Harusame: Part Two

Omi lifted his face up to the sky, letting the raindrops tickle his skin and slide down his slicked cheeks. It felt cool and refreshing, and Omi wondered why he had never taken a liking to walking in the rain before. He smiled to himself. It's probably because it's not as fun when you're alone.

He looked over to the quiet figure walking next to him. Nagi's dark blue eyes stared down at the pavement before him, his dark brown hair clinging to his flushed cheeks. Omi watched mesmerized as a raindrop fell on Nagi's long, dark lashes, before they fluttered and the raindrop fell away. Omi felt a lump in his throat, and he tried to swallow it with difficulty. Nagi was really beautiful.

Omi flushed and looked away. He had never thought of another man as beautiful. Well, he had always thought that Aya had beautiful hair, and Ken had beautiful eyes, and Yohji ... well, beautiful wasn't a word he often used with Yohji, though the man was unnaturally well groomed. But all that was different. He couldn't find a single thing in particular that was beautiful about Nagi, or maybe it was only that everything about Nagi was beautiful.

Omi looked back at the other boy, his curiosity ever growing. He found himself wanting to know more about this mysterious boy.

Nagi turned and saw Omi looking at him. Nagi wasn't quite sure how to read the expression on Omi's face, but it compelled Nagi to do something he would normally never think of.

"Do you ... wanna stop by my apartment? We can get out of the rain, or..." Nagi trailed off and shrugged. He honestly didn't know what he expected Omi to say, but it definitely was not what he heard Omi say next.

"Sure."

Nagi looked over at him, thinking for a moment he had imagined the other boy's response. "What?"

Omi smiled back at him. "I said, sure. I finished my deliveries, so the guys won't really mind."

Nagi nodded, then smiled.

******************************************************

"Wow, this building is really nice!" Omi said, mouth open in awe. He turned in circles around the lobby, admiring the obvious wealth the place exuded. Nagi chuckled. "Wait till you see the apartment."

They stepped into the elevator, and Nagi swiped a key card into the slot next to the doors. The letters "PH" appeared on the screen above the keypad and the elevator began moving. Omi said nothing, just stared with wide eyes. When they reached the top floor, Nagi let them into his apartment. He flipped on a few switches and flooded the room with light.

"Sugooooiii!" Omi beamed. "This place is so huge! How many rooms does it have??" he asked, craning his neck down the hallways. He began moving off in timid exploration.

"Five," Nagi replied, smiling. He was happy that Omi was impressed. "This is an old Schwartz hideout. They gave it to me when we split, kind of a 'going-away present.' It's all paid for, even down to the electric bills."

"Really? That's so cool! How? Does Schwartz pay for it?"

"Well, sort of," Nagi said. "Crawford said all the utilities are paid directly through my bank account. He set it up himself. I haven't checked my account, so I have no idea how much is in there," Nagi said thoughtfully.

Omi turned and smiled at him. "Crawford must really care about you."

Nagi thought about it for a moment. He had never viewed it as Crawford doing so out of the kindness of his heart, but after that brief exchange in the restaurant, Nagi now knew that it was. And he was grateful. "Yeah," he whispered. "Guess he does."

Nagi showed Omi around the apartment a little, then led him into another huge room. "This is my room. Do you mind if I change? I feel miserable in these wet clothes," Nagi asked. "No problem," Omi said, moving to look at Nagi's computer. "Whoa, this is really sweet," he said happily, eyeing the machine. He hesitated to touch it. "You can use it," Nagi assured him, before moving off into the bathroom.

Omi was busy sifting through Nagi's programs when the other boy came back into the room. Nagi was wearing a sleeveless shirt and shorts. As he passed by the computer, Omi found himself distracted by the sight. He watched as Nagi pulled things out of a closet, stretching up to reach something on the top shelf. He was thin, but well toned, and his skin seemed to glow against the soft light of the room. Omi found himself blushing again.

Nagi noticed him looking out of the corner of his eye, and he smiled. He threw a towel at Omi, which landed flat against Omi's face. Omi let out a startled yelp, and Nagi laughed. When Omi pulled the towel off his face, Nagi was holding something out to him.

"Here. Go change your clothes. We can't have you dripping water in here like that, now can we?" he said, smirking.

Omi seemed hesitant, but he nodded and took the change of clothes from Nagi, then moved off into the bathroom. When the door clicked shut, Nagi smiled to himself. He sat down on his bed and waited quietly, crossing his legs on the heavy comforter. He only waited a few minutes when the door opened once again.

Omi stepped timidly into the doorway, wearing a pair of Nagi's shorts and a tank top. Nagi's jaw dropped. Omi was a real knockout. He didn't know why, but just seeing Omi standing there, in the clothes he had picked out for him, made the air catch in his throat. Nagi realized he was staring when Omi shifted uncomfortably, tugging lightly at the tank top and the hem of the shorts. "Is ... is this okay?" he asked awkwardly.

Nagi swallowed, his mouth dry. "Yeah, fine," was all he came up with. He shook his head, trying to tell himself to stop acting like such a lovesick puppy. He quickly recovered and a thought popped into his head. "You, uh, wanna see something cool?" he asked the other boy.

Omi agreed, and Nagi hurriedly stood from the bed and went to one of his drawers. He pulled out several large books and brought them over to the bed, throwing them across the coverlet before seating himself. He smiled and patted the space next to him. Omi sat, a curious expression on his face.

Nagi dragged one of the heavy books over and placed it in front of the other boy. "Go ahead, take a look," he said.

Omi slowly opened the book before him. He realized it was a photo album. Omi looked up at Nagi. "Did you take all of these?" he asked, pointing at the other books laid out on the bed.

Nagi nodded. "Un. It became a sort of hobby of mine. I took pictures of everything. It really annoyed the hell out of people, but ..." he said, shrugging.

Omi looked through the book, carefully examining each picture. "Hey, this is-"

"Schwartz," Nagi nodded. "I have a lot of pictures of them. Shuldich would get really upset when I caught him off guard. He could get pretty vain," he chuckled.

Omi laughed, spotting several pictures of the angry redhead, after obviously just waking up. "And this is Crawford," Omi said.

Nagi nodded. "Yeah. Pretty photogenic guy. Never got one I could really blackmail him with. Ohh, take a look at those," he said, pointing at several photos.

"That's ... Farfarello," Omi said, his voice dark, his expression guarded. Nagi looked at him, wondering. "Yeah ... he used to be pretty messed up. But you know ... he's a lot different now. I think leaving Schwartz had a real impact on him ... in a good way," Nagi said slowly.

Omi looked up at the other boy, his eyes searching Nagi's. "I can't imagine Schwartz having a good impact on anyone." Nagi was a little shocked by Omi's tone of voice. He almost sounded ... angry. Does he still hold my past against me? Nagi wondered. Nagi's reply was carefully chosen. "How did Weiss affect you?"

Omi looked down at his hands. He was almost ashamed of the way he spoke to Nagi just then. "I ... don't know." He said softly. Nagi thought he understood what Omi was feeling. It was the same feeling he had about his own past.

"Do you regret being part of Weiss?" Nagi asked softly. He knew it was a delicate subject, but he needed this. Omi needed this. It was something they would carry with them for the rest of their lives.

"I ... I don't regret being part of Weiss," Omi said, he voice nearly a whisper. He looked back up at Nagi. Nagi was shocked to see tears forming in the corners of the other boy's eyes. "But I ... I wish it could have been ... different."

The tears in Omi's eyes slowly ran down his cheeks. He closed his eyes and turned away, ashamed of himself. A soft touch on his chin made him face Nagi again. He slowly brushed his fingers across Omi's cheek, gently wiping away his tears.

"It's okay Omi ... it's okay to be sad. I know how you feel. I knew the moment I saw you that we were alike. You never wanted to hurt anyone, or to kill. I can see in your eyes what a sweet and gentle soul you have, Omi. And I'm sorry that fate put you in the hands of assassins ... you didn't deserve to lead that kind of life. But you're a strong person ... you proved that by staying caring and innocent even after all that you've been through. I admire you, Tsukiyono Omi, and I don't ever want to see you cry ..."

Nagi's words were so open and truthful that Omi found his reserve failing him. Before Nagi had even finished, the tears began flowing freely from his eyes, and he covered them desperately with his hands, his sniffling shaking his whole body. Nagi pulled Omi's hands away from his eyes and pulled the boy towards him, his arms wrapping gently around him.

Omi lost himself in Nagi's embrace. He couldn't hold the pain back anymore. Instead he let it all go as he cried against the other boy's chest. He could feel Nagi's warm breath against his ear, whispering that everything would be all right, that he was there for him no matter what. Omi clung to the other boy desperately.

Slowly, Omi's sniffling began calming down. His eyes still leaked tears, but there was no more force behind them. He still held onto Nagi, burying himself in Nagi's tight embrace. The other boy was so warm, and his skin smelled sweet and musky like sandalwood. Omi wanted to stay that way forever. He could feel Nagi's fingers softly stroking his hair. It all felt so ... right.

"...Nagi?"

"Un?"

"Why do you ... admire me? I'm the one crying in your arms ... how could you admire someone so weak?"

Nagi smiled, his arms tightening around the other boy. "You aren't weak, Omi. And I admire you because ... you've stayed so true to yourself ... despite all the things you've been through. You came out of Weiss still innocent ... and I ... I could never have done that. I don't remember ever being so ... innocent," Nagi trailed off. Omi looked up at the other boy. Nagi's dark blue eyes seemed clouded over and distant.

"I'm sorry," Nagi said, seeming to snap out of his reverie. "Let me get you something to drink," he said, slowly easing himself away from Omi. He left the room, and Omi sighed. He took one of the pillows off the bed and wrapped his arms around it. He couldn't even think now ... he felt so light-headed. He had cried in front of Nagi like a baby. Omi blushed. He knew he should feel ashamed ... but he didn't really. Nagi was so kind to him ... and Nagi's embrace was so ... so ..."

Omi shook his head and tried not to think too much about it. His eyes settled instead on the photo albums still in front of him. He noticed that one of them had "Weiss" written in one corner. Had Nagi taken pictures of them as well? Curious, he pulled the book into his lap and opened it.

Just as he thought, the album had photos of the Weiss members, most of them in battle with other members of Schwartz. Omi laughed. No wonder Nagi said it drove people nuts. He continued flipping through the book, when he realized something. He flipped through the next several pages ... and several pages after that ...

***********************************************************

Nagi stepped into the room again, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. "Here, I brought you some ... uhm," he said, trailing off as he noticed the other boy. Omi was certainly feeling better, his reddened nose and eyes the only telltale sign that the boy had been crying. He was holding one of the photo albums, his eyes almost ... mischievous. "Is everything okay, Omi?" Nagi asked.

Omi smiled. "Hai, hai, Nagi-kun," he said in a rather cheerful voice. "I was just wondering ..."

Omi dropped the photo album onto the bed. It lay opened to a page full of pictures of the Weiss assassin. Omi flipped to the next page, which, like the last, had pictures only of him. Then the next, and the next, and it continued until Omi flipped through the entire book. Nagi swallowed hard.

"...Was there something you wanted to tell me?"

Nagi yelped suddenly, nearly dropping the coffee mug. He realized he had been tipping the cup, and steaming hot coffee had spilled onto his hand. "Uhm, well," he stammered as he quickly put the coffee on a table. He began wiping the coffee off with a napkin, trying desperately to avoid the question. Omi waited with a smirk on his face. "Well?"

Nagi took a deep breath, then turned towards the other boy. "I just ... liked taking pictures of you, that's all." He shifted uncomfortably, trying to look anywhere but Omi's eyes.

"Why?" Omi asked. Nagi sat down on the bed, running a hand through his hair thoughtlessly. "I dunno ... there was always something about you that reminded me of myself ... you interested me more than the others."

Omi sat down on the bed across from Nagi. "Really?" he said, his eyes a bit wide. "I never thought I was very interesting." Nagi shrugged.

Omi put a hand on one of the other photo albums. "I saw some of the other ones ... you're really good with a camera."

"Thanks," Nagi said.

Omi looked up at Nagi. The other boy was looking downward, deep, ocean-colored eyes gleaming beneath those thick black lashes. Omi was once again struck by how beautiful Nagi Naoe really was. He knew that image would stay in his mind for the rest of his life, just like the image of Nagi walking in the rain, and Nagi sitting across from him in the café, and Nagi just ... being there. Omi realized all at once how much he wanted Nagi, needed Nagi, this beautiful boy with raven-shaded hair and sad blue eyes. Omi wanted Nagi to be his own ... no ... he wanted to be Nagi's.

Before Omi could think anymore, the other boy slowly raised his head. Their eyes met, and a powerful current passed between them, flowing through their veins. At the same time, they leaned in toward each other, ever so slowly, until that one blissful moment when they felt the softest touch of lip on lip.

Omi gasped, Nagi's lips just a feathery brush against his own. He moved closer, this time taking the other boy's lips in full. He could feel the other boy's warmth, their bodies so close, but not quite touching. Somewhere in his drunken haze, Omi forced his hands to move, seeking the warmth that waited on Nagi's skin.

Nagi nearly moaned, the kiss was so blissful. He could taste Omi's lips, so soft and sweet, and gentle against his own. Then came that touch, Omi's hand moving slowly up to his cheek, in what could only be called a caress. Nagi had never felt anything so wonderful. It was such a tender touch, so full of passion and love that it nearly burned him in its intensity. Nagi leaned into the touch, desperately seeking more of Omi's attentions, his own hands following in Omi's lead as they moved to feel the other boy's form.

The two of them fell into each other's arms, lying back against the bed. When their lips finally separated, Omi felt the air rush back into his lungs. "Wow," he stammered out. "I've ... never felt anything like that."

"Me neither," Nagi smiled. He moved forward to lay several kisses on Omi's lips and cheeks. "Will you spend the night here?" Nagi asked between kisses.

Omi looked away, breaking contact with Nagi's lips. "What's wrong?" Nagi asked.

"Nagi, I ... I can't sleep with you," Omi said softly. "I hope you understand."

Nagi looked at Omi for a long moment. He scowled, then turned over roughly and settled into the bed. "Humph, fine then." He said angrily.

Omi gasped. "Nagi, don't-"

"If you can't sleep with me, you'll have to take the floor, because this is *my* bed," Nagi said in mock anger.

Omi breathed a sigh of relief and laughed. He settled into the bed next to Nagi, looking at the other boy's turned back. "Nagi?" he asked softly.

"Hm?"

"Thank you."

Nagi turned around this time, his blue eyes smiling. "Your welcome." He leaned forward again, stealing one last gentle kiss, before reaching over and turning out the light.

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