Fanfic: The Key
Title: The Key
Pairing/Group: Aoi Ryosuke/Kusano Akira (Ryopi)
Rating/Warnings: NC-17, drama crossover
Summary: No one really understands Akira, but that’s okay because he understands everything.
Note: I wrote this fic for the pi_exchange. It's lilly0's fic
The Key
Shuji liked Akira. That was out of the question, but he needed some more space between them. He had a girlfriend now and he would really love to stay together with her, but he saw her frown whenever Akira threw his arms around him and blabbered about what was on his mind. She had asked him once if there was something between them that she should know about and he figured it was time to do something. After reassuring her, he had made a plan. Akira needed to focus his energy and affection on someone else. He wanted to stay friends of course, because there was seriously no one who could top off Akira in being loyal. So he needed to find someone suitable, which was quite difficult. Akira was a handful to handle and he was not ready to entrust his friend to just anyone.
Therefore, he was delighted to hear when his favourite sempai dropped causally he was looking for a boyfriend. They worked in the same company and he knew he was extremely reliable. Akira needed someone like that. Someone who could take care of him; someone who could prevent him from running into poles, walking blindly over streets and most of all petting big dangerous dogs. There were some stories he could share about such matters. He knew his friend was bi. A few years ago he had caught him looking at almost naked men in a magazine and the tell-tale blush on his cheeks had explained the rest.
Akira once had a crush on Nobuta so he had to be bi.
Ryuzaki Shinji always took care of his kohais and would surely be able to deal with Akira’s weirdness. He had not been completely sure about it in the beginning since Ryuzaki did not share much about his past, but he couldn’t help but think that he had become more open since he had first met him. Maybe something tough happened to him in his past, making him keep to himself more.
They sometimes went drinking together, much to Akira’s unhappiness, and he had made sure he was really a nice guy before he had mentioned Akira to him.
“Akira is really a nice person, just different than other people.”
Ryuzaki looked at him over the rim of his glass.
“Now you are really making me curious. He is different than others? What do you mean by that?”
“Well, he…is indescribable.” He laughed, embarrassed and earned another curious glance.
“Would you be interested in meeting him? I mean, even if he is different he is very nice.”
“Are you trying to set me up?” The other leaned back causally in his chair and grinned.
“I…you are both good friends of mine so I thought it would be nice if you knew each other.” He couldn’t really meet the other’s eyes, but he hoped Ryuzaki would agree anyway.
“Why not. He seems to be interesting.” The other agreed easily and Shuji couldn’t believe his luck.
“Great!”
A few days later he tried to drag his best friend with him.
“Oh come on, what is your problem?”
”Akira doesn’t like this guy and doesn’t want to meet him.”
He looked baffled at his friend.
“How can you say you don’t like him if you haven’t even met him?”
“There is no need to meet him. You always go drinking with him instead of going with Akira.”
“That’s because you are bad with alcohol. I can’t go drinking with you.”
“Akira is not bad with alcohol!”
“Yes, you are. May I remind you of the incident when you were drunk and pointed at the car and got hysterical because you thought it was an UFO?”
“It was an UFO!”
“Never mind…”
They had left the train station already 20 minutes ago and he was getting worried that they were lost. Ryuzaki had mentioned that it was hard to find. He looked at the directions the other had given him and went to a man that sat on a bench to ask for help.
“Hopefully, he has no clue.”
”Akira, we will go there no matter what.”
“Why does Akira even has to accompany you?”
“You are both my friends and therefore I want you to meet.”
”That makes no sense.”
”Yes, it does.” Arguing with Akira was seriously tiring.
“If Akira is a good-boy, will you go with him to the movies tomorrow?”
“Okay…” It was a good chance to ask Ryuzaki to tag along. That was probably not what Akira had in mind though.
The other complied a lot more and after only five minutes they stood in front of a pretty big looking house.
“Your friend is rich.”
”I never knew. Why are all my friends rich?”
Akira shrugged his shoulders. Sometimes he forgot about Akira being rich though. The other was living in a one-room flat even though he had agreed to be his father’s heir after a lot of discussions and fist-fights. He did not even want to know how rich Akira really was.
He looked Akira once over and then rung the bell. The other was considerable presentable. There were some noises on the other side and soon Ryuzaki opened the door smiling.
“Come in, you two. You must be Akira?”
“Hi, I am Kusano Akira.”
“And I am Ryuzaki Shinji.”
Akira bowed his head slightly, but Shuji could see that his friend was incredibly stiff. He really hoped the atmosphere was going to change.
They entered a spacious living room and he had to stop himself from gaping. What a big contrast to Akira’s living room/bedroom/kitchen/dinning room. Did he have anything else in that one room?
“Wow, are you living alone?”
“Ah, I am living here with my younger brother. He should be here somewhere. His name is Aoi Ryosuke.”
“You are not having the same family name?” Shuji could feel that Akira still stood very stiff next to him. What could he say to perk the other’s interest?
“We were separated as children and met when we were already grown up. It’s rather complicated. Do you want to sit down? Do you want something to drink?”
“Some water?”
“Sure, and you Akira?”
“Do you have soymilk?”
“Sorry, no one drinks soymilk here.”
Shuji cringed. The probably worst possible start .
“That’s no problem. Akira will also drink some water.” He nudged the other and made clear with a look that he should behave. Akira pulled one of his grimaces and flopped down on the couch.
“That guy is weird.”
He sent Akira a look. It always made him want to shake his head when Akira said someone was weird. As if anyone could top off Akira in being weird.
“He is weird because he drinks no soymilk? Come on Akira, be fair.”
“He is hiding stuff.”
“Akira, he is not hiding anything.” Ryuzaki had been really nice and open so far and what made him the most happy, he had looked at Akira interested.
Akira pouted and swung his legs.
When Ryuzaki came back, Shuji tried to strike up a conversation, which he managed quite well since soon he and Ryuzaki talked animatedly, but he couldn’t pull Akira in. The other kept swinging his legs and looked out of the window. He would like to pull the other to the side and tell him to stop sulking.
He knew quite well that Akira never liked to meet any of his friends. There was the fear that Akira felt more for him than he did for the other but he pushed that thought constantly aside. He did not want to think about that possibility.
“I want to go to the toilet.” Akira suddenly said and Ryuzaki told him where to find it.
“I guess it doesn’t work out how you wanted it to be.” Ryuzaki said as soon as Akira was out of sight.
“What do you mean?”
”He does not seem like he is the slightest bit interested in me.”
“Well, Akira is sulking, a little, but he is usually different. I mean oh…” Shuji laughed embarrassed when he realized he had just admitted to wanting to set them up.
“Well, we will see.” Ryuzaki smiled.
---
Aoi Ryosuke let the grass slip through his fingers. He was sitting in his brother’s garden. Shinji always said it was his home as well, but he did not really feel like it was. He was only hiding here from the world. Looking at the hand he detested so much, he balled it to a fist.
Suddenly, there was a noise behind him and he turned his head slightly. He frowned. Who was that? A young man looked curiously at him. He had brownish hair and what struck him the most, honey-brown, bright eyes.
The other tilted his head slightly to the left and then opened the door wider and walked out to him into the garden. No wait, walk was not the right word. It was a strange mixture of bouncing and jumping and while doing so he flapped his arms.
The strange boy toppled down next to him. He couldn’t help but call him a boy since his movements reminded him of that of a child, even though he had to be around the same age as him.
“Are you Ryosuke-chan?”
He had to blink at the sudden question. Now that he thought about it, Shinji had mentioned to him that a friend of his would come to visit and bring his best friend along. Moreover, that he had the suspicion that he wanted to set him up with said best friend. What had he said was his name? Something with A…Ak…?
“Are you not Ryosuke-chan? I am Akira!”
Ah, Akira it was.
“I am Aoi Ryosuke.” He said and watched how the other’s face suddenly lightened up as if that were great news.
“Really? What are you doing? Akira is bored, you know.”
“Nothing…”
”Muumuu! Boooooooooooring!”
He blinked again. What was with this boy?
“Kon~” Suddenly the other held his hand up with his middle and ring finger touching his thumb. A bright smile accompanied the gesture and he mirrored the action because he had no clue how to react otherwise.
“Awesome! Ryosuke-chan can do it!”
“It’s not all that difficult.”
”Shuji doesn’t do it, but you know, Shuji is pretty cool so he doesn’t do uncool stuff like that, at least not very often.”
“Shuji is your friend?”
”Shuji is Akira’s friend!”
“Do you always use your name when you talk about yourself?”
A big pout developed on the other’s lips and Ryosuke had to wonder about the plumpness of those lips. Could such lips really belong to a boy?
“Shuji said that Akira is Akira and it can’t be helped.”
He had to lift an eyebrow at that.
“I see.”
”Is Ryosuke-chan going to play with Akira? The two inside are talking about boring stuff.”
“Uhm…”
“Here try this.” The other pulled something out of his pocket and put it in his lap. He picked it up and it turned out to be a puzzle.
“You have to turn the pieces till it’s a cube, but since it easily becomes boring like that, Akira often makes animals. It’s more fun! See this is an elephant.” Akira took it from him again and turned the wood pieces a little before he held it up for him to see. With a lot of fantasy it did look a little like an elephant.
“Now you try.”
That thing was tricky. No matter how he turned and twisted the wood pieces, it didn’t become a cube. Moreover, it wasn’t helping that this boy was sitting next to him, smiling like an idiot and from time to time, giggled. How could someone be so full of smiles and happiness? It radiated off the other and he couldn’t help but be amazed by how bright Akira was.
“Do you want Akira to help Ryosuke-chan~” The other said in a sing-song voice.
“No, I can do it.”
”Haii~”
He said so, but he did not really trust his own words, but he really wanted to manage. It has been awhile since he had felt like really doing something and not giving up halfway. When he saw a strange movement out of the corner of his eyes he looked up.
“What are you doing?” He asked perplexed.
“Akira is silently cheering you on. Akira thought if he was loud he would only distract you, so Akira is cheering silently.” The other kept moving his hands and it looked like some strange kind of dance to him.
“You are…weird.”
Akira shrugged his shoulders and then said “Kon” again and made the fitting hand-movement.
“Is it a fox?”
The other’s eyes shone very brightly suddenly and he wildly nodded his head.
“It’s a fox!”
“It’s quite easy to make you happy.” He had never met such a person before and he had met a lot of people in his life. Not even one of his students had been that bright.
“It’s better to get happy easily than to get easily sad.”
He swallowed. The other’s words had struck something within him. To hide how much it affected him, he returned his attention back to the cube or well, the thing that was supposed to be a cube.
“Ryosuke-chan can do it.” The other’s honey eyes formed to crescent moons when he smiled broadly at him.
He nodded and kept twisting the pieces. He couldn’t say how long he sat like that with the other next to him till he suddenly looked astonished at the cube he was holding in his hands.
“Akira look!”
“You managed! Akira is proud!” And with that the other suddenly leaned forward and slung his arms around him. He froze and then pushed the other away strongly.
“Don’t touch me!”
Akira blinked at him.
He was shocked by himself and looked worriedly at the other.
“Did I hurt you? Are you okay?”
Suddenly, the bright smile was back on the other’s lips.
“Of course Akira is fine. The best friendships start like this.”
The best friendships started with pushing someone away? He seriously doubted it and Akira was really weird.
The other made a fish mouth towards him.
“You look like a fish.”
”Akira made a kissy-face!”
”Oh sorry.”
“To make Akira forgive you, you do it too! Let’s see if you look like a fish as well.”
“Ehhh…really?”
“Do it~”
“I got it, I got it.”
---
“That’s just…” Shuji watched bewildered how Akira pulled grimaces together with another man. What had happened and who the hell was that? He had gone to look for the other since it was unusual for Akira to be in the toilet for over 45 minutes.
“Oh…”
He turned his head to the side when he heard the silent word and looked at Ryuzaki next to him, who looked at the two men outside.
“I am sorry. Akira more often than not behaves however way he wants. I’ll go get him. I am so sorry he disturbed him.”
“No.” Ryuzaki shook his head and pulled him away from the door and back into the living room.
Looking at the other puzzled, he sat down again.
“Why…?”
“I mentioned Ryosuke earlier to you, my brother.”
“Uhm yeah.”
“That was him just now.”
”Oh.”
”Yeah and I am quite thankful you brought Akira here today.”
“Eh? But he is just playing around and annoying your brother.”
“I think it is the first time that I see Ryosuke really relaxed and at ease. There are some things in our past that are hard to believe and tough to explain, but Ryosuke is really in need for someone to cheer him up and apparently Akira is doing a wonderful job.”
“Well, Akira is quite good at that.”
“Obviously.” Ryuzaki smiled slightly and he couldn’t help but wonder about the past of these siblings. Why was it hard to explain?
“Do you want to stay for dinner?”
“Ohm, I don’t want to bother you.”
“Not at all! I will only warm something up though since I am not the best cook.”
“Okay, let me help you a little. I’ll set the table.”
He went to set the table and when he was done he walked back to where the door was that lead into the garden.
As he opened it further, he heard Akira’s voice.
“Soymilk is really yummy. Ryosuke should try it, too.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it made Akira grow up strong.”
“I see. I will then.”
Akira smiled beamingly at the other and he felt a slight twinge of jealously. He shook his head in disbelief. That was exactly what he had wanted. For Akira to direct his affection on someone else, even though it had not supposed to be Ryuzaki’s younger brother. He sighed. He probably had to learn to let go a little as well.
“Dinner is ready.” He said loud enough for them to hear and Akira ginned broadly at him. His best friend tried to take the hand of the man next to him but the other pulled it away in time and stood up by himself, but smiled apologizing at the other.
During dinner he couldn’t help but sneak glances at them. Since Ryuzaki had asked how he and Akira had gotten to know each other, Akira was saying some very Akira-like things and he stepped in when the other got a little too enthusiastic.
When they were done eating he thought it was about time they left, but suddenly Ryuzaki asked Akira if they could talk for a few minutes. Not knowing what to make of this, he looked after them with furrowed brows.
“So you are Akira’s best friend?” He got pulled out of his thoughts by Ryosuke. Since the other had been silent during dinner, he was slightly startled.
“Ohm yeah, since high school and I hope he didn’t bother you earlier.”
“No, he didn’t. He is quite cheerful and bright.”
“I see, so you looked past Akira’s weirdness? Not many people do that.” Somehow that pleased him. He hated how many people didn’t see how loveable Akira was and simply called him a weirdo.
“I guess he is just being himself. It’s impressive that he doesn’t let people influence him.” The other looked down at his empty plate.
“He really doesn’t care what other people think about him. I still don’t understand how he does it, even though I try to follow his example.”
“But you are worried he makes a wrong step and leaves a bad impression.. and because of that you prevent him from doing what he wants.” Ryosuke said matter-of-fact.
“Well…”
“You can let him be himself here. My brother is not someone to judge others and I am not in a position to do so either.”
“Thanks, I just hate it when people whisper behind his back.”
The other hummed in understanding and a silence settled between them.
“Has he always been like that?” Ryosuke suddenly asked.
“Weird?”
“No, that cheerful.”
“Most of the time. I only saw him really sad very few times.”
“I see.”
When Akira came back with Ryuzaki he said it was time to leave. They had already spent several
hours there.
Akira pouted slightly and stumbled over to the younger one of the brothers.
“Will you play with Akira again? Can Akira come again?” The other accompanied his words with pouty lips and he had to suppress a chuckle. If Shuji wasn’t straight he might have fallen for this idiot.
Ryosuke furrowed his brows and he anticipated his reply. He knew that if the other said ‘yes’, he would steal a great deal of Akira’s attention from him, but he knew as well that it was time to let go. Akira needed someone to love, too.
“I…”
“Please.”
He was really amazed by Akira. Not only that nothing was embarrassing for the other, but he also could make a face that would put every puppy to shame.
“Okay, let’s drink some soymilk together.”
Shuji was impressed by the other. There was nothing better he could have said to win Akira’s heart. The other was beaming brightly and nodding his head enthusiastically. He had last seen Akira like that on his birthday.
Now that Akira had his promise of meeting again, it was not all that difficult to make him leave with him.
“It’s nice to make new friends.” Akira said as they walked down the street and looked up in the dark night sky.
“You seem to like his younger brother.”
“He needs Akira.”
Shuji snapped his head towards the other.
“What are you talking about Akira? Aren’t you a little full of yourself?”
In return he only got a mysterious smile.
The next day, they really did go to the cinema and since Akira had been considerably civil, he didn’t ask Ryuzaki along. Moreover, he had the feeling that those two wouldn’t really work out after all. Especially, after Akira had shown such an interest in Ryosuke.
The following day though, his friend was nowhere to be seen and he had a slight suspicion where he went.
---
When the doorbell rang he sighed. Why now when his brother wasn’t home? He considered not opening, but if it was someone for his brother and he didn’t open, Shinji would be mad again. The other wanted him to have more contact with people anyway. Grumbling, he walked down the stairs and to the front door.
It was quite a surprise when he opened the door and looked into Akira’s face. The other had told him he wanted to meet again, but somehow he had not taken him that serious.
“Akira.”
“Has Ryosuke-chan some time?” The other beamed at him as happy as a few days ago and he stepped back to let him in before he realized it.
“Thank you!” Akira toed off his shoes and looked at him expectantly.
He was not sure what to say to him. So he said what first came to his mind.
“I tried soymilk.”
“And is it good?” If it was possible, the other seemed even brighter than before.
“Yeah, do you want some?” Now Akira was certainly as bright as the sun. He wished he could be happy about simple things like that as well.
“Yes, please!”
He turned around to go into the kitchen and the other followed him like a little puppy.
It had been a reflex to buy some when he had seen it. He usually always went shopping very early so that not many people were around and when he had seen the soymilk, he had wanted to try. It tasted good without a doubt.
It seemed to taste even better to Akira than it did to him as the other drank two glasses in a row and he caught himself wanting to smile because of the whiteness around Akira’s mouth. It made the other look even more adorable than he already was. Wait, he thought he was adorable?
“You have white stuff around your mouth.” He commented and emptied his own glass.
“Eh where?” Akira tried to clean his mouth but missed a great amount.
“It’s still there.”
”Ryosuke-chan help me.” The other leaned forward so that he could have wiped his mouth. His heart suddenly started to beat rapidly and he stumbled up and got a napkin. Gingerly, he reached out and made sure he didn’t get in contact with the other’s skin, but with the napkin.
“Thank you~” Akira said chipper and he couldn’t help but return the overly bright smile hesitantly. This guy was a mystery and a one in a million.
“Ne, show me your room.” Akira asked and looked at him with begging eyes.
“Well…”
“Please?”
He nodded. Akira was already there anyway and it was not like he was hiding anything in his
room. They went to his room and he sat down at his desk and let the other look around.
“Ryosuke-chan is a tidy person.”
He shrugged his shoulders. Since he spent most of his time in this room he tried to keep it in order. He didn’t want to seem like on of these typical people who locked themselves in their room and were surrounded by a mess.
“Oh!” Akira picked up his magic cube delighted and flopped down on his bed like it was his place.
Astonished, he watched the other twist and turn it and held in no time, the cube in his hands with the colours ordered.
“How boring.” Akira pouted and he couldn’t believe his eyes.
This boy was actually smart. He acted like a child, but there was no doubt that he was extremely intelligent.
“Your nii-chan told Akira you are a teacher.” The other said while he balanced the cube on two fingers.
“Not anymore.” He looked away and busied himself with the papers on his desk. Why did Shinji have to tell Akira?
“Why did you want to be a teacher?”
“I don’t really want to talk about it.”
There was silence from Akira and when he turned around he saw for the first time seriousness in the other’s eyes. It made him forget to breathe.
“I wanted to help the students with their lives, to give them a stepping stone for their future.”
Suddenly it slipped out past his lips without him really realizing. How was it possible that the other affect him like that without doing anything in particular? They were not close, nor did he know anything about him.
“That sounds nice. You should do that again. There are not enough good teachers around. Akira thinks being a teacher is a nice job.”
“I am not a good teacher.” He said definitely and looked down at his lap. How could he be considered a good teacher. He was a murderer. Akira would surely flee if he knew. He should tell him, but somehow he couldn’t. The other was so bright and he made him feel alive.
“Ryosuke-chan cares for his students. Why should you be a bad teacher then ?” Akira asked innocently and he had to swallow.
“You seem to like the job of a teacher. Why aren’t you one?” He tried to change the topic.
“Akira could never be a teacher. The students would make fun of him. Since Akira is working at his father’s company and is the heir, everyone has to treat him nicely and Akira can stay who he is.” The other said with a bright smile while showing him thumbs up. No, Akira was certainly not stupid.
“I see.”
Suddenly, Akira got up and bounced closer to him.
“Ryosuke-chan misses his students.” He said in a sing-song voice and Ryosuke cleared his throat nervously.
“That’s…”
“You would never harm them, so Ryosuke should go back to them.”
His eyes opened wide, when Akira suddenly grabbed his hand and held it in his. Hurriedly, he pulled it back and then, it dawned to him. Akira knew. Akira knew about his secret.
“Who told you?” His voice was sharp and he felt slightly guilty when Akira flinched visibly.
The other kept silent though.
“Tell me!”
Akira only shook his head and kept his lips tightly locked.
They stared at each other for several minutes and the longer he looked into Akira’s innocent face, the more he felt his defence crumple. He had to get a grip on himself.
“I think it would be better if you leave.” He said without meeting the other’s eyes.
“But…”
“Please!” His voice was harsh and he knew Akira did not deserve to be talked to like that, but he really wanted the other to leave.
“Bye bye.”
And then there was silence. Akira had listened to his request and left, but he could not have borne to see the other’s face when he had realized he was a murderer.
Getting up, he curled up on his bed and closed his eyes tightly. No, he was not going to regret telling Akira to leave. It was for the best. No matter how much he was already missing his brightness and spiritedness.
Akira did not come again and he was not sure if he should feel relieved or not. His mind told him it was good like that, but there was something in him that wanted that chipper boy close again.
“You are moping more than usual.” Shinji commented while he tried to force his dinner down.
It was him who had cooked, but he simply had no appetite.
“I am not.”
“Yes, you are.”
He kept silent and played a little with his vegetables in his bowl.
“Is it because of Akira?”
“No!” He might have answered too fast, he figured, when Shinji looked at him pointedly.
“Did something happen between the two of you?”
“What should have happened? Anyway, what are you talking about? I barely know that guy.”
“But you smiled at him.”
Sometimes he hated his brother for being that sharp-witted.
“That’s…”
“Whatever, I heard some neighbours talk. Apparently, there is a strange man walking up and down the streets talking to himself while flapping his arms. Isn’t that strange news?”
And then Shinji acted like nothing had happened and continued to eat his food.
Akira. It had to be Akira, but what was the other doing here? Was he thinking about coming again? His heart skipped a beat and he scolded himself. So what if the other had made a big impression on him. It was nothing special, nothing to go crazy about.
At night, he rolled from one side to the other while biting his lip. What should he do? Should he just ignore the news Shinji had given him or…or what? No, he would not go to Akira.
The next day, he was totally on edge. It would be a lie if he said he was not thinking about Akira. He had felt so at ease with the other around and he could barely remember the time when he had last been that relaxed.
When it was slowly getting dark again, he couldn’t sit still anymore. Grabbing his shoes, he left the house at an, for him, unusual time and he could bet he had heard a chuckle.
Not minding his brother, he walked down the streets, but soon found out that he had actually no clue where to look for Akira and who said that the other was still there?
Unsure, he moved from one foot to the other till he decided to return back home. It was better like that anyway.
Suddenly, he heard something that made him stop in his track.
Someone was singing. It sounded slightly funny and he knew immediately who the one singing was. He followed the voice and soon saw Akira bouncing up and down the street. He had a nice voice. Everything but perfect, but it went right to his heart.
“Akira.” He only noticed he had said the other’s name when he suddenly spun around and
looked at him surprised.
“Ryosuke-chan!”
“What are you doing here?”
“Akira is not sure if he is allowed to come again. Does he get another chance?”
This guy was unbelievable. It was not like he had done anything wrong. Moreover, it should be him who asked for forgiveness, not Akira.
“What are you talking about?” He said disbelievingly and looked down at the ground to not have to meet Akira’s honey eyes.
“Akira did something wrong. He has no right to stick his nose into other people’s business. He does it more often than not though.” The other laughed embarrassed and Ryosuke can’t stop himself from looking up and watch Akira laugh carefree.
“The soymilk is getting bad, you better hurry.” With that he turned on his heels and it wasn’t long till he heard some fast steps behind him. He watched Akira’s shadow in front of them and smiled slightly at the odd movements.
As hard as it was to believe, he had actually missed his stranger.
Soon, the soymilk had no chance anymore to get spoiled, since Akira had made sure to drink even the last drop and they went to his room. He avoided Shinji’s knowing look as he passed him.
Sitting down on his bed, he let out a sigh. Now he had to decide whether he was going to talk with Akira about his past or not.
“Ryosuke looks very depressed.”
“I am a murderer.” Okay, that had been more direct than he had planned, but there was something about Akira that made it hard to lie to him. Maybe because the boy seemed to be so honest himself.
Daring to look into his face, he waited for a reaction.
Akira returned his glance serious.
“You are not, Ryosuke.”
He laughed a disbelieving laugh. Akira was so innocent; of course he wouldn’t suspect him to be a heartless murderer.
“I am.” He said simply and let himself fall on his back. There was a movement next to him and when he turned his head slightly, he saw Akira lying on his side looking at him.
Suddenly, Akira reached out and placed his hand over his and he jerked immediately, but the other had a strong grip on his wrist.
“Do you want to tell Akira?”
“No.”
“Are you going to tell Akira anyway?”
He looked at the other and felt the warm hand on top of his own. How long had it been since anyone had held his hand like that. So warm and comforting.
“That’s…”
“I am not going to hate you.”
Akira’s words hit him hard. It was like the other could look right through him into his soul. How was that even possible?
Suddenly, his body acted on impulse and he pulled Akira right into his arms and buried his face in the brown strands. He felt like laughing when he realized the other smelled slightly like soymilk.
He was holding him so tightly, Akira had trouble to move and put his own arm at least partly around him.
“I can kill people with a touch. I thought the curse ended. That Shinji healed me and that I healed him, but it returned. To both of us. Shinji found me and brought me here into this house. I killed this man, like so many others before, who cares if they all had been bad guys? I have no right to execute them and end their life. I am a bloody murderer. “
Akira’s grip on his hand tightened slightly.
“Akira is not going to say it was okay what you did, but you don’t want it. You are not heartless.”
He tried to swallow around the big lump in his throat as he looked at the brown hair that was still in front of his face.
Suddenly, Akira pushed himself up from him and made a strange hand movement as if he was turning something.
“Just now Akira locked your powers. Ryosuke sees this key?” The other showed him his palm and he didn’t know if he should go along with the other’s idea or not.
“You can’t lock my powers.”
“Of course Akira can!” The other acted as if he took the key out of his palm and he watched a little confused the next movements, till he understood that the other acted like he put the key on a necklace and the necklace around his own neck.
“That’s never going to work and it would be better if you don’t touch me anymore. I am really sorry for hugging you. It was irresponsible.”
Akira pulled a really sad face and for a second he thought the other was going to cry.
“Akira can touch you, you’d never hurt Akira.” The other said it defiantly and he surrendered to the other’s logic.
Since that talk, Akira came almost every day. The other was his chipper self and he couldn’t help but relax in the other’s presence. He liked Akira, without a doubt, but he never forgot what Shinji had told him. Akira had been supposed to be for his brother. When he felt like he could bear to be without the other for a bit, he pushed them together and tried to ignore the relief whenever Akira came back to him quite fast.
“Don’t you like Akira?” The other suddenly asked him, touching his hand like so often and by now he almost didn’t jerk anymore. Akira was someone who liked body contact and had more than once tried to cuddle him.
“I like Akira.” He bit his lip. Was it okay for someone like him to like someone as pure as Akira?
“Akira likes Ryosuke-chan, too~”
He couldn’t suppress the smile that forced itself on his lips and Akira giggled delighted when he saw it.
“Idiot...” He nudged the other gently and tried to force the corners of his lips down.
“Ne, do you want to see Akira’s home? It might be a shock, but it’s comfy.”
To be truthful, he was quite curious about the other’s flat. How did someone like Akira live?
When he saw how the other lived, he almost burst out laughing. What a mess. Everywhere, things were lying around and there was one thin part where nothing was lying that leaded to the futon with several pillows and blankets.
“This is my kingdom!” Akira looked beamingly at him with pride in his eyes.
He hummed and looked around some more. One had to give Akira credit, there were no rests of spoiled food lying around or things that where rotten.
“Akira knows where everything is!” The other said suddenly and in his imagination popped up the other’s best friend, telling Akira to get rid of this mess.
“Well, I guess it might be comfortable.”
Akira smiled and then tugged him by his hand towards his futon. He wanted to protest, but the other had already pushed him on the blankets and pillows and damn, Akira had been right. It was incredibly comfortable.
“I like it.” He mumbled and he got a contented hum in return. They simply stayed like that. Akira lying next to him, thinking about everything and anything.
He moved and bumped his knee against something that whined in return and he blinked his eyes open. He was surrounded by a mess.
Looking at his watch, he groaned. He had spent the night at Akira’s place and it was already late morning.
Akira moved in his sleep and snuggled against his side and he felt unfamiliar warmth in his tummy.
It took some minutes for him to understand that it was simply happiness. How weird.
“Akira.” he shook the other gently and another smile tugged at his lips, when sleepy eyes blinked at him and the other’s hair looked like a bird’s nest.
“You are adorable.” He bit his lip. The other really made him say things he didn’t plan to say, but only had wanted to think them.
Akira seemed to ponder his statement and looked at him with his honey eyes.
“It’s okay, I guess.” Akira said with a grin and leaned forward and pressed a hurried kiss on his cheek.
The other already wanted to pull back, but Ryosuke slung his arms around him and pulled him back. Their lips touched and he couldn’t believe how fast his heart was beating in his chest. Couldn’t Akira hear it?
The other didn’t really know what to do so he tried to guide him along and since Akira seemed to be someone who was eager to try new things, he tried to kiss back enthusiastically.
Their tongues touched and he sighed into the kiss. He had forgotten how nice kissing felt.
Akira pulled back and gasped for air, but he didn’t let the other get away and pulled him right back into a kiss. He was not sure how much time they spent simply kissing and by now they had throughout explored each other mouths. When he let Akira go the other looked positively dazed.
“Are you alright?”
“Akira is dizzy.” The other’s hands held onto his arms and it took a great deal of concentration for him to not kiss Akira again. He was already addicted to the other’s soft lips. And to Akira himself.
The other started to look more normal and they looked at each other for a long time, so long that he felt the heat crawl into his cheeks.
“I will make us breakfast.” He hurriedly let go of the other and got up. If he stayed any longer with Akira on this futon, he would ravish the other and do who knew what to him. He had some trouble getting to the kitchen because he didn’t want to step on anything, but when he reached it and opened the fridge, he furrowed his brows.
“Akira, what the hell?”
He heard some shuffling and soon the other glanced over his shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Are you living from soymilk alone?”
He only got a peace sign in return and he growled at the other.
“In the shower, now. We are going over to my place.” He said decidedly and Akira pouted a little, but he was going to make sure they ate something proper.
Leaning towards him quickly, there was a soft pressure against his cheek before Akira disappeared in a hurry.
The other’s innocence made him smile and not feel that tainted himself anymore.
He took a quick shower as well and put on new clothes when they reached his house. Telling Akira to sit down, he opened the fridge. Maybe some traditional food would be good.
“Akira can help you?”
“Can you cook?”
“No.”
He sighed.
“Alright then. I will teach you.”
“Please, Ryosuke-sensei.”
Akira cut into his finger immediately but the other didn’t want to give up and after a lot of hesitating, he placed his hand over Akira’s and guided it.
“Stop being so tense. Akira has the key. You can’t harm him.” The other said calmly and he breathed in deeply. How badly he wanted to believe in those words.
He was so concentrated on preventing Akira from getting hurt anymore and the food not getting burned, that he was startled when he saw two people sit at the dinning table as he turned around.
“Shuji!” Akira stumbled over to his best friend and slung his arms around his neck happily. He swallowed. He was not going to be jealous. They were best friends and who knew what those kisses meant anyway.
“So you at least missed me a little.” Shuji pressed out and tried to loosen Akira’s arms a little around his neck so that he could breathe.
“Shuji missed Akira~” Was the other’s reply and Shuji rolled his eyes.
“Do you want to have some breakfast as well?” He tried to ask as friendly as possible.
“Oh, that would be nice.”
They set the table and a relatively comfortable silence settled between them and he was secretly pleased that Akira had sat down next to him instead of Shuji.
He might have fallen head over heels for Akira. A man…shit.
It irked him when Shinji asked Akira away again. What was he going to say to him now? Why did he have to stick his nose into his affairs?
He got interrupted in his anger by Shuji.
“You don’t have to worry. I am not the slightest bit interested in Akira that way. He is all yours.” Shuji’s smile was all-knowing and he felt like banging his head against the table. Had he been that obvious?
“That’s…” The chances that he was blushing were pretty high. His cheeks felt very hot.
“No need to be embarrassed. Akira is loveable and very loyal.”
He buried his face in his left hand.
“I shouldn’t. I swear, you don’t want me to be your friend’s lover.”
“I thought that some hours ago as well when Ryuzaki told me about the secret the two of you hide. I was set on dragging him away and never let him return to your side, but that was before I saw how you are fretting over him and most of all look at him. Akira needs love, but I can’t give it to him.”
“This is crazy.”
“Have half as much faith in yourself as Akira has in you. I haven’t seen much of him the past days and that certainly means something.”
“But shouldn’t he have become the lover of Shinji?”
“That idiot does never what he is supposed to, but I guess its fine. He chose to spend his time with you. It’s his choice.”
“Akira is not an idiot.”
Shuji chuckled slightly.
“Well, I guess one could simply say he is different, but don’t deny it: He is a handful.”
“To be honest, he is the one taking care of me. Moreover, I think he is very intelligent and has a good sense for people.”
Shuji looked disbelievingly at him and he smiled slightly. It seemed that even though he only knew Akira for a few weeks, there was still something he knew about him Shuji didn’t.
“Well, he will annoy you early enough, but I won’t take him back then.”
“I doubt that I will ever want to get rid of him.” He was too weak to push Akira away. It was impossible for him.
“Well, I guess it is pretty difficult to get rid of him. He gets quite clingy.”
”Shuji is mean!”
He looked up and saw Akira stand in the doorway and that was definitely hurt in his eyes.
Shuji got up and walked towards the other.
“It’s the truth, but we love you that way, Akira. Right Aoi-san?”
He blushed and nodded slowly.
Akira seemed to accept Shuji’s answer and made the fox gesture with his hand again.
“Don’t say such mean things again or I might stay with Ryosuke-chan completely.”
This time he could watch them with amusement as Shuji took Akira in a headlock and the other flapped his arms. He had the suspicion that Akira could have easily shaken him off though.
They had a nice day together, just sitting on the couch and talking. It made him feel relaxed and calm. It seemed like he was really having a life, a normal one.
Akira was giggling and embarrassing Shuji and it really amused him to watch them. Soon Akira seemed to get tired though and the other snuggled up to his side and he smiled to himself when Shinji watched the display astonished. His brother probably didn’t think they had gotten that close.
His former self would have been embarrassed about having a man curled up to him, but after all that had happened to him, he could care less. Akira was who he needed so he was not going to push him away, but rather keep him close.
“I guess he is going to stay here.” Shuji said when it was getting late and he nodded.
“Yeah, it’s fine.”
“He can be such a sleepy head.” Shuji patted Akira’s head and then waved and left.
“I never thought you would get close that fast.” Shinji sat down on the armchair and he shrugged his shoulders.
“Akira is special.”
”I bet he is.”
“What were you telling him when you asked him whether you could talk?”
“Nothing much. I only told him he is welcome in our family.” Shinji winked at him and he rolled his eyes.
“Ryosuke…” There was a faint whisper from Akira and he blushed.
“Take him to your room. He should sleep in a proper bed. A single can’t watch this sweet creepiness.”
Shinji said it jokingly, but he couldn’t help and feel slightly guilty. There was not much he could do though.
“Okay. Hey, Akira get up and moving.” He shook the other and the other pouted at him.
“Akira was sleeping so well.”
“You can sleep in my bed even better.”
“Akira can sleep in your bed?” The other asked suddenly bright awake.
“Yeah.”
“Ryosuke-chan, get up.” Akira got up and tugged at his arm and he let him pull him up.
The other giggled happily when he bounced on his bed and he followed a lot more calmly.
“May Akira ask something?”
“Why are you asking? Of course you can ask me something.”
“Do you love Akira?”
Wow, he never would have expected such a question. The other was really someone who didn’t beat around the bush.
“What…” he looked in his serious eyes and swallowed.
“You kissed Akira on the mouthand normally people do that when they love each other, right?”
Well, the other did have a point with that, even though there were a lot of people who kissed each other and certainly did not love each other. In their case…
“Akira.”
“This is special for me. So, I want it to be special for the person I do it with, too.”
He looked up surprised, not because of what Akira had said, but rather how. He used personal pronouns.
“If you don’t feel the same way, then I think it would be better if we don’t kiss. I admit that I like to hug and cuddle and all that, but a kiss is something special for me.”
It had to be extremely important for the other.
“I lo…it’s kind of special for me as well.” Almost he had said it, those three words.
Suddenly, Akira smiled a smile that was very unusual for him. He had never seen it on the other before. It looked rather strained.
“Akira, what’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing. I am fine.”
“Eh.”
Akira lay down on the bed.
“Thank you that you told Akira.” The words were accompanied by a bright smile.
He blinked. It was like a switched had been flipped in the other and for the first time he wondered about Akira’s cheerfulness. What if Akira was not always feeling the way he acted?
Tugging him up by his arms he looked at him closely.
“Please, tell me what really is going on.”
“Eh? What are you talking about?”
Akira’s smile faltered, when he took his cheeks in his hands.
“Akira, please be honest.”
When something warm and wet ran over his hands, he sort of wished Akira had not been that honest. He was bad with such situations.
“No one ever says he loves me, because it’s embarrassing to admit to loving someone like me. You almost said it. Couldn’t you have not start slipping it?”
What was this guilty feeling in his guts?
“It’s not like that.”
“I know, sorry, it’s okay.”
He hated to see that smile on Akira’s lips. It looked so false. Letting go of his face, he pulled him into a hug.
“I love you.” He whispered very silently and then again “I love you” and again “I love you.”
Akira’s arms tightened around him and he laid his head on the other’s shoulder.
“Silly.” He said silently and Akira chuckled slightly.
“Everyone wants to be loved. It’s simple like that.”
He could hardly deny those words, could he?
Lifting his head, he pressed his lips against Akira’s and the other deepened their kiss. When Akira needed to break away for breathing, the other instead nibbled at his neck.
“Oh God…”
“Akira is not God.”
“I would hardly do that with God.” Ryosuke pushed the other on his back and licked his lips. It had been too long, way too long.
“Poor him~”
He shut the other up with another kiss and Akira pulled him down and then rolled them both on their sides.
“Are we going too fast?” he rather asked himself, than Akira and the other tilted his head to the left.
“Maybe, but who is going to judge us?”
Akira’s logic was unbeatable, simply because he could not object.
“You are right.”
“Of course! Akira is not stupid.”
“I know.”
Akira looked at him and then took his hand. He gasped when Akira placed it right over his heart.
“Are you crazy? Let go.”
“Shhh…”
“Seriously, I am starting to think you want to die early.”
“Akira is fine.”
He tried to relax, because he had the feeling that Akira was not going to budge till he did what he wanted.
The other’s chest moved steadily up and down and it didn’t seem like Akira was the slightest bit scared. He was completely calm as he watched him.
“I don’t really understand you.” He said truthfully, because he really didn’t. Why was Akira doing those things? Why wasn’t he scared? And most of all, why did he have so much faith in him?
“Akira loves Ryosuke-chan.”
Akira had been right. Everyone wanted to be loved. Suddenly, his heart felt light and he wanted to laugh just because he could, just because of Akira’s words.
Instead he pressed their lips together again and moved the hand that was lying on the other’s chest down and grabbed the hem of Akira’s shirt.
The other let him pull it over his head and returned the favour. As he wanted to move his hand down to relief Akira of his pants, his hands bumped the other’s torso and he stopped in favour of gaping.
“Oh my…”
“Hmm?”
“You must be working out regularly.”
“Well, Akira does karate.”
“You are full of surprises.”
Akira smiled at him and this time it was a true and honest smile. He leaned forward and kissed his smile. Fingers tugged his pants open and he helped the other get rid of them. Then he opened Akira’s and he wiggled out of them.
“I have no idea how this works.” He hoped Akira did, but he didn't have high hopes.
“Neither does Akira.” Figured. “But why don’t we just do what feels good?”
That didn’t sound like a bad idea so he nodded. He blushed slightly when they pushed their underwear down and especially when Akira looked at him. Maybe he should have taken more care of his body, but the other didn’t seem to be bothered by it and pulled them flush together. His fairer skin was a nice contrast to Akira’s tanned one.
At first it was rather clumsy. They tried to move against each other without wanting to be the one, who started it, but then he accidentally pulled Akira in the right position and it was pure bliss. He bit his bottom lip as Akira’s thigh pressed against just the right place and tried to return the favour.
Akira’s surprised gasp made him press against him even harder.
They became more insistent in their movements and soon all embarrassment was forgotten as he felt the heat of Akira’s body and his warm breath against his shoulder. He was so deliciously close, he could barely bear it.
Akira slung his arms around him and mouthed inaudible words against his shoulder and he closed his eyes and tried to listen.
It felt good, but he wanted more. Moving only slightly away, he pressed a hand between them and wrapped it around the other’s hard length. Surprisingly, Akira’s moan was very low and melodic. It made him shudder and cling to him more.
The other tried to return the favour, but it was hard. The pleasure was trying to rip them off their control and they had trouble to keep a steady rhythm.
In the end, it was messy and they ended up stroking their erections together while getting in the way of each other.
He came first, snapping his hip into the touch with a groan as he clung to Akira’s shoulder. His mind was dazed and he enjoyed the overwhelming bliss he felt, till he heard some whining and was reminded of the fact that Akira still didn’t come.
He pushed Akira's hand away and stroked him with long, hard storks. It was beautiful to watch Akira fall apart. His bangs were stuck to his forehead, his plump lips slightly parted and sweat drops ran down his tanned neck.
When he felt the other’s cum on his hand, Akira opened his eyes and the honey-brown of his eyes seemed to have come alive and twinkled in every possible shade of brown. It was mesmerizing.
They pulled each other close and leaned against each other for the warmth of the other.
It was the second night he slept that well, maybe even a little bit better. Throughout his sleep, he could feel Akira close and when he opened in the morning his eyes he was greeted by warmth, tanned skin and a feeling he could not describe. He propped himself up on his elbow and looked at his new lover.
Akira was sleeping peacefully and…what?
He blinked and it was gone. Incredulously, he stared at Akira’s chest. For a second he could have sworn he saw a golden key lie just right over the other’s heart.
It must have been the sunlight.
---------
Meaning of the name Akira: Intelligence
Pairing/Group: Aoi Ryosuke/Kusano Akira (Ryopi)
Rating/Warnings: NC-17, drama crossover
Summary: No one really understands Akira, but that’s okay because he understands everything.
Note: I wrote this fic for the pi_exchange. It's lilly0's fic
The Key
Shuji liked Akira. That was out of the question, but he needed some more space between them. He had a girlfriend now and he would really love to stay together with her, but he saw her frown whenever Akira threw his arms around him and blabbered about what was on his mind. She had asked him once if there was something between them that she should know about and he figured it was time to do something. After reassuring her, he had made a plan. Akira needed to focus his energy and affection on someone else. He wanted to stay friends of course, because there was seriously no one who could top off Akira in being loyal. So he needed to find someone suitable, which was quite difficult. Akira was a handful to handle and he was not ready to entrust his friend to just anyone.
Therefore, he was delighted to hear when his favourite sempai dropped causally he was looking for a boyfriend. They worked in the same company and he knew he was extremely reliable. Akira needed someone like that. Someone who could take care of him; someone who could prevent him from running into poles, walking blindly over streets and most of all petting big dangerous dogs. There were some stories he could share about such matters. He knew his friend was bi. A few years ago he had caught him looking at almost naked men in a magazine and the tell-tale blush on his cheeks had explained the rest.
Akira once had a crush on Nobuta so he had to be bi.
Ryuzaki Shinji always took care of his kohais and would surely be able to deal with Akira’s weirdness. He had not been completely sure about it in the beginning since Ryuzaki did not share much about his past, but he couldn’t help but think that he had become more open since he had first met him. Maybe something tough happened to him in his past, making him keep to himself more.
They sometimes went drinking together, much to Akira’s unhappiness, and he had made sure he was really a nice guy before he had mentioned Akira to him.
“Akira is really a nice person, just different than other people.”
Ryuzaki looked at him over the rim of his glass.
“Now you are really making me curious. He is different than others? What do you mean by that?”
“Well, he…is indescribable.” He laughed, embarrassed and earned another curious glance.
“Would you be interested in meeting him? I mean, even if he is different he is very nice.”
“Are you trying to set me up?” The other leaned back causally in his chair and grinned.
“I…you are both good friends of mine so I thought it would be nice if you knew each other.” He couldn’t really meet the other’s eyes, but he hoped Ryuzaki would agree anyway.
“Why not. He seems to be interesting.” The other agreed easily and Shuji couldn’t believe his luck.
“Great!”
A few days later he tried to drag his best friend with him.
“Oh come on, what is your problem?”
”Akira doesn’t like this guy and doesn’t want to meet him.”
He looked baffled at his friend.
“How can you say you don’t like him if you haven’t even met him?”
“There is no need to meet him. You always go drinking with him instead of going with Akira.”
“That’s because you are bad with alcohol. I can’t go drinking with you.”
“Akira is not bad with alcohol!”
“Yes, you are. May I remind you of the incident when you were drunk and pointed at the car and got hysterical because you thought it was an UFO?”
“It was an UFO!”
“Never mind…”
They had left the train station already 20 minutes ago and he was getting worried that they were lost. Ryuzaki had mentioned that it was hard to find. He looked at the directions the other had given him and went to a man that sat on a bench to ask for help.
“Hopefully, he has no clue.”
”Akira, we will go there no matter what.”
“Why does Akira even has to accompany you?”
“You are both my friends and therefore I want you to meet.”
”That makes no sense.”
”Yes, it does.” Arguing with Akira was seriously tiring.
“If Akira is a good-boy, will you go with him to the movies tomorrow?”
“Okay…” It was a good chance to ask Ryuzaki to tag along. That was probably not what Akira had in mind though.
The other complied a lot more and after only five minutes they stood in front of a pretty big looking house.
“Your friend is rich.”
”I never knew. Why are all my friends rich?”
Akira shrugged his shoulders. Sometimes he forgot about Akira being rich though. The other was living in a one-room flat even though he had agreed to be his father’s heir after a lot of discussions and fist-fights. He did not even want to know how rich Akira really was.
He looked Akira once over and then rung the bell. The other was considerable presentable. There were some noises on the other side and soon Ryuzaki opened the door smiling.
“Come in, you two. You must be Akira?”
“Hi, I am Kusano Akira.”
“And I am Ryuzaki Shinji.”
Akira bowed his head slightly, but Shuji could see that his friend was incredibly stiff. He really hoped the atmosphere was going to change.
They entered a spacious living room and he had to stop himself from gaping. What a big contrast to Akira’s living room/bedroom/kitchen/dinning room. Did he have anything else in that one room?
“Wow, are you living alone?”
“Ah, I am living here with my younger brother. He should be here somewhere. His name is Aoi Ryosuke.”
“You are not having the same family name?” Shuji could feel that Akira still stood very stiff next to him. What could he say to perk the other’s interest?
“We were separated as children and met when we were already grown up. It’s rather complicated. Do you want to sit down? Do you want something to drink?”
“Some water?”
“Sure, and you Akira?”
“Do you have soymilk?”
“Sorry, no one drinks soymilk here.”
Shuji cringed. The probably worst possible start .
“That’s no problem. Akira will also drink some water.” He nudged the other and made clear with a look that he should behave. Akira pulled one of his grimaces and flopped down on the couch.
“That guy is weird.”
He sent Akira a look. It always made him want to shake his head when Akira said someone was weird. As if anyone could top off Akira in being weird.
“He is weird because he drinks no soymilk? Come on Akira, be fair.”
“He is hiding stuff.”
“Akira, he is not hiding anything.” Ryuzaki had been really nice and open so far and what made him the most happy, he had looked at Akira interested.
Akira pouted and swung his legs.
When Ryuzaki came back, Shuji tried to strike up a conversation, which he managed quite well since soon he and Ryuzaki talked animatedly, but he couldn’t pull Akira in. The other kept swinging his legs and looked out of the window. He would like to pull the other to the side and tell him to stop sulking.
He knew quite well that Akira never liked to meet any of his friends. There was the fear that Akira felt more for him than he did for the other but he pushed that thought constantly aside. He did not want to think about that possibility.
“I want to go to the toilet.” Akira suddenly said and Ryuzaki told him where to find it.
“I guess it doesn’t work out how you wanted it to be.” Ryuzaki said as soon as Akira was out of sight.
“What do you mean?”
”He does not seem like he is the slightest bit interested in me.”
“Well, Akira is sulking, a little, but he is usually different. I mean oh…” Shuji laughed embarrassed when he realized he had just admitted to wanting to set them up.
“Well, we will see.” Ryuzaki smiled.
---
Aoi Ryosuke let the grass slip through his fingers. He was sitting in his brother’s garden. Shinji always said it was his home as well, but he did not really feel like it was. He was only hiding here from the world. Looking at the hand he detested so much, he balled it to a fist.
Suddenly, there was a noise behind him and he turned his head slightly. He frowned. Who was that? A young man looked curiously at him. He had brownish hair and what struck him the most, honey-brown, bright eyes.
The other tilted his head slightly to the left and then opened the door wider and walked out to him into the garden. No wait, walk was not the right word. It was a strange mixture of bouncing and jumping and while doing so he flapped his arms.
The strange boy toppled down next to him. He couldn’t help but call him a boy since his movements reminded him of that of a child, even though he had to be around the same age as him.
“Are you Ryosuke-chan?”
He had to blink at the sudden question. Now that he thought about it, Shinji had mentioned to him that a friend of his would come to visit and bring his best friend along. Moreover, that he had the suspicion that he wanted to set him up with said best friend. What had he said was his name? Something with A…Ak…?
“Are you not Ryosuke-chan? I am Akira!”
Ah, Akira it was.
“I am Aoi Ryosuke.” He said and watched how the other’s face suddenly lightened up as if that were great news.
“Really? What are you doing? Akira is bored, you know.”
“Nothing…”
”Muumuu! Boooooooooooring!”
He blinked again. What was with this boy?
“Kon~” Suddenly the other held his hand up with his middle and ring finger touching his thumb. A bright smile accompanied the gesture and he mirrored the action because he had no clue how to react otherwise.
“Awesome! Ryosuke-chan can do it!”
“It’s not all that difficult.”
”Shuji doesn’t do it, but you know, Shuji is pretty cool so he doesn’t do uncool stuff like that, at least not very often.”
“Shuji is your friend?”
”Shuji is Akira’s friend!”
“Do you always use your name when you talk about yourself?”
A big pout developed on the other’s lips and Ryosuke had to wonder about the plumpness of those lips. Could such lips really belong to a boy?
“Shuji said that Akira is Akira and it can’t be helped.”
He had to lift an eyebrow at that.
“I see.”
”Is Ryosuke-chan going to play with Akira? The two inside are talking about boring stuff.”
“Uhm…”
“Here try this.” The other pulled something out of his pocket and put it in his lap. He picked it up and it turned out to be a puzzle.
“You have to turn the pieces till it’s a cube, but since it easily becomes boring like that, Akira often makes animals. It’s more fun! See this is an elephant.” Akira took it from him again and turned the wood pieces a little before he held it up for him to see. With a lot of fantasy it did look a little like an elephant.
“Now you try.”
That thing was tricky. No matter how he turned and twisted the wood pieces, it didn’t become a cube. Moreover, it wasn’t helping that this boy was sitting next to him, smiling like an idiot and from time to time, giggled. How could someone be so full of smiles and happiness? It radiated off the other and he couldn’t help but be amazed by how bright Akira was.
“Do you want Akira to help Ryosuke-chan~” The other said in a sing-song voice.
“No, I can do it.”
”Haii~”
He said so, but he did not really trust his own words, but he really wanted to manage. It has been awhile since he had felt like really doing something and not giving up halfway. When he saw a strange movement out of the corner of his eyes he looked up.
“What are you doing?” He asked perplexed.
“Akira is silently cheering you on. Akira thought if he was loud he would only distract you, so Akira is cheering silently.” The other kept moving his hands and it looked like some strange kind of dance to him.
“You are…weird.”
Akira shrugged his shoulders and then said “Kon” again and made the fitting hand-movement.
“Is it a fox?”
The other’s eyes shone very brightly suddenly and he wildly nodded his head.
“It’s a fox!”
“It’s quite easy to make you happy.” He had never met such a person before and he had met a lot of people in his life. Not even one of his students had been that bright.
“It’s better to get happy easily than to get easily sad.”
He swallowed. The other’s words had struck something within him. To hide how much it affected him, he returned his attention back to the cube or well, the thing that was supposed to be a cube.
“Ryosuke-chan can do it.” The other’s honey eyes formed to crescent moons when he smiled broadly at him.
He nodded and kept twisting the pieces. He couldn’t say how long he sat like that with the other next to him till he suddenly looked astonished at the cube he was holding in his hands.
“Akira look!”
“You managed! Akira is proud!” And with that the other suddenly leaned forward and slung his arms around him. He froze and then pushed the other away strongly.
“Don’t touch me!”
Akira blinked at him.
He was shocked by himself and looked worriedly at the other.
“Did I hurt you? Are you okay?”
Suddenly, the bright smile was back on the other’s lips.
“Of course Akira is fine. The best friendships start like this.”
The best friendships started with pushing someone away? He seriously doubted it and Akira was really weird.
The other made a fish mouth towards him.
“You look like a fish.”
”Akira made a kissy-face!”
”Oh sorry.”
“To make Akira forgive you, you do it too! Let’s see if you look like a fish as well.”
“Ehhh…really?”
“Do it~”
“I got it, I got it.”
---
“That’s just…” Shuji watched bewildered how Akira pulled grimaces together with another man. What had happened and who the hell was that? He had gone to look for the other since it was unusual for Akira to be in the toilet for over 45 minutes.
“Oh…”
He turned his head to the side when he heard the silent word and looked at Ryuzaki next to him, who looked at the two men outside.
“I am sorry. Akira more often than not behaves however way he wants. I’ll go get him. I am so sorry he disturbed him.”
“No.” Ryuzaki shook his head and pulled him away from the door and back into the living room.
Looking at the other puzzled, he sat down again.
“Why…?”
“I mentioned Ryosuke earlier to you, my brother.”
“Uhm yeah.”
“That was him just now.”
”Oh.”
”Yeah and I am quite thankful you brought Akira here today.”
“Eh? But he is just playing around and annoying your brother.”
“I think it is the first time that I see Ryosuke really relaxed and at ease. There are some things in our past that are hard to believe and tough to explain, but Ryosuke is really in need for someone to cheer him up and apparently Akira is doing a wonderful job.”
“Well, Akira is quite good at that.”
“Obviously.” Ryuzaki smiled slightly and he couldn’t help but wonder about the past of these siblings. Why was it hard to explain?
“Do you want to stay for dinner?”
“Ohm, I don’t want to bother you.”
“Not at all! I will only warm something up though since I am not the best cook.”
“Okay, let me help you a little. I’ll set the table.”
He went to set the table and when he was done he walked back to where the door was that lead into the garden.
As he opened it further, he heard Akira’s voice.
“Soymilk is really yummy. Ryosuke should try it, too.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it made Akira grow up strong.”
“I see. I will then.”
Akira smiled beamingly at the other and he felt a slight twinge of jealously. He shook his head in disbelief. That was exactly what he had wanted. For Akira to direct his affection on someone else, even though it had not supposed to be Ryuzaki’s younger brother. He sighed. He probably had to learn to let go a little as well.
“Dinner is ready.” He said loud enough for them to hear and Akira ginned broadly at him. His best friend tried to take the hand of the man next to him but the other pulled it away in time and stood up by himself, but smiled apologizing at the other.
During dinner he couldn’t help but sneak glances at them. Since Ryuzaki had asked how he and Akira had gotten to know each other, Akira was saying some very Akira-like things and he stepped in when the other got a little too enthusiastic.
When they were done eating he thought it was about time they left, but suddenly Ryuzaki asked Akira if they could talk for a few minutes. Not knowing what to make of this, he looked after them with furrowed brows.
“So you are Akira’s best friend?” He got pulled out of his thoughts by Ryosuke. Since the other had been silent during dinner, he was slightly startled.
“Ohm yeah, since high school and I hope he didn’t bother you earlier.”
“No, he didn’t. He is quite cheerful and bright.”
“I see, so you looked past Akira’s weirdness? Not many people do that.” Somehow that pleased him. He hated how many people didn’t see how loveable Akira was and simply called him a weirdo.
“I guess he is just being himself. It’s impressive that he doesn’t let people influence him.” The other looked down at his empty plate.
“He really doesn’t care what other people think about him. I still don’t understand how he does it, even though I try to follow his example.”
“But you are worried he makes a wrong step and leaves a bad impression.. and because of that you prevent him from doing what he wants.” Ryosuke said matter-of-fact.
“Well…”
“You can let him be himself here. My brother is not someone to judge others and I am not in a position to do so either.”
“Thanks, I just hate it when people whisper behind his back.”
The other hummed in understanding and a silence settled between them.
“Has he always been like that?” Ryosuke suddenly asked.
“Weird?”
“No, that cheerful.”
“Most of the time. I only saw him really sad very few times.”
“I see.”
When Akira came back with Ryuzaki he said it was time to leave. They had already spent several
hours there.
Akira pouted slightly and stumbled over to the younger one of the brothers.
“Will you play with Akira again? Can Akira come again?” The other accompanied his words with pouty lips and he had to suppress a chuckle. If Shuji wasn’t straight he might have fallen for this idiot.
Ryosuke furrowed his brows and he anticipated his reply. He knew that if the other said ‘yes’, he would steal a great deal of Akira’s attention from him, but he knew as well that it was time to let go. Akira needed someone to love, too.
“I…”
“Please.”
He was really amazed by Akira. Not only that nothing was embarrassing for the other, but he also could make a face that would put every puppy to shame.
“Okay, let’s drink some soymilk together.”
Shuji was impressed by the other. There was nothing better he could have said to win Akira’s heart. The other was beaming brightly and nodding his head enthusiastically. He had last seen Akira like that on his birthday.
Now that Akira had his promise of meeting again, it was not all that difficult to make him leave with him.
“It’s nice to make new friends.” Akira said as they walked down the street and looked up in the dark night sky.
“You seem to like his younger brother.”
“He needs Akira.”
Shuji snapped his head towards the other.
“What are you talking about Akira? Aren’t you a little full of yourself?”
In return he only got a mysterious smile.
The next day, they really did go to the cinema and since Akira had been considerably civil, he didn’t ask Ryuzaki along. Moreover, he had the feeling that those two wouldn’t really work out after all. Especially, after Akira had shown such an interest in Ryosuke.
The following day though, his friend was nowhere to be seen and he had a slight suspicion where he went.
---
When the doorbell rang he sighed. Why now when his brother wasn’t home? He considered not opening, but if it was someone for his brother and he didn’t open, Shinji would be mad again. The other wanted him to have more contact with people anyway. Grumbling, he walked down the stairs and to the front door.
It was quite a surprise when he opened the door and looked into Akira’s face. The other had told him he wanted to meet again, but somehow he had not taken him that serious.
“Akira.”
“Has Ryosuke-chan some time?” The other beamed at him as happy as a few days ago and he stepped back to let him in before he realized it.
“Thank you!” Akira toed off his shoes and looked at him expectantly.
He was not sure what to say to him. So he said what first came to his mind.
“I tried soymilk.”
“And is it good?” If it was possible, the other seemed even brighter than before.
“Yeah, do you want some?” Now Akira was certainly as bright as the sun. He wished he could be happy about simple things like that as well.
“Yes, please!”
He turned around to go into the kitchen and the other followed him like a little puppy.
It had been a reflex to buy some when he had seen it. He usually always went shopping very early so that not many people were around and when he had seen the soymilk, he had wanted to try. It tasted good without a doubt.
It seemed to taste even better to Akira than it did to him as the other drank two glasses in a row and he caught himself wanting to smile because of the whiteness around Akira’s mouth. It made the other look even more adorable than he already was. Wait, he thought he was adorable?
“You have white stuff around your mouth.” He commented and emptied his own glass.
“Eh where?” Akira tried to clean his mouth but missed a great amount.
“It’s still there.”
”Ryosuke-chan help me.” The other leaned forward so that he could have wiped his mouth. His heart suddenly started to beat rapidly and he stumbled up and got a napkin. Gingerly, he reached out and made sure he didn’t get in contact with the other’s skin, but with the napkin.
“Thank you~” Akira said chipper and he couldn’t help but return the overly bright smile hesitantly. This guy was a mystery and a one in a million.
“Ne, show me your room.” Akira asked and looked at him with begging eyes.
“Well…”
“Please?”
He nodded. Akira was already there anyway and it was not like he was hiding anything in his
room. They went to his room and he sat down at his desk and let the other look around.
“Ryosuke-chan is a tidy person.”
He shrugged his shoulders. Since he spent most of his time in this room he tried to keep it in order. He didn’t want to seem like on of these typical people who locked themselves in their room and were surrounded by a mess.
“Oh!” Akira picked up his magic cube delighted and flopped down on his bed like it was his place.
Astonished, he watched the other twist and turn it and held in no time, the cube in his hands with the colours ordered.
“How boring.” Akira pouted and he couldn’t believe his eyes.
This boy was actually smart. He acted like a child, but there was no doubt that he was extremely intelligent.
“Your nii-chan told Akira you are a teacher.” The other said while he balanced the cube on two fingers.
“Not anymore.” He looked away and busied himself with the papers on his desk. Why did Shinji have to tell Akira?
“Why did you want to be a teacher?”
“I don’t really want to talk about it.”
There was silence from Akira and when he turned around he saw for the first time seriousness in the other’s eyes. It made him forget to breathe.
“I wanted to help the students with their lives, to give them a stepping stone for their future.”
Suddenly it slipped out past his lips without him really realizing. How was it possible that the other affect him like that without doing anything in particular? They were not close, nor did he know anything about him.
“That sounds nice. You should do that again. There are not enough good teachers around. Akira thinks being a teacher is a nice job.”
“I am not a good teacher.” He said definitely and looked down at his lap. How could he be considered a good teacher. He was a murderer. Akira would surely flee if he knew. He should tell him, but somehow he couldn’t. The other was so bright and he made him feel alive.
“Ryosuke-chan cares for his students. Why should you be a bad teacher then ?” Akira asked innocently and he had to swallow.
“You seem to like the job of a teacher. Why aren’t you one?” He tried to change the topic.
“Akira could never be a teacher. The students would make fun of him. Since Akira is working at his father’s company and is the heir, everyone has to treat him nicely and Akira can stay who he is.” The other said with a bright smile while showing him thumbs up. No, Akira was certainly not stupid.
“I see.”
Suddenly, Akira got up and bounced closer to him.
“Ryosuke-chan misses his students.” He said in a sing-song voice and Ryosuke cleared his throat nervously.
“That’s…”
“You would never harm them, so Ryosuke should go back to them.”
His eyes opened wide, when Akira suddenly grabbed his hand and held it in his. Hurriedly, he pulled it back and then, it dawned to him. Akira knew. Akira knew about his secret.
“Who told you?” His voice was sharp and he felt slightly guilty when Akira flinched visibly.
The other kept silent though.
“Tell me!”
Akira only shook his head and kept his lips tightly locked.
They stared at each other for several minutes and the longer he looked into Akira’s innocent face, the more he felt his defence crumple. He had to get a grip on himself.
“I think it would be better if you leave.” He said without meeting the other’s eyes.
“But…”
“Please!” His voice was harsh and he knew Akira did not deserve to be talked to like that, but he really wanted the other to leave.
“Bye bye.”
And then there was silence. Akira had listened to his request and left, but he could not have borne to see the other’s face when he had realized he was a murderer.
Getting up, he curled up on his bed and closed his eyes tightly. No, he was not going to regret telling Akira to leave. It was for the best. No matter how much he was already missing his brightness and spiritedness.
Akira did not come again and he was not sure if he should feel relieved or not. His mind told him it was good like that, but there was something in him that wanted that chipper boy close again.
“You are moping more than usual.” Shinji commented while he tried to force his dinner down.
It was him who had cooked, but he simply had no appetite.
“I am not.”
“Yes, you are.”
He kept silent and played a little with his vegetables in his bowl.
“Is it because of Akira?”
“No!” He might have answered too fast, he figured, when Shinji looked at him pointedly.
“Did something happen between the two of you?”
“What should have happened? Anyway, what are you talking about? I barely know that guy.”
“But you smiled at him.”
Sometimes he hated his brother for being that sharp-witted.
“That’s…”
“Whatever, I heard some neighbours talk. Apparently, there is a strange man walking up and down the streets talking to himself while flapping his arms. Isn’t that strange news?”
And then Shinji acted like nothing had happened and continued to eat his food.
Akira. It had to be Akira, but what was the other doing here? Was he thinking about coming again? His heart skipped a beat and he scolded himself. So what if the other had made a big impression on him. It was nothing special, nothing to go crazy about.
At night, he rolled from one side to the other while biting his lip. What should he do? Should he just ignore the news Shinji had given him or…or what? No, he would not go to Akira.
The next day, he was totally on edge. It would be a lie if he said he was not thinking about Akira. He had felt so at ease with the other around and he could barely remember the time when he had last been that relaxed.
When it was slowly getting dark again, he couldn’t sit still anymore. Grabbing his shoes, he left the house at an, for him, unusual time and he could bet he had heard a chuckle.
Not minding his brother, he walked down the streets, but soon found out that he had actually no clue where to look for Akira and who said that the other was still there?
Unsure, he moved from one foot to the other till he decided to return back home. It was better like that anyway.
Suddenly, he heard something that made him stop in his track.
Someone was singing. It sounded slightly funny and he knew immediately who the one singing was. He followed the voice and soon saw Akira bouncing up and down the street. He had a nice voice. Everything but perfect, but it went right to his heart.
“Akira.” He only noticed he had said the other’s name when he suddenly spun around and
looked at him surprised.
“Ryosuke-chan!”
“What are you doing here?”
“Akira is not sure if he is allowed to come again. Does he get another chance?”
This guy was unbelievable. It was not like he had done anything wrong. Moreover, it should be him who asked for forgiveness, not Akira.
“What are you talking about?” He said disbelievingly and looked down at the ground to not have to meet Akira’s honey eyes.
“Akira did something wrong. He has no right to stick his nose into other people’s business. He does it more often than not though.” The other laughed embarrassed and Ryosuke can’t stop himself from looking up and watch Akira laugh carefree.
“The soymilk is getting bad, you better hurry.” With that he turned on his heels and it wasn’t long till he heard some fast steps behind him. He watched Akira’s shadow in front of them and smiled slightly at the odd movements.
As hard as it was to believe, he had actually missed his stranger.
Soon, the soymilk had no chance anymore to get spoiled, since Akira had made sure to drink even the last drop and they went to his room. He avoided Shinji’s knowing look as he passed him.
Sitting down on his bed, he let out a sigh. Now he had to decide whether he was going to talk with Akira about his past or not.
“Ryosuke looks very depressed.”
“I am a murderer.” Okay, that had been more direct than he had planned, but there was something about Akira that made it hard to lie to him. Maybe because the boy seemed to be so honest himself.
Daring to look into his face, he waited for a reaction.
Akira returned his glance serious.
“You are not, Ryosuke.”
He laughed a disbelieving laugh. Akira was so innocent; of course he wouldn’t suspect him to be a heartless murderer.
“I am.” He said simply and let himself fall on his back. There was a movement next to him and when he turned his head slightly, he saw Akira lying on his side looking at him.
Suddenly, Akira reached out and placed his hand over his and he jerked immediately, but the other had a strong grip on his wrist.
“Do you want to tell Akira?”
“No.”
“Are you going to tell Akira anyway?”
He looked at the other and felt the warm hand on top of his own. How long had it been since anyone had held his hand like that. So warm and comforting.
“That’s…”
“I am not going to hate you.”
Akira’s words hit him hard. It was like the other could look right through him into his soul. How was that even possible?
Suddenly, his body acted on impulse and he pulled Akira right into his arms and buried his face in the brown strands. He felt like laughing when he realized the other smelled slightly like soymilk.
He was holding him so tightly, Akira had trouble to move and put his own arm at least partly around him.
“I can kill people with a touch. I thought the curse ended. That Shinji healed me and that I healed him, but it returned. To both of us. Shinji found me and brought me here into this house. I killed this man, like so many others before, who cares if they all had been bad guys? I have no right to execute them and end their life. I am a bloody murderer. “
Akira’s grip on his hand tightened slightly.
“Akira is not going to say it was okay what you did, but you don’t want it. You are not heartless.”
He tried to swallow around the big lump in his throat as he looked at the brown hair that was still in front of his face.
Suddenly, Akira pushed himself up from him and made a strange hand movement as if he was turning something.
“Just now Akira locked your powers. Ryosuke sees this key?” The other showed him his palm and he didn’t know if he should go along with the other’s idea or not.
“You can’t lock my powers.”
“Of course Akira can!” The other acted as if he took the key out of his palm and he watched a little confused the next movements, till he understood that the other acted like he put the key on a necklace and the necklace around his own neck.
“That’s never going to work and it would be better if you don’t touch me anymore. I am really sorry for hugging you. It was irresponsible.”
Akira pulled a really sad face and for a second he thought the other was going to cry.
“Akira can touch you, you’d never hurt Akira.” The other said it defiantly and he surrendered to the other’s logic.
Since that talk, Akira came almost every day. The other was his chipper self and he couldn’t help but relax in the other’s presence. He liked Akira, without a doubt, but he never forgot what Shinji had told him. Akira had been supposed to be for his brother. When he felt like he could bear to be without the other for a bit, he pushed them together and tried to ignore the relief whenever Akira came back to him quite fast.
“Don’t you like Akira?” The other suddenly asked him, touching his hand like so often and by now he almost didn’t jerk anymore. Akira was someone who liked body contact and had more than once tried to cuddle him.
“I like Akira.” He bit his lip. Was it okay for someone like him to like someone as pure as Akira?
“Akira likes Ryosuke-chan, too~”
He couldn’t suppress the smile that forced itself on his lips and Akira giggled delighted when he saw it.
“Idiot...” He nudged the other gently and tried to force the corners of his lips down.
“Ne, do you want to see Akira’s home? It might be a shock, but it’s comfy.”
To be truthful, he was quite curious about the other’s flat. How did someone like Akira live?
When he saw how the other lived, he almost burst out laughing. What a mess. Everywhere, things were lying around and there was one thin part where nothing was lying that leaded to the futon with several pillows and blankets.
“This is my kingdom!” Akira looked beamingly at him with pride in his eyes.
He hummed and looked around some more. One had to give Akira credit, there were no rests of spoiled food lying around or things that where rotten.
“Akira knows where everything is!” The other said suddenly and in his imagination popped up the other’s best friend, telling Akira to get rid of this mess.
“Well, I guess it might be comfortable.”
Akira smiled and then tugged him by his hand towards his futon. He wanted to protest, but the other had already pushed him on the blankets and pillows and damn, Akira had been right. It was incredibly comfortable.
“I like it.” He mumbled and he got a contented hum in return. They simply stayed like that. Akira lying next to him, thinking about everything and anything.
He moved and bumped his knee against something that whined in return and he blinked his eyes open. He was surrounded by a mess.
Looking at his watch, he groaned. He had spent the night at Akira’s place and it was already late morning.
Akira moved in his sleep and snuggled against his side and he felt unfamiliar warmth in his tummy.
It took some minutes for him to understand that it was simply happiness. How weird.
“Akira.” he shook the other gently and another smile tugged at his lips, when sleepy eyes blinked at him and the other’s hair looked like a bird’s nest.
“You are adorable.” He bit his lip. The other really made him say things he didn’t plan to say, but only had wanted to think them.
Akira seemed to ponder his statement and looked at him with his honey eyes.
“It’s okay, I guess.” Akira said with a grin and leaned forward and pressed a hurried kiss on his cheek.
The other already wanted to pull back, but Ryosuke slung his arms around him and pulled him back. Their lips touched and he couldn’t believe how fast his heart was beating in his chest. Couldn’t Akira hear it?
The other didn’t really know what to do so he tried to guide him along and since Akira seemed to be someone who was eager to try new things, he tried to kiss back enthusiastically.
Their tongues touched and he sighed into the kiss. He had forgotten how nice kissing felt.
Akira pulled back and gasped for air, but he didn’t let the other get away and pulled him right back into a kiss. He was not sure how much time they spent simply kissing and by now they had throughout explored each other mouths. When he let Akira go the other looked positively dazed.
“Are you alright?”
“Akira is dizzy.” The other’s hands held onto his arms and it took a great deal of concentration for him to not kiss Akira again. He was already addicted to the other’s soft lips. And to Akira himself.
The other started to look more normal and they looked at each other for a long time, so long that he felt the heat crawl into his cheeks.
“I will make us breakfast.” He hurriedly let go of the other and got up. If he stayed any longer with Akira on this futon, he would ravish the other and do who knew what to him. He had some trouble getting to the kitchen because he didn’t want to step on anything, but when he reached it and opened the fridge, he furrowed his brows.
“Akira, what the hell?”
He heard some shuffling and soon the other glanced over his shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Are you living from soymilk alone?”
He only got a peace sign in return and he growled at the other.
“In the shower, now. We are going over to my place.” He said decidedly and Akira pouted a little, but he was going to make sure they ate something proper.
Leaning towards him quickly, there was a soft pressure against his cheek before Akira disappeared in a hurry.
The other’s innocence made him smile and not feel that tainted himself anymore.
He took a quick shower as well and put on new clothes when they reached his house. Telling Akira to sit down, he opened the fridge. Maybe some traditional food would be good.
“Akira can help you?”
“Can you cook?”
“No.”
He sighed.
“Alright then. I will teach you.”
“Please, Ryosuke-sensei.”
Akira cut into his finger immediately but the other didn’t want to give up and after a lot of hesitating, he placed his hand over Akira’s and guided it.
“Stop being so tense. Akira has the key. You can’t harm him.” The other said calmly and he breathed in deeply. How badly he wanted to believe in those words.
He was so concentrated on preventing Akira from getting hurt anymore and the food not getting burned, that he was startled when he saw two people sit at the dinning table as he turned around.
“Shuji!” Akira stumbled over to his best friend and slung his arms around his neck happily. He swallowed. He was not going to be jealous. They were best friends and who knew what those kisses meant anyway.
“So you at least missed me a little.” Shuji pressed out and tried to loosen Akira’s arms a little around his neck so that he could breathe.
“Shuji missed Akira~” Was the other’s reply and Shuji rolled his eyes.
“Do you want to have some breakfast as well?” He tried to ask as friendly as possible.
“Oh, that would be nice.”
They set the table and a relatively comfortable silence settled between them and he was secretly pleased that Akira had sat down next to him instead of Shuji.
He might have fallen head over heels for Akira. A man…shit.
It irked him when Shinji asked Akira away again. What was he going to say to him now? Why did he have to stick his nose into his affairs?
He got interrupted in his anger by Shuji.
“You don’t have to worry. I am not the slightest bit interested in Akira that way. He is all yours.” Shuji’s smile was all-knowing and he felt like banging his head against the table. Had he been that obvious?
“That’s…” The chances that he was blushing were pretty high. His cheeks felt very hot.
“No need to be embarrassed. Akira is loveable and very loyal.”
He buried his face in his left hand.
“I shouldn’t. I swear, you don’t want me to be your friend’s lover.”
“I thought that some hours ago as well when Ryuzaki told me about the secret the two of you hide. I was set on dragging him away and never let him return to your side, but that was before I saw how you are fretting over him and most of all look at him. Akira needs love, but I can’t give it to him.”
“This is crazy.”
“Have half as much faith in yourself as Akira has in you. I haven’t seen much of him the past days and that certainly means something.”
“But shouldn’t he have become the lover of Shinji?”
“That idiot does never what he is supposed to, but I guess its fine. He chose to spend his time with you. It’s his choice.”
“Akira is not an idiot.”
Shuji chuckled slightly.
“Well, I guess one could simply say he is different, but don’t deny it: He is a handful.”
“To be honest, he is the one taking care of me. Moreover, I think he is very intelligent and has a good sense for people.”
Shuji looked disbelievingly at him and he smiled slightly. It seemed that even though he only knew Akira for a few weeks, there was still something he knew about him Shuji didn’t.
“Well, he will annoy you early enough, but I won’t take him back then.”
“I doubt that I will ever want to get rid of him.” He was too weak to push Akira away. It was impossible for him.
“Well, I guess it is pretty difficult to get rid of him. He gets quite clingy.”
”Shuji is mean!”
He looked up and saw Akira stand in the doorway and that was definitely hurt in his eyes.
Shuji got up and walked towards the other.
“It’s the truth, but we love you that way, Akira. Right Aoi-san?”
He blushed and nodded slowly.
Akira seemed to accept Shuji’s answer and made the fox gesture with his hand again.
“Don’t say such mean things again or I might stay with Ryosuke-chan completely.”
This time he could watch them with amusement as Shuji took Akira in a headlock and the other flapped his arms. He had the suspicion that Akira could have easily shaken him off though.
They had a nice day together, just sitting on the couch and talking. It made him feel relaxed and calm. It seemed like he was really having a life, a normal one.
Akira was giggling and embarrassing Shuji and it really amused him to watch them. Soon Akira seemed to get tired though and the other snuggled up to his side and he smiled to himself when Shinji watched the display astonished. His brother probably didn’t think they had gotten that close.
His former self would have been embarrassed about having a man curled up to him, but after all that had happened to him, he could care less. Akira was who he needed so he was not going to push him away, but rather keep him close.
“I guess he is going to stay here.” Shuji said when it was getting late and he nodded.
“Yeah, it’s fine.”
“He can be such a sleepy head.” Shuji patted Akira’s head and then waved and left.
“I never thought you would get close that fast.” Shinji sat down on the armchair and he shrugged his shoulders.
“Akira is special.”
”I bet he is.”
“What were you telling him when you asked him whether you could talk?”
“Nothing much. I only told him he is welcome in our family.” Shinji winked at him and he rolled his eyes.
“Ryosuke…” There was a faint whisper from Akira and he blushed.
“Take him to your room. He should sleep in a proper bed. A single can’t watch this sweet creepiness.”
Shinji said it jokingly, but he couldn’t help and feel slightly guilty. There was not much he could do though.
“Okay. Hey, Akira get up and moving.” He shook the other and the other pouted at him.
“Akira was sleeping so well.”
“You can sleep in my bed even better.”
“Akira can sleep in your bed?” The other asked suddenly bright awake.
“Yeah.”
“Ryosuke-chan, get up.” Akira got up and tugged at his arm and he let him pull him up.
The other giggled happily when he bounced on his bed and he followed a lot more calmly.
“May Akira ask something?”
“Why are you asking? Of course you can ask me something.”
“Do you love Akira?”
Wow, he never would have expected such a question. The other was really someone who didn’t beat around the bush.
“What…” he looked in his serious eyes and swallowed.
“You kissed Akira on the mouthand normally people do that when they love each other, right?”
Well, the other did have a point with that, even though there were a lot of people who kissed each other and certainly did not love each other. In their case…
“Akira.”
“This is special for me. So, I want it to be special for the person I do it with, too.”
He looked up surprised, not because of what Akira had said, but rather how. He used personal pronouns.
“If you don’t feel the same way, then I think it would be better if we don’t kiss. I admit that I like to hug and cuddle and all that, but a kiss is something special for me.”
It had to be extremely important for the other.
“I lo…it’s kind of special for me as well.” Almost he had said it, those three words.
Suddenly, Akira smiled a smile that was very unusual for him. He had never seen it on the other before. It looked rather strained.
“Akira, what’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing. I am fine.”
“Eh.”
Akira lay down on the bed.
“Thank you that you told Akira.” The words were accompanied by a bright smile.
He blinked. It was like a switched had been flipped in the other and for the first time he wondered about Akira’s cheerfulness. What if Akira was not always feeling the way he acted?
Tugging him up by his arms he looked at him closely.
“Please, tell me what really is going on.”
“Eh? What are you talking about?”
Akira’s smile faltered, when he took his cheeks in his hands.
“Akira, please be honest.”
When something warm and wet ran over his hands, he sort of wished Akira had not been that honest. He was bad with such situations.
“No one ever says he loves me, because it’s embarrassing to admit to loving someone like me. You almost said it. Couldn’t you have not start slipping it?”
What was this guilty feeling in his guts?
“It’s not like that.”
“I know, sorry, it’s okay.”
He hated to see that smile on Akira’s lips. It looked so false. Letting go of his face, he pulled him into a hug.
“I love you.” He whispered very silently and then again “I love you” and again “I love you.”
Akira’s arms tightened around him and he laid his head on the other’s shoulder.
“Silly.” He said silently and Akira chuckled slightly.
“Everyone wants to be loved. It’s simple like that.”
He could hardly deny those words, could he?
Lifting his head, he pressed his lips against Akira’s and the other deepened their kiss. When Akira needed to break away for breathing, the other instead nibbled at his neck.
“Oh God…”
“Akira is not God.”
“I would hardly do that with God.” Ryosuke pushed the other on his back and licked his lips. It had been too long, way too long.
“Poor him~”
He shut the other up with another kiss and Akira pulled him down and then rolled them both on their sides.
“Are we going too fast?” he rather asked himself, than Akira and the other tilted his head to the left.
“Maybe, but who is going to judge us?”
Akira’s logic was unbeatable, simply because he could not object.
“You are right.”
“Of course! Akira is not stupid.”
“I know.”
Akira looked at him and then took his hand. He gasped when Akira placed it right over his heart.
“Are you crazy? Let go.”
“Shhh…”
“Seriously, I am starting to think you want to die early.”
“Akira is fine.”
He tried to relax, because he had the feeling that Akira was not going to budge till he did what he wanted.
The other’s chest moved steadily up and down and it didn’t seem like Akira was the slightest bit scared. He was completely calm as he watched him.
“I don’t really understand you.” He said truthfully, because he really didn’t. Why was Akira doing those things? Why wasn’t he scared? And most of all, why did he have so much faith in him?
“Akira loves Ryosuke-chan.”
Akira had been right. Everyone wanted to be loved. Suddenly, his heart felt light and he wanted to laugh just because he could, just because of Akira’s words.
Instead he pressed their lips together again and moved the hand that was lying on the other’s chest down and grabbed the hem of Akira’s shirt.
The other let him pull it over his head and returned the favour. As he wanted to move his hand down to relief Akira of his pants, his hands bumped the other’s torso and he stopped in favour of gaping.
“Oh my…”
“Hmm?”
“You must be working out regularly.”
“Well, Akira does karate.”
“You are full of surprises.”
Akira smiled at him and this time it was a true and honest smile. He leaned forward and kissed his smile. Fingers tugged his pants open and he helped the other get rid of them. Then he opened Akira’s and he wiggled out of them.
“I have no idea how this works.” He hoped Akira did, but he didn't have high hopes.
“Neither does Akira.” Figured. “But why don’t we just do what feels good?”
That didn’t sound like a bad idea so he nodded. He blushed slightly when they pushed their underwear down and especially when Akira looked at him. Maybe he should have taken more care of his body, but the other didn’t seem to be bothered by it and pulled them flush together. His fairer skin was a nice contrast to Akira’s tanned one.
At first it was rather clumsy. They tried to move against each other without wanting to be the one, who started it, but then he accidentally pulled Akira in the right position and it was pure bliss. He bit his bottom lip as Akira’s thigh pressed against just the right place and tried to return the favour.
Akira’s surprised gasp made him press against him even harder.
They became more insistent in their movements and soon all embarrassment was forgotten as he felt the heat of Akira’s body and his warm breath against his shoulder. He was so deliciously close, he could barely bear it.
Akira slung his arms around him and mouthed inaudible words against his shoulder and he closed his eyes and tried to listen.
It felt good, but he wanted more. Moving only slightly away, he pressed a hand between them and wrapped it around the other’s hard length. Surprisingly, Akira’s moan was very low and melodic. It made him shudder and cling to him more.
The other tried to return the favour, but it was hard. The pleasure was trying to rip them off their control and they had trouble to keep a steady rhythm.
In the end, it was messy and they ended up stroking their erections together while getting in the way of each other.
He came first, snapping his hip into the touch with a groan as he clung to Akira’s shoulder. His mind was dazed and he enjoyed the overwhelming bliss he felt, till he heard some whining and was reminded of the fact that Akira still didn’t come.
He pushed Akira's hand away and stroked him with long, hard storks. It was beautiful to watch Akira fall apart. His bangs were stuck to his forehead, his plump lips slightly parted and sweat drops ran down his tanned neck.
When he felt the other’s cum on his hand, Akira opened his eyes and the honey-brown of his eyes seemed to have come alive and twinkled in every possible shade of brown. It was mesmerizing.
They pulled each other close and leaned against each other for the warmth of the other.
It was the second night he slept that well, maybe even a little bit better. Throughout his sleep, he could feel Akira close and when he opened in the morning his eyes he was greeted by warmth, tanned skin and a feeling he could not describe. He propped himself up on his elbow and looked at his new lover.
Akira was sleeping peacefully and…what?
He blinked and it was gone. Incredulously, he stared at Akira’s chest. For a second he could have sworn he saw a golden key lie just right over the other’s heart.
It must have been the sunlight.
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Meaning of the name Akira: Intelligence