Inside the Lion's Mind

Diclaimer: Of course I own Inazuma Eleven! Along with the Titanic and pink and purple polka-dotted dinosaurs :)

Genda couldn't sleep that night. For one thing, his hand was still throbbing from the fifty lines of "I will not behave like a babbling baboon in class". For another, he kept replaying his consciences' conversation in his head over and over again. Most importantly, the last thing they said refused to leave his mind.

Talk to Sakuma, Celeste and Damon had said. He didn't even know what to say to him.

Hey Sakuma, guess what! I know I'm your best friend and all, but I think I'm in love with you!

Genda groaned inwardly. He sounded like a total girl! If Sakuma didn't punch him, he'd punch himself for talking like that, and gauge out his eyeballs while he was at it.

Sakuma, I know we've been best friends since forever, and I know you probably don't feel the same way… but I'm crazy about you. I know it's wrong, but—

"Argh!" Genda clapped a hand to his forehead. He needed to sleep; he couldn't stand the torture that his brain was cooking up for him.

When Genda finally managed to drift off to sleep, his dreams were plagued by a certain bluenet.

Sakuma's mouth dropped open at the sight of his best friend. "G-genda?"

Genda lifted his head slightly, grunted, and then dropped it back onto his desk, trying desperately not to yawn.

"Genda, are you sick?" Sakuma asked apprehensively as he took in Genda's disheveled appearance. His brown hair was sticking out in seemingly random directions, not the carefully groomed spikes that had always swept to the right. His face was drawn and pale, with dark circles under his eyes. On top of that, his uniform was rumpled in places, and he couldn't go two minutes without yawning.

Genda shook his head. "Didn't sleep well last night," he mumbled, keeping his eyes shut.

"Dude," Sakuma said worriedly. "I am seriously concerned about you." He put his hand to the goalkeeper's forehead. "Whoa man, you're burning up!"

"Leevvv me alunnn…" Genda unconsciously slurred his words, yawning.

Sakuma studied him for a second, and then hooked his arm around his best friend's waist.

"Watchuhhh doinnn…" Genda mumbled.

"Taking you to the nurse's office, drunkie. C'mon, move it." He slung Genda's arm over his neck and hauled him out of his seat. Pointed looks were directed at them.

"Hey Kidou, you mind telling Meguni-san that I'm taking Genda to the nurse's? I think he has a fever."

Kidou blinked at Sakuma with Genda leaning against him. "Um… sure. I'll tell her."

"Well, he's definitely not fit for class," Nurse Tomatsu frowned at the thermometer, which was hovering just a little above 38 ˚C. "I'll have to call his parents to pick him up—"

"I can take him home," Sakuma volunteered.

Tomatsu-san eyed him over her tiny square glasses and raised an eyebrow. "You, young man, need to get back to class."

"No, you don't understand, Tomatsu-san. Genda's parents are both really busy working, and I have the keys to the house anyways. I'll take care of him."

Tomatsu-san scrutinized him through narrowed eyes. "Genda-kun, would you like this young man to take care of you today?"

"Mm," Genda hummed, still not entirely conscious.

Tomatsu-san sighed. "Very well, I shall write to your homeroom teacher a note abstaining you two from class," she said, scribbling something on her notepad. "Now get the child out of here, and make sure he gets plenty of rest, do you understand young man?" she asked Sakuma. Sakuma nodded, and Tomatsu-san grunted and waved them away.

"Come on, big guy," Sakuma whispered, heaving Genda onto his slight frame once again. Genda sighed and rested his head on Sakuma's shoulder, causing the forward to blush heavily.

After successfully loading themselves into a cab, Sakuma and Genda managed to get back to Genda's house without anything drastic happening. Sometime along the way, Genda fell asleep on Sakuma's lap, which caused the driver to chuckle when he saw them. Once back in the house, one of the Genda household's many maids came and helped Sakuma drag him back to his "quarters".

"May I ask what happened to young master Genda, Sakuma-sama?" The girl, a shy young thing called Yuu asked timidly. Sakuma looked up with a start—he didn't have any staff at home, so he wasn't sure how to treat them, especially not when they called him "sama". All the times he had went over to Genda's or Kidou's, they had mostly kept their distance.

"Um, he's running a fever, but the nurse said he should be able to sleep it off."

"I see," Yuu said. "I'll bring up a glass of water." A while later, she reappeared back in Genda's room with a tall glass of crystal clear water, which she sat down on Genda's bedside table. She then disappeared from the room in a flurry.

Sakuma sighed and settled down in the rocking chair next to Genda's giant four-poster bed. He massaged his shoulders, wincing a little as his fingers prodded a sore spot. As he winced, the boy in the bed stirred.

"Sakuma…"

The blue-haired striker of Teikoku in question shot forward, almost banging his knee against the hard wooden post.

"Genda? Can you hear me?

Genda's eyes fluttered open. "Hey, Sakuma. What's up?" he managed to croak before he dissolved into a fit of coughing.

Sakuma couldn't help it—he laughed. "Here, drink some water first," he said as he lifted the glass to Genda's lips, from which the goalkeepers drank greedily. "You were pretty much unconscious when you came back to school today."

Genda looked at him in bafflement. "I was? I don't… remember."

"Yeah. Completely beat. So I took you to the nurse's office, and she said you hadn't been sleeping well these past few nights apparently, so she sent you home and me to look after you."

"Oh."

"So rest," Sakuma said soothingly, patting down Genda's unruly hair. "You'll feel better once you have, I promise."

Genda nodded sleepily, already snuggling into the pillow. As Sakuma got up to leave, he felt a hand grip his wrist. With wide eyes, he turned to look at Genda.

"Stay," he said softly, his eyes half-closed. Sakuma nodded, and sat back down into the rocking chair, keeping his tan hand on Genda's the whole time.

"I will, Koujirou. As long as you need me to be, I'll be at your side," he whispered.

A/N: Another filler chapter -.- Man, I am a terrible person. I make all my beautiful readers wait so long, and all I can give is a filler :'( I'm a failure~

But any hoo, I'm sorry for making everyone wait. School just started, and the past few days have been hectic trying to get everything ready. I'll update ASAP, as usual, but my writing will time is definitely more limited, now that I can't write up till four a.m. whenever the muse strikes me. Sorry I couldn't give you guys the confession :P I wanted Genda to be sick, so Sakuma could take care of him. OTL I'm so sorry :'( Review? I think those little magical words make me update faster lol~(:

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