The final bell had rung, and Jenrya couldn't be any happier. Not only was he sick of sitting in a hard chair for an hour and a half, typing random programming into the laptop in front of him – and he was almost certain that he knew more than the teacher when he came to this kind of stuff – but now he got to leave, get some fresh air and hang out in the park with Takato. It was a win-win-win situation for the young bluenette.

He raced as fast as he could through the halls, narrowly avoiding the other students, as he made his way to the exit of the school, and then across the street to the public playground that lay there. He saw that everyone else was already there. Takato and Juri were sitting on the swings, talking about whatever, Kenta and Hirokazu were playing Digimon, and Ryou and Ruki were just leaning against a tree, relaxing in the shade.

Jenrya, Takato and their friends often hung out there at the park after school. They would just stand around, talking or play the popular card game "Digimon." Ruki and Ryou were the best out of the group, however, and that often infuriated Hirokazu out of jealousy.

Ruki stood upright from the tree she was leaning against. "Finally!" she exclaimed. "What the hell took you so long, Jen?"

Jenrya scratched the back of his head nervously. No one liked keeping Ruki waiting, because she had fuse so short that lighting the entire bomb instead would take less time. "Sorry Ruki, Tsumaru-sensei made me reprogram his laptop and take all the bugs out of it… again…" he replied.

Ruki huffed, but then grinned. "Lucky for you, I'm in a good mood. Every guy on the football team asked me if I'd join the cheerleaders and root for them at the game, even calling me 'Ruki-chan'…" she said with a content look on her face.

Ryou just starred at the redhead with a confused look on his face. "…I thought you hate all that 'girly crap' as you so eloquently put it. And don't you hate people using '-chan' with your name?"

Ruki's grin changed to a full-on smirk. "I do… I'm happy 'cause I kicked every one of them in the balls, and they all dropped to their knees and cried like little girls." She leaned back against her tree and rested her hands behind her head. "Ah… I love the sound of boys whimpering and balls crushing, it's the most pleasant sound in the world…" she gave a content sigh.

"SPEAK FOR YOURSELF!" Hirokazu suddenly screamed, grabbing everyone's attention. He and Kenta were sitting on the ground, playing Digimon, all the while, Hirokazu had a bag of ice on the front of his pants. "I wasn't there to ask you to join the cheerleaders, I went to stop them! So why'd you have to kick me in the balls, too?!"

"For the same reason we all play digimon: Because I enjoy it," she answered bluntly. Hirokazu growled under his teeth, but returned to his game when Kenta tapped him on the shoulder.

"I hope this doesn't affect the game, or else everyone else at school is gonna be just as pissed as me…" he mumbled.

"Come on, Hiro-chan, calm down," the greenette said in a soothing tone. "You know if Ruki went full force on you, you'd be in the hospital right now, she held back a lot if all you need is an ice pack." Kenta then crawled across the ground and gave the aching boy a gentle kiss on the cheek.

Hirokazu smiled lightly, letting a small blush escape his cheeks. "Thanks, Kenta-chan…"

It was no secret that Hirokazu and Kenta loved each other deeply. They'd been friends practically since they were born, and it was only a few months ago that they got together officially. Everyone knew the story…

Back around when the school year had just started, they were sitting on a bench in this very park, going through their cards in hopes of finally beating Ruki in a match, as they had convinced her to play with them again.

Hirokazu held up his cards with a confident grin plastered on his face. "I can't wait to wipe that everlasting smirk off Ruki's face when she sees my new combo!" he said, excitedly, adding in a small chuckle. "She'll never expect my Andromon to digivolve into his Mega form, HiAndromon, especially since she doesn't even know I just got the card yesterday!"

Kenta laughed. "I know, I was there when you got it. My ears are still ringing from when you opened that pack and screamed 'NO FREAKIN' WAY,' ha ha," he replied, jokingly cleaning his ear with his pinkie finger. "And hey, if you don't beat her, I'll make sure to crush her with MarineAngemon!"

"Don't get cocky, Kenta, you can't even beat me so you have no chance against Ruki." Hirokazu smirked.

Kenta smirked back. "Is that so?" he asked in a sarcastic tone. "Then you wouldn't mind proving it to me in a game against me right now. Winner gets to face Ruki first?"

"Oh, you're on! Get ready to lose, Kenta!"

"Lose what, his virginity? I thought he lost that to you already, Shiota," a snide voice spoke to the boys.

Hirokazu and Kenta looked in the direction the voice was coming from, and instantly scowled. Standing before the two was a boy who was known as the biggest homophobe in school, with an ego to match. His name was Hayate Kirai, a tall, muscular and somewhat attractive male with short, brown hair, similar to Ryou's, and center for the boys' basketball team. What separated him from the other homophobes in school was that the others simply mocked and teased gay people, while he often got physical with them, often leaving them with a black eye or bloody lip.

"What do you want, Kirai?" Hirokazu asked, his tone making it obvious he didn't want Hayate around because of his reputation and all the gay jokes the two already endure on a regular basis.

Hayate smirked. "Not what you want, if that's what you mean, because I certainly don't want your little boyfriend here in bed with me," he replied. "Speaking of which, shouldn't you two be in a locker room somewhere spying on innocent and unsuspecting guys?"

Kenta let out a soft pout, letting the hands holding his cards drop to his lap. He and Hirokazu were the targets of many gay jokes around school because of how close they were, and, while the latter could easily shrug it off and ignore it, it hurt Kenta a lot more. Hirokazu hated seeing his friends upset, Kenta especially, and it made him want to explode just looking at his best friend's saddened face.

Hirokazu glared daggers at Hayate. "Look buddy, we never did anything to you, so just get lost and leave us alone!" he said assertively, getting himself ready to jump up and punch the bully in the face if need be.

Hayate mockingly waved his hands in front of his chest in a defensive position. "Oh, I'm sorry, did I get you angry?" he asked in a tone that made Hirokazu want to knock his teeth in. Hayate smirked as he glanced over at an upset and distracted Kenta. "Then, how about if I did… this!"

In the blink of an eye, Hayate managed to grab Kenta by his shirt collar and pull him into the air, with his feet dangling above the ground, where all of his cards now laid scattered. The greenette tried desperately to break free from his grip, but found it difficult, as was his ability to breathe. "H-Hiro…ka-zu…" he whimpered out in a suffocated voice. His face was beginning to get flushed from the lack of oxygen getting into his lungs, and his eyes were trapped shut.

Hayate smirked, holding the greenette a few inches away from his face. "What are you gonna do about it, Shiota? Are you gonna try sucking my co-UGH!" The taller brunette was cut off when Hirokazu's fist made hard contact with his cheek, sending him flying all the way into a tree that was roughly ten feet away from the bench, making him drop Kenta to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, Hirokazu dashed after the boy and slammed his hand against the boy's neck and held him up against the tree, cutting off his supply of oxygen. Hayate glanced into Hirokazu's eyes, and almost flinched when he saw that they were filled with a burning anger and hatred directed squarely at him. "I'm gonna give you to the count of ten for you to get your ass outta here and never come near me or Kenta again," he muttered in a ferociously serious tone, making it clear that he was downright pissed at Hayate. "I could beat the crap outta you right now, easily, without even giving it a second thought, but that may scar Kenta for life... However, if you're not outta my sight by the time I get to 'ten', then I don't give a damn what Kenta sees, I'll beat you to a bloody pulp! No one messes with Kenta and gets away with it with their teeth in tact! You hear me?!"

Hirokazu threw the boy to the ground, allowing him only a second to breathe. Once the word "One" was uttered, Hayate took off running as fast as he possibly could. Ordinarily, Hirokazu wouldn't be much of a problem for him to take out, but in the state he was in now, Hayate probably would have been placed in intensive care by the end of it, at the very least, while Hirokazu would only have a few scratches on him.

Hirokazu watched Hayate desperately take off with his tail between his legs until he was completely out of sight, in record time. After the jerk was long gone, Hirokazu ran to Kenta's side and helped him regain his breath.

"Kenta, are you ok?" he asked.

Kenta coughed a few more times and then looked into the boy's eyes. "Thanks… a lot… Hirokazu…" he choked out, still breathing heavily. He took one more deep breath and smiled weakly. "Thanks for saving me Hirokazu, I meant a lot to me, what you said…" he said, a small blush creeping up on his face.

Looking into Kenta's eyes, Hirokazu couldn't help but notice just how wonderful they looked. They were as deep and inviting as they were beautiful and luxurious. And his eyes soon drifted down to his soft, succulent lips. They were the kind that made anyone think "Is he a good kisser?" In fact, Hirokazu could actually feel himself being pulled closer to Kenta, the latter being well aware of that, feeling his face growing hotter. "Kenta… a-are you thinking what… I'm thinking?"

Kenta nodded. "I… think so…" he whispered back, leaning back and moving his hands behind him, onto the ground for balance.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Hirokazu's lips placed themselves atop Kenta's. Their lips crashed against one another, longingly, as if it were something they'd been waiting their whole lives for. Hirokazu's hand reached around Kenta's head and pulled them closer to each other, while Kenta did the same by swinging his arms around and linking around Hirokazu's neck. Their combined weight and lack of balance forced Hirokazu to fall to the ground back on top of Kenta, but neither party seemed to mind. All they could think about was the pure excitement and delight they were feeling, not to mention the ecstasy.

After a minute or so, Hirokazu slowly came up for air and stared down at the boy beneath him. They were both breathing heavily, and their faces were quite flushed, either from embarrassment or from the lack of oxygen. He couldn't believe he just did that – made out with his best friend, his best guy friend no less – but at the same time, he never felt happier. It's like there was this one thing missing in his life he could never find, and the moment his lips touched Kenta's, that one thing was found.

"K-Kenta… did that… did that just happen?"

The boy nodded, smiling at him as if to say he was just as joyous about this as Hirokazu was. "Yeah…"

"So… does this mean…?"

"I think so…"

Suddenly, a loud cackle made the boy's nearly jump out of their skin. "Ha ha, I freakin' knew it! Pay up, Akiyama!"

"Man! I was so sold those two weren't a thing! There goes my lunch money for the next month…"

Kenta gave Hirokazu a pleading look. "Please don't tell me Ryou and Ruki are standing there with smug looks on their faces…"

"Oh they aren't… Ruki's got a smug look, Ryou just has a stupid grin…" he said in a somewhat joking tone.

Ruki held out her hand in front of Ryou. "You heard me, Akiyama, hand it over. 5000 yen and not one yen less, fork it over. And if you even think of kissing my hand again like last time, I swear that I'll rip each tooth out of your mouth, one by one."

Ryou grumbled and reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of yen notes, then placing them in Ruki's palm, who gladly accepted them and placed them in her own pocket. "There you go, 5000 yen in full. Now, what about Romeo and Juliet over there?" he asked

Ruki smirked and walked slowly over to the boys, reaching behind her.

Hirokazu flinched. If Ruki was about to attack them for this, there was no way he could defend against it, or intimidate her like he did with Hayate – the girl practically struck fear into Satan himself! "R-Ruki… please, don't do anything you might regret…"

Ruki's smirk grew wider. "Oh trust me, I won't regret this…"

Kenta gripped fearfully onto Hirokazu's shirt, fearing this might be the last time he ever spoke to him. "Hirokazu, I just want you to know, in case we don't live, I love you!"

Hirokazu hugged him back. "I love you too, Kenta! …And I also stole 2000 yen from your wallet the other day!"

"…Wait a minute, is that how you paid for those packs? I was saving that money for the new Digimon World game! If Ruki wasn't gonna kill us, I'd strangle you!"

Ruki gave the two boys a look of confusion. "Kill you? What the hell are you idiots going on about now?" she asked. Hirokazu and Kenta looked to each other, hoping the other knew how to respond. However, since neither had an answer, they looked back to see Ruki holding up a deck of Digimon cards. "When I said I wasn't gonna do something I'll regret, I meant I wasn't gonna lose to you. Now THAT'S something I would regret."

Hirokazu gave Ruki a blank expression. "So… you don't care if Kenta and I like each other?"

"Please, I couldn't care less what sex you have in bed – gender or otherwise – the only thing that matters to me is keeping my reputation of being better than you at Digimon. You can have fun in the locker room later, right now, I believe you both challenged me to a game, and it's my duty as the Digimon Queen to pummel you both. Now, are you gonna get your butts off the ground and play me or what?"

Hirokazu sighed and smiled in relief. While it may seem to the normal person like Ruki was making fun of them, Hirokazu knew she was actually quite happy for the two of them. She knew they both liked each other, and she was glad they were together now; she just didn't like getting all mushy about it. Ruki was supporting them in the only way she was comfortable with: by being Ruki.

Kenta smiled, and then smirked evilly at Hirokazu. "Thanks Ruki… but first, I have to strangle Hirokazu for stealing my money…"

Hirokazu flinched once more and jumped to his feet, running as fast as he could from Kenta, Ruki and Ryou.

"HIRO-CHAN, GET BACK HERE YOUR ADORABLE LITTLE ASS BACK HERE!" Kenta shouted, though mostly in a way that said he was less mad about the money, and more that he was so excited to be able to call him 'Hiro-chan.'

After that day, Hirokazu and Kenta were practically inseparable, and it was even rarer than before that you saw one without the other. The two never gave a gave attention to those guys who made fun of them, and anyone that even tried getting near Kenta ended up on the wrong side of Hirokazu's fist.

"Yes, yes, I held back on Ace over there, just keep quiet about it…" Ruki muttered bitterly, glancing away. Everyone chuckled softly. Ruki stood up from the tree and walked over to Kenta, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a blue ticket stub. "Here, it's that ticket you asked me to buy for you."

Kenta nodded and accepted the ticket. "Thanks, Ruki."

Jenrya looked over at Takato, smiling at the boy, as he often did. "Hey, Takato-kun," he spoke, grabbing the brunette's attention. "You bought your ticket after, right?"

Takato nodded, slightly grinning. "Uh-huh!" he said happily. "I really hope I get to go on that dinner, it'd be amazing to go to Subarashii Ryorii!"

Ryou couldn't help but let out a small snicker, though only Ruki noticed. "What's got you so happy?" she asked, giving him a suspicious look.

Ryou covered his mouth until his snickering stopped, and then revealed a small grin. "Nothing, just remembered a funny joke, is all…" he replied.

Ruki eyed him like a hawk. "You're up to something, I can just feel it… and I'll find out what it is."

Ryou winked at her and flashed another grin. "Good luck with that, Ruki-chan."

"Akiyama, I'm in a good mood and a little wiped… don't make me have to crush your balls too."