. Unexpected .

The younger boy froze, his eyes widened and his limbs gone stiff. His mind was a total blank, and no matter how many times he tried, he still failed to produce a legit meaning from his friend's previous words.

He regained his composure, although it did take quite a while, and very slowly, he turned to face his friend. The one who had just invited him over to his house. He who had just cooked up a scrumptious meal for the both of them, the one who earned a guaranteed spot in the preliminary rounds of the national volleyball game. Yoh took his time to examine his friend as much as he could.

Hao had his face lowered; he was staring at the floor below him. Nevertheless, Yoh didn't fail to notice the pained expression on his face. His eyes weren't bright any more, and a frown now presented itself at where his smile used to be.

"Stay here," Yoh heard Hao whisper, and at the same time, he felt the grip on his wrist getting tighter. Yoh's heart almost skipped a beat; what was going on? Why was his friend so out of character? Why did he want him to stay? How was he supposed to respond? Yoh tried as best as he could to remain calm, although he knew that things would only get worse if he were to stick in this situation any longer.

"...I can't," Yoh managed to speak, although his voice was just as soft and shaky as his friend's. Yoh knew that for now, he could only speak nothing but the truth. "My mother would kill me if I—"

"Can't you get her permission to stay here for the night or something?" Hao snapped, his voice slightly raised. He was still facing the floor, and although the sad expression was still present on his face, Yoh knew that deep down, Hao was angry. Angry at him. It was already so obvious when he spoke. But why?

Yoh decided that there was only one thing he could do, then. He gently shook his friend's hand off his wrist; Hao let go off him almost immediately, and Yoh quickly dug his hand into his pocket to fish out his cell phone. He dialled his mother's number before placing the phone next to his ear, and he waited impatiently for her to answer his call. What was really ten seconds felt to him like five hundred years.

Hao remained rooted in his spot. He didn't know if it was because he couldn't move, or because he didn't want to move. He wanted so badly to listen to the one-sided conversation between Yoh and his mother, but he couldn't, because his own disturbing thoughts and emotions were distracting him. Besides, it didn't sound like they were having a nice chat.

Finally, after minutes of begging and a little arguing, Yoh hung up. As he slowly proceeded to keep his cell phone away, he couldn't help but turn to his friend again; the same pained expression was on his face, but it was also accompanied with another one. Hao now looked.. confused. Frustrated. Perhaps both?

"I... I can stay for the night," Yoh said, hoping those were the words Hao wanted to hear.

Hao's face lit up almost instantly, but it still wasn't enough to hide the slight tints of sadness that were present in his pupils. Now Yoh was just confused; he could hardly tell what Hao was feeling any more. He couldn't tell if the smile on the other's face was a fake, or if the sadness in his eyes were permanent. He didn't know, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to.

"You can go wash up," Hao said as he suddenly tossed a towel at Yoh, catching the latter by surprise. Yoh had been too distracted with his thoughts that he didn't notice when Hao had gone to grab the towel for him. "I'll prepare the bed for you while you're at it," Hao added. Yoh did not fail to catch the slight grin on his face then. It looked genuine, but Yoh wasn't sure. Was Hao back to normal now?

Yoh nodded in response, and he watched as Hao jogged back to his room to perform his chore. He decided to push all his disturbing thoughts aside, while he replaced them with good ones. He was standing in Hao's apartment. He was going to stay there for the night, and he was going to take a shower in Hao's washroom. Yoh slowly lowered his head to examine the damp red towel in his hands. Could it be the very same towel that Hao had used earlier? A sudden chill of excitement ran down Yoh's spine, and Yoh had to remind himself that he wasn't alone in the apartment, before he turned and bashfully made his way to the washroom.

Yoh couldn't help but notice the several different bottles of shampoo and conditioners there. It looked like a typical washroom that would belong to a girl, or a salon store. Nevertheless, it didn't bother Yoh much, since he knew that Hao had to keep a good physical image anyway.

Besides, these were the stuff that always made Hao smell so good, right?

x-X-x-X-x

"Sooo... why did you want me to stay here for the night?"

Yoh noticed Hao's temple twitching slightly, and immediately he regretted asking the latter. He had just finished his shower not too long ago, and then he spent the next five minutes crying in embarrassment because he insisted on locking the bedroom door while he put on his (or rather, Hao's) clothes, and for a while, Hao couldn't stop teasing him about it. When he finally did, though, the two had found themselves sitting in the living room, and since the atmosphere between the two had settled down for bit, Yoh couldn't help but ask.

Hao looked almost hesitant to answer, as he shifted in his seat. "...I haven't had a visitor in a while."

Yoh arched a brow. "You mean those popular kids have never been to your house before?" Hao shook his head.

"Not even Anna?" Yoh added quickly, only to receive the same response from the older.

Yoh sighed inwardly. He couldn't tell if Hao was being trustworthy. Hao hardly told any lies, but Yoh believed that perhaps he might have another — a better — reason as to why he wanted Yoh to stay. Hao wasn't just going to tell him, though; he knew that for sure.

After a while of pondering, Yoh got to his feet and turned to the bedroom. "I'm going to bed," he announced, and began walking towards the room. Hao nodded, and proceeded to lay back on the couch, placing his hands casually beneath his head.

Yoh noticed, and he paused in his tracks to turn to Hao. "...Are you really going to sleep on that?" he asked, "In that uncomfortable position?"

Hao shrugged. "I can't help that there's only one bed in the room."

"You tell me to stay, and yet you can't even bring yourself to sleep in the same room?" Yoh nagged.

"I don't have an extra mattress."

Yoh wasn't pleased. "I'm not sleeping then," he said, frowning. His words didn't fail to capture his friend's attention. "Either you go to sleep on the bed, or we don't sleep at all."

Hao blinked. The stubborn side of Yoh. This was nothing he was used to, but definitely something worth remembering. He opened his mouth to respond, but not a sound escaped his lips. Hao didn't have a clear idea on what he wanted to say, anyway. Having no choice but to give in to his friend's (concerned) nagging, he slowly stood up and followed Yoh into his room. A whole sleepless night with Yoh sounded tempting, but Hao was beat from the game.

Once they were both in the bedroom, Hao grabbed a nearby chair and pulled it over, placing it right beside the single bed. "How 'bout," he began, turning to sit on the chair. "You sleep on the bed, while I sleep on this?"

Yoh furrowed his eyebrows. "Isn't that uncomfortable?" he questioned, but Hao simply shook his head.

Yoh proceeded to sit on the bed, but he couldn't stop staring at Hao for some reason. Probably because he was trying to decipher the older's thoughts. The childish smile on his face made it look like he was hiding something. Playfully, Yoh asked, "Are you going to watch me while I sleep?"

"Don't be silly," Hao laughed, "You're tired, aren't you?"

Now that he mentioned it, Yoh was indeed feeling tired after such a long eventful day. He continued to stare at Hao, who still had that cheerful smile on his face; through this, Yoh was able to see that Hao was feeling tired too, since he did play all day without getting a moment's rest. Hao even tended to him by cooking him a meal and trying to make him feel at home. Suddenly, Yoh felt like he was being a huge burden to the older; perhaps the reason why Hao was telling him to go to bed as soon as possible was because he wanted to get some rest as well.

With that in mind, Yoh nodded and turned to lie on the bed. His head felt heavy, but the rest of his body felt light; an obvious sign that he needed rest — badly. He slowly closed his eyes, and, in a matter of seconds, he was already in a deep sleep.

"Asa-kun, if I like you, does that make me gay?"

"What are you saying? You're only gay if you like girls."

"But how would I know if you're a girl or not?"

"You just have to find out."

"How do I do that?"

"...Like how all the grown-ups do. We put our lips together."

Yoh sat up in bed, covered in sweat. His breathing was normal, his pulse was fine; he checked. He didn't feel terrified; he simply didn't understand why he woke up so suddenly with his head and body damp with sweat. It wasn't like he was having a nightmare, too. Yoh thought long and hard about the flashback he just had; he had already forgotten most of it by then, and the only thing he could recall was his friend's last line, "We put our lips together". Back then, Yoh didn't know what he meant, but now that he was older, Yoh could only widen his eyes and blush as he repeated the words over and over again to himself and registered the meaning.

Determined to brush such embarrassing thoughts off his mind, Yoh quickly turned to face Hao. He found him sitting upright on the chair next to the bed, although his head was slightly tilted forward. Yoh noticed him taking deep breaths, and giggled when he heard him snoring softly as well; the poor guy must have been exhausted from the game the previous day. Yoh smiled; it was funny how Hao looked so much like a young child in his sleep.

Yoh didn't know why, but he was obliged to stand up and turn to face Hao. Although the latter's hair was covering parts of his face, Yoh couldn't help but catch sight of his lips, which were slightly parted. They were pale and dry, but Yoh thought that they were beautiful, nonetheless.

Recollections of his flashback ran through his head again, and Yoh's blush returned. Now there was no way to get rid of his thoughts in such a situation. Even if they were evil.

Yoh considered them evil, because he felt that his thoughts was giving him an unknown urge to lean forward, to get closer to Hao. Their faces were only centimetres apart when he did so, and by then, the sight of Hao's lips only made Yoh tremble involuntarily. Yoh could feel Hao's soft minty breaths against his own lips; he was still sleeping, and he was probably completely oblivious to the other.

Yoh hesitated for a moment; was it right for him to do this? What would happen if Hao woke up now? He would think that Yoh was a freak, and they might never be friends any more after such an embarrassing and terrifying situation. That always happened, at least in Yoh's logic.

He focused his gaze on Hao, who was still sleeping soundly like a baby. Yoh noticed that he wasn't having any rapid eye movement, but Yoh figured that since Hao had been so tired from his match.. Surely he couldn't notice him now. Perhaps he wouldn't even notice what he was going to do next...

The flashback came again, and Yoh's blush only deepened. He slowly leaned closer to the older, taking slow and steady breaths after each second, and very gently, he locked his lips with Hao's. He was even bold enough to close his eyes afterwards; he had no clue as to why he was doing this — and to someone who only considered him as a friend, at that — but he felt that there was just this selfish part of him on the inside that made him do it. Yoh stayed there for a few seconds, and had wanted to part his lips; however, his body wouldn't oblige. He only remained in his position; his lips touching the other's pair, and his eyes closed. He was completely oblivious to the other when he suddenly opened his eyes, only to find himself in an unexpected situation.

As if by instinct, Hao immediately raised his hands and pushed Yoh away from him with an incredible amount of force. Yoh wasn't anticipating this, and so he simply fell back onto the bed behind him, ultimately shocked and confused. He watched as Hao brought a hand to his face to touch his own lips, while he stared at the younger.

"Wh—...What were you doing?"

Yoh gulped. He tried to think of a decent response, but he couldn't. He was constantly being distracted by his conscience that kept nagging at him. How could you have been so foolish?

Hao mumbled something, but Yoh was unable to catch what it was. A rush of guilt went through him every time he saw the older cupping a hand over his mouth every now and then.

Very suddenly, Hao turned to Yoh and widened his eyes. "Did you have some sort of feelings for me?" he questioned quickly. He sounded blunt, but if he didn't want any misunderstandings.. "Did you have this random desire to.. — I don't know — kiss me?"

Yoh was appalled by how straightforward the questions were, and honestly, he was afraid to answer them, but he had to tell him the truth. Besides, Hao was bound to know of his feelings for him, someday. Yoh nodded sheepishly. By now he already had his head lowered for he was too afraid to meet the gaze of the man before him. It was probably the best idea.

Hao mumbled something again, only he did so very quickly, before speaking to the younger once more. "I... Yoh, I have something to say."

Yoh nodded again. "I know," he said. "You think I'm disgusting."

Hao was slightly taken aback by his response. "I don't think you're disgusting," he replied calmly. It only surprised him that Yoh didn't have any problems with kissing someone of the same sex. It wasn't disgusting, especially to Hao. Nevertheless, he needed to get the message clear. "It's just...," he continued. "...If you had hoped for us to be together, then I'm sorry. I can't be with you."

Yoh blinked; of course, he was already expecting this kind of response, but it still didn't fail to send a sharp pain straight to his chest. He felt his heart sink, and very instantly Yoh began to regret even waking up that morning. He just wanted to continue sleeping, to live in a world where he could be an innocent little kid once more, with his beloved friend whom he called 'Asa-kun'. They never had to worry about things like this, then. They could play all day without having any thoughts of growing up. No more confusion, no more misunderstandings. Just him, his friend, and his childhood.

Yoh got to his feet. He didn't wish to speak any more, but he knew by now that Hao probably understood what he meant. Yoh then left the room and began walking towards the main door. After what happened, there was no point in staying in that tiny apartment any longer, unless he wanted to humiliate himself further.

For some reason, Hao felt it hurt to see the other leaving without even saying goodbye. He knew the atmosphere around them wasn't very good, and that saying any more would only make the situation worse, but he just didn't like it. This wasn't his first time calling the rejection — but besides Yoh, his other admirers were girls. When he rejected them and watched them leave, he felt nothing. Sorry for them, perhaps, but that was it. He only didn't understand why it felt so painful to watch Yoh leave. Somehow, watching the other leave like that felt so familiar to him.

"There is already someone I like," Hao blurted before the other could reach the door, although he didn't know why. He just felt like it was something he should say at that point of time.

For a moment, Yoh paused in his tracks to turn to Hao. His expression seemed like a mixture of disappointment, and shock. Then, within seconds, he was gone. He had already left and closed the door behind him, leaving Hao feeling lonelier than ever before.

x-X-x-X-x

His heart was beating rapidly, and he quickened his pace. What was happening? Tears were already beginning to well up in his eyes. Yoh quickly wiped them away, and continued to walk down the path as fast as he could to the main road. He would be able to find a cab there, and then he'd go straight home. Yoh didn't know why, but he felt sad — and guilty. He felt his emotions overwhelm him as he recalled how he had just left Hao like that, all alone in his apartment, without having said a word to him.

He had expected Hao to reject him anyway, of course; why would the school's star and hero have feelings for a nobody like him? Hao was probably being nice by letting him know that there was already someone he liked. He knew Hao didn't mean to hurt him, but the way Yoh had treated him afterwards probably made Hao feel like... nothing. Yoh had no right to act like that. It was his fault all this had to happen, after all.

Yoh stood by the road and waited impatiently for a cab to come his way. He watched as a number of vehicles drove by, as several other people walked past him. It was still early in the morning, but the streets were already so busy. It only baffled Yoh because he had assumed this neighbourhood to be an obscure one, since it lay by the outskirts of Tokyo. Although there were tons of people here, however, the atmosphere around them didn't feel right. It still felt grey, sad, and...

Yoh felt another sharp pain in his chest as another disturbing thought registered in his mind, and then he mentally cursed himself for being so foolish. For leaving Hao like that. For being so mean to him. For everything.

He thought that.. perhaps the reason why Hao had wanted him to stay last night, was because Hao was feeling lonely, just like everyone else who lived in this neighbourhood.

"So, how did the game go yesterday?"

"It was all right." Jeanne smiled. "There was a large audience, and I learnt a thing or two about volleyball."

Marco nodded in approval. "That's good. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

The loving conversation between the father and his daughter was suddenly interrupted by loud crashing sounds. They turned, only to find a wooden table — in shreds. Remnants of the table traced back to where the giant was standing, and he did not look too happy. His fists were clenched, and he grit his teeth; he looked as though he was ready to jump into war.

Oddly enough, the little girl Jeanne was far from surprised upon observing the scene. Her father had told her that her future father-in-law had a short temper and possessed physical power strong enough to cause a tremor in the area. She was even told to expect sudden ragequits from the giant whenever she was around him. Nevertheless, Jeanne didn't mind it one bit; in fact, she actually found it amusing.

En grunted, "Where is that little brat? He runs away just as the girl is about to leave..."

Marco laughed after realising whom the giant was referring to. "Don't worry about that!" he assured En. "We don't have to wait for him; we can just leave now. I'm sure you've got some things to settle later on." En frowned, because Marco was speaking the truth.

Both the Lasso's got to their feet and bowed courteously to the Tao's. Marco bid them farewell, before calmly leaving the building and making his way to his lacky limousine, with Jeanne following close behind. The both of them entered the vehicle, and their trusty chauffeur drove off quickly.

Just as En was about to close the main doors behind him, a familiar voice calling "Father!" rang in his ears, and he quickly turned to the direction of the voice, as did Jun.

Great timing.

Jun and En suddenly found Ren walking down the path, facing them. Behind him stood a girl which looked to be his age; she was dressed in a silky white dress, and a sun hat. She quickly hid behind Ren when she caught sight of the other Tao's; the foreign family intimidated her and made her feel so inferior.

Jun arched her brows in surprise and amusement upon seeing the girl, while her father could only stare with his jaw dropped.

Once Ren and the girl finally caught up with the other two, Ren couldn't help but look around cautiously. "Have Jeanne and her father left already?" he asked.

En frowned. "You just missed them." He was sure he just heard his son heave a sigh of relief.

Ren resumed his sturdy posture and nudged the girl to stand beside him. She did, so he began, "Father, this is.. the girlfriend I was telling you about." Then, as if on cue, both Ren and the girl bowed. It was torture trying to suppress a gulp. Ren was truthfully awful at lying.

Jun gasped upon hearing the words of her brother, while En only had his gaze fixed on the girl. He was eyeing her, watching her every move.

Ren, too, watched his father carefully, praying to the great spirits above that his father wouldn't suspect anything about the girl. Ren had, after all, just randomly picked one of his fangirls at the tournament the day before, when Jeanne had went to the washroom. Ren explained everything to the girl, and had to make it clear to her that they were only role playing, and that she shouldn't take it so seriously. Thankfully, the girl understood him perfectly, and even promised not to tell a single soul about this. At first, Ren was sceptical of her words, but after a while, he realised he could trust her. In fact, he felt like he could trust her more after he compared her with the other girls. This one seemed the most mature and trustworthy.

"...Greetings," the girl spoke. Her voice was naturally soft, but fortunately, it was loud enough for even En to hear her. To be polite, she took her hat off, revealing her short black hair that seemed to match her pale skin. "My name is Hibiya Shizen."

En continued to examine her. "Very well," he said. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Hibiya." He shifted his gaze to Ren now, who was still staring at him sternly. "Bring her in," En ordered. "We have some things to deal with."

Secretly, Ren wanted to pat himself on the back for being able to pass his father's first round of approval. There was still conversation left to do, however. Shizen will ace this, Ren thought proudly to himself. After all, she was his fangirl.

They stepped into the house, and Ren quickly took Shizen by the hand and escorted her to the living room, where En was waiting for them. They took their own seats, while Jun distributed three glasses of warm green tea on the coffee table. She retreated quickly to the kitchen, knowing very well that she didn't have the right to be part of the conversation. It bothered her that she couldn't be part of the fun, but she had her duties as a daughter of a Tao, and she had to fulfill them well, otherwise she might turn out to be just like her brother.

x-X-x-X-x

En took a sip of his tea, while he continued to eye the girl. "So," he began. "For how long have you known my son?"

The girl Shizen flashed a grin that deemed far too casual. "Oh, for many years, actually!" she responded excitedly. She seemed more confident now than she was just moments ago, but maybe this time it was because she was given the right to talk about the man she liked very much. "We went to the same elementary and middle school, and for a year, we were even in the same class! I knew I liked him the moment I set my eyes on 'im!"

Ren had to stop himself before he could roll his eyes and grimace. Okay, maybe this was going way too far. It still amazed him how a normal person such as himself had so many admirers, though, or at least that was what Ren thought of himself.

En placed his half-empty glass back onto the table. "I mean, how long have you two been together?"

"For as long as we've been in Shinra," Ren answered immediately, before Shizen could even utter a word. Luckily, she got the hint, and she nodded enthusiastically, as if agreeing with him.

En seemed to ponder something, and this only made Ren feel nervous. Hopefully his father wasn't beginning to have suspicions about them already. He answered the last question only because he wanted to save his own skin. And Shizen's.

Suddenly, En shot another question at her face, "What kind of family were you born into, Miss Hibiya?"

Both teens widened their eyes, appalled that the man even asked such a question. Ren, however, mentally cursed himself; he should have seen this coming! The demon in disguise — Jeanne — came from a well-to-do family, and even her father was the owner of a huge toy company. She was lucky enough to be adopted by Marco Lasso. Of course, to En, family background was extremely important.

"Well, my family isn't that rich...," Shizen responded, her gaze lowering to the polished marble floor beneath them. "But it's not poor, either...!"

Ren was relieved when Shizen finally came up with an answer, although he wasn't sure if her answer was good enough.

En nodded thoughtfully. "Very well, then," he said. "I suppose this is a good time for a test."

Both teens blinked. "A test...?"

"Yes," En said. "A test to see if you, Miss Hibiya, are worthy enough to be my daughter-in-law, of course."

I only just realised how much this fic resembles one of those ridiculous shoujo manga.

Gah, I hate this chapter. I don't like anything I wrote in here. The fluff, the kiss, the Shizen, the everything sfkjdad;dj. I hope I didn't disappoint you guys. Honestly. If you didn't enjoy this chapter, please don't hesitate to tell me. I'll put a note never to add such stupid things in a fic ever again.

The fluff between Yoh and Asa-kun was added at the last minute. It was something to - I don't know - foreshadow the horrible kiss scene (yes, I'm aware Hao and Yoh were very OOC there; first day of fasting month and my brain is not working without the presence of caffeine in my body. But the first few days are always like that, so it's normal). On a side note, I wanted to share this bit of nugget with you guys too: When I was a kid, it was considered gay if you liked someone of the opposite sex (what is my childhood).

The girl, Shizen, was inspired by the Vocaloid song, Kagerou Days.

EDIT: I forgot to add in your review replies. Sorry! I'll do it now!:

RoseblossomWarrior: I'M GLAD. \o/ Pfft, you're doing just fine! And yeah, I need to stop working so hard. orz

FreedomFallenStar: Oh, my! Your review has made me so happy! Thank you so, so much! It motivates me, really, to write even more when I come across reviews like yours. Thanks again; I really appreciate it! I'll try my best not to disappoint readers like you! *bows*

TotalAmuto: Because shipping them together is socially acceptable, yes.

SK-fan7: xD You had me! I missed you too, honestly! Sorry I haven't been so active nowadays. orz And ah! Don't fangirl too hard! Or you'll end up becoming a wreck just like me- /shot

xoxo: Because it's shorter? xD I always liked it better than Yuan, don't know why. Thank you very much, by the way!

Yuki Usagi-Nyan: xD It's okay, I do that sometimes! And no worries, I'm pretty new to this shipping too, actually! Thank you very much!

Shadowzamy: I could have sworn I've seen your username somewhere. I mean whut. Thank you, and I'm glad! I hope this chapter didn't disappoint you, though. D: Thanks, again!

neo: I apologise for my absence. orz I need to work that out. Thank you!

I want to get this chapter done already so I'll never have to deal with it again. Also, I just wanted to apologise for my long absence. orz

- A

P.S. Sorry for any mistakes!