Chapter 2: Stigma

"I'll be going now."

"Take care..." Misaki mumbled to Usami in reply. Somehow Usami had been roped into taking a very exasperated and very drunk Aikawa home. Misaki wagered it wouldn't take too long and as soon as Usami got back, they could eat dinner together. Left alone to his own devices, Misaki could do nothing else but think. He was a thinker by nature and while Usami generally filled his thoughts, his mind was racing with the earlier news about his brother and sister-in-law. He heaved a sigh and found himself flopping onto the couch before letting his eyes settle on Suzuki-san.

"I wonder if Usagi-san is okay about this. Shit, it pisses me even thinking about it." He mumbled to his inanimate audience and pulled himself and the bear to the floor. Usami would probably be busier than usual with Aikawa breathing down his neck about his deadlines. He was always so careless with it but managed to make the deadlines anyway. It reminded him of a character in a manga he'd read once. He only barely remembered it was about a bunch of cursed people who turned into zodiac animals.

"Stupid Usagi..." He muttered and debated snacking on a couple of the chocolates until Usami returned. He thought to ask Suzuki-san about if he should eat some chocolates or not but in the end, he decided to go with eating just a few. He wouldn't spoil his appetite and if they were laced with alcohol, he wouldn't eat enough of them to tamper with his state of mind. He couldn't remember if Usami liked strawberries or not, but he was sure that maybe somewhere along the line Usami had said he didn't? Annoyed by the rampant thoughts of Usami in his mind, Misaki didn't realize he'd gone and eaten all but one of the strawberry filled chocolates. The familiar feeling of being warm and dizzy washed over him and he realized these chocolates were liqueured like the Belgians had been.

"Usagi-san in late..." Misaki began to pout to the bear that was almost bigger than he was. Even though he knew the bear was just a stuffed animal, sometimes it felt like the bear was really watching him and it either comforted Misaki or was able to creep him out. For now he was too drunk off the chocolates to be disturbed at the fact he was staring Suzuki-san in his beady black eyes. Misaki gave a small hiccup and drew in a deep breath. He suddenly felt tired and he shifted his weight on the floor. Curling up to the the bear he stuffed it under his head as a pillow and fell slowly asleep.

It wasn't until hours later that Usami finally returned to the apartment. He felt guilty for having been away for so long but he'd suddenly been caught up in meeting one of Aikawa's subordinates who was completely obsessed and engrossed in his BL novels. The woman was much like Aikawa and it was as difficult to get away from her as it was from Aikawa herself. He'd finally been able to excuse himself and he regretted not brining his cell phone along with him. Usually it was on him at all times but he really hadn't thought he'd need it. He hadn't even had a chance to call Misaki anyway. He was sure he'd get a brow-beating for being so late but it was fine so long as he was able to return and Misaki was there waiting for him. The faint smell of soy sauce and fish cakes lingered in the air but Usami was more intent on the picture before him. Misaki was sprawled out sleeping on the floor with his arms tangled around Suzuki-san. Usami was unable to keep from smiling at the adorable scene and he wondered if he shouldn't take a picture.

"Misaki." Usami whispered softly. He reached down to gently shake Misaki awake. He was going to catch a cold if he slept on the floor like this. It didn't help that it was somewhat chilly outside too. It was the middle of October and the floors in his apartment weren't exactly warm plush carpets. He hadn't turned the heat up either because it had been warmer out today and there wasn't much of a need to. After calling Misaki's name a few more times, he relaxed to see him finally waking up. Usami worried when he watched Misaki shivered and pull his hand to his head.

"Usagi... san?" Misaki whimpered and rubbed at his eyes and temples. He had an excruciating headache and wondered if he might have obtained a hangover from the chocolates. He didn't feel drunk anymore but he felt like heaving whatever was left of the chocolates all over the floor.

"You're going to catch a cold if you stay there." Usami said with a sigh to his voice and moved back so Misaki could get up. When he didn't immediately get up, Usami worried that he might've really been sick from laying on the floor for too long. Usami had been gone for nearly four hours and that was plenty of time for Misaki to get sick from sleeping here. However, Misaki rushed to his feet and mumbled something about dinner. It made Usami sigh a bit with relief. He worried about Misaki not taking care of himself properly.

"Ah, the food is warming u... wait a minute! What the hell are you doing back so late?!"

Usami gave a soft huff of air and righted Suzuki-san on the couch before he sat down and lit a cigarette. He took a long drag from it to calm himself down a bit from the hectic day he'd had. He'd miss his chance with Misaki twice already and even worse he'd had to deal with Aikawa as well as that crazy fan woman who was drooling over his BL novels. Exhaling the smoke he gave a bit of a smirk and let his eyes fall to Misaki. Damn the boy was sexy when he first woke up. He was even sexier for the fact he was running around in a tizzy.

"You missed me?"

"Like hell I did!"

"Your words say no, but your gestures say yes."

"You're just delusional."

Usagi snuffed out the last of his cigarette and found his way to the kitchen. He wrapped his arms around Misaki's waist and pulled the boy into a soft hug. With his head on Misaki's shoulder, Usami peered to the stove to see what was cooking. His stomach gave a growl in reply and he hoped the meal would be done soon. In the meantime he wanted to catch up on the days earlier events. He was seriously deprived of Misaki and wanted to recharge before the end of the day.

"I need to recharge my Misaki." Usagi grumbled in his frustration and began slide his hands under Misaki's shirt. He was surprised and somewhat vaguely alarmed at how warm Misaki's skin was beneath his palms. Then again, he wasn't sure if it was Misaki's skin or the fact that he had fairly cold hands. Either way he wondered if it was a good idea to entice him at all even if Usami wanted to satiate his urges. If Misaki was sick, he wasn't going to do anything to him. The fact that Misaki wasn't arguing with him or shoving away at him like usual had him worried. His hands stilled and his brows furrowed slightly in confusion. "Misaki?" He said softly and awaited an answer.

"Usagi-san. Let go." Misaki hadn't been feeling the greatest and all the smells from the food coupled with his growing migraine made him feel very queasy to his stomach. If Usami didn't let him go right away then Usami risked the chance of having leftover strawberry chocolates all over his feet. He was relieved when Usami didn't seem to argue and let him go. He debated running to the bathroom but figured it would only upset his stomach more. He instead found a pace in between and it was no sooner that he had reached the bathroom that he lost whatever was left within his stomach and more.

Usami had tried his best to give Misaki a little space and focus instead on making sure their soup didn't burn too bad. He only managed to burn his hand slightly in the process and almost tip the pan over twice. In a particular moment of silence he heard exactly what Misaki had been up there for. The sound made him cringe slightly and his brows ticked with annoyance. Usami felt like demanding Misaki stop being sick right away because it wasn't to his liking.

"Eh, sorry. I suddenly just didn't feel well is all. I'm fine now." He lied. Misaki didn't look okay at all. He was pale and he was a shaking a bit.

"Misaki. Go lay down." Usami nearly commanded. He knew it wouldn't fly over well with Misaki to be ordered around but even if Usami was a selfish man, he did put Misaki welfare above his own. He was a bit upset over knowing he wasn't going to be recharging tonight but Misaki's health was the main priority now. With a defeated sigh for his loss, Usami turned in time to hear the angry words that spilled from Misaki's tongue.

"Don't treat me like a child! I said I'm fine!" Misaki argued. So engrossed in his defiance, Misaki bustled quickly to the top of the stairs. He hadn't anticipated to be so lightheaded and dizzy from his fast-paced stomping. Misaki barely made it down a stairs before the world turned to hazy darkness around him and he fell towards the floor below.

"If I have to drag you... Misaki!!" Usami was sure his life had flashed before his eyes the moment he'd watched Misaki fall. He was even sure his heart might've stopped beating for a moment when he nearly didn't catch Misaki. Usami would bruise and be stiff for the next few days but for Misaki, he emerged unscathed.

"Aaah, stupid. Stop shouting..." Misaki whined to Usami. He still felt disoriented and everything turned into tiny pinpricks of light that began to fade away in front of him. His eyes looked to Usami before they fluttered shut slowly and Misaki slid off into a deep sleep.

Usami heaved in a huge breath of relief when he noticed Misaki was unharmed from the fall. He was quick to put to use the skills he had remembered from his own experiences of being sick. Usami debated bringing Misaki to his room but settled instead on his own room with the bigger bed and warmer covers.

Taking Misaki to a hospital would be a hassle and they'd call Takahiro which would create a large scene he'd rather not deal with. Instead he called the only person he could think of to help him; Hiroki Kamijou. He snatched the phone and dialed the number. Seconds later he was on his way upstairs to check on Misaki again.

"Kamijou-san, your seme is a doctor, right?" There was a brief pause before he continued. "Then come over right now; Misaki is sick." Usami hung the phone up and tossed it aside. He paced around the sleeping Misaki until Hiroki and his 'seme' Nowaki could arrive.

It wasn't much long until the doorbell rang and Usami raced to fling the door open and notice a very annoyed looking Hiroki and a worried Nowaki. He directed them to where Misaki was and stood back just enough to give Nowaki the room to work.Usami ripped a cigarette from his pocket and went to light it before he remembered something about smoke being problematic for people who were sick. Instead of lighting the cigarette he shoved it back into his pack and crushed the entire pack in his hands.

"Fix him." Usami demanded and paced once again. If Misaki was sick he couldn't see him running around the apartment with that stupid, goofy smile on his face and he couldn't be intimate with him either. He didn't want to wait any longer for Misaki to feel better.

"Usami-san, I don't think..." Nowaki ventured.

"Fix him!" Usami boomed again and threw his pack of cigarettes on the floor. He paced again and bit at his nails until he heard an exasperated sigh from Nowaki moments later. His pacing stopped and the look on his face suggested he was demanding answers.

"Usami-san, relax. It's just a cold and a bit of a fever. He'll be fine if he rests for a while. You should rest too. Try to keep him warm." Nowaki was glad that was all that was wrong with the boy. Usami's wrath was scary and he wondered just how angry he'd get if Misaki's condition had been worse. With the assessment of Misaki complete, Usami ushered them out the door quickly with a brief thank-you. He wasn't in the mood for company and even if it was rude, he didn't care.

Figuring to take the doctors order, Usami left the bowls of soup and Suzuki-san downstairs to be dealt with later. He instead stripped himself and crawled into bed. Within moments Usami was asleep with Misaki snuggled close and protectively against his body.

Hours later when the day broke and the sun filtered in through the trees, Misaki awoke. It took him a few minutes to rise but when finally he did, he noticed he was sleeping in Usami's bed... alone. Confusion washed over him and his head played through what he remembered from the night before. He remembered everything up until the point where Usami was shouting his name after he fell from being dizzy. Misaki still felt fairly sick but he had classes today and he wasn't about to miss them on account of something as silly as a cold. Getting to his classes was his top priority and for nearly an hour he argued with Usami about going. In the end Misaki had won the argument and had Usami drove him to school.

Misaki had somehow managed to make it through the day and catch at least some of his lectures. At the end of the day when class let out, Misaki stayed behind for a few moments to finish up his notes while the classroom emptied out around him. Before he could finish he was interrupted by one of his fellow classmates.

"Takahashi Misaki, I need to speak with you..." Misaki wasn't sure this was going to end so well.


Edited for some minor typos. w00t. Chapter 3 is out now!