FAKE Fic: All Lit Up
Title: All Lit Up
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Dee.
Rating: PG
Setting: After Like Like Love.
Summary: There’s a severe storm raging across New York, and Dee’s worried for his lover, somewhere out in it.
Word Count: 1077
Written For: Challenge 54: Lights at slashficlets.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
It looks as if every light in the apartment is on when Ryo wearily pushes the door open and steps inside. The main living area, the kitchen, two bedrooms, all are brightly illuminated… only the bathroom lights seem to be off.
Part of him is impressed they still have power, considering the storm raging outside. It hit with unexpected suddenness and ferocity when he was barely halfway through his shift, and he’d been in two minds whether or not he should even try to make it home through the almost eighty-mile-an-hour winds and driving rain. Another, more practical, part of him is more concerned about the amount of electricity being used; it's horrendously wasteful, especially when whole sections of the city are currently without power, but the thought is swept from his mind as Dee bursts out of their bedroom at the sound of the front door closing.
He looks stressed, his hair in disarray as though he’s been repeatedly running his hands through it, and his face is pale. If the lights being on was vaguely annoying, the sight of his lover in such a state is nothing short of worrying.
“Dee, what is it? What’s wrong?” A thousand possible explanations race through Ryo’s mind. Has something happened to Bikky? Carol? The baby they’re expecting? Is it Carol’s aunt, or his own, or Mother? Has the orphanage been hit by lightning? Has one of their colleagues been shot, maybe even killed? Before Ryo can ask, Dee’s arms are around him and his partner is clinging to him, despite the fact that Ryo’s coat is drenched. It occurs to him a touch belatedly that he’s dripping all over the floor.
“You’re okay?” Dee gasps the words out against the side of Ryo’s neck. “I was so worried! The storm woke me, and I tried to call you at the precinct, but the lines were jammed and there must be a cell tower down, ‘cause I couldn’t reach ya on your mobile…” Dee trails off as Ryo wraps his arms around him.
“I’m fine. Tired, cold, wet, and hungry, but okay. What got you so worried?”
Dee sighs, gradually relaxing. “When I woke up, I turned on the weather report. BIG mistake. We got floodin’ down by the river, some of the subway tunnels are fillin’ up so half the system’s had to be shut down. Rescue services had to go after a bunch of people trapped in a train stuck between stations. Two skyscrapers under construction collapsed, the cranes were just swingin’ outta control in the wind. Branches are comin’ down, whole trees are bein’ ripped up, roots and all, and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge has had to be closed; it’s too dangerous for traffic. Then there’s all the road accidents, flyin’ masonry, rooftiles, and a few gargoyles…”
Ryo’s nodded along to Dee’s litany of disasters. “Yeah, it’s pretty bad out there, and the wind’s set to get worse. Could top out at around ninety-five sometime tomorrow, unless the storm changes direction again and moves back out to sea.”
“Yeah, I heard.”
“What’s with all the lights?”
Gradually loosening his death grip, Dee laughs shakily. “I didn’t know where you were, whether you were out in that, maybe caught up in the floods, or under a collapsed buildin’ somewhere, hurt, or…” He shudders. “Every time the lightnin’ flashed, I thought my heart would give out, so I turned the lights on. That way I can’t see it.” Pulling back, Dee studies Ryo, as if checking he’s all in one piece.
“I’m fine, Dee.”
“Yeah, you are.” The words come out on a relieved sigh. “When I couldn’t reach ya…” Suddenly he frowns, realising something. “You’re soaked to the skin!”
“It’s raining,” Ryo reminds him. “And umbrellas are useless in this. I had no intention of getting blown over the rooftops like Mary Poppins.”
“What the hell possessed you to leave the precinct? The news is tellin’ everyone to stay off the streets, for their own safety!”
“Doesn’t apply to cops and the emergency services.” Ryo manages a wry smile. “Every NYPD officer on duty is being roped in to provide assistance wherever it’s needed. The whole city’s in chaos.”
“Tell me somethin’ I don’t know.”
“Okay. I was out at the scene of a bad accident, helping firefighters rescue the injured; the wind tipped a semi-truck over on top of some cars, near enough flattened them. By the time the casualties had all been taken away in ambulances, it was past the end of my shift. I thought of heading back to the precinct, but I wasn’t that far from home so there didn’t seem much point. I asked one of the uniforms to let whoever was covering the desk know I was heading home, and I hitched a lift partway on one of the rescue vehicles. They would’ve brought me all the way home, but they needed to head for another call, so I walked the rest of the way. It was only about ten blocks.”
“Ten blocks? In this? You’re crazy, you know that?”
“I was careful, Dee; this isn’t my first storm. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of these wet clothes and into a hot shower.”
“Yeah, sorry.” Dee backs off a couple of steps and looks down at himself. “I should probably change too.” His sweatpants and t-shirt are almost as wet as Ryo’s clothes.
“While you’re at it, how about turning some of these lights off? We don’t need them all, do we?”
“Guess not. Where’re you goin?”
Ryo glances over his shoulder. “To dump my wet things in the laundry room. I’ll deal with them and clean up the floor after I shower.”
“I can take care of the floor,” Dee says with a grin, quickly shucking out of his clothes and using them to mop up the rainwater.
“Dee!”
“Hey, they’re wet anyway, and they’re goin’ straight in the laundry. Might as well use ‘em instead of gettin’ somethin’ else wet. Hurry up and strip, then we can shower together, save water.”
“Water’s not the problem right now; it’s electricity we should be saving.”
The lights flicker ominously, then stabilise.
“I’ll turn most of ‘em off once I’ve mopped up. Gotta see what I’m doin’.”
Outside, the storm continues to rage, but within the apartment, everything’s slowly settling back into a semblance of normality.
Finally Dee can relax; his lover is home, and all is well.
The End
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Dee.
Rating: PG
Setting: After Like Like Love.
Summary: There’s a severe storm raging across New York, and Dee’s worried for his lover, somewhere out in it.
Word Count: 1077
Written For: Challenge 54: Lights at slashficlets.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
It looks as if every light in the apartment is on when Ryo wearily pushes the door open and steps inside. The main living area, the kitchen, two bedrooms, all are brightly illuminated… only the bathroom lights seem to be off.
Part of him is impressed they still have power, considering the storm raging outside. It hit with unexpected suddenness and ferocity when he was barely halfway through his shift, and he’d been in two minds whether or not he should even try to make it home through the almost eighty-mile-an-hour winds and driving rain. Another, more practical, part of him is more concerned about the amount of electricity being used; it's horrendously wasteful, especially when whole sections of the city are currently without power, but the thought is swept from his mind as Dee bursts out of their bedroom at the sound of the front door closing.
He looks stressed, his hair in disarray as though he’s been repeatedly running his hands through it, and his face is pale. If the lights being on was vaguely annoying, the sight of his lover in such a state is nothing short of worrying.
“Dee, what is it? What’s wrong?” A thousand possible explanations race through Ryo’s mind. Has something happened to Bikky? Carol? The baby they’re expecting? Is it Carol’s aunt, or his own, or Mother? Has the orphanage been hit by lightning? Has one of their colleagues been shot, maybe even killed? Before Ryo can ask, Dee’s arms are around him and his partner is clinging to him, despite the fact that Ryo’s coat is drenched. It occurs to him a touch belatedly that he’s dripping all over the floor.
“You’re okay?” Dee gasps the words out against the side of Ryo’s neck. “I was so worried! The storm woke me, and I tried to call you at the precinct, but the lines were jammed and there must be a cell tower down, ‘cause I couldn’t reach ya on your mobile…” Dee trails off as Ryo wraps his arms around him.
“I’m fine. Tired, cold, wet, and hungry, but okay. What got you so worried?”
Dee sighs, gradually relaxing. “When I woke up, I turned on the weather report. BIG mistake. We got floodin’ down by the river, some of the subway tunnels are fillin’ up so half the system’s had to be shut down. Rescue services had to go after a bunch of people trapped in a train stuck between stations. Two skyscrapers under construction collapsed, the cranes were just swingin’ outta control in the wind. Branches are comin’ down, whole trees are bein’ ripped up, roots and all, and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge has had to be closed; it’s too dangerous for traffic. Then there’s all the road accidents, flyin’ masonry, rooftiles, and a few gargoyles…”
Ryo’s nodded along to Dee’s litany of disasters. “Yeah, it’s pretty bad out there, and the wind’s set to get worse. Could top out at around ninety-five sometime tomorrow, unless the storm changes direction again and moves back out to sea.”
“Yeah, I heard.”
“What’s with all the lights?”
Gradually loosening his death grip, Dee laughs shakily. “I didn’t know where you were, whether you were out in that, maybe caught up in the floods, or under a collapsed buildin’ somewhere, hurt, or…” He shudders. “Every time the lightnin’ flashed, I thought my heart would give out, so I turned the lights on. That way I can’t see it.” Pulling back, Dee studies Ryo, as if checking he’s all in one piece.
“I’m fine, Dee.”
“Yeah, you are.” The words come out on a relieved sigh. “When I couldn’t reach ya…” Suddenly he frowns, realising something. “You’re soaked to the skin!”
“It’s raining,” Ryo reminds him. “And umbrellas are useless in this. I had no intention of getting blown over the rooftops like Mary Poppins.”
“What the hell possessed you to leave the precinct? The news is tellin’ everyone to stay off the streets, for their own safety!”
“Doesn’t apply to cops and the emergency services.” Ryo manages a wry smile. “Every NYPD officer on duty is being roped in to provide assistance wherever it’s needed. The whole city’s in chaos.”
“Tell me somethin’ I don’t know.”
“Okay. I was out at the scene of a bad accident, helping firefighters rescue the injured; the wind tipped a semi-truck over on top of some cars, near enough flattened them. By the time the casualties had all been taken away in ambulances, it was past the end of my shift. I thought of heading back to the precinct, but I wasn’t that far from home so there didn’t seem much point. I asked one of the uniforms to let whoever was covering the desk know I was heading home, and I hitched a lift partway on one of the rescue vehicles. They would’ve brought me all the way home, but they needed to head for another call, so I walked the rest of the way. It was only about ten blocks.”
“Ten blocks? In this? You’re crazy, you know that?”
“I was careful, Dee; this isn’t my first storm. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of these wet clothes and into a hot shower.”
“Yeah, sorry.” Dee backs off a couple of steps and looks down at himself. “I should probably change too.” His sweatpants and t-shirt are almost as wet as Ryo’s clothes.
“While you’re at it, how about turning some of these lights off? We don’t need them all, do we?”
“Guess not. Where’re you goin?”
Ryo glances over his shoulder. “To dump my wet things in the laundry room. I’ll deal with them and clean up the floor after I shower.”
“I can take care of the floor,” Dee says with a grin, quickly shucking out of his clothes and using them to mop up the rainwater.
“Dee!”
“Hey, they’re wet anyway, and they’re goin’ straight in the laundry. Might as well use ‘em instead of gettin’ somethin’ else wet. Hurry up and strip, then we can shower together, save water.”
“Water’s not the problem right now; it’s electricity we should be saving.”
The lights flicker ominously, then stabilise.
“I’ll turn most of ‘em off once I’ve mopped up. Gotta see what I’m doin’.”
Outside, the storm continues to rage, but within the apartment, everything’s slowly settling back into a semblance of normality.
Finally Dee can relax; his lover is home, and all is well.
The End