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Kougami Shinya inhales another long drag from his diminishing cigarette, staring intently at the person laying on the small cot against the opposite wall. The room they are in, which is no bigger than a janitor’s closet located at the MWPSB, is dimly lit by a small oil lamp sitting next to a trunk in the middle of the room. The trunk itself contains provisions they will need for the next several days, such as bars of soap and shampoo for the adjacent walk-in shower, towels, rations, spare clothing, water, flashlights, a box of matches and additional oil for the lamp. One of his contacts, who is posing as a worker on the ship they are hiding in, will check on them every twelve hours or so. Otherwise, they are to remain in this room until they reach their destination. A destination Kougami has yet to tell the room’s only other occupant about.
Kougami exhales the last drag from his cigarette harshly before stubbing it out next to him on the floor. He has his back against one of the rusted metal walls of the room, ruefully wondering just how well that conversation is going to go.
When he returned to Japan, Kougami had reached out to his former colleague Inspector Tsunemori Akane. He knew she was the only one who could convince his old friend and partner, Ginoza Nobuchika, to listen to what he had to say, much less agree with him, which she herself did not. Under Sibyl’s ever watchful eye, the two corresponded carefully and agreed to meet at Nona Tower at midnight three nights ago. Kougami found out later Akane had told Gino it was a personal errand she and the Enforcer had been entrusted with by Chief Kasai herself, but Gino never asked her any questions. He had simply put on one of his father’s old trench coat and followed the young Inspector to the car. Like a good dog, Kougami reasoned.
Kougami considers himself a good strategist. He planned his return to Japan for months, outlining every minute detail to evade capture in order to talk to the only two people who could help him with his next move. He had everything planned: the route from Okinawa to Tokyo to best avoid psymatic scanners, to the locations of safehouses, to getting a hold of Akane, and finally to setting up their meeting at Nona Tower.
Kougami had thought he would be the one to suggest where they should meet. He figured by asking her directly to show him what was in that tower would be the best approach, since he had a strong suspicion she already knew. It came as a surprise when she was the first to suggest it, but the surprise quickly turned to dread. If she was willing to let one of Sibyl’s most wanted fugitives and her most experienced Enforcer see what secret Nona Tower contained, then she must have known what would happen next.
If Gino had been surprised to see him standing in the shadows just outside a side access door, he didn’t show it. He simply locked eyes with Kougami and froze, saying nothing. Kougami couldn’t help but to smile lopsidedly at him like he did back on Shambala Float. In the dim light, he could see Gino’s hair was tied back, damp slightly on top and on his shoulders from the drizzling rain. Akane herself paused right beside the Enforcer, but other than a harder, more determined look in her eye, she remained just as he remembered her.
Fixing his attention back on Gino, he distinctly remembers watching as a drop of rain trailed down Gino’s bangs to land delicately on his nose. Kougami’s eyes had followed as it traced a tantalizing path over his lips. He continued to watch intently as it ran over his chin and down his neck, only to disappear at his shirt collar, all without Gino seeming to notice. But Kougami did notice, and a memory from so many years ago came rushing back where he himself followed that same path with his own lips and tongue. The grin had immediately fallen from Kougami’s face, wondering why he would think of such a thing at a time like this.
As the seconds ticked by in silence, Kougami felt the need to speak. “Akane, Gino,” he greeted, “it’s good to see you again.” And in truth, it really was. He guessed it was under the best of circumstances any of them could have hoped for.
“Kougami,” to hear him speak his name again caused a pang in his chest he didn’t expect, “how are you even here?” Not waiting for an answer, Gino turned his intense gaze to Akane. “Inspector?”
The petite woman moved towards the door. “I lied to you before, Mr. Ginoza. You’re here because Mr. Kougami wanted you to be, and frankly, so do I.” She punched a code into the side panel next to the door (which Kougami now had memorized) and stated, “But you should know, if you choose to follow us, everything you think you know will change. I will leave the choice to come with us up to you.”
“What do you mean?” Gino asked, moving forward, “what’s in there?”
Kougami stepped forward as well. “The truth behind the Sibyl System.”
Gino paused for a moment. “I see,” he stated quietly. “I’m not going to leave you alone, Akane.”
She smiled slightly. “You know you don’t need to worry about me anymore, Ginoza. Just know I’ll support whichever decision you make.”
Gino nodded. “Since the decision is mine to make, I choose to go with you.”
At this, Kougami quietly released the breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. Akane opened the door and said, “Then we should get going. We don’t have much time. This way.”
The silence descended heavy and thick between them as they made their way through Nona Tower. Kougami brought up the rear, remaining on high alert for any security measures or drones, but also focusing his attention on the two in front of him. This was the first time in over five years the three of them had been together, and he had no idea what to say to them. Should he begin with an apology? Tell them where he’s been? What he was planning? Ask them how their day was? He thought he had everything planned so well until this exact moment.
They moved in a line down several flights of stairs, with Akane in the lead. She never once looked over her shoulder to make sure they were following. Gino, on the other hand, snuck glances at Kougami every twenty steps or so. At first, he tried to be discreet, but as the minutes passed, Kougami could see Gino was trying to figure out what to say, too, or maybe how to even feel.
But all thought of conversation vanished once they reached a giant door. Akane approached the panel and scanned her badge, taking a deep, steadying breath. As the door opened, she turned to them and said, “Brace yourselves.”
The very memory of what came next brings Kougami back to the present and to his feet. He begins to pace in what little space is available in the room, closing his eyes tightly to the images flashing in his mind’s eye.
In his time away from Japan, and even when he was working for the MWPSB, Kougami Shinya had seen (and done) some truly horrible and appalling things. He figured all his experience would prepare him to learn the truth about Sibyl. But when he saw it, to learn all those brains of asymptomatic people were what made up the whole system, there really is no amount of experience that can prepare a person for something like that after all.
Kougami remembers hearing a voice speaking to them, the same one from years ago that would guide him as he held and wielded a Dominator, but he can’t recall what it said. What he does remember is the man standing next to him, who always had a detached, analytical approach to any situation he found himself in. He remembers the other Enforcers would call Gino downright cold-hearted, as he never seemed to have any feeling whatsoever towards what he would see out in the field. But now, that same man, upon learning Sibyl’s secret, collapsed to his knees as he stared wide-eyed at the scene before him.
It took a few moments, but Kougami was able to come out of his own stupor and knelt at Gino’s side, placing a hand onto his shoulder. “Hey, you all right?” Gino didn’t answer, but then, he really didn’t need to.
Akane approached them slowly, and Kougami could tell at a glance this was something she had known for a long time. He could see in her eyes she regretted having to be the one to show them.
Gino continued to stare as the disembodied voice spoke, and the robotic arms moved brains from one location to another. Without blinking, he turned his gaze to Akane, and quietly said, “You knew.” It wasn’t a question and she nodded numbly. He took a quick breath. “How…how long? How long have you known about this?” His wide eyes then turned to Kougami. “Did you know?”
Before he could answer, Akane spoke. “No one knows about this, Mr. Ginoza,” she stated, “and I’ve known about this since…that day.” And they knew which day she meant. The day Kougami’s life as a true enemy of the system began, and Gino’s life as an Inspector, along with the life of his father, ended.
Kougami decides he needs to shower. He quietly lifts the lid to the trunk so as not to disturb the person still sleeping on the cot. He grabs a towel, some soap and then makes his way into the shower. He strips out of his clothing, and as the water cascades over his tired body, the events of the past few days continue to play out in his head.
After learning the truth, things escalated quickly. Gino came back to himself, and his disbelief was replaced with anger. He turned that fury towards the brains staring back at them without eyes. “Damn you,” he said, as he got to his feet and pulled out his Dominator. He pointed the weapon from brain to brain, repeating “Damn you,” to each of them. Kougami knew the gun was telling him none of them were a threat.
At last, he shouted, “Damn all of you!” and hurled the weapon into the center of the colony. “I believed in the Sibyl System! And this,” he spread his arms out at his sides, “is what I’ve believed in? I’ve given you everything! My family, my freedom, my very life! And this is what I have to show for it?” The rage radiated off Gino in a way Kougami had never seen or felt from him before. It was almost palpable.
He collapsed again, this time lurching forward onto gloved hands which quickly balled into fists. He just breathed for a few moments, saying nothing while Kougami and Akane watched him. “How could you?” He asked dejectedly.
At this, Kougami and Akane looked at each other, both thinking this question was directed not just towards Sibyl, but to the two of them as well.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Ginoza,” Akane said quietly, “but you deserved to know the truth. What you do now is entirely up to you.”
At this, Gino raised his head to look at her. Akane then turned her own towards Kougami, who was watching them both. “Mr. Kougami?”
“Come with me,” he answered as he stepped forward, “both of you. Please, just come with me, and help me create a new era free from Sibyl’s control.” Here he paused before continuing, “I can’t do this without you.”
At this, Akane sighed, her shoulders slumping. “I can’t do that, Kougami,” she said. She slowly walked over to Gino still on the floor, and offered him her hand, which he took and got to his feet. Still holding his hand, his real hand, she looked him in the eyes and said, “But you should go with him, Ginoza. I won’t try to stop you.” And to make her point, she removed the commlink from around his wrist and let it clatter onto the floor.
“Akane?” Gino questioned as she placed his hand between both of hers.
She looked out at the colony. “I have to stay here. I will do what I can to protect the people by upholding the law and by working towards an era in which Sibyl is no longer needed.” She turned to them. “In order to get to that era, we need people like you. People who want the same thing but are able to operate outside the law to do so.”
Kougami saw his hand tighten around her much smaller ones. “I can’t just leave you. You can’t shoulder this burden all on your own.”
She smiled sadly. “Do you really think you can go back to the PSB, knowing what you know now?”
He sighed tiredly. “No. I’m done with that place. And now I’m sure it was done with me a long time ago.”
At this, Kougami came up right next to them and placed his hands on top of theirs. “Please, Gino,” he all but whispered, “help Akane and me achieve our shared goal. Come with me.”
And for a moment, it felt to Kougami like time came to a halt. He could see the internal struggle behind Gino’s eyes, the wanting to stay behind to be there for Akane but realizing the moment he made the decision to come into Nona Tower, his life was forever changed.
It only took a few moments before Gino placed his prosthetic hand on top of Kougami’s, now firm in his resolve. “I’ll go with you, Kou.”
As they lowered their hands, Akane’s own resolve seemed to wilt. Shallow tears filled her eyes, but her voice did not waver. “Then you should go,” she said as she dropped her gaze and took a step back from them, “I can buy you some time, but Sibyl will be coming for you both. And so will I.”
Kougami nodded, fully understanding. “Thank you, Akane.” He turned to go back the way they came. “Let’s go, Gino.”
Gino turned to follow, then stopped. He briefly made eye contact with Kougami before turning back around. He took two long strides forward to envelope Akane’s petite body in his arms. She didn’t hesitate to receive his embrace and latched her tiny arms around his neck. Kougami heard a barely suppressed sob come from her as Gino whispered something only she could hear. Kougami watched as she wiped at her eyes and answer him just as quietly, bittersweet smile appearing on her face.
Then without another word, he released her and followed Kougami out of the room. Kougami nodded his head to her in appreciation. She returned his nod with a simple raising of her hand in farewell. As the door began to close, she turned her gaze back towards the colony. None of them looked back.
Kougami turns off the shower and watches without seeing the last of the water circle the drain. He tilts his head back and removes a nearly invisible contact lens from his left eye, which contains a hidden camera. Kougami is confident the video he took and uplinked to an encrypted server captured what was shown to them in that room. He is also confident his contacts have been reviewing the footage in detail, getting ready to put the next phase of their plan into motion. Now all he has to do is tell Gino about it.
Kougami emerges from the shower, towels off and puts on a fresh set of clothes. When he comes back into the room, he notices Gino is awake, sitting up but slumped over on the edge of the cot. He is still dressed in his suit from the night they met up, having been on the move for the past three days with little to no rest to make it to the ship.
Upon arriving, they had both been too exhausted to change before collapsing together onto the cot. If Gino had had any complaints about sharing the cot with Kougami, he never voiced them, probably having been too tired to care. At first, Kougami tried to give Gino his own space, but the cot was not big enough for two full grown men, and Kougami ended up spooning behind him. Even though it had been nearly a decade since Kougami had last slept like that with Gino, it felt oddly comfortable in its familiarity. He had woken up hours later, mildly surprised his arm had wound its way around Gino’s chest. That had been familiar, too.
Gino looks even more worn than before they went to sleep. Kougami reasons while he was showering, Gino had been processing everything that had happened to bring him here. They had been on the move so much over the past three days they were barely able to even speak. Gino had simply trusted Kougami to get them out of Japan. And Kougami appreciated that, especially now since he needed Gino to trust him for this plan to work.
“Hey,” Kougami greets, “the shower’s free if you want to use it.” He spots a half-eaten ration and a fresh set of clothes next to Gino on the cot.
Gino gets tiredly to his feet. “Yeah,” he answers simply. He grabs the clothes and brushes past Kougami as he enters the shower.
As he hears the water turn on, Kougami grabs his own ration and sits down on top of the trunk. He practically rips the ration in half to get it open and takes too big of bites. He hasn’t realized how hungry he is until he had seen Gino’s partially eaten ration.
When he finishes eating, Kougami lights up another cigarette. He counts only five left, so he makes a mental note to tell his contact on board to grab him another couple of packs. The cigarettes will help to keep his hands busy while they remain in this room for the duration of the trip.
Gino emerges from the shower the same time he finishes the cigarette, wearing a black tank top with dark green cargo pants, the same clothing Kougami himself has on. His hair is unbound and wet from the shower. Kougami hadn’t realized how long it is while it had been tied back; it comes just past his shoulders.
Speaking of his shoulders, Kougami’s eyes widen slightly to see just how more muscled Gino has become. His chest is broader, and he can see his abs under the tank top. Even his waist is trimmer than he remembers. Gino had always been slim and strong, but now he has the muscles of a fighter, a soldier, and Kougami can’t help but to take a moment to appreciate what he sees.
This is also the first time Kougami has seen Gino’s prosthetic arm, and his eyes flick over to it. He notices it is most likely made from steel, and it includes his shoulder. Gino’s father had utilized his own prosthetic arm for additional strength and as a shield out in the field, so he imagines Gino uses it for much the same reasons. He can’t help but think how useful that arm will be in the months to come.
While he appraises Gino’s body, Kougami can feel those emerald green eyes roaming over his own. He sits up a little straighter, granting him silent permission. He sees Gino’s eyes hover over a scar he received last year on the side of his neck. Gino finally moves toward the cot and breaks the silence by saying, “You have a lot more scars than you used to.”
Kougami watches Gino as he sits down on the cot facing him, making sure their knees do not touch. Kougami points to his own left bicep. “So do you. I’m betting there’s more, ones I can and cannot see.”
Gino chuckles but it is without humor. “We live dangerous lives, Kou. Dangerous to both our bodies and our psycho-passes.” And truer words were never spoken.
“So,” Kougami says after a beat, “I should probably tell you where we’re headed.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
That brings Kougami up short. “Uh, what?”
“You got what you wanted,” Gino says with no malice in his voice, “I’m here. I chose to be here. And I’ll be whatever you need me to be. A spy, a soldier, it doesn’t matter.” Gino meets his eyes. “What does matter is taking down the Sibyl System. I’m going to do whatever I have to in order to make that happen.”
Gino pauses, takes a steadying breath. “I no longer care what happens to me.”
Kougami can’t stop his hand from reaching out and grasping Gino’s knee. “I care.”
“I know,” Gino allows his hand to remain, “but what you really care about is the mission. I’m assuming you got footage of what we saw, correct?” Kougami nods before Gino continues. “And I’m sure you’re already working on a plan to reveal Sibyl’s secret to the world, but it has to be done carefully, or else everything will be thrown into mass chaos.”
Kougami nods again. “And I know it was no surprise to you Akane chose to stay behind. She’s your contact on the inside. That’s why you didn’t try harder to talk her into leaving.
“And bringing me on was a good strategic decision. I have insights no one else does about the MWPSB, not even you. When the time comes, I can help you dismantle the place from the inside out without it falling apart.”
Kougami remembers how sometimes he would think that Gino knows him better than he even knows himself. “There’s another reason I wanted you with me. A much more selfish one.” Kougami places his other hand on Gino’s other knee, “I really missed you, Gino.”
Gino pauses, waiting for Kougami to continue. “I thought I was over you, really, I did. But when I saw you again on Shambala Float…” He closes his eyes. “Everything we were came rushing back. And I missed all of it. Our days at the academy, working side-by-side as Inspectors, hell, I even missed our arguments.” He opens his eyes and notices Gino is now leaning more towards him. “But most of all, I missed just being with you. When we were together, everything made sense, no matter how crazy it got.”
He turns his hands up, inviting Gino to take hold, which he does. It’s the first time their skin has made contact in over five years. Both sigh at the sensation.
“I missed you, too,” Gino whispers. “It’s funny. I missed you the most when you were right beside me the whole time.” Kougami knows he’s referring to the three years he spent working under Ginoza as an Enforcer. “It was only after you were actually gone that I thought I was finally able to let you go.”
Kougami holds his hands a little firmer, subtly pulling him closer. “And did you? Were you able to let me go?”
Gino tightens his own hands around Kougami’s as he willingly leans closer, their lips nearly touching. “No,” he answers breathily, “I’m selfish, too.”
In the next instant, their lips are together in a kiss. Their first kiss in years is passionate, sure, full of meaning and the words they cannot yet say. It quickly becomes open-mouthed so they can relearn the taste of the other. Both moan as their tongues slide along each other.
Kougami’s hands find their way into Gino’s hair, still wet from the shower. He has been longing to run his hands through the silky-smooth strands just like he used to. The extra added length just makes it even more pleasurable.
Gino’s own hands wind around Kougami’s waist. Kougami can feel one set of nails press firmly into the center of his back. As the kiss continues, Kougami feels those hands wander lower, palms now flat against his back, to slide under his tank top.
Breaking the kiss, Kougami’s hands replace Gino’s so he can pull the garment over his head. Gino does the same with his own. Their mouths come back together immediately, both sets of hands now roaming over newly revealed skin. Kougami can’t help but to notice the stark contrast in feeling from Gino’s hands, one made of heated flesh and the other cooled metal, as they glide over the sides of his neck and down his defined pecs. He can barely wait to learn what both hands will feel like gripping his ass.
“Gino,” Kougami hums, moving his mouth down Gino’s chin, remembering that drop of rain and following its invisible path down his neck to his bare chest. He flicks one of Gino’s nipples with the tip of his tongue, while he rolls the other between two fingers. He remembers how Gino prefers both of his nipples to be stimulated at the same time. Gino sighs at the sensation and lays down on the cot to give Kougami better access.
As he leans over him to continue his ministrations, Kougami can feel Gino’s erection poking him in the abdomen. He continues moving his mouth downward, never breaking contact with Gino’s defined chest and stomach. Once he reaches the waistband of his cargo pants, Kougami glances at his eyes, asking for permission. Gino nods at him quickly, and Kougami sits up so he can pull Gino’s pants down his narrow hips.
Gino’s engorged cock greets him, and the sight of it makes Kougami’s mouth water. The urge to taste him there again is too strong, and without any hesitation or warning, he takes the head of Gino’s cock into his mouth.
He hears Gino cry out above him and feels him arch his hips instinctually off the cot, forcing his length further into Kougami’s mouth. Kougami pulls back slightly and places one of his hands around Gino’s hip to hold him in place. The other hand he wraps around the base of Gino’s cock as he hollows his cheeks and plunges him down his throat again and again.
Gino gasps and continues to writhe on the cot as he grips Kougami’s wild hair with his real hand. The other hand he throws over his own head, taking hold of the end of the cot.
As he continues to suck him, Kougami’s own erection becomes uncomfortable still trapped in his pants. He pulls off Gino’s cock to free himself, then pulls Gino’s pants the rest of the way off his body. He must grip the base of his own cock to keep from coming at just the sight of a fully naked Gino spread out underneath him, face and chest flushed from pleasure.
“You’re beautiful,” he says. He doesn’t even realize he has spoken the words out loud until Gino smiles softly at him.
“So are you,” Gino answers as he sits up. He wraps his flesh hand around Kougami’s erection, causing the other man to moan. Kougami closes his eyes and concentrates on the motion of Gino’s hand sliding up and down his cock. He opens them again at the sound of a cap opening. He watches intently as Gino tips a small vial of oil onto the hand stroking him, making both slick. He makes a mental note to ask Gino where he got the oil from later.
Gino presses the vial into Kougami’s hand. “Get me ready for you,” he says as he kisses Kougami again before laying back down, splaying his legs to give Kougami easier access to his body.
Kougami is all too eager to oblige him. He pours most of the contents of the vial onto his right hand, making sure his fingers are fully coated. As he positions his index and middle fingers at Gino’s entrance, he leans over him so he can capture his lips in another passionate kiss.
He pushes his fingers in up to the second knuckle. He pauses right away as Gino breaks their kiss with a grunt of discomfort. Kougami immediately regrets the action and goes to withdraw, but Gino grabs his wrist. “I’m okay,” he says breathlessly, “just go slow. It’s been a while.”
Kougami can’t stop himself from asking, “How long is ‘a while?’”
Gino sits up, looks Kougami in the eye, and says, “Since the last time we did this.”
That amazes Kougami. “Really? No one else has gotten to touch you like this?”
Gino shakes his head. “No one, Shinya. Only you. It could only ever be you.”
His given name. In the past, that was their shared tell; say each other’s first name for additional emphasis or, in this case, reassurance.
Kougami wishes he could tell him the same, but he would be lying if he did. There have been a handful of others, both men and women, but it was just a way to release pent-up frustrations. One or two wanted a more meaningful relationship, but Kougami could never give them more. That could only ever be with the person waiting expectantly in front of him, and they both know it.
Kougami leans over Gino again, capturing his lips with his own as he slowly inserts just his middle finger into him. Kougami gets a much more desired reaction as Gino lets out a quiet breath, urging his body to relax. Kougami slowly withdraws, but doesn’t fully exit Gino’s body before he’s gradually pushing his finger all the way back in. He watches Gino’s face for any hint of pain or discomfort and is encouraged when he doesn’t see any.
After a few more experimental thrusts, Kougami adds his index finger. This time, Gino is ready for it, and his mouth opens in a silent cry of pleasure. It isn’t long before Kougami is spreading his fingers as far apart as he can within Gino and slowly withdrawing them, only to reinsert them in a tortuously slow rhythm.
The noises Gino is making send a bolt of lust straight to Kougami’s weeping cock. He waits until Gino starts to thrust his own hips onto his fingers before he asks, “Are you ready for me?”
“Yes, Shinya. Yes,” Gino answers, panting with want.
Kougami fully withdraws his fingers, then uses the remaining oil to finish coating his throbbing erection. He lines up the head of his cock and carefully enters the man underneath him, his name a whisper on his lips, “Nobuchika.”
And it’s like coming home. It’s where he was always meant to be, should have always been, and Kougami knows he will never be able to leave Gino again. He has been completely ruined for this man.
Both men groan as he bottoms out and stills. Kougami takes deep breaths as he presses his face into the side of Gino’s neck to keep his emotions in check. He wraps his arms under Gino’s shoulders and can feel him trembling with suppressed emotion.
Gino has his real arm wrapped around Kougami’s back, while his prosthetic grips the end of the cot. “No,” Kougami says gently. He reaches for Gino’s wrist and places this hand on the back of his neck. “I want to feel all of you.”
Gino visibly swallows. “But what if I hurt you?”
“You won’t, Nobu,” Kougami reassures him as he begins to shallowly thrust his hips. The action releases a sigh of pleasure from them both. “I trust you.”
Kougami pulls his hips back and slowly thrusts in more deeply. He watches Gino’s face before he does it again, picking up the pace. He raises himself onto his hands to get better leverage, his eyes never leaving Gino’s. It isn’t long before Gino is thrusting his own hips to meet Kougami’s, encouraging him to go faster.
Kougami can feel his orgasm approaching. He wishes he could make this last longer, but all possibility of slowing down is now impossible. He begins thrusting in earnest, listening as his cries of pleasure mix with Gino’s own. It isn’t long before Gino is reaching between them to stroke himself. His pace picks up again, knowing Gino is close as he feels his muscles tighten around his length. A few quick strokes and then warmth is splashing between them. Gino closes his eyes and throws his head back in release, his back arching off the cot.
The sight is nearly enough to send Kougami over the edge, but he manages to hold back. He continues to pump his length into Gino until he’s fully spent. Once he’s finished, Gino grips Kougami’s ass with both hands, hard enough to bruise, to push him in as deeply as he’s ever gone. As he hits his peak, Kougami’s body seizes so strongly in Gino’s welcoming heat that he forgets to breathe.
He comes to a moment later, head pillowed on Gino’s perspiring chest. He is still buried deep inside of him, and they both just breathe. He’s not sure if the trembling he feels is Gino’s or his own.
He raises his head, breath still recovering, to look into Gino’s eyes. “You okay?” He asks quietly.
Gino nods, then brings their lips together in a soft kiss. Kougami slips out of Gino’s body and lays his head back down on Gino’s chest, his full weight on top of him. He can feel Gino’s heartbeat against his ear, returning to its normal rhythm. Gino presses his lips to Kougami’s hairline, wrapping both arms around him.
Once they are fully recovered, neither moves, basking in the afterglow and each other. Kougami tries to remember the last time sex was this intimate, this powerful, but he doesn’t think he’s ever had an experience like this before, even with Gino. The thought should scare him but strangely it doesn’t.
Some time passes before either speaks. “You know what I missed most about you?”
Kougami smiles softly and raises his head to let Gino know he’s listening. “No,” he answers quietly, “what did you miss?”
“My memories of you.”
This causes Kougami’s smile to fade. “What do you mean by that?”
Gino sighs. “I forced myself to forget everything, Kou. After you fell, I had to change the way I thought of you in order to keep you in my life.” Kougami hums with understanding. “I’ve trained myself to see you in a different light for a long time. Much longer than when we were actually together.”
Kougami slides off Gino to lay beside him. Gino turns onto his own side, facing him. “Do you blame me? For any of it?”
Gino nods, lowering his eyes. “I did. I think in some aspects, I still do,” he admits solemnly.
Kougami waits for Gino to continue. When he doesn’t, he asks, “Then why did you come with me?”
Gino looks at him, really looks at him, then says, “Because the moment I learned what the Sibyl System was, I knew my goals were realigned with your own. And what you experienced when we saw each other back on Shambala Float is what I’ve been going through since leaving that place.”
He places his real hand on Kougami’s bare hip. “I’ve wasted so much time trying to forget you, trying to forget us and what we had. I’m tired of pretending I don’t want to be with you.”
Kougami moves his hand to cradle Gino’s cheek, his fingers sliding into his hair. “You do realize from here on out our lives are fully intertwined. We’re partners again.” He tightens his hold on Gino, fingertips pressing into the back of his neck. “We can use whatever time we have left to remember everything we’ve forgotten about each other, because I’m never leaving you again.”
He moves closer, their naked bodies pressing flush together. When he speaks, his breath ghosts over Gino’s lips. “Do you believe me when I say that, Nobu? Will you trust me again?”
Kougami can sense Gino’s smile against his own lips. “I have always trusted you, Shinya.” He kisses him, long and hard, and both feel a once forgotten stirring in their blood, “And I always will.”