Author's Note: Out of all of the one-shots I've written so far, this is the one I'm most proud of.

Dsiclaimer: I don't own shit.

Confessions of a Con-Artist

"S-Seto! Come and help me plant these flowers," Marry Kozakura yelled at one of the two boys standing just feet away from where she was kneeling on the ground, a tiny shovel in one hand and a small adolescent plant in the other.

The boy whose name she had called was Kousuke Seto, the second member of the group called Mekakushi Dan. Next to him stood Shuuya Kano, the third member as well as the one who had pegged the name for the gang.

"Oy, Seto, you heard the girl. When a lady asks for help, you should help her," Kano said to Seto as a sly grin turned up the corners of his mouth. He then whispered, "especially if that lady is Marry." He nudged Seto with his elbow and winked at the dark-haired boy who was now blushing rather fiercely.

"Sh-shut it, Kano!" Seto hissed.

"Hm? Oh, I see," Kano said, narrowing his eyes at the blushing male. "You don't want Marry to know that you have feelings for her, eh?" he asked, sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Th-that's not what I... I mean... I don't know what you're talking about," Seto said defensively, clenching his fists as Kano tried hard not to laugh at him.

"Sure, sure, I believe you," Kano said, closing his eyes, his grin still in place. "If you say you don't have feelings for her, then you don't have feelings for her," he said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Really?" Seto asked with something in his voice that sounded like relief mixed with surprise.

"Sure," Kano said, shrugging again. "However, Kido might not be so easily convinced," he said, his grin turning into a thin-lipped smirk. When Kano opened his eyes again, they were red. The blonde's appearance began to shift, his blonde hair and black hoodie replaced with long green hair and a purple hoodie. Seconds later, Tsubomi Kido stood where Kano once had.

"K-Kido?" Seto asked, blinking and rubbing his eyes. "But I thought you were running errands for the day," he said in disbelief.

"I should be doing that, but instead here I am having to babysit you three," the girl said bitterly. "What's this I hear about you being a wimp again?" Kido asked, putting her hands on her hips. "Denying that you have any feelings for Marry. That poor girl deserves better than someone who isn't willing to admit how they feel," she said, shaking her head in disgust. "You know, she won't wait for you forever, Seto. Soon she'll forget all about any feelings that she might have had for you all because you were too weak and scared to tell her how you really feel. Then all you'll be left with is one-sided feelings for someone who will never be able to return them, and you're only excuse for not telling her is denying that you have any feelings for her to begin with. Pathetic"

Seto stood there in utter shock, his eyes wide and his hands trembling. Never had Kido spoken to him like that before. Usually, the only one who ever saw this side of her first-hand was Kano... Of course. It made sense now. Frowning, Seto pulled back his fist and let it go, connecting with the side of Kido's face.

The girl stumbled backwards, the surprise on her face all too evident. A split second later, the facade melted away, and Kano stood in front of Seto once again. His face was red from where Seto had struck him, and he winced as he rubbed his injured cheek.

"That was a dirty trick, Kano!" Seto yelled angrily, causing the white-haired girl just feet away to look at them in confusion. "That was the wrong thing to do and you damn well know it!"

Kano was at a loss for words, having never seen Seto get so worked up over anything before. However, the cat-eyed boy wasn't about to stop there. He was far too deep into the matter to quit now. "Oh was it now?" Kano asked almost cruelly. "The way I see it, none of that was unnecessary. In fact, the one in the wrong here is you. You don't realize how damn selfish you're being by keeping your feelings for Marry a secret," Kano said, frowning as anger began to take hold of him. "She could die at any moment and for any reason, and she would die never knowing how you feel about her, never knowing that someone in this world saw her as special and felt things for her that run deeper than anything else," he hissed in a low voice so that Marry wouldn't hear him. "Dammit Seto, if you don't do something about this, I swear I will," he growled.

"Meaning what exactly?" Seto asked, narrowing his eyes at the boy who he rarely ever fought with, but was now the source of his bubbling anger.

Kano opened his mouth to answer when a small concerned voice stopped him. "S-S-Seto? K-Kano? Is everything okay?" Marry asked as she stood hesitantly, not sure if she should get involved in whatever it was that the two boys seemed angry at each other about.

Kano flashed Seto a sarcastic smirk before turning towards the timid girl. "Oy, everything's fine. Nothing to worry about," Kano said, waving it away as he began walking towards the girl. "Marry, why don't I help you with your planting," he said with a soft smile. He could feel Seto's eyes on his back, watching him cautiously, waiting to see what dirty tricks he might up his sleeves.

"That would be great, Kano!" Marry said cheerfully, holding the shovel out towards him.

Kano grinned and grabbed the shovel, but didn't take it from her. He smiled at her and tilted his head slightly so that his blonde hair covered one eye. "I don't really think that a lady like yourself should be down on the ground getting her hands dirty, especially not while wearing such a pretty dress," Kano said sweetly and almost seductively.

Marry's face heated up, her cheeks turning a bright rosy color. "W-what are you talking about, Kano? I do this all the time, and I wear this dress a lot too," she said, tilting her own head in confusion.

"Ah, yes, I suppose you're right about that," Kano said, chuckling to himself. "Forgive me, it's just that... it's not often that I get to admire you like this," he said, taking the hand that wasn't gripping the shovel and flipping his hair out of his face. He could feel Seto tense, even from feet away.

"K-Kano, what are you-" Marry began to ask, though she didn't make it very far into her question before things took a sudden turn that no one expected.

Before Marry could make heads or tails of what was happening, Kano had taken his free hand and squeezed her waist. The girl emitted a high pitched squeal, and tossed the plant that she'd been holding into the air. She watched in astonishment as the plant fell, smashing into the ground.

"Kano!" Seto shouted sounding less than thrilled about what had just happened. "That's enough!"

"Eh? What is it?" Kano asked, tilting his head sideways towards Seto as his hand maintained its grip on the clumsy girl's small waist. Even though she'd begun to cry, Kano refused to move. Come on, Kousuke, fight me. Defend her right now. You know it's the right thing to do, Kano thought with a smirk as Seto's eyes grew wide. Without even realizing it, Seto's enraged state had triggered his eyes ability, allowing Kano to catch him off guard by projecting thoughts into his head.

"Stop it!" Seto yelled, his face twisting in anger. "Get away from her right now you bastard!" At that moment, Seto shot towards Kano, fist pulled back, ready to beat him senseless.

Kano had plenty of time to move, but remained where he was. He found himself to be amused by Seto's rage as only someone like him could be. He couldn't help but grin as Seto knocked him to the ground and away from Marry.

"You've taken this too far, Shuuya," Seto said after he'd knocked his dear friend to the ground. He sounded calmer, looked calmer even, but the anger was still there. "I understand why you're acting like this, but still," the boy said, shaking his head.

Kano was intrigued by Seto's sudden claim that he understood Kano's reasons for acting the way he had. "Oh, you understand do you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at Seto. "Then please, tell me what it is that has me acting this way?" Whether it was a challenge or an actual cry for help, Kano would never be sure.

"Ayano," was all Seto had to say for the blonde boy's defenses to come crashing down.

"W-what?"

"You heard me," Seto said, frowning. "You're lashing out at me because you never had the chance to tell Ayano how you really felt about her," he said. Even he seemed surprise at how daring he was being, knowing that Kano could very well lose his temper at any moment, but he pressed on. "You loved her, and even though you knew what she was planning to do, you refused to tell her how you felt. Now you feel guilty because you let her kill herself without telling her that you loved her, that you truly treasured every moment she was alive and with us, and felt as if every second you spent with her was precious."

Kano wanted so desperately to block out the words that Seto was saying He sat up on his knees and angled his head towards the ground so that his hair and his hood completely hid his face.

"It's okay, Kano," Seto said taking a step towards him. "You don't have to be so strong all the time. You don't have to keep up this act like everything's okay."

Kano was silent for several seconds before he lifted his head up and began to laugh. "Hah! Kudos for thinking you have me all figured out, but really, Seto, I thought you knew me better than that! No matter," the blonde said, standing up and brushing the dirt and grass off of his pants. "I'm going to go for a walk on my own. You two have fun planting flowers," Kano said, forcing a smile as he waved at the two. He would apologize to Marry later, but for now he thought it best to let the situation cool down.

"You're disappointed in me, aren't you, Ayano?" Kano asked once he was far enough away from Seto and Marry that they wouldn't be able to hear him. He chuckled softly to himself and shook his head. "Look at me. What the hell kind of monster have I become, hurting my dear friends like that? Of course, you're not here to tell me that I'm being an ass or that I need an attitude adjustment. Seto's right though," Kano said, his eyes dulling as his expression became rigid. "I do feel guilty. I feel so guilty every moment of every day for not telling you how I felt when I had the chance. If Marry were to die before Seto had the chance to tell her how he feels, chances are it would be a complete accident. I knew, though. I knew what you were planning and I didn't bother to speak up. I let you leave this world thinking that you were a terrible person not worthy of anyone's heart or even trust for that matter. I guess I'm the terrible person though, aren't I? I could have just let Seto deny his feelings like he always does, but instead I had to go and hurt both of them. I wouldn't blame Marry if she never forgave me. I'm a monster after all. A cold-blooded con-artist who only thinks for himself." He sighed and shook his head, staring blankly at the pavement as he walked. "I'm sorry, Ayano. I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I've become such a monster. I'm sorry that I never told you how I felt about you, how I still feel about you."

"I'm so sorry, Ayano..."