Disclaimer: I don't own Beelzebub.

I can't tell you what it really is,
I can only tell you what it feels like.
And right now there's a steel knife in my windpipe.
I can't breathe but I still fight while I can fight
As long as the wrong feels right.

"Love The Way You Lie" – by Eminem

Chapter 12: Men's talk

"In the end, they think that you and Hilda-san are in some kind of a relationship…" Furuichi pondered, "… in that kind of a relationship."

Oga scowled at his best friend. After the incident in the classroom, he was held back by Furuichi on the void hallway. The silver-haired sensed that something was wrong with Oga so he forced the latter to resume the conversation from a few minutes ago.

Seeing his angry face, Furuichi shrugged. "Don't give me that look! Sooner or later, they would bother you with gossip and odd glances like that."

"Gimme a break!" Oga closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall.

"You don't get it after all…" Furuichi sighed. "It's totally worth questioning it for the audience. I mean, the Oga Tatsumi being close to a female for the first time…"

"Kunieda's hanging out around us, too…" Oga stated and wondered, why people weren't so fevered about that fact.

"That's another matter." Oga looked at that half-interestedly and Furuichi explained further. "It's Kunieda-san who's coming after us… or after you. But in Hilda-san's case… it's almost the other way round…" Furuichi risked earning a smack for the last part.

However, he was surprised that he didn't get any and continued.

"You may get mad at me to hear this, but…" Furuichi gulped and let the cat out of the bag. "If I didn't know you better, I'd say that you l-like… or even-…"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Oga prevented him from finishing his sentence. His tone wasn't loud but serious enough to make Furuichi wince. "I don't have time for shit like that…!"

Silence filled the room between them. Furuichi sought the gaze of his counterpart whereas Oga stared at nowhere in particular. His eyes were fierce like his usual self. At the same time, Furuichi saw an unknown emptiness – a mysterious dark look, which he couldn't interpret. It was the first time that Furuichi shared this kind of a conversation with Oga. Relationships with the opposite gender were topics that were too far away from Oga, thus impossible to talk about.

Anyway, there was more than just ignorance behind Oga's quiet manner.

"Class is about to start. Let's get over with this and grab food somewhere." Oga stuffed his hands into his pockets and headed for the classroom.

"Wait, Oga." Furuichi stopped him before finishing their conversation. "Are you serious about what you've just said?"

Oga came to a halt for a moment and repeated.

"I can't love Hilda."

A few days passed by and everything seemed to be normal.

On the other hand, what did 'normal' mean to Oga Tatsumi?

He went to school. He returned home. He took care of Baby Beel. That were the main things mentionable going on in his life. That was his daily routine. That was how he was living since the infant entered his life.

But something was wrong nowadays.

He glanced from the television screen to the blonde crossing his sight field for a split second.

Something about her was wrong!

It had been a while since Oga didn't seem to be able to hold a proper conversation with Hilda. It wasn't that they had been ignoring or avoiding each other on purpose. Nevertheless, she seemed to be absent-minded whenever he saw her and that was fine with him. Because whenever he accidentally met her gaze, whenever he coincidentally looked into her eyes for the tiniest second, he felt the urge to look away in the same instant.

For the first time, he somehow seemed to be troubled by her presence.

Whenever he was in the same room as her, the temperature seemed to start increasing suddenly. Was it because she turned the heating up? He already heard that women froze their butt faster than any other being. "Tsk, their fault for wearing those short skirts all the time…!" he commented inwardly.

RING!

A text message interrupted his chain of thought. He wouldn't get much messages so he exactly knew that it was from Furuichi.

"How is it goin'? (°_^)"

Oga frowned at the smiley since it reminded him of Furuichi's mocking face. Actually, it reminded him of a certain phrase of the silver-haired:

"I'd say that you l-…"

Oga let out a loud grunt and stood up rashly. He texted Furuichi a short "fuck off" as an answer and fell back on the couch, looking up at the ceiling.

To be honest, the more he tried to suppress Furuichi's words, the more the 'L-word' kept reverberating in his brain. "Damn you, Furuichi!" he cursed and stomped on the floor. Ever since that douche bag blathered on about that nonsense applying Hilda, something felt… weird between them.

Not that there actually was anything between them.

Oga adjusted himself and sat properly once again. His gaze wandered from the ceiling to the door. When he caught sight of the other person, he was startled for a moment and almost jumped up.

"Talk of the Demon!" he thought and tried to keep a straight face.

Hilda was standing at the door and looked at him, arching a brow. She might have heard the loud grunts and noises that Oga let out unconsciously.

"Any problems?" she asked monotonously.

"No." he replied calmly and stood up. He glanced at the phone in his hand, which revealed a time of 7p.m. "I'll get some food."

"I can prepare-…"

"No need!" he hissed back. With that, the conversation was finished as Oga grabbed his jacket and left, thinking.

"I need to talk to him."

Oga walked abstractedly by the riverside. He was rather following his nose than going a particular way. A few meters later, he saw a little stand selling takoyaki.

"'Sup?" He greeted the salesperson briefly.

"Oh? What a rare customer!" An orange-haired man leaned forward.

"Cut the crap, Toujo!" Oga turned away moodily. "Three portions."

"The third one? Furuichi or your new neighbor…?" A glint of amusement was evident in Toujo's eyes.

Oga didn't reply to that. Normally, he would be easily provoked by Toujo and grab him by the scruff of his neck. The fact that he didn't was a sign that Oga came for another reason.

"What is it?!" Toujo asked bluntly. The other man just shot him a void look as Toujo added. "You're not just here to grab food, aren't ya!"

A moment of silence confirmed Toujo's words. After a while, Oga interrupted his silence. "How-… wi-… Shiz-…?" he mumbled something incomprehensible.

"Whaaat?! I can't hear ya!"

"How did you-…?" Oga seemed to consider whether to talk or not.

"Come on, dude! Don't be such a pussy and spit it out!"

As if he was reacting to the word 'pussy', Oga finished his question. "How did you become a couple with Shizu-…hmpf!"

Before he could finish his question, he felt a strong grip around his jaw. Oga didn't see it coming but within a second, Toujo jumped over his stand and pushed Oga on the ground.

"YOU ASSHOLE! HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT SHIZUKA?!" Toujo was deep red because he was furious or due to something else.

"Hands off, punk!" Oga shoved him away with a kick and got up. "Anybody would know sooner or later with that bloody loud trap of yours!"

Toujo launched another attack. "Tell me, you shitty father!"

"Come again!"

After throwing punches and insulting each other for a while, they were both sitting on the ground and panted. For Oga, it was exactly what he needed rather than a good advice. Not that he thought Toujo was the best choice to get a good advice. Nevertheless, coming to him wasn't a bad idea after all.

They calmed down a moment later and the dark-haired man lifted his upper body, facing his counterpart. The latter was lying comfortably on the ground and watched the dark sky.

"So how did it happen?" Oga repeated his question from earlier, referring to Shizuka.

"You answer first." Toujo hissed back motionless. Since he didn't overreact this time, he seemed to accept the fact that Oga already knew it. Not that he could do much about it now.

"Shizuka told me herself."

"Oi, oi!" Toujo interrupted him. He rolled his slit eyes in Oga's direction and frowned at him. "Address her properly, dumbass! It should be 'Shizuka-san or Nee-san' to you!"

Oga frowned back. "And since when have you become my elder bro, idiot?!"

Toujo waited for several seconds and didn't reply to that one. "Whoa, hold it there! SHIZUKA told you?! What?! When?! I mean… WHY?!" Toujo got up and sat across Oga.

"Just how slow are you processing information, dammit!" Oga sighed and answered. "Shizuka-obaasan came to me once." He ignored Toujo's glare. "She said she wanted to meet me since… 'you seemed to be obsessed with me'!"

"Eh?!" Toujo blinked at his words dumbfounded whereas Oga showed him a rather disgusted expression.

"Cut that crap out, whatever shit's going on in your bloody mind!" Oga explained further. "Seems like you're only blabbering about me when you're with her and she wanted to meet me herself."

Toujo was quite astonished by his words. He couldn't even imagine that Shizuka would go and see Oga. "And?" Toujo asked skeptically. "What else did she tell ya?!"

Indeed, Toujo was right and Oga wasn't finished yet. Nevertheless, he didn't tell the other man the whole truth about Shizuka's final words. "She said that you're hers and I should not steal that orange, brainless bastard away from her!"

"Who are ya callin' bastard, piece of shit!" He grabbed Oga by his collar and pulled him closer.

"They only have their hair color in common!" Oga thought and wondered how Toujo could get only the insult from that phrase. "I answered your question." Oga commented in a monotone voice. "Now it's your turn!"

Suddenly, Toujo let go of his clothes. The fearless and confident man seemed to be twitchy for the first time ever. "Well, you know already, dumbass! What else do you wanna hear?!"

"Just tell me HOW the hell it happened, moron!" Oga cried out furiously.

Toujo backed off a little and didn't get why Oga became so agitated out of the blue.

"Come on, Toujo! We both know that you're as clueless as me when it comes to stuff like that!"

"That's why Shizuka asked me out." Toujo turned away and murmured.

"What?" Oga became speechless.

"You heard it, idiot! Don't make me say it twice!" he faced Oga with an angry, albeit embarrassed expression. Anyone would have paid loads of money to see the Toujo like that.

"Alright, alright." Oga held up his hands defensively. "I don't wanna know the details." he half-lied. "But… why?"

"Why what?"

"Just why!"

"Why not?" Toujo shrugged.

"Stop foolin' around, will ya!"

"Then ask more clearly, coward!"

"Coward?" Oga repeated inwardly. Why should he be scared? There was nothing in the world that Oga would be scared of… besides his sister Misaki… more or less.

Toujo stared at him impatiently and Oga looked away. "Why… are you two… together?"

Toujo was surprised by that question but he hid it and didn't reply immediately. It was not that he couldn't or wouldn't reply to it. He was just curious why Oga asked him that now.

"'Cos… I like her… maybe." Toujo scratched his hair uncomfortably.

Oga's mouth fell wide open at the confession. Toujo noticed that instantly and barged in. "What! Don't ya ever tell anybody, asshole!" In fact, Toujo never told it Shizuka herself once that he liked her. It just slipped out of his mouth now, he guessed.

„L-…" That word just didn't seem to fit in Oga's mouth and wouldn't come out.

Toujo got up agitatedly. "Yeah, I like her! You got a problem with that, punk?! Hah? Just tell me, idiot. Make fun of me, I DARE YA!"

"How can he claim that so easily?" Oga wondered. Normally, he would make fun of it until dawn, until the world went down or until Toujo beat him to death. However, saying those lines as if it was nothing… Oga was just speechless.

Toujo noticed his unusual behavior again and found it weird. "Oi, what's your damn problem, Oga!"

Oga stood up silently and wanted to leave. "Nothing. Thanks for the beat-up, man."

Toujo could just not believe him. Not something – everything about Oga was weird that evening. Did he just think that he could make Toujo yell out his most intimidate secrets and just go off without a single reaction? In addition, Oga thanked him? Just for the beat-up? Toujo felt like he needed to beat some more sense into him.

"Wait there, dimwit!" he reached for Oga's shoulder. "What's your fuckin' problem?!"

"Leave me alone." Oga murmured to himself, facing the ground.

"If it's a proper beating that you want, you're very welcome! Just tell me what the hell is-…"

Before finishing his words, Oga grabbed Toujo's arm and threw him over his shoulder. "The hell I know what's goin' on with me, fucker! How the heck can you just say you like her?!"

Lying on the ground and seeing Oga ass about face, Toujo blinked. "That's why you're so worked up?" Oga's sharp and loud exasperation confirmed him. "I mean, can't you just say it out loud that you like your family or whatsoever?"

Oga reflected on his words. Liking family? Sure, that was something obvious. Everyone liked the own family. That wasn't an exception for Oga. He even liked his dominant sister. Not that he would say it aloud though.

Then, he liked friends. It'd be questionable whom he would categorize as a friend though. Furuichi was someone he would call a friend although their friendship started somehow oddly on the battlefield, thanks to Misaki. Oga never knew whether his sister had forced Furuichi to befriend him or what method she had used. However, Furuichi was always by his side whenever he called or did not call him. And Oga appreciated that.

That hulk on the ground was rather not his friend! Toujo and the others were rather his sparring partners. Reduction of stress – that was how Oga would call them. They were fools who had challenged him long ago. What had the reasons been again? It didn't matter anyway. Two men wouldn't need a reason to fight. And that was what he liked about Toujo. He liked fighting against him. Because Toujo was a worthy opponent. And he seemed to like fighting as much as Oga did. That was the reason why he liked fighting Toujo the most.

Then, there was Baby Bell. He didn't deny it that the infant had grown close to his heart. Even if they weren't related by blood; even if Oga was still underage and even if he still lacked experiences to be a great father, he and Beelze became a father-son duo.

Now that he thought about it, he actually liked everything and everyone around him. Or were the people he liked chasing him and always by his side? That wouldn't count for Baby Beel though since it was Oga who kept him by his side.

It was weird that he didn't notice it until now that he was content with his current life. Additionally, to think that it'd be Toujo to make him notice it. However, he felt as if he had forgotten something. Or someone… around him…

It was Toujo's voice, which interrupted his chain of thought.

"So how about Blondie?"

Oga's heart skipped a beat because he knew very well whom he referred to. As if that idiot could read his mind, Toujo had to mention her right now. His words resounded in his mind so that Oga gave a thought about it. Was it that what Toujo was implying?

Him liking Hilda?

Even the thought of it sounded so… wrong. Completely wrong. Almost impossible!

Oga launched a strong attack on the man on the ground but Toujo was flexible enough to dodge it. Oga barely missed him and his drop kick would have killed any normal human.

"I'm leaving…"

Toujo didn't know what triggered that deathly attack a moment ago. However, he didn't make a fuss about it and let him go. "What about your food?" he shouted from behind while Oga just walked away quietly.

In the end, Toujo didn't find out why Oga came exactly.

"I'm back." Oga murmured lifelessly and entered his apartment.

By hindsight, he wondered whether talking to Toujo was a good idea. Heck, the whole conversation confused him even more. All the chat about women... or rather, about Shizuka and Toujo...

He shook his head to forget about it. "Since when did that bastard become such a pussy!"

Advancing to the living room, his gaze dropped to the table. Cutlery and glasses were prepared neatly as if somebody was waiting for dinner.

Crap!

Turning his head to the couch, he noticed that Hilda was staring at him inquiringly while feeding Baby Beel.

Oga was supposed to get food. And Hilda knew that since he told him so. He looked away and pondered what to do. Should he order some food? Damn, that would take at least an hour. Should he run out again and get something? Wouldn't she warily question why he didn't get it in the first place then?

And since when was he wracking his brains over Hilda's thoughts?

"GYAAAH!" he was screaming inwardly. He was so hungry that his stomach was ready to eat itself. Thus, why was he coevally thinking about unnecessary stuff?

Additionally, someone was knocking at the door at the moment. The person knocked hard four times and Oga had a good guess who it might be.

Seeing his calmness, Hilda knew that she had nothing to worry about and the guest might probably be Furuichi. However, Oga seemed to be annoyed at the same time. He ran a hand over his face and sighed.

With an unhappy expression, Oga opened the door. "What?!"

Despite the host's gloomy mood, the newcomer grinned at him. "You forgot your food, idiot! So don't die starving on me!" Toujo stomped inside without Oga letting him in.

When he reached the living room with Oga following behind, the orange-head's eyes instantly landed on Hilda. The female unconsciously tightened his grip around the infant and responded to Toujo's grimace with a bored expression.

"Yo, Blondie!" Toujo lifted one hand and saluted. "Guess the third portion was meant for you after a-...!"

Oga interrupted him with a light strike. "Your job's done here, moron! So get the hell-..."

"Is that how you treat a guest?" Toujo slit his eyes and frowned. "Lemme play with Beelze-boy while you enjoy your food!" He grinned at the baby and stretched his arms towards him.

On the other hand, Hilda arched a brow and hesitated a little. She sought for Oga's attention and asked him silently what to do.

Oga just rolled his eyes and muttered a "whatever" under his breath. He let himself sink on a chair and leaned one elbow on the table.

Hilda looked still a little suspicious as she exchanged the baby with the food in Toujo's hand. She headed to the kitchen to serve the food when Oga decided to follow her.

"I can handle this on my own." she signalized monotonously that she didn't need his help.

"I can't handle two babies back there." he replied simply and helped her anyway. It wasn't the first time that Toujo and Beel were playing together. Who would have thought that the orange barbarian had a soft side like that – a mind of a six-year old and playing happily with Beel now. That was another point of him which kind of resembled Oga.

"You were just fine with Kunieda's brother."

"Hm?" Oga looked at her and barely caught Hilda's dry comment. "What about Kouta?"

"Never mind." her bangs hid her face so that he couldn't read it.

"Something wrong?" he put the plate in his hands away and turned around to fully face her. "Is it about Toujo's sudden-...?"

"No." she cut him off. "I have no right to interfere in your personal affairs, right?" she stated as a matter of fact.

There was a moment of silence. Oga had the dim feeling that there was more behind her words. However, he disagreed to them. Sure, it was not much of her business whom he befriended, as well as the other way round. But for all that, he wouldn't just invite anyone to his house as long as she wasn't OK with it.

Even if it was his residence, they were sharing the apartment after all.

He just wanted to say something when Hilda was the faster one and continued. "I'm a little surprised that so many people know about Beel."

"That so?" Oga wasn't pleased about the change of subject. Well, he should have told her the details about Beel probably sooner to avoid any trouble. "Not that I've told them by choice... more or less..."

Hilda shot him a questionable look as Oga set to work again. He unwrapped the takoyaki and explained. "Furuichi knew about Baby Beel from the very beginning. I was reliant on his idea about what to do with a strange brat. As for Toujo... it's a long story how he found out."

"How about Kunieda?" Hilda looked away and lowly asked out of the blue.

"After I decided to keep Beel, I had to ask for her help. She has a little brother and experience with this stuff." he simply answered. "Besides you and Allon, there's one other person-..."

"Oi, you guys done yet?!" Toujo popped up. "I'm starvin'; move it or lose it!"

Hilda glared at Toujo and brought the food quietly to the living room.

After she left, Toujo leaned towards Oga. "Guess Blondie doesn't like me, dude!"

"Guess you're right for once!" Oga hissed back and threw away the garbage.

Toujo growled at his comment. "You didn't finish earlier. So how about you?" he was referring to his question from before and Oga knew that. He just ignored it though and headed for the living room.

When Oga met the sight of Hilda and Beel together there, he stopped on his spot and observed them briefly – Beel beaming with joy and the hidden glint in Hilda's warm gaze. Although she didn't show it, Oga was sure that she was currently smiling inwardly.

The atmosphere around them seemed to merge to him as a rare smile crossed his face, which didn't escape Toujo. He laid one hand on Oga's shoulder and gave him a reassuring look. Oga glanced at him shortly and returned his eyes back to the other couple with one thought.

"Guess I like her... being around."

A/N: This update was delayed due to technical difficulties.

First of all, a wonderful happy new year to everyone! I hope that you accept this chapter as a little present from me, although it's shorter than the others. I decided to shorten them, which might help me to update faster. Seriously, I want to finish this story already but it'll take me at least another year.

Remember when I told you that the song "Impossible" was dedicated to Hilda? And this song - "Love the way you lie" is dedicated to our dear Oga. You'll see later why it fits so much to our wannabe-father.

Well, so much from me... for now! I have no idea which story to update next since I must write an essay for university. Until then, I'm eager to read your thoughts, compliments, favorite parts, critique... just anything.

REVIEW please!