Author's note: Um, wow? Oops? Dude, this is the fourth chapter. I kind of posted chapter 5 before chap 4. My bad. Sorry.
~~~~~_____~~~~~
They sat in the little cafe, smiling across the table from each other, neither in a hurry to make conversation. Koushiro was drinking green tea, sipping at it really, as it was too hot to drink quickly. On the other side of the booth, Jyou was drinking ice water, his dark eyes flickering between the sweating glass and the smiling redhead.
"How was your test?" Koushiro asked, realizing at last that the silence had taken over their little corner. The rest of the cafe was buzzing with excitement, but they were off to the side, away from most of the noise.
"I passed. Full marks," the blue-haired teen answered, picking up his glass and taking a small sip of water. His eyes were glued to Koushiro's face, giving the redhead his undivided attention. "How are your classes?"
Jyou was eighteen and in a different class than Koushiro. The redhead shrugged. "I'm going back and forth between high school and the university. They're allowing me to work with some of the older students in the computer lab to ensure that I do not get overlooked."
"Sounds challenging."
"Not really. Unfortunately, the majority of what they're working on I have already bypassed. At least at the high school, I get a chance to pretend that I'm normal. At the university, everyone is taller and older than I."
Jyou laughed at the forlorn expression on his face. After a moment, Koushiro joined in, his cheeks turning a light pink color as he chuckled.
"Laugh all you want. I'm the one that has to suffer being walked over by vision-impaired giants. I think you're the only tall person I know that doesn't step on me." He said it with his head tilted forwards lightly, looking up at the older boy through his lashes. The over all effect made him look almost flirtatious, and Jyou's smile turned from amused to gentle.
"I'll buy you stilts for your birthday." Chuckling, Koushiro shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"I'd probably kill myself. I can imagine getting one of the stilts stuck in a crack in the sidewalk. I'll fall flat on my face, from a greater height than normal."
"I'd catch you." Jyou said without thinking. He blushed the instant he realized what he had said. To cover his sudden embarrassment, he picked up his glass and held it to his lips, looking around the cafe to avoid eye contact.
Koushiro, smiling wistfully and looking down to hide his expression, missed Jyou's discomfort, too busy trying to hide his own. "Thank you, Jyou."
It was too bad that neither could bring himself to look at the other, for the expressions on their faces would have given them away.
~~~~~_____~~~~~
Daisuke smiled as he stretched out on the sofa, putting his feet in Ken's lap as he rested his head in Takeru's. He smiled up at the blonde, eyes dark. "From this angle, I can see up your nose."
Matt snorted, rolling his eyes as he settled himself more comfortably against Tai. They were -trying- to share a chair without sitting on one another, but so far, their efforts had only managed to make them both uncomfortable.
On the floor, leaning back against the couch, Iori and Hikari were snuggled close, arms about one another. Miyako was next to them and in front of Ken, using his legs as support.
Sprawled on the middle of the floor, Sora and Mimi were directing the meeting currently taking place, using the fact that Jyou and Koushiro were on dates to take the opportunity to hold a meeting on their behalf.
"I don't think that the girls we set them up with tonight were very good choice. I can't honestly see Koushiro liking Keito, and I know that Jyou will be bored stiff with Yanko. We can scratch it off to a preliminary match-up, but we need to coordinate the next one better," Sora said.
Mimi nodded, wrapping her arms tighter around her girlfriend and nuzzling her neck. She was sitting behind the brunette, her pink hair spread out to cover both their shoulders as she buried her nose in Sora's brown locks.
"We need people that they'll actually be able to talk to," Mimi agreed. "Not just any girls will do for our boys. They have to be intelligent, witty, sophisticated, loving, fun, and pretty, of course."
Her edict was followed by silence, as all the guys looked at each other. Finally, Daisuke wiggled around on the couch so that he was facing more into the room than at the ceiling.
"I don't see why we don't set them up together," he said. "They're really good friends, and they get along together."
Tai shifted, accidentally putting his elbow in Matt's side as he did. The blonde grunted, but didn't comment. The brunette responded to Daisuke's suggestion, "They're both smart guys, Daisuke. I'm sure that if there was a chance for them to get together, they would be."
"Tai's right," Matt joined the conversation. "They're good friends. If they liked one another, they would tell each other."
Everyone except Daisuke nodded in agreement. He shook his head, pushing himself into a sitting position. "You guys were best friends," He pointed out. "And you didn't get together until you were forced to admit how you felt. Just because Jyou and Izzy aren't that stupid or stubborn, there isn't a reason that they -would- have told each other how they felt."
Some chuckling erupted when he insulted Tai and Matt, but he had made a point, and the others were seriously considering the possibility that he could be right.
Takeru looked down at his boyfriend, running his pale hands through Daisuke's dark locks, a tender smile on his face. "I love you."
The brunette smiled back at him, sitting up fully so that he could take advantage of his new leverage and lean forward to kiss Takeru. When they parted, Daisuke grinned and whispered, "I love you, too, Gilligan."
~~~~~_____~~~~~
They sat in the little cafe, smiling across the table from each other, neither in a hurry to make conversation. Koushiro was drinking green tea, sipping at it really, as it was too hot to drink quickly. On the other side of the booth, Jyou was drinking ice water, his dark eyes flickering between the sweating glass and the smiling redhead.
"How was your test?" Koushiro asked, realizing at last that the silence had taken over their little corner. The rest of the cafe was buzzing with excitement, but they were off to the side, away from most of the noise.
"I passed. Full marks," the blue-haired teen answered, picking up his glass and taking a small sip of water. His eyes were glued to Koushiro's face, giving the redhead his undivided attention. "How are your classes?"
Jyou was eighteen and in a different class than Koushiro. The redhead shrugged. "I'm going back and forth between high school and the university. They're allowing me to work with some of the older students in the computer lab to ensure that I do not get overlooked."
"Sounds challenging."
"Not really. Unfortunately, the majority of what they're working on I have already bypassed. At least at the high school, I get a chance to pretend that I'm normal. At the university, everyone is taller and older than I."
Jyou laughed at the forlorn expression on his face. After a moment, Koushiro joined in, his cheeks turning a light pink color as he chuckled.
"Laugh all you want. I'm the one that has to suffer being walked over by vision-impaired giants. I think you're the only tall person I know that doesn't step on me." He said it with his head tilted forwards lightly, looking up at the older boy through his lashes. The over all effect made him look almost flirtatious, and Jyou's smile turned from amused to gentle.
"I'll buy you stilts for your birthday." Chuckling, Koushiro shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"I'd probably kill myself. I can imagine getting one of the stilts stuck in a crack in the sidewalk. I'll fall flat on my face, from a greater height than normal."
"I'd catch you." Jyou said without thinking. He blushed the instant he realized what he had said. To cover his sudden embarrassment, he picked up his glass and held it to his lips, looking around the cafe to avoid eye contact.
Koushiro, smiling wistfully and looking down to hide his expression, missed Jyou's discomfort, too busy trying to hide his own. "Thank you, Jyou."
It was too bad that neither could bring himself to look at the other, for the expressions on their faces would have given them away.
~~~~~_____~~~~~
Daisuke smiled as he stretched out on the sofa, putting his feet in Ken's lap as he rested his head in Takeru's. He smiled up at the blonde, eyes dark. "From this angle, I can see up your nose."
Matt snorted, rolling his eyes as he settled himself more comfortably against Tai. They were -trying- to share a chair without sitting on one another, but so far, their efforts had only managed to make them both uncomfortable.
On the floor, leaning back against the couch, Iori and Hikari were snuggled close, arms about one another. Miyako was next to them and in front of Ken, using his legs as support.
Sprawled on the middle of the floor, Sora and Mimi were directing the meeting currently taking place, using the fact that Jyou and Koushiro were on dates to take the opportunity to hold a meeting on their behalf.
"I don't think that the girls we set them up with tonight were very good choice. I can't honestly see Koushiro liking Keito, and I know that Jyou will be bored stiff with Yanko. We can scratch it off to a preliminary match-up, but we need to coordinate the next one better," Sora said.
Mimi nodded, wrapping her arms tighter around her girlfriend and nuzzling her neck. She was sitting behind the brunette, her pink hair spread out to cover both their shoulders as she buried her nose in Sora's brown locks.
"We need people that they'll actually be able to talk to," Mimi agreed. "Not just any girls will do for our boys. They have to be intelligent, witty, sophisticated, loving, fun, and pretty, of course."
Her edict was followed by silence, as all the guys looked at each other. Finally, Daisuke wiggled around on the couch so that he was facing more into the room than at the ceiling.
"I don't see why we don't set them up together," he said. "They're really good friends, and they get along together."
Tai shifted, accidentally putting his elbow in Matt's side as he did. The blonde grunted, but didn't comment. The brunette responded to Daisuke's suggestion, "They're both smart guys, Daisuke. I'm sure that if there was a chance for them to get together, they would be."
"Tai's right," Matt joined the conversation. "They're good friends. If they liked one another, they would tell each other."
Everyone except Daisuke nodded in agreement. He shook his head, pushing himself into a sitting position. "You guys were best friends," He pointed out. "And you didn't get together until you were forced to admit how you felt. Just because Jyou and Izzy aren't that stupid or stubborn, there isn't a reason that they -would- have told each other how they felt."
Some chuckling erupted when he insulted Tai and Matt, but he had made a point, and the others were seriously considering the possibility that he could be right.
Takeru looked down at his boyfriend, running his pale hands through Daisuke's dark locks, a tender smile on his face. "I love you."
The brunette smiled back at him, sitting up fully so that he could take advantage of his new leverage and lean forward to kiss Takeru. When they parted, Daisuke grinned and whispered, "I love you, too, Gilligan."