Can you believe I've been writing this for over a year? OMG! I am going to cry...excuse me while I sit in my corner of depression. Either way...I view the year and a half writing time as two things. 1) I give slow updates...2) I've been working hard for so long on my story! (The second one seems more like an excuse, haha...)

Thanks for the reviews!

Extra A/U: I'm not sure but I think the next chapter is going to be the last one...We'll see what happens...

And another...: I'm surprised. I get more comments saying that people like the more serious moments than the comical moments. I don't know...maybe it's just my expectations that confuse me...

Disclaimer brought to you by the letter 'g': See capitalo uno.

Chapter 18

Emiko's loud laughs spread throughout the Niwa household. "Krad just doesn't have any luck with women, does he?" She chuckled to the rest of the family. "First, it happens in the locker room, and now this." She handed Daisuke and Kosuke their plates. Daiki sat on the opposite end of the table, hiding his smile with the tea cup in front of his mouth. "So...how long is he going to sleep?"

She nodded her head towards the couch, where Satoshi was resting. "I think since he had to get up early and he went to sleep late last night, he's really exhausted." Daisuke told his mother. He stuffed a mouthful of bacon into his mouth.

There was a loud thump sound and Daisuke could have sworn he heard, "I smell bacon and sausage." The blue haired boy emerged from behind the couch with a tired look on his face.

"Satoshi, are you alright?" Emiko walked over to him. "You just fell on the floor." She reached to help him up but Satoshi shook his head.

Everyone's attention was turned to Satoshi, though Daiki hid it. Satoshi just gave a dazed look to them all, and then faced Emiko. "May I have some bacon and sausage?"

She nodded frantically, dashing to the stove. Worry was beginning to fill Emiko as she stacked food onto Satoshi's plate. She set it down for Satoshi. His eyes widened slightly. "Just eat as much as you can. You can't get all your energy from sleeping." Satoshi gave her a nod and began eating.

How did she know about my condition? Satoshi asked himself, taking a bite of sausage.

Last night, Dark had asked me about it. I explained it to him, and I'm sure the Niwa boy told the rest of his family. Krad sighed.

"Satoshi, are you going to be alright getting to school?" Daisuke asked with a full mouth. "We could always get that old wheelchair we have in the basement and roll you to school."

"Why do you have a wheelchair?" Satoshi asked.

"Long story." Dai scratched the back of his head nervously. "Let's just say I had many injuries as a child thanks to my mothers training."

Nodding, Satoshi showed that he understood. "I think I'll be fine walking." He took a swig of water. "You know what's a little odd? My father told me he called in and asked that the teachers let me sleep in class."

"Really?" Both Daisuke and Kosuke said. A laugh escaped Daisuke. "That is surprising. I mean, man, Satoshi...your dad..." He glanced at Satoshi to see and interested look on his face.

"My dad what?"

Well, you know..." Daisuke turned his head away. "Your dad is a little scary at times."

"True." He said and took another bite.

It soon came time to leave the house. Emiko had sent Kosuke with them, just incase Satoshi passed out. "Mr. Niwa, I am not going to collapse. You can go back."

"No. I'm worried about you Satoshi." Kosuke smiled kindly. "Plus, Emiko would kill me if I came back too early."

"I'm going to be fine. There's nothing to worry ab-" Suddenly, Satoshi fell forward. Daisuke gasped and leaped to catch his friend.

"Satoshi!" He screamed to Satoshi. Daisuke watched Satoshi, his eyes were squinted shut and his breathing was deep.

A light groan came from Satoshi. "Stupid crack." He looked up to see the surprised expressions of Dai and Kosuke. All their eyes traveled to the deep crack in the sidewalk.

"See? It was just the sidewalk. Nothing to worry about." Kosuke laughed. His left hand was on his chest, he felt like he had gone through a heart attack.

Before they knew it, they were at school. Kosuke waved them goodbye and shouted, "Be careful Satoshi!" before leaving.

Satoshi looked away, acting like he ignored him. He glanced up, seeing that Daisuke was only a few inches from his shoulder. "I told you, I'll be fine."

"I know." Daisuke nodded, refusing to back away. "I'm just keeping a close eye on you."

Satoshi cocked an eyebrow. "You don't mean that literally, do you?" That got Daisuke to back up a few feet.

The town had appeared small on the plane. Yet, now that he was walking around in it, it actually seemed quite large. The only thing that he wondered about the town, though, was the plateau mountain that looked like Ayres Rock in Australia. Besides that, everything seemed normal.

"Satoshi, we're going this way." Kei Hiwatari softly said. His young face had a smile that matched his voice.

Satoshi nodded and went the direction his new adoptive father directed him to. He had to switch the new uniform he held in his hand to the other so he could scratch his arm. A few minutes later, his father bent down and placed his hands on Satoshi's shoulders. "Satoshi, I need to run in here for a few. You can wander around the marketplace if you want. Just make sure you are back here in a half an hour, alright?"

"Yes, sir." Satoshi forced a smile on his face. He watched his father disappear into the building. He looked at his feet, wondering what to do. Finally, Satoshi let out a big sigh and decided to walk around.

The area was quite similar to where he had lived before. His father explained that he actually lived here when he was a baby before he went to the orphanage.

Satoshi yawned as he gazed at all the stores. He didn't see anything special.

"Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap." He heard behind him. "My mom's gonna kill me!" Satoshi turned around to see who was talking, only to be knocked down by someone running into him. "I'm sorry!" The person shouted frantically, noticing the shopping bags he had spilled everywhere.

Satoshi analyzed the person who had run into him as he picked up his items. The boy was his age, if not a little younger. He had large red eyes with the hair to match. Not only was his hair large but it was spiky too. Satoshi handed him an orange that he missed. "Thanks!" The boy shouted.

They stood up and Satoshi noticed he was taller than the red head. "Sorry again." He heard. "Oh, I like your blue hair. Is it natural?"

"Is yours?" Satoshi said quietly.

"I'll take that as a yes. Mine is too. I thought I was the only one with natural odd hair." He laughed happily. The boy looked like he was finally going to leave when his eyes dropped down to the uniform in Satoshi's hands. "You go to Azumano Middle School?"

Satoshi shook his head. "No, I'm starting there next week."

"How old are you?" He stared at him with his large eyes. For some reason, Satoshi felt like he had to answer him or those eyes would be ruined. By what though? Sadness? Disappointment? He mentally sighed, Satoshi felt like he was being too poetic.

"I'm thirteen. I am going to be turning fourteen next month."

"Really? I'm thirteen too! And I go to Azumano! Maybe we'll be in the same class!" He giggled happily.

Satoshi stared at the kid. He was way too happy for Satoshi's taste.

"Daisuke!" There were shouts from the distance. Glancing to his side, he saw a young woman trying to push her way through the crowd.

"Sorry. That's my mom calling." Daisuke turned away and took a step. He then stopped and faced Satoshi. "By the way, my name's Daisuke Niwa. Hopefully we can be friends." Daisuke gave another childish giggle before leaving.

"Niwa?" Satoshi asked himself. "Like that could happen." He began to walk back in the direction where his father was.

Niwa...

Daisuke couldn't help but glance back at Satoshi. The blue haired boy was resting on his rather large literature book. He had removed his glasses earlier, knowing he would fall asleep but his blue bangs covered his face. Daisuke wondered if he looked like a fan girl since all the girls in the class (besides Riku) were gazing at Satoshi.

He could also hear the whispers from the girls. "Doesn't he look adorable sleeping?" "How come you think he's sleeping?" "I bet he worked so hard. No one should wake him." "He looks like an angel from heaven!"

He sighed just as the bell rang. "We'll continue tomorrow." The teacher announced. Most of the students packed their things and left. The only ones that stayed were Daisuke, Satoshi (unwillingly), Riku, Risa and Takeshi.

"Something's fishy." Takeshi plopped down in the desk next to Daisuke. He could see the brunette glance up at the teacher. "When I fall asleep in class, I get busted and detention." Takeshi ran his fingers through his hair as he let out a sigh. "Yet, Satoshi has been asleep for the past three periods and no trouble for him."

"Takeshi, that's probably because-"

"No, Daisuke. I know what is going on here." The brunette stood up on the chair. He raised one foot on the desk and put his hands on his waist. "You know what I'm thinking? I think...that Satoshi is sleeping with the teacher!"

At once, four books were thrown at him. Takeshi fell to the floor; a large bump was now on his head from landing on it. Daisuke noticed Risa and the teacher had annoyed looks on their faces. Daisuke bent down to grab his own but wondered where the last one came from. His eyes checked the room when he saw that Satoshi was no longer sleeping on the book.

"Saehara! Clean the chalkboard right now!" The teacher shouted.

"But-"

"No buts! Do it or detention!" She growled at him before leaving the room.

"See what I mean?" Takeshi whispered before heading up to the chalkboard.

Daisuke packed all of his books into his bag. When he raised his head, the Harada twins were standing in front of him. "How come Satoshi's been sleeping in class?" They asked at the same time.

Daisuke had to think quickly and come up with an excuse. "His father was moving yesterday and Satoshi had to help him. He didn't get back to his own house until five, which gave him two hours of sleep. Satoshi's father called in and explained what happened, so that's why the teachers aren't getting him into trouble." Daisuke told the twins, though Saehara.

"That's right. I forgot boy wonder lived alone." Takeshi blurted out.

"He does?" Riku and Risa asked.

"Yeah." Daisuke picked up his bag and walked over to Satoshi. He began to pack Satoshi's things into the boy's bag.

"Do you think he's going to be alright?" Daisuke looked up to see Risa's worried look. "Even when he's up, his face his pale." Risa told Dai.

"He should be just fine in a few days. All he needs is rest and the weekend is only two days away." Daisuke gave her a smile, hoping to cheer her up.

The two nodded and left the room. When Daisuke finished packing Satoshi's things, Takeshi left also. He put one of his hands on Satoshi's shoulders and began to shake him. "Satoshi! Wake up! Come on! School's over."

It took a few minutes, but finally, he got Satoshi to wake up. "What happened?" Satoshi muttered, his expression was dazed once again.

"I said that school is over. Now come on." Daisuke grabbed Satoshi's arm and pulled him up. In an attempt to stay up, Satoshi's arms wrapped around Daisuke's chest.

A slight blush popped up on his face as he saw Satoshi pressed close to him. Arms wrapped around him, head rested on his shoulder, this could look bad if someone saw. Yet, Satoshi had never been this close to him, let alone anyone, before. He let the blue haired teen stay there for a few more minutes.

"Satoshi. Please don't fall back asleep." He pried him off his chest. Satoshi nodded and leaned against the wall. "I said don't fall back asleep!" Daisuke shouted as he saw the blue haired boy's eyes drift down. Daisuke ran to the teacher's desk and grabbed two pieces of tape and tried to tape Satoshi's eyes open. The second his fingers left the tape, Satoshi's eyes fell past the tape. "Funny, that works in cartoons."

Daisuke removed the piece of tape and sighed. Dark, if Wiz can turn into me, you and your wings, you think he can turn into a wagon?

I don't know... Never thought about it.

"Daisuke. Should we head to your home?" His head flew up to see Satoshi pushing himself off the wall.

All he could manage was a smile on his face. "It's good to see you finally woke up."

"Unfortunately, even during the day, my low blood pressure affects me." Satoshi grabbed his bag and began to head to the door. "Plus, those eyelashes and the hairs you plucked from my eyebrows with the tape helped me."

"My bad." Daisuke chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head. "Hey, before we leave, I wanted to show you something."

Satoshi gave Dai a look of approval. "Alright."

"Then follow me."

Daisuke led Satoshi down the hall and to the art room. Daisuke went straight to an easel while Satoshi stopped in the doorway and gazed around. "It's been a while since I've been in here."

"A month. Now suck it up and get over here." Daisuke laughed. Satoshi walked over to him and stared at Dai.

"What did you want to show me?"

"This." Daisuke pointed to the painting.

Satoshi's eyes lazily traveled to the artwork. His eyes widened slightly when he saw it. "What is this?"

Daisuke felt a little nervous. He knew that when he explained things, he made them sound dumb. "Our teacher told us to draw something that we couldn't live without. Plus, he said that the five best paintings would go to a competition." He told Satoshi. Noticing the look on the boy's face, Daisuke frowned. "I know it's corny but it's true. Satoshi, you're my best friend and I wouldn't be able to live without you. You're the one person that can relate to me."

He quickly glanced at his painting. It was a portrait of Satoshi with a small smirk on his face. He was gazing forward and had a happy look in his eyes. A few rays of sunshine shined down on him. There was only one thing different.

"Daisuke, how come I'm blonde? In your painting, I mean."

The redhead found himself bursting out in laughter. "Well, you see, the teacher recognized who I was painting. He told me everything looked great but blue hair might be surreal for the competition. Plus, he said the rays of sunshine and blonde hair went well together." He smiled at Satoshi, yet Satoshi now had a sad expression. "Did I...do something wrong?

Satoshi forced himself to smile. "Not at all. The painting is beautiful." He said.

"Then why do you seem so disappointed?"

Satoshi gasped quietly. He stared down at his feet. "It's just that..." He let out a sigh, gazing back up at Daisuke. "It reminds me of Krad."

"I figured that was the case." Daisuke chuckled and put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I tried to distinguish the difference by keeping your eyes blue. Besides the fact that you look German in my painting, I hoped nothing else would be wrong."

"It's just fine." Satoshi gave Dai an encouraging smile. "Now why don't we head back?"

Satoshi tried to take a step to the door, but Daisuke and Emiko flew towards him. They grabbed each of his hands. "Are you sure you are going to be alright?" They both said at once. Satoshi's left eyebrow twitched a bit.

I'll never be able to leave this house. This was his third time trying to leave. Satoshi nodded to them. "I'll be just fine. Please, may I go back to my apartment?"

"Well, he did say please." Emiko pointed out.

"And may." Daisuke added.

Kosuke laughed softly as he entered the room. "You guys, let the boy leave. He needs his rest. Luckily for him, there's only one more day of school left until the weekend."

They all said their goodbyes, (even though they would see him the next morning.), and Satoshi left the Niwa household.

The streets were only lit by the dim streetlights on the side of the road. Still, Satoshi couldn't what street he was on. He just continued to walk until he saw a familiar street and turned.

He wasn't afraid of the dark but the empty and dark streets did give him the chills. Every morning, Satoshi watched the news and always heard incidents that happened at night. He took a deep breath, calming himself. Satoshi knew he was only about five minutes from his apartment now. All he wanted to do is go home and go to bed.

Then, there was a noise. Satoshi quickly looked over his shoulder. Nothing. Shaking his head, Satoshi laughed to himself, ignoring the sound. Next, he heard footsteps. Without turning around, Satoshi said calmly, "Who's there?"

No answer. Satoshi placed his hand on his chest. He began to take more deep breath. The footsteps became louder. The hand on his chest could feel his heartbeat speed up. Seeking comfort, Satoshi called for Krad but the blonde was asleep.

Satoshi decided that he would walk faster. His mind began to wander. If it was just a physical attack, Satoshi could probably beat the person but if they had a weapon, Satoshi knew he knew he had no chance.

Suddenly, Satoshi felt a hand on his shoulder. A gasp escaped his mouth and he jumped a few feet in the air. His head slowly turned to see who it was.

Satoshi felt amazed at how fast humans could feel so many different emotions in the shortest amount of time. Before, he had felt panic and fear. Now that he had seen that big bush of red hair, Satoshi felt relieved. Yet, anger quickly took over. "What the hell are you doing, Daisuke?"

A small laugh came from the redhead as he took a step back. He noticed the angry fire in Satoshi's eyes. "We were kind of worried so we thought we could stay at your apartment. We wanted to stay with you to make sure you were alright..." Satoshi leaned to the side to see the rest of the Niwa family poke out from behind a building. Emiko and Kosuke were smiling to themselves while Daiki played the innocent act.

"I'm never going to be able to get rid of you guys, am I?" Satoshi didn't care that he said it out loud. Daisuke merely shrugged. The red head wrapped his arms around the boy's shoulders and grinned his usual grin. Satoshi couldn't help but feel happy that they followed. Most of the time, that cold apartment was pretty boring.

Surprisingly, this chapter is really short...You can consider it a break from the really long ones XD Or consider me being lazy...whichever one...

I don't really have that much to say today...welps...later.

-Paige