To Yield

Disclaimer: Don't own characters or series. OOC and some angst. NC17 for later in the story.

This was going to be harder than he thought. After slacking off for the last two years and basically letting Keiko do all of his school work, he was not going to enjoy being back at school full time.

If it wasn’t because of his current situation, he would have never given it a second thought to actually attempt to graduate from high school. This was his senior year and he basically had to pass with flying colors or else. Yusuke didn’t want to think about the ‘or else’. He was determined to give it his all to pass and not have to put foot in this miserable building ever again.

Now that his mother was pretty much useless and all she did was drink, all of the bills were piling up. He had been working in restaurants as a waiter and now that he was eighteen, he could do some basic bar backing too; which was even more money. But, even Yusuke knew that he had to do better than that and without an education that was just not going to happen.

So, here he was walking to school.

“Hey Yusuke!” He turned around recognizing the voice.

“Hey, wait for me man.” Kazuma was running towards him. Yusuke chuckled while watching his friend. Kazuma was all arms and legs and had no grace when moving. He looked like a lunatic swinging and flapping his limbs as he ran towards him.

Once Kazuma caught up with him, he threw an arm around Yusuke’s shoulders. “I thought you were kidding man. You’re actually here. This is great. Just like old times.”

Yusuke sighed and shrugged the arm off of his shoulders. “Yeah, whatever, man. I’m doing this because I have to. I still may turn around and forget the whole damn thing.” He turned to look at Kazuma who had a wide grin on his face. Yusuke just exhaled and rolled his eyes.

“Everyone is going to be so happy to see you. How long has it been since you last came to school? Two months?”

Yusuke thought about it for a minute. It had been a while indeed. “Three months.” He mumbled to himself. How in the world was he going to be able to do this? It was just going to be hard and painful. He just knew it.

----

Pushing and shoving people as he made his way to the cafeteria was just annoying as hell. He had forgotten how crowded the halls got when that damn bell rang. Everyone running out of the classrooms at once, trying to get to their lockers, outside, or like him, to the damn cafeteria.

Once out of the hallway and into the openness of the dining area, he located Kazuma who was waiting for him along with the others.

“Yusuke, my, my, my, I would have never believed it unless I saw it with my own eyes.” Hiei just looked him up and down with that devilish grin on his face.

Yusuke approached him and gave him a very manly pat on the back. “I know, it’s pretty shitty, but here I am.” Yusuke took the time to look at Hiei up and down as well. The kid was just as gothic as anyone could be. Everything on him was black with a couple of chains and buckles as accessories. “Still keeping the look I see.”

“Why change. This is just the way I am and the way I’ll always be. Plus, I like the fact that people leave me the hell alone. That is my favorite effect.”

Yusuke smiled and then turned his attention to Keiko who immediately dashed towards him confining him into a tight embrace.

“Yusuke, I’m so glad you’re back. We can spend some time together again, like before.”

Yusuke thought about that for a while. Even though she was very good to him and there was no doubt that she was interested in him, he had his reservations. He was just not ready to commit to a relationship; especially a relationship with Keiko who tended to be a little controlling at times. Yusuke always had a problem with the control issue. At the same time, he knew that the girl had saved him so many times before that he could not bring himself to just tell her he wasn’t interested. “Hey, Keiko. Nice to see you.”

“Okay, okay, that’s enough. Geez, hurry up and give me a hug already.” Shizuru just had to get it over with. She was never too fond of the whole mushy, mushy stuff.

Yusuke laughed at Shizuru’s comment and gave her a hug as well.

----

The day had gone by as slow as a slug and Yusuke felt completely drained by all of the teacher’s ramblings, the required reading and things of the sort. He just wanted to get home and be a couch potato for a while.

Yusuke was just thinking of all the possible ways to not lift a finger for the rest of the day when out of the corner of his eye he saw a mane of red. He immediately turned his attention towards the lockers and stared at this… person. Yusuke was just completely stunned by the beauty of those tresses.

He decided to walk to his own locker, which was on the same side of the wall, to see if he could take a closer look. Very discretely he glanced over and was totally shocked to see the ‘guy’ look back at him. Yusuke then closed his locker and once again headed outside where Kazuma was waiting for him.

On the way there he couldn’t help but think that he had just been gawking at another guy. But, it wasn’t really his fault, because from the back you couldn’t tell that it was a guy. Usually guys didn’t have such long, gorgeous hair. 'Did I just think that guy’s hair was gorgeous? Oh shit.'

Yusuke continued to walk silently until he saw his friends. “Okay, I just want to make sure that everyone understands that I’m completely done for and all I want is to go home and lounge.”

Keiko gave him a worried look. “But I thought you wanted to study for the chemistry test. I thought we could start today.”

Yusuke leaned against a tree and let out a sigh. “Keiko, please, all I need is a couple of days to get used to this again. I promise I won’t slack off. I really don’t want to study today.”

Hiei snorted and looked at Kazuma. “I think you owe me ten bucks my friend. I told you he wouldn’t do it.”

“Hey, hey, what the fuck? You guys are supposed to support me, not have bets against me. I didn’t come back here to this dump hole willingly. Geez, who needs enemies when I have such wonderful friends.” Yusuke turned his head the other way as if he was hurt by what just happened, when there he was. The guy with the lovely red hair was walking out of the school and past them.

“Why don’t you take a picture? It’ll last longer.” Hiei just had to be the sarcastic one of the group.

Yusuke felt the blush burn his face at Hiei’s comment. He had not been staring. Had he? “I was just wondering who he is. That’s all. I don’t remember ever seeing him before. God… I’m surrounded by idiots.” He tried to play it as cool as he could hoping that no one noticed his slip.

“Of course you don’t know him. That guy holds the highest GPA in the whole city. He’s a freaking genius. That’s why you don’t know who he is.” Shizuru just loves torturing people. “Anyway, are you ready to go Keiko? If you’re not going to help ‘Mr. Urameshi’, then let’s go to the mall.”

Keiko glanced at Yusuke and smiled. “Are you sure you don’t want to study? I can tutor you if you want.”

Yusuke pushed himself away from the tree and started walking to his house. “Nope. Thanks for the offer sweetie, but I pass. See ya’ll later.”

----

Finally, Friday was here. Yusuke felt like he had been living the longest week of his life. He was rushing down the hall towards his locker. He was going out tonight to hang out with the guys for a while. After stuffing all of his books into the locker and slamming the door he turned on his heel and ran into something.

The loud bang of books flopping to the floor brought Yusuke back from the moment of disorientation. He impulsively kneeled and started to pick up the books. “I’m sorry; my bust.” Yusuke turned his gaze upwards and was just frozen in place. It was the redheaded guy from earlier that week. He had not seen him since Monday and now, here he was. Blinking his eyes rapidly he somewhat recovered from his stunned state and continued to pick up the books. “Shit, man, I’m sorry. I wasn’t paying attention.”

Once again Yusuke looked up and noticed that the guy was holding his side with one hand and then slowly squatted next to him to collect his books from the floor. He couldn’t do it with only one hand though. “It’s okay, here, I got them.” Yusuke handed all of the books back and stood, but kept watch of how the boy stood up slowly still clutching to his side.

“Thank you for picking them up for me.”

Yusuke then watched as the redhead opened his locker and very carefully slid the books inside. He then closed the locker door and turned around. Yusuke was once again stunned, but this time was because he was just entranced by the color of the eyes staring at him. They were the most beautiful emerald green eyes he had seen in a long time.

Yusuke once again caught himself gawking at the boy. “I’m sorry. Where are my manners? I’m Yusuke.” He extended his hand in greeting.

“Shuichi Minamino. Nice to make your acquaintance.”

Yusuke once again noted as the boy seemed pained when he shook the redhead’s hand which in turn made his arm shake as well.

“Are you okay, man? Did I hurt you?” He asked as he reached to take a look himself.

“NO! I’m… fine, thanks.” Shuichi just hoped that Yusuke had not lifted his shirt too much. “I have to go.” He then turned and started to walk away.

Yusuke stood there for a while longer. He had reached for the shirt to see if he had really hurt the guy. He had been able to lift it at least two or three inches and saw that there was a nasty black and blue bruise there. He knew that he had not caused that since he had just bumped into the guy, but then what could it be?

He just started walking to Kazuma’s house. He didn’t want to get involved anyways. There was a party and he didn’t want to miss it.

----

Shuichi opened the door to his mother’s bedroom and gave her a nice smile. “How are you feeling today mother?” He was glad to see her smile back at him.

“Hi Shuichi. I’m doing fine. How did you do on your test?”

Shuichi sat beside his mother who started to caress his hair. “I did very well. First place again.” He then leaned and hugged her lightly. “Don’t worry mother. Everything is taken care of.” Since his mother had gotten sick, he had to enter these little contests in order to win extra cash to help support the family. His step father still worked, but it was just not enough. Not when such step father continued to take a big portion of their income and waste it away on alcohol and other illicit things. Shuichi just took a deep breath and cleared his mind. He didn’t want to think about that right now. “Do you need anything before I retire to my room? I just have a couple of things I need to do and some studying as well.”

Shiori gave him another smile and brought a hand up to caress his face. Shuichi leaned against the caress and stared into his mother’s eyes. “Shuichi, how bad was it this time?”

He felt like he was going to be sick right then and there. He just stood up and held her hand for a moment. “I’m okay mother. Don’t worry about me.” He then placed a kiss on her forehead and tucked her into bed. Shuichi then turned and walked out of the room.

Once inside his own room he leaned against the door and let the tears run down his face. The situation was getting complicated. He in no way, shape or form wanted to let his mother know about what such situation was. He wiped the tears from his face and walked to the bathroom. He desperately needed a shower and time to unwind before he started to study for the next science fair, which had a nice monetary first place prize. He needed to make sure that he had the money to pay for his mother’s medications.

----

Yusuke just wanted to fall on his bed and go to sleep. After partying on Friday, working on Saturday morning and partying yet again Saturday night, he was just exhausted. He felt worse than when he got off school on Friday. How in the world was he going to go back to school tomorrow when he felt so shitty?

He was cutting through the park to get to his house as quick as possible when he felt the air escape his lungs. There was Shuichi sitting on the grass with his back against a tree. There were a multitude of books scattered around him and he was currently very intently studying one of them. He decided to approach him.

“Hey, you must have the biggest test coming up. Look at you; the devoted scholar.” Yusuke said with a smile on his face.

Shuichi just sat there staring into those dark brown eyes. Why did he feel like he couldn’t function whenever Yusuke appeared? And now, the older boy was making him feel awkward with all of these books scattered about him. He must look like the biggest nerd there was. “Actually, yes I have a very important science fair coming up.”

Yusuke sat on the grass next to the redhead and picked up a book. “Wow, looks like Greek to me.”

That brought a smile to Shuichi’s face. “Yes, these are a little bit advanced. I just want to make sure that I do well.”

Yusuke looked up at the redhead. “I have no doubt that you’re going to do extremely well.”

Shuichi felt a blush coming to his face. He had really liked Yusuke since the first time he saw him. “Thanks.” He just didn’t know what to say at the moment.

“So, do you always study or is there anything else you like to do for fun?”

Shuichi thought about it for a moment before he answered. “I like to go to the movies and listen to music. I don’t study all of the time.”

Yusuke laughed at that. “Yeah, just most of the time. Right?”

Shuichi smiled and brushed his bangs away from his eyes. He then turned to Yusuke who was once again looking at him in that… way. “I’m just good at this. I’ve always been this way. I really enjoy learning as much as I can.”

Yusuke reached and took the book from Shuichi’s hands. “Hm, well I need a tutor. Do you think you can help me out with that?”

Shuichi smiled at Yusuke before he answered. “I guess I could help you. What subject do you need the most help with?”

Yusuke chuckled as he let himself fall back to lie on the grass with his hands behind his head. “I kinda, sorta need help with all of them.” Yusuke turned his head to look at the redhead. “You see, I’ve had to miss a lotta school and now I’m behind. But, I really want to graduate and all.”

Shuichi nodded and then started to collect his books. “That’s fine. I guess we just need to take it a step at a time. You still have months ahead of you and I know that if you apply yourself, you will do well.”

Yusuke helped collect the books and then handed them to Shuichi who winced at the feel of the weight of books on his injured side. “Here, I’ll help you carry these things. We can talk a little bit more that way.” Yusuke took all of the books under his arm and waited for Shuichi.

Shuichi looked at Yusuke with nervous eyes and then looked at the ground. He wasn’t sure that this was a good idea, but decided to go with it regardless. “Thank you, Yusuke.” He then started walking in the direction of his home and Yusuke followed by his side.

----

Another week down and a trillion more to go. That’s how he felt about the whole situation. Even though it was a long week, it had not felt as long as the first week. Yusuke placed his books in his locker and then started to walk towards the rest of the group.

“Ha, ha, ha. She got you there man. You’re never going to make it unless you study. You know that, Yusuke.” Kazuma just shook his head and laughed some more at the way Keiko scolded Yusuke due to the fact that he was not studying like he should.

“Look, I’m working with what I got. I’m covered.” He once again rested against the tree and crossed his arms over his chest. “I appreciate your offer, but I have things to do Keiko.” He tilted his head back and closed his eyes.

“Yusuke”

Yusuke almost jumped from his bones at the sound of that voice calling his name. He immediately froze as Shuichi looked at him. “Yeah, man. What’s up?”

Shuichi looked at the rest of the group and then back at Yusuke feeling rather uncomfortable at how everyone was just staring at him.

Yusuke realized what was going on and immediately called everyone on it. “Geez guys, what the fuck is wrong with you?” Once everyone stopped staring he decided to introduce them all. “Shuichi this is Kazuma, Hiei, Keiko and Shizuru. Everyone this is Shuichi.”

Everyone extended their hand in greeting and once that was done Shuichi turned back to Yusuke. “Are we still on for tonight?”

Yusuke felt like the earth could just open up and swallow him whole. He looked at Keiko and then back to Shuichi as he answered. “Yeah. I’ll see you at seven.”

Shuichi nodded and then turned to the group. “Very nice to meet you all. See you around.” He then turned and started walking away.

Once Shuichi was at a good distance, Yusuke turned to the group who were staring back at him as if he had grown a horn. “What?” He then ‘hned’ and paced a little. “You guys want me to do well in school. Right?” He waited until everyone nodded. “Well, I got the best of the best to get me there. I told you guys I had it covered.”

Keiko just stared at Yusuke for a while longer before she could even speak. “But, I had already offered to help you study. Why did you choose him over me? You don’t even know him.”

Yusuke sighed in frustration. “All I need to know about him is that he knows his shit. I just needed someone else other than you to teach me. Don’t feel bad about it. It’s nothing against you, really. You’re just a close friend of mine and I just tend to take advantage of that and talk you into letting a lot of shit slide. I’m just trying to do the best thing here.” Yusuke realized that he was rambling now and felt a little bit nervous too. He looked at Hiei who was also eyeing him. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Hiei rolled his eyes and looked at Keiko before he turned back to Yusuke. “You really need to try and figure people out before you start mingling with just anyone, Yusuke. You know that there’re a whole bunch of idiots in this school. Did you know that he, Shuichi, is gay? Are you sure you want people to know that you two are ‘studying’ together?”

Yusuke picked up on the insinuation immediately. “I could care a rat’s ass what anyone thought about me. I know that he’s good. I don’t give a flying fuck if he’s gay, straight or otherwise. I hang out with you, don’t I?”

Hiei ‘hned’ and stared Yusuke down. “It’s not the same, Yusuke. You know that.”

Shizuru felt the need to put her two cents in. “We’re just trying to keep your reputation intact. As you well know, no one really hangs out with him. He’s just weird. He’s too smart for his own good. It’s not just that he’s gay, Yusuke. God, I think he’s prettier than a lot of the girls in this whole school.”

Yusuke did not like this at all. “Yeah, are you jealous of him or what? He has everything going for him and you guys want to diss him because he’s a little bit different. Since when do you guys care about that shit?” He was getting aggravated now. “Whatever, I’m going home and then…” Yusuke looked at Keiko and smiled “…I’m going to fucking study.” He then reached and hugged Keiko. “Thanks for understanding. It means a lot to me.” He then started walking towards his house.

“Hey, are you going to be able to hang out tonight or what?” Hiei always had a party going on every single weekend.

Yusuke waved at them without even looking back. “See ya tomorrow guys.”

----

“So, the whole idea is that we let a crazed idiot into a powerful political position and then we complain when he nearly killed us all?”

Shuichi had to laugh at that. Yusuke had a very unique way of looking at things. “No, it means that sometimes we choose the wrong leaders due to the manipulation of the media, the willingness for people to manipulate data that should assist in our decision and sometimes even other people who are close to us influencing our opinion. If we just did our own research and made an unbiased decision then, as you well put it, we wouldn’t have to complain due to our own misinformed judgment.”

For a couple of seconds Yusuke just stared at the redhead. He was just enthralled by how all of that sounded and how now he understood perfectly what the whole point of the assignment was.

Shuichi felt a bit uncomfortable and brought his gaze to his nervous hands. “Do you understand, Yusuke?” He just had to ask to make sure that everything was okay.

Yusuke turned himself from lying on his abdomen to his back and just stared at the ceiling. “Could I ask you a question, Shuichi?” Yusuke looked up to see when the redhead nodded. “Does it bother you when people make ‘uninformed decisions’ about you?”

Shuichi felt his heart skip at that comment. He brought his eyes down to look at his nervous hands once again, and kept silent.

Yusuke sat on the bed and scooted back towards the headboard where Shuichi was. “I know that you’re gay and I’m completely okay with that.” Yusuke waited a couple of seconds before continuing. “Hey, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I’m sorry.”

Shuichi looked at Yusuke and gave him a slight smile. “No, it’s okay. I just…”

Yusuke turned again and sat right across from Shuichi. “You know, people are just idiots. They look at you and they don’t take the time to get to know you. I guess they’re intimidated by you or something.”

Shuichi stood from the bed and took a couple of steps towards the window. “Why would they feel that way? I don’t understand.”

Yusuke stood up as well and stood behind the younger male. “You are absolutely oblivious of how you come across. Aren't you?” Shuichi turned to him. “I mean, you’re the smartest person I will ever know and you have a great personality.” Yusuke grinned at the slight blush on the boy’s face. “And… you have killer looks.” He absentmindedly took a lock of the red hair and twisted it around in his fingers and was startled at how soft it felt. “I mean, Keiko and Shizuru would kill for hair like this.”

Shuichi wasn’t sure of what was going on, but it made him nervous. He had decided to hang out with Yusuke because he knew that the guy was completely straight and he wouldn’t have anything to worry about. But he wasn’t sure about that now. He turned his head and walked towards the bed to collect his books. “It’s late. I should be going.”

Yusuke just stood there watching Shuichi gather his books. What the hell just happened back there? Did he just touch Shuichi’s hair? Shaking his head he came back from his thoughts. “Hey, um, what about tomorrow?”

Shuichi tried not to look into those brown eyes. “What about tomorrow?”

Yusuke walked in front of Shuichi and squatted as well to help him put the books in his pack. “Could you come back tomorrow? I still need help.” He was hoping that his little slip didn’t cause the redhead to not want to talk to him again. “Listen, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I don’t know why I did that.”

Shuichi took his pack and stood looking into Yusuke’s hopeful eyes. “Is seven okay?”

Yusuke didn’t even know that he had been holding his breath there. He smiled and nodded. “Thanks. I appreciate that man.”

Shuichi smiled and walked towards the door. “Good night, Yusuke.”

----

“I’ll be damned! I stand corrected man. You never seize to amaze me.” Hiei just couldn’t believe that he was looking at Yusuke’s C+ grade on his exam paper.

“And you guys thought I was going to fail again. Hn, I’m actually understanding a lot of this shit now. Shuichi is a great tutor.” Yusuke had a smile on his face. He couldn’t wait to show the redhead how he did on his exam.

Keiko just sat there with a fake smile. She had not spent any time with Yusuke since he started studying with Shuichi. “Well, I’m very proud of you, Yusuke. I knew that you could do it.”

Yusuke looked up to Keiko and smiled. “Thanks, Keiko. You’re my #1 fan.”

“Oh, for crying out loud. It’s just a C. You guys are acting like he aced the test or something.” Shizuru just stood there smoking her cigarette. She then glanced at Yusuke and winked at him.

He returned the smile knowing that it was just Shizuru’s way of treating everyone. She really didn’t mean anything by her comment. “Well I just might ace my next exam. If I continue to study, I think I can do it.”

Kazuma and Hiei laughed at that last comment. Yusuke just looked at the two of them and gave them the finger. He knew that they were going to have a bet on that.

----

Yusuke shifted from one leg to the other just waiting to see Shuichi’s reaction.

“I’m very impressed, Yusuke. I knew that you would do well. I had no doubt.”

This brought a proud smile to Yusuke’s face. “You don’t know how much I appreciate this, man. I owe it to you. You’ve had so much patience with me and I just owe you big time.”

Shuichi smiled at Yusuke’s words. “It’s no problem at all Yusuke. I’m glad I had the opportunity to tutor you. I feel that we’ve accomplished a lot in the last three weeks.”

“We need to celebrate, man. What do you want to do?”

Shuichi turned his attention to Yusuke. He didn’t want to disappoint him after doing so well on the test, but he knew he shouldn’t spend so much time away from home. “What do you suggest we do?”

Yusuke thought about it for a minute and nothing really came up. “I don’t know. I just want to celebrate this with you. Let you know how I appreciate what you’ve done for me.”

Shuichi smiled at that and then lifted his gaze to Yusuke. “Well, we could go watch a movie. I actually wanted to see ‘Alexander’ if you’re interested.”

“Alexander? What’s that about?”

Shuichi tilted his head to the side before he answered. “You’ve never heard of ‘Alexander the Great’?” Yusuke raised his shoulders in bewilderment and shook his head. “Hmm, sounds like another lesson to me. Let’s go.”

----

As they sat in the very last row towards the middle left section of the theater, Yusuke felt a little bit confused about the situation. He wanted to watch this ‘Alexander’ movie as Shuichi seemed very interested in it, but he had realized as they purchased the tickets that he had never been to the movies with another guy. I mean, he had gone with Kazuma and Hiei plenty of times, but not with just one other guy. He felt a bit out of place until he noticed that there were about two or three other pairs of guys there to watch this movie.

What really made him feel kind of confident to be here with Shuichi were the very obvious stares and compliments he had heard of those other guys when they saw the redhead with him. Every now and then he would catch one of those guys turning around and looking first at Shuichi and then at him. He just had to ask. “Is it me or are these guys acting weird?”

Shuichi brushed his long bangs away from his eyes as he realized what Yusuke was referring to. He then looked at his hands in a nervous gesture. “I’m sorry if you feel uncomfortable. We can leave if you wish. Or maybe have an empty seat in between us if it makes you feel better.”

Yusuke frowned at that and then thought about it. He then saw as the one guy had his arm around the back of the other guy’s chair and was very closely speaking into his ear. Then it dawned on him. “Do they think that we’re together, like we’re a couple or something?”

Shuichi blushed at Yusuke’s question. He could only wish that he would ever have a relationship with someone like Yusuke. He once again brushed his bangs behind his ear and nodded. “I did get that impression. I could move if you like.” Shuichi raised himself from the chair to move over and give Yusuke some room.

“Wait.” Yusuke grabbed Shuichi by the wrist to stop him. “I don’t have a problem if that’s what they think. I was just wondering what was going on. That’s all.”

Shuichi sat back down and looked at Yusuke. “You don’t mind that they think we’re a couple?”

Yusuke ‘hned’ and brought his arm to rest on the back of Shuichi’s chair. “Hell no! I could care less what anybody thinks. I’m my own person and no one has any say in what I do.” He placed his hand on Shuichi’s shoulder and pulled him towards him a little bit. “I’m pretty sure they’re trying to figure out how someone like me, got a gorgeous guy like you.”

Shuichi smiled at Yusuke knowing that he was just kidding with him. “I’ll see how you feel about me at the end of the movie. It’s almost three hours long.”

Yusuke raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Three hours long? Damn, this movie better be good or I’m going to fall asleep halfway through it.”

Shuichi smiled and looked forward as the movie was about to start. “I think you’ll enjoy it.”

----

It was great that whenever Yusuke had a question about what was going on in the movie, he could ask Shuichi about it and he would explain it to him in terms he could understand. He felt very comfortable being there with him. He was enjoying the movie indeed. Or was it the company? He glanced over to look at Shuichi. He was so into the movie and the way his face looked in that little bit of light that the screen generated it was somewhat entrancing. Yusuke quickly turned away and started to pay attention to the movie once again.

Shuichi felt a bit conscious of the fact that Yusuke had been staring at him just seconds ago. It had taken a lot of restraint to not look back at Yusuke. He wanted to. He wanted to see why he was being intently stared at, but was glad that he didn’t.

----

It was close to nine o’clock at night as they walked down the street.

“Man, that movie was great. I can’t believe that guy did all that shit and died so young.” He thought about all that happened in the movie and remembered a certain something he noticed. “So, I can see why there were same sex couples in the theater.”

Shuichi smiled and continued to look down as they walked. “I’m sorry about that. I completely forgot about that part. I’m sorry you were uncomfortable.”

“I wasn’t uncomfortable as much as confused about why they kept looking at us. I just hate it when people do that. Anyway, I really did enjoy the movie. You think this ‘Alexander’ stuff is going to come on a test or something?”

Shuichi laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t think so. I just thought it was a good learning experience for you.”

They kept walking towards Shuichi’s house discussing the movie.

----

Shuichi walked into his mother’s room before he went to bed. “You’re still awake. Do you feel okay?” He went ahead and sat by her side and placed a hand over her forehead to make sure she was not fevered.

“I’m fine. How was your day?”

Shuichi looked into his mother’s eyes. “It was good. We studied for a little while and then watched the movie Alexander.”

Shiori could tell that Shuichi had enjoyed doing things that a normal teenager should do. “I would like to meet him, Shuichi. Could you bring him by for your next study session?”

Shuichi felt his heart sink. He had never told his mother it was a ‘he’ that he was tutoring. “Sure.” He whispered while placing a kiss on her forehead and tucking her in. “Good night, mother.”

----

“Hey guys.” Yusuke greeted everyone.

Keiko sat by him and smiled. “I’m glad you could make it, Yusuke. We missed you last night.”

“Yeah, well, I was busting my ass studying.” He said as he looked at Hiei knowing that he and Kazuma had a bet against him again. “I even learned about Alexander the Great. He was a cool guy.”

Keiko took his hand and held it tight. “Ohh, great Yusuke! Maybe we can go watch the movie together. If you liked learning about him then you will really like the movie!”

Yusuke found himself mute for a moment. Should he tell her that he had already watched the movie or just play it safe. “Um, maybe we could. Sure, Keiko.” He had to look at Hiei as he heard him snort at that. “What is it man?”

Hiei shook his head and rearranged himself as he sat on the window sill. “Who are you and what have you done with Yusuke?”

Everyone laughed at that and Yusuke threw his head back and brought his hands over his eyes. “I swear you guys are horrible.”

Hiei kept his eye on Yusuke for a while longer. He knew that he would never go out with Keiko because he didn’t want to encourage the girl. And he had a good feeling that Yusuke had already gone to watch that movie. “Hn”. He knew Yusuke better than anyone else; maybe even better than Yusuke himself. Hiei could tell that Shuichi was having an influence on Yusuke and even though it seemed to be a good thing, he still felt that there was something else there. He turned his head and continued to look out the window. Whatever it was, he was going to find out sooner or later.

----

Yusuke didn’t get it. He had been thinking about Shuichi all frigging day. He barely paid attention to anyone else today. When it was close to seven and he knew he would see the redhead again it felt… weird. He felt excited about it. “Fucking hell, what the fuck is wrong with me?” He muttered to himself as he knocked on the door.

Shuichi opened the door and smiled at Yusuke. “Come in, please.”

Yusuke walked into the house and stuffed his hands into his pockets in a nervous gesture.

Shuichi thought that it was very amusing, and tried to make Yusuke more comfortable. “Would you like something to drink?” Yusuke nodded and they both walked to the kitchen. Shuichi handed Yusuke a glass of soda and then walked to the stove.

Yusuke stood behind Shuichi and inhaled deeply at the awesome smell of some good cooking. “You’re making dinner.” Shuichi turned to look over his shoulder and smiled at him. “What’re you making?” Yusuke was startled when Shuichi turned and held a spoon to his mouth. He hesitantly opened his mouth and tasted what Shuichi was offering him. “Wow, that tastes great!”

Shuichi continued to stir the contents of the pot and decided to ask. “Would you like to stay for dinner Yusuke? There’s plenty for everyone.” He then turned once again and felt relieved when Yusuke accepted. “My mother would like to meet you. Is that okay?”

Yusuke’s nervousness was back again. Even though he could care less about what anyone thought of him, he wanted to make sure that Shuichi’s mom liked him. For some reason the thought of not being able to hang out with the redhead made him feel uneasy. “Hey, I’m warning you right now, I’m quite the charmer. So, if she wants to keep me as her son and ditch you, don’t get mad.”

They both laughed at that. Shuichi just stared into those darn brown eyes a little longer. If Yusuke only knew how right he was about being a charmer. He shook his head and dispelled those childish thoughts. “Come, she’s upstairs.”

----

Yusuke felt relieved when he was received with a big smile and an even bigger hug from the woman.

“I’m so happy to meet you, Yusuke. I’ve heard great things about you and how you’re really making an effort to better yourself in school. I must commend you for that.”

Yusuke smiled and looked at Shuichi. “Well, I can’t take all the credit. Your son has a lot of patience and you just don’t know how thankful I am that he agreed to take the job to teach me.”

Shiori felt so glad to see Shuichi smiling again whenever he spoke of Yusuke. He had been so overwhelmed with so many things that someone so young shouldn’t have to deal with. Seeing the spark back in his eyes gave her hope. “Shuichi, do you mind getting me some cold water?” She smiled as Shuichi left the room and then she turned her attention back to Yusuke. “Thank you, Yusuke, for making him smile again. I’m so thankful that you’re in his life. He had been… down lately and I just hate to see him that way.”

Yusuke felt a bit nervous hearing those words from Shuichi’s mother. He knew that there was something wrong when he had first bumped into the redhead and saw that black and blue bruise on his side. He couldn’t believe that he forgot about that. He had been enjoying the boy’s presence so much, that he never brought up the subject. “Don’t worry about him. He’s a good guy. I’ll watch his back, promise.”

She gave Yusuke a weak smile knowing that even though Yusuke meant well, there was nothing that could be done about Shuichi’s troubles. If there was someone that could help him it was her and in her current health condition that was completely out of the question. “Thank you. You’re a good kid too.”

At that moment, Shuichi entered the room and handed her a glass of cold water. “Dinner is ready. Do you want to eat now, mother?”

“Yes, why don’t you boys bring up your plates too and we could watch some television together.”

That comment caught Shuichi by surprise. He glanced at Yusuke and then at his mother. He nodded and looked back at Yusuke. “Could you help me bring the plates up, Yusuke?” The older boy nodded and stood up from the bed.

Both of them walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. Yusuke found the silence a bit unnerving. Shuichi usually had something to say and seeing him thinking so much was just unexpected. “You okay, man?”

Shuichi looked at Yusuke and then smiled. “I’m sorry. I just… yes, I’m fine. It’s just that since she’s been ill and in her condition she had never wanted company. All she usually wants to do is sleep or just be by herself in her room. I was just surprised that she wants to have us with her. That’s all.”

“I warned you man, but you didn’t believe me. She loves me, you see that right?” He walked with a cocky posture as he held the tray. “She loves, meeee.” He said as he pointed to himself and continued to walk in front of Shuichi.

Shuichi just snorted and followed Yusuke upstairs.

----

After having a great time with Shuichi and his mother, Yusuke opened the front door and stepped outside. He turned and looked at Shuichi. “Thanks man. That was great. And I specially loved the part where there was no studying.” They both laughed at that last comment. “Hey, um, where’s your dad?”

Shuichi paled at the mention of the man. “Ah, he’s…” He couldn’t help but stutter. “…he’s out of town. He’ll be back in two weeks.”

Yusuke noted the redhead’s nervousness. “Oh, okay. I was just wondering. Sorry, if I got my nose where it don’t belong.”

Shuichi gave him a forced smile and then cleared his throat before speaking. “Yusuke, um, my step father is not very fond of me having people over. So, you’ll probably never have the pleasure of meeting him.”

Yusuke raised his eyebrows at that. He picked up on Shuichi’s hint that it was his step father and not his dad and that he was not welcome whenever the man was around. “I get it. Well, thanks again. I’m stuffed man and tell your mom she’s tons of fun.” He then turned and started to walk away. “Good night, Shuichi.”

Shuichi walked back upstairs and into his mother’s room. She received him with a smile and held her arms out to him. He fell into those arms and stayed there as he was hugged by his mother. “I like him, Shuichi.” He was startled by that, but didn’t move an inch. “I love you, son.” He continued to stay in his mother’s embrace. He knew that she had an idea of his sexual orientation, but they never spoke about it. He knew what she meant when she said that she liked him, but she might have not picked up on the fact that Yusuke is straight. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh. At least, he had his friendship and that was okay for now.

----

Saturday morning was here and Shuichi was awaiting the announcement. He felt somewhat excited at the fact that Yusuke had decided to come with him to the science fair and was now giving him big smiles and two thumbs up from the audience. He had to smile at that. Yusuke was such a ray of light to him. He was thankful that he had his friendship.

“And first place goes to… Shuichi Minamino!!!”

That was all he needed to hear. He couldn’t help but lower his head as a tear fell down his cheek. It was such a relief that he had once again gotten first place. His mother seemed to be in good spirits and he didn’t want to change a thing. If he had the money for her medicines, maybe, just maybe, she would get better this time. He was brought back when he was hit by a runaway train and held so tight he couldn’t breathe. Yusuke had run down from the audience and was now giving him a bear hug.

“I knew you would win!! I had no doubt, man!!”

Hearing those words from Yusuke where so fulfilling. He tucked his head under Yusuke’s chin as he didn’t want the older boy to notice that he was crying; but had to disengage himself from Yusuke as he was being handed a trophy and an envelope with the monetary prize.

“Well done, Mr. Minamino. It is a pleasure to have you participate in our science fair. We look forward to your attendance in the upcoming events and congratulations once again.”

Shuichi shook the man’s hand and accepted the prize and trophy. He was then startled when Yusuke raised his hand to his face and wiped his tears away.

“You okay, man?” Yusuke felt like those tears where from more than just excitement at winning first place. Shuichi nodded and then their eyes met. He couldn’t help but reach for the redhead and give him a hug. “Your mom is going to be so happy for you.” He had one hand in the nape of Shuichi’s neck and the other around the boy’s waist as he held him tight.

The hair on his back stood on end as Shuichi murmured a ‘thank you’ in his ear. He could feel the boy’s lips very close to his neck and it just sent shivers down his spine. He then realized that his hand had moved from the younger boy’s neck into that beautiful hair. He turned his head and placed a gentle but lingering kiss on Shuichi’s cheek right in front of his ear. Then he placed another one in the middle of his cheek. And finally one on the side of the redhead’s mouth as he very slowly moved his eyes to look into Shuichi’s trembling ones. Then he made the mistake to look at Shuichi’s slightly parted lips.