Minegishi couldn't get a minute of peace now could they?

"What is it, Ryou?" asked Minegishi. They'd had about half a second's warning before Ryou teleported beside them. They had used that second to mourn what little time they had to just sit and relax and just….be.

And sweat, of course, they couldn't forget the sweat.

"Try this." said Shimazaki as he held out a piece of slated black licorice. Toshi had to like this. He couldn't have been the only one who didn't like this. Even Mob had said that she hadn't liked it and she liked everything. Well Toshi and Mob were different people. If they didn't like this then he had no idea what he would do. Maybe accept that he was weird and then continue on with his life? And then sauna with Toshi? Or see what Mob was up to? Or maybe chase Mukai around in the snow? The possibilities were endless…

But not candy based, so they wouldn't do.

"Fine." Said Minegishi as they took the piece of black licorice from his hand. The sooner they ate this the sooner he'd go. Not that they wanted…they wanted to be alone right now. They'd spent the whole day following Mob around. They were tired, bone tired, physically and mentally. The lack of plant life around here didn't help. They had seeds in all of their pockets but it didn't help. They needed grass and flowers and weeds and trees other than pine. They needed to sit here and be warm and just…collect themselves.

They needed a minute of peace, but with Ryou for a boyfriend those were hard to come by.

"Tell me you like it." Said Shimazaki as Toshi bite into the licorice rope. He focused on them, he came very close to using mind's eye even. They were making their Toshi tasting face…which could have been good or bad. Someone had to like this beside him. If they liked it then they could share and…well he didn't know what would happen afterwards but he'd figure it out. Drinks. They'd make a drink out of it. There was no such thing as having too much to drink.

"It's alright. I like black licorice but I don't think that it needs so much salt." Said Minegishi. Ryou leaned in and kissed them, they let him, and they kissed him back. They were…not happy with him….but it would pass. He thought he had a crush on Mob but he didn't, he wasn't trying to sleep with her, and it was purely emotional. There. They could move past this. They'd yelled at him, he'd realized what an idiot he'd been, and now things were getting as close to normal and they could be.

"But you like it." Said Shimazaki

"It's edible." Said Minegishi

"You're edible. I mean I love you. I mean you are edible but I love you." Said Shimazaki before he kissed Toshi again. They tasted salty. Maybe it was from the licorice or maybe it was from the fact that they were covered in sweat…it was hot as hell in here…where was here again? It smelled good…oh! Sauna! Right, that was where he was.

"If you want to eat me then wait until I'm done in here." Said Minegishi as Ryou pulled away. He'd been drinking, they could smell and taste it on him. Well then. He could have waited for them, or maybe even cut back. This may have been a vacation but he still had to remember himself. He was overly affectionate at the best of times, to them, and Mob….well he thought he had a crush on her. The last thing Minegishi needed was for him to act like the drunken idiot he was and try something, anything, with Mob. Mob had been through enough and, really, that was a line that they didn't know if they could uncross, if he could uncross. Mob…well she could do whatever she wanted with whoever she wanted…but Ryou was Ryou. It wasn't any desire to possess him, they knew what his argument would have been, it was the desire to keep Mob from making stupid choices with a very stupid man…but the whole thing didn't matter, it was all hypotheticals, and they didn't have the mental space fpr hypotheticals right now.

"Can I?" asked Shimazaki

"Yeah, when I'm done." Said Minegishi

"I fucking love you. So this means that you forgive me….?" Asked Shimazaki

"Don't push it. One thing at a time, Ryou, one thing at a time. Now get out of here and let me sweat." Said Minegishi

"Can I sweat with you?" asked Shimazaki

"I'm not fucking you in the sauna. I don't think that would be pleasant for either of us." Said Minegishi

"So we're fucking now?" asked Shimazaki

"Depends on how I feel." Said Minegishi

"On how well I do, you mean?" asked Shimazaki

"Sure, if you want to go with that." Said Minegishi

"It's not a sex thing, by the way. I really do want to just sit here and sweat with you." Said Shimazaki

"Fine, be my guest. You might want to undress first, though, just a thought." Said Minegishi. Ryou teleported out of the room, displacing the air around him as he left. There was an unpleasant rush of coolness as the air around them reconfigured itself. Their skin went to goosebumps. They didn't even have a chance to get used to it before he teleported right beside them.

"You know what I just noticed?" said Shimazaki as he sat down beside Toshi. They were shivering. He put an arm around them. He forgot how much smaller they were sometimes. They were all small and thin and shit. They needed more licorice, lots more licorice. More sugar and stuff, maybe it would make them sweeter too. Not that he didn't love sour Toshi, he did, he just…well Mob was sweet enough for him. He wasn't going to try and turn Toshi into Mob or Mob into Toshi. That was why he had two….well he had a partner and whatever the hell Mob wanted to be. He was getting close to just coming out and asking her…but then that might have been rushing her. The last thing he wanted to do was rush her.

That was how he'd fucked up with Toshi.

He had pushed them too fast and that was why they got all distant and hit the, well, everything too hard. Well he'd learned his lesson. He had put too much of himself onto Toshi, been too needy, but now he knew better. He wasn't a one person kind of guy and he never should have tried to have been. Romantically, of course, not sexually. He had a lot of love to give, all kinds of it, and maybe it was better for the both of them if he gave that love to someone else.

Someone like Mob.

She really was the whole package. She had it going on, for one thing, and she was nice too. She was nice and thoughtful and just this bottomless well of caring. She also loved to party and was always so up when they did pretty much anything. She kept things interesting. Yeah, Mob was great…what was she doing right now? Probably still trying to get Sho in the tub, or maybe she was wrapping Christmas presents…she'd been talking about that before. Or maybe she was just sitting on her bed hitting her pen. Maybe she wanted to get in on this. What could have been better than Mob and Toshi together? Maybe something other than wood to sit on. This was so weird, people were naked in here. What if he got a splinter? Fuck, that would have sucked…so maybe he shouldn't have invited Mob over…wait, had he?

No, it was still just him and Toshi.

"What?" asked Minegishi

"You're the only person I've ever met who can shiver in a sauna. You were shivering and its like…only Toshi does that. Then I thought that you might be cold. Then I was thinking about how I rushed you into becoming my partner. Now I'm thinking about how weird it feels to be completely naked sitting on wood. I hope I don't end up with a splinter in my ass, that would suck. Could Fukuda even fix that? Or would I die before I got to Japan? How many people a year die of splinters, do you think?" said Shimazaki as he rocked back and forth on the wood. It felt weird. Why didn't they make these things out of metal? Well maybe that would have been too hot, like a metal slide in the summer sun. Plastic was good too…but then it would have melted. Leather? Leather. Leather was perfect. Who didn't like peeling themselves off of a leather couch? That was one of life's greatest feelings right there.

"I don't know. More than one less than a million." Said Minegishi. They didn't mind him that much, him or his drunken ramblings. Just so long as he wasn't rambling about…parts of himself that they weren't sure if they were still one hundred percent alright with. It was one thing to hear about things he'd done with people they'd never meet, it was another thing entirely when that person was Mob. They hadn't minded, before, actually they had been relieved that he'd put everything about himself out there. They loved that about him, he didn't have a disingenuous bone in his body, but maybe…maybe he could have done with a little less transparency.

"That's a lot of people, I think, a million. I've never even seen a million people in one place before. I can't even imagine…well I can but I get kind of dizzy. It's like using mind's eye…wow. I don't even know a million people. That's an insane amount of people. One to a million." Said Shimazaki

"Or very few, depending on how you look at it….and before you say anything, no, you are perfectly capable of looking at things. I know you're looking at me right now. I can feel your aura." Said Minegishi

"You killed my blind joke. Do you know how rarely I make those? The opportunities don't just come one after the other after the other." Said Shimazaki

"Well maybe now you'll be more motivated to learn some new material. Sho hardly even laughs at your jokes anymore and his heart beats for you or whatever." Said Minegishi. Sho had been pretty quiet about that lately. They knew not to get too comfortable. If that kid was anything he was tenacious. They had their money on Valentine's Day for when he got back into crush mode. Mob had said that Sho had a little boyfriend out there somewhere. Out there was the operative term. There was no way Sho was going to be able to wait to see that boyfriend of his. He couldn't even wait for the microwave to ding let alone to see who Mob had said was the love of his life. Part of them felt sorry for Ryou, for what he had to deal with, but another part of them reminded themselves that Ryou had earned this karmic retribution fairly and that it was not their place to interfere with the will of the universe or whatever.

"No, I think he's finally over me. He's got some guy in Seasoning City he's in love with. Good for him, I think, but mostly good for me. That was getting really awkward, and this is coming from me." Said Shimazaki

"You do know a lot about making things awkward." Said Minegishi

"Yeah, I do. It's really fun, Toshi, you should try it sometime. People's auras sound so….kind of like….percussive? Yeah, people sound percussive when they're uncomfortable. Plus it's fun." Said Shimazaki

"You're an agent of chaos as always, Ryou." Said Minegishi

"Well I aim to please. You, if you'll let me." Said Shimazaki, his hand fining Toshi's thigh. He hadn't touched them like this in so long. He missed this. He missed them.

"I said when I was done." Said Minegishi as they moved Ryou's hand off of their thigh.

"Sorry, it's just been a while since we were together. I miss you." Said Shimazaki. He leaned over and kissed Toshi at the side of their neck right where they liked it. He hadn't been with them, really been with them, in so long. He missed the way they breathed when they got close. He missed the way they always managed to scratch his back up even if they were on top or something. He missed the way they said his name…he missed them.

"If you're that pent up then work on your Finnish and hit on some locals until you find someone who can look past your sparkling personality." Said Minegishi

"It's not a sex thing, it's a 'you' thing. I specially want to make your pleasure my business. With you on your side facing me, if possible." Said Shimazaki, his hand tracing a line up Toshi's leg. The sweat made them feel both smooth and sticky at the same time. He loved it. He loved every single thing about them.

"Ryou, you make me feel so special." Said Minegishi. They would see how it went. They still didn't know if they were ready to go rushing back into it with him. Love was one thing and sex was another. They still loved him…but maybe full on sleeping with him was still too much. They'd see how they felt. Ryou wouldn't have minded, well he would have grumbled, but he still would have rolled over and done his own thing. Not that he would need to…they'd figure it out when they got to that point.

"You are special. You're Toshi. You're special to me." Said Shimazaki. He took their hand in his and kissed it. They tasted as salty as ever. He was beginning to like it.

"Someone's in a romantic mood." Said Minegishi as he kissed the top of their hand like the gentleman they knew for a fact he wasn't. Good. They didn't have time to deal with a gentleman. They didn't have the inclination to see what was behind all those layers of artifice. Ryou didn't even know the meaning of the word artifice….they loved him for it.

"I've got a lot of love to give and you're one of the people I want to give it to. Not sexually, well yes sexually, but romantically too. Like dates and stuff. Like we're dogs and we both accidentally eat the same strand of spaghetti and then we kiss." Said Shimazaki. That was a great movie, and audiobook too. The audiobook was even better than the narrated movie. He wondered if dogs really did go on dates like that and if he could teach them to eat spaghetti…that would have been so great. Dogs deserved love too.

"Tomatoes are actually poisonous for dogs, you know." Said Minegishi

"I didn't know….and why'd you have to say that? How am I supposed to listen to Lady and the Tramp now?" asked Shimazaki

"Dogs don't go on dates, fall in love, or talk either. Just take it as the fantasy world it is. Sometimes fantasy is better than reality." Said Minegishi

"Fantasy Toshi is just as good as real Toshi. I mean Fantasy Toshi does do coke with me during candlelit dinners in trees but you're still the best Toshi there is." Said Shimazaki

"We can do coke, we can do coke in a tree, but you know I'm not a candlelit dinner sort of person." Said Minegishi. They shuddered at the thought. They were into him, he was into them. There was no reason that they had to go and show off their relationship to the world. Romantic displays like that, with their rules and expectations, existed so that you could show the world that you were doing everything right. Well they didn't need to show the world they loved Ryou. He loved them, they loved him, and that was the end of it.

"I know, and that's ok. You're a do coke in a tree sort of person and that's ok." Said Shimazaki. That was what Mob was for. Toshi would always be his number one, of course, but Mob came in at a close second. She lived for that romantic stuff. She loved date nights. Even when he got lazy and they just drank someplace that he assumed had a good view she was still happy. They hadn't gone on a date in so long…well she'd been pretty busy….maybe he could put something together for them. Something she'd like….yeah. That would have been good.

"I'm also a coke on a bed sort of person…but just a bump or two. God, I feel like Mob's always watching." Said Minegishi. They felt around with their aura. They knew that she wasn't there with them but it still felt like it. How anyone could have had a passive range that big was beyond them. She wasn't there but it was like she was…and she was watching…and starting the first draft of that letter they'd asked her to write them from rehab. They had been kidding, then, it had seemed like it would have just been a onetime thing. They'd fucked up so bad with her. Whether they'd asked for it or not she was always watching them, learning from them, and they'd taught her some terrible lessons over the years.

"Yeah, Mob's kind of a coke fiend but I won't invite her if you don't want me to." Said Shimazaki. It wasn't a sex thing with Mob. She had it going on but that wasn't all of it. Still, the thought of a Mob and Toshi sandwich, with a little coke, seemed downright heavenly. His two favorite people and him, there, for the both of them…but that wasn't going to happen. Ever. Toshi had said so and he wasn't going to push Toshi on this. He wasn't going to push Mob, either. All of that meant a lot to her at her age and as difficult as it was he had to think about what was best for her and not just what he wanted. Thinking about other people kind of sucked but it was part of the whole 'boyfriend' thing.

"Please don't. That would be weird on so many levels." Said Minegishi

"Alright. This'll be a strictly you and me thing." Said Shimazaki

"Good. You can go, now, I'll be out in a second." Said Minegishi. They kissed him quickly. He was the one who teleported away first. They could feel him moving around the tiny little hotel house. Good. Now they had a minute to themselves. They closed their eyes and leaned their head back. This was shaping up to be a good night…maybe a very good night. They didn't know. They'd see when they got there. They loved him. They knew that. That was…they knew that they loved him and they knew that he hadn't meant anything by, well, everything...and that was enough for now.

They knew that they loved him…even though he never gave them a minute's peace.