"So, what's your story?"
Hiro glanced up from his beer the moment the question had been asked, blinking a little at the halting Japanese spoken. For the last few days, he had been tailing Shuichi, making sure his best friend would be all right before he went home to Tokyo. It was the least he felt he could do after the small amount of hell he had put Shuichi through after Eiri's death. He still wanted to approach his best friend, but the timing had never been right, it seemed.
Upon looking up, Hiro saw the same police officer he had seen Shuichi with at the 27th Precinct but knew he was not the same detective who had taken his best friend in during his time of need. He shrugged, sitting a little straighter than he had.
"There isn't much to tell," he murmured. "I came here, looking for someone, and I found him. That's all there is to it."
"And have you approached him?" the man asked, sitting next to Hiro. The guitarist shook his head.
"No. I haven't. I don't think he even wants to talk to me anyway."
"Are you sure about that?" The man rested his arms on the bar. "Have you tried?"
"No . . ." Hiro frowned. "I haven't tried. He's happier not even seeing me, I'm sure."
"Then how do you know for certain if you haven't tried?"
"Because we didn't exactly part on the best of terms," Hiro all but snapped. Then he paused and inhaled deeply. The man had a point.
"You're here to make amends, aren't you?" he asked. Hiro nodded sullenly.
"Yeah . . . I just want for things to be the way they were . . . before everything went to shit, you know?"
"Yeah. Believe it or not, I know," the detective said with a laugh. "A fellow officer and I have felt that way for almost a year now. But things never usually go back to the way they once were. They can't, really. We need to learn how to adapt and move on, you know?"
"Yeah," Hiro murmured with reluctance. He sighed softly. "I've know that for a while now. It just doesn't make things any easier."
"I can relate to that."
They sat in silence for a few moments, Hiro contemplating what the detective told him. Maybe he could approach Shuichi and not have the conversation escalate into an argument. It was like the detective said. He would not know until he tried. A soft smile touched his features, and Hiro pushed his beer away from him.
"Are you going then?"
"Yeah," Hiro said. "Thanks."
"Not a problem," the man replied with a laugh. "I hope things work out for you."
"I do, too."
J.J. watched as the dark-haired man left the bar, seemingly in a lighter mood than when the detective had entered, and he shook his head. Japanese men were decidedly weird, in his opinion. Somehow, Shuichi had known his childhood best friend was in New York, though he would not tell J.J. how. It was a secret, apparently, but J.J. did not mind. As long as Hiro and Shuichi could overcome their differences, that was all that mattered. He raised his half-empty glass to the air.
"Merry Christmas, you two. Can't wait to hear how things turn out. This is my Christmas present to you, Shu."
"Shuichi . . ."
At the sound of Ryo's voice, the former vocalist glanced up. The sandy-haired man stood in the kitchen doorway, holding his hands behind his back, ironically under the mistletoe. An impish smile touched the singer's lips, and he rose to his feet. Ryo had given him another excuse to kiss him, not that Shuichi needed any reasons whatsoever. Since his confession earlier that week, his relationship with the detective had changed. Things were moving slowly between them, but Shuichi did not mind. From what he had learned about Ryo, the detective had been the uke in his last relationship, much in the same way Shuichi had been with Eiri, but their roles had been reversed. While Shuichi had been the one to pursue Eiri, Ryo's seme had pursued him, and it had taken Dee, from what Ryo had said, two years to win him over.
'Glad it isn't taking me that long,' Shuichi thought, his mischievous smile still in place. 'I think I'd have gone crazy to wait that long.'
"Yes, Ryo?" Shuichi sauntered over to him. He wondered if the detective knew he was standing under the mistletoe. Ryo smiled back at him, his dark eyes glittering.
"I have something for you . . ."
