A/N: Hey AB section! As promised, a new update before July's end. Perfect timing for a beach episode, don't you think? (Outside the fic's circumstances, that is.) I cut Chapter 64 short, so you may not have to wait very long for part II (it's all set with its preview quotes :D). Thanks to ZainR and Seiram for the reviews!
ZainR: I actually made a Spider Man pointing meme edit a couple years ago with Hejj and Hinata's faces, I knew this scene had to happen one day XD (and tbh his name warrants a little teasing ^^ I find myself preferring Souma/Hejj these days). I was really excited to write these characters again, so I'm thrilled you liked the reunions/meetings as much as I did! Also relieved that Kanade's story resonated with you, since I wasn't sure if it would feel out of place. But it felt nice to have Kanade offer up a little information about her own family. We know so little about her background. Hope your own family is doing better!
Seiram: So pleased the Hejj vs Hinata scene was a hit! Bc honestly the "who's this?!" confrontation was something I'd been dreaming of since... maybe the early days of writing Hejjiguchi's character! Naoi deserves to be fought over a little. And no new blue boy is gonna replace Hinata. Glad you liked seeing Chitose and Saki again too! A lot's developed since we last left them in TPS (which I am still working on). And that's what I was thinking - AB deserved a beach episode! A river one just isn't the same.
Hope you enjoy! (Also, stay tuned after the chapter for a more spoilery A/N)
[Chapter 62]: An Ill-Timed Beach Episode (Part I)
Sitting on a log covered by a vibrant green and yellow beach towel, Ayato stared blankly at the bonfire as its flickering flames rose higher than the sun in the lavender sky, and he tried to remember how he got here.
The journey had taken some maneuvering. First Yuri and Ayato had gotten a ride in Fujimaki's car and led the group to the Nakamuras' house. That way everyone had a place to change into their swimsuits and hang out, and he and Yuri could go over to the Masudas' to pick up their stuff without flooding the couple with a bunch of people just yet. With a spare key, Yuri easily let the Battlefront inside.
Ooyama had handed Ayato a packed bag from the car before he went in, brightly informing him that thanks to the conversation last night about finding people at the pool or beach, he had thrown in Ayato's swimsuit just in case. Ayato didn't think he would be swimming today in his condition, but as he would be sitting on a beach all the same, he didn't want to get Masuda's clothes all sandy, so he had accepted the bag from him. Its surprising weight came from the fact that Ooyama had spotted an interesting storybook on his coffee table and packed that too, thinking Ayato might want to read it while he was here.
Yui had gasped happily when she peeked into the bag and saw Once Upon A Time partially hidden beneath some shirts. "My book!" she'd cried, then pointed a finger in Ayato's face. "You're not bringing that to the beach."
Obediently he ended up putting it away in the guest room where he'd be staying. Then he'd showered and changed, and after Yuri was done showing everyone around and then changing as well, the two of them walked to Ami and Masuda's together.
Their time there was kind of a blur. Bits and pieces stood out in Ayato's memory. They returned their clothes in gratitude. Masuda gave Yuri back her car keys. Ayato went upstairs and fetched his phone (quietly, as Mio was napping). The bloodied clothes were gone. When he came downstairs and asked about them, Ami admitted she'd attempted to get the stains out before a phone call pulled her away. Masuda called Ayato over while he was preparing food to bring down to the beach. Ami went back to discussing with Yuri whether or not it would be wise to bring Mio's Charmander along.
But they'd talked, him and Masuda. At first of the whereabouts of his brother and sister-in-law (they had decided to just go directly to the beach and meet them there, reserve their spot and set things up), then back to the grimmer stuff from earlier. Things he would understandably want to get out of the way before they went to a lighthearted beach party.
Toxicology had confirmed what Ayato already knew. The crime scene had been investigated, evidence had been collected, and they'd pieced together an idea of what had happened. There was no alcohol found in the house so they'd talked to the bartender who worked at a bar a couple of blocks away from the pottery shop. He said Kimito had never set foot in there before, but sometime after eight last night he burst into the bar and pounded down a few drinks, muttering about train tickets and disloyalty.
He didn't seem to be drowning his sorrows, the bartender had reported, he drank like someone trying to numb himself before an amputation. But at the same time it made him more agitated, and he ended up storming out around nine thirty.
This, along with the train ticket to Mizuzaka and packed suitcase they'd found on the scene, led investigators to believe Kimito found out about her escape plan, went to the bar and drank with a purpose, and came back to confront her. They'd also found the phone and looked at Ayame's most recent calls. A conversation with Ryou filled in more of the story and strengthened Ayato's alibi.
Assured by the hospital that Kimito's cause of death had been the heart attack, and not injuries sustained during the fight, the investigators had no intention of labeling this death a suspicious one. Ryou, Ayame, and Yuri all had given reports of Kimito being the aggressor last night, and Ayato's actions were clearly in self-defense. Thus, they would be wrapping up the case, and had gotten all that they could from the estate, so it was open to him if there was anything he needed to get.
Ayato couldn't think of a single reason he would want to go back there right now, but Masuda pointed out that his mother might have an address book of some sort, perhaps phone numbers of relatives on her side of the family he could invite to the funeral or even the cremation.
(Sometimes Ayato wished Masuda wasn't so sensible.)
He must've agreed with him, because his next memory was of Yuri driving him to the Naoi estate. And him walking into the house on autopilot. His tunnel vision was enacted; if the grass was still stained, he didn't notice.
Once upstairs, he didn't have to look far. The suitcase was still there, packed, on the floor of his parents' bedroom. If she had an address book like that, perhaps she wouldn't have left it behind for Kimito to use as a hit list. Ayato sifted through clothes, books, and mementos until he found what he was looking for. A quick glimpse inside confirmed; there were some contacts with a last name he recognized.
His mother's maiden name. Endo.
He wouldn't linger. Not today. Getting back on his feet, he carried himself downstairs and out the front door to Yuri's car. The moment he dropped into the passenger seat, he exhaled as if he had been holding his breath the entire time.
"You okay?" Yuri asked, shifting her gaze between him and the book in his hands.
He closed his eyes. "Fine."
They drove off.
Back at the Nakamuras', the Battlefront was hanging out in front of the TV. Matsushita the Fifth, Otonashi, and Kanade had made themselves comfortable on one couch, Hinata and Shiina on the other, and Yui was lying on the ground on her stomach, her legs kicked up in the air as she entertained Mitsuo along with Fujimaki, who was lounging on his side. Ooyama sat on the floor with them, semi-watching them play, but occasionally looking up at the crime show on the screen just as it was getting to a particularly intense moment. He yelped and hastily averted his eyes to much cuter and comforting sights.
Yuri hesitated, watching them all for a moment, a wistful expression creeping across her lips and glistening in her eyes. Then she snapped out of it and got them all into gear. They packed up everything they needed, including food (Otonashi had gone out on a grocery run earlier), and then piled into their respective cars. Yuri, who knew where she was going, led the entourage to the beach and everyone reconvened in the parking lot. The Shibuya crew would probably be leaving earlier than the rest since they'd be dropping off Shiina in Kyuuya, which wasn't all that far from here.
"So both of you are staying in Akuma tonight?" Otonashi asked Yuri as they waited by her car. Ami had texted Ayato on the way letting him know they might beat her and Masuda there by a few minutes.
Yuri shrugged, leaning against her driver door and adjusting a beach bag strap on her shoulder. "That's the plan," she confirmed. "I just want to help get some affairs in order. There are so many things we need to do this week. Besides, if on the off chance my parents come home in the next few days before I can reach them, it would be weird if Ayato was staying there by himself."
Fujimaki gave a deep laugh. "Wait till they find out their unwed daughter has been sneaking a guy into their house and letting him sleep over while they're gone!" he teased. "No parental supervision? These things you're going to do together, aren't they usually done between a married couple—?"
Yuri threw a bottle of sunscreen at him. It bounced off his forehead with a resounding thunk.
"And seriously, what's with you calling him Ayato all of a sudden?" Hinata asked, while Fujimaki rubbed at his temple with a frown.
"Oh, that." Yuri perked up once she spotted the Masudas pulling into the parking lot. "That reminds me. There's one more thing I need you all to keep in mind while you're in Akuma."
Matsushita looked over as he was helping Shiina get a cooler out of Yuri's trunk. "What's that?"
"As far as everyone here is concerned, Ayato and I are still married."
"EEEHHHHHH?!"
Gesturing with one hand for the Battlefront to stifle their bewilderment, Yuri took Ayato's wrist in the other, tugging him along to meet their friends at their car and help them unload. Ami was working to free Mio from her car seat while Masuda fetched a portable speaker dock, chairs, and a cooler from the back. Though Masuda didn't approve of Ayato lifting anything especially heavy, he agreed to use the latter's arms for towel bags. They were almost done and ready to go when Ami found herself having some trouble balancing Mio on one arm and keeping a precariously placed toy shovel from falling out of the bag on her other one. She tried to jostle it into place, but it toppled out and hit the pavement with a clatter.
"Ooh," Ami sighed in dismay, looking over her shoulder at the fallen toy and then her friends and husband with their full hands, before visibly debating whether or not to set Mio or the bag back down and get it herself.
Coming up behind her, Kanade carefully knelt to pick up the shovel, then tapped her on the shoulder and held it out to her. "Here."
"Oh! Thank you-" Ami started to say, accepting it gratefully, but then her eyes grew big as they traveled further upward. "Tachibana! How nice to see you again!" She made a move as if to hug her, but then thought better of it, considering the child in her arms. "Or, isn't it Otonashi now? Jinko mentioned you got married recently..."
She and Masuda took to Kanade and Otonashi rather quickly, falling into a conversation while they started their trek toward the beach area. Ami was absolutely delighted when she found out that Kanade had finally met and even befriended Yuri without knowing she had been Sakurai in the play. Since Otonashi knew next to nothing about said play except for what he had learned earlier today, it made for an excellent icebreaker between him and Masuda (who had worked the lights and voiced the final antagonist of the story, the mysterious underground omniscient figure who had been behind the shadowy demon monster).
Ayato watched them converse, honestly relieved they were getting along so easily. Not that he didn't expect them to, but this wasn't the subject he anticipated them bonding over. At least it was something positive.
"Okay," said Hinata, as they were walking across the parking lot. "Why are your other friends Noda and Yui clones?"
"What?" Ayato snorted in disgust. "He is not Noda. In appearance or intelligence."
"Fine, maybe not," Hinata replied, stroking his chin as he tried to sneak a good look at him. "But I swear he looks like someone we know."
"It's something in the jaw," Ooyama noted. "And the eyebrows, I think. And his eyes – they're really stern and familiar."
Fujimaki rolled his own eyes. "You can just say he looks hot."
Cheeks flushing bright red, Ooyama gaped at him and hunched his shoulders defensively. "That's not what I meant at all!" he cried, making Mitsuo yip in protest.
As they reached the beach part and started padding across the sand, Mitsuo tugging his leash as far as he could go and furiously sniffing around the new place, Yuri cupped her chin in contemplation. "It is true, though," she said musingly.
"That he's hot?" Ooyama asked, confused.
Fujimaki raised his eyebrows in exaggerated offense. "Yurippe, you shouldn't say such things in front of your husband."
"Not that part!" Yuri retorted, causing Ayato's shoulders to discreetly relax. "It's just... I never noticed it before. He reminds me of someone, but I can't..." She trailed off, growled, and knocked herself in the head. "Ugh, this is going to drive me nuts. I swear it's buried right underneath the surface."
"Memory problems?" Shiina said lightly. "That's new."
Yuri shot her a baleful look, but the woman had closed her eyes to bask in Hinata's and Yui's snickering. Of course, her eyes snapped open again when Mitsuo started barking and dancing at the end of his leash, hopping in the air and kicking up sand when he could go no farther.
"Mitsuo, settle!" Ooyama warned. Mitsuo whined excitedly in return, softening his barks to stuttered yips and chirps.
But Mitsuo wasn't the only restless one. At once Mio started to squirm in her mother's arms, her limbs flailing and her eyes aglow with determination. "Char! Char!"
Yuri, seeing that Ami had her arms full at the moment, stole a peek into the toy bag herself. "Did you guys decide to bring Charmander after all?"
Despite the battle she was currently fighting (and losing), Ami managed a chipper laugh. "No, right now it's his namesake she's after." She conceded and lowered Mio to the ground as one would a wriggling cat. And just like a cat, Mio instantly took off running as fast as her little legs could carry her.
"Char! Char!" she shrieked.
Not too far down the beach, a sturdy, tanned, bearded man had risen from his beach chair, and a huge grin stretched across his face as he lifted his sunglasses on top of his dark, dusty cedar brown hair.
"Somebody must've just used ember, because my ears are burning!" he jeered.
The girl squealed with delight and rushed at him faster. It really was a sight, a little puff of pink in a red-frilled orange one-piece swimsuit scrambling through sand and making Pokémon noises. But to Mio, and the Battlefront behind her, a much more incredible sight was just ahead.
"Char!" Mio exclaimed in happiness.
Yuri took a step forward, in front of the gawking Battlefront, disbelief written all over her face as she stared at the man and realization set in.
"Chaa," she said softly.
Crouching down, Chaa opened his arms wide so that a giggling Mio could crash into them. That she did, and he scooped her up in a hug. "Aw, c'mere ya little lizard!" He barraged her cheek with noisy kisses that made her shriek with more laughter, his facial hair no doubt tickling her face.
A woman came up beside him, along with an extremely sandy-legged young boy. Both of them had red hair, though the boy's was short and a dark rusty color. The woman's was more of a deep crimson, and it fell halfway down her back while in the front her bangs nearly covered her light green eyes.
"Can Auntie Ishiko get some love too?" she asked, leaning in with a smile.
"Sure, if you insist—" Chaa said, and dove in for a kiss.
Ishiko playfully pushed his face away. "Not you, goof! I was talking to Mio!"
While Mio happily indulged her aunt in affection, Masuda and Ami led the group in closing the distance between themselves and the couple's beach site. Grinning, Chaa opened his arms again, and Masuda set down his stuff before gladly falling into them.
"Hey, little brother," Chaa said warmly, throwing in those solid backslaps for manly effect. Ayato thought presently that no one should get sunburns around him.
A strange squeezing pressure on his hand caused him to glance over at Yuri. She had unconsciously gripped it in hers as she clapped her other one over her mouth, muffling most of her reaction to the sight of Chaa wrapping their friend up in a powerful hug. Her eyes gave her away; they glistened with recognition and gladness, and even, dare he say it, the understanding of an older sibling.
Pulling away, Chaa then moved on to greet Ami. "And here's my favorite sister-in-law..."
"Your only sister-in-law," she reminded him, disappearing into his embrace.
"Even if Ishiko's siblings were sisters," Chaa replied firmly, his eyes twinkling with fondness. "Still you."
"You Masuda men," Ami said, drawing away from him with a laugh. "Such conviction."
"Don't I know it," Ishiko chimed in with an eye roll, and when she hugged Ami it was quite obviously laced in solidarity.
While Masuda and Ami greeted their nephew, a boy named Hiroki who was anxious to show them his sandcastle and the huge hole he'd been digging, Chaa's casual glance toward the Battlefront became a baffled double-take. Particularly as his gaze landed on Yuri.
"Hey, Ishiko?" he said, studying Yuri's face intently as surprise gave way to a smirk. "Scratch that. I've found your long-lost sister."
Ishiko looked over, instantly spotting Yuri, and lightly elbowed Masuda. "Aren't you gonna introduce us to the troops?"
"Allow me." Parting the small sea that was his family, Chaa singled out Yuri and extended his hand to her with an especially friendly grin. "Name's Chaa. The older and cooler Masuda. Your doppelganger here is my lovely wife Ishiko, and this is our son Hiroki."
Yuri beamed briefly at Ishiko and Hiroki, before realizing her hand was still entwined with Ayato's. Quickly letting go, she stepped forward and accepted Chaa's handshake.
"I'm Yuri. Yuri Nakamura," she said, trying to remain composed and not too eager. Then, blinking, she reddened in realization and hastened to correct herself. "It's Yuri Naoi now. But you would've known me as Nakamura before you left."
"Of course," Chaa said with a nod. "Ami and Eisuke have told me so much about you, it feels like I know you already."
Behind Yuri, Hinata and Ooyama shared a look and tried to stifle their laughter. Which Ayato didn't appreciate, as he was already on high alert since remembering the little detail of Chaa once calling Yuri his wife. But also this was different from the Noda situation – he couldn't have them embarrassing him in front of his old friend by taunting his brother with Battlefront memories. At least not in quite the same way. Glancing over his shoulder, Ayato flashed them a warning look to behave.
"And that would make you Ayato Naoi," came Chaa's gravelly voice. Startled, Ayato turned his head back around and snapped to attention. Chaa hovered over him, tall and burly and smirking, and Ayato swallowed hard as he realized he was just a little bit terrified of him. He wasn't nearly as pale as Kimito and his raspy voice was deeper, but he had a commanding energy that was only barely lessened by the fact that he was wearing gray-green swimming trunks.
"Yes sir," he blurted, tensing up and squaring his shoulders. As if not slouching would ward off Chaa breaking through his memory loss and somehow getting a whiff of everything he'd ever done with or to Yuri in the past few years.
Chaa startled, then burst out laughing. His own shoulders shook with the intensity of his guffaws. Ayato felt his face heat up with embarrassment.
"Did you hear that?" Chaa said, turning to Masuda. "Your friend here 'yes sir'd me! As if I were a damn military man." He put a hand to his head, pushing his hair back against his scalp. "Good lord, I've officially turned into our father..."
Masuda and Ami, to their credit, had the decency to cover their smiles. But Yuri, who had mainly just stared a little, finally did something that caught Ayato by surprise. She curled herself around his arm and leaned into him.
"Please excuse my husband," she said, running her fingers along his arm comfortingly. "He's a little on edge lately."
Ayato side-eyed her, making every effort to mask his astonishment. As if that was doing anything to assuage the searing heat in his cheeks, having her touch him like this. But it did make Chaa's features soften in understanding.
"Ah, yes. Please accept my condolences," he said, and bowed respectfully. "I've been told it was a rough night. Even so, it's an honor to finally meet the two of you."
Ayato nodded. "Thank you for having us," he said, shaking Chaa's hand and still feeling like he was meeting Yuri's father all over again. "I hope you don't mind us crashing your anniversary celebration like this."
"Not at all," said Chaa, waving him off. "As Eisuke will tell you, I'm the extrovert of the family."
And as they settled in, it became evident that this was the case. Unlike Noda and his wariness towards the Battlefront when they first met, Chaa grandly welcomed them all, learned their names, and helped them set down or put up their stuff. He did a double-take at Kanade, though, and it definitely helped Ayato's nerves towards Chaa to see the man startle at the sight of a tiny snow-haired woman holding a floral orange and white towel and sipping from a juice box. But Ishiko liked her very much, since she'd complimented her swimsuit and praised Hiroki's sand handiwork, so Chaa quickly warmed to her.
Meanwhile, Yuri and Ayato chose their spots – next to each other, so as not to arouse suspicion. Bags down, towels draped over their chairs, they kept close to the Masudas' bonfire that was still under construction. The beach was not especially populated right now, so the sitting logs here and there were also up for grabs. There was one close to the small forest area bordering the beach that Ayato thought he might go to when he was ready to get away from the group and make some phone calls.
"You guys aren't going into the water?" Ooyama had asked, hovering over them as Yuri unpacked her sunblock.
Yuri held her wrapped hand up for display. "I might, but I figure I'm going to want to keep this away from salt water as much as possible."
"Same here," said Ayato, grimacing at the thought of the waves crashing against his cut. "Sea and stitches don't mix."
"Is it really that bad?" Fujimaki asked, quirking a brow. Ayato had worn a t-shirt to the beach with little intention of taking it off, but his friend's eyes burned with curiosity.
Sighing, he lifted the bottom of his shirt, raising it high enough to reveal the stitched line along his lower abdomen. Everyone leaned in to get a closer look. Matsushita the Fifth gave a low whistle.
"Damn," said Hinata. "He really sliced you."
Otonashi inspected it, tilting his head to the side. "It actually doesn't look too serious. As long as you keep it clean."
"I think it looks awesome," Fujimaki countered. "Scars are sexy. What do you think, Yurippe?"
Yuri narrowed her eyes at him, then followed his not-so-subtle neck movement gesture towards Masuda and Ami, who were chatting with Chaa and Ishiko within earshot.
"Do I think it's sexy that my husband got attacked?" she quipped.
"No, that he got in a fight and won!" Fujimaki insisted. "Pretty manly, huh?"
"That's your takeaway from this?" Otonashi said under his breath.
Ayato lowered his shirt with a harrumph, unsure whether he should be amused or disturbed by the fact that Fujimaki was trying to play wingman for him over a laceration wound. Despite this, he couldn't help but look over at Yuri, who heaved a sigh.
"I'm just glad he's okay," she said quietly.
His features softened. The Masudas couldn't possibly have overheard that...
Their curiosity slaked, the others wandered back to their spots to get ready for beach fun. Ooyama always carried sunblock on him, so aside from the bottle Yuri had brought from her parents' place, that started getting passed around the group. Otonashi, health-conscious as he was, had his own for himself and Kanade. Yuri and Ayato decided to share hers, and she offered it to him first since he would be done with it quicker.
"Naoi, are you sure you don't mind any of this?" Otonashi asked thoughtfully from his and Kanade's spot nearby. He moved Kanade's hair aside to get her neck and shoulders with sunblock, then looked over at him. "I don't want you to think we're celebrating your parents' deaths."
You can celebrate one, Ayato thought darkly.
"That's not what we're doing here," he said instead, slathering his arm with lotion. "We're celebrating what we always do on these weekends. Finding one another. Being brought back together." Studiously he gave his other arm the same treatment. "This weekend was supposed to end on a high note. I'm glad you're here but I want you to enjoy yourselves. It's what my mother would've wanted."
Otonashi nodded in understanding. "Alright," he said, clicking the sunblock closed. Kanade's navy swimsuit covered up almost as much of her form as Ayato's t-shirt so there hadn't been much to protect. After standing up, he placed a hand on Ayato's shoulder. "Just take it easy today, okay?"
He had a look of gentle empathy in his eyes. Like he knew it wouldn't be easy, and he knew Ayato might not heed his advice, but he wanted to give it anyway. So Ayato nodded back at him, if at least to show that he'd been heard, and Otonashi smiled before taking Kanade by the hand and helping her up. They headed towards the water together, fingers entwined.
Ayato watched them go for a few seconds, then resolutely finished working on his legs.
"You done with that?" came Yuri's voice from beside him after a moment.
"Huh?" He'd spaced out, and time had gotten away from him (auto-pilot again). "Oh, yeah. Here."
Turning to hand the bottle over to her, Ayato raised his eyes – and almost let it fall out of his grip into the sand.
At some point while he and Otonashi were talking, Yuri had taken off the clothes she'd worn to the beach. Now she was standing in front of him in her deep purple two-piece swimsuit that flattered her lithe feminine figure, the skirt bottom ruffled at the hem and sweeping up to her hip with a bow, revealing much of her long, slender legs. He followed them back up her body to the dainty white ribbon nested in the center of her bikini top, promptly blushed a scorching red, and averted his gaze to her outstretched palm before hastily dropping the bottle into it.
"Thanks," Yuri said, and squeezed some sunblock into her good hand. "You sure you don't need more? Your face already looks a little sunburnt."
"Don't worry about it. I'm fine." He was avoiding her eyes, so he couldn't tell if she was teasing him or not.
"Alright..." She made short work of her arms, then sat down on the edge of her chair and started rubbing sunblock up and down her legs.
Ayato sucked in a breath. Maybe he'd better just not look at her at all. He wiped his hands off with a towel and picked up the address book, pretending to scour through it. A shrill, excited yell made him glance up in time to see Yui splash into the waves after Kanade and Otonashi, leaping on the latter from behind in a surprise attack.
"Hey!" Otonashi's yelp turned into laughter. "Just so we're clear, no German suplexes in the water!"
"Don't give her ideas!" Hinata called from the shore.
Shiina, interestingly enough, had gotten pulled into a conversation with the Masudas. By the sounds of it, Ami recognized her from the baseball game eight years ago. She had been in the bleachers a couple of rows behind her when Shiina caught that foul ball, and was recounting the story to Masuda, Chaa, and Ishiko while praising her reflexes. While Chaa had this look on his face like he was trying to place her from somewhere, Masuda looked particularly impressed, especially by the part where she'd jumped from the bleachers and vanished from sight.
One of his favorite subjects of interest in the past had been ninjutsu, so probably he was already picking up on something about her. Ayato had a feeling they'd get along...
An irritated growl from Yuri broke into his thoughts. He glanced over as she was turning to Fujimaki, who was exploring closer to the forest area and inspecting sticks (either for roasting food or for playing fetch with Mitsuo). "Fujimaki, would you get my back for me?"
Fujimaki put on his best scandalized face and jabbed a finger in their direction. "No way! Your husband is right there, why don't you ask him?" He snorted and crossed his arms. "Besides, I'm not your slave—"
"Hey, could somebody get my back?" Ooyama called out.
"On it!" Fujimaki loped across the beach to him.
Yuri did a mix between a sigh and a growl. She sat there for a moment, chewing her lip, then cut her eyes to the side – clearly not expecting to already meet Ayato's gaze. Looking caught at first, her expression eventually turned sheepish and apologetic yet hopeful.
"Do you mind?" she asked.
He looked back at her pensively. What a question... He cursed Fujimaki in his head.
But what was worse? That's what he wondered. Touching her, or watching someone else touch her when he wouldn't dare?
Fine, whatever. He'd done this more times than he could count.
"I guess it would be weird if I didn't," he conceded, getting up from his seat. He moved to sit on her chair and she shifted her hair to the side, presenting her back to him. Taking the sunblock from her, he squeezed out a handful and began massaging it into her skin. He'd forgotten how soft and smooth it was, how much he'd liked tracing his fingers along her spine at night before they fell asleep...
No! He needed to focus. No matter how great her hair still smelled from the shower she took today. Or what a crime it was that these hands had been parted from her back for so long, as big a fan she'd been of them (she'd said a potter's hands were perfect for massages). His mind did not have to go there.
"How's your hand, by the way?" he asked, desperate for a distraction. A safer one, at least.
"Hmm... the stitches are starting to itch now. It's driving me crazy." She examined her wrapped hand. "But even if I could get around the gauze to scratch them, I think of my nail accidentally scratching them out and I just—" She shuddered through a cringe, her back muscles tensing as she did so.
Ayato grimaced in empathy. "And thank you for that mental image."
She laughed appreciatively. "Sorry..."
Actually, he had very much meant that particular "thank you." Such a disturbing thought was already proving useful for the delicate situation he was in. The perfect preventative against… well, ill-timed stirrings. He could work with this.
Almost done, he moved to her shoulders, working the sunblock into the area between her shoulder blades. And that's when she did the worst possible thing she could have done to him right then. She arched slightly into his touch and gave the smallest, quietest moan.
She'd tried to muffle it, he could tell. Somehow that just made it so much worse.
His heart stuttered and then beat faster. He tried to pretend like he hadn't noticed it. He planned Fujimaki's own slow torture. Then he dropped the sunblock, contemplated running screaming into the ocean's cold water, wiped his hands off, and grabbed his phone and towel and the address book.
"Alright you're all set I've gotta make some calls," he choked out in a rush, then scrambled away until he was at the safety of the sitting log in front of the forested area.
Why had he agreed to a beach day again…?!
A/N: Not much of a cliff-hanger, but it was the best cut-off point I could find to ensure you all didn't have to read a 10k chapter! ^^
Also, just wanted to give a well-deserved shoutout to Cha0T1cPeace for suggesting that Chaa was (a) Masuda! We got a glimpse of Chaa and Ishiko on this beach in TPS Chapter 15, so I knew he had to be from or around Akuma. And I also wanted him to be found there. So when I read the "Chaa/Masuda" theory, it lived in my mind rent-free for a while as I compared the two (possible militaristic upbringing, solemn severe stares, smugness and subtle humor, soft spot for Yuri) and then I realized, "Oh my God. They're brothers." Like pardon my HP but the dude is clearly the Regulus to Chaa's Sirius. Or the Faramir to his Boromir?
So thank you kindly for helping me reach a glorious truth! My mind was blown. And I have been waiting for this reveal for a long time.
Anyways, see you all in very early September for part II!
Preview:
"You shouldn't exert yourself."
"Someone ought to tell him he has a new fan."
"When were you going to tell us about them?"
"A lot has changed for us."
"No one wants to feel like a replacement, Ami."
"I'm surprised Yurippe didn't hear about it."
"Expecting someone else?"
"They keep themselves busy."
"What's the meaning of this?!"
[Chapter 63]: An Ill-Timed Beach Episode (Part II).
