Disclaimer: (Since I forgot to add one in the first chapter) I own nothing T&B. The only thing that's mine is the plot.
Unlikely Pair
'Chapter 2'
"Oi- Kotetsu. What's your deal tonight?" Antonio insisted, patting his crestfallen friend on the shoulder, "you've been all weird since we left the precinct. You can't honestly tell me doing paperwork is that terrible."
Kotetsu visibly sighed as he continued to replay the previous afternoon's occurrences in his mind. He fell into another man's arms. His new partner's arms of all things! And to top it all off he couldn't help hearing the teasing blonde's voice repeating over and over again, "Try to be more careful, old man."
Finally looking up and noticing his friend's growing impatience he simply stated, "I just had a run in with my new partner is all."
"That's it? Well, what's wrong with him?"
He called me an old man. "According to the Chief, absolutely nothing," Kotetsu admitted truthfully.
Antonio blinked, "Well then what's the problem?"
He caught me in his arms like some sort of princess, and called me an old man! "He's just a little too flashy. He must be some spoiled rich boy or something. You know I don't do well with flashy."
"Kotetsu, I will literally keep you here all night until you-"
Kotetsu's eyebrow twitched when the prodding overwhelmed him and he exploded, "That little bunny caught me in his arms like a princess and called me an old man! There! Are you happy now?"
A wide grin stretched across Antonio's face before he opened his mouth and roared with laughter. "You- have got- to be kidding me!"he gasped, "that is the single greatest thing I've ever heard!"
Kotetsu's frown deepened as he watched his best friend take pleasure in his humiliation. "It's not funny, jerk! That guy is already looking down on me!" he grumbled to himself.
He continued to chuckle to himself for a while more, but when he was able to calm himself, Antonio asked, "Just one more thing… 'Little bunny'?"
"He was wearing a motorcycle helmet. I wasn't lying when I said he was flashy! The thing has ears! He looked like a bunny," Kotetsu sighed, "you'll see him tomorrow."
"He starts working tomorrow?" Antonio asked, elated, "Oh man, I've never been this excited to get back to work!"
"Just shut up and take me home. Some friend you are," Kotetsu sulked.
"Don't worry about it so much. Once you start working together he'll see how good of a detective you are," Antonio patted his friend on the back and continued, "alright, lets get out of here."
The two paid their bill and went out to Antonio's car. They rode the distance to Kotetsu's apartment in silence: one too tired to speak, and the other knowing better not to push it. Upon arriving at Kotetsu's apartment building, he thanked Antonio and the two bade each other goodnight. He made his way up to his empty unit and immediately collapsed onto his bed and slept.
The next morning Kotetsu woke feeling surprisingly relaxed. He went about his usual morning routine and ate breakfast before heading downstairs to wait for Antonio. Since the two lived about a block away from each other, they often rode to and from work together.
He made it down to the lobby area and cheerfully greeted the desk clerk as usual and went out to the front to wait by the street. It only took about five minutes for Antonio to arrive. Kotetsu got in the passenger's seat, and the two set out for work.
"You seem better this morning," Antonio commented.
"I guess all the embarrassment went away after some sleep. Sorry about freaking out on you yesterday."
"Don't worry about it. I think any normal male would freak out a bit after being held in some other guy's arms," he teased, elbowing Kotetsu lightly.
Kotetsu just chuckled and scratched the back of his head. 'No use fighting it. Guess it'll be a while before I live that down,' he thought.
The two pulled into the parking lot ten minutes later and as they made to get out of the car, a bright red motorcycle rumbled into the lot and rode into the stall next to them.
Kotetsu took one look at the rider and recognized him immediately. All the anxiousness he thought he'd gotten over came back with a vengeance. He groaned inwardly and shot a pleading look to his friend that went completely unnoticed. The taller man was too busy admiring the bike.
"Kotetsu, do you know who that is? I've never seen that bike before," Antonio questioned loudly over the roar of the engine, eyes still fixed on the motorcycle.
Before Kotetsu could answer, the motorcycle quieted and the rider dismounted. In one smooth motion he removed his helmet and gracefully ran his fingers through his hair as it fell perfectly into place.
'The showy little-,' Kotetsu thought to himself as he felt his eye begin to twitch.
The blonde had no such effect on his friend, however. Antonio happily strode over to the man and said, "Hey, nice bike! I haven't seen you around before… You new?"
"Thanks a lot. It's very kind of you to say so. I put a lot of work into it," came the friendly reply, "and yes, today is my first day. Glad to meet you. I'm Barnaby."
"Good to meet you too. I'm Antonio, and that guy over there," he began, motioning to Kotetsu who hadn't moved from his position next to the car, "is Kotetsu."
The blonde looked off in the direction Antonio pointed and smiled when he saw Kotetsu's stunned face starting back at him. "We've met. Glad to see you looking unharmed," he said.
"Ah, yah. Thanks again for helping me out yesterday," Kotetsu said quietly as he moved to join the other two.
"Yesterday? I thought you said today was your first day?" Antonio asked, still not quite able to put two and two together.
"Oh, it is. I was just in filling out some papers and we ran into each other on my way out," Barnaby replied with a gentle smile, "it's actually a good thing we ran into each other this morning. The Chief said he wanted to see us in his office. He's probably wanting to do the introductions himself."
"Really? I hadn't heard, but thanks for letting me know. I'll be in in a minute, but you can go ahead," the bearded man offered. He was a bit thrown off by the difference in the man's attitude.
"Nonsense, I'll wait for you. We'll be partners from today on, won't we?" And with that the taunting gleam in Barnaby's eyes returned.
"Partner?" Antonio's eyes widened in realization, "this guy's your new partner? The one you said-"
Kotetsu quickly covered his friend's mouth and interjected, "That's right, this guy's my new partner. So why don't you go ahead and get to work and we'll head to our meeting, alright?" He pushed his friend towards the building and whispered, "I'll talk to you later."
Once he was sure Antonio was on his way, he turned back to Barnaby who was watching him with an amused look on his face.
"I see you told your friend about yesterday. Was it that memorable for you, old man?" he taunted.
'So I guess this side of you is reserved for me, huh? He was fine with Antonio…' Kotetsu thought, sadly, 'and what do you mean Memorable? More like mortifying.'
Deciding against voicing any of his thoughts he sighed and said, "You ready to meet with the Chief?"
Barnaby snickered, "Sure. Lets get this over with."
The two walked in an uncomfortable silence to Maverick's office. The meeting went as Barnaby had predicted, the Chief hadn't expected the two to have already met and so he had wanted to introduce them properly. After a short briefing on a case they would be working on today, Barnaby was dismissed, but Kotetsu was asked to stay back for a bit.
Barnaby obediently left the room, and Kotetsu turned to his boss and said, "What did you want to see me about, Chief?"
"He's already started on your nerves hasn't he? I can see it when you look at him."
Kotetsu's shoulders slumped, upset someone else had noticed. He wasn't used to people taking such a dislike to him. "He doesn't like me very much, does he? He's nice enough to everyone else…" he managed.
"It's because you're his partner. Despite the way he looks, he hasn't had an easy life," the Chief explained, "his parents died when he was young and so he's not used to having someone around to rely on. He's been let down a lot, so don't expect him to be very trusting up front."
"Huh… I had no idea, "Kotetsu responded, surprised, "you seem to know a lot about him."
"I was friends with his parents and so I've known him since he was a boy. He's a good kid, Kotetsu. Just give him a chance to open up. Don't give up on him, alright?"
Kotetsu stared after his new partner, and felt guilty for having him pegged as some spoiled brat. "I've got it, Chief," he resolved, "I don't know how things will go from here, but I won't count him out just yet." With that, he waved goodbye and sprinted out to catch up with Barnaby.
"Glad to hear it, Kaburagi. I think the two of you could be even better for each other than even I could predict," Maverick said thankfully to himself, and smiled.
A/N: Thanks for sticking with me so far, guys! I'm sorry it's a little slow for now, but it'll be picking up pace in the next few chapters! Reviews are greatly appreciated, and thanks again for reading!
