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This day was going to be perfect… Well, of course it was, since the one and only Kambe Daisuke has spent an entire month thoroughly planning everything out, all for the sake of his beloved soulmate. A bouquet of freshly picked red roses have just been delivered straight from the Netherlands in the morning, and the reservation of the entire VIP hall of one of the most exquisite restaurants in the vibrant city of Tokyo has been taken care of. However, the most important part of the occasion was securely hidden in small velvet box inside the billionaire’s jacket pocket. For the past couple of weeks this tiny yet significant item had become the heavy weight on the man’s heart, the all-consuming nervousness taking over his very being, and Kambe could not wait for the moment he could finally part with it…
Daisuke could feel the soul mark around his wrist tingle slightly at the pleasant fantasy of him standing on one knee, soft words accompanied by the mesmerizing melody of violin, and looking straight into those lovely golden orbs with all the adoration the billionaire felt for his other half until he finally hears the long-awaited “I do”. Yes, that was the original scenario, a perfectly detailed scheme that left no room for the failure… What a naïve way of thinking, when your boyfriend was the literal master of the unpredictability.
The beautiful image of the events that should have transpired this evening shattered into a million tiny pieces the second Kambe opened the large double door leading into their shared apartment to find Kamei and Hoshino holding his almost unconscious lover by the shoulders from both sides in a futile attempt to prevent the detective from helplessly collapsing onto the dirty linoleum flooring. Haru’s face was flushed crimson and his breathing was ragged, as if he has just run a marathon.
For a moment Daisuke could only stare at the unusual scene, too shocked to even utter a single word, before Shinnosuke unceremoniously pushed him out of the way and “auto-piloted” Katou inside the apartment with the First Division Investigator trailing behind them silently.
“Wha… What are you two doing here?!” – the billionaire composed himself rather quickly and followed the strange trio into the living room, where the officers settled their panting colleague on the sofa. – “What’s wrong with Haru?!”
“Not so loud, Kambe-san.” – Hoshino whispered strictly; index finger pressed to his lips. – “Senpai has a bad fever, so we brought him over here.”
“A fever?!”
Daisuke found himself immediately crashed by the tidal wave of anxiety at this statement. How could the billionaire fail to notice his beloved falling ill? Why did the latter never mention anything? And most importantly, why could he not feel Haru’s pain through their bond?!
With shaky hand the raven-haired man rolled up the sleeve of the dark purple shirt, instantly revealing the vividly colored vine of red tulips around his wrist shining ever so brightly. The mark was in its usual place, then why…
“Daisuke-kun,” – Kamei, who until this moment was silently watching the fellow MCPTF member struggle with his inner turmoil, squeezed the billionaire’s shoulder in support and, once the unfocused gaze of the blue eyes shifted to him, continued, – “Don’t worry, it doesn’t have anything to do with your mark. In fact, it was Katou-san, who was restricting your bond the entire day, so you don’t learn of his illness.”
The wealthy heir simply stared at his blond colleague with such a dumbfound expression, as if the blond grew a second head.
“It is the truth, Kambe-san.” – thankfully, Ryo was quick to support Shinnosuke’s declaration before Daisuke burned a hole in the man’s forehead with his intent glare. – “Senpai was so excited for today, you know. He kept repeating that you have some sort of a surprise for him in the evening and that he would never forgive himself, if his poor health ruined your plans. That is why he has been hiding it from you…”
“Until he collapsed, that is.” – Shinnosuke shook his head and let out an annoyed sigh, nodding towards the unconscious man on the couch. – “You know how determined he gets, when he sets his mind on something.”
Oh, Daisuke knew all too well of the rather admirable yet infuriating trait of his lover’s personality; although, in this particular situation there was nothing to “admire” about the man’s seemingly infinite stubbornness.
After thanking the officer duo for taking care of their sick colleague and seeing them off, the wealthy heir carried inspector to their bedroom and carefully settled him atop the soft white linens the bed spacious bed was covered with.
The heir to the Kambe's fortune had never had a chance to care for a sick person before, but he could manage... After all, how hard could it be to have his lover stay in bed until he got better?
***
When it came to being sick, Katou Haru was perhaps the most obnoxious and stubborn human being on Earth. In fact, despite being over thirty years of age, the man could never accept himself falling ill and allow anyone to take proper care of him. This little yet significant trait of the inspector’s personality slightly infuriated his soulmate, who has never been known as the most patient person, per se…
“Haru!” – the billionaire strictly exclaimed, holding onto his lover’s waist tightly in a futile attempt to restrict his sluggish movements. – “Go back to bed this instant, or I swear I’ll handcuff you to the headboard!”
Usually, such “threats” caused nothing but the pleasant shudders, lingering touches, and bubbling excitement of the eloquent promises; unfortunately, in this particular situation such emotions were not applicable.
“Oh, come on!” – the tall detective tried to remove Kambe’s arms from his body, golden eyes unfocused and movements sluggish. Screw the damn fever – no way it would ruin their plans for tonight. – “I probably overheated. Yeah… it is extremely hot outside, after all.”
Katou chuckled nervously and immediately wanted to slap himself for this unsure statement. As expected, Daisuke did not look even remotely impressed at such a poor excuse, his stoic facial expression thoroughly radiating disappointment along with the all-consuming concern for his loved one.
“And who are you trying to fool, huh?” – the raven-haired man asked with her perfect eyebrow raised. – “You do remember that I always feel your pain, right? Or the fever messed with your head, too?”
Haru let out a defeated sigh and seized the struggle against his lover’s secure hold. Surely enough, there was no way he could possibly forget about their soul bond, when the constant reminder was securely “wrapped” around his wrist.
"I'm sorry for making you worried and for restraining our bond the whole day." - Katou mumbled under his nose with his gaze averted. A clear sign of admitted guilt. - "You were just so eager about your "surprise" for me, so I did not want to destroy it for the both of us."
Kambe could only pet his head lightly, unable to withstand the cuteness of the elder's pout, and kiss him on the lips, which were searing hot, undoubtedly, due to the continuous fever.
“Let’s make a deal then, honey,” – Daisuke said with a small smile, bringing his lover’s wrist to his face to nip on his wrist. – “If you allow me to get you the required medicine, return to the bed and get some rest, I will organize everything here. Sound fair?”
In the end, Haru did depart back the bedroom with an unhappy growl and even shut the door behind him to allow the raven-haired man to set his idea in motion. First, he cancelled his restaurant reservation (the cancellation fee policy shall be hidden from the elder detective until the end of time though) and instead ordered all the dishes to be delivered back to their apartment along with the bouquet he left there for safekeeping. Once this has been taken care of, the man proceeded to set up the dining spot in the most romantic way known to mankind – he pushed the round, glass dining table towards the panoramic window with a magnificent view of the picturesque park across the road, always lush with greenery, and set a couple of tall red candles in the middle of it. Satisfied with his not-really-terrible organizing skills, the billionaire set off to the kitchen where he spent the next ten minutes rummaging through the cabinets in search of Flora Danica, the most expensive and fancy-looking dinnerware they had in possession, that Katou reserved for the "special occasions" only. Technically, it was probably the most important event in their lives by far, so the detective would not be mad if Daisuke broke a plate or two in the process of setting the table up... Right?
Haru did not emerge out of the bedroom until later in the evening, when the sun has already settled behind the horizon allowing the gentle light of the stars to settle in for the night. The fever has finally subsided, and the detective looked (and felt) more like a human rather than a burning tomato, although his vision was still swimming a bit. Dressed in the oversized pink hoodie along with the old pair of comfy sweatpants, he hobbled over to the dining room with a small smile on his face. After all, the man was truly excited for whatever "surprise" his beloved has prepared for him. And the scene that unfolded before his very eyes certainly did not disappoint...
Daisuke was carefully plating the mouthwatering food out of its neat packaging, too absorbed in his activity to notice another man standing mere steps away from him. With the raven hair down and Haru's green apron wrapped around his middle, Kambe looked so cozy and welcoming - the detective could not help, but pull him in the tight embrace from behind.
"Honey, I see you have finally decided to grace me with your presence." - the magnate said with a light chuckle. - "I thought my Sleeping Beauty will not raise from his slumber today."
"Well, you could always wake the Sleeping Beauty up with a kiss of true love." - to emphasize on this statement, Haru squeezed his hands around Daisuke's middle and tenderly pecked him on the cheek.
"I am afraid I would not be able to stop, if I started, and I do not wish for my beautiful prince to overexert himself at the moment." - Kambe turned around and wrapped his arms around the trim waist, pulling the detective even closer. - "How are you feeling, by the way?"
"Much better, thank you. Though the kissing part does, indeed, have to wait... I would not want you to fall down with the fever as well."
Haru shook his head and let Daisuke go, instead turning his gaze to the immaculately set table.
"Wow, dear, this looks amazing!" - he exclaimed surprisingly.
"Surprise! I guess?"
"And what is the occasion?"
Daisuke's plump lips parted in a self-satisfied smirk and he wordlessly extended his hand to Haru. The latter instantly decided to go with flow and soon he was led to take his seat by the most elegant gentleman with a red apron over his brand-new suit. Kambe made sure to wrap the blanket around his beloved's shoulders and settled in the chair himself after removing the no long useful piece of cloth.
Even though it was no exquisite wine-and-dine experience Daisuke was hoping to impress his dear boyfriend with in the beginning, but the coziness and privacy of their house had its certain charms. Looking at Katou's warm, inviting smile that was always directed at him specifically, the billionaire could not contain all the tender and loving emotions his heart was bursting with at this moment.
Haru was here, in their apartment, allowing Daisuke to pamper him, to care for him, to give him all his love... That onslaught of feelings has soon become rather unbearable.
"Marry me?" - the billionaire blurted out without thinking, causing Haru to choke on his tea.
However, once the magnate realized, what exactly he has just said, he instantly slapped himself on the cheek. So much for a romantic confession, accompanied by the "mesmerizing violin melody" - all this planning, for naught.
A warm palm atop on his own fist tore the man out of his self-loathing mind, and he raised his head to come eye-to-eye with blushing Haru.
"I... Umm... Were you serious just now, honey?" - the detective asked shyly with a hint of disbelief and hope in his quiet voice.
Well, as the saying goes, "sometimes mere improvisation could lead to the most unusual discoveries"... Kambe took a deep breath to calm himself down and raised from his seat, only to fall on his knees right in front of Katou, who has completely turned into a blushing mess from such actions of his usually stoic soulmate.
"Haru..." - Daisuke began firmly, taking out the treasured velvet box out of the pocket. - "I am not exactly good with sentimental statements such as this, but you are the light of my life, my other half, my... everything. You know, before you fell ill, I have planned for us to go to the best restaurant in the city, where I wished to propose in the most romantic setting possible. I even have a hidden bouquet of roses prepared for you, but if I were to retrieve it now, it would ruin the moment, huh... I do have so many words inside my head, so many confessions for you, but the moment I see you, all the thoughts vanish, and I find myself circling around you alike our planet circles around the Sun. I know it sounds extremely cheesy, but you are my Sun, Haru, and I want to bask in your light for the rest of my days. Now, would you do me the honor and become my dear husband, inspector Katou?"
At first there was nothing but the overwhelming silence, the only sounds in the spacious room being the ones of their erratic heart beating. Daisuke decided that it was a complete, utter failure on his part - man, who even proposes so pathetically? The elder's expression was unreadable, his eyes searching around for something on the raven-haired man's face. They sat unmoving like this for what seemed like an eternity, until:
“I do…” – Katou whispered, tears of pure happiness welling up in the corners of his beautiful eyes.
That was the exact moment Daisuke realized that sometimes the improvised plans were the very best, indeed… And he would not mind doing it for his love for the rest of their lives.