Author's Notes: An incredibly large AU that has Ken and Davis in HS. A lot of the situations and observations in here are from my time in Highschool. Writing this is kind of like therapy for me. I should also note that this story starts right in the middle of the action. I might go back and write a true beginning for it if I ever feel like it.
Rating: R for language and sexual situations
Pairing: Ken/Davis
Written: 2003
"Asshole," Davis yelled as the other boy used his arm to force the red-head against the wall. With the way Ken had him braced, there was no way for Davis to get any leverage. No way for Davis to get out of this situation, and no way for anyone to hear him when he yelled. Too much isolation was never a good thing. "Let me go!"
"No," Ken said softly.
"What do you mean no? Are you trying to get suspended?" Davis asked. Even though he disliked Ichijouji, even though the punk always had dry insults or angry words for him, Davis had never known Ken to be physically aggressive. "Let me go, I'm going to miss my ride."
"So walk. It'll do your rich kid ass good to walk to get where you need to go. Like us peons do."
"Look, Ichijouji. I don't know what this is about, but if you don't let me go, someone is going to notice. They're going to come looking for me, and you are going to be in trouble when they find me," Davis said. He was trying to be rational in an irrational situation. There was something dangerously calm in the other boys gray eyes that warned him not to fight back too hard. "So just let me go."
"No."
"Then either beat the crap out of me or tell me what this is about so I can go home." Davis started struggling again, hoping either to start the beating he was sure was going to happen or to get away. Ken refused to be pushed and waited till Davis tired himself out. Once Davis had quieted, Ken let up a little bit and started speaking.
"Fine. You want to know what this is about? You and the idiots you try to bond with can talk shit about me all you like. I don't care. But you leave my family out of your little speculations, you hear? I don't want to hear your big mouth spreading rumors," Ken said. There was none of the volume Davis had come to associate with the other boy's anger. The words were delivered in a quiet, almost emotionless tone.
"What are you talking about?"
"What I'm talking about," Ken said, crowding Davis closer to the wall once more. "...is you and your cronies speculating on my brother's sexual orientation. It is none of your damn business."
Davis blinked at him, his mind trying to comprehend what Ken was saying. "Your brother? You have a brother?"
"Sam. I heard you morons joking about it, so don't even think of playing stupid on this."
It took a while for Davis to place the name. A fragment of conversation floated back to him from earlier that day. Hey Davis, if you can't get a date for the dance, we could always hook you up with Sam. He was always hard up for dates when he was here. He'd even take a loser like you to the dance. Davis had made some comment about how he was sure this Sam didn't live up to his standards, and that had been the end of the conversation. Neatly turned away from topics and questions he'd rather not discussed.
"Wait a minute. The Sam they were talking about was your brother?"
"Yes."
"Okay then, sorry. No need to get violent or anything. I didn't know your brother's sex life was that important to you," Davis said, trying to lighten the mood. Ken's eyes narrowed at his tone.
"It's not funny!" Ken yelled, the volume Davis usually associated with the other boy's anger finally creeping into Ken's voice. "This isn't some kind of joke. I'm not going to stand by and listen to you call my brother gay."
"Why? Do you have something against being gay?" Davis had never pegged Ken for being a gay basher. Then again, he didn't have the greatest track record when it came to sensing how people felt about the subject.
"No. There's nothing wrong with it," Ken said evenly. Davis wasn't sure whether he believed Ken believed those words. "I just don't want to hear you morons tear someone apart because they might be gay."
It was funny. No really it was. Davis found himself laughing uncontrollably. Ken was giving him that look, the one that said he thought the red-head was insane. It only served to make Davis laugh harder. Him? Make fun of someone who was gay? The irony was not lost on him.
"What the Hell is wrong with you, Motomiya? Stop laughing! It's not fucking funny." Ken was yelling, almost screaming at this point. He shoved Davis back against the wall hard enough to force the breath from Davis' lungs.
"It's just..." Davis tried to explain what was so funny, but Ken wouldn't let him finish. The other boy seemed infuriated by Davis' laughter. The red-headed boy fully expected Ken to hit him he was so mad.
"Shut up! I don't want to hear anymore of your excuses."
"But..."
"I said shut up!" Ken was pressing Davis hard against the brick. Hard enough that Davis could feel the roughness of the bricks digging into his back through his shirt. Hard enough that he knew he'd have bruises tomorrow. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"
Fine. You asked for it though. Just remember that. Davis wanted to say it out loud, but Ken was adamant about his continued silence. So he did the only thing he could think of to show Ken just why he wasn't going to be bashing anyone's sexual preference any time soon.
Davis kissed him.
It wasn't a real kiss, not at first. A real kiss to Davis involved tongues and wandering fingers and arms holding you against the other person. If it was really good, there was a good grope or two involved. This didn't have any that. All this kiss was was Davis pressing soft, dry lips against Ken's.
At first.
But Ken didn't pull away. He didn't respond, but he didn't pull away. Davis gently nudged Ken's lips with his own, turning his head to get a better angle. The other boy shivered, and pressed his lips against Davis's a little harder. The pressure from Ken's arm had lessened and Davis tentatively reached out.
He was shaking. Davis barely rested his fingers against the skin of Ken's arm, but Ichijouji flinched as though burned. Ken tore his lips away from Davis's. He met the redhead's eyes, and opened his mouth to speak.
Ken never got a chance to say a word. Davis surged forward and kissed him again. Their teeth bumped together with a flash of pain. Ichijouji made a startled sound as Davis's hands settled on his hips, not restraining him but not letting him go either. Davis's tongue found its way into the other boy's mouth, warm and slick as it rubbed against Ken's tongue.
The groan that came from Ken vibrated through Davis as well. Davis leaned forward and Ken pressed him back. Hands settled on Davis's waist, not quite holding him. It was enough to send a shiver down his spine and encouraged him to fully wrap his arms around Ken's waist, to press his body against Ken's.
His first impression of Ken as he held the other teen in his arms was of lean muscle. Here was someone who Davis was pretty sure could seriously hurt him, but Ken wasn't. Instead, Ken was letting Davis hold him, was letting Davis kiss him. Davis was trying to memorize everything about the whole experience because he doubted it would be repeated anytime soon.
The smell of leather from Ken's jacket. The salt and sweetness of Ken's mouth. The faint smell of Ken's shampoo. The heat from Ken's body.
Davis ended the kiss then, gentling it until their lips were barely touching. They traded breaths until Ichijouji pulled back. Ken was panting, his pupils so dilated that his eyes appeared black. He was still shaking.
"Ichi... Ken." The other boy jerked, startled at the sound of his name said in that breathless voice. "Are you okay?"
"No," Ken said. He laughed, a shaky sound. Davis automatically reached out towards the other boy, only to have Ken jerk back. "No! Don't touch me. Just... don't."
"Okay," Davis said. He would have backed up, given the suddenly wild-eyed boy in front of him more space, but his back was still pressed against the wall. Muscles twinged in protest when he moved. I'll definitely have bruises tomorrow."Whatever you want, Ichijouji."
"I want... I want you to not talk about my brother, again." That was one thing Ken felt he could hold onto in a world that had suddenly turned upside down. "I want you not to touch me again." Ken dragged a hand across his lips, wanting to get rid of the tingling sensation that still remained from where Davis had kissed him. "And I want you not to tell anyone about this. Don't go trying to use this against me in school."
Davis laughed, though he kept it short. Laughing at Ken was what had gotten him in this mess in the first place. "Trust me, I'm not going to go telling everyone I kissed the great Ken Ichijouji. Not unless I want to get the shit beaten out of me for the rest of my life."
"You wouldn't get beaten. People at this school know better," Ken said.
"Yeah, whatever." Davis said. "I have to go." There was some sort of story here, he was sure, but Davis didn't know if he wanted to know it. Not now. Now I just want to go home, and think about this. And hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the ass.
"Fine."
"Um... in order to go home, I kind of need you to get out of my way." There was no need for Davis to apologize, but he could hear it in his voice. Sorry to ask you to move after you threatened me and I kissed you.
Ken moved out of his way so quickly that Davis winced. Davis slid by, trying not to touch Ken. Hard gray-blue eyes watched him. Nervously, Davis scratched the back of his head.
"I'll see you tomorrow. Don't forget what I said," Ken said. Davis nodded.
"Tomorrow," Davis said. Then he began the long walk home. He felt Ken's eyes on him the entire way.
My parents are going to kill me if I have to change schools again.
*******************************************
Davis walked home. He couldn't remember the last time he'd walked home. It had to be before I changed schools. Before everyone found out about the restraining order because after that Mom was so worried that she made sure someone was always there to pick me up right as the bell rang.
It was a long walk home, lasting over an hour but Davis found he didn't mind. There was a slight chill in the air but his sweater kept him warm enough. His sister was probably going to wonder where he was. That is, if she noticed. Otherwise it was a perfect time for him to be by himself, look at the scenery, and think.
I kissed Ken Ichijouji. I kissed him. And he let me. I can't believe he didn't kick my ass. Davis raised his arms and laced his hands behind his head as walked. Leaves from trees floated down around him. I'm going to regret this tomorrow. He'll probably tell everyone in school I'm a fag who tried to hit on him.
That is, if he doesn't get his cronies to beat the shit out of me before hand.
With a sigh, Davis decided he'd deal with whatever happened when it happened. Besides he was at his house now. Davis hit the buzzer at the front gate. The intercom came on with a crackle.
"Hello?"
"Jun, let me in. I lost my controller... thing."
"Give me a reason to brat."
"Look, I've had a bad day. I missed the bus and I had to walk home. Let me in."
"You walked home? Davis, Mom and Dad are going to be pissed!" There was a click as the lock on the gate was released. Davis rolled his eyes as he opened the gate. The walk up the driveway seemed to last forever, but Davis didn't dare cut across the lawn. He actually liked the head gardener his parents had hired and didn't want to get the man pissed at him.
Jun was waiting for him at the front door.
"Why didn't you call me to pick you up from school brat?" Jun demanded. "I would have come and gotten you. What if someone jumped you on the way here?"
"That's why we moved, Jun. Nobody around here knows me," Davis said as he pushed past his sister and into the house. "I'm fine. You worry too much. Besides it was too late to call you. They lock the doors right after all the buses leave."
"So what were you doing that whole time?" Jun asked. Davis hated it when she went into annoying older sister mode. She grabbed his shoulder and turned Davis until he faced her. "You don't have a black eye or anything so you weren't in a fight. What happened?"
"Why do you always assume I was in a fight?" Davis asked. He put his backpack down at the bottom of the stairs so he could grab it after dinner and work on his homework. Then he headed towards the kitchen to grab himself a snack.
"Oh I don't know. Maybe because you always use to be in fights." Jun followed Davis as he went to the kitchen and poured himself some orange juice. There were cookies in the fridge under plastic wrap that the Cook had made yesterday for desert. "So if it wasn't a fight, why did you miss the bus? And what were you doing while all the buses left?" There was a pause as Davis drank his orange juice. "I'm not going away till you tell me."
"Fine. You want to know what I was doing? I was kissing some guy out behind the gym. That's why I was late." Silence reigned after his statement. "Well? Aren't you going to say something?"
"Is this guy five years older than you like the last guy?" Jun finally said.
"Tai was only four years older than me, not five," Davis stated.
"Oh that makes it so much better," Jun said. "Anyway, you're current guy, is he older than you?"
"No, Ken's the same age as me. He's in my classes," Davis said. He rinsed the glass out and put it in the dishwater. "Don't worry about us being seen. Ken was careful. No one saw us and it's not going to happen again. Ken was kind of freaked about the whole thing anyway."
"Ken? You mean like Ken Ichijouji? Davis isn't that the punk who is always harassing you at school?" Even though it was a question, Jun didn't expect an answer. "Shit Davis, can't you pick someone normal to make out with?"
"Jun, I didn't exactly plan this okay? He caught me behind the gym, yelled at me, and then I kissed him. He freaked out on me and let me go. That's all that happened." Davis headed out of the kitchen, grabbed his backpack, and started up the stairs. Doing homework was better than dealing with a nosy, obnoxious sister. Jun followed. "And don't get that look in your eyes. The last thing I need is for you to go beating up Ken."
"I didn't beat up the last guy. I just decked him. He deserved it."
"You decked him in front the entire school during lunch. And Tai did not deserve it," Davis said over his shoulder.
"Davis you were thirteen. He so deserved it."
"Whatever. I've got homework to do." Davis made it to the sanctuary that was his room, closing the door firmly behind him. Jun might be nosy, but she respected his privacy when he shut the door in her face. And locked it loudly to keep her from just opening it and walking in. That didn't stop her from yelling through the door.
"Fine. Just remember, I tried to help you."
*******************************************
Ken needed something to keep his mind off of what happened. He started to walk home after school, after the ki... whole incident with Davis Motomiya. Despite his best efforts, his mind kept returning to what had happened earlier that afternoon. Half way home Ken decided that he did not want to spend the next two and half hours alone in his house with nothing to think about but what had happened.
He kissed me. I was yelling at him and he started laughing, which only pissed me off even more. Then he just started kissing me. Why? Why the Hell did he just kiss me like that? Why did I let him? What the fuck did he think he was going to prove by doing that?
It was so nice though. I didn't know what to do, but Motomiya sure seemed to. No. Don't think about that. Think about how pissed you were. Think about what he's going to tell everyone tomorrow. Think about why you didn't punch him when he tried it the first time.
Don't think about how good it felt to have his arms around you.
Ken definitely didn't want to be left alone with his thoughts. His parents wouldn't be home until after 5:30, possibly 6:00. He'd already done all his chores for the daybefore school. Anything else would only take him twenty minutes at most. That still left him with way too much time to think.
What he really needed was someone to talk to. Maybe if he had a second opinion on the afternoon's events things would be much clearer. That had to be it. He was too close to the events to be objective and rational about this. Ken needed a second opinion. But who to ask?
Cody was three years younger than he was. While he might be level headed and open-minded enough, Ken couldn't take this to him. It would be weird asking a thirteen year old for advice on this. TK would try to help but Ken had a feeling he'd be too weirded out to be very objective. Kari... Kari would most likely encourage him to start something with Davis and then confess to her about it. Ken huffed, amused despite himself. That's what he got for being friends with a scary yaoi fangirl.
That left Yolei. He could not under any circumstances talk to Yolei about this. Yolei had had a crush on him since third grade, and was not shy about letting people know about it. Besides, I remember what happened to the last girl who wouldn't take no for an answer and kept pushing me to go on a date with her. Yolei caught her in the girl's bathroom, alone, and threatened her with a knife. I can't even imagine how she'd react to Motomiya randomly kissing me.
Well, that eliminated all of his close friends. Now what? Ken kept walking past the end of his road, heading into town. He supposed he could always talk to Sam about what had happened. Ken laughed, dismissed the thought, paused for a moment, and thought about it again. Sam was pretty open-minded, fair, and logical. His brother might be the best person to talk to about this.
Then again there was that whole incident during Sam's senior year. Ken closed his eyes for a second at the familiar surge of anger. He took a deep breath and forced himself to relax. Sometimes Ken thought that he had taken the taunting and subsequent beating of his brother harder than Sam had.
Still, I really don't have anyone else to talk to.
The walk into town didn't take very long. A few of the older ladies gave him a look as he walked down the street. Ken gave them a sharp-eyed look out of the corner of his eye, but for the most part ignored them. Sam was always the good child in the town's eyes. He was the troublemaker.
It didn't matter one-way or the other what people thought about him. As long as they left him alone, it was fine.
Ken came to the local grocery store and looked in through the huge glass window. He didn't see Sam among the aisles or working one of the cash registers. That meant Sam was in the back sorting through the new deliveries or stocking some of the back shelves.
Hoping that Sam was in the back, Ken went around the store and knocked on the back door. It wasn't that Mr. Watanabe didn't like Ken. The storeowner really didn't care if Ken came by to talk or even help as long as the job got done. However people tended to talk if he was seen hanging around the store too much.
In this town, people talk if you blink wrong. Ken waited at the back door, then knocked again. This produced noise from inside. Sam opened the door a few seconds later.
"What do you... oh. Ken what are you doing here? Please tell me you're not skipping school again," Sam said as he dragged his hand through his hair. It stuck up at odd angles, and his brother was covered with a thin layer of dust. Ken resisted the urge to snicker.
"I'm not skipping, Sam. School got out about an hour ago. It's four o'clock," Ken replied. Sam blinked a few times and pushed his glasses up his nose.
"It's four? I've been back here all day?" Sam hung his head. "At least that means I only have one more hour of work. Come on in and keep me company."
"What have you been doing?" Ken asked as he went up the rickety wooden steps and stepped into the back of the store. There were stacks of papers everywhere, some in boxes, some out, all laid out in a semblance of order that only Sam understood.
"I've been going through Mr. Watanabe's files for the past several years trying to figure out what he needs to keep and what he needs to throw away. The man is a packrat, but he's a packrat that is quickly running out of room. Don't step on that! That's one of the keep piles."
Ken balanced with one foot still raised. Somehow he managed to hop to a clear spot. There was a chair, but it was covered in a stack of papers. "Sam, what do you want me to do with these papers on the chair?"
"Those? There's a trashcan behind the chair. Just dump them into it."
"Right." Ken dumped the papers into the trash and sat down in the chair. Sam hopped carefully through the stacks until he came to the clear spot in the middle of the piles that he was working on.
"So what brings you here, Ken?"
"I needed someone to talk to," Ken said. He watched as Sam sorted through a few more papers. "You were the only person I could think of."
"I know you have friends..." Sam started. Ken cut him off with a shake of his head.
"I've already thought of them. It wouldn't work. It would be... strange."
"Oh?" Sam said. "Now this sounds interesting. What's up?"
"I know you've heard about the new rich family that moved in on the other side of town. The Motomiyas? Their son Davis goes to my school. He's a real poser, Sam. He flits from one group to another group trying to fit in, and in reality most of the groups he hangs out can't stand him. I can't stand him," Ken said. Sam gave him a look.
"Why do you care? It's not the first time someone has tried to hard to be something they're not."
"I don't know," Ken said. "There's just something about him that grates on me. He lets these people walk right over him and acts like it's a privilege to have their footprints on his ass. I just... don't understand him. And it's not like I can get away from him. Motomiya is obnoxious and loud and always trying to be the center of attention. You can't just ignore someone like that. No matter how hard you try."
"Hmmm..." Sam said. "Sounds like your typical trying to be the class clown to fit in. Someone should tell him that position is taken at your high school. What happened this time?"
"Davis kissed me."
"Come again?" Sam said.
"Davis kissed me," Ken repeated. It sounded so bizarre, so ridiculous saying it out loud like that. "We were behind the gym having an argument and he just kissed me."
"He just kissed you? For no reason what so ever?" Ken nodded in agreement to the two statements. "Did you hit him?" Sam asked. Ken rolled his eyes.
"No I didn't hit him," Ken replied. Looking back, Ken realized he hadn't even thought about hitting or pushing Davis away. In fact, he was pretty sure he had spent most of the kiss determinedly not thinking.
"What did you do?"
"I just stood there. I didn't know what to do," Ken admitted. "I just let him kiss me." It felt nice. I enjoyed it. He ended it because I couldn't. "Eventually it ended. I told him to leave. He did. That was the end of it."
Sam spent a few minutes shuffling papers from pile to pile. Ken resisted the urge to fidget. Even though it looked like Sam wasn't paying attention or reacting to what he was said, Ken knew his brother was really turning the incident over and over in his mind. Years spent watching his older brother told him that.
Ken just wished Sam would say something.
"Boys just don't go around randomly kissing other boys," Sam said after awhile. "Especially if they're trying so hard to fit in like you said this guy was trying to do. It kind of puts a damper on your social life, ne? So something had to have happened to cause this. What were you two talking about right before this all happened?"
Wincing, Ken suddenly refusing to meet Sam's eyes. Sam sighed loudly. "I can already guess what you were talking about."
"Motomiya was talking shit about you Sam. He and those snotty preps he tries to hang out with. I couldn't just let them do that," Ken protested. Sam opened his mouth to disagree, closed it, and sighed. There was no changing Ken's mind on this, no matter how many times they argued about it, and Sam didn't want to bring it up.
"Okay. I am not going to yell at you for that. I'm not, so you can stop giving me that disbelieving look. Motomiya was being an ass. Then what?"
"He was being an ass earlier in the day, not right before he... you know. After school I decided to confront him about what Davis was saying about you. I grabbed his arm and dragged him out behind the gym to tell him to knock it off." Sam looked at Ken for a few seconds before he burst out laughing.
"What? What is so funny?" Ken asked. Bewildered was a good description of how he felt. Sam managed to get his laughter under control.
"Behind the gym is possibly the most popular make-out spot in school," Sam replied. Ken felt heat rise to his cheeks as his brother grinned at him. "Maybe that's why he had thoughts about kissing you Ken."
"That doesn't explain why he was laughing right before he did it."
"He was laughing?" Sam handed a stack of papers to him and Ken pitched them into the trashcan. "Why was he laughing?"
"If I knew that, I'd understand the enigma that is Davis Motomiya. Personally, I think he's just insane," Ken said. Sam gestured towards one of the boxes and Ken passed it over. Soon it was filled with three stacks of paper. His brother grabbed a black marker and labeled it "Jan-Jun. 1999."
"That doesn't make any sense for him to be just laughing like that."
"Nothing about Davis makes sense," Ken stated. He sighed and put his head in his hands. "He started laughing and I got mad. So I shoved him up against the wall because I figured he was laughing at you. Or at gays. Or something. Davis just wouldn't stop laughing and then... he kissed me."
"That doesn't make sense Ken."
"Like I said, nothing about Davis makes sense." Ken looked up at the clock then. "It's 4:57. You only have three minutes left in your shift."
"Yeah, looks like the rest of this is going to have to wait till tomorrow. Does Mom know you're in town?" Sam asked. Ken shook his head.
"I didn't stop by the house and leave a note. You better call her before we leave so she doesn't worry."
"Right." Sam opened the door to Mr. Watanabe's back office to use the phone. The store manager had told him he was welcomed to use it as long as Sam didn't make any long distance phone calls. He paused before entering and turned towards Ken. "You know, it's got to be hard for that kid who kissed you."
"Hard?" Ken would call Davis's life a lot of things. Hard was not one of them.
"Yeah. He's just moved here. The people he's trying to be friends with treat him like dirt. From what you've said he's probably gay or at the very least confused. It sounds like he's got it hard," Sam explained. "Or maybe he just has a crush on you. You're cute... in a icky, creepy way I'm not going to think about that since I'm your brother kind of way."
"I doubt he has a crush on me," Ken replied. "I'm not the kind of person people get a crush on."
"Yolei has a crush on you," Sam pointed out. Ken blushed and shifted uncomfortably.
"That's different. Besides, shouldn't you be calling Mom?"
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. First you ask for my opinion on the whole thing and then you ignore what I say. Fine. Just remember, I tried to help you."