Naked 2

Sequel to: "Naked"

Written by: chochowilliams

Disclaimer: I do not own Only the Ring Finger Knows or the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Summary: Yuichi Kazuki and Wataru Fujii set out to prove to that love conquers all.

Warning: M/M, OOC, hentai, implied self-mutilation, romance, hurt/comfort, drama, language

Pairings: Yuichi Kazuki/Wataru Fujii, one-sided Masanobu Asaka/Wataru Fujii

Inserts: recap from chapter 4

A/N: This is it folks. Enjoy!

oOo

Last Time

Now he had Wataru Fujii to have and to hold for better or worse until death do they part. It did not matter if his parents, his brother, the world or even God himself were against their relationship and thought their love was a blunder, an error, an aberration or even the gravest of sins. It did not matter. He just did not care. Wataru belonged to him and he to Wataru. If it meant he would spend the rest of his afterlife in the deepest depths of Hell, then so be it, for there was no way he was ever going to give Wataru up, not now not ever, not for his brother, not for his parents, not for Toko and certainly nor for God or Buddha.

That was exactly what he told his parents. It was the first time he stood up for himself, the first time he spoke back to his parents. You were supposed to respect your elders. It was ingrained into all Asians-that and honor and duty. They came before anything else. But even the most well trained obedient dog will attack when cornered. There was no way he wad going to give up the one thing, the one person that made him happy, that made his life worth living in order to fulfill his parents' selfish desires for him. This was his life, his future. If being with Wataru was a mistake then it was his mistake to make.

oOo

Chapter 4: Memories of the Affliction

March – Ryokuyo High School Graduation Ceremony

She brought her hand back with a screech. Anger. Betrayal. Humiliation. It all swirled within her bitterly. How dare he? How dare he? How dare he?

The first time, she decided to draw back and bid her time. Patiently waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. After all, her affections had only been turned down. It was not as if she had been outright rejected. Therefore, naturally, she assumed she still had a chance. Slim it might have been, but as long as there was even a hundredth of a percent in her favor, there was no way she would give up.

She never thought it would happen, but it arrived in the form of the annual Ryokuyo High fest. Their class was to put on an auction and not just any ordinary auction, but one in which items of present as well as past popular students were to be sold to the highest bidder. This was it! It was a sign from God. It had to be! It was now or never. After some wheeling and dealing, whiling and whittling, her plan was set in motion. Her one true love would indeed appear at the auction.

She could just picture it in her head. Like she did the year before, she would draw Kazuki aside and confess. It would work this time! She was sure of it. There was no question about it. She would tell him how very much in love with him she was. He would see how genuine her feelings were. He would move his lips sweetly and call her name with that voice dripping with honey. He would then draw her into his arms and they would exchange their first kiss. The first of many. It would be filled with enough heat and passion to melt the glaciers. She could feel herself blushing hotly even now as she drew upon that fantasy.

Of course, it had not gone at all as she had planned. First off, he planned to bring his supposed girlfriend. That treasonous little hussy had to be taken care of. With the girlfriend out of the picture, she-Mai Tachibana-would be free to move ahead with her plan. The fact that Kazuki was involved with someone meant nothing. That little whore had nothing on her. If that girl was anything like her brother, then there was nothing to worry about. That little bitch would be easily taken care of.

Oh, how wrong she had been. On many counts.

The last thing she wanted was to make Kazuki angry with her, but that was exactly what she did. All she wanted was for him to love her. Was that so wrong?

She knew then that she would never again have a chance at her first and only love. This time, she had been clearly rejected. Not so much by what he said, but by the expression on his face as he spoke about his lover, the one he claimed was most dear to him. It was a look of someone who had found "the one". It pained her to witness such reverence. She had never felt such an aching before, but it was obvious that as far as her affections for Kazuki were concerned, she never stood a ghost of a chance, not now, not ever.

And that was that.

…Or so she thought. As difficult as it was to give up on Kazuki and move on, that was exactly what she did. Spring eventually rolled around as did graduation.

As the ceremony ended, a low murmuring started through the crowd. At first, she ignored it. Her parents had caved in and were throwing her an elaborate graduation party and from the hints they have been dropping, she might even get a very special present-the four-wheeled kind. Then she heard it: Kazuki.

In that instant, all the struggling to move on with her life had been for naught as those feelings she had held for her sempai for so long all rushed back to her. Her heart started racing. She could not draw a breath.

…But then…

Whatever small hope had been born within her when she realized that Kazuki had shown up at the ceremony shattered. Just like it did in each and every girl in the district that day as she witnessed the most sacrilegious event in her young short life.

That was when it all fell into place-all those little pieces, all those "coincidences" started adding up.

"It's someone people would find difficult to accept." (1)

It all made sense, why Kazuki refused the advances of every girl who approached him, why eventually he even stopped accepting gifts on the spot…why their rings "just happened" to match…

Her world crumbled.

Blind with rage, she approached her now former classmate. She was not even aware of what she did until after the deed was finished with and her hand was red and throbbing. Before she could stop herself, everything that had been bottled up inside her spewed forth.

Knowing what she knew now just made her past attempts seem that much more pathetic and sad. They both must have been secretly laughing at her futile attempts behind her back. That thought enraged her.

"How dare you! Pervert!"

His cheek stinging, Wataru stared in shock at his best friend's former crush.

"Mai!"

"Tachibana!"

A chorus of voices just as stunned as Wataru cried out around her, but she ignored them all.

"You knew how much I was in love with him! For so long, I've loved him. And yet you…! Yet you…! How could you? How could you steal him away for yourself? Do you have any idea how it feels to have your heart crushed? Your hope shattered? To pine for someone who regards you as nothing more than dirt beneath their feet? And yet here you come and do what nobody else could like it was nothing! Do you have no shame? How Kazuki could choose someone like you over me is beyond me…No. There's no way someone like Kazuki would fall in love with a boy…Yes. That's right. I bet you seduced him. Or maybe…Yeah. I bet it's nothing more than a misstep. A temporary experimentation that I'm sure he'll grow out of."

"-what an arrogant, egotistical, selfish thing to say."

"K-Kazuki?"

Now it was her turn to be stunned.

Yuichi stepped forward, blocking any further attempt by Mai to get at Wataru. The honor student, "good boy" reputation he had strived to build throughout his whole school career would be ruined after this, but he had had enough of being arbitrarily messed with. He was sick and tired of pretending to be someone he was not. He refused to move to the beat of different drummers.

"Yuichi."

Yuichi threw a look over his shoulder.

Wataru swallowed the words he was about to say nervously. This was something they'd discussed, but discussing something and executing it were two completely different things.

"If anyone should be ashamed it should be you, Tachibana. You have no right to speak to Wataru like that. It was disrespectful. How dare you?"

The color drained from her face. Never had anyone spoken to her like this. Never.

A crowd had gathered around them. Their glances being tossed back and forth as if they were at a tennis match. This was the most excitement they've seen in quite some time.

"My private life is just that and it certainly is no concern of yours or anyone else. I am free to love whomever I choose, including Wataru."

"B-but Kazuki-"

Yuichi glanced over his shoulder and smiled that gentle smile that had Wataru's pulse racing and a blush coloring his cheeks.

"I told you didn't I Tachibana? That as long as I have that person I can go on living."

She peeled her gaze away from Kazuki to Fujii. But why? Why him and not her? Was she not good enough? Did she come across as too brash? Was she not demure enough? What? What was it? There had to be something. Why else would he choose him and not her? It made no sense.

She'd seen Fujii's sister and they definitely could be twins. His sister was the female version of him. So-she couldn't believe she was even thinking this-why had Kazuki not chosen the sister instead of Fujii?

As if he could read her mind, Yuichi turned back to her. "Tachibana. I will tell you now just as I've told you before. I can never feel for you what you feel for me and frankly, giving the way you acted today, I'm glad that I don't."

Shocked gasps followed by a tidal wave of whispers rippled around them, but Yuichi paid them no heed. He'd promised Wataru two years ago that he would no longer be nice to the female population at Ryokuyo, but even though he'd stopped accepting letters and gifts on the spot, he really had continued with his "good boy", honor student reputation. No more. Wataru and he'd decided some months ago to free themselves from all the lies surrounding them and this was just another step to achieving that goal.

"But…Why?" Mai's voice came out just barely above a whisper. She had to know. Why Fujii and not her? Why a boy of all people? Why? It made no sense! "Why?"

"Why?" Yuichi repeated.

"Why him?" Mai spit. She glared venomously at her dark-eyed, dark-haired ex-classmate.

"That's easy."

"Huh?"

"I love him."

Being told something like that so bluntly threw Mai. She stuttered, unable to bring forth the contingent of scattered phrases that flew into and out of her mind. The world tilted and spun around her, leaving her feeling dizzy and lightheaded. Her vision narrowed until she was gazing at her sempai down a long tunnel. She felt faint.

Him and not her. Why? It still made no sense. What did he have that she did not? She was sure that with Fujii out of the picture, Kazuki would fall for her. Without a roadblock, traffic could continue uninterrupted, right?

"Tachibana."

Oh! That voice! How she loved it!

"Some things-are not about you."

Mai felt the words like a crushing blow. The first rears welled up.

"Just like you couldn't return Kawasaki-"

"Kawamura, Yuichi," Wataru snapped. "He's my best friend. Get it right already."

"Yeah. Yeah. Whatever," Yuichi rolled his eyes.

Hearing the retort between the two of them was the final blow. She clenched a fist to her chest.

"Like you couldn't return Kawamura's feelings, I cannot return yours."

Her vision, which had started to clear, blurred behind the heavy veil of tears that spilled down her face.

"You should know more than anyone that love is the least prejudicial person in the world. You can't help who you fall in love with."

Each word struck a cord within her.

"Right?" Yuichi could see it on her face. Mai was starting to understand. Taking a step backwards, he reached out blindly and clasped Wataru's hand. His fiancé was trembling and felt cool despite the unnaturally warm day. He caught Wataru's gaze and smiled.

Wataru caught his breath at the sight. Cheater, he thought.

Yuichi gave the smaller hand within his a reassuring squeeze. "I didn't set out to fall in love with Wataru and it definitely was not easy to come to terms with the fact that I'd fallen in love with a-younger-man."

Even two years after the fact.

"Yuichi," Wataru whispered. A slow grin transformed his face.

Clearing his throat, Yuichi turned away from the glorious sight.

Wataru chuckled lightly. It seemed his smile still charmed his boyfriend. Good to know.

"It hasn't been as easy road," Yuichi confessed once he'd gotten hold of himself. "But I wouldn't change it for anything."

Mai chocked back her sobs.

"I'm sorry Mai."

As the tears continued to fall, Mai watched as Kazuki gave her one last smile and turned away from her. She reached out. She opened her mouth to speak, to say anything that would keep Kazuki from walking away and keep him at her side, but then her tear filled gaze caught sight of his hand holding Wataru's, their fingers threaded together. As she continued to watch, Yuichi turned to gaze at Wataru and the look of absolute, unquestionable devotion had her on her knees with a heart-wrenching wail.

"Mai!"

A chorus of cries called out to her. Sympathetic tears and comforting hands.

"How dare he?"

"How rude!"

"How can Kazuki do such a horrid thing?"

Angry retorts caught her ear.

"Enough," she commanded to the gaggle of girls surrounding her.

"What? But Mai-!"

Mai merely shook her head. Enough was enough. No more. Scrubbing at her wet face, Mai struggled to her feet. Yuichi and Wataru were gone she noticed.

"Mai?"

She smiled at her oldest and closest friend. Her smile wavered around the edges and had an artificial feel to it, but eventually it'd be real. So this is what a broken heart feels like, she thought. It was not a feeling she particularly cared for. But maybe she'd finally be able to move on.

oOo

The Next Day

"Thank you. Come again."

"Have a nice day now."

The old couple who ran the small teashop located off the beaten path called pleasantries after them.

"Thank you."

"Thank you," Wataru echoed his boyfriend of two years with a bow.

"Such nice boys," the woman commented to her husband.

"Uhm hm," he agreed.

Once out of the shop, Yuichi clasped Wataru's hand firmly, startling Wataru.

"Ka-Yuichi?" He still wasn't entirely use to using his boyfriend's given name. It was somewhat strange.

"Hm?" Yuichi turned a smiling face to Wataru.

Wataru faltered in the face of that expression. "N-no, well…" He sighed. "Never mind."

Yuichi's smile widened into a grin. "Sure?"

Not trusting himself enough to speak, Wataru nodded.

"Okay." With a self-satisfied expression on his face, Yuichi turned from his flustered fiancé.

The main road was not that far from the little shop and it was always at that point where the two of them dropped each other's hand, but not this time. Yuichi had no desire to do such an officious thing. He was never going to let Wataru go. Never again. That meant that Wataru had to fight through his embarrassment.

His mile wavered. His step faltered. Tension rippled though him.

Wataru halted besides Yuichi. "What-?" He took in the strained expression, the hard look of his eyes, the set jaw and pursed lips.

"C'mon."

"Huh? Yuichi? What-?"

Yuichi tugged on Wataru's hand and pulled him along behind him none-too-gently.

"What? Not even a, 'Hello Brother'?"

Yuichi's grip on his hand tightened only a fraction at the sound of the familiarly sly voice. It was the only indication he gave that said he knew the newcomer was there.

Wataru turned towards the sound of the voice. "Sh-Shohei!"

"Hello, Fujii. Congratulations. I hear you got into M-U."

"Oh, uh, yeah," Wataru stuttered.

"Let's go," Yuichi repeated, yanking Wataru along.

"Wah!" Wataru stumbled after Yuichi.

Shohei watched the two of them stroll off with an expression that could be called something akin to sorrow. "I heard about your-visit, Yuichi," he called after his younger brother.

Wataru glanced at the back of Yuichi's head when the grip around his hand tightened to the point that it actually hurt.

Yuichi refused to acknowledge his brother. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction. When it came to Shohei, Wataru claimed he acted just like a little kid. So no more. He got what he wanted out of life. A nice apartment, a good job, good friends and Wataru. What else was there? More than anything, he wished to have the blessings of his parents and his big brother, but he didn't need them in order to live a happy life with Wataru.

The first signs of tension entered Shohei's expression.

They were mere feet from the street when Yuichi's stride paused.

"Yu-?"

"Your life must be so pathetically dull."

"What-? Yuichi?" Wataru had never heard Yuichi speak like that. Especially not to Shohei. "What are you doing?" His whispered words seemed to have no affect on his boyfriend.

Shohei cocked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Or it is you have so much spare time on your hands that you have to keep yourself occupied by interfering into things that don't concern you?"

"Yuichi. You are my little brother and are dear to me. All I want is for you to be happy."

"I am happy, big brother. Wataru makes me happy. If you'd get over yourself long enough, you'd be able to see that." Yuichi turned sideways and glared at Shohei out of the corner of his narrowed eyes. "Which leads me to believe that isn't what this is about."

"It isn't?"

"No. It's not."

"Alright then. What is this about then? Pray tell."

"You said it yourself, Shohei. Wataru makes me a better person."

Shohei inclined his head. That was all too true.

"And you hate that."

Wataru's eyes grew wide.

"Do I?"

"You hate that it's Wataru, because me being with him means that all of Mom and Dad's expectations and hopes and dreams for me were for naught."

"Which is why-"

"You're jealous," Yuichi interrupted.

Shohei went still.

Wataru glanced from Yuichi to Shohei. Jealous? What was he talking about?

"Otherwise, what's the point of all this?' Yuichi waited for a reply, a retort, a scoff; anything, but only silence stretched around them. "Take care of yourself, Shohei. Come on, Wataru," he said, "we've got a meeting with the florist."

Unable to say anything, Shohei watched his baby brother and his brother's lover vanish into the crowded street.

He knew he was not wrong. Whether that boy made Yuichi much more of a man or not was not the issue. The problem with Yuichi being with that boy was because Wataru was a boy. It would cause Yuichi's life to be that much more arduous and Shohei would give anything to stop that from happening. As the oldest, it was his job to protect his younger sibling, even at the cost of his relationship with him.

…The End

(1) Book 3 page 262