Monday, AM

Sorry if this wakes you up, but if you don't get up now, you're going to be late.

Seryou Touji finished typing the message with a dazed combination of relief and happiness. He scrolled down his contacts list and double-checked the recipient's name: Shino Yuzuru. He shouldn't feel so elated about a text message, he thought as he pressed 'send', but there was too much history here for it not to mean anything.

Strange though it may seem, he'd never done this before, send a 'good morning' mail to the same person two weeks in a row. Usually, he'd be texting another stranger this time of the day, another person to hopefully – but never quite – fall in love with. He'd inevitably break up with the said person, reset the cycle at the start of a new week, and hope that the next one would finally be it. Then Shino Yuzuru came along, threw a wrench over everything, and Touji's life had taken an unpredictable turn. Not that he had any complaints.

A buzz alerted him to a new message: You woke me up. Thanks.

Touji smiled at the reply. Yuzuru enjoyed sleeping, he knew as much. In the seven days that Touji had dated him, there was never a moment when he wouldn't complain about being sleepy and wanting to go to bed. When they'd gone to watch a movie, Yuzuru had fallen asleep halfway through. Not that Touji had minded. Back in the theater, he couldn't help but doze off, too.

Touji's smile broadened as he made his way to his usual corner, where he always waited for Yuzuru to arrive so they could walk to school together. He'd done as much for everyone he'd dated before, but it was only now that he was doing it again for longer than seven days.

'Seven days was the limit,' Touji had always thought to himself. Seven days was enough time to know what was in his heart. It was probably an arrogant thing to believe in, and with each failed relationship, Touji was beginning to think it was a hopeless endeavor. He didn't expect that the stars would align one Monday morning, somehow prompted by his tardiness and Yuzuru's craving for pizza.

Touji had been late for school again, and it was by some happy coincidence that Yuzuru – or Shino-senpai as he knew him then – was waiting at the school gate for a pizza delivery guy. The conversation had started harmlessly enough. Yuzuru had greeted him with a curious sort of smile and a playful, teasing question. Was the person who'd dropped Touji off the girlfriend of the week?

Touji remembered responding politely (the person asking was an upperclassman, after all). He didn't think third years knew about his weekly relationships, but then gossips like that tended to spread like wildfire at Houka Academy, especially rumors where he was concerned – Seryou Touji, the freshman who'd begin and end a relationship in a span of a week. Touji knew he'd gotten quite a reputation, but it was something he coudn't help. It was his fault anyway, for failing to fall in love.

On that Monday morning, Yuzuru had prodded him about his relationships, going as far as to ask Touji his "type." It had been too personal a question to throw at a random schoolmate, but Yuzuru didn't seem like the gossip-hungry kind. He just seemed genuinely curious.

Touji had answered without really thinking. He couldn't remember what he'd said that time, but Yuzuru was quick to remind him when an opportunity arose: 'You said you liked my face.' It was an embarrassing thing to say, but the Touji of last week didn't care, knowing that he wouldn't likely share a few words with this curious guy ever again. Besides, he'd spoken the truth: Yuzuru was beautiful. From the few times that Touji had deigned to attend practices in the Archery Club, he'd seen his fill of Yuzuru's stunning profile. Yuzuru's stance, with a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other, was elegant in itself, and that was only half of the picture. There was also his beautiful face, which was generally considered by everyone who'd seen him to be at its most breathtaking when he was drawing a bow.

"Then how about it?" Yuzuru had said afterwards, taking Touji by surprise. "Why don't you go out with me?"

And on that frivolous note, that roller coaster of a week started.

Touji treated Yuzuru as he did the others who'd asked him out before. He went to Yuzuru's classroom, exchanged numbers and mail addresses with him, and requested if he could call him by his first name. Well, the last one was actually a departure from tradition – Touji hadn't dared to be on such familiar terms with his exes – but there was a reason. There'd been somebody else named Shino in Touji's past, a girl who'd dumped him. Or at least that was the cover story because things had been much, much, more complicated than that. Touji had also offered to walk Yuzuru home, but Yuzuru wasn't having any of it. 'Go to club practice,' he'd ordered Touji instead, a thing that Touji had dutifully followed, much to the surprise of the other club members. Up until that point, he only attended club activities when he felt like it.

Touji quickened his pace, feeling giddy at the thought that he'd still be seeing Yuzuru today. He reached the corner of the store – his usual waiting spot – and leaned back in anticipation, his mind suffused with more memories of the past week.

Tuesday came, and more out of habit than anything else, Touji had sent Yuzuru the obligatory message: 'Good morning.' He'd simply sent the words without much thought or feeling other than the notion that it was what devoted boyfriends did. Girls, and boys, appreciate the gesture. Shino Yuzuru, however, didn't.

Yuzuru's reply had been curt and irritable: 'Do you know what time it is? I hate you.' Touji could remember feeling bemused for he hadn't expected that sort of response from somebody who seemed so…serious. That was when he started to realize that Yuzuru wasn't what he seemed at all, a fact that he found rather…cute. The call that followed reinforced his conclusion.

"Hey, are you an idiot?" Yuzuru demanded. "You're an idiot, right?"

Touji could recall chuckling in amusement. "Yes, I'm an idiot. Sorry."

"Don't laugh when you're apologizing!"

Yuzuru was lecturing him again, and somehow, Touji was attending club practices yet again. With a jolt, Touji realized he wasn't doing it out of a sense of duty to please the person he was dating. He just wanted to see Yuzuru again.

Club practice went well that day. Yuruzu was there, and Touji could feel him staring the entire time. It was a strange feeling at first, but if he were being honest, Touji quite liked it. For the first time in a long while, Touji felt hopeful. He had a good feeling about this thing with Yuzuru. The hope lasted until they'd gone on their first date.

It was right after club practice, and Yuzuru had been the one who'd suggested it. But to Touji's disappointment, it soon became obvious that Yuzuru thought the entire thing was a game, some kind of joke. Which was weird. He made the first move. He asked Touji out. Was everything just a misunderstanding? Or worse, a trick?

Touji could sense that something was off, and right then, he knew he couldn't keep seeing Yuzuru. If he'd fallen in love with somebody who wasn't serious about it, it would never go the way he wanted it to. But somehow, Touji couldn't end their so-called relationship or correct Yuzuru's assumption that everything was just a one-week deal.

'It wasn't,' Touji could remember thinking sullenly. It wasn't a game for him. Every week, he was genuinely looking to find someone, someone who could make him feel that something, that heady feeling that came with falling in love. That feeling he'd only ever felt with one person: Shino, his brother's girlfriend.

Touji wanted that, but week after week, that feeling didn't materialize. He went through the motions still, unwilling to give up, even if he ended up hurting or disappointing others – which he avoided by being as perfect a boyfriend as he could strive to be. In reality, the one who always ended up hurt and disappointed was himself. Maybe Shino and Yuzuru were right. He was a masochist.

Touji dwelled on that thought for a moment before deciding that, yes, there was a bit of truth into that accusation.

"Seryou-kun!"

'Right on time,' Touji thought. His morning routine wouldn't be complete without his fan club (as Yuzuru liked to call the girls who'd always flock around him) checking in on him and making small talk. Touji greeted them all with an easy smile. He was so used to their presence by now that it was like they weren't really there at all. Yuzuru also seemed to handle them easily enough. He was popular with the girls, too, Touji thought with an uneasy twinge.

"Who are you waiting for?" asked one of the girls.

"Shino-senpai, right?" said another before Touji could reply. He smiled, feeling irrationally superior for getting to call Yuzuru by his first name, never mind that it was Touji's avoidance issues that led to that arrangement in the first place.

The girl said cheerfully, "Again? I didn't know you were close. But like I said, you do suit each other."

"Right," Touji agreed with another smile. There was no use pointing out the truth. Last week, Yuzuru had told them all honestly that he was dating Touji, but the girls had laughed it off, perhaps thinking that it had been a joke.

That was a Wednesday, Touji recalled. It was the same day that he started waiting for Yuzuru at the store corner and walking him to school. Last Wednesday, they spent all of their free periods together, and afterwards, because Touji had asked him to, Yuzuru had waited for him. They had walked home together, pausing for a moment at the park to enjoy the sunset.

It was an incredibly romantic setting, and the mood was perfect for what happened next. Touji caught Yuzuru staring at him with that same curious look he'd had on Monday, when he'd asked Touji out. And then, Yuzuru had smiled and closed his eyes coyly, making Touji's pulse race. Interpreting that as a clear invitation, Touji's body had moved without conscious thought, and before he could stop himself, he'd already leaned forward and kissed Yuzuru.

Yuzuru had seemed flustered afterwards, mumbling something about falling for a trick.

"What?" Touji had asked, puzzled at this reaction, to which Yuzuru had said, "No, never mind."

Yuzuru's strange reaction to the kiss occupied Touji's mind the entire night, so that when he woke up on Thursday morning, he felt a little bit…weird. But as usual, he waited for Yuzuru at the same spot, wondering how Yuzuru would face him that day, worrying whether Yuzuru's treatment of him would change because of that kiss.

But Touji needn't have worried. Yuzuru made light of what happened the day before, calling the kiss an "accident." Touji found himself laughing with relief, thinking that with an easy-going personality like Yuzuru's, there was no need for them to fight over anything.

He was wrong on that count because at lunch time, they had their first argument. As with their becoming an unlikely couple, the fight started harmlessly enough. Yuzuru was asking him about a girl in his class that Touji had previously dated – Arisa Koike. It wasn't as if Yuzuru was jealous of her. No, it wasn't anything like that. In fact, it appeared that Yuzuru was good friends with the girl he fondly called "Koike-chan."

'Great,' Touji had thought with a surprising bout of bitterness. How did they end up talking about one of his exes?

"Do you still see her?"

"I don't get in touch with anyone I've dated," Touji had replied stiffly, willing Yuzuru to let the matter drop.

He didn't. "But some of them must call you."

"I don't answer calls from unknown numbers."

Yuzuru fell silent for a while. Then he asked slowly, in a voice that was so unlike his usual cheerful tone, "You…delete their numbers afterwards? Just like that? Isn't that kind of cold?"

Touji caught himself regretting that he'd even answered the question.

"Next week, you'll delete my number, too, right?"

Touji wanted to say that it wasn't really his choice, that if he fell in love with Yuzuru – a possibility that was becoming more and more probable by the day – then the week wouldn't end. Touji wouldn't need to break up with him, and the seven days would become a month, a year. Forever.

Obviously, Yuzuru didn't see things that way. Touji felt a growing prickle of annoyance. Why couldn't he see that this wasn't a game for him? With everyone he'd dated in the past, even if it was just for a week at a time, Touji had tried really hard to feel something – anything! Was it his fault that he hadn't been able to find what he'd been looking for?

If things weren't complicated enough, the other Shino took that very moment to call and complain to him about his older brother. Between trying to make the phone call quick and telling Shino a few well-chosen words of advice, Touji didn't see Yuzuru move. In the next second, Yuzuru had snatched the phone out of his hand and ended the call.

"You can delete all the numbers of the girls who like you like it was nothing, but you still have the number of the girl you like? That isn't really fair, is it?"

Touji had felt far too surprised at this aggressive side Yuzuru had just shown him that he couldn't respond properly. When he found his voice, all he could do was ask what was making Yuzuru so angry. His question had clearly struck a nerve, for it was the first time that Yuzuru yelled at him.

"Why? Because I'm the one who's dating you right now! Why shouldn't I be angry?!"

Yuzuru had stormed off. Touji could do nothing but stare after him, feeling dazed and confused and unreasonably happy. Touji was just starting to realize something that maybe Yuzuru himself didn't know – Yuzuru had a possessive streak. Touji realized that this was making him so happy. He was pleased that Yuzuru had staked his claim upon him.

Despite what happened, Yuzuru still waited for him after club practice, apologizing for – in his own words – "throwing a tantrum," admitting that he wasn't really sure what he'd been angry about. Touji merely smiled. He was right; Yuzuru wasn't even aware of that domineering aspect of himself. It was, he decided, actually kind of cute.

"You don't need to apologize," Touji had told him, beckoning Yuzuru to come closer, whispering in his ears when he did, "I'm the type who likes to be tied down, you know?"

That was the first time Yuzuru accused him of being a masochist. It was also then that Touji knew that he was – without any doubt – already falling in love.

Friday morning started off like the previous day, with Touji waiting in the usual corner, chatting with the same group of girls. Yuzuru had arrived, giving him a strange look that he couldn't quite decipher. It was the same day that Yuzuru invited him to a movie. He'd somehow gotten his hands on movie passes, and he wanted to go with Touji! Touji's bubble of delight deflated quickly when he learned that the movie was scheduled next Sunday.

Touji's mind went into overdrive. Did this mean that Yuzuru was still willing to go out with him then? Or would it just be a casual sort of thing? Yuzuru didn't expound, and with a heavy heart, Touji asked him if they could talk about it later. He hadn't counted on Yuzuru taking a giant leap to the wrong conclusions in that span of time. Without quite knowing what was happening, Yuzuru was handing him the movie passes on their way home, telling Touji to use them with the person he'd be dating next week.

"Unless you plan on inviting Shino? You haven't given up on her, have you, Seryou?"

Touji couldn't quite understand how Shino got involved, but that was hardly the point. Yuzuru was practically telling him to pick somebody else to go with, as though he didn't mind at all. It hurt that Yuzuru was fine with the idea of Touji going out with somebody else. For him to even suggest it so casually…

"Why is this so difficult?" Touji had blurted out wearily. He wanted to go with Yuzuru, even if the week was over. "Liking someone can be so exhausting."

Yuzuru had smiled at him. "If your fans find out that you've already got somebody you really like, they'd be devastated."

Touji could feel his stomach sinking. Yuzuru had misunderstood. 'I was talking about you!' he wanted to scream at him. 'I like you!' But Touji couldn't bring himself to say the words. In the end, all he managed to say was, "Yuzuru-san, do people ever tell you that you're really slow?"

Yuzuru looked both surprised and disconcerted. 'Ah,' Touji had thought, 'he'd heard the same thing before.'

"Looking at just your face," Touji had gone on, unable to stop himself, "people think that you're a quiet, beautiful person. But you're very careless and clumsy. You say and do things without really thinking." Touji went further, telling Yuzuru the things that he admired about him – his straightforwardness, his impulsiveness, even his absentminded manner. He looked back at Yuzuru and said, "You know what? You're actually…quite likeable."

It was the closest Touji could get to actually confessing his feelings.

Yuzuru's face was hidden in the shadows so that it was difficult to tell what he was thinking. But to Touji's surprise, Yuzuru had smiled self-consciously, blushing. "Thank you. This is the first time I've been told that I'm okay just the way I am."

It wasn't what Touji had meant to say at all, but he'd take what he could get. "You really are slow," he said, and Yuzuru laughed.

It was a happy, magical, moment. Not even the fact that a girl pulled Yuzuru away a little while later (to confess her feelings, Touji could tell) could mar that moment of bliss. The girl didn't matter anyway because Yuzuru came back to him afterwards. Yuzuru even offered to walk him home, saying offhandedly that he'd always wanted to do it too.

Touji gladly led the way. It was a long walk up to where he lived, which would allow him a few more minutes to be with Yuzuru. It was a good plan, but there was just one thing Touji hadn't foreseen – Shino. How was he supposed to know that Shino had gotten back with his brother? Or that she'd be there, running down the stairs in a flurry of lace and ribbons to welcome him back?

Shino, as expected, flitted about Yuzuru like some overgrown butterfly, and Touji couldn't help but feel annoyed. He caught Shino's arm before she could lay a finger on Yuzuru, and this display of protectiveness must have triggered something in her. Her eyes widened slightly as she regarded Yuzuru with dawning comprehension.

"The third year who'd be considered beautiful rather than cute,"Shino had blurted out, repeating the very words Touji had used to describe the person he was currently dating. It would have been enough, had Shino not decided to continue with, "The one Touji likes more than—"

Touji had acted on reflex, clamping his hand over Shino's mouth at the very last second. Yuzuru had looked furious, and before Touji could say another word, he'd taken off, sprinting back to the main road. Touji wasted no time in going after him, puzzled at Yuzuru's behavior. But even after he'd caught up with him, even after he'd begged him to say what he was so angry about, Touji didn't get a direct answer.

On Saturday, Touji was relieved when Yuzuru invited him out for lunch. He'd been nervous that after that encounter with Shino, Yuzuru might somehow become aloof, or mad, or something. Yuzuru didn't seem the least bit angry though. He seemed quite normal, joking with the other members of the Archery Club as they filed past, getting all possessive again when he found out that one of the girls in the club had invited Touji out for lunch.

"Don't cheat on me," Yuzuru had muttered.

For that one moment, the world seemed to freeze, and all Touji could see was Yuzuru's gloomy expression, and all he could hear was Yuzuru's dejected voice. 'Don't cheat on me.' Seriously, how could he say that so easily? Didn't Yuzuru know how absolutely ecstatic those words made him?

"Hey, did you lose a screw or something?"Yuzuru had asked, poking Touji in the chest.

And still reeling from that unexpected display of jealousy, Touji had begged, "Can you say that once more?"

Of course, Yuzuru didn't, but hearing it that one time was more than Touji could ever have hoped for.

They had lunch together, and after wondering where they wanted to go next – with Yuzuru refusing pointblank to go over to Touji's place – they walked to Yuzuru's apartment, stopping by the DVD rental shop on the way. At Yuzuru's apartment, Touji met Yuzuru's little sister for the first time. She was cute, and Touji told Yuzuru so, remarking that they look very much alike. It was then that Yuzuru reminded him of something that he couldn't remember ever saying.

"She's your type then."

"What?"

"You said it before. You like my face."

"I-I said something that embarrassing?"

"You did. Don't forget it." Then Yuzuru laughed, indicating that everything was just a joke. He confessed, "Actually, I hate it when people tell me they like my face."

Touji blushed and stuttered, "I-It's not just your face…"

It was Yuzuru's lighthearted air, too, and his bluntness, and his honesty. Touji liked all of him very, very much, but the words remained stuck in his throat, unsaid. The seconds trickled by, taking with it the opportunity Touji had been waiting for. He sighed at his cowardice, resigning himself to a quiet hour of watching that really boring movie that Yuzuru had insisted on renting.

It wasn't long before Yuzuru himself verbalized what Touji had been too polite to remark upon, that the movie was about as interesting as watching water pouring out of a drain. Dialing irately, Yuzuru had yelled to somebody on the phone, demanding his rental fee back.

"Who did you just call?"Touji had asked, torn between alarm and amusement. This was one of the things that made Yuzuru so interesting. Touji could never guess what he was thinking or what he was going to do next.

"Koike-chan,"Yuzuru had muttered.

"She tricked you?"

"She keeps doing this."

"Oh? What else did she do?"

Yuzuru didn't answer but instead, turned his head away.

"Yuzuru-san?"

"Watching that boring thing made me sleepy."

Touji had smiled despite himself. "You say that at least once a day."

"I can't help it. I couldn't sleep yesterday."

"What were you doing?"

"I was thinking,"Yuzuru shifted back to face him, propping himself upon the bed, "about you."

Touji couldn't breathe. What was that about? Yuzuru couldn't sleep…thinking about him? Touji had barely enough time to process what he'd just been told when Yuzuru reached out a hand, pushing Touji's hair back against his ear, before gently cupping his cheek. Then Yuzuru tilted his head up and kissed Touji.

It was brief, and sweet, and over before Touji's senses could catch up with what just happened. Yuzuru began to withdraw, but Touji clasped Yuzuru's hand in place, holding tight. He couldn't stop himself. This time, it was he who leaned forward to return the favor.

It was exhilarating, being able to hold Yuzuru, hands and lips connected, much like normal couples would do in these circumstances. But it didn't last long. It was yet another phone call that ruined that moment, a call moreover, from somebody Touji didn't even know. He quickly rejected the call, and for some reason, Yuzuru exploded at him for doing so. Yuzuru walked out on him after that, using returning the rented DVD as a pretext, ignoring Touji's attempt to ask him out to that movie next weekend or his offer to go with him. The door slammed shut and Yuzuru was just gone.

His memories of what happened next were a bit hazy, considering that Touji had tried his best to forget about that incident. He could remember walking home alone, calling Yuzuru and finally connecting, meeting Yuzuru himself along the way. And then—

"The preview tickets. Give them to me."

Touji had obeyed with some confusion. Was Yuzuru accepting his invitation…? But his hopes were promptly crushed when Yuzuru tore the tickets right in front of his eyes and flung the pieces into the air. Touji could still see the remnants of the preview passes fluttering down the street as clearly as though it was only yesterday. Suddenly, it had become too painful to breathe.

"I've decided we don't need these tickets anymore. See you tomorrow, Seryou."

Touji had stood in place, a numb feeling spreading to his extremities as the person he now knew he'd fallen for, walked past him in silence.

Touji didn't sleep well on Saturday night, and it was with a gnawing feeling of dread that he got up on Sunday morning and set off for club practice. He knew Yuzuru would be there, and it would be his chance to explain, to tell him…

Touji had thought about it. Maybe they could just start all over again, with no pretense, no misunderstanding that everything was just a weekly game. Touji could make Yuzuru understand that he was serious, that he'd fallen for him, that the one week they'd spent together were the best seven days of his life and that he wanted to be with him for longer than that.

Club practice was absolute torture. If the bow was indeed any reflection of the archer's heart, then anyone could see that Touji's was a messed-up bundle of nerves and emotions. In sharp contrast, Yuzuru was a steady shot like always, betraying not even the slightest bit of discomfort or distress. Touji eyed the perfect shot Yuzuru had just let loose, right smack in the middle of the target, and he felt his heart plummeting down to his stomach. Yuzuru was completely fine with what happened yesterday. Yuzuru was going to end things today.

"What happened? Today, you were all over the place,"Yuzuru had asked him a while later.

"I should be all over the place," Touji had answered. "My mind was on other things. I wasn't thinking about archery at all."

Yuzuru's reply had been perplexing. "Did something happen to Shino?"

What the…? Shino? Why did she keep on cropping up at times like these? Touji looked straight at Yuzuru, frowning. "When have I ever thought of her when I'm with you?"

It was a good start, Touji thought approvingly. He just needed to tell Yuzuru the rest of it – that he wanted to start again, even if it was just becoming friends. Touji could build it from there, start getting close again, start forming a real relationship.

"Could we go somewhere else?"Touji had asked. "I wanted to tell you something. Properly."

Yuzuru had agreed, and although he'd seemed preoccupied, he'd listened attentively to what Touji had to say.

"Tomorrow, I still want to walk home with you," Touji had said. "Maybe we could go out. Even once in a while is fine—"

Yuzuru had released an audible huff at that point, cutting him short. "That's troublesome."

The words hacked through him like a knife. Touji's breath hitched in his throat.

"Besides,"Yuzuru had gone on, "I don't want that sort of compromise with you."

Touji should have expected this. Yuzuru wasn't the type who'd go along with something he didn't like. Touji was just a lovestruck fool scrambling to salvage something out of a seven-day relationship. It was over.

"Seryou?"

The voice transported him back to the present. The girls were giving him strange looks, and Touji wondered whether they'd seen a shadow of the anguish he'd felt yesterday, when he'd thought he and Yuzuru were done.

"We're going ahead," said one of the girls. "You're sure you don't want to come with us?"

"No, thank you. I'll wait a little while longer."

"Say hi to Shino-senpai for us," said another, and the request was echoed by the other departing students.

Touji nodded, returning his gaze to the crowd, expecting to see Yuzuru any minute soon. His earlier feeling of giddiness returned at the prospect of being able to spend more time with Yuzuru. Yesterday, Touji thought that this would never be possible. Yesterday, he thought that it was over.

"What time does it end? This one week with you?"

He could hear Yuzuru's voice inside his head as though he was speaking to him at that very moment.

"Whatever you decide is fine," Touji had answered with a brave attempt at a smile.

"Then six o'clock should be okay, right?"

It was, by then, a few seconds to six. Several protests and arguments hovered at the tip of Touji's tongue, but the seconds merely flew by in silence. Touji wanted to convince Yuzuru not to end it, but each time he tried, he couldn't quite summon enough courage to say the words. Besides, Yuzuru seemed like he didn't want Touji to speak.

Six o'clock stole in, bringing with it the end. The end. Touji clenched his fists as an awful sense of finality bore down upon him. He couldn't breathe.

It was Yuzuru who broke the silence. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't fall in love with you. Let's break up." Touji looked up, astonished at his own lines being thrown back at him. But then Yuzuru shrugged and smiled. "Well, I'm glad you didn't say that. Go out with me, Seryou."

Touji's mind was reeling with confusion. What did Yuzuru just say?

"I really like you." Yuzuru's face was solemn. "When next week comes around, I don't want to go back to just being schoolmates."

It was one revelation after another. Touji felt happy, relieved, and cheated all at the same time. If this was what Yuzuru wanted, why didn't he just say so? Honestly, he'd nearly given him a heart attack, not to mention the sleepless night he had to endure, worrying how Sunday was going to be the last day and how helpless he felt that he couldn't prolong their relationship.

"This isn't fair, Yuzuru-san," Touji had said, his voice shaking.

"Yeah, well."Yuzuru shrugged. "But if I wait for Monday, the competition's going to be tough, and I don't want you to pick somebody else."

Touji stared, wide-eyed. He had to hand it to Yuzuru to say disarming things like that with such a straight face.

"And I don't want this weekly make-believe relationship. I want to go out with you properly." Yuzuru had made a face and looked away. "I'll wait for your answer, but if you go out with someone else before giving me one—"

Touji could no longer contain it. An answer. Honest and blunt though he may be, Yuzuru was as dense as ever when it came to these types of things. The answer should have been obvious. He pulled Yuzuru towards him, holding him tight.

"Really unfair,"Touji whispered against Yuzuru's ear. "There's something I've wanted to tell you this entire time, Yuzuru-san."

"What is it?"

"I like you."Touji paused, then repeated for good measure, "Yuzuru-san, I really like you."

There was a beat, in which Yuzuru seemed to be contemplating Touji's confession. Then he asked, "More than Shino?"

"How is she related to this? You're seriously dense, you know that?"Touji paused to let that sink in, but then because it was Yuzuru he was talking to, he knew he needed to make himself very clear. "Yuzuru-san, I like you more than Shino. More than anyone."

The look on Yuzuru's face at that moment told Touji that he'd finally – finally – gotten his feelings across.

'Seven days,' Touji mused, thinking back to everything that happened the past week. At least he'd been right about one thing – seven days were enough to see what was inside his heart.

"Hey, good morning." Touji snapped out of his memories. Yuzuru had just emerged out of the crowd of commuters, hair windswept from running, eyes bright, lips lifted in a teasing grin. "No fan club today?"

"Good morning to you, too," said Touji. "And you just missed them."

"Heh," said Yuzuru, falling in step beside Touji. "I should do this more often then."

"What? Be late?"

"Yup. And get you all to myself."

Touji stopped, disarmed. Unlike him, Yuzuru had no problem saying things like that within an entirely normal conversation, without even noticing the impact his words had on Touji. It was so unfair sometimes.

"Seryou? What's wrong?"

Touji shook his head. "It's nothing. I just—"

"Hurry up. We're going to be late."

"Sorry."

"What are you apologizing for?"

"Uh, sorry—"

"Quit apologizing!" scolded Yuzuru, lightly smacking Touji over the head.

Touji caught his arm and laughed. "Yes, sir."

And as they left the station, treading the familiar path to school together, Touji couldn't stop himself from smiling.

A new week had began.

Monday, PM

"Seryou-kun, I really like you. Please go out with me."

How many times had he heard those words today? Touji had already lost count. There were slight variations, of course, different voices at different points during the day, in several unlikely places, but they all wanted the same thing. Play the dating game with the guy who'd always say yes. First come, first served.

This girl was telling him the same thing. She was braver than the others, for she was staring straight into his eyes, not blushing and addressing her feet like the rest had done. Touji had to give her credit for that, and it almost made him feel sorry that he had to turn her down.

"Thank you, but I'm already seeing someone. I'm sorry."

The girl winced and mumbled, "I see," in a defeated tone, cheeks reddening with embarrassment. Touji watched her as she ran off and rounded the corner, noting a sort of blazing determination on her face. Which didn't bode well for him at all. It seemed like—

"—she's going to try again, you know."

The words were plucked straight out of his head. Touji swiveled around in surprise. Yuzuru was standing right behind him, looking alternately at Touji and the departing girl.

"Yuzuru-san! Please don't sneak up on me like that."

"You should pay more attention."

"I didn't think you'd be here."

"I got tired of waiting," said Yuzuru, shrugging. "And I know practice ended at least ten minutes ago. I was wondering what you were up to."

"I wasn't up to anything. I was…"

Yuzuru grinned. "So, what'd you tell her?" At Touji's questioning look, he scowled. "Don't look at me like that. She asked you out, didn't she?"

"I turned her down." There was an unspoken 'of course' there. What was Yuzuru expecting anyway?

"How many exactly did you have to turn down today?"

Touji paused, wondering why the question seemed so important. When Yuzuru continued to look at him, waiting for a response, Touji said vaguely, "A few." The honest response was 'a lot', but he didn't want to say it.

To his surprise, Yuzuru laughed. "You're being too modest. It's more than that, isn't it?"

Touji felt his face getting hot. "W-Why does it even matter?"

"Because it means I was right not to wait," Yuzuru said simply. "I knew people would be pouncing on you when the week begins. Good thing I already asked you out yesterday."

Again, here was Yuzuru's knack of saying such disarming things so casually, in the same tone one might use to talk about the weather or some other equally dull topic. It was one of the things Touji found rather charming about him.

"'Pouncing'?" he repeated, amused. "You make it sound like I'm being hunted here."

"Well, all things considered, with you agreeing to date anyone who'd ask you out, you are an easy prey, Seryou."

"Please don't say it like that." A reminder of his former habits was a bit difficult to digest, especially coming from this guy that he was now dating not because of some petty reason but because of something Touji had thought he'd never feel for anyone. "Besides, I didn't agree to go out with you because of that."

But Yuzuru wasn't listening. He was still gazing pensively at the direction the girl had taken, mumbling, "She's probably thinking she'll have a chance next week. All of them."

Touji didn't know what to say to that. His Mondays had always been a bit hectic in the past, with classmates and strangers hounding his footsteps, racing each other to confess their alleged feelings for him. The rest of the week would be relatively peaceful, and then the cycle would begin anew as – left with no choice – he'd end up breaking up again with the unfortunate soul he'd been dating at the time.

Touji knew that it would take a lot of getting used to on his admirers' part to have him be officially unavailable for the rest of the term. Or for the rest of the year. Or for the rest of his life. Touji would miss neither the chaos of people he barely knew vying for his attention nor the seemingly unending process of dating and breaking up with them. He was seeing Yuzuru now, and it was a nice change from the lifestyle he'd gotten mired into for the past year.

"Some are persistent," Touji agreed. "I guess I'll just have to tell them again until they stop asking."

"Yeah."

Touji was suddenly struck by a thought, but it was minutes later, when they were already a few blocks away from school that he managed to ask Yuzuru something that had started to bother him.

"Yuzuru-san?"

"Hm?"

How should he put it? He went for a casual tone, as though the answer to the question didn't matter. "What about you? Didn't anyone ask you out today?"

"None," said Yuzuru, glancing curiously at him. "Why do you ask?"

Touji averted his gaze. "I just remembered, you know, that girl from last week?"

"Oh, Sanae-chan? What about her?"

"Well…" Touji had been thinking that that girl might have tried to corner Yuzuru again, but it appeared that it wasn't so. It sounded illogical now that he thought about it, but Touji felt more reassured now that he'd asked. "I just thought that she'd try again."

Yuzuru seemed to be casting his mind back to what happened the past week. "I don't think she will. I think I made it perfectly clear that I wasn't interested. But you know, even if I wasn't seeing anyone then, I wouldn't have gone out with her still."

"Really?"

"Because I'm not the person she thinks I am. I think she's in love with her idea of me, rather than, you know, me. Does that make sense?" Touji nodded, and Yuzuru continued softly, "I just told her that I was already seeing somebody who liked me for who I am." He bumped his shoulder against Touji's and grinned. "I think she got the idea."

Touji felt the blood rising to his cheeks once again. How could Yuzuru be so offhand about things like these? But then Touji guessed that it must be Yuzuru's innate sense of candor that made him speak his mind so effortlessly, with little regard to modesty. It was strange that this particular trait had turned others off, when it was the very thing that drew Touji more and more to this guy. The discrepancy between Yuzuru's face and his personality was something Touji found rather cute rather than aversive.

"Seryou? You spaced out."

"Huh? Oh, sorry."

Yuzuru regarded him with a meaningful smile. "Whatever. Besides, you don't have to worry about me. I don't usually go for anyone just because they asked me out on a Monday. Unlike some people here…"

Touji paused, not sure whether he was being chastised or warned. But much as he wanted to defend himself, he could never justify his actions. Not really. Besides, it was true to some extent. He'd gone out with innumerable people he didn't even know just because they told him they wanted to date him.

Yuzuru's laughter rang out of the blue, and Touji realized that he was merely being teased. "Don't take it so seriously, Seryou."

"You made it sound like I was going to cheat on you," said Touji, feeling slightly disgruntled.

"I know you wouldn't," Yuzuru said. "I was told that you're the perfectly faithful type."

"Who told you that?"

"Koike-chan." Yuzuru's smile vanished. "Don't tell me she was wrong?"

It was Touji's turn to laugh. "No, no. But Yuzuru-san, that's a little unfair, you know."

"Unfair?"

"You're getting to know me through others," said Touji, "while I still don't know much about you."

It was true. While he did find out a lot of interesting things about Yuzuru in a span of one week – his propensity for sleeping, his passion for archery, his closeness to his little sister – Touji knew there were still a lot of blanks to fill in.

Yuzuru was shaking his head. "I don't think I'm really getting the right information either. These things I hear from others, they're not really you, right? I was wondering about that, you know." Yuzuru's face suddenly lit up. "Well, there's only one way to do it then. What about it, Seryou? Want to go on another date?"

Touji's steps faltered once again in surprise, but then he thought that he should really get used to this. Yuzuru would never be anything other than impulsive and unpredictable and really, really cute.

"I'd like that," he said, smiling. "A lot."

And the day ended on that note, with a plan and a promise to see each other again the following day.

Touji couldn't wait for tomorrow to come.

To be continued