Elly entered the loud karaoke club with trepidation since she wasn't sure she wanted to sing, dance or even listen to music tonight. When she went out it was usually to a closed room bar, not these flashy places. They were noisy, for one, and attracted a lot more tourists.
One thing she was certain of, however, is that she wanted to forget her feelings for a certain colleague and somewhat friend of hers. She sighed and weaved her way through the crowd on the dance floor to the bar. A few stiff drinks and maybe she would relax - though hopefully not enough where she lost control of her quirk. She was dressed in shorts with a spaghetti strap black top, a little more daring than she normally would wear but her ears and tail were invisible thanks to her power. People were less likely to hit on her because they saw Cheshire, the Insanity Hero. If she were simply Elly, she could blend in more.
As she sat, she looked around at the other faces at the bar and drew in a sharp breath when she recognized <i>him</i>.
"Hizashi," she gasped quietly. She would never, ever presume to call him that to his face, of course, as in Japan it was considered very personal to use given names. But he was that in her heart and had been for many years.
The tall, blond-haired man was wearing a tight maroon, button down shirt with a black leather vest. Two gold chains rested on the swell of his chest - she knew from training he was built, though you wouldn't see it unless he took off his outer clothing -- and he wore a red beaded bracelet on one wrist. His long hair was pulled back into a bun and he had red-rimmed glasses on.
He was <i>beautiful</i>; so gorgeous her heart skipped a beat. But there was an undeniable sadness around him as well. Hizashi sat with his shoulders slumped, his head on his arms as he stared at his mug of beer.
Elly couldn't stand to see him so depressed. She got up and sat beside him, clearing her throat a little. "Yamada?"
He looked up, startled. "Wh - Ches?"
"Thank god." The bartender, a woman with several long tentacles alongside her two human arms, sighed. "He's got a friend. You want anything to drink?"
Elly shrugged. "Milk?" She'd been planning on getting buzzed, but it looked like that idea was deflating pretty quick.
"On the house if you take care of Mr. Mopey, there." She dipped below and soon handed her a full glass. "He's bringing everyone down."
"What's wrong?" Elly bent down to his level so she could be heard over the pulsing bass beat in the background.
"I came here with Kayama an' a few others," he muttered. "They're gone."
"Did they just dump you here? You could call a cab or something if you need to get home... he'll, it's not far. You could walk. If you <i>can</i> walk, that is," she amended.
"Nuh, that's not the <i>problem</i>," he whined.
The bartender snorted. "Now he's quiet about it. We all had to listen to a half hour rant, but no. He won't tell a friend."
"Awww," Elly spoke softly in a soothing voice. "See, that hurts. You can tell me. What's wrong?"
"Why doesn't anyone <i>want</i> me?" Hizashi sniffled, turning to her with tears falling down his stricken face. "Why does everyone <i>else</i> get to go home with someone but not <i>me</i>?"
That hurt far more.
She sighed, watching him carefully as he lifted the glass to his lips and drank. He was drunk, no doubt about it, but that wasn't what made her heart drop sickeningly in her chest and her body tense. It was his admitting that he had been trying to pick people up.
"So that's it."
Long, slender fingers tucked a strand of blond hair behind one ear. "I'm a hero! Why doesn't anyone want me, Ches?"
"I don't know," she shrugged. <i>I want you</i>.
"You hafta," he whined, clinging to her arm as he focused all his attention on her. "Yer a therapist, yeah? You know!"
<i>I do, Hizashi Yamada - oh god, I want you more than I've ever wanted anyone</i>.
"I'm just as confused as you are, Yamada. Honestly." Elly sighed a much deeper sigh and rubbed her weary eyes with one hand. "But do you really need these conquests?"
He blinked up at her through the stupidity of the beer fog in his brain. "Nuh... uh, I want," he slurred, his hand tightening on her arm. "I wanna hold someone, to be held. Izzat so wrong?"
Her ears flattened back into her hair and she shook her head, reaching out to tug him upright before he fell off the barstool. "No," she whispered faintly. "No, it's not." Then, clearing her throat purposefully she laid enough money to cover his tab on the bar along with a generous tip for the bartender. The woman had to put up with their impromptu therapy session, after all. She propped the drunken Voice Hero's arm over her side and stumbled under his weight as she got up.
"Careful," the bartender called out as a tentacle scooped up her money. "He's a lot bigger than he looks."
"Sorry," he mumbled.
"Okay. It's okay. Let's just walk."
"Where you takin' me?" The cool air outside sobered him up slightly but he was still out of it.
"Home."
"I don't <i>wanna</i> go home!" It came out as a loud whine, his quirk vibrating their bodies when he spoke. "Please, baby? I don't wanna be alone!"
Elly's mouth twisted bitterly at the nickname, and she scolded him quite firmly about it. "I'm not your 'baby', Yamada," she hissed.
He drooped, dejected. "Sowwy."
"Did you just -? Nevermind, nope, not going to think about any of this. Just concentrating on <i>getting you home</i>." She trudged along, half carrying the blond-haired man as he stumbled and dragged his feet.
"Don't wanna be alone." He wept quietly for awhile until she set him down on a bench at a bus stop. A few people walked past, some glancing curiously over but most avoiding going anywhere near them.
"Yamada."
"Pease don't leave me." He refused to meet her eyes.
"I promise I won't, okay?" She patted him awkwardly on the shoulder, afraid to get more personal than that. "Now you have to help me by walking better. Okay?"
"Yeah!" He brightened noticeably, his eyes coming alight for the first time all night.
Elly shivered, a chilling premonition of heartbreak on her horizon. Still, he needed her right now so she smiled woodenly and held her arm out. "Let's go!"
Thankfully it wasn't much longer until they reached his apartment. Hizashi opened the door without fuss, though when she finally got him into bed he clung to her until she assured him she was staying.
"All right, Yamada - I'm gonna go nap on your couch. I'll be in the living room if you need me."
He grasped a fistful of sheets and wept. "M'still alone," he sulked. "No one's <i>with me</i>."
"Shit," she hissed, her heart feeling like it was ripped in two. "Do you want sex that bad, then?"
He nodded. "I wanna <i>feel</i> more than my hand," he pouted harder, his lower lip thrust out.
"Fine." Elly reached out and pulled her top off. "You can do it with me, then."
He gawked at her comically, eyes popping open and his mouth open in shock. "Ch - Ches? What?!"
"You want to fuck, right? You're desperate? I can fill that need."
"I - I want you. Yes." He reached for her, his arms sliding around her waist as he bent toward her face.
"No." She held the flat of her hand up against his chest, stopping him from leaning in further. His necklaces were cold and hard under her hand. "No kissing."
<i>Kissing is for lovers, and I couldn't stand to lose you after that. Sex may be okay, maybe, but no illusion of love. It will hurt too much</i>.
He paused, and though she could only see his shadow in the dark it was clear his shoulders sagged a little.
"Do you still want -"
"Yeah! Yeah." He coughed and nodded. "No, it's, ah. I get it. It's all right."
"Well then, strip."
Clothing fell to the floor as he yanked it off, unceremoniously tossing his shirt, vest and slacks to the floor without a second thought. Elly took hers off more slowly, placing them over the headboard for later.
"I, uh, I've got condoms..."
"I'm on the pill, and we're both clean, right? Hero mandated bloodwork monthly."
"Uh huh." He couldn't take his eyes off her.
"Then it's okay." Unlike him, she averted her gaze as he climbed on top of her, wanting to see him but afraid of his beauty. He paused, his hands hovering over her breasts with a confused look in his eyes but she nodded. "Do it."
He took a breath and entered her.
<i>He's a terrible lover</i>, she thought in dismay after only a little while. Though the initial thrust had caused a wild thrill to run down her spine, the act quickly faded to a painful grind. His strokes were jerky and too shallow to bring her pleasure, his rhythm hectic.
"Ya - Yamada," she panted, then realized her question might hurt him. <i>I can't ask if he was a virgin</i>! <i>Besides, he wouldn't have lasted this long if he was</i>.
"Ches?"
But now she had to come up with something to say, and she faltered, still breathing hard. "Uh, here. Let me help."
He whimpered and his hips bucked involuntarily when she raised her legs to grip his waist. "Aaaaahh!"
"There, see? Come on." Her fingers twitched and she barely resisted the urge to stroke his hair, most of which had fallen out of the bun. "It's okay. Let go."
"Mnnn, Ches..."
"Oh god." She trembled, moaning softly as he rubbed her the right way.
Hizashi heard her and immediately gave vent to a shivering, pitiful gasp. "Sh - <i>shit</i>!" He thrust powerfully one last time, quivering with his mouth drawn into a grimace.
He was finished.
Elly's ears drooped. That was it. She'd never be this close to him ever again, and to make things worse, the sex had been bad.
His eyes met hers and he must have read some of what she was thinking from her expression, because he pulled away with a horrified look and darted out of the room. She lay there for a minute, gathering her wits about her before she realized he had locked himself in the bathroom.
"Yamada?" Elly tapped on the door, wincing as his semen dribbled out of her to run down her leg. "I was trying to help. Did I make it worse? What's wrong?!"
The only sound was muffled sobbing from the other side of the door.
"Yamada, <i>please</i>."
She heard a thump and a low whine. Then he burst out yelling, though he was careful to reign in his power at first. "Don't act like ya like me or somethin'!"
"Of course I like you." Elly's heart felt like it was on the verge of breaking. This wasn't how <i>any</i> of this was supposed to go. "We just, I mean..."
"No." He snorted heavily at her response, and quickly fired back with anguish in his voice. "Ya don't even like me enough to call me <i>Hizashi</i>!" The door rattled as his control over his quirk slipped, and he choked. "<b>Damn it</b>!"
"Open the door. Now."
The knob rattled slowly and the door swung open to reveal Hizashi, his glasses off with his head down and long, thick strands of blond hair falling out of his bun. She reached out and took his tightly clenched hand in hers, pulling him back to bed. He resisted at first, but soon followed, dropping down with a heavy sigh.
"Sorry."
"It'll be okay." Elly sat beside him, reaching out to do what she'd wanted for so long and stroke the hair back from his tear-streaked face. He flinched, and she shook her head. "Now, what's wrong?"
"I know it's stupid, but I wanted love, not just a quick fuck."
"You can't force that!" Her tail slapped the bed hard enough to startle him into silence. "If you don't feel it for me, then what happens when I give my love to you?"
Hizashi froze, his mouth open in shock. "Did you - did you say -"
"It's not fair to ask me to do that," she sniffled, starting to cry. "No, it's not fair. I did what I could to help you without breaking my heart and <i>it's not fair</i>!"
He threw his arms around her suddenly, holding her tight while pressing his mouth to hers in a fervent kiss. Startled, she kissed back and all the tension flowed out of her and into where they were locked together, panting now and grasping each other, their hands wandering. Since they were already naked there was no resistance and fingers traced and tickled intimate areas easily. He encountered wetness drying on her thighs and flinched slightly.
Hizashi had orgasmed but she had not. He knew this and guilt mixed with a little shame flooded him. "Give me another chance," he begged. "It hurt too much for me to make it good. I - I wanted to kiss you so badly, and I thought..." He inhaled shakily, struggling to take a deep breath without sobbing. "I thought you were doing it out of pity. I thought you didn't love me." He paused, hazel eyes shining down at her, pleading. "Tell me the truth now, yeah? 'Cause I love you. Please tell me you do, too."
"No fair," she whispered.
"Please don't keep saying that."
"No, but," she touched his face, her fingers trembling. "To say something like that to me with your gorgeous eyes staring into mine... I do love you, Zashi. That's why I wanted to help. I'd do anything for you and you looked sad that no one wanted you - it's not true! <i>I want you</i>!"
He was surprised at her vehemence, almost anger, then realized he'd been trying to hook up with strangers in front of a woman that was in love with him. It would have destroyed him to see her flinging herself at other people, and he was ashamed anew. "Oh, baby, I'm sorry," he whispered. "I did you wrong an' you were so, so brave for me."
<i>That nickname again</i>. She hid her face in her hands but he shook his head and pulled them away. "Zashi..." It never occurred to her that while she had been thinking of him as <i>Hizashi</i> all this time, he'd had a special name in his mind for <i>her</i>.
"S'okay now. I'll never look at anyone else again." He kissed her again, much slower and softer and <i>better</i>. "I didn't know," he mourned sadly. "Mnnn, but I can definitely make it up to you."
"Yes. Yes, I want that."
His whole approach was different now that he knew how she felt. His hands skimmed along her curves and he kissed everywhere he could reach, starved for the taste of her skin and her cries of pleasure.
"Yeah, baby, let it out," he moaned. "I love hearing you."
"Zashi, I - I want..."
"I know." He rested his cheek on her left breast, listening to the beat of her heart and trailing his finger down her side. "Trust me, I know it sucked before, but I can make you <i>sing</i>." When he moved to slide between her legs she crossed her ankles, blushing.
"I'm kind of, uh... you came in me before."
"Don't care." He kissed a wandering line down her leg. "Do you?" He stopped immediately when she nodded and sat up, tapping a thoughtful finger on his lips. "Okay! Let's get in the shower."
His bathroom was small but efficient, and they were soon freshened up under the warm stream of water.
"This was a good idea," she sighed. "It really feels like starting over with a clean slate."
Hizashi ran a hand through his wet hair, pulling it away from his flushed face. "Yeah."
Elly slid her hands up his wet body to gently caress the back of his neck. "Hold me?"
He immediately complied, bending down so they were more level, and kissed her for good measure. One kiss turned into many, and before long he'd backed her against the shower wall, licking down her stomach and making her giggle and squirm.
"Here's what I want," Hizashi moaned with delight, nuzzling at the damp patch of purple hair between her legs. She jerked them apart, shivering, and he smiled. "Yeah, baby," he whined eagerly and proceeded to kiss the quivering folds of her sex. She tottered unsteadily on her feet.
"Z - Zashi..!"
"That's music to my ears, sweetie. But I gotta fix your poor <i>legs</i>, they're all <i>wobbly</i>." He carefully lifted one and supported her while he placed it on his shoulder. "There. Now lean back, and pop the other up too."
"What?"
"Let me hold you up." He stooped and nudged her standing leg with the top of his head. "I've got you."
Elly dubiously hopped up as he ducked, so she was soon resting with her weight half propped on the back wall of the shower and half on his shoulders. Her heart started to beat faster, her throat dry at the thought of the massive strength needed to hold her this way. Hizashi didn't seem encumbered at all, grinning happily up at her as he kissed her inner thigh.
"Now I've got <i>really</i> good access, baby. You can't escape me like this, though, so be sure to let me know if it gets too intense."
"Safe words?" She asked tentatively, not knowing if he used them previously or knew what the phrase meant. He nodded, though, and she sighed, a little jealous.
"Stop light colors, yeah?" She nodded this time and he grinned. "I know what they are, but uh, only from Kayama. Not experience or anything, so don't turn so green on me, baby." He chuckled a little at the joke.
She blushed, squirming with embarrassment. "That doesn't help!"
"You know her," he rolled his eyes. "She's always giving tips to everybody." He coughed slyly. "Yanno, she was suggesting you and I should hook up when she mentioned safe words in the first place."
"Oh."
"Yeah, oh. Now, <i>shhhhhh</i>, babygirl, I gotta make up for earlier." He kissed a sloppy, meandering path up her thigh to her sex, where he paused with a soft sigh. "Beautiful," he murmured.
Panting hard, she flipped her head back to try and get some of the wet purple locks off her face. "I'm - I'm not beautiful <i>there</i>!"
Hizashi's look at this was not only shocked but a little outraged as well. "Of course you are!" He licked a long, slow strip up from the bottom to the tip. "Beautiful," he said again, more firmly this time. Before she could argue again he pressed forward with tiny, precise kisses that left her speechless. He was really quite good at this, and seemed to enjoy it as much as she did. What made it even better was being at his mercy resting on his shoulders, since it meant she was unable to back away or buck into his touch. His fingers circled the dripping button of flesh while he lapped tantalizingly close but not close enough. She curled her toes at the sensations, unused to a lover taking such care and time to please her. The shower pelted down, mostly on Hizashi, but there was warmth in the steam and he was making her even hotter.
"A - are you showing off, or are you always - <i>aaahh</i>! -- so, so, uh..."
"Ehh?" He raised an eyebrow at her, squinting up from his knees on the thick mat below. "I'm not showing off <i>yet</i>, babe." Hizashi licked his lips and ran his fingers back through his wet hair, pushing it away from his flushed face. "You'll know when I'm amping things up." His tongue flickered teasingly slow, just the tip, and she whimpered.
"Please, Zashi, I <i>need</i>..."
"I know what you need, but yer not gonna <i>get</i> it yet, Ches baby. Just - be - patient," here he hummed softly, the merest suggestion of his quirk directed at the edges of the folds surrounding her clitorus. She cried out in shock, and he smiled. "And I'll take you there," he said quietly with a kiss and another lick. Ten minutes later she had lost all thought from his thorough teasing; all she could do was moan and pant and struggle to hold on.
Hizashi, however, knew she was at her limit. He stopped and reached up to stroke her hair back, soothing her with his touch.
"Z - Zashi..?"
"You ready?"
"For what?"
"<i>I'm gonna show off</i>," he said in a soft, sexy growl, his hazel eyes staring hotly up at her. His voice was somehow the most erotic part yet, deeper than usual and thrumming with promise. Elly nearly lost her mind. Her wet tail flopped around, flicking water on him as it slapped his back. She screamed when he used his quirk directly on her, grasping his wet hair mindlessly but thankfully not pulling too hard. Hizashi altered the strength and speed of his gentle humming, slowing down only when she began to wilt in on herself.
"Oh god, oh my god, holy <i>shit</i> I did not think you could do <i>that</i>..."
"I know," he said with a secret smile as he bent backward, washing his face and rinsing his mouth out. He flipped his hair and helped her to a more comfortable position. "Easy, baby. Your legs are gonna be wobbly from the position they were in and, well." Hizashi smirked. "Other factors."
She rested her head on the back wall of the shower, breathing hard. "Wow."
"Wow, huh?" He winked. "That's the difference love makes. Awww, I'm sorry," he sighed, taking her in his arms for a hug when she whimpered. The water made this a slippery task but they managed. "I shouldn't have said yes before. Not until I told you how I felt. Now, let's finish up here and I can show you how much better I really am all around."
"It's my fault, too," she reminded him as she reached up to touch his wet hair. "Hey, if you turn around I can rinse this part... it's still got conditioner in it."
"Oof." He did, bending down so it was easier for her. "Thanks."
"Are you kidding? I've dreamed about washing your hair for ages. Doing things like this with you is wonderful."
Hizashi teared up a little and quickly wiped his eyes free of extra moisture. "That's sweet. You're gonna make me cry again though, if ya keep saying stuff like that."
She hugged him from behind. "Let's dry off and go back to bed."
"Right on."
He told her to get comfortable while he searched the pile of clothing on the floor for his phone. Elly settled back, snuggling into a pillow and breathing in his scent on the sheets.
"Aha!" He held it up triumphantly and swiped it on, fiddling with it until soft, sweet strains of music began playing. It surrounded them, romantic music he'd chosen with lots of orchestral background.
"That's beautiful," she whispered.
"I, uh, had a Playlist ready for us, you know." He gave her a cockeyed grin as he knelt between her legs. "I added songs to it now and then - it's pretty long. Should last far into the night."
"Long enough," she sighed as she reached for him.
"Maybe." He sank into a much warmer embrace, breathing hard already. "Maybe I'll outlast the songs. I've got a lot of pent up love in here, yanno." He tapped his chest on the left side.
"I do know." Elly gazed wistfully into his spiraling pupils, this time allowing herself to truly <i>feel</i>.
"Oh, shit," he breathed as he saw the love in her eyes. "Oh, <i>babygirl</i>, I've got you. I promise I got you an' I'm <i>never</i> letting go."
