Previously -
Someone wanted him. Even if it was the flea.
Even if it was the flea, someone wanted him.
Someone could actually -
His brain was suddenly working, his mind racing at the possible notion –
"Shizu-chan, you're….crushing me."
Shizuo jolted slightly, surprised.
"Sorry."
He said. Quickly, he loosened his grip and Izaya took the opportunity to dart out of his arms when they opened for him, brushing himself off with a grimace that dampened some of the warmth in Shizuo's heart.
It was as if he hadn't caught the flea.
Yet.
"….Hey flea."
"What?"
"You want me to do normal things, right?"
"Huh? Well I'd rather you not do anything at all really, but of course normal things would be preferred to the weird things Shizu-chan did, but I suppose because Shizu-chan is a monster –"
"Izaya."
"….What is it?"
Izaya asked almost cautiously, pausing in his usual belittling of Shizuo to look at him expectantly, almost warily.
Shizuo took a deep breath, then met Izaya's eyes and spoke –
"Kiss me."
……
……
……
Chapter 15
Fireworks, Ferris Wheel and the Flea
"Kiss you?"
Izaya's lips curled in disgust.
"I don't know what you're thinking Shizu-chan, but there is no way I'm going to allow a monster to touch my lips."
"Well this monster has already touched your lips," Shizuo said dryly, "So it won't matter if it happens another time." He said.
"And I'm asking you to kiss me, I'm not kissing you."
"But I don't want to kiss a monster like Shizu-chan -"
- The hell? I finally want to do something 'normal' and he KICKS UP ANOTHER FUSS?!
- …JUST WHAT THE HELL DOES HE WANT?!
Shizuo's patience snapped at his own frustrated thoughts.
"SHUT UP AND KISS ME DAMN IT!" Shizuo lunged forward and grabbed Izaya's jacket collar, "OR WOULD YOU RATHER I KILL YOU WITH MY KISS?! SUFFOCATE YOU TO DEATH?"
"…I think you know my answer to that," Izaya said and Shizuo glared. He sighed, waving a hand.
"Fine, fine, I'll kiss you. So let me go already."
Shizuo let him go, and Izaya brushed himself off. He reached forward and placed his hands on Shizuo's shoulders, as Shizuo looked at him with his brown eyes.
"Don't look at me like that, it's disgusting. It's not like we're lovers or anything."
"Lovers?"
Shizuo's eyebrow twitched, and a wicked grin crossed his lips.
"I'm staring at you, shitty flea, because there's a 0.00000000000000000000675% chance my stare will kill you on the spot."
"…Honestly, your protozoan brain's logic astounds me."
"Shut up and hurry up."
Izaya huffed. Averting his gaze from Shizuo's, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against the debt collector's.
The kiss lasted for a few seconds before Izaya withdrew, and Shizuo said, "That's all?"
His voice had a half demeaning, half incredulous tone to it.
"Don't misunderstand."
Izaya said.
"If it's with tongue, Shizu-chan will bite my tongue off. Since Shizu-chan hates my voice and all."
The flea actually had a good point, and he was being honest. But Shizuo was not feeling satisfied.
So he said so:
"Argh, somehow I'm not satisfied at all!"
Izaya blinked as Shizuo glared, leaning towards him.
"Listen, shitty flea. Either you kiss me properly or I kiss you and kill you. Which will it be, HUH?!"
"…That's blackmail, Shizu-chan."
"Look who's talking." Shizuo punctuated with a glare.
Izaya scoffed, "Fine, but Shizu-chan must promise not to bite my tongue off!"
"Yeah whatever, fine I promise, I fucking promise so fucking kiss me already!" Shizuo jabbed a finger at his own lips, a vein throbbing warningly in his temple.
"Or I will kiss you with tongue and bite your tongue off!"
Izaya scowled, but inhaled. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Shizuo's again, for a few moments before Shizuo's mouth opened and Izaya took it as a cue to slip his tongue inside.
He hadn't planned on kissing the monster for real, but the monster's tongue came to tangle with his and Izaya felt himself inhale sharply. Not wanting to lose, he pushed forward, kissing Shizuo with passion he didn't even know he had.
In the process, his hands on Shizuo's shoulders exerted more pressure and Shizuo fell back, Izaya following him as they continued their battle of dominance with their tongues, neither willing to lose.
Izaya withdrew first because he wasn't a monster like Shizuo who didn't need oxygen. He panted lightly, staring down at Shizuo with flushed cheeks, who looked up at him with honest, hazy hazel eyes.
…
"That wasn't so hard, was it?"
Shizuo didn't even sound breathless, though there was a slight hitch in his voice.
Izaya inhaled because he didn't want to be the one to sound breathless, then spoke breathlessly anyway, "It was horrible."
Lie – but Shizuo didn't need to know that. Well he probably already knew it with his sharp instincts but there was no way Izaya was going to admit it to him. It wasn't as if he had liked the kiss- but it had felt, good, to be reassured he was the one in control. It was better than when Shizuo had pushed him down and touched him. This way, Shizuo couldn't do unpredictable things to his body and mind.
Because if he was on top of Shizuo, he didn't have to be apprehensive. He wasn't pinned down by the monster's physical strength which he knew he couldn't win against, he could always get away if necessary, if the situation wasn't to his advantage.
"Really."
Shizuo said, then leaned up and captured his lips with his own. Izaya responded automatically, even though Shizuo's hands weren't trying to push him back. Their tongues met again in Shizuo's warm cavern, and Izaya panted lightly into Shizuo's mouth as his tongue grazed Shizuo's teeth.
"As expected," Izaya gasped, "Shizu-chan has…monster teeth."
"Shut up." Shizuo mumbled against his lips, as he pushed back more forcefully against Izaya with his tongue, causing Izaya's breath to hitch sharply.
"And stop making noises, it's distracting."
"Ngh…" Izaya couldn't prevent a sound from escaping as Shizuo started to be more forceful, hands on his shoulders, "Shizu…-chan…"
The sound snapped Shizuo back to his senses, away from the lingering primal desire in his mind, to push the flea back and claim his mouth and make sure Izaya was too breathless to even speak. Inhaling, he moved his hands to Izaya's neck. He felt Izaya tense, but he just wrapped his arms around Izaya's slender neck, slowly, carefully, and brought him down against him, as he felt the flea relax.
Izaya was definitely more relaxed, and that was good. His assumption had been right. If Izaya had a fear, it would probably be losing control. He didn't want to scare the flea, so he couldn't just push him down and kiss him, no matter how tempting the option was. If it was this way, Izaya would be more reassured.
After all, it was the flea, who always ran away and whom he was never able to catch.
Well, he guessed he had sort of caught the flea now. Unlike just now when he could hold the flea but the flea would always escape and be reluctant to go into his arms again unless he forced him to.
A smile tugged at Shizuo's lips at the thought. Who knew all he had to do to catch the damn flea was to put up a guise of vulnerability? Shizuo felt a sense of pride in his chest at having come up with such a simple yet effective idea.
And he liked it, liked that Izaya was the one kissing him, the one pressing against him, wriggling his small body against him, trying to get closer to him. He liked that Izaya was the one clutching onto him- just like the flea he was.
He liked it so much that he didn't even find it disgusting.
Yes, the flea had fallen into his trap. He had finally caught the elusive flea.
Usually Shizuo looked at Shinra like he was a lunatic when he spouted nonsense when he gushed about Celty, but at that moment, he felt inclined to follow the underground doctor's example:
Oh Happy Day!
Shizuo grinned to himself.
"What are you smiling about, Shizu-chan?"
"None of your business, flea," Shizuo said, "Shut up and continue kissing me."
"Shizu-chan's so demanding."
Izaya said but continued kissing Shizuo anyway. Shizuo's arms tightened around Izaya's neck as he kissed back and tried his best to hold back from ravishing the flea.
Because, he realized, kissing was an act of passion and Shizuo was a man of passion. He wasn't passive, especially when it came to the flea. And while Izaya wasn't a passive man, he certainly wasn't passionate either. He was a man who manipulated the situation to his advantage and Shizuo let him do so for the time being.
But his hands were itching to move, itching to touch the first person who dared to get close to him, and he couldn't prevent his hands from straying from Izaya's neck and sliding down the flea's body, going down Izaya's slender back-
"Ah!" Izaya gasped and Shizuo blinked. He ran his hands across that spot on Izaya's back again and the informant let out a surprised cry, "Don't…do that!"
Izaya's words made Shizuo want to do that more, whatever it was. But Izaya was glaring at him and he didn't want to scare the flea away, so he reluctantly moved his hands further down-
"S-Shizu-chan!" Izaya's voice had jumped an octave higher.
"Ah."
Shizuo said, blinking when he realized his hands were on Izaya's ass. Which felt…surprisingly soft under his hands.
"Can't I touch?"
"No!" Izaya was mortified, red heating up his face in an angry, embarrassed blush.
"Where can I touch then?"
"Nowhere! You aren't supposed to be touching me in the first place!"
The flea was being whiny, and Shizuo felt annoyed. To exact his revenge, he gave Izaya's cheeks one firm squeeze, smirking as he heard the flea squeak.
"Shizu-chan!" Izaya batted his hands against Shizuo's chest.
"Fine fine."
Shizuo said, and trailed his hands back up before Izaya could realize he didn't exactly have the control he wanted. The flea felt nice in his arms which were caging him, and he didn't want the captured flea to escape.
"Happy?"
Izaya glared at him in response, cheeks flushed, russet eyes incredulous, his pale form illuminated by the moonlight, and Shizuo had the awed thought that Izaya looked very pretty at that moment.
He didn't have to resist the urge to kiss Izaya because the informant was soon leaning down again and kissing him, hard. It seemed he was trying to exert his dominance on Shizuo. So Shizuo kissed back, half allowing him to do so, half fighting back.
Shizuo wouldn't go so far as to say he was turned on, but there was a stirring in his stomach at seeing Izaya aggressive, feeling Izaya's aggressiveness, almost desperateness in the kiss. He couldn't help but think that this flea was sort of cute – trying to reassert himself after having been embarrassed, through not words like before, but actions.
They weren't lovers, so Shizuo didn't tangle his hands in Izaya's glossy black hair, and Izaya didn't roam his hands around Shizuo's body. But Izaya did place his hands on Shizuo's shoulders as he leaned over Shizuo, and Shizuo did move his hands to hold Izaya close to him.
He felt satisfied that Izaya was kissing him, really kissing him. Which meant that Izaya wanted it, wanted this physical closeness. So no matter what he said afterwards, Shizuo would know that at that moment, Izaya had wanted to be close to him. Someone had wanted to be close to him, even intimately.
Because Izaya could lie all he wanted with his words, but he couldn't lie with his actions.
Shizuo might be bad at words, but actions were his forte.
As they kissed passionately under the moonlight, Shizuo curled his arm around Izaya's body, bringing him close. Izaya didn't resist, and Shizuo realized that despite that fluffy jacket, he could still feel the slenderness of Izaya's body.
Shizuo wasn't exactly muscular himself despite his strength, but he wasn't slender like Izaya was.
Men weren't supposed to be so slender – Shizuo mused as he sneaked his hand under Izaya's jacket to trail his hand along Izaya's small waist – Slenderness was for women, pretty women. Did Izaya even eat? How light did he weigh?
But it felt – nice, holding Izaya. Knowing that this was where the flea was and he couldn't ruin others' or Shizuo's life if Shizuo had an eye on him.
Shizuo held Izaya close to him. Shizuo was a man so he could appreciate the beauty of a woman's figure, yet he had never had a girlfriend before. So he had never held a woman close like he was holding Izaya. What was it like? Would it be different? Would it feel the same, since Izaya's body was so slender for a man?
But Heiwajima Shizuo was a monster whom no sane woman would go near. So he just decided to appreciate the sensation of being able to hold someone close as he kissed them. Maybe holding Izaya was like holding a woman, maybe it wasn't, Shizuo couldn't bring himself to care. What mattered to the man whom had been shunned for his strength more was that he could finally experience the feeling of holding someone close. Someone who wasn't scared of him.
It was then that Shizuo remembered a conversation between him and Tom:
…
…
…
"But to be quite frank, I am jealous of him for having women who would take care of him."
"Yeah…speaking of which, you are lacking a girlfriend. I know we're at work and all, but aren't you tired of eating with a guy day after day? You could probably use an oasis of the heart as well, ever thought about that?"
"Not that I haven't heard people say 'I love you' to me…but I don't even know if they counted as women or not."
"Hmm? Have you been going to gay bars or transsexual clubs?"
"No, that's not what I meant…I mean, they hardly counted as humans to begin with…more like sharp objects…"
"Sorry, but I really have no idea what you're talking about."
"Actually, no women have ever been willing to get close to me. I know that's partly my personality's fault, but there's no one close to me save that fucking flea and the weird guy in glasses. The flea was always sweet-talking some woman into following him somewhere, and the glasses guy creeped women out as well since he had that twisted personality."
"Are you talking about Izaya and…um, the doctor you mentioned?"
"Yeah. The doctor's an irritating fly that just can't stop talking nonsense into your ear, and I still get mad at him at times. But he's kind of a bad acquaintance that stuck. I don't even wanna mention that fucking flea. He can't die in a fire soon enough for me. Anyway that's why I've never had a girlfriend."
"Don't mind that too much. You'll find a cute girlfriend sooner or later. You've got a face like your top idol brother's after all."
…
…
…
So much for that. Despite Tom's words, Shizuo knew the truth. No woman would go near him, and none did. Well, there was Vorona and she was a pretty woman, but she was his kouhai. She was also pretty innocent, despite her strange way of speaking due to her Russian background. He had wondered about her use of the term, "extermination", maybe it meant something different in Russian? She was his first kouhai after all, and though she did her job well along with him, she couldn't really want to exterminate people right? Because that meant she wanted to kill people.
Yeah, that was impossible. Vorona was his cute kouhai whom he brought out to eat cakes and sweets and delicious desserts with him, not something crazy like a killing machine. Simon had introduced her after all and Simon was a good guy.
Besides, she had offered to kill Izaya for him, and it was the first time anyone had done that for him before. He was the only one who wanted to kill the flea besides small fry like gangsters and what not, for everyone else wanted nothing to do with him or feared him. He had felt touched by her offer, even though he didn't want her to kill anyone, not even the flea.
And the flea that couldn't die in a fire soon enough for him was the one kissing him now, the one being closer than before.
But Shizuo didn't feel the urge to kill him now, he would rather kiss Izaya since kissing wasn't violent. And that was good for Shizuo hated violence and this time Izaya wasn't making him use the violence he hated.
…
How the hell had this happened? Oh yeah, because Izaya had claimed he was Shizuo's "girlfriend".
- If this is the "cute girlfriend" you were talking about, Tom-san, someone up there must really hate me.
Shizuo couldn't help but think dryly.
But he didn't want to think on how the hell had things ended up like this with Izaya – thinking was troublesome and made his head hurt.
So Shizuo kissed Izaya for a while more, before Izaya withdrew, his eyes shining crimson in the moonlight, his cheeks pink. Shizuo could see drops of sweat on his glossy black hair and pale skin.
Beautiful
Shizuo thought. And since he had already had the thought once, it wasn't that surprising to him. He wanted to brush those black locks of hair away and look into Izaya's crimson eyes which changed color with the light. He wanted to give the flea a gentle kiss which would express his appreciation for letting a monster like him hold him close.
But the flea had to open his mouth at that moment:
"Shizu-chan…doesn't really kiss like a monster," Izaya smirked at him, voice slightly breathless, "Are you holding back, Shizu-chan?"
"Maybe." Shizuo said.
Izaya grimaced at that, "Shizu-chan kissed like a lover," he glowered at Shizuo, and Shizuo looked at the flecks of darker red in his eyes, "I don't like it."
"Too bad." Shizuo said, still absorbed in Izaya's eyes. "I like to do the things you don't like."
Izaya glared at him, and Shizuo said, "Oh shut up."
Then he leaned up and kissed Izaya. This time he didn't hold back, released all the passion he had confined, as he thrust his tongue into Izaya's mouth. He heard Izaya's gasp and felt the flea lean back, and he realized his hands were on Izaya's shoulders, pushing him back.
Shizuo moved one hand to Izaya's back to bring him close to him as he laid on his back, and the other to Izaya's cheek.
Izaya's skin was soft. His mouth was wet and warm. Shizuo was glad he had resisted the urge to push the flea back as he wasn't sure he would be able to control himself if Izaya was under him, looking vulnerable. And he didn't want to do something he would regret nor did he want Izaya to accuse him with words.
Because Izaya was already making noises, moaning softly as Shizuo pushed his tongue into his mouth, intertwining their tongues as he kissed Izaya with vicious passion, as he plundered Izaya's mouth. Izaya's eyes were half lidded and dazed, and his hands were hard on Shizuo's chest, as if trying to support himself.
"Mmm….Shizu…-chan…" Words were spilling out from the flea's lips.
"Can't breathe…Shizu…ahhh…"
"Shut up."
"Shizu-chan is so rough…"
Izaya managed to get out as Shizuo kissed him until his vision was spinning with the sudden assault of pleasure, his cheeks flushed, all the air leaving his lungs.
But he was Orihara Izaya, and he managed to smirk with a low laugh -
"Shizu-chan is such a monster…even in kissing…"
"I said shut up."
Shizuo proceeded to kiss Izaya harder, making those Izaya's last words for a while. He smirked against Izaya's lips as the informant panted, crimson eyes glazed over.
"It's so much better when you don't talk."
"Shut…up."
Izaya said before he was cut off by a moan Shizuo tore from his throat as the monster delved so deep into his mouth with such passion that there was sudden moisture in his eyes, his body heating up that the cold he had denied affected him faded away, and he couldn't think, couldn't grasp any information at the moment.
"Shizu-…chan…"
- Shit, I want to touch him.
The thought struck Shizuo as Izaya looked at him with pleasure filled eyes. If Izaya reacted like this to his kiss, how would he react to his touch? Shizuo, who had never been able to touch someone this way, wanted badly to do so to Izaya, to move his hands around the flea's slender body and see his reactions.
To see what Izaya would be like without his precious words and lies.
"Don't…you dare…" Izaya exhaled heavily, seeming to read his mind. He was glaring, his eyes hazy.
Shizuo was tempted, it was so fucking tempting, but although Izaya didn't look happy, he hadn't tried to move away from him. It meant that, as absurd as it sounded, Izaya trusted him.
And Shizuo found himself unable to break that trust.
Fucking flea, just what are you doing to me?
…
With an inhale, Shizuo controlled himself and kept his hands where they were, slightly above Izaya's waist and on Izaya's soft cheek, as he continued to kiss Izaya, trying to be less rough, pouring feelings he couldn't convey as he kissed the informant.
Izaya kissed back, and something welled up in Shizuo's chest -
The feeling of being wanted.
Maybe this wasn't so bad. Izaya knew him inside out, knew what pissed him off, so he didn't have to hold back. And even if he didn't hold back, Izaya didn't get hurt anyway. He didn't have to be afraid of hurting the person he was close to.
- Maybe this isn't so bad.
Shizuo thought vaguely, more focused on the sensation of kissing Izaya, kissing someone who had firsthand experience of his monstrous strength and wasn't afraid of him.
Because Izaya had already revealed his intentions on blackmailing him onto this date, so Shizuo didn't have to expect anything else from him. He could just relax and kiss the flea who wanted him.
It's so much better when he isn't talking, lying with every word he says. When he isn't pissing me off.
At that thought, Shizuo felt a sense of satisfaction. This was the kind of situation he wanted. With Izaya not pissing him off and not spouting shitty words.
And the flea was always doing that anyway, so the only way for him not to do that was killing him. Simple. Or him being gone.
But since the flea was here and alive and yet not pissing him off, Shizuo thought:
- Maybe having this shitty flea close is better than having no one at all.
It was a crazy, insane thought to Shizuo, so he brushed it away, deciding to think about it some other time, or not at all. Thoughts were troublesome and he would rather kiss Izaya than think.
Izaya pulled away first, and Shizuo let him. He brushed the flea's hair to the side, feeling the glossy black strands as Izaya inhaled to catch his breath.
"Monster."
Izaya said and stopped because he didn't want to sound anymore breathless than he already was.
"Flea."
Shizuo returned lowly as he felt Izaya's hair.
Shitty fleas shouldn't have such soft hair.
Izaya's hands gave up on him and Shizuo felt Izaya collapse onto his chest, slender legs tangled with his as he pushed his flushed face into the fabric of his bartender shirt.
"I hate you."
"Hate you too." Shizuo said distractedly. Izaya's face was to his chest and he took the chance to run his fingers through the flea's glossy black hair, vaguely wondering if a woman's hair was as soft as this. He had patted Vorona's hair which felt soft, but he had never run his fingers through her hair like he was doing with Izaya's.
It better be, since there was no way any woman would come close to him (and it was all Izaya's fault, as usual) for him to do such a thing, so he would have to make do with the flea's hair. Good thing it was soft.
"I think I swallowed some of Shizu-chan's saliva." He heard Izaya's voice, "So disgusting. What if the DNA in Shizu-chan's saliva makes me become a monster like Shizu-chan?"
"That won't happen." Shizuo said, "You'll always be an annoying flea."
"I actually feel relieved at that," Izaya continued with his shitty words, "I wouldn't want to become a monster like Shizu-chan."
"Anyway Shizu-chan tastes horrible, Shizu-chan's mouth is too sweet. And disgustingly bitter, since Shizu-chan smoked just now. I almost puked."
"Good thing you didn't, or I would have killed you if you had done that. And you taste disgusting too, fucking flea."
Shizuo hadn't really thought on what Izaya tasted like, though he had tasted a little salty from the popcorn from earlier, yet sweet at the same time from the soft drink. Yeah that was like Izaya – his taste changed like how he leaped from building to building as he chased the flea.
The flea couldn't just pick something and be satisfied with it, could he? Like how he had lured and sweet-talked women to follow him, and couldn't be satisfied with just one.
Though Izaya had said he wasn't romantically interested in his humans…
…
Well whatever, Shizuo didn't really care. Izaya was in his arms so the flea was his now. He was forcing the flea to be satisfied with him even if it was only temporary. And he hadn't given him a choice.
The thought brought a grin to Shizuo's lips, which did not fade even as Izaya spoke.
"Shizu-chan really is such a horrible boyfriend, he forced his girlfriend to kiss him."
"Like you're a better "girlfriend", you're not cute at all. You're a bastard who ruins people's lives and always spouting shitty words which piss me off. Can't you be more cute?"
"If Shizu-chan wants a cute girlfriend he should go and find one. I have no responsibility to adhere to Shizu-chan's expectations."
"Nah." Shizuo said as he stroked Izaya's hair.
"It's too troublesome. Since you're already here, shitty flea, and you're not dead, remain my girlfriend for today."
"Even though Shizu-chan knows he's a monster whom no normal woman will go near?"
"Yeah." Shizuo said, letting glossy black strands fall from his fingers.
"Hahaha! Ah Shizu-chan is really pathetic, he can't even find a real woman to be his girlfriend!"
"Whatever." Shizuo said, "It's not like that's anything new."
And this is new.
- Why not try something new?
Shizuo couldn't find an objection to that.
…
There was silence, and Shizuo's hand reached to his pocket instinctively. He lighted a cigarette as Izaya was resting on his chest, and put it to his mouth, smoking and immersing himself in the peaceful silence.
But of course Izaya couldn't keep his mouth shut for a moment.
"Ugh, put that out, Shizu-chan! The smell is horrendous."
"You stink more."
Shizuo countered, puffing on the cigarette as he looked up into the night sky.
"Such a monster, leaning back and smoking on top of the ferris wheel like you're on a park bench! Shizu-chan really is a monster!"
Izaya raised his head to glare at him, "If you want to smoke let me go first so I can leave!"
"…Fine." Shizuo said and pulled the cigarette from his lips, tossing it over the edge.
For he had remembered Kasuka's precious words of advice, to be considerate of his girlfriend's feelings and not smoke in front of her for she may not like it. And even though Izaya was whiny and annoying, Shizuo had asked him to remain his girlfriend for the day, well, the night actually, and it would be rude of him to smoke when Izaya genuinely didn't like the smell.
"Just throwing it off like that – Shizu-chan that's littering you know!"
Since when was the flea such a responsible citizen? He was a pest to Ikebukuro.
"Would you rather I throw it on your face?"
"That's cruel, even for you, Shizu-chan! Besides, I would never allow a monster like you to ruin my face."
"I've already ruined your mouth. Maybe your face will be next."
"So crude, Shizu-chan."
Izaya smirked at him and Shizuo smirked back. He continued to run his fingers through the flea's hair.
"Shizu-chan likes my hair?" Izaya said mockingly.
"Is that why you haven't pulled out my hair with your monster hands? Wow, I'm so surprised."
"Yeah." Shizuo replied honestly.
"You're a shitty flea but your hair is soft. I like your hair."
…
In response to such honest praise, Izaya found himself speechless. His cheeks began to warm and he buried his face in Shizuo's chest. Shizuo could feel the warmth of Izaya's cheeks. He merely continued stroking the flea's hair.
- The flea's almost cute like this.
Before he could ponder more on the unexpected notion, a loud sound filled the air.
Shizuo raised his gaze into the night sky, which was suddenly alight with colourful lights.
The fireworks had begun – the real ones.
There were no fireworks when he had kissed the flea, but at least there were fireworks after he had kissed the flea.
Real fireworks, not imaginary ones he'd heard schoolgirls talking about a long time ago.
And with Izaya with his head on his chest as they laid on top of the ferris wheel under the fireworks in the winter night sky, a smile crossed Shizuo's lips as he held the flea he had finally caught close to him, as the cool night air blew softly against his hair as he stroked the flea's, his "girlfriend's" soft hair.
It was nice, holding someone close. Holding someone close, having his heart beat against theirs as he took in the pretty lights that lit up the night sky above them.
"Shizu-chan likes fireworks?"
"I like pretty things."
Shizuo said idly, and thought of Izaya's russet eyes.
"But pretty things don't like Shizu-chan." Izaya said in amusement.
"Doesn't matter."
Shizuo replied calmly. He wondered if Izaya knew he was thinking about him. Probably not.
"I like them anyway. They don't have to like me back."
"…Shizu-chan is so simple-minded."
Izaya let out a sigh and Shizuo felt the flea snuggle close to him, hands clutching onto his shoulders.
"Well, Shizu-chan is a protozoan after all."
Fleas really shouldn't be so pretty, Shizuo thought as he looked at the slender raven haired male with glossy hair lying on top of him. Izaya wasn't looking at him, so he looked at the fireworks reflected in Izaya's glimmering eyes.
Pretty fleas shouldn't reflect pretty things either, it made them seem even more pretty and deceived even monsters who hated fleas.
Who knew shitty fleas would be so pretty when seen up close?
. . .
It really wasn't fair, shitty fleas were supposed to not be pretty when he finally caught them. They were supposed to be flea-like and maybe even ugly so monsters like him would have no qualms with killing shitty, not pretty fleas.
But since when had anything involving the flea had been fair?
Shizuo grumbled, the sound rumbling from his chest.
"What is that noise?" Izaya drawled from where he lay on Shizuo's chest, "Must be from Shizu-chan since it sounds monster-like."
"Shut up fucking flea." Shizuo grumbled more. "It's your fault."
For looking so pretty
"Now Shizu-chan is really speaking nonsense, since all I've been doing for the past several minutes is laying here on Shizu-chan's monster body like a good girlfriend, not like Shizu-chan who's accusing his girlfriend."
"I said shut up. Everything is your fault." Shizuo mumbled, brushing Izaya's glossy black hair aside so he could look into the flea's eyes.
"Eh? What about that 2%?"
"That doesn't apply, it's your fault for looking like this." Shizuo said, looking into Izaya's eyes.
Izaya stared at him. "Like what?"
Warmth touched Shizuo's cheeks. There was no way he was going to tell Izaya he was pretty and have the flea tease him mercilessly.
He scrambled for words, "Like…a girlfriend." Izaya blinked and Shizuo paused.
"Like a woman."
Well it wasn't a lie, since Izaya was pretty and women were pretty. So that meant that Izaya was pretty like a woman. Shizuo nodded to himself.
…
"…What did you say?"
It seemed that Izaya was not happy being compared to a woman.
So Shizuo was happy that Izaya was not happy being compared to a woman. This was why Shizuo said his next words:
"You heard me, flea. You look like a woman and it's your fault."
"Firstly, I don't look like a woman and secondly, how would it be my fault if I looked like a woman?!"
"Because you're the flea and everything is your fault, except for that 2%." Shizuo said with logic from his mind, "So it's your fault that you look like a pretty woman."
Izaya stared at Shizuo, and Shizuo watched in amusement as red touched his cheeks.
The logic from his mind must be so astounding that it rendered the flea speechless.
Shizuo felt happy at this thought.
"You idiot protozoan!" Izaya bumped his fist against Shizuo's head but since the flea was weak, it didn't even hurt.
"Stop grinning! I don't know what kind of protozoic logic you're using but it's not my fault I look like a woman – not that I look like a woman in the first place!"
Shizuo raised an eyebrow at him, "You're slender, you're thin, your waist is small," he moved his hand through the fuming flea's hair, "I bet you weigh yourself everyday, narcissistic freak. Your hair feels like a woman's hair, your skin is pretty pale," he observed.
"You're too pretty for a man, so it isn't surprising to say you look like a woman."
"Besides," he added before Izaya could speak, "Wasn't that your intention just now with that man? You tricked him into thinking you're a woman. So why are you so frustrated?"
The man in a bartender suit smirked at the information broker.
"Not that I don't find it amusing."
"Shut up. That was different," Izaya hissed, and Shizuo thought he looked like a ruffled black cat, hair standing up on their edges, "That was intentional! I wanted to see that human's reaction."
"Doesn't change the fact that he thought you were a woman, so it's not far-fetched to say you look like a woman."
"You -"
"Or would you rather I call you pretty?"
"P-Pretty?!"
Izaya choked on his own breath and Shizuo looked on in amusement. Who knew teasing the flea would be so fun?
"Are you crazy, Shizu-chan?! I am not pretty! I consider myself to be a very aesthetically appealing, handsome man -"
"Handsome is for guys like Kasuka," Shizuo said, pride welling in his chest at how far his brother had made it in his career.
"You're too pretty to be handsome." He added the flea's name for good measure. "Izaya."
Izaya fumed more, the red reaching the tips of his ears, and Shizuo thought it was almost cute, as he played with the flea's hair.
"I -"
"Hate me, I know," Shizuo said distractedly, wondering if he would ever get tired of touching the flea's hair. It really was soft. "I hate you too. I like your hair though."
…
Izaya glared, and Shizuo was beginning to feel annoyed, "Oh stop sulking," he said, pulling Izaya down so that the flea's head was on his chest again.
"Take it as a compliment. You're my girlfriend for today so it's good that you're pretty. Like this you're a better substitute for the woman I could have had if you had not chased all women away from me, fucking flea. So take some fucking responsibility."
"I didn't chase women away from Shizu-chan, it's Shizu-chan's monstrous nature which scares women away." Izaya muttered, "Not like me, who's a handsome man who can get any woman I want,"
Shizuo felt him smirk, "If I wanted any woman. Not that I want men either, I'm not interested in any human in particular. But you see, I have no responsibility to take."
"Yeah whatever."
Shizuo said lazily as he laid on his back, looking up at the colourful lights. The fireworks sure were long today. And really pretty. Blue, red, yellow…and was that a heart?
"Oh look, there's a heart."
Indeed, there was a red heart shaped firework in the sky, exploding right next to them along with other coloured fireworks.
"Ah...is that so..."
Izaya said with a shaky smile, his eyebrow twitching violently as he imagined maiming a certain other information broker in his mind.
"And now there's a smiley face. Heh, this is kind of cool."
Shizuo smiled admiringly at the firework, and Izaya thought the smiley face was not smiling but leering at him. So he decided to cut the grin in half.
A knife pierced through the smile on the face and the fuming culprit was pulled back down.
"Oi, what's wrong with you?!"
"I don't like being mocked."
"Huh? It's smiling at you, not mocking you. Tch you may be a bastard but not everything's out to get you, flea. You're acting weird today. You know what, it's better if you lie down here and look pretty."
Shizuo made to tug Izaya back onto his chest, but Izaya pulled back and did his best expression between a pout and a scowl.
"What? Not happy? Tch, why can't you just smile like that nice firework? Whoever made it must be pretty cool."
Izaya glared more.
Shizuo frowned as Izaya looked unhappy with him. He wondered what he had said wrong.
"Izaya..."
"What?"
"You're not...jealous of that firework, are you?"
"No."
Izaya said, huffing and looking off to the side.
- I am not jealous of a firework. A firework, of all things! Where did his protozoic brain get that idea from?!
- And why would I be jealous anyway?
- ...I am seriously going to kill that bastard Tsukumoya...
Shizuo blinked. Then he smiled as Izaya had not only not mocked him but seemed embarrassed. He chuckled and pulled the adorable, jealous flea gently down.
"Fine, you're not jealous. Sorry, my bad. Don't worry, I like pretty things and you're definitely prettier than that firework."
"I am not pretty." Izaya said, crossing his arms and looking petulant.
"I am a man and men are not pretty. They may be in anime but they're not in reality. Well if this was an anime I would probably be called a bishounen due to my stunning, even more glorified looks but this is reality. But I suppose Shizu-chan's protozoic brain can't differentiate between his fantasy and reality. Of me being a man. A talented, handsome, manly man."
"...Tsk."
Shizuo grinned, half in amusement at Izaya's annoyance and half in his own annoyance.
"Girlfriends shouldn't be upset being called pretty and we both agreed you're my girlfriend today so suck it up shitty flea."
"Boyfriends should be more gentle with their girlfriends," Izaya sneered back, but relented and laid on Shizuo's chest again.
"But fine. Only because it's Shizu-chan's birthday and I'm a generous man, even to a monster like Shizu-chan."
…
"It's my birthday?" Shizuo blinked. Izaya stared at him and he suddenly remembered, "Oh yeah, it's my birthday."
"…Did Shizu-chan just forget those big words in the sky just now?"
"Ah." Shizuo said. He looked at Izaya carefully, but the flea's expression didn't change.
"I didn't. You were annoying me so much it just slipped my mind."
"But now that I remember, I feel less annoyed."
Shizuo felt like smiling, so he did, as he ruffled the flea's hair.
"Birthdays aren't that special to me but somehow, today feels like a special day."
"So nice to know Shizu-chan knows his existence shouldn't be celebrated." Izaya smirked.
"Mmm." Shizuo wasn't really listening, he was distracted by the emotion in Izaya's eyes.
"Aren't you going to say it?"
"Eh?"
"What you say to someone on their birthday."
"No way."
Izaya sat up and stared down at Shizuo.
"Like I said, I won't celebrate Shizu-chan's existence."
"Even though that Happy Birthday in those fireworks was from you?"
"That isn't relevant."
"Yeah even though you called me by my name."
"I doubt a protozoic brain like yours would understand, but it requires a lot of rockets to spell out letters in the sky and there wasn't enough for "Shizu-chan" so I had to change it."
"You're lying. You wouldn't let a thing like that stop you. You do things to the end."
"Sharp, aren't we?"
- Damn that Tsukumoya. I knew he would mess with me. Doesn't he know how much time I spent getting rockets to spell out that damn suffix?! And he goes and uses them to make emoticons to mock me?
- A heart? Really, Tsukumoya?
Izaya thought in frustration even as he directed a saccharine smile at Shizuo.
But Shizuo was not a mind reader and wasn't aware of Izaya's thoughts.
To Shizuo, the flea wasn't making sense, so Shizuo said, "I'll give you a choice," he said generously, "Either you say it or I kiss you."
"…You're joking, right?"
Shizuo smirked, "Nope." He said.
"Say to me what I want to hear," he trailed his hand down from Izaya's hair to the back of his neck, and relished in the little shiver the flea gave -
"With my real name. Or I'll kiss you. Oh don't worry, this time I'll be really gentle."
Shizuo said almost mockingly.
"I'll kiss you like you're my real, really pretty girlfriend. Isn't that reassuring, Izaya-kun?"
The stunned look Izaya gave him almost made him laugh. He looked like a deer trapped in headlights. Or a flea caught in between two incoming vending machines.
"…Shizu-chan is getting his revenge huh?" Izaya finally said, lips quirking, "It seems I underestimated Shizu-chan."
Shizuo ignored him, "I'll give you ten seconds."
"Usually I would only give whoever it is only three seconds of my life but I'm in a generous mood today. So I'll give you ten seconds. One."
"What. Wait -"
"Two."
"Shizu-chan!"
"Three."
Izaya's cheeks turned pink.
"Four."
"Shizu-chan," the flea was still trying to lie, "I don't know what to say."
"Don't lie." Shizuo said simply. He thought for a bit, then said, "Seven."
"How is it seven?!"
"Eight."
It was amusing, so amusing as he watched the flea sweat - literally, droplets running down that pretty face. He tried to get away, but Shizuo's arm held him in place.
"Nine."
Shizuo leaned up, hand moving to Izaya's cheek in a gentle touch, and Izaya seemed to panic.
"Alright, alright!" Izaya spluttered, face red, "I'll say it!"
Shizuo smirked. "Nine and a half."
Izaya squeezed his eyes shut, "H-Ha-"
"Nine and three quarter," Shizuo said and Izaya snapped his eyes open.
"That's better. Look at me." His grip tightened around Izaya's back, "You can't run away this time."
"Ten."
"H-Happy Birthday!"
Izaya said, cheeks cherry red and Shizuo smirked in satisfaction.
"Who?"
"Shizu-cha -"
Izaya eyes widened in panic as Shizuo pushed him backwards and moved swiftly as if about to kiss him –
"I mean S-Shizuo! Happy Birthday Shizuo!"
. . .
. . .
. . .
- Ah shit. How can a shitty flea make me feel such happiness?
Shizuo withdrew with a smile. Izaya stared at him, a blush on his cheeks. "That enough?" He managed.
"Yeah."
Shizuo said, brushing his thumb against Izaya's cheek. He moved his hand to push back Izaya's fringe, leaning up and touching his lips to Izaya's forehead.
"Thank you."
"…Being thanked by Shizu-chan again makes me want to jump off this ferris wheel."
Izaya had to say, the red on his cheeks darkening in shade.
"You're the one who said you're my girlfriend, so you're stuck here with me."
Shizuo said, the smile still on his lips as he pulled Izaya back so he could lean comfortably back on top of the ferris wheel with the flustered flea on his lap.
"Looks like your plan backfired huh, Izaya-kun?"
"…Shut up." Izaya mumbled into his shirt, "It's all Shizu-chan's fault."
He exhaled, "I'm not supposed to be here. Shizu-chan was supposed to lie and believe I can't do anything good so that I can laugh and then jump off and be chased by Shizu-chan until Shizu-chan's birthday ends…" he said lowly.
"So why the hell am I still here with Shizu-chan?"
"Because you did do something good. And since you're my girlfriend today I want you here," Shizuo said, hand moving to Izaya's hair again. It was almost addictive.
"And it's my birthday so you better give me what I want for once and be grateful you're not dead." He paused, then added, "Shitty flea."
I want you here.
It was the first time Izaya had heard those words said to him.
That strange feeling was in his chest again -
And he didn't like it.
"…Tch."
Izaya scoffed, which made Shizuo's smile widen.
"Where's that dog by the way?"
"In my jacket." Izaya replied.
"There's space?"
Izaya shrugged. "Did Shizu-chan think I threw it away?" He smirked up at the man in a bartender suit.
"Why would you throw it away when you like it so much?"
Izaya didn't reply, and Shizuo looked down. The black haired male wasn't looking at him, and Shizuo caught sight of golden-brownish fur peeking out from Izaya's jacket. He reached out his hand and fondly patted the dog on its head.
There was a vibration against his leg and Shizuo watched as Izaya retrieved his phone.
"What is it?"
…
"Nothing."
Izaya said. He pocketed his phone.
"Just Shinra saying stupid things."
… …
… …
… …
[What's the matter, Shinra?]
"Oh nothing!"
Shinra grinned as he looked at his phone.
[Don't say stupid things. I hate Shizu-chan. When are you going to cut off ties with him? I'm still waiting, you know. And my plan hasn't failed – it's just steering in a different direction. And don't even mention that word – associated with the monster, it becomes disgusting. I'm not like you, who can feel "love" for a monster.]
- Since when did you become such a bad liar, Izaya?
[Is that from Izaya?]
"Uhuh."
Shinra thought for a moment, then shrugged and pocketed his phone, deciding to let the informant keep his pride. Whatever of it he still had left.
[What did you say to him?]
"Nothing much, just that he's looking quite cozy up there with Shizuo," Shinra gave a cheeky grin -
"So I was wondering if he could possibly have been tamed! Since his precious plan failed."
"Oh and I think I mentioned something about love…"
[…You said that to Izaya?]
"Yup!"
[I'm surprised.] Celty flashed her PDA after a while. [He must really consider you a good acquaintance if he hasn't come down to kill you]
Shinra just smiled and said simply.
"He does."
"Anyway," the underground doctor said gleefully, "Since Shizuo and Izaya aren't coming down from there anytime soon, let's go ride the ferris wheel, Celty!"
[Do we have to?]
"Of course! It's something romantic for couples to do!"
[S-Shinra!]
"Please, Celty?"
Celty didn't reply as she was embarrassed, but Shinra took a hold of her hand.
"I really want to ride the ferris wheel with Celty." He said sincerely, "So let's go, okay?"
If Celty had a head, she would have nodded slowly. But Shinra seemed to understand her anyway, and he smiled and pulled her along by her hand, and Celty let him, a warm, pleasant feeling enveloping where her heart could be.
She couldn't say no to that smile.
And she didn't want to.
... …
… …
… …
"Eh? What do you mean it's not in service?!"
"Exactly what I mean, Sir. The ferris wheel is not in service from 6.00PM to 7.00PM."
"But why?! What kind of service is this?!"
"My apologies Sir, but it was a request. It's almost 7.00PM, perhaps you could wait for half an hour?"
"Wha-oh fine."
Shinra sighed. He turned, giving Celty an apologetic look.
"I'm sorry, Celty!"
[It's fine.]
Celty thought for a moment, then flashed her PDA.
[Shinra, by "ferris wheel", you mean that big wheel which Shizuo and Izaya are on top of?]
"Eh?" Shinra read.
"Yeah. Why?"
[Then…does that wheel spin?]
"The ferris wheel? Uhuh, it moves by spinning."
[Then Shinra…]
Shinra blinked as Celty seemed exasperated.
[If it spins, won't Shizuo and Izaya fall off?]
"…Oh that's right!"
Shinra said in realization, pushing his fist into his palm -
"No wonder!"
Celty just shook her neck at her lover's antics, as he complained.
"But that's not fair! I want to ride the ferris wheel with Celty! And there are people around who want to ride it too!"
[Would you rather Shizuo and Izaya fall off?]
"Well, it's not like they'll die! They're Heiwajima Shizuo and Orihara Izaya after all."
Shinra said. He gave a wry smile, then pulled out his phone, dialling a number he had not dialled for years as he raised his gaze to the top of the ferris wheel.
"Ah, how long has it been since I last called that guy?"
.
.
.
Author's Note
I'm having a bit of a Writer's Block nowadays, for example I just stared at this not knowing what to write for a while.
Well first thing's first - Shizuo's flashback in italics is from the novel, doesn't belong to me. And uh, I've put near the bottom of my profile progress of my stories, which I'll be likely to update, etc. I will probably always be working on this story, 'cause if I leave it too long I might lose interest (there's just too many things in my head and this is an old story), but the pace depends. Long chapters take a long time to write. And this is just part I.
I think I need like someone to talk about my plans to and discuss so it doesn't just stay in my head...but unfortunately I don't have anyone like that. Also one of my favourite authors left to publish a book, so I'm quite downhearted. Since it was so sudden and all her stories were deleted. I will support her as her friend and I'm glad she's pursuing her dream, but yeah, I have no means to contact my friend.
And I guess sometimes I just wonder what I'm writing for, why I'm still here, seeing people come and go so simply. Losing contact with people I've talked to and genuinely enjoyed conversations with. All in a single moment. Bonds seem so ephemeral. So fragile.
I'm also having a sort of writer's block on Without a Goodbye, though I might be able to post a third chapter...I'll just remove the star for now anyway. But I feel like writing a little more for IJH, so I'll mark that. Just a bit more, I don't wanna rush it. Besides this, I've actually been working on the sequel to the oneshot with twisted, dark Shizuo, but it's nothing solid yet. Sorry, I know I shouldn't be starting a new story when I haven't completed anything yet, but ideas came to me and wouldn't leave my head...
Right. Sorry for my rambling, I shouldn't be saying this here, I should just do this soliloquy in my head.
Anyway hope you enjoyed this fluffy chapter ~