A/N: Hi there! Once more, AdaraLove and me return to you with an 8059 fanfiction. It is set in the same universe as 'Diffusing the bomb', 'How to Seduce a Baseball Idiot' and 'Crimson Rain'. For a time line, this story is set some time after 'Baseball Idiot'.
For those of you new to our teamwork, this is a fanfiction written in the style of a roleplay between AdaraLove and me. While it might take a little time getting used to the style, which changes point of view for every section between separation bars, it also presents the unique opportunity to get both sides of the story. Many of our readers found it worthwhile to just stick with it ;)
As usual I took the role of our irritable, little bomber, while AdaraLove wrote for the dorky, love-drunk jock. Although this was meant as a carefree, funny episode, things turned out a little different as usual. For those of you following our various endeavors, you might guess that there is drama in the air XD So while this started out as just a little bit of sexy fun, we ended up changing the status of Gokudera and Yamamoto's relationship. Both AdaraLove and me love writing some sexy times but, in the end, we are both about the story, so yes, there will be some substance here, too ;D
If you care to see the whole story unfold, we ask you to please leave us a review so we know you're out there and that you're actually interested. Even one review is enough to make us post the next chapter ;D
Have fun!
Warnings: This is a yaoi fanfiction, it's BoysLove and rated M for a reason. If you don't like this sort of thing, just leave. There are enough other stories around here for you to read.
Disclaimer: Sadly, we don't own Katekyou Hitman Reborn! or any of the characters. They belong to Akira Amano (Lucky chick!) XD We just borrowed the characters for a short time and we hope you guys are gonna like what we did with them.
Chapter 1
A white plume was rising from Gokudera's mouth as he walked along the street. The silver-haired bomber had not returned to his unhealthy old habit of smoking, instead, it was the bitter cold that turned the moisture on his breath into tiny, white clouds. Underneath his feet, the snow was crunching softly as the Storm Guardian, for once, rued for choosing to wear the more stylish ear muffs that were currently covering his ears, instead of an old fashioned, but much warmer, wool hat. Gokudera really couldn't remember any of the last winters he had lived in Namimori ever being this cold. This exact very bitter cold was in fact the reason why he was outside at the very moment.
His mitten-clad hands held onto plastic bags filled with the ingredients of a special thank-you-gift. Nothing much had changed in Gokudera's living situation; money was still too damn tight. That was why he found himself in a situation where he was indebted to another. A situation he had always tried to avoid and hated to be in. Yet, for once, there was nothing much he could do about it.
With the early and sudden arrival of a freezing winter this year, the little bomber had found himself in a very bad fix. No special jobs had been available from Reborn-san for some weeks now, and the stipend he was granted by the Ninth barely covered his rent and dynamite supplies. With what little money was left, Gokudera had to decide on whether to have some food in his stomach or heating in his apartment. There really was no choice.
At first, he had worn some warmer clothes in the apartment and had tried to use his wayward box weapon as a heat source. Sadly this didn't work out, because neither was Uri in the mood to get cuddled to share his body heat, nor did he like the cold in the apartment. Soon the room temperature had dropped enough that it was barely warmer than outside, and the storm cat actually loathed to come out of the ring for once. The Storm Guardian had tried to be brave about the whole situation, keeping his problems to himself, and trying to spend as much of his free time as possible over at the Tenth's under the pretense of tutoring his boss while tucked in under a warm, comforting Kotetsu, and always dreading to go back to his cold home in the evenings. Once he started to have trouble sleeping because of the cold, though, his stupid boyfriend had caught onto him pretty fast, and had not stopped badgering him until he found out what was going on. The moment Yamamoto stepped foot into Gokudera's icy apartment, he had made him pack a bag and dragged him home along with him.
While the bomber had looked forward to maybe a full night's sleep in the warmth of the Yamamoto home, his boyfriend had other plans. He had immediately explained Gokudera's situation to his father, who in turn had insisted vehemently that Gokudera stay at their house until either the temperatures rose or they found a way to adequately keep the Italian warm at his own home.
It had been a full week now, since the Storm Guardian had practically moved into the Yamamoto household. Not only did he now have a warm place to return to after school, but also cheerful company and a full set of hearty meals to look forward to every day. Poor Uri was forced to stay in his ring, though, because Gokudera was certain having the wild cat out in the midst of constantly tempting raw fish was a rather bad idea.
Except for helping out at the family's sushi shop, there wasn't much Gokudera could give in return for the hospitality the older Yamamoto was offering so freely. Yet one thing came to the Italian's mind this morning. He had offered to cook a true Italian dish today. That was why he was out in the cold right now. Thankfully, though, he could already see the welcoming sight of the sushi shop and the Yamamoto home above it. Gokudera couldn't wait to get back to the warm, cozy building. It wasn't just the temperature he was thinking about either. Tsuyoshi-san had welcomed him into his home without a second thought and then there was his stupid, annoying, beloved Takeshi waiting for him, too.
Said stupid baseball-freak was all over him once he entered the sushi shop and greeted the older Yamamoto, who was in the midst of expertly cutting up some huge fish. While his annoying boyfriend berated him on going out alone, Gokudera just ignored him and went right for the store's kitchen. Only once he had put his bags on the kitchen counter and he was sure they were out of ear shot of the customers and Tsuyoshi-san, too, did he turn around to his idiotic boyfriend.
"I just needed some time alone, okay? I had to get some fresh air and...and the cold air outside might do wonders for you, too." Gokudera was looking meaningfully at Yamamoto. Ever since he had taken up residence in his boyfriend's room, Takeshi just couldn't keep his hands off of him. Now, normally, this wouldn't be a problem, since the little bomber loved the attention the other showered him with, yet this situation was anything but normal. Gokudera was saved from an icy death by the kind hospitality of Tsuyoshi-san and he would definitely not pay him back by screwing his son under his own roof, no matter how much he missed the physical side of their relationship by now. He had told Yamamoto these convictions very clearly in a way that even the jock could understand.
"Now, I'm gonna take off my jacket and go wash up, then I'm gonna start cooking. You wanna help me, or not?" Although the irritable Italian didn't want to initiate any physical contact between them, he actually enjoyed being around Yamamoto the whole day much more than he would have expected. Gokudera had anticipated a lot more friction between them once they spent all of their time together, and in the tight space of the other's room no less, yet this was not so. All in all, Gokudera loved the caring and the warmth that surrounded him in this household, and he loved the time they spent together, especially after the long time they had spent separated during summer because of the Koshien tournament. The one thing the Italian didn't love, though, was the constant temptation Yamamoto presented, and the almost tangible sexual tension between them. Yet, cooking with the other one in the shop's kitchen with his father right around the corner, seemed like a safe enough activity.
Yamamoto swept restlessly near the door to his father's sushi shop, his eyes constantly glancing towards the entrance for his lover's return as he did the chore assigned to him. In all honesty, he had swept the entire house by now and was now hanging by the door, continuing to look busy as a form of distraction. This was also because he wanted to stay away from his father, who was bound to ask him questions as to why he was so antsy that Gokudera had gone off shopping without him. Actually, he didn't know fully why himself, just that he had loved the idea of shopping for food with his lover as soon as the silver-haired teen had suggested he'd make an Italian dinner for them the following night as thanks for letting him stay with them. The last time they had gone shopping for food had been before they had started dating and they had dropped by a convenience store for bento and drinks, but grocery shopping…it sounded so domestic in comparison, and the idea of doing such a thing often with his boyfriend elated Yamamoto too much to be considered normal. Maybe he was just becoming greedy after having Gokudera stay with him for a week…?
At that thought, the dark-haired jock let out an exhausted sigh. He had equally loved and loathed this week with his lover. They had spent so much time together; eating meals, studying, sleeping in the same room, and just hanging around. Because of the domesticity, it almost felt like their relationship was becoming stronger in certain regards…but living with Gokudera was very frustrating for him at the moment because of one particular thing; Gokudera had completely cut him off from sex.
To say that Yamamoto was frustrated was an understatement. He had felt sexual frustration before in droves when he had spent most of his summer practicing for the Koshien tournament, but at least then he had baseball as a distraction and Gokudera was generally nowhere near him. This situation did not compare, though. Not only was it the beginning of a really cold winter, but Gokudera was constantly just centimeters away from him! He could often smell the shampoo he used for his hair just by passing by him, feel his soft skin with every brush by, and see every small twitch of his mouth when he tried not to smile. By this point, even Gokudera's voice was turning him on at random moments…well, more so than usual anyway. Why, oh, why did Gokudera have to ban sex just because they were under his dad's roof?! The poor, deprived jock had sworn up and down that he'd make sure he was as quiet as possible but Gokudera still insisted that he sleep on a separate futon for pretenses sake, and that they wouldn't share baths either. At this point he could tell that his feisty bomber was close to banning kisses, too, because every one he initiated often turned heated in a matter of seconds. He couldn't help himself! It wasn't his fault that Gokudera was so tantalizing!
"Takeshi, you're going to wear a hole in the floor if you keep sweeping in the same spot as that," Tsuyoshi mentioned offhandedly from his position at the sushi counter, where he was cutting up fresh fish for some of the customers at a nearby table.
Blinking in surprise, Yamamoto stopped his movements, not realizing that he had basically been sweeping the crap out of the floor like it had done him a personal wrong. He let out a sheepish chuckle and rubbed the back of his head as he glanced over his shoulder to his father.
"Sorry, Dad…"
There it was. That look in his father's eyes that was usually reserved for when he knew something was up and he was going to interrogate him until he spilled the beans. The older man was staring straight at him, his eyes boring into his own like he could see all the secrets that swam underneath, and Yamamoto could feel himself break out into a cold-sweat, having a hunch as to what his father would ask him. He was pretty sure he wasn't ready for this conversation yet.
Thankfully, Gokudera decided in that exact moment to enter the shop with his bags of groceries. Taking the opportunity, Yamamoto averted his gaze from his father and jumped to his lover's side.
"Geez, Gokudera, why did you have to go out on your own!" He berated as he followed his boyfriend into the kitchen, making sure to use his last name in the presence of his father, just like his silver-haired lover had asked of him. "I wanted to come with…"
When he heard his lover's reply as he placed his bags on the counter, Yamamoto couldn't stop himself from blushing at the insinuation…and in embarrassment. All he could do was let out an uncertain laugh at the beautiful Storm Guardian's meaningful look, unable to tell him that he had already tried going outside several times, and mainly during the middle of the night, because he was constantly getting hard. It didn't work…not for long anyway, because as soon as he saw Gokudera again he'd get harder than his practically frozen nipples and he'd have to run to the bathroom so that he wouldn't jump his peacefully slumbering counterpart.
His lover's voice broke through his thought process then, telling him that he was going to wash up before he started cooking and asked him if he wanted to help. Well, how could he not?! Cooking with Gokudera had always been one of his many relationship goals!
"Of course!" Yamamoto replied enthusiastically, his hazel eyes shining with excitement. "I would love to! I'll get the cooking utensils ready while I wait for you, so what recipe are we using?"
As soon as his question left his lips, Gokudera knew the answer. His stupid boyfriend was practically giddy with excitement at the prospect, as it seemed. His eyes were two glittering orbs and his body seemed to be trembling with too much energy. A soft, exasperated sigh left the Italian as he shook his head at his lover, but there was a smile on his lips, too. Yamamoto really had too much energy for his own good sometimes and he was so, so fucking cute in his eager, puppy-dog state. Of course, the silver-haired bomber never, ever would tell the other this latter thought.
"Okay, you do that. I need a chopping board, a vegetable knife, a big pot for the pasta, and a pan for the sauce," he rattled off the list of utensils he'd need. "Oh yeah, and get some salt and pepper ready, please." Salt and pepper were easy enough to get in a Japanese kitchen. That was one of the reasons why he had gone to the grocery store; to buy the herbs he needed for the dish since the Yamamoto's usually only ate traditional Japanese-styled meals at home.
"I'll be making pasta con salsa de atún," he told the other with a grin as he noticed the confused look he got at the Italian name for the dish. "It's noodles with tuna in a tomato sauce."
After his explanation, Gokudera turned away from his lover.
"I'll be back in a moment."
With these words, the Storm Guardian left the kitchen to finally lose his winter attire. Once he was free of that, he went to the bathroom upstairs. For a moment, Gokudera looked at himself in the bathroom mirror. He told himself that what he was about to do was strictly for hygienic reasons, but a part of him knew full well that he also did it to earn himself some admiring looks from his boyfriend. Gokudera pulled his hair back into a ponytail and held his bangs out of his face with the use of some hairpins. After that, he washed his hands and went downstairs again and back into the shop's kitchen.
Just as promised, Yamamoto had prepared the named utensils.
"Okay, this is good. I think, I've got all I need. Let's get this started."
As Gokudera rattled off the utensils that they needed, Yamamoto did a mental check in his head as to each utensil's place in the kitchen. Seeing as soon as Gokudera was done sharing this information with him and that he knew where everything they needed was, he knew that he'd have all of it prepared in time for his lover's return.
Nodding his head at the other to show that he had understood what had been asked of him, the silver-haired teen then went on to say what they were going to be making. Confusion soon consumed the dark-haired teen as Italian reached his ears instead of Japanese. Woah! What they were making sounded pretty fancy!
Apparently his look of confusion tipped Gokudera off, because his lover explained to him in Japanese what the dish was. Oh, now it didn't sound as fancy! It was strange how much difference just a language could make in concern to a sentence. Yamamoto inwardly chuckled at this thought, knowing that his beloved had also sounded pretty hot when he had only been saying 'noodles with tuna and tomato sauce'. He guessed that went to show that Gokudera could literally say anything to him in Italian and he'd automatically get all hot and bothered. Just imagining the things his lover could actually say to him without him even knowing and taking it in a sexual manner was kind of funny, and a bit ridiculous.
The mentally distracted rain guardian was brought back to reality with his lover's parting words, then. With a smile and a mention that he'd get everything ready, he watched Gokudera leave the kitchen, his eyes habitually lowering towards his boyfriend's tightly clad bottom for a few seconds longer than necessary since the opportunity had presented itself. Dang, he was getting turned on again!
Once Gokudera was out of the room, Yamamoto let out a deep sigh and tried his hardest to think of something disgusting to distract himself from his growing problem. Cursing internally for sabotaging himself out of habit, and after picturing Giannini in a woman's bikini, Yamamoto set himself to work gathering all the utensils that they needed. By the time he was grabbing the salt and pepper out of one of the cupboards, and all the utensils were out on the counter, he felt better in control of himself. Sadly, that all shattered the moment Gokudera reentered the kitchen.
The tanned-skinned jock stared on with widening eyes as Gokudera walked in with his hair and bangs pulled back, exposing his beautiful face and his creamy-smooth neck for Yamamoto's starving eyes. He saw Gokudera saying something, but he couldn't hear the words, his mind too zero-focused into how irresistible his boyfriend looked. Yamamoto knew that it was probably for sanitation reasons that his lover had his hair back, but damn it, was Gokudera trying to kill him and the practically zero sexual patience he had left?! He knew that he got turned on whenever he did this!
"Uh…yeah! Yeah…" Yamamoto stuttered out stupidly, even though he had no idea what Gokudera had just said to him. Quickly averting his eyes from the other and scratching the back of his neck as a form of distraction from his hot and bothered thoughts, he asked, "So where's the recipe that we're supposed to follow? I don't see it anywhere here."
As the flustered jock actively started to glance around the kitchen as if to look for the slip of paper the recipe was on in hopes that Gokudera wouldn't notice the ever growing problem in his pants, his lover told him that he had the recipe. When Yamamoto unconsciously looked back towards his feisty counterpart, he saw Gokudera slip the paper the recipe was on from inside one of his pants pockets and came over to the counter with him where all the utensils were. His lover then started to review the recipe with him but, a quarter of the way through, Yamamoto noticed him scrunch up his eyes before he reached inside of his shirt and drew out his dark-rimmed glasses and slipped them over his eyes. From then on Yamamoto had no idea what Gokudera was saying. He could only stare at the other hungrily, mouth completely slack-jawed as his heart started pounding in his ears. What he wouldn't give to wrap his arms around the other and kiss the back of that neck…But if he did that, Gokudera might kick him out of the kitchen!
When Gokudera's eyes turned and met his, the trance and Yamamoto's warring thoughts were instantly broken. Shaking his head to clear his mind, the poor jock tried his best to save face— "So…uh…What did you say?"—and totally failed.
The answer the Storm Guardian received sounded pretty absentminded. Trying to see what was going on with his boyfriend, Gokudera turned to him just in time to still catch the other one looking at him in a way that he knew only too well. Since Yamamoto had quickly avoided his gaze, he couldn't be sure if he was seeing things correctly, but were his lover's eyes actually glazed over? Part of the silver-haired bomber felt absolutely flattered he had this effect on his boyfriend with just a slight change of his hair-do, but another part felt kind of guilty for doing this to Yamamoto when he was adamant about his no-sex-rule.
When the jock asked him about the recipe, Gokudera decided to act like he hadn't noticed anything amiss to give his boyfriend the chance to recover.
"I've got it here," he announced, fishing the paper from his pants pocket, where he had stashed it for his shopping trip.
While he unfolded the paper, he approached the kitchen counter and Yamamoto. While reviewing the directions, though, Gokudera found out fast that he'd need his glasses. He rarely cooked at all (except for boiling water for some cup noodles), which was mostly owed to his sister. Being force-fed Bianchi's poison cooking didn't do much to interest the young Italian in venturing into that field himself. Also, there was the distinct fear that he might have a secret knack for the poison cooking ability himself. Yet this was a unique circumstance where he wanted to do something special to thank the elder Yamamoto in particular and, at the same time, he knew Takeshi would love it, too. It was the little things, like something as domestic as cooking for your beloved, that made that idiot giddy with happiness. With his uncertain cooking background and his deep rooted wish to get things not only right but perfect, it was absolutely necessary to rely on the recipe and stick to it meticulously. That was why he got out his glasses, knowing full well that they were one of Yamamoto's major turn-ons. But for one, this couldn't be helped, and secondly, it wasn't his fault that his boyfriend was such a sex-crazed, stupid idiot now, was it?!
For a moment, Gokudera tried to ignore the other's reaction. He was willing to act like he hadn't noticed anything, but when he told the jock to give him the package of noodles from the bags right in front of him, there was no answer. Turning to Yamamoto, Gokudera pretty much knew what the jock was thinking about and had a very, very hard time not letting his gaze drop to see if his suspicions were correct. No matter what his stupid boyfriend thought, this whole situation wasn't easy for the little bomber either. He missed the physical side of their relationship dearly himself. He wanted to get touched and kissed and spoiled, and he craved to be one with Yamamoto, too, to feel him as deep inside as possible, but not here and not now. He didn't want to show himself to be ungrateful to Tsuyoshi-san for saving him like he had, because no matter what Takeshi promised, the Italian knew only too well that the two of them couldn't keep quiet during sex; not for the life of them! Tsuyoshi would hear them, definitely! And although they had thought he knew about them a while back, the older Yamamoto had never confronted Takeshi about it and had never acted any differently around Gokudera. So, the Storm Guardian assumed it was just his boyfriend's guilty conscience that made him think his dad knew. There was no way that Tsuyoshi-san would take him into his home for an indefinite amount of time, and let him sleep in his son's room to boot, if he knew about their relationship. Not only that, but if he knew, why wouldn't he confront them about it? It was impossible. Tsuyoshi-san was still in the dark about them and the Italian really, really wanted to keep it that way.
"I told you to give me the pasta! The package of noodles right in front of you, Stupid!"
Gokudera told himself that the slight blush to his cheeks was just a side-effect of his yelling right then, although he actually knew better. In his slightly flustered state, he grabbed the bottle of olive oil he had bought, spread some oil in the pot and heated that up.
"First we need to fry the noodles," he mumbled absentmindedly as he tried to distract himself from the path his thoughts tried to wander off to.
Avoiding Yamamoto's gaze, Gokudera rummaged in one of the bags and took a small glass of capers and another glass of black olives from it.
"C-Can you manage to boil up water in the pan for the onions?" The silver-haired Italian asked as he took the two glasses to the chopping board, trying hard to focus on the task at hand while neither looking at nor thinking about the hunk of a boyfriend that was so, so close to him at the moment.
A light, adorable blush and a berating voice were his answer as Yamamoto hurriedly retrieved the package of pasta from one of the grocery bags. As he handed the package over, he laughed sheepishly and sent his lover an apologetic smile, but Gokudera was too distracted to take either.
Placing the pasta package down on the counter instead, the dark-haired teen heard his silver-haired companion mumble something out about frying the noodles as he placed a pot coated with oil on the stove. Yamamoto wasn't quite sure why his mind started sounding warning bells, but he had a hunch that something was off with his lover's cooking mindset. That was strange, though, since he had no experience with Italian cuisine…
Still, it was a hunch, and his hunches were usually right.
Despite how cute and sexy his boyfriend appeared to be before him, that wasn't what Yamamoto was focusing on anymore. Something was telling him to be very vigilant with this entire cooking process, so that's what he was going to do. His gut instincts seemed all the more sound when he saw Gokudera take two jars of some strange food out of the bags. Reading the labels, the jarred food was apparently capers and black olives but, to the ever observant jock, they looked utterly repulsive like Bianchi's poison cooking. Were they going to put that stuff into the pasta? And what the heck was a caper?
The stutter in Gokudera's voice didn't go unnoticed by the taller teen as he was asked to do a certain task a moment later. Once again, a little warning bell was ringing in his ears at his boyfriend's words.
"A-Alright," Yamamoto quickly agreed as Gokudera visibly avoided eye contact with him and went to chopping up the onions. Thinking fast, the hyper-aware rain guardian glanced down at the recipe beside him and immediately saw why his instincts were going haywire at the moment; Gokudera had accidentally switched where the oil and the water were supposed to go! Water was supposed to be boiling in the pot, not the oil! The oil was supposed to be heating up in the frying pan!
Realizing that it was possible for his lover to get upset if he realized he had already messed things up, and that he'd probably take his anger out on him or blame him for this instance, Yamamoto knew he had to try and fix the situation without Gokudera finding out.
Making sure his lover was distracted with his task, Yamamoto quickly and quietly made his way over to the stove and took the pot off the burner. Thankfully, it had only been on there for a little over a minute, so the oil wasn't that warm.
Glancing over his shoulder to make sure that Gokudera was still distracted by his onion chopping, Yamamoto then redistributed the oil to the frying pan and placed it back on the warming burner.
Rushing back to the pot, he hurriedly brought it to the sink and turned on the tap. After rinsing the oily residue off the bottom of the pot, the ever careful jock filled the pot most of the way with water and then placed it on the stove top next to the heating oil. Turning the burner on high in order to bring the water in the pot to a boil, Yamamoto then turned to face Gokudera again just in time to see him finishing with his task.
Hoping against hope that his lover was distracted enough not to realize that he had messed up beforehand because he didn't want this to become a bad experience between them, especially when Gokudera was so emotionally invested on making a good dinner for him and his dad, the desperate rain guardian decided to distract his lover even more.
"Hey, Gokudera, are you crying?" He teased playfully as he approached his lover. "Is it the onion or do you need a hug?" He offered as he opened his arms wide in invitation with a cheesy smile on his face. It was then he realized that maybe he shouldn't be cracking jokes and making himself wide open to attack when his lover was still holding a knife.
…
Well, hopefully this wouldn't go horribly…
Just when Yamamoto agreed to his request did Gokudera realize that he had to chop the onions first, because they needed to get glazed in the pan before anything got put in. Glad he remembered in time, he took one of the onions Tsuyoshi-san had in abundance in the kitchen and started to chop it up once he had peeled off the outer, dry layer.
Fully concentrated on his task at hand, the silver-haired bomber did not check up on what his boyfriend was doing. Yamamoto might be an idiot sometimes, but he wasn't stupid and could easily be trusted with menial tasks like the one he had asked for. Also, there was the little problem that he couldn't see too well anymore anyway, since his eyes were now swimming with tears from chopping the onions. Of course, though, his stupid-ass lover had to comment on that.
"Of course it's the fuckin' onion!" The little bomber exploded at the jock. "I don't need a fuckin' hug! And definitely not from you!"
It was only then that the Storm Guardian actually turned around to his lover and saw the arms that were opened wide to welcome him in and the oh-so idiotic grin plastered all over the jock's face. Tears from the onions running down his face, Gokudera stared at his super stupid, caring, idiotic, lovable dork of a boyfriend and felt his cheeks turn hot. Fuckin' fuck fuck! There was an almost inescapable, gravitational pull towards those open arms. Only the thought of Tsuyoshi-san, who might drop in to see how things were going at any moment, kept Gokudera from succumbing to his own physical and, yes, emotional needs.
"You're such an idiot..." With a huff and a little snivel from his now also runny nose, the young Italian turned back to the chopping board.
He lifted his glasses, rubbed his shirt sleeve over his eyes and, once he could see better again, glanced at the pan. The oil gave off enough heat inside the pan, so he dropped the onions in.
"Now you stir them until they're glazed—almost see-through—and take the heat down a notch while I mince the capers and chop the olives," he told Yamamoto without looking at him, since his face was still feeling a little hot.
Gokudera pulled the paper with the recipe closer to him as he was handling the glasses of capers and olives, glancing at the instructions surreptitiously to make sure he had everything right at the moment, yet without wanting to let Takeshi know how insecure he was about the whole thing. With a slight nod to himself, he turned to the chopping board once more.
The green, shriveled capers didn't look too appetizing, but they went great with the tuna. Since their look wasn't too nice, though, Gokudera tried to mince them up really fine. Although in Italian cuisine the olives would either be left whole or cut into rings, he decided to cut them up, too. Most likely, the Yamamoto's didn't know olives at all, and since the black one's had a strong taste of their own, Gokudera thought it best to try them in tiny pieces first.
"Okay, how do the onions look," he asked once he was done and looked first at the pan and then at his lover. When he saw the slightly golden color of the onion and heard Takeshi's positive answer, he nodded. "I think we should trade places now," the Italian decided then. "I need to take care of the sauce next, but I still need to chop the garlic as well." Handing Yamamoto the garlic bulb, he stepped around him to get at the cans of chopped tomatoes. "Oh, damn. Where do you guys keep the can opener," Gokudera asked once he realized that he had forgotten about that little, but pretty important, utensil.
Just as he thought, Gokudera yelled at him for his jibe, and when the smaller teen turned around, his eyes were glaring as sharply as the knife in his hands, but the rosy tint to his tear-stained cheeks and the embarrassed sounding lilt to his voice gave away what he truly felt.
Yamamoto let out an amused chuckle as his lover turned away from him in a huff and tried to discretely rub the tears out of his eyes, but to no avail. The taller teen couldn't help but feel even more enamored with his boyfriend's behavior. Gokudera was just too cute, and there was nothing more that he wanted to do than go up behind the other and hug him close to his body and purr sweet nothings into his ear. The idea itself was becoming more tempting by the second, and Yamamoto wondered if he'd actually cave in. Even if the thought sounded welcoming, he knew that doing such a thing at the current time and place would only insight his lover's wrath, so he barely kept himself in check by the time Gokudera was inspecting the heating oil on the stove.
Without even glancing his way, the silver-haired teen explained his next task as he poured the chopped onions into the oil pan. The dark-haired rain guardian nodded his head in understanding, remembering the instructions on the recipe in the same manner as his lover had spoken them. The capers and olives weren't part of the recipe, though, and that left the young jock on edge. Still, he kept his mouth shut and obediently did as he was told as the sound of the knife hitting the chopping board echoed throughout the room.
By the time the onions were fully glazed and Yamamoto had turned down the heat on the stove as instructed, Gokudera was finished with his chopping task and asking him how things were going.
"Everything's looking great!" The taller teen exclaimed happily as his lover approached him and eyed the onions, just to make sure. Seemingly pleased with what he saw, the feisty bomber then insisted that they switch places; he'd handle the sauce while Yamamoto would finish chopping the left over ingredients. The well-toned jock nodded his head enthusiastically as he opened his palm and let Gokudera hand over the bulb of garlic in his hand. When his lover walked around him to get to the cans of tomatoes by the stove, though, he suddenly asked for a can opener.
"Oh, it's right here." Without even thinking, Yamamoto walked up behind his lover, his hand accidentally brushing the smaller teen's hip as he opened the drawer next to the Italian where the can opener rested. The young swordsman felt a surge of electricity travel up his spine at the accidental touch, his breath hitching at the same time as Gokudera's as they turned to face each other, their bodies so close; just centimeters apart. Yamamoto's hazel orbs met his lover's jade-green, both of them staring at each other in slight surprise. Automatically, as if the universe itself had been waiting for that moment, the air between them became rife with unbridled sensuality. They were so close. If he just moved a few centimeter's closer, Yamamoto knew that he'd be able to press his body fully into Gokudera's back and capture the other's lips in a hungry kiss, but a loud noise from outside the kitchen startled both of them out of their heated stupor.
Practically jumping out of his skin as a random child started screaming for more fatty tuna, Yamamoto blushed a bright scarlet and hopped away from his boyfriend like he had just electrocuted him.
"Haha, I'll…uh…go and chop the garlic now!" He laughed out sheepishly as he quickly turned away from his just as embarrassed boyfriend and mentally berated himself for acting so carelessly.
He just hoped that Gokudera wouldn't be pissed at him for what almost happened. The silver-haired bomber was just so fickle when it came to affectionate gestures in 'public' settings.
Trying to distract himself as much as possible then in order to calm all the hormones now pumping through his blood in a mad quest to make his lower regions as unbearably hard as humanly feasible, Yamamoto reread the recipe and cut off two gloves of garlic from the bulb and started to chop it up as finely as possible. As he did so, his eyes caught the cut up capers and olives on the same board and his gut made an uncomfortable twist at the sight. They really looked unappetizing, and since they weren't part of the recipe, the dark-haired teen could only wonder if they'd turn the food they were cooking inedible. Or, even worse, what if they were rotten and they turned their food into Poison Cooking! It wasn't completely unfeasible to believe that such a trait could run in Gokudera's family, was it?
Hearing his lover curse behind him then, Yamamoto turned to glance at his boyfriend to see him fiddling with the pot of water, which was now close to boiling over. Seeing as his lover was distracted and that the tomatoes were now in the oil pan, the quick-thinking rain guardian took the opportunity to grab his chopping board, which was now filled with finely chopped garlic, capers, and olives, and headed over to the pan. Hurriedly scraping the chopped garlic into the pan and constantly glancing to make sure that Gokudera didn't look his way, Yamamoto then quickly turned around and scraped the finely chopped capers and olives into the garbage. It was better to be safe than sorry in his opinion, and his gut was just telling him to not ingest such weird looking food.
As soon as he was finished, the slightly guilty (he felt bad that his lover had spent money on the food he had just thrown away) swordsman put down the chopping board and headed over to the pan to stir the contents. By this point, Gokudera had reclaimed control over the boiling pot of water and was now slipping the hard pasta noodles inside of it.
"Alright, I added the ingredients to the pan," Yamamoto stated with a smile that he hoped wasn't too forced so that Gokudera wouldn't catch on to what he did. "What do we do next?"
His boyfriend reacted instantly when the Italian asked for the can opener, but instead of just telling him where to find it, he stepped in to get it. As he did so, his hand touched the bomber's hip. It was a mere brush, most likely nothing more than a little accident, yet it sent a bolt of lightning up Gokudera's spine and made his senses tingle. He couldn't help the hitching of his breath, nor the expectant gaze he sent his lover. When their eyes met, he saw the same expectancy, no, hunger, he felt, reflected in Yamamoto's eyes.
The air between them seemed to heat up, and almost crackled with sexual energy. Gokudera felt the blood rush to his groin. The rules he had set for his stay at this house were slipping away, drowning in his desire to be close to his lover. Just when all his convictions started to falter under his urgent desires, the deafening bawling of some stupid kid made the both of them jump. Although the Storm Guardian had absolutely no liking for self-centered, stupid, dirty, and loud small children, for once he was thankful to it and the disturbance it had caused. If it wasn't for this interference, he would have done something very bad and very stupid! His face burned with a new blush as he berated himself for his low self-control. At least Yamamoto had retreated now back to the chopping board, making it possible for the smaller Italian to try to clear his head and get back to his tasks.
With only slightly shaky hands, Gokudera open the cans of chopped tomatoes and added them to the onions in the pan. Stirring the sauce, he finally relaxed a little, until he realized that the sauce would be ready before the pasta if he didn't put the noodles in the already boiling water! Acting fast, he opened the package and dumped the whole contents into the pot and even remembered to add some salt before he put the lid back on, thinking of retaining the heat. Turning back to his tomato sauce, he stirred that, squishing some of the tomato pieces to get a thick texture, when suddenly the lid of the pot with the pasta clinked and danced and, a moment later, foam started to show.
"Fuckin' shit! What the fuck...?!"
With a start, Gokudera lifted the lid to let a plume of steam escape. At least his fast reaction made the water foam recede back into the pot before any water could spill onto the stove. Still, the water was boiling hard and big bubbles popped on the surface. Any good cook knew not to put the lid back onto a pot filled with boiling noodles, but the young Italian rarely cooked at all. Nonetheless, he was very intelligent and good at science, which helped him realize that the starch in the noodles was reacting with the water to create the foam, which couldn't dissipate with the lid in place because the mounting foam would lift the lid and make the water spill over. Understanding this, he kept the lid off and reduced the heat for good measure. Only when the bomber was reaching for a cooking spoon to stir the noodles did he realize that the jock was right beside him, stirring the contents of the pan and telling him he had added all the chopped up ingredients to the sauce.
"Ah, that's good," Gokudera breathed in relief as he used the cooking spoon to keep the pasta from sticking together. "The sauce needs to simmer for a while, but if you want to, you can already open the tuna cans and pour out the oil."
When he was sure the noodles were sufficiently stirred, the young bomber dared to relax a little. Turning his back to the kitchen counter, he leaned against it and let his eyes drift to his lover as the other was eagerly taking care of the cans of tuna.
When Yamamoto heard Gokudera breathe a sigh of relief, he couldn't help but feel relieved himself. It seemed like his lover hadn't caught on that two ingredients he had chopped up had gone missing and actually weren't in the sauce at all.
Hearing his next task, the taller teen nodded enthusiastically before he left his boyfriend's side and grabbed the cans of tuna. Popping off the tops of the easily openable canisters, he carefully drained the juicy oil-like substance collected in the bottom of the cans in the sink without accidentally losing some of the tuna. As he did this, the fresh smell of his favorite fish wafted to his nose, and his mouth started to water. The dark-haired jock was quite thankful that his lover had decided to try out an Italian recipe that had a familiar tasting fish in it.
"Mmm, you can never go wrong with tuna!" Yamamoto hummed out in satisfaction as he finished draining and glanced over his shoulder. As he did this, he noticed that Gokudera's body was fully turned towards him. Had his lover been watching him work the whole time? When hazel eyes met beautiful jade, Yamamoto received his answer. As if noticing what he had been doing, crimson sprouted on the feisty bomber's cheeks and he quickly turned back to stir the pasta, grumbling something about being considerate with the dish he chose because both him and his father weren't used to Italian cuisine.
"Haha, yeah, and we thank you for that," the pleased rain guardian said in appreciation as he approached his lover's form with the cans of tuna in hand. Once he reached the silver-haired teen's side, he couldn't resist leaning close and teasingly whisper in the other's ear, "Did you like what you saw?"
That comment earned him a flustered punch to the shoulder and a reprimand to shut up and focus on flaking the tuna carefully into the sauce. Yamamoto burst out into laughter, loving the embarrassed flush that consumed his companion's face and the stutter in his breath that told him that he did indeed like what he had seen, even though Yamamoto knew that Gokudera would never admit it.
Feeling his love for the other almost consume him completely then and there, Yamamoto used the rest of whatever willpower he had to not forget about the tuna and just scoop Gokudera up in his arms, hold him close, and kiss him repeatedly to show him how happy he truly made him. Even though the thought was more than tempting, he did as he was told and started to slowly add the tuna to the simmering sauce. When he was done, he stirred the contents, loving the aroma that wafted through the air as everything started to come together.
"It smells delicious," Yamamoto sighed happily as he turned to shower his boyfriend with a pleased smile. It was then that he noticed that the noodles were close to done, but their sauce still needed time to cook the tuna! "Ah!" He exclaimed in realization before he, without even thinking about what he was actually doing since he thought that everything was supposed to get done at the same time, reached over and increased the heat on the pan's burner. This way, everything would get done at the same time, right?
Gokudera was glad when Yamamoto exclaimed that one never could go wrong with tuna. So his decision to make a dish with some very familiar ingredient had been right. He knew his boyfriend loved the fish and he really wanted his cooking to be tasty to the jock.
Said jock now turned around and caught him staring at him. The small bomber felt a blush dust his cheeks and immediately turned around, busying himself with stirring the noodles in the pot.
"Well, you guys aren't familiar with Italian cooking, so of course I'd make something that is at least a little bit familiar to you," he uttered gruffly, keeping his gaze focused on the pot like it might explode if his eyes strayed for a second.
His happy-go-lucky boyfriend chuckled and thanked him for his consideration, which, annoying as his perpetual good humor was, actually sent a wave of warmth through his body. Just a second later, Yamamoto was standing right next to him, and the warm and kind of fuzzy feelings soon turned into a rising heat. Damn it, his stupid fuckin' boyfriend's horniness was actually contagious! That was the only explanation! Gokudera was pretty damn sure he usually had more control over himself than this! Right at that moment and that thought, the damn rain guardian was leaning even closer and whispering in his ear with a voice that could melt fuckin' glaciers. How the fuck was he to hold out against that?!
Of course the storm guardian had liked what he had seen! There was absolutely nothing his stupid boyfriend could do that he didn't like to watch. Takeshi had the body of a sports god and a natural ease about him,that the smaller Italian would never achieve. To the silver-haired bomber, he was just sex on legs. Gokudera felt heat and need flood his system, his face growing hotter by the second when the other one called him out on it. Angry more at himself than at Yamamoto, but still needing to take it out on someone, he punched the jock on the arm.
"Sh-Shut the fuck up, Stupid!" The flustered bomber shouted out and pointed at the pan. "I-Instead of running your mouth, you should flake the tuna into the sauce!"
Yamamoto laughed at him then. Not too long ago, Gokudera would have exploded, maybe thrown some dynamite, and would have certainly run from the kitchen to get away from the other, feeling hurt at being made fun of. Yet, over the course of his relationship with the other one, he had learned to understand his boyfriend better. Yes, Takeshi was laughing, but just because he was happy and he loved him (loved his 'cute antics' – a description Gokudera hated and tried not to think of in that moment) not because he was making fun of him. That was why the young Italian just growled deep in his throat and concentrated on his noodles while his face glowed a bright red. Fuckin' hairpins, if not for them, he could at least hide his eyes behind his bangs.
A moment later, the jock was commenting on how good the food was starting to smell, and the bomber had to agree. It really smelled nice, which made him hopeful it would taste good, too. They were almost done and no catastrophe had happened yet. Maybe everything would turn out alright for once, even with something as unfamiliar to him as cooking. This was when he saw Yamamoto turn up the heat on the sauce.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing?! Turn it down! Turn it down now! You're going to burn the sauce!" Gokudera was freaking out. To him, there was so much riding on this dinner turning out perfectly. "Just...Just pour off the noodles and leave the sauce to me now," he added a little softer, feeling only slightly guilty for yelling.
Taking over the pan now, Gokudera decided it was time to taste the sauce and add the last touch-ups. Only when he did so, he found it severely lacking salt. He had no idea how that could have happened, with the salty olives and the bitter taste of the capers being in there. Again, the young Italian was about to freak out. This couldn't be happening! Desperately, he reached for the salt and the pepper, adding both, only to learn that there was still taste missing.
"Where's the chili powder? Can you give it to me," he asked of Yamamoto, hoping the spicy taste would mask anything that was still lacking. When he tasted the sauce once more after giving it a good stir, he felt like it worked out.
"Okay, now I need the pasta," he told Yamamoto, who had poured off the water already. "While I add the pasta to the sauce, you can get out the dishes. We can eat in a moment."
He turned off the heat on the stove and added the pasta in heaps, stirring it into the sauce all the while. When the noodles and sauce had mixed nicely, he took the plates from his lover and dished them out.
"Alright," Gokudera breathed out a sigh of relief. "Let's hope it's good."
Taking two of the plates, he left one to Yamamoto.
"Can you bring the cutlery along," he asked over his shoulder as he left the kitchen.
The naïve, unsuspecting rain guardian practically jumped out of his skin when his partner suddenly yelled at him. Oh, he had actually been completely wrong about the heat? Wow, how ironic that even though he had been trying the whole time to fix all of Gokudera's mistakes, in the end, he'd end up making a mistake, too. It was kind of funny, now that Yamamoto thought about it.
When he heard Gokudera suggest that he should start to drain the noodles, he noticed how his lover's voice had become softer, and he averted his gaze as if he felt slightly guilty for his outburst. Not wanting the feisty bomber to get the wrong idea, since he had actually found his mess up amusing, Yamamoto just let out a light-hearted laugh.
"Alright, alright, I'll leave the cooking to you," he said as he grabbed hold of the pot of boiling noodles and brought it over to the sink were a strainer was already placed within. As he slowly poured the noodles into the strainer, the hot water steaming his face and sizzling as it hit the metal of the sink, he heard Gokudera then ask him for chili powder.
Remembering that the recipe had suggested to use chili powder if need be, thus making it safe to hand it off to his boyfriend, Yamamoto placed the now empty pot in the other sink basin beside the strainer and started rummaging through a nearby cupboard. Upon procuring what he was looking for, he handed off the container to his lover with a smile.
Seeing Gokudera sprinkle the contents of the spice container into the sauce and then taste testing it, his eyes and nose crinkling in thought as he savored the taste to make sure that it fit his idea of a good tasting sauce, it took all of Yamamoto's willpower to not just hug his boyfriend already for being so freaking adorable. Knowing that he would undoubtedly lose himself if he stayed and watched a moment longer, the dark-haired teen returned to the sink and picked up the noodle-filled strainer, moving it back and forth to shake out the excess water. Just as he was doing this, Gokudera called out for the pasta.
Making his way over to his lover then, he handed off the pasta just as Gokudera told him to start getting the dishes ready. By the time that Yamamoto had set out the eating utensils and plates on the counter, the silver-haired teen was ready to dish out their delicious smelling food. Yamamoto's mouth watered as Gokudera scooped a good heaping of the noodles, tuna, and sauce onto the three plates before he took two for himself and asked Yamamoto to bring out the last plate and the cutlery.
Following behind his lover with everything in tow, the two of them made their way into the now deserted restaurant where Yamamoto's father was finishing closing up his shop.
"Haha, you're just in time boys!" Tsuyoshi laughed out heartily as he wiped off the table closest to them. "The last customer just left a few minutes ago." As the older man said this, his eyes fell onto the food that the two teens placed onto the table. "My, that's looking mighty tasty there! I can't wait to try it out, Gokudera-kun!"
With a proud and eager smile, Tsuyoshi walked away to discard his cleaning rag and wash his hands. In the meantime, Yamamoto and Gokudera finished setting the table. By the time that Tsuyoshi came back, everyone was ready to eat.
After giving thanks for the food, everyone dug in and murmurs of delight filled the air. The food had turned out deliciously.
"Wow, you boys have to cook together more often if this is what you come up with!" Tsuyoshi laughed out as he messily scooped up some more saucy noodles with his chopsticks. "Especially if Gokudera wants to cook more of his homeland's dishes! I'm ready and willing to try anything!"
Yamamoto smiled at his father's enthusiasm, his smile growing even bigger when he saw how flushed with embarrassment and appreciation that his boyfriend was at his father's compliments. In that moment, it truly felt like they were one big happy family.
…The raven-haired teen wouldn't love anything more if that actually happened one day.
Yamamoto's wishful thinking only seemed to spur on his need to touch his beloved, though, so sitting through the rest of dinner without being able to was even more torturous than before. He had never felt such an intense longing as he did then.
Thankfully, they all finished dinner rather quickly after the young jock's urges increased, and his father insisted that they go upstairs to start doing their homework while he cleaned up the dishes. Gokudera was persistent with the idea of helping out the older man, but Tsuyoshi wouldn't have any of it, saying that their studies were more important.
Seeing as his father wasn't going to take no for an answer, Yamamoto led the way up the stairs, Gokudera following closely behind him. With each step he took upwards, the frustrated Rain Guardian could feel his urges rise with it. He had been holding out for so long and Gokudera had been just too sexy and adorable in the last hour or so that Yamamoto wasn't sure if he could even focus on his studies. Especially if Gokudera kept his hair up like that!
When Gokudera stepped out into the restaurant, the room was already empty of people. Tsuyoshi-san told them that the last customers had just left, making the Italian realize that this would be like a cozy family dinner. It would be like one of those, right? He had no experience of those from his own home, and even when they ate over at the Tenth's house they would be a lot of people at the table and his respect for the Tenth, and his mother too, would never allow him to think of it as something as intimate as a family dinner. But right now there were only the three of them, and Takeshi was his boyfriend and Tsuyoshi-san was something like his father-in-law (albeit unwittingly!). It was as intimate and cozy as it could get for someone like him, wasn't it?
The silver-haired bomber was startled from these thoughts when Tsuyoshi-san told him how tasty the food looked. Gokudera felt new heat rush to his cheeks at the compliment. Of course he had no idea how a prospective fiancé felt when she was cooking for her future in-laws, but he felt a lot of pressure right then to impress Tsuyoshi-san. Taking the cutlery from Takeshi, he made sure to lay it out himself for the older Yamamoto, leaving him with the choice for either western-style spoon and fork or the more familiar chopsticks.
When Tsuyoshi-san sat down with them after washing his hands, Gokudera chimed in with the thanks giving, yet he couldn't eat a bite until he saw the reaction of the other two at the table. With his spoon and fork buried in the noodles, his gaze flicked back and forth between the two Yamamotos until he heard them hum in appreciation. Only when he was sure they liked the food he had cooked up for them did he follow suit and eat as well.
A few moments later, Tsuyoshi-san spoke up and praised their combined cooking skills. In a surge of greed, Gokudera wanted to shout out that he was the one who had done all the work, so that he could gather up and hog all the praise for himself. It wasn't like he felt like Yamamoto didn't deserve any praise, yet his boyfriend was a successful jock, a great warrior, and an all-around good person; he got praised all the time. But this moment, it was very special to the young Italian. Not only was he praised for something he had worked hard on, but he was praised by someone very important to him.
"Of course I will cook for you again if you should wish so, Tsuyoshi-san!" Gokudera shouted out even as his cheeks were burning a bright red in embarrassment and a secret happiness. Only barely was he able to keep himself from jumping up in his seat to bow deeply before the older Yamamoto.
With his heart beating rapidly with happiness, and a wonderful warmth filling his entire body and making it all tingly, the little bomber dug into his food with gusto. He had found a way to thank his savior, even if it was just in a small way. He had liked cooking with his boyfriend much more than he thought he would, and he was enjoying something akin to a real family dinner. Today was a very special day.
So, when they were done eating, Gokudera was eager to help out Tsuyoshi-san with cleaning or anything else just to keep this moment going and revel in the warm feelings it made him experience. Yet, once Takeshi had mentioned the homework waiting for them upstairs, his father was adamant they take care of those and forget about washing the dishes or anything else. In the end there was nothing left to do but follow his boyfriend up the stairs and into his room. Well, at least he could kind of thank Tsuyoshi-san for his incredible kindness by tutoring Takeshi and helping him with his homework, right?
Yet, once they were in his lover's room and the door shut behind them, Gokudera knew nothing of the like was going to happen once the other turned around. His hazel orbs were glowing almost feverishly with a hunger no amount of pasta could satiate. As his heart-rate picked up speed and the jock closed in on him, the smaller bomber could feel the need he had felt in the kitchen before return full force.
"T-Takeshi...we...we need to study," he breathed, trying to remind his boyfriend what they had come up here to do. Contrary to his own words, though, he wasn't even trying to evade the other one, but rather awaiting his touch with utter yearning shining in his eyes.