Welcome to Gaia! ::

Daichi gladly hugged the willing warm body. He buried his face into the nook of Kaoru’s neck as his arms wrapped around him and held him tightly, as tightly as he could with a wounded hand and a mug in the other. It felt good to hug Kaoru… he hadn’t spoken of his past in years… and he wasn’t sure he was ready to talk about it more yet… but maybe having it out there would help both of them understand where the other was coming from. He was reluctant when Kaoru pulled back to cup the side of hi face. He leaned into the touch, willing his tears to cease. He was supposed to be the strong one… the strong one doesn’t cry…

The protective and fiery tone of Kaoru’s voice made Daichi smile softly. “You realize that protective feeling your feeling right now... that’s how I feel about your mother?” he asked softly, hating how breathy and broken his voice sounded. He turned his hand in and gently kissed Kaoru’s palm. “She doesn’t have a right to touch you anymore than my abuser had a right to touch me.” He said softly, closing his eyes for a moment before he looked back into Kaoru’s brown eyes. He was a bit surprised Kaoru kissed him… why would he want to kiss him after what he just heard? Daichi was certain his past would make people distance themselves from him… not bring them closer… It felt amazing to have someone accept him, and act like his past changed nothing. He leaned into the kiss, closing his eyes, his hands rested on Kaoru’s hips and pulled him in closer. The kiss was soft and sweet, like candy.

Kaoru broke the kiss and Daichi opened his eyes long enough to rest his forehead against the other male’s, still holding him close. He nodded softly, sighing softly. It felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders… he wasn’t sure why… maybe having Kaoru understand him just a bit better was the reason… Daichi opened his eyes and stared into honey brown as Kaoru spoke.

Believing Kaoru in this moment was easy… easier than it had ever been. Kaoru had actually wanted to be with him… Daichi hadn’t turned into his abuser… Daichi was kind and thoughtful with Kaoru… he felt like crying again hearing Kaoru chase away his fears with his confession. He had never felt so relieved… except, of course, when the doctors told him Kaoru would be physically all right. He nodded again when Kaoru said they could work together to heal each other wounds. Their next kiss was just as soft and sweet as the previous, but didn’t last as long.

Daichi wrapped his arms around the male and hugged him tightly. “So, you’ll talk with Rui, with me?” He asked against Kaoru’s neck. “And you’ll stop saying I deserve better? I really hate it when you say that.” He said softly, almost crushing Kaoru with the weight of his embrace. He chuckled, a breathy half laugh, against Kaoru’s neck. “Ya… I’d like that…” he said softly. He held Kaoru for another long moment. He really didn’t want to let the male go. But it was starting to get cold, and the house was starting to wake up… they needed to go get dressed and start their day. Reluctantly, Daichi released Kaoru, pulling away slowly, smiling softly. “We should… probably go get dressed.” He said softly, happy his voice sounded mostly normal.



(I found new pictures for Daichi! Which do you like better? The left one or the right one?))

Daichi took Kaoru’s hand, holding it as firmly as he could. They walked quietly back to the kitchen and Daichi smirked when Kaoru tried to ‘fight’ the kitchen staff. He knew it was a losing battle… one of the summer rules that had external forces acting against it. Once Kaoru returned, they walked hand in hand back to their room and quickly started to get dressed. Daichi pulled out a casual blue v-neck shirt and some loose black pants. He wanted to be comfortable today. Daichi pulled off his night shirt and slipped the new one on, followed by his pants. He didn’t bother with shoes and just slipped on a pair of socks.

Daichi looked over at the male when he spoke. He then looked at the door and sighed, returning his gaze to Kaoru. “I guess not… and I doubt Rui will let us hideaway in this room all day…” he said softly. Daichi gladly took his hand, and stared down at him for a moment. “Come here…” he gently pulled the male into his chest, wrapping his arms around him, hugging him firmly but not too tight. He leaned his cheek against Kaoru’s head and held him there for a moment, just breathing in his scent. He spoke after a long minute, “Breakfast first… then we’ll tackle the next thing together…” he said, but he wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince/comfort, Kaoru or himself. Daichi pulled back from the hug and gave Kaoru a smile before he took the male’s hand again and opened the bedroom door.

Yui came down sometime while the boys were getting dressed. The kitchen staff was already working on breakfast. “Good morning, everyone.” She greeted as she entered the room. She helped herself to a cup of coffee and sat at the dining room table, reading the paper as she waited for people to wake and come down for breakfast. She did hope everyone would hurry, breakfast was smelling amazing… it would probably be ready in no time. Sipping her coffee slowly, she skimmed the first page of the paper, only pulling her eyes away when she heard footsteps approaching. She smiled when Daichi and Kaoru came into the kitchen. “Good morning boys. I hope you slept well. You slept for a while.” She said with a smile, amused by the amount of time her boys had been ‘asleep’ since yesterday.

Yui tilted her head softly when Kaoru apologized, confused as to why the male was apologizing. “Oh, no… Kaoru, it’s alright. You did nothing wrong.” She said, once it clicked. She gave the male a bright smile as Rui walked in and confirmed her statement. “Good morning, Rui.” She said before nodding. “He’s across seas, meeting with his off-shore employees…” she said, looking back down at her paper. Rui had helped her figure out her place in this huge house without her husband. But some days, it was still pretty hard to have an absent husband… lonely. She shrugged softly and folded her paper, slipping it out of the way so she could conversate with the people at the table. “How are we feeling today?” she asked, gesturing the question at both Kaoru and her son.

Daichi took his seat, next to his mother, across from Rui. That left the seat next to him for Kaoru. He gave the male a small, soft smile when their hands separated so they could eat. Food was placed in front of them from the kitchen. Daichi looked up when his mother spoke. He shrugged, glancing at Kaoru. “I feel better after sleeping.” He said simply, leaving out his conversation with Kaoru that morning… maybe he should tell Rui… but he didn’t want to bring it up at the table. He took a few mixed bites of his food, happily taking in the nourishment. “What is the plan today, Rui?” he asked after Kaoru spoke, answering his mother’s question. Daichi figured Rui wanted to speak to them today… to at least get their point of views of the events that occurred the day before.

Yui glanced at Rui and smiled a bit. “Perhaps you could do whatever it is you want to do outside today? It’s supposed to be a beautiful day.” She suggested. Daichi and Kaoru could probably benefit from some sunlight… and maybe out in the garden the darkness of their situation would have a harder time finding footing in the brightness.

Yui remained quiet as Rui spoke to the boys. She had her own plans for the day, most of which involved tracking down Kaour’s mother and start to pick away at her family’s lives. She sipped her tea quietly, glancing at Rui as he asked questions and spoke. She noticed the hesitation in Kaoru’s voice when he agreed to go outside, but it wasn’t her place to comment. Turning back to her food, she simply nodded to the things Rui said that she agreed with.

Obviously Rui wanted to speak to them alone. And obviously Rui wanted to speak to Daichi alone. That didn’t mean Daichi had to like it. After this morning with Kaoru, he wasn’t really in the mood to talk about his emotions… even though he told Kaoru he’d work on his own wounds along with him… even though he needed to… and he hated the idea of Kaoru being out of range. He quietly tapped his finger against his fork, a nervous tick he had picked up when he was younger… it had started with strumming on his violin bow… normally he had better control over this particular tick… but currently he wasn’t even aware he was doing it. He wanted to tell Rui no, but he knew he couldn’t… they needed this… he sighed, defeated, and nodded in agreement.

Daichi looked over at Kaoru and nodded slightly. “I would prefer if you’d stay within eyesight… I doubt anything will happen on the grounds but…” he looked at Rui, his eyes determined. They were going to stay within visual range… even if that meant Daich had to stand inside the house, on the other side of the closed glass doors. He wasn’t going to leave Kaoru alone again… even in Rui’s hands.

Yui smirked at her son’s determination to stay next to his wife… husband… partner… however they wanted to identify. When she had researched Kaoru, she had a feeling he was going to be good for her youngest. She lifted her tea cup to her lips to hide her smile. She was mostly done with her food, having actually focused on eating instead of talking. “Well, I’ll be working in my study until lunch, so if you need me, you know where I will be.” She said softly.

Daichi had lost most of his appetite, worried about Rui and probing questions… worried about Kaoru being away from his side… but he forced himself to finish his plate, it wasn’t like it had been a very full plate after all. He just wanted to get this session started, so it could be over… that was probably the wrong outlook to have.

Yui smiled at them. “I’ll handle the table. You guys go.” She said, waving them off. The cleaning staff cleared off the table as Yui went to her study to make a phone call. She dialed the same number she called yesterday and waited for the other end to pick up. “What do you have for me?” she asked immediately, her tone dark and down to business. She listened quietly, nodding to herself as the person on the other line spoke. "Compile all the evidence and data into a file and send it to me. As soon as you can. Thank you.” She hung up the phone and quickly dialed another number. A man on the other end answered. “I’m calling in a favor. There’s something I need you to do.” She said.

Daichi followed Rui and Kaoru to the gardens, Hana in tow. Rui and Kaoru took a seat and Daichi moved out of hearing range. He crouched down and played with Hana, tossing a rope toy she had brought with her. He’d glance over at Rui and Kaoru periodically. And it took everything in him not to run over there when he realized Kaoru was crying. ‘Why was he crying? Rui what did you say?’

Daichi stood when Kaoru walked over to him. He was frowning, glaring at Rui until Kaoru fell into his arms. Daichi held him tight against his chest, staring down at the male as his facial expression softened. He ran his hand through Kaoru’s hair as he nodded. Kaoru told him not to be angry… so he was going to try not to be angry. “Alright.” He said softly, kissing Kaoru’s forehead before he left the circle of his arms and walked over to Rui. He was frowning by the time he took his seat next to the male.

He crossed his arms and his gaze grew sharper when Rui spoke. “I hate it when you do that.” He practically growled. Looking over at Kaoru across the way, Daichi took a breath, which when released sounded like a huff. “Okay… not okay… I don’t know.” It was hard for him to honestly talk about his feelings. “I don’t want to talk about… that right now… can we focus on Kaoru today?” he asked. He knew he would need to work through his own problems… eventually… today, he already opened up and cried. He wasn’t in the mood to do that again. “Kaoru told me that, when we are both in a better place, he wants to be… more intimate with me…” he said, trying to direct the session, which he knew was futile unless Rui thought it was a good avenue to explore.

((if you want, we can skip. Do we want to summarized what they talk about/progress they made?))

Daichi sighed at Rui’s comments. It was true, he liked not having to talk about certain things… but he also hated that Rui could see right through him. He was a man who liked to keep his secrets, and he couldn’t with Rui around. He nodded at the mention of insecurities were the reason Kaoru and himself couldn’t be intimate. He still was having a hard time believing Kaoru wanted him… he was convince that it wasn’t Kaoru’s training, but now he was just worried Kaoru felt like he had to pay him back for ‘rescuing’ him. The talk with Rui went as well as he thought it would. He didn’t cry, and he didn’t yell, but it still left him drained and exhausted. Daichi nodded when Rui said they were done until after lunch.

He remained on the bench, watching the male leave before he leaned forward and rest his elbows on his knees. He dropped his head into his hands and sighed, closing his eyes as he just sat there for a minute. He didn’t look up until Kaoru was next to him, hugging him. “Ya, I’m fine.” He said, wrapping an arm around Kaoru’s shoulders before he pulled the male to lean back with him, against the back on the bench. Daichi chuckled at Kaoru’s suggestion. “I don’t think Rui or mother would let us get very far…” he ran his hand through Kaoru’s hair as he looked out at the garden. “I probably hate this more than you do, but it’s good for us… gods I hate admitting that.” He said with a forced laugh. “I want to go back to bed…” he commented quietly.

Daichi enjoyed the gardens… the only sounds were a couple of birds chirping and the wind through the trees. Kaoru’s body was warm next to him… and he knew he probably shouldn’t be touching Kaoru this much… not when he was still worried that Kaoru was just ‘thanking’ him, but after everything that had happened over the past couple of days, he couldn’t force himself to distance himself… he felt like he had almost lost Kaoru twice. He sighed and leaned into Kaoru a bit more. “Are you okay now? You were crying… you don’t have to tell me why you were crying… I just want to make sure you’re okay…”

Yui left her study to get a cup of tea and noticed Rui walking back into the house. “Rui, how are the sessions going? Daichi participating?” she asked, slightly concerned. After Rui answered her, she nodded. “Can I barrow you for a moment?” she asked, changing her direction to take Rui back up to her office. She wanted to show him the dirt her contacts had dug up, and ask him question regarding the mental ramifications of her actions… she wanted to make sure Kaoru’s mother suffered as much possible, while still in the confines on the law.

Daichi laughed again at how determined Kaoru was to ditch that afternoons session. “Stop tempting me, Kaoru.” He said, his tone playful. He really was tempted… he could put up with Rui’s disappointment, and his mother’s anger for leaving… He was smiling, actually smiling at Kaoru’s determination… who knew Kaoru could be funny… eggplant? Really!? “Are you tired at all? I woke you up pretty early.” He asked, almost loving the idea of taking an early nap… he wasn’t sure if sleeping was the best thing they could do, but it did sound wonderful.

Daichi listened to Kaoru explain his session with Rui, and he pulled the male in closer, more firmly against his side. He shook his head when Kaoru finished. “You don’t need to apologize. I was just worried about you.” He rubbed his hand along Kaoru’s arm. Maybe he could do the same time Rui did? Make a list of things he liked about Kaoru… he would have to write them down… he’d think about it. He looked back up at the sky for a moment before he sighed. “Yep, I’m tired… I want a nap.” He pulled away from Kaoru a bit and stood up. “You don’t have to join me… though I’d probably sleep better with you in the room.” He said honesty, holding his hand out to Kaoru, offering to help him stand. He walked back inside the house with Kaoru and headed up to their room. Once in his room, he just flopped down on the bed, laying on his back. He draped his arm over his eyes and relaxed his body into the mattress.

Yui huffed at Rui. “I’m just worried about my boys. I wasn’t asking for details.” Up in her study, she handed Rui the evidence she had and took a seat at her desk, giving him a moment to read over the files. She just smiled at the first question and let Rui continue to read. She knew he knew what she wanted from him… an assessment… how much would this hurt? Nodding in agreement, she frowned a bit. “No, it doesn’t. I want to make sure she never has the ability to do hurt Kaoru again, ever.” Her voice was even, but her words held venom. Listening to Rui’s assessment, Yui smiled. “That’s the same conclusion I came to… I turned in all this evidence to a good friend of mind. It’s going to make its way to every major local and federal branch of law enforcement… not to mention a few news outlets and tabloids. I imagine she will be in cuffs, along with multiple other members of her family in a matter of hours…”