roneal | (no subject)

Taking a shower right away this time sounds like a gift he doesn't deserve, but he's not about to argue. Irvin won't be happy when he smells like shampoo and soap instead of Irvin and he'll have to find a way to keep the dog content despite that. He'll find something. And then scrub away the stains on the floor. Do all his chores in peace. Sounds nice. Definitely better than the current situation. He can feel the guest's eyes on him -- he squirms, trying to make himself smaller and disappear beneath Irvin's body.

"Yes. Thank you, Jade." For not being angry, for allowing him to take a shower. There are a few reasons he's sincerely thankful. He closes his eyes then, taking deep breaths as he waits for Irvin to release him.

He shouldn't be thanked.

"It's nothing," he says calmly. "Take care."

His associate is waiting for him, his eyebrows drawn together into what might be the deepest frown Jade had seen to date. With another inward sigh, Jade leads him into the study. The door clicks shut behind them.

There are recriminations, of course, the expected what the hell is going on and the what are you thinking, he's just a kid, you're going too far.

Jade sits quietly through it all, distantly grateful that the other man isn't shouting. He doesn't want Shinjirou to doubt what he's doing. Of course, it's entirely possible that soon, he'll no longer have to care for Shinjirou.

He's not sure how that makes him feel. He's not sure how giving up on the mission makes him feel either; he's never been fond of making big decisions on his own.

In the end, it's simply easier to try keep things as they are. It's not difficult to rebut his associate's points, they're all arguments he's made to himself: Shinjirou enjoys being here, you've heard how he thanked me; we both know this mission requires more extreme methods if I'm to gain the trust of my contacts; I'm trying to ingratiate myself with the dog's owner, he likes this sort of thing...

"He's not even in the country at present," his associate points out, voice still low with anger.

"I know." Jade hesitates, rubbing at his temples. He lowers his voice. "I've been taping him. The videos aren't the best, but they should be enough."

Revulsion twists across his associate's face. "You're sick."

There's no amusement in the way he says it, unlike the slavers and their clients, but Jade is more interested in the barely-visible slump of his shoulders and the tiredness in his voice. It seems like his associate has lost this round. Jade should be satisfied; he only feels hollow, doubtful.

It takes another few minutes for his associate to concede defeat, then another hour and half to discuss their next mission. They finish with little in the way of concrete ideas, and by the time he shows his associate to the door, Jade finds he has trouble maintaining even his usual cordial smile.

It doesn't take long before the knot goes down after Jade and his guest disappear into the study. And while Irvin sniffs him, making him stay in the same position for a few more minutes, eventually he seems satisfied and rolls up in a corner.

Once he's certain Irvin is fast asleep, Shinjirou sneaks into the bathroom. It's a disgusting feeling to have Irvin's come run down his thighs, even with soap and hot water to wash it away. He cleans himself up properly, puts salve onto his wounds and into his abused opening, and band-aids over the marks left by Irvin's claws. A definite improvement.

Then there's chores to busy himself with: getting rid of the stains on the floor, vacuuming every room except the study, doing the laundry and preparing dinner -- Shinjirou is fully unaware of the heated discussion that's going on between the two men. He's even in quite a good mood again when they leave the study and bows to the guest to quietly say goodbye.

It's hard not to notice that Jade isn't all that happy, though.

"You two don't get along." Touching Jade's arm, he tilts his head, a small smile on his lips. Jade told him he did the right thing. It doesn't matter that he's a bit sore from the rough mating when he has those words to hold on to. "Can I cheer you up?"

This is...unexpected. Jade finds himself smiling in return before he can really think about it, his lingering doubts fading away for the moment to fester quietly in the back of his mind. This will have to end someday, he knows, but he may as well take advantage of Shinjirou's presence while he has it.

"Was it that obvious?" He adjusts his glasses, self-deprecating. "Thank you for the offer, but I'm fine. It's nothing much."

At the same time, he could do with a distraction from the events of last night (or early this morning, rather). Even now, he can smell the smoke. "Though I wouldn't say no to some food."

"Yeah, it kinda was." Seeing as Jade isn't pushing him away, he feels confident enough to lean against his chest ... and frowns at the dark smell he can taste even on his tongue when he inhales. It's not his place to ask questions, he knows, especially not with Jade visibly stressed.

He admires Jade's control. Seeing it slip even the slightest bit is odd, but sort of nice, too. Perfect control may not be possible, nor necessary. Maybe there's really a chance for him to learn. He sneaks a kiss onto Jade's neck, a bold move he tries to make up for by taking a step back.

"Give me a minute and I'll have dinner ready. Want me to prepare a bath for you while you eat?" Well, not asking questions isn't the same as more or less saying you stink.

He had planned on taking a shower, but a bath sounds better. Jade nods slightly, not at all bothered by the implication that he smells. It's true.

"I'd appreciate that." He gives Shinjirou a quick look over, checking on the state of his injuries. He's nowhere near ready to be tied up prettily and presented as a party favour, but they still have time. As long as he can stop Irvin from doing anything too extreme, he should have enough time to heal.

"I think that'll be all. You can wash my clothes tomorrow."

"Alright. Take a seat."

He sets the table, still wearing the afterthought of a smile the entire time. The guest might've been angry or disgusted, but he doesn't care about guests as long as Jade approves of what he's doing. And with Irvin worn out, it looks like he'll have at least a few more hours of peace to come.

Eventually a steaming-hot plate is placed in front of Jade. "Here you go." Smile growing, Shinjirou fills a second plate for himself, though there's less on it than on Jade's. He doesn't want to spend a lot of time on his dinner, so there'll be enough time to prepare the bath.

"Might be wrong, but sake tonight?"

Relaxing and unwinding. That's what his fellows usually do after a mission. Meanwhile, he's never seen the need, but he supposes trying it out can't hurt. He doesn't have anything he needs to do until tomorrow at the earliest.

"After the bath, perhaps. If you're not too tired, would you like to drink with me?"

He's not trying to instil any lessons into Shinjirou right now; there's no harm in a drink or two. In fact, he seems...buzzed, almost. Happy in a simple, uncomplicated way. Jade isn't entirely sure why, considering how the day had gone. He can't be this affected by the simple reassurance from earlier, can he?

He's tired and maybe drinking isn't the wisest choice he makes today, but he nods all the same. After being alone with a highly agitated Irvin almost all day, the prospect of spending time with Jade -- a human being! -- and having a bit of sake sounds nice. "Sure, why not."

First the bath, though. After finishing his plate and excusing himself, he wanders off to take care of that. He picks a supplement and checks the temperature of the rising water, keeping it at a comfortable level until Jade enters the bathroom. "Hope dinner was alright. Anything I can help you with?"

"It was good," he reassures him, setting down his change of clothing on the counter. Without a hint of self-consciousness, he starts unbuttoning his shirt.

"I should be able to handle a bath by myself." So, no, he doesn't need anything.

It doesn't take long at all to finish bathing and put on some cologne. The air of the bathroom is cool on his damp skin, and after a few rapid blinks, Jade feels more awake than he had all day. Cleaner, too, in more ways than one. Confident and self-assured once more, he strolls out of the bathroom, adjusting his shirt as he does.

Without much to do in the kitchen except do the dishes quickly, he ends up on the sofa, lying on his belly as he reads in the book Jade gave him. He's not the fastest reader and barely past the first chapter. Noticing Jade, he sits up and sets the book aside.

"That was fast." He pours the sake into their cups, then hands one over to Jade. "Huh. You don't look pissed anymore. That's good, right?"

He takes a sip before he responds. The sake burns pleasantly as it goes down, and his eyes half-close lazily. "No no, I'm still seething with rage on the inside."

Was he actually angry? He can't remember. Probably not; he can count the number of times he had truly been angry on one hand. Irritation, though, is another matter entirely. But it must have been quite severe for Shinjirou to have read him.

"No, you don't." Secretly, he's already had some sake, but he sips on his cup as if the sharp aftertaste surprises him, coughing as he swallows. Just another opportunity to train himself how to pretend successfully in front of someone. Jade did say he needed to learn that.

Leaning against him, Shinjirou closes his eyes. This must be allowed, surely? Too late to decide against seeking Jade's closeness. "Any idea why Irvin's been acting strange all day?"

The cough doesn't register as anything out of the ordinary, and the leaning is almost expected by now. Jade accepts it without comment.

"It's not very polite to contradict me," he remarks. "But no, I'm afraid I don't know. My best guess is that he grew bolder without me here this morning."

"Sorry," he murmurs, taking another sip. "Bold is a nice way of putting it."

After all, Irvin threw him down outside. But everything's settled down now and, though he's sore again, he feels at ease. Maybe his body and mind are so worn out, he's finally able to relax because that's all he can do anymore. And he worries he's a bit too bold, too, when he nuzzles Jade's neck.

"You got hard last time. Watching Irvin take me." He refills their cups once they're empty. "So that's something you're into, but not all of your guests?"

It's not exactly pleasant, being reminded of his own perversion, but Jade had enough time to come to terms with it by now. His body doesn't even tense and betray him; he just nods slowly, still smiling.

"Their tastes are quite varied. You'll learn most of them in time, but I don't think you need to concern yourself with him." Mostly because he isn't with the slavers, but he can't exactly tell Shinjirou that. "He prefers his partners to be more innocent. Now that he's seen you like that, I doubt any amount of pretending you do will interest him."

"You make it sound like I want him to be interested in me." Which he would be, if it was something Jade wanted. It doesn't seem like that's the case and so Shinjirou isn't bothered either. Though it is a bit odd, he figures that it must have something to do with Jade not liking the guy. Weird that he invited him at all, but enjoying the sight of someone getting fucked by a dog is weirder and Shinjirou doesn't give it much more thought than that.

"As long as Mr Curtiss is still interested in me," he says, trailing off, watching Jade closely. What he sees as mild teasing may not be all that amusing to Jade -- but he's also trying to find out if he got the name right.

So he remembers. It's unfortunate that they're so close; Jade can't stop himself tensing slightly from surprise. If Shinjirou hadn't been pressed against him, he probably would have been able to conceal it.

Ah well. It can't be helped - the tensing, and his associate's slip of the tongue. Shinjirou knowing shouldn't be too much of a problem, at least. There's little he can do with the information.

"Please, just call me Jade," he says lightly, completely relaxed once more. "Or I really might lose interest."

The response is at the same time not surprising and almost shocking. Jade's mask slips so rarely that Shinjirou doesn't expect it to happen no matter what, but on the other hand it's a normal reaction and, just maybe, Jade's also pretty normal when he isn't a pervert and a tease.

He nods, resting his head on Jade's shoulder again. For a moment he's quiet, thinking. Then he whispers his response: "Yes, Jade." He doesn't want Jade to lose interest. For all the embarrassing, painful situations he's been put through, being with Jade is safer than running around and being a threat to innocent people. Discipline is easier to achieve when it feels better to accept and submit rather than fighting against everything and everyone, especially himself.

"Sounds nicer anyway."

"I agree." He's never been particularly fond of his adoptive family. The years had only widened the gap between them.

It's warm, with Shinjirou curled up against him and the sake sending heat through his whole body. His lids are starting to grow heavy. Draining his cup, he gently disentangles himself from Shinjirou and stands, still steady despite the drinks he had.

"I'm going to bed."

"Huh. Me too." It's been a long day, even if in the end it didn't turn out as bad as Shinjirou had at some point feared it would. Sitting up, he gathers the sake and their empty cups. After putting them into the sink to take care of it tomorrow, he joins Jade.

And wonders if it'd be acceptable to make a request. With mostly an aggressive dog around to play with, he's got to admit to himself that quietly resting his head on another human's shoulder is a nice reprieve. Jade's day has obviously been stressful so far, though. Watching him with a frown, Shinjirou eventually decides against asking if it'd be okay to sleep in his bed and drops onto the futon.

"Anything I need to know about tomorrow?"

"No, I think we'll take it easy for a few days."

And they do, for over a week. He returns Irvin to his owner at the agreed time, along with the tapes, but that's the only big change. Other than that, Jade holes up in his study and works, collecting information and making deals, carefully cultivating his connections with honeyed words and filthy promises.

Shinjirou gets his usual list of chores and a new cookbook, but that's all. Aside from walking Irvin, Jade doesn't take him out of the house again, and the toys and clothes they had bought lie in storage, unused.

It's a period of recovery and a test of Shinjirou's patience both. Finally, one night over dinner when Shinjirou's bruises and cuts have faded to almost nothing, Jade says: "By the way, I've been invited to a party. It's taking place in two days."

Not having to do anything is sort of pleasant, even if he's suspicious at first. He eases into the schedule until he actually feels comfortable, every day being the same over and over again. There's new dishes to try and he makes note of what meets Jade's approval and what he seems to really, really like.

And while Irvin's still around, he uses the time outside to meet Takaya. The drugs are safely tucked away in his pillow case. It's easy to hide something there when he's doing the laundry all day by himself and apart from feeling sleepy after starting up his dose again, there's no change. He takes good care of his body, using the salves every day before going to bed and it's a lot easier to get enough sleep when you're not out on the streets.

Just when he's almost lulled himself into the false belief that his life will be blissfully boring from now on, Jade mentions a party. Jade never mentions anything just because. Raising an eyebrow, he sets down his fork. "... I'm not really a party person."

Edited 2014-11-21 15:57 (UTC)

"I doubt you've had very many experiences." Jade also sets down his fork, reaching for his drink. "At any rate, I've promised to bring you. I know a few of the attendees are quite eager to meet you."

"Nah." Shrugging, he turns his attention back to his not yet empty plate. "What did you tell them? Bet it isn't about my cooking."

Which is alright. He hasn't forgotten what he's been mainly bought for. And it's still a compliment, isn't it? He relaxes again, nibbling on a small piece of meat. "So you're going to let them fuck me, I guess. Never had more than two at a time. Sounds fun." Partially, he's being sarcastic. But then he's also honestly curious what it'll be like. At least he doesn't think his assumption is wrong. "As long as we're not talking animals here."