[fic] I Like

[fencer_x]

Title: I Like
Author/Artist: fencer_x
Warnings/Rating: PG, worksafe
Pairing(s)/Character(s): Tsujimoto/Takasaki (5th cast Golden Pair)
Notes: Sequel of sorts to this fic because I realized I'd never written anything outright slashy for these two :P I'm still not satisfied with this fitting the bill, but I'm working my way up XD

Shouta sighed. Loudly. So loudly that it echoed off the bare walls of Tsujimoto's apartment and rang like a death knell in his ears as he sat there, frozen, lips pursed resolutely and willing himself to just move dammit.

"Tsuji-kun--just--" Another sigh. "Stop. Just--stop." Shouta clamped his hands on Tsujimoto's shoulders and pushed him away resolutely, wincing at the effort it took to right himself into a standing position. "This clearly isn't going to happen."

Tsujimoto followed him with his eyes, offended. "Wha--Shouta? I'm trying, dammit! Just--give me some time. It's not like I've done this a lot--"

"With guys?"

"With anyone!"

Shouta waved a hand, gesturing at their situation. "See--this is why I didn't want to tell you. Because you're Tsuji-kun, and you want to try and make everything right and normal again, and--" Another sigh. "It doesn't work like that."

Tsujimoto drew his knees to his chest, wrinkling his sheets, and wrapped his arms around his legs. "How do you know that when you won't even let me try?"

"We've been sitting on your bed 'trying' for ten minutes now." He cocked his head. "Shouldn't that tell you something, since it's not just...happening?"

Tsujimoto picked at a thread, petulant. "...I want it to happen though..."

"Tsuji-kun..." Shouta shook his head in defeat, then stalked back over and slumped onto the bed beside him, pulling one of Tsujimoto's hands towards him and examining it with his own. He massaged one finger between his thumb and forefinger, rubbing their palms together and secretly enjoying the way the light sheen of sweat that had settled on them in Tsujimoto's stuffy room was reducing the friction. Reflexively, Tsujimoto balled his hand into a fist, capturing Shouta's fingers. "Tsuji-kun's nice. And maybe you do want to try but...it's not like trying some new food, you know. It's just...it just happens. You like someone, and they like you back--the same way--and...so you just...you know. Just kiss."

Tsujimoto's eyes rolled back in his head, and he slumped flat to his bed beside Shouta, forcing a pout. "How come this can't just be like rehearsals and even though I suck at it at first, you keep practicing with me and eventually I'm really good?"

Shouta snorted, leaning onto his back beside his friend. "It'd be even worse then."

Tsujimoto's brows furrowed. "How so?"

Shouta bit his lip and looked down at their hands. "...You can't practice liking someone. You can't...just, rehearse feelings. I definitely wouldn't want that."

"Oh... Yeah. I guess so." Tsujimoto looked down at their hands now, too. "But...how'm I supposed to find out if I like it--if I like you--if I don't do it a lot?"

"Tsuji-kun, you've had over a year to find out."

He shrugged. "I'm slow. And thick. And stupid--"

"You're not--"

"--but I like being around Shouta, and I like doing stuff with you--stupid stuff, or just normal stuff--so...maybe I'd like kissing you, too."

Shouta smiled, but rolled his eyes. "Kissing's always fun, unless you're doing it wrong."

"Yeah, but it's even more fun with someone you like."

"You don't like guys, though."

"Well--you don't either." He lifted an eyebrow pointedly. "See: you said you didn't like guys, you just liked me. 'Cause I'm special, cause I'm your partner." Shouta could feel some good-natured teasing coming on now. "You li~ke me--you li~ke me~" He punctuated these accusations by using his free hand to poke his friend in the stomach--and was rewarded with pronounced flinching as Shouta wriggled away, laughing and batting the hand away, drawing up his knees in an effort to protect himself and holding Tsujimoto at bay with his own free hand.

"St--stop--I can't--breathe--" Tsujimoto, however, paid his pleas no heed and continued to attack, reaching and grabbing at any exposed spot, adrenaline forcing laughter from his lips as he excitedly wrestled with his friend--until he felt a hand clamp onto the back of his head, fingers in his hair, and was conscious of stiffening instinctively to balance out Shouta using him as leverage to pull himself forward with graceful ease, faster than Tsujimoto could react, to cover Tsujimoto's lips with his own.

They both froze--or maybe the whole world froze around them. Shouta's eyes were dark and confused despite him being the one who'd initiated the action in the first place. Tsujimoto could feel warm breath against his cheek where their noses were pressed up against each other, Shouta's face so close, his upper lip trapped between Shouta's own--ostensibly so innocent, but something neither had really planned or expected.

A car door slammed outside, and Shouta quickly pulled away, wiping his lips with the back of one hand and releasing Tsujimoto, instead now grasping the sheet to wipe the sweat. "Shit--I'm sorry. I didn't--" He shook his head, words failing him. "I'm really sorry."

Tsujimoto sat there in silence for a moment, shell-shocked more than anything, and lifted a finger to his lips, blinking. "...That's it?"

Shouta stared, incredulous, brows furrowed in confusion. "...What?"

Smiling to himself, he licked his lips, laughing nervously. "That's--geez, I could do that!" He chuckled again, less nervous now and more manically relieved. "I could totally do that."

"What the heck are you talking about?"

Tsujimoto shot forward, clapping one hand on Shouta's shoulder and another on the back of his neck to steady him, then quickly brought their lips together again before Shouta could react, relief shifting to confidence demonstrated through the way he sucked just a bit on Shouta's lip, releasing it with a loud smack. It was all lips, and it was still awesome. "That."

Shouta vigorously wiped his lips again, biting back a smile and instead chiding, "If I didn't like you, that'd be a crime you know."

Tsujimoto just sat back on his knees, seiza on his bed, grinning like an idiot because he'd just realized he wasn't hopeless. "You started it."

Shouta bit his lip. "Yeah...I did." He shook his head, moaning, "We're really weird. This isn't how this is supposed to happen, you know."

"Well, we're guys," Tsujimoto reasoned. "We get to do things differently. I'm pretty sure kissing's in there somewhere, though."

Shouta coughed. "I'm pretty sure there's a few things in there..."

The room fell quiet. "Ah...yeah..." It was an ambivalent response, and Shouta couldn't tell if it meant Tsujimoto didn't want to think about that sort of thing, or just didn't know what to say that wouldn't hurt Shouta's feelings.

Irrationally annoyed at the reponse, Shouta flopped back down again, grabbing Tsujimoto's fist in his hands and bringing it to his lips, breathing in the scent. "I like Tsuji-kun's hands."

"I gathered as much," he laughed in response, then--feeling a cramp coming on from the awkward position with his arm oustretched to reach Shouta--he scooted down beside him, lying face to face. His breath caught in his throat when Shouta turned his hand and kissed a knuckle, only lightly--and reflexively, he unclenched his fist and unfolded his fingers, reaching a forefinger up the few centimeters to trace Shouta's chin. "I like Shouta's lips." As if responding to the compliment of their own accord, his lips curled in on themselves, and a laugh leapt out, pulling a smile from Tsujimoto as well. He scooted a little closer, folding his arms to his chest and stretching out more fingers now to trace Shouta's chin, rubbing along the little valley right below his bottom lip. "Can we try it again?"

Shouta swallowed. "...I guess. If you want to?" A nod. "Sh--should you do it? Or I could--"

"Can we do it a lot more?" Tsujimoto interrupted, licking his lips in anticipation. "I mean, not tonight or whatever, but. You know."

There was a loud bark of laughter. "Mmm," Shouta hedged with a smile, then shrugged, "If you want, I guess we could."

"Well, I do want." Their faces were right beside each other now, and it kind of amused Tsujimoto the way Shouta wouldn't even look him in the eye right now when usually he was the one taking all the initiative in their practice sessions, suggesting new moves or ad-libbing, dragging Tsujimoto along until he finally got in the groove and brought them back in sync, like it was natural. "...Thanks."

Shouta's eyes shot to lock their gazes, brows furrowing. "...For what?"

"Just, for putting up with me. Probably sucks having someone this thick for a partner, huh."

"Nah," Shouta brushed off the concern. "But it's going to, now."

"How's that?"

A smile, the kind that curled at Shouta's lips the way Tsujimoto liked. "We probably won't be able to practice this in rehearsals."