Fake Fan Fiction ❯ FAKE in Love: Act XX, Memories and Moments ❯ Chapter 6

Warnings and Disclaimers: I do not own FAKE. Dammit. You'd think by now you'd all know that. I'm not making any money off of this, though if anyone's interested in hiring a writer, feel free to contact me. This is yaoi.

 

“There we go,” Ryo said with a small smile. “No more bandage.”

Dee glanced up from the bed, Ryo dressed in an old pair of jeans and a baggy shirt. He smiled at Dee, his partner sprawled on the bed with a cigarette in one hand and a magazine in the other. Ryo sat down on the edge of the bed and Dee tossed the magazine onto the floor. He chuckled and ran his fingers up through Ryo's hair, the tips brushing over the faint mark that was quickly disappearing.

“You heal fast, Sexy.”

Ryo laughed and leaned forward to steal a quick kiss. “Good thing too.”

“Damned good thing,” Dee agreed.

Dee's lips brushed over Ryo's forehead and then traced down to one ear.

“Aren't you supposed to go into the station for a couple of hours?” Ryo murmured, his head tilting to the side to encourage Dee's exploration.

“No.”

“Liar.”

Dee snorted laughter and brushed his lips over Ryo's neck.

“Do you really want me to go?” he asked as his tongue slid out to run over Ryo's pulse.

“Not really,” Ryo breathed.

“Maybe I'll just blow it off,” Dee said.

“Mmph.”

Dee snorted laughter. He knew that sound. Ryo made it whenever he didn't want to give a straight answer on something. Ryo obviously wanted him to stay, but he couldn't bring himself to tell Dee to just skip out on work.

“I've got to make a call,” Dee murmured.

“What are you going to tell them?” Ryo asked.

“I'll think of something,” Dee answered with a wink.

Dee strolled out into the living room, his cell in one hand and his cigarette in the other. He sighed and flipped it open as he stared out over the city. New York still looked beautiful at night, that's all he ever thought when he looked out across it. It didn't matter that he knew everything that went on in the shadows, the place was still beautiful.

“This is Detective Laytner,” Dee said after the desk sergeant had picked up. “Connect me to Chief Smith, please.”

He listened to the sound of a holding phone line and absently took another drag at his cigarette.

“Smith, here,” a low voice grumbled in his ear.

“It's Laytner,” Dee said. “About toni--”

“Don't even think about it,” Smith snapped. “Get your ass in here or you're in deep shit.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Dee muttered. “Come on, Ryo's actually feeling better now.”

“How is that supposed to convince me to let you stay home?” Smith asked, the grim smile apparent in his tone. “Get in here.”

Dee sighed. “Fine.”

He hung up and headed back into the bedroom, Ryo now paging through the magazine Dee had left behind. He glanced up and Dee almost cursed himself when an expectant blush fanned over Ryo's cheeks.

“Sorry,” Dee said. “No go. I have to go in for a while.”

Ryo's face fell and then he forced up a small smile.

“That's fine,” Ryo said with a shrug. “You can get some work done.”

“Ha, ha,” Dee answered as he pulled back on his jacket. “Are you going to stay awake while I'm gone?”

Ryo was silent and Dee glanced over at the blank look on his partner's face.

“Ryo?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes, I'll stay awake.”

Dee chuckled and leaned forward for a quick kiss. He sighed as their lips parted and Ryo smiled at him.

“I'll be back as soon as I can,” Dee said.

“Good.”

 

“Dee-senpai!”

Dee couldn't help it that his spine still tensed up every time he heard that bellowing cry echo through the precinct. His teeth ground together and he shot JJ a narrowed glare as the sharpshooter skidded to a halt next to him.

“What do you want, JJ?” Dee growled tiredly.

“I'm supposed to give you this,” JJ said, holding out a file. “Smith sent it up for you.”

Dee took the folder and flipped it open. His lips thinned immediately and JJ frowned.

“What is it?”

“Nothing,” Dee answered.

“Oh,” JJ said hooking an arm around Dee's neck. “It's something to do with Ryo-senpai, then.”

Dee shrugged him off with an irritated scowl.

“It's nothing,” Dee said again.

His eyes scanned the paperwork and he nodded.

“I'm going home.”

“What?” JJ yelled. “You just got here!”

“And now I'm just leaving,” Dee answered and tapped the other man on the head with the folder. “See ya.”

 

“You're back pretty fast,” Ryo said as he looked up, a watering can gripped in one hand and an amused look on his face.

“No reason to stay,” Dee said as he pulled off his shirt and grabbed some comfortable clothes from the bottom of the dresser. “Did you want me to stay away?”

“No,” Ryo said and sighed heavily. “I guess you're welcome here.”

Dee chuckled and headed into the bathroom.

“So did you stay awake the whole time I was gone?”

“Yes,” Ryo answered as he shook his head with a little annoyance. “I stayed awake the whole time you were gone.”

“Hmm,” Dee said as he stepped back into the bedroom, his eyes running over Ryo's body as his partner turned back to the sunflowers leaning over their bed. “Then you don't have an excuse to get out of bed for the rest of the night.”

Ryo's eyebrows lifted and a faint blush fanned over his cheeks as Dee sauntered across the room.

“What do you say, Sexy?” Dee purred.

The front door banged open then, Carol's voice echoing out into the apartment.

“Ryo! Ryo! Are you in?”

Ryo chuckled at the crestfallen irritation that raced over Dee's face and glanced at the door.

“Oh, hey, Carol. What's the matter? And where's Bikky? Isn't he with--”

Ryo's voice cut off as he took in Carol's heartbroken expression. Then she was moving across the room. Dee hissed softly, his teeth grinding together. Ryo was in no condition to be glomped by an overly emotional teenage girl; his lover was still on the mend and he knew Ryo was sore and, even though Dee would never say it out loud, Ryo was still weak after his hospital stay. Dee flew across the room and caught the girl before she could ram Ryo.

“There, there,” Dee said in his best Mother Lane impression. “Tell me all about it, hon.”

Carol roared and her fist cut through the air as she wrenched out of Dee's hold.

“What the heck are you doing here?” she snapped.

“Oh, and, uh, when did that start being your business, huh?” Dee answered with a smirk.

“I'm here to talk to Ryo. Not you, so scram!”

Carol hooked her arms around Ryo and curled up close, Ryo wincing a little but not pushing her away.

“What?” Dee said with annoyance. “I got here first, dammit.”

“Dee, would you mind?” Ryo asked with a faint smile. “Just go find something to do for a sec, would you?”

Their eyes met, and Dee knew that Ryo wouldn't just abandon Carol now. Damn that Ryo anyway. He sighed and ran a hand back through his hair.

“Fine,” Dee grumbled. “Okay, see ya. Sheesh.”

Dee shut the door noisily behind him, his lips thinned now as he wandered into the kitchen. He could hear the muffled sound of Ryo and Carol talking, the girl's voice obviously agitated and emotional, Ryo's soft and soothing when he spoke. Dee loved the sound of that voice. He smiled and poured himself a glass of juice.

Green eyes slid to the paperwork Dee had abandoned on the table, the file Smith had dug up for him innocently tucked inside a magazine. Dee poked his head out of the kitchen to glance at their closed bedroom door.

He had hoped to keep himself distracted with Ryo enough that he wouldn't be tempted into reading the information. He had hoped that he could have a night without trying to figure out what had happened in an old warehouse outside of town. He finished the last of his drink and sighed with resignation as he checked the door again. Still closed. No luck.

Dee snagged the hidden file and an ashtray and set up camp outside the door. The moment he could get inside, he was tucking this magazine and the file it held out of sight and not thinking about it again until tomorrow. Dee sighed and flipped it open.

 

“I know this is selfish,” Carol said as she shook her head. “But I just hate that there's a part he won't share with me. A part of him I'll never see.”

Ryo smiled a little and fanned his fingers over the bed spread. Selfish. Yes, love was like that. Ryo hoarded all the pieces of Dee that he could find and kept them locked away just for himself. And he knew Dee did the same.

But now there were secrets between them, secrets that Ryo was keeping locked away from the both of them.

Ryo's eyes closed a moment. His head was starting to hurt, and the thoughts were ramming together in that irritating way that always ended with them being too dark and frustrated.

He leaned forward into his hand and gave Carol another smile. She looked on the verge of crying now.

“Hey, Carol,” he said gently. “Did Bikky come right out and say he didn't like you anymore?”

“Well, no,” Carol admitted with a frown.

“Then how can you throw away close to seven years of trust just because he's been acting a bit odd for the past week or two?” he shrugged a little and leaned back into the bed. “Besides, whenever Bikky and I talk, you always come up. Once a day at least.”

Once every conversation was far more accurate, but Ryo didn't want to admit Bikky's feelings for Carol if the teen hadn't already done it himself. He just smiled again and rubbed at her shoulder.

“And it's never anything negative.”

They were silent then, Carol toying with the edge of the blanket and Ryo's mind drifting. He sighed and shook his head.

“Personally, I think a person without any secrets at all is kind of creepy.”

Carol's lips pursed as she thought and then she bowed her head.

“What should I do, Ryo?”

“Well, first and foremost, cheer up. And then, why don't you start by apologizing to Bikky tomorrow,” Ryo hugged her and laughed against her hair. “Now smile, silly.”

“Okay,” Carol said with a small smile.

She pulled out of Ryo's arms and headed for the door, her braid flipped back behind her as she waved.

“Thanks Ryo. Good night.”

“Night,” Ryo answered.

Dee flipped the `magazine' closed and glanced up, his cigarette hanging from his lip.

“You done in there?”

“Yeah,” Carol answered as she shut the door. “Sorry about earlier, Dee.”

Dee smirked and pulled the cigarette free with a last plume of smoke.

“Just cheer up, okay? It just isn't you when you're all in my face and acting obnoxious.”

Carol snorted laughter and then shook back her hair again.

“I am not obnoxious, geek!”

“Whatever,” Dee said with a shrug. “G'night. Tell the monkey to be home at a respectable time.”

“Sure,” Carol said. “Good night, Dee.”

Dee tossed the hidden file back on the floor and ground out his cigarette, his footsteps silent across the floor as he returned to the bedroom. Ryo smiled from the bed, one hand sliding out to toy with the top button on his shirt.

“I think I'm all done with my good deeds for the day,” Ryo said with a coy smile.

“Oh goody,” Dee answered with a lecherous grin. “You should be all set for the naughty ones tonight, then.”

Ryo laughed and flicked another button open.

“Maybe,” he murmured.

Dee smiled and leaned against the doorjamb.

“I heard what you said,” he said quietly. “About secrets.”

Ryo's fingers faltered at the next button and he shrugged a little.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” Dee said. “This is really bothering you, isn't it?”

“Shouldn't it be?” Ryo said, a little anger bleeding into his voice.

His hands jerked away from his shirt, skittering over the blanket for a moment before he pushed himself to his feet. Ryo shook his head as he pushed past Dee and headed to the kitchen. The brunette paced through the room, his eyes darting over everything before he finally picked up a stray cloth and started wiping down the counter.

“It's alright,” Dee said. “Ryo, it's okay.”

“No, it isn't,” Ryo said angrily, his hands slamming against the counter.

“Ryo--”

“I might have killed those men,” Ryo said. “What if I shot them? What if I…what if I pulled the trigger?”

His hands tightened around the cloth.

“What if I murdered them?”

“You didn't,” Dee said, his hand moving up Ryo's back, a tremble racing up through his palm. “You didn't, Ryo.”

“You don't know,” Ryo said tiredly.

One hand pulled free from the counter and he winced as he rubbed at his temple.

“Headache?” Dee asked softly.

He slid his arms around Ryo's waist and pulled the other man close.

“Why didn't you tell me you were so worried about this?”

“I wasn't thinking about it,” Ryo answered dully. “I didn't want to think about it at all. I don't want it to matter.”

Dee didn't know what to say. He wanted to just tell Ryo that it was alright, that it didn't matter, but it would be a lie, and an empty one. His arms tightened and he pressed a soft kiss against Ryo's neck.

“I haven't really been myself lately,” Ryo murmured.

Dee's lips slid up the other man's pulse. He chuckled softly and nuzzled Ryo's jaw.

“You think I'd throw away all these years of trust and love just because you've been acting a little odd?”

“You really were listening,” Ryo said.

Dee nodded and kissed the side of Ryo's mouth.

“I think Mother would be jealous if she knew that I always listen to you.”

Ryo sighed as he leaned back into Dee's body, his hands sliding up to lightly rest over Dee's arms.

“I love you, Dee,” he said softly. “More than anything.”

 

“Forensics has a solid case,” Sallins said quietly.

“Built on nothing,” Rose answered.

“We're running out of options,” Sallins continued. “We have to move on this.”

Rose's lips thinned and his eyes narrowed.

“Not in this direction.”

 

They were sprawled on the couch, Ryo tucked under Dee's arm as an old movie played in front of them.

“This isn't the kind of naughty fun I had in mind,” Dee murmured and kissed the top of Ryo's head.

“Mmph,” Ryo answered sleepily and turned to nuzzle at Dee's chest. “Stop talking.”

“I love it when you take charge,” Dee said.

Ryo muttered something and Dee sighed as he pulled the blanket up higher over the both of them. Green eyes slid across the room and rested on the magazine carelessly abandoned in front of their bedroom. He shouldn't be thinking about what was hiding inside that cover. He tightened his hold around Ryo and let another kiss pass over Ryo's head.

“Hey, Ryo,” he whispered.

“Hmm?” Ryo sighed.

“When you wake up, I have something to show you,” Dee said softly.

“Mmm.”

“You're probably going to be mad that I waited to tell you,” Dee breathed.

“Mmm.”

“But it might be good news,” Dee said into Ryo's hair and combed his fingers through soft brown hair. “Just sleep for now.”

Mumbled words brushed over Dee's throat and then Ryo sighed and nosed at the soft dip of Dee's collarbones.

“How mad?”

 

“I'm not supposed to have this,” Dee warned.

The file was spread on the coffee table in front of them, the magazine now forgotten again on the floor as Ryo flipped through the papers. He was wearing his thick framed glasses again, and Dee couldn't help it when his lips quirked just a little; he still wanted to kiss his partner with those lenses in place.

“Jake Fontana,” Ryo said and frowned. “Whose file is this?”

“An FBI agent,” Dee said. “He died in the warehouse.”

Ryo's eye twitched slightly and Dee shook his head as he lit a cigarette.

“When Diana first told me that an agent had been killed, it sounded like he was some all star investigator there on behalf of the FBI.”

Dee's finger tapped lightly on the file.

“I asked the Chief to dig this up for me, and it's pretty obvious that this guy wasn't a poster boy for the feds.”

“Cited for excessive force, cited for inappropriate contact with an informant, cited for misappropriation of funding…”

Ryo frowned as he continued to read the list. “Why didn't this guy get fired?”

“One of life's little mysteries,” Dee said and pointed lower on the page. “But look at this one. Two years ago he was under investigation for supposed ties to the mafia in upstate. They never filed any charges and it looks like everything was just hushed up and painted over.”

Ryo pulled the glasses off and folded them before he tossed them onto the table.

“So what exactly do you think this means?”

Dee smirked sadly.

“I think we're thinking the same thing,” Dee said.

“He was dirty,” Ryo said.

“Yeah,” Dee agreed. “I think that there was a meeting scheduled in that warehouse to clean up some loose ends. We just happened to walk in at the wrong time and ruin everything.”

Ryo nodded a little and flipped further into Fontana's file. Dee's hand brushed over his arm.

“So I know you didn't do it.”

Ryo smiled and caught Dee's hand for a split second before he lightly kissed the back of it.

“Thank you, Dee.”

Dee shrugged. “No one really thought it was you anyway.”

“Everyone always seems so sure that you're the blood thirsty one,” Ryo said boredly.

“They obviously don't know you like I do,” Dee said wryly.

Ryo lightly punched him on the shoulder and turned back to the table.

“You never told me just what led us to the warehouse in the first place,” Ryo pointed out.

“Uh…anonymous tip?”

Ryo frowned and glanced up.

“Dee.”

“Alright, alright,” Dee said. “Shakes Lee. He gave us the lead on the warehouse.”

Ryo slumped back into the couch and shook his head.

“Why do we take information from him?” he groaned.

“It's usually good,” Dee said defensively.

“Does Rose know that's how we got to the warehouse?”

“'Course not,” Dee said. “I'm not a complete idiot. There's no way I'd tell him that we based our entire search on the testimony of some strung out junky.”

Ryo's palms rubbed at his eyes.

“Jesus Christ, how do we always end up with these cases?”

Dee chuckled.

“Another of life's little mysteries.”

“We should talk to Shakes again,” Ryo murmured.

“No, I should talk to Shakes again. You're on medical leave and you'd be hands-off on this case anyway.”

“What about you?” Ryo asked.

Dee slid his arm around Ryo's shoulder and pulled his lover back to him. Their heads leaned comfortably together as Dee's hands caressed across Ryo's face.

“What about me?” Dee asked softly.

He smiled slowly then, a quiet cocky smile that always made Ryo's eyes narrow and pulse speed with expectation. Dee chuckled and closed the distance between their lips.

They traded soft slow kisses, their hands leisurely exploring firm muscle and finding skin. They tasted each other, and when Ryo guided Dee to lay back on the couch, their bodies molded together perfectly. Dee's hands moved over his back, Ryo a warm weight on top of him as more dizzying kisses passed between them. At last, their lips parted and Ryo smiled a little as he brushed his fingers back through Dee's hair.

“I love you,” he said softly. “I love you, Dee Laytner.”

Dee smiled, and this time it was a small pleased smile that the rest of the world never saw.

“I love you, Ryo.”