Prince Of Tennis Fan Fiction ❯ Reason ❯ Reason To Worry ( Chapter 4 )

Title: Reason to Worry

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Author: Lethanon

Archive: www.geocities.com/lethanon

Pairing: TachibanaxIbu

Warnings: Angst and then fluff, lemon, yaoi (obviously)

Notes: Takes place in episode 41 with the car crash.

Tachibana Kippei wasn't sure what to think. Mori and Uchimura were obviously angry, but that was to be expected. They were merely teammates who wanted to play, if not win, and unless the others came soon that was not going to happen. But Kippei was not merely a member of the team; he was the captain, and he didn't just want to play. He wanted every member of his team safe, sound and within sight where they couldn't get into trouble. At least, no more trouble than he would naturally allow.

He wasn't panicking. He was actually quite calm, and continued to remind himself of that fact. He was sure they would arrive soon. It just didn't make any sense. Shinji had rung him from the school's payphone as they were leaving and said they would catch a taxi. It did not take an hour to catch a taxi to the tournament from the school. Not even close, and Shinji never lied. Said too much, twisted the truth with his wicked perceptions, certainly. But he didn't lie. Not to Kippei.

He wondered if he should be worried. There were many things that could have gone wrong, far too many to think about so he refused to do so. They were responsible people; they knew what this meant to them as a team. They'd worked beyond even Kippei's wildest expectations to get this far and he knew nothing would stop them. He thought that might be reason enough to worry, but couldn't bring himself to do so. He would remain calm, as the captain should, and all would work out for the best. It had to.

He was just about ready to start reevaluating his decision when Ann looked up with a cry of delight and Uchimura sneered something Kippei didn't quite catch at Mori. He followed Ann's line of site and his vision collided with his four missing team members. Ann was already rushing over, berating them for being late. Kippei followed after her quickly, eyes slightly narrowed as he looked them over. They looked fine. Sweaty, breathing a little heavy. He supposed they'd run the last short distance though why he couldn't say. The taxi should have gotten them there at least a half hour ago.

Kamio made the apology for the group. It wasn't unexpected; Kippei had been looking at him, waiting for it, even though his eyes felt a tug to the right, wanting to look that way, just to check. But here he was the captain and he remained focused. Forward. They had to go forward as a team.

"No kidding. You bastards." They almost had him worried. Almost, but not quite. Not the captain of Fudomine; the unseeded. He hated that word, hated what it meant and what it had come to signify among the players from other schools. They were not dangerous people, quite the opposite actually. They were just normal students, beset by foul circumstance and willing to fight against it for what they wanted. Such simple dreams, and Kippei was willing to help them. And maybe help himself in the process.

"Now hurry up and enter." He watched them go, Akira pulling the forms from his bag as they jogged over to the registration tables and signed the team in. Kippei didn't give it much thought after that. Not to their lateness or Akira's uncharacteristic sweating since there was no way he could actually be tired from running even if he had run all the way from the school. He certainly didn't give a thought to the fact Shinji hadn't mumbled a single word at anyone since they finally arrived. He just lined up with the rest of the team, shook hands with the captain of Yamabuki and moved off to the seat to watch his doubles play. He was looking forward to it, despite what he had heard about the skills of the other team. Shinji and Akira had gone to the school early that morning to perfect whatever madness they had been working on with Sakurai and Ishida in doubles two and he was quite intrigued as to how effective whatever it was might prove to be.

It only took the first point for Tachibana to frown. Something was off about the pair's timing and the other team was far too skilled for them to be letting their guard down so far. As the game progressed his concern only increased, eyes narrowing darkly as he examined each move they made. If this was what Kamio and Ibu had been working on it didn't work. At all. He wanted to put a stop to it all but didn't see much point as the game was flying past, Fudomine not scoring a single point.

He didn't know what to say to them when it was over, merely nodding that it was alright; he understood, even though he didn't. He had no idea what was going on but Uchimura and Mori were in perfect form and he let their win calm his nerves. It was not an easy match, but it gave them a little leeway when they walked off winners, wide grins plastered to their faces.

Shinji came onto the court out of nowhere. Kippei could only assume he had been standing nearby with Akira somewhere, but Kippei had not heard any voices from where Akira had been standing and he just couldn't imagine Shinji not saying anything, especially while they were losing the first doubles match.

Kippei thought Shinji looked a little distracted, but not by something outside of the game. He wasn't sure what to make of it. Shinji was staring at Muraba but it was almost like he couldn't actually see the Yamabuki player; was in fact looking through him. Kippei did not think that was a good thing. The Spot would not come out if Shinji wasn't watching his opponent like a hawk. He folded his arms a little tighter over his chest, crossing his legs, pulling all his muscles tighter, senses screaming. Something just wasn't right. The doubles match had proved that. Whatever reason they had for being late, he had to figure it out. After the match. He knew now was not the time. At least, he hoped it wasn't.

The game started and Kippei's mind only yelled louder. Something was very wrong. He spared a glance for Ann and saw her with hands folded over her chest; the sure sign she was worried and thinking hard. He wondered what she made of it all. It was not as if Yamabuki was that strong, rather Fudomine was weak somehow. Unusually weak. Out of character, and out of form. The further into Shinji's match they got the more Kippei worried, because Shinji's play was completely internalized, his attention entirely on his own body, as if he was afraid of something. And there was not much in the world that scared Ibu Shinji, of that Kippei was very much aware.

"They had a little accident in a taxi before they got here."

The voice was low, menacing, knowing. Kippei let his hands drop a little, head lifting as he let the words sink in. He knew who it was, had heard many stories about Yamabuki's Akutsu lately, but he didn't want to believe those words. Would not have believed them, knowing the other boy's reputation, had there not been truth to them. There had been a taxi, and they had been late, and it was certainly a valid explanation.

Kippei turned to face Akutsu, only to find Akira standing right by with Ann, a shocked and slightly guilty expression on his face. Kippei didn't know what to think; that it wasn't true was bad enough. If it was true…if Akira had hidden it from him, for whatever reason, they would need to have words. Because the match did not come first, no matter what outward appearances Kippei might show the world. His team came first. Their lives. Their dreams.

"It's amazing no one got hurt, right?" Akutsu questioned, turning his attention to Akira and Kippei found his own attention wavering in that direction as well. He was all too attuned to the sound of the ball still being hit back and forth on the court, and of Shinji's soft grunts as he raced from one side to the other, rushed for the first time since Kippei had met him. It was scrappy play, and everyone there knew it.

Akutsu walked away. Laughing. Kippei couldn't blame him. They all knew Kippei would never have allowed them to play; would have forfeited the match, kept the school's growing reputation in tact. Instead, lucky Sengoku's ill-fated fortune telling would come true, and Fudomine would still lose. The hard way. Not that that really surprised Kippei; it seemed to be the way his team did things, after all.

Ann looked horrified. Akira looked scared and guilty. Kippei just felt sick. What did they all think of him that they would play…

"Is this true, Kamio?" He looked back at the game, watching the ball, and watching Shinji from the corner of one eye. Something was wrong there. Very wrong. Shinji was turning his whole body to hit the ball, much like Echizen had done to avoid his spot technique. The longer it dragged on the more Shinji seemed to draw into himself, movements growing stiffer until at last Kippei saw the eyes squint closed in defeat, the grunt turning into a soft whimper as he was forced to spread his arms wider to return the shot.

"Kamio!" He demanded. Something was very wrong and he had to know. If it was true, it had to be stopped before something worse happened.

"But…the game!" And there is was, the words Kippei feared most, because he knew they were not only Akira's words, but the whole team's. They put the game first; put winning before themselves. He would have to talk to them all after this. A hard, long talk about what was important. Back to basics, but not starting again. Just learning from the mistake. And it was a mistake; a huge one.

"Hey ref…" Kippei stood, moving over to the worried looking referee in the chair. "We forfeit." The guy actually looked relieved. Shinji looked shocked as hell but there was a light of relief in his eyes as he just dropped the racket and stood in the middle of the court, perfectly still. He didn't say anything, just stood there and waited. Kippei sighed as he walked over and picked up the racket. He didn't reach out, didn't speak, didn't do any of the things he wanted to, because it had been Shinji's decision too; no one had made him play. No one made him stay quiet about it all. Shinji had done that himself; had done this to himself and for the moment Kippei wanted that small lesson to sink in.

It didn't mean it didn't hurt to watch Shinji make his way back over to Sakurai and his track suit. It didn't mean he didn't want to take it back as he watched the way Sakurai had to help him get his jacket back on. What kind of idiots were they to play in that sort of condition, and just what were they really capable of if they could still play that way despite the accident.

Kippei knew it had to have been bad, if even Akutsu was amazed no one was seriously injured. He was glad he didn't know how bad it was. He doubted he could have kept his resolve if he did. Eventually though, he would have to know.

He wasn't deaf; he hard the things the other teams said about them, heard what they said about him as a captain, and he could feel the way his team was reacting, but he made no move against any of it. It was their right to question why they would withdraw. It all seemed too surreal, even to Kippei who was the captain they were all talking about. If he couldn't really believe it, he could not expect anyone else to.

He walked in front of the team. The one small glance he dared to take revealed Akira looking guilty as sin, Ishida and Sakurai barely watching where they were going and Shinji walking with his eyes shut, now entirely focused on whatever was going on inside his own head. Kippei wanted to ask, wanted to fall back in step with them but couldn't. They had to learn the lesson.

Ann rushed at him from the side, leaning heavily on his shoulder, eyes beseeching.

"Brother, please try to understand! Kamio-kun and the others just didn't want you to worry."

It was the last straw for Kippei. He paused, scowling at the ground in front of him and answered loud enough for all of them to hear him, because it hurt, just a little, that the other teams were blaming him. Because he was the captain and should have known better. But he had known better; had he known there was no way they would have played, and they had known that and had kept it from him and played anyhow. He didn't want to think about what could have happened. Would Shinji have been able to finish his match? Would Akira have dared to start his?

"But what were they thinking by entering the match like that?" It was the one question he didn't really know the answer for, and yet he did. He just wanted it to be the wrong answer. He wanted them to mean more to each other than the game, like they had when he had first met them. He wanted that desire to simply enjoy what they loved together to last but they had lost sight of it at some point. Now he had to try and find a way to get it back for them.

"I would be worried if one of you got hurt by putting your health on the line," he turned, looking at them each in turn and taking them all in. He looked at Shinji last, not really trusting himself to keep the distance but needing to see if he understood. Shinji's eyes were open and he actually looked remorseful. The others too, were shocked and he could tell he was getting through to them; that his anger was successfully waking their memories of exactly why they played tennis and why today had been a mistake. He was almost confident it wouldn't happen again.

"We're going all the way, right?" He smiled, unable to stay mad at them as they stared at him, eyes almost moist as they glittered in the sunlight. He wanted to go home already, go off to the courts and just have a play. For fun. Not to win. Just for the hell of it; something he himself had almost lost until he transferred to Fudomine and met them all. Sure, he had fought for it, but he had not fought alone.

"Let's go to the hospital from here and get you guys properly examined." They were smiling at him, relieved and looking a little calmer than they had but Kippei refused to take any chances. This was his team; his masterpiece and they were his friends. He would not be calm again until he was certain they were fine, which judging by their play they were not.

There was laughter. Kippei turned to see Akutsu, who was able to rile Akira with a few words. Not even overly creative words at that. Kippei wondered if he would ever be able to leash Akira's tempter, but he doubted it. He could control it, to a certain extent, but it would never be leashed. Akira would never hand over that much of his control.

Akutsu was not pointing out anything new. Kippei's reputation as a captain was shot to pieces, but that didn't matter because his team knew the truth. So while Ann and Akira got riled he just stood back and let the words wash over him, tuning into the quiet nearby, suddenly acutely aware that Shinji still hadn't mumbled a single word at him.

It was getting worse. When Akutsu dared actually come over Kippei knew it could get dirty, so he held Akira back, not wanting a fight when he wasn't even sure Akira was alright. He hadn't played and so Kippei had been unable to assess if he actually had any injuries. It wasn't that Kippei thought Akira would lose; he doubted Akutsu really understood what he was doing. Fudomine was not an easy school. Their reputation was not based completely on rumor. Rather, if Akutsu challenged Akira he was actually challenging the whole team. The moment Akutsu laid a finger on Akira the rest would be on him like hounds. It was the way they were and Kippei had witnessed it first hand. He would not envy Akutsu that position. His team also knew how to fight, and how to defend themselves. It came with the territory.

"We're leaving," Kippei ordered and started walking, confident his team would do as he said. They would not risk angering him any more than they had. He was, after all, their captain and the one who had given them a chance at their dream.

Seigaku was there, watching them, but Kippei didn't really care. He wasn't much aware of what he said to Tezuka as they passed, just wanting to get out of there and to a hospital.

They followed him all the way to one of the small sheltered areas near the parking lot where they waited for the next bus. Kippei didn't think they would want to go anywhere in a taxi anytime soon. So they waited, in silence, each wrapped up in their own thoughts and Kippei took the moment to watch Shinji, to let the warm presence at his side sink in at last.

Shinji was shivering a little, despite the fact it was a sunny day and he had his jacket zipped all the way to his chin. Kippei let his arm trail up Shinji's spine, slowly, loving the way the shiver increased though not from whatever cold was inside Shinji. His hand fisted in the hood on the back of Shinji's jacket and he drew it up, over Shinji's head, tugging on the drawstrings a little to make sure it stayed. Shinji jerked a little but made no move to remove the hood, curling in on himself a little more and leaning to the side, shoulder to shoulder with the captain.

Kippei let him lean, wanting nothing more than to pull him closer and not let go. He wondered just how close he had come to losing that warmth, that weight, and looked across the table at Akira.

Their gazes met and Kippei saw the guilt still hadn't faded. He softened a little, trying to let Akira know he wasn't mad. After all, it was not Akira's fault the taxi smashed, and Shinji had made his own decision to play, as Akira would have done if it had gone on and they had made it to singles two.

The bus came and Kippei stood, a little surprised when Shinji slumped sideways and almost face planted into the seat, only Mori's quick reflexes as he snagged a hand in the back of Shinji's jacket keeping Shinji's nose from meeting cold, hard cement. Kippei leant over to look under the hood only to find Shinji blinking open sleep dusted eyes wearily. Kippei blinked back, reaching down to tug a little on Shinji's sleeve.

"Come on. Wake up." It was odd, to see Shinji like that. Usually he was a little lethargic, often extremely bored, and he was lazy as hell so he tended to sleep a lot rather than do anything without a reason, but actually being tired…Kippei could count on one hand the amount of times Shinji had actually been tired and not once could he ever recall Shinji actually falling asleep.

They rounded everyone onto the bus, Sakurai also looking a little more worn than the others. Kippei noticed the way he kept holding his shoulder and hoped there wasn't any permanent damage.

The hospital was not overly crowded, which Kippei thought was a good thing. His team wasn't fond of crowds and only Akira really liked lots of noise. Shinji loathed crowds, so Kippei was glad he was able to just lead him off to a chair, push him into it and leave him alone, confident no one would try to talk to him or push him around and he went to talk to the nurse at the desk.

She was polite and fast, going off to find them a doctor since there were quite a few who were not busy. The man who came to see them was familiar and Kippei thought he might have been one of the doctor's who regularly was on call for school sport injuries. He had seen him at a game once the year before and nodded in greeting, explaining what had happened and who was involved as best he could without knowing the details. The man just nodded, called for a nurse to join him and took the four into another room, leaving Kippei with Ann, Uchimura and Mori.

"I can't believe those idiots played," Uchimura grumbled and Kippei had never agreed with anything more in his life. They waited quietly after that, Uchimura and Mori settling on the floor to play Jax while Ann hovered at Kippei's side, casting fretful glances at him and making little worried noises that were slowly getting on Kippei's nerves.

"Kippei," she said softly, leaning a little closer so only he could hear. "You…you really like Shinji-kun. A lot. Don't you?"

Kippei glanced aside, nodding a little, slightly amused by the surprise in Ann's voice. Because they both knew Kippei rarely liked anyone, much like Ann, yet they had both been so easily accepted into the Fudomine team's small group of friends and they were both more than a little surprised to find they liked it there. Kippei liked it more than he thought he should, but that didn't matter, because Shinji liked having him there more than he probably should.

"That's good," Ann noted, turning away, a small smile still in place as the door opened and Ishida stepped out, a small frown on his face. Kippei waited until he came over to them and sat down before questioning him with a single raised eyebrow.

"All clear," Ishida assured them. "Sakurai's shoulder is pretty icky. They think he might have cracked a rib, so they're running an x-ray just to make sure, but other than that he's fine."

Kippei just nodded, wondering how Akira and Shinji were doing but not daring to ask lest his tongue give away his nervousness. He could only assume they were in a different room and Ishida hadn't seen them. It took more effort than he had thought to settle back into his chair and wait. He idly wondered how Seigaku was playing, but figured they were probably winning. Tezuka would never let his team lose.

Akira was next out. He moved straight to Kippei, bypassing the curious looks the others were giving him and leaning in close to speak softly.

"Sakurai's okay. He did crack a rib but only slightly and they said he'll be right to get back into training in a week or two. I've got the all clear. Shinji's a bit black and blue and he has a mild concussion. The doc wants you to go in and get him."

Kippei blinked at that, calm for a moment before his body reacted and he stood quickly, striding off toward the examination room the doctor had taken them in to. He knocked on the door but no one answered and when he stuck his head in there was no sign of doctor or nurse and Shinji was lying on the bed by the window, the late afternoon sun glaring through the glass and splattering the dark form lying on the bed. His hair glittered in the little golden rays, blue shards of light refracting off Shinji's head and splayed across the white sheet, dying it a soft indigo. He looked beautiful, and calm, and bruised.

The closer he got the more his heart seemed to clench in his chest and the unease he had felt all day finally took over, letting him know just how worried he had been. Just how completely he would have panicked had he not kept it all at bay. Just how right Ann was and how completely he finally gave a damn about something other than the game. Something other than winning.

He leant down, kneeling on the floor so he could lean on the edge of the bed, just watching Shinji breathe, in and out in perfect timing, chest rising and falling. He could see the bruises around the collar of the t-shirt and down one arm and they were finally starting to bloom down the side of his face where he must have hit his head on the window. Kippei reached out, tracing the dark mark on Shinji's temple, following it down across the cheekbone and into the hairline, down the back of the ear. He knew how hard Shinji must have hit his head for it to have grown that dark, yet it had taken a few hours to show through even on Shinji's pale skin. He thought that was a good sign.

Weary eyes slid open, still sleep dusted but looking a little more alert.

"Hey, sleepy."

"Hey grumpy," Shinji mumbled. "Where'd dopey go?"

Kippei just smiled faintly, letting his hands linger on the pale flesh, trying to put some warmth back into the cool limbs. Shinji just watched his hands lazily, eyes dropping shut only to flicker open, as if he didn't want to sleep while Kippei was there.

"Dopey went to make sure Ann didn't go buy you flowers."

Shinji snorted at that, shifting slowly until he was sitting on the edge of the bed, legs hanging off the edge and not quite reaching the floor, Kippei still kneeling between them, his arms now resting across Shinji's knees as he looked up at him, loving the way the silken strands of blue-black hair fell about his face, casting soft shadows there that made his eyes look darker and hid the bruises.

"How do you feel?"

"M'okay."

Kippei stood then, wrapping his arms about Shinji and pulling him to his feet, leaning in to press his lips to the cool, petal-soft touch of Shinji's, wishing he had done it earlier, that he had done it more, that he could have been kissing Shinji while Shinji was crashing, head smashing into a taxi window, body hitting metal…He drew his thoughts away from it, leaning back to press smaller but equally heart-felt kisses to Shinji's forehead, temple, jaw, ear; anything he could touch. Shinji murmured soft nothings in his ear all the while and it was all Kippei wanted to hear. He had not realized how completely it disturbed him to be without that soft background noise.

"Stay at my place tonight?" Kippei asked as he let Shinji's feet finally touch the floor and grabbed his jacket, helping him pull it on over the bruised shoulder. Shinji looked up at him, a little hesitant but he nodded and Kippei rewarded him with another kiss before he pulled up the hood of Shinji's jacket. Shinji tucked his hands inside the sleeve and then grabbed hold of Kippei's arm. It just looked like they were standing close together, the black clothing all meshing together. Kippei smiled and headed out the door, satisfied with the presence glued to his side.

Ann and Akira were waiting by the door. There was no sign of the others. Ann quickly explained they had come out a few minutes before and their parents had come to pick them up. Apparently it was hospital policy to call them. Akira's mother was waiting just outside the door. It didn't surprise anyone that no one had come for Shinji, but it didn't really matter because Kippei was already there.

Akira said his farewells, apologized and left, leaving them to wait for Kippei and Ann's parents. Ann sidled up on Shinji's other side, peeking under his hood curiously.

"Are you really okay? You're kind of quiet."

Shinji just made a non-committal sound and pressed a little more into Kippei's side. Ann just shrugged and winked at Kippei as their father's car appeared in the pick up bay and they climbed in. Their father leant over the seat to look at him, concerned.

"Everyone's okay? I rang Shinji's parents to tell them we would take him home with us tonight, alright?"

Kippei just smiled faintly at his father and nodded, wondering how he accepted everything so easily. Not that he really had a choice, but still…it never ceased to amaze him. Of course, it helped that his father was also a lawyer who worked with disillusioned youth like Shinji and his family almost every day. His father was more accepting than a lot of people, of a lot of things.

"Shinji's okay. Just a mild concussion and some bruises," Kippei murmured and as if in response Shinji finally let go of whatever he had been using to hold himself together and let himself fall into Kippei's lap, arms wrapping tight about his waist as he mumbled something no one quite heard. Kippei just smiled and ran his fingers through the fine strands of hair, letting his other arm run up and down Shinji's spine as he watched the world slip by outside the window.

Shinji wasn't asleep when they got home but he was close to it and Kippei cast only a cursory glance at his father before simply wrapping Shinji's arms about his neck and his legs about his waist and carrying him in on his back. Shinji kept mumbling in his ear about it the whole way but Kippei didn't mind. He loved the soft words, grumbled straight into his ear, the way Shinji would only ever let go if Kippei was there to catch him. And secretly, he loved that Shinji had tried, that he had been willing to play after the accident despite everything, because he had thought it was what Kippei wanted. That was how far Shinji was willing to go for him; all the way and back again.

His mother waved at them quietly from the kitchen table and Ann sat down to talk to her. Kippei just sidestepped it all, knowing they would understand, and headed down the hallway to his room where he carefully let Shinji slide off onto the bed. He was more than a little surprised when Shinji just sat there in the middle of the blankets looking up at him with a curiously blank expression.

"You're alright?"

Shinji mumbled what Kippei could only assume was an affirmative, holding out his hand expectantly. Kippei took it warily, an instinct proved correct when Shinji used all of his manipulative skill to trick Kippei's body into falling onto the bed right in front of him, a small smirk blooming on the small mouth as Kippei frowned up at him.

"You play cruel Shinji."

"Always, Buchou," Shinji whispered, leaning down to suck on Kippei's neck. Kippei shivered at the tender touch, leaning into it and reaching up at the same time to tug at Shinji's jacket, wanting it off, along with everything else.

"All I wanted to do all damn day was take off your damn clothes and make you stop frowning like that," Shinji mumbled, running his thumb along Kippei's bottom lip. "I don't like it when my captain frowns, when he's unhappy with me and he looks at me like he wants to skin me alive. It's not as fun as when he looks like this…like he wants to fuck me raw."

Kippei shivered as the words went straight to his groin and he was rougher than he had wanted to be as he yanked Shinji's shirt over his head, but Shinji didn't seem to care as Kippei's hands moved immediately to his chest, ghosting over the bruises and settling on one dark nipple, brushing the pad of one finger over it lightly, silently pleased with the way Shinji arched into the touch, trying to press skin harder into skin while Kippei kept it just out of reach.

"Now who's playing cruel, Buchou, always staying one ball ahead of the rest of us," Shinji's hand snuck to the waistband of Kippei's trousers, tugging insistently. "I want your pants off."

Kippei groaned, reaching down to tug the drawstring free and letting Shinji's hands do what they willed, sighing as the material was yanked down his legs and pushed away. He focused his own attention on Shinji's skin, hands roving over slender hips, lips nibbling at slightly marred flesh, tongue slaving over the rounded hub of a nipple. Shinji moaned, muttering a curse as he fumbled at the drawstring of his own trousers. Kippei caught at his hands, holding them still as he leant down and used his teeth to pull the knot apart, slow and steady, eyes never leaving Shinji's flushed and impatient face.

"Impatient, aren't we little cat?" Kippei hissed against Shinji's stomach as the cord came free and Shinji immediately started to squirm free of the material. "And I want to hear you say my name. I'm not the buchou here, remember?"

Shinji just moaned as he pushed his shorts down, tossing them in the same direction his pants had gone. Kippei felt one slender, bony-fingered hand ghosting up the inside of his thigh and shivered, returning the favor by lifting Shinji's free hand to his mouth and sucking in one of the fingers as the light touch tangled in the curls between his legs and tugged gently, teasing, almost where he wanted them but not quite.

"Impatient doesn't begin to describe me Kippei," Shinji murmured, leaning up to whisper his words straight into Kippei's ear, tonguing the shell of flesh with long, wet strokes. "Will you take another one of my lives for me?"

Kippei growled low in the back of his throat, hand gripping tighter on Shinji's wrist and pulling it up over Shinji's head, pushing him down into the mattress while his other hand reached down to clutch at his cock.

"Use your mouth to tell me something useful," he ground the words out as Shinji just narrowed his eyes, small pink tongue sneaking out to slide over his darkened lower lip before he used his free hand to guide Kippei's hand to his mouth, tongue lancing out to tentatively poke at the head. Kippei moaned, deep and dark from the back of his throat, arms quivering, threatening to collapse, barely holding him over Shinji's lithe form.

"I thought you were tired."

Shinji's only reply was to suck half the length of Kippei's cock into his mouth and hum the damned tune Akira always had on his Discman before his played. Kippei hid his moan in Shinji's hair, reaching down between Shinji's legs to fondle the balls hanging loosely there, tickling the back of the sac in the way that never ceased to drive Shinji to complete distraction.

Shinji gasped, Kippei sliding from his slack lips, as Shinji's hands struggled free and wrapped around Kippei's neck, eyes barely focused as he breathed erratically, searching for words. There was only one word for it.

"More."

Kippei grabbed hold of one slender ankle and hoisted Shinji's leg up, hooking it around his waist before he let his fingers trace over the now familiar skin around the delicate hole. He brought his hand to his mouth and made sure Shinji watched as he sucked on his fingers, dragging them away from his lips soaked and drooling, loving the way Shinji's breath hitched, a soft groan the only sound that escaped him as Kippei pressed his finger against the tight opening and edged it inside.

Shinji, typically impatient, thrust back against the digit, breathing raggedly as it slammed in to the knuckle. Kippei frowned down at him but Shinji merely reached up to rub his thumb over Kippei's lower lip, telling him silently to stop frowning and hurry up.

Kippei let another finger slide in, waiting patiently, letting his own muscles fall in tune with Shinji's, waiting for that moment when Shinji let go, and then he was snatching his fingers back, wrapping them in Shinji's hair, holding something larger to that circle of almost unbearable heat and pushing in, forcing the head past the tight ring, snagging Shinji's lips with his own to drown out the pain in the moan, swallowing it whole as Shinji rubbed insistently against him, cock caught between their bodies, friction distracting as Kippei pushed further, letting the heat draw him in as the muscles finally settled around him, relaxed and Shinji let him in completely.

"Admit it, Buchou," Shinji snickered as Kippei glared at him, rewarded with a peeved thrust of his hips that momentarily knocked the breath past Shinji's lips, forcing him to suck it back in. "You've wanted to do this all day. You wanted nothing more than to be right where you are. How hard was it, Kippei?" That menacing tongue found its way to his collarbone and teasing teeth nibbled at the bone. "How hard were you? How hard was it to keep your dick out of my arse?"

Kippei growled, forcing Shinji to shut up by stealing those lips, swallowing his voice, tonguing his breath out of his lungs. He slid his hands between their bodies, giving Shinji's cock a few swift tugs before settling his fingers just above where he was thrusting in and out of the intense heat and he scratched the sensitive spot.

Shinji's scream went straight down the back of Kippei's throat as he came, the warm wet splashing into his gut and leaking over their chests where they were plastered together. Shinji's entire body tensed, stalling his own progress, the small cavity that held almost all Kippei's attention now momentarily impossibly tight.

One more thrust, two, five and he came just as Shinji's body was relaxing, Shinji's eyes opening as he felt the release pumping free inside him. Kippei thrust shallowly a few more times, feeling his own seed slicken the channel, mingling with his saliva as he withdrew, reaching over to grab his discarded shirt and wipe off the mess.

"Are you alright?"

Shinji just hummed an affirmative, body curling up on the sheets as Kippei pulled the dirtied blanket off the bed and grabbed another from his closet, tossing it over the bed before he crawled under it and pushed Shinji over so they could both slide under the sheets. He let Shinji decide where he wanted to lie and was quietly pleased when it was sprawled all over Kippei's chest. His hand wandered once more into the long, dark hair, fingers wrapping around the light strands while Shinji's hand languidly stroked Kippei between the legs.

"You're going to make me want more," Kippei drawled lazily but Shinji didn't stop and Kippei didn't stop him. They just lay there, together, in quiet thoughts all their own, listening to the night slide by them and wondering if the dawn really had to come and each silently thanking whatever was responsible that there would be a morning for them. Eventually.

"Were you worried?" Shinji's voice was so soft he almost didn't hear it but it rumbled against his skin where his head rested over his heart, listening to the beat. Kippei felt the words rather than heard them.

"Yes."

"Why?"

Kippei's hands tightened, snatching at Shinji's hair and skin, the morning catching up once more, reminding him. Because it was Shinji. Because Shinji was late and didn't lie. Not to Kippei.

"Because it was you." Kippei thought that was reason enough to worry.