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Ranpo loves his boyfriend no doubt, dearly, but the problem is, he is starting to doubt. It may be the lack of intimacy both had the past few days, or weeks, he lost count. Both had been equally busy so Ranpo can’t put all the blame to Poe for the things he’s been feeling.
He huffed a sigh and looked at the paperwork in front of him. Usually, he finishes cases in a flash but this time he couldn’t focus, mind always wandering. Glancing at his phone, hands itching to call his beloved and ask, how are they? How is us? Something that Ranpo couldn’t grasp on was stopping him to do so.
He gave up on trying to do his work and went to his bed. On most nights, him, Poe, and Karl will snuzzle up together on this same bed Ranpo is laying on. Watching movies and guess how it ends, talking all night long, or just simply appreciate each other’s warmth and company. But this night wasn’t one of those nights. The bed felt colder, more because it lacks a specific someone’s presence and less because it was mid-winter.
Closing his eyes, he remembered the reason why they stopped talking to each other. They recently just moved in together and both got on in a lot of fights, just like most couples. It was mostly about stupid things, like how Ranpo doesn’t wash his own dishes, Poe turning on his lights on in the middle of the night, the usual stupid things.
But their recent fight was more than stupid. It was practically Ranpo’s fault. Poe was asking him on who was that guy he’d been working on a case; he was stressing on the fact that Ranpo had been going home late. That day wasn’t Ranpo’s day. He tried pushing the issue off instead of explaining, repeatedly saying that he was overthinking and that he will explain another day, because he was tired but the other kept pressing the issue which caused Ranpo to lash out.
He remembered the face Poe made. Ranpo opened his eyes and forced himself to stop thinking on what had happened. He would do anything to not be the reason why Poe looked like he hated him the most. The words he spat was just as painful as how Poe looked at him. “I think we need a break.” Just like that he left the other hanging.
Ranpo had been pondering whether that meant they broke up or not. Until he slowly got tired of thinking about it. He would just wait for a sign from the man he loves.
He didn’t expect his door to ring at late 7pm. Sure, Ranpo had a few overdue deadlines but surely Kunikida would understand. He ignored the ringing till it turned to loud knocking. Sighing as he got out of bed and opened the door, “Kunikida, a man must get his res- “
No, the man standing in front of his doorstep was not his cranky, blonde coworker, rather it was a familiar sight he had unknowingly missed. He was wearing a suit and his hair was rather smooth-looking, Ranpo thought.
“Ranpo,” he long dropped the honorifics, but Ranpo’s heart still squeezed out of teensy joy and somewhat feeling anxious. Ranpo’s eyes widened as he instinctly fixes his hair. He cursed mentally as he was not looking the best.
“Poe,” it took him all his nerves to not stutter. He opened his door wider, indicating that Poe could enter in which he received a shook in the head as a reply. Ranpo started to worry. Was Poe here to tell him that they were officially over?
“Fitzgerald asked us to bring at least one person to his party,” Fitzgerald was Poe’s employer at work. Ranpo’s heart squeezed once more. “Oh, or maybe you have eaten already?” Poe said in response to Ranpo’s silence, “I could just tell Fitzgerald that you aren’t availab- “
“No!” Ranpo screamed desperately. This was so uncharacteristic for him to be like this. Yes, Ranpo had already eaten but was he going to miss this godly chance the deities have given him? “I’ll be ready in 15.”
Poe gave a little smile. Heart squeezing, Ranpo fought the urge to kiss him. He thought that maybe he could brute force his way to fix whatever was going on between them, but he thought that he could fix this slowly and that this was the first step.
Poe then said he’d wait at the car that he had parked outside his apartment and Ranpo merely nodded, not knowing what else to say.
Ranpo closed his door dramatically and mentally screamed and thanked Fitzgerald for giving him this opportunity indirectly. Poe was wearing a suit (in which he looked goddamn hot, Ranpo added). A white blaze on top of a green vest, matched with a black tie. Ranpo then decided to wear a grey suit with a purplish, nearing to gray, tie. He carefully groomed himself so he could proudly say that he was Poe’s boyfriend (Ranpo still wasn’t sure with that).
He checked himself one last time and decided that he was good to go. After leaving his apartment, he saw a black car that was undeniably Poe’s. A lot may not know but Poe came from a wealthy family of authors. He rarely uses his car because he liked riding taking the bus with Ranpo.
He opened the passenger’s seat and sat down stiffly. He closed the door and heard Poe said, “you look good,” and Ranpo swore that he saw that dangerous smile again.
It took a while for Ranpo to process what he said until his remaining brain juice took the wheel and he awkwardly said, “thank you.”
Poe started driving and Ranpo cursed at himself. The silence was what brought him back to reality. The air was draped with awkwardness that Ranpo couldn’t stand. What did they talk about before? Their conversations just came out naturally before and Ranpo wished that he could get his witty and flirty tongue back.
“So, um, where’s the place at?” Yes, what a nice way to start a conversation with someone you haven’t talked to in weeks.
“Just nearby the office,” the other replied coolly and Ranpo hated that.
The air was filled with silence again. Ranpo gazed out of the window and searched for possible topics that he could continue on naturally. To his dismay, the car has stopped in front of a tall building that shone brightly in the night. Fitzgerald has always been one to like big and fancy things, Ranpo knew this from Poe talking about his office hours.
“Come, let’s head in,” Ranpo was distracted by the tall building and his awkward feeling mess that he didn’t notice Poe opening the door for him. Holding himself back was getting harder.
They walked together towards the building and underwent security. Ranpo took this chance to examine the interior ahead of them.
The interior matches the exterior in looks. It looked handsome and was shining brightly. It was a circular area with walls that bare fancy printings, one big chandelier can be seen in the middle of the topmost ceiling. The area was filled with a lot of people Ranpo did not recognize. They walked in after having passed the security, Poe offered his arm in which Ranpo stared at blankly.
Sure, people knew that Ranpo was gay, and that Poe was too, but expressing affection in the middle of lots of people? Ranpo would willingly take his arm but the question about their relationship is still floating in his head. He was so confused and was grateful that somebody stopped by in front of them
“Ed, it’s great to see you here!” Said a girl who Ranpo recognized as Louisa. Louisa seemed to recognize him too.
“Ranpo-san! What a nice company!” She then meekly gestured to a waiter to serve them welcome drinks. “Just arrived?”
“Yes, how’s Fitzgerald?” Poe asked as he took a sip of his drink.
Louisa turned slightly pink and replied rather quickly, “he’s doing great.” She smiled as she turned to Ranpo, “how are you, Ranpo-san? Poe treating you well?” She was one of those people who knew what Poe and Ranpo’s relationship was.
His mind gears were starting to fit slowly and before Poe could reply, Ranpo placed his arm around Poe’s waist and pulled him closer. “Oh, Poe is treating me exceptionally well, Louisa.” A grin could be seen, and he added a wink to his sentence.
It seemed that Louisa took his word in another road and was now blushing intensely. “I’m glad,” her voice cracked, and she seemed embarrassed, “to hear that,” she looked behind them both and saw a person gesturing her to come. “Sorry, but I’ve got to go now. Duties. Hope you enjoy the night,” she smiled before leaving them.
Shortly after she left, Ranpo was coming to a realization on what he had done. Hastily pulling away his arm, he looked at Poe and apologetically smiled but what he saw made him just want to scream out of happiness. Poe looked pleasantly shocked and was slightly blushing. He looked cute, Ranpo thought, he always does, but tonight he seemed way cuter.
“Sorry,” he smiled cheekily, Poe merely nodded and muttered under to himself, “there’s nothing to be sorry about,” while walking, which meant that Ranpo had to follow. Ranpo knew that this was something, a step closer to mending their relationship.
Following Poe amongst the crowd, Ranpo kept contemplating whether to hold Poe’s hand or not. A voice told him to man up and act what he was supposed to be, Poe’s boyfriend, another voice told him that it was not the time yet and that he was rushing.
His thoughts were stopped when Poe stopped by at a table full of desserts. “Fancy a chocolate cake?” Poe looked at him and Ranpo nodded at him enthusiastically. Grabbing a plate, Ranpo filled it up by taking one of each dessert.
While Ranpo was busying himself, a man who Ranpo did not recognize, came near Poe. Ranpo may look like he was too busy, but his ears were wide and open.
“Edgar! Glad I ran into you!” Said the man.
“Likewise, Smith. To what do I owe you this pleasure?” Ranpo then realized that they were speaking in English.
The man called Smith laughed and replied, “I just wanted to tell you how much I love your new work! A poem, not like your usual style, Ed. What inspired you?”
Ranpo saw his partner blush, “I’m glad you like it, Smith. I just wanted to explore new areas, that’s all.”
“Green eyes warm as summer, your love is like no other,” Smith started citing.
“I don’t think its necessary to speak of it out loud,” Poe was blushing more intensely. He then looked at Ranpo, “Ah, this is Smith, another author from Germany. Smith, this is Ranpo,” he gestured his hands from Smith to Ranpo.
Smith faced Ranpo and charmingly smiled, “nice meeting you,” and curtly nodded. Catching Ranpo’s eye, he looked like he was struck by realization. He then turned to Poe again and patted him in the shoulder, “so he’s the one,” he grinned at Poe and then said his goodbye’s.
After Smith left, Fitzgerald was now on stage with a microphone in his hand, “thank you all for coming to this event!” Ranpo was barely listening as he was thinking of more ways to wriggle into Poe’s heart without sounding awkward at all. He was thinking of pulling Poe into a secluded area so that he could get his body to do the work-
“And to make the night more fun, I decided to add some games, cash as prize, of course. First game is for couples!” Ranpo was now intently listening. “Come out now, lovebirds.” Fitzgerald was calling out contestants.
A bunch of people were now coming out from the crowd in pairs and without hesitating, Ranpo grabbed Poe’s arm and was dragging him to the front. He grinned and looked at Poe in the eye for the first since entering the building and was pleased to see a slightly flushed face grinning at him back.
“The rule for this game is simple, each pair will have a small ball,” a person was handing out balls, “and you shall put the ball in between your foreheads and avoid making it fall while slow dancing. Last person to make the ball fall, wins.” Fitzgerald then gestured Louisa to come, and they did it first as an example. “Now, let’s start!”
The lights dimmed, and only the lights that fell upon the contestants were left on. Holding on to small, white ball, Ranpo then lifted it up to his forehead, looking at Poe. Poe bent his neck down a bit and placed his forehead on the other side of the ball (Ranpo was glad that he wore shoes with a bit of heels). The ball was so small that they were so near at each other, forcing them to look at each other.
Slow music was now playing, and people were starting to dance. Poe didn’t know where to place his hands, so he just placed them stiffly on his sides, Ranpo noticed so he placed one hand on Poe’s waist and the other hand was guiding Poe’s hand to his shoulder, doing so carefully to not let the ball fall. Then, he gently clasped Poe’s other hand with his, appreciating the warmth that he had missed. Then they started to dance, slowly.
Green eyes were now looking at purple, greyish ones. And for a moment, everything seemed perfect. Their steps on sync, and Ranpo felt like they were the only ones there. It seemed that their long-lasting fight never existed. Ranpo’s doubt was slowly dissolving and was now sure he damn loves the man in front of him.
That moment only lasted for a while until someone bumped on Poe’s back causing the ball to slip out of their temples. Fitzgerald noticed this, “Edgar and Ranpo, out!”
Ranpo looked at the ball then at Poe and started to laugh, Poe then started laughing too. They pulled away from the remaining contestants and returned to the majority of the crowd.
“Fresh air?” Ranpo suggested.
“Would love some.”
They walked out of the building and simply roamed around. Steps crunching against the ground, air was as cool as ever, and two people simply enjoying each other’s presence. They stopped walking when they spotted a well-kept garden, with a pond in its center.
The moon was shining brightly, and it fueled Ranpo’s courage, “I’m sorry.” He turned his heel to face Poe.
“You know, for being an ass. I should’ve explained instead of lashing out. It was wrong for me to- “
Poe cut him off, “I’m sorry too, I knew that you have been busy, I shouldn’t have pressed it on that much.” He then sighed, “you don’t know how much I missed you.”
He wrapped his arms around Poe, “I missed you too. More than you think.” He pulled away to watch Poe’s face.
The moonlight was reflecting on Poe’s already-pale skin, making Poe look prettier, no, more ethereal. Ranpo just wants to appreciate every part of him. He picked a white flower behind Poe and gently placed it in his ear, “to match your suit. I have to admit that you can have the right fashion sense at times.” He kissed Poe’s nose. Poe started to turn red, Ranpo was continuing, picking a lavender flower, and placing it at the other side of Poe’s ear, “to match your eyes, I love it when those eyes look at me,” He kissed Poe’s temple. He then picked a handful of small red flowers and made a little flower crown, tiptoeing a bit to reach Poe’s head, “to you, I love you,” Ranpo kissed his lips.
Poe, who was now red instead of pale, was covering his face, “ugh, you’re being cheesy in the middle of the night,” he spread his fingers over his face and peeked a bit, “but I love you, too.”
Ranpo grinned, “I know.” He hugged Poe again, seizing him up because he finally could touch him without questioning everything, then something was making him curios.
“Who forced you to invite me? Because I know you don’t have the guts.”
“Louisa. She knew something was wrong.” He then pulled out from the embrace, Ranpo didn’t like that as he thought he pulled away too soon. “And I do have the guts.”
Ranpo laughed, “can you prove it then?”
Poe pulled Ranpo’s tie upwards and kissed him. With tongue. Ranpo’s eyes widened, and his hands immediately knew where to go. Placing them both on Poe’s neck, he pulled him, making the kiss deeper. Ranpo, who was forgetting where they were, was snaking his hand down to Poe’s ass. Poe didn’t mind at first and his hands were now messing up Ranpo’s hair, until Poe’s rationale side took over, he pulled away (his lips looked way more kissable now that it was red and swollen) and glared and hissed at Ranpo, “not here.”
“But it was getting to the good part,” Ranpo pouted and was fixing his messed up tie, “you didn’t have to pull my tie, this was your gift,” Ranpo grinned, he noticed that he was now starting to grin a lot.
“Your tie hasn’t been tied up properly, it’s been bugging me,” Poe reasoned.
Laughing, they walked towards a nearby bench and finally, conversations can now come out naturally. Love filling the air instead of awkwardness.
“Ranpo.”
“Yeah?” He replied while carding his fingers in Poe’s hair and rubbing the flower’s petals with his thumb and index.
“I don’t think you were supposed to pick flowers,” said Poe while looking at a sign that has been painted with black capital letters that bare the sentence, ‘Do Not Pick.”
Ranpo snuzzled his head on Poe’s neck, “that’ll be our little secret.”