Kaede was busy reading a file sent in from the new resort when suddenly, the door to his study opened and in walked Akira, followed by a curious readhead.

"Kaede," the tall brunette said, "We need to talk."

The fox-eyed teen stood up quickly, his face expressionless but voice carrying a hint of relief. "Akira. Yes, of course. But please don't be angry with outosan and aniki. I know they want to talk to you-"

Akira hushed him with his hand held up in front. "That's alright. I'm over it already. You are Hisashi-kun's brother. Whatever Anzai... I mean, outosan has in mind to give to me, I'll let you have it."

"Akira-"

"I don't want anything," Akira said, cutting off Kaede's protests.
Suddenly, he pulled the redhead towards him and continued firmly, "But in return, give me Hanamichi."

Kaede stared at Akira before turning his face towards the blushing redhead who looked just as shocked as he was.

"B-Baka! What are you doing?" Hanamichi hissed, tugging himself away from the brunette. Akira merely stepped forward and pushed the redhead behind him. Ignoring the teen's persistent tug at the back of his coat, Akira kept his eyes trained at the expression on his step-brother's face.
"Do you love Hanamichi or are you willing to let go?"

Kaede's normally monotone voice was forced, "Whatever my feelings are for Hanamichi, I cannot simply break my relationship with him. What we have is a binding business agreement."

"Just a business relationship then?" Akira scoffed, "That's fine with me. You and Hanamichi can keep up your pretense as boyfriends. I don't need Hanamichi as a display to show off to the public like you do. I just want him as a lover by my side. What do you say?"

Hanamichi stopped pulling at Akira's coat to clench at the fabric as he waited with bated breath for Kaede's response. Peeking over Akira's taller form, he saw the uncertainty on the brunette's handsome face.

"I don't want Hanamichi other than for business."

The redhead's clench on Akira's coat became tighter when he heard those words. He did not know that being dismissed so simply by a person he cared so much hurt.

"So you don't love Hanamichi at all, is that it?" Akira asked in persistence, "I am ready to back of since you met him first before I did."

"I can't..." Kaede said, running his fingers through his hair as he turned his face away from them. "He... He is more valuable than anything. I want him to be free and happy... so I cannot say something that will bind him to me."

Akira stared at Kaede in disbelief, not feeling the hands falling loosely from the back of his coat. Hanamichi stepped away from behind the preoccupied actor to look at the fox-eyed teen who was busy warring with his emotions. It seemed to take a lot on Kaede to admit his feelings for Hanamichi in front of Akira. Sudden displays of emotions usually happened when the redhead and Kaede were alone and often the fox-eyed youth made his feelings known without any prompting. This time, Kaede was forced into it and he looked tortured as well as embarassed.

"Baka," Akira growled, "Why do you always do that? You are the most helpless and egotistical person I've ever met! If you're so afraid of committing yourself to Hanamichi, you could at least limit your relationship with him."

Hanamichi was furious. "Limit? With me? What am I? A rent-boy to be made ready beck and call?!""

The actor began stammering, "I-I mean-"

"Idiots..." Hanamich grumbled, "I'm outta here."

"Hanamichi-" Akira called.

"This is stupid," the redhead said in irritation, stuffing his hands in his pockets, "Whatever you guys want to do, leave me out of it. If Kaede doesn't want me, then I don't want him either."

Akira was about to open his mouth again when he was stopped by Hanamichi who lifted a finger in silence.
"Let me say this," the redhead continued, "Start thinking about yourself. Be selfish for once. You too, Akira. And being free to take is better than restricting yourselves of what you want. I don't like people who take the easy way out because they're scared!"

With an annoyed huff, he walked out, banging the door behind him. Not long after, he heard the sound of footsteps following him out the house and he did not turn around when Akira spoke up.
"That was harsh."

Hanamichi only snorted in reply.

"You know that what you said hurt Kaede a lot," Akira remarked, lacing his fingers behind his head.

"Let him be hurt!" snapped Hanamichi, making his way to the growth of trees at the side of the estate. "I wish he'd bleed too."

Akira sighed. "You're mean."

"I hate him," the redhead growled, punching at a nearby tree, "What he said about being afraid to bind me to him made it sound as if I'm that easy to get. So what if I hurt him! He won't get it through his thick skull if I keep quiet!"

Akira stepped forward and reaching from behind he held the redhead's hands still, preventing further damage to the slightly bruised knuckles. To his surprise, the fist he held shook and he lifted one hand to tilt the teenager's head to the side to look into the redhead's brown eyes. As expected, they were glistening with unshed tears and he realised that Kaede was not the only one hurt among them. He felt stupid not to think of the redhead's pain, especially when he himself felt the frustration of Kaede's reluctance in accepting his feelings.

"Be with me," Akira murmured, pulling the redhead back to lean against his chest, "You and I. Together. I can stand on my own two feet but sometimes things can get weary. I need you. And I'm offering myself to you. If you want to cry let me give you my shoulder to cry on."

Hanamichi gripped at the arms that held him. "Why me?"

Akira sighed, burying his face against Hanamichi's soft red hair,
"Because I feel alone if you're not with me."

"Hm."
Hanamichi relaxed in Akira's embrace, the warmth and love emanating from the brunette, soothing the redhead's tumultuous emotions.

"My life is nothing without you," Akira added, holding the redhead tighter.

"Hm."
The redhead's eyes fluttered shut as warm lips nuzzled affectionately against his ear.

Tell me more... Hanamichi silently pleaded, letting Akira keep on talking. He just wanted to stop crying and to stop hurting. Hanamichi sighed, loving the feeling of being loved.

Watching the two young men from the second floor of the mansion was Kaede, standing alone behind the glass door of his study room. A second later the fox-eyed teen turned away before the two had a chance to see him.


~~~~

Hanamichi quirked an eyebrow as the words glared at him from the magazine page in his hands. Above the printed words was a picture of him and Akira in each other's arms, taken from yesterday afternoon.

"Huh," the redhead huffed, "They even got the picture from yesterday. These reporters sure are something."

"Why are you so calm about this?" demanded Haruko, striding after the redhead who non-chalantly walked away after she presented him with the article. Thankfully, the class corridor was empty so the girl had no qualms rising her voice at the indifferent redhead.
"I told you not to become too close to Sendoh-san! Now look what happened! The media is having a field day at your expense!"

"Let them talk." Hanamichi winked at the girl. "It's not gossip anyway."

Haruko halted her steps as she stared at her friend. "Y-You mean..."

"Ja." The redhead smiled, walking away from the stupified girl before she could spot the blush on his cheeks.
"I have a date with Akira today."


~~~~

"A-Akira!!?"

Hanamichi stared at the person before him. The redhead nearly did not recognise the actor the first time if not for the brunette's height but as soon as Akira came near, the redhead had to do a double-take.
Akira had on a dark brown wig which was nearly reaching the young man's shoulder and over the famously handsome face was a pair of sunglasses now pushed back to show off the merry twinkle in the dark blue eyes.

"Yo." Akira grinned at the surprise on the redhead's face.

"What are you doing?" Hanamichi asked, tugging at the brown locks in disdain.

"I had to disguise myself to slip past the reporters," Akira told him, "Like it?"

Hanamichi yanked the wig off of the brunette and snickered in amusement at the young man's flattened black hair.
"I like you better this way," he replied, tossing the wig back to the brunette.

"You've got no sense of adventure," sighed Akira dramatically, as he ran his fingers though his hair to give it a semblance of appropriate style.
"We've already set the scene and you won't go along with it."

Hanamichi arched an eyebrow. "What scene?"

"A secluded place all to ourselves," Akira indicated, sweeping his arms to their surroundings. Hanamichi took a glance at the quiet and overgrown park before turning his attention back to the brunette.

"Yeah, so?"

Akira pouted. "You're not romantic."

The redhead kept his smile in check. "Romantic like how?"

The brunette touched his chin with a finger in thought. After a few seconds he snapped his fingers and said, "Like I be the kidnapper and you are my victim."

"Honto?"

"Yup!" Akira smiled. "At first you hated me-"

"You got that part right," muttered Hanamichi.

"But slowly you became attracted to my wit, charm and good looks. And together we escaped to live happily ever after as vigilantes on the run."

Before Hanamichi could laugh at that, suddenly Akira was pushing him to the ground with a hiss. "Duck! Someone's coming!"

Hanamichi nearly lost his breath at that sudden motion by Akira but his eyes immedietly trained themselves on the rustling of overgrown weed in front of his face. He blinked, belatedly realising that no person could be small enough to hide in there, before a cat came sauntering through to stop and stare at him in feline wariness.

"Oh, just a cat," Akira said simply. Hanamichi would be an idiot if he did not see that Akira knew of that earlier before he pushed both of them to the ground.

"You're carrying this fantasy of yours too far, y'know," Hanamichi groaned, rubbing at his left elbow in a disgruntled manner. Suddenly the redhead's chin was tilted forward and surprised brown eyes met the dark blue ones of Akira's. The brunette's warm breath fanned against Hanamichi lips as the taller man leaned forward with a seductive smile on his lips.
"And next comes the kissing scene," Akira purred, dropping his head to kiss Hanamichi. But, before his lips could reach those of the redhead's, fingers touched Akira's mouth and the brunette obediently stopped.

"Don't," murmured Hanamichi before pushing himself away from the other young man.
Akira let him go as he stayed on the grass, watching the redhead stand up and begin dusting himself off of bits of grass and dirt.

"You're thinking of him aren't you?" Akira said.

Hanamichi looked at Akira from the corner of his eyes before he turned his head away. Akira smiled at the redhead's embarassed silence.
"I don't mind. I actually pity Kaede, being treated so coldly by you."

Hanamichi turned back towards Akira with a scowl on his face. "Who do you actually like the most? Me or Kaede?"

Akira's smile suddenly disappeared replaced by an expression of deep thought. After nearly a minute of silence, Hanamichi began to get annoyed.
"Oi! Do you really have to think that hard?"

Akira sighed, patting the ground beside him. "Come sit. Let me tell you a story."

"Eh?" Hanamichi snorted. "Better not be one of those romantic fantasy of yours again."

Akira smiled, shaking his head. "No, it's about Kaede."

Hanamichi blinked. "Oh," he said, sitting back down on the ground beside Akira, "What about Kaede?"

"I was still a kid at that time. About ten or eleven years old. I was always getting into trouble with my dad. One afternoon, I was out after another fight with him and I passed by a bridge and saw Kaede just standing there, looking at the water. He looked dirty and bruised. I didn't know who he had been fighting with, though I knew he was having trouble in school with bullies. I also knew about his parents' accident and heard about him being shifted from house to house.

"Looking at him at that time I knew that he wanted to do something... bad. He had that look on his face that just scared me.

"'Kaede no baka! Come here!'

"And after that I brought him to Hisashi-kun and immedietly, the Kanagawa family adopted him. Outosan's wife had no objections to that."

Hanamichi pulled at a weed and began playing with it. "So that means you were the one who made Kaede into a Kanagawa?"

"Yeah," Akira said, sounding low, "Sometimes I get to thinking that I've made a mistake. Being a Kanagawa is opressive sometimes and I regret pushing him into the family."

"But then if you haven't stopped him, he would've jumped in and drowned," Hanamichi pointed out.

"That thought occured to me, too," Akira replied wryly, "But I feel responsible somehow that he turned out the way he is. That's why I can't stop thinking and worrying about him."

Hanamichi leaned back to look up at the clear sky, and sighed. "Souka."

Akira pouted. "What? That's it? No kiss to make this sadness go away?"

Hanamichi chuckled, punching the brunette playfully on the shoulder.
"Maybe just a small kiss," the redhead mumbled a second later, leaning forward to kiss Akira quickly on the cheek before the actor could manipulate him for a more intimate one.

That afternoon, Hanamichi realised that he and Akira have begun settling themselves into the role of lovers. Words and gestures of love and affection was comfortably used between them and he was pleased to note that as a couple they became in sync with one another that they thought of the same things, did the same things and talked of the same things without any problem.
The topic that often came up between their conversation was Kaede, the boon and pain of their heart. It seemed natural for them to talk about this frustrating young man who has sadness deeply etched in his beautiful blue fox eyes.

However, by the end of the date, Hanamichi came to a conclusion. Akira did not evoke the strong feelings that Kaede could but Hanamichi did not care. Akira owned a part of his soul and he knew he could not bear not having the young man beside him. With Akira he felt free and happy and he knew it was better than wallowing away waiting for the person he knew he could not have.


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