Gravitation Fan Fiction ❯ Inspired ❯ Your friends, for better or worse ( Chapter 13 )

Pairings: Ryu/Taki and slight Tatsuha/Shuichi

Summary: Taki suffers through outrageous and embarrassing torture. Ryuichi has it out with Shuichi.

[] a character's thoughts.

// // flashback

Disclaimer: I don't own gravitation or its characters
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Inspired

Chapter 13

"Tachi! You're here early." Ma-kun said as he entered the office, Ken close behind. "So how did your date go?" The blonde winked.

"Yeah. Spill it." Ken was obviously just as interested, not that he betrayed it.

"It went." Taki muttered. He was looking down at some legal documents, hoping to ignore his so-called friends.

"Really? That's so vague! I always tell you about my dates." Ma-kun wasn't going to take no for an answer. Taki couldn't care less about sharing.

"We went out. We had… fun." Taki snarled as he grabbed a pen and began signing his signature to some papers.

"What kind of fun?" Ken cocked an eyebrow, not that you could easily tell through the sunglasses.

"Fun." Taki was making sure to keep his head down. Ma-kun and Ken both leaned in so that they could look him in the eye.

"Really. Kinky fun I bet." Ma-kun had an amused tone to his voice. [Bastard has to make everything perverted. Though, Saturday night was… kinky.] Taki now had the papers in front of his face, pretending to read them. Ken pushed the papers down, not willing to let him escape.

"He's blushing." Ken said matter-of-factly.

"Leave me alone." He swiveled in the chair, face flaming. Ma-kun tried to step in front of him, causing Taki to swivel away again. Only he found Ken in front of him now. "Alright! I give!"
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Ryuichi was jumping up and down inside of Tohma's office. "And then, me and Taki played video games. Taki's really good! He beat me every time. Well, except on Midnight Run. He's not good at racing games."

"I'm happy for you, Ryu." Tohma was typing on his computer, apparently doing the typical president thing.

"Oh, and, and, and…" Ryuichi stammered, trying to remember what he was going to say. Tohma smiled to himself. He really was happy for Ryuichi, but he was also worried that his friend might be expecting a little much out of Taki. He had the feeling that ASK's vocalist might have a hard time handling this relationship.

"Oh." Tohma remembered something else he had been curious about. "Ryu, did you run into Shindou or Tatsuha?" An eerie silence filled the room, the calm before the storm. "Eh, Ryu?" Tohma grimaced.

"Yeah. I ran into them." Ryuichi was quiet, an edge to his voice.

"I see…" [Uh, oh. He's angry. This isn't good.] "Did something happen?" Tohma was really hoping that he was mistaken and Ryuichi wasn't angry, just sick from the twenty jelly donuts he'd had previously.

"Things… happened. Tohma, I think I need some air." Ryuichi said as he headed towards the door. He paused for a moment before existing. "Oh, and tell Shuichi that I need to talk to him."
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Taki wanted to bury his head in his arms and disappear. Somehow he had spilled every last detail. Ma-kun and Ken now knew about Saturday night and all of Sunday. [Really, Sunday isn't the embarrassing part. All we did was putz around his house. But, they weaseled the previous night's events out of me.]

"I think it's cute." Ma-kun snickered. "Taki has a boyfriend."

"Whatever." Muttered Ken, his mind now elsewhere. It was annoying Taki. [If I'm forced to embarrass myself, I better have your full attention.]

"What's your problem?" Taki shot at Ken, who just looked away. Ma-kun laughed even louder.

"He lost the bet, that's what. Speaking of which, pay up." Ma-kun gestured towards the keyboardist. Grumbling, Ken pulled out his wallet and removed a thousand yen. Taki watched the exchange, eyes narrowing.

"What bet?" Taki glanced at them both, knowing that it had probably been at his expense and that he would have to beat the crap out of them for it.

"I bet Ken that you would get Ryuichi in the sack. Ken told me you couldn't."

"What?" The two looked a little nervous, realizing they were going to suffer the consequences for their misdeeds. "What do you mean I couldn't?" Taki's eyes were burning as they looked at Ken.

Ken had his hands up in a defensive position. "What I mean to say is… Well, you're…" Taki was up now walking towards Ken, looking incredibly angry. He reached up and pulled the other man down by his shirt, so that their eyes were level.

"Well. Your safety depends on how you answer."

"I mean, even you aren't that indecent…" Taki was confused for a moment.

"So, now I'm indecent?" [Since when… Now I feel so dirty.] Ken gritted his teeth, fearing for his life.

"No, no. I meant-" Ma-kun chose to cut in at this moment.

"He meant to say that you're not hot enough to bag someone like Ryuichi Sakuma." He even had that idiot grin in place.

"That's not what I meant!" Shouted Ken as he pulled away from Taki. "Besides, Ma-kun said even worse things about you!" As Taki turned to glare at him, Ma-kun became the frightened one.

"He's lying, Tachi. Honestly. I would never say anything bad about you." Ken and Taki looked at him in disbelief.

"Liar." They said in unison.

Ken looked at Taki seriously. "Tachi, he called you a slut and a horn dog." Taki looked at Ma-kun, thinking about it.

"Really. That sounds like something he would say." The look on his face indicated that Ma-kun was going to face divine justice.

"Those weren't the words I used! I just said that you'd be a fool not to take this chance."

Ken snorted in disgust. "Yeah, his exact words were, "Even Tachi isn't that stupid." Ma-kun gulped as Taki advanced on him.

"Oh, so Taki's stupid is he?" His voice was dangerously low. Without warning, he lunged at Ma-kun. Ken tried to get into the fray, hoping to save Ma-kun from Taki's wrath. Unfortunately, he was drug into it as well. After a while, the dust settled, leaving the three disheveled and slightly worse for wear, but still living.

"I'm sorry I said you couldn't get any." Huffed Ken, looking for his sunglasses.

"Yeah, and I'm sorry I called you stupid." Ma-kun had removed a comb from his jacket and was brushing his hair.

"Don't mention it." Taki rubbed his wrist, feeling a little sore. Ken got up and helped Ma-kun up, then did the same for Taki.

"Oh, and Tachi, congratulations." Ma-kun flashed him a smile. His smile grew even wider at Taki's puzzled look. "Congratulations on finding a boyfriend, moron." Taki cocked an eyebrow for a moment, then grinned.

"Thanks. For once I'm ahead of you losers." Ma-kun and Ken looked at him, a little annoyed.

"Jerk." They muttered as Taki left the room, cackling.
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Shuichi headed towards the roof, feeling nervous. When Tohma had paged him, saying Ryuichi wanted to talk to him, it was as if a death knell had sounded. [Ryuichi's going to kill me. Or he'll never want to be my friend again.] Shuichi could feel the tears streaming down his face.

He had every reason to fear. When Ryuichi was angry or in his "intense" mode, he was scary and difficult to talk to. Nonetheless, he had decided to face his end with dignity and courage. All he had to do was open the door, but his hands were trembling. [Why did it have to be a roof? Is he going to push me off it?]

Shuichi gulp and slowly opened the door. [Good bye cruel world. Bye Mom, Dad, Maiko. Good bye Hiro. Goodbye Yuki, Tatsuha.] He stepped through the door and winced as a cold breeze brushed pass him. "Windy up here."

"Yo, Shuichi." Came a voice that chilled him to the core. He turned around, seeing Ryuichi behind him.

"Ulp. Ryuichi. Hi. Nice weather we're having." He said lamely, unable to hide his fear.

"Shuichi we need to talk."

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Tatsuha adjusted his monk's robe, feeling irritated. Usually he didn't mind wearing the garb. Regardless of what some people thought of him, he liked being a monk. It wasn't stopping him from having fun, and he got to help people out with their problems. Plus, some boys and girls loved a man in uniform. But, today it chafed against his skin.

"Shit! You'd think I would be able to solve my own problems. No wonder Dad would rather have Eiri as his successor." He grabbed the beer that was sitting next to him and took a few swallows.

[I'm quite possibly in love with my brother's boyfriend. And I'm not sure if it's genuine or if I'm seeing some rock legend in him.] For the first time ever, Tatsuha honestly believed his life sucked.

[Why do I always want what I can't have? I should follow Mika's advice and set my sights lower.] Still, he couldn't stop himself from thinking it…

"Shuichi." He whispered. The guy was so much fun, so cute. So kind and understanding. Determined, brave and generous. He had always liked that about his friend, yet he had never thought about Shuichi as anything beyond a possible one nightstand. Not until now.

"Damn. I think this is the first time I've ever resented Eiri." It was true though. Tatsuha realized his brother had something he wanted. And the worst thing was, Tatsuha doubted that Eiri appreciated Shuichi. That made it a million times worse. Plus, Shuichi no longer seemed like the bastion of faith Tatsuha had always assumed he was. It seriously tempted a guy to just go for it, saying to hell with family ties.

"Why do I have to have a moral dilemma now?"
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"Ryuichi, listen I…" Shuichi stammered, feeling nervous. Ryuichi wasn't smiling, which was usually not a good sign.

"Why? Why would you want to do that Shuichi? I can understand about Tatsuha, but why you?" His voice was quiet and Shuichi couldn't tell if Ryuichi was angry or sad.

"I-I don't know. I told myself it was because of Tatsuha, but that's not the truth, at least not all of it. I resented the idea of you being with him, because I don't think he deserves you." Shuichi dug his hands into his pockets. "Why does it have to be him, Ryuichi? Why does it have to be that guy?"

"Why? Because I love him. I shouldn't have to explain, considering that Yuki isn't a model citizen either." Shuichi flinched.

"I know. I know that." [Of course I do. I know I shouldn't decide on other people's love lives when mine's not perfect.]

"The reason I guess I don't like this is because I don't like him." [There. I said it.]

"I think he feels the same way. I don't know why though." Ryuichi sounded sad now.

"Ryuichi I don't know how to explain it. He acts like a jerk to me all the time. And I just can't stand his stuck up attitude, so I always fight back. I guess, if I said there was anything between us, it's that we're rivals."

Ryuichi looked at him oddly, as if he didn't understand the concept. "Shuichi, we're rivals and we don't hate each other. Why would it be any different between you and Taki?" [He doesn't hate me. Thank God.] Shuichi smiled, feeling very relieved right now.

"It's just different. Some people aren't going to like each other, no matter what. That's just the way it is."

"But, I want you two to like each other. You're one of my best friends. And he's…" Ryuichi choked back a noise and turned away from Shuichi. Shuichi placed a hand on Ryuichi's back.

"Listen, I don't like him, but… I can try to get along with him." Ryuichi turned around, face streaked with tears, but also smiling.

"Really? You mean it?"

"Of course I do. Besides, someone has to be there in case he screws you over." Shuichi said proudly, quoting one of Hiro's lines. Suddenly, Ryuichi started laughing out loud. "Eh?" Shuichi blinked.

"It's already a little late for that." Ryuichi's eyes glinted, an evil look in them. Shuichi looked at him, trying to figure out what Ryuichi meant and then it hit him.

"Eww."

Ryuichi smirked. "What are you talking about? Like all the times you go on and on about Yuki is such a treat."

"That's different. Yuki's much hotter then Aizawa."

"Yeah, well Taki's prettier. Come on, let's go some place warmer." Ryuichi said as he headed down the stairs. Shuichi followed behind Ryuichi, trying to figure out a good retort.

"Oh, alright. I'll agree he is pretty. In an effeminate way." [At least Yuki has rugged sex appeal and Tatsuha is even hotter…] Shuichi froze in his tracks.

"Shuichi, what's wrong?" Ryuichi stopped, waiting for Ryuichi.

"Oh, nothing." Shuichi said as he started moving again. [What the hell was that? Tatsuha is not, since when was he so…] Shuichi shook his head in frustration. [Oh great, I'm having fantasies about a sixteen year old.]
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To Be Continued…

Tatsuha and Shuichi angst. And of course some stuff with Ryuichi and Taki.

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Sorry, I had to get rid of my replies to all the reviews. I want to comply with the rules against chat dialogue or overly long author's notes.