Into Temptation
By nekojita

Chapter 2

Yohji leaned over the counter, staring back at where Aya was busy arranging flowers. The redhead, as if sensing his gaze, looked up for a moment to treat him to a proper shi-ne glare. He merely smiled back at the man and blew him a kiss. Maybe it was the fluorescent lighting or wishful thinking on his part, but he swore Aya blushed, just the tiniest bit. The smile on his face widening, Yohji straightened up as a customer came to be rung up.

The past week had definitely been entertaining, what with him turning the tables on Aya over the little ‘lesson’ the man had been trying to teach him. Not that he was quite sure what that lesson was. All he knew was that Aya had set out to prove that he could catch Yohji’s attention, and had been too damn successful. Now he was returning the favor. He wouldn’t stop until he made the pale man want him back. Quite a challenge, but he felt that the famous Kudoh charm was up to it. Hell, he’d just gotten a blush, hadn’t he?

Once the customer left the shop, Yohji sauntered back to the worktables. Picking up a white rose along the way, he stopped right next to Aya. Hitching a hip on the table, once more he smiled at the man as he toyed with the flower. "Kudoh, leave me the hell alone."

Undeterred by the cold greeting, Yohji trailed the flower down a pale cheek, mindful of the thorns. Hands busy tying an intricate knot, Aya just glared at him. The violet eyes promised grievous bodily harm once the bow was completed. "I told you before, that’s not an option. Do you know you’re not much darker than this rose? I think we need to get you to a beach, sweetheart. Maybe put a little color on those white cheeks of yours." He leaned over until his mouth was centimeters from the swordsman’s right ear. "I’d offer to help with the suntan lotion, wouldn’t want you to get all burned now, would we? Promise to rub it _all_ over." He flicked the rose against Aya’s lips.

Arrangement all finished, the redhead snatched the flower, gripping it tight between slender fingers as the other hand shoved Yohji away from him. "Kudoh, go away. I’m not playing. And don’t call me sweetheart."

"Should have thought of that before you started the game, sweetheart," Yohji said in a serious voice. "Now you’re left with the consequences of it. I won’t stop until I get what I want. Which is you, and you only have yourself to blame."

"Shi-ne."

He wanted to laugh at the man, sitting there trembling from the need to destroy something, preferably him, those violet eyes flashing with fury. "You are so gorgeous when you’re mad, did anyone ever tell you that?" He was about to say something else, break the man’s precious composure completely apart, when Yohji noticed blood running down the rose’s stem. "Gods Aya, I swear you need a babysitter or something, to try and keep you out of harm. Gimme your hand." The sudden change in topic had the smaller man flummoxed, anger transformed into confusion as he finally noticed that the thorns had bitten into his flesh. Yohji pried the slender fingers open, hissing in sympathy at the cuts on the finger and thumb. Taking advantage of there being no paper towels nearby, he ran a tongue over the wounds, watching a shocked expression blossom on Aya’s face over his actions. He briefly sucked the index finger into his mouth, flicking his tongue against it, before the redhead jerked his hand back.

"Kudoh, what are you, that’s…." Aya’s voice drifted off as he tried to think of the right words to say. The scowl was back on his face as he cradled the injured hand close to his chest.

"You’re welcome, Aya-sweetie. Anything else that needs some TLC?" Yohji ran his tongue suggestively over his lips as he eyed the man’s body up and down. He had Aya sputtering again, too off-balance to form a coherent sentence. Taking a moment to brush the long crimson bangs off of the man’s face, Yohji got off the table and returned up front. Humming softly, he congratulated himself on another successful skirmish. He’d been keeping Aya off-guard all week long, preventing the quiet man from retreating behind his icy façade in an attempt to freeze him out. The cool indifference Yohji had been subject to these past several weeks was long gone. He had Aya thinking about him all the time now, the smaller man busy trying to figure out what he was up to. The first step in his master plan had been achieved.

*******

Returning to the Koneko with some takeout, Yohji frowned when he found Omi sitting in the kitchen and talking on the phone. Setting the food on the table, he reached over to snag the telephone, surprising the chibi. "Sorry, but Omi has to go now, he’ll call you back later." With that he severed the connection, causing the younger blond to howl in indignation.

"Yohji! I was talking to a friend, how could you just do that? Do I interrupt your conversations? No. So gimme it back!" Omi was jumping up and down, trying to snatch the device from Yohji’s hand. He merely held it up in the air as he frowned at his teammate.

"I seem to remember a certain discussion we had last week. About you and Ken returning the favor and making yourselves scarce. Now get out of the house and call your buddy back on your cell phone. I don’t want you coming home until later tonight."

An expression of guilt crossed Omi’s face for a moment, quickly replaced with a scowl. "But I have homework to do! That’s what I was talking to Shiro about."

"I don’t care. Go do it at your friend’s house. You managed to make yourself scarce for about two months before, you can just keep at it. Fair’s fair. Go. Shoo." By all rights he should have exacted more revenge from the younger men for their part in Aya’s little ‘lesson’, besides gaining their cooperation and making them feel extremely guilty for several days. And having them take over all of his chores, plus waxing the Seven every week, for the rest of the year. But all he wanted was to win Aya over right now. He’d worry about retribution for the boys later.

Omi sighed, a signal that he was giving in. Ken was a lot easier to get rid of, he just merrily went out to play with his kids, or to a sport’s bar to watch a soccer game. "All right, I’m going. Just answer me this, Yohji. Do you really think this is wise? What you are trying to do with Aya? I’m sorry, but I can’t see it working out."

Mussing up the boy’s hair, Yohji offered him a sly grin and a wink. "It’ll work out in the end, kiddo. This is a man who had to turn to a book for advice on seduction techniques after all. He doesn’t stand a chance, at least not if you guys would just go away and let me work in peace. See you later." It was clear that Omi wanted to argue a bit more, but he wasn’t in the mood to be reminded about how hard it would be to make Aya crack. Strolling out of the kitchen, he made his way upstairs.

Once on the upper floor, he pounded on a closed door. "Wakey wakey beautiful. I got some dinner downstairs, if you aren’t too afraid to show your face. Come and get it while it’s hot." Judging from the muttered shi-ne’s he barely made out through the wood, Aya was up and pissed over the challenge. Really, the man’s buttons were just too easy to push. It was what Yohji was counting on, challenging Aya’s pride to keep the man from hiding from him. So far Aya took the bait every time.

Heading back to the kitchen, he set about getting their supper ready. The noodles were dumped into bowls and placed on the table. Next to Aya’s setting he placed a white rose and a cattleya orchid, their stems twisted together. Yohji then poured two glasses of wine and sat down to wait.

It didn’t take long. Aya stomped into the room, eyes a stormy purplish grey shade that usually sent his teammates running for cover. Well not this time. Yohji wasn’t retreating until he got what he wanted. "There you are, lover. Sit down and eat, you need to keep your strength up." For a moment it looked as if Aya was going to say something, maybe ask what the strength was needed for, but decided to remain quiet after all. Upon seeing the flowers pale fingers took to shredding the orchid into tiny bits. Yohji made a comment. "Careful with the rose, sweetheart. Unless you want me to kiss your boo-boo again."

Oh my, that was quite a potent glare. "Kudoh, shut up and leave me alone. This is ridiculous, what you are trying to prove. Let it go."

Yohji paused in lifting up his bowl. "Not a chance, Aya. What’s the matter, am I getting to you?"

Aya snorted and ignored him, concentrating on his meal instead. Yohji’s eyes narrowed in anger, but he decided to let the matter slide for now. Besides, the redhead had given him an excellent opening, and he had ever intention to use it.

The meal passed by in silence. Quickly finishing up, Aya moved away from the table to wash up his dish. With the water running he didn’t hear Yohji come up behind him, and started when a hand touched his shoulder. Yohji took in the wide eyes when the redhead turned around, internally shouting with joy at the apprehensive gleam in them. Now that was a welcome sight. "You know sweetheart, you need a lecture on manners. It’s proper to thank a person for buying you dinner." He shifted closer to Aya, pinning him to the sink. The apprehensive look only intensified, as the pale visage turned icy.

"I told you before, stop calling me that. Get away."

"No." Yohji put his arms on either side of his teammate, cautious of an attack. Aya did not like to be cornered. "Aren’t you going to say something?" The stubborn fool remained silent. "Come to think about it, you owe me more than a simple thank you. You also owe me an apology for embarking on that damn lesson of yours. I’ve been more than patient enough in waiting for it." Aya didn’t say a word. "Nothing to say? My, aren’t we the tenacious one? Well, if you’re not going to talk, I can put that mouth of yours to better use." Before the smaller man could react he moved in, pressing tight against the slender body, a leg firmly planted between Aya’s to prevent the man from kneeing him in the groin. Yohji then kissed him.

For a few moments he had shock on his side, then Aya seemed to realize what was happening. He tried to break free, but Yohji refused to let that happen. The redhead managed to pull away from the kiss only for a moment. "Kudoh, you’re dea- mph." Yohji took advantage of the open mouth, flicking his tongue inside as he sought to render the smaller man breathless. He rocked his hips against Aya, seeking to distract him from whatever evil thoughts was going through the man’s head. Most of them probably involved him being chopped into tiny pieces.

For a precious minute it was working, Aya stopped resisting and was starting to relax. Emboldened by the response, Yohji gathered him into his arms, holding him close. Aya didn’t fight him over that. Next came the touch of a tentative tongue, a slight flicking against his that had him groaning at the feel of it. Needing more of the man, he slid his hands underneath Aya’s shirt, groaning again to find out that the swordsman’s skin was indeed soft all over, at least every bit that he could touch at the moment. He skimmed them down as far as he could, sliding them into the smaller man’s pants.

Then he found himself violently thrust backwards, knocked into the table. Regaining his balance, Yohji caught sight of Aya fleeing the room. Cursing himself for pushing too fast too quick, he gave the redhead a head start before following him upstairs. Once again finding himself standing before a closed door, Yohji sighed as he thought about what he wanted to say.

Pitching his voice so it could be clearly heard on the other side, Yohji started talking. "Part of me wants to apologize for what just happened, but I won’t. You started all of this, Aya. I’d convinced myself that you would never want me before you started playing silly games. As childish as it sounds, this really is all your fault. But I’m doing this for more than getting some revenge against you. You wanna know why?" There wasn’t a single sound that he could make out in the room. "I think you want me back, maybe as much as I want you." That got him a derisive snort that was clearly heard through the wood. "Yeah, I know, that sounds crazy, but listen to me for a minute. Why else would you have picked such an insane way of making me pay for some careless comments? Ken inserts his foot in mouth just about every damn day, but I don’t see you seducing him. So I think it has something to do with me, and you are too damn scared to admit anything. I mean, I just attacked you, and you’re hiding in your room, not chasing after me with that damn security blanket of yours. Not that I’m complaining about the fact. I just," he paused, running a hand over the wood grain. It smelled like lavender from touching Aya. "I just want us to get past this as soon as possible. I’m not giving up, Aya, not until you are mine." As he had expected, there was no response. It was only in those stupid romance novels that the silly virgin tossed open the door and embraced their would be lover wholeheartedly. This was reality, and he didn’t see Aya doing silly real well. Though he had his suspicions on the later part. Because of the damn book.

"So you can stay in your room if you want, or leave the house as much as you can. But it’ll only delay the inevitable. And to be quite frank with you, would be very disappointing. Never thought I’d see Fujimiya Aya run from anything. Only two options here, sweetheart. Prove me wrong or admit the truth." With that he walked away to his own room, leaving the pale man to think about what he had just said.

*******

Sprawled out on the couch, Yohji laid there watching Aya once more play with his hair, brushing the crimson strands all over that pale column that he wanted to nibble on so damn bad. Who knew he was such a motivational speaker? Ever since the other night, when he’d sent the redhead running for his room, Aya had decided to fight fire with fire. Yohji was treated to the same tactics that had started this mess, executed with cold precision. For the first two days he’d reacted in a bewildered manner, unable to remember his plan let alone think any rational thoughts, too busy drooling over the gorgeous man. But contrary to popular belief, he wasn’t ruled by hormones alone. Well, not always. Having what he wanted flaunted in his face and then his hands smacked when he reached for it had snapped him back to his senses.

If Aya wanted to play, he’d find out just how much he was outgunned in this arena. Really, what the hell was the man thinking? Trying to out seduce Kudoh Yohji? If he hadn’t managed to pull it off the past couple of days, Yohji would be rolling on the floor, laughing his ass off. Now it was time to show Aya who was in charge here.

Getting off of the sofa, he crossed the living room until he was standing in front of the smaller man. After a minute Aya lowered his book and raised an eyebrow as he regarded him, lock of hair swishing back and forth under a pointy chin. "You want something, Kudoh?"

Hell yes, and the redheaded bastard knew exactly what that was. Leaning over the man, Yohji let his lips curve into a seductive smile. "I must say, that move is one of your more inspired tactics, but you could be doing it better." Violet eyes narrowed in anger, it seemed that Aya didn’t like hearing that he wasn’t doing something properly. "Let me show you." When the other man didn’t say anything Yohji extended a golden finger and began to ever so lightly trace it up and down Aya’s neck. "You need to slow it down a little sweetheart, make the watcher anticipate where you will brush it next." Feeling the redhead start to shiver under his touch, he couldn’t help but grin. "And don’t forget about your ear, some people really go for that." The finger shifted up and traced along the outside of the ear, making Aya squirm at the feeling. When the digit drifted back down, along the side of the neck, Yohji heard the man’s indrawn breath and watched as the violet eyes fell shut. Oh, guess someone was really sensitive there. He slowly caressed that area, moving his finger in swirls, inching closer and closer to Aya. When the redhead tossed his head back he lightly skimmed the touch up the neck and along a pale jaw, until he reached a set of parted lips. "This part is my personal favorite."

Aya opened his eyes at the feel of a fingertip brushing along his lips. Yohji reversed the touch, dragging his nail over the pouty mouth, teasing it open ever so slightly. His face was now only centimeters away from the swordsman’s, they were feeling each other’s breath. Those gorgeous eyes drifted from his, lowering to watch his mouth. A pink tongue was touched to the man’s lips, swiping across his finger. "Remember, nice and slow, a little bit of teasing is a good thing." He rocked forward for a brief second, replacing his finger with his mouth, and then just as quickly shifted back and returned to the couch. Pretending to watch tv, he noticed that when Aya picked up his book to resume reading, the pale hands shook.

*******

Smiling as he entered the kitchen, Yohji was for once grateful of the fact that he was awake early in the morning. Couldn’t sleep late if he wanted to catch his sweetie. Not that it was such a burden, he’d been devoting so much time trying to ensnare the man that he hadn’t gone clubbing at all this month. Ah, the sacrifices one made for the object of their affection. Thankfully the matter wasn’t quite so one-sided anymore, he was definitely making some leeway with the stubborn man. Aya still put up a hell of a struggle, but if handled right could be coaxed into a little bit of fun. At least until Yohji pushed too far or the man snapped back to his senses, which usually ended with him being hit. So far he had quite an interesting collection of bruises and a raging libido.

The source of his out of control hormones was standing before the stove, cooking pancakes. Aya was wearing a pair of grey cotton pants and a white t-shirt, clearly what he had gotten out of bed in. Quietly sneaking up on the redhead, Yohji rested his chin on his teammate’s shoulder, and an arm around a slender waist. "Mmm, pancakes. My favorite. You didn’t have to go through all this effort just for me, but I appreciate it."

"I didn’t make them for you. Omi wanted them. Now get off of me."

"Not a chance sweetie. What’s the matter, can’t concentrate with me nearby? I know someone as sexy as me can be hell all distracting." That provoked a snort from the smaller man. It then appeared that Aya decided to ignore him and focus on the pancakes. Oh well, nothing to do but play. Yohji grinned and rubbed his hand along the redhead’s belly.

It didn’t take long for Aya to drop his aloof façade and snarl at him. "Kudoh, get your damn hands off of me."

"Or what? You’ll hit me? That’s original, Aya. You know, they may be painful, but I don’t mind the bruises too much. They just prove that I’m getting to you. That I can get a response from the ice prince himself. Lets me know that you really want me."

Aya growled at him but didn’t say anything else, just kept flipping the pancakes. Oh, Yohji was so thankful for the man’s refusal to back down from a challenge. He resumed the rubbing motions while pressing against the younger man. Aya continued to pretend that he wasn’t there, determined to not reveal any emotions. Rising to the challenge himself, Yohji rocked his pelvis against the redhead’s behind. "I had the best dream this morning. You were in my bed, naked against red silk sheets that made your skin glow. Begging for me to take you. How was I to argue? So I crawled along side of you and started to kiss you here," he touched Aya on the side of the neck, making him shiver. "You were begging me so sweetly not to stop, but I couldn’t take hearing you cry out my name any more, so I had to kiss you silent. Not that you minded, since I started to stroke you so slowly, making you thrust your hips off of the bed."

Yohji kept up the dirty talk, watching as the pale man’s cheeks took on a pink glow. Aya was still trying to shut him out, but their hips were rocking together in time, both of them breathing just a touch quicker than normal. When the smaller man ran out of batter, he turned the stove off and pushed back against Yohji, trying to get away. Spinning Aya around, he traced a finger over the heated cheeks. "Like the story so far? Maybe you could make a few suggestions, tell me what’s your favorite position, if you like it hard or slow and gentle. Hmm?"

For a second it looked as if the redhead was going to flee, but he took a deep breath and treated Yohji to an indifferent gaze. "I’m not playing this game, Kudoh. You’re just wasting your time."

"No, don’t think so. What I do believe is that you don’t have a clue what you want. That was why you kept the book, right? To help you figure things out. Well it’s a lot more complicated than merely getting a guy’s attention, sweetheart. Hell of a lot of stuff comes after that. What do you think all that teasing and touching leads too? Time to follow through, lover." Feeling a bit brave at how calm Aya was acting, Yohji binked him on the nose. "Don’t worry your pretty little head over it though, I’ll show you the ropes."

His kind offer was met with a glare. "I don’t need you to show me anything, Kudoh."

"Yeah, right. Just how much experience do you really have, Aya? Wanna prove to me that I’m not the first person you chased after?"

"I. Did not. Chase after. You."

"Sure you did, sweetie. Just had to rationalize it as some damn game or lesson or whatever." Yohji kept on goading the man. "That’s what has you running from and hitting me all the time. Classic fight or flight reaction. Feelings got you all confused? Or are you just afraid? Never thought I could shake you up this badly."

All the warning he had was an angry snarl as strong fingers gripped his hair and yanked his head down for a savage kiss. Yep, reading those psych books had been a very good idea. Yohji kissed Aya back with a passion, holding on tightly to him. They stayed like that until they heard Ken yelp and start muttering apologies as he stumbled back out of the room. When Aya pulled away Yohji was treated to a narrowed gaze. "You don’t affect me at all."

Reluctantly letting the smaller man go, Yohji made one last comment before helping himself to some breakfast. "You know there’s an old saying, sweetheart. ‘Put your money where your mouth is.’ We’ll see if I have you running yet again, won’t we?" Aya muttered his name as if it was a curse as he stormed off.

*******

It was a quiet lull in the Koneko. Just after the lunch crowd, but before the throng of schoolgirls showed up. Perfect time to do a little Aya-stalking. Looking over to where the redhead was watering plants, Yohji spent a few seconds just drinking in the sight of the man. Aya was still wearing his tighter clothes, and as he stretched to water some hanging baskets, a smooth expanse of skin was exposed. Hmm, yummy. He couldn’t wait til he got to see all of it. Which hopefully wouldn’t be much longer. The past two weeks had been utterly delightful, as he matched each and every one of the pale man’s tricks and left Aya completely flustered.

Ignoring him no longer worked, now that he knew what was the reason behind it. He’d merely keep after Aya until the man snapped at him or took off in a huff. The looks, half smiles and innuendos earned the redhead rather explicit details of what Yohji would do to him the second they were alone. It was nice to know that Aya could be made to blush, if one spoke dirty enough. The lingering touches and ‘accidental’ brushes ended with him being held tight in Yohji’s arms, not to be let go until he gave one of those blushes in return. The only thing he couldn’t counter was the lavender lotion Aya still wore, but since he liked the way the other man smelled and felt, he wasn’t even trying on that one.

Aya still wasn’t throwing in the towel, though. He’d quit a bit with the running after their morning conversation, dead set on proving that Yohji wasn’t getting to him. But what the stubborn fool didn’t realize was that the more he refused to give in, the more Yohji wanted him. The more determined he was to make the smaller man his and never to let him go. Having never spent this much time and effort trying to seduce another person, he was well and truly fixated on his teammate now. Yohji didn’t think that would end once he managed to drag Aya off to his bed. He recognized what mere lust felt like, and that was nothing compared to this. The only thing that rivaled what he felt for the smaller man was what he’d had with Asuka.

Walking over to the hanging baskets, Yohji wrapped a long arm around a slender waist, fingers tracing swirls on the white flesh. "Here, let me help you with that." He snatched the watering rod from Aya’s hand, but kept holding the man. Who trembled minutely in his arms. What were the chances that the redhead was feeling just a wee bit frustrated? Yohji sure as hell knew that he was, he felt himself start to harden due to the fact that Aya was pressed against him. The last two weeks had been very _very_ hard on his libido, what with Aya attempting to prove that he wasn’t a naïve virgin, doing his best to reduce Yohji to a quivering pile of need and then leave him wanting. Oh, how the man had him wanting. Damn bastard was picking up the skills too damn quick. Trying to rein in his hormones by focusing on the flowers, he spent the next few minutes tending to them until they were soaked. Yohji turned off the water as he bent his head to nuzzle a pale ear. "All taken care of now, anything else that needs looked after sweetheart?"

"Stop calling me that, Kudoh," Aya growled out, trying to pry off the arm around his waist. Yohji just held on all the tighter, dropping the water hose as he wrapped his other arm around slender hips. "But it suits you so well, lover. You taste so sweet." He decided that now was a good time to make a obstinate redhead go weak in the knees, so he dropped his mouth to the flesh right behind Aya’s ear. As soon as his lips touched the pale skin, the younger man gasped. Busy licking and nipping at the sensitive area, Yohji let his right hand wander down his teammate’s waist, skimming it over a denim clad crotch.

Aya gasped again, rocking his pelvis back away from the touch. Right onto Yohji’s erection. The redhead strained against his hold for a moment, until he sunk his teeth into the pale neck, right above the shoulder. That did the trick, he had to hold a trembling Aya upright. Pressing his hand harder against the growing bulge, Yohji held the smaller man tight against him, grinding his hips against a luscious ass. Gods, it was so nice to hear his name moaned out like that, in that deep voice.

He kept up the assault until a voice in his head clamored for him tripping Aya to the ground and landing on top of him, then proceeding to fuck the man senseless. With a load groan he let go of the redhead, watching as the man stumbled a few steps until he could grab ahold of a display stand. It hurt so gods damn much to not close the distance between them and finish what he’d started, but Yohji knew that in the end it wouldn’t get him what he wanted. He stood there until the passion dimmed in those beautiful eyes, as the pouty mouth stopped panting and tightened into a grim line. Finally, he saw an echo on the normally expressionless face that resembled how he’d looked for the past couple of months. "It’s painful, isn’t it, to be so close to what you want and then be denied."

"Was that what this was about, another lesson?" Aya tried for a cold tone of voice, but there was an indignant quiver present in that question. He made to stalk past Yohji, but found himself grabbed and yanked close.

"No, this is about me thinking you wouldn’t take being fucked on the shop’s floor very kindly." The smaller man flinched at the words. "Go ahead and tell me that wasn’t what you wanted just then."

Violet eyes stared up at him, sparkling in anger. "I’m not the one refusing to let this end and things return to normal."

Brushing back the long crimson bangs, Yohji trailed his hand over Aya’s lips. "That’s not what I asked. Avoiding a question pretty much admits that you don’t like having to face the answer. Tell you what, prove it to me instead. Give me a kiss, and see if you can just walk away. I mean a real one, not just a peck on the cheek." Aya didn’t say or do a thing, besides dropping his eyes. "Thought so. Just so you know, sweetie, that feeling won’t go away. It’ll just keep getting stronger and stronger, the pain growing more every day."

Grabbing his wrist and pinching the nerve until Yohji had no choice but to let the swordsman go, Aya quickly stepped back. "If that’s the case, why didn’t you carry through with it?"

"What, fucking you senseless in the Koneko? Grinding your ass into the floor until you lose your voice from screaming at how good it feels?" The faintest blush touched the pale cheeks. "Because I’m not after a quickie, Aya. As much as it hurts dealing with your stubbornness every day, it would be even more painful to have a small taste once and never again." The shocked look in the man’s eyes made putting a halt to things very worthwhile. Aya hadn’t been expecting that response. "What’s the matter, starting to realize that I’m not going to stop any time soon? I’m disappointed, lover. Thought you were smarter than that. Told you before I was only going to accept one conclusion, you being completely mine."

The silence stretched on between them, Aya staring back at him pensively, a hand toying with the hem of his shirt. Yohji simply stood there, looking as sincere and determined as he could possibly manage, when all he wanted was to pick up the man, toss him over his shoulder, and carry him to the nearest bed. They remained like that until the door chimed, signaling that a customer had just entered the shop.

*******

"Ken, why don’t you go watch the game in your room."

"Ah, Yohji, you know I don’t get this channel up there. I don’t care what stupid program you are missing, I’m not budging from this room."

Yohji crossed over to stand in front of the television, earning a yell from Ken. "One more time. Hidaka, go watch it upstairs or at a bar somewhere, anyplace but here. Aya will be here any minute." At the mention of the redhead’s name, Ken finally bought a clue. Mumbling under his breath, the athlete got up and stomped over to the tv, quickly programming the vcr. "Man, I hope the two of you settle this thing soon, I’m getting tired of being chased out of my own house."

"Should have thought about it before you joined in Aya’s little game. Now get your ass in gear and maybe something will happen tonight." It better damn well happen tonight. He was getting sick and tired of dancing around Aya, wearing the man’s defenses down. It was taking all of Yohji’s control to keep from pouncing on him. The past five days had been extremely hard on his libido.

Since that day in the flowershop, Aya had all but thrown in the towel. The icy indifference had been shattered, he was now sure that the younger man wanted him just as much. Only problem was the stubborn fool refused to give in without one hell of a final struggle. He’d spent the last few days just out of reach, not running away but no longer trying any attempts at seduction. Merely staring at Yohji with those gorgeous eyes filled with want and fear.

Tonight it was going to end. No more dance, no more temptation just out of reach. He settled in the chair that Aya usually curled up in to read a book, flipping through the channels until he found some random program. Right when he had almost figured out the show’s plot, Yohji heard a deep voice from behind him. "Kudoh, get the hell out of my chair."

Time to get this started. "Hate to break it to you sweetheart, but this chair was here before you. So it’s not yours. And I got it first." Yohji sat there as Aya walked around to stand in front of him. The smaller man was frowning, a thick book clutched tight in a pale hand. He blinked at the sight, surprised that Aya wasn’t wearing his normal all black ensemble. The man had on a pair of old baggy jeans and that hideous orange sweater. Yohji wanted to yell at the redhead to go change, he wanted his sexy Aya back.

"Did you hear a word of what I said?" Yohji snapped to, shaking his head at the other man. Aya sighed before he continued. "The light for reading is best here. Can’t you move to the couch? You’re always hogging the whole thing any other time."

"But not tonight." He offered the pale man an innocuous grin. "You want the chair, gonna have to share it. Unless you’re afraid to."

Pausing for a moment to nibble on a lip, Aya finally came to a decision. Ducking his head, letting the overgrown strands hide his face, he moved towards the chair. Yohji was hard pressed to not let out a shout. Instead he spread his legs, letting the slender man settle between them. Immediately his arms wrapped around the man, pulling him tight against him. The scent of lavender was heavy in the air. Heaven. And about fucking time at that.

For a while they just sat there like that, Yohji pretending to watch tv and Aya pretending to read. When he noticed that the redhead hadn’t flipped any pages for at least twenty minutes, Yohji gently grabbed the book and dropped it to the floor. Then he pulled Aya around until the man was facing him. Brushing back the shaggy locks, he tilted the pale face up until violet eyes met his. What he saw was a mixture of need and apprehension that almost left him breathless. "It’ll be okay," he soothed, bridging the last of the distance between them.

The kiss started out gentle, a light brushing of lips that just stoked the flames higher until suddenly he was cramming his tongue down Aya’s throat as a pair of slender hands were gripping his hair and jerking his head forward. Yohji couldn’t get enough of the other man, needed to taste every bit of him. He was now very thankful for Aya’s outfit, as one hand slid down underneath the jeans and boxers, cupping the redhead’s ass and pressing their hips against each other. The other hand caressed the pale man’s spine, making his lover shiver at the touch.

Breaking apart for oxygen, the two of them just stared at each other, busy panting. This time it was Aya who moved first, setting his mouth on Yohji’s jaw, nibbling a path to his ear. All Yohji could do was moan out the man’s name as a wet tongue traced the sensitive shell and then speared inside of it. Gods, he always had been such a sucker for that. He let his hand search out the tight opening that he wanted to be buried in as soon as possible, teasing circles around it before pushing a finger in. Aya hissed in surprise, pulling back in Yohji’s arms to stare down at him. "Shh, it’ll be fine, trust me." Please oh please don’t let him take off running like usual. For a moment the man merely sat there, body tense and eyes hooded, before leaning forward again. Right before kissing him, Aya softly commented that he must be insane to do so. Mouth now busy devouring the pale man’s, Yohji didn’t try to respond back, but kept working the finger in as much as he could, wishing that he’d thought to bring a tube of lube downstairs. He didn’t want to add another finger just yet, not until he was sure there wouldn’t be any more pain for his lover.

Frustrated by the jeans that impeded him from reaching the sweet spot that would make all of Aya’s doubts go away, he tugged at the pant’s button and zipper until he had them undone. Shoving the jeans and boxers down, he adjusted his hand until the finger was buried as deep as it could go, twisting it around until he suddenly had Aya writhing on his lap. Oh yes, that was it. The smaller man’s eyes were wide, his teeth biting into his bottom lip in an attempt to keep from moaning aloud. "It’s okay sweetheart. Told you it would be fine." Flicking the spot again, Yohji’s lips curved in a smile as the redhead moaned out his name, voice so low and husky. "It only gets better from here." He attached his mouth to the extended neck, loving how he felt each moan vibrate against his lips. Aya’s hands began tearing at his shirt, trying to jerk it off. He assisted the man’s efforts, removing first his top and then that damn sweater. It felt so incredibly good to be pressing bare skin together. Yohji let his hand roam over a white chest, teasing Aya’s nipples while the man returned the favor, letting his hands drift down to Yohji’s crotch, busy pulling the zipper open.

"Ahem. Guys? You hearing me yet? Hello? Damn, guess I need that bucket of water after all." It finally sunk in that someone was in the room and talking to him and Aya. It seemed that the redhead realized this too, and went stiff in Yohji’s arms, burying a flushed face in the crick of his neck. Glancing over his lover, Yohji found a furiously blushing Omi looking at them. At Aya curled up on his lap, mostly naked and with his hand cupping the man’s ass in an extremely intimate manner. Oh fuck. This wasn’t good.

Seeing that he had their attention, Omi continued. "Manx is here, she has a mission for us. Can you guys, uhm, well, get presentable and join us downstairs?" With that the boy fled the room.

As soon as the chibi was gone, Aya burst into action. He reached back to grab Yohji’s hand, a bit too forcefully for the circumstances in his humble opinion, yanked it free and leapt off of his lap. All Yohji saw was a blur of pale skin covered too damn swiftly for his liking. Violet eyes filled with venom shot him a look that would have done a Gorgon proud before he fled the room as well. Dammit. Yanking on his hair, Yohji repeated that word out loud several times, trying to calm his body and temper down.

He’d been so fucking close to having the man, and Omi had to go fuck things up for him. Now Aya was pissed and embarrassed, not a very good thing. Yohji foresaw quite a bit of work ahead of him trying to coax the younger man into resuming what they had just been up to. And the worst part of it all was that he _still_ hadn’t caught a glimpse of Aya’s tattoo. Oh yes, the chibi was one hell of a dead fucking bastard.

*******

Spying Aya as he made his way to the garage, Yohji broke into a run. When he neared the redhead he came to a screeching halt, grabbing the man’s wrist as he did so. This was the first chance he had to talk to Aya alone since last night, he had been avoided like the plague after the little ‘incident’.

"Let go of me, Kudoh," Aya snarled at him, trying to jerk his wrist free. Yohji was very conscientious of the katana the other gloved hand held.

"Only if you promise not to run, like you did last night. Where the hell did you take off to after the debriefing, I was hoping to talk to you then. Not minutes before we head out to kill someone."

Still trying to break his hold, the smaller man refused to look at him. "It doesn’t matter where I went. All that does is the fact that I did some much needed thinking. We need to get going, so leave me alone."

Yohji knew that this wasn’t the proper time to be doing this, but he wanted things to be back like they were before the interruption last night as soon as possible. That comment about thinking didn’t sound very good. It was much better when the man was merely feeling. "Still have a few minutes left, sweetie." Oh yes, that did it. Those gorgeous eyes were glaring daggers at him. Sometimes he wondered why Aya bothered carrying a sword, what with those lethal looks of his. Any other time it would make him back off, but not right now, with so much at stake. "We need to talk about what happened."

Impossibly enough, that remark actually caused the glare to intensify. "No, we most certainly do not need to do that, especially right now. Let go."

Patience never really being one of his virtues, Yohji decided the hell with talking and went with a more direct approach. He pinned Aya against the wall and proceeded to kiss him breathless. At least that was the plan, until a hilt was jammed into his sternum right before he could start kissing the smaller man. Forced a step backwards, he released Aya’s wrist accidentally as he wheezed.

Once more the redhead took off. Cursing under his breath, Yohji gave chase, surprising Ken and Omi who were treated to the sight of their elder teammates running into the garage. "Excuse us for a moment," he said to them as he shoved Aya over to his car.

"Kudoh, are you fucking insane? Now is not the time for this nonsense!"

Grabbing ahold of the coat’s leather belt, he yanked Aya close, wrapping his arms around the furious man. "Quiet honey, the children are watching. Don’t want them to see anything this time, do you?" The pale man snapped his mouth shut while silently making it very clear that Yohji was as good as dead later on. "This is what happens when you hide from me, it would have been better if you’d let me talk to you last night. I want to say I’m sorry, never should have let things get that far in the living room. Didn’t stop to think that we might be walked in on."

"I. Refuse. To talk about this now." The smaller man struggled in his arms for a minute, huffing in anger.

He couldn’t afford to think about how good it felt to have Aya rubbing against him like that. "Then promise me we’ll talk about it later tonight. I’m serious here, Aya. Avoid the issue or me any longer and I’ll pull something during a rush in the Koneko. Understood?"

"Yes." Aya managed to pack quiet a lot of vehemence in that one word. Yohji reluctantly let him go. The man immediately stormed off for his car after punching him in the stomach. Raking a hand through his hair, he could only stare after the redhead while Ken walked over to him.

"You ever hear the old adage about playing with fire, Kudoh? I think you’re about to get yourself royally burned."

Yohji knew that Hidaka meant well, but he still felt a spark of anger for the brunet’s unsolicited advice. "There’s another old saying, Kenken, that I think fits this situation a bit better. ‘Better to rule in hell than serve in heaven.’"

It was obvious that he’d confused the younger man. "It means, among other things, that sometimes you just have to take that chance, to not play it safe. What’s the point in having a nice, tidy world if it isn’t what you want?" With that he turned to open his car door, eager to get the assignment over with. As soon as they returned Yohji was going to make sure that Aya was a permanent part of his life. Even if he had to put up with shi-ne’s and an incredibly obdurate nature every damn day, it would be more than worth it if the man was his.

*******

"Dammit, what is with me getting shot anymore? Is there a fucking target painted on my back or what?" Yohji asked as he limped into his bedroom. This time he’d been shot in the leg while diving for cover when a well-armed guard had unexpectedly shown up during a fight. "I get one more bullet wound I’m switching jobs with Omi. He can get shot at while I play with a computer." He had ever intention of mentioning it to the teenager when he showed up to patch up his wound.

Gingerly sitting down on his bed, Yohji set about removing his work clothes. The jacket would need a bit of attention; it had been scuffed up and ripped during one of the pitched battles with security. His crop top got tossed in the general vicinity of the laundry basket, and he was in the painful process of removing his boots when the door opened. "It’s about damn time chibi. Could have bled to death waiting for you to show up." Straightening up, Yohji blinked in surprise to find Aya in his room. "Aya?"

"Nice to see you still have a few braincells left." He must be going crazy, had Fujimiya just cracked a joke? The reserved man didn’t say anything else as he crossed the room to the bed.

Silently thanking every god there was that the man hadn’t decided to hide from him again, Yohji smiled at Aya. "Haven’t managed to kill them all yet. You here to patch me up?" That earned him a look that clearly expressed that he was an idiot, as a pair of hands held up some towels and a first aid kit. "Good. I need some help getting out of these pants, what with the wound and all. And when you’re all done we can have that talk."

Aya narrowed his eyes at him and quietly set the stuff down on the bed. Kneeling on the floor, the pale man ran his hand up Yohji’s legs. "Well?" Hoping the redhead interpreted the moan as one of pain, Yohji raised his hips as he unbuttoned the tight pants, shoving them down his legs. Aya helped pull them down the rest of the way, fingers trailing down his skin. He was feeling pretty good about the whole situation until slender fingers dug into his wound. "Ah, fuck!"

"Sorry, checking to see if there are any fragments in there." Aya’s voice was too carefully bland for him to think for even a moment that the man hadn’t done that on purpose.

"And are there?" Yohji gritted his teeth in pain as the torture continued.

"No, looks good. I need to clean this now." The smaller man set about spreading towels under the leg, and next reached for some saline solution. Aya then proceeded to do a very thorough, lengthy cleaning of the wound.

Muttering curses at the agony, Yohji spared the redhead a dirty look. "You wouldn’t happen to be mad at me, would you sweetheart? I think the damn thing is clean now." All Aya did was hum briefly as he reached for a shot of painkiller. Which was rather enthusiastically injected into his leg. Yohji started to think that maybe this wasn’t such a good thing after all.

After a few minutes had passed in silence Aya threaded the needle and looked up at him. "Ready?" Yohji nodded his head, expecting another barrage of pain. Instead all he felt was pressure as Aya swiftly stitched the wound close, his touch much lighter than it had been the past several minutes. Staring at the man’s face, furrowed in concentration for the task at hand, Yohji never even noticed when the job was done until his teammate shifted back. "There, just need to wrap it, be careful in the shower." Pale fingers quickly slathered on some antibiotic cream before winding gauze around the injury. "Is there anything else?"

"Just this." Yohji grabbed Aya’s shirt and yanked him close for a kiss. When the man tried to pull back he ran a hand up the stiff spine, brushing his fingers along the back of a pale neck. Aya stopped struggling, opening his mouth for him to ravage. Now this was something to be thankful for, it made all the rough treatment worthwhile. Injured leg all forgotten, he hauled the slender man up onto the bed. Fingers were run along Aya’s waistband, creeping down inside the tight pants.

Suddenly Aya was pulling back, trying to get to his feet but hampered by the death grip on his arm. Yohji’s temper snapped. "Gods dammit Aya, will you stop with this already? I want to fuck you. You, judging from last night before Omi walked in, want to be fucked. We’re in my room, no interruptions, so what the hell is the problem?"

Oh boy, that hadn’t been the most tactful thing he could have said. But it was just so damn frustrating to have what he wanted this badly take off each time it looked like he was finally about to get lucky. The other man went from dazed and apprehensive to flat out pissed off. "Did you ever think that this isn’t a good idea, Kudoh? I’m not one of your flings, we have to deal with each other after you get bored and move on to something new. Why the hell couldn’t you have just left things be? You want revenge for what I did to you? Well consider last night it." Aya was yanking at his arm, half pulling Yohji off the bed in his attempt to get away.

"Where the hell do you think you are going?"

"Out of here. We’re even now, Kudoh. I came for a talk, you literally tried to get in my pants, there’s nothing left to say but leave me the hell alone." Determined to get out the door, the redhead let out a yelp as his arm was viciously jerked back, causing him to crash onto the bed. Ignoring his hurt leg, Yohji scrambled on top of Aya, not about to let him go.

Enough was enough, time to end this thing once and for all. "Listen to me Aya, there’s not going to be any more games from here on out. You haven’t been listening to me. This isn’t about revenge, or a one-night stand. Gods, I wish it were. I wouldn’t be ready to kill half of Tokyo in frustration, or want to shake you until I got my point into that thick skull of yours. This is about you and me."

Aya lay still beneath him, eyes downcast and lips pouty. "There is no ‘you and me’ Kudoh."

"Gods I want to fucking strangle you. What the hell do you think the past couple of months have been about, huh? Or what happens between the two of us when we touch each other? There are sparks and then there are _sparks_, Aya. What we have is too fucking intense for you to try and deny it."

It was clear that the smaller man wasn’t ready to let go of that denial though. It sounded like he was reciting something when he finally spoke. "What we have could easily be solved with a couple of cold showers and you going out on a date. It’s nothing more than urges that can be easily controlled, if you had any to begin with."

Bending down until his nose almost brushed against Aya’s, Yohji stared deep into a pair of violet eyes. "Just an urge? You really believe that shit? Seems to me that there wasn’t a whole hell of a lot of control to be found on your part yesterday. If Omi hadn’t have walked in we would have fucked right there on the chair." That statement earned him a hiss, which Yohji let slide by. He knew that he had hit a mark there, no way the redhead could rationalize that. "Tell you what, sweetheart, let’s make a deal. You want an ‘end’ the this game, right?" Aya nodded his head, suddenly wary. The man knew him a bit too well. "If I recall correctly, you had two months to drive me nuts, don’t see why I shouldn’t receive at least the same. Unless," he had to repeat himself to be heard above the torrent of abuse suddenly being snarled at him, "unless you give me twenty minutes to prove to you that what we have is more than just ‘easily controlled urges’. Deal?"

"What are the conditions of this ‘deal’?"

Yohji smiled as he rubbed his nose against the other man’s, loving how suspicious his sweetie sounded. "Twenty minutes of you not fighting me, letting me touch you to see if we can’t make you forget all about your damn control."

Aya’s eyes closed as he contemplated the terms. After a minute they snapped back open. "If I win you’ll leave me alone, not more flirting or touching?"

"I won’t ever try another thing, _if_ you last twenty minutes."

"Ten."

"Thirty." At the snarling sound the pale man produced, Yohji waggled his eyebrows. "I’m not going to be cheated out of my time, Aya. My terms, or we continue this ‘game’. Agreed?"

He was treated to a look of pure fury for a moment, before the redhead nodded. "Good. Now let’s begin." That said, he lowered his face to kiss Aya, ecstatic over not having to worry about the man lashing out at him. Yohji could now devote his full attention to seducing his teammate.

Of course Aya wasn’t making it completely easy for him. The pouty lips refused to part and let his tongue in, and the slender body beneath his was stiff and unresponsive. Yohji wasted a few precious minutes letting the man think that he actually had a chance of winning before moving in for the kill. Leaving the clenched mouth he trailed kisses down a delicate jaw and along a pale neck as he worked the collar around the sweatshirt open.

He felt the smaller man tremble at the caresses, head twitching with the need to tilt back and allow him better access. Once the collar was off Yohji ran his hands down Aya’s sides to his waist, then back up under the shirt. Light touches teased the redhead, skimming over the soft skin until he had the man squirming. Aya let out a gasp, tense body starting to melt.

That was it, he’d won. Shifting up to kiss the man again, Yohji redoubled his efforts, determined to render his lover senseless. It was only a matter of time before Aya was kissing him back, threading tapered fingers through his hair. He lifted the two of them up, breaking off the kiss long enough to tear off Aya’s shirt and drink in the need shining in those violet eyes. "So beautiful." He just stared at the pale man for a moment, until he saw the eyes shift to his clock. Feeling a bit angry over the fact that the stubborn fool still thought he was going to get out of this, Yohji shoved him back down to the bed, kissing him breathless as he mercilessly tweaked a pair of pink nipples.

When Aya jerked his head to the side, desperate for air and softly moaning, Yohji started licking and kissing his way down the man’s chest as he worked at a zipper. It took a few seconds for the redhead to figure out what he was doing. "Yoh-ji, stop." Glaring up at the nervous swordsman, he growled out "eight more minutes, sweetheart. I still have eight more minutes." Not about to let Aya argue any more, he attached his mouth to one of the man’s nipples, sucking and nipping it until Aya was groaning at the sensations. Judging the redhead to be suitably distracted, he finished unzipping the pants, pulling them down and tossing them aside, stroking the semi-erect shaft he’d just revealed.

Aya jerked up his hips, strangled voice drifting off as the hand kept pumping him, tossing his head back and forth. Yohji allowed himself a moment to look at the lovely figure before scooting down and taking the now hard penis into his mouth. He would have smiled at the shout his action garnished if his mouth hadn’t been otherwise occupied. As Aya moaned and clutched at his hair, Yohji let a hand creep between the man’s buttocks, teasing along the tight ring hidden there. He kept at it as he continued to suck the smaller man off, trying to prolong the blowjob as much as he could. Finally it was too much for Aya, and the man spurted in his mouth, crying out his name in a choked whisper.

Swallowing all the man had to offer, Yohji stretched his body over Aya’s as he glanced over at the clock. Time was up, Fujimiya had lost. He kissed the dazed man, soft little caresses all over the flushed face, until Aya came back to himself. When the purple eyes focused on him Yohji made a show of pulling back and reaching for the lubricant. No matter what he’d agreed on, if the man tried to run he’d let him. Rape wasn’t what he’d wanted, a willing partner was. It hit him like a physical blow when the quiet man nodded his head without even looking at the clock. Yohji smiled before swooping in for another kiss, this one ardent and long. Aya’s arms came up to hold him close, shifting his legs apart when Yohji searched between them with slickened fingers.

Pulling back for breath, he watched his lover’s visage as one of those fingers pushed back the tight ring of muscles. Aya’s face was clenched tight, as if waiting for a blow or something else painful, and slowly loosened. As the man’s eyes sought his out, Yohji brushed back the sweaty bangs and offered him a reassuring smile. "Just relax, it won’t be so bad this time. And any pain will shortly go away." He carefully positioned the one finger before adding another, and when Aya squirmed at the feeling he quickly flicked the man’s prostrate, making him forget all about the stretching sensation.

Oh gods, he didn’t need to hear the man mewl his name like that. Not sure how much longer his control was going to hold out, he pulled out the fingers and slickened up his shaft, nestling between Aya’s legs. He took to pumping the redhead’s erection as he slowly pushed his way inside, groaning at the incredibly tight muscles clenching against him. Aya groaned as well, head tilted back and eyes firmly shut, but didn’t try to squirm away from being impaled. Taking his time, Yohji kept slowly thrusting forward until he was completely buried in the pale body.

"You okay sweetheart?" His voice was raspy and low, it took so much effort to form the words. He had to repeat the question a couple of times before Aya drew in a deep breath and nodded his head. Gently rocking back and forth to make sure the man had adjusted to his girth, Yohji started thrusting, driving himself in deep.

It was as if a switch in his brain had been turned off. All he was aware of was the tight channel he was thrusting deep into, the silky, salty skin his mouth couldn’t stop tasting, no matter how much he was panting, and the gasps and mewls that filled his ears. Maybe he was saying something and maybe he wasn’t, all that registered was the pleasure that kept impossibly building and building until he felt his body shatter.

Coming back to himself, Yohji found himself lying on top of Aya, their trembling bodies sweaty and sticky from the smaller man’s release. Reluctantly rolling off of his lover, Yohji gently pulled the dazed man onto his side. When Aya didn’t protest the action he tilted up his face and kissed the panting mouth. It took a few seconds, but the man returned to kiss, running a shaking hand through his hair. When he felt that he could talk again he tucked the blood red bangs back and pressed his lips against a pale forehead. "Gods, Aya that was… just, oh fuck that was good." He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so lost in the act like that. Maybe never, to that extent.

"Hn."

Poking the redhead, Yohji was treated to a sullen glower. "’Hn’? That’s all you can say? I think I’m offended."

Aya sighed as he wrapped a strand of blond hair around a slender finger. "Is it always like that?" He thought that the man might be blushing, just a light tinge of pink to high cheekbones, though it might have been an aftereffect of the sex. But it was cute to think that anyways.

"No, not always." Yohji chuckled at the redhead’s disappointed expression, earning a glare for his amusement. "But I think it might be the norm for us. All those urges, don’t you know." He promptly winced after being punched in the ribs. "Ow."

"You’re never going to let me live down the fact that you won, are you?"

Holding Aya’s face still, Yohji gazed back as solemnly as he could. "I told you, sweetheart, that this wasn’t a game. We both won, as far as I care to tell. Unless you think you can run away from this." He felt relieved when the man shook his head. "Good, else I’d have had to teach you a lesson until you knew better. Shit, I nearly forgot." Aya let out a squawk as he was tossed over onto his stomach.

Yohji could only blink as his fingers traced a lavender colored cattleya orchid caged in thorns. The flower’s shade was slightly lighter than Aya’s eyes, the black and grey thorns standing out on the pale skin and making the orchid appear all the more brighter. It was a shock, seeing his code flower tattooed on his lover’s skin. "Aya-love, when did you get this done?"

Looking over his shoulder, Aya frowned at him. "It’s not what you’re thinking. I’ve had it for a couple of years. It’s a… symbol of sorts. Of who I am and used to be."

Puzzling out the comment, Yohji’s mind flashed back on the odd statement he’d found in one of the advice books on the swordsman’s desk a couple of weeks ago. "Wait a sec, who’s Ran, sweetie?" At the redhead’s closed expression, he took a wild guess. "It’s you, isn’t it? I mean come on, Aya isn’t your real name. You pretty much said so when you woke up in my bed that time. And you have an orchid inked on your back."

The smaller man sighed as he sat up, leaning against him. "It was my name."

"Oh." Yohji hadn’t expected a straight answer. Figuring he might as well strike while the iron was hot, he let loose a string of questions. "Then who is Aya? What happened that you took her name? Is she the one who gave you that book? And just what the hell was the damn lesson about in the first place? Those weren’t your books that I found, were they? I mean, you can-." The barrage was brought to an abrupt halt as Aya rather forcibly kissed him. Not that he minded the fact all that much. Yohji hugged the man close.

Slanting his head to the side, Aya regarded him sadly for a few heartbeats. "Yes, she gave me the one book, and no, the other ones weren’t mine. I have better taste than that. As for the rest," the man paused, eyes looking inward as he shook his head. "Ask me again tomorrow. I don’t want to talk about it right now. Not here." He clutched his arms tight around Yohji’s waist, making him draw in a sharp breath.

"Okay love, whatever you want." He cursed himself for reminding Aya of his painful past. "Just one more question, what do I call you?"

Aya was so quiet that for a minute he was afraid that he’d pushed things to far. Right when he was about to apologize, the smaller man finally spoke. "Aya. Call me Aya. I’m not sure I can be Ran again. At least not now. Besides, you named me it in the first place." That earned Yohji a fleeting smile before Aya tucked his head under his chin. "It’s better than sweetheart, that’s for sure."

"Ah come on, what’s wrong with sweetheart?" Poking the growling man in the ribs, Yohji swiftly kissed the top of Aya’s head. "I can always come up with worse, you know. How does honeybunch sound? Schnuckems? Baby-doll?" He started laughing as Aya shoved him down on the bed, intent on kissing him silent.

TBC

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