(March) Nic & Linda's Secret : West Mifflin

[Kyo Suzuki]

Outfit here.

Kyo pulled his winter gloves over his hands, one after another, then straightened his black coat over his shoulders, watching his breath mist in the cold air even despite the fact that he was still inside the church.

He had just finished up a chorus rehearsal at church, a session which was normally quite enjoyable for him. Except in that it had become increasingly difficult to manage once the Christmas concert had passed and Linda decided he was challenging her for her solos. It didn't matter how many times he told her the choir director herself had asked him to accept the part for the concert--Linda was on a very determined "Kyo-hating-streak," and she would hear none of his excuses.

In fact, Kyo hadn't tried auditioning for many solos following that Christmas concert. He'd been asked again recently to do "Pie Jesu" for one of the masses, and he'd accepted that among a few others that Linda had been the only person to volunteer for, but otherwise he'd made a point of avoiding her jealous, annoying stares. It was at all these times that Kyo wondered how anyone like her could be related to Nic. He still didn't understand the attraction there, but he knew Nic seemed to really like her, so...

With everything packed up, Kyo was in the process of leaving the church along with the rest of his fellow choir mates, when he saw him.

A man. With Linda.

And it wasn't Nic.

Kyo blinked, as if somehow the image of the unknown man in front of him might be a trick of the lights or something and would go away if he looked more carefully.

But it didn't go away. In fact, Kyo watched Linda scan the area around them almost nervously--somehow her gaze passed over Kyo, though he figured that was in part due to all the people moving around him after the rehearsal--and then she hurriedly pulled the unknown man out the back door of the church by his arm.

Kyo took a deep breath, feeling almost rooted to where he stood, just watching the two leave.

What was going on? It was weird enough to see Linda sneaking around with some other guy--though not entirely unexpected, considering Kyo had always thought her the type to play around--but the fact that she was acting so suspicious...

He decided to follow.

Kyo wasn't typically one to go sneaking about and spying on people, but he felt he had his reasons this time. First of all, because his curiosity had gotten the better of him, but perhaps more importantly, because he was very aware that Linda was the one making all the moves on Nic, not vice versa. And Nic did seem to have fallen for the sneaky girl, whether Linda was playing him or not. That's what Kyo wanted to know now. Had she gotten tired of Nic already? Now she was making up for him with a fling or two behind his back?

Kyo didn't want to open up a can of worms, but he didn't want Nic to have to put up with that kind of thing either. And maybe, well....maybe he was being a bit selfish. He'd never trusted Linda, never taken much liking to her even before she'd proven to him that she absolutely hated his guts, and if she proved to be just what he thought she was....

Slinging his schoolbag over one shoulder, Kyo hurried through the back door he had seen Linda disappear through. Outside, the weather hadn't improved. If anything, the temperature had only continued to drop, and now small flakes of icy snow were coming down. He blinked the cold rain from his eyes, glancing around the area for where the annoying woman and her male friend had gone.

Hearing the loud commotion of his choirmates to his right, Kyo instinctively looked to his left. The path this way was more secluded, less used. It didn't seem proper for Linda to want to take this route at all, especially with her prissy ways, but the way she'd seemed adamant to avoid people moments ago, he could understand if she'd had a quick change of heart.

Taking a deep breath, Kyo pushed past some old rakes and leaf blowers, following the path from the back door of the church through a narrow alleyway and out onto a side street he recognized as one which branched off from the main road he always caught the bus on. He'd never explored this area before, but there was a first time to everything, wasn't there?
Moving around the back of the church and down the street, Kyo passed by a run-down looking home and was in the process of stopping in front of an equally small, run-down, abandoned looking factory building, when he heard the voices.

"Sorry, there's some kid there that's so damn annoying. I wanted to get out of there before he started nagging me like he usually does. He thinks he's the best damn singer in the whole chorus..."

Kyo didn't need a single guess in the world to know who had spoken those words.

Officially intrigued, and fairly annoyed, he moved forward around the warehouse, stopping just as he reached the corner to peer around.

There were two figures standing in the otherwise empty parking lot, one definitely Linda, the other the man Kyo had seen her leave the church with moments before. The two were standing quite close.

Kyo's mind suddenly felt blank. What was this?

[Nicholas Wu]

ooc: Posting for Linda!

ic:

"Sorry, there's some kid there that's so damn annoying. I wanted to get out of there before he started nagging me like he usually does. He thinks he's the best damn singer in the whole chorus..."

Jeff set down the keys to his car on the hood of the automobile, before smirking at Linda. "Picking fights with little kids, Lin? Leave him the f*ck alone, he's probably just got some kind of massive preteen crush on you..."

Linda laughed. "I wouldn't actually be surprised. He's kinda puny for his age, might need an actual woman to make up for it..."

"...Masturbating to the sound of your angelic voice--"

"--Jeff, ew, seriously! I can't stand that kid."

She continued to laugh as Jeff pulled her into a big bear hug, his chuckles disappearing into her hair. She reached up to hold him back.

"Anyway," Jeff spoke, his breath tousling her hair. She buried her face into his shoulder, taking in his strong smell, of soap and the Ax he had put on. He really was so manly. "You've been so busy recently, babe, I've missed you. I'm the one missing the sound of your voice..."

"Mmmm," Linda responded, not allowing herself to actually dwell on why Jeff had seen so little of her recently. After all, despite everything that had been going on, she really did still like Jeff. She didn't want him to get upset or accidentally mistake her feelings.

Looking up, Linda met Jeff's eyes, then smiled. "It's like I can never have enough time to hang out with you, sweetheart. Between school and work, and now choir, it's begun to get so freaking--"

But she didn't get to finish her words there, because suddenly she felt Jeff's lips pressed against hers, his passionate kiss immediately taking her by storm. She closed her eyes and fell into the kiss herself, her tongue flicking in between Jeff's lips to explore his mouth.

The sweet, electrifying sensation might have lasted a little longer, if it weren't for Linda's phone going off. With their bodies pressed together so closely, the vibrating coming from her pocket told both of them that someone was calling her.

"Oh babe," Linda pulled away for a moment, her hand slipping into her pocket. "Hang on."

Her hand came out clasping the white cellphone loosely. Who could be calling? She hadn't made any plans with anybody for today--maybe someone wanted to schedule a hang-out time?

"Probably one of my girls," she told Jeff, smiling as she opened up the phone.

The name of the caller blinked against a white background, announcing who had intruded on the special moment between her and Jeff. And it was a name Linda had not been expecting, nor was it one she had wanted to see right now.

Nicholas.

The phone flashed the name over and over again, the image of it now burned into her mind. She tensed, about to slam her finger down on the hang-up button.

"Who's 'Nicholas'?" Jeff asked, a curious tone to his voice.

Linda looked up at Jeff, her real boyfriend, before quickly smiling and finally hitting the hang-up button on Nic, and closing the phone. She felt a sinking feeling despite the smile on her face. Dammit Nic, why'd you have to call now, she couldn't help thinking to herself. Turning back to her boyfriend she laughed and quickly waved it off. "He's actually some kid I've known since middle school. He used to have a massive crush on me. Now we're just friends."

Jeff just stared at her. "Oh?"

Linda felt as though there were something stuck in the back of her throat. This reminded her all too much of a certain something that had happened between her, Nic, and an old boyfriend way back when they'd all known each other and gone to school together. But they'd all been kids then, and Linda didn't think Jeff would take things as far as Geoffrey had. At least, she hoped not.

Laughing again, Linda tossed her hair, trying to appear confident despite suddenly feeling rather shaky. She knew what she could do to fix this. "Don't worry, Jeff." She slapped him on the arm playfully. "Geez, he's just a friend, if even that! You're acting like I'm dating the guy!"

Jeff seemed to believe her, though there was a moment's pause before he spoke again. The big guy snorted. "Well, I don't like the idea of any other guy putting his paws on my Lin."

Linda shook her head, still smiling despite the sickness that seemed to have made itself to her throat. "Nicholas? Oh please. He's not even really a man. He can't even hear!"

Jeff looked at Linda with surprise. "What do you mean? He's deaf?"

Linda nodded, a smirk on her face despite the stabs of pain that seemed to be plaguing her heart. Well, even if she had to say these things about Nic, at the very least, she was saving him from what could have been another horrible fate.

"He's always been a geek, even back when I knew him. A wimp too."

Somehow, talking about this seemed to have peaked Jeff's interest. He smirked in return. "And you've known him ever since? What is he, some kind of stalker?"

Linda shook her head. "No, that's the thing, he'd moved away after middle school. I only just met him again recently. Like I said, he used to have a massive crush on me. Back when we were in middle school and I was dating this guy named Geoffrey, Nicholas had tried to share his feelings for me. Both Geoffrey and I were so shocked that he'd even had the audacity to feel that way about me, considering he's well, a ch*nk, and especially when I was already taken. So Geoffrey beat the sh*t out of him. He almost died. That's why he's deaf now, because Geoffrey hurt him so bad that he lost his hearing."

There was a moment's pause before Jeff burst out laughing. At this, despite Linda's breaking heart, the wrenching feeling in her gut at recalling 13 year old Nicholas' screams, she smirked. Jeff seemed thoroughly amused by her story, and she knew why. He was in some ways like Geoffrey. The big, tall, very obviously strong type. Unlike Nic, who was far thinner and shorter. He probably enjoyed hearing about how so many people fought over the woman that was now his.

"So your old boyfriend back then took care of his Chinese *ss and he what--ran away? Didn't come back to school anymore?"

Linda nodded. "Yeah, he moved away after that. And years later, I met up with him here at Penn State." She rolled her eyes. "At least he isn't fawning all over me now." But oh, how I wish he was, she couldn't help thinking to herself.

Jeff wiped his mouth, still laughing at what he was probably imagining. "Better not be fawning over my girl, or he'll lose more than just his hearing." His laughter now reduced to snickers, he reached out and pulled Linda in close again. "You're so freaking sexy, Linda. I just imagined you kicking the snot out of some little Asian kid."

"Jeff, haha..."

"My own f*cking Helen of Troy..."

There was nothing more Linda could say after that, as she felt Jeff's lips pressed to her own once more. She slipped her phone back into her pocket quietly and fell back into his kiss, although this time she wasn't quite enjoying it as much as she had been a moment before.

[Kyo Suzuki]

"Sorry, there's some kid there that's so damn annoying. I wanted to get out of there before he started nagging me like he usually does. He thinks he's the best damn singer in the whole chorus..."

Kyo had rolled his eyes at Linda's initial comment. He wasn't sure if she seriously believed what she was saying or not, but he didn't particularly care. He didn't know her guy friend anyway. At least, he didn't care until they couldn't seem to stop talking about him. It was difficult to hear from where he was standing, leaning just around the building corner so as to be able to hear them and still keep out of sight, but he could make out their voices well enough.

"Picking fights with little kids, Lin? Leave him the f*ck alone, he's probably just got some kind of massive preteen crush on you..."

Linda laughed like the guy had made the best joke in the world. "I wouldn't actually be surprised. He's kinda puny for his age, might need an actual woman to make up for it..."

Kyo subconsciously glanced down at himself. Puny? Well, he was really skinny, yeah, but a lot of Japanese guys were. He was at least fairly tall, he thought. He was taller than a lot of guys in his class, anyway, and--

"Masturbating to the sound of your angelic voice--"

HEY!

Kyo suddenly felt a strong sense of anger well up inside of him. And while he wasn't normally one to get mad over just anything, he felt he had legitimate reasons now. He didn't want people talking about him like that in the first place, but worse still, he definitely didn't want them thinking he would do anything like that over someone like Linda! Had her all-too obvious hints of hate against him not mirrored his feelings for her? He hadn't been as obviously hurtful with how he felt about her, and maybe that was still the Japanese part of him hoping that his dislike of her would just come across through his subtle gestures, not through him having to make some grandiose effort to show his absolute dislike of her, in the way she seemed so adamant to pick on him. How many times had she embarrassed him in some way or another in front of his choirmates? If it wasn't picking apart his singing style (especially for songs she'd been asked to sing in the past), then she always had a good time taunting him about his strong Japanese accent or making other stupid jokes at his expense. He could deal with that....but not if she thought he had some gross crush on her, and he had to admit, he'd never been able to accept her Nic-stalking either....

By the time Kyo's mind had fully returned to the two jerks in front of him, they had started to get a little romantic, and while the sight put Kyo off to the ultimate degree, especially after what they'd assumed of him, something else about the whole scene was disturbing. And fairly ironic too, considering how Kyo had just been thinking about the way Linda acted around Nic.

Like she likes him. A lot. And yet she's with this other guy...?

Linda suddenly began to speak again. "It's like I can never have enough time to hang out with you, sweetheart. Between school and work, and now choir, it's begun to get so freaking--"

Her words were cut short as the jerky guy she was with pulled her into a kiss. Kyo felt his face flush--he was intruding in on something personal, too personal, and yet he knew he couldn't leave. Not yet. Something was up.

"Oh babe. Hang on."

Kyo glanced up. Linda's phone.

"Probably one of my girls." She had that sick smile on her face, the one Kyo hated to see if only because he knew it was the fake one she gave to everyone she was trying to appease. Everyone but him, of course.

But then the look changed. In fact, Kyo didn't know Linda well, just what he did of the times he spent with her--which was usually only with other people and thus when she showed the rest of the world her fake side--but the look he saw now across her face was one of pure surprise. Kyo wondered what was going on, subconsciously pulling his body further around the corner, closer to the couple on the other side of the wall.

Then he heard it.

"Who's 'Nicholas'?" It was the man speaking, and he didn't sound too happy.

"He's actually some kid I've known since middle school. He used to have a massive crush on me. Now we're just friends."

Kyo took a breath he realized he'd been holding it since he'd seen the phone appear. Linda might have otherwise been dull and dumb, but she'd at least been smart enough to play the phone call the way she had. He didn't agree with how she described Nic, thought that described her feelings for his friend and host family member more, but he also didn't like the look on her guy friend's face at the sight of another male name on her phone. In fact, now that he thought about it...

Guy friend. Who was he kidding? Kyo was sure this was Linda's real boyfriend. Who else was she going to be making out with like there was no tomorrow? And more than that, it would explain why she'd snuck off with him from choir practice, as if she wanted to ensure Kyo didn't see her with another man and then tell Nic. What the heck was this girl's problem? As if it wasn't bad enough that she thought he fantasized about her....

And then there was the fact that she'd said "middle school." Since middle school. She'd known Nic that long? Nic had never mentioned anything like that...

But despite how good an answer Kyo thought the girl had given, her boyfriend didn't seem too appeased. She looked to have caught on.

Linda laughed, but it seemed half-hearted to Kyo. Suddenly he was moving forwards again, trying to get closer. The pair's voices had gotten progressively softer since reaching the topic of Nic.

"Don't worry, Jeff. Geez, he's just a friend, if even that! You're acting like I'm dating the guy!"

"Well, I don't like the idea of any other guy putting his paws on my Lin."

Kyo would have gagged if he wasn't listening so intently.

Linda still looked uncomfortable, from what Kyo could see, but she shook her head. "Nicholas? Oh please. He's not even really a man. He can't even hear!"

As Linda's boyfriend--Jeff, if he'd heard the name correctly--mused over that thought, the possibly grossest look Kyo had ever seen Linda wear appeared on her face. The kind of smirk one might see on some evil Disney witch's face, perhaps. He thought it suited her personality, 24 hours a day, but he didn't like the context here. At all. He swallowed a lump which had begun to develop in his throat.

"He's always been a geek, even back when I knew him. A wimp too."

"And you've known him ever since? What is he, some kind of stalker?"

Kyo wondered how Jeff would react if he knew that his very own girlfriend was the actual stalker. She was the one who had made Nic take off from Cafe Mocha that day, followed him around ever since. And hadn't she made it a point to Kyo to avoid getting in her way when it came to Nic? Kind of like with what he was doing now...

"No, that's the thing, he'd moved away after middle school," Linda continued, sounding confident. "I only just met him again recently. Like I said, he used to have a massive crush on me. Back when we were in middle school and I was dating this guy named Geoffrey, Nicholas had tried to share his feelings for me. Both Geoffrey and I were so shocked that he'd even had the audacity to feel that way about me, considering he's well, a ch*nk, and especially when I was already taken. So Geoffrey beat the sh*t out of him. He almost died. That's why he's deaf now, because Geoffrey hurt him so bad that he lost his hearing."

.......what?

Kyo actually felt tremors running through his body. Just....what? Had he misinterpreted? Had he heard wrong in some way? English wasn't his native language, so maybe it was possible that he just hated Linda so much that he'd invented some kind of story that just made her out to be the garbage he'd always thought she was.

But no. No, her story....he'd heard it. And it made sense, all of it. From Nicholas moving after middle school--Nic had told him that himself--right down to the fact that Nic had gotten hurt because Linda had played up his feelings for her while she had a boyfriend. Like....like....

Oh my God. Kyo's hands suddenly felt clammy, his heart pounding so hard and fast that it might very well have just finished a running marathon.

Nic was in danger. Nic was in serious danger.

Because Linda was doing it again.

She'd gotten Nic deaf once before, she'd been the reason for his unfortunate disability, for all his qualms and troubles, his family's qualms and troubles, Nic's inability to hear the beauty of music or singing or his friends and families' voices...And the girl who had stolen all that from him, stolen a significant part of his life....she hadn't learned. She was really doing it all over again.

Kyo began to back up slightly. He....he...Oh God, what did he even do now? What could he do? Who could he tell? Well, he had to tell Nic, of course, but what if Nic didn't believe him? What if telling him hurt him more, especially when he'd come to fall for Linda all over again? He didn't think he could bring himself to do that to Nic, let alone even get the words out at all. Kyo tried to steady his shaking by pressing more tightly against the wall. He needed to think, but he couldn't. His mind was spinning....

Jeff's laughter moments later only made things worse. Kyo literally felt as though Linda's words had tightened an invisible rope around his neck, tightened until he could no longer catch a breath. Suddenly, even though there was open air all around, he felt trapped, stifled. He barely heard the words the nasty couple spoke to each other next, and he doubt it mattered if he did. He....he was so shocked, so scared....he'd never been in this kind of situation before. He'd never been in the middle of threat of bodily harm before either, but he had the feeling that this feeling, this overwhelming sense of being in the middle of something deadly, stuck, with nowhere to go and nothing to do without some kind of negative consequence....this was far worse.

"Nic-san...." It was little more than a breathless murmur.

Jeff's next words were loud and clear, as if they had been amplified out to Kyo through some kind of speakers.

"Better not be fawning over my girl, or he'll lose more than just his hearing."

And then Kyo ran. He didn't wait a second.

His legs shaking, unsteady beneath him, he rushed back in the direction of the church knowing he needed to find some place to sit down for a moment, catch his breath, try to calm down and mull things over, figure out the best course of action. He could do that, it would be okay, he just needed to--

"Nic-san......" Kyo brushed tears from his eyes. "Oh my God...."

The church tower came into view within only a matter of seconds, and Kyo ran for the sight as fast as his legs could take him, a sudden beacon of hope in the cloudy darkness which suddenly seemed to have surrounded him. He needed to get inside, he needed to just sit down a moment. Just a moment.

[Angela]

Evgeni was excited for this special charity benefit concert, which brought together choirs from different churches, and different denominatiuons of Christianity, in the spirit of brotherhood. He'd come up with the idea himself. He'd grown tired of people in the region criticizing each other for the fundamental differences in the Christian denominations. He went to various church officials in Sewickley, and eventually several churches in the region agreed to participate in the event. What almost destroyed the plans, however, was whether to charge admission or not. When it was decided that a small charge would be acceptable, what everyone disagreed about was what to do with the money. Some thought that each choir should get a percentage to donate to their church or a charity of their choice. It was Evgeni who proposed that they all decided on a single charitable cause. After listing several foundations and causes, everyone felt that St. Jude's Children's Hospital was the best charity that their money could be donated to.

The venue was decided for St. Anthony's Catholic Church in West Mifflin, which was good proximity to everyone involved. Evgeni was looking forward to seeing Kyo perform with the choir. Zhenya directed the choir in St. Nicholas's in Sewickley, and had never heard him sing. For his own choir, Zhenya chose songs that were not just hymns for the concert, but still secular in their own way. One that he was lookin forward to singing "God Help The Outcasts" from Disney's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." With the recent crisis that happened with Danil, and how much Danil loved the film and its music, Zhenya decided that he would offer his comfort and support to his beloved brother by performing this song.

Evgeni went to the church, about a half hour before his choir's practice, so that he could prepare for his choir's rehearsal there. As he made his way inside, he looked at the congregation area, surprised to see someone there, and not just anyone, but Kyo.

"Kyo?" he asked, walking over to him. He looked like he was crying. Zhenya sat down next to him. "What's wrong?" He put his arm around him, rubbing his arm and shoulder.

He had grown very close to Kyo over the past several months, but he had not really confided in him as much as he did his host family and Nic. Evgeni understood, but right now, it looked like he could really use some comfort.

[Kyo Suzuki]

Kyo hadn't wasted a moment once he'd gotten through the church doors. The entire building had gone quiet with the absence of the choir and its conductor and the piano accompanist. Normally the atmosphere would have been reverent for Kyo, peaceful, but now his mind was so a-whir that it had simply become a place for him to try to settle down in, think everything he'd just witnessed through in the calmest way he could....if that was even possible. He couldn't seem to find any means of rational thinking at the moment--was it a panic attack? It seemed reasonable to assume.

What Kyo had just heard, now knowing the reason for Nic's deafness....he was positive it hadn't been some grand fabrication on Linda's part. She was probably a Grade-A liar in a lot of areas, but he knew this wasn't one of her grand lies. Everything matched: her story, Nic's, all the facts and stories he'd encountered over the course of his stay with Danil, Peter, and Nic together. It was like he'd been building the puzzle to the entire thing for the entire time, a very complicated puzzle. But it was like someone had put the puzzle pieces of a very different puzzle into a very different box, so the image on the outside did not match the image the pieces made when put together. And now he had them all, or most of them, and he could see the picture clearly, and he was wondering how he could have been so stupid, how he hadn't even considered that Nic had lost his hearing prematurely, especially when he'd had hearing at one point in his life.... Possibly near worst of all, Kyo realized how selfish he had been all this time. All the times he'd spent with Nic, never once asking him how he came to lose his hearing, if it had been of natural causes or something else, always taking for granted, in a way, his own hearing....

And Linda.

Kyo had never liked Linda. He hadn't liked her the minute she'd walked through the doors of Cafe Mocha and made an entrance into his life. He'd known Nic had had some affiliation with her after that moment, after the way he'd bolted, and now it all made sense. But instead of Linda staying out of Nic's life, the way it should have been after what she'd done, she was coming back for more. Cruelly, she hadn't had enough. Along the way she'd made sure to make Kyo's life hell too, but he had been so selfish, griping about her annoying acts against him....he had no right. At least he hadn't lost his hearing thanks to her. She seemed to hate Nic enough that even taking from him something so important, something just so important, hadn't been enough for her. And yet the way she acted around him, like she really, truly liked him.....Kyo couldn't begin to understand it. Why was she playing games with Nic? She secretly hated him and wanted to do him more harm--that was all he could think of, but even he had had hope somewhere deep down that she couldn't be that evil.

And if he told someone...Oh God, who would believe him? If he told someone, there was the risk of Linda finding out, and then not only would Nic be in danger, but possibly everyone else involved too--the people he told, himself...If she hated "little Asian kids" enough, or however her stupid boyfriend had put it, then he wouldn't put it past her to find some way to hurt him too, especially if it meant getting her stupid solos back. God, even his thoughts weren't making sense! Kyo felt another tremor run through his body and gripped tightly onto the pew in front of him, blinking out endless-seeming rivulets of tears. He....he needed to just....

"Kyo?

The voice was as alarming as just about everything else in Kyo's life at that moment. He felt himself jump what seemed feet into the air before turning sharply on the spot.

Zhenya......Sweet Zhenya. Kyo knew the man only from the meetings they had had over the course of the school semester, which--while many--had never offered Kyo the opportunity to get to know the man on a deeper level, at least in the way he knew Danil, Peter, and Nic. Zhenya had always been sweet and supportive, but seeing him now.....Kyo didn't feel ready for this. Realizing he probably looked the mess he felt, Kyo quickly turned back around in his seat, trying hard to find some thought that could ease him back into some more composed state.

Zhenya took a seat beside Kyo at the pew, putting an arm around him to rub his arm and shoulder supportively.

"What's wrong?"

Kyo looked up. Feeling panic mode kick in double-time now, Kyo took a deep breath and tried to regain some composure. He knew he'd already made a mess of himself and Zhenya had seen that, but he also knew he could not relay what he'd just overheard. Not to anyone, not even--and this was the worst part--to Nic. At least not yet. He needed to figure out what it had all meant, but most of all, what he could do that wouldn't put anyone in danger. All the players in Linda's sick game were so grossly intertwined, that if he made one wrong move......

"There is nothing wrong..." Kyo tried a smile for Zhenya, grateful for the man's gestures but unable to glean any comfort from them. He wiped tears from his eyes. He might not have been a true Christian, but he certainly didn't like being forced to lie in church. "I am sorry to trouble you. I....I...." He tried to think quickly. Of anything: feeling sick, someone ill at home, not singing well and disappointing everyone......Excuses were flying through his head a mile a minute in his desperate state, but none seemed a valid reason for the look of distress he couldn't seem to erase from his face.

Kyo stifled a sob. He'd never been in such distress before, so he'd never had to make up a lie to cover anything like this up. He'd never imagined he would have to...

"It is....just that I have too much on my mind lately." Kyo closed his eyes. He hated lying, he didn't want to be a liar, not in church, but he knew he couldn't say anything to Zhenya. Not yet, anyway. "I just feel.....ah....I just feel so stressed recently."

Maybe that wasn't even a lie. In fact, he was feeling more than stressed suddenly, wasn't he?

Kyo wiped more tears from his eyes, wondering where they were coming from, so many and all at once and how he couldn't seem to stop, and buried his face in his hands again. He couldn't do this. This was just too much at once.

The Japanese exchange student stood up suddenly, shoving one shaking hand into his pocket and wrapping the other tightly around the strap of his schoolbag. "Zhenya-san....I know you are busy, so I think I should go home. Ah....." He sniffled."...I think if I sleep, I will feel a bit better. Sometimes I am guessing....just emotio.....I just...."

He couldn't even get words out properly.

"I will see you later." He turned quickly to leave. He wasn't the type to be forceful about things--he had a great respect for his superiors and his elders--but now was different. He couldn't allow himself to end up in a worse situation. He would go home. He would take the walk to the bus and then home from the bus as an opportunity to compose himself and gather his thoughts, then he would hide out somewhere near to home to try and figure everything out, lay it all out to see what he could do and what it all meant, even if he already had an unfortunate idea of what. That would be somewhere away from home, somewhere where poor Danil wouldn't have to worry about him, though he got the horrible feeling Zhenya would tell his host father about his state and thus worry the other man when he didn't return home right away.

Kyo turned again, biting a lip. "Zhenya-san, please do not worry about me. I know I look like......" He paused. You can do it-you have to. "....a big crybaby, but I just recently felt very down....It's my own fault, so...ahhh, I just needed a place to let it all out. Please don't tell Danyaru-san. I don't want to trouble him too. I am really okay."

[Angela]

Evgeni shook his head as he stood up with Kyo. "Kyo, it's all right. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I just hoped I could help you. Will you accept my comfort in lieu of my advice?" He paused, watching as Kyo turned to leave, then when he spoke and turned back to him, Zhenya nodded to himself. There was something seriously wrong. Kyo wouldn't act like this if he was just stressed for a generic reason such as school. "Kyo, please let me drive you home. We don't have to talk. I understand if you don't wish to confide in me. At least let me drive you home," he insisted.

His heart ached watching him cry and not being able to help. He couldn't blame Kyo for pushing him away; he wondered if he were in his place if he would confide in someone he did not know well.

Worrying Danil... Danil was already worried and stressed enough due to his newly-diagnosed post-traumatic stress. All the same, Zhenya knew that he put his responsibility towards Kyo ahead of caring for himself. He wasn't sure that was a good idea, but if the boy couldn't count on Danil, if he could not be cared for properly, that was risking psychological damage on Kyo himself. Zhenya knew Danil well enough to know that he wouldn't let that happen.

"Whatever it is, you should only talk about it when you are ready," Zhenya pointed out. "So I will not force you. Just let me drive you home." He smiled gently.

[Kyo Suzuki]

Kyo didn't have to be a genius to see Zhenya felt upset, even the slightest, though he had been expecting that. And of course the man was--he'd probably been able to read Kyo just as easily, seen through his lie, and now he felt hurt that Kyo wouldn't confide in him...

But he could get a lot more hurt if he hears the truth, Kyo couldn't help thinking.

He might have been talking to his senior here, and he didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, but he had to be firm. Kyo wasn't even sure he could trust himself with his own feelings right now, he was so overwhelmed. He definitely couldn't lay this on someone else, and he certainly didn't want to.

He thought of the time Danil had managed to coax what happened with Shotsky out of him, something he hadn't even originally realized he knew deep inside or existed or had been possible at all until Danil had asked him for it. He knew Zhenya was only trying to be helpful, but he was worried the same thing would happen here. And either way, would he tell Danil?

Kyo finally sighed. "It is....it is okay." He forced a smile. "I think if I have the comfort to be able to walk home alone, I can really figure out what I can do to....to better manage my time and my stress." He wasn't sure Zhenya had bought that lie, but he figured he better stick to it. Anyway, it wasn't so far from the truth.

"Walking helps me a lot in this way," he continued, trying to sound encouraging. "But I am really grateful that you offer me help too. Thank you." He bowed low to Zhenya and turned to leave once more, making it as far as the church's main doors, his bag slung over one shoulder, one hand still wrapped tightly around the strap, the other now out of his pocket, shaking slightly as it brushed the surface of the door.

Kyo swallowed the impossibly large lump in his throat, his heart heavy knowing that in addition to the horrifying thing he'd just discovered, he'd also hurt a friend's feelings along the way. He felt as though he'd lost a piece of himself too.

Kyo took a deep breath. "Zhenya-san...you know when a friend needs help to keep a secret? I am in need of a friend. Please be that friend for me...Please do not tell Danyaru-san that I was unhappy. He has only been good to me, so I do not want him to worry. It is between you and me, okay? Secret." Kyo turned, trying to maintain a smile even as tears appeared at the corners of his eyes once more. Then he tapped his nose at Zhenya, gesturing to him that he trusted him to keep this secret between them.

Just as he would keep Nic and Linda's secret, until he could figure out what to do.

Kyo turned for the last time and didn't hesitate, departing from the church into a rapidly darkening sky.