"Why don't you ever make anything special for me?" Junpei was in the kitchen, scratching Koromaru behind his ears and watching Shinjiro make his special gourmet dog food.

"You ain't cute and fuzzy." Shinji flicked the bill of Junpei's hat up, revealing his close-shaven head. "Hell, you ain't even fuzzy."

"So?" Junpei scowled and pulled his hat back into place. "I make up for it by being devastatingly handsome." Koromaru whined uncertainly.

"Devastatingly stupid, maybe." Shinji went back to chopping.

"Oh man, not you too…I get that enough from Yuka-tan."

"You mean…someone else pointed out that you're an idiot before I did? …I'm shocked."

Junpei looked up at him angrily and Koromaru found an excuse to trot off. "Okay, well then…if I'm so stupid, why hasn't anyone else noticed that you and Akihiko-senpai are doing it?"

Shinji dropped the knife. It fell to the floor with a clatter. Quick as thought, he recovered it and pointed it at Junpei. "What did you say?" His voice shook.

"Jeez, it's not like I'm going to tell anyone…" Junpei's voice trembled a little bit too, but it was from fear and not rage. He tried to scoot his chair back a little. "No reason to get so upset."

"You don't have anything to tell anyone, because what you just said is a crock of bull."

Before he could help himself, Junpei raised his eyebrows and said "Oh? When did you two stop?"

Shinji forced himself to calm down and after a moment he even managed a withering smile. "You really are stupid. Where the hell did you even get an idea like that?"

Junpei looked at the linoleum floor. After a minute he said softly, "Because he told me he loved somebody else."

For a long moment the kitchen was completely silent. Then Shinji cleared his throat. "He said that, did he?"

"Uh huh."

"And you assumed it was me. Well that's awful sweet, but--"

Junpei looked up. "Cut it out, Senpai. Look, you think I didn't wrack my brains trying to figure out who? Then you came here and I knew. It was plain as fucking day. Maybe you're not too bad at hiding it, but he--"

"All right, shut up. Look, it's complicated, all right? It's stupid and pointless and complicated, and maybe there used to be something but it's over now. And you, you pathetic little faggot, got told that bullshit so he wouldn't have to deal with you. Face it. He was trying to spare your feelings."

Junpei looked dangerously like he could cry, to Shinji's discomfort. Instead though he gulped and said, "You guys are the ones who are pathetic. If you still love each other, you should just get back together."

"…yeah, well. He's too stubborn." The answer was awkward because it was so painfully true. Shinji hoped that it would satisfy Junpei, but apparently that wasn't going to happen.

"But--" Junpei still had his innate optimism. Leaving things like that seemed stupid to him.

"Look, no offense, but back the fuck off. I've already tried and it's no good. And you might as well realize, if you haven't already: if he thinks he's too good for me, he sure as hell isn't going to be interested in a whiny little shit like you." That was probably going to make him cry for sure, or leave, but at least he'd shut up.

Again, he didn't do what Shinji expected; he just stayed there, head a little down, lips pursed. Irritating little bastard, what did it take to get rid of him? Insults weren't doing it, so he decided to make him feel threatened instead. He propped Junpei's chin up with one of his fingers, fixing him with the most brutally condescending smile he had in his arsenal. " 'Course, I suppose you might be good for one thing, anyway."

Junpei sat there dumbly with his hands on his knees for a moment before he said, "…all right…"

Shinjiro let Junpei's chin drop and scowled at him, backing up a step. "I wasn't asking--"

Junpei just looked back at him hollowly. "Weren't you?"

Everything after that happened like a reel of film that started and stopped, or skipped over certain mundane details. Shinji couldn't remember washing up or giving Koromaru his plate. He didn't remember going back to his room. The next image that came to him vividly was his hand, pressed against the top of Junpei's head, with the late afternoon sunlight glaring off the right side of Junpei's face. He'd had to turn the hat around because otherwise it kept him too far away from Shinji's stomach to do anything. The look on his face was determined and he didn't glance up at Shinji once either for guidance or approval as he did it, even though Shinji could tell there was no way in hell he had done this before. He only criticized him one time, though, saying "Christ, keep your teeth back." And later when Junpei got the hang of it he made sure to rub his jaw and say, "Yeah, that's good."

He managed to finish, even though it was weird, and he watched sympathetically as Junpei coughed and ducked his head. He knelt down so that they were at eye level and said, "Good boy." But Junpei pulled back when he tried to kiss him.

"Don't…it'd be the wrong thing to do, right?"

"If you mean 'cos of what you just did, I mean…it's mine. So I don't really care."

"No…I mean, because we don't love each other. So…it'd be wrong…"

Shinji stroked his cheek. "…if that's how you want it."

Fast forward to Junpei leaving, awkwardly. At some point the light in the room was gone and it was time to turn on the lamp. After that, no memories again…Shinji supposed he had been standing there thinking. After awhile he just headed back to the lounge.