A/N: Hey, new update! (Sorry for the lack of them, I haven't been getting much time to write). Heh heh, who noticed the new cover this story is sportin'? Drawn by yours truly. xD

So jealousy—what a wonderful emotion! Man, I was actually listening to Honeywork's 'A Solution for Jealousy' for the majority of writing this. xD Anyway, this chapter's from Aoi's POV—we are slowly inching nearer and nearer to his true feelings—and it also includes a couple OCs as well as some Usui (finallllly). Enjoy and please review!

Just a note: The Japanese word kimoi is slang for something unpleasant, disgusting, or sickening in general.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

.*.*.*.

J is for Jealous

adj. 1) feeling bitter and unhappy because of another's advantages, possessions, or luck

2) feeling suspicious about a rival's or competitor's influence, especially in regard to a loved one

.*.*.*.

Hyōdō Aoi was not jealous.

He swore he was not.

Yes, the feeling came fairly easy to him but it always had to do with… things.

That did not include her.

Naturally.

It was a peaceful weekend. Completion. Excitement. A phone call. Agreement. Plans. Before he knew it, he was waiting impatiently at her doorstep, cumbersome bag full of clothes held under his arm and fingers reaching up to sweep his tousled navy fringe from his forehead and out of his vision.

"Oh, Hyōdō-kun! Did you bring some new dresses?"

The boy felt the edge of his mouth curl upwards just slightly; Suzuna was becoming more and more interested in modeling for him and he couldn't help but feel almost giddy about that. …It wasn't as if her fashion sense had exactly improved over the course of their relationship, though Aoi found himself fussing over it less and less frequently, and—

—Was that really such a bad thing?

He tilted his head to the side, eyes hooded with something resembling pride, and nearly beamed at the girl as she let him inside.

"Yep!" Aoi exclaimed, flinging off his shoes and heading for the staircase within seconds; he hardly even spared a glance at the tarnished walls anymore, nor did the rickety floorboards cause him as much grief as they used to. "I worked all week on these so you better like them!"

Suzuna blinked at his enthusiasm and returned it with a mild smile. "Of course—everything Hyōdō-kun makes is wonderful, after all."

Eh?

"A-Ah…"

He was unprepared for such words.

"…Thanks, I guess," the boy muttered under his breath and faced the other way, face reddening. Jeez, was this happening again? Waiting for the painfully erratic beating of his hard to finally calm, he sucked in a breath and restored his cool—

"Tch."

Showing gratitude was not his style.

He began to make his retreat to Suzuna's room once again, aware of her presence behind him when a sudden tapping sound stopped him in his tracks.

"Hm?" the girl glanced back. "Someone's here…"

Aoi turned around to find her already moving towards the door, dark pigtails brushing against her petite shoulders—how come they kept drawing his attention? He leaned languidly against the staircase, lowering the bag of clothes beside his feet on the step and watched with a bored expression.

Ugh, hurry up…

Yet, as soon as the door was opened—

"Hi, Suzuna-chan!"

He nearly lost his balance.

Shintani Hinata?!

…You gotta be kidding me.

"You-kun!" Suzuna greeted. "Onee-chan isn't here right now, if you're wondering."

"Ah, well, that's okay. I came to see you," the brown-haired boy chirped in return, grinning at her with a small paper bag held in his fingers. "I brought some mochi from a stand I was passing—it's pretty good!"

"Is that so?"

Rubbing his neck sheepishly, Hinata held out the bag to the girl, "Yeah! I ate most of them… But, there's still some left for you!"

Mochi? He brought rice cakes for Suzuna?

Suzuna accepted the bag with a soft smile. "Thank you, You-kun," she politely spoke.

Aoi wanted to go and vomit at the sight he was seeing. Just what was going on here? Did Suzuna actually take the bag—with a smile, no less—and thank him for it? And again with that stupid nickname?

You-kun?

Ha, more like Kimoi-kun.

Tightening his fists, the boy bit the inside of his cheek and looked in the other direction, trying to push down the burning feeling in his gut. Which made him wonder—what exactly was he feeling? It was stronger than anger… Past the point of disgusted… Not completely what he'd call irritation…

Wait.

Jealousy?

No.

He could never, in a million, billion—trillion years—be jealous of something so meaningless, so pointless, sostupid. He could never be jealous of someone like him with someone like her.

He would not allow himself to be.

He had no reason to be.

It was unfathomable.

"Oh, I almost forgot—Hamburger-kun! Fusion!"

Eh?

"Ah! Right, Cheese-chan!"

…What the hell is this?

Okay.

So, he was a little ticked off.

But, he was definitely not jealous of that infuriating airhead, Shintani Hinata.

"Ne, ne, did you hear? Hana-chan said she's going to confess to her crush today!"

"D-Don't be so loud!"

Laughing at the desperate look the flustered brunette sent her way, Hasegawa Naomi waved her hand in apology. "Ah, sorry, sorry…"

Suzuna gave the two a content smile from her place at her desk, silent as her friends bickered back and forth. Unbeknownst to her, a certain navy-haired boy had been watching her from the corner of his eyes as she absentmindedly clicked the end of her pencil several times, tea-colored eyes distant and head reeling with thoughts, when—

"Oh, right! Su-chan!"

She blinked, looking up. "Yes?"

"Is there someone that you like?"

Eh?

Jolting into full alertness, Aoi immediately turned around to listen, leaning back against his chair.

Wait, what do I care…?

He questioned his eagerness, only to discard the thought a moment later. After all…

Who Suzuna likes?

Forget his pride; he had to hear this.

"Oh," the taciturn dark-haired girl murmured, face betraying no emotion. "Well—"

Miyuki Hana seemed far less excited than her friend. "Nao-chi," she chided, reaching out with a reprimanding finger to poke the girl in the shoulder and frowning. "You shouldn't ask super personal questions like that. And so loudly, too…"

No—be louder! Loud is good, loud is good!

"It's fine. I don't mind."

The two girls looked back at Suzuna in surprise. She was actually okay with it? They immediately huddled around her and much to Aoi's dismay, he could no longer hear what they were saying. Just a few giggles here and there.

He let out something between a sigh and a growl and turned back around, slumping down in his seat.

So annoying.

"Eh? That's not a person, Su-chan," Hana frowned. "You're just talking about your favorite fruits."

"I thought you asked who it was that I liked."

Naomi nodded. "Yeah! Oranges are not people!"

"Waterme—"

"Watermelons are not either!"

"I see. Then, bluebe—"

"Su-chaaaan!"

Aoi wanted to throw something at the three of them. This was not what he was hoping to hear once their conversation reached his ears, thanks to Hasegawa's rather loud voice.

"But, I like blueberries."

"Well, what's so special about them?"

Aoi froze when he heard her words after that, in that excruciatingly silky tone he recognized at once. The voice she often used when she teased him.

"Blue is my favorite color."

He put his head down in his arms on his desk and squeezed his eyes shut, pretending the shade of his face hadn't just turned ten times darker.

Dammit.

She knew that he had been listening.

The navy-haired boy hadn't noticed when Naomi and Hana eventually turned back to look at him, expressions nothing short of disbelief.

Su-chan was kidding, right?

"So, have you told her yet?"

Aoi raised his head at the question, jerked out of his thoughts, and looked over to the owner of the voice. It was an extremely boring afternoon at his aunt's café, though because a certain dark-haired girl had planned to meet him there, he overlooked the urge to complain—

—that, and because Usui Takumi also happened to be seated beside him.

"Told what to who?"

"Suzuna-chan. That you like her," Takumi replied without missing a beat. The tall blond boy leaned back into his chair, smirking; he knew full well that he had just touched an amusing subject.

Cobalt eyes widened.

"W-What gibberish is that supposed to be? Like hell I do!"

"Ooh. You're turning red. That's a sign of denial, you know."

Scowling, Aoi tugged at his navy fringe, feeling flustered. He glared at the older boy with the intent to drill holes through his head."Feh. How would you know?"

Takumi raised an eyebrow in pleased knowingness. "You behave just like my Misa-chan."

"Eh—?"

Aoi paused.

Do I?

"That's not true! Me and that old hag are nothing alike!" The navy-haired boy crossed his arms over his chest as he made an attempt at his coldest glare. He would not be compared to that crazy, unfeminine, beast of a woman in any life. "Besides… it wouldn't matter if I did somehow… like… Suzuna anyway…"

What am I saying? There is no somehow.

I…

Don't like her.

"Mm? And why not?"

Lips curling up into a cattish sort of smile, Takumi regarded the younger male with sly grass green eyes and Aoi instantly felt the urge to smash his face in. That damned 'perverted alien' as Misaki-chi put it—he was mocking him! Clearing his throat, Aoi spoke calmly, trying his best to appear nonchalant.

"She's obviously interested in that Shintani guy."

Yeah.

That's it.

Takumi leaned in.

"Ohh?"

Aoi leaned back.

"W… What?"

He wanted to take the pervious words back the moment they left his mouth, noticing as the older male's grin seemed to widen. "Shintani Hinata?"

A curt nod.

"Mm. As I thought—" Takumi pretended to muse, bringing a hand to his chin. If Aoi hadn't already been in such a dreadfully embarrassing situation, he may have commented on how stupid the older blonde looked with such a face just then. But the longing to do so vanished as soon as those grass green eyes looked up to find his once more, brighter than ever.

"—you're jealous."

Freezing.

J…

Jealous…?

I'm jealous of Shintani?

No, no, no, no—

"No!"

Hands pressing against the table, Aoi pushed his chair back as he stood up and nearly seethed, "That's ridiculous! What reason would I have to be jealous of-of him?"

"Ah… Then you're jealous of Suzuna."

"Yeah! Wait, what?"

"It's the opposite, huh? You like Shintani Hinata."

Goodness, how he wanted to die.

"Hah? That's not what I meant!"

"Oh, then you're in love with me?"

"Gah! Shut up!"

"I'm flattered, but you see, I already—"

"Usui, I will freaking kill you if you don't stop talki…"

He trailed off as the bell on the café door jingled and in stepped Ayuzawa Suzuna, composed and quiet always as ever. Her dark hair done it in its usual set of pigtails and dressed in a simple yellow hoodie and jeans, she seemed only slightly surprised when her eyes settled on the two males—one of them sitting casually in his chair and the other standing up in obvious frustration.

A placid smile lingered on her lips as she stepped forward to greet them.

"Hello, Hyōdō-kun, Onee-chan's Husband."

Aoi only frowned; he had heard Suzuna address Usui Takumi with such a name before but it had never bothered him as much as it did at that moment.

Onee-chan's Husband?

What is with her and nicknames?

"Hmph. You're late."

"Sorry, I was—"

"Ah, what a surprise," Takumi easily interrupted before she could continue speaking and his gaze drifted to the navy-haired boy near him for just a moment. With the way those grass green eyes glimmered, Aoi was sure something was up. What is this guy planning? In an attempt to ignore the feeling that had started in his chest, he almost didn't notice when Takumi also stood up from his chair and—

"Hm?"

Suzuna looked up as an arm found itself around her petite frame, hanging from her shoulder. Blinking once at the older blond smiling down at her, her attention was drawn back to Aoi.

Who looked quite ready to kill at this point.

"Do you want to hang out with me, Suzuna-chan?"

He had pressed his long fingers to her cheek, pinching the soft skin in an endearing manner—Suzuna remained silent, unsure of how to respond. As she calmly opened her mouth to say something, Takumi pulled her closer to his chest and her nose was met with rather nice-smelling cologne, causing her to momentarily forget what it was that…

"No. She doesn't."

Aoi glared at the two, fists tightened at his sides. Just what was that perverted alien trying to do with Suzuna? He had Misaki-chi, didn't he? Not wanting to wait around for the feeling in his chest to go away on its own, he stepped up to grab her hand, pulling her towards the door and out of Takumi's hold around her shoulders.

"Eh—Hyodo-kun?"

"We're going somewhere else."

"But—"

"Just come with me."

When she fell silent, Aoi could almost feel Usui Takumi's amused grass green eyes on his back as they left the café.

His face was hot.

"Tch."

That bastard.

It was late.

Satsuki had said goodnight a while ago, barging into his messy room and kissing him as she usually did—only for him to push her away as he muttered something of a reply and wiped his cheek. He couldn't stop recalling the events of the last few weeks… Everything seemed to bother him no matter how hard he tried to stop thinking about…

Aoi did not sleep that night.

Thinking about her, about him, about them, about… about…

The boy shifted in his bed, muffling a growl into his pillow and curling up against the covers. Did she do it on purpose? Torture him by being so damn perfect around everyone that spoke to her, so effortlessly, so indifferently. Did she not see how much attention she attracted all the time? Did she not notice when guys flirted with her? Did she not care?

She was his.

A frustrated groan.

"…I'm not," he breathed.

I'm not jealous.

His chest was still hurting and he had no idea why.

"O-Oi! Wait!"

Measuring tape dangling from his fingertips, having nearly swept away by the speed in which she had moved away towards her bedroom door, Aoi couldn't help but feel as though he had been in this situation before. He found himself running after down the stairs, yelling something along the lines of, "I'm not done, yet!" though, honestly, he didn't even have to look to already know who was standing at the doorstep.

"You-kun?"

"Hi, Suzuna-chan!"

His blood boiled.

Not again.

"Ah, you look super cute!" Hinata grinned good-naturedly at the girl, reaching out to gently pat her head. He ruffled her dark strands beneath his fingers as Suzuna looked up at him with confusion, tilting her head slightly to the side.

Aoi grit his teeth.

What the hell does he think he's doing?

"I do?" Suzuna inquired.

A flush spread across Hinata's face as he blinked down at the girl, somehow not expecting her reaction to be so… "Uh, y-yeah."

Aoi desperately wanted to scream at her, "Yes, yes, you freaking do, okay? You always do!" but bit his tongue before he actually did say something embarrassing and stupid like that. She… probably deserved comments like that once in a while.

He supposed it was his fault for never really telling her that.

What am I thinking? She only looks that way because she's wearing one of my dresses, duh!

True, she actually was in one of the dresses he was in the process of making for her; a surprisingly simple yellow one over a full-sleeved white shirt, adorned with small yellow and green flowers at the hem and under her bust.

So, it was only expected that she looked cute.

Scratching his cheek, the navy-haired boy scowled and held his sewing pin between his lips as he turned away, already nauseous by the display. "Do you mind, Shintani?" he spat when he finally looked back with a glare. "We're in the middle of something."

Hinata's eyebrows turned up at the voice and he looked past Suzuna to find Hyōdō Aoi settled on the staircase, arms crossed and cobalt eyes burning in his direction.

"Oh, Hyōdō! I didn't see you there!"

He swore he would punch that airhead if it was the last thing he did. Aoi mumbled something under his breath before turning around and heading back up the stairs without another word—they would take a while, he was sure, doing who knows what.

Acting stupid, probably.

"Hyodo-kun, where are you going?" he heard Suzuna call after him as he reached the top step, but he forced himself to keep looking ahead. She didn't need to see his expression.

"Gonna wait," was his curt reply.

Yeah, since that's all I can do.

"You don't want to sit down here with You-kun and me?"

Again with the You-kun, You-kun…

"No."

The word tasted ugly in his mouth.

But what tasted even uglier was the silence, the lack of response that followed as he stepped back into the room and closed the door behind him.

He had occupied himself with her bookshelf, sitting back on the bed that had the rest of his sewing materials scattered about—a pair of scissors, a box of thread, ribbons, and buttons, rolls of plentiful, colorful fabric—a manga held in his hands.

Honestly, he wasn't even paying attention to the black-and-white panels of art, the random tsundere girl stalking her senpai from behind the lockers; his mind anywhere but where he wanted it to be.

None of this made sense.

It was just a friendly visit, wasn't it? He knew Ayuzawa Suzuna and Shintani Hinata were childhood friends. She had told him this before, so why?

Why did he get so mad?

Why was he still so mad?

The painful feeling in his chest had returned and he wanted to throw the manga at the door in frustration. What would it take to make this go away? Why did he suddenly want nothing more than to go downstairs and crash their little get-together? Well, they can't blame me if I… Just as he really did contemplate doing that, the sound of the knob turning entered his ears and Aoi looked up.

Suzuna was entering the room and her clear amber eyes seemingly brightened as she saw the boy sitting on her bed. He only frowned and returned his gaze to the manga in his hands.

"Oh, Hyōdō-kun! Do you want to come and—"

"No thanks."

She stared. "…I cut some apples."

"Don't want any."

The dark-haired girl stood at her place in front of the door, still wearing the dress he was close to finishing before they'd been interrupted by Hinata.

"Hyōdō-kun," she started, tone level. "Are you angry?"

Aoi flinched and looked back to her, surprised when he caught something he was sure he'd never seen in her distant tea-colored eyes before.

Uncertainty.

No—surely, he had seen wrong—Ayuzawa Suzuna was steadfast and direct, always knew the answer… right? He quickly found it difficult to ignore the uneasy feeling that had arose in his stomach and pushed himself upright and off of the bed, still scowling. "Not really," Aoi grumbled as he flicked the manga to the bed, trying his hardest to act nonchalant.

"I promise to finish modeling for you after—"

"That's not it."

Ah—a slip of the tongue.

"Mm? …I see," Suzuna quietly murmured and began to turn around to leave the room again, causing a wave of panic to wash over the navy-haired boy. His legs instantly moved forward and before he even knew what was happening, he had a hand placed on the door—

—shutting it closed behind her.

Trapping her.

They were too close, Aoi realized, when he looked down to find that the back of her head was brushing against his nose, the narrow slope of her shoulders that had stiffened in surprise. She was turning around now—trying to right herself—he could see the curve of her plentiful lashes as she looked up through them with calculating tea-colored eyes. Heart thudding frantically in his chest, he had to force himself not to pull away as he glared back down at her with blazing cobalt ones.

The painful feelings in his chest all spilling out at once.

"Fine. I am angry," he admitted through clenched teeth.

Suzuna only studied him.

"…Why?"

Why?

"I-I don't know."

I don't know.

"Hyōdō-kun…"

Hyodo-kun?

"Don't call me that," Aoi found himself mumbling as he bowed his head slightly, his hand slipping from its hold on the door. This was all so aggravating. Why didn't he just let her leave? Now, he was saying things he didn't even want to say in the first place!

"What do you mean? I always call you that."

"…Use my first name."

Suzuna blinked again and Aoi had to fight the urge to just lean in and get this whole damn thing over with before he went crazy and—

"Aoi."

He sucked in a breath.

Her voice sent a shiver down his spine.

E-Eh?

He wasted no time in backing away, feeling himself blush to his roots as he attempted to stammer out a reply only to fail rather miserably. This was not what he had expected. Those lips moving to form his name…

It was unfair!

Was she trying to give him a heart attack?

"D-Don't say it so weirdly!" Aoi rebuked once he had finally managed to find his voice. "And use an honorific, jeez, Suzuna!"

"You don't use an honorific with my name," she pointed out.

He scowled and Suzuna now seemed to be amused; the glimmer had returned to those large tea-colored pools and a faint smile turned her lips as she took a step forward, causing Aoi to take one back.

"Well, I, uh—that's 'cause your… your just Suzuna, alright?"

"Alright."

The response was quick and indifferent, used to the defensive words the boy threw out. Despite this, she couldn't help but be curious as to what had just happened and asked a moment later, "Why do you want me to change what I call you, anyway?"

Because I'm jeal—I mean…

"Because I'm irritated—"

Yeah, that's works.

"—you call everyone with a nickname but me."

Exactly! That's all!

So, he was overreacting a bit.

That's wasn't a problem, right?

The dark-haired girl seemed to believe him, however, nodding her head and looking down in thought. "I see…" she murmured, fingers dancing across her lips. "What about Hyō-kun?"

He shook his head.

No, that sounded too much like You-kun.

"I—" Aoi faltered but managed to speak up again, wondering just what the hell was compelling him to say this. "I mean… my first name is fine, just, um…"

"Aoi-kun?"

Well, he was about to suggest 'Aoi-chan', like everyone at the café and Misaki-chi called him, but hearing the way Suzuna pronounced his name, different from the others, was almost exhilarating and he was nodding, despite himself, trying not to smile in front of her and instead…

"Yep, good enough," he shrugged with an expression resembling disinterest and looked past her towards the door, decidedly grabbing her wrist a moment later and dragging her outside. He brushed off the curious look Suzuna gave him as he was already racing towards the steps.

"Shintani, you're sharing those apples!"

Hyōdō Aoi was not jealous.

He swore he was not.

And yet—the look on the airhead's face when they came tumbling down the stairs, hand in hand—

Priceless, he concluded.