Disclaimer: The usual thing applies- don't own it.
AN: Third chapter. Enjoy xD
Chapter 3: HoroHoro's Plan And How It Failed
It's been one month since I stayed over at Ren's place. I can honestly say that I have officially befriended him. Well, maybe not officially, but we're friends- I think. How it happened? No idea. Maybe it was somewhere in the beginning, when we slept in his king-sized bed or something. Yoh seems to be on good terms with the guy, but he's on good terms with practically everybody, so that's not really a surprise. Manta seems a bit scared of him though- I can't blame him for it. After all, he's just a small boy and Ren is a scary Chinese guy.
Well, in those two weeks, Ren and I decided to rehearse daily even though we didn't really need it. We practised for about thirty minutes and after that, we'd grab something to eat or go to the movies or simply stay at hime. Too bad for me, we almost always rehearsed at my place and Pirika disturbed us every five minutes, using the lamest excuses humanly possible. After a while, she even stopped using excuses.
I also locked the door so she couldn't get into my room. Ren was very thankful for that.
I guess I'm the only one Ren really opened up to- out of our group. And maybe just out of the whole world. I still am kind of proud of myself for that, and, to be honest, I like it. That I'm the only one whom he trusts, even if it's only a little bit.
"Alright class, let's get started!" Silva says cheerfully. I groan- how can anyone be that happy all the time? Even Silva must have his problems once in a while. I mean, even I'm not like that! And people call me 'the cheerfulness himself'. Anyway, Silva must be crazy or something. But I had already concluded that after I had my first lesson from him. "Well, let's see," he's rummaging through a big box and pulls out a light blue dress triumphantly. Oh no… he can't be serious, can he? "I already have all your costumes, so I thought it would be fun to already try them on! So, if you would all step into the dressing rooms and get changed, we can begin." Ren snickers next to me. Bastard.
"I am NOT going to wear a dress when it isn't needed!" I yell at the top of my lungs. I have a strange feeling Silva saw this coming.
"You are going to wear it, because I'm the teacher and I say so! So there," he retorts and sticks his tongue out. This guy is really a teacher? Man, if he can be a teacher, I could've been one six ears ago.
Thirty minutes later I find myself standing on stage with a light blue dress on, no headband on my head. My hair falls to my shoulders and the girls persuaded me to let them put some make-up on me (for the record: I do NOT enjoy this!). And, just to let you know: I'm one hot chick. I'd fall for myself if I didn't know I was… me. Yeah.
Ren's standing in front of me, not the least bit interested in my dramatic change. Bastard. He doesn't even say anything! He just smirks as he starts reciting his lines. I respond with my lines, grumbling a bit as he takes my hand and guides me, as Romeo does in the play. The whole auditorium is watching us and I feel kind of self-conscious about this whole ordeal. Man, why do they have to stare like that? I mean, I usually like being the centre of attention, but not when I'm wearing a damn dress.
I trip several times over the dress- it's just a little bit too long and it's unbelievably annoying to walk while wearing it. I trip once again and this time, I knew I would really fall- I prepare myself for the fall, hands to the front to at least soften the fall, but it never comes. I open my eyes and look at Ren, who has apparently caught me and I find myself in his arms. Yes, in his arms. Now, why does my heart beat so fast?
"Idiot! Can't you even walk properly?" he says, glaring at me. I grin at him playfully, trying to get myself out of this mess.
"Aw Rennie-chan, so you do care about me! I'm so flattered," Ren still glares at me, before he let's me go, making me fall on the ground anyway. Bastard.
"I told you never to call me that," he growls and turns away from me, leaving me, Usui Horokeu, in a dress blushing like a mad man. Silva coughs and I look at him.
"Well, I suppose you can go change clothes, Horo," he says. Wow. How nice of him.
--
"Hey, you're Horo, right?" I look up and see a guy standing in front of me. I think he's in my class, though I can't be sure- I never really pay attention and I don't know half of my classmates. He must be in that half. The guy has brown hair, tied up in a short ponytail, blue eyes full of happiness, unlike Ren's piercing gaze. I like that gaze- it makes you wanna- Wow, stop right there. Back to the guy in front of me. He's slightly taller than I am, and pretty muscular. He's wearing a costume as well, some weird… purple-thingie. Whatever they wore back then. So, with my all-knowing mind, I conclude that he is in the play as well. "I play Paris and I thought that we could rehearse together sometime." He flashes me a smile before adding, "I'm Ueki by the way."
"Sure, Ueki," I grin back at him. Do I know this guy? I don't think so. Well, it's not like I knew Ren either, when I went to his house.
"Horo," I look behind me and see Ren standing there, hands placed on his hips, giving an unclear look at me, before glaring at Ueki. "Are you coming? We have to rehearse," he emphasizes the word, while still glaring at Ueki. I look back at the brunette and I see that he's glaring back at Ren. What the hell? Too much glaring for my taste. Ren walks up to me and grabs me by the collar of my shirt.
"Bye, Ueki!" I yell at him, while Ren's literally dragging me away. He really has issues, involving dragging people around (and when I say people, I mean me).
"Don't talk to him anymore," he says as he stops dragging me, once we're outside of the auditorium. He's looking at me sternly. What! Since when can he tell me what to do?
"I talk to whoever I want to talk to," I retort. His eye twitches and he crosses his arms which is making me nervous. "He seems like a nice guy! Why can't I talk to him?"
"Because I don't like him."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't." I throw my hands in the air.
"You know what? Fine! I don't care- if you don't want me to talk to him, I won't! I swear Ren, sometimes I just want to-" I make some gestures with my hands to make a point and he just smirks, before petting me on my head.
"Good boy," he says, walking off towards his house. "Come on, we need to watch The Green Mile. Are you staying over tonight?" Again, I raise an eyebrow.
"Do I have a choice?"
"No."
"Thought so."
--
"Hey Ren?"
"Yes, Horo?"
"Why did you accept the part of Romeo? You don't strike me as the guy who would give up that easily," I ask him, as we lie in Ren's bed together. I can't sleep, so I start to wonder about things. Those things, oddly enough, mainly involve Ren.
"Because I thought that maybe father would think I've had enough of the Japanese culture stamped into my head if I would be social with the other people in my class and take me back to China."
"Why? You don't like it here?" I feel kind of hurt- I mean, I'm not that bad, am I? Me and Ren are having fun, right?
"I do now. I didn't at that moment," he replies honestly. Ren's always dead honest about things and that can sometimes be good and it can sometimes be bad. Mostly bad, because honest people are the people who are most likely going to get hurt.
"So, why not quit the play then?" I ask him. I can vaguely see him smirk in the dark as he replies.
"Because I like seeing you in a dress."
"What! Gha, honestly, you're even weirder than Yoh is," I reply. He snorts.
"Don't compare me to that lazy bum."
"Hey! Don't call my best friend a lazy bum!" … Woops. Wrong words. Seconds later, I get pushed out of his bed and lie on the floor, I somewhere hit my head in the process. I blink at him and he jumps of the bed, standing in front of me, and turns on the light.
"He's your best friend?" he asks me. I'm afraid to answer and frankly, I don't even know myself. The words just slipped out of my mouth, because Yoh and I have been friends for a long time now, best friends even. Well, of course, him and Manta were best friends too and I was kind of jealous of their relationship, but still, he was and is very important to me. Same goes for Manta.
As for Ren… I don't know about him. We've been friends for a month now and, even though we're as different as the sun and the moon, we still have fun together- we trust each other, we can laugh together (though he usually laughs at me), but are we best friends? I don't feel the same way around him as when I'm with Yoh.
I feel something warm dripping down my cheek- it's blood. Must've been from the fall. Ren's eyes widen and he immediately goes out of the room. He returns about thirty seconds later with bandages and a wet towel; he uses the towel to wipe the blood off my cheek and head and immediately bandages it.
Light fingertips gently wrap the bandages around my head. I can hear the soft beating of his heart as he briefly leans over me to cover the back of my head and I feel his soft breath in my neck, sending shivers over my spine. As he smiles- a real, true smile- gently at me, his eyes never leaving mine, I realise something, something I would have never expected.
I was attracted to Tao Ren.
--
It's been one week since my great epiphany and I've given it a lot of though. Seeing Ren just increases my feelings.
Okay. So I have feelings for the guy. Big deal. It was probably just a stupid little crush anyway. Besides, how could I, Usui Horokeu, self-proclaimed Babe Magnet, could ever fall for a guy like him? He was annoying, demanding, arrogant… and somehow, very nice and caring and handsome.
… I really am hopeless.
Damnit, I guess I really have to come to terms with my feelings. I mean, why should I deprive myself of something I want, anyway? So what if I like a guy? He is kind of girly! Look at his wardrobe: it's huge!
Anyway, so, let's get things straight here: First, I hate his guts. Next thing I know, I spend every second with him and then, I fall for him. Or maybe I fell for him immediately- no idea. That might be a possibility too.
So, what do I do next? Damn, I wish I had someone to talk to, when it comes to things like this. Yoh surely isn't an option; he'd go with the 'just-be-honest-and-tell-him-your-feelings-method', which would definitely not work. I mean, I think Ren must be asexual or something. At least, he doesn't seem to be interested in anybody at all. And I certainly can't ask Pirika. Why, you ask? Well, first of all, she has an enormous crush on him. Secondly, she's my little sister. It's practically a law of nature that you don't talk to your siblings about stuff like this.
And I don't really have anybody else to really talk to, besides Ren. Which is pretty ironic.
To get back to the question at hand: what do I do? Well, maybe what I do with every girl I like… absolutely nothing, because most girls hate me. Just forget that. Maybe I should find out how he feels? I can do that. I can be sneaky enough so he wouldn't know, but the question is; how do I find out? When I was talking to Ueki the other day, he did seem kind of jealous- plus, he doesn't want me to talk to him anymore. Which is perfect, because I am going to talk to him; just to figure out if Ren gets jealous or not.
Or maybe I should just forget about it and try to get rid of this crush.
I shake my head. Why do I have such a problem with this anyway? Is it only because he's a guy? Wasn't I the one who told Ren that it doesn't matter if someone's gender is the same, as long as you love him or her?
I'm not a homophobe or anything, but I guess it's different when you find out that you like a guy yourself. I mean, what will people say? What will Manta or Ryu say? Or Anna? Or Pirika? Then again, if they are my friends, they should accept me, right?
Okay, let's just think about this; do I need Ren? Do I love him? Sure, if I don't see him a day, I miss him. Even if it's only a couple of hours, I still miss him. I think about him when he's not around and when he is around, he's the only thing I pay attention too. I can't even watch movies normally! I still look at him from the corner of my eyes and the movie just passes me by. Is that love?
I certainly don't want him to get a girlfriend or… boyfriend. I like touching him; swinging my arm around his shoulders, or pinching his cheeks just to tease him. Occasionally grabbing his hand to show him something or just giving him a simple hug- I like it all. And sometimes, I find myself thinking how it would be to kiss him- especially on one of those 'kiss-moments', you know, when you both look at each other in silence.
I want to protect him from anything- that's why I spend so much time at his place. I don't want his father beating him and I'm sure that, if I would ever notice if his father had done anything to Ren, I'd kill Tao En. And that's not a bluff- I'd really do it.
Maybe I do love him.
Wait. Not maybe. I think I do love him.
I grab a piece of paper and write the following:
Operation Ren:
Get Ren jealous
Try to figure out his feelings
In case he likes me (which I'm sure he does, because I am very dashing), try to make him say it.
In case he doesn't like me (which is not a possibility, but I'll write it down anyway), flirt with him.
If 'making him say it' doesn't work, flirt with him like your life depends on it.
I stop. Flirting with Ren? That would be like a death wish… Ah well.
Ask him out?
If that doesn't work, just grope him or something.
Okay, so I'm not good at making plans- damnit. But still. I think I'll go along with this; I need to have some kind of plan.
"Horo! Get over here, it's Ren!" Pirika yells from the living room. I jump up and quickly put away the note, when I hear Pirika say to him, "Aw, why do you always come for Horo? We could go out sometime, you know!" I grin- he's never going to do that anyway. Too bad for her, but he doesn't even like her that much.
"No, thank you," he replies politely. About two weeks ago, I asked him to at least put her down gently. She is my sister, after all, and I don't want her heart to break just because Tao Ren hasn't learned any manners from his father. "Could you let me through? I'd like to see Horo." Ah, the wonders of manners. I feel so proud of myself; I think I'd make a good dad.
"Hey Ren," I greet him as I open the door to my room. Ren nods and enters it.
"Are you ready to study? I hope you've found your English book," he says, narrowing his eyes at me.
"Yeah, yeah," I pull out my English book triumphantly and he just rolls his eyes at me. "Oh, by the way," I add. Operation Ren has begun! "I'm going over to Ueki's next week, so I can't rehearse with you." Silence. He glares at me and I see my life flashing before my eyes.
"I thought I told you not to talk to him anymore," he says.
"Well, yeah, but I have scenes with him as well because he plays Paris, so I need to rehearse with him," I reply casually. His face is heating up- wonderful. This is going perfect.
"Fine," he grinds out.
"Good," I swing an arm around his shoulder, while grinning happily at him. Do my eyes deceive me, or is that a small blush on his cheeks? "Then, let's start!" Ren nods, before getting out his script. I see him smirking- uh oh. This can't be good.
"I thought we'd practise the ending scene today," he says. "With everything in it," he adds. I quickly go to the last scene and- oh crap. It's a kissing scene. Well, it's not that bad, really, but, I'm nervous now. He just smirks at me triumphantly. Horo: 0 Ren: 1. I guess my plan to make him jealous, didn't succeed. "Let's start when Romeo drinks the poison." I nod nervously and lie down on my bed, closing my eyes. " O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die." Is it my heart that's beating so fast? I still haven't opened my eyes and I feel his breath on my lips, before I feel his soft, moist lips pressing on mine briefly. I know at this point, that I want more of that. I hear a thud and this is my cue to wake up. Of course, we don't have the Friar right now, nor do we have Balthasar, so we'll just have to do without them right now.
" What's here? a cup, closed in my true love's hand? Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end: O churl! drunk all, and left no friendly drop to help me after? I will kiss thy lips; Haply some poison yet doth hang on them, to make die with a restorative." I bend over Ren, whose lying beneath me with his eyes closed- damn, it feels as if my heart is pounding in my throat. I bend down and keep getting closer to his lips- I press mine to his, but don't kiss him as brief as he had done. My lips linger on his and he doesn't appear to mind it, but, I still don't know how he feels… So, I withdraw and continue with the rehearsal. "Thy lips are warm," I whisper. "Yea, noise? Then I'll be brief. O happy dagger!" I pretend to grab a dagger. "This is thy sheath," I stab myself (or, I pretend to stab myself) and fall on top of Ren's body. "There rust, and let me die."
And it's over. Probably one of the best things I've ever done in my life.
"That was good," Ren says and sits up straight, pushing me off his chest.
"Convincing enough for ya?" I ask him, grinning. He seems to be slightly flushed.
"Quite, but not good enough. Your words were unclear- we need to rehearse some more," he coughs slightly. My inner-chibi jumps up and down, holding a victory sign. He wants to do it again! Go me! "And by the way," he adds. "I'll be accompanying you when you go to Ueki." I blink.
"What? I thought you didn't like him!"
"I don't, but I need to rehearse with him as well." He smirks slightly. "Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on you."
"I can take care of myself perfectly!" I huff, making him grin.
"No, you can't."
"Yes I can!" I think about a retort briefly and grin. "You sound like a mother when you're this overprotective by the way," I know how he hates it to be compared to a woman, it'll make him speechless. He looks at me, a calculating look on his face, before he walks towards me and leans over me, his lips very close to my ear.
"If I'm not mistaken," he whispers. "You're the one who has to wear the dress."
Okay, so he's not the one whose speechless. I turn around, holding my heart that's pounding more than it should be able to. Who is chasing who anyway? My plans are clearly failing. Damn that Ren, always one step ahead of me. Well, no more! I, Usui Horokeu, shall now make sure I am making him blush! Oh yeah!
"But," I almost purr at him, "I believe it would suit you better." Horo: 1, Ren: 1. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a tie! And yes, he's blushing slightly. And a slightly blushing Ren, means that a normal person would be as red as a tomato. He coughs, before making eye-contact with me- a serious look on his face.
"I have to leave tomorrow," he says. I blink- he's leaving? "It's only for a week or so. I'm going to see some relatives in China," he stops and looks away, a faint hint of pink on his cheeks. It might be because of embarrassment. "I… was wondering, since we have vacation anyway, if you would come with me. We could rehearse and-" I don't hesitate one moment.
"Sure!" I say enthusiastically. Anything to make sure his family won't hurt him. I'm glad he asked me to come with him as well, because I could have a lot of alone time with him now. It's perfect. Ren's face lights up immediately.
"Good," he replies, almost happily. I can see the relief on his face clearly. "We'll leave tomorrow morning by plane."
"Plane?" I blush slightly.
"Yes. Is that a problem?"
"Well, I- I don't exactly have any money for that." Ren rolls his eyes at me.
"Haven't I told you? We own the plane. You don't have to pay anything." He owns his own plane? … I'm never going to let this guy go. Ever. Before I know it, I glomp him happily. He tenses slightly, but after a second or two, he relaxes and returns the embrace. This is the second hug I get from him and this one feels much better, oddly enough. "It's very easy to make you happy, isn't it?" he murmurs into my shoulder. I grin.
"Only for you," I reply and let him go, reluctantly. I notice he blushes again- Oh yeah!
