smokebombsandmirrors:

Now he wanted to tear his hair out. He groaned he slammed his plate down onto the table and whirled on him. Reaching out he snagged the front of Hakuba’s tee and half dragged him towards him. At a hair breath from their lips touching he choked.

He went wide eyed and felt his body shake. None to gentle he laughed back from the detective and smacked a hand over his mouth. He knew he was red. He was just surprised he wasn’t red all over. A series of jumbled garbled word escaped, not all of them Japanese. Stumbling back he fled upstairs to his bedroom and hid underneath the covers.

There was a moment of confusion, another of fear, and then a whole lot of breathless staring as the whirlwind that was Kuroba Kaito fled the room. The loud sound, the rough grabbing, the almost – what was that? Almost a kiss? And then to be left like that… 

Hakuba stood still in the kitchen, only barely able to keep hold of the plate in his hands as he trembled. What was he supposed to make of that?!  Hesitantly, he turned to look toward the stairs, biting his lip as he once again considered his options. 

Before anything else, Hakuba set the food on the counter, less he let the plate slip from his fingers, and retrieved the pocket watch. Snap. Check time. Confirm with wrist watch. Snap closed. Caress the crest. Slip back in pocket. 

He wished he was wearing his suit instead of these god-awful casual clothes. He had cigarettes in his suit. It would have been such a welcome relief at this point. Was it rejection that he felt? The ache in his chest suggested as such, and he felt sick from it. Really, he needed to leave, give Kaito some space. So much had happened in so little time and clearly there were dangerous emotions running high. 

Quietly, he went up the stairs, following the path that he knew led to Kaito’s room. When he reached the door, he knocked, peeking in but not entering, posture submissive and apologetic. 

“Kuroba-kun…” he said, biting his lower lip again. “I’m sorry. I know you’re likely exhausted. Shall I leave you to rest now…?”

smokebombsandmirrors:

He DID NOT squeaked. Blushing he turned and half glared at him. He went to open his mouth to say something and jumped again at the beep from the machine behind him. He glared at that and yanked out the food. Then turned back to Hakuba.

He voiced died on his tongue and he blushed open mouthed. Everything he wanted to say just crawled back in side and refused to return. Closing his mouth with an audible snap of teeth. He turned back to the food and replaced one of them onto its plate. Collecting both of them he moved towards him and held one out.

“Here.” He offered and watched the floor. He couldn’t look at him in the eye now or at least until he got IT out of his system. 

That was… abrupt. Hakuba frowned as he took the plate from him, taking half a step back, then another, confidence faltering. Had he pushed him too far? Somehow, he’d expected their banter to be on even ground. Fun, playful teasing like they’d sort of become accustomed to. But perhaps he’d overstepped his bounds. 

“Thank you,” he said, glancing to the table where the tea was, ignoring the anxious snake that twisted around his lungs and into his throat. It was fine. He was fine. Everything was all right. It had just been a very long night, and he definitely wasn’t hungry at all. 

After running his teeth together, Hakuba looked back to Kaito cautiously. “I won’t take much more of your time this morning; I just need to make certain that you’re going to be all right before I head out… apologies for all of the trouble thus far, Kuroba-kun. I know you’ve had a rough evening.”

smokebombsandmirrors:

He hadn’t heard him. He was to absorbed into his thoughts. Carefully he shifted forward as something clicked into place. Resting his hands on the counter he braced against them and tried to breath.

Hakuba tilted his head, coming around the corner to look for him. “You’re not on the couch, so I assume…” He paused when he found him in the kitchen, tilting his head to regard him. Of course he wasn’t all right; Kuroba Kaito never was. How could he be with so much additional stress? It hadn’t been fair of him… none of it. 

He approached quietly, footpads soft on the dining and kitchen room floor. “Kuroba-kun?” he asked, voice quiet in gentle concern. 

smokebombsandmirrors:

“Hai, hai.” He sighed.

Once the detective was gone he flopped over onto his side and screamed quietly into the cushions. He wanted to jump him? Hakuba? Yeah, he didn’t want the detective to leave and he had said that he didn’t want to lose him but to …. He staggered upward and rolled off the couch. He was up and on to his feet and wrapping his arms around his waist.

NO! No no no! I don’t like him like that! I just reacted to the touch! That was all! He screamed internally and looked down at his thigh. He could see Hakuba there. He could feel those gentle fingers brushing against his skin. He could also feel his want rise. 

Jumping about a foot into the air he nearly tore his hair out and paced into the kitchen. On his way he snatched the food, shifted them onto one plate and tossed them into the microwave. He shifted and closed his eyes and just stood there. Hip cocked to the side and levitating pressure off his bad thigh, hands planted onto his hips and body tense.

He was also failing in every way in forgetting his desire for one Hakuba Saguru he didn’t realize he had.

Once Hakuba reached the bottom of the stairs he leaned against the wall, taking a moment to collect himself. He was still so tired from the previous evening; all of the anxiety, the running around, the lack of sleep… Well, he’d slept, but it definitely hadn’t been enough. Really, though, it was just the emotional and mental gymnastics that they’d both been doing in the last couple of weeks. Just what had possessed him to seek Kuroba for advice, anyway? 

Not that he regretted it, but everything seemed so foreign and dreamlike, now. So very, very unreal.

The detective disposed of the material a moment later, then checked his watch and his mobile phone for messages. An alert waited for him there – a case, for later that afternoon. He sighed, adding it to his calendar application, then began the climb back up the stairs. 

“Kuroba-kun…” he called, looking for him. “Are you resting again yet?”

smokebombsandmirrors:

Kaito felt a brow arch a minor movement in a still face. “Oooo~ now I’m just tempted.” He purred and shifted on the seat. His feet pulled underneath him he almost looked like he was ready to pounce.

The detective turned back to look over his shoulder at Kaito, expression a cold and icy glare. “Kuroba-kun…” he said, warning as he cast a glance down at the other’s leg. “I’m quite serious. If I have to restitch you, I may just sedate you entirely, and I’m quite sure that you wouldn’t enjoy that.”

He huffed, and went down the stairs to take care of the rubbish. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy seeing him like that, really… though, that was part of why he, also, needed to get away for a few moments. 

smokebombsandmirrors:

“If you want. I’ll reheat our breakfast and before you tell me to relax again. I promise that the minute it’s done I won’t move from the couch.” He said. His eye still held that gaze and watched Hakuba’s every move like a hawk. The only other movement he did was to hold up his hand in a rendered salute.

Hakuba studied him for a moment, incredulous and unamused. He hefted a sigh, getting back to his feet so that he could take the disposable bag with him. “All right, fine… go ahead, reheat breakfast, and then return to this couch. I’ll just be a moment to nip downstairs; I remember the way." 

He wasn’t certain if he should return the salute or not, particularly as it was something that he used to do his chums back in London as a joke. It felt far too sarcastic from Kaito, but then, what didn’t? 

"I’m warning you, though…” he said as he reached the door to the stairs. “If you don’t rest, there will be repercussions."