"Many Detailed Things"
Four Years Later
December 24:
"What has you so nervous," Sora asked. He'd taken on look at his friend and frozen in the silver haired man's doorway. The main room had a large floor to ceiling window against which Riku was leaned. On the desk the second-hand typewriter Riku had bought in a yard sale sat abandoned along with the stacks of half written stories.
Riku's nimble fingers stilled mid braid and dropped to his sides as he turned to face his best friend. Rolling his eyes as he took in the sight of the brunette weighed down by grocery bags.
"If you are going to take the time to bring me provision you could finish the trip," Riku said as he moved away from the window. Sora stuck his tongue out at Riku when the young novelist turned back to his worktable.
Sora instinctively checked the calendar that hung beside the fridge. Marked in a red circle was the days date. Blue eyes widened as he turned back around to his friend.
"It's today?"
"Is what today,' Riku asked in a half mutter as he flicked through the pile of papers.
"Today the today." Sora sighed exasperatedly. He shoved the milk carton into the fridge none to kindly and muttered beneath his breathe. Riku sighed at the sight of the egg carton being manhandled and with a large show of dropping his work he moved to Sora's side, for the eggs sake.
"What is it?"
Sora turned at the question. Taking in the sight of dozens of tiny braids spread through out the mass of Riku's long hair Sora chuckled. Riku blushed, ducking and freeing a box of crackers from a bag.
"Are you nervous," Sora asked as he watched the older teen shove the box unceremoniously into the cupboard. Riku turned and rolled his eyes mockingly at the brunette. Sora stuck his tongue out in response.
Both young men were silent as they finished dealing with the food. When the last grocery bag was tossed to the trash Sora turned back to his friend. Riku gave a weak smile as he leaned over the counter top. The fingers of his right hand began to comb through his length of hair as his thoughts turned back toward the days occasion.
"Is he going to recognize me," Riku asked with a sidelong look to Sora. The brunette rolled his eyes.
"You mean with all of the other silver haired men running around town," Sora asked sarcastically.
Riku punched the boy lightly in the arm as they both diffused into chuckles.
"You have paint all over you again."
Riku groaned in response, looking down at the greens and blues splattered all over his shirt and arms. He'd gotten more paint on himself then the easel again. Sora read his mind and spoke the sentence aloud. Riku glowered at him and changed the topic to Kairi. Like mechanics a blush and grin spread over Sora's face and his mouth ran off with stories.
"Hey, Sora," Riku softly interrupted. He looked up through his bangs to his paused friend and gave a smile. "Do you remember when you broke your arm?"
Sora stuttered an affirmative as a blush consumed his face. He made to make excuses only to see a blush cover his friend's cheeks.
"What did you do," the brunette asked with his blue eyes wide.
"I didn't do anything," Riku replied, stressing the word anything. A smirk grew over his face and ruined the statement. "I saw him. Or rather spied on him. While you were getting your cast I was roaming the halls and I spied him with a patient."
Sora chuckled at the blush darkening to rouge on Riku's pallor.
"You cheated," Sora accused. He pointed his finger at the silver haired man and laughed as Riku grumbled beneath his breath,
The pale light of early morning shone in through the windows. The red light of the clock on top of the stove reminded Riku he had five hours to get ready. With a curt thanks and a smile Riku quickly shoved the brunette from his apartment so he could change.
"I have the address for a great florist if you're interested," Sora hollered through the door.
oOoOo
Yuki leaned against the wall of the elevator in exhaustion. He'd finally gotten home after a sixteen-hour shift and had begun to drop off into a doze. Then his cell phone had gone off in unison with Hatori's across the hall. A loud groan had strangled itself from his throat when he'd answered the phone, Hatori slept soundly through it.
Because his mentor had been on late night shifts the last two weeks Yuki hadn't had the heart to wake him up. That didn't change the fact that as soon as the elevator doors opened Yuki wasn't going to march to Haru's room and strangle the man. He took a long sip from the coffee cup glued to his hand as the doors opened with a "Bing". The miracle liquid was the only thing keeping him awake enough to recall what room number the two-toned-hair klutz was waiting.
"Please explain to me what you did this time," Yuki asked with a bit of exasperation in his tone. Haru smiled at him from the bed, his left arm rested awkwardly against the bar of the bed.
"I've missed you Yuki," he said in his deadpan tone, but a smile shone through the chocolate brown irises. Yuki caved and gave a weak smile to his cousin. He flipped open the chart and held two x-rays up to the light. A sigh escaped him to see the evidence of large fractures in the man's forearm. With a heavier sigh he gave a sidelong look at the younger Sohma.
"You broke you arm again."
Haru gave him an apologetic smile. As he spoke a comforting tone calmed Yuki's frayed and exhausted nerves.
"The cousins were flying a kite and it got caught in a tree, I had to get it out for them," Haru said. Yuki shook his head, laughing at the thought and slightly proud of the other Sohma.
"At least it wasn't just a fall from your bike."
"Are you supposed to make comments like that to patients," Haru asked teasingly.
The two men dissolved into soft chuckles. Yuki had been so busy with patients over the course of the week he had missed out on dinner at Shigure's and dinner at Haru's a fortnight earlier. As Yuki addressed the cast being made Haru prodded for information about his favorite Sohma.
"Stop asking about my love life, Haru," Yuki said with a laugh as he pressed the call button. He requested a nurse to prep Haru for his cast, while Haru rolled his eyes.
"How long has it been though," Haru murmured.
"its none of your business Haru," Yuki responded smiling at the look of worry in the brown eyes.
"But you're my sister," Haru deadpanned. The memory of the younger Sohma likening their relationship to a sisterhood made Yuki laugh again, he was reminded why Haru was his favorite member of the family. His response muffled the sound of approaching feet and left him unaware of the person standing at the door.
Until they spoke.
"Yuki Sohma?" the call was a stutter from a voice that he couldn't place.
Yuki turned and found himself staring at a face, matured but so familiar. He hadn't seen those aquamarine eyes to closely in four years. Now they were darker and wide with the same shock flowing through the doctor's veins. Riku had grown; Yuki realized as the silver haired man before him took a step further into the room. Long white blonde tresses brushed his mid back as they cascaded from the loose ponytail that hung at the base of the young man's neck. Simplicity personified with a plain white shirt and blue jeans the sight of the boy now a young man made Yuki's heart falter.
In Riku's hand was a bouquet of lilacs the color of Yuki's eyes.
Riku couldn't hold back a second longer. He rushed forward tossing the bouquet carelessly to the bed as he wrapped his arms around Yuki.
Without a spare second Riku pressed his lips to Yuki's, desperation and urgency flowing through the tight grip he took around Yuki's torso. Arms slid up around his neck as the warm mouth that he'd dreamt of so long opened up under his lips. Riku felt like he could cry.
Picking up the lithe man Riku spun them round and round with no thought to the patient.
"I love you I love you I love you," Riku chanted, punctuating each word with a hard press of his lips to Yuki's. Then he set Yuki the few inches back to the floor and stood and just stared at the man. Riku's gaze ran over the doctor, taking in the dip of his cheekbones and the paling gray hair that hung, like before, around his chin as if a curtain in progress. Wrinkles were beginning to appear on the pale skin and he was just so lovely.
"You came back," Yuki murmured in awe. He ran his hands around Riku's shoulders and up to his face. He cupped the face between his hands as he looked deeply into the young man's eyes, then Yuki laughed. Riku laughed as well leaning so their foreheads were pressed together and Yuki realized that, like Haru, Riku had beat him in height. If only by a little bit.
One of the hands at his shoulder blades ran down to his hip as lips kissed him over and over again.
"I didn't know if you'd want to see me," Riku murmured as he finally drew in a breath. Foreheads pressed together aqua hued irises met with amethyst and Riku could see every detail of the doctor's eyes.
"Why would you think that," Yuki asked, as if the very idea was absurd. He closed his eyes as he took in the feel of hands pressed firmly to his hips. He brushed his lips against Riku's and could only smile at the hitch in the silver haired man's breath at every gentle touch. Yuki wrapped his arms around Riku's waist and drew the younger man into him, pressing fully against him.
"I don't know," Riku whispered truthfully. Every worry that had crossed his mind was swept away by being so close to the doctor once again. The comfort of years prior penetrated his every nerve and the urge to tell this bright-eyed man his every secret spiraled deep within him.
"I wanted to come back and see you so many times…" Riku breathed the whisper into Yuki's ear as the doctor's gentle hands rubbed circles over his back. Yuki paused and leaned back and watched as sea foam eyes opened to his gaze. The boy was still there, Yuki thought with a sort of awe, and every emotion as well. There was a confidence in the gaze that hadn't been there the last time they'd spoken , Yuki blushed at the attraction the gaze made him feel.
"I'm an illustrator now," Riku said proudly as he leaned his chin down on Yuki's shoulder. "I work for a small publishing company and make decent wages."
Yuki ran a hand up the lean surface of Riku's torso, eyes feeling the pads of his fingers ran over Riku's lips and Yuki felt a chill run through him. Even four years later he was still much too old for the young man, surely there was someone his age?
"I must have been pacing the lobby for twenty minutes before I finally had the courage to even come up here," Riku babbled, every word drawn from his lips like the mere touch of Yuki's fingers was a tugging cord. He looked into the cooling gaze and even though his observation was four years old he felt he was seeing every emotion flow into a proverbial bottle behind Yuki's eyes.
"Please don't think what I think you are thinking," Riku begged in a whisper. He quickly combed his fingers through the strands of grey and held Yuki's gaze to his. Through a film the older man looked at Riku.
"A nurse is coming to get my patient," Yuki whispered. The words dried as they left his lips and he winced. Lips pressed urgently to his with begging words escaping the lips at each breathe.
Don't break my heart, Riku pleaded in a chant as he tilted his lips against Yuki's. He'd practiced since the last time and now he knew to lick at the lips that shook beneath his own. He spread his breath to Yuki as the hands fell around his waist, the doctor pulled him tight.
"I love you I love you I love you," Yuki chanted as they parted for breath. The mirror of Riku's own chant deepened the flush on their cheeks and drew hands into a waltz hold. Fingers laced as chuckles broke the tension Yuki's momentary worry.
All this love I'll have for as long as he is willing.
Yuki vowed as he held Riku tight to him. His free hand pressed flat against the lower back of this thin young man.
Haru coughed to break the moment. Two sets of darkened eyes flicked to him, flushed cheeks growing dark as the Sohma was remembered.
"Pardon me for interrupting," Riku said, his tone cool as a smile grew on his face. The men drew back from each other until only the laced fingers held the two warm bodies near. Haru nodded in response, sending Yuki an approving smile.
"This is my cousin, Hatsuharu Sohma," Yuki said, his gaze locked with the brown eyes. His fingers, however, moved like gentle caresses against the pale digits twisted with his own.
"Another cousin?" A knowing smile passed through the interlocked figures and Haru raised his eyebrows in question. The question remained locked behind his teeth.
"You better do well by Yuki-kun," was the sentence that escaped instead.
There was a mess of words as Riku tried to assure the patient as the nurse finally arrived and tried to cart the Sohmas off. Riku's hand left Yuki's as the metal bed passed through the door. Running for a moment Riku caught the sleeve of Yuki's white physician jacket. He pulled him from his steps behind the nurse and drew him just a breath away from an embrace. A smile on Riku's face, curiosity in Yuki's eyes and many more detailed things passed between them.
Into Yuki's ear, his breath making the doctor shiver, Riku whispered, "How does it feel to be swept off your feet?"
The end :) I know the post of the second chapter took a while but I am pleased with how it finished.
Note: The flowers Riku brings for Yuki are "Mauve" (purple) Lilacs. They are supposed to be a question from the giver, "Do you still love me?" Because of Riku very obvious nervousness I thought a florist would suggest these over red chrysanthemums ("I love you"). Plus, it was cute that they matched Yuki's eyes.