Warnings: Lots of talk about the cruelty of homophobes, slight religious fanatic bashing.

"How's Keba?"

Jakotsu looked lazily up at Tsuchi, who stood in the doorway. The sophomore had poked his head into the room to see if Bankotsu and Jakotsu were there or if Inu Yasha knew where they were if they weren't and had found the two boys curled up on the bed together. Bankotsu was still asleep, clutching one of Jakotsu's arms, but the older man was staring up at the ceiling, apparently lost in thought.

"Bankotsu told you what happened?" Tsuchi asked quietly. He stood over the bed, looking down at Jakotsu, their inky eyes burning together. The younger boy was dressed in his usual dark attire, but he had forgone the hat in favor of a loose ponytail.

"Yeah." A nod.

"He's okay. Just got up. I know he'll be okay…" A small frown crossed Tsuchi's face and he toyed with a stray lock of his hair.

Jakotsu smiled kindly. "I'm sure he'll be fine. It takes a lot more than one little insult to break Keba."

"I suppose." Tsuchi smiled faintly, "So what are your plans for the day? Bankotsu said we could hang out with you guys."

"Yeah; we're not doing much. Probably going downtown later for something to eat. Maybe we can play bad mitten or something." Jakotsu ran a hand through his hair, grinning, "You know I play a mean game and Keba is so much fun to play with."

"I'll see what he says." A pause, "You guys didn't…you know…Did you?" The younger boy blushed lightly, pondering over how they could have possibly with Inu Yasha skulking around.

Jakotsu giggled. "No. He was tired so we took a nap. That's all, you pervert. I did get a good look at Inu Yasha though. He is cute. Keba wasn't kidding."

"Jakotsu…" Tsuchi's eyebrows knit together, "You better not even think about going after him." He said warningly, glancing at the still sleeping junior on the bed, "If you break Bankotsu's heart, you'll regret it. He loves you more than anything, you know."

"I know." The man sighed, "I can't help it though. It's not my fault I'm attracted to him."

"Just don't do anything stupid." The boy turned to leave the room, "Because I don't want any more of my friends living with regrets." He smiled sadly, "I'll see what Keba wants to do today."

"All right." Jakotsu nodded, "See ya later."

"Yup."

Tsuchi left and Jakotsu glanced over at his sleeping boyfriend. Bankotsu was smiling; he looked very happy. I don't want to hurt you…He brushed back the younger man's hair, smiling fondly. I never want to hurt you. I told you that a long time ago, didn't I? Told you that I only want your smiles. And I don't want to…But I know that I'll let you down. I will make you hurt.

And I'm so sorry…

"You guys wanna go get something to eat with us?"

Kebakeba looked over his shoulder. Bankotsu and Jakotsu were crowded in the doorway of the common room, both looking expectantly at him and Tsuchi. He and the younger boy were sitting on the couch together, watching Maury, he snuggled up against Tsuchi. His hair was damp -he'd just showered- and he was still tired, but the idea of food did sound appealing. "Dining hall?"

"Yeah. They should be serving lunch stuff by now." Bankotsu nodded, "We're not going to go for real food until later."

"Going downtown later?" Keba brightened considerably. He loved excursions to town; to the pet store, the Chinese restaurant, the thrift store and -of course- the book store…"Sounds fun."

A trace of a relieved smile crossed Tsuchi's face. He had been worried that Keba would spend the whole day brooding of Inu Yasha's hurtful comment and the connection he made between Ryoku and Inu Yasha. And Kiyaku…He would dwell on the past and Kiyaku if he wasn't properly distracted. Tsuchi could only provide so much distraction.

"You can come then too." Bankotsu offered kindly. He knew Jakotsu would probably prefer that they spend some time alone, but he also knew that Tsuchi didn't deserve to suffer any more because he didn't know what to do with Keba. It wasn't his fault that bad things had happened to his friend and it wasn't his fault that Keba couldn't let go of the past. "We'll go for Chinese food."

"Really?" Keba grinned, "I can get chicken and broccoli!" He beamed at Bankotsu, then looked excitedly at Tsuchi, before bouncing up off the couch to find his flip-flops. "C'mon, let's go!!"

Tsuchi offered Bankotsu a grateful smile as he rose from the small couch and followed behind his friend. The older boy acknowledged the thanks with a nod, indicating they could talk about it later, then he glanced at Jakotsu, who looked at him questioningly. "Later." He said softly, patting the taller man on the shoulder.

Keba came bounding back out of the bedroom, his pants swishing as he moved. "Everything is so much more fun when you're here, Jakotsu!" He exclaimed, "We actually go out and do things." His hair bounced around his face, which was flushed red, and he shuffled impatiently from foot to foot.

Jakotsu laughed. "You're like a puppy, Keba." One slender hand flicked out and patted the senior on the head, "It's like when you ask a dog if it wants to go for a car ride…"

"Hey!" Keba swatted his hand back, growling mockingly, "I'm no puppy!"

"Are we going to eat or are you guys going to fool around?" Tsuchi asked calmly. Bankotsu was still standing in the doorway, rolling his eyes at the antics of the two oldest boys. "I'm hungry. Let's go."

"Okay!" Keba swished out the door, "Last one there has to kiss Juuroumaru!" He giggled insanely, running down the hall.

More eye rolling from Bankotsu and Tsuchi. Jakotsu just laughed more and scampered off after the brunette. The two still in the room shared a glance. "Looks like he's feeling better." Bankotsu smiled.

"Won't Jakotsu be upset if we tag along for everything? I mean, didn't he want to spend time with just you?" Tsuchi frowned, "I don't want us to get in the way." He pushed back a chunk of hair which had slid from his ponytail, peering intently into Bankotsu's blue eyes.

"It'll be okay." The braided boy insisted, "He worries about Keba too ya know. Now come on…I'm not staying here if it means I have to kiss Juuroumaru!" He grinned, disappearing off after the other two.

Tsuchi sighed, trailing along behind him. It would be an interesting day, to say the least…

"…So I told him there was no way he would ever do it and he said he would and I said nu-uh and he insisted and I still said 'no' so he did it!" Keba waved his arms around wildly as he spoke as if he was trying to emphasize his point and embellish the story.

"He jumped?" Jakotsu asked, eyes wide. His dark gaze then swept over to Tsuchi's face, "You jumped??"

Tsuchi nodded solemnly. "Yup."

"Wow."

Bankotsu smiled, laughing to himself at Jakotsu's almost childish fascination with Keba's obviously embellished story. He felt so relaxed and at ease; it was as if he needed Jakotsu around for his life to be routine. It was good to have things back to normal, even if it was only for the day.

The four were crowded into a booth in the dining hall together, swapping stories over soggy french fries and Dr. Pepper. Kebakeba was back to his usual loud self, leaned forwards across the table, speaking animatedly. Tsuchi was slumped down next to him, yawning, dark gaze never leaving the face of his beloved friend. Jakotsu was snuggled up beside Bankotsu, clinging to his arm, smiling happily and laughing at the exaggerated stories of the brunette. Everything was as it had been the previous semester and it felt right.

Suddenly they were distracted by a large crowd moving past them towards the tables by the window. All four boys fell silent, solemnly watching the passing throng; who stared back at them just as seriously, some with disgusted looks on their faces.

"You know," Keba spoke up once they were out of earshot, "I used to be friends with a lot of those people."

Bankotsu looked surprised at this. "You hung out with the Bible thumpers?" He questioned incredulously.

A nod. "My freshman year, I was a part of their little goody-goody club. Back then, it was really fun. I liked it a lot. We got to do all kinds of volunteering things and work with a lot of little kids and all…" He sort of trailed off. Across from him, Jakotsu was nodding in agreement, a small frown on his face. Tsuchi sat beside him, quiet as always, his expression darkened by anger.

"What happened?" The junior boy had heard nothing about this. Since when was Keba religious?

"We had this retreat weekend the beginning of my sophomore year." The story continued, "It was not too long after I started admitting things about myself, only five months or so after I told Kiyaku that I loved him. It was one of those deals where we were supposed to come together and share experiences and come to terms with ourselves and all…I made the mistake of talking about my struggle to accept my sexuality and how I denied it for two years or so. For the rest of the retreat, they avoided me like I had the plague."

Silence. Bankotsu glanced from his friend to the religious fanatics and back again. How could any one do that to Keba? He was the nicest guy. Sure, a little quirky, but fun and outgoing and helpful…Bankotsu looked again at Keba, who smiled sadly.

"It gets worse." The brown-haired boy continued, "At the next meeting, they tried an intervention or some crap like that. Apparently, some of them thought they could 'cure' me and make me 'normal.' So they all started preaching passages from the Bible to me. I insisted that this was how I was and it wouldn't change, but they wouldn't let up. One of them finally told me I was an evil sinner and I would be going to hell for eternity and I decided I didn't deserve any more of their shit." He paused, "I left and I've never looked back."

"That's terrible!" Bankotsu exclaimed, blue eyes wide with horror. "Even if they don't feel the same as you, no one has the right to tell you that!" He felt sick. How could people be so cruel? And to Keba, who never did a thing to anybody in his life. It wasn't fair.

"The club administrator tried to apologize to me, but I wouldn't buy it. Even though only one of them said it, I know it's what they were all thinking. I guess…that was when I stopped considering myself a religious person. I haven't been in a church since then, with the exception of Kiyaku's wedding." He smiled lazily, shrugging, "But I've survived so far."

"I had something like that too…" Jakotsu piped up, "My first roommate, his girlfriend seemed to be under the impression that all gay men check out all other men. She accused me of giving Kenage the once-over. I was insulted…Just because I'm gay doesn't mean I don't have standards." He wrinkled his nose, "Ken wasn't really that cute." A meditative pause followed this statement, "And she never apologized to me for it either."

"Oh, yeah…You pointed them out to me once." Bankotsu nodded, "Neither of them were good looking. And wasn't it something like you saw some other guy check him out and you told the girlfriend and the girlfriend said something like 'how do you know it wasn't really Jakotsu checking you out?' and she thought you didn't hear it?"

"You remember better than I do." Jakotsu smiled proudly, leaning over to kiss Bankotsu on the cheek, "I forgot about that part." He patted his friend on the head, eyes sparkling, and left his arm draped around the younger man's shoulder.

Bankotsu instantly blushed. A year and a half and he still couldn't control himself when Jakotsu was feeling flirty; he was constantly blushing up a storm. Jakotsu grinned down at him and he ducked his head shyly, smiling to himself.

"It happened to me to." Tsuchi said slowly, "In high school."

All eyes were instantly on the sophomore boy. He didn't really talk about things in his past much; only Kebakeba knew what his life had been like before college. Only Keba knew of the uptight parents and the close-minded little town. Only Keba knew of the struggles, the hatred, the anger. And only Keba -who loved another man more- knew how to make everything seem less hopeless.

"Because I was open-minded and they were not, every one assumed I was gay. Back then, I considered myself to be nothing but straight -I'd had a couple girlfriends- but every one for some reason thought I was a…how did they put it?" He paused for a moment in silent contemplation, "…A fairy. I got called that all the time. I had things put in my locker. Taped to my locker. My art projects got vandalized. They trashed my car…Spray painted things on our garage door. I even got beat up. My parents were so angry. 'No son of theirs was a fag' they said. I hate them anyway, so when I came here, I was never planning on going back. It didn't matter after I was with Keba…They would have kicked me out anyway. I called them from his house Christmas morning and gave them a gift…Told them I was bisexual, in a relationship with a man and that they finally, totally pushed me away, just like they always wanted."

Bankotsu felt numb. Never when he got involved with Jakotsu had he imagined so many terrible things. He had forgot to factor in much of the torment that comes with homophobia, from extremely cruel remarks like Inu Yasha's to actual, physical abuse. To that day, he had only received a few small comments and jokes from his homophobic friends back home who knew nothing about his illicit affair with his former roommate. He couldn't imagine in his wildest dreams being beaten just for loving some one.

But then, the braided boy came from a good, loving family.

Keba had a hand rested supportively on Tsuchi's shoulder, but his brown gaze had drifted over to Bankotsu. Even though the junior had been mixed up with them for quite some time, he really had no clue what he had gotten himself into. He looked terrified and angry and ill all at once.

Jakotsu snuggled him closer, lips grazing across his forehead. "Cheer up, kiddo. If any one messes with you, they mess with me too. We're all in this together."

There was an awkward silence for a moment, then Keba's face brightened again. "Hey, did I tell you guys about when we went to that amusement park?" He chirped excitedly.

The other three smiled faintly, glad for a distraction. Keba was good at acting as if nothing was wrong and getting other people to feel the same way. That was why it had been so unnerving for all of them to think about him crying. But he had bounced back easily and they all settled back into the comfortable atmosphere as Keba launched into another outrageous tale.

"Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're being awfully quiet. And you're avoiding my question by asking your own question. That's a good sign that something is bothering you."

Bankotsu sighed as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders and Jakotsu looked at him pointedly.

"See?" The older man accused, "Something is too wrong! Now tell me!"

"Does it matter?" The shorter man grumbled, throwing himself down on the sofa. He kicked off his shoes, flipping on the TV, his back to the older man, who stood behind the couch.

"Of course it matters!" Jakotsu stormed across the room, standing in front of his boyfriend, hands on his hips. "I love you! It matters!" He peered down at Bankotsu, brow furrowed, "Please? Tell me what's wrong."

"You love me. That's what's wrong." The blue-eyed boy mumbled miserably, "And I love you." He pulled a pillow into his lap, hugging it to his chest. "That's the fucking problem."

"Bankotsu…" The older man sank down beside him, looking at him sadly. His arm snaked around, pulling him close, pillow and all, and he rested his head on the young man's shoulder. Sometimes it was easy to forget how much all of this homophobia stuff got to Bankotsu; Jakotsu had been dealing with it since he was fourteen. He was used to it by then. "It's only a problem if you let it be one. You care too much what everybody else thinks."

"I don't want people to hate me because I happen to love you." Bankotsu stared at his socks, twisting the pillowcase around in his hands.

Jakotsu's fingers ran across his cheek; soft, cool, gentle. "If people don't hate you because you love me, they'll hate you for some other reason. There are always people who hate you and think whatever they want to think. And in the end, we all die. So what's the use of worrying about it?"

Blue eyes rose to meet gray. "I can't help it." Came the quiet response, "Why can't people just mind their own business? Why does it matter that we're both men? Is it really so wrong? Why is loving you wrong?" His eyes welled with tears.

Strong arms wrapped around him, pulling him closer. He buried his face in the front of Jakotsu's shirt, trying to keep from crying. "It's not wrong." Came the whispered reply. Jakotsu was rubbing his back soothingly, hands moving in slow circles, fingers massaging through the tee-shirt. "It could never be wrong when it feels so right."

"I love you." Bankotsu's voice was muffled by his companion's chest, "But I will never understand why people see it as a bad thing or why people need to be so fucking stupid about it."

"I know it's hard to understand. Especially when you're not used to being hated…But hey, like I said before, any one who wants to fuck with you has to go through me first." The effeminate man spoke into his companion's hair, "You're far from being alone in this."

"Thank you Jakotsu." The younger boy pulled back slightly, lifting his head to look up at his friend. He smiled faintly, blue eyes speaking volumes of both his concern and devotion. "I guess…" A pause, "I guess it's just going to be harder to deal with this year because you won't always be here by my side. It doesn't seem as bad when we're together."

"Ah, I'd stay if I could, you know." Jakotsu grinned, "I'd just stay here, waiting for you in bed all day. Put my satin sheets on the bed, stash a bottle of plum wine in the little fridge…I could greet you each night with-"

"Jakotsu!" Furious blushing ensued at this train of thought, "Why do you always have to make everything seem so dirty?"

Another wide grin. "You know you like it. The taller boy ducked down, capturing his lover's mouth with his. "You wouldn't change me for the world." He whispered into the kiss.

Bankotsu nodded slightly, arms wrapping around possessively, pulling their bodies closer together. He flopped backwards down on the couch, Jakotsu sprawled on top of him. "Hello there, little boy." Jakotsu breathed softly, eyes wide and teasing, as he leaned in for another kiss, "Hello." Mouths couldn't get enough; they were so hungry for one another. Bankotsu twitched beneath him. He could feel the younger man trembling in anticipation, hands clutching at the fabric of the small couch. Wide blue eyes, shimmering with unshed tears; he was begging silently, those eyes pleading with him.

Jakotsu smiled dangerously, inky eyes glinting. This is where it gets good…

A hand down Bankotsu's pants; a hand down his own. He's about to begin working them both when-

"Oh. My. God."

Beneath him, Bankotsu paled significantly. Jakotsu's head jerked up and he froze, hands exactly where he left them.

Standing in the doorway, Inu Yasha looked as if he were about to die.

Bwah ha ha! Evil cliffhanger!!! {dances a paganistic ritual dance} I don't know what I'm going to do next {laughs evilly} so y'all are going to have to wait and see!! {cackles} I'm feeling very evil today.