Disclaimer: I do not own Fake, and I do not profit financially from writing this.
Dee ran his fingers through sandy blond hair, and he smiled at the contented peacefulness he saw on his partner's face. Ryo remained asleep in the mid morning hours – he had walked into their shared apartment around one in the morning and therefore deserving of his rest. His partner had been beyond exhausted upon arriving home, so much so that he had simply crawled into bed and dropped off to sleep in less than a minute. Ryo had not even bothered to change his clothes, which was the biggest indication to Dee of his lover's exhaustion. Ryo always changed into pajamas before crawling into bed at the end of a long shift. They sometimes never remained on his body, thanks to Dee, but he always, always, always changed into something. Forgoing that one simple yet important step said a lot to Dee, and idly he made a mental note to talk to Rose about the insane hours Ryo was working. In the meantime, Ryo's exhaustion afforded Dee to observe the one who had stolen his heart.
Getting to the point where they were had been no easy feat. There were times during his pursuit of Ryo that Dee even wondered if the chase would be worth the headache and the tears and the initial torment of loving someone so strongly. Obstacles in the forms of J.J., Commissioner Rose, and Bikky created difficulties for the raven-haired detective during the first couple years of their partnership. Dee had not even imagined such difficulties could exist, yet they had been there all the same.
Rose had made it clear he wanted Ryo, and he would do whatever he could to drive a wedge between Dee and Ryo. His attempts had been thwarted, and by Ryo, no less. To this day, Dee always received the dirtiest of looks from Rose whenever Ryo was not looking.
Then there was J.J. and his blatant attempts at claiming Dee for himself. Even after the news the two were a couple, the flamboyant man threw himself at Dee every chance he could. It took Dee everything in his willpower to not kill J.J. He still bore far too many bruises from his fellow officer, and Dee had yet to figure out a way to get J.J. to leave him alone . . . short of killing the man.
As for Bikky, well, the boy needed reassurance that Ryo did not need protection from Dee nor would he be left to fend for himself. Since Dee identified with such emotions a little better than what Ryo could, such reassurances were easy to give. Neither Dee nor Ryo would abandon the boy, and the two men worked together to guarantee that Bikky (and Carol) would have a better future than that of a street thug.
Once Rose understood Ryo was not interested and J.J. realized Dee would never be his, Dee knew his life with Ryo would get better. At least Bikky knew what Ryo wanted and accepted it, although it was grudgingly at best. Dee gave the boy credit for as much.
Still, as he gazed at his partner, Dee knew that, despite the obstacles, the chase had been worth every tear and heartache and every bruise. He was where he wanted to be, which was waking up on the Fourth of July next to the one person he loved above all others. Since Ryo had entered his life those scant few years ago, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness had taken on brand new meanings for Dee, meanings he would cherish for as long as he lived.
A sly grin crept onto Dee's face as he continued to watch his lover, and his hands slid under the blankets, their destination one sleeping Ryo. It was Independence Day, there were plenty of beers in the refrigerator, and the kids were looking forward to the fireworks. They even had the best seats in the city, as far as Dee was concerned. He also had some fireworks of his own design in mind, and he intended to start his celebration quite early.
As he started to disrobe his sleeping partner, Dee leaned in and whispered, "Happy Fourth of July, babe. Happy Fourth of July."