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Silence creeped over the condo, making the tick of the clock on the wall much louder than before. A shirtless Tachibana sighed as he sat down in the bed to begin his nightly routine, stripping himself of the weighty prosthetic arm that proved a reminder of so many unfortunate things. Pitiful glances, aching memories, the smell of the small, bleached room in Little Asia. He rolled his shoulder as the phantom pains started up, reaching for the bedside table for his medications, and then a glass of water.
Slipping into his silky pajamas, worth more than the average salary a man made in a year, Tachibana slid under the thousand count sheets of his western style bed. He stared at the lofty ceiling as he always did before sleeping, all the worries of his past, his present, and his future all floating before him, feeling uncertain. His expression hardly betrayed these worries, as he had practice in bottling up emotions ever since he was a young boy.
The most uncertain worry was a young man with the strength of ten men and a heart like a roaring lion.
There was that sigh of his again. Kiryu always seemed to be on his mind – ever since he met him, drenched in the rain. He could recall every drop of rain that had dripped from Kiryu’s brow, and his broken and raw expression that had made even Tachibana’s emotionally hardened heart tremble. With every new interaction with him, Tachibana felt another piece of the shell around that heart break away.
Why then, if he was shedding those pieces, did his heart feel heavier than before?
It was pointless to think about it. He didn’t like wasting his time on pointless endeavors. Kiryu was an honorable, red-blooded yakuza right down to his core. The only concerns Kiryu had were Kazama’s, and Tachibana was his one link to him. Still, Tachibana just couldn’t shake his feelings.
All of these thoughts were slowly turned over in his mind before being compartmentalized into a box and buried for tomorrow. He took a deep breath in, closing his eyes and letting it out, carefully slipping into a doze.
Kiryu stood, looking about the room with a heart full of aching nostalgia. He hadn’t dreamt of this portion of his life in a long, long time – the opulence was just as he remembered it, with its large window overlooking the night life of Kamurocho. He inched away from the window, fearful that analyzing too many details would awaken him, and he wanted to remain in his dream for a while longer.
Would the occupant be here? Would his dream allow Kiryu to see him, or had all these years faded that countenance from his memories to the point he couldn’t dream of him anymore?
He shed his suit jacket, hanging it in the closet like he’d done it a thousand times before. The fact he had to remove his shoes befuddled him, brow furrowing as he toed them off and into the closet.
His feet remembered the floor plan for him as he padded his way to the office, taking a glance inside. No one there. There were nights where he found Tachibana here more often than not, burning the candle at both ends. His fingers touched the surface of the desk, memories unfurling before him – happy moments, sad moments. A couple of moments that made him blush. He moved on.
Each room he passed through contained those moments, a varying range of emotions swirling through him. Affection. Regret. Laughter. Sadness. Love. Perhaps even a deep-seated anger. Directed to who? Kiryu didn’t linger on anything for too long, letting his dream take him where his feet desired.
His feet led him to the bedroom.
A lump settled in his throat as his eyes found the sleeping form on the bed. His heart roared to life, thundering in his ears like a rampaging herd, adrenaline racing through him. His whole body now felt like it was made of lead, but he still took steps towards the bed, afraid of what he would find. Was this a nightmare? A fantasy? Would he approach the bed only to find bloody and lifeless eyes staring at him? Would it even be Tachibana he saw?
All of his doubts melted away the moment he saw Tachibana’s sleeping face, Kiryu’s entire world stopping and narrowing down to a single point. His eyes roamed over that perfectly detailed face, even better than he remembered it, not a mole or freckle out of place. A sleeping prince with – Kiryu noted – lips meant for….
Should he? It was his dream, right? He should stop making it so depressing all the time, he was allowed a little happiness.
One hand leaned softly on the bed, dipping his head down.
Tachibana knew he shouldn’t have thought about Kiryu before bed. His dreams revolved around him now, feeling his weight, his heat. Their lips met, and his blood warmed at the soft, gentle exploration of Kiryu’s tongue. Tachibana’s eyes fluttered open, parting the kiss for a moment to stare at Kiryu, to take in his flushed face and dazed eyes.
It was Kiryu, but it wasn’t – not the one he knew. This Kiryu looked older… more world-weary, subtle wrinkles at his eyes and mouth. He felt his heart stutter in his chest – the man aged like a fine wine, with eyes as dark as chocolate. Tachibana cupped that face with his hand, thumbing the goatee on his chin, admiring every detail.
What a fantastic dream.
“Kiryu-san,” he spoke, barely above a whisper, afraid if his voice was too loud, it would break the spell.
“Tachibana-san,” Kiryu’s voice was deeper, much deeper, low and rich and at just the right octave to create a curl of heat deep inside Tachibana. It drove him wild, to that brink that said screw it, wrapping his hand behind Kiryu’s head to bring their lips crashing together.
A fire flickered alive inside him, and he needed Kiryu more than he needed air, breathing in the essence of his mouth into his lungs. It kindled the fire, made it spread. Kiryu’s touch stoked those flames of desire as he neatly unbuttoned Tachibana’s top and ran his large, calloused hands across his chest. He shuddered as Kiryu lovingly traced his scars, almost like he had them memorized.
Being a dream, it was only logical that he knew exactly how and where to touch Tachibana in just the way he liked, a caress down his sides, a gentle groping of his hips, with just the right pressure. Kiryu parted their lips to remove both of their shirts; the moment was ripe for Tachibana to
[notes:
Later tachibana wants to call him kazuma. Kiryu calls him by Li Hua and hes shocked but also hes like oh this just certifies this is a dream bc only oda and I know that name duh]