Chapter Text
When Kou woke up, the resolution he made that night hit him like a train. He knew that his insomnia filled self was right, but he just couldn't bring himself to do what he had to.
He needed advice. Although, it would be difficult to ask someone without them assuming the worst. He came up with a list of people he could ask, or get advice from.
Hanako was a definite no, Senpai would probably fluster at such an idea (afterall she's hopeless in the love department), Teru-nii would get too curious, his parents were away.., that's when it came to him. He knew exactly who to ask.
"Uhm, excuse me, sensei..?" He knocked. The supernatural teacher looked up. "Oh, um sure. What is it, kid?" Kou looked away for a second, he didn't know how to exaclty word this.
"Sensei, can you keep a secret?" He finally asked. Tsuchigomori frowned, "Is the secret about harming yourself or others?" Kou shook his head, he was hesitant at first, as he wouldn't know how the teacher would react. "Oh ok then, tell me."
Kou mumbled it at first. "Kid, if you want to tell me something, I'm actually going to need to be able to hear it."
Kou sighed, "I need some help telling people, something.."
"What do you need to tell them?" He asked, not out of curosity, but pure concern.
"I-I, um, it's just.." Kou stuttered out. The supernatural became even more concerned by this, as he knew Minamoto's did not stutter.
"Look, kid, I don't care what it is, as long as I can help." Tsuchigomori waited before Kou spoke up again. "I-I n-nee-d to tell them that...., I like umm.."
"Boys?" Tsuchigomori filled in the blank. Kou stared at him for a while, before nodding his head profusioucly. The Middle School Teacher sighed, "Just tell them."
"Huh?? What do you mean 'just tell them'." Kou overreacted.
"You shouldn't be so afraid, just make sure you tell the right people. If anyone gives you a problem about it, let me know." He went on with, "So, who are you planning on telling, unless this is some sort of school announcement?"
"Um Hanako, Yashiro, Mitsuba....Teru-nii.." That last part broke in Kou's mouth. "Are you scared to tell your brother?" The teacher asked. Kou nodded. "I wouldn't worry, you mean the world to Minamoto, that shouldn't cause anything to change."
Kou felt more confident after his talk with Tsuchigomori, and had headed out of the classroom.
School was know about to start, so Kou got his books ready and waited inside his empty classroom. The contents of his discussion not leaving his head, however.
He paced. Of course he was pacing, it was a natural reaction to FREAKING THE FUCK OUT. Kou didn't know what to do. Was he going to take the spider's advice and 'just tell' or was he going to rethink this entire thing?
Kou took some deep breaths. (Not that they were helpful, but they seemed ethical.) And decided to just go with the flow, as he tried to convince himself.
He went to the HighSchool Building as always, and stood outside the bathroom door.
As creepy as it looked, Kou was trying to prepare himself for the conversation that would come next, and the reactions he would get.
He didn't expect to be shunned or beat up, but he did expect to get weirded out looks or unhappy mumblings between the three he was going to tell. (He had told Mitsuba to arrive as well.)
Kou jumped when the door opened. "Where is that lame-" Mitsuba stopped short. "Oh, here he is. Arriving unfashionably late.." Kou chuckled, that was an incredibly Mitsuba way of saying things.
"Oh, um, sorry," Kou mumbled, stratching the back of his head lightly. Mitsuba rolled his eyes and pulled Kou inside.
There, was Yashiro and Hanako, who had been playing cards while they had been waiting. "Oh hey, kid." Hanako looked up from his cards.
"Why did you call us here, Kou-kun?" Yashiro asked, her doe like eyes sparkling.
"Oh, um, there's something I wanna talk about.." Kou looked down. "Okay, kid, spill." Hanako chuckled, then noticing Kou's face, stopped.
"What happened? Did you kill someone or something?" Mitsuba crossed his arms, eyeing Hanako while saying the last part. Hanako flushed in return.
"No, I just um, I dunno how to say this-" Kou stuttered out. "Well, If you're not gonna tell us then why are we her-" "NONONONO you called me here to rape me, all of you nasty pervs!!!" Mitsuba screamed.
Kou stared at him wide-eyed for a second, before shaking his head. "It's not that.."
Hanako looked at the excorcist, "Kid, if its not that..then why are we here?"
Kou took a deep breath..
"I have a secret.." He mumbled. "No duh, sherlock, tell us something we don't know, dumbass." Mitsuba rolled his eyes.
Kou took another breath. "I like um..."
"IS IT YASHIRO?!?!?!!?" Hanako blurted out, jealousy in his eyes.
"No, no, not even close.."
Yashiro flushed slightly, "Really? Kou-kun, you don't like me?"
Kou shook his head agressively, "NONONO. I do, but not like that.."
"Oh." The other three mumbled.
"I like..." Kou started again.
"IS IT SOMEONE IN THIS ROOM?!?!" Mitsuba yelled unpatiently.
That was it, Kou, lost his m a r b l e s. "NO! JUST LISTEN TO ME!!"
The others went silent..
"I think I may be or, I dunno, like um...boys." He choked out that last part.
"Huh? Kou-kun, he couldn't hear you.." Yashiro mumbled.
"I-I u-um said..boys.." They still couldn't hear him.
"Can you repeat that?" Hanako asked, no ulterior motives seen. (Well Kou saw them, of course.)
That. was. it.
"I, MINAMOTO KOU, LIKE BOYS! IN-FACT, I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE THEM, OKAY?! I AM SOOOOOOOO GAY!!!" He screamed, loud enough for everyone to hear. (Not just the people in the room..)
They stared at him, for a long while. Kou cleared his throat and stared at the floor. Until, that is, he felt a pair of arms embrace him.
"It's okay, Kou-kun, we understand.." Yashiro smiled.
"You really didn't think we knew, kid?" Hanako asked. Kou flushed, "What do you mean I-I, what?"
"Well, everytime I bring up that one over there, you become a tomato.." He pointed towards Mitsuba. Both boys blushed.
"Stupid perv. You just wanna do things to me, just like in porn.."
Kou flushed once again. "I don't I swear!!" He yelled.
They all talked for a while, playing a new game of cards, in honor of his special annoucement.
Kou was over the moon, but once he left the bathroom, everything changed..
As Kou walked down the stairs and turned a corner, he noticed something...
People staring, mumbling words about him he didn't want to be true...
"My sister was going to ask him out..."
"Wow, young Minamoto's a...." Kou didn't want to hear the rest.
Kou kept his head down, trying not to meet the prying eyes. He also didn't want to see him...
He walked home fast, not at all a steady pace. He was scared. Teru-nii probably already knew and was on his way to scold him.
For being so very irresponsible, for tarnishing the Minamoto name. There was no doubt in his mind that this wouldn't happen.
His brother probably already knew, after all he stayed late at school and was the Student Body President. He knew everything.
Kou cried, tears fogged his vision and made it hard for him to storm off from school in a more...less embarssing(?) way..
He kept going though, all the way until he reached home.
He stopped at the door, wondering if Teru-nii was there, and would have to confront the news.
He took as many deep breaths as he could (Although we already know that does nothing for him.:P) and went inside. (Agressively flashes back to Killing Stalking)
Once he turned the key, however, all he saw was Tiara and a babysitter that Teru had hired in advance.
She ran to him, hugging him tightly. "Kou-niichan, what's wrong?" Kou sighed and bent down, hugging his sister a little less awkwardly. "Nothing, I'm fine now."
The babysitter, Nishimya Osaki, frowned slightly. "Are you sure, you look really upset?" Kou nodded into Tiara's hair. "I'm okay now, you can leave if you need too."
The woman, only about a year or two older than Teru, mumbled to herself slightly, before saying goodbye to the two. "Alrighty then, call me if you two need anything."
They both waved and watched as the Osaki-san left. Tiara was slightly dissapointed, as they had planned to play Princess Tea Party (Ghost Edition.) but was happy Kou-niichan was back.
"Are you hungry?" She asked him. Kou shook his head and said, "I need to go take a shower, play in your room until I'm done." Tiara smiled and ran upstairs, accidently pushing Kou slightly.
He smiled lightly, chuckling lowly. (But not in a creepy way I just didn't know how to phrase it. :0)
Kou let the water run over his body, he was in a rush, but at the same time, his body was just so tired.
He needed to finish showering, put Tiara to bed, and then pretend to be asleep all before Teru-nii got home. If he were awake, actively doing things, Teru was bound to confront him. After all, there was no chance Teru didn't hear.
After what felt like hours, Kou got out of the shower. (Even though it was only like 10 minutes :/)
He slipped on a pair of plaid pajama pants and a t-shirt and head off to put Tiara to bed. When he got in her room, he saw her already starting to tuck herself in, he smiled.
"What are you doing, Princess Tiara?" He asked. Tiara smiled, "Osaki-niisan told me that real princesses went to bed early, and didn't fight their brothers."
He non-verbally thanked Osaki-san for making his life so much easier.
"Ok, do you need anything before bed?" He asked. The princess shook her head, "No nii-chan, goodnight." Kou turned off the light, mumbling the same back to her, before going downstairs. (He'd feel bad if Teru-nii came home with nothing to eat.)
He went to the stove, heating up curry he had made the night before, he put some in a bowl, and left a note. The note read, 'Here's dinner, sorry we couldn't eat together, love, Kou.'
Kou slipped back upstairs, into his room, and laid down on his side, away from the door. (Me and my run-on sentences smh. I even wrote this while in my Grammar Class-)
Teru walked inside, being as quiet as possible. It was way past Tiara's bedtime and getting her back down wouldn't be an easy feat.
He also looked around for Kou, assuming he was in the kitchen. But, he wasn't. All he say was a bowl with a note. (Not repeating myself bc I'm tired.) He sighed.
He obviously knew what happened. He felt bad, of course, but wouldn't confront Kou until he knew what exactly to say. As, this was puzzling to him.
Teru didn't know whether or not this was true, if his brother was just joking, or if he was influcened by that dirty- (Keeping this part PG for Tiara :X)
Teru calmed himself down, ate his warmed up curry, and tried to figure out what to do. As, he knew that Kou must be destroyed.
He spent as much time as he could preparing, before entering Kou's room, watching to see if the boy was awake.
He was.
Infact, he was incredibly awake, and was aware that Teru-nii was at his door.
Teru, had also figured out Kou was awake. As, his breathing patterns weren't the same. (Of course Teru would know Kou's breathing patterns.)
"Kou, I know you're awake, don't try to hide it." Kou yelped. "Why are you hiding from me?" He asked the younger. Kou didn't say anything.
Teru walked inside the boy's room, sitting on the ledge of his bed. He moved his hand to Kou's back and rubbed softly. (Not in a pervy way by any means.)
"Kou, please talk to me..I'm not mad..." Kou moved to face his brother, sitting up slightly. "You're not?" Teru shook his head.
"Why did you say that?" He asked. Kou looked down. "You want to know if it's true don't you?" Teru didn't respond. "Ask me, and I'll tell you." Kou's voice was incredibly raspy.
"Is it true?" Teru asked, not able to look his brother in the eye. Kou nodded, "Yeah.." Teru's eyes widened slightly. "A-are you sure?"
Kou didn't respond. Dammit, he pissed Kou off, now he'll neve-
"Teru-nii? Are you mad?" Kou's voice suddenly broke out. Teru looked back at Kou, tears swelling in his eyes. He pulled him into a hug.
"I- of course not, I'd never be mad at you for something like that.." Kou smiled into the other's chest. "Really?" "Yup. I could never hate my little brother, ever."
They both smiled, staying in that hug for what felt like a millenium. Once they released, they spent the night in the kitchen talking about life over curry.
As Kou finally laid down for real sleep, he smiled to himself. Oh how lucky he was to have such amazing friends, family, teachers..
And with that thought, he drifted off.