Fake Fan Fiction ❯ Valentine's Day Psychology (Series: Multiple Psychology) ❯ Prologue

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: I do not own FAKE or Sanami Matoh's wonderful characters.

Rating: NC-17 OT+16 (Yaoi, Multiple Partners)
Pairings: Various Pairings of Dee, Ryo, Berkley, J.J.
Timeframe: 1998, approximately 6 months after the end of Volume 7
Series: Multiple Psychology

Summary: Berkley Rose calls in a psychologist to help with some of the interpersonal conflicts around the precinct. In doing so, he gets himself and his detectives involved in a crazy experiment cooked up by a somewhat sadistic lady Doctor. Strangely enough, it all pays off for them when Valentine's Day turns into something far more than a day for treats and sweethearts.

Title: Valentine's Day Psychology

Author: Mori Ryoshi

Prologue

09-February-1998 - 09:00

“I wonder what the damn sly fox has in store for us in today's meeting,” Dee grumbled before sipping his coffee. “God, this is nasty sludge. Marianne's is rare form to make stuff this nasty.” Ryo huffed at him and Dee could have sworn that his partner had asked, “Then why drink it?” But he wasn't entirely sure what he'd heard and chose not to respond.

“Don't let the commissioner hear you talk about him like that. He'll have you doing paperwork until your fingers bleed.” Ryo tried unsuccessfully to push his partner toward the meeting a little more quickly.

“That's not a bad idea, Ryo,” Rose said from behind the two men. “I'll see what I can come up with for you Dee.” The two men spun around and immediately noticed Berkley's lop-sided, and somewhat evil, smile. “In the meantime, aren't you supposed to already be in the conference room?”

“Aren't you?” Dee looked defiantly at his superior. “You're the one who called the damn thing. We're coming off night shift and are tired. We don't have time for your fun and games.”

“Nasty. Nasty. Nasty,” A sweet, feminine voice said from behind Rose's back. “I see why there are so many complaints concerning this department.” A tiny, almost child-sized, woman stepped from behind the safety of Berkley's body.

Dee and Ryo looked down at the woman who stood maybe four, five or four, six. She was a tiny wisp reminiscent of a fairy or forest imp. Her face was beautiful with a fine bone structure, high check-bones, and full-lips. When she turned her head up to look at the two detectives the glare on her glasses disappeared to reveal emerald eyes with soft auburn eyelashes that seemed to brush the lenses. The auburn was reflected in her long, flowing hair that was caught simply in a hair clip.

“Think you can put us back on track?” Berkley asked.

“Yeah. I can put you back on track.” The woman smiled at the detectives before looking way up to look at Rose. “But, he's right about something. We should have already been in the meeting.”

“Let's go.” Rose led the way, with the mysterious fairy woman in his wake. Dee couldn't help but wonder about her as he watched her body sway under her loose fitting skirt and blouse.

Ryo gave Dee's arm a light pinch and whispered, “Behave yourself, Koibito. Else you'll be sleeping on the couch for a month.” Neither detective noticed the quick glance the woman gave them.

“She's different. Wouldn't have thought Rose would go for the little girl type.” The raven-haired detective laughed under his breath.

Rose opened the door for the woman and waved her and Ryo inside. With a strong arm across his chest, Rose stopped Dee from following them. “Detective Laytner, I want you to be on your best behavior. If you hurt Ryo, or hurt this lady, I'll have you doing more than paperwork until your fingers bleed.” Berkley's violet eyes flashed in anger before he continued. “And since you haven't noticed, I don't go for the little girl type. I'm far more interested in half-Japanese men with beautiful bodies, faces, and minds who're also sharpshooters and paired with pain-in-the-ass partners.” The commissioner removed his arm and reopened the door. “Get in there. I don't want to have to say anything else about this.”

Dee edged by the slightly larger man and hurried over to take a seat next to his partner. The detective scanned the room as he sat down; he noticed the woman was laughing over one of Drake's jokes. “Well, shit, she seems nice and sweet to everybody else. What's wrong with me?” Dee thought. He was privately relieved to see that J.J. wasn't in the meeting. It was too late in his shift to have to deal with the little leech.

No sooner had he'd had that thought, the door opened and a seriously hyper J.J. came bounding into the room. “DEE-SEMPAI!!!” He launched himself at Dee from across the conference table and landed squarely in Dee's chest. The raven-haired detective struggled and pulled at the tiny squirming body that was plastered against him.

“Get off! GET OFF!! GET THE FUCK OFF ME!!!!” Dee screamed into the other detective's ear as he stood up and continued to claw at the younger man's clothes.

As J.J. dropped to the floor holding his ears, he managed to squeak out, “You didn't have to scream at me. That hurt.”

Drake hurried to his partner's side and helped him to his feet. “You're mean, Dee. Sometimes, too mean. He's just happy to see you, why can't you accept that?” He turned his attention to his lavender-haired partner and friend to check him over. “I'm not in this meeting. I was just waiting for you so I could tell you were I'll be.” He pressed a piece of paper in his partner's hands and continued, “I'll be there. If you have any problems, call me or page me. I'll be here as quickly as I can.”

“Thank you, Drake,” J.J. settled into the chair that Drake pushed him into. “I'll see you as soon as the meeting's over.”

“Okay,” The blond-haired detective gave him a wide, somewhat sad smile. “He'll never notice me as long as Dee's around. Why did I have to fall in love with him?” He turned and left the conference room to leave for his stakeout.

~~~~~

The woman had taken the incident between Dee and J.J. in stride. Their exuberant `relationship' had been one of the most common complaints that she'd received over the last several months. Evidently, J.J.'s flying leaps and Dee's violence toward him were disturbing to more than a few people who either worked, or had to come to, the 27th.

Rose walked to the head of the table to tower over the tiny woman. He cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. “Take your seats. I'm sure you all want to get started and finished as quickly as possible.” He paused as the men, “And Riz?” He noticed, took their seats. “What's Riz doing here? No one has problems with her.” He continued, “First, the reason for the meeting, I'd like to introduce Doctor Emily Wilson. She's a specialist in workplace interactions and will be here to help cut down on the number of complaints stemming from conflicts in the 27th.” He turned to Doctor Wilson and said, “We're all yours.” He then walked to the other end of the table and took his own seat.

“Thank you, Commissioner.” She glanced around the room and was happy to note that all the people she'd requested to attend had seen fit to actually show up. “I know that most of you are aware that there have been numerous complaints levied by various people in and around this precinct. Some of you are only here because you are a catalyst for the conflict,” She spared a quick glance at Ryo and Riz. “What needs to happen is, you must find alternative outlets for your disruptive behavior. However, before you can do that, you have to learn something about the person you're having the conflict with.” An evil, almost sadistic, grin crossed the pretty woman's face. “Since it's almost Valentine's Day, I decided that I'd assign sweethearts for a day.”

There were loud groans from around the table. She just smiled at their reaction.

Dee whispered, “I'm going to have to deal with J.J. all day. I know it.”

Doctor Wilson's eyes lit up in anger. She was slow to tumble into a rage; but she'd already had enough of Dee's antics this morning. Insulting a superior office wasn't something she took lightly and his prying eyes had given her goose bumps…especially because he'd been willing to look her up and down in front of someone he was quite evidently involved with. His violence toward the little officer who'd only shown him affection had been so over the top that she had to wonder if he was abusive in relationships. She stomped over to stand behind the raven-haired detective and had to physically restrain herself from hitting him over the head. “Get up.” Her voice was unfailingly calm. If the men in the room had known her, they would have been running for the door.

Dee waved at her over his shoulder and gave a snorting laugh. “Get on with it. I'm tired and I want this meeting to be over with now.”

Doctor Wilson's voice dropped to a mere whisper, “Get up out of that chair and look at me.”

“On my knees?” Dee snickered.

The tiny woman grabbed the back of Dee's chair and pulled hard. Since he had already tilted back so the front legs were off the ground, she was able to topple him to the floor. He came to his feet sputtering. “Good, I have your attention now.” She stepped back out of the reach of his arms. She wasn't stupid and knew that he could easily close the distance between them. “Hell he could probably break me in half if he wanted too.” She took a deep breath to bring her anger under control. “I've had a bad morning, Dee. I had to deal with a patient until five am, and then my car wouldn't start. When I finally got it turned over, I was caught in traffic…at the garage; the security guard wouldn't let me in because I'd forgotten my ID badge. To make matters worse, I get eyeballed by someone right in front of that guy's partner and made to feel like a piece of meat. To top it all off, I have to deal with smart ass remarks when all I'm trying to do is make this a better place for everyone to work.” Her voice never broke a soft conversational tone and the small smile never disappeared from her face. “I'm not going to have to ever repeat myself with you ever again right?”

The raven-haired detective swallowed hard and wondered just were this woman had found such a commanding presence in her tiny body. An aura of authority surrounded her and made him realized how rude he'd actually been. “Yes, Ma'am. I'll be on my best behavior.” Rose hid a snicker behind a hand as he sat back and enjoyed the dressing down the tiny woman had given Dee. When Doctor Wilson turned to glare at him, he wiped the grin off his face and found the table to be very interesting.

The rest of the people in the room sat quietly afraid of drawing the tiny woman's wrath. “Good,” She smiled widely and went back to the head of the table. “Sit back down.” “Bless you Daddy. I just wish I could have become a Marine like you. I think I'd have made a very good drill sergeant.” She grinned at the thought before she continued.

“As I was saying, I'm going to assign sweet heart's for a day. I won't make the day actually Valentine's Day. That day should be reserved for your own special someone. Instead, I'm making Thursday, February, 12th, Sweet Heart's Day for my assigned couples.” She could see the curious looks on several faces and elaborated, “The purpose of Sweet Heart's Day is for each member of a pair to learn about the other. During the course of the twenty-four hour period, I want you to treat each other as if they are the most important person in your life. Whatever you would do for your truest love, you will do for them. If you normally bring your significant other flowers, you'll give a bouquet to your assigned partner. Same with a card, meal, or anything else,” She watched as understanding dawned on everyone's faces…that understanding faded quickly to dismay on several as they began wondering who they'd be paired with.

Berkley raised a hand to get the doctor's attention, “I'm sure that we're all wondering…who will we be paired with?”

“I'm getting to that. I'll also explain why I set up the pairings the way I have.”

Several scared faces stared back at her. Dee's was one of them. He looked like a man getting ready to face the hangman.

She pulled a small notepad out of the pocket of her skirt. “The first pair is going to be, Riz and Jonathan.” The two officers glared at each other and then at the doctor. Riz opened her mouth to complain when Doctor Wilson stopped her before she could get started. “I'll explain. There is some conflict going on between the two of you. I haven't been able to figure out what it is during my week long observation. Nevertheless, whatever it is, I want the two of you to work it out by focusing on each other. I know that you'll learn something about each other and that should help bring about some understanding.”

The rest of the men started to sneak glances at each other wondering whom they would be paired up with. Doctor Wilson continued, “Second, Shane and Lincoln. I think I know what your problem is; but it's something that the two of you are going to have to figure out on your own. You're both relatively new here; but you've had to realize that the people at the 27th are some of the most tolerant people in New York.”

There were only six men left. Ryo, Dee, J.J., the chief, Brandon, and Berkley…The only one Dee wanted to be paired with was Ryo; but he had a suspicion that he'd end up with J.J. instead. He almost passed out from shock when he heard, “Ryo and J.J. are my third pair.”

The rest of her statement was drowned out by his thoughts, “Oh, God, I lucked out on the that one. I don't have to put up with J.J. all day.” He then realized who was left. “Oh! NO! I'm going to be paired with one of them?”

Berkley had listened closely to the explanation the doctor had given concerning Ryo and J.J.'s pairing. “J.J. needs to understand the relationship that Dee and Ryo already have. To accomplish that goal, most people would pair him up with Dee. I prefer him to instead learn how his behavior affects the other member in the relationship. J.J., Ryo, the two of you are going to have to work some things out concerning Detective Laytner.”

Berkley had a sinking feeling that he knew who he was going to be paired with. He'd answered truthfully the questionnaire that Doctor Wilson had given him…the question about `Is there anyone in the workplace that you'd like to be involved in?' was going to be his downfall. He'd answered, `Ryo MacLean'…putting him in the same position, “Almost the same position,” he conceded as J.J.. He grimaced over having to treat Dee as his `sweet heart' for a minute or an hour, let alone the entire day. “What have I gotten myself into?” Because he knew, he had gotten himself into this since he had been the one to ask for help over the large number of complaints the precinct had against it.

“Chief Smith and Brandon Smith. The two of you should really get along better. Friday morning, the two of you will either have killed each other or you'll be best of friends. I'm not sure which I'm going to expect.” She turned to Dee who was trying to crawl under the table. “That leaves us my last pairing, Dee and Commissioner Rose. I think both of you already know why you're paired up. I just hope that the two of you deal with your conflict of interest.”

She finally sat down at the head of the table and glanced around the table. None of the faces looking back at her held a happy expression. “I'm not here to make friends with anyone. Just to force them to look at each other in a new light.” “I'll be working here in the conference room through Wednesday. If you have any questions or need help, I'll see if I can come up with answers.” She gave everyone a small smile, “That's all. Go back to work. You have three days to come up with ideas of what you can surprise your Sweet Heart with.” She grinned even wider at the series of groans that reached her from the table.

“When will you be back?” Rose asked, “How will you know if your experiment was successful?”

“I'll be back Monday, February 16th. If everyone's still alive and the place is a little calmer, I know that it worked. If it doesn't, I'll have to come up with something even more creative.” Her grin turned a little sadistic, “Perhaps a Sweet Heart's Week? Or month?” She almost laughed at the flash of fear that crossed everyone's face.

After that answer, no one wanted to hang around and made a beeline for the door. Doctor Wilson sat back and laughed softly. “This is going to be fun. The other precinct I tried this with was so homophobic that if I'd paired two men up they would have hung me from the rafters…in here, no one even blinked.” After a few minutes, she stood to run down to her car for the work she'd brought with her. She had three other precincts she was dealing with and wanted to begin combing through her various notes before she had to do the same thing starting next Wednesday.