(NOTE: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS EXCESSIVE CURSING AND MINOR SEXUAL REFERENCES SO IF YOU DON'T LIKE THAT STUFF THEN KINDLY WAIT FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER TO BE POSTED)
The Tenmas
Another Amazing Astro Boy fanfiction by Emily the Artist and Kaitlyn Draws Manga (aka Kaitlyn Kaidraman)
Chapter Nine: Love Me Like You Do.
"You know, i'm still a little worried about Atom." Astro said, sitting on the couch next to Tenma.
"I am too."
"You think something might be up with him?"
"I don't know."
"Well he seemed a little uneasy yesterday."
"Hmmmm."
"I"m telling you, if we don't act now, it's gonna get worse and turn into a bigger problem we can't deal with, and know because I'm a living, breathing, walking, talking example!"
"I know. I know."
"Well then, you've been warned, he's your responsibility because Elefun is an asshole and won't do shit to save his life."
"Yes. I know. But it'll have to wait for now."
"Mmmmhmmm…" Astro changed the channel.
"And yet again we meet the terrible fate of there being nothing interesting on TV."
"It happens all too often."
"Yes, yes it does."
"I think i'm done with watching TV for the rest of my life." Astro put the TV remote down and left the living room.
Tenma turned the TV off and picked up a book. ((THIS IS AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE KIDS. STOP WATCHING THAT LIFE SUCKING TV AND READ A FLIPPING BOOK DANG IT ~,Kate)) ((OMFG i'm dying xD ~Emily))
Astro and Brianna were walking the sidewalk on their way downtown, Astro began to speak with fast, sudden hand motions that flew across the air.
"So bitch you're gonna tell me, you're gonna tell me you're not satisfied, bitch please, last time i checked you was writing me love letters up the ying yang, not satisfied, pfffft, not satisfied my timbuktu sorry ass!"
Brianna couldn't help but laugh.
"And no, no, this is just the beginning, there's a whole lot more shit after this!"
"There's like gallons in a tank fearing for it's life out there!"
"Don't you ever like step out the door and just feel the judgement of the world hit you already, like you just know it's already judging you….."
"sometimes." Brianna chuckled.
"Pfft, you sure about that?"
"Uhh… yeah, why wouldn't I?"
"I dunno, but I like pie and that's all that matters."
"You told me yesterday you hated pie."
"Well you know, things change Brianna, people grow up and become criminals, or some become dumbasses serving me food at McDonald'z."
"In the end they're all stupid, nothing you can do to change that." Astro shrugged.
"Touche."
"TOUCHE MOTHA-"
"Sssshhhh, what are you gonna do, wake up the whole neighborhood?"
"Brianna, it's only 6."
"Well still, you should be courteous to the people that live here."
"Pffft, to the people that live here."
Brianna thought for a moment before speaking.
"So did you hear about the new couple?"
"New couple, hmmmm….. unless you're talking about my engagement to my crackers, I haven't heard of a 'new couple'"
Brianna rolled her eyes.
"You honestly don't know…."
"Hmmm, nope, not a clue."
Brianna facepalmed.
"Kaitlyn and that red head."
"Oooooohhhhhh, you mean blondie and her rebound to get over Reno the pervert, oh I see…."
"I dunno though, he seems a little old fashioned."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, he dresses a little too fancy, always says 'miss' or 'sir' and he actually opens doors for people!"
"What, dang it, that sonofabitch stealing my moves!"
Brianna bursted out laughing.
"You a gentleman?"
"Well I may not be perfect but atleast i'm not yelling at you or beating the crap out of you, gotta give me some credit."
"It just seems so strange seeing her with that guy, mind you Reno was a red head, and then if this guy dumps her, who's she gonna go with next, Bozo the clown dressed up like Tom Hiddleston?!" ((*le gasp* don't bring my baby into this ~kate))
"Haha, nope, i'm sure after him she'll just give up and marry herself, wouldn't be surprised."
"Anything else you know about him?"
"Well I wouldn't date him, that's for sure."
"Well duh, you're taken!"
"Well yeah, but even if I wasn't I still wouldn't date him, gentlemen are just not my type, I like people that are kinda classy, and not so classy, like you."
Astro burped.
"Exactly."
"Ooo, I wonder if they're gonna go to the park, we should go and call them out for PDA for no apparent reason."
"And then get your ass beat?"
"Pffft, trust me, I'm the professional, I know how to do these sorta things, we'll be gone before she can even catch a glimpse of us."
"How we gonna call them out though?"
"We'll just wait till they're sitting on a bench or something, and we'll take this water and pour it on them, and by the time they notice, we run and alert the whole park of their inappropriate doings in public."
Brianna laughed.
"Oh well it looks like we have a teenage couple making out on the bench over there, looks like he's sliding his hand down her bra strap, think there's a few little youngsters watching too!"
"Oh their parents must be ashamed."
"Letting them do the dirty deed at the park, what kinda parents are they?!"
"Maybe it runs in the family!"
Astro and Brianna continued to laugh super hard as they got closer to the park.
"It's such a perfect day to go out to the park, don't you think, Miss Kaitlyn?"
"Yeah. It is." Kaitlyn looked around.
Brandon and Kaitlyn were walking around the park, fighting the usual crowd of kids that always came there.
Brandon slowly reached over for Kaitlyn's hand, but before he got close, he changed his mind and retracted his hand.
Kaitlyn took a quick glance at him then looked down at her feet as she walked.
The two walked in silence for a moment.
They swore they heard a familiar noise in the distance, but shrugged it off and continued walking.
"Ah! so that's the dude?" Astro asked.
"Yup."
"Oh yeah, he's totes fancy, looks like Kaitlyn got herself a sugar daddy, good luck keeping up with that."
"sssh! sssh! I think they're coming closer."
"Oh yeah."
The two of them hid in the bushes.
"Do you... feel that?" Kaitlyn asked Brandon.
"Feel what?"
"I'm not sure. Kind of feels like someone's watching me... I'm sure its nothing, though."
"That might be so."
"Gee and he talks fancy too, whoo man, even more to help fuel my prank." Astro whispered in a really quiet tone to Brianna.
"They must have great se-"
"Don't go there." Astro interrupted her.
"Do you.. Um... Wanna take a break and sit on that bench over there?" Kaitlyn looked over at Brandon as he pointed to a bench along the path.
"Yes." Astro thought.
"Sure, all this walking is wearing me out a little."
She chuckled a little and strolled over to the bench.
"Ok you ready for this?" Astro asked.
"Umm, maybe?"
"Now we have to be quick, you got me?"
"Uh huh."
The both of them crawled away from the bush and in the opposite direction of where Kaitlyn and Brandon were sitting.
"Wait, aren't they that way?"
"Yeah, but we can't let them see us, so we have to go the back way."
"Oh I see…."
"So. How has your Spring Break been?" Kaitlyn smiled.
"Very good, very good." Brandon nodded.
"That's good."
Brandon smiled at her.
"Ok, now we just gotta wait till the perfect moment, water?"
Brianna handed him her water bottle.
Kaitlyn blushed and looked down at her lap as she swung her feet under the bench.
Brandon reached for Kaitlyn's hand again, but yet again, he gave up and retracted his hand.
"Now?" Brianna asked.
"Nope, not yet, we gotta wait till it gets a bit more steamy."
"But then we'll be here for ages!"
"Well you did say they must have great se-"
"I said nothing."
"Hmmmm…. alright…"
"So uh, how has your Spring Break been, Miss?"
"It's been alright. A tad boring."
"Hmmm….. interesting."
"I guess you could say so." She shrugged.
Brandon shrugged back.
"Now?"
"No! We gotta wait, it's not steamy enough."
Brianna folded her arms.
"Well at least until they hold hands, that'll be the signal."
Brianna nodded.
"So. Uh..." Kaitlyn began a sentence but got lost and didn't know how to end it.
"It's been a while since i've been to the park, haven't really done much with it, have they?"
"Not really. It's the same old park. But I hope it never changes."
"Same here."
"Gosh, he's boring me to death, talk about something interesting will ya! Maybe like.. I dunno, why the fuck your hair looks like a mop or like that embarrassing moment you accidentally walked into Victoria'z Secret and kinda enjoyed it!"
Brandon yet again tried but sighed and retracted his hand back.
Kaitlyn heard him sigh and looked over at him.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes yes, i'm fine." He scooted a little further from Kaitlyn.
"Are you sure nothing's wrong?"
"Yes yes, i'm sure."
She looked into his eyes for a moment then looked away and at some nearby flowers.
"Those are pretty flowers."
"Yeah. They're nice."
Astro slowed his breathing down, getting prepared for the fastest run he's taken in a while.
"Um..." Kaitlyn fiddled with her hand in her lap.
"Yes?"
"I hope you don't mind me asking but... Do... Do you like me? Like... as more than just friends?"
Brandon froze.
"Well um…" He began.
"Maybe…"
"Hmmmmm." Kaitlyn thought for a second.
"Now?"
"Sure, but not just yet, but we can slowly inch our way up there now to make it in time."
"I know we don't really talk much. I don't mind. That's what I like about some relationships... You can just be around someone to tell if they care enough to at least stay your friend... Silence can be good." Kaitlyn said as she slowly looked back over at Brandon.
Brandon nodded.
She nodded back.
"Okay, stop stop, we're getting too close."
"And now we wait." Astro looked over at Brianna who had a red face and covered her mouth.
Astro chuckled.
"So uh, have any plans for tomorrow?" Brandon asked.
"Mmm. No. I don't think so. Do you?"
"Well besides taking my morning jog and reading, I don't think so…."
"Wait for it…."
"Do you... Maybe wanna come here again tomorrow?"
"Almost…."
"Ah! why yes, that would be nice."
Kaitlyn grinned.
Brandon reached over for Kaitlyn's hand and almost retracted it back again.
"Give it a few, I'm gonna let one of them speak, adds to the surprise."
Kaitlyn took hold of Brandon's hand.
Brandon blushed.
She blushed back.
"NOW!"
"Huh?" Kaitlyn looked behind her.
Astro got down on the ground, making himself unseen.
"What was that?"
"I dunno I-"
Suddenly the two of them became soaked with water as Astro and Brianna fled the scene, yelling out at the other people walking by.
Kaitlyn sat on the bench speechless and trying to process what just happened.
"W-what was that?" Brandon sounded a tad bit scared.
a "YOU KNOW YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE DOING PDA AT THE PARK!" was heard in the distant.
"I think I know..."
"YOU HEAR THAT, ITS THOSE TWO WEIRDOS OVER THERE MAKING OUT IN FRONT OF LITTLE CHILDREN, SO SCANDALOUS!"
"And we need to get out of here. NOW."
"Yes!" Brandon got up from the bench.
Kaitlyn got up after him and they both quickly fled the park.
They got a few dirty looks from people as they left the park.
Astro and Brianna couldn't help but laugh super hard as they left the park and went over to get ice cream.
"Hahaha, you should've seen the look on her face, it was so priceless!" Astro laughed.
"But you know she's gonna kill you right?"
"Pfft, may I remind you, me robot, she blonde dumbass human, there's a difference….."
"I'm sure it's gonna be a while till they go to the park again."
"Hahaha yeah, we just turned them into mega sluts."
"You think we should apologize?"
"Pfft, nah, she deserves this for all those times she's been a bitch, it's more of a life lesson to not fuck with people like me."
"And besides, that dude she's with, ha! He's rich, boring, well now that I think about it, no wonder he's bored, the kid could ask for whatever the fuck he wants and it comes in gold with his name engraved on it! I'd be bored too after a while…"
"How long do you think they're gonna last?"
"Hmmm…. i'd say… until she's pregnant."
"You're really pushing the limit, aren't you?"
"No, i'm just having high hopes I see her one day on 17 and Pregnant."
Brianna bursted out laughing.
"Hahah, that shouldn't be hard."
"Oh no, we got a badass blonde chick over here dating the rich dude from private school, what's next? Barney marries Dora?!"
"No no, Vanilla mixes with Chocolate."
"Oooooh, now that's a story…."
Astro opened the door for Brianna and let her in.
"Thank you very much Pookie Face!"
"You're so not welcome." Astro smiled.
"Well at least it was only water." Brandon said as Kaitlyn continued to drive away from the park.
She sighed.
"I know... But..."
"Who was that, anyways?"
"The famous Astro Boy." She said in a mocking tone.
"Oh really? Never knew he was much of a prankster?"
"He's more of a jerk than anything."
"Ahhh I see, well, fame can get to you…."
"Well, lucky him, he's gonna be grounded for life.
"What do you mean?"
"I know his father."
"Aw, well isn't that neat?"
"Real fucking neato- whoops I'm sorry for cursing. I'm just really in a bad mood." She sighed again.
Brandon smiled.
"So uh, what flavor you gonna get?"
"I dunno, maybe we split one?"
"Sure."
Astro walked up to the cashier and ordered the ice cream, he walked back with it in his hands.
"You know I just realized."
"Hmm- wha?"
"What if Kaitlyn tells Tenma?"
"Hmmmm, yeah, you take this while I go outside and kill myself."
"Is he really that bad?"
"Well no, never really gotten on his bad side before, I could only imagine."
"Well it can't be worse than Elefun or my mom, that's for sure."
"Yeah, you have a point."
"Nevermind, i'm gonna suck it up like a robot man and take the consequences, even if they are harsh or unbelievably stupid!"
"Yeah!" Brianna cheered.
An hour later, Astro dropped Brianna off at Ken's house and opened the door to his own house, waiting for any certain doom.
Tenma stood in the living room facing the door and tapping his foot.
"I know, I know, i'm an asshole, don't need to remind me."
"Astro... I know you tend to be a troublemaker, but this crossed the line. I had no idea you had it in you to do something like this! Especially to Kaitlyn. You should know better. And who knows how many other people you've pranked like this!" Tenma walked up to Astro with his arms crossed.
Astro sighed.
"And don't think you're going to get out of this easily."
Astro sighed again.
"You're grounded for two months. No electronics, no socializing. And you're going to do every chore in this house for the next month."
Astro looked up at Tenma with a blank face.
"And for all of July and August, you will do any favors Kaitlyn asks of you."
"Woah? Really? Sweet!" Kaitlyn said from the couch with a towel over her shoulders. "I mean.. Um.. That is a reasonable punishment..."
"Pffft." Astro folded his arms.
"I hope you realize what you've done wrong."
Astro nodded and casually walked back to his room where he closed the door and tried to contain his laughter.
"I'm very sorry for what he's done, Kaitlyn and... Sorry I do not recall catching your name..." Tenma turned to the couch.
"Brandon." Brandon said.
"Well, it was very nice meeting you, young man." Tenma walked up to him and held his hand out for a handshake.
Brandon took his hand and firmly shook it.
Astro couldn't help but sit in the corner of his room laughing as hard as he could wiping tears from his eyes.
Tenma walked into Astro's room a few minutes later to see Astro still laughing in the corner.
"I can't believe you're still laughing! Well I can believe it, but I don't approve."
"Because you just-" Astro couldn't speak.
"YOU JUST PULLED AN ELEFUN ON ME OK?!"
"An Elefun?"
"Yes an Elefun, oh you must not know…. oh I must explain to you then…."
"Well to save you time and boredom, i'd like to say this isn't my first time gettin in trouble."
"But it's your first time getting in trouble with me for a very long time."
"I know, I know, but I swear you spoke the same words Elefun spoke, so i'm calling it an 'Elefun' for now on, and you just pulled an 'Elefun' on me."
"But this is different. You did something seriously wrong."
"Doesn't matter, you- you're not any different."
"And besides, now I have more free time to do the things I love….."
"Have it as you will. But I am very disappointed in you." Tenma slammed the door shut after walking out.
"Fine by me, I didn't come here to be liked." Astro chuckled.
"Ah! Ok I need to stop, this is hurting my stomach."
"But he just- he just- SHIT!"
Astro got up and left his room to go use the bathroom.
He came back a few minutes later.
"So this is how life was years ago."
"I actually like it." He walked over to his bed before zoning out and fell asleep.
The next day (Sunday), Astro walked out of his room and went to go sit where he usually did every day, at the table.
"Morning Citizen!" Astro greeted.
"Good morning." Tenma replied in a monotone voice.
"Is it just me, or does it look really ugly outside, like is a storm I don't know about supposed to be coming?"
He shrugged and turned the page of the newspaper he was reading.
Astro shrugged back and quietly burped.
"I had a dream I turned into a Dinosaur and it was epic. I was an awesome Dinosaur"
"Good for you." Tenma said in the same dry tone.
"Yup, I wonder if today i'll become a dragon, or maybe a little miniature version of me, ah TINY ME! I need to draw that, oh my gosh!"
"I wish you the best of luck."
"And to you too, my fellow relative!"
"Mmmhmm."
"Are you sick? Because if you're sick I'm going back to my room Because I don't wanna catch anything." Astro scooted his chair back a little.
"I'm not sick. Even if I were, you can't catch human viruses."
"Oh." Astro scooted his chair back in.
"So then how is your morning going, everything going average?"
"My morning is fine."
"How lovely." Astro brightly smiled.
"You know what's for breakfast?" he asked, trying to keep the conversation going.
"You can make it for yourself."
"Hmmmm….. well then.I'm a terrible cook, but if you insist." Astro got up from his chair to make breakfast.
He came back a few minutes later with a plate of practically nothing and sat back down at the table.
"Interesting plate of air you've got there."
"Yup, I worked so hard, this is like the best I can make, I'm actually proud of it!"
"Good for you."
"And to you too, my fellow relative!"
"But wait I wonder if we actually are related, like legally, or am I still somewhat related to Elefun?"
"You were never related to him."
"Well I had to be at some point, since once in history he was my crappy caregiver?"
"That doesn't make you related. He was your guardian. Being related to someone is different."
"But I mean legally."
"Yes. Legally."
"Hmmmm….. interesting…."
"Oh wait, I forgot a fork." Astro got up to go get himself a fork.
"Hello." Astro said as he sat back down with a fork in his hand.
"I have a fork."
"Congradulations."
"Yes, I feel so proud, thank you." Astro wiped fake tears of joy from his eyes.
Tenma continued looking through his newspaper.
"Hmmmm….. I think I made too much." Astro said, looking down at his plate.
"How ironic."
"Well i'm on a diet ok, I need to watch what I eat, you know, maybe I won't eat breakfast then…."
"Do whatever you want."
"You seem really interested."
"Yup."
"Hmmm… I wonder, what's the difference between poop and diarrhea?"
Tenma rolled his eyes.
"What? I really don't know!"
He sighed.
"Oh I see, I'm in a good mood and then you're upset, and then I'm upset, and you're like frolicking in the fields picking flowers!"
"I'm not upset."
"Hmmmm, well then."
"Oh, and school starts back tomorrow, just to remind you."
"Good luck with your walk there."
"Wait? You're not driving me?"
"It's not likely."
"Hmmm, well then I better get up earlier…."
Astro finally grabbed his fork and took a bite of his food.
"Bleh! This taste nasty!"
"Ok remind me to never become a cook for the rest of my life."
"Yup."
"You want it? Because I think i'm done."
"No. I'm good."
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"So what do I do with it then?"
"Just throw it out."
"Okie dokie." Astro threw it away and sat back down at the table.
He sighed and put his head down.
Tenma looked up at him.
"I-" Astro was about to speak, but changed his mind.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'm fine."
"You sure?"
He sighed, then nodded.
Tenma got up and kneeled next to Astro.
"Are you sure nothings troubling you? You can tell me."
"I-I'm-no- I'm fine."
"You don't sound fine."
Astro sighed.
"Are you going to tell me?"
"I'm fine."
Tenma sighed.
"If you say so." He got up and sat back down.
"I'm a bitch." Astro muttered quietly to himself.
He got up and left to his room.
He closed the door behind him, sat down on his bed, and sighed.
"I'm a hazard to everyone." He muttered.
"I'm crazy, I did this. I-I did this."
"GOSH DARN IT!" Astro raised his voice.
Astro sighed, trying to pull himself together.
"N-no, I can't do this! I-I, Can't do this! I. Can't. Keep. Being. A. Hazard. To. Everyone."
He put his head in his hands.
"I-I can't do this!" Tears streamed down his face.
He scooted back and brought his knees up to his chest, then put his head down.
He stayed like that for a few hours in the silence as he sniffled and continued to somewhat quietly sob.
It was lunchtime.
Astro didn't feel like leaving his room.
Tenma knocked on the door.
Astro didn't respond, he just hid himself away in his room.
"Are you going to come out to get lunch?" Tenma called from the other side of the door.
AStro shook his head, he didn't feel like harming anyone else anymore.
Maybe if he stayed there he wouldn't harm anyone?
"Astro?"
"I-I can't keep hurting people anymore." He muttered to himself for the millionth time.
"I-I've hurt everyone, and I shouldn't have."
Tenma sighed.
"I can't be here, I'll just hurt more people and make an ass out of myself!"
"I can't go out there, I was never ready for this or for anything, I wasn't ready to handle life."
"So no I am not going out there, I don't wanna hurt anyone anymore or make myself look more like an asshole then I already am, because I'm not ready for this, and I probably never will be." Astro crawled into bed and pulled the sheets over his head.
"I'm sorry." He whispered.
Tenma sighed again and walked away.
"I'm not always going to be there for him. I can't always be there for him… He's going to have to figure this out on his own. I gave him the ability to and he has to use it." He quietly said to himself as he walked down the hall.
Astro just decided to keep to himself the rest of the day, only came out once for his shower, and another to use the bathroom.
He was fine sitting alone, organizing the many thoughts in his head.
He stopped for a moment and looked at his door.
It was getting late.
Even the next day at school was worse, he didn't say a word to anyone, even when he walked on the way home.
"Oh come on Astro, somethings up?" Brianna would ask.
Astro didn't respond.
"Come on, I'll walk home with you."
The two of them walked home together, when they got there, Brianna knocked on the door.
"Hello Brianna." Tenma said when he opened the door.
Astro just walked inside.
"Uh, you might wanna check up on Astro, he's been acting all strange today, wouldn't even talk to living soul!"
"I've noticed it too. And I've been keeping an eye on him. Don't worry."
"Oh, good, just as long as he's not going deaf or some sort of crazy, I think he'll be fine."
"Yes, he'll be fine."
"Well, I better get going, just walked him home to be on the safe side."
"Of course. Thank you for doing so."
"No problem."
Tenma closed the door after waving goodbye to Brianna and walked down the hallway to Astro's room.
Astro was quietly sitting at his desk doing homework, punching a few numbers into his calculator.
Tenma stood in the doorway and knocked on the wall to get Astro's attention.
Astro turned around for a moment and resumed his homework.
"Astro… If you ever want to talk, I'm always here."
"I can't talk to people like you…. I'll only dig you a hole and throw you in it." Astro muttered, looking over at a few other papers scattered across his desk.
"Don't say things like that. They're not true." There was obvious concern in Tenma's voice.
Astro shook his head.
"I'll only hurt you and I know for a fact that you won't like it."
Tenma walked up to the desk.
"You've only slipped up a few times. That doesn't mean you're going to hurt people with every word you say."
Astro didn't even look at Tenma, but there was a sense of fear in Astro's face.
"You only hurt me because you did something I thought you would never want to or have the heart to do. I know you're better than that. But this doesn't make you some kind of monster." Tenma placed a hand on Astro's shoulder.
Astro wrote a number down.
"Here, think of me like this triangle, you need one long side, and two shorter sides to make a triangle, if you don't have two shorter sides, or you're missing a longer side, it's not a triangle."
"You have the adjacent and opposite lines, and you have the hypotenuse which is opposite the 90° angle in a right triangle."
((Wow i love how Astro is so smart he's able to compare his problems to triangles, like thats some skill right there. ~Emily))
"Now think of me as a triangle with one short line, and two giant lines, I'm talking running off the page lines."
"Can you make a triangle with two long lines and a short line? No. Will you ever be able to construct a triangle with two long and one short line? No."
"So think of me, my problems, my bad attitude, my depression as the two long lines, and everything else is the short line that's stupider than a bag of potatoes, because they ain't smart to realize that if they were long enough, they could someday reach the other lines, and make the triangle!"
"So because I am not a triangle and I'm just a bunch of lines, I will forever be a hazard whether I say or do anything, or just sit in my room and stare at the ceiling."
Tenma blinked and thought for a moment.
"Well, you can make a triangle with two long lines and one short one. Acute isosceles."
Astro facepalmed.
He ignored Tenma and just went back to doing his homework.
"Nevermind." He muttered.
"But I know how you feel."
Astro kept working and didn't say a word.
Tenma looked away for a moment before looking back down at Astro.
"We all do something we regret. Even if we don't regret it, we may still feel guilty. It may haunt us forever or it might blow over in a few days. Either way we can't just sit around and sulk and feel like were the worse person in the universe. Everyone makes mistakes but you can't let that affect you for the rest of your life. Someday you're just going to have to stand up to the fact that you've messed up and show it proudly. Yeah, I did that once, but I made up for it."
Astro wrote another number down.
He still had a hint of fear in his face, slowly making him appear uneasy.
Tenma moved over a little to give Astro some room.
"You OK?" He asked.
He sighed and couldn't even hold his pencil correctly.
"...Mostly…"
"Hmmm."
His hand began to shake.
Tenma moved in closer and put both his hands on Astro's shoulders.
"Hey now. Calm down. Everything's OK."
Astro let out a sigh, he set his homework aside.
"Y-You're right, I really need to stop."
He took a deep breath and couldn't help but sob just a little.
He wiped the tears from his eyes with his hand that wasn't shaking.
Tenma slowly rubbed Astro's back.
The look of uneasiness on his face seemed to go away.
Astro felt an urge to turn around, but he ignored it.
"I'm sorry for being so harsh the other day." Tenma broke the silence.
"It's ok, we all lose it sometimes."
"I will lessen your punishment. I'm not taking it away completely, but I will make it fairer for the both of us."
Astro nodded with his eyes closed.
He turned around and put his arms around Tenma.
He held him tightly.
Astro let go and slowly turned back around to face his desk.
He sighed.
"So many things to do, so little time." He said, reaching for his pencil and homework again.
"I'll leave you be to do your work." Tenma backed up a little.
"Okie dokie." Astro chuckled.
He left the room and closed the door.
Astro sighed and stared at the ceiling as he tapped a finger on his desk.
"Hmm." He shrugged and went back to doing his work.
A few hours later, Astro came back out of his room for dinner.
He sat down at the table.
"So uh, you know what's for dinner?"
"Spaghetti. It's almost done." Tenma said as he stirred the pasta in a pot over the stove.
"Haha, Spaghetti." Astro laughed.
"What's so funny about it?"
"Well nothing really, just the word spaghetti. Like... how you say it."
"Spa-ghetti." Tenma tried saying in a funny voice.
"No, you gotta say it with an Italian accent..."
"Ah. The-a Spagehetti is-a fine-a tonight-a." He did in a fake Italian Accent.
Astro bursted out laughing.
Tenma chuckled.
Astro gasped for air.
"O-oh- I-I c-c can't feel m-m my stomach!" He tried to say.
"Calm down. Don't want you passing out."
Astro soon relaxed.
"Phew! That was the funniest thing I've heard in a long time!" He said, wiping a few tears in his eyes.
"Haha. Glad you found it funny."
Astro chuckled again.
Tenma turned off the stove and placed a plate of spaghetti and meatballs in front of Astro.
"Oooo, quite the meal..." He said.
"Hmmm... I need a fork."
"Oh. Yes. Sorry, I forgot."
"Wow ok, at least I knew who I got my memory loss from..."
Tenma chuckled as he handed him a fork.
"Yes! Now with my trusty fork, I shall conquer the world and consume it whole!"
"Well at least this spaghetti world..."
"Haha. Ok. Don't hurt yourself."
"Pffft, puh-leaze, how's a fork gonna- oh." Astro looked at his arm.
"Well it was nice knowing you Citizen, I'd like to thank Citizen, food, crackers, bands, hot topics, my mom, my stepmom, the world, the toilet, the academy, poop, and uh... More poop, and uh... Yeah, just poop."
"I'll be sure to put that all on your gravestone."
"Yes, please do..."
"Now just eat your food."
"Fine." Astro sat back down and ate his food.
"Spaghetti." Astro mumbled in a fake Italian accent.
Tenma chuckled as he got himself a plate of food and sat down in front of Astro.
"Do you know what nine plus ten is?"
"Twenty-one."
"Seriously? It's nineteen!"
"You mean you never saw that Vines?"
"I did, and it's annoying, everyone at school is yelling out twenty-one and its really getting on my nerves."
"Well, i'll just say nineteen for now on then."
"Pffft, I swear to you everyone in that school is an idiot."
"I bet you a million dollars without me the school would be the worst this state has to offer!" Astro folded his arms.
"I'm sure there are other smart students there."
"Yeah, Brianna, and that's it, everyone else is stupid, trust me..."
"I doubt that everyone is stupid."
"Hmmm... Then you haven't visited it yet..."
"Well I have been there quite a few times..."
"True... But one time this kid asked me why I was like the only one in my grade without acne, I literally stared at them until they finally understood and left, and that's just the beginning. I think I need to engrave 'I AM A ROBOT' on my forehead for now on..."
"It can't be that bad..."
"Oh, you'd be surprised..."
"Oh really..."
"Yes, really."
"I guess I have no choice but to believe you."
Astro chuckled.
"Hmmm, this isn't actually too bad, better than what I tried to make yesterday..."
"Well it takes some time to learn."
"Then I must have a lot to learn..."
"Yes.. you do."
"I just can't believe I failed at something so simple..."
"Some people just aren't good at some things." Tenma shrugged.
"Yeah but what am I gonna do when I get older? Brianna's definitely gonna think I'm being a bitch making her do all the cooking!"
"You could always learn."
"Pffft, always learn..."
(END OF CHAPTER 9!)
((Thank you guys so much for reading, we as the authors are glad to announce we have reached over 200 reads on this fan fiction which to this day blows our minds because we never thought we'd get this far, but we ask a favor of you, although we may have lots of reads, we have no reviews, and with so many people reading this, we're sure that you have something to say about this fan fiction, and we'd love to hear it! Even if you're shy, because believe it or not, I'm shy too! So if possible just take a moment to type out your thoughts on the bottom and post your review, because if no one reviews, we will just assume no one likes the fan fic and we won't post the chapters that are set to come after, we've already started on chapter 10, but if no reviews are posted, we may just not post it! So don't forget to post your review and thanks for helping us get this far! ~Emily (The author) ))
