Title: Accidentally on Purpose
Fandom: Code Geass
Pairing/Characters: Gino/Lelouch
Genre/Category: Humour and a bit of Romance, maybe?
Rated: PG
Word count: 1920
Warnings: None
Spoilers/Setting: Set in R2, between Turn 11 and Turn 12
Disclaimer:Code Geass does not belong to me, I'm just playing with the characters a bit.

Summary:Prompt: "You know, if you don't stop accidentally hitting on me, I'm gonna have to accidentally take you seriously. And then what would we do?"

A/N: Written for cgkinkmemeii. Not beta'd, so if anyone catches some mistakes please do point them out! :) Feedback is as always welcome.

"I think Lelouch likes me."

Gino couldn't see Suzaku from where he lay sprawled on the couch, but he could hear him pause.

"I'm sorry?"

Gino turned on his stomach to grin up at his fellow Knight. "I think Lelouch likes me," he repeated, watching Suzaku's frown with interest before his friend smoothed his expression out, turning back to his paperwork.

"I'm sure he does," Suzaku replied neutrally, and a tad absently. He looked as though he wanted to say something more, but rifled through his papers instead.

Gino rolled his eyes. "Likelike, Suzaku." That caught Suzaku's attention again. "He's been flirting with me."

To say that the look he was getting was sceptical was a huge understatement. "I doubt that," the Knight of Seven said, amusement colouring his voice. "Gino, Lelouch doesn't flirt. He's completely oblivious to anything even vaguely related to romance or sex," he said with the same fond look he sported when talking with Princess Nunnally.

Gino watched in fascination as Suzaku's warm expression suddenly closed off, something like anger flashing in his eyes before returning to the stoic expression Gino had come to expect from his fellow Knight.

"You shouldn't put too much stock into what he says or does."

The statement sounded final, and Gino mulled it over as Suzaku returned to his work for the viceroy (or whatever it was he was doing). Then, after a while: "You know him pretty well, don't you?"

"Yes."

"So, if it's not flirting, why did he offer to teach me how to cook?"

Suzaku snorted, a slight smile playing at his lips. "Gino, you nearly burnt down the kitchen. Milly probably forced him to do it fearing for the school building."

Gino laughed at that, unabashed at the reminder of his horrendous first attempt at cooking. "Alright," he conceded, "but why did he offer to take me gambling with him sometime?" Granted, Gino hadn't exactly left him any choice when he had asked (or rather ambushed) the civilian, but he hadn't put up too much of a fight, either.

The trace of humour disappeared from Suzaku's expression. He looked uncomfortable. "Listen, Lelouch isn't- He's not-" he broke of in frustration. "He's not who you think he is, okay? What you see at Ashford... that's just... that's not really him."

"Are you saying he's lying to everyone?"

Suzaku's expression darkened. "Yes," he answered shortly.

Gino thought about that for a moment. "Then who is he?" he asked finally.

"That's not my place to tell."

"But he's your friend?"

Suzaku was visibly fighting with himself. Gino had to admit that he was more intrigued than worried by Suzaku's words.

"Yes," the Knight of Seven answered eventually, with the air of one who had admitted murder rather than friendship.

Suzaku pointedly turned back to his papers, the conversation obviously over.

-0-0-0-

"The most important thing is that you watch the-"

Gino instinctively took a step back as the milk bubbled over the brim of the pot, bumping into Lelouch who had rushed forward at the same time to remove the pot from the hot plate.

"-heat," Lelouch finished, as the mess stopped hissing. He reached across Gino to shut off the oven, brushing against Gino's chest in the process.

Gino didn't care what Suzaku said; no way was that accidental.

Lelouch, oblivious to Gino's thoughts dumped the pot into the sink, watching the burnt milk go down the drain with a slight scowl. "You really haven't cooked before, have you?"

Gino showed him his most brilliant grin. "Oops?"

The look of utter disgust Lelouch gave him couldn't be faked, never mind what Suzaku said about Lelouch being not-the-real-Lelouch at school. Was that what Suzaku had meant? The Lelouch Gino had observed at Ashford so far was benign and patient, but the real Lelouch wasn't anything like that?

"Maybe blancmange is a bit too sophisticated for you at the moment. Let's go back to the basics first. You do know how to boil water, right?"

-0-0-0-

Dinner consisted of the pasta Gino managed to produce on his second try - the first had been horribly overdone - and the sauce Lelouch had prepared. The pasta itself was a bit too salty, the sauce simply heavenly. No wonder Lelouch had been the one to offer (or been forced to offer) to teach him how to cook.

Maybe it was the wine they had to accompany dinner, or maybe it was the relief of having Gino out of his kitchen, but Lelouch had relaxed considerably by the time their plates were empty. And with Lelouch smiling encouragingly over the brim of his glass, his gaze intense as he listened to Gino talk about his work as a Knight of Rounds attentively, Gino couldn't help but think that this was just like a dinner date. And that he wouldn't mind if this truly was a dinner date.

Unfortunately, Gino couldn't use this opportunity to find out more about Lelouch, as he started gathering the dishes just as Gino opened his mouth. He trailed after Lelouch like an obedient puppy as the other started loading the dishwasher. He didn't want the evening to end yet, though, so cast for something to say.

"I'm sorry for the trouble," was what he finally settled on, with a small, flirtatious smile that Lelouch returned. Encouraged, he added, "Cooking apparently isn't one of my talents."

Lelouch's smile sharpened. "Oh, I'm sure your talents lie in another field, Sir Weinberg." His dark gaze was intense as he regarded Gino.

Gino swallowed thickly at the sight before him. Leaning against the counter with his hip, his arms crossed, violet gaze steady and a dangerous edge to his smirk, Lelouch looked as regal as a prince and as dangerous as a demon.

Screw it, Gino thought with a silent apology to Suzaku. Accidents and possible obliviousness aside, he made his decision and took a chance.

He stepped into Lelouch's personal space, ignoring the way his eyes narrowed, and leaned close to whisper in his ear:

"You know, if you don't stop accidentally hitting on me, I'm gonna have to accidentally take you seriously. And then what would we do?"

The alluring demeanor crumbled as Lelouch jerked back in shock, staring at Gino with wide eyes. "W-what?"

Gino was torn between disappointment that Suzaku had been right and how utterly adorable Lelouch looked, confusion and a faint trace of alarm plainly written on his face as his finely defined cheeks reddened.

"I'm not- I haven't-" he stammered, visibly flustered. "You have misunderstood-" He gave up with a frustrated growl, pushing Gino off him to put some distance between them. He crossed his arms again, glaring at Gino. "Cease and desist," he hissed imperiously, and Gino really, really shouldn't find that hot.

But he did.

Gino held up his hands, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. "Sorry, sorry," he said with a self-deprecating grin, "I guess I misunderstood."

"Yes!"

"I mean, when you offered to tutor me..." He couldn't help but think the way Lelouch glared at him suspiciously when he trailed off was utterly adorable. God, Suzaku had been right.

"Or all that 'accidental' touching during cooking-"

Lelouch blushed even harder. "Excuse me for trying to keep you from setting fire to yourself!" he snapped.

He wasn't thatbad. Probably. "And then there was your crack about my talents," Gino finished.

Lelouch gaped. "I- I was talking about your piloting skills, you dunderhead! What else could I possibly have been-" His entire face was on fire when he got the innuendo.

Gino watched as Lelouch visibly struggled for composure. As he had already made his decision before he had made his move he merely found it slightly hilarious how badly he had misinterpreted Lelouch's 'advances', instead of being embarrassed or mortified. Besides, Lelouch was doing enough blushing for the two of them.

Not that it wasn't an enticing sight.

And the most important thing was that despite his spluttering and glaring, Lelouch hadn't kicked him out yet. Nor had he outright rejected him. Gino could work with that.

"Look," Gino started, but Lelouch held up a hand to silence him. Gino closed his mouth with a snap.

Lelouch closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before meeting Gino's gaze. "I apologise if any of my actions made it seem as though I intended to make untoward advances towards your person. It was not my intention and I assure you that I hold nothing but the highest respect for you and your personal boundaries, and I will ensure that such a misunderstanding will never occur again."

Silence descended between them as Lelouch gazed steadily, but not unkindly at Gino, though his cheeks were still tinged pink. Gino took a moment to work through the overly formal Dear John-speech.

"Did you memorise that?"

Lelouch blinked. "I beg your pardon?"

Gino gestured at him. "That little speech. It sounded like you were reciting a-" Something clicked. "Is that what you tell all the girls that confess to you?"

Lelouch didn't answer verbally, but the renewed fire in his cheeks and his averted eyes spoke volumes.

"Well, I'm not having it." Lelouch's eyes snapped back to him, narrowed in irritation. "I like you," Gino continued, pleased when that made Lelouch's eyes widen, the artificial light in the kitchen reflecting in those beautiful violet eyes. And it was true. He had only known the other boy for a couple of days, but Lelouch was mesmerising and intriguing. Even Anja had taken a shine to him. "Let's go on a date!"

"What? No!"

Okay, that smarted a bit. "Why not? You went with all those girls a few days ago."

Lelouch sputtered. "That wasn't- That's not- No!" He turned away from Gino, hands clenched tightly.

With a sigh Gino considered his options. He could press his point and probably get Lelouch to agree to a date if only to get rid of him, but... He wasn't going to forcehim on a date. Damn. "Guess Suzaku was right."

The silence that reigned after his admission had a very peculiar quality. The Knight of Three couldn't quite place what was suddenly different, as Lelouch gazed at him with narrowed eyes.

"What does Suzaku have to do with this?"

Gino blinked at Lelouch, choosing his answer carefully. "He told me you wouldn't be interested," he settled on, feeling out of the loop. He hadn't stumbled into an argument between the two, had he?

Lelouch considered Gino for a moment. "Did he," he murmured absently, obviously deep in thought. Then he smiled, and it lit up his whole face as he regarded Gino pleasantly. "Very well, then. I'll agree to go out with you."

"Seriously?" There was something Gino had missed, but he shoved the thought to the back of his mind for now. He could always worry later. "That's great!"

On a whim, he closed the gap between them to give Lelouch (in consideration of his very probable inexperience) a light peck on one burning cheek, before being shoved off once more.

"Ack! Get off me, brute!" Lelouch glared at him again. Gino didn't mind, laughing as showed himself out to the sound of Lelouch insults, not willing to test Lelouch's temper any further. There would be enough time to do that, later. Gino grinned at the thought.

Suzaku had been right: this wasn't the Lelouch Gino had seen at school. This Lelouch was even more interesting.