Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me. I am BROKE.
Summary: Matt is an escort. An ESCORT! Not a hooker, as most people choose to believe. That is until he meets Taichi Yagami and his remaining morals seem to desert him. Taito!
Warnings: Slash, language and SEXUAL SITUATIONS.
Chapter 10 - Mad About The Boy
"Wait. You're the client?" Matt asked in amazement, silently cursing whatever higher-power had decided to put him in such a horrific situation.
"You're the escort?" Ikato responded, looking infinitely more smug than horrified.
"Er…no," Matt lied, deciding that honesty was definitely not the best policy at that particular moment.
Ikato however, did not look convinced.
"Right. So you frequently hang around on street corners and ask people if their clients?" he asked, raising his eyebrows and throwing the blond a patronising smile.
"Yes. Yes I do," Matt nodded unconvincing, inwardly cringing at his own inability to lie.
Throwing Ikato what he hoped was a charming smile through gritted teeth, the blond turned on a heel, fully intending to run away as fast as his legs could carry him. Ikato however, seemed to be intent on preventing his escape.
"Does Tai know?" he asked loudly, unable it seemed to hold back a triumphant smirk.
Matt froze, his mind whizzing into overdrive. If he admitted that Tai did know that he was an escort, Ikato would immediately realise that Matt had only been pretending to be the brunette's boyfriend at the party. But if he claimed that Tai did not know he was an escort, Ikato would try to use his profession as a reason to blackmail him.
Making a split second decision, Matt turned slowly, eyes flickering around uncertainly. "No, Tai doesn't know," he replied tonelessly, deciding it would be the lesser of the two evils to just lie. It was so much less complicated than telling the truth.
Ikato smiled, eyes shining dangerously. "That's interesting. Very interesting."
The blond scowled in response, crossing his arms across his chest and trying to disregard the uneasy feeling that was bubbling at the pit of his stomach.
"So how about are date then?" Ikato said a moment later, clapping his hands together and throwing Matt a hundred watt smile.
"Date?!" Matt laughed acidly. "I'm not going anywhere with you!"
"Tough," Ikato replied, smile fading slightly. "I've hired you!"
The blond raised an eyebrow, fixing the dark-haired man before him with an calculating look. "I have the right to refuse service to whoever I like!"
To Matt's immense surprise, Ikato carried on smiling, tilting his head and gazing at the blond with an almost innocent expression. "Maybe…" he said silkily, his words soft and slow. "But then again, I don't think Tai will be too happy to find out his boyfriend is an escort."
The blond cursed silently. Although he had predicted beforehand that Ikato might try to blackmail him about Tai, it didn't make it any less painful to hear. He was quickly running out of options.
"Your blackmailing me?" he asked with a scowl, blue eyes narrowed dangerously.
If it was possible, Ikato's smile became even more pronounced. "I don't know where you got that from!" he said innocently, "I was merely commenting that Tai would be incredibly disappointed to find out his boyfriend's an escort."
Matt closed his eyes for a second, wondering how on earth he managed to get himself in such situations. But realising that he had no choice but to play along, he levelled Ikato with a cold glare, admitting silent defeat.
"Excellent!" the black haired man said enthusiastically, evidently taking Matt's silence as consent. "Off we go then. Where do you want to go for our date?"
"A place far away from you!"
"Now now, do you treat all paying customers this way?" Ikato said patronisingly, hooking his arm around Matt's waist and leading him quickly down the road.
"It's part of my appeal," the blond replied angrily, as he attempted to squirm out of Ikato's firm hold.
"Oh believe me, that's not your only appeal," the dark-haired man said with a laugh, giving the blond a small smack on the ass and ignoring his yelp of horror. "What do you say we go for a drink?"
"I say burn in hell," Matt replied angrily, his eyes dangerously narrowed as he rubbed his sore behind. He wasn't sure how long he could last without turning around and smacking Ikato straight in the face, despite knowing it could ruin everything. If Ikato found out that Daisuke had simply hired the blond to be Tai's boyfriend, both he and brunette would never hear the end of it. Ikato would never let go of the fact that Tai had to buy himself a boyfriend
Deciding that he would just have to contain his anger, Matt rearranged his face into what he hoped was an impassive expression, rather than his previous scowl that had just been downright hostile.
He seemed to of succeeded, because Ikato gave him a small pat on the back and said, "I'm glad your starting to calm down."
Biting back a retort, Matt stuck his nose up in the air and stalked onwards with all the dignity he could muster, determined not to succumb to his anger.
Ikato gave a short laugh and followed him, his mind brimming with ideas.
"So with this escort business," Ikato said lightly, flagging down another couple of drinks from the barmen, "does Tai know you sleep with other people?"
Matt gritted his teeth, downing his drink in one quick flick of his wrist. "I do not sleep with other people!"
Ikato smiled in such a sickly manner that the blond was tempted to throttle him, but appeared not to notice Matt's mounting anger. "Of course you don't. But surely your tempted sometimes?" he asked with a casual shrug, passing the blond a small vodka and coke.
"No I'm not!" Matt cried incredulously, knocking back a cold gulp of drink in an attempt to calm himself. He was determined not let Ikato wind him up, but even his sneering smile made the blond want to kill him, despite his best efforts to remain calm.
"Oh, but surely you have to kiss other people?" Ikato said, in such a way it was although they were discussing the weather.
"Not often!" Matt replied, suddenly defensive. After all it was him kissing other people that Tai had such a problem with in the first place. "Besides, Tai doesn't mind," he lied.
Ikato raised an eyebrow, amusement gleaming in his eyes. "Really?"
"Yes! He understands!" The blond cringed at his lie, attempting to avoid Ikato's eyes by taking a furious sip of his drink. "He trusts me!"
Feeling the dark-haired man's gaze upon him, Matt turned to the barmen, face flushing under Ikato's unwavering stare.
"So Tai's never doubted you?"
Matt choked on his drink, but shook his head furiously, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "Never," he replied, with far more conviction than he actually felt. He was suddenly not sure of much at all.
"If I was him, I'd want to keep you at home," Ikato coaxed, eyes surveying the blond carefully, but making no move to advance on him.
Somewhat comforted by this, Matt nodded, sipping his drink so he could survey his customer over the top of his glass. Ikato's ever changing demeanour was beginning to confuse him.
"Don't you think it's strange that he's letting you go off with other men? Is he not protective?"
"Yes he is!" the blond cried, his anger returning to him with a jolt. "He doesn't like me going off with other men at all!"
"But you just said he's fine with it! That he trusts you!" Ikato reminded him, expression impassive, though his eyes gleamed in triumph.
"Well yes, but…he…I…" Matt hesitated, face contorted in confusion and uncertainty, suddenly feeling incredibly flustered. "What I mean to say is…that he doesn't like it, but he supports me!"
"Oh I see. That's good of him," the dark-haired men said off-handily, waving his arm in indication for some more drinks.
"Yes it is!" the blond cried hotly, wanting to get his point across clearly, as though uncertain as to whether or not Ikato believed him. "He's a brilliant boyfriend."
"I remember," Ikato said with a smile, which only succeeded in fuelling Matt's defensiveness. He had momentarily forgotten that his client was Tai's ex-boyfriend, and the whole reason the blond and brunette had been introduced in the first place.
"But your not with him anymore!" he cried, only vaguely aware that he was stating the obvious.
The dark-haired man's face darkened slightly, but he smiled once more, passing Matt a drink. "Well spotted!"
The blond flushed and hiccupped slightly, shaking his head to try and relieve it of it's fogginess. He was not going to give Ikato the satisfaction of watching him fall apart.
"But when I was with Tai, he never wanted me out of his sight," Ikato began, evidently having discovered a new line of attack. "I'm glad he overcame his possessiveness."
Matt scowled, gulping back the burning taste of whiskey to try and prevent an angry retort. Somewhere in the back of his mind a small voice was reminding him that Ikato was only trying to stir things, but the blond couldn't help the bubble of uncertainty that had risen in his chest. Everything suddenly seemed very distorted, including his relationship with Tai.
He leant his head on his hand, desperately trying to gain control of his thoughts and feelings, which were currently rendering him speechless. Everything was so confusing that he had no idea how to respond to Ikato's words, suddenly feeling quite helpless.
Vaguely registering that he probably shouldn't have had so much to drink, Matt sat up straight, trying to regain control of himself.
"I'm sorry," Ikato continued insincerely, but the blond was too busy attempting not to sway in his seat that he barely noticed. "I should stop talking about the past. How are you and Tai now?"
Matt nodded distractedly, eyes unfocused as he pictured his boyfriend. "Good."
"I'm glad," his client responded, though his voice was somewhat wooden. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must go to the men's. Have another drink."
Vaguely relieved that Ikato was leaving, if only for a moment, Matt nodded, his head collapsing on the bar as soon as the dark-haired man disappeared from sight.
"What I don't understand, is how he could do that to me?!"
"It's a mystery."
"He said he liked me, and yet he did that to me!"
"Despicable."
"I mean, if you like someone, you don't treat them like that!"
"Quite right."
"I know we made up and everything, but it still hurts. Know what I mean?"
"Absolutely."
It was half an hour later, and Matt and his client were still sat at the bar in deep discussion. Or at least the blond was in deep discussion - mostly with himself it seemed - and Ikato was sat beside him, listening to his rant with increasing interest.
Matt hiccupped, his uncertainty pouring out of him almost as fast as the drinks were flowing. "I'm glad you understand. Was he like that with you?"
Ikato paused for a moment, evidently weighing out what he should say, although the blond did not seem to notice. "A bit."
"Some people - hiccup -never- hiccup -change."
"Why not break up with him then?" Ikato suggested lightly.
Matt jumped to his feet and swayed, but his eyes were dangerously narrowed. "No!"
"OK," Ikato said hastily, waving his arms defensively. "Just a suggestion. Sit back down."
Mumbling incoherently under his breath, the blond did as he was told, relieved that he had an excuse to collapse back in his chair. He barely even registered that he had just taken orders from a person his heartily despised.
"I was just thinking, if Tai sleeps with you and then tells you it means nothing, that he obviously doesn't care about you," Ikato explained, his voice soft and low.
"He does," Matt said groggily, although with a lot less anger and conviction than he intended. The calm even tone of Ikato's voice seemed to be lulling him into a state of comatose, so much so that he couldn't even bring himself to try and stop him.
"It's time," Ikato said a second later, glancing down at his watch. "Come on."
"Come on?" the blond repeated in confusion, allowing his client to almost drag him to his feet.
"Yes. You need to get home," Ikato said with some urgency, looping an arm around his waist and pulling him forward. To his immense relief, Matt did not try to fight him this time and simply crumpled into the embrace, so much so that it was almost like steering an unconscious body.
Leading him out of the bar and onto the deserted street, Ikato tightened his grip, feeling Matt slump slightly in his arms.
"Are you ok?"
The blond nodded feebly, clasping onto the edges of Ikato's jacket for dear life. His head was spinning and he could barely see, only able to make out bleary dark shapes around him.
"Shouldn't drink," he mumbled, feeling ashamed of himself. He couldn't believe he'd got himself drunk with a client once again.
"Indeed," Ikato said distractedly, his hands running up and down Matt's back in what he took as a comforting notion.
Leaning against his only support, the blond closed his eyes tightly, trying to block out the spinning and swaying of the world around him. Grateful but unsure as to why Ikato was helping him, he disregarded his doubts, unable to contemplate anything but how ill he was feeling.
Hearing the sudden roar of engines around him as though from miles away, Matt hiccupped once more, attempting to gain his bearings. He could feel Ikato's hands sliding over his back and his soft breathing, suddenly right next to his ear. Taking in a sharp intake of breath, he felt his client's lips graze the side of his face as he shifted, causing Matt to squirm uncomfortably.
However before he could do anything else, a loud voice echoed down the deserted road, causing the blond to freeze.
"What the hell is going on?"
"Oh god," Matt whispered, suddenly feeling even sicker than before. "Tai?"
The brunette was stood less than 50 metres away, watching Ikato and the blond with a face like thunder, his eyes wide in disbelief.
Matt stumbled away from his client, who let him go willingly, a smile upon his face.
"Oh Tai, what are you doing here?" Ikato asked, his face so alight with innocence that even the blond could see it. "What a lovely surprise?"
Matt gaped, comprehension finally dawning on him. However before he could speak, although he admittedly did not have a clue what to say, Ikato spoke again.
"I'm glad you arrived just in time to see me reject Matt's advances…"
The blond mouthed wordlessly, his alcohol addled brain unable to think up anything to defend him. He watched in horror as Ikato smirked back at him and swayed dangerously, suddenly feeling completely overcome. Glancing quickly from a sneering Ikato and a scowling Tai, he fell forward, allowing the darkness to claim him…
To be continued…
A/N I know this has taken forever! Sorry people, but I had to wait for inspiration to strike. It finally did, but I'm sorry it took so long. I also apologise for the lack of Tai in this chapter, although he was mentioned a lot. And the chapters short too. SORRY lol
I hope everyone understood Matt's actions in this chapter, and how Ikato managed to manipulate him. I didn't want to make Ikato's attempts too obvious, because then Matt wouldn't have fallen for them, but I also wanted to make it clear Matt was being tricked. I found it quite hard to write! And yes, Matt was drinking again :)