.

Takaba Akihito is on my mind again. I took him to my bed after rescuing him from Fei Long only because I wanted to keep an eye on him for a while–– although I will admit, the thought of having his warm body next to mine was appealing.

When I awoke a little while later, the warmth was gone. He had slipped away while I slept.

I had hoped to spend a little more time with him to make sure he was all right, but I was never given the chance. So now I feel uneasy.

Still, I have to move on. I went through all the necessary motions to prepare for work. I showered, dressed, and went out for a late breakfast. On the way to my office I saw a young man with dyed hair walking down the sidewalk. I lowered my window for a better look. As we passed him I saw he was carrying a camera bag.

As if he sensed my presence, the young man turned to look in my direction and our eyes met. Suddenly, he performed a rather rude gesture solely for my benefit, then he broke into a mischievous grin and ran away.

It was such an absurd thing for him to do, yet I found myself laughing out loud at his antics.

I really shouldn't be messing around with this kid. He has the spirit and energy of youth which is incredibly addicting. He is a wine produced from wild grapes. Surely I can allow myself one sip from time to time.

So when I arrived at my office, I gave the order for someone to watch him for a while. One should enjoy the bouquet first before consuming the wine.

These reports were a fresh breeze to the mundane routine of my life. He had not suffered from the events with Fei Long. He stayed busy supplementing his newspaper job with a variety of other freelance photography jobs, and spending time with a friend whose wedding was rapidly approaching. He made no more attempts to investigate me, so again I needed to find a way to pique his interest. However, before I had the chance to do something about it, I received a report that we were not the only ones shadowing Akihito.

.

思考

Another secret to success in the world of business is appearance; how you appear to those who pursue you as an ally, or to those who seek to oppose you. Confident, unruffled, and in charge at all times. Show no weakness or fear, despite how you might feel deep down, or else they will swallow you alive. Eventually it becomes a part of your being and less of an act.

In the underworld, these qualities are an absolute must. Any weaknesses in your armor will be exploited for all that it's worth.

I overheard a conversation once–– a group of men discussing this crime lord, Asami Ryuichi. The demeanor I had put forth had created something of a legend.

I have no fear. I would not hesitate to kill or to torture my opponents. My power is unbreakable. No one would dare cross me, otherwise the consequences would be unthinkable.

This is true.

Let me amend that–– some of it is true.

Only those with small minds believe that I have reached the state of godhood. A wise man knows better. I am, after all, only a man; complete with all the detestable human characteristics. There have been instances where I've felt a lack of confidence, where I've let my emotions cloud my better judgement, where I've felt powerless... but these events are few and far between. I believe I can safely say that I have an advantage over most men.

Then there's that one who has the cunning to discover where each and every weakness in the armor is located. How does Fei Long know?

Luck, perhaps. Or perhaps because I can't seem to help revealing them to him.

麻見 隆一

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I am now in constant contact with Yoh. He tells me since Fei Long returned to Hong Kong he's been in an unusually foul mood. I feel somewhat troubled that I might have revealed my hand in the way that I reclaimed Akihito from him. Akihito is simply an indulgence of mine, but he is mine nevertheless. However, I have no intention of allowing him to become a new weakness in my armor that Fei Long could possibly exploit.

Because of this, now we had to follow the follower. It only took a day to identify him. It turned out to be a colleague of Detective Yamazaki's, a man by the name of Imamiya. Our source told us there had been a rumor going around the precinct that a high-profile underworld figure had stormed a Chinese crime den in order to rescue Yamazaki's pet former juvenile delinquent. Imamiya was attempting to make that connection to me. This was an annoyance since it now meant I had to keep my distance from Akihito.

Akihito continued to go through the motions of his normal life, ignorant that he was being watched by my people and by a cop. Yoh reported that while Fei Long grumbled occasionally about being bested by "a brat", his attention was now directed toward another faction that was attempting to wrestle away a rather lucrative deal from him. Yoh had also mentioned there were some within the Baishe who thought Fei Long's leadership abilities were beginning to deteriorate. I think Fei Long has enough on his plate that he won't be troubling me in the near future.

It was another late night at the office when Kirishima informed me that Akihito had gained entrance to the Shinjuku club as the guest of a member. Kirishima wanted to know whether or not he should have him tossed out.

Akihito inside one of my clubs... a chance for me to meet up with him again. After all, what would be suspicious about paying a visit to one my own business places?

It probably would not be a good idea though. Imamiya might have followed Akihito there.

"He managed to get in, so let him enjoy himself... although I suspect he'll be shocked once he realizes how much drinks cost."

"There's a vendor/client meeting going on in the special VIP room."

'Vendor/client meeting' is the code for an arms deal. Now would not be a good time to show my face at the club, but with Akihito there...

I've never met anyone with such a nose for trouble. An unfortunate coincidence?

"Which member brought him in?"

Kirishima picked up the phone. After a few minutes he placed it back down. "The membership card that was used was recently reported as 'lost'. The person who presented the card has been identified as Detective Imamiya. What would you like us to do?"

I smiled. "Nothing." I put my briefcase on the desk and placed the file I had been reading inside it. "I believe I'm done for the night. Have someone bring my car around."

Kirishima brought his hand up to his glasses in what I like to call his 'how interesting' gesture. "Not the limo? Then you'll be driving yourself home?"

Kirishima knew damn well where I was headed.

"Of course," I told him.

麻見 隆一

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I used the back entrance so not to draw attention to my presence. My plan was to watch both the cop and Akihito from the surveillance room; however, before I could open the door, Akihito bolted out of the room right in front of me.

I can tell you I was not happy about that. How the hell did he get into that room so easily?

I grabbed him, probably a little too vigorously, and dragged him to the observation room for the special VIP suite. I wanted to show him just what kind of danger he was about to get himself into.

Just as we looked out, Imamiya entered the room. If he stepped any further into the room, he would see a rather shocking display of firearms. This was going to be interesting.

Akihito looked alarmed. "I need to stop him!"

"Why do you care so much about the cop that's been stalking you?"

He looked at me surprised. "How did you know about that?!" This was good, in my opinion, that he was aware that a cop had been following him.

I turned him back toward the window. "I think if we wait a minute or two, both of our problems will be solved. Let's watch together, shall we?"

I embraced him from behind and lowered my head to his hair, breathing in his fine bouquet. I didn't realize until that moment how much I had been craving his scent and the feel of his skin. I moved my hands up to loosen his carelessly knotted tie when my hand brushed across something odd upon it. I stopped and ran my fingers across it again. It felt like a thick button––

My hesitation cost me. Akihito broke free and slammed his hand down onto the alarm panel, setting off the alarm. The noise surprised the cop who turned toward the door, giving the dealers a chance to cover up the guns. The others in the room began yelling for security. We watched as the club's security men hurried in and then escorted Imamiya out.

Akihito turned to me, defiant. I looked at his tie and saw that the mysterious object appeared to be an RF transmitter bug–– a small microphone.

I had let myself be led by the nose–– or more aptly in my case, an appendage somewhat lower down on my body. I was being set up by the cop and this kid in front of me! I felt a surge of anger, more at myself than at Akihito. It was my stupidity that had gotten me into this situation. I angrily snatched the bug off his tie.

Akihito flinched, apparently thinking I was about to strike him, but then he saw the object between my fingers and he looked bewildered.

"What is that?!"

I felt a small feeling of relief. He hadn't known about it.

"Imamiya apparently didn't trust you, so he must have planted this listening device on you. Fortunately, we jam this type of signal here." The look on his face was the same look he had when he discovered the other cop, Yamazaki, had betrayed him. "You didn't know about the arms deal he was planning to bust here tonight, did you?"

I watched Akihito's face as he worked it out; the potential danger Imamiya had put him in by bringing him along tonight.

And again, the "bad guy" had saved him.

He tried to throw it back at me. "You're just as bad as he is! You're always following me, too!" Was he also aware of that? Good for him for being so observant.

"Why did you come along with Imamiya?" I stepped toward him and smiled. "Did you want to see me that badly?"

"WHAT?! NO...! "

I pushed him against the wall and held his chin firmly so I could lower my head down to kiss him. Unexpectedly, his lips parted without resistance. I accepted the invitation and slipped my tongue inside. After a while, I broke the kiss and looked at him. I saw anger mixed with desire in his eyes.

The wine was now ready to drink.

I brought his fingers to my lips and ran my tongue across them. His faced flushed as he struggled to keep from reacting... but he didn't resist either.

I reached down between his legs and I could feel that he was hard. I lightly caressed him through his trousers and felt it twitch beneath my fingers.

"That's a nice reaction."

"Just because that happened, don't think I'm going to let you have your way with me!"

"Oh?" I laughed. "Are you actually going to put up a fight? This should be fun." Akihito still hadn't resisted, so on a whim I decided to goad him into action. "I don't mind that you managed to get into my club, but breaking into the surveillance room... you'll have to be punished for that."

"PUNISHED?!" he yelled trying to push me away. "You assho––"

I quickly pulled out a handkerchief and stuffed it in his mouth. I grabbed his hands before he could reach up and take it out. "Shhh... you're ruining the moment," I mocked.

He glared at me angrily and started to struggle as I began peeling off his blazer and tie. Trying to unbutton his shirt as he was fighting was trickier. I finally got one arm out of a sleeve when he managed to pull one of his hands loose from my grip. I pulled my own tie off and tied his wrists together; yet another tie I've ruined with him. I wasn't able to completely get his shirt off, but it was good enough for my purposes.

I slipped my hand down the inside of his pants and began fondling him again. I heard him moan through the cloth in his mouth and then he relaxed, letting me caress him. I pulled my hand out so I could get his pants off but it was awkward being up against the wall, so I dragged him to the couch and pulled him onto my lap so I could finish undressing him.

Once his pants were off, I began stroking him again while I watched his face. His eyes were tightly closed, but he had the most erotic expression. I coated my fingers in the wetness that was beginning to drip from the tip of his erection and began stroking him faster. He was suppressing his voice but panting heavily through the cloth. This was causing a rather strong reaction in me. I was tempted to finish him off so I could watch him come, but my own desire told me I needed to take him.

Suddenly, he arched his back and thrust hard into my hand. No, not yet. I need to be inside you first.

I pulled my hand away and moved him off my lap onto the couch so I could get ready to take him. With his eyes still closed, he arched his back again and thrust into empty space, this time whimpering in frustration when there was nothing for him to thrust against.

It was unbelievable watching him. Takaba Akihito is quite possibly the sexiest human being I've ever encountered. I couldn't wait any longer. I pushed into him immediately.

His face convulsed in pain as he grunted loudly into the cloth. In my impatience, I had neglected to prepare him. But again, I felt that familiar heat and those seductively soft insides as he gripped tightly around me, and I knew there was no turning back. Something about being inside him is different than anything I have ever felt. I thrust into him, letting my own slickness lubricate his insides slowly. Again, those sounds came from him, alternating between pain and pleasure. I went to kiss him but that damn cloth was in the way, so I pulled it out with my teeth. Once it was removed, sighs and moans poured from his mouth. This time it was all pleasure. He shuddered and then clamped down hard on me as he came.

It was then that I lost myself in him. "You're mine, and mine alone... don't you ever forget that," I whispered in his ear before I came.

麻見 隆一

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I held him on my lap as he let me dress him. He had a pouty expression on his face which I thought was very cute. When I first saw him inside the club, I noted how sloppily he was dressed in that cheap business suit; with the top button undone and his tie loose in a simple knot. I buttoned his shirt all the way up and did his tie up in a double Windsor knot. It didn't look right on him.

"I think I prefer you dressed in your normal attire better." I reached up to readjust his tie and he slapped my hand away.

"I don't really care WHAT you prefer." He reached up and loosened his tie and then unbuttoned the top button. Yes, that did look a little more like Akihito. He got up and grumbled some impolite things as he stumbled out of the room.

Ah... the camera. I forgot he had been taking pictures. I called up security and told them to make sure they had someone relieve him of his camera before they let him go.

Remembering his cute pouty expression I told them, "Trade him a piece of candy for it."

I sat back and smiled contentedly. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed this evening.

麻見 隆一

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RF Transmitter Bug: a "Radio Frequency" transmitter. An inexpensive transmitting device used by individuals or private detectives. It transmits on the commercial FM band 88-108 MHZ (the signal can be picked up by an ordinary FM radio)