Disclaimer: Junjou Romantica isn't mine.

A / N: I haven't yet explained this at all, but I really did think about the honorifics before dropping off all the -sans and -chans and whatever (except for when using the expression 'the great lord Usami-sama'). They don't really belong to English, so I just decided to omit them altogether. Even so, I had some trouble imagining how Aikawa would then address the author she's editing. Akihiko? Too informal. Usami? Just weird. So I was left with plain 'sensei', and that's what you'll see here. I also wonder if anyone has noticed a pattern to how I alternate between 'Usagi' and 'Akihiko'...? I just don't know if I managed to write it how I wanted to.

Anyway, thanks for all your comments! I really love reading your thoughts! The kittens are still in the process of being named, although we're thinking of some food-related names. We just haven't found the perfect ones yet. And they've grown even cuter!


LEVEL UP!


Chapter 8: A Game of Scrabble

Gorgeous, handsome, beautiful, amazing, luscious, elegant, scrumptious, sexy, manly, magnificent, delicious, pulchritudinous, perfect. Absolutely perfect. Words like these flashed across Akihiko's mind – already in working mode – when he saw Misaki come downstairs wearing his clothes. Not suits or vests, but a polo shirt, a blue one that made Misaki's emerald eyes twinkle and reflect the colour of the sky like an ocean.

There was already an idea to a new BL story forming in Akihiko's mind, which was lucky since it was just that subject that had brought Aikawa to the flat on a Sunday. The woman had barged in, found Akihiko in the kitchen and grabbed him, sobbing and cursing and muttering something about missed deadlines. He had no choice but to play nice for a while.

"Oh, hello Aikawa", Misaki said when he noticed the guest. "I didn't know you were here. Would you two want some tea?"

Aikawa was open-mouthed and staring at the young man. "Misa... ki?"

Her question had been so quiet that Misaki hadn't even heard it. He was already fixing tea in the kitchen and placing some biscuits on a saucer. He seemed to be in a good mood.

"Sensei, that is Misaki, right?" Aikawa whispered to Akihiko. "I'm not imagining things, am I? What the heck has happened to him since I last saw him?"

"Isn't it amazing?" Akihiko said, repeating Takahiro's words from the day before.

"Amazing? Amazing?! This goes beyond amazing! Isn't he already well over 20? And I swear it hasn't been a month since we last met! How is that even physically possible? Are you certain that it's really Misaki?"

Akihiko chuckled. "Yes, I'm sure," he said, remembering last night and feeling the long fingers of inspiration caress his mind. "I was quite surprised myself when I came home from the tour."

Aikawa studied the new form of Misaki more profoundly. "Amazing... Yes, I can see that. Or gorgeous, handsome, manly," she muttered to herself. Her vocabulary wasn't quite as large as Akihiko's. "Hey," she then started a bit more loudly, addressing Akihiko, "what does Misaki himself think about it?"

"I think he's a bit weirded out by the suddenness of his growth spurt, but beyond that he doesn't mind." Actually, what did Misaki really think about it all? Akihiko wasn't completely sure he had the absolute answer to the question, but he wasn't going to admit that to Aikawa.

"Well, I think he looks damn fine," Aikawa said, winking conspiratorially at Akihiko.

Akihiko smiled proudly, then frowned. Had the editor become a fly that needed swatting? Aikawa often acted like she was desperate to find a husband, after all, and she had admired Misaki's house keeping skills before. There was age difference, of course, but not too much. No more than between him and Misaki. Akihiko was already picturing a wedding dress on the woman, and one could almost see the thunderclouds appear over his head.

Their whispered conversation was interrupted when Misaki came with the tea and biscuits. "Do you need anything else?"

Aikawa smiled her most winning smile at the young man. "Misaki! I can't believe how much you've changed. You look very handsome!"

Misaki blushed. He wasn't used to getting compliments from women, or if he did, it was always cute, never handsome. "Um, thank you," he stammered. "You look good, too," he added, flustered.

"Why, thank you!" she giggled.

Akihiko hated that girly behaviour, almost like a teenager with a crush, or so it seemed to his rather biased eyes. And Misaki's blush; was it a sign of something? He had to stop this before it got too far. "I think we're fine with these, Misaki, thank you. Didn't you have that show you wanted to watch?"

"Waah, is it already that late? Thanks for reminding me! Ah, sorry, I'll leave you to your work!"

With a satisfied smile Akihiko watched as Misaki ran back upstairs to watch it in peace, making a terrible racket on the way. Then he turned back to the editor, who was eyeing him disappointedly.

"Awww, I wanted to talk to Misaki a little more..."

"I'll tell you this just once," Akihiko said threateningly. "You can't have Misaki."

Aikawa was astounded. "What? You thought I –? No way, your imagination is too wild! He's still just a boy, no matter how he looks! He just got my fantasies running high, that's all. How about, with this new book, if we have a scenario like this –" And so they started working again.

But the incident was etched in Akihiko's mind. He hadn't just imagined that girly giggle. Plus, he was the only one who was allowed to fantasize about Misaki. He was sure that Aikawa was telling the truth about how she felt about Misaki, but he could also see the effect that Misaki had on a representative of the peculiar species called female. Even if Aikawa wasn't going to be a danger, there would be a horde of other women that would pose a serious threat. Not to mention men.

It became harder and harder for him to concentrate on his work. Somehow they managed to get through everything that needed getting through, largely thanks to Aikawa's unyielding tenacity. Akihiko, on the other hand, had started imagining things that were worse and worse by every passing minute. First there was just mild admiration towards Misaki from some college girls, or maybe from women at his workplace, then there would be fans, then a special fan. Ah, he could already picture her, all innocent words and smiles on the outside, a selfish and vicious bitch on the inside. And Misaki, who had never been that popular, would fall to her snares quickly, easily. He would walk out that door right over there, saying something about women being better, after all. Then the two of them would hop off to the sunset to live happily ever after, while Akihiko would be completely forgotten as a folly of the youth. Sometimes it was a curse to have as good an imagination as Akihiko had. He just couldn't switch it off.

It wasn't like he was doubting his Misaki. Maybe just a little. He couldn't deny the fact that life would be easier for Misaki if he chose a woman. He could live normally, then. Even so, Akihiko didn't really think Misaki would leave him just like that. Yet he couldn't stop his mind showing him the image of Misaki's back disappearing out of the door.

Mainly he was dubious about the other party. Women. They could be quite devious when they wanted to. Very twisted, sly, cunning, crafty, fraudulent or whatever. And they could trap a pure boy like Misaki in a heart beat, using only one finger.

A bit later, when Aikawa was leaving, Akihiko was already in a very foul mood. The air in the room felt stale, the atmosphere cold, and one could almost imagine thunder rolling somewhere far away, just out of hearing range. Aikawa escaped from the flat and counted herself lucky to get out when she did.

Misaki came back down, his show had finished with a cliffhanger. He started preparing the dinner, checking the fridge for whatever ingredients they had, picking some vegetables. Of course he noticed how Usagi seemed to be surrounded by complete darkness, but he thought it was just usual work related stress and hoped that the author wouldn't vent his anger on him. He wasn't a bloody lightning rod, nor did he want to be.

Misaki flinched a tiny bit when he saw that Usagi had started his long and painful trek from the sofa to the kitchen. He was a bit worried about Usagi's state, which seemed quite bad.

"Do you have to go to work tomorrow?" Akihiko asked, irritation showing through in his voice.

Oh, was this mood just because of this again? But this was something in which Misaki would definitely not give in. He would not be locked inside this flat, he would not become a kept slave boy. "Yes, I do. You know that my vacation is over."

"Yeah, yeah," Akihiko said tiredly and retreated to his study to pretend to get some work done.

He emerged only when Misaki called him to dinner, ate quickly talking only what was necessary, then disappeared again. Misaki was worried, yet at the same time he was thinking that Usagi's suffering was really Usagi's own fault if he had to be so egoistic and possessive.

There was a pout on Misaki's face. This wasn't how he had wanted to spend the last day of his vacation, but he didn't know how to fix the situation since he didn't really even understand what was bugging Usagi so much. He watched some television, read a bit of manga, went over his work materials once more, and through all that the study door stayed closed. Misaki was a bit nervous about the next day. It was his first day as a full-time employee, and there was his change, too: how all his colleagues at the publishing house would take it. He would have liked to talk this over with Usagi, but the author seemed to be in such a mood that Misaki absolutely didn't want to go too near him. Not angry as such, at least not yet, but really annoyed and ready to explode.

Was it good to leave things like this between the two of them, Misaki wondered. Probably not, he answered his own question. Nevertheless, he didn't dare approach the moody author. Besides, what was the point if Misaki wouldn't give up his work, no matter what. No matter how jealous Usagi would get about him spending his time with other people. No matter how much Usagi wanted to keep him here all his life. No matter what. The idiotic self-centred bastard would just have to get used to it, and if this silent treatment would be the only way to achieve that, then fine. Two could play this game.

So he went to sleep in his own room, only saying good night through the door and receiving a muffled reply. For a few seconds he listened to the steady rhythm of Usagi's fingers tapping the keys of his laptop on the other side of the door. Well, at least he was getting some work done even in this state, or maybe it was because of this state that he had to divert his energy into work.

Misaki fell asleep quickly and saw no dreams at all.