iwaizumi woke up with a pounding headache and a thin blanket draped over him, lying on his couch. he sat up slowly, groaning at the piercing pain, rubbing his forehead. he liked drinking, he disliked the consequences and he would simply not accept that he was way too old to even drink as much as he did.

his tie was gone, the crystal glasses were cleared away, and so was oikawa tooru. that, he thought, until he heard vague classical music playing down the hall. lazily, he headed towards the dining room, where the sound was coming from and, unsurprisingly, where oikawa was seated at the head of the table, drinking coffee with an extraordinarily extravagant breakfast situated in front of him. he sat there looking as if he was exactly where he belonged, owning the place.

"what are you doing?" iwaizumi asked. oikawa looked up, and paused the music from his phone, smiling at him as he sat upright.

"helping myself to breakfast."

"you mean helping yourself to the services of my private chef? just go to denny's."

"exactly that, and fuck denny's. i'm surprised you even know that," he winked, "come, sit. help yourself. there's more than enough where this came from."

"i know there is. i live here. but i'm not hungry," the shorter grumbled as he walked over, "and you're in my seat."

"what're you gonna do about it?" he asked, smirking even more than he was doing before — if that was even possible.

"i'm gonna kick you out."

"no you're not," he said firmly, "now sit. there's some amazing omelette and i'm full, so you'd better not let it go to waste."

reluctantly, iwaizumi sat down in what was definitely not his preferred seat, grabbed a fork and stabbed at the omelette rather unceremoniously, angrily taking a bite. oikawa chuckled.

"you truly are fascinating."

"fuck off, oikawa," he groaned, rubbing his forehead, "you're too fucking loud. shut up."

"aww, does poor little iwa-chan have a headache?"

iwaizumi glared at him. "what the fuck did you just call me?" he growled.

"iwa-chan."

"don't," he started, "call me that. ever. i'm not some cute schoolgirl that you can flirt with however you want."

"iwa-chan hates when people use chan with his name, interesting," oikawa grinned, "how many people know about that?"

"literally everyone. i'm surprised you don't."

"i'm surprised you think i didn't call you that on purpose just to annoy you," oikawa told him, and iwaizumi's glare intensified — if it even could.

"i hate you."

"yeah, you can let yourself think that," oikawa said lightly, taking a fork and lazily piling omelette onto it, before holding it up for iwaizumi, "we all know the truth. iwa-chan. now open wide."

iwaizumi grumpily grabbed the fork, taking the bite himself. he missed half of it. oikawa sat back, amused.

"so, what're your plans for today?" the brunet asked.

"work. i have to go down to the office," he said, grabbing the new york times that was lying on the coffee table, "you're going home."

"iwa-chan, i don't know if you've noticed, but i live in a really crappy apartment. you didn't exactly give me great pay when i worked for you."

"you can go to matsukawa. and yeah, your pay was crappy. probably because a shitton of what could have been your pay went to us trying to cover up your mistakes."

"so i got caught with a big fat bag of cocaine, big deal," oikawa groaned, sitting back, closing his eyes, "a man in your power could probably tell the fbi to fuck off and they would. it's just one bag of cocaine. that's all."

"that one bag of cocaine required a crapton of cash to shut them up," iwaizumi said angrily, "you should be thankful."

"come do a line of coke with me and you'll understand."

"no," iwaizumi said, looking at oikawa, "you're still on drugs?"

"who doesn't do drugs nowadays?"

"you're a mess."

"thanks! well, i'll go to mattsun's, if you're gonna be stubborn again. have fun at work, darling!"

—

"oh god, what happened to you?" hanamaki asked as iwaizumi walked into his office, face grumpier than usual, "you look positively furious."

"nothing," he grumbled, "i just want to get the fuck out of this office, go to sleep and never wake up."

"oh, cream puff, who in the world did this to you," hanamaki sighed, the smirk on his face indicating that he was definitely enjoying iwaizumi's suffering.

"remember that cocaine bust that went down and that one employee... kisumi or something, that we had to bail out? that cost us oh, i don't know, too much money?"

"clear as day."

"yeah, well, his name is tooru oikawa and he seems to be obsessed with me now."

"obsessed?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, a slight sense of amusement around him. iwaizumi frowned at said amusement.

"he wants me to drive him around in my chiron. and he wants to have sex with me. probably wants to have sex with me in my chiron."

"hajime, anyone would want to have sex with you in your chiron. i would have sex with you in your chiron. and against all expectations, i am a hetero."

"why are all of my friends attracted to me?"

"because you're you. you're fit, you're rich and you're just grumpy enough to make it seem hot!"

he glared back. "anyway," iwaizumi cleared his throat, trying to change the subject from why most everyone he knows wanted to have sex with him, "we're having a meeting with nohebi, the swedish company. we're buying them."

"what are you talking about?"

"i just decided that we're buying the company. it will cost us, but we need to get into the scandinavian market. really make our claim on europe. it's risky but it's going to work."

"you haven't done anything this ballsy in the past year," hanamaki commented, raising an eyeball, "should we be thanking our dear tooru oikawa?"

"i don't know. but in the small chance this does go to shit, we're feeding him to the feds and i'm getting back my hush money."

—

"how did you even get in here?"

"wouldn't you like to know," oikawa replied, gracefully lazying down on the couch covered with a million pillows. naomi liked pillows. a lot. he looked good, admittedly, like some kind of modern roman god. he also looked ridiculous, like someone who tried to look like some kind of modern roman god.

"did matsukawa give you the passcode to the gate after you seduced him?" iwaizumi sighed.

"yep!" oikawa replied cheerfully, sitting up from his strangely elegant lounging position, "anyway, congrats on the big win. first iberia, now scandinavia. i'm impressed."

"it's nothing," iwaizumi grumbled, "i'm going to sleep."

"it's not nothing," oikawa said as he stood up, looking ridiculously glamorous for someone in skinny jeans and a v-neck sweater over a dress shirt, "it's something you haven't done in a long time. so we're having a celebration dinner."

"i really don't want to go out toni—"

"i know," oikawa smiled, "steak and fries are on the table. a medium-rare porterhouse. just the way you like it."

"matsukawa informed you again?"

"actually, i called your buddy hanamaki takahiro before you left for work," oikawa told him, and iwaizumi groaned, face-palming, "he ever so generously informed me."

"you two planned this. fucking hell, who even are you to have this kind of power?"

"oh, remember how i said i should've slept with him? well, i tried that, but because he's y'know, not attracted to men, i bribed him with an all-expenses paid trip to the maldives in return for his help. he'll be needing eight extra vacation days, by the way."

"i could give him a year in the maldives. and you can't pay that."

"entertainment is priceless, and so is the annoyed expression you apparently have when making investments under the influence of your new, devastatingly handsome and slightly obnoxious 'friend'," he mused, grabbing iwaizumi by the wrist as he walked past him, "and i'll get the money somewhere. don't worry. now, c'mon, those steaks aren't going to eat themselves."

iwaizumi, surprisingly, followed him willingly. allowed oikawa tooru to drag him to his dining room without protest, knowing that if anyone else'd tried to grab ahold of him like that, they wouldn't live to tell about it.

he let him. and that was the start.

—

nohebi's ceo was a fucking prick.

they were halfway through discussing aoba's proposed agreement, and iwaizumi was about to go out of his fucking mind. if he had to listen to suguru daishou sweet-talk his way through the contract like a little bitch for one more second, he was going to sucker-punch him so hard he wouldn't live to tell about it.

hanamaki was obviously trying to get him to keep his cool, taking all the shots daishou was firing at them like a gentleman whilst iwaizumi was writhing in his chair, ready to fly at him and tear him to shreds. still, he needed this win, especially after he'd gone on about it with such confidence in front of hanamaki. especially after hanamaki — rightfully, though he wouldn't admit that — linked his risky behaviour to oikawa's newfound presence in his life.

they took a break to discuss amongst themselves, and hanamaki turned to him. "dude, do you need him to come here and calm you down? cause i can—"

"i don't need him here. if anything, he'll annoy me into actually slaughtering him. and that fucking snake sitting at the other end of the table," iwaizumi hissed back at him, "besides, why the fuck would i need him here? what has he ever done?"

"he got you to sit at this table. within a day. look, i'm not judging you, but i can't keep on answering questions for you. you know more than i do. we need you to tackle them and get us this win." hanamaki gave him a pleading glance, and iwaizumi sighed, laying down his pen rather angrily.

"get me a cup of coffee. i'll take it from here." hanamaki nodded, signalled something to some assistant standing in the far corner, and she hurried off immediately.

"go get 'em, boss," hanamaki said, patting his shoulder lightly. iwaizumi nodded, and stood up, determination written all over him.

"ah, iwaizumi," the bastard said with an all-too-pleased smile on his face, "where were we?"

"you were just about to agree to our proposal," he said, "and i'll tell you exactly why."

—

after some sour glances from daishou as iwaizumi completely pulverized whatever reasons they had thought up to go against their proposal or abnormal conditions they had imagined into a some strange, far-off version of reality, they shook hands on their newfound partnership. or, rather, aoba inc.'s newfound ownership.

hanamaki walked to the elevator with him, a slight grin on his face.

"congrats boss."

"nonsense. you helped just as much. besides, we have a long way to go before anything's actually official," iwaizumi shrugged as he swiped his company card and pressed the button. he himself and a select number of high-functioning employees had floors designated for work and for keeping hideously expensive cars safe, the latter being where he was headed now.

"dude, you built this, and you're finally back in the game. have i told you that it's a relief? cause it is. i mean, it was tough, seeing you like that. and i'm your friend, but i'm not your therapist. and i don't think i'll ever understand that crazy brain of yours." iwaizumi looked at him grumpily, and hanamaki laughed. "that. how are you always so angry?"

"'mnot. it's my natural expression. the kids these days refer to it, i believe, as a 'resting bitch face'."

"oh my god, can you please say that again, i just need to get my camer—"

"stop trying to film me using slang! you were the one who said i should become more 'modern'!" iwaizumi yelled.

"got it, boss," hanamaki smirked at him, "hey, you should use twitter. god knows what you'll be saying by next week."

"i hate you. and the internet."

"you own an energy company."

"and as soon as i have enough money to buy the internet, i'm deleting it." hanamaki imagined iwaizumi sitting behind a crappy laptop, pressing the delete button and making the screen go black. he would die to see it. and then upload it onto twitter because it doesn't work that way. at all.

"you can't buy the internet."

"watch me."

the elevator dinged, and the doors opened, allowing the two suit-clad men to exit.

"by the way, takahiro," iwaizumi said, stopping in his tracks, "next time, maybe don't conspire with the dude who's stalking me," he continued, causing hanamaki to spin around and stop as well.

"i have no idea what you're talking about."

"he told me you fed him information."

"you got me there," the other shrugged with a grin, "look, hajime, he got you to do something with your pathetically amazing life. you should be thanking me."

"why are you all so concerned with me stagnating? i'm thirty-six and incredibly successful. i'm bound to hit a wall around this time. a fucking mid-life crisis, if you will."

hanamaki's grin fell. it wasn't often he looked so serious. it caught iwaizumi's attention instantly. "because i care about you." his tone was softer, lower. "and alongside that i care about this company. because i've been here since the start as well. i want to see it succeed. and i need you to succeed in order to fulfill that. as much as i can help, i'm not the owner. and i'm not meant for that role."

iwaizumi nodded slowly, brow furrowing even more than it already was. he knew hanamaki was right. this company meant more than just some entertainment to him; a way to get days to pass. it meant more than a passion to hanamaki. it was jobs, an industry, international. it meant something to the world. "okay. yeah. i'll make an effort."

"good. we need it. now, go get him tiger."

"he's not essentia—"

"oh, don't even try."

—

oikawa hadn't even left the goddamn house during the time iwaizumi was gone. and even though iwaizumi knew that, he didn't protest; he just told oikawa he was going to his study and let the brunet follow him there.

"congratulations," oikawa told him as he sat down, "i heard about the deal. you did well."

"why are you here?" iwaizumi asked him, "it's a genuine question. you could be going after anyone; there are tons of rich single guys out there, against all expectations. you could easily find someone who isn't as much of a hassle. who'd gladly drive you around."

oikawa stared ahead of himself, lips formed into a pout, frowning as if he were mulling over something. he probably was. iwaizumi just watched him as he did, his relentless stare never-ending.

for the first time since they met he felt like he had the upper hand, catching the brunet off-guard with unexpected questions. it didn't feel amazing. it felt... wrong. like he shouldn't be the one in charge. and that was a very strange, unknown feeling.

oikawa met iwaizumi's gaze with his own, and smirked, "because i want to do unspeakable things to you." iwaizumi glared at him.

"i will call security."

"buzzkill," he chuckled, "i'll tell you if you tell me a secret of yours."

"no way. not if you'll leave me alone if i don't."

"do you really want me to?" oikawa asked, leaning forwards, "because you would have called security if you did."

iwaizumi poured himself a drink. "i'm a businessman, tooru — if you don't mind me calling you that; the whole japanese last name thing is overrated anyway. i'm the ceo of an extremely successful company. i know how to play games, against your apparent expectations. i've won a lot of them. you're not here because i like you here; you're here because i'm planning to watch you lose."

"that's the thing, iwa-chan, you haven't played a game in so long, according to the two friends you have."

"how about," iwaizumi started, "we stop this interrogation and drink until i probably tell you something stupid just so we can both forget about it when morning comes?"

"i'll drink to that."

"yes, that was my proposal."

"i know, that's the joke —"

"it's a very bad joke. is that what you millennials think is funny?"

"oh my god."

—

iwaizumi woke up the next morning, rubbing his forehead. he didn't have that much of a headache. he did have vague memories of oikawa force feeding — drinking? — him three glasses of water, whilst he was obviously drunk off his ass himself.

oikawa was still there, slumped over his desk as iwaizumi had been, his glasses just barely slipping off of his nose as he breathed peacefully. it was cliché to say, but he did look angelic when he was asleep — and not terrorising iwaizumi as he usually did. it also reminded iwaizumi of how ridiculously attractive he was. the miracle of shutting the hell up hadn't left the world just yet.

all of the urges that he felt when they first met flooded back. only this time, he wasn't angry, or scared; he was intrigued. sure, he was annoyed with how he acted, but iwaizumi could see that it was exactly that: an act. and he kind of wanted to see what he was like without the facade he put up. he wanted to feel the rush oikawa promised him. he wanted to take him up on all of his ridiculous sexual advances.

it was the fourth day without his wife, and he was already considering too much.

he knew that his story was a mess. one minute he was protesting oikawa's existence; the next he was indulging in the banter, playing along with his little scene. interested in taking it so much further.

it was a game he had to play. and if he was going to play it right, he had to retreat right now.

so he grabbed his jacket, slung it over his shoulder, and headed to the office for absolutely no reason at all.

—

that tuesday was a dreary one. it was long and bland and plain boring.

iwaizumi kept himself busy with the most unimportant of tasks — things he'd been putting off because he simply didn't care. that day, though, he kept himself as busy as he could. he had to keep his thoughts off of him.

tomorrow, naomi would return, and he'd escape the danger zone he was in. he kind of dreaded it.

when he drove home, he prepared himself for the evening to come. preparing himself to be agitated and at the same time preparing himself to not like it. preparing himself for oikawa's devastating smile.

but his home was empty, silent and dark. no signs of life; no signs of his obnoxious new acquaintance.

he made his way up to his study and sat down in his chair, eyes scanning the room that was as messy as he'd left it the evening before, the only thing missing being a beautiful brunet boy. the place where he had sat was undeniably empty, and as iwaizumi eyed the pair of crystal glasses, he sighed, whispering "fucking hell" to his lonesome self as he grabbed a particular set of car keys and made his way downstairs again.

—

"iwaizumi?" matsukawa yawned, rubbing his eyes, "what're—"

"we all know. get him out here," iwaizumi sighed. matsukawa grinned lazily.

"yeah. we do," he said, "well, see you around. i'll call him."

"fuck off," iwaizumi scowled. matsukawa saluted him, turned around, and disappeared.

he wanted to run. to get in his car and get away as fast as he fucking could. he wanted to leave and not make this stupid fucking mistake and live his life blissfully boringly.

however, as soon as oikawa stepped out looking like a million bucks and more, all of that regret dissolved into a strange substance, mimicking liquid courage and euphoria and whatnot. oikawa smiled at him, sweeter than iwaizumi had expected.

"it seems you've figured it out."

"get in the car," iwaizumi said, turning around and walking over ahead of him, purposely not making any effort to open the door for him. oikawa followed him lazily, taking a seat in the splendidly kept dark-blue and white bugatti chiron parked in front of matsukawa's mansion. he looked over at iwaizumi who had one hand on the wheel, sighing once again like he had so many times in the past hour.

"if you start giving me any i-told-you-so vibe, you're out," he said.

"that's not true."

"i know."

he started driving, from matsukawa's long private lane to the gated community he lived in, heading for the freeway. oikawa marveled at the car along the way, sometimes interjecting the silence with quick questions that iwaizumi'd answer shortly.

when they finally did reach said freeway, iwaizumi started accelerating, hitting the speed limit and exceeding it slightly.

"you know, you got me good," he said, grumpiness shining through, "you're good. more so than i expected."

"you figured it out soon enough," the brunet mused in response.

"you knew that you wouldn't get me to talk, drunk or not. you knew. so you just doused me with your presence every second of the day that i wasn't at work. you got my two best friends on board and made sure that even when i wasn't with you, you would be associated with me taking positive, progressive steps in my life. you made me think there was an overload of you in my life. but that's where you sealed the deal." he ran a hand through his hair shortly, relaxing after. "and then you up and left. it took me three minutes before i was in my car and on my way to you. three fucking minutes. that's how long i lasted." he looked over at the brunet. "you knew that you couldn't trick me, so you made me trick myself. until i'd come to you to pour my heart out. and by tricking me, you discovered something about me that even i didn't know."

"and that was?" oikawa smirked.

"that i can't last three minutes without you now that you've forced yourself into my life. and that married or not, you know i'm going to do stupid shit for you."

"how have we not kissed yet?"

"beats me," iwaizumi laughed, "but hey, since we're at it, wanna hear a good secret about me?"

"what's that?" oikawa asked contently.

"it's a really good one. exciting too. you see," he started, smirking to himself, "i'm terrified of spiders."

oikawa's face was priceless. this was the one way iwaizumi had got him to look truly shocked. "wait— what?!"

"my wife makes me kill them. my mom used to too. one time, one jumped onto my face and i freaked out. cried for like an hour. i'm absolutely fucking terrified of them. but i'm not telling anyone now. i've gone too long with this secret."

"oh. my. GOD. you are lying. that is ridiculous!" he was laughing now, curled up in his seat. "a grown man! scared of spiders!"

"i rest my case. i hate the fuckers."

"lucky for you i am also a designated spider-killer," oikawa chuckled, patting his arm, "so i can save precious princess iwa-chan."

"you'd better," iwaizumi replied, "anyway, you got your wish. we're in the chiron on an empty freeway. i say we make use of it."

"i've never been this turned on."

"i'm not replying to that."

—

"you shouldn't stay here," iwaizumi said as he and oikawa entered the humungous construction that was really so much more than a mansion, "she'll be home tomorrow."

"tomorrow isn't tonight," he replied, turning to face iwaizumi, taking a step that would normally definitely be considered as too close for comfort.

"i can't risk it."

"you already have," oikawa retorted, raising an eyebrow, "i'm not asking for you to have sex with me — though i would not object — or to cheat on your wife or anything. yet. but if you want excitement, you're gonna find out that i don't play by your rules. so you can fight me, or you can save precious time."

iwaizumi didn't reply. he didn't have to. they both knew how to go about their secret made for two.