chapter twenty-nine has storm and rain.

Shock—

—was the first emotion that registered in Tsuna's mind. However, not even that feeling was given a chance to fully process; instead, Tsuna found himself caving under the weight of his older brother, who, at the moment, kept eager lips pressed against his.

Pleasure, naturally, was the next feeling to hammer through the brunet's mind and body. The heat of the kiss, intensity, burned, and he found his own hands clawing against Giotto's long shirt. A long, delicate hand that was originally on the small of the teenager's back now pulled him closer until the balls of Tsuna's feet were lifted off the ground.

A split second later (and only that, a second), they parted, and fiery eyes locked on brown. A heavy breath tickled the surface of Tsuna's lips, which, at this point, throbbed.

He shivered, then stood at the tip of his toes. Slowly, tentatively, Giotto and he met lips for a second time that night.

Yes.

Moans and mewls, sounds that Tsuna was not used to hearing (especially from his own mouth) filled the air, and with each second, Tsuna's backed into the living room, ukulele music long forgotten. He shivered, crooning again as a long hand spread beneath his shirt.

Yes.

He'd wanted this. Tsuna really, really wanted this. Despite the tension that arose between them months ago, they were good now. Giotto and he had gotten so far as people, and…

He loved Giotto. But…not as a brother. True, unadulterated feelings from one person to another, the way two lovers held the soul of their beloved. Enma, Yamamoto, and even Gokudera were friends who supported him, but it was Giotto who…who challenged him.

Yes.

Tsuna fell onto the couch, back against the cushions as for the second time that night, they parted. The air in his lungs had depleted, and now, as Tsuna took in shallow breaths and held onto the bare skin of Giotto's forearms, he watched dazed, amber orbs scan his entire form.

Then hoped that those very eyes would not sober up to the actions just out.

Because now, as his brother's demeanor succumbed to horror, with swollen lips twisting into a mortified 'o' and blond eyebrows knitting together with fluster, Tsuna knew the air of euphoria had long been chased out of the room.

It was over.

Limbs were untangled from others. A shudder passed through the teenager as large hands slid out of his shirt, and he dared not make a sound as the tiny space between them now became an immeasurable gap.

The primal movements were long gone from the blond's instincts, and his next, sober breath felt like a punch to the gut.

Tsuna realized it too, now that the room had been doused with seriousness. He caught his breath, finally, feeling the heat in his cheeks become cold.

They…did something bad.

The feelings he felt, the sensations as Giotto's hands expertly around him, the tongue that groped the inside of his mouth and left him pleased and bothered—

Tsuna trembled.

They did something very bad.

There was no doubt in his mind that Giotto was thinking the very same thing, and the fear that coursed through the brunet's veins was bright in Tsuna's eyes. Giotto snapped out of his thoughts, out of his scrutiny, and took in the full sight of his baby brother—

Who…in a matter of moments, he could have undone.

Swallowing hard, the tightness in Tsuna's throat refused to go away. "Giotto…"

He pushed off the couch, stumbled to his feet, and reached out to touch the blond—only to have him pull away.

The space between them deepened, and Giotto backed away, now fully aware of what he'd just done. What…they'd just done. He was at a loss of words, and Tsuna doubted the Namimori Library had an instruction manual for, What-to-do-After-an-Intense-Makeout-Session-With-Your-Baby-Half-Brother.

"Giotto," Tsuna murmured once again, the silent plea in his voice. He was confused and very, very scared. Please don't hate me, he wanted to say. P…Please don't kick me out. P…Please don't h-hate me.

Giotto bit his bottom lip and lowered his head courteously.

"Goodnight, little brother."

SLAM

The sound resonated through the emptied apartment, deafening Tsuna's ears until all he could hear was the low hum from their lights. He caught his breath, replaying the scene in his head—all of it, from the dance to the kiss to now—and crumpled.

He lay curled against the couch with hands over his ears and knees to his chest. Tsuna breathed again, unable to calm his throbbing heart. The heat resurfaced in his cheeks, and slowly but surely, he could feel a wetness swell in his eyes.

They'd kissed. Two brothers, t…two blood relatives.

They'd done something very, very wrong.

And Tsuna knew they could never look at one another in the same way ever again.

Because now he wanted more.

OoOoO

Daylight filtered through the large, long windows on the far side of the living room. As it snuck along the wooden floor, darkness became a fleeing enemy that hid beneath the furniture and shielded itself from pure light. The morning's graces soon touched the flesh of a tired adolescent, who lay half-awake against the couch, groggy eyes filled with grains of sand and dried tears.

Tsuna woke up that morning with a splitting headache, hand tangled through unruly hair. He maneuvered until the back of his head met couch cushions and let his eyes soak in the panorama above him. Sunlight teased light fixtures, gleaming and shimmering to welcome the new day, and without a care, he took in a full breath before closing his eyes again.

What day was it? Why wasn't he in his room? Where had he been last night?

Reaching into his pocket, Tsuna dug for his cell phone, which without a night's charge was nearly dead. He had an hour before school started. Yamamoto would be coming soon to collect him for their walk to school and—and, he reminded himself with a small smile, Enma was here. All three of them could walk to school this morning.

Forcing himself to his feet, the teenager groaned as his headache hit him full-force and stumbled on his way to the stairs. He'd had an awful dream the night before, with anxiety hammering through his lungs and making it difficult to breathe.

Shockingly, Tsuna couldn't remember what it was—why he dreamed badly, and why he'd gone to bed in a foul mood.

With each step drew a wince and a grimace, along with a limp Tsuna knew very well. That part of the night—his first date, ever was marred in his brain from the moment he left the penthouse to when Haru doused him with boiling hot tea.

Not…to mention what had happened right before Kyoko's big brother had his big match against Aoba Koyo.

He shivered as he peeled off his clothes from the other night and jumped in the shower.

Going on a date in the first place had been awkward enough. However, Tsuna was too scared of what PawPaw would say if he'd declined his classmate. Kyoko was really sweet, it…was just mixed interest. Tsuna rotated his shoulder and winced, feeling the full force of the bruise Aoba-kun gave him last night.

To say Enma's foster family didn't hold a grudge against him would have been a lie. Without Reborn-sensei and Ryohei there to intervene the night before, Tsuna was sure he'd have more than the bruise where Aoba grabbed him. Words had been flung, and being the overprotective brother he was, Ryohei requested Tsuna to take his sister home as soon as the match was over.

Which may had been the cause to his exhaustion later that night. Tsuna shampooed his hair and bit the inside of his mouth. Kyoko, who was oblivious to the exchange, was distraught when Tsuna insisted they went home.

It…probably was a bad idea to say, Everything will be okay, and then kiss her on the cheek. Th…that was what his mother always did. She'd done that when Enma went in for surgery when they were younger.

Today, he realized with a breath as he got out of the shower and got redressed, he would have to be on his guard. People from Shimon weren't the easiest to deal with, and in the corner of his mind he had a feeling that despite Enma being under G's custody, their roots would come back to burn them.

Making his way downstairs, Tsuna quickly checked the clock and started for the freezer. A quiet laugh escaped his lips when a tired Nuts nuzzled against his leg and crooned. He picked the tiny kitten up and rubbed his cheek. "Hi, Nuts."

He popped two waffles in the toaster and faintly heard the sound of footsteps walking toward the kitchen. Tsuna sighed tiredly and acknowledged his brother.

"Good morning Gi—"

Or tried to, before the final inkling of last night's events flooded through his mind.

Tsuna stood frozen next to the sink with blood running cold through his body.

He'd come home last night, worried of what to say to Enma, how to politely turn down Kyoko-chan, and was swept into a silly waltz with his brother. Body against body, with intense eyes that flickered with life drew him in, they'd melted onto one another.

They'd kissed. The kiss, with unbearable heat and strength and—a-all of the overwhelming emotions Tsuna never knew existed.

Immediately Tsuna turned to meet eyes with the very same brother, the shock accumulating to his demeanor. His throat swelled, unable to squeeze even the tiniest of words from his lips, and Tsuna's complexion paled in a pasty white.

That had been the memory he'd forgotten last night. It…h-hadn't been a bad dream—it really happened.

And now, brown eyes meeting that of his brother's, Tsuna's heart fell to the pit of his stomach. Dark rings marked the eyes of his half-Italian brother and hair, sweaty and mussed, matted across the adult's face. Both were clear indications Giotto had not slept the night before and the same thought passed through both brothers' minds.

The air in the room suddenly disappeared, and Tsuna was consumed in his own emotions.

Every minute that passed felt like an eternity. The clutch around Tsuna's heart loosened and he forced a ragged breath before opening his mouth again. "Um…g…good morning, Giotto."

The words immediately snapped his elder brother out of his stupor. The blond ducked away, and immediately Giotto carried out, going through the cabinets for breakfast. At the very same moment, Tsuna's waffles popped from the toaster. Hesitantly, the teen appeared next to his brother to collect it, then shivered as they brushed arms.

Giotto tensed altogether and now, refused to look him in the eye.

Tsuna shut his eyes. This…morning couldn't get any worse. There was a gap in his chest, so large and empty that it hurt, and he could barely hear his own thoughts. His hands curled into tense fists. "A…about last night—"

"Let's forget it ever happened."

Freeze. Tsuna was met with a hesitant side glance, Giotto's hands squeezing the cereal box so hard that it began to crumple. Before him, his older brother's tight gaze was restrained. He must have been up all night thinking about this.

It was so like them, too, to get lost in their head and try to come up with a simple solution for such a complicated problem. Remembering the circumstance too, Tsuna realized he must have spent the latter half of the night trying to find a solution before he fell asleep in his stress.

"It's—" The brunet hesitated, feeling his heart hammer in his chest.

Giotto's stature remained stiff, and now that he was this close, Tsuna realized he hadn't heard his brother draw a breath. This was weird for the both of them; a situation neither could have ever expected after living together.

The doorbell rang twice, signaling Yamamoto was right on schedule to pick him up.

"I…It's probably for the best that way," the brunet muttered quietly. As he spoke, his chest burned.

For every reason to leave the overbearing feelings of the room, Tsuna picked up his backpack from across the room, held one waffle in his hand, and collected himself at the door. Fingers wrapping around the doorknob, he looked over his shoulder where Giotto remained firmly planted to the ground, and shook.

"B…Bye, Giotto. Have a good day at work."

"Ah! Good morning, Tsuna. How was it last night? Haha."

As Yamamoto greeted him, it shouldn't have hurt as much as it did, when Giotto said nothing in return.

OoOoO

Tsuna was much quieter than he normally was during their morning walks.

Hm. Takeshi looked down to his brunet friend with curiosity, who in return had eyes glued to his feet. A smile adorned his own features per usual, but the sight of his distraught little buddy worried the taller teen to no end.

Taking that into account, he reached over and touched Tsuna's arm, a smile gracing his features as he broke the brunet's pace and stopped in their tracks. "You feeling okay, Tsuna?"

Brown eyes looked to him hesitantly, brows knitting together with clear uncertainty. "Uh…y…yeah." Tsuna forced a smile, and beneath Takeshi's arms, the shorter teen was trembling.

"You don't seem okay." The last time something bothered Tsuna, he'd gone missing for three days and ran away from home. Of course, through that debacle they had gained Enma but—well, that was beside the point. Without warning, he placed a large hand against his shorter friend's forehead and felt his temperature. "Ah? You're a bit hot."

"Am I?" Those same eyes widened in surprise. Tsuna stumbled back, clearly not expecting his friend's—best friend's, Takeshi corrected in his head—touch. The taller teen responded by pulling Tsuna closer to prevent him from falling. "I...I didn't expect that—"

"You can tell me if something's bothering you, okay?" They were good friends now. After that talk they had on the porch and aside from issues with Gokudera, Tsuna mattered a lot to him. Taking a step forward, Takeshi squeezed the other teen's shoulder reassuringly and tried a smile.

This time, Tsuna's full attention turned to him, demeanor still filled with too much uncertainty. It was this look he would get—or, Takeshi realized, Tsuna always had where he worried over even the tiniest detail, then fell into a depression when he couldn't see it through. It was endearing, when he worried so much after Ryohei-senpai and he told Tsuna he could go out for track.

"We're friends. Brothers, okay?" Takeshi squeezed the younger teen's shoulders tightly, then curled an arm around him. "Gokudera and I don't want you to lose yourself over something. Whatever it is, you're still very important to us—and, Kozato would be very distraught if you were worried over something too, right? Haha."

Good. After making that point, Tsuna's complexion eased just slightly, a small smile and quiet thank you gracing his lips. It wasn't much, but he knew it would be enough of a breakthrough for now. Once Enma came into the picture, maybe things would smooth over better. He relinquished his grip over Tsuna's shoulder, then took the shorter's hand in his.

A cute blush streamed across Tsuna's face as they continued forward. "You…d-don't have to—"

"It's fine, okay? Haha." Takeshi gave a tiny squeeze as they entered another apartment complex belonging to G, Master Asari Ugetsu, and their newest addition, Enma Kozato. "This way you know that I'm here for you."

Tsuna admitted earlier that being fed sushi was a sweet, but odd gesture. Maybe holding his hand would be better—besides, both bento were in his backpack and he had a baseball bat slung over the other arm. He couldn't feed the poor teen just yet.

The red across Tsuna's face only darkened and he sputtered, "It's really not that big of a—"

"To me, you are." Oh? The comment led to another silence on Tsuna's part, followed by an even darker shade of red. Takeshi kept himself from chuckling—that had been part of his point for the grand gesture; now Tsuna's mind would hopefully be preoccupied with something else.

The firmness of Tsuna's next smile was harder, tighter, and was no doubt more genuine than the last few. His fingers tightened weakly under Takeshi's grip and he nodded. "Thank you, Yamamoto. I—I…I'll…tell you. When I can."

"Mm. No more running away again, okay? Haha."

"R…Right."

They used the elevator, hands still tangled together as they approached the correct apartment number, and even when a prim and proper G opened the front door.

The redhead yawned, halfway done with tying his tie, and opened the door wider with a more-than-cheerful smile. "Morning, Takeshi-kun. Morning, kid." His gaze lowered until settling on the state of their hands, then a red eyebrow raised in the air with much amusement. "Is…there something you wanna tell me, kid?"

That amusement changed into concern when Tsuna forgot to look the older man in the eye. Bewildered by matching gazes, Tsuna looked up, eyebrows at their hairline and surprise written across his face. "Y…Yeah, I'm fine."

Just like Takeshi this morning, G placed both hands on Tsuna's shoulders, immediately switching to his mother-henning mode. A frown fell across his lips that would readily morph into a scowl. "What happened? Fuck—is Dino on one of his surprise visits again? Hayato do something stupid?"

"N-Nothing happened." Tsuna twitched, instantly trying to escape, but G's grip only tightened.

"Did Giotto do something stupid?"

Ah. Giotto-san. Takeshi blinked. Giotto was rarely up whenever he picked Tsuna up in the mornings and the last he heard, both brothers were on good terms with each other. However, it was easy to think otherwise when the younger of the pair tensed again, then refused to look the redheaded guardian in the eye.

"It's…" Tsuna's voice disappeared.

"Ah…dammit." G was…oddly very angry. In all the years Takeshi knew the man, he'd never seen something break his tolerance level. Yet now, the older redhead pressed a hand to his face, an intense scowl falling across his features. He sighed. "I'll have a word with him…it's wrong for him to upset you like this, ki—"

"N-No, it's f-fine!" Whoa. Tsuna raised his voice.

The unexpected sharpness of his tone cut through the serenity of the room. Takeshi blinked, almost forgetting he himself was in the room to console Tsuna, and G looked down, clearly taken off guard. Tsuna's entire body reanimated as if given a new set of batteries, and he was clearly flustered.

"Tsuna," Takeshi muttered. He wasn't sure what to say. G bit his lip.

"Tsuna." The entrance of the fourth voice caught the trio off guard. Enma, who had been standing at the hallway for who-knows-how-long, held a tiny frown across his lips and scarlet eyebrows wrinkled with a certain fluster.

"E…Enma." Tsuna grimaced. The younger redhead took the other teen by his hand, into the kitchen and out of sight. Under the supervision of his best friend, Tsuna had willingly followed.

At a loss for the situation, all Takeshi could do was watch, then held a small smile when he saw Tsuna's tense stature break down to hug his best friend. With a sigh of relief, he chuckled and turned his attention back to G. "Looks like he's in good hands now, huh? Haha."

G made a face. He ran a hand through his hair and bit the inside of his mouth.

"He's…good now." Takeshi frowned. "Right?"

"I hope so," muttered the redheaded man. He closed the door behind him and quickly side-glanced the tall teenager. G sighed. "He…"

"Locks himself up." They had to be careful. Tsuna had been a wary kid when he first came to Namimori, but it got even worse whenever he was pulled out of his comfort zone. Takeshi's eyebrows furrowed and he laughed quietly under his breath. "Yeah, I know. Not exactly a laughing matter, huh? …haha."

Fortunately through the hugfest, Tsuna seemed more like himself. In the kitchen, his gangly limbs wrapped around his redheaded best friend tight and squeezing out all the comfort he could. Aw. Enma inhaled a sharp breath and untangled from the brown-haired teenager before smiling.

Tsuna, though uncertain, smiled back.

"Tch. I'm beginning to wonder when I became a foster-parent to all these children." G rubbed the back of his neck, half-sarcasm, half-amusement in his voice. "Please don't tell me there's another friend that's the long-lost brother of another one of my old lovers."

"Eh? You were involved with Kozato's brother?" To that, the adult twitched. Takeshi knew better than to pry. He offered a cheeky smile when Enma held hands with Tsuna, and both teenagers turned the slightest shade of pink. Again, aww. "Aww, haha. They make a cute couple, don't you think?"

G-san twitched again. This time he grimaced.

"Mm? Something wrong, G-san?"

"Somehow that thought doesn't…sit well with my temper. Um, don't worry about it, kid."

Their conversation was cut short when the somewhat not-a-couple reappeared from the kitchen, hand-in-hand. Whatever Enma had said to Tsuna in their own time seemed to have worked; the brunet was now willing to look them in the eye, if not still a little hesitant.

G pounced. He placed a hand over Tsuna's forehead to check his fever, forced the teen to look him in the eye, and touched wherever he could like a doting mother trying to find a problem. "You gonna be okay, kid? Do I need to tell Alaude you won't be attending school today?"

A slight smile decorated Tsuna's face and he shook his head. "I…I've already missed too many days of school. Anymore and…R-Reborn-sensei offered to tutor me."

"Oh, yikes! Mochida-senpai says that Reborn-sensei's tutor sessions are deadly!" The baseball player shivered. That didn't sound like a good idea.

"Y…Yeah."

"Very well then." Still, G was not at peace with the situation. He opened the door behind them, lips curled into a tiny frown. "Do you have any plans today?"

Because of Tsuna's silence, Enma was quick to answer. He turned to Takeshi, a curious look to his face. The elder teen smiled. "Not exactly, haha. You two are more than welcome to come by for sushi if you'd like."

That answer in mind, the red-haired teenager turned back to his guardian and shook his head. G smiled slightly, still wary and wry before touching hands with both boys. "Go to school. I'll..try and get everything sorted out."

The way Tsuna's eyebrows furrowed looked as though he wanted to protest, but Enma quickly nudged him before nodding. Red sweetly glowed in his cheeks and he took a step forward to hide the brunet's indecisiveness. "O…okay."

Ah? The word alone was enough to crack a sincere grin from G-san. He ruffled scarlet-red hair and sighed. "Alright then. Now get the hell out of my apartment."

OoOoO

Something was off with Tsuna.

That much, Enma was able to figure out the moment he stepped out of his bedroom, dressed in his new and awkward Namimori uniform. It was a loose fit (his pants were too long, for some reason), and very…different from the Shimon uniform he'd grown used to, but for Tsuna, G, and Giotto, Enma was more than gracious to wear it.

Until he saw the mixture of guilt and frustration that twisted across Tsuna's face.

Enma always knew when something was off about his best friend. That was what they were—best friends. From the slightest crinkle in brown eyebrows to the millisecond of hesitation in Tsuna's speech, he knew better than to shrug off Tsuna's uncertainty.

However—

Did Tsuna tell you what was wrong? – Yamamoto

—was what the note the Yamamoto-san had passed to him during math class. Enma looked at the tiny, crumpled paper thoughtfully, then glanced at his best friend, who unfortunately sat on the other side of the room. Tsuna was absorbed by the contents in his notebook—or at the very least, looked like he was. Enma knew a contemplating Tsunayoshi when he saw it.

So, he turned to Yamamoto, who he had the good-fortune of sitting next to during math, and caught the taller teen glancing up from his notebook. The redhead shook his head left-and-right, then smiled sympathetically when he saw the concern flutter through the baseball player's eyes once again.

It was…nice for Tsuna to have friends that cared for him like this. He really deserved them.

Enma turned his attention back to his notebook when he caught Gokudera-san glaring at him. A shiver passed down his spine and his shoulders hunched.

Tsuna had been especially quiet on the walk to Namimori High School. It left Yamamoto free to chatter about whatever subject and, being on good terms with the taller ten, Enma had kindly nodded and spoke words whenever he had a question.

Still, even through their conversation, both teens caught themselves watching Tsuna for his reaction.

Something was wrong. Even Gokudera-san held his tongue instead of hissing when he saw Yamamoto dote more than usual. Watching the pair peck and poke Tsuna to make sure he was okay was…entertaining, actually. For Yamamoto to go as far as passing notes with him during Reborn-sensei's class was a surprise.

A sigh of relief left his lips when Reborn-sensei only continued with the next lesson.

If it was one thing Enma hated, it was when he was unable to help his best friend out in his time of need after everything Tsuna had ever done for him. This morning when he pulled Tsuna aside, his best friend refused to speak. It amazed him how quickly G-san and Yamamoto-san noticed the change in Tsuna's behavior.

Then again, the night started with a nervous Tsuna going on a date with a girl he apparently didn't like, and halfway through, he forgot to call for dinner reservations. G wouldn't stop smiling after the redheaded pair had to bail Tsuna out of the problem—something, according to Asari, about having a breakthrough. The sweet musician-and-swordsman mused Giotto himself would call it a 'Bridge in Redhead Extraterrestrial Communications,' to which Enma elegantly blushed and murmured 'good night.'

Yamamoto and Gokudera were hardly the problem. Yamamoto was tolerant of absolutely anything Tsuna did (which, of course, irked Gokudera), and despite his tepid nature, Gokudera did very little to hurt Tsuna's feelings.

Which, Enma frowned as he scribbled names in his notebook, left Giotto. He hmm'd to himself.

The school bell rang, signaling the end of class and beginning. Immediately, the tiny redhead shoved his belongings inside his desk before scampering to the other side of the classroom to pick up his best friend—

"Mister Enma Kozato." Freeze. Enma stopped three desks away from Tsuna, whose brown eyes traveled to him, then to Reborn-sensei at the very front of the classroom. A tiny, daunting smirk curled across their scary teacher's face as students fled the classroom. Reborn-sensei flattened his palm against the teacher's desk and raised his head ever-so slightly. "Next time, you and Takeshi Yamamoto will wait until the end of my teaching period to pass notes."

H…He saw that? All the way from there? Enma nodded slowly, eyebrows raised behind his hair.

"Otherwise," their teacher tittered evilly, "I'll kill you."

"Okay," Enma whispered quietly.

The look in Tsuna's eye quickly showed worry. He stood up from his seat, quick to waltz across the room, and wrapped a hand around Enma's bicep. Reborn-sensei hummed, then also left the room for his own lunch.

Tsuna looked to him, eyebrows furrowed together. "Are you okay?"

Enma matched his facial expression. "Are you?"

Frustratingly enough, his best friend turned blue in the face and shook his head. That one hurt. For as long as they'd known each other, Tsuna never hesitated telling him what the problem was. With a tight squeeze to the hand, Enma dragged the brunet out of the aisle and met Gokudera and Yamamoto, both who waited at the door today.

Enma looked to the taller teen curiously. Tsuna was the one to ask a question. "You're…going to eat with us today, Yamamoto?"

Gokudera grunted, arms crossed. "That Mochida got into some stupid trouble or something with Sasagawa."

Tsuna's blinked. "Kyoko-chan?"

"Ah? No. Her brother." To explain his point, Gokudera-san rotated his palm over his head and rolled his eyes. "You know. The Lawn Head third year?"

"Sasagawa-senpai doesn't have a Lawn Head, haha." Yamamoto split into a grin and started their path to their lunch spot. His eyes, Enma realized, were focused on the way Tsuna and he were holding hands. In the next moment, the baseball player's gaze returned to his own best friend, who was as grouchy as ever. This time, he smile fully. "But it's been a while since we were together. Right, Hayato?"

Ah. This again.

Super-Dooper Explosive Blush. "Th-The fuck! Don't you dare call me by my first name you stupid idiot!"

"Ah? You can call me Takeshi if you want."

"The hell I'll call you Takeshi!"

Enma bit the inside of his mouth to hide a giggle of amusement. He nudged Tsuna in the arm, and to his pleasant surprise, that same amusement was surfacing in his best friend's own demeanor. They looked to each other, one with a tiny grin and the other a small smile.

"Ah? Then, do you want to call me Takeshi, Tsuna? Kozato?" Yamamoto smiled fully to the both of them.

That only flustered Gokudera-san more. "What? Don't just casually ask!"

"You can call me Enma if you want." Fortunately the other two of their quad hadn't gotten as worked up. Enma held a smile that brimmed with mirth and raised his head. "You already call Tsuna by his first name, too."

"Is that so? Haha." Yamamoto smiled heartwarmingly and nudged him in the shoulder. "Enma then. Are you gonna call him Enma too, Hayato?"

"No!" Not to anyone's surprise, the silver-haired teen was now simmering, his short-fuse of a temper having ignited. He bared his teeth and harrumphed. "You're so unbearable! Now stop calling me Hayato!"

"Aww, but we're childhood best friends! Wait—Gokudera, don't storm off!"

As Yamamoto chased after his best friend, Enma and Tsuna were leftto follow them, only yards away. Enma nudged him gently in the arm. "You think they'll ever adopt children?"

Brown eyes looked to red, then to the trail where the other two teenagers had wandered off. Tsuna shrugged lightly. "I-I think they've already adopted me."

OoOoO

"Are you okay?"

He kissed his brother.

"Giotto, you're wearing a hole into that paper."

He…kissed his little brother. Tsuna. His tiny brother, with whom after nine years of tension and hatred, he was on good terms. The brother, that without, he would never have found Enma Kozato, the long lost Shimon Heir and the brother to an old lover whom he loved very, very much.

The one that coaxed him not too long ago, and kept him going after countless nightmares about Daemon Spade.

"Giotto."

Nana's son. The other woman's child. His…half-brother. Only half of their blood was the same. They…were only half related and—

No. The cold hard fact was, it'd been his brother. It was Tsuna, who he had bent down and kissed, Tsuna's body where he let eager hands roam, and Tsuna he had every intention of…unwrapping. Despite the terrible night with Alaude, Giotto eagerly touched Tsuna's skin, and it was different from the times before. He wasn't just…cuddling Tsuna in bed, out of fear, or examining that skin like it was a precious antique.

He'd wanted it.

That was what it circled back to, after the infinite amount of times Giotto dwelled about from last night. He wanted it and he wanted Tsuna badly. Had he not settled Tsuna on the couch and consciously admired his handiwork (the pleasant red that glowed in Tsuna's cheeks, along with the swell of his lips, plump and wet from hot kisses), they would have done more than chaste touches.

"Giotto, do I need to ask Dino to come back?"

"Please don't." Having Dino set the building's aquarium on fire the moment he stepped foot in Japan would only stress him out more.

"Fine." G's threats weren't to be taken lightly. Far away from Giotto's scope of attention, he saw a phone light up and heard numbers being dialed into a phone. "I'll call your mother."

"No." That was enough to snap Giotto out of his thoughts. He pushed away his current paperwork, eyes pulling from his desk, and met the wary glare the redhead gave him. A frown decorated G's lips, clearly annoyed and lacking in tolerance for his behavior. Ruby red orbs looked to his best friend, then looked down. Giotto followed the gaze, then realized his pen had snapped in half and his hand had been doused with blue ink.

The paper work, too, was now soiled in a dark blue puddle.

Had Celeste not been mentioned, Giotto would have very well continued what he was doing, even if anyone could tell he was out of it. A scowl decorated his lips and he bit back a sneer. G, too, wasn't in the most favorable of moods. Celeste's number had been fully entered in the phone, proving he was not bluffing.

"You are really not playing a fair game, Gaspare." It took all his self-control not to raise his voice.

"You're in luck then. I was one button away from calling her." G clicked his tongue, unamused, then stuffed the phone back in his pocket. "I came to work ready to ask you what you did to Tsuna. Now I'm wondering what Alaude did to you."

At the mention of his brother's name, Giotto inadvertently fidgeted. He matched his best friend's irritation, refusing to stand up from his chair, then arched an eyebrow. "What makes you assume Alaude did something to me? And that I did something to Tsuna?" Lie. Lie, lie, lie. He knew very well it was his fault, but—it…wasn't every day someone kissed their younger brother in a less than familial way.

G arched an eyebrow. "Because your first reaction is, 'What happened to Tsuna?'"

Shit. He needed to be careful with how well G was able to read him. Feeling his heart hammer in his chest, Giotto had no choice but to refuse looking the other man in the eye.

This morning was hard.

After he'd escaped the actions from last night, Giotto spent the entire night desperately trying to forget what had happened. He rolled in bed, eyes wide as he tried to make sense of things, and secretly hoped he was having a dream.

"We…had a little bit of a falling out," Giotto murmured quietly under his breath.

What was he supposed to say? I'm attracted to my little brother.

Of all the things Gaspare followed him into over the years, this thought was the most surreal. Iemitsu being a shitty father, Daemon Spade, Cozart and Enma—all of those were either hard or irritating to deal with, but…less ridiculous as this.

It was hard.

That was evidence enough when silence filled the room for the next few minutes, leaving Giotto to a headache and G standing, respectfully waiting for the blond to react.

Giotto ran a hand through his hair, a heavy breath falling from his lips. He squeezed his eyes tightly, dipped his head back, and shivered. "He came back last night after his date…we had a disagreement—a big one. W…we're not seeing eye-to-eye at the moment." 'Not' seeing eye-to-eye probably wasn't the right way to say it. Can't seemed more like it.

But…he couldn't help it.

"Well you better fix it. The kid came by this morning and was a mess, Giotto." G made a face. He leaned over the desk, quickly trashing the ruined paper work before muttering something about 'copied papers.' He eyed the other man. "You know him like I do."

Yeah, he did. And ever since the incident before, when Tsuna disappeared, Giotto knew it was not a joking matter.

He just…hated the way so much fear bubbled in Tsuna's eyes this morning when they saw each other. And the way the words had been caught in his throat, unable to say anything more. This whole situation was terrible.

"Gaspare?" Giotto asked quietly. It was rare for him to use the name in such a small way.

Busy with the way his best friend was handling himself, G breathed and reached over to push the hair out of Giotto's eyes. "Yeah?"

"Can Tsuna stay with you for the time being?"

OoOoO

Gray clouds gathered in clusters right above the school, shadows casting later that day as students exited the building. Light, a bright and happy thing that morning, was now forgotten in the form of rain clouds. It showered in sheets, no living being given slack unless they were lucky enough to find an umbrella.

For Hayato, every time it rained, he was anxious for a downpour. Something about the sound of storms made them mesmerizing in his eye; when he was little, he remembered turning off all the lights and electronics in his room so all that was heard were trees rattling and thunder drumming.

He took a deep breath, looking through the open doors of the school as he waited. Only moments later, Yamamoto appeared from down the hallway, soggy with baseball equipment in his hand and a cheerful smile on his face.

"Sorry that took so long, haha. Mochida-senpai caught me while I was leaving the baseball shed."

Hmph. Suppressing the urge to snap, the hotheaded teenager shoved both hands in his pockets and snorted. "Only you would go back for wet baseball equipment."

"Maybe so, haha." A grin, mischievous and more than just a little stupid, spread across the taller teen's lips. "You know what though? I think I caught Colonnello-sensei and Lal Mirch-sensei making out behind the stands though."

Huh. "Someone that isn't a faggot for a change." He grabbed his bag and changed his footing, green eyes narrowed to his best friend. "So, are we waiting for the brats, or are you here to tell me you're leaving?"

The look Yamamoto gave him after that sentence caught him off guard.

Hayato blinked, hesitantly arching an eyebrow. "What?"

"You want to hang out with Tsuna. Openly. Wow, Gokudera, I don't think I've ever heard you say something so sincere! Haha."

"What?" Gah, how did the two of them end up being together after all these years? Who knew after eight years, Yamamoto would still be the same numbskull after all. Hayato huffed, irritation clear in his features as he scowled. "Well, wouldn't you be?"

He saw the way Yamamoto and Kozato doted on the Tenth earlier; granted Hayato was not much of a sentimental person, but after everything Sawada had told them in the past few weeks, he couldn't help but be concerned, too.

Yamamoto stared at him even more, like he'd grown a third head.

"Ah, fuck it. So I like the kid—what of it?" he glared, heat simmering in his cheeks. "It's none of your fucking business! I-I'm not saying I'd date him or anything!"

"Never said you would." Emerald green eyes raised to meet sharp, tranquil brown, and chills fluttered through his skin. Goosebumps rose, and suddenly the teen felt his heart skip a beat. "I'm just…glad you're tolerant of them. Both of them."

He caught his breath. Ah, shit.

In the most platonic way, Yamamoto touched his shoulder and a chuckle, light and sweet, left the back of his throat. "They need us. You know? Haha." He shifted his weight and gestured down the hallway. "We should probably go find them—"

"Wait." Before the baseball player could get away, Hayato grabbed the back of his shirt. Tightly. The flesh from his grip became a pasty white, and red flared in his cheeks, a shade darker than it had been only moments before.

Those eyes; they looked at him again. So fucking curious and stupid and ignorant. And…captivating.

Ugh. Double shit.

"What is it?" Yamamoto lowered his gaze, eyes fully making contact with the silver-haired teen's. Ebony eyebrows knitted together and he titled his head curiously. "You alright, Gokudera?"

Triple shit.

Quadruple shit.

Quintuple shit.

Sextuple shit.

Seven times—

"Ah, Gokudera…?"

"Shut up! I'm thinking!" This shouldn't have been as hard as it felt. Nevertheless, Hayato closed his eyes and rubbed a hand to his temple. His face was soaked in red, embarrassed, flustered, and looked ready to explode. "You...me…next Saturday…"

"Uhuh?" Yamamoto smiled, arching an eyebrow in the air.

"Let's go o—"

"Yamamoto! Gokudera!" AGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH. Through the doors, the person that called their names rushed into the room, drenched head-to-toe in rain and eyes wide with distress. He panted, trying to catch his breath before his eyes darted to every angle of the room and landed on the pair.

Instantly Yamamoto pulled away from his best friend in favor of his…boyfriend. "Mochida-senpai?" He placed a hand around the older teenager, hand squeezing a wet shoulder with eyebrows raised in the air.

Hayato was in his gaze, from the corner of his vision. The said teen tensed.

Until—

"What happened? What's going on?"

—Mochida looked to the pair with distress in his eyes. "That kid Sasagawa fought last night in the ring, Aoba Koyo? He's here. And he jumped both your friends."

OoOoO

Author's Note:

So, first I wanted to apologize for the length of time since the last time I updated; I get busy with a lot of other things easily. Second, I want to ask you guys be patient with me, since in that length of time it's hard to pick pieces up sometimes. (: There wasn't much to do in this chapter, clearly, but trust me. A real confrontation will be coming up very soon and—well, if you ended up making out with your brother, wouldn't you feel a little odd, too? Haha. Thank you, for all of you that still felt compelled to review through the gap! I can't promise a real time-span for each chapter; I'm really trying to pace myself so I don't stress myself out.

However, I do have another thing to ask; I'll be coming out with a new KHR story soon; not G27, but Reborn x Tsuna! If you can, I'd love for you to check it out. Please review, it's nice to see familiar faces again! We've come a long way since the beginning, now haven't we? Haha.