A/N: Yay, another chapter! I updated this one a tad quicker than usual because I didn't want to make you wait too long - because this is a short chapter. I tried to lengthen it, but I can't really stretch it out anymore without ruining the flow of the story.
I'm getting pretty busy with school; a lotta big tests are coming up for me and though I'm going to do my best to work on the next chapter, I don't know how long of a wait it's going to be.
The one-shots have been slow because I don't have the motivation or inspiration for them. My muse.. he's being very stubborn. It's his fault that a V-Day fic TOTALLY slipped my mind oo
Uhmmm crap, I had a lot more things to say but my head is pounding so I'm going to pretend I had nothing to say.
Warnings: pfft, you know them.
Thank Youuuuu!
Versus: Oh dear, I didn't mean to take over your study time, lol. You and me both, hun, want to just shout at them because to us, it's just so obvious they're in love. I didn't even realize I updated on Valentine's Day until I got your review, heh.
T.J.: Aww I'm so happy to hear it was able to make your day better! Everyone seems to love the fence scene, and that makes me so glad! As for Kazu and Riffle.. well, they meet up in this chapter!
ranchan-akari: You have to remember, heh, that both of them can be so, so dense. But you'll be happy to hear that they start coming to their senses in this chapter. Or... or the next one. Or do they..?
DL: Yus, poor Kazu. I love making him angst, perhaps just a little too much, I think. Here's more!
Slifer: Thank you, darling! The fingers through the fence was something I've been wanting to write for a while now, 'cuz it's just a cute thing to picture. So much better than Akito/Agito, yus?
ALt6913: Eehee you're like me. You print things off to read on the go if you don't have time at home. I have this thing about the fence I can't explain. I just love it.
melchan13: Thank you, dear. Sorry that things have been going slow, hopefully action will start popping up very soon.
iKat.13: I think I speak for all of us when I say YAY for IkkixKazu moments! And thank you so much for your kind words - you flatter me, darling!
Kattrin Ray: Thanks! Though I still wish there was more IkkiKazu out there, it sure is growing! You're not the only one who loves the Kazu angst! Hurr hurr...
Sagri: Mhmm they are moving slow but they ARE moving. Poetic... for some reason, I'm really flattered by that word, lol, so thank you SO, so much!
Jess: Aw, I like to reply to reviewers 'coz I want them to know how appreciative I am of them. So thank you for your review and your comments.
Marshiemallows: I can't believe how long it took for the plot to get this far. Took so long... I'm glad you enjoyed the IkkiKazu moment - I had a pretty good time writing it.
manicalpha: lol wow. Yeah Air Gear has a tendency to get kinda... but you came back to read the story still! That means a lot to me! Their 'chemistry' is just so addictive.
Ikichi: Thanks, sweety! Don't worry about the last chapter - I'm glad you took the time to hit the review button.
Emi Sue: Hello Emi dear! Your words always bring a smile to my face. You make me feel so good about my work! I always had a feeling Kitsune liked Kazu, 'cuz usually when the guy was talking, it was at Kazu.
BlackFlameRose: I'm happy to be back! Tag doesn't really have a solid set of rules - just however you want to play, really. Here's the next chapter, I'm just sorry it's shorter than the rest.
Blizzy: oh ho dear I'm so used to you that I don't need a review from you to know you read it! Thanks sweetums.
Endy: Get your internets. I miss you.
Kitten: hurr hurr you told me to work on FaS, so I updated. Love me :3
To the rest of the reviewers: I didn't give everyone much time to really review the last chapter, but there are a few select reviews that have been loyally following this fic and I know they've read the previous chapter. So thank you!
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Air Gear
a fiction by Crimson Vixen
Bitter Reunions
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"I'd know where to go," Kazu muttered gravely, eyes jumping back and forth and behind to make sure no one was following him. Watching him. He stuffed his hands into his pockets as deep as the fabric would allow, uncomfortable with sweaty palms, ringing ears and stiff legs – the thing he needed the most. "I know."
This wasn't the first time Kazu was angry about being right. He did know where to go. Faintly remembered how to get there. Tried to ignore the feelings that the area tried to resurface.
The blonde glanced up towards the sky nervously. Being a good judge of the moon's placement in the sky, he assumed it was nearing midnight, and he picked up the pace a little. He didn't want to be late; who knew what kind of problems that would cause for him.
When he rounded a rather familiar block and curb, the places seemed to be getting darker and darker, emptier and emptier. Lonelier. Colder.
Kazu huddled into himself as he walked. He realized he was walking slower as he got closer, and every few steps he had to remind his leg to move forward so he could actually... get somewhere. The blonde didn't want to say he was scared or nervous, just careful, and he kept telling himself this when he made his way into that dreadful alleyway in which he'd first come across the sinister pack of idiots. He didn't see anything or anyone at first but then again, it was just as dark, if not darker than he remembered. Kazu puffed out his cheeks when he released a much needed sigh.
He posed himself in a way he'd always seen Ikki stand when he was sure of himself. To his frustration, he had nothing heroic or threatening to say; not when he was the one defeated last time. As he expected, they laughed at him just for showing up. Either there was something he wasn't aware of, or he truly was stupid for being there.
He thought about Kitsune, and how the boy has suffered for something that he'd had nothing to do with. He thought about himself and how much he wanted to see this thing through to the end, whatever this thing was. And he thought about Ikki, and what the crow would think if he knew where he was and what he was doing at the moment. Would he be proud? Would he step in and take over, telling him he was an idiot for doing it alone? Would he know what to do?
Then he thought about his thoughts, and wondered why no matter what he was doing, they always ended with Ikki, that idiot, that birdbrain! Why every time they touched, his mind lingered on it, or how much he blushed whenever Ikki said something that complimented him. Why he was so damn set on impressing the guy with everything he did and why he was always staring at the crow when he was around.
Sure he was friends with the guy but things like that were just... It wasn't normal.
Kazu looked down to the ground, at his feet. His ears started burning in spite of the cold, and he tore his hands from his pockets to cover them. Was he getting flustered? Thinking about…
"Hey! The hell is your problem?" a voice cut through, jolting Kazu from his thoughts with a light gasp. His mouth hung open slightly before he licked his lips and swallowed.
"Nothing," he glowered, actually grateful for the distraction. "I came here just like you asked. So what do you want?"
"It'd probably be wise not to take that tone of voice with me and my men," the darkest voice said. The leader, Kazu promptly remembered. He cleared his throat at the risk of wavering the next time he spoke, attempting to keep his foot from taking a step back. That voice alone was enough to freeze the blonde's blood completely. "After all, we were considerate enough to invite you back here. At the very least, you could show a little gratitude."
At first, Kazu's tongue tied itself into a knot to prevent itself from saying anything stupid. That was before he realized that he didn't want to seem weak by cowering in front of these guys or losing his voice completely. He didn't want it to be like last time.
"Just tell me what you want," he said again, this time a little more solid, eyes staring bitterly into the blackness, hoping it was at least somewhat intimidating when he couldn't see any of them. It was like he was reliving the past when they started chuckling again, only succeeding in pissing the jet off to no end. His lips folded to the side and he took in a deep, and thankfully steady, breath. "Tell me or I'm leaving."
The chuckling died down quickly enough but no words were said, and Kazu took the opportunity to shrug them off and turn the other way. He didnt have time for shit like this; if they were just going to stare and laugh at him...
Kazu hadn't taken one step before he heard something shuffle from the darkness, and something whizzed past his ear and looped around his face, his neck, his chest, pulling him into that horrible alleyway.
"Let me the fuck go!" he shouted vehemently, throwing around blind fists and trying to find the ground with his feet.
"Calm down," someone said to him. Another voice he remembered. Kazu stilled, but only for a moment, long enough to gather his predicament. Cold limps wrapped around his arms, holding him back, but they didn't feel like normal appendages. They didn't even feel human. They were hard to the touch, and cold, like the fence.
"Wh-what!? What is…"
The metallic restraint slithered away from him and pushed him roughly, deeper into the hopelessness of the alley, where another part of hands caught him, rough with their grip, violent with the way he dragged the blonde along.
"Don't go anywhere just yet, kid. We didn't even get started," the new voice broke in, fingers curling and digging into the skin of the blonde's shoulder. This one, Kazu knew in a flash.
"Riffle!"
"Hey, you remembered me," Riffle said darkly, slamming the boy into the brick wall next to them and pinning his arms behind his back. The gruff rider pushed his weight into the jet mercilessly, growling into his ear, lifting his arms up a little higher, a little higher, until a sharp pain shot through the blonde's body. "That's perfect."
Kazu hissed angrily, grimacing at the way his cheek rubbed against the grainy texture of the brick wall. Was sure it was going to tear his skin if the devil himself hadn't cut in.
"Let him go, Riffle. I don't want damanged goods."
Kazu gulped when he was released and fell to the ground, hand landing in something sticky and wet. He was back on his feet in an instant, refusing to give these guys any more satisfaction than he already had. Kazu dusted himself off and took a step forward. Now that his eyes had adjusted, he could see them all a little better.
His eyes fell upon the one with a slouch, a strange contraption on his back – the one that had to have jumped Kitsune. Just like the boy had described, there were eight sinewy extensions that poked out from the contraption on his back. Four on each side, like a fucking spider. Kazu shivered. Then there was the one next to him, skinny as a twig and a bony structure to go with it, even in the face. His eyes were narrow, pupils like pinpricks, and they were glaring at him. And there was Riffle, just as pissed off as Kazu remembered it, audibly growling at him and with good reason; Kazu would give him that.
This time, he was able to see their team leader. It was a first that the blonde wasn't sure he wanted to experience. But once he set eyes on him, Kazu found it hard to pull them away. He wore a mask that covered his eyes and nose, gleaming and slick looking, painted red and black with endless black holes where the whites of his eyes poked through, and for only a moment, Kazu was convinced that demons really existed.
And since the guy was doing nothing but staring him down, Kazu had to ask again.
"What do you want?"
"Let me look at you," he said, mono-tone. Kazu just stood there, unsure what to do, what to say, or how to get the other team members' eyes off his back. The man in the devil mask stood, walked slowly to him, put a thin hand on his blonde head. Kazu remained unmoving; wasn't sure what death smelled like but got a faint idea. "Just how in the world does a little thing like you…"
He faded away with his words, bending down to be mask to face with the boy, searching those retracted blue eyes with his. Kazu let the spit that had accumulated in his mouth stay there; didn't want the devil to see him gulp. Didn't want to risk choking on it.
"You'll have to excuse my boys," he drawled lazily, bringing his hand to Kazu's chin and lifting the boy's delicate head, turning it left and right and examining him like dog at a dog show to see if he was well groomed and well fed. Then he let Kazu's chin go and smiled warmly, yet it still sent chills down the boy's spine. "You should stick around for a while. There are a few things we'd like to discuss with you."
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--
Yayoi swung her arm gently over to the left to embrace the stout rider, nuzzling her head into his arm and turned her eyes to the movie they were both watching. She loved how Onigiri was actually conscious of her when they did things like this. Paid attention to her. Watched movies he didn't like because they were the kind she preferred. Watching movies with Onigiri had become their thing. Couple things like that used to annoy the track runner, but that was before she had one of her own.
And it was a black and white film; the old style romance movies that would never happen in real life. But it felt good to watch things fall so perfectly into place, hear a man whisper words that a real man would never, and a girl hanging on every word he says without a doubt because the man is just too beautiful and perfect to be true but he was and oh what a girl in the real world wouldn't do for a man like that. But Yayoi was convinced that men like that didn't exist, because she was a realist.
So when Yayoi wrapped hands around Onigiri's arm and rested her head on his shoulder, she could hear his breathing, and she was content. He was as real as a guy could get – stupid, boy flaws and boy smells and everything. She knew it had happened suddenly, and it wasn't until after she'd given the boy a chance did she realize that she had real, genuine feelings for him. He was sweet when he wanted to be, when he wasn't trying to impress his friends, and to her surprise, was a one-woman man once he had a woman. The thought makes her blush every time she thinks of it. And she's sure that she's lucky, not even having to look for someone to call her own because that someone had found her when she was least expecting it.
It almost made her feel guilty. She felt bad for her friends, both who were crushing on other people and making little progress while she didn't need to lift a finger.
"What was that?"
Yayoi blinked her eyes wide, pulled away slightly to look Onigiri in the eyes. Had she spoken out loud without realizing it?
"Huh?"
"What do you feel bad about?"
"I guess there's no harm in telling you," she said softly. After all, they were dating now; it was only natural to share these sort of things with each other. "Ringo and Emiri. They're trying so hard."
Her head jerked a little bit when Onigiri laughed; "Well everyone in the world knows Ringo likes Ikki, except for him."
Yayoi giggled a little. It was pretty evident. She wasn't sure why the crow was so blind to it. There were also a lot of boys who would give anything to snatch a girl like Ringo, but no one dared make a move since she was 'already spoken for.'
"But poor Emiri gets so flustered around Kazu."
After she'd spoken, all she could hear was the movie; Onigiri wasn't saying anything so Yayoi looked at him again with questioning eyes. The boy was looking back at her with a confused expression.
"…Emiri likes Kazu?"
"Oh my god!" Yayoi said half jokingly, slapping his arm with the flat of her palm. "You're kidding, right? It's so obvious!"
Onigiri shook his head disbelievingly and laughed at himself, short thick brows raising.
"I had no idea."
"You're such a guy," Yayoi scowled half-heartedly. "She's liked him for a really long time. I think she's actually really close to telling him."
"I seriously didn't know."
Yayoi jutted out her lower lip in a way that looked like pouting even though Onigiri knew she wasn't. Yayoi didn't pout; she scowled, if anything. He could tell the girl was actually pretty shocked he lacked this apparently vital information. But that wasn't very fair; everything was vital to girls.
Her face lightened when she sighed, shaking her head at him and smiling softly before replacing her head on his arm. Onigiri reached over to the side of the couch that was left unoccupied and yanked the blanket closer before draping it over his girlfriend.
The rider grinned shamelessly. His girlfriend. It was nothing like it was the first time, with a girl who loved him for his chunky build. Yayoi was a girl who didn't let appearances cloud her judgment of people. She was just as new to this relationship as he was and yet she always seemed like she knew what she was doing. And in turn, Onigiri liked this girl for her assertive, powerful nature and controlling behavior. She was a softie deep down, he realized, once he took the time to dig deep enough. It had nothing to do with her cute face and low-set pigtails, or her toned and defined track running legs and creamy skin.
Though it definitely wasn't going unnoticed.
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He fiddled with his thumbs, swirling them around each other in rapid rotation, staring at them intently as if looking away would ruin the motion. His foot was tapping against his will, and every time he stopped it, it would just start again a few minutes later. Kazu hoped that by doing these involuntary mannerisms he looked like he was just bored, but knew it came across as nervousness.
"Stop fidgeting," Riffle snapped, causing the blonde to jump in his seat. Seated on some soggy crate in some deserted part of the city, surrounded by darkness and three riders he wasn't exactly on good terms with towering over him wasn't exactly something that calmed his nerves. "It's really annoying."
He looked up at the other rider – the speeding bullet – and the other two that were standing next to him. Weaver, he'd learned. And Mantis.
What fitting names.
Made 'Stealth' sound childish.
"I'm not sure I… understand."
"Listen, I'll go through it again," Mantis approached him, his skinny shadow managing to seep over him. He seemed to be the nicest of the three of them, though that wasn't saying very much. "Whatever team you run for, you don't run for them anymore. Boss says he wants you to hang out here for a while."
"That's not up to you!" Kazu bit back without thought, slamming his hands on his seat and glaring. "You can't just tell me to quit!"
"Yeah," Riffle spat, snarling as per usual at him. He put Kazu on edge the most, having a motive to hate him and seeming to be the violent type. "Boss thought you'd say something like that. Predictable little shit."
"Which is why he wants you to know this…" Mantis continued carefully, bending his knees and stooping down to be eye level with the young teen. "If you don't… then we might just have to get rid of the team that's currently holding you back. At least then, you won't have to worry about letting anyone down."
"Think about it," Weaver decided to join in. "Don't you want to be noticed? Don't you want that speed of yours to get the attention it deserves?"
He heard Riffle spit again, growling a little when his speed was mentioned.
"I, uhh…" Kazu drawled at first, then reminded himself where he stood on all this. "No."
His heart thudded loudly in the next two beats.
"It's not like you'd be an official member or anything," Riffle made sure to point out loudly, pushing his team mates aside and shoving Kazu on the chest. The blonde nearly lost his balance on the crate and had to clutch at the edge to keep himself from falling. "If anything, think of it as workin for two teams at the same time. And if you can't even agree on that…"
"No."
"Stubborn shit!" Riffle snapped again, slapping the blonde upside the head. Kazu just shot him a defiant stare. The speeding bullet grew disgusted and brought his attention to the other two, but Kazu knew Riffle was talking to him. "I can tell by the way your knees are bangin' that you're hiding something!"
Kazu gritted his teeth so hard it hurt. His nose crinkled with how much his lip curled to bare his canines.
"Like I'd fucking degrade myself by running for a team like yours!" he shouted, voice bouncing off the walls. Kazu knew what he was doing; he was sacrificing himself for his team, just like he always did, defending his friends by throwing himself in the line of fire. He was okay with that. "Of course I'm not going to leave them and I'm definitely not going to run for another team behind their backs! And... You can't hurt them - your threats are worthless if you don't know who they are!"
Kazu was beginning to wonder if he should become a mute, since every time he talked for more than a couple of sentences, hands liked to slap him across the face to shut him up. He didn't catch which one of them did it, but this time he was hit hard enough to send him off the crate and onto the ground, but he picked himself up in an instant.
"There are other ways," Weaver said calmly, eyes half lidded and not at all phased by the blonde's outburst. "There's bound to be something that means enough to you…"
"We found that dopey little kid at your school," Riffle chimed in once again, voice making Kazu cringe, filling his head with thoughts of Kitsune and how the boy had taken a serious fall for him. "I'm sure we could find someone else you know…"
"I think you misunderstand," Kazu spoke fondly but insolently. "He would never stoop so low. It doesn't matter what you do or how good you are, he'll always be on top. He'll always be above scum like you."
He was playing with fire and he knew it, but he felt so sure about his words that he felt no fear in saying them. Perhaps if it wasn't so dark and he wasn't looking back at his hands, he would have seen the glare being shot his way. He was so busy drowning in his pride for his friend, his head floating way too high in the sky with the clouds and crows and a certain boy who could fly so high, that he didn't even notice the large hand that came out and twisted into his school jacket until he was dangling in the air. There was a dark, sardonic laugh and Kazu felt his heart beating faster, as well as his back against a wall.
"Lotta brave talk comin' out of someone so expendable."
"Expendable, my ass," Kazu barked. "If I'm so expendable, why are you keeping me around!?"
"So now you're saying you don't matter?"
Kazu narrowed his features, trying not to let his emotions bubble and get the better of him. That's just what they wanted, after all. Get him worked up so they could use it against him. He gripped at the hands that held him, determined not to fall for the bait. Or be it.
"Bastard..." he growled. Then, more to himself; "I'm... I'm important to him. It doesn't matter if no one else can see it."
And he found comfort in these words. And faith.
"How cute," a voice growled – Kazu saw it was Riffle, expectedly – who'd hauled up by the shirt, and damn he better not rip the damn thing. He was tired of having other people destroy his clothes – and Kazu let out a strangled gurgle as the hand that was entwined in his jacket leaped to his throat in a vice grip. He was still hanging in the air. "Are you saying you can handle this all your own? Kinda like that race?"
The blonde seethed. Riffle seemed like the kind of guy to hold a grudge.
He hated calling for Ikki's help; it made him feel incompetent. So he didn''t. He forced himself to grin, speaking regardless of what little air he had to speak with.
"I don't need help to wipe the shit off the bottom of my shoe..."
"Tough guy, huh!?"
Kazu was pulled forward and slammed back into the wall, his feet starting to kick until he connected with the guy's middle. As soon at that greasy hand released him, he slid down to the floor and gathered his bearings.
"Don't underestimate me," he said, baring his fangs like that of a wild animal. "Don't think so lightly of him either."
Riffle's laughter was quickly becoming one of Kazu's greatest pet peeves, for the man was at it again, practically holding his sides. He looped a heavy arm around the blonde's shoulder and pulled him close.
"You made one little mistake, you know?" he smiled knowingly. "Didn't even have to dig for anything - you brought him up on your own."
Kazu was silent for a minute, eyes jumping left and right to regather his thoughts and remember what he'd said. That was when his breath caught in his throat. He'd been so focused on defending Ikki's name that he'd given his enemies the information they needed to keep him under their thumb. He felt like an idiot, throwing around he's and him's like they were disposable.
The consequences, Kazu assumed, for always thinking about the idiot.
His silence went on for too long, and Riffle's annoying guffawing hurt his ears.
"So let me see if I got this right... it's a boy that's got you so restless, am I right?"
Kazu could find no words when he needed them the most, only staring at Riffle with burning eyes.
"Hey guys!" he shouted, turning towards Mantis and Weaver. Riffle jammed his thumb over his shoulder to point at the blonde. "No wonder he was being so quiet! Kid's a queer!"
The name sent an automatic alarm through Kazu's body. Red flags shot up in his brain and the back of his neck started to shimmer with sweat. Queer… he'd definitely heard the name tossed around before, as a label for other people – never really gave it much thought until he himself had been slapped with it.
Kazu spat. It's not like it was true or anything. After all, Ikki was his friend. His best friend. And so what if his loyalty was a bit over the top and his thoughts were rotating around the crow like the pull of the planets. So what if he would give anything to be worth something in his eyes. It didn't mean he was…
It didn't make him queer.
The only thing Kazu found hope in was the fact that even though he'd stupidly dropped hints that there was a boy somewhere that meant something to him, he hadn't dropped any names. But he'd gotten too close. The blonde slumped his shoulders and cleared his throat. Maybe living a secret life behind Ikki's back, working and running for another team, wasn't such a horrible thing. Not if it meant the crow would be left alone.
"Fine. I'll do it."
At least, Kazu figured, until he thought of a way out.
"That's a good sport." A hand came down and mussed with his hat until it fell off. Kazu made a face and picked it right back up and replaced it atop his head. "We can sort out the details later."
"There's one more thing, though. Before we let you off for the night."
Kazu was about to retort – he could feel it like fire in his windpipe – but Weaver took him by the left arm, Mantis by the right. He hollered to be released while Riffle rummaged for something off to the side. When he found what he was looking for, and when Kazu set eyes on it – he wasn't totally sure what it was. All he saw was the point of something sharp and a gleam in Riffle's eyes when he brought that thing closer – he flailed and cursed and kicked. His blistering words were slurred when Riffle's free hand clutched his jaw and turned his head to the side.
"Shut up, it'll only hurt for a second."
--
--
Ikki was half awake, half asleep. He tossed and turned in his bed, throwing a leg that way, tucking his arm under his head like that and hugging his pillow this way… nothing was working. He threw the covers over his head and curled into himself, frustrated.
He felt a dip in the bed, but no sound. Ikki was close to growling Akito's name and telling the boy to give him some time alone. Needed some breathing space and no ifs ands or buts about it. But the hand that gently slid down his arm was a reassuring one, and something that Akito had never done before. His mind screamed Kazu's back but at the risk of sounding like an idiot, Ikki remained silent. Slowly he pulled the covers back down and gazed up. Wide, hazel eyes gazed back at him, flowing hair cascading down smooth shoulders.
"Sim… Simca…"
"Good morning, little crow."
"I…" the boy mumbled, only half aware, and sat up in his bed. "How did you…"
Simca let out a girlish giggle, a sound that slid even and silky from her nose then her mouth, and pointed a finger to the crow's window, which was open. That sneaky woman had…
"I missed you," she cooed, puckering her lips and coming in for the kill. Ikki brought the covers up between them just before their lips could touch. He wasn't in the mood and even if he was, regardless of not sleeping a wink, he had morning breath.
"Simca, I thought I… I mean I figured we…"
"I haven't seen you in a while," Simca whined playfully, making circles on Ikki's chest with her finger. "You don't come to watch me fly anymore."
"I've been busy," the crow muttered, throwing off his covers and standing. He threw his arms into the air and stretched. In the past this was the kind of thing Ikki dreamed about; Simca sneaking into his room at night and they'd play and fool around and no one would ever have to know about it. But now… Now he wasn't even sure what the Swallow was even doing here.
"Busy?"
Slender arms looped around the boy's neck and gently pulled him until his back was nestled over Simca's full breasts.
"Yeah."
"You seem distracted," she said suddenly, putting a hand to Ikki's cheek to make him look at her. Ikki tried not to scoff; if he had a dime for every time someone told him that... "Something on your mind?"
"No."
"…Someone?"
Ikki was silent. A lot of people were crowding his thoughts. He felt a little coldhearted towards Akito. He felt like he was ignoring Buccha and Onigiri, though the two of them were hanging out together more and more lately and didn't say much on the matter. Then there was Ringo; the guilt was irritating because there was nothing he could really do to comfort the girl without giving off the wrong signals. Simca herself was usually out of sight, out of mind, which didn't say much for any feelings for the migratory bird, though she always had a way of leaving him with lingering thoughts.
But for some reason…
Above all else…
All he seemed to be able to think about was…
"I'm just worried about someone."
Simca's hands twitched, her body tensing for a spilt second before relaxing again. Ikki supposed she wasn't actually expecting that sort of answer. She brought her head to his shoulder and rested her chin on it.
"You're in love?"
Straight-forward as always. Love seemed to be the theme of most of their get-togethers, anyway.
"No… just… taking over my thoughts a lot," Ikki said, forcing a nervous laugh. "Almost to the point of obsession." A short minute of silence before he added; "But I'm not in love."
After all, it was totally normal to be concerned about your friends, especially when you've known them for so long. And sure he'd made a lot of excuses for them, for him, telling Onigiri and Buccha that the only reason he practiced with Kazu more was because the boy just so happened to be so close – living with him. Shooing Akito off whenever the shark tried to cut between their time together (which was a lot, Ikki noticed) because they never seemed to get enough of it, and feeling a strange sense of comfort when he knew where the blonde was since he was being so damn elusive.
And yes, he had noticed his devotion to saving their friendship before it fell to a level too deep to be worth saving, and yeah, he'd been thinking about the jet an awful lot lately, and he felt responsible now that he was living under the same roof with him... And he was starting to learn more about the blonde's likes and dislikes, his smells and his mannerisms, his speech patterns and the sway to the way he walked, but certainly… he certainly wasn't in love.
Simca's hands ran seductively up and down Ikki's front, feeling up his chest and down his tight belly, slipping around his sides and up his toned back and back over his shoulders. Ikki shivered and turned around to face the girl, her hands dropping away when he did.
He and Kazu – they were just friends. Best friends. Their love was one hundred percent platonic.
"I'm really not."
That would just be silly.
The Swallow played with a few strands of her hair and fluttered her lashes at him, looking unconvinced.
"You sure are getting defensive about it."
Ikki clicked his teeth and looked left, then right, then back at the window. He marched over to it, tried not to look at Simca's luscious body and obvious invites and gestured outside. He didn't need this.
"I think you should go."
Simca blinked in surprise, looking more than a little offended. She stood still as she tried to find and identify her thoughts, but found she had nothing to retort with. Perhaps the boy really just… wasn't interested. Maybe he'd grown tired of her games and teasing. It was definitely a first for her; finding someone that was hard to get instead of playing that role herself. She had to admit, it was enticing; made her kind of want the crow even more now that he was being so adamant.
When her legs allowed her to walk towards the window, she stopped to gaze at into the crow's eyes.
"You look really conflicted, Baby Face…" she sighed, reaching out and brushing some of the boy's bangs aside. "You know… if it's really bothering you that much, you should do something about it."
She sat on the windowsill and swung her legs out, gripping at the frame and looking back one more time. Ikki couldn't help but hear Simca and think about the words that Akito had told him really not that long ago because really, if you want to, why not? But he shook his head to chase it away.
"And in the end if you find it's not what you're looking for, I can be your rebound!"
With that, she giggled, blew a kiss and let herself drop from the window, soaring out into the sky with the rising sun and leaving Ikki to his own devices; his thoughts, near destructive and sleep depriving. There was no use trying to convince himself of something he already knew wasn't true, but just to remind himself – in case he forgot somehow – Ikki mumbled it again as he slammed the window shut and locked it so no more stray birds would come in unannounced.
"I'm not in love…"
He nodded his head firmly at himself, turning his back to the window and crossing his arms thoughtfully. The girl was just throwing herself at him, sprawling herself on a silver platter and offering herself to him with a bow on top, and he just threw her out.
"I must be the biggest fucking moron in the world right now," he muttered, yet couldn't find a scrap of guilt big enough to confirm it.