gekidasa | "That tattle-tale >:"

Moar Tsukasa/Natsumikan, with a side of Yusuke \:D/

This is in the same continuity as the others I've written, and I guess it's a direct continuation of this one.

Tsukasa/Natsumi.
Spoilers for 27 again, and references something that happens in 29.

Yusuke woke up the morning after they'd brought Natsumi home from the hospital to find that Tsukasa's bed had not been slept in. It surprised him a little, because he'd figured that Tsukasa would have crept into their shared guest room at some point during the night. He shook his head ruefully as he climbed out of bed and made his way to open the door.

He hadn't really expected to open the door at the same time that Tsukasa snuck surreptitiously out of Natsumi's room, hair messed up and sticking every which way and wearing the same, now rumpled, clothes from the day before. Their eyes met, and Yusuke couldn't help raising his eyebrows at his friend.

"Don't," Tsukasa said, making a face as he glared at Yusuke.

"I didn't say anything," Yusuke replied, trying to bite back a grin.

"Good. Keep it that way."

Tsukasa turned to walk down the hall, but Yusuke grabbed his arm before he could go.

"You didn't tell her?"

"Tell her what?"

"Tsukasa."

"I thought you weren't going to say anything," Tsukasa muttered, tugging his arm out of Yusuke's grip and turning to walk away.

Yusuke glanced at the door to Natsumi's room as Tsukasa disappeared. She should really know, and if Tsukasa was going to refuse to tell her... he would just have to. But it would have to wait. He didn't think she'd appreciate a visit right then.

*

Tsukasa left on his motorcycle shortly after lunch, saying he had something to tell Minami Kotaro before they moved on to a new world; and so Yusuke found himself sitting with an unusually quiet Natsumi.

After a few minutes, he decided to just say it.

"So, Natsumi..."

She glanced up at him, and Yusuke thought he saw the hint of a blush on her cheeks before her eyes darted away.

"Nothing happened last night, Yusuke."

"...Eh?"

She laughed softly, the blush deepening. "Yes, he slept in my room. But nothing... I mean, we didn't..."

Yusuke's eyes widened as he shook his head. "Natsumi-chan, that's none of my business! It's not what I was going to say!"

"...Oh," she smiled at him, her eyes sparkling. "Never mind then."

He laughed and grinned back at her "Not that I have a problem with it, as long as he's nice to you."

"Tsukasa-kun, nice? Be serious now, Yusuke," her smile widened as she dropped her chin to rest on the palm of her hand.

"Well... niceness is a relative term when it comes to Tsukasa," he conceded.

"He really does mean well, and he cares about you very much, Natsumi-chan," he said after a moment, his voice taking on a more serious tone.

"I know that, Yusuke," she whispered.

"He was really worried about you. He felt terrible. He thought it was his fault, that it was true that he'd destroy everything, starting with anyone close to him."

He watched as Natsumi's smile faded and her eyes widened. A pained expression crossed her features as she shook her head.

"I don't believe that. That's not who he is," she said.

"I don't believe that either," he replied firmily as their eyes met.

"There's something you need to know, Natsumi-chan," he said after a moment. He waited, and her expression changed slightly, more curious than worried now. "You weren't going to get better. Apollo Geist stole your life to extend his, it's what he does."

"With that thing he had?" she asked.

"Yeah. There was nothing the doctors could have done. In fact you..." he trailed off, remembering Tsukasa's words the day before.

I am not going to tell Natsumi that she should be dead.

Tsukasa was right. He couldn't bring himself to tell her she had died.

"I was dying. I would have died," she said, her voice strong. "I guessed that already, Yusuke, by the way the doctors acted when they came in. He saved my life somehow, didn't he?"

Yusuke nodded, "He went after Apollo Geist and took the Perfecter from him," he supressed a frown as he remembered Daiki's intervention. It bothered him that he wasn't sure yet what to think about that, but it wasn't the point now anyway.

"So Tsukasa-kun used it to give me my life back?"

"No, Natsumi-chan. He used it on himself," he looked her directly in the eyes, watching as she grasped the full meaning of his words. "He used it to share his life with you."

They sat in silence for a few moments, until finally Yusuke laughed.

"He doesn't want you to know. He'll probably be pissed off at me when he finds out I told you."

"That's because he's an idiot," she replied immediately, in a tender tone that belied her words.