Chapter 6


[idk Shinoa, i haven't even thought about it]

[but you are going, right?]

[don't really have a choice, you already had guren pay for it]

[: ) you were gonna go anyway]

[probably but still, i didnt even tell him]

[well yuu, i know deadlines mean nothing to you and I didnt want you to miss out or be stuck at home alone cause you missed it]

[...somehow I doubt that was your actual reasoning]

[maybe it was, maybe it wasn't]

[whatever shinoa, see you]

Yuuichirou tosses his phone aside and stretches. The school camping trip was coming up and Shinoa had already roped him into it. He would probably have gone regardless, but still it was completely unnecessary to have Shinya make sure Guren paid for it, so he would have no choice but to go. A little underhanded if you asked him, but he can't say he's surprised.

Yuu wonders if Mika's going, it's outdoors, but it still doesn't seem like the kind of thing he'd be interested in. But if Yuu is stuck going, it'd be even better if Mika was going too, as long as he doesn't try anything funny around everyone, that's embarrassment he could do without. Yuu grabs his phone and types out a quick text.

[hey mika, are you going on the trip?]

[nah, not interested]

[ : ( why?]

[i have other things i could do, plus lacus and rene aren't going]

[i'm going]

[now you can't spend the weekend with me]

[huh?]

[if all your friends were on the trip, you could have]

[or you could go even if lacus and rene don't]

[not a chance, have fun yuuchan ; ) ]

Yuu falls back on the couch, so he was right, Mika didn't plan going, but maybe just maybe he could convince him to sign up without them. Speaking of Mika, he hasn't acknowledged that kiss or said anything about it, nor has he made another move. He's not sure if Mikaela regrets it or if he's leaving the next step up to Yuu cause he's not sure what exactly he should do. If he can get Mikaela to go on this trip, Yuu promises himself he'll get a straight answer from him, no more mixed signals.

~~~~~
"Yuu, are you still going for dinner with us tonight?" Yoichi questions him on his way out the classroom.

"Yeah! I just have to do something real fast. I'll catch up to you guys in a second."

"Okay, we'll be waiting in the parking lot."

Yuu hurries out the door and spots Mika heading towards the exit. Yuu speeds up to corner Mika before he reaches the exit, "Mika!"

"Hey, Yuu-chan, what's up?" He's a little surprised Yuu is seeking him out at school, but it's a nice change.

"So...about the camping trip?"

"Yuu-chan..."

"Wait! Before you say no, it's better than being at school."

"We'll probably skip anyway."

"You like the outdoors," Yuu points out.

"I don't need to go camping to enjoy the outdoors," Mika counters.

"It'll be fun too!"

"Then you can have fun with your friends."

Yuu internally groans in frustration, this isn't working, time to switch tactics. Hmm, he's got an idea. Yuu steps forward, "But, I really want to have fun with you too Mika." He wraps his arms around Mika's neck, pulling him closer and staring him in the eye, "Please Mikaela?"

"Uh..I.." Mika's trying to think, but with those sad emerald eyes staring at him so intensely, all he can focus on is making Yuu happy. "...Fine."

Yuu's eyes light up and he lets go to celebrate, "Thanks Mika! You're the best, it'll be fun!"

Mika narrows his eyes at Yuu, "You're manipulative."

"I am not!" Yuu looks affronted.

"You are and I'll get payback for it."

"Mika! Ah, don't be like that!"

"Too late, see you later Yuu-chan."

Shinoa appears by his side as Mika walks off and groans, "You invited him? You may as well have just stayed here with him."

"I knew you had an ulterior motive to make sure I came on the trip."

"So, what if I did? You wanted to come anyway." Yuu just shakes his head. "Whatever, let's go. The others are waiting and Mitsuba's getting hungry."

~~~~~
Mika gets in his car and rolls his eyes in aggravation. He shouldn't have let Yuu manipulate him like that, if he did it once, he'll probably do it again and next time it might not be something as trivial as a field trip. Which is actually pretty annoying because now he'll have to bribe Lacus and Rene into going with him and they're not exactly happy with him right now, but there's no way in hell he's going on that trip alone, not even for Yuuichirou.

He arrives at the entertainment center a short while later, it's some hybrid bowling/food/game center that Lacus wanted to go to and Mika didn't have anything better to do. He takes a seat at the table they've already occupied and grabs a menu.

"What is it?" Rene asked immediately.

"Huh?"

"You've got that blank look on your face, you only do that around us when you're anxious about something."

Lacus drops his menu, "Oh no, what did you do this time Mika?"

"Nothing! I mean, I just agreed to go on the camping trip for Yuu-chan…"

"Hah! Have fun with that! I doubt his friends are going to welcome you with open arms and you don't talk to anyone else." Lacus laughs, "What have you gotten yourself into? And imagine, sharing a tent with them!" Mika gazes at him silently. "Not a chance."

"It's not like you have anything to do anyway, I know you don't."

"I'm not spending my weekend sleeping on the ground and mingling with the plebs."

"You're such a rich kid."

"And I don't mind it either. Don't act like you're not, you're probably only going because Yuuichirou used his big green eyes on you." Mika feels himself color, that's exactly what happened. "I knew it! You dug yourself your own hole."

Mika turns pleading eyes to Rene, "Rene?"

Rene looks considering for a moment, "What will you give me for it?"

"Rene!"

"Whatever you want," Mika answers immediately.

"I want...you to cut off all contact with Yuuichirou the following week"

"What! Why?!"

"Because, since you seem to have forgotten, we have a major job coming up and I don't trust you not to make a mistake. We're still under watch after your last discrepancies. We don't want you taking us down with you."

Mika opens his mouth to protest, but Lacus beats him to it, "It's that or nothing, Mika. I agree completely with Rene."

"How am I supposed to explain that?"

"Not our problem."

Mika sighs, he supposes he can just make up another family excuse, that should be halfway believable. "Fine."

"Well, unfortunately it looks like you've got yourself two camping buddies."

"Thanks guys."

"Yeah, yeah, we know we do a lot for you." He turns to Rene, "Let's get one of those giant tents with a living room!"

"We'll only be there a few nights…"

"Might as well be comfortable. Oh I can bring my portable DVD player too!"

Mika rolls his eyes at Lacus' enthusiasm, he's pretty sure that's not what the trip is supposed to be about, but he's also counting his blessings that they agreed, even if it was conditionally. Once the food arrives, Rene stops bothering to even pretend he's listening and Lacus finally stops listing everything he's going to bring.

After they eat, they head over to laser tag and it's one of the rare times their two lives mix. It starts off fine, they're winning and everything is normal until one of the players hits Rene in the back with the butt of his laser gun and Mika and Lacus are there instantly. Rene may not have a temper, but he has no qualms about calmly strangling someone to death if no one stops him.

"That's not how you play the game."

Instead of replying to Rene, he turns to Lacus, "You're the guy who came after me, then beat up my friend and ran off."

"...I don't recall."

"After you beat him up, you gagged him, you tied him to a pole while I watched."

"Oh. I remember that."

"Lacus! We're not street fighters!"

"I was having a bad day, okay Mika. He started it."

"Who cares," the guy mutters before slamming the gun back into Rene's back.

"Fuck," Rene's voice comes out strained from the pulsing pain in his back.

Mika shoves the guy back and Lacus points a threatening finger at him, "We'll see you outside." They quickly make their way to the exit and strip off the equipment. "That asshole, I bet he doesn't show. Where were the employees, aren't they supposed to be watching?!"

"Of course he's not going to come out, there's three of us and don't blame the employees. This was all your fault."

"Oh I see how it is Mika, we protect you, but you throw me under the bus."

"That's totally different-"

"There he is, grab him!"

"What? No way!" Mika protests a little too late, they've already grabbed him and dragged him out the door. Mika glances surreptitiously to make sure no one saw before following them out.

"You stand guard, Mika!" He doesn't agree with this at all, but he leans against the wall and does his best to tune them out.

~~~~~
Yuu covers his food from Shinoa's searching hands, she has her own food, why does she insist on bothering him. He swats Shinoa's fingers away from his pepperonis and looks up just in time to see a blonde head slipping out of a side door. Mika? What's he doing here? Without a word to his friends or another thought to his pizza, Yuu follows after him.

He steps out the door to see Mika leaning against the wall looking bored and what looks and sounds like a two on one fight going on behind him. "Mika?" Mika whips around and Yuu sees his eyes widen in shock.

"Yuu-chan! What are you doing here?!" He glances back over his shoulder before hurrying towards Yuu. Mika grabs him by the shoulders and begins pushing him back towards the front of the building, but Yuu isn't going to make it easy.

He plants his feet on the ground so Mika is practically dragging him, "What are they doing? Shouldn't we go help that guy?"

"No no, it's fine, come on. They're just messing around."

"No they're not Mika, they were beating the shit out of that guy! Why don't you want to help him?"

Mika sighs, Yuu is making this so difficult, that stubborn personality of his. But, this is not something he should get involved in, the faster they're away the better. Mika catches Yuu off guard, scooping him up and increasing his pace, ignoring Yuu's flailing and demands to be put down. Mika sets him back down when they're near the front.

"What the hell was that Mika?!"

"I told you it was nothing important, let them work it out."

"I'm not going to just let them double team that guy," Yuu protests. He goes to move past Mika and Mika grabs his wrist in an iron grip.

"Yuu-chan. Leave it alone." And there's something in his voice that Yuu has never heard before, Mika has never talked to him like that. His voice was always happier and lighter, but now it's sharper and forceful. Yuu didn't even know Mikaela was capable of speaking like that. It's such a contrast from his usual personality and it sets Yuu on edge. Has he been fooled all along? Is this what Mikaela's really like?

Mika interprets the fact that he's stopped struggling as defeat rather than the surprise it is. Mika lets go of his wrist and takes him by the shoulders again, pushing him towards the entrance, "Who are you here with?"

"My friends," Yuu mumbles.

"Good, let's go back inside. We can go sit with them." Mika guides Yuu back to his friends and forces him into a seat, taking the one next to him. Mika pretends he doesn't see the surprised and wary looks from Yuu's friends and greets them with a smile while Yuu is silently brooding beside him. He's no longer holding onto Yuu's shoulders anymore, but his hand has dropped to Yuu's forearm beneath the table, slowly massaging it, Mika's way of being discreet and still keeping a grip on Yuuichirou.

Yoichi, ever the kind one, strikes up a conversation with Mika that he goes along with. It's enough to dispel some of the awkward atmosphere at the table, although Shinoa is giving him a smug look, so clearly she can tell there's tension, but Yuu won't give her the satisfaction of being right.

"I bet that would look good on you," Yuu hears Mika say and looks over to where Yoichi's showing Mika something on his phone. Mika's smiling at him and Yoichi's looking a bit flustered and Yuu can't believe it. Is Mika actually flirting with Yoichi right in front of him? And after what just happened?

"Stop flirting with Yoichi."

"Why? He's cute," Mika teases. Despite everything, Yuu still feels a pang of jealousy.

"Because you're no good for him." Mika's smile turns a little forced and his brilliant blue eyes dim.

"Ouch, Yuu-chan, that hurts," he says with a forced laugh. "But it's okay, I understand if you want me all to yourself."

Yuu glowers, "That's not what I meant and you know it."

Mika is saved from replying when Lacus and Rene approach the table and ask to speak with Mika. He nods before giving Yuu a light kiss on the shell of his ear. "I'll be right back." Yuu can't help but think there's an unspoken warning in there. He watches Mika walk off and looks back to his friends who, of course, are all staring at him.

"So, kisses huh?" Shinoa questions staring him down.

"They don't mean anything, he's just affectionate."

"Affectionate, but still no good? Looks like someone is finally wising up."

"Are you talking about how bad Mika supposedly is?" Kimizuki interrupts.

"Yeah, I don't know how, but Yuu's finally starting to get it."

"I haven't seen anything, but if he is, does that mean we finally don't have to listen to you bitch about him anymore. I'm probably more sick of it than Yuu is."

Shinoa ignores him. This is perfect, if Yuu can realize Mika's trouble by himself, she won't have to worry about warning him. She's already walking a fine line as it is. "What happened, Yuu?"

"Nothing happened."

"You're lying. You're too annoyed with him for it to be nothing." Yuu shrugs.

"No, he's right Shinoa," Mika replies returning to sit next to Yuu. "It was just an argument, it'll pass."

"Where'd they go?" Yuu asks.

"They got bored and went home."

Yuu nods, if Lacus and Rene are gone, then that means they probably left the guy out there. There's no way Yuu is going to pretend he didn't see it. When he manages to sneak away from Mika, he's going to check on the guy, he'll probably have to call 911 considering how long they were out there. Mika might be pissed at him later for going back, but he's not leaving him there with no help.

Yuu waits a few minutes before announcing he's going to the bathroom and climbing over Mika to get out of the booth. He heads to the bathroom before slipping away and going out the side door. Just as he thought, a few feet up hidden halfway behind a dumpster, so you'd have to look to see him is a guy. They really did just leave him there, he never thought they were that callous.

Yuu leans down to prod the guy. His face is a mess of cuts and bruises and he's unconscious. Yuu jabs him again, "Hey wake up, you need to get some help." There's no response, so he continues to shake the guy until he finds himself on the receiving end of a punch.

Yuu loses his balance and hits the ground, looking up to see two guys in dark clothing standing over him, one holding a knife. "What the hell is your problem?"

"We should be asking you that. What'd you do to him?"

"Nothing, I was trying to wake him up to help!" Yuu stands up, but is promptly shoved back down. This isn't looking good, he may have to fight his way out of here, but that knife gives them an advantage.

"Right, then how'd you know he was out here?"

"I...uh…" Shit, he can't say what really happened, that'll make him look bad too and implicate Mika.

"That's what we thought." Yuu stands up and prepares to get through them, even if it costs him a stab wound.

He doesn't even get to land a punch before Mika is between them, wrenching the knife out the guy's hand and stabbing him into the side of the building. Yuu's eyes widen in shock when Mika pulls the knife out and stabs the other male too, taking him to the ground. Mika quickly stands up and grabs Yuu's arm hauling him away.

"Mika, what the hell was that?!"

"That? Me saving you from getting your ass kicked."

"You stabbed them!"

"So what? They were going to stab you. Walk faster."

"Where are we even going?"

"I'm taking you home."

Yuu tries to resist, but Mika really is absurdly strong. Where's he hiding those muscles? Maybe Yuu should have paid closer attention all those times Mika was cuddling with him. "What about my friends?"

"You can text them in the car, tell them something came up. I don't think you want to be around when someone finds them."

Yuu concedes the point and reluctantly gets in Mika's car, it's silent the whole way to his house. When they finally arrive, Mika cuts off the ignition and they sit in silence. "Mika.." Yuu begins.

"Don't. Why did you go back out there? Why couldn't you just listen?"

"I wasn't going to just leave him for dead like your friends did!"

"And that almost got you left for dead! Why were you even out there?"

"I saw you and I came after you."

Mika sighs and lets it head fall on the steering wheel, so it was his fault. Yuu would never have been out there if he hadn't seen Mika. He's so selfish, he's already dragging the people around him down with him.

"Mika? Are you going to tell me why they did that?"

"No."

"No? Your friends just beat the shit out of someone and left them and you're acting like you don't care."

"I don't."

"Mika!"

Mika gets out of the car and heads to Yuu's front door, Yuu follows after him fuming, what the hell is wrong with him. He unlocks the door and Mika immediately goes to the kitchen to fix him an ice pack. He presses it against Yuu's swollen cheek and Yuu smacks his hand away stepping back, holding the ice pack. "I can hold it myself, you can leave me here too, don't feel bad."

Mika studies him before gesturing to him, "Come here Yuu-chan."

"Nope."

Mika steps forward and Yuu backs farther away throwing the ice pack at him which he easily catches. Yuu has learned from experience that once Mika gets a hold on him, he won't let go until he's good and ready. Last time, he ended up curled up with Mika for hours. Yuu runs up the stairs with Mika hot on his heels. He doesn't make it to his room fast enough to shut the door, so instead opts to jump on his bed and wrap himself in his comforter.

He feels Mika take a seat on the bed and attempt to force the covers down before eventually giving up and rolling on top of Yuu. "Are you mad at me?"

"Yes!" Yuu's muffled voice comes from under the covers.

"Please don't be mad Yuu-chan. I'm sorry, but you just don't understand."

"Then tell me."

"I can't." Yuu pulls the comforter tighter around himself. He feels Mikaela's arms circle around him and no more words are spoken. At some point he must've fallen asleep because when he wakes up Mika's long gone.