Look at Me
Chapter 15
Once Jo got there with
the priest, the rest of the wedding went off
without a hitch. Yohji looked exceptionally handsome as he walked
down the aisle, Lacey's arm hooked under his. The bride herself was
as radiant as the rising sun.
Before the priest, the blond assassin stepped back, relinquishing his
hold on the young woman so that her hand could be taken up by the
groom. As Yohji and Edward's eyes briefly touched, the lanky man
gave him a look that promised dire consequences if Lacey were to ever
be hurt by him.
Ran shifted a little more to the side when Yohji came over, so that
he could sit next to him. The blond's hand sought his out and the
younger man let his fingers become laced together with his team
mate's. He was only half paying attention to the ceremony. Ran's
spoken English wasn't nearly as good as his written grasp of the
language.
The vows were exchanged and then, in short order, everyone was being
ushered out so that they could, en masse, head for the reception
party. Sharon drove the car with Ran and Yohji sitting in the back
so that the tall blond could change on the way. He struggled out of
the tux, only partially because of the fit. The main hindrance was
that Ran had suddenly gotten a playful streak and wasn't helping.
The redhead couldn't resist. His hands pulled at the clothing in
just the right ways to make Yohji's life a living hell for the time
it was taking to change. Five minutes worth of work became nearly
twenty.
"Damn it, Aya… cut that out!" Yohji's voice was muffled by the shirt
as he was trying to pull it over his head and off. "Mom… help!"
Sharon chuckled from her place in the driver's seat. "Sorry, son.
You're on your own here." Her smile reflected back through the
rearview mirror. "Seems to me that you've had this coming for years…
in payback for all the pranks you've pulled in the past."
Once Yohji got his change of clothes settled in place, he gave Ran a
glare and nearly tackled him down in the back seat. Surprise lent
him leverage and he pinned the redhead in place under his lean
frame. "Now, you're at my mercy…"
"Hey, hey, HEY! No funny business in the car, Yo-chan!"
Teeth grinding at the use of the nickname, which just made Ran giggle
uncontrollably, Yohji lifted his head to glare at his mother in the
mirror. "Thanks, ma! I'm never going to live that down."
"Yo-chan," Ran snickered. His hands were still held down over his
head and the blond's face snapped down to glare at his. A wicked
look crossed the beautiful features and the younger man became
slightly worried.
Then fingers dug into his ribs, drawing an uncontrolled burst of
laughter, and Ran was suddenly very afraid. "Ha!" Yohji shouted,
elated. "I found your weakness!" The blond was merciless; pressing
his fingertips into ribs, running them along the perfect planes of
stomach, and then applying the pressure to his hip bones.
Ran thrashed, trying to get the blond off of him. All the laughter
was making it hard for him to breath and his face was starting to
hurt from the constant smiling that it was forcing from him. "Stop…
oh, god, please… Yohji, stop!"
Breath hit his ear a split second after the tickling stopped as Yohji
leaned down and whispered something. The words were husky and
sensual. "You'll be begging me for a different reason later if I
have my way…"
A blush rose to Ran's cheeks, and his body grew hot for some reason.
He was held in place by the intense gaze on his own, even though the
blond had let his hands go. Then, Yohji leaned down and took
possession of his lips in a kiss that left him breathless when it
finally broke.
When the redhead had finally come to his senses, he realized that the
car had stopped. Sharon Kudou was turned around in her seat and
glaring at her son. Ran almost thought they both might be in deep
shit until her voice sounded out in slight exasperation.
"Yohji Kudou… are you about done?"
The blond looked at his
mother and grinned. "Not by a long shot,
ma." His emerald gaze flicked down to the young man under him on the
back seat. "But I can save the rest of the torment for later…"
Ran swallowed and tried to sit up, only to be pushed back down by one
of those elegant hands. "Yohji…"
"Now, now… don't get any ideas, Ran… This isn't over, just so you
know." Yohji sat back and ran his hands through his hair. "Come
on. There's a party waiting for us." With that, he opened the car
door and let himself out.
When the redhead got out, his love took his hand and laced their
fingers together, drawing a look from the violet gaze. "What," Yohji
asked softly as they followed his mother into the building.
"I… I thought that… well, this sort of thing… wasn't approved of."
Ran was confused. Weren't same gender relationships generally
unwelcome in the States?
Yohji waved it off. "Around this crowd, no one gives a fuck.
Anybody who knows me knows that I can be happy with someone no matter
what gender." He gave a gentle tug of the younger assassin's
hand. "Don't worry about it."
Inside the hall, the party was already in full swing. Jo and Lacey
greeted the couple almost the instant they were in the door. "Is
this him," Lacey was asking, her hands grabbing at Yohji's forearms
excitedly.
"Yeah. This is Ran Fujimiya." The blond moved his lover to a
position in front of him, wrapping both long arms around the younger
man's upper body possessively. "Ran, this is Lacey and Jo… the best
drummer and songwriter this side of anywhere."
Jo gave her `big brother' a wry look. "Says you… as I recall, you
had to help me with most of the stuff I wrote." She dropped her eyes
to look at Ran. "You know, this is the part where most family types
threaten the newcomer in their midst. All that shit about `if you
hurt him'…" She grinned wickedly and leaned in a little
closer. "Not the same with Yohji… if he hurts you, let me know –
I'll kick his ass for you."
Yohji gave a mock-horrified stare. "JO?!? That's not fair! You
know I can't fight back when it comes to you." He drew himself and
Ran a couple of steps back. "I've got longer legs, you know… I can
run faster."
"That won't do you any good," Lacey said, good naturedly. "We don't
give up."
"Yeah," the blond assassin said winningly, "but, unlike the both of
you, I'll be running free and clear."
Ran blinked, not understanding the statement, until Lacey
clarified. "He means that we'll be running through shit left in his
wake." Her gaze rose to Yohji and she smiled. "Awww, come on,
honey… you know that Jo and I would do anything for you."
Jo's arms were crossed over her chest. "That includes keeping you
from fucking up a good thing." She waved off Yohji's
protests. "Save it, bro… we've got to get ready."
That snapped the blond to attention and he led Ran over to a seat
near his mother. "I've got a surprise for you, Ran… It'll take a
few, but it's something you asked me about a while back." Yohji sat
his love down next to her and looked at Sharon with a smirk.
"Don't let him go anywhere, ma."
Mama Kudou took one of the redhead's hands in hers. "Don't worry,
dear. You just get started… I've been waiting for this for years."
She smiled fondly on her son as he darted off to one of the side
rooms with the two women.
"What's going on," Ran asked after they'd gone. He looked at Sharon,
his eyes curious, and waited for her answer.
"Nothing bad, sweetheart." Sharon's hazel eyes turned to the
Japanese youth, her smile returning in full force. "Now that we've
got a moment, there's something I want to ask you, Ran."
"Nani?"
"Will you make sure that Yohji is happy when you both go back to
Tokyo?" The woman's head bowed a little. "I… I get so worried about
him. I know there's something he's not telling me, something
serious, but I won't press him about it. I just want to make sure he
stays safe and… and happy since I can't be there for him."
Ran smiled and nodded. He was already planning on that as soon as
they got back to his native country anyway. His eyes flickered over
to the corner of the hall, where there was a lot of activity behind a
curtain. "What's going on over there?"
Sharon smiled. "Part of the surprise. Just be patient, Ran… you'll
see."
A few minutes later, the activity stopped and the curtain parted.
Behind it were Yohji, Jo, Lacey, Mark, and Ryan; all bedecked in
stage clothes. The Kramer guitar that Ran had gotten the blond for
Yohji's birthday was slung from his neck and his hands ran down the
strings in a quick riff.
Jo got in front of the microphone and smiled at the assembly of
people. "Hey, everyone… we just thought that, for this special
occasion, we'd send Lacey off into her marriage in the right way."
Off to her side, Yohji let his eyes meet with his lover's and he gave
him a small smile. `I love you, Ran,' was mouthed at the redhead
silently before he turned back to his friends. "Ready? One… two…
three!"
And then the music started and the wedding reception began in earnest.
TBC