Chapter summary: Tsuna freaks out, Romano takes his revenge, and Kyoko is well-meaning, but a little naïve. And has brother issues.
Disclaimer: I own neither Reborn nor Hana Yori Dango.
Claimer: I own the school nurse, even though she won't be around for very long.
A/N: I'm trying to flesh out Kyoko and Nana a bit more, since I think they're both important parts of Tsuna's life, and—as much as I love Reborn!—I feel like they're not explored enough in the manga.
Also, since many people have been asking me about it: Romano is Gokudera. The reason why his family name has changed will be explained later.
Warnings: Language, violence, slash, het.
Extra note: I would just like to assure my readers that this is going to be a GokuTsuna fic. It's just going to take a bit of time to develop, given the way their lives have been altered.
Unbetaed. If you see any errors, or have any criticisms about characterization, please feel free to tell me.
Bombs Over Flowers
Chapter Two: Retribution
That night, Tsuna was faced once more with Reborn's idea of tutoring. But this time, it came with an extra surprise.
"You must be wondering why I've decided to become your home tutor," said Reborn, like being a talking baby was completely normal.
Tsuna just sat in his chair, nonplussed. Because it was suddenly dawning on him that--hey--Reborn was a TALKING BABY. It had taken a day to really process this fact, and now that he had, he was more than a little freaked out. It didn't help that he was pretty sure today was the last day he had to live.
Reborn was unfazed by his silence, or the fact that Tsuna's eyes were probably about as wide as saucers. "You have been selected to become the next boss of the Vongola family."
"...Vongola?" he finally managed to say.
"The Vongola family is powerful organization in the Italian mafia, No-Good Tsuna. So you have to be strong if you're going to lead it."
"WHO SAID I WANTED TO LEAD IT?!"
The baby ignored him. "It seems that more tutoring is in order."
Tsuna, in a fit of sudden, intense frustration, let out a mighty yell. Well, perhaps not mighty. Rather, it was high-pitched and girly and sounded not unlike he was yelling out "HEEEE". The satisfaction of this yell lasted only as long as it took for Reborn to smack him over the head with a pole (which may or may not have been a chameleon a few moments earlier—but Tsuna was trying very hard not to think about that), at which point the satisfaction was replaced with pain.
Tsuna wanted to hide beneath his covers like he had as a small child, afraid of the monsters under his bed. But there would be no sanctuary from this; Reborn--the talking baby from Italy--was smarter, stronger, and more determined than Tsuna was.
And so, when Reborn told him that it was time for another lesson, Tsuna complied, even as he decided that the Vongola family could find somebody else to be their boss. Somebody who wasn't No-Good Tsuna.
This was all assuming, of course, that the past day hadn't all been the product of a very detailed and realistic hallucination.
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Here it was, thought Tsuna, stepping up to his locker. The moment of truth. With trembling hands, he opened it. Sure enough, the red slip of paper had been taped to the metal band at the top of the locker, a large black F3 printed on the front. He barely had time to think before he felt arms hoisting him off of his feet, carrying him like a rag-doll to the place where he would meet his retribution. Sure enough, when Tsuna was planted on his feet again, he found himself faced with Romano, who was lounging in an armchair that was so fancy it may as well have been a throne. Hibari was leaning against the wall, looking bored, and Longchamp was texting somebody on his cellphone.
Romano was scowling, like always. "Hold him," he instructed gruffly, and Tsuna felt somebody grabbing both of his arms, twisting them behind his back.
Tsuna grimaced in pain, tears springing involuntarily to his eyes. Why had Reborn insisted that he go to school that day? He trembled in fear as Romano stalked closer, and wondered if begging would help him. Instantly, he felt ashamed of how pathetic he was. He really did deserve to be called No-Good Tsuna. In any case, it wasn't like begging had helped any of the other people that had received Red Notes; and Tsuna was pretty sure that none of them had managed to punch Romano in the face.
"You have one chance," said Romano. "Beg for my forgiveness, and I may decide to make this short."
Tsuna averted his eyes. In his mind's eye, he could see the thankful smile that had dimpled Kyoko's cheeks, and the sensation of her arms wrapped around him lingered pleasantly in his memory. He wasn't going to betray those memories, he decided. No matter how tempting. He pursed his lips together.
"Not gonna say anything?" asked Romano. The boy's nostrils flared, and Tsuna felt a fist connecting with his abdomen. He couldn't stop himself from crying out and doubling over reflexively, although it sounded more like a wheeze than a scream. The tears spilled over, stinging his cheeks. Romano stepped back. "How about now?"
Tsuna couldn't have said anything even if he wanted to. It was difficult to breath, and the pain had him practically paralyzed. Romano didn't have much patience, though, and hit him again in the stomach. Without giving Tsuna so much as a moment to recover, Romano backhanded him hard across his left cheek. Tsuna fought off the impulse to retch onto the floor, but tasted the bile on his tongue, along with the metallic tang of blood.
"Stop it!" cried a female voice. With what little remained of his strength, Tsuna raised his head. He could just barely make out who it was through the tears blurring his vision.
Kyoko...san...
"Please," she pleaded, tears streaming down her face. "He was only trying to help me. If you want to punish somebody, please let it be me!" This earned her boos and heckles from the crowd, but she stood resolute in spite of her blatant distress.
Romano looked at her, sneering. "You think I give a shit about the chivalrous act, bitch?"
"I don't--" she began, but Romano cut her off.
"Let him go," he said, gesturing sharply to the boys holding Tsuna in place.
Abruptly, Tsuna was released, and he collapsed onto his knees, reeling in agony.
"I'll make you a deal," said Romano. "You fight me, one on one. I win, and your little girlfriend gets a Red Note. You win, and both of you are let off the hook." Tsuna felt a foot nudge him in the back. "So how about it, fucker? You game?"
Tsuna swallowed thickly, and struggled to get to his feet. "I accept," he said, voice trembling.
"Don't do this, Tsuna-kun," said Kyoko. "Please...you'll only be hurt more."
"It's okay," he said, giving her a weak smile. "I'll do my best, Kyoko-san."
For the first time, Romano's lips twisted into a smirk. If anything, it was an even uglier expression than his scowl. "You heard him." As if on cue, the crowd moved back, creating a circle in which the two of them could fight. Tsuna wished at that moment that the conviction of yesterday would return to him. But that certainty--that drive--was lost to him, and no amount of wishing could bring it back. And Tsuna didn't really know how to fight; he'd spent his entire life trying his best to avoid confrontation.
Which was why, when Romano lunged at him, fists flying, Tsuna didn't even have the good sense to dodge. The impact sent him reeling, and he fell to floor once more, blood dripping from a split bottom lip. He wondered, through the pain, if Romano was going to start kicking him. But he didn't. Instead, he said, "That punch yesterday must have been a fluke. You aren't even worth my time." He then turned to Kyoko. "Why you'd try to stand up for such a pathetic weakling is beyond me. But I'm sure the Red Note will teach you your lesson."
Romano left the foyer, and the crowd dispersed soon after. Once the foyer was empty, Kyoko rushed over to where Tsuna was shaking on the floor. "I'm going to get the school nurse, okay? Everything's going to be alright, Tsuna-kun. I swear it."
And then the world went black.
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When Tsuna woke up, the first thing he became aware of was that absolutely every part of him was throbbing in pain. The second thing that he became of was that he was lying on a hospital bed, and that somebody was holding his hand.
"Tsuna-kun? I'm so glad that you've woken up!"
He rolled his head to the side, and found Kyoko gazing worriedly at him with her big brown eyes.
"I guess…it isn't so bad," he said, trying his best to smile. By the look on her face, he probably did not succeed.
"What is it with boys going to ridiculous lengths to prove a point?" There was no bite in her tone—just sadness.
Tsuna got the feeling that this wasn't the first time Kyoko had been faced with situation of this nature. "I wasn't really trying to prove a point. But…" he almost wanted to tell her that he had done it for her sake. But really, that would be selfish, no matter how true it was. Tsuna had no desire to make her feel any more guilty than she probably did already, even though the only person at fault was Romano.
"But?" she prompted.
Tsuna turned his head on his pillow, looking away. "It's nothing," he said. "Just…thank you. For standing up for me, even though I don't deserve it."
"If you weren't lying in the infirmary right now, I would slap you," said Kyoko, with that same sadness in her voice.
"E-eh?"
"You don't get to say things like that about yourself, because they're not true. Romano-sempai only said those things because he wanted to hurt you more."
Romano's words only hurt because they were true, thought Tsuna. But he didn't voice this. Instead, he let out a weak sound of agreement. He'd always thought that he wanted to make a good impression on Kyoko—but now that he had, he almost felt like he was deceiving her, and that it was only a matter of time before she realized he was not only useless, but a liar as well.
"Am I interrupting something?" asked a second female voice.
"No," said Kyoko and Tsuna in unison. Kyoko said it with a hint of surprise, like she didn't quite understand what the nurse could have been interrupting. Tsuna, on the other hand, stammered the word as he said it, blushing.
Tsuna discovered that the voice emanated from a plump woman in her mid-to-late thirties. "Sasagawa-san," said the woman. "I would like to take a full examination of Sawada-kun, now that he's awake."
Kyoko nodded. "Of course. I'm sorry for getting in your way." She stood up and walked out of the infirmary, pausing at the door to give Tsuna a warm, genuine smile. "I'll organize somebody to take you home while I'm waiting for Nurse Miura to finish. So don't worry, alright?"
This time, Tsuna managed to smile as well. He knew this from the way his left cheek stung at the movement of his facial muscles. "Thanks, Kyoko-san."
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Kyoko held to her promise, and even arranged for a wheelchair. It turned out that Tsuna had sustained some pretty bad bruising, but nothing too grievous. Still, he was grateful at not having to walk just yet. His stomach was unbelievably sore.
She pushed the wheelchair up to his front door, and waved goodbye as his mother wheeled Tsuna into his house. His mother then helped him out of the wheelchair, and supported him as he walked up the stairs to his bedroom.
She was uncharacteristically quiet as she did these things, her face drawn into something that was not quite a frown, because her eyebrows weren't pulled far enough together; but her lips were pinched in a hard line.
His mother also helped him change into his pajamas, and even went so far as to tuck him into bed. Once the covers were pulled up around Tsuna's shoulders, she leaned forward and placed a kiss on his forehead, brushing some hair out of his face.
"Sleep well, Tsu-kun," she said. It was the first time she had spoken since he had come home.
"I'll try," he replied, confused at her behavior, and not quite sure how to deal with it. But, even though it was a little bit embarrassing (he was sixteen, after all—not a little kid), it made him feel all warm inside.
His mother smiled slightly. "If there's anything you need, don't even hesitate to come and wake me," she said. "Goodnight, Tsu-kun."
"Goodnight, mom."
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A/N: Tune in next time, when I will be taking a peak into Hayato's head. It's certain to be an…interesting experience.
