tangled
For the third time since his encounter with Sho, Jun slept uncomfortably.
Drawn into a lucid dream, Jun was the unwilling audience made to walk through the monochromatic landscape of his mind. There was a sense of déjà vu that made him feel as though he were revisiting a memory as he walked through the woods, plodding idly behind a silver-gray wolf. The wolf turned right, preoccupied with following the powdery red rail hovering above its little black nose. They walked for a few more meters, the wolf paying Jun absolutely no mind as it sniffed and scratched the ground with its paws, letting out a pitiful whine every now and then as the veil of red grew thicker. In the next instance, Jun found himself sprinting after the wolf, each hurried step increasing the familiar sense of dread in his heart. Jun was vaguely aware of having had this dream, and though he couldn't remember happened next, he knew with great certainty that it wasn't going to be good. Though he didn't know why, Jun needed to follow the wolf. Jun watched as the wolf jumped through the thicket, and like a mechanical doll he followed, lungs heaving as he tried to keep up with the swift animal.
Just as he was about to jump over the hedges, a pale hand grabbed his arm and stopped him in his tracks...
"You don't want to go there, puppy..." a soft, lilting voice snapped Jun awake from his trance. The warm hand gripped his arm gently and pulled him away from the thicket. Confused, Jun slowly turned his head and came face to face with a tall man draped in silken white cloth that fell loosely over his lithe frame. The kittenish face smiled warmly, pointy ears twitching in delight, and sticking out from layers of ash blonde hair.
"A-aiba-san...?" Jun's brow was furrowed in question.
"Hi!" Aiba chirped, his soft, fluffy tails swishing beneath his hips.
The dreary black and white had gone and Jun found himself with Aiba standing amidst lush greenery and vibrant blooms. The mild yellows of the sun filled the vast meadow with its soft, inviting light and painted a lazy, almost sensual atmosphere that dissipated the thick fear and tension in the air. Jun took a deep breath and looked around him curiously, carding fingers through his hair and trying to remember what he was supposed to be doing. Fingers gently squeezed his palm, and Jun's eyes finally re-focused the lanky man with kitten ears.
"A-aiba... what? where..?" Jun looked more puzzled than ever. Unconsciously, Jun reached out to touch a pointy ear.
"Oi... don't do that! It tickles!" Aiba giggled, his ears twitching away from Jun's curious fingers.
"Sorry" Jun blushed, retracting his hand, "I just... why do you have those?"
"I've always had them." Aiba answered simply and tangled his fingers with Jun who stood lost in his thoughts. With a small tug, Aiba gently led Jun into a leisurely stroll among the flowerbeds.
"Oh..." Jun dazedly turned to look behind him as something fluffy brushed against the back of his palm.
"Tail..."
"Tails," came Aiba's chipper reply, swinging their hands back and forth as they made their way towards a tree. The two sat on a patch of green under the shade, and Aiba held out a cupped hand in front of him. Jun uttered a surprised gasp and jerked away when he felt the tree move behind him as its branches reached down to offer Aiba its fruits. Aiba plucked two ripe apples from its branches and whispered an earnest thanks to the tree, which straightened itself and remained still after the fox had gotten hold of the fruits.
"Want some, puppy?" Aiba offered Jun one of the apples.
"Th-thanks... I think." Jun stuttered, taking the apple from Aiba's hands.
"It's good, try it!" Aiba encouraged, taking a bite from his own, "It'll make you feel better"
Jun sank his teeth into the crisp red apple, its sweet juices dribbling onto his chin. Jun leaned on the tree and began to chew thoughtfully as he took in his surroundings. The pair sat in a companionable silence, with neither Jun nor Aiba making a sound, until one of Aiba's tails began to twitch and swung lazily back and forth...
"Aiba-san?"
"Masaki."
"Um..."
"Aiba-san's too formal" Aiba smiled, his eyes crinkling.
"Masaki..."
"Yes?"
"Where are we? I kind of remember running after a wolf and then there was you, and now we're here...and the tree, and why do you have tails and ears and..." Jun scratched his head in confusion.
"Hmm... which question do you want me to answer first?" Aiba tilted his head, furry ears twitching while he thought, "We're in a garden, sort of... well, it's ours now. It's peaceful here, isn't it?"
"Yes, but... that wolf... do you know anything about it? I think I have to follow him..."
Aiba turned to face Jun, tucking a stray lock of hair beneath his ear; his brown eyes losing its cheerful glimmer as he looked at Jun. Aiba shook his head sadly. "Don't follow him, puppy, not just yet..."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean..." Aiba whispered, bringing his face closer to Jun's
"stay with me..." Aiba placed a tender kiss on Jun's lips, coaxing the soft buds open with his tongue. Jun offered no resistance and lost himself easily into the kiss. Aiba's plush lips felt wonderfully pleasant on his own and the kiss reminded him of spring and sunshine; enervating him and left him feeling renewed...
The next thing that Jun could remember was waking up to the persistent beeping of his alarm clock with something wet and sticky between his legs.
"Crap!" Jun turned to his side, grabbing the clock in annoyance and turning the alarm off, with a little more force than was needed. Jun threw the covers off and looked at the mess that was starting to dribble down his thighs, there was a big white spot on the sheets that was beginning to dry, which meant that he was going to need a change of covers soon. Jun sighed, shakily pushing himself off the bed and grabbing the box of tissues. He pulled out a sheet and began to wipe the cum off his thighs; fragments of his dreams stealing into his waking mind...
There was the black and white dream about the wolf. Jun didn't know much about interpreting dreams, but he did remember reading somewhere, that people who dreamt in black and white lacked imagination-- which he might have agreed to, except that it didn't explain why there were red blobs in that dream... and then there was Aiba, with his pointy ears and his furry tails and the field full of flowers... very colorful flowers...
Jun felt his face grow warm as he began to remember more... Aiba's lips on his own, trailing down his chest; moist and warm around his cock... Jun wiped furiously at his thighs, trying to suppress the stirring in his groin as he threw the soiled napkins into the waste basket and bounded off into his bathroom to take a cold shower.
It was going to be a long day...
****
After a brisk morning jog and a hurried breakfast, Jun drove off to work, congratulating himself for braking on time before he ran over a senile old lady who took immense pleasure in yelling obscenities at him and banging her handbag on his car. Jun was skittish; even more so than the time he found out that he had just slept with his boss. With Aiba's kittenish face still fresh in his memories, Jun was unsure of how he would face his coworker. It didn't help any that his mind had recalled each moment in explicit detail, from Aiba's warm and talented mouth, to his turgid length and the way it filled him. Jun felt horribly confused and frustrated; and so he coped best way he knew how: by throwing himself into his work.
Jun turned his computer on; steeling his resolve to focus solely on his work while he waited for all the applications to load. Just as he was about to open his first email, the door to his office flew open and he was greeted by the very same nasal voice that sent pinpricks of heat straight to his groin.
"Good Morning, Jun!" Aiba bounded into his office, looking at Jun with bright cheerful eyes as he strode to his desk and left a bundle of folders and envelopes for Jun to review.
"Good Morning..." Jun said in a quiet voice, a shy smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Are you okay now? You were pretty out of it last night." Aiba placed his hands on Jun's desk, leaning over and looking into his eyes.
Jun unconsciously held his breath, throat going dry as Aiba brought his face closer to Jun's.
"I-I'm okay now..." Jun squeaked, suddenly very aware of Aiba's proximity, "Sorry I was such a burden last night... I normally know when to stop, but I..." Jun babbled on, stumbling on his words. "I promise it won't...happen... a-again" Jun's words were uttered in a breathless whisper as brown orbs locked on to his; Jun watched the pupils of Aiba's eyes dilate, seemingly in slow motion, and it wasn't long before he found himself lost in those eyes, unaware of how much time had passed in the few seconds their eyes met...
"I--"
"That's good to know!" Aiba replied, his normally cheerful smile fixed on his face, "We were worried you'd get a hangover and call in sick today. Though I'm pretty sure Sho would understand, if you did that..."
"Aah.." Jun replied, suddenly looking away from Aiba.
"Anyway, " Aiba continued, "I need those reviewed by Wednesday next week, at the earliest. The ones in the red folder are top priority. Let me know if you need anything."
"Sure thing." Jun smiled politely, suddenly feeling small and claustrophobic in his relatively spacious cubicle.
"We should go drinking again sometime, you're really cute when you're drunk!" Aiba giggled, throwing Jun a small wink before he turned his back and strolled towards the door.
Jun could only smile in embarrassment, very conscious of the blush that was quickly spreading to his ears. He exhaled shakily, unaware of the breath he'd been holding, as he watched Aiba's lithe frame exiting from his room.
Jun was about to relax and indulge in idle musings, when something made him do a double-take; Aiba had just taken a step outside of the door when something caught his eye... it was faint, its appearance almost ghostly, yet he could make out the wisps of several tails swishing languidly back and forth behind the taller man. Jun rubbed his eyes in disbelief, his heart racing faster as he tried to convince himself that this wasn't happening. When he looked up once more, the tails were gone and there was nothing but an empty doorway before his eyes.
With a shaky hand, Jun grabbed one of the folders and flipped through the pages, forcing his eyes to focus on the words that his mind refused to understand.
When I walked into your dreams, I meant to seduce you...
Jun dropped the folder he was holding; it's pages falling loose and scattering across the carpeted floor of his small cubicle.
Aiba's not a... he can't be...they're only mythical creatures...
Jun shook his head violently, trying to convince himself that it wall all a product of his overactive imagination as he proceeded to pick up the loose leaves scattered all over the floor...
***
Inside his room, Sho was thumbing through the documents laid out across his desk. His eyes skimmed across page after page of words, none of which, registered in his mind. A long drawn sigh escaped his lips as he laid the folder back on his desk, and decided to read through the whole thing after his break, when his mind was presumably in a much clearer state. Sho shifted his attention to the blinking cursors on his screen, sparing a quick glance at the unread emails piling up in his inbox and looking at the list of employees logged in to their IM accounts. Sho scrolled down the list of names and stopped at Jun's, wondering if he should send the younger man a message, inviting him out for lunch. The 'busy' icon blinked before Jun's name and Sho knew that he should be busy reading through the contracts and the agreements that each party had signed.
Jun was efficient; probably one of the best, and most hardworking employees that the company had ever hired. His record had so far proven to be sterling, full of praise, and without a single complaint from any of his previous employers. Sho knew, however, from his first encounter with Jun, that the younger man also knew how to let loose and indulge his whims-- a big risk to his reputation, had anyone caught wind of his nighttime activities. It was an odd way of looking at balance; swinging from one extreme to the next, but Sho paid it no mind, if he hadn't sniffed him out that night, he wouldn't have met him. Aiba knew of his activities too, but kept him in the company for entirely different reasons...
"I knew from the moment I saw him that he was the one you've been looking for... "Aiba began, "I thought, you know, that I'd bring the two of you back together since you've been so miserable without him and I wanted to see you happy. I kept a close eye on him while you were away and I made sure he was safe... there were some things that I discovered that would probably get him fired if anyone found out, but it never really affected his work, so I kept him on... "
"How long have you been watching over him?" Sho asked, his hands tucked in his pockets as they walked back towards the mansion
"A little over 3 months, maybe four..." Aiba replied, a gloomy look on his face, his eyes refusing to meet Sho's. "He was just about as lonely as you, Sho. He'd work his ass off all day, keeping to himself and doing a good job... some nights, I guess, when it gets too much, he'd lose himself in one of those clubs, god knows what happens there... it's usually too smoky and I don't like the noise, but he's never taken anyone home with him as far as I can remember. When I follow him home, sometimes I hear him sobbing softly to himself until he falls asleep..."
Sho fell silent, his hands balling into fists inside his pockets. Aiba turned to look at Sho, a wry smile on his face. " I wanted to take care of him, you know? Sometimes I think I'm a sucker for lost causes... like you, when I first met you. Eventually Jun warmed up to me, and I've been the only one he's talked to, so far... He's a little prickly, his words could be harsh sometimes, but he's very kind." Aiba sighed, "I know how much he means to you, and I think he's aware of that connection you have... but I don't think I can let him go..."
"Masaki..."
"I thought I'd be annoyed at him because he was the reason you couldn't give yourself to me, but it turned out quite differently..."
Sho kicked an imaginary pebble as they neared the gates.
"Give me a chance, Sho... let Jun choose..."
Sho grabbed the mouse, its pointer hovering over Jun's name. Sho gave the button a click and there appeared an empty chat window with the blinking cursor that mocked his indecision... All it took was a mere few seconds before Jun's status message changed from 'busy' to 'out to lunch.' Sho closed the chat window, sighing in frustration...
***
Jun's nerves were frazzled and the younger man pondered taking a few days off to sort his head. He couldn't leave the company, that much he knew but so many weird things had been happening lately, some of which, had caused him to question his sanity. Jun thought that a quick fix was better than nothing and so decided to get away from the office and all its familiar faces, even if only for an hour.
It had been a while since he visited the small, family-owned restaurant a few blocks away from the office but Jun needed the break and maybe he actually missed the snarky owner and his oft absent-minded assistant. Jun walked in to the restaurant, the smell of freshly cooked beef stew wafting through the air. Jun waded through the lunchtime crowd, made up of salarymen in their early to mid-30s reading the papers, or checking their mobile phones while patiently waiting to be served. Jun settled himself on an empty bar stool directly in front of the counter and smiled cheekily at the chef.
"Ei! Haven't seen you in a while. What's a fancypants lawyer like you doing here?"
"Shut up Nino. All your diners are fancypants lawyers" Jun grinned
"Oh, but none of them work for a TV station...Let me guess, you tried out to be an idol and they threw you out because you have two left feet."
"No. Nothing like that..." Jun laughed mirthlessly
"So there is something then..." Nino's brow rose
Jun frowned, and shook his head sadly, refusing to meet Nino's eyes. The young chef looked at Jun for a few moments before snatching out the menu that he was pretending to read.
"The usual, then?"
Jun nodded, placing his chin on his hands...
***
TBC
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