Someone was shaking him. Hyuk-jae's eyes sprang open for a moment, concern flooding his angular face before he realized where he was. Right, the couch. Nagisa's place. Normal. He rolled over, finding the fluffy-haired man glaring at him with angry brown eyes.

"I can't sleep."

"Uh... do you want some tea?" Rubbing at his eyes, Hyuk-jae stared at Nagisa. He couldn't sleep? Well, okay — but why was he coming down to yell at Hyuk-jae about it? It wasn't like the Firebender could do anything... "Or d'you need another blanket or something?" he asked, feeling stupid. His eyes were burning a bit from being awakened so suddenly.

Apparently not. Nagisa let out a strong breath of annoyance through his nose, stamping his foot as he demanded Hyuk-jae go to bed. "W-- what do you think I'm doing?" he asked, orange eyes wide. He wasn't just playing games down there! He'd been sleeping! "I was asleep!"
"Well fine!" Nagisa shouted at him, "Why shouldn't you just sleep down here then?"
"What in the seven hells is wrong with you?" Hyuk-jae climbed out of the blanket, hair a mess. Apparently Nagisa did not want him to sleep downstairs. The confused Firebender went up the stairs quickly, throwing himself into bed and stuffing his face down against a pillow. "Happy?"
"Ugh." Nagisa climbed in next to him, grumbling about something. Hyuk-jae was too tired to listen. He rolled over as Nagisa tucked up against him, falling back to sleep quickly.

The next morning, of course, Nagisa was still mad. He stomped around and whined about breakfast and Hyuk-jae had almost — almost — had enough of it, but reminded himself that patience was a virtue. He made porridge for the young man and put sugar in it. He made tea and lunches. He even made an effort to match the young man's outfit for the evening.

Despite Hyuk-jae's efforts, things continued to be strained. He felt like he was working twice as hard trying to make Nagisa happy and their customers happy. They seemed to get a lot of female clients that week, and Yoshida didn't come back around. when he finally did, it was with Nakamura in tow. Nagisa didn't seem pleased about it, but Hyuk-jae made sure to show him his list. He was not booked separately at all.

Yeah, Nagisa was mad at him all right. Even their clientele noticed, with some asking questions. Nagisa lied, of course. He was decent enough at it, too.

By the time Nakamura and Yoshida arrived, Hyuk-jae's mood had taken a serious downturn. No matter what he did or said, Nagisa was still angry with him. No amount of kindness changed his mind. He ignored him, or else simpered at him with smiles that didn't reach the eyes. Hyuk-jae wanted to go home.

Then again, home was worse. Nagisa flat-out ignored him there, and Hyuk-jae had spent hours out looking at apartments without so much as a word from the younger man. While Nagisa's gold eyes had questioned him from across rooms, the man obviously didn't care enough to ask. No, Hyuk-jae decided, he didn't want to go home. He sighed.

"Trouble in paradise?" asked Yoshida, looking at Hyuk-jae's face. "You're quiet today, Eunhyuk. Even for you."
Hyuk-jae shrugged. "Shouta's mad at me," he admitted.
"Oh?" Yoshida laughed. "A lover's quarrel?"
"No, I think — he's really mad." The dark-haired man drew circles on the table with his forefinger.
"What did you do?" The businessman leaned back in his chair, draping his arm about Hyuk-jae's shoulders.
He shrugged. "I just --I think I'm difficult to live with."

After a little more flirting, Yoshida seemed to be stuck on the dynamic between the two of them. "C'mon," he said, "kiss and make up. You're both too boring this way, it's dull." He gave Hyuk-jae a little push. "Go on." Resisting, Hyuk-jae shook his head. Nagisa seemed fine with Nakamura. Of course, Yoshida didn't want to take no for an answer.

"Go on," he said, insistently. He shoved a little harder. "Make up with your boyfriend. It'll amuse me."
Hyuk-jae wanted to slap the man, insist that Nagisa wasn't his boyfriend and tell him that he wouldn't kiss him for his amusement.

He didn't, though. And he would — kiss him, that is.

Making his way around to the other side of the table, for the clients sat between them, he leaned over Nagisa's shoulder. "You're too cold," he said, keeping his voice smooth like honey. "Don't be mad at me." Stroking his index finger across Nagisa's cheek, he turned the man's head and pressed their lips together. It was fine, right?

Except that the kiss was more emotional than he'd planned on, and he couldn't take the scent of Nagisa's hair. It was too sweet, like strawberries in summertime. Hyuk-jae leaned in more than he meant to, kissed deeper than he meant to, forgot to hide how he actually felt.

Yoshida was amused indeed.

Nagisa wasn't kissing him back.

The only thing that crossed his mind, other than how very sweet that shampoo smelled, was that Nagisa wasn't kissing him back. Hyuk-jae jerked away, flush blooming across his cheeks. He had to get away. The room suddenly felt much too hot, and he felt like the whole of the Earth could see his very soul. It was a horrible, wrenching feeling. Shoving away from Nagisa, he turned on his heel and abruptly left the room, ignoring any sound similar to his name.

He managed to make it to the bathroom, leaning over the sink as he forced the tears to fall straight out without rolling down his face. Eyeliner. He had eyeliner on. Turning on the cold water, Hyuk-jae briskly rubbed his hands under it before pressing slim palms to his skin, closing his eyes at the cooling sensation.

"You are so stupid," he told himself, opening his eyes again to stare at the mirror. They seemed feverishly bright. "So, so stupid." Swallowing, he let out a trembling breath. "It's just work to him." Admonishing himself in the mirror was an old habit, one born of not having anyone else to talk to. "It's just work and you are pathetic." How could he have fallen for that bait? Of course it had gone badly!

Leaning back over the sink to steady himself, he braced his weight on the porcelain. No, he couldn't blame Yoshida for this. "It's your own fault," he said. "You set yourself up for this, getting so attached." It was true. He was so, so screwed up. Was he really so starved for affection that he — "You can't even tell the difference between friendship and love," he told his reflection, whose eyes looked distant and sad. "And you have no idea how to make friends."

Hyuk-jae gave himself a few more minutes before pushing away from the sink, taking a deep breath. He had to rejoin the party, act like he was fine. He could it off, right? Laugh off a monumental mistake.

Oh, God.

As he straightened, Hyuk-jae glanced in the mirror to check on his eyeliner — and saw Nagisa's face staring at him. Whirling around, he braced himself on the sink. "Nagisa!" he exclaimed. The other man stared at him, face unreadable. "When did you get here?" the Firebender asked, immediately looking at the floor. When his friend remained silent, he was sure he was in serious, serious trouble.

Get out of my house kind of trouble.

"I'm so sorry," he breathed instantly. "I really — I have no idea what I was thinking, please — I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have. I had no right. I mean it. I'm really sorry." The shorter man advanced toward him, still saying nothing. Dimly aware that he just kept apologizing over and over, Hyuk-jae tried to back up but found there wasn't anywhere to go.

Nagisa placed a hand on his chest and his breath hitched. "I'm sorry," he said again, helplessly, waiting for his friend to hit him. He had ruined everything! Hyuk-jae had no idea what was coming next and certainly, certainly wasn't expecting for Nagisa to push up onto his toes and kiss him. The first one was soft, like butterflies, like an accident. But the second was deeper, and when Nagisa kissed him a third time, the Firebender put his hands on the shorter man's waist, pulling him closer, opening his mouth to him. It was hard to breathe when they parted, and he had trouble understanding what his friend was saying.

"I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry about this week."

What? Why was — "Because you weren't talking to me?" Hyuk-jae asked, breathless. He felt so... stupid. "I — it's okay. I know I'm a frustrating person, right?" Swallowing, he stared at Nagisa with impossibly bright eyes. "W-- aren't you mad at me?" he asked. "Don't you hate me?" He didn't understand. Nagisa hadn't been talking to him for a week.

He shook his head when Nagisa started explaining, bending to kiss him again. He wanted to kiss him forever, to kiss him over and over again until it finally felt real. Hyuk-jae felt dizzy, drunk maybe, with the smell of Nagisa's hair and the sugary taste that lingered in the corners of his mouth.

It surprised him to notice that Nagisa was hesitant. He'd assumed that because the young man was attractive, he had romantic experience — but the way he was kissing him felt like he was unsure. Hyuk-jae experimentally brushed their tongues together and the shorter man gasped in surprise, just as the door flew open.

The Madame chastised them at once for hiding in the bathroom while they were on the clock. Not that he blamed her. The door shut behind her and Hyuk-jae laughed, feeling like a weight had been lifted. "Right," he agreed, and following Nagisa out. He kept his hand in the small of the shorter man's back.

He raised a brow as Nagisa fed him an extremely long explanation for his behaviour. It seemed as though Nagisa wasn't very knowledgeable when it came to his own feelings. "Jealous?" He stopped for a moment, shocked. "Of what, me pouring tea? It was awful and I think he hated every minute of it." He explained how upset Yoshida had been over the seizures and how uncomfortable he'd been alone with him. Hyuk-jae wished he could just refuse all private clients. He didn't want to take them, he said.

Sitting next to Yoshida, he slid his hand easily over the man's lap. "Thanks for your advice," he said, voice a purr. Their time was almost up anyway, right?
"Shame I didn't get to see more of the outcome," the salaryman said.
Hyuk-jae laughed, throwing his head back slightly, as if it were the most amusing thing he'd heard all night. Maybe it was. "Next time, perhaps," he said, "if you're good."

Not sorry to see them leave, Hyuk-jae leaned back in relief. The night was almost over, praise the spirits. A peculiar expression graced his face as he considered going home, a very satisfied expression. Maybe his dreams would come true...

It was just too tempting. Hyuk-jae found that he could barely keep his hands to himself. Naturally a physical person — despite how he flinched away from certain types of people — he kept running his fingers through Nagisa's hair, gently touching the small of his back, sitting close. Their clients thought it sweet, and he smiled, indulging them as well as himself.

On the way home Nagisa wound their arms together, and by the time they reached the door Hyuk-jae was besotted with him, doing his dead-level best not to drop to his knees in the front hallway. They were lucky they made it upstairs fully clothed; it had been a long time. Much longer than he was used to, in fact.

It was with little fanfare but certain expertise that Hyuk-jae got Nagisa out of his shirt first, a small stumble over the pocketwatch just a minor annoyance. His own shirt came off immediately following, and he curved his hands along Nagisa's arms, aiming for his belt. Maybe it was the dreams, but he couldn't wait to get him —

"W-wait... I don't... I don't think I'm... I mean, I've never..."

Oh.

Right. Hyuk-jae smiled, pulling back from Nagisa smoothly even as the other man pushed him away. "Okay," he said. "Don't worry about it." Nagisa was blushing fiercely, face averted. Was he embarrassed? Hyuk-jae tucked his fingers under the younger man's chin, making sure their eyes met. "It's fine," he said, honestly. "I'm sorry. It's too fast, right?" He ran his fingers through Nagisa's hair. "We can stop. We can do whatever you want." While he wasn't used to being with someone special, he WAS used to doing whatever his partner wanted. At that moment he wanted nothing more than to be as close as possible to Nagisa. If 'as close as possible' was just cuddling, well...

Well, he was a grown man. He knew how to take care of himself and wait patiently. And that was exactly what Nagisa deserved from him.

Waiting a moment, watching Nagisa's face, Hyuk-jae found the room to be a little more chilly than he'd realized. "Are you tired?" He tried to sit patiently, trying to think of how normal people probably did things. "We can go to bed, if you want. We don't have to..." What? Continue?

"We don't have to do anything." Hyuk-jae smiled. "That's what you want, right?" He rubbed his right upper arm briskly with his left hand as chillbumps rose on his pale skin.