Silent Storm

You know that feeling when time just went by, people come and go, it felt like yesterday but also felt like years? That's how time felt when you have people in your life. It went by so quickly.

It didn't feel the same for the red-haired boy. There's not that many people that is actually in his life. It went so slowly that he couldn't escape the constant boredom from the lack of goals and friendship in his young life. Yukihiro often worried about this, but there's not much a mid-thirty old man could do, is there?

Karma often thought this was a kind of 'karma' for him. In exchange for loneliness, he gained wealth and the freedom to do whatever he wanted. However, lately, after a week of returning to school, he realized, that was not the case.

"What is the matter?" Yukihiro finally asked, after the unusual silent progressed in the car as he drove to the manor. Karma was staring through the darkened window of the car, a distant look on his face.

"Why am I here?" he asked out of nowhere.

"Hey...Yukki...What am I supposed to do? Everything is so boring. Why are my parents always so busy working and not taking a break to enjoy their money?"

The traffic light turned red from afar, and the car slowed down to a stop. Yukihiro hummed thoughtfully, a frown that reminded Karma of the man's only son.

"You're too young to feel that way, it's not a big deal, Young Master."

"Oh, come on!"

"You'll get bored..." Yukihiro chuckled heartily.

"I can get serious, sometimes, on a rare occasion?"

"What occasion is this, then?"

"This is me feeling the abyss of boredom! Even serious talk will amuse me, I hope? I don't know...What is wrong with me? I have everything, but I don't have..." the boy hung his head down, but he didn't want to think about it. The boy scoffed and shrugged it off.

"Nah, I have everything! Can we go to Gamestop? I need to buy new stuff."

Yukihiro smiled sheepishly, but did as ordered. He watched the boy forcing himself to look excited about spending his pocket money for new game system and consoles. The boy was young, and he seemed really energetic and mischievous, but Yukihiro, who had practically raised that boy, knew more. Karma was deeper and more profound than he tried to appear. For some reason, the boy thought that no one would like a serious and quiet boy. He feared to appear boring to everyone else. Karma thirsted a lot of attention, as he lacked attention so much it was actually quite sad.

However, the boy held his head high with pride, and forced himself to do everything because he wanted it. And that's actually the very opposite of his true personality.

"Tomorrow is Sunday, yes?" asked Yukihiro, waiting for Karma to get into the car before closing the door and walked around to get into the driver seat. "What about a sleep over? I would have to go back to the manor to take care of some business, and my wife is working out-of-town; Nagisa would be all alone."

"He is? Doesn't he have friends or something?" Karma snorted, checking his shopping items just to look busy.

"Well, we just moved, remember? He wouldn't have new friends yet... I feel really bad leaving him home alone."

"But you do that often."

"Well I often feel really bad, then."

Karma scoffed a laugh and shrugged. "Fine, I'll go for that. Do you have any consoles at home, though? It'll help."

"Yeah, we got a Nintendo Wii. Nagisa prefers hand-held consoles though."

~.X.~

It was like hell and heaven, when looking at Karma and Nagisa. Both of them were introverts with different means. Yukihiro raised the two of them, but he always learned something new about Karma, being with the red-head gave him an uneasy, worrying inkling.

Being with Nagisa was like watching a calm ocean wave. He couldn't hide deeper meaning, he was considerate and could be straight-forward when needed. However, that didn't mean Yukihiro preferred one more than the other. For him, he loved both of them, like a father did to his children. Nagisa wasn't the biggest schemer, unlike Karma, what he did wouldn't hide a deeper meaning or any trick. He was simple, and that was peaceful to have. Only at times, Yukihiro knew that his only son was always piling up complaints or personal problems for himself.

So when the red-head and the bluenette met, it was always interesting to watch. Karma became more sincere, whereas Nagisa showed unusual emotions, impatience, and mischief.

"I thought you're not going to come home," Nagisa said, looking really surprised after closing the door behind; it was raining and snowing outside. "I only cooked dinner for myself!" he added, and helped his father taking off his coat. "Come, hand that jacket over me," he told Karma, waiting for the boy to take off his damp jacket.

"Well, I can always order something," Karma shrugged, taking off his shoes—he was told by Yukihiro that normal Japanese people took off their shoes at home.

"Nagisa, I'm not here to stay," Yukihiro said, ruffling his wet hair. "Will you please put my coat in the washer and take the dry-cleaned one? It's hanging over the dryer."

"Sure. Karma-kun, then, you should head in. Dad, do you want something before you go?"

"No, no, I'll just have my dry coat, please."

Nagisa directed his guest to the living room before leaving to fetch his father's dry coat, still wrapped with plastic. Karma could hear the rain again when Yukihiro opened the door to leave, and the sound was muffled when Nagisa locked it. There was a very short table in the middle of the room with thick blanket, known as kotatsu, and a set of dinner on it.

"You're soaking wet!" Nagisa exclaimed again, finally taking a good look at Karma.

"You don't say. So what's the closest fast food around here?"

Nagisa hummed, thinking for a bit, and had an idea. "Oh, no, what if you just go and take a bath first. I'll put your clothes in the laundry, yeah? I'll lend you my dad's clothes, since I think you won't fit mine. And in the meantime, I'll cook you dinner. Yes, now go."

Karma blinked, unable to have a say as Nagisa escorted him to the bathroom and shoved a dry towel for him, telling him to drop his wet clothes in front of the door, on the mat. It was odd. Yukihiro never did that to him, he just asked Karma accordingly to the schedule. That, and he wanted to laugh at the size of the tub. Karma rarely soak in bath, even though he had a larger tub at the manor, he'd always go on for shower.

And how do they do it anyway? He was getting wrinkled-skin as he tried to figure out if he's supposed to soap in the bath or mix the soap for a bubble bath when Nagisa opened the door again. An deadpan crossed his face.

"I forgot you probably don't know how to bathe like a normal Japanese person,"

"You got me,"

Nagisa sighed. He told Karma to soap himself outside the tub and wash himself by taking the water from the tub with the wooden bucket. There was a small stool for Karma to sit outside the tub and soap himself.

"After you're clean from soap, you can soak in the tub." Nagisa finished his explanation, and then paused, wrinkling his nose. "I sure hope that isn't the smell of your dinner being burnt." He added, before striding off, closing the door behind him.

Karma chuckled, and began to take off his clothes, putting it out by the door, then washed himself as he was taught earlier. It was odd. Apparently, to save water, they can't possibly re-fill the tub for each person, so they had to be clean before soaking in the tub and took turns. Karma decided to think of the tub as some sort of public hot water spring.

He sighed in bliss when he soaked into the hot bath, feeling it into his bones. He could just fall asleep right there and then. At home, he rarely get in a tub because he would be so busy playing with bubbles. Karma never really grasped the luxury of sitting and relaxing in silence inside a tub.

But now he could, because he didn't feel that he had to be worried of boredom in this small house.

~.X.~

"You can't flip the table okay, this isn't your manor," Nagisa warned when he finished serving dinner for Karma, who rolled his eyes.

"I'm not stupid!" the red-head laughed, and when he was about to dig in, he saw Nagisa was praying, so he followed suit, even though he didn't know what mantra he should be saying.

"What is this big fruit?" Karma poked the pickled plum on top of his rice bow with his chopsticksl.

"That's umeboshi. Okay...Um, let's eat." Nagisa said, smiling to Karma before finally digging in. Karma watched the boy for a while to figure out how he should eat, because he's too prideful to ask. It didn't take too long until he perfectly followed suit how Nagisa eats.

It was odd for him, because Nagisa seemed simply happy about eating together. After that, they washed the dishes, and Nagisa took out his homework, telling Karma that it's okay to put on the TV.

"Heh...You're doing homework? Why? Tomorrow's Sunday."

"And I want to enjoy it without having to worry if I forget anything?" Nagisa replied in confuse. "Besides, I just have to do it, right?"

"Well," Karma shifted his place right to Nagisa's side. "I'll see how good you are with this, then. It's pointless for me, but whatever."

Nagisa snorted, but smiled sheepishly, muttering a 'thanks' underneath his breath before focusing on his homework again. Karma then pointed out his mistakes and taught him tricks to solve things faster. It amused him how the bluenette seemed genuinely impressed with things Karma found pointless.

"It's all boring and pointless," Karma said, cleaning up Nagisa's books and put it inside the schoolbag whilst the bluenette was brewing tea for them.

"What is?"

"School, homework...well, everything is," the red head dropped himself on the tatami, sighing. "After that, graduation, go to high school, graduation again, go to college, then I take over the company, and then I die. Every boring bits for all that peak of boredom. It's pointless. I don't want that."

"Then what do you want?" Nagisa asked innocently, setting a cup of tea for Karma in a clay cup.

"I...don't know! Can you ask why a cat is alive? They're just there, lounging, hunting, sleeping...They're not livestock for eat, they just...live! They don't even want anything but eating and sleeping. What's up with that, eh?"

Karma fell silent upon noticing that Nagisa was staring. It was a very unsettling stare, because Karma couldn't predict what the boy was thinking.

"Maybe because you already have everything?"

Karma sighed. "Maybe."

"But that's weird. I don't have everything, but I kinda understand that a little."

"Liar, you always look happy about little things," Karma rolled his eyes, and heard Nagisa giggled quietly.

"Well...You might won't believe this, but I actually don't ask much," Nagisa shrugged. "I mean, I don't see the point of my mom working herself to the bones, or my dad, serving your family as if his life depended on it. I used to...feel lonely about that."

"Then what about now?"

Nagisa smiled shyly. "I'm not...all that exciting of a kid like you are, Karma-kun...You'll get really bored."

"Well tell me about it, you should be," Karma snorted. "But I don't think you are."

They fell silent, enjoying their tea, when suddenly Nagisa began to tell him a little story.

"I have a story."

"Okay?"

"Once upon a time, there was an old man and an old woman living in a small house," he stared at his cup, turning it on the table slowly.

"They didn't find a peach floating through the river when washing the laundry. Nor did they found a shining bamboo patch in the woods. They eat the same rice and live in the same house, they lived the same day everyday. There was nothing dramatic in their life."

Karma raised his eyebrows, still expecting something about this story.

"It's just that, they met, fell in love, and decided to live together. They didn't ask for something dramatic, nor did they get anything dramatic in their life. And they're happy about it. And they lived happily ever after."

The red-head stared at Nagisa expectantly in a moment of silence, but realizing Nagisa had nothing else to say, Karma had a very bewildered expression.

"That's it?" Karma asked, and Nagisa nodded. "What's the point?"

Nagisa laughed. "Oh, that's the entire point. They're happy. And that's...that's the kind of kid I am," he shrugged. "I guess I do get angry once in a while, but I don't expect much. It's also not about going with the flow...Yeah, I will graduate, and I will get a job...I hope I can marry someone I love and live happily. Is being happy not enough?"

Karma stared at Nagisa with the utmost confused expression plastered on his face.

"How can you be happy from a life so boring...!?"

And Nagisa returned the question with a pitying look. Karma deadpanned in distaste at this, and raised his fist.

"I don't like that look."

"Well I can't help it, a rich boy like you can't feel happy about anything, what's there to do—OW! OW! I'M SORRY HAHAHA! STOP!"

The serious conversation ended as Karma attacked the bluenette with a round of tickling, kicking, and hair-pulling. It was amusing. And it was pointless. But Karma felt happy about it. Happiness was odd. It wasn't something you gain just by reaching your goals or dreams in life. He still didn't quite get it.

Nagisa, even though he couldn't put it in a sentence, understood this. If he wanted to feel happy, then he would. He was so simple, it'd be difficult for him to explain what happiness really was and how to obtain it, because he didn't need to understand it thoroughly. He also understood that he wouldn't feel happy all the time, and that's just how life was.

"I'm sorry I don't have anything exciting here," Nagisa muttered tiredly when they stopped playing around, lying on the tatami.

"Yeah...there's nothing much...even your Wii don't have anything good except Splatoon." Karma hummed, closing his eyes. "But you know...?"

"Hmm?"

"I can't quite put it...but it was fun." Karma stared at the ceilings, smiled, and nodded to himself. "Yeah. It's fun. I'm never bored when I'm with you."

Nagisa hummed, closing his eyes, and patted Karma's shoulder.

"Maybe you're just lonely?"

Karma snorted, and Nagisa giggled.

"I don't get lonely, that's ridiculous. What, you get lonely?"

The bluenette hummed again.

"Sometimes." He confessed. "My teacher said that...it wouldn't matter if I have a lot of friends, I would still feel lonely if I don't stop and befriend myself."

"Befriend...yourself?" Karma yawned. "That's weird. Like, so we have to talk to ourselves in the mirror?"

"I dunno..." Nagisa hummed, starting to feel really sleepy. "I don't think...it works like that..."

"Mm..."

"Karma..."

"Mm."

"We should go to the bedroom."

"No...this is fine."

"If dad knows you sleep here he'll kill me."

"He won't."

"Yeah, well, he'll scold me."

"Deal with it."

~.X.~

Sunday morning, the rain was falling gently, waking Karma from the best sleep he'd ever had. It was refreshing. Aside of the sound of the gentle rain, there was also the warm smell of toast, the sizzling sound of eggs fried on a pan. He sat up, finding himself still in the living room, on the tatami, only that he was under a blanket and had a pillow beneath his head.

"Hn...Nagisa?" he called, but heard no response. Rubbing his eyes and stretching his arms, he stood up, finding two set of breakfast on the table. Nagisa returned from the kitchen, carefully bringing a pan filled with sunny-side up eggs to serve it on an empty plate on the short-table.

"Good morning. My parents aren't going home either today, so I'll have to take you home with a public train. Are you okay with that?"

Karma nodded, still enjoying the trance of his refreshing sleep. Seeing this, Nagisa laughed and flicked his finger onto the red-head's forehead.

"Ow!? What was that for?"

"You should wash your face before breakfast."

Karma yawned and did as told. He felt an oddly enlightening mood today. When washing his face, he stared at the mirror curiously.

"Hello," he said, and felt like a big dork.

Slightly blushing in embarrassment, he wiped his face and retraced to the living room where Nagisa was ready for breakfast.

And what a sight that was.

It was nothing special. That living room was not even half the size of his dining room—not even his bedroom. But there was Nagisa, and breakfast that wasn't as luxurious of what he usually had. The rain behind him could be seen from the balcony, but the sun was rising, creating a mild atmosphere and lighting.

It really was nothing special nor dramatic. It was just a breakfast he was going to have with a friend. He was just about to eat the same rice with this bluenette kid on the same table.

"What?" Nagisa asked, confused as to why Karma took so long standing in the hallway.

"Nothing," said the red-head, smiling as he entered and took his seat, clasping his hands together. "Let's eat!"

Maybe it was the rain. Maybe it was Nagisa. Maybe it was because he was eating breakfast with someone after a long time. Karma couldn't put a finger on it, but he was positive that he was happy. He wished he understood why, because it'd be awful to lose this kind of feeling. He didn't have to have a purpose or set a goal. He was just happy.

In time, he would learn how. And the bluenette across him, he would learn as well. How to be happy, without having to depend on anything at all. For now, as they're just two little dorks, they'll just enjoy it.

Eh, I just don't really like to depict them as this couple that can't live without each other...it's too depressing and clingy for me. But it turned out to be pretty gay than I planned!