AN: Oh…my gosh. You all have no idea how sorry I am. Like, you all deserve to stone me right now. What's it been, like, almost two months now? Oh god. The idea of making you guys wait that long makes me sick to my stomach. I'm so sorry.
I was thrown so many assignments and tests and booklets in my last month of school that I couldn't even draw anymore (yes, I do that too). I lost my motivation and spent this last little while picking that back up. I don't wanna drag this AN any longer with my crap. I owe you guys my kidneys right now. Thank you so, so, so much for all the follows, favorites and love. Your reviews make me cry, I don't even know why. I think it's just the sheer emotion of happiness knowing you guys care enough to take the time out of your lives to tell me I'm doing this right. (ಢ◞౪◟ಢ")
To sum that all up, thank you and I'm ever so sorry with all my sincerity.
Warnings for chapter: fluff? Do you even need a warning for that? This is rated M, you should know what you're in for by now.
Disclaimer: ain't nobody got time for this. Refer to previous chapters from now on if you'd really like a disclaimer
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It was nearly an hour later till Saruhiko actually heard the water of the shower begin running, and at that time he had already moved himself into the kitchen. He had relieved himself of his own situation–the scene he and Misaki had just played out brought more than enough awareness down below–and phoned in to the head office at Scepter 4, dryly notifying them that he wouldn't be coming in that day for personal reasons. He wanted nothing more than to stay at home and watch over Misaki.
Deep within Saruhiko, his possessive feelings grew for him, each moment spent with Misaki burying more and more twisted emotions within his heart. He wanted no one else to see what he's seen of Misaki, feel what he's felt for Misaki. But most of all, he wanted Misaki to never have these same feelings for anyone else other than Saruhiko. Just the thought constricted his chest and a lump rose to his throat, but he swallowed it down nonetheless and breathed a heavy sigh as he prepared brunch for the two.
The soft click of a door drew Saruhiko's attention away from the dish before him. Shuffling of feet back and forth in the hall gave Saruhiko the slight idea of what the vanguard was up to.
"Misaki~?" The shuffling stopped. As Saruhiko waited, a small smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth as he heard the other man heave an exasperated sigh.
"Saru," Misaki groaned as he trod out into the entryway of the kitchen, sporting about every clean towel Saruhiko figured he had left. "Where are my clothes?" Saruhiko just stood there for a moment, admiring the display Misaki had made of himself. The crow rolled his eyes and pulled one of the towels wrapped around his chest tighter and restated his original question. "Give me back my clothes."
"I haven't washed them yet."
"I don't care, I want them back." Saruhiko narrowed his eyes and noticed something strange about Misaki's face. He strode closer and quickly took hold of the vanguard's face.
"Your eyes are red." Misaki, though stunned at first, quickly recoiled and attempted to make his way back to the bathroom.
"I-I-I got soap in my e-eyes." Clearly unconvinced by the transparent lie, Saruhiko reached out and snatched hold of Misaki's arm.
"Have you been crying again?"
"No!"
"Tch– Pathetic." Saruhiko dragged Misaki back into his room and gave him a light push towards the bed. He turned and once again searched through his wardrobe for something the other could wear, but this time picked out something of his own liking, disregarding the thought of whether if fit the young man or not. Grinning devilishly, he tossed Misaki a giant woven sweater and some baggy sweatpants that even seemed too big on Saruhiko himself.
"Eh?! No way! There's no way in hell I'm wearing this!"
"It's all I have for you," he lied and waved his hand with a sigh, dismissing the subject.
"'It's all I have' my ass," Misaki grumbled mockingly, first pulling off the towels covering his upper body. Saruhiko took a sidelong glance and watched the other as he undressed, but was caught and chased out of the room by flying wet towels.
Setting out the bowls onto the table, Saruhiko sat and waited a few moments before Misaki finally emerged from the hall. The large clothes had only made the smaller boy look even shorter. Saruhiko couldn't help but snicker at him.
"OI, SHUT UP!" Misaki shouted and sat down roughly, his face bright and flustered. Saruhiko continued to grin as he pointed his chopsticks at the bowl before Misaki. Eyeing it, the crow's expression suddenly changed, pushing the bowl away, hanging his head and turning away. "I'm not hungry."
"Come on, Misaki."
"No."
"Misa–"
"You can't make me do anything, you stupid monkey!" Clicking his tongue, Saruhiko stood and moved around to bring the bowl back closer to Misaki.
"Look, you're sick, and not eating isn't going to help. Your body can't maintain a good immune system and heal your illness if you starve yourself. You're not getting out of here until you get better, so if you want to leave, you'd better do what's best for you. Now, eat."
Defeated by Saruhiko's lecture, Misaki sighed uncharacteristically and reached for his chopsticks. Something was very wrong with Misaki and Saruhiko could tell. The crow was definitely not himself anymore, at least, when he was upset he wasn't. Saruhiko could only keep him distracted from Misaki's own thoughts for so long.
Finishing two servings and the rest of Saruhiko's unfinished portion, Misaki gurgled and sat back, watching lazily as the Scepter 4 member cleaned up the mess. Saruhiko felt the eyes of the other on him the entire time as he moved and inwardly smiled. Good. That's how it should always be. Keep your eyes only on me–no one else. Saruhiko found himself slightly inclined to know what Misaki was thinking of as he watched him, but he figured he wasn't curious enough to actually ask
Saruhiko gave Misaki a new medication this time to help clear Misaki's head a little better. He could only imagine the pain the crow was suffering; of course, Misaki would never admit to it though. Misaki had been stifling off a few coughs here and there to make it seem as if he was better than before, but Saruhiko could tell otherwise every time Misaki make a choking noise as he 'cleared his throat'. He tossed Misaki a few new fresh blankets and instructed him to go back to the bedroom, but Misaki immediately discarded that as an option and went straight to the couch. He had plopped himself down and powered on the TV, casually flipping through channels as if he were right at home. Saruhiko rolled his eyes and gathered the remaining dirty laundry from off of the floor. After sorting the fabrics and tossing them into the washing machine, Saruhiko collected some important files and his laptop before walking into the living room and dropping himself down on the couch beside Misaki.
Still absorbed in previous thought, Misaki flinched away at first, looking over at Saruhiko with startled eyes. Saruhiko opened his laptop and glanced at the stricken crow.
"Hm? Oh, sorry." Misaki's cheeks darkened and he quickly turned away.
"S'fine. Whatever, you just startled me," Misaki slurred, turning and shifting away from the other. Amused, Saruhiko focused his attention back to his work with a small grin. He reached over and tousled the mess of damp auburn hair and completely perplexed Misaki, catching him off guard once again. Misaki cried out in agitation and pulled away, yanking the blankets covering him up and over his head for protection. Saruhiko laughed through his nose at the reactions he could stir. Misaki's ears had heated up so quickly under his touch, it made Saruhiko want to experiment more with the vanguard. However, that would have to wait; despite not going to Scepter 4 that day, he still had paperwork and to complete from the day before.
There was more work for all Scepter 4 members even after the death of the Kings. More and more dangerous Strains were being reported and it was causing everyone at headquarters to run around in search to bring them into custody. Patrols around specific areas were arranged, and after each, a report was due on any findings or tracing of evidence that could lead them closer to catching the Strains. Saruhiko saw it as tedious work, but was forced to complete his given tasks nonetheless.
As Saruhiko typed, time slipped by and just as he was nearly finished, his left arm was bumped away from the keys as Misaki's sleeping body slumped over onto Saruhiko. With a sigh, Saruhiko popped his legs up to rest on the coffee table and pushed his laptop further down his legs. Carefully, he shifted Misaki off his shoulder and lowered his head down onto his lap. Saruhiko reached up with one hand and continued typing while the other gently combed through Misaki's soft hair.
He was beginning to think playing with the vanguard's hair was becoming a weakness of his. Each lock that feathered between his fingers brought Saruhiko a wave of relaxation. He thought perhaps it was just the thought that Misaki was close to him, and that was why he had felt such comfort in the affectionate touch. Humming contentedly, Saruhiko's fingers grazed delicately over Misaki's hairline, occasionally thumbing softly at his temple to relax the other further in his slumber. His stomach knotted uncomfortably as he took note of the extremely warm skin beneath his fingertips. Worry flooded through Saruhiko and he began to feel pessimistic as he pressed his hand tenderly to Misaki's forehead.
Saruhiko was more than concerned about the vanguard's health at this point. Misaki's emaciated body was burnt into Saruhiko's mind, and he was determined to heal Misaki and take care of him till he was in good health, physically and emotionally. Misaki was never so sickly when they were younger; he had a fairly good immune system, better than Saruhiko's, in fact. Back in their school days, when one of the duo became ill, the other, in turn, would visit their home; do their best to comfort the other; and bring horribly attempted home remedies that (as expected), in the end, never worked.
Misaki heaved a sigh and shifted in Saruhiko's lap.
"Saru..." Saruhiko stiffened, freezing his movements and mentally preparing himself for a forceful punch to the gut.
But the blow never came.
Instead, Misaki whimpered and curled in on himself slightly. Pressing his lips into a thin line, Saruhiko closed his laptop and placed his work materials aside. He returned his fingers to Misaki's hair, calming the crow slightly.
"...gone...–koto...–san.." Saruhiko clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes. The idiot was dreaming about that bastard? Pathetic. "...Saru!" Suddenly, Misaki's arms shot out lazily in front of him before dropping back down as Misaki's face warped into a sour expression.
"Shh," Saruhiko cooed, rolling Misaki over and up into a laid-back sitting position where Saruhiko could hold the young man in his arms more easily. Misaki moaned quietly and pressed himself into Saruhiko's collar unconsciously. "It's alright," Saruhiko whispered, nuzzling his nose into Misaki's clean, vanilla scented hair. He grinned at the simple thought of Misaki using his shampoo. It created the idea of them being closer together in a sense with Misaki smelling now more like Saruhiko, almost like Misaki was being marked like an animal through scent. "I'm here, and I'm not leaving you anytime soon."
::.
AN: I've got one more final to write on the 18th so I definitely won't take as long to update again. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think.
Later my lovelies~