Little Boy

Chapter 22 ~ Back to School

“Class, let’s give Manta a warm welcome back,” the teacher, Jiange-san said with a smile.

“Ohayo,” Manta said timidly, gripping Yoh’s hand tightly. He noticed Ren glaring at him, then whimpered and moved slightly behind Yoh. “Yoh, I wanna goe,” e,” he said softly.

Yoh knelt down and smiled at the boy. “Manta, don’t worry. I’m not going to let you out of my sight for one minute.” He looked up to their teacher and smiled sweetly at her. “Jiange-san, Manta’s having a little difficulty getting used to things again. I would greatly appreciate it if you seated him by me.”

“Very well, then. Manta, you may take the seat behind Yoh’s desk.”

“H-Hai,” the blonde replied quietly, then timidly made his way to his desk and climbed into the chair. He sat there quietly, then felt a shadow loom over him. Nervously he looked back and saw it was Ren, who had changed seats once Yoh was seated and turned on his headphones.

“Hello, Manta-kun,” Ren said quietly with a cocked eyebrow.

“Ohayo,” he whispered, then looked to the front, hoping Ren would just leave him alone.

“I would like to have a word with you, later,” Ren said quietly. “And if you tell Yoh, I will hurt him much more badly than I ever hurt you. Understand?”

“Hai,” he whimpered as he closed his eyes. He shook as Ren reached forward and rest a hand on his back, then sighed in relief when the shaman finally removed his hand. He stared at his books silently as his mind, which had been clearing of darkness, began to fog again with fear and confusion.

After a while, the blonde boy sighed sadly as he laid his head on the desk and closed his eyes. Inside he cried desperately for Faust to arrive and take him home where it was safe and warm, but on the outside he remained silent and passive.

“Hey, guys,” Horo said as he walked up to the table which Yoh and Manta sat at during lunch. “What’s up?”

Manta looked to Yoh, hoping he wouldn’t have to say anything, but to his disappointment, Yoh had fallen asleep after spending all night trying to think of a name for their unborn child. Slowly he looked back to the table and stared at his books, then finally found courage to speak. “N-Nothing much,” he whispered.

Horo’s expression became sad and he knelt down beside Manta’s chair and looked at the blonde. “Manta, I’m really sorry for what happened. I truly am. I’d like to try and be friends again, if you want.”

Manta grasped the chair nervously, then slowly looked up to the Ainu. The blunette’s expression reminded him of Yoh, and slowly he began to accept Horo. “I... I’m sorry...” he whispered.

Horo smiled slightly. “Hey, it’s . I . I understand. Maybe some day we can be friends, but I’ll leave you be for now.”

Manta shook his head. “No... I... I’m sorry I upsetted you...”

Horo tilted his head. ‘Upsetted’ wasn’t usually a word Manta would use, and he became curious when Manta began apologizing for upsetting him. “Manta, what do you mean?”

“Y-You just wanted to feel good... I shouldn’t have been bad and try to keep you from feeling good...” he whispered.

Horo frowned. As far as he had been told, Manta had been doing much better since he had been at Mt. Fuji, but the blonde seemed to be the same. “Manta, you were not bad. I made you do something you didn’t want to do, and that was bad of me to do. Please don’t blame yourself, Manta.”

The blonde stared at the floor now, regained clarity in his mind fogged with confusion and sadness. He couldn’t understand why people told him he was good. Of course he was bad, wasn’t he? He denied people happiness, and it was like He said. It is a sin to deny a person happiness. Especially when it’s your own friends who seek happiness. But it always hurt so much. Even with Yoh.

Horo watched worriedly as Manta slid off his chair. “Manta?”

“I just need to get something,” he whimpered softly, then walked out of the cafeteria.

Horo sighed. What’s going on inside of you, little guy?”

Manta walked through the hall silently. “Why do people say I wasn’t bad? I denied my friends happiness... Isn’t that bad?” he thought sadly. He looked up quickly when he felt somebody grab his wrist into their hand, then began to shake when he saw it was Ren. “R-Ren?”

“Come with me,” he said quietly and led him through the halls to the drama studio. Once there he made sure there was nobody around, then looked angrily at Manta, who stared at the floor nervously, his arms wrapped around his stomach. “Because of you Horo left,” he growled.

“I’m s,” M,” Manta whimpered.

Ren looked at Manta angrily, then knelt down and began unbuttoning the white shirt.

“R-Ren.... please don’t make it hurt,” Manta whimpered.

Ren smirked at the boy. “Oh? But you made Horo go away. Why shouldn’t I hurt you?” He pulled the shirt off of Manta and roughly placed a hand on Manta’s stomach. “Is it because of this?” he whispered.

Manta whimpered softly. “P-Please, Ren...”

“You think I wouldn’t know? That child’s life is easy enough to feel,” he whispered. “And why else would your stomach look like that?” He forced Manta to the floor and claimed the thin lips in a hungry kiss while rubbing over the baby. “Don’t worry. I won’t risk the baby’s safety. Not when it may be my own,” he sneered.

The boy looked at Ren with confusion. “Huh?”

He smirked. “I believe you and I made love the day after Yoh finally took you, didn’t we?”

Manta continued to look at Ren with confusion. “What... what are you talking about?”

Ren blinked, then snickered. “You don’t remember how much fun we had in here together?” he asked. “When is the last I p I played with you?”

Manta continued to look at him with utter confusion. “Um... I think... it was.. Uh... the party?’ he whispered.

Ren began to laugh. “It wasn’t that far back, little one.” He suddenly became grave. “Once the baby is out of the way, you’re mine, Manta. And if you say anything to anybody, I won’t hesitate to punish both you and the child,” he growled.

“H-Hai,” Manta replied reluctantly, then lay still as Ren’s hands roamed him in a vulgar manner, violating every part of the blonde’s body.

“You are a dirty thing, Manta,” Ren murmured in his ear. “And when Yoh realizes that, don’t expect him to hold onto you. He knows he is too good for you. It’s only a matter of time before he comes to his senses, and then I will be all you have left. So you may as well get used to me.”

Manta closed his eyes, continuing to whimper, as Ren pulled away and left the room. After a moment, he forced himself to his feet and pulled his shirt back up, then sighed sadly as he walked out and returned to the cafeteria.

Yoh watched Manta silently. His small beloved hadn’t said anything to him or anybody else since lunch that day, and now Manta sat alone in his room with a blanket wrapped around him.

“Dinner is ready,” Ryu said as he walked up.

... ... I don’t understand. He was fine this morning... Then we got to school and he started acting weird again,” Yoh sighed.

Ryu thought quietly for a moment. “Perhaps being there just made memories too unbearable?”

“I don’t know,” Yoh sighed again, then wa ove over to Manta and knelt down. “Manta-chan?”

“Yoh-chan... If somebody else played with me the day after you did, does that mean he could be the baby’s daddy?” Manta asked shakily.

Yoh frowned. “WellI doI don’t know... It depends on how long the spell lasts and if it affected me or you.”

“Yoh-chan... What happened after I went inside?” he whispered.

Yoh looked at him curiously. “What do you mean?”

“When Anna asked me to eat that sandwich... What happened after that?” he asked again.

Yoh stared quietly, then his eyes filled with tears as he sat down then pulled Manta carefully into his lap. He stroked the blonde hair gently while rocking Manta, trying to comfort him. “After you left, Ren found you and did bad things,” he said gently. “He hurt you and made you do things that you didn’t want to...” He held Manta in a loving embrace while nuzzling his face into the blonde silk. “Manta, don’t think about it, okay? Let’s just concentrate on the good things.” He smiled while placing a hand on his beloved’s stomach.

Manta sighed while staring at the wall. “Yoh-chan...” he looked up with confused eyes. “Am I supposed to be a mommy or a daddy?”

Yoh looked at Manta curiously. “I’m not sure. I guess it depends on if you’re a boy or a girl in the end.”

Manta’s gaze returned to the wall. “What if... Ren is the baby’s daddy? It means we can’t be together...”

Yoh frowned. “Don’t think about such things. And even if the baby turns out to be Ren’s, it won’t matter. I’ll still love you both.” He smiled again. “Manta, I don’t want you to be thinking about such things. Let’s think about happy things. Like food. Ryu finished making dinner, so let’s go and gobble it up. Okay?”

Slowly Manta nodded. “Hai,” he said quietly, then leaned his head against Yoh’s shoulder as the shaman stood up while cradling him in his arms.

As Yoh walked through the hotel, he decided he would talk to Faust after dinner.