Note: I have nothing to do with Here is Greenwood and its characters except to be a fan who enjoys the OVAs a lot. This story is my extrapolation of the storylines as seen in the OVAs. I apologize if this story doesn't quite fit in with the manga.
Kazuya struggled hard--very hard--to keep a straight face as he watched Shun drag a reluctant Mitsuru-senpai into a boutique at the shopping plaza. The test became even more difficult when the older boy turned a resigned, much imposed on expression towards them. He tried looking away and wound up glancing at Shinobu-senpai. Seeing the smile growing on his friend's face caused Kazuya to grin as well. He tried to mask it before Mitsuru-senpai saw it, but he and Shun had already disappeared into the store.
Kazuya sighed and turned towards Shinobu-senpai. "Well, better Mitsuru-senpai than me," he said. "We won't see them for at least 30 minutes."
"You speak from experience."
Kazuya nodded. "It will take Shun half an hour to breeze through the store, an hour if he finds something he likes. And with Mitsuru-senpai in there, we might not see them again for even longer." He glanced back towards the store, watching as two attractive young women entered. Not that I'm interested! he told himself firmly. He had Miya-chan, and he was quite happy. But Shun and Mitsuru-senpai would be besieged by girls the entire time.
"Then we should make ourselves comfortable," Shinobu-senpai said calmly.
Kazuya nodded. "Senpai," he started, but then stopped.
The older boy glanced at him. "Yes?"
Kazuya felt himself flushing. "Um, I need to talk to you about something," he said quickly. "It's sort of important."
Shinobu-senpai glanced around. "Let's wait for Shun and Mitsuru by the fountain," he said. "We can talk there." He turned and started to walk away.
Kazuya sighed and followed his friend towards the fountain that dominated the square.
Today was free from any pressing engagements. The spring term was still two weeks away, for one thing. For another, they didn't have any filming today or tomorrow, because Tochizawa had gone home the night before to spend the weekend celebrating his great-grandmother's 100th birthday.
Kazuya had felt a stab of envy when Tochizawa had explained his departure. Greenwood had an unusually large number of "orphans" living in it, which probably accounted for at least some of its residents' idiosyncrasies and eccentricities. He was one of the real orphans, having only his brother and sister-in-law as his known relatives. Mitsuru-senpai and Shinobu-senpai had families, but the first had been adopted after being left at the Ikeda temple, and they both had distanced themselves from their families for various reasons. Tochizawa, on the other hand, had three siblings, both parents, and hordes of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Tochizawa would have memories that he could never have.
After his late arrival at Ryokuto Academy, Kazuya had gradually come to consider his dorm mates as his family, with Mitsuru-senpai and Shinobu-senpai being his older brothers and Shun being...whatever. And that made what he had to talk about hard.
Kazuya sighed and sat down on the edge of the fountain next to Shinobu-senpai. The breeze blew a light mist towards him, and he turned to enjoy it.
"All right," Shinobu-senpai said. "Now what did you want to talk to me about, Hasukawa?"
Kazuya took a deep breath. "I have a problem," he said.
Shinobu-senpai said nothing.
For a moment Kazuya hated the older boy. Shinobu-senpai had an irritating habit of forcing people to voice their problems before offering any assistance. Still, he had no choice, not if he really wanted his senpai's advice.
"It's about the scenes I'm going to be in with Mitsuru-senpai," he said.
The other boy nodded. "I see. You'll be doing those scenes at the end of next week."
Kazuya nodded.
"Hasukawa, what is the problem? You and Mitsuru have rehearsed those scenes in our room dozens of times. You and Mitsuru started filming your first scenes together last week. I've watched the two of you, and you had no trouble whatsoever."
Which was true. They'd begun shooting the first scenes involving Mikuro and Kenichi the week before. In those scenes Mikuro and Kenichi were introduced to one another and had become friends, but Kenichi had no clue that Mikuro had fallen in love with him. The scenes as they were had been simple enough, and they had done all the scenes in one or at most three takes. But there had been times...
Kazuya wondered if Shinobu-senpai could really understand his problems. He sighed. There was no way of knowing until he told his friend everything.
"The scenes we did last week were easy enough," he said. "For the most part it was like we were just being ourselves and doing things we'd normally do. We hardly called each other by name so that wasn't a problem. But then we--" He stopped.
Shinobu-senpai's eyebrow rose. "Then you what?"
Kazuya swallowed. "We did that scene where Kenichi sees how jealous Mikuro is of Seishiro and how angry Mikuro is because he loves Kenichi but Kenichi loves Seishiro."
"I remember that scene."
Kazuya sighed. "Well, in that scene Mikuro glared at Kenichi and made some angry comments. And--"
"Go on."
"Well, when Mitsuru-senpai said those...things to me, I didn't see Mitsuru-senpai. I saw Mikuro standing there. It was only for a moment since the scene ended a few moments later, but it startled me. And now I'm worried about the other scenes I have to do with Mitsuru-senpai. What if I see Mikuro there again?"
Shinobu-senpai shook his head. "Hasukawa, you know that it was Mitsuru playing the character of Mikuro. Whatever he said and did was all an act. You know that, and I know that. I remember rehearsing the scene with you and Mitsuru. He glared at you then, just like he did last week when we actually performed that scene."
Kazuya sighed. "I know that," he said dejectedly. "But you don't understand! I knew that those rehearsals were just practice. It was all make-believe. And it's the same way whenever we rehearse any scene together. I know that none of it is real. But when I saw Mitsuru-senpai's eyes that day..." He shivered and looked away. "It wasn't Mitsuru-senpai. He was really Mikuro. There was anger and hatred and jealousy there that I've never seen in Mitsuru-senpai. He was really angry with me, and he really hated you. He was even standing differently. He was Mikuro." Kazuya closed his eyes. "And he was angry at me."
"I think I understand now."
Kazuya looked up. Shinobu-senpai was gazing steadily at him.
"Hasukawa, let me ask you a question. Are you worrying because the scene calls for Mikuro to shout at Kenichi, hit him, tear his shirt off, and throw him on the bed and you don't know if you're up to it, or are you worrying because you don't know if you could stand it to have someone you love shouting harsh words at you, hitting you, and just being absolutely violent with you?"
Kazuya flushed. "I don't--"
"You don't love Mitsuru?" Shinobu-senpai asked skeptically. "Hasukawa, everyone in Greenwood knows how much you care about him. That you like him was apparent from the day you arrived."
"What?"
"Do you remember the prank we played on you when we introduced you to Shun?"
Kazuya flushed at the memory. On the day of his arrival at Ryokuto Academy, he'd been introduced to his roommate, Kisaragi Shun. Seeing Shun with his long hair and his demure stance, Kazuya had immediately assumed that Shun was a girl. He'd had a moment of relief when Mitsuru-senpai introduced him by name, only to have it fade away in disbelief and terror when both Mitsuru-senpai and Shinobu-senpai said that Shun was, indeed, a girl. It had all been part of a moneymaking scheme to raise funds for a dormitory party. Everyone in the dorm knew Shun was a boy, but nobody had said anything to him, since the scheme involved wagers on how long it would take for him to realize the truth. He hadn't been very pleased about the incident. He had even gone so far as to swing a right hook at Mitsuru-senpai's face.
"If you'll recall," Shinobu-senpai continued, "you hit Mitsuru and not me. Of course, Mitsuru was asking for it when he boasted about the prank to you, but some of the other boys mentioned that you seemed more astonished and hurt when Shun explained that the whole thing was partially Mitsuru's idea."
As he thought back, Kazuya recalled that moment. He'd thrown Shun against the wall, demanding an explanation. It had hurt more that Mitsuru-senpai was involved, or at least he hadn't been quite so upset by Shinobu-senpai's involvement.
"Part of it is probably because of your brother marrying Sumire," Shinobu-senpai said. "You felt betrayed and abandoned, so you followed the school president's suggestion and began thinking of Mitsuru as your older brother. It hurt you that Mitsuru had apparently betrayed you just as Kazuhiro had."
Kazuya opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He shut his mouth and looked away.
Shinobu-senpai shook his head. "You're closer now, and the entire dormitory knows it. But Shun and I are probably the only ones who realize that it's more than simply caring about him. You love Mitsuru like an older brother."
Kazuya felt himself flushing, but he also felt relieved in a strange way. It was true, Mitsuru-senpai was more like a brother to him than Kazuhiro was. Or at least, as he was now. Before his marriage to Sumire, they'd been much closer.
"You're right," he said softly. "About everything. But that's what makes it all so hard. You--if you'll excuse me, senpai--your childhood was different from mine. I mean, Nagisa was always there trying to make your life a living hell. You yourself said she was constantly antagonizing you in one way or another. But until Kazuhiro married Sumire, we always got along. He never teased me--at least, nowhere near as much as Mitsuru-senpai does--and he was always very considerate of my feelings. I've never had him shout at me." He looked away. "I'm not sure I could bear it even now if Kazuhiro shouted at me. And I know Mitsuru-senpai's shouted at me before and been angry at me before, but...I don't know if I could bear it again, not now that we're closer and not even under the guise of characters in a movie." He shook his head. "I'm afraid..."
"That he'll mean it?"
Kazuya suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. He flushed but didn't shy away.
"Hasukawa, listen to me very carefully," Shinobu-senpai said slowly. "You are not Kenichi. You are Hasukawa Kazuya. Mitsuru is not Mikuro. Mitsuru is Ikeda Mitsuru. You are not your characters, you are yourselves. Whatever emotions Kenichi or Mikuro might feel are not your emotions or Mitsuru's emotions."
Kazuya looked up. "I know, but--"
"Hasukawa, however real Mikuro becomes to you and however cruel his words might be, just remember that Mitsuru doesn't mean those words." Shinobu-senpai suddenly smiled. "And do you know how I know that?"
Despite himself, Kazuya found himself smiling back. "How?"
"Because he loves you."
Kazuya's jaw dropped. "What?"
"Mitsuru loves you, Hasukawa. Haven't you noticed--" Shinobu-senpai stopped. "Well, possibly not, since your relationship with Kazuhiro was hardly standard, and I'm hardly qualified to judge it, but I'd say that Mitsuru treats you more like a brother than Masato."
"Sho?" Kazuya asked. "But they are brothers. I mean, I know Mitsuru-senpai is adopted, but..."
His friend shook his head. "He loves Masato, but as close as they are, nothing can change the fact that they share no common blood. I know, he has no more genetic ties to you than he does to Masato, but from the very beginning he's found other things in common with you."
Kazuya blinked. "Really? Like what?"
"For starters, when you arrived at Greenwood you didn't know where you belonged. Neither did Mitsuru. Now he knows--and so do you--that your places are at Greenwood, together with the rest of us." The older boy smiled again. "But shall I tell you how I really know he loves you?"
Kazuya couldn't help smiling himself. "How?"
"Because he hits you over the head with rolled up magazines."
Kazuya blinked. "That's absurd. And please don't tell me it's because he doesn't know any other way to show me that he cares."
Shinobu-senpai shook his head. "You're the only one he ever does that to, and it's because he wants you to succeed and do well."
"By hitting me?" he demanded sourly.
His friend laughed. "Well, he was trying to get you caught up with the rest of your class. And can you honestly tell me that it didn't work?"
Despite himself, Kazuya started to laugh. "I guess so." He sighed and leaned back, forgetting where he was. As he struggled to catch himself before he fell in, Shinobu-senpai had caught him around the shoulders and was pulling him back up. Kazuya flushed. "Thanks, senpai."
"Any time." He turned and looked across the plaza. "Look, Mitsuru and Shun are coming out."
Kazuya followed his friend's gaze. Sure enough, Shun and Mitsuru-senpai were just emerging from the boutique, both with shopping bags in their hands.
"Ah, I see Mitsuru found the gift for his mother he was looking for." Shinobu-senpai stood up. "We should go meet them before they start to wonder where we are."
Kazuya got to his feet, but caught at his friend's sleeve. "Senpai," he said softly.
Shinobu-senpai glanced back. "Yes?"
"Thanks for listening," Kazuya said softly. "And please don't tell Mitsuru-senpai that...well, what we were talking about." He flushed as his friend gazed steadily at him.
"As you wish," Shinobu-senpai said. "Just remember what I said, Hasukawa. Mitsuru won't mean the things he says as Mikuro because he, Ikeda Mitsuru, loves you." He smiled, then turned and started across the plaza.
Kazuya took several deep breaths, then followed his friend.
* * *
"Shinobu, I need to talk to you."
Shinobu glanced at his friend for a moment, then watched Shun's progress as the younger boy dragged Hasukawa into another boutique. As the door to that shop closed, Shinobu turned to his roommate. "Okay, Mitsuru, what's on your mind?"
Mitsuru sighed and looked away. "Is there someplace private we can talk?"
Shinobu studied his friend, then pointed behind him. They were in another plaza, but this one had a terraced hill dotted with flowers, shrubs, and a tree as its central feature. "It should be quiet enough over there."
Mitsuru said nothing but turned and headed towards the hill.
Shinobu, walking behind his roommate, studied Mitsuru carefully, suddenly knowing without a doubt exactly what he wanted to talk about.
They settled themselves on the edge of a planter, with a bed of lavender flowers behind them.
Mitsuru started to speak, but Shinobu cut him off. "You're worried about doing your scenes with Hasukawa at the end of next week, aren't you?"
Mitsuru's jaw dropped. "How did--" He stopped, a disgusted expression spreading across his face. "I wish you'd stop doing that."
"Stop doing what?"
"Quit reading my mind, Shinobu!"
"I didn't 'read your mind,' Mitsuru," Shinobu said mildly. "It was a logical assumption that you wanted to talk about it."
Mitsuru crossed his arms and glared at him. "And what, exactly, led you to this 'logical assumption?'"
Shinobu sighed. "First, you waited until Shun and Hasukawa left us, which means either that what you want to talk about involves one of them or is something you want to keep private. I weighed the options, and reasoned that it has to do with one of them. You and Shun are on fairly good terms, barring anything that happened today while you were shopping with him, which means that your problem probably involves Hasukawa. Right now the only thing that could really bother you that involves Hasukawa would be your upcoming scenes with him. Knowing your initial feelings about doing the scene and knowing you as well as I do, I guessed that you would still worry about how the scene would finally play out."
"Is that it?"
"No." Shinobu grinned at his friend. "Hasukawa and I talked about the same thing while you were in the boutique with Shun, and you and Hasukawa are enough alike that you'd both worry about the same thing."
His friend's mouth opened, then shut as he jumped up, anger contorting his features into a ferocious scowl. "Kuso! You have the nerve--" Then the anger fled. Mitsuru's shoulders sagged and he sank back down to his seat. "Well, you're right. I am worried about those scenes."
"Mitsuru," Shinobu said calmly, "I expected Hasukawa to have trouble with the scenes. I didn't really expect you to have this much difficulty. You seemed to be handling it well. What changed that?" He watched as his roommate leaned forward and stared at the ground.
"It was that scene we did last week," Mitsuru said softly. "The one where Mikuro's angry at Kenichi for merely liking him while Mikuro loves Kenichi."
Shinobu's eyes narrowed. It was the exact same scene that had troubled Hasukawa. "Why that scene?"
His roommate sighed. "I don't know. When I was--" He shook his head. "When Mikuro was glaring at Kenichi, I saw something change in Hasukawa's expression. He seemed afraid of me, and even a little hurt by what I was saying...what Mikuro was saying to Kenichi."
"Mitsuru," he said, "are you worrying because the scene calls for Mikuro to shout at Kenichi, hit him, tear his shirt off, and throw him on the bed and you don't know if you're up to it, or are you worrying because you don't know if you could bear to shout and practically swear at someone you love, hitting him, and just being absolutely violent with him?"
While Hasukawa had blushed and tried to deny it, Mitsuru didn't even flinch. "Yes," he said slowly. "Shinobu, you were right that night you and Tochizawa announced the plans for the movie. I do love Hasukawa, nearly as much as I love Sho. We've been through so much together since he moved into Greenwood, and everything's brought us closer together." He turned, smiling briefly. "I'd say we were best friends except that my roommate has that distinction."
"Thank you," Shinobu said quietly.
The smile faded from Mitsuru's face as he looked back at the ground again. "Hasukawa's been through so much, though," he said, sighing. "First he grows up without his parents, then his brother marries the girl that he loves. I know he was hurting when he moved into Greenwood. Shinobu, I don't want to hurt him again. And that's what I'm afraid I'll be doing when we do that scene. I'm afraid he'll think that whatever Mikuro says and feels is a reflection on how I feel about him."
Shinobu sighed. "Mitsuru, do you remember what else I told you that night when I first explained what your role was going to be?"
Mitsuru frowned. "No, I can't remember."
"I told you then, and I'm telling you now, that Hasukawa loves and trusts you enough that your upcoming scene won't upset either one of you for long."
"But it will--"
"Mitsuru," Shinobu said, sighing, "such is Hasukawa's love for you and such is the trust he places in you and such is the faith he has in you that, as long as you make it perfectly clear that what Mikuro says and does is not what Ikeda Mitsuru feels, everything will be all right." He held up his hand to forestall his roommate's comment. "All you need to do is differentiate between the way you, Mitsuru, treat Hasukawa and the way Mikuro treats Kenichi."
Mitsuru's hands clenched into fists. "I want to believe you, Shinobu, but I just don't know."
Shinobu shook his head. "Then I can't help you. You have to believe, or it's just so many words." He heaved a sigh and was silent for a few moments. "I'll be honest with you, though. The two of you are good actors, but you become your characters too well. It's entirely possible that, despite everything I've told him and you, Hasukawa will take Mikuro's words as being partially inspired by your feelings for him. Not that you want to rape him or anything, but that you really are angry with him and that you really want to hurt him."
"That's my point!" Mitsuru fumed. "What do I do if that happens?"
"What you have to do," Shinobu said calmly. "Bring him back to reality. Shun and I will be there to help if you really need it, but I think you can count on your love for him and his love for you to pull things through."
"And everything will be all right?"
"Everything will be all right."
"Because he loves me?"
"Because he loves you. Look, Mitsuru, is that so hard to accept? You love him almost as much as Sho, and he loves you more than he loves Kazuhiro, which is understandable since they haven't quite patched things up completely yet. And because he loves you, and because you love him, you'll both be able to do this without any lasting side effects in your relationship. It might even bring you closer."
Mitsuru started to smile. "Closer than we already are?"
Shinobu smiled back. "Yes." He looked up. "Hasukawa and Shun should be coming out soon, and we should be heading back to Greenwood already."
Mitsuru glanced at his watch. "You're right." He stood up. "I'll see if I can hurry them along." He started to walk away, then stopped and looked back. "Thanks, Shinobu."
Shinobu nodded and watched him walk away. He allowed himself to smile slightly.
It was a little amusing, and slightly depressing, that two people could care so deeply about each other yet never know that the other felt the same way in return while everyone around them knew exactly what was going on, and nothing but a complex series of events would bring the depth of their feelings to light. His two friends probably wouldn't realize it even now except that circumstances had forced him to remark on it.
He shook his head as he started after Mitsuru. The two of them, Mitsuru and Hasukawa, were like brothers, or closer even than brothers. He wondered briefly if there would ever be a time when events forced himself, Akira, and Nagisa to confront the true nature of their feelings towards each other.
He smiled. Nagisa hated them both. That was clear enough, and that was all he needed to know.
He continued on to meet his friends.
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