AN: oookay, so I just had this idea of these two calling each other dense and going into why but it ending up on a positive note and…well it turned into this. I don't yet know what I think of this particular fic, it may be hard to decipher what I'm getting at here and there, cuz I'm not a great writer in that respect sob So hopefully you all like it anyway…and coughreviewcough. So…enjoy!

Disclaimer: turns out pockets, letting some lint fall to the ground Nope, no XXXHolic rights here. It must be because I'm not CLAMP. So picky with details, aren't they? (Oh yes, before I forget: I'm sarcastic. A lot. Sarcasm also shows up in the fic a little. Be prepared. 3 But to be sure no one gets the wrong idea, I really don't own XXXHolic, Watanuki, or Doumeki. They belong to each other of course giggles, then smacks self for her overfangirlness/sappiness)

P.S. For those who may have read KuroGrinch, this is also an apology to you, something to keep you all from hating me until I finally finish it. My bad for making the first fic I write in about five or six years a chapter fic. Not the best idea. So here! This is for you.

Watanuki was silently fuming. Silent mostly because he had to bite his tongue to not severely tell off the archer, who had, as usual, exorcized a spirit that had been trying to eat him. Fuming, because it always pissed Watanuki off to no end that the archer, as usual, exorcized a spirit that had been trying to eat him, as usual. Despite what Doumeki and many others may think, it's a perfectly sane and logical reaction to be angry in Watanuki's situation because 1) it gets old, really old, when spirits have been hounding you and coming really close to devouring you since the days barely remembered, like say preschool. 2) Doumeki is a certified arrogant jerk who may as well just have vouchers or a contract stating "1 Watanuki-eating-spirit exorcized for 1 free Watanuki-made bento" and lets just say, especially from Watanuki's point of view, that the bento that inevitably was prepared for the following day almost always garnered more attention from the taller boy than the spirit Doumeki had exorcized. Oddly, this time, Watanuki may have been content silently fuming but this time, oddly enough, Doumeki opted to break the hostile silence.

"You're dense," Doumeki stated plainly.

Watanuki glared, going into "cat-with-hackles-raised" mode.

"Excuse me? I'm dense? Have you looked in a mirror lately?"

"Yes, and you're still dense."

"Well you're a hopeless, stupid glutton!"

"I'm stupid, according to you? Do I antagonize the person who sticks their neck out all the time?"

"As a matter of fact you do, if you remember the whole pinning me against the wall, glaring at me and demanding that I call Yuuko-san out when I tried to help you! And you know what? You're dense, you're really dense!"

"Really?"

"Yes! Maybe I don't jump for joy every time you help me out, but didn't it ever occur to you why?"

"Because you're stubborn and can't ask for help?" Doumeki spat out; both of their tempers were starting to flare more and more.

Watanuki didn't know why he kept yelling, kept revealing what he hadn't ever wanted to say out loud , least of all to Doumeki, but here he was, yelling.

"See? Dense! If I couldn't ask for help I would never have met Yuuko-san, would I have? So you're wrong! Do you want to know why I'd rather deal with things myself? How about I give you a few hints, you arrogant bastard? I told you that I've always dealt with things like seeing the spirits, right?"

"Right. So?"

"And you know I live by myself, right?"

"What does that have to do with-"

"Guess! What do you think happened to my parents, huh?" Watanuki yelled, his anger and his reasons for it bubbling ever closer to the surface and he was furious by now since Doumeki just kept egging him on.

"I'm sorry for what happened to them, if it's what you're implying it is, but just because they got hurt doesn't mean I'll-"

"They didn't get hurt they were killed, you complete and utter moron! And fine, what happened to them doesn't specifically mean the same will happen to you but it certainly could and don't you dare deny that! If you do keep pretending that's not true you'll be more likely to get yourself killed because you're so arrogant!"

"That won't happen and if maybe it does it was my choice."

"Well then it's my choice to tell you not to, to get angry and to avoid you! Why the hell do you keep pulling these stunts anyway? To piss me off more?"

"If you can't figure that out you're still pretty dense, you know."

"I'm not a mind-reader! What you do and say never makes any sense!"

"Well I'm pretty sure you don't want to know, you'll just spazz out again," Doumeki glared, though the tension and anger in his voice was beginning to contain something else too…

"Spazz out? Oh really? It's that outlandish? Oh wait, no, it's because my only purpose in life is to 'spazz out' for your entertainment and cook for you! I actually might be impressed here, please, enlighten me, I beg you as your poor little damsel in distress slash cook! You are unbelievable, you know that?" Watanuki glared back.

"I pull those 'stunts' as you call them, and I save you instead of staying out of danger because I love you, idiot!" Doumeki blurted out, though his eyes went a hair wider when he realized he'd said that out loud. Maybe Watanuki would be in such a rage he wouldn't catch it?

"And…WHAT?!"

"So you're deaf now, too?" Doumeki readopted his apathetic face, and even managed not to blush.

"I'M NOT DEAF! I just don't believe it…" Watanuki's voice softened in awe at the last sentence, and he hated to admit it, even if only to himself, but all of Yuuko's, and for that matter Doumeki's, little hints were all clicking into place. Doumeki really wasn't kidding, Watanuki was now sure.

"Well I wouldn't lie about who I'm in love with," Doumeki confirmed, folding his arms and turning away, thinking, "Well, no taking it back now."

Watanuki gawked and blushed for a full minute before finally swallowing a lump in his throat and saying softly, "You're dense."

"That's your answer?" Doumeki's gaze was unflinching in its intensity; it was now an effort to keep that unaffected façade in place.

"No…I called you dense for not figuring it out already…I…I mean…considering that I make your lunch all the time, and most of the time I'm yelling at you for doing something reckless or doing something without my permission…usually being reckless for my sake without my permission. And gods know why but…I-I love you too. So…so lucky for you, even if you are dense, the great Watanuki-sama happens to like you anyway. And-" Watanuki was cut off by Doumeki kissing him passionately. Watanuki was beet red but silent when they pulled apart for air. Doumeki smiled, which made Watanuki both wonder if he was dreaming and pray he wasn't. Still blushing madly, but needing (and most likely wanting) to have a bit more reassurance that this wasn't dreaming, Watanuki quickly yanked on Doumeki's collar and kissed him deeply. Surprised, but far from being displeased, Doumeki simply watched Watanuki intensely when they parted for air again, for a stronger hint of what was going through the spirit seer's mind right then.

"S-so this means we're-"

"It better," Doumeki cut him off, holding Watanuki close as if he'd run away, but Doumeki wanted to be sure the other boy knew exactly how serious he was about all this.

"O-ok…then you know what? There's something you'd better do…just…will you stop risking yourself all the time? I know I couldn't, and wouldn't, ask you to stop helping me but…but if you keep getting wounded all the time or even worse, letting some spirit accidentally remove your soul again or something I swear I'll-"

Let's just say Watanuki had mixed emotions about this new favorite bad habit of Doumeki's: the whole cutting-off-Watanuki's-rants-by-kissing thing. If he was honest, the bad and good emotions may be just about equal, and he was going to comment on it as soon as he was done letting the archer experiment a little with adding their tongues to the kiss. Doumeki was just enjoying a not only quiet, happy Watanuki, but a quiet-happy-kissing-him-Watanuki.

And for the record, cutting off Watanuki's rants with kissing is still one of Doumeki's favorite bad habits. Watanuki's about ready to admit the same thing. Almost.

End