Double Shot Espresso
Part 2
Author's Notes: Sometimes there just aren't enough rocks.... That is all.
---
Fai shivered as the dry winter air hit him. Stepping out of the heated office building into the cold New York winter, he could almost feel Christmas buzzing in the air. It was an electric sort of excitement that pulsed from passerby's smiles. Even the stoic, suit-wearing businessman had a childlike joy reflecting in his eyes. The occasional brightly—almost gaudily—decorated pine tree cast a warm glow on the white blanketed streets. It all screamed commercial New York Christmas on Christmas Eve.
Fai could almost imagine Times Square right now, lit up exactly like daytime and crawling with people. Toys R' Us would be the busiest place there, more than likely. It would be swarmed with divorced parents shopping for last minute gifts to try and win their child's favour.
The blond suddenly had an urge to go to Central Park and go skating. Mingle with the tourists and visiting families. Absorb the feeling of familial love, affection and generosity that only a season like Christmas could bring out... 'tis the season, after all. He laughed off the thought almost immediately and shook his head. Perhaps he was growing bitter towards the holidays.
Celebrating it alone year after year tended to do that to a person.
An almost inaudible sigh escaped him, moist vapours curling and disappearing into the cool evening air. The snow crunched beneath Fai's feet as he made his way to the subway station where he would catch his train form the Financial District to Greenwich Village. Perhaps he would grab a cup of tea or coffee, if the café were open, before heading home....
The memory from the other day rushed over Fai's mind like a tidal wave riddled with man-eating sharks. His heart began pounding in his ears and a flush of recalled embarrassment caused his cheeks to burn even in the freezing temperature.
Normally, Fai was a very polite and articulate person. He never pointedly stared and always had a few readily prepared phrases in case he was ever caught. There was just something about that mysterious black-haired man that made his mind and tongue freeze like the snow on the ground. It was strange and it was frighteningly different from the way he normally felt. He didn't exactly like the feeling, but the way it made his heart race was worryingly... pleasant.
He forced himself to shake off the feeling and hurry down the stairs to the subway station. The sights and smells of the station were comfortingly familiar. Hoards of people just let off work, the homeless tucked away in the corners, accompanying the smells of urine and sweat. Most people would find the whole routine unsettling, but to a permanent New York resident, it was a perfectly normal, everyday sight.
With a quick swipe of his pass and a push through a crowd of damp people, he was on his train and heading home.
And sandwiched between four or five people.
Though Fai was used to being pressed against various people in the trains, he never liked the feeling of being so physically close to them. It made him feel self-conscious and awkward, like the people surrounding him were actually watching him. Even if most of the time this wasn't the case, it was still unnerving to even think about. As the train took a lurch forward, he was pressed even closer to those surrounding him. Rush hour in the subway was the worst for the slight blond.
He slipped his hand into one of the plastic holds attached to the ceiling, hoping to gain some semblance of balance through it. The car screeched to a halt, an automatic voice announcing the station. Fai let out a tiny breath. Only a couple more stops to the Village, then he could go and relax in that cozy little café, possibly talk to Sakura or simply sit back and observe the life that bustled around him. Then he would head home, give his Uncle Ashura a call and wish him a Merry Christmas before drifting off to lonely sleep, only to wake to carollers and bells and cheer....
If he were lucky, he would sleep through the entire holiday.
Fai frowned to himself, eyes fixated on the ground as he made room for more people that crowded into the subway cars. The train reeled forwards again. The blond, who was still brooding over the Christmas season, was jerked out of his melancholic reverie and nearly lost his footing in the process. He tripped over some old man's shoes and—if it weren't for his nearly iron grip on the plastic hold—nearly fell face-first onto a strangely familiar black-haired man.
Oh, dear, sweet Lord.
Fai felt his entire being congeal for a split second. Time seemed to stop to allow him to absorb the scene at hand: he was in the subway, pressed up against the tense, well-defined chest of that peculiar stranger from the day before. The blond felt the muscles in the man's chest twitch and ripple under the taut fabric of his t-shirt. He couldn't hear, but oh, he could feel the growl resonate in the ribcage. The scent switched over from sweat, body odour and urine to cheap deodorant and... Old Spice? Strange, but oddly fitting for such a man.
And then reality seemed to set back in far too quickly.
"Ah! I'm very sorry!" Fai answered quickly, hoisting himself back into a standing position. A slight blush crept across his face before he could will it away and he was forced to turn away from the unusual Asian male to his side to avoid further embarrassment. The man didn't seem to hear or he simply didn't care, for all he did was scoff and immediately turn to face the other way.
How rude.
Fai pressed his lips together and scrunched his brow. This man certainly wasn't talkative in the least. He possessed the prowess of a panther in the way he carried himself; full of life, stealth and mystery. Disciplined, but not uptight, per se; possessing the looks that would lure in any unsuspecting prey before he pounced and devoured them.... Yes. This man was danger and beauty in one tightly wrapped—in sweet smelling skin and quivering muscle—package.
Wait a moment.... Disciplined. Stealthy. Mysterious. Dangerous....
"Martial artist!" The metaphorical light bulb clicked on in Fai's head. That's what was different about this man! Several people were staring at the blond, but only a select few. Most New York City inhabitants had learned to tune out insane ramblings by then.
"Uh... what?" was the only response Fai got from the crimson-eyed male. The blond blinked, feeling far too proud of himself to realized that he had just said that out loud. He had just figured out the man's background, the one who had been plaguing him since yesterday! "Oh... I remember you." The black-haired man's mouth twitched at the corners in a sort of smirk.
"Huh?" Fai responded oh-so-smartly.
"You're that weird guy from yesterday at the café. The one who was staring at me while I got my espresso." He raised his dark eyebrows, amusement glinting in those oddly coloured eyes.
Busted. Oh, yes, Fai was caught red-handed. "I... I was not staring—"
The man let out a deep, rich bark of laughter. "Right. Whatever you say," he hummed, turning his face away from the blond. The fact that he looked so smug tugged some sort of nerve in Fai. Maybe it was the fact he had been caught and his normal articulation seemed to escape him around this man.
"You're a martial artist, though, aren't you?" Fai stared ahead of himself, a small smile on his face. "Judging by the muscle definition on your upper body, I would say... Jiu-jitsu or perhaps Judo..." he murmured, eyes trailing along the other man's body. Yes. Definitely martial arts. It was something about the way he stood and carried himself that simply didn't fit any other sport; proud and regimented.
"Wrong."
"What?" Fai's eyes widened, his smile falling immediately. He was wrong?
There was a silence between the two; stifling and strangely tense. A static sort of electricity buzzed around them, the air seeming even more stifling than normal in the train car. It was like a wet, cold blanket had been placed over their heads and held there tightly over their mouths and noses.
"Kendo. Not Judo."
Fai could have laughed. So, this man had a sense of humour after all. He could see the corner of his mouth turn up into a half-grin, revealing sharply white teeth, stained around the bottom. Probably from all the espresso.
"I'm Fai."
"Call me Kurogane."
Kurogane. Black Steel. How very fitting. "I wouldn't suppose you're going to that café, are you?" Fai asked, a tiny smile on his face.
Kurogane stared at Fai quizzically. "And if I am?"
"So suspicious, Kuro-puu!" the blond laughed. 'Kurogane' was far too harsh. He needed something to lighten the menacing sound of it. "Would you care to sit down and have a drink with me?"
"I never said you could call me any nicknames!" Those mahogany eyes narrowed dangerously, lips tugged up in a vicious snarl. Panther, definitely a panther. There was a long pause after that and Fai could almost swear that Kurogane was doing it on purpose. "Hm. I suppose I could have a drink with you. It's not like I have anything better to do."
Fai chuckled under his breath and shook his head. A few strands of white-blond hair fell into his face, brushing over his cheeks and nose. The train squealed to a jerking halt, a pleasant female voice announcing his normal stop over the intercom. "Well, let's go, then, Kuro-sama!" he chirped, squeezing out of the doors and dashing away to the stairs.
Kurogane's shout of "What did I just tell you, idiot?!" echoed after him.
---
Author's Notes: Chapter two is DONE! Only one or two more chapters to go. Er... by the way, would any of you dear reviewers want, um... the rating to go up, if you catch my drift...? Because that would be chapter four if anybody wants it. Or do you want it to end at the next chapter? XD' TELL ME, PLEASE!