Fake Fan Fiction ❯ Ordinary Heroes ❯ Ordinary Heroes ( Chapter 1 )

WARNING: This is a sequel to Delicate. If you have not read Delicate this will not make sense.

 

Disclaimer: Dee, Ryo, Bikky and Fake in general are not mine (yet! Muhahaha!) and I am not making any money from any of this (if I was do you think you'd be reading it on the net?). Lyn, Andrew, their girls, and other original characters ARE mine, and I do plan to one day make money from them, so no usey!

 

Ordinary Heroes

 

Chapter One: Life Less Ordinary

 

By: Irish

 

 

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Ryo stood in front of the door of Dee's apartment. This was the first time they were supposed to do something socially together probably since they had broken up. Three months on the Meathook Murders hadn't given them a single damn lead but three more dead bodies. Dee was working every contact he had, seeming to know every street kid, drug dealer, and hooker in the entire city. None of them knew anything, none of them had seen anything, and the transgender sex worker community wouldn't talk to them. The very small handful of male to female transgendered women that Lyn knew were very reluctant to out themselves, as some of them had made a complete transition and no one around them knew they had once been men, nor did they want any cops to know. Those who were willing to be out as transgendered weren't willing to go out on the streets at night and talk to their nightwalking sisters.

 

Dee was climbing the walls and Ryo didn't blame him one bit. Ryo was feeling that way himself, for all of the same reasons as Dee, and not all of them were work related.

 

Ryo was starting to understand what a sacrifice it had been for Dee to remain celibate for two years while he indulged Ryo's waffling. He hadn't understood it at the time, having never had truly enjoyable sex, but now… The last time he'd had sex had been with Mary, and looking back at that made him shudder, and if he lingered over, it made him gag just a little. Not just because she was a woman (he had been with women in college) but how revolting the entire situation was. There hadn't even been a casual affection on his part. The last time he had sex with Dee was over a year ago. Not that Ryo had anyone to compare him to, at least not other men, but Dee had been an incredible lover. All reports were (if one listened to the locker room talk of Drake and Ted, who were aware of a number of Dee's sexploits, for reasons that were completely beyond Ryo) that Dee was a truly exceptional lover. Even if you weren't a virgin. Ryo missed it. Not just the pleasure, but also the intimacy, the affection, the tender moments afterwards. He could “handle” himself… but he couldn't cuddle with himself.

 

Dee hadn't taken any lovers. Not even the one-night stands or two-week flings he was known for. That worried Ryo a little. Dee was eating and breathing this case. The only time he took away from it, as far as Ryo could tell, was when he spent time with Bikky. Which is what had prompted him to push Dee to go out with him tonight. Bikky had been at camp for a week now, and Ryo was worried Dee was going to shave his head and start flashing his crotch when he got out of cars.

 

Ryo took a deep breath and knocked lightly on Dee's door; reminding himself that this was Not A Date. Ryo was okay with that, he really was. There was an ulterior motive, oh yes, but getting in Dee's pants wasn't it. Not tonight anyway. Ryo had formulated a new campaign that technically fell under the `just friends' category but might, in time, allow for more. He was getting to know Dee. Dee knew more or less everything about him. How that was possible, Ryo didn't know. He supposed it was the same thing that made Dee such a good detective. He heard everything, stored it away, picked up on context clue and implications, and followed threads of logic. Ryo had never thought to apply those skills to his own personal life.

 

He also had to admit, even though he loved Dee, he'd never gone out of his way to know the man. Dee had always been the one to feed him tidbits. Those tidbits were only the tip of the iceberg. The Orphanage, Jess… it was so easy to take those stories, those parts of Dee, and assume that that was it. Not because Dee was shallow, but because being thrown away by your parents, watching two people you loved die, and being exposed to drug and sex trafficking all by the time you were fourteen was more then enough for any one life. They were actually two of Dee's least painful stories to share.

 

So, Ryo was endeavoring to learn more about the man he loved. Learn all the things Dee knew about him about Dee. If he did that Ryo thought it would go a long way to fixing part of what had been wrong to begin with.

 

The door opened the length of its security chain, one of Dee's green eyes peering out. “Hey Ryo,” he greeted before the door shut again, the chain was slid off, and Dee opened it the rest of the way. That was rare; Dee almost never had his security chain on, especially not when he was expecting someone.

 

“Hey Dee,” Ryo smiled. “Ready?”

 

“Almost, come on in. Just need to put my boots on,” Dee's reply was a little cool, but Ryo was unworried. Dee needed to warm up to him these days. It always took a good twenty minutes before Dee would relax around him and start smiling.

 

Ryo came in, following Dee far enough into the apartment that he could sit on the arm of the couch. He looked around him, surprised at how neat the apartment was. Dee wasn't a slob, but he was a busy man who lived alone, and unlike Ryo, functioned just as well when it was cluttered as when it was clean. Now, though, the place was almost spotless. There wasn't even dishes in the sink. Not even leftover coffee in the pot, and there was always left over coffee in the pot.

 

“Wow, Dee, the place looks good. I like what you did for Bikky. He told me about it, but I haven't actually been up here to see it yet.”

 

“Well, a kid needs his privacy and I wasn't about to make him sleep on the couch.” Dee shrugged, glancing over his shoulder at his closed bedroom door as he laced up a boot. He looked a little jumpy.

 

“Dee?”

 

It was a woman's voice. Coming from Dee's bedroom. Ryo couldn't help himself, he tensed and froze. Why did Dee have a woman here now? Had someone moved in with him? How could Ryo possibly have not heard about that!

 

“What's up, Sal?” Dee called back, looking a little skittish too as he straightened, a foot still up on the seat of one of his kitchen chairs. The bedroom door opened and `Sal' stuck her head out, her shoulders were bare and Ryo could see she was covered only by one of Dee's towels. She looked as startled to see Ryo, as Ryo was to see her.

 

“Oh, I'm sorry Dee, I didn't realize your friend was here, I'm sorry. I'd introduce myself but, ah…” She chuckled sheepishly. A strawberry blonde with chin length hair and a double shiner and split lip. She was pretty under the bruises, snub nosed, slender.

 

“It's okay, uh, Ryo, this is Jane. Jane, this is my partner Ryo,” Dee cleared his throat, and Ryo was shocked and disheartened to see that Dee was blushing. “What did you need?” he asked Jane.

 

“I wanted to ask if you had a spare razor,” she bit her already abused lip, seeming to sense the tension in the room.

 

“Go ahead and use mine. I'll pick up some new blades tonight, no big deal, ah shaving cream's under the sink,” Dee cleared his throat for a second time.

 

“Great, thanks, uh, nice to meet you Ryo. Next time I promise I'll be more presentable and you won't have to listen to the details of my personal hygiene.” She laughed, a bit shrill with nerves.

 

“No problem. Enjoy your shower,” Ryo managed to smile, hoping it didn't look as plastic as it felt. It was not Jane's fault this was the most awkward moment on the planet.

 

“Right. Have a good night Dee… uh… yeah…” She pulled her head back into Dee's bedroom and shut the door quickly, then thumbed the lock. Dee's bathroom was only accessible through his bedroom.

 

“So, that's Jane?” Ryo tried to joke.

 

“Don't, Ryo,” Dee was frowning at him deeply.

 

“Don't what?” Ryo asked, feigning innocence. It wasn't at all fair for him to be upset about this. He'd been with someone else with in months of their breakup. Nor had he had the courtesy to tell Dee.

 

“Don't. Just don't. Don't assume you know anything. Just… don't…” Dee shook his head, angrily pulling on his other boot and lacing it up jerkily. Ryo swallowed and cleared his throat now too.

 

“I'm sorry Dee, I swear I'm really trying not to be an ass,” Ryo gnawed his lip. Damnit, the first time Dee was willing to see him outside work without the buffer of Bikky between them, and this was what happened? Damnit.

 

“I know you are,” Dee was abrupt as he straightened, grabbing his wallet from a dish on the counter. Ryo watched incredulously as Dee took out a twenty and laid it on the table. His eyes must have been the size of dinner plates, because when Dee looked at him scoffed.

 

“Yeah, that's right Ryo, I picked up a prostitute, a fucking cheap one at that, before I was supposed to get together with you, and I'm leaving her alone in my apartment afterwards to shower,”

 

Ryo winced at the acidic sarcasm, and then winced even more as Dee took the magnet off his fridge for the local Chinese deliver place and slapped it down on the table on top of the twenty. He was leaving her money for food.

 

“Okay, okay, I'm sorry. You're right, that was stupid; I just didn't know what to think. I'm a little off balance here,” Ryo was annoyed. Annoyed that Dee was so defensive, annoyed with himself about not having a better poker face.

 

“Lets go,” Dee growled, marching out the front door. Ryo trailed after, watching as Dee locked the door from the outside.

The walk to the Japanese restaurant they were going to, a new place that had no history for them was a silent one. Ryo was squirming by the time they got to their table, and even watching Dee was unable to read him at all. The man was like fort Knox when he wanted to be. They were both hiding behind their menus when Dee finally spoke.

 

“She's not my damned girlfriend, she's not a hooker, and she's not someone I'm sleeping with or have any desire to sleep with.”

 

Ryo slowly dared to peek over his menu. Dee wasn't looking at him, instead glaring at the menu. Ryo did know, at least, that that glare wasn't actually meant for him. Dee always glared at menus.

 

“Okay… so… who is she?” Ryo almost squeaked, not wanting to piss Dee off any more than he already had.

 

Dee took a deep breath, setting his menu down and pinching the bridge of his nose for a moment. “What are you getting?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“What are you ordering? For food? And what do you recommend?” Dee asked.

 

“Uh… I'm getting the mixed sushi plate. I know you aren't fond of sushi though,” and Ryo felt proud that he knew why too. It wasn't the taste, or the idea, it was the texture. Dee hated the texture of the sticky cold rice. “You might like the shrimp.”

 

Dee nodded once and pushed his menu away, and fell quiet. Ryo waited. Reflecting that even though they weren't together any more some things never changed. Dee always asked Ryo what he was having at a new restaurant, then asked either what he recommend or what else sounded good, then always ordered one of the things Ryo had said.

 

“Ryo, you've got to swear you won't say anything to anyone. I mean it. If I tell you, you have to forget it the minute I say it,” Dee's voice was intense, as were his eyes, as he leaned forward on the table.

 

“Is it illegal?” Ryo frowned.

 

“Illegal, but morally right,” Dee replied after just a moment of thought. Ryo took a moment to think too, before he responded.

 

“Okay. I don't think there is anything that you'd consider moral even if it were illegal, which I'd disagree with. I promise,” Ryo knew that if nothing else, Dee had a very strict code of honor, and had long ago given up most of his lawbreaking. So if he was willing to risk his badge, and called it a moral duty, Ryo was confident that keeping the secret wouldn't be that hard.

 

“You saw her face. She's been battered by her husband for the last five years. I don't know a lot of the details, and even if I did, I couldn't share. Suffice to say, her husband works somewhere in the justice system, and if she didn't completely vanish off The Grid, he'd find her. And probably kill her.” Dee was whispering now. “She's tried to leave twice before, and he always manages to drag her back.”

 

“Okay…” Ryo said slowly, not fully understanding.

 

“Come on, Ryo, surely you've heard of the Women's Underground?”

 

Ryo blinked. He had. It worked on much the same principle that the Underground Railroad had. Women who were victims of domestic violence, sometimes with children, were passed along a series of `connections'. If Dee were one of those connections, he'd only know the next person on the chain, and maybe the person before him. Women were secreted across state and even country boarders in this manner, and eventually presented with false identities and documentation at the end of the track, to start new lives. It wasn't explicitly illegal, passing women from house to house, but often they took their children with them, or had taken money or other assets from their husbands, and that's what was illegal about it. That, and the illegal, forged, documents that they were given to start their new lives.

 

“But… I thought that was a `by women, for women' kind of thing?” Ryo finally managed to ask. Dee shrugged.

 

“Usually, because most of the stops are women who themselves have left abusers, since they're the only one with connections to do so. But married couples are sometimes stops too.”

 

“You're not married, nor a battered woman, and you grew up here in the city, so you've never made use of this type of resource yourself… how did you get involved?” Ryo had never known this about Dee. Never in all the time they'd known each other. He supposed that was the point, though.

 

“I was approached, by one of the connections. I've been with the NYPD since the moment I was out of the academy, and I guess I have a reputation for being sympathetic to women's issues. I don't entirely get it myself. I suppose what it comes down to is that I believe a woman when she says she's raped, and I try to genuinely help women who are victims of violence, not just shut them up or sweep it under the rug, which is unspoken policy, and you damned well know it is,” Dee was fiddling with his chopstick, looking uncomfortable.

 

“You're a good cop Dee, you've always been a good cop. You got this rep back when you worked beat I take it? Since most of the women we see are dead.” Ryo asked, pausing a moment as the waiter appeared, ordering and waiting as Dee ordered.

 

“Yeah from when I was on beat,” Dee nodded. “Can you believe it, me, a feminist? Not a word I would have used for myself, but if believing women are people is feminism, count me in.” he chuckled a little. “Anyway, they wanted another contact on the force, for a lot of reasons, many of which are less then legal and could potentially get me fired. It's the right thing to do though. The NYPD should be helping these women in the first place. If the force isn't doing it's job, then I'll do it for everyone else. Fuck the rules. Hell, fuck the law.”

 

“You do have such a way with words, Dee,” Ryo chuckled softly. “Well, I promise I won't tell. Whoever picked you out as a connection did a damn fine job.” Ryo paused, quiet a moment. “And I'm sorry I jumped to conclusions. I just didn't know what to think.”

 

“To be fair, situations reversed, I would have jumped to the same ones,” Dee said, giving Ryo some emotional wiggle room.

 

“No you wouldn't have, not if it was a woman, you've known longer then I have which team I bat for,” Ryo shrugged a bit. “You switch hit.”

 

Dee shook his head. “Well I've been benched for a season or two now anyway, but I'll be honest Ryo, I'm less interested in women of late. Although, to be really honest, I haven't been to interested in anyone of late,” Dee shifted uncomfortably, and Ryo wondered what was buried under the layers, hidden between those words, what it would translate to in plain language.

 

“Oo have you gotten Lyn's `sexuality is a continuum and fluid' speech? Sometimes when he talks I expect him to pull out an easel, one of those huge tablets of drawing paper and some permanent markers and just go to town,” Ryo laughed, changing the subject easily enough. He understood, that if nothing else, the conversation they had been having had been dancing way too close to `relationship' territory.

 

“Yes, and his `What is Gender' talk, and the `Sex Roles in Same Sex Relationships' presentation. I swear to God that the man thinks in PowerPoint at times,” Dee was smiling more easily now, laughing a little as he sipped his water.

 

“He has a way of turning a conversation into a lecture… he just gets so excited, though, it's hard to be bored,” Ryo smiled in reaction to Dee's smile. Dee had the most wonderful smile. His real smile, not his obnoxious I'm-such-a-smart-ass smile.

 

“I suggested he and Andrew team teach a class, and they could call it Queeries… you know like Inquiries or Theories?” Dee grinned, he was proud of that little pun. Ryo choked on his water, managing to keep it in his mouth, but coughed pretty hard for a minute, eyes watering.

 

“Oh, that's classic!” Ryo laughed when he could breath again.

 

It was a good meal. They chatted; mostly about people they had in common, Lyn, Andrew and the girls, Bikky, Ted, Drake, JJ, Penguin. Those were safe subjects. Not about feelings, not about work, not about the past. Towards the end of the meal they even managed some congenial talk about the upcoming presidential election. Politics were fairly safe, in that Dee and Ryo were both left wing independents, but they didn't agree on everything, which made it a conversation, instead of just a lot of agreeing. Ryo realized though, that Dee was incredibly slick at managing not to talk about himself. Ryo knew through Lyn that Dee had completed a year of college, but Dee had yet to say a single thing about his grades or his class work, or even if he planned to go back again in the fall. In fact Dee had yet to mention it at all to Ryo, ever.

When the waiter brought their checks, they were separate, and each paid for his own meal. It was all carefully choreographed to be Not A Date. When they stepped outside, Ryo was surprised that Dee didn't light up, another change.

 

“When did you stop smoking?” Ryo asked as they walked down the street, the sound of The City and night rushing around them. How often had they walked like this?

 

“Oh, I haven't, not entirely, anyway, but I'm getting there,” Dee smiled a little. “Some days are just too damned stressful, ya know?”

 

“Yeah, enough that I've thought about taking up smoking,” Ryo laughed. Conversation trailed off a little awkwardly after that, but the silence slowly eased into something companionable. Dee didn't suggest they do anything else, so Ryo simply walked Dee back to his place, wondering absently about Jane.

 

Dee stopped at the door of his building turning to Ryo, giving him a small smile. “Tonight was really nice Ryo. It was good to get out.”

 

“I'm glad you had a good time, Dee. I'm really glad you took me up on this.” Ryo smiled a little too, putting his hands in his pockets to be sure to keep them to himself. He didn't want to ruin tonight by doing something that Dee took offense too.

 

“Listen…” Dee trailed off, then shook his head. “Goodnight Ryo,”

 

“Goodnight…”

 

They both stood, lingering a moment. Dee wasn't moving away, and Ryo couldn't decide what that meant. The tension grew as neither of them moved. Ryo felt himself slipping one of his hands out of his pockets and resting it lightly on Dee's chest. When Dee didn't move away, it was more willpower then Ryo had to keep from leaning forward, going up on his toes.

 

His mouth found Dee's and brushed against it lightly. A shiver of pure desire ran down Ryo's spine and he tilted his head more, leaning in for a second time, intending on something more passionate, but Dee caught his chin, stopping Ryo's face inches from his own.

 

“Don't push your luck,” Dee whispered, intense green eyes looking down at Ryo studying him.

 

Ryo went back on flat feet, ducking his head a bit to kiss Dee's palm. “Alright Dee, I won't,” he whispered, taking a step back, then another, hands returning to his pockets. “Good night, Dee.”

 

“Good night, Ryo. Sleep sweetly,” Dee murmured, before turning his back to Ryo, unlocking the door to his building and slipping in. Ryo stood, watching him through the glass doors as Dee walked across the lobby and up the stairs, until his heels disappeared from view. Ryo took a long deep breath, smiling to himself. It was a start. It was a start.

 

 

Author's Note: Sorry, sorry, I'm a day late getting this out! My mom had hip surgery and this just slipped away from me! It isn't the strongest start in the world, but it's a start! Welcome to the new story everyone!