Author's Notes: All right, thanks again to the continued support of my reviewers.
I hope you all enjoy, and if you take the time to read this, please take the time to review it ^^
----------------------------------------------------------------
The rest of my morning classes seemed like a blur to me. I can't remember much of what anyone said to me, and as for the lesson that day- I might as well have been absent.
When someone makes the comment "it seemed like he had the whole world on his shoulders" they must have been thinking of someone in my position, because it certainly felt like that to me.
By the end of my second period class, I was almost dreading the fact Jakotsu was coming back. And that thought alone made me queasy. I ended up in the restroom, throwing up what little I'd eaten for breakfast.
Damn, I hated being this weak. I felt like a fucking wuss, or as Hiten would have put it, "a pansy."
At that thought my knees buckled even further and I found myself suffering from what I'd like to refer to as a psychological trauma hangover. If Suikotsu ever became a really famous doctor, I'd have him get that term officialized, because it truly summed up what I was feeling.
Here I was- in a sense, well… damn, I guess lovesick would be the term, about having to be away from Jakotsu so long, and now I was dreading him coming back. It made me feel like scum to even remotely think that I should turn Jakotsu away just to solve my problems, and I really hated myself for ever letting it cross my mind.
And that didn't even touch on the fact I was going to have to face Hiten at lunch.
Suddenly, I found myself thinking I wouldn't be needing to wait in the lunch line this day. Too many sicknesses- and my self-coined term for a hangover- plaguing my heart too badly to even think of food.
With a sigh, I gathered myself up off the bathroom floor and went to splash some water on my face. I was hoping I'd make it through this day without having to go to the nurse's office… if, I was lucky that is.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 5: Struggling Through the Day
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Walking into his next class, Bankotsu's eyes skimmed the room, trying to decide who he felt he was up to sitting nearby.
Finally deciding that just about anyone was going to cause him some uneasiness, he just took a seat and hoped that no one too obnoxious sat beside him.
"Hiya, Bankotsu," A purple-haired girl said sitting beside him, "I heard you're up for Prom King this year."
Looking up from his desk, he nodded, "Oh…hi Hari. Um…I am?" He blinked.
"You didn't know? The list was posted up late this morning down the three-hundred hall."
"I was a bit late to school today, I guess I missed it," He replied, glad this conversation wasn't headed in any direction that would cause trouble.
The girl nodded, glaring as a tall, blackish-teal haired girl entered the room.
Leaning over to whisper to him, Hari spoke softly, "Rumors have it that that bitch Kaguya is trying to throw the votes so her and Hiten win. Isn't that silly?"
"Why would she do that?" Bankotsu whispered back.
"Well, she's obviously afraid that Menoumaru's going to win with either me or Ruri as Queen. Then again, the fact that you and Sesshoumaru got nominated also probably ticked her off."
"Sesshoumaru got nominated?"
"What? You think he wouldn't? He'd be the school heartthrob if he wasn't such an Ice Prince," She muttered, sticking a piece of gum in her mouth.
"And what about me?"
"You're the star of the baseball team! Of course there are some girls out there that would want you as their King."
Bankotsu paused, "They…do?"
"Why do you think all those girls ask to help you study and then get all upset when you turn them down?"
"I thought they were just being nice…"
Hari blew a bubble and it popped, "You are so naïve, you know that? Then again, they probably think it's cute."
At that Bankotsu began to fidget, as his thoughts wandered, "Jakotsu always said it was cute…my naivety…"
"But anyways," She continued, "So Kaguya is afraid that since in the way of girls only her, and me and Ruri were nominated, that if she doesn't pressure votes, she'll end up Queen with you or Sesshoumaru as King."
"And…that's a problem?" Bankotsu muttered.
"She has…issues," Hari continued, watching Kaguya from the corner of her eye.
"Well, I've been around her before with Hiten, and she seems okay…"
"Key words- 'with Hiten.' When she's not with Hiten she's a royal bitch."
Bankotsu withheld a laugh, "Actually, she's kinda bitchy even when she is with Hiten. I sometimes wonder how he can stand her."
"Well I'd just watch your back, she'll do whatever she can to make sure Hiten wins that King slot, even if you are his friend."
Biting his lip as his previous worries came rushing back into his mind; he let Hari's words linger in his thoughts.
"She'll do whatever she can…" He sighed, "Well maybe if Hiten talks to her, she won't take things too far."
"Hari, why are you talking to him?" A pale-skinned man with long aquamarine hair said with a scoff.
"Oh hello there, Menoumaru," She replied sweetly looking up at him, "I was just warning Bankotsu not to get his hopes up about Prom King nominations because you're going to win them."
The young man smirked at that, "I just hope you and Ruri don't get in a catfight over who gets to be Queen."
Hari shrugged, "Ruri and I can handle it. Don't worry about us."
"Shit- move it," Another female's voice rang out across the classroom, her deep blue hair pulled up into a bun on either side of her head.
"Hey Ruri! Did you get the homework finished?" Her friend called out, making her way over to where her friend sat and leaving Bankotsu to his thoughts.
"So….what's the latest gossip?" Naraku asked sitting down in the chair Hari left behind.
"Na…Naraku? I thought you were in the office," Bankotsu stammered on seeing the brown-haired boy sit down.
"Yah, they got tired of dealing with me again and sent me onto class. So what's up?"
"Um…" He looked down at his papers, then shrugged, "I guess I got nominated for Prom King."
"Oh really now?" He questioned, leaning back in the chair and propping his feet up on the desk.
"Well, that's what Hari said."
"So, who's the lucky guy?"
Scrambling, Bankotsu practically fell out of his seat as he went to quickly cover Naraku's mouth and muffle the words.
"Mmph?" Naraku tried to speak with the hands still over his mouth, and the braided-teen took it as a 'what.'
"Look, I don't want anyone else to know. So keep it quiet okay?"
"Oh okay, gotcha," He muttered, gesturing with his hands for Bankotsu to calm down, "Still 'in' around here, right?"
Bankotsu glared, noting Naraku making a quick gesture towards the room's storage closet.
"You wanna make something of this?" He retorted, balling his fist.
"Chill man, chill. I'm one of you…well, half way at least."
The blue eyes intensified the glare.
"But honestly now, are you going to tell…you know, that he can't come to prom with you just because you're too scared about this?" The brown-haired young man questioned, his tone low.
Frowning on thinking it over, Bankotsu felt his stomach churn at the tiny voice telling him that he would if it saved him the trouble. "I can't keep compensating Jakotsu for my own happiness. That's just stupid. If I was going to do that, then I wouldn't have told my Mom that I…that I love him."
"I don't know yet… I'll just…figure it out somehow," He replied half-heartedly.
"Well don't wait too long; it'll just hurt more people in the long run."
"I know… I've been slowly figuring that out," Bankotsu retorted bitterly, almost wishing he'd told everyone from the start so this burden wouldn't be on his shoulders now.
The class slowly quieted as the bell rang and the history teacher made his way into the room.
"I wonder if Mr. Toutousai will end up going off on some tangent about stupid kids never listening again," Naraku mumbled.
But like his earlier classes, Bankotsu found that paying attention wasn't exactly on the top of his priority list. Hoping Naraku took at least a few notes or that that day's lesson wasn't that hard, the black-haired teen closed his eyes and slumped down in his chair.
"Naraku is right. What the hell am I going to do about Prom? If I knew some single guys we could all just go as friends…but, they'll all have dates. Female dates," He bitterly noted, "And I can't just say we didn't get asked. The closer the day gets, especially since I'm a candidate for Prom King, girls will get up the guts to ask me…and if I show up without one, they'll know. Everyone will know…"
Sighing, he lifted up his government book, opened it to a random page and sat it over his face as he leaned back against the wall behind his chair.
The ramblings of Mr. Toutousai about various loopholes in the constitutional rights fell on deaf ears, and Bankotsu found himself slowly drifting off to a semblance of sleep as the teacher droned on.
---------------------------------------------------------
"Hey- hey Bankotsu…" Naraku said, gently prodding the sleeping boy.
Finally snapping out of his reverie, the black-haired teen looked up.
"What…did I fall asleep?"
"Don't worry; you didn't miss anything but another tangent that had nothing to do with government."
"I…normally don't fall asleep in class," He said, sitting upright and gathering his books.
"You have a lot on your mind, it's natural you'd get lost in your thoughts."
"I suppose…"
"I mean, shit, the way people treat us, it would make you bitter. And don't you try and shrug it off either. You have every right to be mad at them, remember that," Naraku noted, following him out of the classroom.
"But, some of them….are my…"
"Friends don't screw over their friends like that. Just worry about yourself, and hate them for being assholes and you'll feel a lot better," He remarked with a shrug.
"You make it sound like it's easy to hate them," Bankotsu replied with a frown, the two pushing their way through the hallways.
"When people turn on your just because you suddenly realize you like things differently, the question is- how can you not hate them?"
Bankotsu paused then, causing Naraku to walk right into his back.
"I don't know… Damn, I just don't know," He seethed.
"Come on. Let's just get something to eat…"
The two walked on in silence, finally entering the lunch room. Looking towards the table he usually sat at, Bankotsu found that sinking feeling once again tugging at his stomach, and his steps faltered.
"Bankotsu?" Naraku questioned, noticing his strange behavior. Following his friend's line of sight, the brown-haired young man quickly discerned the problem, "You can always sit somewhere else…"
"No…" He replied quietly, "That'll just make Hiten even more suspicious. He has already noticed I'm acting weird."
"Then stop acting weird and go sit down," Naraku muttered with a sigh.
Realizing that Naraku was right and that he was indeed only making it worse by panicking, he shakily made his way over and sat down.
"Bankotsu, hey- where's your lunch?" Hiten questioned, pausing to take a drink from his can of pop.
"I'm…not feeling well, so I wasn't going to risk it." He mumbled quietly.
"Ah, true. Given that the lunch room food is probably laden with diseases already, the last thing you need to do is eat it when you're already sick," He concluded, dipping a fry into some ketchup before popping it into his mouth.
The table fell silent, Naraku still waiting in line and leaving to the two braided teens alone for the moment.
"So you hear about this Prom King thing this morning? I know you came in late…" Hiten spoke up after a while.
"Oh yah…" He paused thinking back over it, "Someone told me last hour about it. You as well, right?"
Hiten smirked smugly, "There'd be something wrong if I wasn't. Kaguya got nominated for Queen too. Hey- you know any of the girls that are running for Queen?"
"Well…sorta. We're just friends."
"Heh. Friends, you can't be 'just friends' at Prom, man. So which one's your favorite, I bet I can hook you up with a few dates before then."
"I'm…" Bankotsu paused, trying to figure out the way to put this, "Shit. If I say I'm bringing someone else, he'll ask who. If I say I don't want to leave Jakotsu alone, he'll say he can get us both dates."
Taking a deep breath, he forced a smile, "Don't worry about it Hiten, I'll take care of myself."
"Come on now, that's what friends are for right? Are you just embarrassed about which girl it is?"
"No- I told you, they're all just friends," Bankotsu snapped back.
"But…are there any you'd like as more than friends?" He asked suggestively.
"No. I like them just as friends."
"Sheesh man, what's your problem? You're acting like you're gay or something."
Bankotsu froze then, his stomach lurching and his anxiety hitting him full force. Without a word, he stood hastily and ran from the cafeteria, a single thought racing through his mind.
"I'm sorry Hiten…but I…I am…"
------------------------------------------------
Preview for Chapter 6:
A sickness is something easily perceived.
It can afflict the body, the mind, and the heart.
But what can heal those that are plagued by pains this deep?
----------------------------------------------------
AND---
Okay boys and girls, here's the author with one more little note for you. Just recently, I teamed up with fellow InuYasha fanfiction author, KellyChan85 to start in on a collaboration fanfic….and it's ready for you to read!
"Under Queer Circumstances"
After being blackmailed by Jakotsu, Inuyasha has three weeks to secure his relationship with Kagome & turn his roommate Bankotsu into the gay-stud Jakotsu's always wanted. It's a little crazy, but hey, it's all in the name of love. (InuKago BankJak)
Check it out now!~
www. fanfiction .net /read. php?storyid=1829275 (just remove the spaces ^^)