Sousuke submerged out of the shared bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. He had another towel and was drying off his still damp hair. He shuffled down the hall, reaching for his keys that hung around the lanyard he always kept around.

Successfully opening the door to his room, he whipped it open and proceeded to walk towards his dresser.

"Geez... Sousuke, the least you can do is put on some underwear in front of a lady."

"Oh, shut it. Not too loud, or people will hear you!"

"Sorry, sorry [Name]."

Sousuke turned his head slightly and saw Rin on the bottom bunk and [Name] sitting on the swivel chair. He groaned and grabbed his garments. "Just turn around. I'll be done before you know it."

Rin chuckled, and Sousuke could hear Rin turn the swivel chair around. He pulled up his boxers and stuck his muscular legs into a pair of sweatpants before coming to the two invaders.

"Why are you two here?" he asked. Rin shook his head.

"You still aren't presentable in front of this beautiful lady, Sousuke. I am ashamed!" Sousuke gave Rin an annoyed glare before Rin continued. "Haha... Just kidding. I was able to get [Name] to talk to us about her secret."

"But, you have to keep it 100% confidential between us three, and us three only," said [Name].

Sousuke was surprised that [Name] was suddenly so willing to tell him the truth. He didn't mind; he needed to know. He wanted to know more about her before he could continue with their relationship.

[Name] sighed. "You guys have to keep it a secret, like your sister's diary. You read it, but you can't tell anyone about her secret crush on your friend. Do you understand?"

Her analogy was somewhat ridiculous, but Rin and Sousuke nodded in unison. [Name] stuck out her pinky finger. "Promise not to say a word, or you'll feel the wrath of my storm."

"My parents had always wanted the best for me," started [Name]. "My parents are quite old in age, so my mother couldn't conceive children as well as she would have if she had gotten married earlier. They tried for years, and they just couldn't have children until... They had me, a diamond in the rough.

"My grandmother wanted a grandson from her only son, and my father didn't want to disappoint her. He told me that I was a girl at heart, but I had to be a boy to make grandmother happy. I understood that. I'd go visit my grandparents as a boy and come home as a girl.

"Eventually, I had basically began dressing up more masculine everyday as I grew older. I went to middle school as a boy, telling my classmates that I had a twin sister who went to school with them because the boy-me went to an all-boys' academy. Now, my "twin sister" was in America with one of my make-believe relatives, studying to become a dancer.

"One day, my grandmother fell deathly ill and told me to come visit her. My parents had moved closer to my grandparent's, and I was going to graduate middle school soon. She touched my face, lying on her bed; she told me that she wanted me to go to a prestigious high school and become the greatest man ever. What was I supposed to do? Tell her that I'm actually a girl. That my breasts were growing, and that I wouldn't get any taller?

"But, I just smiled. I told her I got accepted to Samezuka, and that I was studying art. My grandmother's face was wet with tears. She told me that she was proud of me, studying art. She wanted me to paint with love and with strength.

"And, she passed peacefully that same night." [Name] had to pause, taking a shaky breath. The tears were brimming, and she dabbed at her inner corners.

"So, I had to live with the fact that she died not knowing the true me. She saw a smart, artistic grandson. Not a granddaughter. She wanted her grandson to attend the prestigious Samezuka Gauken, the school that excels in everything. I wanted to make her proud, even if I was female. Even if I wasn't who she thought I was."

[Name] reached for a tissue and blew her nose. Her eyes were puffy and were beginning to redden. "It's a blessing and a curse, if I were to be honest. To be a successful man and hide my femininity, or disappoint my grandmother by exposing the real me. The girl me. I don't know what to do..."

Rin reached for her shoulder and began to say something when Sousuke interrupted him. "[Name], you're... You're truly amazing." Sousuke's hand grazed her knee.

[Name] gave him a soft grin. "Thanks. I wouldn't know what I would do without knowing that you were here to support me."

"M-me, too!" exclaimed Rin. "I'll support you, too!" His hand clasped around [Name]'s.

[Name] had excused herself and went back to her dorm room to finish homework. Sousuke walked to the closet once more and pulled over a thin sweatshirt. Rin watched Sousuke before catching his attention.

"Sousuke, I want you to know something."

"And, what might that be?" asked Sousuke.

Rin stood up and placed his hands in his pants pocket. "I think I might have fallen for [Name], and I'm going to help her."

The corners of Sousuke's mouth turned upwards. "That's not going to happen if I do it first." Sousuke pulled on his shoes and opened the door.

Before he closed it, Rin shouted, "I'm not going to lose to you! Not if I can help it."

~End: The Eye of the Storm~

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