Hunted

Kyun stared after the purple-haired guy as he left. What on Earth was going on? He gazed with confusion down at the flowers - he hadn't expected or wanted a bouquet, but the gesture had made him all warm and fuzzy inside. That was, until Julian just turned around and left.

He closed the door behind him, tossing the flowers onto the table. He'd deal with those later. Luckily, that sickening frame was gone; he hoped Nele and Kiyoshi had taken it with them, but even Takuya running off with it was better than him having to see it. Moving back to the kitchen, he wondered whether the noodles had gotten burnt.

Thankfully, the food seemed to be in decent shape. He switched the heat off, then saw the aforementioned yellow-haired Japanese appear around the corner. Upon noticing the flowers, the guy set course for them immediately with a grin on his face.

"They're not for you!" Kyun called out, a bit annoyed at his flatmate, more out of what intentions he expected the guy had than anything in particular he had done yet. Then, he saw Takuya pick it up, quickly finding a card. He cleared his throat in an exaggerated manner, with a broad grin on his face. "My beloved Melissa..." he started, and two seconds later, Kyun had jumped over, grabbing the guy's throat and tugging at the card.

And the card tore.

"What's the big idea!" Takuya shouted angrily, dropping the flowers and his half of the card. He used one hand to tug at Kyun's fingers, the other pushing at the Korean's chest. Their glares met, and the black-haired youngster saw plenty of fear in those dark brown eyes. Which was well deserved!

When he calmed down a bit - partly from the fact that Takuya was no longer messing with the flowers - he let the Japanese pry the fingers off him. The guy backed off a few steps, panting anxiously. Takuya bit his lip for a moment, then decided it was time to talk. "Shit! Warn me first before you decide to show off that rabies!"

That guy didn't know when to stop pushing. Kyun hissed at him through clenched teeth, then took a step closer. "If you don't want me to hurt you, go to your room and stay there."

"Come on! What did I -" Upon seeing the look on the Korean's face, Takuya broke himself off. "... fine. I don't want to see your butt-ugly face anyway." He muttered, turning around to head for his room.

"Better ugly than being a small, weak asshole." Kyun muttered back as he picked up the torn card. It wasn't too hard to put it back together. He gazed confusedly over the words. Quite romantic, addressed to someone called Melissa. And signed with his name!

Kyun thought back to what Julian had said. Something about a delivery boy not taking refunds. What was that supposed to mean? He scratched his head. It didn't make sense that Julian would write such a card, so who did? Apparently, the purple-haired guy thought it was Kyun himself who had, so that was due for clearing up. He fished out his cell phone, quickly dialing Julian's number.

It wasn't until the end of the fourth ring that the other line picked up. There was noise in the background. Sounded like a lot of people were there. Eventually a hesitant voice spoke up. "... Hello."

"Julian? Listen! I didn't write that card!" Kyun blurted out, not quite sure whether to be most mad at whoever wrote the card, or at Julian for not talking about it.

Even more hesitation. The background noises were muffled for a moment as if something was covering the phone, and he heard Julian mumble to someone else. Whatever was covering it was removed and the uncertain voice spoke again. "Kyun... What are you calling about?"

The Korean sighed, trying to fight back the annoyance, but that was rather hard. "Julian..." he started sternly, "you were all happy about coming over, then you give me flowers with a card signed in my name. Am I jumping to conclusions when I'm thinking you just running off after that means you think I wrote it?"

"What am I supposed to think?" The voice lowered to a whisper until it was barely audible with all the noise in the back. "I've gone through this so many times before, but I didn't expect it this time... And I didn't run off, I walked."

He paused. 'So many times before'? What, his lovers writing love poems to others? Kyun found it hard to stay mad as he felt increasingly bad for the guy. "What do you mean... what happened before?"

"This. People aren't interested in a 'mouse'. There's always someone else who is more of a man or more... of a woman in some cases, I guess." There was a sigh and then even more hesitation. "I'm sorry I walked away, but I didn't want to hear it again... And I still don't."

Kyun sighed and swallowed. "Julian... I want you. I don't want another man, and certainly not a woman! I'm gay, remember!" It felt a bit awkward to make such a declaration this early, but the Korean wished so badly for the purple-haired fellow to feel wanted. He wished he could hold him tight, caress and reassure him, but his cell phone didn't have those features. Bastard cell phone.

The resulting pause made it very difficult to tell how it was received. There was a quiet sniffle, but when Julian spoke again, his voice was as steady as ever. "I've gotta go, Kyun. This isn't a good time to talk. I know you're a good guy and wouldn't do it on purpose, but if you're just playing with me, please stop it because it's really painful... Goodbye." The words were immediately followed by a beep and a silent line. Julian had hung up.

'If'? Did that mean there was hope? Part of his mind was boiling because he hated not being trusted, but most of all he was just feeling depressed. He glanced briefly over at the pot, but having lost all appetite, there was no point in trying to eat. After a frustrated kick at the recliner, he headed into his bedroom to brood.

~~~~~

That kiss had made Zach so confused. Probably was all those things that little blond journalist had said. He could feel his body's reaction to it, recognising the feeling from situations he shunned with a passion.

There was no two ways about it. Zach had to talk to someone. So in the following afternoon, he had headed to his favourite church, trying to get a word with the old, conservative priest. And with his luck, he did find what he sought, and presented his case as well as he could.

The white-haired priest had sighed lightly, then looked at him as if he was a little kid in need of proper education. "You're a good Christian, Zach. You know that to receive answers to your questions, you have to ask and pray. The Lord will give you the answer if that suits his divine plan."

Why was that the only response he could get? He nevertheless thanked the man politely, knowing full well that further questions would not be welcome after that. Not in a particularly high mood, he wandered out of the building. That simply wasn't good enough.

As he stepped out into the parking lot, he spotted a familiar face casually making his way towards the congregation office. The young Mr. Green administered most that was happening, from youth events and sunday school to the more earthly tasks of maintenance. Zach had plenty of experience with the knowledgeful man, especially after he had started the activity center. Although not a priest by profession, Mr. Green had a master degree in theology and was fluent in Greek - which had let him read the New Testament in the original language.

He hurriedly made his way over, just short of running. When he finally got the guy's attention, he jumped right in. "Good afternoon, Mr. Green... I'm sorry to bother you, but I have an issue that bothers me, and I thought I'd hear your opinion on it."

A benevolent smile encouraged him. At least it didn't seem he caught him at a bad time. "Certainly. What is it? Anything to do with the unfortunate incident at the activity center?"

"No..." Zach paused. He didn't really have any other leads than Leandor, and was reluctant to pull in his power base. The church would most likely resent such people, and the resentment would be mutual. With a strained swallow, he met the man's gaze. Maybe he could use that prompt as an opening. "You know about that, then. I'm working on it..."

The redhead paused, forcing his courage out. It was well hidden away when dealing with the men of God, as he felt that was necessary to be accepted. Be humble, and all that. But now, he needed it. Homosexuality was probably the hardest topic of all for Zach to talk about. "... but I have been thinking... I've heard different things about the Lord's take on homosexuality. Is it really wrong?"

The man shifted uncomfortably, apparently a bit reluctant to answer. "Faith issues are better raised with the priest, I'd say."

"I already tried." Zach blurted out, then sighed. That was probably not a good thing to say, and he tried damage control. "He was very encouraging. Firm in his faith, that man. But he was rather unspecific, and suggested I raise the issue with God. I'm afraid a simple man as myself may not fully grasp communication with the Lord..."

Mr. Green thought for a bit, then rested a reassuring hand on Zach's shoulder. He smiled amicably, insisting on eye contact. "What is it you have heard, my friend?"

"Well..." Perhaps he should have thought that far before he started this conversation. Then again, he hadn't expected to talk to Mr. Green about it. "A friend told me that the Lord creates people as he want them to be, and that he'd want people to take what he gives as gifts, rather than struggling to change things." Had he said too much? Zach's heartbeat raced up a bit as he added anxiously, "of course, I've read the Bible. I know what Paul's letters say. I'm not sure if -"

"Zach." The other man broke him off. "Calm down." He stopped to smile at the redhead, and Zach took a deep breath with closed eyes. "That's a beautiful take on the Lord and his ways, I think." Mr. Green said, still smiling.

Gazing at the other man with confusion, Zach quirked a brow. "You do?" He asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"Yes." The man answered firmly, then met his gaze. "Am I correct in assuming this has something to do with you or someone you care about?"

How did he know? Well, thinking about it, it was probably blatantly obvious from what he himself had said. Not knowing what to say, he simply nodded in silence.

Thankfully, that was taken as a cue to go on. "Zach, between you and me. Fifty years from now, people will see drawing a line between heterosexuality and homosexuality as ridiculous. It's a matter of human interpretation. You have to do what feels right for you, and your friends have to do what feels right for them. After all, the Bible says: 'Judge not, that you be not judged.' So I advise you, do not judge your friends or yourself by the sexuality a person has."

"Alright, thanks!" Zach flashed a bright smile, absolutely beaming. What felt right for him? He couldn't wait to try that out!

~~~~~

This is a collab, written together with Chlover. You can find her author profile here: http://original.adult-fanfiction.org/authors.php?no=26260