[fic] The Things We Can't Control - Chapter 14 ~The First Week~
Title: The Things We Can't Control
Author:
prettyorianna
Pairing: Akame. Others to be added later.
Rating: NC-17.
Genre: crime drama au
Beta by: my cat Gemma. okay, seriously, nobody
Disclaimer: I don't own KAT-TUN, any of its members, any other JE people. I write this for fun and for other fans of these fine folks. But don't steal my plots, mmkay? I put a great deal of time into them except for when I'm randomly spastically spitting words onto a page. But I value those too...
Summary: Two criminals with vastly different styles meet by chance one day. Can they work together or will they end up destroying each other?
Author's Note: Back to the past. Kame's first week on the street.
BANNER BY DESHISORABA!!
Warning: This gets graphic often occasionally, containing at the very least foul language, character death, nefarious crimes, rape, etc etc.
The Master Posts:
On my journal - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
On the akame_ Community - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
On the akame_fanfics Community - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
On the je_kamenashi Community - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
On the kattun_fanfics Community - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
On the jin_fics Community - The Things We Can't Control Master Post
Chapter 14 ~The First Week~
It was a longer walk back to Third and Pearl than it was to get to the pawn shop, even though it was the same route. Kame’s thoughts weighted him down, slowing his pace. After all, it’s one thing to decide to do “whatever is necessary” but quite another thing to actually be able to do it, or even to know what it is.
But…
If he was being totally honest with himself…
He knew what he’d have to do. If he’d really thought about it, he’d have known before he stepped one foot out of the front door to his home. Well, house. That place was in no way ever a home to him. He hadn’t left that place in over a year. He had no skills but those his father taught him, that he spent the last seven years perfecting.
Like his papa said, he was otherwise useless.
A voice broke through his thoughts, pulling him to the present, “I figured you’d be back before the evening rush. You wake up yet?”
“Wake up? What does that mean?” Kame asked, keeping his distance from the figure leaning against the building which turned out to be Ryuichi.
A laugh and Ryuichi said, “To your situation, I mean. You think you’re finally free and then it hits you. The things it takes to survive out here are the same as the things you ran away from. Or did you get kicked out for not being a good fuck? I find that hard to believe…”
No, it really wasn’t the same, was it? It couldn’t be… how many men really could be like that customer? “Do… is it common to get… hurt… badly?”
“What, like getting beaten up? It happens. You get used to it.” Ryuichi shrugged casually.
Kame shook his head and stammered, “No, I mean… well, like… like t-torture…”
“Ah! So that’s what that was about last night…”
“No! I mean…” and Kame frantically tried to think of something to say, “I’m just curious, that’s all.”
Now it was Ryuichi who was shaking his head. “Sure you are. Okay, look, around my stroll, you’re left to deal with problems yourself for the most part but for something that bad, I’d step in. Probably. Maybe. Okay, I guess it depends…” He shrugged again. “It definitely wouldn’t be for free…”
Of course not. Kame refrained from rolling his eyes, though.
“Now, if you get into a client’s car, you’re definitely on your own. Who knows what would happen then? I mean, some whores ain’t got a choice cause they just take what they can get but I think you’ll have a bit more power than all that. You can afford to turn down the ones who won’t go to the alley.” Ryuichi looked thoughtful. “I should probably introduce you to some of the others. You gotta know who you can trust…”
The hell? Did he actually believe Kame would take his word for that? “And you’re saying I can trust you to tell me who else I can trust? You’ve got to be kidding me! After what you did to me yesterday?!”
“Oi, you’re so overreacting. Look, you have to pay to stay and to work. You would rather I had kicked you off my blocks till you figured out your situation and came crawling back more willing?” Ryuichi pushed himself off the building, walking over to Kame and grabbing him by the arm. “Come on, you should really let me show you to the guys…”
Jerking his arm away, Kame nevertheless followed him. It wasn’t like he had much of a choice. He had to learn how to live out here and these were the people who knew. Besides, if he didn’t make nice and his father ever did come here looking for him, it would be better if the others were on his side so they’d be less willing to sell him out.
If he wasn’t being a fool for hoping for that, at least…
“Let’s see… Ah! Yoko, come here for a sec!” Ryuichi called out rather loudly.
An older-looking boy with dark hair looked up from where he was sitting on some steps eating breakfast. “But I’m busy eating, Ryu-chan!”
“Mou, didn’t I say not to call me that?” Ryuichi whined, which surprised Kame. He wouldn’t have expected that tone from the older boy.
“Only like twenty times. It’s no big deal. Just put it on my bill.”
“Oh, ha ha. Don’t think I won’t find some way!” But Ryuichi waved the other boy, this Yoko kid, over and, sighing, the boy finally stood and approached, leaving the food on the steps. “This is…”
But Yoko interrupted Ryuichi with, “Kame. I know. We all know. You haven’t shut u-”
And then Ryuichi interrupted him in turn with, “Right! Um… Kame, this is Yokoyama Yuu. Mostly useless but he can be kind of funny.”
“Who are you calling useless? I can make just as much as you. More even. And you shouldn’t make fun of me; you know I’m bigger than you…” but Yoko’s tone was not a menacing one but rather more of a joking one.
“Oh, no one is bigger than me. Well, maybe Kame…” Ryuichi said, looking thoughtful again. But Kame wasn’t quite sure what Ryuichi was talking about. Clearly Yoko was taller than him, but Kame? Kame was definitely shorter than both of the older boys.
“ Hey, where’d Hina run off to?” Ryuichi’s voice cut through Kame’s thoughts once more.
With a laugh, Yoko said, “Oh, he fell in love again. He’ll be back. You know he always comes back when his latest sugar daddy throws him out.”
Ryuichi groaned. “Not again… Well,” and he suddenly threw his arms around Kame’s waist, pulling him in close, “At least this way he won’t go behind my back with Kame-chan!”
Kame let out a screech of protest as he found himself suddenly pulled against Ryuichi’s body. “Don’t touch me!” he shouted, throwing the other boy’s arms off of him and ducking out of his grasp. Taking deep breaths, he tried to calm his heart which was beating entirely too fast. That boy was entirely too hands-on!
“Oh, he’s precious! And that stuffed animal is just too much!” Yoko practically giggled. “You know, I could maybe teach you how to-”
But Kame wasn’t interested. “No, thanks. I already know everything I need to.” Well, almost everything. To be honest, he still wasn’t sure how, exactly, things worked. Did… did he just sort of stand around and hope?
“You know everything, huh?” Ryuichi teased. “Okay, then… show me.”
“What?! I’m not going to… You said payment was only once for a week!”
Rolling his eyes, Ryuichi said, “I didn’t mean that. I mean, go try and get yourself a customer and then come back here and tell me you know it all. Look, you may undeniably be one fine piece of ass but just having it ain’t enough. You gotta show it right and you gotta know how to spot your clients and you gotta be able to pick out the cops and you gotta work it, right?”
“Oh…” because truthfully, Kame really thought he had meant… well, guess it didn’t matter. “So you’re going to teach me? How much will that cost me?”
“Ah, he catches on fast,” Yoko laughed. “I like him, I think. It’s been a long time since a new kid showed you this much attitude, ne? Pity it won’t last.”
“You know, I like you and I’m feeling all generous. Work with me tonight and I’ll teach you what you need. But if you ain’t got it figured by next week, I’ll start charging you a piece of your profits for the lessons on top of your weekly payment. Right?” Ryuichi’s expression was suddenly serious.
Kame couldn’t really afford to refuse, so he didn’t. When night drew closer, the lessons started and it wasn’t very long before Kame had the very first real client of his new life (the pawn shop owner didn’t exactly count) in the alley taking him against the wall for $20, cash up front - the first bit of advice he’d gotten from his new “teacher” Ryuichi, who also suggested the amount and said that for his first night it was quite a lot but that he had confidence Kame could get that - and it was over rather quickly at least.
And then there was the second and the third and onward from there and he tried not to think about what he was doing but he couldn’t help it. He felt so… so dirty. In some ways, this was so much worse than everything he’d done the past seven years to make money for his father.
But it was still better than his life would be if he’d stayed. He’d let the whole damn city fuck him if it would mean he’d never again be at the mercy of that monster his father sold him to.
For the rest of the week, things went pretty much the same. He still had nightmares every night when he finally grabbed his stuffed animal from its hiding spot and settled down to sleep. After a few nights of being woken by an irritated Ryuichi, Kame thought the boy was going to throw him out of his stroll but it didn’t happen. Though by the end of the week, Ryuichi was getting grumpier and grumpier about the noise and threatening to charge him a quickie for each time he was rudely awakened by Kame’s screams.
It’s odd how one fear can help quell another. He still had the nightmares, but he managed to keep quiet.
That… that was an improvement of sorts, right?
He’d take his hope wherever he could find it these days…
+++++++++++++++++++
The story continues:
Chapter 15 ~Going Home~
A/N: I wanted to make this longer, to cover the first few weeks instead of just one, but it's like 3 in the morning. I got all distracted by meat. Okay, it didn't come out like I wanted but I think when I slice it and put it through the broiler, it'll be fine for the gyros.
But anyway, I didn't want to make you guys wait any longer so I did my best to give you a decent chapter anyway.
For the record, I don't really like Ryuichi all that much. Yoko's vocal but I think he wouldn't actually go so far as to attack another boy like Ryuichi obviously has no problems doing. And I'm sure Hina will be back soon. He's not usually gone for more than a couple weeks before he gets kicked back to the curb.
There are other boys working Ryuichi's stroll but they don't have the status that Ryuichi, Yoko, and Hina do. Don't ask me how many 'cause I have no idea. And willing suspension of disbelieve on that $20 price. I did a bit of research but I couldn't find the exact info I needed so I ballparked it.
Anyway, next chapter is back to the present, to Jin and Kame in the motel room waiting for Koki to come pick them up. Though most likely I will be updating UP before this.