Chapter 12

Fuji was terribly quiet that morning when they all trekked over to the temple, and it was not simply for lack of sleep. All of the boys knew the reason for his lack of spirit that morning, but Miho and Asa were oblivious. Every once in a while they would ask him what was wrong, worried, and he would simply give a shake of his head and paste a smile onto his face, trying to be reassuring.

Neither of the two was very reassured.

At the temple, they went in groups of three so as to not swamp the poor place, telling the gods their wishes and clapping their hands, heads bowed and eyes closed.

Fuji almost fell asleep when it was his turn, and had to have been poked in the sides by Eiji and given a quick shake of his shoulder from Tezuka. Looking dazed, the honey-haired boy left the shrine.

"Are you absolutely sure you're alright?" Asa asked him as he came to stand besides her. She really didn't like how his face looked; pale and worn, with darker areas starting to form underneath his eyes. "You're not sick or anything? Getting plenty of rest and drinking lots of fluids is the key to maintaining a healthy body. Are you sure you're not dehydrated, by any chance…?"

At one time, Fuji would have been more than happy to have Asa fussing over him, he noted drily, shaking his head to her assumptions and watching her worry increase by tenfold with each shake. She was a good Oishi-substitute, he decided. But currently, his mind was preoccupied, and he paid her no more attention than he would have a bird flying overhead, intent on getting to its nest. That morning, he had woken up after a troubled sleep to find Asa's grandmother waiting for him, and they had talked. She had called it 'breaking the ice.'

To Fuji, it had more or less been Hell on earth, or should he say, Hell in the Ijuuin household kitchen. She was relentless in her questions, picked apart each and every one of his answers, scolded him, chided him, and praised him all in one sentence. She played mind games, just as Fuji did, but her's were so much more intense, the aura she emitted was so much more dangerous than one that Fuji had ever before emitted himself. She was insightful, more so than Atobe (even with his Insight and World of Ice), and she had forced Fuji to reveal facts that he had felt were better off being hidden, known to him only.

Ijuuin Sakura was a dangerous force to be reckoned with, and frankly, Fuji was surprised that he was still alive after that ordeal. Had she been a general in a war and the head of an army, the opposing one would have been all slaughtered, and any survivors would have crawled away, tail tucked between their legs, hating the name 'Ijuuin Sakura' yet dreading it with a fear indescribable and unsurpassable.

Indeed, Asa's grandmother was a one-man army, innocently silent but one that struck with a godly force.

"Let's stop at the sweet shop!" Miho suddenly announced, in an attempt to lighten up the mood. "Didn't Gakuto-kun mention something about specials once? Let's see if there's a New Year's Special!"

Asa perked up, nodding happily. "I think there is… we should definitely go! It's not that far; we'll be close enough to walk after two stops with the subway." And so they trooped over to the subway, chattering among themselves. There was a mild scuffle at the ticket booth over who would buy tickets (no one seemed to take the subway enough to have a subway pass). The Hyoutei members seemed keen on Atobe paying, with Atobe grumbling something underneath his breath about how he wasn't the only rich member in their group. Poor Eiji had to treat both Momo and Echizen, but when he noticed Oishi offering to pay for Miho's ticket (Miho having spent her pocket money on goo-luck charms at the temple for all of them) he instantly shoved his doubles partner aside and paid for hers, as well.

"Is it a privilege only the boyfriend gets?" Asa asked, raising an eyebrow, looking mildly amused while Miho chuckled lightly next to her.

"Hai, hai," Miho said brightly. Her impish expression brightened, if that was at all possible, and she poked Fuji in the side. "Ne, ne, Fuji-kun, you should totally use the boyfriend privilege with Asa-chan!" She ignored Asa's protests of "Miho-chan! What are you talking about?!" and shoved Fuji towards the booth. Asa scrambled away from her to stop Fuji before he could do anything.

Asa grumbled under her breath about her friend as she stood next to Fuji. Honestly, she had money! She could buy her own ticket! Furthermore, Fuji-kun wasn't her boyfriend. End of discussion. She sighed, rubbing her temples.

Fuji's light chuckling brought her out of her silent cloud of complaints. "Saa… you're acting a lot like Tezuka, Aa-chan," he teased, smiling softly.

Asa offered a small grin. "Am I?" she asked. Fuji nodded, pulling out his wallet from his pocket and stepping up to the lady behind the booth.

"Two Tokyo Metro Open Tickets," Fuji announced. The lady nodded, smiling, handing over the two tickets while Fuji handed over the money, turning to Asa so that the two could leave the line. He brushed aside her attempts to pay him back, laughing lightly. "Aa-chan, 710 yen for a ticket is nothing. Besides, it's New Year's. Can't I treat you?"

She huffed, seeing that she was fighting for a lost cause. "Fine, fine," she grumbled, looking like a child deprived of her candy, "But I'm paying for the return trip!"

Blue eyes gleamed. Was that a challenge he heard in her voice? "Saa… whoever gets to the booth first pays for the return trip," Fuji said smoothly. "And it's not going to be you, that's for sure." She glared sulkily at him, snatching her ticket and marching to the platform, a laughing Fuji trailing behind him.

Well… at least he's not so distant anymore, Asa sighed as she waited for the subway. Gakuto and Shishido had gotten into an argument. Oishi and Choutarou had hurried over to break them apart, and Atobe and Tezuka pretended that they didn't know any one of the boys. Momo and Echizen were giving Eiji a full explanation on why he should pay for their tickets on the return trip, while Miho and Oshitari were playing a prank on a hapless Hiyoshi and an unsuspecting Kaidoh.

Who knew so much stuff could happen in the three minutes that one waits for the subway?

Fuji had slipped back into his silent, brooding state, and Asa turned to him, brows furrowed in worry. She would have imagined him to have padded over to Miho and Oshitari and join them in their pranking, but he was still standing besides her, a sullen look on his usually smiling face. "Fuji-kun," she murmured, tugging at his arm. He turned to her, looking curious. "Are you sure everything's alright? You've been much too quiet today."

Fuji tilted his head to one side, regarding her carefully. When he spoke, his words were carefully chosen, his voice guarded of emotion. It frightened Asa. This was a Fuji that she did not know. "I just had someone point out to me some… things… to consider," he said, turning his face back to the track, his face an unreadable mask.

"Oh," Asa squeaked out. "Oh, I see." Except she didn't see. She had no idea what her friend was talking about. Unless…

"Did Obaa-sama have anything to do with this?" she asked abruptly. Fuji started, but said nothing. Even still, it was enough of an answer, and Asa sighed, shaking her head while her hands made their ways to her hips. "Don't take anything Obaa-sama says to heart," she sighed. "While she means well most of the things she says can be ignored. Don't let it bother you."

Fuji chuckled quietly. Trust it to be Asa to worry about him. "It's alright," he offered, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "She was quite surprising, that's all. I could almost use the word 'intimidating,' or perhaps I should go with something stronger?" His head tilted in the opposite direction. "She's a frightening dragon, your Obaa-sama," he said softly.

"I'm sorry that you had to go through one of Obaa-sama's lectures, Fuji-kun," Asa apologized. Having been the recipient of some of those lectures herself and having to watch others go through it, she knew how hard it could get. Her grandmother was frighteningly intense.

"Ah… it's alright, I can take it," Fuji replied. The subway came at that time, drowning out what he was going to say next. In a way, he was glad, because on an afterthought he probably would have been too embarrassed to say it straight to her face.

Climbing onto the subway after Asa and finding a pole to stand at since all the seats were taken, Fuji watched her chatting cheerfully with Choutarou about the sweet shop. His smile brightened as he leaned against the pole, bracing himself as the train lurched forward. His unspoken sentence repeated itself in his mind:

I can take it because I love you.

***

"'New Year's Special: Everybody-friendly Latté,'" Miho read off of a sign that was erected just outside of the sweet shop's front door. Her head tilted to the side as she regarded the sign. "What makes a latté everybody-friendly?" she asked, puzzled.

"A latté is a shortened version of the Italian caffelatte, which quite literally means 'coffee and milk,'" Asa explained. Working at the sweet shop hadn't all been for nothing; she had quite a bit of knowledge in coffee and teas, now. "But because it's best for children to avoid caffeine and thus not drink coffee, the coffee portion of this latté will probably have been replaced with hot cocoa. A greater amount of hot milk will be added to balance for the added sweetness, but it will be served in the same style as a regular latté. For the children, a dollop of cream will most likely be added on top to appease their sweet teeth."

Eiji's eyes were shining by the time Asa had finished with her speculation about what the New Year's Special was, and he literally dragged them all inside the door. Fuji chuckled at his friend's excited behavior.

"That's one person with a sweet tooth," he said, following the excited redhead and his luggage (five people… Fuji wondered how he was able to grab that many with only two hands) into the shop.

He was greeted by the sweet scent of hot chocolate, mixed in the warm scent of cream and the sharper, more fragrant scents of fresh fruit that topped baked cakes. The cakes stood in their display case, proudly bearing their decorations and crowns of fruit. Waitresses carried trays bearing cups of warm drinks; Fuji could see the stream rising gently from the rims as they passed him.

"Saa… I wonder what their Valentine's Special will be," Fuji said cheerily as they found several unoccupied tables to sit at. There followed a brief period of speculation about that special, and then the topic of conversation went to White day Specials while Miho and Asa trotted off to look at cakes, Choutarou tagging along like a puppy.

Presently, a waitress came up to them, smiling brightly and looking rather energetic. "Hello!" she chirped up. "Can I get you anything or would you like to do so yourself later on? We have our New Year's Special, too, at 300 yen per cup, free refills."

Sitting in the corner of the table Eiji was practically glowing. "We'd all like the New Year's Special, please!" he piped up happily, and the waitress nodded, still smiling, counted how many people there were, and trotted off to place their orders, meeting Asa and Miho who had paid for cakes and were headed back for the table.

In any case, Asa was pounced on by the waitress, who looked absolutely thrilled to see her. "You love us so much that you even came on your break!" she squealed, while Asa simply chuckled (albeit a tad bit nervously). Letting go of her, she beamed. "Perfect! I have a favor to ask of you, Ijuuin-chan!"

"A favor?" Asa echoed, slightly wary. Her fellow waitresses meant well but sometimes the favors they asked for were… strange…

"Yes, a favor! It won't take long; you'll be back with your friends in no time!" She grinned like a Cheshire cat, nudging Asa's side with an elbow. "One of them's your boyfriend, ne?"

Asa twitched. "No," she said flatly. The other girl simply shrugged, still grinning impishly while Asa excused herself from her friends and headed for the back room. Why did she have to work on her break? It wasn't fair.

Moments later she emerged, dressed in the waitress uniform, sighing lightly as she went over the 'favor' she had to do in her mind. 'You see that little boy?' the other girl had asked her, gesturing to a table in the way back of the store, tucked away so that at first glance one wouldn't really see it. 'He's been sitting there all alone for an hour, now. Every time someone's gone over to ask if he wants something, he sends them back in tears. He's a frightening child.'

Yes, leave the difficult customers to her. Asa could see a pattern in her work life.

"Ne, teach me how to use the big machine," Asa said abruptly, marching behind the counter, the waitress trailing behind her. "I've never had to use this before and I don't think anyone wants this broken." She grabbed a cup, then some milk.

"You're going to make a Special?"

"I'm going to try to make a Special. Then I'm going to pick a slice of cake. Then I'm going to deal with that kid. That's my plan." The other waitress smiled slightly, leaning forward so that she could show Asa how to work the machine. She caught on fast, both with the machine and the situation. The other employees had started calling Asa the 'hostess' behind her back and directly in her face. The sweet shop saw its fair share of customers that were difficult to please, especially during the holiday seasons, and most of the time Asa had to be called to deal with them.

And deal with them she did, although whether because she wanted to or whether because she couldn't find any way to shake off the pleas of the other employees no one knew for sure.

"Say, Ijuuin-chan, you'd better not schedule a break for Valentine's Day and White Day," she said to Asa as Asa mixed together hot cocoa and scalding hot milk, reaching for the cream as she did so. "I don't think all of us combined can take care of broken hearts."

"And I alone can?" Asa asked, faintly bemused as she took the light cream and added some to the top of the cup, taking a spoon and gently working the cream into a little mountain. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was better than just having it sit atop the cup like a blob. Asa was happy with her handiwork, and turned around to select a slice of cake. "Ring these up under my account," she told the other girl.

Said girl sighed as she obeyed. "And this is why you don't make a penny even though you hold a paying job," she chastised.

"And that's why I can deal with those difficult customers that no one else seems to be able to," Asa shot back in a teasing voice as she loaded her items onto a tray and left. "Don't forget that group of wolves over there," she said, nodding her head in the direction of her friends who were devouring the cakes she and Miho had selected. "A few among them have ferocious sweet teeth." So saying, she headed for the lone boy at the back table.

"Hey," she offered, giving the boy a smile as she set the tray down and unloading the food.

The little one (he must have only been around eight or nine years old, Asa assumed) looked up at her and frowned, looking rather annoyed. "Are all of you waitresses stupid or something?" he asked, in a very arrogant way that reminded Asa of Atobe. "I told you already, I don't want anything that this sloppy shop can offer."

"Stop referring to us as a unit. We are individuals who all happen to hold the same job, in the same shop. What you tell one of us doesn't automatically get relayed to the rest of us via telepathy," Asa explained, raising an eyebrow. "Besides, this is your first time one of these shops, isn't it?" she asked, and the little boy stiffened. "I can tell because your eyes are wide and their shining in wonder. There's probably a cake or two that you want to try, right?"

"Maybe…" This time the voice was small, almost ashamed, as opposed to the former imperialistic voice that had been used.

Asa chuckled lightly, setting the slice of cake down in front of him. "Try this," she coaxed. "There's rice added into the batter, so it gives a pleasant texture in the mouth. It's double-layered with raspberry jam and finished with buttercream frosting." When he hesitated, she smiled slightly. "Go on; it's quite delicious," she encouraged, and he picked up his fork, taking off the tip of the slice of cake and putting it into his mouth.

The other waitresses watched in awe as the little boy, so rough and snappish earlier on, suddenly became like any other child at a cake shop, energetic and excited, happy to be eating sweets. Asa watched in amusement as he ate, pushing the cup with the Special in it towards him and telling him to drink something lest he choke, to which he obeyed before diving at his cake again. Leaving him happily to his cake, she trotted over to the counter, looking very pleased with herself. "See? Problem all fixed! The kid was shy, so he put on a tough exterior, that's all."

She was promptly glomped and gratitude and given a free slice of cake before shoved towards her friends.

"Back?" Fuji asked, taking a sip from his cup and letting the warm drink sit on his tongue for a bit before swallowing, enjoying the feeling as the warm liquid tumbled down his throat and into his stomach.

Asa nodded, sitting down in the open seat next to him and starting in on her cake. "I love helping the costumers here and all, but I wish that everyone else would try to do that, too, so I don't get swamped with these 'favors' as soon as I walk in the door," she grumbled, stabbing at her slice with her fork. Fuji chuckled, evidently amused with her.

A tug at her arm diverted her attention from Fuji. The little boy who had sat at the back table was standing next to her, looking embarrassed. "Um… thank you for the treats," he said shyly. "And I'm sorry if I caused any trouble."

Asa blinked before collecting her composure. "Not at all! I'm glad you enjoyed the cake and the drink," she said, at the same time which Atobe said, "Kenta, what mischief were you up to?"

Heads swiveled over to the diva, who was frowning at the little boy. "You know him, Atobe?" Oshitari asked, taking another sip from his cup before setting it down on the table.

"He's my cousin," Atobe said shortly.

"Ah! That's why he sounded a lot like Atobe-kun!" Asa said, realization hitting her. Atobe twitched, glaring at her, trying to decided whether or not that was a compliment to his splendid person or a direct insult. He decided to take it as a compliment.

Kenta looked horrified to see his older cousin and inched behind Asa, using her as a shield, peeking around her nervously. "Keigo-nii's going to tell Nana," he whined, looking sulky.

Atobe snorted. "Of course I'm going to tell Grandmother," he retorted. "Causing trouble for others is not going to be excused lightly."

"But…"

"Ore-sama's word is final." Kenta whimpered.

"Mou… Atobe-kun, it's alright," Asa said, trying to make peace between the cousins (Kenta's puppy dog face was also rather effective). "Kenta-kun was just a bit shy." Turning to Kenta, she asked, "Is anyone coming to pick you up?"

Kenta shook his head, looking remorseful. "The limo's coming at nine to take me to the station. Mother is spending a week in Tokyo since she just finished a business deal." Atobe swore under his breath and was promptly scolded by Miho for language usage.

"But it's already past nine," Oishi said, staring at the clock, looking worried. "You should have been picked up by now."

"Hakubo-san probably forgot all about Kenta. It happens often," Atobe sighed, getting up. "Kenta, c'mon. Keigo-nii will take you home." He turned to the others. "I'll pay for this. Count it as payback for the troubles my annoying cousin caused." He had the bill paid in less then three seconds, and took Kenta by the hand. "Say 'Thank you' to Ijuuin," he ordered.

"Thank you," he said dutifully, shaking her hand before trotting at Atobe's side as the two left the shop. A silence followed them, broken by Oshitari.

"No wonder Atobe was so keen on leaving his house for New Year's," he muttered, earning him questioning looks. "Atobe hates his aunt with a passion. You should have seen the last Atobe family gathering."

"Why would he hate her so much, though?"

Oshitari shrugged. "Atobe might not show it, but he's rather fond of Kenta. He despises it that Kenta's mother usually forgets to pick him up even though she promised him. Kenta's neglected rather frequently, and spends most of his time either with Atobe's grandmother or with Atobe himself." Oshitari raised an eyebrow at Asa. "I'm surprised he got along so well with you. Atobe's told me on more than one occasion that Kenta is a difficult brat to deal with and his previous sitters hated him with a passion."

Asa blinked again before shaking her head. "Iie, Kenta-kun's alright. He's not that bad, I think."

Shishido huffed. "You should go into childcare when you graduate, then. You seem to have a way with kids."

"So says the one who offers to babysit at large family functions," Inui muttered, reading from his notebook, glasses glinting dangerously. Shishido turned a brilliant shade of red and glared. Gakuto openly laughed.

It was three in the afternoon by the time they trooped over to Asa's house to pick up their things and go to their own respective homes. They chatted cheerily along the way, Inui getting into his data mode and reading snippets of data of everyone in the group from his notebook, much to the amusement of everyone and the embarrassment of whoever's data was being read.

"'Ijuuin Asa,'" Inui read, and Asa frowned, bracing herself, "'her most prized possession is a music box, which apparently got insulted by Fuji the first time he listened to it.'" Fuji huffed, turning away, while Asa offered a lopsided grin. Inui was pretty good at what he did.

Snapping his book shut, the data man regarded Asa with a serious look. "It'll be about time to make up a decision," he said. "Graduation is in three months, and isn't the final announcement the day after? It would be best to sort out your feelings in these three months; time goes by fast."

Asa lowered her head. "Yes… yes, time goes by fast," she agreed.

A hand fell on her shoulder and she looked up. Inui was smiling, a kind smile of genuine concern. "I wish you luck. May you be 100% sure in your decisions today and after today."

"Thank you."

Inui left with his overnight stuff slung over his shoulder and a cheery wave, leaving Asa on her doorstep to brood over what he had said. Time really was running short. She heaved a defeated sigh.

Saa… no matter how hard one tries, their problems keep coming back, don't they?

A/N: Ugh. Absolute suck. Total fail. And the sad thing is... it took me so very long to write. *sobs*

Three more chapters and I'm finished! ^_^ I feel so happy!

Please review! Thank you!