Neither of them mentioned the incident in the elevator for quite some time. Eiichi brushed it off as Van just wanting to comfort him. He had been hysterically crying and hyperventilating, after all, so Van probably did the first thing he could think of. No big deal. It had definitely worked, after all, but Eiichi tried not to let it show that he still thought about it afterwards. The feeling of being swaddled in Van's arms, of warm lips ghosting over his forehead - it was nice. Eiichi had gotten just a taste of Van's intimate affection, and though it was in a less than desirable situation, he couldn't stop himself from wanting more. From wondering what a kiss from Van would feel like in other places.

Things went back to normal, and Eiichi was perfectly content with that. He loved being around Van. Something about his presence was so calming, to the point Eiichi felt it was nearly impossible to be sad or anxious if Van was with him. Even just cooking side by side was soothing.

And that's what they were doing right now. Nagi and Eiji were out doing work-related things, Kira was at the piano, Shion was taking a nap, and Yamato was hitting his weekly gym trip which left Eiichi and Van in charge of dinner for the evening. They opted for a curry dish, something fairly simple since it was late. The two of them worked in comfortable silence together, the only sounds the sizzle of the stove, the chopping of ingredients, and a few idle notes from Kira's piano ringing out.

Eiichi wrung his hands on a towel after peeling the final potato, cold from letting the icy water of the sink run over them for extended periods of time. "Van, can you pass me that knife?"

"Sure thing." The knife was handed to him, and Eiichi smiled in thanks.

Adjusting his glasses, Eiichi set the freshly-peeled potato onto a cutting board and held it firmly with his knuckles curved. The knife made an oddly satisfying noise as it slid through the white flesh of the potato before thumping against the cutting board. He pulled his hand further back to let the knife make another slice. Another inch backwards. Another slice. Another inch backwards. Another…

"Shit!" The knife clattered as it fell hard against the kitchen counter. Eiichi raised his hand to his mouth instinctively, only to jerk it back at the unpleasant, salty taste that assaulted his senses. A small chunk of his skin was peeling away, revealing glistening red flesh beneath. Droplets of blood emerged from the gash and began their travel down his arm.

Van looked over at him as soon as he heard the first wince of pain. At the sight of blood, he rushed to Eiichi's side, the rice he had been stirring all but forgotten about. "Lemme have a look at it."

"I'm fine, Van."

"No, you're not. Look how much you're bleedin'. C'mon, lemme see it." Before the other man could argue further, Van reached out and gripped Eiichi's wrist so he could closer inspect the wound. Eiichi's entire hand was now coated in a thin layer of crimson, and the cut was only continuing to gush.

Van smeared a stray drop of blood away with his thumb. He clicked his tongue. "It doesn't look deep enough t' require stitches, but you're gonna need t' wrap it in some gauze. I'll be right back with the first aid kit, 'kay? Hold a paper towel to it while 'm gone."

Eiichi nodded and did as he was told, and Van was off. He returned minutes later with the first aid kit they kept in the apartment in tow.

"Yer hand, please."

His face flushing, Eiichi extended a limp hand to his friend, who took it delicately in his own. Eiichi averted his eyes - he was used to taking care of everyone else, not being taken care of. Having his friend tend to his wound was embarrassing, to say the least, but he trusted Van, so he let it happen.

Eiichi winced when he felt a stinging sensation ripple throughout his skin. "Sorry," Van mumbled, delicately dabbing at the lesion with a cotton ball saturated in rubbing alcohol. He gently blew on the exposed flesh to cool it down a bit, and the tension in Eiichi's muscles eased.

A few minutes later, Eiichi's hand was as blood-free as it had been before. His gash was thoroughly cleaned and concealed with a gauze pad, which Van had tightly wrapped an adhesive bandage around. He assured Eiichi that the bandage wouldn't come undone if he didn't pick at it, and advised him to replace it within the next three hours or so.

"Thank you, Van," Eiichi mumbled, lightly tracing the bandage around his finger. He looked up at his friend curiously. Honestly, he was impressed with how smoothly Van handled the situation. It seemed almost uncharacteristic of him; Van was so laid-back and happy-go-lucky all the time, it sometimes surprised Eiichi when he was reminded that Van had a serious side as well. "I didn't realize you were so adept at handling medical emergencies. Where did you learn this stuff?"

Van chuckled, scratching at the back of his head. "Ah, my big sis is a doctor. She was always really good at takin' care of me an' my other siblings whenever we got roughed up from playin' when we were little, so I guess I jus' kinda picked it up from her." He shrugged.

Eiichi always found it interesting that there was such a contrast between his and Van's family situations. Eiichi was the eldest sibling, Van the youngest. Eiichi's family was small, while Van had three siblings. Eiichi lacked a mother and Van, a father. Van seldom talked about his family but when he did, it was with such fondness that Eiichi couldn't help but smile.

"Ah, there's one thing she always did that I forgot t' do, though."

"Oh? And what's that?"

Van held out a palm, wordlessly requesting Eiichi's hand once more. Eiichi's lips parted, but he tentatively allowed their palms to meet. Van smiled at him, leaned his head down, and pressed a firm kiss to the affected area, right at the place where skin met bandage.

Heat broke out across Eiichi's face as Van pulled back. He could feel the flutter of Van's lips lingering against his skin, his stomach doing backflips. The loving glint in Van's chocolate eyes and the smile tugging at the corners of his lips didn't do much to keep his pounding heartbeat at bay.

"Better now?" Van whispered after the two spent a few moments staring into each other's eyes.

"Mhm." Eiichi tried to retain eye contact with Van, but his gaze kept flitting down to the other man's lips. "Yeah… much better. Thank you."

They went back to making dinner, but whenever Van wasn't looking, Eiichi's fingers would trace over the space he had kissed once more.