Fake Fan Fiction ❯ Misery ❯ Misunderstanding ( Chapter 19 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Kita and Subu-chan 
Sometime what you hear isn't what you think is is...
Anime/Manga: Fake Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Comedy / Action / Drama / Romance / Police | Type: Shounen-ai | Uploaded On: 02.25.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.6K | Visits: 409 | Status: Work In Progress
Sometime what you hear isn't what you think is is...
Anime/Manga: Fake Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Comedy / Action / Drama / Romance / Police | Type: Shounen-ai | Uploaded On: 02.25.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.6K | Visits: 409 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter Nineteen-Misunderstanding
A/N-Well, here’s the next to last chapter. Hope you all like it. We’ll post both this and the epilogue together. Thanks, thanks and more thanks to those of you who read and/or reviewed this story. (Whee! We love you, Catti, Hana, Foxcat, DRF, Mi-chan, Moontatoo, Rj1ofakind, jdr1184, silverwyvern, All of you, very, very much! *winces, expecting to be smacked and pushed away from the keyboard.* Hey, you’re not going to hit me, Subu-chan?) No, because I second that sentiment, dear. (Whoa, I think I’m gonna faint!)
To say Drake was in a foul mood would be like saying a downpour was only mildly wet. He was pissed. And the target of his anger sat the length of a desk away, typing with one-handed proficiency that Drake had never mastered and blithely munching on a jelly doughnut. JJ’s silvery hair flopped into his eyes in a way Drake normally found endearing, but right now was just annoying the hell out of him.
His deprived stomach chose that moment to add its own growl of displeasure to Drake’s grumbles. His poor throat still wasn’t up to much beyond soups and Jell-O and that wasn’t enough to satisfy the aching hollow in his gut. Drake was sure he’d lost at least five pounds in the three days since he’d been released from the hospital. He took another long drag from his cigarette, glowering and earning an annoyed look from JJ. “Drake-sempai, you know you aren’t supposed to smoke until your throat and ribs are healed. Doctor’s orders.”
Fuck! Those were JJ’s new favorite words and damned if he didn’t use them once a day at least. “Doctor’s orders” this and “Doctor’s orders” that! Drake’s annoyance intensified and he rose from his desk with a snarl. “Need air.” He grated shortly at JJ; even those two words making his aching throat hurt that much more. He fled to the roof, grabbing a cup of lukewarm coffee along the way. Heavily dosed with cream and sugar, it soothed the burn in his throat and eased the ache in his belly a little.
He was still panting and out of breath by the time he made it to his sanctuary. His ribs ached fiercely and for a long moment he just huddled there, panting for breath with his arms curled protectively around his aching ribs. Ironically, the pain just pissed him off more. It was a long moment before he could uncoil enough to lean on the balustrade and try to catch his breath.
Drake wasn’t sure just why he was pissed with JJ, to put it bluntly. On the surface, not much had changed and it still seemed like thing were normal, but there was this nagging feeling that JJ was deliberately trying to piss him off. Sure, it was Chief Smith’s idea to pair JJ with Dee, but did JJ have to enjoy it so damned much?
Sure, he wasn’t hurling himself at Dee and pouncing on him from around blind corners, but on more than one occasion, Drake had heard them laughing and talking, only to drop into silence the moment he entered the room. If he were more paranoid, he’d think they were plotting something.
Thankfully, Dee spent what time he wasn’t on duty at the hospital with Ryo. Then and only then, did things seem normal in his own little corner of the world. Well, maybe not so normal, but safe and oddly soothing. JJ was determined to make Drake follow doctor’s orders and Drake was just as determined that JJ not do anything to hurt his still painful shoulder. If that made for some awkward moments, it was still safe in a way that made Drake as uncomfortable as not.
He and JJ had been back together since he had gotten out of the hospital, so why did things still seem strained between them? Drake didn’t want to admit to some of the things he had found himself thinking lately and so buried them deep in his psyche. But…
With a growl, he shook himself out of his thoughts, lighting yet another cancer stick. He didn’t need this shit. He should be basking in having the asshole that shot Ryo off the street (more specifically, in the morgue) or concentrating on the paperwork for the new case Diana Spacey had brought them. His life was fucked up enough already.
The nicotine wasn’t helping. Snarling and unable to vent his anger with a nice curse, he stubbed the cigarette out and stalked back downstairs. The few uniforms he ran into on the way took one look at his thunderous expression and the ring of black and purple around his throat and stayed well out of his way. That was a damn shame because right now, he would have welcomed an excuse to go off.
He stalked back into his shared office, a little surprised and more than a little put out to find that it was empty. Where the hell had JJ gotten to?
He turned as he heard the unmistakable sound of JJ’s voice, speaking in a lowered tone, but decidedly excited sounding. He knew the voice that answered back. Dee!
“…are you really sure, Dee-sempai?” JJ’s voice came from the closed door leading to Dee’s office.
“Would I lie to you?” Dee snickered softly and his voice dropped below Drake’s range of hearing. Drake eased closer to the door to Dee and Ryo’s office until he could hear clearly again. “…got it bad.”
JJ’s voice was breathy. “Wish I could believe that…”
There was more than a hint of smirk in Dee’s tone. “Trust me.”
JJ laughed, a light, high sound. “You know I do.”
“Then trust me on this. I know.” Dee’s low growl carried a tone of certainty.
Drake caught himself against the wall, something in his chest contracting with a painful squeeze. He heard, but he didn’t want to believe it. He’d thought Ryo had settled Dee down, but from the sounds of it, Dee was still playing games. And JJ had fallen right back into the trap. Damn him. Damn them both!
Pushing himself away from the wall, Drake stalked downstairs, movements stiffer than even busted ribs could account for. He found Ted, who had just gotten off shift, flirting with Janet at the desk. “Ted,” He gritted, ignoring the pain in his throat and another hurt that he really, really didn’t want to think about. “You still up for that drink at Kellie’s?”
Ted glanced up, surprised. He didn’t like the look in Drake’s cloudy gray eyes anymore than he liked the raw sound of Drake’s voice. “Um, sure… but aren’t you supposed to be on duty, doing paperwork for the serial killer case?”
Drake snorted a harsh laugh, ignoring how it made his ribs ache and throat burn. “Still walking wounded. Who’s gonna give a shit if I take off a couple of hours early?”
“What about J--?” Ted cut himself off mid-word at the flash of something he thought it best not to name that flared in Drake’s stormy eyes. “Uh, sure. Let me grab my jacket.” He bid a hurried farewell to Janet, who was looking after Drake in concern and snatched up his jacket. Glancing after Drake’s retreating back, he looked back down at Janet. “Shit, babe, sorry. Do me a favor and let JJ know Drake took off early… but not why.”
“Sure thing.”
Cursing under his breath, Ted hurried after his friend.
A few minutes earlier…
Dee spotted JJ as the slight detective left the records room. “Hey, JJ, c’mere for a second.”
He watched JJ flinch and wondered if JJ would ever lose that reaction. He was sorry he’d yelled at him. Hadn’t he apologized already?
“What is it, Dee-sempai?”
Dee waved him into his and Ryo’s office. “I wanted to ask you something.”
“What?” JJ tilted his head to look up at him, looking rather like an inquisitive cat.
Dee glanced out into the hallway to assure himself that they were unobserved and closed the door before turning to JJ. “Let’s get straight to the point.” He said bluntly. “What’s going on with you and Drake?”
JJ took a step back, panic suffusing his rather feminine features. “I-I… I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dee-sempai…”
“Let’s not play games here.” Dee said brusquely. “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”
JJ sighed and collapsed into a chair, rubbing his aching shoulder ruefully. If it hadn’t been for that, he might not have come as far as he had, but it still hurt like hell. “God, you always pick the hard ones, don’t you?”
Dee crossed his arms and propped one hip on the corner of his cluttered desk. “Yeah. So, answer me already.”
“I don’t know. I haven’t the foggiest idea.” JJ was blunt as Dee. “I think I could fall for him, Dee-sempai, and easily at that.” He thought it best not to mention that he already had, and fallen hard. “But he’s straight. He’s my partner and my best friend. I don’t want to lose that. If I come on to him, I could. I don’t want that to happen.”
Dee smirked. “I don’t think it will. If you ask me, Drake’s already questioning his own sexuality. Ryo’s noticed too.” Dee cocked a thumb toward JJ and Drake’s office. “Now, don’t get me wrong. At this point he’s still confused and unsure, and if you start chasing him down the hall, screaming ‘the love god’ or something, he’s gonna run like hell the other way, and you’ll lose any chance you have with him.” Dee noticed how JJ was leaning forward and hanging onto his every word. “But if you go slow and let him adjust, I think you’ve got a good chance with him. Y’know what they say-‘friends make the best lovers.’ And if you guys aren’t friends, than what are you?”
Dee mentally noted that he owed his lover dinner when Ryo got out of the hospital. Ryo had been the one to notice all the nuances that Dee missed. He had been certain that JJ was head over heels for Drake, and seeing the look in JJ’s bright blue eyes, Dee wasn’t about to disagree.
“I want to think that.” JJ’s face was full of excitement.
Dee sighed. “Listen to me, willya? I’m not lying. If Ryo’s even noticed it, you’ve got a better than even chance of making Drake fall for you.”
“I don’t know.” JJ said pensively. “I mean, are you really sure, Dee-sempai?”
“Would I lie to you?” Dee snickered softly and leaned closer to the smaller man. “If you ask me Drake’s got it bad.”
JJ’s voice was breathy and excited and his blue eyes sparkled with happiness. “Wish I could believe that…”
Dee smirked and leaned back. “Trust me.” He said smugly.
JJ laughed, a light, high sound, made breathless by the exhilaration he was trying hard to conceal. “You know I do.”
“Then trust me on this. I know.” Dee growled, pleased with himself. Ryo had coached him through this last night, but he had pulled it off without his lovers prompting.
JJ looked up and nodded, smiling broadly.
Later, at Kellie’s Bar… (a/n- in other words, the obligatory bar scene.-K.)
Drake was on his third draft when Ted gave up on trying to cheer him and decided he would be better off playing pool with a couple of the other patrons. He figured he’d just hang around to haul Drake’s drunk ass back home when he finally passed out. Kellie herself had had no better luck talking to him. Drake just grunted a noncommittal reply and tapped his glass to indicate he wanted another refill. Ted shrugged and concentrated on the stunning looker in the blue dress that was busting his balls (a little too literally) at pool. She’d beaten him four breaks out of five and looked to do it again.
She landed the six ball in the corner pocket and studied the table for a long moment, tipping back her bottle of Guinness for a swallow. “So what are you really doing here, Red? It’s obvious your head’s not in the game.”
Ted sighed as she deftly sank the four. “I’m waiting to take my friend home when he’s had enough. Don’t ask me what the hell’s wrong with him. His throat’s hurt so he ain’t got one helluva lot to say. And he’s not gonna try.”
She glanced over at the bar as she lined up for a shot. “The strong silent type, huh? He the blonde?”
“That’s him.” Ted groaned as she neatly managed to sink two balls at once.
She grinned at him. “He’s not bad looking. Want me to give it a shot? I’ll be gentle.” She sank the eight ball and held out her hand. “You lose again, Red. Pay up.”
Drake scowled at his beer. Damn JJ anyway. He was grown man, even if he did act like a kid half the damned time. It wasn’t any of Drake’s business if the fool was setting himself up for another broken heart. He didn’t need Drake looking out for him. Drake figured JJ didn’t want him looking out for him… except at work.
Drake threw back half of his beer with a stifled growl that made his throat hurt. He ignored the pain. Fine by him. He had better things to do than look after the little spaz.
“Buy you another, handsome?” Drake looked up into sultry chocolate-brown eyes in a lovely dark-skinned face. She leaned down, unconcerned by the cleavage her low-cut blue dress exposed, and offered him a dazzling smile.
Drake managed to smile back, his anger evaporating in the face of her interest. Course, the slight haze from all the beers didn’t hurt a bit either. At least someone gave a damn.
“Yeah…yeah.” He rasped. “That would be nice. I’m Drake.”
A/N-Well, here’s the next to last chapter. Hope you all like it. We’ll post both this and the epilogue together. Thanks, thanks and more thanks to those of you who read and/or reviewed this story. (Whee! We love you, Catti, Hana, Foxcat, DRF, Mi-chan, Moontatoo, Rj1ofakind, jdr1184, silverwyvern, All of you, very, very much! *winces, expecting to be smacked and pushed away from the keyboard.* Hey, you’re not going to hit me, Subu-chan?) No, because I second that sentiment, dear. (Whoa, I think I’m gonna faint!)
To say Drake was in a foul mood would be like saying a downpour was only mildly wet. He was pissed. And the target of his anger sat the length of a desk away, typing with one-handed proficiency that Drake had never mastered and blithely munching on a jelly doughnut. JJ’s silvery hair flopped into his eyes in a way Drake normally found endearing, but right now was just annoying the hell out of him.
His deprived stomach chose that moment to add its own growl of displeasure to Drake’s grumbles. His poor throat still wasn’t up to much beyond soups and Jell-O and that wasn’t enough to satisfy the aching hollow in his gut. Drake was sure he’d lost at least five pounds in the three days since he’d been released from the hospital. He took another long drag from his cigarette, glowering and earning an annoyed look from JJ. “Drake-sempai, you know you aren’t supposed to smoke until your throat and ribs are healed. Doctor’s orders.”
Fuck! Those were JJ’s new favorite words and damned if he didn’t use them once a day at least. “Doctor’s orders” this and “Doctor’s orders” that! Drake’s annoyance intensified and he rose from his desk with a snarl. “Need air.” He grated shortly at JJ; even those two words making his aching throat hurt that much more. He fled to the roof, grabbing a cup of lukewarm coffee along the way. Heavily dosed with cream and sugar, it soothed the burn in his throat and eased the ache in his belly a little.
He was still panting and out of breath by the time he made it to his sanctuary. His ribs ached fiercely and for a long moment he just huddled there, panting for breath with his arms curled protectively around his aching ribs. Ironically, the pain just pissed him off more. It was a long moment before he could uncoil enough to lean on the balustrade and try to catch his breath.
Drake wasn’t sure just why he was pissed with JJ, to put it bluntly. On the surface, not much had changed and it still seemed like thing were normal, but there was this nagging feeling that JJ was deliberately trying to piss him off. Sure, it was Chief Smith’s idea to pair JJ with Dee, but did JJ have to enjoy it so damned much?
Sure, he wasn’t hurling himself at Dee and pouncing on him from around blind corners, but on more than one occasion, Drake had heard them laughing and talking, only to drop into silence the moment he entered the room. If he were more paranoid, he’d think they were plotting something.
Thankfully, Dee spent what time he wasn’t on duty at the hospital with Ryo. Then and only then, did things seem normal in his own little corner of the world. Well, maybe not so normal, but safe and oddly soothing. JJ was determined to make Drake follow doctor’s orders and Drake was just as determined that JJ not do anything to hurt his still painful shoulder. If that made for some awkward moments, it was still safe in a way that made Drake as uncomfortable as not.
He and JJ had been back together since he had gotten out of the hospital, so why did things still seem strained between them? Drake didn’t want to admit to some of the things he had found himself thinking lately and so buried them deep in his psyche. But…
With a growl, he shook himself out of his thoughts, lighting yet another cancer stick. He didn’t need this shit. He should be basking in having the asshole that shot Ryo off the street (more specifically, in the morgue) or concentrating on the paperwork for the new case Diana Spacey had brought them. His life was fucked up enough already.
The nicotine wasn’t helping. Snarling and unable to vent his anger with a nice curse, he stubbed the cigarette out and stalked back downstairs. The few uniforms he ran into on the way took one look at his thunderous expression and the ring of black and purple around his throat and stayed well out of his way. That was a damn shame because right now, he would have welcomed an excuse to go off.
He stalked back into his shared office, a little surprised and more than a little put out to find that it was empty. Where the hell had JJ gotten to?
He turned as he heard the unmistakable sound of JJ’s voice, speaking in a lowered tone, but decidedly excited sounding. He knew the voice that answered back. Dee!
“…are you really sure, Dee-sempai?” JJ’s voice came from the closed door leading to Dee’s office.
“Would I lie to you?” Dee snickered softly and his voice dropped below Drake’s range of hearing. Drake eased closer to the door to Dee and Ryo’s office until he could hear clearly again. “…got it bad.”
JJ’s voice was breathy. “Wish I could believe that…”
There was more than a hint of smirk in Dee’s tone. “Trust me.”
JJ laughed, a light, high sound. “You know I do.”
“Then trust me on this. I know.” Dee’s low growl carried a tone of certainty.
Drake caught himself against the wall, something in his chest contracting with a painful squeeze. He heard, but he didn’t want to believe it. He’d thought Ryo had settled Dee down, but from the sounds of it, Dee was still playing games. And JJ had fallen right back into the trap. Damn him. Damn them both!
Pushing himself away from the wall, Drake stalked downstairs, movements stiffer than even busted ribs could account for. He found Ted, who had just gotten off shift, flirting with Janet at the desk. “Ted,” He gritted, ignoring the pain in his throat and another hurt that he really, really didn’t want to think about. “You still up for that drink at Kellie’s?”
Ted glanced up, surprised. He didn’t like the look in Drake’s cloudy gray eyes anymore than he liked the raw sound of Drake’s voice. “Um, sure… but aren’t you supposed to be on duty, doing paperwork for the serial killer case?”
Drake snorted a harsh laugh, ignoring how it made his ribs ache and throat burn. “Still walking wounded. Who’s gonna give a shit if I take off a couple of hours early?”
“What about J--?” Ted cut himself off mid-word at the flash of something he thought it best not to name that flared in Drake’s stormy eyes. “Uh, sure. Let me grab my jacket.” He bid a hurried farewell to Janet, who was looking after Drake in concern and snatched up his jacket. Glancing after Drake’s retreating back, he looked back down at Janet. “Shit, babe, sorry. Do me a favor and let JJ know Drake took off early… but not why.”
“Sure thing.”
Cursing under his breath, Ted hurried after his friend.
A few minutes earlier…
Dee spotted JJ as the slight detective left the records room. “Hey, JJ, c’mere for a second.”
He watched JJ flinch and wondered if JJ would ever lose that reaction. He was sorry he’d yelled at him. Hadn’t he apologized already?
“What is it, Dee-sempai?”
Dee waved him into his and Ryo’s office. “I wanted to ask you something.”
“What?” JJ tilted his head to look up at him, looking rather like an inquisitive cat.
Dee glanced out into the hallway to assure himself that they were unobserved and closed the door before turning to JJ. “Let’s get straight to the point.” He said bluntly. “What’s going on with you and Drake?”
JJ took a step back, panic suffusing his rather feminine features. “I-I… I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dee-sempai…”
“Let’s not play games here.” Dee said brusquely. “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”
JJ sighed and collapsed into a chair, rubbing his aching shoulder ruefully. If it hadn’t been for that, he might not have come as far as he had, but it still hurt like hell. “God, you always pick the hard ones, don’t you?”
Dee crossed his arms and propped one hip on the corner of his cluttered desk. “Yeah. So, answer me already.”
“I don’t know. I haven’t the foggiest idea.” JJ was blunt as Dee. “I think I could fall for him, Dee-sempai, and easily at that.” He thought it best not to mention that he already had, and fallen hard. “But he’s straight. He’s my partner and my best friend. I don’t want to lose that. If I come on to him, I could. I don’t want that to happen.”
Dee smirked. “I don’t think it will. If you ask me, Drake’s already questioning his own sexuality. Ryo’s noticed too.” Dee cocked a thumb toward JJ and Drake’s office. “Now, don’t get me wrong. At this point he’s still confused and unsure, and if you start chasing him down the hall, screaming ‘the love god’ or something, he’s gonna run like hell the other way, and you’ll lose any chance you have with him.” Dee noticed how JJ was leaning forward and hanging onto his every word. “But if you go slow and let him adjust, I think you’ve got a good chance with him. Y’know what they say-‘friends make the best lovers.’ And if you guys aren’t friends, than what are you?”
Dee mentally noted that he owed his lover dinner when Ryo got out of the hospital. Ryo had been the one to notice all the nuances that Dee missed. He had been certain that JJ was head over heels for Drake, and seeing the look in JJ’s bright blue eyes, Dee wasn’t about to disagree.
“I want to think that.” JJ’s face was full of excitement.
Dee sighed. “Listen to me, willya? I’m not lying. If Ryo’s even noticed it, you’ve got a better than even chance of making Drake fall for you.”
“I don’t know.” JJ said pensively. “I mean, are you really sure, Dee-sempai?”
“Would I lie to you?” Dee snickered softly and leaned closer to the smaller man. “If you ask me Drake’s got it bad.”
JJ’s voice was breathy and excited and his blue eyes sparkled with happiness. “Wish I could believe that…”
Dee smirked and leaned back. “Trust me.” He said smugly.
JJ laughed, a light, high sound, made breathless by the exhilaration he was trying hard to conceal. “You know I do.”
“Then trust me on this. I know.” Dee growled, pleased with himself. Ryo had coached him through this last night, but he had pulled it off without his lovers prompting.
JJ looked up and nodded, smiling broadly.
Later, at Kellie’s Bar… (a/n- in other words, the obligatory bar scene.-K.)
Drake was on his third draft when Ted gave up on trying to cheer him and decided he would be better off playing pool with a couple of the other patrons. He figured he’d just hang around to haul Drake’s drunk ass back home when he finally passed out. Kellie herself had had no better luck talking to him. Drake just grunted a noncommittal reply and tapped his glass to indicate he wanted another refill. Ted shrugged and concentrated on the stunning looker in the blue dress that was busting his balls (a little too literally) at pool. She’d beaten him four breaks out of five and looked to do it again.
She landed the six ball in the corner pocket and studied the table for a long moment, tipping back her bottle of Guinness for a swallow. “So what are you really doing here, Red? It’s obvious your head’s not in the game.”
Ted sighed as she deftly sank the four. “I’m waiting to take my friend home when he’s had enough. Don’t ask me what the hell’s wrong with him. His throat’s hurt so he ain’t got one helluva lot to say. And he’s not gonna try.”
She glanced over at the bar as she lined up for a shot. “The strong silent type, huh? He the blonde?”
“That’s him.” Ted groaned as she neatly managed to sink two balls at once.
She grinned at him. “He’s not bad looking. Want me to give it a shot? I’ll be gentle.” She sank the eight ball and held out her hand. “You lose again, Red. Pay up.”
Drake scowled at his beer. Damn JJ anyway. He was grown man, even if he did act like a kid half the damned time. It wasn’t any of Drake’s business if the fool was setting himself up for another broken heart. He didn’t need Drake looking out for him. Drake figured JJ didn’t want him looking out for him… except at work.
Drake threw back half of his beer with a stifled growl that made his throat hurt. He ignored the pain. Fine by him. He had better things to do than look after the little spaz.
“Buy you another, handsome?” Drake looked up into sultry chocolate-brown eyes in a lovely dark-skinned face. She leaned down, unconcerned by the cleavage her low-cut blue dress exposed, and offered him a dazzling smile.
Drake managed to smile back, his anger evaporating in the face of her interest. Course, the slight haze from all the beers didn’t hurt a bit either. At least someone gave a damn.
“Yeah…yeah.” He rasped. “That would be nice. I’m Drake.”