Disclaimer/ Warnings: Back up front. Schuldich's guarding them for me.

A/N: Sorry this chapter has been a long time coming. School started and for some insane reason, they tend to think that the homework they assign is more vital than my getting the fifth chapter up. So it's going to be an uphill struggle - hopefully I can finish this quickly so nobody has to wait anymore. ANYWAY - day 5. Here we go.

***********************

When Ken and Aya woke up the next morning (separately, of course), they both decided it was time to get serious about their challenges. They'd been fumbling about for the last couple days, and although limited progress had been made, they were definitely running out of time. Ken sat up and established a firm new resolution: he was going to stop blushing. It made him seem all shy (which he was) and uninterested (which he wasn't), so he resolved to stop it.

Unfortunately, Aya, deciding he needed something to inspire himself to be serious about seducing Ken, came up with a game that morning. It was called the Touch-Ken game. While the name was certainly not very creative, the game itself was a lot of fun. The objective was to make contact with Ken - discreetly and accidentally-on-purpose, certainly - as many times as possible. The secret motivation for this? Aya thought Ken was cute when he blushed. He was sure the game would work.

Aya entered the shop - immediately, his eyes sought out Ken, who was diligently watering the flowers. Aya smiled slightly. Ken had been working awfully hard these last few days. It made Aya get all bubbly inside and have all these 'ah-if-only' thoughts. Ken was working and making money. Ken and money - two of the things Aya loved most in the whole world - side by side. If only Aya-chan were added to the picture, Aya could die happy. Wait - Aya didn't want to die yet. He still had to beat that smirk off of Yohji's grinning countenance. He shook himself back to the real world and proceeded to his companion's side, studying Ken's expression and activity and waiting for the best time to put his plan into action.

Finally, Ken looked up at his leader, no doubt wondering why Aya - AYA, of all people - was watching him water the flowers. He managed to keep from blushing when he noticed how intently Aya was staring at him, and pulled himself up resolutely. "If you're just going to stand there, you can water the flowers and I'll find something else to do," Ken said, trying to sound firm and decisive. Aya said nothing, but he reached out a hand to take the hose. Ken passed it to him, and their hands brushed momentarily. Ken pulled back, stunned, but he managed to keep a pale face. Aya frowned slightly. Apparently, he'd have to be a little more direct to tease a blush from his companion.

The game continued through the early morning throng of fangirls, through the quiet hours of the midmorning, through the arrival of Yohji (who didn't notice), until finally Ken decided Aya had touched him a bit too often for it to be an accident anymore. Confused and frustrated, he made a point of catching Aya's own hand at his next opportunity. To his surprise, Aya merely smiled and pulled away, mentally tallying up the score. Aya: 16. Ken: 1. It was fairly clear who was winning. But Aya still hadn't managed to make Ken blush, and it upset him a good deal. That was the point after all, right?

Ken, for his part, was trying extremely hard to keep his impromptu resolution. He had no idea what Aya was up to, but the constant physical contact was driving him crazy. Shaking his head, he suppressed his ludicrous thoughts and headed to the counter just in time for the fangirl lunch-rush. Apparently, none of them had bought enough flowers that morning, and needed more by the time their lunch break rolled around. Ken pounded the cash register in annoyance. Who did they give all these flowers to, anyway?

"Ken-san! Ken-san! I need a bouquet of -those-!" one girl cried. Ken looked to where she'd pointed and sighed, leaving the relative safety of his counter behind. As he moved into the crowd, they pressed forward eagerly until they were overwhelming. Ken felt himself backing away, desperate for freedom. Then fangirlism threatened to become an international crime as, all of a sudden, they pounced. They came for him with sacks and rope and various other means of restraint, squealing shrilly. Ken jumped back in alarm, but soon they were grabbing at his arms and hands and pulling him ever toward his black doom.

Without warning, he was wrenched firmly away from the overzealous girls by a strong pair of pale arms, which wrapped themselves around his waist and huddled him against a tall, orange-clad frame. The girls drew back in surprise. Aya gave all of them his best 'drop-dead-Takatori-filth' glare and pulled Ken farther away from the grasping abductors. "Out," he growled. "Get out." Ken was shocked - Aya hadn't even included his customary alternative today. The girls muttered and moaned and protested, but at the decidedly frightening expression on Aya's pale face, they left the store one by one. Aya squeezed the lovable brunette and rested his cheek against the shorter man's hair, watching the fangirls file moodily out the door. His Ken! They'd tried to steal his Ken away! Well he had news for those fangirls. If they ever tried something like that again, he was going to string them all up in the basement and use them for kendo practice. Oh yes. And he'd be taking his katana out of the sheath when he did it, too. Aya's vicious thoughts were broken as Ken sighed in relief, alerting him to the fact that all the girls had finally gone. Despite the lack of apparent danger, Aya still neglected to let Ken out of his grip.

//Dammit, he's touching me again,// Ken thought frantically. //What do I do? I don't really want him to -let go-, but if I stay here it'll look suspicious!// As he thought this, Aya began to withdraw his arms. //Ack!// Ken's mind cried. Thinking quickly, he threw his arms around Aya's waist and sniffled convincingly several times. Aya stopped, then put his arms back around the apparently distraught brunette. "Ken?" he asked quietly. "Are you. . . all right?"

Ken sniffled once more and snuggled into the ugly sweater, which, despite clashing terribly with the redhead's image, was very soft and warm. "They tried to kidnap me!" he cried passionately. "You saved me Aya! Who knows what those evil fangirls would've done to me!"

Aya blinked and patted Ken's back awkwardly, doing his best to coo soothingly while glaring at the fangirls who peered sadly through the front windows. Omi, coming to stand beside his teammates, looked questioningly at the redhead and asked, "Ne, what's wrong with Ken-kun, Aya-kun? Why are you holding him like that?"

//Because I love him with all my heart and soul, and just holding him is the greatest pleasure I've ever experienced,// Aya thought to himself, glad Omi wasn't a telepath like that Schwartz freak. "He's been traumatized, Omi," he answered aloud, deciding to keep his syrupy thoughts to himself. "He'll be fine in a minute." Omi gave the devious fangirls a pouting, unhappy look and headed back into the storage closet. Yohji watched Ken worriedly, then suddenly realized that Aya and Ken were still locked in a tender embrace. No way was he going down as simple as that! With a small frown, he called, "Oi, Aya - let go of Ken and help me with these arrangements." Aya gave Yohji a scowl, but he dropped his arms from around Ken's form and followed the blonde to the arrangement counter. //Damn you, making me get back to work,// Aya thought vehemently, glaring potently at the back of Yohji's head. //Couldn't you see I was busy in Heaven?//

Once the redhead caught up with him, Yohji whispered, "You're not gonna beat me -that- easily, Fujimiya." Aya gave him an odd look.

"I didn't start that - Ken did. He was distressed." Yohji paled considerably.

"Ken?" he asked, voice deeply concerned. "-Ken- started that?" Aya nodded shortly. Yohji pulled back, stunned. //Is it possible he hasn't even noticed-// He shook his head and decided to help his comrade out. "Shy little Kenken? The one who's been tripping over his feet and dropping things whenever you're around?" Aya nodded, then paused.

"Now that you mention it - that is a bit odd," Aya said, brow furrowed. He watched Ken watering the flowers again and continued, "Perhaps he's developing a split-personality disorder?"

Yohji stared, then groaned loudly. //He doesn't have a clue how Ken feels!// he thought, exasperated. All of a sudden, the sheer stupidity of it all was too much for him, and he stormed out of the shop, yelling, "I can't take it anymore! You're all so dense, it's driving me crazy!" Aya watched him leave, then went back to making the arrangements as Ken wandered over to his leader under the guise of watering thirsty Morning Glories, moving perhaps a tad closer than necessary for normal conversation.

"What's he so upset about? -He's- not the one that got accosted!"

Aya shook his head wistfully. "Maybe it's withdrawal." They watched silently as Yohji threw himself valiantly in front of cars for several hours, occasionally screaming things like, 'Please, somebody! Take me away from this dimwitted insanity!' - obviously, he was severely annoyed. All of the cars missed him, but it did relieve his frustration, and he returned in a much better temper.

"Man, do I feel better!" Yohji mused aloud. He then shoved Ken into Aya and laughed loudly amidst his teammates' cries. "They're both so oblivious," he muttered amiably. "Maybe I can win after all!"

***********************

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty please?"

"No."

"We never get to do anything -I- want to do!"

Farfello rolled his one good eye. "That's because if -you- got your way, it would make God smile."

Nagi folded his arms crossly in front of him. "We've been over this, Farf - I'm not as innocent as you seem to think. I'm paid to kill, remember? You told me I have devil-powers! How can I make God smile?"

Farfello paused and looked Nagi up and down. "You're cute," he replied simply.

Nagi choked. "I'm -what-? I'm not cute! I'm short, and dangerous, and evil, and. . . and lots of other things! But I'm NOT CUTE! That stupid Weiss kid is cute! Those huge blue eyes, and golden hair, and chubby face - that's what you call 'cute', Farf. I'm -not- cute. I'm just. . . just. . . just small, that's all."

Farfello shrugged. "I think you're cute." Nagi blushed brightly. Farfello leered at him, then laughed and rumpled the boy's hair. Nagi gave him a pout.

"Why can't you just kiss me like a normal person?" Farfello grinned.

"It hurts God."

Nagi sighed. "Can we just go in the toy store now?" Farfello laughed and followed his koi into the store, chanting 'It hurts God, it hurts God' over and over again.

**********************

"Aya?" Ken called, coming to the bottom of the stairs and busily buttoning his shirt. "Aya, are you ready to go?"

Silence was his only answer. Curious, Ken wandered up the stairway, shaking silvery water droplets from his freshly washed hair. He peered into the various apartments of his companions, but Aya was nowhere to be found. Finally, he spotted the redhead in the kitchen, leaning against the counter. He was gripping a coffee cup firmly in one hand and had a determined expression on his face. And, Ken noticed, despite being gorgeous as usual, he was nowhere near ready to go. Ken sighed.

"Aya?" he said again, more softly this time. Aya grunted. "Are you ready?" Another grunt. "We need to leave in ten minutes."

Aya looked cross. "I'm not going," he announced defiantly, sounding slightly childish. Ken's eyes widened.

"What? But you promised!" Aya grumbled, avoiding Ken's pleading look.

"I changed my mind." Ken's eyes began to waver.

"But - but Aya. . . you're gonna make me go all by myself?" Aya twitched uncomfortably.

"You don't have to go," the leader mumbled. "It's just Schwartz."

"But I promised I would!" Ken wailed. "I can't ignore that! Can't you just - I don't know - pretend you're eating with me?"

Aya froze. //Aw dammit,// Aya thought unhappily. //Now I -have- to go along, or it'll seem like I don't value his company.// Aya gritted his teeth. //No - be strong. Just propose an alternate activity. There's no reason this has to be the only was you spend time together. Don't fall for the - oh damn.// All his resolve disappeared at the sight of the wounded puppy-dog look Ken was giving him. Aya sighed, defeated.

"All right, all right - I'll go," he muttered darkly. His scowl vanished, however, when he saw the way Ken's face lit up and his beautiful eyes began to sparkle. //I wish I could make him look that ecstatic more often,// Aya thought fleetingly before he was tugged out the door by his energetic dinner date. Omi shook his head as he watched a reluctant Aya being forcefully maneuvered down the street by the bouncing, brown-haired Ken. Turning away from Yohji's bedroom window, he smiled at his lover and said,

"They make a cute couple, ne, Yohji-koi?" Yohji grumbled unintelligibly at Omi's comment. "Maybe they really will get together. . . " Omi observed wistfully. Yohji frowned at him.

"Hey, whose side are you on, Omittchi?" Omi giggled. He jumped into Yohji's lap and wrapped his arms around the older blonde's waist.

"Oh, Yohji-koi - stop being so silly. I just want everyone to be happy, that's all. I mean, I have you, but Aya-kun and Ken-kun - they're still all alone. They're so kawaii together, Yohji-koi, and they make each other smile. . . wouldn't that be worth it, Yohji-koi? If Aya-kun was happy and smiled more often?"

Yohji sighed, but he smiled slightly and pecked Omi on the cheek. "Yeah - yeah, that'd be worth it." Omi giggled.

"Oh Yohji-koi, you really are a softie!"

*****************

"-And there he was, sitting on the bathroom floor, just -chewing- on it as if it were one of his stupid knives-"

Crawford sighed deeply as Schuldich chattered on and on in his ear. The two were currently waiting for the arrival of the Weiss kitties at the Italian restaurant, and Schuldich was taking the opportunity to explain his entire range of life experiences to a very bored Brad. His attention wandered to the pair of arguing idiots seated at the table behind his.

"Ah jist can' -stand- it!" the orange-haired, fanged, wildly gesticulating one proclaimed loudly. "He's jist such a-"

"Anou, Tasuki, please, not here noda," his companion requested nervously, blue bangs shuddering lightly. "I know you and Tamahome-san don't really get along-"

"Git along! Yeh're kidding me! He's never listenin' ta me, he's always tryin' things, an' then he's got that attitude-"

"Tasuki! Please! Keep your voice down, noda! People are trying to eat, noda!" Tasuki rolled his bright eyes.

"I'm naht botherin' nobody, ya worrywart!" Brad flinched and decided to interject his opinion. Turning around in his chair, he faced the emotional stranger (his own carrot-top kept on blathering, apparently failing to notice that he'd lost the other man's attention). Brad pushed his glasses back up on his nose and gave the man a light sneer.

"Actually, you're disrupting my conversation quite a bit. If it's not too much trouble, would you mind shutting up?"

The two men stared at him, aghast. Then the blue-haired one stammered and grasped his friend's arm, tugging his startled companion toward the door. "S - sumimasen - we - we were just leaving, noda." They hurriedly stumbled away from the table and across the restaurant, shooting him anxious backward glances. Brad smirked, then turned back to Schuldich and sighed. Despite the distraction, Schuldich was still talking. To say the man was a motor mouth was definitely sugarcoating it.

Thankfully, Schuldich's lengthy epic was ended by the timely arrival of Aya and Ken, who made their way carefully across the crowded restaurant. Ken, being a social person, was clearly quite excited about the dinner in spite of the fact that he was not a great friend to the Schwartz members. Aya, on the other hand, was looking rather displeased about the whole situation. Crawford didn't have to be a telepath to read the look in the redhead's eyes. It was the same feeling of //Someone please rescue me from this hell// that Brad was currently experiencing himself. He caught the man's violet eyes and the two shared a look of pure sympathy before Aya sat down. Schuldich paused in his ramblings long enough to greet the two with his trademark grin before quickly wrapping up his tirade.

"So that's why you should keep Farf locked up, Bradley! I mean, he ate my toothbrush! Do you know how expensive those things are?" Brad sighed.

"Schuldich, I don't care whether Farfello ate your toothbrush or not. It took you 45 minutes to tell that story. Does the word 'concise' mean anything to you?" Schuldich pouted, and Ken sniggered quietly. The German stuck his tongue out at Ken, and both leaders rolled their eyes.

"If you two aren't even going to get along, let's go home," Aya growled. Ken's eyes got very wide and he grabbed Aya's wrist.

"What? But we just got here!" He blinked sadly and forced Aya to sit back down. "Can we stay, Aya? Please? Schuldich and I'll be good." Aya sighed, but he stayed at the table and shot Schuldich a glare. Ken bit his lip nervously, then slid his fingers through Aya's and gripped his hand tightly. Aya raised an eyebrow, but he said nothing.

The waitress arrived at that point with the food for all of them, which Crawford had conveniently ordered ahead of time. Ken's eyes widened as the young girl set a steaming plate of spaghetti down in front of him. "Wow!" he cried aloud. "How did you know what I wanted?" Crawford gave him a look, and Ken blushed lightly. "Oh, yeah. . . I forgot." As he dug into his pasta, Ken smiled giddily at the Schwartz members. "Sorry we're late. We, uh, kinda got lost." Schuldich waved him off.

"It's nothing; I was just telling my future lover here all about myself."

Crawford glared daggers at him. "For the last time, Schuldich, I am not, and never will be, your-" At that precise moment, Brad was hit with a huge premonition. He froze as his mind was completely overwhelmed by the potent images.

~//Sighing, Brad dug his house keys out of the front pocket of his Armani suit. He shoved them roughly into the slot and pushed the door open. He'd had a terrible time at the office - whatever evil, corrupt businessman he was working for now had been especially nagging that day, and Brad's headache was so bad he was even having trouble receiving his precognitive visions. As he strode into the hallway, he suddenly saw Schuldich in front of him on the floor, lying in a pool of red liquid. . .

Crawford's eyes widened, and he hurled himself to Schuldich's side, pulling the still German into his arms. "Schuldich!" he cried, panicking when he received no answer. "Schu, speak to me! No, you can't leave me!" He clutched his lover's prostrate form against his chest, ignoring the blood that spilled across his designer clothing. Schuldich's head rolled back against Crawford's shoulder, but the man made no movement. Brad clenched his fingers into the flaming hair and tucked his face against Schuldich's neck. Why? Why hadn't he seen something this important before it happened? What was he going to do without Schuldich by his side?

Even as these terrible thoughts were running through his mind, Brad was suddenly assaulted by the overwhelming smell of. . . strawberry? What the hell? Schuldich didn't use strawberry shampoo - Schuldich used Vanilla Cinnamon. Brad pulled back to see Schuldich blinking up at him, crocodile tears gathering in his eyes.

"Oh Bradley, you really do love me," Schuldich cooed. Brad shot up from the ground, dropping Schuldich back into the puddle of strawberry jam. "Ouch!" Schuldich yelped as he fell out of Crawford's lap. Brad glared menacingly at him.

"Dammit, Schuldich! What the hell was that for?! Do you know how much you scared me?" he yelled, trembling with either rage or fear - he wasn't sure which. Schuldich rose slowly and made his way to where Brad was standing, stepping carefully around the patches of jam littering the floor. He unwound Brad's arms from where they were crossed over the man's chest and settled them around his jam-covered waist, leaning up to wrap his arms about his leader's neck.

"Yes, I know exactly how much it scared you - that was the point Bradley. You fought me for so long that I wanted to find out how you -really- feel about me. When I saw the expression on your face, I knew." Schuldich gave him a sly grin and curled his strawberried fingers into Brad's hair. "Think of it this way, mein Bradley - at least I'm not dead, ja?"

"You will be if you ever pull something like that again," Crawford growled. Schuldich just laughed and kissed him soundly. Wrapping his arms more tightly around the German's waist, Brad decided to let the whole thing go - that is, until he remembered the jam. He broke away and scowled down at his lover. "And you're cleaning all this up," he threatened. Schuldich just kissed him again.//~

"Bradley?" A nasal voice broke through his thoughts. He shook his head to clear it and found himself staring into the semi-worried eyes of his Schuldich - HIS Schuldich? Huh? What had come over him? Then Brad remembered the premonition, and he closed his eyes briefly. If he was perfectly honest with himself, he knew he'd have to admit that he'd liked Schuldich for quite some time. And that if he ever found Schuldich lying in a pool of strawberry jam, he'd probably flip out. And that if the only way to avoid such a scare was to marry Schuldich, then he'd just have to suffer through forever with the obnoxious, garrulous, pestering, evil, dangerous, amusing, beautiful, and decidedly wonderful German. Brad allowed a small smile to creep onto his face as various happy visions flashed across his mind's eye. Maybe life with Schuldich wouldn't be so bad after all.

He sighed and looked up to catch Schuldich's confused gaze. He ignored the two Weiss members, who were looking at him as though he'd lost his mind - which, what with his most recent decision, wasn't a ridiculous argument. Then he reached across the checkered tablecloth and took Schu's hand, much to the man's surprise. "Schuldich," he began, "I have something to tell you." He paused then, careful to keep his mind blocked against any German telepathic perusing. "I just had a vision. A very important vision. It's going to change the course of our lives."

Schuldich frowned slightly. "You're not pregnant or anything, are you?" Brad scowled, then smiled and shook his head.

"I certainly hope not. That's not what I saw at all. What I saw was that it's not worth the effort it would take to fight you over this proposal thing. And," he added as an afterthought, "there's really no one else I would spend eternity with. I give up, Schu. You win. I'll marry you."

Schuldich blinked several times, then smiled dazzlingly. "You'll marry me? Really you will?" Brad nodded. Schuldich threw his arms around the American's neck and hugged him tightly. "Oh Bradley!" he squealed. Brad smiled for a moment, then he began to gasp and his face turned blue.

"S - Schu - can't - breathe-" Schuldich ignored him. Aya and Ken glanced at each other, and then decided simultaneously that it was time to leave this happy moment (and the check) to the Schwartz members. They got up and moved away from the table. Unfortunately, Ken's clumsiness decided to kick in just at that moment, and he tripped over his own feet. He went hurtling into the table, which tilted irrevocably and sent Ken's plate of tomato sauce flying right onto Schuldich's head. Schuldich shrieked and dropped Bradley, who had fainted. Aya grabbed Ken's arm and lugged him across the room quickly, dodging waiters and customers with cat-like grace. As they hurried out the door, Ken could still hear Schuldich screaming, "My hair! My beautiful hair! I'll get you, Weiss, if it's the last thing I do!"

"Well," Aya remarked cynically, "I guess the friendship's over."

*********************

"I think we lost them," Ken panted as he and Aya came to a stop behind an enormous tree. After they'd dashed out of the restaurant, various waiters and cashiers had chased them for a few miles, obviously believing they were leaving without paying (which they were, after all). It seemed their pursuers had finally given up, and Ken leaned back against the tree bark, sighing softly. Aya came to stand beside him.

"That, I have to admit, was a brilliant shot," Aya commented lightly. Ken looked up and smiled, knowing Aya was referring to the accidental headdress he'd given Schuldich on their way out the door. The brunette gave a hearty laugh.

"He probably won't be able to get it out for weeks!" Ken crowed, imagining Schuldich whining to Crawford 24/7 until the problem was fixed. As he thought about the pair, his eyes brightened and he looked out across the field in front of him. "They are cute together, though, aren't they?" he asked casually. Aya raised an eyebrow. Ken smiled at him. "I hope they're happy together."

Aya's gaze softened. "That's just like you, Ken. Wanting everyone, even your enemies to be happy - you're always so kind to others." Ken blushed. Aya smiled, watching in amusement as the scarlet streaked across Ken's face for the first time that day. "It's what I love most about you. . . " he said absently.

Ken's head shot up, and Aya felt himself turning red. What the hell had he just said?! Ken was looking at him in something akin to confusion, no doubt replaying the redhead's words in his mind. "A - Aya?" Ken asked incredulously. Aya tried to stammer an excuse, then gave up and stalked away. Ken started. "Oi, Aya, wait up!" He hurried after his companion and caught the other's arm, content to let the situation drop once he saw the beet red color of Aya's cheeks.

//I wonder what he meant by that?// Ken mused, hugging Aya's arm tighter. //Surely he couldn't - he doesn't-// He glanced up at Aya once more and then focused on the sidewalk. //Oh, I wish. . . maybe I'll ask him about it tomorrow.//

//That was a stupid thing to say, but I just can't help it!// Aya thought angrily. //I want to tell him so badly. . . tomorrow. I'll tell him tomorrow.//

//Tomorrow.//

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Yay! I finally finished this darn chapter! It took -forever-. Anyway - okay! Two days left! Confrontation and conclusion. There wasn't a lot about either Yohji or Omi in this chapter - rest assured they'll be back for the next one. I have to say I really liked the visual of Schuldich with spaghetti in his hair - call me sadistic. Please review! Again, sorry for the wait! Ja ne! ^_^