A/N: And here is the next chapter!!! Maybe NOW Kazuki will say it? I don't know, but he did say it through actions, right? Hmmm… BTW, this is an extra long chapter… And if you are confused about the times and stuff, I'm actually skipping days and months… This chapter is set two months after last chapter.
The More You Hate, the More You Love
"Hey, Kazuki! Good Morning!" Ginji shouted while running to Kazuki's side, who was about to go to his locker.
"Good Morning, Ginji." Kazuki answered with a weary smile on his face.
"What's the matter? Are you sick? You look pale." Ginji asked with a concerned look on his face.
"No, I'm fine… I'm just tired." Kazuki jadedly answered.
"Yeah, you do look tired."
"If you know what I did yesterday, you'd say I'm completely, utterly, and absolutely freaking exhaustedly tired."
"Whoa, that's way too much. What did you do anyway?" Kazuki then related to him his Sunday afternoon.
Flashback
That Sunday Morning at about 7 a.m., Kazuki woke to a loud noise, much like the sound of car breaks. After he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and put on his bathrobe and slipped his slippers on, he went outside. It turns out, a motorcycle and a car collided. He quickly ran inside and called for help, while the guards went to inspect.
After the paramedics have arrived and carried the one in the motorcycle away to the hospital and leaving the driver of the car behind after treating her minor scars, Kazuki invited the woman to have tea inside his house.
"Why thank you, young woman. How very kind of you!"
"Well, actually, I'm a boy, madam."
"Really?! I never would have guessed! I'm sorry, though."
"It's alright. A lot of people mistake me for a girl."
"I see. Ah, I'm just so clumsy at driving sometimes. I hope that man is okay."
"I hope so too."
"Anyway, young man, what's your name? I'm Mrs. Raiko."
"I'm Kazuki Fuuchoin."
"Fuuchoin? You mean this is the house of the great Mr. Fuuchoin who owns oil companies all over the world, the Fuuchoin Oil Company?"
"Yes, madam."
"I'm sorry to hear about his death. By the way, where's your mom?"
"She's overseas. She won't come back until two weeks from now."
"Ah, I see. Anyway, thank you for the tea. I really have to get going now."
"How will you go to your destination?"
"Well, I'll just call a taxi or something down the street. After all, my car is still being repaired and none of our drivers are available to pick me up."
"If you would like, why don't you use one of our cars? I can ask one of the drivers to send you home."
"That's very kind of you! I'd appreciate it if you could; I really have to hurry to my office."
Kazuki then ran into one of the driver's sleeping quarters and called for someone who isn't sleeping. A random driver then got up and dressed.
"Where do you want to go, sir?"
"No, I'm not going anywhere. Can you take someone to where she's supposed to go? She's in the living room."
"Of course, sir." The driver then went to fetch the woman in the living room and drove her away. Kazuki then trudged back to his bedroom, yawning. But before he could even lie down on the bed, his phone rang.
"Fuuchoin Residence, who's speaking, please?" Kazuki answered sleepily.
"It's mom. Sorry for calling you this early, darling, but can you take care of something for me?"
"Is it important? It must be if you're calling me this early."
"Yes. I want you to get some files from the office and let one of the drivers send it to our airport where we keep our jets. A man dressed in yellow will be waiting by one of the doors, and to make sure it is delivered, I want you to go as well."
"Okay mom. What files am I supposed to get?"
"It's laid on the top of my desk. It's enclosed in a red folder and it has 'Malaysian Contract' written on it. It's extremely important, my son, so please hurry and get it to the man in yellow no later than eight thirty."
"I understand, mom. Take care."
"You too." After Kazuki hanged up, he hastily put on a brown shirt and jeans, and hurried downstairs, all thoughts of sleep forgotten. To his relief, the driver who brought the lady to her office returned, so he didn't have to use another limo.
"Hey, Mr. Kaoru, can you please bring me to my mother's office? I'm sorry for bothering you this early in the morning."
(A/N: I just thought of something random for the driver's name. I hope it sounds Japanese and is also appropriate for a guy's name…)
"It's perfectly fine, sir." They then went outside, climbed the limo, and hurried to his mother's office, which was twenty minutes away from the house. Once they got there, Kazuki rushed to his mother's desk, but he didn't find anything. Thinking his mom might have placed it somewhere else but didn't remember, he searched the drawers and boxes, but did not find anything. Puzzled, he called his mom on his cellphone.
"Mom, I don't see any red folders here."
"What?! But it's right there on the desk, Kazuki! I did not put it anywhere else!"
"But it's not here, and I looked everywhere too, but I can't find it."
"What? Ah damn it… Can you ask the secretary?"
"Okay mom. I'll call you back." Kazuki then asked the secretary if she had seen it.
"Well, I didn't see anything of the sort, and… Oh, wait, let me check first." The secretary then rummaged under her desk for a few minutes, and afterwards she pulled out a green folder.
"Is this the one? I found it on your mother's desk and decided to keep it in case it's important."
"No, I'm looking for a red folder."
"But it does have 'Malaysian Contract' written on it."
"I'll call my mom to confirm." Kazuki then dialed his mom's number, but he could not get through.
"Damn, it's 8:10! And from here it takes ten minutes to get to the airport!" After trying and trying for fifteen minutes, he got through. His mom picked up almost immediately.
"Did you get it, Kazuki?"
"Yes, but it's in a green folder."
"A green folder…? Oh, I remember… I misplaced the red one so I just made a new one and put it in a green folder! I'm sorry, Kazuki… Anyway, can you please hurry up?"
"Yes, mom." After hanging up, he looked at the clock and realized he won't make it. He then called his house for a faster car, and so he told the driver who brought him to go home. Realizing even a faster car wouldn't make it, he jumped on a taxi and called home to cancel the car.
He arrived at the airport ten minutes later, and to his dismay it was 8:35. He then gave the folder to the man in yellow and called home for a car to pick him up. He then called his mom to tell her.
"That's okay, Kazuki. It will only arrive five minutes late here. Besides, it's my fault anyway."
"Phew… I guess that takes care of it."
"Thank you for your hard work and take care, Kazuki."
"You too. Mom." Just after he hanged up, a black Mercedes car with white stripes that he didn't recognize pulled up in front of him. The driver pulled the window down, and to his surprise, Juubei was driving.
"Hey. I dropped by your house this morning and your driver told me where you are, so I came to pick you up."
"Thanks, but how come you dropped by so early in the morning?"
"Nothing. I guess I just wanna see you."
A blush crept to Kazuki's cheeks. "Oh, is that so…?"
"Anyway, how about we go somewhere? We can have breakfast in this great place in town."
"Sure. But did your parents allow you to be out this early?"
"Oh, they're overseas since last week. I think they went to Hong Kong this time… You know, I could say the same thing about you. What are you doing in your family's airport this early in the morning?"
"I had to deliver some important files to my mom. Besides, I woke up early this morning anyway."
Juubei then drove both of them to a fancy restaurant where they ate breakfast and talked. Afterwards, Juubei drove Kazuki home.
"How come you're driving your car, Juubei? Don't you have drivers?" Kazuki asked curiously.
"Oh, I just felt like it. Besides, I like to drive myself every once in a while too. I mean, don't you drive?"
"I do, but just rarely. And I never drive the limos."
"Oh? Then what do you drive, if not the limos?"
"The other cars, like a Ferrari or Subaru. They're much smaller and easier to control. Besides, I don't need a long car just to drive myself around."
"You got a point there." Juubei then pulled up in front of Kazuki's house and drove away after Kazuki got out.
Once inside, Kazuki let out a huge yawn, all thoughts of sleep coming back again. But before he could even take one step, a maid went to him.
"Master, a Mrs. Raiko left a note for you. She came by again when you were gone."
Kazuki,
How about going to a ball my company is holding tonight? If you're interested, you can call me at anytime of the day. You can also bring your friends, if you want. It's a way for me to show my thanks, so I do hope you can come. It's 8:30 this evening.
Mrs. Raiko
"This sounds interesting!" Kazuki then called Mrs. Raiko and confirmed. Afterwards, he called Ginji.
"Hey, Ginji, how about coming to a ball with me tonight?"
"Sure, I'm free, But why a ball?"
"A lady I met this morning invited me to a ball her company's holding. She said I could bring my friends. I'll pick you up at eight."
"I'll be here."
Afterwards, Kazuki called Juubei.
"Hey, Juubei, how about coming with me to a ball tonight?"
"Eh? What's this, some kind of date?" Juubei asked teasingly.
"No, stupid. I invited Ginji too. A woman I met this morning invited me to a ball her company's holding, and she said I could bring my friends."
"Really?! What's her name?"
"Mrs. Raiko. She owns a clothes making company."
"Oh, is she Emina's mom?"
"Emina? Oh, that girl best friend of yours? I don't know; I wasn't able to ask."
"Well, okay then. I've got nothing better to do anyway."
"I'll come pick you up at 7:45. I have to pick Ginji up, too."
"Sure. I love you."
"See you tonight." Kazuki then hanged up. Man, I still can't get over with him saying I love you like that every time we end a telephone conversation… It makes me feel awkward not being able to answer back! Oh, I just don't understand myself… Rubbing his temple, he went to his room and collapsed on his bed.
He had slept no sooner than five minutes when his telephone rang. It was his mom again.
"Kazuki, I need you to do something for me. You still have your wireless internet, right?"
"Yeah, I do, mom… Why do you ask?"
"I want you to e-mail the files I'm going to send you. I don't have time to do it, so can you please do it for me?"
"Sure, mom."
"Okay. I'll send you the files together with the e-mail recipients. It should arrive within fifteen minutes."
"Okay."
"Oh, and one more thing. I want you to go to the office and sign some paperwork that's been piling up. I'm sorry son, but you're the only one I can depend on."
"It's okay, mom. I'll do it. Take care." As soon as he hanged up, he turned on his laptop and waited for the e-mail. Sure enough, it arrived fifteen minutes later, but when he looked at it, he went dizzy.
No wonder it took mom fifteen minutes to send this… I just can't imagine how she sorted through this large amount out! Oh, and the people to send it to are just numerous! No wonder she didn't have time… Kazuki then started working, and three hours later he was done. He went downstairs to have lunch, when suddenly he had an idea.
He's always inviting me to lunch. Maybe I'll invite him this time. Kazuki then picked up the phone and called Juubei.
"Juubei Kake speaking."
"Juubei, it's me, Kazuki. You wanna have lunch with me? I figured you always asked me to lunch, so now it's my turn. I know about this great Japanese restaurant downtown."
"Sure, I'd love too! I'll be over in ten minutes."
"Okay." Kazuki then sat on the couch to wait for him. Sure enough, after ten minutes Juubei was walking to the door. Kazuki then went out and directed Juubei to a red Viper.
"Oh, so does this mean you're driving?" Juubei asked.
"Yeah. I love to drive, and I can only drive if my parents aren't here. Well, my mom, that is."
"It's already been two months, hasn't it? The death of your dad, I mean."
"Yeah. Well, let's switch to a happier topic! This is really depressing me…"
They then talked about random things along the way, so before they knew it they arrived at the restaurant. They ate a delectable meal and talked some more, but after an hour Kazuki stood up to go.
"Sorry Juubei, but I can't stay any longer. I have to go to work."
"Work? I thought your family had enough money to fill the vaults of all the banks in Japan." Juubei joked.
"I don't mean work like part time jobs… I mean, I have work to do in our company."
"Oh. Sure, let's go home, but don't stay too late, okay? We have to go to the ball."
"Yeah." Kazuki then drove Juubei home and proceeded to go to his father's office.
Kazuki finished signing paperwork at about 7:20, so he hurried home and dressed up. Afterwards he went to Juubei's house to pick him up.
"Hey, Juubei, hop in!" Kazuki called.
"Huh? How come you're driving? Shouldn't you be riding in a limo or something?" Sure enough, Kazuki was driving a white convertible.
"No, I wanted to drive. Besides, I don't really like arriving at the ball fancily and stuff."
They then went to Ginji's house, who was also equally surprised to why Kazuki was driving. They then went to the place, and arrived rather early. Mrs. Raiko came to meet them.
"My, what punctual young boys you are! And it's only 8:20!"
Just then, Emina came out to inspect. She was wearing a fuchsia pink off shoulder mini dress and pink glass shoes. Her long brown hair was loose, and a diamond encrusted hair pin kept it in place. She was also wearing light pink gloves and a diamond bracelet.
"Juubei! You're here as well?" Emina squealed while holding onto him.
"Yeah, Kazuki invited me."
"Oh, Emina darling, you know them?"
"Yes mom. Juubei's my best friend and Kazuki-san and Ginji-san are my classmates."
"Oh, Juubei! So you were the young man my daughter is excitedly talking about? You're a very fine young man."
Kazuki couldn't help but feel a tad jealous at Emina. I feel like she's taking him away from me! Kazuki rubbed his temple. What the hell am I thinking? Damn… Kazuki then turned to Ginji and walked with him inside, leaving Juubei with Emina. Juubei saw them from the corner of his eye and detached himself from Emina and followed Kazuki inside, much to her annoyance.
Damn that stupid pretty boy… He is one lucky bastard! But still… I won't lose to the likes of him! Emina then followed Juubei inside.
For the rest of the night, Emina dragged an unwilling Juubei to the dance floor and danced with him. Kazuki watched with annoyance, while Ginji settled for eating and stealing glimpses at his best friend, making sure he doesn't charge on Juubei and Emina while they're dancing. Finally at about 10:00, Juubei managed to free himself from Emina because she was called by her mother, and went walking towards Kazuki.
"Would you like to dance, my dear sweet Juliet?" Juubei said teasingly while reciting their old script.
"What nonsense are you blabbing now, Juubei? And don't call me 'dear sweet Juliet! That was in the past, for God's sake! If we were seen dancing, just think how many people would think badly of us, and-" Kazuki was suddenly interrupted by a kiss from Juubei.
"I told you before, didn't I?" Juubei said after pulling away. "I love you, and I will fight for it. No need to be ashamed now, ne?" Juubei then pulled Kazuki to the dance floor, while Ginji watched with his jaw hanging open. A lot of the guests actually watched, and after they finished, everybody clapped.
Kazuki then went to where Ginji was; blushing an uncanny shade of red, while Juubei was again dragged by Emina to the dance floor. At about 11:00 the ball ended. Mrs. Raiko waved the boys goodbye, and after bringing Ginji and Juubei to their respective homes, Kazuki went to his room and collapsed on the bed dead tired.
End Flashback
"And I woke up this morning to my usual seven o' clock alarm and got ready for today." Kazuki finished. Ginji was amazed.
"Wow, and to think someone was that busy on a Sunday morning. As for me, I did nothing but watch T.V. and eat, much to my mom's dismay." They both laughed. A few minutes later, Juubei came running to them.
"Hey Kazuki! Hey Ginji!" Juubei greeted. He was looking energetic.
"Hey." The two answered. Juubei noticed Kazuki's tired disposition, so he became serious and decided to save the joke he was going to tell them for another time.
"Kazuki, what happened? You looked like you didn't get any sleep at all."
"I did a lot of work yesterday so I still feel tired. In addition to that, my bed time is supposed to be ten."
"Hmmm… So anyway, you wanna hang out after school?"
"I can't. Mother's got more paperwork for me."
"Oh, I see… Well, there's the bell! We'd better get to class!"
After school, Kazuki hopped onto a limo waiting outside the school, being too tired to walk. He fell asleep in the car, when the driver woke him up five minutes later.
"Sir, would you like to go home first and get some rest? I can bring you back here later."
"Thanks, but no thanks, Mr. Kaoru. I have a lot of paperwork to finish. Thanks for the concern, though. You can go home first and rest and I'll just call you."
"Are you sure, sir?"
"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you." Kazuki then trudged to the office with a sigh.
This after school work routine continued on for weeks, which resulted in Kazuki not getting enough sleep. Then one day, he caught a fever, but he decided to go to school anyway, which raised concerned thoughts from Ginji and Juubei.
"Kazuki! You're really sick. You should get at least a day off from work and rest, you know." Ginji worriedly said.
"He's right, Kazuki. You really need to get some rest. And I think you've got a fever too! I'll bring you home right now."
"No need, Juubei, I'm fine, as long as I can still stand. Besides, my mom has no one else to depend on, and I hate large piles of paperwork, so…"
"No! You're not fine, Kazuki!" Juubei interrupted while feeling his forehead. "You have a fever, and on top of that, you're not getting enough sleep. You have to rest!"
"Seriously, Juubei, I'm fine." Kazuki replied, emphasizing the 'fine'.
Ginji placed a hand on Juubei's shoulder and shook his head. "I've known him for a long time, and believe me, Juubei… there's no changing his mind."
"Fine. But call me if you don't feel fine, Kazuki, no matter what time it is. Is that a deal?"
"Y-yeah… Thank you for the concern, you two."
They were nearing the classroom when Kazuki suddenly collapsed. Ginji caught him, while Juubei ran to their side. Everyone was shocked. Juubei then carried Kazuki to the nurse's office.
"Ms. Sunoka! Kazuki collapsed on the way to the classroom."
(A/N: Another random name…)
"What happened to him?"
"When I felt his forehead he had a fever, and he's not getting much sleep lately."
"I see. Well, I'll watch over him, so please get going to class."
"No. I want to stay here with him until he wakes up."
"But Juubei, you're going to miss your classes."
"Ms. Sunoka, please! He's very special to me, so I want to be the first person he sees when he wakes up."
"Okay, but when a teacher looks for you, you have to go back. Is that clear?"
"Yes." Juubei then stayed by Kazuki's side while holding his hand, and finally after two hours he woke up.
"Huh? What am I doing here?"
"You collapsed on the way to the classroom. I brought you here."
"But… Why are you here? You should be in class!"
"Well, I wanted to watch over you. Are you okay now?"
Kazuki felt his forehead. "Yeah, the fever is down and I had some needed rest, so let's go to class."
"Not yet. We have to wait for the nurse on what she's going to say." The nurse then came back in a few minutes and examined Kazuki.
"You need to be in bed the whole day, Kazuki, and when you go home you need to lie down and rest until your fever really goes down. I suggest you take two days off from school."
"You heard the nurse, Kazuki; you don't need to pressure yourself too much. I'm sure your mother would understand. What do you think she will say if she sees her son like this? I shall stay with you, then."
"But, what about school…?"
"I'll miss it. I don't care, it's just one day; I can catch up. I want to take care of you."
"Th-thank you so much, Juubei…" Kazuki timidly answered.
And so for the next two days, Juubei was absent from school as well because he was taking care of Kazuki. Ginji came to visit everyday after school.
"I have to get to work, or the papers will pile up!" Kazuki protested.
"That's it! I'm calling your mom and telling her!" Juubei brought his cellphone out and dialed Kazuki's mom's number.
"Juubei! Stop it!" But Kazuki was too weak to even get up.
"Hello, Mrs. Fuuchoin? This is Juubei. I want to tell you that your son has been overworking himself and has gotten himself sick. I'm taking care of him."
"What?! You mean, because of the paperwork? I don't care when it's done, so why's he overworking?"
"He says he doesn't want to disappoint you."
"Oh, he's never disappointed me ever in my whole life! In fact, I'm very glad that he gets to finish the paperwork even when he's going to school! I'm stuck here at Malaysia, but can you tell Kazuki to take care and not worry about paperwork?"
"Yes, I will. Take care, Mrs. Fuuchoin."
"Likewise."
After hanging up the phone, Juubei went to the kitchen to prepare chicken soup. He had the cellphone on loudspeakers, so Kazuki heard everything. He then just allowed Juubei to take care of him.
A few minutes later, Ginji came into the room with more get well soon cards and flowers.
"These were all from our classmates. I guess they must have been pretty worried about you." Ginji said while putting the presents down. He then went to Kazuki and felt his forehead. "Looks like your fever's gone."
"Yeah. Thanks to all of you, really." Juubei then arrived with the chicken soup, which Kazuki gladly accepted.
The next day, Kazuki was back to school again. After exchanging a lot of greetings with classmates, Kazuki went to Juubei.
"Hey, Juubei, would you like to hang out today? You know, just for fun. Besides, I really want to thank you properly."
"Sure, why not?"
End of chapter
A/N: Whoo! That's finally it… This chapter was getting waaaay too long so I just ended it at that… Anyway, please read and review! No. of reviews needed: 2 (I don't know why this chapter was sooo long… It's like I wrote it this long for no reason at all…) -Oh and don't sue me... I don't know much about cars... I'M A GIRL, FOR GOD'S SAKE!