Around six o’clock that night, Shogo was sitting at his dining room table, staring blankly at the wall. For some reason a bout of depression had settled upon him, and he turned to look out of the window to people watch (which was easy to do from where he lived, being the Tomoku-hasu’s mansion and all). The “people watching” bit was probably what had caused him to sink down in his seat, a bit discouraged. There were more couples than anything, giggling and parading to the nearest bars and other such establishments with alcohol. Women with short dresses that contained so many sequins they could be seen from a low flying airplane strode into such places with dates who wore embarrassing party hats. One or two of them were already drunk.
Isn’t it silly to decide to stay just because of that? He rubbed the back of his neck, leaning back in his chair. Shogo had begged for the chance to get out of the house, but he was genuinely a bit nervous. When was the last time he’d actually interacted with people socially? Other than talking to friends who had been with him for his entire life (i.e., Soshi, Kamui and Chihiro), he admitted that he didn’t consider anyone else a “friend” or anything close to it, which almost bothered him. There were no casual acquaintances to speak of, he realized, and as his brown eyes cast to the ceiling he sighed deeply.
“You look pretty depressed, Sho.”
The blonde clicked his tongue, rolling his eyes a bit as he sat up in his chair, not even bothering to spare the visitor a glance. “What do you want, old man?”
Natsu Shimada slipped into the room, his chocolate brown hair disheveled from the obvious runs he’d been making. “You aren’t going anywhere tonight? But you can finally drink this year…” He sounded a bit regretful.
“None of your business.” He answered, his expression becoming a bit more sullen at his words. The old fart was right, though; this would be the first New Year’s Eve that he would be able to drink, and that excited him…but what about the cons to it? He couldn’t just go out for the drinking, could he?
“You’re right, it’s not.” Natsu said airily. “But I can tell you’re having some…doubts.” Though Shogo could not see his face, his eyebrows furrowed together as his face twisted into something that conveyed genuine worry. “You aren’t afraid of being too tsundere to function, aren’t you?”
“I am not tsundere!” Shogo cried, standing so abruptly that he knocked over his chair in the process. His cheeks were flushed with embarrassment. “Stop saying that, it isn’t funny anymore!”
“You ARE tsundere, and someone needed to tell you before you punched a girl in the face instead of confessing...” Natsu sighed. “I just want the best for you, you know.”
“You...that was not…Get out!” He exclaimed suddenly.
“Calm down, boy, I was only half joking…” His voice lowered. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s…wrong.” His voice dropped a bit and he edged away from the window.
His adoptive father followed his gaze. “You know,” he said, “when I was a kid, I was worried about a lot of things, and my worries just began to increase as I aged. Like…dating, for instance,” he noticed Shogo’s eyes widen a bit. “Women are strange creatures. You also can’t blame them if they ‘friend zone’ you, or just don’t like you. You can’t force yourself onto someone, because love doesn’t come by force. It’s the same for us, too. I bet you haven’t noticed, but you’ve got some admirers too.”
Admirers? “Sure. Doesn’t everyone?” The words were without any sort of enthusiasm; if anything he was being sarcastic.
“Have you ever taken a moment to stop thinking? You’re a very bright boy, Shogo, but sometimes that’s not the best thing for you. Sometimes thinking means more fear. Why do you think there are so many geniuses who won’t leave their houses?” Natsu told him, leaning against the window frame. “So.”
“What?”
“Go. You were invited, right? I know for a fact you’ve been cooped up here for the past three days.” He shrugged a bit. “Who knows, you may be really glad you did.”
The blonde swallowed a little. With a glance to the clock- which read seven- thirty already- Shogo shook his head. “…get out already. I have to get dressed.”
Natsu smiled a bit. “Whatever you say, Tomoku-hasu-sama.”
“…arigato, tou-san.” It came out in a whisper and his back was turned when he said it, but the elder shinobi heard it and understood, running his fingers through his hair. He realized Natsu had already gone when he turned, and with a smile he headed to his bedroom to shower.
