A/N: To my lone Guest reviewer: Haha I don't know about a full length story. I honestly don't think my skill as a writer has developed enough for that and there doesn't seem to be any interest in it anyway. : shrugs: We'll see how things go.
Any who, here is another short. I think after this one the stories might start jumping around and not so much following the theme of its predecessor. Please tell me what you think! (Sorry I'm an attention whore)
Soma has been avoiding him.
He would still glare at me if I dared to not put him on my mission roster but other than the mandatory interaction during a mission, Soma has been avoiding me for the better part of two weeks. I like to think I'm kind of a good guy. If someone didn't want to be in his presence I wouldn't force them. But Soma was his friend and if he could break this strange tension that seemed to rise when he was near the elder, he would try.
I paused. 'What if I'm just overreacting? Maybe he just wanted to get closer to other units. And rookies. And Gen. And Hibari. And everyone except me. Maybe he's mad at me for getting him sick that one time! I need to apologize better.'
I felt a poke on my shoulder, breaking me out of my 'Aha' moment. Turning away from the vending machine in front of me, I saw Karel standing behind me looking impatient.
"Are you actually going to buy something or are you just going to stare blankly at it?" I scratched the back of my head in embarrassment, quickly sidestepping. "Sorry, I was a little distracted." Distantly I heard a door squeak open.
Humming the blonde retrieved his soda can, popping it open. After taking a sip of fizz he turned towards me and tsk'ed. "You keep making faces like that," he reached out a hand and smoothed out my furrowed brows. "Stop it or you'll ruin that face."
"O-oh right." I mumbled, confused. A door suddenly slammed closed behind me. I jerked and whipped my head around. Being on the veteran's barracks in this specific hallway meant that could've been only a number of people. And the only who makes a habit of door abuse is…
"Oops." Karel chuckled behind me. "Someone's jealous." I turned back around, my head cocked, "Wha-
Karel shushed me though and began walking down the hallway backwards. He paused beside Soma's room and asked me loudly, "So Shun lent me the whole Last Samurai trilogy. You should come by my room later and watch them with me. I don't want to be alone the whole night." Karel smirked.
Though his loud volume was unusual the invention wasn't. Karel and I have watched multiple movies together. Sometimes we do a marathon of old movies. Liking the idea I gave a wide grin and a nod, excited. He gave me a conspiratorial wink and then began yelling, "I suggest taking a nap now, I don't know how long we'll be at it tonight."
'Why is he yelling?'
A door swooshed open. Stomping out of the dark room, a blue clad shoulder bumped roughly with Karel's, nearly knocking him over. The blonde only smiled, waved and mouthed 'good luck' as he disappeared down the hall.
'Good luck? Does he know why Soma's mad?' Curious but determined I saw my chance at apologizing and hurriedly stood in Soma's path to the elevator. Aware of his bad mood I softly called, "Soma..."
He stopped in front of me. "What." He didn't look at me. Instead he looked over my head at the numbers displayed on the elevator.
"Well I noticed you've been kind of..." I gulped. Confrontation not involving aragami was not one of my strengths. "I noticed you've been acting differently with me lately."
Soma jerked as if hit and finally looked at me. I met his eyes evenly. "I wanted to apologize for any hardship or pain I put you through. It was the last thing I wanted." He really was sorry. The symptoms for that particular fever were not fun, he would know, and lasted days after the actual fever broke. Vomiting, nasal congestion, strep throat, headaches. It was a bad memory.
Soma stayed silent, staring at me. I smiled at him with sad eyes. "If you still feel the same it's okay even though it makes me feel sorry and uncomfortable. But I really wish you wouldn't because I want us to stay friends. I just ask that you don't let it interfere with our missions. Cause you know when you get like that, you get reckless and well, we need you Soma." I finished it in a rush laying a hand on his shoulder. My eyes widened when Soma grabbed me by my collar, raising me up the tiniest bit. My breath caught. Soma's eyes were so cold. 'What in the world.' I thought, incredulous.
"Say it." He demanded. I looked at him, lost. He grew angrier at my silence and shook me by the collar. "Say it!" My own temper flared. Grabbing his wrist and pressing down where I knew the pressure point was I threw it off me. I would not be manhandled so. Soma's expression didn't change. I took a step back and a deep breath, 'in the mouth, through the nose' and asked calmly. "Say what Soma?"
He took a step closer, crowding me. I refused to step back into the closed metal doors. I lifted my chin and met his gaze. Soma growled. "Don't fuck with me. I never took you for a coward Yuuki."
"What-
His hand encircled my neck. Not squeezing, just on my pulse. 'He's being tactile! This is weird! What's happening!' I internally panicked. Involuntarily, I took that step back. He bent over me, shielding me from the rest of the hallway and the light. With his jacket and frame casting me into shadow, his eyes glowed, piercing me. I shivered.
His left arm perched itself above my head, bearing his weight. "I'm not your fucking charity case. You don't have to be friends with me to still have your Death God. I can still kill aragami even if I don't have your pity." He snarled into my ear. "I don't give a shit if it makes you feel bad or uncomfortable or whatever. The den needs you. So no, it won't interfere. Stop pretending to be my friend. Stop fucking with my head-"
I moved before he finished, dislodging his hand from my thundering pulse. Wrapping my arms around his lowered neck, I squished his face into my chest.
"Soma I don't know what you're talking about at all and I'm really confused but I just don't want you mad at me anymore so I apologized for getting you sick." I tightened my hold, "and stop saying charity case or whatever. You. Are. My. Friend. I'll say it as many times as you need me to so it'll get through your thick skull. I don't pity you Soma. I empathize. And yes you do get really reckless when you're angry and it scares me because I don't want to lose you. You keep me...steady Soma. You and everyone here. You keep me from drowning with everything. Okay? I need you here. We need you here. Everyone does." I lightened my hold, taking a much needed breath. Patting him on the head I said, "You are my friend. If anything I'm your charity case." Grabbing him by the cheeks I lifted him from my chest. "Okay?"
His blue eyes were blank and staring past me. He straightened and slowly removed my hands from his face. Sighing loudly he covered his eyes with one hand. "You were apologizing?"
I nodded slowly. "Because you thought I was mad you?" I bit my lip and nodded again. "That's it?"
"Um yeah. Pretty much." His face took on an interesting red color. Pinching the bridge of his nose and turning his face upwards Soma asked for strength. "Why in the hell would I be mad you?"
"Because I-
"You know what. I don't even care. Just..." Soma sighed again. "I'm sorry. For all that." He gestured around me, "Didn't mean to get in your space like that."
I smiled uneasily. I was so lost. "It's okay. Get in my space. Get all up in that space."
Soma made a strange choking sound. "Idiot! Don't say it like that!"
He looked away, blushing. Still unsure as to where we stood I nudged him. "Hey." He looked at me moodily. "Are we okay?" He hesitated. "Soma?"
He breathed out. "We're fine. I just had some stuff to deal with. Sorry for worrying you."
I smiled relieved. That was a more emotionally charged conversation with Soma than I was prepared for. "Good." Soma reached behind me to press the down button for the Lobby. I hummed as we waited for the doors to open.
"You should come watch movies with Karel and me. It'll be fun-"
I yelped when Soma started violently banging his head against the metal doors. Grabbing his arm and pulling him away from the new indent before he could hurt himself more, I saw him raise his closed eyes upwards again, asking for more strength. What was wrong with him today?
"You guys were really talking about movies?"
"I..uh yeah. What else would take all night?"
Soma swore, pulling his hood over his eyes. 'The things you do to me.'
Unbeknownst to his thoughts I rocked to and fro on my feet as the silence began to settle around us.
"So…" I started.
A sigh.
"What were you talking about?" Soma only grumbled in response and looked away.
I smiled, happy anyway. We're okay now. That's all that matters.
