The weather was dismal outside . Everywhere was just dark clouds and sheets of cold rain gushing down from the black sky . Since winter was now officially over and spring had become , they were constantly plagued with bouts of rain because of a storm .
Schuldich partly loved the weather , partly hated it .
He liked it somewhat because it meant that he didn't have to go to work the next day , or even that night ( being a professional photographer was just shitty ) but he also hated it because it meant that he was going to be cooped up in his condo - again , alone ... with only the TV. for company .
He yawned and padded off barefoot to the fridge to scavenge some food .
He was wearing only a thin tank top and sweats because the heater was turned up to its maximum .
Hmmm ... leftovers and beer . Damn was he starving .
He was in no mood to cook , and the city was too swamped in snow to order some takeout . So the great Schuldich had no choice but the dubious-looking leftovers .
" Leftovers it is ." He sighed as he took the stack of Chinese takeout and dumped it in the microwave . Ping !
He was about to pad off to get the beer when he heard his doorbell ring .
He wondered who it was . As far as he knew , Yohji was out on the date (despite the damned weather) and Yohji was the only one who ever visited him at his pad . Schuldich opened the door to see Ken standing in front of him , smiling innocently , his boots making puddles on the carpeted floor .
" Hey kid . What're you doing here ?" He said , opening the door wider to let the brunette pass .
" I've come to help ease the pain of going back to work tomorrow . I wanted to surprise you but I left the cardkey you gave me at home ... so , well , SURPRISE !"
Schuldich laughed .
Ken stepped into the flat and immediately was removing his soaked boots .
It pleased Schuldich to not that Ken was wearing the ones he had bought for him . He was great kid – he didn't deserve to get his toes frozen off .
He halted , and stared at the boy sitting on the carpet , struggling with the shoelaces and felt a warm feeling spread through his chest . Is that the only reason ?
He scratched his jaw and tried to ignore his own question . " I'll get you a pair of slippers ."
With his coat off , in his comfortable faded denims and a plain shirt , Ken looked delectably eatable .
Ken looked up and said hesitantly . " Thanks . Hey , Schu ... You don't mind do you ? Aya's off to work tonight and probably won't be back until dawn so ... well , I ... I was getting a little lonely ."
" Hey , hey . Of course I don't mind . You can crash here anytime you want – even if I'm not home . Did you tell your brother where you are ?" Schuldich grinned affectionately and ruffled Ken's chestnut hair .
" Yeah ."
" What'd you say ?"
" That I'm going to your place . He looked like he wanted to strangle me , but he waved me off with a grunt ." Ken's eyes crinkled in suppressed laughter .
Schuldich could tell that Ken was enjoying the joke . He grew quiet , pursing his lips together and walked off to find a pair of slippers .
When he came back with a pair of terry slippers he rarely used , he saw Ken eyeing the leftovers in the microwave with a wrinkled nose . " Is this even fit for human consumption ?" He asked , holding up a box of soggy fried rice .
" Yeah , well . I wasn't in the mood to do any cooking ." Schuldich tossed the slippers at the brunette's naked feet .
" I'll cook for you if you want ." Ken's eyes were so intense , Schuldich felt that they were almost smoldering against his skin .
" Nah . Why don't we just hang out ? I'm not that hungry anyway ." He lied .
" I'll make you hungry . I cook great you know , just tell me what you have and I'll whip up something that can send you slobbering ." Ken joked .
" Nothing here but pasta and ... I dunno what I have ."
Ken laughed and rummaged liberally through his fridge . " Tomato sauce ... hmm . Yup , I can make something fit for a king !" With that , he grabbed several random items from the fridge and nudged it shut with his foot . He grabbed the apron hanging from a hook and a large spatula .
Schuldich watched with amusement , half-doubting if this clumsy , innocent boy could whip up a gourmet meal .
Somehow , he doubted that .
*
" Hey , what you grinning there like an idiot for ? Shoo ! Go ahead and watch the tube . I'll be around in a few ... and don't bother me here !" Ken made shooing motions with his free hand and the spatula .
Chuckling , Schuldich moved off to the living room and promptly plopped on the couch with the remote control . He could barely keep himself from laughing out loud when he heard a clatter of pans and a loud curse . " Ouch ! Damnit !"
" Anything wrong ?" He called out , trying to keep his voice level , craning his neck to get a view around the large recliner .
" No ... everything's just ... hey ! What the – " He heard the sound of sizzling , as if something was boiling too much . " Everything's great !" Another clang and the sound of the flame roaring into the air .
Schuldich chortled and tried to concentrate on the news segment in front of him , something about a major earthquake somewhere in California but he couldn't quite succeed , not when he heard some sort of banging from the kitchen . " Need help ?" He called out again .
" Nah ! I'm almost through !"
For a few minutes , normalcy returned , not a bang or clatter came from the kitchen and a pleasant aroma wafted to the place where he was sitting , lounged on the Moroccan couch .
He heard the sound of the table being set and a moment later , " Everything's ready Schu !"
He bit back a smile and gravely approached the table , half-expecting to see a culinary disaster ; but he was taken aback to see a perfect meal set in the middle .
" What's that ?" He managed to choke out in his surprise . He desperately wanted to wipe his jaw off the floor but , well , he didn't exactly think that the little rascal could pull it off .
Ken gurgled in pride . " Pasta Primavera ." He declared , gesturing for Schuldich to sit down as he grabbed some bottles of Coca Cola from the fridge .
Schuldich forked a bite into his mouth and nodded appreciatively . " Mmmm ... Where'd you learn to cook like this ?"
" Papa used to teach me , he was a cook before at some famous restaurant . I cook like this for Aya all the time . Bet'ya didn't think I could make anything , did'ja ?" Ken teased . He raised his eyebrows comically .
" Well , I was a little bit skeptical ..." Schuldich started mischievously . " Hey ! why's there only one plate here ?"
" I made just enough for you . I already had dinner ." Ken eased himself on a chair across Schuldich , his cheeks flushed bright in pride as he watched Schuldich savor the food .
" No way Jose ! You're going to eat with me , kid . Whether you want to or not ." Schuldich asserted , as he stood up to get another plate .
" Hey ! I'm fine , really !"
Schuldich grinned playfully . " Well , you are at least going to taste your cooking ." With that , he spun some pasta around the silver fork and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively . " Come on . Eat your dinner ." He cooed jokingly , as if dealing with a small child instead of a teenager . How strange it was , being able to talk like that to a boy he had just met – .
Ken laughed heartily and relented . " All right ... hey , it's not half as bad as I thought ."
" Yeah , not bad ." Schuldich agreed . " You could make a living with this ."
Outside , the wind howled louder .
" Listen , I'd better go ." Ken said suddenly as he hurried to the door .
" It's crazy outside , you won't be able to wade through all that snow ." Schuldich said , leaning against the frame of the door .
" But Aya ..."
" Why don't you just call your brother at work and tell him you'll be staying here for the night . After all , you're with a friend , aren't you ?"
Ken looked a bit uncertain , his grey eyes clouded with doubt .
" Come on . It'll be fun . I promise I'd drive you home first thing in the morning , you told me yourself you don't have classes tomorrow ." Schuldich offered .
" You don't mind ?"
Schuldich said firmly " No , I don't ." With that , he took the damp coat from Ken's arms and hanged it back on the rack . He shoved Ken back lightly towards the living room like a little child . " Go on , kid . Make yourself comfy ."
He smiled and reclaimed the still-steaming plate of past from the table and padded off to the couch where Ken was sitting awkwardly on the spot that he had been just a few minutes ago . His heart constricted again and he choked down a delicious bite of pasta and collapsed beside the brunette .
" What'd you wanna watch , kid ?"
" I dunno ."
Schuldich changed the channel to a soccer game and watched Ken's eyes light up suddenly as he wolfed down the remainder of the pasta .
He kept his eyes surreptitiously more on the animated face beside him rather than the loud game roaring on the tube .
He had to admit to himself the truth ; Schuldich never tried to fool himself ; he was growing fond of the kid – in a way that he had never encountered before .
***
They watched the television in silence , Ken was so absorbed in the game that he seemed to have forgotten where he was ; only hearing the roar of the crowd and seeing the spectacular stunts of the players . His eyes danced in concentration , seeming to absorb every movement , every swerve .
Schuldich stole away to dump the dishes into the dishwasher . When he tiptoed back to the couch , Ken was already asleep , leaning gently against the arm of the couch , his eyes closed peacefully as if he was trying to keep awake to finish the game .
A warm smile spread Schuldich's lips , gently , he took the remote and switched the television off .
But he couldn't very well leave the kid to sleep on the couch , could he ? But his condo only had one bed – so ...
Well .
He gently picked the sleeping boy in his arms and was amazed by how light he was . He didn't look it , but he was as weightless as a child .
Schuldich smiled softly to himself . Ken looked so right , curled up in his arms . It was as if he was made to be there , like a part of a carving missing before now ...
He nudged the door open and laid the brunette lightly on the king-sized bed , covered him with his black comforter and turned off the lamp .
Looked like he was going to camp out on the couch for the night .
He was about to turn back towards the living room when he heard a small voice mutter . " Cold ..."
Schuldich brushed his long hair back and tucked the thick blanket further but the brunette continued to shiver in his sleep under the feeble light from the living room .
Maybe he still was cold .
Maybe .
Schuldich sighed softly as he crawled into bed and hugged the frail body tightly .
Maybe he could keep him warm for the night .
Just for the night .
It wasn't long before he fell into a deep sleep , with beautiful dreams of spring and a certain brunette laughing at his side .
† † †
Mariki : Pythia ? Sounds like a Greek mythology character (^__^) Thanks anyway . 3-5 eps ? Well , if you want Kenken action , it's all in episode four and five . That's about every episode that focuses on Ken ... T_~ *mutters* Damned Takehito , he never gives enough attention to Tomokazu Seki . Yay for AyaxKen brotherly mush !
Kaen-chan : Nope , never feed before ... ^__^ but I can start the habit ! *lol* Really ? I've never thought it to be heart-warming and stuff . I didn't actually plan it to turn out like that – but I'm not complaining , seeing that you guys actually like the fluff ! ^__~ *points at Schuldich* YESSSS I AGREE WITH AYA ! YOU CRADLE ROBBER !
Schuldich : AM NOT ! WHY YOU LITTLE –
R_M : *wags her finger* uh-uh-uhhhhh , don't you forget , I AM the fic writer here , I just might decide to make this an incest fic with KenxAya and not KenxSchu .
Schuldich : *sucks up* Awww... you know I didn't mean that , Redemption . *fake smile*
R_M : *Evil grin* Bwehehe ... *kicks him on the head* You're not complaining are you ?
Schuldich : No , of course not *is secretly fuming and planning his revenge*
R_M : *kicks him again on the head* Good ! ^__^
Brizey : Arigatou ! ^__^ This is a little longer than the last and I hope you liked it !
Jenken : He probably will be , let's see ne ? ^__^ *is glomped* Waiiii ! *glomps Jenken back*
Dan : Yes he IS !!!! O_____O *jumps up and down* I'm so excited for him to appear !!! It will be a cameo appearance but he'll play a BIGBIG role . About Nagi and Omi ... I haven't really thought about it . (I'm not a major fan of NagixOmi *coughs*... or AnyonexOmi for that matter) *huggles Dan*
Misura : I absolutely agree with you . *nodsnods* I really see Aya as the kind big brother type . I enjoy writing the confrontations as well , tho . ^__~ Maybe you'll see a little more of that ... or maybe not . *nudgenudge and winks*
Whisper Reilman : YOUUUUU ! *points at Whisper* YOUUUUU ! *runs and jumps into Whisper's arms* ARIGATOU for taking time out to review ! I saw the reviews for Cry of the Captive and I was soooo happy to see you around again . It just seems like you're soooo busy these past few weeks(?) that I'm really flattered that you bothered to review my humble ficcies ! So to you , *truckload of pocky and bunny mittens appear from out of nowhere* I give you the grand prize of all the grand prizes!!!! *glomps* Actually , I enjoy them being mortal enemies too . It puts the spice into the story , sort of like a redhead battle in Celebrity Deathmatch ! *LOL* ^_____^
*NOTICE*
To all Cry of the Captive readers , I would just like to tell you that the fic is now on a short-term hiatus . Due to the fact that I'm almost losing my brain because of all the work and stuff I have to do , I probably would have to crawl the next chapter out . Don't worry though , it probably wouldn't take too long .
Thanks .