Strawberries…

"Misaki."

"What do you want?" Misaki hissed, annoyed. "Go work on something. I'm busy here."

Akihiko raised an eyebrow. "Busy? With what?"

Misaki's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "N-Nothing in particular."

"What is it?"

"I said nothing in particular!"

"Alright, alright." Akihiko walked off to his office to go work on one of his projects, leaving Misaki alone in the large living room.

Spacious… Misaki thought. Everything suddenly got really quiet after Usagi-san left.

He stared down at the boxes of strawberries he was trying to finish off. Or atleast, for today. "Haruhiko…" Misaki murmured with hate layered over the name. "You're the reason I'm in this strawberry mess."

Out of nowhere, the phone rang. Misaki got off the couch with a huff and picked it up. "Hello?"

"I expected my brother to pick up, but I'm glad it's you."

Misaki froze in place and glared at the tiles on the floor. Trying to hide the annoyance in his voice, he asked, "Excuse me?"

Haruhiko paused for a second, possibly thinking over his words, and asked, "Did you like the strawberries I got you?"

Misaki laughed sadly to himself. "Y-Yeah… Thanks…"

"I'm sending another shipment over today, so you'll get more in the mail soon. I'm glad to hear that you received them yesterday."

His voice made Misaki's head ache. There's no way in hell you'll be able to win me over like that. It's all Usagi-san's fault for making me fall for h—

Wait? What was he going to say?

A slight blush creeped up onto Misaki's cheeks and tried to get Haruhiko to hang up. "A-Ano… I have to go."

"You have to go do what?"

Why does this guy want to know so much about me? "Well…"

"Tell you what. I'm in the mood to make a bet." Haruhiko sounded like he was smirking on the inside, where on the outside he kept that scary, emotionless face.

"Excuse me? A bet?" Misaki leaned against the wall and listened closely.

"Yes, a bet."

There was a long pause that finally got Misaki to half-yell, "Well?!"

"You eat all the boxes that I sent you yesterday and I'll leave you alone."

Misaki's heart rose in his chest. He'll leave me alone? For real? Is he serious? "You'll… leave me alone?"

"Yes. I will leave you alone if you complete all the boxes that I sent."

"Only yesterday's shipment?"

"That's right."

"Ha ha!" Misaki laughed triumphantly. "I'll do it!"

Haruhiko chuckled on the other end. "That's good to hear. I'll be over tomorrow to check on your progress to see if you succeeded. I know which boxes I sent and how many of each one. If you even think about throwing any away, I will know."

Those are the rules? Huh? "Are… Are those the rules?"
"The rules are to eat all of he boxes I sent yesterday. You may not throw any away. All of them have to be eaten before midnight."

"Oh. Okay. Got it!"

"Goodbye." There was a click, followed by the dial tone.

Misaki slammed the phone onto the dock and smiled to himself. Usagi-ani will leave me alone forever if I complete all of the boxes! I have a lot of time, so there's no way I won't lose!

He checked his phone and realized it was already 7:30, but then stopped worrying after finding out it was Saturday.

This'll be fun. He walked over to the big, cardboard box that came to the doorstep and opened it. I think.

---

Oh my, god, I'm full. Misaki thought drowsily as he went to throw away the small, empty box he emptied just now. I feel like I'm going to burst.

He had already finished several boxes of strawberries, making the cardboard box only a little over halfway full. But it wasn't good enough. He had to finish everything.

Akihiko came out of his room finally and frowned at the normal scent of the household. He was hungry. Where was breakfast?

"Misaki?" He wondered, coming down the stairs. "Where are you?"

"I'm… in here," Misaki murmured from the kitchen. "I'm sorry I didn't cook anything. I was…" He hesitated over the words he was looking for. Busy? Doing something? Devouring strawberries for a bet? "I was just about to cook, so you can either go wait in the living room and wait, or go back up to your room and wait for me to call you back down."

What's with the stern tone in his voice? It doesn't match the features he's wearing right now; flushed face, heavy breathing… Akihiko began to wonder what was wrong with his young lover. Is he okay?

Misaki noticed Akihiko's concerned stare. "U-Usagi-san? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I was wondering the same thing, Misaki."

"You were wondering what?"

"You don't seem like your usual self. Are you sure you're up to cooking?"

Misaki laughed weakly, his head swimming from the strawberry take in. "Yeah, I'll be just fine…" His voice wasn't even reassuring. The way he stumbled around the kitchen wasn't helping either.

Akihiko didn't buy it, not one bit. He wrapped his arms around his lover's waist in a tight embrace and whispered, "No, you're not up to cooking."

Misaki fell limp against Akihiko's chest. "I'm… not up to it… Usagi-san… I'm tired."

"That's your fault for staying up last night."

He recalled last night's activity and blushed. "Who's fault…" Misaki didn't even think about finishing his remark. He was too tired to say anything. "I'm tired, Usagi-san." Reluctantly, he begged, "Please c-carry me…"

Misaki was immediately in Akihiko's arms and was currently being carried to his room. "Did you eat anything bad?" Akihiko asked, worry in his voice.

The young uke had enough strength to hiss, "What's with all this worrying and concern?! I'm just fine!"

Akihiko took a sharp turn and headed for his room suddenly. "No, you're not."

"HEY! Baka! Where are you taking me?!"

"To my room."

"Where?" Misaki murmured stupidly, knowing he was going to be sore later. "I'm just tired! I need to go cook breakfast!"

"That can wait."

He lost his control and snarled, "I need to win my bet with Usagi-ani!"

Akihiko froze in his tracks, right in front of his door. "My brother? You made a bet with him?"

Misaki saw it coming, the punishment he was going to be getting. So, he just decided to get it over with. "Usagi-ani called not long ago and was telling me about the stupid strawberries he was sending me. I forgot he usually calls every day to bug me, so I was a little shocked. But then I was trying to get him off the phone when he asked if I wanted to make a bet. So, I agreed! I totally didn't expect strawberries to be so filling!"

"What do strawberries have to do with this bet?" Akihiko was getting impatient, but he held it.

Misaki sighed irritably like Akihiko was supposed to know what the bet was about. "I have to eat all of his strawberries that arrived yesterday. We agreed that he would leave me alone if I accomplished this. But, I'm only half way through the box and I have a giant stomachache!"

The door was slammed against the wall as Akihiko opened it with great force. He threw Misaki on the bed and was instantly on top of him. "You talked to my brother," He growled icily.

Misaki, still confused from the scene, tried to find the words. "W-W-Well, yeah… I have to or else he'll end up coming up to your house and kidnap me!"

"I'm not joking around."

He sunk against the sheets on the bed. "I know…"

"Why do you continuously talk to my older brother? He's a threat."

"Says who?!" Misaki shouted.
Akihiko came very close to Misaki's face. "I do."

Misaki, as irritated as he already was, held in the angry tears that threatened to spill. "S-So what? I don't have to l-listen to you, Usagi-san."

This struck a nerve.

Akihiko's hands landed on each side of Misaki's head that was pressed into the bed. "Oh, really?" He smirked. "Want me to prove it to you? I've been waiting to show you who's boss, Misaki."

He gulped and glared into Akihiko's lavender eyes, but his brown hair made it difficult to see. "W-What?"

"I love you."

Misaki shook his head, blushing furiously. I won't give in! "Don't say that!"

"But I do love you."

"Stop!"

It was too late. Akihiko's lips had already claimed Misaki's and, with much ecstacy, Misaki was moaning every so often. There was no way he would give in to the famous writer. There was no way he would lose to Akihiko and Usagi-ani!

I'm just going to try and get this over with. If I give in every once in awhile with nothing to stop him, then maybe he'll leave me alone too! Or… atleast he'll leave me alone a lot more then he usually does.

As Misaki grasped Akihiko's silver air, his bottom lip was bitten as he was asked for entrance. Parting his lips, he moaned in agreement as Akihiko's tongue took over his. "Mnn!" He cried out as Akihiko pushed back reluctantly.

Akihiko smirked and one of his hands slowly traveled down to the bulge in Misaki's pants. "You were begging me to stop just minutes ago and now you really want me. Am I right?"

Misaki was panting and gasping for air, so all he did was shake his head. His lips were still slightly parted as he took in a fresh breath of oxygen. "N-No…"

He felt Misaki's forehead and swore to himself. "Shit, your forehead is warm."

Right when Akihiko removed his hand from below and began to get off of Misaki, he cried out, "Wait, Usagi-san!" His face turned an even darker crimson when he said, "Y-You are right. I d-d-do… I do want you…"

"Oh, Misaki…" Akihiko smiled, but he still didn't move any closer. "I'm sorry, but I can't if you have a fever."

Misaki growled. "WHAT?! SO ALL THE OTHER TIMES ARE JUST FINE?!"

"No, it's just that I realized now that there's no way that I can keep it up without making the fever worse."

He tried to find a reason to get Akihiko to keep on going. I need a reason! I need a really good reason, damnit! Why can't I think of a good reason?! "U-Usagi-san…"

"Sorry." Akihiko walked off, leaving Misaki on the bed with nothing to satisfy his hard-on. Damnit…

"This is so screwed up! I'll never be able to win Usagi-ani's bet now!" Misaki complained to himself, curling up into a ball in the middle of the bed. "Why do I have to do this in the first place…?"

---

It had been a very long day yesterday. Misaki had nothing else to do, so he just took his own temperature and discovered he had a fever of 101.7 degrees Fahrenheit. He swore to himself for a few minutes and walked off to his room to lay down for a bit. But before he could turn off his lamp, he realized something really embarrassing.

He admitted to Akihiko that he wanted him.

Misaki's face blushed at the memory of yesterday. Haruhiko, who was standing in the doorway and staring at the sick Misaki, said, "I see you didn't complete the bet."

"I…" Misaki coughed several times and looked over at the pile of boxes still unopened. "I got sick after eating half of the boxes."

"Oh. That's too bad." Haruhiko was smiling on the inside. "I guess I don't have to leave you alo—"

The door was shut suddenly and Akihiko was found behind Misaki, a cigarette dangling from his lips. "What were you doing talking to my brother again?" He growled.

Misaki trembled, he was cold and scared, and managed to get out, "I lost the bet."

"I know. But that's not the problem right now, Misaki."

"Y-You… Usagi-ani won't leave me alone now!"

"So?"

Misaki narrowed his eyes and swept the chocolate locks away from his semi-sweaty forehead. "We're talking about Usagi-ani here."

"Ah…" Akihiko sighed, pretending to know what he was talking about. He kissed Misaki's forehead and walked upstairs with a coffee mug in his hand.

"I'm throwing away all of those strawberries later…" Even if that is a little selfish. "I've come to hate them."

End

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