Part3: The Fieldtrip.
Leorio found the last two clean cups in the cupboard. Then he opened the fridge.
Kurapica looked around in the dirty kitchen.
"I understand why you go out for dinner."
"Yes I know, most of my fellow students are pigs. Orange juice or rootbeer?"
"Juice is fine."
Leorio smiled and took a big carton of orangejuice. His name was written on it in black letters.
"Why don't you rent a private studio or an appartment?"
"Cause that would kill my social life. I hate being alone. I need people around me, friends. For that I'll take the messy kitchen, not to mention the dirty toilets and showers."
//I guess that's something you will never understand.//
Kurapica frowned precareously. His eyes wandered off to the corridor to the door that said 'showers'. Around the doorway the carpet had turned brown from the moist. The door next to it said '203'.
Kurapica sniffed and turned around to look back at Leorio and took the cups and the carton out of his hands.
"Let's just go back to your room."
...
Leorio swithed on the lights and hung his vest in the closet. He thought the room smelled a little fusty so he opened the window on ajar. To prevent the books and paper on his desk from flying away he put them in the drawer.
In the meantime Kurapica had put the carton and the cups on the desk and sat down on Leorio's bed. When Leorio finished putting away his paperwork he poored the orangejuice in the cups and handed one to Kurapica. While he emptied his he considered if he would sit on the chair or on the bed next to Kurapica.
"Maybe I'd like to see those pictures after all."
Leorio allmost choked in his orangejuice. He coughed.
//Hold on a sec. A few hours ago he thought sitting on my bed with me to watch pictures implied something that offended him, but now he invites me to.... Now does he just want to watch pictures or is he implying something now? In any case sitting that close to Kurapica involves the danger of getting my face damaged. There is no way to predict that guy's moodswings. But wat am I thinking? The offer is WAY too tempting to turn down.//
"Allright." Leorio put down his empty cup and took the photoalbum from the bookshelf. "The fieldtrip to Mohancity."
He sat down close to Kurapica and opened the album holding it between the two of them.
"Look, this is our group in front of the tourbus. Here, that's me."
"Yes I noticed."
"Really?"
"The pink tie is sort of a giveaway."
"Are you mocking my style?"
"I wouldn't dare..."
...
"And here, that's Sandro in front of the Kanga Medical Reaserche Center. You remember Sandro right? The waiter at..."
"Yes I remember."
"You don't seem to like him..."
"I don't."
...
"Who's that girl?"
"That's Anko, she's a girl from my class. Why do you ask?"
//Is he jealous?//
"You look sort of close."
"She's a very good friend of mine."
"Oh..."
Leorio thought he saw a glimpse of worry in Kurapica's eyes.
//Yatta! I made him jealous! Haha! That means I might have a chance...//
"What are you smiling about?"
"Nothing... I mean ... here. THe statue of doctor Kanga. I climbed it after I took this picture."
"You climbed doctor Kanga?"
"Yup." Leorio turned the page "See? That's me on his shoulders."
"You're crazy!"
//...about you. Yes I am. I could stare into your eyes like this forever.//
...
"This is a good picture of me, don't you think?"
Kurapica nodded. "It's one of the better ones. That's because you allways make weird faces when you know someone is going to take your picture. This one looks natural."
//What? He didn't take the opportunity to insult me?//
"So you think I look good in this picture?"
//Now he's gonna say 'I wouldn't go that far'.//
Kurapica looked from the picture to Leorio back to the picture and back to Leorio.
He concluded "I think you look better in person."
//WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE REAL KURAPICA???//
"What.....??"
"What?"
"Did you just give me a compliment?"
Kurapica had a wicked smile on his face. "I think so. You can't handle it can you?"
Leorio blinked a few times and slowly shook his head. He looked into the eyes of the boy he dreamed about every night.
//The way he looks at me now... His eyes are intoxicating... I just...//
He tried to resist the urge to kiss Kurapica right then and there, but he leaned closer to the boy beside him, as if he lost control over his own body.
Kurapica froze as he felt Leorio's lips softly touch his....
Leorio found the last two clean cups in the cupboard. Then he opened the fridge.
Kurapica looked around in the dirty kitchen.
"I understand why you go out for dinner."
"Yes I know, most of my fellow students are pigs. Orange juice or rootbeer?"
"Juice is fine."
Leorio smiled and took a big carton of orangejuice. His name was written on it in black letters.
"Why don't you rent a private studio or an appartment?"
"Cause that would kill my social life. I hate being alone. I need people around me, friends. For that I'll take the messy kitchen, not to mention the dirty toilets and showers."
//I guess that's something you will never understand.//
Kurapica frowned precareously. His eyes wandered off to the corridor to the door that said 'showers'. Around the doorway the carpet had turned brown from the moist. The door next to it said '203'.
Kurapica sniffed and turned around to look back at Leorio and took the cups and the carton out of his hands.
"Let's just go back to your room."
...
Leorio swithed on the lights and hung his vest in the closet. He thought the room smelled a little fusty so he opened the window on ajar. To prevent the books and paper on his desk from flying away he put them in the drawer.
In the meantime Kurapica had put the carton and the cups on the desk and sat down on Leorio's bed. When Leorio finished putting away his paperwork he poored the orangejuice in the cups and handed one to Kurapica. While he emptied his he considered if he would sit on the chair or on the bed next to Kurapica.
"Maybe I'd like to see those pictures after all."
Leorio allmost choked in his orangejuice. He coughed.
//Hold on a sec. A few hours ago he thought sitting on my bed with me to watch pictures implied something that offended him, but now he invites me to.... Now does he just want to watch pictures or is he implying something now? In any case sitting that close to Kurapica involves the danger of getting my face damaged. There is no way to predict that guy's moodswings. But wat am I thinking? The offer is WAY too tempting to turn down.//
"Allright." Leorio put down his empty cup and took the photoalbum from the bookshelf. "The fieldtrip to Mohancity."
He sat down close to Kurapica and opened the album holding it between the two of them.
"Look, this is our group in front of the tourbus. Here, that's me."
"Yes I noticed."
"Really?"
"The pink tie is sort of a giveaway."
"Are you mocking my style?"
"I wouldn't dare..."
...
"And here, that's Sandro in front of the Kanga Medical Reaserche Center. You remember Sandro right? The waiter at..."
"Yes I remember."
"You don't seem to like him..."
"I don't."
...
"Who's that girl?"
"That's Anko, she's a girl from my class. Why do you ask?"
//Is he jealous?//
"You look sort of close."
"She's a very good friend of mine."
"Oh..."
Leorio thought he saw a glimpse of worry in Kurapica's eyes.
//Yatta! I made him jealous! Haha! That means I might have a chance...//
"What are you smiling about?"
"Nothing... I mean ... here. THe statue of doctor Kanga. I climbed it after I took this picture."
"You climbed doctor Kanga?"
"Yup." Leorio turned the page "See? That's me on his shoulders."
"You're crazy!"
//...about you. Yes I am. I could stare into your eyes like this forever.//
...
"This is a good picture of me, don't you think?"
Kurapica nodded. "It's one of the better ones. That's because you allways make weird faces when you know someone is going to take your picture. This one looks natural."
//What? He didn't take the opportunity to insult me?//
"So you think I look good in this picture?"
//Now he's gonna say 'I wouldn't go that far'.//
Kurapica looked from the picture to Leorio back to the picture and back to Leorio.
He concluded "I think you look better in person."
//WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE REAL KURAPICA???//
"What.....??"
"What?"
"Did you just give me a compliment?"
Kurapica had a wicked smile on his face. "I think so. You can't handle it can you?"
Leorio blinked a few times and slowly shook his head. He looked into the eyes of the boy he dreamed about every night.
//The way he looks at me now... His eyes are intoxicating... I just...//
He tried to resist the urge to kiss Kurapica right then and there, but he leaned closer to the boy beside him, as if he lost control over his own body.
Kurapica froze as he felt Leorio's lips softly touch his....