Secret Hideout

1

It was their fort.

It was their secret hideout.

It was a special place, where they could hang out, and be themselves.

They could have fun together.

Kaidou and Kuboyasu loved their fort.

"Hey, Aren!" Kaidou called out.

Kaidou had been walking with Saiki and the rest of the group. He left to look for Kuboyasu, who was more quiet than usual at school. It was a subtle difference from his usual behavior, but Kaidou noticed. Kuboyasu was his closest friend after all.

Kaidou was a bit worried about him.

"Shun? I thought you were walking home with Saiki and Nendou?"

"I wasn't going to make you walk home alone! What if the Dark Reunion made a move while I wasn't here to protect you? I couldn't risk that!"

Kuboyasu smiled.

"Thanks, I guess."

Kaidou wanted to ask him what was wrong, but he knew if it was really serious, he would tell him.

Or, at least, he thought so.

Kuboyasu had felt... Different lately. He didn't really understand what he was feeling, but he knew that being around Kaidou made him feel better. But in a way, it also made him feel worse. He had been hanging out with him less lately. He didn't avoid him, but he no longer seeked him out.

Kuboyasu felt that familiar feeling surface. He didn't feel like talking. And even if he did, what would he say?

Nothing important.

Kaidou broke the silence first.

"Hey Aren?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to build a fort?"

Kuboyasu blinked.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"I went for a walk in the woods the other day. Sometimes I go there to be alone with my thoughts. And of course, I practice my Dark Reunion training! Anyway, I found a big empty space that was very quiet and hidden, and I thought it would be the perfect place to build a secret hideout!"

Kubuoasu suppressed a laugh.

'He has some pretty weird hobbies. Aren't forts for like, six year olds at sleepovers?'

"I... Don't know. It sounds like a lot of work."

"Aw, come on! It'll be so much fun! We can put up posters, and set up booby traps for intruders, and put in funiture-"

Kuboyasu chuckled.

"Alright, alright, calm down! I'll help you."

Kaidou's eyes lit up.

"Really? Great! Come on! I'll show you the spot!"

Kaidou ran ahead at top speed, which wasn't very fast, but he got a short distance away before he realized that Kuboyasu was walking. He ran back to him.

"Aren, come on!"

Kaidou grabbed his hand and dragged him along.

Oh no. There was that feeling again.

***************************************************************

They arrived. A small clearing in the forest. It was pretty big. There were branches scattered on the floor, along with some leaves. Kubuoyasu saw two rakes resting on a tree.

"So! What do you think?" Kaidou asked.

"I think it has potential."

Kaidou smiled.

"Good! We should get started right away!"

Kaidou had been looking foward to this.

Kuboyasu picked up a rake.

They cleared out the space. It was hard work, to say the least. Kuboyasu was tired and sweaty. He wanted to go home. But he couldn't disappoint Kaidou. Not his...

Best friend.

He sighed as he lifted the branches and moved them away.

Kaidou was moving branches too, but he was much weaker than Kuboyasu, and could only lift two at a time. And it was a struggle. Depending on the size, Kuboyasu could move about five.

Kaidou wanted to slow down and let his friend do most of the work, but he decided against it.

'I can't seem weak in front of Aren! He'll think I'm a wimp! I wish I could grab more at a time, but they're too heavy!'

Kaidou felt like he would fall over at any second.

Kuboyasu noticed this, and tried to work faster, for Kaidou.

By the time they cleared out all the branches, they were both exhausted, and the sun was going down. They sat on the ground. Kuboyasu was tired, but Kaidou could hardly breathe.

"Hey Shun, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm f-fine! I, whoo, I'm just a bit... a bit..."

"Slow down, you need to breathe!'

Kaidou caught his breath.

"Okay, I'm fine now."

Kuboyasu helped him up.

"Tomorrow, we'll get started with building!"

Kubuyasu tried not to groan.

"Alright then."

Kubuyasu walked home with Kaidou. He listened intently as he babbled on about the Black Beat sealed in his arm.

They arrived at Kaidou's house.

"I can't wait until tomorrow! Bye!"

"Bye."

Kubuyasu sighed. He was not looking foward to more work.

But he was looking foward to seeing Kaidou.