Chapter Text
Normally Kojiro didn’t take that long to get ready for anything really, not even for his dates. He knew his muscular physique looked good in just about anything, so the most he ever did was throw on some random outfit, dose on some silky-smooth perfume, and head out. This usually worked because the people he went out with only did so because they were interested in the prospect of some good dicking down at the end of the night.
However, this night was different. Kaoru was not just one of his “dates”. Well, he wasn’t even a real date to begin with, but he was his best friend, and most importantly, he was the man he had been in love with since they were practically in diapers. So obviously this meant that Kojiro felt the need to look his absolute best for that night, even though a little voice in the back of his head kept telling him that it didn’t matter because Kaoru would never be interested in him that way. They argued all the damn time, so why would Kaoru suddenly make a move?
Nonetheless, he hopped in the shower to get himself clean. He got out with a towel lightly wrapped around his waist and carefully unpacked the outfit he had in his suitcase for just this occasion. As he stared at the bag the clothes were neatly folded in, he chuckled in some kind of sad amusement over the fact that he had completely forgotten about finding clothes he needed for the event they were there for in the first place, and instead his mind had made the decision that remembering to style what he was going to wear for an outing with his best friend was a hundred times more important. A second later he spotted an ironing board in the corner of the room and decided to go the extra mile and make sure nothing had any wrinkles in it because he knew Kaoru would eat him alive over it (not in a good way sadly). After making sure everything was good to go, he put it all on. He had traded his normal blue jeans for slim-fit black jeans, and a plain white shirt with a snazzy denim jacket that was tight enough to show off his biceps given any slight movement he were to make and topped it all off with some new white sneakers.
He made his way back into the bathroom to comb his hair neatly into place and spray his good cologne on which smelled of Pine-trees in the forest. There was a full-length mirror behind the bathroom door and Kojiro used it to thoroughly review his appearance, hoping with all his might that the man next door would give him even the tiniest of compliments upon seeing him.
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While Kojiro took his sweet time getting ready in his room, Kaoru was not any better with the amount of time it was taking him to prepare in his own space. The man was always meticulous about his image, whether he was portraying a rebel in his youth, to a respectable/traditional calligrapher for his career. Tonight they were miles away from their hometown, therefore he wanted to bring back a bit of the feisty side that still resided within himself out to play.
He went about getting ready a different way than Kojiro though. Sure, he also started off with a shower, but once out, he pampered his skin with his favorite cherry blossom-scented lotion. While his hair was damp, he added a few drops of hair-care oil. While letting that soak in, he wiped some of the foggy condensation off of the bathroom mirror and proceeded with makeup. Kaoru always secretly loved putting on a little on his face now and then, but only in the comfort of his own home. It had been a while since he wore it out in public (other than S of course, but that didn’t count since half of his face was always covered by his mask).
It wasn’t a lot, but it was just enough. He spot-concealed any blemishes. He took his favorite liquid-black-eyeliner and hesitated slightly as he brought it up to his right eye. His hand was shaking a little and he thought to himself, ‘get a grip Kaoru, Kojiro has seen you with winged eyeliner more times than you can count. stop being so nervous!’ After one deep breath, he drew on that winged eyeliner on both eyes in a flash with deadly precision. He curled his lashes and opted for waterproof mascara, since they were going to a sweaty club after all. The finishing touches of his makeover consisted of a sweep of baby pink blush across his cheeks and nose, and some clear sparkly lip-gloss.
Before styling his hair, he went out to put on an ensemble consisting of a pair of ripped blue skintight jeans, skintight grey shirt, a leather jacket, and fancy black heeled boots that he had laid out on the bed beforehand. He went back into the bathroom to airdry and floof up his soft pink hair into a high ponytail, which he then curled at the tip along with the few strands that were left cascading down his face. He analyzed himself in the mirror over and over again, both hoping he didn’t just go overboard with the look and also that the dumb ape next door would find it somewhat appealing even if he was a guy, and even if Kojiro was straight.
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It was nearing nine o’clock when Kojiro found himself staring dazedly at his best friend who had just opened the door. Damn he looked good. He looked better than good, he was drop dead gorgeous. Was that makeup on his face? Kojiro was used to the winged eyeliner, but the baby pink blush on his cheeks and the way the light bounced off of his lip gloss was making his heart do flips. He almost let his jaw drop but saved himself by forcing words out of his mouth.
“You clean up well enough.”
Kaoru scoffed, “I would say the same to you, but that outfit is mediocre at best.” He was lying of course, Kojiro looked good enough to eat. He wanted to climb that man like a damn tree. “…But it isn’t what you usually wear so it’s nice.” “
Woo, I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Take it as you will. Anyways, where exactly are we going?”
Kojiro pulled out his phone and opened up a picture then showed it to Kaoru, “This place has great reviews, and it looks flashy. Oh and get this, it’s called Palm Me, haha get it? Cuz it’s Palm City.”
Kaoru did not look amused, “As always, your sense of humor is abhorrent. How could any place with a name like that have good reviews?”
“Would it kill you to loosen up a bit?”
“…Maybe once we get there.” He winked and Kojiro thought he felt his face heat up. A taxi pulled up and Kaoru got in, “What? Did you think we were going to drive knowing we’re going to drink, I had Carla arrange a ride for us. Now get in.”
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Palm Me was written in big, flashy, white neon letters in cursive above a building made out of shiny reflective black marble. There was a long line of people waiting to get in, all dressed in arrays of sparkles and glam. All of them chattering about, being as loud as ever. Kaoru instinctively took a hold of the end of one of Kojiro’s sleeves as the two made their way towards the crowd. His body started to shake ever so slightly.
Once they were in line, more and more people came behind them, until they were practically squished from all sides. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Kaoru noticed that all of the women in the surrounding area were looking their way. They must have noticed how insanely good-looking his dumb best friend was. Kojiro basked in the attention and handed out many winks. This made him hold onto his sleeve a bit tighter, a bit possessively even if he had nothing to possess in the first place. He wanted to be here, he wanted to have a good time, but what if Kojiro ended up finding someone for the night and left him behind? All alone in a stuffy room full of strangers. He stared at the ground trying to calm himself.
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?’ He heard Kojiro half yell.
Kaoru took a deep breath, “Why would you think otherwise?” Kaoru’s voice did it’s best to stay composed, but Kojiro was no fool. He knew that his best friend’s anxiety was trying to make its presence known, and he didn’t want Kaoru to deal with that. But, he also knew that the man was stubborn as all living hell, so the only thing Kojiro could do this night was to try and distract him the best way he could, sheer annoyance and petty fighting.
He put on his best teasing face, “Hmm, you know you’re funny.”
A confused pair of eyes looked up at him, “What does that mean?”
“Well, for someone who’s always calling me an ape, you sure do cling stronger than any monkey out there.” He gave him a wink.
“Well I can’t decide whether you’re a primate or a big bulky tree.” Kaoru blushed as he made an attempt to let go but was promptly stopped by Kojiro, who linked their arms together to make for a more secure embrace.
“Fine I can be a tree tonight, so hold on tight monkey.”
“Don’t call me that!”
“What? Monkey? Is the small pink monkey getting upset?”
“You’re insufferable.” His words might have been said with spite, but he made no more attempts to let go of his arm, and Kojiro noticed that Kaoru seemed more relaxed. He smiled fondly.
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A while passed, but they finally got in. There were flashing lights, with many people dancing in the center of the room. Black booths were surrounding the entire perimeter, and off to a corner was a bar. There were stairs leading to the second floor blocked off by a bouncer and a red rope with a sign for VIPs only. Kaoru mentally kicked himself for not being the one to find the club, because he could have made Carla pull off some stunt to get them into that section. Maybe it would have been classier up there, instead of being stuck with the masses that reeked of booze and sweat on the first floor.
“Come on!” Kojiro yelled as he took his hand and led them to an empty booth tucked away in the farthest corner. Kaoru was thankful for the slight peace of mind that brought to him.
“I’m going to go get us plenty of drinks, so you just stay here for now.”
“You better get some good stuff, I’m a man of taste!” Kaoru watched as Kojiro made his way over to the bar. He allowed himself to admire the way he walked, damn he looked good. The booth seats were comfortable enough and after a few minutes, he found himself relaxing as the bass of the music overtook his senses. He was only startled when a tray full of what he assumed were shots of various kinds of alcohol were displayed in front of him. He leaned forward inspecting all the booze in front of him, “I thought I told you to get something good. That did not translate to getting the whole damn menu.”
Kojiro took a seat across from him, “Excuse me for wanting to have a good time. It’s not every day we get to get drunk.” He picked up one of the shots and made eye contact before downing it in one go, “That one was vodka.”
“I feel like we get wine drunk at least once a week at Sia la Luce.” He picked up a vodka shot and threw it back just as quickly as Kojiro had.
“True, but we don’t go clubbing all the time.” Another shot, this time tequila.
“That’s because there are no good clubs around there.” Another shot.
“You have your little robot girlfriend though; can’t you get her to look for a good one close to us? I’m surprised that you didn’t take over the planning for this little outing to be honest, you being such a control freak and everything.” Another shot.
Kaoru leaned over in Kojiro’s face, “Me a control freak?! I just prefer doing the planning because I’m better at it. And for your information, CARLA has looked up places close to where we live, but she hasn’t found anything good enough.”
Kojiro inched his face closer to Kaoru’s, “I’m sure those places are fine, you just have high standards princess.”
Kaoru pressed one of his fingers into Kojiro’s chest, “YOU have no idea what my standards are Gorilla!”
Kojiro grabbed his finger and didn’t let go. With his other hand he brought a shot to Kaoru’s lips, “Oh shut up and drink up princess.” For a moment, Kaoru stayed frozen, unable to do anything but feel the cold glass on his lips and Kojiro’s intense gaze. “Come on, open up for me… or what? Am I going to have to drink the rest of these by myself?”
Oh, that was a challenge, and Kaoru never backed out of a challenge. He parted his lips and allowed Kojiro to pour it straight into his throat. It burned, but the way ruby eyes bore into his burned even more, so he ended the moment and sat back down away from his friend, and immediately picked up another shot ready to keep going. His new goal was to drink enough alcohol to blur the way his heart ached in want for the other man.
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Some time passed, and there was no booze left around them. Although both men were not light weights, they had surpassed their tolerance line and the world was covered by a blurry veil that made anything possible.
“Wanna dance?” A very wobbly Kojiro stood up and stretched out his hand towards Kaoru who slapped it away as best he could.
“I think you’re *hiccup* too drunk if ya think imma dance with YOU!”
Kojiro dragged him up to his feet and spoke right into his ear in a silky voice, “Nu-uh, you’re not allowed to say no. You lost the bet remember.”
Without the alcohol, Kaoru definitely would have pushed Kojiro away for being so close, but he was drunk and that made it ok for him to indulge himself in his touch a little. Maybe he could indulge in it a little more by dancing. “Leave it to your dumb pea brain to remember the stupid bet even while intoxicated, let’s go.”
Kaoru led Kojiro to the dance floor. Not the center since it was too crowded for him, but a nice spot in the corner where there was actually space to dance. Kojiro started moving with the music and soon enough Kaoru let himself go. He swayed one way and another, letting the rhythm guide him, making sure to keep his gaze focused the man before him, Kojiro gazed back intensely, if he didn’t know any better, he would have feared being devoured right then and there. But that could never be the case.
His hips took a mind of their own as he shook them from left to right, he thought he saw Kojiro’s eyes glued to them, but that must have been the alcohol talking. He was feeling risky, so he spun around and leaned back into Kojiro, throwing his hands up and around his neck, testing the waters a bit by grinding ever so slightly into him. The response he got was surprisingly well, again must have been the booze because Kojiro’s hands found his hips and took control of their movement. The music that was playing was fast, upbeat, and sensual and Kojiro controlled his body to fit the sounds perfectly. They were drunk and sweaty, letting their hands roam freely. If Kaoru slowly caressed Kojiro’s chest at some point and if Kojiro made sure their bodies stayed flushed together, they could blame the atmosphere and the state of not being sober.
They continued like that for a while when all of a sudden a slower song came on. All the couples around them started swaying together as the single people made scattered back to their booths or the bar. Even through his clouded haze, Kaoru felt a tinge of heartache as he started making his way out of the dance floor as well. But then he felt an arm hook around his waist and abruptly yank him in close.
“Where do you think you’re going? You still owe me a dance remember?” Kojiro said, holding him tightly with both arms now.
“We’ve been dancing all this time you ape.” Kaoru tried to argue but he felt hypnotized and floaty from the way he was being held.
“Ah, I guess you’re right, but I forgot to mention yesterday that I meant a slow dance just like this.” Kojiro effortlessly started swaying them together. Kojiro didn’t actually have that planned in the moment, but the cloud in his head made it easy for him to act like that was his plan all along, and no way was he giving this opportunity up, not when Kaoru looked so absolutely divine.
On any other sober occasion Kaoru would have protested, but he was drunk, and he was helplessly in love with the stupid man he was pressed up against, and so he let himself have it. His hands found there way around his neck again and he let his head rest on Kojiro’s shoulder. The people around them seemed to vanish, the flashing lights turned to glittering sparkles that were shinning just for them. He could allow himself to bask in this feeling for now. Pretend that Kojiro was his.
Kojiro suddenly backed away, only to take one of his hands and spin him around. Kaoru couldn’t help but laugh, which in turn made Kojiro laugh. A couple more twirls and dips and they were back in each other’s arms, only this time, their foreheads were pressed together. They stopped moving, calming down from all their laughter, panting so close to each other’s lips, each one feeling their warm breath, the stickiness of their sweat which seemed to be acting like glue holding them in place. Their eyes locked on one another, and for a second it felt like both men were inching closer to one another, lips barely brushing… when the music returned to the fast and upbeat selection it had on earlier. Kojiro and Kaoru stayed frozen, neither wanting to move, all they had to do was lean in just a smidge more and they would be right where they wanted.
But then a women tapped Kojiro on the shoulder, which immediately made Kaoru back away. He looked up and saw a very drunk but gorgeous lady who latched onto one of Kojiro’s biceps, “Sorry *hiccup* to interrupt, but a hunk like you should bedancingwithme.” Kojiro was about to say no, he was pissed off that this nobody ruined such a perfect moment when Kaoru unexpectedly answered for him.
“He’s all yours.” Then he turned to him, “I’m sorry for not letting you have fun with anybody else, stay. I’m going back.” Before Kojiro could protest, Kaoru ran off and disappeared into the darkness. He was a fool, how could he think that they had shared something special, it was just the alcohol that made Kaoru dance with him like that. He turned to the women that was still on his arm and decided he would try and enjoy himself the way he always does without the other man by his side.
Meanwhile, a very wobbly Kaoru walked all the way back to the motel. He struggled to get his room key out and once he was in, he slammed the door shut behind him and sunk to the floor. He was drunk off his ass still, but even that did nothing to stop the hole he felt in his heart. Of course they weren’t about to kiss back there, that was a product of his drunk mind. Before Kojiro could find someone to leave him for, he had run off first.
Kaoru knew he looked pretty tonight, but that would never compare to the look and feel of a women, and Kojiro was straight damnit, damn it all! He felt sick to his stomach, and his mind made a rash decision. Maybe if he showed Kojiro how seductive and beautiful his body could be, then he could prove to him that he was better than any girl.
He wobbled up to his feet and made his way to the bathroom. It had a large mirror in it. He fumbled through his jacket pockets to find his phone and set it on the counter and began taking his clothes off.
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It had been over thirty minutes since Kaoru had run off and Kojiro could not bring himself to focus on the women he was dancing with. She kept trying to get handsy with him, but he kept brushing her off.
She wouldn’t take the hint, or maybe she just chose not to, “Come on big boy, don’t you wanna take me back to your place?”
“I don’t think either of us are in the right clarity for that.” He excused himself and made it to the booth he had been in earlier. He glanced over to the dance floor to find that the women had already chosen another victim. He sighed in relief that at least he didn’t upset anyone else tonight, but his heart still felt heavy. He slumped down, and for the first time noticed the room spinning. He saw all the empty shot glasses that were still on the table and thought, “Wow, we really did get wasted.” This was all his fault, why did he have to get so much to drink? Would they have danced the way they did together if it weren’t for the disappearing cloud of judgement? Who knows.
He wanted the loud music to take over his senses, but instead felt the buzz of his phone in his pocket alerting him that he had a new notification. He fished it out and saw that an attached image sent to him from none other that Kaoru. He thought about not opening it, play it off as another petty fight and forget about it in the morning, but his curiosity got the best of him. His face wasn’t in it, only his neck down to his waist. Pink strands of hair falling on his perfectly pale lean shoulders. Kojiro’s eyes scanned the photo down his exposed chest, pink perky nipples just begging to be suckled on, until he reached where the tip of Kaoru’s hard cock was showing. The caption read, “I could love you so much better.”
Was this actually happening? Was this really meant for him, or did Kaoru have a secret lover Kojiro didn’t know about and in drunk confusion had sent this message to the wrong person. That thought made his blood boil, and he shot up and started running