Ickiakki- Okay, so I don't have 30 reviews… But you guys were taking too long, and I decided to update. I'll totally fix chapter two! It has a lot of errors and stuff in it. X-x Sorry the last chapter was so short.

I Like You.

Chapter Four- Paralysis

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Later that evening, Rik put returned to the scrapyard, and crawled through the large metal log. He hit his head on the roof of the entrance, causing Coo to snicker.

"Hurry up, old man. Piyoko's waitin'," the boy said mockingly.

So, the two slid through the pipe, and reached the underground "base." It was a hardly livable place, and most would be surprised that anything could survive in that hole, at all. I mean literally, it was a fucking hole. Keep in mind, I said, "hole." Not "hoe."

Anyways, getting back on track, the place was rather decrepit, and abandoned, just like the scrapyard. Nothing really came in, or out, other than the members of the Black Gema Gema Gang, who had never once thought of even calling it "home." Whenever they used that word, they were referring to Analogue, though the planet was probably no better than this place to which they had become accustomed.

Apparently, the hole was near a sewer, and therefore it stunk of sewage, urine, and raw fish heads. Yes, Rik could identify the scent clearly, he thought to himself, wincing. In addition to the general's keen smell, the cats mewed continuously, and several others would visit from time to time.

When they had first reached the place, the purple-haired young man also commented that it had probably been inhabited by workers years ago, for there were rusted, broken lockers, and several power tools that they had first mistaken for moldy rocks. There had also been mice skulls scattered everywhere, because the cats from the sewer had visited so often.

However, Ky had been obsessed with keeping the place as clean as it could be, and he insisted that the other two do their part. The dentist seemed to always be frantically running everywhere- the 26 year old wouldn't have been surprised if Ky started to fly.

Though Coo slacked, Rik would often do his friend's part- In the oldest boy's mind, Coo was only a child. He didn't have enough maturity to carry out certain difficult tasks. Being in love with Piyoko would probably change that, Rik predicted.

"And, where were you two?" came a she-mannish voice from the corner.

There was Ky, still clad in a blue apron, while holding a feather duster in his right hand. He was slightly irritated, and raised an eyebrow questioningly while folding his arms. He had also removed his hands from his hips, something that Rik had always found rather… Womanly. The Lieutenant also had a uncommonly high pitched voice, but the thing that really did it was the nagging. That was something that only girls, and whatever Ky was, did. Maybe that's why the blue-haired boy never had a girlfriend… He was so female it creeped the girls out.

Though, the general had gotten used to him by now… Mostly. Plus, the shorter of the two had been in supa-evil-angry-woman-mode lately, and the bad moods even made Rik wonder if Ky was experiencing PMS…

But, the older boy never had the courage to ask. Not even once- Who knew what havoc this he-woman could wreak.

"Oi?" Ky paused, studying the blank look on Rik's face, quickly becoming more concerned. "What happened? Something go wrong during the interview."

It was exactly this change in attitude that made the vet's eyes widen.

"No, it actually went quite well. I got the job," the oldest boy's eyes sparkled, a smirk forming on his face.

Pouting, Ky ignored Coo completely before sighing, "Sheesh! You really had me worried. Both of you."

The brown-haired boy simply remained silent, not making eye contact with the dentist at all. However, a blonde panda girl rushed in, and hugged Rik's legs.

"Rik, pyo! Where were you?" she said, clinging to him. "We were worried, pyo! Did you get the job, pyo?"

"Yes, Pyocola-sama," Rik replied happily, kneeling over and pulling the girl into a hug. "We'll be able to buy food now!"

"Yay!" she exclaimed, her green eyes lighting up.

Coo glanced over his shoulder at the girl, then rolling his eyes. "Oi, quiet, you. You're making my head hurt."

The veterinarian was about to scold the youngest boy, but the second eldest beat him to it.

"Stop that! Say sorry to Pyocola-sama," Ky reprimanded.

"Fine, fine. Sorry," Coo mumbled, not wanting to be hit by another mop. However, he moved towards the other room, then sharply poked Piyoko's nose before running away.

"Major!" the blue-haired boy called angrily.

"Ow, pyo!" tears began to fill the panda girl's eyes. "That hurt, pyo!"

While her "father" made an attempt to calm her, the "mother" stormed angrily after her childhood friend. Again embracing the tiny girl, Rik managed to say, "He does that for a reason. You'll find out, soon enough."

"Why, pyo?" she sniffed.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out. Very soon."

--

Akari sighed, and threw herself upon the hotel bed.

"Yeesh! I come back from that interview, and the Manager wants me to write a song..," she complained. "He really does work me hard."

Drumming her fingers against the desk, the pop idol tilted her head to the side, while humming an innocent tune.

"I really have to contribute to the fan base, now don't I," she continued to herself. Pausing for a moment, she began to contemplate the events of the day.

Well, first things first- She had gotten the part time job. Her manager said that the issues would take a year or more to work out, so it would be good to earn some money in the mean time. Akari's new boss was rather old, but super nice, and the girl had no problem working underneath him.

And then, there was that other young man, the one who had applied for an assistant veterinarian position. When he looked at her, she just thought her heart had stopped for a moment. Sure, she only saw him from the corner of her eye at first, but eventually, she got the courage to speak up and say hello.

It was really during the middle of the interview when she finally got a good glance at him. He was talking to Mr. Shoe, and she calmly observed his profile for a brief moment. It seemed as if he had not gotten enough sleep the night before, because there were some barely discernable bags under his eyes- Akari was surprised that she had caught them herself. His eyes were a beautiful color- a rich, intelligent purple, though they were sad and almost always downcast. His manner of speaking was rather formal, and he seemed rather distracted and far away- He seemed rather quiet, too. Something must have been troubling him, for Akari had a feeling that this man was not the silent type often.

Despite all this, "Heisenberg-san" had clear, pale skin, and sharp features- Something that usually made a person look horribly shrewd, sharp-tongued, and altogether unlikeable. However, there was a softness in his face as well, a certain unexplicable sweetness that showed in his smile. Still, it was only a half-smile he had offered that day, and the singer hoped to see his real one.

She didn't really know why, but it turned her on when he pushed his glasses up his nose. That never happened with any other guy who wore glasses… Huh, she must've been too far away from normal guys for too long. Being around all of those pretty boys was bad for a woman's psyche- After that, she craved a nice, normal boy. It was probably because that was least available to her, like celebrities were for most ordinary folks.

As she flipped pages in her songwriting notebook, the wavy-haired girl slightly raised her eyebrows. She was never very good with observations, but today she had written several personal notes to herself regarding the new young man. Huh, maybe she wasn't as dumb as she and everyone else thought she was.

Akari remained silent for a moment, and stared hopelessly at the piece of paper before her. She was concentrating so much that the paper might have just been burnt by her hard gaze- Though, she eventually gave up.

"Agh!" she ran a hand through her hair. "Whenever Manager-san says something is 'optional,' it never really is. I hate that."

Then again, her Manager had been there for her more than anyone else in her life had been. Moreso than her parents, even.

"Fans are so gullible, I feel sorry for them," Akari commented. "I've been in the music business for seven years! Poor Manager-san. I'm surprised he's stuck with me for so long. I've never been famous until this year."

She thought about her life currently. The music business wasn't a very easy thing to rely on- But her singing was the only talent she had. Akari had always done her best, but was never able to achieve anything higher than a "B" in classes that weren't musically related, despite all of her hard work. Her dancing was nice, but backstage dancers made less money than singers did. As a young girl, the singer had also been a complete introvert. Most people would expect her to be quite popular, but she wasn't.

Truth is, she had a serious makeover when her Manager had gotten a hold of her. Her hair had always been a mess, and she often kept in braids so it she wouldn't look like the tips of Ky's duster. Though, the girl had always been pretty, and even she had realized that fact- Though, she didn't want to be seen as shallow, and therefore never paid much attention to her appearance. Akari had always worn horn-rimmed glasses, and she was rather shy, always reading romance novels and daydreaming about what it would be like to actually be in love.

Love… From the beginning of highschool, she had always been so interested in that topic. People around her were always buzzing around each other, mentioning their boyfriends, girlfriends, etc… But, these relationships would last from 3 days to 4 years. That's just how it was. Plus, they were based on shallow things- Social status, only appearance, etc…

She was interested in the ideas of "true love." Although most didn't believe it existed, she did. In her eyes, the main point of true love was that you would grow to be selfless, and more concerned about your significant other's being than your own. That was true love.

For example, when you forgot your jacket, and it was cold outside, you would wonder if your lover had forget his or her own, and was shivering. One should always put a loved one before themselves, she believed.

Then again, there had never been any boys she really liked at school… Most were either too shallow or too quiet. There had never been anyone sweet enough.

"Yeesh!" she sighed, again. "I need to write a love song. Maybe, something about selflessness…? Ah, poo! What do I know? I'm twenty-four and I haven't got a clue. Sure, I've had a few tiny crushes here and there, but that's not too important. Since I'm small, Manager-san made my age '17' to the public. I guess I would appeal to more audiences that way, but… I dropped out of highschool 7 years ago. I can't believe nobody has caught onto it right now."

--

"Lieutenant, would it be alright if I asked you for tea?" Rik nodded towards his subordinate.

"Yes, yes, I'm making some right now," the blue-haired boy responded. "I'm almost done. You've had a hard day, haven't you? Well, at least you got the job. We'll have enough money for food, at least. And maybe, just maybe we'll be able to move into a place more suitable for Pyocola-sama."

Two cups of green tea were carefully set onto the table, and the General picked up one, taking a couple of sips before speaking.

"Ah, yes, this is not the best situation that Pyocola-sama could grow up in," Rik sighed. "Indeed, it will have an impact on her entire life. A childhood without parents is difficult."

"That's why we're her parental figures," Ky responded quickly.

"We are, but..," the purple-haired boy chuckled a bit. "It's a little weird that her father and mother are both men."

"I said 'figures' specifically. What are you getting at, General?"

"You can't take a joke, can you, Lieutenant?" Rik said teasingly.

"Do you want me to hit you with the broom, too?" a threat arose.

After the mention of the broom of doom, the 26 year old stated, "I am interested in women. Women only."

There was an awkward moment of silence.

"Don't look at me like that," Rik sighed. "You're making me feel as if I'm subject to an interrogation, of some sort."

Sighing and taking a sip of his tea, Ky still eyed his friend suspiciously while saying, "Anyways, I'd rather have Piyocola-sama be exposed to the real world than be sheltered. I know it's hard, but… It's better for a ruler to know of her people's problems. Plus, she won't turn out to be a spoiled brat that way. She'll also know the value of a dollar, how to work hard, etc."

"That's true, Lieutenant," Rik held the cup of tea away so that it wouldn't fog his glasses, and he studied the other for a moment. "Are you still sad, Lieutenant?"

"Don't mention that. I've said this before- I'm not a kid, and you're not my father," another bitter statement. "And, you've been encouraging him, haven't you?"

"Yes, I have," was the answer. "It's not something we can prevent. Those two are made for each other, anyway. Plus, we want Piyocola-sama to be happy, am I correct?"

Ky sighed, and nodded.

"You'll find a nice girl someday, Lieutenant," Rik said reassuringly. "If you don't find one, I'll find one for you."

"But, what about yourself, General?"

"I'm rather picky. That's all."

--

Both of them were in a state of paralysis. They were stuck in their current situations- Lonely, miserable, and loveless. Perhaps some interactions between the two would connect their lifelines, in a way. It would, indeed. Or, perhaps there would be two paths, of some sort, if their lifelines did not intertwine…

Though, when there are two paths, there is always a crossroads. Which is the path to take? Nobody ever knows for sure.

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Ickiakki- Phew! Be happy. This took me a while. No updates 'til 40 reviews. O