Unbearable:

Chapter Three: Tea

Disclaimer: Mentioned in first chapter

Fuyuhiko's POV

I didn't feel in the mood for going to a boring meeting today, so I had it canceled. I told my underlings that I would handle the business myself over the phone. At the very least, I could take a peek at Akihiko and his new pet sooner than later. It made me smile to know that the boy had at least some of the same tastes as me, though I prayed he would never pick up my less than stellar business habits. I kept thinking about how those little arms around my waist felt so terrified to be happy. It was an odd way to describe it, but it almost felt like my son was indeed afraid to be content, as if we'd uproot him again and put him somewhere else. His rarely smiling face kept breaking into my mind as I walked into my office and sat down.

I never knew that a few minutes with my son would have such a drastic effect on his behavior. Ordinarily, whenever I did try to reach out for him, he remained sullen and unresponsive. It wasn't as if I tried to ignore either of my sons; I just happened to be a very busy man. It irked to be held responsible for not only their displeasure, but also for their loneliness. Those two had a lot more in common than they knew, really. I sighed as I began making business calls.

Despite the fact I was going through the drudgery of my work, I couldn't help smiling. Akihiko's unusually excited voice floated up the stairs along with the gruff replies of his friend.

I felt a single bead of perspiration bedew my temple as I thought of that child's explosive temper. No matter how much I wished my children would show more emotion, I was eternally grateful that their temperaments were more extremely reserved rather than extremely overly-emotional.

The potential client I was speaking with droned on and on about the pros and cons of signing on with the Usami group, in a roundabout way of explaining their indecision as a company. Just as they were finally about to get to the point, Akihiko came rushing into the room, with the young Kamijou child trailing hesitantly behind. "Father, it's here! It's actually here! He's sleeping right now, but he's here!" Akihiko cried, all but barreling into the front of my desk. I placed a hand on top of a stack of paperwork just in time as my son smacked his palms on the top of the mahogany surface. The stack wobbled, but stayed put.

"Excuse me for a moment," I interrupted my potential client. I looked at my son sternly. "Akihiko. I am on a very important business call. You're just going to have to wait." I tried not to let my stern gaze waver as Akihiko's dazzling smile fell into his all too familiar blank expression. The Kamijou child tried very hard to not look disgusted with me, though I already knew what he thought of my parenting skills.

I turned my attention back to my potential client, only to realize that they had hung up already. I sighed as I put down the phone and rubbed my forehead with the back of my hand. "Now, what is it Akihiko? I'm sorry I snapped at you, but you need to learn to respect other people's professional lives."

Akihiko refused to meet my gaze as he mumbled "I'm sorry father…I just…" his breath caught and I was alarmed to see that his eyes were threatening to drown themselves. I put my hand under his chin and forced him to look at me. "How about you and your friend and I all go to the parlor for some tea? Then we can go see your new pet together, alright?" Akihiko didn't verbally reply, he merely pushed my hand away and nodded. But I could tell that he was pleased as he gestured to his friend that he should leave the room first.

Kamijou stole one last baleful glance at me before he walked out of the room.

I got up from my desk and went around it, but I had only taken a few steps before Akihiko had grabbed my sleeve and clung to my arm with both arms for a moment. He didn't say anything; he just stood there, hugging my arm as if trying to convey what he was feeling by hugging it tighter. I didn't know what to do or say, so I fished out the handkerchief from my breastpocket and said gruffly "Here. You'll soil your shirt if you keep going on like that." He released my arm and took the handkerchief, blowing his delicate nose into it. He stuffed it into his pocket and refused to meet my gaze as he strode past me and out the door, but I could see just the faintest smile on his face.

Again, I had the faint impression that Akihiko wanted so very badly to be happy; he was just too afraid.

XxX

Ryūichirō's POV

I stood outside of the side entrance to the Usami mansion, tapping my foot impatiently. It was annoying to me that my friend's jealousy of his brother would affect me of all people. Although, to be fair, his little brother's friend was beyond scary, especially during one of his tantrums. But as for Haruhiko's little brother, I couldn't figure out what the older brother's problem was. Personally, I found the kid to be kind of funny with his little quirks. And it wasn't like he actually went out of his way to annoy Haruhiko; as far as I could see, he was just a convenient scapegoat. I tried my best to rein in my friend whenever I thought it was necessary, although I still believed that a little sibling rivalry was perfectly normal.

Haruhiko's silhouette loomed in the door as he drew nearer. I put on my mask of overall cheerfulness in hopes that Haruhiko would forget his irritation at his brother and focus more of his negative energy on me. I could take all kinds of crap; my father being the CEO at Marukawa, I got all kinds of jabs for the position everyone knew my father would give me, so whatever wrath Haruhiko had stored up for today, it wasn't anything I couldn't handle.

As he opened the door, I threw an arm around him before he could say a word. "Ah, how are you Haruhiko-sama? Ready to stare at fish some more?" Though we were both working on the same project, we had decided that we'd house the aquarium at his house, seeing as one of Haruhiko's non-anti-Akihiko interests included aquatic life. I was just glad that Haruhiko actually did have a personality of his own that didn't echo his brother's all the time.

Haruhiko rolled his eyes as he shrugged out from my arm. I set my mouth in a mock pout. "This isn't playtime, Isaka-san." Haruhiko squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest importantly. "This is about hard work, commitment, and patience." He strode inside with me sauntering behind him.

"I do work hard, I am committed, and I'm patient enough to deal with your miserable company." I grinned as he glared at me in disapproval. Noting that he wasn't in the mood, I changed the subject. "I vote that we have tea first; it was rather chilly outside waiting for your workaholic butt to show up." I saw Haruhiko's eye twitch in irritation, but he couldn't deny that it was because of him that my nose was now red as well as my cheeks. He sighed, and I knew that I had won. I strutted ahead of him up the stairs and walked into the parlor before realizing that it wasn't empty.

I tried to reel back, but ran into Haruhiko as I tried to back out of the parlor which currently was occupied by Master Usami, Akihiko, and the angry Kamijou kid. Too late not to have caught the attention of the eldest Usami. "Ah, Isaka-kun! Come, please join us! You too, Haruhiko." Master Usami had seemed genuinely pleased when addressing me, but I noticed that his tone hardened ever so slightly as he addressed Haruhiko. I bowed and then nodded. "Thank you very much, Master Usami."

I noticed that there were two seats unoccupied, and I attempted to sit next to Akihiko on the sofa before Master Usami cleared his throat and glanced pointedly at the chair next to him and then at me. Sighing in defeat, I sat in the chair next to him and shot my friend an apologetic glance as he strode past me and sat next to his brother without a word.

The four of us looked at Master Usami, who smiled warmly and held his arms out. "Now isn't this wonderful! An impromptu sit-down with friends and family!" Even Haruhiko and Akihiko exchanged glances saying He's finally lost it, hasn't he? in a silent mutual agreement. When nobody verbally responded, Master Usami put his arms down and sighed. "Fine. At the very least, you are all being civil towards one another." He pouted as Tanaka-sama brought in a tray laden with five cups of tea, almost as if he knew we'd all end up here.

For the first couple of minutes, we all sat there with our tea in our hands. Akihiko and I were the only ones not drinking our tea. I noticed that Akihiko kept glancing at the door as the steam from his untouched tea began to fade away. Master Usami then cleared his throat and looked directly at me. "So, Isaka-kun! You're here to help with Haruhiko's psychology project, is that right?" Haruhiko grimaced as I plastered on my best fake smile that I could.

"Not quite, sir. It's a biology project sir, and it's not his project, it's ours. We're partners." Master Usami nodded thoughtfully. "After we go see Akihiko's new pet, why don't we go take a look at this project, hmm?" Though he was attaching a question mark at the end of that sentence, it was clear that refusal was not optional. Though I wished he would have done so at another time (preferably when I wasn't there), I had to give the man credit for trying to be familial.

Both the brothers nodded while Kamijou frowned into his teacup. I downed my tea in nearly one gulp and grinned as Master Usami got to his feet and clasped his hands together. I set my teacup back onto the tray, as did the other boys.

I noted with amusement that the plant next to Akihiko appeared to be freshly watered and his cup empty, despite the fact I never saw him even take a sip. He saw me looking and ducked his head. I smiled to reassure him; he wasn't completely used to Japanese tea yet, having been raised in England. We were about to file out the door when we all heard a distinctive splash, followed by uneven footsteps across carpeting.

"BRAT!" Haruhiko spat as he pushed past Akihiko with me right on his heels. "Oi, Haruhiko!" I heard Master Usami snarl behind me as all six of us (Tanaka had seemingly appeared out of nowhere) raced towards Haruhiko's room. I was trying my hardest not to laugh; knowing full well what had most likely caused the sound. Haruhiko stopped short at the door, upon which I promptly collided with him, thus causing our posse to tumble in through the door.

"The salmon! They're gone!" Haruhiko wailed. Sure enough, when I looked up at the tank in front of me, it was empty. There was however, a tuft of fur caught on the corner of the massive tank. Upon seeing it, I succumbed to helpless and unrestrained laughter. I wasn't sure what Akihiko's pet was, but I knew without a doubt it had everything to do with the heightened chaos gripping the Usami household.

A/N: Next chapter is from Hiroki's POV; that should be entertaining, yes?

Special thanks to puppyfacetwo, freakylemurcat, and Cerberus Revised, especially C.R. The feedback has been more helpful than you know. ^-^