Chapter 10

Dedicated to rusalkaz

"I just can't help it!" Kazahaya told him, banging his fists on the firm countertop of Watanuki's apartment.

Watanuki could only watch helplessly as he finished the tea and food. He'd invited Kazahaya over for dinner, risking Yuuko's wrath for asking for a day off. In return, he had to make her a chocolate cake with fudge in the middle. But he'd been walking and talking with Kazahaya for a few days now and it looked as if the boy really needed a break, so he'd invited him for dinner and to stay the night.

For some reason, Doumeki had not at all been pleased when he'd heard the news, but Watanuki had forbade him to come and interrupt them. Honestly, what was that damn Doumeki thinking? What was he getting so uptight about? It was just Kazahaya and dinner at his house. He'd even dragged out his extra futon, which was airing at the moment, for his friend.

Which was all they were. Perhaps he was so uptight because he had no idea that Kazahaya was in love with Rikuou.

"Chop up those carrots, carefully."

He'd learned that on the contrary, Kazahaya was totally inept in the kitchen compared to himself. Obviously, it had been Rikuou who had made the food three days ago that he hadn't really eaten. He'd been in no state of mind to do anything for himself then.

Oddly enough, he hadn't been having nightmares when he slept. Was it because of Doumeki, who always seemed to wait until he went to sleep before leaving? Or was it just his mere memory and the memory of his kisses that kept away the unwanted dreams?

They talked about a lot of things during the creation of dinner and he'd never really had such an enthusiastic audience over his food, but apparently Kazahaya loved it. Watanuki loved it when people enjoyed his cooking. It was something left of his parents that he could treasure.

"What do you plan to do when you get out of high school?"

Watanuki sighed. "You see, that's the problem. I can't really plan anything because of this ability of mine. I guess I have to do whatever Doumeki does, since he's the only that can keep the spirits away."

"You guys really are close…"

The bespectacled boy flushed and picked up the dishes to wash them. "I guess. My dream is to open my own restaurant, but what with all these spirits following me, there's not really a future for that. There's not much of a future for me anywhere…"

There was a bit of silence. "You could be a novelist."

"Huh?" He turned around to see Kazahaya with a contemplative look on his face.

"No, listen. Seriously, you can be a novelist. They don't have to leave their houses, so all you have to do put up wards and all, or live with Doumeki-san, and just send your manuscripts out. That way if you have to leave Doumeki-san can go with you and you'd still have a good job. Novelists are really rich if you do well."

It had never occurred to Watanuki about being a novelist. But what would he write about? His experiences with the paranormal? Take the incidents in his life and make them into a fiction novel?

"Or maybe that Yuuko-san can suggest something. You did say you're working for her to get rid of your ability? But no spirits bother you in her shop, so…why not talk to her about succeeding her position one day? That way you have your ability, Doumeki-san, and a place that's probably really nice to stay at."

That thought made his stomach clench. Doing that job of Yuuko's? He'd seen enough of that damn job than he ever wanted. He never wanted that kind of responsibility in his life. He didn't want other people's lives hanging in the balance because of him. That was the whole reason he always felt so guilty about Doumeki getting involved with all the things he was so deep in.

"Hey, don't get so depressed, it was only a suggestion," Kazahaya added hastily.

"It's all right, Kudou-san, I'm not depressed. I just…I just don't think I have any right to look toward the future. I'm just trying to survive one day at a time."

"I know what you mean."

They shared a rueful laugh. "You can call me Kazahaya, Watanuki-san."

"Then you can call me Kimihiro."

There was a bit of silence before Kazahaya stood up to help him with the dishes. The atmosphere was calm, almost too tranquil. He was always so calm with Kazahaya next to him. They could talk about anything and agree on almost anything.

Really, if he didn't have Doumeki…

"Where the hell is he!" Rikuou snapped and crossed his arms, pacing in his apartment. The last time he'd seen Kazahaya was leaving the store with Watanuki. Knowing those two, they were so dense that they could get in trouble while just walking down the street.

"That's it! Who does he think he is, to do this to me!"

The door slammed behind him as he ran out.

"Is it comfortable, Kazahaya-kun? It hasn't been aired out in a while."

"The futon is fine, Kimihiro-kun." Kazahaya smiled at him.

"So…you haven't talked to Rikuou at all since then?"

"Not if I don't have to. But it's kind of hard to avoid him if we live in the same apartment and work in the same store. Not to mention, Kakei likes to send us on jobs. I'm only thankful that he hasn't sent us out on one recently, so that I don't have to worry just yet."

"But Kazahaya-kun, he didn't completely say no either. Maybe if you just talk to him again…"

Kazahaya shook his head and rolled onto his stomach, looking out the window of the bedroom. Or tried to around the closed curtain that Watanuki wouldn't let open. "You don't know Rikuou. He'd probably be just as happy to leave things as they are. He probably hasn't noticed that I'm gone yet."

"Kazahaya-kun…"

"It's getting really late, you know."

"Didn't you accompany Watanuki today?" Rikuou snapped, ignoring Doumeki's comment as he stood on the shrine steps. It had taken little questioning from Kakei to find out where Doumeki lived.

"No, he said he got a day off from Yuuko and was going to have Kudou-san stay over at his apartment. Why?"

Rikuou didn't need to say he had a bad feeling, because it appeared as if Doumeki had picked up on his mood. He snatched the bow from the wall and was already locking the door to the temple before Rikuou had even reached the stairs.

Something was just not right…

"What do you see? What's wrong, Kimihiro-kun?"

Watanuki was frozen in his bed and could only stare at the window, feeling his hands shaking. "There's something at the window…it's burning the wards around it…it's going to break through…"

"Then get off the damn bed, you're right in it's line of fire!"

There was a moment of chaos, the slamming of a door, and the next moment, he found his head pillowed against someone's chest. It was most certainly not Doumeki's, it was nowhere near as muscled, and there was a very distinctive smell, like aftershave, but not quite.

Silence…

"What's going on…?" he muttered, and peered over the shoulder of who was covering him, which could only be Kazahaya. He had shielded him. How nice of him. But the spirit was gone, so…

"Watanuki."

"Doumeki…" It took only a few seconds more before he registered that he was being stared by both Rikuou and his lover. Then a few seconds more to realize what their position must look like. "It's not what you think! Right, Kazahaya-kun! Right!"

Kazahaya let go of him as if he were made of fire and held up his arms, shaking his head frantically. "He's right, this isn't what it looked like! The spirit was at the window, Watanuki was right in the way, and I was just trying to protect him!"

Doumeki and Rikuou exchanged glances and he did not miss the anger in Doumeki's eyes. Or was it…jealousy? Oh man, this was bad. This was really bad. He'd only seen that expression on Doumeki's face once before and that was when he'd shoved him against a wall when he'd seen Watanuki's eye patch.

"Kazahaya, what you told a few days ago…was that true!"

"Of course it's true, you idiot!" Kazahaya screeched back.

"Then what the hell is that all about!"

Watanuki had a passing thought that maybe it would be better if Kazahaya weren't sitting in his bed with him, but Doumeki was not about to let him off the hook. He could practically see the hurt and jealousy winding around his boyfriend and he knew this was not the sort of situation that was good with a new relationship of only three days old.

"Watanuki, what were you doing?"

The voice was calm enough, but he heard it louder than Rikuou and Kazahaya's yelling. To him, it was like the lower it was, the more clearly he heard it. "Kazahaya-kun already told you! There was a damn spirit out the window and he was protecting me!"

"…Really."

"Really, you damn pompous ass!"

Why did he feel as if their worlds were slowly falling apart? Not only Kazahaya and Rikuou's, but also now his precious relationship with Doumeki. Why was this all happening? Why did everything good he held in his life have to go bad?

Watanuki was yelling, but really, all he wanted to do was cry.

End