Kako Mo Ima Mo Mirai Mo Kakenukero
Kako III: Densetsu No Onsen Hebi (Li Jianliang)
...I...I can't believe what just happened...
We spent, maybe, ten minutes in the spring before... Something happened... ...Something I never thought would ever happen...
...I still can't believe it...
...Takato...um...Did what I was afraid I'd do... Hirokazu was the one who noticed. Takato ran back to the room right after Hirokazu brought it to everyone's attention. ...I was stunned... ...Takato pushed past me, jumped out of the spring and to the changing room for his robe and ran back to our room...
...Now I know why he wanted to be the first in the springs and avoided us entirely in the changing room...
Kenta was pissed. So was I. I can't believe Hirokazu would do something like that, though he...Didn't seem to be malicious about it, more joking around as he usually does. Like it was no big deal. We still spent a good couple minutes trying to get Hirokazu to go back with us to apologize to Takato...
...I guess I can't blame Takato for running. The look on his face when he realized Hirokazu had noticed his 'problem' was one thing...When Hirokazu said, loud enough for all of us to hear, "So is there a snake loose in the hot spring or are you just happy to see me?" Was another thing... ...To be able to make that situation even more uncomfortable is a gift that only Hirokazu Shiota possesses.
We're standing outside the room Takato and I are sharing, Hirokazu is pounding on the door. "Takato! Open up! Come on! No-one's mad!" He puts his ear to the door. "Oh, for the love of...!" He turns to us, saying, "He's crying!" Again, Hirokazu turns to the door, pounds twice and says. "Takato, seriously! No-one cares if you got a boner in the hot spring! Come out already!"
Kenta and I groan. "...Could you rephrase that, just a little?" Kenta asks.
"What? Did you see something I didn't?" Hirokazu asks. He knocks on the door again. "Come on, Takato! I'm not mad! I take it as a compliment, I'm honored that I turn you on!"
"Hirokazu!" Kenta shouts.
"What? You think it was you?" He asks, then points to me. "Jen, maybe, but...I think we all know who's the best looking guy here." ...Hirokazu's reaction to this revelation might just be more of a shock than the possibility that Takato's gay.
"I can't believe this..." I sigh. "...And why did you have to bring attention to it, Hirokazu? Takato was embarrassed enough!"
"...Why were you even looking?" Kenta asks. That's...actually a very good question.
"It's hard not to notice something like that," Hirokazu says, he leans on the door. "And, what? You two looked up the entire time? Everyone's naked, I don't care what you see, I assume you don't care what I see!"
Kenta and I exchange looks and nod. He has a point.
Hirokazu goes back to knocking on the door. "Takato, come on! Go back to the hot spring with us!"
"...You want him back in the hot spring?" Kenta asks. "Why?"
"Because we paid an extraordinary amount of cash for this trip, and I don't want any of it to go to waste! What do I care if he's gay?" Hirokazu shrugs.
"Y-You have no problem with it?" Kenta asks.
"No, he's Takato, we've been friends for years and, well, who cares? It's nothing I have a problem with. Why do you ask? ...Wait, you care? Kenta, that's...shocking! I mean, really shocking..." He gives Kenta a confused look.
"I don't care if he's gay, don't even joke that I do!" Kenta frowns. "I am a little surprised, though...I didn't really picture Takato as gay."
"...Kenta, you realize you're saying that about a guy whose instinctual reaction to this sort of situation is to cry into a pillow, right?" Hirokazu says.
Kenta groans.
"Hirokazu, could you not joke like that?" I ask.
"All right, all right," Hirokazu rolls his eyes. He pounds on the door. "Come on, Takato! Open up! You can check me out all you want!"
Again, Kenta and I scream "Hirokazu" in unison.
"...I'm sorry for that joke, Takato. I honestly have no problem, you can love anyone you want and I wouldn't judge you. I for one would LOVE to go back and soak in some springs! And I want you to join us!" No response. "Jen, gimme your key...I'm goin' in."
"Takato wants to be left alone, Hirokazu," I say. "I doubt you're the one who can make him feel better right now."
"Why? I turn him on."
Kenta and I groan.
"Jen, I'll go back to the springs with Hirokazu, you deal with Takato," Kenta says, he looks to Hirokazu, who's still trying to get Takato's attention, then winks at me. "You're so damn lucky." He whispers.
"What?"
"Come on, Takato might like you," Kenta whispers. "Just tell him, I don't think he can pull the whole 'ew, you're a sick freak' thing after this."
I nod...I...I can't believe that thought didn't occur to me. Takato and I...have a chance together.
Kenta turns to Hirokazu. "Jen says he'll deal with Takato, you and I can go back to the hot springs."
"Oh, come on! We spent so damn much!"
"We're here for a few days, Takato probably needs a day to calm down-"
"Dude, how long do you think his boners last?"
"...I meant emotionally, you idiot..." Kenta groans.
"O-Oh, right..." Hirokazu laughs. "Okay, fine, but...Jen, try to get him back to the spring, okay?"
I nod. "R-Right. I'll do what I can." I wait until Hirokazu and Kenta turn down the hall before I reach for my room key. I knock on the door. "...Takato, it's Jen. I'm coming in. I just want you to know, I'm not mad or anything. I'm not going to make fun of you or be an ass like Hirokazu. Okay?" There's no response, but I can hear faint sobbing inside...
I unlock the door and walk in. Takato's on one of the beds, lying on his stomach with his head in a pillow... I haven't seen him like this in years. My heart starts pounding more and more as I approach...This is it...
I sit down on the other bed. "Um...Takato, are you all right?"
"...Y-Yeah...Kind of..." Takato says, he doesn't turn to face me. "...Jen...I'm sorry...I...I..." He stammers, I think he's trying to explain what happened in a way as to deny the obvious implications...I can't let him do that. "Jen, it's not-"
"Takato...Can I just ask...Are you...gay?" I say, plainly. "I-I won't care if you are, really. I promise. I swear, I would never hate you for it...You're my best friend. No matter what." I feel so far from hate for you right now, Takato...I just want to be absolutely sure.
It takes him a minute to answer, he lets out a loud sigh. "I am..." Takato nods into his pillow. "...I'm sorry, Jen-"
"No, no, Takato, don't apologize." I say. I can't believe this... I'm sorry for Takato that I had to find out this way, but... ...My only fear now is if he rejects my feelings, not if he hates me. "I, um, I want to talk to you...About something. Can you sit up?"
Takato, gradually, lifts himself up. His eyes are already red from crying. He faces me, but he's looking away, resting one hand on the pillow. "...I know, you want another room, right?"
"N-No, of course not," I shake my head. How can I say this? ...I don't know... I've dreamed of this moment, not this exact moment (and certainly not the circumstances leading up to it), but I've imagined something like it...
I...I think I'm more afraid of what would happen if he says 'no,' than I was of him hating me before... Because...I mean, we're both...'that way,' but if he says no...It'd be even worse for me...Because I was so close to being with him and he still rejected my feelings...
Th-That's...Actually even scarier, I think. That...he could reject me, that he could have no problem with how much I like him but...He just couldn't return those feelings, he could have a thing for Kenta instead! Or even Hirokazu... ...And not me...
...No, no, I have to do this! ...If I knew he wouldn't hate me, I would have done this so much sooner, I'm not going to stop now.
"...Takato, would you like to...do something, sometime? Like...go out?" I guess that's a good way to start...
...Or not. Takato throws his pillow aside and frowns at me. "Jen, that's not funny! Hirokazu's an ass who would joke like that, but you? I can't believe it!"
"N-No! T-Takato! I'm serious!" I say, quickly. "I-I'm gay, too. I'm not joking, I...I like you! ...I-I like you a lot."
His jaw falls. "...You're gay, Jen?"
I nod, swallowing. It's still nerve wracking, even telling Takato when I know he won't hate me for it... "...I really like you, Takato. A lot. I've had feelings for you for a long time, I can't even pinpoint when they started, I've just thought about you that way for so long."
"J-Jen...I'm s-sorry I yelled at you. It's just...With what Hirokazu was saying out there..."
"No, it's okay. After what Hirokazu was shouting, I don't blame you," I say. "Kenta was the only one who knew about me, he found out by accident last week... I never thought I'd tell you because I was afraid of how you'd react. So, um...Is there a chance...?"
Takato nods, smiling slightly. "I've liked you a lot for more than a few years, too. I didn't tell you for the same reason, and I was pretty sure that you were straight. I mean, you're...You! I figured you could have anyone you wanted."
I laugh, "Wow, thanks." I look into his eyes, a grin spreading across my face. "If I can have anyone, then I want you. I want Takato Matsuda. And only Takato Matsuda."
Takato laughs back. "I have no objection to that at all."
"How about we have lunch at that cafe, near the hot springs? To make things official."
Takato nods. "Yeah." He gets up, I do the same and take his hand.
"...Can I try one thing, before we leave?" I ask.
"What?"
I lean forward, Takato gets the idea and does the same...
...For a first kiss, it's...actually a little awkward, nothing at all like the first kisses in a manga or my games. It was just simple kiss on the lips and nothing more. And I wouldn't ask for anything different. It's great. Because it's Takato.
When we break the kiss, Takato smiles. "Was that your first kiss, too?"
I nod with a laugh. "Y-Yeah...I think we'll need to practice."
Takato gives me another kiss on the cheek. "Yeah, we should practice. As often as possible."
I laugh, though I'm blushing a little from the kiss. Takato, too, and even more, actually.
Takato looks up at me, a little hesitantly. "Can I call you...Jen-chan?"
"Only if I can call you Takato-chan," I reply.
"Thanks, Jen...chan," Takato laughs. "S-sorry, it's...Something I never thought I'd say to you."
I kiss him on the cheek, he blushes. I do, too, but not nearly as badly. "I never thought I'd do that, Takato-chan."
The outdoor cafe is in a bamboo walled area with a stone path and some outdoor tables. You can see steam rising from the hot springs over the wall and there's wild bamboo and other plants growing everywhere. It's beautiful...
...But there's not much of a cafe. They don't serve much more than snacks. Takato and I are splitting a soda. It also happens to be their last Ramune.
So much for a first date.
Takato takes a sip of our soda. "...Sorry again about what happened in the springs..."
"Don't be, Takato-chan," I love saying '-chan' at the end of his name. "If it didn't happen, we'd have no idea we liked each other. And Hirokazu, really, just seemed to be joking around. I'm surprised by how he reacted, it's not something that bothers him."
Takato nods. "I...I actually laughed a couple times while he was shouting through the door. I was still embarrassed and upset but the fact he was acting like he always did made me feel a little better. I was more scared that you would be upset."
"I was so mad at Hirokazu that...I didn't even realize I now had a chance to be with you," I laugh. "Kenta had to point it out to me, he got rid of Hirokazu so I could talk to you."
"It's...sort of weird, like not much has really changed," he says, "N-Not that I don't like it, but...I guess shounen-ai manga tend to over-romanticize things."
"I know what you mean," I pause. "Wait, you read...shounen-ai manga?"
Takato glances away, blushing, "Um...No?"
"Ai To Kirai is a shounen-ai dating sim," I say, remembering when he asked about it earlier. "They aren't Lianjie's. I'll let you borrow my favorite, the original."
"Why is that your favorite?"
"There's...a boy named Wataru who's an artist...He looks a lot like you," I start to blush. "I've had that game for three years and...I don't think I've ended the game with anyone except him...I guess it was the closest I could get to the real thing."
Takato giggles, "You like me that much?"
"No, I like you a lot more."
"I...Um...I have a few sketches I drew of us, together," Takato looks away, his cheeks turn a light shade of red. "I'll show them to you when we get back. N-Nothing dirty, of course, just...Holding hands, sitting together and being a couple. Sort of like that picture I gave you for your birthday that one time...That was, um, sort of one of them, just not as...obvious. I was worried you might suspect something."
I laugh, "I hugged you after you gave it to me, I...I was worried you would suspect something from that." Takato laughs, too and nods. It's true, I did. I liked his gift that much, it was of Takato and I with our partners, sitting on a hill and watching clouds. He put so much effort into it. "That's one of my favorite gifts, ever. I keep it in a frame of a picture...of us."
"I...I can't believe we never told each other this before, with...Well, your sims, my pictures," Takato laughs. "I think I even know the frame you're talking about. The one of us on your computer, right?"
"Yeah, that's the one." I nod. "I wanted to tell you so badly sometimes but I didn't want to risk losing our friendship. I don't think I could handle that."
Takato's about to speak when a flash goes off near us. We turn to the source...
...Hirokazu and Kenta, with a throwaway camera.
"I told you, Hirokazu," Kenta says, looking to Hirokazu with the biggest grin I've ever seen him with.
"All right, all right, I owe you five hundred yen..." Hirokazu rolls his eyes. He and Kenta walk to our table. He eyes Takato, then me, "So, Takato, it was Jen that turned you on..." He trails off.
Takato and I are bright red...I guess the secret wouldn't have lasted too long. Hirokazu may be a little dense (what with Kenta and all), but even he'd figure out why I was suddenly spending so much time with the recently outted Takato Matsuda.
"Hirokazu...Kenta..." Takato stutters.
"And why didn't you tell me you were gay, Jen?" Hirokazu looks to me. "Keeping secrets isn't cool! You, too, Takato!" He turns to Takato.
"...You don't mind?" I ask. ...I really pictured Hirokazu as the type to freak out over this sort of thing.
"I'm more upset that I'm not in the hot spring right now, and you two should be there with me!" Hirokazu says. "I want to spend more time in a hot spring than on dry land with this trip, guys. Kenta could confess his undying love for me and I won't care as long as I'm soaking in a nice warm hot spring!" ...I wonder if he really has no idea that Kenta likes him...
"I love you, Hiro-chan. I always have..." Kenta grins, he leans forward for a kiss. As before, he uses the tone I would have never used on Takato...Before.
Hirokazu gently pushes him aside. "Kenta..." He rolls his eyes. "Look, tonight, we're all going back to the springs. I don't care who gets hard, you're staying!" He eyes Takato before he gets up. "I'm getting something to drink, hold on..." He walks to the cafe.
"Sorry, Takato, I don't think you're ever going to live this down," Kenta shrugs. "At least you got Jen out of it."
Takato looks to me with a smile. "I can live with that. By the way, Kenta, you...knew about Jen?"
Kenta nods. "He knows about me, too."
Takato's eyes go wide. "Y-You?"
"Don't tell Hiro-chan," Kenta chuckles.
Takato looks to me, I shrug. "I didn't expect it, either. He caught me with an Ai To Kirai game and...Wanted to talk."
"I'm so happy for both of you," Kenta says. "Takato, I am...a little surprised, I didn't think you were, well, 'one of us.'" He laughs.
"Y-You, too," Takato says. "You like...Hirokazu?"
Kenta shakes his head. "I don't like Hiro-chan, I love him. But I know he's straight. You two are so damn lucky. Jen, kiss Takato a few times for me."
I laugh, kissing Takato on the cheek.
"Little closer to the lips than that, Jen-chan," Kenta says.
I oblige, Takato blushes slightly. I look to him. "S-Sorry, don't want to be so open in public?"
"N-No, it's...I never thought I'd be able to kiss you in front of someone else...Or at all. I don't mind," he says, smiling. "I just need to get used to it, and I'm not going to complain when you kiss me. Ever."
Kenta speaks up, "Hey, she's hot," he points to a maid passing through the area. Hirokazu comes back just as he says this.
"...Huh?" He looks. "Eh, not really my type..." Hirokazu starts to pass out cans of iced green tea. He opens his, raising it. "I'm only going to say this once...To Jen and Takato, I'm happy two of my best friends found love. May they find eternal happiness, which I know for a fact will be guaranteed if they join Kenta and me in the hot springs tonight! The hot spring gods told me so!" He toasts his tea can, we all do the same with a laugh.
"Hirokazu, I'm just wondering, why don't you have any problem with sitting around naked with a bunch of gay guys?" Kenta asks.
"Because those three gay guys are my best friends, duh?" Hirokazu replies.
Takato and I exchange glances. Kenta goes slightly pale. "...Th-Three, Hirokazu?" Kenta asks.
"Yeah, you, Jen and Takato...Why? Did I miscount?" Hirokazu replies.
...I take back what I said about Hirokazu being dense... I guess this is why he didn't seem upset about Takato's "secret," he's, well, ALWAYS with Kenta...
"...Oh...Um..." Kenta blushes slightly.
"...Wait, you thought I didn't know?" Hirokazu asks. He looks surprised. "Seriously?"
"...Sort of..."
"...Dude, you're...sorta obvious...No offense..." Hirokazu trails off, sipping his drink, Kenta just hangs his head, as if defeated. "...Uh...Sorry?"
"...I need to soak in some hot springs now and reflect..." Kenta finishes his tea quickly and gets up. "I thought I kept my secret so well!" He turns, looking to the sky. "If Hiro-chan figured it out, who else knows...?"
"Um...I thought...You'd just...always been out...Like for the past couple years..." Hirokazu trails off. Kenta hangs his head lower.
"Again...If anyone needs me, I'm going to soak... ...Maybe with my head underwater for an extended period of time..." Kenta sighs, walking off. The last part is obviously a joke, but he's definitely upset about his 'secret' not being so secret.
As Kenta walks off, Hirokazu finishes his green tea, tosses the can in a nearby recycling bin and starts off. "See you guys, springs are calling!" He jogs off, shouting, "KENTA! Wait up! I'll join you!" ...He's...going to join Kenta? W-Well, then again, we three gay guys are his best friends.
I'm really glad this is a non-issue for him, though.
"...Are we...sure there's nothing between those two?" Takato asks, looking to me. I shake my head with a shrug.
"Hirokazu is...Weird." I shrug. "But...I wonder if he knew Kenta wasn't joking all those times..." I trail off. "Sorry our first date isn't all that much."
"Jen-chan, it's a date. That's...more than I thought would ever happen."
I smile. "Are you...up to going to the springs later?"
"Um...I'll...try..."
I blush slightly, saying, "Kenta...told me a trick..."
"...A trick?"
Ori's Notes:
First, for those wondering why, of all things, this is what I chose for Takato to be outted back when I wrote Christmas Dinner... ...The reason is...
...It MIGHT be based on a true and very funny\embarrassing (depends on who you ask) story that took place around the time I wrote Christmas Dinner. That's all the detail you're gonna get, though!
And that's the infamous hot springs incident...For the record, the incident was established way back when Christmas Dinner was first posted. Pass the Soy Sauce turned it into a running gag, sort of. I obviously was not going to write out the actual incident, but the aftermath... ...Hirokazu's dialogue was a ton of fun to write. Especially when I got to Takato and Jen's date...
Oh, and I am not going to comment on the really bad pun if you translate the title of this chapter...
Taiki's Notes:
I will comment on the pun: Hysterical.
Ori sent this to me last night, I thought it would be good to get an early start and put this up the following morning.
And Hirokazu knew? Oh, that is excellent, Ori! I loved that twist!
What could be next, though? You say it's going on more than just the next chapter but, how? Aside from maybe one more chapter to follow this up and end it all, I have no idea how you can go further.
Honestly, I'm curious as to what Ori has planned for something he says is so going to be so long. How long? SIXTEEN CHAPTERS, he says! I mean, five or six is one thing but I have no idea what he has in mind for sixteen!
-Taiki Matsuki