You're Awful, I Love You
Title: You're Awful, I Love You [Chapter 3]
Author: carcrashheart_8
Fandom: KAT-TUN
Pairings: Ryoda, Junda, RyoUchi [past] [possibly more pairings to come]
Rating: PG-13 for language and sexual innuendo
Summary: Ueda is in love with Ryo. The problem is, he doesn’t know it and instead insists that he hates the poison-tongued man, more than anything else. Will his friends be able to convince him of his true feelings or will it be too late for the couple that gets along “0%”?
Disclaimer: Title taken from "Love Me Dead" by Ludo
Chapter 3
When Ueda was walking to lunch with Maru, he was smiling in a not-so-subtle way, and was sighing and practically skipping down the hallway. Maru didn’t say a word even though he was pretty embarrassed by the way his friend was acting.
He finally spoke up, without even looking at Ueda, “You know it’s not a date, right?”
Ueda stopped and looked at Maru, appearing very offended.
“What--what--what--” he stuttered.
Maru turned to him, “It’s not a date. He just wanted to hang out with you--like a friend--and I have a sneaking suspicion he’s only doing it to piss Ryo off,” Maru said as he entered into the cafeteria and grabbed a tray for the food.
Ueda just stood with his mouth hanging open. He got pushed around by the other students in line before he finally defended himself.
“Out of my way! Out of my way!” he screamed, pushing his way back to Maru, “What do you mean he’s only doing it to get back at Ryo?!”
“Face it, Tat-chan; the two of them are more similar than they let on. They’re related and probably spend a lot of time together--I think Junno has a dark side that he doesn’t readily show to other people, while Ryo is pretty much dark all over.”
“You talk like you know them too well--like you’re their therapist or something. What makes you so sure that that’s what’s really going on? Huh?” Ueda placed his hands on his hips as he waited for the cafeteria lady to put some food on a plate and give it to him.
“Because--you forget, I’ve been in the same class with Nishikido all these years as well and I know what he’s capable of. Junno--in my mind, is very much similar to his cousin but it’s something someone as oblivious and as in denial as you couldn’t pick up on,” he grabbed a drink from a bin and went to pay for his lunch.
Ueda grunted before moving down the line and grabbing a drink for himself and paying for his own food. Something made him think that Maru may actually have a point but due to his regular nature, he was in complete denial and made that very clear to his friend.
“You’re just making stuff up! J-J-J-Taguchi, he’s not like that! He’s not a rat’s ass like Ryo is--Ryo’s the worst, the most vile creature on the face of this earth and I despise him from his stupid shaggy hair to the bottom of those ugly ass shoes he wears every friggin’ day! Seriously--someone needs to buy him some new ones--ones that don’t look like a dog chewed them all up and then spit them back out.”
The pair finished paying and walked over to their usual table, only to see a new face sitting there waiting for them.
“N-Nishikido! What the hell makes you think you can sit at our table?” Ueda snapped at the boy sitting in what appeared to have been Ueda’s usual seat.
“I have all the rights in the world to sit in this spot--and you sure as hell couldn’t stop me,” the sharp-tongued boy remarked, looking Ueda up and down and sneering, like he wasn’t a bit threatened by Ueda’s physical stature.
Ueda growled like a feral dog before walking over to the other side of the table and slamming his tray on the table.
“You--you’re such an asshole! What makes you think you can treat me like shit--as if I had no feelings at all?”
Ryo looked at the other boy, a scowl on his face and his hands folded and his arms held up in a position similar to that of a praying mantis.
He continued to stare at Ueda before finally saying, “I’m an asshole? I treat you like shit? What about you?! You constantly insult me--you’re the one who acts like I have no feelings! You treat like I’m an emotionless robot or something--something that’s only put on this earth to make your life a living hell!”
“Funny--I wasn’t aware of any other truth. I was sure that was the reason for your existence--and that you were just a ‘something’,” Ueda boldly stated, crossing his arms and trying his best to show he was not afraid of what the other boy was physically capable of.
Ryo didn’t say anything and just muttered, “I sure as fuck won’t let you go on that date with Junno,” before walking away in a huff.
Maru’s expressionless face made it seem like the situation was just a normal occurrence, which it was to some extent. The only thing that was different was the fact that Ryo didn’t seem to be his usual snarky self, but rather someone driven by a pure hate, or possibly driven by jealousy. Maru knew this and he wished he could explain this to Ueda but he found it futile and instead just decided to eat his food, without saying a word.
“THAT--I’M GONNA--DAMMIT!” Ueda ranted, before sitting down and muttering some more, “He’s such a--a--a--”
“Douchebag?” Maru answered, taking a sip from his soda bottle.
“YES! The biggest one I’ve ever met--and he-he acts like he’s surprised that I insult him! He acts like I have no reason to hate him--like I’m completely unjustified! It’s insane!”
“Yeah well--you know how it is,” was all Maru said, not doing much to make his friend feel better, but then again it didn’t seem like that was his intention in the first place.
“You know you could be of more help to me, Maru. It’s not like I’m asking for much here--just a bit of emotional support when I need it,” Ueda said, looking straight at Maru who was staring at his food at the moment.
“Well--you shouldn’t expect much from me anymore,” Maru monotonously replied, “If I wasn’t so used to shit like this, I’d be there for you to quickly insult Ryo to his face. But I’ve grown so sick of you two fighting that I’ve decided to stop getting involved because I realize--after so long--that you’re both idiots.”
Ueda looked shocked, but Maru just shrugged his shoulders.
“Hey, I’m trying to support you--but it’s hard when you act so difficult,” he mumbled before sipping some more soda.
“Hey guys!” a voice called out to the pair. It was Jin, along with Koki and Kame, who looked suspiciously happy.
“So--Tat-chan--we heard about Junno,” Koki teased, nudging Ueda in the side as he sat down next to his friend.
Jin was smiling too but Kame didn’t seem too interested in the conversation. Ueda just blushed and hid his face, picking at the food on his plate.
Kame softly said, “So he asked you out?”
Ueda quickly looked up, “Huh?! I--I--no--no--it’s not like that. We’re just hanging out--like f-f-friends!” He wiped his forehead, since he happened to be sweating.
Koki laughed and continued nudging and poking Ueda, while Jin just giggled and Maru continued sipping soda, acting completely detached from the conversation.
“So what does Ryo think about you ‘hanging out’ with his cousin?” Kame continued with his questioning.
“Who the hell cares what he thinks?! He’s just a stubborn annoying jerk who has a useless opinion and a big mouth and he’s got a helluva lot of nerve too!” Ueda griped.
Maru shook his head before explaining, “Ryo made Tat-chan mad again by telling him that he wasn’t going to let Junno hang out with him. And when Junno and Tat-chan were talking during homeroom, Ryo was clearly furious about it, which makes me think that Junno’s only doing this to get back at Ryo for some reason.”
“EH???” Jin and Koki gasped.
Kame nodded, a bit eager for more while Ueda started to fume.
“Maru--” he growled but Maru just continued.
“I found it odd that Junno was the one to break up the argument that Ryo and Tat-chan had during homeroom--and even odder that he practically asked Tat-chan out right after that. Plus he insulted Ryo a couple of times when he was supposedly trying to keep the peace. I don’t know--I just think it’s odd,” Maru shrugged his shoulders once more.
“No one cares what you think!” Ueda defended, getting up and leaving from the table.
He couldn’t believe his own friend would doubt him and the decision he was making to hang out with Junno despite the fact that it was a possible sign of Junno’s own dark side. Ueda was continuing in his state of denial and it seemed like he was just getting deeper into it.
When he walked out of the cafeteria, he accidentally bumped into someone on the way there.
“Hey, watch where you’re going!” Ueda muttered but then he stopped and stared.
“Ueda, what’s your problem?! Why’re you acting all pissy towards me?” the other person complained.
“I’m--I’m sorry, Uchi, I didn’t know it was you--I guess I’m a little upset right now,” Ueda said as he brushed the other boy’s shoulder as a sign of apology.
“Well, don’t take it on me. I’m just an innocent bystander. Besides--what’s gotten you storming around like a mad man anyways?”
“I’m ‘storming around’ because of your ex-boyfriend! He’s such a jerk--I hate him! And then Maru--he’s almost as bad--acting like J-J-J-Taguchi’s just as bad as his cousin, when he clearly isn’t!” Ueda was going off on a tangent causing the taller boy to be a bit confused.
The other boy was Hiroki Uchi, Ryo’s ex-boyfriend and a friend of Ueda’s, and part of the reason why Ueda was rejected the second time by Ryo when he confessed. At the time of the second confession, Ryo had a crush on Uchi and was in the process of pursuing him but Uchi was a bit difficult to “tame”. One of the reasons was the fact that Uchi and Ueda had been friends for years and Uchi was quite aware of Ueda’s feelings for the sharp-tongued boy, especially since he would never cease talking about him. Ueda, trying to be a good friend, gave Uchi his blessing and eventually Ryo and Uchi started dating, and it pretty much tore Ueda up inside, but he sucked it up in favor of his friend’s happiness. Of course, he couldn’t forgive Ryo because Ryo not only rejected him in favor of Uchi but also made it very clear, in the most humiliating of ways, that Ueda wasn’t his type. Ueda’s deep-seeded hate for Ryo caused him to never hold a grudge against Uchi and remain friends with him during the relationship and well after it had ended.
“Whoa, whoa, Ueda, you’re kind of rambling again. What’d Ryo do now?” Uchi said in a comforting tone of voice.
“First he insults me--on several occasions and SEVERAL different levels. I guess I’m used to it but he’s gotten progressively worse--which makes me hate him even MORE! Plus, his cousin J-J-J-”
“Oh you mean Junno?” Uchi finished Ueda’s statement.
“Yeah--h-him. Well, HE and I were talking to each other when Ryo decides to come over and start insulting me, not only in front of J-J-his cousin but EVERYBODY in our homeroom. And we almost get into a fight but J-his cousin stops it and the two of us started talking while Ryo goes back to the dreary corner he calls his seat. And then h-his cousin kinda asked me to hang out with him at the movies--”
“HE DID?!” Uchi sounded surprised.
“Y-yeah--he did,” Ueda blushed, yet again.
“Aw, Ueda--I think that’s a date,” Uchi smiled, causing Ueda to blush even more.
“N-no I’m pretty sure he meant just as friends. But anyways, now stupid Maru is saying that J-J-Taguchi’s only doing it to get back at Ryo, which is SO not true!” Ueda grunted.
“Okay, calm down, Ueda--no need to blow a gasket just because of Ryo and especially not because of Maru. Maru’s your friend and I know he’s only saying this stuff because he cares about you and he doesn’t want you to go and make a mistake--especially not when it involves getting roped into Ryo’s tangled web of despair. Gawd knows it’s not easy getting out,” Uchi shuddered.
“Yeah but he insulted J-J-Taguchi by saying that! I can’t just let that go--especially since I li--I li-”
“Oh my gosh,” Uchi put his hand over his mouth, then taking it off, “you like him!”
“What?!”
“You like Junno! Oh my gosh, Ueda, that’s so adorable--you have a crush on Ryo’s cousin! That’s just so cute!” Uchi started giggling like a schoolgirl and poking Ueda on the cheek, causing the shorter boy to bat his hand away.
“I-I-I do not!” Ueda defended, his cheeks growing hotter and hotter.
“Of course you don’t,” Uchi laughed, “I wouldn’t be surprised if Ryo’s already figured it out. I bet he’s j--”
“Tatsuya!” a voice from down the hall called out.
Ueda slowly turned around and saw Junno running up to him. His heart dropped along with his jaw. It seemed like slow motion when Junno ran, his hair flowing like a movie star and his muscular body moving up and down with every bounce from every sprint. Ueda’s pants tightened a bit at that moment.
“How are you? I heard Ryo’s been giving you more trouble. I thought he’d stop--after this morning. Oh--h-h-h-hello, U-U-U-Uchi,” Junno stammered.
“Hello, Junno. Haven’t seen you for awhile--didn’t realize you’d be transferring here either. Ryo never said anything when we were dating--guess it was a last minute decision, no?” Uchi’s happy tone turned serious when Junno entered the conversation.
“Hey--you don’t have to be so cold to me. It wasn’t my idea to come here--it was my parents’, I swear,” Junno replied, holding his arms up like he was saying that he was not at fault.
Uchi shook his head and shook his head, “Whatever,” he then turned to Ueda and smiled, “I’ll see you later, Ueda. I got to go and eat lunch. Junno.”
“Uchi,” Junno responded in an equally cold tone.
Uchi turned around and stuck his nose in the air, before going down the hallway and entering into the cafeteria.
Junno chuckled and shook his head, “That guy’s never liked me. I’ve never understood why. Well--no matter--now back to you, Tatsuya. You eat lunch yet?”
Ueda’s cheeks turned pink again, “I--I kinda just left the cafeteria before I got a chance. I’m still kinda hungry though?”
“Cool--how about we go off campus to eat? I know a cool little burger joint a couple blocks away,” Junno looked at his watch and said, “Yeah we still got like 45 minutes left. So--you wanna go?”
Ueda smiled and nodded nervously. The pair walked off, walking pretty close together with Ueda staring at the ground and smiling awkwardly and Junno looking at him practically the whole way out of the building.
At that moment, Ryo was watching the whole thing from a spot next to the cafeteria doors, his arms crossed against his chest and the scowl on his face causing lines to form on his forehead. Just then Uchi appeared from around the corner and spoke to Ryo.
“If I were you--I’d keep an eye on your cousin,” he whispered before walking back into the cafeteria. Ryo just continued staring as he still saw the pair through the school’s glass doors.
After school, Junno and Ueda were hanging out behind one of the school buildings, laughing and drinking from bottles of soda they’d gotten from the burger joint they had gone to at lunch. Ueda was laughing especially hard at a corny joke Junno had just told.
“That’s--that’s so funny. You’re a really funny guy,” Ueda gasped as he wiped tears of laughter from his eyes.
Junno smiled, “Wow--you’re the first person to tell me that. Most people, when they hear my jokes, they either ignore me or they kick me. Not many people like wordplay and puns I guess,” he shrugged his shoulders and shook his head as if he didn’t understand why.
Ueda stopped laughing but smiled instead, “I had a fun time today--hanging out with you at lunch and now. It’s really nice.”
Junno grinned widely, “I had a good time too. You’re pretty cool--and it’s fun hanging out with you. You laugh at my jokes! That’s like a miracle right there,” the tall boy laughed.
Ueda blushed and giggled as well. He looked up and he saw Junno was standing over him. Ueda started breathing through his mouth as he felt his heart beating faster and faster.
“You’re a really special guy, Tatsuya. I don’t know what Ryo is thinking--he’s an idiot.”
Ueda gulped and mumbled, “I--I--I--I”
He didn’t get a chance to say anything because Junno kissed him, softly on the mouth. Ueda’s eyes felt ready to pop out of their sockets. He could feel his knees buckling but lucky for him, there was a wall behind him and he got at least some support from it.
Junno put his hands on the wall to support himself, but he never once took his mouth off of Ueda’s. Eventually he did, smirking seductively, causing Ueda’s stomach to churn and make him a bit nauseous.
“Well I’ll see you tomorrow!” the taller boy happily said.
Ueda shook his head, making sure he knew what was going on, “Huh?!”
“It’s kinda late and I’m supposed to get home to help my dad with the car. I’ll see you tomorrow, Tatsuya,” Junno slowly walked away, waving and smiling the smile that made Ueda feel like he was on air.
Ueda waved back, his arm feeling a bit numb. His whole body felt numb just from Junno’s kiss, and eventually Ueda fell onto his butt onto the ground, sighing. He shook his head, smacking the sides of it, slapping himself on the face, and then resorting to pinching his arms. He tried everything in order to wake himself up from what he thought was a dream.
In reality, the kiss did happen and even though he’d known the other boy for about a day, Ueda felt like he had known Junno for most of his life. And it was at that moment he realized he was in love with Junno as well.
He got up from his spot on the ground and held his hand up to his mouth. He smiled nervously and replayed the magical kiss in his head. He then let out an enthusiastic yell, one to show how happy he was at that moment. But in the midst of his screaming, he got knocked in the head with a flying soccer ball.
When he regained consciousness, he saw Ryo standing over him. Ueda rubbed his head and got up off the ground, slowly but all in one thrust of his body.
“What the hell is wrong with you?! Why don’t you watch where you kick that ball, asshole?!” Ueda shouted to the other boy.
“You’re lucky I didn’t hit you in the crotch! I’m sure it’d hurt even more especially since you’re walking around with that hard-on right now! I can see your pants, pervert! Do you really get that hard just from thinking about Junno?” Ryo taunted.
Ueda said nothing and just grunted. Just then he felt his fist clench and his arm raised and before he knew it, he punched Ryo square in the nose, causing it to bleed. Ryo fell back onto the ground, blood spouting onto his shirt. Ryo touched his nose and saw the red liquid coming out from it and started to scream.
“OH MY FUCKING--I’m bleeding! YOU--YOU--YOU FUCKING GAVE ME A NOSEBLEED! YOU--”
Ueda felt his heart pump in his chest and he started growing nervous at the thought of what he had just done, but for some reason, his face just showed anger.
“U-Ueda! I’m gonna fucking kick your ass, you little jackass!” Ryo got up off the ground just as a bunch of his soccer teammates started gathering around. Kame and Maru, along with Jin and Koki came running out onto the soccer field, along with some of their classmates.
“FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!” the large group of students started chanting.
Ryo held his fists up and looked like a boxer about to start a match. Ueda looked around, his facial expression now showing his nervousness. He didn’t know what to do but he managed to dodge Ryo’s first swing at him. Ryo fell forward into the arms of some of his classmates, but those classmates just pushed Ryo back into what was now the center of a giant circle of teenagers.
Ryo prepared himself to take another swing but once again, he missed Ueda who wasn’t sure what was going on.
“Ryo--Ryo--now wait a second--let’s talk about this thoroughly--let’s not resort to violence,” Ueda tried to calm the clearly furious boy who was getting ready to kill him.
“I’m tired of talking! I’m gonna do what I should’ve done a long time ago--I’m gonna kill you, Junno!”
“Huh?” Ueda sneered, trying to make sure he had just heard what Ryo said.
Just then, Ryo took a swing but his arm was stopped by someone behind him.
“Okay, that’s it, Ryo! You need to stop this shit now before I have to kick your snarky little ass!” the person who stopped him shouted.
It was Junno and he looked furious. He held back Ryo’s arm, all the way behind Ryo’s back causing the other boy to shout in pain.
“AH! IT HURTS! STOP, JUNNO! OKAY! OKAY! I’ll calm down!” Ryo begged for mercy.
Out of sympathy for his cousin, Junno eventually let go but that proved to be a mistake because Ryo just turned around and punched his cousin right in the face.
Junno fell backwards and immediately Ueda cried out for him.
“JUNNO!” Ueda cried, this being the first time he was ever able to say the name of the man he claimed to love.
Junno was on the ground, his eyes closed as if he was knocked unconscious. Ueda’s face showed clear worry as he tried to wake the other boy up.
“Junno! Wake up! Come on, Junno! Wake up!” Ueda shook the other boy, gently tapping his cheek, doing everything he could to wake up the unconscious boy.
But Junno didn’t respond. Ryo looked down at his cousin, at first angrily but when he realized what he had done, his facial expression turned to one of concern.
“Oh my gawd! What did I do? I--Junno--” he cried as he bent down to help up his cousin but Ueda stopped him.
“Don’t touch him! You’re such a--how could you do this to your own cousin?! Ryo--you’re a--”
“I didn’t mean to! I swear I didn’t!” Ryo cried, tears seeming to form in his eyes.
“RYO--GO TO HELL! I HOPE YOU GO TO HELL FOR THIS! I HOPE YOU ROT IN HELL!”
Ueda heaved and panted. The crowd around the three of them stood silent. Kame gasped a little as Koki, Maru, and Jin stared in disbelief.
Ryo looked at Ueda, shocked at what had just come out of the other boy’s mouth. Then he got up, now looking furious again and stormed off the field. Ueda turned back to Junno and rubbed his head, hoping he could wake him up.
END CHAPTER 3
A/N: Whoa @__@ What a dramatic ending to this chapter! Ryo punches Junno and knocks him out! D: And now Uchi has been introduced into the series as well, as Ryo's ex-boyfriend D: and he doesn't seem to like Junno too much either >.> wonder why! XD;; Gotta watch out for Junno, maybe lol at least Ryo does XDD Anyways, thanks to all the readers and all those who comment ^^ Please keep reading until the end! ♥
Author: carcrashheart_8
Fandom: KAT-TUN
Pairings: Ryoda, Junda, RyoUchi [past] [possibly more pairings to come]
Rating: PG-13 for language and sexual innuendo
Summary: Ueda is in love with Ryo. The problem is, he doesn’t know it and instead insists that he hates the poison-tongued man, more than anything else. Will his friends be able to convince him of his true feelings or will it be too late for the couple that gets along “0%”?
Disclaimer: Title taken from "Love Me Dead" by Ludo
Chapter 3
When Ueda was walking to lunch with Maru, he was smiling in a not-so-subtle way, and was sighing and practically skipping down the hallway. Maru didn’t say a word even though he was pretty embarrassed by the way his friend was acting.
He finally spoke up, without even looking at Ueda, “You know it’s not a date, right?”
Ueda stopped and looked at Maru, appearing very offended.
“What--what--what--” he stuttered.
Maru turned to him, “It’s not a date. He just wanted to hang out with you--like a friend--and I have a sneaking suspicion he’s only doing it to piss Ryo off,” Maru said as he entered into the cafeteria and grabbed a tray for the food.
Ueda just stood with his mouth hanging open. He got pushed around by the other students in line before he finally defended himself.
“Out of my way! Out of my way!” he screamed, pushing his way back to Maru, “What do you mean he’s only doing it to get back at Ryo?!”
“Face it, Tat-chan; the two of them are more similar than they let on. They’re related and probably spend a lot of time together--I think Junno has a dark side that he doesn’t readily show to other people, while Ryo is pretty much dark all over.”
“You talk like you know them too well--like you’re their therapist or something. What makes you so sure that that’s what’s really going on? Huh?” Ueda placed his hands on his hips as he waited for the cafeteria lady to put some food on a plate and give it to him.
“Because--you forget, I’ve been in the same class with Nishikido all these years as well and I know what he’s capable of. Junno--in my mind, is very much similar to his cousin but it’s something someone as oblivious and as in denial as you couldn’t pick up on,” he grabbed a drink from a bin and went to pay for his lunch.
Ueda grunted before moving down the line and grabbing a drink for himself and paying for his own food. Something made him think that Maru may actually have a point but due to his regular nature, he was in complete denial and made that very clear to his friend.
“You’re just making stuff up! J-J-J-Taguchi, he’s not like that! He’s not a rat’s ass like Ryo is--Ryo’s the worst, the most vile creature on the face of this earth and I despise him from his stupid shaggy hair to the bottom of those ugly ass shoes he wears every friggin’ day! Seriously--someone needs to buy him some new ones--ones that don’t look like a dog chewed them all up and then spit them back out.”
The pair finished paying and walked over to their usual table, only to see a new face sitting there waiting for them.
“N-Nishikido! What the hell makes you think you can sit at our table?” Ueda snapped at the boy sitting in what appeared to have been Ueda’s usual seat.
“I have all the rights in the world to sit in this spot--and you sure as hell couldn’t stop me,” the sharp-tongued boy remarked, looking Ueda up and down and sneering, like he wasn’t a bit threatened by Ueda’s physical stature.
Ueda growled like a feral dog before walking over to the other side of the table and slamming his tray on the table.
“You--you’re such an asshole! What makes you think you can treat me like shit--as if I had no feelings at all?”
Ryo looked at the other boy, a scowl on his face and his hands folded and his arms held up in a position similar to that of a praying mantis.
He continued to stare at Ueda before finally saying, “I’m an asshole? I treat you like shit? What about you?! You constantly insult me--you’re the one who acts like I have no feelings! You treat like I’m an emotionless robot or something--something that’s only put on this earth to make your life a living hell!”
“Funny--I wasn’t aware of any other truth. I was sure that was the reason for your existence--and that you were just a ‘something’,” Ueda boldly stated, crossing his arms and trying his best to show he was not afraid of what the other boy was physically capable of.
Ryo didn’t say anything and just muttered, “I sure as fuck won’t let you go on that date with Junno,” before walking away in a huff.
Maru’s expressionless face made it seem like the situation was just a normal occurrence, which it was to some extent. The only thing that was different was the fact that Ryo didn’t seem to be his usual snarky self, but rather someone driven by a pure hate, or possibly driven by jealousy. Maru knew this and he wished he could explain this to Ueda but he found it futile and instead just decided to eat his food, without saying a word.
“THAT--I’M GONNA--DAMMIT!” Ueda ranted, before sitting down and muttering some more, “He’s such a--a--a--”
“Douchebag?” Maru answered, taking a sip from his soda bottle.
“YES! The biggest one I’ve ever met--and he-he acts like he’s surprised that I insult him! He acts like I have no reason to hate him--like I’m completely unjustified! It’s insane!”
“Yeah well--you know how it is,” was all Maru said, not doing much to make his friend feel better, but then again it didn’t seem like that was his intention in the first place.
“You know you could be of more help to me, Maru. It’s not like I’m asking for much here--just a bit of emotional support when I need it,” Ueda said, looking straight at Maru who was staring at his food at the moment.
“Well--you shouldn’t expect much from me anymore,” Maru monotonously replied, “If I wasn’t so used to shit like this, I’d be there for you to quickly insult Ryo to his face. But I’ve grown so sick of you two fighting that I’ve decided to stop getting involved because I realize--after so long--that you’re both idiots.”
Ueda looked shocked, but Maru just shrugged his shoulders.
“Hey, I’m trying to support you--but it’s hard when you act so difficult,” he mumbled before sipping some more soda.
“Hey guys!” a voice called out to the pair. It was Jin, along with Koki and Kame, who looked suspiciously happy.
“So--Tat-chan--we heard about Junno,” Koki teased, nudging Ueda in the side as he sat down next to his friend.
Jin was smiling too but Kame didn’t seem too interested in the conversation. Ueda just blushed and hid his face, picking at the food on his plate.
Kame softly said, “So he asked you out?”
Ueda quickly looked up, “Huh?! I--I--no--no--it’s not like that. We’re just hanging out--like f-f-friends!” He wiped his forehead, since he happened to be sweating.
Koki laughed and continued nudging and poking Ueda, while Jin just giggled and Maru continued sipping soda, acting completely detached from the conversation.
“So what does Ryo think about you ‘hanging out’ with his cousin?” Kame continued with his questioning.
“Who the hell cares what he thinks?! He’s just a stubborn annoying jerk who has a useless opinion and a big mouth and he’s got a helluva lot of nerve too!” Ueda griped.
Maru shook his head before explaining, “Ryo made Tat-chan mad again by telling him that he wasn’t going to let Junno hang out with him. And when Junno and Tat-chan were talking during homeroom, Ryo was clearly furious about it, which makes me think that Junno’s only doing this to get back at Ryo for some reason.”
“EH???” Jin and Koki gasped.
Kame nodded, a bit eager for more while Ueda started to fume.
“Maru--” he growled but Maru just continued.
“I found it odd that Junno was the one to break up the argument that Ryo and Tat-chan had during homeroom--and even odder that he practically asked Tat-chan out right after that. Plus he insulted Ryo a couple of times when he was supposedly trying to keep the peace. I don’t know--I just think it’s odd,” Maru shrugged his shoulders once more.
“No one cares what you think!” Ueda defended, getting up and leaving from the table.
He couldn’t believe his own friend would doubt him and the decision he was making to hang out with Junno despite the fact that it was a possible sign of Junno’s own dark side. Ueda was continuing in his state of denial and it seemed like he was just getting deeper into it.
When he walked out of the cafeteria, he accidentally bumped into someone on the way there.
“Hey, watch where you’re going!” Ueda muttered but then he stopped and stared.
“Ueda, what’s your problem?! Why’re you acting all pissy towards me?” the other person complained.
“I’m--I’m sorry, Uchi, I didn’t know it was you--I guess I’m a little upset right now,” Ueda said as he brushed the other boy’s shoulder as a sign of apology.
“Well, don’t take it on me. I’m just an innocent bystander. Besides--what’s gotten you storming around like a mad man anyways?”
“I’m ‘storming around’ because of your ex-boyfriend! He’s such a jerk--I hate him! And then Maru--he’s almost as bad--acting like J-J-J-Taguchi’s just as bad as his cousin, when he clearly isn’t!” Ueda was going off on a tangent causing the taller boy to be a bit confused.
The other boy was Hiroki Uchi, Ryo’s ex-boyfriend and a friend of Ueda’s, and part of the reason why Ueda was rejected the second time by Ryo when he confessed. At the time of the second confession, Ryo had a crush on Uchi and was in the process of pursuing him but Uchi was a bit difficult to “tame”. One of the reasons was the fact that Uchi and Ueda had been friends for years and Uchi was quite aware of Ueda’s feelings for the sharp-tongued boy, especially since he would never cease talking about him. Ueda, trying to be a good friend, gave Uchi his blessing and eventually Ryo and Uchi started dating, and it pretty much tore Ueda up inside, but he sucked it up in favor of his friend’s happiness. Of course, he couldn’t forgive Ryo because Ryo not only rejected him in favor of Uchi but also made it very clear, in the most humiliating of ways, that Ueda wasn’t his type. Ueda’s deep-seeded hate for Ryo caused him to never hold a grudge against Uchi and remain friends with him during the relationship and well after it had ended.
“Whoa, whoa, Ueda, you’re kind of rambling again. What’d Ryo do now?” Uchi said in a comforting tone of voice.
“First he insults me--on several occasions and SEVERAL different levels. I guess I’m used to it but he’s gotten progressively worse--which makes me hate him even MORE! Plus, his cousin J-J-J-”
“Oh you mean Junno?” Uchi finished Ueda’s statement.
“Yeah--h-him. Well, HE and I were talking to each other when Ryo decides to come over and start insulting me, not only in front of J-J-his cousin but EVERYBODY in our homeroom. And we almost get into a fight but J-his cousin stops it and the two of us started talking while Ryo goes back to the dreary corner he calls his seat. And then h-his cousin kinda asked me to hang out with him at the movies--”
“HE DID?!” Uchi sounded surprised.
“Y-yeah--he did,” Ueda blushed, yet again.
“Aw, Ueda--I think that’s a date,” Uchi smiled, causing Ueda to blush even more.
“N-no I’m pretty sure he meant just as friends. But anyways, now stupid Maru is saying that J-J-Taguchi’s only doing it to get back at Ryo, which is SO not true!” Ueda grunted.
“Okay, calm down, Ueda--no need to blow a gasket just because of Ryo and especially not because of Maru. Maru’s your friend and I know he’s only saying this stuff because he cares about you and he doesn’t want you to go and make a mistake--especially not when it involves getting roped into Ryo’s tangled web of despair. Gawd knows it’s not easy getting out,” Uchi shuddered.
“Yeah but he insulted J-J-Taguchi by saying that! I can’t just let that go--especially since I li--I li-”
“Oh my gosh,” Uchi put his hand over his mouth, then taking it off, “you like him!”
“What?!”
“You like Junno! Oh my gosh, Ueda, that’s so adorable--you have a crush on Ryo’s cousin! That’s just so cute!” Uchi started giggling like a schoolgirl and poking Ueda on the cheek, causing the shorter boy to bat his hand away.
“I-I-I do not!” Ueda defended, his cheeks growing hotter and hotter.
“Of course you don’t,” Uchi laughed, “I wouldn’t be surprised if Ryo’s already figured it out. I bet he’s j--”
“Tatsuya!” a voice from down the hall called out.
Ueda slowly turned around and saw Junno running up to him. His heart dropped along with his jaw. It seemed like slow motion when Junno ran, his hair flowing like a movie star and his muscular body moving up and down with every bounce from every sprint. Ueda’s pants tightened a bit at that moment.
“How are you? I heard Ryo’s been giving you more trouble. I thought he’d stop--after this morning. Oh--h-h-h-hello, U-U-U-Uchi,” Junno stammered.
“Hello, Junno. Haven’t seen you for awhile--didn’t realize you’d be transferring here either. Ryo never said anything when we were dating--guess it was a last minute decision, no?” Uchi’s happy tone turned serious when Junno entered the conversation.
“Hey--you don’t have to be so cold to me. It wasn’t my idea to come here--it was my parents’, I swear,” Junno replied, holding his arms up like he was saying that he was not at fault.
Uchi shook his head and shook his head, “Whatever,” he then turned to Ueda and smiled, “I’ll see you later, Ueda. I got to go and eat lunch. Junno.”
“Uchi,” Junno responded in an equally cold tone.
Uchi turned around and stuck his nose in the air, before going down the hallway and entering into the cafeteria.
Junno chuckled and shook his head, “That guy’s never liked me. I’ve never understood why. Well--no matter--now back to you, Tatsuya. You eat lunch yet?”
Ueda’s cheeks turned pink again, “I--I kinda just left the cafeteria before I got a chance. I’m still kinda hungry though?”
“Cool--how about we go off campus to eat? I know a cool little burger joint a couple blocks away,” Junno looked at his watch and said, “Yeah we still got like 45 minutes left. So--you wanna go?”
Ueda smiled and nodded nervously. The pair walked off, walking pretty close together with Ueda staring at the ground and smiling awkwardly and Junno looking at him practically the whole way out of the building.
At that moment, Ryo was watching the whole thing from a spot next to the cafeteria doors, his arms crossed against his chest and the scowl on his face causing lines to form on his forehead. Just then Uchi appeared from around the corner and spoke to Ryo.
“If I were you--I’d keep an eye on your cousin,” he whispered before walking back into the cafeteria. Ryo just continued staring as he still saw the pair through the school’s glass doors.
After school, Junno and Ueda were hanging out behind one of the school buildings, laughing and drinking from bottles of soda they’d gotten from the burger joint they had gone to at lunch. Ueda was laughing especially hard at a corny joke Junno had just told.
“That’s--that’s so funny. You’re a really funny guy,” Ueda gasped as he wiped tears of laughter from his eyes.
Junno smiled, “Wow--you’re the first person to tell me that. Most people, when they hear my jokes, they either ignore me or they kick me. Not many people like wordplay and puns I guess,” he shrugged his shoulders and shook his head as if he didn’t understand why.
Ueda stopped laughing but smiled instead, “I had a fun time today--hanging out with you at lunch and now. It’s really nice.”
Junno grinned widely, “I had a good time too. You’re pretty cool--and it’s fun hanging out with you. You laugh at my jokes! That’s like a miracle right there,” the tall boy laughed.
Ueda blushed and giggled as well. He looked up and he saw Junno was standing over him. Ueda started breathing through his mouth as he felt his heart beating faster and faster.
“You’re a really special guy, Tatsuya. I don’t know what Ryo is thinking--he’s an idiot.”
Ueda gulped and mumbled, “I--I--I--I”
He didn’t get a chance to say anything because Junno kissed him, softly on the mouth. Ueda’s eyes felt ready to pop out of their sockets. He could feel his knees buckling but lucky for him, there was a wall behind him and he got at least some support from it.
Junno put his hands on the wall to support himself, but he never once took his mouth off of Ueda’s. Eventually he did, smirking seductively, causing Ueda’s stomach to churn and make him a bit nauseous.
“Well I’ll see you tomorrow!” the taller boy happily said.
Ueda shook his head, making sure he knew what was going on, “Huh?!”
“It’s kinda late and I’m supposed to get home to help my dad with the car. I’ll see you tomorrow, Tatsuya,” Junno slowly walked away, waving and smiling the smile that made Ueda feel like he was on air.
Ueda waved back, his arm feeling a bit numb. His whole body felt numb just from Junno’s kiss, and eventually Ueda fell onto his butt onto the ground, sighing. He shook his head, smacking the sides of it, slapping himself on the face, and then resorting to pinching his arms. He tried everything in order to wake himself up from what he thought was a dream.
In reality, the kiss did happen and even though he’d known the other boy for about a day, Ueda felt like he had known Junno for most of his life. And it was at that moment he realized he was in love with Junno as well.
He got up from his spot on the ground and held his hand up to his mouth. He smiled nervously and replayed the magical kiss in his head. He then let out an enthusiastic yell, one to show how happy he was at that moment. But in the midst of his screaming, he got knocked in the head with a flying soccer ball.
When he regained consciousness, he saw Ryo standing over him. Ueda rubbed his head and got up off the ground, slowly but all in one thrust of his body.
“What the hell is wrong with you?! Why don’t you watch where you kick that ball, asshole?!” Ueda shouted to the other boy.
“You’re lucky I didn’t hit you in the crotch! I’m sure it’d hurt even more especially since you’re walking around with that hard-on right now! I can see your pants, pervert! Do you really get that hard just from thinking about Junno?” Ryo taunted.
Ueda said nothing and just grunted. Just then he felt his fist clench and his arm raised and before he knew it, he punched Ryo square in the nose, causing it to bleed. Ryo fell back onto the ground, blood spouting onto his shirt. Ryo touched his nose and saw the red liquid coming out from it and started to scream.
“OH MY FUCKING--I’m bleeding! YOU--YOU--YOU FUCKING GAVE ME A NOSEBLEED! YOU--”
Ueda felt his heart pump in his chest and he started growing nervous at the thought of what he had just done, but for some reason, his face just showed anger.
“U-Ueda! I’m gonna fucking kick your ass, you little jackass!” Ryo got up off the ground just as a bunch of his soccer teammates started gathering around. Kame and Maru, along with Jin and Koki came running out onto the soccer field, along with some of their classmates.
“FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!” the large group of students started chanting.
Ryo held his fists up and looked like a boxer about to start a match. Ueda looked around, his facial expression now showing his nervousness. He didn’t know what to do but he managed to dodge Ryo’s first swing at him. Ryo fell forward into the arms of some of his classmates, but those classmates just pushed Ryo back into what was now the center of a giant circle of teenagers.
Ryo prepared himself to take another swing but once again, he missed Ueda who wasn’t sure what was going on.
“Ryo--Ryo--now wait a second--let’s talk about this thoroughly--let’s not resort to violence,” Ueda tried to calm the clearly furious boy who was getting ready to kill him.
“I’m tired of talking! I’m gonna do what I should’ve done a long time ago--I’m gonna kill you, Junno!”
“Huh?” Ueda sneered, trying to make sure he had just heard what Ryo said.
Just then, Ryo took a swing but his arm was stopped by someone behind him.
“Okay, that’s it, Ryo! You need to stop this shit now before I have to kick your snarky little ass!” the person who stopped him shouted.
It was Junno and he looked furious. He held back Ryo’s arm, all the way behind Ryo’s back causing the other boy to shout in pain.
“AH! IT HURTS! STOP, JUNNO! OKAY! OKAY! I’ll calm down!” Ryo begged for mercy.
Out of sympathy for his cousin, Junno eventually let go but that proved to be a mistake because Ryo just turned around and punched his cousin right in the face.
Junno fell backwards and immediately Ueda cried out for him.
“JUNNO!” Ueda cried, this being the first time he was ever able to say the name of the man he claimed to love.
Junno was on the ground, his eyes closed as if he was knocked unconscious. Ueda’s face showed clear worry as he tried to wake the other boy up.
“Junno! Wake up! Come on, Junno! Wake up!” Ueda shook the other boy, gently tapping his cheek, doing everything he could to wake up the unconscious boy.
But Junno didn’t respond. Ryo looked down at his cousin, at first angrily but when he realized what he had done, his facial expression turned to one of concern.
“Oh my gawd! What did I do? I--Junno--” he cried as he bent down to help up his cousin but Ueda stopped him.
“Don’t touch him! You’re such a--how could you do this to your own cousin?! Ryo--you’re a--”
“I didn’t mean to! I swear I didn’t!” Ryo cried, tears seeming to form in his eyes.
“RYO--GO TO HELL! I HOPE YOU GO TO HELL FOR THIS! I HOPE YOU ROT IN HELL!”
Ueda heaved and panted. The crowd around the three of them stood silent. Kame gasped a little as Koki, Maru, and Jin stared in disbelief.
Ryo looked at Ueda, shocked at what had just come out of the other boy’s mouth. Then he got up, now looking furious again and stormed off the field. Ueda turned back to Junno and rubbed his head, hoping he could wake him up.
END CHAPTER 3
A/N: Whoa @__@ What a dramatic ending to this chapter! Ryo punches Junno and knocks him out! D: And now Uchi has been introduced into the series as well, as Ryo's ex-boyfriend D: and he doesn't seem to like Junno too much either >.> wonder why! XD;; Gotta watch out for Junno, maybe lol at least Ryo does XDD Anyways, thanks to all the readers and all those who comment ^^ Please keep reading until the end! ♥