WHY DOES LOVE HURT

" I can't stand him!" Otogi hissed, pulverizing his plastic cup, undaunted by the bewildered stares he was receiving from the people sitting nearby.

" Otogi……your drink is--"

" Just look at him! He's all over her!" His fingernails dug in the cup, jarring holes in the sides and allowing the remainder of his Pepsi to leak out and pool on the table.

" Spilling……" Anzu trailed off.

Otogi scowled. I don't get it! What's he have that I ain't got!?

He jumped up with a shout, cursing when he looked down at his spilled soda, now gathered in his lap.

" Damn it!" He snatched a napkin, rapidly swatting at his soaked pants. " I can't believe this!"

Anzu sighed, turning her head to the side. I tried to warn him….

She reached out, yanking him back down in his seat by his arm. " Are you trying to let them know we're here!?"

He grimaced, keeping his head bowed and aggressively patting the sides of his crotch with the napkin. Of all places!

He sighed, throwing the napkin on the table with a careless toss. " I don't care. In fact, I hope they do see me!"

She leaned over, clamping both her hands over his mouth. " Listen, I know you're mad about it, but that's why I'm here,"

He nodded slightly, and she reluctantly removed her hands to move back in her seat across him, warily watching him prop his elbows on the table and rest his chin in his palms.

" This was a bad idea," He muttered, eyes drifting toward the table he'd been staring at the entire time they'd arrived.

Anzu peeked at it, watching her friend Honda, flatter and drape his arm over Shizuka's shoulders, resulting a shy blush in the girl's cheeks.

" I'm surprised Jou let Honda go out with his sister….." Anzu murmured, looking back at Otogi who was staring down at the table in a depressed manner.

She smiled sympathetically. " Look! Today's the day you get over Shizuka and find someone else!"

She hoped to only cheer him up to his normally energetic and confident attitude. It was weird seeing him like this.

" I don't know if I can," He grumbled in an arrogant tone, turning to stare out the window situated by their booth.

She shook her head. " You can, Otogi. All you need to do is believe in yourself,"

He regarded her with a cocky grin. " This another of your famous speeches I hear of?"

She frowned, and he couldn't help but chuckle. " Otogi, I'm being serious,"

His playful smirk vanished into a solemn line. " I know,"

She smiled. " Now let's just eat and enjoy the day. Okay?"

He nodded. " Yeah, sure,"

Bakura entered the family room, cocking his left brow when he spotted Marik languidly seated on the couch, legs propped up on the table.

" Where's---"

" She went out," Marik snapped, eyes locked on the blank television screen in front of him. Bakura smirked, approaching the blonde as he slipped his hands in his pockets.

" Enjoying the show?" Bakura mocked, the corner of his lip twitching in humor.

Marik's eyes remained in place. " Joke all you will. I'm not in the mood,"

The tomb robber leaned back against the wall with a jut of his chin to the side. " Anzu with that guy?"

Marik glared at him. " Who else?" he spat in repulsion.

Bakura chuckled with a bow of his head. " Jealous…..?" He gave the blonde an askew stare.

Marik rose from the couch, towering over the seated Bakura before he snatched the white-haired spirit by his collar.

" I said," He hissed. " I'm not in the mood!"

Bakura pried his hands off his shirt, shoving Marik back when he stood two inches over the tanned Egyptian.

" He won't touch her," Bakura grumbled.

" Well, well. Didn't know tomb robber was psychic," Marik mocked, before retreating into the main hall affront the entrance door.

" She's ours. That idiot doesn't have it in him,"

Marik lowered his head with a sneer. " Fool. You may trust easily, but I don't!"

Marik curled his right hand into a fist. " If she dare betray me--"

Bakura's right fist tightened, before he swung his arm out and punched Marik, sending his face violently jerking to the side from the rough impact.

Marik draped a hand to his swelling cheek, eyes wavering in shock before he whipped his head up in anger.

" You'll regret ever doing that to me!"

" I'm tired of listening to your complaints! If you're so damn worried, I suggest you tell it to someone who cares!" Bakura roared.

Marik removed his hand from his cheek, panting in postponed recovery. He'll pay for laying a hand on me!

" You're not going anywhere, Tomb Robber!" Marik bellowed, abruptly approaching the retreating spirit and snatching a fist full of white-hair, before whirling him around and slamming his face into the wall.

Bakura grunted, shutting his eyes on impulse when his face came crashing into the hard wall, blood immediately trailing from his left nostril.

" Your low for hitting me with my back turned to you…" Bakura stated, pulling his head away and moving his hand over his bloody nose.

Marik smirked. " Call me what you like," He crossed his arms over his chest, bowing his head slightly with a smug expression.

Bakura swiped his hand under his nose, collecting the blood before swatting his hand and riding it off his knuckles.

" A pathetic fool like you deserves to be sent to the shadow realm,"

Marik lifted his head, cocking his brow with a challenging grin. " You, threatening me?"

Bakura chuckled lowly. " I wouldn't have to share Anzu,"

The tanned boy narrowed his eyes in offence and enragement. " She was mine before she ever gave you a chance!"

He grit his teeth down, suppressing himself from sending the pitiful moron to the shadow realm for eternity.

Marik chuckled sinisterly. " Well? Have you nothing to say, Tomb Robber?"

Bakura snorted. " I wouldn't get ahead of yourself, Marik," He challenged.

" We'll see,"

Anzu stared out the window, watching the downpour increase with each passing minute. Rain. It's been awhile since it last rained…

" Their leaving. Finally," Otogi murmured, bowing his head and secretively hiding from Honda and Shizuka, retreating the Café hand in hand.

" Look at them. Their already holding hands," He grumbled, enviously transfixing his eyes on the couples linked hands.

Anzu turned with a light laugh. " They are dating,"

He muttered beneath his breath, turning his head away from the window. Anzu smiled before looking back out to glimpse Honda and Shizuka, hurriedly running down the sidewalk in attempt to fend off the rain.

Just look at him. Shizuka's really changed Honda for the best.

She admired how Honda loaned Shizuka his jacket, positioning it over her head to protect her from the downpour.

I wonder. Have I changed Marik and Bakura…….for the best….?

Marik stumbled back into the door, clutching his stomach where the blow struck him. Bakura lowered his fists, smirking at the tanned boy, slouched against the wall.

" Bastard…."

Marik charged at the spirit, slamming him to the floor with him on top. Raising his fist, he punched him in the cheek.

Bakura laughed. " That all you got!?"

He blocked the following punch from the tanned boy, grinning when Marik stumbled off him after being kneed in the groin.

" You low ingrate!" Marik roared, clutching himself between his legs. Bakura smirked, sitting upright in a triumphant manner.

" Anzu won't settle for less,"

Marik's right eye twitched. " What are you implying!?"

Bakura laughed. " Simple. You're probably--"

" …..small compared to me! I could take him on!"

Anzu rolled her eyes at Otogi's enthusiasm. " Yes Otogi. You're much stronger than Honda,"

She'd completely given up distracting him from talking or recalling his crush and enemy and just agreed to whatever he was saying. Her thoughts, however, were on something far more important.

She glimpsed her wristwatch. " It's been almost two hours. I hope Marik and Bakura are doing okay……"

Otogi smirked at her. " Thinking about your boyfriend?"

She paled. How'd he know I was dating anyone!?

She laughed. " More like boyfriends,"

He arched a brow. " What was that?"

" Oh nothing. You ready to go to our next stop?" She shuffled through her purse and pulled out the piece of paper.

He nodded, leaning over and pushing down the paper in her hands to glimpse it himself. " Where next?"

Anzu smiled. " The park,"

" Park!?"

She nodded, putting the list away. " That's our next best stop to find you someone,"

" I'm not so sure. Weird girls go to parks……" He trailed off.

Anzu laughed with a twitch of her eye. Weird….girls….?

She groaned. This is going to be harder than I thought. I never knew Otogi was so...picky.

" Well let's go before I change my mind," Otogi announced, slapping down his share of the tab on the table before moving out of the booth and waiting for her.

" Trust me. This will be fun!" She assured, standing after putting the rest of the payment down, then retreating with him out of the Café.

" You didn't bring an umbrella by any chance……"

" Afraid not….."

He sighed, slipping his hands in his pockets. " This is just my luck,"

" Our luck," Anzu corrected. He's not the only one getting soaked here!

She ushered him under the canopy bordering the Caf's entrance. " Let's just stay under here till I think of something…."

Otogi sighed, leaning against the brick wall of the Café building.

Anzu pointed across the street. " Look!"

Otogi apathetically obeyed and set his eyes on the pointed out-department store. " Yeah. What about it?"

She sighed. " Just stay here, I'll be right back!" With that, she fled across the street, ignoring his bewildered wails.

" I'm not a mutt like Jou! So don't be orderin' me around, ya' here!"

She waved her hand in the air dismally. " Sure thing, Otogi,"

He grumbled. " I'm only staying because I feel like it,"

Anzu padded in the store, looking around before greeting the cashier who smiled at her. " Hello. I don't suppose you sell…umbrellas?"

The stout woman pointed behind her to a rack in the far right back. " Right that way, miss,"

" Thanks," Anzu made her way affront the racks of diverse umbrellas, skimming through them to decide which to take. I suppose it doesn't matter, as long as we don't get wet…

" I should get two…." She pursed her lips. Otogi's not going to want to share. And I doubt that'll look good. Normally couples share an umbrella. Least I've noticed.

She snatched two randomly, before shuffling them in her left arm while busily search through her purse to pull out some money.

The cashier smiled when Anzu approached the counter, her head slightly down and intently looking in her small-vanilla colored purse.

" Find everything okay?" The woman asked, sliding the umbrellas toward her after Anzu had set them down, still pulling change from her sack.

" Um, yeah," Anzu replied, looking up and waiting patiently as the middle-aged woman rung up the items at a relatively slow pace.

" Bag?" The cashier asked.

Anzu shook her head, taking the offered umbrellas back and cradling them in the crook of her left arm.

" All right. It comes up to twenty one dollars and eighty three cents,"

Anzu's eyes widened. Since when did umbrellas get so expensive!?

Hurriedly she slapped down the proper amount, before fleeing out of the department store and letting out a puff of air.

I thought I'd never get out of there…

Quickly she unraveled one of the umbrella's, propping it over her head before she looked across the street at the Café to find Otogi nowhere in sight.

" Otogi..? Where'd he go?" Oh! He'd better not have bailed on me!

Jogging across the street, wary of the approaching cars, she successfully made it back on the other side, worriedly scanning the area in a ten foot distance.

" One at a time! One at a time!" A voice commanded lightly. " There's enough for all you lovely ladies,"

Anzu whipped her head behind her, jaw slacking at the sight.

Otogi grinned, boasting from the attention the schoolgirls were drowning him with, and he, with no hesitation, basked in his glory as the girls clung to his arms and giggled at anything he said or did remotely charming.

" Otogi! There you are!" Anzu shouted angrily. Here she was, kindly buying herself and him an umbrella and he ungratefully abandoned her in return!

Otogi grinned, waving her over. " What took you so long!?"

She took a step back, astounded by his sudden transformation, more fitting to his cocky character, but she still had a feeling he was faking it all.

The pack of schoolgirls huddled closer to him as she approached, and she distinctly felt they thought she was out to steal him from them.

I leave him for a minute and already he's got a new fan club. Maybe me coming along was a bad idea…….What if…

She dreaded the finality of her thoughts. What if all those girls didn't approach him…..because I was around? Maybe they thought him and I……No, no, no! Definitely not!

" I see you have new friends," She noted, before extending the black umbrella for him. He gladly accepted it.

" Thanks. You didn't have to get me one,"

Anzu laughed nervously at the looks they girls began sending her way. What's with these girls? They act like he's theirs or something.

" What are friends for," The girls relaxed, before going back to their thirty-questions-about Otogi--every minute.

He chuckled. " Slow down ladies. I know you all want me, but…"

The girls gaped, one tightening her hold on his sleeve. " You don't have a girlfriend? Do you!?"

Now's my chance to play matchmaker! " Actually," Anzu began, gaining the five girls attention.

" He's quite available right now,"

The girls shrieked. " REALLY!?"

Otogi paled. Did Anzu clearly not realize these school girls were middle schoolgirls!? As in half his age!

He was seventeen for crying out loud! These girls were……were probably 13!

Now nothing denied the fact he enjoyed his little devoted fan clubs. But date the members?

He might be one raging-hormone-teenager, but that was just……wrong!

Much less, what would Shizuka think if she saw him dating little girls!? He could only imagine what she'd say:

" Honda! It was horrible! Otogi……he…..he,"

" What Shizuka? What about Otogi!?"

" He's a…..a pedophile!!"

Otogi shuddered involuntarily. No way am I riskin' that.

" She's lying. I'm really involved quite intimately with someone," He announced, shutting his eyes and bringing a hand to his chest to accentuate the affects of his words.

The girls gushed. " He's so romantic!" One cried.

" I wish he was free! I'd want him as my boyfriend!" Another wailed in dismay.

Anzu stared in shock before grimacing. What's he doing? I thought he was desperate to get over Shizuka and move on? Hmm, odd, I thought age didn't matter to him…

She laughed in disbelief to his actions before she felt herself being hauled away from the group of girls.

Otogi dragged Anzu down the sidewalk, before rushing them in an alley and letting out a loud-relieved sigh.

" Anzu! When I said a girl, I meant one my age!"

She laughed. " Sorry…" She peeked out of the alley.

" I'm beginning to think this whole idea is lame,"

She sighed. " Well if your not up to it, I don't want to pressure you,"

He grimaced, jutting his thumb in the direction they'd been in just moments before. " Like you did just now?"

She frowned. " I get the hint,"

" Now come on!" Grabbing her wrist, he led her back out of the alley.

" Hey slow down! And where are we going!?"

" To your house of course!"

" My house?! But--"

" No buts already! Now come on!"

A/N: Now for sure the next chapter WILL NOT contain a lemon. But the one AFTER it will. And I've got note from some of you that people get booted, so I'm going to figure something out so you can enjoy the nice threesome lemon. o It'll no doubt be on a site that permits it, but I'll let you guys know what it is. Until then, hope you liked this pointless chapter! Heh heh XP