn't meet his eyes, but kept his gaze on the ceiling.
"…Do you honestly think that I want to marry Tooko-Chan?"
Hotsuma blinked and turned to face his partner, "Huh?"
"Do you really think marrying Tooko-Chan is what I want?" Shuusei's eyes met Hotsuma's as he finished his question.
"I-I-"
"If you really think so," He looked into the younger male's eyes, "Then you aren't as smart as I anticipated."
Hotsuma blushed and looked away once more. The air in the room seemed to grow thicker as the silence lingered. Hotsuma bit into his lip and swallowed nervously, "Do you…Do you love Tooko-Chan?"
Shuusei moved his gaze to his partner, "Not in the way Takashiro-Sama wants me to."
Hotsuma sat up, "You never said anything about Takashiro-Sama before!"
"You didn't exactly give me a chance to explain before," Shuusei neatly whispered as he looked down, avoiding his partner's gaze.
"…So it's arranged?"
Shuusei gave a slight nod. The fact that it was arranged didn't really matter in the end. However, since he hadn't made the choice himself, it made it a bit different at the current point in time.
Hotsuma was quiet for a moment before he twined his arms around his partner's shoulders and leaned his head against to his chest, "I'm sorry, Shuusei."
"Don't be," Shuusei's fingers thrummed against the blonde's back, "It has nothing to do with you."
"It has everything to do with me!" He snapped, pulling away, "Don't be so stupid!"
"Hotsuma-"
"It doesn't matter if it's arranged or nor, Shuusei. It still has to do with me."
"How does it have to do with-"
"Because I-"
Hotsuma slapped his hand over his mouth before looking away. Crap, he'd said too much. He'd almost said more. His fingers began to shake; what if he'd said it?
"…Because you what, Hotsuma?"
He shook his head and got up before moving to his own bed, "It's nothing."
"No it isn't," Shuusei sat up, "Tell me."
"Now so fun when the situation is reversed, is it?" Hotsuma crossed his arm and lay back on his bed.
"Stop acting like a child and just tell me, Hotsuma," Shuusei lay down on his side, facing his partner this time.
Hotsuma blushed "You're just going to laugh me."
"Come on, Hotsuma, Pl-"
A knock cut Shuusei off.
"Shuusei-Kun?" Tooko's voice came from the other side of the door, "Can I talk to you for a moment?"
Shuusei stood and walked to the door before stepping outside, "Yes, Tooko-Chan?"
She looked to the side, avoiding his gaze, "Takashiro-Sama wants to see us in the morning."
"Why is that?"
"I'm not sure," She kept her gaze focused away from him, "But after this morning's conversation, I'm guessing it can't be too great."
He offered a dry laugh, "Am I so bad really?"
"You know I don't mean it like that Shuusei-Kun," she looked up at him, tears hugging the brims of her eyes.
"What's wrong, Tooko-Chan?"
Her lip trembled and she looked down, "I'm afraid."
"Of what?"
Without warning, Tooko threw her arms around him and buried her face in his chest, "I'm afraid of what will happen to the Zweilt because of this decision!" She sobbed against his chest, "I'm afraid to lose Nii-San and Hotsuma! I'm afraid that we'll all drift apart!"
Tooko sniffled and clung to Shuusei as her long sienna hair fell to cover her face. One of his hands came to stroke her hair whilst the other rest on her back.
"Shhh…" His fingers continued to run through her hair in an attempt to comfort her, "Calm down, Tooko-Chan…Someone may here you."
Tooko sniffled and nuzzled against him lightly, "Sorry," Her voice was muffled against his shirt, "I let my emotions get ahold of me."
"It's okay," He offered her a soft smile and patted the top of her head, "It'll be okay."
"Well isn't it nice to see the two of you spending time together already."
The pair turned to see Tsukumo standing at the end of the hallway. Tooko immediately pulled away from Shuusei, "We were just-"
"Don't." The silverette turned and walked in the other direction.

-UraBoku-

Author's Notes: This is an idea I started on a while ago, but I'm just now getting around to posting it. The whole concept is a bit depressing, but I sort of enjoy depressing stories. They're quite the pleasure to both read and write. Reviews are appreciated.
Love,
Tsukiko-Chama