Hey there again! :)

I still haven't overcome my fascination for Ren and Masato and therefore: Here we go again. :)

I hope you'll enjoy the story and I'd greatly appreciate constructive criticism or just a short hello to cheer up my day. :)

Italic writing is meant to be a flashback, just so you know.

Lots of love,

SnowWhiteSummer

Ps.: And still I neither own the characters nor anything else but the story in my head. :)

„So that's it for today, everyone! ", Haruka clapped her hands together, smiling widely, "We'll meet again tomorrow, right. "

The sound of chair screeching, paper rustling and pen clicking could be heard while the members of Starish gathered their things, leaving the music room one after another.

Shou and Natuski were discussing rather loudly whether Shou would visit the next Piyochan- Convention or not, Natuski insisting that he had already bought the tickets and Shou exclaiming vehemently that he couldn't care less.

Ren silently stood at the windows of the music room, observing the scene. His gaze wandered over to Masato who was organizing his sheet music, carefully filing it away in single folders. Sensing the stare, the other man looked up and his blue eyes locked with Ren's brighter ones.

Grinning wickedly, Ren strode over to the desk Masato was standing at.

Leaning in close his fingers brushed just the slightest over the others palm. "I'd really appreciate you concentrating on me like you do on those papers. You've been organizing them for several minutes now, just to avoid my gaze, haven't you? So what is it with that quietness of yours lately?", Ren leaned in even closer, his breath tickling Masato's ear shell, causing the man to tremble slightly.

"It's not like you would care anyway, right Ren?", Masato hissed sharply and turning around, he left the room without another word.

Ren closed his eyes, clenching his hands on the table, his nails scrapping the wood slightly.

He could still feel Masato's warmth, still smell his scent and yet the other man was out of reach for him.

Masato had changed within the last weeks, avoiding Ren, keeping his distance and turning him down whenever he tried to approach him, whenever he was reaching out for him and now, now Ren was desperate to at least understand the reasoning behind all this.

"This won't get you anywhere, you know...", Tokiya's voice breached the silence ,"This time you've seriously pissed him off."

"You don't know a thing, Ichinose", Ren growled, not moving from his position, his fingers now clawing into the desk painfully. Before he could say anything more, he heard Otoya's hushed whispers and could practically feel Tokiya's stare on him while being ushered out of the room silently.

The low click of the door was the only thing signelizing Ren that he was alone by now; alone with his buzzing thoughts and overflowing emotions. "Finally", he sighed before he felt his knees giving in and dropping on the floor. Burying his face in his hands, he tried to calm his nerves and regain his composure.

Masato slammed the door behind him, tossing his folders carelessly on the floor while making his way towards the wardrobe, sending the sheets flying all over the room. Pulling forcefully at the handles, he opened the doors and grabbed a dark-grey hooded pullover from the back of the top shelf. Stepping over the mess of papers scattering all around Masato sat down on heavily his bed, burying his face in the piece of cloth, trying to hide the tears rolling down his cheeks and sobbing quietly.

Still damp from its last use and even though needing a proper washing soon, the pullover still held the scent Masato was longing for. It smelled like summer sunshine and tanned skin, warming you wherever you were; like wind ruffling through grass and leaves, always in motion; like summer rain on a muggy day, refreshing you; to Masato it smelled just like Ren.

But even though this feeling like home to him, Masato knew he had lost his place in Ren's world having been thrown out of it just some weeks ago.

"No, really, that's just annoying you know...", Masato froze at his spot right in front of the dorm room he was sharing with Ren. He had been in one of the music rooms, practicing the piano and going over some of the notes Haruka had left him.

"Yes, I know, it's against the school rule, but you really have nothing to worry about...", Ren was on the phone and judging by the sound of his voice he was far from controlling his anger. "Of course it's complicated, of course it's trouble and no, of course it won't be easy...", Masato backed away slowly. Ren wouldn't like him eavesdropping, if it was something he was supposed to know Ren would tell him, because that's what you did when you were in a relationship.

Even though he wasn't quite sure if the fooling around they had done so far, could count as a relationship per se. Sure, he really liked Ren embracing him from behind, when he was rummaging in the wardrobe and he also liked leaning his head back and capturing Ren's lips in a chaste kiss and oh how he loved sharing Ren's bed just lying next to each other, feeling each other's heartbeat, drawing patterns on Ren's arm, feeling his warm breath, feeling save cuddled up to him, but he couldn't tell without a doubt, that this thing they had was a relationship; that this was love or anything in between or anything at all.

So Masato turned his back to the door, deciding he would just pretend he had never heard a word when Ren raised his voice again.

"No, seriously? If that's what you thought your dead wrong, dear brother... I do not like him, like you think I do, no seriously. Don't you worry about that...", Masato froze. Ren's voice had dropped in volume and everything Masato could hear was the hammering of his heart, the rushing of his own thoughts in his head.

So it wasn't a relationship after all, it really was nothing more than fooling around to Ren, just something to chaste away the loneliness... He didn't even like him...

Masato felt tears running down his cheeks, the urge to vomit overcoming him, his whole body trembling with tremors shaking through his body. He practically fled from the room in front of him and he was desperately avoiding Ren ever since.

In the long run, it would be easier for both of them, he decided. He wouldn't force things and complicate the whole issue, he would be just as mature and unconcerned as Ren was; he would push the pain away.