A/N: Hello, lovelies! And how are we all today? I realized a very sad thing when I looked over my docs and realized I haven't been writing much for this fandom... It's because I get way more reviews for, other fandoms. So we must fix that! please leave reviews, not just on Mathis story (though you are perfectly welcome to do so) but on other stories as well. Good. Now that's out of the way...
This story is rated M for a reason not prevalent in the first chapter, but that shall become clear soon enough. Please don't get attached to this if you find the idea of two men together gross or even mildly repulsive. Thank you!
"Come on, Hisoka! Take a picture of me!" Tsuzuki posed in his new swimsuit, standing in front of the bright blue ocean. It was spring break for their office, and everyone had packed up and headed to the beach. Hisoka hated it. The hot weather and salty air just made him want to curl up in a dark room somewhere and maybe read a book or sleep. Unfortunately, his partner was having none of that. Hisoka had been dragged around all morning, through markets and little shops and to every single little stand selling fruit or edible things that Tsuzuki could see. Damn buddy system. Watari had immediately claimed Tatsumi as his buddy, which the secretary pretended not to be very pleased about, and everyone else had already paired up, so Hisoka was left with his idiot of a partner. He probably wouldn't have minded so much if it wasn't so hot. Tsuzuki really wasn't a bad guy. Annoying at times, even more so when drunk, which seemed to happen quite often, but not too bad.
"Hey! 'Soka-chan!" Tsuzuki called again, breaking Hisoka out of his reverie.
"Fine. But then we're going back to the hotel." Hisoka grumbled as he pulled out the camera. It was going to be filled with photos of Tsuzuki after this trip. And, as Hisoka was quick to point out, he had absolutely no interest in taking any more pictures. He snapped a few quick ones while Tsuzuki posed in ridiculous positions for his pictures.
"Let's go." Hisoka walked away quickly, thinking of the cold glass of water waiting for him in the air conditioned room of their hotel. Tsuzuki looked disappointed for a moment, but followed Hisoka all the same, starting up his pointless chatter as they walked back.
After a few blocks, Tsuzuki began complaining that his feet hurt and they should have taken a cab. His head hurting and body generally in a sweaty and unhappy state, Hisoka finally turned around and shouted at Tsuzuki.
"Do you not think I'm tired too? Maybe we could have gotten a cab if you hadn't spent all your money on food and souvenirs already, you idiot! Would you just shut up, for once in your life, and act your age?" With that outburst he turned back around and continued walking. Tsuzuki looked a little surprised, but wasn't overly hurt by it. He knew Hisoka hated hot weather. It was a wonder he had even agreed to come out of the hotel at all. For the last ten minutes of walking, Tsuzuki stayed a few feet behind the fuming teenager.
When they finally made it to the hotel, Hisoka seriously entertained the thought of locking his partner out for an hour or so, but knew that would just make things worse in the end. He left the door open behind him and went straight to the bedroom.
When they had first arrived, the two twin beds had been pushed together to form a king bed. Tsuzuki had been ecstatic, spewing some senseless crap about one big sleepover. Hisoka, however, had taken one look at the room and pushed the beds as far apart as possible. There was nothing on earth that would convince him to sleep in the same bed as Tsuzuki, who tended to move and talk in his sleep.
Hisoka collapsed into his bed, kicking his shoes off and closing his eyes. A few minutes later, just as he was starting to fall asleep, there was a knocking on his door.
"Hisoka?" Tsuzuki stuck his head through the door and spotted Hisoka on the bed. "Oh, sorry, did I wake you up?"
"What do you want?" Hisoka glared at him from his pillow.
"I brought you some water... I wanted to check on you." Tsuzuki took that as an excuse to push his way through the door and sit on the edge of Hisoka's bed to hand him the water.
Hisoka muttered a thanks and downed the entire cup. He felt much better after that. He must have been dehydrated.
"I'll go get you some more!" Tsuzuki quickly bustled out of the room and returned with the glass full again. This time, Hisoka sipped it slowly.
"Are you feeling better?" Tsuzuki asked worriedly. He felt bad about keeping Hisoka out in the sun all day. The poor boy looked like he was getting a sunburn. Tsuzuki made a mental note to pick up some sunscreen.
"Yeah, thanks." Hisoka was still annoyed at Tsuzuki, but it had faded somewhat now that the pounding in his head had let up.
"Great! Are you going to be okay to come out to dinner with Tatsumi and Watari and me tonight?" He asked excitedly. Watari and Tsuzuki always got together and planned these stupid dinners or breakfasts or whatever and Tatsumi and Hisoka were left to go along for the ride. This time though, Hisoka had a golden excuse for skipping.
"I dunno, my head still hurts. I think I'd better stay here. You want me to be able to walk around with you tomorrow, don't you?" He leaned back, closing his eyes for effect. Tsuzuki immediately let up.
"Oh, yeah, absolutely. I can stay with you, if you want. We can just reschedule..."
"No.. I mean, it's okay, you go out and have fun." Hisoka reached into his pocket and dug the last bit of money out of his pocket. "Here, have a drink for me, okay?" He shoved the money at Tsuzuki and raised his eyebrows as if to ask what he was still doing there.
"Okay, I get it, I'm going, I'm going. Just, promise you'll call me if you need something, okay?" Hisoka nodded and practically kicked Tsuzuki off the bed. He waited until he heard the door close then got up. Finally, some alone time. Tsuzuki didn't exactly understand the term "alone". He was always dragging someone along on his adventures.
The first thing Hisoka did was open all the windows but pull the blinds down. People usually made fun of him for this, but it let in fresh air without the sunlight that hurt his eyes. He then got another glass of water and settled in on the couch with a book he'd brought along.
Almost exactly an hour later, Hisoka's phone began to ring. He picked it up and Tsuzuki immediately began questioning how he was feeling.
"I'm fine. I told you I'd call you if I needed anything, didn't I?" Hisoka rolled his eyes at his partner's worries. After assuring Tsuzuki that he didn't need to come back, he hung up and put the phone on silent so he wouldn't have to answer Tsuzuki's calls anymore. At nine, Hisoka decided to call it a night and go to bed early. It's not like he had anything better to do. He closed his eyes and slowly faded off into sleep.
An indiscernible amount of time later, Hisoka woke up to a loud pounding on the door.
"Hisoka? Do you mind opening the door?" Tatsumi's voice floated through the haze of sleep clouding his head. He got up slowly and walked to the door. He heard giggles coming from the other side and frowned, thinking that giving Tsuzuki extra money for drinks probably wasn't the smartest move. He unlocked the door to reveal a very disgruntled Tatsumi supporting two very drunk and very loud shinigami.
"Hisokaaaaaa!" Tsuzuki called when he opened the door. Tatsumi and Hisoka shared knowing looks and Hisoka grabbed Tsuzuki's arm and pulled him away from his friend. Durning this entire thing, Watari had been blabbering away to Tatsumi about chemistry, and it seemed he was now trying to recite the periodic table of elements. Tatsumi nodded his thanks and picked the scientist up, slinging him over his shoulder and heading back to the elevator to take them up another three floors. Hisoka, tempted again by the notion of locking Tsuzuki outside, slowly helped the intoxicated man through the door.
"Thanks 'soka..." He slurred. "I miiiiiiiiissed youuuuu..." He said as Hisoka threw him down onto the bed. Hisoka sighed. Great, it was one of these nights. Occasionally when drunk, Tsuzuki had been known by many to get extremely affectionate. Hisoka, who was as far from affectionate as possible, did not find this amusing.
"Just go to sleep, idiot." Hisoka pulled Tsuzuki's shoes off and left it at that.
"Ya know wha', 'soka? You're amazin'... I dunno what I'd do withou' ya..." Tsuzuki sat up and started pulling his shirt off. Hisoka rolled his eyes and threw a clean tee shirt at Tsuzuki.
"Would you keep your clothes on?" He couldn't help himself though, he was beginning to laugh at Tsuzuki.
"Wasso funny?" He asked bewilderedly.
"You..." Hisoka finally lost it at the confused look on Tsuzuki's face and doubled over because he was laughing so hard.
"Hisokaaaaaaa..." Tsuzuki whined, trying to stand up. He managed it just barely, then ended up falling forward onto the laughing teen. They ended up in a tangle of limbs on the carpet, Tsuzuki giggling again but not in any place to move.
"Get off!" Hisoka laughed, pushing him away firmly. Tsuzuki grabbed onto him and wouldn't let go.
"Nooooooo... Hisoka, you're just trying to get rid of me again!" Tsuzuki was a very whiny drunk.
"Go to bed, idiot. I'll help you if you let go of me." Hisoka tried to extricate himself from Tsuzuki's arms and finally managed it. Tsuzuki suddenly burst into tears.
"Do you hate me?" He hiccuped, sitting up and staring at Hisoka.
"If I say no, will you go to sleep?" Hisoka was tired of Tsuzuki's changing emotions. When he was drunk, all his shields went down, which meant Hisoka could feel each and every emotion that passed through his partner's head. Tsuzuki stood up with the help of a table and looked Hisoka very carefully in the eyes.
"Do you really hate me?" He asked seriously. Hisoka sighed. It was likely Tsuzuki wouldn't remember any of this tomorrow, so he may as well just say whatever it took to get the man in bed.
"Of course I don't, you idiot. What makes you think that?" Hisoka sat down on his bed and yawned, hoping Tsuzuki would take that as a sign to finally sleep. Instead, the drunk stumbled over to Hisoka's bed and sat next to him.
"Well..." He hiccuped, wiping his eyes and looking for all the world like a little toddler. "You're always so cold to me..." Tsuzuki turned his pleading violet eyes to stare at Hisoka. He reached out and grabbed Hisoka's hand absentmindedly. At the contact, Hisoka shuddered with the strength of emotion emanating from Tsuzuki. The ever-present self-loathing was there, but also a strong feeling of rejection and loss.
"Hades, I'm cold to everyone, Tsuzuki. You should know that by now. It's just my personality. And now, because I'm such a nice person, we have to talk about the other feelings I just felt." Hisoka sighed, thinking he was not getting paid enough to be Tsuzuki's babysitter and therapist. For some reason though, Tsuzuki went bright pink and quickly pulled his hand away.
"Um, no, that's okay, Hisoka. I'll just... Yeah, I'll just go to sleep now. Remember, I'm drunk so don't take anything I was feeling for true." He bounded off the bed and managed to make it into his own. Hisoka watched him bemusedly. He'd just wanted to ask if he'd lost a bet with Watari or something. Maybe Tsuzuki was still hiding something. It was sure to be an interesting vacation.