AN- We have some JJxDrake cuteness here, but nothing ground breaking on theirrelationship yet. I'll get to that next chapter when they go out to eat.

Discliamer- I don't have one on the other chapters, so I guess I should put one here then. Don't own them, or the restaurants Burger King, and Wendy's.

Chapter 4

"Cassie is probably sick of Italian food, so we should go for burgers. What do you think Drake?"

JJ asked Drake as they looked for a place to eat.

"Burgers sound fine. We'll just head into Burger King or something, and pick everyone up food from there."

JJ nodded and they headed into the burger place. JJ was trying to sort his feelings out. He did like Drake after all, but could he ask him to be more then just friends? Would Drake turn him down? If he did, would it ruin his friendship with Drake?

'I need Cassie here. She would know what I should do.'

JJ sighed, and Drake knew something was wrong with him.

"You ok? We don't have to eat at this place. Wendy's is down the road you know."

JJ shook his head.

"It's nothing. I'm ok."

He smiled and Drake smiled back. He loved the way Drake smiled.

Back at the hotel...

Cassie had walked around outside by the pool. It was going to be a pretty night outside.

'I wonder if, while Dee's gone, Ryo will come out here with me for a while. I want to get to know him better.'

Cassie was knocked out of her musings when she ran into a man about forty or so, with eyes as green as hers, and hair jet black. She only prayed she remembered to put her contacts in. This man was her father.

'Oh Shit.'

"I'm sorry sir. I was just, walking, and thinking about something. I didn't hurt you did I?"

The man looked at her funny.

'Damn it. I think he's on to me.'

"No. I'm ok. You should pay attention to where you're going next time."

The man spoke. Cassie trembled. She remembered when he used to yell at her. She was starting to remember things that this man had done to her.

"I'm s-s-sorry. I n-need to leave."

Cassie got up and ran back to the room. She opened and slammed the door shut. Ryo came in to see what all the noise was about, and stopped when he saw Cassie curled up in front of the door crying.

"Cassie? Cassie, what's the matter?"

Cassie wouldn't speak. She just sat there crying.

'Why am I crying? I am a detective for heavens sake! Stop crying like some damn baby and pull it together!'

Her mind screamed at her. She finally stopped crying, and looked up at Ryo.

"I-I'm ok. I found my father. He was by the pool. I was just scared, that's all. I thought I had my cover blown, but it wasn't. Is the food here?"

She went back to being her usual happy self, which Ryo could see was an act, but he didn't say anything to her.

"No. JJ and Drake didn't come back yet, and Dee just left. Are you sure you're ok?"

Cassie nodded, and Ryo helped her up from the floor.

"I need to go and soak for a while in the tub. Just tell me when JJ and Drake return, ok?"

Ryo nodded and Cassie went into the bathroom. Ryo sighed.

'This is going to be harder then it looks.'

Ryo thought to himself as he sat down and flipped through a book.

"Damn this place looks fancy."

Dee said to himself as he walked up to the club entrance. There was no bouncer for this club, but it was still a bitch to get into.

"Fifty bucks for a cover charge? Holy hell this place better be worth it."

Dee walked into the club and his mouth dropped open. There were strippers everywhere. Both guys and girls. The bar was huge, and had almost any type of liquor he could ever dream of. The music wasn't that bad either. It was a really up beat tune, and it had all the strippers and patrons alike dancing quite provocatively.

'Well, I guess this place was really worth it! No wonder why JJ had me come here, instead of anyone else!'

Dee smiled to himself as he made his way over to the bar.

"What'll it be?"

The girl who was working behind the bar said to Dee. She looked young. She had to have just turned 21.

"I guess I'll just have a beer."

She nodded and went about the task of getting him a beer.

"Hey. You wouldn't happen to know what time it is, would you?"

The girl placed the beer down and looked at her watch.

"Almost eight. Why, you expectin' someone? A lover, or perhaps a mistress?"

Dee shook his head.

"I guess I'm looking for an old acquaintance of a friend of mine. It's a really long story."

She nodded her head.

"You know, you can pay for one of these strippers and go into the backroom. Hell, I do it for free if you'd like."

Dee thought for a moment. Then decided.

"No thank you. If I don't stay out here, I will miss this person I am suppose to meet."

"Well, suit yourself then. If you change your mind, you know where to find me."

She winked at him, and walked off.

'Damn that was hard. She was hot, but still, Ryo and I are together now, so I can't be doing that anymore.'

Dee sighed as he drank his beer. He really hoped the guys would get here soon so he could get back home.

"Thank you guys so much. I am so glad you're back. Cassie got startled when she went for a walk earlier, and she mumbled something about finding her father, and her cover being blown."

Ryo sighed as he took the food from JJ. Drake closed the door behind them, and went about making a place to eat.

"Did she say that her father knew it was her?"

Drake asked while setting up a card table he had found in one of the closets in the room.

"No, but she sounded pretty freaked out about it. Maybe we should tell Rose, that this is no kind of lifestyle for her. I mean, she's been doing this since she was ten, but still, this is a very dangerous mission regardless of the training she's had. I don't know what they were thinking down in the capitol, but this isn't something for her."

Ryo set the food down on the table, and went to knock on the door of the bathroom.

"Cassie, the foods here."

Ryo heard a muffled ok, and he walked away from the door.

"Drake?"

Drake looked up to see JJ's concerned face.

"What's the matter?"

Finding them sudden dry, JJ licked his lips.

"Never mind."

Drake looked at him funny, and then shrugged his shoulders. JJ seemed to be acting strangely lately, and he didn't know why.

Cassie came out of the bathroom a few short minutes later. She was dressed in her blue silk pajamas, and her fuzzy blue slippers.

"Oh! Burger King! My favorite!"

Cassie smiled brightly.

Everyone sat down to eat. JJ had brought back burgers for everyone but Ryo. He had brought a chicken sandwich for him. After they all finished their meal, they played a few games of cards, and Monopoly. After a while, Ryo started getting worried about Dee. Cassie could tell he was stressing out.

"Ryo, what's wrong? If it's about Dee, you shouldn't worry. Dee's a big boy, and he can take care of himself."

Ryo looked at Cassie. Concern was written all over his face.

"I know, but the clubs around here aren't the best places to be. Many of them have all kinds of gang and mafia activity going on, and many of them are strip joints. I'm just worried he will end up getting in the cross fire of some gang shoot out, and end up dead."

Ryo sighed heavily, and got up from the table.

"I'm getting sleepy. I am going to turn in for the night."

JJ, Drake and Cassie started to clean up the mess, and Ryo went into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed. He knew he wasn't going to be able to get sleep with Dee still being out there, but still, he had to try.

"Cassie? Can I talk to you for a while?"

JJ asked Cassie, and Cassie nodded her head.

"Drake, if you're tired, you can take my bed for tonight. I'm sure Ryo and Dee won't mind if you sleep I here for tonight."

Drake nodded his head. Ryo came out of the bathroom a few short minutes later, and noticed Drake was making himself comfortable in Cassie's bed.

"Where did JJ and Cassie go off to?"

Drake looked up surprised, and smiled.

"JJ needed to speak with Cassie about something. So she said I could stay in here tonight. I hope that's ok with you."

Ryo nodded, and he turned the lights off. He tried to sleep but couldn't. Dee wasn't there, and he didn't know when he would return.

"Cassie?"

"Yes JJ?"

"I can't do this."

JJ sat down on the bed, and Cassie followed him.

"What do you mean? Are you afraid to?"

JJ nodded his head. Cassie smiled at him.

"Come here sweetie."

Cassie hugged JJ. She knew he was a sensitive person, so he feared rejection more then anything.

"JJ, you have to ask him. If you don't ask him soon, he might find someone else, and that will leave you miserable."

"And if he rejects me I will feel even worse then miserable. I don't even know how to ask him. Do I just go up to him and say, I like you wanna go out? Or what?"

Cassie sighed this was going to be way harder then she expected.

"JJ let me explain something to you. Once I fell in love with someone. Or at least thought that I was in love with someone,"

She closed her eyes and sighed again.

"I was nine at the time, and he was ten. I know, what do you know about love at nine right?"

JJ smiled.

"Go on."

"We were best friends. He didn't care that my father was in the mafia, and he didn't care that his parents needed protection from my father. He was just a happy little boy, and my best friend. One day, after we ate lunch at his house, my father came to pick me up. He had some of his men with him, and I didn't think anything of it at the time, and my father escorted me out of the house, while his men stayed behind."

A tear fell from her green eyes.

"I could hear him screaming as the guns went off. I never saw him again after that. I got to see death at nine years of age. I never told him that I liked him or anything. I was so mad with my father I didn't speak to him after that for a while. He told me that he was just doing his job, and that it was his parents fault because they didn't pay their money to him."

Cassie wiped the tears out of her eyes.

"So, what I'm saying is, you never know what tomorrow will bring. And in your line of work, you need to get these things out in the open as soon as possible."

JJ held Cassie close to himself as she cried. She finally stopped crying, and looked up at him.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't want to bring that up."

Cassie shook her head.

"No. It's ok. Do you understand where I'm coming from now?"

JJ nodded his head.

"I will tell him tomorrow. But how?"

"Just tell him, you have liked him for a while now, and that you realized it, after spending today with him."

JJ nodded his head. Tomorrow things would be different. Tomorrow, he will have someone to call his lover. He looked down and saw Cassie was sleeping peacefully against his chest.

"Thank you Cassie."

He smiled as he carefully got up and moved to his own bed.

"Damn it! Where did I put that damn key?"

Dee searched his pockets for the key, until he found it. He smiled and put it in the hole and tuned the knob. He saw Drake in one bed, and the sleeping form of his lover in the other bed.

'I wonder if he's still awake. And where the hell is JJ and Cassie?'

Dee quietly crept through the room. He sat down gingerly on the bed.

"Ryo?"

Ryo rolled over, and smiled at Dee.

"Morning koi. Did you get any information?"

Dee smiled.

"Yes, but we'll talk about that in the morning. Have you been up all this time?"

Ryo nodded his head.

"Ryo, it's three in the morning, when did you go to bed?"

"At about eleven. I just couldn't sleep without you being here with me. I would doze off, and try to snuggle against you, and you weren't there."

Ryo smiled lazily at Dee.

"Well, I'm here now. So, let me go use the bathroom, and I will be right back."

Ryo nodded. Dee hurried off to the bathroom, and took his clothes off. All he had on was a pair of blue boxer-briefs, and his socks. He kissed Ryo gently on the lips, and the two of them cuddled together for the rest of the night.