A/N: Hello there! I just want to thank Yoshi333 for reviewing my last chapter! Your review really made me happy and I'm glad that someone is enjoying my story after I put so much work into it. =) Really, just knowing that one person enjoys what I write inspires me to write more!
For this chapter expect a little more angst. I'm not entirely confident with this chapter but I still hope it will be enjoyable to all who read it.
Part 3
Lunch was officially finished when Yamamoto chugged the contents of his un-touched milk bottle, draining all of the milk in one go. Gokudera couldn't help but be a little sickened at the sight; he was not a fan of milk.
"Ah, that was good!" Yamamoto exclaimed happily after his little task was done, wiping away the milk mustache that had formed because of it. "Nothing beats a good glass of milk!"
Yamamoto's silver-haired companion begged to differ. "That was nasty. How the hell can you even drink that stuff?"
The dark-haired athlete glanced at his secret crush in honest confusion. How could anyone find milk nasty? "What do you mean Gokudera? Milk is good for you and gives you strong bones. How can I not drink it?"
"Never mind." The fiery teen puffed out irritably, too tired from the days past events to even bother trying to argue. The young silver-haired boy couldn't suppress the yawn that escaped from his mouth at the thought. He hadn't gotten much sleep lately because of those recent all-night study sessions with the Tenth and Yamamoto for finals.
Seeing the other boy yawn, Yamamoto came up with an idea. "Hey, if you're tired you can go and rest for a bit, Gokudera. I'll watch the clothes."
The said silver-haired teen gave Yamamoto his best 'are-you-stupid?' glare at the thought. "We're in a laundry mat idiot. Where the heck would you suggest I sleep? Those benches aren't the most comfortable, you know."
Yamamoto gave an 'ah' at the reminder, scanning the area in question and conveniently seeing a solution. "Well what do you know, one of the chairs are open. You could probably sleep on that."
Seeing the taller boy hitch his thumb over his shoulder, Gokudera followed its direction to see that one of the many armrest recliners that were scattered around in the waiting area, was indeed, vacant. As much as he would have loved to sink into the comfy looking chair and catch-up with the sleep his body deserved, Gokudera had to abstain for one very obvious reason.
"Like hell I'd do that and leave you in charge of my stuff! How do I know you're not just going to go snooping through my bags again?"
The black-haired teen scratched the back of his head sheepishly, a little embarrassed at the reminder of the underwear incident that happened a few hours prior. "Ah, well I promise I won't do that again, ok? It looks like you really need some rest so how about you steal that chair before someone else does? There's only one left."
Gokudera narrowed his eyes suspiciously, he didn't know what to expect from the taller teen anymore, heck, he didn't know what to expect from himself when he was around the taller teen anymore! "Look, I'll rest up for a bit on one condition, and that's if you wake me up when my clothes are done so I can put in another load; there should be about two loads left…"
Thinking the terms were easy ones to live by, Yamamoto agreed with a nod of his head and a reassuring smile. "Sure thing, I'll do that and also guard your other duffel bag so those creepy college girl's in the back don't get ideas and try to steal it again, ha ha!"
Almost forgetting about those stupid girls, Gokudera couldn't help but shudder. "Sounds good," then almost as an afterthought, the silver-haired teen added. "Oh, and make sure they don't do anything to me in my sleep. I'll probably be too tired to wake up quickly if they try to do something funny."
Seeing the look of apprehension on his friend's face, not the mention the creepy and hungry stares they were receiving from the group of college girls who still hadn't moved from their positions in the waiting area, Yamamoto didn't even have to think to know his answer.
"No problem! You can count on me!"
Relieved at the reassuring smile Yamamoto was giving him, Gokudera allowed himself to trust in his companion and made his way over to the still open recliner, unknowingly cutting off the little old lady from before again, who was just making her way towards the same chair to rest her tired aching body. She looked about ready to snap the silver-haired boy's neck in half for his constant rudeness but decided against it when another seat made itself available; Gokudera never knew how close he had just escaped from imminent death.
Not really paying attention at that point, Yamamoto had made himself busy and gathered his and Gokudera's now empty lunch items and placed them into the trash-bin near the dryers. Walking back to the washing machine after his little task, the taller boy was quick to notice that Gokudera had made himself comfortable in his chair in the back corner and had immediately dosed off. The younger teen couldn't help noticing how innocent his companion looked when he slept; the complete opposite of his usual fiery and explosive demeanor.
Yamamoto smiled to himself as he leaned against the washer, his eyes softening as he watched the other boy sleep from across the room. Gokudera really was beautiful, especially when he was asleep and wasn't so tense and agitated like he was when they played the mafia role-playing game. Even then, Yamamoto still thought that the Italian teen was beautiful, his actions and very presence dangerously alluring to the taller teen despite his better judgment telling him to stay away. Yamamoto couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to wake up to such a pretty face lying beside him everyday—his thoughts quickly cut off there, not wanting to go back into such depressing territory. Yamamoto would probably never know what that was like, especially if that breath taking face belonged to a certain Gokudera Hayato. If their almost-kiss and the silver-haired teen's reaction was anything to go by, it was obvious that his friend wasn't interested and was probably terrified and disgusted at the very thought of it.
Yamamoto didn't know how long he had stared forlornly at his silver-haired companion but the next thing he knew he was looking away and outside the laundry mat window, his eyes catching someone familiar walking by outside. It just so happened, in that moment, that the familiar person glanced in his direction at the exact same time as well, their eyes widening in surprise and anger through the laundry mat window.
Well crap, this wasn't good.
In the next instant, the familiar person that Yamamoto had recognized stormed her way into the laundry mat, a girl who Yamamoto didn't know following close behind her in confusion. The familiar girl had short cropped brown hair that framed her face, while her friend had long shiny black locks. The brown-haired girl made her way up to Yamamoto in seconds, which wasn't that much of an accomplishment since he was only a few feet from the door anyway but that didn't make it less intimidating. Of course, Yamamoto had been intimidated by far worse things in his life so he wasn't exactly worried; Gokudera was far scarier.
"Ah, Airi-chan! What a pleasant surprise meeting you here!" Yamamoto faked enthusiasm, completely caught off-guard by the chances of this scenario actually happening. Airi-chan didn't seem to be the least bit amused.
"Yamamoto-san, what on earth are you doing here?" The younger girl started incredulously, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion and her voice sounding hurt. "You said something important came up and you had to cancel our date again. Was this the important thing? Doing your laundry?"
Another wave of guilt hit Yamamoto hard as Airi's voice wavered near the end of her question, her innocent eye's pleading for an explanation as to why he would choose laundry over her.
"It's not my laundry." Yamamoto started to explain, hoping Airi would accept his excuse better than her older brother. "I'm helping a friend with his."
This, of course, wasn't the right thing to say as Airi's black-haired friend made her way up beside the duo and added her own thoughts on the matter. "Like that's any better!" She replied scathingly. "If you didn't want to date Airi-chan then you should have just said so. But no, you had to lead her on for a while and make her think she wasn't good enough for your time!"
"No, no, it's not like that!" Yamamoto stated defensively, bringing his hands up to try and placate the upset girls. "Gokudera really needed my help. His washing machine broke down so he had to come here. He also lives about a mile or so away and didn't have enough money for bus fare so he had to walk instead. I saw him struggling with all the stuff he was carrying so I offered to help him."
Airi's once upset and confused face instantly became angry and dangerous at the sound of the Italian's name. "Gokudera? Isn't he that delinquent boy that always hangs around you and that short brown-haired kid? I always see them when I'm watching my brother at baseball practice and he's always whining about having to be there to wait for you. You would actually help someone like that?"
"Not only that," Airi's black-haired friend chimed back in, adding fuel to the fire. "Yamamoto-san's been ditching you to help that jerk all the time!"
"Hey!" Yamamoto exclaimed, restraining himself from getting too upset but quickly coming to the aid of his silver-haired friend all the same. "I know Gokudera might come off as a bad person but he really isn't that bad. You just need to try and understand him."
The two girls stared at Yamamoto un-phased, not liking the idea of trying to get to know the dangerously explosive teen (they had heard some weird stories…).
"Look it doesn't matter anymore." Yamamoto explained after he calmed himself down a bit, putting on his best apologetic smile. Why did he always have to be so protective of the feisty bomber? "I'm sorry that this has been happening whenever we try to meet up, it's all a coincidence I swear." Yamamoto knew this was mostly true, but that still didn't make it any better that he had hurt someone else's feelings because of his own selfishness. "I try to avoid making people upset but when my friends need help I try to put them first. You two can understand that right?"
The two girls glanced at each other, their eyes becoming sympathetic as they began to understand what the taller boy was getting at. Airi knew that she would put her friends first over someone else she didn't know that well. "So does this mean…" Airi asked tentatively, scrutinizing the handsome upperclassmen before her. "…does this mean that you would still be willing to try meeting up with me sometime?"
Yamamoto blinked in surprise, a little taken back by the question that he hadn't even begun to think about; he thought the call from Airi's brother had been the final straw in settling that particular matter (he was sure Daichi-senpai didn't want him around his little sister anymore). Even though his answer should have been obvious, Yamamoto couldn't stop the nagging thoughts at the back of his mind. Would going out with Airi be so bad? It wasn't like the secret feelings he held for Gokudera were going anywhere; Yamamoto knew that the smaller boy would never see him in the same way and that he was just hurting himself by harboring these feelings he shouldn't have had in the first place. Dispelling his doubts, the black-haired teen glanced over towards the corner where Gokudera was still sleeping soundly, the taller boy's eyes saddening as he thought of what to do next; what he had to do next for the sake of his own sanity.
He had to try to let Gokudera go.
Smiling as best as he could even though it felt like his very soul was ripping in half, Yamamoto gave his answer. "Sure, I would love that."
Airi's eyes lit up in excitement, not catching the apparent heart-ache her crush was going through or the life changing decision he had just made.
Yamamoto meanwhile was trying to console himself by thinking that maybe he could learn to care for Airi; she was a very nice girl after all and she loved baseball so how bad could she be? Besides, she was a girl, and dating a girl was healthy and normal by society standards.
Airi's friend on the other hand seemed a bit skeptical about trusting a guy who had ditched her best-friend five times in a row and was about to state her claims when two very loud buzzers went off, cutting off her train of thought.
At the sound of the buzzers, Yamamoto peered over his shoulder to notice that the washer and dryer that Gokudera was using were done doing their duties. He quickly glanced back towards the corner where his secret crush continued to sleep peacefully, completely oblivious to his surroundings. Unable to bring himself to keep his promise and wake up the smaller teen when it seemed he was sleeping so well (and the small fact that Yamamoto wasn't ready to face the teen after making his decision to give up on him), Yamamoto thought of ways he could continue to help Gokudera with his errand without waking him up.
The taller boy's eyes lit up as an idea dawned on him. There was one way that he could still keep his promise to help Gokudera with his laundry without having to wake him up from his comfortable nap but it probably wouldn't go over well.
Throwing caution to the wind, Yamamoto glanced back down at the girls who had started a heated discussion when he wasn't paying attention. Yamamoto caught their attention by clearing his throat a little. "Hey, um, Airi-chan, do you know how to do laundry?"
Both Airi and her black-haired friend blinked in confusion at the random question, forgetting whatever argument they were having (Yamamoto thought he heard "You can't trust him!" from the black-haired girl but he wasn't too sure). "Um…yes?" Airi answered uncertainly, wondering where Yamamoto was going with this.
The taller boy smiled sheepishly in response, prepared for the worst. "Do you think you could help me with Gokudera's laundry?"
An awkward silence filled the room, both of the girls staring incredulously at the taller boy like he had just asked them to jump onto the washers and do the Macarena.
"…are you kidding me?" Airi asked defensively. Was that supposed to be a joke? Why would she want to help that jerk, Gokudera? Airi's friend backed her up by glaring questioningly at the taller boy, demanding an answer.
"Um...no?" Yamamoto answered uncertainly this time, hoping that the two girls would change their minds and help him. Seeing as that probably wouldn't be the case, Yamamoto quickly thought of an idea. "Ok, how about this. Since you're here and all, why don't we hang out together? That way we can get to know each other better and I don't have to back out on my friend if you help me. It's a win-win situation, don't you think?"
Yamamoto stared down at Airi imploringly. He wasn't sure how Gokudera would handle the girl when he woke up and found her messing with his things but by doing this, Yamamoto could still help Gokudera and see if he could actually learn to like someone else.
"Oh," the taller boy added as an afterthought. "Your friend doesn't have to stay if she doesn't want to either, but I wouldn't mind her help all the same."
The two younger girls stared at each other with uncertainty, both not really liking the idea if it included helping the delinquent but not wanting to turn down someone asking kindly for their help.
Seeing as the girls were having trouble coming up with a decision, Yamamoto came up with another incentive for them to stay. "Um, if you girls help me then maybe I can go and buy us some ice cream to eat as a thank you? It's pretty warm outside now since it's the middle of the afternoon and I saw the building just down the street from here. I can get us some really quick."
At the sound of him treating them to deliciously cold ice cream, the two girls begrudging accepted. This made Yamamoto smile in victory. The mafia game had taught him well; bribing was a very effective tactic.
"Thanks girls! So what do we do first?" Yamamoto said with some enthusiasm, a little excited that he might be able to learn something that could be helpful in the future. Maybe he could even help Gokudera with his laundry more—oh wait; he wasn't supposed to think like that anymore now that he was with Airi-chan. The taller boy tried to not let the reminder crush him as he thought of how these moments he would spend with Gokudera would gradually lessen as he tried to forget about his feelings for the silver-haired teen.
His dampening mood went unnoticed by the two girls, who were explaining to him on what to do for the next load. Having sucked out his own enthusiasm, Yamamoto hardly paid attention, tossing all of Gokudera's dark clothes (mindfully ignoring the red boxers with the fireworks printed on them; Yamamoto swore they were mocking him) back into the duffel bag without folding them. Once the girl's realized that Yamamoto wasn't exactly listening to them anymore, they took matters into their own hands, emptying the washing machine and tossing Gokudera's white clothes into the now empty dryer. From there, Airi took all of Gokudera's jeans from the second duffel bag and placed those in the washer and poured in some soap. After both deeds were done, with Yamamoto watching on with a sad sheepish smile, the girls gave Yamamoto inquiring glances.
"So," The black-haired girl muttered disapprovingly, raising an eyebrow in question. "Do you have change to start these things or do we also have to pay for them as well as do all the work?"
Yamamoto's eyes widened upon realization, almost forgetting about the money.
"Oh, I almost forgot about that!" Yamamoto laughed nervously, wondering why he had to forget about such an important step. "I don't have any change but Gokudera's carrying some..."
The girls looked slightly annoyed at that.
"So, how are we supposed to get the change without waking him up?" Airi questioned delicately. "I'm assuming since you wanted us to help you that you also didn't want to wake that guy up, right?"
It was here that Yamamoto remembered exactly where Gokudera was holding his change.
There was a loud smacking sound as the taller boy slapped himself in the forehead, berating himself for forgetting about the change being in, of all places, Gokudera's pockets. Since he didn't want to wake the smaller boy up, Yamamoto knew he had no choice but to dig through Gokudera's pockets just to get to them.
"Shit."
The girls' eyes widened at Yamamoto's not so subtle curse, watching as the taller boy put his game face on. Yamamoto really had to prepare himself for what he was about to do. There was a high probability that 1) being physically close to the unconscious teen while he was trying to forget about his feeling for him was going to be absolute torture and 2) Gokudera would probably wake up while Yamamoto was searching through his pockets. Both options were mentally taxing and physically harmful.
"You girl's stay here, I'll go and get the change."
Yamamoto's voice left no room for arguments (the girls weren't exactly clambering for his position anyway) as he marched towards the corner where Gokudera was sleeping, his face set in determination. Before he could reach his destination though, Yamamoto had to glare at the college girls in the waiting area because they had started making their way over to the sleeping teen as well, having small giggling fits along the way. The college girl's didn't notice Yamamoto until he cut them off half way, giving each and every one of them pointed death glares if they so much as touched a hair on his friend's head. Quickly picking up on the ominous vibes from the usually happy teen, the college girls ran back to their seats and grabbed their laundry baskets, previous tasks forgotten and frightened into finally doing what they had come to do in the first place.
Sighing in slight relief that one of the obstacles was taken care of, Yamamoto finally arrived at his destination—
He did not want to do this.
The taller teen couldn't help but think that as he looked down on the sleeping form of his friend. If he thought Gokudera was beautiful before when he was watching him from across the room then he was downright breathtaking now. In fact, Yamamoto was holding his breath; he just wasn't sure if it was from the Italians beauty or from the fact that he was too scared to breath just in case it actually woke the deadly bomber up. What Yamamoto was doing now was probably the equivalent of walking into a hibernating bear's cave and poking it with a rather sharp stick; either way, it was a highly dangerous situation.
Trying to breathe as softly as he could so as not to disturb his sleeping friend, Yamamoto leaned downwards, putting one of his hands on the top of the chair for support as he maneuvered the other hand into one of the sleeping teen's pants pockets without jostling him. Yamamoto tried very hard not to think of how his hand was rubbing up against the side of Gokudera's hip as he delved his hand deeper into the pocket in search for change.
He was so close to the other boy it was hard to concentrate. Yamamoto's face was beside the sleeping teens'; he could smell the shampoo Gokudera used for his hair, he could see the other's lips slightly parted, begging Yamamoto to tilt his head so he could get a taste of the delicately forbidden fruit.
It was absolute torture.
Yamamoto didn't know how he did it but once he felt his hand close over the familiar smooth texture of coins, he quickly grabbed a handful and tore his hand out of Gokudera's pocket, jumping away from the still dozing teen as if he had been burned and luckily not waking the other teen up in the process. From there, Yamamoto quickly made his way over to the two waiting girls and handed over the change, looking rather flushed and worse for wear.
Forgetting his feelings for Gokudera was going to be a lot harder than he thought.
Feeling a little concerned for the taller boy, Airi and her friend took the offered change and started up the waiting washer and dryer. They both didn't understand why Yamamoto looked so haggard, like he had just run a mile without any rest stops in between. As they made their way back to the black-haired teen (who was busying himself by staring out the window alongside the wall and shuffling his feet awkwardly like he wanted to run), Airi couldn't help but ask, "Are you alright, Yamamoto?"
The taller teen jumped in surprise at the brunette's voice. Looking rather sheepish and a bit uncomfortable, Yamamoto explained, "Ah, yeah, I'm alright Airi-chan. I just remembered that I've been in here all morning and haven't gone out much so a feel a little cooped up, ha ha!"
The two girls exchanged looks of uncertainly, not sure if they bought what the older teen was saying; the laughter in his voice sounding too strained to be taken seriously.
"Are you sure you're ok?" Airi asked again, her voice heavy with concern. She didn't know Yamamoto that well, but she knew he was a calm and confident guy so to see him act this way was a little weird.
"Yep, I'm absolutely fine!" Yamamoto lied with a smile. The dark-haired athlete decided it was best to change the subject before he got even more uncomfortable; he was beginning to feel suffocated. "So, how about that ice cream? What flavors did you girls want?"
Taken back by the question but remembering their deal, the girls rambled off their orders to the taller teen who seemed awfully eager to leave the premises. In fact, Yamamoto practically bolted out the door with a promise to 'be back quick', making his way down the side walk towards the ice cream parlor with hurried steps.
The two girls blinked in amazement at the quick departure then quickly glared over towards the corner where Gokudera continued to sleep, completely oblivious to everything that had just transpired. Airi's black-haired friend narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What kind of hold does that delinquent have on Yamamoto-san? Do guys normally act this way around their friends?"
Airi continued to stare at the sleeping silver-haired form, her eyes filled with perplexity as she tried to figure the sleeping teen and his taller friend out. "I don't know, but something tells me that if we stay here longer, we'll be able to find that out."
The black-haired girl looked a little uncomfortable at the idea, but upon seeing the determination written all over her friend's face, she couldn't object. Airi had been crushing on Yamamoto for awhile now, so there was no way she was throwing away the chance to get to know him better. The least the black-haired girl could do was stay and support her friend.
"This time," Airi spoke with dangerous determination. "We'll see if that boy is the one worthy of Yamamoto-san's time."
After leaving the laundry mat and standing in line for ice cream, Yamamoto had enough time to calm himself down. He knew he had to stop letting his feelings for Gokudera get to him but the young athlete was beginning to think it was impossible. He was so tuned into the feisty Italian, so used to the other's presence that it was hard to not think about him. It also didn't really help matters much when he was purchasing three ice creams for the girls and himself and not anything for the sleeping bomber. The guilt was starting to get to him.
'It would melt by the time Gokudera woke up anyway, so it would be a waste of time right?' Yamamoto told himself over and over again, trying to reason with himself so the guilt would stop suffocating him.
By the time he made it back to the laundry mat, Yamamoto had calmed down to a point where he didn't feel like he had to run as far away from the store as possible. Taking that as a good sign, the tall athlete re-entered the store and smiled at the two girls who had waited patiently for him, handing over their respective ice creams and spoons. The three of them then proceeded to nibble awkwardly on their frozen treats, not really sure on what to say to each other.
Not liking the silence, Airi broke the ice by talking about something that she knew all three of them could actually talk about; baseball. Airi's black-haired friend looked relieved at the subject and Yamamoto dove right into the conversation with complete enthusiasm. It wasn't long until all three were stating their favorite players and what teams were doing well that year, laughing and joking companionably as they continued to eat their ice creams.
Out of all the noises around him that he could have woken up to, Gokudera woke to the sound of Yamamoto's laughter.
At first the older teen was annoyed by this, not liking that his peaceful slumber was broken by the familiar noise. That laugh never failed to make him tired and it grated on his nerves but the teen couldn't help but think that the laugh was also soothing in its own way too. Gokudera would never admit this to anyone but he actually did like hearing his taller friend laugh, even though it was annoying most of the time. It was funny when Gokudera thought about it; how the one thing that got on his nerves always seemed to calm those same nerves down, especially when he was having a tiring and strenuous day. The small Italian couldn't help the sleepy smile that spread across his face at the thought as Yamamoto continued to laugh about God-knows-what. Gokudera kept his eyes closed and enjoyed the sound to its fullest.
That is, until he wondered why the baseball-idiot would be laughing in the first place.
Usually this wouldn't bother him. Yamamoto tended to laugh at everything but knowing that he had left the tall rain guardian in the store with nothing to do, Gokudera couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive at the thought of what the young athlete could be up to if he was left unattended. Horrifying scenario after horrifying scenario played without pause in his head at the thought. His fear and curiosity getting the better of him, Gokudera groggily opened his eyes and tilted his head in the direction of the laughing voice and was quickly blessed with the image of Yamamoto talking with two other girls. The fiery Italian blinked a couple times to get the sleep out of his eyes, his tired brain trying to understand the image in front of him.
'Yamamoto+ two girls+ three cups of ice cream =?'
Gokudera blinked in confusion as he tried to figure out what was going on. Why would Yamamoto be talking and eating ice cream with these girls he didn't recognize? It wasn't long before the young genius's mind immediately shifted into high gear as it was bombarded with questions: 1) Who the hell where those girls? 2) Why the hell was the brown-haired girl sitting on top of the washer? That was his spot damn it! 3) Why the hell were they all eating ice cream? And 4) Wait! Where the fuck was his ice cream?
As Gokudera continued to watch, he quickly came to find out that Yamamoto and the girls were talking about baseball. This wasn't so hard to figure out on the Italian's part because Yamamoto just so happened to be re-enacting a baseball moment at that very moment. He was going into a batters crouch and using his ice cream spoon as a bat, not failing to look completely and utterly ridiculous to Gokudera and probably everyone else in the store.
After the silly action was done and Yamamoto had embarrassed himself enough, Gokudera didn't fail to notice how the dark-haired teen leaned back onto the washer, his body awfully close to the girl sitting on top of it. The young Italian also noticed how the taller boy looked completely enraptured with the brown-haired girl as she rambled on about stupid baseball statistics and other useless baseball trivia that no one should honestly care about.
Gokudera couldn't stop the weird pang he felt in his chest at the sight. It wasn't too long ago that he was the one sitting on top of that washer with Yamamoto standing so close to him. The young Italian couldn't help but feel like he had just been replaced.
The silver-haired teen almost blanched at that thought. He was being silly. Why should he care that Yamamoto was talking to a girl and standing so close, no, painfully close to her and why was it suddenly so hard to breathe?
Gokudera tried his best to calm down but being able to see the happy little scene unfold before him, Yamamoto and the two girls laughing like they've known each other all their lives, continued to worsen his mood. He felt forgotten, replaced, betrayed, and so many other different emotions that he couldn't put his finger on and it was beginning to piss him off! Gokudera didn't understand what was going on. He didn't understand why so many emotions were bombarding him all at once and he didn't understand why he was feeling this way in the first place.
Not knowing how to deal with such raw emotions coursing through him, Gokudera did the only thing he could think of; going straight to the source of these emotions and putting a stop to them.
With that, Gokudera stood up and marched his way over towards a laughing and oblivious Yamamoto.
It didn't take long for Gokudera to make his way across the room. It also, much to his character, didn't take him long to get straight to the point.
"Who the hell are you two?" The young Italian practically shouted in the two girl's faces, directing more of his anger towards the small brunette sitting on top of the washer (she was still sitting in his spot, damn it!). His outburst grabbed the attention of every person in the laundry mat who where now looking at the group of four with scared but curious eyes.
Yamamoto and the girls had noticed the fiery bomber's approach due to said bomber's aggressively loud footsteps but that still didn't prepare them for the silver-haired teen's rude question or the feral animosity that seemed to palpitate from every pore on the teen's body.
"Gokudera…" Yamamoto started, trying to calm the aggressive teen down. The said teen whipped around lightning-quick to direct his fiery glare towards the taller teen.
"You stay the hell out of this!" The Italian teen threatened, not willing to deal with the idiot yet when there were more pressing issues to deal with first. Speaking of pressing issues, Gokudera looked away from Yamamoto to glare at the girl on top of the washer again. "Who the hell are you and what are you doing here?" he questioned venomously.
At first, Airi was frozen in shock and fear at the Italian delinquents questions. No one had ever approached her in such a way nor had she ever had anyone talk to her so rudely before. It didn't take long for all of her fear to quickly change into self-righteous anger. What was this guy's deal? "I'm Takaki Airi and I'm here visiting Yamamoto-san. Is that a problem for you?"
"Don't even bother with him Airi-chan!" Airi's black-haired friend interrupted, her face the perfect picture of disgust. "If he's going to be so rude about it then the jerk doesn't need to know!"
"What the hell did you say?" Gokudera exclaimed as he directed his murderous glare towards the black-haired girl. The two glowered at each other spitefully. Gokudera was kind of lost on what to do, he never expected a younger girl to verbally lash back at him. It seemed the universe had finally found Gokudera's match for Namimori's bitchiest citizen (Gokudera's landlord came in as a runner up).
"You heard me." The black-haired girl snidely answered back. "Why are you so ticked off anyway? Yamamoto-san just invited us to stay and help. I don't see a problem!"
Shocked at this bit of information Gokudera twisted around to stare at the taller teen, his jade-green eyes demanding an answer. "What the hell is this girl talking about? Help with what?"
The young athlete looked extremely uncomfortable as the question was directed towards him. He tried to look Gokudera in the eyes but couldn't keep his gaze directly; the Italians eyes were inflamed with so much anger and…hurt? Was that the right emotion? Yamamoto was too afraid to double check. "Look Gokudera, Airi-chan and her friend saw me in here and came in to talk when you were asleep. Then the buzzers for the clothes went off and I didn't want to wake you up because you looked so comfortable, so I asked the girls for help—"
"Wait! They did my laundry?" Gokudera exclaimed as he cut Yamamoto off, looking completely affronted by the idea. "I thought I told you to wake me up? How in the hell do you know if they did things right?"
The black-haired girl was quick to chime in again. "Chill already! Airi and I know how to do laundry; we only put your whites in the dryer and your jeans in the washer. Oh yeah, and Yamamoto-san stuffed all your darks into a duffel bag."
Gokudera glared at Yamamoto again who appeared to be panicking at that last bit of information. The young Italian was quick to assume that his darks were probably all wrinkled now due to Yamamoto's inability to do anything remotely constructive. Diverting his attention so he wouldn't publically strangle the idiot, Gokudera asked another question that had been bothering him.
"So what the heck is with the ice cream?" The Italian questioned in a calmer manner, although his glare was still stabbing the three people around him with metaphorical daggers. He motioned with his head towards the ice cream cups that were now placed on top of the washer next to Airi, all of them seeming to now be empty upon closer inspection.
Seeing as Yamamoto looked like he was having an internal struggle with himself (the taller boy's eyes were diverted away from everyone else like he was either scared or ashamed), Airi decided to answer the question. "For helping him with your laundry he offered to buy us ice creams and to stay and chat with him." She explained as civilized as she could. Given the circumstances that a boy she didn't know was chewing her head off for reasons she didn't know, she thought she was doing a pretty good job.
Airi's answer and attitude caught the attention of her black-haired friend who felt prompted to speak again just because she seemed to like hearing herself talk (that's what Gokudera thought anyway). "Yeah, it was the least Yamamoto-san could do after he ditched Airi so many times for you!"
Gokudera's body went rigid at the younger girl's words. This was the girl Yamamoto had ditched earlier in the day? –And wait! Did that bitchy-girl just say what he thought she just said? Gokudera trained his questioning eyes onto the taller boy beside him, who was still refusing to meet everyone's gaze.
"This girl…you ditched her more than once?" Gokudera asked quietly, he didn't add the 'for me' part because it seemed to get stuck in his throat. What was going on with him today? His emotions felt like they were riding a rollercoaster with too many loops.
At this, Yamamoto finally seemed to be able to look Gokudera in the eyes. The young Italian couldn't help but think the taller boy looked burdened and heavyhearted.
"Um, yeah…" Yamamoto started with a sad smile as he rubbed the back of his neck distractedly. "Whenever my senpai scheduled me to meet up with her, you always seemed to be having trouble with something so I would help you in the end instead of going to meet her. It felt kind of wrong to send her away again after she came in to talk to me, you know? I kind of owed Airi-chan for all the things I put her through, so I asked her to stay."
As Gokudera took in this information, his brain couldn't help but pinpoint one small detail. This was the second time Yamamoto had called that Takaki-girl, 'Airi-chan'.
"A-Airi-chan?" Gokudera peered up at Yamamoto in confusion even though he had a feeling as to why Yamamoto was calling this girl by a first name basis; he just wished beyond hope it wasn't true.
The taller boy did his best to smile even though it felt completely wrong. He shouldn't be smiling and he shouldn't be explaining this to Gokudera but it's not like the older boy would care right? "Yeah, that's what Airi-chan wants me to call her, haha! It can't be helped really since she's my girlfriend now."
Gokudera felt like he got smacked in the face. Girlfriend? He…a-and she—they were—
This seemed to be news to more than just the flabbergasted Italian as Airi glanced towards Yamamoto with hope in her eyes. "Really, Yamamoto-san? You think of me as your girlfriend now?"
Yamamoto looked a little uncomfortable as he replied to the enthusiastic girl. "Well, we are planning to meet up again. Boys and girls who hang out together are usually considered boyfriend and girlfriend, right?"
Airi was the description of ecstatic. She was jittering in excitement on her seat on the washer and holding her hands together in anticipation, her eyes practically bugging out of her head. "I would love to be your girlfriend Yamamoto-san—Oh! Does this mean I can call you Takeshi-kun now?"
Gokudera had the distinct feeling he was going to vomit soon as a wave of distress hit him on top of his shock; the Italian completely missing the wince Yamamoto gave at the over familiarized version of his name. The silver-haired teen felt like he was being crushed or split in two or…or…something that involved physical pain! He didn't know how to describe it nor did he understand it. All he knew was that it felt like every single part of him hurt and he didn't know whether he should be upset or angry about it.
In the silence that seemed to follow the conversation, Gokudera was finally able to find his voice. The Italian teen averted his eyes, his silver bangs hiding them from view as his body decided things for him and shook with tightly suppressed anger. The silver-haired teen gathered all his strength and stated the word that adequately described what he wanted Yamamoto to do at that very moment.
"Leave."
Yamamoto had been discussing with Airi on what she was allowed to call him, so he almost missed what his smaller friend said. The taller teen froze in shock, not sure if he heard correctly.
"W-What?" he asked hesitantly, afraid that he had heard that word correctly.
"Leave." Gokudera replied with a little more force. He still wasn't looking at anybody and his body was shaking harder now, his hands clenched tightly into fists, the knuckles turning a ghostly white.
"L-Leave…?" Yamamoto repeated, is voice barely above a whisper. The taller boy looked completely shocked at what the smaller boy was asking of him, no, demanding of him. The two girls looked on in stunned silence, glancing between the two males in complete confusion.
Yamamoto's stupid questioning voice seemed to be the trigger that made Gokudera snap. Like an erupting volcano he brought his head up to glare at Yamamoto, eyes clearly upset and blazing with fury. "Yes, leave! Are you too fucking stupid to comprehend that? This isn't a place to have a freaking date so how about you take your stupid fucking girlfriend and leave already?"—The girls yelled indignantly at that remark but Gokudera continued on like he hadn't heard them. "You're stupid and useless and I don't need you here, so leave!"
Yamamoto was completely overwhelmed by the Italian's outburst. All he could do was stare, light-brown eyes wide with confusion, as Gokudera's anger and hurt filled eyes continued to bore spitefully into him. Why was Gokudera so upset over all of this? So he let the girls touch his laundry and he gave them ice cream, that didn't mean the silver-haired boy had to throw a tantrum! Was it because he called Airi-chan his girlfriend? Gokudera had started acting weird (more so than by normal standards anyway) after that little comment…
Before Yamamoto could think any more on the subject and of how thinking of Airi as his girlfriend still sounded wrong to him, the very same brown-haired girl jumped down from her seat on the washing machine, her eyes narrowed angrily as her hands went to her hips.
"What is wrong with you?" The younger girl all but shouted at the enraged Italian in front of her, her friend backing her up with an indignant 'yeah!'. "Takeshi-kun has done so much to help you and this is how you repay his kindness? By insulting him? I think you should thank him at least after all he's done!"
Yamamoto didn't know how it was possible, but the intensity of Gokudera's glare went up a notch at Airi's words, his eyes becoming the very definition of hell's fire. "This isn't any of your fucking business!" the hot-headed teen snarled in fury as his hand instinctively reached out and clasped the brown-haired girl's shoulder in a vice-like grip.
Airi squeaked in fright at the violent action, wincing in pain as the sudden pressure enveloped her shoulder. She could hear her friend exclaim something in worry but she couldn't discern what was being said, she was too focused on the raging green eyes before her that looked about ready to blow her head off. Thankfully, she didn't have to stare or feel the pain for too long because, not a second later, a tanned hand had reached out and ripped Gokudera's hand from her shoulder. The second she knew she was free, Airi ran towards her friend who was waiting on the other side of the washing machine, putting as much distance between her and her attacker as she could within the crowded confines of the laundry mat. As she turned around to glimpse at her savior, she noticed that Yamamoto, unsurprisingly, had been the one to help her out. He was standing where she used to be, holding Gokudera's wrist in his hand from where he had taken it from her shoulder. Both boys looked tense as they stared each other down, Yamamoto still refusing to let go of Gokudera's wrist and giving the Italian a serious but pleading look and the smaller teen looking completely surprised but still holding on to his anger.
Eventually, Gokudera freed his wrist from Yamamoto's grasp with a mighty tug. The silver-haired teen turned away from his taller friend, rubbing his wrist in slight agitation. He hadn't meant to lash out at the girl; he had no idea what had come over him. The young Italian also couldn't stand looking at Yamamoto anymore. He could tell the taller teen was angry and disappointed with him (believe him, that was an accomplishment if he received it from Yamamoto of all people), hell, he was upset with himself too. He must have looked completely ridiculous, acting like some jealous—
Wait…jealous?
Suddenly, as that one word rung repeatedly in his head, everything seemed to click and Gokudera was able to understand what exactly he had been failing to comprehend up until then, to finally understand the emotions he had been feeling all day long. He was an idiot. He was so stupid to have not seen it before. The young teen would have laughed at his revelation but it was impossible at that moment (he knew it would have come out hysterical anyway and scared the living crap out of everyone, including himself). He felt like he was choking, like something large was stuck in his throat and it wouldn't dislodge even when he tried to swallow.
He was a freaking idiot!
Still unable to look at the dark-haired teen standing behind him, Gokudera prepared himself for what he was about to say. The silver-haired teen looked subdued and utterly defeated, his shoulders hanging low and his head bowed as he opened up his mouth to say what was really on his mind.
Only for those words to chicken out on him at the last minute and replace themselves with, "Leave, Yamamoto. Just…just leave."
Yamamoto's breath caught in his throat at the despairing tremor in Gokudera's voice. Hating how grief stricken and dejected the other boy sounded, Yamamoto tried to speak, his hand reflexively reaching out to the other teen to comfort him. Before he could do so, Gokudera twisted around and fixed Yamamoto with a sorrowful glare, seemingly knowing what the taller teen had been trying to do.
"You are so stupid. I told you to go! I never wanted you here in the first place! I never wanted any of your help!" The heartbroken Italian lashed out, putting as much emphasis on the 'any' as he could. It was true that he never had wanted Yamamoto to help him with anything from the very first time the other boy offered when they were still in middle school. If the taller boy had just stayed away like Gokudera wanted him to, none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have befriended Yamamoto.
He wouldn't have fallen in love with him either.
Even though Yamamoto was known to be slow when he had to think about things other than baseball, that didn't mean he was stupid. He was quick to catch on to what Gokudera had truly meant by his words. Gokudera had never wanted to be around him in the first place. To say those words stung would have been an understatement. Yamamoto couldn't hide the hurt that spread so openly over his face for everyone to see, including the person who had said those very hateful words.
Deciding it was best to look away before he did something he would regret, like grabbing hold of Gokudera and begging the other to make him understand what was going on and making a complete fool of himself in the process, Yamamoto just nodded his assent and traveled towards the door. Airi and her friend had continued to stare at the two boys in confusion but when Yamamoto made for the door, the two were quick to follow, not wanting to stay in the Italian bomber's presence a moment longer.
The tinkling of the bells above the door signaled the trio's departure along with the prospects for a potentially happy future that Gokudera had never considered possible for him.
The Italian hated himself for throwing it so carelessly away.
