Vermllion (pt 2)

Vermillion (pt 2)

Scene 2 Compromise

Now I don't know what to do,
I don't know what to do,
when she makes me sad
(ooooooooh)

She is everything to me,
The unrequited dream,
The song that no one sings,
The unattainable,


At home, Gingi waited for Ban to talk. It was no use to try to get answers out of him if he wasn’t ready to give them.

As the sun went down and the apartment started to get dark, Ban stopped Gingi from turning on the lights, instead indicating he was ready to talk. Gingi complied quietly, sitting on the small couch next to Ban, holding his hand.

Ban-chan seemed so strange after seeing Shido and Kazu-chan today. Gingi was puzzled about what kind of answer Shido could want from Ban-chan. There were no jobs pending that he knew of. Well, Ban-chan seemed ready to shed some light on it.

“Gingi, you know that I love you, don’t you?” asked Ban plaintively. “I love you more then anything.”

“Yes, Ban-chan, I know that,” answered Gingi.

“You know I would never intentionally do anything to hurt you, don’t you? I would rather die then to think that I was the cause of pain for you.” Ban’s voice sounded anguished.

“Yes, Ban-chan,” said Gingi.

“The day I took you from the Infinite Fortress was the day I started to live. You believed in me. You trusted me. And you gave yourself to me. Gingi, I can’t live without you. I can’t go on through life not knowing that you’re beside me, my best friend.” Ban was almost in tears.

“Ban-chan,” Gingi started, reaching out to touch the distressed Ban’s face, but Ban caught his hand, bringing it to his lips, kissing the palm gently, silencing Gingi.

“Gingi, what I have to tell you, you might not understand, you might hate me for it, you might wish me dead because of it, but I have to say it.

“Gingi, this is going to be the hardest thing I will ever have to say to anyone, so please, just let me say it all at once. Then you can do what you want. I won’t stop you, no matter what you decide. I just want to say that I will always love you, Gingi Amano. Please, no matter what else, believe that.” A tear ran down Ban’s face.

“Yes, Ban-chan. Tell me, please,” requested Gingi, brushing away the tear.

Ban took several shuddering breaths, trying to regain some control.

“When Shido and Kazuki came in today, it wasn’t coincidence. Shido came for me. I was, well, indiscrete with a client, and Shido found out. At first, I guess he just wanted some hot sex in trade for silence. I didn’t want him to go to you. I couldn’t bear the look in your eyes at my betrayal, so, I agreed,” Ban told him. “Maybe the fact that I gave in so easy to him was too much. I let him take me, there in the bathroom of the Honky Tonk. I thought that once it was over, it would be all done.

“I guess I was wrong. Maybe I should have fought him instead. Maybe he would have just killed me. But he took me, and he marked me as his own. He said he’d have me forever and that now I belong to him. And I don’t know what he did to me, but I have to be with him, it’s something inside me now, a need I can’t fight. He wants me to work it out with you. He said if I didn’t tell you, he would, and I didn’t want him to hurt you. I already hurt you enough.” Ban paused, a catch in his voice.

“Gingi, I don’t know what to do now. But, I guess that’s not up to me, huh? I lost that when I messed with that client. I’m sorry, Gingi. I never meant to hurt you. And whatever you choose to do, I understand. And I deserve whatever happens to me.” Ban stopped talking as tears coursed down his face.

Gingi sat for a long time, holding his hand and stroking it, his head bowed. In the darkness, Ban could not see his expression, but he couldn’t bear to see the hurt and rejection in Gingi’s face, hence the darkness. Then Gingi moved, turned and switched on the small lamp on the table next to the couch.

Ban had his head down, but Gingi could see the tears falling, and they almost broke his tender heart. His beloved Ban-chan was crying. He reached out his hand and tipped Ban’s face up, then wiped away the tears. He held open his arms and a sobbing Ban threw himself into them.

“Ban-chan, I love you. You believed in me, you gave me life. I’ll never part with you. Didn’t we vow to be together always? Didn’t we seal that vow with a kiss?” Gingi sounded plaintive. “I know Shido. I know how he is, how he takes his mates, but he can’t take you from me, not completely, and not without a fight. I won’t let him. You belong to me, Ban-chan. You are mine.”

And Gingi’s soft lips claimed Ban’s for a sweet kiss that reaffirmed their love and their vow. The salt from Ban’s tears seasoned the kiss.

After Ban had cried, and Gingi had comforted him, Gingi took his emotionally exhausted lover to his bed, holding him until he slept deeply. Then Gingi want back to the living room to wait, a familiar coldness rising in him. Raitei.

It wasn’t long before Shido walked in.

“Don’t you knock?” asked Gingi, mildly.

“Ban?” asked Shido, looking around.

“He’s sleeping. Leave him alone,” Gingi replied.

“Did he tell you?” Shido pressed.

“Yes, and I saw your mark. You shouldn’t have marked him without him knowing what it meant first. But that mark doesn’t mean anything to me, you know,” Gingi stated.

“I never meant for that to happen, believe me. It all happened too fast, but that’s beside the point. I’ve marked him as mine, he’ll always come to me when I call. He can’t resist me,” the beast master said.

“He’ll always love me and he’ll always come back to me,” replied Gingi.
“Can you live with it?” Shido asked.

“I won’t let you tear Ban-chan apart. I’ll fight you and you know you can’t win against me. The Lightning Lord is in me, I will always be him, and I’ll let him loose, if I have to.” Gingi’s face took on a look of hard resolve.

“I don’t want to fight you for him, but I won’t give him up, either. Can’t we compromise?” asked Shido.

“What do you have in mind? I’ll think about it,” replied Gingi.

“I’ll move in with you two. You’ve got two rooms. One for me, one for you. We can share him. I only want him every now and then, maybe once a week. I’ll come here for him. The rest of the time it’s just you two, like before,” Shido said casually.

“You’ll take my room, but you’ll only use it once a week? What about the rest of the time? How do I know you’ll be satisfied with that? You won’t start demanding more and more of him? After all, you’ve taken him for your mate,” questioned Gingi.

“The rest of the time, I’ll be elsewhere. And as for satisfaction, who knows? Once a week is a good start and we can work on it from there,” Shido stated.

“I’ll think about it. I’ll let you know in a week. Until then, hands off of Ban-chan.” Gingi sat with crossed arms.

“You drive a hard bargain, Raitei. I’ll be back in a week.” Shido nodded solemnly and stood to leave. “But what about Ban? Does he have any say in this?”

“No. It’s my decision.” And Gingi would say no more.

With that Shido had to be satisfied, and he let himself out of the apartment.

Gingi sat on the couch and started to shake. He had never had to face Shido down and the encounter had scared him half to death. Now he just wanted to fall apart. Warm arms enfolded him from behind and Ban-chan just hugged him close for a long time. Finally Gingi regained some composure.

“Did you hear?” Gingi asked turning to face him.

“Yes. Thank you. I don’t deserve someone as wonderful as you.” Ban rested his forehead against Gingi’s.

“Will it work?” Gingi asked. “Is this something we can live with?”

“If this keeps you and me together, I’ll fuck the devil himself once a week. Gingi, I’ll do whatever I have to do to make you happy and keep you next to me,” Ban answered.

“Good. Then take me to bed and prove to me that you love me more then anything. That I mean everything to you,” Gingi smiled mischievously, all signs of Raitei gone now.

Ban spent many long hours over the next week proving his love to Gingi. So many in fact, that he was starting to feel a little exhausted. But he would never stop trying to show his undying love to Gingi.

One week later, Ban and Gingi once again were occupying their favorite booth, Ban once again murmuring sweet nothings into Gingi’s ear, when Shido walked in, along this time.
He walked to the booth and slipped into the seat across from the two and sat waiting. Shido looked intently at Ban, then turned his attention to Gingi.

“You may have my room and you may come over on Thursday nights. That is the only time you are allowed to touch Ban-chan,” Gingi stated in no uncertain terms.

“Works for me,” Shido replied, leaned forward, took Ban’s face in his hand and pulled it close for a kiss. “I’ll see you on Thursday, sweetheart.”

With that Shido departed, a self-satisfied smile on his face. It was a start and he had the snake bastard in his bed now. There would be plenty of time for changes, later. First things first. Three days, then a whole night in a bed with the snake bastard under him. The thought had him grinning in anticipation of the pleasure to be gained with his new mate.

“Well, I guess we just got a roommate, hey Gingi? Guess I’d better get my ass ready for Thursday,” said Ban ruefully.

“I’ll make it feel better on Friday,” promised Gingi, happy that it had all worked out so easily.

And so the trio took up this strange living arrangement with each other, and Ban had little time to think about anyone else but Gingi and Shido from that point on, because they made sure to keep him too sated to look at anyone else.

*~*

Thanks for reading, hope your visit was a good one.