Merry Christmas to all my followers! Here is the second chapter of the Christmas bundle. Enjoy your gift.
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Yu sighed, looking at the deeply asleep Kaoru who seemed strangely comfortable on the stairs. He had been through a lot today; it was really no wonder that he fell asleep there of all places and so quickly at that. Yu guessed it would just be dinner for one now. He looked over to the sofa. Meh, it would have to do, it didn't look that bad after all. Kaoru could have the bed upstairs.
It was a bit of a struggle getting Kaoru back up the stairs, but soon Yu had him resting on his newly made bed. Yu sighed, Kaoru didn't have any pyjamas yet and there were far too many clichés about boys undressing other boys when one is asleep. Besides, he had been so happy to get the clothes he was wearing; he didn't want to wake him up trying to take them off him again.
Kaoru mumbled under his breath but stayed fast asleep as Yu pulled back the blankets from underneath him and covered him up with them. Yu then grabbed the spare blanket and a couple of pillows and proceeded to trudge back downstairs, suddenly feeling very tired himself.
He then remembered, before he could go to sleep, he would have to clean up the kitchen where he had left out food for the both of them. As he wrapped the two plates in glad wrap and placed them in the fridge with the two drinks, he nibbled at one of the rice balls Nanako had made for his dinner. He figured that he had better eat something so that he wouldn't be starving in the middle of the night.
As he settled himself on the two-seater with his legs tucked up, he realised that it was actually cosier than he thought. He felt all snug and secure, curled up on his side, wrapped up in a soft blanket and head smooshed into a squishy pillow. He did, however, give the TV a furtive glance before he felt comfortable enough to sleep.
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He woke up at his usual time of 7am, his body clock refusing to let him sleep any longer. This was ideal as he had a lot to do today and he knew that time would fly away from them. He was just about to open the fridge to get out last night's leftovers when he was glomped from behind.
"Morning senpai, I made you a coffee. I didn't put any sugar in it." His arms wrapped around Yu's middle and his head rested on his right shoulder, looking at what he was doing.
"Thanks Kanji-um Kaoru…sorry. Here, "Yu said, handing a plate to Kaoru, "this was dinner from last night. I think we were both too tired to eat it though." Kaoru smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry. The bath was so lovely and the clothes you gave me were so snug. I just couldn't help it." The clothes did look good on him, though the jeans were a little too short and the shirt a touch tight. The latter didn't matter though as tight clothes suited the buff man. "Thank you for moving me to the bed though, the stairs might not have been so comfortable in the long run." Kaoru gave him a playful smack on the shoulder. It looked really odd as Kanji would usually either do nothing or go all out on someone. Kaoru was centred; Yu had a feeling that it was one of the things that Kanji needed. "Next time dump me on the sofa! It's your house remember?" Yu laughed, was that all?
"You weren't feeling the best yesterday. The rules don't apply."
"Hmm." Kaoru wrapped his hands around what appeared to be a hot chocolate and sipped it, before picking at and moving things around his plate.
"Kaoru, are you not hungry? You didn't eat anything last night so I figured…" Yu trailed off, concerned.
"I'm sorry. At least I won't eat you out of house and home." Kaoru laughed half-heartedly.
Yu could tell that something wasn't quite right but didn't ask. Kaoru would tell him if he needed to.
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After Yu had gotten dressed and had found Kaoru a hat ("OMG- I'm gonna look so lame!") and a pair of sunglasses ("now we're talking! Hello῀ handsome!") they walked to Junes, which wasn't far from his new apartment. They would have to take care of things quickly. They didn't need Yosuke or Teddie to see them before they were prepared and ready.
They started off at the chemist as they were least likely to be spotted there. It gave them a bit more time to give Kaoru a stronger identity.
"So…who are you?"
"Well, duh hunny! We met before a couple of times, remember? Shadow Kanji! Handsome hunk here to save both my life and Kanji's (aka Kaoru). Hm, I can't go blonde again…it's too obvious. There is only so much I can do with my black hair in this time frame. I guess I could manage brunette, I might just grow my hair out as well, I have always wanted longer hair." Kaoru picked up what he needed and put it in the basket Yu was holding. Yu rolled his eyes.
"Don't get cheeky. I meant you need to create an identity for yourself. What's you last name?" Yu prompted.
"Um…Mikkito?"
"…Good enough. Why are you in Inaba?" Kaoru got into it.
"I've just moved here from the city, I met you on the train. It's my first time living out of home, so you said that I could be your roommate until I got used to being independent. I wanted to experience what it was like living and working in a quiet town. It would be easier for me to learn new skills in a relaxed environment."
"That's pretty good; you must have thought it through when you were in the bath right?"
"Of course senpai, why waste the time? I also thought about what job I should get. First I thought that maybe I could be a hairdresser, but I don't think the people here would hire me. But I could work in a clothes store. I'd give good advice and I could learn new skills quickly. Do you think that there might be a suitable place in this complex somewhere?"
"We'll have to have a look." Yu knew that there was a clothing department, but maybe there was somewhere that focused more on teen fashion. They would have to shop somewhere like that next anyway, so that they could get some new, suitable clothes for Kaoru.
"What about you, you mentioned that you were getting a job as well. What sort of place were you thinking of?" As they paid at the checkout, Yu was lost in thought. He knew that he was open enough to try anything, why not put that to good use.
"Just give me a minute; I'll suss things out with my uncle."
"Kay!"
Once outside the store and in the mall, Yu reached into his pocket for his mobile, calling up Dojima on his whilst Kaoru played with his nails. He needed to know where Kanji worked; maybe he could get close to him there.
"Hello, Dojima speaking."
"Hey Dojima, its Yu."
"Oh hey, what was you first night in your new house like?"
"Um…different, but I'll get used to it. Tell Nanako that her bento was delish."
"Hey Nanako! Big Bro liked your boxed lunch!" he called out.
"Yay! Thanks Big Bro!" he heard muffled through the phone.
"She says thank you. Anyway, what do you need?"
"I was wondering if you know where Kanji works, I wanted to catch up with him today."
"He unloads trucks at Junes. It's the only place in town that would hire him with his reputation. Poor kid, to do backbreaking work at his age... Yu, just don't go bothering him ok. You don't want to get him in trouble with his boss."
"Gotcha, where do I find the main office?"
"I know it's on the ground floor somewhere. Don't get run over!"
"Kay, thanks Dojima. Bye." Click. As he tucked him phone away he asked, "Hey Kaoru, do you know where Kanji is? It would be easier if I could chat to him before I make up my mind. I know what he does…but I don't know where to find him." He explained.
"Hunny," Kaoru put his hands on his hips and gave him an amused look. "I may be Kanji's shadow, but I don't come with a GPS tracking system."
"Right…do you have any useful skills?" Yu joked. Kaoru pouted and gave Yu another playful smack.
"Watch it senpai, I could still beat you up if I had to."
"I'd like to see you try." Yu raised his arms, karate style, ready to attack. Kaoru poked him with his index finger in the forehead, watching in mock amusement as Yu proceeded to swoon in pain.
"Ha ha, very funny. Soo? Where's Kanji working?"
"He unloads trucks downstairs. Like, hard labour."
"Poor sweetie! I bet no one else would hire him." He added.
"How did you know that?" Yu asked, maybe he had heard the phone conversation.
"I may not have a GPS but I have got a kind of ESP. I can tell how Kanji feels, what he thinks about certain things. He's hurt deep knowing that no one wants to give him a chance… story of our lives." He added sadly.
"Sniff sniff, sniff sniff."
Kanji jumped, hand clutching his chest in a rather girly way, grasping at Yu's hand with the other in shock.
"I think someone is sniffing me!"
