30 Day DaiMao Drabble Challenge: Day 10
A/N: Get some tissues ready, even I came close to tears with this one...I really love this AU, so I'm very likely going to continue it in the future.
“Koni, you stay here and wait for me in the car. I won’t be long.”
“Wait, what? I thought we agreed that if I brought you here, I’d come with you.”
Mao sighed solemnly as he unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to his brother, exasperation written all over his face. “I need to see him alone, alright? I’m already leaving the goddamned country for heaven’s sake, isn’t that enough for you? Just-please.”
Koni thought about it for a moment but hesitantly conceded in the end. “Fine. But mom and dad can’t know about this or they’ll have my ass…I won’t wait more than ten minutes. Any longer than that, and I’ll come get you myself, I know where your little hideout is. It’s already bad enough that I agreed to this…”
“Thank you, Niisan! I’ll never forget this favor as long as I live,” Mao said, hugging his brother appreciatively before getting out of the car.
As Mao started walking into woods, Koni opened the passenger window and shouted, “And don’t try anything funny! You only have ten minutes and not a second longer!”
Mao’s steps slowed down for a fraction of a moment upon hearing his brother’s warning, his heart heavy in his chest, but he continued forward with haste so as not to waste any time.
As he approached the small bridge over the creek, Mao could discern the silhouette of the man he loved, standing tall in his black leather jacket and blue jeans, back faced towards him. Tears began to well in his eyes and his heart panged him as bitter reality struck. This was it, the moment he had been looking forward to and dreading all the same; he would finally see the man he longed for, but he knew that after that day he’d never see him again.
It was too much to bear.
By the time Mao was within arm’s reach of the man, tears were already trailing down his cheeks.
Then, finally sensing his presence, the man he came to see turned around to meet him.
Daisuke.
Daichan.
…………….
Mao had not seen his lover for several weeks, ever since his parents found out he was dating a much older man and put a restraining order against him. It was not so much a problem that his boyfriend was nine years his senior, rather that his reputation as a hooligan gang leader is what scared Mao’s parents the most, causing them to go through great lengths to separate them. The couple resisted zealously in their fight for love, but the fact that Mao was still a minor and his parents still had legal control over his life served to his family’s best interest. They took Mao out of school and kept him grounded at home until they decided to send him to study abroad…halfway around the world.
Even his brother Koni was against his relationship, since he knew Daisuke well (they had been friends growing up but parted ways when each of them chose to pursue different, incompatible lifestyles; Koni chose to go to college, Daisuke chose to start a gang). At any rate, for his beloved brother’s sake, Koni became a little lenient, and even agreed to let Mao meet Daisuke for the last time that day, to say goodbye.
…………….
“Daichan-” Mao cried as he took a step closer.
Daisuke looked at his young lover, and a mixture of relief and anguish swelled in his heart upon sight of him.
This was it.
It was really over.
The elder man swiftly caught Mao in a tight embrace, and the couple held one another passionately, kissing each other all over the face, hands caressing hair and stroking backs, shoulders, and necks. It was as if they wanted to memorize each dip and curve, to brand their lips and mark each other indelibly.
Daisuke then held Mao’s face betwixt his palms and leaned in to give him a long, yet chaste kiss on the lips.
After they hesitantly pulled away, Daisuke wiped the wetness from his lover’s eyes and forced a smile. “So I guess this is goodbye, then…” he said, voice wavering.
Mao’s eyes widened as a look of panic took over him. He did not want this to be over. Not now, not ever. Especially now that he saw Daisuke again, touched him and kissed him, inhaled his scent. He was certain that he could not live without the other man.
Mao threw himself into Daisuke’s arms and held him tightly, afraid to let go. “Daichan, baby, I love you so much! You have no idea how much I missed you, this can’t be over, it can’t be!” he desperately sobbed.
“Shh…baby its okay, don’t cry alright?” Daisuke soothed, gently caressing his hair to calm him. “Listen, I don’t want you to go either but this is for your own good-”
“No, don’t say that! Being with you is for my own good!” Mao retorted. “Please, please just listen to me…let’s just run away and-”
“Mao!” Daisuke shouted, holding his boyfriend’s shoulders firmly. “I told you before and I’ll tell you again…running away is not an option.”
“But Daichan, if we don’t do something right now, I’m going to be on a one-way trip to America and I might never see you again! Don’t you care?!”
“Of course I fucking care! Don’t you understand how much I fucking love you?! Goddammit Mao, I love you so much, but your parents are right, I’m no good for you!”
“Don’t say that…of course you are!” Mao interrupted, voice trembling.
“No, no I’m not…during the time that we were separated, I spent a lot of time thinking about us…and I realized that your parents are right. I’m a bum, a scumbag…I don’t deserve you.” A fresh set of tears streamed down Daisuke’s face, uninhibited as he spoke. Mao was about to say something, but Daisuke hushed him and continued, “You deserve the best, Mao. You’re perfect and you need to be with someone your own age, someone you can grow to love…you need to take care of your school work and make something out of your life. Don’t be like me.”
“Stop! Stop it, I don’t want to hear you talk that way! I love you and only you dammit! I don’t want to be with anyone else!”
All of a sudden, Koni’s voice bellowed through the woods, “Mao! C’mon, we need to leave!” He was standing at a distance with a scowl on his face, and Mao wasn’t sure how much his brother had seen or heard.
“Give me five more minutes, Niisan!” Mao pleaded.
Daisuke put a hand on his shoulder, “Mao, you should go…”
“No!” the younger boy insisted aggressively, shrugging Daisuke’s hand off of him. “I’m not going anywhere!”
“Mao, don’t make me come over there and drag your ass to the car!” Koni threatened.
“Niisan, I beg you, just five more minutes!”
“You’re going to miss the fucking plane, Mao, we need to go! Don’t make me regret bringing you here!”
Seeing as Mao was getting deeply distressed and slowly losing his sanity, Daisuke decided to approach Koni and ask for permission to let Mao stay for a few more minutes. He wanted to have a chance to calm him down since he was afraid that if the younger boy was left in that state, he would grow ill.
“Koni-san, you were gracious enough to give us this time to say goodbye, but I beg you, give us a couple more minutes. I’m the only one that knows how to calm him down. Please, for the sake of his health,” Daisuke reasoned.
Koni looked from Daisuke to his brother. The young boy was heaving uncontrollably, and although Koni hated to admit it, Daisuke did have a point. Nobody else would be able to comfort him.
“Fine. But just five more minutes. If he’s not okay by then, I’ll have no choice but to take him by force,” he reluctantly agreed.
“Thank you,” Daisuke said, bowing with his hands clasped above his head. He then ran back to over to where Mao was standing and Koni headed out of the woods.
“D-Daichan-”
“Shh, don’t say anything. Please just hear me out…” Daisuke said gently, pulling his beloved into a hug. “You told me you’ll always love me, right?”
“Mm…I never want to be with anybody else…” Mao replied with a sniffle.
Overcome with emotion, Daisuke kissed the top of his head and took a deep breath. It was excruciatingly hard to try parting with the boy he loved the most, but he knew that for his sake, he had to. “Okay, in that case, you’ll go to New York.”
“Heh?!” Mao stepped back as his heartrate went into overdrive. It didn’t seem like Daisuke was willing to fight for him like he had hoped.
“Maokun…if you really love me like you say you do, you’ll go to New York and you’ll do your best in school. That’ll give me time to clean up my act and get my life together so I can be worthy of you. It’ll take a couple of years, but once you come back, I can prove to your family that I’m a changed man and that I’ll take good care of you for the rest of our lives. That is, if you’ll still want me by then…”
Mao hugged Daisuke and snuggled into his chest, his eyes shut tight to resist the impending tears. It hurt knowing that he would not be able to see or talk to Daisuke again for at least a couple more years, and whatever uncertainty the future held for them frightened him. Regardless, Mao figured that this would be their only hope.
“I’ll want you then just as I want you now and for the rest of my life. If you think this is the best choice for us, then I trust you.”
Daisuke’s body shook with sadness, his hand trembling as he pulled Mao’s chin up to kiss him.
Their final kiss was bittersweet, laced with hope and fear of the unknown. It was their silent good-bye.
Mao stepped back, his lover’s hand still lingering on his cheek; before he left, he kissed Daisuke’s palm one last time, and then finally ran back to his car.
Daisuke watched his lover’s figure fade into the distance. He wanted to kick himself for not taking the opportunity to run away with Mao so they could be together and avoid the pain of being apart; however, he only wanted what was best for him. He just hoped that he would not regret his decision in the future…
Daisuke turned to face the setting sun, took a deep breath, and walked away towards his new life. The road he chose to take would not be easy, but for Mao’s sake, he was willing to take the risk.
End.