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Honestly, this kind of place isn’t made for Kaoru.
Tourist-y interior, tourists on either side of his table, crowded street outside, and of course, western food. Not that Kaoru’s against it – the fries are really good – but if he were to choose any western cuisine, it’d be Italian. Not American, minus the fast food on last resort. But he guesses this fits his palate much better than any food he actually had in America. He wouldn’t choose a tourist diner for his lunch. He'd much prefer the ramen shop that he frequented since middle school, or the Italian restaurant near the main street. But the sun was quite nice when he went out earlier. He’s in a good mood, after finally finishing that one big commission successfully. So he – and Carla – decided to treat himself a little 3 day break.
It just that now it’d be too dangerous – for his standard – to walk out when he’s done eating because outside, the sun is scorching and heating up the shopping street like a fucking microwave. Thankfully, Kaoru’s safe inside with a little too sweet mojito and air conditioner, but with the almost packed room, he can feel the heat seeping through his skin. He thanks his 6-hours-ago self for choosing a bright, thin yukata and braiding his hair for today.
Classic, Okinawan summer. For tropical people like him, everyday is summer day but the sun still has its favorite on certain months, much like anywhere else. The all bright and sunny glory are what brings tourists here, suffering the same fate of avoiding sunburns and humid sweating just like him. With Tanabata starting its swing just yesterday, July air hangs light and heady like the sweat under his sleeve.
He tries to enjoy the moment, still. He can unclench a little easier here. Kokusai Dori is filled with tourists this time of the year, so his over-180-centimeters ass can hide in plain sight. Away from seeing former clients, students, or anything work related, in general. Or at least he hopes so. He even lets himself put one of his piercings on, a pair of small emerald studs on the lobe that isn’t much noticeable, but still adds up to the aesthetic of his look. At least now, he can enjoy his plateful of potatoes and hamburger in peace, listening to the chatter and buzz all around him as he occasionally scrolls through an online skating magazine in his CarlaPad. Even though the urge to drown himself in the tantalizing icecubes of the next table’s soda is very tempting.
“Would you mind a company, miss?” Suddenly, a disembodied voice from the side of his table shakes him away from his inner thoughts. Kaoru lifts his head only to find a tall, muscle-heavy man with a can of cola which looks too small for his hand. It’s not the first time Kaoru’s been mistaken as a woman, not that he really cares much about stuff like that anyway, but he raises his head with a raised eyebrow and squinted eye anyway.
“I mean, sir, I guess? Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention. You look… really pretty,” says the man sheepishly with a beaming toothy grin that almost rivals the sun outside. From Kaoru’s point of view, the said sun forms a soft halo through the curls of green on the man’s head.
“Uh, well. All of the tables are full, you see. I hope you don’t mind,” he continues. Kaoru doesn’t answer him immediately, instead he scans around the room, finding that it is quite full and the only available seats are either in front of him or squeezed between a foreign couple sharing a meal. He bites back a frown, so much for a sacred me-time. If he were that man he would’ve left the second he sees the filled space. But he’s not, so he’d just have to take it.
“Yes, go ahead,” Kaoru finally answers with a polite but sharp smile, a habit he had to learn to adapt as he climbs the uneven path of customer-centric work.
“Alright, thank you!” the man brightly expresses again with a playful ‘o’ and a grunt as he sits down. “Having lunch all by yourself?”
“You don’t see anyone else here aren’t you?”
“Ah, just in case you’re waiting for someone , or whatever.”
“Ah, no. Just me.”
“That’s too bad. With that face of yours I expect someone to make lunch for you everyday,” the man smugly says, eyebrows wiggling almost comically if Kaoru doesn’t find him slightly attractive. Slightly .
“Oh someone did,” Kaoru shrugs.
“Oho, trouble in paradise?” the man smugly smirks. Okay, more than slightly.
“None of your business, I’m afraid.”
“Ah, sorry for prying. I hope all’s well, then.”
They don’t get to mull around it much because as soon as he finishes the sentence, a waiter arrives and puts down the man’s order, similar to Kaoru’s but probably a different sauce, dressing, or whatever. The man weaves out an easy, sly smile that makes the waiter go a little red when he thanks her.
Now that Kaoru really looks at him, he thinks that that smile might just come out naturally like that. The man has tan skin and rippling muscles that look like they’re going to pop out his patterned button up, his curly mop of green hair bounces slightly as he picks up a fry to his plump lips. Why did Kaoru notice the last point again?
“Is there something on my face or something?” those lips that Kaoru’s been staring suddenly pulled into a smirk that immediately set his nerves on fire — he doesn’t care to find out which one — and breaks his eyes away.
“Do you just naturally flirt with everything that walks, or is there something in the air?”
“I’m not doing anything, baby. As far as I know there’s only one person I’m staring at now.” It’s almost annoying, how Kaoru can’t find himself thoroughly annoyed because he really have to admit it, the man’s fucking hot. Kaoru can’t shake the internal checklist of ‘Kaoru’s type of men’ that keeps on ticking inside his head. “I’m Joe, by the way. Nice to meet you.”
Oh, already? Kaoru thought this is just a case of meeting the most gorgeous person in the world then going on with your day, never seeing them again. But maybe they can talk. He considers what name he should give the man- Joe , Sakurayashiki is too professional for a successful business whose owner kind of doesn’t want to deal with anything work related at the moment, Cherry is too…S — still doesn’t want to be recognized as an illegal ring skateboarder — so Kaoru will probably do, even though they just met.
“Kaoru.”
“Figured it'd be as pretty as you are.” God, how can Kaoru respond to such things? Kaoru wants to salivate the absolute Greek god of a man but at the same time he wants to make him learn how to shut the fuck up. Probably with his mouth-
“Well, aren’t you going to finish the food, Kaoru?”
Kaoru then just squints and pops the last bite of meat and bread to his mouth, leaving the plate empty but some coleslaw and golden-like potatoes. Kaoru doesn’t know if he wants to bolt out of here and not deal with anything that will ever spew out of this man’s mouth again, or he wants to stay, and watch the most beautiful stranger he ever laid his gaze upon examine the onion ring on his plate much longer. He almost wants to ask Carla to choose for him. Fuck, this is going to be a long day.
❀𖤓
Well, he chose the latter. Go figure.
“Like, the meat is very fresh but there’s too much garlic in my sauce? I don’t know, it’s just too strong. But still good either way. The fry was absolutely bomb, though. Definitely not store bought.”
“Yes, I do agree about the potatoes.”
“Right?”
That’s how he ends up listening to the other man rambles about the meat grilling technique and seasoning in the burger that he somehow knows just by tasting it. Kaoru’s meal is long finished and Joe just finished the last bite of his lettuce, neither of them knows how to end the conversation. The ever-so-polite and covertly-ending-interactions-with-people master Kaoru Sakurayashiki is no longer here, for some reason. Though they really have to. It’s almost 4 PM and somehow the customers are piling up into a small waiting list.
“Now, I think it’s our cue to leave,” as if he can hear Kaoru’s thoughts, Joe speaks up.
“Oh, right, definitely,” he hopes he doesn’t look too upset about it. Because he’s not . He’s so not. But the sun is still blistering outside and-
“Hey, come with me to the market. What’dya say?”
Kaoru’s train of thoughts on why he clearly wants their time to end is interrupted instantly. “The market…?”
“Yeah! I’m actually here to find a new seafood vendor for the restaurant. But only if you’re f-”
“Alright,” before Joe can say any further, Kaoru’s already cleans up his side of the table and stands, raising his eyebrows tho the other man who stares at him somewhat dazedly, like a fucking fool that doesn’t believe Kaoru would agree to him. Honestly Kaoru doesn’t know why either. It’s not in his usual habitude to let a stranger — other than clients — lead him anywhere. But something about this…chunk of a man pulls on Kaoru’s tight-laced strings into his orbit. His anxiety would usually flag him the danger of that , but Kaoru’s in a good mood, his sandals are light, and so are his steps. “Do you really want to go or what?”
“Huh? Okay. This way, princess,” Joe says, with a single warm hand hovering over Kaoru’s spine as they walk out the door. Kaoru feels it when he retracts.
❀𖤓
During their walk, Kaoru learns that Joe is newly 30, the same as him. Joe mentioned in the diner that he’s a chef at a restaurant nearby and to Kaoru’s surprise, it’s the same Italian restaurant down the main street that he visits sometimes, Sia La Luce. Joe doesn’t mention anything as to seeing him there, but he does talk about the effort and courage it took him to build it from scratch when he was 24. As a fellow business owner, Kaoru can relate. Also kind of awed because that restaurant created the best dish Kaoru ever landed on his tongue. Of course not also at the sheer thought of a muscle piled man cooking his favored carbonara, sweating in the hot temperature of a kitchen, focused in the middle of rush hours… definitely not.
Anyway, despite their contrasting differences, it’s easy to talk to Joe. His voice is hearty, in a way, as he responds to Kaoru’s short description of the calligraphy business which is practically his child. Though he still has the nerve to laugh when Kaoru starts to practically ramble about the greatest creation he could ever make; Carla. It’s quite enjoyable, walking alongside him as he talks to street vendors, jokes with the aunty at one of the seafood stalls, and points Kaoru to the producers he doesn't even know can be consumed. Joe is so…vibrant. While Kaoru is just ‘stands and smiles’, Joe is full of grins and big hands making various gestures. His dimpled cheeks accentuate everything that he says, Kaoru can’t help but find him endearing, somewhat.
“Honestly, I’m pretty upset that he decided to close the store, but I get it, you know? Maybe when I’m old, fulfilled, and just want to live the retirement life I would let go of Sia too,” the chef shrugs as they pass another vendor. Kaoru absentmindedly pays attention to the stalls too, helping Joe in his journey of finding the right vendor that fits his standard; even though he doesn’t really understand shit about cooking and food processing. Joe said that the grandpa who used to sell his usual seafood stock just retired and closed his shop, leaving the loyal customers like himself scrambling to find another high quality sea produce somewhere else.
“What about your regulars, then? Are you just going to let them wander around, not knowing what to eat because this old man with his old restaurant decided he’s done for all?” Kaoru asks.
“Well, I mean, maybe I should hand it down to someone. Perhaps a kid in the future, or any young chef that gains my trust enough to run my baby smoothly while I’m enjoying the lasts of my days tanning and I don’t know, gardening or something. You’re free to welcome yourself in the picture,” Joe winks.
Kaoru only narrows his eyes behind his fan, as Joe drops the conversation to stop at one of the shops, hand absently reaching to pull Kaoru closer when he turns away. Kaoru hides his face behind the fan once more.
❀𖤓
After successfully finding a seafood vendor and making a deal on delivering fresh goods starting in two days from now, the kind middle-aged owner packs them some fried calamari to go. Their conversation goes further then, as they get out of the fresh produce market to other areas which sell stuff like souvenirs, clothes, trinkets, ritual instruments, and local artists’ works. With the day starting to grow tired, tourists from many fill the empty spaces more than before, leaving the clear-roofed hall a little stuffy even though the sun’s gleaming kinder by now. Kaoru swings his fan with each step. Joe, as he learns, is actually more sensitive with cloying hot weather than him due to his thick muscles. While Kaoru avoids the sunburn, Joe craves the tan glow. But when Kaoru’s cold running body warms up, Joe feels suffocated.
So that’s how they find themself in a cluttered trinket kiosk, right under the jingling door with a fan blasting so strong the string attached to it waves haphazardly. The store is filled with many souvenirs varying from Shisa statues, local knicknacks, to various tropical-inspired accessories, with a bored looking teenager greets them from the cashier station. Despite the crowd in the hallway, the store remains empty. So rather than standing awkwardly on the door, Kaoru decides he wants to take a look around. Joe parts way to another aisle, looking through a series of necklaces and combs as Kaoru sifts through miniatures and braided cord accessories. Kaoru is holding a sleazy cat clay sculpture when Joe draws closer.
“Kaoru.”
Kaoru hums in response. Joe appears on the tail of his eye out of thin air, his body almost pressing to Kaoru’s side as he nods to the mirror Kaoru didn’t notice is in front of him.
“Look,” Joe says, warm burgundy eyes meeting Kaoru’s golden one as he slides a glassy reddish-colored hibiscus hairpin on the side of the other’s head. Kaoru watches as Joe breaks their eye contact to lodge the hairpin firmly but gently between the pink strands. Then he grins as if he’s just made the biggest accomplishment in the world. “There, what do you think? Pretty, right?”
Kaoru silenced for a moment. Failing to see how the hairpin fixes into his hair but rather nearly having a heart attack from the rasp of the other’s voice directly over his right ear, the heat that radiates from their proximity, and the hand on his shoulders. But he quickly regains his composure — hopefully — before the other notices.
“Right, it looks nice.”
“Great! That one’s for you then, beautiful,” that’s the last thing Joe says before he patts both of Kaoru’s tensed shoulders and makes his way to another aisle again. Kaoru turns his divided attention back with the selections of accessories in front of him.
By the time Joe finished the payment for the hairpin and a stupid looking abstract dog miniature that was so small is fit in his pocket, Kaoru slides a pair of olive and yellow kumihimo bracelets to Joe's left wrist and tightens it. Joe doesn’t say anything, only stares at him with those dumb copper eyes as Kaoru tries to nonchalantly hand the cash to the smug looking teenage clerk.
❀𖤓
“I actually park my bike somewhere. If you still want to go, I know this one spot with a good sunset. We can also like, get dinner there. Only if you want to. of course,” Joe offers as they wind down, leaning against the glass window of a minimarket. Admittedly, Kaoru’s grown tired. He was not planning on going for walks in crazy heat with some random guy but he couldn’t bring himself to refuse. Not now, either. Even when it’s been somewhat three hours of non-stop talking – and excessive flirting, though less on Kaoru’s part.
“How much more walking?”
“Eh, probably ten minutes walk from here.”
The street is no less crowded, but the heat reduces as the sun withers lower. Kaoru doesn’t want to think about the cold wind of the night paired with a few dozen kilometers per hour speed in the city, much less of his clothes that’s more prepared to withstand public commute air conditioners than motorcycle ride. But if he can manage Paris in the winter with only two layers of clothing almost harmlessly five years ago, he practically can stand anything at this point, much more that he’s used to Okinawa’s cooling summer nights.
“Fine, lead the way.”
❀𖤓
Passing stores and stalls, Kaoru grows to welcome the stares thrown at them as they stroll by, though it still leaves his skin tingling slightly. He understands, though. A pair of six foot-something conventionally attractive men with bright hair and exceeding height with one of them wearing an intricately embroidered yukata and the other buttons the shirt that barely leaves it for the imagination are not quite a frequent view one can see everyday down the street. Joe is absorbing this to his heart’s content, greeting them in a small smile if his eyes happen to accidentally make contact with theirs. Joe stops talking for now, opting to hum and whistle brightly with head in his hands — which is annoying like, hello , Kaoru knows he’s got some guns, no need to dangle a treat on the cat’s face like that! — as if in deep thought. Then, he suddenly speaks up.
“You know what, 20 questions.”
“What…?” Kaoru asks in confusion.
“20 questions! You know how it goes. Flash round, go!”
“Are we on a date or something?” Kaoru can’t help but say, though it’s kind of a sensitive topic to mention. What is their intention, anyway? Will the next day dissolve away every remnant of their conversation? Will they be strangers again? Will it be anything more? 20 questions seems like a lot of information to be given and taken. Ordinarily, Kaoru would back down; he wouldn’t let someone he just met know the depth of his being. But something about Joe’s excitable way of things, for probably the hundredth time today, lets Kaoru defy his own principles. Like skating down a deep slope of mountain rocks, knowing you could fall to your doom but also knows that you won’t .
“Who cares? You’re scared?” Of course, Joe doesn’t mention it and taunts Kaoru instead. The one thing that would trample him into doing anything.
“You wish.”
“Just bring it on, Kaoru.”
“Fine. Favorite color?” Kaoru gives in, finally.
“How boring. Red, yellow, green.”
“What are you, the traffic light?”
“Uh uh, that is a question, precious.” The green haired teases. “Least favorite food?”
“Liver of any kind and milk, excluding dairy products.”
“How specific.”
“It is how it is. Favorite activity.”
“Eating tours! I actually wanted to bring you for a little street food hunt earlier, but that burger was quite a heavy portion, so I’m not risking it.” Kaoru thinks about it. God they would look like overgrown teenage boys with too much appetite wouldn’t they? But it would be fun. Kaoru’s too embarrassed to admit this but he’s quite what people would say a ‘foodie’. He appreciates good quality food, and has a sharp tongue when it comes to tasting. But he doesn’t need to say all that, so he lets Joe continue. “Next! Dream destination?”
“I’m curious about Prague, recently. It’s an exquisite city, really. I’m interested in its architectures, so I’m saving it for a next destination. How about you? That’s my question”
“Would it be stupid if I say Hawaii?”
“What? Yes, kind of. You live in Okinawa, for hell’s sake. It doesn’t make that much of a difference.”
“That’s what people say. But only one way to find out, right? I’m curious how familiar it’d be. Okay, favorite sport?”
“Skateboarding,” Kaoru answers with no hesitation.
“No shit, me too! It’s practically my life at this point, like, aside from cooking,” Joe giddily exclaims as Kaoru’s eyes widen in surprise. Joe looks like someone who’d prefer like…surfing over anything.
“Oh really?”
“Yes! We should like, skate together sometimes.”
“We should, indeed,” Kaoru says with a reserved smile as Joe stares at him unreadably in response. Kaoru diverts his gaze somewhere else.
During that ten minutes of more walking, Kaoru learns that Joe is deathly scared of cockroaches, is four centimeters taller than him, has traveled to 5 countries, is the eldest sibling of three, has high blood pressure tendencies running in the family, masters Italian cuisine but is equally talented in Japanese food thanks to his mother, and many more. In return Joe now knows more about how Carla was developed when Kaoru’s in college, the computer engineering degree which he graduated with honors in, has type B blood — Kaoru accuses him as a serial killer on this one — and more. By the time they reach the 16th question, Joe’s parked bike is in front of them. Joe takes it out of the parking spot before starting the egine and signs Kaoru to hop on.
“Is it far from here?”
“No, not really. Why?”
“Good,” Kaoru says as he jumps on to the seat, opting to sit sideways to avoid the embarrassment of having his yukata rides up to his thigh and potentially rips apart.
“Wow, okay, hold on tight, m’lady,” Joe teases.
“Despite popular beliefs, you do not, in fact, need to hold on to the rider as a passenger on a motorbike. You don't think I ride everywhere too, do you?” Kaoru defensively says, just to be a bitch, really, because he doesn’t mind doing it willingly anyway.
“Yes but you’re sitting sideways with no helmet on my slippery leather seat wearing what I’m guessing is a slippery garment, so I’d like for you to spare your pretty head from kissing asphalt. I’d still like to have a conversation with it,” Joe over saccharinely explains.
“Fine, now go,” Kaoru asserts, both hands gripping on the front of Joe’s shirt, feeling the rock hard muscles of his stomach.
“On it, baby!”
❀𖤓
“And, here we are.”
By the time Joe parks his bike in front of an old-looking pub, the sun has started to drown on the edge of the sea. Kaoru only realizes this when Joe leads him in, greeting the bartender and opening a glass door offering a deck area facing an open ocean. Kaoru passes through warm lighting and trinkets on the wall, people sporadically seated in the relatively cozy tables. There’s no one else in the outdoor area though, at least not yet.
“It’s not crowded here. It’s rather old, actually. But the food is good, the drinks? even better. It’s been a long time since I’ve been here, though,” Joe explains before he stretches with a sigh, relaxing his — rather excessive, as Kaoru likes to think — muscles after the ride. “See? It's a good sunset.”
But for an entirely different reason, Kaoru stops in his tracks and stares right at Joe. And perhaps it’s the cooling breeze that passes through his clothes, but Kaoru shivers when the man looks at him back with a smile. Open and warm, like the heady salt air that surrounds them, or the orange glow framing his messy hair like a halo of a deity. Like Kaoru sets the sky pink only for him, like he knows Kaoru in many more lives than one.
Oh shut up , Kaoru thinks. Just because his job is setting and writing pretty words, doesn’t mean he could wax poetic nonsense about a guy he just met. But if Joe notices this, he doesn’t say a word about it. He just walks to the table pushed against the railing and pulls a chair out for Kaoru.
“Sit down, I’ll make an order,” Joe says instead. He leaves to the indoor area as Kaoru sits, not even asking what Kaoru wants as if he knows exactly what Kaoru would like. This, would usually irritate Kaoru; when clients take him to eat out and instead of giving recommendations of what they know is good, they just order things without asking Kaoru assuming he’d enjoy it. This time though, Kaoru only smiles behind his fan. Trust the chef’s taste, he knows better.
By the time Joe emerges from the sliding door, the sun has fully set, yet the warm tint still brushing its strokes on the clouds.
“You missed the sunset completely,” Kaoru speaks up as Joe sits.
“It’s okay, I can still look at you,” he winks. Kaoru rolls his eyes playfully.
“So, tell me more about your last annoying client, Kaoru-sensei- or whatever they call you. I like hearing you talk. Food and drink on the way.”
Joe asks, so Kaoru tells him about it. He laughs at the ridiculousness, he nods passionately at Kaoru’s story of the absolute hell of putting up a customer service front, his palm rubs comfortingly when Kaoru gets quieter. Kaoru lets himself be seen and heard, lets himself be touched and eyed to his heart’s content by possibly the most gorgeous human being his golden eyes have ever landed upon. Plates of yakitori, dumplings, and glasses of wine later, their exchange got somehow deeper. The blue hour has long passed and what remains is then humid salty air nipping through their thin clothes. The deck is as empty as Joe said it will be, only a few people come out and leave not long after. It’s only the two of them in the end.
“You know, it seems a bit greedy to even dream about, but I want to open up a new branch of Sia La Luce, one day. Maybe more of an osteria, but still under Sia’s name. Sometimes I miss going out to that old osteria with my friends whenever we can squeeze it between the hectic of culinary school. It’s been a decade already…” Joe laments, distant eyes lays upon the calm waves.
“I don’t think it’s greedy at all. Didn’t you say the restaurant was your biggest dream back in the day? You did it once, I do not see the problem why you can’t do it once again. I mean, you have run the restaurant for six years. There’s so much more to do in the future,” Kaoru counters, nursing the wine on the tip of his fingers.
“Maybe you’re right. I don’t know, I just have these nagging thoughts that what if one day…”
“...people stop coming in, orders subsides to nothing and there’s not a thing you can do about it?”
“Yeah…”
“Been thinking about that since the first day the studio opens, you’ll live.”
“Kaoru…”
“Oh shut up. I’m eight years into the business. It will never leave, but you’ll manage at some point.” Kaoru knows this better than anybody else, clock ticks faster day by day, and maybe one day, the technology he loves so much and spent his effort on will come back biting him. Maybe one day, people wouldn’t care anymore about traditional calligraphy, or strictly-personal-use artificial intelligence he built his life upon. But every second he spent lamenting on it would be worth an appointment email with a new client. So, really. He’ll manage. “No one’s going to get bored of pizza, anyway.”
“You have such ways with words, Kaoru,” Joe laughs, his tone clearer now. Perhaps due to the amount of drinks they consume too. As of now, Joe has moved from wine to beer, while Kaoru is a couple glasses into his red.
“I am but a calligrapher.”
“Right, right,” Joe relaxes. He sighs as he throws his arms on the back of Kaoru’s chair, pulling him closer. “You know, the reason why I love this pub is because it’s the closest thing to the osteria I used to go to. Though it’s obviously so different. I just…want people to experience the fun that I had, back in the day.”
Kaoru can feel the heat emanating from his back and on his side, he can almost hear the gentle smile forming on the other’s lips. Ruby eyes are still fixed on the sea, deep in nostalgia of a time Kaoru doesn’t know.
“Why did you go back here, then? I mean, there are probably more opportunities back in Italy. Or maybe in the mainland, where more people would come,” Kaoru knows his question is fueling a fire when he practically hears the other’s head snapping back to look at him.
“What? No, not a chance. My dream is to open a restaurant here, where-” Joe catches himself midway as their eyes meet, then scrunches his nose in humor, as if he realizes something before continuing. “-my…home is. Yeah, that’s just always been the goal from the start. Besides, I would need an even more bizarre amount of applications and permits and taxes if I open it anywhere else,” he shrugs.
“That would’ve been awful.”
“Very awful. To this day I can’t even deal with taxes and reports alone.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Truly.”
Joe’s gaze flickers dazedly across Kaoru’s face. First at the glistening golden under slightly foggy glasses, then at blossoming cheeks, the salt air-dried pink collected in a now loose braid, finally to the reddening lips, slightly ajar from the previous retort. Kaoru looks up at him through his ashes almost innocently — almost, noting the implacable mirth glazing beneath those alcohol-influenced soft eyes — from where he’s pressed against Joe’s side. Kaoru finds himself grinning slightly.
“Elaborate more about the osteria, I’m quite interested,” Kaoru tests, raising his eyebrows to the taller man.
“Uhh, it’s still just a fleeting idea.”
“Really?”
“Yes, maybe. I don’t know. I, uh, still need to discuss it with my-”
“You really can’t be left alone, can’t you?” Kaoru challenges on, now putting forth the full form of his sly grin.
“Are you taunting me now, Kaoru?” Joe sweats as he draws closer.
“Am I?”
“No. I think you’re trying to seduce me, you sly bunny.”
“Oh? I didn’t know that. But is it working?”
Kaoru’s confidence is at the utmost right now. One thing about him is that he is a challenger. He’d barrel on and hook one to their limit before he lets go. Whether it’s him or the other who falls away, let it be the tale only the thrill can say. He’s been playing nice, polite, a soft push to Joe’s constant pull, so he makes his turn. Hook, line, and sinker.
“Quit that, Kaoru.” The low rasp of Joe’s demand sets fire to Kaoru’s body, it’s quite unlike the usual lightly nasally tone he uses in his exuberant way of speaking. Don’t lose now, Kaoru, he tells himself, settling a competition over everything in the usual Kaoru ways.
“Try me,” Kaoru baits.
In the few seconds that time freezes itself inside Kaoru’s brain, he feels a large palm moving to splay upon his scruff, then a single thumb from them presses on the back of his neck, pulling him closer. There’s sweat forming on his forehead as his vision gets surrounded by ruby eyes and golden skin. Kaoru feels it in the jump of his heartbeat first before he tastes it on his lips. Plump and soft, practically engulfing Kaoru’s like the rest of his body does. Joe kisses the same way he carries himself. Easy, vibrant, and demanding . The two of them fit perfectly, like a brand new wheel sliding across smooth ramps. Like Joe is meant to hang from the other’s lips for a lifetime and more, for both of their refusal to let go. Kaoru draws him closer, grabbing on the green haired man’s neck to feed the ebbing fire.
But unfortunately, there’s a breath to catch and they still have their minds intact enough to — perhaps only Kaoru — post under public decency, no matter how empty the place seems to be.
“So much for playing it cool, Kaoru,” Joe teases, lips barely an inch away from Kaoru’s. This close, Kaoru can feel his faintly labored breath tickling his cheeks.
“Shut up, you revolting ape,” the blossom dazedly replies, clearly too distracted looking at the glassed, wet lips of the other man to digest the words that came out of his equally debauched mouth. Though he gasps when he takes notice.
“What was that, Kaoru?” Joe pushes, placing a light kiss on the corner of the other’s lips with a visible pout like a puppy who just got his tail stepped on.
“Nothing, no. Just- kiss me properly. Again. Or whatever.”
Joe laughs in response. “Is the alcohol really getting into you or are you just really this desperate?” Kaoru wants to spit him off but he does what any smarter man would do in the face of a specimen that is Joe practically breathing off your air; pulls him down once more and kisses him deeper than before. Kaoru runs his fingers to the mossy curls this time, letting himself feel the bitter tang on his mouth before they pull away again for good. Joe slips out a groan before he forcefully distances himself out of Kaoru’s exploring lips, visibly more disorganized than before.
“Here’s what’s gonna happen : We finish our drinks — though you’re free to get more, I’m done ‘cause I’m riding that bike. We’ll go somewhere more private, preferably my place since it’s not far away or a hotel if you want. And then, after we arrive I’m going to kiss the shit out of you until you’re fucking done with me. After that, your choice. Any objections?”
So crass , not even planning to take me home? Kaoru tells himself as he the thought of it dawns into his head and sends a pleasing shiver all over his body. So as quick as a chased fox, he downs the rest of his half empty wine in one, big gulp. As he sees Joe raising his eyebrow in amusement next to him, he snatches the man’s still nearly full beer at a similar speed.
“Whoa, slow down, princess,” Joe laughs, sliding a hand over Kaoru’s back. “That’s mine, by the way.”
"I don’t care. This is on you,” Kaoru says as he wipes the last of beer on his lips, absolutely red-faced, the dusting pink from earlier blows into a full flush from the speed of his consumption, probably also from that nickname, and most likely from the anticipation. Not a theory that Kaoru would be happy to prove though.
“You’ll regret that in the morning. But hey, that’s what I’m here for, right?” Joe grins.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Kaoru answers, as he grabs one of Joe’s biceps tightly when he pulls him up.
❀𖤓
Kaoru is definitely not into someone manhandling him like a rag doll. No. Obviously not.
But Joe looks like he’s been waiting to feast on Kaoru’s lips, neck, and preferably his body all day. Kaoru almost choked when he’s pushed against the stairwell entrance the second they arrive at Joe’s apartment. So is it really his fault for getting heavily riled up at the way Joe’s big palms possess handfuls of his cotton clad thigh? That, or the intensity of his kiss that just knows how to demand . Yet he returns all the pleasure just as greedily as he takes. Kaoru’s pressed against the cold wall of the living room as of now, but if the world fucking burns right at the moment, he would’t even think of moving an inch. His braid is a mess now, and the fact that the hairpin still lodged loosely is a wonder, for the many times Joe has his fingers running through them in the course of ten minutes.
“You’re so beautiful, ‘ru. The most intriguing person I’ve ever been with. Can-” Joe babbles, peppering kisses all over the calligrapher’s neck and collarbone. “-I can do this forever, what the fuck,” he goes on, burying his annoyingly perfect face on Kaoru’s chest.
“I- ah, not there! I appreciate that sentiment-” Kaoru’s words are cut off by his own gasp as Joe sucks the skin just beneath the crossing collar of the yukata. Fucking tease. “-but are you just planning on taking me right here? In the harsh surface of your living room?”
“For someone so defined one wouldn’t expect him to be sooo chatty when he wants something, am I right?” the asshole taunts again and Kaoru tugs his hair in retaliation. Joe groans, whether from plain or pleasure Kaoru couldn’t tell. “But alas, do you want me to take you so bad, princess? Do you want me to claim all of you for the night, make you my precious babygirl, and mess you up to my heart’s content, yeah?”
The words almost get Kaoru choking his own spit. How the fuck is this man real? He revels in the crazed look on Joe’s face. As if he takes on his namesake, the man looks up at him like a sacrificed prey to worship before the tiger devours it whole. The audacity of him to grin widely after he practically quenched Kaoru’s ability to think of anything other than his face — or his arms, or fingers, or the heavy mystery pressing on the back of Kaoru’s thigh. Kaoru desperately wants to counter him, but his betraying brain lets out a breathy, desperate whine instead.
“Ahh, you like that?”
Stop asking stupid questions, Kaoru angrily thinks, but he just starts blowing raspberries on the other man’s chin instead. He's afraid that if he opens his uncooperative mouth it’ll start getting embarrassingly desperate.
“Alright, alright, baby. Answer me now, this is serious. Do you want to continue this? You’re like, fairly tipsy right now,”
Kaoru nods.
“Answers, sweetheart.”
“Yes, fuck! I’m good! Can you just take an ans-” the rest of his complaints are cut off by a deep short kiss. One that he shamefully chases after Joe draws away.
“Alright, to the bedroom it is. The couch is pretty tempting but I’m not risking your pretty little — and a little old — back,” Joe picks, earning him a slap on the shoulder as he pulls the other closer to his chest.
Kaoru is, by no means, a small person. But he feels so as Joe carries him like he weighs absolutely nothing. So this is what the muscles are for, he thinks distractedly, as he presses his mouth to any exposed skin around the other man’s neck. Time feels too long yet too short by the time they enter the darkness of Joe’s bedroom. He doesn’t even have the time to scan his eyes around when he’s thrown into the soft mattress, Joe’s weight hovering over him comes shortly after. Despite the ferocious start, this time they just…stare into each other's eyes. Kaoru can feel a lingering sense of affection painting the ruby of Joe’s eyes, too close, to trusting. But Kaoru wants nothing but to give in and dive.
“Hi,” Joe smiles, his hand silently reaches Kaoru’s head to remove the hairpin so he can lay comfortably.
“Hello.”
“We’re doing this?”
“If you ask one more time instead of touching me I’ll say no.”
“Okay, okay.”
The green haired man starts on Kaoru’s lips, then his teeth move their way to the shell of Kaoru’s ear.
“You look fucking stunning in green, baby,” Joe is saying, as he bites down the lobe with its emerald studs. Kaoru thinly whines in response. He carefully unties the obi around Kaoru’s waist as he does so, unwrapping his front like a present. His face is not unlike a child unwrapping one as well, as he caresses the smooth surface of Kaoru’s side gently yet so, so possessive. Kaoru’s breaths get shallower now, even though the man barely touches him. Then his skillful touch palms the front of his underwear, and he snaps, gasping at the sudden stimulation.
“How sensitive,” Joe chuckles. “Can I…?” he asks and Kaoru nods, lifting his back to let Joe pull down his boxers, then throwing it somewhere on the other corner of the bed.
“It’s kind of unfair that I have my dick out and you’re still fully clothed, no?”
“So eager to see me?”
“You wish.”
“In command, baby,” Joe starts unbuttoning his loose shirt then. Sure, Kaoru’s been looking at his pecs — not his fault it’s there — since the way he buttons it leaves little to the imagination anyway. But the full blown view of his body — and holy shit, the tattoo — can make one salivate. Kaoru probably will, if he holds less dignity. The blazing sun tattoo sporting on the bulging part of his bicep really takes the tea in all the seconds it takes him to strip from all his clothes. Kaoru wants to bite it, he wants to climb him and hang on there like a fucking tree–
His moan rips off the remains of his thoughts in a sudden. He doesn’t even notice Joe scooting back closer and now is stroking his cock gently. It looks relatively small in the hand of someone like him, just seeing the view nearly sends Kaoru off balance and dizzy. So he closes his eyes. He can hear Joe chuckling and drawing closer, kissing his lips chastely before dropping his tongue to lap on the metal barbels on his chest. Kaoru sighs, still with his eyes closed, high on the intensity of Joe’s fiery touch all over him. So soft yet so intense, as if he understands each and every way to make Kaoru squirm and sigh. As if-
That’s when it hits him.
Kaoru is suddenly reminded of someone else. Of how he always touched him just so, with so much care and sweetness that should’ve been impossible for someone so strong. How would he react if they know he’s currently being touched in the same places, deflowered once again by a man built by his own dreams. His wettest ones.
“Kaoru? What’s wrong?” Kaoru is so lost in thought that he doesn’t realize Joe has detached his lips from his chest, looking at him with worry lines and warm baby-cow eyes of his. “What’s your color, baby?”
Kaoru chuckles fondly. God, this man is so fucking adorable . Even if he’s closer to ruining Kaoru to oblivion. He looks like a puppy getting upset for losing the fetch. “It’s fine, K- Joe. I was just…zoning out. Please keep going- mmm okay yeah, like that.”
“Hmm? Mind to tell me what got you so busy up there?” Thankfully he catches on and starts leaving traces of wet lips down to the cherry’s hips.
“Nothing. It’s just that you touch me so- ah, well…familiarly.”
“Not my fault that I feel like I’ve known you in all lifetimes, baby. Maybe you’re made just for me.” I am , Kaoru wants to say, instead he’s trying to swallow an embarrassing moan to come out as Joe’s teeth grazes his inner thigh. He decides to be a brat about it, anyway.
“Do you talk like that to everyone you’re fucking?”
“No, only you, darling.”
“Hah. You don’t have to try that hard to please me. What I was trying to say was that I have a…partner waiting on me as we speak. Wishing he could touch me like you do now,” Kaoru wants to take it back as soon as he says it, he shouldn’t have said that. But there’s this thrill , like cruising down hundreds kilometers per hour on rocky pathways down a hill. Kaoru is always drawn to, and even a victim of that dangerous feeling. But the way Joe presses his calloused palm on his thigh, motioning them to open up for him, Kaoru doesn’t feel like he minds falling.
“Oh, well I’ll please you, alright? I’d be better than anyone you ever have.”
Yeah, fuck it.
“Even better than him?”
“You’re playing with me now, Kaoru. Stop it.”
Kaoru laughs then, ruffling the green hair that tickles his pelvis. He looks adorably dangerous from this view, dilated eyes and flushed face resting on the plush of Kaoru’s open thigh, pouting mouth painfully close to where Kaoru wants him to be. “Doesn’t answer my question though.”
“Do I have to? For someone so eager earlier you seem like testing my presence here.”
“And…what are you gonna do about it?”
“Whatever my babygirl let me do to him.”
“ Then do whatever you want to me ,” Kaoru challenges, pleased at his own surprise when that dangerous mouth pounces on him where it really shouldn’t be — except Kaoru’s wildest dreams. “I’m completely, utterly yours tonight.”
❀𖤓
And what a wild dream that was.
Kaoru woke up in an empty, cold bed. The sun from the small windows takes a sharp turn upon his eyes, forcing him to get out of the slumber. He notices too that the blanket is now suffocating him, his body’s too warm from the mid-summer humidity that graces the island. The second thing he notices as soon as his senses collected enough is that his whole body is fucking sore . He doesn’t remember it being this painful when he showered – then continues on another short series of blows and a bit more of the eating out but that’s not the point – but at the same time, he still feels too sated and satisfied to be mad. His head also aches a little, but he really should’ve seen that coming. He has the day off, anyway. So waking up at half past eleven, freshly out of a good fuck, with no Carla alarms feels guiltless and freeing. God he deserves this after that long ass project that he’s finally finished.
His mind suddenly wheels back to the last conversation he held before he’s dead asleep. with the ghosts of rough hands still creeping their way all over his bare skin.
“I’ll make breakfast tomorrow morning, okay? Stay with me, baby,” Joe whispered, as he mouthed lazily on the bruised skin of his companion, the one who can only whine through oversensitivity and extortion. “I’m so glad we did this.”
“Let me sleep…” Kaoru bemoaned, too tired to even open his eyes.
“Alright, alright. Goodnight, baby, Thank you so much for today,” the other whispered. He continued for a bit, but the last of his words were drowned between the heap of pink hair, as Kaoru drifted off to dreamland with soft lips pressed against his temple.
The memory put a slight flush upon the calligrapher’s face, which is quite fucking embarassing, he’s not a teenager for god’s sake. But speaking of which, the man who accompanies him throughout is nowhere in sight. Kaoru can’t help but frown. He had been promised breakfast. But there’s no hint left behind, no scattered clothes, not a lingering whiff of cooking he’s used to smell even after hours later-
Wait.
Now he realizes that he’s not in his own bedroom. Figures why the bed feels a little different. Kaoru takes in the surroundings of the room now. Very boyish, clean, but something that he only notices now – he was busy last night – is that the room is so…empty. There are too many awkward spaces that look like things used to belong there, but not anymore. Like an empty nail on the wall, dried rim stain on a wooden nightstand, awkward negative space in between the furniture. Like the person living here hasn’t been here for a long time, even though there are no single specks of dust casted in the sunlight that creeps in. Kaoru chuckles to himself as he stands.
Walking is a bit of a pain in the ass — like, literally — but he manages. Navigating himself in the familiar corridors of the flat until he reaches his destination. He doesn’t even know that he has one, but he’s here either way.
The destination comes with a view of a wonderfully broad yet sinfully scratched back of a man with a grey tank top and loose patterned boxers. Humming while busying himself with something on the kitchen counter.
“Didn’t you say you have a restaurant to run?” Kaoru says as he reaches the kitchen and wraps himself onto the other’s back.
“Oh, hi! Didn’t hear you wake up. Did you sleep well?” Kaoru nods against the ribbed cotton of the shirt. “Okay then, are you okay with toast?”
“Mmm, okay with anything.” He mumbles.
“Can you let me go for a sec I’m just going to-”
“No.”
“Okay-okay. I was just saying I can grab an extra jar of sun-dried tomatoes at the resto downstairs. But I guess you’re not letting me go so…”
“You’re going to go out…like that?” Kaoru raises his eyebrows as Joe turns his head towards him, eyeing the scratches and purples down his neck and body. Suddenly, his own face starts to feel a bit too warm.
“Possessive much, pinky? It’s nothing new for my sous chef,” Joe smirks over his shoulders.
“Hah. What a perverted ape.”
“Wait. Are you my Kaoru or…”
“In what world I am not your Kaoru?”
“How sweet, but you’re not mine and not Kaoru at S.”
“What is S?”
“Oookay, cut!” The moss-headed man then carefully drops the knife on the sink next to him, before turning around and startling Kaoru by the sudden movement. He chuckles at that. “You did great, precious,” Kojiro says as he plants a long kiss on the crown of the other’s head.
Yes, Kojiro . Kaoru’s beloved husband in all his chiseled skin and dimpled smile glory in the morning glow of his old kitchen above the restaurant — the very flat he left behind a few months before they got married two years ago. His husband who just turned 30 two days prior and declined an answer when Kaoru asked him what he wanted for his birthday. So ever so brilliant and unlike-a-certain-gorilla-brained Kaoru came up with the smartest idea to test Joe’s youth, to remind him of something he stopped doing years ago : a one fine day together as strangers who humor and please each other by the end of the night for the sake of it. No ties, no hard feelings, just good time and pleasure. Just like the Joe lifestyle — as the kids call it — used to be. The main mission is, well, to treat Kaoru like one of his girls back then. The notion can put a gag on Kaoru’s throat, if it doesn’t turn him on crazy. It almost annoys him how down bad he is for his man. Though the fact that it wouldn’t be anyone else, it’s him, and only him that owns Joe for the day does that, even though Kaoru has Kojiro in the palm of his hands everyday and forever.
“Satisfied, now?”
“Don’t pretend like you don’t enjoy it, baby.”
“Like hell I do,” Kaoru lies, as he hides a smile against his husband’s warm chest and snuggles closer. “Do you like it?”
“I’d say it’s the best birthday gift ever but I’d say that to everything you gave me.”
“Fucking sap”
“You know me.”
“Unfortunately.”
“Thank you, princess.”
“Hmm, yeah,” Kaoru hums, still happily drowning his face between cotton. “Do you want to do that again?” He looks up then, giving his love a wide eyed, open stare that is reserved in mornings when he feels particularly soft, usually before his double-shot coffee.
“No, not for a long while, at least,” Kojiro answers softly as his fingers carefully untangle the remains of sleep in Kaoru’s hair. “I miss my Kaoru and his pissy, stupid insults. It’s actually weird to see you act nice, you know. ”
“It takes the life out of me to not just punch you in the fucking face everytimes you opens your corny mouth but sure, yeah. I guess I can play nice.”
“Wow, good morning, asshole. It’s been a long time since the last time I got to do that before I’m stuck with you! Sorry for being rusty .”
“And you took me to this old ass apartment- I thought we’re going home! Or a hotel or something,” Kaoru complains.
“Hey I cleaned this place spotless just for you! I thought if I take us home the familiarity will break our characters. That’s the same as going back to your place anyway. And I’m not going to fuck you on a cheap love hotel or something, I assume you’d hate that even more. So boom! My old apartment will do! Even though realistically I never brought anyone here for the night and you’re the only one I had sex here with anyway. But that was like, years ago so give me some credit please,” he explains, motioning to the speckless room that wouldn’t be possible without a thorough clean up for at least a few hours. That explains his late return a few days ago. Kaoru doesn’t think about it too much, he understands and appreciates the effort. So now his mind strays into another, a tick in his brain that refuses to rest from its prolonged, constant restlessness. So he asks.
“Do you miss it, though?”
“Miss what?” Kojiro can’t help but notice the doubt flashing Kaoru’s bare eyes, he pulls his waist closer.
“One fine day, going out, one night stands?”
“What? Why should I be? I literally do all that with you. Though one night stand is not quite fitting for our...frequency, don’t you think?”
“Nevermind, you uncouth, dirty gorilla!”
Kojiro only laughs at his fuss. “Princess, I’ll do anything, everything, and anywhere if it means I’m with you. And don’t get me wrong, I love what we did yesterday, but for now and a lifetime more I just want you . My husband and his spicy little mouth who’s sooo mean to me but loves me more than any stranger I could ever let to.”
“Shut up!” Kojiro’s laugh roars even louder when he feels his red-faced husband grips the fabric on his waist even tighter. Even after years of settling into a comfortable romantic intimacy, Kaoru’s never changed that habit.
“Though the cheating route is a bit…surprising. I didn’t expect to suddenly become the other man of a stranger I’m fucking?”
“Well, that one was accidental, sorry. It’s- it’s just hard not to mess with you.”
“You almost slipped calling me ‘Kojiro’ a million times. I think you did once when you came after I–”
“Shut up, pervert! Not my fault you decided to go with that!”
“Everyone I go out with calls me Joe. Even your client calls me that! You’re just so obsessed with me, admit it!”
Kaoru doesn’t answer, instead he tries to wriggle out of the cage that is his husband’s arm.
“Let go of me, I need water.”
“Tried to warn you last night.” Kaoru wants to punch that pretty little grin but hasn’t regained his energy enough to do so, so Kojiro’s only met with his annoying pout that carves its way into his lips. “One more question, after this I’m letting you go and we’re having breakfast.”
“What? Quick, now, you owe me lots.”
“Hey you said it’s a birthday present!”
“For the roleplay, yes, not for breaking my back like fifty ways in a night,” Kaoru complains, but they both know he doesn’t mean it. The man wouldn’t be satisfied if by the last act he’s still able to think coherently. Between the both of them, if Kojiro’s filled with power and confidence enough to reheat the sun, Kaoru is the insatiable one. So really, all that talk is just his spoiled-ass way into getting whatever he wants that Kojiro’s happily obliged. “Please, speak faster, banana brain.”
“Okay, okay. Uh, it’s my turn now. You did so great yesterday baby. Do you like it?”
“I guess,” Kaoru shrugs.
“I want real answers, Kaoru.”
“Fine. It feels good,” he sighs, his forehead on his beloved’s shoulder .“Although I’m trying my hardest to not knock your shit off every five seconds, I do have to admit. I understand now why they’re hanging off of your arms 24-7 back then. I don’t know, it feels…young. And fucking stupid, but it’s like I can finally rest for the day.” Kaoru laments on, remembering the stress he had put up this past few weeks with work almost intensifies the dull ache in his head.
“Aw, you’re so soft like this,” Kojiro coos, lightly massaging his husband’s temple. Which has him nuzzling like a cat in a sun spot, his headache reduces a little. “My sweet, little old man.”
“Oh fuck you. That’s all you got to say?”
“Well, I’m glad you felt good, baby. I was afraid you’d feel weird about it.”
“Won’t pitch the idea if I did.”
“Mhmm, you did. And you did a great job so now-” Kaoru almost squeals when his husband suddenly sweeps him off his feet and carries him all the way to the dining room before putting him down onto one of the chairs. “-your highness should sit his spoiled, pretty little ass here and eat breakfast with me. And we can watch that documentary that’s been sitting in your watchlist for a while, and if you’re good, you’ll get a tiramisu by lunch made by my precious staff before heading back home. How’s that sound?”
“Hmm, it sounds like I should be having my toast right now,” Kaoru demands.
“I indulge you plenty, don’t you think?” says Kojiro as he struts back to the open kitchen to finish up the bread.
“You love me, dopey gorilla,” Kaoru states. A fact. The one that’s just as true as how Kaoru, in all his demands and witt, takes care of his husband just the same amount as the indulgence he gets. As true as the way Kaoru loves him more than his body can contain.
“Unfortunately so, princess.” Kojiro comes back with two plates of golden warm toast, and Kaoru’s pretty sure his husband can fix up the sunlight’s smile into their breakfast plate. His smile matches the sun on his shoulder when he sits before him, burgundy eyes locking into golden ones. “You’re stuck with this gorilla loving you forever.”
Kaoru reaches across the table and kisses him stupid.