"Katsu?" Ryuu choked out, and Katsu just stuck out his tongue before possessively putting an arm around Kazumi's stomach.
"Why are you here?" Katsu asked, ignoring Ryuu. "Shouldn't you be, I don't know, manipulating someone?"
"I thought I told you to sleep on the couch," Kazumi murmured to Katsu calmly. She didn't push his hand away.
Katsu gave a one-shoulder shrug. "I sleep better in here." He met Ryuu's eyes with a glint in his own.
Kazumi just yawned and scooted a little closer to Katsu.
What the- Is she snuggling with him? What the hell?!
"You're nice an' warm," she whispered, her eyes already fluttering shut.
Well, of course it's only because she wants to sleep. It was obviously sleep-related. It has nothing to do with the fact that Katsu has his hands all over her-
Why do I even care? Ryuu suddenly realized. Like I told Kazu, Kazumi means nothing to me. So why should I care who she invites into her bed?
Katsu must have been watching Ryuu's expressions as he hesitated because he laughed. "In case you're wondering, no, there's not room for three."
Ryuu glared at Katsu, who just grinned back at him. "Like I would ever want that," Ryuu snapped, throwing up a quick, angry defense, but as usual, the one caught in the crossfire would, albeit unintentionally, be Kazumi. "I don't even understand how you can share a bed with her, knowing that she's...that she's Kazu, too! That's like sleeping with a guy!"
Kazumi's eyes opened slowly, and Katsu glared at Ryuu in disgust. "How dare you say that about Kazu!" Katsu roared back, his smirk gone, replaced by a fierce sense of loyalty. "You could never hope to understand-"
"Quiet, Katsu," Kazumi commanded, and he instantly fell silent, but his glare lone more than filled the silence in the room. Then Kazumi spoke. "Get out," she said. Two words. Neither of them possessed any blame, hatred, or negative emotional connection. She was quiet; she was succinct; she was unbiased.
Anger would have better.
Anything would have been better.
Those two words, so impassively spoken, hit Ryuu harder than any malicious retort could have.
I mean nothing to her, he realized.
He also realized that, for whatever reason, he wanted to mean something to her.
But he wasn't allowed to. He has chosen not to.
Before he had a chance to say something - anything - the door opened slightly, creaking, and Taro stuck his head in.
"Sorry," he whispered. "But I heard yelling..." Then he took in the scene, and his eyes widened. "K-Kazumi?" he stuttered, and then he noticed the male beside her who was not-so-subtly glaring at Taro while pulling Kazumi a few inches closer to himself. Taro looked lost and embarrassed for a second before grabbed Ryuu by the shirtsleeve. "We're sorry for intruding. We'll go now," he apologized before dragging Ryuu out of Kazu's house, who walked with no resistance or direction.
Once outside, Taro turned to Ryuu, angry. "I asked you to help me apologize to Kazu, and then I find out that you're just creeping on his sister?"
Oh...is that what it looked like... "It was a mistake," Ryuu tried. "Wrong room." Normally, he would have tried a better lie, but his head was still reeling.
Taro didn't look like he bought it, but after a moment, he shook his head. "Well, thanks for coming this far, I guess. Bye." Without another word, he began walking off, leaving Ryuu alone with a new realization.
Wait a second. If Kazumi changes to Kazu at sunrise, and the only way to prolong that is through a kiss, then...
Katsu kissed Kazumi? The thought made him sick. Or did Kazumi kiss Katsu?
But why would she want to stay as a girl?
Unless...
Unless they were doing...things...that being a girl might be convenient for...
Now Ryuu really felt sick.
No way. It didn't happen. It didn't happen, right?
He breathed out a sigh of relief as he recalled that they both still had their clothes on.
That turned into a tight inhale as he realized that neither of them were wearing very much. Kazumi had been wearing a tank top and a tiny pair of shorts, and from what Ryuu could see, Katsu was wearing shorts, although he wasn't wearing a shirt.
But it's okay, right? Because Kazumi even said that Katsu wasn't supposed to be there...
Right before she cuddled with him...
Ryuu wasn't sure which was more disturbing - the fact that Kazumi had been snuggling with Katsu, or the fact that he half-wished that he had been in Katsu's place.
A wave of self-loathing washed over his thoughts.
After a while, Ryuu felt just about ready to head back to his own apartment when a final thought struck him.
Not once, he realized, did Katsu call her 'Kazumi.' He always referred to her as 'Kazu.'
With a cold feeling in his gut, Ryuu forced himself to turn around and head back to prepare dinner for his sister. He shouldn't be worrying about strangers, after all.
But still...
Just once, he wanted to know what it felt like to hold her in his arms.