March 16 5:23 PM Dadaepo Beach, Busan, South Korea
"Want some?" Komori offered while holding a cup with stir-fried rice cake in it. (Tteokbokki 떡볶이)
"There's no way I'll eat that. No one knows how the hell they prepared it." Sakusa shot a disgusted look at Komori before gazing back at the sea.
"That's fucking... rude, you know? People here... follow the food... safety guidelines so... it's fine eating... street foods." He spoke with his mouth full and almost choke on his last words.
When Sakusa didn't respond to him anymore, he asked, "When are you going back to Japan?"
He didn't looked at him nor answered right away. He was staring blankly at the waves, as if deep in his thoughts. "Not yet." He answered dryly.
His gaze is still focused on the sea that looked dozy as it rested on the afternoon glow. He often sees the sunset golden beach here in Dadaepo when he wants to have some time alone for his self but everything felt different after that day.
He regretted everything he has said to Atsumu and wanted to swallow back the words that he uttered to his lover about wanting to finish everything off but what surprised him is that, he agreed to end their relationship.
"He didn't even resisted." Sakusa blurted, "He just agreed with it and before I knew it, everything was all done. It's been a month but he never came back to me. I want to call him but I was too afraid he might reject me again."
"Hmmm..." Komori sat beside him on the beach mat and was about to tap his back but Sakusa quickly dodge his whole body away from him.
"I don't need your comfort, you shit."
"Then don't fucking tell your stupid tragic love story to me, you fucking germaphobe." Komori thought as he smiled sarcastically at Sakusa. "You really love him, do you?"
He nodded, his gaze strolling over the sea absently. "I really do."
"Then what do you like about him?"
Sakusa answered nothing, but Komori looked at him significantly, awaiting for his reply. "What do you like about him?" He asked for the second time.
Sakusa curled his knees and buried his face before answering, "I don't have... a reason. Do I really need that when falling in love?"
Komori nodded his head even if Sakusa didn't saw it and waited for him to continue.
"I met him at the gun shop where I normally do my training and that was the first time I saw him there. I was with two alleged undercover agents that Oiwake-san wants me to kill at that time. When I had the opportunity to kill one of them at the shop, I did it, but Atsumu didn't flinched nor got scared. You do know a lot of people are scared whenever they see me, right? But Atsumu was different."
"Maybe he was just too shocked to process everything that happened, I guess?" Komori responded while taking a sip of his ice Americano coffee.
Sakusa finally looked at him and started getting interested on Komori's questions. "Then what about when he used his body to protect me from being shot by Kita?"
"Maybe he planned that so that you'll fully trust him?"
Komori's responses does makes sense. "What if Atsumu was really an undercover agent and he only did those things to me to gain my trust?" Sakusa thought. If Atsumu was really an undercover agent then why would Atsumu turn down his offer to live with him, knowing he will gain more information about him. Everything seemed so conflicted and the puzzle pieces won't even fit together.
"He did it without hesitation, Motoya. He really did saved me. Kita was shaking so bad while holding a gun pointed at me. So if he just did it just to gain my trust, and if Kita could have shot him on a vital part of his body, wouldn't that be so dumb?"
Komori nodded his head as an approvement. Sakusa has a point. He heard that it was only Atsumu's shoulder that got shot from that incident but in case Kita's aim went a little higher, he could have shot Atsumu at his head. "I want to hear more."
"It's true that maybe he really plotted everything so it really didn't matter to me that time. The truth is, I asked him to go out with me so that he can be my play thing when I'm bored but things completely changed when that incident at Akigawa Valley happened. I really thought I was going to die that day."
Komori was holding a tupperware and took out a one piece of sweet korean pancake before asking, "What do you mean by 'die'?"
"All of my men died that day and two of Oiwake-san's bodyguard were left with us. It was a surprise attack from the police department who were wearing protective gears and helmet so I really didn't see who were those people. They even used the helicopter for Search and Rescue operations for the aerial attack so there wasn't any chance for us to survive. I knew we were all gonna die that time, the sinking feeling of panic swept over me that made my whole body paralyzed with fear. But Atsumu was different. The way he firmly held my hands with his shaking hands, his face full of concern and tears welling up on his eyes, that was the time I realized that, 'Ah, this man cares for me.'. He even took care of me when I had a severe asthma attack and didn't leave me until we were rescued by Kenma and the others."
"He's different... is what you're trying to say, right?" Komori asked, cutting Sakusa off while his mouth full.
Sakusa didn't answered. He picked a rock from the sand and thoughtlessly wrote Atsumu's name, his mind obviously deep in thoughts.
"He's different from all the people you met, I guess. Since you're filthy rich, people wants to get close to you for your money. But once they get what they needed from you, everyone will leave you after. Besides me and your mother, meeting Atsumu made you realized that not all people are like that, right? You haven't given anything to him yet he sacrificed his life just to save you. Maybe that was a turning point for you."
He took a big bite of the last piece of pancake he has and continued, "Atsumu wasn't just a play thing that you use when you're bored, but a precious person you want to treasure for the rest of your life."
He swallowed down the pancake he ate before continuing, "What you said earlier was wrong. It's not like, 'I don't have a reason why I fell in love with Atsumu."
"Then what should I answer to questions like that?"
A small smile formed on Komori's lips and quickly patted Sakusa's head, knowing he'll dodge it right away. "You should have said, 'Atsumu taught me the true meaning of love'."
Sakusa looked at him eagerly, wanting Komori to continue more. It struck a chord deep within him, realizing how great Atsumu impacted his life.
"You should tell him how you really feel for him. I'm tired of seeing you growing mushrooms in my closet so go back to Japan and try to look for him." He swallowed the last piece of pancake onto his mouth before taking a sip of his coffee.
"Then... what if he's really an undercover agent?" Sakusa blurted out, still not knowing what he wants to do and what kind of relationship he wants to have with Atsumu.
"Everything will be up to you, Kiyoomi." A slow smile worked its way across Komori's face and into his eyes, and he added, "But always remember, I will never leave your side even if I die."
Sakusa smiled, the same happy smile he had when he met Komori. A beautiful smile that has an almost stunning effect on others, a real smile, free from pretenses. "I really like you, Motoya."
"Ew, you're disgusting. Stop saying those kind of stuffs, it's not like my end is near already." Komori, jokingly said while tapping Sakusa's shoulder hard, and to his surprise Sakusa didn't move away nor felt disgusted from his touch.
Both of them remained silent for a long time, listening to the sound of the waves crawling gently to the shore.
"Speaking of Akigawa valley, that was the time you set two agents free, right? The one with the black hair and the other was orange-haired chibi?" Komori asked, breaking the silence.
Sakusa turned to face him, surprised from what he heard. "How did you know about that?"
"Two of Oiwake-san's men were with you at that incident, right?" Sakusa nodded, "Apparently one died while the other one escaped from the mansion after reporting the whole incident to Oiwake-san. I was in a vacation at Hokkaido when he called, saying, 'I want you to check an apartment around Higashi Muroran station' and then he sent me a picture of the guy who escaped and his name was Murakami."
"Don't tell me he ordered you to kill him?"
"I was planning to but I didn't. When I saw him with his wife and his two year old daughter, I hesitated of course. I don't want his daughter to grow up without a father." Komori said the last sentence on a faint voice but Sakusa heard it.
Knowing Komori grew up in an overcrowded and understaffed orphanage, was starved to death and was beaten almost everyday because of stealing food for the younger orphans, he knows what it feels like not having a parent.
"I don't want his daughter to imagine that the real monsters in this world would be humans." Komori said, staring blankly at the island a few miles away from the shore.
"Then what did you do?"
He turned to face Sakusa with a broaden smile on his face. "I burned the apartment."
"That's goo..." Sakusa looked over to Komori dumbfoundedly, and shouted, "You burned their apartment?! So you killed them?!"
"Of course not! You know I'm not that kind of person!"
Sakusa sighed in relief after hearing Komori's answer. "Then why did you burn their apartment? What happen to the family?"
"I went to a funeral parlor around the area and asked if they have dead bodies that were not claimed by their families having the same built with Murakami and his wife and if possible a two year old kid too. Before I burned the apartment, I used the bodies as replacement for the family and left them all inside. In case crime investigators collect evidence from the apartment, I asked Murakami if I can have some strands of their hair and some sample of blood so I can leave it as a fake verification of the bodies that were burned."
"Then where are they now?" Sakusa looked at him eagerly, wanting to know where Komori hid the family.
"I gave them enough money and sent them somewhere in the Philippines to start anew." Komori said while picking rocks and then throwing it at the sea.
"You really think... Oiwake-san won't know about this?"
Komori turned and grinned at Sakusa, "I'm not scared of Oiwake-san, you know? If he finds out about it, then I'll just deal with it. Your father is way so scary than him."
"I know." The smile faded from his face as the sun sets slowly in the west. "My father really is the scariest person in this world."
March 19 8:53 PM Art of Bloom Flower Shop, Shibuya District
"Atsumu-san, is it okay to water this flowers tomorrow too? Or is it just once a week like those plant there?" Himekawa asked, pertaining to Begonias next to the Jade plant.
"Whaaaat?" Atsumu screamed when he didn't heard what Himekawa asked cause he was on the other room which was his office. He stopped what he was doing on his laptop and walked towards Himekawa who was currently writing some notes about flowers.
"You're asking about the Begonias?" Himekawa nodded when he saw Atsumu pointing at the flower he was pertaining to. "If the Begonias are still young, you need to frequently water them for the first two weeks to keep the soil slightly moist but you need to avoid letting them stand in water. Overwatering it will make the roots rot and will eventually kill the begonia. You also need to make sure it's under a shade for around 4-6 hours a day cause begonias grow best if they receive just enough sunlight."
Himekawa nodded continuously while Atsumu was explaining about the differences of each flower and plant he was selling on his shop. It has been a month when he was forcedly pulled out of the Sakusa case when Sugawara found out that Sakusa and him were in a relationship.
That day at the Dogenzaka street, when Sugawara saw him filled with bruises and marks that was left by Futakuchi, Atsumu doesn't have any choice but to tell everything to Sugawara.
"Then did you really fell in love with him?" That was Sugawara's question to him. He wants to deny all of his feelings and forget everything what happened between them so that he can still have a chance to avenge for his brother's death but Sugawara pulled him out, knowing Atsumu's answer even if he doesn't say it.
"Atsumu, I'm sorry but you're fired."
That was the last conversation he had with him. It can't be helped that Sugawara thought that it was the only way to keep him safe. If he continued working with Sakusa, no one will know what will happen to him, knowing how sharp everyone is on that clan. Sugawara doesn't want him to end up like how Suna died because he fell too deeply in love with Kita.
"Atsumu-san?" Himekawa waved his hand in front of Atsumu's face, snapping him out of his thoughts.
Atsumu faked a smile toward his part timer and asked him what was his question again.
"I asked if you want to rest cause you look so pale, your skin is not smooth as it was and the bags under your eyes looks so bad." Himekawa said, no offense intended.
Atsumu forced a laugh with his dry humor and held Himekawa's head, gripping it tightly. "You really are a demon, Aoi." Himekawa shyly laughed at him while gently pushing Atsumu back to his office.
"I'll wake you up when something bad happens at the shop, Atsumu-san." He said before closing the door behind him.
"No. No. No. I should have not took responsibility. What if I accidentally burn the shop or what if a thief barge in and stole some cash or what if a yakuza visits here to collect money and if Atsumu-san doesn't pay, they'll destroy everything in here." Himekawa was full on thought while roughly pulling his hair hard, not realizing someone on a Black Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV stopped by in front of their shop.
A middle aged man who has solid and muscular build, his black hair carefully styled on a clean look. He also has thick eyebrows and his height was around 190 centimeters. Even if it was the first time Himekawa met the person in front of him, he felt nervous and panic swelled deep within him. He was overflowing with charisma and at the same time Himekawa felt the supremacy of that person.
"G-good..." Himekawa swallowed thickly before forcing a smile to the man who just got in. "Good morning, welcome to the shop."
"Good morning." The man said on a deep, husky voice and a pure smile slowly forming on his lips that made Himekawa blush.
"Oh... he's handsome." Himekawa thought as he stares at the man while checking on the flowers.
"Do you perhaps have a large stock of white roses and gypsophila?" The man asked after roaming around the shop.
Himekawa hurriedly open his notes, not knowing what on earth is gypsophila. It took him a few minutes flipping all the pages on his notes but Atsumu haven't taught him what kind of flower that is.
"Is there a problem?" The man asked as he saw Himekawa panicking.
"Uhm... can I call the owner? I'm.. sorry I just got hired a few weeks ago and I don't know what gypsophila is." Himekawa embarrassedly explained while looking down on his feet.
The man chuckled and walked towards Himekawa to pat his head. "That's fine with me. There's no need to be shy about it."
The man grabbed his phone and searched for some pictures of gypsophila to show it to Himekawa. "Gypsophila is known as Baby's breath. My son also likes white roses because it symbolizes purity and innocence same as with Baby's breath that also symbolizes sincerity, love, compassion and trust."
Himekawa was so amazed at how knowledgeable the man is. He doesn't look like it, but he knows a lot of information about flowers. "He's not just good looking but also smart. Many people will surely love and will fall for this guy even he's in his 40's already."
"Can I ask who the owner is? I need to ask if the owner can cater a large quantity of those flowers for my son's birthday celebration tomorrow." The man said, his gaze focus on the Chamomile flowers.
"Please wait here for a moment, I'll wake him up." Himekawa rushed towards the office door but before he could open it, Atsumu did it. He looks so annoyed and irritated while holding a pan that turned into black charcoal color, smoke swirling out of it.
"You almost burn my shop, Himekawa." Atsumu said, gritting his teeth with annoyance.
"Forget about that, Atsumu-san! You have a reservation for tomorrow!" Himekawa exclaimed while pulling Atsumu's hand to meet the man.
"What the heck. I only do this job as a decoy, not for living. There's no way I'll waste my time for this flower shop." Atsumu clicked his tongue before meeting the man's gaze Himekawa was pertaining to.
The man smiled as he met Atsumu's gaze. "Can I order a large quantity of white roses and gypsophila for tomorrow?"
It gave Atsumu chills and a shiver ran down his spine as he saw the man who was standing in front of him.
"I heard this shop sells good quality flowers so when I came here to check, your flowers really are great."
Even if he only saw a glimpse of him before, he still remembers how brutally he treated Sakusa. He still remembers how he used a knife to pierce Sakusa's hand and how he mercilessly beat him in front of his men.
Atsumu forced a smile and went to Himekawa's table to get a piece of paper and a pen. His hands were shaking so bad and his body was trembling because of fear.
"Please. I'm begging you. Please lie and don't tell me the truth." Atsumu breathed heavily before walking towards the man who was staring at him intently, and asked, "Can I ask for your name?"
A grin formed on the man's lips and he answered, "Sakusa Daiki."