Disclaimer: I do not own the characters. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

Warning: Contains mild language, violence, sexual situations and shonen ai/yaoi (mxm pairings) if any of this bothers you, do not read.

A/N: Wow, that last chapter got some reactions. Thank you all for your input. I promise I wasn't trying to upset anyone. Okay, so that last chapter was meant to be disturbing. Thank you for your continued support. I really enjoy working on this story and reading your reactions.

I Like Hating Him:

Broken Hearts

Kyo wandered by himself for hours after leaving the main house. He had never been so angry. He cursed God, Akito, and his weak willed cousins. Most of all he cursed himself for being stupid enough to get involved with Yuki. He felt truly murderous and knew that if he saw Akito he could easily kill him with his bare hands.

He felt bile rise in his throat when he remembered what Akito had done to Yuki. What Yuki had allowed him to do in order to save my sorry ass, Kyo reminded himself angrily. When had it happened? When had Yuki grown to care for him so much that he'd risk himself? When he'd said he loved him Kyo know knew for a fact that Yuki had been sincere, and he'd reacted like a psychotic prick. He was afraid of facing up to the fact that their relationship no longer revolved around just sex--to the fact that he was probably in love with a man. Kyo was even more confused by the fact that he still desired women and occasionally had an erotic dream about Tohru or even Kagura.

"My sexuality isn't the issue here," Kyo said aloud although no one was around. The issue is that Akito will keep using me to hurt Yuki. I have to do the right thing. But Kyo knew that the right thing would be far from easy.

000

By the time Kyo arrived back home, the house was dark and everyone was in bed. Kyo felt relief because he knew he'd have beat the crap out of Shigure had he seen him and he knew he needed a place to stay until he was finally put in his cage. Kyo sighed, knowing that leaving was no longer an option. If he ran away Akito would only torment Yuki.

He slipped into his cousin's room surprised to find Yuki already asleep. From the sliver of light from the hallway Kyo could see a bottle of Hatori's sleeping pills on the bed stand next to Yuki. Shigure had probably forced him to take them to help him sleep off the trauma of the day.

Kyo closed the door behind him and sat next to Yuki on the bed. He waited a few moments for his eyes to adjust. He looked down at his cousin sadly as he brushed back his silky hair. Yuki's cheek was still moist with tears. He must have cried himself to sleep, Kyo thought bitterly. Kyo felt his pillow and found that was also dampened. He continued to stroke Yuki's hair and face softly as he watched his cousin sleep. I love you Kyo's mind said to his cousin. I love fighting you, I love making love to you, I love that you love me. I love you, Yuki. I'm sorry I can't tell you. I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry for what I have to do.

Yuki stirred slightly and rubbed his cheek into Kyo's hand. His face softened slightly as though he had heard his cousin's silent confession.

000

Kyo was still awake and waiting in a chair next to Yuki's bed when the rat awoke.

"Kyo?" he blinked a few times groggy with sleep. "You're back. He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No," Kyo answered although he knew the emotional scars left by Akito would never be erased. "He didn't hurt me. I'm fine." Thank you for sacrificing yourself for me, He wished he could say, but instead he glared at him coldly. "We need to talk."

Yuki winced at Kyo's tone. "No, I need to talk to you. I did something I shouldn't have done."

Kyo wanted to slap him for accepting any responsibility for what had happened. "Which was?"

"I slept with someone else."

"Why the hell should I care? It's not like we're going steady. Who was it, Haru?"

"Why are you acting this way? What did Akito do to you?"

"Nothing." Kyo narrowed his eyes. "It's what he told me."

Yuki sat up and looked at his cousin with confusion.

"He told me the bet was off. I can't defeat you to avoid being caged. In some ways I'm relieved."

"Now we don't have to pretend to fight anymore."

"No, now I don't have to ever look at your stupid face." Kyo felt his heart breaking, but it also felt good to take out some of the anger he was feeling.

"You don't mean that." Yuki's eyes had turned to steel.

"You couldn't have completely believed I was sleeping with you because I wanted to. I mean, when you fell for the head trauma thing I thought you were dense, but this is ridiculous." Kyo eyed his cousin disdainfully. "I'm the cat and you're the rat. We're supposed to hate each other. I guess in a way, I finally won."

"I love you!" Yuki's fists shook with rage. "You have no idea how much I love you!"

"Guess that's you're problem." Kyo shrugged his cousin's words off even though hearing them caused his stomach to flip. "I did feel a little guilty when you first said that. That's why I left. I almost stopped pretending, almost, but I guess my desire to defeat you brought me back to thinking sensibly. Damn rat."

Yuki stormed out of the room slamming the door behind him. Luckily he hadn't noticed the moisture in Kyo's eyes. This is for the best Kyo reminded himself.

He left the room and went to the phone to call Haru. "Yuki needs you," he told his cousin. "Don't even bother going black and looking for me. I won't be back for a few days." Kyo hoped that Haru could comfort Yuki (although not too much) and that a few days would be enough to make the pain in his chest subside.

TBC

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