"Yu-senpai how was your time back in the city?" Naoto asked, with the enthusiasm of a rock. Rise's eyes gleamed with excitement.
"Oooo yea! Tell us about your new school senpai!~" Rise exclaimed.
The group of friends was at a local Chinese restaurant, by the name of Aiya. It was place where the group sometimes rendezvoused back when the murder cases were still a mystery.
Kanji was playing with a few chunks of meat on his plate, zoned out of the conversation with everyone else. The fact that senpai now knows about his feelings still hasn't quite sunken in yet. Kanji peeked at Yu, who was sitting directly across from him. He didn't seem bothered at all. He actually felt slightly jealous of everyone. They were all able to 'click' with Yu-senpai immediately after reuniting with him, cracking jokes, telling stories, and having fun as if senpai never even left in the first place. While Kanji, on the other hand, couldn't think of anything worthwhile to say. Maybe he was trying too hard. He snapped back into reality the moment he heard someone call his name.
"What?" Kanji asked bluntly. All eyes were now on him and he suddenly felt tense. Not because of the fact that everyone was looking at him, it was just that Yu-senpai was staring directly at him.
"Naoto-kun was just telling us about some wanna-be gangster that looked like you," Rise said.
"Oh yea, I saw that on the news," Yosuke replied. "Dude," he said looking directly at Kanji, "learn to pick up your phone. I've been trying to call you ever since I heard that the police were looking for a 'blonde biker.'"
"Ain't my fault my phone ran out of batt." Kanji said gruffly. The group laughed a bit, including Yu-senpai, and he felt his nerves relaxed a little.
"Dude, it's totally your fault!" Yosuke chuckled.
Teddie, who was awfully quiet for the past few minutes, was peering out the window with a grim look on his face.
"What's wrong Ted?" Yosuke asked.
"It's… raining…" Teddie replied with a sigh.
"Oh no!" Chie, the tomboy of the group, cried out suddenly. "I didn't bring an umbrella… How hard is it raining?"
"It's like there's a waterfall right outside the restaurant," Teddie mumbled. Everyone in the group, besides Naoto, Kanji and Yu, sighed.
"Ah crap. How're we supposed to go home like this…?" Yosuke sighed. Yu looked at him with kind eyes and reached for his bag.
"Senpai? What are you doing?" Rise asked, getting uncomfortably close to Yu. He said nothing to her as he pulled out a single umbrella.
"Since I'm here for the week, I figured I'd be as prepared as possible," Yu said softly to the rest of the group. Kanji inwardly smiled. He supposed with everything that had happened last year, it became a force of habit for his senpai to be 'as prepared as possible.'
"I don't know whether to laugh at you for being a bit too prepared, or thank you for saving our asses, again," Yosuke replied with a smile.
"Woohoo! Senpai to the rescue!" Rise chirped, latching onto Yu's arm lovingly. Kanji unconsciously glared at her.
"Well, problem is I only have one umbrella… and I have all of you to worry about…"
"Oh don't worry about me," Yukiko, a female, raven-haired teenager said reassuringly, "Since I live in my family's inn, I always take the bus home. The bus stop isn't too far from here and I don't mind getting a little wet." Chie nodded her head a few times.
"I'm staying over at Yukiko's, so don't worry about me Yu," Chie said. Yu frowned slightly at the girls' responses.
"I can't just let you girls walk out in the rain. It's close, so I'll just walk you there and come back for everyone else." Kanji smiled at his senpai. This was the man he fell in love with.
"Ooooo, senpai's such a gentleman!" Rise said, hugging Yu's arm even tighter than before. Naoto cleared her throat, gaining everyone's attention.
"That won't be necessary Yu-senpai," she said as she flipped out a portable umbrella. The light reflected off her face unnaturally, and it made her look almost like a model. Kanji noticed the outline of her breasts, which was a rare event. Quite often she hides her bust from everyone. Perhaps she was feeling more comfortable with her femininity. "I checked the weather forecast today, so I was fully prepared for the rain. And since my house is on the way to the bus stop, I'll gladly drop off Yukiko-san and Chie-san."
The three girls exchanged friendly glances, and said their goodbyes before heading out of the shop.
"Now, what are we going to do…?" Yosuke sighed. Rise shrugged casually.
"Well I live right down the street so I'm perfectly fine," she said with a smirk. Kanji could see Yu's eyes wander to the right. He was thinking of something, Kanji was sure of it.
"Since Rise doesn't need an umbrella, I suppose I should take Yosuke, Teddie and Kanji home shouldn't I?" Yu said emotionlessly, albeit with a polite tone.
"Nah, it's alright bud," said Yosuke. "We'll just wait here till the rain dies down." Teddie gave him a disapproving glance.
"B-But what if it doesn't?" The blonde asked with a worried look on his face. Kanji smirked. Silly bear, getting so worked up over water. Even though the bear was in his human form, Kanji supposed that Teddie was still unconsciously worried about getting his 'fur' wet. Even if he didn't have any at the moment.
"Dude relaaaax," Yosuke replied with a slightly annoyed tone. "We'll… just take a taxi then."
Teddie's shoulders began to relax. He then cracked a large, exaggerated smile.
"You… have extra money?"
"Of course I do you dumb bear."
Teddie's grin grew wider.
"Well… in that case can I have another bowl of—"
"No."
As Yosuke and Teddie began their trivial argument, Kanji noticed Yu's eyes gazing at him.
"Uh… w-what is it senpai?" Kanji said uncomfortably. He always felt somewhat uncomfortable when Yu stared directly at him. Kanji looked straight into senpai's cool, grey eyes. As usual, he couldn't tell exactly what senpai was feeling. It was like his eyes had their own little poker face.
"How are you going home?" Yu asked casually, his voice in a deadpan. Kanji licked his nervous, dry lips.
"…Walkin'"
Without another word Yu stood up, umbrella in hand, and walked towards the door. He gestured Kanji to follow him, which made the blonde more nervous than before.
God, get a grip Kanji. Why do I always feel so damn self conscious all the time? Just be normal dammit!
"I-I don't need you to walk me home," Kanji said, his head avoiding to face his senpai. Secretly he wanted to spend more time with Yu, but… damn. This was all just so awkward… "I ain't scared of no rain…"
"I never said you were," Yu said with a small smile that made Kanji's innards flop. "It would just be bothersome if you got sick while I was here in Inaba." Kanji wanted to think that Yu-senpai's concern for him was more than just concern. But, he knew that wasn't the case.
"I'm waiting for you," Yu said, with his emotionless tone.
…Senpai was waiting for him?
Kanji flushed.
Without saying anymore, Kanji obediently stood up and walked towards the door next to his senpai.
"Awweee, you're leaving already?" Rise whined. Her sad mood didn't last very long. "Well~ I'll see you tomorrow senpai!"
"Yea, later partner," Yosuke said with a small playful wink.
"Later," Yu said, unraveling his umbrella, "I'll see you all tomorrow." And with that, Kanji and Yu left the restaurant.
Kanji felt as if he was waaaaaaaay too close to his senpai. Every step and action felt forced and unnatural. Who could blame the poor, confused teenager for being so self-conscious around the person he loved so much.
For one, the umbrella was small and Kanji was pretty… large. The two boys could barely fit underneath the umbrella together. Their arms were touching and Kanji couldn't help but feel like a nervous wreck. That along with the fact that the two have said nothing for a while now.
Kanji noticed that Yu's arm, which was out of the umbrella's reach, was getting fairly wet. Feeling guilty, Kanji moved towards the end of the umbrella, giving his senpai some more room for the relatively small umbrella. Yu-senpai was thinner than he was, and can easily fit inside the umbrella if it wasn't for him.
Yu noticed this, obviously.
"You don't have to do that, you know," Yu said with his deadpan, albeit grateful, voice. Kanji could feel his senpai's eyes on him and he looked in the opposite direction.
"J-Just don't mention it," Kanji replied. This was so awkward it was unbearable.
They continued to walk another few minutes in silence, before Yu, once again, broke the ice.
"I like the doll you made me."
Kanji felt that anxious tug on his heart again. Yup, Yu DEFINITELY read the letter.
"…Y-Yea, it was nothing,"
Other than the fact that it took me the entire night plus morning to make.
"It's not nothing, Kanji," The sound of his name made him even more anxious. "I really appreciate it."
"Uhh… you're welcome?"
"You have a real knack for this kind of stuff you know?"
"You're startin' to sound like my Ma."
Yu cracked a small smile.
"Your Ma knows what she's talking about…"
Again. Silence. Kanji desperately tried to think of something to say, but he couldn't think of anything worthwhile to say. It was exactly like before senpai had left. Nothing has changed.
Soon enough the silence became unbearable for the poor teenager. This silence was different than before. Before senpai left, senpai had no idea about Kanji's feelings for him. Now he knows. This kind of silence is different.
That's it. Kanji couldn't take it anymore. He had to know. He mustered up as much courage as he could summon (more courage it would take to defeat a shadow) and blurted out his thoughts.
"Senpai, you read the letter didn't you?"
Yu replied almost immediately.
"Yup."
As soon as senpai spoke, he stopped in his tracks. Kanji stopped after a step forward from Yu, wondering what the problem was.
"We're here," Yu said softly. Kanji's eyes widened slightly. It was his house. When did they get here? Figures that they end up home at such a crucial moment. Kanji opened his mouth to say something, but then it closed as quickly as it opened. He had no idea what to say. "I'll be leaving then," Yu said.
"Wait senpai!"
Yu stood where he was; his back turned towards Kanji and his house.
"Y-You can't just leave me hangin' like that!" Kanji cried.
"Hanging?"
"You know…" Kanji said, with his heart racing. "Y-You never told me how—like how you… you know… feel?"
"…How I feel…" Kanji heard Yu mumble aloud. Kanji could hear nothing but the soft pitter patter of the rain as it hit the streets. "Happy I guess," Yu said.
"H-Happy?"
"Of course. How else would I feel?"
"Th-That's not… That's not what I—"
"I know."
Yu was still standing in the rain with his umbrella propped up. Kanji was under the roof of his house, but even so he was less than a meter away from the grey haired teenager.
"I know what you mean, Kanji," Yu said, his back still facing the blonde. He turned slightly, so he could at least see Kanji's confused face. "The truth is…"
Kanji gulped. Here it was. The moment of truth. This was the moment senpai would tell him if he was interested in guys or girls. The moment he had been waiting for ever since he met him. It was aggravating to wait for Yu's answer.
"The truth is, I'm not looking for anyone, nor will I ever," Yu said coldly. Kanji's heart sank. He figured it could have been worse, he admits. When Kanji said nothing more, Yu began to walk away.
"Wait! Does that mean you like girls or…"
"Doesn't matter."
Kanji's head tilted to the side in confusion.
"What do you mean?" Kanji asked.
"I mean what I said. It doesn't matter. I don't plan on being intimate with anyone, and I never will." Kanji took the time to take a good look on Yu's face. His eyes were as cool and grey as ever. His face was blank. His body, stature, and face were all playing in a permanent poker game. It was always impossible to tell what senpai was truly thinking.
When Yu began to walk away again, Kanji didn't cry out for him to wait. There was no point. He loved senpai. Now he knew senpai didn't love him back. Of course, it was something Kanji was always expecting. But he had always hoped that maybe… things could have worked out for him. Before he knew it, Kanji felt a sudden burst of anger in his stomach. It was childish, he knew, getting so angry just because he didn't have his way. But he couldn't help it.
Disappointed, frustrated, heart-broken, and more, he dragged his feet into his house. He heard his mom call, and he called back politely. He went to his room and flung himself to his bed, not bothering to change his clothes.
He stayed like that for a while. He didn't know how long. He didn't even know if he was sleeping or if he was awake. His mind was just blank. He wasn't thinking; just absorbed in the heavy swirl of emotions that lay waste inside of him. It was still raining.
Finally starting to feel uncomfortable in his current clothing, he got up and got changed for bed. Pretty much wearing nothing but his boxers.
Right before he threw himself to the bed again, he heard a familiar sound of static. Confused, he looked at the TV, which was turned off. To his surprise, the TV began to come to life, the static becoming more noticeable. It can't be…
Kanji gazed at the clock. Midnight. He gazed out the window. It was raining. No way…
He gazed once again back to the TV, and now there was a mysterious figure in the center of the screen. It was happening again. A sudden wave of nostalgia swept over him. This was exactly like what happened last year. But… it was supposed to be over… why…?
Before Kanji had any time to wonder why the Midnight Channel was airing again, the figure began to become somewhat clearer. It was still fuzzy, but Kanji recognized it immediately. After a whole year of staring and fantasizing over this person, it would be a crime not to recognize. The figure was Yu Narukami.
Yeeeeep :D
Soooo i have no idea what to write in this thing...
Review if you like it... or dont... haha.
