AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story takes place during the Dark Tournament Arc, starting with the morning after Kurama's battles with Gama and Touya. The only difference is that in this story, the show started when Hiei and Kurama were a little older, and now they are both adults (because I'm not really comfortable writing this otherwise). Therefore, in this story, Kurama's human body is 18 and Hiei is…well, I'm pretty sure he's an adult in the show to begin with, but just in case he isn't, remember that for all intents and purposes, he IS an adult in this story (about 100 years for a demon, I would guess). That said, enjoy!

Warning: contains anal and oral sex, masturbation, yaoi, and (hopefully) lots of love!

…

"Kurama…FAREWELL!"

Stab!

That memory from only yesterday was still fresh in Hiei's mind. And though he would never admit it, that fight had turned him on an unbelievable amount. True, he almost always got off on watching Kurama fight—that eagerness to watch Kurama in battle was far more than just respect for his skill—but this one had been particularly intense, and it didn't help that Kurama's shirt had ripped open halfway through. The mere sight of Kurama groaning like that as he smeared blood all over his bare chest…It wasn't easy for Hiei to watch, and not for the reason one might think. Let's just say he was very glad that none of the spectators' attention had been focused on him, and one part of him in particular.

The normal part of Hiei felt bad, sometimes even worried, when Kurama got injured and cried out in pain or exertion. But the dirty part of him wondered if the noises Kurama made during battle sounded anything like the noises he'd make during sex. Hiei was confused; horny, but confused. Sex was something he understood (despite being a virgin), but this was something different. Something more. And he didn't know what.

For most of his life, he had never felt strongly for anyone, not in that way—whichever way that was. It felt like nobody ever really bothered to get to know him. That was how it was for the first century of his life…until he met Kurama. Then it was different. Kurama didn't try to change Hiei or force him to discuss his feelings. It seemed like he always understood. True, he called Hiei out when he deserved it, but both of them knew that they would stay as close as always, maybe even closer. And so far, he had resisted all of Hiei's attempts to push him away. Kurama…accepted him.

But this didn't seem to explain that feeling Hiei got when he looked at Kurama, or spoke to him, or interacted with him in any other way. He didn't feel that way for anyone else and he never had. Over the years they had known each other, something had just become different for Hiei. And not just his emotions, either. Ever increasingly, he could feel it in his body, in his most private areas.

And that was why, the morning after Kurama's fight with Touya, Hiei could be found sprawled on his hotel bed, completely naked, passionately masturbating.

That was how Hiei felt. Passionate. Even though he didn't know if he should stop or not, he knew he couldn't stop. It just felt so good. Even though he hadn't ejaculated yet, he could tell he was getting very near that point. His erection only grew harder and bigger as he kept most of his fingers stroking and squeezing the shaft, his index finger rubbing the tip. The entire morning, he had been experimenting with what felt good and what didn't, and what he did enjoy, he just kept doing.

Oh, God, this feels so good! Teeth clenched, eyes squeezed tight, toes curled, Hiei moaned with pleasure and grabbed onto the pillow underneath his head with his left hand while he continued to stimulate his erect penis with his right. Some people watched porn while they did this, but Hiei was thinking of Kurama; he was doing his best to pretend that it was Kurama's hand jerking him off, not his own. What would he give to have that man's hands all over these parts of him? Would his touch feel gentle and soft, the way Hiei had always imagined? Or would it get rough and wild? How would his mouth feel? His tongue? His lips? His…oh, this was getting sexier by the minute.

It was time to be honest. Hiei's body was just aching, begging, pleading for some dick.

Even if Hiei didn't understand why Kurama turned him on so much, he did, and Hiei just went with it. Luckily, the aforementioned fox-demon was going to eat at the hotel breakfast buffet and then spend some time outdoors, so Hiei had the whole morning to himself, and he planned on spending it in this most wonderful of ways. Plus, the hotel rooms here were completely sound-proof; nobody would be able to hear Hiei's moans, which were getting increasingly louder. Everything he did or thought about made him hornier by the second, the pressure and heat in his body building up wildly. It wouldn't be long now.

…

Kurama was walking to breakfast, thinking of nothing but the delicious scrambled eggs he was going to eat. Maybe some bacon, too. But he was riding downstairs in the elevator by the time he realized he had left his communicator in the hotel room he shared with Hiei (Yusuke, Kuwabara, and the masked fighter were sharing another).

Crap, Kurama thought, because he had no choice but to wait for the elevator to reach the ground floor, then ride it all the way back up again. When he got to the room, he slipped his key card in the door, turned the handle, and…

"Oh my gosh! Hiei! I'm so sorry!"

As soon as he heard the voice, Hiei looked up—and he just about died. There in the doorway stood Kurama, his mouth open in shock, his face as red as his hair. Hiei realized his fingers were still wrapped tightly around his penis, so he yanked his hand away, trying to ignore how every nerve in his body was screaming for him to put it back.

Kurama apologized again, and without another word, he slammed the door shut. The communicator could wait, he thought, as he rushed to the elevators, his face still burning.

There was nothing wrong with what Hiei had been doing, but still, it wasn't something Kurama wanted to walk in on. It was like walking in on him while he was taking a shower or using the bathroom. And he hadn't just been masturbating either; he had been completely naked, hard as a rock, covered in sweat, and moaning at the top of his lungs. What were you supposed to say in a situation like that? Kurama had a feeling that even though Hiei had obviously been on the brink of orgasm, he would be too embarrassed to continue.

Sure enough, he was correct. Tears of utter mortification filled Hiei's eyes as he tumbled off the bed, his body still begging him to finish. But how could he? All he could do was stumble around looking for his clothes while he hoped Kurama would go away. Just a few seconds ago, he had been feeling wonderful, but now he felt terrible. It took a while, but he found his pants and put them on, then collapsed onto his bed, face-down, hoping the monster down there would leave.

…

As the morning went by and Kurama's embarrassment faded, he started to feel bad for Hiei. On a normal day, they would probably be training together for the next round. But today, he hadn't seen Hiei at all since accidentally walking in on him.

Hopelessly distracted, Kurama sat down underneath a tall tree to think. Discussing this with Hiei was the last thing he wanted to do, and he knew Hiei wouldn't want to talk about it, either. But at the same time, he didn't want Hiei to get the wrong idea. What if Hiei thought Kurama was going to be judgmental? What if he was ashamed? That idea was too much for Kurama to take. All he wanted was for Hiei to be happy, and if that was what did it for him, fine. But still, Kurama wondered how he would feel if Hiei walked in on him doing the same thing.

Well, actually…Kurama didn't think he would mind that much. The truth was, seeing Hiei going at it was embarrassing, but it turned him on a little, too. That sounded horrible, but Kurama was too old, too experienced to not know what he wanted. In his previous life, he had enjoyed sexual encounters with both men and women. And usually, they were more than willing to deliver. But would Hiei? And, for that matter, would Kurama?

No matter how much Kurama wanted Hiei (and he did), he knew he could never make the first move. Hiei was technically a mature demon, of age, but he hadn't been that way for very long. All the revelations about sex and identity and preference that Kurama had experienced long ago were still on the way for Hiei. What if Hiei just thought he knew what he wanted? They were both above the age of consent (in both worlds), and they certainly got along well. But even so, Kurama felt that if he were ever to do anything sexual with Hiei, it would be taking advantage of his youth and inexperience, even if Hiei wanted it.

Maybe if Hiei made a move on Kurama, things would be different, but Kurama had no idea which way Hiei swung, or even if he was capable of love at all. Well, he loved Yukina, that much was obvious, but that was in a brotherly way. Could he ever love someone in a romantic way? And if so, could it ever be a man? An older man?

I highly doubt it, Kurama thought glumly.

Well, whatever. Kurama had kind of lost his appetite for the breakfast buffet after walking in on Hiei, and now (around lunchtime) he was starving. So he went back up to the hotel, where the rest of his team was waiting…minus Hiei.

"Hey, Kurama, I've been meaning to ask you," said Yusuke, as Kurama sat down at their table in the hotel restaurant. "Where's Hiei?"

"Yeah, if anyone would know, you would," Kuwabara added, and that made Kurama feel guilty.

"I don't know," he replied. "It could be that he's not feeling well today."

"Maybe you should go and look for him," Yusuke suggested. "We're getting kind of worried. None of us have seen him since last night. What if he's hurt?"

"Did you check in our hotel room?"

"We don't have key cards," said Kuwabara. "But we knocked, and there was no answer."

"Hmm…" Kurama was thoughtful. Maybe Hiei was taking this harder than he thought. "You know what, sure. After lunch, I'll let myself in and make sure he's okay."

…

This would have embarrassed Hiei enough all on its own, but how often did it happen that the person who walked in on you was the person you were masturbating to in the first place? Worse, Hiei hadn't actually made it to orgasm earlier, so he had all this buildup that was uncomfortable, almost painful. But he couldn't bring himself to finish things up, now that the fantasy of Kurama's soft hands, the thought of the touch he craved so badly, embarrassed him more than it aroused him.

Hiei was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't even hear the key card activating the lock, but next thing he knew, Kurama was in the doorway again.

"Good afternoon," he said, a little too formally, but kindly. "How are you?"

"Look who didn't knock again," Hiei said angrily. Somehow it was just more satisfying to blame Kurama than himself.

"That was what I wanted to talk about, actually," said Kurama, to Hiei's horror. "You don't have to feel so uncomfortable on my account, Hiei."

"What do you mean?" Hiei asked warily.

"I mean," said Kurama, taking off his shoes and sitting down next to Hiei on the bed, "I'm sorry if I embarrassed you, but you have to realize that you weren't doing anything wrong."

"Easy for you to say," Hiei mumbled. "You weren't the one who got walked in on."

"Maybe not, but why have you been avoiding me?" Kurama asked.

"Because you walked in on me!"

"So?"

"So, that's embarrassing!"

"Why?" Kurama asked, point-blank, and Hiei blinked.

"Because…because…" It must have looked to Kurama that Hiei couldn't find an answer, but really, he couldn't tell Kurama the answer. It was embarrassing because of what Hiei had been thinking about. The things Kurama did in Hiei's fantasies were things Kurama would probably never do in real life, or at least not to Hiei. Besides, this wasn't the first time he'd used those thoughts to satisfy himself.

"Trust me, Hiei, I know how you feel," said Kurama understandingly. "Self-pleasure is completely normal. It's good for you. I do it, too."

Maybe that was supposed to help, and if it were anyone else, perhaps it might have. But this was Kurama, and Hiei didn't know which was more arousing—the idea of Kurama masturbating, or the fact that he would just openly admit to it like that. Ever since this morning, Hiei hadn't really managed to get rid of his leftover horny feelings, and now that he was picturing Kurama naked and having a massive wank session, maybe accompanied by some of those sexy vocals, he felt his own erection coming back in full force.

"Are you all right?" asked Kurama, looking concerned.

"Yes," Hiei lied, grabbing a sham pillow and holding it in a strategic manner.

"You don't look like it." Okay, this was getting weird. Kurama could understand embarrassment or even shame from Hiei, but this seemed way out of proportion. Something else was obviously going on, though for the life of him Kurama couldn't figure out what. Hiei's face was so red; maybe he really was feeling ill? Demons could get sick too, after all. Tenderly, Kurama pressed the back of his hand to Hiei's forehead, right underneath the Jagan eye.

"W-What are you doing?" Hiei stammered, stiffening slightly at the touch.

"I'm sorry, Hiei," Kurama said, remembering that Hiei didn't really like to be touched, and taking his hand away. "I was just checking to see if you have a fever. You're not acting like yourself at all. Are you sure you're all right?"

Oh, the temptation! Why was it that everything Kurama did to make Hiei feel better just made him feel worse? That hand…it was soft. So soft. It was sweet, delicate, and loving. But why did it have to be on Hiei's forehead? Why couldn't it be in his pants?

"Please just tell me what's wrong, Hiei," Kurama implored him. "You're my best friend. Whatever it is, I promise I won't judge you."

"Well, I-I can't say who, but…" Hiei shrugged, trying not to look too guilty. "I was thinking of someone this morning, an actual person. I feel bad because I had some really…inappropriate thoughts."

"But you're not harassing her in real life," Kurama pointed out.

"It's not a her," Hiei said miserably, dropping his gaze in embarrassment.

Well, that answered that question. Kurama wanted nothing more than to hug his friend and comfort him (maybe even kiss him). That was out of the question—Kurama was sure Hiei would not want it—but the whole topic of love and lust was way outside of Hiei's comfort zone, and he was vulnerable enough without questioning his orientation. Sometimes, Kurama forgot how difficult it could be when you were still trying to make sense of your sexuality.

"There's nothing wrong with liking men better than women," Kurama said, feeling tears in his eyes as he held Hiei's hands in his own, his touch as tender as before. "Love is love. You know that."

"Is that what this is?" Hiei looked up into Kurama's eyes, and he seemed genuinely confused. "Love?"

Kurama blinked. Finally, his intelligent mind started to put two and two together; he looked into Hiei's wide, curious eyes, down at the hands that clutched Kurama's rather tightly, and then at the sham pillow, which had been thrown to the side, and now Kurama could see what had been hiding underneath it…

"Oh, Hiei," said Kurama, meeting the fire demon's gaze again. "Was it me? Were you thinking about me this morning?"

Hiei let go of Kurama's hands, knowing he shouldn't have been surprised that his secret was out. When was he going to learn? It was literally impossible to hide anything from Kurama. No matter what you did to cover your tracks, it would never be enough. Hiei looked down, and when he saw what had given him away, he felt like he wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Why did his body have to betray him like that?

"I'm sorry, Kurama." Hiei felt like he was going to cry. "I'm really, really sorry."

"Don't feel sorry," Kurama said softly, placing one hand on Hiei's shoulder. "I'm not angry. I just wish you would have told me earlier."

"W-Why?"

"Because, Hiei…" Kurama suddenly started to smile, and leaned closer. Hiei bit his lip as the familiar scent of roses surrounded him; he would have thought it was impossible, but he was even hornier now than before. "I like you too."