Chapter 10

The boys had gathered information from Rise's grandmother that there was someone from the paparazzo hanging around the Samegawa Flood Plain. They went there to get information, but he wasn't there. "I also heard that we can get information from a fanboy at school." Yosuke said. "You or Kanji?" Souji teased. "Neither, man." Yosuke sighed. "Let's just go." Yosuke began walking towards Yasogami High School. The walk wasn't that long, since the Flood Plain was the quickest way to get to school. The boys chatted idly, as usual, mentioning the first thing that pops into their heads. Topsicles came up a lot, probably because they were both sweating profusely under the harsh June sun. "Souji... I want to take my top off, but my stomach isn't that muscular yet, is it?" Yosuke stopped walking and asked Souji as he lift his top up. Sure, he wasn't as well developed as Souji, but he definitely had more muscle than before. It was more than clearly visible. "It's perfect Yosuke. Come on, I don't want to be the centre of attention just because I have my top off, take yours off too." Souji said as he peeled off his school shirt. Yosuke took his off too, sighing as he felt the sweat ease a little. "That's a nice feeling..." Yosuke whispered to himself. "I know." Souji looked at Yosuke, smiling. Yosuke looked at Souji in surprise. "Did... did you hear me, just then?" Yosuke asked apprehensively. "Just a little." Souji laughed. Yosuke sighed playfully but continued walking, Souji walking next to him. They definitely were a sight to see. Girls stared at the two boys, whistling and waving at them both. Before, nobody would even look at Yosuke, never mind whistle to him. Women in cars stared as they drove past and a couple of them threw their underwear out of the window, with their phone number attached to it. Souji picked them both up and put it in his back pocket. "I don't think we need these, do we?" Souji sniggered. Yosuke nodded triumphantly.

They reached Yasogami High, but Yosuke stopped walking and looked around. "Where are we supposed to go?" Yosuke asked doubtfully. "We're going to the Practice Building, second floor." Souji marched down the corridors, Yosuke at his side. Ayane was walking out of the Music Room, when she saw the two boys. "Senpai!" Ayane called. Souji and Yosuke turned around to see the green haired girl running up to them. "Um... I just wanted to... say that... um..." Ayane stuttered, as she does. She stared at the boys' stomachs, still stuttering. "Something to do with our muscles?" Yosuke guessed. "Y-Yes. I was going to say that I didn't know you two were so muscular." Ayane blushed a little and giggled. "Thanks Ayane." Souji ruffled her hair and set off towards the chubby fanboy. "Bye-bye!" Ayane waved, still giggled. "I'll see you later." Souji called back. "You have a cute little admirer." Yosuke teased. "Like I need admirers, when I'm in the best relationship ever." Souji replied, raising an eyebrow playfully. Yosuke laughed at his boyfriend. "You really think that this is the best relationship ever?" Yosuke enquired. "I don't think it is." Souji said simply. "B-But you just said-" Souji put a finger on Yosuke's moving lips. "I know it is." Souji smiled at the stunned brunette. "I...Wha... I mean..." Yosuke stopped talking, sighed, then tried again. "Thanks. It means a lot to hear that from you."

They saw the chubby fanboy, excitedly reading an article of Risette on his phone. He chortled at the funny, secret pictures that were taken of her, as perverted as that sounds. Souji and Yosuke approached the student quietly. "Hey, can we ask you something?" Yosuke interrupted the chuckling fanatic. "Not right now, I'm finding out the latest on Risette. Sorry, come back when I'm not busy." The boy replied. Souji snatched the phone away from the boy and sighed. "We need to ask you about Risette. Are you too busy to do that?" Yosuke rolled his eyes. "If I do it, can I have my phone back?" The boy asked cautiously. "Yeah, I guess so." The two boys said in unison. The fanboy did a quick summary of Rise's recent status. He told them in impeccable detail. Souji handed the phone back to the large boy. "Thank you very much. I hope you two can appreciate Risette as much as I do." The fanboy smiled at them before going back to his phone. "Wha-? The battery's dead? No!" The boy cried. The two Persona-users could only stare. The fanboy sighed. "Well, never mind. It's time to head home anyway. See you two later." The boy left, slightly waddling down the corridor. Sosuke held back laughter; that made tears well up in their eyes, like when you stifle a yawn. "Maybe he can come into the TV and train with us." Yosuke muttered quietly. "Come on, stop it. We can't be making fun of large, waddling people. It isn't fair." Souji still snorted with laughter, regardless of what he'd just said.

The two boys had nothing else to look for around town, so they decided to go to Yosuke's house for the night. On the way back, Souji was falling asleep, even though he was walking. Yosuke looked over at him, nervously keeping him awake. "Partner, we're nearly there, don't worry." Yosuke whispered in Souji's ear. Souji lazily smiled at the brunette. "Thanks; and I'm sorry. I haven't been sleeping well recently." Souji's voice was husky because he was unusually fatigued. "I can give you a piggyback if you want, Souji." Yosuke offered. "Please..." Souji accepted with a slight grin. Yosuke heaved Souji onto his back and Souji rested his head on Yosuke's back tiredly. He fell asleep in a couple of moments. He began snoring softly, cute little snorts that made Yosuke chuckle lovingly. "I... love you. You're so... cute when you laugh." Souji muttered in his sleep, groaning peacefully. "Souji? Are you awake?" Yosuke asked curiously. Souji breathed heavily a couple of times. "What, you didn't know? I can... talk to you... in my sleep." The silver haired boy mumbled. Yosuke laughed a little. "No, I didn't know. That's impressive Partner." Yosuke seemed proud of his other half. "I've had practise but... I can't say... stuff without pausing." Souji seemed to sigh. "I gathered that." Yosuke rolled his eyes. "Are we nearly... there yet?" Souji asked quietly. "Yeah, we're here. Do you need me to carry you upstairs too?" Yosuke asked wearily. "If... you don't mind. It's okay if... you do. I'll wake up and... walk." Souji muttered. "Well, I do need to develop bigger muscles. So, I'll do it, I'll carry you." Yosuke huffed as he carried a dead weight up the stairs. "You're so strong... Yosuke. That's why I... want to be with you... forever." Souji smiled in his sleep. His dream was of him talking with Yosuke. In a way, Souji could see his surroundings in a dream. It was an extraordinary power. Everything that Yosuke was saying, reached him, in his dream. Everything that Souji said in his dream, he'd say in real life. Yosuke gently put Souji in bed. "Take my... clothes off please." Souji whispered. Yosuke complied, happily stripping Souji of his clothing. He did the same to himself and slid into bed, beside his lover. "Tomorrow, we'll rescue Rise-chan. We can do this Souji." Yosuke whispered to Souji. "Of course we... can. We always win." Souji smiled in his sleep. "Goodnight Souji. I love you so much." Yosuke sighed calmly. "I love... you too. With everything I... have and more." Souji replied. The two boys fell asleep in each others' arms.

Souji woke up early, when the sun was only just rising. He yawned and stretched as he sat up. He looked next to him to see a sleeping Yosuke Hanamura. His hair was covering one eye and his mouth was a little open, his chest rose and fell in a gentle pattern. Even though they had both been asleep all night, Yosuke's face was a little red. Perhaps he was having a nice dream. Instead of waking Hanamura up, he decided to lay back down and watch his other half sleep. Souji gently brushed Yosuke's hair out of his face. Yosuke shuffled around, smiling and moaning quietly. He moved from his side, onto his back, his face a little more red this time. Souji moved closer and cuddled Yosuke lovingly. "This might be my last day here Yosuke. So, I'll show as much affection as I can." Souji muttered. Yosuke groaned, moving onto his side to face Souji. He opened his warm brown eyes sleepily. "Souji, you're up early. Maybe too early." Yosuke chuckled quietly. "I can't sleep Yosuke. I still have sleeping disorders." Souji sighed. "Come here stupid." Yosuke pulled Souji in for a hug. "Now close your eyes." Yosuke whispered. Souji comprehended and complied quietly. "Now think of an event, think of something that you want to happen. Make it up, create your own fantasy. Whatever suits you." Yosuke muttered into Souji's ear. The brunette was falling asleep, trying to send his boyfriend to sleep was easier said than done. "Now drift. Drift away from reality and sink into your dreams." Yosuke whispered before he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep himself. Souji fell asleep too, head nestled into Yosuke's warm chest. They were entwined with each other, but they couldn't complain. They wouldn't have it any other way.

The boys woke up a little later, both of them grinning at each other sluggishly. "Urgh, I feel so sloth-like." Yosuke groaned as he dangled, half in, half out of bed. "Get up Yosuke. Come on, I don't want to separate from you. It pains me inside." Souji whimpered. Yosuke slowly got back into bed and moved closer to the clingy teenager. "What's with you today? You're more clingy than normal." Yosuke asked, sighing against Souji's body. "I don't like being away from you, Yosuke. If anything, I'd always be with you, I'd always go wherever you go, I'd always do whatever you do." Souji said, almost sadly. Yosuke looked Souji in the eye, curiosity sparked. "What are you talking about Partner? Has something happened? You're not usually like this." Yosuke was curious, of course, but he was also really worried. "I just... wanted you to know that I'll always be with you. Don't forget that, okay?" Souji smiled sorrowfully. Yosuke smiled back at the other male. What was he talking about? Of course he'll always be by his side, he wouldn't leave it, would he? "Yosuke..." Souji whispered. "Hmm?" Yosuke answered with a simple hum. The best of answers. "Kiss me Yosuke." Souji moved closer to Yosuke, lips slightly parted. "Souji, why are you..." Yosuke stopped. He wrapped his arms around Souji's neck and moved closer to him. "Of course Souji. I'll kiss you." Yosuke said finally. They pressed their lips together gently, their hands wandering. "I love you." Souji breathed in between kisses, a tear rolling down his face. Yosuke pulled back. "I love you too. Why are you crying Souji? Have I done something wrong?" Yosuke rubbed Souji's tears away with his thumb and stared deep into Souji's dark grey eyes, mesmerised by the different shades of grey he had in his eyes. "It's nothing to do with you." Souji sobbed.

He was doing ema requests, when the fox gave him another ema. Souji could only stare at the ema, no emotion shown on his face. Please help Souji Seta. He's going to die on 06.25 and there's nothing I can do to stop it. He turned the ema over. It had a letter on the back so he opened it and read it. If this is not Souji Seta, please give this to him. Souji, your time's up. I'm sorry, but you've lived for 17 years. It... wasn't long enough. I know about the TV, I know about the dungeons. I looked into your future and it showed you trying to rescue a girl from a pink and purple dungeon. You were laid on the floor, bleeding out whilst a brunette held you in his arms and cried out. The date was 06.25 and you were on the 10th floor, so close to your target. But, you couldn't do it. One enemy left and your time ran out. You should also know that those 10 Moon Tsukubame that you originally had, have vanished. I found this out too. I looked further into your future and you have them after you've saved the girl. This is a warning. This is not to scare you, I was worried about you, so I sent an ema and a letter straight away. Please Souji, be careful. From Anonymous. Souji's breathing became abnormal, his palms became clammy, he couldn't feel anything in his body. Nothing at all. He couldn't tell anyone, it'd only cause panic. He kept that secret for weeks, but he wasn't about to tell it. He couldn't hurt Yosuke like that. Yosuke put his arms around Souji comfortingly as the silver haired man cried hard. "It was probably a bad dream. Are you traumatised?" Yosuke whispered into Souji's ear. Souji nodded, it wasn't a dream though. "Whatever's bothering you, tell me. I'll sort it out, trust me Souji. I'll never give up on you. Ever."

Souji was still in tears later on, when they were both getting dressed. "Souji..." Yosuke could only say. "Y-Yosuke, I don't want you to worry about me." Souji held Yosuke's shoulders firmly. "Wha-?" Yosuke stuttered. "Whatever happens, I'll always love you. I don't ever want to know that you were worrying or in distress. I want to know that you're happy and cheerful." Souji wanted a guarantee that Yosuke would continue to live his life and never be depressed. Like with Saki Konishi. Yosuke was still confused. "Promise me." Souji whispered. Yosuke stayed silent and confused. "Promise me Yosuke! Please!" Souji pleaded, his eyes flickering with pure worry. "I-I promise Souji. But what..." Yosuke mumbled. "You'll see Yosuke. Even if I don't want you to." Souji said quietly as he left the house with Yosuke by his side. They were heading to the Flood Plain again today, to find that paparazzi guy. "Souji, you've been acting really weird today. What's going on?" Yosuke persisted. "I'll tell you in the dungeon." Souji said, holding Yosuke's hand quietly. Yosuke clung on to his hand, claiming it and acting as if someone was about to steal it away from him. They found the man and after lots of information swapping, the boys had found enough information for Teddie to go on. Yosuke rang Chie and Souji rang Yukiko, Souji also rang Kanji, so that they could all meet up and tell Teddie. When everyone was in the TV, Souji relayed the information to Teddie. "Mmhm... I see. She's just like me then! The delicate, sentimental type. Follow me!" Teddie marched off, following where his nose took him.

Everyone reached the dungeon, Souji still holding Yosuke's hand. He was getting more and more nervous. The lights were off, so Souji moved a lot closer to the brunette. "I'm scared Yosuke." Souji whispered. "Don't worry, I'm here." Yosuke whispered back. The lights suddenly turned on, revealing a pink and purple strip club. Everyone looked around open mouthed. "So this is a strip joint huh?" Kanji looked around, interested. "Strip, like what zebras have." Teddie smiled at his own joke and expected a laugh from everyone. "Okay, I'll say it again. Strip, like what zebras have." Teddie waited for another reaction. "Don't you guys get it? I'll say it once more. Strip... it's what zebras have..." Teddie looked at everyone expectantly. "Will someone shut this thing up?" Chie muttered. "Huh? Zebras? What are you talking about?" Yukiko was WAY out of the loop. "Don't worry... I won't say it again..." Teddie said dejectedly. Everyone entered the dungeon, weapons at the ready. "I'm going ahead with Yukiko, we need all the EXP we can get." Chie ran into the dungeon with Yukiko at her side. "I'm going to get the most EXP so I can kick the most butt! Later, guys." Kanji ran off in another direction. Sosuke looked at each other quietly. "I guess it's just us again." Yosuke laughed a little. "Yeah, it's kinda nice." Souji sighed. "Well... shall we?" Yosuke looked at Souji anxiously. "We shall." Souji smiled as they ran deep into the dungeon.

A couple of hours later, the couple were on the 10th floor, fighting Shadows with ease. Souji was extremely uneasy. Souji could see the exit and was running to it as fast as possible. He stopped when he heard Yosuke's voice. "Souji, there's one here, it wouldn't hurt to fight this one before we hit the jackpot would it?" Yosuke smiled at the silver haired teenager. Souji's eyes widened. "Yosuke, no!" But, just like in old movies and novels, it was too late. Yosuke had already struck the Shadow. Souji was about to cry. This was it, wasn't it? He was about to die. Yosuke cackled darkly as he looked at the distressed Shadows. "Easy money." Yosuke scored a critical hit on 4 of them, but one of them hardly got damaged. "What? What's going on?" Yosuke gasped. They didn't have enough SP for a Persona attack. Souji went for an Agilao gem from his bag, but it just absorbed it. The Shadow scored a critical hit on Yosuke and took 354 HP off of him leaving him with 36 HP. "Yosuke! I have to help him!" Souji exclaimed. The Shadow went for Yosuke again, smiling darkly from above him. Yosuke looked up at the Shadow weakly, blood pouring from his mouth. "Go on, do it. I'm not scared of you." Yosuke muttered. The Shadow blinked at Yosuke's braveness. It went in to attack Yosuke, but Souji pushed him out of the way quickly. "Souji, no!" Yosuke cried as Souji collapsed from the attack. "Souji!" Yosuke shouted over to his collapsed partner. He turned to the Shadow. "You bastard. I'll be back. With a vengeance." Yosuke muttered as he threw a Vanish Ball into the air. Yosuke sat beside the quiet Souji Seta, who was bleeding out profusely now. "Souji... I'm sorry, I should've dodged. I should've done something! I should've been there for you." Yosuke muttered sadly. "Is this what you were crying about earlier? Why didn't you tell me? It wouldn't have hurt as much, Souji. Knowing that I can't save you, hurts me." Yosuke whispered to Souji. "Why, Souji? Why do you have to leave me behind? I've had enough of everyone I love dying." Yosuke sobbed. "What have I done to you?" Yosuke whispered, tears pouring down his face. "WHAT HAVE I DONE?!" Yosuke screamed into the air around him.

To be continued in: Heartbeat, Heartbreak.

So, what has Yosuke done? Will he be able to undo it? It's worth waiting for (I reckon). The second story will be released soon, so hold on to your hats. Heartbeat, Heartbreak will be posted as well as a Minato x Akihiko story, another Sosuke Short Stories page and even a story where me and my friend go into the TV, into Inaba!

Thanks for reading and tolerating this amateur story.

~Sosuke40