A/N: So uhh... Hi. I haven't updated in a long while, huh? Sorry bout that...

Lotsa things happened: there were times i just got lazy even if my head was screaming at me to write; another time where i got a certain disease which passed but still has some effects; and some other shit. Also cause i didnt wanna publish this until i completed the one after (and i did! :3 im also done with almost 1/3rd of the next of it).

Anyway, here y'all go!

Disclaimer: I dont own arcv


"Every single day is a good day, no matter how bright or dark it is, because it always brings an opportunity to start a positive beginning in your life."

-Edmond Mbiaka


A Few Days Later

Yuri and his brothers just entered the building of Leo Corp.

They said their goodbyes to one another and headed to their separate departments. They didn't do a race today because Yuto kept on sulking.

'Another boring day is about to pass,' Yuri thought and sat on his chair. 'Maybe I'll do something fun after today…'

He only thought of one thing and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't think of anything else. So, he took his phone and started texting someone before he started his day.

Some Bitch

Yuri: Good Morning,

Yuri: Wanna hang out tomorrow?


He put his phone down as he waited for her to answer.

And she did quite instantly.

Some Bitch

Some Bitch: cant gonna be with yuzu then & now

He felt a bit disappointed.

Yuri: You sure?

Some Bitch: yea. Dw, i dont plan to do anyth reckless

Yuri: You pwomise?

From her side, Serena sighed.

Some Bitch: I promise

Yuri: Damn, ok then…

Yuri: Bye…

Some Bitch: bye, ass


Yuri "sadly" put his phone down and tried to think of something else to do.

Then it clicked. He remembered what happened those other days, with Yuto—plus, the dance! He and his brothers could go look for something to wear for then. It was still a bit far, but it's better to prepare early.

He excused himself and went over to his eggplant-haired brother.

He was supposed to enter quickly but stopped himself and hid behind the door frame.

Where Yuto was, Yuri watched him mope. If he remembered correctly, this guy should be with Reiji, guarding him. Except here he was, sighing then gazing at the other side of the room as if it interested him that much. But there was nothing there.

All Yuto thought of was one thing: 'Why…?'

Yuri couldn't handle the pathetic sight of his brother; this was not him—not the Yuto Yuri knew.

'What could even bother him this much? This has been going on for days.'

At last, sighing, Yuri stepped inside. Putting on a cheery, smiling face, he said, "Hey, Yuto. Want to go out with the other two later, or maybe tomorrow?"

"No," Yuto answered, not even looking at him. "Maybe next time—"

"So tomorrow it is! Right? Right? Right?" Yuri persisted, not giving the other boy time to finish his reply.

Too tired to argue, the eggplant sat up and agreed. "Yeah, yeah. Sure." He put his arms behind his head and closed his eyes.

"Alright then, looking forward to tomorrow, brother!" Yuri responded with glee. "Just gonna ask Reiji-sama for permission."

"Oh, and stop moping—it doesn't suit you," Yuri couldn't help but tease.

"Was not!" He heard Yuto retort. He giggled and continued walking to Reiji's office.

On the way, Yugo passed by him. The former stopped abruptly and followed him. "Hey, Yuri, look at this program I made for the drone show!"

For context, Yugo planned to release some drones for the sake of impressing—Yuri believed—people, or perhaps, someone, at the dance. He wouldn't shut up about it for days, but when Reiji approved it, he finally went silent, because he was working on the program.

Now, after a lot of days' work, he seems to have finished it. "It should be fine now, though I still have to test it."

"Well go do it, then," Yuri said bluntly and shrugged. He continued to walk to Reiji's room, ignoring Yugo's frustrated and annoyed look.

"Unsupportive as usual." Yugo sighed, accepting it and walking away.

"Hopefully you won't break any of Reiji-sama's important drones in the process!" Yuri laughed. He then remembered. "Wait, Yugo!"

"What!?"

"Will you go out with us and Yuya tomorrow? We're gonna be trying to find some suits and other formal wear for the dance. Yuto already agreed, by the way."

"Hmm… Yeah, sure. I need a new outfit, anyway." Yugo shrugged. "Now I do have to test the code, so see ya later!" They both left to do what they had to.

Yuri finally arrived at Reiji's office. He knocked on the door and entered when Reiji answered, "Come in."

"Good morning, Reiji-sama," Yuri started brightly, closing the door. "I have a favor to ask." He clasped his hands together.

"What is it?" Reiji asked, but did not look at Yuri as he continued to examine something on his holographic RSV-enhanced tablet.

"If my brothers and I could have a day off tomorrow. I mean, we have been working hard the past few months. Plus, I decided we needed to get new outfits for the dance," Yuri explained.

Reiji closed the tablet and looked at him. "Yeah, sure. And before you do any of that, come here tomorrow—I'm gonna let you boys borrow something. Bring Yuya if you wish."

"Thanks! And maybe we will," Yuri responded a bit cautiously. "After all, you still haven't met him, right?"

"Yeah," Reiji knew them to be wary of anything concerning Yuya, refusing to talk or mention him while they were here. He never knew why, but it couldn't be anything of importance.

"Well, bye now! See ya whenever."

Reiji nodded and let him go.

'What could it be that Reiji will let us borrow,' Yuri wondered, walking away.


The Next Day

Yuri awoke and stretched his arms then let out a soft, morning yawn. He wondered why it was quite cold, but remembered that snow started falling a few days ago.

'The cold must be seeping into our apartment,' he thought. 'We ought to get ourselves some heaters soon…'

He approached his window and moved the curtains before taking a glance outside.

Lots of white snow covered the ground; the sidewalk barely seen. 'That much already?' He looked up to see that lots of snow was still falling.

It was slow, so chances of a snow storm happening was small.

Thinking he had enough alone time, he headed out of his room.

Annoyed to not see Yuto busying along downstairs, Yuri went over to the eggplant-head's room.

He entered without a single knock and said, "Hey, get up."

Yuto turned to his direction, still lying on his bed. He was already awake, but still he looked tired, as if he hadn't gotten any sleep at all. He also seemed to be listening to music by the presence of ear buds on his ears.

Tonight I've fallen and I can't get up…

I need your holding hand to come and pick me up…

He couldn't even look at Yuri for long before turning back to face the other side of his bed.

His interaction with Ruri some few days ago hurt him a lot to the point that he still hasn't recovered.

The song was right, he needed her very much right now. But it's not like he can go see her right away.

"Up," Yuri's annoying voice sounded demandingly into his room once again. "C'mon, you can't stay there moping all day."

Yuto sighed; his brother was right, and if he won't do anything, he'll just endanger them in some way. These thoughts made him forget that today, they were supposed to go out to the mall, as Yuri requested Reiji the other day.

Yuto sat up for a while and finally walked out of the room without a word.

Yuri noticed his gray eyes as he passed—they usually shone with life, even though Yuto wasn't amused that they worked so hard, but now, they were cloudy, with clouds like that of a storm cloud. Yuri wondered what had caused this to happen, as they shone even more after Yuto met Ruri.

'Maybe that's what's bothering him,' Yuri guessed. 'Something definitely happened between the two. Love can affect a lot of things, huh…' He knew too. He's happier whenever he's with that hot-head, Serena. And he can only imagine how angered or worried he might get if he found out she had done anything she wasn't supposed to or hurt herself… Again.

So maybe that is why—maybe Yuto did have a problem with Ruri. If so, he'll confront Serena when he can and ask her if she knows anything.

He has to know why Yuto was like this.

The sound of food being cooked distracted him from his thoughts, so he decided to go down stairs.

…not before waking the other two idiots—okay, maybe idiot only because Yuya was too precious to be one—up.

"Wake up dumbass"—he emphasized that part to make sure they knew he meant only one person—"and tomato-head. Time to go."

"Go where?" Yugo groaned.

"Please, we're supposed to be working today. If we were, you would've been late already," Yuri countered. "Now get up; we're going out."

Yuya mustered all of his strength and got up. He said a good morning to Yuri then left the room at once. Meanwhile, Yugo stayed still.

Yuri sighed, picked up a pillow, and slammed it to Yugo's face. He recalled Serena doing that to him one time when she still stayed in Dennis's place when he wouldn't wake up. (It worked.)

"Alright, I'm up!" Yugo shouted with a muffled voice and sat up. He then threw the pillow back to Yuri.

Said guy caught it with ease and threw it back to Yuya's part of the bed.

They finally went downstairs, not without giving Yugo a menacing grin and starting a little fight.


"Huh, why?" Yuto asked the purple cabbage.

The snow crunched under their feet. It had snowed a bit more since earlier, but it stopped falling for now. Hovercars also passed beside the sidewalk they're on every so often.

"Said he wanted to let us borrow something, that's all," Yuri responded. "I dunno what else."

"What could it be, though?" Yugo wondered out loud. His arms were behind his head.

"We'll know soon enough."

The four boys were walking to the Leo Corporation building to get whatever it is Reiji mentioned.

When they finally got there, Reiji's guards led them straight to his room.

"Ah, you're all finally here." He got up from his seat and went over to them. "Good morning to you all, and I reckon you're Yuya?" he asked the tomato.

"Uhh, yeah, I am. Are you my brothers' boss?"

"Yep. And the CEO of the whole company."

"Cool… but are you really their immediate boss? No one's higher than them before you?" Yuya added enthusiastically just to make sure, red eyes shining with curiosity.

"Yes, I decided that they're fit for their positions and have been doing very well," Reiji assured him. He then gave a small, barely visible amused grin. "And I heard from Yuzu that you have been a good guy to her as well."

"Y-You know Yuzu!?"

"I'm one of her older brothers, actually."

"But you have different… Family names!" Yuya couldn't really believe what Reiji was saying. Other than their names, they looked wildly different from each other.

"Well, it's up to you to believe it or not. And something… Happened which caused us to need to change our names. But even if that happened, we're still close to each other."

'Hm, so the three—Serena, Yuzu, & Reiji—are siblings, plus Rin and Ruri too, I guess,' Yuri thought. He knew all this before anyone but didn't say anything. They also had one more brother, but he forgot the name—if Serena ever told him before, anyway.

"Alright, let's just get this thing over with." He stood up and walked to the door. "Come on."

The four boys followed him.

He led them to an elevator which went straight to the basement.

In there, Reiji told them to follow him once again.

Yugo gasped, "Wow!" He knew Reiji was rich, but damn there were lots of vehicles here. "You have a lot of stuff!"

Reiji I stayed silent until the got to a certain car. "This," he began, "You can borrow." It was certainly an expensive car.

"Sure—" Yuri and Yugo started but got interrupted by Yuto.

"No," the eggplant-haired boy interrupted. "You can't, it looks expensive!"

"Oh, and it is," Reiji confirmed. "That's why I trust you four to take care of it."

"But—"

"I'm not giving it to you, I'm simply letting you borrow it," he repeated, "and only until a day after the dance."

Yuto sighed and was about to protest again, when Yuya tapped his shoulder.

"Hey," he called, "It's only for this time, and we're gonna give it back, anyway!"

"Oh, I'm actually… Fine with it." Yuto smiled. "It's those two"—he eyed Yuri and Yugo. Yugo tilted his head, not knowing what Yuto meant, while Yuri simply smiled innocently at him—"that I do not trust."

"Oh…"

"If it's the payment for any damages they may cause that you're worrying so much about,"Reiji began, catching their attention, "then don't worry. Whoever caused it just needs to do overtime for a while. No need to get money involved."

"Fair," Yuri said with a shrug.

"You only say that because you love your job," Yuto retorted.

"I do, so?"

"So are you four gonna accept it or not?" Reiji asked loudly. He had other things to get to. "This isn't the only thing I need to do today, you know."

Yuto looked at his brothers. He was still a bit reluctant—knowing well what Yugo and Yuri might do to or with the thing—but the other three looked like they wanted to accept it. And excluding Yuri, the other two had a begging glint in their eyes.

Maybe he'll just accept it. As long as he keeps guard of the thing, what could go wrong? Plus, they could finally have a means of transportation for once.

With a long, drawn-out sigh, he said, "…fine."

"Really!?" Yuya and Yugo asked in sync.

Yuto gave an amused smile. "Really."

"Thanks, Yuto!" Yugo ran to it with a grateful look on his eyes.

After examining the car and doing a test drive with Yuto and Reiji with it, the boys went off to the mall.


At the Mall

"No, no. You look like a waiter," Yuri commented, taking his hand off from under his chin and waved at Yuya.

"Yuri, this is the third," Yuya complained, going back to the changing room. "Plus, I can find one on my own!" he echoed from the room. "Why don't you try helping Yugo instead?"

"Guy can manage." As Yuri said that, Yugo came back with a ridiculous outfit. "My Ra you look worse than Yuya."

"Maybe if you actually helped me I wouldn't look so ridiculous!"

"Yuto can help you. He might not have the same fashion taste as I do, but it's good enough," Yuri said. "Speaking of which, where is he, anyway!?"

Yugo sighed. "Moping somewhere, just like all other days before this."

"Of course…" Yuri muttered angrily. 'I really have to talk to Serena.' "Fine. Let me help you."

"Finally!"

With Yuto

"…" Yuto silently listened to music through his ear buds. He sat down on a chair and was leaning on the wall.

As much as he knew he was supposed to be getting a suit or something, he was too bored and… tired to do basically anything, and that too included shopping with his brothers. Even the noise of the people around him and the sound of the mall and futuristic machines around him fell deaf to his ears.

His head was so high up in the clouds, that he didn't even notice a person approaching him. "Yo."

The person furrowed their brows. "Yuto," they called out more loudly this time.

This finally caught Yuto's attention, as he absentmindedly looked toward the person. He sighed and took an earbud off. "What are you doing here, Shun?"

"Eh? I was just going through the mall, of course. Maybe buy some things on the way… WHAT ELSE DO YOU THINK!?"

Yuto was startled by Shun's unexpectedly angry voice which made him almost drop his ear bud. "What's your problem!?"

"What's your problem? I just went to say hi because I saw you here; it'd be rude to just ignore you like you did to me!"

Yuto just realized what Shun was saying. "Sorry… My mind's been full lately."

"It's fine." Shun sighed. "Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really…"

"I reckon you haven't talked to your brothers about it either."

"No…" Yuto trailed off, looking away. He didn't want his brothers to know his problems.

"You have to let it out somehow, and I'm here to listen, so you can tell me—you know I can keep a secret," Shun assured.

Yuto sighed. "Fine. It's about a girl—"

"Ah, no wonder." Shun grins.

Yuto stood up. "I don't think here is the best place for this, let's go somewhere else." He walked away with Shun following suit.

"So what did this girl do to get you to act like this so much?" Shun asked, not even waiting to arrive at whatever place Yuto mentioned.

"She said we couldn't be together," Yuto muttered but loud enough for Shun to hear. The memory of the day shot a thorn to his chest as he recalled it. "She-She said it was because we had our siblings to support, and looking back, I second her."

"Then why still dwell in it?"

"Because something from the back of my mind tells me that that isn't—no, that that wasn't the reason why she left." Yuto wasn't sure, but he felt as if there were more to the reason of their break-up.

"Who is this person, anyway?"

"Her name was Ruri," Yuto said. "Ruri Kuro…saki." He looked at Shun. He just realized it: that Shun and Ruri might actually be siblings. 'Shitshitshit…!'

"Ruri?" Shun echoed. "Wait, does she have two-toned hair with an eye color of pinkish-violet?" he added.

"Ye-Yeah… Shun," Yuto gulped, "is she your…" He hoped not, "your sister?"

Shun's gaze suddenly turned stoic. "Yes." So what Ruri said was true. It was just hard for him to believe.

'More or less I'm dead,' Yuto thought, face suddenly as pale as a ghost in realization.

But Shun unexpectedly pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. 'What happened…?' "Tell me, though, what happened with you two?"

"Alright, first of all, are you mad? Because you look mad," Yuto questioned loudly and in a mildly defensive pose.

"Surprised, yes, but… I'm not really… Mad."

Yuto calmed down. "Alright…" he then explained what happened—what Ruri said, what he said and how he kind of regretted it but not really because of Ruri, and all other that's related.

Shun listened carefully and did his best to understand it. And he did understand why Yuto said and reacted the way he did, but what he didn't was why Ruri said all that in the first place.

She knew and they agreed when they found out that certain day, so then… Why? She also knew the consequence of not making the bond with Yuto, so, with a big headache, Shun asked himself again: why?

And because he himself knew the consequences, he pushed himself to encourage Yuto to forgive Ruri. All he had to do was wait for Yuto to let it all out, then he'll make his move and try.

It had been a while now, and they were eating some takoyaki.

"So she said it's because of your siblings?"

"Yeah… but if you're here, that means that she's not the only one providing for them, right?"

Shun looked down. "Yeah, but some… certain things in the past happened which caused them to not want help from me," "Nor Reiji," he added the last under his breath.

"What happened?" Yuto wanted to know. If Ruri actually had help, why wouldn't she take it?

"It's personal and family-related, so I'd rather not tell you, sorry…" Shun apologized

"She told me something like that too when we first went out—"

"How long have you guys been with each other, anyway?" Shun interjected. He knew, but he wanted to make sure.

Yuto thought about it. "Not that long, a month at most maybe." When he said that, he felt that he couldn't believe it. Has only a month, maybe even less, passed? It felt like a long time already with everything going on.

Shun's eyes glinted with suspicion. 'Only a month and already…?' He relaxed. "You know, you should go talk to her again."

"W-What?" Yuto didn't feel like talking to Ruri right now. He still felt bad, and with everything she said, would she still want to see him?

"Knowing Ruri, she'd definitely want to see you again," Shun said as if knowing his thoughts.

"Even… Even if she said all that?"

"Of course." Shun gave away a sigh before continuing, "Ruri is someone whose heart is so pure, she might seem dumb at times."

Yuto laughed. He hadn't gotten to know her all that well yet, so this was a bit new to hear. And with Shun mostly so serious, it was new coming from him, too. "I guess…"

"You can convince her—I know it. If she truly loves you, she'll want to talk again. And although she'll push you away, just keep on." He gave Yuto a reassuring nod. "You can do it."

The other boy sighed then stifled a small laugh. "Alright, I'll try." His face lit up with determination.

"Plus, I feel that… There was more to it than just her siblings," Yuto admitted. "That there's more behind her reason."

Shun narrowed his eyes. Although he wasn't there, he felt it too. "If she does tell you something more, please let me know."

"Sure." Yuto smiled. He'll convince Ruri somehow, no matter what it takes.

"Ah shucks, I'm supposed to be with my brothers…" Yuto realized. He was here supposedly to be with them and to find suits; how could he forget? "Sorry but I'll have to go with them.

"We better get back to them now, then," Shun agreed, getting up. "Let's go."

"Right behind ya," Yuto said, standing up himself.

He knew he and Ruri would be together again. This isn't the end yet.


With the Other Three

"Where the heck is Yuto!?" Yugo groaned. Yuri helped him a bit, but only a bit.

"He's still not here?" Yuri asked as he and Yuya carried a tray with their lunch onto the table.

"Yeah, I've sent him a bazillion texts already, and he's not answering my calls!" the banana-haired boy continued to complain, throwing his head back to the point of almost falling off his chair out of frustration.

Yuya put the tray on the table and sat down. "Don't worry, he'll be here soon," Yuya assured.

"But still! The drones didn't work so well yesterday, and I still have to fix some because I accidentally crashed them!" At that, Yugo waited for Yuri to go and make fun of him. But, surprisingly, the cabbage-head ignored him and seemed to be listening to his surroundings as if he noticed something they didn't.

Seeing that, Yugo shut up,and listened himself, not without taking a fry and biting down on it.

"But why do you look like her like, a lot!?" a faint voice asked.

"Because who you mentioned might be my sister, that's why! Now, please, leave me alone!"

"Ohhhh that's why even if you have pink hair, you still look like Serena a lot!"

"How do you know her, anyway!?"

At the mention of Serena's name, Yuri immediately stood up and went to where the voice came from.

"Hey, where ya going!?"

Yuri ignored Yugo's question and went on.

Not long after, he found Sora… and Yuzu.

The blue-haired midget seemed to be asking Yuzu about her sister, Serena. And he seemed to be doing so in the most annoying way possible.

"Sora?" Yuri interrupted Sora's stream of questions.

"Oh, hi Yuri-san! I was just asking Yuzu here about Serena."

"Yeah, I've heard. From afar. Could you maybe lower your voice next time…?" he warned the blue midget.

"Yuri? Do you know him?" Yuzu queried.

"He's my coworker," Yuri answered, not letting a second pass with each word. He just wanted to get this over with. "Isn't Serena supposed to be with you? She texted me earlier."

"Oh yes, she's just outside, keeping watch," Yuzu muttered the last part to herself.

Yuri's heart fluttered a bit at the mention of Serena being nearby. But though he wanted to go see her so bad, to the point that he wanted to fidget his foot out of excitement, he knew he was supposed to be with his brothers. "If so, why are you here?" But he also actually needed to talk to her about Yuto…

"I'm just gonna buy something; she didn't want to come inside."

"Oh…" Maybe next time.

"Is Yuya with you?"

"Yes—" before Yuri could even finish his sentence, Yuzu interrupted him, "Where!?"

"In the food hall—" With that, Yuzu dashed away. Yuri sighed.

"Hm? Your 'unknown' brother is here? Can I meet him?" Sora asked.

"No—"

"Okay, thanks!" Sora went on to follow Yuzu anyway.

'They-they're not listening—to me!' Yuri did an even deeper sigh and followed the two back.

Back with the other Yu's

"Yuya!" The tomato-haired boy heard a high-pitched voice call out. Is it one of his rare fans again…?

But lucky him because when he turned back, he was met with Yuzu running to him.

He stood up just in time for Yuzu to give him a quick hug and greet him. "Hi, Yuz'! Whatcha doing here?" he asked through a mouthful of food.

"Yuya, that the girl you've been always talking about?" Yugo asked through a sip-ful of soda.

Yuya nodded happily. "Nii-san, this is Yuzu. And Yuzu, this is one of my older brothers—Yugo."

"Nice to meet you." Yuzu held her hand out.

"You too." Yugo accepted the handshake. "Boy is my brother lucky, you look so hot!" he teased. "And—oOF!"

But was met with a hard fan-slap to the face, making him fall off his chair and spill his soda to the floor.

"Perv…" Yuzu murmured.

"Sorry, Yuzu! And I'm sorry, too, Yugo…" Yuya trailed off, sweat-dropping. He didn't know who to be sorry too.

"It's okay/It's fine," the two said in sync, but Yuzu added a glare to Yugo.

"Damn, you're just as violent as Serena!" Sora commented out loud as he approached them, much to Yuri and Yuya's chagrin.

Yuzu was a bit startled at the comment, but she stood her ground. "Nah, Serena doesn't need a fan to tell you what she means, much less words."

"All she needs is her fist and her fury…I should know," Yuri muttered, rolling his eyes. And he only said that cause he knew everyone here knew that he knew her.

Yuzu chuckled. "And what did you do to get punched?"

"Surprised her." He shrugged. "Wait, aren't you supposed to go back to her?" He eyed the plastic bag Yuzu had. It looked like it had some… Cans in it—colorful cans.

"Ah. Yeah, right… I should get going, then. Bye! Bye, Yuya, love you!"

"But I love you more~"

"No, I love you most~"

"No, I love you infinity!"

"Nah uh, I love you infinity squared times infinity!"

Yuri rolled his eyes. "Oh dear Ra, not here, please…"

But there went Yuya and Yuzu, flirting in an endless loop of "I love you"s and what not.

"They-well, they…"

"Yeah, that's love, Yugo." Sora sighed. "I actually find them cute."

"Cute!?" Yuri observed the two with great disgust. Sure, he's had relationships in the past—mostly for the sake of having a relationship but alas—but he never flirted like… like this.

Okay maybe once in a while he did too on purpose to make other people cringe.

Sora turned abruptly. "Oh, HI SHUN!" he screamed from the top of his lungs.

"Hey," greeted Yuto who was walking with Shun.

"Yuzu!?" the latter shouted with a look of great disbelief.

"Nii-sama!" she gasped in response. "H-hi."

"And I'll guess that that's Yuya," Shun uttered, eyeing said boy.

Yuri immediately went near Yuya, though he did his best to not make it look threatening. "Yeah, so?"

"Nothing, it's just that it's the first time I've seen him."

"Oh, right. Yeah, he's my youngest brother," Yuto mentioned. "Yuya, this is my best friend from work, Shun."

"Nice to meet you!" Yuya greeted.

'He doesn't seem to be as serious as Yuto and Yuri, though he probably has the same idiocy as Yugo,' Shun observed.

His silence made Yuya and Yuto's soul shake with a tinge of fear. Yuya because he's with Yuzu, and Yuto because he's with Ruri… And also cause Yuya was flirting with Yuzu.

"You too," he said slowly at last. "You seem like a nice guy."

"And he is!" Yuzu interjected. "And stop scaring their asses, big brother."

"And here I thought only Serena and Rin used foul words."

"Eh, Ruri and I too, sometimes." The way Yuzu talked to Shun oh so casually was somewhat alien to Yuto. Most of the people who talked to the former did so in the most respectful way they could. And Yuzu just…?

"Anywho," Yuri piped up, "we really have to resume our look for a good outfit and don't have much time to talk, so can we Yu's be on our way…?"

"Oh, sure." Shun nodded. "Y'all can go."

"Thanks. Yuya, Yugo, and I just finished eating. Yuto can get a snack later. See you! You too, Sora!"

"Bye, Yuri-sama!" the blue pineapple said, waving his hand a little too vigurously that Yuri half-expected Sora to lift that side of him off the ground.

"Bye to you both as well," he said smugly and with a bow. After that, he sprinted away.

'Tch. Childish,' Shun thought, brushing aside the fact that Serena was a bit childish as well. "Should I walk you home, Yuz'?"

"Nah, I'm fine. Serena and I were doing something, that's how I ended up here," Yuzu explained, "to buy more supplies."

Shun looked at the bag. He sighed and shook his head. "You know that part of my job is to arrest vandals, right?"

"Oh come on, you know the art she and I leave behind isn't trash."

"It's still vandalizing," Shun retorted. "But you're right; I'll let you both off the hook this time." 'If they think they're lucky to be my sisters, then they're absolutely right.'

"Thanks, nii-san!" Yuzu hugged him then let him go. "Not as good as Reiji but eh."

"Still comparing even if I'm the eldest out of all of you, huh."

"Please, it's a sibling thing."

"Right. Well, I'm off. Take care of Serena." 'Even if it's supposed to be the other way around…'

"Will do!"

With the Boys

Yuri was looking at Yuya proudly.

He finally found the "perfect" suit for Yuya and couldn't be more happier.

"Damn, you look so grown up!" Yuri commented, clasping his hands together. He also almost teared up looking at his little brother.

"But I'm already grown-up, nii-san." Yuya scratched his head with a sweat drop and looked at Yuri with a smile.

"Yeah, but you've always been the youngest, and now…" Yuri looked down, "You have a girlfriend and everything. You have your own job and are in college." 'And I couldn't be prouder.'

All the hard work he, Yuto, and Yugo did for Yuya proved to be fruitful, and he was glad that it wasn't all put to waste. Other than that, Yuya was his favorite brother.

When the tomato was born, he and the other two made a promise to protect him with their lives.

He even quit his bad ways when Yuya got involved; Yuya was also the reason he worked hard in his field as he had long accepted his mom's passing.

Speaking of her… what he and Yuto told their girls of how their mom died wasn't the real reason, but they had to tell them that—no matter how ridiculous, really—because how she died was confidential and was only told to him, his brothers, and dad.

His thoughts trailed off to: what if she, their mom was still with them now? Would she be happy with the start of their success?

He smiled. She would. She'd be very proud of them—her boys, her sons.

Yuri looked at his two other brothers, Yuto and Yugo.

"Are you sure I'll look good tomorrow!?" Yugo asked Yuto for the millionth time probably. 'Rinrin MIGHT be there, and I wanna make sure that I'll not look like garbage!'

"You look fine," Yuto insisted. "What's up with ya, anyway? You're never this insecure."

"Ah! You see…" Yugo wasn't the best at lying. "There'll be a lot of people there, and I don't wanna look like trash."

"That's the thing—most of the time, you don't care," Yuto pointed out. "And fuck cares what we look like, anyway? Yuri just dragged us into this; it's not like anyone we know will be there."

"Still…!"

Yuri approached them. "Does Yuya look fabulous or what?" he yelled at them, making a few eyes turn to their direction.

"Yuri…!" Yuya whispered warningly. "You didn't have to say it out loud!"

"Oh but why? I'm proud of my little brother!" He gave Yuya a noogie.

"Ack!"

"Huh, he does." Yuto smiled. "He looks… Different."

"I know, right!?" Yuri let Yuya go and shoved his face to the front of Yuto's, making him move back. "He looks like he's going to get married!"

"YURI!" Yuya yelled this time.

"What? I'm right."

"He is, to be honest," Yugo agreed, though he was looking at himself on a body mirror.

He then turned to Yuya. "Oh wait, do look handsome!" He placed an arm around Yuya and also gave him a noogie.

Yuya gave an exasperated sigh. He loved his brothers, but… they're just annoying at times.

Sometimes he wished to disown them, Yuri more so than the other two.

They all did their best to help him, though, so he still loved them too much to ever actually consider it.

Yuto looked at them smiled, and contemplated. Would they really be fine alone?

Would they still need him in the future?

He noticed that he thought too much about them. If so, is he the one that needs them? Can he… Can he even let them go their separate ways in the future?

And back to his own little world…

Is Ruri worth it at the cause of all this?

"Why don't we all just… Wrap this up and go home already?" Yuya asked, putting Yuto's train of thought to a sudden stop. Yuya also really just wanted to go away from all the staring eyes that felt as if they were burning his back.

"Aww, but you look so gorgeous!" Yuri whined. "I don't want to see you out of that just yet."

Yuto went over to try and talk him out of it. He also wanted to go as he already found a good suit. "But, technically, we still need to buy that, Yuri," Yuto explained. "That means he will need to take it off."

Yuri faked a pout. "Hmph. Alright, then."

"Finally we're going," Yugo said with a groan. "I still have the drones to work on. Come on, Yuya," he called, "let's take this off and buy them. And Yuri, since you're the one who forced us into this, can you pay? These seem expensive as heck."

"Only for mine and Yuya's," Yuri said with a wink. "You and Yuto can share."

"Fine." Yuto didn't even bother to argue anymore.

As the two walked further away, Yuri pushed Yuto to a different direction.

"Hey! Yuri, what—?"

"Shut up, I wanna talk to you."

When they got far enough, Yuri asked, "Alright, answer me, and be honest with it: Why do you keep sulking around and moping in your room lately?"

"What? What do you—what do you mean?" Yuto tried to defend.

"Don't think I've noticed? I'm not as oblivious as the other two, you know?" Yuri let him go and looked him in the eyes seriously.

"Well…"

"Well?"

"Look, you don't… Don't know and weren't there, okay? And this is private business," Yuto snapped and pushed him.

"Oh, private?" Yuri scoffed. "Pri-since when do we hide things from each other, Yuto!? We've always helped each other out and told any deep secrets."

Yuto looked back at him in shock. Yuri was rarely ever mad, and when he is, he's mad. Yuto then calmed himself down. There was no hiding from his brother. "It's different this time…"

"Yuto," Yuri began, "Anything 'private' or 'personal' was and always should be shared to the four of us. We're brothers, remember?"

Right. They were. And they didn't deserve to be not told anything. Worse, he was the eldest—he was whom they had left.

But, he didn't want to share his burdens with them. He started it, so the problem is his alone. "I'm sorry, Yuri. But this is just my problem. I don't want you guys to worry about me, okay?"

Yuri nodded. If Yuto wanted to keep to himself, then so be it. Better not to pry into him.

After all, he had a secret from Yuto of his own. And he wouldn't want anyone knowing about that, either. "Although not telling us would usually make us worry more… Fine. I understand."

"Thank you, Yuri." Yuto gave him a heartfelt smile.

"You're welcome. And hey, if you need to talk to anyone, I'm here. Don't rely on that idiot nor Yuya," Yuri added.

It was weird that all that came from the usually sadistic and heartless guy. But Yuto accepted it nonetheless—it's rare that Yuri is like this, anyway.

"Noted. Let's go now before they notice."

"Assuming they would."

"We're their older brothers…" Yuto sighed. "They're not that dumb."

"I doubt that with Yugo."

"Believe what you say, then." Yuto chuckled.


The Yu's stepped outside, ready to go to the car and go home.

It was cold. Yuri looked up and saw the snow—it was not falling anymore and the sky was more clear.

He smiled; it was a good day, so far.

"Alright guys, time to go home," Yuto called. "C'mon guys time to go!"

He led them to the parking lot to the car.

They put their things (plus some groceries) at the trunk and got in.

"You go to the front," Yuri told Yugo.

Yuto was the one that's driving. Yuri was at the passenger seat at the front earlier.

"What? I wanted to be there earlier, not now!" Yugo grunted. "Besides, why'd you even wanna be here?"

"Because I was at the front earlier."

"Guys, stop fighting. Yugo, just go sit at the front. Please, we all just wanna go home," Yuto prodded.

"Okay…" Yugo grumbled, getting to the front and shutting the door.

Yuto gave Yuri a tired look.

"What?"

"Did you have to?"

"As I said, I was there earlier," Yuri went on, "guy should be lucky I let him sit there in the first place—I don't usually allow that."

Yuto face-palmed. "Still."

"Um, not to bother," Yuya's muffled voice came from the car, "but when will we leave? I'm hungry… Again."

"Now, we're leaving," Yuto said with a sigh. "Hopefully Yuri won't continue bothering them for the rest of the trip." He gave said guy a short glare and entered the driver's seat.

"Hmph. I won't." Yuri himself also entered the car.

He pulled Yuya close and hugged him. "I'm so sorry, little brother—for causing you hunger."

"I-It's fine," Yuya choked. "But can you please let me go?"

"Oh, right." He let Yuya go. "But really? Do you not rejoice in your brother's embrace anymore?"

Yuya shrugged. "Well, I do, but now I'd rather… Not? I mean, you don't like hugs."

"Ah, but I haven't since we were younger, not just now," Yuri countered. He then noticed Yuya yawn. "Oh, sleepy already as well?"

"Yeah…"

"C'mon, lean on me," Yuri went on. Yuya did just that.

"Psh. Usual Yuri, babying Yuya," Yugo muttered loudly.

"Am not," Yuri retorted.

"No, really," Yuto agreed. He sighed as he thought of the next sentence. "You do know, that… One day, we might part ways, right? That one day, we'll live separate lives and do our own thing," "or raise or own families," he added under his breath. He then drove the car out of the parking lot and paid the fine.

"Yeah… That's why I relish in the moment now," Yuri said to him.

When he noticed Yuya was already fast asleep, he added, "Plus, we made a promise, remember? To our parents; for Yuya."

"Yeah," Yugo uttered, "that we will do anything to protect him and that we will care for him."

"But he doesn't need protecting all the time," Yugo continued.

"I insist," Yuri argued. "He's the youngest, he needs it." He grinned. "Plus, you're probably just jealous that I don't give you as much attention."

The banana-haired boy turned to him. "AM NOT!" he exclaimed in disagreement.

Yuto stifled a laugh. "I think he's right."

"Do you want some love too, brother?" Yuri asked Yugo in a mushy voice. "Come here," he declared, putting an arm out for Yugo for a hug.

"I said I'm fine!" He pushed Yuri away.

"Alright, then. If you say so." Yuri shrugged.

The car fell silent for a while.

Yuri turned to Yuya's sleeping form and hugged him closer. He purred contentedly—literally. Though he hated it, it was convenient as it was hard to tell whenever he's comfortable or happy, and this was a non-emotion related way that he couldn't hide.

Yeah, he was a little weird, even physically.

He continued to observe Yuya with much admiration.

He was proud of how far they had gone, including Yuya; he was doing well in school and his part-time job, and he even got himself a good girlfriend.

It wasn't really good, though—that Yuya had a relationship, especially in these trying times. But as long as they met at their jobs at the bar and spend as much time with each other there and not distract the other, he should be fine.

Yuri then thought of what Yuto said: that one day, they'll be living separate lives.

Was he ready?

Sure, he had no heart, except for Yuya, and only him—and maybe a certain cat-loving girl, too, if he would ever admit—but he felt quite… sad ever imagining seeing them go.

And so, while he can, he'll protect Yuya with his life, just like he, no, they promised.

Yuya was the most precious thing in their lives, and they will continue to believe that until their life says otherwise.


A/N:A forewarning, the chapter after this is... long. And i don't rlly know when the next update'll be, just hope it'll come soon.

Lastly, I thank all those who still stuck with me after all this time. I'm rlly grateful for u guys. Also to any who commented and favorite'd!

Bye, now! Cya whenever!
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