A/N: So, now we're back with Romantica. We're winding down to the end of the story now, so I hope you guys enjoy the last few chapters.
Misaki and Akihiko were laughing as they entered the author's apartment. They were both carrying souvenirs from their trip to the amusement park, which were mostly composed of teddy bears. Akihiko turned on the light to his apartment before closing the door behind him. By now, they had both calmed down somewhat and were now smiling at each other.
"I had a great time tonight, Usami-san," Misaki said softly while still smiling. His heart was racing and he could feel his face starting to heat up.
Akihiko chuckled at the use of his formal name. "Haven't I told you to call me Akihiko?" the author said.
Misaki blushed but shook his head. "I can't call you by your name yet."
"Why?" Akihiko asked in confusion.
The blush on Misaki's face grew brighter and spread farther across his face and neck. He mumbled out something, but Akihiko couldn't hear a thing that the boy said. But judging on how embarrassed Misaki seemed, it was something adorable. He leered at the boy before he stalked forward. Akihiko reached out for Misaki and placed a hand on the boy's face, cradling the cheek in his palm. He tilted the boy's face up so that they were staring at each other.
"What was that, Misaki?" Akihiko purred out.
Misaki lifted his head up and noticed the gleam in Akihiko's eyes. The gleam was recognizable enough for warning bells to go off in his head. He shook his head rapidly and kept his mouth shut. The gleam in Akihiko's eyes grew brighter until a smirk came to his face. This was the only warning that Misaki got before Akihiko reached out to grab his waist.
"Usami-sam? Usami-san? Put me down!" Misaki shouted as he was suddenly lifted into the air.
Akihiko draped Misaki over his shoulder, which slightly the boy's heart to speed up. He heard Akihiko chuckling under him and that caused the boy to frown deeply. He started to struggle in the author's grasp, but Akihiko wouldn't have any of that. Placing a hand on Misaki's lower back, he tightened his grip around the boy.
"Just tell me why you won't call me Akihiko and I'll put you down," Akihiko said with a smirk.
Misaki blushed and locked eyes with the author. "It's embarrassing…," Misaki trailed off.
"I don't mind," Akihiko said simply.
"I know you don't, but I do," Misaki thought to himself.
Akihiko just tightened his grip over the boy's body, pulling him closer to his shoulder. Misaki grunted at his stomach stretched over the author's shoulder and he couldn't stop his hands from grabbing onto the man's shirt. His eyes were starting to water slightly and he had to keep his eyes close to stop the tears from falling. He wasn't about to cry in frustration like some little kid. He begged the author to let him down again, but Akihiko just ignored his begging.
"I won't let you go Misaki, not until you tell me why. And if you don't, I won't stop until I…persuade you," Akihiko purred.
Misaki immediately started to struggle in Akihiko's grasp. "Okay, okay! I'll tell you, jut let me down!" Misaki nearly shouted.
Akihiko chuckled and released Misaki as he asked. There would be other times to persuade the child, after all. There was no need to scare the boy away yet. The boy stumbled when his feet touched the ground and he moved towards the couch. He fell on the couch but he paid it no mind as he continued to stare at Akihiko. The man was giving him a heated glance. Blushing brightly, Misaki looked right into Akihiko's eyes. He brought his knees up to his body, ducking his face in-between the small gap.
The author smiled at the cute display and kneeled down. His chest blocked Misaki's only path of escape and a smirk came to his face. Placing a hand on Misaki's shoulder, Akihiko lifted Misaki's face up with his other hand. He swept in and kissed Misaki right on his lips, ignoring the struggle that the boy put up. After a while, Misaki ceased with his struggles and relaxed under Akihiko's ministrations. His eyes fluttered shut in response to the kiss before he let out a soft sigh.
Akihiko begrudgingly pulled away from the boy's soft lips and looked Misaki straight in the eyes. "I just want to know everything that Misaki thinks about," Akihiko confessed.
Misaki blushed before he nodded his head slowly. "I…I don't want t-to call you by your name u-until I l-l-like you," Misaki said, stammering slightly.
Misaki ducked his head down in embarrassment. He couldn't believe what he had just said. He had basically implied that he was interested in dating the older man. Biting his bottom lip, Misaki slowly lifted his head up, afraid of what he would see reflecting in those eyes. But what he found wasn't annoyance or disgust. Instead, it looked as though the author was happy. Shocked, but happy.
A large smile came to Akihiko's face. "Oh Misaki! You make me so happy!" the author exclaimed before wrapping his arms around Misaki.
Misaki opened his mouth to say something when he heard Akihiko mumbling things in the crook of his neck. Furrowing his eyebrows, Misaki strained his ears and blushed at what the author said.
"I 'like' you too, Misaki."
Misaki blushed at the sentence and he buried his face in the crook of Akihiko's neck. He was beyond embarrassed right now, but it looked as though Akihiko wasn't even affected by all the weird tension. The author just chuckled at the display and rubbed the back of Misaki's back. Taking in a deep breath, Misaki lifted his face from Akihiko's neck and looked around the room. A magazine on the coffee table caught his attention and he narrowed his eyes. His eyes widened in horror as he recognized the picture of the front page of the magazine.
It was the picture of Akihiko and himself kissing at the movie premier. And judging by the controversy of the headline, it appeared as though the media wasn't quite happy about the prospect of Akihiko having a significant other, especially a male one. Either that, or the media was just eating up the moment and had struck gold. Misaki reached out for the magazine and flipped through with a daze. He wasn't sure what to expect.
Akihiko frowned when he felt Misaki freeze in his arms before the boy reached for something. Looking over Misaki's shoulder, the author's eyes grew wide. It was the magazine that had their picture. His eyes narrowed as he took in the picture. He had thought that he ripped up the magazine. No, he was positive that he had ripped it up. But then, who would have-
Oh...Aikawa had brought in extra magazines so that she could fully give her rant about avoiding the paparazzi. The author mentally rolled his eyes as he remembered that conversation. How was he supposed to avoid the paparazzi? It wasn't as if they just announced their hiding places to the author before taking his picture. If they had done that, he would have been less adamant about leaving his condo. And he would have gotten restraining orders. Not that he hadn't already tried.
"Usami-san...," Misaki trailed off, his eyes never leaving the article picture.
Akihiko wrapped his arms around Misaki and pulled the boy to his chest. "I don't care what they say about us. You're mine now and that's that," the author announced.
Misaki felt his eye twitch when he heard that before he glared up at the author. "I'm not some piece of meat that you can just claim! I'm a human being and I have rights too!" Misaki shouted before standing up.
"And what gives you the right to 'claim me' anyway?" Misaki asked, placing quotes around the end of his sentence.
Akihiko just blinked his eyes. "Because I can."
Misaki slapped the palm of his hand against his forehead and groaned. So not only was he involved with a celebrity, he was involved with a childish celebrity. Picking up the magazine, Misaki turned to the page that the article was on. His eyes skimmed through the text before he slowed to a stop. His eyes grew wide in shock as he took in the words.
Misaki Takahashi has been a movie theater employee ever since he had been in out of high school. His college experiences had been cut short years ago when he could no longer afford to pay for his education. So, one would wonder why the famous Akihiko Usami found this child interesting in the least. But it isn't hard to wonder what the boy finds interesting about the famous writer. After all, Usami is practically a goldmine for any person...
The magazine fell from Misaki's hands as his mind went over the words in his head. Was he a gold digger, just because he kissed Akihiko once? Looking down at the picture, Misaki suddenly felt dirty. Gulping tightly, the boy wrapped his arms around his body and began walking away from the author. He wasn't blinking at all, still in shock about what he had just read. How had the media found out about his lack of money, his troubles in college, even where he worked? He never remembered giving that kind of information away to anyone. Not even his closest friends knew about his situation. That made him feel even more dirty.
"Misaki? What's wrong?" Akihiko asked in worry.
The author had seen the fear that flashed thought Misaki's eyes. Misaki just ignored the author and moved to grab his coat before heading towards the door. Eyes snapping open, Akihiko jumped up and slammed his hand against the door before the boy could leave. The door slammed shut and the bang echoed through the room, causing Misaki to jump in shock.
Akihiko's eyes went to Misaki's tense backside. When the boy showed no sign of turning around, the author sighed. He placed his hands on Misaki's shoulder before letting his head rest on the other shoulder. He breathed in the boy's scent before letting out a deep breath.
"Misaki, just tell me what's wrong. Please," Akihiko begged softly.
A soft sniff filled the air around them before soft sobs came right behind. Misaki's shoulders were trembling slightly as more tears fell down his face. Akihiko wrapped a hand around Misaki's chest, pulling the boy closer to the author. The other hand crept around until it connected with Misaki's face. The long fingers brushed away some of the tears, which prompted more to appear.
"Stop crying Misaki," Akihiko said in Misaki's ear.
Misaki sniffed loudly before shaking his head. "I can't help it. Once I start crying, I can't stop," the boy said in a trembling voice.
"Then let me help you. Just tell me what's wrong," Akihiko said again.
Misaki remained tense for a few seconds before slowly turning around. His eyes were shining brightly from unshed tears. His bottom lip was shaking slightly. Akihiko placed a finger under Misaki's chin, lifting his head up. The author bent down and captured Misaki's lips in a soft kiss. Their lips brushed against each other as gently as possible.
Akihiko moved away from Misaki's lips, licking his own in the meantime. Misaki sucked in a large breath, his cheeks dusted with a light blush. His large eyes were looking straight at Akihiko before he bowed his head.
"Usami-san...am I a...a gold digger?" Misaki asked with mild difficulty.
Akihiko's eyes grew wide in shock before he grabbed Misaki's shoulders tightly. "No! You are not a gold digger at all! Who told you that?" Akihiko asked vehemently.
Misaki slowly lifted his arm up and pointed towards the magazine that laid forgotten on the floor. Akihiko just growled before pulling Misaki to his chest. "Don't listen to whatever those gossip magazines say! They just want to separate us because they don't think that you're good enough for me."
The author watched as tears started to come back to Misaki's eyes. "So, you don't think that I'm with you for your money?" Misaki asked cautiously.
"No. And even if you were, I would just romance you until you became happy with just my presence," Akihiko said deeply.
Misaki's throat tightened at the confession and his tears started to fall once again. This time though, they fell due to happiness. He wrapped his arms around Akihiko's neck and cried against the author's chest.
A/N: Well, Misaki went through every emotion in the book, didn't he? But this moment needed to happen sooner or later. So, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. :D
