The first teaser fic for Where the Waves Crest (波が上り詰める所) and an entry for 2021 Cullen Week.
Cullen Rutherford is an American enlisted sailor who regularly visits his boyfriend, Tharin Trevelyan, at his place in Kawasaki, Japan. But he has no idea about White Day, a day of love on March 14 celebrated by the Japanese. At Tharin's apartment, Cullen is confronted by something he did not expect and feels many conflicting emotions.
2021 Cullen Week theme: Thirst
This is a self-indulgent one-shot that I wrote for the 2021 Cullen Week (April 1-7). It is also a teaser fic for Where the Waves Crest (波が上り詰める所), an upcoming long fic beginning on Sunday, May 2 featuring Cullen Rutherford and Tharin Trevelyan in Japan.
Before I begin, I must express my profound gratitude to MoonCrisis (*FFN*/u/1538943/MoonCrisis), the best beta reader anyone could ask for. They actually came up with this idea when I did not know how to fill the Cullen Week prompt, so thank you!
Obviously, I do not own the rights to any characters or materials directly derived from the Dragon Age franchise, which all belong to BioWare. I do not, and will never, profit from the publication and the distribution of this fan fiction.
Saturday, March 19, 2022
When Cullen Rutherford boarded the navy-blue and beige Yokosuka Line train that day, he expected a typical day of liberty spent at his boyfriend's studio apartment. But he was sorely mistaken.
When he knocked on the front door of Tharin's place, he was answered by a freshly showered man with a towel wrapped around his waist. He must have just returned from the gym.
Tharin's hair was a right mess, but Cullen could not have cared less. With tiny water droplets dotting his muscular torso, the young man was simply gorgeous.
"Hey, Cul!"
"Morning, love."
As he had done many times before, Cullen stepped onto the tiled entryway and took off his shoes. But Tharin was impatient. Even before Cullen entered the apartment proper, Tharin wrapped his arms around the man's neck and began to lightly nibble on his left ear.
In Cullen's mind flashed an unflattering image of a bear caressing him, and he chuckled. But the nibbling on his ear definitely elicited a different response from Cullen. The kind that made him focus on the desire that sprang from within and forget about anything that did not have to do with it.
Cullen stood on the hardwood floor, moaning as Tharin now traced his tongue over the side of his neck. Cullen gently pushed against the other man and felt the hardness underneath the towel.
They moved slowly, but smoothly, across the floor toward the bed in the far-left corner of the apartment. But when Cullen directed his gaze toward the kitchenette that stood on their right side, he saw something that astounded him.
"Wha… What's with all these?"
On the kitchen counter were chocolates. Lots and lots of them. They numbered in the tens and came in different shapes and varieties, from a humble candy bar to a crimson heart-shaped box that presumably held chocolate truffles. There was even an extravagant gift basket filled with bars of chocolate.
As Cullen broke from the embrace, Tharin glanced at the kitchenette and explained as though Cullen should know what he was talking about, "Oh, because of White Day."
"What in God's name is White Day?" If anything, it sounded vaguely problematic.
"White Day. March 14. You've never heard of it since you've been in Japan?"
With his brows raised, Cullen shook his head.
Tharin expounded, "White Day's kinda analogous to Valentine's Day. In Japan, women give men they like chocolates on Valentine's Day. On White Day, men reciprocate by giving candies to women they received chocolates from."
But Tharin was a man. How did he get so many chocolates? "So, what are these then? Who gave these to you?"
"Eh, people like me. I'm likable. Most of them are from my colleagues at school. Some are from my students. Cute kids."
"Ah… I see."
"Yeah, I even got a fancy chocolate bar from the new history teacher. He's–"
"He?" interjected Cullen a little too sharply. He felt his heart speed up as something viscid and vicious wrecked his pleasant mood. He could not tell what it was exactly. It felt like a combination of many things, but a small part of him was scared by it.
"–rather attractive. Reminds me of young Toshiro Mifune from Kurosawa films, with a really nice beard and everything. We've been having lunch together for a few weeks." Tharin seemed blithely unaware. Or perhaps he was being deliberately obtuse.
"Oh, is that so?" huffed Cullen, to which Tharin replied with a mischievous grin.
The young man padded over to the kitchen counter and took ahold of a green box. He returned and handed it to Cullen. "I was gonna wait, but I guess I'll give this to you now."
Everything on the box was written in Japanese calligraphy, the kind with lively and irregular brushstrokes. Even though Cullen could read hiragana and katakana, Chinese characters and calligraphy were still far beyond his ability. Curious and clueless, Cullen tore the tissue papers and opened the box.
When Cullen lifted the lid, a grassy tang hit his nostrils. Inside lay sixteen Lego-sized green bricks tightly fit next to each other.
"What is this?"
"I know you liked that matcha tart we got in Enoshima. I figured, you'd like these, too. They are white chocolate fudges covered with matcha powder."
The unpleasant feeling morphed into a tangible guilt in Cullen. "But… I didn't get you anything… And we didn't even get to do anything for Valentine's because I was out at sea."
Tharin shrugged. He was nonchalant. "Well, the Navy isn't gonna let you off just because of Valentine's, and you didn't know about White Day. It's really not a big deal. I just wanted to do something nice." He reached out and gently patted Cullen's left cheek. "Because I love you, you big oaf."
Cullen quickly put the chocolate box aside and grasped Tharin's face to fuse their lips together. He kissed as though he were trying to rid himself of the guilty emotions. Like lighting an intense fire that would decimate anything that it came in contact with. Cullen cinched his arms around Tharin's wet torso, giving him a tight embrace. He could feel his sweater getting sodden, but he did not give a damn. To be able to feel Tharin close to him was everything.
When they parted, Tharin glowed, but his teasing did not cease. "Although, I might be tempted to leave you for that history teacher. He might be interested in me."
The kiss calmed the manifold emotions that stormed within Cullen. He exhaled lightly, and drawled, "Well, then, I should make sure you wouldn't leave me."
"Oh? How are you gonna accomplish that? You do have a stiff competition," joked Tharin as he touched the middle of Cullen's trousers. Pleasure radiated upward, which Cullen managed to ignore. Just barely.
Straightening his posture and puffing his chest, Cullen declared, "I've got an ace up my sleeve." And then he swiftly fused their lips once again. This time, the kiss was much more relaxed, like a spring breeze that began to fill the Japanese air with the scent of new leaves and new flowers this time of the year.
After they broke from the kiss, Cullen whispered, "Right," and turned around. He promptly walked over to the entryway and put his shoes back on.
Aghast, Tharin asked, "Aren't we… uh, you know…?" The young man gesticulated at the rumpled bed.
Cullen crinkled the corners of his eyes. "Nope. Not yet."
Looking rightly peeved, Tharin crossed his arms and creased his brow. "Where are you going?"
"The convenience store around the block. I'm getting you something for White Day."
"Please don't tell me that's what you meant by an ace up your sleeve," sighed Tharin.
"What if it is?" Cullen curved his scarred lips in a goofy grin.
Tharin plopped down on the bed and grunted. The mattress groaned along with him. "Ugh. You better be back really quickly. I'm starting without you."
Cullen guffawed before he pushed the front door open. "Challenge accepted."
End Notes:
If you liked this fic, please come back on Sunday, May 2 and check out the first chapter of Where the Waves Crest (波が上り詰める所). I promise many, many more adventures with these two lovable boys in and around Tokyo!
Comments, reviews, and critiques are always welcome but never obligatory! Thank you for reading!