Chapter thirteen.
Skirtchasing isn't the answer, nitwit!
The next week flew by, they got a lot more information about the camp and it was now the wednesday before camp, four more days until the actual camp would start. Sinbad had been right about kissing being the more vanilla subject. As for the others, PDA but also boobs (assigned to Yamuraiha,) everything up to the point of self touching, Ja'far shuddered, as he was relieved that his subject wasn't as embarrasing. All of the presentations were over with, and the class could breath as they were back to self-study. All of them could only pray she wouldn't try doing such things again, but one could never be sure with Miss Pisti.
''Okay, all well done.'' she said, as she marked the grades down, before saying, ''I've got more information about the camp.'' ''Camp?'' Hinahoho asked, as Pisti said, ''Yes, we're going on a trip with the entire class, I'll fill you in later. In the meantime, you'll receive an envelope. In this envelope, you can find the location, the schedule of what we're going to do, what you're not supposed to do, who you will share your room with and what you're not supposed to do with them. There is also a list of what you should take with you, make sure you peruse it. Same goes for the list with phone numbers of the teachers, make sure to have them just in case.'' she said, before handing out the envelopes.
Ja'far took his and opened it, eyeing the list of his roommates. First of all, Sinbad, he could have squealed. Then there was Sharrkan, which was convenient for their situation. Then there was Yunan, he assumed that wasn't too bad, and last, but not least, Judal had gotten assigned with them. ''NOOO!'' he could hear Sharrkan exclaim, as the entire class looked at him. ''Ehr, I'm not paired with Yamuraiha.'' he said sheepishly. Pisti sighed, as she rolled her eyes. ''I told you guy/girl pairings didn't get approved. Oh, right, forgot you weren't that clever.'' Pisti said, before grabbing her magazine and reading on.
Soon enough, the day had flown by. ''Who did you get paired with?'' Ja'far asked Hinahoho and Masrur as they headed towards basketballtraining. ''We got paired together, along with some fellow named Spartos, Sphintus, and Titus.'' Hinahoho replied. ''Well, at least you have someone you are familiar with.'' Ja'far replied. Masrur quircked his eyebrow, ''You don't?'' he asked.
Ja'far quickly corrected him, as he showed the list. ''My, my. This is interesting.'' Hinahoho said, as he eyed the list. ''Tell me something I don't know... All of them are irresponsible in a sense. It's going to be the end of me.'' Ja'far joked. He and Masrur entered the gym, as the basketballers got dressed. The exception being a certain purple haired teen. ''Sin. You seem to be in a foul mood.'' Ja'far said, as he spotted the king on a bench.
''I'm still not allowed to play.'' Sinbad pouted, as they sat down. "Oh, right, the incident at the game." Ja'far recalled. ''It was a good match though, I'm glad we won.'' Sinbad said. ''It sure was.'' Ja'far said. ''So, I read we're roommates at camp. Sounds like fun. Can't believe Sharrkan actually thought he was going to share a room with Yamuraiha. She'd castrate him if he'd attempt to peek at her.'' Sinbad joked.
'I don't think he actually meant that.' Ja'far thought, but decided to not voice it. ''We've a pretty good group.'' he said instead. Sinbad nodded cheerfully. ''Two of them are good friends I'm crazy about, and my co-captain is reliable. I'm not sure about Yunan, I think he's kind, yet there is something mysterious about him, but I can't put my finger on it.'' Sinbad said, giving Ja'far a fond look.
Ja'far was about to reply, as the basketballers took the field. ''Okay, standard warming up.'' Sharrkan shouted, as they started running. 'He's taking charge right away.' Ja'far noticed, as Sinbad said, ''That's why he's co-captain.'' Ja'far looked up, ''What do you mean?'' he asked. ''Sharrkan is bold, and doesn't go around things. He heads in for whatever has to be accomplished right away. I like that quality.'' Sinbad replied.
''I can imagine. He doesn't like to think about any consequences, but tries to help as good as he can. Maybe even beyond his capability.'' Ja'far agreed. Sinbad nodded, as he took a deep breath. ''You are really close to him, aren't you? I have been wondering for a while, how did that happen? Just a few weeks ago, we went to this coffee place and you barely knew him. How did that change?'' Sinbad asked.
Ja'far wasn't sure how to reply to that. Then he spotted a large bruise on Judal's arm, as the players ran by. ''What happened to Judal's arm?'' he asked Sinbad, before adding, ''That's a very large bruise, is he alright?'' Sinbad's expression turned into a worried one as he replied, ''Your beloved Sharrkan and he have gotten into a fight. I'm not sure what it was about, but the teacher that caught them gave the both of them detention for it.''
'So that was he was late for that dinner. Wonder what made him fight Judal? It isn't like Sharrkan to be aggressive at all.' Ja'far thought, but neither of them seemed hostile towards another on the field. ''It was probably nothing.'' he heard Sinbad add. ''It better not be. We share a room with them after all, and I don't feel like making them stop fighting all the time.'' Ja'far said.
''Maybe we should head out tonight, just to be sure everything is swell. Why not hang out at your place?'' Sinbad asked. ''Because, my house is being renovated. And I have an extra shift tonight, someone I'm covering for, they will cover for me next week.'' Ja'far said. ''I see. Well, maybe after your work.'' Sinbad tried. ''I don't think so. We have school tomorrow, so we can't stay up that late.'' Ja'far explained. ''Then, let's ask after training to be sure.'' Sinbad said.
But training lasted longer then expected, and Ja'far had to leave for work. Sinbad waved them off, as Masrur left too. ''Are they gone already? Too bad for co-captain that his girlfriend didn't cheer him on.'' Judal said, when practice was over. Sharrkan, who overheard him, came closer, as he said, ''Are you starting this again? I don't appreciate it when someone spreads rumors about my friends, especially when it comes from filth like you.''
''Be polite, and behave yourselves.'' Sinbad ordered them. ''Very well.'' Judal said, but didn't seem to mean it. ''I'll give it a try, but only because I have to share a room with you two.'' Sharrkan said. Sinbad smiled, he was pretty good at keeping peace in his "kingdom", a.k.a. the basketball team. As Judal walked off, Sharrkan gave Sinbad a good look. ''Why do you like him that much?'' he asked.
''There is something different about him. Just like Ja'far, he's considered a good friend, okay, maybe not as close to me as Ja'far is, but it seems he's closer to someone else, so I need someone to confide in.'' Sinbad replied, as he eyed Sharrkan. ''What do you mean by that?'' Sharrkan asked. ''Are you two in denial, or just plain out hiding. Because, from my position, it seems like you and Ja'far care a lot about eachother. Which isn't bad, but I'd like to know, so you can at least have your alone-time at camp.'' Sinbad said. 'I know he's dumb, but Ja'far obviously likes him.' Sharrkan thought, as he said, ''Trust me, there is nothing going on. After all, I'm all about the boobs, and girl parts.'' Sharrkan boasted. ''Could have fooled me.'' Sinbad said, as he left.
That evening, when Ja'far was done with his shift, he headed back to Masrur's place, where he found the Fanalis siblings packing. ''Getting ready already?'' he asked. Masrur nodded, as Morgiana opened the suitcase. ''Maybe I should get ready too, though it seems kinda early.'' Ja'far said, but Masrur stopped him. ''Actually, I wanted to talk.'' he said. ''Oh, sure.'' Ja'far said, as Masrur turned to Morgiana who nodded. Ja'far could swear they had some telepathy going on, because Morgiana suddenly headed upstairs.
''You want to talk about what is going on with Sharrkan, Sinbad and the situation, right?'' Ja'far said and Masrur nodded. ''Well, I'm having fun, that much I can tell.'' Ja'far said. ''I see. Do you still like Sinbad?'' Masrur asked, Ja'far was taken aback at this question. ''I do, I really do. There have been some doubts, but I can't stand the thought of living without Sin.'' Ja'far admitted, before asking, ''Why do you ask?''
''Not to be offensive, but you seem close to Sharrkan.'' Masrur said. Ja'far sighed, as he nodded, ''I enjoy being friends with him, and he's been helping me, in a sense.'' he told Masrur. ''Then I believe you, just promise me that you'll make the right choice.'' Masrur said. ''I will, really.'' Ja'far said, as he rested his head on Masrur's shoulder. ''But I'm not the only one that likes Sin. I mean, Judal seems kinda close as well, and we're even going to share a room with that guy.'' he complained.
''But, you share it too, right? You are his best friend, and closer to him. Use that as your advantage.'' Masrur explained. ''You aren't usually this talkative.'' Ja'far told him. ''Maybe I want to help you.'' Masrur replied, as he added, ''Sinbad is jealous of you being close to Sharrkan.'' Ja'far nodded slowly, as he said, ''I'll keep that in mind.'' Masrur nodded, as they resumed packing their stuff for camp.
At the Saluja-household, the siblings were busy packing as well. ''Going to camp, so much fun! And I'll have the house just for me and myself!'' Alibaba cheered, as Sharrkan nodded. Alibaba was wise enough not to admit to Sharrkan that he'd probably invite Mor over. ''Did you get any fun roommates, nii-san?'' Alibaba asked, as he snatched Sharrkan's list away. ''Let me see, Aladdin's big brother, Yunan, and your captain Sinbad with his shadow, Judal. And ooh, what have we got here, your oh-so big crush, Ja'far.'' Alibaba teased.
Sharrkan paled, ''What did you just say?'' he asked. Alibaba gave him a knowing look, before he said, ''Nii-san, don't tell me that you're still denying it. Clearly, you have feelings for Ja'far. It isn't that strange, I mean, you two are spending a lot of time together, and-'' ''I don't like Ja'far that way.'' Sharrkan deadpanned. ''You don't say. Nii-san, it isn't a bad thing.'' Alibaba urged. ''I like girls!'' Sharrkan yelled. ''Sharr, you never dated one before.'' Alibaba said. ''Well, I'm not interested in anyone yet.'' Sharrkan replied, before he stomped off. ''Nii-san..'' Alibaba whispered worried, before he continued packing.
The next morning he found himself equally as worried, as he spotted his brother in a rather fancy suit, staring into the mirror. ''Are you going to wear that to school?'' he asked. ''Yup.'' Sharrkan answered, as he looked at his brother. ''Something wrong with it?'' ''Not really, it's just against school regulations.'' Alibaba mentioned, but Sharrkan shrugged. ''The ladies will love it.''
''Is this about what I said yesterday? Because I didn't want to make you snap or anything.'' Alibaba said. ''Nah, it's fine. I just got to get back in the game.'' Sharrkan said, trying to tie his tie. Alibaba rolled his eyes, before helping his brother. ''I can't believe you're going through a mid-life crisis at this age over a small crush.'' Alibaba said. ''It'll be fine.'' Sharrkan said, looking himself over in the mirror once more. ''And I don't have a crush!'' Sharrkan said.
Alibaba kept his distance as he walked with his nii-san towards school, and fled away the minute he spotted Morgiana and Aladdin. Sinbad was the first to spot Sharrkan, as he asked, ''What's with the get-up?'' ''Charmin' the ladies.'' Sharrkan oozed, making Sinbad frown. ''What has gotten into you?'' he asked, but Sharrkan was already running after Yamuraiha.
''What is going on?'' Judal asked, who had spotted them. ''Our co-captain has gone insane.'' Sinbad replied, as they watched Yamuraiha run away from the dressed up Sharrkan, telling that leech to get the hell away from her. ''Has?'' Ja'far asked, as he joined them. ''Your boyfriend is getting weirder by the day.'' Judal said, making Ja'far blush. ''We aren't dating, and he has always been strange.'' Ja'far told him.
''Leave me alone!'' they heard Yamuraiha shout, as she gave him quite the slap. ''Maybe we should let him be.'' Sinbad said, as he led them towards History. Sharrkan, who was giving up on Yamuraiha, spotted a lovely lady up ahead. ''Hey miss, do you want to go out with me?'' he shouted, as he started running after her.
He had gained around five slaps by the time History class actually started. ''So, after Sinbad had set the tiny gladiator free, trough all those efforts, he entered the glorious area called Heliohapt.'' their teacher explained. ''Heliohapt?'' Ja'far wondered out loud, he loved history, and this had been where their book had ended thusfar, so he definitely wanted to know more. ''But, we don't have the material yet to go over this, so, we'll talk about that later. Instead, we're going to overview-'' his voice droned out as Ja'far decided to focus on Sharrkan instead.
'What the hell is up with him today?' he wondered, as Sharrkan was trying to draw attention from some cute girl, who was doing her level best to ignore him. 'Maybe he wants to hook up before camp starts. That kinda makes sense, because if Sin and I get together there, he wants someone to spend time with too.' Ja'far figured, as he focused on his studies again. The girl finally managed to tell Sharrkan to stop, and somehow he had the decency to stop.
'What am I doing?' Sharrkan wondered to himself, before he stared towards Ja'far. 'Oh, right.' he thought, as he remembered how bad he had slept the previous night. ''I can't like Ja'far, I just can't.'' he told himself as he paced through his room. 'But, somehow, you grew close to him.' his conscience said. ''I'm supposed to get him together with Sin. He isn't even that cute. Okay, maybe he is, and that kiss may have been amazing, but I can't like him.'' he yelled, as he pulled his hair. 'But I do.' a faint blush was present as he fell onto his bed.
'I do like him a lot.' he sighed, things couldn't have been worse. He didn't mind liking another man, because there was nothing wrong with that, but Ja'far loved Sinbad. That's why he needed Sharrkan's help in the first place. 'I can't like him, it will just end badly.' he could envision Ja'far letting him down easy, or maybe, ending their friendship entirely. After thinking it over for a while, he had managed to come up with the splendid idea to chase after girls, to prove the fact that he was solely straight, and had it going for those glorious, and bouncy boobs.
So, the minute class was over, he went back to chasing more girls, aside from Mor, because, yeah, she obviously would kick his ass if he did so. And she was with his little brother. So, he went after this tiny, but very cute blonde girl instead. For some reason, she had this very masculine name for she was called Titus. He shrugged, as he ran after her, cause who could resist him?
''Ja'far?'' Sinbad asked, as the they looked bewildered at Sharrkan's behavior. ''Yes, Sin?'' he asked, as he tore his eyes of his friend's antics. ''Would you mind hanging around with me and Judal for today. It was Judal's idea, because of Sharrkan's, well, whatever crisis he is having.'' Sinbad said. 'Liar, Judal doesn't remotely want me closeby.' Ja'far was flattered that Sin did make up that lie for him. ''I don't mind.'' he said, and Sinbad seemed elated.
''Hey, girlie. Why are you not replying?'' Sharrkan asked. Titus twitched a few times, before he turned around. ''I AM NOT A GIRL, MORON!'' he shouted. ''No way.'' Sharrkan said, unbelieving. Suddenly, out of the blue, Aladdin appeared, and tried to squeeze, well, probably her breast. ''Neh, Miss, you are missing some parts.'' he said, and Sharrkan wasn't sure what to do. Titus loudly gave the both of them a smack, as he yelled, ''There aren't any there, because I'm a man!'' with a huff he walked off. ''I was sure he was a she.'' Aladdin said sulking. Sharrkan patted his head, as he said, ''So was I.''
The day continued like this, and both Sinbad and Ja'far were surprised that Sharrkan was still alive by the time basketball training started. Surely, he must have hit on nearly all the girls from school, and most of them were, well, sorta violent. ''He gets to play like that, whilst I, with a minor sprain, can't.'' Sinbad grouched. ''Nice try.'' Ja'far said firmly. ''But he's not in the best shape, I'll give you that.'' he added, somewhat concerned for Sharrkan.
Masrur nodded along as well, Sharrkan was in a terrible state. Instead of just missing the hoop entirely, he did make it, but neglected to remember which belonged to his team in the little friendly match they had. And he didn't run along, or shout for the ball, making it possible for Judal to aim at his head instead of being able to pass the ball. ''I wonder what's up with him today, I mean, he was just fine yesterday. Stupid as always, but fine.'' Sinbad said.
''Maybe he is anxious for camp, and hopes to have some alone time with someone dear?'' Ja'far opted. ''Nah, doesn't sound like him at all.'' Sinbad said. ''Maybe he wants to just bang someone that bad. Aren't you giving him any?'' he added, gaining a whack from Ja'far, naturally. 'Moron.' Masrur thought, before looking over to Sharrkan, who was just staring into space, or so Masrur guessed. ''I'll talk to him later on.'' he said. ''That would be nice.'' Ja'far said, as he held Sinbad's head in a headlock, trying to make the schoolking apologize.
When Sharrkan was finished dressing up, he sighed to himself as he sat down on the locker room bench. ''The fuck am I doing?'' he asked out loud, of course, seeing everyone had left already, he didn't get an answer. Not that he cared, he didn't want an answer to that, if he was being honest. 'God, why did I start helping him out? I didn't ask for this.' Sharrkan thought, as he sighed deeply.
When he had gotten dressed, and left the room, he found Masrur waiting for him. He had his arms crossed, as he literally stood in front of the door, and his stoic face made him seem somewhat angry. ''AAAH,'' Sharrkan shrieked, before adding with a high pitched voice, ''Hey there, big guy. The rest left already.'' ''I'm waiting for you.'' Masrur replied. ''Wha, who, me?'' Sharrkan asked, before leaning against the doorpost, ''That's very kind and all, but I fear I don't see you like that.'' he joked. Masrur rolled this eyes, as he picked up Sharrkan and threw him over his shoulder. ''Mor is over at Alibaba's, we're going to hang out in the mean time at my place and talk.'' Masrur said.
''We are going what now? Hey, let me down!'' Sharrkan screeched, as Masrur carried him home. Sure, they gained some odd looks on the way home, but Masrur didn't let him go, until they had reached his house. ''You know, you've broken into Ja'far's house before, and now you are abducting me, you could be seriously charged for this.'' Sharrkan told him, as Masrur threw him onto his couch.
''Don't be so dramatic.'' Masrur told him, and somehow, he made it seem like a valid argument. ''So, why did you drag me here?'' Sharrkan asked. ''Because, you are being even weirder then usual.'' Masrur told him. ''You mean my flirtatious behavior? I can't help being so charming.'' Sharrkan said. Masrur just gave him a look. ''Fine. It's not like anyone can hide anything from you. You probably smell my thoughts, or something like that.'' Sharrkan said, before adding more seriously, ''I'm supposed to help Ja'far, but somewhere, along the line-'' he stopped before he whispered hoarsely, ''-I fell for him.''
Masrur just blinked a few times, and then, a few times more. ''So?'' he asked. ''So? That's all you have to say!'' Sharrkan shouted, as he stood up, and ranted, ''Ja'far is going to kill me. I'm supposed to help him, not make his life more horrible. I don't want to hear him go on and on about Sinbad any longer, because I can't stand it. I want to be able to hold him, call him mine, and I can't. You want to know why? Because I promised to help him engage a relation with Sinbad! I'm a coward if I don't help any longer, he will fail, and god knows what Ja'far does when we fail. And if we do succeed-'' his eyes became more dull as he painfully added, ''-I will crush my own heart.''