Ryu sighed heavily as he climbed the last stair of the arts and crafts building, stopping to rest only when he had reached the door to his private studio. He stood in the hallway for a moment and shifted the box in his arms, cringing slightly in mild pain as the corner dug into his hip. He had finished unpacking in his cabin, having made (and disinfected) his bed and living area, and all that was left was to drop off his art supplies. It was nearing one in the afternoon and Ryu was starting to get rather hungry. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast, and that had been hours ago.

It had been a long ass morning. The weather had seemed hotter than usual, the sun more blistering, and bus ride twice as long. Even torturing Li hadn't served to keep him fully occupied throughout the drive. Kat had sadly been absent during that time, having some type of family emergency that caused her to miss the bus. She had called Ryu not long after to tell him that she would be dropped off at camp sometime later in the week. So, during the entire four hour bus trip, he was left bored, tired, and Kat-less.

But, on the plus side, he'd finally be able to spend time with Tatsu. Ryu couldn't help the small smile that flitted across his face. He hadn't seen his brother in what felt like ages, not since he went away for college. Sure, he talked to him on the phone every once in a while... but, really, that wasn't even close to enough. And it definitely wasn't a substitute for him actually being there. He only got to see him twice during the school year, and that was on their Christmas and spring breaks. And even then their time was limited. It felt like as soon as Tatsu would arrive, he would be walking right back out the door, more often than not while talking on the phone with their father.

Ryu leaned heavily against the door frame, a small frown replacing the even smaller smile that had been there before. And remembering all of that just brought up the question about their relationship and where they stood. Nothing much had happened between them since they had left camp last year. Tatsu was gone the week after they were home, and they couldn't really do much at home anyway, seeing as they were around their sister and mother most of the time. It was all so frustrating. Was Tatsu still even interested in him? Ryu had thought they had figured it all out before... but now he found himself in the same damn situation.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Ryu shifted the heavy box again before pushing himself off the door frame and unlocking the door. Pushing it open, Ryu hurriedly sat his burden down on the make-shift desk in the corner of the room. Sighing in relief, he stood back and wiped his hands on the front of his jeans before looking around. It really had been a long time since he'd been there and he could honestly say he'd missed it. And, not to mention, there were a lot of nice memories that came with it. His first attempt at oil painting, hiding the raccoons, the time Kat almost walked in on him and Tatsu...

Yeah, that was a nice place to stop.

Almost immediately Ryu's dark eyes came to rest on his brother's sleeping form. He was a bit startled at first, seeing as how he had just been thinking about him and wasn't exactly expecting him to be there. Speaking of... wasn't he supposed to be greeting his campers right now? A slight, knowing smile curved the corner of Ryu's lips. It was just like Tatsu to do something like that.

Making up his mind, Ryu quietly made his way over to his brother, a devious smirk falling into place as he knelt down by the side of the couch. He rested his arms and head on the cushion as he studied him for a moment. It was rare that Ryu got to just look at him like this, well, at least rare that he could look without receiving a bunch of questioning glances and colorfully spoken words. Ryu smiled again just thinking about it. He missed having his brother around, it was a lot different without him. A lot lonelier, too.

Ryu let out a small, almost sad sigh and tried to change his train of thought. It was the start of summer vacation! Three months with no school, three months at Camp Riverside, and three months alone with his brother. So, really, he had nothing to complain or be sad about. Lifting his head, Ryu sat back a little and continued to watch his brother sleep. Well, as pretty as Tatsu was, this really wasn't very exciting. Glancing around himself in boredom, Ryu pulled idly on the black band around his wrist. He almost frowned when he discovered a rather long, unraveling thread hanging from it. Looking down, he pulled on it, but stopped when he saw that it was making it worse.

Well, lovely. He'd have to just leave it until he could find a pair of decent scissors so the whole damn thing wouldn't end up falling apart. Ryu rolled the string between his fingers as he let himself get lost in thought. Hearing the squeak of the couch springs, Ryu turned his attention back to his brother, watching as he shifted on the mattress, turning on his side to face towards him.

Glancing down at the string between his fingers, an evil idea began forming in the back of Ryu's mind. Smirking, Ryu moved forward again, standing completely up on his knees so he could lean over his brother's sleeping form. He bit his lower lip to hold back a giggle as he brought the dangling string to hang just above his brother's face. Biting his lip even harder, Ryu slowly lowered his wrist, letting the string glide gently across the sensitive skin under his brother's nose.

Oh, he had a feeling he'd probably end up pissing Tatsu off by doing this, but Ryu figured it'd be worth it in the end. At least it would serve as a good laugh. Besides, he was bored. And everyone knows a bored Ryu was never a completely sane Ryu.



[ooc: frecking HUGE. i promise the next one wont be this long. if it goes the way i want it, it wont even be half of this. sorry you have to read it >.< and the ending sucked horribly because it was so rushed. but oh well, im getting back into the swing of things, i deserve some leeway]

Ryu watched in silent amusement as Tatsu swatted at the string before mumbling. Okay, not all that silent. Not even biting his lip could stop the small giggle that escaped this time. He brought his unoccupied hand up to cover his mouth, hoping to muffle the sound so as to not wake his brother. He lowered the string a second time, laughter slipping out from between his fingers anyway as his brother once again slapped himself in the face. Why were things like this so damn funny? It’s not like it was all that amusing… okay, maybe it was. It was more than amusing, just because it was Tatsu on the receiving end for once.

Getting himself under control, Ryu went to lower the string a third time, his movements slow and calculated. He had expected the same reaction as before, but maybe this time he’d actually smack awake. What he didn’t expect, however, was his brother attempting to turn over and face planting on the floor. Ryu barley had time to move out of the way before Tatsu tumbled off the couch, hitting the ground with a painful sounding smack. Ryu cringed for a moment at the sound, knowing that it couldn’t have been too pleasant. But that soon dissolved into hysterical laughter as his brother began getting up while cursing in every language he knew (and probably some he didn’t). It was just… perfect, in every sense of the word.

Ryu continued to laugh, one hand still covering his mouth while the other clutched at his stomach. He was laughing so hard it actually hurt, and that very rarely happened. Well, at least, not any more. Ryu knew he would probably get knocked upside the head for what he had just done, but he also knew he’d deserve it. It had been worth it, though, after all, so he couldn’t bring himself to care much.

“Ryu? When the hell did you get here?”

Still holding his stomach, Ryu lowered his other hand after his laughter had subsided to give his brother an odd look. How long had he been up there sleeping? Ryu decided it must have been a while since he looked sincerely confused. Maybe he hit his head when he had fallen off the couch? That would help explain a lot.

“It’s nice to see you, too.” Ryu replied with light sarcasm, rolling his eyes slightly as he moved past Tatsu to flop down on the couch. He leaned back against the arm rest, letting his head fall sideways against the cushions as he studied his brother. What? He had been deprived of looking at him for the past nine months, so he deserved a break. After a few moments Ryu averted his gaze, hoping that his brother hadn’t noticed.

Ryu wasn’t even sure where he and Tatsu stood when it came to their so-called ‘relationship’. The past few times they had had time alone together, it felt more brotherly than anything. It had felt more like old times, before everything had gotten complicated. Times where Ryu would sneak into Tatsu’s bedroom and curl up with him under the blankets because Li had turned their bedroom into a life-sized freezer again. Times when they would fight over who got the bathroom first, or who got to control the television remote and for how long.

Ryu suddenly felt uncertain and confused. He didn’t like the feeling, so he attempted to fill in the silence the best way he knew how. If he kept talking he had no time to be thinking.

“So… how long have you been up here?”

"Uh... shit... way too long. Hopefully they don't actually need me. I don't want to go meet campers yet."

Ryu shook his head at his brother’s words, watching with slight apprehension as he moved to sit next to him on the couch. Ryu kept his focus straight, but couldn’t suppress the urge to shift a little, just to feel the fabric of his jeans rub against his brother’s leg. It was nice to be like this again, even if Ryu wished they were sitting just a tad bit closer. He sighed; following his brother’s lead and leaning back against the couch, tilting his head so that he could study the patterns of paint on the ceiling. It was just like his brother to avoid work like that. He used to do it all the time when he still lived at home. Their mother would ask him to do something, but Ryu would find him an hour later asleep in his room or working on his bike out in the garage. Ryu smiled softly as he thought about it. It was comforting to know that some things never changed, even in a world as unpredictable as this one.

Feeling a bit sleepy, Ryu closed his eyes and let his head fall to the side, content to just rest like this for a while. He had been in constant motion ever since he had arrived at camp. If he wasn’t dragging bags around, he was cleaning cabins, making beds, or unpacking. It was barely past one in the afternoon and Ryu felt like it should be bedtime already. What had happened to all his energy? Ryu felt like it had been soaked up by the sun or completely sweated out of him. The day had started hot, and Ryu had no doubt that it would just keep getting hotter.

Ryu yawned suddenly, hand coming up to cover his mouth as his body stretched itself out along the couch. He let himself sink even further into the cushions, breathing in deeply as he felt fatigue wash over him. It smelled like wood and dust and sunshine, but it was a familiar sent to Ryu, one that he associated with a lot of happy memories. It was a smell that reminded him of camp, of summer, and whenever he thought of those he always thought of Tatsu.

And speaking of Tatsu…

Ryu’s was jolted out of his calm state, his eyes suddenly flying open as he felt something fall into his lap. Waiting for his eyes to refocus, Ryu struggled to sit up a little straighter before glancing down. What he saw made his face bloom thirty different shades of red. His brother had flopped himself down on Ryu’s lap, close to his… yeah, and was now looking up at him as if something had just died.

“Kamiko didn’t survive college.”

Okay… maybe something had died. But Ryu could honestly care less about the turtle. The thing was a bitch and had something of a wicked temper. He couldn’t even walk past her tank without her hissing at him. Ryu was never much of an animal lover to begin with, but he was sure any love he did have for them was probably killed the moment his brother bought that damn turtle. But there was Zorro… so, okay, Ryu liked some animals, but he was pretty damn picky.

“Uh…” Ryu wasn’t sure how to respond to his brother’s words at all. Tatsu had just sprung the news on him so suddenly and Ryu’s brain was still a little confuddled from his earlier tryst to the brink of sleep. “I’m sorry?” Ryu finally spoke, his hand coming up to run soothingly through Tatsu’s hair. He figured that it was the best way to show compassion given the situation, especially considering their current position… and the fact that Ryu was still confused on their relationship.

He glanced back up at the ceiling, letting himself relax back into the couch as Tatsu cuddled his legs. He felt his face heat up again and he closed his eyes tightly. Maybe he should just give up already and actually talk to his brother about their relationship, no matter how uncomfortable and potentially hurtful it could be. One thing was for sure, though. It had to be better than all these awkward situations and the fact that Ryu would blush every time Tatsu would show him any sort of affection. Like now, for example.

Ryu willed his body to behave, hoping that his brother couldn’t see how red his face was. It was embarrassing enough without that happening. Ryu was getting desperate. He had to make this stop before something extremely mortifying happened.

“Hey Tatsu,” Ryu spoke without thinking, his words slow as he struggled to keep his voice steady, “Don’t you have to… ah… be greeting campers or something productive like that?” Ryu breathed again before speaking. “I mean, I don’t want you to get into trouble or anything.”

Ryu blushed again. Wow, that had sounded lame, even to his own ears. But it was the first thing that had come to mind, so he just went with it. And, really, he should be lucky that he was able to think at all, especially with his brother busy snuggling against his lap.

"You know I never get into trouble. Mr. Satun loves me too much. Hell, I spent the whole counselor training week drunk off my ass, and he didn't say a damned thing."

Ryu continued to stare up at the ceiling of his self-proclaimed art studio as he listened to his brother speak, a small frown clouding his face. He momentarily paused in stroking his brother’s hair as he let the words sink it. Picturing Tatsu drunk off his ass was both amusing and worrying at the same time. Amusing because, hell, almost anyone who’s drunk is amusing in some way and worrying because… well, Ryu didn’t want Tatsu to get into trouble or end up doing something he might regret. And as selfish as Ryu felt at the moment, he was more worried about Tatsu keeping their promise. It had eaten him up over the school year, wondering if his brother was quietly studying or fucking some girl in his new dorm room. They were not altogether reassuring thoughts, and since practically everything at home reminded him in some way of his brother, Ryu had dealt the best way he knew how. Kat. He spent most of his time at her place, skipping school and brushing off assignments just so he would be able to concentrate on something other than his brother.

The frown tugging at Ryu’s lips deepened as those previously forgotten thoughts started making themselves known again. Well shit, now the worry was back. So was the underlying need to know for sure about their situation and what still applied and what didn’t. Ryu had kept his promise to Tatsu; he hadn’t so much as dated anyone, let alone slept with them. Hell, he hadn’t even really hung out with anyone else besides Kat either. He was too busy avoiding his problems, just like he usually did…

That wasn’t a very reassuring thought, either.

Deciding it was best not to comment on Tatsu’s previously uttered words, Ryu began moving his fingers again, concentrating instead on how soft his brother’s hair felt. Another deepening silence surrounded them, but Ryu hardly noticed. His mind was elsewhere, too busy thinking about himself and Tatsu, how everything was going to play out now that so much had changed. Would they start up where they had left off, start everything over again, call it quits?

God, Ryu really hoped it wasn’t the last one.

"Mom said you spent almost every weekend at Kat's... Did something happen between you two... like you're now more then just friends?"

Startled out of his thoughts, Ryu blinked up at the ceiling and cringed as he realized he had forgotten to blink while lost in thought. Bringing up his unoccupied hand, Ryu softly rubbed at his eyes, blinking a few more times before turning his gaze back to his brother. Who, by the way, was still lying comfortably in Ryu’s lap. Ryu blushed again, not only from the situation, but because of what his brother had implied.

Him and Kat? As pretty as she was, Ryu and Kat were just not made to be anything more than friends. Or so, that’s what they had both agreed on. They had talked about it once, and both had decided that their friendship wasn’t worth the risk, and that it was best if they kept their relationship purely platonic. Now, Ryu couldn’t deny that he had had a small crush on Kat for a while, but after their talk, he had let it go and had slowly gotten over it. Besides, he had Tatsu… or, at least, he hoped he still had him.

“Nah,” Ryu began, smiling down at his brother before stretching, “Why, has mom been telling you things?” Ryu had to know. He knew his mother swooned over himself and Kat, proclaiming that they were the cutest couple ever. She even went far enough once (to both his and Kats complete embarrassment) and started rambling about how adorable her future grandchildren would be. Ryu bit his lip in worry. Had his mother told Tatsu that he and Kat were together now? Maybe… maybe that’s why everything had become all skewed. Well, if it was the reason, Ryu was going to try and fix it as best as he could.

“Mom doesn’t know anything, Tatsu.” Ryu stopped for a moment, trying to think of a way to lighten the situation, but was unable to come up with something. He opted, instead, to just finish what he had been saying. “There’s nothing going on. Kat and I are just friends and that’s all we’ll ever be. We talked about it a long time ago. It’s for the best anyway…” Because I have you now. Ryu wanted to say it, but he held his tongue. He wasn’t sure if that territory was safe to trudge through at the moment.

“Oww.”

Ryu turned his attention back to the man in his lap, once again interrupted from his thoughts. He watched as Tatsu brought his hand up to wipe at his mouth and furrowed his brows in confusion. What the…? Ryu swatted his brother’s hand away so he could have a closer look. Did he bite himself? Ryu gave his brother another confused glance before leaning down to get a closer look, his own finger wiping away a smear of blood just under Tatsu’s bottom lip.

“Idiot,” he couldn’t help but chastise, but there was underlying affection in his words. “Now why did you go and bite yourself for?”


[ooc: sorry its so long >.< i didnt even notice how long it had gotten actually. i had only started writing this at around 2:30... so it only took me a little over an hour to do =D im not sure if thats a good sign or no. oh, and sorry for the sucky ending, had to end it sometime XD]

"Ryu... I want to ask you if--"

Ryu had sat back up as soon as Tatsu had grabbed his hand, hoping beyond hope that he hadn’t been stopped because his brother was uncomfortable. If anyone had the right to feel that way, it was him. He was the one, after all, with somebody’s head in his lap. Frowning slightly, Ryu trained his dark eyes on his brother’s face, noticing that he seemed to be a little troubled by something. There was sinking feeling in his stomach, an uncomfortable lurch of nervousness and… fear? Yeah, definitely fear. What was it he wanted to ask? Did it have to do with them? Their relationship? Despite Ryu’s sudden curiousness, he was also a little afraid of what might happen.

But to Ryu’s relief (and disappointment) Tatsu’s question was cut off by a high-pitch ring. He leaned back even further as his brother pulled a cell phone out of his back pocket, checking the screen before sitting up and flipping it open. Ryu couldn’t help but frown again as his brother let go of his hand. He held the hand up to his chest, bringing his other hand up to rub at his wrist. It was still warm.

"…and this is when I get bitched at."

Ah, so it was Mr. Satun on the phone then. Ryu hoped that Tatsu wouldn’t get into too much trouble for neglecting his job… hell, he seemed to do it a lot and nothing bad ever came of it. Tatsu just had that charm about him. He could be irresponsible, rude, or just downright reckless and all he’d have to do was apologize with that smile and everything was forgiven and forgotten. Ryu hadn’t been as blessed. If he so much as stepped out of place there were people there, waiting and ready, to put him ‘ right back in it’. It was rather annoying, actually.

Ryu leaned back into the couch again, stretching out his now free legs before bringing them up and tucking them under his chin. He laid his head down on his knees as he waited for his brother to get off of the phone. There was still an issue that needed to be dealt with and Ryu was a stubborn kid. He wouldn’t let it go until he got what he wanted.

As soon as Tatsu flipped the phone shut, Ryu was there with his question.

“What is it you wanted to ask me?”


[ooc: zomfg!1! this post was super sucky, but also super SHORT! im not sure if i should be disappointed or excited >.< but oh well, i posted like a promised. just took me hours of procrastination to get it done! yay me!]

"Umm..."

Okay, as much as Ryu loved Tatsu, he knew that whenever his brother stalled for time, he wasn’t going to be answering the question. At least, not truthfully. And the infamous ‘um’ his brother had just muttered pretty much cemented Ryu’s suspicion.

"I wanted to ask..."

Yeah, he was definitely thinking of a way to avoid what he was really going to say. Sometimes Ryu just knew his brother too damn well.

"If you want to have dinner at the cafe with me tonight. Beats camp food."

Despite Ryu knowing that his brother wasn’t being completely truthful with him, he couldn’t help the blush that colored his cheeks as what his brother said finally sunk in. Maybe it was his inner-romantic speaking, but Ryu felt like he had just been asked out on a date. It was probably the way his brother worded it, so there was no use in getting all excited. Yeah… but still, Ryu was somewhat excited. That is, until he actually thought about what they were going to dinner for.

Why did people get asked out to dinner?

Well, it could be for the company. Ryu wouldn’t mind that, in fact, he had missed talking with his brother. So if that was the main reason, well, Ryu didn’t really see a problem with it. It could be for romantic reasons… and Ryu really hoped it was that one. Just because he was still confused on everything, and was hoping deep down, that he wouldn’t have to be the one to bring it up first. Maybe his brother wanted to talk about everything and (hopefully) start again where they had left off.

Then there was the whole ‘I’m inviting you out to dinner to break up with you’ reason that Ryu really didn’t want to think about at the moment. It could just end up the casual, almost-like-a-date, then Tatsu could spring the whole “I really like you and all, but I’ve been thinking that it’d be best for the both of us if we just remained brothers and nothing else”.

Ryu almost cringed. Brothers. Well, shit. He’d almost forgotten about that little problem.

“Uhh…” Great, now Ryu was the one sounding like he was stalling. If only he could stay positive for once. He looked away, one hand coming up to push a handful of dark hair back from his face. “Yeah, sure. Um, when did you want to go? Cause I’m kind of hungry now…”

Think. Positive.

Ryu could practically hear his own conscious laughing at him.

"Hmm... Well, I have to sort this thing out before I can do anything. So, I can go fix this, then come back here for you. It shouldn't be more then a half hour, and dinner here is in about an hour..."

Ryu turned his attention back to his brother as he spoke, nodding his head slowly to show that he understood. He leaned back into the couch again before placing his feet on the floor and standing up. Ryu didn’t know why, but he didn’t like to be the only person in a room sitting down. It made him feel somewhat venerable.

“Sounds good…” Ryu let his voice trail off as he stood in front of his brother, not quite sure how he should act. He shifted, somewhat uncomfortable, before glancing away again, his gaze falling on the box of art supplies he had carried up not even an hour ago. That reminded him, he needed to finish unpacking.

"Son of a bitch."

Ryu’s head snapped towards his brother, wincing as he saw him touch his lip. Ouch. Tatsu really had to learn to be more careful, but Ryu knew that he would be a hypocrite if he said that out loud. How many times had he done the exact same thing? It was then that it hit him that Tatsu was right there, barely a foot away from him. Even though they had been even closer on the couch, Ryu hadn’t taken the time to actually realize it. His fingers twitched as the sudden urge to reach out and just touch him overcame his senses.

But he refrained, just like he did every single other time over the past year. During spring break, during Christmas. Ryu almost smiled. It was almost sad how afraid he was to take that one goddamned step and figure everything out. What would it take? One breath, a few words? What was so scary about that?

"All right, I'll be back here in a half hour to pick you up, and we'll go eat. We can do something afterward too if you don't want to return to camp right off."

Ryu forced himself to smile, but he knew that it didn’t quite reach his eyes. He was genuinely happy that he was going to get to hang out with his brother, but… he just felt like there was something missing now. After all, what was the one thing Ryu had craved ever since his brother was shipped off to college halfway across the country? Ryu missed Tatsu just being there, and even though what they had shared at camp was amazing and beyond anything Ryu could have ever hoped for, he’d give anything just to be his brother again, if that's what it all came down to.

“Okay,” Ryu scratched at his arm before waving it towards the box placed on the top of his make-shift desk. “I have to finish unpacking anyway, Just, uh, let yourself in when you get here. And I wouldn’t mind doing something afterwards. Kat isn’t here, so my nights are going to be pretty uneventful for the next week or so.”