A/N: Hello all! Thank you for reading my story. :) This story continues from where my other fanfic "Consumed by your fire" stopped. Basically, this chapter is set after the night Souichi finally confessed to Morinaga. If you are confused, please kindly read "Consumed by your fire" first, as this sequel would tie in closely with the events mentioned within.
Please enjoy this sequel. I'm taking the story in a slower direction, so it's not like a wham-bam-here comes the baby kind of story. I would love it if you were to continue and enjoy this journey with me!
PS: Throughout the story, the way in which the 2 main characters are called will switch between these:
Tatsumi Souichi: Souichi (in his own POV) / Sempai (in Morinaga's POV)
Morinaga Tetsuhiro: Tetsuhiro (in his own POV) / Morinaga (in Souichi's POV)
Warning: This story is Yaoi and contains male pregnancy.
Disclaimer: As before, Koisuru Boukon does not belong to me.
Chapter 1: Where there is smoke, there is fire
xxx Tetsuhiro xxx
It was the weekend and Tetsuhiro had woken up especially early. Blinking blearily as his cell's silent alarm vibrated against his back, Tetsuhiro squinted at the reflected time on the alarm clock. Six am. That would give him just enough time. Glancing down at the man in his arms, Tetsuhiro smiled contentedly and stayed still for a moment. Sempai was slumbering deeply, his countenance relaxed and free of worry. His beautiful long hair was draped around Tetsuhiro's shoulders, silky soft yet strong, just like Sempai. He had to be tired; Tetsuhiro had read through the hospital pamphlets thoroughly the day before and knew that fatigue and morning sickness usually came hand in hand with pregnancy, especially at the beginning. Regrettably, Tetsuhiro placed a soft kiss on Souichi's head before he slipped out of bed.
Yawning, he went back into his own bedroom, switching on his trusty Fujitsu. While the computer was loading, he padded out to the living room and collected all the pamphlets lying on the coffee table. Now, for the food types the doctor recommended…
"Hmm, for pregnancy, the mother needs an extra 300 calories per day. So for breakfast, I have to increase it by 100 calories… miso soup and grilled shirasuboshi should be good to start off for extra calcium; Sempai likes grilled fish so that's perfect. I think I'll add some natto and mustard for the protein. Now for the fruits…" Tetsuhiro's hand rapidly scrolled through the Internet for some healthy, low- fat recipes for the fish, deciding to also look for healthier and more nutritious ways to cook the miso rather than just the white miso that he had always prepared.
It was half an hour later that Tetsuhiro shut down his laptop, took a quick shower and stepped back into Souichi's bedroom for a moment before he went grocery shopping. His Sempai was still fast asleep on his side, the quilt in a rumpled mess around his legs. Souichi did tend to have a habit of kicking off his blanket. Tetsuhiro quickly went over and gently pulled the sheets up so that Souichi would not catch a cold. Sweeping the tendrils of long hair aside gently, Tetsuhiro could not resist and placed a chaste peck on Souichi's cheek. Looking at the glowing alarm clock beside the bed, Tetsuhiro decided that it was still early. He slipped into bed beside the sleeping man, movements careful so as not to jar the bed. Shifting Souichi's head gently so that he now rested on Tetsuhiro's chest, the younger man could not help the huge grin that he could feel spreading across his face. Sempai was finally, finally his.
After a quiet and peaceful fifteen minutes of cuddling with the unsuspecting Souichi, Tetsuhiro stepped out of their apartment, equipped with the various recipes that he had printed out from the Internet. His goal was the shopping district the next street over, where the ingredients that he needed were always fresher than those from the supermart. His lover and baby needed taking care of, and he was going to make sure that they got only the best!
"Prof. Fukushima, I am really honoured for the opportunity that you and S Pharmaceuticals offered with the business attachment to Hong Kong but I'm afraid that I would have to reject the offer with my sincerest apologies." Tetushiro bowed deeply to the portly old man seated behind the oak table, prepared to stay in this position until Prof. Fukushima relented.
"What? That was surprising, Morinaga. I was so sure that you were going to consent that I had already more or less confirmed your participation with S Pharmaceuticals! What's the meaning of this!" The professor was not relenting so easily. Inwardly, Tetsuhiro heaved a big sigh. Prof. Fukushima always meant well but he tended to place overly high expectations on students, which was what was happening now.
Tetsuhiro bowed deeper. "I'm extremely sorry about this inconvenience! Please accept my apologies! A serious and extremely important family issue was recently brought to my attention and I want to devote this year with my family. Please, sir, I vow to work doubly hard at my remaining training sessions to make up for this!"
"Ah… when you put it this way… I see. There is no point in forcing you then. But do note that I expect you to give a personal apology to the head chemist at the company! Dr. Maya is actually in Nagoya for a few days for a conference seminar. She was the one who approved of your joining the team despite your inexperience. Apologise to her properly as soon as possible! This is her namecard. If she asks, tell her that I told you to contact her directly." So saying, the professor slid a rectangular card over the table.
"Yes sir. I will take my leave now. Thank you for your kind understanding!" Tetsuhiro took the card and exited the office, breathing a sigh of relief. Turning, he headed towards the labs, where Sempai had returned to work with gusto. Tetsuhiro shook his head in resignation. He admired Souichi's dedication and passion for his research; that was one of the reasons why he had been so strongly attracted to Souichi in the first place. Souichi's serious attitude and look of concentration when he was carrying out experiments was always accompanied by a subtle sense of happiness—Sempai was truly in his element in research. It was great but with the pregnancy, Tetsuhiro was beginning to wish that Souichi would not carry on with his demon pace as he had always done, forgoing lunch and many times even dinner in favour of tending to a time- sensitive experiment.
Pushing open the lab doors, Tetsuhiro stepped into the pristine white interior of the laboratory, looking past all the various students busy at the benches until he noticed his favourite long, silvery haired- person at the very last bench. Grinning happily as he swung the bentou bag that he had brought along, Tetsuhiro prepared to give Souichi a super sweet and enthusiastic greeting.
"Sempai, I'm bac-oof!" Souichi had thrown a large wad of documents at his head. Pouting, Tetsuhiro looked at the papers as he rubbed at the big bump rising up from his head. So much for a lovey-dovey greeting. Sempai would always be Sempai.
"Morinaga, since you are currently the only free one in the research group who does not have experiments to do, help me read through those ASAP so that I can know what the hell has gone wrong with this batch of lactic acid bacteria! God, I took a few days off from school and the assistants have managed to screw everything up!" Souichi was busy with the microscope as he grumbled, sliding slide after slide of the samples beneath the lens to examine the bacteria up close.
Tetsuhiro put down the bentou boxes sadly by the lockers and flumped down beside Souichi. There had to be about twenty research papers, all about thirty pages long filled with prose and data. But Sempai's work was his life, and Tetsuhiro intended to make things as easy as possible for his lover, even if it meant ploughing through a ton of dry literature at record speed. He fished for a highlighter and pencil in his bag as he began to read, his knowledgeable mind admittedly not finding the information too overwhelming. Soon, he became absorbed in the papers, brows furrowed as he highlighted important points and jotted down notes in the margins.
Tetsuhiro was too focused on the research papers that he missed the soft glance that Souichi sent his way and that Souichi had shifted the portable microscope nearer to the seated young man so that their elbows would touch whenever Tetsuhiro flipped a page.
Tetsuhiro sat nervously opposite Dr. Maya in the crowded but tasteful Japanese restaurant in downtown Nagoya. He had contacted her a few days ago and she had agreed to his dinner invitation as a form of apology for backing out of the Hong Kong business trip. While looking through the menu, Tetsuhiro also took the chance to observe his superior.
Dr. Maya was a handsome woman of about thirty-five, if his guess was correct. Even in an off- office setting, she exuded an aura of confidence and capability. It reminded him of Souichi a little. That warmed him to the lady seated across from him and his smile was friendly and slightly apologetic as he asked, "Dr Maya, have you decided on your dinner choice? I'll signal for the waiter."
"Sure, I'll have the fuyu dinner set and a glass of white wine, please." Dr. Maya's voice was rich and mature, which suited her appearance tremendously.
Tetsuhiro nodded and before long, he was dictating their dinner choices to the attentive server.
Dr Maya, Tetushiro thought darkly an hour later, was acting strangely. Throughout dinner, he had felt her gaze on him as they partook of the food. Tetsuhiro had forced himself to carry on the conversation as though nothing had happened. Now, as they took their after- dinner drink, it was either his imagination or his superior was really staring at his lips as she sipped from her glass of wine. The main course and dessert were already settled and so Tetsuhiro did not even have the excuse of eating to shield away from those, for lack of a more polite word, lascivious eyes.
"So, tell me more about yourself, Morinaga- san. I heard from my subordinates that you are rather capable." Dr. Maya's dark eyes looked at him from beneath her lashes, simultaneously making Tetsuhiro feel happy and nervous at her words. He reached for his cup of sake and tried not to gulp it down.
"Ahh, thank you for the kind words. Hmm, there's nothing interesting about me that I would bore you with, Dr. Maya! Up till the job offer, I was just working on my Master's program on herbal medicinal properties under Prof. Fukushima and my PhD mentor."
"Interesting, you must be rather capable to garner a scholarship for Nagoya University's postgraduate program. But, tell me Morinaga- san, are you currently attached? You know that accepting the job offer at the company would entail much travelling and perhaps even stints overseas?" Dr. Maya was gazing at him languidly, leaning slightly towards him. Tetsuhiro looked away, choosing to focus instead on her red- painted fingernails currently curled around the wine glass. A sudden brush of something against his left calf made him gulp. Was that the doctor's foot?! Tetsuhiro hastily retracted his legs, hoping that he did not look as spooked as he felt.
"Ahh…err, Dr. Maya, I suddenly remember that I have something important to tend to later! Please, allow me to extend my deepest apologies regarding the business trip. I will work doubly hard at the company from now on!" Tetsuhiro stood up from the booth like his pants were on fire and bowed formally to the head chemist, cold sweat forming on his brow. "I will settle the bill at the counter; please take your time to finish your wine! Thank you for your guidance!"
"All right, I shall let you off tonight. What a cute subordinate you are, Morinaga- san." Dr. Maya gave a rich chuckle and waved him off. "Thanks for the dinner treat but keep in mind that for our next business trip, I will personally request for your attendance. Goodnight."
Tetsuhiro breathed a sigh of relief when he finally stepped out from the restaurant. Thank goodness he would only have to face Dr. Maya in Tokyo. Hopefully, it was just the doctor's idea of teasing a new subordinate and not anything else. Tetsuhiro decided to put the issue at the back of his mind. The important thing now was getting back home to be with Sempai. Glancing at his watch, the late timing told him that Sempai would be home from school already. He picked up his pace and set off towards the train station.
To be continued.
So here's the first part to the sequel to "Consumed by your fire"! I really do hope you enjoyed this, as well as the first story :)