This chapter is dedicated to Miss Vampire and Sachiko, two amazing artists who have drawn fanart for this fic. Since this is the chapter that ushers in what can know longer be argued away as a PG-13 rating, I thought it best to make it even more special and give them some extra credit. Thank you, you two, for your art and all those you have inspired to join us on this journey. I hope you all enjoy the next chapter, because it is one of my faves. And if you have yet to go and see Miss Vampire and Sachiko's art on deviantart, GO RIGHT NOW! (or at least after you read...and review)
Part Twenty
"It's been a long time…Ran."
Gold hair and eyes. That inviting grin. That pure confidence. That simple beauty. The memories of intimacy and passion—passion for many reasons. And for the first time in far too long all of it is staring back at him from the charismatic, charming, irresistible man that is Honjou Yuushi.
Knight.
"What are you doing here, Yuushi?" Ran asks evenly, making sure to close the RV door behind him should anyone get any ideas about listening in.
Yuushi's smile twitches at Ran's frigid tone but holds firm. "I suppose I shouldn't expect to be invited in, but I thought we were close enough that I might at least be granted…a hug?"
Ran tenses, muscles stiff as he chooses very clearly not to move forward.
"Come on, Ran-chan. I could be asking for a lot more than a friendly hug. It's the least you can give me after so long." A more genuine smile graces Yuushi's fine features as his arms open, beckoning, and the mocking very faintly in his tone does not spread to his eyes as Ran thought it would.
For that the redhead decides it is the least he can do.
Hesitant steps carry Ran forward, his violets trying in vain to find a harbor anywhere but gold, and his approach is thankfully met halfway as those familiar, long arms envelope him. The contact is warm despite the chill in the air. It feels unfairly reassuring and…comfortable…to be held by them again.
'Comfortable…' Ran muses. 'Ken…' Pulling gently from the hug, Ran tries his very best to appear more approachable, as he owes his long lost teammate and friend, but also to appear as if he does not miss the other's touch as much as his pounding heart is admitting.
"Now…why did that feel more like a goodbye than a hello?" Yuushi smiles, his own longing tugging at his insides and making him nauseous with memory.
Ran pulls fully out of Yuushi's arms, eyes steady and firm, though for the blonde's sake he does offer a small, reciprocating smile. "It is good to see you, though I must admit your timing is as lacking as ever."
An honest laugh replies. "I'll say. I bet you never expected to find me at your doorstep again. Especially not after a son and future lover presented themselves."
"…I take it Queen has been talking with Manx lately."
"Of course. The change in Kritiker's management won't affect Crashers all that much. We're a no-kill team, as you remember. But we've been filled in on current events. It took me forever to get Queen to spill the whole truth though. Seems she was under the impression I might do something foolish like…track you down."
Unconsciously shuffling his feet, Ran finds he is still doing all he can to avoid gold, placed under an unfairly scrutinizing stare. "Foolish? Why would it be foolish? Unless…you're planning something."
Yuushi represses a mischievous smirk. "Don't worry. I'm not here to win you back."
Not quite soothed by that sentiment, Ran fights away a few insistent tremors. "Then…?"
"I'm here to make sure you don't make the same mistake twice."
-----
"What do you think they're talking about?" Ken asks, not caring which of the other boys might answer as he sits perched by the window to get a good view of the pair outside.
Omi and Nagi share a look but decide against saying anything. Shioshiro merely shrugs. They can all easily tell that Ken isn't really looking for them to answer anyway.
"I mean…this guy, Knight…he was in that Catchers with Aya, right?"
"Crashers, Ken-kun." Omi corrects.
"Yeah. Crashers." Ken acknowledges absent-mindedly, his thoughts very much on other details. "So…he and Aya were friends…and…Aya was the quiet, no-date type in school, doncha think…so…maybe…I mean…it would have to be him…wouldn't it?"
Blonde brows lifting, Omi is a little confused by Ken's mumbled ramblings. "What are you talking about, Ken-kun? Have to be him for what? And what does Knight-san have to do with Aya's dating habits?"
It is most likely a good thing that Ken is so distracted right now or he would probably have had to explain himself on that account. For a certain other brunette's part, Shioshiro offers nothing. Some things are best left private after all.
Not receiving an answer to his query, Omi shakes his head, motioning Nagi back over to the computer desk so they can finish up a little of the work they had been doing when Yuushi's message came through. Ken fails to notice they have left his side.
"It is him…I know it is…" Ken continues under his breath, brown eyes narrowing into near slits as he stares hard at the blonde outside with his…with Ran. "I mean…they hugged. Aya hugged him. Aya doesn't hug. Even when we're kissing he barely touches me. He gets close but…he's still always so far away. But this Knight guy…he got a hug after barely two words. He has to be…that other guy. The only guy…the only person Aya's ever…" Ken's fists unwittingly clench with jealousy.
Usually this would be the moment for Shioshiro to step forward and offer his father a little soothing advice, but when it comes to Yuushi his knowledge is very limited.
When Estet rose to power in Shioshiro's timeline, Crashers was one of the first groups to be wiped out, purely for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Shioshiro was too young to remember anything, but Ran never talked much about Yuushi, especially not after the man's death. Though Shioshiro was told a few things about Crashers and the close relationship Ran had had with 'Knight,' he really doesn't know what to expect from him. Yuushi meant a lot to Ran, but circumstances kept them apart for years. Brought together like this…
Shioshiro doesn't want to think about it.
And he doesn't want Ken to think about it either. Right now—much like his currently bristling father—Shioshiro would give anything to hear what the pair outside is talking about.
-----
"Mistake…?" Ran questions, trying hard to relax, to enjoy seeing…an old friend, but his mind is still suspicious of Yuushi's intentions.
"Mistake." Yuushi repeats, gesturing half-heartedly…at himself. A corner of his mouth twitches slightly. "Do you remember what it was like when we first started…being more than teammates, Ran? We had fought through that entire first mission, but we came out of it friends. A few more missions, and…our temporary-replacement-Rook was starting to grow on me. I made the first move, but you didn't mind at all."
"I remember." Ran breaks in quickly, hoping the blonde will refrain from going into detail. They are pleasant memories, but now is not the time to be dredging them up. Not when Ran is most certain there is a particularly edgy brunette staring out the window at them fro inside the RV. "I remember many fights and many…make-ups. I remember that the worst of our fights…was the day I left."
Yuushi's smile twitches again. "Why did you leave? I've been waiting to ask you that for a long time now. Why? You didn't have to, and I know you didn't want to."
"Hn. You're so certain of that?" Ran challenges, his face set in fragile stone, while his hands, clenched in tight fists are almost visibly shaking now. "And what makes you think I didn't have to leave. Your original Rook had healed and returned to you. There was no more need for me. King told me I had to leave, that he wanted me in another of his groups."
"Weiss." Yuushi supplies with a half-sneer.
"He said it would bring me closer to Takatori. In those days…that was all I cared about."
Another very prominent twitch. "Liar." Yuushi accuses firmly. "Do you think I don't know? I know. Yes, King, Persia…he wanted you in Weiss, said you had to leave, but you could have refused. You could have said you would rather stay in Crashers than worry about Takatori. Instead…you ran. Persia had to send that Birman woman after you before you would join Weiss. All that running for nothing when you could have stayed."
"No, Yuushi." Ran says firmly, his trembling strangely stilled in the bringing up of past resolutions. "I could never have killed Takatori while in Crashers, and I needed that. I thought you understood."
"Then why run away first? Tell me that."
"Because…I was angry at King…at Persia…for making me choose. I still wanted Takatori dead and my anger at Persia pushed me to seek him on my own. That was stupid, I don't deny it, but it doesn't mean I could have stayed with you. Takatori was--"
"More important than me."
A sliver of Ran's cold expression slips away, replaced by honest sorrow for the pain in those words. A small part of him—very small—almost wants to pull Yuushi into another hug, as if it could make up for the truth. "I'm sorry. You knew from the beginning how important avenging Aya and my parents was to me. Please, Yuushi, I don't want to have this fight again. We had it when I left, remember?"
"Of course I remember. It's why I'm here." Yuushi says with a cool…eerily cool smile.
Ran unwittingly takes a step back in the face of that expression. "You said…you were here to make sure I didn't make the same mistake twice. But…you also said--"
"I'm not here to win you back." Yuushi finishes. "I'm not. You made your choice. And…maybe…it was right one. How else would that son of yours come into existence if you didn't leave me? You see? I'm not here for me, or even for you when it comes down to it. I'm here for…you know I don't even know his name, code or anything. But you know who I mean. I'm here for the lucky bastard who gets to build a life with you. I don't think anyone should have to suffer like I did. So…don't break the guy's heart, huh? And if you really love this guy, don't ever put something else before him. Well, if you really love him, you won't anyway. I'm not fooling myself here. You went for Takatori because revenge was more important. I know you never really…loved me."
Another sliver, another crack in Ran's mask, and he wants even more to bridge the growing gap between them. "Yuushi…"
"Just…know what you want, never forget what you have, and…be happy. Okay? You owe me that." And with admirable resolve, Yuushi extends his hand, not seeking an embrace this time as he had before.
Ran stares. He knows Yuushi's simple words, the act of coming here, it was all for such selfless reasons. And now…the blonde before him is already signaling his goodbye.
Taking the hand offered him, Ran shakes it once firmly, glad that Yuushi at least went this far instead of offering a traditional bow, that for some reason would have felt so terribly cold. Ran, however, is bold by association and his single shake of Yuushi's hand turns into a second that tugs the blonde towards him into another tight hug. For all its uncharacteristic beauty, it causes Yuushi to laugh.
That laugh, this intimacy, it reminds Ran of so many times past.
"Naa, Ran…" Yuushi whispers, mouth so close to Ran's ear in their embrace. "…have you ever loved someone so much…it made you cry…?"
The tears in Yuushi's voice almost force the same reaction in Ran, but to be completely honest, for the redhead…the tears just aren't there. "I don't know." he answers honestly, squeezing tighter, and nearly burying his face in that familiar crook of neck.
"Know." Yuushi breathes, echoing that firmer hold. "Know…and when you do…also know…how happy I'll be for you. And…" he adds, pulling away just enough to grin, and not caring that his few traitorous tears are showing on his face. "Don't expect me to be so sappy and blubbering next time we see each other, huh? It's bad for my reputation." he winks. "And I will be seeing you. When the time comes for the big fish, Kritiker is ready to back you up with everything they have. Including Crashers. I'll send the boys your regards…Aya."
It takes perhaps a little more than it should to get the pair to release one another fully, but when Yuushi is heading back to his car, Ran honestly feels only one thing.
Closure.
-----
"He's coming back in now, Kento."
"Yeah. I see that."
"You sound a little…upset."
"Upset? Why should I be upset? It's not like I just saw the love of my life being all cozy and intimate with some other guy. Oh wait. It is!"
Shioshiro grimaces at Ken's harsh tone, having a suddenly very bad feeling about where things will lead once Ran comes back inside. Since the RV door is finally opening with the redhead's reentry, it looks like they are all about to find out.
Ran's face is content as he walks inside, his stride easy and almost burden free. He looks at Omi and Nagi, both still busying themselves with computer work, and then turns to his son, whose worried expression is not what Ran expected to find. The anxiety written on the young brunette's face seems directed at another brunette, and when Ran at last turns to Ken, furthest on his right near the window, anxiety is the very least of what he finds.
"What?" he asks, contentment and ease unfairly put on hold.
Shaking his head in a gesture that clearly says, 'like you don't know,' Ken turns away, an angry pout gracing his otherwise empty expression.
Ran looks back to Shioshiro for a possible explanation, and luckily, the young brunette gets the perfect idea for how best to serve this situation.
"Ano…Omiji, Nagi-jisan…what would you say to a late movie?" Shioshiro suggests. "I love old films, which anything out right now would be to me, and…it feels just a little too crowded in here right now, doncha think?"
Curious glances quickly turn into understanding, and soon Omi and Nagi are up off their seats, grabbing their coats, and hurrying to follow after Shioshiro as he leads them out of the RV, giving Ran and Ken a little time to themselves.
This is unfamiliar ground for Shioshiro, being events that never took place in the past he knows of, and at this juncture, he feels that leaving things up to fate might be better than sticking around to make more trouble.
When left alone with very hurried goodbyes sent their direction, Ran and Ken aren't entirely sure they are happy with this arrangement, but at least it gives them the opportunity to speak what is on their minds freely, something Ken is more than ready to jump on.
"So…you gonna tell me what the hell that was out there?" he bites bitterly, his anger and frustration all too apparent.
Ran is rightly taken aback. "Excuse me?"
"That…display. You and your Knight in shining armor."
Violet eyes blink, uncomprehending. Did Ken really just say that? "Please tell me you are not as immature as you are acting right now."
"Oh, come off it, Aya. I saw you two out there." Ken counters, eyes narrowing and fists still clenched as they had been while watching the two outside.
"Ken, you are three seconds from being way out of line. Whatever you think you saw, you are obviously mistaken."
"Oh? Then how come you looked more at home in his arms…than you've ever acted in mine?"
This question catches Ran off guard. He doesn't know what to say when the accusations Ken is making have a little too much truth to them.
"We kiss, Aya, but you've never been with me the way you were just with him outside."
'No, that isn't true.' Ran thinks wildly, feeling a strange surge of panic.
"You looked so…comfortable around him. Like…just like--"
"Just like someone would around an old friend." Ran forces his voice to speak, unwilling to stay silent when so much is at stake in this, especially in the long run. And after all, he did just make Yuushi a promise, just as he has promised Shion much the same.
No regrets. No mistakes. No denying himself this time. And no fooling himself either.
"Ken, Yuushi and I are friends. There was a time we were more than that, but I promise you that is all in the past."
A flicker of hope and realization that he most likely has his foot in his mouth for the umpteenth time passes over Ken's face, but it is soon masked by fear and desperation. After so long, Ken cannot help doubting. "Maybe, Aya. Maybe. But…I mean…yeah, you were a little tense at first, but…out there with him…you looked…happy."
"I'm happy with you." Ran contradicts, surprising himself with the sincerity of his words. After all, though they have had time now to get used to being a couple, they have kept things slow and simple. Now, much more than that is needed. "Ken, I may have looked happy out there, but that's because we were talking about--"
"You know what, I don't care." Ken cuts in, taking a few steps into the living room, and foolishly allowing his emotions to take him down the wrong path of thought. "I should know better. I should have known better from the start. You can never really be happy with me. You don't love me."
"Ken--"
"I know there's Hiro, but…maybe the real reason he came to this time was to make sure things worked out better between us, only…maybe they can't."
"Ken, listen to--"
"How could I ever think you would actually love me?"
"Ken--"
"I'm such a idiot for even thinking--"
"Damn it, Ken, will you just shut the fuck up already!"
The silence that follows a roar is always more deafening than the roar itself. And this is no exception. Ken turns to look at Ran dumbfounded.
Ran's anger outweighs Ken's initial fury by leaps and bounds of petty misunderstanding. "You're right, you are an idiot! Sometimes you are such an idiot I can't stand it!" he screams, not caring in the least if there might be someone nearby to overhear his shouts. "You don't listen! You don't think! You get these stupid ideas in your head and don't pay attention to an ounce of reason until you've poured your heart out for nothing and I've lost my last shred of patience! How the hell are we supposed to get anything to work when you obsess and pick and don't shut up about every single fucking thing! Urrrg!"
For a moment Ken is still standing in the main room, watching as Ran storms his way into the kitchen area for something to drink. It doesn't have to be liquor; it just has to be cold. Ran's throat is on fire after yelling like that.
And for Ken's part, once his sense have come back to him, he isn't about to let Ran's rant slide. Not without a little fire from his end to go with it anyway.
"And what about you!"
Quick, athletic feet carry Ken to the kitchen to join Ran in barely a couple strides.
"How am I supposed to know where we stand when you never talk to me? We talk, but not about us. We talk about ourselves, fine, but while I'm constantly saying how much I love you, you just shut me up with another kiss." The same volume of voice may not be present with Ken's words, but the venom is just as strong as Ran's.
Ran's anger has not diminished, and the lingering effects of it close his mind to much of Ken's argument. Sink and counter at his back, Ran attempts to move out of the kitchen and past the brunette, the idea of getting a drink suddenly less important than getting away.
Still just as angry in his own right, Ken is not about to let Ran pass. He stands defiantly in Ran's way, and when the redhead pushes at him to move, Ken pushes back with more force, pinning his companion against the counter's edge. There is fire in both sets of eyes, but with the room gone silent, and the electricity between them left to hang, the close proximity of their position becomes suddenly apparent to both of them.
Ken has pressed Ran back with his hands gripping Ran's biceps, but his hips are also holding the redhead in place, firmly pressing forward.
Anger is replaced with guilty realization, Ken's brown eyes going wide as he releases Ran with a near-gasp and tries to back away. But as Ken is slowly making his retreat, Ran's instincts kick in and he decides very surely—at least in the heat of the moment—that he does not want things to end like this. And so he does the one thing that seems to work so well, even if Ken resents him for it. He pulls the brunette back by the scruff of his shirt for a bruising, pulsating kiss.
Unfortunately, Ken is still somewhat trying to move backwards, and Ran's action has thrown them both a little off balance, making the kiss last but a handful of moments before the pair is suddenly speeding towards the floor where they land in a shocked heap.
Ken, who has landed painfully on his back with a thin but heavy-enough redhead on top of him, gasps as the air rushes from his lungs, their lips most certainly torn from one another's. Ran, however, was lucky enough to have something break his fall.
"Ken…" he calls sympathetically, pushing himself up enough to stare down into Ken's anguished face.
Gasping for lost air, Ken's face is blank as he gulps back in what had been forced so painfully out, but when he has regained his breath and brown eyes look up into searching, seeking, worried violets…Ken starts to laugh.
Ran is perplexed by this reaction. What could possibly be funny?
Ken, of course, is quick to answer Ran's quizzical look. "I…I can't help it…haha…I mean…both of us…we are both…so stupid sometimes…"
As is so often the case, laughter can be rather infectious, and though Ran doesn't burst into echoing laughter, he does break into a very wide smile. "You are absolutely right. Both of us can be real fools sometimes. Most of the time. Almost all of the time when it comes to…us."
Something in the word 'us', the way Ran nearly whispers it, causes Ken's laughter to finally die off, and the brunette realizes as he did before that they are dangerously close.
The smile leaves Ken's face, his expression all in his eyes as he stares up at a porcelain face touched by crimson and a perfect, too beautiful smile. For all their foolishness, their fighting, and their misunderstandings, something in that perfect face tells Ken without a word that everything will be all right for them in the end. They…belong to each other.
"What?" Ran asks, his own smile slipping as that quizzical look reappears.
Ken doesn't answer in words, but lifts a hand to Ran's face, tracing pale skin with his fingertips before pushing back into red hair, reaching all the way to find a grip on Ran's neck, and pulling the other man down into a slow, wonderful kiss.
No jolts break this one. It whispers, moving through them as their lips move, as their tongues meet, and they sigh for how perfect it feels when so few things make as much sense in life as a simple kiss can.
When they at last pull apart, there is no sense of completion or satiated contentment. There is only wanting.
"Ken…I think…we had better…get off the floor before--"
"Before what?" Ken smirks, arms coming to rest on the same biceps he had so recently been holding in anger. "Before we…have too much fun?"
Ran's mouth twitches. "Before we…do something regrettable."
Any trace of anger, any trace of anything but pure passion and love has vanished completely as brown holds violet captive. "I love you, Aya. There is nothing I would ever regret about being with you. Ever."
Ran swallows hard in the face of Ken's confidence. "Ken…I…that…that's very sweet, but…we…I don't know if I--"
"Aya?"
Ran stops his rambling just long enough to listen.
"Shut up already."
Lips meet this time in an eruption of the passion both have held at bay for far too long. Reservations fly out the window as minds cloud over with desire, and any lingering hesitations in Ran's mind seem suddenly unimportant.
Ken's hands move to Ran's back, pulling the redhead fully on top of him as they had been when they first hit the ground. It isn't enough to kiss, much as Ken enjoys the sensation; he wants to feel Ran against him, pressed tightly to him. Holding Ran means so much more than any mere kiss.
There is still enough sentient thought in Ran's mind to warn him of the situation developing here. Ken's hands are at the small of his back, pulling him down, their hips aligned, their mouths locked. Part of Ran still wants to dissent, but…that kiss, those hands, the feel of another's body so close. He wants that too. He wants the warmth of a real embrace again.
Hands forgottenly braced on Ken's chest, Ran grips what fabric he can get in his fingers and pulls, rolling to the side until their positions are reversed, with Ken on top now instead of him. When Ken tries to pull from their kiss to question this decision, Ran's hands have released fabric and are quickly reaching up to pull Ken back down, renewing their lip-lock.
Ken isn't about to protest.
Pulling his hands from being trapped beneath Ran's back, Ken runs them slowly down the redhead's sides, feeling his companion squirm a little as he brushes past Ran's waist and holds firm on slim hips. Mouth finally pulling free from their elongated kiss, Ken trails his tongue from Ran's jaw down the juncture of his throat. When Ran rolls his head back with a small moan, Ken takes this to mean his advances are not at all unwelcome. He trails further, delivering deep, open-mouthed kisses down to Ran's clavicle and across the elegant bone.
But as fulfilling as this touch is, it is not nearly enough.
Near-frantic hands move up from Ran's hips to begin unbuttoning the redhead's shirt, wanting so badly to get at more and more pale white skin. But Ran's hands move to grab hold of Ken's and push them back down to rest where they had been before. When Ken looks up to question this, Ran's hazy expression is nothing but allure as the redhead moves his hands to begin unbuttoning the shirt himself.
To Ken this very clearly states that Ran believes the brunette's hands are better used elsewhere.
Returning his mouth to the smooth, hairless chest of the man beneath him as more and more is revealed with every button undone, Ken grips the hips in his grasp tightly. Being shorter than Ran and with his head at Ran's chest, Ken's groin is positioned just below the other man's. Meaning that a well-timed thrust up would create just the right kind of friction.
Ken dips his tongue languidly into Ran's navel—the shirt fully open now—before beginning his ascent back up. He moves quickly this time, and when he reaches Ran's perfect, gracefully formed neck, he places a gentle kiss just below the redhead's ear before using his grip on Ran's hips to pull and push at once, rolling his hips as best he can against his partner's.
Both gasp. It has been very long since either felt comfort there.
The idea that both are wearing far too many clothes seems to hit them at the same time, and soon hands are doing nothing but pulling at clothing until shirts have been tossed aside and pants are being hurriedly unfastened.
Ken is therefore rightly surprised when a white hand suddenly grips his wrist, stopping him from pulling down Ran's zipper.
"Wait." warns Ran's soft voice in the quiet of the otherwise empty RV. "Are we thinking this through?"
Ken ponders that for a full tenth of a second. "I hadn't planned on it."
"Well we had better at least think of one thing, because if we plan on going further we're going to need more than just ourselves."
Damn. Sometimes Ken really hated it when Ran was right. Looking around feverishly for anything that might work, Ken's eyes quickly rest on something that makes him very happy they ended up in the kitchen. "God bless Omi for being smarter than he is tidy." Ken mumbles, reaching up towards the counter where a bottle of vegetable oil had been left out after Omi made breakfast many hours prior.
Ken sets the bottle next to them and tosses Ran a 'don't worry about a thing' grin. Ran does his best to not think at all, knowing that dwelling on anything for more than a few seconds might kick in his self-preservation mode, most likely telling him to push Ken away and seek a safe distance.
And damn it all if Ran wants that to happen.
Hungry stares from violet and brown alike invoke a sudden need to reconnect, and their lips meet as before, tongues seeking, tracing every corner of one another's mouths in kisses far deeper than any they had allowed before tonight.
Amidst this, Ken has not forgotten what he had been doing only minutes before, and his hands move swiftly back down to Ran's pants, pulling the zipper down before Ran can offer another protest. Soon Ken is tugging at the redhead's pants, thankful that Ran isn't wearing jeans as he is, which makes the act almost effortless.
With his pants now removed and kicked aside, a small part of Ran's rationality begins to kick in: You're in nothing but your undershorts, a very horny Ken is sprawled on top of you, there is vegetable oil at your elbow with much intent to be used, and you…you don't mind one tiny, little bit.
Demons thoroughly hushed, Ran surrenders to his libido's whims and grips the waist of Ken's jeans. Since Ken wears them snug, a frantic pull will do nothing to free them, so Ran moves his hands with slight difficulty between their bodies to get at the fastenings and undoes them as quickly as his fumbling fingers will allow.
'Don't let this be a mistake…'Ran manages to pull the jeans to about mid-thigh, having more difficulty than Ken since he is the one beneath.
As rapt as Ken is in their continued kiss, he feels the restriction on his legs and very fervently wants them gone. In a heartbeat Ken's hands have moved from playing across Ran's chest to pulling his caught pants completely off.
'This isn't a mistake. Not with Aya…'It is at this moment, when he finally has his own pants away from around his ankles, that Ken dwells on the strange occurrence of the fabric of his boxers brushing the fabric of Ran's briefs. Boxer briefs. Ken allows a small smirk, pulling away from Ran's lips just long enough to think…boxer briefs…how fitting…before returning to below Ran's right ear and slowly works his way up.
Ken hears the gasp Ran releases near his own ear and shivers at the breath, the sound, the sensation that flows over him. While he is still delivering attentions he is more than happy to give, Ran begins to give a little back, making it even more difficult for Ken to concentrate. Tentatively, Ran has begun placing his own soft, delicate, and yet wonderfully wet kisses to Ken's neck and shoulders.
And despite being a little distracted, Ken doesn't mind at all.
Thin hands and long fingers travel their way to Ken's lower back, and better judgment aside they start to make their way further down, beneath the elastic of Ken's boxers to touch only skin. Before Ken even has the time to register this advance, Ran takes it one step further and pulls Ken's hips down hard against his own.
"Ah!" Ken can't help releasing a small cry, electricity shooting up from below the belt to everywhere above and beyond. That's it; he wants full contact skin, heat, sweat, the whole package. Lifting his head up to stare down into hazy violets, he locks on with more focus than he has since before this all began. "You wanna…switch back now?" he asks a bit breathless, heart beating almost ridiculously fast in anticipation.
Ran blinks a few moments, pulled from a delicious trance, and suddenly wonders if he heard Ken wrong. "What?"
"Switch back. You know, roll over again."
"Why?"
Ken's mouth opens as if he has an immediate comeback, but nothing comes out. Now he is the one wondering if he heard things wrong. "Well…I mean…I guess I just figured…ya know…don't you want to…?" Ken trails off, eyes inexplicitly darting to the oil beside them.
With passion still running a few minutes ahead of his logic, Ran reaches an elegant hand towards the tan face hovering over him and smiles. "I want to…but I think we're fine just as we are. If it's all the same to you."
Beat.
Actually, it isn't all the same to Ken. It's impossible. He just assumed that when it came down to it their positions would be reversed, but now, when things are finally happening between them, a reversal isn't what Ran is asking for, or what the redhead wants.
A millisecond only may have passed before Ken dives for those soft lips again, hands trailing down hurriedly over a smooth chest and lower still, gripping cotton to immediately slide them down long, slender legs. Ken kisses a trail as he pulls Ran's briefs down and past his ankles, grinning up at the violet eyes watching him. When he slithers his way back up he makes a point of pressing his naked thigh against the total nakedness of Ran.
Ran does not cry out, not even a little, but his eyes roll back, neck arching as little gasps spill from his throat. Hazy eyes open slowly, and Ken is still grinning to greet them. Passion still very much ahead of his logic right now, Ran decides to take this as a challenge.
There is no fabric to grip this time, so Ran holds firm on Ken's shoulders, rolling them to their long-forgotten original positions before beginning to swiftly remove Ken's last article of clothing and make things even again.
Before Ken can comment on how he thought he was getting to be top, another roll has them back as they were, with Ken in command—theoretically anyway—and skin suddenly touches skin in an intimacy neither has felt in a long time. Desire overrides any final hesitations either might have as their bodies instinctively begin working against each other, moving without thought or care.
The reality of it is blinding.
Ken reaches for the oil, pulling up to best see this through. He looks down at Ran, who is beautifully flushed and expectant below him, and can't help grinning again. He doesn't say a word, he merely tosses the cap away and pours a good amount onto Ran's stomach, making the redhead squirm with the wet, smooth feel of it against his skin. Running his hand through it slowly, Ken gathers some in his hand and starts to apply it to himself, teeth almost chattering at the feel of built-up pressure under his own touch. When Ran raises his hips and lifts his legs to Ken's advantage, it nearly undoes Ken completely.
Preparation is done without words, brown and violet locked the entire time, with neither daring to think or barely breathe, only feeling and loving the feel of one another. Soon preparation is done, leaving nothing but action.
Ran cringes a little as Ken descends, telling his endorphin-ridden mind to relax, breathe deep. It has been a long time since he felt this pressure, this intensity. For Ken it takes all of the brunette's strength not to drive things home immediately, but although he knows so little of patience, this is something he can force himself to take his time on.
Once the difficult beginning is over, and Ken lays flush against Ran, bodies interlocked and tight, Ken waits as long as he can before pulling back for the first of hopefully many reconnections. "Aya!" he cries, eyes open but hopelessly unseeing. "God, Aya…!"
This first backstroke has Ken reeling and Ran gasping, but to the dismay of the fervent and delirious brunette, before he can pull back for another…
"…stop…"
Ken would swear his heart just stopped if his ears heard correctly. He freezes, every weary muscle tense and disbelieving.
"Stop…" Ran says again.
Has Ken done something wrong? Has Ran changed his mind? Did Ken—God forbid—hurt Ran in any way?
The agony of possibility alone pulls Ken's head up to stare down at Ran, praying, hoping that things aren't as he fears. But when Ken takes in the full affect of Ran beneath him and sees the subtle smile on the redhead's face, he would almost swear his heart stopped again.
"Stop…calling me Aya." Ran breathes, the flush to his cheeks making him glow with an ethereal beauty. "Not when we're like this."
Something that could only be described as concentrated joy spreads over Ken's face, which on Ken pretty much looks like an amplified version of his normal, goofy grin. Fortunately, Ran finds that look adorable.
Reaching anxious hands upwards, Ran pulls his partner down into another slow kiss, holding both sides of Ken's face as he caresses those all too kissable lips with his own. Within that kiss, a sudden thrust up of Ran's hips sends Ken nearly into convulsions, but the kiss itself remains. No matter how things increase between them, it is something they keep coming back to. The feel of one another in a kiss, outside and in all at once, is perfectly reminiscent of the rest of their bodily connections, and as a parallel it makes their soon to be rhythmic movements all the sweeter.
Any signs of pain have been pushed through or forgotten, and Ken rocks steadily, pressing Ran into the floor as the redhead lifts up to meet every thrust. White legs are tucked up under tan arms, white arms are wrapped around a tan neck, red and brown hair fall together as lips meet and meet again, and the movement does not stop, does not even slow…until they do.
"Ran…" Ken gasps, eyes watering with the pressure of near-release. The name is whispered, but it brings a smile to Ran's face for all its softness. "…Ran…I…oh, God, I love you so much…"
Panting with ragged, uneven breaths, Ran's eyes peek open from under heavy lids, his head raising enough to look up and meet brown, their lips parted now in the frantic search for an end. Ran is still looking up, watching Ken watch him, when that end is reached, both releasing their own sounds of satisfaction into the air.
When they are but a heap, Ken limp atop Ran with a sticky mess between their bodies, Ran at last notices the tears in his own eyes, spilling from their corners to stream down the sides of his face. They are not tears of pain, he realizes, or even tears of pleasure. These tears are so much more.
"Ken…"
They are tears of rapture.
"…I love you too…"
tbc...
A/N:
OH was this fun. You know, this scene was what inspired the entire fic. Hope it did what it was meant to and that all enjoyed. Next we have the afterglow and we'll soon be off to deal with Rosenkreuz and Estet, which means everyone you have met will at some point come back into the story, Brad and Schu first and foremost. I thought you all deserved to know they would soon be back.
spiritualbabe: I am so glad you reviewed, and I must say that if you hadn't mentioned that english wasn't your first language, I would not have been able to tell. You wrote wonderfully and I thank you for the kind words. I am sorry that there are many things not explained, but they are things that are in pieces of Weiss past, like from short stories, the drama cds, and others that I didn't want to go into, assuming the reader had read/listened to/watched everything I had, which I know isn't always the case. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask.
Shirohikari: Everyone thinks I'm going to kill Ken. Hmm... 'After all, there are three groups of people. The bis, the homos, and the ones in denial.' Ya got that right!
Hope I didn't miss any questions, but I really want to post this. Again, thanks to my wonderful fanart drawers. Your art inspires and has brought some new readers. I can't express my gratitude enough. Til next chapter, minna!
Crim