Playing the Part:
Part Two


Ken awoke at six-thirty on the dot, as he did every morning. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked around at the sharp maroon and black room. The events of last night came flooding back in a rush, causing him to hurriedly rush out of bed. Despite Schuldich’s assurances that his boyfriend Bradley wasn’t due back until next week, Ken was taking no chances.

He folded the blankets and coverlet over the bed neatly and smoothed down all the wrinkles. Then he quickly shoved on his clothes and rushed out of the room in search of the bathroom.

Schuldich’s apartment, as he soon discovered, was large, roomy and expensive. In his walk down the elegant hallway, he discovered another bedroom, an office, a library, a very messy art studio room and finally, the bathroom. The last door at the end of the hallway must have been the German’s room.

Ken winced when he saw his reflection in the large mirror. He leaned over the marble sink and gently touched his cheek. The bruise marking his face had turned to an ugly dark purple color. There was also a nasty looking scratch on his forehead, hidden under his bangs. He gingerly probed through his hair and found the big lump on the side of his head. He’d been thrown against the brick wall in the alleyway and had passed out.

The three men had been drunk and Ken was lucky that Schuldich had happened by. Otherwise they would have succeeded in gang raping him.

He shuddered as he washed his face. It had been the perfect conclusion to seeing Yohji kissing that kid.

"Fucking bastard," he said out loud, the words sounding foreign coming from his mouth. He usually never swore.

He finished up in the bathroom and headed for the last room. Perhaps Schuldich was awake now and then they could discuss this stupid situation.

"Schuldich?" he called softly, sliding the door open. "You awake?"

He peered inside. Schuldich was sleeping on his stomach, his face buried into his pillow. His blanket rested low on slender hips, showing clearly that he slept in the buff.

Cheeks burning, Ken quickly shoved the door shut and fled down the hall.

"Now what?" he wondered, walking into the living room. He absently made his way to the immense window that dominated the back wall and pulled open the heavy, dark blue curtains. "Oh jeeze," he gasped, eyes widening.

Before him lay the most majestic view of Tokyo he’d ever seen. In his own apartment, he lived on the third floor and his window afforded him with a splendid view of the bus stop, the grocery shop, a sushi bar and a hair salon. But this...this was mind-boggling. He had no idea what floor he was on but it was very high up. He could see the sun peeking up between buildings and sky scrapers that rose like skinny fingers. The sky was streaked with vivid hues of pink and orange and blue. Far below him, he could see cars and trees and people looking like grains in potting soil.

The balcony was locked so Ken made a mental note of asking Schuldich to unlock it when he awoke. He would love to stand outside and gaze at the city before he left. He stood admiring the view for a while longer before his stomach let him know that it was time for breakfast.

The kitchen, like the rest of the house was spotless and spacious. The various appliances literally gleamed in the morning light. A quick look into the fridge and the many cupboards revealed that the kitchen was filled with food, though most of it was foreign.

"Well," Ken muttered at last, feeling overwhelmed. He decided on a banana and a glass of milk. While he was quite a good cook, he only knew mostly how to cook Japanese food with Japanese ingredients. What one did with things like lemon grass and blueberry filling and starfruit paste was beyond him.

After breakfast left him at exactly seven o’clock. A half an hour had past. He sighed and wished that Schuldich would wake up soon. But something told him that the German probably wasn’t an early riser.

He wandered around aimlessly for a while before finally deciding to watch TV. When bored, TV was a great friend. He settled down on the plushy carpet and was pleased to discover that Schuldich had over a hundred channels. It wasn’t long before he found a soccer game.

"England vs. Brazil!" he declared happily, crossing his legs and leaning back against the sofa.

Ken was half way into a second soccer game when Schuldich finally sauntered into the living room at eleven o’clock. Ken was so engrossed in the game that he did even hear the redhead enter the room.

"You stupid ref!" he yelled at the TV. "What kinda dumb call is that?"

"You’ve made yourself comfortable I see," Schuldich observed, his tone amused.

Ken started and flushed slightly at having been caught shouting at the TV. "About time you got up."

Schuldich looked offended. "Oy! I got up especially early because you’re here!"

Ken stared up at him. "But it’s nearly noon. I’ve been waiting for you since six-thirty."

Green eyes stared back down at him. "For God sake’s why?"

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise," Ken quoted.

"Early to rise and early to bed makes a man healthy, wealthy and dead," Schuldich quipped back.

There was a short silence. "Alright, you got me," Ken conceded, grinning ruefully. "That was pretty good."

"Well naturally," the German replied, settling down gracefully into an armchair. "I thought of it, didn’t I?"

"Not to modest, are we?"

Schuldich chose to ignore that remark. "What are you doing sitting on floor, anyways?"

Ken shrugged. "It’s a habit. When I was a kid my mother never used to let me sit on the sofa ‘cause I’d always spill stuff on it or make holes. So I had to sit on the ground ‘cause we had hardwood floors. It was just easier that way."

Schuldich shook his head. "I knew you were weird. So tell me, how’s your head doing?"

"Oh fantastic!" Ken enthused. "I’m in great condition to go home!"

"Nice try Hidaka."

Brown eyes widened. "How did you know my last name?" Ken gasped.

~You tell me~

Ken reddened. "Oh yeah."

"You’ve gotta start remembering things about me," Schuldich told him, sighing. "Otherwise Bradley’s never gonna believe that you’re a my lover and then he won’t get jealous. He’s a shrewd guy, you know."

"I already told you that I’m not staying with you," Ken reminded him. "This isn’t the sort of thing I’d be good at. I’d screw up."

"You aren’t going to screw anything up," Schuldich contradicted. "You know, I really don’t see what the problem is. You need the money, you need a change to forget about Yohji, so why not?"

"But you can get anyone you want!" Ken protested. "He’ll never believe that you chose someone like me! You’re a mind reader, you can *screen* people! I don’t see why-"

"I don’t want to waste time looking for someone else," Schuldich explained patiently. "When I’ve already got you here. Besides, I like you. You’re cute. So why don’t you stay with me? There isn’t anything worth going home for and you know it."

Those words struck home. A cramped apartment filled with dirty dishes and memories of Yohji awaited him. Even his job would be difficult. Many times Yohji would watch him coach or wait for him to finish. All his kids knew and liked Yohji. On days when he wasn’t around, they’d badger Ken about where he was. How could he explain that Yohji wasn’t ever coming back?

"I...I’ll need some things from home," he said finally.

"Of course you will," Schuldich responded smugly. "We’ll visit your place when I get back."

"When you get back?" Ken parroted. "Why, are you going somewhere?"

"I have some work to do," Schuldich answered vaguely, standing up. "I’ll be back in a couple of hours or so."

"A couple of hours?" Ken burst out, jumping to his feet. "Why can’t I come with you? I don’t wanna stay here alone. I’ll be bored!"

"Bradley’s supposed to call soon and I want you to answer the phone," the German explained. "In the meantime, watch some more soccer."

"I don’t wanna watch more soccer and I don’t wanna talk to your boyfriend," Ken complained, aghast. "He’ll get mad at me!"

"Oh stop whining," Schuldich told him. He caught Ken’s chin and tilted it upwards to meet his eyes. "And in case you’ve forgotten Ken, the whole point of this charade is to make Bradley jealous. That’s why you’re here playing my lover, remember?"

Ken pulled away. "What am I supposed to say to him? I don’t even know you!"

"Which is why you’re staying here for the week," Schuldich reminded him. "So we can learn about each other. As for Bradley..." He shrugged, unconcerned. "Tell him we fucked like animals all night long. See if that gets a reaction from ol’ cardboard man."

Chocolate colored eyes widened to plate-size. "I’m not saying that, you perv!"

Schuldich laughed. "I think I’m gonna have fun with you, Ken. You’re cute when you’re embarrassed, you know that?"

"If you’re going then go," Ken grumbled, folding his arms across his chest and turning away.

"Kiss me and then I’ll leave."

"Why should I?"

"Think of it as practice," Schuldich said, smirking. He caught Ken’s wrist and jerked him into his arms.

Ken sighed deeply. Sometimes you just couldn’t win. He stood on his tiptoes and kissed the German.