Down South

Summary: ...And she never did like cowboys.

Dreamshipping-Asuka x Johan. Ya, I think a sad ending is going to be in play here. Just don't shoot me for it. I really push the K+ rating on this chapter lol. But, I think it's ok, since the whole fic is generally k+.

"Try and hug me. Just try. If Fubuki doesn't get away unscathed, what makes you think you will?"

Johan blanched a tad at the genuinely serious and warning look he received from the taller man, famously known as Marufuji Ryo, before he laughed skittishly and slinked off.

Honestly, it was like people were allergic to hugs. He didn't even think Ryo would settle for a manly handshake. Heck, the guy didn't look like he even wanted to be here. Johan frowned slightly at this. Was it him? Or...no, Ryo was like that with everyone.

Yeah, he'd go and see Asuka. She didn't seem to mind his presence. In fact, he gathered she liked it quite a bit.

'But she also loses her confidence around me. I wonder why she's so out of character sometimes? Hmm...maybe what Fubuki said...'

"Dear brother in law!"

"My sister has a soft spot for you, you know."

"Asuka likes blue. Make sure to have some on your suit at the wedding."

Just when he was about to stumble upon an answer, he stumbled across something else. The devil...no, she was no devil. Angel fit better. The angel herself.

"Oh Asuka!" he chirped, noting with interest the way she flushed and looked anywhere but him.

It didn't take him too long to realise why she was at a great discomfort though.

He merely blinked, gazing at her curiously. "Oh. Nice nightdress."

And in her humiliation, red completely overwhelmed her face.

Damn him and his simple ways of saying things that shouldn't be simple.

They had arrived a few hours ago. Ryo had been missing in action most of the day. Asuka realised this was his version of sulking, so told everyone to keep out of his glaring range. Oddly, everyone did apply to Johan, but he had smiled calmly and claimed Ryo would be fine with him just saying hello.

He'd just found out he was not going to try that again.

"Ah. Right..." She drew in a breath, relieved when it had the desired affect, and the red on her cheeks subsided.

The two stood there in complete, VERY awkward silence. When Asuka gathered the courage to look at him, she nearly jumped when she saw him focusing intently on her eyes. Usually a boy's eyes would be directed lower, but his were directly on hers, gently probing. She inwardly gulped. He was trying to figure something out.

She was hoping to high heaven it did not concern her and her certain unwanted feelings.

Of course, over the last week or so of being harassed by Fubuki, Momoe and Junko, alongside her very conflicting opinions of men and Johan, she had accepted she probably had a slight infatuation with him. It wasn't like she was exempt from crushes on people. She'd had them before. She'd just been caught off guard by this one because the previous ones didn't involve so many racing hearts, blushes and headaches. From thinking and arguing. With herself.

Eventually, she couldn't take it.

"Do you..." Her mind flew into a frenzy as she tried so hard to continue the sentence, not aided by the fact Johan was looking at her expectantly. "...Have those eggbread you promised me?"

Eh, it was weak, but it would break the tense atmosphere.

And luckily it did. At least, that was what Asuka thought as she watched his grin make the odd atmosphere dissipitate and cause off sensations in her chest and stomach. Since when did you have butterflies in your chest? They were probably what were causing her heart to have panic attacks whenever she found herself in an situation.

"Of course. I am a man of my word. I just don't have them with me at the moment," he replied.

"Should we get them?"

"At eleven?" He surveyed her, eyes shining with humour.

She reddened a bit and crossed her arms.

"Yeah. Probably not a good idea."

"Besides..." Ok. She wasn't in the best of states, and Johan nearing her with an undecipherable gleam in those green wonders called eyes wasn't calming her down. Did the boy not realise there was a boundary to how close two friends could get?

"Yes?" she asked, leaning back.

Of course, by now he had innocently captured her waist in his hands, and devilishly placed himself right in front of her. At the moment, she couldn't properly move back, and now the only thing moving was his face.

Towards hers.

Her heart started drumming again, and her blood boiled. The tips of their noses were touching, and she couldn't get far enough away.

"What I wanted to know..." His breath was warm against her lips, and she involuntarily shivered. Damn him and his obliviousness. Of course, along with her and her frozen nerves.

Her pride wasn't frozen though, and her so she responded.

"Yes?" she continued, sounding way more in control than she was.

"I was wondering..."

"Why do you teenagers never listen?! Even if I condemned you to death, you'd still make out on MY LAND."

Asuka found the energy to prance out of Johan's arms as his grip slackened, her face wildly red. Of course, Johan's pale skin didn't share the same condition.

"Oh. Sorry sir. But we weren't about to kiss," Johan explained...truthfully? It wasn't like he was intending to kiss Tenjoin Asuka. He had sensed her nervousness but he needed to know the truth. To do so, she had to stop running, and stopping her by the waist had worked.

Of course, then his head had started moving forward of its own accord. He'd gotten a strange feeling, and had easily seen Asuka's discomfort.

Would he have kissed her?

He didn't want to think about it. She probably would have destroyed his reproductive system after the initial shock had waned.

But...why hadn't she tried to get away? Sure, she was uncomfortable, but there was no A+ effort to escape.

Could she...?

"Look," the hotel manager grumbled, "stop trying to eat each other's faces and go to bed." Asuka felt a lump form in her throat at his choice of words. This was not happening. Johan, thankfully, had the decency to blush at this. At least she wasn't all alone on the mortification boat.

"We weren't-"

"Johan," Asuka sighed, suddenly feeling very weary. "Let's just go to sleep." She claimed his hand, and his blush spread a little bit.

Observing this and misunderstanding Asuka's words, the man's face flared in anger and a vein popped up on his face.

"AND YOU'RE NOT SLEEPING TOGETHER EITHER YOU IDIOTS! THAT'S EVEN WORSE THAN MAKING OUT IN PUBLIC!"

Asuka let go of Johan's hand abruptly, and her mouth opened. Nothing resembling sound came out. Of course, this was more than made up for the strangled one that emerged from Johan's.

"JUST WHAT IS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND?!" Johan shouted.

Another vein popped up on his face.

"MY MIND? YOU TWO ARE THE TWO DIRTY ONES!"

"We're not!" Johan argued, looking visibly upset.

Asuka, not contributing to the...debate, was resting face in the palm of her hand.

This was a dream. A lovely dream that some sadistic bugger had turned into a nightmare towards the end.

Even though Johan's warmth had felt really real...

That was it. She was going to sleep.

"I feel unwell..." she suddenly piped up, wobbling a bit. Anger and sadness replaced by concern, Johan wrapped an arm around Asuka's waist.

She blushed. That wasn't what she needed.

"Do you want to take you back?" he whispered.

The hotel owner snorted.

"Right. He'll help you back and then discover you've got a fever, so then your clothes will be off-"

"Enough!" Johan interrupted in a calm but forceful voice. One hand was attached to her forehead, and the amount of heat on it actually got him worried she had gotten a fever. Of course, he wasn't going to let the man run his mouth and dirty claims while his friend was ill. "She's sick. I need to take her back."

And so, supporting Asuka, who was not really ill, Johan marched off, looking determined and steady.

"Sick. Beh. Pregnant more like."

Which faltered as Johan tumbled forward at the man's assumption.

Ryo was doing a good awful job of not trying to smirk as a slightly red Johan relayed the events of the previous night.

He had no idea why Johan had come to him for advice, but if it brought him closer to getting the two together, and getting him out of a pinch, he was fine with it.

And there was also the amusement.

"So now the hotel owner of all people thinks we're dating and doing THAT stuff and-"

"Slow."

"He...he's convinced Asuka is..." The last word came out in a gargle, and Ryo barely understood it, indicated by his arched brow. "Pregnant!"

Ryo wasn't going to laugh. That wasn't his style.

He did smirk though.

"You are in quite a predicament, aren't you?"

Johan nodded glumly.

"What do I-?"

"Do you love Asuka?"

He flushed at this.

"W-what? Where did something like that come from? We're just friends caught in an odd predicament!" he explained.

'Yes. Close friends who should be dating to get me out of my own predicament.'

"Well, I can't help you until you answer sincerely," Ryo apologized, smirking at Johan's expression. "So, come back when you've decided you love Asuka. Until then, you can ramble, but I won't be listening or giving advice."

Meanwhile, Asuka was getting her own beating from Junko and Momoe. God knows why she had invited them, as an isolated, silent room was swiftly becoming more appealing.

"What happened with Johan?" Momoe inquired.

"You were with him for ages!" Junko pointed out, giggling.

"Oh no. I was with a friend," Asuka said sarcastically, placing her hand on her cheek in false shock.

Noting the lack of passion in reply, Junko and Momoe frowned, exchanging confused and worried looks.

"Asuka?" Momoe gently prodded.

The aforementioned suddenly exhaled deeply, catching the other two off guard. She shook her head, looking at her quilt with sad eyes.

"It's all so confusing. Why him?"

Once again, the two watching their friend wrap herself in her own musings swapped glances.

"It's good and bad. Asuka and Johan are getting closer, but both are upset at how."

Fubuki, who had been smiling at the first bit, frowned at the small picture of Ryo he was conversing with.

"Why?"

"Well..."

As Ryo informed Asuka's older brother of the events, his expressions varied. A lot.

"If only I was there. My sister wouldn't be so glum!"

From the other end, Ryo's face remained neutral.

"Right. It'd be impossible for her to be glum if she's too preoccupied with being angry."

Fubuki pouted at the claim, though he was aware Ryo had a point. Of course, the way Fubuki really took it was that he meant Asuka would be too busy laughing and appreciating him. It's not like Asuka was constantly angry at him.

"Damn back," he groused. "If only I was back to my good old self."

"Please, don't be in a rush to get better."

"I must be, if just for Asuka's sake!" he declared. He saw Ryo sigh loudly, and bid the blue haired duellist farewell.

"Can I help with your sister's love life?" his room-mate piped up.

Fubuki scowled.

"No. Only I can."

"Oh."

Fubuki put the small device down and gently lowered himself fully onto his back. He flinched a bit at the familiar pain, but sighed in relief when it died down, sprawling out across the bed. He closed his eyes and yearned for sleep, when-

"So, does this mean I can be one of your sister's love possibilities?"

Fubuki brought the covers further up his body and closed his eyes even harder.

"These teenagers make me laugh. Honestly, like I don't know what they're really up to," the hotel owner snorted to the receptionist.

He was currently busy staring blankly at the desk, eyes tired. He was listening, really. He was trying so hard, but nothing was working. The ass had kept him up all night with his own dirty business.

Why he had that dirty business was confusing for the receptionist.

"Mr. Akuma, I think you should be getting to bed," he suggested, hoping to God that the man would comply.

When Mr. Akuma's race rolled up in a snarl, most would have flinched, but the receptionist, Shinji, was just that damn used to it.

"Beh. Lazy boy."

But with those words, he was gone.

The receptionist let out a sigh of relief, and then allowed his mind to wander.

He'd remembered seeing those two teenagers come in. The boy had been supporting a girl-a really, really pretty girl-who seemed to have been affected by love sickness if anything. From what'd he seen and heard, it seemed like the pair were two that should have been a couple but weren't.

Heck, if he cared enough in the morning-after a good night's sleep, of course-he might try and get to know them. After all, his alter ego was a fantastic, unmasked match maker.

End Part VI