[Written on October 31st, 2002]
[Last edited August 15th of 2004]
Disclaimer: Matoh Sanami is the owner of all who are featured beyond (and more); I just follow my muses’ bidding and write to my heart’s content about her characters.
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“Three Little Words”
Chapter Four: Never Doubt Me
The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, even with Ryo’s confession and desire to seek a romantic relationship with Dee; said man had had a ridiculous smile plastered on his face since the incident, and carefully avoided coming into physical contact with Ryo, which was perplexing, to say the least, he’d pictured Dee practically pouncing on him, cackling wildly about victory but the raven-haired man had done nothing of the kind.
Had he been wrong in admitting his feelings? He thought, as he cut up various vegetables in preparation for dinner, unaware of the footsteps advancing towards him until a hand touched his shoulder, and Ryo spun around in surprise, jerking the set of headphones, that had been resting on his head, off quickly. Dark blue eyes set in an ebony face watched in amusement as his unofficial guardian recovered then smiled in recognition. “Bikky, I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow afternoon, did something happen?”
The young teenager rolled his eyes, and jabbed a thumb towards his bruised right eye a bit irritated about what had happened, even now. “No, I only smashed a fist in my face voluntarily; of course, something happened. That bastard, Mike, insulted me and then had the damn gull to punch me! If he wasn’t sporting his own black eye, I’d still be pissed.”
Frowning, Ryo kneeled in front of Bikky, touching the bruised flesh lightly, when the boy visibly winced, the Japanese-American sighed heavily and headed towards the bathroom to get the first aid kit, it seemed he’d been using it a lot more than usual.
As he neared the kitchen, the sound of angry yelling filled the air, and Ryo walked hurriedly to the room, only to chide himself for worrying since fighting seemed to be as per usual for Bikky and Dee.
“Please! I refuse to believe you actually made these, your idea of breakfast is a can of beer and a couple of pop tarts!” The boy was sitting at the kitchen table, shoving one of the leftover pancakes in his mouth and glaring intently at Dee, acting for all he was worth, a nuisance.
Dee growled warningly, his arms twitching as he resisted the urge to plant his hands around Bikky’s neck, somehow, he doubted Ryo would appreciate him trying to murder the boy in his own apartment. “You smart-ass little punk! I’ll have you-uh…hey, Ryo. How long have you been standing there?”
Said man frowned disapprovingly at the pair, even more so when Dee tried to grin innocently, since Ryo was well aware his partner was anything but innocent. “Long enough. I’m disappointed in both of you though if you weren’t fighting, something would be glaringly off. Come over here, Bikky, and I’ll give you an ice pack for that eye.”
The teenager finished off the last of the pancake then walked over to Ryo, sticking his tongue out at Dee as he passed (he was unaware the raven-haired man returned the gesture with something worse). As Ryo handed Bikky the item, he spoke quietly, out of Dee’s range of hearing, as the detective was currently was poking at the soup on the stove, smiling as he sniffed the concoction. “Bikky, Dee’s going to be around more often than usual, and I’d like you to try and be civil to him.”
“Why is he going to be here around more often? Don’t tell me the two of you are dating or…” At Ryo’s serious expression, Bikky’s eyes widened in disbelief. “No way! You can’t be seriously thinking of dating him, that dumb-ass?!”
Dee straightened, brows narrowing in anger; Ryo met his gaze from across the room and shook his head firmly, sending a clear signal that he could very well handle this by himself, Dee nodded, slandering out of the room to give the pair some privacy.
“I do realize you’re not fond of the man but I was serious when I came to this decision and still am, I have to see if this works out or not. You understand that, don’t you, Bikky?” The young teenager gazed up at Ryo in silence then gave a curt nod.
“But that still doesn’t mean I have to like him. He’s loud, obnoxious-“
“And devastatingly handsome,” Dee interjected, glaring opening at the boy as Bikky countered the expression. He stalked up to the raven-haired detective, and stabbed a finger into his chest, speaking angrily, punctuating each word with a press of his finger. “If you break his heart, I’m going to feed it back to you in pieces.” Colorful threat said and done, Bikky sulked off to his room, muttering underneath his breath to call him whenever dinner was ready.
“Pushy little…” At Ryo’s glare, Dee curtailed the last of his words, and took a seat at the kitchen table, watching in silence as the older man returned to his task of preparing dinner. “I’m surprised you told him so soon.”
A tight smile gathered on the Japanese-American’s lips as he cut the small carrot into two with the knife, another downward strike, and the vegetable was cut into satisfactory pieces. “Is it? He’s living in the same apartment as me, and having to make excuses each and every time you appear doesn’t exactly sound appealing, to be honest, I’m kind of surprised he took it so well; after all, it’s everyday your unofficial guardian admits he’s interested in another man.”
Warm arms encircled his waist, and Dee rested his chin on Ryo’s shoulder comfortably. When the last of his partner’s words had come out bitter, he’d decided to end his undeclared ban on touching the man, and offer some comfort; indeed, when he had first realized his sexuality, he’d been a bit cynical at first as well.
One of Dee’s eyebrows arched when the body in his arms leaned back into the embrace, but he wasn’t going to argue, being so satisfied at the moment. He planted a light kiss on Ryo’s neck, and spoke quietly, his tone unnaturally soft. “And I’m forever grateful for your courage. I do care about you, Ryo, and I’ll wait however long I have to before you’re comfortable in being seen with me in public.”
“Dee…” The Japanese-American was stunned; he’d never expected the detective to pinpoint his anxiety exactly. Somehow, this made the burden a little more bearable, and suddenly grateful, he turned in the man’s arms, and nipped at Dee’s lower lip, delighting in the expression the man’s face took as the American realized Ryo was being playful.
Growling lightly, Dee pressed his mouth against his partner’s savagely, drawing a groan from the older man as he delved deeper, exploring Ryo’s mouth to the fullest, just when his body was beginning to make react accordingly, Dee pulled away, breath a bit ragged, watching as Ryo opened his eyes, and heavy longing dissipated from their depths.
“It gets better?” The raven-haired detective grinned broadly, entertaining thoughts of just how far he could get the older man to progress before he got uncomfortable, though instead of answering Ryo’s inquiry, he jerked a thumb in the stove’s direction. “Your soup’s boiling over.”
“Shit!” Dee could only laugh as Ryo scrambled towards the appliance.
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Sunday evening…
A slim finger trailed down the length of Ryo’s bare chest, then a thumb slipped into the top of his jeans, and fingers tugged at his zipper impatiently, Dee making sure to observe his partner carefully as he undid the piece of clothing, searching for any sign of unease or fear. Seeing none, the man set about removing the piece of clothing, and when the jeans were tossed away, Dee leaned over his boyfriend’s body, pressing his mouth to Ryo’s fiercely, the older man did anything but protest as he kissed fervently back, making sure he wasn’t the only one of the receiving end.
When a hand fondled his crotch, Ryo moaned into Dee’s mouth, burying his hands into a head of familiar dark locks; Dee pulled up to catch his breath, the Japanese-American moaned almost despairingly for the loss of heat upon his mouth. “Tut tut,” Dee teased, nipping lightly at Ryo’s neck as he pulled away.
The sharpshooter looked to Dee questionably, making his partner chuckled dryly; suddenly wishing he had a pack of cigarettes nearby. “Ryo, your body may be more than willing but I highly doubt your mind is, I’m not going to have you mad at me for taking advantage of you even when you’re mewling and pleading beneath me.”
Still confused and disheartened from the loss of Dee’s body upon his, Ryo could only nod curtly as he tried to reign in his wandering mind, his boyfriend was surprisingly gentle when it came to chiding him for letting his body override his senses. Seeing Dee’s eyes scan the floor for his ever-present cigarette carton, Ryo reached back over the couch arm and grabbed hold of said item plus a plastic lighter, tossing them to Dee who smiled gratefully.
As Dee exhaled smoke a moment later, Ryo grabbed his jeans from the floor and slipped the clothing on, very aware that it was tighter than it should have been. “You think things could get more heated than they already are?”
“No doubt they will. You’ve shown surprising restraint so far. How do you handle that?” Ryo asked curiously, as he sat up on the couch, and watched Dee contently smoke his cigarette, also because he wanted to see the younger man’s expression when he answered.
“Heh, I chased after you for a few years, if you will recall. Now, that we’re finally in a relationship, I’m the one who has to put the brakes on since someone can’t stop them self very easily. Damn ironic, isn’t it?”
Ryo flushed in the darkness of the living room, hands searching around for his discarded shirt absently. “Oi, Dee… Doko wa watakushi no waishatu desu ka (1)?”
Dee arched a brow curiously at his partner’s slip into his native language, usually; it meant he was very flustered or incredibly nervous. “You might as well be talking gibberish, Ryo, now, want to repeat that question in English?”
“Sorry, I asked if you knew where my shirt was.”
“Hmm, I wonder if your shirt got ripped off here or in the kitchen?”
“Dee!”
To Be Continued…
Onto Chapter Five?
(1) Phrase provided by Autumn (from fanfiction.net). Thanks for the assistance!