S C A N D A L

Chapter Thirty-Seven

"How can you not tell me something that important?!" Shiro scolded as soon as the words were out of his mouth.

Kurou smiled awkwardly. Perfect! His husband was mad again. "It's not that I don't want to tell you...it's just that I don't really want to talk about it..."

The way Shiro narrowed his gaze made Kurou regret what he said. "Was she one of your paramours?"

"What? God, no! You know I always thought that Masahiko nii-san despised me and my behavior, and when I found out that he started a relationship with Eri's cousin, I immediately prematurely presumed that he did it on purpose to teach me a lesson. I didn't listen to his explanation and we fought. That fight almost forced him to give up his relationship with Hikari nee-san."

Realizing the true reason why Kurou neglected to tell him about Hikari nee-san's relationship with Eri after hearing the situation, Shiro quickly gathered that the sibling rivalry did not end the affection Masahiko had with his youngest brother. Though Masahiko's action may seem bizarre at times, torn between reaching his personal goal and being the big brother Kurou looked up to, Shiro understood that Masahiko may not know a lot of things about Kei Nakajima until Hikari came into his life.

"So, you changed your mind about her," Shiro speculated.

"Hikari nee-san is very different from her cousin," Kurou explained. "She proved how much she loves my brother and helped me a lot, telling me about Eri's plans, but I didn't listen at first because I thought she only became romantically involved with my brother at the request of her cousin."

"No wonder Masahiko nii-san was mad at you..."

"Duh! He sided with his girlfriend and at that time I thought he was taking this whole sibling rivalry shit to a new level that I started viewing him as a traitor."

Glancing at Kurou's complex reaction, Shiro couldn't help feeling bad for him. During the height of his scandals, Kurou must've felt hopeless as he was unable to turn to his father for assistance, fearing the impact it might generate with Masahiko's business deal with Izanagi-san at the forefront. He had to endure being prejudiced by his own family while trying his best to escape Kei and his manipulating schemes.

Knowing this, Shiro was remorseful and couldn't resist reaching out and touching Kurou's handsome features above him. "I'm sorry..." he said. "I didn't mean to scold you. Damn it, why am I always scolding you?"

The tone of his voice had an effect on Kurou, whose grin widened as Shiro took pity on him. He immediately took advantage of the vulnerability and captured Shiro's lips in a passionate kiss. Shiro was so stunned that his cry was muffled by the kiss, reaching out a hand, he pulled Kurou by the hair to force the man to let go of his mouth.

"Aw, aw, Shiro..."

"Let me up. NOW! You really are going to seize every opportunity just so you could have your wicked way with me!" The country bumpkin accused and it was spot on.

It worked. Kurou stood up to sit on the bed, rubbing the back of his head and inspecting if he lost any of his hair. Shiro's grab was so tight that he felt as though every strand of hair was pulled out from the roots.

"Be serious now," Shiro faced him with solemness. His heart was in his mouth as he spoke, "I know there's something in your mind, but you care so much about me that you won't even contradict my decision. I could...I could listen to you. Be obedient if you demand it too. Kurou, you don't have to make all the sacrifices. You've done plenty for me."

Kurou only smiled. "I don't want that. I want to make you happy."

"---and you are making me happy. So much so, that I'm starting to feel guilty and even foolish."