It's been a while since I've seen the way.
The candles light your face.
And it's been a while but I can still remember,
Just the way you taste.

Staind -- It's Been A While



Jun's POV

"He turned. She held her breath-- did he recognize her? Yes! He lowered the hat he had been settling on his wavy dark hair," I stopped my reading of the novel I was infatuated with finishing and sighed. John Jakes Love and War. This was so romantic in a depressing fashion.

I sighed again deeply, slamming my book shut tightly before placing it on my nightstand. When I had told some of my friends that I was reading this 878 page novel, they laughed at me, thinking I was joking. They told me to continue reading my fashion magazines, act 'normal'. Funny how people just chalked me up as an airhead that doesn't have one original thought in her head. I think that's the way everyone saw me at first. This little ditz that wanted them to sign her shirt.

I rested my head on my pillow, rubbing my eyes so they adjusted to the now pure darkness of my room. I smiled faintly to myself as I looked up at my ceiling, gazing deeply at the fake plastic glow-in-the-dark stars that were strategically placed there. Constellations were mapped out, bright stars and satellites were carefully arranged and all in all, made my boring ceiling a lot less boring.

Osamu had done that for me. I think I had just barely mentioned I hated astronomy and that I didn't believe in horoscopes. It wasn't even a whole conversation or anything, just this less than three second comment I had made. That day, when he dropped off Ken to see Daisuke, he snuck into my room with a box in his hands.

I was too busy catering to the orderly demands of my brother and his best friend, laughing at the duo simultaneously. They were so much alike and so very different all at the same time. But luckily for me, our mom had gone on this cleaning spree and every inch of the house was sparkling. It was so clean you could eat off it.

It had taken him a good two hours of straining his neck and mind-blowing calculations to arrange everything so it was exactly the way it was in the sky. I didn't even know he was there to be perfectly honest. And I still wouldn't have known who did it, if it hadn't have been for him stepping back and tripping over my French flute.

Yeah go figure, Jun Motomiya playing the flute. Something so beautiful and time consuming. If my memory does me justice, he crashed into my bookcase which systematically dropped every book on his head one at a time. An ice pack later I thanked him profusely through suppressed giggles. I admired him tremendously. And still to this day, I can't forget the way his dark blue hair fell over his shocking eyes. Half glued to his head from the ice and half spiked up in its usual manner.

He smiled at me for the first time; hell I think that it was his first time smiling. He wore this neutral look on his face that for the life of me, I couldn't figure out. It unnerved me in a sense, sending shivers up my back. I mean, how can someone so privileged be so monotone? I shook my head, pushing the though slowly from my head. I needed to get to sleep.



"Jun!" Daisuke screeched at me as I giggled madly, running from the apartment building. "Give them back!"

"Make me!" I yelled back, clutching his goggles in my hand firmly. He wouldn't give me back my hair-gel; I wouldn't give him back his goggles. It seemed like a fair trade off to me. Watching him snap them on his head a zillion times, I followed, yanking them over my ears so they stayed firmly in place, pushing my hair so it rested on my shoulders and back. I rather liked them come to think of it…

"Jun!" he screamed again, bolting out the door after me. It was like this everyday and the people on our floor were used to it. I think in some language, Motomiya means hyper because we never stop moving. Through giggles and screams, we started off to school.

"Come on Daisuke! I thought you were faster than that!" I jokingly yelled back, turning my head slightly to catch him hastily gaining on me. He was beside me in less than a second and reached out to grab my arm, twisting it painfully when he latched on.

I screamed as I tumbled forward, managing to tug him down as well. "Woah!" a strong pair of arms wrapped their way around me, pulling me up before I hit the ground. I looked over faintly to see Daisuke in someone's arms as well.

"Thanks Tk," he muttered through an almost unnoticeable blush that crept up on his cheeks.

"No problem!" the younger boy chirped out happily. His brilliant blue eyes sparkled merrily as he gazed at my brother, smiling gleefully as he did so.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked me as I turned my attention back to the person whose arms were still securely wrapped around my waist. Shimmering azure eyes greeted me with a seductively gorgeous smile that showed off his perfectly sparkling teeth. I could have melted right there, but composed myself before he noticed I was blushing a heated crimson.

"Yeah, I am. Thanks a lot Matt," I praised as I stood up, his arms still not leaving my sides. Nervously, he pulled me closer as I tripped a tad, hitting his chest painlessly. We were so close I could feel his breath on my cheek.

"That's good," he muttered, tilting my chin upward. His eyes froze mine on the spot, locking them in a steady gaze. "God your eyes are beautiful," he flattered as he slowly brushed some of my stray hair behind my ear. "Simply gorgeous…"

I could fell my heart melt. Matt could strike me down dead with a simple wink. Surprisingly enough, he wanted me and made no effort concealing his attraction for me. And in the same way, I wanted him too. He made me feel special and treated me like a goddess. He sent shiver of anticipation up my spine with his careless, rebel act that could make any girl swoon.

"Hey!" a new voice broke the silence that was between us. Irritatedly I turned to face Ken, who was waving at all four of us in a carefree type of manner.

"Hey Ken!" Daisuke smiled widely. His eyes started to fog over dreamily. I caught the pained look in Tk's eyes as my brother turned away from him, running to his friend with open arms. You would have had to be blind, deaf, mute and in a different galaxy to not notice the way Tk stared at Daisuke. Just the manner he talked and acted around him was practically a dead give away he had this huge thing for him.

And my brother was so thick he missed all the signs. All he seemed to see was Ken. My heart went out to the handsome blond that seemed so full of misery it twisted my soul. He was so sweet and nice, so innocent it could choke a horse. He truly deserved to be happy.

And at the same time, Ken seemed to make my brother ecstatic. Mention his name, Daisuke hit cloud nine and didn't return. And Ken felt the exact same way about him. He treated Daisuke with this infinite care and love it made my eyes water. They were literally a match made in heaven.

But just as quickly as my eyes lifted from Tk, they fell upon Osamu. Needless to say, he wasn't thrilled to see Matt touching me, let alone hugging me. Those lavender eyes held steel in them as he approached us. He told me that he disliked Matt Ishida since the first moment he met him. "Hello Jun," he smiled warmly, "Matt," he added in as an after thought in an icy tone.

"Osamu," Matt seemed to reply curtly, hugging me closer to his body. "What are you doing here?" he demanded in an ugly voice. "I mean, on this side of town," he managed to smile, no doubt hiding the venom. Matt didn't like Osamu much either.

"I came here, Matt, to see Jun," he replied in the confidant voice he possessed.

"She's busy," he replied for me.

"Oh Matt," I sighed, "Osamu, it's nice to see you. What did you want to talk to me about?" I asked as I broke out of Matt's embrace, much to his dislike and Osamu's content.

"This Saturday, my school is having this Spring Fling dance. I wanted to know if you want to come with me."

Just for the sheer pleasure of torturing him, I tortured him, even though he knew I would say yes. How could I turn down my best friend? "Osamu Ichijouji, are you asking me out?"

As much as he didn't like admitting it, Osamu hated to blush and he blushed when he was nervous. At that moment, I could have mistaken him for a stop sign. But all too soon, he looked up, smirking jovially as the scarlet vanished. "Is that what you're calling them now-a-days?" I was just about to say I'd be honored, but Matt answered before I could.

"Sorry, Sammy, my concert's on Saturday. Jun promised me she'd come to all my concerts. All the time," his voice was nothing less than frigid.

"Oh," he muttered, looking down dejectedly for a minute before staring at me with liquid purple eyes. "Sorry then. Maybe another time?" Matt was mumbling something under his breath which I couldn't catch, but I knew was nasty.

"You can count on it Osamu," I smiled just for him. His expression softened noticeable as he smiled back. His eyes returning to their natural lavender color.

"Daisuke, are you going to the concert?" Tk asked hopefully.

"I don't know," he thought for a minute. "I don't think there'll be anyone I know going so…"

"I'll be there!" Tk interrupted hastily.

"Cool! Hey Ken, you wanna go?" I could have smacked my head as Tk's entire face dropped. My God, my brother isn't that stupid, sure he's a little dense, but come on!

"As long as you're there, I'm in," Ken replied, hugging him closely from behind. His chin was resting peacefully on Daisuke's shoulder. Since I had stolen his goggles, his chocolate hair fell on Ken's face. The other genius didn't seem to mind at all.

I was so busy staring at my brother and his friends that I didn't even notice when Osamu joined my side, leaning down so his lips were right next to my ear. "Cute goggles. They look better on you," he muttered. I could tell he was smiling even from the position I was in.

"Jun, let me walk you to school," Matt offered as he less than subtly pushed Osamu out of the way. The taller boy stumbled as he regained his balance, leering the entire time. He looked at me, scanning my appearance for the first time. "Cute…" he muttered sarcastically as he lightly removed them from my head, throwing them back to Daisuke. He grabbed onto my arm and began leading me off in our direction. I looked back over my shoulder, waving bye to the handsome blue haired prodigy.

He waved numbly before shaking his head as he balled his fist. My heart went out to him, it really did. Especially since Matt was being such a jerk to him. But the second I looked over at Matt's gorgeous face, my brain took off for places unknown. There was something about him. The way the sun reflected off his golden locks, or maybe it was the way his eyes glued to yours causing you to drown in pools of azure? I personally had no idea what it was, but whatever it was, made me so helplessly attracted to him that it baffled my mind.



Luckily for me, I had all my 'breeze' classes that day. None of them actually made a difference in my future, so I barely paid any attention to them. Plus the teachers were so old and boring I wouldn't be surprised if they suddenly transformed into fossils before us. The bells rang one after the other, finally signaling the end of the day after several painful hours of nothingness.

I pushed my way through the crowds of eager to depart students, finally making my way out the door without deposing my books. It would have taken me hours to actually accomplish that. It was Thursday after all. Suddenly realizing that fact, I groaned, hitting my forehead with my palm.

"Ah, what's wrong my fair damsel?" a cheerful voice exclaimed from behind me. A smile broke out on my face.

"Oh, nothing a knight in shining armor couldn't solve," I giggled as Osamu draped his arms around my shoulders. "Ken behind you?" I asked.

"Oh course," he smiled. Every Thursday Daisuke and Ken would meet and head off to the ramps at the park. Their way of spending more time together. And also as a bonus for me, Osamu would come over to my house and we would hang out.

"Oh," I suddenly realized, "I picked us up a movie and a few bags of popcorn. Hope you wanted to see the movie Boys And Girls," I smiled, winking coyly. "What could be more perfect than a sappy movie, several bags of junk food and a night without homework? Have you seen it yet?"

"No, I haven't seen that one. What's it about?" he asked me, passing a hand through those silky tresses of almost ebony silk. "Oh wait!" he exclaimed. "Is that the one with Freddie Prinze Jr?"

"Yep," I replied happily. "I've been dying to see it, but no one would take me to the movies," I made a little face that made him laugh.

"You should have called me, I would have loved to take you," at that little comment, he turned a bright cherry and avoided the little gaze I was giving him.

The rest of the walk to my place was done in a peaceful silence that neither of us broke. We didn't need words to have a conversation, just the fact he was near me and I was near him was enough. "Okay, give me five minutes to change out of this stupid uniform and we'll start," I declared as I walked in the front door.

"Great, so I have to sit around in mine," he scrunched up his face, looking simply irresistible. There were a few times when Osamu could look as hot as Matt.

"You know where the bathroom is, grab a sweater of Daisuke's. He won't mind," I told him disappearing in my room. I sighed out loud happily, allowing the large gasp of air to exit my lungs finally. Pulling out a pair of my insanely baggy jeans and a black tank top I threw off my school clothing and changed. The jeans were way too big for me (but I needed them for length) so I grabbed a belt and strung it through the hoops before making my way out. My hair now being tied back in a ponytail.

"Wow," Osamu's eyes widened briefly. "You look so cute."

"As do you," I replied, fighting away the blush that crept on my cheeks. He was wearing a tight sweater that clung to his muscular frame, emphasizing his midnight blue hair.

"You know what's scary, Ken has a sweater just like this one," he noted.

"Probably is his," I informed him, dropping on the plush cushions while grabbing a soda. "They leave a lot of their clothing at each other's houses," Osamu raised one of his eyebrows elegantly. I laughed. "You don't know?"

"Know what?" he inquired, sitting next to me. He grabbed the remote, pressing play with his thumb before looking back to me. I laughed at him again before scooting in closer, cuddling into his shoulder. It was a typical gesture we did and he would always fling his arms around me, grabbing my figure in a loose hug.

"Sam," I called him by the nickname I had given him, "you can figure out complicated math problems without even using a calculator, but you can't figure out that our brothers have been screwing each other rotten since they were twelve. That's pretty sad."

He didn’t even act surprised. "Yeah, I kinda figured that after a while. There was no way studying algebra could have made Ken that happy…" his voice was remorseful. "I'm glad that he found someone though. He's been alone for a long time."

"And what about you?" I asked. "Aren't you tired of being alone?"

"Nah," he replied. "I'm still in the process of finding someone that can look at me and not see 'the genius'. You know what I mean?"

"Yea," I muttered as the credits stopped and the movie began. I got in closer to him; loving the warmth he gave off.

"But since we're on the topic, what about you Jun? Why haven't you found Mr. Right yet?" his voice faltered faintly. "I mean, you're smart, funny, great company and beautiful! You could have anyone you want!"

"I'm in the same boat as you Osamu. I want to have that someone that knows me better than I know myself you know?" I replied lifelessly, giggling a little. "You know me, the helpless romantic."

"And what about Mr. Rock Star, you know, the one who thinks he's God's gift to women… ow!" he joked as I hit him on the arm.

"Matt's not exactly someone anyone would want to have a long time relationship with," I pondered momentarily. "Besides, even if I did like him, what are the chances he likes me? He has half the women in Japan after him!"

"Trust me Jun, Matt as a thing for you," for a moment he sounded almost depressed, which made me nervous. "He really cares about you and it's obvious you like him too!" his voice went all too cheerful. "I'm happy that you're happy," he added softly.

"Liar," I muttered."But I would be lying it I said I wasn't attracted to him. Hell, who isn't?" I continued a bit dreamily.

Osamu's pager went off just as the opening credits finished and he winced slightly. "Listen Jun, I have to go. A rain check for the movie?" he asked abruptly before grabbing his school jacket and threw it over his arm while he took his school bag. "I'll see you later."

"Osamu?" I picked up on something that was a little off with his personality. Before I could even react he darted out the front door, practically jumping down the stairs, ignoring the elevator completely. I sat there, basking in the silence that I was left in for a minute before trying to get everything to process in my brain. Even after things had settled in my brain I still couldn't get things straight. Something was definitely wrong and I was going to find out what it was. After all, I'm his bet friend. He tells me everything.



Osamu's POV



As soon as I got back to my house, I started to rhythmically bang my hand into a wall. How could I have been so stupid? Walking through my front door and into my bedroom, I collapsed right on my bunk. How could I have just left her like that? I sighed deeply, groaning. I knew Jun all to well. She would probably be super pissed or super worried at me for blowing her off like that.

Then an idea crossed my mind. I had a rugby game tomorrow, maybe if she's simmered down a little I could invite her to come, then I could treat her to lunch or something. I smiled rather happily at the already preplanned date I had made in my head.

My beeper went off again and I sighed, rushing into the bathroom that was in the hall and grabbed my rugby outfit. My coach had just sent out an emergency practice thing. He was crazy, really he was. This would be my 8^th practice within five days. Now where was the logic in that?

Opening my green and navy Tomachi bag, I quickly checked to see if I had all my gear, mentally going over the list. Mouth-guard. Check. Cleats. Check. Shorts. Check. There, I was good to go. Amazing how a sport can require such little equipment and the injuries are still less than those who would actually be using protection.

On my way out of my apartment I caught up with Izzy Izumi, the hooker for our team. He transferred to Tomachi from Odaiba when he was offered a scholarship in. We instantly became great friends considering we shared the exact same common interests. And if it hadn't been for him, I would have never met Jun and Ken wouldn't even know Daisuke existed. In a sense, I owed a lot to the short redhead.

"Hello Osamu!" he waved pleasantly.

"Hey Izzy," I smiled warmly, waving back. "Isn't this ridiculous? The practice I mean," I huffed after I ran up to catch him. Luckily for me, he stopped.

"Yea, I'm supposed to meet Joe to pick him up so we can go off. I hope you don't mind," he informed, shifting his bag from his right arm to his left.

"And if we had to pick up Hino we'd have our first row all here," I joked as he laughed. Hino Hitashi and Joe Kido player tight head and loose head prop for us because of their height. Personally, when I first saw Joe, I thought he had accidentally gotten lost and wandered onto the field. But he proved me wrong. Thought, strangely enough, he's paranoid of getting hurt. To this day I can't figure out how he still plays like he does.

margin-left:.5in;tab-stops:.5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in "Hey you two!" a voice in back of us called out as we turned around. "Satoshi!" I greeted our fullback. He was fast. Very, very fast. I'd say

between the two of us, we've scored over half the goals this season.

"Hey, do you guys know why coach called this practice?" he asked, smirking to himself. It was fairly obvious to us that he knew the answer.

"No, why?" Izzy asked.

"Odaiba," he said simply. We were playing them tomorrow. "They just recruited this player and he's dangerous. Apparently, he's fast, maybe faster than I am and he's their kicker. He can do conversions from half way across the field."

"What does he play?" I asked, gasping a little. A team with a good kicker is deadly. If they can drop kick, then you have a problem.

"Get this, he's a tight-head," Satoshi exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "They got him from the junior nationals! He alone could kick our entire team's ass!"

"Does this guy have a name?" Izzy inquired. "Maybe I know him, I did, after all, go to Odaiba."

"Yea, Tai Kamiya I think. Apparently his hair is about the size of Tokyo," he exaggerated a little.

"Are you kidding me?" Izzy almost choked. "Tai playing rugby? Oh my God that's hilarious! Last time I saw him, he was so in love with soccer! You must have this wrong Satoshi!"

"No, I swear it. This is legit. We're going over to see one of their games and then we're going to be at the field until the sun comes up."

I groaned. "And I left a nice movie date for this," I sighed suddenly wishing I hadn't left Jun's place. Both of them snickered and I smirked, winking as we stopped in front of Joe's place. He was out in seconds and we headed off.



Like Satoshi said, our coach lead us over to Odaiba's field where they were in the middle of their game against Kyoto. Looking at the scoreboard, I noticed it was 0-0. He couldn't be that good if the score was like this already. But just as soon as I had finished my thought, the scrum half tossed the ball in back of him, neatly into the arms of a boy with wild brown hair. He took off, speeding right through the other team almost as if they were stone statues. Absolutely nothing could catch up with him.

Their last shot would be the fullback, but as the red haired boy lunged at his feet, he kicked him off, passing the try line and slamming it down right in the center. The perfect kick. With Odaiba already leading 5-0, everyone backed away, allowing him to kick. It sailed right through. 7-0. And later, much to my demise, I learnt that we walked in one second after kick off.

There was a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. One that left me nauseous. We were so screwed…



"You're friggen kidding me right?" Jun gasped into the phone. I had phoned her from the train right after my practice and I was practically moaning.

"He's amazing Jun! The score was 39-0! I mean, how in the hell are we supposed beat that! He made six-drop kicks and he didn't miss one! He scored one of the try's and got the conversion on that and then when the weak side wing and the outside center scored, he got the conversions on those too! That's 29 points all by himself!"

"Osamu, calm down. Listen to me, I know Tai. He's… well, he's out there to say the least. He's an amazing athlete but he does have his weaknesses. All you have to do is figure them out and you'll be safe! I know you can beat him!" she encouraged.

"But he's so good…" I whined again, kicking the back of my seat with the heels of my shoes. Ow…

"And so are you! You think I would spend all that time cheering you on if you weren't amazing? Osamu, you're the captain, don't let the team know you're scared because I know you can beat him!"

"You're right Jun," I groaned. "So, all I have to do is break his legs and then I'm good to go."

"Osamu Ichijouji don't you dare!" she warned in her adorable 'angry' voice.

"Why Jun, got a thing for the opposition?" I was smirking, awaiting her response to my joke.

"Wrong sweetie, he's your opposition, he's from my school after all."

"Are you telling me you're going to cheer for him?" I pouted, knowing perfectly well she knew what my facial expression was.

"Now there's an idea," she joked as we both laughed. For some reason, the thought of that made my heart wince.

"Oh shit, I'm almost home, I gotta get off," I cursed, coughing a little at the smoke from a nearby cigarette. I saw the small sign inside the train flash Tomachi and I stood up.

"Goodnight Osamu, get some rest. And Daisuke's over there so tell him to hurry back home. It's like, midnight,"she asked. "But if he'll be spending the night you can come crash here. Okay?"

"Sure," I smiled at the thought. "Bye Jun."

"Bye Osamu," and with that I hung up my cell-phone. The train doors opened at that moment, sending wave after wave of people out the door. I tucked my phone safely in my bag and got out, slowly making my way home. A good thing about my apartment building was that it was really close to the train station. Only a ten-minute walk.

I made it all the way to my front door, knocking twice because I was way too tired to rifle through my bag for my key; and if what Jun said was true, Ken and Daisuke would be home. When no one came after a while I got frustrated and searched my less than immaculate school bag, finding things I didn't even know I owned.

But the second I stepped in, I was greeted with heart wracking sobs that made my blood run cold. I knew it was Ken instantly. I walked quietly over to his bedroom, knocking once before opening it. "Ken," I spoke in a soothing voice gently touching his shoulder with my hand. He recoiled still crying almost hysterically. "Ken what happened?"

"Go away," he spat. "Leave me alone!"

"No!" I was never a very patient man and I was used to getting the information I wanted when I asked. So dealing with sad or depressed people wasn't something I was gifted in. Becoming a doctor or therapist was not on my to accomplish list. But noticing that one person was not with him and to note the fact he was weeping, lead me to ask another question. "What happened with you and Daisuke?"

"Nothing!" he screamed, uncoiling himself from the ball he was in, looking me straight in the face. Even thought I wasn't well versed in the romance department, I knew what had happened.

"I'm sorry," I muttered, hugging him tightly. "Ken, what did he do?"

"He… he… he was cheating… on me…" he wept, bringing on a fresh batch of tears. My heart went out to him. "And with Tk of all people… I though he was my friend Osamu… but all along he was really after the only person I loved…"

"Oh God Ken…" I hushed. "Don't worry Ken, it’s gonna get better. I promise it will," I held him close as he cried and cried the entire night, never stopping. He fell asleep with tears in his eyes and I had to bite my lip to not cry as well.

I placed his thin frame down on his bed, pulling the blankets over him. It was already five am and we both had to get up at six to catch the train. I wasn't exactly that sleepy anyway. Ken looked worse for wear so I decided he wouldn't be going to school. No use him passing out from exhaustion.

So making my way to the living room, I dropped down on the couch like a sack of potatoes. I grabbed my disk-man from my bag, pressing the play button and letting whatever CD was in it to play. I groaned a little once the first few beats began to play and I recognized it as one of Jun's CD's.

A lonely doll. She came again. Frozen wall. Like teenage skin. And neither for. What comes within. A substance clouds like sinking sin. You told your great tale. And it's always the same. Quite a shame that it goes this way. Is what you said. How very bizarre. All those blood-letting games. Quite a shame that it goes this way. Is what you said. Lay me down. Oh such a shame...

I smiled to myself, shaking my head all at the same time. She was definitely one of a kind. And out of some odd curiosity, I grabbed my messanger bag and dumped out all its contents, finally deciding on cleaning it.

A few burnt CD's mostly Our Lady Peace and Nothingface. One Slipknot CD, an Orbit CD, Soulfly CD and a Sevendust CD. Three packs of gum, (all cinnamon) a pack of pictures, my ankle brace, my digital camera, a few computer disks, my wallet, (with ID's, credit cards and a picture of my family and one of Jun) some spare change, my spare mouth-guard and finally a necklace. I picked up the small gold chain with the cross on it and looked puzzled.

I just shrugged and slipped it around my neck. We could use all the help we could get when we played Odaiba. Maybe God could help… I sorted everything out, finally placing the useful things inside and keeping the junk aside. But when I came to the pictures, I just had to look at them.

The first few were from when my family went to Barbados. Remembering how hot it was and the shade of red I had turned brought back memories I shuddered at. The next few were… well nothing and then the last dozen or so were from when I attended Jun's concert.

I smiled at that memory. It was so funny how when the first day she told me she played the flute I had thought she was joking. I was never any good with music. The teacher always said I never played with enough heart. Like heart was going to make me pass the class… but when she whipped out her instrument and began playing Sawmill Creek in E flat minor, I held my breath.

That night she was the very essence of beauty. The way her hair fell over he face, the way her amber eyes seemed to sparkle in the dim lights. Staring at the pictures, I felt a smile creep to my lips. She was sitting in the first row, sitting so elegantly on her seat as her fingers danced over the keys perfectly. Every so often she would look up at me, smiling slightly as I grinned like a fool. A fool in love…



Jun's POV



"Go Osamu!' I cheered hysterically from the sidelines. The night before I had spent hours braiding my hair into long Jamaican braids so it would finally stay flat on my head. I noticed as they lined up to do the kick off Osamu looked over at me, shaking his head as his semi long hair was pulled back.

I watched in pure fascination as Jiro, the kicker for Tomachi wound up and hammered the ball right to the backs. The game started. Within a second, Akio had tackled an Odaiba player to the ground and they both went down in a frenzy of red, blue and green.

They began to form a maul and the ball was instantly rucked out by TD, the fly half from Odaiba. It was passed right off to Tai and he bolted like bat out of hell. But before he could even get close enough to Satoshi, Osamu had come out of nowhere and hit him right in the legs, taking him down.

"Nice Osamu!" I screamed as I jumped up, cheering wildly. Izzy came right behind him and grabbed at the ball, ducking under a player from Odaiba. The cutest thing about Izzy had to be his motto. Only run if you're being chased. He kicked it out to Joe (who was must to my surprise faster than him) and both of them began running after the ball to support.

Osamu jumped away from Tai, racing like mad to catch up to the pack of backs, which he was so far behind and began to position himself once again. "Come on Osamu!" I screamed out again as his arms wrapped around the ball that was just thrown to him. I saw Odaiba's fullback coming out of nowhere to get him and I screamed. "Look out!"

My call seemed to reach him in time and he stopped, allowing the player to rush past him empty handed. Once he was out of the clear he bolted off again and once he saw that the outside half was open he kicked it back allowing him to rush right through the try line without anyone behind him.

I jumped out of my seat again, cheering like mad as I whistled. "Nice Tomachi!" I hollered getting an awkward smile from Tomachi's players. It was hilarious to watch them smile with mouth-guards in.

"Hey Jun! Your hair looks great!" I spun around startled to see Tk and Daisuke. The handsome blond was waving and smiling happily. I waved back, smiling as well.

"Yea, you brother doesn't think so," I winked at him, touching my hair. The expression on Matt's face was on of bewilderment when he saw me. I could tell he was lying from the number of times he was blinking. "Hey Tk, what's up?"

"Nothing really," he replied, wriggling his nose a little, "and don't mind Matt. He wouldn't know good taste if it came up and bit him on the ass."

"Oh, I know. Believe me, I know," I joked, laughing. "Come here to watch the game? Osamu's winning!"

"No, we just stopped in to say hey, oh and mom says to bring home ice cream," Daisuke informed me as he scratched his head, passing a hand through his thick shock of brown hair.

"Okay, see you two later!" I waved goodbye, mentally noting I had to buy ice cream now. As the duo walked away, I noticed Tk had snaked his arm around my brother's waist. He chuckled, by the movement from his shoulders and rested his head on his shoulder.

At that moment the whistle blew and the game stopped. Quarter time. Osamu jogged over to me, panting a little as he pulled his hair out of his small ponytail and took out his mouth-guard.

"See, I told you you could do it! You guys are doing great!" I exclaimed as he came within talking distance. He had an odd look in his dark eyes. "You okay?"

"Yea, I'm fine. It's just, well, you look great," he blushed at his compliment, clearing his throat moments later. I touched my hair, blushing a little too.

"Thanks," I smiled sweetly, giggling a little. "It's not everyday one of the most famous guys in Japan comes and hits on me," I winked as he laughed a nervous little laugh. He looked simply adorable.

"Jun, listen, I hate to be rude, but what the hell is up with your brother?" he looked over my shoulder at Tk and Daisuke who were walking off.

"I noticed that," I said flatly, shaking my head as my braids slapped at my face. "Listen, you know I love Ken to pieces, but we can't get in the middle of their love lives. We have to let them figure it out for themselves," I sighed.

"I have to get back to the game now. Wait for me after and we'll go get so ice cream or something after okay?"

"You got yourself a date," I promised. "Score me a try please!" I pouted as he winked at me. And he did. Sadly, in the end Odaiba managed to score two try's and Tai made two beautiful conversions from the deep left side. The game ended in a 14-14 tie and had to go into overtime. Tomachi lost when Tai made a dropkick from the 22.

Walking a glum Osamu to an ice cream shop was something I wasn't very used to, but was well equipped for. Flashing him a smile or two I lightened the mood with a few lame jokes that he laughed at. "One cookie-dough and one mango please," Osamu ordered.

"It's still, a mystery to me on how you can eat that. It's really funky tasting and you mouth tastes like it long after you've finished it," I made a face at his order.

"I might ask the same for you Jun. Cookie-dough, not nutritious or delicious."

"But all the chocolate," I swooned. He laughed again. I liked hearing his laugh. He did it so rarely that each time was special; almost as if it were the first time. "Besides, cookie-dough is suck a girl ice cream flavor."

"Oh really?" he challenged, taking our orders and handed me mine.

"Napkins," I said absently as he showed me his hand. "Yup," I replied winking at him. "Here, go ahead, take a lick!"

"Nah, I'm good," he waved it off. "You enjoy your… your… thing."

"How about a trade. You take mine and I take yours and we see who can survive the longest?"

"Are you challenging me?" he almost choked out his laugh and dazzling smile. I nodded. "Okay, the winner has the buy the other's ice cream for a month."

"Deal," I shot as we switched. Both of us took a lick in unison and both winced. I could tell he didn't like mine and I definitely didn't like his. "Oh this is funky."

"Very odd," he muttered, chewing. "Won't I get ecoli from this?" he swallowed, narrowing is face. "This is so gross."



"Hey, I'm back!" I announced to my rather empty house. I could hear the radio blasting one of Matt's songs and I instantly walked over to Daisuke's room.

"Hey Jun!" he called out. I knock on his door and pushed it opened. "Doesn't that defeat the purpose of knocking if you're going to just come in anyways?" Daisuke smirked.

"Funny. That's very funny Daisuke. You want to hear a funny story I heard today? Well, it went a little something like this. You cheated on Ken, broke up with him and now you're screwing Tk. The end. Actually, it's not that damn funny at all! What the hell are you thinking Daisuke? And I had to find this out from Osamu!" I snapped at him bluntly, not bothering to sugar coat anything.

"Listen Jun, it's not like that…" he began to explain, but I cut him off.

"Then what was it like Daisuke? You're playing around with two people's emotions here! God! What the hell are you thinking!?" I cracked again.

"Shut up Jun! God! It's not like that at all! I broke up with Ken for a reason and Tk was just there and he cares about me and I can't help it if I like him! He's my best friend for Christ sakes!" he spat out.

"And that's all you'll ever be able to consider him as Daisuke! Your best friend! Nothing, no matter how hard you try, you'll never be able to see him otherwise! What happened between you and Ken that screwed up everything?" I sighed softly, ridding my voice of the anger, which had been there and donned a compassionate tone.

"He hit me Jun. He hit me and accused me of something I didn't do. Jun, he scares me sometimes," he chuckled bitterly, throwing his pencil to the ground, "you can ask Tk just how many tears I shed on him. Way too many if you ask me."

"Daisuke, I knew that you two were having your problems, but come on! It's only a lovers spat!"

"Jun, every time I see him, I tremble. Not out of happiness, but out of fear. Fear that he'll hurt me. Every single Goddamn time I'm with him, I feel as if he's just using me and I hate feeling like that. But Tk's so different from that…." he choked back tears.

"God Daisuke," I breathed, stepping over to wrap my arms around him. "I know this isn't fair for you. But sad to say, you screwed up big time. And for your information, Ken is miserable. He honestly, genuinely loved you. But after your little public display of affections with Tk happened today, I think he might be having second thoughts on that."

"But Jun, I can't hurt Tk. I can't. He was always so sad Jun, but today, he smiled! He smiled for the first time in two years!" Daisuke exclaimed, wiping his eyes.

"Daisuke, you don't have to convince me," I spoke in my sisterly voice, taking his hands in mine. "You have to convince yourself here," I spoke, placing his hand over his chest, right above his heart. He looked up at me and without so much as another word I stood up and left the room.



Osamu's POV



"Ken," I knocked on his door once. "Hey, I brought back some ice cream," I smiled, but upon hearing one of Matt's songs on the radio I growled, stormed over and hit the off button. 'There,' I smiled self-satisfied. "Want some?"

"I'll pass," he croaked. "Wait, on second though, hand me a spoon."

"Good, I got cookie dough. Total girl food," I winked, remembering exactly what Jun said, laughing to myself. Even thought I would never admit it to her, that flavor was quite enjoyable… I handed Ken a small silver spoon and I popped the top, allowing our spoons to dig in greedily.

"Osamu," he inhaled deeply, swallowing, "I'm sorry. I know about Jun and everything and if this thing between me and Daisuke messes up your chances or…" I interrupted him with a bitter chuckle, full of sorrow. "What chances Ken? I never had any chance in hell with her. She'll only be able to see me as this boy she has movie nights with. I'm just a friend to her. Not like Matt…" I grumbled the last word spitefully. "I wouldn't worry about me Ken."

"Osamu," he turned to face me, "listen to me. I might not be as smart as you, but I do know the look some people get in their eyes when they're deeply happy. And Jun's eyes light up when you're around. It's curse of the Motomiya's and it's something I could never forget…" I suddenly went a bit dreamy, thinking back to all the times I had Daisuke wrapped up securely in my arms. That's probably the only place I ever felt he truly belonged with me… "I could never forget it because I saw that look today in Daisuke's eyes… when he was looking at Tk…"

"Ken, don't beat yourself up over this. If Daisuke can't see what the rest of the world does, then that's his fault. And take it from me, I know how you felt about him and it'll sting for a while. No matter how nice he tries to be, it'll still be like rubbing salt in the wounds," I muttered, thinking of Jun for a moment as I shoved my spoon in, digging out another mouthful of ice cream.

"But when will it stop hurting so much?" his voice broke. "God Osamu, I still love him like crazy. It hurts. It really, really hurts."

"I know Ken. And I wish I could make it all go away, but I can't work miracles. But I think you have to ask yourself a question now. Do you still love Daisuke?" I had to know.

"Yes," he replied instantly. "God I love him so much and that's why it hurts so much."

"Then be an Ichijouji, Ken. Fight for him," I gave him a confidant smile and stood up. "And I think I should follow my own advice as well," I chuckled. "What is it that the Motomiya's possess that make us Ichijouji's feel like this?" I asked, rhetorically as I stood up and left, spoon still in my hand. That was certainly a question I wanted an answer to.



Jun's POV



The air at the club the next night was so thick I could barely see straight. Matt's band was performing so amazing tonight! I could honestly say it was their best performance ever! And I could have sworn the entire night he was singing directly to me. Every one of his songs literally moved you or made you groove to the beat. It was unreal…

"Hey everybody!" Matt screamed into the microphone right after the Teenage Wolves finished playing my favorite song, Radio Whore. "We have a new song tonight! Written by myself and Shin, we know you're gonna love it!" just at that, the crowds of people exploded with cheers. "It's called I'm With Stupid!" more cheers followed.

As soon as the first note cracked through the club, I knew it was punk metal. Matt had to literally strain his voice just to hit that high note. "Yeah Matt!" I screamed out as loud as I could, just as he turned to me.

"He's a loser she said! Great pains I've gone to, gang slang, I've gone to lame brain, looking for gold I… I have become someone else!" he bellowed out, just as Shin slashed his fingers across his guitar like a razor. "Outside, stepping to inside. Stepping to my side stepping, I wade through… shit!" Taji who was playing base rocked his way around the bridge several times, speeding up the tempo as Taishi pounded the living daylights out of the drum set he was sitting at. "He's a loser. He's a loser, she said. He's a loser. He's a loser, she said!" Matt screamed.

I stopped dancing at that moment, looking up at him. I shook my head remorsefully, letting my braided hairs swing violently to each side. I could see through the corner of my eye he was glaring at Osamu who had been at the club. The glint in his cool blue eyes was nothing less than poison. Getting over the brief period of uncertainty, I became flaming mad.

I am mine. I am mine. I am mine. I am mine. I am mine.

I can't become someone else.

He's a loser. He's a loser, she said. He's a loser. He's a loser, she said!

As soon as they finished, the people started to whoop and holler, demanding an encore. Personally, if I had stayed for that, I would have probably stood up and slapped him, right up on stage. I began heading for the door when a firm hand clamped down on my shoulder. "Leaving so soon?"

"Osamu!" I cried out in surprise. "Aren't you supposed to be at your dance?" I had seen him around, but I had completely forgotten about the dance he had invited me too until now.

"I got bored. Nobody there was worth spending four hours in a crowded gym, with bad music. It would have been better if I had had some company though," he smiled. His eyes were sparkling even in the dark.

"You didn't have a date?" I said this rather bluntly.

"Well, the one girl I wanted to go with wasn't available, so I had to settle with asking you… ow!" he exclaimed as I hit his shoulder playfully.

"You can be so mean Osamu Ichijouji," I muttered childishly.

"That's not all I can be," he stated as he pulled me close to him, resting his head on my shoulder. "Would you do me the honor of dancing with me Jun Motomiya?"

I sighed dreamily, shutting my eyes thankfully. "And they say chivalry's dead," I smiled at him as I turned around, allowing his arms to wrap around my waist. I melted into the warmth of his body, loving every minute I was wrapped away in his arms securely.

And just as we began dancing, Matt started to sing a slow song with a depressing tune but powerful lyrics. It's Been A While, a song I cherished. The slow beat made Osamu's arms squeeze my waist comfortably as he lowered his head on mine.

It's been a while since I could hold my head up high.

It's been a while since I first saw you.

It's been a while since I could stand on my own two feet again

It's been a while since I could call you.

Everything I can remember.

They seem to be passing all the same.

The consequences that are rendered.

I stretched myself beyond my means.

It's been a while since I could say. I wasn't addicted.

It's been a while since I could say I loved myself as well

It's been a while since I've gone and fucked things up like I always do.

It's been a while but all that shit just disappears when I'm with you.

Everything I can remember.

They seem to be passing all the same.

The consequences that are rendered.

I've gone and fucked things up again.

Why must I feel this way?

Just make this go away.

It's been a while since I could look at myself straight.

It's been a while since I've said I'm sorry.

It's been a while since I've seen the way. The candles light your face.

It's been a while but I can still remember just the way you taste.

Everything I can remember.

They seem to be passing all the same. Always the same.

And can I blame this on my father?

Damn the best things come from me.

It's been a while since I could hold my head up high.

It's been a while since I said I'm sorry.

The rest of the night, we danced together. Me wrapped up in his arms as he held onto me tightly. I noticed that not matter what type of song it was, we clung to each other almost desperately, not wanting to tear away from the warmth we were giving off. I didn't know why, but I fit perfectly in his arms, as if I was always meant to be there.

His arms tightened around my waist, almost refusing to let go as he rested his head on top of mine, allowing me to rest the side of my face against his chest. For the first time in the entire span of my knowing him I felt nervous around him. My breaths were coming in unevenly and if he could tell my body was trembling, I would have probably died.

But this felt so… so… I couldn't exactly explain how if felt, but I knew I liked it a lot. I felt this warmth in the pit of my stomach and it radiated over my entire body enveloping me in this peaceful, serene glow.

"Osamu…" I breathed in lightly as the song changed into something very soothing, light, romantic.

"Yes…" he replied softly.

"Do you want to kiss me?" the question was spoken with a numb feeling, the very same one that seemed to be wrapping its way around my body, through every single cell that made me.

He looked down at me in a slight shock, not saying a word. His lavender eyes were fixated on mine as he opened his mouth to say something, but shut it almost immediately. Giving up on his voice he shook his head in one deft motion.

I smiled hesitantly, nervously lifting my head to bring it closer to his lips. Everything in me was screaming to kiss him, to finally taste those lips that had comforted me endless times over. He complied, lowering his head so that his locks of eternal blue brushed against my cheeks. He cupped my cheek with one hand, gently brushing away a piece of fallen chocolate brown hair and angled my head up to meet his.

We were so close that I could feel his soft breaths on skin, igniting it on a blazing fire. Electricity raked through my body, making my entire frame shiver in anticipation. "God you're so beautiful," he managed to whisper all in one breath before he lowered head so he was only millimeters away from me.

We were so wrapped up in each other, that we barely noticed that the music had stopped, but what brought us both back to reality was when Matt ripped Osamu from my arms, punching him square in the face. "Get the hell away from her!" he barked, balling his fist to his side angrily.

"Matt!" I snapped. "Stop! Apologize to him right now!"

"I'd rather eat dirt," he growled under his breath, turning toward me, latching onto my arm. "Come on Jun, I'm taking you home."

"Matt get off of me!" I ordered, pushing him back rudely. My amber eyes were blazing with an unholy fire of rage.

"I'm taking you home!" he very nearly hissed squeezing my arm again. This time it hurt and I gasped in pain.

"You heard the lady," Osamu appeared, grabbing Matt from behind, twisting his arm behind his back. Matt's azure eyes darkened to an almost navy color. I wanted to warn Matt to not get in a fight with Osamu, since he'd been doing Judo practically his entire life and he ranks within the top five masters in Japan, but something told me to let him find out by himself.

"Get off me!" he barked, tearing his arms away, pushing him back with the palms of his hands.

"Then get away from her!" he snapped back, stepping in front of me protectively.

"I'm all right Osamu," I whispered to him. "I just want to go home."

"Okay," he smiled, turning his back to Matt and he gently placed his arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to his body.

"Jun stop acting stupid!" Matt called out. "He is such a loser!" that was the last straw.

"No Matt, you're wrong. He is not a loser. You're the loser here. and what's even worse is you're a jerk to boot!"

"What did you say?" he snarled, as his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Sorry, I take it back," I sighed weakly before lowering my eyes. A cold smirk tugged at my cheeks as I looked back up at him. "You're a deaf jerk!"

And with that I took Osamu's hand and he lead me out of the club, holding onto me in a much needed embrace that I had seemed to be craving. There was an awkward few minutes of silence as we approached the train station. Neither of us was willing to talk even though we wanted to desperately.

"Listen Jun," he seemed to sigh and breath in all at the same time. His voice was very low, subdued, cutting through the air that made me shiver slightly. All in one deft motion he stripped his jacket from his shoulders and wrapped it around my shoulders, smiling slightly. "I'm really sorry…"

Before he could go on, I silenced him, pushing my finger to his lips. "No, let me speak first please," I semi begged and semi demanded. "Osamu Ichijouji, I don't know what it is about you, but there's something about you that I like a lot. I just to think it was just my friendship, I mean, you are my best friend, but then I began to realize it was something much, much deeper than that."

I sighed shakily, lowering my hands so they met his and I entwined our fingers together. "Everything you did, everything you said to me made me stronger. Even if you just smiled at me, I knew you were there and you cared. The little comments you made about me that nobody else in this world even noticed! I mean, you're the only person in the entire galaxy that knows me better than I know myself and you don't judge me because of it," I smiled at him as he smiled back.

"Jun, you wouldn't even believe how long I've waited for you to just pick up on that," he smiled again, biting his bottom lip in his tell tale show of happiness. "For the last few years, I have been so happy you can't even begin to fathom how happy you've made me. You don't chase after me for autographs, you don't think I'm this school fanatic that studies every three seconds and you don't expect me to be someone I'm not. You encourage me to be myself and that's something nobody has ever done for me before. I tell you everything and anything that I feel and you cherish it and you don't laugh. And because of all that, I fell in love with you Jun."

I think it was at that moment that I began to cry. I hadn't intended on sobbing my eyes out, but I did. I did and I practically launched myself into his arms. The arms that wrapped themselves around my waist and held on tightly, hugging me for all I was worth.

"You know," I muttered, breaking the shattering silence once again. "I never did get my kiss. And a Motomiya always collects."

"Something I don't mind giving up," he smiled as he head came down and I leaned up, meeting him perfectly in the middle. I swear, for an entire minute everything around us stopped moving. The kiss was unlike anything I had ever experienced before in my life. Magical and beautiful all at the same time, while a passion only made it sweeter.

Once we broke it off, we looked deeply into each other's eyes, blushing while still grinning like idiots. There was this weightlessness around my heart has the young genius lightly brushed away the same piece of hair that had been obstructing my view earlier.

I liked this feeling. I liked it a lot. I think it was one that proved to me that when you found someone special, you had them. And I found Osamu and I refused to let him go. Then a thought came to my mind that made me giddy and most of all giggly.

"What's so funny?" he inquired, pulling his face into a mock hard stare.

"I just realized something," I said plainly, twirling out of his arm as he wrapped his arms around my waist from the back. "How are all your teeny-boppers going to react?" he laughed as I did too. This was definitely the start of something great. Something great and amazing.

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