Psync by Zile Elliven

Chapter Forty-Two

Eli

Eli moped on the bed for exactly six minutes before jumping up and running to the kitchen. He loaded his arms with as many cans of coffee as he could carry and ran back to the bedroom. Then he came back out to grab his laptop—and its charger—and brought them in as well.

He stood in the bedroom doorway and stared at the hoodie still lying on the floor where he’d thrown it. It was Haruka’s. It wasn’t the black hoodie he’d originally given Eli—that was out getting cleaned because reasons—but part of Eli still wanted it.

Finally, he darted out of the doorway and kicked the hoodie across the room, turned around and ran back to the doorway, stopped halfway, ran back, snatched it up and raced into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

He locked the door, but since he didn’t trust Haruka not to break the lock, the next half hour was devoted to shoving as much furniture in front of the door as he could. He had a bathroom, coffee, and his laptop. He could stay here indefinitely.

He had two hours of peace and quiet before there was a knock at the door. Eli put on his headphones and turned on his distraction playlist. The knocking turned into banging, so Eli turned up the volume and tucked his legs inside the hoodie he refused to admit he was wearing.

He ignored the dozens of phone calls from Haruka, but he’d had to switch his music over to his laptop because the calls kept interrupting his songs.

The calls stopped eventually. Then every few minutes his phone would chirp to let him know Haruka had sent him another text.

StupidStupidJerk: Let me in Eli

Or talk to me

Have you eaten yet today?

I see you took all the coffee, but not any food

Let me at least give you something to eat

I know you’re reading these, so at least I know you’re okay

Eli went into Haruka’s contact page and turned off his read receipts. Then he added another Stupid to his name.

StupidStupidStupidJerk: Do you need anything?

You don’t have to see me, I can have someone else bring it to you

Eli?

Tears pricked his eyes, and Eli turned his music all the way up.

Eli: How dare you take my best friend away when I need him the most?!

Eli threw his phone across the room so he didn’t have to see Haruka’s response. Then he put on the fluffiest anime he could think of and watched it until he fell asleep.

When he woke up from a long night of trash fire dreams, it was light out and the apartment was still. Eli climbed on top of the dresser he’d pushed in front of the door and pressed his ear against the door.

Nothing.

Eli gave it a few more minutes before finally getting up the nerve to push everything away from the door. When the noise didn’t bring Haruka running, Eli opened the door to discover the floor was littered with bags full of all of Eli’s favorite snacks—as well as new ones that looked amazing.

If Eli tried to eat now, he’d throw up, so he stepped over the mountain of snacks and nearly killed himself on a Kero-chan plushie keeping guard on the other side. He ran to the kitchen to look for more coffee and was unsurprised to see their supply had been fully restocked. Once again, Eli loaded himself down with all the coffee he could carry.

Before he closed the door to barricade himself back in, his eye caught on the Kero-chan plushie.

Eli picked up the tiny, stuffed flying lion and absolutely did not start crying his eyes out. Neither did he throw the stuffie across the room and then run after it to snatch it up to bring back into his lair.

Before he locked himself back inside, he shoved all of Haruka’s offerings into a massive pile so he wouldn't be able to tell Eli had taken anything without going through the whole thing.

After popping open a can of coffee, Eli retrieved his phone. Ignoring the twenty new messages from Haruka, he typed:

Eli: Don’t be toxic. You can’t buy me

There was an immediate response.

StupidStupidStupidJerk: I’m not trying to buy you. I’m worried you aren’t eating

Eli: Funny

Food isn’t terribly appealing right now for some reason. I wonder why?

StupidStupidStupidJerk: Don’t hurt yourself just to punish me

Please

At least take your meds

Shit, he’d totally forgotten to take his meds.

Eli went to the bathroom, found the right bottle, shook out two pills, took a picture, then dry swallowed them. He may be pissed, but he wasn’t stupid. At some point they would work this out, and it would be better if Eli wasn’t seesawing wildly between mania and depression when it happened.

He was, however, petty enough to wait thirty minutes before texting the picture to Haruka.

StupidStupidStupidJerk: Thank you

Eli: Don’t thank me. I didn’t want you to cut a hole in the wall

StupidStupidStupidJerk: My wall appreciates it

Eli rolled his eyes and went back to ignoring his phone.

An hour later there was a knock at the door.

“Eli, I brought you coffee and muffins.”

Eli walked over to the door and loudly opened a can of coffee at it. He chugged half the can before putting his headphones back on and turning on Eternal Love-Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms. He skipped to the part where QianQian was locked up in her palace and being pathetic as hell. She hadn’t lost her eyes yet—he hated that part and was fully planning on skipping it.

He picked up his phone.

Eli: I swear to god if you try to pluck out my eyes . . .

StupidStupidStupidJerk: Don’t watch the Peach Blossom show right now

I’m begging you

Literally anything else

Eli: Kidnappers don’t get a say in what I watch

Eli sent Juniper a few pictures of Osaka Castle, telling her to expect a ton of presents when he got back. He considered telling her what was actually going on but decided against it. When Haruka pulled his head out of his ass, it would be a massive pain to get Juniper to calm down if she found out his boyfriend had kidnapped him.

It occurred to Eli that a normal reaction to being locked up was fear. He’d felt plenty of it the last time.

But no, Eli wasn’t the one who needed to be afraid right now. If Haruka didn’t back down, Eli was fully prepared to make his life a living hell.

His stomach growled.

Eli poked it and said, “Quiet, tummy, we’re winning this thing. Just hold on a little longer.”

He looked at his phone, and it told him it was only a bit past noon. How long could Haruka hold out before caving? A few hours? A few days? The man was stubborn, but he had serious issues with Eli not eating. Which one was he more obsessed with? Eli eating, or Eli not getting kidnapped?

His stomach growled again.

Fuck this.

He put an ear to the door, but it was only a precaution. Since Haruka wasn’t spamming his phone, it meant he was probably in a meeting.

He dismantled his barricade and stepped into the hallway. He grabbed his wallet, phone, and the cute shoulder bag filled with fancy stationery he’d bought for Alice.

He stopped counting the stairs as he went down them. All he knew was there were way too goddamned many of them, but he couldn’t afford to take the elevator and alert security that he was on his way. Haruka would pay when this was all over. He didn’t know how, but he knew it would involve coffee.

Every few floors, he took a short break so he could catch his breath—and so he could write fuck you on a piece of paper to leave on the landing.

When he finally reached the main floor, he sat on the last step and concentrated on breathing until the corners of his eyes stopped popping with little sparks. He needed to go back to his old gym routine. His nose wrinkled when he remembered who helped him come up with his old routine. Stupid Ash.

He hoisted himself up and put on his game face. Then he opened the door and bolted for the exit.

As expected, he was surrounded in seconds.

He took a deep breath and crossed his fingers, hoping his boyfriend was exactly as obsessed with Eli as he thought he was.

“Excuse me, but you’re between me and the place I want to go.” Eli moved toward the door, and the security guard in front of him took a step back.

“Please forgive me, sir,” the guard stammered.

Eli took another step forward. The guard took another step back, then another as Eli kept going.

In his peripheral vision, Eli could see the other guards throwing looks at one another as Eli backed the lone guard against the door. There was less than an inch between them when he moved forward again. The guard pushed the door open, and Eli stepped outside.

“I’m sorry, that was incredibly rude of me. But your boss gave you instructions that were impossible to follow.” Eli bowed low. “It’s not your fault. I promise I won’t let him fire you. What’s your name?”

“Kamakura Keiji.”

Eli watched as Kamakura’s eyes darted between Eli and the other guards filing outside.

For a moment, it looked like one of them was about to get brave, so Eli said quickly, “Trust me, he meant it when he told you not to touch me. He’ll be angrier about that one than letting me go.” Eli bit his lip because he wasn’t entirely certain it was true.

Nara sounded like a great place for lunch. But how was he going to get there?

“Kamakura-san . . . do you have a car?”

“Yes, but—”

“I know you’re going to follow me when I leave. Wouldn’t it be easier to do so if we were in the same car? I’ll even let you drive.”

Kamakura looked like he was questioning every single one of his life choices when he sighed and said, “Follow me.”

✽✽✽

On his epic list of things to do in Japan, visiting the Daibutsu in Nara was in the top five. He’d planned on dragging Haruka there, but that was out the window now. Eli would have to go on his own.

He sat in the back of a very nice car—probably not Kamakura’s, since it was loaded with expensive-looking snacks, drinks, a flatscreen TV, a Nintendo Switch, and a half dozen other things Eli hadn’t yet figured out the purpose for.

He bit into something that was a bit like a waffle and a bit like a cookie while scrolling through his phone, searching for other things to do in the area. A name caught his eye. Tenkawa Benzaiten.

It was a shrine he’d read about in his History of Japanese Religion class. He’d found himself doing more research on the kami of the shrine because something about her had spoken to him. The kami’s name was Benzaiten, and she was the goddess of things that flowed—music, water, knowledge, and words.

Eli sat up and tapped the button to open the window between him and Kamakura. “Stop here, please.” He passed his phone through the window to show his unhappy driver the location.

✽✽✽

The shrine was breathtaking even in late fall.

Eli leaned against the car and took in the vibrant red torii—the massive gate found at the entrance of Shinto shrines.

“I’ll be right back,” Eli said to Kamakura.

He started toward the torii and stopped when he realized he was being followed. “I don’t need a babysitter.”

“Sir—” Kamakura began, looking conflicted.

“Listen, this relationship of ours is built on compromise. I recognize that I can’t shake you entirely, and you understand that you can’t actually stop me from doing what I want, right?”

Kamakura nodded slowly.

“Excellent. Now, I’m going inside this shrine for, hmm, about thirty minutes, and you’re going to stay by the car and wait for me. I’m not going to run off. You have the car, after all.”

“I don’t know . . .”

“Let me—” Fuck. What was the word for rephrase in Japanese? All he could come up with was the word in Spanish—which was ridiculous because he only knew ten words in Spanish. “Say in a different way, only not so nice. I’m going in there alone, or I will hug you and take a picture of it to send to your boss. Okay?”

Kamakura went pale and stepped backward, nearly tripping in his haste. “Please don’t do that.”

“Great! I’m glad we’ve reached this compromise. If I’m not back in thirty minutes, you can come get me.”

“No hugging?”

“No hugging.”

Eli whistled as he walked away. Haruka’s employees were going to get a very skewed idea of Eli during this trip. Kamakura probably thought Eli was a cuddle-happy touch-freak.

He burst out laughing as he walked toward the torii, startling two tourists taking a selfie. Before he entered, he remembered to bow before walking through the gate. History of Japanese Religion was really coming through for him right now.

For a time, he stood on a small, red bridge and stared unseeing at the landscape, not entirely sure what he was doing there.

It was peaceful, probably because it was late in the season. Most of the trees had lost their leaves, and there was a bite to the air. Eli wrapped his arms around himself, snuggled into the sweater he’d stolen from Haruka’s side of the closet, then moved further into the shrine.

When he reached the main shrine building, he bowed and placed a handful of yen into the offering box. Then he rang the bell, bowed twice, and clapped his hands twice. Then he pressed his palms together and lowered his head.

Hi. Um, I’m Eli Talosa from Massachusetts. I know I’m a foreigner, but I really love your country. Thank you for having me? Ugh, this is awkward, I know, sorry. It’s just, you seem like someone who might get where I’m coming from. I know this sounds crazy, but I think I might be cursed by a god and . . .

What the hell was he doing? Was Eli actually coming up to a foreign god and begging for help? What else was he supposed to do? Either he was crazy, and he needed help, or he and Haruka were cursed, and they needed help. In any case the only way to get help was to ask.

If there is anything you can do to help, I’d really appreciate it. Thanks!

Eli bowed again and ran away.

Sheesh. He felt like he’d just tattled to a teacher because someone was bullying him. And all he could think about was whether he was supposed to have rung the bell and then clapped, or the other way around. He really should have paid more attention in class.

He was about to go back to the car when he realized he wasn’t ready yet. As much as he wanted to be plows boldly forward in the face of trouble Eli, he was seriously freaking out.

So, he found a nice tree to freak out under.

His kidnapper was on the loose and probably looking for him. Haruka had gone bananas. And there may or may not be a god who had cursed the both of them to an eternity of being torn apart.

Eli put his head between his knees.

It hadn’t been just a dream. Right?

It had felt so real. Dying over and over again, losing Haruka, being torn away from him countless times—it had been too horrible for it to have just been a dream.

And he was here dealing with it alone instead of having his partner with him to share the burden.

He lifted his head. Had Haruka had the same dream? If he had, that would explain why he’d suddenly gone all alpha male on Eli.

Haruka was probably hurting as much as Eli, and Eli had just ditched him to go sightseeing.

He should have talked to him.

Eli leaned his head against the tree. So, this is what it feels like to be a stupid jerk.

He wasn’t a fan.

In a few minutes, he would pull up his big boy pants and try and fix this mess, but for now he would sit and be still.

He closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of nature. The wind swirling through fallen leaves, a lone bird chirping, a shrine maiden sweeping the pathway.

He reached into his shoulder bag and pulled out a notebook and pen.

Even if our curse

Separates us once again

I will still find you

 

He wasn’t the best at poetry, but it seemed fitting to write something at the shrine of a kami who presided over words. And because he was Eli, he wrote the work jerk at the end of his haiku.

“You realize that word means jerk, right?” a young, feminine voice asked in English.

Eli looked up to see the shrine maiden looking over his shoulder. “Yes.”

“And that adding it means it isn’t a haiku anymore. You’ve got too many syllables now.”

Eli smiled ruefully. “I know. But even though it doesn’t fit, it’s still fitting.”

The shrine maiden raised an eyebrow. “If you say so.”

Eli stood, bowed to the shrine maiden, and turned to go. He pulled out his phone. The Daibutsu would have to wait for another day.

He dialed Haruka’s number.

A phone buzzed softly behind him.

Eli turned to see Haruka standing in the shadow of a tree several feet away. “How long have you been here?”

“Not long.” Haruka’s face was in default mode. Cold and distant.

“It wasn’t nice to lock me up.”

“Hn.”

“That’s not what partners do.” Eli started to walk down the path, and Haruka joined him, keeping several feet of space between them.

“I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

“But I would do it again.”

Eli laughed softly. “I know that too.”

They walked quietly for a while, making their way deeper into the trees surrounding the shrine.

“I’m sorry too,” Eli said finally, inching closer. “I should have talked to you, but I was so hurt, I couldn’t even look at you.”

Haruka stopped, and Eli turned to face him. He looked even worse than he had during their fight. The shadows under his eyes had increased, making his ethereal beauty haunting.

The space between them was only about a foot now, but it felt like a thousand miles. Eli couldn’t feel even the slightest hint of his presence in his mind.

“Did you have the same dream?”

Haruka went stiff, and his face went even colder. “Someone kept taking you away from me.” A shudder went through his large frame. “They hurt you, and I couldn’t stop them.”

Eli bridged the thousand-mile gap without thinking. His arms went around Haruka, and he held him tight. Haruka was like a statue in his arms, cold and unmoving. “Don’t shut me out, Haruka. Don’t be the reason we get torn apart this time.”

And it would tear them apart. Maybe not this time or the next, but eventually, Eli wouldn’t be able to take being cut out of the loop and locked away.

Tentatively, Haruka lifted his arms and wrapped them around Eli, holding him carefully, like he was some precious, fragile thing.

“I’ll let you protect me and be as crazy as you want. Just . . . talk to me first. I don’t want to be taken away from you any more than you want to lose me.”

Haruka crushed Eli against his chest with bruising force, but Eli didn’t care. He burrowed in and held on tight. Eli felt wetness on top of his head and realized Haruka was crying.

“Okay.” Haruka whispered and rubbed his face against Eli’s hair. “Whatever happens, we’ll face it together.”

Eli was about to tell Haruka not to use his hair as a handkerchief when he heard the sound of clapping.

“You two are adorable, really.”

Haruka turned and shoved Eli behind him, but left him enough room to see a tall, blond man standing on the path in front of them.

“I thought you were going to do my work for me this time, but here you are working things out and being annoyingly clingy in the process.”

“Who are you?” Haruka asked in a low, dangerous tone.

“Someone you betrayed and abandoned.”

Something hot and heavy slammed down on him, locking him into place. Haruka’s body jerked at the same time, and Eli felt a flash of alarm through their bond.

Fuck.

“I doubt that,” Eli said shakily, trying to push through the fear lancing through his body. The story he’d read said nothing about the girl betraying the god. Also, something inside of him clashed against the claim. As if outraged by the accusation.

“Like you would know.” The man sneered. “I’ve erased your memories so many times there must be nothing left of your first life.”

“I know enough to know I’d never want someone like you.” Eli peered up at Haruka’s face. He’d never want anyone other than the man currently holding onto him like his life depended on it. “And he doesn’t want you either.”

Eli felt a strong burst of agreement come from Haruka.

:We need to get out of here. Now.:

:You finally done shutting me out?: Eli asked.

:Yes.:

:Good. Can you move?:

: . . . No,: Haruka said, grudgingly.

The mad god carried on, oblivious to their silent conversation. “If I put you back together, you might change your mind about that. What do you say? Wouldn’t you like to know what it’s like being whole again?”

Twin spikes of revulsion bounced between them.

:No offense, Haruka. You know I love you, but I don’t want to be you.:

:I don’t want to be you either. You’re more fun to play with when I can see you. Besides, I’m not sharing you with anyone, let alone this guy.:

:Agreed, so what do we do?:

:Stall, until we see an opening.:

Eli could do that. “We don’t need you to make us whole. Don’t you have something better to do with your time? If it’s been so long, maybe you should find a better hobby.”

The god threw back his head and laughed. “How about just you then? I’ve always found this side of you more amusing than the cold, quiet side. What do you say, pretty? If you go with me, I’ll leave this one alone.”

Eli’s stomach churned. Could he sacrifice himself like that? If it was for Haruka?

:Don’t even think about it. You said you wanted me to stop shutting you out, that means you can’t do it either.:

:Together or nothing then?:

:Together or nothing.:

:It’s been nice knowing you in this life.:

:It’s not over yet.:

“Neither of us is going with you,” Eli said.

“Do you even realize how self-centered it is for the two of you to be together like this? You’re lucky that I even want you.”

“Then stop wasting your time on us. Go find someone else more worthy of your attention.” Eli spat. He didn’t care how weird they were. Nothing felt as right as the bond he had with Haruka. This god could get bent.

“Fine. If you don’t want to be reasonable, I’ll just reset you both again.” The man held up his hands, and clouds parted overhead. The sun instantly became scorching. “Maybe next time, I’ll find a way to make it so you can’t meet. You’ll feel differently me about me if I become your savior instead of him.”

:I hate this guy.: Haruka’s mental voice growled, vibrating Eli down to his bones.

:I don’t care what he says. There is no world where we don’t find each other.: Eli gripped Haruka so tightly his fingers went numb. He tried desperately to move his feet, but the weight pushed even harder, and his knees nearly buckled.

:I will always find you. Wait for me.:

:Make sure and be a massive jerk next time so I’ll recognize you.: Eli’s throat hurt from holding back tears. He refused to cry in front of this asshole of a god.

:As long as you make sure to be a tiny brat.:

:It’s a deal.:

They faced the god defiantly, standing side by side, holding hands, ready for whatever was about to come.

A ball of blazing light formed in the god’s hands, and Eli found a detached part of him thinking how cool this would look if it wasn’t happening to them.

Eli braced himself, ready to die, ready to be torn away from Haruka, willing himself to remember everything this time. He wouldn’t be fooled by this asshat. He would find Haruka, and they would figure out how to get rid of this guy in their next life.

Eli felt Haruka’s wordless assent as the light flashed and sped toward them—only to be blocked by a broom.

The little shrine maiden stood between them and the mad god with a look of faint irritation. “I told you it was a bad match, Helios. I told you this hundreds of years ago when you came after my boy the first time.”

“Stay out of this, Benzaiten.” Helios snarled.

“Excuse me? You come into my house, attack my people, and have the nerve to tell me to stay out of it?” Benzaiten seemed to grow with every word, until she towered over Helios.

The weight vanished from Eli’s body. Eli and Haruka exchanged glances and, in unison, scrambled back to give the gods some space.

“Your people? This one has belonged to me since she was born.”

“We’re two people now, assface!” Eli couldn’t stop himself from shouting.

“Yes. Mine.” The goddess said each word like an attack. Helios staggered backward. When this one was born on my shores”—Benzaiten nodded toward Haruka—“he became mine. Why do you think he kept being reincarnated here again and again?”

Helios gave her a calculating look. “Then keep that one, I don’t want him anyway. But give the other one to me.”

The goddess turned and fixed her eyes on Eli. “You should have been mine, Eli. I’ve been waiting for you to come here. You’ve gotten close many times, lived dozens of lives throughout Asia, but this is the first time you’ve made it to my shores.” Benzaiten turned back to Helios. “When he asked for my help today, he became mine as well.”

Haruka looked at Eli in surprise. “Is that why you came here?”

“I wasn’t planning on it, but yeah. Kinda?”

“You have no power over my people, Helios. Amaterasu knows you’re here, and she’s not happy about it. She still has many worshipers to fuel her. Do you?”

The mention of the Japanese sun goddess had Helios dropping his hands. For the first time, his arrogant smile left his face. He looked toward Eli and Haruka “You were supposed to be mine.”

“We were never yours.”

The sun blazed brighter, but Helios no longer seemed strengthened by its rays. Instead, he dropped to his knees.

“She’s almost here, Helios,” Benzaiten said, twirling her broom artfully.

Helios gave Haruka and Eli one final look and vanished.

The sun’s rays flickered as if it were disappointed.

“Um.” Eli began and stopped.

“Thank you.” Haruka released his death grip on Eli and bowed to the goddess.

Hastily, Eli followed suit. “Thank you so very much.” He used the politest version of Japanese he could manage.

“You’re very welcome. Both of you. I’ve wanted to do this for ages, but this is the first time you’ve been here, Eli. Haruka belonged to this land when he was born here. All of the gods and goddesses have been aware of your problem for some time, but we haven’t been able to do anything about it until now. Do you want to belong here, Eli?”

“Yes, please!” Was that too eager? He felt like maybe he’d just been too eager.

Benzaiten laughed, and it sounded like water flowing playfully over river stones. “Good. Take good care of each other, you two. We’re all invested in your relationship, so make it a good one.”

The goddess touched each of them on the head. Eli’s mind glowed happily, and his internal alarm stayed silent. Apparently, it didn’t mind goddesses.

“I’ve given you both my blessing.” She held out both hands. “Here, I have one for each of you.”

Eli reached out and allowed her to place a small silk bag in his hand. It was an omamori—a good luck charm usually found for sale at shrines and temples. This one was a little different than the ones Eli was used to seeing. It had three tiny bells attached to the drawstring. They tinkled softly as he turned the bag in his hand.

“If you take these with you, it should be safe to return to your home for a time, Eli, but I’m afraid you can’t stay. This is your true home now. Helios can’t touch you here, but my blessing will fade if you leave for too long.”

“How long do I have before I need to come back?”

“You must return every two months to recharge the omamori here at my shrine, but I warn you, it isn’t perfect protection. Helios can still find you and might be able to hurt you if he’s clever. You will only be truly safe here.”

Eli nodded and bowed again. “Thank you.”

Haruka bowed as well.

The goddess turned and walked away, sweeping the path as she went. She looked smaller somehow, and Eli had the impression that if he ran after her, she wouldn’t know who he was anymore.

“That really happened, right?” He held the omamori gingerly, afraid it would disappear if he wasn’t careful.

Haruka gave Eli a half smile. “Hn.”

Eli twined his fingers with Haruka’s. “So, what now? Do we go back to America?”

Haruka squinted up at the sky, then gazed at the shrine maiden in the distance. “Maybe just for a little while. If that’s what you really want.”

“What about your family? It looked like something big was happening there.”

Haruka heaved a big sigh.

“Full disclosure, Haruka.”

“Full disclosure.” He guided Eli to a bench, and they sat down. “The company is supposed to be mine, but I don’t want it. My aunt runs things, and I’ve been happy with the arrangement. Technically, I can take over at any time though. I hold a majority of the stock. A large majority.”

“What have you been doing the past few days if you don’t want to be in charge?”

Haruka smirked. “I’ve been proving to my aunt that I’m more than capable of doing so if she doesn’t stay out of my life. It backfired though. She wants me to step in and help her manage things.”

“Is that something you want to do?”

Haruka shrugged. “I want to do whatever will keep me with you.”

“Oh,” Eli said in a small voice. “That doesn’t sound fair.”

Haruka took his hand, and suddenly Eli could feel the truth of Haruka’s words. Everything he did centered around Eli. What he wanted most was to see Eli smile and to make sure he had many opportunities to keep doing so.

“You are so freaking soft,” Eli said, trying to ignore the heat in his cheeks. “If our classmates could see you like this—” He looked down, unable to meet Haruka’s eyes.

“I’m only soft for you.” Haruka cupped Eli’s chin and lifted it.

“Make sure and keep it like that.” Eli finally allowed himself to meet Haruka’s gaze. He was absolutely gone on the man. He had been from the moment they’d met, he just hadn’t realized it yet.

:I will.: Haruka dipped his head and pressed his lips against Eli’s.

Eli sighed happily and wrapped his arms around Haruka’s neck. In the distance a car horn caught his attention, and he pulled away.

“Oh no, I forgot about Kamakura-san!”

Haruka narrowed his eyes. “Please continue to forget about him. Forever.”

“Oh no, you don’t. He was only trying to do his job.”

“He did it badly.”

“What was he supposed to do, chase me with a giant butterfly net? Face it, you gave him terrible orders.” Eli stood up and held his hand out for Haruka. “And I may have tricked him a bit as well.”

Haruka took his hand and stood. “I need smarter employees.”

“You’re not allowed to fire Kamakura-san. I promised him I wouldn’t let you.”

“Hmph.”

“Promise me.” Eli tugged on Haruka’s hand.

“Fine. I’ll just relocate him.”

“That’s just as bad!”

“He can work at our Russian branch.”

“Is it nice there? I’ve never been interested in Russia, so I don’t know anything about it.”

“Russia, it is.”