A/N: Time really got away from me on this one! I had a fair bit of trouble with the outline but finally I feel like this is a continuation that at least does the original story some justice, and gives these two some closure. I really hope you guys enjoy this! I'll try to keep the wait between chapters to a minimum.

JUST A NOTE ABOUT GUEST REVIEWS. Fanfiction doesn't allow me to reply to Guest reviews! So if you leave me one (which I appreciate) just know I can't send you a reply :(


Chapter One.

Closing his eyes, Ventus adjusted his grip on the hanging strap above him and let the gentle rocking of the train lull him into a comfortable doze. Since returning to Tokyo and beginning his new job, he'd always made it a part of his regular routine to stay behind after his last class and go over his future lesson plans or mark a few assignments, but today he'd felt like braving the crush. It was just after six in the evening and the peak of rush hour on the subway, which was what he usually tended to avoid, but with his third week at his new post nearly over, Ventus thought it'd be nice to be home early for once, and before the sun had fully set as well. It wasn't like working as an English teacher in a girl's school was particularly strenuous, but the obvious exhaustion he'd felt today had seemed more to do with the fact that he hadn't been feeling quite like himself lately, something just… not right at all. He couldn't put his finger on it exactly, or pinpoint when this disquieted feeling had first begun, but he as sure as hell knew the root cause of it.

If he was being even half honest with himself, nothing seemed to feel right anymore, not since that insufferable man had successfully barged his way back into his life.

Vanitas Ishi, the very bane of his existence, now plagued most, if not all of Ventus' waking thoughts.

Ventus opened his eyes tiredly and stared blankly through the gaps in people's heads over to the glass windows of the train carriage. He could just make out his own reflection amongst a sea of faces, the colour of his eyes dulled by the tint of the glass.

The train shuddered to a stop, an automated voice announcing the station name as commuters poured out the doors like a human wave, just as many people now pushing to get back on and take their vacated places. Ventus was jostled slightly from his position, but still managed to keep his handhold as he resituated himself and adjusted the strap of the backpack on his shoulder. Everyone now packed in like sardines, the doors of the carriage smoothly slid shut again and the train jolted forwards once more.

The morning after that night, Ventus had somehow managed to make his way back to his apartment without incident. He couldn't exactly recall how he'd gotten himself there, but the next thing he'd known was standing motionless in the middle of his living room, oddly staring down at his hands. He ended up sitting in his shower for what seemed like hours, the water falling gently onto his shoulders, his fingers playing over the marks he knew to be there, along the sides of his neck and across his chest. Later, he'd been a mess all over again worrying about how he was going to cover up the more noticeable ones for his first week of work – what would his students say if they caught sight of them? It didn't help at all knowing Vanitas had most likely left them all on purpose.

And then there were the memories.

All he had to do was have a single moment to himself and Vanitas' cold, arrogant demeanour would melt away, Ventus now tortuously fixated on remembering Vanitas quietly gasping his name with something akin to reverence, his eyes laying bare the emotion and feelings he still obviously harboured. No matter where he was, or what he was doing, Ventus would be completely lost just recalling the intimacy of Vanitas' heated touches along his skin, the near desperation of their lips melding perfectly against each other, over and over again…

It just wasn't fair, and that's why Ventus was so angry.

It was like someone had pulled the stitches of an old wound and wriggled their sharpened fingernails into it. Pain he'd felt long ago, that he'd thought was nothing but a distant memory, now stood out fresh in his mind. He might as well have walked out on Vanitas yesterday for all his heart understood.

And perhaps, he had considered his relationship with Vanitas, 'unfinished business', that maybe, there had been far too much left unsaid between them for him to just leave it, but finding himself waking up alone that morning had all but cemented his resolve. With the parameters of their agreement met, Vanitas hadn't felt the need, nor want to stay in his company any longer, choosing to leave without so much as a single, parting word. In hindsight, Ventus could definitely agree that waking up with Vanitas still beside him would have been incredibly awkward, but it would have been a far better conclusion to what they had between them now. Vanitas had given him his word that he would never contact him again after their arrangement had come to an end, so all Ventus was left with for closure was indefinite silence.

That, and six years of festering bad blood.

The train once again slowed to a stop, Ventus only paying half a mind that his station was now only three stops away. With the ongoing shuffle of people vacating and then others entering, Ventus slowly made his way over closer to the doors. Suited businessmen and high school-aged children pressed in on him from all sides, the air-conditioning of the carriage constantly battling to make a difference against so much concentrated body heat. Ventus sighed heavily through his nose and closed his eyes again. It wouldn't be long before he'd be comfortable at home, so for now he just had to bear it.

Try as he might to fight the compulsion, Ventus had typed Vanitas' name into Google the first chance he got. The search engine had been immediately inundated with page after page of damning information: news reports, countless articles, and – God's help him, even his own Wikipedia page. Ventus knew Wikipedia wasn't always an appropriate source for correct information, but it could be proven factual with enough references. Such was the case with Vanitas' biography. There were even pictures. As soon as he clicked into it, a recent photo of Vanitas with his eyes cold and dead, leapt out of the screen at him.

Vanitas Ishi, (also known by his various aliases: Void Gear, the Black Dragon, Ishi-Oni, and formally 'the Delivery Boy') was the only adoptive son to the late Xehanort Ishi, who was the former Oyabun of the Ishi-kai. Ventus strangely felt a grim sense of satisfaction seeing that Vanitas' life before joining the criminal organisation was largely unknown, but his apprehension only grew worse as he continued to read on, Vanitas' exploits before and after becoming the new Ishi-kai boss far too detailed for his liking.

Vanitas had started out like most Yakuza, as a low-ranking member who dealt with debt collection and local gambling rackets, but as a former, anonymous member of the Ishi-kai had informed police, Vanitas somehow managed to successfully pique Xehanort's interest, who never, if at all, ever paid attention to the small-fry. Vanitas became known as Xehanort's 'delivery boy', and would often be personally tasked with specialty 'clean up' jobs where he'd be sent out as an assassin. Ventus felt sick just reading that Vanitas' so called 'signature' calling card was disembowelling, where he'd then wrap the intestines around the victim's neck. The article even had the gall to describe Vanitas' kills as 'always clean and precise', which was disturbing beyond belief when he couldn't help but imagine how disgustingly messy throttling someone with their own entrails would be. Pushing on, Ventus discovered that Xehanort had indeed officially adopted Vanitas as his son and named him his first lieutenant, just shy of his 21st birthday – only four years after him becoming a member. It was a monumental feat, to move so quickly up the chain of command. It seemed Vanitas Ishi was a real force to be reckoned with.

It wasn't all 'sunshine and daisies', though, as Ventus soon learned. Not long after being instated as Xehanort's second in command, Vanitas had found himself caught in an all-out civil war with Xehanort's other two lieutenants when Xehanort unexpectedly died before naming a successor. Ventus had remembered hearing about this on the news, of how Tokyo had become an extremely dangerous place to live due to all the ensuing bloodshed. The Japanese Government had called numerous times for an end to the violence as it continued to escalate, and he'd been so glad to be living in Kyoto. He was only 22 at the time and had just finished his teaching degree, and when he'd first seen footage and mugshots of Vanitas on the television he'd been so shocked he'd nearly fallen out of his chair. He and Vanitas had had no contact with each other for all of three years and whereas Ventus knew Vanitas had chosen a life of crime he had never expected him to be involved to this extent. After an entire year of in-fighting, and with the other two lieutenant's dead, Vanitas finally emerged the victor, becoming Ishi-kai's youngest boss in a century at only 23. Under its new leadership, the organisation had immediately gone to ground then and had been operating covertly ever since.

Ventus had waited for the news of Vanitas' arrest to reach him, but it never did, and now he knew why. The police had never been able to pin the other two lieutenant's murders on him, (amongst countless other crimes), because there had apparently never been enough evidence to convict him, even though, due to Vanitas' habit of favouring traditional Japanese weapons over guns, there was more than enough speculation that he'd carried out the killings personally. There followed a number of photos of two men butchered beyond belief, the article informing Ventus that one of the lieutenants had committed Seppuku before having his head lopped off, while the other had not been as lucky to receive the same kindness. He'd been found with his eyes and tongue cut out, having simply been left to bleed to death.

Ventus had felt so ill he'd been unable to keep reading. To think, someone who he'd been intimate with, someone who had laughed and cried with him and held him so gently could be revealed as such a monster was really unsettling.

Pulled from his thoughts, Ventus idly noted the train had reached the next stop, the carriage doors slow to close this time with all the people now pressed against them. It was in that moment, when the train shunted forwards again that something seemed… , Ventus stole glances at the people around him, trying to pinpoint exactly what had changed. Every way he looked it was just more of the same thing: a lot of people just standing with their eyes closed or staring down, some even quietly conversing, but nothing looked out of the ordinary… It was just a general feeling of unease that he couldn't seem to shake. Surely… this was just paranoia.

Annoyed with himself, Ventus chose to ignore it and faced the window again, his eyes happening to lock with those of another. There was a man standing behind him, a couple of other people in between them, but it didn't take more than a split-second for Ventus to recognise him, no matter how brief their actual acquaintance had been. His anxiety promptly shot through the roof.

It was one of Vanitas' henchmen – one of the two who had forced his father to his knees.

Swallowing hard, Ventus tightened his grip on his backpack strap and looked down at his chest. Their eyes had only met in the reflection of the glass briefly, but it had been more than enough to be sure. The train carriage suddenly seemed a lot hotter, a lot more confined, and the air trapped in his lungs felt too heavy for him to breathe out. It could have just been a horrible coincidence, but there was no way in hell he was believing that. He felt eyes on the back of his head and just knew, the man was now openly staring at him. He'd never known Vanitas not to be a man of his word, but maybe he'd been a little naïve in still believing that. Maybe… Vanitas had changed his mind about letting him go?

Maybe, he'd sent his goons to drag him back?

There was no time to be indecisive. As soon as the carriage doors opened at the next stop, Ventus was pushing his way through. Squaring his shoulders and not daring to look behind him, he fell into an even rhythm and moved along with the flow of people also exiting the station. He walked fast, weaving quickly through the crowd, one hand still clenched so hard around the strap of his backpack that it was starting to cut into his skin. He took the stairs up to ground level, two at a time, immediately veering right, straight onto the main street. Luckily for him, this was a particularly busy part of the city, so he could easily use it to his advantage.

Jogging across a street just as the direction of traffic changed, Ventus dodged around a large group of people waiting outside an already overcrowded restaurant and turned down another street that he knew to be packed with open-air bars and bustling noodle shops. There was a lot more people here, but Ventus kept moving, wanting to keep his advantage as much as possible. If there really was still a chance that that guy was after him, Ventus wasn't going to make it easy for him to keep up. Just before the street tailed off into another one, Ventus noticed another set of stairs heading underground and immediately ducked down them. He found himself in the food court of a large shopping mall, people milling about everywhere he looked, most, if not all of them lined up to purchase food or already seated, eating. Too nauseous to be hungry anymore, Ventus quickly darted down an escalator to the floor below before striding for the other side of the building. He found another set of escalators and went back up before quickly blending in with a group of businessmen exiting through a side entryway.

From there it wasn't hard to find another subway entrance, and before he knew it, he was back on the train again, sandwiched in as if he'd never gotten off in the first place. Still wary, Ventus scrutinised the people around him, but he was more than sure that the man hadn't gotten on with him, if he'd even been following him to begin with. Even now he wasn't completely sure if he was just overreacting, but it went without saying that if Vanitas had changed his mind about leaving him alone, if he found out where Ventus lived it would all be game over. It wasn't for the first time that Ventus wished he wasn't stuck with paying off his father's debt, otherwise he'd be moving straight back to Kyoto. He hadn't known it at the time, but Kyoto was apparently under the jurisdiction of another Yakuza clan, so Vanitas had no reach there at all. This only served to make Ventus all the more determined. If he moved back to Kyoto, Vanitas wouldn't be able to touch him.

Ventus wasted no time in getting home. He walked quickly and made sure to stay along well-lit streets, the crowds of people left behind him, now that he was more outside of the city centre. For once, the key to his apartment didn't jam in the lock, and the door didn't make a single sound as he pushed it open. For some reason, this bothered him more than it should. It always squeaked. He'd been meaning to oil the hinges since the day he'd moved in. Paranoid all over again, Ventus closed the door behind him, dropped his backpack at his feet and clicked on the light. His apartment looked just as he'd left it, slightly messy, with packing boxes still dotted around the living room, but nothing was out of place… as far as he could tell.

Still unsure, he swiftly toed off his shoes and made quick work of walking over to the sliding door to the balcony, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw that it was still locked and secure. Rubbing tiredly at his eyes, Ventus closed them and gently rested his forehead against the cool surface of the glass door.

This was so stupid. It had been nearly a month since his night with Vanitas, so why now was he becoming so anxious? Yes, he'd been feeling out of sorts, but that wasn't enough of a reason to be jumping at shadows and running from supposed stalkers on the subway. Maybe, he just really needed a weekend away, just to get a good night's sleep without having to wake up and deal with the morning rush hour, or organise tedious remedial classes for his students. He knew he had to go visit his father at some point and make sure he was settling in okay, so perhaps that was a better idea. Right now, though, he just wanted to sleep. He was just too exhausted of this constant, suffocating tension.

Opening his eyes, Ventus stared blankly down at the floor between his feet, still reluctant in moving just yet. It took him a while to focus, but eventually he realised what he was staring down at. Lying beside the sliding door was something that at first glance looked like a nail file. Puzzled, Ventus bent down to pick it up. It was a small metal tool, the handle no longer than his index finger, with a long thin, needle-like hook protruding out of one end of it. He turned it over and over between his fingers, trying to comprehend what it could be, but nothing at all was coming to mind – until he looked to the lock on the sliding door again. Carefully, gripping the slim handle of the tool, Ventus wedged it into the lock. There would be another tool required to fully disengage the locking mechanism, but the tool's purpose was made clear enough. A lock pick. There was a fucking lock pick in his apartment.

Ventus actually laughed. It probably sounded insane, but there was no one else there to hear it. Slowly, he sunk to his knees.

He was trapped here, and that was the hardest truth. He had no money to move back to Kyoto, and this had been the only apartment he'd been able to afford with a debt of twenty million hanging over his head like a sharpened guillotine. The fact that he'd been broken into, but nothing seemed to have been stolen was not wasted on him either. Who else, but him, would be responsible for this?

The apartment was silent, save for the harshness of his breathing. It pressed in on him, the white noise filling his head. He didn't know what to do anymore. Two months ago, his life had been perfect, and now, it was like he was descending into the very depths of hell.

-0-

"Okay, that's it for today – don't forget the homework on page 63, please."

Excited at having been dismissed, his class all answered him in unison before happily chattering amongst themselves as they packed away their workbooks and pens. His teaching done and his attention already directed elsewhere, Ventus closed the textbook he was holding and promptly looked out the bank of windows to the right of him. He looked passed the sports grounds where another class was playing a game of Soccer and over towards the open school gates. For one brief moment, he felt relieved – that is, until the strange man that had been loitering just on the other side of the gates stepped back into view again. Ventus felt a wave of dread wash over him. This surely couldn't just be baseless paranoia anymore. He'd only noticed the man around midday, but who was to say he hadn't been there since Ventus had arrived for work, first thing in the morning? He'd been watching the man pace back and forth outside the gates for the entire afternoon, and not once had he moved far from the front of the school. Something was definitely going on.

"Sir, are you okay…?"

Ventus blinked and turned to the student he hadn't notice approach him. It was a girl named Xion, both of her hands neatly grasping the handle of her bookbag in front of her.

"E-Excuse me for asking, but you don't seem well today."

Ventus forced his mouth up into what he hoped was a reassuring smile. Great. He'd been so distracted his students were even starting to notice. "Thanks for asking, but I'm okay. Just tired."

Xion instantly looked relieved and smiled too, her fingers playing along the handle of her bag. She bowed low, already stepping away. "I hope your weekend is very restful then."

Now Ventus' smile really was genuine. He returned her bow with a slight incline of his head. "Thanks; I hope yours is too."

Xion was a good student. She was mostly more on the quiet side, but she always worked hard and never shied away from helping her classmates. Ventus watched her join her friends and leave, most of the other students having left the classroom already. The promise of a weekend away from school and boring classes was just way too enticing.

Waiting till he was alone, Ventus was quick to return to watching the school gates, his eyes easily hunting out the man he'd been monitoring for the better half of the day. As he watched, groups of students began filing out of the gates, some noticeably looking over at the man, who Ventus couldn't quite see from his position, save for his profile. As he continued to watch, Ventus was surprised to see some of the girls break away to walk over and approach the man, and finally, this was the first time he was able to get a proper look. Frowning, he moved closer to the windows and rested his hands on the nearest windowsill.

The man stepped out from behind the wall and started talking with the girls, and Ventus quickly noted how young he was, surely no more than 18. He was also wearing plain clothes, which Ventus had thought earlier wasn't exactly Yakuza style. The girls were crowding him on all sides now, and although he appeared nervous he still seemed quite friendly. Ventus chewed on the side of his bottom lip, still watching, but thoughtful. Maybe he had been wrong in assuming that this guy had been waiting around all day for him. Now that he considered it, there was a very real chance that he might actually have a girlfriend who went to this school, but even so… what kind of creep hung around outside all day, just waiting for classes to end? Still suspicious, Ventus' eyes narrowed as the man waved the group of girls off, but then stayed standing by the gate. He stepped back around the corner, more out of sight, but Ventus could still see his face. The guy was looking for someone, that much was obvious, his eyes shifting through the crowds of students still moving passed him.

Sighing loudly, Ventus straightened from his position against the windowsill and moved back over towards his desk to begin gathering his things. There was no use in over-thinking it, and it wasn't going to do him any good just standing in here jumping to conclusions. The rational part of his brain was still convinced he was just being paranoid, but then… stranger things had already occurred. He would be hard-pressed to forget finding the lock-picking tool in his apartment, or the underling that had manhandled his father, watching him on the train, so who knew what Vanitas was really capable of, even if this sort of… harassment didn't quite seem his style. Ventus could more see Vanitas as the type to just 'take' what he wanted, but then again, he already well understood that Vanitas was a man that should never be underestimated.

His backpack now fully packed and slung over his shoulder, Ventus turned off the lights to the classroom and slid the door closed behind him. Despite all the uncertainty, he was actually really looking forward to some downtime over the weekend. He had a few lesson plans to go over, but that wasn't much, so for the rest of the time he could finally get a break – that, and he also needed to check in on his father.

Keeping his pace casual, Ventus waved to a few other teachers he came across on his way out of the building before heading directly for the gate. There were still many students hanging around the sports grounds, most just talking and sitting in small groups, or watching and waiting for the afternoon baseball tryouts. Upon reaching the gates, Ventus wasn't at all surprised to find the guy still waiting there. He didn't look at him – didn't acknowledge him in any way, but from out of the corner of his eye he could easily see that the man was looking straight at him. Turning his back on him, Ventus fought all of his instincts to turn around and look behind him as he continued his way along the street. He was just dying to know if the guy was following him, but he would have to be patient. He didn't go his usual way home, instead choosing to bypass the subway altogether, heading towards an inner-city grocery store he knew would be relatively busy at this time.

Grabbing a basket by the doors, Ventus slowly wandered around the store, making a show of grabbing items off the shelves and inspecting them for a while before placing them back down again. Eventually, slowly walking along one of the aisles and weaving around a mother and her child, Ventus stopped and turned to inspect the shelving again, but this time, as he held a can of beans and pretended to read the label, he looked up and to the side, peering down the way he'd just come.

And sure enough, there he was.

He was standing midway along the aisle behind a number of other people, but Ventus had a clear line of sight from where he was standing. Their eyes met and Ventus froze, but the man was the first to look away, trying to busy himself with looking at a display of tinned tuna. Ventus just stared, his heart leaping into his throat. Yes, he'd suspected it, but here was the undeniable proof.

Woodenly, Ventus carefully placed the beans back on the shelf. In somewhat of a daze, his mind reeling, he made his way into the next aisle and stood by the entrance – waiting. Who else but Vanitas would do something like this? Not to mention, how long had this been going on? …How long had it taken him to even notice?

He waited for the guy to follow him around the corner, but after a minute or two, there was still no sign of him. His patience wearing thin, Ventus began walking down the aisle to start making his way out of the store, until rather predictably, the guy was there again in front of him, having obviously ducked around the other end to stay in the same aisle as him. Ventus nearly shook his head in disbelief. Either Vanitas was getting slack or he'd wanted him to catch this guy because he was doing a terrible job at remaining inconspicuous. The guy glanced at him again and upon seeing Ventus looking directly at him, swiftly looked away, shoving a few packets of biscuits into the basket he was carrying for good measure. Reaching his limit, Ventus had had enough. This was beyond a joke.

Striding down the aisle, Ventus dodged around the other few people that were in his way before coming alongside the man, who was now closely inspecting a box of wafer crackers. Ventus could see he was nervous, especially now that they were standing side by side.

"Why are you following me?"

The guy actually jumped a little. Visibly more nervous now, he tried to put on a tough act, looking at Ventus like he'd just asked the most insane question in existence.

"F-Following? You?" He scoffed loudly, taking a step back. "I'm not sure what you're on about, old man, but –"

"Save it." Ventus cut him off, already tapping away at his phone screen. He quickly found what he was looking for and held it up for the man to see. On it, his phone number was displayed.

"This is my phone number. You better get it down."

Taken by surprise, the man's jaw worked uselessly for a second, his eyes running over Ventus' phone number like he'd just been handed the holy grail.

"…Why would I want that?" He snorted weakly, still ridiculously trying to play it cool.

Ventus just gave him a look. He continued to hold the number up.

"Tell your boss I want him to call me. Do you realise what I'm giving you right now? Do you know what he would do to get it?"

There was a pregnant pause between them as they stared each other down, until finally, the man's shoulders sagged in defeat.

"Okay," was all he said as he quietly took out his own phone and entered Ventus' number into it.

Seeing his number successfully saved on the man's phone, Ventus turned to leave without another word. An afterthought occurring to him, he stopped briefly, facing the man again. The man stood frozen in surprise, his expression slightly frightened.

"And tell him, if he hurts you in any way for blowing your cover, don't even bother calling me."

The man was stunned. For a second he blinked owlishly, and then alarmingly looked like he was about to cry. The relief on his face was near palpable. He bowed so low his hair almost brushed the floor.

"Thank you so much, Fujin-sama! It's true what they say about you!"

The man stayed bent at the waist for far too long, the depth of his bow clearly conveying his gratitude and respect, but for what exactly, Ventus wasn't quite sure.

"Uh, yeah…" He managed to answer as he glanced around at the people surrounding them that were now all staring. Never had anyone used 'sama' on the end of his name and having been addressed in such a way, in a grocery store no less, was slightly embarrassing to say the least.

It was only after he'd left the grocery store and gotten onto his train home that he'd realised that the man had even known his name to begin with. He wasn't just 'some guy' Vanitas was having followed everywhere, he'd been labelled as someone important, for whatever reason, but just the fact that Vanitas' goons were respectful to him did not make any of this okay – not by a long shot! He knew it was only a matter of time before Vanitas called him and then he'd be putting an end to this mess, once and for all.

-0-

His phone rang within the hour.

He'd barely gotten inside his apartment before it was vibrating in his pocket, calling for his immediate attention. The screen showed a private number, but Ventus knew it was him. He let it ring for at least another ten seconds before finally pressing accept.

"Vanitas."

There was silence on the other end, then –

"Do you always answer the phone like that?"

Vanitas' voice filtered through clearly and Ventus' heartbeat sped up of its own volition. For a second his mind went blank, but he just managed to get a hold of himself before his pause came across as strange. Wasting no more time, he cut straight to the point.

"What the hell are you doing, Vanitas? I thought we had an agreement, or does the word of the mighty Ishi-kai boss mean nothing these days?"

Vanitas hummed thoughtfully. "Ah, but see, Ventus, you're actually the one who's contacted me, so I haven't broken my word at all."

"…You…" Ventus breathed, realising the trick. "You planned this!"

"I'm not sure of what you mean," Vanitas answered, and now he definitely sounded smug. "I have men working for me everywhere in this city, it's only chance that some of them may be in the same area as you, at any given time."

"You're an idiot if you think I'm going to believe that," Ventus grated out, his anger getting the better of him. "Stop having me followed, and leave me alone."

Vanitas sighed, and Ventus could imagine him rolling his eyes.

"You're not exactly living in the greatest part of Tokyo, Ventus, so as far as I'm concerned I'm doing you a favour. You should be grateful."

Ventus felt like he'd been hit up the side of the head with a phonebook. Not only was Vanitas admitting to having him followed, but he was completely and utterly unapologetic. He was actually proud of himself!

"I'm hanging up."

Removing his phone from his ear, Ventus poised his finger over the 'end call' button, just as he heard Vanitas reply.

"Wait."

Despite his better judgement, Ventus moved the phone back up to his ear.

"…I want to meet. There's things we need to talk about."

Ventus shook his head, his answer curt. "Out of the question. I have nothing to say to you."

"No matter how… distasteful I am to you now, you still can't deny the fact that we have unfinished business."

Remaining silent, Ventus thought it over, even if he already knew Vanitas had a valid point. Would this horrible feeling that had been plaguing him ever since their reunion finally leave him if they just talked it out?

"I pick the place." It wasn't a question.

Vanitas didn't even hesitate. "Of course."

"Day-time hours." Ventus added, already wondering if he would live to regret this.

Vanitas laughed quietly, and Ventus' nerves had him gripping the phone tighter.

"As long as I can see you, I'm fine with whatever you choose."

-0-

Ventus was nervous. After some thought, he'd decided on a coffee shop near to his apartment, only a couple of stops down the line just to be safe – not that that seemed to matter since Vanitas had already made it known he knew where he lived. He'd chosen a booth further to the back of the shop where there were less people, but as it was a Saturday, the café was still generally quite busy. Ventus didn't know what to expect from this meeting but he did feel more at ease being in such a public place. After their phone conversation, Vanitas had given Ventus his number and they had exchanged details over text message to meet at ten in the morning. Ventus had rather predictably gotten here a half hour early, but he'd grown restless sitting at home just waiting to head out. Not only that, he'd also been curious to see if he was still being followed. He hadn't noticed anyone tailing him, so as infuriating as it was that the stalking had occurred at all, it seemed once Vanitas had gotten what he'd wanted he'd ended the harassment immediately. Thank goodness for small mercies.

It was just reaching ten and Ventus drummed his fingers restlessly against the table. It would only be a matter of minutes and Vanitas would be walking right through that door…

He glanced up at the café entrance again, and as if summoned, Ventus recognised Vanitas' shock of black hair on the other side of the glass door. As Ventus watched, another man in a business suit came in before Vanitas and promptly held the door open for him. Vanitas' eyes scanned the room at record speed, all of his attention directed on Ventus just seconds later. Without pausing, he began making his way over, the man that had held the door for him closely following. Ventus sat up a little straighter, his heart doing that annoying 'beating in his throat' thing again. He swallowed hard. He wasn't sure of what he had been expecting but Vanitas was dressed painfully casual in faded denim jeans and a dark singlet, a long-sleeved shirt that was rolled up at the elbows simply thrown over the top. He honestly looked like he'd just dragged himself out of bed, and he didn't seem to care at all that his Irezumi tattoos were on full display, black and red ink just visible along both of his forearms. If he hadn't already known Vanitas was the leader of a large criminal organisation he never would have believed it, even if the tattoos were more than telling to some..

Vanitas was halfway across the room when a number of things happened all at once. The café at large fell strangely silent, and a man sitting near to Ventus suddenly stood up so fast his chair fell backwards. Without any explanation to the woman he was seated with, he ran in a state of panic through the tables, slamming his way through the door to the café's kitchen. Then, Ventus noticed several other people standing and gathering their things as well, a few glancing fearfully in Vanitas' direction.

Oh hell…

Ventus slunk low in his seat, just as Vanitas reached him. The café was now more than half empty, but many of the patrons that had stayed were all still curiously looking over at Vanitas. Ventus closed his eyes and prayed for strength. He had definitely been naïve in thinking that Vanitas' reputation wouldn't be known here. For his part, Vanitas just looked bored, as if people running at the mere sight of him was just a regular occurrence. Without a word, he slid into the booth's seat on the opposite side of Ventus. Avoiding Vanitas' eyes for the moment, Ventus glanced off to the side and was surprised to see a familiar face. It was the young man who had followed him around the grocery store, and was now sitting at a nearby table with the other man who had entered the café with Vanitas. The man saw Ventus looking and smiled at him, actually giving him a small wave in greeting. Caught off guard, Ventus offered a small awkward smile in return. Across from him, Vanitas' eyes narrowed. Following Ventus' line of sight he shot a glare at his underling who in turn rapidly bowed his head. Ventus frowned.

"Is it against the rules to smile?" Ventus meant it to sound derisive, but Vanitas took the question seriously.

"He's the only son of a business associate I'm teaching a lesson to," Vanitas murmured, resting his forearms on the table. "Think of it like Day Care."

Ventus was not impressed. "You would play with someone's life like that? He's only a kid."

"That 'kid' is one of the best martial artists in all of Japan, a master in Aikido by the age of 17." Vanitas answered, matter of fact. "He'd be useless to me here if he was just a liability."

"Of course," Ventus shot back. "Everyone's gotta serve some purpose to you, don't they?"

"Gentlemen, gentlemen!" A portly, balding man suddenly interrupted, rushing up to their table. "Please excuse my interruption, but I must say, what a pleasure it is to have you in our shop, Ishi-sama!" The man turned his attention to Ventus then, bowing his head repeatedly. "And you of course, sir, any friend of Ishi-sama's is a welcome guest of ours!"

Vanitas, who had been in the process of answering Ventus' gibe slowly closed his mouth and rolled his eyes skyward.

"Go. Away."

Ventus watched all the colour drain from the man's face, who he could only assume was the manager here. The manager bowed low, his smile strained.

"Y-Yes, sir! If there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask!"

"Just coffee will be great, thanks." Ventus cut in, seeing Vanitas obviously wasn't going to be civil.

The manager bowed to them again, already hurrying to take his leave. "I will send one of the girls over right away."

Left on their own, Ventus found himself caught in a staring match, Vanitas' face completely blank as he studied him intently. Ventus knew full well that Vanitas was a sociopath – perhaps even a psychopath when it came down to it. He was never one to convey his feelings well, or know how to empathise properly with others, and Ventus didn't quite know if he could call Vanitas' interest in him 'love' when it seemed more like an obsession.

When they were still in school, Ventus had always known that their friendship hadn't been built on the healthiest of foundations, and it had only been inevitable right from the start that they would eventually take their relationship another step further. Vanitas would never have been satisfied with only having Ventus' friendship, not when he'd never made it a secret that he'd wanted all of him. Luckily for him, Ventus had felt the same.

He knew they had an interesting power dynamic. It was a constant battle of wills that had always excited him when they were younger, and if he was going to be even a little honest with himself, there had been a very small part of him that had relished Vanitas' possessiveness of him. Even now, it gave him somewhat of a heady rush, that even after all these years, he still seemed to be the only one Vanitas wanted to depend on – the only one he was unwilling to let go of. Despite their time apart, Ventus still knew he had a slight advantage here. Regardless of Vanitas' feelings for him, he had to make him see sense, or at the very least, get him to leave him alone for good.

Tactful as always, Vanitas was still staring at him. It was only after his eyes lowered to Ventus' lips that Ventus forced himself to break the silence. With a frustrated sigh, he flumped back in his seat, crossing his arms.

"You wanted to talk, so talk."

With impeccable timing, a waitress chose that moment to come over and take their order.

"What can I get you today?" She asked, her eyes never leaving her little notebook in hand. Ventus could tell she was nervous, her fingers gripping her pen just a little too tight. He ordered for the both of them.

"I'll just have a cappuccino, please, and he'll have a long black in a mug."

With a nod of her head she was quick to leave them alone again.

"You remember how I take my coffee." Vanitas said quietly, sounding pleased.

"I remember a lot of things about you, unfortunately." Ventus dryly replied, starting to wonder if they were ever going to get around to discussing the issue at hand. He was just about to prompt him again when Vanitas beat him to the punch.

"I think we should get back together."

"No."

Vanitas frowned. "You didn't even think about it."

Ventus fought the urge to roll his eyes. He sighed heavily. "I don't need to think about it, Vanitas. It was different for us years ago, it worked, but now you kill people and make a profit out of crime!" He pressed a hand to his chest, lowering his voice. "I'm a school teacher! I can't be associated with the Yakuza!"

Clearly agitated, Vanitas snorted and looked off to the side. He fell back against his seat and propped one arm up against the headrest "I think you're just making excuses. The real truth of it is you're actually just scared." He looked back over at Ventus, challenging.

Now it was Ventus' turn to scoff. "Scared? Of what?"

Vanitas made him wait for an answer as the man who had held the door open for him suddenly stood from his seat and approached them. Without a word, he produced a pack of cigarettes and offered one to Vanitas. Ventus ridiculously felt like he was guest-starring in a gangster movie as the man lit Vanitas' cigarette for him before returning to his previous post.

Vanitas drew on the cigarette hard before neatly blowing the smoke up at the ceiling. He pointed the cigarette at Ventus, smoke from the end lazily curling upwards.

"Commitment." He said simply.

Incredulous, Ventus opened his mouth to argue, right when the manager chose to make a reappearance, bustling over with an ashtray.

"I'm terribly sorry, sir, but this is unfortunately a non-smoking establishment – new regulations, see? I-I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to put it out." He held the ashtray out towards Vanitas, his hand lightly shaking.

Vanitas spent an uncomfortably long time just staring the poor man down before slowly looking down at his lit cigarette.

"Oh. How rude of me."

Deliberately slow, he grabbed the manager's hand that was holding the ashtray and pulled him in closer. Without even blinking, he bypassed the ashtray altogether, choosing to stub the cigarette out on the man's wrist. His eyes flying wide, Ventus gasped and reached out to stop it a little too late. The manager whimpered and squeezed his eyes closed, his entire body shaking as he shrunk in on himself. The cigarette out, Vanitas dropped it into the ashtray like nothing out of the ordinary and turned back to Ventus, just as another couple at a nearby table hastily gathered their things and fled the café as well.

"T-thank you… s-sir." The manager gasped out before clumsily bowing and practically running for the kitchen.

Ventus was shell-shocked. Vanitas actually tried to look innocent.

"What?"

"This is exactly what I'm talking about!" Ventus burst out, gesturing wildly at Vanitas. "Are you being serious right now? You just hurt that guy really bad and you don't even care!?"

Scowling, Vanitas sighed and rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Oi," he said, prompting the same henchman to approach them again with just a jerk of his chin. "Go fix him up."

The man nodded. "Understood, sir."

Ventus watched him go, following the manager into the café's kitchen without a care for if he was even allowed back there in the first place. Ventus swung back around to face Vanitas, thoroughly unconvinced.

"Is that Yakuza talk for kill? Don't you dare kill him, Vanitas!"

Vanitas grumpily crossed his arms, looking as if Ventus' fears were completely unfounded. "No, he's not gonna kill him. Despite what you think I'm not always a bad person, Ventus."

Ventus sniffed. "I'm finding that hard to believe."

Vanitas just shrugged. "Think what you want."

The waitress took that moment to bring them their order. They both sat quietly and waited till she was done, Ventus worriedly eyeing her shaking hands, the cups rattling in their saucers. She managed to set his down without any problems, but just as Vanitas' was put in front of him she bumped the edge, causing some of the black coffee to spill slightly down the side. It pooled in the saucer, and both Ventus and Vanitas stared down at it, the waitress already appearing panicked. Ventus reflexively held his breath.

"I-I'm so sorry! I'll get you a new one!"

She shakily reached out to take the mug back, but Ventus put a hand out and stopped her.

"It's okay, I'll clean it up," he told her, offering her a comforting smile. He quickly grabbed a wad of napkins and shoved them under the mug. "No harm done."

Looking between Ventus and the girl, Vanitas rather surprisingly smiled at her too.

"Thanks," was all he said, but it proved to be enough. The girl blinked rapidly in surprise and hid behind her serving tray, her cheeks tinting pink. Bowing quickly, she skittered away.

"See?" Vanitas said, gesturing after the girl. "I can be nice."

Ventus said nothing. He couldn't have been less impressed if he tried.

Continuing, Vanitas leaned back in his seat, smirking slightly. "But it's only because I'm with you. You keep me honest."

Keeps me sane… whispered through Ventus' mind, that night in his apartment, the night he'd walked out, instantly leaping to the forefront.

Sobering, Ventus looked down into his coffee, his fingers playing with one of the sugar sachets sitting on the side. "Honest, huh? I couldn't keep you honest back then, so what makes you think I can now?"

In the process of taking a sip of his coffee, Vanitas paused. He lowered the mug, looking at Ventus from over the rim. "You're still bitter about that? It's been six years, let it go already."

Ventus had to bite his tongue. He could very nearly say the same thing.

Vanitas plonked his mug back down onto his mushy pile of napkins and shifted forwards, his tone matter of fact. "You know what I think? You only broke up with me in the first place because you were too angry to really think about what you were doing." His hand snaked across the table, his fingers playing over the back of Ventus' hand. He smirked. "I know you regret it, especially after our night together…"

Ventus was gobsmacked.

"Vanitas, I broke up with you because you were hiding illicit drugs in my apartment!" He whipped his hand out of reach.

Vanitas was indifferent. He slowly retracted his arm. "It was a couple kilos of coke, so what?"

Ventus couldn't believe what he was hearing. Mindful of the people still around them, he lowered his voice to an angry whisper. "A couple!? Filling the roof is not a couple of kilos! I could've went to prison because of you! You used me!"

Vanitas waved his hand in the air and the henchman that had disappeared into the kitchen instantly materialised. He swiftly lit Vanitas another cigarette, and this time, no one stopped him. The manager still hadn't reappeared and Ventus was really starting to wonder if he was even still alive. Who knew what Vanitas' lackey had actually done to 'fix' him.

Vanitas exhaled heatedly, cigarette smoke billowing upwards. His eyes narrowed just a fraction. "I didn't mean for it to turn out that way and you know it. What should it matter now, anyway? Everything worked out in the end."

Everything except us, Ventus thought, slowly shaking his head. It wasn't at all surprising that Vanitas was still incapable of apologising. He felt like asking if it'd been worth it? – Choosing this life over the longevity of their relationship, but he couldn't bring himself to say it, too afraid of hearing the answer. Even after all these years, it still hurt to think back on how everything had ended between them. He just wanted to be free of this, he wanted Vanitas to take some responsibility. …He needed him to understand that he couldn't have his cake and eat it too.

"But we're getting off topic here," Vanitas added, pulling Ventus from his thoughts. "Tell me you'll at least consider it?"

Ventus was confused. "…Consider what?"

"Us getting back together."

Looking Vanitas dead in the eye, Ventus decided to change tactics.

"I'm seeing someone."

Vanitas exhaled smoke through his nose, his expression hard. "You're not."

"Well, maybe I am," Ventus flippantly replied, holding Vanitas' gaze.

Vanitas just looked mildly amused. "Oh? What's his name then?"

Ventus busied himself with drinking some of his coffee, his answer stilted.

"As if I would tell you."

Vanitas snorted, a triumphant grin pulling at his lips. "You're a terrible liar, as always. If you are seeing someone, you haven't actually seen them once in over three weeks."

Ventus glared, his patience wearing thin.

"Whatever, think what you want, but you can't change the fact that we're two very different people now." Vanitas' grin slipped right off his face. Ventus continued, pushing his point home. "You… You're a stranger to me now. I don't… know you at all anymore… and you don't know me."

Vanitas looked serious, his eyes softening. He reached across the table to grab a hold of Ventus' hand once again. Ventus allowed it. "Then, let's get reacquainted. Let me –"

"I don't want to be reacquainted with you, Vanitas," Ventus harshly interrupted. "I don't want to know the person you've become."

Vanitas' fingers tightened over his just briefly and Ventus looked away, feeling ashamed. That had been a low blow, but playing nice obviously wasn't getting through. Vanitas lifted his hand away.

"So you'd rather believe what you've read in the papers and seen on the internet than actually get to know me again." It wasn't a question, Vanitas' voice low and expressionless.

"There has to be some truth to it," Ventus murmured, avoiding Vanitas' eyes. "I'm sure all those men you've murdered didn't just disembowel themselves."

There was silence on Vanitas' end and Ventus glanced back up, his heart sharply aching at what he saw. Vanitas actually looked sad, and Ventus felt sick knowing he'd put that expression there. His resolve began to waver. He wasn't wrong, he couldn't be.

He had to stay strong.

Bracing his hands on the table, Ventus pushed himself to standing.

"…I have to go. I won't be telling you again, Vanitas. Stop stalking me and leave me alone. I'm not going to change my mind."

Staring straight ahead, Vanitas stubbed his cigarette in his saucer and finally looked up at him. He definitely wasn't conflicted anymore, his face nothing but determined.

"I'm not giving up. You're just being stubborn. Despite everything that's happened, you know we're meant to be together. Maybe, if you gave me a chance, you'd see I'm not as different as you think."

Ventus pulled a few bills from his wallet and laid them down on the table. He didn't look at Vanitas again.

"Goodbye, Vanitas."

Keeping his posture as relaxed as possible, Ventus left the café. Vanitas didn't try and stop him.