Author Notes: Finally, the third chapter. Sorry for the delay, I was suffering a writer's block and honestly, had no idea where I should bring this fic. You'll understand what I mean after reading this chapter. My deepest gratitude to my reviewers: Rini/Smiley, maboroshi16, Ikyutakei, Regatto, thiel, kireira, stained-glass, Cheeseburger of Doom, firefly, Yuki Scorpio, whity, hakkai-san, Nekocin, Angel72, Stardustangel1. Thank you for your supports, I hope you can enjoy this chapter Have a happy reading!
DISCLAIMER: These superb characters belong to Konomi-sensei. I only own Kane.
WARNING: Male/male relationship (Tezuka/Fuji) and for those who can't accept that there is desire in their relationship, please leave or read at your own risk. Oh, and also very ooc characters, lousy grammar, some confusing sentences.
Summary: After finishing his junior high school, Tezuka went to London to enroll into a tennis academy. After three years of not seeing any of his former teammates, he finally had a very acquainted roommate.
Italicized words mean the words are somehow important.
/Italicized words in here/ represent the character's thought, whose thought it is I think you can guess.
Symphonies of Life
Author: SIB
Chapter Three: Concerto
Monotonous echoes of resilient ball colliding taut strings filled the sultry afternoon air. Muscles noiselessly shifted, under contraction of scuttling feet and swaying arms, conveying gust of wind with each taken swing. Hazel eyes glinted passionlessly behind elegant spectacles, setting a mask of mediocre apathy to obscure the silent yet intense observation.
If truth were to be told, Tezuka was nowhere near negligent in his arcane scrutiny at a certain prodigy from his spot near the entrance of the court. The pretense of utter indifference was periodically betrayed by his relentless eyes flying in pursuit over the lean supple body. Fuji was moving, engulfed in his air of imperial grace, fluently calibrating lane after lane of aimed shots with the sweet spot of his racket. A genius would never lose his touch, was a thought occurring in his mind at the sight of the tensai himself. It was confirmed correct in Fuji's case.
Another high-speed ball and the prodigy coolly pulled his racket to counter, sending it to the other side of the court with an enhanced velocity. Poise and aplomb, Tezuka noted, were two things Fuji never lacked, regardless any critical state he was situated in. He played his game under such a blithe fashion, which could rouse wonder from many other players. Ferocity rarely accompanied him, save at times when it indeed was an irreplaceable necessity, infrequent moments which were avoided by most of his opponents.
The academy and its inhabitants greeted Fuji with an immediate approbation. Much as it was impossible to not put some respects toward Tezuka, it was purely difficult to dislike the tensai. As the week passed, the name Fuji Shuusuke was thoroughly acknowledged among the students and staffs as a merry genial prodigy. Merely by his presence, the eternal bequeathing of his smile, their moods could be brightened. They, however, hadn't befriended him as long as Tezuka did and thus, still oblivious to what their amiable friend was actually capable to do in diluting one's sanity. But then, how would they know if the only one Fuji had ever made fun of was his former captain?
A life which included Fuji was never easy, but he couldn't think of one without him either.
Fuji's constant company plunged into his steady beats of life naturally, like a mere drop of water falling to join the vast body of a lake. It blended only too well, being the same substance, and served the other no harm of any effluence. Nevertheless, no matter how small the droplet was, it could still mar the dormant lagoon with a surge of minor transversal waves spread across the pristine surface. Insubstantial, and yet irrepressibly conspicuous.
His nights –or should he say 'their nights'?- was one to count. The first night he had Fuji sleeping beside him brought him no sleep at all. The unfamiliar heat seeped through his flimsy pajamas in an alarming degree of ease; their close proximity didn't allow any other way though. And so he spent the particular night frozen to his spot, too wary of many undesirable reactions that would probably come from the tensai if he dared to stir. His next day was a living inferno due to the evident lack of sleep and every one who had their names not written next to him to be his opponent in their practice match, was utterly grateful of their good luck. If Tezuka was daunting enough in his normal state under a normal circumstance, that day he was atrociously merciless.
However, the good echelon of his temper after successfully slaying practically all of his adversaries vanished into oblivion right away when the prodigy once more claimed his spot next to him. Occasional glances were all he could risk since Fuji with his eyes closed was as guessable as the definite shape of water. He could never be sure if his friend was indeed asleep or currently staring at him from behind the folds of eyelids. Not to mention the creamy skin of rising and falling chest Fuji had let him to perceive was almost too obscene to be unnoticed. Perhaps it was weariness that finally pulled him into uneasy slumber.
It was just how long his malleability system required. On the third night he could remember nothing during his sleep; it immersed him too deep although none could tell if it was his excessively tiring practice or the steady rhythm of breathing next to him which caused it. At the following morning, a dulcet etude sang, roused him from his dreamless sleep and he found his arm circling the slender build of his friend. Almost as immediate he retracted it back, still careful enough not to wake the quiescent one despite his heart which almost stopped beating.
What a great way to begin a day; yet, the piece of music lingered for the day until it replayed itself at the next morning. Despite a small distraction it could offer during his practice, Tezuka had little to complain over such a beauty.
No, Fuji wasn't a nuisance. He could be, if he was in his mood to tease the former captain, which encompassed most of his times. But not in the real thing. They could spend hours dwelling in a companionable silence with each mind focused at poles-apart topics. He would sense Fuji's presence due to the occasional rustles or a slightly louder intake of breath and still find it immensely agreeable afterward.
Tezuka enjoyed solitude, it was obvious, but with Fuji, solitude seemed less appealing.
"Oi, Mitsu, what are you doing, standing here like an idiot?"
That annoying voice. His preference to give the somewhat uncouth question utter ignorance seemed to provoke the newcomer even further. "Are you that busy looking at him to spare me a glance? Jeez, Mitsu, after all the trouble I've gone through to room him with you!"
Tezuka maintained his stoic mask in place by tightening his crossed hands into curls of offensive fist. His eyes, however, remained fixed on the heating-up match and one of the players in particular. There were sounds of footsteps approaching as the initiator settled himself protuberantly in front of him, leaning to the barrier of interlacing green filament. The face he was forced to look at was glowing in mischief and the smirk plastered on it suggested nothing which could be rendered noble.
"So, have you molested him yet?"
It almost managed to rouse a verbal reaction from him. His most glaring response, however, was the sudden narrowing of his hazel-green orbs, conveying thrust after thrust of razor-sharp nonetheless invisible knives in silent wish that there would be one which indeed would graze that smug face.
"I should know that, you are really an idiot." Kane sighed in obviously feigned remorse before darting his gaze to the winning prodigy. "He is good-looking, isn't he?"
Finally Tezuka opened his mouth. "What do you want?"
"Let's see," the blond-haired man pondered thoughtfully for a while, which ensured the other guy that his answer would be nowhere near good. "What if I say I want you to kiss him right now?"
Tezuka closed his eyes, collecting more patience even from the darkest nooks of his inner sanctum where he had never set his feet on before. Even though the teasing done by the two of his friends had become a regular menu to his days since Fuji arrived, to become accustomed to it was a different issue. Made it worse, Kane seemed to exploit the tensai's presence to its full extent for his personal satisfaction in torturing his stoic friend. It was very likely that he would remain as a victim to those two until he graduated from the academy.
"Game set and match! Fuji! 6-3!"
"Don't you worry, Mitsu?" Either the score announcement or the slightest tinge of solemnity in Kane's voice which managed to rip his eyes open. Tezuka found himself staring at a pair of dark-emerald orbs which meaningfully gave a sidelong look to the victor of the match. In feeble reluctance, he shifted his gaze as well until it caught the picture of Fuji conversing casually with his hand shaking that of his adversary. The former captain admitted that he tended to be possessive over some things he owned, but the look Hampson had on his visage when his hand tightly clasped the prodigy's was not helping him in any way to cure his possessiveness. The grinning loser didn't seem to mind the fact that Fuji had defeated him at all.
It displeased him. Overly.
A chuckle cut the sequence of unfriendly looks he was sending to Hampson as he turned to see his older friend, green eyes were sparkling in triumphant satisfaction. "Ah, at last you're jealous!"
Ignoring the idiotic albeit true remark, the taller guy left his laughing friend, walking almost too hastily to the bench at the outskirt of the court where he had left his tennis bag before. Unfortunately for him, Fuji and his bald-faced adversary intended to reach the same spot. And not only them, his fellow schoolmates who previously were watching the match from the vicinity of the court, began to cluster around the two players, mostly out of awe.
"Good match you two!"
"Seriously, Fuji, I want to play you too! That smash-counter is awesome!"
The proud smile on Hampson's lips irritated Tezuka even more, which nothing he could do about; it was not as if he had any right to be angry with anyone considering the prodigy as an unquestionably attractive single young man or gawking at him up to the point that winning and losing was hardly a concern. He did not own Fuji in any way.
However, Fuji noticed his arrival and widened the casual smile into a more eloquent one. The bespectacled guy had to resist the urge to smirk exultantly at Hampson who all of a sudden spawned a frown, obviously aimed at him. Oh yes, the cold heartless captain was being possessive.
The others were also not oblivious of his coming –not that his aura of self-confidence permitted such thing- and soon pulled him into the ongoing discussion while still maintaining a touch of vigilance in their voice. "Tezuka, you've never told us that there are many great players in Japan. Are there still more like you two?"
He thought of his former teammates and opponents from the rival teams, above all Echizen, Atobe, and Sanada. The path of life before them seemed to lead to nowhere but tennis, as his and Fuji's did. It would be hard, almost impossible, to imagine the baby of their team with no racket grasped by his skinny hand, either left or right.
"Perhaps."
The customary length of his answer left the tension a bit awkward although his friends did know well that vocal words and Tezuka did not match. One of them with grey hair returned his attention to the prodigy who was smiling in an awfully amused way, clearly relishing the moment of his beloved captain emitting an unparalleled authoritative air. Even though there was no clear classification of organizational stratum among them, Tezuka was easily regarded a leader, as unofficial as it was. With that kind of stringency he possessed, any difference in race or skin-color was simply forgotten and they treated him respectfully, as if he still had the authority of ordering people to run laps.
"I hope we can meet them soon," the grey-haired guy beamed at Fuji, lengthening Tezuka's list of those he must be alert to, as unwilling as he might be to admit it. "Any special reason that you choose to enter our academy, Fuji?"
There was a flicker of azure jewels as the tensai let his eyelids to glide upward, literally flustering them who had yet to see his eyes, in quiet yet palpable admiration. The spellbinding gaze rested on a pair of russet eyes secured proudly behind crystalline glass, conferring a look that could have been an irrefutable defiant mingled with a moderate degree of seduction.
"To defeat him."
Murmurs of wonder rose; of course, who would have thought that someone would actually be able to hold grudge for three long years before finally drawing level with the one he had pursued all the way. Fuji did show the real meaning of the word 'tenacity' regardless himself being a genius. He could effortlessly rival most of the students there and yet, to be equal with Tezuka needed more than talent and mundane hard work, as prodigious as he was. It demanded an almost frightening amount of patience and persistence.
A hearty laughter erupted at the background, pulling all attention to its source and Tezuka found himself, once again, looking at a smirking Kane. The return of his scowl, in this case, was very understandable.
"Now, isn't it interesting? Rivals since junior high school we have here," the blond chirped happily. "But there's no need to be so worked up, Fuji. Stress is the worst deterrent to tennis player, we all here to enjoy ourselves while we can. Ah, except Mitsu of course." The unnecessary remark earned him more hostile glances from Tezuka, leaving Fuji in wonder why any order to run laps hadn't surfaced yet.
However, he would be more than glad to answer such pretty bait Kane had offered.
"Saa, I suppose it should be my responsibility now to make sure that you have more fun, Tezuka." The smile went inauspiciously bright and the former captain knew whatever following would be far from tolerable. "Now that I think of it, you haven't taken me out for a date yet."
Kane almost burst into laughter at the expression crossing Tezuka's face as well as the rest of their listeners'. The stoic guy, although managed to restrain his face muscles from shifting too much into any unhelpful expression, seemed like he was about to execute his roommate whatever it must take with his glare. Their watching friends, in the other hand, had a shade of grey colouring their countenance. Fuji's coming indeed made the life at the academy a bit livelier, to Kane's delight, not to mention that without a doubt, it also granted him an eternal partner in tormenting their beloved but ever-so-cold friend.
"That's right, Mitsu. How discourteous of you to let your newly arrived friend wandering alone here in London," the flaxen-haired man admonished with a quantity of premeditated disagreement, resuming their teasing as a mischievous glint twinkled in his eyes. "Or...you have done too many dates inside your bedroom? Ah, I see... So that's why you seem to be lacking of sleep lately."
Tezuka was trying so hard not to grimace even the slightest. It was unbelievable, really. Kane did know well that he hadn't touched Fuji in any way and yet... Not bothering to defend his reputation, the tall bespectacled guy shouldered his duffel bag and walked out of the condemned court, still looking as if he could care less. Amidst their shocked friends, Fuji smiled innocently, enjoying of how the events had turn amicably to his favor. Clearly not a chance to be let pass. Retrieving his own bag, he gave the remaining occupants of the court a farewell smile before his feet were set off to chase the infuriated former captain. The prodigy almost grinned at Kane's voice chiming behind him. "Now, guys, what are you looking at, gaping like that? You look like a bunch of morons, really."
Falling into step beside his friend, Fuji called out. "Tezuka, you're not angry, are you?"
The taller guy remained pokerfaced, no sign whatsoever that the query was hearable. Fuji felt his smile had widened for a several millimetres at the typical reaction –if it indeed could be called a reaction. Tezuka could be awfully obstinate sometimes, which in fact intrigued the tensai even more to discover how long his dearest captain could stay expressionless with his infinite teasing. No, he was not letting it off that easily.
"You're angry then?" he resumed almost playfully, amused by the small frown emerging on Tezuka's brow at the pealing of his cheerful voice. "Don't be so touchy, Buchou. I promise I'll be at the bottom tonight."
"Fuji!" The bespectacled guy hissed at his victoriously smiling friend, unable to keep his swelling wrath suppressed any longer. Yet, before he could string the floating words inside his seething head into a train of spoken ones, a chaste kiss had been landed to his cheek, leaving him dumbfounded for a split second.
"There. I hope you're not angry anymore," Fuji kept smiling gleefully, fingers touching his chin lightly. "Or you want me to place one on your lips?"
Distraction. Anything. Tezuka felt those two words were ricocheting inside his skull as he clenched his hands into fists. Always Fuji pushed him to his brink of patience, prodded him to taste the sweetness of lunacy, allured him to a world where neither logic nor rule existed. While it was so easy to concede, his pride and stubbornness was too much an obstacle to let him pass. And a wonderful addition to make everything even worse, he knew Fuji wasn't one to let him pass easily either.
No one could find out what the great Tezuka Kunimitsu would actually do to respond the unasked-for kiss, since right at the moment he realized, fortunately, that one of their fellow friends was standing rooted to the ground, not far from their spot. Judging from the bulge of his eyes, he had stood there for quite a while, witnessing all which should not be seen.
"Ah, Scott," Fuji addressed him lightly as if nothing was amiss. "Is there anything you need to tell us?"
The unexpected visitor nodded almost in anxious manner. "Eh, yes actually. Well, you two are... ah, summoned by Head Coach now. You know, about the practice or sort. I was just- you know, I have to inform you, no intention to...eh, spying or-"
"Thank you, Scott," the prodigy cut his prattle with such pleasant grace which no one would condemn as impoliteness. He had to, since the stammered explanation didn't appear to end anywhere near soon and the most flagrant response his taller friend managed to display was to glare over the vexing situation. "We will meet him momentarily. Thank you for notifying us."
As their nervous friend swiftly scuttled off elsewhere, Fuji turned to his frowning captain. A sweet innocent smile was stretched on his lips as he offered his right hand casually. "Shall we go now, Tezuka?"
The other merely closed his eyes and resumed his halted strides as a headache began to plague him. Fuji and his games. As much as he preferred for the tensai not to divert his attention to another, probably it was safer to let it go the other way. He didn't know for how long he could still keep his urges tamed with the unremitting seductions. It would be too much to bear soon. Very soon.
---------- ----------
Tezuka stepped into the curtain of iridescent water falling from the shower and suddenly a feeling of rebirth sprang up from his drained muscles. Despite the numberless occasions had he bathed in a similar temperature, the coolness seeped through his skin in a blissful sensation comparable to that of earning a deep slumber after so many sleepless nights. His practice was insufferably hard as usual, but never had it ebbed him so far like this, almost collapsing his notoriously unbreakable wall of self-control.
To question who had caused his forthcoming fall down, was something unbelievably obtuse which only mentally retarded people would do. Or his dormitory organizer in this case–although he too was considered an idiot beyond any hope by the former captain- who undoubtedly had another intention in asking rather than to learn the obvious answer. After the afternoon scene he had made with Fuji, it was understandable, logical even, that they soon became famous as a husband and wife. He doubted that Scott, the sole eyewitness of all, had restrained himself from spreading the interesting fact that the tensai had just kissed his buchou with a couple of uncalled-for exaggerations. The latest version he managed to discover of their kissing incident almost made him kill Scott.
The reactions from their friends were various. Half of them all of a sudden became hostile toward him, in a manner which reminded him of someone trying to guard his kitten from being stolen or abused. There were still the likes of Kane of course, who continuously supplied him with unwanted whistling sound every time he needed to come near Fuji out of an important subject, no matter how murderous the looks he was sending at their way. Guys suddenly could be seen cluttering at every corner of the courts, blathering amusedly over a topic unquestionably related to the two Japanese players. And amidst these infuriating riots, the source of all troubles was still smiling cheerfully.
It was a good thing that he still had tennis or else there would be no other way to release his stress than to molest Fuji right there at the heart of court until he begged for mercy. All the games he played that evening were straight 6-0 wins with very little resistance coming from his adversaries –not that they could do something against the incensed Tezuka. It was out of his wrath of course, and yet he could still hear Kane loudly identifying it as 'a violent release of unbridled desire'.
Tapping the water off, Tezuka reached for his shampoo. He might detest the overdone reactions done by Kane and his friends, but they were nothing compared to the occasional looks of disgust coming from several of his other acquaintances. He had never needed for others to like him but those looks got their point.
It was disgusting for two of the same sex to cross the line of friendship, to feel the way that normally only opposite sexes would experience. Disgusting, abnormal, and unacceptable. His family, bound in conventionality, would accept this fact no better than his condemning friends and the last thing he wanted to do was to be an ungrateful son.
Life wasn't an easy road.
Coated in soft sweet-scented layer of foam, he once more turned the shower on, letting the cool droplets to sluice them along with any unpleasant thought off his olive brown tresses as well as the smooth surface of his suntanned skin. The stream of torrential rain cloaked his skin seamlessly, a diaphanous glaze upon a russet plateau, immersing his awareness deep into a realm of serene quietude. Sounds of trickling water pleased his ear, blended only too well with a pleasant cord of another, of how the myriads of lucent water beads splashed harmoniously upon the solid rhombus tiles. And Tezuka closed his eyes, setting his foot on a world of his own where he could enjoy seclusion in utter tranquility.
Yet, brief was his time of solitude in the darkness where light was constantly deterred by closed eyelids. A faint trace of smile appeared all of a sudden, followed by the silent yet alluring flares of lustrous pearls in their azure shade, beyond price. Their presence awakened a flicker of light, small it might be, protruding a clearer outline of a perfectly sculpted body. Fuji stood there, engulfed in his own touch of luminosity without lessening the other's pleasure of being in the darkest folds of his black velvet mind, simply emanating an air which solely belonged to the tensai. Vivid yet subtle.
The former captain breathed out partly in apathy. Wonders had been long since subsided, leaving a quiet acquiescence of consenting the prodigy's nebulous presence to linger. Fuji had nestled himself that deep inside him, irremovable in his shrewd delicate ways, irreplaceable by millions of anyone else. And Tezuka knew, willpower and conscience alone were hardly sufficient to nail him out.
A train of firm knocks marred the refined harmony as he flung his eyes open, leaving him frozen to his spot. The sound was audibly clear and seemed to come no farther than from the semi-transparent door securing the shower stall he was in. More horrified than ever, Tezuka noticed a shade of colour darker than the rest shaping a figure standing in front of the screen, albeit his slightly vague eyesight.
"Ne, Tezuka, I will go in if you don't come out soon."
The entrapped one eyed the blurred glass before him in utter incredulity, seeking in painstaking concentration if there was the slightest likelihood of his ears being misled by the picture of the tensai himself flourishing within his mind.
"I'm serious, Buchou. It's so hot here."
The passing statement crashed the somewhat little hope he had as once again Tezuka shut his eyes closed, drowning himself in the gravelly sound of the downpour hitting hard floor. Completely aware to his deed of wasting the precious water, it was but all he could do to condense his growing panic and to restrain himself, as problematic as it was, from speculating why the hell Fuji would feel hot out there. Of course, it could be a mere disadvantageous result of his sweat-dropping training, but the former captain seriously thought that his uncanny friend didn't have to say it right now, when he was taking a shower. He would be more than disposed to give his privilege of enjoying the shower first in return of his safety from prying eyes.
Tezuka had been famed as one of the brightest in the term of intelligence by every one acquainted with him and yet he currently felt that his idiocy could rival even that of Momoshiro every time the riotous rascal was involved in a pointless squabble with a certain speed demon from Fudoumine. He had left his towel outside. Not that he could blame himself entirely since there had never been a single idea disturbing his mind that the prodigy would come close to inviting himself into the bathroom while he was bathing.
Cursing his thoughtless act under his breath, Tezuka tried to muster his equability back despite the soaring bustle of anxiety and approaching humiliation inside him. He called out, voice as steady as usual if not a bit sterner.
"Fuji, hand me the towel."
There was a pause encumbering as Tezuka waited in grim acknowledgement of his hazardous state, very much like a fly trapped in a spider's web. Then the calm voice rose, laced by unconcealed amusement. "Why don't you come out, Tezuka? We're both males, there's nothing to be ashamed of."
The former captain almost cried out in frustration, repeatedly grateful of the still trickling water and the distraction it could offer. However, he was unable to hold back a tinge of irony from surfacing at the ambiguous statement mentioning their same gender, the constant reminder of why what he felt was far from acceptable. While he couldn't blame God in this matter, the thought of seeing Fuji as a girl creased his brow.
When no response came, the tensai resumed plainly. "I am naked myself here."
It was exactly what he needed to hear, as if his undressed state alone was insufficient to worsen the whole situation. Perhaps Fuji thought that it would be fair if he should appear unclothed too if the other must, but... Tezuka stayed silent, lengthening the short strand of his patience as annoyance slowly rose. Fine if it was a battle of persistence that Fuji wanted, he would answer to it, no matter how uncomfortable the feel of relentless rain flooding his skin began to lodge.
Not even a minute had passed as the smooth voice cracked their hiatus, leaving the other in surprise as well as apprehension over another plot on the air.
"Ah, and I was hoping that you could be less stubborn."
The pale shadow shifted, momentarily vanished from his sight as a trace of doubtful breather fluttered inside of him. Fuji's quick submission brought more trepidation than the supposed relief. Tezuka placed his left hand on the screen handle, the best precaution he could come up with if suddenly the prodigy had a wonderful idea to storm into the shower stall.
"Your towel, Buchou," the same voice chimed, casting a faint silhouette of the owner. At the other side, Tezuka pulled open the distorted screen which partitioned them off very slightly, barely enough for any folded towel to pass. The white fabric partly slipped in through the narrow slit, waiting to be taken.
"Do I have to wait forever, Tezuka?"
A melancholy breath which tinting the prodigy's light query left the other astounded as fist began to coil upon the coarse surface of the towel. Long it had been since he let go to understand an enigma that was Fuji, of his manipulative deeds, of his uncanny sense of humor, of his fathomless thoughts. This insignificant question however, kindled a morsel of his curiosity if it indeed referred only to the length of time Tezuka needed to take his towel. The fleeting touch of anguish was too faint to let him believe, compared to the evident teasing which forced him to suspect that the whole matter was no more than a temporary pastime.
It was either he exerting more force than necessarily required or the tensai clutching the towel in a grip that simply wouldn't let go that he pulled not only the white garment in but also his friend. The door freely gave way as he fell backward straight down to his ass with Fuji practically slumped into his embrace.
All pains an abrupt fall could have caused were soon forgotten as Tezuka realized a more urgent matter he had to take in hand with a shirtless prodigy, sufficiently said, settled between his legs. He noticed, uncomfortably, how the slightly hazed blue eyes cleared into twin marauding hues, how the edges of the enticing lips quirked up forming a heinous smirk as Fuji recognized their accidental yet compromising position.
"It seems I'm fated to go in after all."
The only thing he could coerce his rigid body to do was to glower at his friend, trying with all he might not to let their suggestive state distract him in any way. His eyes however, could not help but to appreciate the sight before them unless he dared to slam them shut, something which he would never do since it also was an admission of defeat. The pallid skin glistened, drenched by spell of rain falling gently upon smooth surface, successfully eclipsing any other picture he would like to see beyond the bare skin displayed generously before him. The only consolation he could find was in the fact that Fuji was not completely naked as he had suggested before, with wearing still his white short.
Not that it helped much. The thin flimsy fabric was soon soaked wet by the heavy downpour, flattened against curves of slim hips as white diluted into cream-coloured tone. Tezuka felt his body was stiffening, both at the eye-catching sight and the heat he could sense seeping into his running veins from the other's warm skin. It was obvious that they had spent their nights side by side that they should have been accustomed enough to the intimate proximity, but the fact that no longer there was any garment forbidding their skin from earning a contact made an inconceivable difference.
Suddenly the water and its cooling ability faded into nothingness.
A finger scaled its way from his upper hips, tasting the smooth contour of his skin, tracing every muscle it encountered, then sensing the erratic cadence of his heartbeat as it slowed down on his left chest, before eliminating its motion completely on the rise of his collarbone. Maintaining his face impassive, Tezuka clutched the sodden towel grasped in his slightly trembling fingers tightly, eyes fixed on the damp locks of taupe stuck on the side of his friend's face.
Glossy skin swayed, meeting his own, sharing their heat in the depth of dense rainforest as Fuji slowly moved forward, resting his lips on the side of Tezuka's neck. The pair of maddening warmth parted, mouthing whispered words against his skin.
"I want you, Tezuka."
The slick warm tongue ran on his moist skin, and against all his will and strength, the former captain arched his head even so slightly to a side, a wordless response that the caress was reluctantly allowed. The little shift had not gone unnoticed by the tensai as a satisfied smirk conquered his lips. Parting his legs, he settled himself on Tezuka's lap, fingers tangled in the wet strands of dark hair as the other hand savored the heat flaring from under his captain's skin. Azure jewels flashed into marred self-control the brown eyes were presenting, loving the sight of collapsing strength of will.
Fuji lowered his lips, touching Tezuka's left ear. "And you want me."
The former captain tensed as his friend moved even lower, working his lips and tongue on his neck, pressing his warm body to that of Tezuka. The towel was hardly enough a distraction to release him from the blinding heat, from the sensation of Fuji's mouth sucking his skin or Fuji's legs circling his waist. He could feel the prodigy once again let his tongue caress the stiff neck and it ebbed the last piece of sanity left in him.
His fingers grasped the soft brown hair, forceful enough to free his neck from the continuous ravishing as he slammed his friend lean body to the cold tiled wall. Tezuka crushed his lips on the tensai's, ignoring the slight gasp of breath emitted from the pliant lips. All coherent thoughts fled, leaving his mind crammed only with need and want over the one he was kissing. Tongues battled, breath condensed, beats quickened as he felt the legs enclosing his waist fall to his side. Slender fingers sneaked to the back of his neck, taunting with slow caresses.
The lock of their lips was cut for a very short moment, barely sufficient for any of them to intake a single breath. Still squeezing his eyes shut, Tezuka continued to taste Fuji's skin, to savor the oddly pleasant scent of sweat left on the prodigy's neck. During the encounter of kisses and touches, he could hear those wanting lips breath out his name in a slow sensuous moan.
"Te...zuka..."
It felt like cold water poured to his head as his senses sprang to life. He instantly let go his hold of Fuji's body, demolishing every contact he had previously made so abruptly as if he was touching blaze of fire. Eyes met, conveying bewilderment and denial as Tezuka tried to regain his breath, to forget the scorching need inside of him.
Fuji watched in silence as the cloud of desire blurring his companion's hazel eyes began to clear. It was not long until the cool composed guy returned and got on his feet, eyes already crusted with ice.
Circling the wet towel around his hips, he mumbled almost inaudibly, "Sorry."
The word hung between them as another awkward silence was stretched. Tezuka knew, rather than to apologize over his vicious acts, the one-word explanation was more of a reprimand to his own lack of self-control. Once again, je let his gaze to meet the level one of his friend, searching for a sign of anger. But only a graceful smile appeared on the tensai's face, neither accepting nor declining.
The ambiguous response held him suspended between relief and anxiety. But then, it was still better than to continue what he was doing, which probably would bring him nothing but regret. Casting his look somewhere else, he stepped out of the shower stall.
Tezuka was about to cross the threshold into the bedroom when he heard his friend's voice, calm and clear.
"Is that what you wish, Tezuka?"
He halted for a moment, letting the words to flutter around him. Wish was a very dangerous thing, Fuji should have known that. No one should play with wish, not even a genius and what he –no, they– wished was even more dangerous. Giving no answer, he stepped out and closed the door behind him. The taste of Fuji's lips and tongue still lingered in his mouth.
/This is far from over,/ a low voice from behind of his back told him that and he knew it was right.
Life wasn't an easy road.
It would never be.
To be continued
Ramblings: How I love bathroom I seriously think that I am being an idiot for making Tezuka that... restraining, but that part was really hard to write. Honestly, I also want Tezuka to... argh! Just go and molest him before someone else does, you baka! But if I follow my urge, this fic would have been ended.... And sorry for the ooc-ness. I don't know if Tezuka or Fuji could act that way.
I think the next one will take longer time to update since, like I said, I don't know where I'll bring this. This fic has gone longer than I expected, but well, I hope I can get through somehow. Thanks for reading! I hope you'll leave reviews!