AN: Thank you for your reviews; they are appreciated.
-.--.--.-
The next morning, Nowaki and Hiroki both awoke to the sound of a loud clattering.
Hiroki threw off the covers, but Nowaki was the first one out the door. He hurried toward the kitchen and froze at the sight that met him.
Keiji was getting ready to make breakfast, (or attempt to, anyway), and when he had opened a cupboard to grab a skillet, the entire contents of the cupboard had spilled out; crashing to the floor.
The seven year old looked up, frowning. "Sorry, Kusama-san…"
Hiroki peered around his lover, blinking. "…You made a big mess." He huffed, grouchily.
"I was trying to make breakfast." Keiji frowned, head lowering in shame.
"…What're you making?" Hiroki sniffed the air.
"Pancakes… western-style, I guess…"
"Pancakes?" Hiroki couldn't remember the last time he'd had pancakes. Did they even have the ingredients? What the hell were pancakes made out of, anyway?
Nowaki laughed softly, heading inside and placing a hand on Keiji's shoulder. "I'll help you finish up, alright? Hiro-san, get ready for work."
"Mm…" Hiroki left and Nowaki began cleaning up.
Keiji's shoulders were still shrugged in nervousness. "…I-I really didn't mean to make such a horrible noise… sorry about that…"
"It's alright. That's what happens when Hiro-san sets traps like that."
"Traps?" Keiji blinked.
"Mm… it's the term I use for when Hiro-san puts something in a cupboard, drawer, closet, or on top of the fridge to where if you open whatever it is, the contents come spilling out."
Keiji blinked before laughing, softly. "You call this a trap?"
"Yep."
"NOWAKI, YOU BASTARD!" Hiroki, who had been listening in from the hallway, entered the kitchen, fuming, and threw something at Nowaki's head.
Keiji turned and hurried into another room.
"Hey!" Hiroki caught him by the back of his shirt, and Keiji let out a small and somehow somewhat-masculine yelp.
"Go get ready, got it?" He snapped.
"Un." Keiji nodded, nervously.
"…And… do your best."
"Un!" Keiji smiled.
Hiroki released him and took his hairbrush back from Nowaki, annoyed.
"You do set traps." Nowaki huffed.
"I don't!!!"
-.--.--.-
The three finished getting ready, had a delicious breakfast while sharing few words, and they all headed off, together.
As the three walked to a street light, where they would have to part ways, Keiji glanced up at the two, one at a time.
"…What?" Hiroki snapped, upon noticing.
"…Just thinking… that… most couples will hold hands or something in public… so other people don't eye their lovers… like you noticed that woman eyeing Kusama-san, back there, but you didn't do anything other than look mad."
Hiroki's face flushed and Nowaki laughed, softly, daring not look back to see who Keiji was talking about. He hadn't noticed any stares- though… when one is as tall as Nowaki, one learns to ignore such things.
"This is Japan, brat! Two guys can't go walking down the street, holding hands, without being stared at!"
"Kusama-san doesn't mind being stared at; do you, Kusama-san?"
"Learn to be an adult, brat!"
"You're the brat! You're disregarding Kusama-san's feelings!"
"Kusama-san didn't say anything like that!" Hiroki fumed and 'Kusama-san' laughed, continuing past the bickering 'brats.'
"So can we stop somewhere to eat before going back to the orphanage?" Keiji asked.
"We just ate." Nowaki chuckled.
"I'm hungry."
"Alright, alright."
"NOWAKI! Don't give in so easily!"
"Sorry, Hiro-san… I find it hard to say 'no' to a cute face."
"Then do as I say and refuse his breakfast!"
"Yes, Hiro-san."
"But I want breakfast…" Keiji complained.
"YOU HAD BREAKFAST!"
"We'll stop somewhere after we drop Hiro-san off."
"NOWAKI!"
"He heard it." Keiji smirked and Hiroki growled, annoyed. "Hey… isn't your first name Hiroki?"
"That's Kamijou-san, to you!"
"So if it's Hiroki, why does he call you Hiro-san, instead of Hiroki?"
"You ask too many questions!!" Hiroki snapped. "No one calls me that except my parents and-"
"Hiroki!"
Nowaki frowned, annoyed as Hiroki turned, blinking.
Usami pulled up beside the three at the red light. "Do you need a ride?"
A brunette tried peeking past Usami, but he seemed to lose interest, going back to working on something.
"No thanks." Hiroki snapped.
"Who's that?" Usami pointed at Keiji, who blinked, staring at him.
"No one of any concern to you, Bakahiko, get lost!"
"My name is Keiji!" Keiji piped up, cheerfully.
"Don't talk to strangers!" Hiroki scolded.
"What's your name?" Keiji ignored Hiroki, excited to meet a new face.
"I said don't talk to him! He'll steal your essence!" Hiroki grabbed Keiji by the hand and started walking away.
"I'm Usami Akihiko… nice to make your acquaintance…" Usami, who always did as he wanted, apparently held no respect for the law, and continued driving, slowly, through the red light so he could continue speaking to the boy attached to Hiroki's hand.
"The pleasure is mine… I like your car!" Keiji stated, trying not to be tugged along by the frustrated brunette who held his hand, but to no avail.
"So do I."
Hiroki growled. "Don't you have any regard for the LAW?!!"
"Not so much, it would seem…" Nowaki continued walking, as well, hands in his pockets.
"I need a favor. Hiroki, I'll call you later." Usami snapped, poking his head back into his car and driving off.
"…What the hell was that?" Hiroki huffed, annoyed, voicing Nowaki's thoughts.
"…" Nowaki sighed, folding his arms.
"Ah- Kusama-san also gets jealous!" Keiji smirked, and Nowaki flushed, slightly.
"K-Keiji-kun… you're both observant as well as outspoken…"
"Too outspoken." Hiroki snapped. "We part ways here, kid. Nice meeting you."
"But who was that guy?"
"You just met him, did you forget his name already?!"
"How come he can call you Hiroki, but Kusama-san can't?"
"Because that's different!"
Nowaki blinked, a tad hurt, before masking his sadness with a small smile. "Keiji-kun, Hiro-san is going to be late to work… come on."
"…See you around, Kamijou-san." Keiji pouted.
"…Bye." Hiroki huffed, stepping into the street, only to nearly be run over by a car that sped toward him.
"Hiro-san!" Nowaki gasped, but the car stopped right in front of him.
"Kkhmmmkhhh…" Hiroki growled, deep in his throat, glowering at the people sitting in the front seats.
Miyagi smirked, leaning against his steering wheel. "Cross on the green, not in-between, Kamijou!"
"THAT'S MY LINE! WHY IS IT BUMP-INTO ASSHOLE DAY?!!"
"Kkm…" Nowaki glowered at Miyagi and Keiji, ever the perceptive pre-teen that he was, noticed, immediately.
"Is he also one of Kamijou-san's ex-boyfriends?"
Nowaki gawked down at the child. "WHAT?! NO!!! Neither of them!"
"…Hm." Keiji blinked. "…You're jealous, though…"
"That's just… ah… because I don't have a car… now come on…" Nowaki glanced once more at his lover, who was bickering with that university professor.
After what only appeared to take a moment of persuasion, Hiroki climbed into the back seat of the car and it sped off, somewhere.
Nowaki frowned. He turned, heading down the other way. "Come on, Keiji."
"…Un!" Keiji followed, running for a moment to catch up before stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Hey, Kusama-san?"
"Hmm?"
"…Did you have anybody when you were growing up in the orphanage?"
"What do you mean?" Nowaki smiled. "I had many people! All the other orphans, and the people who work there-"
"But I mean… someone special?"
"No… not really." Nowaki smiled. "Hiro-san is my first special person!"
"Really? Huh… were you funny-looking, growing up or something?"
"NO." Nowaki laughed. "Well… I don't know… I guess… I've always been very tall, anyway…"
"Mmm… I bet it's convenient."
"Not always. When I was very young, I'd be too tall for the beds they always tried to put me in…"
"Oh?" Keiji smirked. "So what? Then you can have two beds!"
"No… I just had to cram myself into one, really." Nowaki smiled. "Where did you want to eat at?"
"…It really bothers you, doesn't it?" Keiji let out an exasperated sigh. "I can tell, even now, you're still thinking about it. You can talk to me about it, you know?"
"What is it I'm bothered by?" Nowaki blinked. "Being tall?"
"Nah… that Kamijou-san still has friendly relationships with his ex boyfriend."
"No…" Nowaki huffed. "They're really not like that! The first one is his childhood friend and the second one is his boss."
"Heh, his boss tried to run him over… he must not be very good at work…"
"It's usually the students…"
Keiji laughed at Nowaki's quip. "…But still… I wonder if he knows you're self-conscious about it…"
Nowaki's hair frazzled with frustration. "No? It doesn't bother me!"
"It sure does!"
"It doesn't!"
"Yep. It definitely does."
"Why do you feel that way?"
"Because you're mad and all worked up, and you don't seem like the type to get so easily worked up about things."
"…" Nowaki inhaled. "Where did you want to eat at?"
"Mmm… I want meat. Protein! So I can get big and strong- like Kusama-san!"
"Yeah? Alright, let's find somewhere… but then we HAVE to go to Kusama, okay?"
"Okay, okay… you know, you can talk along the way, if you really wa-"
"So is there a special person in Keiji-kun's life?"
"Maybe I'll steal Kamijou-san from you, if you don't get tougher about protecting the one you love."
"You're not Hiro-san's type." Nowaki smiled. "And I really don't think he's yours."
"Nah…" Keiji blushed, slightly, looking at his feet. "There's this girl I liked… but she got adopted."
"Oh." Nowaki frowned. It was a feeling he knew all too well. Becoming attached to a person you grew to care deeply for, only to wake up one morning, and they'd be gone…
"…What was her name?" Nowaki smiled, sadly.
"Arisa."
"Mmm…" Nowaki frowned. "…Did she like you back?"
"Yep! Of course!"
Nowaki laughed. "How do you know?"
"Everyone likes me! Mostly because they think they have to… but… she was different. She liked me because of who I am. That's why… to me… she was really special… nn… the truth is… I ran away from Kusama, because I thought I might be able to find her… I have this letter." He pulled it out of his pocket. "…It came from her real father… he would send her letters, every once in a while… she'd open them and cry, sometimes, reading them, when she thought no one was watching-"
"Were you spying on her?!" Nowaki stopped, noticeably disturbed.
"NO!" Keiji flushed, deeply. "But she would go hide in a corner, somewhere, to read, and I'd… just… happen to see her, okay?! It's not like there're a lot of hiding places in Kusama. If you try'n hide, someone'll find you and tell you to stay where they can keep an eye on you."
"Ah… yes… the furnace room is the best hiding place."
"It used to be, but they walled it off."
"Really? When?"
"A year or two ago."
"Aww…" Nowaki pouted.
"Anyway, they got the letter, and put the forwarding address on it, then put it back in the mail box. So I snagged it and took off… I thought I could find it on my own… but…" He sighed, again, crumpling it back up and putting it in his pocket. "I don't understand how to read streets at all…"
"Want me to take a look?" Nowaki frowned.
After a hesitant pause, Keiji handed it over.
Nowaki smiled at it. Children really did cling to things, sentimentally, but they took such horrible care of those things, physically… He un-crumpled the envelope and took a look at the address. "…Osaka? You'd have to take a train, or bus, or car, you know…"
"I know." Keiji took it back, stuffing it in his pocket, again.
"…Maybe I'll take you there." Nowaki smiled.
"Yeah?!" Keiji smiled, excitedly.
"If you agree to stay in Kusama. Someone will definitely adopt you, Keiji. You're a very good person."
"…Thanks." Keiji smiled, lightly. "…Kamijou-san… he doesn't like kids, does he?"
"…Not really."
"And you?"
"I love children."
"It's kind of sad, isn't it?" Keiji frowned. "Being unable to have kids."
"I want to be a pediatrician. To compensate, I suppose." Nowaki smiled.
"Yeah?"
"Un." Nowaki smiled. "…Keiji… I might not be able to adopt you… but we can still see each o-"
"I'm very sorry!" Keiji snapped, suddenly.
"Eh?" Nowaki blinked.
"I wasn't trying to say I want you to adopt me or anything like that! Please don't misunderstand! I was just talking and didn't stop to think! I really didn't mean-"
"Keiji…" Nowaki frowned, falling silent for a moment, awkwardly. "…Keiji-kun… it has nothing to do with what I want. Two gay men can't adopt, and even if we could… Hiro-san doesn't like or want children."
"I already said that's not what I meant!" Keiji huffed, but Nowaki sensed that the child was somewhat disappointed. The pang stung ten-fold, because he knew that same sting, all too well… The hope an orphan feels when they meet a kind adult, outside of the orphanage. Trying so hard to stop hoping like that, to fight the feelings of hope, because you know you'd only burden those kind people, or that they would get to know you and dislike you, or that they were only being kind because you were an orphan, without really even understanding it, at all…
Yes… he was very in-tune with this child's pain… and this pain hit home, moreso than any other he'd felt in a long time…
-.--.--.-
"Ka~mi~jo-u~!!!" Miyagi sang as he entered their office. "I'm finished early! I thought I'd see you real quick, before you go to your next class."
"Why? What's going on?" Kamijou asked, hurriedly getting his things together.
"Nothing important, I just wanted to ask you a question."
"About what?" Kamijou snapped, organizing some folders.
"Who was that child you were with, this morning?"
"Who was that child YOU were with, professor?"
Miyagi's grin fell from his face and he glowered, quite sternly at Kamijou. "Your jokes are getting old, Kamijou."
"As old as you are, compared to that child?" Kamijou smirked. He was certainly on a roll, today.
"As old as you look with those wrinkles between your eyebrows." Miyagi snapped, back.
"I don't look old." Kamijou folded, annoyed, "So what about the kid?"
"What was with that kid?"
"What about him?" Kamijou repeated, taking a drink of his coffee.
"Is he your kid?"
Kamijou choked on his coffee, gagged, coughed, and continued coughing for a bit.
"Kamijou, you're such a drama queen." Miyagi snapped, raising his arms in the air. "Hold your arms up, like this, so the oxygen can flow through your lungs more freely."
Kamijou shook his head, spastically, as he kept coughing, indicating that he would most certainly NOT hold his arms up in the air like a fool.
"Alright, fine, die."
Kamijou caught his breath at last before glowering at his superior. "What the hell do you mean by asking if he's MY kid?!"
"Not just yours- I meant yours and… you know… that big fellow."
"Nowaki!"
"Nowaki, Nowaki… nope… it just isn't appropriate for me to call him that."
"WHO ASKED YOU TO?!"
"What shall I call him?"
"Kusama-san."
"Kusama-kun's and yours, then." Miyagi smirked.
"You bastard! What makes you think he's our kid?! That's impossible!" Kamijou snapped.
"How so? There's adoption."
"Not in Japan!"
"Because he used to be an orphan, didn't he?" Miyagi recalled. "I wonder if he'd like to adopt… I bet he would… you told me once that he's really good with kids."
"Not good with kids like how you're good with kids-"
"One more, and you go home early." Miyagi snapped.
"Oh?" Kamijou smirked. "Then who will do your work for you, professor?"
"You. Tomorrow. I'll leave a big pile on your desk, with a pink sticky-note that reads: 'Kusama Hiroki.'"
"Don't leave your food or drinks unattended, professor." Kamijou threatened, to which Miyagi responded with a short laugh at his own expense.
"Anyway, you should give his feelings some thought. After all, he spoils you so much, would it really kill you to show him some kindness?"
"You don't know what you're talking about- so don't talk about it." Kamijou huffed, gathering his things and heading out. "…The kid is from the same orphanage, though. Nowaki's taking him back there, today."
"…So I was right." Miyagi muttered to himself, after Kamijou had left. "I wonder if it would be possible for them to adopt? I know they make special cases for single people… I wonder what the circumstances are…"
"Do you always talk to yourself out loud?" Kamijou returned for his glasses, snagging them off the table.
"…Have you always had glasses?"
"…As long as you've known me."
"…Hmm…" Miyagi looked away, thoughtfully.
"…Idiot." Kamijou left, again. 'I need more intelligent people in my life…'
-.--.--.-
AN: End of chapter 2. The adoption process in Japan is fairly complicated… I'm fairly certain that homosexual couples are not allowed to adopt. Though I did discover something interesting. To bypass the fact that homosexuals can't marry in Japan, there are couples in which one of the partners will legally adopt the other. (Apparently, adopting adults is legal in Japan). This way, one can adopt the name of the other, and this proves to be beneficial for multiple medical reasons, as you can surely imagine. Fascinating, no? If anyone has more information about homosexual adoption, or links, that could help with this story, please ping me- so I don't have to do the research myself. XD I'm really busy- srsly.
Anyway, next chapter, Keiji causes a fight between our Egoist couple. Should be out around March or so. Maybe February? (Why am I asking you…?)