On January 1st, 1872, Takuto visited Ranmaru at his apartment in the evening. He looked ashamed of having abandoned Ranmaru the previous night. Ranmaru opened the door and did not stop him from coming in but he showed no excitement at seeing him.

"I'm sorry. " This was the first thing Takuto said as soon as he entered.

Ranmaru didn't know how to face him. He had opened the door and turned away from him. But when he apologized, he slowly turned towards him.

Immediately, Takuto was startled. Now he saw the cut on his forehead sparsely covered by ointment.

"How did this happen?" He rushed close and held his face to examine.

"I fell off the stairs. " He answered plainly.

"Are you alright?!" He exclaimed with worry, "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

Ranmaru felt like he couldn't breathe because of the closeness. But this time not because his heart leapt with joy but because he remembered the incident at the party. He took in a deep wavering breath and stopped Takuto's incessant questions with one of his own.

"Are you married?"

Takuto was frozen mid-sentence, mid-expression. It was an odd question for sure.

"Of course not! Whatever gave you that idea?" He interjected.

"That woman...at the party...for whom you left me there..." He didn't try to hide the sombreness in his eyes.

"Is that what you inferred? That I left you there for her." Takuto stared at him blankly.

"You left halfway between our moment. What else am I supposed to infer?" Ranmaru spoke rather disinterestedly and looked away.

"Oh, I did do that..." Takuto trailed away sheepishly.

The next moment, he suddenly held Ranmaru's cheek and made him turn towards him. Before he knew it, Takuto's lips were pressing on his passionately as he pulled Ranmaru closer against him.

Ranmaru was confused, he still hadn't received an answer, he supposed the kiss was an answer but he wanted a verbal response too. It's as if Takuto could now read his mind through the mere physical connection they shared at the moment, that as soon as they broke apart, he chimed,

"She is just an acquaintance. "

⚜

"Our families might push for me to call her my friend, since the families are friends among themselves, but I don't think I have shared enough thoughts with her to call her a friend. " He elaborated after a pause.

"You haven't shared many thoughts with me either. " Ranmaru pointed out.

"But I have shared a kiss with you. " He immediately retorted and chuckled at Ranmaru's naivete.

Ranmaru frowned at having been made to feel silly. In the meantime, Takuto examined the wound for his mind's ease and concluded it with a kiss on it.

"Now stop frowning. " He said.

"Would you bring me some of that hot choc...cho...choco..." He strained to remember the name of that foreign beverage.

The next moment Ranmaru burst into laughter. Takuto smiled a satisfactory smile.

"Hot chocolate! And yes I will. " With that, he skipped to the kitchen.

Takuto settled down on the couch and began thinking about how he wanted to see Ranmaru more in the coming year. He didn't want to just count upon a chance meeting at some party, or stroll all the way to his apartment on a dark blue evening. He wanted it to be so that when he woke up each morning he would know for sure that he was going to see Ranmaru that day.

Ranmaru returned with two cups of hot chocolate in a tray and set it down on the table. He handed one cup to Takuto and picked the other one for himself. With that, he settled beside Takuto.

"I wish you would leave that server's job." Takuto began with a purpose, "I hate the way they treat you."

"I wish it too but I need the money." Ranmaru answered plainly and concentrated on his cup.

"You deserve better."

"Whether I deserve better or not, the fact of the matter is nothing is available, especially for me."

"Work for me."

Ranmaru almost spat out his hot chocolate. He had no idea the conversation was taking such a turn.

"What would I even do for you? I know nothing." He turned to Takuto awkwardly.

"Be my assistant." Takuto said, "Take care of me." He tried to make it sound less like servitude and more like a romantic opportunity.

"That's not what an assistant does, I don't think." Ranmaru chuckled.

"But you would, wouldn't you?" Takuto tilted his head curiously.

It was a strange proposal to come from one's lover but at the same time, the opportunity was too golden to pass up out of sheer awkwardness. Ranmaru didn't have very many options.

"Alright, I will." He agreed quietly.

⚜

Takuto presented himself in his office way too early for reason. This meant Ranmaru also had to get up early and rush to his workplace.

As soft as Takuto was in front of Ranmaru enclosed within the four walls of his apartment, it was jarring to see him interact at work. He was perpetually frowning, pointing out a hundred ways someone had fallen short of their duties.

With Ranmaru he didn't do that. He gave him a lot of leeway for mistakes, which Ranmaru used up quickly given his inability to do anything. He did not yell or frown at him but explained anything that was needed in a calm, calculated tone.

He was very professional when at work. He didn't do anything that was outside the workplace decorum. He did not want it to look like he had brought him there for any ulterior motives. He was content with only basking in Ranmaru's company.

On the contrary, Ranmaru was disappointed. He had expected it to be the start of his great office romance much like he had read in many stories. If he received such benefits perhaps he would do better. Right now, the dreary officescape was sucking the life out of him.

Takuto not only arrived early but also left late. This regimen was proving to be very hard on a sleep-loving Ranmaru but he tried his best to keep up. He wanted to take his job seriously.

One evening, as the sun set, so did Ranmaru's attentiveness. Takuto was the only one left in the office along with his assistant. Ranmaru sat on the other side of his desk, at first actively looking at certain files to understand what went about in this office, then with his head rested against his palm, and finally his head down onto the desk, eyes closed.

Takuto kept working for a while paying no heed to what became of his assistant. Then suddenly, he took note of him. His fine golden locs were curtaining his face, a few individual strands quivering at every breath.

Takuto stopped thinking. He looked at the sight ahead with curiosity and before he knew it, his hand reached out to him and brushed his hair to a side.

As soon as he touched him he came to his senses and found himself breaching his own rule of maintaining the decorum. He recoiled instantly, pulling his hand back with a jerk and waited with bated breath what would happen next.

Ranmaru had felt the touch and slowly opened his eyes. There was ink on his cheek from Takuto's pen that had given it up because of the sudden motion.

"I'm sorry I fell asleep!" He said alertly.

Takuto didn't respond and continued to stare at him.

"Is there something on my face?"

"Yes, ink. "

Ranmaru stood up, circled the desk and sat on his knee in front of Takuto's chair, like a knight in front of his king,

"Would you mind?" He looked up at him softly.

Takuto was stunned for a moment, he kept staring at Ranmaru's face which was washed with the golden hues of the setting sun.

His hand moved on his own to his cheek as he wiped the ink away from his thumb leaving only a faint trace of blue. However, he did not pull back immediately, rather, his hand travelled down to his lips. He slowly traced his lower lip with his thumb. 

He came back to his senses when he realised he had accidentally painted his lip blue. He tried to frantically pull his hand back again when Ranmaru caught his wrist and stopped him.

He pulled his hand closer again and kissed his thumb, smearing the ink on his lips even more in the process.

Takuto's heart was beating fast now, he was finding it hard to keep himself from swaying. But at the same time he couldn't bring himself to give in to it completely because he had never gone against his rules before.

As if sensing his dilemma, Ranmaru stood up and gently closed the file in front of him. He set it aside to its designated place and closed his pen and tucked it back into the holder.

"We're off the clock now." He whispered softly as he hopped up on the desk, looking down at Takuto anticipating his next move.

The logic worked and Takuto finally stopped overthinking. He stood up from his chair and pulled Ranmaru in a kiss, sharing the blue tint of his lips.

Ranmaru smiled against his lips, holding his face between his palms. This was a perfectly blissful moment, there were no interruptions, no complications, he had Takuto's undivided attention which was something more precious than pearls.

His hands slid down to Takuto's lapel and he tugged on it. Taking the hint, Takuto quickly took it off. He wasn't sure where this was going but he was willing to do as Ranmaru said.

"Ahh!" Ranmaru exclaimed as soon as Takuto pushed back his jacket. His hair had gotten caught in one of his buttons and it got pulled when he tried to take it off.

"Oh no! What do I do?" Takuto panicked.

"Just don't move. " Ranmaru said as he chuckled at his hysteria.

"And come closer. "

Takuto complied and stood perfectly still as Ranmaru bent down to his chest and carefully tried to free the strands of his hair from being rolled around his silver button.

As Takuto took a breath in, he could notice the scent of Ranmaru's hair which smelled floral. It was making his mind wander into dreams and all he wanted to do was fall back on his chair with Ranmaru on his lap but he had to stay still. He felt like he was being tested.

By the time Ranmaru freed himself, he was fed up. As soon as he could pull back, he hopped off the desk.

"That's enough for today, I'll see you, tomorrow boss. " He said jokingly as he picked up his jacket and left Takuto alone, reeling from this experience.