Iori has to admit that the skirt is comfy. He wasn't expecting it to look or feel good on him, but it's not the most unpleasant thing he's worn. It's not a bad garment for fighting, either. Unlike his signature red pants, the skirt doesn't inhibit his movement, making him quicker. He still likes the red pants, though. Prefers it over the skirt, but he can't deny that the skirt is nice.

He looks at his opponents, sizing them up. Four men, trying to corner him in an alley. This is child's play for Iori. He had parked his moped on the street, and was trying to get back to it when the men had approached him. They quickly realized that he wasn't a woman (not that he was trying to be one), and became aggressive.

It made Iori wonder what they would've done if he was a woman.

The first one lunges forward, attempting to grab him. Iori dodges easily, and while the man stumbles forward, Iori sends him flying with a well-placed kick. Two of the men draw weapons, while the other stays close to the wall.

One of the knife-wielders attempts to drive his weapon through Iori's skull, but he seizes the man's arm and smacks the knife out of it. While he's off-balance, Iori shoves him aside. The man near the wall picks up a steel pipe, and the other man with a knife slashes at Iori. While he's distracted, the one with the pipe swings down, aiming for his head. Iori tries to dodge it, but the steel pipe connects with his shoulder, and Iori grunts in pain.

A motorcycle goes by. Iori only notices it because the engine stops abruptly, and he sees someone running into the alley. Iori doesn't pay them much mind, at least not until he hears their voice.

"Hey! Leave her alone, unless you want me to beat you into the ground."

Iori freezes.

He doesn't quite hear what happens next, and before he knows it, the other man grabs him and pulls him out of the alley.

"Stay here, I'll take care of this."

Iori doesn't feel like he's really here.

The man makes quick work of the thugs, who scatter as soon as they realize he's a threat. Iori sees the brunette approaching him, wiping sweat from his brow, and immediately turns around. He spots his moped and quickly walks over to it.

"Wait!"

Iori's desperately trying to start the damn thing, pulling the key out and jamming it back in, but it won't start. At this point, he's positive that the universe is punishing him for something. Did he not feed enough cats?

"Hey, are you okay?" The brunette's voice is warm, and he leans in front of Iori, placing a hand on the moped.

"Uh," Iori clears his throat, attempting to make his voice sound higher, "y-yes…"

"That's a pretty nasty bruise," he says, taking Iori's arm and pulling him forward. Iori jerks his arm back, eyes wide in horror.

"I'm f-fine."

"You sure? You don't sound fine," he leans in further, scrutinizing Iori's face. After a moment, he pulls away. "I mean, I won't push it."

A few minutes pass in silence, during which Iori desperately pleads with whatever higher power is up there to end him.

"Name's Kyo, by the way."

"I know."

"Oh?" Kyo tilts his head, "do you watch the tournaments or something?"

"Um… yes," Iori realizes the hole he's dug himself into. Kyo grins at him.

"Yeah? You a fan of me?" Iori nods. He's digging himself deeper into the hole and he knows it.

He clears his throat again. "I-I like Yagami, too."

Iori's not even sure why he's compelled to continue the conversation. He could just punch Kyo and leave. But instead, he's digging his grave.

Kyo pouts— and Iori's baffled at that, because he's never seen Kyo pout like that.

"I mean, I guess he's all right… his fans are mostly girls, so it makes sense. But I don't think you'd like him very much if you actually knew him."

Iori narrows his eyes at that, and nearly forgets his falsetto. "Oh? And how would you know, huh?"

Kyo chuckles. "Trust me, he's not good boyfriend material. I think you'd have a better time with someone like me." Kyo smirks at the redhead, and deliberately gets into Iori's personal space.

Is… is he flirting with Iori? Doesn't he have a girlfriend?

To say that he is embarrassed is an understatement.

He is mortified.

It's late. He wants to go home. He's had a hell of a night. But for some fucking reason, Iori Yagami is sitting on his defective moped in a skirt while his fucking rival flirts with him.

How the hell does Kyo not realize it's him? He knows Kyo isn't the brightest, but surely, he's not this stupid? Iori hadn't even changed his physical appearance— aside from the eye makeup, of course. But… his hair was the same! And didn't Kyo find it odd that the woman he's talking to is six feet tall?

"I'm cuter than him, don't you think?"

Iori doesn't fully process the sentence, and nods. At this point, he's sure his face matches his hair, and even with the mask on, his flush is visible.

"Yeah?" Kyo steps forward, his nose almost touching Iori's, "well, I think you're pretty cute, too. If you're not busy, maybe we can—"

"Kyoooo!" a voice calls. Both of them turn, and Iori is once again mortified.

"Oh, Beni. What are you doing here?"

"I was at that bar over there, and I stepped outside for some fresh air, and then I saw you! So I came to say hi," the blonde flips his hair out of his face, and then he notices Iori. "Hey, who's your lady friend?"

"This is… uh, what's your name?" Kyo asks, scratching the back of his neck.

"You don't even know her name?" Benimaru crosses his arms, shaking his head at Kyo. "Not very courteous of you, Kyo." He turns to Iori, and his expression softens.

"What's your name, miss?"

Name.

What was his fucking name?

"...call me Miss X," Iori says.

"Miss X? Well, it's a pleasure to meet such a lovely lady. I'm Benimaru Nikaido," Benimaru takes his hand and kisses it. Iori wants to scream.

"I hope my ill-mannered friend here isn't causing you any trouble. You'll have to forgive him, he doesn't know how to treat a lady."

"Oi!" Kyo tugs Benimaru's arm, pulling him aside. "I was about to ask her out!"

"...don't you have a girlfriend?"

"Um… well, I mean— I guess Yuki and I are— I, uh…"

"Kyo! You can't just cheat on your girlfriend!"

Iori really wants to leave. He attempts to start the moped again. The engine starts, and for a moment he's relieved, but it immediately dies down. Iori lets out a noise of frustration as he throws his keys on the ground. The commotion draws the attention of the bickering men in front of him.

"Ah, sorry about that," Benimaru says, once again flipping his hair. "Kyo seems to have forgotten that he has a girlfriend. So that means he can't go on a date with you. I, however, am single, and would love to—"

"Beni, that's not fucking cool! I was about to ask her out, you can't just come in here and do that!" Kyo exclaims indignantly. Iori notes that he doesn't seem to care about his girlfriend.

"Language, Kyo! You can't swear in front of a lady," Benimaru runs his fingers through his hair— Iori's starting to get sick of how often he adjusts it— "and you can't have two girlfriends, either. Leave some for the rest of us!"

"I didn't ask for your opinion. Besides, you flirt with anything that walks. Don't lecture me on how to live my life." Benimaru colors slightly and glances at Iori.

"D-don't listen to him! It's not true, I'm a gentleman—"

"It is true! I've seen you at your photoshoots, you're always asking for the other models' numbers! As if that's not enough, you flirt with the staff, too!"

"W-well at least I'm not a two-timer! Who would want to date someone unfaithful like you?"

"I'm— I'm not unfaithful! Yuki and I are just… taking a break. It's… it's complicated," Kyo mumbles, looking away. He turns his gaze back to Iori. "Why don't we ask her who she'd rather date?"

"All right," Benimaru says, and now they're both getting in his personal space, "him or me?"

"You said I'm cuter than Yagami, so I'm definitely cuter than Beni, too."

"Hey!"

Iori backs up, but he runs into the brick wall of the building behind him. Kyo and Benimaru are staring at him intensely, and he feels heat rushing to his face. He's probably even more red than his hair at this point.

Iori silently prays for the earth to open up and swallow him whole.

Iori wakes up with a start. As his eyes adjust to the darkness, he realizes that he's in his room.

There's a faint light coming from the bathroom. Iori squints at it. After a few moments, a figure emerges.

"Oh, you're up." Kyo scratches his head.

"How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?" Kyo asks, as he pulls the covers back. Iori shakes his head.

"Might hurt in the morning. I'll get you painkillers if you need them."

The other man slips an arm around Iori, resting his head on his chest. A few minutes pass in silence, and then he lifts his head up to look at the redhead.

"Are you okay? I know it's two in the morning, but… you seem kinda… disturbed."

"Bad dream." A look of distaste crosses his face. "It involved you, Nikaido, and a moped." He leaves the skirt out— Kyo doesn't need to know about that.

Kyo looks puzzled. "Why was the moped there?"

Iori shrugs. Why was the moped there? He takes a minute to think.

"It wouldn't start," he says, "and I was trying… to make it start. I was trying to get away from you and Nikaido."

Kyo snickers. "Why? Did we do something?"

"You were flirting with me."

He feels Kyo laughing into his neck. "I can understand you trying to get away from Benimaru, but me?"

"We weren't… together in my dream," Iori says, "I don't know. You just… started flirting with me, and I didn't like it."

Kyo chuckles. "Sounds like an interesting dream. I doubt Beni would ever flirt with you, though, so you have nothing to worry about."

Iori sighs. He doesn't want to think about Nikaido, mopeds, or skirts for a very, very long time.

As he's drifting off, Kyo nudges him slightly.

"You should wear skirts more often. They look good on you."

"...the bra was a nice touch, too."