Hello everyone! I am very happy about all the reviews, follows and favorites. You guys rock *hugs*

This chapter got a little longer than I actually intended it to be since Sairi took over my writing LOL - I kind of like him and Hotsuma interact with each other. And already I apologize up front for the ending of the chapter. But there will be one more so no worries *hinthint*

Now on to the reviews!

kaminokoe: Wow, I'm honored *blush* If you ever need a beta, I am more than happy to be your wing (wo)man!

Kitkat3195: Thank you and yes, I was arguing with Hotsuma, too. But we all know how stubborn he can be sometimes and it just didn't feel right to make him kiss Shusei (yet). Not that he doesn't want to LOL The other day, I was reading through the forum and there was a thread about Shusei and Touko going on a mission together (and I don't want to spoil anything in case you haven't read it yet) but it was not good for my poor Hotsuma x Shusei shipper heart *cry* These two are just meant to be together and the mangaka better leave Touko where she belongs - with her brother that is.

Guest (Killer-chan): Thank you!

ExpectoPotato: I loooooove cute so much. And these two are just made for cuteness. More to come :-) Actually, I have had to stop myself with the details at some point. When I write about Hotsuma, I could go on and on since I believe that there is a lot going on behind this gruff facade of his. He is more perceptive and thoughtful than he lets on. Maybe I will do a one shot one day and just let it all out LOL

bloodydarkangel: Thank you! I am glad you like it. Actually, some characters are really hard to keep in canon but with these two, it's amazing. They compliment each other so well and their interactions just come naturally which makes it very enjoyable for me to write this stuff/fluff ;-)

Syaoran-Lover: Thank you for the praise *bows*

And here we go!

When he resurfaced from the depths of his sleep, the morning sun that shone brightly into the room tickled his face. Groaning, he turned around to get away from the source of light that much too bright for his taste at this time of the day. For a moment, he had to rack his brain for where he was since the sheets felt different and the pillow was definitely too soft.

Shusei's bed.

Hotsuma buried his face into the pillow, inhaling deeply the aroma that was lingering in the fabric. He would recognize the mix of musk, vanilla and flowers anywhere. Shusei had been using the same type of soap since they had been kids and the scent had seeped in, become a part of him. Together with his natural scent, his body had created an incredibly enticing smell. If it came in bottles Hotsuma would buy lots.

The memory of when Shusei had touched his hand last night popped up in his head out of nowhere. He could still feel the touch on his hand, slender fingers brushing gently against his own, sending his heart racing. And that smile… it had been almost too much for him to handle.

Hotsuma pressed his face even harder into the pillow to stifle a groan, praying that, next to him, Shusei wouldn't notice anything. He could already see that this conversation would be an awkward one to say the least.

It had taken him quite a while to fall asleep last night but at one point, exhaustion had taken over and he had found some rest. With Shusei right next to him, he had been much too busy to get all these feelings and thoughts under control that had sent his mind swirling. He couldn't remember that he had felt that way the last time he had slept in Shusei's bed but then again, so much had changed since then.

His brunette friend, on the other hand, hadn't noticed anything about his troubles. He had slept soundly with the tiniest smile on his face. And since Hotsuma hadn't wanted to wake him up he had tried not to move too much around with the result that he had kept the proverbial lid on the pan. Which made him feel the tension between his shoulder blades now even more.

Maybe there would be some time to bathe before school. He would ask Shusei to accompany him. They could have Katsumi-kun make them breakfast for to go so they didn't have to rush.

Slowly, stretching and yawning, he pried open one eye only to find the space next to him empty. Shusei had already gotten up. A sting of disappointment mixed with fear tugged at his heart but was quickly replaced by sheer horror when his eyes fell upon the alarm clock.

"Shit!" He cursed loudly, sitting up in a split second and swinging his legs out of bed in one move. Waiting for the world around him to stop spinning, he sat at the edge for a moment before he got up and crossed the room to where he had discarded his clothes last night.

As if it was not enough, out of nowhere, a cold feeling crept up his spine, leaving a foul taste in his mouth. What if something had happened to him while he had been asleep?

He paused with one leg in the air, swallowing hard.

No. The reasonable part of his brain tried to tell him but it was too late. Instinct was taking over which for Hotsuma meant that he would turn each rock on this godforsaken planet to find him. Reason had nothing to do with it.

Hastily, he put the rest of his clothes on. Jumping on one foot to get the other one through the opening of his pants, he kept swearing under his breath. What had Shusei been thinking to leave just like that? He wasn't supposed to do that.

Desperately, Hotsuma racked his brain. Maybe he had done or said something last night that had upset Shusei? The mere thought let his stomach drop, making him feel a little nauseous.

Barely a minute later, he darted out of the room, shirt still unbuttoned, almost crashing into Aya on his way down the stairs. They avoided a collision but the poor girl lost her balance and with it the tray she was carrying. The china on it together with the tray went down and shattered into pieces, the sound of the crash echoing through the otherwise quiet hallway.

"Hotsuma-san, I am s…" She started saying but Hotsuma brushed past her, completely ignoring the trembling maid who was also very close to tears since she just had broken a couple of cups of Tachibana-san's precious china.

When Hotsuma reached the end of the stairs the door to the dining room flew open and out came the master of the mansion, a worried look on his face.

"What in the world is going on here?" He demanded resolutely but was stopped by Hotsuma. Tachibana-san's eyes grew wide when he took in the whole scene.

"Where is Shusei?" Ignoring the master's question, he planted himself in front of Tachibana. He knew he must look out of place with his wrinkled clothes and bed head but he got more anxious with each minute that passed.

"My china!" Tachibana-san wailed, trying to get around Hotsuma who was blocking his view but the very same grabbed his shoulders.

"I don't give a damn about your china! Where is Shusei?" He continued to hold the older man at the shoulders, shaking some sense into him. Why didn't he get it? Shusei hadn't been there when he had woken up. Hotsuma's nerves were blank. In fact, they were about to give out any moment if he wouldn't hear soon that Shusei was ok. In some remote part of his brain, he know he was acting irrational but that was about how far it got. The rest was instinct, driven by memories of the last time Shusei had vanished.

In front of him, Tachibana-san, seeming to sense the distress the young man was in, gave a deep sigh, drawing his eyes away from the pile of pieces that had used to be his china and looked Hotsuma in the eyes.

"Hotsuma, listen to me. They all went to school 10 minutes ago. Shusei is fine." His words were accompanied by a friendly smile that helped to calm down his frayed mind a bit.

Cool down.

The words finally made sense and he felt the cold knot in his stomach unravel. He let go of the older man.

"School, huh?" Suddenly, he felt rather stupid.

To their left, Aya appeared, holding the tray with the remains of the china. Her face was white as a piece of chalk and her cheeks were stained with tears.

"M-master, gomen nasai." She bowed, still shaking, and seemed to be waiting for her punishment.

Tachibana-san waived his hand and gave her one of his fatherly smiles.

"Just bring it to Katsumi-kun. It wasn't your fault, Aya-chan." He looked at Hotsuma indignantly instead.

"What? It's my fault now?" Hotsuma shot back immediately, whining. "What did I do?"

"We will talk about this later." Looking somewhat defeated, the master of the mansion rolled his eyes at him. He ushered Aya-chan away gently. Before he left the scene he turned to Hotsuma, giving him a good stare from head to toes.

"You should get dressed properly. Sairi-kun is waiting outside with the car."

"No way!" This was just great. "I don't need that idiot to drive me!"

Tachibana-san looked sternly, raising his finger at him.

"I don't want to hear any complaints, you have wreaked enough havoc for one day."

For once, Hotsuma knew better than to say anything in response. The china was one of the items that were very dear to Tachibana-san. The master took great pride in always having the perfect set for every occasion and the dishes that had been shattered would be difficult to replace. Punishment would be inevitable and Hotsuma wondered briefly how many hours he would have to spend in the kitchen helping with the chores to make up for it. Probably quite a few judging by the look on Tachibana-san's face.

He bowed his head.

"Gomen nasai, Tachibana-san." Hotsuma mumbled contritely which only earned him an exasperated look from the other before he turned on his heel.

"Just hurry up so you won't be late for school."

Hotsuma waited until the hat bearing head had vanished into the library. The hallway was deserted and very quiet.

"Great, now I have to drive to school with that skirt chasing idiot."

He could already hear the girls squealing when they got out of the car. Stupid. If they knew how condescending of a character the guy really had they would think twice. But the other gender was shallow and unconvincible, at least that was Hotsuma's impression. Fact was that he wanted nothing of it. He would ask blondie to let him out a block earlier so he could walk the rest of the way, saving him the embarrassment.

Hurriedly, he went back upstairs to his room in order to get ready. Needless to say that his mind kept running in circles.

Thinking back to earlier this morning, it had almost been as if a switch had been flipped in his head, completely knocking out common sense. It had been absolutely irrational but he hadn't been able to stop it. The fear he had felt upon Shusei not being next to him when he had woken up had been crippling. All he had been able to think of was to get the hell up and look for him.

In hindsight, he knew why.

Ashley. He grimaced upon the thought, doubting that the memory would ever become less scary to him.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down as he was reliving the few minutes after his awakening. Shusei was safe and in school while he had overslept. He would probably never hear the end of it. Which he would gladly accept, no doubt. Secretly, he liked to be scolded by his partner. It made him feel… loved?

Now that was weird. Only that Hotsuma couldn't help but smirk. But there was no time to explore that train of thought right now, he had to hurry up.

When he came down, the tall blonde zweilt was sure enough already waiting for him.

"Good morning, flame brain. Overslept?" He greeted Hotsuma with a smug expression.

Hotsuma growled at him, striding purposely toward the door.

"Shut it, pansy." He opened the door and stepped outside. It was a beautiful day, all sunny and blue skies. He didn't wait for Sairi to follow but went straight to the car, getting in the backseat. There was no way he was going to ride next to that snobbish jerk.

They rode in silence the first ten minutes which Hotsuma was actually thankful for. The last thing he needed at the moment was some snotty remark.

But sure enough, the peace didn't last much longer.

"Gotten late last night, huh?" Sairi said casually, his eyes focused on the traffic. Only that the faint around his mouth smirk told him that the blonde was enjoying himself greatly.

In the backseat, Hotsuma clenched his fists. He would get in big trouble if he sat fire on one of Tachibana-san's cars.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, princess."

He glanced at his watch, only a few minutes more to go. Just don't let him get to you.

"Ouch, that hurt." Sairi put on a fake pout, chuckling. "You are no fun. No wonder, lover boy is looking elsewhere."

"Say that again and I'll show you some fun." Hotsuma grinded his teeth. It had been a bad idea to have Sairi give him a ride from the start. If he ended up harming the blonde idiot it would be all Tachibana-san's fault.

In the front, Sairi seemed to be completely oblivious.

"Hey, no reason to get all fired up, ladybug. I told you before that I can help you get what you want." Winking at him through the mirror, Sairi made a left turn.

"Like hell." Hotsuma huffed. For a couple of seconds, he thought about strangling the guy to put him in his place.

The school came in sight on the left side of the street but Hotsuma couldn't get out since the traffic was dense. Damn.

In the front seat, Sairi laughed at him.

"Oh, come on, Hotsuma. Don't play hard to get with me. I know you are dying to get some advice." Their eyes met in the mirror and Hotsuma did his best to glare back.

He would rather sink into a hole and vanish from the face of the earth before he would let Sairi help him. Wouldn't he? Fuck, he wanted to slap himself for even thinking about it. The guy was a big jerk and a cocky one at that. Alone being near him caused his palms to itch. Why would he even consider to accept his offer? There was certainly more than one string attached and he would be forever indebted to him. The thought alone caused him to shudder with disgust.

Hotsuma could feel Sairi's gaze on him. The guy was probably reading him like an open book in the rear mirror. Jesus, how he sometimes wished to be able to conceal his emotions. But being the bearer of God's voice and putting on a calm demeanor just didn't go together very well. He always wore his feelings up the sleeve which made him even angrier sometimes.

On the other hand, he wanted to mend things once and for all with Shusei. If that meant to swallow his pride and listen to the show off in front of him so be it. Maybe he had something useful to say after all. But then again, how likely was that?

"Why, of all people, would you want to help me?" Hotsuma muttered.

"Simple." Sairi pulled into the school parking lot. They got lucky and found a spot right away. Sairi put the car into park and turned off the engine before he turned around to face him, shrugging nonchalantly. "Out of that weird group of people that live in the mansion you two idiots are the only ones that belong together. I'd hate to see it to go to waste." After a short pause he added "Even I don't play for your team."

Hotsuma didn't trust his ears. Had he really just heard that?

Anyway, he let out a small pffft sound. This guy had some nerve!

"That doesn't change anything. I still hate your guts, blondie."

At that, Sairi laughed openly.

"Of course, you do. Wouldn't want it any other way."

Sairi turned around and opened the driver's door, getting out of the car, while Hotsuma couldn't help himself but just sit there, dumbstruck. What the hell had just happened?

A knock at the window interrupted his thoughts.

"Are you waiting for me to roll out the red carpet for you? Get out of the car, everyone's inside already." The blonde turned around to walk toward the school building. The schoolyard was deserted. Hotsuma checked his watch. Three minutes before the bell.

Quickly, he climbed out of the car, catching up with Sairi. He fell into pace next to him.

"Geez, you are nothing than trouble. Shusei must be either blind or stupid to put up with you."

"Watch your mouth or I will kick your sorry ass, idiot."

"Always on the edge, aren't you?" Sairi chuckled.

Hotsuma grumbled something unintelligible to himself. This was ridiculous! Why was he even talking to him?

They reached the stairs to the entrance. Sairi stopped and turned around, having Hotsuma all but bump into the tall young man.

"Hey, watch where y… " Hotsuma shouted out angrily, backing away but Sairi cut him off mid sentence.

"Listen to me, dumb ass. I'm only gonna give advice once. Take it or leave it."

What in the world?

Hotsuma huffed.

"Fine." He spat. "Spit it out and then we're done with it." If he was that desperate to counsel him he wouldn't keep him from it. Couldn't hurt to listen, now could it? Outwardly, he did his best to put on a bored expression. The last thing he wanted that pig head to see was that he was actually interested. How pathetic.

"Shusei is going to the police station after school. You should go with him and take him out for dinner afterwards so you can talk without all the other fools hanging around." Sairi handed him a business card with the name of the place and an address. "You should walk there, watch the stars and all that other romantic crap. And don't you dare to screw it up. I can't believe the both of you are so dense."

And with that, before he could even respond, Sairi turned on his heels, leaving him outside all by himself.

Hotsuma stared at the little card in his hand. A dinner. With Shusei. Alone.

The sole thought sent his heart pounding. He wasn't good at this whole date thing. But if it kept that blonde nuisance off his back he would take Shusei out. And he had to admit to himself that the prospect of spending a night out with Shusei without all the other nosy zweilts around sounded pretty damn good. Especially Touko. He would probably punch her in the face the next time she said something inconsiderate.

He actually giggled at the mental picture. Ooooops, sorry, Tsukumo!

The school bell rang.

"Damn!"

He sprinted inside. He grimaced at the NO RUNNING IN THE HALLWAY sign while almost slipping on the freshly waxed floor. Skidding around to corner he made it to his classroom just the moment when the students were standing up to greet the teacher.

Naturally, all eyes were on him as he was standing in the door, catching his breath. His homeroom teacher shook his head in disapproval.

"Go… gomen nasai, Nokimura-sensei." Hotsuma panted, bowing profusely.

"Hotsuma-kun. How kind of you to bless us with your presence. Now go to your desk so we can begin."

Glad that he got off the hook so easily he crossed the classroom to his desk at the window. The rest of the day passed by uneventfully.

When the last bell rang Hotsuma hurried to get outside to wait for Shusei. All day long, he had made up his mind and now he was all fired up and ready to go through with it.

The weather was still nice and relatively warm for this time of the year. He spotted Takashiro-san's car in the parking lot and decided to wait there for his partner.

Minutes passed and while the school building kept spilling out students there was no Shusei in sight. Hotsuma grew more restless with each second. Trying to reason with himself he recalled the morning when Tachibana-san said that Hotsuma was with the others at school. That he was safe. He hadn't seen him all day and although that was normal since they were in different classes the scare he had had this morning made him feel uneasy.

Just as he was about to storm back into the building and turn over each desk if he had to in order to find him he appeared on the stairs in front of the exit.

As usual, the tall brunette looked impeccable in his school uniform. The light wind played with the strands of his hair and sent them flying which just looked lovely on him. In fact, Hotsuma wouldn't wonder if there suddenly appeared twinkling stars all around him and Shusei started glowing from within. Since this simply was how he saw him. Although if this was ever to become public he would deny it with his blood, logically. Well, screw the logic, he would simply smack everybody who was stupid enough to sustain that bold statement over the head and set his ass on fire.

But when he looked to Shusei's right, he saw her. His stomach dropped what felt like sixty floors in one second. With all what had happened today he had completely forgotten about the girl.

She was tiny with long black hair that was hold together in pigtails that were bopping up and down at each side of her head while she was talking animatedly with Shusei. The fact that Shusei was actually talking back with one of those rare smiles of his let Hotsuma's blood run cold.

He really likes her. The thought stabbed his chest andHotsuma's heart sank even further. As much as he hated to admit it but Touko had been right when she had said that the both of them looked cute together.

And what was even worse was that were heading toward him in this very moment. Crap. This was bound to get awkward. He couldn't remember a time when he had wished more for that hole in the ground he just could vanish into. He wanted to flee but his feet were like glued to the ground.

The next moment, Shusei spotted him and raised a hand to greet him. Now it was definitely too late to get away so he lamely waved back, hoping that the smile he had plastered across his face would hold.

"Hotsuma!" Shusei called out to him when they got closer.

In a normal world, Hotsuma would have skipped the greeting and have gotten right back at Shusei for why he had left without him in the morning and sure enough Shusei would have admonished him for staying up late and, thus, having overslept. They would then simply move on, talk about random stuff, enjoying each other's company.

But not today. Today, there was this girl at Shusei's side so he just stood there, stiffly, all words fleeing his mind. The girl was… well, for a lack of a better word, pretty. Her voice was kind and her features were pleasant to look at. When the pair arrived in front of him she bowed politely.

"Hotsuma, this Hikumi-chan. She is in my parallel class and I tutor her in literature."

The girl blushed, clutching her school bag with both hands to her body.

"It's n-nice to meet you, Hotsuma-san." She slightly stuttered, her cheeks taking on an even deeper pink.

There was an awkward moment when none of them spoke. All Hotsuma could do was stare at her. Why was she blushing? Geez, he would never understand girls and their quirks. He could feel Shusei's gaze upon him and he knew that he had to say something soon or it would be impolite. Not that he cared though.

"Yeah, nice to meet you, too." He hoped it hadn't sounded too harsh but he hadn't ask for her to show up and ruin his plans. He turned to Shusei. "Let's go, Shusei. We can't let Takashiro-san wait."

Without paying further attention to the girl, he opened the passenger door in the back and climbed into the car. Outside, he could hear Shusei speaking to the girl.

"Hikumi-chan, would you like to ride with us? Your house is on the way so it would be not a big deal."

Hotsuma groaned to himself. That was typical for Shusei. This guy just didn't know how to say no when it came to losers.

He stuck out his head.

"Shusei, we are running late. Just get in the car already and leave her alone."

The girl looked at him with wide eyes. Obviously, she was scared of him since she quickly bowed and fled the scene.

"Now that was just plain rude, Hotsuma." Shusei said neutrally, getting into the car. The driver waited for the door to be shut before he steered the car out of the parking lot, weaving into the traffic.

"There's not enough space in the back and besides, we can't let the police wait." Hotsuma pointed out, hoping to disperse the topic because he really didn't want to talk about this Hikumi-chan right now. He made a face when he thought of Shusei saying her name in such a familiar tone.

"Are you jealous, Hotsuma?"

"What? No!"

"Yes, you are." Shusei chuckled quietly.

"NO!" He was furious now. Why did Shusei always have to hit home so unerringly when it came to him. Of course, he was jealous but he would never admit it out loud. He was jealous because she was cute, pretty and soft-spoken while he was anything but. He was the elephant in the china store, he was the one that had scarred his best friend and partner, he was the one with the flaring temper he didn't know how to control. He had caused Shusei so much pain that not this lifetime nor the next would suffice to atone for what he had done.

His hands raked through his hair and he turned his head toward the window so Shusei didn't see the turmoil he was in.

The touch of Shusei's hand on his thigh made him go stiff. The warmth of Shusei's skin seeped through the fabric of his pants and Hotsuma had to hold his breath to not let out a gasp.

"Hotsuma?" Shusei inquired calmly.

Slowly, Hotsuma turned his head. He was careful not to move too much in his seat since Shusei's hand was still on his thigh, distracting him.

Their eyes met and Hotsuma was shell shocked how close the brunette was. He must have had scooted closer when he had looked the other side.

"Uhm… Shusei?" He whispered nervously, not able to break the gaze. His heart lurched in his chest, his mouth very dry all of a sudden.

"You seem to be acting weird lately. Are you feeling ok?" Shusei's voice was smooth like silk.

Hotsuma swallowed hard. His brain was going into overload and as a result the capability to speak had left him. Shusei's face was only a couple of inches away and the soft glow in these amber eyes was holding him captive. His hand was still touching him and by now his skin felt as if it was blazing.

Shusei's other hand came up to cup his cheek and Hotsuma had to close his eyes. He released the breath he had been holding, trembling a little while doing so. How he had gone from all angry to a puddle of goo in a matter of seconds he had no idea but he felt like he was soaring.

When he opened his eyes again Shusei was smiling gently at him.

"Better now?"

"Yes." He croaked.

Shusei's smile grew wider.

"Good. Because -" He paused and the hand that had just been caressing Hotsuma's face took his hand and placed it gingerly on his chest, right above where his heart was. "Because in here, there's only you."

Stunned, Hotsuma looked down at his hand that was covered by Shusei's. Their fingers were intertwined and he could feel Shusei's heartbeat through the layers of clothing that was matching the speed of his own.

"Shusei…" He managed to say, looking up into these gorgeous orbs. Even if he was able to speak there were no words that could describe how he was feeling in this very moment. So close…

When the driver cleared his throat loudly he almost hit his head on the ceiling. They both jumped away from each other.

"Usui-san, we have arrived at the police station." The driver said politely.

While Hotsuma's brain came up with various ways to murder this insolent son of a bitch he glanced at Shusei. Aside from the slight blush that decorated his cheeks he looked as calm as ever. How enviable! While his insides were in uproar and the rush of his blood was like a storm in his ears Shusei looked neat as a pin.

"Thank you, sir." Shusei's voice was smooth and clear.

He turned to Hotsuma.

"Will you accompany me?"

With some effort, Hotsuma scraped the remainders of his sanity together, drawing in a deep breath. They would just have to pick up where they had left off later tonight.

He grinned at Shusei.

"Of course, what do you think why I rode all this way with you?"

Please forgive me for the cliffhanger! Since the next chapter will be the last I promise I won't let you down :-) I look forward to reading your reviews, they make my day!