A/N: Something that's been in the works for a while. I just recently posted this first chapter on y-gallery and tried posting it here, but was being a turd and not letting me. So here it is at last.
SUMMARY: Hisoka's birthday comes round…the year he would have turned 21 were he still alive. Tsuzuki and Watari decided to take the boy out for a celebratory drink. Little does Tsuzuki know that Watari has a bet going with the Gushoshin twins that he can hook the two men up by the end of the night. Slash, Tsu/Hiso.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Yami no Matsuei or any of the characters involved.
CLAIMER: I own the bar, Watari's crappy car, and any random characters who show up who are not from YnM.
DEDICATION: JessJ (my Watari) and Sarah (my Tsuzuki), who constantly inspired me during the writing of this ficlet.
Hisoka sat in the backseat of the car, arms folded across his chest. "Remind me once again...why are we doing this?"
"It's your 21 birthday, Hisoka!" Watari sang from the front seat. "Or it would be, if...you know...your lack of a pulse hadn't gotten in the way."
Sitting in the backseat next to Hisoka, Tsuzuki smothered a snicker. Watari was not great with the conversation skills. Hisoka spared Tsuzuki the briefest of glances (even that fleeting look enough to send the older man's heart racing) and then turned away, facing forward again. "I still don't understand what that has to do with anything."
Tsuzuki tossed a pencil at Hisoka, who detected it without moving and instantly deflected it, sending it flying into Watari's hair. "DUH! Today is the day you would be legal!"
Hisoka turned that quizzical look on Tsuzuki now. "...legal?"
Tsuzuki felt his heart pound a little more. "...yes," he answered at last. "Legal...for drinking."
Watari eyed Tsuzuki in the rearview mirror, a knowing smile on his face. "Yeah...there are other things besides drinking, you know, but you've been legal for those for a few years now...eh, Tsuzuki?"
Tsuzuki flushed bright red. "Shut up, Watari!" he said immediately. "And if you really want to get technical about it, then Hisoka's not legal at all...for drinking OR for..." Tsuzuki froze, well aware that Hisoka was waiting expectantly for him to finish the sentence. "...the other thing," he finished lamely.
"Nuh uh," Watari interjected. "He is TOO legal!"
"Is not! Legal age is eighteen!"
"Not in Japan, it isn't! In Japan it's fifteen!"
With this unwarranted reminder, Tsuzuki's mind was immediately filled with ridiculously dirty thoughts...he became suddenly aware of Hisoka's extreme proximity, couldn't help but notice how tight those jeans were, couldn't help but think about shoving Hisoka back against the seat and...and...Tsuzuki realized that they were stopped at a red light, that they had been for some time now, and that both the other passengers in the car were staring at him, Hisoka with one brow arched in puzzlement, Watari with that evil grin on his face once more. Tsuzuki immediately turned a terrific shade of red. Mercifully, the light changed and Watari had to turn around and drive.
"...but surely you knew that already, Tsuzuki?"
"Knew what?" Tsuzuki asked somewhat distractedly as he fanned himself with one hand. It had suddenly become extremely hot in that tiny car.
"That the legal age in Japan is fifteen."
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I did, Watari," Tsuzuki snapped back. "...I was just trying to forget it." He was careful to clearly annunciate each word to make sure Watari understood that Tsuzuki didn't want to be having this conversation.
"...legal for what?" Hisoka asked. Tsuzuki turned bright red within seconds and Watari gave a snicker. "...what?" Hisoka asked, looking back and forth between them, but both men ignored the curious query. Watari began whistling nonchalantly (but it couldn't hide the big grin on his face) and Tsuzuki turned to look out the window, trying to ignore the feeling of Hisoka's eyes on him, those brilliant green eyes tracing across his face and burning like hot coals.
It was true; Tsuzuki had been trying extremely hard to forget this particular legality law since he first met Hisoka. The boy was young, attractive, and beneath that gruff exterior, completely charming. Each day that went by, Tsuzuki was finding it harder and harder to ignore the obvious attraction he had to the boy, the feelings that were growing stronger and stronger. So his reaction was to pretend that Hisoka was off limits, to tell himself that legal age of consent was eighteen and that, since Hisoka had died at the age of sixteen, the boy would never be legal.
"Legal for WHAT?" Hisoka demanded, sounding a bit cross now. Watari opened his mouth as though to answer, but Tsuzuki beat him to it.
"Nothing!" the brunette trilled, shooting Watari a death glare. The blonde ignored Tsuzuki, waiting only until the brunette had finished before continuing with what he had been about to say.
"Legal for sex," Watari finished. Tsuzuki gave a nearly inaudible groan of sheer agonized humiliation, shoulders hunching up, burying his face in his hands. Hisoka glanced at Tsuzuki and then back to Watari, questioning look still on his face.
"I don't understand," Hisoka said.
"In Japan, the age of consent is fifteen," Watari replied, as though that would explain everything. Hisoka still just stared as though waiting for more. Watari sighed, smile widening. "Basically, Hisoka, you died at the age of sixteen. Therefore, you were legal age of consent. That means you are allowed to sleep with anyone." A few seconds went by before "...well..." Watari paused, face scrunched up as he considered it, "...anyone your age or older," he amended. "Anyone you want...and it's legally allowed."
Hisoka's eyes widened just slightly, his expression changing no more than that. "...anyone?" he asked, his voice tinier than usual.
Watari grinned, stopping at another red light. "Anyone." He was grateful for the red light, for now he was free to watch in the rearview mirror and catch both men's reactions to this information...especially Hisoka's. The boy's eyes were still wide as he took all this in, but now there was a far more interesting development. Slowly, Hisoka turned to the right, glancing at Tsuzuki. There was the tiniest of flushes to those normally pale cheeks as those huge emerald eyes watched Tsuzuki, searching for a sign of some reaction, searching for Tsuzuki's feelings on this matter. It shouldn't have been too hard to tell. Tsuzuki's face was already pink; he stared resolutely forward at nothing, clenching his hands tightly on his knees as though if he didn't they would wander on their own accord and do illicit things to the adorable sixteen year old sitting next to him.
After a moment, Tsuzuki, seeming perhaps to sense Hisoka's stare, slowly glanced to the left, looking Hisoka's way. And at that moment, their gazes met, emerald locking with amethyst...but only for the briefest of moments. Then, two pairs of eyes widened with horrified surprise to find the other man staring, two heads whipped about immediately to look in opposite directions. Still watching in the rearview mirror, Watari's eyebrows shot up in amusement and a grin spread across his lips. This evening would be better than he had expected. The light changed and he began driving again, chuckling softly to himself under his breath. They would be at the bar soon, and then they would see what they would see.
-tbc-