Yami No Matsuei Fan Fiction ❯ Double Faced Mask ❯ Winner's Choice ( Chapter 7 )

Author: Ria
Disclaimer: YnM is copyright to several people, such as Yoko Matsushita and Hakusensha. It's not mine and never will be, considering I'm just a college student struggling with a part-time job because she's so broke. Suing me would be rather pointless. I just do this because I love to and hopefully to give others some enjoyment, too.
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: The anime and the first few volumes of the manga.
Pairings: Tsuzuki/Hisoka, Tatsumi/Watari
Warnings: angst, memories of NCS and mind-rape, eventual shounen-ai
Summary: Tsuzuki angsts and Hisoka's logical (but still dense) about their situation. Then Watari gets in on the act to deliver some advice, dragging a helpless Tatsumi along for the ride…
Timeline: A few months after the Kyoto arc in the anime with some stuff from the manga thrown in for good measure. If you've seen the anime, you'll be fine. If you've seen both, you'll be great!
Author's Notes: This took so long to write because I couldn't get the opening scene right! ^^; Oh well, persistence worked after all. :) We're back to our neurotic little scientist (I think I got his characterisation better this time, but it's probably just me who thinks that) who's back to the role of matchmaking... again. Enjoy! Lyrics are from "Living on the Ceiling" by Blancmange, and aren't mine.

You keep me running round and round
Well, that's all right with me
Up and down, I'm up the wall
I'm up the bloody tree
That's all right with me
Yeah, that's all right with me
Well, it feels all right to me
Yeah, it looks all right to me

And I'm so tall, I'm so tall
You raise me and then you let me fall
And I'm so small, I'm so small
Wrapped around your finger
See me fall - here we go!

Something happened between them in Nagasaki - of that I'm sure. I can see it in the way they look at each other and in the way their hands linger when they 'accidentally' brush against each other. I know it and the rest of the office knows it - the tension between them at work is so heavy that my hair practically stands on end.

Their careful circling of each other has turned into a full-out waltz, full of the hesitant glances and touches of a budding romance that's almost there. I think it's quite cute, actually. Sometimes, when Tsuzuki says or does something that's not meant to be amusing but is, Bon's expression flickers and his eyes fill with something that could be longing, except that he also looks like he could bolt if he gets too close to his partner. The last of Bon's walls are rapidly crumbling, even though it's still normal to see him snap irritably at Tsuzuki whenever he annoys him, or hold his head in his hands when he finds Tsuzuki asleep at his desk again.

Tsuzuki, for his part, is really, really trying, though he sometimes fails rather spectacularly (like when he accidentally shredded the reports that Bon had just finished in an attempt to keep things neat, not realising that Bon's desk was off limits). Bon's been quiet and reflective ever since he and Tsuzuki came back from their last case, and the only one who dared to take any notice of his brooding was Tsuzuki. He fusses over him, now, making sure that he's eating properly and attempts to cheer him up when Bon's misery becomes frighteningly apparent. But what's even stranger is that Bon doesn't always freeze up when Tsuzuki mothers him like this, instead accepting the fussing with only the faintest irritation. It seems that Tsuzuki's not the only one trying to be better.

They really need to get together. It's all becoming sort of pathetic at this point.

So, as the current Shokan Division matchmaker, I'm here knocking at Tsuzuki's door, safe in the knowledge that Bon has gone home early for the night (he made Tsuzuki stay and finish his paperwork, with admirable threats of certain violence if he didn't, which Tsuzuki completely believed. Hell, anyone wishing for a longer afterlife would believe them).

I open the door and poke my head around it when Tsuzuki calls out something that could probably be taken as 'come in'. "Yo, Tsuzuki!"

Tsuzuki looks up and beams. "Watari, come in!"

I glance at the pile of papers before him as I sit down, grinning. "Paperwork?"

Tsuzuki visibly wilts, glaring at the offending sheets. "Hisoka's being mean," he whines, looking dejected. "I don't know how to get through to him, sometimes…"

"So," I begin, settling in for a deep and meaningful discussion. "I presume you and Bon finally got together, hai?"

Tsuzuki stares at me and blinks slowly. "Why would you think that?"

It's my turn to stare at him. For a moment, I think he's just deliberately baiting me, until I realise that he being genuinely serious. I gape at him. "Tsuzuki!" I exclaim. "Do you even realise how you and Bon act around each other?"

His blank look almost fools me, but his sudden blush gives away his true feelings.

I huff, crossing my arms and giving him a stern look. Tsuzuki becomes downcast; if he were the puppy he so often reminds me of, his ears would be drooping by now. "Okay, what happened between you two in Nagasaki?"

"Nothing, really," Tsuzuki begins, fidgeting. I intensify my stern look and he crumbles, explaining what happened when they were in the park.

At the end, I'm almost starry-eyed and thinking about how lucky Bon is. Tatsumi would never do stuff like that without extreme prodding and the possibility of bribery. But it's still not enough.

"So you didn't tell him how you feel?" I ask at last, rubbing my temples as a headache brews.

"Well... not exactly," he admits, absently doodling on his paperwork. "But he knows, Watari; you should have seen the expression on his face when I almost told him!"

"But you didn't tell him, Tsuzuki," I tell him as gently as possible, not wanting to disappoint him. "Bon's the kind of person who needs to be told things; he feels emotions too much and too easily."

Tsuzuki frowns, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I never thought about it like that," he murmurs.

"Well, that's what I'm here for!" I say brightly, and he smiles. "So, are you going to tell him how you feel? What about that fate you wanted to go on?"

Tsuzuki's expression is rapidly becoming alarmed. "Hold on, Watari, you're moving too fast!"

I raise an eyebrow, giving him a long stare. "Tsuzuki, we're all dead. If I moved any slower, you and Hisoka wouldn't get together for another twenty years!"

Tsuzuki becomes even more worried. "I don't think I can do it, Watari," he whispers.

"You said yourself that he knows how you feel about him," I remind him. "He feels the same way, Tsuzuki, but he can't make the first move. He's waiting for you."

"How… I don't even know where to begin telling him," Tsuzuki stammers, beginning to wring his hands anxiously. The nervous action is enough to even unsettle me, coming from such a person as him.

I wrack my brains, wondering yet again how I ended up giving Tsuzuki romantic advice - my own track record is hardly anything to boast about. After several minutes, I finally say, "Start with something small and use that to work yourself up to telling him. Give Bon something that he'd never, ever expect to get and see what happens."

"Like what?" Tsuzuki asks, but his eyes have lit up at the challenge.

"That's up to you." I stand up. "Finish your paperwork," I tell him with a grin. "The sooner you get out of here, the sooner you can start thinking."

He rolls his eyes and pouts, but the anticipation and excitement in his eyes still has them alight.

Days pass and nothing happens. At first, I begin to plan my next 'chat' with Tsuzuki in earnest, until I realise that he's completely occupied in his thoughts - he's not even annoying Bon as much as usual, which is, of course, making the younger shinigami suspicious as hell.

Tatsumi suspects that I had a part in Tsuzuki's sudden change, but I'm playing the innocent fool. But his last comment, calling me a 'lecherous matchmaker', came mighty close to hurting my feelings. It would have, too, if I hadn't seen the faint amusement in his eyes as he spoke.

Bon, for his part, is no fool. He knows that something is up with his partner, but he respects Tsuzuki enough not to ask - as long as it doesn't end up with Tsuzuki sinking into another depression, in which case Tsuzuki's privacy will be thrown out the window. But Bon stays alert and watches him - and looks for all the wrong signs.

I'm so intent on watching Tsuzuki behave so strangely that I forget he's planning something. So on the day he finally acts, I'm as surprised as the others, as if I never knew that he was planning something.

It starts off just like any other day - I have to run home to change after falling asleep on my notes again. I come back just in time; Tatsumi's able to give me only the faintest disapproving glance.

But Tsuzuki still isn't in yet.

A groggy Bon merely shrugs and snaps that he certainly has no idea why Tsuzuki is so late, before returning to his tea. I watch him with my arms crossed, a frown marring my face as a sudden inkling begins to form in my mind, just as the door opens.

We all gape, astonished, as Tsuzuki sweeps in and strides over to Bon, who's stirring his tea and still trying to wake up, and presents a bouquet of lilies to him with a flourish. "These are for you," he announces, so sincere that I can't help but reflect on how lucky Bon is.

Blushing so hard that his face appears to be on fire, Bon accepts the lilies with a grumbled, "Baka, what in Enma's name are these for?" But his voice holds none of its usual bite.

Tsuzuki merely smiles at him, explaining, "It's because you deserve them." His smile widens to a grin as Bon's blush worsens.

"Thank you," Bon mumbles at last, ducking his head as his blush continues to worsen, and Tsuzuki's face lights up.

I happen to glance over just in time to see Tatsumi witnessing the exchange. Something indecipherable passes over his face, but I'm more interested in the sad, accepting flicker in his eyes, tinged with a guarded edge. Then he turns and starts to walk away.

On a sudden impulse, I go after him, reaching him just as he stops at his door. "Tatsumi!" I call, trotting up to him.

He pauses, turning to regard me with a raised eyebrow. "If you wish to apply for extra lab funding, the answer is no," he says mildly.

"No, no!" I reply hastily, shaking my head as I stop before him, brushing my hair out of my eyes and adjusting my glasses. "Well, I wouldn't mind applying," I explain quickly after a moment's thought, "but that's not what I want to talk to you about."

"Oh?" His other eyebrow goes up.

I stare up at him, suddenly realising how blue his eyes are, and blurt out the first thing that pops into my head: "I don't think you're really jealous of Bon."

I think I've just achieved the impossible - I've made Tatsumi speechless. He stares at me, his eyes wide, completely taken aback. "Excuse me?" he asks blankly.

"Um, well, uh…" I stammer, deciding the most prudent thing is to take a step back. "I don't think you're jealous of Bon," I repeat at last, my voice small and weak.

He folds his arms, his expression piercing. I feel beads of sweat break out on my forehead, but hold my ground. "And what makes you think that?" he asks, his voice dangerously low. His shadow starts to writhe around him in warning.

I smile. "Because you dislike change, not Bon," I tell him quietly. "This… relationship between them is new and everything is changing."

He freezes, then studies me carefully and with great thought. "What do you think I should do?" he asks at last.

I swallow, then say slowly, "I think you should talk to Bon."

Tatsumi purses his lips, then nods almost to himself. "I'll think about it," he says, turning back to his door.

I blink, stepping forward. "What about our wager?" I ask, injecting the slightest hint of teasing into my voice.

He stops, glancing at me over his shoulder. "As I recall, I win, since Tsuzuki hasn't yet told Kurosaki-kun how he feels."

I stare at him, my mouth hanging open. "But… but…" I wrack my brain, trying to see a way to turn this to my own advantage. Nope, coming up with a blank. "So… what's your price?" I ask at last, accepting defeat as gracefully as I can. I should have learned to stop gambling by now.

Tatsumi smiles, his eyes gleaming with sudden humour. I begin to get a very bad feeling, but smile weakly back at him. He turns to face me, taking a slow step forward, then another, and another, until I can feel the wall against my back.

Tatsumi's arms shoot out, pinning me between them as his palms slap against the wall. I stare at him, my eyes wide, as he leans in to stare at me. "Oh, I know my price, all right," he whispers, before turning abruptly and disappearing into his office, leaving me leaning against the wall, stunned.

It takes me several moments to move, but as I walk back towards my lab, I can't stop a broad smile from spreading across my lips. In my own potential love life, at least, things are beginning to look up.

I pause before a window, recognising the two figures down below in the Sakura grove. I press my nose against the glass, smiling as I watch Tsuzuki gently brush Bon's hair out of his eyes, hesitate, then lean down to brush his lips against Bon's. The kiss is chaste, but it doesn't stop Bon from clinging to Tsuzuki afterwards like he's the last remaining anchor in his world.

I allow a silly grin to take over my smile as I turn and let them have their privacy, a spring in my steps as I continue on towards my lab. Yes, things are definitely looking up.