Yamato stared at me. "THAT was your plan?" He asked, blue eyes wide.
"Hell no. No. Nuh uh, not at all. I was planning on telling Jun that you were dating Mimi." I mumbled. "Only..."
"'Only...'what?!"
"Only it just seemed like an easier solution." He continued to stare at me. "C'mon, snap out of it." I laughed nervously. "I only kinda kissed you."
"Dammit Taichi! Why the hell did you do that?!" He turned away. I could hear him taking deep breaths. "Why did you have to kiss me?" He whispered, all the anger gone from his voice.
"Yama...?" I reached out and brushed his upper arm.
He flinched away from me. "Don't. Just...don't, okay?" I spun him round and grabbed his shoulders hard. The sapphire eyes refused to meet mine, but I could see them glittering with unshed tears. "An easier solution huh?" he muttered hoarsely.
"Yamato... I-" I couldn't express it. Why had he reacted so badly? It wasn't like he was homophobic, not with the whole Daisuke/Ken situation under his belt. He'd been the least suprised or ruffled by it out of all of us, and both boys instinctively turned to him for relationship advice. No, that wasn't it. And the idea of me being gay wouldn't have bothered him; hell, he stood by me through everything that I've ever gone through and my sexuality wouldn't have ever made any difference. As it was, I was only just exploring it myself - up until tonight I'd never even considered kissing another guy. So what was it?
Yamato could see the questions going through my mind. He's good at reading expressions, always, is Yama. Gently removing my hands from his shoulders he sighed softly. "Taichi, it's not your fault. Don't dwell on the fact you don't understand." And then he turned and disappeared into his dressing room.
I watched his retreating back, sighed to myself and headed back to find everyone else. What the hell was going on here?
Daisuke met me at the stage door, confusion the primary expression stamped across his face. The others looked similarly bemused. The was a brief moment of silence, in which Ken, Miyako, Sora, Jyou, Hikari and Takeru examined my appearance for clues.
"Taichi, what did you do to Jun?" Daisuke blurted out. "She came out of there as though the Hounds of Hell were on her tail, muttering something about Yamato and you..."
Ah. Should've thought about the teeny tiny fact that everyone would know before acting. Ho hum. Not like it's in my nature to look before I leap. "I, uh, kinda showed her that Yamato was unavaliable."
"Finally!" Miyako crowed. "Thank God, the Vulture'll leave him alone from now on!"
The others smiled and generally looked pleased while I breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"How?" asked Ken. Dammit. Caught.
"How what?" Innocence. Innocent puppy face. C'mon, work just one more time.
"How did you 'kinda show' Jun he was 'unavaliable'?" Daisuke demanded.
"WellIdidn'texactlymeantobutIkindaendedupkissinghim." I mumbled, all in one long breath. Let them figure it out. I wasn't gonna say it again. I shouldn't feel ashamed of it. It was only...Yama's reaction. I didn't want to tell them when he was all weirded out about it.
"You did WHAT!?" Takeru demanded. I looked down at my feet. Then straight back up again. Daisuke was restaining him from taking a wild swing at me and I really didn't get it. His best male friends were dating and he, like his brother, was so supportive. How on Earth could he have any kind of problem with me and Yamato? Not that there even was any me and Yamato.
"I kissed him. It wasn't planned; it just was a means to an end."
"And he knows this?!" Takeru screamed at me. I winced in the face of his anger and obvious protectiveness toward his brother.
"Yeah. Only he suddenly went off on one, even knowing that."
Takeru swore, long and creatively. "Oh, I'll bet he 'went off on one'. Honestly Taichi, you amaze me that even such a complete baka as you can be this utterly stupid!"
"What?! I don't get it?! Yamato knows it meant nothing-" Light dawned. "Oh. Oh, oh shit. He must really hate me right now." Seven knowing faces nodded at me. "Oh shit. Why did no-one tell me?" I wailed, running backstage for the countless time that night. Looking at it objectively, and with hindsight, it was glaringly obvious. I am a total baka. Even the song....I mentally smacked myself on the head. Baka, baka, baka! Yagami Taichi, I berated myself silently, sometimes you really can live up to your dense label.
"Hell no. No. Nuh uh, not at all. I was planning on telling Jun that you were dating Mimi." I mumbled. "Only..."
"'Only...'what?!"
"Only it just seemed like an easier solution." He continued to stare at me. "C'mon, snap out of it." I laughed nervously. "I only kinda kissed you."
"Dammit Taichi! Why the hell did you do that?!" He turned away. I could hear him taking deep breaths. "Why did you have to kiss me?" He whispered, all the anger gone from his voice.
"Yama...?" I reached out and brushed his upper arm.
He flinched away from me. "Don't. Just...don't, okay?" I spun him round and grabbed his shoulders hard. The sapphire eyes refused to meet mine, but I could see them glittering with unshed tears. "An easier solution huh?" he muttered hoarsely.
"Yamato... I-" I couldn't express it. Why had he reacted so badly? It wasn't like he was homophobic, not with the whole Daisuke/Ken situation under his belt. He'd been the least suprised or ruffled by it out of all of us, and both boys instinctively turned to him for relationship advice. No, that wasn't it. And the idea of me being gay wouldn't have bothered him; hell, he stood by me through everything that I've ever gone through and my sexuality wouldn't have ever made any difference. As it was, I was only just exploring it myself - up until tonight I'd never even considered kissing another guy. So what was it?
Yamato could see the questions going through my mind. He's good at reading expressions, always, is Yama. Gently removing my hands from his shoulders he sighed softly. "Taichi, it's not your fault. Don't dwell on the fact you don't understand." And then he turned and disappeared into his dressing room.
I watched his retreating back, sighed to myself and headed back to find everyone else. What the hell was going on here?
Daisuke met me at the stage door, confusion the primary expression stamped across his face. The others looked similarly bemused. The was a brief moment of silence, in which Ken, Miyako, Sora, Jyou, Hikari and Takeru examined my appearance for clues.
"Taichi, what did you do to Jun?" Daisuke blurted out. "She came out of there as though the Hounds of Hell were on her tail, muttering something about Yamato and you..."
Ah. Should've thought about the teeny tiny fact that everyone would know before acting. Ho hum. Not like it's in my nature to look before I leap. "I, uh, kinda showed her that Yamato was unavaliable."
"Finally!" Miyako crowed. "Thank God, the Vulture'll leave him alone from now on!"
The others smiled and generally looked pleased while I breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"How?" asked Ken. Dammit. Caught.
"How what?" Innocence. Innocent puppy face. C'mon, work just one more time.
"How did you 'kinda show' Jun he was 'unavaliable'?" Daisuke demanded.
"WellIdidn'texactlymeantobutIkindaendedupkissinghim." I mumbled, all in one long breath. Let them figure it out. I wasn't gonna say it again. I shouldn't feel ashamed of it. It was only...Yama's reaction. I didn't want to tell them when he was all weirded out about it.
"You did WHAT!?" Takeru demanded. I looked down at my feet. Then straight back up again. Daisuke was restaining him from taking a wild swing at me and I really didn't get it. His best male friends were dating and he, like his brother, was so supportive. How on Earth could he have any kind of problem with me and Yamato? Not that there even was any me and Yamato.
"I kissed him. It wasn't planned; it just was a means to an end."
"And he knows this?!" Takeru screamed at me. I winced in the face of his anger and obvious protectiveness toward his brother.
"Yeah. Only he suddenly went off on one, even knowing that."
Takeru swore, long and creatively. "Oh, I'll bet he 'went off on one'. Honestly Taichi, you amaze me that even such a complete baka as you can be this utterly stupid!"
"What?! I don't get it?! Yamato knows it meant nothing-" Light dawned. "Oh. Oh, oh shit. He must really hate me right now." Seven knowing faces nodded at me. "Oh shit. Why did no-one tell me?" I wailed, running backstage for the countless time that night. Looking at it objectively, and with hindsight, it was glaringly obvious. I am a total baka. Even the song....I mentally smacked myself on the head. Baka, baka, baka! Yagami Taichi, I berated myself silently, sometimes you really can live up to your dense label.