Hi, everyone! This is my second attempt at a story, as I've encountered some serious writer's blockage on my first one. *Cry* But! Due to a sudden idea, and the request/threat from a rather homicidal friend, I have here, a new work in progress. Hope you enjoy it, if only just a little. For MuffincupPrincess (Codename for Janie), you little terrorist, you.

Disclaimer: Of all of the main characters in this story, I own absolutely none of them. Wah!

WARNING!: Because I truly care for you, as the reader, I'll inform you that during the course of this story there will be abuse, rape, and man-boy love/ guy-on-guy action/ pole-to-hole, whatever you wanna call it. If you don't like gay couples, this in not the place for you. Sorry! And if you're one of those people who reads a story without reading the header first, and encounter an unpleasant surprise along the way; afterward scrolling up to read said neglected header, do not say that you weren't forewarned. If, however, you are someone who's foaming at the mouth for yaoi, then for heaven's sake, disregard and read on already!


CHAPTER ONE

Must the world, in its entirety i.e. people included, lose all sense of the word normal? Normal as in, nice house, two cars, good-paying job, approximately two-point-five children, a well-matched couple to support them, and a puppy who does not have the insatiable urge to crap in every yard on the street. I suppose not. Daisuke Niwa grumbled to himself as he sat at the "kiddie" table with children of ages six and below. Daisuke, being a seventeen-year-old would-be third year in high school, felt that he had the privilege, no, the right to sit with the adults attending his father's wedding. It's only fair seeing that not only was he sitting at this table for tots, but the chick who had the pleasure of marrying his father was no less than twenty years of age with an IQ that, if squared, would still be considerably lower than all of these snot-nosed brats put together. This girl was most likely looking for a rich old guy, who would die and leave her with lots of pretty green stuff to run her greedy little fingers through, however, Daisuke's father was only forty-two, so she would either have to wait until all the stuff she wants is no longer applicable to her, or kill him. Killing is suspicious for at least the first five to ten years of marriage. Conclusion? Dumb mistake. Oh my God. I swear if I have to sit through another one of these boring... The mumbling teen continued in his rant of self-loathing, until a slender hand slowly came to rest on his blazer-clad shoulder.

"How about a dance?," asked a girl with blond hair rippling down her back in a cascade of golden locks. She wore a long, hot pink gown that met the floor with a train following her, mimicking her movements while she twirled about Daisuke in a dance of her own. Drenched in perfume that screamed money and jewelry fit to drop her if she leaned the wrong way, the girl swirled, accomplishing nothing, but dazed looks from dizzy onlookers. The boy frowned, slightly pushing her to the side and out of his way. He placed his small hand on the table, rising to leave with a short glance at the objects of his company.

"I don't dance, Freedert," Daisuke hissed, hastily snatching up his glass while evading her incessant attempts to grab him. He twisted away from the begging blond slowly inching further away to safety. Freedert pouted, knowing all too well that after the party was over, there would be no way to escape her. Now that she was his step-mother.

Really? Really, Daisuke? She could be your sister! Here I am, with a mom who turned out to have been a crackhead. Yes, a crackhead and not only was she addicted, but she was addicted to the point where she would have sold me for a hit. She was literally taking bets as I was incubating, which makes me wonder how and why my father was even with her...a crack whore, I mean. I have never met her, besides the moment that I bursted from her vagina, only to be whisked away by childcare services to live with my father from infancy. Now, my father is on his third marriage and I stupidly, up until Freedert casually mentioned otherwise, had believed the woman from the first marriage to have been my mother. How very wrong I was! Thought Daisuke, running his small hands through the roots of his hair, that hair being the color of the deepest sala flower. The small teen wandered his way through corridors of the hotel where the reception was held. Time to himself was all he wanted, all he ever needed. He never had any friends to confide in, just his maid, Towa. Towa would always listen, but she would never tell him anything to support nor oppose his cause. Whatever she told him, however, was always the truth and that is what he liked most about her. She would always remind him that he was normal, but at the same time, that he was different and could do everything normal kids do, but not with normal kids. The only friends he ever had or could call friends were the ones his father paid to come over. Daisuke never went to school, always having a tutor for this, or a tutor for that. His father was a prosperous archaeologist and thus, was always gone leaving the boy to his own devices. In a large house with no one, but your servants who always seemed too busy to deal with you, solitude would seem the most suitable alternative.

Daisuke continued to wander the halls for what seemed like forever, going in circles a couple of times along the way. People watching was an unbreakable hobby Daisuke wished he hadn't obtained, however, that's the price you pay for seventeen years of personal contact with only a few select people. A few individuals even stopped Daisuke along his meanderings to ask for directions throughout the hotel. From the look of his attire, they might have supposed him to have been an employee, never-the-less, he knew where to go, having been around enough times. He passed back through the threshold to the reception area, which was filled with guests he had never even seen before, but who knew exactly who he was and everything there was to know about him. It never failed to amaze him how people could know so much, yet know so very little at the exact same time.

"So Daisuke, I hear you're quite the painter these days, huh?," a lanky gentleman inquired in a tone that was torn between 'I-don't-want-to-be-rude' and 'I-honestly-couldn't-give-a-shape-shifting-shit-about-this-kid,' all the while maintaining a flawlessly fake smile. "I suppose it's to woo the ladies, is it not?" Daisuke returned the appearance of a happy disposition, raising his newly filled glass like a cheerful ol' chap.

"I do, indeed. All in great fun, sir," he replied gleefully, bringing his glass to his lips, before turning away to end the conversation. The boy really didn't paint all that much. It always seemed as if he had a beautiful work thought up, but once that work made its way onto the canvas, well...the work's always better off staying in his head. "Excuse me. Pardon me," Daisuke called as he surreptitiously made his way through the crowd of people by the spread of foreign delicacies. He stopped on his quest for a secluded area as he heard his name in the near distance. He followed the voice to a far table where people were sparsely conversing.

"Honey, I like totally think Daisuke would love boarding school! It would be a tremendous change for him," Freedert whined annoyingly into Kosuke's ear, leaning seductively towards him in a manner not suitable at a dinner table in any class of society. Yeah. Tremendous is an understatement. Might as well turn my body inside-out while you're thinking of change. Daisuke thought to himself, then began listening intently once again. He was now crouched low underneath the table next to the one his father was sitting at. His tiny body easily concealed under the flowy tablecloths.

"Boarding school? Where did that idea come from?," Kosuke coughed out like this idea was clearly unheard of. His second wife, Marianne had also suggested boarding school. She couldn't stand the sight of the 'ghost-like' apparition of a son that Daisuke had been for her. "I don't think that's such a good idea. I mean he likes being by himself." Freedert pouted in a way that can only be described by getting a puppy and dunking it in a freezing bucket of water. *Whimper...Whimper*

"You said, yourself that you wished he had more company, so I just thought that he might try going to school with other kids. Besides, it's not healthy to stay inside all the time and I want to have you all to myself for a while." Daisuke rolled his eyes and made a 'tsk' noise, audible enough for some of the guests to look around. You just thought you'd get me out of the house so you could do whatever you want? Yeah, well it's not going to happen, missy.

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess we can try it out. It's for Daisuke's sake. I'll call up some guys to pull some strings, but if he has any problems, he's coming home," Kosuke agreed warily as he drained his glass of its contents. Freedert squealed and immediately dashed off in search of her new baby. Daisuke could hear Kosuke sigh loudly after her retreat. "Daisuke, you can stop hiding." The small boy eeped, scooting out from under the table slowly. He stood up and took a seat next to his father, looking confused to no end.

"You knew I was hiding?" A look of pure embarrassment spread over the boy's features, as he straightened his tie, trying to find some sort of occupation for his hands. At this point, him being placed at the 'table for tots' didn't seem all that farfetched of an idea.

"Isn't it obvious, Daisuke? I clearly called you out," Kosuke replied, taking a rather large swig from the bottle of champagne before him. Daisuke nodded slightly, watching his old man drink away his 'troubles.'

"Well...you said yes? I don't understand. Last time you flat-out rejected even the tiniest hint towards something like boarding school." Kosuke gazed upon his son with a tired expression, conveying the ultimate form of 'keep-it-short-and-sweet-'cause-I-have-a-headache.' Daisuke's ruby eyes got wide with discontent.

"You know, maybe it'll be good for you. You can make some friends; add some hip and cool memories to your teen life." At this, the man poised himself into what he thought a 'hip or cool' kid might look like, earning a look of disdain from his fidgeting son. After realizing that this achieved nothing, but sideways glances from onlookers, he shrugged his shoulders and took another sip from his half-empty bottle. "Come on, just try it," Daisuke's father sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger. "It'll be fine. If you don't like it, I'll send you right back home, I promise." Promises, eh? Isn't this your third marriage? Or were you married to my real mom as well? I never know these days. Daisuke nodded and stalked off, getting intercepted by Freedert along the way.

"Dance with me!," she chimed, once again spinning around idiotically.

We've got an awesome house, more than two cars, a very well-paying job, approximately one kid and a twenty-year-old who might as well be a kid, a couple who seems happy with looks that are most likely deceiving, and a pint-sized purse puppy with irritable bowel syndrome. Normal? Close, but no cigar.


"Can we? Can we? Can we?," Freedert pleaded, oh-so-loudly throughout the mall, jumping up and down as she did. She pulled a tiny blushing red-head towards a clothing store, which he immediately resisted. It had been three weeks since her proposal of boarding school and every day since the agreement, she had been begging Daisuke to let her shop for him. "Please, please, please, please, please! Daisuke, I'll be your very best friend!" Daisuke scoffed at this last remark, wondering how the hell she expected to be anyone's best friend when she's scrumping their dad every night. Involuntary chills filled Daisuke's body as that last thought passed through his head.

"Freedert, I've told you already. I don't need you as a best friend. You won't even be around and I don't need to go shopping. We'll have a uniformed dress code. My God, you are so dense." Daisuke continued walking throughout the mall getting all of the necessities he would need for his dorm. He had already picked out a comforter which was black, accented with gray stripes in varying sizes and red sheets to go with the red pillow cases. All of this stuff was to be 'top-of-the-line' according to Freedert, who needed everything top quality. Daisuke could care less as long as he had something to sleep under. He was rich, there's no doubt about it, but he took great pride in the little things, not the price tags that come with them. The other items matched his bed set, however they didn't resemble a catalogue spread, but rather a conglomerate of amazingness waiting to be morphed into a masterfully decorated room.

"Awww! I wish I could come with you to help you decorate!," Freedert wailed, clinging even more tightly to the teen, harder than what's normally acceptable in step-mother/step-son embraces. As much as Daisuke would hate to admit it, Freedert was a good decorator, from what he'd seen around the house. "And I'm not dense! I happen to weigh 122 pounds, thank you very much, Mr. I'm-so-great-smarty-pants."

"When you're done acting like a complete idiot, let me know so I can at least attempt to tolerate you once again." Daisuke rolled his eyes and began speed-walking down the fastest route to freedom. Freedert easily caught up, because if anyone could run in six-inch heels without breaking their neck, it would be her. "You know you are coming with me, right? You're getting a hotel to help me get settled and then you leave me forever so I can rot and wither away, never letting you know how much I truly liked being your son."

"Y-you really like me? Really, really?" Freedert lit up, illuminating her golden locks with the glow of self-regard. She held her hands up to her face and began bouncing again with a grin that looked as if it were carved from ear to ear.

"No, not really. That was funny, though. Thank you for that," Daisuke giggled softly, shaking his head, allowing his unruly rubicund tresses to sway around his face in a contrast that was almost angelic. Freedert smiled and couldn't bring herself to be angry at the kid she thought she was going to hate.


"AN ALL GUY'S BOARDING SCHOOL? WHAT THE HELL?," Daisuke growled as he approached the gates of Akune High, Academy for Boys. The school was enormous, fully decked-out with court yards and gardens laden with grandeur. His father scratched his head, unaware that this was an all boys' school. "Don't tell me you didn't do your research..."

"Daisuke, it sounded legit and my partner is a close personal friend of the headmaster. I thought he said something about girls." Daisuke rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time that day after first getting lost in the airport, then once again on the way here, and only to find out that there is no poontang strutting the campus.

"Yeah, Dad. Something about girls, or lack thereof," Daisuke scoffed, pacing about in a fit of annoyance.

"What's wrong with all guys? You might find someone hot! Woo-hoo!," squeaked Freedert, fist pumping. Both Daisuke and his father rolled their eyes at her. "You guys are no fun. Hey boys!," she called out to some guys walking by. They both glanced at her, then continued on their course. "They don't know a good thing when they see one! Humph!" Kosuke pulled out his brochure which he got his reference from and began to look over it.

"Ah! See! The Akune High has a sister school attached to it. It says here that Amame High, Academy for Girls is right there and the dorm rooms are co-ed. Meal times, after-school activities, and clubs are co-ed as well." Kosuke pointed to the far end of the huge building, indicating that it was Amame High. "So that means we go this way." The three of them began to walk towards the building; Daisuke and Freedert following the map holder.

"Hey, how about we take a tour first?," Freedert sang, getting all excited for nothing. Kosuke nodded, but continued to look at his map as Daisuke was yanked off in a random direction. "Wow! This place is so nice!" The high ceilings and statues placed along the halls made the school seem more like a nice museum, than a learning institution. "Listen! You can hear me echo...echo...echo..." Daisuke turned around, acting like he wasn't with her while people chuckled as they walked past. Anything that could possibly be called embarrassingly stupid had been done along this make-shift tour. From smushing her face up to floor-length windows to asking how much the electricity bill was, Freedert had done it. She even bought Akune and Amame hats for the two of them to wear. "Oh m'goodness! Daisuke, let's go get you signed up!," she said after having had her fill of exciting tourism. They dashed over to a front desk, one of the many they'd seen along their travels, and commenced in asking about the sign-up.

"You'll need to go thattaway," rasped a short, older woman with library glasses. She looked angry, as if she were unhappy with her job. Then again, who would be happy with Freedert - the tour guide two inches from their face? The woman pointed Daisuke in the direction he should go and off he went with Freedert at his heels.

"I think this is it. Everyone else is in line," Daisuke stated monotonously, finding a spot behind a girl with short brown hair. "Freedert, stop that!" Freedert had been twisting in her spot with her finger in her mouth, batting her lashes at some guys who were sitting on a bench not too far from where they were. The guys appeared really interested in what she was doing, but Daisuke popped her anyway. "Stop it." She put on an expression that read 'what-did-I-do?' Daisuke glared at her and she stopped pouting, but still glanced over in the guys' directions. The girl in front of Daisuke turned around to see who he was yelling at and giggled when he noticed her staring. "She does that a lot. You should have seen her outside."

"Oh, yeah? Is she going to be your roommate?," The girl asked, smiling with a hopeful expression. Daisuke blinked for a moment, then registered her question.

"R-roommate? Oh, no! That's my step-mom. I know, I know. She's twenty and she can't help herself," Daisuke sputtered, nearly perishing at the thought of staying in the same room with Freedert. The girl's smile got wider and she began to beam slightly.

"Well, you wanna be my roommate? My sister was supposed to be mine, but she ended up rooming with some other girl, and they don't give out single rooms unless you pay extra and well, well I just don't want to get stuck with someone weird, 'cause it's already costly enough to go here...and-" Daisuke cut her off with a small giggle.

"The dorms are co-ed right?"

"Yep. Everyone who enrolls gets a dorm. If you pay extra, you get a single. I want one, but it's expensive," the girl said, pouting.

"Oh, okay. I'll room with you then. It's no problem with me," Daisuke concluded, figuring that co-ed must mean guys and girls could share rooms if they wanted to. The girl smiled and gave him a quick hug, pulling him closer to her in the line. Freedert saw the hug and instantly began gushing.

"Oh, Dai-chan! That's so cute!" Freedert hugged Daisuke, yanking him back to his previous spot. His new roommate giggled, putting her hand to her mouth, and the guys on the bench nearly gave up all hope on Freedert. The lady at the desk for dorm applications called Daisuke's partner up to the desk and she walked over, dragging Daisuke along with her.

"Hi, I'm Riku Harada, nice to meet you ma'am," Riku calmly announced bowing her head slightly.

"That's all well and good, but who's your roommate honey? We've got a lot of people to bed, so there's no need for formalities," the shrewd woman said, quickly snapping at the girl.

"This is uh...um," Riku began, nudging Daisuke's arm. Daisuke had glued his focus on a tall, purple-haired guy. He looked a little older than Daisuke, with a calm and cool demeanor, almost with an air of self-righteousness like everyone else was shit on the bottom of his shoe. Daisuke envied it never-the-less and this guy never ceased to grab his attention. The older male caught wind of Daisuke's staring ways as he looked through the brochures at the desk, but when he began to stare at Daisuke as well, the red-head's eyes snapped up and away. He caught a glimpse of a smirk before he tore away his gaze.

"D-dai...suke," Daisuke stammered, earning laughter from both the lady at the desk and Riku. The guy walked away from the desk, but even as he did, he seemed to be chuckling.

"That's an odd last name," the lady commented, typing away at her computer. "Well, here are your keys. Have a great year. Next!" She handed them the keys and the two of them continued down the line where everyone else was going.

"You've got a pretty name, Dai," Riku complimented, flashing a smile at him when they approached the uniform line. Freedert had long since abandoned them and was sitting on the bench with the guys from earlier.

"Oh. Um, thanks." Daisuke wasn't sure about what she meant by pretty. No one had ever called his name pretty before, but then again, who had he ever really talked to?

"The red-head is kinda cute, huh?," someone asked from a distance. Daisuke looked around slowly, trying not to seem obvious. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the guy from the desk talking to two guys on a bench, not too far from where he was in line. One was what you might call a pretty boy. He seemed completely manicured, like if he'd broken a nail, you wouldn't be surprised if he fell out screaming bloody murder. Even his blond ponytail seemed to have a confidence of its own, strangely enough. The other male had blue hair and was slightly smaller than the afore-mentioned beauty, but on a completely different level, aesthetically speaking. In a word, the man was frigid. It was as if there were an aura of doom lingering about him, just ready to end anyone who even thought of coming too close. How two people like this could even stomach sitting next to one another was mind-boggling, to say the very least. Still trying not to reveal his eavesdropping ways, Daisuke glanced around in a different direction, before staring out of the corner of his eye once again. The blond looked over at him, or at least that's what he thought, then turned back to his creepy friend.

"Yeah, she's okay. Kind of tomboyish though," the blond replied, flipping his hair and smirking at the bluenette, not unlike the violet-haired boy had, just a few minutes before. "Then, again. Those types always seem to capture your full attention, don't they?" The purple-haired guy laughed at this, nudging the creepy guy's arm in jest.

"Pray tell, what is the meaning of that last remark, Krad?," the bluenette asked tiredly, as apparently these types of snide questions are asked of him on a regular basis. Folding his arms, he shifted his eyes from the violet one, to the man he'd just referred to as Krad.

"Well, isn't it obvious, Satoshi? You're totally a closeted homo. The only women you're ever interested in look like men."

"I absolutely refuse to agree with you," Satoshi stated, clearly taken aback. There was little or no change in his expression, but from the widening of his eyes, measured within the minutest margin, one can assume that he was somewhat shocked.

"Can I get a co-sign, Darkie-poo?," Krad asked laughingly, as if to say 'Whether-you-agree-or-not,-it's-a-cold,-hard-fact.' 'Darkie-poo' nodded his head, co-signing on the topic at hand, all the while reading over a pamphlet he'd gotten from the brochure rack. "You see? Now it's official. You've been overruled by two-thirds majority. You're gay, so admit it."

"You can't have a majority rule over a person's sexuality, Krad. I mean it's not like you're voting for him to be gay...," Darkie-poo sighed, folding his pamphlet. "...Or is that what you want? For him to be gay, that is."

"Hahaha," Krad laughed nervously, brushing off the question. "Oh, please. Come now. All I meant was, through popular vote, it's clear that everyone here thinks Satoshi has homo-tendencies, therefore we can safely assume that he is, in fact a homosexual. I, on the other hand, am as straight as straight gets!"

"Sure, you are," Darkie-poo said sarcastically, standing up to stretch, before walking off towards a random hallway.

"Really? I'll have you know that I-. Hey, wait! Where are you-," Krad asked in annoyance, watching the target of his question continue to leave. "I hate it when he just up and walks off right in the middle of a conversation. Just rude, wouldn't you say?," he ranted, not even waiting for a response before continuing. "You know, what were we even talking about before?"

"I asked if you thought that red-."

"Oh, right! The red-head...hm...She's definitely cute. So if you aren't gay like you say, then you have my blessing to try to court her," Krad said officially, folding his arms as he did.

"I wasn't aware that I needed you're permission, but I suppose that's good to know," said the bluenette with a slight frown on his features. The red-head shrugged his shoulders, turning back to face the direction of traffic. 'Oh. Must not have been talking about me then,' Daisuke whispered under his breath, even as he glanced around seeing no other red-heads in the vicinity.

"Did you say something?" Riku glanced at Daisuke suspiciously and he shook his head.

"N-no, I didn't say anything," Daisuke assured her, blushing a little at his embarrassment. When it was his turn to approach the desk, the woman stationed there asked for his size, which he gave her. For a moment she stared at him awkwardly, converting the male size he gave her into a female one. After receiving their uniforms, Daisuke and Riku smiled, moving aside for the others to pass by. "O-oh my God," Daisuke squeaked as he held up the uniform he'd just been handed. It was a black miniskirt with white pleats, and a white button-up with a maroon and black crest on it. There was also a selection of vests and jackets that went with the uniform, but those weren't exactly mandatory in order to abide by the school's dress-code. "Um, there must be a mistake. This is a skirt." Daisuke's voice was quivering minutely.

"Well, yeah. All the girls wear skirts," Riku laughed, as if all was right with the world, tugging on the front of his Amame High hat, which was supposed to have been Freedert's.

"But...but..." Riku pulled his arm and began to drag him out of the atrium. "W-wait! Where are we going?"

"To our room, so we can try these on, duh."

"Riku! I gotta do something first! I'll just meet you there! Here take these for me," he asked, dropping his uniforms in her arms. Riku shrugged, handed him a key, and continued on her journey to their dorm. "Freedert! Let's go!," Daisuke commanded, stomping over to his step-mom. The guys she was sitting with looked him over and invited him to relax with them as well. Daisuke made a slight gagging noise and pulled Freedert off of the bench.

"Dai! Dai, we were having fun!," Freedert whined, holding one of the bench-hugger's hands.

"Does your husband know that, MOM?" That was a BINGO. The bench-hugger dropped Freedert's hand like a steaming pile of horse manure. "You know we went to the wrong place?"

"W-we did? Oh, how did that happen?" A small frustrated sigh escaped the boy as he fought the urge to answer that question. Round 1...2...3! Ding! Ding! Ding! Loser.

"Your dumb ass decided you wanted to go on a flipping tour of this gigantic school! Or should I say two schools? It's your fault we're even here to begin with, goddamn it!," Daisuke exploded, receiving looks and laughter. Most of the laughing was due to his tiny size compared to Freedert's, which didn't help because she also had heels on. "And on top of that, now I'm a cross-dressing girl in guy's clothes! Wait! Damn it, I said that wrong... I can't even think straight! Dag friggen' nabbit!" Freedert snickered, then broke out in uproarous laughter, causing many people to join her. The blue-haired teen was even smiling along with his blond friend, as tiny as that smile may have been. A blush flourished on Daisuke's face right up to his roots, as he put his hands on his hips and tapped his foot in frustration. "Fuck you. Let's go." Freedert stared at him for a moment, unmoving. "NOW!," the heated voice came out like a slap in the face, snapping her back to reality and as much as it irked her to be handled in such a manner, she followed obediently.

The two of them returned to Akune High in silence. No matter how hard Freedert pleaded, Daisuke refused to speak to someone with such little common sense. Daisuke couldn't believe how utterly ridiculous Freedert was, or even how he, himself was stupid enough to follow such a person. There was a cutting air about the boy. Arms folded tightly across his chest, jaws clenched, forcing his lips into a thin line, he warded off anyone who came too close with a permanent twinkle of death in his eye. People steered out of the way as he passed by looking pissed beyond all belief. Not only had he been mistaken for a girl and humiliated to the point of no return, what with his overly promiscuous step-mother, but the more he thought about it, the more it ticked him off. He felt more like Freedert's parental unit than a step-son. As Kosuke approached the two of them, he couldn't help, but to notice the icy atmosphere.

"Hey, did something happen? One of you looks like you're about to cry and the other like you're out for blood. What's up?," he asked, attempting to break the ice, so to speak.

"Dai-chan started it!," Freedert whined, pointing a long finger at the glaring boy.

"Fucked if I did. Dad, you married a total idiot," Daisuke sighed, scratching his head minutely. "She makes me feel like my IQ is dropping."

"Hey, you little...," Freedert began, trying to swing at the red-head who just walked away as she was restrained by Kosuke.

"We'll have none of that. No fighting and Dai, could you at least be nice? No need for name calling and such. She is your step-mother now, after all. Man-up, and show some respect. That means no swearing." At this, Freedert stuck her tongue out at him, before hiding behind her new husband.

"You see? How do you expect me to be serious, when she's acting like an infant?," Daisuke asked, giving Freedert the bird.

"Hey! You're both acting like infants! Now cool it, before I put you both in time-out. You wanna act like kids; I'll treat you like it." Kosuke looked back and forth between the two bickering 'kids' and folded his arms as if to say 'test-me-if-you-want-to.' Daisuke and Freedert rolled their eyes, before conceding in defeat. "Now apologize."

"Sorry," they said in unison, watching as Kosuke nodded and turned to lead them in the direction of the dormitories.

"Fuck you," Daisuke whispered angrily, flicking Freedert in the neck and laughing as he caught up to his dad soon after. Freedert fumed, rubbing the stinging spot on her neck, but followed never-the-less.

"Dai, I've already signed you up and got your room. Should be around here somewhere. A, uh...room 2719," Kosuke announced, handing Daisuke his male uniforms. "Those should be your size. If not, you can exchange them back at the front desk."

"No, these are fine," Daisuke answered back, after first checking the labels on the clothes he was handed. "Wait, you said room 2719? How many rooms does this place have?"

"According to the brochures, this place can house up to five thousand people, which includes faculty and students. Of course, some of the rooms are shared, and there's the possibility of getting a room to yourself. That aside, I figured since you came here to make friends, it'd be easier on you if you had someone to room with, no?"

"Yeah, that's fine with me. I don't mind sharing. I'm actually kind of looking forward to it," Daisuke said, thinking back on how friendly Riku was. Oh, I forgot about Riku. She still thinks I'm a girl, huh? Should be okay if I tell her the truth. Daisuke pulled the key she'd given him out of his pocket to see that she would be in room 1631. He'd be sure to explain the little mishap to her, and she'd get that single room she wanted. He smiled thinking that perhaps it was a good idea to get out of the house and try something new. Wondering about what he and his friends-to-be might do in the future, Daisuke found himself lost in thought and almost ran right into his dad as the man stopped at his door.

"Looks like this is it," Kosuke said softly, glancing back at the room number on his key, matching it to the door. "Yep, here we are."

"Oh m'goodness! Are you excited?! I'm so excited for you! And, I get to decorate!," Freedert sang, bouncing around Daisuke and his father, completely forgetting about being mad at the boy.

"I guess I am a bit excited. Or maybe I'm just nervous," Daisuke answered, getting that butterflies in your gut feeling, not unlike the moment right after your teacher calls your name to give a presentation.

"Nonsense. What have ya got to be nervous about? I'm sure your roommate will love you!"

"Thanks Freedert, but I'm more worried about whether or not I'll like my roommate," he laughed nervously feeling his palms get sweaty just thinking about some hideous creeper opening the door.

"Only one way to find out," Kosuke laughed as well, unlocking the door and pushing it open for Daisuke and Freedert to see.

"Wow, this place is beautiful!," gasped Freedert, as she entered the room. At first glance, you might have thought you'd gone back in time. The room was very large, styled in the classical Victorian grandeur with high vaulted ceilings and ornate crown moldings upon the eggnog colored walls. Daisuke was lucky enough to have gotten a room located at the corner of the building, so there were four floor-to-ceiling windows, garnished with flowy, golden curtains, which allowed a massive amount of light into the room. Being that the two adjacent walls had two windows a piece, where the windows were spread apart, there lay a bed between them; each bed made special with the intricate carvings on their headboards and foot boards, adding to the already overly elegant space.

"Yeah," Daisuke agreed, walking over to the area across from the illuminated beds. There was a seating area which had Victorian styled furniture placed over a most likely super expensive rug, including a couch, chase, chair with an ottoman, and a wood-carved coffee table with a golden finish. The light blue and gold furniture held an eye-popping contrast with the dark Calamander flooring, and at that point Daisuke felt that his rooming here would be fairly inappropriate as he'd be so stressed out with trying not to mess anything up that he wouldn't get a chance to actually enjoy his stay. Off to the side of the seating area, there were two drawing desks; each with a laptop on them, along with the other necessary desk accessories. The three of them just marveled at the sight of the room, taking in its otherworldly beauty.

"So, I'm guessing this place is worth what I'm paying for it," Kosuke laughed, pacing about the room. Daisuke chuckled along with him, taking a seat on a couch in the seating area.

"Ah, looks like we get to go shopping for a new comforter set to match this room, because you are so not using that cheap one you got last time," Freedert chimed, jiggling the handle on a walk-in closet. "Oh my God! Daisuke, if you don't like it here, I'll take your spot!"

"Haha, I'll keep that in mind."

"This closet is like a maze! And you guys have got a sweet bathroom, too!" As soon as you enter the closet, there's a door to the left leading to the bathroom, which had both a shower and a tub, and two sinks for the tenants of the room. "Marble...in the bathroom? Are you kidding me? You think I could get back into school, honey?" At this, Kosuke just laughed, taking a tour of the closet as well.

"Hm, looks like your roommate has already been here. He seems to dress normally, at least," Kosuke commented, seeing some clothes already hung up in the closet. "See? Jeans…tees...nothing to worry about here."

"Dad, you can't say someone's 'normal' just because you saw a pair of their jeans. Serial killers wear jeans," Daisuke snorted, walking over to lay on one of the unmade beds. His body seemed to sink right into it as it molded to his figure, making him relax almost completely. He sighed, rolling over to check the time on the clock, which read about 2 P.M. His excitement or rather, his nervousness was most definitely not making the day go by any faster.

"You'll just have to wait and see, then," Freedert giggled. "Until then, we'll be right back! I've got to get stuff for your room!"

"Freedert, you really don't have to do that. I can ju-"

"I'm decorating for you and that's final," she said, cutting him off. "You'll thank me later." With that, Freedert and Kosuke left, leaving nothing but the small click of the door behind them.


Daisuke awoke to the incessant clicking of keys on a keyboard across the room from him. Giving his eyes time to adjust to his surroundings, he glanced over at the clock to find that he'd fallen asleep and passed about six hours away as it was a little past eight o'clock at night. Following the sound which was the cause of his broken sleep cycle, Daisuke's gaze fell upon a lanky boy typing furiously on one of the laptops near the seating area. After a few moments, the aforementioned typist's head snapped up and turned in Daisuke's direction, seeming all the more intense with the glow of the computer screen illuminating his features.

"So you're my roommate, huh?," asked the guy, pushing up his glasses as he did.

"Uh, yeah," Daisuke began nervously, propping himself up into a sitting position. "I...I didn't disturb you, did I? I mean, I'm sorry, if I did. You seemed really into whatever it was that you were working on."

"No, you didn't disturb me," the boy replied, seeming somewhat irritated as he did. "It was just a minor tiff. Something to do with my guild leader and him deciding to change the raid times, although I specifically told him I couldn't make raids at 6:30. Apparently, my heals aren't good enough to warrant some consideration when setting up guild events! I must just be some second rate healer who can be replaced on a whim! Well, joke's on them, because I dare anyone to find someone who can pull 35k H.P.S on almost every boss like I can! I double-dog-dare ya!" As the guy said this, he grew all the more irritated, going so far as to stand up and pace about the room.

"Your guild leader...? H.P.S? I'm sorry, but I don't follow," Daisuke said quietly, flooded with confusion.

"Guild leader, as in a leader of a guild. My guild's name is 'Avengers of the Dark Goliath,' but we just say A.D.G. for short and H.P.S is the acronym for heals per second. I do top heals in all my raids. It's a well-known fact."

"I'm sorry. What?," Daisuke inquired, frowning at his own lack of understanding.

"Ugh, you don't game much, do you? Online computer games? It's much too complicated for me to explain to you right now. Honestly, I have no clue if you and I will even be able to survive rooming together." At this, Daisuke rolled his eyes, making the connection between this guy and the 'no-lifing computer geeks' he'd seen described in movies, although he'd never thought they were really as intense as movies made them out to be. This one at least, lived up to the exaggeration. "By the way, you're on my bed."

"Your bed? But..." He stopped mid-sentence, because as he talked, the computer geek waved his hand nonchalantly, gesturing at what were apparently his possessions on the nightstand next to the bed Daisuke was currently on. "Oh, sorry about that, then."

"As you should be," the nerd stated matter of factly, striding across the room towards his bed. "I'll have to make sure this bed is completely sanitized, before bringing in my bedding." Daisuke's eyes began to twitch as he tried to convince himself that agreeing to come to boarding school was not the worst decision he'd ever made, although now that he thought of it, coming to this school was really the only big decision he'd ever had to make. "Shoo! Off to your own bed, now. Your dad and sister already made up your bed and stuff. They got some other things in that bag over there," he said, pointing lazily at a red bag in the corner of the room.

"She's not my sister, just so you know." At this, Daisuke's roommate just shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'Who cares?' and went about his business before nearly leaping out of his skin. Before Daisuke had even realized what had happened, the violet-haired boy from earlier was pacing about the room having popped out of nowhere.

"Don't touch that!," the aforementioned hardcore online gamer called out, nearly panicking to death as he shooed the new intruder away from the computer the violet-haired teen was now pushing buttons on. The guy shrugged his shoulders and casually sauntered across the room, focusing his interests on the comic book laden bookcases.

"Darkie-poo?" Daisuke hadn't even known he'd whispered anything, but the unexpected teen turned on him immediately with a suspicious look in his eye.

"What did you just call me?," Darkie-poo asked, seeming somewhat agitated, but at the same time masking a tiny hint of laughter.

"M-me? No-nothing. I didn't say anything," Daisuke managed to choke out innocently, feeling embarrassed beyond belief. Darkie-poo raised an eyebrow at the red-head, because for some reason unknown to him, the boy looked oddly familiar. He frowned, squinting his eyes at the red-head in question, but dropped the uncertainty none-the-less and continued to pace around the room.

"Hey! You can't just come barging in other people's rooms out of nowhere, you know!," yelled the kid with the glasses, holding his chest as if he was coming down with a heart attack, after having made sure his computer was unharmed.

"The door was open."

"Even so! Whether the door is open or closed, when going into someone else's room, it's customary to knock first!," replied the boy who, at least in Daisuke's opinion was way too angry for something so simple. Perhaps he was still upset over his guild scuffle. Completely ignoring the ranting boy behind him, Darkie-poo turned back to Daisuke with a look of concern.

"Is this your bed?," the violet one asked seriously, pointing towards the bed that Freedert and Kosuke had made up for him. Daisuke nodded in response, causing a yet another small frown to form on Darkie-poo's lips. "That won't do. That, over there, will be your bed."

"Hey, now! Wait a second! That's my bed!," said the 'still-seething-over-neglecting-to-knock-guy's-rude-entry' boy. "Who are you to come in here dictating stuff?!"

"I'm Dark. Dark Mousy," the boy said, never turning away from the slightly confused red-head, who just sat on the edge of his ex-bed.

"I don't care what your name is! I just wanna know why the hell you're in my room trying to give my bed away!" At this, Dark turned his attentions to the ranting roomie.

"Here, take these and get out," Dark said calmly, handing the boy a set of keys to one of the rooms of many on the seemingly endless hallway. "You can pick up your stuff later."

"Wh-what? What do you mean 'Get out?!'"

"You're trading rooms with me. The bed in my room faces a window which opens to the East. I can't sleep peacefully if I have to wake up to the sun in my eyes, now can I?," Dark asked, smirking inwardly to himself. He didn't even wait for an answer before continuing. "In any case, this room will do just fine."

"You can't just take someone's room! You have to get a room transfer and fill out a bunch of forms! Besides, I like it in here and my roommate, even though he knows nothing of games, is pretty normal! I have no intentions of leaving!," the boy bellowed, pushing up his glasses and glaring in a fit of disgust.

"If it's that big of an issue, I can just switch rooms with you. I don't mind," Daisuke chimed in quietly, earning looks from both Dark and the angsty nerd.

"Then it's solved. He will take your room, and I can stay here, since I'm already unpacked and everything."

"No, I want him," Dark stated bluntly, glaring at the gamer as he pondered his thoughts. "Did you honestly think I'd want to spend a year holed up with a freak like you? Some guy who gets his panties in a bunch every time someone forgets to knock and gets off to pixelated women on computer games? If that's what you thought, it's just another reason it's you that needs to leave." Dark laughed aloud to himself, while eyeing the computer Daisuke's roommate was playing on earlier.

"He's not a freak. Actually, he seems pretty nice from what I've seen so far," Daisuke commented, feeling bad for his new roomie. In all honesty, the guy looked petrified, even though Dark was no longer glaring at him. Daisuke hadn't seen the glare for himself, so he couldn't understand why his roommate wasn't even trying to stick up for himself. It made his roommate appear all the more pitiful.

"And you've known him for what? All of ten minutes?," Dark asked laughingly, smirking at Daisuke as he took a seat on an ottoman. Daisuke winced at the sound of Dark's deep, throaty laughter. The guy was apparently really enjoying himself.

"It doesn't matter. He really doesn't wanna leave, so I'll just go instead. Then everyone will get what they want. I haven't unpacked yet either, so moving will be easy," Daisuke suggested again, just ready to get out of this awkward situation.

"You're staying where you are," Dark said sternly, before returning his sights on the computer guy. "Why are you still here?"

"I-I...um. Well, I was...uh," the boy stammered out nervously, melting under Dark's intense stare.

"You were just leaving." At that, Daisuke's roommate conceded defeat and nodded, before gathering up some of his action figures which were placed on his nightstand. "Don't worry. My room is a single, so you'll have plenty of space for those...things." Daisuke's jaw dropped, not being able to believe someone could really stare someone out of their own room or even that someone would want to give up a single room just because they didn't like the lighting.

"You're joking, right?," Daisuke asked frantically, running to the door to see computer boy hastily walking to what would be his new room.

"I don't joke about the things I want." It may have just been Daisuke, but he could have sworn the room seemed to get just a tad bit colder, because as soon as Dark had spoken, a chill crawled its way right up his spine. The intensely serious look on the older boy's face didn't do much in the way of settling Daisuke's nerves either.

"B-but he looks really upset. I, well I just think it was really unnecessary and-"

"He will get over it. Relax," Dark sighed, rolling his eyes before getting up and walking over to examine Daisuke's freshly made ex-bed.

"Why didn't you just move your bed if you didn't wanna wake up facing the sun? I mean, it just would've made a lot more sense," Daisuke thought aloud, pressing his fingers to his lips as he did. He wondered if this guy was the type to openly answer questions or if he was a solitary type who would much rather his roommates mind their own business.

"Way too complicated," Dark answered, stretching his long arms towards the ceiling. Judging from his reaction, Dark seemed, at least to Daisuke, a rather laid back kind of guy and thus, he proceeded to investigate.

"Let me get this straight," Daisuke began, completely shocked by what he'd just heard. "You mean to tell me, that you kicked a guy out of his own dorm, all because you were too lazy to push a bed to the other side of the room?"

"That's right."

"Unbelievable! You know, you really are-...Hey! Wait! Where are you goin'?," Daisuke yelled, watching Dark stride out of the room and into the hallway not caring in the least that he was still in the middle of a conversation. "I wasn't done talkin' to you! Dark!" Wait a second, did I get too comfortable? Or maybe, does he just come into rooms whenever and leave just like he came - without thinking of anyone but himself? In any case, that guy really is somethin' else. Just strange. Sighing, Daisuke sauntered across the room, kicking off his shoes, before dragging the large red bag Freedert had left for him out of the corner his ex-roomie told him about. Upon opening the bag, he found that its contents were all duplicates of the stuff on his 'ex' side of the room, the one that was just recently claimed by Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome. Hold on. Did I really just think he was tall, dark, and handsome? Tall, yes. Dark, not really, but that's his name, so yes. Although he is a bit mysterious and strange...and handsome? Well... Daisuke began to blush, holding the second Victorian-styled, baby blue and cream-colored plush blanket against himself. Ah, no. This is just awkward. It's this place. It must be making people go crazy, 'cause I know for a fact that I never think this way. Hm, but this blanket is ridiculously soft...

After realizing Freedert decided to buy two of everything so that the room would be uniform, Daisuke got to work on making his new bed and setting up the decorative items so that they looked exactly like they did on Dark's side of the room. Once he'd completed the tasks at hand, he took to unpacking his clothes and hanging them in the closet, along with organizing his shoes. The closet, with all of its vast cupboards, drawers, and hanging space, still seemed completely barren, even with all of Daisuke's clothes properly put away. Daisuke stared at the empty spaces in the closet, wondering all the while, who in their right mind had enough clothes to fill this thing. He shook his head tiredly, before grabbing one of the towels Freedert had bought for the room and walking into the bathroom for a shower.

The shower was amazing, to say the very least. An octagonal enclosure made of a marble base and five large floor-to-ceiling frosted glass plates, which were at least six inches thick. Inside the shower, where stone walls served as the top portion of the 'octagon,' there were two marble shower benches and a series of twelve water jets that provide a soothing massage as the initial suspended, round showerhead, located in the center of the octagon, creates a waterfall-like experience. Daisuke spent nearly an hour just letting the water run over him, damn near falling asleep in the shower after lathering up with his favorite White Tea and Ginger body wash. After mustering up enough will to refrain from wasting any more water, and then cursing himself for wasting a hell of a lot of water up until that point, he roughly dried off with his towel and threw on a thin white t-shirt and a pair of ultra-cute Super Mario pajama pants, climbing into bed as he flipped through the school's brochure and his class schedules for the upcoming week. It was almost midnight when Dark found his way back to the dorm, walking in and dropping his hoodie over the back of the chase in the seating area. Daisuke followed him around the room with his eyes, hoping beyond hope for an apology of some sort, having been really offended when the violet one walked off in the middle of their previous conversation.

"What?," Dark asked tiredly, as he plopped down onto the bed he'd just recently stolen. "If you have something to say, say it." He could just feel those bulbous fiery eyes staring holes into his person.

"Well, I have nothing to say. At least not to you. Rather, I think there's something you should say to me," Daisuke huffed, folding his arms about his chest. Dark turned his head, staring intently at the boy whom, he'd just realized wasn't just staring, but all out pouting in his direction.

"Pouting doesn't suit you." Dark's face was completely serious and Daisuke all, but fainted from the blood rushing into his reddening cheeks. What's worse, Dark's saying this statement only made the boy pout all the more, making him blush almost scarlet. Why are you looking at me so intensely? Should I look away? Yes, yes I think I will look away. No! I'm angry at this person. Be direct and firm.

"Ugh, you flat out walked off during the middle of our conversation. I was tryin' to tell you something," Daisuke fumed, mentally cheering himself on for being 'direct and firm.'

"Oh," Dark replied, flipping over onto his stomach and burying his face in a pillow. So much for trying to invoke an apologetic response.

"'Oh' is all you have to say for yourself? It's incredibly rude to ignore someone when they're talkin' to you, you know," Daisuke scoffed, walking over and standing by the edge of Dark's bed. Dark lifted his head from his pillows to find himself staring right at Super Mario, surprising him a little as he hadn't even heard Daisuke cross the room and the utterly delicious smell wafting off of the boy was borderline mind-numbing. Dark had smelled the fragrance of Daisuke's body wash in the room, because the boy had just been in the shower, but the way it smelled on him was so sinfully sweet, it took just about all of his resolve to keep him from gluing his face to the boy's body. Daisuke stared at Dark for a moment, noticing those violet eyes visibly darken in just those few seconds. He flinched involuntarily in response.

"What did you want me to say?," Dark inquired slowly, scanning the boy in front of him from head to toe. Daisuke couldn't help but to feel slightly self-conscious, what with Dark looking like he was ready for a midnight snack. He decided it was in his best interest to return to his side of the room, and did so with a quickness. Too intense! Retreat!

"I-I'm not sure, exactly. I guess some sort of apology was what I had in mind," he answered, hurrying into bed and curling up beneath his blankets in a makeshift self-defense.

"Honestly, I don't remember walking off on you, but if you say I did, I guess it must be so. I won't apologize, but I'll at least listen to what you wanted to tell me."

"Um, a-actually, I don't remember what I was tellin' you about," Daisuke coughed out, blushing feverishly.

"Then why all the drama?" Dark smirked inwardly to himself, stretching comfortably on his bed. "Wait, don't tell me. You just needed a reason to talk to me."

"N-no! If I wanted to talk to you, I would. I don't need a reason," Daisuke sputtered out defensively. "Just forget I ever said anything." He could hear Dark chuckling quietly on his side of the room.

"Fine, but now I have something to tell you."

"Okay, I'm listenin'," Daisuke said eagerly, popping out of his blanket cocoon.

"Rules. Remember these, 'cause I don't like to repeat myself," Dark began, completely serious now and in seeing this seriousness, Daisuke nodded quickly and focused all of his attention on the older boy. "First. Don't ever ask me where I'm going, what I'm doing, or how late I'm staying out. Most likely, I'll never tell you. We just live together. You're not my mother and you're not my wife, so what I do in my spare time has nothing to do with you. Understood?" Dark took the time to wait for Daisuke's 'Okay, go.' before continuing. "Secondly. And this one is simple. You don't touch my shit. I won't touch yours."

"Got'cha," Daisuke agreed, making a mental note. "Anything else?"

"I'm getting to that. Third rule. I'm gonna have some girls in the room sometimes. Don't be 'that' guy."

"Which guy?," Daisuke asked, completely clueless as to what Dark was implying.

"Don't be a cock-blocker, man. If I bring a girl over, you disappear. Plain and simple."

"But, what if it's the middle of the night and I'm already asleep? Or if I'm working on an important paper? Or if I already have a girl over?" At this, Dark basically snorted, before cracking into some serious laughter. That same throaty laughter that was beginning to sound somewhat nice to the red-head who up until recently had normally enjoyed only his own company. The idea of conversing with someone other than the help at his father's home was proving to be quite thrilling, and Daisuke found himself secretly hoping that he could keep talking to Dark without the guy up and walking off on a whim. Luckily for him, the violet-haired teen had claimed the room for his own, albeit, at someone else's expense, so it would seem that they'd have all the time in the world for chatting and the like.

"Whatever the situation...although I highly doubt you'll be having girls over, you need to vanish. I don't care if I have to wake you up and make you sleep in the closet. You can do papers at the library and, if God forbid you taint yourself with members of the opposite sex, you and your girl will be ousted."

"Well, how come you always get the room? I was here first. And what do you mean; you highly doubt I'll be having any girls over?" Daisuke was admittedly a little peeved by the situation, but it wouldn't hurt to at least attempt to negotiate.

"Because I'll need it more often. It doesn't matter if you were here first, because I'm older, so I take precedence over you, and you won't be having a ton of girls over because of rule number five, which I haven't gotten to, but will get to if you stop interrupting me," Dark said smoothly, watching as Daisuke settled back into the little ball he was making with his comforter.

"Okay..." Daisuke pouted, not expecting Dark to pull the 'I'm-older-than-you-so-deal-with-it' card. "Wait a second, how do you know for a fact that you're older than me?" The red-head folded his arms beneath his comforters, so wanting to make sure he wasn't getting hoodwinked. Dark laughed at the question – a sort of breathless laughter that seemed to command anyone close enough to hear it to laugh as well. Daisuke giggled quietly awaiting Dark's response.

"Well how old are you?," the violet one asked, after having come down from his laughter high.

"Seventeen and a half," Daisuke answered quickly, feeling satisfied with himself.

"Then I'll have you know, I'm one day over seventeen and a half…since we're being technical." In seeing Dark's smirk, it was apparent that even if Daisuke, himself was older than this guy he would never really know. Daisuke frowned, losing this little game of hardball.

"Fine, but if I find out that the day before my birthday isn't yours, you're gonna be in a world of hurt, buddy," Daisuke scoffed jokingly, earning some quiet laughter from his new roomie. After a minute or so, Dark collected himself and continued on with his rules, regaining Daisuke's full attention.

"Okay, fourth rule. Never touch the thermostat. I like the room temperature a certain way and if it's changed even the tiniest bit, I'll know. So just don't touch it. And that's basically it. I think we'll get along just fine," Dark concluded, smiling at Daisuke's wide-eyed expression.

"Wait, what temperature do you keep it on?," Daisuke asked, wanting to commit it to memory so that he wouldn't mess it up by accident.

"Forty-seven degrees," Dark said, as he got up from his bed and walked across the room, setting the thermostat accordingly.

"What? Why do you make it so cold? I'm gonna freeze to death," Daisuke complained, pulling his blanket around himself as if the temperature was going to drop immediately. Dark gazed at the boy momentarily, before putting together his answer.

"I get…hot." Dark's reply was flat, but for some reason the pause at end - right before he said 'hot' had Daisuke hanging on his every word, watching him standing motionlessly by the thermostat. Daisuke swallowed quietly, wondering to himself why his mouth had all of the sudden run dry.

"Oh…," was all the red-head could manage, feeling his heart rate quicken minutely as Dark continued to stare at him. "I-I guess I could just get extra blankets then." Dark held his gaze for a few more moments, then nodded almost to himself, before turning off the lights and walking back to his newly acquired bed.

"Goodnight, then."

"G-goodnight," Daisuke answered back, feeling somewhat sad that the conversation was nearing its close. Then he remembered. "Dark?" He could hear the older boy shuffling beneath his covers across the room, apparently getting comfortable for sleep. He waited for the small hum of acknowledgement, before continuing his question. "What's the fifth rule?"

"What fifth rule?," Dark asked quietly, taking off his shirt and pants and throwing them to the floor from what Daisuke could hear. There was no way to tell for sure; however, because it was completely pitch black in the room.

"You just said there was a fifth rule and that's why I most likely won't be having any girls over," Daisuke reminded him, popping out of his cocoon once more. The violet-haired teen nodded his head through the darkness as if to say 'Oh, yeah. That,' before flipping onto his stomach and fluffing his pillow.

"Right…Rule number five. You belong to me. Now get some sleep, Red." I what? I must have heard him incorrectly.

"Sorry, could you repeat that last one for me?," the red-head inquired nervously, his hands fidgeting beneath his comforters.

"No, I've already told you I don't like to repeat myself. And see there, now you've made me do it. Go to sleep." Daisuke frowned into his pillow, but accepted the answer non-the-less.

"Okay, just one more question, then."

"If you must," Dark sighed, seeming irritated by all of this chit-chat.

"With so many rooms to choose from, why'd you pick mine?" And Dark smiled into the darkness, closing his eyes as he inhaled the sweet scent of white tea and ginger, and with one last sigh he said:

"Because of your decor."


'Because of your decor.' What does that even mean? What? Was he bursting into every room on the hall until he found one with 2000-count sheets? Honestly he'd have been better off just moving his bed to the other side of his assigned room. Daisuke thought, exuding an irritated aura as he brushed his teeth. He couldn't help, but to feel like he should have done more to stand up for his ex-roomie. "Yeah...I think I'll check on him," he said cheerfully, after spitting the last remnants of Aquafresh toothpaste foam into the sink and rinsing his mouth out with water.

"Check on whom?" Dark nearly scared the smaller boy to death, having been standing in the closet grabbing a jacket, just as Daisuke was about to exit the bathroom. Daisuke released his death grip on the bathroom counter and collected himself, before eliciting a response.

"That guy. I mean, from yesterday. Just to see if he's settling in."

"'That guy.' You honestly care about him that much and you don't even know his name? Wow," Dark said, almost to himself as he made his way to the door of their room.

"As opposed to not knowing his name and forcibly removing him from his room?," Daisuke scoffed, glaring death rays into Dark's back, then looking away quickly as the older boy turned around.

"He left on his own accord. I didn't force him to do anything. He's a big boy who can make his own decisions. Luckily for him, this time he made the right one."

"Please. You totally forced him, acting all scary and stuff. I probably would've done the same thing, had I been in his shoes," Daisuke said, folding his arms across his chest, while following Dark to the door.

"So you find me intimidating?," Dark asked smirkingly, turning on Daisuke as he did. Daisuke began to blush, wondering why every little thing this guy did seemed so intense. Can't...look...away...You won't win this time.

"Wh-what? No...No, I don't find you- You know what? Where are you going, anyway?," Daisuke answered, not quite knowing what to say to such a straight forward question, especially when Dark was staring directly at him. Dark just raised an eyebrow at the question, thinking to himself that he'd specifically told Daisuke never to ask him that as he slipped on his shoes to leave. Shaking his head, Dark let out a tiny chuckle of laughter, before taking his leave and strolling down the hall. "Wait, what was your room number?" Daisuke got no response, just watching as Dark continued to laugh at his expense, holding up his hand as a sign of farewell. He watched for a few more moments and let out a frustrated sigh. He most certainly did not care about his ex-roomie enough to knock on every door until he found him, so the idea of apologizing on Dark's behalf was out of the question. Instead, Daisuke figured he'd get dressed and confront Riku about their situation. By the time he got dressed, however, the halls that were once empty were now flooded with students. It had almost seemed like he had opened the door to a completely different place, than he had when he watched Dark leave. In any case, he decided to see what all of the commotion was about.

"Dude, let's go! We're gonna be late!," said one student to his friend, as the two of them pushed past a mass of other hurried students. Daisuke unfortunately was standing a bit too close and got shoved into even more oncoming human traffic. Eventually he found his way to a wall and managed to scrape by that way, trying to avoid as many people as possible. When he finally arrived to where most of the people seemed to be heading, he found himself overcome with awe as he passed through the doors to an enormous auditorium. There was a large round stage in the center of the circular room and the walls were lined with rows upon rows of seats, seeming almost like a circus of sorts. Students were everywhere and if Daisuke had to guess, there must have been well over three-thousand of them. There were long, stained-glass windows placed here and there, but the most interesting aspect of the room was the fact the there was no ceiling, but rather a glass dome that appeared to change colors depending on how the light reflected on it. Daisuke stood, staring at the glass dome for so long, that he hadn't realized most of the students were already seated and whatever they came for was about to begin in a few minutes.

"Here! Sit with me!," a girl yelled excitedly, pulling Daisuke's hand and breaking him free of his trance. He staggered along willingly as he was pulled up some steps and situated himself in the fourth row with his guide.

"O-oh, okay. Thanks," he said quietly, glancing at the girl next to him. His eyes widened, noticing that this girl looked exactly like Riku. "Um, R-Riku your hair..."

"No, silly! Riku's my twin sister. I'm Risa, of course. You'll like me much better anyway," the girl said, laughingly. "You're supposed to be her roommate, right?"

"H-how did you know that?," Daisuke asked suspiciously, still a little thrown off by the overwhelming atmosphere.

"She told me, of course. Why, she seemed so excited to have gotten a normal roommate and she told me you were really cute, big-eyed, and had wicked red hair. That is you, right? God, if it's not I'll be really embarrassed!"

"About that...I need to talk to Ri-," Daisuke began, but got cut off by the screeching sound of the microphone being moved. "What is this?"

"Orientation, silly! And why aren't you in uniform?," Risa squealed, just now aware that he was in dark jeans and an Invader Zim t-shirt.

"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to be in uniform," Daisuke admitted, blushing as he did. Now that he thought of it, he did find it odd that Dark grabbed a blazer from the closet as he left. Daisuke figured the guy just liked to dress nicely.

"Awww, you're so cute! Didn't you read the brochure? 'Sunday, 2 P.M. Be in uniform.'? Ah, it doesn't matter. With all these people, they probably won't even notice." Daisuke did remember reading that in the brochure, but with all the commotion last night and him fretting over what he thought Dark said about belonging to him, must have made him forget about it.

"Yeah, I'll just try not to be seen. Ugh, why did we have to sit in the fourth row?"

"Don't worry! I didn't notice until just a few seconds ago," Risa reassured him, patting his shoulder.

"Yeah, but now I'm all paranoid. Maybe I should just skip this and go back to the room," Daisuke thought aloud, rising to head back down the stairs.

"Well, this thing is mandatory, but they probably aren't expecting everyone to be here anyway. Just leave quickly before anyone spots you."

"My thoughts exactly," he agreed, just as Dark began to make his way up the steps; the two guys from sign-up, Krad and Satoshi in tow. "...Or not. Hide me!"

"What? Why are you whispering? Did someone see you?! Oh no," Risa squeaked, looking around frantically, drawing all the more attention to their general area.

"Shhh! He's gonna see me! Hide me, quick," Daisuke whispered anxiously, yanking Risa onto his lap so quickly, she had to verify her surroundings. This earned him some hoots and hollers, which immediately attracted the attention of Dark and both of his friends. Daisuke shrunk behind Risa, not even chancing to peek over her shoulders, because he knew for a fact they'd be staring.

"Oh my God. Those guys are so gorgeous!," Risa chimed, grinning at them as they walked by. "I mean, really...really g-"

"Okay, I got it. Just tell me when the coast is clear, please and thank you."

"Fine, the coast is clear. They're already in their seats, jeez. What's so scary about 'em anyway?" Rolling her eyes, Risa readjusted herself on her new seat - mainly Daisuke, before crossing her arms with an obvious attitude.

"Sorry. It's not really them. Just the one in front. I don't think he likes me all that much, or rather it's hard to tell, 'cause he's kind of cryptic," Daisuke explained, giving the guy next to him a halfhearted high-five. Apparently getting Risa to sit on your lap is an achievement. "He kind of scares me. Well, only a little, but don't tell him that."

"You know him?!," Risa gasped, feeling the excitement bubbling up within herself.

"He's my roommate, but I've only talked to him a little bit so I can't really say I know him at all," Daisuke stated quietly, pushing Risa into her previous spot.

"But what about...? Oh! You bad, bad girl! Sneaking into boys' rooms! Just scandalous!," Risa sang, playfully slapping Daisuke's arm.

"Risa, I'm a guy. Do I really look that much like a female? Really? I mean, I'm not even cross-dressing," Daisuke explained, seeming somewhat disheartened.

"But you're rooming with my sister! You! You womanizer! And you had me on your lap!," Risa yelped, turning playful slaps into full on battery.

"No, wait! That was a misunderstanding! I even tried to find her today to give her the room key back, but I ended up here. Don't worry, I slept in the male dorms, I promise," Daisuke said in his defense, trying to evade most of Risa's attacks while giving the guy next to him another high-five for apparently having two sisters pining over him. "And just forget about the lap thing. You smell really nice and you're as light as a feather."

"R-really? You know, I was trying to lose a couple of pounds. Thank you," Risa beamed, ending her barrage of attacks instantly. "And no, you don't look like a girl that much. You're just really, really cute. So when Riku said you were a girl, I could immediately see it, 'cause I'd thought you were a girl to begin with, but I can see you're a guy too. You're like the ultimate form of androgyny!" Daisuke was unsure of how he was supposed to respond to that, but luckily for him, he didn't have to as the orientation was about to begin.

"Welcome students, friends, and faculty, to a new year at Akune and Amame High Academy. Now, for those of you who don't know me, I'm the academy's headmaster and also head chairman, Mr. Takiyama. These lovely ladies and gentlemen you see behind me are the people who make up our Board. Please, if you would, stand up and take a bow when I call your name so the students can familiarize themselves with your faces," Mr. Takiyama began, earning moans and sighs from the students. Daisuke could guess that orientations were boring. Teachers and old people trying to act excited is always a recipe for disaster, but why everyone else around him seemed to be acting like they were suffering a slow and painful death was beyond him. He glanced around at the other students, finding none of them of any particular interest and even though he was probably just imagining it, he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.


"Man, orientations are so overplayed," Krad whined, leaning his head back and attempting to catch an M&M he'd just tossed into the air. Satoshi, who was holding the extra-large resealable bag of peanut M&M's, nodded his head in silent agreement, smiling just a little when Krad completely missed catching the aforementioned chocolaty snack. "Oh, hush up, Satoshi. I'd like to see you catch one like that."

"I could, but I'm not in the mood to show you up." At this, Krad laughed aloud, rousting out murmurs from the students around him.

"Why so quiet, Darkie-poo? You were talking non-stop earlier." Both Krad and Satoshi stared at the violet-haired man who seemed to be glaring intensely at someone a few rows down from where the three of them sat. "Oh, God. It's always someone. Who's the unlucky guy, this time, Dark?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Dark replied coldly, still maintaining his unflinching stare.

"Oh, please. The last time you glared like that, Satoshi's lab partner accidently caught you're history paper on fire with a Bunsen burner."

"He meant to do that. You can't accidentally catch a history paper, which was in my bag, on fire. Even if it wasn't in my bag, you'd have to put it in the fire unless, of course, my paper had magical levitating powers, which would explain everything," Dark said sarcastically, still glaring into the middle distance.

"You're right. Total douche."

"Hey, that guy was a friend of four years," Satoshi added, although he didn't seem all that hurt by Krad's remark.

"A friend of four years who turned out to be a total douche. I've corrected myself and I apologize," Krad chuckled, giving up on catching M&M's and just stuffing his face with them – which for Krad, meant eating them one at a time and rolling them over his tongue until both the candy shell and chocolate had melted away; quietly chewing the peanut within.

"I appreciate it."

"Haha. Seriously, Dark. What's wrong with you today? I swear, I feel like Satoshi and I are being accomplices to your murdering ways. At least that's what we can assume, 'cause with the look you're giving to whoever is over there, you can't be thinking of pickin' daisies." At that, Dark directed his glare out of the corner of his eye at Krad who immediately looked away. "And...dropping the topic. Who's up for a back-to-school shopping trip? I know you love the smell of new textbooks, Satoshi," Krad suggested, attempting to change the subject.

"I'm getting out of here," Dark almost growled, standing up and walking back down the steps from whence he came.

"Did I say something wrong?" Satoshi shrugged his shoulders and both he and Krad watched as Dark quickly descended the stairs, stopping when he got to the fourth row and taking off his jacket. Once the jacket was off, he tossed it to a small red-head sitting next to the girl who had grinned at him as he walked past the first time. It looked as if the girl had smiled at Dark again as he walked by, but was completely ignored almost as if she were invisible. The two administrators at the doors didn't even attempt to stop Dark as he left the auditorium, which must have meant either he gave a damn good excuse for leaving or they realized he wouldn't have heard them even if they'd protested. "What was that, just now?"

"I'm not sure," Satoshi answered, also looking at the people in the fourth row.

"Did he just throw his jacket at that boy?"

"I believe so."

"Could you not answer everything with three words?"

"Yeah, sure thing," Satoshi said, with a small smirk, hearing Krad release a long, frustrated sigh.

"Give me those goddamn M&M's," Krad scoffed, snatching the candy from Satoshi's lap. "You're helping me investigate when this is over!" Just as he had said this, the orientation had concluded. "Shorter than I thought. Let's go." Satoshi wasn't one for taking orders, but he'd follow Krad anywhere as long as the blond had confiscated his favorite candy – not that he was a slave to food, but after paying seven bucks for the jumbo resealable bag, Satoshi thought it best to get his money's worth out of it. It took them a while to catch up with the two people from the fourth row, but once everyone had exited the auditorium, it became much easier.

"Wah! You look so adorable. Almost like you're playing dress-up in your dad's clothes or something," Risa squealed, tugging on the oversized jacket Daisuke was wearing.

"It's not that much bigger on me," Daisuke retorted, a little self-conscious about his small stature. His blush was immediate.

"Well, well...Lookie what we have here," Krad began coolly, walking up with his hands in his pockets; Satoshi serving as a wingman. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Who? M-me?," Daisuke choked out, not doing anything remotely incriminating, but still feeling a tad bit nervous.

"Yes, you. Whose jacket do you think you're wearing, right now?" Krad finished this question with an overly exaggerated raising of his brow. Very bad acting skills.

"Dark's?," Daisuke asked, raising an equally exaggerated brow.

"Dark who?"

"Krad enough. We both saw Dark give this guy his jacket. The question is 'Why?,'" Satoshi broke in, becoming increasingly annoyed by the stupidity of the situation.

"Satoshi, you're supposed to be my wingman! You know like in police shows where one guy talks and the other guy just looks around the suspect's house nonchalantly while offering a word of instigating advice, only at the most critical points of a suspect's story!" Satoshi rolled his eyes, folding his arms as he did.

"But he's not suspected of anything!," Risa pleaded, the only one taken in by the makeshift cop act Krad was trying to create.

"That's what he wants you to think!," Krad yelled in response, pointing an accusing finger at the red-head in question. Risa inched away from Daisuke, watching Krad's long finger as she did.

"You have really nice nails. Do you do them yourself?," she asked quietly, finding a spot next to Satoshi.

"Oh, thank you and yes, I do, do them myself. Honestly, I find painting them with a coat of Keratin gel once or twice a week, depending on your free time, really helps make your nails not only stronger, but also more vibrant looking." After saying this, Daisuke, Satoshi, and Risa all had their eyes on him.

"Can I borrow that?"

"Oh, absolutely," Krad said quickly before clearing his throat. "Now, where was I? Oh, yes. Why'd Dark give you his jacket? He was pissed at you wasn't he? What have you got on him to make him want to get undressed for you?"

"Get undressed for me? I'm sorry what? I don't have anything on him and I don't think he was mad at me. I've barely even known him for like a day, let alone spoken to him," Daisuke answered, seemingly confused beyond all belief.

"Bull Shenanigan! He was glaring at you like you were a pair of white pants after Labor Day!," Krad stated briskly, pursing his lips while twisting the ends of his ponytail around his fingers. Risa gasped, apparently finding the hypothetical white pants just as, if not more horrific than Krad.

"What is that supposed to mean? And for the record he didn't even glare at me. He just stopped and said 'Put this on,' threw the jacket, and continued walking. He probably let me borrow it, because I wasn't wearing my uniform. I'd forgotten we were supposed to," Daisuke said, staring up at Krad with those colossal ruby red eyes a'glistenin'. Krad scowled at first, but he couldn't stop staring into the red-head's eyes, which looked as if they were going to overflow with tears at any moment. Daisuke had gotten him - hook, line, and sinker with puppy dog eyes to die for.

"O-oh, okay. I'm sorry, then," Krad said, blinking furiously as he tried to stop his eyes from watering. Satoshi shook his head, knowing full well what Daisuke's story was gonna be and that the person Dark was glaring at was Risa, for whatever reason.

"Let's go, Krad," Satoshi called out to Krad, having already been on his way towards a random hallway. "'Straight as straight gets' my ass."

"Wait, just one more question!," Krad said abruptly, turning back to Daisuke. "How do you know him? Dark, I mean."

"He kicked my roommate out of our dorm and says he's gonna be my roommate now."

"D-did he say anything else? Anything out of the ordinary? Something like 'I'll have your soul?' Anything?" Krad and Satoshi both stared at each other for a little longer than what's normally considered just a glance.

"Well, no. Not really, why?," Daisuke giggled, a tiny blush forming on his cheeks. "Does he normally go around claiming people's souls?"

"Not exactly."

"What do you mean 'Not exactly?' Like what? Is he gonna try to cannibalize me in my sleep? You're kinda making him seem like a creepy soul eater thing," Daisuke said, shifting his eyes from Krad to Satoshi, then back to Krad.

"No, it's just...Well, he can be...What's the word? He's just difficult to be around, I suppose," Krad thought aloud, unsure of whether or not 'difficult' was a suitable enough word to describe Dark. "You know what? Let me just give you my number and you can call me if you need anything. To talk or whatever. How's that?"

"Sure, okay," Daisuke agreed, happily. After putting Krad's number in his phone, Daisuke watched as Krad and Satoshi parted from them, leaving just Risa and himself wondering what the blond meant by 'difficult.' The two of them stared at each other, then just shrugged it off as nonsense. "Well, that was awkward, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, just a bit," Risa answered, just relieved that she wasn't the only one thinking it. "I guess we should get back to our rooms, huh?"

"Actually it's only four and I could really go for something to eat."

"Really?," Risa sang, smiling from ear to ear. "Oh, I know a great burger place! It's really good and cheap!"

"Sounds great," Daisuke said, equally as excited. This would be the first time he'd ever gone to a restaurant with an actual friend. In essence it'd be the first time he'd gone anywhere with an actual friend. He had had so much fun just sitting and talking, that he and Risa didn't get back to the school grounds until about eight o'clock. Daisuke felt it was almost too good to be true, that he could actually find a friend before school even started. A friend that was a girl, at that. He was grinning all the way back to his room, confident that he would make even more friends in the days to come. "Hey! I got some-"

"Where the fuck have you been?," Dark asked calmly. It was almost hard to tell if he was serious or not, because right after he'd said this, he bursted into laughter.

"I went out to eat with a friend," Daisuke replied, still ecstatic that he could actually say 'friend' and mean it. "I brought you something, too. Wait, what is that smell?" Walking a bit further into the room, Daisuke could see a visible fog encircling him and the closer he got, he noticed that Dark was smoking. "Gah! What is that?! Dark, you can't smoke in here! We could get in serious trouble!"

"This?," the violet-haired boy asked, holding the blunt in his hand up in front of his eyes for closer inspection. "They call it Blue...No wait. Sweet Havana Dream or something like Blue Coconut Drop, maybe. You know, I'm not sure. These are samples, I think."

"What do you mean you think? Sweet Havana? Dark is that weed?! Are you fucking kidding me?! We could get expelled!," Daisuke yelled, snatching what was left of Dark's blunt and putting it out in the soap dish Dark was using for an ash tray. "And this is not an ash tray!"

"Kind of like these, I guess," Dark said, slowly getting up and grabbing a bag with five or six more samples in it. The blunts were three and a half to four inches long each. "Why?"

"Why, what?!"

"Haha! Why are you so mad? Come here and smoke with me," Dark coughed out, lighting one of the samples he'd gotten and taking a drag.

"No! What is wrong with you?! You have to get rid of that stuff before people smell it! And there are smoke detectors in here, I hope you know!," Daisuke continued to yell, taking a book and waving the smoke away from the detector on the ceiling. "Ugh, would you stop smoking and help me make sure this thing doesn't go off?!"

"That's why the windows are open," Dark laughed, taking another drag off of his blunt. "Now, calm down and smoke with me, Red."

"Uh, no. We shouldn't be doing that, 'cause it's against the rules," Daisuke said quietly, now no longer facing the threat of setting off alarms.

"Whose rules?"

"The school's rules!"

"Who's to say those are the rules that should be followed?" Daisuke shot a glare at Dark, folding his arms tightly across his chest. "Look, we won't get caught as long as you don't say anything. I promise I won't." Dark flashed a winning smile as Daisuke crossed the room towards him. "It's my first time trying it, and it's not so bad."

"R-really? Why'd you try it by yourself?," Daisuke asked curiously, trying desperately to post-pone trying it himself. It didn't seem so bad watching Dark do it, but it made him nervous all the same.

"To avoid embarrassing myself, of course. Here," Dark chuckled quietly, passing the blunt to Daisuke who just held it in his hand. "Don't waste it. Smoke it."

"I don't think I want to. Sorry, it just seems like a big decision to make and it's supposed to be a gateway drug, so I'd rather not, thanks." Dark stared at the boy for a while, then frowned, before taking the blunt back.

"Fine," Dark said shortly, taking a long drag off of the blunt and blowing smoke directly in Daisuke's face.

"You're not mad, are you?," Daisuke inquired, waving smoke out of his face as he watched Dark close his eyes and lean his head back on the foot board of his bed. He'd been sitting on the floor. Dark slowly opened his eyes, focusing on the boy who saw that they were completely dilated to the point where they were almost black.

"No, it's totally cool if you're a fucking square," Dark said, before closing his eyes again. "Just don't narc on me. I'll kill you."

"Narc?"

"Don't tell anyone."

"O-oh, I wouldn't. I mean, I-I won't. Sorry, I'm just anxious," Daisuke stammered, fidgeting as he sat in front of Dark. "Would you really kill me if I did tell someone?" At this, Dark hit him with the intense glare he'd been shooting at the back of Risa's head during the orientation. Daisuke's eyes widened, making him feel all the more nervous.

"They say nervous people talk. In other words, you need to relax. So you have two choices." Daisuke nodded, waiting for his options. "Either you smoke this yourself, or I'm going to force it down your throat. You've got twenty seconds to decide."

"Are you serious? Dark, like really serious?"

"What do you think? You don't ask a question like 'Would you really kill me if I did tell someone?' unless you were, in fact, planning on telling someone. In which case, you'd be narcing on me, which by the way, if I recall correctly, you specifically promised me you wouldn't. So I can't trust you now and high people are very, very paranoid. But, you can't tell on me if you're high too. So yes, I'm being completely, one hundred percent, dead fucking serious. You now have ten seconds."

"I-is it gonna burn my fingers?," Daisuke asked quickly, more scared now, than nervous. He stared at Dark for a moment, who just stared back, counting down on his fingers.

"Five..."

"Wait! Wait, I need more time to think!"

"Four..."

"Dark, wait! This really isn't my thing! I won't tell anyone, I swear!"

"Three...Two..."

"Okay, fine! Teach me!," Daisuke yelped, gripping the leg of Dark's pants. Smiling to himself, Dark handed Daisuke the blunt which had now been burned down nearly half-way.

"Draw in air through that and make sure to inhale as you do. Hold it for as long as you want, then exhale. Just don't get my blunt too wet." Daisuke nodded and brought the blunt up to his lips - hands visibly shaking, as he did. He took a quick drag, inhaling shortly thereafter and holding it for almost five seconds before coughing the smoke back out. "Well?"

"I-it...It certainly is d-different," Daisuke coughed out, bringing his hand up to his throat which still tingled from the heated smoke. Feeling completely pumped up due to the possibility of being caught, Daisuke took a second hit of the blunt he still held with a sense of accomplishment.

"Finish it," Dark said, after Daisuke tried to give him back the blunt, lighting another one up for himself. "There are four left. Two for each of us and we're going to smoke them before we go to sleep, understood?" Daisuke nodded, smoking the blunt he had until the heat got to be too much for his fingers, then putting it out on the makeshift ash tray.

"Dark...Dark, is it really your first time smoking this, or did you just say that to try to get me to smoke with you?," Daisuke asked slowly, sprawling out on the floor next to Dark as he did.

"It was my first time smoking this particular strain of weed, yes, but I may have lied a bit to get you to smoke with me. It's no fun smoking by yourself," Dark admitted, laughing to himself.

"That's rude, but understandable, I guess. So I won't be upset with you. Where did you get this from anyway?"

"From a friend. Why? You interested in buying?"

"No. No, I was just curious. Mm, do I really have to finish those other two before I go to sleep? I'm already tired," Daisuke mumbled, getting up and climbing into his bed, feeling somewhat light-headed as he did. "I can always finish them later, maybe."

"Well, I don't know. I put a lot of effort into getting you to smoke this time. I'm not sure I'll have the stamina later if you don't feel like it," Dark sighed, smirking in Daisuke's general direction.

"I promise...soon I'll...yeah...," Daisuke trailed off, falling asleep almost immediately after climbing into bed.

"Fine," Dark answered back, his reply falling on deaf ears as he put the unused samples in a Bible with the center cut out of it. Feeling bored all of a sudden, Dark walked over to the door and slipped on his shoes, figuring he should have just a little bit more fun before tomorrow, which would be the official start of the school year.


Well, that's chapter one! Ugh, I'm always so nervous about putting up a new story. *Sweatdrop* I hope it wasn't too terribly bad. First time writing a story like this, but alas leave a review and tell me what ya thought. And it can be as brutal as you want it to be, just make it honest. =D