The Pink Rose's Promise (BL)

24. Lovesick

"You didn't tell me you were bringing Oda-san," Ichirou hissed to Yuuhei as he sat in front of the other man.

The cafe they were meeting up at was fairly cheap, but Yuuhei wanted to pay for himself, so this is where they were going. Yuuhei, and apparently Takeru, had arrived before Ichirou and were sitting at a four-person table in the middle of the restaurant. Ichirou really wanted to be able to meet up with his best friend alone after he had that anxiety attack yesterday, but it seemed like that wouldn't be granted.

"I invited myself," Takeru said, a grin on his face as he sipped on the cola. "Why, you got something bad to say?"

Yuuhei looked at his boyfriend with an annoyed stare. "I can't believe you followed me all of the way here. I tried to tell him that this was something important that you couldn't say in front of just anyone, but he ignored me."

"And I said that I want to get to know my boyfriend's best friend better, so where does that leave us? Oh, right here. Please, it can't be that big of a deal," Takeru said, folding his arms.

Ichirou glowered at him. "It is."

Takeru suddenly looked serious and leaned across the table. "Did Masahiro finally knock you up?"

Ichirou stared at him for a second, not fully understanding what Takeru said, before he let out a squeak of indignation, covering his red cheeks with his hands. Takeru laughed and leaned back, while Yuuhei smacked the back of his head. The only thing that held Ichirou back from full-on yelling at Takeru was the nice waitress who came over to get his drink order. Ichirou hadn't really been looking at the menu, but he quickly found what he wanted.

"Strawberry shake, please," Ichirou said. The waitress nodded and walked off, while Yuuhei looked like he was extremely concerned.

"I thought you were on a not diet but actually a diet," Yuuhei said.

"I'm done for a minute. I need to... ugh, I need sugar to compensate for my emotions," Ichirou grumbled.

"Okay, so, got it, you're feeling really bad. Is it something you can say in front of Takeru?" Yuuhei asked.

Ichirou glowered at the blond man. "How well can he keep secrets?"

"Surprisingly well," Yuuhei said, shrugging. "I mean, he tells me all of Masahiro's secrets, but you can't expect secrets between boyfriends or best friends. That always leads to trouble."

"Okay, but what if it's a secret about Masahiro?" Ichirou asked, eyeing his best friend's boyfriend with distrust.

Takeru seemed to take offense at that. "I'm not going to tell anyone. As long as you aren't planning, like, to destroy his house or cause him actual harm, I'll keep it to myself. You don't need to worry about me."

Ichirou continued looking at him with suspicion written on his face, so Yuuhei butted in. "Ichirou, I know Takeru's kind of an asshole, but he really won't tell Masahiro, especially if it is what I think it is. I would personally kick his ass if he did."

"Damn, cold, babe," Takeru said, putting on a mock look of hurt.

"Oda-san. I need you... to not. Just don't. Okay? Like, don't tell him, don't make funny quips, don't make light of the situation, nothing. I'm freaking out a bit, and I don't need you to make it worse for me. Do you understand?" Ichirou asked, glaring at Takeru.

Takeru seemed to actually sober up a bit. "Yeah, okay. I'll keep my mouth shut."

The waitress came back at that moment, placing the strawberry shake in front of Ichirou. She grabbed their orders, then walked back to get them put in. Ichirou sucked on his milkshake, and while it definitely wasn't the best milkshake he'd ever had, it was definitely hitting the spot. He took in a deep breath, shaking a little, before speaking.