"My roommate is a homophobe."

Kebakeba looked up from playing with Tsuchi's silky hair. The two boys were cuddled up together on Tsuchi's bed, the younger laying with his head on Keba's lap. Tsuchi looked flustered -Bankotsu didn't doubt that he was embarrassed by his boyfriend's kissing him in the middle of campus- and he stared off at the wall, his cheeks slightly flushed. Keba was stroking his hair, running fingers through it -it was odd to see him without his hat on- and frowning lightly, but whether it was because he had upset Tsuchi or he was troubled by Bankotsu's announcement was unknown.

"What makes you say that?" Keba asked absently, fingers still twined in the silky locks. One hand drifted down to caress Tsuchi's cheek, to which the sophomore smiled slightly. Keba smiled quickly back at him, then his gaze lifted and leveled with Bankotsu's, looking at him questioningly.

"Well," Bankotsu scratched the back of his head nervously, "He saw the two of you together at the picnic and looked like he was about to hurl."

Keba winced and Tsuchi's dark eyes flashed angrily. For once, the exuberant senior was silent, his face tinged slightly pink. Tsuchi pushed himself up into a sitting position, glaring in the direction of Bankotsu and Inu Yasha's room. He didn't say anything, but disgust was written clearly across his face, and the other two boys already knew his feelings on people who preached the evils of homosexuality. "It's okay, Tsu." Keba said soothingly, "He's just stupid and ignorant like the rest of them. He doesn't get it."

"What am I gonna do, guys?" Bankotsu asked worriedly, "If he finds out about me and Jakotsu, he's not going to have any respect for me or anything. He'll make my life hell. If he was cool with this, it wouldn't be so bad, but I don't think he's going to be very understanding at all…"

"It's none of his fucking business who you're with and if he can't get that through his head, tough for him. It's not that people like him don't understand, it's that people like him don't want to understand." Keba's eyebrows knit together, "And I hope to God you're not ashamed by any of this, Bankotsu. It's about time you start acting proud of who you are. You can't keep running from the truth, you know."

"Keba…" Tsuchi finally spoke, "It isn't fair of you to preach things like that. You haven't told your parents yet, remember?" Inky eyes blinked as the younger boy peered at his companion, "So none of that crap from you."

Keba scowled, then turned back to Bankotsu. "If the kid really is some kinda homophobe, he's in for a wild year…I mean, this is like the gay ward. Look who he's got…" He flashed a toothy grin, "Me, you, this one here," he jerked his head in Tsuchi's direction, causing his brown hair to bounce, "Naraku…We ain't sure about Juuroumaru, but Naraku thinks he could go both ways. They had a little 'incident,' if ya know what I mean." His eyebrows rose slightly, "The guys in this whole wing of the dorm are pretty much bisexuals and gays. Sesshomaru is gone now and I think he was the straightest guy here."

"I feel sorry for him then." Tsuchi was rummaging through a bag hanging from the bedpost, "It's going to be hell for him, being the only straight guy here." He fished around until he came up with a package of rice crackers, then settled back on the bed, fumbling to tear the plastic, "You know?"

"I'm not gay." Bankotsu insisted for the second time that day.

"We know; we know…" Kebakeba spoke as he would to a small child as he took the package from Tsuchi and tore it open, "You're bi."

"I'm not that either!!" The other boy shouted in frustration.

"Well, what are you then?" Keba sighed as he pulled a few crackers out and began munching on them.

"I'm straight. Heterosexual. Into girls."

"Gimme those." Tsuchi crawled across Keba, reaching for the crackers.

"Look, Bankotsu, you've been sleeping with Jakotsu for, like, a year and a half. If you can't even admit it to yourself, how are you going to face Inu Yasha when the issue becomes a problem?" The brown-haired boy relinquished the snack to his friend and flopped down on his back, chocolate gaze still resting on Bankotsu's face, "You love Jakotsu, right?"

"Right." Bankotsu muttered, blushing slightly.

"So what is the frickin' problem then? You don't wanna wind up like me with all kinds of regrets, do you? I mean, after I found out Kiyaku was getting married, it was too late for me. I thought I'd never get over him…And that was my fault, because I worried too much about what every one else would think. I lost my best friend to a woman because I was afraid to face the world with what I am." Keba paused for a moment and silence fell over the three.

Tsuchi fidgeted slightly, staring down at the dark purple carpeting. He twisted a strand of hair around his finger, suddenly not hungry. It still unnerved him when Kebakeba talked about the past and Kiyaku, still bothered him to think he was just a replacement for what Keba had lost. It's because we were friends before…Because he wanted to forget about Kiyaku. So he settled for me…He sighed, running a hand absently through his hair.

Kebakeba, looking uncharacteristically solemn, reached over and caught Tsuchi by the wrist. "Hey, cheer up, Tsu." He smiled faintly, tracing a finger along the younger boy's cheek, "I'm happy we're together." He kissed the tip of Tsuchi's nose, "But the point is, you don't want to do anything stupid because you're scared or worried about what people will think, Bankotsu. I got lucky that things worked out with Tsuchi, but if you give up Jakotsu for some stupid reason, you might not be so lucky. You shouldn't have to compromise your feelings to make other people happy." A frown crossed his face, "Or you might regret it for the rest of your life."

Tsuchi's gaze lowered again and he huddled in the corner on the bed, a pillow clutched in his lap. He was twisting the striped pillowcase around in his hands, staring at a King Hippo poster on the wall, looking everywhere but at Keba. He regrets me. He wishes he told Kiyaku sooner so he wouldn't have married that girl. He says he's happy…But he's not.

Bankotsu looked at Tsuchi for a moment, studying the younger boy's drawn face. Then he glanced at Kebakeba, taking in his serious expression. "When it's an issue…" He murmured, "Then I'll tell him." He nodded, more to reassure himself than to emphasize the point. His cerulean gaze swept across the two on the bed once more, hoping that everything would be okay for them, then he wandered out of the room and back across the hall.

--

"What are you doing?"

Inu Yasha'a head snapped up at the accusing sound of Bankotsu's voice and he nearly dropped the picture frame in his hand. "Just lookin' at your pictures." He mumbled, "Is that a problem?" He fumbled for a moment to set the frame back where it had been on the desk and straightened up, golden gaze piercing through the older boy.

"No." Bankotsu's brow furrowed, "But I'd prefer if you asked before touching my stuff."

"Keh." Inu Yasha folded his arms, turning away. There was an awkward silence for a moment, then he looked back over at Bankotsu. "Who's the fruitcake you're with in those pictures?" He asked casually, pointing at a couple of the frames near Bankotsu's computer.

A frown darkened Bankotsu's face. "That 'fruitcake' is my best friend." He said through gritted teeth, "And he happens to be the guy you're replacing in the room." He glanced at the pictures for a moment; one of him and Jakotsu together in the grass on the hill -Tsuchi had taken that right before the end of the semester last spring- and one of them playing Beetle Racers on Keba's Playstation which Naraku had snapped after yelling "hey guys, lookit me!" so they were both twisted around, confused expressions on their faces. Then there was the one from graduation…That had been an emotional day for them both…Bankotsu fingered the silver frame. In the picture, he was smiling, dressed neatly; he appeared happy. Jakotsu -in his cap and gown- was beaming, arms tossed around his friend. We were so happy then. Was that really only three months ago…?

"Are you okay?" Inu Yasha questioned, a puzzled expression crossing his face. Bankotsu seemed to be in a trance as he stared at the picture, a soft, wistful smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Huh?" Bankotsu snapped back to reality and scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Yeah; I'm fine. Just thinking about things…" He climbed up onto his bed, kicking off his shoes on the way, "It's going to be way weird getting used to a new roommate. Jakotsu and I've lived together since I first got here."

Inu Yasha shrugged. "I gotta get used to it too…Even if I did have to put up with my annoying bastard of a brother; I had my own room at home."

"Well, I'm sure we'll get along okay." A half-smile crept across the junior's face, "I'm pretty easy to live with, or so I've been told. It's Naraku and Juuroumaru you've got to watch out for. Naraku is an ass and he likes making people miserable…Juuroumaru, he can be a pain if you get him angry at you. He doesn't say much, but don't let him fool you…He can be pretty violent."

"Oh." Inu Yasha settled himself down in front of his computer, tipping back in his desk chair, "What about the guys across the hall?"

"Two of them," Bankotsu paused for a moment, wondering how to put this so that it wouldn't come out too awkward or accusing, "Are the 'fags' who were waving at me before." Was it his imagination, or did Inu Yasha suddenly look sort of green? "Tsuchi, the black-haired one, he's a sophomore; an art major. Kebakeba is a senior and he's in Methods this semester. He wants to be a teacher. The other guy in that room is the RA, Koga. He's a bit of a jock and always looking for a woman."

"Oh. Okay." He swiveled around, turning back to the computer screen.

Bankotsu shrugged. "There'll be a hall meeting in a little while. Then every one meets every one else and everything. Most of us know each other already though. It's really just you and some of the girls who are new." He picked up his headphones and untangled the wires, then shuffled through his CDs, looking for "RaNDoM: Live at JCHS."

"Baaaaaankotsu!!!"

Bankotsu yanked off his headphones and glanced at the clock. He'd been sitting on the bed, listening to music for nearly an hour and Kebakeba was in the doorway, beaming. "It's time for the hall meeting, you two." He said excitedly, "C'mon; Koga wants us outside, on the wall."

"Gimme a sec…I need to put my shoes back on." Bankotsu climbed down off the bed, "I'll be out in a minute."

"Okie dokie." Keba scampered out of the room, his voice floating back in "Naraku! Juuroumaru! Come on; time for the meeting!" Then, further down the hall, booming, "Ladies!!"

Inu Yasha stretched; popping several joints and scratching his back. "Will this take a long time?"

"Why? You have something planned?" Bankotsu looked at him, one eyebrow cocked, as he tied his left shoe.

"I just, y'know, don't want to be around them very long." The freshman fidgeted, shuffling his feet nervously.

"Around who?" The dark-haired man's eyebrows knit together and he frowned, cramming his right foot into the sneaker and tightening the laces.

"The queers…"

"You know, it's not like they're going to give you gay or something. Geez, how close-minded can a person get?" Bankotsu rolled his eyes, "You either are or you aren't. They're perfectly normal people." This said, he straightened and marched out of the room, leaving the other boy standing there.

Five minutes later, the entire residence of Koufukin Hall, first floor, west, was sitting lined up side by side on the wall between buildings. The girls were all giggling together at one end and the boys were casually lounging here and there at the other. Kebakeba and Tsuchi were in the middle, Keba nestled against a slightly blushing Tsuchi. Nobody really seemed surprised by this, but some of the girls were giggling and squealing and Inu Yasha looked tense and uncomfortable.

"Welcome back; ladies, gentlemen." Heads snapped up at the sound of the RA's voice. Koga was a tall, wiry boy with long black hair pulled up in a ponytail. "And welcome to those of you who are new." His blue gaze panned across the expectant faces of the bunch lining the wall, "Most of you know the rules already, but I have to tell you all this anyway, so bear with me. There's no drinking or smoking in the dorm. No drinking at all; this is a dry campus." He glared at Naraku, who simply grinned smugly, "Quiet hours are from eleven to seven on weeknights and one till seven on weekends." Another glare in the direction of the kinky-haired senior, "There's to be no candles, no open flames of any kind, no microwaves, hot pots or coffee makers in the rooms. Laundry rooms are in the pit; the trash room is at the end of our hall." He paused for a moment, trying to remember if there was anything else, "If you have any questions or whatever, I'm in room 122 B."

Silence for a moment, then the RA spoke up again. "Now for the part I know you all love." Groans from the returning students, "Time for names and all that."

"Do we have to do this again?" Naraku whined, "We know each other already."

Koga's glare intensified, burning through Naraku. "Some people don't know each other. Like the puppy over there." He jerked a thumb in Inu Yasha's direction, "You know the drill. Name, year, major and some other random fact about yourself. Since you're so eager, Naraku, why don't you begin?"

"Fine; fine." The boy languidly pushed his hair out of his eyes, "Naraku, senior, theater major. Random fact about me?" He paused for a moment, "Most of my roles have involved me playing the part of a woman." He smiled coyly, winking at Inu Yasha, who recoiled in disgust. "Your turn, puppy."

For a moment, Inu Yasha looked revolted. Then his disgust turned to outrage at having been called "puppy." He balled his hands into fists and glared at the senior, golden eyes burning into Naraku's brown ones. Naraku seemed to not care, just sat there staring back, brown eyes unblinking. The rest of the group watched curiously, wondering if there would be some sort of brawl.

Koga sighed, dragging a hand across his face. Leave it to Naraku to get on the freshman's bad side right away. "Can we just get on with it?" Bright blue eyes rolled. "Puppy, you're up."

"Don't call me that." Inu Yasha grumbled, "'M Inu Yasha. I'm a freshman and I'm undeclared right now. Uh, I guess…Uh, my brother graduated from here last semester. Sesshomaru. He lived in this hall."

"Yeah, we all know him." Naraku butted in, "Had somethin' up his ass, didn't he? Whew; he was a social dud…"

"Shut up, Naraku!" Koga growled, "You're making this take longer than necessary."

"True…" Naraku nodded, "Shutting up now." He glanced at his braided quadmate, one eyebrow rising.

The junior rolled his eyes, but proceeded with the introduction. "I'm Bankotsu, a junior, music industry major. Um…" He paused for a moment, thinking, "My favorite band is Purple Haze and I have all of their albums."

"Me next! Me next!!" Kebakeba waved an arm around wildly, "I'm Kebakeba, I'm a senior and I'm entering my Methods block. Next semester I get to student teach!" He squealed excitedly, "And…I really hate shoes!" As if to emphasize this point, he wiggled his toes, grinning like an idiot. "Your turn, Tsu." He poked his companion.

Tsuchi blinked, haunting gaze drifting across all the people looking at him expectantly. "My name is Tsuchi." He said quietly, "I'm a sophomore and an art student. I'm the only one here besides Koga who knows Keba's real name."

Keba nodded. "And it's gonna stay that way, right?"

"Yes."

And so it continued. Every one introduced themselves and said something about themselves until they returned to Koga. He pointed out a few more things, then dismissed the group, reminding them again of where they could find him if he had any questions. Some off them wandered off to the dining hall, some went back into the dorm.

Bankotsu was unlocking the door while Inu Yasha shuffled around impatiently behind him, shifting from one foot to another. The freshman was feeling antsy and restless; he just wanted to get into a somewhat familiar setting and get on his computer. The older boy couldn't seem to remember which key was for the door to the common room, which was for the door to his bedroom and which was for the mailbox. "Dammit!" He cursed under his breath, finally shoving the correct key into the lock just as some one grabbed him from behind.

"Bankotsu!" Kebakeba exclaimed gleefully, feeling the younger boy start at his touch, "I wanna hear all about your summer and everything! Tsu and I are gonna hang out in here for a while, 'kay?"

"Uh…" Bankotsu blinked, then glanced at Inu Yasha, who had backed away slightly, looking terrified. He shrugged, not really caring what the homophobic freshman thought at the moment. To be honest, he wasn't quite sure he could handle being alone in the room at the moment anyway. He dreaded going back in and not seeing all of Jakotsu's things…"I guess it's okay."

He pushed the door open and ushered his friends into the common room. Inu Yasha instantly made a bee-line for the bedroom, shutting himself safely inside with his computer, away from the "queers." Naraku and Juuroumaru had gone out to celebrate the beginning of the semester with some buddies of theirs, so the three boys had the room to themselves.

Keba immediately began an inspection of the common room, looking over the collection of DVDs piled in a box near the TV. Tsuchi made himself comfortable on the small couch, stretching long legs up to rest on the make-shift coffee table created out of a board laid across a couple cinderblocks --Naraku's idea of furniture. Bankotsu closed the door leading to the hall part-way and sank down into the beanbag chair Jakotsu had left behind for him, purposely leaving the other end of the couch available for Keba to sit next to his friend.

In the end, there was no need for that. Kebakeba plopped unceremoniously down on Tsuchi's lap, draping an arm around the younger boy's shoulder. Tsuchi's face paled for a moment, then turned very red as a small smile lit his dark features. His blush deepened as Keba shifted to make himself comfortable until he was bright red. Bankotsu blinked, momentarily wondering why his friend was changing colors, but Keba simply grinned mischievously, giggling as he kissed his boyfriend on the cheek. "Somebody's happy to see me." He teased in a singsong voice.

Tsuchi looked like he wanted to crawl under a rock. Bankotsu was mortified. At least Jakotsu had attempted to try and control himself when other people were present. Keba, on the other hand, had absolutely no shame. "So…" The braided boy spoke up, trying to ease the somewhat uncomfortable atmosphere, "What did you guys do all summer?"

Inside the bedroom, Inu Yasha was searching desperately for his headphones. Must…have…music…He didn't want to run the chance of overhearing any of the conversation in the common room, for fear of what one of the queers would say. For some reason, it didn't seem to bother Bankotsu at all; Inu Yasha's roommate seemed to have absolutely no problem with the fact that they were surrounded by sickos.

Then a horrifying though crossed his mind. Suppose Bankotsu is gay too! Inu Yasha froze for a moment, turning the idea over and over in his mind. It made sense, after all. The guy who lived here before -Jakotsu- he didn't look like he was anything but gay…And he and Bankotsu were best friends…The freshman paled significantly.

But Bankotsu neither looked nor acted gay…Inu Yasha's eyebrows knit together as he studied one of the pictures on the junior's desk a second time. There was Bankotsu, hair pulled back as usual, wearing a black t-shirt with the Purple Haze logo emblazoned across the front. He was flopped down on his back, lying on a patch of grass, his head resting in Jakotsu's lap. Jakotsu, Inu Yasha noted, definitely looked very fruity. He had a pink button-down shirt on and gray, silky-looking pant. His dark hair was pulled up in a loose ponytail and -dear God- was that lipstick?

The young man felt ill. Why was he cursed with the bad luck to be surrounded by homos? How would he survive nine months with those weirdoes around him? It was bad enough with the two across the hall, but his own roommate?

Another glance at the picture. The way the two men in the picture were looking at each other, it was as if they shared some great secret. One of Jakotsu's hands rested on Bankotsu's forehead as if he had been brushing back the younger man's bangs and Bankotsu was smiling faintly; it almost appeared that he was forcing himself to be happy. But something about their eyes…

The boy recoiled in horror. No wonder Sesshomaru had gone around smirking so much when they received Inu Yasha's housing information in the mail. Sesshomaru had known it would be like this, but hadn't bothered to inform him…His brother knew about his phobia and had done this on purpose. Inu Yasha scowled, turning away from the picture and resuming his search for his headphones.

He never found them.

Sighing, Inu Yasha resigned himself to the fact that he would have to make do without and plopped down at his desk. Moments later, he was absorbed in browsing through the files at AnimeMusicVideos.org, punk rock music pouring from his speakers. His golden gaze settled on the screen as he browsed for songs and shows he liked and he momentarily forgot about the other boys out in the common room.

He managed to forget, that is, until a loud shriek of laughter resounded from the other room. Startled, he jerked back, nearly tipping over his chair in the process. His eyes flashed dangerously and he leapt up from his chair, storming out of the bedroom. "What the hell is going on out-!" He froze in the doorway, gaping at the sight before his eyes.

Tsuchi and Kebakeba were still together on the couch, only now they were facing one another and Keba had his legs wrapped around Tsuchi's waist and his face buried in his shoulder as he tried to control his laughter. He giggled madly, shoulders shaking beneath the tie-dyed tank top as he clutched at Tsuchi's dark tee-shirt. Bankotsu was sprawled over the beanbag chair, laughing as well, and Tsuchi looked furious, as if he had been the butt of whatever the joke had been, but there was a sparkle in his eyes and he cracked a smile which quickly turned into a snicker then a full-blown laugh.

"Would you all shut up?" Inu Yasha spat out trying to block out the sight of the three of them, "You guys are so fucking loud." His amber glare swept from one to the other, his mouth turned down in a scowl.

"Lighten up. You're really wound up, aren't you?" Keba looked up at him from over Tsuchi's shoulder, grinning lazily and hiccupping as he tried to stop laughing, "You only get one go-round, so you might as well make the best of it, ya know?"

The blonde's eyes nearly bugged out of his head and he stared at the brunette, aghast. "I don't need advice from some one like you." His jaw clenched and he steeled his gaze, eyes never leaving the older boy's face.

Keba blinked in confusion. "Some one like me?" He looked questioningly at Tsuchi and Bankotsu, who shrugged uncomfortably, then back up at Inu Yasha, "What do you mean, some one like me?"

Bankotsu shifted uneasily, the beanbag chair making a chuff-chuff noise beneath him. This could only go from bad to worse and Keba was the kind of person who would argue any point to death if it meant defending himself and Tsuchi…Dammit, why did we have to get a homophobe? Why couldn't he have been understanding at least? It's bad enough not having Jakotsu here, but with this guy…Everybody is going to be miserable. He felt a sudden twinge of sadness. Why does everything have to be so different?

"You mean some one who likes guys, don't you?" Keba continued, "You think I have some kind of disease? That I'm insane? You think I'm going to try and make you gay or something?" Brown eyes flashed angrily, "Just because I happen to like men as much as women doesn't mean I'm a terrible, bad person."

Inu Yasha stared at him a moment longer, then turned to go back into the room, ash-blond hair swirling around him. He paused in the doorway, one hand raised to the doorframe, "That's exactly what it means." He said coolly before marching back into the bedroom.

Keba, for once, had absolutely nothing to say. He simply lowered his head, burying his face back in Tsuchi's shoulder. The sophomore didn't say anything either, rather he stroked his friend's back slowly, an angry expression on his face. His dark eyes flashed dangerously, a sure sign that he would destroy Inu Yasha if he ever heard the younger man say anything like that again.

Bankotsu stared at his hands in his lap. If Inu Yasha was going to be like that, it would be impossible for him to have Jakotsu around…That made his heart ache. How would he survive without Jakotsu? He needed the older man to calm him down when he was stressed over school work, needed him to keep him from being hurt by people like Inu Yasha who didn't seem to understand the complicated nature of their relationship, just needed him to be there and encourage him. How could he possibly survive on his own?

Fact was, he couldn't. The summer had been proof of this. He'd gotten far too used to being in his friend's presence; far too used to having Jakotsu by his side. And now it was torture for him that they were so close, yet so far apart. He ran a hand wearily through his bangs, pushing himself up from the beanbag chair. "I think I'm going to go to bed, guys." He fumbled for the right words, "And…Ah, I'm sorry about that, Keba." He frowned, "I'll try and talk to him."

Kebakeba nodded slightly, eyes glazed over, then sighed heavily and nestled against Tsuchi's neck again. "It's not your fault…" He whispered wearily, "So don't be sorry. I don't want pity." A pause, "Tsu…We better go back to our room."

The dark-haired boy nodded, hand once more running across his friend's back. "All right." He agreed, "Good night, Bankotsu."

"Night." Dreading a confrontation, the junior turned back to the door of his bedroom. Pull yourself together! He's just a little freshmen…There are more guys here who don't care about my personal life than do…He's the only one with a problem with it…And he doesn't even know anyway. He twisted the doorknob, and entered the room, glaring at Inu Yasha. "You're the most insensitive ass I have ever met." He managed to spit out, folding his arms across his chest, blue gaze boring through the back of the other boy's head.

"Keh." Was the muttered response. Inu Yasha didn't even bother to turn around, just hunched himself further over his keyboard, eyes glued to the glowing computer screen.

Bankotsu sighed, realizing there was no point in pressing the matter. He wandered over to the dresser, searching for a different tee-shirt and a pair of shorts to sleep in. Ignoring Inu Yasha, he switched off the light and crawled into bed, clutching Jakotsu's stuffed snake. Earlier in the afternoon, his roommate had scoffed about the stuffed animal, but the older boy didn't care. He buried his nose in the fabric, trying to catch the lingering scent of his lover as he stared at the wall.

It would be a long time before sleep claimed him.

"Methods" is the name for the series of classes you take right before student teaching (that's what it's called in the SUNY school system, at least). I don't really know much about it yet, but I will have to go through it…

RaNDoM: Live at JCHS is the first "album" my brother's band put out snicker snicker It was a CD my dad made of their songs from Battle of the Bands and it's crappy. Now they have a good demo CD. So I guess I did that as a little joke…

Mou; I've made Inu-kun into a right little bastard, haven't I? I think I'm writing him like this because he really does act like that at times; like an insensitive clod. And also because people adapt to change in strange ways. Look at me, for example…I went completely haywire when I went away last summer ;;