Fic - Taking Cues 1/2
Fandom: KAT-TUN
Characters: Kame, Jin (main)
Pairings: Akame
Genre: AU, comedy/fluff, action/adventure
Rating: R, yaoi, rps
Status: Complete
Dedication: soundczech
A/N: Written for kizuna_exchange 2010 here. Thank you to solo____ and darkgloom for betaing!
Summary: JE cop AU. Kame is an overworked cop. Jin whines about being an overworked cop. They have ~adventures~.
Kame yawns as he flips the folder closed. He glances at the clock: it’s almost seven o’clock. He’s been at it since six in the morning, surviving on doughnuts, take-out, and endless cups of really awful coffee. Even with all the overtime he’s been putting in lately, it feels like nothing is ever enough. That despite all their efforts and the sleepless nights and the raids, the criminal activity in the city is somehow bound and determined to multiply exponentially with each passing day.
And already, he thinks, looking at the messy pile of untouched folders on his desk and rubbing his temples, he’s starting to get tired of it all. Tired of being one of the lone fish swimming against the current, tired of begging his supervisors to increase his budget and extend the manpower, of filling out endless amounts of paperwork when he should’ve really been out doing his job.
Maybe it would’ve been easier if he’d gone the route Pi had taken. If he’d made different choices. If he’d taken the right cases. The high profile ones, like the cases that nowadays routinely ends with Yamapi’s earnest face gracing the front page of the newspaper. He’d at least have a bigger budget, he muses, sparing a doleful glance at his dull brown folders. Apparently no-one, apart from him, really wants to know about crimes against the less-than-respectable denizens of Tokyo. He has to admit, he’d been more than a little irked at the beginning, when Yamapi would get the best cases while he was assigned the cases about hookers and delinquents and runaways; cases that might end up in a small box in page four of the newspaper, if he was lucky.
He’d since learned to love it; he has to admit that thinking of himself and his unit as some sort of champions for the less privileged has a certain appeal. He glances at the side where some of the detectives from Yamapi’s department are standing, grinning and congratulating each other on yet another successful case, folders carelessly strewn on the desks. Kame’s eyebrows draw together in a deep frown, his eyes on the multicoloured folders. He likes his job, but it’s moments like these when he flashes of jealousy surfaces. They don’t even colour code their files in an efficient way, he fumes. If it was him-
He stops his train of thought right there and hunches down on his desk, his hair shielding his face. It was pointless to think like that - he and his unit had chosen their path, with no illusions that there'd be a glorious end or anything like that waiting for them; Takki had made that quite clear when he’d asked to stick with his department. Kame had chosen something that he thought was good, was right, and because no-one else seemed to want to do it. At least he’s able to get a good night’s rest, he consoles himself, as his gaze strays once more to the unopened piles of files at this side.
If and when he finally gets out of the office, that is, Kame sighs as he wearily takes the first folder and opens it.
Kame is steadily working his way through the piles of paperwork on his desk when he gradually becomes aware of the increasing levels of noise outside his office. Ten minutes ago it had barely pinged his consciousness, but now it sounds like someone's giving out free lunch coupons.
“What’s the racket out there?” Kame asks Shige, when he pokes his head out. Shige is lounging on the threadbare couch outside Kame’s office; unusual, because he normally doesn’t stray far from his own - Yamapi’s - department.
Shige looks up, distracted, and straightens his glasses when he sees Kame. “Oh, um, someone came to see Yamapi. It got too loud so I came over here. I hope you don’t mind-”
Kame waves a careless hand, and then both of them wince when the noise moves up another decibel.
“You sure they’re okay down there?” Kame enquires. “Yamapi’s not normally like this...”
Shige frowns. “I’m sure they’re alright,” he says, grimacing. “Ryo’s with him.”
Kame gives a half-smile, then nods as he grabs his mug from the table and walks over to the coffee maker. Anyone who is able to get past Nishikido Ryo probably deserves to. Kame’s already dismissed the situation from his head, and is mentally cataloguing the list of things he needs to do before the end of the day when he catches a glimpse of Yamapi’s office door opening. He turns his head absently. Who he sees next makes him stop short and stare, nearly dropping his mug of coffee.
The man stepping out the door is tanned and tall, the shapeless hoodie and loose cargos he’s wearing not nearly enough to hide the trim body within. His hair is longer than when Kame had seen it last, now a dark chestnut instead of the notice-me blond he remembers from years ago, and is secured at the nape of his neck in a low ponytail. He’s turning away with Yamapi at his side, probably to leave the station, when he slows down and glances back, meeting Kame’s eyes.
The hair and the clothes might have changed, but that unforgettable face, the playful lips that can grin and pout with devastating results, they haven’t changed at all. Neither has the confusing intensity in those dark, almond eyes when they look at him - Kame can still feel it from across the length of the room.
It lasts only a moment; then someone flits between them, and when the group of people have passed, there is no sign of anyone in the hallway. Kame stands stock-still for a moment more, then turns and walks shakily back to his office.
Jin is back.
*
That night, Kame uncharacteristically takes Uchi up on his offer to go out for dinner. From Uchi’s surprised face, he hasn’t really expected Kame to agree, but he recovers admirably. Uchi drives them to an expensive French restaurant; Kame is surprised at his choice, but everything is clear when Uchi grumps about Ryo dumping him at the last minute and calls him some of the most inventive names Kame has ever had the pleasure to hear. Uchi is understandably bitter because Ryo was supposed to celebrate the successful overturn of a drinking on the job verdict against Uchi, and they’d scheduled this evening almost a month ago.
Dinner goes as well as can be expected; both of them have a lot of frustration built up - an unfortunate side effect of their profession -- and they take full advantage of the opportunity to bitch about everything from the superior attitudes of the latest rookies and the decrease in the quality of doughnuts from the corner cafe to the blinding pants that senior sergeant Tsuyoshi is prone to wearing these days. They go through two bottles of excellent wine together, and by the end of it Kame’s feeling mellow and relaxed, and he's successfully pushed the earlier incident with Jin from his mind until Uchi gets a call from Ryo.
Uchi takes the call in front of Kame, and immediately moves the phone a few inches away from his ear. Kame can see why - he can hear the music blasting from his seat at the table.
“God, Ryo, at least move somewhere quieter before you try to call,” Uchi grumbles, “I can’t hear a damn thing you‘re saying.”
There is a pause, ostensibly so Ryo can follow Uchi’s suggestion. Kame helps himself to more wine, takes a sip of his drink and lets his eyes roam across the room. There’s a couple sitting in the corner table to his left. They seem happy and nervous with the flush of first love. Kame lowers his eyes and wonders if he’s ever been so naïve.
“No,” Uchi is saying, “I’ve been looking forward to this for months, and I’m not going to cram myself in a sweaty, crowded nightclub just because you want to pick up girls with Akanishi and Yamapi.”
Kame’s attention swerves back to Uchi in spite of himself. But Uchi doesn’t say anything else about Jin (not that Kame’s straining to hear or anything), just gripes at Ryo for the next minute and a half.
“Seriously,” he complains after ending the call, “The nerve. Cancelling on me at the last minute, and he expects me to drop everything and run whenever he calls, like I’m a clingy girl instead of his partner.”
Kame stares unseeingly into his glass of wine as Uchi keeps talking, not noticing Kame’s distraction.
“Just because Akanishi’s back doesn’t mean he gets a free pass,” Uchi mumbles and Kame looks up to see his lips quirking down. “I mean, you guys trained together too, right?”
Kame grimaces. That particular time in his life has always evoked intense feelings in himself whenever he looked back on it - he had experienced some of the best and worst moments in his life in that period. The time when he and Jin had been rookie partners, inseparable. They’d been good together. Kame smiles slightly. Well okay, even he could admit that they’d been one of the best teams the academy had seen in recent years. Which was part of why it had hurt so much when everything had come crashing down.
“So why aren’t you with Ryo and Pi then, getting drunk off your ass with Akanishi?”
Kame jerks his head up; he’d almost forgotten that Uchi was talking to him. “Clubbing’s not really my style,” he deflects, hoping Uchi won't ask for details, and bends over his glass of wine.
“Oh yeah, I think I remember about you guys,” Uchi says, nodding and signalling for more wine. Kame approves. “They split you up after that case with the mob, right?”
Kame opens his mouth, then wonders how to even begin explaining, where to start. They’d been thrown into a case that had looked straightforward at first, then rapidly descended into something more dangerous than anyone had thought. They had gotten in too deep before they knew it, and later, it seemed like every step they had taken had gotten on the wrong side of their supervisors. And when they’d deviated from standard office procedure, well.
Kame personally still thinks they’d made the right decision; the opportunity that had presented itself was too tantalizing not to take advantage of. And the information they had gained had helped significantly in a spate of drug-related arrests later that month after they’d both been pulled off the case. Kame knows how to play the game now; what to do to make people think he’s just one of the boys. Back then, though, he’d been too full of idealism, and too arrogant with it to realize the advantages of playing the subtler game.
Though they’d both fought against their separation at first, Kame had been the first to give in. He still remembers Jin’s betrayed face when Kame first told him that maybe they should do what the supervisors wanted. He’d figured their seniors knew what they were talking about. Surely for two rookies, fresh out of the academy, deferring to their experienced seniors should be a matter of course. Jin had taken it as a betrayal, no matter how Kame tried to convince him. That had been their last big fight. They had each left that night, equally furious, and had kept up their mutual iciness for almost half a year, one just as stubborn as the other and both incapable of apologizing.
When Kame had finally gotten up the nerve to talk to Jin, it had been a horribly awkward conversation. Kame had apologized; Jin had gotten a funny look on his face and broken the news that he’d accepted a solo mission, just like Kame had suggested. A week later, he’d left for an undercover mission to America.
Kame wishes he knew how to classify their relationship. He thinks of their past closeness and their current distance, and winces. “We... we drifted apart after they split us up. Actually, the last time I talked to him was just a week or so before he left.”
“Huh,” Uchi says. “So he didn’t contact you in between?”
Kame shrugs.
“And now he’s back after, what, a year?”
“Two,” Kame corrects.
Uchi nods. “Ah, that’s a while. So if you’re not that close, then you probably won’t be hanging out too much with Akanishi now, huh?”
Kame swallows the sting of bitterness and his hands tighten on his glass when he throws the wine back, but he manages not to show it on his face as he sets the glass down on the table. “I guess I probably won’t.”
*
The next week, Kame is summoned to Koichi’s office. Kame has prepared copies of the case file and when he walks into the room and sees someone already there, his first thought is shit, I should’ve made more than one.
“Ah, Kamenashi,” Koichi says, nodding at him. “Come, sit. And of course you already know Akanishi.”
Kame stills at Koichi’s words, but moves forward to take a seat at the same time as the other man stiffens and turns to look at him, and Kame meets Jin’s eyes for the second time in two years.
Kame always thought that Jin was the one people have in mind when they talk about the eyes being the windows to the soul. Jin’s eyes were big and open, incapable of hiding anything, with all his emotions and feelings laid right on the surface for anyone to pluck out.
But as Kame looks at him now, he realizes that isn’t the case anymore. Jin’s eyes now seem impenetrable, like they have iron curtains shielding him from anyone and everyone. Kame can no more read him than he can read Koichi. He nods, and is surprised when Jin actually smiles a little and nods back.
“I’m sorry,” Kame says. “I didn’t realize I needed to bring more than one copy of the file,” he apologizes, looking from Jin to Koichi.
“Kamenashi,” Koichi replies. “I didn’t ask you in to look at your cases - didn’t you get the memo?”
“Memo?” Kame asks, frowning.
“Okay, so you probably haven’t got a chance to look at it yet.” Kame wonders how Koichi can look so pleasant and so disapproving all at the same time. “Well anyway. Kamenashi, meet the latest member of your unit and your new partner. I’m sure you’ll be able to show him all the ropes.”
“Partner?” Kame stares. “What about the decision to have me go solo?”
“Ah, well, some of your cases haven’t been working out - through no fault of yours, of course,” Koichi hastens to reassure him and Kame’s ears burn in embarrassment. It isn’t his fault (he can’t help it if most of the witnesses for his cases are druggies and hookers who pretty much get shot down on cross-examination), but that hasn’t stopped him from regarding those as personal failures, and the reminder still rankles. “And some of the higher-ups decided that putting you two together would be good for PR in some ways.”
Kame blinks. “PR?” he asks, utterly baffled.
“Well,” Koichi says, voice lowering. “It’s being kept quiet, but how much do you know about the gun running circle that Takki, Yamashita and Ohno’s teams have been working on for, oh, months?”
Kame shrugs. “Some. What I picked up from gossip here and there. It’s not really anything connected to my work, so I don’t know much.”
“Ah well. There’s been a recent development of sorts. A complication.”
“Complication?” Kame asks, feeling dread seep through him. At his side, Jin looks bored; he’s probably heard all this already.
“Well, the bottom line is this. We need some more undercover work for that op. But since most of the units here are tied up or working on it already, we were kind of shorthanded,” Koichi explains. “Akanishi’s return here turned out to be extremely lucky.”
“Lucky,” Kame parrots, then turns a puzzled glance from Koichi to Jin. “But what does that have to do with me?”
Koichi looks at him like he can’t believe that Kame’s so slow. “You’ll be going with him, too.”
Kame is pissed off. Not just because he’s been saddled with a sudden mission to help with some other unit's case at the last minute, no matter how short the duration would be, but because underlying that is the fact that Koichi apparently doesn’t think anything he’s working on is important enough to merit concern. And after all the fuss the management made a couple of years ago with the two of them, now they seem to have no problem with having Kame partner Jin. Good for PR, my ass, Kame sneers when he’s back in his office, flipping through files with crisp, sharp movements.
“Here,” he says shortly, turning to Jin and handing him the piles of folders. “These are all our current files. Once you’re done, just put them back, the cabinet’s unlocked during work hours.”
Kame doesn’t look at Jin, just stares in the vague direction of his eyes. He’s already turned back and is walking to his desk when Jin speaks.
“Kamenashi, if you’re that mad, you can always request my transfer to somewhere else.”
Kame turns around, eyes wide with surprise. “What?”
Jin is leaning against the wall with his hands full of folders, seemingly relaxed, except his eyes are shuttered and wary. “If you don’t want me in the unit, I won’t mind. You have seniority, so you can probably-”
“No,” Kame denies. “I’m not mad.”
“So you’re what, bending the folders in your hand in half because you like them so much?”
Kame looks down to see the files bent almost double. He lets out a breath and unclenches his fists with an effort.
“It’s okay,” Jin says, looking away. “I know how it feels, suddenly saddled with someone-”
“No,” Kame repeats. “That’s really not it. It’s not you. Not at all.” It suddenly seems very important for him to let Jin know this.
“How can you even think-” Kame stops short and presses his lips closed and wonders for the umpteenth time just what it is about Jin that makes him turn tongue-tied and awkward and prone to blurting out things that would better stay in his head.
He’d hoped to be professional and smart when he met Jin, and in a tiny corner of his mind, admits that he wanted Jin to be impressed. By him, how he’s changed in two years, what he’s accomplished. In reality, though, apparently all that the Kamenashi brand of professionalism does is cause misunderstandings for Jin, which result in horribly awkward silences when Kame falls over himself trying to correct all the misconceptions.
“Okay, I’m a bit upset,” Kame admits, figuring the straightforward option will be the best way to go at this point. “But it’s not because of you.”
Jin isn’t completely relaxed yet, but at least he’s meeting Kame’s eyes, which is a definite improvement.
“What is it, then?” he asks, when Kame doesn’t show any inclination to elaborate.
Kame purses his lips and has to fight down the automatic “none of your business” response that comes to mind. After a couple of deep breaths, he figures it doesn’t matter. He doesn’t need to be so damn defensive, Jin’s supposed to be in his unit anyway, his partner.
“It’s nothing. I’m probably letting the stress get to me, but…” he says abruptly, turning away. “Just, suddenly putting me in an investigation that has nothing to do with me when our unit’s already trying to play catch-up with our regular cases is just...”
Kame bites off any more words before he ends up ranting and raving like a lunatic. “It’s nothing,” Kame sighs, shaking his head. “I’m being stupid. Koichi said he’ll be forwarding the details of our assignment tomorrow, so I’ll let you go now to familiarize yourself with stuff here.”
Jin nods, and trails his eyes across Kame’s wall where he’s put up the framed stuff, and his eyes land on one news article and makes a sudden stop.
“Is that Yamapi?”
Kame looks up at the astonishment in Jin’s voice and blinks. “Ah, yeah. Bit more than a year ago, I think.”
Jin stares at the happy grins on Kame and Yamapi’s faces in the newspaper clipping in disbelief. “You were the one Yamapi told me about? They made you two partners?”
“It was just temporary,” Kame snaps, feeling defensive for some strange reason. “It was one case. And then we solved it and that was it, end of story.”
Jin is still looking bug eyed. “I can't believe they made you two work together. I tried to get you two to become friends for years, and all that came out of that was a stupid fight in a park!”
Kame pinches the bridge of his nose and remembers exactly why he’d become used to suppressing urges to punch Jin in the face all those years ago. “We were young and stupid. We got over it.”
“Over, like, swings.” Jin is still open-mouthed, and if not for the files in his hands, would probably be gesticulating wildly. “Swings, or something equally retarded!”
“It's over- it doesn’t matter.” Kame narrowly avoids admitting that the fight might have started over something stupid, but it had really been about, well, Jin. He feels a headache coming on. “We worked for a few months on a case, we solved it, end of matter. And yes, we don’t feel the urge to punch each other in the face anymore.”
Because both of them had long resolved where they stood with Jin. Not that Kame doesn’t get jealous every once in a while, but that is neither here nor there.
Jin is still staring wide-eyed from the framed picture to Kame, speechless.
“That was actually our first serial killer case,” Kame feels the urge to fill the silence. “And probably why Yamashita gets all of those cases now.”
“And you?”
Kame looks up to see Jin looking at him, eyes curious. “Probably why I get all the cases I do, too,” Kame says, smile bitter, and Jin gets a strange expression on his face, but doesn’t ask any more questions, and leaves Kame’s office soon afterwards.
*
“Hey, hey, did you know?”
Ohkura turns around to see Yoko bounding over to the water cooler. “Know what?” he asks, turning back to filling the coffee pot.
“Akanishi’s been assigned to Kamenashi’s team,” Yoko says, running his hands gleefully together.
“That doesn’t explain why you’re so excited,” Ohkura notes, turning the coffee machine on.
“That’s because you don’t remember their old glory days at the academy,” Hina says, strolling over, hands in his pockets. “Yoko had to do a group project with Akanishi once, and he’d call me and report on everything the two of them were doing - ‘oh they played cards! They have such presence! Do you think they'd do threesomes?’”
Yoko growls and chucks a mug at Hina, who’s laughing like a hyena.
“Anyway,” Yoko says, turning back to Ohkura, who’s by now joined by Subaru and Maruyama. “I heard that they were seen together at two in the morning yesterday. So, who wants to bug their apartments with me?” he asks, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Oh, I dunno, Yoko,” says Tegoshi, walking over with Ryo. “Bugging someone’s house seems kind of dangerous, especially if it’s-”
“Oi, whose house are you guys planning to bug?”
They turn to see Jin walking over, grinning, and Yoko chokes on his water.
“What, tell me,” Jin persists, looking around at everyone staring back at him. “I wanna be in on it too,” he insists, and Ryo cackles. “Somehow I doubt you’d be very enthusiastic, Bakanishi.”
“At least I can reach up to put them in the air vents, you freaky midget.”
“Fucker, I will-”
“Akanishi.”
They all turn at the no-nonsense voice. All except Jin, who just groans silently. Kame is standing there in a crisp shirt and perfectly creased pants with his eyebrow cocked. “Bugging someone’s house without cause is illegal, and you’re supposed to be starting on your paperwork which I need by the end of the day. So please, for the sake of my sanity, no bugging for the next few months till we’re caught up, alright?”
They stare as Kame drags off a still-protesting Jin.
“See?” Yoko hisses, turning back to them. “See what I mean?”
*
Nakamaru doesn’t look up when Jin staggers over to his desk and slumps down next to him.
“I’m dying,” he groans in an over-dramatized whine. “All the paper on my desk is on a mission to smother me before the day is over. You have to save me, Nakamaru.”
“That wouldn’t happen if you didn’t sleep when you’re supposed to be going over all the background reading,” Nakamaru retorts.
Jin moans pathetically.
“I don’t know what you’re going on about,” Nakamaru adds, leaning back in his char and tilting his head at Jin. “It’s not like you won’t be out of here in a week.”
“Yeah, that’s the only thing that’s keeping me sane,” Jin mutters. “And here I thought I’d be looking forward to the life of a boring paper-pusher when I came back to Japan.”
“Boring?” Nakamaru snorts. “Perish the thought. Where else would you have the opportunity to play out what seems like a cliché spy drama plot with Kame?”
“I wouldn’t mind being a glamorous spy,” Jin grins. “Especially if the role came with sexy women.”
“Who would?” Nakamaru asks philosophically. The two of them allow themselves a brief moment to daydream before Jin sighs.
“If only. Instead, we’ll probably be playing druggies or something- what?” Jin asks, when Nakamaru makes an impatient sound. “What?”
“Kame’d make a horrible druggie.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Jin snorts. “He’s got the thin, emaciated look down pat.”
Nakamaru snickers. “Don’t let him hear you say that. The guy’s got a mean streak, and he can make life difficult when you two are posing around. You know he’s got the upper hand in it.”
“What?” Jin blinks and sits up straighter. “Do you know what we’re going in as?”
Nakamaru spares him a glance. “You’d know too, if you’d been going through the memos like you should have, instead of whining at me about it.”
“Well then, since you know, you can just tell me,” Jin says, sotto voice. “So what’s Kamenashi supposed to be then?”
“Do you seriously not know? He’s supposed to be Tsubasa’s rep, sent over to Tokyo to get the guns as a buyer - you know Tsubasa’s still undercover over in Osaka, right? Oh, and it’s looking like Kame’ll probably be a part-time pimp, it’ll be easier for us to get info from you guys then. Koki’ll be briefing him soon,” Nakamaru explains, but the last part of his sentence is drowned out by the explosion of Jin’s high pitched laughter.
“Tell me again,” Jin pants, sprawled on the chair. “Maybe I heard it wrong, but I could’ve sworn that you said that, that Kamenashi will be- please, please tell me you said he’ll be playing a-”
“Yes, Akanishi, he’s going to be a pimp,” Nakamaru replies, long-suffering, when Jin shrieks and collapses on the floor. “Oh come on, grow up. You’re his partner for now, right?”
Jin waves a careless hand, and clutches his stomach with both hands. His laughter gains a hysterical edge when Kame strides in and stares at where Jin’s lying collapsed on the floor, all curled up like a pill bug, gasping for breath. His face turns purple when he sees Kame.
“Kame, you, you- pimp-” he manages weakly before dissolving into another round of giggles. Kame takes in Jin’s near-hysterical glee and Nakamaru’s resigned expression in the space of one exasperated glance.
“I don’t know what you’re so amused about, Akanishi,” he says, glaring at Jin, voice acquiring a distinctly frosty undertone. “Didn’t anyone tell you what you’ll be going in as?” and smiles in satisfaction when Jin’s laughter cuts off abruptly.
“What the fuck, Domoto?” Jin demands, stalking into the Sergeant’s office and slamming his hands on Koichi’s desk. Koichi clicks his tongue in irritation as a couple of files drop down from the desk. “Why me? Why can’t Erika or Leah do it instead?” he gestures emphatically. “Or Meisa, even. Meisa would totally be the hottest whore ever!”
“Don’t let her hear you say that.” Koichi looks pointedly over Jin’s shoulder towards the open door. Jin takes the hint and kicks it shut (but not before making sure Meisa’s nowhere near them).
“You do realize you’re supposed to keep this quiet,” Koichi says mildly, sipping his oolong tea. Jin makes a rude gesture at him.
“If anyone asks, I’ll just tell them you’re making me train the kiddies or something,” Jin says impatiently. “Whatever. But why do I have to do it? And as a girl?”
“Both Leah and Erika have worked on the case before. And Meisa’s too high profile with the pedophile she caught last month, the press still shows her photos in the papers. All three of them are known to the sleazeballs over there.”
“But-”
“Kamenashi looks exactly like what he is when he dresses as a girl - a guy in drag. He lost a bet to Meisa last year,” Koichi explains, when he sees a flash of curiosity pass Jin’s face.
“It was pretty hilarious, Tegoshi had to do it too, and they had to spend the whole day like that, and if we could spare him, we’d have him be the whore, but, look, that’s not the point here.” Koichi catches himself before he could drift off too much. “Which is that Minamoto’s buyers aren’t in the gay sex business for the most part, so we pretty much have no choice - the whore’s going to have to be female.”
“Besides,” he continues, leaning back against his chair, “you’re one of the guys with the most undercover experience. Unless all the stories about the things you got up to in LA were just bragging on your part.” Koichi has an eyebrow raised, and he’s smirking around his cigarette. Jin snarls at him. “And also, with Kame having a hooker as a girlfriend, it’ll be easier to relay messages back and forth. Not very elegant, but this is a rush job, so that’s what we’re sticking with.”
The explanation does little to mollify Jin. He’s just opened his mouth to rant some more when the phone rings. Koichi checks the caller id, and immediately straightens up. Someone important enough to do the kiss-ass routine with, no doubt, Jin thinks nastily.
“Go to Koki, he’ll get you all the stuff you need,” Koichi says, turning businesslike within the space of two seconds. “And take Kamenashi with you when you go.” He waves a hand, signifying that the meeting is over, and is already deep in conversation with whoever’s on the phone by the time Jin leaves.
Jin scowls as he stalks back to his desk, sending the unfortunate individuals meeting him on the way scurrying out of his path. He bangs open the door to Kame’s office and flings himself down on the ratty couch.
Kame looks up from his report and stares at Jin over his glasses, his expression steady. “I told you it wouldn’t make a difference.”
Jin makes a rude noise in response. Kame waits until Jin looks up at him again, then points at the chair next to the couch. Kame watches Jin look over with studied disinterest before perking up at the bags of take-out. Jin stretches to take the cheap plastic bag, and Kame has to force himself not to stare when Jin’s t-shirt lifts up to reveal a narrow strip of belly. When, Jin settles himself on the couch, busying himself with taking out the cardboard boxes, Kame congratulates himself for his foresight in having food at hand, and goes back to his work. Well, attempts to, anyway.
“Kame.”
“Mm,” he answers as he shuffles through his files, distracted. He can’t find the Ueno case file, but he’s positive it was on his desk somewhere. Hmm, now which pile of folders to look in first...
“There are two boxes of take-out in this.”
“Uh huh.”
“Kame,” Jin tries again.
“Yeah?” Kame says, getting up and turning away from Jin to leaf through the folders in his drawer.
It turns out to be a strategic mistake. Kame’s reached up to Mitsuko, Aya when he feels himself spun around and forcibly marched to the couch. He protests when Jin pushes him and he lands heavily on the couch, springs creaking at the abuse. He shuts up at Jin’s glare and gives up when he’s handed the box of takeout and chopsticks, resigning himself to an inefficient half-hour of nothing but eating.
He doesn’t know how Jin does it.
*
They’re on the go with less than a week of research and hurried training under their belts. The first week passes by slowly without them getting anywhere, but it picks up during the second week. Jin gets vindictive pleasure in bitching at Koki and Ueda every chance he gets - they were the ones who got the unenviable task of playing Jin’s customers. Both of them seem to have fun with their roles, though, Koki more so than the typically stoic Ueda. Jin has to fight to keep his face straight when Koki drives by one day to pick him up, dressed up to the nines in a white shirt, black skirt, slutty black boots and a long blonde wig.
“Nice boots,” Jin murmurs when he struts over to the car and leans on his elbows by the window, making sure to bend over to show his legs and ass to best advantage.
“Thanks,” Koki grins, winking and his diamond earrings sparkle in the light. “Yours aren’t bad, either,” he says, winking at Jin’s red bitch boots with the six inch heels.
“Fuck you,” Jin grunts, tucking his chin in to give the impression of bargaining. “When this is done, I’m going to find great pleasure in beating you over the head with them. Why the fuck couldn’t you have given me normal shoes, these make my legs hurt like a bitch.”
“Whine, whine,” Koki retorts, running a teasing finger over Jin’s bare arm. Jin obligingly shifts to make sure they can be seen by the hookers clustered on the lane behind them. “When you’re done, you can buy me lunch for a week as a thank you for doing my job so well; I notice you’ve blended into the scenery excellently,” he says, smirking when Jin discreetly flips him the bird.
“Why the hell didn’t you ask to be the hooker?” Jin asks later, ensconced in Koki’s car as they compare notes. “You make a hotter ho than me.”
“Is that a come-on, Akanishi?” Koki grins, waggling his brows at Jin’s muttered “you wish, asshole”. “Oh, and don’t forget; tell Kame that Minamoto’s been spotted in town today. He seems to be in a hurry to get the deal done.”
“Kame’s managed to get an in with one of the suppliers,” Jin says, frowning. “When he asked for some working models, they got kind of antsy.”
“Antsy how, exactly?” Koki asks, looking up from his notes. “Antsy-nervous, or antsy-suspicious?”
“Is there a difference?” Jin asks philosophically, then shrugs. “Kame doesn’t think they suspect him, Tsubasa’s endorsement seems to hold a lot of weight with them, so as a representative, he’s been treated okay. Or maybe he’s dazzled them with the eyeliner,” he says, grinning.
Koki looks intrigued, but Jin continues with the report.
“The suppliers seemed to be kind of wary of Minamoto, though; they don’t know what to make of his sudden decision to sell all his supplies in such a short time. Guess he hasn’t publicized the deal gone bad in China,” Jin says with a grin. “Kame’s supposed to be one of the party to get access to Minamoto’s stash next week - and it’s not even supposed to be the demo stash, he’s supposed to be taking them to the whole thing after he gets the proof of the money.”
Koki nods, then frowns as he thinks. “I don’t like it,” he says at last.”Minamoto’s always been one to keep his hands close to his chest. I don’t think Kame’s safe.”
“What, you want him to pull out?” Jin challenges, eyebrows raising. “It was fucking lucky that we were able to find Ishima in under three days. We pull out now, then all of this-” he indicates himself and Koki with a wide wave of his hand; “would be for nothing.”
Koki shakes his head. “It just seems too easy,” he insists. “What if Kame-”
“Kamenashi’s a big boy,” Jin interrupts, aware of the bitter tinge underscoring the edge in his words, “he can handle it.”
Koki opens his mouth to argue, but shuts it with an audible click when Jin glances sharply at him.
“Besides,” Jin continues after an uncomfortable pause, “it’s not like he’s going in alone.”
Koki exhales, then leans over to get the money from the glove box. “You do still have your gun on you, right?”
Jin scoffs as he stuffs the money in his boobs. “Please. I have two. And extra magazines. And a knife.”
Jin’s telling Kame what he learned from Koki when a honk interrupts their muttered discussion and a rough voice calls out to them.
They turn; the two guys in the car that’s approached them are grinning sleazily. “So, how much?”
“I’m not working right now,” Jin says, winking. “A girl has to eat. But come by later and I’ll see what I can do, hm?” he drawls out, voice pitched just high enough and utterly believable.
Kame has to admit that Jin’s definitely picked up some skills in America. And then he has to stop that thought before he starts wondering exactly how Jin knows how to play a hooker so perfectly.
“Aw, come on, sweetheart.” The guys in the car say with a wheedling tone, now opening the car door.
“We’ll treat you good. And even throw in some extra if you get your boyfriend to come with. We don’t see such pretty pairs about a lot these days.” He leans forward and strokes a sweaty hand over the back of Kame’s leg and then it continues up and is the fucker really-
Kame narrows his eyes and thinks that maybe Koki’s idea of pimp style maybe needs a bit of work, if he keeps getting mistaken for a whore too. Koki’s even painted his nails black, and loaned him some of his rings and chains. Kame has to admit to having a soft spot for the skull ring, but maybe all of that is a bit excessive. He’d had to endure quite a lot of catcalls already, and he’d had to resort to taking out his gun to shut them up. Though he’s admittedly taken liberties with the eye make-up, so it’s probably not fair to blame Koki a hundred per cent, either... but none of this is making him feel anything other than murderous rage at the moment.
Jin takes one look at Kame’s irate face and turns slightly away to hide the way he’s choking back laughter. It doesn’t stop his face from turning slightly red from holding in his laughter, though, and Kame burns with mortification. Kame stares at the leering man leaning against the car, intensely aware of Jin snickering under his breath next to him and takes a deep breath. In character, he chants mentally. I need to stay in character.
He steps up slowly, right up into the man's space and tips his hat back so his eyes can be seen. He knows how the eyeliner makes his eyes blacker in the harsh glare of the streetlight. That's the reason why he wears it in the first place. Well that, and he finds that he rather likes the way Jin stares at him then.
He doesn't lower his eyes, bends his face till his lips are near the man's ear. Though he talks in a whisper, the steel in his voice floats clearly over the dim cacophony of the traffic. "If I pay you a dollar, will you let me pull your tongue back out through your dick?"
He waits three seconds, long enough for the man to still completely, trails a finger across the man's chest, not missing the tremble he causes. He's made sure to angle his body so the guy can feel his very solid Glock on his belt.
Less than a minute later, the car speeds away from them, the noisy sound of squealing tyres echoing in the alleys. Kame is still irritated, and pointedly turns away from Jin when he’s still laughing five minutes later.
"I thought he was going to pass out on you," Jin says later, when Kame’s gotten over himself and they’re walking back to the corner. He’s trying to keep up with Kame's strides, but it’s difficult when the giggles keep pouring out at the same time. "Or maybe come all over you, I couldn't really tell."
Kame snorts in spite of himself. "I thought I was going to pass out, god. That guy likes garlic too much. Ah, I hope- Jin, am I all garlicky?" he mutters worriedly, whirling around and stopping Jin. “Wouldn’t be the best impression when I go to Ishima later tonight, would it?”
Jin blinks when Kame comes close - very close, a faint voice in his brain shrieks - and then Kame has both hands on his shoulders; to anyone else it would look like Kame is threatening Jin (or rather, Jennifer), but really, Kame is frowning and trying to inconspicuously smell himself and Jin finds that he cannot seem to look away from Kame because Kame is in black leather, and has a Glock, and is wearing eyeliner and-
"No," he says at last, his voice surprisingly steady. "You are not garlicky, Kame."
Once they’re caught up with each other’s news, they realize it’s pretty much a waiting game for a while. Jin has been able to let Koki know everything they’ve discovered and need done, and now they just have to wait for Minamoto to take the next step, which is supposed to happen the week after next. Which means that they have two weeks to kill in the meantime.
They discuss what to do in between gasping out ecstatic moans - they’ve had to go through the charade more than a few times before, when anyone that wasn’t Koki, Ueda (and sometimes, Nakamaru and in one rare case, Taguchi) tried to pick Jin up. The hookers over at the other corner seem to have accepted them as the weird couple who have sex more often than Jin gets picked up - but since that means more revenue for them, there haven’t been any complaints. Some of them have even started calling out to them, offering threesomes. This wouldn’t bother Jin if he really was having sex. Instead, it’s just them shut up in their shithole of an apartment with its paper-thin walls, trying to imitate sex-noises.
The first time had been rather awkward, but then as always, they ended up competing with each other, trying to one-up each other with their moans and groans and “right there, yess”es, and now the super grins lecherously whenever he catches sight of them. Though by now, the novelty’s gone out of it with the number of times they’ve had to play at having sex.
“Oooh,” Jin moans, bored, as he collapses on the bed, eyes closing. He decides that he’s lacking some enthusiasm and decides to add a “yesss, there,” after, and then waits for Kame. After a few seconds of silence, he opens his eyes, grumbling. “You could at least make an effort, you-mmmph”
Jin’s eyes light up when the uni sushi - his favourite, Kame remembered! - is shoved in his mouth, and this time the “mmmmmm” that comes out of his mouth is totally believable. Jin is intent on savouring the expensive sushi for the next little while, but notices Kame glancing away just as he looks up to offer some to him and looks down before the twinge of hurt in his chest can make its way to his eyes.
“So what are we going to do now?” Jin mutters, sitting beside Kame against the wall next to the futon. “Keep playing at whoring and having fake sex?”
Kame shrugs.
“It wouldn’t be so bad if I was actually having sex,” Jin grumbles, and Kame rolls his eyes. “I mean, some of the hookers are pretty hot.”
Kame stares at him. “Jin. They’re hookers.”
“Well yes. I’m not actually going to have sex with them or anything. But some of them are pretty hot,” he insists. “I mean, come on, you have to agree.”
Kame stares at him. “I don’t even know what you’re going on about. Please tell me you’re not actually thinking of fucking-”
“Of course not,” Jin says in an injured tone. “What do you take me for?”
“Well, pardon me if I worry when you suddenly start harping on about the hookers-”
“Oh fuck you,” Jin grumbles, mentally marvelling at how easy it is to fall back into the easy banter with Kame. “You’re not the one in a tight dress trying not to get a hard-on while women all around you are adjusting their boobs and rolling up their stockings every ten minutes - oi, stop laughing, this isn’t funny!”
“So what are we going to do now?” Jin asks again when Kame’s laughter has died down. “Just wait around till next week?”
“Well,” Kame says doubtfully. “I guess we could get a start on those three girls who made a fuss over turf issues when you first came in... I noticed that one of them has a regular who’s working for one of the lesser drug lords. I’m pretty sure they’re the ones behind the girls.”
Kame purses his lips in concentration as he reapplies his eyeliner. “If we go up against them now, they’ll go running back to their boss, and we’ll have a chance to sweep Nomura out too.”
Jin stops listening. He should have expected something like this; the only thing Kame hates more than losing is to waste time that can be spent accomplishing things. He sighs. “Okay,” he mutters, looking down despondently. “Let’s go threaten more people. But make it fast, okay, my bra is starting to itch.”
“This is going to be kind of sad,” Jin notes as they walk down to the street. “I mean, I’m generally against the whole violence against women bit.”
“Thought you liked the girl-on-girl action,” Kame says, voice dry.
“Not when I’m one of the girls in question,” Jin retorts. “And hm, I’m pretty sure a couple of them have a crush on you.”
“That’s not going to stop them from trying to claw your eyes out,” Kame seems quite unaffected by his statement.
“I can handle them,” Jin says with a smirk. “It’s the most exciting thing I’ve done yet; wade directly into a catfight. Maybe I can steal a few gropes,” he says with a wistful note in his voice.
“You’re disgusting. Maybe they know self-defense. I hope they do.”
“You’re a meaner bitch than all of them,” Jin says, rolling his eyes. “Also, the answer to your wicked wish is no,” Jin answers immediately. “You can tell by the way they stand.”
Kame glances at him. “You’ve spent a lot of time looking, huh.”
Jin harrumphs. “Don’t knock it till you’ve tried waiting around at a street corner for most of the day, Kamenashi.”
“Hello,” Jin says, smiling sweetly. “How are you today.”
The three girls stare warily at Jin, but say nothing. They do look up, however, when Kame strides in and levels his gaze at them.
“Oh hi,” he says, and leans against the streetlight. “This is Jennifer, as I’m sure you know.” He waves a hand at Jin, who is now smiling with a lot of teeth at the three uncertain girls, eyes glinting.
“I’ll just stay here while you four get... reacquainted,” he smirks. “Wake me when you’re done,” he says as an aside to Jin before he leans back, yawning, tipping his hat over his eyes.
He leaves his eyes open a slit as he stays back, slouching and watching Jin advance towards the girls, hips swinging. The girls trade worried looks and nervously fall back.
“That’s a definite no,” Kame hears before the first shrill scream, and snorts, leaning back and shutting his eyes. Takki and Koichi had better appreciate the extra work they’re doing.
*
Part 2/2
Characters: Kame, Jin (main)
Pairings: Akame
Genre: AU, comedy/fluff, action/adventure
Rating: R, yaoi, rps
Status: Complete
Dedication: soundczech
A/N: Written for kizuna_exchange 2010 here. Thank you to solo____ and darkgloom for betaing!
Summary: JE cop AU. Kame is an overworked cop. Jin whines about being an overworked cop. They have ~adventures~.
Kame yawns as he flips the folder closed. He glances at the clock: it’s almost seven o’clock. He’s been at it since six in the morning, surviving on doughnuts, take-out, and endless cups of really awful coffee. Even with all the overtime he’s been putting in lately, it feels like nothing is ever enough. That despite all their efforts and the sleepless nights and the raids, the criminal activity in the city is somehow bound and determined to multiply exponentially with each passing day.
And already, he thinks, looking at the messy pile of untouched folders on his desk and rubbing his temples, he’s starting to get tired of it all. Tired of being one of the lone fish swimming against the current, tired of begging his supervisors to increase his budget and extend the manpower, of filling out endless amounts of paperwork when he should’ve really been out doing his job.
Maybe it would’ve been easier if he’d gone the route Pi had taken. If he’d made different choices. If he’d taken the right cases. The high profile ones, like the cases that nowadays routinely ends with Yamapi’s earnest face gracing the front page of the newspaper. He’d at least have a bigger budget, he muses, sparing a doleful glance at his dull brown folders. Apparently no-one, apart from him, really wants to know about crimes against the less-than-respectable denizens of Tokyo. He has to admit, he’d been more than a little irked at the beginning, when Yamapi would get the best cases while he was assigned the cases about hookers and delinquents and runaways; cases that might end up in a small box in page four of the newspaper, if he was lucky.
He’d since learned to love it; he has to admit that thinking of himself and his unit as some sort of champions for the less privileged has a certain appeal. He glances at the side where some of the detectives from Yamapi’s department are standing, grinning and congratulating each other on yet another successful case, folders carelessly strewn on the desks. Kame’s eyebrows draw together in a deep frown, his eyes on the multicoloured folders. He likes his job, but it’s moments like these when he flashes of jealousy surfaces. They don’t even colour code their files in an efficient way, he fumes. If it was him-
He stops his train of thought right there and hunches down on his desk, his hair shielding his face. It was pointless to think like that - he and his unit had chosen their path, with no illusions that there'd be a glorious end or anything like that waiting for them; Takki had made that quite clear when he’d asked to stick with his department. Kame had chosen something that he thought was good, was right, and because no-one else seemed to want to do it. At least he’s able to get a good night’s rest, he consoles himself, as his gaze strays once more to the unopened piles of files at this side.
If and when he finally gets out of the office, that is, Kame sighs as he wearily takes the first folder and opens it.
Kame is steadily working his way through the piles of paperwork on his desk when he gradually becomes aware of the increasing levels of noise outside his office. Ten minutes ago it had barely pinged his consciousness, but now it sounds like someone's giving out free lunch coupons.
“What’s the racket out there?” Kame asks Shige, when he pokes his head out. Shige is lounging on the threadbare couch outside Kame’s office; unusual, because he normally doesn’t stray far from his own - Yamapi’s - department.
Shige looks up, distracted, and straightens his glasses when he sees Kame. “Oh, um, someone came to see Yamapi. It got too loud so I came over here. I hope you don’t mind-”
Kame waves a careless hand, and then both of them wince when the noise moves up another decibel.
“You sure they’re okay down there?” Kame enquires. “Yamapi’s not normally like this...”
Shige frowns. “I’m sure they’re alright,” he says, grimacing. “Ryo’s with him.”
Kame gives a half-smile, then nods as he grabs his mug from the table and walks over to the coffee maker. Anyone who is able to get past Nishikido Ryo probably deserves to. Kame’s already dismissed the situation from his head, and is mentally cataloguing the list of things he needs to do before the end of the day when he catches a glimpse of Yamapi’s office door opening. He turns his head absently. Who he sees next makes him stop short and stare, nearly dropping his mug of coffee.
The man stepping out the door is tanned and tall, the shapeless hoodie and loose cargos he’s wearing not nearly enough to hide the trim body within. His hair is longer than when Kame had seen it last, now a dark chestnut instead of the notice-me blond he remembers from years ago, and is secured at the nape of his neck in a low ponytail. He’s turning away with Yamapi at his side, probably to leave the station, when he slows down and glances back, meeting Kame’s eyes.
The hair and the clothes might have changed, but that unforgettable face, the playful lips that can grin and pout with devastating results, they haven’t changed at all. Neither has the confusing intensity in those dark, almond eyes when they look at him - Kame can still feel it from across the length of the room.
It lasts only a moment; then someone flits between them, and when the group of people have passed, there is no sign of anyone in the hallway. Kame stands stock-still for a moment more, then turns and walks shakily back to his office.
Jin is back.
*
That night, Kame uncharacteristically takes Uchi up on his offer to go out for dinner. From Uchi’s surprised face, he hasn’t really expected Kame to agree, but he recovers admirably. Uchi drives them to an expensive French restaurant; Kame is surprised at his choice, but everything is clear when Uchi grumps about Ryo dumping him at the last minute and calls him some of the most inventive names Kame has ever had the pleasure to hear. Uchi is understandably bitter because Ryo was supposed to celebrate the successful overturn of a drinking on the job verdict against Uchi, and they’d scheduled this evening almost a month ago.
Dinner goes as well as can be expected; both of them have a lot of frustration built up - an unfortunate side effect of their profession -- and they take full advantage of the opportunity to bitch about everything from the superior attitudes of the latest rookies and the decrease in the quality of doughnuts from the corner cafe to the blinding pants that senior sergeant Tsuyoshi is prone to wearing these days. They go through two bottles of excellent wine together, and by the end of it Kame’s feeling mellow and relaxed, and he's successfully pushed the earlier incident with Jin from his mind until Uchi gets a call from Ryo.
Uchi takes the call in front of Kame, and immediately moves the phone a few inches away from his ear. Kame can see why - he can hear the music blasting from his seat at the table.
“God, Ryo, at least move somewhere quieter before you try to call,” Uchi grumbles, “I can’t hear a damn thing you‘re saying.”
There is a pause, ostensibly so Ryo can follow Uchi’s suggestion. Kame helps himself to more wine, takes a sip of his drink and lets his eyes roam across the room. There’s a couple sitting in the corner table to his left. They seem happy and nervous with the flush of first love. Kame lowers his eyes and wonders if he’s ever been so naïve.
“No,” Uchi is saying, “I’ve been looking forward to this for months, and I’m not going to cram myself in a sweaty, crowded nightclub just because you want to pick up girls with Akanishi and Yamapi.”
Kame’s attention swerves back to Uchi in spite of himself. But Uchi doesn’t say anything else about Jin (not that Kame’s straining to hear or anything), just gripes at Ryo for the next minute and a half.
“Seriously,” he complains after ending the call, “The nerve. Cancelling on me at the last minute, and he expects me to drop everything and run whenever he calls, like I’m a clingy girl instead of his partner.”
Kame stares unseeingly into his glass of wine as Uchi keeps talking, not noticing Kame’s distraction.
“Just because Akanishi’s back doesn’t mean he gets a free pass,” Uchi mumbles and Kame looks up to see his lips quirking down. “I mean, you guys trained together too, right?”
Kame grimaces. That particular time in his life has always evoked intense feelings in himself whenever he looked back on it - he had experienced some of the best and worst moments in his life in that period. The time when he and Jin had been rookie partners, inseparable. They’d been good together. Kame smiles slightly. Well okay, even he could admit that they’d been one of the best teams the academy had seen in recent years. Which was part of why it had hurt so much when everything had come crashing down.
“So why aren’t you with Ryo and Pi then, getting drunk off your ass with Akanishi?”
Kame jerks his head up; he’d almost forgotten that Uchi was talking to him. “Clubbing’s not really my style,” he deflects, hoping Uchi won't ask for details, and bends over his glass of wine.
“Oh yeah, I think I remember about you guys,” Uchi says, nodding and signalling for more wine. Kame approves. “They split you up after that case with the mob, right?”
Kame opens his mouth, then wonders how to even begin explaining, where to start. They’d been thrown into a case that had looked straightforward at first, then rapidly descended into something more dangerous than anyone had thought. They had gotten in too deep before they knew it, and later, it seemed like every step they had taken had gotten on the wrong side of their supervisors. And when they’d deviated from standard office procedure, well.
Kame personally still thinks they’d made the right decision; the opportunity that had presented itself was too tantalizing not to take advantage of. And the information they had gained had helped significantly in a spate of drug-related arrests later that month after they’d both been pulled off the case. Kame knows how to play the game now; what to do to make people think he’s just one of the boys. Back then, though, he’d been too full of idealism, and too arrogant with it to realize the advantages of playing the subtler game.
Though they’d both fought against their separation at first, Kame had been the first to give in. He still remembers Jin’s betrayed face when Kame first told him that maybe they should do what the supervisors wanted. He’d figured their seniors knew what they were talking about. Surely for two rookies, fresh out of the academy, deferring to their experienced seniors should be a matter of course. Jin had taken it as a betrayal, no matter how Kame tried to convince him. That had been their last big fight. They had each left that night, equally furious, and had kept up their mutual iciness for almost half a year, one just as stubborn as the other and both incapable of apologizing.
When Kame had finally gotten up the nerve to talk to Jin, it had been a horribly awkward conversation. Kame had apologized; Jin had gotten a funny look on his face and broken the news that he’d accepted a solo mission, just like Kame had suggested. A week later, he’d left for an undercover mission to America.
Kame wishes he knew how to classify their relationship. He thinks of their past closeness and their current distance, and winces. “We... we drifted apart after they split us up. Actually, the last time I talked to him was just a week or so before he left.”
“Huh,” Uchi says. “So he didn’t contact you in between?”
Kame shrugs.
“And now he’s back after, what, a year?”
“Two,” Kame corrects.
Uchi nods. “Ah, that’s a while. So if you’re not that close, then you probably won’t be hanging out too much with Akanishi now, huh?”
Kame swallows the sting of bitterness and his hands tighten on his glass when he throws the wine back, but he manages not to show it on his face as he sets the glass down on the table. “I guess I probably won’t.”
*
The next week, Kame is summoned to Koichi’s office. Kame has prepared copies of the case file and when he walks into the room and sees someone already there, his first thought is shit, I should’ve made more than one.
“Ah, Kamenashi,” Koichi says, nodding at him. “Come, sit. And of course you already know Akanishi.”
Kame stills at Koichi’s words, but moves forward to take a seat at the same time as the other man stiffens and turns to look at him, and Kame meets Jin’s eyes for the second time in two years.
Kame always thought that Jin was the one people have in mind when they talk about the eyes being the windows to the soul. Jin’s eyes were big and open, incapable of hiding anything, with all his emotions and feelings laid right on the surface for anyone to pluck out.
But as Kame looks at him now, he realizes that isn’t the case anymore. Jin’s eyes now seem impenetrable, like they have iron curtains shielding him from anyone and everyone. Kame can no more read him than he can read Koichi. He nods, and is surprised when Jin actually smiles a little and nods back.
“I’m sorry,” Kame says. “I didn’t realize I needed to bring more than one copy of the file,” he apologizes, looking from Jin to Koichi.
“Kamenashi,” Koichi replies. “I didn’t ask you in to look at your cases - didn’t you get the memo?”
“Memo?” Kame asks, frowning.
“Okay, so you probably haven’t got a chance to look at it yet.” Kame wonders how Koichi can look so pleasant and so disapproving all at the same time. “Well anyway. Kamenashi, meet the latest member of your unit and your new partner. I’m sure you’ll be able to show him all the ropes.”
“Partner?” Kame stares. “What about the decision to have me go solo?”
“Ah, well, some of your cases haven’t been working out - through no fault of yours, of course,” Koichi hastens to reassure him and Kame’s ears burn in embarrassment. It isn’t his fault (he can’t help it if most of the witnesses for his cases are druggies and hookers who pretty much get shot down on cross-examination), but that hasn’t stopped him from regarding those as personal failures, and the reminder still rankles. “And some of the higher-ups decided that putting you two together would be good for PR in some ways.”
Kame blinks. “PR?” he asks, utterly baffled.
“Well,” Koichi says, voice lowering. “It’s being kept quiet, but how much do you know about the gun running circle that Takki, Yamashita and Ohno’s teams have been working on for, oh, months?”
Kame shrugs. “Some. What I picked up from gossip here and there. It’s not really anything connected to my work, so I don’t know much.”
“Ah well. There’s been a recent development of sorts. A complication.”
“Complication?” Kame asks, feeling dread seep through him. At his side, Jin looks bored; he’s probably heard all this already.
“Well, the bottom line is this. We need some more undercover work for that op. But since most of the units here are tied up or working on it already, we were kind of shorthanded,” Koichi explains. “Akanishi’s return here turned out to be extremely lucky.”
“Lucky,” Kame parrots, then turns a puzzled glance from Koichi to Jin. “But what does that have to do with me?”
Koichi looks at him like he can’t believe that Kame’s so slow. “You’ll be going with him, too.”
Kame is pissed off. Not just because he’s been saddled with a sudden mission to help with some other unit's case at the last minute, no matter how short the duration would be, but because underlying that is the fact that Koichi apparently doesn’t think anything he’s working on is important enough to merit concern. And after all the fuss the management made a couple of years ago with the two of them, now they seem to have no problem with having Kame partner Jin. Good for PR, my ass, Kame sneers when he’s back in his office, flipping through files with crisp, sharp movements.
“Here,” he says shortly, turning to Jin and handing him the piles of folders. “These are all our current files. Once you’re done, just put them back, the cabinet’s unlocked during work hours.”
Kame doesn’t look at Jin, just stares in the vague direction of his eyes. He’s already turned back and is walking to his desk when Jin speaks.
“Kamenashi, if you’re that mad, you can always request my transfer to somewhere else.”
Kame turns around, eyes wide with surprise. “What?”
Jin is leaning against the wall with his hands full of folders, seemingly relaxed, except his eyes are shuttered and wary. “If you don’t want me in the unit, I won’t mind. You have seniority, so you can probably-”
“No,” Kame denies. “I’m not mad.”
“So you’re what, bending the folders in your hand in half because you like them so much?”
Kame looks down to see the files bent almost double. He lets out a breath and unclenches his fists with an effort.
“It’s okay,” Jin says, looking away. “I know how it feels, suddenly saddled with someone-”
“No,” Kame repeats. “That’s really not it. It’s not you. Not at all.” It suddenly seems very important for him to let Jin know this.
“How can you even think-” Kame stops short and presses his lips closed and wonders for the umpteenth time just what it is about Jin that makes him turn tongue-tied and awkward and prone to blurting out things that would better stay in his head.
He’d hoped to be professional and smart when he met Jin, and in a tiny corner of his mind, admits that he wanted Jin to be impressed. By him, how he’s changed in two years, what he’s accomplished. In reality, though, apparently all that the Kamenashi brand of professionalism does is cause misunderstandings for Jin, which result in horribly awkward silences when Kame falls over himself trying to correct all the misconceptions.
“Okay, I’m a bit upset,” Kame admits, figuring the straightforward option will be the best way to go at this point. “But it’s not because of you.”
Jin isn’t completely relaxed yet, but at least he’s meeting Kame’s eyes, which is a definite improvement.
“What is it, then?” he asks, when Kame doesn’t show any inclination to elaborate.
Kame purses his lips and has to fight down the automatic “none of your business” response that comes to mind. After a couple of deep breaths, he figures it doesn’t matter. He doesn’t need to be so damn defensive, Jin’s supposed to be in his unit anyway, his partner.
“It’s nothing. I’m probably letting the stress get to me, but…” he says abruptly, turning away. “Just, suddenly putting me in an investigation that has nothing to do with me when our unit’s already trying to play catch-up with our regular cases is just...”
Kame bites off any more words before he ends up ranting and raving like a lunatic. “It’s nothing,” Kame sighs, shaking his head. “I’m being stupid. Koichi said he’ll be forwarding the details of our assignment tomorrow, so I’ll let you go now to familiarize yourself with stuff here.”
Jin nods, and trails his eyes across Kame’s wall where he’s put up the framed stuff, and his eyes land on one news article and makes a sudden stop.
“Is that Yamapi?”
Kame looks up at the astonishment in Jin’s voice and blinks. “Ah, yeah. Bit more than a year ago, I think.”
Jin stares at the happy grins on Kame and Yamapi’s faces in the newspaper clipping in disbelief. “You were the one Yamapi told me about? They made you two partners?”
“It was just temporary,” Kame snaps, feeling defensive for some strange reason. “It was one case. And then we solved it and that was it, end of story.”
Jin is still looking bug eyed. “I can't believe they made you two work together. I tried to get you two to become friends for years, and all that came out of that was a stupid fight in a park!”
Kame pinches the bridge of his nose and remembers exactly why he’d become used to suppressing urges to punch Jin in the face all those years ago. “We were young and stupid. We got over it.”
“Over, like, swings.” Jin is still open-mouthed, and if not for the files in his hands, would probably be gesticulating wildly. “Swings, or something equally retarded!”
“It's over- it doesn’t matter.” Kame narrowly avoids admitting that the fight might have started over something stupid, but it had really been about, well, Jin. He feels a headache coming on. “We worked for a few months on a case, we solved it, end of matter. And yes, we don’t feel the urge to punch each other in the face anymore.”
Because both of them had long resolved where they stood with Jin. Not that Kame doesn’t get jealous every once in a while, but that is neither here nor there.
Jin is still staring wide-eyed from the framed picture to Kame, speechless.
“That was actually our first serial killer case,” Kame feels the urge to fill the silence. “And probably why Yamashita gets all of those cases now.”
“And you?”
Kame looks up to see Jin looking at him, eyes curious. “Probably why I get all the cases I do, too,” Kame says, smile bitter, and Jin gets a strange expression on his face, but doesn’t ask any more questions, and leaves Kame’s office soon afterwards.
*
“Hey, hey, did you know?”
Ohkura turns around to see Yoko bounding over to the water cooler. “Know what?” he asks, turning back to filling the coffee pot.
“Akanishi’s been assigned to Kamenashi’s team,” Yoko says, running his hands gleefully together.
“That doesn’t explain why you’re so excited,” Ohkura notes, turning the coffee machine on.
“That’s because you don’t remember their old glory days at the academy,” Hina says, strolling over, hands in his pockets. “Yoko had to do a group project with Akanishi once, and he’d call me and report on everything the two of them were doing - ‘oh they played cards! They have such presence! Do you think they'd do threesomes?’”
Yoko growls and chucks a mug at Hina, who’s laughing like a hyena.
“Anyway,” Yoko says, turning back to Ohkura, who’s by now joined by Subaru and Maruyama. “I heard that they were seen together at two in the morning yesterday. So, who wants to bug their apartments with me?” he asks, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Oh, I dunno, Yoko,” says Tegoshi, walking over with Ryo. “Bugging someone’s house seems kind of dangerous, especially if it’s-”
“Oi, whose house are you guys planning to bug?”
They turn to see Jin walking over, grinning, and Yoko chokes on his water.
“What, tell me,” Jin persists, looking around at everyone staring back at him. “I wanna be in on it too,” he insists, and Ryo cackles. “Somehow I doubt you’d be very enthusiastic, Bakanishi.”
“At least I can reach up to put them in the air vents, you freaky midget.”
“Fucker, I will-”
“Akanishi.”
They all turn at the no-nonsense voice. All except Jin, who just groans silently. Kame is standing there in a crisp shirt and perfectly creased pants with his eyebrow cocked. “Bugging someone’s house without cause is illegal, and you’re supposed to be starting on your paperwork which I need by the end of the day. So please, for the sake of my sanity, no bugging for the next few months till we’re caught up, alright?”
They stare as Kame drags off a still-protesting Jin.
“See?” Yoko hisses, turning back to them. “See what I mean?”
*
Nakamaru doesn’t look up when Jin staggers over to his desk and slumps down next to him.
“I’m dying,” he groans in an over-dramatized whine. “All the paper on my desk is on a mission to smother me before the day is over. You have to save me, Nakamaru.”
“That wouldn’t happen if you didn’t sleep when you’re supposed to be going over all the background reading,” Nakamaru retorts.
Jin moans pathetically.
“I don’t know what you’re going on about,” Nakamaru adds, leaning back in his char and tilting his head at Jin. “It’s not like you won’t be out of here in a week.”
“Yeah, that’s the only thing that’s keeping me sane,” Jin mutters. “And here I thought I’d be looking forward to the life of a boring paper-pusher when I came back to Japan.”
“Boring?” Nakamaru snorts. “Perish the thought. Where else would you have the opportunity to play out what seems like a cliché spy drama plot with Kame?”
“I wouldn’t mind being a glamorous spy,” Jin grins. “Especially if the role came with sexy women.”
“Who would?” Nakamaru asks philosophically. The two of them allow themselves a brief moment to daydream before Jin sighs.
“If only. Instead, we’ll probably be playing druggies or something- what?” Jin asks, when Nakamaru makes an impatient sound. “What?”
“Kame’d make a horrible druggie.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Jin snorts. “He’s got the thin, emaciated look down pat.”
Nakamaru snickers. “Don’t let him hear you say that. The guy’s got a mean streak, and he can make life difficult when you two are posing around. You know he’s got the upper hand in it.”
“What?” Jin blinks and sits up straighter. “Do you know what we’re going in as?”
Nakamaru spares him a glance. “You’d know too, if you’d been going through the memos like you should have, instead of whining at me about it.”
“Well then, since you know, you can just tell me,” Jin says, sotto voice. “So what’s Kamenashi supposed to be then?”
“Do you seriously not know? He’s supposed to be Tsubasa’s rep, sent over to Tokyo to get the guns as a buyer - you know Tsubasa’s still undercover over in Osaka, right? Oh, and it’s looking like Kame’ll probably be a part-time pimp, it’ll be easier for us to get info from you guys then. Koki’ll be briefing him soon,” Nakamaru explains, but the last part of his sentence is drowned out by the explosion of Jin’s high pitched laughter.
“Tell me again,” Jin pants, sprawled on the chair. “Maybe I heard it wrong, but I could’ve sworn that you said that, that Kamenashi will be- please, please tell me you said he’ll be playing a-”
“Yes, Akanishi, he’s going to be a pimp,” Nakamaru replies, long-suffering, when Jin shrieks and collapses on the floor. “Oh come on, grow up. You’re his partner for now, right?”
Jin waves a careless hand, and clutches his stomach with both hands. His laughter gains a hysterical edge when Kame strides in and stares at where Jin’s lying collapsed on the floor, all curled up like a pill bug, gasping for breath. His face turns purple when he sees Kame.
“Kame, you, you- pimp-” he manages weakly before dissolving into another round of giggles. Kame takes in Jin’s near-hysterical glee and Nakamaru’s resigned expression in the space of one exasperated glance.
“I don’t know what you’re so amused about, Akanishi,” he says, glaring at Jin, voice acquiring a distinctly frosty undertone. “Didn’t anyone tell you what you’ll be going in as?” and smiles in satisfaction when Jin’s laughter cuts off abruptly.
“What the fuck, Domoto?” Jin demands, stalking into the Sergeant’s office and slamming his hands on Koichi’s desk. Koichi clicks his tongue in irritation as a couple of files drop down from the desk. “Why me? Why can’t Erika or Leah do it instead?” he gestures emphatically. “Or Meisa, even. Meisa would totally be the hottest whore ever!”
“Don’t let her hear you say that.” Koichi looks pointedly over Jin’s shoulder towards the open door. Jin takes the hint and kicks it shut (but not before making sure Meisa’s nowhere near them).
“You do realize you’re supposed to keep this quiet,” Koichi says mildly, sipping his oolong tea. Jin makes a rude gesture at him.
“If anyone asks, I’ll just tell them you’re making me train the kiddies or something,” Jin says impatiently. “Whatever. But why do I have to do it? And as a girl?”
“Both Leah and Erika have worked on the case before. And Meisa’s too high profile with the pedophile she caught last month, the press still shows her photos in the papers. All three of them are known to the sleazeballs over there.”
“But-”
“Kamenashi looks exactly like what he is when he dresses as a girl - a guy in drag. He lost a bet to Meisa last year,” Koichi explains, when he sees a flash of curiosity pass Jin’s face.
“It was pretty hilarious, Tegoshi had to do it too, and they had to spend the whole day like that, and if we could spare him, we’d have him be the whore, but, look, that’s not the point here.” Koichi catches himself before he could drift off too much. “Which is that Minamoto’s buyers aren’t in the gay sex business for the most part, so we pretty much have no choice - the whore’s going to have to be female.”
“Besides,” he continues, leaning back against his chair, “you’re one of the guys with the most undercover experience. Unless all the stories about the things you got up to in LA were just bragging on your part.” Koichi has an eyebrow raised, and he’s smirking around his cigarette. Jin snarls at him. “And also, with Kame having a hooker as a girlfriend, it’ll be easier to relay messages back and forth. Not very elegant, but this is a rush job, so that’s what we’re sticking with.”
The explanation does little to mollify Jin. He’s just opened his mouth to rant some more when the phone rings. Koichi checks the caller id, and immediately straightens up. Someone important enough to do the kiss-ass routine with, no doubt, Jin thinks nastily.
“Go to Koki, he’ll get you all the stuff you need,” Koichi says, turning businesslike within the space of two seconds. “And take Kamenashi with you when you go.” He waves a hand, signifying that the meeting is over, and is already deep in conversation with whoever’s on the phone by the time Jin leaves.
Jin scowls as he stalks back to his desk, sending the unfortunate individuals meeting him on the way scurrying out of his path. He bangs open the door to Kame’s office and flings himself down on the ratty couch.
Kame looks up from his report and stares at Jin over his glasses, his expression steady. “I told you it wouldn’t make a difference.”
Jin makes a rude noise in response. Kame waits until Jin looks up at him again, then points at the chair next to the couch. Kame watches Jin look over with studied disinterest before perking up at the bags of take-out. Jin stretches to take the cheap plastic bag, and Kame has to force himself not to stare when Jin’s t-shirt lifts up to reveal a narrow strip of belly. When, Jin settles himself on the couch, busying himself with taking out the cardboard boxes, Kame congratulates himself for his foresight in having food at hand, and goes back to his work. Well, attempts to, anyway.
“Kame.”
“Mm,” he answers as he shuffles through his files, distracted. He can’t find the Ueno case file, but he’s positive it was on his desk somewhere. Hmm, now which pile of folders to look in first...
“There are two boxes of take-out in this.”
“Uh huh.”
“Kame,” Jin tries again.
“Yeah?” Kame says, getting up and turning away from Jin to leaf through the folders in his drawer.
It turns out to be a strategic mistake. Kame’s reached up to Mitsuko, Aya when he feels himself spun around and forcibly marched to the couch. He protests when Jin pushes him and he lands heavily on the couch, springs creaking at the abuse. He shuts up at Jin’s glare and gives up when he’s handed the box of takeout and chopsticks, resigning himself to an inefficient half-hour of nothing but eating.
He doesn’t know how Jin does it.
*
They’re on the go with less than a week of research and hurried training under their belts. The first week passes by slowly without them getting anywhere, but it picks up during the second week. Jin gets vindictive pleasure in bitching at Koki and Ueda every chance he gets - they were the ones who got the unenviable task of playing Jin’s customers. Both of them seem to have fun with their roles, though, Koki more so than the typically stoic Ueda. Jin has to fight to keep his face straight when Koki drives by one day to pick him up, dressed up to the nines in a white shirt, black skirt, slutty black boots and a long blonde wig.
“Nice boots,” Jin murmurs when he struts over to the car and leans on his elbows by the window, making sure to bend over to show his legs and ass to best advantage.
“Thanks,” Koki grins, winking and his diamond earrings sparkle in the light. “Yours aren’t bad, either,” he says, winking at Jin’s red bitch boots with the six inch heels.
“Fuck you,” Jin grunts, tucking his chin in to give the impression of bargaining. “When this is done, I’m going to find great pleasure in beating you over the head with them. Why the fuck couldn’t you have given me normal shoes, these make my legs hurt like a bitch.”
“Whine, whine,” Koki retorts, running a teasing finger over Jin’s bare arm. Jin obligingly shifts to make sure they can be seen by the hookers clustered on the lane behind them. “When you’re done, you can buy me lunch for a week as a thank you for doing my job so well; I notice you’ve blended into the scenery excellently,” he says, smirking when Jin discreetly flips him the bird.
“Why the hell didn’t you ask to be the hooker?” Jin asks later, ensconced in Koki’s car as they compare notes. “You make a hotter ho than me.”
“Is that a come-on, Akanishi?” Koki grins, waggling his brows at Jin’s muttered “you wish, asshole”. “Oh, and don’t forget; tell Kame that Minamoto’s been spotted in town today. He seems to be in a hurry to get the deal done.”
“Kame’s managed to get an in with one of the suppliers,” Jin says, frowning. “When he asked for some working models, they got kind of antsy.”
“Antsy how, exactly?” Koki asks, looking up from his notes. “Antsy-nervous, or antsy-suspicious?”
“Is there a difference?” Jin asks philosophically, then shrugs. “Kame doesn’t think they suspect him, Tsubasa’s endorsement seems to hold a lot of weight with them, so as a representative, he’s been treated okay. Or maybe he’s dazzled them with the eyeliner,” he says, grinning.
Koki looks intrigued, but Jin continues with the report.
“The suppliers seemed to be kind of wary of Minamoto, though; they don’t know what to make of his sudden decision to sell all his supplies in such a short time. Guess he hasn’t publicized the deal gone bad in China,” Jin says with a grin. “Kame’s supposed to be one of the party to get access to Minamoto’s stash next week - and it’s not even supposed to be the demo stash, he’s supposed to be taking them to the whole thing after he gets the proof of the money.”
Koki nods, then frowns as he thinks. “I don’t like it,” he says at last.”Minamoto’s always been one to keep his hands close to his chest. I don’t think Kame’s safe.”
“What, you want him to pull out?” Jin challenges, eyebrows raising. “It was fucking lucky that we were able to find Ishima in under three days. We pull out now, then all of this-” he indicates himself and Koki with a wide wave of his hand; “would be for nothing.”
Koki shakes his head. “It just seems too easy,” he insists. “What if Kame-”
“Kamenashi’s a big boy,” Jin interrupts, aware of the bitter tinge underscoring the edge in his words, “he can handle it.”
Koki opens his mouth to argue, but shuts it with an audible click when Jin glances sharply at him.
“Besides,” Jin continues after an uncomfortable pause, “it’s not like he’s going in alone.”
Koki exhales, then leans over to get the money from the glove box. “You do still have your gun on you, right?”
Jin scoffs as he stuffs the money in his boobs. “Please. I have two. And extra magazines. And a knife.”
Jin’s telling Kame what he learned from Koki when a honk interrupts their muttered discussion and a rough voice calls out to them.
They turn; the two guys in the car that’s approached them are grinning sleazily. “So, how much?”
“I’m not working right now,” Jin says, winking. “A girl has to eat. But come by later and I’ll see what I can do, hm?” he drawls out, voice pitched just high enough and utterly believable.
Kame has to admit that Jin’s definitely picked up some skills in America. And then he has to stop that thought before he starts wondering exactly how Jin knows how to play a hooker so perfectly.
“Aw, come on, sweetheart.” The guys in the car say with a wheedling tone, now opening the car door.
“We’ll treat you good. And even throw in some extra if you get your boyfriend to come with. We don’t see such pretty pairs about a lot these days.” He leans forward and strokes a sweaty hand over the back of Kame’s leg and then it continues up and is the fucker really-
Kame narrows his eyes and thinks that maybe Koki’s idea of pimp style maybe needs a bit of work, if he keeps getting mistaken for a whore too. Koki’s even painted his nails black, and loaned him some of his rings and chains. Kame has to admit to having a soft spot for the skull ring, but maybe all of that is a bit excessive. He’d had to endure quite a lot of catcalls already, and he’d had to resort to taking out his gun to shut them up. Though he’s admittedly taken liberties with the eye make-up, so it’s probably not fair to blame Koki a hundred per cent, either... but none of this is making him feel anything other than murderous rage at the moment.
Jin takes one look at Kame’s irate face and turns slightly away to hide the way he’s choking back laughter. It doesn’t stop his face from turning slightly red from holding in his laughter, though, and Kame burns with mortification. Kame stares at the leering man leaning against the car, intensely aware of Jin snickering under his breath next to him and takes a deep breath. In character, he chants mentally. I need to stay in character.
He steps up slowly, right up into the man's space and tips his hat back so his eyes can be seen. He knows how the eyeliner makes his eyes blacker in the harsh glare of the streetlight. That's the reason why he wears it in the first place. Well that, and he finds that he rather likes the way Jin stares at him then.
He doesn't lower his eyes, bends his face till his lips are near the man's ear. Though he talks in a whisper, the steel in his voice floats clearly over the dim cacophony of the traffic. "If I pay you a dollar, will you let me pull your tongue back out through your dick?"
He waits three seconds, long enough for the man to still completely, trails a finger across the man's chest, not missing the tremble he causes. He's made sure to angle his body so the guy can feel his very solid Glock on his belt.
Less than a minute later, the car speeds away from them, the noisy sound of squealing tyres echoing in the alleys. Kame is still irritated, and pointedly turns away from Jin when he’s still laughing five minutes later.
"I thought he was going to pass out on you," Jin says later, when Kame’s gotten over himself and they’re walking back to the corner. He’s trying to keep up with Kame's strides, but it’s difficult when the giggles keep pouring out at the same time. "Or maybe come all over you, I couldn't really tell."
Kame snorts in spite of himself. "I thought I was going to pass out, god. That guy likes garlic too much. Ah, I hope- Jin, am I all garlicky?" he mutters worriedly, whirling around and stopping Jin. “Wouldn’t be the best impression when I go to Ishima later tonight, would it?”
Jin blinks when Kame comes close - very close, a faint voice in his brain shrieks - and then Kame has both hands on his shoulders; to anyone else it would look like Kame is threatening Jin (or rather, Jennifer), but really, Kame is frowning and trying to inconspicuously smell himself and Jin finds that he cannot seem to look away from Kame because Kame is in black leather, and has a Glock, and is wearing eyeliner and-
"No," he says at last, his voice surprisingly steady. "You are not garlicky, Kame."
Once they’re caught up with each other’s news, they realize it’s pretty much a waiting game for a while. Jin has been able to let Koki know everything they’ve discovered and need done, and now they just have to wait for Minamoto to take the next step, which is supposed to happen the week after next. Which means that they have two weeks to kill in the meantime.
They discuss what to do in between gasping out ecstatic moans - they’ve had to go through the charade more than a few times before, when anyone that wasn’t Koki, Ueda (and sometimes, Nakamaru and in one rare case, Taguchi) tried to pick Jin up. The hookers over at the other corner seem to have accepted them as the weird couple who have sex more often than Jin gets picked up - but since that means more revenue for them, there haven’t been any complaints. Some of them have even started calling out to them, offering threesomes. This wouldn’t bother Jin if he really was having sex. Instead, it’s just them shut up in their shithole of an apartment with its paper-thin walls, trying to imitate sex-noises.
The first time had been rather awkward, but then as always, they ended up competing with each other, trying to one-up each other with their moans and groans and “right there, yess”es, and now the super grins lecherously whenever he catches sight of them. Though by now, the novelty’s gone out of it with the number of times they’ve had to play at having sex.
“Oooh,” Jin moans, bored, as he collapses on the bed, eyes closing. He decides that he’s lacking some enthusiasm and decides to add a “yesss, there,” after, and then waits for Kame. After a few seconds of silence, he opens his eyes, grumbling. “You could at least make an effort, you-mmmph”
Jin’s eyes light up when the uni sushi - his favourite, Kame remembered! - is shoved in his mouth, and this time the “mmmmmm” that comes out of his mouth is totally believable. Jin is intent on savouring the expensive sushi for the next little while, but notices Kame glancing away just as he looks up to offer some to him and looks down before the twinge of hurt in his chest can make its way to his eyes.
“So what are we going to do now?” Jin mutters, sitting beside Kame against the wall next to the futon. “Keep playing at whoring and having fake sex?”
Kame shrugs.
“It wouldn’t be so bad if I was actually having sex,” Jin grumbles, and Kame rolls his eyes. “I mean, some of the hookers are pretty hot.”
Kame stares at him. “Jin. They’re hookers.”
“Well yes. I’m not actually going to have sex with them or anything. But some of them are pretty hot,” he insists. “I mean, come on, you have to agree.”
Kame stares at him. “I don’t even know what you’re going on about. Please tell me you’re not actually thinking of fucking-”
“Of course not,” Jin says in an injured tone. “What do you take me for?”
“Well, pardon me if I worry when you suddenly start harping on about the hookers-”
“Oh fuck you,” Jin grumbles, mentally marvelling at how easy it is to fall back into the easy banter with Kame. “You’re not the one in a tight dress trying not to get a hard-on while women all around you are adjusting their boobs and rolling up their stockings every ten minutes - oi, stop laughing, this isn’t funny!”
“So what are we going to do now?” Jin asks again when Kame’s laughter has died down. “Just wait around till next week?”
“Well,” Kame says doubtfully. “I guess we could get a start on those three girls who made a fuss over turf issues when you first came in... I noticed that one of them has a regular who’s working for one of the lesser drug lords. I’m pretty sure they’re the ones behind the girls.”
Kame purses his lips in concentration as he reapplies his eyeliner. “If we go up against them now, they’ll go running back to their boss, and we’ll have a chance to sweep Nomura out too.”
Jin stops listening. He should have expected something like this; the only thing Kame hates more than losing is to waste time that can be spent accomplishing things. He sighs. “Okay,” he mutters, looking down despondently. “Let’s go threaten more people. But make it fast, okay, my bra is starting to itch.”
“This is going to be kind of sad,” Jin notes as they walk down to the street. “I mean, I’m generally against the whole violence against women bit.”
“Thought you liked the girl-on-girl action,” Kame says, voice dry.
“Not when I’m one of the girls in question,” Jin retorts. “And hm, I’m pretty sure a couple of them have a crush on you.”
“That’s not going to stop them from trying to claw your eyes out,” Kame seems quite unaffected by his statement.
“I can handle them,” Jin says with a smirk. “It’s the most exciting thing I’ve done yet; wade directly into a catfight. Maybe I can steal a few gropes,” he says with a wistful note in his voice.
“You’re disgusting. Maybe they know self-defense. I hope they do.”
“You’re a meaner bitch than all of them,” Jin says, rolling his eyes. “Also, the answer to your wicked wish is no,” Jin answers immediately. “You can tell by the way they stand.”
Kame glances at him. “You’ve spent a lot of time looking, huh.”
Jin harrumphs. “Don’t knock it till you’ve tried waiting around at a street corner for most of the day, Kamenashi.”
“Hello,” Jin says, smiling sweetly. “How are you today.”
The three girls stare warily at Jin, but say nothing. They do look up, however, when Kame strides in and levels his gaze at them.
“Oh hi,” he says, and leans against the streetlight. “This is Jennifer, as I’m sure you know.” He waves a hand at Jin, who is now smiling with a lot of teeth at the three uncertain girls, eyes glinting.
“I’ll just stay here while you four get... reacquainted,” he smirks. “Wake me when you’re done,” he says as an aside to Jin before he leans back, yawning, tipping his hat over his eyes.
He leaves his eyes open a slit as he stays back, slouching and watching Jin advance towards the girls, hips swinging. The girls trade worried looks and nervously fall back.
“That’s a definite no,” Kame hears before the first shrill scream, and snorts, leaning back and shutting his eyes. Takki and Koichi had better appreciate the extra work they’re doing.
*
Part 2/2