Title: Fictional Truth
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: not mine, cool? cool.


That night, Niou lay in bed, wondering how things would have been different had he stayed with Yanagi. After practice that day, he and Yagyuu had gone to the tree by the shrine to talk. They'd sat facing each other, and Yagyuu had told him he was applying to six international colleges - three in England and three in the United States - to improve his English and learn more of the world.

Yagyuu's words seemed practiced, like words he'd told his parents or interviewers or something, not like words he'd say to a friend, much less a boyfriend. Niou didn't get it. Yagyuu was the one who'd chased after him when he had given up. How could he do that when he knew he was going so far away? It was unfair, and Yagyuu never acted so irrationally. It wasn't like it was even possible for Niou to also study abroad - Niou would be lucky to test into any of the top colleges in Japan, much less get into one of the world's top colleges.

Niou turned over and stared out his window. There were no stars in the sky - there were too many lights in the city. He's always had to go outside the city to see any stars. He stared at his cell phone in the dark for awhile, wondering about the solid plastic casing concealing so much technology, before sitting up, grabbing the phone and calling Yanagi. He scooted back on his bed so that his back rested against the wall just as Yanagi picked up on the second ring.

"What do you need, Niou? I'm busy." There was a mildly annoyed tone in Yanagi's voice and a clacking of keys that indicated he hadn't stopped typing on his computer. Yanagi was probably simulating some shot or something - he did that on occasion before showing the move to whomever he was developing it for. He really needed to sleep more though - the bags under his eyes had always been too deep for a boy their age, and had only been getting darker recently.

"Did you know?" He stared at the shadows in his room, slightly illuminated by the brightness of the streetlight outside his window, as he waited for Yanagi to understand his question. He didn't feel like explaining himself further - he didn't need to. Yanagi knew what he meant.

The keys slowed, then stopped. There was a click as Yanagi disconnected his headset and put his phone to his ear, giving Niou his mostly undivided attention. "He told you? I didn't think he'd tell you until after he got in and decided to go to one of them."

"So you knew."

"Yes; I helped him look over his personal statements."

Niou paused, wondering why Yanagi hadn't told him anything. More appropriately, he wondered how Yagyuu and Yanagi had managed to hide it so well from him for so long, and why Yanagi helped Yagyuu when there was so much discord between them. "What are his chances?"

"I don't know Yagyuu's exact scores in the necessary standardized exams, but I think he's likely to get into at least one of them." Yanagi sounded, well, glad. It was hard to tell - Yanagi was hard to read in person and therefore all but impossible to read on the phone - but Niou wouldn't be surprised if Yanagi were in fact glad. He was too tired for mind games though.

"Oh. Thanks."

"Was that all?"

"Yea, I'll see you tomorrow." Niou moved to turn off his cell phone when Yanagi stopped him.

"Wait, Niou. I have a question, too." There. Now, Yanagi's voice held no hint of gladness whatsoever - it was all serious and businesslike and so completely Yanagi.

"What?" Niou grabbed his pillow to his stomach and shifted his phone to his left ear. He didn't really feel like answering any questions right now; he had too many of his own he wanted to sort through first.

"That ploy Akaya pulled had your name written all over it. Why did you help him?" It was the same question Yanagi had asked before. Niou had never replied to that message, and didn't want to answer it now. He offered to help Kirihara because he knew how the younger boy felt. He also could see that even though Yanagi appeared to be fine, he was still hurting, and had hoped that maybe Kirihara could help. He wasn't about to say that to Yanagi though.

"He asked."

"He wouldn't. You must have volunteered." Unfortunately, Yanagi had more data on Kirihara than Niou did.

"So what? I wanted to help a friend. The kid has a crush and he doesn't know how to deal. He got all pissy at me because I dated you, remember?" He knew he shouldn't have said those words. It was an off-limit topic, just because it made for awkwardness. Still, it was something he wanted to know more about, and now seemed as good a time as any in which to ask Yanagi about what Yukimura had meant at practice the other day.

"I see." Yanagi breathed into the receiver, causing a loud white noise to be transmitted. He immediately readjusted his phone. "If that's all then, Niou, good night."

"One more thing, actually. The other day, when Yukimura said I have both you and Yagyuu - what was that about?" He'd been meaning to ask about it, but it had never seemed like a proper time. The line between them right now was so full of tension already that it probably didn't matter if he added one more awkward question to it.

"Just that. You and I dated. Akaya was jealous because I turned him down." Yanagi was lying through his teeth. Kirihara would have blown up at Niou back when he and Yanagi first started dating if that were true - he would not have contained it until after the fact. Niou told Yanagi as much, and Yanagi sighed. "Do we really have to get into this now?"

Niou thought for a moment, but his mind was pretty made up. "Yes."

"Niou, I- damnit, I still like you, OK? Hell, I..." There'd been a break as Yanagi decided what to say, and then his voice trailed off entirely, words apparently escaping the usually eloquent boy. Niou held his breath, heart pounding, waiting to hear what Yanagi had to say. "I think I might love you." Niou's eyes widened, pillow falling to his side as his grip on it loosened. "I was going to tell you, after winning Kantou, but..."

But Niou had kissed Yagyuu and Yanagi had lost his match because of it and everything that wasn't supposed to happen happened. Niou closed his eyes, tilting his head back to rest against the wall. Breathing was suddenly a chore, something he needed to remind himself to do. He didn't know why Yanagi's words affected him so much - he was in love with Yagyuu, even if he'd never specifically said those words to Yagyuu. Yagyuu had spoken them to him many times though, and didn't mind Niou's silence on the matter. Perhaps this was why Yanagi was helping Yagyuu get into a foreign college - to get him out of the way. He probably told Kirihara as much also, which got Kirihara all riled up. He took a deep breath of cool, fresh air as everything suddenly clicked. "Oh."

"Are we done now?" It sounded like a double entendre when he phrased it like that. Knowing Yanagi, it was perfectly possible that he wholly intended for it to come across that way. The guy sure had a way of hiding behind a mask.

"I suppose. I'll see you tomorrow at practice?"

"Yea, we should play a match against each other."

"OK. Good night, then."

"Good night, Niou."

Niou found himself again staring at his phone. There was too much information circling around in his mind. He wanted Yagyuu, but at the same time, he knew that being with Yagyuu right then would only lead him to be even more confused. Sighing, he flopped down on his bed, setting his cell phone on the nightstand before trying to fall asleep.