Chapter 2: What Do You Love?

" Okay...your favorite color?"

" Orange," Tsuna replied. " And yours?"

" Don't have one," Dino sighed leaning back on his hands. " I'm more of a 'Hey this looks good for whatever I'm doing' kind of guy."

At that Tsuna frowned in concentration, studying Dino carefully for a few minutes. Dino smiled slightly in amusement and asked the brunette what he was thinking so hard about, but Tsuna only held up a finger to silence him.

Dino honestly had thought this would have gone worse than it had. He expected a silent, nervous kid that would be trembling and stuttering the entire time, providing Dino with half-assed one worded answers that would've left him feeling defeated and exasperated. To be frank, that was actually how it had been for the first hour, but Dino wasn't such a wuss to give up so easily.

Or at least Reborn hadn't taught him to be.

By the second hour, Tsuna and he were much more relaxed around each other and Dino couldn't help but find the kid's redeeming qualities underneath the anxious wreck. He was bright, alarmingly bright. Dino tried to stay away from intellectual conversation; after all, he couldn't let his junior surpass him so easily now could he?

Tsuna was surprisingly tactful with his wit when he didn't think about it. So sharp-tongued was he, that doing so almost nearly sent the poor kid into a panic attack afterward from fear that the person he snapped at would hate him or retaliate.

" Alright!" he said suddenly, breaking Dino's train of thought. Tsuna jumped with the blonde and looked down at his hands, nervously fiddling with his fingers as he mumbled an apology.

" No worries, I shouldn't have zoned out," Dino said quickly. " Go ahead."

" W-well," Tsuna said slowly. " I know we said favorite colors and all..and you don't exactly suggest a favorite color, but I think you'd look best in dark, cool colors you know? It would match your eyes and you're kind of tan, but not anything so dark that it wouldn't fit the seasons."

" Well, that explains why that orange pinstripe suit didn't work out."

Tsuna gave a sheepish grin and quickly added, " Ah, that's more pertaining to the kind of person you seem to be. I know I don't know you that well but.."

Dino nodded slowly, curiously smiling at Tsuna as he stammered out more explanations and added that Dino didn't have to take his advice. A soft knock on the door called both males' attention and Gokudera appeared at the door, his gaze falling directly onto Dino.

" Tenth, its nearly one in the morning," Gokudera said politely. " Though I don't know what you guys are talking about in here, I'm sure Mr. Cavallone is tired, and you still haven't really recovered from earlier, have you?"

" W-well...I..uh.."

Dino sat patiently for the young man's answer, marvelling at his quick transition from lax to fidgity. This was Tsuna's friend wasn't it? What did he have to be nervous about?

" Tenth?" Gokudera's voice rose a few pitches in alarm, and he quickly invited himself in, and knelt down next to his friend, ever so slightly glaring at Dino in the process. " If you don't mind, I fear for the Tenth's health. I-"

" Its fine," Dino said and rose to his feet, grabbing his shoes off the floor and his suit jacket off the chair. " It's pretty late, I shouldn't have imposed for so long."

With a final smile, Dino bid the two goodnight and left the room, not even pausing to put his shoes back on.

" Tenth, you should really head to bed," Gokudera said quickly. " You seem a bit pale."

" W-well, I feel fine I think, but if you say I'm pale.."

" You are Tenth, trust me. Here, get on my back! Come on," Gokudera urged. Tsuna's cheeks burned bright red at the notion and he stoutly refused until Gokudera threatened to carry him bridal style if he didn't get on his back.

" Gokudera, I can walk on my own, " Tsuna insisted, but Gokudera shook his head.

" Trust me Tenth, try to walk on your own and you'll fall out, I'm certain of it. Now just relax and get on my back, please?"

Knowing Gokudera, he wouldn't give up until Tsuna succumbed to his demands. Obediently, Tsuna climbed onto his companions back, silently fretting to himself about how much of a burden he must be.

" So Dino, what I'm thinking- Dino? HEY USELESS!"

" Mm?" the blonde crossed his eyes in an attempt to refocus his attention from the pencil balanced on his nose to Reborn, who looked near ready to leap across the table at him.

" Dino. This. Is. Serious. Pay. Attention," Reborn growled. " Your damn cars aren't gonna sell themselves."

" He's right Boss," Romario said quickly. "We've got to get these ads out before Accelerando is on the market. And we really don't have time."

Dino pouted slightly and threw his hands up in the air. " Time, time. Time is just a fabricated concept created by man to stress everyone out and make life hard! I think that Cavallone Industries should not function on such a silly concept as time Romario."

" And I think you want to go bankrupt, but no one is stupid enough to believe that either," Reborn snapped. " You wouldn't last a day without the money your department executives make for you."

Dino gaped in shock. " Romario, did he just call me lazy?"

" I'd rather not get involved sir, that could cost me my job," he replied nervously.

" Smart man," Reborn acknowledged. With a sigh, he sat down in the seat at the far end of the table. " Dino. We, at the Arcobaleno Advertising Agency, have always effectively gotten word out about your family's cars. Do you agree?"

" Mmhmm."

" We, at Arcobaleno Advertising have only been able to do so effectively with the leadership presented by the previous owners of this business. So, let me get right to the point. Do your fucking job like I showed you."

Dino frowned and replied back, " When are you going to see Tsuna?"

Reborn raised his eyebrows. " Later. Why."

" I met the kid last night; dropped by his house. If you take me to see him and I get to participate in whatever you guys are doing, then I'll pay attention to you and get this stuff down."

Reborn glared daggers at him. " How about you shut the hell up, sit down, and do your work like an adult."

"Oh Reborn, Reborn, you've hurt my feelings," Dino said shaking his head. " I'm afraid I'm gonna be extra lazy now.."

" Damn it Cavallone-!"

" Reborn, I think it'd be best to succumb to the boss," Romario interjected. " I'm afraid persuading him will be..futile."

Dino smiled broadly at Reborn, and spun around in his chair, sticking out his tongue at Reborn during his revolutions. Gritting his teeth together, Reborn pulled his fedora down over his eyes, grumbling bitterly to himself before growling out, " Fine. But this is the only time you're getting your way brat."

" Aww, is Reborn a sore loser?"

" Shut the hell up Cavallone."

Tsuna's hands were a burning, bright red, sweaty mess. When weren't they? His knee bounced up and down uncontrollably and his companions couldnt help but stare as they watched the silent nervous breakdown the teen was having.

Okay Tsuna,he thought. In and out, in and ou-

" Tsuna?"

The brunette gave a sharp gasp that came out as a shrill " Hiii!", gaining himself odd looks from around the room. Yamamoto gave him a thumbs up and a reassuring wink, as if he hadn't heard the embarrassing sound.

Tsuna gave a small smile and stood, smoothing out his clothes as if he were wearing a suit and face his father with the bravest gace he could muster. Iemitsu wasn't looking at his son harshly, in fact, he had specifically cut time out for him, no matter how tired he was feeling.

Tsuna took in a deep breath. " W-well..."

" Yes son?"

" Y-you see...my idea..."

" Yes?"

His friends leaned forward, curious to hear about what had been going on in Tsuna's head for the past few weeks. The boy turned bright red, the room beginning to grow hazy as an overwhelming rush of thoughts drowned him. M-my idea? What idea? Its stupid, I'm sorry dad. I can't think of anything. You'll hate it I know you will. It's awful, it's different, its not something secure like Reborn or Dino or you. It's mess, a failure, I'll never make it work. I'm sorry for being No Good again, I'm so-

" Oi, loser! If you aren't gonna buck up and tell Iemitsu your plans, then you may as well call this whole thing off!"

Tsuna's eyes widened at the sight of Reborn and, to his surprise, Dino. The blonde smiled brightly and waved at him from behind Reborn, clearly not reading the situation as well as he should have.

Tsuna's heart pounded harder as he looked up at his father again, feeling even smaller than he had before now that more people were watching.

" M-my...uh...I think.."

Everyone waited expectantly, only curious as to what he had to say. Even so, he felt as if the very eyes of his friends and family were judging him, impatient with his apprehension and nervousness. In Tsuna's mind, even Gokudera appeared fed up with his hesitation.

" M-my idea is dumb! I hate it! It doesn't exist! I don't have one!" he shouted suddenly and pushed past his father. Reborn scowled and pulled his hat over his eyes, stepping to the side and allowing t\Tsuna to pass through the door easily. Dino raised an eyebrow in surprise, and asked, " You aren't going to stop him?"

" You wanted to come along didn't you?" Reborn smirked and plopped down into a chair, propping his feet up on a nearby table.

Dino started to complain about how unfair it was that Reborn suddenly thrust such big problem onto him, but quickly closed his mouth at the glare he recieved and shot out the room.

" Some tutor you are," he muttered.

" Heyyy, Tsuna!" Dino called out for umpteenth time. " Come out, come out wherever you are."

Nothing.

" I'm not it anymore, so you don't have to worry about me finding you!"

Okay, the hide and seek approach won't work either. Dino sighed a raked a hand through his hair, frustrated with his search. This place was huge and the kid could be anywhere, not to mention Dino had only been to the estate once and hadn't exactly been intent on receiving a grand tour.

Dino turned another corner and proceeded down another hallway, admiring the walls and decor that livened up the place.

" Damn, too bad Tsuna's mother can't come do an Extreme Mansion Makeover to my place," Dino muttered, inspecting a brass antique vase filled with crisp, cut flowers.

Dino continued walking, every so often whistling to himself or holding a very heated debate with himself about how successful Accelerando would be compared to it's predeccesor, Sforzando. Around anyone else, he would've looked like insane.

To Tsuna, he appeared just a bit amusing.

Dino was quite unaware that Tsuna had found him nearly an hour ago when he'd been yelling that nonsense about "being it" and not telling others where he was hiding. Tsuna was surprised that Reborn hadn't told Dino about how tragically unathletic he was, and was even more surprised that Dino hadn't heard him earlier.

And so, he continued, trailing behind Dino and listening to his ongoing debate about, what was it? Accelerando? Tsuna was tempted to ask exactly what Accelerando was, but his fear of being brought back to the tension of that room far outweighed his curiousity.

" Hahh, okay, I'm freaking lost," Dino complained. " Why doesn't this place come with a map? Or a GPS? Doesn't Tsuna think people will get lost in here?!"

Tsuna covered his mouth to stifle a laugh, but Dino had already turned around and saw him. His eyes widened and he stepped over to Tsuna in two long, quick strides.

" Tsuna, there you are! I've been looking all over for-"

" Yeah, I know, I've been following you for a while," Tsuna said, his faint smile starting to fall. Dino stared at him blankly, unable to comprehend what he'd just heard.

" You were following me all this time?" Dino said slowly.

Tsuna looked away and nodded, starting to feel a little cross with himself. God he sounds mad..how stupid Tsuna, just following him around like a-

" Way to be a jerk Tsuna! You just let me get lost, talking to myself like a maniac! What the heck," Dino pouted. " If you were gonna let me get lost, at least talk to me while you're doing it."

Tsuna stared at him in surprise before bursting into laughter, shocking Dino out of his pouting fit. Tsuna had a nice laugh, Dino thought. Too bad he doesn't do it more often.

" God, you're so weird Dino," Tsuna gasped.

" I prefer the term eccentric," Dino huffed crossing his arms. The two walked on down the hallway, and evey now and then Tsuna would look over to Dino, expecting him to break the concentration on his face and return him to the sitting room where his family and friends had been.

However, Dino didn't seem to realize Tsuna was still with him, even after encountering him just a few moments ago. Tsuna stared in awe at Dino, who face was creased in unbreakable concentration. The brunette was quite shocked; the elder's personality hadn't led to think he was capable of seriousness.

Tsuna cleared his throat and when Dino gave no response, cleared it again. The blonde looked up innocently, snapped out of his reverie, and grinned at Tsuna.

" Ah! I've gotta get you back to Reborn!" he said suddenly before Tsuna could speak. Dino quickly grabbed Tsuna's shoulders and began to steer him in the direction they came.

" You can navigate this place right?" Dino said quickly. " Because it's been nearly an hour and Reborn is-"

" Wait!" Tsuna said sharply and began to plant his feet into the carpet. " What were you thinking about?"

" Hm?" Dino said in surprise. " Work stuff, now come, or Reborn-"

" You said something about Accelerando," Tsuna said, easing off his feet and allowing himself to be directed. " Is that a new car?"

" Yeah," Dino said. " Left or right?"

" Right. Aniki, preferred Fortissimo himself," Tsuna said. " What's it like?"

" Well, it's gonna come in orange, yellow, red," Dino said looking around trying to memorize his surroundings. " Other colors too, but especially those. There's more to it, but it's jargon to most people. Do you know much about cars?"

" Nothing other than they're supposed to go," Tsuna said looking back at Dino with wide eyes. " Is it hard?"

Dino paused and stared down at him. " Is what hard? Dealing with Reborn? Because I can tell you, middle school-"

" No, no," Tsuna said shaking his head. he turned to face Dino, a serious expression on his face but his cheeks already turning pink. " Running a company like yours. Is it hard?"

Dino looked at Tsuna thoughtfully and replied, " Well, it all depends on what you're doing."

" What you're doing?" tsuna asked.

" Well sure," Dino grinned. " I love cars, whether it's because I just do or because I grew up in that environment, I don't know. But I love what I do and try to do it well in it in my own way."

Tsuna looked at Dino in shock, his breath caught in chest as he stared at the man in front of him. There was no difference from the Dino who was rushing him to Reborn a few moments ago and now. He looked the same. The same disheveled, lax appearance, same goofy, casual grin. But looking in his eyes, Tsuna felt that he seemed a lot older, more responsible even.

" Well Tsuna?"

" Huh?" Tsuna squeaked. " What?"

" What do you want to do?" Dino asked. " That's the question that made you run out right?"

Tsuna bit the inside of his cheek and looked away, his stomach turning flips at the question. Something he loved? Well, Tsuna loved a lot of things. His family, his friends, his cat, school, Reborn. But those kind of things don't keep a business running, and anything else he loved, he felt wouldn't be a suitable answer. Tsuna nearly jumped out of his skin at the feel of a hand on his head and looked up at Dino with wide eyes.

Dino smiled down at him and ruffled his hair, trying hard not to melt in front of the kid. Gosh, what kind of alien creature can make such a cute face? he thought.

" You don't have to tell anyone right away," Dino said gently. " It is your decision after all. Though if you don't mind my asking, why not just take over your old man's place?"

" Well, you said yourself, you should do something you love," Tsuna said slowly, removing Dino's hand from his head. " I like and respect his job, but..it's not my thing. I figured that out a long time ago."

" Tsuna!"

Tsuna jumped, nearly jerking Dino's arm out of place in alarm. Gosh, for such a timid, jumpy kid, he sure had a grip. Dino, looked down the hall and saw the girl from yesterday, moving quickly down the hall.

" Oh God, please don't carry my death warrant from Reborn," Dino said fearfully.

" It's just Kyoko," Tsuna said with a small smile. " Kyoko!"

The girl smiled and quickened her pace, reaching Tsuna and Dino in a matter of seconds.

" Tsuna, the others have been looking for you," she said. " I just got here and they seem pretty worried, so..." Kyoko trailed her eyes falling curiously to Tsuna's hand that still clutched Dino's. Shocked, Tsuna jerked his hand away -much to Dino's surprise- and raised his hands in defense.

" I-It's nothing strange, I promise!" Tsuna said quickly. " I was..uh-"

" It's fine Tsuna," she smiled. " It's harmless. Reborn waiting for, so shall we? Tsuna? Mr. Cavallone?"

Kyoko began to lead them away, closer to where Reborn and the others probably were. Dino couldn't help but stare at the girl in front of them, curious as to who she was and what she had to do with Tsuna. She wasn't a maid, she seemed far too refined. Not to mention she wasn't dressed for it. Could she be like the other boys, interns or the children of company executives within Iemitsu's company?

Dino glanced at Tsuna and nearly stopped dead in his tracks. The kid's eyes were different. Not apprehensive or nervous, but calm and somewhat warm. Following his gaze, Dino's eyes fell once more on Kyoko and he couldn't help but smirk.

" Someone have a crush I presume?" Dino said in a low voice.

Tsuna looked up shocked, his cheek slightly pink from embarrassment. " Wha-!" he quickly cut himself off and lowered his voice. " I do not!"

" Do to! I know love-sickness when I see it kid. they call me the Love Guru you know."

" I'm pretty sure they don't 'Love Guru'," Tsuna grinned. " I just like Kyoko, she's a comfort."

" Oh?" Dino said curiously.

" Yeah, she's like a rock for me," he said with a small smile to himself. " She's decisive, headstrong, independent, she's pretty great. She's practically my best friend, after Gokudera and Yamamoto of course."

" Hm." Dino felt a small nagging in the back of his head, but shook his head an ignored it. Somehow the nagging in his head had made him voice thoughts that hadn't crossed his mind before.

" Too bad you haven't got a girlfriend like that, you'd probably be a lot better off," Dino joked.

Tsuna burst out laughing, eliciting curious, yet amused gazes from both Dino and Kyoko. Continuing on their way, Tsuna managed to gather himself and grinned up at Dino. " Funny you should say that Dino. Why should I feel bad for not having a girlfriend like her when I have a fiancee that is her?"

Tsuna perceived the look of shock on Dino's face as innocent. After all, most people didn't know he had a fiance, so when they found out, they most often had similar reactions. Truthfully, Dino was shocked for the same reasons. Not to sound cruel, but he had never imagined someone like Tsuna getting along well with girls, much less having a fiancee.

Dino felt his initial shock was normal, but grew restless with the small voice in the back of his mind saying, " Ah, what a shame". Dino cleared his throat and didn't respond to what Tsuna said, averting his gaze so as to not look at either teenager. Tsuna look at the blonde, confused about his reaction and shrugged it off for what it was.

After all, this kind of reaction to Kyoko and him was normal.

Author's Note: Sorry, for taking so long to post this guys ^^" typically, I always write out most of it and then procrastinate the ending, forget it, and then remember it. It's a tragic process, but I manage to overcome it for one more chapter, so enjoy!

Seems like Dino is checking into his feelings a lot earlier than our little Tsuna~ 3

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