Once sucked into the television world, any sense of normality was washed away by the strange environment and its inhabitance. The castle they ventured through to save Yukiko was weird enough, with the invisible audience of shadows watching their every move. But this sauna; weird could not even begin to cover it.

At first, it made Souji's skin crawl. Kanji's shadow was just too much. The voice, the loincloth, that ridiculous hue of pink on his cheeks. It didn't help with the sauna's oppressive atmosphere. The air was thick and heavy with heat and humidity, it hung around and settled in his lungs, making it a struggle breathe.

"Man! What is wrong with this place? That can't be Kanji! And why here?" complained Yosuke loudly, reaching up to wipe the sweat beading on his forehead with the back of his hand.

"You're such a baby!" scoffed Chie, rolling her eyes behind her glasses, "You're just uncomfortable, that's all."

"What does that mean? Some...g-gay guy doesn't weird me out!"

"Oh, yeah? Then why are you all fidgety and sweaty!"

"Because it's really hot in here! Duh! Right, partner?" Yosuke gave Souji a pleading look to back him up here.

Souji nodded and furrowed his slivery brows, blinking at the two girls who looked surprisingly comfortable despite the situation. "Isn't the heat bothering you two?"

"Hmm? It's a little warm in here...and steamy, but not overly so," explained Yukiko, flipping her long hair back from her face.

Yosuke and Souji shared a confused look, the heat bothering both boys visibly. Weird. Souji gave the other a shrug, telling him to just ignore it for now.

Pushing the strangeness to the back of their minds, they trudged on through the labyrinth of saunas, fighting off the shadows.

They turned back to the normal world when they were exhausted and running low on supplies. Once back in the electronic section of Junes, they went on their separate ways, vowing to head back in to find Kanji after class the next day.

As Souji turned to head out of Junes, he felt a hand close around his wrist for a brief moment, the contact making a knot tighten in his stomach. He knew immediately that it was Yosuke, only from his long fingers and the shyness of the touch. Turning to face the other, he pushed the odd feelings bubbling up to the surface down, locking them up for now.

"Hey, partner. Do you want a ride home? I think we're both a little more wiped than normal," offered Yosuke, smiling lightly.

Souji nodded, his limbs feeling heavy and sluggish from lugging around the huge katana through the heat for hours. He could read the tiredness in Yosuke's eyes as well, despite his smile. He followed the red headed boy out to the street, leaning up against the side of the building as Yosuke tinkered with the brake chain of his bike.

"This thing just keeps slipping. OW! Shit..." Yosuke mumbled under his breath as he worked, casting a nervous glance up at Souji.

"Take your time. I'm in no rush," he replied with a small smile, closing his eyes with a sigh as Yosuke continued to work at the chain. He honestly didn't think his legs would carry him home anyway.

"So...What do you think about that sauna?" asked Yosuke in a small voice, avoiding Souji's gaze this time.

Souji didn't even bother to open his eyes, "I'm not sure. That world doesn't make much sense anyway. Perhaps the atmosphere just effects us differently."

"Because we're guys?"

"...Could be. I'd rather not worry about it now."

"Yeah...right...HA! Got it! She's all fixed up!" stated Yosuke proudly, standing up from his beloved bike. He swung his leg over and motioned for Souji to get on behind him.

Souji pushed off from the wall and shuffled over to climb onto the bike behind Yosuke, wrapping his arms around the other's boy narrow waist. Yosuke smiled over his shoulder for a moment before propelling them along the street, weaving in and out of the back alleys to Souji's house.

In an act that Souji would later claim to blame exhaustion for, he laid his head against Yosuke's shoulder and let his body sink in against the warm, yielding body in front of him. If Yosuke was uncomfortable from the intimate closeness, he never once showed it. Souji prayed that Yosuke thought he just fell asleep, not letting himself believe for a moment that Yosuke might want this.

Souji didn't have time for feelings like this. His focus had to be saving Kanji. Not memorizing the sound of Yosuke's steady heartbeat. Or the warmth from his body soaking through his clothing. Or the musky sweet smell of Yosuke's sweat that clung to him from the heat of the sauna.

Swallowing thickly, he tried to clear his mind and calm himself; realizing that he was clutching tightly at Yosuke's shirt. In the end, Souji was fearful of scaring off his best friend with the new emotions and feelings raging within him. He was unsure if Yosuke would even consider having feelings for another boy. And now with the strange sauna and Kanji's shadow, this moment wasn't the right time to push his luck.

Yosuke brought the bike to a stop in front of Souji's house, grinning proudly that the brake chain actually stayed in place for once and didn't cause them to crash. Souji straightened out and sadly let his arms fall from around Yosuke's waist. Meaning to swing his leg over the bike to get off, he stumbled as he misjudge how tired he was, his legs feeling more like lead.

"W-Woah, careful there!" Yosuke cried out as Souji hit the pavement, scrambling off his bike as fast as he could. He rushed to the silver haired boy's side and knelt, placing a comforting hand on his back. "You okay?"

Souji nodded and sighed as he moved to sit, lifting his hands to inspect the scrapes on his palms from catching himself. Yosuke hissed and gently cupped his injured hands, "Do you need help? I can come in and-"

"No, I'm fine. It's just a scrape," Souji said firmly, removing his hands from Yosuke a little too quickly. The action left a hurt look on Yosuke's face for a split second, which Souji didn't miss.

"Y-Yeah, it's late. I should head home," Yosuke said with a forced laugh, helping Souji to his feet and rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, "Um...goodnight."

"Night, Yosuke. See you in class," Souji said in a calm, cool voice to mask the emotions threatening to spill over at any moment. He rushed inside his house without giving Yosuke another looking, knowing it would be too tempting to linger around him.

Huffing out a dejected sigh, Yosuke climbed back onto his bike, pausing once just to see the light flicker on in the window he knew to be Souji's bedroom. Satisfied with knowing that the other was safe and sound in his room, he peddled his way home.