Beauty and the Geek (ch. 11)
Title: Beauty and the Geek
Chapter: 11/12
Author: socialriotbitch
Pairing: ReitaxRuki
Genre: AU, high school, humor, angst
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: MxM, kissing, homophobia, loads of swearing, anal sex, alcohol/drugs,
Summary: Everyone thought Suzuki Akira was the luckiest guy in the world.
Except Akira himself.
Disclaimer: I only own the plot, not the characters.
Comment: If you check above, you'll see that there will only be twelve chapters to this fic, which means next chapter is the last one -drumroll-
The rest of the comments are at the bottom!
So, that plan to not skip any more classes this year? Yeah, Akira had failed already, but in his defence, he probably wouldn't be paying attention even if he attended. In stead, he had grabbed the books he would need from his locker and trotted away from school, his mind completely blank until he reached a small park. He shrugged his backpack off his shoulder and sat down on the grass, staring at his crossed legs for several minutes before he dared to think about anything at all.
Unless Takanori was lying just to screw with his mind, they had ended up having sex on Friday. And as much as he hoped it was a lie, Akira knew it was hard to fake the emotions he had seen on Takanori's face earlier. Takanori was pissed, he was furious, he was hurt, and Akira didn't blame him one bit, neither did he doubt that Takanori was being sincere.
It explained a lot. It explained why Akira had been naked when he woke up on Saturday. It explained why Takanori had left and not talked to him since. It explained why Akira didn't remember a shit. The only thing he couldn't comprehend was why.
Obviously, Akira had been drunk. That was his excuse for ending up in bed with a guy, and honestly, it was as good an excuse as any. He hadn't had sex in weeks, in fact, he hadn't even jerked off. He had been so smashed he couldn't remember the night, so it was entirely possible he had gotten frustrated and taken it out on Takanori.
What didn't make sense was why Takanori had agreed. Akira knew himself, even drunk he was no rapist, he wouldn't force himself on someone who didn't want him, so Takanori must have said yes, and that was what puzzled Akira beyond reason. Why would Takanori have sex with him? Sure, Akira was aware that he was an attractive man, but Takanori hated him. Why would you fuck someone you hated? That made no sense. It made no sense, and that fact alone was enough to convince Akira that deep down, despite all the disgust and repulsion Takanori regarded him with, Takanori must have cared.
Was Takanori in love with him? Akira shook his head. No, that couldn't be it. Infatuation, maybe, but Akira wasn't stupid enough to believe Takanori loved him. There were other reasons to have sex with someone, right?
Akira decided to discard that train of thought for the time being. The topic only confused him, and he didn't want to be confused any more, so he moved on to the next issue at hand. Akira struggled as he tried to remember Takanori's exact words.
The only reason why I even bothered with this whole charade to begin with was because I wanted to get back at Yuu and Kouyou.
Whether that was the entire reason or there was more to it, Akira couldn't be sure, but he didn't doubt that it was at least partially true. If he was honest with himself, he should probably have been more sceptical. Maybe in the beginning he could fool himself into believing that Takanori's sole motivation to help him out with maths was that he wanted Akira to act as his boyfriend. He didn't believe for one second that Takanori had done it out of his good will or pity for Akira. Akira didn't want to be pitied. He wasn't that stupid. He wasn't good at maths, but that didn't make him stupid enough to deserve pity.
To the point. Point was, now that Akira had gotten to know him better, he didn't think Takanori was actually so desperate to get a boyfriend that he would bribe someone into a relationship. Takanori was smart enough to understand that that wouldn't last in the long run, and that he couldn't force someone into falling in love with him. Using Akira to make Yuu and Kouyou uncomfortable, however? Now that sounded like something that sly bastard would do.
Akira wasn't bothered by the thought that Takanori had been using him for some revenge game. Maybe he should have been a little bothered that the people Takanori was trying to get revenge on were his best friends, but that was between them and Takanori. To be fair, Akira had been using Takanori just as much. He didn't want to lose his pride over admitting to his friends that he needed help with maths, so he picked a genius kid who he thought he could trick into doing the job for him. So they were both using each other. It was only fair, wasn't it?
Akira's shin ached, and he realised that he would most likely get a bruise tomorrow. He deserved it. Forget who was using who, and to what end, their agreement had worked perfectly until Friday. And although Akira couldn't remember the details, all evidence suggested that he and Takanori had sex. That was a fact he had to face. And if he put himself in Takanori's place, he understood him perfectly.
Akira was straight. Takanori was gay. Even if they had both been drunk off their wits, they had fucked. On Takanori's part, that made sense. On Akira's, it didn't. Akira wasn't gay, so he understood that sleeping with Takanori would make it seem like he was either playing him or just using him. Takanori could have jumped to those conclusions, and that alone justified the aching jaw and the pain in Akira's leg. In fact, he felt like he deserved much worse, but being self-destructive now wouldn't do him any good.
He understood, clear as day, why Takanori was pissed at him. And he couldn't say it was just a misunderstanding either, because he wasn't sure if he really was. He didn't have sex with Takanori to play with his feelings, or tease him. But he wasn't beyond having sex with Takanori just because he was frustrated and horny. The frustrated part was self-explanatory. He hadn't had sex in weeks. He couldn't remember anything from Friday night, so it wasn't entirely impossible that he had ended up getting horny, and, for some weird reason he couldn't quite comprehend, had sex with Takanori.
It gave him a headache to think about. He wasn't gay. He probably could have fucked any girl he wanted at that party. He could have chosen anyone else, but in stead he had sex with Takanori. That had to mean something, right? Akira couldn't quite imagine what exactly that could mean, but it had to mean something.
As for Takanori. He was gay. He probably couldn't have gotten laid with anyone other than Akira, so on one hand it would make sense that he went for him, but then again, why at all? Takanori wasn't like him. Takanori didn't seem the type to just have a one night stand for the pleasure of it. Only hours ago, Takanori had screamed at him that he didn't want to have sex with Akira just to get off, so then what was the point?
Suddenly, nothing made sense again. No matter how many times Akira went through the facts in his head, no matter how much he thought back and forth about it, he ended up with the same conclusion. He didn't have the foggiest clue why he and Takanori had fucked, and he felt like if he thought about it any more, he would start to doubt quite a few things about himself, and he didn't want to. He knew he was straight.
“People only defend themselves when they have something to defend.”
Takanori's voice echoed in his head, and Akira shook his head, trying to shoo the stupid midget out of his thoughts. He was done thinking about him. Everything was confusing, but at least Akira was sure of one thing. He was straight.
“You keep saying that. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“Leave me alone!” Akira looked up, realising he had just screamed in the middle of a park. People were giving him concerned looks, and he grabbed his backpack and quickly got up, hanging his head in embarrassment. “I'm straight,” he mumbled to himself, ignoring the voice at the back of his head. He didn't want to think any more about him. He just got confused, so he gave up on thinking and decided to walk home and go to bed.
~
Tuesday passed, and Akira didn't see Takanori all day. He thought he was just avoiding him, but then he didn't see him on Wednesday either. On Thursday, in the lunch break, he looked everywhere, but he couldn't find him.
It wasn't like Takanori to just skip like that. Akira didn't claim to know a lot about Takanori, but what he did know was that the kid was a genius who took school way too seriously. He got top grades in all his classes and hadn't skipped a single lesson. Akira knew, because last year the principal had made a list of all the pupils that had been present to every class that year, and Takanori had been one of the three names on that list.
Akira made his way up the stairs to the teachers' lounge. If Takanori really hadn't been to school since Monday, that was a reason to be concerned. He knocked on the door, bowing politely when someone opened it. “Excuse me, is the teacher of class 2C present?”
“One minute.” The guy went back inside, and Akira waited for a couple of minutes until Takanori's teacher, a nice old lady who always smiled to everyone, emerged.
“Can I help you?”
Akira bowed again. “Has Takanori Matsumoto been at school today?”
“Actually, he hasn't been here since Monday. Any particular reason you're asking?”
“Just wondering.”
He was about to turn around and leave when the teacher gripped his arm, furrowing her brows as she looked at him with an expression Akira couldn't quite read. “This is the first time he has skipped school. Do you have any idea what has happened to him? Is he sick?”
Akira shook his head. “I have no idea, Ma'am.”
“Oh, okay.” She looked almost disappointed when Akira turned and left.
~
A knock sounded on Takanori's bedroom door, and he lifted his head briefly from where it was buried deep in his pillow. “Go away!”
“Honey, Yutaka is here,” came his mother's voice through the door.
Takanori wiped a few tears and let his head fall back onto the futon. “Why?”
The door opened, and Yutaka peeked his head into the room, frowning at the sight of Takanori sprawled out on his stomach, face down on the bed. “Because your mother called me.”
Takanori looked at him briefly before turning his head towards the wall. He knew Yutaka would notice the redness of his eyes and realise that he had been crying. He didn't have the energy to care. “Go away.”
Those words stung, but Yutaka ignored it. He knew that Takanori only pushed people away when he felt weak, and besides, he wasn't the one who needed comfort right now. “She said you haven't been at school since Monday. That's not like you. She's concerned, and she says you won't talk to her. Did something happen?”
“Yeah, something happened.”
Yutaka waited for Takanori to finish that sentence. Several minutes passed, until Yutaka realised that Takanori wasn't going to. “Tell me about it. Maybe I can help.”
“You can't.”
“You never know until you try.”
Takanori rolled over so he was facing Yutaka, looking more than a little aggravated, but Yutaka didn't let it phase him. “I went to a party at Kouyou's place this Friday.”
Yutaka stiffened up at the mention of Kouyou's name. “What? Why? How did you even get invited?”
“Because me and Akira are 'dating', remember? And Kouyou told him to bring me.” He took a deep breath and looked away. “Yutaka, if you want me to tell you what happened, then you need to be completely silent and just listen. Don't cut me off or ask any questions until I'm done.”
Yutaka nodded, smiling as he sat down on the edge of the futon, patting Takanori's thigh. “You can trust me.”
Takanori pursed his lips, shutting his eyes tightly. “There was alcohol there. And no scolding me, I know you're frowning, but you promised to just listen. So yeah, I had a couple of beers. Yeah, I was a little drunk. But Akira was wasted. He was completely sloshed and I made the biggest mistake I have ever made in my entire life. He said he wanted to fuck me. And I said yes.”
A tear rolled down Takanori's cheek, and Yutaka wiped it away, but he didn't say anything. He simply waited for Takanori to continue. “And it was great. I mean, obviously Akira is good at it considering how much sex he's had, but it was the best I've felt in my entire life, Yutaka. And I completely forgot that he's straight.” Takanori sobbed as he heaved his breath, lip trembling with the force of holding back his tears. “And I texted him the next day, but he didn't reply. He didn't say anything all weekend, and on Monday he just pretended that nothing had happened. He pretended he didn't know anything about it, and-” He choked back another sob. “And I kicked him in the stomach and ran home.”
Yutaka raised an eyebrow. “You kicked him?”
Takanori nodded. “And I punched him before that.”
“Taka, don't take this the wrong way but...” Yutaka rubbed the back of his neck, staring at Takanori's closed eyes. “Why are you so upset about it?”
A few broken sobs left Takanori, and more tears rolled down his cheeks. Yutaka instantly embraced him tightly, and Takanori clung to him like a teddy. He buried his face in Yutaka's chest and cried for several long minutes, before he lay back down and wiped his tears. “I don't know.”
Yutaka frowned. “Taka, I need you to be honest with yourself here. First of all, you had sex with him. Then, you're upset that he doesn't text you back.” He watched Takanori's face carefully, knowing he was treading in dangerous waters, and that if Takanori was in denial, he would probably snap at him for what he was about to ask. “Are you in love with him?”
That only prompted another round of tears, and Takanori hugged his duvet tightly. “I'm an idiot, Yutaka.” He managed to croak out between sobs. “I fell for a straight guy.”
“Taka, remember that time when we were young that I told you you wouldn't know logic if it bit you in the butt?”
“Your point being?”
Yutaka pinched Takanori's ass, almost laughing at the pathetic yelp that followed. “That was it.”
“What the hell was that for?” Takanori rubbed his ass and pouted dramatically.
“He had sex with you, Taka. He defends you. He kisses you of his own free will.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“Have you considered that maybe he's in love with you?”
Takanori snorted, burying his face in his pillow again. “Yeah right. He's straight, remember.”
Yutaka gave him a pitiful look. Takanori could feel it. “It's not like he's ever had any other options.”
“You don't choose your sexuality.”
“I wish.” Yutaka giggled, but they both knew it was strained. “Think about it. He grew up with friends and family who encouraged him to get girlfriends, to get laid.”
“So did we.”
“But we realised, at some point, that we're not straight. We like guys. Some people take longer than others. Some have to actually fall in love before they realise it. And some people, believe it or not, are bisexual.”
Takanori rolled his eyes. “I know what bisexuality is.”
“Then when are you going to stop being in denial? Have you seen the way he looks at you? Taka, he loves you.”
A small tear rolled down Takanori's cheek. “Don't get my hopes up.”
“He loves you.”
“That's a lie and you know it.”
“He loves you.”
“Well then he can damn well come and tell me that himself!” Takanori didn't care that he was screaming. He knew his mother was most likely eavesdropping on the other side of the door, but he didn't care. All he cared about was making his heart stop hurting so much every time he mentioned Akira.
“Taka.” Yutaka smiled genuinely, and Takanori was almost blinded by the shine of it.
“What?” Takanori snapped, going back to glaring at the wall.
“You love him.”
He didn't argue. He had just screamed, it was pointless to argue, so he settled for sarcasm in stead.
“Stop stating the obvious.”
~
03/04, 11:09
Meet me outside, front of the gates. Now.
Yutaka
That was the text Akira had received five minutes ago. He had excused himself and left the cafeteria, heading to the front of the school. It was raining, and he spotted Yutaka standing by the gates, holding an umbrella. “Hey, Yutaka, what's up? It's Friday, shouldn't you be at school?”
Yutaka clenched his fist, glaring harshly at Akira. “I really ought to punch you, but it seems Taka took care of that himself.”
Akira's hand reflectively went up to his jaw, and he hissed as he touched the sore bruise. “You could say that.”
“You do realise he has been lying in his bed, crying, since Monday?”
Akira turned his head away in shame. “I figured.”
“You need to talk to him.”
“No way!” Akira looked up, and the sheer desperation in his eyes startled Yutaka.
“I already tried. He won't listen to me. He's... broken.” Yutaka had to bite his lip to keep from saying anything more.
“I don't care. Go home.” Akira was about to turn around and go back inside when Yutaka suddenly gripped his shirt, pulling him back to face him. Dark eyes bore into Akira's own, and he had never thought he would see Yutaka look so furious.
“No, listen to me, dickhead! Takanori has been crying for days, and if you don't go talk to him, he will lock himself in his room until school ends and you graduate. You have to fix what you fucked up.”
They stood silently for a long minute after that, Akira still in shock after Yutaka's outburst, and Yutaka trying to calm himself down. The patter of rain on the umbrella was disturbingly loud over the silence. “Well, what do you expect me to do? I don't think he will be overly happy to see me, if he even lets me inside at all.”
“You ask his teacher for his books, saying that you have to deliver them so he can do his homework. Then you go and give them to Taka.”
Akira nodded. “Okay.”
“Promise me that no matter what he says or does, you'll talk to him.”
He looked at the ground, biting his lip. “I promise.”
With that, Yutaka let go of Akira's shirt and left. Akira stared after him for a long time before heading back inside the school.
A/N: And that was the second to last chapter! (I swear the last one will be longer just bear with me) So much inner monologue in this one. Anygay, chapter 12 is essentially done now, I just need to proofread it, correct all the typos, change the ending and maybe do some minor tweaks, so expect the final chapter within this week, depending on how much I want to change and how productive I am. (I am very excited, since this will be the first chapterfic I ever finish. Squee!)
Chapter: 11/12
Author: socialriotbitch
Pairing: ReitaxRuki
Genre: AU, high school, humor, angst
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: MxM, kissing, homophobia, loads of swearing, anal sex, alcohol/drugs,
Summary: Everyone thought Suzuki Akira was the luckiest guy in the world.
Except Akira himself.
Disclaimer: I only own the plot, not the characters.
Comment: If you check above, you'll see that there will only be twelve chapters to this fic, which means next chapter is the last one -drumroll-
The rest of the comments are at the bottom!
So, that plan to not skip any more classes this year? Yeah, Akira had failed already, but in his defence, he probably wouldn't be paying attention even if he attended. In stead, he had grabbed the books he would need from his locker and trotted away from school, his mind completely blank until he reached a small park. He shrugged his backpack off his shoulder and sat down on the grass, staring at his crossed legs for several minutes before he dared to think about anything at all.
Unless Takanori was lying just to screw with his mind, they had ended up having sex on Friday. And as much as he hoped it was a lie, Akira knew it was hard to fake the emotions he had seen on Takanori's face earlier. Takanori was pissed, he was furious, he was hurt, and Akira didn't blame him one bit, neither did he doubt that Takanori was being sincere.
It explained a lot. It explained why Akira had been naked when he woke up on Saturday. It explained why Takanori had left and not talked to him since. It explained why Akira didn't remember a shit. The only thing he couldn't comprehend was why.
Obviously, Akira had been drunk. That was his excuse for ending up in bed with a guy, and honestly, it was as good an excuse as any. He hadn't had sex in weeks, in fact, he hadn't even jerked off. He had been so smashed he couldn't remember the night, so it was entirely possible he had gotten frustrated and taken it out on Takanori.
What didn't make sense was why Takanori had agreed. Akira knew himself, even drunk he was no rapist, he wouldn't force himself on someone who didn't want him, so Takanori must have said yes, and that was what puzzled Akira beyond reason. Why would Takanori have sex with him? Sure, Akira was aware that he was an attractive man, but Takanori hated him. Why would you fuck someone you hated? That made no sense. It made no sense, and that fact alone was enough to convince Akira that deep down, despite all the disgust and repulsion Takanori regarded him with, Takanori must have cared.
Was Takanori in love with him? Akira shook his head. No, that couldn't be it. Infatuation, maybe, but Akira wasn't stupid enough to believe Takanori loved him. There were other reasons to have sex with someone, right?
Akira decided to discard that train of thought for the time being. The topic only confused him, and he didn't want to be confused any more, so he moved on to the next issue at hand. Akira struggled as he tried to remember Takanori's exact words.
The only reason why I even bothered with this whole charade to begin with was because I wanted to get back at Yuu and Kouyou.
Whether that was the entire reason or there was more to it, Akira couldn't be sure, but he didn't doubt that it was at least partially true. If he was honest with himself, he should probably have been more sceptical. Maybe in the beginning he could fool himself into believing that Takanori's sole motivation to help him out with maths was that he wanted Akira to act as his boyfriend. He didn't believe for one second that Takanori had done it out of his good will or pity for Akira. Akira didn't want to be pitied. He wasn't that stupid. He wasn't good at maths, but that didn't make him stupid enough to deserve pity.
To the point. Point was, now that Akira had gotten to know him better, he didn't think Takanori was actually so desperate to get a boyfriend that he would bribe someone into a relationship. Takanori was smart enough to understand that that wouldn't last in the long run, and that he couldn't force someone into falling in love with him. Using Akira to make Yuu and Kouyou uncomfortable, however? Now that sounded like something that sly bastard would do.
Akira wasn't bothered by the thought that Takanori had been using him for some revenge game. Maybe he should have been a little bothered that the people Takanori was trying to get revenge on were his best friends, but that was between them and Takanori. To be fair, Akira had been using Takanori just as much. He didn't want to lose his pride over admitting to his friends that he needed help with maths, so he picked a genius kid who he thought he could trick into doing the job for him. So they were both using each other. It was only fair, wasn't it?
Akira's shin ached, and he realised that he would most likely get a bruise tomorrow. He deserved it. Forget who was using who, and to what end, their agreement had worked perfectly until Friday. And although Akira couldn't remember the details, all evidence suggested that he and Takanori had sex. That was a fact he had to face. And if he put himself in Takanori's place, he understood him perfectly.
Akira was straight. Takanori was gay. Even if they had both been drunk off their wits, they had fucked. On Takanori's part, that made sense. On Akira's, it didn't. Akira wasn't gay, so he understood that sleeping with Takanori would make it seem like he was either playing him or just using him. Takanori could have jumped to those conclusions, and that alone justified the aching jaw and the pain in Akira's leg. In fact, he felt like he deserved much worse, but being self-destructive now wouldn't do him any good.
He understood, clear as day, why Takanori was pissed at him. And he couldn't say it was just a misunderstanding either, because he wasn't sure if he really was. He didn't have sex with Takanori to play with his feelings, or tease him. But he wasn't beyond having sex with Takanori just because he was frustrated and horny. The frustrated part was self-explanatory. He hadn't had sex in weeks. He couldn't remember anything from Friday night, so it wasn't entirely impossible that he had ended up getting horny, and, for some weird reason he couldn't quite comprehend, had sex with Takanori.
It gave him a headache to think about. He wasn't gay. He probably could have fucked any girl he wanted at that party. He could have chosen anyone else, but in stead he had sex with Takanori. That had to mean something, right? Akira couldn't quite imagine what exactly that could mean, but it had to mean something.
As for Takanori. He was gay. He probably couldn't have gotten laid with anyone other than Akira, so on one hand it would make sense that he went for him, but then again, why at all? Takanori wasn't like him. Takanori didn't seem the type to just have a one night stand for the pleasure of it. Only hours ago, Takanori had screamed at him that he didn't want to have sex with Akira just to get off, so then what was the point?
Suddenly, nothing made sense again. No matter how many times Akira went through the facts in his head, no matter how much he thought back and forth about it, he ended up with the same conclusion. He didn't have the foggiest clue why he and Takanori had fucked, and he felt like if he thought about it any more, he would start to doubt quite a few things about himself, and he didn't want to. He knew he was straight.
“People only defend themselves when they have something to defend.”
Takanori's voice echoed in his head, and Akira shook his head, trying to shoo the stupid midget out of his thoughts. He was done thinking about him. Everything was confusing, but at least Akira was sure of one thing. He was straight.
“You keep saying that. Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“Leave me alone!” Akira looked up, realising he had just screamed in the middle of a park. People were giving him concerned looks, and he grabbed his backpack and quickly got up, hanging his head in embarrassment. “I'm straight,” he mumbled to himself, ignoring the voice at the back of his head. He didn't want to think any more about him. He just got confused, so he gave up on thinking and decided to walk home and go to bed.
~
Tuesday passed, and Akira didn't see Takanori all day. He thought he was just avoiding him, but then he didn't see him on Wednesday either. On Thursday, in the lunch break, he looked everywhere, but he couldn't find him.
It wasn't like Takanori to just skip like that. Akira didn't claim to know a lot about Takanori, but what he did know was that the kid was a genius who took school way too seriously. He got top grades in all his classes and hadn't skipped a single lesson. Akira knew, because last year the principal had made a list of all the pupils that had been present to every class that year, and Takanori had been one of the three names on that list.
Akira made his way up the stairs to the teachers' lounge. If Takanori really hadn't been to school since Monday, that was a reason to be concerned. He knocked on the door, bowing politely when someone opened it. “Excuse me, is the teacher of class 2C present?”
“One minute.” The guy went back inside, and Akira waited for a couple of minutes until Takanori's teacher, a nice old lady who always smiled to everyone, emerged.
“Can I help you?”
Akira bowed again. “Has Takanori Matsumoto been at school today?”
“Actually, he hasn't been here since Monday. Any particular reason you're asking?”
“Just wondering.”
He was about to turn around and leave when the teacher gripped his arm, furrowing her brows as she looked at him with an expression Akira couldn't quite read. “This is the first time he has skipped school. Do you have any idea what has happened to him? Is he sick?”
Akira shook his head. “I have no idea, Ma'am.”
“Oh, okay.” She looked almost disappointed when Akira turned and left.
~
A knock sounded on Takanori's bedroom door, and he lifted his head briefly from where it was buried deep in his pillow. “Go away!”
“Honey, Yutaka is here,” came his mother's voice through the door.
Takanori wiped a few tears and let his head fall back onto the futon. “Why?”
The door opened, and Yutaka peeked his head into the room, frowning at the sight of Takanori sprawled out on his stomach, face down on the bed. “Because your mother called me.”
Takanori looked at him briefly before turning his head towards the wall. He knew Yutaka would notice the redness of his eyes and realise that he had been crying. He didn't have the energy to care. “Go away.”
Those words stung, but Yutaka ignored it. He knew that Takanori only pushed people away when he felt weak, and besides, he wasn't the one who needed comfort right now. “She said you haven't been at school since Monday. That's not like you. She's concerned, and she says you won't talk to her. Did something happen?”
“Yeah, something happened.”
Yutaka waited for Takanori to finish that sentence. Several minutes passed, until Yutaka realised that Takanori wasn't going to. “Tell me about it. Maybe I can help.”
“You can't.”
“You never know until you try.”
Takanori rolled over so he was facing Yutaka, looking more than a little aggravated, but Yutaka didn't let it phase him. “I went to a party at Kouyou's place this Friday.”
Yutaka stiffened up at the mention of Kouyou's name. “What? Why? How did you even get invited?”
“Because me and Akira are 'dating', remember? And Kouyou told him to bring me.” He took a deep breath and looked away. “Yutaka, if you want me to tell you what happened, then you need to be completely silent and just listen. Don't cut me off or ask any questions until I'm done.”
Yutaka nodded, smiling as he sat down on the edge of the futon, patting Takanori's thigh. “You can trust me.”
Takanori pursed his lips, shutting his eyes tightly. “There was alcohol there. And no scolding me, I know you're frowning, but you promised to just listen. So yeah, I had a couple of beers. Yeah, I was a little drunk. But Akira was wasted. He was completely sloshed and I made the biggest mistake I have ever made in my entire life. He said he wanted to fuck me. And I said yes.”
A tear rolled down Takanori's cheek, and Yutaka wiped it away, but he didn't say anything. He simply waited for Takanori to continue. “And it was great. I mean, obviously Akira is good at it considering how much sex he's had, but it was the best I've felt in my entire life, Yutaka. And I completely forgot that he's straight.” Takanori sobbed as he heaved his breath, lip trembling with the force of holding back his tears. “And I texted him the next day, but he didn't reply. He didn't say anything all weekend, and on Monday he just pretended that nothing had happened. He pretended he didn't know anything about it, and-” He choked back another sob. “And I kicked him in the stomach and ran home.”
Yutaka raised an eyebrow. “You kicked him?”
Takanori nodded. “And I punched him before that.”
“Taka, don't take this the wrong way but...” Yutaka rubbed the back of his neck, staring at Takanori's closed eyes. “Why are you so upset about it?”
A few broken sobs left Takanori, and more tears rolled down his cheeks. Yutaka instantly embraced him tightly, and Takanori clung to him like a teddy. He buried his face in Yutaka's chest and cried for several long minutes, before he lay back down and wiped his tears. “I don't know.”
Yutaka frowned. “Taka, I need you to be honest with yourself here. First of all, you had sex with him. Then, you're upset that he doesn't text you back.” He watched Takanori's face carefully, knowing he was treading in dangerous waters, and that if Takanori was in denial, he would probably snap at him for what he was about to ask. “Are you in love with him?”
That only prompted another round of tears, and Takanori hugged his duvet tightly. “I'm an idiot, Yutaka.” He managed to croak out between sobs. “I fell for a straight guy.”
“Taka, remember that time when we were young that I told you you wouldn't know logic if it bit you in the butt?”
“Your point being?”
Yutaka pinched Takanori's ass, almost laughing at the pathetic yelp that followed. “That was it.”
“What the hell was that for?” Takanori rubbed his ass and pouted dramatically.
“He had sex with you, Taka. He defends you. He kisses you of his own free will.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“Have you considered that maybe he's in love with you?”
Takanori snorted, burying his face in his pillow again. “Yeah right. He's straight, remember.”
Yutaka gave him a pitiful look. Takanori could feel it. “It's not like he's ever had any other options.”
“You don't choose your sexuality.”
“I wish.” Yutaka giggled, but they both knew it was strained. “Think about it. He grew up with friends and family who encouraged him to get girlfriends, to get laid.”
“So did we.”
“But we realised, at some point, that we're not straight. We like guys. Some people take longer than others. Some have to actually fall in love before they realise it. And some people, believe it or not, are bisexual.”
Takanori rolled his eyes. “I know what bisexuality is.”
“Then when are you going to stop being in denial? Have you seen the way he looks at you? Taka, he loves you.”
A small tear rolled down Takanori's cheek. “Don't get my hopes up.”
“He loves you.”
“That's a lie and you know it.”
“He loves you.”
“Well then he can damn well come and tell me that himself!” Takanori didn't care that he was screaming. He knew his mother was most likely eavesdropping on the other side of the door, but he didn't care. All he cared about was making his heart stop hurting so much every time he mentioned Akira.
“Taka.” Yutaka smiled genuinely, and Takanori was almost blinded by the shine of it.
“What?” Takanori snapped, going back to glaring at the wall.
“You love him.”
He didn't argue. He had just screamed, it was pointless to argue, so he settled for sarcasm in stead.
“Stop stating the obvious.”
~
03/04, 11:09
Meet me outside, front of the gates. Now.
Yutaka
That was the text Akira had received five minutes ago. He had excused himself and left the cafeteria, heading to the front of the school. It was raining, and he spotted Yutaka standing by the gates, holding an umbrella. “Hey, Yutaka, what's up? It's Friday, shouldn't you be at school?”
Yutaka clenched his fist, glaring harshly at Akira. “I really ought to punch you, but it seems Taka took care of that himself.”
Akira's hand reflectively went up to his jaw, and he hissed as he touched the sore bruise. “You could say that.”
“You do realise he has been lying in his bed, crying, since Monday?”
Akira turned his head away in shame. “I figured.”
“You need to talk to him.”
“No way!” Akira looked up, and the sheer desperation in his eyes startled Yutaka.
“I already tried. He won't listen to me. He's... broken.” Yutaka had to bite his lip to keep from saying anything more.
“I don't care. Go home.” Akira was about to turn around and go back inside when Yutaka suddenly gripped his shirt, pulling him back to face him. Dark eyes bore into Akira's own, and he had never thought he would see Yutaka look so furious.
“No, listen to me, dickhead! Takanori has been crying for days, and if you don't go talk to him, he will lock himself in his room until school ends and you graduate. You have to fix what you fucked up.”
They stood silently for a long minute after that, Akira still in shock after Yutaka's outburst, and Yutaka trying to calm himself down. The patter of rain on the umbrella was disturbingly loud over the silence. “Well, what do you expect me to do? I don't think he will be overly happy to see me, if he even lets me inside at all.”
“You ask his teacher for his books, saying that you have to deliver them so he can do his homework. Then you go and give them to Taka.”
Akira nodded. “Okay.”
“Promise me that no matter what he says or does, you'll talk to him.”
He looked at the ground, biting his lip. “I promise.”
With that, Yutaka let go of Akira's shirt and left. Akira stared after him for a long time before heading back inside the school.
A/N: And that was the second to last chapter! (I swear the last one will be longer just bear with me) So much inner monologue in this one. Anygay, chapter 12 is essentially done now, I just need to proofread it, correct all the typos, change the ending and maybe do some minor tweaks, so expect the final chapter within this week, depending on how much I want to change and how productive I am. (I am very excited, since this will be the first chapterfic I ever finish. Squee!)