A Simple Plan
Chapter 2

ST: Heyas, sorry about the delay. Parental problems (yea ty?). Anywho, thanks for the reviews! I'll put out the third chapter in a few days.

After work, TK and I changed out of our disgraceful marks of teen-employment and switched back to the images that we created for ourselves.

Takashi was a little bit of a goody-goody, and if him and I had never met way back when in 5th grade (when I had brought my first skateboard to class for my own 'show and tell'- modest wasn't I- and he asked me to teach him how to skate), I'd bet he'd be a true-blue butt kissing, boot licking, suck-up do gooder, perfectionist samaritan type. Not that, even though I tried to stomp it out of him the best I could, he didn't sorta turn out that way anyway.

The only thing he gained from befriending me, besides utmost coolness-cause, even though the estupido jocks and plastic cheerleaders at our school didn't yet see it, we were what made cool cool, was a slight shift in clothing and music style, realization that being gay was a-okay, and the ability to skateboard.

I know, it doesn't seem like much, but c'mon! You shoulda seen him before I took him under my wing. He let his mother pick out his clothes for Kami-sama's sake! He's damn straight lucky to have me.

Anyway, that day Takeru was wearing a Zoo York tee shirt and a pair of baggy long pair of shorts. Could you see the blonde in Ralph Lauren jeans and a starch white polo shirt? Heck no.

Me myself, I had mucho style. I was sporting a pair of black cut-off shorts that hung (barely) above my knees. My shirt was one of those shirts that had a comical saying on it, this one being an "I'm famous in England" one. I thought it was pretty killer.

Not that what we were wearing was really relevant to the story I'm telling. Naw, I'm just giving you a feel of us character's personalities.

Back to that day: after getting out of our prison uniforms and shoving them into our already overstuffed backpacks, we grabbed our beat up skateboards from the storage closet in the back of the Shake Bake and made a bee-line for the exit.

Before we left, we both took a quick glance towards the booth that had earlier held Freakin Beauty and her evil, murderous, wicked pest-of-the-west brother, hoping to (maybe) see them again- me, her, TK, him, crazy for crap head. But, no such luck.

But I didn't worry all that much. I mean, Odiaba was (and still is) a small town, a flyspeck on the map, a truck stop on the way to the coast. There's a 7 out of 10 chance that you'll see the same people everyday, everywhere you go.

I knew I'd be seeing/hearing/talking to her again.

Well, anyways, after realizing that our love interests were no longer within human contact, we left the dreaded workplace of doom, a large weight lifted off from our backs. We were free.

Um, that is, until the next day when we'd have to trudge our way back in there and be slaves once again to the world of commercial fast food that would kill someone if he/she ate it continuously for four weeks straight (which some people actually would) for another wasted summer day. Ahh, the price to pay to be paid by the most certainly (loaded) obese owner/head-manager.

Pushing our skateboards along, we cruised moderately down the sidewalk. Our conversation went as followed:

"So, there should we go?"

"Um, I dunno man. Where do you wanna go?"

"Depends. What should we do?"

"I have no idea."

"I do."

TK looked tempted to shove me off my skateboard. Laughing, I jumped a fallen sign from a nearby coffee house and casually said, "Let's pay a visit to Kenny."

"Sounds like a plan."

Now, one thing you should know about our good friend Ken Ichijouchi is short, simple, and really hard to forget- unless you look past it and think he is just a misunderstood genius, which, proven by a multitude of therapists and specialist, has a factor of 2 out of 7 chances of being correct- he's insane.

Filthy rich, a kick-ass skateboarder and bass player, funny, but completely and totally mind-blowingly insane. Just like that. Even he admits it.

But, even if he's off his rocker, he's such a blast to be buds with. I remember one time, about two years before the summer of the present, where us three all got together one Saturday and rode our bikes to the coast, every single 7 miles of it.

Anyways, once we got there, Ken took us to this one huge cliff. I'm talking, 12-foot high ledge with mass-destruction and slow and painful death at the bottom, waves crashing viciously against it.

The crazy freak wanted us to jump it. Said him and his older, late brother used to do it all the time when they were kids.

I had two questions:

One: Where were your parents?
(He said that they almost had a heart attack when they found out what the two siblings had been doing every time they'd run off once the family had laid down a blanket to establish a spot on the beach.)

Two: Late brother, meaning your dead brother?
(Which he quote unquote answered, "Did I ever have another brother? Didn't I tell you that he died four years ago in a car accident?" Oh, and not one where Ken's brother was driving, oh no. He wasn't even in the car at all, not to mention not old enough to drive it. Ken's brother died by getting sideswiped by and SUV while rollerblading blindfolded along the curb, a result of a dare made by one of his friends. If you ask me, I think that they were both nuts.)

Well, after long contemplation and logical consideration (which was a grand total of 6 seconds), Takeru and I did the only thing we could do: We jumped right along side our blue-haired friend.

Not that we'd do it ever again, oh hell no. But, I'd have to admit; it was one of the most, thrilling, heart pumping, exciting experiences of my short-lived life. Well, at least up until the summer of present.

Anyways, back to the story I'm telling.

Ken doesn't seem like the rich type, not at all- not for a simple second. Of course, first impressions with Ken usually only last for a second, and in the end (or what you think is the end) turn out to be quite the opposite.

Most people would automatically think of him as a struggling soul, an artist who's parents could never understand him or provide him with the environment and attention (or lack of attention) that would help him gain his full potential, A loner, a distant mind, a real hottie. I've heard him be described in many a way, but never even close to the true him.

Kenneth Ichijouchi does not have a struggling artist's soul. His soul is a kooky, wild, daring one with total disregard for limitations of the body and mind. And his parents, they do care, immensely, and they understand him completely (or completely enough to not blow up on his actions), but, honestly, how do provide your son with the tools to achieve such an outlandish goal: to break five world records. I think that they're doing one heck of a job so far; letting him scrape his knees, but rushing over to douse it with rubbing alcohol and pat him on the back with encouragement, and then always reminding him to please be careful.

He's definitely not a loner. In fact, he says on a daily basis that he hates to be alone. And, maybe his mind is a bit distant, but not angsty distant. Naw, he's more of the "I'm thinking of a new near death experiment/adventure/idea to test out".

And about the hottie part, well, you'd have to talk to TK about that one. I mean, me being straight and all, I just wouldn't know, now would I?

Truthfully, I guess that if I did swing either way, I'd find Ken immeasurably attractive. What with the sorta-long blue hair and midnight violet eyes and like-silk voice, I'm not shocked yo see girls (and sometimes guys) swoon and stutter like love struck frission-freaks would.

But, I just so happen to so not swing that way. Nu uh.

Anywho, he's the type that wears band tee shirts. It's all about the music with him. His wardrobe is full of concert and label shirts with every single one of his favorite bands smacked on all of them. Metallica, Scorpions, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, and even the Clash (which would be by my influence, since I myself am I punk fanatic) litter many articles of his clothing. Ken has a minor obsession with 80's rock.

I myself enjoyed more of today's kick bands; Blink-182, Trapt, Less Than Jake, Linkin Park, and my utmost fave, Sum 41.

Then there was Teeks. His CD case was full of bands like Yellow Card, Good Charlotte, Ataris, Relient K, and even Jet.

We were almost all completely different when it came to music (and morals; TK was immaculately precise when it came to school, but would occasionally goof off with much poking from me and Ken; I would slack off during class, but knew that I had limitations, due to my butt-biting parents; Ken, well, he had no morals), Ken being all about the 80s, me being a punk-master, and TK being occupied with his poppy rock (although he hates it when we call it that). But we were three of the closest friends you could ever find.

((a/n: holy snit, did you like that paragraph? sorry..))

We, we being TK and I, met Ken when we were 12. Even back then he was kinda funny. And not ha ha funny. His parents thought it was a phase; little did they know that he was always that way and would always be.

Anyways, the first thing Ken ever said to us was, "My brother died a year ago. Do you wanna be my friend?"

Touching, eh? And yes, it did work. The three of us were forever stuck like glue, sticking together through thick and thin, good and bad, always associated with each other. We were like the Mauders of Odiaba. You know, from the Harry Potter books. I was James, the devious mastermind, mischief-maker. TK was Remus, the smarter one- common sense and quick thinking wise, the saver of our skins. And Ken was Sirius, the crazy, daring, lady/dude killer. Quite the threesome, eh?

Anyways, back to that day. Takeru and I made our way to the (large) Ichijouchi residence. We kicked up our skateboards when we reached the driveway, running the rest of the way up the asphalt.

I rang the doorbell and waited patiently for the door to open. After about two seconds, Mrs. Ichijouchi answered the door, all smiles and welcome.

"Daisuke! Takeru! Ohayo. How are you today? Come in, come in. Ken is upstairs, still sleeping I think."

Grinning at TK, I led the way into the house and up the stairs to the second floor (a true unbelievable thing for regular people who just live in everyday ordinary apartments) that had Ken's room on it.

We sneaked into his room quietly, surrounding his bed. Lying half under, half on top of his covers was widdle Ichijouchi. He was flat on his stomach, his head lying on his left cheek, indigo hair falling everywhere.

Snickering, I motioned to TK to close in on him. I was about to whisper to my blonde buddy that on three we would shout, pull off the sheets, and shake him, scaring the crap out of our slumbering friend, when the unexpected occurred (but of course, with Ken we should've expected him to try to take over the world or something).

Out of nowhere, Ken leapt up and planted a long, wet, rough kiss on Takeru Takashi's lips. Screaming bloody murder, TK pushed away, eyes wide and deep blue and filled with pure shock and horror.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Laughing, Ken sat up and wiped his mouth. "Mornin boys. Man, you sure are lucky that wasn't you Motomiya."

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Chuckling to myself, I sat next to Ken and joined him in watching TK officially freak out. He was sitting on the floor, eyes closed tight, hands covering his face, mouth open wide and a loud, drawn out scream emitting from his lungs.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH (breath) AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Luck doesn't even explain the relief I feel from being spared from touching my lips to your tainted ones. Although I feel deepest sympathy for my unfortunate friend, I can't help but remember that he really shouldn't mind that much, due to the fact that he swings your way."

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Shaking his head, Ken merely replied with, "Whatever dude. You're waxing your poetics waaaaaa-aay too early."

"It's like 3:30 in the afternoon."

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Exactly."

At that moment, a thought hit my head. It was completely random and totally off the subject, except not so much cause we are talking about Ken, aren't we? Anyways, I realized that, maybe, just maybe Ken was a genius. An evil, sadistic, insane genius, but a genius just the same.

It surely would explain a lot. Like how Ken could ditch every other class and spend all the others sleeping and still get straight A's. It would also explain how Ken always could understand my rants, raves, and insistent ramblings, even though all he does is complain about how he has to hear it. Not to mention, him being a hidden genius would fully explain how he was able to get away with everything. Like he would with kissing TK.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" TK was obviously somewhat calming down. His voice was beginning to start to crack anyways. Ken got off his bed and approached the now groaning blonde.

He grabbed TK's hands and pulled them away from his face. Sitting on the still paralyzed boy's lap, Ken smiled wickedly and licked his cheek.

"AHHHHHRRRGGG! GERRROFF ME DAMMIT!"

"Nu uh, no way. You're hott. I think I could sit here alllllllllllll day."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Rolling my eyes at my friends' immaturity, I got up myself and walked over to the pair, easily pushing Ken off my dramatized comrade. "Yea yea. How I befriended a gay and a bisexual, I shall never know. Now get your guy-loving, sorry butts up and listen to me."

Ken shot up onto his feet, saluting. "Aye aye captain. What's today's plan?"

"Mission 1, track down Yama and ask him about band openings. Latest I heard, their rhythm guitarist left for college. What have you heard about your brother's band TK?"

The half-disgusted, half-annoyed disgruntled blonde joined me and Ken on his feet, shoving Ken angrily before looking my way and saying, "Um, nothing else so far. All that I know about it is what my brother told me a day ago, which was that he's really desperate and is in a very vulnerable situation right now."

"What kind of vulnerable? Available vulnerable?"

Glaring daggers at the innocently smiling bluenette, TK continued. "He's having tryouts tomorow. I think it's an all day tryout. Which means you'll be able to stop by anytime."

I rolled my eyes. "No duh Teeks. All day tryouts usually means that they go on all day. It doesn't take a blonde to figure that one out."

Ken sniggered. "Or does it?"

We both cracked up, leaving Take-chan blushing with all the blood he could send to his head. Apparently he didn't like those blonde jokes. So, Ken and I made it a point to poke him about it every chance we could.

"Yea yea," he growled, trying his best to shrug it off, as if it didn't bother him one bit. "What else is on your to do list? And nothing stupid! We almost got totally busted last week for pulling that prank on Yolei's parents and their convenience store."

"Hey!" Ken said. "I happen to think that Dais' idea to hold Miya hostage for a summer's worth of 5-finger discounting was a complete stroke of-"

"Idiocy?" I scowled at TK.

"Oh, like you could think of anything better, huh? Well, I know for a fact that you're going to absolutely love my next Mission."

He sighed, "What is it then?"

I held up tow fingers. "Mission 2, track down the hottie from Shake and Bake."

"Hotties you mean."

Ken, who was beginning to let himself wander (Teeks and I both think he should look into getting Ridilin. He's a complete ADHD candidate), suddenly asked, "By you saying hotties, is it safe to assume that you were scoping out a hot dude, and if so, what's his naslap?"

((a/n: naslap is like asl, except longer. Nname, aage, ssex-yes or no, llocation, second aavailability, and ppreference-boy or girl))

"Nu uh! I saw him first!"

I barged into the soon to be argument between the two, most likely to result into a he's-mine, no-way-he's-mine chick-like dude fight. "Age is unknown, we don't know if he has sex, we don't know where he lives, he seemed single, and there was no way to tell what his sexual orientation was. All we now is that his name is Tai, he just moved here, and he's got a really fine sister."

"Naslap?"

"I don't know, but I'm so gonna find out."

This would've been one of those really cool silent, reflecting moments, like in Stand By Me where the boys all stood in respectful awe while staring at the dead body of another kid.

Note the would've.

"Tsk, well if Teeks gets the hot brother and Dai get the hot sister, who do I get?"

Automatically, TK and I both said, "The hot dad." "The hot mom."

Obviously this was a joke. But Ken is never to be taken seriously, unless he is being serious. Which is never.

"So, which one is hotter?"

Both of us groaning, TK and I turned to each other with a look of "Typical" on our faces.

"You guys, really! Naslap?"

tbc