Hello Everyone. Sorry that it's been so long. My computer shut down and then I lost all my files, including what I had written for this chapter, and it took me a long time to work up the patience to write it all again. It SUCKED. And so, late as it is, and short as it is, this is the next chapter. Please enjoy.
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It was raining.
Sora sighed, upset at the world at that moment. He was upset at Namimaru-sempai, the tennis team captain, for keeping him at school late for a meeting, he was angry with his mother for freaking out so much that he was late for school that moring, which resulted with him standing in the hallway holding two buckets of water, and most of all, he was infuriated by this stupid rain.
"It's alright, Senpai..." Ayumu said softly from his side, his hand holding Sora's tightly as they stood alone in the doorway of the school. "I don't mind if it's raining, we can still go out."
Sora looked down at the young boy and frowned. He knew it was a bad idea to go out in that rain, but he was tempted to take Ayumu up on his offer. After all, few others would be out in the rain and that meant that they could hold hands and stuff, even though they were in public. But the rain... If Ayumu got sick...
"Sempai?" Ayumu asked, looking up at Sora with large, innocent looking eyes.Sora sighed, kissed Ayumu's forhead and took the other boy's hand, leading him out into the rain at a running pace.
They made it to the bus stop (which was covered, thankfully) without becoming too wet and Sora laughed at their predicament. This was crazy! Here they were, it was pouring rain, and they were planning on going downtown on a date. He stopped laughing immediately when he saw Ayumu shiver and instead moved to wrap the younger boy up into his arms, providing him with as much heat as he could.
A felt rather than saw a small smile spread across Ayumu's lips and heard that small voice wisper "Thank you, senpai". Sora just held him tighter.
"Are you alright?" Sora asked, pressing his lips softly to the freshman's hair, "We can still go home, I'll take you back to your house and we can just hang out and watch a movie, if you want."
Ayumu shook his head, determined. Sora held back a sigh, knowing that though Ayumu seemed young innocent and fairly emotionless most of the time, the boy did indeed have a stuburn streak. So, sora said nothing more on the subject and they continued to wait for the bus, which, luckily, arrived very soon after that.
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It was raining hard, and Ayumu was well aware of that.
Still, this was a date with Sora they were talking about, and Ayumu was NOT about to let a little rain come between him and a date with his senpai. Still this rain was terrible, they should find a place to go inside soon.
"Looks like there's a bakery over there," Sora said, somehow knowing Ayumu's every thought, like always. Sometimes Ayumu wondered if Sora was really a psycic too. He also wondered on a regular basis why he couldn't get into Sora's mind. Then again, he was also a bit glad, because it just made thing seem that much more real between them.
"Yeah," Ayumu answered, and they headed across the street, entering the bakery quickly to get out of the rain.
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Yusuke Ono knew what he was seeing immediately when the two boys walked through the door. They stood too close to be 'just friends' and boys their age generally didn't hold hands with their brothers, not that these two looked anything like brothers in the first place. Part of Ono found it sweet that the two young boys seemed to have no fear of rejection, walking hand in hand like that, but another part of him was a little bit jealous. He was a player, and could anyone he wanted (just about, anyway) but he wished he had someone like that, who he could actually love and cherish, rather than just keep as a temporary boy-toy. That was what he wanted out of Chikage, but...
"Hello, boys, what can I do for you," Tachibana's voice interrupted his thoughts. The owner of the Antique Bakery and the only person immune to Ono's 'Demonic Charm' wore his winning 'bussiness man' smile as he talked to the two boys over the counter. "You're going to dine in, I'm assuming?"
"Good guess,"the taller boy chuckled, then looked down at the other boy and pointed towards the display case. "What would you like, Ayumu?" 'Ayumu' looked down at the display case, perfectly silent, and then back up to the taller boy, his eyes looking as if they were trying to comunnicate something. "What? Are you feeling shy?"
Ayumu gave him a slight, slight glare, but Ono could see it, and hid a smile behind his hand.
"Hey, Master, what are you--?" Ono turned around quickly and clamped a hand down over Eiji Kanda's mouth, pressing a finger to his own lips. He then gestured back to the kitchen door, which he had been watching from. Kanda nodded in a promise to be quiet, and Ono cracked the door open again and they both watched on.
"Alright," The taller boy smiled, "I'll guess..." He looked at the display case thoughtfully once more. "From what I know of Ayumu's tastes, I would say that you want something with strawberries in it... And with out any nuts. I'd also be willing to bet that you want something that's super sweet, but not too big, because it would overwhelm you. How did I do?"
Ayumu just looked up at him, amazed. The taller boy chuckled.
"What would you have that matches that description?" He asked.
Tachibana looked thoughtful. "Well, most french pastries that have strawberries either have nuts of some kind, or are much larger than what you'd want... Hold on one moment please." Tachibana turned towards the kitchen and, seeing that the door was partially open, called for Ono. "Ono, what do you think?"
The patissier gave only a small sigh and came out into the kitchen. He came up to the counter, beside Tachibana, and smiled at the two boys. He then addressed Ayumu directly, careful to keep smile in place. "Are there any kind of nuts you do like?"
"... Peanuts..." Ayumu said quietly. "But that's... Not much help, is it?"
"That depends..." Ono chuckled, "Do you care if it's pretty or not?"
Ayumu looked confused, and then slowly shook his head. Ono smiled again, gratefully, and went to get one of the new cakes that Kanda had made from the kitchen. Ayumu ate it without a word as to it's less-than-appealing looks, said it was tasty, thanked them, and then the two boys were back out in the rain again. Ono had a feeling that this story wasn't over yet.
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Taka and Kabaji walked through the orphanage quietly, looking through class windows into little rooms full of children playing. It made Taka sick, thinking that these kids were being put on display for the adults coming here, like they were animals at some kind of pet shop. This, howevere, only concreted his will to adopt from this place, and get some poor child out of this orphanage.
He didn't want a 'traditional' orphan. He didn't want someone so broken that they would except Kabaji and he himself as their parents automatically, just because they were there. He didn't want someone who caused nothing but trouble either, though. He wanted someone who stood out, hwo caught his attention, but was modest, someone strong, someone willful, but also someone who did not throw their weight around. He didn't know if he could find a child like that, but if he did, he knew that he would know it.
That was when he saw him, sitting by himself in a corner of a small room, away from where the other children were playing, and looking longingly out of a window. He recognized the expresion on that face immediately: the need to be outside, the need to be free, and to move and run. He could tell immediately that this boy...
"Baby, that boy's a positive, isn't he?" Kabaji asked quietly from Taka's side, and Taka nodded.
"He's the one, Munehiro," He said, and then raised his voice so that the lady givng them their 'tour' could hear him. "We would like to talk to that boy over there, please."
"That one? Oh, you don't want him, that's Ayase-kun and he's rather... Odd..." The woman said, "I could introduce you to some other children, though, if you'd like."
"We would like to talk to Ayase-kun," Kabaji said firmly, stepping out in front of Taka, towering over the woman for added effect.
"O-okay, right this way, p-please," thye woman stuttered.
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Ayase didn't like this, not at all. He had been taken away from his window into a windowless, stuffy room, and now two men that he didn't know were coming in to sit across the table from him. And that woman.
He didn't know he name, but he recognized this woman well; she didn't like him, because of what he was. Hell, his own parents had aboandoned him because of what he was, but this woman was simply cruel. She withheld food from him, and made sure that no one would ever want to adopt him.
And he hated her back.
"Hello, Ayase-kun." Ayase looked at the man who spoke to him, and then looked deeper into the man's aura. It was a pleasently light yellow, and it surprised Ayase slightly. Very rarely did he see an adult with such a light aura. Actually, he had never seen an aura like that on an adult before, only on the youngest of orphaned children, the ones who would still do you a favor without wanting something in return. When you lived in an orphanage, that was squashed out of you really quickly.
Ayase said nothing, but then looked to the other man. This man's aura was also interesting; At first glance it looked like a flat peach-orange, but on closer look there were many colors hidden inside that one main color. The important thing was that Ayase did not see anything threatening from these people.
"Ayase-kun doesn't speak," The lady said, and Ayase could hear the disgust which she tried to keep hidden in her voice, and saw that her aura was the same puke green-brown that it had always been. Reflecting on it now, telling her that her aura was so ugly had not been the right foot to start on, all those years ago. Ayase's aura-seeing abilities were always useful, but also very good at getting him into trouble, so he remained silent at all times. He wasn't even sure if his voice could work anymore, after it's years of non-use.
"We would like to speak with Ayase-kun, alone, if you don't mind," The light-aura-ed man said, and the woman glanced from him to the taller man with him, and then hurriedly left the room. The light-aura-ed man turned back to Ayase with a smile on his face. "Let's start again, shall we? Hello, Ayase-kun, I'm Takashi Kabaji, and this is Munehiro Kabaji. We are interested in adopting you."
Ayase could have laughed; this person was very straight-to-the-point, just like his aura had suggested. Ayase again said nothing, but watched the two expectantly. Ther was more, he could feel it.
"Ayase-kun..." the taller Kabaji leaned over the table and then whispered, "We're like you."
This time, Ayase did physically react, as the surprise of hearing that statement made him take a movement backwards, a look of surprise coming to his face. And then the two were changing in front of him and he could see that what they said was true. Ayase moved his mouth and tried to form words, but none would come. He frowned and put a hand to his throat. Nothing was coming out.
Ayase felt fear then for the first time in years. Had he really lost his voice?
"Ayase-kun, not using your voice for long periods of time can make you temporarily lose it," The taller Kabaji said, "With proper rehibilitation, you can get it back, I promise."
Ayase tried once more to try and form words, but at another failure caused his face to twist into a frustrated glare. Munehiro Kabaji chuckled and pulled a small notepad and a pen out of his deep coat pocket, handing it to the young boy.
'What do you intend to do?'
"We told you, Ayase," Takashi Kabaji chuckled mild-temperedly, "We plan to adopt you, if you are willing to let us."
Ayase remained silent for a moment, and then scribbled something more on the paper. He held it up when he was done for the two men to see.
'What are we waiting for?'
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Notes:
1. I really like Ayase, and his ability to see people's auras. I'm going to enjoy writing more about him in the future.
2. About Yusuke Ono, Eiji Kanda, and Tachibana at the Bakery, are all from the manga Antique Bakery. If you haven't read them, then don't weat it. They WILL show up again, but you really don't need to know anything about them to enjoy it. If you want to know what they look like, Google their names. Also, for those who HAVE read it, Chikage is going to show up later, I promise.
That's all, hope you enjoyed it. Ja mata ne!