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That night, Akiko slept soundly for the first time in so long. He didn’t wake until morning light. The next couple of days were similar to the first: Breakfast, then some alone time for himself, lunch with Rui, some activity or therapy with Rui, dinner with Rui followed by either baking or quiet laptop work. Akiko’s world was quickly centered around Rui, and the male was comfortable with that. Rui was kind, energetic, and always so happy… it was infectious. After only a few days, Akiko found that he stuttered less around the male, and didn’t flinch most of the time Rui reached out to touch him. It was strange… but GOOD strange.

It was late afternoon when Rui spoke about going on a walk. Akiko looked up from his laptop, took a moment to process Rui’s question, then nodded. “Sure. Sounds great.” He said. He closed his laptop and set it out of the way before he picked himself up off the couch. He slipped on his shoes by the door and waited for Rui to lead the way. He closed the door firmly behind him, locking it, before he turned to follow Rui. This was the first outdoor activity they had done since he had moved in. Maybe Rui thought he was progressing well enough to come to this stage? “I-it’s a beautiful day.” he commented, looking up at the clear skies.

Daichi smiled when Kaoru agreed with his suggestion. He chuckled softly when Kaoru said he was afraid to move the furniture because of the interior decorator. “Well, if we do, no one ever know…” he shrugged with a soft smile. He glanced down at their hands for a moment, gave Kaoru’s hand a reassuring squeeze and turned his attention back to the road. “I’m not a big star wars fan… Maybe we could find something new on Netflix or something.” He suggested.

The building had a ton of security… security guards, codes, electronic locks… but they all made Daichi feel a bit more secure. He wouldn’t have to worry about Kaoru when he left for work. “No, she wasn’t.” Soon enough, they were in the living room of their new place. Daichi dropped their bags by the couch and gave the place a look around. Almost everything was in order… it did feel a bit impersonal… like this was a mock viewing apartment or something… Daichi figured they’d break the place in, in a couple of days. “Sure.” He answered, grabbing their bags to walk up to their bedroom. He set the bags on the bed and found the boxes of their other clothes. They had washed everything before leaving, so they just needed to fold and hang everything. “What do you want for dinner? Pizza? Or maybe Chinese?” he suggested as he started to pull out his own clothes and either folded or hung them on a hanger, then draped the article on the bed.

Daichi smirked at Kaoru’s face. “Chinese it is then.” He answered. He just hummed at Kaoru’s suggestion of how the home cooking at the main house ruined him. He pulled out his phone and searched for a Chinese restaurant nearby that delivered. “Sure thing.” He answered, not even looking up from his phone as he found a place, looked at the menu, then called. He answered in Manderian, and continued his order in Manderian, ordering Kaoru’s requests, plus a couple of his own items. He gave their address and told them that he would come down to the reception area to pick up the food and pay. After he hung up the phone, Kaoru mentioned a cooking show on Netflix. “That sounds like it could be funny. Let’s try the first episode and see how it is.” He suggested, putting the rest of his clothing away with Kaoru’s help. “Food should be here in about thirty minutes.” He informed.

Now that everything was unpacked, they were free to explore their new place. Daichi stepped into the bathroom and gave it a quick look over. He nodded a few times, pleased with the layout. He then headed down to the living room and walked over to the large sliding doors that lead to their little balcony. “Kaoru, come look at this.” He said as he opened the doors. Hana, who had been exploring before, stepped out with him. The balcony was completed closed off, so they didn’t have to worry about Hana jumping off. Daichi held his hand out to Kaoru. When the male took his hand, he pulled the male in front of him. He rested his hands on Kaoru’s arms and leaned down so his head was level with Kaoru’s. “See that tall building?” he stretched his arm out, trying to point and direct Kaoru’s attention a building that was in the distance. His lips brushed against Kaoru’s ear with how close he was. “That’s my office.” He said, smiling softly.

Walking the garden was so relaxing. And the main house had some of the most beautiful flowers and plants. Akiko took a deep breath and sighed softly, enjoying the slight floral smell on the air, and the bright warm sun against his skin. His smile softened a bit when Rui told him about Kaoru and Daichi’s move. He guessed Kaoru was near, and that was the reason he hadn’t been allowed to roam. But he was surprised that now that restriction was removed. He wasn’t sure what he would do with that much freedom… it actually made him feel a bit anxious. Rui said he could venture off on his own… just notify someone of his plans… but Akiko wasn’t sure if he truly believed that… surely someone would be following, right? When was the last time he went out of the house by himself, without being followed? Probably when the family business had still been his… so years. He just nodded at Rui to show his understanding. “I d-don’t plan on venturing a-alone… wouldn’t know w-what to do with myself.” He tried to joke to hide his nervousness.

They completed their lap around the gardens before heading back. “Hey, Rui?” he turned towards the male as they started to head back. “I was w-wondering… would you l-like to bake something with me th-this afternoon? I found this recipe for an apple p-pie.” He said softly, still expecting that one day Rui would laugh as his desire to bake, and bake with Rui.

Daichi smiled, turning his head to place a soft kiss on Kaoru’s cheek before the male turned into him and snuggled under his chin. He wrapped his arms around the male and hugged him close, looking over towards his building. He let his mind drift for a little bit, until Kaoru mentioned going back inside. He hummed in response and released Kaoru, smiling softly when the other grabbed his hand. They stepped back inside and Daichi shut the door. He smiled at Hana on the couch. “Do you approve of the new place, Hana?” he asked, giving Kaoru’s hand a squeeze before he walked over to pet the dog.

“Have you seen your piano? Is it set up correctly?” he asked, still petting Hana. It was a couple more minutes before his phone started to ring. “That’s probably the food.” He said, answering the call. He said a few short words in mandarin before hanging up. “Ya, get the show started and I’ll be right back.” he said before he stepped out of their apartment. He made sure the door locked behind him before he headed down to the reception area. He found the delivery guy and paid him. It only took him a couple of minutes to gather the food and return to Kaoru. “This smells amazing. And I’m starving.” He said as he entered.

He dropped the bags of food on the kitchen counter. “Do you want to eat out of the containers or on plates?” he asked, pulling out the different sized containers, inspecting them before setting them in two separate piles.

Akiko practically beamed at Rui’s confirmation. “Okay. G-good.” He looked down, blushing a bit at Rui compliments. He couldn’t help but lean into Rui’s hug. He enjoyed the male’s company and comfort. He knew he shouldn’t get attached… he was just a client after all. There was no way Rui could ever feel anything more for a guy like Akiko… Akiko was so broken, why would Rui want anything more to do with him? But Akiko wanted to enjoy the small moments when he could… and when his therapy was over, he’d at least have something to remember.

“We need a few things from the store… apples for starters.” He smiled softly, attempting to joke with Rui. “Maybe we can head to the store now?” he suggested.

Daichi carried his cartons over to the couch and arranged them for easy access. He nodded at Kaoru to start the show, grabbed a carton and his chop sticks before he settled back into the couch, snuggled up to Kaoru. He took his first bite and nodded in agreement with Kaoru. “Yes, very good.” He said before turning his attention to the TV. They ate and laughed at the show for a while in comfortable silence for a while. Every once in a while, Daichi would lean forward to grab a new container. He smiled when Kaoru spoke. “TV always has the most outrageous actors… they are the most fun to watch.” He commented.

It took two episodes for Daichi to finish his food. He placed the empty containers on the table and leaned back, one arm draped over the back of the couch. He sighed softly, eyes trained on the last few scenes of the episode. “Want to watch one more?” he asked, leaning in to kiss Kaoru’s temple. He pulled his arm down and wrapped it around Kaoru, pulling him in closer. He leaned against the arm rest, propping up his chin. His lean gave Kaoru a surface to lean against. After a minute, Daichi shifted his hand to Kaoru’s hair and started to play with the short locks as the next episode played. Daichi couldn’t help but feel relaxed… they were both safe, Kaoru seemed happy, their therapy wasn’t has horrible as he thought it would be… he smiled absently, pressing his knuckles into his lips as he watched the TV.

Akiko waited outside when Rui ran inside to grab his keys. He was smiling shyly to himself. He couldn’t believe he had asked Rui to bake with him… or succeeded at making Rui laugh… this was already such a great day! Hopefully, he wouldn’t ruin the rest of it… Soon Rui returned and they slipped into the car. Akiko kept his smile small, but he was still smiling none the less. When they were near the store, Rui mentioned getting alcohol for the house. He nodded softly. It wasn’t strange to have beers, or wine, in the fridge. Sometimes it was really nice to come home after work and have a cold one. But his brows furrowed when Rui said he felt like celebrating. What was he celebrating today? Maybe it was for Kaoru and Daichi? Celebrating their move?

The car stopped and Akiko reached for the handle, but froze when Rui reached across the gear shift and took his hand. He hadn’t expected the action so he tensed, his breath caught in his throat. He looked up at Rui, momentarily scared. But his fear transformed into confusion, and a slight blush, as Rui spoke. “I-I-I don’t n-need anything.” He stuttered, blushing more before he averted his gaze. He wasn’t used to praise, or gifts… asking for something was still hard for him to do. Rui released his hand, and Akiko practically fled the car, feeling better instantly once he wasn’t in a confined space. He ran a hand through his hair and tried to get his heart rate to calm down. Rui was just being nice… don’t exaggerate his generosity anything more than a doctor helping his patient. Akiko nodded softly, moving to Rui’s side as they walked up to the store. He had no intention of asking Rui for a gift, but he couldn’t exactly say that out loud.

Once in the store, Akiko distracted himself with shopping. He had a list of the things they needed in his pocket. It didn’t take long to shop through the store, picking up their items, plus the beer Rui wanted. They also walked through the wine section and Akiko picked out a bottle of red wine… Rui didn’t seem to like to drink alone. And it wasn’t a sacrifice on Akiko’s part to participate. He enjoyed a glass from time to time. He paid for their groceries, gingerly shooing Rui’s wallet back into his pocket. He did tense at the action, waiting for Rui to get angry at him. The tension remained until they were in the car, groceries in the trunk. Surely, now that they were alone, if Rui was upset at Akiko for telling him what to do (to put his money away), he would show it now? But nothing happened. Akiko took a slow breath and bit his lip to hide a smile.

The atmosphere in the room was so relaxed. Daichi was having a hard time keeping his eyes open as he petted Kaoru. The sentiment seemed to be reflected in his husband who look positively content. An early night looked to be in order. Daichi figured he would usher Kaoru to bed after this episode. A phone alarm dinged, but the sound was not similar to Daichi’s notification. He looked down at Kaoru, who shifted and pulled out his phone. He was curious of who was texting Kaoru, but he wasn’t overly concerned. Kaoru was allowed to talk and text to whoever he wanted. He kept his eyes trained on the screen, trying to give Kaoru some privacy as he answered a few messages in quick succession.

The episode was ending when Kaoru looked up anything and seemed to notice his company. Daichi was notorious for getting lost in his phone and emails, so he understood. But he was surprised by Kaoru’s reaction. Daichi frowned at the male as he started to apologize. “Sorry?” he asked before Kaoru explained. Daichi’s brows narrowed a bit when Kaoru spoke about a boy, a classmate, who had walked him home from the library. When had this happened? Why hadn’t Kaoru told him about it sooner? He pushed those thoughts aside so he could comfort his husband. He braced Kaoru’s head with his hand and leaned in to press a kiss to Kaoru’s temple. “Kaoru, it’s alright.” He said gently. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You are allowed to have friends… to text them whenever you want.” He leaned back and tried to give Kaoru an assuring smile. “I’ve never heard you speak about your friends… I’m glad you seemed to have made one.” He said softly as his thumb rubbed gentle circles into Kaoru’s neck. He couldn’t help but want to kiss away all of Kaoru’s fears. “Kaoru, come here.” He gently tugged at Kaoru’s arm, trying to get the male into his lap.

Akiko took a breath when Rui finally spoke, and the words were positive. He felt himself shiver and he wrapped his arms around his chest to try and prevent it. He didn’t know what had come over him in the store… he just wanted to do something for Rui. “Th-thank you.” He blushed at the praise. At the red light, Akiko forced himself to look at Rui, but quickly averted his gaze as his blush deepened. He nodded softly, but otherwise remained quiet. His heart was racing from the sincerity in Rui’s voice and eyes. Seriously… His heart wasn’t supposed to beat this fast… he was old! This would be the death of him… What exactly was he feeling? It was like warmth blossomed in his chest. It wasn’t unpleasant but…

Soon they were back home… home, was this home?… Akiko shook the thought away and got out of the car. He helped Rui carry the groceries inside and started to unpack them, sticking the alcohol in the fridge. “Can you get the flour and sugar from the cupboard?” he asked. He placed the apples in a strainer in the sink and started to run water over them. Pulling out his phone, he opened the recipe and propped the phone up on the counter. “Okay… can you measure out the flour into this bowl?” he asked, handing Rui a mixing bowl before he turned his attention to the apples.

Daichi smiled softly when Kaoru moved into his lap like he wanted. The position was not unwelcomed. He placed his hand carefully on Kaoru’s hips, firm but not restrictive. If Kaoru wanted to pull away, he could. “It’s alright. I’m not mad.” He said reassuringly, tilting his head up to look into Kaoru’s eyes. He rubbed his thumbs in gentle circles on Kaoru’s hip bones as Kaoru spoke his name. Blue eyes darted down to watch Kaoru’s pink tongue drag across his lips. Daichi didn’t need any encouragement to met Kaoru halfway, kissing his husband softly. But the light kiss ended far too quickly for Daichi. One hand slowly trailed up Kaoru’s body to cup his jaw. Daichi gently pulled Kaoru’s head down as he leaned up, moving slow enough to give Kaoru time to pull away if he wanted. Blue orbs searched honey brown for a moment longer, searching for permission, before he kissed Kaoru again. This time the kiss lingered. The hand on Kaoru’s hip tightened a fraction as the other hand moved to the back of Kaoru’s neck, gently keeping him in place. Daichi licked Kaoru’s bottom lip, asking for entrance, hoping to deepen the kiss further.

Akiko gave Rui a small smile. “You won’t learn without practice.” He said softly, blushing a bit. He realized that he did trust Rui… And not just with the flour. Rui had been nothing but patient and kind over the passed week. He was understanding, and encouraging… He wasn’t ready to admit this out loud but… Akiko was comfortable around Rui. He almost felt normal… not broken like he was. He felt food when Rui praised him, or gently touched his arm or shoulder. Distracted, he hadn’t been paying attention when Rui pulled out the flour and completed his task with no mess. So, he was shocked when the male exclaimed victory and pulled him into a hug. He just barely managed to hide his flinch at the action. But then Rui kissed him… kissed his cheek and he froze. Wide eyes stared at Rui as reality caught up to him and pulled back. Akiko’s shoulders hunched, and he pressed a hand to his cheek, looking Rui shocked and scared and confused. Rui had kissed him… Why had Rui kissed him? He understood the hugging (though he didn’t handle the suddenness of it all very well), but the kiss? His heart hammered in his chest as he tried to keep the negative thoughts (and hopes) from over whelming him. He didn’t want to have a panic attack in the middle of the kitchen. None of his previous… he shivered at the thought… they hadn’t kissed him during… he was either gagged or … … … preoccupied. He forced the thoughts away and took a few shallow breaths.

It seemed to have been an accident…the kiss… Was accidently kissing a friend a thing? Did Rui even consider them friends? Maybe Rui was just freaking out because he had kissed his patient? Ya, that had to be it. Akiko tried to listen to Rui’s words, but they didn’t make any sense. It was just an accident… Rui was just upset about invading Akiko’s space without permission… he was kind like that. His expression changed from scared to confused, then back to frightened at the thought of Rui leaving. “No!” he flinched and curled in on himself more. “I-I mean… It-its alright. I-I don’t w-want you to l-leave…” he looked down at the ground. “You-you were just-just ex-excited… n-no harm done.” He tried to say, but the stuttering didn’t make his words sound sincere. But the thought of Rui leaving… leaving him to the darkness of his own mind… He closed his eyes tightly to keep the tears at bay. He swallowed hard and opened his eyes to look at the apples in the sink. “We-we still ha-have a pie to bake.” He said sheepishly, hoping it would be enough to keep Rui from running. Baking would help keep the darkness away…

Daichi smiled a bit into the kiss as Kaoru fought for dominance before relenting control. The hand on Kaoru’s neck tightened a fraction, his thumb gently rubbed circles into the muscle. Kaoru’s hand went to Daichi’s hair and gently grabbed a handful. Daichi couldn’t help the soft moan that escaped his lips. His other hand trailed upward from Kaoru’s hip, under his shirt, to touch the soft skin of Kaoru’s side. All too quickly, they were pulling apart to breath. Daichi tilted Kaoru’s head down and rested their foreheads together, taking a moment to breath. He sighed softly when Kaoru’s hand released his hair and moved to cup his cheek. He turned his head to place a kiss on Kaoru’s palm, nodding to Kaoru’s first question.

Kaoru said he wanted Daichi and the words went straight to his nether regions. He couldn’t help it… kissing his husband, mixed with those soft, sweet sounds, on top of the fact they had been abstinent for some time now (was it merely days or weeks? Daichi couldn’t remember)… he definitely was feeling it. And he wanted it… Had wanted it this entire time. “Yes.” He finally answered. “Yes, I want this, want you.” He turned his head to kiss Kaoru’s temple. “But if you’re not ready…” he would hate to stop now, but his husband’s comfort was more important.

Akiko froze again when Rui approached. Had he said something wrong? Was Rui going to …? Rui asked for permission to touch him, to hug him. Dumbstruck, Akiko nodded shortly. He was tense at first as Rui’s arms wrapped around him. He buried his face into Rui’s shoulder, and allowed himself to gently grip the front of Rui’s shirt as the male utter soft affirmation. It was comforting, and the hug was so warm. And even though his heart was still beating rapidly, he felt himself relax a bit into the hold. The hug didn’t last long, and Akiko found that he instantly missed the contact. But he couldn’t exactly ask for it now, after freaking out the way he did.

Slightly confused over his own mixed reactions, Akiko turned his attention back to the pie. It took a little while longer for Akiko to relax the rest of the way. But directly Rui and completing his own tasks help distract his mind and by the time they were putting the pie in the oven, Akiko was soft smiling again. “There… now we wait.” He said softly as he turned the dial on the timer. They had about an hour or so before the pie would be done. Maybe they could order dinner for delivery? By the time they got their food and finished eating the pie would be down and cooled and then they could have a slice for dessert? He nibbled on his bottom lip, thinking as he leaned against the counter, near the pie. “Do-do you want to…” he paused for a moment. “The pie will take about an hour, and then it has to cool some before we can cut into it…” he said, hoping Rui would suggest dinner plans instead.