Title: As You Mean to Go
Author/pseudonym: NemKess
Fandom: Lesson XX
Pairing: Shizuka/Sakura
Rating: PG13
E-mail address for feedback:: nemsmuses@msn.com

Disclaimers: Lesson XX belong to me? I could only wish. Nope, not mine. No copyright infringement is intended and no money is made. This is purely to silence the voices in my head. ^_^


Notes: To my knowledge, this is the first and only Lesson XX fic out there in English. If anyone knows of another, please, please, Please let me know! Cuz I really wanna read it. Also, it took several re-sits and listening/rereading through the subs to figure out that Sakura is actually his last name. And I'm not sure if the characters are sixteen or eighteen. I do know that Shizuka is supposed to be studying for the university entrance exams that he'll be taking after the summer, but that's it.

Summary: The morning after.
Warnings: shonen ai, anime based (if there's a Manga or novel, I haven't been fortunate to get either)

~*~*~

Waking up alone sucked.

Especially considering the tiny little fact that Sakura Ichitaro distinctly recalled falling asleep wrapped around someone else.

Sitting up, the dark haired young man glanced around the room to confirm that no, Shizuka wasn't anywhere to be found. The sheets beside him were cold, so his new lover had been gone for a while. He blushed faintly at the thought of the night before. He'd given little thought to such things until his friend had made a throw-away comment on the beach about wanting to kiss him.

Fear gripped his heart and he was up tossing clothes on as quickly as he could, memories of the torturous month of silence after their first kiss flitting through his mind.

Had Shizuka changed his mind again?

There hadn't been a lot of talk in between the making out, but he'd been sure that they'd decided to be together. There'd even been mentions of telling their parents about their relationship. Sakura had never been able to lie worth a damn and Shizuka had insisted that he was tired of hiding how he felt.

But it would hardly be the first time that the sandy haired scholar had changed his mind if given too much time to think.

He stumbled out of his room and down the stairs, pausing for just a long enough to stick his head into Shizuka's open door to make sure he wasn't there.

Sakura's mind was racing, trying to figure out exactly what he'd done wrong. His eyes widened and he smacked himself in the head as he slowed down at the door to the dining room/kitchen area.

It had to be the tongue thing. If the other boy was used to kissing like that, then of course he wasn't going to want to be with someone who thought it was gross.

He stopped completely at the sound of voices on the other side of the door.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Haruna-san asked, her voice soft and concerned.

Shizuka's own tone was careless. "Maybe, maybe not. My grandfather always said that you should begin as you mean to go on. We're in love and I don't want to hide that. If my parents can't accept it, then it's their loss."

The relief he felt made Sakura's legs go weak and he leaned against the wall and slid down until he was sitting on the ground. All that worry for nothing.

Haruna-san's response was lost on the inadvertent ease dropper. He took a long moment to regain some of his equilibrium before standing back up and joining the others. Masato was there as well and sent him a knowing smirk as he walked through the door. It was eerie how the bespectacled man always seemed to know everything that was going on.

Ignoring him, Sakura turned his attention back to Shizuka just in time to catch the goofy smile that suddenly graced his lips.

"Good morning, Sakura!"

He could feel the heat fill his cheeks and it was all he could do not to duck his chin down to hide his own goofy grin. "Good morning, Shizuka. Masato-kun, Haruna-san." He greeted the others as he took his seat across from Shizuka.

Their host laughed softly before handing him a plate. "Eat up. You're both going to need your strength, I think."

The dark haired teen choked on the drink he'd just been swallowing. Masato helpfully, and forcefully, slapped his back while the other two laughed.

Head cocked to one side, golden brown eyes sparkling with mischief, Shizuka grinned at him. "I don't think she meant that, hentai."

Sakura flicked a bit of food at him while fighting his blush. "Baka."

The rest of breakfast passed companionably and Sakura smiled to himself as he watched Masato and Shizuka argue about something political that went right over his head. His lover just happened to glance over and gave a soft smile back before turning back, hands gesturing, to make his point.

It was, he decided, a definite improvement from their last 'morning after'.

'Begin as you mean to go on'. Not a bad philosophy, he thought. Making a quick decision, he quickly downed the rest of his food and hopped out of his chair. Ignoring the quizzical looks he received, he grabbed Shizuka's arm and drug him away from the table as well.

Shizuka laughed as he managed to snatch a last piece of toast, but let himself be led willingly enough. "Ja!" he called over his shoulder as they exited the kitchen. He munched on his toast as he followed. He swallowed and wiped his mouth with his free hand. "So, where are we off to?"

With a grin, Sakura just shrugged and blushed again when he realized that his companion's attention had strayed southward. "Shi-izuka!" He rolled dark eyes at the unrepentant grin he got in return. With a shrug, he answered the earlier question. "No where in particular. I just wanted to spend some more time with you before we left to go home, is all."

He yelped in surprise as he was jerked back and collided into Shizuka's chest while strong arms wrapped around his waist. "We can do that in the backyard. There's a nice tree back there for shade."

Dark eyes wandered back to the house. Haruna-san and Masato had seemed fine with the idea of them over breakfast, but that had been with the new lovers on opposite sides of the table. How would they react if they stepped outside to actually see the pair of them together? "Shizuka...."

His companion just smiled and pulled him along. "It's all right, Sakura. They're just glad not to have to deal with me moping around anymore. Besides," Shizuka's mock leer made him huff in amused annoyance. "As much as I'd love to ravish you in the backyard, I don't think I'm up to it right now."

Heat flooded his cheeks again and he cursed his fair skin as his light haired companion laughed merrily. In the end, he wasn't as irritated as he could have been. Shizuka tended to be a very serious person and in the last twenty four hours he'd laughed more than Sakura had seen him do in all the years they'd known each other. It was a nice change, even if he did have to sacrifice some dignity for it.

Shizuka's tree did indeed provide a nice shady spot to sit and talk, which is exactly what they did. Mostly, they talked about their future plans. Sakura had given little thought to continuing his education, but Shizuka really had spent most of their break studying in between sessions of angsting over their relationship. His parents were pushing him to excel so that he could take his place in the family business- something that he had little desire to do, but had seen no reason not to.

Sakura wasn't sure how well their futures would mesh, but he was certainly willing to try. It wasn't like he'd made any definite plans. And Shizuka seemed quite indifferent about the ones he had.

Somewhere in the middle of thinking about it all, they'd fallen silent. It wasn't uncomfortable, just the quiet that surrounds two people who are just enjoying one another's company.

He startled slightly when Shizuka's head dropped onto his shoulder. Arching his neck a bit, he brushed back the sandy hair so that he could get a better look.

Poor Shizuka.

He looked exhausted and Sakura had to wonder how much sleep he'd actually gotten in the last month. While a part of him was glad that he hadn't been the only one suffering, it wasn't in his nature to hold a grudge- especially not against a loved one.

Smiling, he eased his sleeping companion down to rest more comfortably against his thigh. "Love you, Shizuka," he murmured, leaning down to press a kiss against the other boy's lips. He straightened back up and leaned back against the tree trunk.

It wasn't long before he too slipped into sleep.