Sworn Enemies

"I'm saying..." Masamune winds up to pitch again, leg hanging in the air, teeth bared.

"...Furuya wasn't a virgin when he went to Seido."

Furuya Satoru.

Tall, slender, pale.

Reserved and soft-spoken, yet strong-willed.

Baseball-oriented, obsessed, even.

Friendly? Debatable, but easy to approach once you excuse his crippling lack of humor and social skills.

Superb pitching prowess aside, there was nothing particularly remarkable about him. He wasn't attractive or brimming with sexual allure. He styled his hair normally, wore normal clothes outside of school and baseball practice, and heck, even his ass was normal.

No sex appeal whatsoever.

None.

But that wasn't the Furuya Masamune once knew.

Slutty, suggestive, seductive.

His icy grayish-blue eyes did the talking, inviting anyone from his middle school team, and the school itself, to sleep with him. Hair clips and ear piercings adorned his visage, with lightly glossed lips and painted nails that looked mesmerizing while he sucked and stroked.

Disregarding his vapid expression that would have been a turn-off for many, his body was perfect for fucking and leaving marks. Size was never an issue and he knew how to make himself climax. He was selfish in that aspect but seldom took longer than five minutes to make his partners climax as well.

He was just that good.

Masamune, who had continuously heard rumors concerning this promiscuous baseball player, one day decided to see what all the fuss was about.

"And the rest is history," Masamune says, "I was the best he'd ever had at that point. No one could hit his spot like me. No one could make him shake and scream like me. No one could ever top me. He was freaking good too, so we naturally became drawn to each other and started dating. Then he left. Didn't think he was such a coward after fucking damn near half of Tomakomai."

Miyuki was silent the entire time, catching and throwing back. His bangs were shadowing his eyes as Masamune's words circled his brain. They were lost and unsure if they should register.

The dots weren't connecting.

--Flashback--Furuya had walked in.

And the torment began.

"What the fuck?" someone whispered. "How dare he show his face now."

"Wow, what a slut. I didn't know he was like that. He looks so innocent."

"Exactly what I thought. He must've really enjoyed sex to get pregnant."

"Shoulda used a condom."

"Definitely shoulda swallowed."--Flashback End--

The dots were slowly connecting.

--Flashback--Masuko's stomach growled. "Furuya-chan, you're so courageous. Please don't hurt yourself along the way. We all love you—"

"I fucking don't," Tanba interjected, a scowl plastered on his face. "I'm not having this shit. Why are you guys condoning his pregnancy? He's fifteen, remember? This is disgusting. Did you not use protection?"

"What is your problem?!" Maezono asked. "Showing ya true colors, aren't ya? I never thought I'd hear those words come outta your mouth, Tanba-san! If you ain't got nothin' nice to say, don't say nothin' at all!"--Flashback End--

Slowly connecting.

--Flashback--Kuramochi freed himself from his hold and straightened out his collar. "Convince me otherwise. With all the scummy shit you've done recently, Sawamura deserves to know the truth. I won't continue to let you hurt him when he's oblivious about everything."

"If you tell Eijun, he's going to blow up and it'll ruin me. I don't want that to happen. I don't want our relationship to end because of some damn pregnancy. Besides, is that really even my child?"

"Furuya's not the type to sleep around."

"Maybe that's what he wants us to think! Please tell me I'm right."--Flashback End--

The dots connected.

He was right.

But that was the least of his worries right now. For some reason, his feelings of shock and betrayal subside as Masamune continues slandering Furuya, sounding spiteful and vengeful.

A match is struck against his chest and a fire ignites.

"Wanna know something hilarious?" Masamune proposes as he waits for Miyuki to throw the ball back, "We used to call him the Hokuto Line cause of how many people ran trains on him! The Hokuto is a train that runs around here, in case you didn't know. Like, doesn't that crack you up? It was the perfect nickname! Ah, I wonder if he's relapsed and fucked anyone at your school."

No response. The fire is now a raging flame.

"Bro, aren't you gonna throw the ball—"

BANG!

Masamune is blown backwards as Miyuki suddenly springs up and launches the ball at him with vicious speed. He's barely able to catch it in time and falls on his ass with a thump.

"What the fuck?!" he yells.

Miyuki tosses his mitt to the ground and trudges over to him, taking careful steps, "First off, I'm not your bro. Second off, you really shouldn't talk shit about people to someone you just met."

"Why are you getting so defensive—wait. Are you his new fuckbuddy or something? Is that it? Or are you angry he lied to y'all?"

Miyuki kneels down, seizes Masamune's collar, and yanks him towards him, their faces no less than an inch apart.

"That's none of your business," he snarls, eyes glinting with a murderous tint, "Furuya's sex life is of no concern to me. All I do is catch for him, so don't you dare start assuming shit. You know what? I hate pitchers like you the most. They make my job as a catcher ten times more tedious because they don't know how to shut the hell up and worry about themselves. With that attitude, I can see why Furuya left your sorry ass."

Masamune snorts, then erupts into boisterous, condescending laughter as he grabs Miyuki's wrist, "Hahaha! Does it look like I give a fuck about my attitude?! That shit ain't gonna change whether you like it or not! And bro, I can tell you're lying straight through your teeth! You're totally disappointed that Furuya isn't innocent.

"Why else would you be getting so agitated? Does fucking him not entice you anymore? Is your mental image of him scarred now that you know how many dicks he's had inside him? How much cum he's swallowed? Oh, you'd be even more disappointed to know the number of times I've blasted right inside his tight a—"

"Shut your mouth!" Miyuki tightens his grip on Masamune's collar and slams his upper body to the ground. The younger teen curses at him and struggles, but he pins him down with a knee grinding against his rib, "You do not deserve to talk about Furuya with that filthy mouth of yours. I'm thrilled he left this place to escape a pretentious little fuck like you. You were probably a nightmare while you were dating him and you're still a nightmare now.

"Get this through your skull, Hongō. Telling me about Furuya's history hasn't altered my opinion of him at all. Not in the slightest. Who am I to judge him about his past? The only thing I'll judge him on, though, is his taste in partners. You're a despicable, bitter piece of shit who got lucky because you just so happened to make him feel good. Guess what? I bet your dick is mediocre and you're jealous he's found better."

Masamune cackles, "Better? Are you talking about yourself?"

"What if I am?"

"See, I knew you were lying! You have fucked him! Well, guess what, pretty boy? You'll never be able to fuck him as good as I did. Never."

"Not only are you an arrogant prick, but you're also unbelievably delusional. The world doesn't revolve around you, brat. You don't own Furuya. You're nothing. I suggest you pattern up because the next time you're babbling nonsense to someone, merely getting pinned down won't be the end of it, bro."

"Go fuck yourself."

"I regret wasting my precious time catching for you. I won't waste another second."

With that, Miyuki shakes loose of Masamune and walks away. He stops and looks back at him momentarily, scowling.

'If I ever see or hear you talking about the mother of my child that way again…I will hurt you.'

--

9 PM

"Sit down, Ruru," Kasumi says as she takes the plates her son is holding, "I'll do the dishes."

Furuya does as he's told and wraps himself back up in his blanket. Morning sickness attacked him with a vengeance, rendering him faint and woozy for the day. He lazed about on the living room sofa, watching TV, having intrusive thoughts about Miyuki, sniffing Miyuki's shirt that was now his, anything to keep from vomiting again.

"Thanks for dinner," Miyuki says after drinking his glass of water.

"Why are you thanking me?" Kasumi asks, squeezing dish soap onto a sponge, "I'm a parent. It's what I'm supposed to do. Cook and shit."

Miyuki turns to Furuya and cups one side of his mouth with his hand, not even pretending to whisper, "I feel like ever since we told her about our situation, she's gotten snarkier at us."

"Right, right," the raven-haired teen agrees, "She's definitely angry."

"Exactly! Normally she'd say, 'Aw, no problem, Kazuya-kun! I'd never let your handsome self starve. I'd serve up a whole five-star restaurant for you!' But now she's being mean. L mom."

"L mom?"

"You know, the whole W or L thing? It's pretty popular online."

"Oh, I remember. Right, right."

"I can hear you guys!" Kasumi shouts. She hurls a soapy spoon in their direction and they both dodge in unison, "It's not my fault my husband isn't around and I'm a bit cranky! Make the connection, will you?"

Furuya gags at what she's insinuating and Miyuki laughs, teasing her.

"Kids are brutal," Kasumi sighs in exasperation, shaking her head, "Look, guys. I have an idea. Since you two are soon-to-be parents, I figured I'd do you a solid and recommend that you bathe together tonight. I heard that it's a great way for parents to bond without it being too intimate. Also, it's what my husband and I did when I was pregnant. Any thoughts?"

Furuya and Miyuki weren't strangers to bathing together at the Seido bathhouse, but of course, they were with their teammates. This time it would only be the two of them, alone, a few feet apart, sharing the same water.

"Wh-Whatever works, I guess," Furuya says indifferently, masking his anticipation, "I don't mind."

"You're just excited to see me naked," Miyuki remarks, grinning, "It's okay. If I were you, I'd be excited, too."

"Miyuki-senpai!"

"Kazuya-kun is such a wind-up," Kasumi chuckles, drying her hands, "Sounds like there are no objections, then. I already heated up the bath in the guest bathroom, so get going. Don't do anything weird, okay? This is strictly for the sake of bonding."

"Roger that." Miyuki helps Furuya up, taking his blanket from him as they head upstairs.

--

Similar to everything else in the Furuya household, the guest bathroom is vast. The walls and floors are a sparkling white marble, a contemporary contrast to the large Japanese-style bath at the far end of it.

'Just call me poor and move on, damn,' was Miyuki's first thought.

They scrubbed each other's backs, which wasn't included in Kasumi's instructions, and then dipped into the water on opposing sides.

It. Was. Awkward.

They sat there, looking around, wiggling their toes, avoiding eye contact as steam clouded the air. The water dripping from the sink faucet Furuya forgot to fully close was the sole sound louder than their breathing.

At last, Furuya breaks the silence.

"Um," he starts, "I don't think we're supposed to be sitting here doing nothing. We should use this opportunity to talk about…stuff."

"Yeah," Miyuki says.

"When you came home, you looked irritated. What happened? Was something troubling you?"

Masamune's venomous comments bubble up to the surface of the catcher's mind.

--Flashback--"Furuya wasn't a virgin when he went to Seido."

"We used to call him the Hokuto Line cause of how many people ran trains on him!"

"Are you his new fuckbuddy or something? Is that it? Or are you angry he lied to y'all?"

"Is your mental image of him scarred now that you know how many dicks he's had inside him? How much cum he's swallowed?"--Flashback End--

Then his conversation with Kasumi.

--Flashback--"In middle school, he went through a phase because I lacked the ability to guide him. I was still naive and allowed him to roam free because I trusted him. What he did was natural human behavior, but I never thought he would let it spiral out of control. In essence, that was the origin story of why he attends Seido."--Flashback End--

Finally, his and Kuramochi's own words.

--Flashback--"Furuya's not the type to sleep around."

"Maybe that's what he wants us to think! Please tell me I'm right."--Flashback End--

Miyuki was right.

At the time, it was simply a desperate excuse he fashioned, trying to dispose himself of all responsibility for Furuya's child. It was a cowardly, heartless excuse, but to be proven correct this far into their journey made him feel…

No.

He wouldn't allow himself to feel livid, betrayed, disgusted, repulsed. He was no one to criticize, lest he'd become like Masamune. He crammed those emotions into isolation in the deepest, darkest corners of himself.

It was Furuya's story to tell when he was ready. He bore no right to bring it up without permission.

"It's nothing," Miyuki finally says, clearing his throat, "Don't worry about it."

"You were really tense before dinner," Furuya notes, "It can't be nothing."

"Let's just say there are people on this earth who have a more twisted personality than me and I got a taste of my own medicine."

"By all laws of physics, that sounds impossible, but I'll take your word for it."

"Hey!" Miyuki playfully kicks Furuya's leg underwater, "There you go again with that cheek! I'm not that bad."

Furuya's small smile dissipates, "I know. I know you're not that bad."

The change in his voice makes Miyuki face him. He's visibly nervous, biting his lip, "What do you mean? Are you okay?"

"I…I have something important to tell you. Very important."

"I'm listening." 'No way. Is he gonna tell me about that Hongō kid? Right here? Right now?'

Furuya exhales deeply before raising his head.

"Miyuki-senpai…you didn't rape me."