rabenhorst (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rabenhorst) wrote2007-07-05 12:19 pm
rabenhorst) wrote2007-07-05 12:19 pm
Entry tags:
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Title: Spread Your Wings; Chapter 4: Just a Job
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
seinen_no and fonulyn
Rating: PG13 [goes up to NC17]
Pairing: Die and Kaoru
Disclaimer: We own no one, only our dirty imaginations.
Summary: Die and Toshiya are unemployed and penniless, even sharing a crappy apartment as best friends although they can barely even afford that one either. Across the street there's a luxurious whore-house, and the two have the brilliant idea that they'll try to get inside information about how things are in there to be able to write a book about it, to cure all their financial problems. Everything doesn't go as planned though, and Die is fascinated by one of the prostitutes like a moth by a flame.
Comments:
fonulyn: Well well well. I don't know what to write here to be completely honest. I think it's sweet how Die and Kao are now kinda getting to know each other better. I feel bad for poor Kao anyways… But it's better that I won't say anything further here XD I'll let you read for yourselves and decide what you think^^ Enjoy.
seinen_no: There are a lotta negative sides to being a whore and now Die has to face them too and learn to deal with them. Quite bad, if you ask me… Still, have fun reading and thanks for all your nice comments so far^^
Previously happened: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Spread Your Wings
Chapter 4: Just a Job
He got used to the weird sleeping rhythm and soon was accustomed to the duties on the first floor. Aiji and Kenji still more or less ignored him, but neither of them complained about him either. Kaoru instead even told the boss what a good job the redhead did.
Die was beginning to like the job more and more with passing time, as he enjoyed the fact that he got to spend short moments with Kaoru every now and then. He was a bit confused about his own thoughts and feelings though, since he had noticed he was getting more and more attached to the purple haired man.
Just like Kaoru had promised, he asked him to spend lunch together once. It has been nice, though they hadn't talked much and from that day on, he asked him to eat together more often, seemingly enjoying the company.
Usually they staid in Kaoru's room and Die just fetched them something to eat. Sometimes they didn't even talk, just ate in silence, other times they chatted about everything and nothing. Die's friends thought it was somewhat weird, how the two spent time together, but they hadn't said anything, at least yet.
On a usual night, Kaoru's last customer had just left, and the purple-haired called for Die's services. Before the redhead reached his room though, he was stopped by Kyo who had grabbed his sleeve. "Better fetch the first-aid kit. Aiji said it didn't sound too good." The blonde looked serious, gritting his teeth so forcefully that one could see it. "See if we need to call the doc."
Instantly Die had a weird feeling in his stomach, something between fear and even anger. "I'll see how bad it is." With the first aid kit he went upstairs, preparing for the worst. During the time Die has been working there, some customers had been a bit rough on Kaoru too, but never had Kyo appeared to be this serious.
The purple-haired was lying on the bed, his face buried in his arms and he was breathing irregularely. When Die entered the room, he only turned his head a bit to be able to look at him. "Hi. Just gimme a moment and I get up so that you can change the sheets." One could hear in his voice that something was wrong and still he wasn't willing to admit it, being used to grit his teeth and bear it.
"No you won't." Die shook his head determinedly, crossing the distance to the bed. He sat down on the edge, setting the first aid kit beside him. "You're not moving an inch before we find out if you're okay." His voice was soft but firm, and he reached out his hand to touch the other's shoulder briefly.
The touch alone caused Kaoru to flinch, but he shook his head. "I'm fine. I just need a bath and then it's okay again. Just trust me." Instinctively, he gripped the endings of the blanket tighter, not allowing it to slide down his back.
"Just let me see, okay." The redhead wasn't willing to give in and took a hold of the edge of the blanket, forcing the other to release his grasp and pulled it away.
There were bloody wales on his back, some deeper cuts and bruises covering the white skin everywhere. "It's okay," Kaoru affirmed, but remained completely still otherwise. Lower, between his thighs, one could see blood as well, and although Kaoru knew it was there, he would've preferred if he had had the chance to wash it off so that the redhead wouldn't worry too much.
"No, it's not." Die bit his lip, forcing himself to calm down for the other's sake. Swiftly he got up from his seat and vanished into the bathroom, returning after a moment with water and a washcloth. Gently he began to clean the other's body, careful not to hurt him more than necessary.
But no matter how gentle he was, everytime the cloth made contact with Kaoru's skin caused pain for him and he moaned quietly. "While you're at it," he began after a moment when he had gotten used to the feeling and the burning of the cuts was bearable, "you could apply some salve... I think I can't do it myself." For once he confessed that he was aching all over, now that Die nursed him so carefully.
"Okay." Die only nodded silently. He went on slowly, not hurrying although it was late, because he simply didn't want to cause the other man any more pain. His heart was aching at the mere sight, and he would've wanted to just go and beat the shit out of the man who had done this. At least Kaoru wouldn't be working for a couple of days, that was for sure.
After he had cleaned the back and applied salve on the wounds, Kaoru had to sit up to enable him to attach bandages. Only then one could see that the purple-haired man's chest didn't look much better. Kaoru sensed the tension in the air, saw the cloud which darkened the other's eyes and he tried to joke. "Well, at least he'll pay a lot for this. Besides, I'll have a couple of days off now."
Die only nodded, not even bothering to try to look happy about that fact. Silently, he just attended the woulds and bruises on the chest as well, avoiding to look him in the eye. He was fuming inside, still wanting to strangle the one who had done this, but he knew he would just have to control himself.
"Hey," Kaoru tilted his head so that he could sneak a peek at Die's face. "Don't worry. I've had worse." There was something in his eyes, something like insecurity.
The air around them seemed to become thicker, suffocating as neither of them knew what else to say to lift the tension. Both were feeling uncomfortable, but for completely different reasons. "But please change the sheets still. I don't want to sleep in there," Kaoru finally almost pleaded, his voice only a faint whisper.
"Of course I'll change the sheets." Die spoke up for the first time in a long moment. His voice sounded somewhat odd, but he couldn't help it. "But I don't think you should take a bath today. Probably not tomorrow either."
"You're right." Kaoru admitted sighing and gently touched the redhead's thigh. "Thank you." His gaze was honest, his dark brown eyes clearly giving away the sincerity of the statement.
The redhead smiled, only a tiny bit but it was definitely a smile still. "You're welcome." He didn't know what else to say, and just went back to finishing the bandaging.
After he was done, Kaoru silently stood up and hobbled into the bathroom, giving him time to change the sheets. He had lied with saying that he had had worse. This was pretty bad in his opinion and once he was out of sight, he took a look at the inside of his arms where a cigarette burn was showing red against the skin. This would most definetely leave a scar behind.
Silently Die changed the sheets, channelled out some of his rage by being unnecessarily harsh, almost riping the dirty sheet in half when he teared it off the bed. He couldn't believe someone was able to do things like that, to another human being, and if he hadn't been so angry he would've just cried.
He was done when Kaoru returned, walking very slowly and somehow stiff. All possible jokes were gone when he carefully dropped back on the bed and rested his back against the cushion, eying the redhead with his flushed cheeks contemplatively. "Die, would you stay a moment until I fell asleep," he asked suddenly, afraid that some of the happenings would haunt him in his dreams. Maybe he was hoping the redhead's presence would prevent them from coming.
"Of course." Die smiled, nodding comfortingly. Somehow he just wanted to do whatever he could to make the other feel better. Carefully he sat down on the edge of the huge bed, instinctively reaching out his hand to pull the blanket better over the other.
"Thank you." After the lights were out, Kaoru snuggled against the cushion, trying to remain as still as possible to make the pain bearable. It took some time, but then his breathing grew more steady, calmed down and showed that he was drifting off.
The redhead still staid there for long, looking at the other and simply remained quiet. The purple haired man had probably been asleep for hours when Die finally got up, careful not to wake him, intending on getting to his room to sleep a bit too.
There was still light in Kyo's room as the blonde couldn't deny that he was worried about Kaoru. Like he had said, things like that happened around there, but that didn't mean that he approved nor that he ever got used to them. It must've been pretty bad, when Aiji had heard the noises in his room, because they were far apart from each other so that nothing disturbed their customers.
As Die got to his bed he couldn't sleep, and only buried his face into the pillow, trying to calm down. It had been bad, and he still didn't know how he should react to it. It wouldn't do any good if he went on a rampage, it wouldn't do any good if he cried, but still he had to get the feelings out somehow.
There was a soft knock on his door and without waiting for an answer, Kyo poked his head through a small gap. "No need for a doctor?" he asked, a frown on his forehead.
"I don't think a doc can do anything more than I did. I cleaned the wounds and bandaged them." Die sighed, sounding truly desperate. He didn't even turn to look at the other man though.
"You don't have to let it get you." Kyo said, slipped into the room completely and leaned his back against the cool wood. "But take good care of him. I aleady left a note for the boss that he can't work the next days and that his customer needs to pay."
"What do you mean not to let it get me?" The redhead turned a bit, sighing in deep. "I would fucking want to kill that bastard who did that." He didn't care that he sounded probably overly emotional, desperate and weird.
"Die, it's a job. We all know that. Kaoru knows, Toshi knows, and you know it too. There's perverted fucks living on this earth who think they can buy everything with money. And, reality check, they can!" Kyo admonished him. "There's nothing you can do about it but to take care of Kaoru and to make him feel better."
"I know! But it doesn't mean I have to be happy about it." Die frowned seriously. "Reality sucks."
"Tell me about it." Slowly, Kyo slid to the ground and hugged his knees close to his chest. "But it's not you or me who bears the pain, it's the girls and we're only there to attend them; not to judge."
"You know, when I was there, in that room a while ago," Die began, his voice faint and tired. "I would've given anything to be able to take some of the pain on me. It's not fair that one person has to go through all this..."
"You do like him a lot, don't you?" The blonde asked, searching for his friend's gaze at the other end of the room. "It's not good if you're getting to attached to one of them. It will only cause troubles for everybody."
"I know." The answer came with a faint nod and suddenly the redhead felt just dead tired, as if he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. "And I'm not going to get myself into anything stupid. But I do like him, and he's a good person, doesn't deserve shit like this."
"True. And don't worry, everybody who gets to know him better likes him. He's different than the others." Kyo noticed the weary expression on Die's face and stood up. "I'm only glad that we don't need a doc. Last time something like that happened, there were stitches needed..."
His hand already on the handle, he turned around. "Try to sleep long and only attend Kaoru tomorrow. You didn't have a single free day yet. If you want, you can have it tomorrow..."
"That would be nice." Die smiled slightly. "Thanks." He already crawled under the covers, without bothering to even get out of his clothes.
The blonde nodded and left. Die had been working so hard and this incident weighed heavy on him. Probably it was because he was generally exhausted and with a bit of free time, he would learn to deal with it better.
After sleeping for some hours Die got up though, because he couldn't fall asleep again. The worry about the purple haired man just didn't leave him alone and he wanted to check on him.
He went to the kitchen first though, taking a bit to eat for both of them before going upstairs. Silently he slipped into the room, not wanting to disturb if the other was still sleeping.
But Kaoru wasn't asleep, only lay there with a slightly hazed expression. He had taken some painkillers and thus was able to move at least without crying out. After he had woken up, the pain had been thrice as bad as the evening before.
"Morning," he greeted the redhead and smiled faintly. "Thanks for staying until I fell asleep."
"No problem." Die smiled honestly, lifting the tray he had a bit. "I brought you something to eat. Well, me too actually, since I haven't eaten anything either yet."
Although Kaoru really wasn't hungry, he ate something, knowing the other would be even more worried if he declined.
Again, they weren't talking a lot, but exchaged shy smiles whenever their gazes met. The atmosphere was considerably more relaxed than the day before, although one could still feel a tension since Die's anger hadn't faded completely. It had turned into worry mostly though, and he was determined to make sure things would be as comfortable for Kaoru as possible.
After they had eaten he kept silent for a moment, before looking up from the remains of his food. "How are you feeling? And I want an honest answer."
The certainty in his voice caused Kaoru to smile. "Now with the painkillers it's okay. But I'd like to ask you if you could apply some more salve."
"I will. Just let me know whenever you need anything." Die smiled. "I'll be there to pester you the whole day."
"Don't you have to attend Aiji and Kenji too?" The surprise was clearly visible on Kaoru's face as it was audible in his voice. Usually, they were pretty much left alone and none of the servants had the time to take care of one them for a complete day.
"It's my free day." The redhead shrugged, stuffing one remaining piece of bread into his mouth, chewing it slowly.
"But you shouldn't spend your free day with a crippled whore like me. It's pretty outside. Go out and get a tan. You're pale as a sheet and I am sure you could use to see the sun for once." Kaoru knew Die had been working hard since the very first day and hadn't been out even once.
"But I don't want to." Die shook his head, before suddenly looking up at the other, straight in the eye. "Unless you come with me. But I guess you shouldn't walk..."
"I think even if I wanted, I can't." There was an honest smile on Kaoru's lips as he really appreciated that Die was willing to sacrifice his free day for him. "But then I promise you that we will do this once. Go out together and enjoy the sun. I have free days too, you know."
"Really?" The redhead grinned slightly, arching an eyebrow. "Then I take that as a promise. Let's just go out to worship the sun once."
"It's a promise." Kaoru nodded and leaned back against the cushions comfortably. "You sure you wanna stay? I won't be a good company today. The painkillers made me sleepy and I think I will have to take a nap at one point."
"I'm dead tired too, so I can sleep as well." Die chuckled, eyeing the floor. "Your carpet looks almost as comfortable as my bed."
"You don't think I allow you to sleep on the floor, do you?" The other man shook his head and laughed. With a bit effort, he moved to the side, patting the free space next to him. "C'mon. I won't bite."
"You sure?" The redhead smiled softly, but moved closer nevertheless, lying down on the free space next to the other. The bed was huge, and there was plenty of room for both of them.
"Sure, I promise I won't bite." Kaoru had closed his eyes, his face turned towards the other. There was something comforting in resing like this, in feeling somebody's warmth so close.
"Just remember to tell me whenever you need something. Painkillers, salve, food, anything." Die mumbled silently, relaxing almost instantly because he was still exhausted.
"You're too kind. But right now," the sentence was interrupted by a stifled yawn, "I really need to sleep a bit." Subconsciously, Kaoru shifted a bit closer to the redhead, instantly falling asleep.
Die too drifted away soon, sleeping like a stone. It took long, hours, before either of the stirred for the first time.
The first thing Kaoru saw when he opened his eyes was a set of full lips very close to his face. Not remembering what was going on, he flinched which caused him to groan pained. Only then, everything came back to him and he whispered quietly. "Die, are you awake?"
It startled the redhead, since he had been lingering somewhere between awake and asleep, and now snapped up completely. "Yeah, I am. What's wrong?" His voice was still sleepy, and he yawned in the end of the sentence.
"I need some more painkillers and salve." The words were equally quiet as before and the expression on Kaoru's face made clear that he was truly aching.
"Just gimme a moment." In a second Die was up on his feet, and at first just looked through the room if there happened to be painkillers. It wasn't the case though, and Die had to go and fetch some from the storage quickly.
Soon he was back though, handing the other a glass of water and a couple of pills. "There. And then I'll take a look at those bruises."
Instantly, the purple-haired sat up and downed some of the pills with a huge gulp of water, wincing at the pain this small movement had already caused. But he grinded his teeth and turned a bit, lifting his arms so that the other could remove the bandages and attend his wounds.
"Die, I didn't mean the salve for the cuts and bruises on my back," Kaoru began tentatively, "more like for my butt."
"I know." Die nodded, but still took his time with checking the wounds. "But you need to take care of the back too. It looks bad."
"I only hope that it won't leave scars behind. That'd be really bad." Kaoru tried to turn his head to take a look at the wounds himself, but didn't see anything and gave up when the pain reminded him that moving wasn't such a good idea.
"I don't know..." The redhead sounded thoughtful. "That big one might leave a scar. But not all of them." He spread some salve on the wounds, before bandaging them again. "And now your butt. Wanna attend it yourself rather?" He turned to smile at the other, inquiring him with his gaze.
"No." The purple-haired shook his head. "I can't turn enough and relax due to the pain." With an apologetic smile, he lay down on his belly, leaving the rest to Die. "I'm sorry, if you feel uncomfortable with it, we can also get a nurse."
"It's okay." Die honestly meant it, he wasn't bothered by helping the other with this either. "I just didn't want you to feel uncomfortable. That's why I asked."
"Me?" Kaoru chuckled a bit. "Why should I? It's just that none of this belongs to your job really, so just tell me when I take advantage of you."
"Well, I'm not on duty right now really, so we don't need to think about what belongs to my job and what not." The redhead grinned, swiftly applying the salve while talking.
After he was done, the other grabbed his wrist to make him look at him. "Thank you. I feel a bit bad though, because I can't do anything for you in return. But it's nice to have company and nice that it's you."
Die smiled, his bright and honest smile. "You don't need to thank me. I wouldn't know what to do with my free time anyways."
"Well," Kaoru drawled smirking, but didn't release Die's hand, "If I were you, I'd know what to do with my free time. There's a lotta nice girls not far from here, just across the hall."
"Well," The redhead averted his gaze slightly, a hardly noticeable blush appearing on his cheeks. "I didn't really even realize, to be honest."
"For how long are you here now? Two months? Give or take a couple of days. And you didn't notice that there's a bunch of hot chicks not far away? Kyo should've given you advice." The other man teased on. Talks like this allowed him to forget the pain for a moment and besides, he was really interested why a young man like Die preferred to stay with him.
"I did notice. And I know they're there. But it doesn't mean I'd have any money to... you know." Die drawled, somehow trying to explain his behavior although he didn't know the reasons behind it himself either.
"What are you doing with the money you earn here? Don't tell me you have an expensive lifestyle. I know it's not true."
"I save it," the redhead confessed, knowing he sounded like an old man in a way. "I've been broke for so long, that I don't want to go through something like that again…"
"That's good." Kaoru nodded to emphasize that he truly meant it. "So you can have a better life once, study and this stuff. Now that's at least a good reason."
"Yeah, I guess so." Die nodded thoughtfully, chewing on his bottom lip slightly. His gaze fell on their hands, and only then he noticed that Kaoru was still holding his wrist.
The purple haired man followed his gaze and smiled, but slowly released him from his grasp. The silence which landed between them afterwards was neither comfortable, nor uncomfortable, it was more disturbing and after some time, Kaoru suggested that they both should eat something. He still wasn't hungry, but knew that Die would only eat if he did as well.
While the redhead fetched some food, he thought about him, didn't know what to make of him at all. The only thing Kaoru was sure of, was that he really liked the redhead and had never met somebody who was so kind to him.
When Die came back they ate silently, a somewhat comfortable silence between them. Afterwards they slowly began to chat a bit, just talking about everyday things shallowly, nothing important, but still enjoyed it somehow.
"You know what?" Kaoru broke the conversation somehwere and smiled at the redhead. "I'd like to smoke a cig now. They are at my desk, would you be so kind and fetch them for me?"
"Sure." Instantly the redhead got up, fetching the pack of cigarettes and a lighter, handing them to the other.
Kaoru lit one and offered the pack to Die as well. "You're smoking too, right? At least you smelled like it." He smiled widely and blew the smoke through his nose.
"Yeah, I smoke too." Die nodded, took one cig and placed it between his lips. "Gosh, I didn't even realize I needed one this badly."
"You should be more considerate of yourself and not care too much for others," Kaoru remarked dryly and then chuckled a bit. "Especially not for an old, sore and useless whore."
"Of course I need to think of other human beings too," the redhead stated it because to him to him it was a natural thing that didn't even need to be questioned. Besides, there was something special about Kaoru that made him want to make him happy.
"But you can't heal the world. And you're not hanging around with Aiji. I understand why you dislike Kenji, he's a bastard, but Aiji's nice. Still, you stick to me and I can't even complain, beause I enjoy your company."
"Well, maybe I like you better than him." Die shrugged slightly, grinning insecurely. "And besides, he has never really talked to me anyways."
"Thanks. I take that as a compliment nevertheless." Contently, Kaoru again leaned back against the cushions. He had taken some more painkillers not too long ago and thus was able to move. Besides, the redhead's company distracted him from thinking about his current state too much.
"Just tell me when I'm annoying you too much." Die chuckled. "Then I'll leave you to have a bit time alone in peace."
"I'm left alone most of the time. So there's no chance you're annoying me." The other smiled, really meaning it. Usually, he had preferred to be alone, but the redhead gave him the feeling of being a normal human, of being his friend. Not even Kyo had elicited this feeling inside him, although he liked the polite blonde man a lot.
They went on chatting idly for long, just enjoying the comfortable moment. Die noticed that with each passing moment he felt more and more at ease with the other man, and was certain that his free day was well spent.
At one point, Kaoru couldn't hide his tiredness anymore and he turned to look at the redhead. "I think I need some more sleep now. But... I mean, if you want, you can stay and sleep here."
Die turned to look at the clock, and as he noticed that it was beginning to be late already, he got up reluctantly. "I guess I should go back to my room. Toshi's dying of curiosity since he wants to know what I did with my free day." He chuckled a bit.
"Tell him you had fun in the west-wing and spent all your money on some chick." The purple haired man answered with a grin, but then became serious again. "Thank you so much. I'm feeling a lot better already."
"Then it was all worth it." Die smiled brightly, gathering the dishes and the remains of their meal. "And I had fun too, believe it or not."
"I'd rather believe it, so I don't feel like you wasted your time with me." The other winked and turned to his side, getting comfortable for sleep. "Have a good night and sleep well."
"You too. And if you need anything, just call for me." The redhead nodded, his hand already on the doorhandle. "I mean it. Anytime."
"I will. And now go, before I make you." Chuckling, Kaoru pulled the blanket over his head and closed his eyes, still exhausted.
Quickly Die got out of the room, closing the door silently behind himself. He headed straight to his own room, intending on getting some rest before he had to get back to work again the next day.
Author:
seinen_no and fonulynRating: PG13 [goes up to NC17]
Pairing: Die and Kaoru
Disclaimer: We own no one, only our dirty imaginations.
Summary: Die and Toshiya are unemployed and penniless, even sharing a crappy apartment as best friends although they can barely even afford that one either. Across the street there's a luxurious whore-house, and the two have the brilliant idea that they'll try to get inside information about how things are in there to be able to write a book about it, to cure all their financial problems. Everything doesn't go as planned though, and Die is fascinated by one of the prostitutes like a moth by a flame.
Comments:
fonulyn: Well well well. I don't know what to write here to be completely honest. I think it's sweet how Die and Kao are now kinda getting to know each other better. I feel bad for poor Kao anyways… But it's better that I won't say anything further here XD I'll let you read for yourselves and decide what you think^^ Enjoy.seinen_no: There are a lotta negative sides to being a whore and now Die has to face them too and learn to deal with them. Quite bad, if you ask me… Still, have fun reading and thanks for all your nice comments so far^^Previously happened: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Chapter 4: Just a Job
He got used to the weird sleeping rhythm and soon was accustomed to the duties on the first floor. Aiji and Kenji still more or less ignored him, but neither of them complained about him either. Kaoru instead even told the boss what a good job the redhead did.
Die was beginning to like the job more and more with passing time, as he enjoyed the fact that he got to spend short moments with Kaoru every now and then. He was a bit confused about his own thoughts and feelings though, since he had noticed he was getting more and more attached to the purple haired man.
Just like Kaoru had promised, he asked him to spend lunch together once. It has been nice, though they hadn't talked much and from that day on, he asked him to eat together more often, seemingly enjoying the company.
Usually they staid in Kaoru's room and Die just fetched them something to eat. Sometimes they didn't even talk, just ate in silence, other times they chatted about everything and nothing. Die's friends thought it was somewhat weird, how the two spent time together, but they hadn't said anything, at least yet.
On a usual night, Kaoru's last customer had just left, and the purple-haired called for Die's services. Before the redhead reached his room though, he was stopped by Kyo who had grabbed his sleeve. "Better fetch the first-aid kit. Aiji said it didn't sound too good." The blonde looked serious, gritting his teeth so forcefully that one could see it. "See if we need to call the doc."
Instantly Die had a weird feeling in his stomach, something between fear and even anger. "I'll see how bad it is." With the first aid kit he went upstairs, preparing for the worst. During the time Die has been working there, some customers had been a bit rough on Kaoru too, but never had Kyo appeared to be this serious.
The purple-haired was lying on the bed, his face buried in his arms and he was breathing irregularely. When Die entered the room, he only turned his head a bit to be able to look at him. "Hi. Just gimme a moment and I get up so that you can change the sheets." One could hear in his voice that something was wrong and still he wasn't willing to admit it, being used to grit his teeth and bear it.
"No you won't." Die shook his head determinedly, crossing the distance to the bed. He sat down on the edge, setting the first aid kit beside him. "You're not moving an inch before we find out if you're okay." His voice was soft but firm, and he reached out his hand to touch the other's shoulder briefly.
The touch alone caused Kaoru to flinch, but he shook his head. "I'm fine. I just need a bath and then it's okay again. Just trust me." Instinctively, he gripped the endings of the blanket tighter, not allowing it to slide down his back.
"Just let me see, okay." The redhead wasn't willing to give in and took a hold of the edge of the blanket, forcing the other to release his grasp and pulled it away.
There were bloody wales on his back, some deeper cuts and bruises covering the white skin everywhere. "It's okay," Kaoru affirmed, but remained completely still otherwise. Lower, between his thighs, one could see blood as well, and although Kaoru knew it was there, he would've preferred if he had had the chance to wash it off so that the redhead wouldn't worry too much.
"No, it's not." Die bit his lip, forcing himself to calm down for the other's sake. Swiftly he got up from his seat and vanished into the bathroom, returning after a moment with water and a washcloth. Gently he began to clean the other's body, careful not to hurt him more than necessary.
But no matter how gentle he was, everytime the cloth made contact with Kaoru's skin caused pain for him and he moaned quietly. "While you're at it," he began after a moment when he had gotten used to the feeling and the burning of the cuts was bearable, "you could apply some salve... I think I can't do it myself." For once he confessed that he was aching all over, now that Die nursed him so carefully.
"Okay." Die only nodded silently. He went on slowly, not hurrying although it was late, because he simply didn't want to cause the other man any more pain. His heart was aching at the mere sight, and he would've wanted to just go and beat the shit out of the man who had done this. At least Kaoru wouldn't be working for a couple of days, that was for sure.
After he had cleaned the back and applied salve on the wounds, Kaoru had to sit up to enable him to attach bandages. Only then one could see that the purple-haired man's chest didn't look much better. Kaoru sensed the tension in the air, saw the cloud which darkened the other's eyes and he tried to joke. "Well, at least he'll pay a lot for this. Besides, I'll have a couple of days off now."
Die only nodded, not even bothering to try to look happy about that fact. Silently, he just attended the woulds and bruises on the chest as well, avoiding to look him in the eye. He was fuming inside, still wanting to strangle the one who had done this, but he knew he would just have to control himself.
"Hey," Kaoru tilted his head so that he could sneak a peek at Die's face. "Don't worry. I've had worse." There was something in his eyes, something like insecurity.
The air around them seemed to become thicker, suffocating as neither of them knew what else to say to lift the tension. Both were feeling uncomfortable, but for completely different reasons. "But please change the sheets still. I don't want to sleep in there," Kaoru finally almost pleaded, his voice only a faint whisper.
"Of course I'll change the sheets." Die spoke up for the first time in a long moment. His voice sounded somewhat odd, but he couldn't help it. "But I don't think you should take a bath today. Probably not tomorrow either."
"You're right." Kaoru admitted sighing and gently touched the redhead's thigh. "Thank you." His gaze was honest, his dark brown eyes clearly giving away the sincerity of the statement.
The redhead smiled, only a tiny bit but it was definitely a smile still. "You're welcome." He didn't know what else to say, and just went back to finishing the bandaging.
After he was done, Kaoru silently stood up and hobbled into the bathroom, giving him time to change the sheets. He had lied with saying that he had had worse. This was pretty bad in his opinion and once he was out of sight, he took a look at the inside of his arms where a cigarette burn was showing red against the skin. This would most definetely leave a scar behind.
Silently Die changed the sheets, channelled out some of his rage by being unnecessarily harsh, almost riping the dirty sheet in half when he teared it off the bed. He couldn't believe someone was able to do things like that, to another human being, and if he hadn't been so angry he would've just cried.
He was done when Kaoru returned, walking very slowly and somehow stiff. All possible jokes were gone when he carefully dropped back on the bed and rested his back against the cushion, eying the redhead with his flushed cheeks contemplatively. "Die, would you stay a moment until I fell asleep," he asked suddenly, afraid that some of the happenings would haunt him in his dreams. Maybe he was hoping the redhead's presence would prevent them from coming.
"Of course." Die smiled, nodding comfortingly. Somehow he just wanted to do whatever he could to make the other feel better. Carefully he sat down on the edge of the huge bed, instinctively reaching out his hand to pull the blanket better over the other.
"Thank you." After the lights were out, Kaoru snuggled against the cushion, trying to remain as still as possible to make the pain bearable. It took some time, but then his breathing grew more steady, calmed down and showed that he was drifting off.
The redhead still staid there for long, looking at the other and simply remained quiet. The purple haired man had probably been asleep for hours when Die finally got up, careful not to wake him, intending on getting to his room to sleep a bit too.
There was still light in Kyo's room as the blonde couldn't deny that he was worried about Kaoru. Like he had said, things like that happened around there, but that didn't mean that he approved nor that he ever got used to them. It must've been pretty bad, when Aiji had heard the noises in his room, because they were far apart from each other so that nothing disturbed their customers.
As Die got to his bed he couldn't sleep, and only buried his face into the pillow, trying to calm down. It had been bad, and he still didn't know how he should react to it. It wouldn't do any good if he went on a rampage, it wouldn't do any good if he cried, but still he had to get the feelings out somehow.
There was a soft knock on his door and without waiting for an answer, Kyo poked his head through a small gap. "No need for a doctor?" he asked, a frown on his forehead.
"I don't think a doc can do anything more than I did. I cleaned the wounds and bandaged them." Die sighed, sounding truly desperate. He didn't even turn to look at the other man though.
"You don't have to let it get you." Kyo said, slipped into the room completely and leaned his back against the cool wood. "But take good care of him. I aleady left a note for the boss that he can't work the next days and that his customer needs to pay."
"What do you mean not to let it get me?" The redhead turned a bit, sighing in deep. "I would fucking want to kill that bastard who did that." He didn't care that he sounded probably overly emotional, desperate and weird.
"Die, it's a job. We all know that. Kaoru knows, Toshi knows, and you know it too. There's perverted fucks living on this earth who think they can buy everything with money. And, reality check, they can!" Kyo admonished him. "There's nothing you can do about it but to take care of Kaoru and to make him feel better."
"I know! But it doesn't mean I have to be happy about it." Die frowned seriously. "Reality sucks."
"Tell me about it." Slowly, Kyo slid to the ground and hugged his knees close to his chest. "But it's not you or me who bears the pain, it's the girls and we're only there to attend them; not to judge."
"You know, when I was there, in that room a while ago," Die began, his voice faint and tired. "I would've given anything to be able to take some of the pain on me. It's not fair that one person has to go through all this..."
"You do like him a lot, don't you?" The blonde asked, searching for his friend's gaze at the other end of the room. "It's not good if you're getting to attached to one of them. It will only cause troubles for everybody."
"I know." The answer came with a faint nod and suddenly the redhead felt just dead tired, as if he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. "And I'm not going to get myself into anything stupid. But I do like him, and he's a good person, doesn't deserve shit like this."
"True. And don't worry, everybody who gets to know him better likes him. He's different than the others." Kyo noticed the weary expression on Die's face and stood up. "I'm only glad that we don't need a doc. Last time something like that happened, there were stitches needed..."
His hand already on the handle, he turned around. "Try to sleep long and only attend Kaoru tomorrow. You didn't have a single free day yet. If you want, you can have it tomorrow..."
"That would be nice." Die smiled slightly. "Thanks." He already crawled under the covers, without bothering to even get out of his clothes.
The blonde nodded and left. Die had been working so hard and this incident weighed heavy on him. Probably it was because he was generally exhausted and with a bit of free time, he would learn to deal with it better.
After sleeping for some hours Die got up though, because he couldn't fall asleep again. The worry about the purple haired man just didn't leave him alone and he wanted to check on him.
He went to the kitchen first though, taking a bit to eat for both of them before going upstairs. Silently he slipped into the room, not wanting to disturb if the other was still sleeping.
But Kaoru wasn't asleep, only lay there with a slightly hazed expression. He had taken some painkillers and thus was able to move at least without crying out. After he had woken up, the pain had been thrice as bad as the evening before.
"Morning," he greeted the redhead and smiled faintly. "Thanks for staying until I fell asleep."
"No problem." Die smiled honestly, lifting the tray he had a bit. "I brought you something to eat. Well, me too actually, since I haven't eaten anything either yet."
Although Kaoru really wasn't hungry, he ate something, knowing the other would be even more worried if he declined.
Again, they weren't talking a lot, but exchaged shy smiles whenever their gazes met. The atmosphere was considerably more relaxed than the day before, although one could still feel a tension since Die's anger hadn't faded completely. It had turned into worry mostly though, and he was determined to make sure things would be as comfortable for Kaoru as possible.
After they had eaten he kept silent for a moment, before looking up from the remains of his food. "How are you feeling? And I want an honest answer."
The certainty in his voice caused Kaoru to smile. "Now with the painkillers it's okay. But I'd like to ask you if you could apply some more salve."
"I will. Just let me know whenever you need anything." Die smiled. "I'll be there to pester you the whole day."
"Don't you have to attend Aiji and Kenji too?" The surprise was clearly visible on Kaoru's face as it was audible in his voice. Usually, they were pretty much left alone and none of the servants had the time to take care of one them for a complete day.
"It's my free day." The redhead shrugged, stuffing one remaining piece of bread into his mouth, chewing it slowly.
"But you shouldn't spend your free day with a crippled whore like me. It's pretty outside. Go out and get a tan. You're pale as a sheet and I am sure you could use to see the sun for once." Kaoru knew Die had been working hard since the very first day and hadn't been out even once.
"But I don't want to." Die shook his head, before suddenly looking up at the other, straight in the eye. "Unless you come with me. But I guess you shouldn't walk..."
"I think even if I wanted, I can't." There was an honest smile on Kaoru's lips as he really appreciated that Die was willing to sacrifice his free day for him. "But then I promise you that we will do this once. Go out together and enjoy the sun. I have free days too, you know."
"Really?" The redhead grinned slightly, arching an eyebrow. "Then I take that as a promise. Let's just go out to worship the sun once."
"It's a promise." Kaoru nodded and leaned back against the cushions comfortably. "You sure you wanna stay? I won't be a good company today. The painkillers made me sleepy and I think I will have to take a nap at one point."
"I'm dead tired too, so I can sleep as well." Die chuckled, eyeing the floor. "Your carpet looks almost as comfortable as my bed."
"You don't think I allow you to sleep on the floor, do you?" The other man shook his head and laughed. With a bit effort, he moved to the side, patting the free space next to him. "C'mon. I won't bite."
"You sure?" The redhead smiled softly, but moved closer nevertheless, lying down on the free space next to the other. The bed was huge, and there was plenty of room for both of them.
"Sure, I promise I won't bite." Kaoru had closed his eyes, his face turned towards the other. There was something comforting in resing like this, in feeling somebody's warmth so close.
"Just remember to tell me whenever you need something. Painkillers, salve, food, anything." Die mumbled silently, relaxing almost instantly because he was still exhausted.
"You're too kind. But right now," the sentence was interrupted by a stifled yawn, "I really need to sleep a bit." Subconsciously, Kaoru shifted a bit closer to the redhead, instantly falling asleep.
Die too drifted away soon, sleeping like a stone. It took long, hours, before either of the stirred for the first time.
The first thing Kaoru saw when he opened his eyes was a set of full lips very close to his face. Not remembering what was going on, he flinched which caused him to groan pained. Only then, everything came back to him and he whispered quietly. "Die, are you awake?"
It startled the redhead, since he had been lingering somewhere between awake and asleep, and now snapped up completely. "Yeah, I am. What's wrong?" His voice was still sleepy, and he yawned in the end of the sentence.
"I need some more painkillers and salve." The words were equally quiet as before and the expression on Kaoru's face made clear that he was truly aching.
"Just gimme a moment." In a second Die was up on his feet, and at first just looked through the room if there happened to be painkillers. It wasn't the case though, and Die had to go and fetch some from the storage quickly.
Soon he was back though, handing the other a glass of water and a couple of pills. "There. And then I'll take a look at those bruises."
Instantly, the purple-haired sat up and downed some of the pills with a huge gulp of water, wincing at the pain this small movement had already caused. But he grinded his teeth and turned a bit, lifting his arms so that the other could remove the bandages and attend his wounds.
"Die, I didn't mean the salve for the cuts and bruises on my back," Kaoru began tentatively, "more like for my butt."
"I know." Die nodded, but still took his time with checking the wounds. "But you need to take care of the back too. It looks bad."
"I only hope that it won't leave scars behind. That'd be really bad." Kaoru tried to turn his head to take a look at the wounds himself, but didn't see anything and gave up when the pain reminded him that moving wasn't such a good idea.
"I don't know..." The redhead sounded thoughtful. "That big one might leave a scar. But not all of them." He spread some salve on the wounds, before bandaging them again. "And now your butt. Wanna attend it yourself rather?" He turned to smile at the other, inquiring him with his gaze.
"No." The purple-haired shook his head. "I can't turn enough and relax due to the pain." With an apologetic smile, he lay down on his belly, leaving the rest to Die. "I'm sorry, if you feel uncomfortable with it, we can also get a nurse."
"It's okay." Die honestly meant it, he wasn't bothered by helping the other with this either. "I just didn't want you to feel uncomfortable. That's why I asked."
"Me?" Kaoru chuckled a bit. "Why should I? It's just that none of this belongs to your job really, so just tell me when I take advantage of you."
"Well, I'm not on duty right now really, so we don't need to think about what belongs to my job and what not." The redhead grinned, swiftly applying the salve while talking.
After he was done, the other grabbed his wrist to make him look at him. "Thank you. I feel a bit bad though, because I can't do anything for you in return. But it's nice to have company and nice that it's you."
Die smiled, his bright and honest smile. "You don't need to thank me. I wouldn't know what to do with my free time anyways."
"Well," Kaoru drawled smirking, but didn't release Die's hand, "If I were you, I'd know what to do with my free time. There's a lotta nice girls not far from here, just across the hall."
"Well," The redhead averted his gaze slightly, a hardly noticeable blush appearing on his cheeks. "I didn't really even realize, to be honest."
"For how long are you here now? Two months? Give or take a couple of days. And you didn't notice that there's a bunch of hot chicks not far away? Kyo should've given you advice." The other man teased on. Talks like this allowed him to forget the pain for a moment and besides, he was really interested why a young man like Die preferred to stay with him.
"I did notice. And I know they're there. But it doesn't mean I'd have any money to... you know." Die drawled, somehow trying to explain his behavior although he didn't know the reasons behind it himself either.
"What are you doing with the money you earn here? Don't tell me you have an expensive lifestyle. I know it's not true."
"I save it," the redhead confessed, knowing he sounded like an old man in a way. "I've been broke for so long, that I don't want to go through something like that again…"
"That's good." Kaoru nodded to emphasize that he truly meant it. "So you can have a better life once, study and this stuff. Now that's at least a good reason."
"Yeah, I guess so." Die nodded thoughtfully, chewing on his bottom lip slightly. His gaze fell on their hands, and only then he noticed that Kaoru was still holding his wrist.
The purple haired man followed his gaze and smiled, but slowly released him from his grasp. The silence which landed between them afterwards was neither comfortable, nor uncomfortable, it was more disturbing and after some time, Kaoru suggested that they both should eat something. He still wasn't hungry, but knew that Die would only eat if he did as well.
While the redhead fetched some food, he thought about him, didn't know what to make of him at all. The only thing Kaoru was sure of, was that he really liked the redhead and had never met somebody who was so kind to him.
When Die came back they ate silently, a somewhat comfortable silence between them. Afterwards they slowly began to chat a bit, just talking about everyday things shallowly, nothing important, but still enjoyed it somehow.
"You know what?" Kaoru broke the conversation somehwere and smiled at the redhead. "I'd like to smoke a cig now. They are at my desk, would you be so kind and fetch them for me?"
"Sure." Instantly the redhead got up, fetching the pack of cigarettes and a lighter, handing them to the other.
Kaoru lit one and offered the pack to Die as well. "You're smoking too, right? At least you smelled like it." He smiled widely and blew the smoke through his nose.
"Yeah, I smoke too." Die nodded, took one cig and placed it between his lips. "Gosh, I didn't even realize I needed one this badly."
"You should be more considerate of yourself and not care too much for others," Kaoru remarked dryly and then chuckled a bit. "Especially not for an old, sore and useless whore."
"Of course I need to think of other human beings too," the redhead stated it because to him to him it was a natural thing that didn't even need to be questioned. Besides, there was something special about Kaoru that made him want to make him happy.
"But you can't heal the world. And you're not hanging around with Aiji. I understand why you dislike Kenji, he's a bastard, but Aiji's nice. Still, you stick to me and I can't even complain, beause I enjoy your company."
"Well, maybe I like you better than him." Die shrugged slightly, grinning insecurely. "And besides, he has never really talked to me anyways."
"Thanks. I take that as a compliment nevertheless." Contently, Kaoru again leaned back against the cushions. He had taken some more painkillers not too long ago and thus was able to move. Besides, the redhead's company distracted him from thinking about his current state too much.
"Just tell me when I'm annoying you too much." Die chuckled. "Then I'll leave you to have a bit time alone in peace."
"I'm left alone most of the time. So there's no chance you're annoying me." The other smiled, really meaning it. Usually, he had preferred to be alone, but the redhead gave him the feeling of being a normal human, of being his friend. Not even Kyo had elicited this feeling inside him, although he liked the polite blonde man a lot.
They went on chatting idly for long, just enjoying the comfortable moment. Die noticed that with each passing moment he felt more and more at ease with the other man, and was certain that his free day was well spent.
At one point, Kaoru couldn't hide his tiredness anymore and he turned to look at the redhead. "I think I need some more sleep now. But... I mean, if you want, you can stay and sleep here."
Die turned to look at the clock, and as he noticed that it was beginning to be late already, he got up reluctantly. "I guess I should go back to my room. Toshi's dying of curiosity since he wants to know what I did with my free day." He chuckled a bit.
"Tell him you had fun in the west-wing and spent all your money on some chick." The purple haired man answered with a grin, but then became serious again. "Thank you so much. I'm feeling a lot better already."
"Then it was all worth it." Die smiled brightly, gathering the dishes and the remains of their meal. "And I had fun too, believe it or not."
"I'd rather believe it, so I don't feel like you wasted your time with me." The other winked and turned to his side, getting comfortable for sleep. "Have a good night and sleep well."
"You too. And if you need anything, just call for me." The redhead nodded, his hand already on the doorhandle. "I mean it. Anytime."
"I will. And now go, before I make you." Chuckling, Kaoru pulled the blanket over his head and closed his eyes, still exhausted.
Quickly Die got out of the room, closing the door silently behind himself. He headed straight to his own room, intending on getting some rest before he had to get back to work again the next day.
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