A/N: Thank you to all that reviewed the first fic of Vita Dela Tempesta! 3 You guys make me want to write more! Anyway, here is the next installation of the series. This one's a little longer. I attempted 5,000 words in one sitting and succeeded. *w00t* This part of Gokudera's life covers one of his days in Middle School. However, it gets a little fluffy in the end when the Guardians get together for lunch. Still Unbeta'ed so forgive the mistakes. I just wanted to get it up so bad!

There are notes in the bottom for those who doesn't know the words with the * asterisks.

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR. Just borrowing them for this fic.

002 A Time for Tenderness

The morning bell rang, signaling the start of morning classes. It resonated across the campus, its sound blaring and piercing across everything that made everyone stop whatever they were doing and rush to get to their respective places in the classrooms. The stragglers who heard the ear-splitting bell rushed at full speed in a futile attempt to arrive on time. Nobody- teachers and students alike - wanted to suffer the wrath of the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee who watched them with his steely grey eyes from the rooftop of Namimori Middle School. The skylark had his tonfas at the ready to bite any unfortunate offender or rule breaker to death the moment they put a toe out of line. This was the reason why everyone seemed to speed towards the school save for a silver headed individual who yawned and stretched sleepily as he walked towards the school without even the slightest inclination for the boisterous bell nor the the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee who followed him with his eyes as he entered the school grounds.

"Gokudera Hayato," Hibari Kyoya spoke, making the one addressed stop mid-yawn and look up to the roof where the cool voice was heard.

"Ah? What is it, Hibari?" Gokudera Hayato replied with a hint of irritation in his tone. He narrowed his emerald eyes to a glare to meet the older man's cold stare. He wasn't in the mood to deal with the Cloud Guardian's early morning PMS. It was too early on a Monday morning, he was tired and still sleepy because he had been up all night and he was hungry.

The dark haired man brandished his tonfas and smirked at him. "If you don't hurry, Storm Guardian, you may be the first this week to be bitten to death. As it is, you are already three minutes late to homeroom and you're not wearing the uniform correctly."

"Tch. Whatever." He scowled at him as he entertained thoughts of blowing Hibari up with dynamites but then thought better of it and quickened his pace. "Fine, I'll hurry up. The Tenth wouldn't like it if I got in trouble with you."

"Wise choice," Hibari said, putting down his tonfas with a small frown of disappointment that the Storm Guardian didn't bite his bait.

The Vongola Storm put his hands in his pocket and walked a little faster towards the school building. Hayato knew he was right in refusing to battle it out with the pissy Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee. He had no energy to deal with him this morning. Plus, he knew that Hibari would just make a sandbag out of him in his current state.

He let a loud yawn again as he went up the stairs to the second floor where the classroom he shared with Sawada Tsunayoshi and Yamamoto Takeshi was located. He tried to stifle another yawn that attempted to escape his lips as he took the final step. It wasn't the first time he was tardy, so he didn't really care.

However, given a choice he would have been up at 7:00 in the morning, with enough energy and alertness to beat the Energizer Bunny and to watch over the Tenth like a good right hand man should. But today, he was just down and out. He felt like his batteries are all but gone and he was literally running on empty.

His stomach growled and reminded him painfully that he hadn't had anything to eat since the burger he had before the escort mission started yesterday. That mission had been a bitch. He had accepted it on a Sunday since he thought that it would be an easy mission to help pad his already dilapidating bank account. It was simply an escort mission. All he needed to do was tour around one of Mancini Boss' daughters who arrived in Japan and act as an escort and translator for them for the day. It sounded simple enough up until he met the woman.

He had never seen a woman that he loathed so much in his life. On the outside, she was gorgeous. Her dark hair flowed in waves to her back which contrasted to her milky white skin and pouty red lips. Her body was perfect, not an ounce of fat was on her curvaceous waist. The Italian beauty also boasted of a full bosom that could make any man drool. Vittoria Mancini had a sweet smile that could con anyone into thinking that she was an angel. The Storm Guardian admitted that he was attracted to her when they had met but the woman's charms ended after they had gone out of the first shop.

A few hours into the mission had Hayato wishing he had taken the tedious spying job instead of this. Vittoria was a brainless, bitchy, vain and indecisive spoiled brat. She had some of her bimbo friends fly over to Japan to join her on her shopping spree. The Storm Vongola had taken her to Ginza where she and her big boobed posse had insisted to look through all the wares of the stores first before deciding on the first thing she had liked. They had the Smoking Bomb wanting to pull out his hair by making him sit and watch them try on everything in the store.

Vittoria Mancini had laden him with multiple bags and boxes of her purchases as she mindlessly spent her father's money on useless things such as overpriced shoes, bags and clothes. If that wasn't enough, the women talked about men, sex, periods, and other girly things in his presence making him wish that the earth would open up and swallow him whole right then and there.

After shopping, the women dined and had spent the rest of their evening getting wasted in a very expensive Karaoke Bar in Shibuya. Multiple nerves had popped in Hayato's head as he had to pull one or two of them off him when they attempted to seduce him. Had he been any regular Joe, it would have been easy to get lost in their game. The young Italian knew that since he was on a mission, he shouldn't act beyond his jurisdiction so as not to shame the name of Vongola and the Decimo.

The women finally let him go at four that morning, after he had brought them back to the hotel they were staying at. This was the reason why he had overslept. He had pushed the snooze button a few times more than necessary. It was already 7:45 AM when he woke up and he only has 15 minutes to get up, get dressed and get to school.

He wouldn't have done this type of mission but rent was due soon, and he needed something that paid out well so he could have some more spending money for the month. Aside from his living expenses, he knew was running low on other supplies as well - he needed to restock his dynamites, and he also needed to get some new shampoo, toothpaste, milk and bread. He frowned and tried to ignore the hunger pangs that were gnawing at his intestines. He would have to bear with it until lunch. If he had woken up early enough, he could have at least had breakfast but he knew that this was his consequence for oversleeping.

Argh. He scowled even more as he turned the corner towards his classroom and remembered what his first class was. Nezu-sensei was just asking if anyone had seen him that morning when he opened the door.

"I'm here," He said as he glared at the teacher. He knew that that teacher wasn't supposed to be there anymore after the Time Capsule incident, but the Tenth had forgiven the man and said that the idiot should be given another chance. Had it been his choice, he would have just fired the man and blown him up with dynamites. Idiots like those didn't deserve to live.

"Gokudera-kun! Why are you tardy? Do you want me to mark you down as…. What-?" The Math teacher stopped mid-sentence at the sharp glare he recieved from his student.

"I'm here already, alright?" Gokudera said rudely as he dropped his bag down on his desk and walked towards where Sawada Tsunayoshi was seated. He promptly prostrated himself in front of the brunette. "Good Morning, Juudaime! I am sorry I am late today. I didn't even get to walk you to school today. I promise to make it up to you."

Sawada Tsunayoshi was blushing to his roots as he tried to placate his right hand man. "Really, Gokudera-kun, it's alright."

Some of the males in the class snickered as some of the girls tittered at the show of loyalty that Gokudera was demonstrating for them. When he heard this, the silver headed man stood up and directed a fierce glare around him which silenced everyone before going to his seat near the front and putting his feet up on his desk. He then nodded for the teacher to continue with the roll call and the lesson for the day.

While the rest of the class learned from the less than effective teacher about Fractions and Equations, Gokudera Hayato tried not to fall asleep. The lessons that were being taught were like child's play to him since he could easily solve NASA level problems in his head. He distracted himself with trying to think about how to make it up to the Tenth and how to fill his aching middle. He only had a few hundred yen to his name, and that was dedicated to dinner for a few evenings until he get his pay from the mini missions he's done for the past weeks. He calculated sums in his head and grunted when he came up short of money once again even though he had done quite a few of the errands the past few days. He sighed, he needed to do at least a couple more to tide him over this month.

He turned to his cellular phone and checked his mail. There should be something in there that he could do this week. He frowned as he scrolled down to the different errand missions that were sent his way by the Vongola Job Search Network. The menial jobs that he was sent were unappealing and the pay was ridiculously low. If he had a choice, he would have done a small hit that paid better but since he was working undercover, the young hitman couldn't risk tainting the Tenth's reputation. Plus, if the Tenth learned about him doing hits, he would be very disappointed.

A part of him wished that the Tenth accepted the Mafia life already. If he had, then he wouldn't be too worried about acting like a goody-goody anymore. He shook his head and cleared his mind of the doubtful thoughts he had about his boss. The Tenth would eventually have to accept his fate, there was no getting around that, but for now, as the Right Hand man, his mission was to guide him along the road to acceptance.

He sighed and then made a face as he typed a message agreeing to do a message delivery errand to the Yakuza downtown. That should be an easy job. The Italian couldn't imagine himself being a courier of all things, but he didn't have much of a choice. He shut off the e-mail client and leaned back on his seat, just as he felt the eyes of Nezu-sensei on him. What is it now?

"Gokudera-kun, since you are paying really good attention, can you solve the problem on page 132 Number 7?" The teacher challenged him.

"Tch," Gokudera Hayato didn't even stand up as he reached for the book that the blushing girl beside him offered. He nodded to the girl in acknowledgement and then looked at the problem specified and handed the book back to the girl who was now fighting a furious blush that was covering her plump face. "It's x= 5+8y."

He glanced at the board and narrowed his emerald eyes at the notes the professor made on the green surface. "You didn't have to transpose the x and the y in Step 4. It would have been easier to just divide them by the denominator. Less confusing." The green eyed genius said lazily as the professor sputtered in response and the class stared at the young rebel.

"Very well, Gokudera-kun, carry on." Nezu sensei said in defeat before he continued his lesson while the class snickered and giggled at his failed attempt to chastise the intelligent rebel.

The Storm Guardian rolled his eyes and slouched back on his seat. Damn right he could carry on. That was way too easy; he turned a little to the left to check the Tenth who looked at him with a big smile on his face. The sight of the Tenth smiling at him perked him up. Answering that stupid question had been worth it. He flashed the Decimo a thumb up and straightened up a little. That at least kept him going until class ended allowing them a few moments of freedom before the next one started.

"That was amazing, Gokudera-kun!" The young don was saying when he approached.

"I couldn't even understand half that problem and you did it in your head."

"Yeah, that was really impressive," Yamamoto Takeshi quipped as he towered above both men with his hands behind his head as he joined them in the conversation.

Gokudera ignored the taller man and blushed with pleasure at the praise coming from his boss. That meant everything to him. He didn't care about what other people said - the only person that mattered was his the future Don of Vongola. "Thank you, Juudaime! I am glad that I have made you proud."

"How did you do that?" the Rain Guardian was now perched casually on the desk behind the Tenth his long legs stretched languidly across the aisle.

"It's called using your brains, you nitwit. It was a simple problem," Gokudera hissed sharply at the taller boy before he launched on a full explanation of how he had solved that particular problem. A few of the smarter students was captivated by his lengthy explanation and were taking notes. But his intended audience blinked at him owlishly and scratched his head to imply that he didn't understand any of the shorter man's intellectual statements.

He didn't exactly know why he was so pissed off at the Baseball jock but he was. He really shouldn't be because as Right Hand man, his duty was to be the leader of the Guardians. Therefore, he had to be more accepting with them no matter how stupid, idiotic or dangerous they are but this guy totally riles up his nerves. Perhaps it was his height, he was at the height that the short Italian wished he was. If he were as tall as the jock, he would have that advantage of looking more dangerous and cooler - plus the height advantage would prove beneficial for him to see more enemies coming. But his blasted genes had made him almost a head shorter than the other man making the Italian hitman envious of the Japanese boy's natural height.

If it wasn't that it could be the fact that the Rain Guardian was one of the Decimo's favorite Guardians other than himself. He also knew that the jock was probably the closest to taking his position as right hand man if he allowed it. Perhaps it was also the other man's cheerful disposition that irked him. The Baseball Nut never took anything seriously but managed to out do him in skill and dexterity when needed. He was a formidable fighter once he has stepped up to the plate and was very reliable. Maybe he had envied the athlete's qualities a little more than he thought.

" I still didn't get it. Hahaha!" The baseball jock's signature laugh echoed throughout the classroom a few moments after his explanation, catching the attention of the tall athlete's many fans and caused them to swoon. This reaction caused a nerve to pop in Hayato Gokudera's head as he tried to control his temper from boiling over. He had just wasted his time and effort in explaining the problem he had just solved only to have it go over the nincompoop's head.

"God, you're such an idiot!" the green-eyed intellectual had narrowed his eyes at the taller man before stomping off to his own desk to fume there. He growled and then sank down to his chair as the next teacher arrived. Literature was a bore - it was another of those classes that he thought was a waste of time. He questioned himself once again why he was dawdling his days away in this useless school. Then again, where else could he be? The Tenth was attending classes there and he needed to be next to him - the diploma that he'd get from it would just be a minor bonus next to the precious moments he could share with the Decimo.

He sat through the next classes wordlessly trying to preserve the little energy he had left. He was suddenly ravenous. The young Italian casually put an arm across his stomach to calm it down so that it wouldn't make too much noise as he prayed for the class to end. He thought about what he could get for lunch with the limited budget he had left. A Yakisoba Pan*, perhaps and a can of iced coffee would be his best bet. It would not satisfy the hunger pangs of a still growing boy, but it will at least fill his stomach.

Gokudera Hayato almost jumped for joy when the lunch bell rang. Finally, it was time to fill the gaping void in his stomach. Walking on the Right Side of the Decimo and with Yamamoto behind them their small party made their way towards the cafeteria. The silver headed Italian paused when he a soft tap came from behind him.

"Ah?" Emerald hued eyes directed a menacing glare at whoever it was that tried to deter him from his lunch. A pink furoshiki* covered three layer bento met his eyes as a girl whom he recognized as one of his fans from 2-B bowed and offered her homemade lunch to him with hopes that he would finally take it. The Italian's eyes softened and considered it. If he took this woman's lunch, he could have a full meal without spending a single yen so he could stay within his budget. Plus, the Decimo always told him to try to be nicer to his fans, so by taking this meal he would be able to gain his boss' favor. With that in mind, the Guardian of the Storm made his decision.

"Thanks," he said in reply as his hand took the pink covered lunch box out of the girl's shaking palms with a small smile. The girl's eyes widened and teared up as her face turned red in surprise. It was obvious that she had been expecting rejection. He silently commended the woman for not running away after his glare, and rewarded the girl with a tiny smirk. "I'll return it to you later."

"H-hai! Please enjoy!" She managed to squeak before turning away and running to most likely squeal and wibble her heart out at what she had managed to accomplish.

"Heh," Gokudera smirked and was about to turn away when he was assaulted by no less than ten other bento boxes offered his way. "Eh?"

"Wow, Gokudera-kun! You're so popular," Sawada Tsunayoshi commented. "You're so lucky to be able to taste bentos made with love. I wish I could have a feast like that. I'm glad you're starting to be nicer to your fans, Gokudera."

That stream of praise was what did it. He immediately accepted the bentos from shocked women with small thanks before he led the Tenth to the rooftop to enjoy the spread of lunch boxes that he had gathered. He laid them all out in front of the Tenth and handed him the best chopsticks he could find before bowing to his boss.

"Please, eat to your hearts content, Juudaime."

"Uwahhh! I can't finish all of these! These were all offered to you,

Gokudera-kun," The 10th Don of the Vongola Family's eyes widened at the feast. "Why don't you taste them too?"

"Hahaha! It's certainly a feast, Gokudera," Yamamoto said as he sipped milk from his tetra pack.

"If you insist, Juudaime," The Right Hand Man said, as he picked out a tamagoyaki* from the bento with the pink wrapping. One bite and Hayato was in food heaven, these women really knew how to cook. After enticing the Tenth and grudgingly agreeing to share the feast with Yamamoto, he dove into the multitude of lunch boxes before them.

Hayato had forgotten his worries as he spent his lunch hour laughing, eating and sharing precious moments with the Tenth and his Guardians. Sasagawa Ryohei had found them midway and joined the feast with them, arguing playfully with him over a piece of anego sushi that they had both wanted. To placate both of the hot blooded males, the Rain Guardian had invited everyone over for a sushi dinner that evening at their place.

It was tender moments like these that made the Storm Guardian feel that he was young and alive. These rare times when they allowed themselves to be just boys being boys were memories he knew he would relive in the future. He allowed himself to relax as he sat back, freeing himself for a little while from the restraint that his oath bound life.

He watched with open amusement as the Rain Guardian made the Decimo and Sasagawa laugh with something he had said, then he started to catch on the fact that he wasn't only chained to his fate. He looked down at the ring that hung on his neck on a silver chain and realized that the rings didn't only chain them to their duties as Guardians but also to each other. Whether they liked it or not, they were bound together in the same fate.

These guys are still oblivious to the fact that they were soon going to be living a dangerous life. They were still living a carefree life, dreaming about things like winning the Koushien * or the Boxing tournaments*. The Storm Guardian smiled and resolved to let them enjoy that time so that they would not have any regrets in the future. Allowing them this small freedom would mean that they could serve the Decimo freely in the future and as the leader of the Guardians, it was his duty to ensure that the Guardians would be at the ready with a heart dedicated to the Tenths service.

"Gokudera-kun?" The voice of Sawada Tsunayoshi jolted him back to reality.

"Ah?" He asked as he picked up a piece of brocolli and chewed on it absently. He didn't want the Tenth to think he was a kill joy and that he wasn't enjoying his time with him.

"You seemed like you were just spacing out. Is anything wrong?" The Tenth asked him with a hint of worry in the brunette's voice. "I mean, if there's anything …"

Gokudera's eyes filled with tears. He was touched by the Tenth's concern. "T-thank you, Juudaime," He said with a smile finally forming on his face. "I was just tired. I didn't get much sleep last night."

Sawada Tsunayoshi chuckled at him with this embarassing revelation. "I figured as much. You usually pick me up and I was a bit worried when you didn't this morning. I was relieved to see you were alright when you came in. I thought you looked a bit unkempt, you know. You had somewhat of a cowlick in your hair. I thought I was the only one who literally jumps out of bed and runs to school."

"I-I…" Hayato Gokudera blushed in earnest in while attempting to find the words to cover his embarassment.

"It's alright," the Decimo continued. "I actually felt relieved that you have those days too, Gokudera-kun. I mean, you seem like you're always prepared for anything. You're smart, you're good looking and the girls love you and you're actually intimidating enough to hold your own against our teachers. I always felt that you were always perfect. But, seeing you today, I felt that I could actually really be closer to you. That you're not that super idol,that I always admired. That you're just a kid like me too."

"Y-you admire me?" the green eyed man stuttered with disbelief as he stared at his beloved boss. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His boss, the man he had sworn his life to had just said that he had admired him.

"I mean, who wouldn't?" the Tenth smiled at him with sincerity. "Don't you think so guys?"

It was then that the Storm Guardian realized that the rowdy laughter had faded and that the Rain and Sun guardian had been intently listening to their conversation.

"I extremely think that Octopus-head's brains is admirable, I couldn't even imagine what goes on underneath those tentacles," Sasagawa Ryohei nodded in earnest in an attempt to compliment the man he often argued with.

"Who has tentacles, you Lawn Head!" the Octopus head's words were sharp but his eyes betrayed his emotions. He was actually grateful and touched by the boxer's unexpected words of praise. However the best words of praise actually came from the Baseball Idiot who was smiling warmly at him.

"At first, I really thought that I wouldn't get along with you, Gokudera. But, as time passed, you really showed us what true friendship was all about. Your constant scolding reminded us about what we needed to improve. You take care of us in your own way and somehow you bind us guardians together while allowing us to still be free to do whatever we want. Since you're the most experienced in the Mafia Game among all of us, you act as the catalyst,strategist and protect not only Tsuna but all of us with your strategic brain. In my opinion, that's what the Right Hand man is really all about, right?" The Rain Guardian said in askance as the Storm Guardian's eyes teared up.

He didn't expect all that coming from Yamamoto Takeshi of all people. The Japanese boy had said everything he had wanted to hear. The Italian ducked his head onto his sleeve to hide the tears that he knew were coming from his eyes. Even at this state, he couldn't risk them seeing him cry. But it was too late for that. They already saw tears wetting his cheeks before he was even conscious of it.

"You- aren't so bad too, Baseball idiot," The silver haired Italian replied as his own emerald colored eyes met with the other's chocoloate ones. "You too, Sasagawa Ryohei. At first, I hated both of your guts. I really did. You are both brainless idiots with nothing but sports in your head. I swear, I never thought I would actually be friends with people like you guys. Yamamoto,you stick to the Tenth too close for comfort, but then again when I am not around, I feel at ease when I think that you'd be there for him. Sasagawa, the way you terrorize the Tenth to Join the Boxing club is ridiculous, but having you as a strong ally is reassuring. I feel like you're always going to be there to watch my back no matter what. And you, Tenth, you know that I have sworn myself to protect you. You were the first person who truly accepted me even after I had challenged you. I am sorry if I keep forgetting to Thank you guys for all of that… Thank you…"

The Smoking Bomb trailed off, being at a loss for words for the first time. But he looked at his comrades with teary eyes in hopes that he could convey the strong feelings he has in his heart.

"You take everything too seriously," the merry voice of Namimori Middle School's star baseball player quipped playfully. "You should lighten up."

The Storm Guardian made a face and was about to retort when he was cut off by the bright smiles of his friends that all smiled down at him. "What?" He demanded in a futile attempt to hide his tears.

"Thank you, Octopus-head!" The boxer said slapping his back strongly with a bandaged hand. "I never thought I'd hear you say those words to me. It feels extremely good and it's extremely manly of you to admit those words."

The young Italian coughed in response. The Sun Guardian apparently didn't know his own strength. He was about to retaliate with something witty when he was blinded by the Rain Guardian's disarming smile.

"Arigato*, Gokudera," the baseball star grinned at him and ruffled his hair, playfully.

Gokudera allowed it this one time. It was his way of thanking the tall guy for his kind words earlier. He would never admit it to the idiot's face, but he did consider the son of the Sushi Man as one of his closest friends.

"Thank you, Hayato," The Vongola Decimo said as he put an arm around his Right hand man who looked up in surprise.

Did he hear that right? His boss just called him by his first name. The self-proclaimed Right hand man stared at his boss' sincere smile.

"… You called me by my first name…"

"Yes, shouldn't we at least be on first name basis?" The Tenth cocked his head to the side in playful askance as the Italian processed what just happened.

"But you have never called me that," was the shocked reply of the Storm Vongola.

"Maybe it's about time I do," Sawada Tsunayoshi declared in a deep voice which reminded all of them of Hyper Tsuna. "I shouldn't put distance between me and my family. So, from now on, I shall call you Hayato."

"Juudaime," Hayato wept openly now as he bowed down low to the ground. "I don't deserve that. I mean, you shouldn't call me that. You're …"

"… my brother," Tsuna finished for him making the Vongola Guardian of the Storm weep a bit more. "Don't forget that you can lean on us, too. You always take everything upon yourself. We're here for you, okay?"

Hayato's response was lost as the bell rang again and signaled the end of lunch. But not one of the guardians rushed to get up from where they were seated. Instead, they enjoyed each other's company as they looked up towards the midday sky together.

Had anyone one of them been curious enough to look around, they would have found the Cloud Guardian on the other side of the rooftop watching them. He too made no move to chastise the students who chose to stay on the roof instead of rushing down to their classes. He let them go, just this once because even he knew that these times of tenderness were rare.

NOTES:

Yakisoba Pan- hotdog bun with yakisoba ( fried noodles) in it. Eaten like a sandwich a very popular lunch meal in Japan. ( I love them too)

Furoshiki- what they call the cloth used to cover and tie up bento (lunch boxes) in.

Tamagoyaki- the slightly sweet rolled Japanese omelette, is a standby protein item for bentos. Very Tasty.

Koushien- a common name for the finals of the National High School baseball tournament in Japan. The name Koushien is taken from Hanshin Kōshien Stadium where the final showdown of the baseball games are usually held.

Arigato- Thank you in Japanese