~ July 3rd, Three Years Ago ~
21:37

Riku stood at the doorstep of Yu Haibara's mansion, waiting at the door with a heavy bottle of whisky tucked behind her back; she held the thick of the bottle's neck in her fist. The long, black curls of her hair had been blown out and flat ironed so that it was silk, bone straight; and she wore dark gray booty shorts, black thigh-high boots, and a black leather bodysuit that had deep cutouts on each side.

The private residence that belonged to Nanami's best friend buzzed with loud music, even with the doors and windows closed. Riku patiently hummed to herself, gently rocking from side to side as she waited for someone to answer the door. She smiled giddily to herself, genuinely excited to spend time with Nanami for his 26th birthday party. Riku couldn't remember the last time she'd been to a house party with all her yakuza friends, but she was glad Yu had convinced him to actually do something fun for once – usually Nanami hated celebrating in loud ways like this, even if it was a small get-together.

The door then opened, with hip hop music booming from the house much louder than before. Yu grinned on the other side of the doorway when he saw Riku; wearing an oversized, streetwear-branded white t-shirt, black tech wear cargo pants, and red Jordan 1s.

"Ri-Ri! Hey, babe! Good to see you!" He stepped forward and wrapped an arm around her, platonically pecking her cheek when he hugged her, "You look good!"

She giggled, "Thanks, Yu. Good to see you, too!"

He spotted the bottle behind her back before standing back upright, "That for Nanami?" He quirked a brow, dark brown hair of his bowl cut artfully framing his face.

"Mhm." Riku nods with a grin, "It's a limited release bottle of Hibiki Whisky. Only 9 other bottles like it in the whole world."

"Ooo, he's going to fucking love that."

"I know." Riku said confidently, mouth smirking and shoulders dancing a bit as she spoke.

"Well, follow me!"

Yu led Riku through various living room-like spaces and down a set of stairs that opened up into a vast, private home bar that had been decorated with Black, gold, and silver balloons – some even littering the floor. There was a huge banner of similar colors on the other end of the room that read, 'HAPPY 26TH BIRTHDAY NANAMI!' The space contained an extensive, wooden bar complete with stools and a vast collection of rare and expensive bottles, an area with a TV and a few couches, a makeshift dancefloor that Yu had probably constructed by himself, a long stretch of glass window that faced a huge backyard, and a grand, modern-style table covered in hors d'oeuvres with a tall yet simple strawberry shortcake in the center. The party setup and décor were so Nanami – simple, relaxed, and uncomplicated.

There were at least 14 other people in the basement space, a few folks dancing to the popular song that blasted from Yu's home speaker system and most chatting it up by the bar.

"Riku's here!" Yu announced, and a few heads turned in their direction.

"Ri!" Nobara shouted, beaming from the area at the end of the long stretch of bar space. The short, gold dress that she wore rose on her hips a bit when she waved.

"Hey, Riku." Maki chimed in from Nobara's side, straight-faced as usual but eyes smiling. She wore a faded purple band t-shirt that was tucked into tight-fitting black jeans, and accompanied by a blue jean jacket.

Riku's eyes spotted Nanami, who clearly hadn't heard Yu announce her arrival over the loud music as he currently chatted with a few of his guy friends from behind the bar.

Yu turned back to look at Riku, "Make yourself at home, Ri. And let me know if you need anything. 'Kay?"

Riku smiled softly as she nodded a few times, and Yu strode over to a group of people at the edge of the dancefloor.

Riku held her index finger up to her friends from across the room as if to say, 'give me a minute,' and made a beeline for Nanami behind the bar. Damn, he looks good, she thought to herself, always having appreciated his classy sense of style. Nanami had on khaki, tailored slacks that perfectly complimented his visibly toned legs and small, tight butt. He wore a black button up as a top, the sleeves rolled up to reveal his thick, veined forearms and the first few buttons undone to reveal a black tank top underneath it and a small, gold chain around his neck. The muscles of his pecs just barely peeked from the top of his tank, and Riku studied it much more closely now than she had in the past two years she'd known Nanami as her bodyguard. She never thought she'd feel anything other than a friendship kind-of-love for the man, but in the past few months she'd grown to find him attractive – an attraction not only for his body but more so for the way he treated her.

I'm going to tell him how I feel. Riku thought, reassuring herself as just a few days ago she'd decided to confess her feelings to Nanami on his birthday if she was able to get him alone for a minute.

Nanami loved her. And though the few times he'd confessed to her over the last two years were one thing, it was additionally obvious to Riku and all their friends through the way he looked at and acted around her. For the first time ever, Riku finally thought she felt the same and wanted to give things a try. Though the bottle of whisky tucked behind her back was her physical gift to him, Riku knew that Nanami would probably appreciate her confession a lot more.

Riku reached Nanami's back and tapped his shoulder with her free hand, appreciating the sight of him in something that wasn't a full-on suit for once. He turns, and his eyes temporarily widen with awe at the sight of Riku.

"Happy birthday, Ken!" She sang the words, bringing the bottle of whisky around to her front so that it was no longer hidden.

"Ri…" He reached down a bit and instinctively retrieved the bottle from Riku's hand before wrapping his thick arms around her in a tight hug.

Riku kissed his cheek, allowing her lips to remain there a hair longer than normal as she inhaled the subtle, dark forest notes of his cologne. He always did smell incredible.

"This for me?" Nanami asked after they broke their embrace, eyeing the bottle.

"Yep, it's a 30-year-old single malt scotch. A Hibiki Whisky small batch limited release… with only 9 other bottles of it in the world."

"Shit," His eyes widened in a bit of shock, "I've heard of this… this is a 20-thousand-dollar bottle!" He looked at Riku again, "You still got the box?"

"Of course." Riku smirked.

"Thanks, sweetheart." Nanami gazes down at Riku with a look so full of pure admiration that it honestly makes her heart flutter, "But a 20K bottle of whisky? You shouldn't have. I should save this for my 30th or something…" He suddenly dropped into a squat, looking around the back of Yu's bar before placing the bottle on a hidden shelf.

Riku shrugged, "It wasn't that hard to get. And hey, special bottle for a special guy. I probably owe it to you anyways, for getting me out of trouble all the time…" She giggled.

Nanami rose to his feet, offering her a small smile - a truly rare occurrence, "Yeah, you got that right."

Riku suddenly grinned, grabbing both of Nanami's hands with her own and swiftly interlocking their fingers as she did so. She slightly swung from side to side in time with the music and brought their arms up in a dance position, "You donna dance with me tonight?" She playfully batted her eyelashes up at the blonde.

He sighed but matched her swaying movements, the corners of his mouth curving even further up into a smile, "Oh, I can't keep up with you, Ri."

"Sure you can!" Riku released one of Nanami's hands then spun into his arm so that it's wrapped around her, and her back was flush with his front, "And if you can't, I don't mind dancing enough for the two of us…" She looked back at him and rocked her hips teasingly, and the two friends Nanami had previously been chatting with whooped and hollered.

Nanami chuckled then turned Riku back away from him, to which she twirled in a practiced way and stretched her arm out in a final pose. The small sequence earned a few claps for Nanami's friends.

"Have you eaten?" Nanami questioned, releasing Riku's hand from his gentle hold.

"…Does iced coffee count?" Riku replied with her own question, not-so-innocently.

Nanami rolled his eyes, placing his hands on his sides, "Jesus Christ, Ri. Please eat something." He checked his silver watch, "It's already almost 10 pm!" He paused before continuing, "There's plenty to eat. Yu even got chicken wings from Nagoya."

Riku's eyes widened, "Nagoya-style wings?!" Riku felt her mouth begin to water; she couldn't think of the last time she'd had good wings.

"Yeah, I know you like them so much, so I had Yu add 'em to the food list." He admitted.

"Ken…!" Riku looked like she was going to cry, suddenly squeezing Nanami tight in a hug. She stayed locked on him, propping her chin up on his shoulder to look at him as she spoke her next words, "Thank you!"

"Mhm, welcome." And there were those loving eyes of his, again, gazing directly down at her.

Riku felt her heart skip a beat and blushed, hesitantly breaking from Nanami before shyly easing away from the man, "Remind me to tell you something later."

Nanami shamelessly looked Riku up and down, a curious look on his face, "Okay... Everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything's fine." Riku offered him a relaxed, honest smile and held her hands behind her back.

"Good, then I'll talk to you later."

Riku turned around to walk towards her friends on the other side, and Nanami leaned against the back of the bar to watch her walk away.

One of Nanami's friends who had been watching the interaction patted him on the back apologetically, "Fuck, you've got it bad, man." He laughed.

Nanami shook his head a few times, just barely smiling to himself, "Shut up." He picked up the glass he'd been sipping from earlier, topping it off before raising it to his lips for a swig. He continued to watch Riku stride over to her friends, eyes locked on the exposed skin between her shorts and her thigh-high boots, "I mean, she's fucking perfect…"

His other friend nearby clasped his hands onto the trap muscles of Nanami's shoulders before aggressively massaging them in encouragement, "Never give up, bro. And it's your birthday today! Anything's possible!"

Nanami playfully shoved his friend away, "Yeah, whatever."

When Riku returned to her friends, she brought a small plate of wings with her, already through two of the six she'd piled on the tiny dish and eaten on her way over to them.

"Hey, Ri. Wait—" Nobara looked shocked when she saw Riku snacking on the wings, "There's Nagoya wings? What the fuck! Why didn't anyone tell me?!"

Mouth still full, Riku poked her plate in Nobara's direction, to which she gladly takes one.

"Thank you…!" Nobara cheered happily before taking a bite from her flat.

Maki reached over, not waiting for Riku to offer her a wing before taking one, "Nagoya wings?! Yeah, I'm gonna need one of those in my mouth right fucking now." She took a large bite out of the drumstick she'd snagged.

Nobara tried to swallow quickly, looking like she wanted to speak up all of a sudden.

"Don't you fucking say it—" Maki started to warn, but Nobara interrupted anyways.

"That's what she said!" Nobara shouted, before poking her wing in Maki's direction and laughing.

Riku giggled, not at the bad joke but more so to her friends' interaction.

"I hate you… so, so much. You know that?" Maki glared at Nobara, then finished her drumstick, placing the bone on the small pile of them on the corner of Riku's plate.

"Love you too!" Nobara blew a kiss to Maki then turned to Riku, looking her friend up and down, "Shit… you look hot!"

"Thanks, bae!" Riku smiled cutely, giving her friends a small twirl so they could see every angle of her outfit.

"Yeah, those shorts make your ass look fat as hell!" Nobara used her free hand to lightly tap the thick round of Riku's butt, and Riku poked it out a bit more flirtingly when Nobara slaps it a second time.

"Thank you…!" Riku half said, half sung, shaking her butt to the music for a few counts before ceasing and standing up once more. She looked to Nobara's dress, "Cute dress, Nobara!" then glanced to Maki, "And I'm definitely stealing your jean jacket."

Maki pulled the fabric closer to her body, defensively, "So you can lose it? No way!"

The three of them laughed.

"Oh, you missed the wonder boys, by the way." Nobara noted.

"Wonder boys?" Riku looked confused.

"You know which ones. The infamous, one and only dynamic duo?" Maki added, jogging Riku's memory.

Riku blinked in realization, "Oh! Gojo and Geto?"

"Mhm," Nobara finished her flat and put the bones on Riku's plate before dusting off her fingers, "Gojo was so hot, too. He had on this all-white getup that looked so good."

"They left already?" Riku retrieved her phone that stuck out her front pocket to check the time, 21:50, "But it's barely even 10?"

"Yeah, think they had an emergency to handle, so they bounced early." Maki explained to the best of her knowledge.

"Huh, strange… Seems like I always miss them." Riku thought to herself of all the times over the past years she'd known Nanami that she'd 'just missed' Gojo and Geto. It was more than handful of times.

"That is strange…" Nobara narrows her eyes at Riku, curiously, "Especially with Nanami being your bodyguard and the three of them being friends for decades… You've really never met Gojo and Geto?" She quired a brow.

"Not once." Riku said simply, "I mean, sure, I've seen 'em across a yakuza banquet hall once or twice at family meetings; but that's it, really."

"Weird." Maki concluded, similarly narrowing her eyes at Riku.

"Oh! And Geto had on leather pants! You missed leather pants Suguru Geto, Riku!" Nobara cried dramatically.

"Oh no! Not leather pants Suguru Geto! What am I to do?" Riku feigned excitement, rolling her eyes.

"Seriously! You wouldn't get it since you've never seen Suguru's ass in tight pants. It's a spiritual experience, Riku." Nobara said, hands on either side of her face and smiling at the thought.

"Relax!" Riku laughed.

Just then, Yu appeared from behind Riku with his hand out to take Riku's now empty plate of wing bones. He leaned over her shoulder with a smile, "I'll take that. You want anything else, or something to drink, Ri?"

She passed the plate to him, "Yes! Something strong… Like, 100-proof! Thanks, Mr. Host!"

"Ooo… so you wanna get fucked up, huh?" He grins.

"Just a little." Riku pinched her newly freed fingers together as a unit of measurement, smirking.

"Coming right up, babe." He winked at her before walking towards the back of the bar.

"Now, who the fuck is gonna dance with me?!" Nobara exclaimed, arms out.

"You know I'm always down to dance – DTD, if you will." Riku smirked, taking one of Nobara's hands and shaking it in the air.

"You kids have fun." Maki nearly crossed her arms over her chest, but Riku snagged her arm with her free hand, pulling both her and Nobara along to the dancefloor.

"What do you mean, Maki? You're coming, too!"

~ 22:58 ~

A group of seven including Nanami, Yu, Maki, Nobara, Riku, Momo – who had come all the way from the Kyoto yakuza syndicate – and one of Nanami's friends that Riku didn't know had separated from the larger group around the bar in the center, back area of the room, and currently sat on a few couches in the TV area with a roundtable in the center.

Momo and Nobara fiddled with a board game box on the center of the table that read, '21+ TRUTH DARE, OR DRINK: THE CARD GAME,' while Yu topped a few glasses off for those who'd requested him to.

Riku giggled when Yu refilled her glass, face blushing a light pink to the buzz she currently had as she was now 6 glasses of whisky in, "That makes seven!"

"And that's your last one for a while." Nanami pointed his finger at Ri from across the table.

"Oh, don't poop your own party, blondie. Lighten up!" Riku locked eyes with Nanami when she took her next sip, to which the man simply shakes his head.

"Why the hell are we even playing this?" Maki stared at the box in front of them, "It's a little childish, no?"

"It's fun! And it clearly says '21+' Maki!" Nobara finally removed the top from the cardboard box with Momo's help, pointer finger trailing over the big letters of the game's age rating for Maki to see and read.

"That doesn't… never mind." Maki stopped herself.

"You wanna play this, Ken?" Yu asked Nanami, before plopping down on the couch next to him.

Nobara and Momo held hands, looking at Nanami pleadingly.

"…Sure. As long as I can sit here and relax."

"Yaaaaay!" Nobara and Momo cheered, then organized the two decks of cards. The black cards had 'TRUTH' printed on the back, while the red cards had 'DARE.'

"I think this one's pretty simple," Nobara said, reading through the small paper card that had the game rules on it, "make a circle, pick a card from each pile, read them aloud and choose to do either the dare prompt or to tell the truth prompt. If you choose to do neither, you must take two shots as a penalty."

Nanami glanced to Riku upon hearing the rules, "Only truths and dares for you, got it?"

"No! You're boring!"

Nanami gave her a more serious glare.

"Ugh, fine. But only because it's your birthday." Riku relented.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, Ken." Riku said before taking another sip from her glass—needing to have the last word, as always.

"So, should the birthday boy go first, then?" After shuffling them, Momo organized the red and black decks at the center of the round table so everyone could reach.

"Why the fuck not?" Nanami set his glass down on the table before picking up one card from each pile. He read them aloud, "Tell the group if you've ever filmed a sex tape and if you still have it, or… moan in the ear of the person to the right of you for 10 seconds." The blonde looked to his side to find Yu sitting there, who laughs, "Yeah, no. Truth it is." Nanami concluded, and Riku booed. Nanami cleared his throat, "Uh, yes I've filmed a sex tape; and no, I don't still have it."

There's a few 'oos' and 'ahs' around the circle.

"Aw, why don't you still have it?" Nobara whined, asking outright. Riku giggled.

"Keeping that kind of stuff after you break up with someone would be kinda weird, no?" Nanami said, and it's seemingly enough to quell Nobara's curiosity. Riku wondered what Nanami's past relationships were like. He never talked about those things with her.

Nobara nodded, "Fair, fair. Okay, you're up next, Yu!"

Yu grabbed one of each card, reading them to the group, "Tell the group if you've ever cheated—or, take off the person's shirt to the right of you with your teeth." Yu glanced over at Maki to his right.

"Yu, if you so much as breathe on my fucking shirt…" Maki trailed off, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Okay! Okay. Then truth it is. Hm…" He pretended to think to himself, stroking his chin comically, "Cheat? Tokyo Yakuza men don't cheat!" He answered, a shit-eating grin on his face that was anything but honest and truthful.

"They sure don't!" Nanami's friend grinned from the opposite side, temporarily standing to high-five Yu.

"Oh my god, seriously?" Momo complained, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Yeah, you guys fucking suck." Nobara groaned, visibly agitated from hearing that annoying, too-often said phrase.

"Two shots for both of you!" Maki raised a finger commandingly.

"Alright, sorry girls! And say less, Maki." Yu quickly finished the liquid remaining in his glass before pouring both him and Nanami's friend double-shots – to which they then clinked glasses and downed their shots without a second thought. It was almost scary how easily they were able to drink them without so much as making a strained or uncomfortable face.

"Maki's next!" Nobara cheered from across the table, clapping her hands a few times.

Maki reached forward, grabbing a card from each pile before flipping them over on the table, "Tell everyone about the first time you came, or kiss the person across from you for 10 seconds… with tongue." Maki looked up from the cards, glancing up to find Momo on the other side—who blushed and glanced away after hearing the words, "You wanna?" Maki asked her, not even flinching.

"Hey, is that even a fair dare since you like girls?" Nobara asked Maki, who doesn't pay attention to her. She kept her eyes on Momo.

"Okay, sure!" Momo decided nervously, looking back at Maki with a shy, slightly embarrassed look.

Both girls leaned over the table, and Yu turned his wrist to look at his watch for a second, "I can time you two…" He grins.

Maki, completely unphased, rose her arms to hold Momo's small face in her hands; she brought her lips to Momo's, immediately breaking into a deep, passion-filled kiss while a few others around the table cheered. Even Riku was a little caught off guard by how expertly Maki moved her lips on Momo's, blinking and smirking a bit to the sight of her friend controlling the pace of it and exploring Momo's mouth at a steady rhythm. Maki barely talked about her own dates and relationships, too, so Riku didn't think Maki was the type to have so much experience.

"Time!" Yu shouted from over his watch, "Sorry, couldn't help but stare so it was more like 15 seconds." He chuckled.

Maki and Momo broke their kiss as soon as Yu spoke, both glaring at him in response before sitting back on their respective couches.

"Wow, that was… spicy." With alcohol in her system, Riku confidently said the words everyone else was thinking silently in their heads.

"Very." Nanami's friend added on, nodding his head in agreement.

"Ri-Ri's next!" Nobara shouts.

Riku slides a single card from the top of each of the two piles and reads them off, "Share two names from the group that you'd have a threesome with, or… do an erotic dance for the person right across from you for a minute." Riku looked up and locked eyes with the person right across from her at the table. Nanami. She grins devilishly, "Well, you know which one I have to do, don't you?"

Nanami facepalmed his hand over his face, dragging it down but unable to conceal the hint of a smirk on his lips, "Seriously, Ri?"

"Seriously, Ken. Come on, let's take it to the dancefloor." Riku rose from the couch, "Yu—can you change the music to something more… fitting?"

He pulled out his phone with a matching grin, scrolling through it for a second, "Sure can."

"Yay, Riku's dancing!" Nobara applauded in excitement.

Nanami's other friend pulled Nanami to his feet, and the group made their way back to the area where the bar and dancefloor were. Yu put a heavy chair in the center of the dancefloor and suddenly changed the music from chill hip hop to a sexy, slow R&B tune. The friend pushed Nanami to sit down on it and Nanami raked a hand through his blonde hair as he looked at Riku standing in front of him.

A bit of a circle is made as a few folks who hadn't been playing the game moved towards the dancefloor to see what was going on. Nobara and Momo cheered from the side of the floor and others joined in with a few hoots of their own.

With liquid confidence on her side and her experience as a dancer, Riku stepped forward to brush her index over Nanami's chin. She winked, "You're going to enjoy this." Nanami's eyes widened in response, and Riku backed up before she started to dance.

Riku recognized the song and used that to her advantage, starting with a slow strut. She smoothed her hands over her curves as she walked, pausing on time with the clicks of the song's beat before turning, and taking every opportunity to look back at Nanami seated on the chair in front of her as she moved. Riku turned again, then slowly rubbed her hands down her legs before falling into a full split—to which a number of folks cheered. She threw her ass up, then back down in the position, and turned over to work the floor, tastefully rolling her back into an arch and kicking her legs up in the air as she did so.

Nanami shook his head, but smiled, unable to tear his gaze from Riku's body as she skillfully pushed up off the floor, rising to her feet once more. She sharply bended at the waist, whipping her long, jet black hair over, along with her straightened back. She locked eyes with Nanami when she looked back this time, smoothing her hand over her ass. Riku then slowly dropped into a squat, popping her butt to one side before rolling her ass back up to a standing position. She gyrated her hips from side to side when the chorus of the song started to finish, then moved them forward to back, ending her little dance with another split.

Riku heard her friends and others shout and whoop loudly when she stood up again but she didn't pay attention to them. She instead kept her eyes locked on Nanami's widened ones; it was obvious that he was clearly trying to keep his composure, his fingers pressed to his lips. She enticingly strutted over to the man once more, only stopping when she was right in front of him to bend at the waist and peck his cheek with a kiss, "Happy Birthday, Ken." She purred into his ear, before leaving him alone on his chair.

~ 00:17 ~

Riku wiped her hands on the hand towel in the guest bathroom after washing her hands… All the wings and alcohol and cake had definitely caught up with her stomach, but, though very tipsy, she surprisingly still felt pretty good and in control of herself—both physically and mentally. That said, instead of exiting the bathroom and heading back toward the party room in the basement, she made a different turn and walked toward the mansion's main kitchen, sure that Yu had some ginger ale or ginger beer that she could drink to settle her stomach a little more.

She blinked a few times and froze when she found Nanami there, sitting on a stool at the kitchen island with a pint of pistachio ice cream and a spoon in his hands, "Kento? What are you doing here?"

"Ice cream break." He shortly explained, raising his spoon in the air as he spoke.

Riku hummed interestingly, making a beeline for the fridge and opening the silver double doors to scan its contents. She could understand Nanami wanting to take a break from everyone at the party; he was pretty introverted, after all.

"You?"

Riku was silent while she looked through the fridge, and only responded to Nanami when she found what she was looking for, "Aha!" She grabbed a can of ginger ale from the random mess of canned drinks in the door, showing it to Nanami, "Upset stomach remedy!" She beamed giddily.

"I told you to take it easy on the alcohol." Nanami noted, prodding his spoon in her direction as he spoke before taking another spoonful.

"I'm fine!" Riku cracked the can, taking a long series of sips from it until it's nearly done. She burps, "Whew, 'scuse me." She giggled to herself.

"You're drunk."

"No I'm not!" Riku yelled a bit loudly in the otherwise quiet kitchen, besides the loud music that blared from the floor below. She walked over to Nanami at the kitchen island then paused, "If I was drunk, could I do this?" She planted her feet in the floor, grounding herself in a slight squat and curving her arms in front of her, ballet-style. Riku then abruptly spun herself in a series of four pirouettes, before gently stopping and resting her previously raised foot back on the ground.

"Knowing you, probably."

Riku grumbled, settling to sit down on the stool next to Nanami's. She suddenly smirked slyly, scooting closer to him a bit with her next words, "Did you like your birthday dance?" She asked in a breathy, seductive voice.

Nanami huffed out a single chuckle, looking into the empty space before him before returning his gaze to Riku, "You seriously asking me this right now?"

"Yes…" She faced and playfully poked Nanami's shoulder a few times then continued, "…cause if you didn't, I can give you a better one…" She cooed, obviously flirting.

"It was good, Ri. Really good." Nanami said with a calm yet unplaced expression on his face, continuing to hold eye contact with Riku, "I guess I should say thank you."

"You're welcome!" Riku said confidently, face gleaming with her bright smile. She eyed Nanami as he took another bite of the pistachio ice cream and she suddenly leans over, only mere centimeters away from him when she spoke up again, "Ice cream me."

Nanami gave the other an honest chuckle before answering, "No."

"Please…?" She batted her eyes at Nanami, pouting her lips a bit to plead with the man.

He sighed, beginning to scoop another spoonful of the pastel, green-colored ice cream, "Fine, Ri." He held the spoon out in front of her mouth, and Riku took her time wrapping her lips around the ice cream and metal utensil, tilting her head back to pull her mouth off of it and revealing the now clean piece of silverware. Nanami's eyes followed each movement, gaze darkening with heat at the innocent yet simultaneously lewd nature of Riku's actions.

Riku stilled all of a sudden, eyes shamelessly gazing over Nanami's handsome face and toned body. She couldn't help but admire his outfit again, especially appreciating how the top buttons were undone to reveal a little more of his chest. Her eyes floated down to Nanami's hands, and she thought about how they had both innocently and protectively touched her countless times over the past few years—patting her head to tease or praise her, wrapping around her waist to pull her out of the less-than-favorable predicaments she'd always found herself in, wiping her tears away after her bad break-ups—she wanted to know what his touch would feel like when trying to please her. She blushed at her own thoughts, and Nanami noticed.

"What, Ri?" He spoke the words more like a statement than a question.

"You look nice." Riku smiled softly, snaking her hand down Nanami's shoulder to rest on the stretch of his bicep as she sat face to face with him.

"Thank you." Nanami said softly, simply because they were so close to one another.

"You should wear more clothes like that."

"You think so?"

"I think I like you."

"What?"

Before Nanami can say anything else, Riku pressed her lips to his, arms moving to rest on each of the blonde's strong shoulders.

He dropped the spoon and pint, and they clattered onto the kitchen floor. Nanami sharply inhaled through his nose, shifting to hold Riku's reddened cheeks in his hands before swiftly deepening their kiss. Riku appreciated how natural it felt—Nanami's lips moving on hers—how easy it was for them to mutually set a rhythm. Nanami bit Riku's lower lip between kisses, tugging it down with his teeth to make her open up her mouth a little bit more, to let his tongue in a little bit more… to let him deepen their connection a little bit more, "Shit."

Riku pulled back to stop for a moment, looking between Nanami's eyes as she felt a light flutter in her chest and a warmth below her navel. She finally reunited their mouths, this time maneuvering herself onto Nanami's lap and fully pressing her body against his.

"Ri," Nanami managed between their strong, passionate kisses that were quickly turning more and more lewd and open-mouthed, "Stop…"

"No." She refused, hands getting lost and tangled in his hair as she makes out with the man intensely.

"You're drunk," He said, reluctantly squeezing Riku's ass with his hands, beside himself. He couldn't help it; he'd wanted to have Riku like this since the day he'd met her two years ago.

"'M not…" She hummed out, darting her tongue over Nanami's lower lip before continuing to kiss him deeply. Nanami's hands smoothed up her sides and she moaned, shifting her hips forward to grind into his.

He broke their kiss to moan lowly at the command of Riku's hips, "Fuck, don't do this to me, Ri…" He cursed again when his dick twitched beneath the confines of his khaki slacks.

Riku pressed her forehead to Nanami's, beginning to roll her hips into his at in a slow rhythm. She rode his clothed erection, body even warmer from all the whisky she'd drank. Riku felt hot between her legs, and wanted Nanami to take care of it—just like he always took care of everything else. She didn't let up on her grinding and started to breathe heavier as she felt his dick grow beneath his pants, "Tell me you love me." She softly moaned, just above a whisper.

Nanami lowered his hands to Riku's ass and hips once more, "I love you." The words were easy to say, the man had confessed them more than a few times to her over the past two years, "I fucking love you, Ri… Which is why I need you to stop. You're drunk." Even as he spoke the words, his voice was heavy with arousal.

"But I need you—"

Nanami grabbed Riku's hips, harshly bringing them to a halt, "I said, fucking stop!"

Riku jerks back in shock at the sound of Nanami's voice; the man hardly ever rose his voice, and she'd never heard him yell like this. Not at her, at least. Nanami looked serious… seriously angry, and the way his dark, pained eyes stared daggers into her soul made her chest sink in a way she'd never experienced before.

"I'm sick of you playing with me, Riku. Now get the fuck off me and get the fuck out of here."

The heaviness in Riku's chest grew greater and greater and stung as she realized she'd been hurting Nanami all this time with the way she'd acted towards him. She felt tears try to push their way out of her eyes, but she was somehow able to hold them back. Was this what the mix of guilt and rejection felt like? Riku stumbled off of Nanami's lap and onto her feet. She wanted to apologize—for everything, "I'm so—"

"Just go." He didn't even look in her eyes as he waved her off.

Riku rushes from the kitchen, just barely able to get out of its opening before tears began to roll from her eyes. She didn't go to the bathroom, or back downstairs, but instead headed straight for the front door. A sob chokes its way from her throat when she's outside, and she clasped a hand over her mouth at the sound. She falls down to the grass on her hands and knees, unable to prevent the steady streams of tears that fell from her eyes.

Riku was so sorry. She'd never thought that her years of playful flirting had affected Nanami, but it was such a simple connection to make. How did I miss that? Why didn't I consider his feelings more?

Riku felt like a monster. Sure, she'd started to like Nanami, but he was her friend, first and foremost. She couldn't forgive herself for hurting her friend like this. She never wanted to do it ever again. She never wanted to feel this heavy, painful burning in her chest—it was a feeling that ran through her body and made her feel disgusting, like she needed to throw up.

Riku knew Nanami. She knew him and she knew that he would more than likely ask her in the morning if she'd remembered anything from last night.

And Riku decided that she would say no.