Sui Writes

Tag: Romance

  • A Thousand Years of Hope Ch 16-2

    Tani cursed under his breath as he walked away from Dante, his heart speeding in his chest. Just now, when Dante cut the dead branch off the tree, he thought they were going to kiss. It hurt him when Dante turned away without giving in to the urge.

    It was always so difficult at the start of their relationship. This pull between them was too hard to manage. If Tani were asked, they would have spent most of their time here in bed, but…

    He could not be greedy. He needed to remember to take his time. Remember their connection was new for Dante. Their love was fresh…again.

    Tani closed his eyes in frustration and rubbed his forehead with his right hand. He would have let out a soft sigh, but then a strong hand gripped his left wrist, pulling him to a stop.

    Tani gasped when Dante dragged him into his arms and kissed him hard. A deep hungry, demanding kiss that had Tani closing his eyes and his free hand gripping Dante’s left arm to keep steady.

    Dante let go of his wrist. He cupped Tani’s face and kissed him again, like a man starved, finally giving Tani the passionate kiss he had been craving.

    Tani let out a soft moan, wrapping his arms around Dante’s waist, his fingers bunching Dante’s white linen shirt. Feeling the heat coming off Dante’s body. Tani closed his eyes, losing himself in their hungry kiss. He felt too hot, insanely needy, his skin turning sensitive, needing to feel Dante’s hands on him.

    Dante broke their kiss a moment and Tani opened his eyes to find Dante studying him. Dante caressed Tani’s bottom lip with his thumb.

    Dante’s gaze was sharp and filled with heat. His lips slightly parted, his breathing coming a little too fast, as he slid an arm around Tani’s waist and pulled him closer. Closer still until their chests touched. Tani’s breath came in shaky breaths as he brought his arms around Dante’s shoulders. Dante held him tighter, turning to pin Tani against the trunk of the closest apple tree. His big body pressed against Tani in full possessive ownership.

    Tani’s breath snagged as his cock filled with need, arousal engulfing him in a hot cloud. Dante took advantage of his parted lips and set his mouth to his again. His kiss was ravaging. Tani’s blood surged in response, his body molding to Dante. He tightened his arms around Dante, savoring his taste, hot, wild, and utterly uncivilized. Their shared heat was so familiar it brought the sting of tears to Tani’s eyes.

    Dante pressed him harder against the apple tree, his hands moving over Tani’s body, stroking down Tani’s back, cupping his bottom, and grinding his swollen cock against him. Long fingers slipped between them, feeling Tani’s hard length through his trousers. Tani let out an aroused moan, his fingers digging into Dante’s hair in response. He undid the rubber band Dante used to hold his hair and sunk his fingers into the soft tresses, holding on, making Dante moan.

    Dante pressed his palm on Tani’s hard length, his touch bold, sensual. Tani had seconds of warning; his hard cock pulsed so hard, he feared he might disgrace himself from the sensation. Then Dante stroked his palm over him and Tani forgot modesty. An intense orgasm built up inside him and fractured into a million pieces leaving him shaking. Tani let out a hoarse moan, arching into Dante’s caress at a loss.

    Dante took in his moans with a sweet kiss, and a soft sob escaped when Dante wrapped a secure arm around him to keep him steady. Holding him tight through his weakening ecstasy. Their kiss broke and Tani buried his face into Dante’s shoulder, closing his eyes as his breath came too fast trying to find his balance again. He clung to Dante’s shoulders afraid he was going to melt to the ground.

    Dante buried his nose into Tani’s right shoulder and breathed him in. He pressed his lips on the soft curve of Tani’s shoulder, sucking on sensitive skin, and then licked at the spot with hot intimacy.

    Tani trembled.

    “This is my answer,” Dante murmured into his ear after a while. His hot breath sent maddening electric tingles racing down Tani’s spine. “I want you. All of you. Every part of you. I don’t want to wait. Let’s make love, Tani.”

    Tani held on to Dante, elated. He opened his eyes and stared at the rows of apple trees closest to them. They were filled with blooming white flowers, even the ones that had none before were now heavy with them. He grinned and decided to hide this strange happenstance of his ecstasy from Dante, for the moment anyway.

    “Let’s go inside,” Tani murmured.

    “Mm,” Dante agreed.

    Tani held onto Dante and teleported them straight to the bathroom. His cheeks flushed with color when Dante cupped his face and tilted his head up.

    “You’re gorgeous,” Dante murmured, studying Tani’s face. His thumb stroked Tani’s right cheek, the pad of his thumb shifting to trace over Tani’s bottom lip.

    “I’ve wanted to see you this way for a while,” Dante said.

    “Messy because you drove me to the brink with a simple touch?” Tani asked, his cheeks flaming, somewhat mortified by his swift orgasm in the orchard. He had thought he had more control. Turns out Dante could drive him to the edge with a simple kiss.

    “Wanting me,” Dante corrected, taking Tani’s lips in a soft kiss. Then he murmured against Tani’s lips, “as much as I want you. There’s nothing messy about our passion. It’s how it should be.”

    Dante kissed him again and then helped Tani out of his clothes. His hands were gentle as he helped Tani pull off his t-shirt. Dante dropped it to the floor with a small smile. His gaze was appreciative as he took in Tani’s figure. His fingers were sure when they reached for Tani’s trousers. He unbuttoned them with a single flick of his fingers. Tani held Dante’s gaze as Dante pulled down the zipper and Tani’s trousers dropped to the floor. Tani stepped out of them and closed his eyes when Dante reached for his dark underwear. His fingers warm against Tani’s skin.

    Dante took Tani’s lips in a short sweet kiss, as he pushed his messy boxer briefs down.

    Then, Tani stood naked before Dante.

    Dante looked at him, his gaze heated as it traveled down from his shoulders, down his chest, to his stomach then to his aching cock. Tani fought the urge to step back as he faced his beloved for the first time in decades. With no clothes to shield him, and no lies between them, Tani decided to take off the glamour that hid his origins. His eyes took on the distinctive fox clan slits. Kinon’s cuffs on his wrists restored to their true form, heavy and punishing on his wrists.

    Tani met Dante’s gaze.

    “This is my true self,” Tani murmured, his voice shaking, vulnerable.

    Dante took a step closer. He placed his hands on Tani’s bare shoulders. His fingers started a slow gentle caress down Tani’s arms. He held Tani’s gaze as his fingers wrapped around Tani’s wrists, holding the gold cuffs that marked him a deviant. He lifted Tani’s right hand to his lips and pressed his lips to the cool gold metal.

    Dante then brought Tani’s hand to his left cheek and Tani straightened his fingers to cup Dante’s cheek.

    “What?” Tani asked.

    “I think you’re expecting that I’ll turn away from you. You show me your cuffs, your eyes, wanting me to cringe and run,” Dante said, shaking his head. He took Tani’s hands and brought them to his chest and the buttons of his white linen shirt. “I won’t, Tani. You’re stuck with me now, no matter what we face in the future.”

    Tani sucked in air at the mention of the future. He thought about Cale’s warning. The idea that someone took Dante’s life when they parted filled his head. Panic had him dropping his gaze to the buttons on Dante’s shirt. The longer he spent with Dante, the more he wished Cale were wrong. The more he wanted to know what a future with Dante looked like. The future he never once experienced in Dante’s company, he wanted to know it.

    Tani undid the first button of Dante’s shirt and looked up to find Dante studying him.

    Their future seemed far away and unsolvable, but the now was here. Tani decided he would lose himself in their shared bliss.

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  • The Man I Like Might Be a Delinquent

    The Man I Like Might Be A Delinquent Book Cover

    Title: The Man I Like Might Be A Delinquent
    Status: Ongoing
    Chapters:
    Category: Modern
    Tags: mmromance, Axel Graysen, Jeha Wook, Family Business, Doctor, Love at First Sight, Aeras Kingdom World
    Description:
    After a strange anticlimactic kidnapping, Axel Graysen is pulled into the tumultuous world of the Wook Family. Axel treats Jeha Wook’s gunshot wound and ends up treating the oddly large team of brothers who work for Jeha. The problem is that Jeha’s people all seem like delinquents, and Jeha is the largest delinquent of them all. Axel worries about how he will keep the man he likes from getting hurt again.

    Chapters

  • The Man I Like Might be a Delinquent – 1-1

    The Man I Like Might be a Delinquent – 1-1

    Part 1

    Dr. Graysen endures Rapture’s Damage

    Dr. Axel Graysen sat on a concrete slab near the railing on the roof of the Wuga Hospital.  Sipping orange juice from a bottle he filled at the cafeteria, he stared at the dark sky and the rising full moon gracing the Kingdom of Aeras with its brilliance tonight.

    Their Capital City was going to be bright this Thursday night.

    Veteran doctors at the Wuga Hospital insisted a full moon meant the Emergency Room would fill with the craziest medical emergencies.  The weirdest medical situations cropped up and the emergency department remained in a state of nonstop crisis until morning.

    Axel once tried to disprove the theory, but experience soon proved the veterans right.  He tried not to be on call during a full moon. That he was on call tonight was thanks to a series of events.

    Axel shifted his gaze to the helipad platform on the other end of the building.

    Three days ago, Dr. Brown, his Residency Professor, called Axel to receive a VIP patient.  The patient arrived on a medic-helicopter and it turned out to be the man responsible for building and establishing the Wuga Hospital in the Capital City, Mr. Chae Wook.

    Chae Wook was presenting with acute abdominal pain on arrival.

    Axel agreed to give Chae Wook emergency care until his attending doctor, Dr. Raff, arrived at the hospital. He completed all admission procedures and settled Mr. Wook in the private wing on the top floor of the building.  Yisu Wook, Mr. Wook’s only son, added in a moment of excitement when he hugged Axel hard in gratitude. He thanked Axel for managing his father’s pain levels.

    When Dr. Raff arrived an hour later, Axel was free to return to his usual final year-of-residency existence.

    Axel was completing his last year of a six-year integrated cardiothoracic residency at the Wuga Hospital. However, it was nice to see the world Dr. Raff lived in and maybe want a bit of it for himself.

    Dr. Brown was his residency mentor and a professor he admired thoroughly.

    Axel was surprised to discover that Dr. Raff was Dr. Brown’s husband.  He had been both embarrassed and impressed by the discovery.

    Embarrassed because Dr. Brown was the one person he looked up to at Wuga Hospital.  Dr. Brown had helped him get through his residency, and made him a better doctor.  He should have known about Dr. Raff being his husband.

    He was also impressed because it took extra work to keep a marriage going with their crazy demanding lifestyle.

    Axel could barely manage his personal life.  He owned an apartment with three pieces of furniture.  A couch gifted to him by his mother, a coffee table laden with research papers and medical journals, and a bed.  When he did make it home depending on his level of tiredness, the farthest he got to was the couch. When he was lucid, his bed saw him. Those were the longest most faithful relationships he had kept these past six years.

    His dad managed his utilities and tiny investments.  His mom had hired an amazing woman who helped stock Axel’s apartment with groceries and pre-packaged meals. Now that he was nearing his residency’s end, his time was packed with board certifications and finding a great posting preferably at the Wuga Hospital.

    At what point could he think to add in a husband?

    Shaking his head, Axel sipped his orange juice and glanced at the time on his watch.  He had two more minutes. Capping the bottle, Axel scratched the stubble on his chin and pushed off the slab.  He walked back to the stairwell entrance and started a slow walk down to the emergency department.

    Axel had agreed to take on a night shift for one of the third-year residents in his group. He ran into her the night he returned to his desk from helping Dr. Raff.  Her name was Ronnie, she was very kind and hardworking. He was shocked to see her crying as she studied their schedule, so he tried to offer comfort. It turned out she was taking care of her mother who suffered a traffic accident and was admitted to the hospital. Ronnie wanted to stay with her mother to get through surgery aftercare.

    Axel agreed to help by taking one of her shifts. He tried to be kind to his co-workers where he could. This was why he had ended up with a full moon night at the emergency department. He was exhausted from a long day and had needed a ten-minute break on the roof before he tackled time in the emergency department.

    Drinking the last of his orange juice, Axel took the last set of stairs and opened the door that would lead him to the emergency floor.

    “Dr. Graysen,” the nurse in charge greeted him when she saw him.

    She stood behind the nurse’s station holding the phone.

    “Nina.”

    “I was about to call you.  Medics 23, 24, and 25 in route with a code blue, and two in potential code blue.”

    Axel took off his doctor’s coat, handing it and the orange juice bottle over to Nina. It was easier to work the night shift in just his scrubs. She placed the coat on the chair next to her behind the counter, the bottle under the counter, and handed him his stethoscope.

    Axel sanitized his hands as Nina started an announcement over the public address.

    “Attention Wuga Emergency Department.  Three medics enroute with one code blue, and two in critical condition.  ETA three minutes.”

    Axel was already heading to the emergency doors, followed by three of the third-year residents in his group and four nurses, behind them, Nina had the rest of the nurses and technicians moving machines, and medicine carts, and preparing emergency bays.

    Axel forgot the tension in his shoulders as the ambulances arrived.  The paramedics opened the doors and Axel checked the vitals of the code blue patient.  He left the other two patients to two third-year residents as they rushed the coding patient to the resuscitation room.

    “Female, 22, vitals are critical,” the paramedic reported as they moved.  “We used the defibrillator twice. We’ve administered three epis so far.  Pupils remain fixed and dilated.  Her friend says she ingested pills called Rapture at the club where we picked her up but we have no samples. Never heard of them.”

    They moved the young woman onto the hospital bed and the paramedic stepped aside to allow Axel and his team to take over.

    “The same conditions apply to the other two who came in with us,” the paramedic continued. “The detectives in charge of the case are right behind us. There might be more incoming patients.”

    “Oliver, take over compressions,” Axel said to the third-year resident with him.  He opened an app on his iPhone to a metronome, matching the rhythm to the patient’s heartbeat.

    Axel checked the vitals on the screen and hurried around to the patient’s head.  This was likely a severe overdose case.  First, they needed to get the patient’s heart beating on its own again.

    The paramedics had inserted a breathing tube down her throat and into her lungs.   Axel checked to make sure it was sitting right.  He was relieved they had done a good job.  One of Nina’s nurses had already taken over the administration of oxygen.

    Oliver’s chest compressions on the woman’s chest had frothy pulmonary secretions rising up through the breathing tube.  The fluids spilled out on the patient’s clothes. Oliver kept up compressions.

    “How long has she been down?” Axel asked the paramedic.

    “Twelve minutes,” the paramedic said.

    Shit!

    Oliver’s tempo changed.  He was getting tired.

    “Hold compressions for a rhythm check,” Axel said, glancing at the monitor.

    The monitor showed a little heart rhythm.  Axel grabbed the ultrasound and placed it over the young woman’s heart.  The heartbeat came back soft. It was still too faint to sustain their patient’s life.

    “Roll her to her right side,” Axel said.

    The nurses, two second-year residents, and Oliver rolled the patient to the right side.  Axel grabbed a pair of scissors and cut her dress to check her back. He felt panic rise when he noted faint streaks of pooling blood.  She was crashing fast.

    Still, the heart was moving however faint.  Carbon dioxide readings looked normal.

    “Lay her back,” Axel said and ordered the second-year resident to restart compressions in place of Oliver.

    Axel ordered another dose of epinephrine. Oliver administered it, and his skills were fast and efficient.  They inserted lines into their patient’s left hand. Axel followed up the epi with a series of life-saving drugs to support resuscitation.  He helped cut away stockings and pulled off the party dress.  Nina replaced it with a hospital gown.

    Axel monitored vitals. He used the defibrillator once to support the restoration of electrical activity and urged a fresh second-year doctor to continue compressions.

    A precious six minutes passed in tense activity.  Nina recorded Axel’s orders, each action they did, the numbers on monitors, and the number of compressions Oliver and the second-year residents put in. Axel was sweating when the heart monitor finally gave them back a strong note and sustained the rhythm.

    “She’s back,” Oliver said, his voice weary.  “Her heart’s beating again.”

    Nina patted Axel’s back, her own relief coming in a swift sigh, and then she urged the nurses to start the cleanup.

    Axel could only nod with a grim expression on his face as he stared at their patient’s vitals.  Her heart was beating, but…it had taken too long to get her back.  Too long.

    Adding the six minutes on to the twelve minutes with the paramedics, Axel feared their patient was brain dead.

    “Prep her for ICU,” Axel said to Oliver.  “Call neurology.”

    “Do you think she’ll make it?” Nina asked.

    “We’ve done the best we can for her right now. A neurologist will monitor her vitals,” Axel said, shaking his head.  “How are the other two—?”

    “Dr. Graysen!”

    Axel left the first room and ran into the second one to find their second patient, a young man this time, coding.

    “Code blue,” the third-year resident said.

    “How long?”

    “Just started.”

    “Compressions, STAT,” Axel said, calling out epinephrine orders and restarting the metronome on his phone. “Nina, get Dr. Brown for the third patient. Keep the paramedics and liaise with the police officers on this case.  We need more information on the drugs the patients took.”

    Nina hurried away and Axel found his third-year’s compressions were off rhythm.

    “Get off,” Axel ordered, his tone harsh, unforgiving.  He got on the resuscitation bed and started the compressions himself.  He was not going to lose this one.  “Oliver, get in here! Give him 100ccs of…”

    ****

    Three hours later found Axel in a horror scene.  Something had clearly gone wrong at a rave party.  The emergency room was dealing with a surge of over thirty patients with similar symptoms ranging from mild to severe.

    Axel saved the coding second patient, a young man.  When he was stable, Axel raced to the third patient and restarted her heart twice. She did not last and when she crashed for the last time, Axel had to call her time of death.  She was the first of the three deaths he had to call these last three hours.

    Sixteen patients in critical condition arrived after her, and the emergency room turned into a gladiator ring.

    Axel vs. an unknown substance called Rapture.

    The second patient to die arrived in full arrest.  There was nothing to do for him.

    Dr. Brown came in to help and was the one who signed off on the death-on-arrival call.

    Together, Axel and Dr. Brown tried their best to save as many of the remaining fifteen patients as they could.

    The fight exhausted Axel so much that the last patient he declared dead cracked something inside him.

    “You did your best,” Nina said, as she shook out a white sheet to cover their last patient.  “Dr. Brown is with the other two girls who came in with this one.  He’s done the same thing you’ve been doing, Axel. They are both stable for now.  I say you’ve won tonight.”

    Axel barely heard Nina’s words.  He stared at the girl lying still on the stretcher.  She was nineteen.  Long dark curly hair fell over the stretcher. Her nails were painted in rainbow colors.  She had been wearing a Black Pink t-shirt and shorts before Nina dressed her in a hospital gown.  She was so young. Barely started her life.

    Now…she was gone.  He had failed her. Fuck!

    Axel removed the gloves he wore and dumped them in the bin. He sanitized his hands and turned to leave.

    “Dr. Graysen,” Nina called his name.

    Axel ignored her and stepped out of the resuscitation room.  He ran past everyone who called his name and headed for the elevators. The doors closed and he rode it straight to the top floor, not exiting until he was back on the roof.

    Fresh cool air filled his lungs.  The cool night air felt like a reprieve, jerking him back from the fires of hell.

    Nausea came next, and he bent over letting out the orange juice he had drunk just three hours ago.  When he was done, he reached into his pocket and found an old napkin.  Wiping his mouth, he cleared his throat and moved to sit on the concrete slab he had used earlier.

    He wasn’t aware of the tears falling down his cheeks until a sob escaped his lips.

    ****

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  • A Thousand Years of Hope Ch 2-1

    A Thousand Years of Hope Ch 2-1

    It was a warm midsummer night. Scents of roses and jasmine in bloom warred in the small vibrant flower garden. Crickets sang in the night, and the sound of water flowing in the brook at the edge of the property added to the music. Standing on the tallest tree, Tani Ryuzo watched a two-story house built in the middle of the property, a complicated mood settling on him.

    He supposed the house represented the perfect American dream: a husband, wife, two children, and a white picket fence in the front yard. The woman worked at the local hospital as a nurse. A school bus picked up the two children every morning and took them to school. She hosted sleepover parties for the children on the street often. It was the perfect life in the small suburban city of Kirtland, Ohio.

    Tani scoffed and wondered what he should do now.

    A breeze ruffled the leaves around him, Tani reached up to touch the branch caressing his cheek to offer him comfort. His feelings for the occupants of the house left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. The bitter taste was tied to nine devastating choices in nine centuries. There was no hope left. The branch slid away and he sighed.

    Tani wondered why he would feel disappointed at this point.

    His beloved had truly gone ahead of himself. In their very last chance, the man had gone ahead and decided to make a family before they even met.

    Tani should not feel disappointed or betrayed.

    After all, in the last nine reincarnations, this tenacious soul always chose the perfect family over him.

    Still…

    Tani had hoped this last one would choose him. He gave an internal scoff. Foolish thinking. It was impossible now. The family was made. Commitments and promises forged. Tani could no longer interfere for the sake of the little ones. He was no family breaker.

    “Quite a beautiful home, isn’t it?” a soft voice commented behind him. “One might believe this two-story house represents a happy home.”

    “You come to take pleasure in watching the end of my calamity,” Tani said, pushing his long dark coat back. He sunk his hands into his dark trouser pockets and kept his gaze on the two-story house.

    “Don’t sound so unhappy. I find the ends quite depressing. I know you don’t believe me when I say it. Tani, don’t you think it is a tragedy to see such a perfect family come to an end?”

    “I wonder if you understand what tragedy means, Cale. In your perspective, tragedy is a word you say, but do not know what it truly means. They are a happy family. No end is coming to them. I have made my decision. I will not meet him this cycle.”

    Cale solidified next to Tani, wrapping an arm around Tani’s tense shoulders.

    Tani stayed still, refusing to show any reaction to Cale’s presence. Fear fed Cale. Made him stronger, and more callous. Cale sniffed Tani’s neck, touching his left ear with a finger, his fingers then sweeping into Tani’s red-brown hair. The long fingers tugged on curly strands, and Tani closed his eyes, working to control his irritation.

    Cale leaned into him and whispered into his left ear.

    “Sweet Tani, I’m so grateful for you. Your pain has fed me for centuries. The last cycle you had with the mortal left you lost in a sea of pain for a hundred years. I wonder how long this cycle will take. Or…wait—”

    Cale broke off and shifted away, dropping his arm from Tani’s shoulders. He made a show of counting on his fingers and then widened his dark, dark eyes. Tani dragged his gaze away from the quiet house to look at Cale. He shuddered when Cale smiled, the sinister curve of Cale’s lips sent shivers down Tani’s spine.

    Cale was painfully handsome. His face was designed to seduce and fool unsuspecting souls into believing he was a benevolent god. The god of calamities adapted to time better than his peers. He was always dressed in neat tailor-made suits and shirts. Tonight, he was in a grey suit and a white shirt open at the collar. He looked like a gentleman but was a man who controlled and thrived in the chaos of darkness, pain, tragedy, and what all souls called calamities.

    Cale was the most sinister of gods from the hidden world known only as the Ekho.

    “You look at me with such accusing eyes, little fox,” Cale said, with a shrug. “You’re still young, Tani Ryuzo. compared to my millenniums in these realms, your three thousand and one hundred years are a drop in the ocean. You know so little.”

    “Thanks to the thousand years of calamity you bestowed upon me I have aged to ancient status, Cale,” Tani said, looking away from unsettling black eyes.

    His heart always felt frozen when he looked into Cale’s dark eyes.

    Although, there were times he needed Cale’s dark eyes to numb his heart.

    “You know nothing about me.”

    “On the contrary,” Cale said, his tone filled with amusement. “I know pain molds a soul. Your pain has molded your soul, and his, and the journey you have both walked has kept me quite entertained. Your pain has changed you, as it has him. You are living your last century of calamity, Tani Ryuzo. If he makes the same choice he made the last nine, your place in this mortal realm shall cease to exist. Your fate will be tied to the Ekho Realm and you shall never return to the human realm.”

    “It makes you happy to repeat the sentence my father’s peers gave me for loving a mortal,” Tani noted.

    “It does,” Cale said with a smile. “The eternal sadness you feel will allow me to remain in our Ekho Realm with no need to reap calamities in this realm. I hope you fail the mission the Septum gave you.”

    Tani took in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. There was no need to get angry with Cale. It only made Cale happy.

    Tani could not cry either. The tears were long gone. There was nothing left inside him.

    It was true that Cale was not the only one waiting to watch him fail.

    Tani was a visitor in the human realm, just like Cale.

    Tani was a deviant Ekho, born of a fox clan mother and an immortal clan father. He was considered deviant because he dared to fall in love with a mortal a thousand years ago. In the eleventh century, he fell in love with a handsome mortal soul, and with careless delight, bound his soul to the mortal to the mortification of his entire race.

    Mortal lives remained fleeting. An Ekho’s life was too long. The Ekho Realm forbade bound love between an Ekho and a mortal. Tani broke the taboo when he bound his soul to the mortal man he loved.

    In a bid to return him to the Ekho Realm, Tani’s father, and the council named the Septum—which governed Ekho—dragged him home for a trial. The Septum did their best to get him to unbind his soul from the mortal man.

    Loyal to his beloved, Tani refused to yield his love, and instead begged the Septum for a fair judgment. His lineage saved him. The Septum ruled that he, Tani Ryuzo, would live under a one-thousand-year calamity monitored in person by Cale, the god of calamities.

    Tani would stay in the mortal realm, and live life among the mortals. His beloved would live a life of reincarnation through the one thousand years. His soul returned through the centuries in different families.

    The only way to escape the calamity was if Tani’s beloved mortal chose to bind his soul to Tani. His beloved’s choice would prove Tani’s love true, and lift the weight of his one-thousand-year calamity, restoring Tani’s freedom.

    At the start of his thousand-year calamity trial, Tani boasted with confidence to his father’s Septum that he would win his mortal’s love within the first century. He begged for a second reward. The right to be allowed to love the mortal bound to him unstopped by his people, or any other soul, including Cale, for the rest of his life.

    The Septum agreed but added to his punishment should he fail. If Tani failed to gain the mortal’s unconditional love, he was to give up the right to visit the human realm forever.

    At the start, Tani was sure he could convince the mortal man bound to his soul to choose him, to love him, to make a life with him. He never once remembered to account for his beloved’s free will.

    Nine hundred years later, each century past, a different yet similar reincarnation of his beloved stumbled onto Tani’s path. Each time, each one made a choice to love, but never with Tani. Never.

    Tani watched his beloved choose to bind himself to another mortal soul, another woman, or man in some centuries.

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    Chapters also available on GA/lilansui

  • A Thousand Years of Hope Ch 1-1

    The sunrise turned the vineyard landscape into a beautiful spectacle. Dante Arturo drove along the main path between the fields in an open jeep. He loved mornings at Artri, but today felt different. He worried in the face of the beautiful sunrise.

    Driving faster, Dante brought the jeep to a stop near a sizeable olive grove on the edge of the property. Getting out of the jeep, he grabbed the bag filled with sample containers and walked fast, hurrying down a wide path between olive trees.

    “Dante.”

    Dante turned left when he heard his name and raised his hand in greeting when he saw the vineyard manager, Hasim Kaan, waving at him.

    “Over here,” Hasim said.

    Dante hurried to where Hasim stood behind the thickest olive tree in the grove. Dante slowed down when he saw his mother crouched by the roots of the olive tree, her fingers digging into the soil. When she heard Dante, she took a bunch and held it out to him on her palm.

    “What do you think is causing the soil to turn this black?” Nora Arturo asked.

    Dante crouched next to her and took her palm. The soil on her palm was indeed as black as night. Dante bent his head over her palm and took a deep whiff. The soil smelled of decay and death.

    “The soil is corrupted,” Dante said with a sigh.

    “Corrupted soil does not come out of the blue,” Nora said, narrowing her gaze on the black soil.

    Dante got a glass container from his bag and placed the soil on his mother’s palm into the container. He wiped his palm over his mother’s cleaning the dirt out of his mother’s skin, and smiled at her.

    “Don’t worry so much,” Dante said. “We’ll find out the source of the problem.”

    “I hope we find it soon,” Nora said, getting up from her crouch to touch the oldest olive tree in their home. “I don’t want to lose any olive tree, Dante.”

    “One of my colleagues gave me a contact working in the Elderwood Conservancy. He says the conservancy is on the west side of our island, and it has researchers who can tell us what’s wrong with the soil. I’ll take these samples to them today,” Dante said. “They may help us.”

    “I’ll leave it to you,” Nora said, with a sigh, tracing the bark of the olive tree one last time.

    Dante got to work collecting soil samples around the olive tree.

    “I’ll have the workers help me keep watch over the grapevines,” Hasim said, helping Dante with digging deeper for soil samples. “It wouldn’t do to have this black soil invade the vines.”

    “It will be hard work,” Dante said. “Let me know if you need extra help. I’ll also come during the weekends.”

    “We can manage, Dante,” Hasim assured him. “You focus on discovering what is infecting our soil. We have never had this kind of trouble before.”

    “Could it be from the beach?” Nora asked, her gaze shifting to the bushes beyond the olive grove and leading to the beach beyond. “An oil spill or something worse.”

    “Perhaps,” Hasim said. “I have three men checking the beach. We haven’t found anything yet that would sink into the soil enough to rot it. We’ll keep looking though.”

    Once Dante and Hasim finished collecting the soil samples, Nora asked Hasim to walk the grove and report on the extent of the black corrupted soil. Dante led Nora back to the jeep, and he drove back to the main house.

    “When are you returning to Istanbul?” Nora asked when Dante pulled up at the back of the house. She got out of the jeep and Dante reached for the bag with the soil samples, following suit.

    The jeep was used to work around the vineyard, so he left the keys in it. Dante followed his mother to the kitchen entrance.

    “I have a lecture at Koc University this morning,” Dante said. “After, I’ll fly to the U.S.—”

    “You’re responding to that woman’s summons,” Nora said, her expression one of disapproval when she looked at him.

    Nora did not like his ex-girlfriend. She thought Viola was not good enough for him. After all these years, Viola’s relationship with Nora remained strained. However, Viola was the mother of his two children. A result of his past stupid decisions. He could not change what he did to, and with Viola. So, he tried to take responsibility, even though Nora did not like it.

    “Mom, Zach, and April are my children,” Dante said, as they entered the kitchen. His mother went to the sink to wash her hands and Dante reached for his own car keys in a holder on the kitchen counter. “At some point, we might need to take them both in, or one of them. You know what happens when our gifts come in.”

    “They are free of the bloodline,” Nora said, making Dante stop to stare at her in surprise. “I checked them, Dante when I visited you in New York. Zach was two, and April was a baby. It was my duty as their grandmother, as it was your grandfather’s to support you. I found no energy in your children with Viola. They are normal, unremarkable.”

    Dante gave an internal scoff at the way she said the word normal, as though it were a crime. Dante sighed at the familiar tirade. His mother found his relationship with Viola the greatest failure of his life.

    “Viola was never the right match for you,” Nora continued. “Dante, you know our family marries for love. You like men more than women. We have both known it since Grandmaster Landi started training you. If you wanted someone to make children with, I would have found a suitable girl. I have no idea how you fell in with Viola. Your time in New York with the Grandmaster failed you. You and Viola, it was the worst union I ever saw. I will never approve of her.”

    “Zach and April remain your blood,” Dante said, his right brow rising in question.

    “Of course,” Nora said. “I will always be their grandmother. They are welcome to visit our home. However, they do not have the power to own this house. When their descendants gain the gifts of our bloodline, this house will take them in.”

    “What about Viola?” Dante asked.

    “She is not welcome. She would not understand our way of life,” Nora stated. “I don’t need to educate you on why.”

    Dante stared at her for a full minute and then nodded in understanding.

    “When will you get the samples to the conservancy?” Nora asked, moving to the double tea maker to pour herself a glass of tea.

    “I’ll stop by before leaving the island,” Dante said. “Mom.”

    Nora looked up from checking the tea.

    “Don’t always blame Viola,” Dante said, giving her a small smile. “I was also at fault with her. I failed her.”

    “You failed each other,” Nora corrected. “It was not easy to watch from my end. The saddest story here belongs to Zach and April. They will miss getting to know the real you. Perhaps, your story is sad too.”

    “Why for me?” Dante asked with a frown.

    Nora let out a soft sigh.

    “Because, you never learned to how to fall in love,” Nora said. “Viola will love again, and so will Zach, and April. You on the other hand…”

    Nora shook her head and returned her attention to the tea maker.

    Dante watched her pour herself a glass of tea and wished he could refute her conclusions.

    Dante turned to enter the corridor to head to the front hall. He took a step, and the house started shaking. Walls vibrating, windows opening and closing. The house came alive, vibrating, shaking items on shelves, chairs, and tables.

    Dante stepped back into the kitchen to make sure his mother was safe. He found all the ingredient containers from the cabinets, cups, spoons, plates, and even his mother’s favorite tea maker suspended in the air. His mother stood in the middle of it all having a cup of tea. Gold sparks decorated the tips of her fingers on her left hand. She smiled at Dante.

    “Looks like your ancestors have something to say,” Nora said. “The grimoire must have opened downstairs.”

    Dante nodded and with a wave of his hand, his magic restored his mother’s kitchen to rights. He hurried into the corridor and opened the door that would lead him to the basement halls, running to see what would make their family’s grimoire come alive.

    *~*~*~*

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  • Love (Ai) – Part 8

    Two months later, Kyo rented a loft. He packed up his clothes and filled up the loft with art supplies. Then he had a lengthy talk with Rin asking her permission to allow him to leave the mansion for the next two months. His thesis was due and a final exhibition at Geidai Art Gallery demanded his full concentration.

    “What about Ryuu?” Rin asked the morning before Kyo left. “He can stay with you. I have other people who can take his place.”

    “No,” Kyo said shaking his head. “He’s your head of security, Rin. How can you ask him to stay with me? There are more important things to take care of.”

    “But you are the most important one to me,” Rin said.

    Kyo refused to pull Ryuu away from his work.

    “Fine, do what’s best for both of you,” Rin said. “Although, I think he loves you very much. I don’t think he’ll let you leave quite so easily.”

    “I’m not going to some other country. I’ll just be in the city.”

    Rin laughed at that and shook her head.

    “Love is funny, my dear son. It warps everything, believe me. Remember your promise to me.”

    “I do,” Kyo said with a small smile. “Don’t worry, just let me finish this thesis.”

    “You’ve changed,” she said with a smile. “You’re not the angry boy I met ten months ago. It makes me proud to see you like this.”

    “Please don’t start on the drama, Rin.” Kyo stood up and leaned in to kiss her forehead. “I’m a phone call away. Anytime you get exasperated by the aunts, call, and I’ll listen.”

    “What do we do about Ryuu?”

    “Give him the address, but order him not to visit.”

    “That won’t be easy.”

    “Rin, you wield all that power, come on, make use of it.”

    ***

    “You are still calling your mother by her first name?” Shuji asked when Kyo fell silent.

    Kyo sighed.

    “Yeah, I’ve been working on that. The truth is I left to make peace with Kyo Tatsuya. There are areas that need to be given up, and others that can’t be given up. I have lived a full twenty-two years as Kyo Tatsuya.”

    “So, this is all about becoming a Kiyoshi?” Shuji asked. “Why punish Ryuu-san?”

    “I’m not punishing him. I’m testing myself,” Kyo said. “Those first months at that house were hell. I would have drowned without him, but now, this last part, I have to do myself.  He’s been holding my hand the entire time. I want to show him what I’ve learned with his help, and that I can stand on my own.”

    “Do you love him?”

    “Of course I love him. I haven’t told him but I will. This year I seemed to have gained a whole new family.  All of them expect something from me, and for a while, I wondered if I was betraying my foster family by taking my mother’s name. But-,”

    Kyo trailed off.

    “But, now what,” Shuji demanded.

    “If I’d grown up with the Kiyoshi family, I would have ended up like them, bitter, angry, and greedy. My mother constantly has to defend her position because each one of them wants a piece of the pie, and it has all been her work. It’s a hateful environment to grow up in. So, I’m glad for my foster family. I’m happy they showed me a different way of life.”

    “This exhibition you’re doing at the new gallery is it going to be under your old name or is it going to be as a Kiyoshi?”

    “As a Kiyoshi,” Kyo said. “I made a promise to my mother that if I chose to stay with her, my paintings would be under Kiyoshi. If not, then I’d just leave it as Tatsuya.”

    “Was there a moment you thought you might walk away?”

    Kyo thought about it for a moment.

    “My decision was made the day my mother found me in the storage room. When I asked Ryuu to help me learn how to be a Kiyoshi, my decision was already made.”

    “How are you going to apologize to Ryuu-san? He’s very angry with you right now.”

    He would be, Kyo thought as he stood up.

    “Shuji, please just hold him off for two more days, alright? The exhibition is on Friday. I’ll be ready by then.”

    “Fine, for the sake of love declarations, I will say no for two more days. But, you had better make sure he apologizes to me for taking his anger out on me. He is very scary.”

    Kyo laughed.

    “I promise, Shuji. I’m going back to work, now.”

    ***

    On the day of the exhibition, Kyo dressed extra carefully. Kaori

    had taken care of his clothes, delivering them to the loft with Daisuke and Rie in tow in the morning. While he got dressed, she and Rie prepared breakfast while Daisuke sat on Kyo’s bed.

    “Are you happy, Kyo?” Daisuke asked. “Of all of us, you’re the lucky one. Kou found your parents. Kaori will never know hers since she was named by the state. My parents died a long time ago. You have to know how lucky you are.”

    “I know, Daisuke.” Brushing his hair thoroughly, Kyo reached up and tied it in a ponytail, making sure that it was neat. Happy with what he was seeing, he turned to look at his oldest brother and shrugged. “My family is also yours. You do know that, right?”

    “I know.”

    “Can you help me tie this?” Kyo held up a tie and Daisuke stared at him in shock. “Stop staring at me and help. I can’t seem to do it right no matter how many times I try.”

    “I have to say, Ryuu-san has a power I didn’t foresee. You are actually going to wear a tie. Kyo, are you ill?”

    “A Kiyoshi is always impeccably dressed.” Kyo recited Ryuu’s words. “I have to make an impression today, Daisuke. It’s my first day as the head of a foundation that scares the hell out of me.”

    “I guess I’ve lived to see the day,” Daisuke said, getting up to help him with the tie. “I’m happy for you, little brother. You’ll make a good spokesperson.”

    Entering the kitchen behind Daisuke, adjusting the knot at his neck, he winced when Kaori squealed in excitement and rushed to jump over him.

    “Oh my God, you look awesome. I knew the charcoal grey would be best, and the tie is amazing. You’re too handsome.”

    “Please stop,” Kyo said rolling his eyes. “Rie-san, I’m so sorry, but you’re getting yourself into a family of mad people.”

    “I don’t mind, it’s lively,” Rie said standing up to stand beside Daisuke.

    They ate breakfast leisurely. Then Daisuke drove them down to the new gallery where a crowd was already gathering. Driving to the back, they dropped him off at the back entrance and went off to find a place to park. Kyo hurried into the gallery and was met by Shuji who was overseeing the preparations.

    “Your guests are waiting,” Shuji said. “Your mom looks very excited. I had a hard time keeping her away from the exhibition room.”

    “Thanks, Shuji.” Entering the waiting room where his mother was waiting, he grinned when his mother rushed to hug him. “Hi, Mom, you look lovely as always.”

    Rin gasped and pulled back to stare up at him.

    “You just called me Mom.”

    “I did,” Kyo said quietly. Leaning down, he kissed her cheek and smiled. “Come on, I’ll show you your portrait. I promise that Ryuu hasn’t seen it first.”

    “That’s good, although I don’t think Ryuu is too happy with any of us right now. He’s out in the lobby talking with the security team. His expression is extra grim. You’re going to need a miracle.”

    Well, he would fix that pretty soon he hoped. Leading Rin into the exhibition room, Kyo placed a hand over her eyes and led her directly to painting number nineteen. When they were standing right before it, he removed his hand and waited for her reaction. Staring back at them was a regal Rin Kiyoshi, looking elegant and royal in a pristine white dress seated on a stool in a disarrayed storage room. To him, she was the calm port in a storm, a woman who despite being in constant turmoil, never once let on that she was anything but graceful.

    “It’s beautiful.” Rin didn’t say anymore but she did reach out and touch the signature Kyo used. It simply read Kiyoshi. She hugged him tightly and said into his ear. “Thank you and welcome home.”

    Kyo hugged her back and allowed the moment for a bit before he pulled back and nodded to the final painting. She looked at it with curiosity and frowned. Glancing around the room she frowned.

    “It’s not a portrait.”

    “It’s a message to a certain upset someone.” Kyo smiled when she gave him an inquiring look. “I’ll explain later, but please let me show it to him first before we start.”

    “Alright, son,” she grinned. “I love saying that. Today is the happiest day of my life. I can’t wait to make my speech. I want the whole world to know I’ve found you. So hurry up and appease Ryuu, and meet us out front.”

    Nodding, Kyo hurried out ready to go get Ryuu, only to collide with the man on his way into the exhibition room. The familiar hold on his upper arms steadying him made Kyo realize just how much he’d missed his lover. Looking into dark cold eyes, he faltered for a moment at the sight of Ryuu’s anger. Swallowing hard, Kyo took a step back.

    “Sir, we’re almost ready,” Ryuu said.

    Ryuu’s cold tone hurt more than he could imagine. Taking Ryuu’s hand, Kyo turned and pulled him into the exhibition room, not stopping until they stood before the zen garden he spent hours painting. There was already a red sticker beside the name of the painting.

    Kyo had named it one word. ‘Ai’, Love. To him, the stupid drawing they made together, so many months ago in the solarium, was more precious than anything he had ever painted.

    “You painted it,” Ryuu said. “And it’s already sold.”

    “I put the red sticker there. The painting is yours to keep,” Kyo said. “I’m sorry, and please stay with me. Be with me, Ryuu, because I can’t live without you. Even though you’re angry with me right now, don’t-“

    Ryuu stopped his words with a soft kiss on his lips and he closed his eyes in relief.

    As much as Kyo wanted to garner respect from the rest of the Kiyoshi family, he never wanted to hear Ryuu call him ‘sir’ using that stupid cold voice.

    In the past year, he had learned more than he dared say from Ryuu.

    Ryuu had brought out his capacity to love, teaching him that it was okay to share that love with his old family, and his new family. That it was alright to be who he wanted to be, even when others didn’t approve. Ryuu had introduced him to a part of himself he never imagined existed. Just thinking about it, made his body ache for time alone with him in a more private place.

    Kyo wrapped his arms around Ryuu’s neck and was glad when he was pulled into a tight possessive hug. Breaking their kiss, he rested his forehead on Ryuu’s shoulder.

    “Please don’t ever call me sir. I don’t think I can take it.”

    “I was angry,” Ryuu said. “You left me and wouldn’t let me see you.”

    “I had to,” Kyo said. “To make this exhibition happen, to make the change I needed to accept Mom. I needed to leave.”

    “I know,” Ryuu said still holding him. He breathed out shakily. “I love you, Kyo. Please don’t ever leave me again.”

    “I love you too,” Kyo said his heart bursting with love. “I love you so much, Ryuu.”

    Ryuu kissed him again and at that moment, Kyo Kiyoshi felt like he had come home. He was where he belonged and nothing would ever take him away, not even death, he decided.

    The End

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  • Love (Ai) – Part 7

    Ryuu became Kyo’s world after that day. If it was possible for someone’s focus to shift entirely in a minute, he liked to think that day in the solarium was the day his focus became centered on Ryuu Shin.

    Visiting his grandparents for the first time, Kyo clung to the fact that Ryuu stood by his side while his grandmother scrutinized him as if he was a piece of fish in the market. Even with Rin smiling at him with encouragement, he couldn’t forgive his grandmother for having put him up for adoption without batting an eyelash.

    The more he learned about the Kiyoshi family, the more he held on to his adopted name, frustrating Rin who wanted to make a formal announcement so that he could take his place beside her.

    When Kyo went back to school, Ryuu made sure he was always the one to pick him up. Ryuu also invited Kaori and Daisuke over to the large mansion making sure no one would stop them from seeing Kyo. Ryuu even convinced him to give up his one-bedroom apartment and arranged for all his personal belongings to be brought to Rin’s home.

    One afternoon six months into his new life, Kyo was busy painting in a storage room he found in the back of the property when Rin came rushing in. She was distressed and her makeup was all messed up, as though she’d been crying. Turning off his iPod, Kyo frowned when he was suddenly wrapped in a tight hug.

    “Rin?” Kyo asked, trying not to get any paint on her nice designer clothes. “Rin, you’re going to get paint all over. Are you okay?”

    She trembled and kept holding him tight.  He dropped his brush onto the pallet and held on. After a full five minutes of an unexplained breakdown, she pulled back and wiped her face, while she touched his cheek.

    “What’s going on?” Kyo asked.

    “No one could find you,” she said. “Ryuu went out to deal with some issues at the offices and the aunts and uncles said you left the house for good. I’ve had security looking for you for these past four hours. I thought you ran away.”

    “Wow, I left a note in the kitchen. It was stuck on the fridge.” Kyo frowned and shook his head. “They must have not told you.”

    “I don’t care what they think, Kyo. All I care about is you,” Rin said sitting on the dirty stool that Kyo used to stand on.

    She was clearly more upset than she was letting on. Kneeling before her, he tangled his paint-stained fingers with her elegant ones.

    “I’ve been selfish lately, haven’t I?” Rin sighed. “I asked Ryuu to take care of you and make sure you didn’t run away, and he’s done such a good job. Kyo, I know you feel stifled here. I know how hard it can be sometimes, but I can’t let you leave, Kyo. I need you to let me take care of you.”

    Kyo looked down wondering if Ryuu was really getting closer to him for the sake of his mother or for their mutual feelings. He didn’t know how to figure out the truth. Especially when his own heart was now Ryuu’s, there was no doubt in him anymore. He loved being with Ryuu.

    He was in love with Ryuu.

    Rin ran her fingers through Kyo’s long hair, messing up his ponytail. She leaned in to press a kiss on the top of his head.

    “I’ve been having issues with the family. The foundation needs a visible head and each of them wanted to have their children named the successor since I didn’t have any. Now that I’ve found you, my dear Kyo, they are all bitter and disappointed. That’s how big families like ours work. Seeing how you, Daisuke, and Kaori are, I know it must seem foreign to you to have people like those related to you, but I will fix it.”

    “How when you can’t chase them away?” Kyo asked. “They are our family.”

    “No, I cannot chase them away.” Rin chuckled and he looked up to find her smiling. “Your heart is pure, just like Ryuu has told me so many times. We can’t chase them away, but we can move them, my dear Kyo. I want a happy home now that you’re with me. I almost went mad with panic when I thought you had left. To find you having to paint in such a place,” she shook her head, “no more.”

    Kyo looked around the large room and shrugged.

    “There is nothing wrong with this storage room. It’s dusty, but that’s okay, and no one uses it.”

    Rin stood up still holding his right hand. She moved to stand before the painting Kyo was working on apparently for the duration of time she’d been looking for him. She gasped as she realized what she was looking at.

    “You’re painting me.”

    Kyo shrugged.

    “I didn’t want you to look at it, yet. I’m developing ideas for my thesis. It’s very rough-“

    “It’s spectacular.” Squeezing his fingers, Rin took a step closer. “I won’t say anything else. I’ll wait until you’re done, and you have to promise to show it to me first even before Ryuu.”

    Kyo looked at her guiltily and she smiled.

    “I have eyes, Kyo-chan. I can see he means the world to you.”

    “You don’t mind?”

    “How can I hate something that makes you happy?” Pressing a finger on his forehead, she waited until he was looking straight into her eyes. “You’re part of me. I’ll always be on your side, okay.”

    And he could see in her eyes that she meant every word.

    Rin helped him cover the painting, unwilling to leave him alone after her recent scare. She dragged him out of the storage room and they walked sedately back to the main house. He liked how he seemed to dwarf her. She clung to his elbow tightly, talking a mile a minute about all the places she wanted to take him that had inspired her painting. And did he want to go with her to see them? Would he like to spend a day at the beach with her? And would it be all right if she brought some strawberry cupcakes from her favorite bakery for him?

    Each question healed a part of him he hadn’t realized was hurting. By the time Ryuu returned to the house, he felt as though he’d known his mother all his life.

    Hours later, standing on the balcony in his room staring out at the darkened manicured back lawns, Kyo wasn’t surprised when Ryuu came to join him.

    “I heard there was some excitement earlier,” Ryuu said, leaning on the balcony beside him.

    “Rin was worried I had left,” Kyo said. “I didn’t realize how hard things were for her until today. I was just thinking about myself.  And, how much I don’t like the family. I never once thought about what it must be like for her. Will you tell me what to do to help her? I think I’d like to do that.”

    “Are you sure, Kyo? What about your painting?” Ryuu asked. “Some things, like your paint-stained hands will have to change.”

    “I’m sure we can find a way to go around it.” Kyo turned to look at him. “I think I would like to give her that as a present for finding me.”

    “It might take a while, living the life of a socialite is not so easy.”

    “I can learn if you teach me. As long as I don’t lose my hair, I really do like it long.”

    “Me too,” Ryuu said straightening up. He turned and leaned on the balcony with his back to the view.

    Kyo allowed Ryuu to pull him into his arms. Their lips met in a kiss full of promise. He loved these moments when nothing else mattered but the feel of Ryuu holding him close. Kissing him senseless and taking him to levels he could never reach alone.

    Returning the kiss, Kyo tasted Ryuu’s strength, an unbending resolve that gave him courage. He tasted Ryuu’s love, a warmth that filled every part of his heart, heating him straight to his core. Clinging to Ryuu’s shoulders, he thanked the gods for bringing this man into his life.

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  • Love (Ai)- Part 6

    Connecting wasn’t easy. It should have been.

    Rin was his mother. Kyo had irrefutable proof thanks to the DNA test. Their similarities stopped there. They differed on everything else. He did not appreciate a life tied up by Kiyoshi family rules. Kyo did not want to be the good son who dressed up and spent time trying to understand the rules of the family. He did not know the right way to eat with a mind-boggling array of cutlery. What was wrong with a pair of chopsticks? He liked his hair long. Kyo hated suits and felt comfortable in his jeans and t-shirts. He painted. The painting was his life, he made a living that way.

    After two months of constant turmoil, Kyo was sure he did not want to be a part of the Kiyoshi family. He missed his apartment. He missed hanging out with Kaori at Hitoiro.

    Kyo sat in a sun-bright solarium a day before the agreed two months ended. He stared at the blank page on his sketchbook wondering what he was supposed to do now.

    He liked the idea of having a mother. Rin was an interesting woman. She wanted Kyo to change his last name to Kiyoshi but he was unwilling. He was loyal to Grandma and Grandpa Tatsuya. They loved him enough to give him their name, and a home. Abandoning them would be wrong. He couldn’t bring himself to do it.

    “You’re frowning again,” Ryuu said into the room, making Kyo drop the pen he was tapping against the sketchpad. “What did you do this time?”

    Kyo sighed, unable to stop staring at Ryuu. 

    Ryuu had become his knight in shining armor. He rescued Kyo from a million situations that would have turned into a nightmare.

    On workdays like today, Ryuu was always impeccably dressed. He was in a black suit today with a burgundy shirt that was open at the collar. His dark hair was stylishly cut, and a lock of it fell over his forehead, making Kyo want to walk over and brush it back.

    “I’m going to go back to my apartment,” Kyo said, looking away from Ryuu. “I don’t belong here.”

    “Kyo,” Ryuu said in surprise. Entering the solarium, Ryuu came to sit beside him on the chaise. He picked up Kyo’s drawing pen from the floor and stared at it for a moment. “You want to run away.”

    “Maybe,” Kyo said.

    Ryuu held out his pen to Kyo and he took it with a shrug. He shifted on the chaise so that he was looking at Ryuu.

    Kyo ran through the information that he’d learned about Ryuu. Ryuu was twenty-eight, single, and was a second-born son. His older brother was married to a Kiyoshi. It was how he had gotten the position he held with Rin’s foundation. The couple had renewed their vows after a few years of being apart on the day Ryuu picked Kyo up from the gallery.

    “Of all the people who live in this house, you are the one that belongs the most,” Ryuu said. “Not the two aunts who are giving you hell for not knowing how to use the cutlery. Not the uncle who doesn’t want you working at the foundation. And none of their brats will inherit any of it even if you leave. You are Rin’s only child, her son. You are the only one who deserves her consideration.”

    “But it’s too hard,” Kyo said. “I don’t have the kind of strength needed-“

    “I can be your strength, Kyo,” Ryuu said. “You just have to get through tomorrow and the next day, and it will all be over.”

    “I don’t know if I can,” Kyo said, staring at the blank page again.

    Kyo had not been able to draw in a week now. Not being able to draw scared him. He always drew. Nothing had ever stopped that place inside him that felt the urge to create.

    Kyo held his pencil, holding his hand over the page determined to make any kind of line, even a straight line would be acceptable. He was supposed to be concentrating on preparing for his thesis. His adviser was expecting a rough draft and a full concept of his final exhibition.  Yet, he couldn’t even draw a single line.  Kyo closed his eyes in frustration. He couldn’t lose his art.

    A warmer hand covered his hand, and the pen was pressed to the sketchpad.

    Kyo opened his eyes to find Ryuu holding his hand steady against the page. Turning his head slightly, smiling dark eyes captured his gaze.

    “I can’t draw,” Ryuu said. “But I can keep the pen steady if you move it.”

    Kyo laughed at the suggestion and turned his attention back to the page. Ryuu’s hand held the pen steady. Kyo moved Ryu’s hand over the page and for an inordinate amount of time, he directed the pen over the sketchpad.  

    Kyo smiled wide when he stopped drawing and they both stared at the Zen garden they had drawn together. It was rough, hardly spectacular, and would need a lot more work to make it worth a longer look.  

    Ryuu let go of his hand and took the sketchpad away from him holding it up.

    “My first drawing,” Ryuu said into his ear with quiet excitement.

    Kyo smiled.

    Ryuu had that effect on him.

    “Can I keep it?”

    “Sure,” Kyo said.

    “Thank you,” Ryuu said. He placed the sketchpad on the cushion beside him and pulled Kyo into a hug.

    “Don’t leave,” Ryuu murmured into Kyo’s ear.

    Kyo pressed his face into Ryuu’s chest, snuggling into the warmth of Ryuu’s body. He wrapped his arms around Ryuu. Taking in a deep breath, he filled his senses with Ryuu’s intoxicating scent.

    “Stay, for me,” Ryuu said. “Stay with me, Kyo.”

    Kyo’s heart answered the request, snuggling deeper into Ryuu’s chest.

    “What if I lose myself here? I feel it already. I can’t lose my art, Ryuu.”

    “I’ll hold the pen,” Ryuu promised. “I’ll remind you who you truly are. Please promise to stay here with us a while longer.”

    Kyo couldn’t help agreeing to the request. Ryuu had that effect on him, it didn’t help that a soft kiss was pressed to the top of his head and strong arms wrapped around him tightly. He could have stayed there forever.

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  • Love (Ai)

    Love (Ai) by Suilan Lee book cover


    Title: Love (Ai)
    Status: Complete
    Chapters:
    Category: Modern
    Tags: Artist, Student, MMromance, Sweet, Short
    Description
    Kyo Tatsuya is a painter who has refused to see his lover for two months, while he prepares his final exhibition as a student of Geidai. He tries to reconcile his past, present, and the future his family expects him to follow. While cherishing the love he has for Ryuu Shin.

    Chapters

  • Love (Ai) -Part 5

    Love (Ai) – Part 5

    “So, you’re telling me some guy picked you up from the gallery, took you to the Peak Lounge, introduced you to your mother, and then took you to some hotel where you had dinner. Kyo, this is why I worry about you,” Kaori said the next morning sitting across from him in their favorite coffee shop.

    “What? I was hungry. He offered meat. What do you expect,” Kyo said with a shrug. Sipping his hot coffee, he sighed. “Don’t worry, nothing happened. I left and headed straight home to my cold empty bed.”

    “You should have come to the club,” Kaori said with a shake of her head. “If these people show up again, Kyo, you have to call me. Don’t leave with them, wait for me.”

    “Are you going to babysit me?” Kyo asked with a chuckle.

    “Apparently, you need it,” Kaori snapped, picking up a muffin and breaking it into two. She handed him one-half and bit into the other with an angry bite. “Wait until Daisuke hears about this.”

    “Oh, please don’t tell him,” Kyo said, shuddering at the thought of the explanation he would have to give. “Did he at least meet with Rie?”

    “Yes, the big question was asked and she said yes,” Kaori said, smiling wide. “I’m finally going to get a sister. I won’t have to deal with the two of you by myself.”

    Kyo laughed. Happy that his brother was finally getting what he wanted. He deserved all the happiness he could get.

    They all did, he thought staring at Kaori. She was a short, skinny girl with the cutest face he had ever seen. Her hair was long down her back.  It was currently all curly thanks to the hair stylists at Bovian Image salon in Harajuku. Today, she was in a white dress that hugged her figure and stopped just above her knee. Her feet were in white knee-length boots. Judging from the look, she was probably presenting a report at her office.

    “What are you up to today?” she asked, studying him with piercing dark eyes that missed nothing. “The exhibition is over right?”

    “Yeah,” Kyo said. He looked around the cafe taking in the warm ambiance and the chattering customers. “I was thinking of heading over to the studio and putting in some hours as a student adviser. I’ve been neglecting that for like a week now. I’m pretty sure there are students who are upset with me.”

    “As long as you’re not alone,” Kaori said. “Call me at one. Hopefully, I’ll be done with my presentation by then. This project is driving me crazy. Become successful already so that I can market your art.”

    Kyo laughed at her constant griping. It always happened when she was stressed at work. Watching her look through her wallet, he wondered if he should tell her who the woman he met really was. He had left out that little detail.  He picked up his mug and sipped his coffee just as Ryuu came to stand right by their table.

    “We don’t want anything,” Kaori started and looked up.  

    She stopped when she saw Ryuu’s tall forbidding figure. He was dressed casually today, although casual for him was still dressed up. Kyo frowned at the black polo neck that was covered by a black casual jacket, and black jeans.

    Kaori gave him an appreciative look.

    “Wow, who are you?”

    “Good morning, Ms. Tatsuya,” Ryuu said, oozing charm like a creamy éclair. Making a face at that annoying handsome face, Kyo concentrated on his coffee. “My name is Ryuu Shin. I work for Kyo’s mother.”

    “Really,” Kaori said, making Kyo glance at her with concern. He knew that tone.

    She was going to start interrogating Ryuu very soon.

    “It’s almost eight-thirty, Kaori, aren’t you going to be late for work?” Kyo reminded her.

    “Damn,” she cursed staring at the time on her cell phone. “Mr. Shin, are you going to be talking to my brother?”

    “I actually want to take him with me to see his mother,” Ryuu said.

    “No,” Kaori said with a firm tone. Pulling out money for their bill, she stuck her purse in her bag and shook her head. “Whoever you are, Mr. Shin, you don’t need to put my brother through this. And why doesn’t she come to get him? Why send other people to deal with family matters? Kyo, stand up. You’re going to work with me. I’ll call Daisuke and you can spend time at his place.”

    “Ms. Tatsuya,” Ryuu started.

    Kaori wouldn’t hear of it, grabbing her bag, she stood up and for once didn’t gripe about getting her change. She urged Kyo up and took him by the arm dragging him out of the cafe. They must have looked like they were trying to escape after robbing the cafe. Once they were on the street, Kyo sighed and pulled at his arm.

    “Kaori, will you slow down.”

    “I’m late for work, and you need to be kept away from strangers. You don’t learn, do you? I was the one that picked up the pieces when you met that woman who made you think she was your mother. I’m the one who had to watch you disintegrate. I won’t do it again.”

    “Ms. Tatsuya,” Ryuu said behind them. He had a habit of keeping up that was irritating as hell. Shaking his head, Kyo stopped forcing Kaori to do the same. “I can give you a ride to your workplace. Which will give you an opportunity to meet Rin-san, and your worries can be alleviated.”

    “Really,” Kaori said, liking the idea.

    No, Kyo thought. The ride to work was the key here, and Ryuu knew it. Ryuu smiled and pointed to a black SUV waiting on the road.

    “The car is waiting,” Ryuu said urging Kaori toward the car.

    Kaori paused for a moment, glanced at her watch, and sighed.

    “Come on, Kyo. I need a ride, and we need to find out what is going on. If it’s too hard, I’ll send Daisuke after them.”

    Kyo shook his head at the number of people trying to protect him. Giving Ryuu a glare, they walked to the black car and were settled in faster than he dared appreciate.  Inside, he found himself seated beside Rin, with Kaori by the door. Ryuu disappeared to the front passenger seat.

    Closing his eyes, he frowned when Rin turned slightly to look at him. She smelled of home and he hated that it was so enticing.

    “Morning, my son,” she said. “This must be your sister. Ryuu has told me about her.  Hello, Kaori.”

    Opening his eyes, Kyo turned to look at his sister to find her gaping. She was clearly stunned and he knew why, but what the hell. Poking her ribs, she blinked and stared at him with accusation.

    “Rin Kiyoshi is your mother,” Kaori gasped.

    “No.” Kyo protested.

    “Yes.” Rin reaffirmed at the same time making Kyo turn to glare at her. She smiled at him and held out a paper. “I have proof. DNA results, I had to move heaven and earth to get them, but I did, thanks to Ryuu.”

    “What?” Kyo looked at the back of Ryuu’s head. Damn bastard must have gotten a hold of his ‘DNA’ last night at some point. “That’s really low, Ryuu.”

    “You gave us no other choice,” Rin explained, giving the paper to Kaori. “You wouldn’t listen, but I doubt that should be a surprise. You’re as stubborn as I was. I thought the money would lure you back, but that didn’t work either.”

    “Money?” Kaori asked, perusing the DNA results she held. “Kyo is not like that.”

    “I know that now,” Rin said.

    Rin smiled and moved to touch him.  She stopped when he flinched, and her hand dropped back on her lap. Today, she was also dressed casually, in a pair of blue jeans, and a heavy black sweater that buttoned up to the top. It looked very warm. Her hair was held in a ponytail, and her face looked freshly scrubbed. She was beautiful.

    Rin met his scrutiny with one of her own.

    Kyo wondered what she thought of his skinny short frame. As usual, he’d grabbed the most available clothes. He was a perpetual skinny jeans kind of guy. His faded blue t-shirt was clean at least, but the blue jacket he wore was paint-stained. He had on a wool cap over his head, mostly because he washed his hair and hadn’t dried it.

    “Kaori,” Rin said into the silence. “I want to spend some time with Kyo today. Please, I hope that would be all right with you. I promise I don’t want to hurt him, just to talk.”

    “Our older brother and I are very protective of him,” Kaori said, folding the paper she was holding and slipping it into her bag. “I don’t care who you are, if you cause him pain, I’ll retaliate.”

    “I’m glad to see that my son has a reliable family. I only want to talk with him. Later, perhaps tomorrow, we should all have a dinner date. That way we can get to know each other.”

    “Of course,” Kaori said. The car stopped and suddenly Kyo realized that they had reached Kaori’s workplace. She glanced at her watch with a frown and sighed. “Kyo, I’ll call you later. Keep your phone on you, all right. Mrs. Kiyoshi, please take care of him.”

    “You have my word,” Rin answered.

    Kaori gave him a concerned look before she left the car giving Rin a short bow. Kyo moved the moment they were just the two of them in the backseat. Kyo left a wide space between them, clutching the door tightly as the car started moving again. He didn’t know what to say. The fact that Rin Kiyoshi was his mother was hard to take in. If she was this wealthy, why had she given him up?

    “You are very angry with me,” Rin stated.

    Kyo didn’t need to answer her. What was the point if she already knew?

    “I can understand your anger. I will take the anger, Kyo, but I won’t take the rejection. I’m your mother, you’re my son. I won’t let you be alone anymore.”

    “I’m not alone,” Kyo replied his thoughts firmly on Kaori and Daisuke.

    “Fair enough,” Rin said. “I’m letting you know that I won’t back off. You might not believe me, but I’ve been looking for you all your life.”

    Kyo turned to look at her in confusion. How hard was it to find one child? He had been adopted through the state. There was no way she would have been unable to find him. As if reading his thoughts, she shifted, turning to look at him.

    “You’re a very skeptical child.”

    Sighing, Rin clasped her hands on her lap, and his gaze was drawn to the very large diamond sparkling on her wedding ring finger. Her nails were perfectly manicured with a shade of dark green. They were long elegant fingers. Perfect for playing an instrument and sculpting things, he wondered if she was still doing her art.

    “I was born into a very strict family,” she said. “My father expected too much from me and I was very rebellious. As a result, I entered a relationship with a man working for my father and ended up pregnant. My mother was devastated. You see, I was promised to marry into another family. Our family had the habit of marrying off children for business instead of love. My dear mother could not face the humiliation of her daughter destroying the family reputation.”

    Rin paused for a moment to look out the window, and Kyo suddenly realized that they were driving out of the main city to the residential areas. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that, but a small part of him really wanted to know. He wanted to know who he was.

    “My parents arranged for me to visit a relative living in Switzerland. I stayed there for the duration of my pregnancy, and the night I gave birth to you, they paid someone to take you away. I never even got to hold you. They wouldn’t tell me where they had taken you. They wouldn’t even give me a name. For three years, I begged my mother, but she wouldn’t even look at me when I started that topic.”

    “My engagement was due, and the day before the wedding to Mr. Kiyoshi, I threatened to run away. God forgive me, but I wanted to end my life that night, unable to take it anymore.” Shaking her head, she turned to look at him with a small smile. “My mother made me a deal that day. She promised to tell me your name if I married Kiyoshi. She chose the perfect thing to blackmail me. I had given you so many names in my head. Every day, all I wanted was to know what you went by, my dear son. I can’t explain to you that need.”

    Pulling out a very old paper from her sweater pocket, she held it out to him with a proud smile.

    “I never wanted to lose this paper. My mother wrote it to me right after the wedding reception, it was the most beautiful gift I have ever received. Your name written on a dry cleaning receipt my mother pulled out of her bag.”

    Kyo stared at the symbols of his name written on the paper with a sad smile. Handing it back to her, she refolded it carefully and put it back into her pocket. Glancing back at him, Rin bit her bottom lip for a moment before she reached out slowly with a trembling hand. It took all he had not to move. The touch of her hand on his cheek had him gasping and she pulled back fast.

    Kyo stared at her in surprise. He had not hated her touch. He wished she kept doing it because she was so warm. Rin cleared her throat and returned to clasping her hands on her lap.

    “You would not believe how many people go by your name Kyo. I’ve made DNA testing into an art, so many con artists want to be who you are. I was starting to lose hope. It didn’t help that your foster family seemed to stay away from modern registration. Not even credit cards,” she shook her head. “If it weren’t for the art book you published I might never have found you.”

    “How did you know it was me?”

    “Ryuu found you,” Rin said with a smile. “He investigated everything about you, tracing you back to the day you were born. I don’t know how he does it, but he even found the nurse my parents used to transport you back to Japan.”

    Frowning, Kyo looked to the front seat where Ryuu seemed oblivious to their conversation. His attention was sorely on their destination and the driver, no wonder the man had seemed so sure yesterday.

    “This might seem disturbing, but Ryuu is the head of the foundation’s security and takes care of the Kiyoshi home as well. He had to know everything about you first before we approached you. You understand we’ve had issues before, and I didn’t think I could stand another false find. I wasn’t happy to find out that it had also happened to you before. Ryuu worked hard to convince me not to file charges against the woman who betrayed you three years ago.”

    “You know about that?” Kyo frowned.

    Who were these people? What more did they know about him? Or should he say, Ryuu? The man probably knew how he liked his cereal.

    The car stopped and Kyo looked outside to find that they had driven into very secure and impressive grounds. Before him, an astonishing modern mansion stood. Its architecture was a mixture of European styles. It was huge, mammoth, he wasn’t sure it could pass for a home, more like an intimidating symbol.

    “Before we go in,” Rin said.

    Kyo drew his attention back into the car to find that Ryuu and the driver had left. Rin was watching him expectantly and she didn’t stop when he frowned.

    “I want to ask you to give me a chance, Kyo. I want you to give me time with you. Stay here in this cold place I call home and if you can’t stand to be near me after two months, I’ll let you go.”

    “Why?” Kyo asked.

    “Because, I have all this love bottled up inside for you, my dear son. It’s going to kill me very soon if you don’t accept it. But, if you really don’t want it, tell me in two months. Give me that much time to dish it out so that it doesn’t hurt as much anymore.”

    “You’re more dramatic than me,” Kyo said. “As long as you don’t start throwing money at me like you had Ryuu do yesterday.”

    “You have my word,” she said with a bright smile. “Does that mean you’ll do it?”

    Kyo stared at her and sighed. What choice did he have? Like Daisuke, he too wanted to know who he really was. Where his roots were. Everyone wanted to know who they were. Why should he be any different?

    “Fine, I’ll do it.” Kyo looked up to find tears trailing down Rin’s face. “Please don’t cry.”

    “I’ll stop if you let me hug you.” She wiped her face with her palms. “Please let me hug you.”

    Giving her a nod of consent, Kyo was suddenly wrapped tightly in the warmest hug he’d ever received in his life.

    Rin smelled of peppermint and strawberries, and the kisses she pressed on his forehead were sweet and warm. She rubbed his back slowly, comforting him in ways he’d never felt before. Closing his eyes, Kyo basked in the warmth of his mother’s comfort for the first time since the day he was born.

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