Saiyuki Reload Fan Fiction / Saiyuki Reload Gunlock Fan Fiction / Gensomaden Saiyuki Fan Fiction ❯ Do It Again ❯ SAGE (SANZO) ( Chapter 2 )

Title: 'Do It Again'

Author: Chrissy Sky and Amatorculus

Fandom: Saiyuki

Rating: 15

Warnings: yaoi, reincarnation!

Pairing(s): 93, 58, for the moment

Disclaimer: Saiyuki doesn't belong to us, alas we are confined to fic for the moment.

Word count: 4143

CHAPTER TWO: SAGE (SANZO)

The first thing I realise the next morning is, other than being a little sore, that I'm very warm and much too tired to get up this early. But something in the back of my mind insists on it. As I force myself to rise, the soreness becomes that much more pronounced. Which is odd in itself, but added with the tiredness, I begin to wonder what I did last night. It takes me a moment to remember.

Turning slightly I catch sight of another body, a stranger, in my bed. Shit... He certainly wasn't there yesterday! What the hell did I... I look around frantically for something, anything, else to focus on. This can't be happening. It couldn't. I wouldn't. I slam my fist into the wall but all I get for my trouble is something else sore. I don't wake up. And then I hear a murmur from beside me, the shifting of covers as he moves around in my bed.

That little son of a bitch!

I'm tempted to, right then, throw him out the bedroom window, naked and all, because I notice, to top it all off, that the little monkey is drooling. Over my pillow. My anger rises to an almost choking level, but inexplicably I notice that, despite the drooling, he's actually kind of cute... Laying there, snores tumbling out of his open mouth, limbs hanging limply in random directions and- gah!

That does it!

I grab the newspaper from the nightstand and start beating him over the head with it, as hard as I can. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes, I'm so angry. I don't think I've ever been this angry before. Annoyed, yes, almost constantly, but this...this is pure rage. It's all his fault! All of it! And I'm going to keep hitting him until I damn well feel better!

He yelps and squirms but amazingly he doesn't move away. He just sits there, taking the beating, and he...he grins. The little shit is grinning at me! I hit him even harder but it makes no difference. I swear I'm going to kill him just to wipe that stupid grin off his face! It's like he's mocking me and after last night that's just more than I can bear. I'm remembering everything now and the more I recall, the hotter my rage burns.

"G'morning Sanzo," he yawns and stretches.

"And just who the fuck is Sanzo?!" I find myself demanding, telling myself I couldn't possibly care less.

"You," he says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "You're Sanzo."

"My name is Sage."

"Oh... Pretty."

I punch him. Bastard!

"Well it is!" he cries defensively.

I want to cry. Does nothing phase him? Can't he see how angry I am? He's not afraid of me, he barely even flinches when I hit him, nothing affects him at all! And maybe I wouldn't care so much, would be satisfied just to hit him even if he didn't react, if it wasn't for the fact that he's affecting me so damn much! Large gold eyes blink up at me, hair ruffled from me hitting him repeatedly.

"What's wrong?"

‘You’, I want to scream at him, ‘you're what's wrong!’ But somehow the words won't come out and all he gets is an exasperated snarl. This is exhausting, he's exhausting. I just can't keep up. I drop to my knees beside the bed, refusing to look at him. I flinch when his hand touches the top of my head. Despite my anger at him, the touch is kind of soothing.

"Sanzo? Did I do something? Tell me and I'll make it right!"

You can't make it right, you stupid monkey. What you did isn't something you can just fix, you idiot!

"Do something?! Don't you remember?! You did a whole fucking lot last night!"

His hand goes away. "Me? We did that together."

I'm not sure how to respond to that. As disgusted as I am with myself, last night it had just...felt like the right thing to do.

"Besides," he adds, "you started it."

Much as it pains me to acknowledge it, he's right about that. I did make the first move. I just don't understand why. I'm not a reckless person and I'm not stupid enough to just trust strangers, especially ones who come at me with bullshit about reincarnation. His hand returns to my head.

"It'll be okay," he says quietly.

It won't. I can't let this go. I just can't believe I would do such things. To let a stranger into my house and then my bed without even checking whether or not he... I guess it's pretty clear now that he does. And what angers me most of all is that I think I might've really enjoyed it.

No.

I'm not enjoying this. I've known him less than a day and already he's driving me crazy. And since I've gone and slept with him, regardless of who initiated it or how it ended up, I can't just forget about him. I hear an odd grumbling sound that makes me look up immediately. He looks back down at me rather sheepishly.

"I'm hungry."

His words bring me back to reality. "Idiot." I glance at the clock and notice, for the first time, how late it is. How late I am, rather. For work. "Shit!" I scramble up from the floor and head for the wardrobe.

"What now?" he whines as I hurry to get dressed. I pull some trousers out and step into them.

"I'm late for work," I growl in answer. I don't even have time for a shower, which is just as embarrassing, because I know I smell like him. Unfortunately, I'll just have to live with it. I pull on a T-shirt and grab a jacket, just in case, which I dump on the bed while I put on some shoes. I won't look great, just presentable enough to get by, for a day. Providing no one notices the smell, of course.

"Take a shower," I tell him. "Then fix yourself something to eat. I'll be back later." I'm almost tempted to add, 'and don't be here when I get back' but I don't. As I head out the door, it occurs to me that today will be the first day in a good long while that I'll come home to someone. Still, I don't dwell on it. I need to start focusing on work now, to remember if Tobias has any meetings scheduled for this morning. In general, he's not such a bad man to work for. He's more inclined towards rewarding than punishing, and people usually respond well to him. A smart man too, though my organisation is (usually) second to none. He probably could manage without me, but he certainly wouldn't do as well.

---

The first thing that greets me as I rush into the office is Tobias' almost empathic, knowing smile. "Why, good afternoon, Sage. So good of you to join us today." I curse mentally at his teasing but hold it in. He continues, voice lowered conspiratorially, "How is our little friend this morning, hm? I hope he didn't keep you up too late. Lots of work to be done."

"Not too late," I answer through clenched teeth. I'm overcome by the sudden realisation that Tobias planned for last night to happen. He had to. He's acting way too smug right now for me to think otherwise. I can only hope that Jay doesn't know anything about it -- that bastard will never shut up once he finds out. I'm about to head toward my desk when Tobias lays a hand on my shoulder.

"Ah, actually, I want to talk to you about something, Sage." The grin on his face isn't lessoning. It gives me a bad feeling. I dutifully follow him into his office. Might as well get it over with. He barely sits down in his chair before he begins his questions, all with that same gently teasing smile. "Was Goku really that much trouble? Or are you getting angry over nothing again?"

I want to tell him that it's none of his damn business, but unfortunately that's not an option. Since Goku is technically going to be living off his money, he has the right to ask after him. The second question is personal though, and, were we in any other setting, I would happily have given him a piece of my mind for his trouble. But here and now, I settle for glaring. And his grin just grows, which means he already knows the answers anyway. Damn.

"Why don't you take an extra hour off for lunch?" he suddenly suggests, in that tone that says it's not only a suggestion, it's an order, however politely he puts it. "You can get Goku lunch and show him around town a bit, perhaps replace those rags he was wearing last night. Afterwards, could you bring him back here? I was hoping to speak with him privately." All of it, with that same damn smile. And he's not asking. Double damn.

My desk should be a welcome retreat from all this but when I get there, I find it doesn't actually help that much. Usually I can lose myself in work, but today my concentration is all shot to hell. Thanks to my smart-arse boss and that idiot monkey. Just what the hell am I supposed to do with him anyway? Where can I possibly take him? Once I unleash him on the city nowhere will be safe. He'll get into trouble one way or another and drag me along with him. So far I don't have so much as a scrap of evidence that he's even safe to take out in public. I shudder at the memory of my first brief glimpse of his table-manners. I'm getting very little done as I sit here worrying, but every time I try to concentrate all I can see is his big, dumb grin and have to stop myself from throwing my work across the room.

By the time lunch comes around, I've gotten nothing done so I just decide to 'face the music' as it were. I sign out and head for home. When I get there my apartment is suspiciously quiet and for a moment I do start to wonder if Goku might have left. I'm sure I didn't suggest it out-loud but I go quickly to check the other rooms nonetheless. I find him in the bedroom, still sitting on my bed.

There are, however, other changes. Despite the fact that the room is somewhat more messy than I remember it being, it's blissfully missing that smell. There's an empty crisp-packet on the floor, which he probably kicked off in his sleep. He looks much cleaner, and he's wearing one of my T-shirts...but nothing else. My mind dwells a moment too long on the 'nothing else' and, just to make matters worse, he catches me staring. A large, sleepy smile stretches his lips.

"Sanzo."

He looks at me with those too-large, innocent eyes in a way no one's looked at me before. At least, not before last night.

"Moron."

I cross the room, intending to hit him over the head, but when I do reach him I find myself overcome by something other than anger. I want him to keep looking at me that way. In fact, scratch that, I just want him. Now. So I take what is clearly already mine in my hands and kiss him soundly.

Then I hit him.

"My name isn't Sanzo, I told you that already!"

"It's what I always call you," he says petulantly. "'Cause it was the first one..."

"I don't care if it was the five-hundred-and-tenth! It's not my fucking name!"

"But Sanzo!" he whines. I get right in his face.

"Sage!"

"Fine! Sage! Happy!?"

With that, he turns around so I'm left staring at the back of his head. Naturally, as he moves, the shirt rides up, revealing his backside. He doesn't bother pulling the hem down though.

"You always get like this..."

That makes me pause, I'm not sure how to respond. I mean...do I? Is it possible -- not that I actually believe his story, mind -- that all my reincarnations basically act the same? I wonder, how many has it been? How many lives have I already lived? Does the idiot even know? Did he...stick around long enough to watch the other 'me's die each time? Somehow something tells me that, yes, an idiot like him would do that sort of thing.

"Hey..." I gently lay a hand on his shoulder and at once my eyes meet gold again. His expression is hesitant, not angry.

"What?"

I don't answer, just squeeze his shoulder a little tighter. I want more of him in my hands. Words fail me but somehow I'm sure that what needs to be said can be, with a little more physical contact. It takes a minute, but he seems to understand that. He rolls onto his back and smiles brightly before pulling me down for a deep, slow kiss. I can taste the mixed flavors from whatever he's eaten on his tongue. Pressing him back into the mattress, I trace the line of his built frame until I reach the hem of the shirt. I pull it up and caress his buttocks firmly. He writhes and gasps, "Sanzo!" into my mouth clearly. This time, I let it go. This is...

What the hell am I doing?! I suddenly remember what I really came home for and Goku is dropped unceremoniously back onto the bed. He gives a little yelp of surprise but I ignore it, heading straight for the wardrobe. I have to get some trousers on him, quick! A old, slightly faded pair of jeans are the first thing I see. I throw them at him. They hit him squarely in the face. He doesn't seem to mind this, though, just stares at me owlishly.

"What now?!"

"Get dressed!"

"For this, aren't we supposed to take them off?!"

I glare and he looks irritated (disappointed?), but puts the jeans on anyway. They are still too big for his smaller frame, but they will do for now.

"Hurry up!" I snap at him.

"Where're we going?" he asks as he stands and straightens his clothes.

"To get you some clothes of your own. And maybe something to eat." Though, he might not be hungry now...

"Can we eat first?" he asks eagerly.

Never mind. I've thought of somewhere to take him now. There's a small hole-in-the-wall sort of pub an easy walk from here. I personally have no love for the place -- it's dark, dirty and noisy -- but I don't dare take him anywhere more sophisticated. He's already proved himself quite unpredictable and for the time being I'd just like to play it safe.

When we get there though, and he doesn't seem to mind. Moreover, his focus is on being fed. Simple-minded little monkey. So irritating. I ask myself, again, why I'm doing this. It's outrageous. As I think, I realise too late that he's gone ahead and made his order -- scampi and chips. I follow him with a Caesar salad, since I'm not that hungry at the moment. He sits and fidgets impatiently. I restrain myself for as long as possible but when he starts poking at sauce-packets, I reach over without thinking and slap his hand.

"What was that for?!" he pouts, rubbing his hand tenderly as if it were a much more serious injury. He's like a child, the kind that I'm usually relieved to remind myself isn't mine. But he is mine.

"Sit still," I snap. "It'll be here soon." He pouts and lays his head on the table.

"I'm starving!"

"You just ate!" I point out. "You ate everything in my kitchen except the sink!"

"You didn't have a lot," he says sulkily. I want to say, 'I live alone!' but now it seems I don't. The little idiot really is turning my life upside down. And I get the feeling that I've already missed my last chance to right it again. "I'm always hungry," he adds more softly, and I notice how his expression has clouded over a little. "By the time I find you, I'm hungry again. But when you're gone, I don't want to eat anything."

"Why?" I ask, unsure how exactly to respond to this sudden seriousness, like the other times. Just when I think I have him figured out, he shows these other sides to him that are...no, not charming, but...something. He blinks at me as if the question has never occurred to him before.

"I-I don't know..."

I frown. Well that's very helpful, and the way he's looking at me now, almost wistful, just makes me feel awkward. I need to get rid of that look. I study his face carefully. "But it's because of me?"

"You-" he starts to say but just then the food arrives and he tucks in without another moment's hesitation. As if he really is starving. I shake my head and begin poking at my salad. It's a few minutes before he's stuffed his face sufficiently to look up at me.

"Don't tell me you want more," I say, voice not nearly as threatening as it should be. His face falls but he doesn't say it. I sigh and give in, motioning toward the waitress.

"Thank you!" he grins. I order him more food, then pause to examine my own. I think I might have to give up on it. Goku aside, this place is doing very little to fuel my appetite. I waft uselessly at a trail of smoke drifting over from the next table. And I catch him staring at me. I glare back but he just starts to laugh. What the hell is funny now?!

"Phew!" he says. "You don't like smoke!"

"What?! Of course I don't, it's disgusting!"

He grins broadly. "Sometimes you... But I'm glad."

"About what?!" I have no idea what he's blathering about, but I don't like the idea that he's keeping something from me. That he might know something about me that I don't even know myself. It makes me uncomfortable. He keeps smiling though.

"Sometimes you smoke," he says simply. I stare blankly at him, blink, then stare some more. What the hell do you say to something like that? I've never touched a cigarette in my life. "But I'm glad you don't now," he goes on in my silence. "Not that I wouldn't kiss you before. It was just, well...gross. Y'know?"

"Yeah..." And suddenly I find a renewed interest in my food. This is just too weird to cope with.

"I think you had a reason for doing it," he adds. "You never told me though."

Afterwards, when I finally drag Goku out of the pub, we head toward the mall. It's also within walking distance, and I'd rather take him there because it'll be more crowded. I lead him into the first young men's department I see and am immediately accosted by an attendant.

"Do you and your son need any help, sir?" she asks cheerfully. I stare at her, caught in between shouting angry expletives and being speechless. My son?! The very idea is- and it's none of her business anyway!

"I'm not his son!" Goku speaks up quickly.

"Oh dear!" She blushes deeply. "Forgive me. You just seemed...close, I guess." What? We just walked into the store! How could the nitwit think that? "Of course, there are other ways two people can be close..." the twit says to herself thoughtfully, then blushes even more at her line of thought.

I clear my throat. "We can take care of ourselves," I say curtly. Now...how to do this? I've never had to shop for clothes for anyone other than myself. I decide reluctantly to let him have a go on his own first. If he pisses about too much though, I'll have to step in. If he really is centuries old or whatever he claims then he should be able to dress himself. Even so, I've got that sinking feeling already.

And after he comes out of the dressing room, I can see that my initial assumption was correct. "What?" he asks, seeing my expression. I pull the brightly-coloured shirt off. "Let's try something else."

"But what's wrong with it?" he insists.

"Try something else," I repeat more firmly.

Several shirts later, things aren't much better. And he is really testing my patience with his whining and constant need to know 'why?' every single time I speak or move. Finally I pull off a long-sleeved back shirt from the rack. Putting it on Goku, who is oddly pliant at being manhandled, I slip a brown T-shirt over that, then step back to take a look. It's simple, and plain. I like plain. My eyes travel lower and I walk around him. The jeans he's picked out on his own fit his frame rather snugly. I shake my head to end that line of thought there. It'll do too, I suppose. I glance over to make sure the floor-girl isn't watching, then firmly squeeze his bottom. He gasps softly and leans back into my touch. Despite my better judgment I don't pull away, the blush on his face is entrancing.

This I really do like.

"Sanzo," he whispers, "don't tease me." The look in his eyes clearly says that he's ready to do it here, despite it being a public place. I store this interesting little tidbit of information away for later, and give his arse a good slap as I step away. "Sanzo!" he complains throatily. Then, smirking, he puts his hand over my crotch. I stifle a groan and pull his hand away. "Later."

It will have to be later, since Tobias said he wanted to borrow Goku this afternoon, I remember. I pick out a few more items I deem suitable then hurriedly head toward the checkout. On the way out, I tell Goku about Tobias' request to see him. He just nods and I make him carry the bags back to my apartment. That done, I take him to work.

It's not until we reach the main doors that I realise just what I'm about to get myself into. A few people, who annoyingly happened to be there, saw Goku here with me when he first showed up. But they might well have managed to forget it, if I weren't just about to walk in there again with him. I am not looking forward to the whispers and snickers I'm going to be hearing from now on.

"Did Hakkai say what this was about?" Goku asks me as we ride up in the elevator. The security men seem tempted to stop us, but one glare from me stills them.

"No," I answer shortly. I can only assume that by ‘Hakkai’, he means Tobias. I wonder how we compare, in terms of what Goku's seen in the past. Will he find Tobias to be just as much like Hakkai, as he finds me to be like this Sanzo? Or will he be different? He asks me a few more annoying questions before we reach our floor. Just as I had predicted, once we exit the secretaries and office clerks begin whispering amongst themselves. I drown them out and guide Goku to Tobias' office.

Tobias looks up from whatever it is he's working on as we enter and smiles brightly. "Oh, hello, Goku! Come in, come in. Thanks for bringing him, Sage." I grunt and leave them to it. I wait at my desk, poking at my work occasionally in a vain attempt to get something done, until finally, after a good couple of hours, Goku emerges from the office, ready to leave. I find myself yawning already as we walk home. I'm not sure if I'm too tired to hurry though, or tired enough to want to get home to my bed as soon as possible. Goku is strangely quiet, which gets me worrying a little about what Tobias might have said to him. Maybe I'll ask him about it later. When we get home he takes off the brown shirt immediately and smiles hopefully at me. "Is it later yet?"

I smirk and reach around to grab his arse again. He gasps and presses his front against mine, practically humping my thigh. "I suppose so." I lay him on the carpet right there and slowly slip his jeans off, caressing the muscled, tanned legs. He seems content to lay back and let me do whatever I want. Good, because this time I'm going to be on top!

TBC.