"Ooh, throw me one, Rei-Chan!" Nagisa shouted across the table, gesturing to the bag of candy Rei had just opened. With a quick flicky roll of his eyes, he sent a bright yellow sweet sailing over the piles of books and pencils and landing in Nagisa's waiting mouth.
"Thanks babe," Nagisa spluttered through chews. He leaned over the desk and planted a kiss on Rei's lips, laughing through the kiss and a mouthful of lemony-yellow.
"Jeez, why'd he throw it if you could've leaned over anyway?" Rin sighed, his face leaning on his hand. He was sitting on the end of the table, irritatedly rotating a blunting pencil through the tangle of his fingers and occasionally gnawing on it with his shark teeth. He didn't hate maths like Nagisa did, but he didn't enjoy it either.
"Aw, come on, Rin-Chan," Nagisa pouted teasingly. "You're just upset because you can't kiss Sou-Chan like that." He collapsed back into his chair, his fingers still lingering over Rei's slender hands, stopping him from working. It had been Rei's idea for the five of them to come to the library and study, since Sousuke was at physiotherapy today.
"How many times..." Rin clawed at the fraying paint on the pencil. "Sousuke's not my boyfriend, okay?" A bead of angry sweat rolled down his cheek. It all screamed suspicion.
"But you want him to be," Nagisa continued. He was teasing, of course, but could it be true? Rei shot him a look that said 'shut up'. He did.
"You're not fooling anyone, you know," Haru piped up from the corner of the table. He didn't even look up - he seemed to be using the cover of his geography book to sketch fish and seaweed. He looked positively bored out of his mind. Makoto looked nervously between both him and Rin. He knew Haru's careless mouth and Rin's short temper were enough to start a brawl at any table. He shifted uncomfortably.
But Rin just shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned back into his seat. He had only one earphone in, playing some J-Rock on a worryingly high volume. "Yeah, so what? So what if I do?" he said in answer to Nagisa's accusation. It was no secret to the four of them that Rin wasn't straight - he had admitted that a while ago. But not all of them had thought of Rin and Sousuke as a potential couple. After all, Sousuke seemed like he was more interested in his friend's sister. That must hurt.
"I told you, Rei!" Nagisa laughed. "I win!" He giggled back and forth in his chair, practically screaming with glee. He had forgotten they were in a library. "My prize, if you will."
"Not here! Later," Rei blushed as red as his glasses. He held out the bag of candy as consolation, letting the smaller boy take two large handfuls of plastic-wrapped lumps of rainbow.
"You were betting on this?!" Rin growled in disbelief. "What's wrong with you two?" He reached over to Nagisa and twisted his wrist backwards, provoking a yelp from the boy. Makoto raised his hands as a sign of mercy on Nagisa's behalf.
"Uh, Rin..."
Rin let go, but his fingers had left white bloodless imprints on his arm: a crude new tattoo to remind him of his cheek. Rei looked on with sympathy as he rubbed his arm in defeat.
"Anyway, what about you, Makoto?" Rin smiled almost viciously. "What's your deal?"
"M-my deal?" Makoto questioned, stammering. "What deal?"
"As in you and Haru. Are you two dating yet?"
Makoto felt himself shaking. "Uh... what?" he feigned ignorance to the matter, all the while shooting looks at Haru, as if to say 'help me!'. Haru was all but oblivious to the situation as he shaded the scales of some fish. Probably a mackerel. Or perhaps he didn't care what Rin said.
