Title: Family Ties
Author: Vicious Question Mark
Rating: M
Summary: Dee may have dragged Ryo out of the closet at work, but as far as Ryo's family's concerned, he's still straight as a board. When an unexpected visit from Ryo's Aunt Elena interrupts Dee's Christmas plans, Ryo may find himself in over his head. DLxRM. Yaoi.
Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own FAKE or any of the related characters or their personalities. I just like to manipulate them for my own twisted amusement (with my deepest apologies to Sanami Matoh for brutalizing and mutiliating her beloved characters)
A/N: Oh gosh…3 months! Guys, seriously, I am SO sorry, I hadn't realized it'd been so long and if you're reading this now and you've hung in for so long…I LOVE YOU! You all deserve a cookie, a really big one, the kind with a million chips. So this one is going up, and the next one will be up very soon and I promise there will be a very juicy scene with our two favorite cops! Hang in there, only 2 more chapters and I'm finished!
Chapter 8: Surprise!
Dee cradled his head in his hands, staring blankly at the spotless white tablecloth in front of him. They'd been in the restaurant for almost an hour.
Oh, there's a spot…Rick was babbling on about some stunt he'd pulled in high school. Something stupid, like putting the unpopular kids' boxers up the flagpole. Dee looked up at him, trying to picture him as a high school student.
Fat fat fatty.
That's not very nice.
No? But I bet it was true.
Regardless…
Well in any case he is now. Fat fat fatty!
You really don't like him, do you?
What was your first clue?
"Dee! Hey!" the dark haired man shook his head and looked up to find all three of his dinner companions staring at him. He turned to Ryo, who had just shoved him in the arm.
"…What?" he snapped. The blonde's eyes turned cold.
"I was just going to tell you that you're about 3 inches away from a face-full of zucchini parmesan, but apparently you don't care. Sorry to interrupt you." And with that Ryo turned back to Rick and Elena, proffering his shoulder to his partner. "Anyway, what were you saying, Uncle Rick?"
Stupid stupid stupid…
Dee stared at Ryo for a moment, then, grumbling, excused himself to the restroom. He would take any excuse to get away from him.
Damn you, Rick…You ruined everything. My perfect night, destroyed. Months of planning, wasted. $200 down the drain…and now you've even managed to get him mad at me. Well I certainly hope you're happy with yourself.
Dee pushed open the bathroom door roughly, accidentally slamming it into another, less angry, customer. The man stumbled backwards, grabbing at the wall for support. Automatically, Dee reached out and grabbed his arm, saving him from a fall onto the hard floor.
"Sorry," he mumbled. He let go of the man and moved forwards into an empty stall and locking himself in. He leaned against the cool wall, letting out a deep breath.
"Come on, Laytner, get it together. You're a cop for Christ's sake! You're supposed to be composed, remember?"
He stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets, adopting his tough stance. As he did so, however, his fingers closed around the package in his right pocket and he pulled it out. It didn't look like anything extraordinary, really. Just a tiny box wrapped in silver paper and a green ribbon. But this tiny, unremarkable box nearly made him lose his composure all over again. Dee stuffed it back into his pocket, leaning forward and feeling very much like he was going to be sick. After a minute or two he straightened up and took several deep breaths.
"Alright…back into the lions' den."
He flushed the unused toilet and went out to the sink, washing his hands and splashing cool water over his face, wiping both with a rough paper towel. He straightened his tie, pushing it all the way up to his neck again (he had loosened it a little after very seriously considering hanging himself with it) and buttoned his jacket. Tonight was going to be good, dammit, Rick or no Rick.
"Sorry, minor emergency." Dee sat back down at the table, now cleared of dishes, and accepted a glass of wine from the waiter. Ryo looked at him questioningly, but quickly looked away again when Dee caught his eye.
"Fire below deck?" Rick grinned and winked at him. "It was the waitress over there, wasn't it?"
"Er…ye-ah…ya got me…" Dee looked down at the table, rolling his eyes.
Moron.
He looked over at Ryo again, but the blonde was still looking determinedly away from him. Carefully, Dee slipped his hands under the tablecloth, leaning forward slightly to conceal them, and snaked one hand over towards Ryo's knee, giving it what he hoped was a quick, apologetic squeeze. Ryo, however, seemed to miss the apology in it. He gasped and pushed his chair back from the table, crushing Dee's hand between his knee and the table edge in the process.
"Ouch! Mother-"
"Ryo! What happened?" Elena leaned back from the table, startled. "Are you alright?" she stood slightly, leaning over towards her nephew to see what the problem was.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine…just…just thought I felt something…crawling on me." On this last part he shot a stony glare at Dee, who withered under it and turned to nursing his wounded hand. Rick was staring at him suspiciously.
God I was just trying to apologize…mother fucker that hurt…Dee flexed his fingers experimentally, wincing slightly. Nothing broken. Ryo was staring hard at the table, his cheeks flushed and his hands clenched together in his lap. Dee leaned over towards him, wanting desperately to make things right and not have the entire night be a waste.
"Hey," he whispered. "Ryo, listen, I'm so-"
"What is your problem tonight!" hissed the blonde, looking angrily at his partner.
"I'm just trying to-"
"Are you trying to ruin tonight?"
Rick sat across the table, watching the two men intently.
Dee frowned. "Tonight was already-"
"You're only making it worse!"
"Ryo, come on, I was only trying-"
"To get me into trouble! You just can't stand it, can you?" the blondes voice had risen a little without him noticing. Dee looked around nervously and noticed Rick watching them.
"Ryo please, I'm not trying to argue with you-"
"I bet you did this on purpose!" Ryo's voice dropped again to a hissing whisper. "You wanted to take me out…bull! You set this up, didn't you, just so I'd have to tell them!"
Dee's mouth gaped. Could he really be hearing this?
"That's what this was all about, wasn't it, that's what you really wanted!"
Dee felt his own face flush as his temper began to get the best of him. How dare he. How dare he! How could he sit there and say all those things? What right…what fucking right…what did Ryo know, anyway? What did he know about tonight? Nothing!
"Shut up," Dee hissed. "Just shut up right now"
Ryo's eyes widened. "Don't you dare tell me to shut up, Dee Laytner! Not after the way you've been acting all night! You haven't even tried to be nice! Probably just because your little plan didn't work, huh?"
"Dammit Ryo!" Dee slammed his hands on the table, rattling the water glasses. He pushed back his chair, standing up. "You want to know what I had planned tonight? Huh?" his voice rose as he shoved his hands into his pockets. Half the restaurant was staring at them, watching their little show. Ryo was staring up at him, almost fearfully. He couldn't remember ever seeing his partner so angry. "You want to fucking know what I had fucking planned!" Dee pulled the box out of his pocket, holding it up for anyone and everyone to see. "This. There it is, my huge plan! You want to know what it is? Well here, take it!" he chucked the box at the blonde, who caught it startledly.
Rick stood up. "You had better sit your ass down, Mr. Laytner, and stop screaming at my nephew! I know all about you, oh you bet I do, and I bet you just couldn't wait to get Ryo alone, huh, you faggot freak?"
Dee turned to the big man, his eyes blazing, and pointed a finger at him. "Shut up, for once in your big fat lifetime, shut the hell up, you homophobic walrus!"
Elena sat calmly in her seat, watching her nephew, who was currently holding an open ring box in shaking hands.
"Oh my God," he whispered, placing a hand over his mouth. "Oh my God…this is…that's what…" he lifted the tiny silver circle out of it's resting place and looked it over carefully, not hearing the shouting match that was still going on between his lover and his uncle. His eyes trailed over the Celtic-looking design around the outside, then to the inscription on the inside, his mouth forming the words slowly
Love is forever…Dee…
Ryo looked up from the ring, his wet eyes betraying his emotion.
Elena smiled.
"Dee…" Ryo stood up, speaking louder. "Dee…!"
Dee and Rick looked over, startled to hear Ryo's voice, returned now to it's normal, soft tone. Dee was the first to notice the empty box on the table, and the ring in his lover's hand. He swallowed hard.
"…well?"
Ryo took a deep, shaking breath and nodded his head slowly, taking a step to close the gap between himself and Dee.
"Yes…" he choked out a laugh, and with another step he was close enough to throw his arms around the other man's neck, holding tightly. "Yes," he repeated, his eyes roaming over the gorgeous face in front of him. Black hair…green eyes that right now were filled with a mixture of happiness and lust, and those lips…those amazing lips that Ryo couldn't wait any longer to feel against his own and on his skin…
He leaned up, crushing his lips against Dee's, everything else around him falling away.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!"
Rick's voice broke through their kiss, causing Ryo to pull away hurriedly, his face once again flushed, this time with embarrassment and arousal.
"U-uncle Rick, I-"
"Ryo that's disgusting!" Rick's eyes looked like they might pop out of his head. "I know we raised you better than that! What a disgrace…"
"HEY!" Dee stood, arms around Ryo's waist, holding him protectively, glaring at Rick. "I've listened to you all week, buddy, and I'm not going to put up with it anymore. Ryo shouldn't have to put up with it, but he did! You wanna talk about a disgrace? How about an uncle who eats too much, looks like a slob, and tells you that the way you live is 'disgusting.' How about a family who won't accept who you are, when they're supposed to love you unconditionally? How about you look in a mirror, Rick, before you go roaring on about how Ryo lives!"
Rick stood for a minute, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. Ryo took the opportunity speak.
"Dee's right, Uncle Rick. It's not fair for you to tell me that what I do is wrong, when you're so far from perfect." He took a deep breath, moving away from his partner. "Aunt Elena, Uncle Rick…I'm gay. I know that I should have told you sooner, but" he glanced at Rick. "I was afraid of how you'd react."
"Ryo," Elena stood up, coming around the table to take her nephew's face in her hands. "You never have to be afraid to come to us with something. Especially something like this. You're our family, Ryo, and we love you." Here she shot a glare at Rick. "And nothing is going to change that. Ever."
Ryo swallowed hard, tears finally spilling out of his eyes.
"Thank you," he whispered. "Dee," he turned to his lover, taking his hands. "Let's go home."
A/N: DON'T SPEAR ME! cowers Ok…Ok. The next chapter WILL BE UP SOON, I promise! And it will be good…rubs hands together maniacally Oh, will it be good. Sadly, this story is almost at its end, so I hope you've enjoyed it up till now!