The Soul Collector

Genre: Drama/Romance

Rating: M

Summary: One day while Watanuki and Doumeki are out, a strange man catches sight of the boy who can see spirits and takes a rather unnerving amount of interest in him. DoumekixWatanuki.

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"Doumeki, you big oaf," Watanuki hissed through clenched teeth. "Do you really have to just stand there looking so... emotionless?"

Doumeki gave Watanuki a sideways glance, then shrugged. "I guess I do. Why?"

"It bothers me," the other boy answered, looking away. He reached down and picked up a sweet potato from the crate in front of them. Today was a shopping day, and since Doumeki hadn't had archery after school, he'd offered to help the other boy carry groceries to Yuuko's shop.

Grudgingly, Watanuki had excepted, and now here they were. Together. Shopping for ingredients for Yuuko's dinner.

"It would seem everything I do bothers you," Doumeki commented, flatly.

Watanuki rounded on him, waving around a potato. "That's because you just look so damn... Ridiculous, with that placid face! It's embarrassing!"

Doumeki put his fingers in his ears. A few people were starting to stare, what with Watanuki's yelling and flailing about, and the taller of the two raised his eyebrows, looking around. "You're the one drawing attention. If anyone should be embarassed, I'd say it's me."

Watanuki turned bright red and backed up, heterochromatic eyes darting around. He slowly started going back to picking out potatoes as people began to go about their business, soon forgetting the display the teenager had put on.

It was always so annoying when Doumeki pointed out that he was making a scene.

"Well," the bespectacled boy mumbled to himself, "I wouldn't have anything to cause a scene over if Doumeki weren't so idiotic and... and..."

"And what else?" Doumeki asked, suddenly very near to Watanuki's ear.

Promptly, the other boy jumped, nearly losing his grip on the basket in his hand. "Why, you---"

"I'm gonna go over there," Doumeki said, ignoring any comments Watanuki had on the tip of his tongue, ready to spew. "I want to grab something. I think I want you to make spicy food tonight."

Watanuki's mouth hung open as he watched Doumeki's retreating form. "Wha? We're having dinner at your house? WELL, WE'RE JUST HAVING TEMPURA TONIGHT AND YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO... deal... with that..."

The other boy had rounded the corner, definitely not listening, so Watanuki trailed off. He sighed, finishing with getting sweet potatoes and turning around to go after batter mix, and maybe fruit for dessert. He honestly didn't care about leaving Doumeki behind at the moment, because he'd sure enough be able to find his way back to Watanuki to continue being annoying.

Although, admittedly, he wasn't nearly as put off by Doumeki's presence of late as he usually was. In fact, his temper tantrums were getting less explosive and his urge to cause the taller boy bodily harm wasn't nearly as prominent as it had been a few months ago.

He obviously couldn't hate Doumeki too much, anyway, since he'd given up an eye for him. But using logic like that didn't work for Watanuki. And Doumeki had ended up returning the favour, later.

Actions like that, with both of them acting so selfless and concerned for the others well being, would have anyone guessing that the two of them were quite close. In some ways, maybe they were. They balanced each other out, and seemed to be spending more and more time together.

He wanted to keep on hating his rival, as one-sided as that rivalry may be. Hating Doumeki was a lot easier than liking him and trying to really be his friend, anyway.

But really, that task was getting harder and harder with each passing day.

Watanuki remembered when Doumeki had become suspicious of his eye, and pushed him against the wall, ripping off the bandage that had covered it. The lack of iris or pupil there had made Doumeki's face fill with worry and anger. It was scary, how he'd been so commanding that Watanuki bring Yuuko there at that moment.

'Eh,' Watanuki thought, gazing at some plump apples, fingers brushing over their smooth surface to check for holes or bruises. 'He probably just wanted to make sure I could see so that I'd keep making him meals...'

With his thoughts so distracted, Watanuki didn't notice the tall figure that was quietly watching him from only feet away, grinning maliciously.

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Augh, this is so short. Not nearly as long as I intended it to be; but please, bear with me, it gets good.

Plenty of Douwata and drama in the chapters to come.