Chapter 12: Confusion
Yuu approaches the movie theater to find Yoichi waiting there, shifting from foot to foot anxiously. I'm not late, am I? He takes a quick look at his phone, he's actually five minutes early for once. "What's up Yoichi? You haven't been here long, have you?"
Yoichi startles and turns to him, relief filling his features. Yuu immediately finds himself on the receiving end of one of the shorter brunette's hugs, "No Yuu, you weren't late at all! Sorry I had to reschedule on you last minute!"
"Uh...it's fine?" Yuu responds, patting his back awkwardly. "...Are we going in?"
"Ah sorry!" He jumps back with a faint blush, "I'm just happy you still came."
"Of course, I said I would." Yuu follows after the other boy inside, pondering quietly. Yoichi's weirdly nervous and jumpy today, it's kind of freaking him out. He's usually so easygoing and soft spoken, this much edginess is an unfamiliar side of him. "Did you decide on a movie?" Yuu questions to fill the semi-awkward air.
"No, anything's good with me, so I figured you could pick."
"Okay," his eyes skim over the movie titles, finally settling on a comedy. "What about that one?"
"Sounds good to me, I like comedies."
Yoichi leads him to the concession line and suggests getting a large popcorn to share and separate drinks, it sounds good to him so they split the cost and head to their seats. He lifts the armrest between them for easier access to the popcorn for both of them and Yoichi scoots closer until they're almost shoulder to shoulder. That's...weirder…
Yoichi is his friend, so it's not too uncomfortable, but it's unusual and he doesn't feel like making things more awkward by telling the other boy to move over. They haven't hung out in a while, it's probably just Yoichi being friendly. At least, that's what he tells himself as he forces his body to relax, it's only for two hours.
...Which turns out to be a lot harder than he thought. The intimacy of another person being this close to him isn't anything new anymore, but the person being someone he's not eager to return the feeling with, is. Yoichi seems to be enjoying the movie if the amount of laughter is any indication, but every time the vibration of Yoichi's laughter runs through his body or the brunette presses closer to whisper something in his ear, he can't help feeling he's doing something wrong.
A slight niggling in the back of his mind that won't leave him alone throughout the whole movie. Spending time with a friend shouldn't feel like this. It never has before and he can't figure out what's changed. Himself? Maybe his awareness of the closeness of another body? Whatever the feeling, it's enough to keep him on edge the entire time.
"Did you like the movie?" Yoichi questions him as they head towards a cafe.
"Yeah, it was good."
"What was your favorite part?"
"Uh...the scene with the guy and...he fell?"
Yoichi laughs quietly, "It's okay, Yuu. I could tell you weren't really paying attention."
"Sorry, I had a lot of things on my mind."
"Like what?"
"Nothing much, just some stuff with Guren," he lies.
"Oh, is now a bad time? We don't have to get food."
"No! No, it's fine. I'm not going to let him ruin the day."
Yoichi gives him a wide smile, "Thanks Yuu. You know, you've really changed."
"What do you mean?"
"You haven't been around much, so it seems sudden, but you seem...older. I don't know, not as clueless, like you understand more. You show more emotions than before, it's nice."
"Thanks?"
"You're welcome," he replies simply, leaving Yuu confused.
If he actually seems 'older,' the only reason he can think of is all the time he's been spending with Mikaela and occasionally with his friends too. But, even with that, they've always treated him like a kid and that's never changed. If anything, he feels younger than before compared to their age and experience.
Emotionally, though, maybe he has grown a little. After all, with all the sexual interest in Mikaela combined with the storm of emotions the other boy drags out of him, he had to figure out some way to deal with it all. If only they knew how far he's moved from a 'cherry boy' now, they'd all be shocked. He's a little shocked himself. They've gone...fast, really fast and now here he is considering going all the way. When did that happen?
"I didn't mean to worry you, Yuu. Forget I said anything."
"Huh?" He questions blankly.
"I told you that, but now you look worried and that's not what I meant. I just thought it was nice."
"Oh, don't worry. It's fine. You just made me think of something, I guess I have changed some and I'm just now starting to realize it."
"Well, don't change too much, Yuu. I like you how you are," the brunette replies with a smile and squeeze to his hand before pulling open the cafe door for them and heading inside.
Yuu subtly wipes his hand on his shorts and steps in after him, They order before picking a corner table near the back to settle in. Yoichi excuses himself briefly and Yuu takes the chance to get a break from the weird atmosphere and see what Mikaela's up to. Unsurprisingly, he has several messages from the blonde ranging from sweet, 'I miss you, come back soon' to when he clearly got bored, 'do you still remember the taste? ;) ;) .'
He rolls his eyes and sends off a quick response, 'hey to you too. Yeah, i remember the taste, it makes me want to throw up!' Let Mika enjoy that response for shoving his dick down his throat. Yuu abruptly shoves his phone back in his pocket before Yoichi returns, even the thought of what happened is making his face burn, there's no way he's going to try and explain that.
Their food arrives at the same time Yoichi does, still beaming at him and if anything looking happier than before he left. Fortunately, he sits on the opposite side of the table this time and there aren't anymore fleeting touches or whispers. Things have fallen back into the familiar.
"How did it go with Kimizuki?"
"How did what go with Kimizuki?" Yoichi questions, looking at him with furrowed eyebrows.
"With the person he liked."
"You know," the brunette begins, thoughtfully. "No one ever told me who it was that he liked. So I'm not sure if he confessed or not."
"That jerk. He's always talking shit about me, but when it comes down to it, he's a coward!"
"Yuu...it's not easy to confess to the person you like. It's understandable to be afraid of rejection."
"Don't try to defend him, Yoichi! He's all talk."
"Okay," he sighs. "But, don't tease him too much. It really is difficult." Yoichi flashes him a warm smile, "Not everyone is lucky enough to find a person that likes them back."
"Yeah…" Yuu mumbles, thinking back to a certain blonde. Will I be one of the lucky ones?
"Anyway! We should do this again soon, Yuu!"
"Yeah! It was great," he answers, forcing himself not to recoil at Yoichi's second hug. He'd thought the touching was over for the day.
Yuu lets out a sigh, reaching for his phone as the brunette departs after another wide grin. Surprisingly enough, Mika still hasn't responded. He raises the phone to his ear and only hears one ring before it switches to voicemail. What's with that?
~~~~~
"Yes, it's going great, Shinoa! Thanks for encouraging me to ask him out!"
Mikaela burns with anger as he strikes out at his opponent, being gentle the farthest thing from his mind. Everytime he remembers, his fists clench involuntarily and he lashes out harder.
"Yea, I think he knows it's a date, we even shared popcorn!"
"..."
"No, I don't think I'll tell him just yet. Maybe after another date when I can tell what he's thinking. I gotta go now, our food's here. Bye!"
"I give!" His opponent yells from the mat, raising his hands in defeat.
"It's best two out of three."
"Yeah, but-"
"Mikaela, give him a break," another voice cuts in. He turns to see Ferid watching him in amusement. "No one wants to fight against you. Karate is about self control and you're not exhibiting any."
"But, what else am I supposed to do?"
"Go hit a punching bag if you really have that much anger to get out. Or we could go to my office and talk, if you prefer."
"And I can use you as a punching bag?"
"Of course not," Ferid chortles. "If you even could. Take a break."
Mikaela glares at the back of his head before wiping the sweat off his face with his towel and laying back on the mat to stare up at the ceiling. How could Yuu do that? At first he was angry and he still is, but now the sadness and betrayal are starting to creep in.
Through the cafe window, he could see Yuu sitting at a table and that was all he saw. Or it was until he opened the door to join him and his eyes found the brunette sitting across from Yuu. The brunette he was pretty sure had a small crush on Yuu if he was reading the signs correctly. He had seemed a little protective the few times he'd seen him in person and right then...well you don't smile like that at just anyone. At that point, he wasn't sure whether to approach anymore, Yuu never mentioned if his friends knew about them or not. It didn't matter long though, the brunette had excused himself to take a phone call and he couldn't help listening in.
The evidence against Yuu was incriminating. And then, a familiar buzzing in his pocket. Yuu was actually texting him while Yoichi was gone. It was humiliating to realize Yuu was only messaging him because his date had stepped away. He didn't bother to respond, anything he said would have been unforgivable with his current feelings of devastation. Instead, he went to the dojo to practice himself into exhaustion.
I dated another cheater.
A solid weight settles on his stomach and he glares up at Lacus' unimpressed expression, not in the mood for the purple haired boy's signature brand of humor. "Get your fat ass off me."
"I take it something happened with you," he replies, ignoring the order.
"The only thing that happened is me trying to hold back from punching you."
"So what did he do?"
"..."
"Hurry up and tell me. You know you're going to eventually."
"He cheated."
"Yuu did? Are you kidding me? The kid's absolutely infatuated with you."
"Apparently that doesn't mean much," he grumbles back.
"You probably misunderstood. What did he say?"
"I'm not gonna talk to him! If we're through, I'm not wasting my time listening to excuses!"
"So, how'd you find out?"
"I saw him at a cafe on date with his brown haired friend."
"Friends having lunch."
"They also saw a movie and shared popcorn before."
"That's...suspicious."
"Plus Yoichi even said it was a date."
"Hmm…" Lacus gives him a firm pat to the side of his face, "Well at least you'll always have me and Rene."
"Lucky me," he mutters.
"Don't devalue our friendship! We put up with all your shit, remember?"
"You're right," he sighs. Rene and Lacus are always there for him, no matter how reluctant they are. They're honestly the best friends he could have made in college. They were welcoming to him in their own way when they found out he was new to the city, showed him around, and helped him find the best snack places.
Lacus stands and reaches down a hand for him, "Probably not the best time to mention this, but I told you this was a bad idea from the beginning."
"You're right again," he replies, ignoring Lacus' hand to stand up on his own. "Your timing is shit."
"I try. So what's the plan for tonight?"
"What do you mean?"
"You're heartbroken and me and Rene are free."
"So what, you're offering?"
"I'm not opposed to that, but you have messy emotions right now and Rene doesn't want to get in the middle of it, so no. I'm just offering to keep you company."
"Fine, I'll take what I can get."
"Great," Lacus throws an arm over his shoulders. "By the end of the night, you'll have forgotten all about your ill fated romance and maybe you'll have found an of age interest."
"Clearly the age has nothing to do with it," he remarks with a scoff.
"Hmm...yeah. I guess you just have shit taste. You should let me and Rene pick next time. We've never hurt each other."
"Or maybe I'll just leave the relationships at the door, who needs that right now."
"Like you meant to do with Yuu?"
"No."
"Face it, you need to have strings. You can't deal without it. You care too much and that's why you'll keep getting hurt if your tastes don't change. How about a switch this time?"
"Mika doesn't like bottoming," Rene answers, joining their group. "So, that wouldn't work either."
"He could date a girl."
"Not interested."
"You're too picky. Hey!" Lacus suddenly squeezes him closer. "Ferid," he whispers.
"Hell no!"
"I'm just saying you wouldn't have to worry about anything with him, purely pleasure."
"You know what, guys? I'll just stay single," Mikaela responds, shrugging Lacus' arm off.
"Fine, but don't complain to us later."
He nods, what else is there to say? He'll get over it, he doesn't have any other choice.
~~~~~
Yuu glares at his phone for the tenth time in an hour, yet it remains clear of any notifications from Mikaela as it has been for the past week. It makes no sense, a week ago they were fine. He said goodbye and now...radio silence. The blonde hasn't replied to a single text message or call. He'd even stopped by his apartment several times to check on him, but there was never any answer.
He's frustrated and Shinoa and Kimizuki's constant taunting about how often he's been checking his phone is starting to wear thin. He knows he's been checking it a lot, but what else is he supposed to do when there's never any response.
Neither Mikaela, nor his friends showed up to the dojo and when he'd asked, all he caught was a cryptic smile from the silver haired instructor. He had almost been desperate enough to ask Narumi if he'd seen Mikaela, but the other man never seemed to warm up to him after that first practice.
He's been moody the last few days and he's sure everyone can tell, especially Guren who unfortunately picked this week of all weeks to be on vacation. So, as much as he'd like to sulk in his room or on the couch all day without anyone knowing, he can't because Guren's always there. Kicking him off the couch or yelling at him to go outside and get over whatever's wrong. If he could just have a single day without someone badgering him, he could deal with everything, but the constant questions are driving him insane.
And now he has to third wheel on Guren and Shinya's 'date,' even though the older male claims it's not one. He's well aware that Guren is only forcing him to come along so it doesn't seem like one and Guren can deny it. He's definitely being used, although it's also free food and with any luck, he can be invisible for most of the meal.
As invisible as he is to Mikaela right now. Yuu frowns, thoughts circling back to his current unresolved problem. Am I ever going to find out the truth? The best thing to do would probably be to just move on, there's plenty of people in the city and maybe take things a bit slower next time, really find out who they are so this doesn't happen again.
"What's with the frown? You like this place, I asked you."
"The place is fine," Yuu answers, shrugging Guren's hand off his shoulder, he doesn't really want to be touched right now. "I'm just thinking."
Guren glares down at him, mildly offended. "What's with you lately? All you do is 'think.' It's summer break and you've been slumping around the house for the past week. Did you fight with one of your friends? I haven't seen them around causing trouble lately."
"It's nothing," Yuu insists, "Can we just go? I'm hungry."
Yuu speeds up to encourage Guren to hurry up and has to backtrack immediately when he catches sight of his friends. Shit. He'd forgotten they'd invited him out tonight. He doesn't get more than two steps back before Guren breezes past him with a backwards leer and approaches their table.
"Okay, spill it. Which one of you brats messed with my brat?" Guren stares them down in annoyance, he's starting to lose patience with Yuu's constant state of aggravation recently.
"Guren! Mind your own business!"
"When you sulk around the house all day like a sloth, it is my business."
"Us?" Yoichi questions. "Did we do something, Yuu? We all assumed you were angry at Guren."
"We haven't even had a chance to do anything," Mitsuba adds, shooting Yuu a dirty look. "Don't blame your issues on us."
"I never said anybody did anything!"
"Then what's wrong with you?"
"Nothing! I'm fine, just peachy, wishing all of you would back off."
"So, when we go home, you won't sit there looking like a kicked puppy?"
"Am I not allowed to think? Is it too much to ask to be left alone while I think?!"
"If that's what you were doing, fine. But, it's not. You look like you got your heart crush-"
"Maybe, you're all what's wrong with me? Maybe I'd feel better if you all just left me alone!"
Guren takes a warning step towards him and then Shinya steps in seemingly from nowhere, grabbing him by the shoulders, and steering them away, "We're going to have a quick talk."
"You can't take my goddamn son, Shinya!"
"Be right back, I promise! I don't want to miss our date either," Shinya adds with a wink.
"Where'd you come from?"
"I was on my way to meet you guys when I saw you trying to escape your friends," he chuckles. "Then I heard you all start arguing and figured you might need a little help.
"I don't want to talk to you either, Shinya." Yuu protests as he's steered towards the other man's car.
"Is this about Mikaela?"
He stiffens immediately, "No."
"Are you sure? Because it kind of hit me when Guren said you looked like you got your heart crushed and that's when you really started yelling."
Yuu frowns, but takes a seat in the car, waiting until Shinya gets in and starts driving to confess. "He dumped me."
"Dumped you?" Shinya gives him a quick glance. "You said you weren't together."
"We weren't," he answers, helpless to stop the tears starting to leak out. "But no calls, no texts, no answer at his apartment. He even skipped lessons at the dojo!"
"Ah...I see."
"You don't have to tell me again that I should have left him alone. I already know."
"I wasn't going to say that right now."
"The worst part is I can't even be sad or cry about it because then people will ask questions and no one knew about him anyway! I'm not about to get yelled at over something that's already in the past!"
"I don't think Guren would yell at you now if you told him the truth."
"Ha! Then you don't him that well yet," Yuu retorts, swiping a few tears away and turning to look out the window at the changing scenery. "He'd probably tell me I got exactly what I deserved and he'd be right."
"Maybe it's all a misunderstanding. If you really liked each other like you said, I'm sure he wouldn't just dump you," Shinya reasons.
Yuu turns to him suspiciously, "Why are you defending him now? You were the one telling me to break it off."
"How will telling you that help anything at this point?"
"It wouldn't…"
"Exactly. I don't know what he's thinking, but you said you trusted him and he hasn't ever hurt you, right?"
"Right?"
Shinya gives him a side eye before focusing back on the road. "Then I'll take your word for it and assume he's not a bad guy. I won't tell Guren and hopefully you figure out what happened soon."
"Thanks Shinya."
"But, if it turns out he is, I'm going to kick his ass for taking advantage of you when I see him."
"He didn't take advantage of me!"
"He never touched you in any way?"
"Uh…" In a lot of ways…
"That's what I thought, so yes I will kick his ass and it'll make me feel better about not stopping it too."
"So it's because of your own guilt?!"
"Maybe and because he preyed on you."
"...You're making everything sound a lot weirder than it was."
"Uh huh."
"Seriously! Everything was normal."
"I doubt you know what normal is, but if you say so. Feel better?"
"Yeah." And surprisingly he does. It doesn't hurt any less knowing that he's been dumped, but not having to hold it all inside does wonders for his mood. He trusts Shinya not to tell Guren anything, in fact the other man isn't so bad. He relaxes in his seat and smiles, "No wonder you were able to get Guren to like you."
Shinya smirks back at him, "I do have a certain charm, don't I?"
Yuu hums thoughtfully, "Although after this, Guren may ban you from the house."
"And if he does, since I was helping you, I expect your help in fixing it."
"No promises."
"You are so much Guren's kid," Shinya sighs.
Yuu laughs as Shinya drives them back towards home, their date effectively ruined. "You know, if you really want to stay in his good graces, you should pick up food since you did stand him up."
"Huh...good idea."
"Burgers would be best."
"Guren doesn't like those."
"I do."
"I think I've reached my quota on helping you for the day. Now, it's about helping me."
Yuu nods as Shinya stops at an Italian restaurant, opting to stay in the car while he goes to order. He pulls his phone out and skims through the messages, concern from Yoichi, taunting from Shinoa, and threats from Guren. Still nothing from Mikaela. Not that he expected anything anyway.
"Don't make that face, you're supposed to be moving on." Shinya places a small bag in his lap.
"What's this?"
"Your food, I doubt you want to sit at the table with us."
"You're the best! Guren really should keep you around!"
"Be sure to tell him that," Shinya replies drily.
Despite talking it out with Shinya, he still doesn't want to face Guren or be scolded for his scene, so the minute he steps in the door, he escapes to his room and thankfully Shinya runs interference for him. I've got to do something to thank him.
~~~~~
"Whatcha doing, Yuu?!" Shinoa questions loudly from behind him, shoving him in the back, and announcing his presence to the room.
"Nothing! I was about to go in."
"Were you? Because it looked to me like you were hiding outside the door. Ashamed after your little hissy fit?"
"I did not have a hissy fit and I wasn't hiding." Yuu denies despite the fact that hiding is exactly what he was doing. It's not that he didn't want to go in, he agreed to come over. He just wanted to get a feel for the room first.
"Sure you didn't. And your dad's boyfriend didn't have to drag you away either," Shinoa counters with a roll of her eyes.
"I came, didn't I?"
Ignoring her reply, he steps into the room, and greets everyone before taking a seat on the couch across from Kimizuki who already looks pissed off. His frown only deepens when Yoichi takes the seat next to him on the couch. Yuu glares back at him, it's not his fault Yoichi chose to sit there, maybe if Kimizuki wasn't all talk, he'd have confessed already and the brunette would be sitting next to him instead.
Yoichi gives him a bright smile and settles in next to him. "Do you feel better now?"
"Of course or I wouldn't have come."
"And I'm sure we all would have survived just fine."
Yuu's eyes lock onto the pink haired male's gaze, "The hell is your problem, asshole?"
"You! You just waltz back here depressed as fuck and make everyone, especially Yoichi worry and fuss over you."
"I didn't tell them to worry about me, I'm fine!"
"Yeah right Yuu, you've been sulking since you walked in the door. You're terrible at hiding anything."
"Hey! I came to hang out with you guys!"
"And Shinoa only wanted us all hang out to cheer you up!"
"Or maybe we're here because we're friends!"
"Oblivious as always, it's really starting to get old, Yuu."
"Your stupidity is starting to get old too!"
Kimizuki snorts, "Only one of us is stupid and it's not me."
"Enough!" Mitsuba cuts in with annoyance. "Will you two grow up already? Yuu, you are stupid and Kimizuki is too, so neither of you have any right to talk."
Yuu scoffs and leans his head back against the couch, shutting his eyes to block out Kimizuki's murderous look. He doesn't know why the other boy's so mad at him, he hasn't even been around! His inability to confess to Yoichi has nothing to do with him. That's between them.
A hand slips atop of his own and Yuu pauses, eyes opening and flicking between the other boy's face and their hands uncertain of what to do. A quick squeeze and his eyes lock onto Yoichi's who's giving him a reassuring smile. There's only one hand he wants on his and it's not this one, Yuu thinks, fighting down the urge to pull his hand away.
"I'm glad you feel better, Yuu."
"Yeah," he forces out, "I just needed to think through some things."
"Anything I can help you with?" Yoichi questions, glancing up at him through his eyelashes and Yuu's eyes widen as realization starts to hit him. The brunette is giving him a look similar to the flirty ones Mikaela gives him when he's up to no good. Fuck.
"No...um...I'm good?" Yuu mutters, breaking eye contact to look anywhere else.
"Yuu," Yoichi squeezes his hand again to bring his attention back. His glances back to grass green eyes to see Yoichi giving him a knowing smile, "It's okay, I'm pretty new at this too, we can figure it out together."
"Are you flirting with me?!" Yuu blurts out louder than he intended and Yoichi leans back, blinking in surprise with pink coloring his cheeks.
"Uh y-yes?"
"He finally figured it out!" Shinoa exclaims with a smirk. "Took him long enough."
"I thought…" Yuu trails off as he catches sight of Kimizuki's pursed lips from the corner of his eye. He really is an idiot. All this time he thought they liked each other when really Yoichi liked him and Kimizuki never confessed because he knew Yoichi liked someone else. Then he stupidly encouraged them both to confess.
Kimizuki's dirty looks are starting to make a whole lot more sense now.
"You thought what?" Yoichi asks patiently.
"Um...that you liked somebody else."
"Nope," he replies with a grin. "It's been you. I'm glad you finally realized it."
"Seal the deal," Shinoa urges, whipping out her phone. "Show him who's in charge, Yoichi."
The brunet shakes his head good naturedly and fixes his green gaze on Yuu, "I don't know what Shinoa's talking about, but I would...really like to kiss you now."
No no no. If only Yoichi hadn't picked now when they're surrounded by everyone to confess. No matter how he does it, he's going to look like a jerk for rejecting Yoichi in front of everyone, especially after encouraging him.
Yoichi leans forward and he does the only thing he can, turn his head and shift away. "Yuu?"
He thinks about his words carefully, previously he would have said he wasn't interested without a second thought, but now...after having his heart tugged so many times by Mikaela, he has a lot more sympathy for people with unrequited feelings. After all, he's one of them now and it feels terrible. The last thing he wants is to make Yoichi feel the same way he does. The least he could do is let him down gently which is a lot more than he got.
"You're my friend, Yoichi and um…" Yuu rubs the back of his head awkwardly, "I don't really want to kiss you?"
There's silence in the room as all eyes, even Kimizuki's, turn to them and he watches as Yoichi turns an embarrassed shade of red, eyes darting around the room when he quickly pulls his hands away. "Oh okay, Yuu. I thought...I mean...I think I'm gonna go home now."
Yuu nods silently when Yoichi pushes away, hurrying out the door without a backwards look or a goodbye to anyone. Kimizuki shoots him a dirty look before taking off after him. What's that look for? He should be thanking me.
"What the hell was that, Yuu?" Mitsuba whips around to stare at him. "You just hurt one of your best friends!"
"I didn't mean to! But, I mean, I don't like Yoichi that way."
"You went on a date with him!"
"No, I didn't!"
"The movie? Lunch?"
"That wasn't a date."
"This is why I say you're an idiot!"
"I'm not the idiot! Maybe people should just say what they're thinking instead of assuming I'll get it!
"We shouldn't have to spell it out for you, we all knew how he felt about you!"
"Except me!"
"This is going to make everything so awkward now," Shinoa muses outloud.
"The fact that Yuu just crushed Yoichi in front of all of us? Yeah."
"But, now Kimizuki has a chance, so isn't it kind of good?"
"Yoichi liked you though, not Kimizuki."
"I think I figured that out by now, Mitsuba. I mean now he'll be able to see Kimizuki's feelings and maybe he can give him a chance."
"Like you gave Yoichi?"
Yuu lets out a frustrated sigh, "That's different, it's...complicated."
"You're never complicated, Yuu."
What to say... Yuu debates internally for a few seconds on what to tell them, enough to satisfy them, but not enough to reveal certain details. "The thing is, I kind of already like someone at the dojo."
Mistuba stares at him surprise, "You do? Why haven't you mentioned him?"
"It's not going anywhere. I said I like him, not that he likes me back or anything. But, it wouldn't be fair to Yoichi if I tried to do date him when I wanted to be with someone else."
Amber eyes look him over speculatively and Shinoa gives a low whistle, "Wow Yuu, whoever it is, they've changed you. Is this what's been happening in all the time you've been away?"
"What?"
"You've like, grown up," Shinoa gestures to him. "Emotions for you used to be happy and angry, now you think and have compassion. You actually tried really hard not to hurt Yoichi's feelings instead of just turning him down. It's surprising, but I guess I can let your rejection of Yoichi slide."
"Gee, thanks."
"My pleasure," Shinoa replies with a bob of her head.
"I'll let it go when I see the guy."
"What?!"
"Oooo good idea Mitsu!"
"No, it's not! Why do you have to see him?"
"As your friends, it's only right that we know."
"And help you get together!" Shinoa adds.
"No! I don't need any help from you guys. I'll figure it out on my own!"
"Nonsense, what are friends for?" She exclaims with a sadistic smile.
"Seriously, no thanks!"
"Anyway, since you disastrously ruined our night, party's over. Go home so we can make plans."
"Please don't do anything, I swear I'll hunt you down if you do!"
"I won't be hiding," she gives him a wave and points to the door.
Yuu grabs his bag and heads to the door, cursing quietly. He's fucked if they find out about Mikaela. And Shinoa will definitely have a lot of words for the other boy if she discovers what happened.
Even without being around, Mikaela's still causing him trouble. I can cover this! Yuu reassures himself. Mikaela hasn't been at the dojo and if he just keeps his distance from everyone there, they won't have a clue who it is or who to ask. Shouldn't be too hard, just can't let my guard down.