Fake Fan Fiction ❯ FAKE In Love: Act XXI, Above And Below ❯ Chapter 5

Warnings and Disclaimers: I don't own FAKE. I make no money off of this. This is yaoi with adult situations included. Huzzah!

 

 

Dee parked the car and both climbed out. The orphanage hung lazily across the street, the sun glinting in the cold air and sharpening the edges of everything.

“It's too quiet,” Dee said.

Ryo snorted and Dee shot him a glare.

“Those kids have me primed for an ambush,” Dee said. “Remember the last time we were here? I was just walking along, minding my own business--”

“I don't think I've ever seen you just minding your own business,” Ryo said.

Dee frowned and Ryo smiled at him.

“It's not a bad thing,” the brunette said.

The orphanage was just as quiet inside, but they didn't have to go far to find Mother Lane comfortably tucked in a corner with a book and two children asleep next to her. She lifted a finger to her lips and smiled. Dee chuckled and carefully scooped up one of the kids, Ryo lifting up the other and following his partner to one of the empty rooms.

“They just came in last night,” Mother said quietly as they walked. “It's a hard time.”

Dee nodded. He'd never remembered any other place than the orphanage, any other mother than Mother, but he did know that so many of the kids who had some other home before, hated the place. He didn't shut the door completely as they left, and positioned himself and Ryo so Mother could sit and still see the room easily. She smiled fondly at him and then at Ryo.

“What brings you boys here?” she asked happily.

“Well,” Dee said. “I guess we're looking for some information.”

“There've been some killings in the tunnels under Central Park,” Ryo said.

“Yes,” Mother said. “I saw that article on the Cage boy.”

“He wasn't the only one,” Dee said and leaned forward. “This is just between us, Mother.”

Mother Lane rolled her eyes and waved a dismissive hand at him.

“Who's going to come and bother an old nun for some paper's quote?” she asked.

Dee chuckled.

“We need to know if there's anyone we can talk to about the people who live down in those tunnels,” Dee said.

Mother paused, one finger tapping at her lips.

“Do you want first hand information or someone's interpretation of what goes on down there?”

“Maybe both,” Ryo said.

“Well, there's this reporter who did a series of articles on homelessness in New York last month.”

“No,” Dee said bluntly. “No reporters.”

Mother rolled her eyes again and continued talking.

“Or you could go and see Matches. He's usually pretty knowledgeable about these things,” her eyes softened a little and she shook her head. “He was one of mine. He just couldn't keep off the streets though. His real name's Ricky, but you won't find anybody who knows that.”

“Ricky?” Dee said. “Scrawny little Ricky?”

“I guess you would remember him,” Mother said. “Yes, that's him. But you'd better be careful. He's not the kid you remember. He's Matches now.”

“Matches,” Dee repeated. “Alright.”

“He brings around a few kids sometimes,” Mother said. “Ones that can't make it on the streets. He visits them for a while and then I guess maybe they just forget about each other. You'll probably be able to find him pretty quickly, as long as you make it clear you aren't looking to arrest him.”

“Thanks, Mother,” he said and leaned forward to kiss her cheek.

“Always so polite when you get what you want,” the nun sighed.

“Don't you forget it, Penguin,” Dee answered with a grin.

 

A few men wearing old trench coats and carefully blank expressions were milling around the shelter door as Dee and Ryo climbed out of the car. All of the men gave them an appraising look and quickly shunted to the side. Ryo glanced at Dee; they'd been identified as cops. Just what was it that always tipped people off? Neither was wearing a badge or openly holstering a gun. They were wearing plain civilian clothes and had gotten out of an unmarked car. Ryo sighed and Dee shrugged a little as if he had heard his partner's thoughts. It was just a sense, that's all there was to it.

Dee fished his cigarettes out and followed the group of men as they tried to fade against the building. He flicked the lighter against the end of the cigarette and then held the pack out, offering them to the tight and silent circle. A couple of hands cautiously darted out to pull a cigarette free, and Dee handed over his lighter. They stood in silence after that.

“Alright,” one of the men said finally. “You didn't come down here just to have a smoke with us. What do you want?”

“I need to talk to Matches,” Dee said.

“What for?” another demanded.

“That's between him and me,” Dee said.

“He in trouble?”

“Not that I know of,” Dee answered as he let out a long plume of smoke. “Just tell him Dee Laytner is looking for him. If that's not enough, tell him Mother told me to see him.”

“Matches ain't got no mother,” one of the men muttered.

“Me neither,” Dee said. “Just see that he gets the message.”

He waved absently and he and Ryo retreated back to the car. They didn't get inside, just leaned against it as Dee continued to smoke. Ryo absently watched the homeless men as a couple more joined the group to find out just what the detectives had wanted. A few heads twisted in their direction, and shortly after that, a couple of the men disappeared in different directions.

“He'll know we're looking in a few minutes,” Dee said boredly. “You know, I think I could have made a very good bum.”

Ryo smiled in spite of himself and shook his head.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” Dee said. “I never turn down a free meal or a cigarette. I don't need a nice clean apartment or anything like that. I can sleep anywhere and I think that vagrancy probably is the profession with the least amount of paperwork attached to it.”

Ryo stared at Dee, his lips twitching with laughter as he tried to remain serious.

“I don't sleep with bums, Dee,” Ryo said solemnly.

“Damn,” Dee said. “I knew there was going to be some kind of fatal flaw.”

Ryo laughed quietly and Dee fished out another cigarette. It was starting to get cold just standing around on the street. In another ten minutes, Ryo probably wasn't going to be able to feel his fingers. He glanced back at the homeless men again and felt his partner lean over to lightly bump him.

“Don't start thinking about it,” Dee said quietly. “This day is going to be bad enough and this case is going to be even worse.”

Ryo smiled sadly and nodded. They'd be doing what they could if they could manage to get a killer of the streets and out of these people's lives.

“Dee Laytner?”

The low rumble made Dee turn and then almost jump back a step. He stared up and shook his head.

“Damn, the Penguin should have given me more of a warning.”

Matches ginned at them, the man towering over them both with enough muscle packed under the grimy clothing he wore to hint that he didn't spend a lot of time standing around anywhere. His head was clean shaven and a hole riddled stocking cap had been pulled down over it. Ryo could see a few tattoos peeking between the frayed strands of yarn.

“What are you doing down here?” Matches asked. “The boys said Mother sent you. Is she alright?”

“She's fine,” Dee said. “She actually thought you might be able to help me out with a problem.”

Discomfort darted over Matches' face and his body heaved with a sigh.

“I'm not interested in being connected to cops, Dee,” the big man said. “Even if it is you.”

“I understand,” Dee said. “Look, I just need some information about the tunnels under Central Park.”

Matches nodded knowingly.

“You're finally paying attention to all the killing that's going on under there.”

“Yes,” Dee said. “We are.”

“Well, it's been going on for at least a year and a half,” Matches said.

“That long?” Ryo asked. “Do you know the name of the first victim?”

“Yeah, but you probably don't,” Matches said. “I'll bet he got listed as a John Doe. Old guy, he was found face down next to a ladder. We assumed he'd just fallen and moved him closer to the top where one of the patrols would pick him up and the city could pay for a burial.”

“You moved the body?” Dee said.

“Yeah, yeah,” Matches said with a grin. “Even I've seen enough cop shows to know I shouldn't be doing things like that, but we thought it was an accident. And even if we had known it was murder, who in their right mind was going to climb down and check it out? Not many people interested in what goes on underground.”

Matches passed a hand up over his head, his fingers lingering a little on the bald spots that glinted through the cap.

“Anyway,” he continued. “Week later, we found another body. It was a little harder to think it was an accident. It started getting regular after that. We made sure the cops picked them up and we sent the word around that something was going on in the tunnels, but everything else we've tried hasn't done anything.”

“What else have you tried?” Ryo asked.

Matches shrugged noncommittally.

“I'm just asking so we can try something else,” Ryo said. “If it didn't work for you, it's probably not going to work for us.”

Matches' lips quirked slightly and he leaned against the car to get in closer to Dee.

“You nail this one yet?”

Dee scowled at him and Matches grinned.

“I remember you back at the orphanage,” the big man said. “But this one sounds pretty smart. Better be careful he doesn't figure you out, Dee Laytner.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Dee muttered, his eyes now on the sidewalk as he willed himself to look annoyed and not embarrassed. “Get on with your story.”

“We tried bottling up some of the tunnels so we'd know who had access to them and we set people up to walk in groups instead of alone. But it didn't do any good. There's no way we can monitor all those tunnels and even less of a chance of everyone agreeing to work together under there,” Matches sighed.

“Are you the ones sabotaging the tunnels?” Dee asked.

“No,” Matches said and something irritated ran over his face. “When they're all open, we can move pretty freely. There are at least three ways to get anywhere under the park. But with all the maintenance, there's more official people down there and more of the roads keep getting closed off. It's like we're getting narrowed in.”

He paused and then stared at Dee roughly. “I hear you picked Corsica up.”

“She's the closest thing to a witness we have,” Dee said around his cigarette. “We're keeping her in protective custody for a while.”

Matches smiled a little.

“Three hots and a cot?”

Dee nodded. “She's being well fed.”

“Well that's something new for her.”

“How are things organized in the tunnels?” Dee asked.

“A few gangs grouped together,” Matches said. “There used to be a time when the whole system under the park was under the control of one or two guys, but times change and for the most part the whole thing is piecemeal. I haven't met most of the guys in charge, but they've all got their systems and allegiances in place.”

“Great,” Dee said quietly.

Matches stared at him and then shook his head.

“Don't even think about climbing down there,” he said. “For a couple of cops like you, it's a suicide run.”

Dee paused to take a long drag of his cigarette and shook his head.

“We're running out of options,” he said. “How else are we supposed to catch this guy if we can't even go down to his hunting grounds?”

Matches sighed and shook his head.

“I don't know,” he admitted. “One perk of not being a cop means I don't have to think about things like that.”

 

Dee sighed and shook his head.

“You know what our next step is going to be,” he said quietly.

“Yes.”

Dee sighed again.

“Let's pack up for the day and go home to figure it out.”

“Good plan,” Ryo said.

Dee leaned forward as Ryo opened their office, his breath warm on his partner's ear.

“We're not falling asleep on the couch tonight.”

Ryo blushed lightly and shot Dee an annoyed glare before they stepped inside. Dee chuckled and poked around his desk for a minute before he picked up a memo that had been piled on top of everything else. His eyes scanned it and he snorted suddenly with laughter.

“He didn't wait for us!”

Ryo found a matching sheet and started to read.

“Ah,” Ryo said. “A review of departmental procedure regarding the press.”

“'On the record language',” Dee read with a chuckle. “Oh, this is great.”

 

Dee fumbled with his tie and tossed it to the floor, one foot kicking at it as he sat down on the bed. It felt sometimes like they barely had a home, just a quick stop before they headed back to work again. He sighed and plopped backwards, his palms pressing over his eyes as he tried to not think about everything that was still buzzing in his head.

Ryo walked past him, a few papers and his partner's wallet and keys bouncing on the bed next to Dee. He listened to Ryo move, felt his tie slither against his foot before his partner tossed it into the hamper. Dee's hands dropped to his sides and he turned his head to look at what Ryo had abandoned next to him. A few notes in Ryo's tight hand, today's mail, and the memo that the station had delivered to every employee.

Dee propped himself up and read through the precise legal language again, his lips pinching together as Ryo paused in the doorway, his long fingers now pulling off his tie and slipping him free from his jacket.

“What?” Ryo asked.

“I was just thinking that there are some good ideas in here,” Dee said, slightly shaking the paper.

Surprise danced over Ryo's face and he joined his partner on the bed.

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Dee said. “Like here. They suggest you have phrases that you can say on the record that mean something completely different off the record.”

“A secret language,” Ryo said with amusement and took the sheet as Dee handed it over.

“Mmm-hmm,” Dee said. “For example, when I tell the press, `my partner's a great guy, I trust him with my life', what I really mean is `I love his sexy ass and I can't wait to get him home tonight.'”

Ryo burst out laughing and Dee leaned over to neatly lick his neck.

“Or,” Dee continued. “If I say `it's been a real tough case, but everyone's really pitched in', what I'm really saying is `he's not just my partner, he's my partner.'”

Dee emphasized the last word by purring it against Ryo's pulse. Ryo chuckled and stared down at the thin paper.

“Or,” Ryo said. “When I say `Dee, get to work', what I'm actually saying is…`Dee, get to work.'”

Dee growled against his neck and attacked, both of them lurching back into bed with Ryo's loud laughter scrambling over them. They wrestled against the blankets, the papers and wallet and keys all scattering over the floor. Dee fought with hands and lips, searching for skin and eagerly nuzzling close whenever he found it. Strong fingers hooked around his wrists, and suddenly the world was spilling over, Ryo pinning him against the bed with a triumphant laugh. They stared at each other, wide grins slowly fading as Ryo leaned down and their lips met.

They kissed slowly, Ryo's hands now running up his lover's arms to feel every swell and dip. They paused a moment on Dee's shoulders, and then Ryo levered himself up to straddle his partner fully, and his hands moved to carefully cradle Dee's neck. For a minute, Dee didn't move, he just enjoyed the feel of Ryo against him, but then his hands ran over Ryo's legs to his thighs, squeezing as little as Ryo began a slow grind.

Their lips parted, and now Ryo was smiling quietly, his eyes dark and body moving to let him brush his lips over Dee's neck. Dee sighed with pleasure and his hands moved to lightly cup his partner's ass. He felt his shirt open, Ryo licking and kissing over olive toned skin with a hunger that thrilled Dee.

“You feel so good to touch,” Ryo murmured against him.

The vibration of the other man's voice made Dee close his eyes and smile.

The room was filled with the silken sound of clothing falling away from skin. They kissed again, tangled once more against the sheets, and Dee moaned as those lips moved relentlessly down his body. Ryo's hands lingered against his thighs. He felt fingertips lightly circle there, and then a gentle squeeze before Ryo spread his legs. Dee closed his eyes again and listened to the sound of his own breathing.

Ryo knelt against the bed, his eyes taking in Dee's body as if he'd never seen it before. Every curve and angle drew his gaze and pulled him in. He wanted to touch Dee everywhere, all over again, anything to have his hands against that skin. He rubbed his palms up the insides of Dee's legs and then drug his fingers through thickly corded hair. Dee moaned as barely there fingers slid up his shaft. Ryo palmed one hand around him and leaned slowly forward.

He didn't close his eyes this time. He watched as he pulled the head of Dee's cock in his mouth and gently swiped his tongue across it. He watched Dee's body tense up from the bed, his eyes blindly falling open for a moment as dark fingers clutched at the blanket. There had been a time when this was all strange to Ryo, all difficult and filled with so much worrying and want. Sometimes it was still hard to keep his eyes open as he took in every twist and turn of Dee's body. But oh God, when he did, when he watched, he couldn't get enough.

Dee's head lifted, green eyes glinting over Ryo with so much knowing in them that Ryo did almost have to close his eyes. He felt his cheeks heat because Dee was watching, because Dee knew that Ryo liked this, loved him. And it didn't make any sense, but there it was. He could feel Dee's green eyes on him, and he shivered with pleasure; sometimes it was so much. Ryo's eyes lifted, meeting Dee's as he continued to suck, and Dee smiled and let his head roll back into the blankets. Ryo's tongue whipped back and forth, tasting something that was coppery and salty and tanged over his lips with a flavor that nothing else would ever match.

“Ryo,” Dee whispered over him.

He felt Dee's body shift, and then Dee was brushing his fingers through brown hair, moaning and shivering as Ryo nuzzled down into the smell of sex and Dee. When had they gotten to this point? When had Ryo started to need him so completely? Dee dropped back against the bed as one of Ryo's fingers, slick with lube, pushed between the cheeks of his ass.

Dee twisted a little, trying to push down on the finger and he felt Ryo's lips tighten around him. His lover was smiling now, or at least as much as he could with Dee still tapping against the back of his throat. There was a soft wet sound and then Ryo was slowly licking him as the brunette leisurely pushed his finger in and out.

“It seems the tables have turned,” Ryo murmured.

Dee chuckled breathlessly and lolled back into the pillows.

“Is this your plan to get even with me?”

“No,” Ryo answered and swiped his tongue down to lightly fondle over Dee's sacs. “This is my plan to have sex with you.”

A pair of fingers pushed down into Dee and his eyes opened wide as pleasure practically ruptured through his veins. He felt Ryo kiss one thigh and then puff air over his erection.

“I'll get even with you later,” Ryo promised.

Dee let out a short breath of laughter. Ryo was moving now, pulling Dee's legs up around his waist as he leaned forward over his partner. Dee smiled up at him, one arm hooking around Ryo's neck while the other hand lightly traced over Ryo's features. Ryo nuzzled down into his palm, and fingers carefully adjusted Dee's hips. Then that luxurious push forward, and Dee was practically vibrating with pleasure.

“Ryo,” Dee moaned.

A soft whisper pushed over his skin, Ryo's face burrowing down into sweat dampened hair. Dee wrapped his legs tighter around his partner, drawing the other man in deeper with the first slow thrust. Dee's hand spread over his partner's back, feeling the muscle and skin shift as delicious tension built in Ryo's spine. Another slow thrust, and Dee panted noisily as his head bucked up from the pillow.

“Is this you getting even?” Dee husked.

Ryo's lips ran down his jaw, and another of those maddeningly slow pushes wracked Dee's body with pleasure.

“I want it slow,” Ryo whispered over him.

Dee moaned and his fingers raked down Ryo's back. Ryo hissed softly and with the next thrust, his body leaned forward to rub over Dee's cock. Another moan escaped Dee and he turned his head to catch Ryo's lips.

They kissed, Dee's tongue pressing over every sensitive surface of Ryo's mouth, languidly tongue fucking as their bodies came together. Ryo pulled away, his eyes opening and closing as he panted against Dee. Another soft whisper that Dee strained to hear but couldn't.

Then knowing fingers wrapped around his cock and stroked. Dee groaned and tightened every limb around Ryo's body. Every time, it was something different. It was something new between them. There was no way to be used to Ryo's touch, no way to expect just what his lover was going to do to him, and Dee couldn't help but want more. He latched his lips on to Ryo's collarbone, sucking hard as he rushed towards release.

Ryo shuddered against him, and Dee let out a muffled cry an instant later as the rush of heat in his body sent him collapsing over the edge. It stayed slow. They caressed, tangling again with sheets and blankets, and Dee tugged Ryo close so their bodies lined up perfectly. He sighed with contentment and leaned forward to sleepily kiss his partner.

“I love you, Dee,” Ryo murmured.

He wrapped his arms around Dee and felt his partner's smile against his shoulder.

“More than anything,” Ryo breathed.

They slept.