Title: Sing For Me, Baby
Author: Keir
Rating: M for swearing & sexual situations
The Gist of Things: Haru and Kyou have been together for three blissful months, but both their pasts seem destined to come back to haunt them.
A/N: AU story, and it's a chaptered one so I know people are going to kill me. XD I absolutely know where I want to go with this one, though, unlike "Million Little Pieces." I have the whole plot written out, in fact! It's just a matter of writing it... Blame kccreation for making me pos this. X3
//blah// = flashback
Hatsuharu's fingers traced the lip of his glass again. He smiled to himself faintly, staring into the amber liquid, then took a sip. His eyes traveled over the singer on the stage illuminated in the spotlight, orange hair shining and bright. That sweet man crooned into the mic, his voice so deep and rough and tragic. Passion was already rising from within Hatsuharu. He wanted to stride across the club from the bar and take a handful of that orange hair, pull the other man's head back until that tan throat was bared, as if he were submissive, and take his lips. Mark him and claim him and delve into him with fingers and tongue and...
Instead, the black and white-haired man fingered his lip ring, other hand firmly grasping his cold glass, but his eyes could not leave the orange-haired beauty. He had thought after Rin had left him—again—that there was no love in this world, that he was doomed to be alone. His heart had frozen over in a sea of ice.
And then Kyou simply…happened. Sweet, raging, furious, passionate Kyou.
//Hatsuharu sighed and flicked the butt of his cigarette down the dark alley, shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather pants. He had come out tonight to try to take his mind off Rin. He had promised himself that he would only smoke one pack and then be done with the bad habit forever. He turned around to head back into the club when he bumped into someone. "Excuse me…" he murmured politely.
"Watch it, asshole! What are you, directionally challenged?" the other person screeched at him.
Eyes of crimson fire with blazing hair and a temper to match. Long, beautiful, hard lines and angles. A face feminine and masculine all at once with pouting lips the colour of ripe berries. Hatsuharu was smitten. He needed to see more, to know more. He couldn't contain the words. "Would you go on a date with me?"
The other man was taken aback, pressing his back against the alley wall. "What?"
"A date. Dinner." Rin had called him boring, predictable, and now his emotions were mystifying even to him.
"I don't date smokers," the shorter man snapped. Such an unusual reply; so much emotion, even in one small sentence. Hatsuharu found himself entranced by long lashes sweeping over angular cheeks.
He had to revel in this creature. "I don't smoke anymore." The orange-haired man looked ready to laugh at him when a quizzical look passed over his face, almost contemplative.
"Fine. Tomorrow at seven; meet me here."//
Three months since they had been dating and it couldn't have been sweeter. He had kept his word to quit smoking.
Hatsuharu stood, laid money on the bar to pay for his drink plus tip, then swung his long trench coat over his shoulders. He left the club and stood outside the back door in the alley, the same place they had first met. "Kyou," he called his lover as soon as that mop of orange hair appeared through the exit door.
"Why do you always have to hide in the dark like that?" the shorter man groused with a scowl.
Hatsuharu smiled but made no comment. "Shall I drive you home?"
"Home to my place," Kyou stated with a wary sideways look.
"Of course." He smiled as Kyou seated himself behind him on the motorcycle. They made a brief stop at the market to pick up dinner before arriving at the orange-haired man's apartment. Kyou unlocked the door and let them in. "Kisa!" The young girl padded out of the single bedroom. "Have you been working on your homework?"
"Yes, big brother," she said demurely.
"Good. I'll make dinner."
Kisa glanced at Kyou before quickly running over to her big brother's lover and hugging him tightly. "Haru-nii," she murmured softly.
"Kisa-chan." Hatsuharu laid a kiss on her soft orange hair. He loved Kisa like family and had swiftly found she controlled a large portion of his kitten's heart. He caught Kyou's nervous look and fidgeting hands. He separated from the young girl, slipping her some candy. Kyou was overprotective and it wouldn't do to agitate him. "Is there any homework you need help with?" Kisa nodded and retrieved her schoolwork, sitting down at the table with him to receive his guidance.
Hatsuharu couldn't help his eyes straying to Kyou as the man prepared dinner with vigor. His lover was only twenty-eight, one year older than Haru himself, and yet he had the presence of an older man. Kisa was vastly Kyou's junior at fourteen years old. Hatsuharu had always wondered—with that age distance—if they were really blood siblings, yet they shared the same features. A mystery.
Soon Kyou had plates set before them and was shoveling food into his mouth as if it would vanish; he always ate like that. "This is delicious as always, Kyou. You should have become a chef."
"I never had any formal training," the other man mumbled around a mouthful. "It's not that great."
"Ah, yes. Where did you go to college? What field did you study in?" He noted the fidgety hands once more threatening to rip a napkin apart.
"I didn't go to college." The orange-haired man refused to look up from his plate.
"Ah." Hatsuharu decided not to press further. Kyou had the look of a terrified horse, eyes rolling.
"You must have had a lot of college, Haru-nii," Kisa said softly.
"Yes, and it certainly helps me to help you with your homework, doesn't it?" His comment tugged a smile from the young girl's lips. When dinner was finished he offered to clear the dishes so Kyou could say goodnight to his sister. He could feel the other man's eyes on the back of his head when he returned to his kitchen. "Kyou, I'm sorry if I offended you with my question about college."
"It's all right."
Yet despite his words, Hatsuharu felt restless. Every time he asked a question about Kyou's personal history, he and his sister would go silent. He chafed to know everything about his lover, but he could bide his time. He turned from the sink and wrapped his arms around Kyou. "Kisa's settled in?"
"Yes."
Hatsuharu could immediately see the hungry look in Kyou's eyes. "To the 'bedroom'?" he teased. The single bedroom in the apartment belonged to Kisa; the orange-haired man slept on a futon curtained off in the small living room.
Without an answer, Kyou pulled his lover forward by his shirt, crimson eyes never leaving grey. He walked backward until his feet felt the edge of his bed; he pulled his lover down onto the dark blue coverlet.
Hatsuharu murmured a soft sound of appreciation as he unbuttoned his shirt. Kyou rose up to his knees and pushed the nuisance piece of clothing from broad, pale shoulders while the black and white-haired man pulled Kyou's t-shirt over his head. Soon amidst the caresses and kisses they divested each other of clothes. Hatsuharu lay with his chest pressed against his lover's back, hand traveling down tan stomach. "How do you want it?" he asked huskily in the other's ear.
"Soft."
That was always Kyou's reply. Soft, gentle. The first light touch to the older man's hard member sent a shiver over his skin. He bit his hand to silence himself for fear that Kisa would hear. Slowly, gently, his lover mounted the tension before taking him. Kyou mewled even through the hand in his mouth, his other hand grasping bed sheets as if it had a mind of its own.
Hatsuharu was always a bit surprised that loud, obnoxious Kyou was so loving and submissive in bed, but he wasn't one to complain. It was maybe the sweetest thing of all.
The beeper went off and Kyou jolted awake; it took Hatsuharu a moment longer to respond. The black and white-haired man sighed and rolled out of bed. "It's work. I have to go in."
"Fine, then leave before that stupid thing goes off again," Kyou growled, yanking the sheets up over his head angrily.
Hatsuharu smiled as he put on his shirt and buttoned it. He leaned over and planted a kiss on the orange mop of hair sticking out from under the blankets. "You need an actual bed; the futon has me waking up cramped."
"Can't afford it," Kyou muttered, voice muffled by the covers.
"We could always sleep at my place once in a while," Hatsuharu suggested.
The older man rose up like a cobra ready to strike. "And leave Kisa all alone? Are you stupid?'
"She's almost fifteen, Kyou. She can fend for herself for one night at that age," he said mildly.
"Why do you want me to stay over at your place so badly anyway? I've seen it already."
"So we can have a nice quiet evening alone. You, me, a bottle of wine. I'll even try to cook," he murmured, face drawing closer and closer to his lover's.
"I'd rather eat take-out than your shitty food," Kyou protested half-heartedly, face turning up expectantly for a kiss.
The beeper went off again. This time even Hatsuharu cursed softly at it. "I'll think about it," Kyou growled, laying down and pulling the covers back over his head, ending the discussion. Hatsuharu wanted nothing more than to smash the godforsaken beeper and crawl back under the covers, then coax Kyou in a more physical manner, but work could never wait.
Kyou rose several hours after his boyfriend had left. He put coffee on and made Kisa's lunch, then woke the girl. She sleepily headed into the bathroom. Kyou poured his first cup of coffee and turned on their small TV set on top of his dresser in the living room. Nothing but news of another train derailment and the declining sea life population concerns; his mind was on far too many other issues than a faulty mechanism on a train in Nagasaki. The coffee warmed the pit he felt in his stomach and he knew he would have to eat something or he would become jittery.
Kisa came from her shower and promptly packed her lunch and schoolwork for the day. Kyou stood to see her off at the door. He kissed her forehead gently, hesitated before delaying her. "Kisa…do you like Haru?"
One of her rare small smiles graced her face. "Very much." She blushed. "But you must like him too, right, big brother?"
Kyou's blush answered her own. "It's just if he bothered you, I'd ask him to not come over any more."
Kisa nodded, fingers fidgeting on the strap of her schoolbag. "He…he looks at you the same way I do when I see myself in pictures." At her brother's quizzical look she ducked her head, eyes on the floor. "He loves you very much." After uttering this, she fled.
Kyou stood in shock for a moment before closing the door. The thought of Hatsuharu's proposition for a night of just the two of them sent shivers down his skin. He quickly poured another cup of coffee and gulped it down. He'd said he would think about it, didn't he? He didn't have to say yes.
He gathered up his jacket, wallet and keys, locking the door behind him. Maybe a trip to the corner market would clear his head. They needed rice, eggplant, milk, dish soap, more of those seaweed chips Haru loved so much…
Kyou growled at himself; he had to stop thinking about Hatsuharu! He picked up the fat free milk this time. The eggplant wasn't as fresh as he would have liked, but he didn't want to go someplace else so he chose serviceable ones. He actually enjoyed cooking dinner for Kisa and Haru, the simple normalcy of it all.
Truth be told, he was surprised that he had even been asked on their first date. He'd been so angry that the club owner had wanted to stiff him out of some tips that night, stormed into the alley, and then to run into someone in his spot. The annoyance level had been through the roof, but somehow that idiot man's grey eyes had him stopping in his tracks, somehow left him fumbling for the angry words he was so ready to spit a moment before.
He had never felt about someone the way he did about Haru. Even from that first encounter, Kyou had felt something. The way he had to look up into the other man's eyes, a colour of storm grey he had never seen before. He had almost found it comical to see so many piercings on such a gentle face—two eyebrow piercings, a lip ring, a tongue ring, and six earrings; Kyou knew because he had counted them numerous times.
Kyou couldn't even remember the last time he had been asked out on a date. What a terrifying experience to be out with someone he didn't know, confused on whether to impress or act nonchalant, and so all he could be was himself. He had fumbled along so badly in the conversation, even got reproving looks from other customers in the restaurant; he had thought for sure Hatsuharu would want to part ways at the door and have done with him. Instead, his date had insisted on a cup of coffee at a small café down the street, a shared slice of pie, and a ride home on the motorcycle for Kyou. Haru had been nothing but wonderful to him—and to Kisa—but Kyou still burned with shame at the difference in their station.
//"So you sing at the jazz club for a living?" Hatsuharu asked, sipping his coffee, amused that while he had added sugar and cream to his cup, his date was drinking it straight black. Somehow that seemed to fit the cinnamon-haired man's personality.
"Yeah," Kyou answered, pouring a third cup of coffee. He knew it would make him jittery beyond belief but he had to occupy himself. "So what do you do? Fix motorcycles?" he mumbled.
Hatsuharu gave that smooth, nonchalant smile. "I have to pay someone to fix mine; I just enjoy riding them. Actually, I'm a doctor."//
Kyou blushed in shame, remembering how he had coughed and sputtered as he inhaled his coffee. Hatsuharu, a doctor. How could he have guessed? The younger man looked like he belonged in a biker bar, not a clinic.
"Excuse me, sir. Are you all right?"
He shied away from the concerned-looking grocery worker. "Of course I'm all right!" he yelled defensively, then blushed at the stares. He quickly paid for his items and hustled outside, cursing himself. Only until he was back inside his own apartment with the door locked did he breathe easier. Why was he so socially inept? So stupid! He put the groceries away and did what little cleaning needed to be done. He restlessly flipped through channels on the television, watching reruns of this morning's news, all of it depressing. A bank robbery where the would-be criminal was fatally shot, a horrible car wreck in Hiroshima leaving five dead, the abduction of a five-year-old girl in Tokyo by her ex-convict father. Kyou's stomach did flip-flops and he shut the television off. He grabbed his jacket; he couldn't stay here or he would go mad. He started the mile-long trek to work.
Yuki sighed irritably. "What do you want?"
The object of his aversion scowled. "I got in early. I just wanted to see if you needed help with anything."
"I suppose I could use help stocking the new shipment for the bar." His amethyst eyes watched as Kyou nodded and hefted one of the boxes. How the orange-haired man could go out in public looking so scruffy and unkempt was beyond him. "Are...are you wearing makeup?"
Kyou blushed. "Ayame is making me," he snapped. "He said I don't have enough stage presence. Fucking fruit."
"As much as it pains me to say this, I agree with you for once. Ayame may be my brother, but he's annoying."
"Oh, little brother, you look ravishing tonight!" The voice made Yuki cringe and Kyou hunch his shoulders.
"Ayame," the grey-haired man acknowledged his older brother.
"And our little Kyoukichi! My, how stunning you look with a little eyeliner and mascara!" Kyou growled softly but didn't reply. "Yuki-kun, your big brother needs a favour tonight!~" Ayame sprawled onto a bar stool with a flourish of his ridiculous peacock fan.
"I'm not working tonight," Yuki replied curtly. "Ask somebody else!" He was clearly already losing his patience.
"But Yuuuukkiii!"
"I have a date!"
Golden, devious eyes blinked. "My little brother, a date!"
"Her name is Tohru, and no you can't meet her."
"Tohru Honda?" Kyou felt the question slip out of him.
Yuki shot him an annoyed look. "You know Tohru."
"Yeah…kind of," Kyou muttered, busying himself with a box full of bottles of vodka. "She's sweet."
"Oh ho!" Ayame giggled, waving his fan. "Could it be a rivalry? Could Kyoukichi hold feelings for this mysterious Honda-san?"
"It's nothing like that!" Kyou hissed, slamming a bottle down hard enough to make Yuki wince. If the idiot broke anything he would make sure it went on his tab. "We're just acquaintances or whatever. I don't like her like that, I—" Then he cut himself off with a hiss of annoyance. Like he would want to tell that fruit anything about his personal life. "I'm going to go get ready," he muttered, turning away from the well-kept bar.
Golden eyes stared after his back as the peacock fan swished through the air.
The woman's long fingernails ran down the side of her smooth wine glass before she lifted it to her lips. A red lipstick stain was left behind on the lip as it was set back down. Her crossed left leg bounced, the only sign of her irritation.
So that scruffy fool on the stage was Hatsuharu's replacement for her? How pathetic. An amateur with a mediocre voice and no stage presence. Her fingers brushed her long raven-dark hair over her shoulder.
"Can I get you another, miss?" the bartender asked and she shooed him away. What a nuisance. Men were such a nuisance. As if Hatsuharu could just brush her off and write her out of his life, especially replacing her with him. She took another sip of wine, fingers toying with the diamond engagement ring the sweet idiot Hatsuharu had gifted her with just six months before.
A man with a beautiful abundance of white hair approached her, bowed elegantly and kissed her offered hand. "Rin-san, how wonderful to see you. Your presence is magical, as always." A peacock fan fluttered tendrils of hair around the man's face.
"Ayame-san, how good to see you again. I look forward to talking to you about a business proposition."
"Then by all means, would you mind accompanying me to my private office?"
"Of course." She smiled, red lips curving viciously as she placed a hand on Ayame's offered arm. Her eyes traveled over to the man on stage as she smirked. Oh yes, she would pay Hatsuharu back tenfold.
And when she was done, he would come crawling on his knees, begging her to take him back.
A/N: I have this thing for hating on Rin. XD Oh, well. She deserves it, that bitch. Probably.