A/N: Wow! It's been such a long time since I updated! As always, a huge thanks and lots of cookies go out for everyone who reviewed! Thanks for helping get past the 200 mark! I'm so, so so excited! Lost Fantasies is now on the Author Alert list of 88 people and I'm in shock (the best kind)! Thank you all! Enjoy this chapter, it kind of wraps up the first half of the story, and the second half is going to begin in Chapter13.

Enjoy the chapter!!

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XII

-

Ryuzaki was pleased, but when she sat across the table, her expression was stern, heavily rouged lips set in a straight line. She knew she should be frowning, after all, a contract was called a contract for a reason. But the fact that Fuji, one of the brothel's best had been promised to a little nobody, who couldn't even afford that much for a contract. She'd only gave it to him out of pity.

But now, to think that Fuji had broken through once again and snagged an acquaintance of Atobe Keigo's as his savior. How very like Fuji, Ryuzaki was secretly pleased, so much so that she felt giddy. Airy, like she had swallowed too much gin in one setting.

As for Tezuka, he had obviously no idea that she was pleased, in fact he thought otherwise, and wanted to disappear. He took comfort in Fuji rubbing his knee and concentrated on that, instead of the woman glaring at him from across the table.

"Fuji, you know breaking a contract is a very serious matter. You've already done it to me many times." Ryuzaki started, her voice stern.

But never with a client this filthy rich. Surely Fuji wouldn't just throw this Tezuka out like he did a host of others?

Her eyes searched his. And Fuji, now with his head nestled on Tezuka's shoulder, just grinned at her.

"I know." The boy said, "But I love Tezuka-sama."

Both Ryuzaki and Tezuka looked as if they were struck by lightning. The former, because it wasn't something Fuji said. Fuji despised love, didn't believe in it. The latter, because he still couldn't come to terms with how easily Fuji professed 'love' for him.

There was a stunned silence.

Then Ryuzaki recovered and said, "...I guess if you're that sure about it, I won't stop you. But I hope you did tell Tezuka-sama that our contracts are expensive."

With that, she gave Tezuka a pointed glance.

So it all came down to money. Of course it did. It was what Fuji did for a living, and money was what bought his emotions.

Tezuka took a deep breath, "Name a price." His voice betrayed him, shaking just a little. What had Fuji said? That Atobe had been trysting with a certain Echizen Ryoma for three years. Three years was a long time when it came to Atobe's loyalty.

And then when he looked into Ryuzaki's eyes and knew why.

Even with Fuji's hand settled encouragingly on his knee. Tezuka still cringed when he wrote the check.

-

And his hand trembled, as he handed the check over.

"Nice doing business with you, Tezuka-sama."

Tezuka could have kicked himself right then and there if it was a physical possibility. But then he looked at the boy beside him...and melted all over again.

-

Back in Fuji's suite again, the boy just looked at him.

And then Fuji pressed close.

"Tezuka-sama..."

"Hm?" Fuji's warmth pressed against him was quickly becoming something familiar, something that was no longer threatening. His own arms came up to hold the other loosely to him.

"Thank you." And then Fuji was silent, content. "Would it be too out of line for me to want to give Tezuka-sama a kiss?"

One kiss. Tezuka considered. Without warning, his cheeks warmed and he nodded. "...Just one." Besides, it wasn't as if he and Fuji hadn't..kissed before.

"One." Fuji echoed dutifully and stood on tiptoe to press his lips to Tezuka's mouth. One kiss, like his client requested, sweet and chaste, nothing more.

Tezuka relaxed and let the boy bring him closer.

Then--

"Well, I can't say I didn't see that one coming."

As if the voice of the intruder was a poisoned dart, the two of them sprang apart and even Fuji looked disheveled.

Oshitari Yuushi leaned lazily against the door frame and gave them a catlike smirk. Like he knew everything...which in reality, wasn't all that far from the truth. He took in Fuji's pretty blush gaze, and his companion's flaming cheeks and laughed outright. "Honestly, if you want to partake in this kind of activity, the very least you could do is close the door, Fuji. Or are you really so shameless?"

"At least have the decency to knock." Fuji said petulantly, like a child would.

"I would have knocked if you'd even bother to close the door." Oshitari said.

"We weren't even...doing anything." What caused the boy to stutter so? Oshitari's gaze wondered to the man who was trying to disappear against the wall. Certainly not... "I mean...I was just giving Tezuka-sama a kiss." And the Fuji recovered. "What are you doing in my room, anyway?"

Tezuka-sama. Oshitari's eyes flickered again. So now he had a name. He crossed his arms, "I heard you signed a new contract. Is that true?"

Fuji didn't look at him, "About fifteen minutes ago, yes."

Oshitari's smirk grew wider, "You slut." But he said it laughing.

Still, Fuji looked up, horrified...looking so horribly pathetic that Oshitari almost wished that the words didn't leave his mouth. "Oshitari--"

But Tezuka—

Oshitari knew he was Tezuka, even though he had never laid eyes on the man. Fuji Syusuke's latest conquest, and quite an exquisite one at that, he had become a great legend as of late. Any acquaintance of Atobe Keigo quickly rose to the status of legend.

The legend had once been Sanada, Yukimura's lover. And now, it was Tezuka.

But Tezuka beat him to it, even if he was rather disarrayed at the moment, Oshitari still had enough sense to consider his presence somewhat threatening. If not physically, then almost certainly economically.

Tezuka said, his eyes and voice both icy cold. "Apologize."

Oshitari felt as if someone had socked him good and hard in his stomach with that single command. It took him a moment to realize that his mouth was hanging open like some idiot. He quickly closed his mouth.

He hadn't known anyone could administer a glare that could make him tremble like that.

"...Sorry." 'Sorry I called you a slut' didn't seem so appropriate.

Silence.

Then, Tezuka said, "Get out."

Oshitari was only too happy to obey.

-

"Fuji, look at me." There was a familiar warm hand against Fuji's cheek, which burned with the utmost humiliation. Once upon a time, he would have laughed, for the insults were true, and he had taught himself not to mind; he was even a little proud. But it seemed that Tezuka-sama turned everything upside down for him.

"I can't." He shook his head, "...Oshitari told me exactly what I am. He's always done that." Only this one time...it hurt so much. Fuji felt a large lump in the base of his throat. "Maybe...Tezuka-sama...I shouldn't have done it. I shouldn't have made you sign my contract with Sumire-sama. I can't...ask you to cater the rest of your life to a little sl--"

Tezuka's mouth was against Fuji's own. The kiss was warm and forgiving, and Fuji was still.

"You said you were in love with me." Tezuka said quietly when he pulled away. "I can't have a...slut in love with me. Fuji in love with me..that's enough" The sentence left his mouth with some difficulty. There were some words thrown in that weren't commonly used in Tezuka's vocabulary.

"But--"

Tezuka silenced him with another kiss, a kiss that made Fuji feel beautiful, and—though Tezuka claimed that he was not capable of love—loved.

-

The terms of the contract stated that Fuji would be under the jurisdiction of the brothel for three more days. There were many things to be done, and tons of paperwork to be filled out. Tezuka still couldn't help but feel as if he had purchased very expensive livestock instead of an actual person.

But the fact that a person had to be purchased was wrong altogether.

He was four months' salary short, and for the first time in a very long time, he thought he was financially threatened, although of course he wasn't. Tezuka Kunimitsu was unusually prudent with money. Fuji had failed to dent his accounts, like he had originally feared.

Tezuka-sama, I love you. The boy had become very fond of saying.

Turning the phrase over and over in his mind became a habit of sorts. It wasn't like Tezuka knew what that meant. And he had the feeling that staring at the darkened ceiling was not going to help things.

His cell phone beeped and he reached for it. Winced at the name.

Atobe Keigo.

He flipped it open.

The voice at the other end sounded so smug. "So ore-sama will overlook the fact that you skipped a day's worth of work. On a few conditions, do you want to go drinking?"

Tezuka considered, getting him drunk again so that Atobe could revel in the details of the one-night stand that never happened. But then, he wondered...if it had happened, he wouldn't be in this mess.

But drinking didn't sound like a bad idea.

"I suppose." And besides, the question was phrased in such a manner that even Tezuka didn't dare refuse.

-

"Yukimura."

"It's my last night, and you still can't bring yourself to call me Seiichi?"

The two lay side by side on Yukimura's bed. Except for the sheets on the bed, the room was completely bare. Fuji reached out and curled a dark silken lock of Yukimura's hair around his finger. "I'm trying not to miss you too much."

"But you're going too, with your Tezuka-sama. I'm sure it won't be too bad."

His Tezuka-sama. That made Fuji blush in spite of himself. "He's not ...my Tezuka-sama."

Yukimura's eyes laughed at him, "Well, say whatever you like, he will be soon enough." And then Yukimura sighed, "...Are you nervous?"

"A little." Fuji agreed, "I...well, what if I can't make Tezuka-sama love me?" He had pondered the question endlessly, and each conclusion that he had drawn...was not satisfactory, at all.

"You will. And when the time comes, you will let him love you." Yukimura sounded calm about it, "And it won't be goodbye for us. I've given you my address and I expect you to come by often."

"I will." Fuji wanted to ask what that meant...letting Tezuka love him. But then, he realized that his asking would be in vain, so he kept it to himself. Yukimura never told him anything about love, except that one day he would be loved.

"And bring Tezuka-sama with you. He needs some air."

That made Fuji giggle, and for that one moment, he felt years younger. "All right."

Yukimura smiled and kissed him, a chaste brush to the lips. "Good. Now go to sleep. You don't want to wake up with circles under your eyes. It's unbecoming. Stay as beautiful and young for as long as you can. There's plenty of time to be old later."

-

In the morning, they had a send off for Yukimura, who looked like a pretty rose of a bride on Sanada-sama's arm.

Fuji smiled.

Two days from now, it would be him.

-

"I can't believe you got contracted before me." Ryoma pouted.

Fuji smiled indulgently, feeling wise and accomplished for nothing, "I am older. There's plenty of time for you, if you ever get out of Atobe-sama's clutches. Which is something you should think seriously about, by the way."

The boy shot him a healthy glare, "I can't tell the difference between the two of you, sometimes." He was sprawled on his stomach, and hugging a pillow, making him look so mistakenly innocent. "Why do you hate him so much?"

"Saa..." Fuji shrugged. "I wonder."

"Fuji-niisan."

Fuji allowed himself a vague smirk, "You won't get it, even if I did tell you. But rest assured that I hate him."

"Is there a chance that you'll stop hating him?"

"...Why so charitable, Ryoma?"

Ryoma bit his lip, hard. "I hate it when he talks about you. He says how much he despises you, and he never thinks about me. All he can say to me, is how much he hates you."

"He does hate me." Fuji said. "It's not something you can change. It's not something he and I can do anything about. You won't get it, and I know that Atobe-sama would never forgive me if I told you. I hate him, but the Atobe-sama I hated was gone long ago. I don't wish him to suffer. So you have to stay by his side to keep him happy."

The boy still wouldn't look at him.

"Keigo said...Keigo said the two of you were in love once. Is that true?"

Fuji paused. He took a deep breath, "He told you that?"

"Is it true?" Ryoma asked again.

The next time he saw Atobe, Fuji vowed to give the man a good talking to. He smiled, and shook his head, "No, of course not. Atobe-sama and I grew up together, in growing up, we grew too much alike." He laughed, and his laugh was surprisingly bitter, even to his own ears. "Atobe-sama loves himself. No one else."

-

"You'll be kind to Shiraishi-sama after I leave, right?"

"He won't come find me. You're the only one he likes." Oshitari shrugged, 'Besides, I don't understand how Ryuzaki let you get contracted, I mean...after you leave, we have a lot of ground to make up for. Are you absolutely sure you won't consider?"

Fuji giggled and kissed the man's throat.

"Is that your way of telling me that you miss me?"

"No." Oshitari spoke quickly, too quickly.

Fuji just grinned at him, "Thanks, Yuushi. I'll miss you too."

Oshitari opened his mouth, and then closed it again. "Fuji."

"Mm?"

"Are you just going to go like this?"

"I learned something." Fuji sighed, he made himself comfortable in Oshitari's arms and didn't feel guilty. "I learned that loving someone who doesn't love you yet is a very dangerous thing. But of course I can't stop, and it's not something you can protect me from. I'm grateful to you, Oshitari, even though of course there are times I'd love to strangle you."

"You should stay. That way you won't be hurt."

"Tezuka-sama will never hurt me." Fuji smiled at him, "Don't worry so much. And we will see each other again, you can come visit when Tezuka-sama isn't home."

-

And then when Fuji left the brothel for the final time and walked with Tezuka to his car, he felt surprisingly empty, although he had Tezuka, who had quietly become everything and more. He wore regular clothes that Tezuka had bought him, and most of his kimonos were packed away in neat boxes that sat in Tezuka's trunk. Fuji hadn't worn a t-shirt and jeans since forever and it felt weird.

Tezuka's car smelled fresh of something lemony. They did not speak on the ride home, and Fuji was glad. It gave him time alone with his own thoughts and he wondered how Yukimura was doing.

He spoke when Tezuka parked the car, it was the first time that he would be stepping into Tezuka's apartment, and the thought made him anxious. "Tezuka-sama?"

"Yes?"

"This is where you live."

"Yes." Tezuka got out and opened the door for him, he offered his hand, which Fuji gladly took because it was familiar. This was probably how brides felt when they went home for the first time. Giddy, and nervous. He smiled at Tezuka, and Tezuka managed a twitch.

He followed the other man up the stairs, characteristic of Tezuka, he ignored the elevator. They climbed to the third floor and stopped at the second door on the right.

Fuji waited. He felt Tezuka let go of his hand, and press something cold and metal into his open palm.

"For you."

Fuji felt warm. He inserted the key in the the lock and turned the knob. The door opened. He turned his head just in time to catch Tezuka's very faint smile, but it was a smile nonetheless.

"Welcome home, Fuji."