Nathaniel pursed his lips, swallowing a hiss of pain as Ken carefully dabbed his open lips with cotton and alcohol. The shy male gently placed a finger under his chin, lifting it up to continue treating his wounds, a light frown on his lips.
Ken hated seeing people in pain, and even more inflicting it but right now there was little he could do to alleviate his friend's agony.
"Sorry... " He quietly apologised, gazing up at the other boy behind strands of messy black hair, brows furrowed in worry.
Nathaniel returned a small smile of reassurance, ignoring the sting coursing through his opened lower lip. "Thanks for taking care of this." He said, hands shooting up to gesture to his current state. Cuts and bruises littering his arms and face, blue and violet shades colouring his usually pale skin like aquarelle on a canvas and blood trickling down his nose and chin, that is if Ken hadn't wiped it out.
Ren sat crossed legged in one of the armchairs of the living room, intently observing the injured boy, a light frown etched between his brows and a fresh cup of coffee in his hands.
Nathaniel had arrived a few minutes ago and Ken had immediately fetched the nursing kit and had sat the male down on the couch to tend to him, thus leaving no time for the male to explain the reason for his current predicament.
But even so Ren could at least guess one thing, this had something to do with (Y/n), if not Nathaniel wouldn't have come over, being more of the individualist and I-can-take-care-of-myself type. And somehow the man also knew he wouldn't like it.
He placed his cup down on the coffee table, leaning back in his seat, eyes locked on Nathaniel as said male cringed once again as Ken pressed a cotton ball to his cuts. He patiently waited for his sibling to be done, crossing his arms over his chest and trying to ponder over what could have happened.
The only culprits he could see were Yuu and Takao. Though from what he knew, the latter had never been the violent type. But rested to know what brought on such a fight. Well then again people could take one off guard sometimes, and after all Takao had had his fair share of hardship for the past few years, him developing a violent streak wouldn't be off the hook.
Ren had never been close to the brown haired male, seeing him as a friend of (Y/n)'s and nothing more. Of course he had encountered him a few times and had even been his teacher last year, but that was it. However one didn't have to know the boy to have heard or read about the tragedy which had hit his family a few years ago. In this small town, news spread like fire.
The boy's father was a cop, one of the best of the town in fact. He had been recently promoted when a criminal he had been trying to catch for years had broken into the family's house and threatened to kill his son and wife. Of course the man hadn't planned on actually killing them off, or maybe he had... But Ren presumed it had been an empty threat. This guy didn't commit murders, he versed in thievery and drug dealing. He had just wanted to scare Takao's father so he'd be left alone with his business.
But things had taken a turn for the worst and had cost him his life. Killed with a bullet in the head in front of his very son. The child had been found by the police covered in his father's blood after trying to keep the blood from oozing out of his father's pierced skull.
A shiver coursed through Ren's spine as his breath caught in his throat.
He had no wish to imagine or picture the scene.
Anyways, it was fair to say Takao had been traumatised by the event. And who wouldn't ?
But Ren wondered how precisely this had affected him, how it had shaped his current psychology and attitude.
"Done !" His brother's soft voice stirred him out of his contemplation and he looked up to see the red haired boy, now all patched up.
"Thank you, you really didn't have to-"
"Oh yes I-I did. We're allies now, aren't we ?" The black haired man interrupted lightly, a gentle smile pulling at the corners of his lips.
Nathaniel scratched the back of his head, averting his gaze bashfully.
Apart from Mia he never had any friends or allies, well not like he had ever needed them. But this was new. And although Ken looked to be perfectly happy and at peace with the way things were, Nathaniel couldn't dismiss the fact that their alliance was purely practical. After all they were still in competition when it came to (Y/n). And he knew the moment one of them saw it fit, they'd all turn their back on one another. But might as well enjoy their partnership while it lasted.
"I-I guess we are." He answered quietly.
Ren cleared his throat, eyes locking with Nathaniel's as he offered him a cup of tea.
"So, what happened back there ?" He asked calmly, folding his hands on his lap.
The red haired male remained silent a moment, pondering over his answer before proceeding.
"A friend of (Y/n)'s beat me up at my own apartment." He explained slowly, a humourless chuckle falling from his lips.
Ren perked up.
A friend ? So this wasn't Yuu. Which only left Takao. But the question of why remained.
"Takao ?" Ken queried curiously, tilting his head to the side and unknowingly mirroring his brother's thoughts.
Ren repressed a soft smile, heart fluttering in his chest.
Ken, just like him, had never been very strong physically. But he had always been smart, very much so. And his innocent eyes had always done a good job at concealing this weapon.
Ren wouldn't be surprised if his brother had, just like him, considered and pondered over the exact same thoughts which had occupied his mind a few minutes ago. They had always been similar like that, with the exception of Ren being aware of his capacities.
Ken had always been too insecure to truly marvel at his own intelligence.
Nathaniel nodded silently.
"Why ?" The shy male queried, a light frown crossing his features.
Nathaniel's breath caught in his throat.
Would they kill him if he were to tell the truth ? That he had finally gone crazy and had given up on the last piece of sanity which had kept him at bay all this time ? That he had been harassing (Y/n) with phone calls and texts after professing his undying love to her ?
Well, not like lying was an option in the first place. Nathaniel had always been a terrible liar and Ren an amazing people reader. This wouldn't work.
The red head swallowed thickly, staring down at his hands fidgeting on his laps, shivers prickling his skin under the weight of the older man's piercing gaze.
"I-" He exhaled shakily. "I told her I loved her... And she rejected me." He said thickly, words barely passing through his throat. Images of the girl's scared features flooded his mind, heart clenching in his chest. He hadn't meant to be this.... Direct with her, this honest. But filtering his thoughts had never been his fort and even less when it came to her. He couldn't stand the thought of being anything else but fully and transparently honest with her. It was just beyond him, even more if it came to his feelings.
He had been pinning them down for too long, and on that day the dam had burst, waves of emotions and unspoken feelings crushing his every inhibition.
The two males listened to him intently, remaining silent and inviting him to continue. Which he did.
"She got angry. And I've been trying to call her and text her to make things right again ! But she never answered... " He paused, licking his lips, a stabbing pain shooting through his chest.
He missed her. Gosh he missed her so bad it was hard to breathe, heart torn in his chest. He usually didn't sleep much, insomnia being an old time friend. But these past few days without news from her had been pure torture, the knowledge of her resentment like a dead weight on his chest, keeping him awake all night.
He hated the thought of her dislike him even if partially.
Unknowingly to him, his attempts at making things right had only managed to push her further away.
"And apparently Takao found out and wasn't pleased with this." He explained. "Said he had to teach me a lesson for tormenting (Y/n) and trying to take what was his." He finished, last words hanging heavy in the room as he looked up at the two males.
Nathaniel had known Takao had a thing for (Y/n) this time they had taken her home. But he hadn't thought he'd be like this... Like them.
However this apparently didn't catch Ren off guard, or maybe he didn't show it. The man wasn't very expressive from what Nathaniel had seen, which only made him more scary in his eyes.
Ken simply averted his hazel eyes, gazing down at his hands with a light frown. Apparently this didn't come as a surprise to him either.
The dark haired man let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his temples to alleviate the building up tension.
As if things weren't complicated enough already, but Takao had to make it worse, right ? Well then again, Ren knew this would happen eventually. But it didn't make the current situation any less annoying.
Rationally he already had little chances of gaining (Y/n)'s trust and love. It would take time for them to become romantically involved, for him to reawaken her feelings for him. Of course he could always take her away and work for something from there. But he'd like to avoid that if possible.
Of course the age difference was something else. Only a half year remained until (Y/n) would be eighteen but he was aware of the fact she'd probably try to fight her feelings for him due to this gap.
And on the other side there were now multiple rivals showing up !
Well things were certainly starting to look interesting. Ren just hoped he wouldn't find himself trapped against the wall.
He'd hate for her to hate him.