Story Title: Mars
Chapter Title: Like Him
Pairing: Kouji/Takuya
Chapter Word Count: 5,307 words (definite improvement from last chapter)
Disclaimer: not mine
Warning: yaoi. is this really necessary at this point?

i'll ramble later.

Chapter 6: Like Him

Kouji sighed yet again as his boredom got the better of him only to be ignored once again by the other teen seated across the room. The art studio was undoubtedly one of the dullest places in existence and the black-haired teen had hey to figure out why exactly Takuya liked it so much. Sure, it was open to accommodate a large number of people and supplies - Kouji had noticed how the supplies always seemed to spread further away from Takuya as his work and time progressed - it was always calm even if it wasn't precisely quiet, and the windows allowed for beautiful lighting...

...And he had obviously had this conversation with Takuya before. That last thought was way too artisty to be of his own interpretations.

Anyway, he knew how much Takuya loved being outside - his love for soccer had long ago been revealed - but he always insisted to hole himself in the studio or his room. But, Kouji amended, at least his bedroom has alternative entertainment. Like a bed...

Kouji had to pry his mind from that train of thought. Takuya had at some point become adept at figuring out when Kouji was thinking about him in that manner and would usually do something to quell the black-haired teen's desire. Hey, he couldn't help that he really did want to see his boyfriend out of his clothes.

...Boyfriend...

Kouji's dark eyes turned to the brunette, who was currently putting yet another indentation into his pencil with his teeth as he drew whatever image had caught his attention today. The dark-haired teen settled for just watching Takuya as he mulled over the fact that the brunette was now truly and officially his boyfriend. It was something he wasn't planning on changing anytime soon. Sure, what they had gone through was basically essential to how close they were but it wasn't something that Kouji would bear repeating.

For a change, Takuya let out a frustrated sigh and tossed his pencil to the floor next to his bag at his feet. Kouji held in a triumphant whoop as he stood and walked over to the sulking teen and encircled Takuya's lithe chest with his arms. "Can't win every time, Slim. Best you learn that immediately." Takuya reached up with his right hand and lightly thumped Kouji on the forehead.

"I can't decide if this is a mess-up or brilliant," Takuya vaguely explained.

"Well, this is you we're talking about." Brown eyes looked up to him in question to elaborate. "We'll call it a failure and save you the debate later."

"You haven't looked at it. I refuse to accept it as a valid opinion unless you know what you're failing." Kouji rolled his eyes and looked away from the brunette to the sketch he had spent the last few hours on.

His eyes widened as he looked at a drawing of himself sitting in front of the window as he had for the duration of Takuya's working period. His body was angled to be parallel with the wall, but his face was turned away from the view to the outside world. But the most captivating feature of the sketch was the shadows that covered his entire face in a way that made it impossible to determine his expression.

Kouji was reminded of Takuya's indecision when the smaller teen could no longer keep from nervously fidgeting in Kouji's grasp. "You were content, not to mention awake, when I started drawing so I started with your face. I hadn't realized until a few minutes ago that I had followed the shadows on your face from the sun moving behind you."

Kouji leaned forward, using his arm across Takuya's chest to move the brunette's head o tilt up slightly and pressed his lips to his boyfriend's soft ones. It took a few seconds for Takuya's brain to catch on that he was being kissed and he parted his lips slightly so Kouji's tongue could taste his if he decided to deepen their connection. That was one thing Takuya learned quickly: Kouji was just as likely to deepen a kiss as he was to simply touch their lips together for any period of time. He had really shocked the brunette the first time he had pressed his tongue past Takuya's lips, but now both enjoyed the kissing aspect of the relationship without any discomfort.

It seemed that Kouji was simply going for the fastest way to shut Takuya's nervous ramblings up as he pulled away quicker that he normally would. He smiled as he tightened his embrace.

"I can't see what your problem is, Slim. I have to say that's the best one of me you've done so far."

Takuya grinned as he looked over the canvass once more. "That's just because you're never awake when I draw you. At least in this one you could be awake."

"See, you've already got a theme for your first like of releases: 'Kouji Minamoto and the Many Faces of Sleep.' Kinda rolls off the tongue, huh?" Takuya shrugged away Kouji's arms and bent over and began packing away all his supplies.

"I don't know why you think it would make me any money. Half the school knows what you look like asleep…and naked," he finished with a grin as Kouji momentarily faltered; he hadn't been with anybody since meeting Takuya and sometimes forgot how much of a playboy he had been.

Takuya shouldered his bag after slipping the canvass into the bag and stood up. He grinned in triumph as Kouji still failed to respond. "I thought you didn't like the studio," he suddenly said as he reached the door. Kouji blinked and looked over to the other teen in confusion.

"It's not on my list of favorite rooms. Why?"

"Because if you're not out when I close the door, you're spending the night here."

Kouji sprung into action, grabbing his bag and running past Takuya out the door. The brunette laughed as he closed and locked the door as he always did when he worked late. When he turned to face Kouji, the dark-haired teen automatically reached out and took his hand before pulling him down the hall in the direction of his motorcycle.

After a few steps in silence, Kouji looked back over his shoulder to the brunette trailing behind. "You know, I never once caught you looking in my direction. Usually I catch you a few times but I actually thought you were ignoring me completely."

"That's for me to know and you to ponder over for the rest of the day," Takuya replied with a grin. "Anyway, I'm finished in the studio for the week. I've got a few sketches that need to go on a canvass to paint and I do those all at home."

"Then I can get you out of that stuffy room after school so you can get some clean air in those lungs and some muscle on those bones."

"You talked to the phys. ed. instructor, didn't you?"

"I just don't get why you hole yourself up in the studio or your room when you love being outside so much. And don't deny it, you told me so yourself." They had reached Kouji's bike and he passed Takuya's helmet back to he brunette, who released the elastic tie holding his hair back and pulled the helmet over his head. "And you're not going to give me an answer." It wasn't the first time Takuya brushed him off like this and he learned quickly enough that the less he pressed the matter the quicker the brunette would speak to him.

"It's just that...inside things are always familiar. Stuff is always changing when you're outside and if you don't change with it things happen, There's no control." Takuya's quiet voice was muffled further by the helmet's visor, but Kouji caught the helpless tone nonetheless. The tone made Kouji wish he could see the teen's brown eyes that never failed to show their owner's emotions. He just felt so lost not knowing for sure where he was supposed to take the conversation. He had a sneaking suspicion that Takuya did that on purpose.

After a few minutes of tense silence, Kouji swung his leg over the bike and sat down. He looked up to Takuya and grinned. "Unpredictability is half the fun of living. If you know every detail of tomorrow, you're not alive." There was a short pause before a light laugh arose from Takuya. Without replying, Takuya sat behind Kouji, wrapping himself closely to the other teen's back as he started the bike.

Kouji yawned loudly as he unlocked the door to his apartment and stumbled wearily into his home. Kicking off his shoes he made his way over to the bed and practically fell onto it. That is the last time I play any sport against Slim, he couldn't keep that particular thought from rising up again. The day before, when he had discovered the brunette's "fear" of the outdoors, he had instantly devoted himself to re-introducing Takuya to the joys of outdoor life.

Today had consisted of testing Takuya's basketball skills. Kouji was loathed to admit they were apparently a lot better than his own. Then again, if Kouji hadn't taken it so easy on him to begin with, Takuya most likely wouldn't have gotten the fifteen point lead that didn't close throughout the game no matter how many baskets the dark-haired teen managed to make.

Kouji's face molded into a smirk as his thoughts moved past his defeat. On the other hand, damn that boy has a fine ass. I could have never arranged, let alone survived, that many gropes within a few hours.

...Okay so maybe there were a few other factors involved than the initial lead.

Kouji quickly slipped into sleep, planning out his moves for tomorrow, but was stopped abruptly by a loud knock on the door. There was only a very short debate before he chose to ignore whoever though nagging him was a good idea.

Five minutes later the knocks were coming constantly with no pauses in-between. Whoever it is is damn sure that I want to see them. Deciding that going right to sleep now was a flop, he pried himself out of the bed and drug his feet in the direction of the door.

Unlocking the door clumsily, he yanked the door open and prepared himself to engage in a yelling fit, but the person he saw on the other side of his entryway stopped him in his tracks most effectively. Identical blue-grey eyes locked onto his and he was temporarily stunned as he remembered that he wasn't an only child, and then berated himself for letting it slip his mind just because they lived in different countries.

"So am I going to stand here all night?" a voice that was much more light and friendlier than his own came from the other teen.

Updating his brain to the right moment, Kouji grinned and leaned his narrow body against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest. "If you really want to, Kouichi, but honestly I would prefer to talk to you inside. It gets pretty chilly at night."

"Very funny. Unlike you, I actually wait to be invited in," Kouichi replied as he stepped around his twin. He pulled off his baseball cap to reveal his own ink-black hair that was cut at his jaw line instead of flowing down to the middle of his back like Kouji kept his.

"Which is why you're still a virgin."

"And you would know all about unwanted entry, wouldn't you?" Kouji was temporarily thrown off by the casual tone of the reply before he recalled that even though his brother was by nature proper and reclusive, years of exposure to Kouji gave him the wonderful gift of taking any subject in stride.

Kouji was putting forward a lot of effort to give Takuya a similar attitude. He knew there was a great pervert buried deep within that shy nature of his boyfriend.

Closing the door behind him, he replied, "Actually, no; nobody can resist these killer looks."

"The only thing you've killed is teenage virginity. Anyway, what took you so long?"

"How was I supposed to know it was you?" Kouichi looked over to his twin before looking around the room. His eyes landed on the answering machine and he walked over to it and pushed the playback button.

"Hey Aniki. I know it's been a while since we talked, but I nagged Dad into letting me come and pay you a visit. I think he figured that he's tried everything but letting your genius brother influence you in the right direction. He actually paid my way here so I didn't have to take the time to work up money for the trip. I don't want to take too much of his money though so I'm just going to stay with you for a while so make sure you can put up with me. I'll be there later this evening. Ja ne!"

"Okay, give me a break. I just got home not long ago and was going to go right to sleep," Kouji defended.

"And where were you? I left that at 9 o'clock this morning." Kouichi was expecting to hear about a wild night in some random chick's bed and Kouji would have indulged, but he never could lie to his brother.

"Playing basketball with the cutest/hottest thing to ever walk the school," Kouji added a dreamy sigh for dramatic effect. Kouichi looked confused and Kouji wondered if he was thinking along the lines of...

"You played against yourself? Who won?"

...Maybe he needed to stop bragging about how sexy he was. Well, now he had Takuya to brag about so it shouldn't be too tough.

"No, but I would probably win if that was the case."

"Nice to know. So who's this hotty?"

"Don't forget the cute part. His name's Takuya Kanbara and, as of last week, he's my boyfriend." Kouji's voice was so smug and victorious that Kouichi didn't have to question if he was happy with being attached to someone like that.

For a second, he didn't recognize his twin with such a happy and content expression. Between the two of them, Kouji was never the content one. He always had some kind of qualm with one thing or another.

Well, now he just had to meet this Takuya Kanbara. He must be something special.

"How long are you here for anyway?" Kouji changed the subject smoothly enough.

"I'm trying to work out staying permanently. If I do, maybe Dad will finally get off your back about coming home."

Kouji growled in frustration at the reminder. "I come out three minutes before you and he thinks I'm the best choice to follow in his businessy footsteps. Did he ever consider that you actually want to?"

"Maybe he just does it to annoy you because of your career choice."

"He just doesn't get the talent it takes to professionally race motorcycles."

"I can't believe you're still on about that. If nothing else, you're persistent. Now that I think about it, that might be why he's so vigilant: Dad doesn't' want anybody else to prove that they can be more stubborn and hard-headed than him. Anyway, think you can hole me up for a while?"

"Just as long as I don't have to feed or clothe you."

"I've already registered at your school and am set up to start tomorrow."

"What name did you register under?"

"Himura Kouichi, of course. I can't just go around disregarding my legal name, even if I am a proud Minamoto."

"Well, find your own ride 'cuz I drive Takuya and there isn't room for three on my bike."

"You are such a considerate older brother. What would I do without you?"

"Be some boring goody-two-shoes. Face it: I'm a damn good bad influence."

"I'm almost afraid to see the damage you've done to your boyfriend already."

"You can give me an estimate on his 'damage' tomorrow when you meet him. For now can we just sleep like I was originally planning to do?"

Kouichi laughed at his twins' growl which was followed by an uncharacteristic pout. He nodded and Kouji silently curled up into a tight ball in his bed and was almost instantly asleep to let the other teen work everything out for himself. Ah, the joy of siblings.

Kouichi had to admit that Kouji wasn't really joking when he said Takuya Kanbara was cute, and he wasn't even bi. Expressive chocolate colored eyes were definitely a crowning feature, but without the auburn hair falling around his face and a dark skin tone he wouldn't be as ethereal as he was in Kouichi, and apparently Kouji's, opinion. The slender teen had a sense of being beyond the norm and Kouichi was already looking forward to knowing the brunette. However, that would have to wait until his brother caught a break from the teen in question's wrath.

Apparently Kouji Mina-moron - lovingly called such by a blonde friend of his - hadn't given Takuya any warning that he would be meeting his boyfriend's identical twin. They had walked into the room and once Takuya's eyes had landed on Kouichi he had froze in bewilderment. Kouji looked in the same direction and he let out a colorful string of profanity. He then stepped in front of his boyfriend and laughed nervously.

"Slim, this is my twin, Kouichi. He's visiting from America for a while. Hope you get along and I pray I survive the day," he ended with a wince. He turned to Kouichi, leaving Takuya to process what he had said. "You weren't supposed to beat me here. I was going to tell Takuya, Junpei, and Izumi at the same time."

"Sorry to ruin your plans, but I had to be here early."

"It had been at that point that Takuya had growled Kouji's name and had initiated a good tongue-lashing. Honestly, Kouichi had been blown away when Takuya had first begun: the brunette just didn't seem to be the type that would be upfront about his anger. A few minutes later the blonde girl and a heavy-set brunette walked into the room, grinned at the distressed Kouji, saw Kouichi and, determining him to be the cause of the dispute, sat down next to him and began grilling him for an event update.

"And don't even try to kiss me quiet!" Takuya's last comment caught Kouichi's attention.

"Who says I was going to?" Kouji defended.

"The bored, aggravated look on your face. You always get that look right before you shut me up."

"This happen often?" Kouichi asked the blonde. She grinned widely and nodded.

"Oh, practically every day."

"What a lovely relationship my brother has found for himself."

"Actually, I'd say Takky gets away with murder," the brunette said with a grin. "Not many people can say they've beat Kouji thirty-seven times in an argument." Kouichi winced and debated on whether or not he should press the subject. Eventually curiosity won out.

"And how many has Kouji won now?" he dared asking.

"What is it, thirteen now?" The inquiry was directed at the blonde.

"If he worms his way out of this one, yeah."

"I wormed my way out, but I wouldn't call it a victory," Kouji joined the conversation as he and a considerably more serene Takuya sat down, Kouichi turned to the brunette instantly.

"Don't you say anything," Takuya beat him to speaking an apology. "I'm not mad that he didn't tell me you were here. I'm mad because he didn't tell me about you at all. You don't apologize on his behalf."

"But it started an unnecessary argument between you," Kouichi reasoned.

"All our arguments are either unnecessary or pointless. We've simply got competitive personalities. There's really no dispute between us and later we'll be arguing again."

"It just seemed serious to me."

"Relax Kouichi. This is just my way of growing Slim's backbone so he'll stand up to more than just me." Takuya just rolled his eyes and turned away from the group to cut off his involvement with the conversation. Izumi looked over to Kouji and asked what was wrong with the brunette with her expression. She was let down when Kouji shrugged his lack of knowledge.

Whatever had Takuya's attitude off was definitely relatively serious. His reaction to Kouichi was completely out of character, as was his turning completely away from a normal conversation within their group. Kouji just hoped he wouldn't have to read dangerous waters of their relationship now that the brunette was finally really opening up to him.

Takuya sighed in relief as his body sagged against the gate surrounding the roof of the school. He hadn't felt that claustrophobic in a classroom for a few years now. Long enough that he had forgotten how it felt. Stupid Kouji he thought, being unable to come up with anybody more suitable to blame for his minor relapse. If only he had warned me about Kouichi then I could have prepared myself.

Then again it wouldn't have been so bad if they didn't look so much alike.

"So much for the anchor of the world indoors. I should have known something like this would happen once I started believing there was somewhere safe and constant." His mind automatically flashed back to when he had said something akin to that to Kouji.

He hadn't planned on telling his boyfriend anything along those lines until much later but he couldn't hold it in once faced with it. So while he hadn't planned on it, it turned out that he had really wanted the other teen to be as close to him as possible. This was just a good step in the right direction to get them started down that path.

The sound of the door opening and closing caught his attention but he didn't turn, already having an idea as to who it was. His behavior had been too off for Kouji to let it go unquestioned. He wasn't even surprised when a pair of strong arms wrapped around his torso in an embrace. His eyes slid shut as warm lips pressed a kiss to his neck at the base of his hairline. More kisses were scattered across his neck and jaw line and Takuya's head lolled back against his boyfriend's shoulder as warmth spread through his entire body while his senses were overcome by the pleasuring sensations.

It didn't take long for Kouji to take advantage of their position and press his lips onto Takuya's, instantly pressing his tongue into the brunette's waiting mouth to satisfy his constantly growing addiction for the taste of his boyfriend. The smaller teen couldn't hold in the deep moan that passed from his mouth into Kouji's, which was responded to with a low growl from the dark-haired teen. The connection lasted for another minute until the kiss started turning tense and Takuya started pulling away slightly, telling Kouji that he was ready for a break on his senses.

Now Kouji knew something was really off: Takuya had gotten used to kissing him almost instantly and he usually kept them going until Kouji decided that it was enough for the moment. The brunette hadn't been the first to pull away for over a week.

Pulling away he rested his head on Takuya's shoulder as the brunette took a few slow and deep breaths to calm himself.

"You're getting stingy, you know. I didn't even get to kiss you goodbye, let alone good night, yesterday when I dropped you off last night," Kouji complained. "Then you give me just enough to get me all hot and bothered."

"I have two good reasons for the former. One: my mom was in the next room and she never stays still long. Two: do you really think that I wasn't aware of you feeling me up during our basketball game? If I let your lips anywhere near me I wouldn't be able to pry you off with a forklift. As for the latter, sounds like a personal problem regarding your self-control."

"Good enough excuses, but don't you have a third reason that explains why you've been acting weird all day?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Not aware of a third excuse or your actions?"

Fair enough.

It wasn't that Takuya didn't trust Kouji to know why he was so off his kilter today. He just didn't want to talk about it here where there was a high chance of being overheard. And if there was one thing the brunette couldn't tolerate, it was those stupid "poor kid" looks that everybody would give him once they knew. And he knew better than to assume that Kouji wouldn't give him the same look. Sure, it didn't fit his general personality, but Takuya had noticed how much differently Kouji acted around him than around anybody else.

"Slim...Takuya, you know you can tell me anything. That's what I'm here for and it really bugs me that you won't allow me to help you when you obviously need it," Takuya couldn't help but let out a laugh, which caused Kouji to growl in frustration because he knew his boyfriend was going to attempt to change the subject.

"How can I resist such an offer, especially if you calling me by name is involved?"

"Easy, you'll change the subject," Kouji's slightly bitter voice responded.

"Well, since it's a predicted move, I think I'll just ignore it altogether." Kouji opened his mouth and was about to press harder but stopped as he felt Takuya's lips on the side of his neck. "I just can't put it together right now, Kouji. I've never told anyone before and it's going to take a while to break myself from the idea that I have to keep it from everyone. When I do get it out, I want it to come out right. You deserve that much."

"All I really need to know is why you freaked out so bad to Kouichi and if it's going to be something we need to work around from now on."

"It's just an old issue being brought up and I couldn't deal with it without any warning. I doubt I'll have any more problems now that I got the chance to calm myself down. Believe me; you being here really did help." The look on Kouji's face told Takuya that his boyfriend still wanted to press the matter, but withheld himself out of concern of the brunette withdrawing any more from him. Takuya admitted that taking advantage of Kouji's caution towards discussing certain subjects with him was not something he wanted to, or would ever, get in the habit of doing. The fact that the other teen was sensitive enough to know when to stop spoke volumes to the brunette and he didn't want to risk losing that if it could be avoided.

He also had to admit that what he wasn't willing to talk about was really as much of a deal as hit had been a few years ago.

"Well then, if you're going to be okay with Kouichi you wouldn't mind talking to him privately, would you?" Takuya looked up to Kouji by way of asking for elaboration. "Don't ask me. He just told me that he wanted to talk to you alone. He's probably just going to interview you to see if you're up to dealing with me for as long as I'm planning to hang onto you. You'd never guess that that mother-hen is the younger of us."

"Especially considering how you act most of the time," Takuya added as he pulled away from his boyfriend's arms. Kouji growled slightly at the jab, but just followed the smaller - and now grinning - teen back into the school to find his twin.

It didn't take long as the brunette walked into the art studio so he could pick up a few supplies he had left behind. Kouichi was seated at the window looking out and Takuya was struck by the differences between the twins. Unlike Kouji, who would never get completely comfortable in the surroundings provided by the studio, Kouichi seemed to be completely in his element here. Then, there were the differences in appearance. Takuya was sure that even if both styled their hair the same and dressed identically, the brunette would have minimal problems knowing which one was his boyfriend. And if his eyes ever failed to tell the differences than the rest of his senses never mistake the fell, sound, smell, or taste of Kouji. There was just something about Kouji that pulled in your attention and didn't let go while Kouichi's would probably melt into a crowd.

Just like himself...

Familiarity breeds contempt they say, not that Takuya was one to be restricted by idioms.

On the other hand, the brunette was convincing himself gradually that Kouichi might become the most tolerable person he knew. Izumi and Junpei were good friends, but they were a little lacking when it came to knowing when to back off. Their interference when he and Kouji were arguing was proof to that. Kouji was...well, Kouji. Takuya knew he had never loved anybody like he loved Kouji, but there were times when he couldn't take Kouji's unabashed attitude and nature.

Another idiom was presented to Takuya: opposites attract.

The brunette sighed in frustration as his brain managed to bring his musings full-circle.

His sigh got him the attention of the other teen and he settled the nerves that had gotten worked up over the idea of talking to his boyfriend's twin brother.

"Hey, Kanbara-san," Kouichi muttered shortly, displaying his own nervousness with the situation.

"Takuya please. I really don't like being formal with people my own age." Kouichi's quiet demeanor was going to take some getting used to. Nobody Takuya knew was like this and he didn't have to deal with his own attitude on the receiving end. This was really working its way toward a new experience for the brunette.

"I know you don't want to hear it, but I really do want to apologize for Kouji. Honestly, that boy could use an update on common courtesy."

Takuya shrugged and debated briefly on whether he should reply verbally or not. Kouichi's expectant look decided for him. "Give me a break. Without his moron moments he would lose most of his appeal."

Kouichi raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Do I want to know what the rest is?"

Takuya grinned as he suppressed his embarrassment. "Sex, of course. Have you heard his reputation?"

Something passed through Kouichi's eyes that Takuya didn't get a chance to identify. "If that's the case, I don't see why you are going out with him. He can be a real strain if you don't know how to deal with his personality.

Now Takuya was suppressing annoyance. Just what right did this stranger think he had asking about his relationship with Kouji? "Sorry, but I don't see myself having any obligations to explain myself to anyone, especially not someone I've known all of five minutes." He walked across the room and grabbed the supply box he had come for and turned to the door.

"So, you don't like being pushed into a corner enough that you get strength of mind from such a situation." Takuya turned to look at the other teen and saw relief fill dark eyes. "My bro knows how to pick the keepers." Their eyes met and Takuya had to fight off turning away from the observant gaze. "I really do look forward to getting to know you, Takuya Kanbara."

first of all, QUESTION: does anybody know Takuya's mom's name? i know that in the show, it shows it and i would prefer to use her real name. thanks in advance whether you know or not.

second: for those who were looking forward to a dead and creepy Kouichi, i hope you weren't too disappointed by my decision. i will say this much though don't get your hopes up. you just might get what you wanted in the end. not sure if i want to go through with it or not yet though.

third: kudos for my reviewers (i'm not saying my appreciation for my reviewers really comes in third, i'm just going with the flow right now) thank you everybody for your reviews. each one does help me want to get through transcribing my stories faster. it seems that no matter how fast i can type, i'm never fast when it comes to transcribing. i'm really easily distracted.

so, i'll keep it short this time around and just say see you guys all next time. i'm trying to get back up to my normal chapter length and even though this was an improvement from chappy 5, i'm still bummed at how short it was.
buh-bye
Kimra Dattei