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Chapter Text

Trust was always a thing that was easily lost and a bitch to gain. Ryuu Zaou knew that better than anyone. Back in high school, he fooled around with so many girls that he had honestly lost count, and they would always praise his womanizing ways, asking who was next. He didn’t need to trust them not to break his heart because his heart was never truly in it. His heart was always elsewhere, hooked on one particular person who would never want it anyway.

Io Naruko was who Ryuu had always referred to as the “love of his life”, even if Io didn’t know that. He was handsome and charming, a self-made billionaire. He was easily the smartest person Ryuu had ever met, and the most beautiful. But Ryuu knew better than to ever fall for his best friend. After all, he was always unsure of whether Io was capable of loving anything other than money.

But that made it easy for Ryuu to date and sleep around. It kept him from thinking about his secret feelings for Io, and it also helped to lead his best friend astray from who was really in his heart. It was the perfect plan. And then it failed.

Not long after graduating from high school, Io had invited Ryuu out to a cafe, offering to front the bill. Naturally, Ryuu accompanied him, knowing it was rare for Io to want to buy anything for anyone. He was immediately shocked to receive a tearful love confession from Io, who thought that Ryuu would find him disgusting since he seemed interested in only women.

That was the day the two became a couple. Ryuu quit his womanizing ways, and Io set electronics aside whenever he was with his new boyfriend. Everything had seemed perfect between them, so why did they break up after a year? Simple, Io was jealous of all of the women who still fawned over his boyfriend, telling them they could just have him.

To cope with losing Io, Ryuu began to sleep around again, trying to do anything but think of the man he loved. And that worked for him. It wasn’t too long before Io realized that he couldn’t just give up Ryuu, and they got back together. Two weeks after they got back together is where this story begins.

.

Io shivered as he shut the front door of the apartment he shared with Ryuu. The winter chill froze him down to his bones on his walks home from the bus stop after work. He hugged his arms tightly to himself to conserve his body heat as his teeth chattered for a moment. “Ryuu?” he called out into their home. “Babe, are you home?”

Footsteps resounded as Ryuu made his way to the entryway, smiling brightly when he saw Io. “Hey, how was your day?” he asked, leaning in to kiss his cheek as Io toed off his shoes to replace with his house slippers. “Make any new business deals?”

“Nah,” the other replied with a sigh. “Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the company trying to partner with me participates in unethical practices with their staff. I couldn’t possibly tie my name to something like that, you know? So I withdrew from the contract. Sure, they weren’t happy, but I wasn’t happy with how their employees were treated, so we’re even.”

Ryuu smiled, pushing stray pink hair out of his face. “That’s my man,” he proudly stated. “The working world would be a better place with someone like you in charge, you know.”

“Don’t patronize me,” Io sighed before his mouth twisted into a smile. He pressed Ryuu against the wall of the hallway and kissed him, treasuring the feeling of their lips caressing each other’s. His heart fluttered in his chest the way it always had whenever they kissed. That was how he knew what they had was real. “I love being worshiped in some cases, though.”

“I’ll be sure to do so tonight then.” The other man winked a brown eye at his lover before grabbing his shoulders and bringing him in for another kiss. “Any other requests?”

Io nearly melted at Ryuu’s touch. “I’ll make them when the time comes,” he breathed. He hoped to never get used to how his lover made him feel. It was one of the greatest parts of loving him, after all. Every day felt like magic, both of them knowing such a thing to be real. He wrapped his arms around Ryuu’s waist, leaning his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. “Make sure you make yours known as well.”

Ryuu laughed. “You know me, Io. Of course I will.” He then moved away from his boyfriend and began to head down the hallway. “I made my grandma’s yakisoba that you like. I’ve already dished it out. Let’s go eat it before it gets cold.”

Watching the other man’s retreating form before following him to the dining room, Io felt so in love. It felt as if he were seeing everything through a rose-colored haze. He prayed that his peaceful days with Ryuu would never end.

.

“What will it take to be with you forever?” Ryuu asked him that night as they lay in bed. He propped his head up on his hand as he looked over Io’s beautifully pale body next to his. “Those months that we were apart, I knew that you’ll be the only one I truly want to spend my life with, Io. If I’m honest, I even knew it back in high school too. Even without Yumoto accidentally dumping water on us in the middle of our argument freshman year, I knew it. But back then, arguing like that was the only way I knew you’d notice me.”

Io let out a light and airy laugh at the memory. “And here I was thinking the same thing.” He rolled to his side to mirror Ryuu’s pose. “If it isn’t obvious at this point, then I have no idea how else to tell you that I love you.” His cheeks flushed as he watched a smile grace his lover’s features. “Spending life with you sounds like quite the adventure, you know. Are you sure you’re up for it?”

With a laugh, the other man leaned forward and pecked Io’s lips, placing a hand on his hip and marveling at how soft his skin was. “Why wouldn’t I be? You’re the only one for me, Io. I’m certain of it.” His hand found his lover’s free hand and he interlaced their fingers, looking into the gray eyes that melted him back in high school. “Let’s get married.”

Io found himself gasping for breath. Sure, he wanted to be with Ryuu forever, but marriage? Was that really something they could pull off? Was it even legal in Japan? Would they go on vacation and get married before coming back married? His heart pounded in his chest and all he could say back was, “Married?”

“Why not? It’s only the rest of our lives, you know.”

“Are you sure you want to get married? You’re not satisfied with the way our lives are now?”

“Are you satisfied with it?”

For a moment, Io found himself at a loss for words. “Could people like us get married?”

“Of course we can,” Ryuu assured, bringing his hand up and brushing his lover’s bangs from his eyes. “Matching wedding bands and everything. Our marriage certificate on display in our living room. Can’t you just imagine it, Io?”

“I want that. I want it so badly, Ryuu. But is it even possible?”

“We’ll find a way. Don’t worry about those details. We have plenty of time to plan everything. I just want you to know that I choose you and that I want you to always be mine.” Ryuu shyly averted his eyes, his cheeks dusted with a blush. He took a deep breath before looking into Io’s eyes, grasping his hand within his. “Io Naruko, will you marry me?”

Though he saw it coming a mile away, Io’s heart pounded so loudly in his ears that he almost didn’t hear the proposal. His consciousness seemed to soar out of his body and up into the sky, looking down at them as if the apartment alone couldn’t contain all of the feelings he was feeling in that exact moment. “Yes,” he finally said before moving closer to Ryuu in the bed to physically show him how sure that he really was.

.

“You’re getting married, Ryuu-senpai?!” Yumoto’s excited voice shouted over the phone, causing Ryuu to hold the phone at arm’s length to prevent himself from going deaf. “And to Io-senpai?! Congratulations!”

Ryuu sighed. “Thank you, Yumoto. I really appreciate it.” He smoothed down the suit he wore to work and leaned back in his desk chair, relaxing during his break. “We don’t have a date picked out or anything yet, but I’ll let you know when I know. We would love to have you there.”

“I’ll be there!” Yumoto excitedly replied. Ryuu could practically hear the blond’s fist pumping up into the air. “You can count on me!”

After a few minutes, Ryuu hung up his phone and was able to relax. He had called all of their friends to share the news, only missing the chance to tell Arima, who had gone under the radar ever since he went to college. At least Ryuu had tried to reach out to him, so he couldn’t be accused of lack of trying.

There was a knock on his office door before his young secretary poked her head in. “Excuse me, Mr. Zaou, but Mr. Naruko is here to see you. He has a screaming infant with him and he doesn’t look too pleased.”

Ryuu jumped up and ran out of his office. He followed the sounds of a crying baby to the lobby where he saw an infuriated Io standing next to a baby carrier with his arms crossed as he glared at him. “What’s going on, Io?” he asked, running over to him. “Whose baby is that?”

Without a word, Io handed over an envelope that was addressed to Ryuu. He used his foot to rock the carrier at his feet and wrestled the baby’s pacifier out from under her, putting it into her mouth. The baby went silent as Ryuu read the letter, his face falling with every line.

“Wait,” Ryuu quietly said after finishing the letter. He looked into Io’s angry, piercing gaze. “She’s mine?”

Chapter Text

“I-I-I don’t understand how this happened!” Ryuu stammered, note tossed aside. “I was so careful!” He pleaded with his lover. “Io, I never meant for this to happen!” His brown eyes then went to the baby who looked so much like him that there was no way he could deny having fathered her. “Please believe me!”

Io fell to his knees, pulling at his bangs. “How could you have let this happen? I’m not ready to be a parent. I didn’t even have it in my plans.” He began to hyperventilate. “I don’t know a damn thing about kids, especially babies! And I sure as hell don’t know anything about girls!”

“Baby, calm down,” Ryuu said, kneeling in front of Io and placing grounding hands on his shoulders. “It’s going to be okay.”

The other man’s expression quickly turned to anger. “How is it going to be okay, Ryuu? You have a daughter! Neither of us even knows how to take care of a baby! I didn’t want kids! This is not the life that I wanted!” Tears fell from his gray eyes. “Ryuu, I love you more than I can bear, but I really don’t know if I can do this…”

“Wait, Io, please don’t say that,” Ryuu quickly begged. “My life doesn’t make sense without you. Please don’t leave me, baby. We can fix this. I’ll surrender her to adoption services. I’ll do anything.”

“I’m not going to make you choose between me and Sakura!” Io shouted in frustration. “It’s not your fault she was born, okay?! I may not be happy about this! In fact, I’m fucking pissed about it! But don’t you dare act like you need to choose between me and your own flesh and blood!”

The ferocity and volume in Io’s voice resulted in terrified screams coming from Sakura. As if on instinct, Io crawled over to her carried and began to rock it, mumbling soft apologies to the infant as he tried to get her to take her pacifier again. Ryuu watched the scene in astounded wonder, seeing the natural caretaker in his boyfriend. He wondered if he would ever have that natural instinct. When his daughter cried, he was just frozen in place. Could he really handle fatherhood?

“I’m nothing without you,” he whispered once Io had the baby asleep. “I don’t know if I can handle a baby. There’s no way I could be as good with her as you are. Io, what am I going to do?” He wrung his hands with worry. “How can I even think to do this without you by my side? I need you. Please, I know you’re angry, but please don’t leave me. I don’t think I would be able to bear it.”

Io slowly stood and turned to face his lover. “Ryuu, do you think we can do this? Do you really think we can raise a little girl together? Are we even fit to be parents? What if something goes wrong?”

“There is no one else that I would ever want to undertake such an adventure with. Please stay with me. Io, please say you’ll always be mine.”

“How could I ever say no to a life with you? Even if that life includes one more person than we initially planned. You think I would miss out on this? If we work as a team, this girl will have the best life any girl could ever desire. I hope you know, that I will always choose you, Ryuu. I choose you and Sakura.”

“Is her name really Sakura?”

Io sighed. “Didn’t you read the note?” He shook his head and leaned in, softly kissing Io’s lips. “I swear sometimes…” His voice trailed off as his lover pulled him closer by the waist and deepened the kiss. “Ryuu, we need to figure out what we’re going to do while we’re working in the daytime.”

Ryuu sighed and rested his forehead against Io’s. “Let’s look into a nanny until we figure out daycare,” he slowly replied. “That’s step one.” His brown eyes flicked over to the sleeping baby in the carrier. “I’m going to take the rest of the day off. We need to get necessities for her. Clothes, bottles, formula, diapers, wipes….God, what else?”

“Let’s get going. Sounds like we have a busy afternoon ahead of us.” The smaller man of the two picked up the carrier and nestled it in the crook of his arm. “Sakura is going to be one spoiled girl. I can already tell.”

.

That night, Ryuu was showing Io just how much he appreciated his lover’s support when tiny screams ripped through the house. He sighed heavily, mood diminished as he awkwardly climbed off of Io and looked for a pair of boxers, not wanting to be naked around a baby. Once clothed properly, he opened the bedroom door and went to the small room they had designated as Sakura’s nursery.

She was so tiny, yet the noise she made seemed to fill the house. Her little face was red from screaming and crying. It took her a couple moments to register when her father picked her up, but once she did, she looked up at him, brown eyes wide.

“What? Is this seriously all you wanted? You wanted me to hold you? Come on, kid, I was in the middle of some really important business.” He frowned down at the baby, grumpy from being unable to finish. His gaze softened as she smiled up at him, wide and toothless. “You know, you have a weird smile, Sakura. It’s gummy and awkward, but it’s actually kinda cute.” Ryuu sat down in the rocking chair next to her crib. “You know, getting a better look at you, I have to admit you’re pretty cute. Papa Io says you look like me, you know. Damn, I have some pretty great genetics.”

After ten minutes, Io came to look for Ryuu and smiled, leaning against the doorway of the nursery when he saw the smitten look on Ryuu’s face as he gazed down at his sleeping daughter. Something about Ryuu snuggling such a tiny human stirred a strange feeling in Io’s chest. His heart fluttered from seeing a look of such awestruck love on his lover’s face. It made him feel better than any orgasm he had been about to achieve. How could seeing Ryuu being so fatherly be such a turn-on?

“In love already? That didn’t take long,” he softly said, Ryuu’s head snapping up to look at him in surprise. He smiled at his lover. “You know, I have to admit, fatherhood looks good on you. Who knew?” His eyes then went down to the baby. “She trusts you so much.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Ryuu quietly replied before carefully putting Sakura back in her crib. “To be honest, I have no idea what I’m doing. Am I doing anything right?” He sat back down in the rocking chair, running his fingers through his hair. “Do you really think I can pull off being a dad? Even with you by my side, can we really do this?”

Io sighed and sat down on Ryuu’s lap, snuggling into his chest while looping his arms around the other man’s shoulders. “We’re doing pretty great so far, you know. Don’t worry about it, babe. We will just take it as it comes. We’ll get the hang of it sooner or later.”

Ryuu looped his arms around his lover’s waist. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. God, stay with me forever. I need you.” His lips began to pepper Io’s neck with kisses. “Never leave me. Please, always be mine.”

Io smiled and rested his head on Ryuu’s shoulder. “Always.”