-thrusts chapter in your face- New chapter? Already? Yes. Clearly I have no life, so, I write a lot. Anyways, Tanaka is not old as fucking dirt in this story, instead I decided to make him younger because I felt that Sebastian could relate more with him that way. So, just imagine a younger Tanaka, however that may be.
"Stay here a moment," Tanaka said as he walked over to the man playing the piano. He bent and whispered something in his ear and the music stopped suddenly. The man turned his head and said something. Tanaka shrugged and seemed to reply. Ciel could see the man sigh and rub his temples. Tanaka whispered something else.
"Sir, young Luca is back. With his father. They wish to apologize for last night," Tanaka said. Sebastian stopped playing.
"What? I thought you took the kid home and talked to his dad," Sebastian growled.
"I did, but I guess he felt the need to apologize in person," Tanaka shrugged. Sebastian sighed and hunched over the piano to rub his forehead in frustration.
"It's not that bad, Sir. You will never see them again, who are they to care?" Tanaka tried to comfort him.
"Fine, send them in," Sebastian said bitterly.
"Try not to be so angry, they're only being nice," Tanaka replied as he walked off in the direction of the front hall. Once back he smiled at Ciel and Luca and nodded his head towards the living room. They walked up and Ciel only now noticed how dark the house was kept. Luca clung to his side and Ciel rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Mr. Michaelis? My name is Ciel, I'm Luca's father, and I just wanted to apologize for what happened last night," Ciel said, but the man still didn't turn around. After a moment of silence he stood and turned.
"Please, call me Sebastian. And it's quite alright." He kept his face slightly down and to the side, like he was looking at something on the floor behind Ciel. Even with his head turned and the darkness of the room Ciel could still see scars on his face. He spoke with a British accent and Ciel couldn't help but find it attractive.
"Luca has something he would like to say also." Ciel nudged Luca forward.
"I'm sorry for spying on you," he whispered, looking up at Sebastian. Sebastian looked down at Luca and his face showed discomfort and nervousness.
"I really hope he didn't cause any property damage or anything, if he did I'll pay for it completely," Ciel offered. At that moment Tanaka wandered in and began cleaning. It was obvious he was trying to listen in. While dusting he 'accidentally' flipped the light switch.
"Oops," he said innocently. Ciel saw Sebastian's face completely and swallowed to hold back a gasp.
"Tanaka!" Sebastian growled.
"What, I'm just cleaning." Tanaka shrugged innocently.
"You're a bad liar, Tanaka. And a worse butler, get out of here," Sebastian nodded towards the front hall.
"But I was just-"
"Tanaka!" Sebastian shouted. Tanaka threw his hands into the air and wandered out. Sebastian cursed silently, and for the first time met Ciel's eye.
"There was no property damage. You're apology is accepted." He looked down at Luca who had gone back to clinging to his father's leg.
"What about the broken fountain?" Tanaka called out from the front hall. Sebastian sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Get out of here, Tanaka!" he screamed at him. Footsteps could be heard walking up the stairs.
"I swear-" Sebastian muttered to himself.
"I would be happy to fix anything that's broken, including the fountain. I'm a construction worker," Ciel said. Sebastian sighed.
"Really, it's fine. I can pay someone to do it," Sebastian said.
"Please, let me fix it. My son caused the damage, and I take full responsibility for that. I'll do it for free of course," Ciel said.
Sebastian was about to disagree, when from upstairs he heard Tanaka. "He is thankful for your help and will gladly accept it!"
Sebastian growled and stormed halfway up the stairs. Luca giggled quietly.
"I swear to god, Tanaka, I will fire you!" Sebastian shouted up the stairs.
"No you won't!" Tanaka shouted back down.
"No, I won't. But I will cut your pay check in half!" Sebastian shouted. There was a moment of silence before Tanaka was heard again.
"That's still more than a doctor would make in a year," Tanaka retorted and Sebastian couldn't help but chuckle.
"You have me there," he smiled. He walked back into the living room and sighed.
"I will be thankful for your help," he said to Ciel.
"Alright then, do you mind if I get started this afternoon?" Ciel asked, it was still early and he could at least take note of what he needed to buy to fix the fountain.
"Whatever you like," Sebastian said. He sat down at the piano and turned the page of sheet music he had been playing. He began playing once more and Ciel assumed it was the end of the conversation. He left the grand house and returned home. After calling a babysitter for Ciel he grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil, along with some other materials and headed back to Sebastian's house. He began looking at the old fountain and saw the part that had broken when Luca had tripped and fell into it.
He had just began repairing it when he found that the fountain had been badly built. Obviously whoever had built it had no clue what they were doing and had thrown together some pipework and cement to create what would serve as a fountain. He stepped inside the spotless house and heard Tanaka bustling around in the kitchen. Sebastian still sat at his piano.
"The whole fountain should come down," he said. Sebastian turned, and once again Ciel fought not to react at his face.
"What?" he asked.
"The fountain. It's was built by someone who obviously didn't know what they were doing. I can rebuild the whole thing for you, it would be pointless to just fix that one piece," Ciel shrugged. Sebastian thought for a second.
"Alright then. Do what you like to the fountain. If its anything major, consult Tanaka. I don't care much about it but god knows that man does," Sebastian laughed. Ciel smiled and Tanaka looked at them from the dining room. As Ciel was leaving he heard Sebastian call out to him.
"Also, help yourself to anything you would like in the kitchen. If there's nothing in there, then feel free to request something. Tanaka is an excellent cook," Sebastian added, awkwardly. As though starting a conversation was new to him.
"Thank you," Ciel said. Sebastian nodded before turning back to his piano. Once Ciel was outside again, writing down what he thought he would need, he noticed he didn't hear piano music. He was wondering what Sebastian was doing but knew it would be awkward to just go in and look. As soon as he was done he headed home and thought about Sebastian and what had happened to him. It was obvious he was extremely bitter about... well... everything. But he seemed to be the best of friends with Tanaka. It seemed like Tanaka was the only one he could trust. He crawled into bed and had sweet dreams of Sebastian.
Sebastian tossed and turned in his sleep.
The thundering music of the night club hurt his ears. He sighed and sipped his drink while looking around the room. Claude stood in the center of the dance floor, with two young men dancing around him. The blonde haired, thin men looked like dolls. Sebastian sighed. He had dragged him here and didn't even want to dance with him. What was the point? He sat down his barely touched drink and paid before heading out. As he was going, a man stopped him at the door.
"You wanna dance?" he yelled over the music. Sebastian hesitated, but he wasn't like Claude.
"I'm taken, sorry," he replied.
"At least you're honest enough to say 'no'. Most guys just lie, I'll give you points for that," the guy said with a smile before walking off. He exited the club and began walking to the parking lot. He felt a hand on his arm and was spun around roughly.
"Who the fuck was that?" Claude asked.
"I don't know, some guy," Sebastian shrugged. Now he would have two bruises on his arm.
"Why the hell were you talking to him?" Claude asked.
"I wasn't. He just asked me if I wanted to dance," Sebastian answered honestly.
"What the fuck, you cheating on me?"
"What? No, how did you get that out of some stranger just asking me to dance?"
"Don't talk to me like that. We're going home, now." Claude dragged him by the wrist to his car and drove home in silent anger. Sebastian knew when Claude got mad that he could get out of control. He only hoped Tanaka was home. When they arrived at his house he saw that the car Tanaka normally used to run errands was gone. It was only ten and he could be out for quite awhile.
"Fucking cunt, who the hell do you think you are to cheat on me?" Claude yelled once they were inside.
"I didn't cheat on you Claude, and I never have. Please don't call me names," Sebastian tried to keep calm. He wasn't surprised when Claude smacked him across the cheek that already had a bruise on it from earlier. He landed on the floor with a thud and hit his head on the cold tile. His vision blurred and his limbs felt like jell-o.
"Stupid slut, I'll make it so no one will ever touch you again," Claude said. The last thing Sebastian saw was the silvery blade of the knife.
Ciel came back the next day and got to work on the fountain early. Which was why he was surprised to see Tanaka and Sebastian already awake and running.
"Good morning, Ciel," Tanaka greeted him.
"Morning, Tanaka. How are you?" Ciel replied.
"Alright, and you?" Tanaka began his work for the day, starting with caring for the plants.
"Good, so Sebastian told me to talk to you about the fountain. Is there any specific design you want? Or I could just replicate the old one?" Ciel asked. Tanaka sighed.
"I swear that man doesn't care about anything unless its on a piece of sheet music," Tanaka rolled his eyes. "Surprise me, nothing to Greek-God-like thought." Tanaka smiled. The two went to their separate work. Soon after his conversation with Tanaka, Ciel saw Sebastian walking down the large stairs. He looked tired and pissed off.
"I wouldn't get too close to him this morning, he has his days," Tanaka whispered while watering the flowers in the front garden. For once Sebastian didn't go straight for his piano but instead went into the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of scotch and a glass, and sat on the couch in the living room. He sat there facing the fireplace and stared at the pictures above it, while pouring himself glass after glass of scotch.
"Oh, one of these days, is it?" Tanaka sighed. He put down the hose he was using to water the plants and went inside. He saw them speak for a moment, Sebastian obviously angry as usual. Tanaka turned and picked up a picture off of the mantle and threw it in the trash before turning and saying something to Sebastian, who stared silently. A moment passed as the two looked at each other but it was broken when Sebastian poured himself another glass. Tanaka rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in the 'I give up' motion. He stormed back outside and left the door open, before continuing to water the plants. With much more anger this time around.
Ciel began to get back to work on the fountain. After watering the plants Tanaka puttered around doing small tasks, seeming to try and stay in the warmth of the morning sun. Eventually he had to go inside and make lunch. When Tanaka came out and told Ciel he had made him lunch Ciel saw Sebastian still slouched in the couch in front of the fireplace.
"Isn't he eating?" Ciel asked as they sat down to eat.
"On days like this, it's best if we just leave him alone. Things will be better for him tomorrow," Tanaka added without looking up. They continued to eat, making small talk, when they heard a large crash and saw Sebastian storm upstairs.
"Huh, he usually waits until later to do that." Tanaka sighed and grabbed the broom from a closet. He came back a few minutes later with the remains of a broken bottle and a towel soaked with wasted scotch.
"At least he didn't drink the whole bottle this time," he muttered as he put away the broom and dumped the glass into the trash.
"He does this often?" Ciel asked. Tanaka looked up like he had forgot Ciel was there.
"Yes actually. Like I said, he has his days."
"And this is a bad day?" Ciel asked.
"Oh no this is actually about a six on a scale of 1 to 10." Tanaka nodded his head as he sat back down to finish eating.
"Jesus, what the hell is a 10?" Ciel laughed.
"You hear about the earthquakes in Japan?" Tanaka joked. They chuckled quietly before the silence got awkward with the obvious question in the air.
"What happened to him?" Ciel asked, laughter gone. Tanaka stared at him for a moment, as if trying to decide if he should tell him or not.
"That's not my story to tell," he finally answered. Ciel just nodded in understanding. After eating, Ciel thanked Tanaka for lunch and Tanaka told him if he needed anything to find him. Ciel headed out to get back to work on the fountain.
He looked up at the beautiful house. The large windows all had their curtains drawn, but were perfectly clean, even though they were never used. Tanaka kept them clean just in case.
Ciel returned home that evening and paid the babysitter. Luca continued to rant about how he was old enough not to need one and Ciel brought up the trespassing thing, which shut him up quickly. After making dinner they watched a movie before Luca started falling asleep. While carrying him up to bed, Luca woke up.
"Dad?" he said, voice filled with sleep.
"Yes?"
"What is Sebastian like?" Luca asked.
"He's... troubled." Ciel chose his words carefully.
"Is that like being mad?" Luca asked.
"No, not exactly. Troubled is when... something happens that you can't control. Causing you problems. Making you worried or angry," Ciel tried to explain.
"Why is he troubled?" Luca began to fall asleep again.
"I don't know." Ciel looked in the direction of the large mansion.
"I wish I knew. Maybe we could help him."
"Some people don't want help," Ciel said, still staring out the window.
"Why not?" Luca was nearly asleep now.
"Some people aren't ready to be helped yet. It takes time," Ciel said. When his son asked no more questions he looked down to see that he had fallen asleep. Ciel stood and crawled back into his own bed.
"Jesus Christ," Sebastian heard. He tried to open his eyes but found one of them swollen shut. He hurt everywhere. And his one good eye was blurry and covered in something sticky. He didn't need eyes to know who had spoken though. He would have recognized that kind voice anywhere. He worked to be able to see and when he did he saw Tanaka standing before him. His skin was pale and he looked like he was going to be sick.
"Tanaka," he spoke and was rewarded with a coughing fit.
"Quiet, don't speak. We need to get you to a hospital," he felt Tanakas arms under him. Picking up his small frame and pushing the door open with a shoulder.
"Can't see," he coughed.
"No shit?" he could hear the panic in his voice. He felt himself being laid down in the back seat. After a drive that seemed like eternity he felt the car stop and Tanaka pick him up again. He heard the sounds of a hospital and Tanaka's frantic voice.
"Can we get some help over here?" he shouted. He heard orderlies and doctors speaking.
"What happened?" a woman's voice asked.
"I don't know, I found him like this. If I had to guess, though, it would be his boyfriend. He's an abusive asshole," Tanaka cursed.
"You know him?" the woman asked.
"Yes."
"What's his name?"
"Sebastian Michaelis."
"Okay, we will let you know how he after we assess him, but you have to stay here," he heard the woman say. He no longer felt the familiar presence of Tanaka.
"Sebastian, we're going to take care of you okay?" he heard, but her voice was fading fast. Soon he drifted off into nothingness.
Sebastian sat up in bed.
"Fucking nightmares," he cursed and rubbed his forehead. He stood up and went down to the kitchen. He poured himself another drink even though his throbbing headache told him to do otherwise. He swallowed it quickly before pouring himself another.
"For Christ's sake, Sir. You have to stop drinking like that," Tanaka said from behind him.
"I'll do what I want. Leave me alone, Tanaka," Sebastian growled.
"Yeah, I did that last time you told me to and that's how you ended up with the scars. Do you really want to replay all of that?" Tanaka crossed his arms. Sebastian stayed silent.
"Sebastian, you're my best friend. I know you're pissed and you have every right to be. But it's been five years. It's time to move on. Find someone new, someone who will treat you right. Someone who doesn't just want you for your money or to use you as a punching bag or a lovely tool to sharpen their knives," Tanaka said.
"Quiet!" Sebastian screamed. Tanaka stayed silent for a moment.
"You know I will always be here for you. Even if one day you just stopped paying me, I would still be here. But there's only so much I can do. Eventually a friend's duties end where a lover's duties begin. I can't cover both bases, Sebastian," Tanaka continued.
"You seem to be doing a good enough job," Sebastian whispered.
"Yes, God knows I'm that good in bed," Tanaka did a stereotypical gay voice which made Sebastian spit his drink over the count.
"Now I have to clean that up, see what you put me through," Tanaka said in his usual voice. He grabbed a rag and began cleaning up the mess. Sebastian sighed.
"I hate my life," he said quietly. Tanaka put down the rag and hugged him tightly.
"I know you do. And I wish that I could fix that. But like I said, my duties end here," he shrugged and headed back upstairs to bed. Sebastian stood in the dark kitchen for a moment longer before taking the bottle and going to sit on his couch in front of the fireplace.
Ciel walked up the steps to the house two days later to talk to Tanaka about ideas for the fountain. The old one had already been removed and now the new one just needed building. Halfway up the steps he heard screaming and things crashing. He saw Tanaka in the window rubbing his temples. Tanaka looked up and saw Ciel. He seemed to look into the living room before quickly dashing to the door and stepping out, closing the door behind him.
"I think it would be best if you came back another day," Tanaka said. The sound of wood splintering came from inside the house. Tanaka flinched and sighed.
"That was a six hundred dollar coffee table," he whispered.
"What the hell is going on?" Ciel asked.
"Remember how we talked about the scale of 1 to 10 and the earthquakes and what not?" Tanaka asked. Ciel nodded.
"Today is about a 9.5".. Ciel nodded his head and turned to walk back down the driveway.
"You going to be okay? He isn't going to set you on fire or anything while I'm gone is he?" he turned and asked. Tanaka nodded his head and waved his hand in the 'go' gesture.
"I'll be fine, nothing to worry about. I handle him and his rampages all the time," Tanaka smiled. The sound of two glass bottles hitting the front door were heard.
"Take me with you," Tanaka begged and chased after Ciel.
They sat in Ciel's living room discussing fountain plans when Tanaka looked at his watch.
"Damn, it's already seven. I need to get back home. Lord knows the man can't cook for himself. He could be in a house full of food and would starve to death," Tanaka rolled his eyes. He grabbed his vest which he had taken off an hour ago and put it back on, along with his white gloves.
"Well, I'm glad we got something done today," Ciel looked down at the design they had picked out.
"I think it will look fantastic." Tanaka smiled.
"Call me if you need anything, fountain details, help with anything, shopping..." he looked up at Tanaka, "...animal control," Tanaka smiled and laughed.
"He isn't a wild animal!" he replied and straightened his vest. He headed for the door. "Most wild animals are too scared to get near him," he chuckled and dashed out the front door. Ciel laughed and wrapped up the fountain plans.
'I do love that man.' He thought about Tanaka's humor and how such a light hearted man could befriend someone with such anger in him.
Tanaka returned to find the house in ruins. Much of the furniture was broken, broken glass was everywhere, a few broken windows, the kitchen torn apart. And Sebastian sitting in the middle of it all.
"Are you finished?" Tanaka asked. Sebastian nodded silently. Tears fell silently as he sat, balled up, on the floor. Tanaka moved and picked him up, bringing him into his bedroom and putting him to bed. Once he was sure he had fallen asleep he returned downstairs and began cleaning up.
'This makes up for the other 95% of the year that I don't actually have to work doesn't it?' Tanaka asked himself. He made calls to have the windows replaced the next day and for someone to come and help fix that walls that had been scratched with several knives. After the calls were made, he picked up the broken glass and fixed everything else, before throwing out the broken pieces of furniture. It took several hours but about an hour before Sebastian would wake up he was finished. He sleepily crawled into bed and fell asleep instantly.
The uncomfortable hospital bed made him miss home. As soon as he thought about home, Tanaka walked into the room.
"How are you feeling, Sir?" The panic was gone and his usual polite formal self was back.
"Alright, I guess." Sebastian knew what was coming. Tanaka sat down and began telling him that he had handled the legal matters and preparing for him to come home.
"Just say it Tanaka," Sebastian sighed.
"Say what, Sir," he added.
"'I told you so.'" Sebastian fought back the tears. Tanaka stared at him silently.
"What kind of friend would I be if I did that, Sir?" Tanaka smiled. Sebastian gave a bitter laugh. He flinched when he smiled.
"An honest one."
"Who the hell wants an honest friend?" Tanaka smiled. Sebastian wanted to smile but it hurt too bad.
"Thank you, Tanaka," Sebastian leaned into him and Tanaka gave him a firm hug.
"Of course, Sir." A moment of silence passed between them.
"Sir, have you spoken to any plastic surgeons?" Tanaka asked. Sebastian sighed.
"I have, they said there is nothing they can do," Tanaka looked almost angry.
"Well why the hell not?" he cursed.
"They said there is already too much scar tissue," Sebastian said as tears began to fall from his face.
"I'm so sorry, Sir," Tanaka replied. Sebastian nodded silently.
"You can return home soon, though." Tanaka tried to cheer him up.
"Thank you, I would like that," Sebastian said.
Sebastian woke up and cursed.
'Just because its a memory, not a nightmare, doesn't mean its not painful,' he thought to himself. He stood and walked downstairs. He found the entire house cleaned except for a few missing windows and torn up walls. Tanaka came down the stairs, yawning and looking exhausted.
"They are coming to replace the windows and wall paper today," Tanaka answered the unspoken question, eyes still half closed.
"Go back to bed Tanaka, you were up late last night. Take a day off," Sebastian ordered. For once Tanaka didn't argue with him.
"Yes, Sir," he whispered and went back up the stairs like a sleepy child rubbing his eyes.
Ciel arrived later in the day, and without coming in got to work on the fountain. At around noon, Sebastian watched Ciel through window. Realizing it was time for lunch, he stepped into the kitchen. Tanaka was still sleeping and he didn't want to wake him. He looked at the unfamiliar room and poked around before making two sandwiches. He was sure they weren't the best, but they were edible.
"Hungry?" Sebastian said from the doorway, he made sure to stay out of the light as he usually did.
"Yeah actually, what's Tanaka making?" Ciel asked.
"Nothing, he's still asleep," Sebastian said.
"What? Really? It's like noon," Ciel looked at his watch.
"He was up late cleaning. I made sandwiches," Sebastian added and stepped back inside Ciel thought for a moment before following him inside. He noticed the scratched walls and the broken windows but said nothing. The food was edible. Not good, but edible.
"I apologize for my poor culinary skills," Sebastian said, and Ciel laughed.
"I can see why you... hired Tanaka," he kept it polite but Sebastian got the point.
"Yes, I couldn't cook if my life depended on it," he chuckled.
"How long has Tanaka been working for you?" Ciel asked.
"About ten years. I was orphaned when I was ten and my uncle hired him. When my uncle died eight years later I got the money, the house, and Tanaka. Of course I nearly tripled his pay. We were best friends growing up," Sebastian said.
"Damn, how old is he?"
"32."
"What?" Ciel practically shouted. He laughed, "no way! He doesn't look older than 25."
"Yup, he started working for us when he was twenty and I was fifteen. He takes good care of himself," Sebastian shrugged.
Sebastian took another bite of his sandwich and grimaced before setting it down.
"So that makes you 27, right?" Ciel asked. Sebastian nodded and forced himself to swallow the poorly made food.
"What happened to your parents, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Car wreck. And no I don't mind, we were never very close," Sebastian shrugged.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be," Sebastian smiled. "So what about you? Tell me more. I've never heard about your wife. I assume you have one since you have Luca?" Sebastian asked.
"No actually, we divorced. We had Luca when we were young and our parents pressured us into getting married. We did and we were both unhappy. I knew she was seeing people on the side but I honestly couldn't have cared. We were really only together for Luca's sake. When I told her I was gay we both knew it had been over years ago," Ciel shrugged.
"And you got Luca out of it, that has to be a bonus, yes?" Sebastian asked.
"Definitely," Ciel smiled, glad that Sebastian had said nothing of him being gay.
"I inherited the house and the money, of course there were always the people who claimed they love you but really just wanted a piece of the wealth," Sebastian said, staring off into space like he was remembering something.
"It's to be expected isn't it?" Ciel shrugged. Sebastian looked at him and nodded in agreement.
"I let myself get fooled one too many times and paid the price for my naivete," Sebastian brushed his fingers over his scarred face. Ciel was about to say something when another voice joined the conversation.
"Oh don't go grouching about how you deserved it," Tanaka came in from the front hall, dressed in his usual formal clothing.
"I have no idea why you wear that, I never said you had to," Sebastian said, as Tanaka straightened his vest.
"I like it. Makes me feel fancy," Tanaka raised his nose. He passed by the table and saw the hardly eaten food.
"Oh good god, did he make you eat his food?" Tanaka looked at Ciel like he had just eaten a bug. "I am so sorry, we'll pay for the hospital bills." He glared at Sebastian and smacked him on the head as he picked up the plates and walked into the kitchen. Sebastian glared after him.
"It's not that bad!" he shouted.
"I'll make you both something to eat," Tanaka said, ignoring Sebastian. Sebastian seemed to sigh.
"You're too good to me," Sebastian replied. Ciel laughed and they continued talking for awhile. When Tanaka came out with a homemade pizza all three of them ate and talked. The more he got to know him, the more Sebastian spoke and spent less time hiding in the shadows. Ciel had become used to his appearance and was no longer shocked by it.
After eating, Ciel grabbed two more slices and headed home. Once he got home he gave Luca the slices of pizza and finished doing some work on the fountain, including how much it would cost and other boring aspects of the job. Sometimes at night he would think about how glad he was that Luca and his friends had spied on Sebastian and had broken his fountain. Otherwise he would have never met him.
"I'm going to bed, Sir. Do you need anything before I turn in?" Tanaka poked his head inside Sebastian's room.
"No, I think I'm alright," Sebastian replied. "Thank you, Tanaka."
"Of course. Good night, Sir." Sebastian said goodnight and Tanaka disappeared into the dark hallway. Sebastian sighed and tried to get comfortable. He prayed that maybe tonight he wouldn't be haunted with memories of the past.
Review? The more you do the faster I will update~