Fukuda Tadashi could say, with the upmost confidence, that he was completely straight.

But that hadn't stopped Suzuki. No, Touichirou had no concept of the world outside of himself. He had no idea that other people had their own inner lives, thoughts, opinions, and that maybe, just maybe, not everyone was questioning their sexuality well into their forties. Oh no, if Suzuki was questioning himself than everybody else in the world must have been as well. There was no other explanation for it. Therefore of course Fukuda would have been totally OK with anything that Suzuki wanted to do.

Fukuda was going to let him go on thinking that.

"Tadashi you're crowding me." said Suzuki as he shifted closer to the window. Fukuda could feel Hatori looking at him. He paid him no mind. He assumed that Hatori new, he had pretty much been Suzuki's shadow for the past few years. Well whatever, then. He didn't care if Hatori knew or didn't know, it wasn't like anyone would have believed him, and anyway he had more important things on the line here than his own reputation.

He didn't scoot back.

There wasn't a lot of room in this car. Sure the backseat was spacious but there were two grown men there, and Hatori. Hatori seemed to not understand the meaning of the words 'pack lightly' so he, of course, got the entire section across from Fukuda to himself. He needed it for all of his games and stuff. It made logical sense, then, that Fukuda would have wound up sitting beside Suzuki…and it made logical sense then that he would end up crowding Suzuki.

It was important, if this went wrong, to have some kind of plausible deniability…sort of like being in court but with much higher stakes.

"Sorry, it's just kind of crowded back here." Said Fukuda. Suzuki had called him by his given name. Good. That was always a good sign when he started to get familiar like that. He wasn't putting up his usual walls between the two of them. He might have even still…there was no 'might' about it. Fukuda knew that he still had whatever feelings had led him to spending the Christmas holidays in Fukuda's bed. The blush that crept across his face, the bob of his Adam's apple as he swallowed, the way his aura seemed to bounce in place…he knew Suzuki and Suzuki never gave up on anything. Not anything that meant something to him.

Or anyone.

"Couldn't we have taken a plane?" whined Hatori. He didn't even look up from his phone. Fukuda had no idea how Suzuki tolerated this man, he was such a child, and Suzuki had never even tolerated childish behavior from his own children….and Hatori was not his child. Fukuda had looked into that. Lover he would have believed, he would have believed anything about Suzuki at this point, but he didn't have any evidence of that. Not that he even wanted anything like that, either, no. That would have just complicated his plans. Suzuki was very loyal to whoever held his heart in the palm of their hand and that person needed to be Fukuda….whether he wanted this or not.

"Planes are expensive and we're hemorrhaging money right now." Said Suzuki dismissively.

"When aren't we hemorrhaging money?" asked Hatori. Fukuda was….mostly sure that there was nothing going on between them. Suzuki….he only let Hatori talk to him like that….but Hatori had also for a time been with Shigeko, he denied it but Fukuda knew the truth, so there was probably nothing going on between him and Suzuki in that case.

"We were in the black not too long ago, we've just been expanding rapidly…and anyway that is not your concern." Said Suzuki

"But I'm laundering money right now." Said Hatori rolling his eyes.

"Then…then get back to it." Said Suzuki with a wave of his hand. Hatori phone jumped up and hit him in the face. He rubbed his eye and fixed his glasses. It didn't look like he had anything else to add. Good. Now Fukuda could….well not full on seduce him, the thought made him shudder, but remind Suzuki that he existed.

"So, what's this about? Another war meeting?" asked Fukuda leaning in close once again. There, that same nervous swallow, that same blush, that same jump of his aura. He knew Suzuki, he knew that whatever feelings he'd had weren't gone, and he knew that this was a massive weakness in his defenses. He trusted Fukuda, maybe even loved him, and all Fukuda had to do was remind him of that fact. He was well aware of what was coming, what he was going to have to do later, but…but it was for the kids. Suzuki having another child wouldn't have been good for anyone…especially Sho.

The things he did for that kid.

"Yes…and possibly another war, I am not entirely sure…well not a complete war but I may have to fight. So conserve your strength, I may need you later." Said Suzuki. He was trying not to make eye contact. That was a good sign…for what Fukuda needed. He had to make sure to push hard, but not too hard, not hard enough to set him off. He knew where the line was. He had known Suzuki long enough to be able to tell where all of his lines were…and which ones were alright to cross….well not alright but not the sort that would end in an explosion.

He reached over.

Suzuki watched his hand. He wasn't going to hold his hand, no, just put his hand on his arm. That was all. God, he felt like he was a kid again. So many of Suzuki's lines were so juvenile…an odd thing to complain about…though maybe if they had been more adult it would have been easier. Then he could have just gotten to the part he knew Suzuki wanted…well Hatori was there. He was there and he was staring…but Fukuda didn't care.

He had to get this done with before it went too far…farther than it already had.

"You can need-" said Fukuda as he reached over. The ringing of a phone broke thought whatever atmosphere he had been trying to cultivate. Suzuki jumped and immediately fumbled with his pockets.

"It's Shiori." Said Hatori quickly. He gave Fukuda a look as he said that. Fukuda gave him one of his own, one that clearly said 'go play a videogame and stay out of the adults' business'.

"Thank you but I am perfectly capable of reading on my own." said Suzuki, despite the fact that as he got his phone out he squinted at it. Fukuda couldn't fix that, aging, and even if he could have he wouldn't. The last thing that the world needed was a Suzuki Touichirou who planned on living forever.

"Are you sure that you don't want me to turn on the extra big print?" asked Hatori

"That's enough out of you….hello? Shiori, I wasn't expecting to hear from you so soon. You don't normally take your lunch break for another thirty seven to forty one minutes." Said Suzuki. Fukuda frowned. That was…not good. Suzuki's who demeanor changed…and not for the better, when he picked up the phone. He smiled, his version of it, and his eyes got brighter. His aura, too, and that never preceded anything good. He uncrossed his legs and leaned away from the window. He…was actually happy talking to that woman…

He had never looked like that, not even when he'd had Masami, and she was ten times the woman that whatever her name was.

"Touichirou, what did I say about spying on me?" asked Shiori. He knew her name, he knew where she lived, he knew what she did for a living, he knew where she had come from, he had come into this knowing nearly everything about her…but now he knew the sound of her voice. That was everything. He knew everything about this woman without having even spoken to her…she was bad news. Suzuki couldn't see it but she was very bad news….

"That I shouldn't, but I'm not. I just know your habits and preferred mealtimes, also your preferred meals. What sort of Chinese did you get today? I remember you said that you were done with-" said Suzuki

"Oh don't even get me started! Ok, I am done with, absolutely done, with Triple Happiness. They've officially lost my business." Said Shiori

"What happened? Do you want me to have it burnt to the ground?' asked Suzuki

"You don't even know what happened but you're ready to commit arson for me?" asked Shiori. She sounded almost coy, there. She could have had him running across the ocean to burn down all of Osaka for her and she knew it. She was smug, he decided, that was what he had been hearing in her voice. Of course she was smug, she had the most powerful man in the world practically eating out of the palm of her hand. A gold digger in the worst way…he would have hoped that Suzuki would have been too bright to fall for that…but he was an idiot when it came to women.

Men, too.

"I've done worse." Said Suzuki

"Well I can commit arson on my own. Anyway, so I get my food and guess what? My galaxy of shrimp only had three shrimp in it. Again! I mean, come on, three shrimp is hardly a galaxy!" said Shiori

"A galaxy is made up of-" said Suzuki

"So anyway I brought this to everyone's attention and, get this, they told me that three was plenty and that a woman my age needed to, and I quote, 'work harder on conducting herself properly' in public….my age….and telling me how to act? No!" said Shiori

"Do you want me to write a bunch of really bad reviews? Like they're serving human flesh or something?" shouted Hatori. He clearly didn't have to. Suzuki had always left his speaker turned all the way up. Maybe Fukuda had been right, back when they'd been kids, about Suzuki giving himself tinnitus.

"Hatori, this is why people think that you're a cannibal…also mind your own business." Said Suzuki

"Was that Hatori?" asked Shiori with a laugh.

"Yes, he felt the need to interject, but go on. What else happened?" asked Suzuki

"Well I told him that a man his age needed to learn some basic respect, I swear the first baby boom generation is so entitled….anyway it got kind of heated and the next thing I knew I accidentally shattered their aquarium." Said Shiori

"That's unfortunate. You love fish." said Suzuki. He honestly sounded like this bothered him…so he was upset about this but watching Masami slowly waste away into a shadow of her former self was just fine? Suzuki….Fukuda needed to calm down. Suzuki couldn't read faces but he could read auras.

"Oh no, I saved the fish. I have no idea how long they can live in a bucket for but I saved them. Kind of burnt a bridge though but I don't care….sorry to dump all of this on you. I just had to tell someone." Said Shiori

"I understand, and I'm always happy to hear from you. I love the sound of your voice. I love everything about you." Said Suzuki, something actually warm creeping into his voice.

"You're sweet. Anyway tell me about you, what's been happening in Touichirou-land? How are you kids? Your oldest still…upset?" asked Shiori

"The children are normal. Shigeko's face is healing well, Mukai is a delight as always, Sho…has broken up with his girlfriend-" said Suzuki

"The one he was going to marry?" asked Shiori, with another laugh. A harsh one. There was nothing funny about what had happened…Fukuda had no idea that Sho had even told his father….it wasn't funny. Sho had been struggling with that for so long, how to do it, and then he'd done it in both the best and the worst way possible….there was no need to laugh. Especially at a little boy she'd never even met.

"Yes. She was a very delightful little girl but he has this idea in his head that he's a homosexual and, honestly, I liked her a lot and it would be nice to have a spare heir or two, but that little girl deserves better than my son. There's no point in being married to someone who has no interest in being married to you." Said Suzuki

"I can't believe that you took that so seriously. He's a little boy, Touichirou, of course he was never going to marry this girl. No wonder he thinks he can make these big choices in his life, the way you carry on." Said Shiori. Fukuda covered his mouth. That had been close. He had been about to make a massive mistake and pull a Hatori. Sho was perfectly capable of making his own choices. He knew himself better at the age of twelve than Suzuki had known himself even now. Fukuda knew to keep this to himself, though, so he just did the only thing he could. He sat there and let Suzuki carry on with…with all of this.

"I don't care what he does at this point." Said Suzuki

"Well you should since he's only…what? Ten? Eleven?" asked Shiori

"He's twelve and he's fine." Said Fukuda before he could stop himself. He should have just kept his mouth shut but…but he couldn't. This woman…she didn't know Sho and she had no right to tell Suzuki to get more involved in his life. Sho had enough problems as it was.

"He doesn't like being interrupted." Said Hatori in a truly annoying singsong voice.

"Hatori is correct, I don't like being interrupted at all. Don't do it again." said Suzuki. He actually glared at Fukuda…he'd really messed up. The last thing he needed was Suzuki being upset with him. He needed to correct this, and now.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to." Said Fukuda before he put his hand right there on Suzuki's arm. He could feel is aura…it hurt. It flared. Suzuki gasped. He turned red…bright red….and Fukuda was suddenly reminded of just how fast they were going. He moved his hand higher up his arm…it didn't help.

"What the fuck…." Muttered Hatori. Fukuda risked a glance at him. He was cleaning his glasses and his eyes were wide. This…may also have been a miscalculation. Hatori….well he couldn't really keep things to himself. Sure nobody would believe him but he was completely incapable of keeping things to himself.

"I-I-" said Suzuki. He was stuttering, now, like a broken record. That was a good sign. If he had a problem with this then he wouldn't have any problem pushing Fukuda away. No, he wanted this…and he wanted her…that was the problem. Fukuda was acting not only in his own self interest but also in Suzuki's. This woman was clearly after his money, his power, or both. He just couldn't see it…somehow he was blind to what she wanted.

"Touichirou, what's wrong? And don't tell me nothing because I know you. You only stutter when something's wrong." Said Shiori. She thought that she knew him, she didn't. Suzuki stuttered when he was happy, too, or when he was overly tired. He stuttered when there was good news, when there was bad news, and when he'd been up for three days trying to break the world's record. She didn't know him…how could she have known him?

She had only been around for a year…at best.

She hadn't seen hm at his worst. She hadn't seen him reach the very end of his rope, the way he lost control, she had never seen him explode…she had never seen him at his lowest, either. She had never seen him cry, and he could cry. She had never stayed up all night nursing him through a breakup. She had never him…she had never seen him at his worst or his best. She didn't know him. She would never know him.

Fukuda didn't think that anyone would ever know Suzuki the way he knew him.

"Nothing is wrong. That was just Tadashi….that was just Fukuda interjecting. Pay him no mind." Said Suzuki quickly. There was a pause on the other end of the line. He assumed, for a moment, that the line had gone dead. He kept his hand on Suzuki's arm. He stared at it. Fukuda could see the world inside of his mind exploding. This may have been a lot…but he wasn't anywhere close to an explosion. That was the important part, walking this line, this very thin line.

It was like walking a tightrope….but at this point Fukuda might as well have been a world class tightrope walker.

"Wait….is that the man you….is that him? Your….friend?" asked Shiori. Fukuda's powers worked better when he was touching someone, it was like getting a direct line to someone's body. Suzuki's body was not in good shape right now. His heart started beating irregularly…he had never seen that before…but he fixed it. The last thing anyone needed was Suzuki doing something unpredictable. Sure he could live through another explosion, even while they were travelling at this speed, but it would still hurt like hell.

"He is…yes, that is the same Tadashi….um….do you…what else happened to you today? I am very interested in the minutia of your day so please share it with me." Said Suzuki. He stuttered, he turned even redder, but he didn't push Fukuda away. His eyes met Fukuda's but he didn't push him away or even say a word…to anyone. He was content to listen to Shiori prattle on about her day…about things that didn't even matter. He had no idea how Suzuki could have listened to that….he hadn't even known or cared about…about anything….

He hadn't given a damn about Masami.

Fukuda was angry on her behalf. Even though she had been gone for years, even after she had cut all contact, even after…he wasn't an idiot, he knew that if Suzuki hadn't been so cold towards her then she never would have gotten closer to him…but she hadn't deserved that. What was so special about this woman? What made her think that she deserved…Fukuda needed to calm down. He had his own mission to accomplice and he had to keep a clear head. He had to make Suzuki think that…he had to make Suzuki think a lot of things that weren't true.

For the kids.

Fukuda did a lot for Sho, and Mukai to a lesser extent, and maybe one day Sho would be able to know. Not now, though, now…well he knew better than to say anything now. A thank you might have been nice but he shouldn't have needed one. He just….he had to keep this up, this act. He had to steal Suzuki from this woman and…and then…well he would think about what would come later when it came. Right now he just had to pretend and then…well he would deal with that later….

He was straight, perfectly straight, but Suzuki wasn't….and Fukuda had no choice but to use this to his advantage.