As You See Me.. (3).
Disclaimer: Same as in previous
Pairing: Yohji x Aya/Ran
Warnings: Yaoi, Shounen-ai, AU
Before his first cup of coffee, Yohji was not a morning person.
For one - he tended to mumble until the caffeine hit his bloodstream. For two - he rarely gave a shit about his appearance until that welcome little jolt. Yohji just didn't want to join the world at large yet.
Ran watched the singer run on automatic; pouring in just a touch of cream, a quick sprinkle of sugar, and then stirring the mix languidly. He loved how the blond hair fell over one eye. His violet gaze was drawn to the sleep pouty lips. The poor redhead couldn't help it; he was well and truly lost in his rekindled obsession.
That first cup was drained quickly, despite the heat, and then Ran poured another. He rather liked this almost ritualistic way of gradually waking up. The young man sat down across from the singer and smiled, "Any plans for today?"
Yohji muttered something involving 'clothes' and 'shopping'. His long fingers twirled the spoon in his cup; slowly mixing his java.
Leaning closer, Ran strained to catch the words, "What?"
"We're going out to do some clothes shopping for you," Yohji repeated, much more coherently this time. He sipped his coffee, eyeing the youth from over the rim, "You don't have enough."
"I have plenty," Ran protested, his violet eyes widening.
"Two shirts and three pairs of jeans isn't enough…" Yohji lay his cheek on his palm, "You shouldn't have to live like that, Ran."
The younger man started to get a little defensive, "I don't *need* a bunch of clothes." His arms crossed over his chest, "I move around a lot."
Shaking his head, Yohji got to his feet, "You shouldn't refuse it when someone's just trying to be nice to you."
"I… I…" Ran stammered, unsure. When was the axe going to fall? When would Yohji show himself to be like everyone else in the redhead's life and demand payment for his benevolence? He wanted, no, he *needed* to know what the singer expected in return for these kind gestures, "What do you want from me, Yohji?"
The singer paused en route to his room, "What do you mean, Ran?" He wasn't sure he liked this direction of questioning.
"Nobody does this much for someone without wanting something back," the youth said cautiously. He almost wanted to shrink into himself as the tall man mulled this over. Then, without warning, Yohji leaned over and trailed the fingers of one hand down the redhead's face, over his eyes, forcing them to close.
"Sometimes, Ran," the blond whispered softly, "You have to do something selflessly… or you lose track of the beauty of life." Yohji watched the lovely eyes open, "I'll never be able to do enough."
Looking up, into the emerald gaze, Ran stifled his denials that too much had been done already. Something about Yohji's eyes stilled his tongue before he could even make the words rise from his chest. His fingers took to absently plucking at a napkin while his own violet orbs broke away from the singer's face, "Could I get a cigarette from you?"
Smiling, Yohji reached for his haphazardly thrown jacket and drew a small box from the inner pocket, "Sure… Want a pack of your own?"
"Yeah…"
Ran accepted the pack, and a lighter, "I guess we should get going soon, huh?" The teen had taken a few moments, during the latter part of the exchange to realize something. Yohji probably didn't go out much. Being so famous, he'd have to keep a low profile if he wanted to get anything done. The fact that he was willing to risk his privacy for the redhead was actually rather touching.
With a smile, Yohji simply threw his jacket on, "Let's go before the crowds get too thick."
After that, time seemed to blur for Ran, who was being convinced by the gorgeous blond into trying on clothes that he *never* would have even dreamed of ever owning. The selection was stylish, tasteful, and very, very expensive. He'd long ago stopped looking at prices, wincing, and giving Yohji a look that said 'You've got to be kidding…'
"That one looks really good on you, Ran," said blond murmured as the redhead stepped out of the changing room.
He looked down, at the outfit, and fought a blush, "You really think so?"
Yohji smiled, "Wouldn't say it if I didn't." The singer turned to the clerk, who already had quite an armload of clothing, "I'll take it all… What he's wearing now, too."
"Yes, sir, Mr. Kudou," the young woman said pleasantly, "Anything for yourself today?"
"No," Yohji said with a wink, "Today is 'his' day. Can't ruin that by being selfish." He waved Ran over to the counter as his other hand gave the clerk his credit card, "I had a thought…"
The youth smirked, in a good mood for once, "Did it hurt?" Ran got a funny look for his trouble.
"Very funny, wise ass…" Yohji paused to put his signature to the slip of paper that he was handed, "What do you say we make a day of this? The shopping's done, but I don't want to go back just yet. Maybe some sunshine would do us both some good…"
Spend more time alone with Yohji Kudou? Ran couldn't think of any better way to pass the daylight, "I'm game. What do you want to do next?"
Yohji smiled widely at him, "I'm going to call ahead to the hotel and have them pack us a lunch basket. I haven't had a picnic in *years*." He took back his card, "We'll stop by, have the bodyguards take up your new clothes, and zip out to this little park I remember from the last time I was here. It's not usually crowded."
God, but that sounded good, "Okay. Just so long as I don't get stuck on the couch for the rest of the day, I'm happy." Ran gave a rare heartfelt smile.
That smile stunned the singer. Yohji found himself drawn to it… sucked in by the way it touched the violet eyes. With a firm shake of his head, he brought himself back to the real world, "I figured that'd probably be good incentive…"
Said park turned out to be deserted. Yohji almost jumped for joy at that. Crowds usually meant trouble for a man with his face. With a dazed giddiness, he spread out a blanket for the two of them and then sprawled out on it. His long limbs entirely covered one corner of the fabric, "This… this is a little slice of heaven…"
Ran admired the view for a few heartbeats before he, too, settled down on his own corner. He watched those long, graceful hands pull various treats from the picnic basket and set them aside. If he closed his eyes, he could almost pretend that this was a romantic outing. 'God, the painkillers must be hitting me hard if my mind is honestly trying to believe *that* delusion.'
Instead of voicing the sarcastic rambling in his head, Ran settled for a safe, "Don't get out much, do you?"
"Not really… not anymore," Yohji admitted, "I tend to draw a crowd when I do."
The redhead smiled, "Can't see why… You're just one of the hottest rock musicians that currently resides on the planet. Just don't have a clue, really…" He got a grape thrown at him for his effort.
"Smart ass." Yohji grinned at him, "I've learned to appreciate the small things more. When I do get my public 'private' time, I enjoy it fully." The singer started to divy out the spoils of luncheon.
Ran tore into the selection like a starving wolf, "I don't blame you." He tried to keep it slow, but his stomach insisted that he take in as much sustenance as possible.
For quite a while, the pair ate in silence; basking in the warm day and the quietly comforting presence of the other. Finally, Yohji broke that spell by asking something, out of the blue, "What happened that you became a hooker, Ran?"
The youth looked up at him, quizzically trying to understand what had spurred that question. He sighed and put down the apple core he'd been chewing on, "You don't want to know… sordid past and all."
"Actually, I do," Yohji said lowly, taking a sip of water. He looked at the redhead with serious eyes, "I don't get the chance to be like a normal person very often… indulge me."
Another sigh, "All right…" Ran lay back on the blanket and looked up at the clouds, "My dad used to be a successful businessman. We had this really nice house back then. My little sister and I went to the best schools." He smiled at the memory.
Yohji watched that quirk of the lips go sour in the next moment, and then the young man was speaking again, "Most of dad's money was in stocks. He had a good chunk deep in this off-shore oil-rig company… Then, one day, this storm blew out of nowhere and wiped everything out."
There was a low whistle from the singer, "Didn't he have money branched out in other places?"
Ran nodded, "Yeah, but not nearly enough. He had to liquidate that just to recoup most of the damages. The company went completely under in less than a month after that… Dad was ruined. He died shortly after that… had a heart attack."
The youth rolled over, "Mom was a strong woman and she tried her best to make life okay for us, but… She got sick. That left things up to me." His violet eyes stared off in the distance, "I tried working under the table at a few places, but I just couldn't make enough to support the three of us." Ran swallowed at the next series of memories, "One night, I was out late. I had tried to make some more money. When I got home, I found mom in the bathtub… her wrists slashed… and my sister huddled in our bedroom."
Reaching out, Yohji put his hand to Ran's head, stroking the hair comfortingly, "I'm sorry… That must have been so hard for you…"
"It gets worse," the redhead said softly. He looked at the singer forlornly, "My sister… apparently she walked in on mom like that. She went catatonic and had to be institutionalized. I was alone… no money… no place to live… I was at my weakest… I was also only fourteen."
Yohji gasped, realizing that he didn't really know how old the boy was, "What *is* your age?"
"I just turned eighteen two months ago," Ran answered. He looked at the singer, "No one on the street knows exactly how old I am. I got some of the better paying johns that way." He shook his head, "Like an idiot, I thought that, if I got enough money, I could get Aya back."
"My first time, I was scared shitless. I'd never done something like that… ever. Ryo said that I could make a lot of money doing it… He never told me that he was going to take most of it."
Yohji got a sudden burst of understanding, "He took your virginity, didn't he?"
There was a sullen nod, "It hurt… a lot… but I thought about how I could get my sister back and told myself I could do it for her." Ran closed his eyes, "When he demanded more than half of the money I'd made that first night, I told him no… That's how I got those whip tracks you saw…"
"Jesus… Ran… You don't have to go back if you don't want to." Yohji meant every word. How could he let this young man go back to that street, that prick, and keep sleeping at night? His hand reached out and covered the redhead's, "I can set you up with an account… You could go back to school…"
"No," Ran growled, "You've already done too much, Yohji. I couldn't do that and feel right about it." Tears sprang to the youth's eyes, "I have to earn my way… don't you see? I can't rely on others, no matter how tempting the offer is."
More than a little taken aback, Yohji went silent. His mind whirled with thoughts as to how to help the boy without impeding on his sense of pride. He figured that it'd have to be something *very* sneaky or Ran would refuse him. He covered the sudden gears turning in his head by saying, "I understand… Just remember, the offer's there if you change your mind."
TBC