Yao gazed down at his meal, picking and chewing at the steamed dumplings absent-mindedly. Miss Katyusha's words were still ringing in his ears and the Chinese boy was now having serious doubts about his decision. He felt as though somebody had played a cruel trick on him – who would have known that Alfred was good at mathematics? He certainly didn't show his skills, or an interest at all in the work.
Then again, a book should never be judged by its cover, just as his father said.
Lost in his thoughts, Yao was snapped back into reality at the sound of his little brother's voice. He lifted his head, greeted to a pair of inquisitive dark eyes and soy-sauce stained lips that were moving ten to the dozen with the words that were spilling from them.
"So? Did you sleep well?" spoke Yong-Soo, a smug grin tugging at corners of his mouth.
"Hm?" replied the Yao as he took another sip of his green tea. He almost spat it out onto the table as his brother spoke the next words.
"…Because you were talking to somebody in your sleep!"
All of the colour drained from Yao's face as the family turned to him, grinning. All but Kiku, who just gazed at him as though he was about to speak.
Yao remained silent, waiting for his heart rate to slow down before he dropped his fork back onto the plate.
"Don't get excited, aru." He spoke, as smoothly as he could. "Because I don't remember such a thing. It must have been nobody."
"You kept saying some name! Something…what was it…Bran…something…" Yong-Soo thought long and hard – but luckily, his young mind couldn't remember it.
"You were saying it, though!" he insisted.
Yao stood to his feet, glaring at the boy in an attempt to offset his obvious blush.
"Aiyah! I didn't say anything at all in my sleep, aru! You liar!"
With that, he stormed up the stairs and crawled under the covers, still a little shaken up from the inquisition.
It took ten minutes for Kiku to build up the courage to enter his brother's room. Not once in his life had he seen such an outburst from Yao, and that both confused and worried him. He opened the door and made his way to Yao's bed, sitting gingerly on the plush, red covers and gazing sympathetically at the heap.
"It's me." He spoke, patting where Yao was curled up.
Yao stayed silent for a little while. Eventually he spoke, the words a little shaky with embarrassment.
"Yong Soo was just…messing around, aru. I wasn't really saying anything."
Kiku nodded slowly. "Well, I don't know anybody who goes by the name of 'Bran'."
He spoke before standing to his feet. "But I do know when something is wrong. I am your brother after all, I can tell these things. Plus…you're an awful liar." He laughed softly before turning to leave.
"…You would tell me if something was wrong, right?"
Yao nodded, leaving his brother no choice but to leave him alone for a little while; for it was clear that it was needed. What pained him however was the fact that he didn't even know what was wrong with him.
*.*.*.*.*
"RIGHT EVERYBODY, LISTEN TO MY HERO VOICE!" ordered Alfred as he waved his arms at the Astronomy class. The sea of heads turned to him; the majority were happy that he was back in school.
Alfred Jones – top in everything. He was particularly handsome and healthy, athletically trained with styled blonde hair and the sort of blue eyes that would make even the coldest of females soften up considerably. He had good grades and was friends with everybody who he decided that he had the time for. Being Alfred Jones meant that if he was going to spend a day crying at home over his brother like a child, he'd have to bounce back twice as hard.
"I'm having a party tonight, so you better free yourself up or else! The booze is on me, and so is the food! So turn up, every single one of you! If you don't…you'll have to face the consequences!" he spoke, feeling a rush of pride at the excitement on everybody's faces.
That was the moment that Yao shyly opened the door. His heart sank when he saw Alfred at the front of the class, terrified that he was going to embarrass him because there was no teacher there. But Alfred didn't. Inside, he considered letting Yao off a little. Just while Braginski was close by, so that he didn't get in trouble. He simply shot the Chinese a glare before speaking a little louder.
"I want everybody in this class to come to my party. Hear that? Everybody."
Yao lifted his head at this, shocked to see that the class was staring eagerly at him, expecting an answer. Out of sheer shame, the boy nodded his head before sinking into his desk. He was grateful when Ivan entered and practically shoved Alfred out of his chair, making his way up to the board and wiping away the boy's contact details.
"I'm guessing that you wrote this, Jones?" he spoke, one eyebrow raised.
"Hell yeah!" replied the American smugly as he folded his arms together.
"Right. Well make sure that you behave. I'm guessing that Arthur won't be in? Don't do anything stupid. Now get to your own class!" ordered Ivan, pointing towards the door.
Yao's eyes widened. How unusual! Since when did Ivan know Alfred and Arthur? Could it be that they were friends? He shook the thought away. Of course not!
The lesson passed fairly slowly. It was bearable, because Ivan kept closer towards the front today, meaning that Gilbert couldn't whisper any harsh words, and nobody could throw things at him. Yao was grateful for the discreet protection that his teacher offered. Once his paper was finished, Yao lifted his eyes up from the sheet and quickly wished he hadn't. Ivan had removed his scarf and coat, revealing a tight black sweater that clung to every inch of his chest. He was already looking at Yao, and the boy swore that he could see a smirk….but no, that wouldn't have happened! He shook his head before lifting his hand.
"Yes, Yao?" spoke the teacher smoothly.
"I…finished my work, aru."
"Ah! Very good! Now let me see…I'll mark it now, da?"
Suddenly, the bell rang, signalling the end of class. Yao was the only student who'd completed his work – Mr. Braginski didn't expect even him to have finished the paper on Nuclear Fusion. He motioned for Yao to come over as the other students left the room.
"You needed to see me?" he spoke quietly.
Ivan nodded, eyes glazing over the work. "This is brilliant, Yao. You are a very talented young man. But what I wanted to say is to make sure that you stay safe this evening. I'm sure that you were invited to Alfred's little gathering, hm?"
This earned a nervous nod from Yao, who was beginning to feel uncomfortable so close to the Russian.
"Shi."
"I understand that social protocol dictates that you must go. If you want to; by all means do so. I'm your teacher and you must understand that I have no desire to run your personal life. However, I am very interested in your safety, da? So if you do go…remember to be safe."
Yao nodded quickly. He still wasn't used to his teacher's protective nature, as he was pretty sure that he didn't act in the same way for other students.
"I am going, aru. I'll show Alfred that I am no coward."
Ivan sighed, placing a hand on his student's shoulder. This act elicited a light blush from Yao, who quickly looked away as he spoke.
"You are not a coward."
*.*.*.*.*
"Is this a bad idea?" asked Kiku with a shaky laugh. The thought of going to a party was one thing, but it was even worse to stare at the large house that was shining with lights and blasting with music. It didn't help matters that the home belonged to the very boy that bullied them daily.
"I'm sure that it will be fine, aru. Just stick with me!" spoke Yao as he flung an arm over his brother and strolled confidently towards the door.
Despite this, he knew that Kiku was right. A lot of bad things could, and probably would happen that evening, and it was not a pleasant thought to dwell on. He sighed in relief when it was not Alfred who answered the door, but a drunken Feliciano. The Italian boy was one of the few nice people in the school; however, he was the sort who was friendly to everybody.
"Kiku, Yao! You made it! Ve~! Come inside! Everybody is very drunk!" with that, he wriggled his way through the hallways with the nervous pair following behind. They tried their best to follow him and not knock into the groups of teenagers who were either smoking, kissing or singing loudly, and eventually ended up into the living room where Feliciano had guided them.
"Hey, Yao, Kiku!" slurred Alfred, patting the floor beside himself. "Look, I'm sorry about everything, okay? Let's forget it all…sit here…" he murmured as he finished his beer and reached for another.
"Just relax with me and the guys! We'll show you a good time!"
Like frightened rabbits the brothers followed, joining them on the floor. Ludwig and Gilbert lay sprawled on the sofa, swigging beer like it was water with Feliciano crammed between them, sipping cheerily at his drink. His brother Lovino was scowling and muttering to himself angrily about sitting on the floor whilst his friend Antonio was chiding him into singing Spanish love songs.
Surprisingly, it was more laid back than the entirety of the party.
After Alfred had passed him a drink, Yao loosened up considerably, as did his brother. After a few beers they were all chatting happily to Alfred as if nothing bad had happened at all. Yao stood to his feet rather shakily, unable to properly handle his first time being drunk.
"I..don't feel good." He murmured quietly, a little dizzy.
Alfred stood to his feet and held out his arms for Yao to prevent him from falling – he was always kind when drunk. He chuckled a little at the boy's reaction to alcohol.
"You look like you're seeing stars!" he spoke softly.
Yao didn't know where he was, or who was holding him up. But at the mention of stars, he immediately concluded that it was Ivan. Who else could it have possibly been, anyway?
The Chinese boy gazed up at Alfred warmly.
"A-Always talking…about s-stars….aren't you…" he slurred.
Alfred raised an eyebrow, a little confused. "Uh, no?"
"Yes…yes you a-are, aru. Come here, I want to kiss..you…"
Yao was brought to his senses as his face hit the floor, distraught at the sight of the others spluttering with laughter at him. It was then that he realised where he was. Lying in the pile of sick which he had spontaneously produced after Alfred shoved his face into the ground, calling him a disgusting queer. He had to get out of there, and fast. He ignored his brother as he palmed his way through the other people, desperately holding onto the banister as he approached the door. He was grateful at the cold night, sobering him up a little. His senses were still blurred however, and he was finding it hard to see.
Hard to walk.
Hard to make his way across the road without…
He hit the floor again before a squeal of tires ground to a halt and Ivan sprung from the car. He sighed, tapping his foot. It was a good job that he came to check up on things.
"I really wish that our out-of-school encounters wouldn't always involve me running you over, you know?" sighed the Russian, holding out a hand.
Yao rolled onto his back, greeted to the sight of his teacher. It was just like in his dreams – the moonlight was illuminating him perfectly, causing the ivory hair to shine as it spilled onto his shoulders. And that smile, the playful half-smirk…it was better than anything that his brain could ever have thought of.
Yao reached out to grasp Ivan's hand, calm and happy and….throwing up again. All over his shirt.
*.*.*.*.*
"You're lucky I always wear a shirt underneath, da?" laughed the Russian as he removed his jumper once they were in the safety of his car.
"Here." He tossed it to Yao, who barely just caught it. The effects of alcohol were beginning to wear off and it was becoming apparent just what situation he was in.
In a car with the teacher that he was so desperately attracted to.
However, that wasn't the worst part. Alfred…he'd mistaken Alfred for Ivan, and tried to kiss him…and everybody knew. Even his brother. He shuddered, knowing that life was going to be one hundred times worse for him now. He didn't want people thinking that he was….gay!
"You need to get cleaned up." Spoke Ivan suddenly, as he parked the car outside a coffee shop. "You're lucky this place is still open at…" he checked his clock. "…half past one. Just go inside and get yourself clean, okay?"
Yao nodded and shakily made his way to the bathroom.
Splashing his face with cold water, he realised just how awful he must have looked. His skin was pale, his eyes were wide and dark with the effects of alcohol still lingering in his appearance. His hair was half hanging out, and his clothes were dishevelled. Tying his hair back into the tight ponytail, Yao gazed down at his teacher's jumper. Would it be weird if he put it on? He supposed not, considering Ivan told him to wear it. Yao removed his own shirt and replaced it with Ivan's, which was much too big, even if it was tight on the teacher. It smelled wonderful, like sunflowers and vanilla. Yao buried his face into it before quickly pulling away, thinking that he must have looked strange.
He was surprised to see that Ivan was not waiting outside the bathroom. He was in fact, sitting in one of the ornate armchairs, sipping at a coffee. He wriggled his fingers to show Yao where he was, but the Chinese boy had already spotted him.
"I ordered you iced water and sponge cake. Coffee is not good for people who are drinking, and you need something to line your stomach. Da?"
The boy nodded shyly, averting his eyes.
"I'll pay you back! I'm s-so sorry that you've gone to such trouble. You're probably going to be r-really annoyed…" he stuttered.
"Nyet. Just disappointed."
Yao felt a pang of guilt. "Why?" he asked, though he was sure that he knew the answer.
"Because I'd much rather we did this under different circumstances."
His eyes widened, had they not already been huge under the influence of his drinking.
"What did you just say?"
But Ivan merely raised an eyebrow as though he hadn't spoken at all.
"Nothing. You must be hearing things, Yao."
*.*.*.*.*
Le Author's Note~!
*Dramatic drumroll* Yeah, I'm not too sure what to say about this chapter, apart from the fact that it's three times longer than the usual! My regular chapters are always around 700 words…this is about 2600.
Anyway, thank you so much to everybody has read this story so far. Seriously. You guys are just…the best. I hope to bring more fluffy Rochu into your lives asap.
Also if you have any questions about the story revolving around the rating (subject to change) future plotlines and anything of the sort, feel free to either leave a comment or PM me. (I swear that I'm not a nasty pasty) Anyway, that's all for now! I'll try my best to update within the week!
