HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNBI! this one's for you my dear! :)

"I don't think this is going to work out," said Takano.

Ritsu froze, eyes wide as he tried to catch his breath. No. this wasn't happening. Sure, he'd wished countless times before that this incident would occur, just to have a little breathing room away from all the drama, but now – now that it was actually happening – he couldn't be more terrified or heart broken in his life.

"Please, can't we just try one more time?" he begged. This couldn't possibly be happening!

"No," Takano said coldly.

Not after all the attempts Takano had been making, not like this, with his heart hanging by a thread. Sweat was beginning to slicken his fingers as he frantically moved his hand up to Takano's shoulder. He squeezed it tight, knuckles turning white from the strength of his grip. He closed his eyes, fighting back the dizziness that was beginning to overwhelm him. Onodera suppressed his shame at feeling so weak.

"I won't accept this. Not after all the effort you put in. Not after all our progress!"

The anxiety was clouding his vision – Takano's eyes, full of sad pity, began to blur, the world around him slowly becoming disoriented.

Takano loosened Onodera's grip, turning his hand away as he gently said "it's over".

Onodera's world crumbled.

"No!" he lashed, jerking out of Takano's hold. "I won't accept this!" Tears were swiftly running down his cheeks. "We've come too far, much too far, for it to end like this – "

"Listen to me!" cut in Takano, clear anger now showcased over his features. "You have to forget about this whole thing. You of all people should know that sometimes things fail to work out properly." A moment's pause. "Or have you already forgotten what happened in High School?"

The tension was suddenly cut by the door to the printing room opening.

Yokozawa came in, looking like an angry bear with a pine cone shoved into his rear. He looked at the two men and raised an eyebrow.

"Damn printer's broken. Ate all the original work," Takano clarified. "Onodera thinks he can somehow save it."

"We just can't give up! Not when we're this close to releasing the special issue!"

"In case you've forgotten, I'm your boss, and I said to forget about it."

"But I can fix it!"

Takano snorted with satiric laughter. "Right. Like how you fixed the staff printer in High School? The damn thing nearly exploded in your face! You're just lucky that I was there to stop you from making any more 'improvements'."

Onodera gave Takano a nasty glare and turned to storm out of the room.

"I was perfectly fine on my own before you showed up. Just like I was here!" and with that he stomped past Yokozawa, brave enough within the fleeting moment to throw him a childish glare from the corner of his eye, and slammed the door behind him.

"What the fuck is his problem?" asked Yokozawa.

Takano huffed, waving his hand in irritation. "He's jus losing his balls over having to rework the entire issue because this fucked up dinosaur of a machine are our only copy."

"Where's the standard backup?"

"Where indeed. I asked him the same thing." Takano let out a heavy pent up sigh and leaned his back against the wall, sliding down until he reached the floor. He cocked one knee and stretched his arm over it, his body desperately craving for a smoke. Way too much stress for eight in the morning.

Yokozawa shook his head. "Kid's an idiot, but he's got guts to be so pig-headedly determined."

Takano looked up, amused eyes locking with Yokozawa's. "I know".

Muahaha! And you thought Takano was giving up on Onodera. I is evil, yes? XD R&R please! :)