Bel liked how Gokudera was willing to be a babysitter of sorts to him during school. Dino had almost lost his job and Bel was nearly kicked out after what had happened, but the older blond had managed to come to a compromise; Bel was allowed to come back as long as there was someone with him at all times to make sure he wouldn't try and attack another student. Gokudera had been very patient with him, giving him time and energy he wouldn't usually give to anyone other than Tsuna. Bel couldn't help but feel special; he knew all too well that the silver-haired teen was as unsociable as himself, so it felt nice to have positive attention on him.

Like now, as the two walked through town after school. Though they had only been together for a week, Bel was slowly coming to trust his boyfriend. He liked how Gokudera didn't mind whenever the blond held his hand; the younger male knew Bel did it because he felt scared and anxious.

"How many subjects do you have homework for?" Gokudera looked over his shoulder to the blond hiding behind him as they walked.

Bel cocked his head to the side. He hesitated before he lifted his free hand and held four fingers up. "…"

Gokudera knew that Bel rarely did his homework. He never did it for Dino, the English teacher instead hiding the fact from his other students and giving his charge marks he was confident Bel would have gotten otherwise. While Bel might hand in an assignment or two every couple of months for other classes, it would only have been because Dino had sat down with him and encouraged him to do his homework, knowing just how far over the extended deadline it was.

"Well, when we have lunch, let's do some homework, okay?"

Bel nodded, too afraid to let Gokudera know that he didn't want to do homework; it was hard for him to even disagree openly with Dino, having wondered day after day if whether or not it was because he had told Xanxus no that the scarred male had hurt him so badly. If that was the case, he would never tell someone no again.

Gokudera stopped walking when he felt Bel wrap his arms around the silver-haired male and press his chest to Gokudera's back. "Bel? Are you okay?"

Bel nodded. He was testing the waters; he needed to know how much Gokudera would tolerate him before getting mad.

Gokudera didn't mind the hug; he lifted his hand and held the other two that were linked across his chest. "We're almost at the café, Bel. Let's keep walking."

Bel nodded, reluctantly letting go of Gokudera. He dropped his head when he noticed all the judging looks being sent his way, wishing they would leave him alone. He gripped the back of his boyfriend's jacket tight as he followed behind once more, tensing in an effort to make himself look smaller.

Gokudera didn't say another word until they had stepped into the café a few minutes later; he instead pulled the older male over to the registers to grab a menu before ushering Bel back away from everyone. Opening the brochure, he asked, "What do you want to eat?"

Bel looked at all of the options before he pointed to the gyoza and takoyaki. He ducked his head once more when he was asked what he wanted to drink, and he reluctantly moved close enough to the register again so that he could see his options. Once he decided, he looked back to his boyfriend as he pointed, hoping the other would understand.

"You want some ramune?" Gokudera smiled when he received a nod in response. "Okay. Let's order."

Bel resumed his death grip on Gokudera's jacket as he followed. He tensed again as he felt the eyes of the cashiers on him. He dropped his head to the younger's shoulder and frowned as he looked anywhere but at the cashiers.

Finally, once the orders were placed, the boy grabbed Gokudera's hand and followed him into the back of the café so that they could take a table away from everyone else. He squeezed himself in next to the younger and watched the silver-haired male pull his schoolwork from his bag. He did the same, not wanting to make Gokudera mad at him; maybe if he were to get his work over and done with as quickly as he could, he would be left alone to just sit quietly with his boyfriend and not have to do anything.

The two hadn't done much on their assignments before Gokudera's phone rang. He answered the call upon seeing that it was his sister, and his attention was fixed on the phone call. Bel stopped what he was doing also, staring blankly down at his objectives as he listened to Gokudera speak.

"Excuse me?"

Bel sucked in a loud breath as he threw himself against Gokudera. He was frightened of the waitress who had come out of nowhere just to talk to him; he wasn't used to people coming up to him out of the blue, and it terrified him. He whimpered as he hugged his boyfriend tight, and he was glad to feel the younger's arm wrap tightly around his waist.

"It's alright, Bel; it's just the waitress." Gokudera quickly told his sister he would be just a few moments before he grabbed the waitress' attention and accepted the two bottles of ramune she had brought out for them. He waited until she had left the area before he leant down and placed a kiss on Bel's cheek and squeezed his waist affectionately. "She's gone. She just wanted to give us our drinks."

Bel nodded, feeling a little sick. He picked up his pen with a shaking hand, and though he was trying so hard to focus his attention onto what Gokudera wanted him to do, he was finding it too difficult; he was too tired to concentrate, and his anxiety was spiking from this unfamiliar setting. He wanted so badly to tell Gokudera he wanted to go to sleep, but he was too afraid to do so; he just picked at his appetisers once the food had arrived and tried his hardest to remain awake.

But no matter how hard he tried, he still found himself dozing off until he had dropped his head to Gokudera's shoulder and fallen asleep; he was exhausted from stress, but he hadn't been able to sleep the previous night; it was only natural he would fall asleep sooner or later.

Gokudera didn't mind, and the staff were kind enough to let them stay until Bel had woken. Needless to say, the silver-haired male was able to get quite a lot of his homework finished within the time his boyfriend was sleeping.

~~XX~~

When Gokudera took Bel home that night, he had been about to leave for his own apartment when the blond grabbed his sleeve and tugged him further into the house. He had understood immediately that his boyfriend was trying to ask him to stay, and he nodded, allowing himself to be led into Bel's bedroom. He couldn't recall having ever been inside the boy's bedroom before, so he was sure to take his time and look around.

The floor was trashed; that was the first thing Gokudera had taken notice of. There was dirty clothing and toys of various sorts scattered everywhere, with some books and magazines peeking out of the mess. The boy's desk was just as messy, looking like anything but a work area. There was a TV and entertainment system across from the bed, with a few gaming consoles hooked up to it, but with the dust that had gathered over the consoles, Gokudera couldn't help but wonder when they had been used last. A bookshelf was next to the desk, but Gokudera couldn't make out what was on the shelves, and the bed was as messy as everything else; it looked almost as if it had never been made, with the blankets twisted and laying haphazardly in a pile with the pillows all over the mattress, and even one on the ground.

"You don't do much cleaning, do you?" Gokudera turned to look back at Bel. He bit his lip as he noticed that the small smile his boyfriend had been donning was now replaced with a frown; had he upset the other? "I didn't mean it in a bad way, Bel. It's alright; it's your room and you can keep it however you want."

Bel nodded, trusting the other. He tugged at Gokudera once more until he got the younger over to his bed. He sat his boyfriend on the mattress before he clambered on as well and laid down to rest his head on the student's lap. He grabbed Gokudera's hand and held it tight as he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax enough so that he could begin drifting into sleep. He almost purred when he felt fingers caressing his head, and it was enough to help him fall asleep.

Gokudera sighed as he laid down and rested his head on the pillows. He was aware of Bel's pet mink uncurling from the windowsill it had been sleeping on, and he watched the animal jump down and come to its owner's side. He couldn't help but smile as he watched the mink curl in against Bel's body, and seeing the blond wrap his arm around it even in sleep warmed his heart; he knew how much the older male loved his pet, but he had never seen it for himself until now.

Gokudera really liked seeing that there was something in Bel's life that wasn't hurting or upsetting him and instead making him happy; the blond had been through enough and was more than deserving of his mink.

Closing his eyes as well, the slightly smaller male was sure a quick nap before heading home wouldn't hurt him. However, instead of a nap, he found out just how tired he himself was when, hours later, he woke to Bel's whimpers and cries of fear.

"Bel?" Gokudera sat up and found that the bedroom light was still switched on; he could see sweat running down Bel's face as the other tossed and turned, tears escaping heavily from their ducts. "Bel, it's alright. It's just dreams."

Bel didn't wake, but he did slowly calm down to Gokudera's voice. He didn't wake when the younger pulled him further up the bed, but he snuggled in close to his boyfriend once he was cradled against Gokudera's chest. He licked his lips for a few seconds before his breathing quietened down and he was resting his face against the other's throat. His bony fingers were curled in tight to the silver-haired male's clothing, and his quivering was slowly ceasing.

Gokudera couldn't help but smile at this sight. Leaning down, he pressed a soft kiss to Bel's forehead before deciding that it wouldn't hurt if he stayed the night. Laying back down with the blond held securely in his arms, he closed his eyes once more, his sleep more peaceful than it had been in a long time with Bel by his side.

Maybe he should try and spend the night with Bel more often; it would probably be beneficial to them both, after all.