Author Note: This took a bit longer than expected, I had been hoping to upload this on our Orca's birthday, but I failed ;_; but nonetheless here is the next chapter. Honestly, I didn't expect the wonderful response this story has gotten. Thank you! I only wish to contribute a little to this wonderful ship!
Warnings: (see chapter 1) but also, a little NitoRin, 'cause of reasons. Also, this will be a relatively slow-paced relationship type fic. These two have way too many demons to get together right off the bat, is this considered a spoiler of my own story? Hmm…
Disclaimer: I don't own Free! or High Speed! for that matter.
….
The night air was pleasantly warm as Rin walked back to his apartment. Only few people roamed the streets at this hour, mostly young couples. The wind picked up as he rounded a corner, his apartment building coming into sight. He was only a few feet away when his phone rang, startling him. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw who it was.
"What is it, Ai?" Rin paused outside his apartment building. There was awkward shuffling from the other line before an uncertain voice spoke up.
"I-is it too late to meet up?" Rin frowned.
"No, it's fine. Give me thirty minutes." The call ended after a few more words. Rin hurried up to his apartment and showered in under ten minutes. Gou said nothing as she watched her brother dress up for his night out with a friend. She smiled as he ruffled her hair and walked out the door. He wasn't surprised to find a dark, sleek car parked on the end of his street.
"I wasn't expecting you to call." Rin said as he sat down on the passenger seat. The handsome young man on the driver's side gave a weary smile.
"Well, I, uh, figured you'd be done by now." The man brushed his grey hair back, his eyes darting to Rin briefly. With that Aiichiro pulled out of the street and drove off. Rin remained silent as he watched the lamp posts and street signs zoom past his eyes. If he were honest, he was extremely glad that it was Aiichiro Nitori who was requesting him tonight. Though he hadn't done much at the Tachibana household he was still tired, and wasn't really in the mood to force himself. Fifteen minutes later they reached a luxurious hotel swarming with people, most of them foreigners. Rin waited by the entrance while Ai spoke with the valet worker. They'd been here before, Rin recognized a few faces here and there as they walked toward the reception desk. The brunette behind the desk was also familiar. She gave them a tight-lipped smile as she nodded to whatever room Ai was requesting. Her smile faltered when Ai leaned closer to Rin, whispering something in his ear. Rin wanted to smirk but kept his face neutral. After they were given their room key, they headed for the crowded elevator.
"She didn't seem very happy to see us back." Rin said. Ai gave a soft chuckle but didn't say anything. When they finally reached their room, Rin wondered if he'd ever get over the fact that the rooms here were always bigger than his apartment.
"Do you want to shower, Rin-senpai?" Rin shook his head, removing his shoes.
"Already took one. I've told you that you don't have to call me that, Ai." The blue-eyed man smiled a little.
"You'll always be my senpai." Rin was about to argue when a pair of arms clasped around his waist. Rin allowed the shorter man to have his way with him. The night was a blur of heated words and sweaty embraces. By the time Rin woke up the next morning, the sun peeking through the blinds unpleasantly, Aiichiro was gone. Rin yawned, noticing the stack of money on the dresser. He smiled up at the ceiling. This is why he liked spending the night with Ai. Rin hated it when his clients dragged on their meetings, insisting on hanging off of Rin, Ai was well aware of this and always left before Rin woke up. To this day his kouhai was still very considerate of him. With nothing else to do in the unnecessarily large room, Rin got up and dressed. He tucked the money away in his pocket and left the still crowded hotel, ignoring the curious glances thrown his way.
…
"I've already apologized, I don't know what more you want." Rin huffed into the phone. It was late, he was tired, and didn't have time for obnoxious blonds. The man on the other end was having none of that.
"I want you to stop being a jerk and call Mako-chan." Nagisa was equally agitated. They'd been arguing for the past ten minutes.
"Why the hell am I the jerk? You were the one who tricked me into going over to that guy's place." Rin rolled over, covering his eyes with his free hand.
"Come on, Rin-chan! Haru-chan absolutely adored you, and Mako-chan was very pleased with all the stuff you taught him." Rin scoffed, remembering the little boy's scowling face. Warm green eyes and a kind smile came to his mind next. Rin sighed. Two days ago he'd received a call from Makoto Tachibana, the little boy's guardian, asking him if he could baby-sit once again. Rin had refused, coming up with a very lame excuse, and upon hearing the disappointed voice of the brunette he instantly felt like shit. However, he tried to convince himself that he was doing the right thing. That they were way better off being apart from him. The gnawing guilt didn't leave him, and it was starting to piss him off. He didn't even know these people, for God's sake!
"…it might even be good for you, Rin-chan! And-"
"Alright, alright, just shut up! I'll call him tomorrow." He ended the call when Nagisa's cheering threatened to leave him deaf. He threw his phone to the side and rolled over once again, throwing a pillow on top of his head. His reasoning was off, he was just being selfish. He had no need to work for Makoto, not when he could make double what he would earn by babysitting the scowling Haruka with one hour with his regular client. Nevertheless, he had enjoyed the warm atmosphere in the brunette's home, and was reluctantly craving more of that. It reminded him of when he and Gou were little and their mother would ask them to set the table for dinner while they waited for their father to come home. That warmth, that familiar warmth, was what he felt around those two, and he craved more of it.
That night he dreamt of sunny skies and salty waters, there was no screaming or tears or fear, only laughter and peace.
…
Rin made good on his word. The very next morning, after he showered and ate, he called Makoto. The brunette had been very glad to hear from him, and got even happier when Rin said he could watch Haruka again. Makoto explained how his department was having meetings in the evening, and that he had been hoping Rin would be able to watch Haru again since the boy had taken a liking to him. Rin nodded through most of the conversation, finding it amusing how much the man could ramble on. Finally, Makoto had to stop himself when he realized he was late for his class. Rin chuckled as he put his phone away, that warm feeling spreading throughout his chest.
"Ooh, what's with that smile, Nii-chan?" Rin jumped when his sister appeared next to him, grinning too much like him.
"Nothing that concerns little girls." Rin smirked. Gou pouted.
"Why aren't you in school?" Rin stood from his chair. Gou turned toward the kitchen and served herself a glass of orange juice, and finishing it off in two large gulps.
"My first class doesn't start until ten. Though today I'm meeting someone for breakfast." Gou said as she picked up her heavy backpack.
"And, who might that be?" Rin said, eyebrows shooting up.
"That doesn't concern nosy brothers." Gou giggled at the disgruntled expression on Rin face.
"Gou."
"Relax, Nii-chan." Gou smiled, obviously pleased with herself, and, after receiving an identical smile from her brother, left the apartment. Rin stared after her, feeling a little lightheaded. She certainly was growing up fast. Soon, so very soon, he would have to face reality. He would have to stop lying about his reasons for doing what he was currently doing. So very soon he would have own up to his flaws. Rin pushed these unpleasant musings away and decided to drown himself in mindless television.
…
Apartment number 259A.
Rin knocked on the door, worrying his bottom lip. After a few seconds the door flew open and a disheveled brunette appeared before him.
"Ah, Matsuoka-san, please, come in." Makoto stepped aside. Rin's lip twitched in amusement. Makoto was missing a sock, his tie was loose and backwards, and his white shirt was wrinkled and stained.
"Are you running late?" Rin couldn't help but ask. Makoto closed the door, laughing nervously.
"I, uh, overslept." The brunette scratched the back of his neck.
"I told him to set an alarm, but he didn't listen." Haruka, the little raven, said as he walked over to Rin, suppressing a yawn. His inky black hair was sticking out in every direction, and his clothes were in a similar state as Makoto's. Rin didn't know whether to laugh or sigh.
"I didn't feel that sleepy…" Makoto mumbled.
"It's getting late, Makoto." Haru said, staring up at the clock. Makoto gave a sort of yelp and ran toward, what Rin assumed, was his bedroom.
"Have you two switched ages?" Rin whispered to Haru. The boy shrugged his shoulders and told Rin that this was a normal occurrence. Five minutes later, Makoto rushed out of his room, gave Haru a hug goodbye, and thanked Rin for showing up again. When the door closed, Rin turned toward Haru. The boy wasn't as reluctant about having a babysitter this time, but he still didn't look all that pleased. Once again, Rin asked the boy if he had homework and the boy nodded, getting up to go for his books. This time there was no English homework.
"Sensei got mad when I corrected him." Haru grumbled when Rin asked about his lack of English homework .
"Oh?" Rin sat next to Haru, peering into the book. There were a few multiplication and division problems.
"Makoto said that he would talk to him." Haru stopped talking after that. Rin watched as the kid worked through the problems, only erasing a few times.
"What grade are you in?" Haru's pencil didn't stop moving.
"Five." Rin was surprised. The boy looked so small, he had assumed he was younger. That would mean he was around ten or eleven years old. Rin looked down when he felt something nudge his leg.
"You can watch tv if you want." Ah, so the kid wanted to be left alone. Rin took the remote from Haru and turned on the nice flat-screen on the opposite wall. He flipped through the various channels but nothing caught his interest. There was a cooking show, an awful reality show, a kids show (he briefly thought of leaving it there, but Haru wasn't paying attention) and finally…
"…and it's Hawn in lane 4 who is currently in the lead. Followed closely by Kinjo in lane 2. It looks like it'll be a close match between these two…yes! With a great time of one-thirty nine, Kinjo advances to the next round." Rin's face lit up as he watched the man pull himself out of the water, exuberant smile on his face. It had been so long since he'd seen a swim meet, and by the looks of it this was an international tournament.
"You like swimming?" The soft voice caught his attention. Rin nodded, turning toward the little boy who had stopped writing and was staring intently at the screen.
"I actually used to swim…when I was in school." Haru's blue eyes twinkled as he gazed up at Rin.
"Do you swim, Haru-chan?" Rin found it surprisingly easy to address the boy by his nickname. Maybe hearing Nagisa call him that constantly was beginning to take it's effect. The boy didn't seem to mind though.
"I used to. I really liked it." Rin frowned at the sad expression that crossed Haru's face. Before he could ask why he didn't swim anymore, the boy continued.
"Makoto used to swim too." A smile tugged at the corners of Haru's lips. With one final glance at the tv, Haru took hold of his pencil once again and continued his diligent work. Rin's head was quickly filling with unnecessary questions. He brushed them away, wanting nothing more than to be the least involved with this odd family. By the end of the competition, which was won by an Australian, Makoto walked through the front door. He was muttering something about Ama-chan.
"Welcome home, Makoto." Haru said as he closed his book. The brunette instantly wiped the tired look off his face, replacing it with a wide smile.
"Are you hungry, Haru?" Makoto asked as he put his briefcase down and removed his shoes. The boy nodded.
"Would you like to join us for dinner, Matsuoka-san?"
Say no, no, no, no. Just make something up. Anything, just refuse the offer…
"Sure." Damn.
Rin sat awkwardly on the couch as Makoto stepped into the small kitchen to prepare their dinner. He had offered to help, but the brunette had kindly declined the offer.
"You are our guest, Matsuoka-san." He had said, smiling. Rin watched as Haru followed Makoto into the kitchen, a look of boredom on his face. Minutes later the little boy was setting the table. Rin stood up, determined to at least help carry the food to the table. There wasn't much to carry. The brunette had cooked up some mackerel, a bowl of plain rice, and, what looked liked, steamed cabbage.
"It's not much, but I hope you enjoy it." Makoto said, nervously pulling off the blue apron he'd been wearing. Rin sat down opposite of the brunette, with Haru to his left, eagerly pulling a grilled fish onto his plate.
"No, this looks great." Rin lied. He served himself some rice, the sad-looking cabbage, and topped it off with the small mackerel. So, the kid had not lied about what they ate everyday. Rin ate his meal quietly, every so often smiling at a particular comment Makoto would make.
"…She is a brilliant professor, but half the time I don't quite understand what she's talking about." Rin looked up from his plate to see Makoto carefully wiping the rice off of Haru's chin.
"Where do you teach?" Makoto's eyes snapped toward his own.
"Tottori University." Rin grinned.
"My sister is going there now. She just started." Rin said, finishing off his rice. Makoto's eyes lighted up at the shared information.
"She's a first year," Makoto said, thinking. "Ah, seems I won't get her until next year. Well, if she decides to choose my class." He laughed. To Rin's surprise, they shared a pleasant conversation over the University and Rin's sister. Makoto informed Rin that he was a classical literature professor, and that he worked with second and third years. Their talk was cut short when Haru began to doze off on the table, his chopsticks falling to the floor.
"I should be going now." Rin said as he stood and stretched. Makoto nodded, waking up the slumbering boy and sending him off to wash up for the night. When it was just the two of them the brunette turned to face Rin.
"Thank you again, Matsuoka-san. I don't know what I would do if you weren't available." Rin waived his hand dismissively, brushing away the memories of other times he's been told that, but in entirely different contexts. Makoto hastily retrieved his wallet and handed Rin his pay for the night. Rin said goodbye to finally stop the rant of gratitude that spilled from the other's mouth.
"Are you sure you don't need a ride?" Makoto asked one last time, half-way out of the door. Rin once again declined the offer and left before he was stopped by unnecessarily kind words.
On his way to the train station, Rin berated himself for continuing on with this farce. Though, technically he wasn't lying, only hiding the truth a little. The smile etched across his face clearly indicated that he was enjoying this situation. He wasn't hurting anybody, Rin concluded, trying to ease his raging mind. Besides, a few more visits to the Tachibana household would serve as a pleasant distraction while he waited for his usual clients to call him. With that in mind, Rin began to think of things he could teach the little raven that would cause his blue eyes to shine in admiration, and that would earn high praise from the friendly Makoto. His anticipation for his next visit to apartment 259A grew tenfold.
To be continued….
AN: One final thing. I'm working off the assumption that Iwatobi is based on the actual town of Iwami, but the fic is actually set in Tottori a city about 30 minutes away from Iwatobi/Iwami. This might be useless information now, but it'll count later. Just wanted to clear this up before I confused people. (Though I think I might have just done that).
Until next time my lovely readers.