Title: Takeshi Loses His Temper
When: Takepon and Kenpii's sophomore year in college
What: The title should give that away.
Status: In Progress
Notes: There's just not enough Duklyon fic. That's what J and I think, anyway, so we wrote (are writing) this one together. Frowny/Smiley CLAMP pairings are so much fun. This is part 1, we need to get off our butts and revise part 2 into a readable format.

It was evening finally, after a long day. All Takeshi really wanted was to sit -- in his own living room, on his own floor -- and study in peace. There was an important exam coming up, and he was concerned.

All Kentarou wanted to do was sit -- in his own living room, on his own floor -- and have a snack while he watched TV and chatted with his roommate about his day.

That's where the problem started. That's where it /always/ started. Because, unfortunately, there was only one living room and only one floor in the small apartment they'd been sharing since college began.

"Have some of the tuna. Fish is brain food." Kentarou picked up a piece of sushi with his chopsticks and reached over the low table to wave it under Takeshi's nose. "It's not good to study on an empty stomach. Did you even eat lunch? Breakfast?"

Takeshi, though he might have admitted to himself that he /was/ hungry, forced himself to ignore the fish and hunch a little bit more over his book. He didn't expect it to deter the other very much, if at all, but he was compelled to do it nonetheless. In the end, Kentarou had to bend his neck oddly in order to keep the food aimed at the other's mouth. "Come on, Takepon, you know you'd like it. Just give in and we'll both be happy." With his free hand he continued to shovel pieces of fish into his own mouth; a second pair of chopsticks was available, since Takeshi had never bothered to pick his own up. "Did I tell you about where I got the fish? I had to go all the way downtown to find the ones I wanted."

Takeshi pushed the other's arm aside so the sushi was no longer blocking his view of the book. The badgering had only gotten worse since Kenpii -- /Kentarou/, he corrected himself -- had finished throwing together his evening snack. While Kentarou had been in the kitchen it was much easier to pretend that he wasn't being chattered at.

"Mmm. You don't know what you're missing. Maybe I'll save you some for later. The seaweed comes from this wonderful little shop. It goes really well with the tuna. I'll have to buy more of both. Maybe tomorrow. Do you want to come with me? We can go during lunch. There's this great crepe stand on the way.

"And a noodle stand," Kentarou continued, after pausing only a split second for a gulp of air and another bite of his snack. "And I know you like noodles, Takepon. I'm sure you like sushi too, I've seen you eat a lot of it. So, where was I? Oh, yes, the shopping. I went down there after class -- I'd looked for you, because I thought you might want to come along, but you were nowhere to be found."

Takeshi flipped a page in his book, his shoulders tensing as he realized that this wasn't going to stop. Kentarou was even more obstinate than him at times, and apparently he was dead set on getting a response of some kind. And he might have said something -- grunted, snorted, whatevered -- if he hadn't caught himself listening with interest. Kentarou reached for the soy sauce and sprinkled it liberally on some of the remaining sushi, "I thought I saw you outside the library, but whoever it was ducked behind a bush like he was trying to avoid someone."

Resolutely, Takeshi's eyes remained fixed on the text as Kentarou continued to prattle. He was determined not to listen; not to be distracted by the excited expression on the other young man's face; not to find himself actually enjoying the endless flow of words from Kenpii. ".. so Erii said that she was actually going the other way, but I think she was just hoping to find you-know-who instead of me.." Takeshi scowled at the page and at himself. /Kentarou/. He had to watch these mental slips, or he might actually call him that out loud, and that could be a disaster.

"Mm. The egg is good too. Even if I do say so myself." Kentarou's head bent over the sushi while he poked them with the end of his chopsticks, trying to find one kind in particular. "I could've sworn I made more tuna ones.. You know, Takepon, if you're not fond of tuna, we can buy some salmon or something next time."

Takeshi said quietly, as if he wasn't really paying attention and the response was automatic, "Don't call me Takepon." Not that he expected compliance, and as the monologue continued, he began to show more obvious agitation. He flipped a page at the end of every sentence.

Empty food containers were stacking up on the table and beginning to crowd out the schoolwork that had been there previously. And yet still, Kentarou was eating, without letting a little thing like food consumption interrupt the endless monologue. "I wish Iron Chef was on tonight." Takeshi flipped a page. "It's on tomorrow night though." Flip. "Will you watch it with me?" Flip. "I wonder what the theme ingredient will be." Flip. "I hope it's Iron Chef Japanese." Flip. "He's really my favorite, I think." Flip. "He's always so creative with his work!" Flip. "I should strive to be more like him in my cooking." Flip. "Don't you agree, Takepon?" Flip.

Takeshi was beginning to run out of pages and had long since run out of patience. It was sheer perversity keeping him quiet now, and his face was slowly growing more and more red. Kentarou was quiet for all of three seconds while he considered Takeshi, "Hey, Takepon, that's amazing." Flip. "You read so fast!" Flip. "Can you teach me to read that fast?"

The book was shut and slammed against the table with a loud bang, causing all of the snack related litter to rattle and Kentarou to jump. "Takepon.." he started, surprised, before he was cut off by the other.

"Shut up," Takeshi said quietly, and then louder, his volume increasing with each syllable until he was shouting. "I do not care where you got the tuna, or the seaweed, or how many crepes you can eat in a minute. I don't care if you met Erii running naked down the street! I don't understand why you /never/ seem to have any work to do, and why I can't have a little peace and quiet once in a while! I don't see why, if you're going to have the television on, you don't actually watch it! I will not teach you to read as fast as that, because /I/ don't know how to read that fast. I have gotten no studying done tonight, which means I'll get hardly any sleep, which means that tomorrow is going to start off just like today. I don't know what you want from me, Kenpii! I ask you to stop, I ignore you, and nothing." Red in the face, Takeshi didn't even notice what he'd said as he shot to his feet in preparation for storming out. "What do I need to do to get through to you? If I tell you that I love you, will you shut the hell up?!"

Blink. Blink. For the first time since Kentarou returned home, the apartment was silent except for the droning of the television. There was nothing but a blinking stare from Kentarou. He'd even stopped eating.

Takeshi, whose mind caught up with his tongue just a split second too late, started to look horrified, followed nanoseconds later by panicked. And it was into this dead silence that the Chief suddenly intruded, a large projected image shooting out of the mess on the table. Somehow, he even managed to turn off the television. "I have a mission for you. Report to headquarters."

Kentarou stared straight through the image without even seeing it, eyes still fixed on Takeshi. He was blushing; a clear indication he'd heard every word Takeshi had spoken.

Rather than deal with any of it, Takeshi turned for the door. A mission. He reacted automatically to the order; he wasn't ready to face that blush. Not yet. Not when it was so obviously his fault.

The Chief's words were apparently slower to sink into Kentarou's brain. When they did, he stood up abruptly and bumped against the table. The projected image wavered, but the smirking visage remained. Fortunately, neither Takeshi nor Kentarou saw it, as they were both out of the apartment by then.