By the end of their lunch/dinner, the sun was setting huge and orange in the horizon. Shuichi, Sano, and Mizuki leaned over the rail at the pier, watching the sunset and enjoying the sea breeze. Shuichi wondered at this easy calmness between the three of them, noting how once again, Mizuki stood in the middle of him and his best friend.It's as if it will always be this way. With Mizuki between us, he thought. It wasn't uncharitable or anything like wishing Mizuki or Sano would go away. It was more like resignation. Something Shuichi rarely felt. He hated having the bitter taste of it in his mouth.

“Nakatsu.”

Shuichi turned his head towards Sano’s voice. “Hm?”

Sano’s hair had grown longer and today it was out of its usual rubber-band. He wore a slate blue blazer with a white wifebeater underneath and faded black jeans. Shuichi still somehow felt Sano overdressed for this occasion and then nearly smacked himself for forgetting Mizuki. He, himself, had on his best t-shirt, jacket, and pants. He’d actually gotten his hair cut and dyed it black with honey-blonde streaks. Self-consciously, Shuichi toed the grit at the base of the rail with his brand new sneakers.

“...Do you think we’ll still be friends after this?” Sano asked, pointedly not looking at Shuichi or Mizuki.

Shuichi opened and closed his mouth several times. It wasn’t what Shuichi expected to come out of Sano’s mouth. Actually, it was surprising period since Sano never talked about things of that nature. At least, not unless something was bothering him or he was in a weird introspective mood. Still trying to think of something to say, Shuichi came around to Sano’s right side and gripped his arm.

“Eh?” is all Shuichi could say right then.

However, Mizuki seemed better prepared in these instances, grabbing Sano’s other arm and saying, “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t we be? Are you breaking up with us?”

When what she said finally sunk into his head, Shuichi unsuccessfully tried to stifle a snort. Mizuki saw and her whole face lit up like a forest fire. Sano’s lips twitched and Shuichi could no longer contain himself.

“Yeah, Sano, are you trying to break up with us?” Shuichi joked, throwing his arm around Sano’s neck and making kissy faces at him. “Don’t be such a ass. After all me and Mizuki did for you, went through with you, fought for you when people were saying hateful things about you.”

Sano rolled his eyes and stated, “I never asked you to do anything. It’s your own fault.”

Mizuki, finally recovered from her embarrassment, sent a grateful smile over to Shuichi -his heart clenched painfully within his chest- and joined in on the joke. “Eh? Don’t go blaming us. That’s what friends do and we’re friends, aren’t we?” She threw her arm around Sano’s neck, making him bend slightly to her height.

Sano stayed silent while trying to shrug off both of their arms.

“Hey, you were just talking a few seconds ago.” Shuichi made sure to wrap his arm all the way around Sano’s neck. “We’re not having a silent war because we all know the truth now, don’t we?”

“Yeah...” Mizuki pinched one of Sano’s cheeks and the boy grunted underneath her attack. “You think we don’t know all the things you did for us? Like threatening gossipers-”

“Sacrificing yourself to get reporters to dig up dirt,” Shuichi added.

“Pretending not to care when you’re waiting around worried and wondering what to do-”

“Carrying injured damsels in distress - Ow!”

Mizuki smacked Shuichi's arm playfully and continued listing the things Sano had done for both of them. The more Shuichi listened and said, the more he felt truly blessed to have a friend like Sano. Despite the obvious tension between them concerning Mizuki, they were best friends. Even when there had been open war for Mizuki between them, Sano was still his friend and still spoke to him. One night, Sano had even tried comforting his broken heart. That conversation had been long and painful, but the next day, Shuichi had felt better.

“All right, all right!” Sano exclaimed, finally wiggling free. “I get it, you idiots.”

Mizuki stuck her tongue out at Sano and Shuichi didn’t move for a moment. All he could do was stare at this man/boy, this ally, this friend and feel a nearly overwhelming rush of love. Without thinking, Shuichi launched himself at Sano, overcome with emotion.

“You are the greatest friend a guy could ever have,” Shuichi whispered into Sano’s ear, slightly embarrassed by just how emotional he sounded. “I mean that.”

Shuichi didn’t have to open his eyes to see Mizuki’s Aw-That’s-So-Cute grin or Sano plainly bewildered expression. However, he was still surprised when Sano hugged him back, albeit awkwardly, but everything involving emotions held awkwardness for Sano. Shuichi never cared if Sano was embarrassed or surprised. He hugged Sano heartily, squeezing and adding manly claps.

After a few moments, Shuichi released Sano, blinking rapidly. “I just wanted you to know,” he said lamely, scratching the back of his head.

“Um... Oh. Oh. Mm.” Sano looked so uncomfortable, Shuichi pitied him. “Kay.”

“Uh, yeah.”

Wow, Nakatsu. Very intelligent.

Shuichi frowned.

It’s not like I know what to say at this strange moment either.

That’s why guys keep their feelings to themselves. They don’t know what to do afterwards.

Well, what do you want from me?!

This is all your fault anyway!

I couldn’t help myself!

You never can!

Shuichi shook his head to free his head of thoughts and realized that Mizuki had saved Sano from further embarrassment by going into what they were doing this week. Shuichi felt lucky to have met Mizuki and blessed to be one of her closest friends.

Mizuki suddenly turned to him and said, “Tomorrow I’ll be free and Sano has some local interviews to do, you want to come food shopping with me?”

Shuichi felt dizzy, ecstatic actually, but displayed an outward calm. “Um, you don’t mind?”

“Course she doesn’t mind idiot, didn’t she just invite you?” Sano said, with an indecipherable expression. “It’s all over your face that you want to go.”

“Whatever, jerk,” Shuichi muttered, looking away from him. Again, he looked at Mizuki and she gave him the thumbs up. “Okay. I’ll get permission from Umeda-sempai.”

“Umeda’s here?” Mizuki’s face glowed suddenly and Shuichi wondered in the back of his mind if she had crush on the infirmary doctor. “I really want to see him! He helped me so much in Japan.”

“Oh really?” Shuichi was interested in this, since Umeda had always struck him as a little strange and Shuichi even felt as though the doctor may had even hated women. “I know he didn’t reveal your secret but what else...”

Then they started talking again, occasionally hearing the laughs down the pier from their classmates. Time seemed fly by as did the noise of their classmates. Soon it was becoming dark and it was Sano who looked up first, making an alarmed noise.

“What?” Shuichi had never been as far as America and knew from Sano’s injury that people were dangerous here. He started looking around frantically, quickly realizing that they were completely alone on the boardwalk. “What is it?”

Sano placed a reassuring hand on Shuichi’s arm. “Nothing! Stop looking like that, nothing’s coming out of the darkness to get you!”

“Oh...” Shuichi then yanked his arm from Sano. "Then stop scaring me asshole!"

Mizuki rushed forward and clapped a hand over Shuichi's mouth. "Quiet." She gave him a serious look.

Sano made a annoyed sound. "Baka. If there were any criminals around here you'll have alerted them to our presence already." He looked around, frowning and squinting in the night.

"Hey, guys, let's get out of here already," Mizuki said in a low voice. "It's kind of scary out here at night. Plus, all the vagrants wonder around here."

Sano gave them both an indescribable look and grabbed Mizuki's hand, who in turn grabbed Shuichi's. Shuichi looked at her hand, feeling warm, but not the same kind of heart clenching, gut twisting warm he used to feel. The strange feeling felt familiar, but Shuichi couldn't place it.

"We're going to take you home and then we're going to our hotel," Sano said in English, as he led them along the boardwalk in a brisk pace. "Do you have any cab numbers in your cell?"

Mizuki stammered a negative and Sano let out a deep breath, nodding his head as if that was what he suspected. Instead walking in a vertical line, Shuichi came around so that they were walking together. He didn't say anything, but he felt peace mixed with the adrenaline rush brought on by the threat of danger.

Soon, they got past all the stands and vending machines, appearing at the street. There were only a few people around, most of them pretty scantily clad in Shuichi's opinion, moseying around. All three of them gauged the potential threat of everyone on the street, breathing slightly easier that none of them immediately looked like homicidal maniac.

"Excuse me, miss," Mizuki said in clear English, with demure blinking eyes. "Do cabs still come around here?"

The woman -middle-aged, blonde, and wearing a denim skirt entirely too small for her thick thighs- looked at Shuichi and Sano suspiciously. "Um, not right now. They're on strike actually. Young lady, are you...okay?"

"Huh?" Mizuki gave the woman a puzzled look. "Wha-"

"These two young men aren't bothering you or something, are they?"

Mizuki's face flamed, along with Shuichi's - Sano probably hid his blush better, and she started stammering. Shuichi wished he could say something, but his English was infantile at best and the last thing he wanted to do is say the wrong thing. (And look stupid in front of his friends.)

"She's perfectly fine, ma'am," Sano said, stepping forward and wrapping a casual arm around Mizuki's waist. "We're trying to get her safely home. We would pay her cab fare if there were cabs running."

Mizuki's eyes went all doe-like and round, apparently choking on air. Shuichi glanced at Sano's hand and took a deep breath. He threw an arm around Mizuki's neck before ruffling her hair affectionately. He something in Japanese and grinned when Mizuki translated it for the woman.

"Like a sister? Oh." The lady looked at Shuichi and Sano in a new light, smiling and showing off her scarily white teeth. "Well, I hate to tell you this, but without walking or a ride, you have to wait another hour and a half for the bus."

"Hour and a half?!" Mizuki groaned, and then said in Japanese that her parents were sleeping and she didn't want to wake them. "Thank you, ma'am. We'll figure something out."

The woman smiled sympathetically and told them, "I'm sorry, honey. I hope you kids get home safe. By the way, my name is Fey."

They all introduced themselves and then waved goodbye when Fey sashayed down the street. Sano sighed and Shuichi looked around, thinking that maybe he would find something to help them. Mizuki started going through her cell phone, trying to figure out someone to call.

"This sucks," she said morosely. "I can't even get a hold of Julia."

"Your American friend, right?" Sano said. "Does she live anywhere near here?"

Mizuki sighed dejectedly. "No, but her boyfriend does. But I don't know where he lives. He has a car and the keys to her place." She clicked her phone closed.

"Hey," Shuichi said abruptly, with an idea. "Our hotel isn't far from here. You can just stay the night in our room and call Julia to take you back home in the morning."

"You're right," Mizuki said slowly. "That's a good idea, Nakatsu." She beamed at him.

"Eh?! You want her to stay in our hotel room?!" Sano unwrapped his arm from around her and stuffed both his hands into his pockets. "What if someone sees her? Her reputation would be tainted!"

Shuichi blew a raspberry at Sano. "It's not like we've never slept in the same room before! Mizuki knows we're not going to become perverts in the middle of the night!"

"It's different now that we know she's a girl!" Sano protested fiercely.

"We knew then!" Shuichi shook his head. "I mean, you knew then and then I found out shortly afterwards. Still, we managed not to paw at her in her nightclothes."

"Everyone now knows!" Sano roared. "What if one of them sees her coming out of our room in the morning?!"

Mizuki came between them, pushing them apart and telling them to stop. Shuichi didn't even realize that he'd been slowly inching towards Sano. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins and the night air did nothing to cool him off, but he backed off just the same. He twisted around and walking a little ways from Mizuki and Sano.

"What do you suppose we do than, Sano?" Mizuki asked, after making sure Shuichi and Sano weren't going to kill each other again. "We can't walk to my house from here. We'd never make it and the bus won't be here for a long time. It's dangerous out here so late at night. This is not a well lit street."

Sano put his hands on both her shoulders. "What if someone sees you, Mizuki?" he asked seriously, actually looking worried.

"Why don't we just dress up her up as a boy again?" Shuichi suggested, not even really meaning it. "It worked last time."

Both Sano and Mizuki were silent for a second and Shuichi stopped pacing. He looked at them, they looked at him, and they all cracked smiles. Sano looked off somewhere with twitching lips.

"Fine, but you idiots are on your own if you get caught," he said, flipping his hair over his shoulder nonchalantly.

Shuichi shared a knowing look with Mizuki. Sano would do no such thing such as leave them to their fate if they got caught. He would try making sure it wasn't obvious that he was helping them, but he wouldn't not do anything. Shuichi clapped Sano on the back, snorting at the irritated noise Sano made.

"Sure," Shuichi agreed, swinging his hands and watching Mizuki walk around to Sano's left side. "First we need to get some boyish clothes for Mizuki-chan..."

"Oh! I know a store that's still open!" Mizuki started leading the way. "The stuff in there is really cheap. We might have to hide my heels though. I don't know any shoe stores that would still be open."

Shuichi nodded agreeably, skipping alongside Sano. He felt a lot better and to be honest, he'd missed being roommates with Mizuki (as short as it had been). He also liked being roommates with Sano. Sano always had shampoo. Speaking of which...

"Do you know Sano uses special shampoo and hair products now?" Shuichi grinned past Sano at Mizuki. "It's why his hair looks so luxurious now."

Mizuki giggled, "Really?" She picked at a strand and laughed when Sano slapped her hand away. "Fabulous," she sing-songed.

"Shut up," Sano muttered, walking faster.

Shuichi jogged after him. "Where do you think you're going? You don't know the way, baka!" Mizuki followed after them laughing.

A/N: I hope you're enjoying it. If you are, please leave a review. I really like them. Even it's only a smiley. :)