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“Would you like some champagne?” Daisuke offered to the stupefied man beside him as the plane lifted off the ground and took flight. “There’s Dom Perignon or Krug, though we also provide beer if that’s more to your liking.”
Haru gritted his teeth. “I’m fine, thank you.”
Daisuke watched him, wondering what it was this time that had the mousy-haired man so agitated. He mentally shrugged, content to let the silence between them remain until the end of their journey.
Haru, however, was the confrontational type and it was not long until he put his pouting on pause and aggressively swiveled in his seat to face Daisuke. “Do you know how reckless your little stunt was? You endangered the whole building with your wannabe vigilante shit!” He groaned, rubbing a hand down his face, mumbling something about a “Batcave” and “he thinks he’s fucking Bruce Wayne”.
“I was making sure there would be no escapees.” Of course, Haru had ended up in the crossfire, but this was the most effective way to do it. And it was Haru’s fault for not cooperating with him in the first place.
“Do you know how many innocent bystanders could have been in there?”
“I assume not many. It was a drug circle, after all. Everyone in there knew exactly what they were doing and what they had gotten themselves involved with.”
“That’s not the point—civilians were still at risk! And, you're supposed to tell me things like this ahead of time!” Haru exclaimed.
Daisuke watched him coolly and noted a bit pettily, “You were the one who tried to handle the sting operation alone. My sister and I welcomed you into our home. You could’ve stayed.”
Daisuke didn't think it was worth mentioning that he had wanted Haru to stay (despite the rancid smell that had wafted off the other man). He didn’t even stay long enough to eat the dinner Daisuke had his chef prepare for the both of them.
“Argh! You're impossible!” Haru huffed, crossing his arms and turning to face forward, seeming as if he were going to ignore the billionaire the entire five-hour flight. And while Daisuke was content with silence, being ignored was a whole other matter. Daisuke was a man who commanded and deserved attention; Haru would learn that soon enough.
He knew Haru wasn't the type to let a grudge fester, so he waited, scanning the detective's face for signs of fading anger. It was within the next hour that most of the tension in the investigator’s shoulders seeped out from his body. When he began to relax into the cushiony seat of the airplane, Daisuke struck.
“Inspector Katou.”
Immediately, Haru raised his head to eye the billionaire suspiciously. “What?”
“In the future, we can work on operations like these together.”
Haru scoffed. “What, so I can watch you throw money at people until things start going your way? No, thank you.” He turned his head to the side to glare out the passenger window, scowling at the clouds as if they’d personally offended him. “Maybe this is just some sort of game for a rich boy like you, screwing around with us commoners, or maybe you’re trying to get your adrenaline fix, but my job and my life are on the line, Kambe. If things go wrong, I don’t get a second chance; money won’t give me that.”
Daisuke highly doubted the latter part of his statement, but he wasn’t going to say that directly to Haru’s face, not if he wanted to avoid further angering the detective.
“It’s not like that,” Daisuke protested, eyebrows slightly furrowing. He didn’t know why Haru insisted on making him out to be the bad guy when they were both after the same thing, when the real bad guys were the people Daisuke was putting behind bars. He didn’t know why Haru’s opinion of him mattered so much to him. “I want to help.”
Those amber eyes rolled sarcastically at that and Daisuke frowned. He was trying to make an effort, truly, but everything he said would instantly be rebuked. The corners of the billionaire’s mouth pulled down further as he decided to play his trump card.
“You seemed…interested in Suzue.”
“What?” Haru sharply said, reeling from the sudden shift in topic.
Daisuke allowed the slightest grimace to appear on his face. “I remember Akira Mita saying you favored women who were innocent and pure looking.”
The exact opposite of me, he thought, a bitter taste forming in his mouth, which was puzzling, considering the champagne he had drunk earlier had been sweet.
“Working with me would consequently result in allowing you to spend more time with her,” he continued.
Daisuke had never regretted a single one of his past proposals, no matter the inordinate fee but, for reasons unbeknownst to him, his gut clenched in a tight knot at this offer. Though he had known Haru for less than a month, the beige haired man had a way of redefining everything Daisuke had ever held true about himself.
Haru’s face was turning red, probably already imagining himself bonding with Suzue, and Daisuke ignored the unfamiliar ache in his chest.
Ah, so that was his price.
Haru turned away financial assets, but a pretty lover on his arm could sway his ideals. He felt oddly disappointed in not only Haru’s shallowness, but himself for not recognizing Haru’s wants earlier.
“I…can't believe you.”
Daisuke internally agreed; his generosity knew no bounds, really.
“Are you seriously trying to…bribe me off…with your sister!?” Haru yanked off his seatbelt and burst out of his seat, striding towards Daisuke’s seat with violent intentions. “What the actual fuck is wrong with you?!”
Daisuke’s eyes widened infinitesimally as the angry man grabbed him by the suit collar and hauled him up so their faces were nearly touching. He kept his voice level as he inquired, “Why are you upset? Is that not what you desire?”
“Why am I upset? Why am I upset? Why wouldn’t I be upset? Do you even hear yourself?” Haru spat, beet red and pale eyes blazing with fury. Personally, it was one of Daisuke’s favorite expressions. Righteousness suited the taller man. “What kind of a douche sells out his own fucking sister—wait, no, silly me, I forgot who I was talking to! You got her to seduce Isezaki just so we could gather more intel on the Gondawara group!”
“On the contrary, I didn’t make her do anything that she didn’t come up with on her own. Furthermore, it worked, did it not?”
Haru snarled, rubbing his temples with one hand while still keeping the other wrapped around Daisuke’s collar. Not that Daisuke minded the proximity; Haru smelled much better now that he wasn’t on stakeout 24/7. He quite liked Haru’s natural scent, which may have been why the billionaire was so angry when the man had let himself sit in a rotten, trash-filled car for days on end, the odor from the garbage erasing Haru’s clean, vanilla scent.
“You’re always missing the point, Kambe!”
Daisuke resented that. He couldn’t miss what wasn’t there.
“She’s your family and you should be doing your utmost best to protect her; not use her charms to get closer to a potentially dangerous target!”
Her charms? What did Haru know about her charms? The raven-haired man disgruntledly thought. All Suzue had done was smiled at that cretin and he foolishly gave her his trust, allowing her into his little illegal business without so much as another thought.
“Suzue is more than capable of taking care of herself. As a matter of fact, she’d be insulted if I tried to exclude her, considering how very involved I am in my cases. It would be quite hypocritical of me to berate her for her assistance.”
Frustrated at having his points rebuffed, Haru clicked his teeth in annoyance and (unfortunately) dropped Daisuke back into his chair. He stood in front of Daisuke, arms crossed over his surprisingly broad chest and mouth set in a firm line. Behind him, the turbulence sign flashed a warning. Daisuke stayed silent.
“How,” he slowly drew out. “am I supposed to work with such an impossibly hopeless case like you? We don’t have the same values, your methods to solving issues and cases are beyond questionable, you treat people the way you treat money, and to top it all off—wow!”
Daisuke’s arms were already outstretched to catch the man when he inevitably fell due to the sudden jolting motion of the airplane. The man’s hands automatically reached out, landing on Daisuke’s shoulders as the rest of him collapsed against the billionaire’s body.
“This may last a while; you may stay here until it is over,” Daisuke said. Glad he had opted to not wear his gloves on the flight, his bare hands rose to steady the detective in his lap, resisting the urge to tighten his hold. Even through his ghastly taupe-colored jacket, Daisuke could feel the heat emanating from him. Their present arrangement pleased him, but they only stayed that way for a single, blissful moment.
Haru gaped at him before his brain caught up with his current situation and location and he yelped, pushing at the billionaire’s torso. It was an odd moment of dejavu for Daisuke as he recalled when they were in a similar position on the rooftop that fateful day they met.
“Let me go—!” Haru shouted, shoving at him until he fell to the ground and then scrambling back to put some distance between them.
Why did he always do that? It was starting to upset Daisuke, just a bit—though he didn’t let it show on his face.
Haru stumbled his way back to his seat, the rocking motions of the private jet making it difficult, but he stubbornly pushed against the force of nature until he could buckle himself back in.
Haru never failed to amuse, Daisuke would give him that. It only made his desire to stay by the entertaining man’s side for even longer, at whatever the cost.
So Daisuke tried again, though the words didn’t seem to want to leave his mouth. “Inspector Katou, if you like Suzue then I—”
“Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Kambe, or I swear to God I’ll—!”
Haru cut himself off with a groan, slapping his mouth over his hand and looking one jolt away from upheaving his lunch all over the upholstery. Daisuke offered the man his handkerchief, which he accepted and immediately covered his face with. He knew Haru didn’t ride planes that often, what with his salary being what it was and all, but he didn’t expect such a strong reaction to a little bit of turbulence.
“Once…once this is over, I’m going to—I’m going to give you a piece of my mind,” Haru vowed, his face an unpromising shade of green.
“I look forward to it,” Daisuke said, unable to tear his eyes away from him despite the unpleasant sight he made. So strange.
True to his word, when the jet had finally started smoothly sailing once more not ten minutes later, Haru shifted in his seat to scowl at Daisuke.
“Look,” he sighed, his voice much more composed than it had been since they’d started their flight. “I’ll—I’ll try to cooperate with you from now on, alright? Just don’t—you need to stop with the propositions, damn it!” Daisuke opened his mouth to object, but Haru glowered at him before quickly adding, “At least with me! I don’t want your stupid pity matchmaking, so stop offering me things I don’t need just to get me to work with your insufferable ass. It’s demeaning and insulting and the next time you do that, I’ll—I’ll—fuck, I don’t know what I’ll do, but it won’t be fucking good!”
His previous disappointment in Haru’s character vanished completely, yet he refused to acknowledge how the detective’s words ignited a spark of hope in his chest.
Reaching up to adjust his collar, the multimillionaire cleared his throat before saying, “I see.”
Daisuke now knew that he had much to learn if he wanted to be Haru’s partner (and he did).
“Why don’t you close your eyes for the next few hours? You’re still tired from your stakeout, aren’t you? Rest now, so we can do our best when we get to Hong Kong.”
Haru looked like he wanted to protest, but the lack of proper sleep from the past week or so was catching up to him and now that he had nothing left to fight for, he blearily nodded at Daisuke instead. Reclining his chair, Haru fell unconscious almost as soon as he laid his head back, mouth falling open as he let out soft snores.
He observed his partner (the word made a tingling sensation run through him), begrudgingly impressed with his integrity. On one hand, Daisuke was perturbed that he had yet to find what the man's price was; never in all his years had Daisuke spent this long determining an individual's worth. Contrarily, Daisuke delighted in the challenge Haru presented, and he was determined now more than ever to figure out the enigma that was Katou Haru.
The billionaire commended himself for selecting such a high-quality person to be his significant other, though that wasn't much of a surprise. Daisuke had impeccable taste, and that extended to his choice in partners.
Daisuke crossed his leg over his knee, leaning an elbow against the armrest nearest to the detective’s seat. Luckily, Haru remained asleep for the rest of their journey, which only made it easier for Daisuke to watch him as much as he wanted. Daisuke still kept a hand over his mouth, though, to cover the ridiculously fond smile he had on as he gazed at what he was quickly discovering to be his most rewarding purchase yet.