She was awakened by the aroma of coffee drifting through the cool air, laced with some other revolting human odors, and fluttered her eyelids open to find herself in an unfamiliar room. She was tucked under white sheets, cool and smooth to the touch, and her head lay caressed on a small pile of downy pillows. The shades were drawn and the room - despite the latter scents - smelled like fresh laundry and crisp linen. The only thing that didn't appeal to her in the situation was the fact that she was stark naked under the blankets.

She scrambled up on the mattress, clinging the sheets to her chest as she frantically bolted her eyes around, her heart thumping wildly and her breath drawing into quick, shallow gasps.

"Ichijou-kun?" she asked instinctively, her voice desperate. She shook violently in her spot, cowering into the blankets as she backed up against the headboard; her eyes were round with fear.

There was a clatter of metal and a scuffle of footsteps before he appeared under the threshold, an apron wrapped around his figure and a sincerely worried look carved into his suddenly rigid features.

"What is it?" he asked in a flurry. "Is something wrong?"

Upon seeing his face, her shoulders eased, and she could feel the relief flood over her as she let out a long sigh.

"Thank goodness..." she breathed.

Ichijou stood there for a second, perplexed, until he realized what was going on; he was at her side in less than a second, couching by the side of the bed as he rested a hand on her leg, stroking it gently through the thin sheet.

"It's alright, Etsuko-chan," he murmured softly to her, his dark eyes gleaming. "You're safe."

Etsuko gave him a small, sincere smile and placed her hand upon his, gazing into his eyes with swirling liquid gold irises.

"I'm glad," she murmured, choking on her own voice.

Ichijou gave a soft laugh, lifting his other hand so that he cupped her cheek in his palm. He gazed into her eyes, deep and full of longing, as she leaned into his touch, breathing in his mind-numbing scent and feeling all of her stress ebb away like snowmelt. His breathing quickened.

"You're so beautiful," he murmured quietly, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

Etsuko stiffened, her eyes turning hard and widening a bit as she continued to stare at him. She held her breath, as if there were toxic gas roaming in the space, and shakily reached a hand up to the one on her cheek. Perplexed, Ichijou watched her as she guided his hand off of her and set it gently down on the bed. She gave him a small, tense smile.

"I'll go get ready now," she announced softly. She swung her legs off the mattress and pushed off the bed, walking past Ichijou, who still sat crouched by the bedside, and into the bathroom. She shut the door quickly with a soft click, leaving Ichijou to bury himself in his thoughts.

Puzzled, he rose slowly from his spot, turned his face to the bathroom door and stared at it for a second, only to make his way back to the kitchen.

Etsuko leaned against the cold counter, feeling the iciness of the stone seep into her pale skin as she glared at herself in the mirror with equally chilling, amber eyes. She could see that her face was etched in a sense of spite, despising and dark with hatred, framed with a slightly frazzled mop of long white hair. She saw the faint lines brushing into her skin, and the powder-lilac half-moons sinking underneath her eyes. Her ribs were still poking out from her skin, though it no longer looked thin as paper; her hipbones however still jutted out violently. She had a long way of recovery from her former starving state, and an even longer distance from anything remotely to what could be described as "beautiful." She was once ravishing, enough to entice and draw in men as though they were moths and she was a burning kerosene lamp; she was once extraordinarily stunning, and she knew it. But now, considering circumstances, she didn't give two shits about her appearance, and just did her makeup out of routine habit. Not once did she ever stop to analyze her own self in the mirror, and never once in that time span did her appearance ever cross her mind, and his words just then had dug into her like some fearsome dagger.

She rinsed her mouth with some mouthwash she had found while rummaging through the medicine cabinet, and then darted back out the bathroom door.

It smelled rotten, like something festering in sulfur, mixed with mold and sour vinegar. She winced at the odor, making a little face before she wiped it back, making her way over to one of Ichijou's dressers, where some of his old clothes were draped over the dark wood; she didn't see her own clothes anywhere, which concerned her a bit, but decided to ask him about it later. She took his button-up shirt and tugged it on, fastening the buttons on it while walking under the threshold and entering the kitchen-living area. She was confronted with a low table in the tiled area a little beyond the kitchen, positioned with two olive-colored cushions and what looked to be a human feast. White porcelain plates with various dishes were arranged upon the smooth tabletop, along with two pale sage placemats and glossy black chopsticks, set atop a paper napkin; in the middle of each mat was a white ceramic bowl of steaming hot rice, accompanied by another bowl of hot miso soup.

Etsuko blinked in astonishment at the set, her eyes round with a concoction of a multitude of emotions. She tore her eyes away from the sight and saw a very proud-looking Ichijou standing by the table, standing tall with his hands behind his back; his beaming smile cut through the sickness that coursed through her icy veins.

"Good morning, Etsuko-chan," he greeted her politely, his face far more welcoming than anything else she had ever encountered. His expression briefly switched to something of a joking manner. "That's a nice shirt you got there."

She gulped, her palms moist.

"Good morning, Ichijou-kun," she replied, her voice steady. "And yes, it's quite comfortable."

Ichijou just laughed and motioned her to a cushion, eagerness electrifying throughout his body.

"Shall we?" he mused.

Etsuko fluttered a quick round of blinks before giving in, making her way over to a cushion and positioning herself on her knees, sitting back against her heels. Ichijou then took his seat across from her, flashing another dazzling smile. Etsuko pressed her lips together into a tight line of a smile and brought her palms together in front of her chest, her terrified eyes closed.

"Thank you for the meal," she murmured as enthusiastically as she could. She reached for the chopsticks and took the bowl in her left palm, scanning the table of side dishes with a daunting expression.

Ichijou dug in, taking a slice of pickled radish and ate it with a lump of rice, sipping a bit of soup along with it. Etsuko, not wanting to offend him, dug into her bowl and forced a round of rice into her mouth. She chewed it, letting the food sit on her tongue, and restrained herself from gagging and making a face. The rice had the texture of a sticky paste under her teeth, tasting bland and emitting this scent that smelled like old glue. She chewed it still, swallowing it quickly before she had the chance to throw it back up.

Rice was essential to any Oriental culture - she knew that much - and was practically served with every meal; she concluded that this thick, bland, pasty glue taste was considered good to the human pallet then and she took note of this, despite the odor of it crawling back up her nose. She let out a tiny shiver.

Still, she continued, not even hesitating as she then reached for some marinated tofu, plopping it into her mouth. It felt like her tongue was squishing a lump of soft liver, which wasn't so bad, but tasted extremely sour with an overwhelming punch of some nauseating, fermented salty sauce, which she guessed was soy sauce, and judging by the small, pungent chunks of yellow stuff clinging to the side of the tofu, was mixed with ginger.

She took note of this as well.

In the end, she came to a consensus about a majority of the dishes on the table.

The pickled daikon Ichijou had eaten possessed a crunch like plastic, and they were so sour and pervasive that she had to stuff her mouth with rice, which honestly tasted a lot better compared to the radishes; however, she felt her stomach churn after eating both of those, and as a result, moved onto the next dish. The soup itself was clear and contained a bit of the moldiness from the bean paste, and the paste swimming in the soup itself had a grainy texture whose flavor could be very much compared to salty dandruff, or maybe even chunky toe jam. It was revolting, and once again, she had to shove some rice into her mouth to mask the disgusting taste with yet another sickening one; still, she took note of all of this and more, including eggs that resembled hot putty mixed with the same fermented salty soy sauce, and shreds of cooked beef that tasted like bark that had been soaking in gasoline for three weeks. As soon as her bowl of soup was drained and her rice was gone, she declared herself full and sat back as she watched Ichijou devour everything else remaining on the table; she felt excruciatingly nauseous.

"It was delicious," Etsuko praised him, her words empty. "I really like the steamed vegetables. What did you put on there?"

Ichijou smirked, plopping a piece of beef into his mouth.

"Just a bit of sesame oil and salt and pepper," he mused, clearly pleased. "I'm glad you liked it."

Etsuko gave him a close-eyed smile, nodding her head.

"It really was delicious!" she continued. "You cook very well, Ichijou-kun."

"I'll cook for you more often then," he laughed. "I'll make dinner tonight too, how does that sound?"

Her heart sank as she heard him say that, but her face refused to budge from the fabricated cheerfulness that lit it up like a light bulb.

"Th-that sounds great," she said, trying her best to keep the food down. It threatened to push up her throat, but was fought back by the constricting and tightening of her trachea; she swallowed again. "Um, may I have some water?"

Ichijou motioned towards the fridge.

"There's some in there," he grunted, slurping up some soup.

Etsuko nodded and rose from her cushion, taking her bowls and chopsticks with her over to the sink, where she discarded them gently. She then made her way over to the fridge and yanked it open, pulling out a water bottle and downing it in three seconds flat.

"Wow, did I make something too salty?" Ichijou asked, a bit concerned.

Etsuko shook her head immediately, her eyes round.

"N-not at all!" she insisted. "I was just thirsty, that's it."

She gave him a quick, reassuring smile, to which thankfully he found comforting, and merely let out a scoff. The water had eased her nausea, and it slowly faded away as her diluted stomach acids ate away at the substances. There was silence between the two for a moment, Etsuko fiddling with her fingers nervously as she leaned against the counter, looking out past the bar to see Ichijou starting to clean up the table. She shrugged and thought she might as well help him out, but was then attacked by another round of sickness; her hand immediately went to her stomach.

"I - ah - I have to go to the restroom," she announced softly.

Ichijou stiffened, a dark blush creeping across his face. He flickered his eyes over to her and then back at the table, his head dipped down, embarrassed.

"Ah, yeah," he muttered almost inaudibly. "You do that then."

Etsuko nodded and walked briskly over to the bathroom, whipping her hair up with a single fluid movement. She entered the space and immediately shut the door, locking it with a sharp click before hurrying to the toilet, where she slid and positioned herself on her knees over the bowl. She struck herself across the face, grimacing intensely as she clenched her abdomen, her body convulsing as she leaned against the seat of the toilet with her hands clamped across the rim, grinding her teeth and the veins popping out from her temples. She let out a soft grunt of a massive effort, her body convulsing again as she struck herself across the cheek once more.

"Keep it in. Keep the fucking food in!" she muttered to herself through clenched teeth. "You good for nothing whoring cunt, keep the motherfucking food in."

She sputtered, the bile spurting past her trachea, spewing from her lips and into the toilet bowl. She gripped the sides of the ceramic toilet, panting softly into the dome so the echoes would not reach out the door. She heaved again, dropping another mouthful of acid and chunks of half-digested food into the water, and bit back the next wave, struggling to keep the sickening grunts down with the food. She gasped, gripping her hair by the roots with both of her hands, screwing up her face and bearing her tightly clenched teeth at the water, her shoulders rising and falling rapidly with the heaving efforts of breathing. She scoffed, flexing her core once more before punching herself in the diaphragm this time, making her breath hitch and swallowing back the sickness in one tight gulp.

After a war between her mind and body, Etsuko finally found peace with her ghoulish digestive tract, and successfully managed to keep at least some of the food from vomiting out of her system.

She walked out the door, dazed, only to find Ichijou at the sink, washing the dishes. He sensed her presence and looked up at her with a broad smile, only to make it disappear faster than it had been flashed.

"Oi Etsuko-chan, are you okay?" he asked her, his voice full with concern. "You look really pale."

Etsuko just grinned.

"It was just a little stomach bug," she said. "Or maybe it's because I haven't had my coffee today."

Ichijou blinked at her with a perplexed face before it spread out into an understanding smile.

"Yeah, I know the feeling," he sighed, continuing to scrub the plates. "If I miss a smoke I feel like I'm going to break out into a panic attack or something. In speaking of it, I need a quick smoke after this too, if you don't mind."

Etsuko let out a smirk; she appreciated the sympathy, but her condition was a bit different from his.

"Not at all," she murmured, walking over to him. She took the sponge from his hand and pushed him away with a sharp bump of her hip, the smirk growing wider on her face. "Go do it now. I can do the rest."

Ichijou blinked, surprised, and then gave her a small grin.

"Sure, thanks," he chuckled. "I'll make a pot of coffee before I do though."

Etsuko gave him a little nod before tending to the dishes in the sink, scrubbing them veraciously and rinsing them off before putting them on the dish rack. Ichijou ran the coffee maker with freshly ground beans and went outside on the terrace with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Etsuko moistened a towel and wrung the water back out, slathering the cloth on the tabletop to clean the surface from any more bits of food. She took the rag back to the sink and washed it out, briefly looking up from the water to check up on Ichijou.

He was just standing there, with his broad back facing her, the sliding door closed. The wind ruffled his wavy tresses and his loose white t-shirt, his plaid navy pajama pants fluttering slightly around his legs; a thick cloud of smoke escaped his mouth. Etsuko let out a little scoff, amused, and wrung out the rag one more time before laying it out on the counter to dry. She snatched the coffee pot and two mugs from the cupboard, filling them with the coffee and made her way out towards the balcony.

She knocked on the glass with her elbow, causing Ichijou to turn around; he blinked down at the cups of coffee for a moment before he allowed her out by opening the door with a quick tug of his arm. She stepped out onto the space next to him and offered him the steaming mug.

"Thank you," he said, taking out his cigarette and letting out another breath of smoke. He took a sip. "I have to leave for work in an hour. Can you do without me until tonight?"

Etsuko rubbed the side of her cup with an itchy index finger and took a gulp of the drink. She stared into it as she felt the warmth spread throughout her body; the food was god awful, and the coffee was definitely the thing to wash it down with. She swallowed again.

"What time will you be coming home at?" she asked quietly.

Ichijou took another drag of his cigarette, hissing out the odorous smoke with a seething breath.

"Probably ten," he said blandly. "Maybe even later if Watanabe-kun wants to go out for dinner. But I was going to cook dinner for us, wasn't I? So maybe I'll invite him over."

Etsuko tensed her jaw, feeling her temples throb with the pressure.

"That's still pretty late..." she murmured, her voice trailing off.

Ichijou faced her with a pained look, his brows knitted and his lips curled down into a frown.

"I'm sorry, baby. I can't take any more leaves this year unless I'm on my deathbed. I'll be able to take a week's vacation in a few months though, so if you can hold on until then."

Etsuko felt her temperature rise to her boiling point, her face tomato red and her ears searing hot. She chewed on her lip as she drummed her fingers on the ceramic.

"I'll manage," she said, slightly embarrassed. "I'll stop by Anteiku or something."

Ichijou nodded.

"Yeah. I'll give you some money too. Go to Harajuku or Shinsaibashi or something to shop - my treat."

Etsuko scowled.

"You gave me money last night," she barked. "I don't need any more."

Ichijou glared down at her with a stern look that made her cower back; she never cowered back.

"I need to make it up to you for last night," he murmured solemnly, staring into his coffee before taking another sip. "I couldn't protect you."

Etsuko furrowed her brows.

"What are you talking about?" she muttered. "I'm here, safe and sound. You did protect me, Ichijou-kun. I'm safe now - isn't that all that matters?"

Ichijou took his last drag from his cigarette before reaching over to the small table to the side, killing the thing and stabbing the butt into the ashtray.

"I suppose so," he said quietly. He turned to her, his dark eyes shining. "I'm just glad they didn't do anything worse to you."

Etsuko sizzled.

"Let's stop talking about that now," she said, reaching out a hand and stroking his arm soothingly. "The real topic should be why the hell you aren't having a killer hangover right now."

Ichijou spread his lips out into that beautiful smile, easing her anxiety.

"I'm used to it by now, I suppose," he chuckled, flickering his eyes over to her. "Also because you're here, I guess. You're the cure to everything." He flashed her an amused grin.

Etsuko smirked.

"You're stupid," she muttered playfully, taking another gulp of coffee.

Ichijou laughed.

"Maybe," he agreed, draining the rest of his drink. "I used to be smart you know, until I met you that is."

Etsuko scoffed.

"You? Smart?" she teased. "That's just like saying a ghoul can survive without human flesh - impossible."

Ichijou twitched up the corner of his lip.

"That might be," he laughed. "But what makes you think you're any smarter?"

Etsuko puffed.

"Excuse you," she seethed. "But I'm the one who graduated Kamii University with a double major - in the top five."

"I could have done that if I wanted to," he boasted, leaning against the wall behind him. "But I graduated high school at sixteen to join the Ghoul Investigator Academy, which is practically the same thing."

Etsuko rolled her eyes.

"Bullshit," she muttered. "Just admit it. You were genuinely surprised when I told you that I had graduated Kamii as a double major."

Ichijou scoffed.

"Only because I was surprised to have met someone close to my caliber," he sputtered.

Etsuko ground her teeth, a vein pulsing in her head.

"Close to your caliber?" she barked. "What makes you think that you're even remotely close to me?"

Ichijou sent her an amused look, holding back a laugh through his tight lips. Etsuko raised an eyebrow.

"What? Are you finally gonna - " she started, only to interrupted by a pair of strong arms scooping her up into the air. "O-oi! Put me down!" she screeched. "Ichijou-kun!"

Ichijou maneuvered her so that the anterior of her torso pressed against his, wrapping her legs around his waist as he lifted her up further into the air, her face hovering over his as his hand grabbed the back of her head; she gulped, her cheeks on fire.

"I-Ichijou-kun...?"

"Is this close enough?" he whispered to her, his lips brushing against her own.

Etsuko sputtered.

"Th-that's not what I mean when I said 'close,'" she stammered nervously.

His lips tugged up into a joyous smile, beaming as he placed her back down on the ground, much to her dismay. Etsuko pouted.

"You're so easy to tease, Etsuko-chan. It's absolutely adorable," Ichijou laughed, patting her on the head.

Etsuko puffed out her cheeks.

"You're mean..." she mumbled. "And I'm not normally like this, you know..."

Ichijou raised a curious eyebrow.

"Oh? So you're only like this with me?" he asked, clearly pleased and his ego blowing up to an extensive size. He leaned closer to her again, their noses touching; Etsuko flinched. "Good. Only be like this with me, okay?"

She swallowed, nodding her head frantically as she narrowed her eyes, anticipating it so painfully it tugged on her chest. Ichijou knew this, and instead of making her suffer any longer, extinguished the desire by pressing his lips softly upon hers; he tasted like coffee and smoke.

It was a slow, sensuous kiss that lingered and dragged as if they were trudging through mud, with their minds going numb and all of their sense of reality dissipating while they remained in each other's arms. He held her face within his hands as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and they stood upon the balcony deep within their moment of true bliss.

Eventually, they had to break apart so Ichijou could get ready for work. She helped him dress by picking the suit he would be wearing that day - it was a dark steel-gray one this time, with a deep burgundy tie - and dressed him as if he were a child. She buttoned up his shirt and zipped up his slacks, taking the black belt he always wore and slinging it around his hips through the belt loops. She tightened the belt with quick jerks as she stared into his eyes, a playful smirk upon her lips as she trailed her fingers over the quickly hardening bulge.

Ichijou growled, attacking her once more with a more aggressive kiss and backing her up against the wall. His lips closed upon hers over and over again with a hungry greed, groping at her skin from under the thin layer of linen that hung loosely from her figure. His mouth crawled down to her jawline and even further to her neck, sucking at the supple white skin and making her moan out in response.

"Ichijou-kun," she breathed, swallowing. He didn't respond. "Ichijou-kun."

"Hmm?" he grunted, tugging at her skin with his bare teeth.

She whimpered.

"Y-you have to get to w-work," she sputtered, her face a bright crimson. "We can d-do this tonight."

"I don't want to go to work," he grumbled, unbuttoning her shirt and sliding his wet tongue further down; she shivered violently. "I want to stay here and have sex with my girlfriend."

She scoffed, her breath quivering.

"You're such a pervert," she growled. "Go to work already."

His eyes glinted as he kissed her down her chest, sliding his hand further down her body. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head, pleasure taking over her as he brushed his fingers against her most sensitive spot, letting out a long groan.

"Fuck, if you want me to go to work then don't make that noise," he spat, taking a pert nipple between his teeth.

"It's not my fault," she hissed through clenched teeth, bringing up shaky hands to push him away. "You're doing this on purpose."

Ichijou scoffed.

"Well it'd be pretty sad if I was doing this on accident," he mused, bringing his face up to hers again to collide into one more kiss. He pushed a finger up to the second digit into her lower region, making her squeal into his mouth; his lips tugged up into a devilish smile. "You can't resist now. You're already soaking wet."

Etsuko grit her teeth, sexually frustrated and physically conflicted.

"Fuck you," she spat venomously.

An evil glint flew across his dark eyes.

"Your wish is my command," he rumbled huskily.

Her eyes grew round.

"W-wait, that's not what I mea - !"

Ichijou scooped her back up again in his arms, walking a few steps before dropping her on the bed. He fumbled with the belt and the zipper, Etsuko sprawled on top of the strewn sheets - still messy from last night's rest - with her face spread out in shock.

"I-Ichijou-kun, shouldn't we wait until we have more time to - "

"Shut up," the man growled, discarding his slacks carelessly to the side. She could see the bulge through his boxer briefs, and immediately sent both hands to cover her gaping mouth. "You're the one who started teasing me anyways. I don't take teasing all too well, you know."

Etsuko sputtered.

"I-I'm sorry," she stammered, backing up into the headboard. "I won't do it again, I promise. Only if you j-just go to work, and we'll continue this toni - "

His lips silenced her, moving against hers in a famished fashion. His body loomed over hers as he remained on all fours, wearing nothing but an unbuttoned linen shirt and his dark gray boxer briefs.

Oh boy.

"Ichi...jou...kun..." she moaned in between breaths, groaning into his mouth as his hands slowly crawled up her legs, reaching her inner thighs. "Please..."

"What?" Ichijou grunted, tugging at her bottom lip. His hands massaged her skin, his thumbs brushing against her sensitive spot purposefully, making her core convulse in response; she shivered. "Do you want me to stop? If you do, just say the word and I'll stop."

Etsuko whimpered, bringing her hands up to his chest, brushing past his nipples and up to trace his narrow jawline; her golden eyes sparkled with lust.

"No..." she whispered weakly.

Ichijou growled, pressing his forehead against hers, not satisfied with the answer. He curled his finger and gently flicked her in that region, and she let out a garbled squeal as the ripples of pleasure were forced throughout her body, as if she were being electrocuted.

Ichijou's eyes widened, his face shocked.

"Did you just - ?" he started.

Etsuko, with the uncontrollable tears beading in her eyes, grabbed the back of his head, tangling her fingers into his hair, and pulled him forward into a maddening kiss. She ate him hungrily, panting and gasping as she still rode out her convulsions, desperate and craving for more. She eventually released him, gasping for breath as she struggled to recuperate from the orgasm. She sent a fierce glare into his eyes, fiery and set ablaze with an uncontrollable lust.

"Fuck me," she hissed, her jaw tense.

Ichijou blinked, perplexed.

"Wha - ?"

"I said fuck me," she seethed, her voice irritated. "Now."

Ichijou stared at her for a moment before a smirk appeared across his features. He slid off his boxer briefs and tossed them to the side, coming back up positioned on his knees with his hard member solid against his chiseled abdomen. Etsuko groaned at the sight of it, fumbling around on the sheets to position her own body accordingly. Ichijou, however, grabbed at her hips and tugged her body down into a missionary position, his hips slamming on top of hers and his hard member sliding against her slick mound. Her back arched at the intense sensation, letting out a strangled moan; he pumped his hips back and forth, sliding the underside on top of her wetness.

"You need to be a little more polite, missy," he growled darkly, hovering over her, propped up on his elbows. "Now, what is it that you want?"

Etsuko's body shook as she neared her second time, grasping at his biceps that stood on either side of her head. She felt the hardness of him rub relentlessly against her sensitive bud, and whimpered as the pressure grew too unbearable inside her core. She was on the verge of exploding again, and she leaned her head back to brace herself for impact.

Then, it was gone. It was still there, lingering like some sick, torturous joke, but he had pulled away completely from her. This sick fucking piece of dog shit.

"You little..." she snarled, glaring up at him with dangerous eyes.

He blinked once, his jaw tense.

"What do you want?" he asked her again, enunciating every word with a quick jab. "Tell me."

Etsuko chewed on her lip, agitated and overly frustrated. This little fucker wanted to play. No one ever played with her; she always played with them. It was eerie and unnatural that such a phenomenon would occur, and it gnawed at her bones with a massive, annoying effort.

"I want you to fuck me," she seethed again, her voice dark.

Ichijou narrowed his eyes, unsatisfied, and began rubbing himself against her again. She squealed, huffing out strangled breaths as she became even more moist, wrapping her white legs around his slim hips as he pumped across her mound.

"Ask nicely," he rumbled, slowing his pace down to a painfully slow tempo.

Etsuko grit her teeth.

"Please...fuck me..." she grunted softly, her voice strangled and broken.

Ichijou's expression dropped even more; his pace quickened the tiniest bit, enough to make her go crazy.

"What? I can't hear you," he murmured. "Say it again."

She clenched her jaw, swallowing her pride.

"Please fuck me..." she said, a little louder this time.

His expression remained stagnant, his pace picking up even faster now.

"What was that? A little louder," he commanded.

Etsuko hissed.

"Are you deaf?" she spat. "You're two inches away from my goddamn face and you still can't hear shit!"

Ichijou, dissatisfied from her retort, pulled away from her completely, his eyes hooded as he silently demanded for more.

She couldn't take it. There was an eerie absence that she couldn't deal with. It was cold and empty there, and it drove her insane. She reached up and pulled his head to the side, her lips at his ear.

"Goddammit, Okajima! Listen to me real good, because I'm not gonna say it again: Please fuck me hard! I want you so bad that I'm going to pass out if you don't do anything! I need you inside of m - !"

He slammed into her without warning, making her scream out in delight. He wasted no time in starting, drawing his hips back and forth into her with her writhing under him, already reaching her second climax. She whimpered and drew out a wail with every pump, the tears trickling down her face as she convulsed and clamped down on his hardened member.

He seemed to have grown harder inside her, going even deeper as his thrusts grew stronger and more deliberate and sharp. His rugged breath was the symphony of all pleasures and desires to her, and she indulged in the core-shattering noise as she, in turn, moaned loudly in response.

His body was strong, much stronger than any other man she had ever encountered, with bulging, rippling back muscles that constricted with every loving thrust he shot into her. His arms were sturdy and powerful, remaining by her head as she gazed up at him through teary amber eyes, encouraging him with the elongating moans that drew out from her parted lips. She ran her crimson nails down his back, scratching angry red marks into his glistening skin and forcing out gritty groans from his own mouth. She felt herself build up again, the coiling in her abdomen growing tighter and tighter with every thrust of his strong hips.

She clung onto him still with her legs around his waist and her around wrapped around his neck, squealing into his ear as he relentlessly rammed into her over and over again. The sound of skin slapping on wet skin filled the room, and slowly, the scent of sex began to overpower them. He grunted loudly as he felt her clamping down on him for the third time, so hot and wet he thought he would black out before he even had the chance to climax himself. She grew weaker as he drove her close to the edge, her grip slackening and her white body, glistening with her sweat and Ichijou's, drooping back down to the cool sheets below.

He continued pumping into her, gritting his teeth as he pushed back the urge to give away already, and steadied himself on one forearm as he brought the other hand down further. He rubbed against her hard bud, now the size of a small pea, and making her shriek in turn, pleasure exploding throughout her body as she was sent over the cliff again into a blissful white light. She shook under him as he worked over her still, her eyes rolling to the back of her head as her white hair remained splayed across the bed. She convulsed again, squeezing him and tightening against his member, causing him to grunt and groan with a garbled lust.

The sweat beaded upon his brow as he carried onwards, feeling the overwhelming pleasure turn his mind numb as well as parts of his limbs. She was excruciatingly wet now, making it even harder for him to hold back as he pumped in and out of her, unyielding to her screams, and continued to circle his finger against her sensitive bead. His breath was ragged and fragmented, just as his mind, as he drew closer and closer to his inevitable drop.

"Are you on the pill?" he asked her through gritted teeth, his face beading with sweat.

Etsuko, whose mind was as equally numb, drew out rigid breaths.

"Huh...?"

Ichijou swallowed back his breath one more time, seething out a hissing exhale.

"That's a 'no,' then," he grunted. Mustering up all of his strength, he quickened his pace even more, ramming in and out of her with impressive force and speed, drawing out wails and moaning shrieks from her parted lips. She called his name, realizing how close he was to his climax, and lifted her face up to his for a sloppy, wet kiss.

"You're so beautiful..." he breathed, his voice strained.

"N-no..." she garbled, shaky and unstable as he continued ramming into her.

"You are," he insisted softly, his breathing growing even more ragged. "And you're mine..."

He grunted against her mouth, screwing up his face as he pulled out of her and spewed out string after thick string of his white seed. He groaned with every spurt, digging his arms under her body and pulling her close, moaning into her ear as she rode out her own orgasm, writhing underneath him and uncontrollably drawing gasps from her convulsing lungs. Their minds had gone completely blank for the slightest moment, in sync with their heavy breathing and the uncontrollable convulsions of their bodies. He rubbed himself against her again, milking himself from the last drops of his essence and feeling her jolt with every pump, finally withdrawing from her.

He stepped back, admiring the lewd scene, with her laying sprawled upon the bed, her hair askew as well as the sheets, her slender body flushed with pink and her lower abdomen adorned with ropes and puddles of his fluid. The sight of it almost made him climax again.

He pulled on his boxer briefs again and his slacks, thrown to the side in a heap of gray fabric. He buttoned up his shirt and did his tie, tucking the shirt inside his pants before tugging on the matching gray jacket. He ran a shaky hand through his dark waves, combing back the sex hair in one swoop, and ambled over to Etsuko, who lay breathless upon the bed still. He crouched over her body and kissed her tenderly, dragging his tongue over her lip as she kissed him back with equal passion, if not more.

He broke away from the kiss, hovering over her face with his dark eyes hooded.

"I'll be back soon," he murmured to her softly.

Etsuko gave him a single, weak nod, his lips coming down upon hers again for one final kiss. He was out the door rather reluctantly in a minute, and left her inside the apartment, naked upon his bed with his semen strewn all over her lower body. She lay there, dazed for a while, before dragging a finger over the fluids on her abdomen, collecting the thick liquid upon her fingertip. She brought it to her mouth and sucked it off, moaning softly as she tasted his fluids.

Much to her dismay, he tasted absolutely divine. His human fluids danced upon her tongue, more delicious than any other semen she had sampled in her life, and let out a gasp as her ghoulish thoughts reigned over her mind.

If his semen tasted like this, then what would the flavor of his actual flesh taste like?

✿

She briskly made her way from the subway station - almost sprinting - towards the one place she knew she could get help. She dodged the bodies in her way, quickly making her way to that place in the clothes she had worn just last night, which had been neatly hung up in the closet by the bathroom, a bit dirty but nothing too bad. She arrived at the place, climbing up the stairs and into the café, the tiny bell jingling, signaling her entrance.

"Welcome!" the waitress greeted her warmly; through the entire fury of her panicked thoughts, she couldn't remember her name at the moment.

Etsuko scowled, glaring straight at the girl's violet eyes, her violet bangs swept neatly to one side.

"The Manager," Etsuko grunted, her voice cold and her face stern. "I need to speak with him. Now."

~~~✿~~~

Thank you so much for 600 followers!! Just in time for this update too, so here's an almost 7000 word chapter for y'all

Ichijou and Etsuko are like perfect. I didn't intend to make them perfect, but here you are :P

Please don't forget to VOTE, comment, and to add this to your library for future updates!

And as always, thanks for reading!