What kind of two-man band only has a drummer and a vocalist. THIS ONE. THAT'S WHAT.
Also the characters are probably going to be introduced out of order, but I'll try to make it flow with the story.
Disclaimer: I don't own...stuff. KHR. THIS IS MOSTLY OUT OF HABIT THAN NECESSITY.
That same eventful day, after all the classes were over, Tsuna packed his things up and left the classroom as usual, making sure to peek around the door frame to see if Hibari was waiting to confront him about his tardiness. Seeing no visible disturbances in the usual crowding of the hallways, for Hibari carried with him an invisible barrier that the crowds had to walk around, Tsuna decided the coast was clear and carefully walked to the nearest stairwell. He couldn't be too cautious after all. His bruises were only just starting to fade from the last beating.
Suddenly a hand descended on his shoulder. Discarding all sense of manly pride he might have had, Tsuna yelped and held up his bookbag in front of his face.
"Pl-please! I didn't mean to be late this morning!" he squeaked, cowering behind his bag.
"Ah! That's alright, Tsuna. I'm late every now and then too!"
Huh, that didn't sound like Hibari promising death from unnatural causes. With a sigh of relief, Tsuna lowered the bookbag and looked up at what seemed to be Yamamoto's cheerfully smiling face.
"Oh, uh." The awkwardness from this morning's incident set in. They had been so busy with classes that they had had no chance to talk about anything after Yamamoto was led to the school counselor. "Hey, Yamamoto."
"Hey, Tsuna! I was wondering since now we're in the band together, I might as well tell you something I've been holding back for a while now," Yamamoto said, rubbing the back of his neck in a sheepish manner.
"Huh? I-if it's a secret you're keeping from me, we should probably move to another location?" Tsuna suggested, pointing to the stairwell. He wanted to give his full attention to whatever the baseball player wanted to tell him, and he couldn't do that if he was racked with paranoia every time someone with straight black hair walked by.
"Sure!" Yamamoto agreed. They both managed to get out of the school with little to no accidents, except Tsuna was curious as to how Reborn got on Yamamoto's left shoulder without the both of them noticing. He gave his demon baby tutor a questioning look, to which the demon baby tutor had no reply but to smile in that deviously knowing way of his.
"So, about your secret?" Tsuna inquired once they were both safely out of the courtyard, and beyond the area of Hibari's jurisdiction.
"My secret." Yamamoto let out a long, foreboding sigh. Was his secret really so burdensome? If so, Tsuna didn't feel as if he could handle a secret of that magnitu-
"I don't know how to play the drums."
Tsuna's jaw dropped. "That's your secret?!"
"Now now, I know. It's detrimental to our band, but I can learn!" Yamamoto went on to say.
"It's not that! I already knew you didn't know how to play the drums!" Tsuna exclaimed. "I can't even sing!"
"Never too late to start," Reborn cut in. "Shall we swing by a store and buy a pair of drumsticks?"
Yamamoto turned to look at Tsuna with a half-smile. "Can we?"
"S-sure!" Tsuna found himself saying. As soon as the baseball player turned away, he let out a sigh. So much for the groundbreaking secret that Yamamoto supposedly had. He might as well play along while Reborn and Yamamoto were enthusiastic about it; the excitement would wear off once they both realized that none of them knew how to do any of the things they were supposed to do.
The brunette opened his mouth, bringing a hand to his throat and remembering how off-tune he was when they sang the school anthem.
Well, at least he had the dying will bullet.
That night, as he laid in bed with Reborn snoozing off in the hammock next to him, he said out loud, "Are you happy now? We're making a band just like you wanted me to."
He had expected no reply from the infant, but when he turned over, he heard a chuckle from behind him.
"Heh, what kind of band has only a vocalist and a drummer?"
It was one of those rare days when he actually made it to class with time to spare. He liked those days, and this day was extra special because he made it in time to catch Kyoko walking into class. The girl's silent yawn as she made her way to her seat struck Tsuna right in the heart, and he sighed longingly, glad that he had put in the extra effort to wake up early.
It was really turning out to be a good day, and with no baby tutor in sight. Reborn disappeared every now and then, only to reappear with no explanation. When asked, the baby would only tilt his fedora with his gun and say, "Mafia business. You don't need to know."
Of course, Tsuna thought as he rested his cheek on his hand, he highly doubted that the baby had any real connections to the mafia, no matter how ominous he made himself out to be. A talking baby? That was ridiculous enough. A talking baby with connections to the Italian mafia? He just couldn't think of it.
"This is our transfer student, Gokudera Hayato. He's been studying overseas."
Jolted out of his thoughts, Tsuna looked up at the black board, a bit surprised to see a transfer student this far into the semester. Not only that, but the transfer student looked really intimidating. With his glare teeming with animosity and his slouching posture, everything about him just screamed delinquent. He tilted his head up, shaking his silver hair out of his eyes, and stuck his bottom lip up in a snarl.
Tsuna slunk down in his seat, not wanting to be noticed by the angry-looking transfer student, even though some of the girls in the class were whispering to each other about how attractive the new kid was. He hesitantly glanced at Kyoko to see what her reaction was, only to be disappointed by the smile she was giving Gokudera.
Damn you, transfer student, he thought, turning his gaze back to the front, only to find that the transfer student was staring steadily right back at him. Though he couldn't sense any ill intent from the other boy's stare, Tsuna looked away immediately, turning his gaze back down to his desk. As the transfer student walked past his desk, Tsuna gulped, looking up once more to see if he really was the one being stared at. He immediately turned his gaze back down, his back stiffening under the excessive attention.
Though he wasn't looking anymore, Gokudera stalled for a moment by Tsuna's desk before continuing on to sit at his own desk.
What a strange guy, Tsuna thought, releasing the breath that he had been holding in and leaning back in his seat.
What he saw under his desk made him squeak in surprise. Half the class turned to look at him, their scrutiny almost as bad as the transfer student's previous attention on him. His face burned, and he kept silent until they turned away. Under his desk, Reborn returned Tsuna's glare with a smirk.
The baby held up a notepad, the words Transfer student written on it. Though he was curious, Tsuna didn't turn to look at Gokudera, and instead, he tilted his head at Reborn who then started scribbling on the notepad again.
New member in the band came the succinct answer. Tsuna started, his knee hitting the underside of his desk with a loud clattering sound.
"What's the matter, Sawada?" the teacher asked, turning from the equations he had been writing on the board.
"U-um, no! I was just moving around in my chair and hit one of the legs. S-sorry!" Tsuna called, his face getting redder with every word.
The teacher nodded and turned back around, effectively taking everyone's attention off of the brunette, who cursed the baby under his desk.
"What?" he whispered down to him, hoping he had read the notepad wrong.
"Gokudera Hayato. The newest member in your band," Reborn replied in that casual way of his.
Tsuna sighed, sliding down in his seat. He dragged a hand over his face, not looking forward to any new recruits in their stupid little band. Besides, Gokudera looked as if he belonged in a tougher crowd. His fingers were probably more used to grabbing people's hair to bash their faces against the pavement than playing any sort of delicate instrument.
What did Reborn want from Tsuna anyway? A band full of members who didn't know anything about music?
When he looked down once more, Reborn had disappeared completely from the underside of his desk, once again leaving matters for Tsuna to sort out. Already he could feel the transfer student's intent gaze on the back of his head.