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Week 9: Friday (continued)
It's episode nine and Usopp is in the middle of his Giant Goldfish story when Kame next makes him jump. "Yeah?" he says. It's five after nine. Sara will be in bed. Akira will be building his volcano city, or something thereabouts. He's allowed to stay up till eleven on a Friday.
"Okay," Kame says, like this is the end of a conversation, not the start of one. "Okay. I'm wrapping up here. I can be at your place in an hour. I'll bring you up to speed then."
"I'll be in," Jin says, catches up with himself and snorts, in a hysterical sort of way.
"Yeah." There's a pause, and a similar sound at the other end.
Wait. "Hang on. You're coming here? But what about reporters, what about the pictures?" God, he must have been dazed, what the fuck is Kame even talking about?
"I know, but it doesn't matter," Kame says calmly. "She's got other things on her mind now."
That shuts Jin up. An hour.
He showers and shaves, and all the way through he feels weak and weird because they're obviously not going to fuck now. Though maybe they should, Jin figures he needs every opportunity given that he'll need a new apartment, after what he told his kids, and he fumbles his hair into a messy tiny ponytail and puts on a clean t-shirt and doesn't do anything else, because he can't think anymore. He's feeling too stupid for One Piece now.
His door bell rings shortly before ten, and there's a knock too. Jin checks the spyhole, just in case, and pulls the door open, stepping back to let Kame get in quickly. The cooler air washes over him, and it's lighter out there from the building's stair lights than in here, Jin's only put on the little lamp over his stove.
It's as if Kame is here for the first time. Jin feels again how shabby everything is, just what a mess he is.
"Bit stuffy in here," Kame says, but without sting.
"I kept everything closed."
Kame nods, locks the door behind him, and shrugs out of his suit jacket. "You okay?" His shirt's looking less than crisp for a change.
"Mostly," Jin says, and wonders if Kame can smell his panic and pacing, if it's just clinging to the room. "Why are you here?"
Kame smiles, mostly to himself, and it's a strange smile. "I'm done for today."
Yes, Jin thinks, but why is he here? Unless it's the obvious after all. "What about the reporters," he prompts. "You said you'd fill me in."
"Can I have some tea?" Kame says. "Tea would be great."
So Jin starts making tea.
"You told your kids that you live here for now?"
"I said my old apartment was getting renovations, and I had to take the first thing quick," Jin says, clinking the fragile tea cups until his nerves snap and he grabs two of his chipped coffee mugs. "My daughter thinks it's cool I'm a security guard, too." His throat closes.
"Sounds like a sensible girl," Kame says. Jin passes him the white mug with a faded cat on it. He checks the curtains again, and startles when Kame turns on the little lamp he uses at night.
Okay then.
"I think she got tipped off by the cab driver from last time," Kame says. "That's how you and your apartment got into it. I'm sorry about that."
"But… you came here now? Isn't that dangerous for you too?" Kame's not exactly secret-agenting about.
"I'm not worried about reporters," Kame says. "Because nothing says I can't have meetings with you, and because you're..." He hesitates, shrugs a little. "Well. You're not very significant in the scheme of things."
Yeah, Jin got that. Kame gives him a long look, badly hidden over the tea.
"It's okay," Jin says. "Actually, it's good. Cause I can live without a follow-up story."
"Trust me," Kame says. "There's not going to be a follow-up story." He leans against the shelf – he was there naked and sweaty, flushed after... shut up – and fixes Jin with dark eyes. "I had a long meeting with Julie today."
Oh. The filling in. A shudder races down Jin's back, and that's stupid, they've just established Jin's not even a blip in this thing. "And?"
Kame's not smiling, but his face is shining with something anyway. "I told her that I know about the girl, about SMAP and Nakamaru. I told her I've got proof of the entrapment and the drugs, and if she doesn't resign, I'll go public with it."
Jin almost drops his tea. "Wait, but… Nakamaru walked so nobody would hear about the drugs. He could go to jail!" And it'll be Jin's fault, because he trusted Kame, and Kame can't do that.
"I'll get him a good lawyer, if it comes to that," Kame says. "I don't think it will. I think she'll go."
Jin is staring with his mouth dry. Kame's eyes are feverish.
"It was a long meeting," he says. "We were at it for three hours. I talked her through all the possibilities. SMAP are willing to come back if she steps down, I told her that too. Messing with Kimura's marriage could make her more hated than the machinations with the drugs, I think."
SMAP, coming back to the company. Jin can already imagine the Dome show. It's going to be the event of the decade. And Kame behind it, Kame orchestrating it – nobody'll be able to touch him after that.
"When will you know?"
"I gave her until morning. Twelve hours. If she's not calling a press conference by ten, I have people ready to go at lunchtime tomorrow."
All the pieces in place. It's like a military campaign, Jin thinks, swift and merciless.
"Pi called me," he says. It brings Kame's head up, but it's not quite suspicious alarm. "Said you told him to stay home and bake cookies."
"I warned the people I care about," Kame says. At Jin's frown, he adds, "Told the rest to shut the fuck up around reporters until I say otherwise. In company speak."
Jin laughs. Second time today, and it's needed and he's wobbly, but in the mercenary part of his brain he knows whatever's going down will drown out any interest in the old has-been company rebel called Akanishi.
"It's an offer she can't refuse," Kame says, brimming with strength. "I gave her a good deal, she'll be rich, she keeps her reputation, that's more than she deserves and I told her so."
He could scare people. He's that confident, that sure.
"So you're here for your celebration fuck?"
Kame presses his lips together, eyes raking over Jin with a flash of heat.
"Come here," he says quietly; motions with his fingers.
Jin feels stupider, sillier, when he's not naked and they're talking business coups and bargaining, but the pull works almost the same.
Kame slips one hand under Jin's t-shirt, but slow, and light, just a warm presence on his stomach. His other hand rises, Kame's fingers... tender, tracing his mouth. They linger, and Jin kisses them.
Kame sighs. "I have to stay sharp," he whispers, and the touch fades out from under Jin's t-shirt.
"I thought it was all settled," Jin says, fuck. Talk about wobbly.
"It is," Kame says, a last light brush on Jin's lips. "It should be. If she has any sense. But this was faster than I planned and I've got to stay sharp. I'll feel better if I do."
"Okay," Jin says. He can see that, in Kame's logic.
Fast was for him. For Jin and his kids and his pride. "So why are..." No, he won't ask again, it's not for him to make Kame say why, of all the places he could be, he's here where it's stuffy and dark and there's no fucking. "I'll keep until tomorrow," he says instead, and Kame's mouth curves up at the edges.
"Right now I could eat," he says as he picks up his tea again. "What have you got?"
Not much. "Rice," Jin says. "Eggs. Instant ramen." He gestures at the curtains. "You know."
"Sounds fine," Kame says, "just do something." He's looking at Jin's tablet, where he stopped the episode when Kame knocked. "That's the Black Cat Pirates at Syrup Village."
"Yeah. I had a lot of free time today." Jin puts the rice cooker on, and feels Kame move behind him, wonders what he's planning… But Kame just leans against the fridge.
He watches Jin cook. At first Jin thinks it's to supervise and correct, old-school Kame stuff, but Kame is just... there, watching.
"Want beer?" Jin asks, though he can guess the answer.
"No, shouldn't," Kame says. "Don't really want to, actually." There's something languid to his movements, a shimmer in his eyes. Maybe he's right, maybe duking it out with Julie at last is better than any drug.
Jin knows how Kame fucks when he's stressed, wound up too tight. Now he wonders how Kame fucks when he's won.
Kame eats heartily and without complaint when the rice is done. Jin, too, after he's sat down and noticed the stress is gone, and his body hasn't been fed right for two days.
"This is good, thank you," Kame says to egg on rice, and Jin thinks about getting the futon out so they can sit more comfortably.
"How long have you got?" he asks. "When do you have to leave? Do you want to stay the night?"
It feels so strangely normal just to ask. Kame doesn't seem to think it's weird, either.
"I don't know," he says, and it sounds genuine. "I'm thinking, I should be fresh tomorrow, but I'm too awake from this to sleep, and… I don't know. Is that okay?"
These days, what's a bit of missed sleep. And Jin's used to the night shift now. "Sure," he says. "We can watch more One Piece, if you want."
Kame laughs a little breathlessly. "Maybe, yeah."
In the end, they don't watch anything. Jin makes more tea and he does get the futon out, and they sit. Open windows, the faintest of breezes, and Kame tells Jin everything about the details, the conversation, it's just spilling out of him. Going back years, the first time he knew Julie was a danger. Kame's kept the suit on, staying sharp, but his legs are sprawling wide and his hair gets mussed from the way he leans into the bookcase. For the first time in forever the room doesn't feel like a box, it feels like shelter.
He asks about the article, and Jin tells him about the housewives calling Meisa in concern, asking if her husband's homeless. That's a moment when Kame's eyes go dark and narrow. But it passes, smoothed out when Jin brings up Sara and the uniform, muses about introducing her to Nakamaru when they have all made up, and Kame gets a glow of nostalgia about him. Then he brings Jin up to his present with a recap of ten years of tours and development, and the song politics that have grown stale on him.
It's around midnight when Jin checks the time again. "Long day," he says, sort of to commemorate the moment.
"Yes. Very long." Who knew sharks could look happy. Maybe Kame will be able to sleep at some point after all.
The phone rings a few minutes later. Kame's phone. A shot of energy goes through him and makes him shine before he's even standing.
"Surrender call, maybe?" he says, smiling as he goes to pick up the phone. "Would be about time." Swipe, buzz buzz. "Hello?" Then he blinks. "Koki?"
Jin has a moment to wonder, more cat torture, different rumors about Koki, Koki's just worried about Kame...
Kame freezes, stiff as stone. Color draining until he's just as grey. "Are you sure?"
Jin's heart speeds up, oh fuck, and suddenly Kame's head is whipping around, for... Jin doesn't know.
"I'll call you back, stay by the phone," Kame says, rock and stone and gravel. Then he hangs up.
Fuck. Fuck.
"That was Koki," Kame says, tight control, so tight. "Turn on the TV. Julie's jumped from the twentieth floor of the agency building. She's dead."
Week 9: Friday (continued)
It's episode nine and Usopp is in the middle of his Giant Goldfish story when Kame next makes him jump. "Yeah?" he says. It's five after nine. Sara will be in bed. Akira will be building his volcano city, or something thereabouts. He's allowed to stay up till eleven on a Friday.
"Okay," Kame says, like this is the end of a conversation, not the start of one. "Okay. I'm wrapping up here. I can be at your place in an hour. I'll bring you up to speed then."
"I'll be in," Jin says, catches up with himself and snorts, in a hysterical sort of way.
"Yeah." There's a pause, and a similar sound at the other end.
Wait. "Hang on. You're coming here? But what about reporters, what about the pictures?" God, he must have been dazed, what the fuck is Kame even talking about?
"I know, but it doesn't matter," Kame says calmly. "She's got other things on her mind now."
That shuts Jin up. An hour.
He showers and shaves, and all the way through he feels weak and weird because they're obviously not going to fuck now. Though maybe they should, Jin figures he needs every opportunity given that he'll need a new apartment, after what he told his kids, and he fumbles his hair into a messy tiny ponytail and puts on a clean t-shirt and doesn't do anything else, because he can't think anymore. He's feeling too stupid for One Piece now.
His door bell rings shortly before ten, and there's a knock too. Jin checks the spyhole, just in case, and pulls the door open, stepping back to let Kame get in quickly. The cooler air washes over him, and it's lighter out there from the building's stair lights than in here, Jin's only put on the little lamp over his stove.
It's as if Kame is here for the first time. Jin feels again how shabby everything is, just what a mess he is.
"Bit stuffy in here," Kame says, but without sting.
"I kept everything closed."
Kame nods, locks the door behind him, and shrugs out of his suit jacket. "You okay?" His shirt's looking less than crisp for a change.
"Mostly," Jin says, and wonders if Kame can smell his panic and pacing, if it's just clinging to the room. "Why are you here?"
Kame smiles, mostly to himself, and it's a strange smile. "I'm done for today."
Yes, Jin thinks, but why is he here? Unless it's the obvious after all. "What about the reporters," he prompts. "You said you'd fill me in."
"Can I have some tea?" Kame says. "Tea would be great."
So Jin starts making tea.
"You told your kids that you live here for now?"
"I said my old apartment was getting renovations, and I had to take the first thing quick," Jin says, clinking the fragile tea cups until his nerves snap and he grabs two of his chipped coffee mugs. "My daughter thinks it's cool I'm a security guard, too." His throat closes.
"Sounds like a sensible girl," Kame says. Jin passes him the white mug with a faded cat on it. He checks the curtains again, and startles when Kame turns on the little lamp he uses at night.
Okay then.
"I think she got tipped off by the cab driver from last time," Kame says. "That's how you and your apartment got into it. I'm sorry about that."
"But… you came here now? Isn't that dangerous for you too?" Kame's not exactly secret-agenting about.
"I'm not worried about reporters," Kame says. "Because nothing says I can't have meetings with you, and because you're..." He hesitates, shrugs a little. "Well. You're not very significant in the scheme of things."
Yeah, Jin got that. Kame gives him a long look, badly hidden over the tea.
"It's okay," Jin says. "Actually, it's good. Cause I can live without a follow-up story."
"Trust me," Kame says. "There's not going to be a follow-up story." He leans against the shelf – he was there naked and sweaty, flushed after... shut up – and fixes Jin with dark eyes. "I had a long meeting with Julie today."
Oh. The filling in. A shudder races down Jin's back, and that's stupid, they've just established Jin's not even a blip in this thing. "And?"
Kame's not smiling, but his face is shining with something anyway. "I told her that I know about the girl, about SMAP and Nakamaru. I told her I've got proof of the entrapment and the drugs, and if she doesn't resign, I'll go public with it."
Jin almost drops his tea. "Wait, but… Nakamaru walked so nobody would hear about the drugs. He could go to jail!" And it'll be Jin's fault, because he trusted Kame, and Kame can't do that.
"I'll get him a good lawyer, if it comes to that," Kame says. "I don't think it will. I think she'll go."
Jin is staring with his mouth dry. Kame's eyes are feverish.
"It was a long meeting," he says. "We were at it for three hours. I talked her through all the possibilities. SMAP are willing to come back if she steps down, I told her that too. Messing with Kimura's marriage could make her more hated than the machinations with the drugs, I think."
SMAP, coming back to the company. Jin can already imagine the Dome show. It's going to be the event of the decade. And Kame behind it, Kame orchestrating it – nobody'll be able to touch him after that.
"When will you know?"
"I gave her until morning. Twelve hours. If she's not calling a press conference by ten, I have people ready to go at lunchtime tomorrow."
All the pieces in place. It's like a military campaign, Jin thinks, swift and merciless.
"Pi called me," he says. It brings Kame's head up, but it's not quite suspicious alarm. "Said you told him to stay home and bake cookies."
"I warned the people I care about," Kame says. At Jin's frown, he adds, "Told the rest to shut the fuck up around reporters until I say otherwise. In company speak."
Jin laughs. Second time today, and it's needed and he's wobbly, but in the mercenary part of his brain he knows whatever's going down will drown out any interest in the old has-been company rebel called Akanishi.
"It's an offer she can't refuse," Kame says, brimming with strength. "I gave her a good deal, she'll be rich, she keeps her reputation, that's more than she deserves and I told her so."
He could scare people. He's that confident, that sure.
"So you're here for your celebration fuck?"
Kame presses his lips together, eyes raking over Jin with a flash of heat.
"Come here," he says quietly; motions with his fingers.
Jin feels stupider, sillier, when he's not naked and they're talking business coups and bargaining, but the pull works almost the same.
Kame slips one hand under Jin's t-shirt, but slow, and light, just a warm presence on his stomach. His other hand rises, Kame's fingers... tender, tracing his mouth. They linger, and Jin kisses them.
Kame sighs. "I have to stay sharp," he whispers, and the touch fades out from under Jin's t-shirt.
"I thought it was all settled," Jin says, fuck. Talk about wobbly.
"It is," Kame says, a last light brush on Jin's lips. "It should be. If she has any sense. But this was faster than I planned and I've got to stay sharp. I'll feel better if I do."
"Okay," Jin says. He can see that, in Kame's logic.
Fast was for him. For Jin and his kids and his pride. "So why are..." No, he won't ask again, it's not for him to make Kame say why, of all the places he could be, he's here where it's stuffy and dark and there's no fucking. "I'll keep until tomorrow," he says instead, and Kame's mouth curves up at the edges.
"Right now I could eat," he says as he picks up his tea again. "What have you got?"
Not much. "Rice," Jin says. "Eggs. Instant ramen." He gestures at the curtains. "You know."
"Sounds fine," Kame says, "just do something." He's looking at Jin's tablet, where he stopped the episode when Kame knocked. "That's the Black Cat Pirates at Syrup Village."
"Yeah. I had a lot of free time today." Jin puts the rice cooker on, and feels Kame move behind him, wonders what he's planning… But Kame just leans against the fridge.
He watches Jin cook. At first Jin thinks it's to supervise and correct, old-school Kame stuff, but Kame is just... there, watching.
"Want beer?" Jin asks, though he can guess the answer.
"No, shouldn't," Kame says. "Don't really want to, actually." There's something languid to his movements, a shimmer in his eyes. Maybe he's right, maybe duking it out with Julie at last is better than any drug.
Jin knows how Kame fucks when he's stressed, wound up too tight. Now he wonders how Kame fucks when he's won.
Kame eats heartily and without complaint when the rice is done. Jin, too, after he's sat down and noticed the stress is gone, and his body hasn't been fed right for two days.
"This is good, thank you," Kame says to egg on rice, and Jin thinks about getting the futon out so they can sit more comfortably.
"How long have you got?" he asks. "When do you have to leave? Do you want to stay the night?"
It feels so strangely normal just to ask. Kame doesn't seem to think it's weird, either.
"I don't know," he says, and it sounds genuine. "I'm thinking, I should be fresh tomorrow, but I'm too awake from this to sleep, and… I don't know. Is that okay?"
These days, what's a bit of missed sleep. And Jin's used to the night shift now. "Sure," he says. "We can watch more One Piece, if you want."
Kame laughs a little breathlessly. "Maybe, yeah."
In the end, they don't watch anything. Jin makes more tea and he does get the futon out, and they sit. Open windows, the faintest of breezes, and Kame tells Jin everything about the details, the conversation, it's just spilling out of him. Going back years, the first time he knew Julie was a danger. Kame's kept the suit on, staying sharp, but his legs are sprawling wide and his hair gets mussed from the way he leans into the bookcase. For the first time in forever the room doesn't feel like a box, it feels like shelter.
He asks about the article, and Jin tells him about the housewives calling Meisa in concern, asking if her husband's homeless. That's a moment when Kame's eyes go dark and narrow. But it passes, smoothed out when Jin brings up Sara and the uniform, muses about introducing her to Nakamaru when they have all made up, and Kame gets a glow of nostalgia about him. Then he brings Jin up to his present with a recap of ten years of tours and development, and the song politics that have grown stale on him.
It's around midnight when Jin checks the time again. "Long day," he says, sort of to commemorate the moment.
"Yes. Very long." Who knew sharks could look happy. Maybe Kame will be able to sleep at some point after all.
The phone rings a few minutes later. Kame's phone. A shot of energy goes through him and makes him shine before he's even standing.
"Surrender call, maybe?" he says, smiling as he goes to pick up the phone. "Would be about time." Swipe, buzz buzz. "Hello?" Then he blinks. "Koki?"
Jin has a moment to wonder, more cat torture, different rumors about Koki, Koki's just worried about Kame...
Kame freezes, stiff as stone. Color draining until he's just as grey. "Are you sure?"
Jin's heart speeds up, oh fuck, and suddenly Kame's head is whipping around, for... Jin doesn't know.
"I'll call you back, stay by the phone," Kame says, rock and stone and gravel. Then he hangs up.
Fuck. Fuck.
"That was Koki," Kame says, tight control, so tight. "Turn on the TV. Julie's jumped from the twentieth floor of the agency building. She's dead."
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 06:06 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 06:36 pm (UTC)poor poor little shark-fish Kame ;___________________________; this is sooo unfair, just so crazily unfair. I really hate people who are doing things like this, because she is dead and she doesn't care anymore and he will live with it for his whole life. This is the worst punishment for him.
Was this corporation so important for her, more than her life? Is she idiot? maybe she is not so dead? #hope do you have something supernatural in this fic *clinging to a tiny hope* just stupid woman who spoiled Kame's life even after her death.
I love so much the scene of them talking with each other, so cozy and relaxed and so just wonderful, just too good to last forever.
that was a war after all and the winner is Kame and she can't take her loss. like war rules. T_______________________T
I need update, like crazily need, like the happy bubble with fluffy feelings destroyed and the harsh reality is too harsh to handle and I'm very curious how will they react.
Thank you for update <3 <3 <3 <3
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:15 am (UTC)No supernatural here, sorry. No unicorns, no vampires, just a glitterpony called Pi. She's dead, Jim.
so cozy and relaxed and so just wonderful, just too good to last forever.
Ha ha, okay, yes, that was when we felt evil. #confession
that was a war after all and the winner is Kame and she can't take her loss. like war rules.
Yes, a bit like that. And maybe a last possibility to fuck with people.
We're really happy this part had the, erm, effect we hoped for. :) Thank you for your lovely comment!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 06:40 pm (UTC)would this recent development good or bad for kame and his plan?
on the other hand, love kame and jin bringing each other up to date on each other's lives..and bonding over ONE PIECE..
i'll be keeping my fingers crossed and hope julie's death won't affect kame too much..
thanks for the update!!!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:15 am (UTC)There had to be ONE PIECE in this story at some point. :)
Thank you for commenting, as usual! ♥
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 06:41 pm (UTC)Besides that WHOA OKAY WHAT ending LOL, this was a really sweet chapter, it was actually quite a nice change to have Kame come over and sex NOT happen and to have them just act like normal people/friends just visiting each other. :') And Kame was in such a great mood too which was also new and so lovely. :'D He's really incredible how he handled things with Julie, he gets shit done. He finally, for the first time, was relaxed enough where he didn't even crave sex so much, would you look at that! XD (AND THE CUTE GENTLE TOUCHING AND JIN KISSING HIS FINGERS AKJSHDKHFK). And now all his happiness is shattered and oh gawd, honestly at this point I'd just pack my shit and leave the country because after EVERYTHING he's had to fucking deal with, I wouldn't be able to deal with a suicide too, just, NOPE. DX I know he can't do that but....ugh this is going to ruin sooo much. >.< I hope he doesn't throw himself off a building either. ._.
But to ignore the suicide for a second, I really loved this line: For the first time in forever the room doesn't feel like a box, it feels like shelter. It's amazing how just having Kame around really changes Jin's perspective on his life. :'D I also LOL'ed at "Said you told him to stay home and bake cookies." Even on the verge of having a mental breakdown Jin manages to be funny, he's really a lot stronger than he gives himself credit for. <3
But I'm getting such a bad feeling this won't have a happy ending or, not one we'd all expect anyway. Because even if this is all sorted out and they both come out of it with their minds in one piece, I mean, won't their relationship still just have to remain a secret, weekly thing? Not that that's bad at all and considering the circumstances there's no other way it can be, but I think they deserve much more than that. :') But hey, I'll take what I can get, LOL. As long as they continue to like each other and see each other, I think I'll be okay. XD
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:16 am (UTC)Oh, you know, it's Japan, people kill themselves all the time. ;D
Or, is it possible she did it just to get back at Kame because now she'll now he'll have it on his conscience?
We are sure this thought pleased her, yes.
And Kame was in such a great mood too which was also new and so lovely. ... And now all his happiness is shattered
We're so happy that contrast worked. Yes, poor little turtle.
Even on the verge of having a mental breakdown Jin manages to be funny, he's really a lot stronger than he gives himself credit for. <3
We may have a fetish for boss!Kame but we also have one for resilient!Jin. *g*
As long as they continue to like each other and see each other, I think I'll be okay.
I think we can safely promise you that.
Thank you for this lovely comment! ♥
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 06:43 pm (UTC)Lovely read ♥ I kind of like the fact that Kame didn't want sex... Although Jin did, haha ♥ Poor Jin. Not the first time he'd like a little action but Kame's not in the mood :3 It happens.
(I'm sorry that my comments are a bit off today. So tired. If I won't comment now I'll procrastinate so much that I won't at all so I thought I'd push myself...)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:20 am (UTC)We are modestly pleased that you didn't see this coming. :p
Kame would have not turned down sex if he hadn't needed to focus. Sex starvation can be helpful with maintaining your edge. (He'd know all about it, poor boy...)
As for when there is more... well... >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:21 am (UTC)Glad the twist was twisty enough. *g* Yeah, Kame and ruthlessness and coping, you'll see.
Thank you for the praise! #^_^# and the comment!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 07:11 pm (UTC)And by that I mean both... that, that ending, and two updates in one day. You both are so evil...
I was calming down, enjoying a Jin and Kame quiet moment and Kame actually eating and the two of them having an insult-free conversation and marvelling at Kame's super superpowers and how unexpectedly hot that is, and then...
For some reason I never expect something that dramatic to come from you two. Now I'm wondering if it's a trick. *shifty eyes*
Suicide... just doesn't make sense to me. Giving in to Kame's awesome and persuasive powers of persuasion, does. She'd have money, keep her reputation, like he said. Does she really want to ruin Kame so badly as to die for it? *suspicious*
Well obviously more...stuff, will happen today... Are you going to make us wait till tomorrow??! Surely you're not that cruel...
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:30 am (UTC)We try. #modest
For some reason I never expect something that dramatic to come from you two. Now I'm wondering if it's a trick.
What, because we are such fluffbunnies? XD Or do you mean to suggest this was a fake twist and Kame will still get hit by a car? *g* Hmm, we could see if we can arrange that...
Are you going to make us wait till tomorrow??! Surely you're not that cruel...
It is a strange world where daily updates are seen as cruel. :p
But we're glad our evilness is being appreciated. BOOM! >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 08:17 pm (UTC)And I was really shocked by it too - in a good way somehow. I had managed to sit down and concentrate on just reading and that last sentence knocked the air out of my lungs and sent me into a minute long OMG-phase.
Here I was going all "aw, look at them, this is like, really sweet, they're talking". And then BAM! Well before that I was feeling very proud over the fact that the turtle had managed to take Julie on in a fight (even though it was early, as he keeps saying), and I was smiling extremely wide when Jin reasoned that nothing was going to be able to touch Kame is SMAP came back *proud fangirl*, and now everything has changed. I'm imagening it will be quite troublesome for Kame and the agency to clear this mess up *no pun intended* (it's that kind of mess/problem that has the possibility of getting even messier T_T)
The Akame interaction was - as always - superb to read *___* Their dialogues mixed with Jin's thoughts are like... sex :DDDD (warning for a creepy kitten).
I somehow want Jin to help Kame now (it'd be nice if they found a common ground to stand on except sex... because they don't seem like the kind of guys that are going to start confessing their undying love at the moment :P) Anyway, silly rambling here. I really liked this update - I've NEVER been this shocked before (still in a good way). And Julie's death makes an odd sense, at least in my brain. Not that I wanted her to die, it's just that I'm thinking about what's to come - guessing - and I'm really curious and anxious to read this story to the very end <333
Thanks for the double update and all the shocking awesomeness guys!!!
(you'll have to take this as a comment for the previous update too XD)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 08:26 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:30 am (UTC)And we're really happy it was a shock, because it would be one to them, too, so... yeah. We wanted to make you feel like they would. #win
Here I was going all "aw, look at them, this is like, really sweet, they're talking". And then BAM!
Seriously, this pleases us SO MUCH. :DDDDD
Their dialogues mixed with Jin's thoughts are like... sex :DDDD (warning for a creepy kitten).
No warning required. We think we know what you mean because, face it, we write stuff primarily to, uhm, entertain ourselves. *g* #creepyauthors
I somehow want Jin to help Kame now (it'd be nice if they found a common ground to stand on except sex... because they don't seem like the kind of guys that are going to start confessing their undying love at the moment :P)
Yeah, no undying love confessions here. Not their style. As for the rest, wait and see, wait and seeeeeeeeee...
Poor Kame... yeah, it's an added complication he doesn't need. >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 09:59 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:30 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-22 10:10 pm (UTC)i hope this isn't close to being over ;((no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:31 am (UTC)him and Jin are being so cute and comfortable with each other and then she manages to interrupt them with her death
Maybe Julie is a bitter former Kokame shipper...
We're happy the cliffhanger works, heeee! Thank you for the feedback!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 12:31 am (UTC)Though maybe they should, Jin figures he needs every opportunity given that he'll need a new apartment Jin is so cute, 40 hrs of emotional rollercoaster and this is his main worry? Should I applaud his belief that Kame will fix everything else or be disappointed he doesn't think Kame will find him wherever he moves?
Because nothing says I can't have meetings with you, and because you're..." He hesitates, shrugs a little. "Well. You're not very significant in the scheme of things." Kame's come such a long way since the first chp in terms of being considerate to
Jinothers. Although my first thought when reading that line was that Kame was going to spill his feelings and maybe say "because you're special/mine/...""I warned the people I care about," Kame says. At Jin's frown, he adds, "Told the rest to shut the fuck up around reporters until I say otherwise. In company speak." Because Kame softening to Jin and showing he has feelings does not exempt anyone else from Overlord!Kame.
The intimate but non-sexual contact really illustrates how much their relationship has changed. Kame asking for food should be taken as a big improvement in his mental wellbeing since last time when Jin had to work hard to persuade him to eat.
Now he wonders how Kame fucks when he's won I'm pretty sure he'll find out sometime in the not-too-distant future...
Jin brings up Sara and the uniform, muses about introducing her to Nakamaru when they have all made up please, please show us that scene! and also Kame meeting the kids for the first time! I kind of wonder how Meisa would react to Jin wanting to introduce the kids to Kame though, seeing as her impression of Kame isn't exactly stellar...
And onto the not-happy stuff:
Kame smiles, mostly to himself, and it's a strange smile. "I'm done for today." poor, poor Kame, he must have thought he was done for good in terms of the struggle with Julie, looking forward to going to bed after an extremely long day and then...
He could scare people. He's that confident, that sure. which makes everything so much worse when things don't go to plan. Kame had plans for Julie following his demands or ignoring him, but none for any other actions, and he's almost relaxed, not planning because there shouldn't be anything else left to plan...It's probably the first time in a long time that he doesn't have contingency plans in place to fall back on...
When Koki called, like jin, I thought Julie was after him again...Then when I finished reading, my first thought was, "did she really jump? Or did someone give her a helping hand? Or is this a last attempt to smear Kame's name (like, Kamenashi forced her to her death) so neither of them get the company?" Either way, this will definitely have a huge impact on Kame because despite his willingness to blackmail and threaten, I don't think he's ever deliberately set out to harm someone, like Julie has. And with all the subsequent chaos (and possible backlash), he won't even get time to work through his feelings...
To answer your previous Q - I did wake up at 8am but got pulled out of the house before I could check for an update (blame the snow and how panicked it makes us for all the potential chaos it'll wreak on public transport!)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:48 am (UTC)Heee, that's a cool thought! Though Kame wouldn't want to damage the business as such, and Arashi's still part of the business, and he doesn't have a quarrel with them as such. He'd go after them if it couldn't be helped, but he'd try to avoid it as long as he's got other options.
Jin is so cute, 40 hrs of emotional rollercoaster and this is his main worry?
:DDD Yeah, the cuteness of Jin comes up in the most unexpected places. *g*
Should I applaud his belief that Kame will fix everything else or be disappointed he doesn't think Kame will find him wherever he moves?
Oh, he would leave a forwarding address, but if he moves into a more expensive apartment he'll need more money for rent! ;p
Although my first thought when reading that line was that Kame was going to spill his feelings and maybe say "because you're special/mine/..."
That could be shiny. *__* But, Kame too much in business mode to spill anything.
We can probably say that extended making up with Nakamaru won't take place within the next half week. ;___;
It's probably the first time in a long time that he doesn't have contingency plans in place to fall back on...
Nope. He totally has to wing this one. :-/
blame the snow and how panicked it makes us for all the potential chaos it'll wreak on public transport!
LOLOLOL! We confess we had a look at your user info, and if that's correct, we totally know what you mean! British Trains: Good to go in Rain, and Rain, and Not Much Other Weather.
(And Solo is curious to know if you are anywhere near Scotland.)
Thank you for this lovely comment and the delicious speculation! *__*
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 01:26 am (UTC)thanks for this update... i like how things move... been reading this since and things turned out quiet nice since.... this is a good update... thank you so much... :)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:39 am (UTC)Well, right now she's dead. Whether that counts as something being wrong with her... :p
Glad you liked the update!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 06:15 am (UTC)It's like a military campaign, Jin thinks, swift and merciless.
Definitely describes the two authors of this fic. (￣^￣)ゞ
There I was, all giddy and fluffy with the first half of this chapter. With Kame feeling almost relaxed and aglow with the thought that his victory over Julie is within his grasp. And then THIS happened...Julie killing herself will definitely be a cause of stress again for Kame. When will overlord!Kame achieve inner peace?!?
Anyways, can't help it if Julie felt cornered with the conditions Kame gave her. She might've been thinking she'll have the last laugh if she killed herself and let her death burden Kame's conscience.
Thanks for the double update, though. (^__^)v
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:40 am (UTC)And yeah, Julie choosing this as her time to go won't help Kame in the inner peace department. T_______T He has a #hardlife. (But at least still a #life.)
Glad you liked the double update! >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 07:58 am (UTC)O.o
Now that's quite the plot twist! I certainly... well I figured she wouldn't just give in to Kame's demands, to be honest - I mean, after going through all that trouble you can't just step down! - but I wasn't expecting that... BUT THEY'RE CUTE! At least they're cute now. Around each other. And Jin has calmed the fuck down, sort of, and Kame looks more and more like a smug kitten *____* They're impossibly cute...
But you still shocked me! D: I never saw that coming! And now? What now? Incident seems good for them in the long run. However, potentially destructive short-term. What's it going to be, what? :B FFS Kame, find out ASAP and update me!
Kame smiles, mostly to himself, and it's a strange smile. "I'm done for today."
Oh. For the first time I. Think. I. Know. what he means. Maybe. That's... an interesting development.
"Well. You're not very significant in the scheme of things."
Yeah, so we keep hearing. And yet it still makes me cringe each time it's said to Jin's face ;A; Particularly when it's Jin doing the saying TT___TT Oh, Jin...
Ah, it's a bit early for typing it seems >.>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 09:40 am (UTC)I mean, after going through all that trouble you can't just step down!
Yeah, there's a bit of that to it too...
We're happy we shocked you the way Julie shocked Jin and Kame. And we like your short-term/long-term speculations. :)
It's not kind to tell Jin he's insignificant, but, well, he can probably live with not being significant to JE or Julie any more. *g* ESPECIALLY IF IT MEANS THEY'LL LEAVE HIM AND KAME ALONE AGAIN!
Thank you for commenting! :D
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-23 07:33 pm (UTC)WELL NOW I FEEL SO STUPID COMMENTING HERE 'CAUSE THERE'S A LOT I COMMENTED ABOUT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER THAT WOULD ACTUALLY GO BETTER WITH THIS CHAPTER.
Fuck my life, I'm an idiot.
Okay, so. Kame did go to Jin's, to catch up on stuff. Because he could, because he's got Julie and that's just great, until she's dead and that's not great. Well, in some way I guess it is, but... it's still not great, overall. But actually my point was that Kame went to Jin again after he's solved shit and that's great! And they didn't have sex, which is somehow also great because sex isn't really the point between them even though for a little while it looked like it was. But not really.
Told the rest to shut the fuck up around reporters until I say otherwise. In company speak. This was a great line too! I've said it before and I'm saying it again: Kame cursing is love! :D
Jin isn't hostile anymore towards Kame when Kame mentions Jin's kids, which is also improvement, but I guess also logical now that things are different between them. Yay!
Okay, and that's it and now I'll go correct my other comment. >
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-24 05:08 pm (UTC)And they didn't have sex, which is somehow also great because sex isn't really the point between them even though for a little while it looked like it was.
Yes, we know what you mean. These two will continue to have sex with great delight and enthusiasm, but it's nice to know there's more to their relationship. :)
Hm, might you have a little cursing fetish? *g*
Sorry again about the confusion, and thanks for bothering twice! :)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-24 06:48 pm (UTC)What was that about snipping off the price tags earlier, Jin? :P
I think it’s good Kame came to Jin’s place, because I’m sure Jin needed that after the last two days. And well, Kame needs someone around him as well it seems. Someone whose presence calms him down and who will take care of him. Also I’m sure Kame knew how horrible these two days must’ve been for Jin and that he’ll need someone to talk to or just be there and reassure him everything is okay.
And it’s great how cool Kame is about the whole thing by now. How he’s pretty practical and all. Also great that there is no real danger of what’s going on in their “meetings” being exposed.
At least Kame has proof against Julie now and managed to show her that she shouldn’t have messed with him and that she wasn’t all that careful. That being so cruel and scheming led her nowhere in the end.
He could scare people. He's that confident, that sure.
Well, he has to be or he wouldn’t always get what he wanted. *g* And as long as it works…
He can see that, in Kame's logic.
But not in his own, because Jin just wants Kame and doesn't care about anything else. :P
And it’s cute how he does and how he doesn’t care Kame might think he’s needy or something. Because for Jin the whole thing about the fucking has just started to feel right and what does he have to lose anyway? (Also hey, it’s been a week. That must feel very long for Jin. *g*)
Kame seems so much more relaxed right now. This is really a relief. When he even mentions that he wants to eat. Without having set an alarm even.
Now he wonders how Kame fucks when he's won.
Does Jin actually even try to stop thinking about fucking? :P Anyway I hope he’ll get his answer soon?
"How long have you got?" he asks. "When do you have to leave? Do you want to stay the night?"
Jin totally doesn’t want Kame to leave, mmh? <33 But that’s great and it doesn’t really seem like Kame wants to leave just yet either.
Hey, they’re really becoming more and more like a couple. :P And I love how they’re just talking about this and that, how Kame is telling Jin so openly about everything that has to do with Julie and work and what happened in between. And that Jin is telling Kame about his kids and what’s happening with Meisa and it feels like nothing has ever happened and everything is so normal between and around them. With Kame being so happy and smiling and all.
But, damn the thing with Julie really came as a surprise. Then again she probably realized she really had lost and rather wanted to end it than taking Kame’s money and just stay out of everything. Especially with Kame still having all that evidence against her. (I bet she’s too Japanese to be able to accept that, huh?)
I just really hope there’s no letter or whatever where she’s trying to put the blame on Kame and makes things just worse than they are anyway when one of the company’s top managers has killed herself. Fuck. D: It probably would’ve been easier for Kame, had she just surrendered. >___>;;
Nevertheless, now I still wonder about my previous assumptions and whether Kame will try and get Jin to work for the company again as soon as everything is sorted out. Because hey, it would save a lot of problems. Jin would have a job again and could afford a proper flat. He could show Akira around later and show him that he really is still working in the music industry and then the boy wouldn’t be so upset anymore and not too disappointed at his daddy and everything would be great. Happy ending for all of them. It would just make sense, okay? T__T
God, I hope my internet comes back soon so I can post this part of the term paper bomb and read the other two chapters. D: #curious #aaaaaah
But yay, I’m even closer to catching up again! >____>;;;
Anyway, end of part 2 of term paper bomb#2. :P I'LL BE BACK THOUGH!!!!!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-05 05:45 pm (UTC)Allow the poor guy to be a bit off balance and trying frantically to think about how to afford a new place. *g*
Also I’m sure Kame knew how horrible these two days must’ve been for Jin and that he’ll need someone to talk to or just be there and reassure him everything is okay.
Kame has come a long way in your estimation. *g* (We love this comment too, btw. Rolling around in it.)
And it’s cute how he does and how he doesn’t care Kame might think he’s needy or something. Because for Jin the whole thing about the fucking has just started to feel right and what does he have to lose anyway?
Yeah, and also, if Kame wanted to use anything about the sex against Jin, he'd have done it already, like say around the time Jin admitted he wanted Kame to boss him around.
LOL, yeah, Jin's gone from coping with a five year dry spell to being a bit starved in the span of a week. >_>
Does Jin actually even try to stop thinking about fucking?
Heeee. But wouldn't you be curious too? >_>
I bet she’s too Japanese to be able to accept that, huh?
We figured that would play a big role in it, yeah. We are glad the surprise worked, and also that the domesticity before worked. Thank you so much for this excellent term paper!
You often make a lot of sense. :DDD
Your internet really went at a BAD BAD TIME, though. T_____T We are glad it is back too!
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-02 10:58 am (UTC)And Kame... didn't want that either. This won't be about JE's reputation, this is more personal. Kame tried to make her quit and then she did something like that. Kame can't possibly not feel guilty and just brush it off D: I hope Jin will be there for him.
Jin knows how Kame fucks when he's stressed, wound up too tight. Now he wonders how Kame fucks when he's won.
Now I wonder that too. Ahem. XDD
For the first time in forever the room doesn't feel like a box, it feels like shelter.
<3
I love it that they didn't have sex, that they can be together like this too. And that they really talked :33 <3
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-05 05:46 pm (UTC)I love it that they didn't have sex, that they can be together like this too. And that they really talked :33 <3
They've come a long way from the start. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-07 09:32 pm (UTC)"I'll be in," Jin says, catches up with himself and snorts, in a hysterical sort of way.
GAH i love him.
"I'll get him a good lawyer, if it comes to that," Kame says.
again, brave to include that, even though it's just consequent. it makes you cringe a bit. but then this kame wouldn't be this kame, and thus wouldn't have the certain appeal this Kame has, if he wouldn't make this conclusion. guh. glad jin is there to counterbalance him from now on. and pat the head's of people Kame's casually stomped over.
"I warned the people I care about," Kame says.
awwww, kamepi. ♥
They linger, and Jin kisses them.
guh, this whole bit, so fluffy, so tender. rolling around in it, totally. who knew kame had it in him. *-*
"I'll keep until tomorrow," he says instead, and Kame's mouth curves up at the edges.
his sense of humor is so wonderfully non-fluffy. he's awesome. and wonderful for kame.
For the first time in forever the room doesn't feel like a box, it feels like shelter.
all the nice cozy atmosphere and domestic eating and kame being open and sort of relaxed and feeling like he won, which he did, and THE ATMOSTPHERE, and then that horrible Julie goes and dies, meanly ruining it. Which is horrible, but this is the first thing I thought. Like, nooo, you mean mean *#@*#! WHAT ABOUT WHAT THIS WILL DO TO KAME!? hypocritical, i know, but i was so angry at her, which is very mean and horrible, and then my third or fourth thought was, duh, at least Kame will have an alibi. >.>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-14 03:23 pm (UTC)Yeah. It *is* hard to write when he's being genuinely callous, but you don't get where he is without making some sacrifices. Or without being willing to make some.
Jin will be glad to hear he has head-patting purpose. *g*
Which is horrible, but this is the first thing I thought. Like, nooo, you mean mean *#@*#! WHAT ABOUT WHAT THIS WILL DO TO KAME!? hypocritical, i know, but i was so angry at her, which is very mean and horrible, and then my third or fourth thought was, duh, at least Kame will have an alibi.
Isn't that useful? *g*
Also, we figure 'what will this do to Kamenashi' figured high on her list of priorities, too, so you're in, uh, good company. >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2013-05-18 02:18 pm (UTC)I love the reference to the orange lights. :D
Pi and Jin are such a delight in this FF.
And sometime soon I'm gonna ask you what precisely you know and how, but right now I'll love you and leave you. Yes, very delightful. *____*
Yes, the waiting game is E.V.I.L.! No surprise he's completely paranoid.
Kame smiles, mostly to himself, and it's a strange smile. "I'm done for today.
Yeah, when do you see a satisfied Kame? Not that often.
Lovely Jin worrying about others first and not about himself. #Yucchi
Fast was for him. For Jin and his kids and his pride.
Talk about importance and growing trust between them.
So yeah, I mentioned there's a very much disliked chapter, totally this one.
Highly dislikable sentences here as well: Open windows, the faintest of breezes, and Kame tells Jin everything about the details, the conversation, it's just spilling out of him.
This just settled that we will never know anything specific about the background stuff and put full focus on their relationship in the chapters to come. I was having fun figuring out Kame the whole time and it sucks to never know his side in the story and not only in my head. I was looking forward to this background stuff too much and you just killed that one here. T____T #stillmoppingaround
Then he brings Jin up to his present with a recap of ten years of tours and development, and the song politics that have grown stale on him
Next disliked sentences. T____T oh well and the blinking highlights of Jin's future occupation.
"Turn on the TV. Julie's jumped from the twentieth floor of the agency building. She's dead.
This was undramatic in a dramatic way. This chapter just killed two of my expectations in one go. T_T After this my interest just died down to mild curiosity how 9 1/2 weeks will play out. Sure, there are nice scenes to come, but yeah, procrastinating with comments really started here. ¬.¬;
I kind of came to terms with her death, because overall the plot wouldn't have changed that much, only some of the ways to reach the goal. Furthermore I cannot really say if I liked a showdown more. ^^;
In a nutshell: the comment I never wanted to write. ^^;
(no subject)
Date: 2013-05-26 01:06 pm (UTC)We're of course sorry our narrative choices here didn't work for you. We can actually see where you're coming from, and we are not counter-moping. *g* We've noticed before that we seem to be a good deal apart on the scale of 'explicit stuff' versus 'implied stuff' (like when you were surprised Jin got a new car but we didn't explicitly write about it, and stuff like that), and this is the kind story -- it's essentially a 'bystander story' -- where that difference would be very noticeable.
For us, this sort of bystander perspective can be very fun and rewarding, provided there is pay-off. With this story, for us the pay-off was not really how Kame plays Julie, but what happens after that, at the company, but we totally accept that that might not work for everybody and is clearly not enough for you.
We would have liked to have a bit more of what's going on with Kame on screen, we just failed to solve that in a way that wouldn't have messed up the style in other ways that would have bugged us, but we suspect even what we would have found the ideal balance wouldn't have been enough.
Blah blah blah. We get you, and we're sorry for the disappointment! Bad haikuesque, only half a biscuit, and maybe better luck this time. ♥