[fic] The Pauper Prince[ss] - Chapter 34
The Pauper Prince[ss] - Chapter 34
Pairing: Akame
Rating: PG-13
Summary: To end the war that has desecrated the lives of the people between two kingdoms, an alliance in the form of an arranged marriage has been made between the two royal families. however, when the princess runs away to avoid being married, the unwilling look-a-like pauper, Kamenashi Kazuya, somehow finds himself brought in to play the part of the princess and deceive Prince Jin. But Kazuya never expected to fall in love...
*waves* So, I'm back with Chapter 34. ^___^ It's been um...*cough* a bit less than 4 months? DDD: Sorry guys >< but you know how RL can get >< So anyways, this is sort of a filler chapter more than anything...but you should still read it, because although it's a filler chapter, it shows development in their relationship as well as bit into Jin's childhood? =P Well, hope you guys enjoy; I'll just leave the rest of my author notes for the end of the chapter. =P
Enjoy~~
---- CHAPTER 34 ----
Ryo woke up to the sound of someone saying his name in annoyance, a finger poking his arm impatiently, and a pair of familiar brown eyes staring at him as he opened his own eyes.
"Tomohisa," he drawled in an amused way, as his brain tried to wake up as quickly as possible, "What are you doing in my room...on my bed?” he noted with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.
He was rewarded with a pillow hitting his face, “Get your mind out of the gutter!” Pi retorted, “I’m here because my room is full of people, who have taken up all the space usually intended for sleeping; Kazuya has made up with Jin and despite the fact that I was sleeping in there, they won’t stop talking even though it’s way past midnight, and you’re the only one left to go to.”
“So I’m your last resort, am I?” Ryo asked, as he sat up, stretching.
“Why do you sleep shirtless?!” he got another pillow in the face.
Ryo made a show of finishing stretching even slower, an amused laugh escaping him when he saw Yamapi’s glare on him, “Hm, I suppose it’s because it just makes it so much easier to dumbfound people who sneak into my bed with my sexiness.” He commented idly, a suggestive smirk on his face.
Yamapi spluttered, “I am not -” he glared angrily at Ryo before throwing another pillow at the older man.
This time, though, Ryo caught the pillow with ease and holding it in front of him, he smirked, “I didn’t say it was you.” He said with a grin, “Is there something you’re not telling me Tomohisa? Something about being dumfounded?”
Yamapi stared at the man for a while, before he jumped up from the bed, “Oh, that’s it! Nothing is more painful than going through this conversation. I’m going to steal the prince’s room since he’s obviously not going to sleep anytime soon.” He muttered darkly, “Maybe I’ll lock him out of his own room, that’ll teach him to keep me awake with his annoying ability to make Kazuya stay up until unreasonable hours, talking...” he muttered under his breath.
He heard a sardonically amused laugh right before a hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him back and he landed back on the bed with an unceremonious bounce.
He turned with a glare at Ryo, “What?”
“As much fun as it would be to watch Jin pound on the door tomorrow morning because you’ve taken hostage of his room and he can’t get to his things, I can’t let you do that.”
“Why not?” Yamapi snapped.
“Well, first reason is that he’ll come bugging me at whatever early hour he returns to his room and I want my sleep,” Ryo folded down a finger for each reason he listed, “Second, I cannot, in good conscience, let you go to Jin’s room and sleep. You might catch idiocy germs.”
Yamapi’s lips twitched as Ryo folded down another finger.
“Any other reasons?”
“Just one. Now that you’ve woken me up, I can’t go back to sleep that easily and I want someone to bug until I fall asleep.” Ryo grinned.
Yamapi raised an eyebrow, “What am I, your personal lullaby-singer?” he asked grumpily.
“I’m not asking you so sing,” Ryo said with a shrug of his shoulders, “But oh fine, just let me stay awake, wondering…just wondering where my lost hours of sleep could have been like, while you go and catch some idiot germs in the idiot prince’s idiot -”
Yamapi didn’t say anything, but he did shoot Ryo a dark look as he grabbed a pillow and threw it onto the bed and lay his head on it in determination…as far away from where Ryo was sitting as possible.
“Molest me in my sleep and you die.” He added as he curled up toward the edge of the bed, shooting Ryo a dark look as the older man smirked and settled onto the mattress again as well. The bed was big enough that neither had to worry about being cramped in with each other.
“Hmph, figures your room would have the king sized bed.” Yamapi said snappishly once a silence had settled over them.
Ryo smirked into the silence, turning over to look at Yamapi’s back, “What can I say? I’m simply that amazing.”
“Oh, get over yourself.”
A silence descended between them.
“Hey Nishikido…”
“Yeah?”
“Do you ever wonder if you’ve done the right thing when it comes to Uchi?”
“Huh?”
“Like…he’s really important to you right? Do you ever wonder if you’ve helped him enough, or made things worse by helping?”
Ryo sat up, turning around again and looked at Yamapi’s back, “Where is this coming from?”
“I don’t know. Just…seeing Kazuya tonight, before he made up with Jin…it made me wonder…what if I’d never encouraged it? What if I told him that it absolutely wasn’t allowed to take that chance with the prince? Would he still hurt so much? Sometimes, I wonder if I’ve done the right thing…every time I see him cry like that, I doubt myself. It takes a lot for Kazuya to cry in front of others…”
Ryo frowned, before he reached over and swatted Yamapi on the head, “Don’t say stupid things. Look, I understand your friendship with Kazuya more than your childhood friends possibly could, because I also have a best friend I would do anything to protect. You wouldn’t tell him to take a risk unless you were sure at the same time, and even if you doubt yourself now, you should trust in the you that made the choice at the same about what to tell him. I trust in that you.” He said seriously, “If there’s one thing I’ll never doubt about you is that you have Kazuya’s best interests at heart, and you should trust in that. I know I do.”
He looked suspiciously at Yamapi, “Is that why you came sneaking into my bed? Because you wanted a heart-to-heart?” he looked disgruntled, “I don’t do girly things like heart-to-hearts.” He grumbled.
Yamapi rolled his eyes, “It was just a question; you don’t have to get so worked up. You’re the last heart I’d want to confide in.” he muttered, “It might spread its clinginess to me.” He added bitingly.
Ryo scowled and kicked Yamapi lightly on the back of his leg, “Shut up and sleep then.”
“Gladly,” Yamapi answered, kicking back once.
There was another long silence, before Yamapi mumbled a, “Thanks,” that Ryo didn’t answer to, but Yamapi knew from the light shifting on the other side of the mattress that Ryo had heard it.
* * *
There had been a long silence after Yamapi had gotten up from his mattress, grumbling, and had left the room running a hand through bed-mussed hair, stumbling in a sleepy way. Jin and Kazuya had stared after him, watching as the man closed the door muttering something about finding someone who went to sleep at decent hours, and as they heard Yamapi’s footsteps along the hallway, they looked at each other and burst into fits of laughter.
Kazuya looked amused, “I guess we weren’t being as quiet as we thought.” He commented idly from where he sat facing Jin as they sat at the table in the room; they had been sitting there for a while, talking quietly, but apparently not as quietly as they had thought because obviously, Yamapi had been kept awake by their conversation.
Jin let out a sudden laugh, “Where do you think he’s going to go?”
Kazuya frowned, “His room’s occupied by everyone else, I think. I don’t think he’d go there. Maybe…” he blinked, “Maybe he’s going to take hostage of your room?” he asked, “Unless…”
“Unless?” Jin tilted his head curiously.
Kazuya bit his lip, trying not to smile at the idea, “Ryo’s room is down the hall isn’t it?” he asked, showing that he obviously knew his best friend way too well. Jin blinked and then a smirk crossed his face; he stood up and Kazuya followed, both of them peeking out the door just in time to see Yamapi, still muttering irritably, sleepily walking into Ryo’s room.
Kazuya resisted the urge to laugh, and then he paused, looking up at Jin from where they were standing in the doorway; Jin suddenly seemed aware of their sudden close proximity as well. The past while, after Jin had shown up, had mostly been spent talking, about things that Kazuya could barely remember - just light conversation to make up for the silence that had fallen after the implications of their kiss hit them. It was like before, after they had initially made up, again; there was a tiny bit of awkwardness in the air.
Jin suddenly smiled slowly, “Hey, let’s go somewhere.” He suggested, “We’re probably not going to sleep for a while, and it’ll be fun.”
Kazuya raised an eyebrow, “It’s two in the morning,” he tried to point out, but it was a weak protest; the idea of going somewhere with Jin with just the two of them was just too appealing.
Jin, however, just smiled a hesitant smile, “It’ll be fine,” he insisted. Kazuya couldn’t help but return the smile, staring at Jin’s face for a moment. He glanced hesitantly down the hall, his already weak resolve wavering.
Fifteen minutes later, he was dressed in an overly large - and long - jacket that belonged to Jin to cover him in case they ran into a late night wanderer left from the festival, was wearing a pair of jeans - and he was still surprised, even now, that all of Kazumi’s clothes seemed to fit him - and was sneaking out of the inn, following Jin by holding onto the back of Jin’s shirt.
Jin was sending him an amused look from time to time, before twisting himself out of Kazuya’s grasp and simply grabbing Kazuya’s wrist, “This might be easier.” He commented.
Kazuya felt a bit of a flutter in his heart at that, before looking warily at Jin’s hand; Jin had been doing this so much over the past few weeks, followed by taking away his hand immediately, that he pretty much expected it by now. Jin seemed to have noticed that look, for he pursed his lips for a moment before pulling on Kazuya’s wrist so that they walked faster.
“Where are we going?” Kazuya asked, taking a shifty look around. There was no one of course; everyone had gone to bed ages ago. With the festival that had been held, everyone would be too exhausted to still be wandering the streets.
Jin merely flashed him a fleeting look and continued to pull him along; Kazuya looked perplexed and would have protested if not for the way Jin continued to hold on tightly onto his wrist, not lifting his hand away for even a moment. It was like it was a silent message directed at Kazuya’s silent insecurities.
It was like Jin was sending him a silent message of, I’m not going to let go this time.
They finally came to a stop a few blocks from the town square, in a street that seemed familiar. Kazuya remembered coming here once; it seemed like a long time ago that he had come here with Pi and had been told about the deal with Jin, and had gotten upset at Pi…
“This place…” he looked around; it was different at night, the streetlight lit up the area dimly, but the silence was what made it much different than what he had seen when he had first come here. Jin dragged him to the bench between two shops, and they sat down; Kazuya looked with a puzzled look at Jin, “Why…”
“You know, I once watched you from up there…” Jin pointed suddenly and Kazuya followed his finger and saw that from here, he could see the area on the top of the hill that they had had their confrontation at earlier. He blinked when he turned around and saw Jin staring intently at him, “You were arguing with Yamashita, and at the time, I was still so angry that I thought…you deserved it. I thought you deserved it, being alone, but…I don’t anymore. I don’t think I ever really did believe that - I was just really angry, really hurt….”
“Jin?” Kazuya asked hesitantly, wondering why he was hearing this.
“I…I know I’ve messed up a lot,” Jin started, moving his hand down his wrist and to take Kazuya’s hand tightly, “Hurt you a lot.” He added.
“You were -” Kazuya made to tell Jin that he could understand that Jin had been hurt too.
“And I know that we’re both to blame, not just you,” Jin said, looking directly into Kazuya’s eyes, “Even though I probably blamed you more than I blamed myself most of the time.” He let out a weak smile.
“Jin,” Kazuya said firmly, “Why are you saying all this?”
Jin blinked, before smiling, “I guess I just want to get all this out while I still can. You’ve apologized to me for lying already, many times, but I still haven’t apologized to you for treating you so badly and hurting you so much. I know we can’t go back to the way we were before all this came out, and I don’t want it to go back to exactly that, because now I can start a relationship with the real you.” He said, “So, what I want to say right now is…I’m sorry for hurting you so much; I’m sorry for making you so upset you cried. I’m sorry for not listening to you.” He added; there were probably a lot more things he could apologize for, that he had to apologize for, but he felt as though those were the most important, the things that gnawed at his conscience and heart. Once the anger had faded away and he had stopped looking at himself as the victim, as the only one that had been hurt, he had felt the guilt from hurting Kazuya so much.
Kazuya blinked at him, “You don’t really need to…” he began, but faltering when he saw the look in Jin’s eyes, “Apology accepted.” He said softly. He knew that with all that had gone on between them, all the hurt and anger, it would be futile to convince either one of them that they didn’t need to feel bad about what they had done…so the best way to get past all that bad stuff was to just accept the apology that was being given, and let the other person move on, knowing that they were forgiven for what they had done.
Jin broke out into a smile, “Thank you.” He said sincerely, “I…”
Kazuya simply shook his head, “I understand.” He said, and he really did. To start over, like they wanted to, they had to get everything out between them; all the insecurities, all the guilt for hurting the other, they couldn’t keep that bottled up or they would never really start over. This apology was Jin getting all the guilt he had out, as well as trying to make up for what he had done in his anger. This was a way for Jin, and by default their relationship, to move past everything that had happened.
Jin was still smiling at him, and Kazuya could only blink in surprise when Jin leaned in, capturing Kazuya’s lips in a slow kiss, “Good,” he said when he drew away, “Then, I can do that, can’t I?”
Kazuya barely hesitated as he grabbed a fistful of Jin’s shirt and pulled him forward again, making their lips meet again; that was enough of an answer for Jin, who slowly circled an arm around Kazuya’s waist, feeling as though with saying his apologies out loud and Kazuya accepting them, a weight had been lifted off his chest, and off their relationship. He smiled into the kiss, pulling Kazuya closer to him; this moment, it just felt so right.
He didn’t need to think about the future; what mattered was right now.
* * *
It was hours later and sometime in that time, both of them had fallen asleep - outside. Jin blinked when he felt a hesitant hand shake his shoulder and he looked up to see an elderly couple on what he assumed to be an early morning walk.
“What is your highness doing out here?”
Jin rubbed his eyes with his fist, looking around in confusion for a moment, before he registered his surroundings, and his eyes widened at the fact that he was still sitting on that bench; a quick glance to his right showed that Kazuya had fallen asleep as well and the younger man had his head on Jin’s shoulder, a smile on his face even in his sleep.
The elderly couple merely gave him a knowing look once they saw Kazuya, and Jin was very relieved that they had brought that jacket of his out with them; on Kazuya, it was large enough that it served to hide the general shape of Kazuya’s body - and the fact that he did not have the curves in certain areas that a woman should.
He let out a sigh of relief when the elderly couple cheerfully told him to get himself and Kazuya inside soon before walking off. He shook Kazuya’s shoulders lightly, earning a soft protest from the sleeping man.
“Kazuya,” he tried again, shaking a bit harder. The younger man let out a soft, sleepy, groan as the insistent movement made him open his eyes.
“Jin?” he blinked in confusion when he saw the prince. He rubbed his eyes, and then quickly covered a yawn with his free hand, “What…”
“We fell asleep outside,” Jin explained, “Think it’s time we head back?” he asked.
Kazuya yawned again, “Guess so…” he mumbled, “If by heading back, you mean we find some place soft and comfy and collapse for a nap…”
Jin smiled in amusement, “I think you have about two hours or so until breakfast.” He said as he looked at his watch, “Enough time for a nap?” he wondered.
Kazuya looked pensive, hiding another yawn behind his hand.
“Okay, I think you really need that nap,” Jin observed idly, “C’mon, let’s get back before I get accused of kidnapping you.” He added.
Kazuya stifled a smile, clearly enjoying the ease that they were talking now, after all the apologies had been made, as compared to before, “I don’t think any of them would be awake this early…” he said even as he hugged Jin’s jacket closer to himself, looking around warily. Very few people were out and about right now, so he wasn’t in danger of being exposed, but he still pulled the material around himself more securely, not willing to take the chance.
“You’d be surprised,” Jin commented, “Especially with the ruckus my father’s been putting up lately.” He said darkly.
“Huh?”
“My father’s been getting up at the crack of dawn to demand a report from the search team looking for Reio,” Jin said with a slight shrug.
“So it’s not really that you think my friends will think you kidnapped me, but to get me safely out of the path of your father just in case something happens?” Kazuya guessed, and he knew he was right when he saw Jin’s startled expression.
There was a long companionable silence between them for a few moments.
“How is Reio?” Kazuya asked quietly, “Do they have any leads yet?”
“No,” Jin said with a wry grin, “I have to hand it to my little brother; he really knows how to disappear. Not even my father’s best people have gotten any leads. He’s either fitting in so well that he passes as a regular traveller in whatever town he’s gone to, or he’s hiding in an isolated place somewhere.”
“You sound worried,” Kazuya commented carefully, looking up at Jin. It was good that he did, or he would have missed the flinch that came across the older man’s face right before the startled expression did.
“What do you mean?” Jin asked casually, “I’m not worried…”
Kazuya made a humming noise, obviously knowing that Jin was at least a little worried despite what he said. Jin shrugged at that, “Well, I’m just hope it’s not that he’s hiding in an isolated place somewhere; since he’s doing this for me…well, us…I’d feel bad if he froze to death or got eaten by a bear up in some isolated mountain cabin or something.” He said, and although he said it casually, Kazuya could hear the concerned tone in his voice.
Kazuya looked at Jin for a moment as they walked along, before nodding, “From what I know of him in the time he was here, Reio seems really smart. He’d be smart enough to get out of any trouble he might get into, and besides,” Kazuya said with what he hoped was a reassuring laugh, “If Reio didn’t think he could handle himself out there in the world, he wouldn’t have left and he’d have gotten caught already; obviously, Reio is more resourceful than anybody really expected.” He said honestly.
Jin looked at him for a long moment, and then a smile spread across his face, “Yeah, I guess. I shouldn’t worry; he’s the brain in the family; my father doesn’t know this, but Reio actually applied for and got a spot in one of the best schools in the kingdom…before all this.” Jin trailed off as he remembered that particular conversation, right before he was about to leave for the South Kingdom.
--
“What do you mean you’re not coming along?” Jin asked, slightly outraged at his younger brother. Reio merely raised an eyebrow, and shook his head as he leaned against the wall of Jin’s room, watching as Jin haphazardly tried to pack his own bags for the trip.
“It’s not that hard to understand, Jin; I’m not coming along on your little pre-marriage, pre-coronation tour,” Reio said with a shrug, “You already have Ryo and Tatsuya going along; you don’t need me to come along.”
“But -” Jin furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and irritation, “The only reason I even agreed to go on this trip was because you convinced me to, you bratty brother!” he sulked.
Reio looked amused if anything, “I didn’t convince you. I told you to give the princess a chance, and then you took my words completely out of context and started rambling about your ‘brilliant’ plan to get her to call off the marriage.”
“See, it was your words that led to that.” Jin said stubbornly.
Reio rolled his eyes “Jin, let’s face it. Whether I go or not, you’ll still go along with this plan to get out of the marriage, whether or not I think it’s a bad idea.” Reio smirked, “It’s always when you’re desperate that you actually listen to me.”
Jin scowled, “Aren’t I supposed to be the older brother here?”
“You keep believing that,” Reio said with a small grin, “But…anyways, whether or not you actually succeed in calling off this marriage, your future is set, Jin.”
Jin scowled at the mention of that, “This plan will work! I won’t marry that -”
Reio cut in with a sigh, “You have such a one-track mind. I’m not talking about the marriage; whether this marriage works out or not, you’ll be king, either over our own country or two joined countries. Your path in life is set, Jin, and mine is currently being decided by our father.” He said bluntly.
Jin blinked. He knew Reio was getting more lessons than usual, to prepare him for a life at court, in helping Jin, and as far as he knew, Reio never really had anything against that; it was just the way it worked. The first born became King, and children that came after the first born were guaranteed places in court. Normally, there was a choice; the children who were not first-born were given more freedom in what they wanted to do, but Hitoshi was stricter and had more control over his sons’ lives than previous kings. Reio’s path was just as set in stone as Jin’s was - decided by their father.
“What…”
“From what I can see, this is your chance for a few months of freedom before you have to take on more responsibilities; you haven’t been allowed outside the palace much Jin, so take advantage of that, if you don’t spend all your time picking on the princess that is,” Reio said disapprovingly, which Jin scowled at, “Meanwhile, I’m going to take the time while both you and Father are gone to prove that I’m not a child that needs my life run for me, or my education bought for me.” He stated firmly, “I’m going to apply to the university under an alias, and I’m going to prove to our father that I can do things on my own and make my own decisions about life.”
Reio looked so determined at that point, that Jin couldn’t protest anymore, but he did offer a smile, “Won’t he be in for a shock when his perfect little prince rebels?” he asked jokingly.
Reio merely scowled at him, especially when Jin moved to ruffle his hair.
--
Kazuya bit back a smile at the strong bond between the two brothers; it wasn’t obvious, for they argued a lot, but it was also obvious to him at the moment that both knew how the other felt, as both of them were Hitoshi’s sons and were going through similar things.
“Was it really that bad?” he asked cautiously, “I mean…with your father…”
Jin grimaced, and he stopped walking for a moment, turning to look at Kazuya, “My father isn’t an evil man…” he started, and took a deep breath, “I know he does care about us, his family, but…he’s been king for so long. He was king when King Tsubasa’s father was still alive and king,” Jin explained, “He’s begun to expect that everyone will do what he says. He’s convinced that he knows best, and he gets really angry when he thinks someone did something he doesn’t expect or against his orders.”
“Well, he’s been at war…” Kazuya said softly, “He sounds like war has changed him a bit too…”
Jin made a noncommittal noise, but he did nod, “During the war…I wasn’t allowed anywhere outside without at least two guards, and as I grew older, if I went anywhere without those guards, it had to be on the grounds of either Ryo’s place or Uchi’s place, because after what had happened with the kidnapping, their homes had the most security. It was like…”
“A prison…” Kazuya said softly, and at Jin’s startled look, he added, “That’s what Hiroki and Ryo told me…”
“Exactly,” Jin nodded, and unconsciously, his hand had grasped Kazuya’s wrist as he remembered what it had been like back then, “I was protected for sure, but…all the guards, with their weapons, made me feel like I had done something wrong. I never made any friends outside of the high-ranked nobles, because if I went outside into the street, most people would be scared off.” Jin let out a bitter laugh, “If you had told me that one day, I’d be walking around like this, no guards, no supervisors, I’d have called you insane.” He admitted, “This trip has been…really free.” He said with a soft smile on his face as he looked at Kazuya.
Kazuya looked startled at that look directed at him. He wondered what was making Jin look at him like that; was it the fact that most of the time they had spent together had been strangely ‘free’ like Jin had said, compared to his childhood?
Jin’s smile widened a little as he circled an arm around Kazuya’s shoulders, startling the younger man even more, as he led them back toward the inn. Jin didn’t say anything else, but he didn’t have to; just that movement, that initiative Jin took in that movement, was enough to make Kazuya smile as though he had never been hurt, as though neither of them had been hurt. In the end, it didn’t matter as much whether or not they had hurt the other, but that they could be forgiven for doing so. Hurt was like a cage; one could become trapped, imprisoned, by all the negative emotions that came with it: anger, guilt, sadness…but in the end, forgiveness could take all those negative emotions away.
They couldn’t keep thinking of the past, because the present, the right now, was more important than ever.
* * *
Eventually, Kazuya never got that nap he wanted to take, for the moment that he and Jin entered the area where their rooms were, Kazuya was, for lack of better word, attacked by a flying blur. That blur also responded to the name Notti. Kazuya staggered, trying to stay standing after getting the shock of Kusano flinging himself at him; Jin managed to put a hand on Kazuya’s back to help support the younger man before he fell backwards, much to Kazuya’s relief.
This, however, also sparked Kusano’s attention.
Kusano stared suspiciously at Jin, “Did you make up?” he asked Kazuya, while still staring at Jin with a look that threatened many painful deaths.
Kazuya sighed at the look, but answered, “Yes,” he said in exasperation, “Please stop glaring at him like that.”
Kusano made a huffing noise, but then he looked around them suspiciously, “By the way, is Pi stalking you by any chance?” he asked hopefully.
“What…?” Kazuya blinked.
“Well, he’s not in his room, or yours,” Kusano said with a shrug, “And I thought you two had gone off together, but since you’re with the prince and not Pi, the next likely theory of where he is is that he’s stalking you.”
Kazuya rubbed his head in consternation, “Notti, your logic is strange.” He said bluntly, “Why would Pi wake up at so early just to stalk me and Jin?”
Kusano shrugged, “You know how protective Pi can get.” He said.
Kazuya sighed, “Did you try Ryo’s room?” he asked with a bit of a smile even as Jin turned around to hide his laughter behind him.
Kusano blinked, “Nishikido’s room? Why would Pi be in -”
He was cut off when there was a sudden yawn from behind, and Kusano swivelled around so fast that Kazuya almost missed it. Jin and Kazuya both blinked at the sight. Yamapi was walking out of what was they all knew to be Ryo’s room, yawning, with bed hair, still in his pyjamas and stretching as he walked out the door. Kusano’s eyes had widened, while Kazuya had an amused look on his face; Jin was clearly trying his best to resist the urge to run into Ryo’s room and tease Ryo.
It took a minute for Yamapi to realize that he was being stared at; when he did, he rubbed his eyes and yawned once more, “What?” he asked defensively upon seeing three pairs of eyes trained on him. He patted his cheek self-consciously, “Is there something on my face?”
Kazuya managed to keep a relatively straight face as he spoke, obviously the only one who could speak coherently at the moment, “How was your sleep?” he asked casually.
“Pretty good,” Yamapi admitted, yawning once more, “Who knew king-sized beds were so comfortable?” he remarked.
Kusano’s eyes, if possible, just widened even more at that. Kazuya began to worry that his eyes were going to fall out of his head if he kept it up.
“King-sized bed, huh?” Kazuya commented idly again; Jin was trying his best not to laugh, and thus, was looking away, and Kusano was looking as though…well, as though he had been told that it was going to rain animals from the sky today.
“What’s wrong with Notti?” Yamapi asked, still yawning a little, “Ugh, too early.” He muttered.
“You could always go back to sleep on the king-sized bed,” Kazuya suggested innocently, “And Notti’s fine…I think…” he reached a finger out to poke Kusano on the side of his head.
“No way, Nishikido would never let me hear the end of it.” Yamapi said, apparently still oblivious to the shock that Kusano was in.
Suddenly, Kusano gave a start and with a startled jump, he looked at Yamapi and then at the room door he had come out of, and then he shot off down the hall, loudly calling, “Hiroki! Hiroki! Hiroki!” as he went.
Yamapi stared in confusion, and a bit of amusement, “One day, Notti’s going to piss off some really strong guy who’s not a morning person and get himself killed.”
Kazuya figured he had better help his best friend wake up properly and realize why Kusano was acting so weird, and calmly said, “By the way, you do know how this looks don’t you?”
“How what looks?” Yamapi asked, yawning again, “Damn it, you know I don’t think well when I just wake up…” he muttered.
“How do I put it...if you add together: you, pyjamas, Nishikido’s room, sleeping and a king-sized bed, what do you get?”
Jin snickered.
Yamapi stared dumbly at Kazuya for a moment, his mind trying to wake up enough for him to work that out; then, his eyes widened nearly as wide as Kusano’s had been, “Nothing happened!!!” he protested loudly and shaking his head and arms formed an ‘X’ shape, a clear ‘no!’ in those movements, “Kazu-chan, nothing happened! I was only there because you two wouldn’t stop talking and I couldn’t sleep, and - you know that nothing happened right?! I mean, it’s Nishikido! He’s the most annoying guy in the world! I wouldn’t do anything like that with him and - you know that right?!”
Kazuya looked amused at his best friend, “I’m not the one you have to convince.” He said, looking pointedly in the direction Kusano had gone.
“Notti!!!” Yamapi yelped as he turned tail and ran down the hall after the younger man.
Jin finally gave up on holding in his laughter and he kept a hand on Kazuya’s shoulder as he leaned against Kazuya, doubling over as he laughed loudly.
* * *
{ part 2 }
Pairing: Akame
Rating: PG-13
Summary: To end the war that has desecrated the lives of the people between two kingdoms, an alliance in the form of an arranged marriage has been made between the two royal families. however, when the princess runs away to avoid being married, the unwilling look-a-like pauper, Kamenashi Kazuya, somehow finds himself brought in to play the part of the princess and deceive Prince Jin. But Kazuya never expected to fall in love...
*waves* So, I'm back with Chapter 34. ^___^ It's been um...*cough* a bit less than 4 months? DDD: Sorry guys >< but you know how RL can get >< So anyways, this is sort of a filler chapter more than anything...but you should still read it, because although it's a filler chapter, it shows development in their relationship as well as bit into Jin's childhood? =P Well, hope you guys enjoy; I'll just leave the rest of my author notes for the end of the chapter. =P
Enjoy~~
---- CHAPTER 34 ----
Ryo woke up to the sound of someone saying his name in annoyance, a finger poking his arm impatiently, and a pair of familiar brown eyes staring at him as he opened his own eyes.
"Tomohisa," he drawled in an amused way, as his brain tried to wake up as quickly as possible, "What are you doing in my room...on my bed?” he noted with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.
He was rewarded with a pillow hitting his face, “Get your mind out of the gutter!” Pi retorted, “I’m here because my room is full of people, who have taken up all the space usually intended for sleeping; Kazuya has made up with Jin and despite the fact that I was sleeping in there, they won’t stop talking even though it’s way past midnight, and you’re the only one left to go to.”
“So I’m your last resort, am I?” Ryo asked, as he sat up, stretching.
“Why do you sleep shirtless?!” he got another pillow in the face.
Ryo made a show of finishing stretching even slower, an amused laugh escaping him when he saw Yamapi’s glare on him, “Hm, I suppose it’s because it just makes it so much easier to dumbfound people who sneak into my bed with my sexiness.” He commented idly, a suggestive smirk on his face.
Yamapi spluttered, “I am not -” he glared angrily at Ryo before throwing another pillow at the older man.
This time, though, Ryo caught the pillow with ease and holding it in front of him, he smirked, “I didn’t say it was you.” He said with a grin, “Is there something you’re not telling me Tomohisa? Something about being dumfounded?”
Yamapi stared at the man for a while, before he jumped up from the bed, “Oh, that’s it! Nothing is more painful than going through this conversation. I’m going to steal the prince’s room since he’s obviously not going to sleep anytime soon.” He muttered darkly, “Maybe I’ll lock him out of his own room, that’ll teach him to keep me awake with his annoying ability to make Kazuya stay up until unreasonable hours, talking...” he muttered under his breath.
He heard a sardonically amused laugh right before a hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him back and he landed back on the bed with an unceremonious bounce.
He turned with a glare at Ryo, “What?”
“As much fun as it would be to watch Jin pound on the door tomorrow morning because you’ve taken hostage of his room and he can’t get to his things, I can’t let you do that.”
“Why not?” Yamapi snapped.
“Well, first reason is that he’ll come bugging me at whatever early hour he returns to his room and I want my sleep,” Ryo folded down a finger for each reason he listed, “Second, I cannot, in good conscience, let you go to Jin’s room and sleep. You might catch idiocy germs.”
Yamapi’s lips twitched as Ryo folded down another finger.
“Any other reasons?”
“Just one. Now that you’ve woken me up, I can’t go back to sleep that easily and I want someone to bug until I fall asleep.” Ryo grinned.
Yamapi raised an eyebrow, “What am I, your personal lullaby-singer?” he asked grumpily.
“I’m not asking you so sing,” Ryo said with a shrug of his shoulders, “But oh fine, just let me stay awake, wondering…just wondering where my lost hours of sleep could have been like, while you go and catch some idiot germs in the idiot prince’s idiot -”
Yamapi didn’t say anything, but he did shoot Ryo a dark look as he grabbed a pillow and threw it onto the bed and lay his head on it in determination…as far away from where Ryo was sitting as possible.
“Molest me in my sleep and you die.” He added as he curled up toward the edge of the bed, shooting Ryo a dark look as the older man smirked and settled onto the mattress again as well. The bed was big enough that neither had to worry about being cramped in with each other.
“Hmph, figures your room would have the king sized bed.” Yamapi said snappishly once a silence had settled over them.
Ryo smirked into the silence, turning over to look at Yamapi’s back, “What can I say? I’m simply that amazing.”
“Oh, get over yourself.”
A silence descended between them.
“Hey Nishikido…”
“Yeah?”
“Do you ever wonder if you’ve done the right thing when it comes to Uchi?”
“Huh?”
“Like…he’s really important to you right? Do you ever wonder if you’ve helped him enough, or made things worse by helping?”
Ryo sat up, turning around again and looked at Yamapi’s back, “Where is this coming from?”
“I don’t know. Just…seeing Kazuya tonight, before he made up with Jin…it made me wonder…what if I’d never encouraged it? What if I told him that it absolutely wasn’t allowed to take that chance with the prince? Would he still hurt so much? Sometimes, I wonder if I’ve done the right thing…every time I see him cry like that, I doubt myself. It takes a lot for Kazuya to cry in front of others…”
Ryo frowned, before he reached over and swatted Yamapi on the head, “Don’t say stupid things. Look, I understand your friendship with Kazuya more than your childhood friends possibly could, because I also have a best friend I would do anything to protect. You wouldn’t tell him to take a risk unless you were sure at the same time, and even if you doubt yourself now, you should trust in the you that made the choice at the same about what to tell him. I trust in that you.” He said seriously, “If there’s one thing I’ll never doubt about you is that you have Kazuya’s best interests at heart, and you should trust in that. I know I do.”
He looked suspiciously at Yamapi, “Is that why you came sneaking into my bed? Because you wanted a heart-to-heart?” he looked disgruntled, “I don’t do girly things like heart-to-hearts.” He grumbled.
Yamapi rolled his eyes, “It was just a question; you don’t have to get so worked up. You’re the last heart I’d want to confide in.” he muttered, “It might spread its clinginess to me.” He added bitingly.
Ryo scowled and kicked Yamapi lightly on the back of his leg, “Shut up and sleep then.”
“Gladly,” Yamapi answered, kicking back once.
There was another long silence, before Yamapi mumbled a, “Thanks,” that Ryo didn’t answer to, but Yamapi knew from the light shifting on the other side of the mattress that Ryo had heard it.
* * *
There had been a long silence after Yamapi had gotten up from his mattress, grumbling, and had left the room running a hand through bed-mussed hair, stumbling in a sleepy way. Jin and Kazuya had stared after him, watching as the man closed the door muttering something about finding someone who went to sleep at decent hours, and as they heard Yamapi’s footsteps along the hallway, they looked at each other and burst into fits of laughter.
Kazuya looked amused, “I guess we weren’t being as quiet as we thought.” He commented idly from where he sat facing Jin as they sat at the table in the room; they had been sitting there for a while, talking quietly, but apparently not as quietly as they had thought because obviously, Yamapi had been kept awake by their conversation.
Jin let out a sudden laugh, “Where do you think he’s going to go?”
Kazuya frowned, “His room’s occupied by everyone else, I think. I don’t think he’d go there. Maybe…” he blinked, “Maybe he’s going to take hostage of your room?” he asked, “Unless…”
“Unless?” Jin tilted his head curiously.
Kazuya bit his lip, trying not to smile at the idea, “Ryo’s room is down the hall isn’t it?” he asked, showing that he obviously knew his best friend way too well. Jin blinked and then a smirk crossed his face; he stood up and Kazuya followed, both of them peeking out the door just in time to see Yamapi, still muttering irritably, sleepily walking into Ryo’s room.
Kazuya resisted the urge to laugh, and then he paused, looking up at Jin from where they were standing in the doorway; Jin suddenly seemed aware of their sudden close proximity as well. The past while, after Jin had shown up, had mostly been spent talking, about things that Kazuya could barely remember - just light conversation to make up for the silence that had fallen after the implications of their kiss hit them. It was like before, after they had initially made up, again; there was a tiny bit of awkwardness in the air.
Jin suddenly smiled slowly, “Hey, let’s go somewhere.” He suggested, “We’re probably not going to sleep for a while, and it’ll be fun.”
Kazuya raised an eyebrow, “It’s two in the morning,” he tried to point out, but it was a weak protest; the idea of going somewhere with Jin with just the two of them was just too appealing.
Jin, however, just smiled a hesitant smile, “It’ll be fine,” he insisted. Kazuya couldn’t help but return the smile, staring at Jin’s face for a moment. He glanced hesitantly down the hall, his already weak resolve wavering.
Fifteen minutes later, he was dressed in an overly large - and long - jacket that belonged to Jin to cover him in case they ran into a late night wanderer left from the festival, was wearing a pair of jeans - and he was still surprised, even now, that all of Kazumi’s clothes seemed to fit him - and was sneaking out of the inn, following Jin by holding onto the back of Jin’s shirt.
Jin was sending him an amused look from time to time, before twisting himself out of Kazuya’s grasp and simply grabbing Kazuya’s wrist, “This might be easier.” He commented.
Kazuya felt a bit of a flutter in his heart at that, before looking warily at Jin’s hand; Jin had been doing this so much over the past few weeks, followed by taking away his hand immediately, that he pretty much expected it by now. Jin seemed to have noticed that look, for he pursed his lips for a moment before pulling on Kazuya’s wrist so that they walked faster.
“Where are we going?” Kazuya asked, taking a shifty look around. There was no one of course; everyone had gone to bed ages ago. With the festival that had been held, everyone would be too exhausted to still be wandering the streets.
Jin merely flashed him a fleeting look and continued to pull him along; Kazuya looked perplexed and would have protested if not for the way Jin continued to hold on tightly onto his wrist, not lifting his hand away for even a moment. It was like it was a silent message directed at Kazuya’s silent insecurities.
It was like Jin was sending him a silent message of, I’m not going to let go this time.
They finally came to a stop a few blocks from the town square, in a street that seemed familiar. Kazuya remembered coming here once; it seemed like a long time ago that he had come here with Pi and had been told about the deal with Jin, and had gotten upset at Pi…
“This place…” he looked around; it was different at night, the streetlight lit up the area dimly, but the silence was what made it much different than what he had seen when he had first come here. Jin dragged him to the bench between two shops, and they sat down; Kazuya looked with a puzzled look at Jin, “Why…”
“You know, I once watched you from up there…” Jin pointed suddenly and Kazuya followed his finger and saw that from here, he could see the area on the top of the hill that they had had their confrontation at earlier. He blinked when he turned around and saw Jin staring intently at him, “You were arguing with Yamashita, and at the time, I was still so angry that I thought…you deserved it. I thought you deserved it, being alone, but…I don’t anymore. I don’t think I ever really did believe that - I was just really angry, really hurt….”
“Jin?” Kazuya asked hesitantly, wondering why he was hearing this.
“I…I know I’ve messed up a lot,” Jin started, moving his hand down his wrist and to take Kazuya’s hand tightly, “Hurt you a lot.” He added.
“You were -” Kazuya made to tell Jin that he could understand that Jin had been hurt too.
“And I know that we’re both to blame, not just you,” Jin said, looking directly into Kazuya’s eyes, “Even though I probably blamed you more than I blamed myself most of the time.” He let out a weak smile.
“Jin,” Kazuya said firmly, “Why are you saying all this?”
Jin blinked, before smiling, “I guess I just want to get all this out while I still can. You’ve apologized to me for lying already, many times, but I still haven’t apologized to you for treating you so badly and hurting you so much. I know we can’t go back to the way we were before all this came out, and I don’t want it to go back to exactly that, because now I can start a relationship with the real you.” He said, “So, what I want to say right now is…I’m sorry for hurting you so much; I’m sorry for making you so upset you cried. I’m sorry for not listening to you.” He added; there were probably a lot more things he could apologize for, that he had to apologize for, but he felt as though those were the most important, the things that gnawed at his conscience and heart. Once the anger had faded away and he had stopped looking at himself as the victim, as the only one that had been hurt, he had felt the guilt from hurting Kazuya so much.
Kazuya blinked at him, “You don’t really need to…” he began, but faltering when he saw the look in Jin’s eyes, “Apology accepted.” He said softly. He knew that with all that had gone on between them, all the hurt and anger, it would be futile to convince either one of them that they didn’t need to feel bad about what they had done…so the best way to get past all that bad stuff was to just accept the apology that was being given, and let the other person move on, knowing that they were forgiven for what they had done.
Jin broke out into a smile, “Thank you.” He said sincerely, “I…”
Kazuya simply shook his head, “I understand.” He said, and he really did. To start over, like they wanted to, they had to get everything out between them; all the insecurities, all the guilt for hurting the other, they couldn’t keep that bottled up or they would never really start over. This apology was Jin getting all the guilt he had out, as well as trying to make up for what he had done in his anger. This was a way for Jin, and by default their relationship, to move past everything that had happened.
Jin was still smiling at him, and Kazuya could only blink in surprise when Jin leaned in, capturing Kazuya’s lips in a slow kiss, “Good,” he said when he drew away, “Then, I can do that, can’t I?”
Kazuya barely hesitated as he grabbed a fistful of Jin’s shirt and pulled him forward again, making their lips meet again; that was enough of an answer for Jin, who slowly circled an arm around Kazuya’s waist, feeling as though with saying his apologies out loud and Kazuya accepting them, a weight had been lifted off his chest, and off their relationship. He smiled into the kiss, pulling Kazuya closer to him; this moment, it just felt so right.
He didn’t need to think about the future; what mattered was right now.
* * *
It was hours later and sometime in that time, both of them had fallen asleep - outside. Jin blinked when he felt a hesitant hand shake his shoulder and he looked up to see an elderly couple on what he assumed to be an early morning walk.
“What is your highness doing out here?”
Jin rubbed his eyes with his fist, looking around in confusion for a moment, before he registered his surroundings, and his eyes widened at the fact that he was still sitting on that bench; a quick glance to his right showed that Kazuya had fallen asleep as well and the younger man had his head on Jin’s shoulder, a smile on his face even in his sleep.
The elderly couple merely gave him a knowing look once they saw Kazuya, and Jin was very relieved that they had brought that jacket of his out with them; on Kazuya, it was large enough that it served to hide the general shape of Kazuya’s body - and the fact that he did not have the curves in certain areas that a woman should.
He let out a sigh of relief when the elderly couple cheerfully told him to get himself and Kazuya inside soon before walking off. He shook Kazuya’s shoulders lightly, earning a soft protest from the sleeping man.
“Kazuya,” he tried again, shaking a bit harder. The younger man let out a soft, sleepy, groan as the insistent movement made him open his eyes.
“Jin?” he blinked in confusion when he saw the prince. He rubbed his eyes, and then quickly covered a yawn with his free hand, “What…”
“We fell asleep outside,” Jin explained, “Think it’s time we head back?” he asked.
Kazuya yawned again, “Guess so…” he mumbled, “If by heading back, you mean we find some place soft and comfy and collapse for a nap…”
Jin smiled in amusement, “I think you have about two hours or so until breakfast.” He said as he looked at his watch, “Enough time for a nap?” he wondered.
Kazuya looked pensive, hiding another yawn behind his hand.
“Okay, I think you really need that nap,” Jin observed idly, “C’mon, let’s get back before I get accused of kidnapping you.” He added.
Kazuya stifled a smile, clearly enjoying the ease that they were talking now, after all the apologies had been made, as compared to before, “I don’t think any of them would be awake this early…” he said even as he hugged Jin’s jacket closer to himself, looking around warily. Very few people were out and about right now, so he wasn’t in danger of being exposed, but he still pulled the material around himself more securely, not willing to take the chance.
“You’d be surprised,” Jin commented, “Especially with the ruckus my father’s been putting up lately.” He said darkly.
“Huh?”
“My father’s been getting up at the crack of dawn to demand a report from the search team looking for Reio,” Jin said with a slight shrug.
“So it’s not really that you think my friends will think you kidnapped me, but to get me safely out of the path of your father just in case something happens?” Kazuya guessed, and he knew he was right when he saw Jin’s startled expression.
There was a long companionable silence between them for a few moments.
“How is Reio?” Kazuya asked quietly, “Do they have any leads yet?”
“No,” Jin said with a wry grin, “I have to hand it to my little brother; he really knows how to disappear. Not even my father’s best people have gotten any leads. He’s either fitting in so well that he passes as a regular traveller in whatever town he’s gone to, or he’s hiding in an isolated place somewhere.”
“You sound worried,” Kazuya commented carefully, looking up at Jin. It was good that he did, or he would have missed the flinch that came across the older man’s face right before the startled expression did.
“What do you mean?” Jin asked casually, “I’m not worried…”
Kazuya made a humming noise, obviously knowing that Jin was at least a little worried despite what he said. Jin shrugged at that, “Well, I’m just hope it’s not that he’s hiding in an isolated place somewhere; since he’s doing this for me…well, us…I’d feel bad if he froze to death or got eaten by a bear up in some isolated mountain cabin or something.” He said, and although he said it casually, Kazuya could hear the concerned tone in his voice.
Kazuya looked at Jin for a moment as they walked along, before nodding, “From what I know of him in the time he was here, Reio seems really smart. He’d be smart enough to get out of any trouble he might get into, and besides,” Kazuya said with what he hoped was a reassuring laugh, “If Reio didn’t think he could handle himself out there in the world, he wouldn’t have left and he’d have gotten caught already; obviously, Reio is more resourceful than anybody really expected.” He said honestly.
Jin looked at him for a long moment, and then a smile spread across his face, “Yeah, I guess. I shouldn’t worry; he’s the brain in the family; my father doesn’t know this, but Reio actually applied for and got a spot in one of the best schools in the kingdom…before all this.” Jin trailed off as he remembered that particular conversation, right before he was about to leave for the South Kingdom.
--
“What do you mean you’re not coming along?” Jin asked, slightly outraged at his younger brother. Reio merely raised an eyebrow, and shook his head as he leaned against the wall of Jin’s room, watching as Jin haphazardly tried to pack his own bags for the trip.
“It’s not that hard to understand, Jin; I’m not coming along on your little pre-marriage, pre-coronation tour,” Reio said with a shrug, “You already have Ryo and Tatsuya going along; you don’t need me to come along.”
“But -” Jin furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and irritation, “The only reason I even agreed to go on this trip was because you convinced me to, you bratty brother!” he sulked.
Reio looked amused if anything, “I didn’t convince you. I told you to give the princess a chance, and then you took my words completely out of context and started rambling about your ‘brilliant’ plan to get her to call off the marriage.”
“See, it was your words that led to that.” Jin said stubbornly.
Reio rolled his eyes “Jin, let’s face it. Whether I go or not, you’ll still go along with this plan to get out of the marriage, whether or not I think it’s a bad idea.” Reio smirked, “It’s always when you’re desperate that you actually listen to me.”
Jin scowled, “Aren’t I supposed to be the older brother here?”
“You keep believing that,” Reio said with a small grin, “But…anyways, whether or not you actually succeed in calling off this marriage, your future is set, Jin.”
Jin scowled at the mention of that, “This plan will work! I won’t marry that -”
Reio cut in with a sigh, “You have such a one-track mind. I’m not talking about the marriage; whether this marriage works out or not, you’ll be king, either over our own country or two joined countries. Your path in life is set, Jin, and mine is currently being decided by our father.” He said bluntly.
Jin blinked. He knew Reio was getting more lessons than usual, to prepare him for a life at court, in helping Jin, and as far as he knew, Reio never really had anything against that; it was just the way it worked. The first born became King, and children that came after the first born were guaranteed places in court. Normally, there was a choice; the children who were not first-born were given more freedom in what they wanted to do, but Hitoshi was stricter and had more control over his sons’ lives than previous kings. Reio’s path was just as set in stone as Jin’s was - decided by their father.
“What…”
“From what I can see, this is your chance for a few months of freedom before you have to take on more responsibilities; you haven’t been allowed outside the palace much Jin, so take advantage of that, if you don’t spend all your time picking on the princess that is,” Reio said disapprovingly, which Jin scowled at, “Meanwhile, I’m going to take the time while both you and Father are gone to prove that I’m not a child that needs my life run for me, or my education bought for me.” He stated firmly, “I’m going to apply to the university under an alias, and I’m going to prove to our father that I can do things on my own and make my own decisions about life.”
Reio looked so determined at that point, that Jin couldn’t protest anymore, but he did offer a smile, “Won’t he be in for a shock when his perfect little prince rebels?” he asked jokingly.
Reio merely scowled at him, especially when Jin moved to ruffle his hair.
--
Kazuya bit back a smile at the strong bond between the two brothers; it wasn’t obvious, for they argued a lot, but it was also obvious to him at the moment that both knew how the other felt, as both of them were Hitoshi’s sons and were going through similar things.
“Was it really that bad?” he asked cautiously, “I mean…with your father…”
Jin grimaced, and he stopped walking for a moment, turning to look at Kazuya, “My father isn’t an evil man…” he started, and took a deep breath, “I know he does care about us, his family, but…he’s been king for so long. He was king when King Tsubasa’s father was still alive and king,” Jin explained, “He’s begun to expect that everyone will do what he says. He’s convinced that he knows best, and he gets really angry when he thinks someone did something he doesn’t expect or against his orders.”
“Well, he’s been at war…” Kazuya said softly, “He sounds like war has changed him a bit too…”
Jin made a noncommittal noise, but he did nod, “During the war…I wasn’t allowed anywhere outside without at least two guards, and as I grew older, if I went anywhere without those guards, it had to be on the grounds of either Ryo’s place or Uchi’s place, because after what had happened with the kidnapping, their homes had the most security. It was like…”
“A prison…” Kazuya said softly, and at Jin’s startled look, he added, “That’s what Hiroki and Ryo told me…”
“Exactly,” Jin nodded, and unconsciously, his hand had grasped Kazuya’s wrist as he remembered what it had been like back then, “I was protected for sure, but…all the guards, with their weapons, made me feel like I had done something wrong. I never made any friends outside of the high-ranked nobles, because if I went outside into the street, most people would be scared off.” Jin let out a bitter laugh, “If you had told me that one day, I’d be walking around like this, no guards, no supervisors, I’d have called you insane.” He admitted, “This trip has been…really free.” He said with a soft smile on his face as he looked at Kazuya.
Kazuya looked startled at that look directed at him. He wondered what was making Jin look at him like that; was it the fact that most of the time they had spent together had been strangely ‘free’ like Jin had said, compared to his childhood?
Jin’s smile widened a little as he circled an arm around Kazuya’s shoulders, startling the younger man even more, as he led them back toward the inn. Jin didn’t say anything else, but he didn’t have to; just that movement, that initiative Jin took in that movement, was enough to make Kazuya smile as though he had never been hurt, as though neither of them had been hurt. In the end, it didn’t matter as much whether or not they had hurt the other, but that they could be forgiven for doing so. Hurt was like a cage; one could become trapped, imprisoned, by all the negative emotions that came with it: anger, guilt, sadness…but in the end, forgiveness could take all those negative emotions away.
They couldn’t keep thinking of the past, because the present, the right now, was more important than ever.
* * *
Eventually, Kazuya never got that nap he wanted to take, for the moment that he and Jin entered the area where their rooms were, Kazuya was, for lack of better word, attacked by a flying blur. That blur also responded to the name Notti. Kazuya staggered, trying to stay standing after getting the shock of Kusano flinging himself at him; Jin managed to put a hand on Kazuya’s back to help support the younger man before he fell backwards, much to Kazuya’s relief.
This, however, also sparked Kusano’s attention.
Kusano stared suspiciously at Jin, “Did you make up?” he asked Kazuya, while still staring at Jin with a look that threatened many painful deaths.
Kazuya sighed at the look, but answered, “Yes,” he said in exasperation, “Please stop glaring at him like that.”
Kusano made a huffing noise, but then he looked around them suspiciously, “By the way, is Pi stalking you by any chance?” he asked hopefully.
“What…?” Kazuya blinked.
“Well, he’s not in his room, or yours,” Kusano said with a shrug, “And I thought you two had gone off together, but since you’re with the prince and not Pi, the next likely theory of where he is is that he’s stalking you.”
Kazuya rubbed his head in consternation, “Notti, your logic is strange.” He said bluntly, “Why would Pi wake up at so early just to stalk me and Jin?”
Kusano shrugged, “You know how protective Pi can get.” He said.
Kazuya sighed, “Did you try Ryo’s room?” he asked with a bit of a smile even as Jin turned around to hide his laughter behind him.
Kusano blinked, “Nishikido’s room? Why would Pi be in -”
He was cut off when there was a sudden yawn from behind, and Kusano swivelled around so fast that Kazuya almost missed it. Jin and Kazuya both blinked at the sight. Yamapi was walking out of what was they all knew to be Ryo’s room, yawning, with bed hair, still in his pyjamas and stretching as he walked out the door. Kusano’s eyes had widened, while Kazuya had an amused look on his face; Jin was clearly trying his best to resist the urge to run into Ryo’s room and tease Ryo.
It took a minute for Yamapi to realize that he was being stared at; when he did, he rubbed his eyes and yawned once more, “What?” he asked defensively upon seeing three pairs of eyes trained on him. He patted his cheek self-consciously, “Is there something on my face?”
Kazuya managed to keep a relatively straight face as he spoke, obviously the only one who could speak coherently at the moment, “How was your sleep?” he asked casually.
“Pretty good,” Yamapi admitted, yawning once more, “Who knew king-sized beds were so comfortable?” he remarked.
Kusano’s eyes, if possible, just widened even more at that. Kazuya began to worry that his eyes were going to fall out of his head if he kept it up.
“King-sized bed, huh?” Kazuya commented idly again; Jin was trying his best not to laugh, and thus, was looking away, and Kusano was looking as though…well, as though he had been told that it was going to rain animals from the sky today.
“What’s wrong with Notti?” Yamapi asked, still yawning a little, “Ugh, too early.” He muttered.
“You could always go back to sleep on the king-sized bed,” Kazuya suggested innocently, “And Notti’s fine…I think…” he reached a finger out to poke Kusano on the side of his head.
“No way, Nishikido would never let me hear the end of it.” Yamapi said, apparently still oblivious to the shock that Kusano was in.
Suddenly, Kusano gave a start and with a startled jump, he looked at Yamapi and then at the room door he had come out of, and then he shot off down the hall, loudly calling, “Hiroki! Hiroki! Hiroki!” as he went.
Yamapi stared in confusion, and a bit of amusement, “One day, Notti’s going to piss off some really strong guy who’s not a morning person and get himself killed.”
Kazuya figured he had better help his best friend wake up properly and realize why Kusano was acting so weird, and calmly said, “By the way, you do know how this looks don’t you?”
“How what looks?” Yamapi asked, yawning again, “Damn it, you know I don’t think well when I just wake up…” he muttered.
“How do I put it...if you add together: you, pyjamas, Nishikido’s room, sleeping and a king-sized bed, what do you get?”
Jin snickered.
Yamapi stared dumbly at Kazuya for a moment, his mind trying to wake up enough for him to work that out; then, his eyes widened nearly as wide as Kusano’s had been, “Nothing happened!!!” he protested loudly and shaking his head and arms formed an ‘X’ shape, a clear ‘no!’ in those movements, “Kazu-chan, nothing happened! I was only there because you two wouldn’t stop talking and I couldn’t sleep, and - you know that nothing happened right?! I mean, it’s Nishikido! He’s the most annoying guy in the world! I wouldn’t do anything like that with him and - you know that right?!”
Kazuya looked amused at his best friend, “I’m not the one you have to convince.” He said, looking pointedly in the direction Kusano had gone.
“Notti!!!” Yamapi yelped as he turned tail and ran down the hall after the younger man.
Jin finally gave up on holding in his laughter and he kept a hand on Kazuya’s shoulder as he leaned against Kazuya, doubling over as he laughed loudly.
* * *
{ part 2 }