} New Days, Old Times {

[Neku Sakuraba]

All you could really see was spikes of orange poking out of the water's serface. The body attatched to said spikes tried to block out everything possible. That counsilor was no help...so maybe he needed to relax. Besides, he doubted he was here.

Little prissy-rainbowbrite would never thing of going to a public hotspring, right?

Well, atleast thats what he hoped for. After all, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of him for a while...so maybe he didn't know he was here? Then again, orengylocks doubted that. He new everything...absolutely everyone and everything's buisness.

Especially his proxy's personal life.

He was hoping to get privacy, a luxury he craved for, and maybe some relaxing time. He sighed a little, sitting up. Pale, unmasculine chest showing off again. Damn...why did he go to places where he was clothless? He had such a whimpy body...but alteast nobody was here...

Well, as far as he knew.

[Joshua]

Chocolat' Academy was starting to feel a lot like Shibuya.

Sure, some of the people had odd accents and/or didn't understand Japanese, and of course the unrelentingly American style of school overshadowed any attempt at tricking himself, but he still stopped by to argue with the obstinate Sanae and Minamimoto was even closer now. The math fetishist had been out of the room all day, probably looking for junk, and Joshua had the sinking feeling the room itself was about to become a junk heap.

Ah, well. It would be interesting to see what the management did, at least, and he'd always wanted to experiment with metal restraints.

For that matter, he'd even seen an orange-haired boy--he'd thought it was Neku at first--whose Soul signature was unmistakeably a Reaper's. Megumi was still conspicuously absent, but Joshua didn't honestly expect to see him again, so the only real loss was the Players themselves.

...Well. Not technically. He could see those running around from time to time, dead boys and girls running hand and hand in front of the campus in search of salvation. It was almost sad, in a way, even if Joshua hadn't thought about that sin--

...Ah.

There was a change in the consistency of his former partner's Soul. Neku wasn't far, and after his spat with the frustrating Mr. H Joshua had really intended to drop by and make sure everything was all right. But the boy was being silly, of course, and he didn't intend to be the wet blanket Sanae was about these things. So, taking the moment Neku turned his eyes from the rock beside him, Joshua manifested without so much as a fig leaf, perched on the rock beside him with his legs mercifully crossed.

"Hello, Neku~. Needed a break?"

[Neku Sakuraba]

A small smile appeared on Neku's lips when he finally decided nobody was around. He sunk lower into the water once more, closing his eyes.

Aah~ all he needed was a good soak to clear his mind! He'd be happy now...or atleast at a minimum, content.

Though his eyes widened at the sound of another voice. He cringed, glairing over to see none other then his killer. A light tint of pink brushed his pale cheeks, weather it was from anger, the springs, or embarassment nobody could tell.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" he snapped, crossing his arms tightly, mainly to cover himself up. He didn't was that guy looking at him while he was naked! It's bad enough he saw him in his underwear...and in dresses...

[Joshua]

Violet eyes softened in what would have been hurt if Joshua didn't look so amused. "Neku, is that any way to treat your partner~? What would Mr. H say." Amazingly, without exposing anything, Joshua slipped into the water and rested his arms back against the rock with an indulgent sigh. "If you must know, I missed you. You never visited me back in Shibuya, and it's not often someone like me catches a day off. How are you doing?" He smirked, reaching up to brush a few bangs out of his face. "Not that I can't guess that, but it's polite to ask, isn't it, Neku~?" Polite, yes--and fake, which was almost sure to rile his proxy. He probably didn't need to be addressing Neku as often as he was, but it'd been awhile since he'd gotten to say that name so frequently and Neku seemed to hate it.

[Neku Sakuraba]

Neku growled a little, clenching his fists tightly. Damn idiot..."I'm not your partner!" he barked, glairing at him as he slipped in. Hn, the only reason he didn't reveil anything is because it's probably so small...

He blinked, shaking his head and looking away from the dulled blonde. He hated the way he said his name...like...two syllables sepirately. "I didn't visit you because I hate you." he said flattly, crossing his arms more as he frowned, "And I was just fine until you came." he spat.

[Joshua]

"Of course you were." Joshua closed his eyes and leaned back in a way that said he was only barely concentrating on the conversation. "I'll take that to mean you don't miss all the lovely friends you made back in Shibuya. Not surprising, really--this place has a far superior collective vibe." Not that it can compare to Shibuya in its heyday.

"So." He turned his head, eyes flicking open to run up and down Neku's form without modesty. "You don't strike me as the type to expose yourself to the elements so willingly~. In fact, it's almost refreshing not to see those tasteless headphones. You look better without them, you know..." One slender finger spun chaotic ripples in the water between them idly. "Something must be on your mind."

[Neku Sakuraba]

He sighed, trying to calm himself down, "I didn't want to see you, that doesn't mean I didn't want to see Shiki, Beat, and Rhyme." he grumbled frowning. He thought Joshua so...dense. Even though in the back of his mind, he knew that was quite contrary.

He blushed deeply, shifting uncomfortably as Joshua sized him up. It was so creepy..."Well...you didn't seem like one either..." he hissed, frowning and looking away. He didn't want Joshua to see the flustered look on his face as he continued talking. It was kind of embarassing! "And stop looking at me and talking like that..." he mumbled, biting his bottom lip. He cursed himself for looking so...vulnerable.

[Joshua]

Joshua gave his proxy a condescending look. "Like what~? Am I treating you any differently than I normally do?" He raised his eyebrows innocently, letting his arm slip into the water and his hand brush Neku's bare hip on the way down. "Oh--beg pardon. But if you're the one feeling awkward, why are you blaming me? It's clearly your fault." He shot Neku a devious look. "Maybe it's stress. Would you like a massage~?"

Being in a relationship with his own proxy was something that had actually crossed Neku's mind before it crossed Joshua's. It wasn't ideal for Joshua of all people to be romantically involved in the first place, but he at least acted it around Neku because his proxy seemed to hate it, too. And becoming an object of loathing was far easier than becoming an attachment--particularly when one was eternal up to a point and the other was not.

[Neku Sakuraba]

He closed his eyes tightly as he was touched, "...Of course I blame you!" he snapped, wipping his head around. His eyes widened slightly, just now noticing how close Joshua was. It was just so...not right! Though he couldn't stop his heartrate from increasing, he didn't know what it was for...but he was opting for embarassment.

He frowned more, though, as he was offered a massage. "I don't want your soft little prissy hands all over me." He barked, covering his body more. He felt terrible around Joshua in this state...

[Joshua]

Joshua gave his proxy a curious look when Neku flinched back. "How would you know they're soft?" he asked petulantly, retreating as well and crossing his arms with the splashing whisper of disturbed water.

He let that hang in the air between them, thinking it over. He'd come out here to catch up, get Neku to talk to him, but he'd botched most of that more or less intentionally. It was important that Neku didn't get attached, but if need be, Joshua would make that part of himself vulnerable again. It was bad for Shibuya to do so, so he'd have to be careful, though.

So, for just a moment it wasn't the Joshua who had snarked at him all through the week--not the Joshua who'd pointed a firearm at him and fired, twice, without remorse--but the one who'd pushed him aside and taken Minamimoto's blast head on. "...Neku, I wouldn't be asking if I didn't care. Are you doing well here?" Or should I break your connection to reality and take you back to Shibuya?

[Neku Sakuraba]

He blinked, thinking for a moment. Of course, he really didn't know! His hands where always looking so soft and white...it couldn't be helped that the assuption was going to be made. "Well. I don't." He said flattly, turning his head away again.

God, the silence in the air was thick, but Neku seemed okay with that for the time being. It game him a chance for him mind to catch up on the quick events that happened. It always seemed like it was lagging behind now and again...

Neku snapped out of it as soon as Joshua spoke again. It kind of sounded...different then the first time. Like he really wanted to know. That was weird...real weird; but not the first time he heard that tone. He curled his knees up close to his chest, "I'm fine, alright?" he whispered quietly.

[Joshua]

Joshua gave him a searching look, pale jaw shifting as though in disagreement, but then he sighed casually and slipped further into the water, letting it consume him up to his throat. "All's well that ends well, then." He shifted, as though about to lean his head on Neku's shoulder, but didn't. "The way things are going, I honestly wouldn't be surprised if all of Shibuya followed you out here. Even Mr. H is here now, and you'll never believe who I'm rooming with..."

He trailed off into hesitation. Neku had never been much of a talker even when they were partners except to argue or figure out a mission. He'd always stood there with his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed, antagonizing Joshua from within his own head--as he was most likely doing now, curling up to protect himself with his limbs where clothes wouldn't suffice. It made the pale-haired boy wonder if maybe Neku's reason for coming to Chocolat' had more to do with running away from Joshua than he realized. His proxy hadn't visited and Joshua hadn't made a habit of bothering him, but maybe all of Shibuya was a reminder.

"I can't forgive you, but I trust you."

Joshua would have to be satisfied with that, and he was. Forgiveness was too much to expect from a mortal he'd pushed to the limit. But...in that case, he wasn't likely to get much out of the still-hurting Neku, and he started to question the wisdom of staying. Yes, he'd needed to check in. Yes, he'd needed to make sure there was nothing significant enough to be troublesome bothering his proxy. Yes, he'd done both, and Neku was just as annoyed with his presence as always. There were other things he could be doing with his time. Like laying down the law for Minamimoto.

He shifted and made a faint noise that was supposed to just be from moving, but it came out vaguely frustrated. The fact of the matter was, he was still a human at heart who'd grown slightly attached to his proxy (even if that proxy had no business growing attached to Joshua) and he'd missed Neku. Not to have that returned in some way bothered him, despite the fact that it shouldn't.

[Neku Sakuraba]

Neku only frowned, listening to Joshua talk. Damn, he had such mixed feelings for this guy. He always made things weird for himself...during the third day it actually crossed his mind that he might have liked Joshua...

But that thought quickly passed. He was a powerful man [and that term is used loosely], and his murderer. How could anyone love a person like that? Or maybe...Joshua made himself that way to shy away from people.

Who knows?

Who really cared...?

Somewhere within Neku, he did. But he shoved that all aside as he glanced at the other as he shifted. He sighed, deciding for himself to lean his head on Joshua's delicate shoulder, ".....I was told to talk to the person that makes me upset." he whispered finally.

[Joshua]

Joshua wasn't sloppy enough to actually gasp, but he did take a silent, quick breath and hold it. The concept of Neku actually resting his head on Joshua's shoulder seemed even less likely than an invisible pink unicorn duking it out with a flying spaghetti monster, and even if it was a mistake Joshua wasn't out to ruin the moment. "...Me~?" As if there were ever any doubt. "I'm hardly the type to be having a heart-to-heart with, Neku, but feel free. I won't bite." Unless you want me to, he thought about adding, but it would only get the proxy riled. He'd already given as much warning as he was obligated and promised almost more than he could afford to, if Neku took that to mean he wouldn't aim any snarks in the ginger-haired boy's direction, so it was Neku's decision to perpetuate this or cut it short. Joshua knew better than to meddle at a time like this.

[Neku Sakuraba]

The orangette frowned a little more, hearing the other's breath hitch slightly. Did that small act really catch him off guard...? Ha...kind of funny. He really didn't think that Joshua wasn't expecting it...though he sighed a little, glancing at the pale skin before back to the water.

"I know that." he replied quietly, pulling his knees closer to his chest, "Like I was going to talk anyway..." he grumbled softly, "besides. You probably know damn why I'm upset." Neku offered.

He paused for a moment before hestinantly, ever so slightly, nuzzling into Joshua's neck. He sure hoped he wouldn't notice...he just felt like he just wanted to lean on something. That was it, right? Blue eyes watched the steam rise from the water before glancing up at the sky. It was kind of dark...not that he really cared.