by Samantha Lau
Vanya sighed and rolled on his back, “I’m sorry,” he propped himself up to accept the coffee. He looked up, feeling guiltier than ever as he noticed her look of relief. Shit, he’d really been worrying them. “Sorry. I just needed a bit of time.”
She nodded. “I know, it’s alright. Just come out and talk with us, okay? We’ll figure something out. Look, Tatsuya thinks it wasn’t an accident, he says he’ll hire someone to–”
“It doesn’t matter,” Vanya cut her off.
“What do you mean ‘it doesn’t matter’?” It was Tatsuya who asked, Vanya finding him at the doorway of their room.
“I mean it doesn’t matter. That guy won.” He tried not to look as defeated as he felt when he said “I’ll sell whatever’s left. There’s really no reason to go against him now other than to annoy him.”
“But we’ll take such a loss... ” Sasha frowned.
“No more than if we rebuilt and this happened again.” Vanya put his coffee aside and got up.
“But all the memories,” Sasha said, not having as many herself of the place as Ivan did, but knowing just how important they had been to him.
“I know. There were a lot of memories,” Vanya smiled weakly and moved to Tatsuya. “But it won’t be the same once rebuilt. And besides, I know memories aren’t in things. They’re in us. I’m sure I won’t forget them just because the shop isn’t there anymore.”
As he’d hoped, Tatsuya wrapped an arm around him as soon as he was in reach, and brought him close. He clung to him briefly, the time to avoid his sister’s gaze, but when he looked back she was smiling warmly.
“Alright, Vanya. We’ll do as you want,” she said, “but I still don’t want that guy to win.”
“He won’t,” Tatsuya said softly, “Because if you’re ready to sell, then I’m buying.”
Vanya’s eyes widened, and he couldn’t help but stare. “Are you out of your mind? The place is a wreck, you’re out of job, and you’ll waste money on somewhere you need to invest even more in to get it back up?”
He idly wondered how Tatsuya could still look so calm and smile so warmly when he was practically going to be tossing his money in the trash.
“I want to keep the location for you. And,” the warm smile slowly turned into a small smirk. “I want to mess with his plans. I’m also no longer out of work, so that won’t be a problem.”
Vanya smacked his chest. “You’re kidding! Since when?!”
Tatsuya chuckled and held up his phone. “Five minutes ago. Come on,” he gently led Ivan back out to where Tom was waiting, Sasha following them.
10
Tatsuya had found a job in one of JUBA’s rival companies after all; with his insider knowledge, a long list of client names, and the common enemy, Tatsuya was certain their relationship was going to be long lasting. Yet he’d still needed to go in to arrange some last minute details and sign certain contracts, so it’d been Vanya who had been tasked with waiting for the private investigator at his café.
When they’d learned Tatsuya would be unable to go, Sasha and Tom had both offered to accompany him, but Vanya had refused. He didn’t relish the idea of returning there, didn’t like the sight of the burnt down walls and caved in ceiling, but the thought of screwing up Higa’s plans and mess with his life like he’d messed with theirs fueled Vanya, now that the initial blow of his loss had passed. He was willing to put up with the sight if it meant finding that tiny piece of evidence that would get Higa in troubles.
Outside the shop was a sad sight indeed. Most walls were still up, but the structural damage was too great, and they would likely have to be torn down and rebuilt. Little was left of the furniture and counters, from outside you couldn’t really tell what had been a chair and what had been anything else. The roof had caved in on certain sections, while others seemed intact. A policeman stood by the scene, preventing anyone from trying to get inside.
The person that finally approached him outside his shop did not really strike him as an investigator. Movies and novels would have had a dreamer like Vanya expect a tall, brooding man with a wide frame. Instead, he came across a lanky Japanese woman with a bob cut and a sharp, lively green gaze. Her accent was thick; she extended her hand for a firm shake.
“Ivan Orlov,” she said, “I’m Haruka. Tatsuya–san told you I’d come?”
Vanya shook her hand, surprised by the strong hold from such a woman, and nodded. “We have reason to believe–” he started, but she nodded and cut him off.
“Yes, his ex–boss might have been involved with the fire here. He’s told me over the phone,” she stated. She pulled some disposable booties and gloves from within her messenger bag, worked on putting them on, and said, “Please wait out here. It’s dangerous inside, and you may step on evidence.”
Vanya nodded. He watched her pull out a flashlight and camera from the bag, approach the policeman for a word with him, and then step through the debris into the burnt shop. He felt his heart tighten in his chest, but tried to ignore the pang of emotional pain. For a while, he followed the sight of her looking around and taking photos. After a bit, he couldn’t quite spot her anymore. She’d probably gone to the back. And she was certainly taking her time. Not that he didn’t want to be sure, but Vanya started to get nervous as soon as she had disappeared from sight. What if she found nothing? What if it’d all just been bad luck? He still had his doubts on whether the robbery attempt had or hadn’t been Higa’s doing, even if he trusted his lover’s word on having not been involved on it.
Without noticing it, Vanya had started pacing. When his mind caught up with his actions, he looked around for Haruka again, but as she was still out of sight, he gave in and moved across the street to the restaurant, finding himself a table by the window so he could keep watch. Even though that had made him stop pacing, Vanya couldn’t help the small tics that assaulted him; the drumming of fingers on the table surface, the way his gaze kept going back again and again to what was left of his shop... He hadn’t really realized just how tense he was until his phone rang and made him jump. Heart beating fast, he picked up the call without even looking at the caller’s ID.
“Yes?”
“Are you alright?” Tatsuya’s worried voice came through the other end of the line, clear as if he’d been standing right by him.
“Tatsu, ah– yeah, just startled.” Vanya smiled a bit. “And kind of nervous. Your friend’s been in there for a while now without news.”
“Don’t worry,” Tatsuya said, trying to soothe him. “She’s just being thorough. I have news that will cheer you up.”
“I could use it,” Vanya sighed.
“I’ve made an arrangement with my new bosses. We’ll try to buy out the buildings by your shop.”
Vanya couldn’t help a small smile at this. “Really?”
“Really. Now, it is a long shot,” Tatsuya warned. “Higa won’t want to let go of them just yet. We’ll have to be tricky, but they believe it’s doable, and I believe they want Higa and JUBA down as much as we do, so I’m confident they’ll find a way.”
“That’s fantastic!” Vanya said, feeling a lot more at ease with these news. “But... what about my shop?”
“They have no interest in it.” He said; one of the perks of his new employers being a rivaling company was that he could make certain demands in order to sign with them. These had included attempting the purchase of the buildings, and the caveat of leaving Vanya’s shop alone. “Vanya, I’ve told you, if you still want to sell, I’ll buy it. But I think you should keep it, and I’m willing to invest in it. Help you make it the best café in the city.”
Vanya sobered up a little. “Thank you. I’ll... I think I’ll need to talk to Sasha and Tom first, though.”
“Anything you want, love,” Tatsuya said “I’ll support you.”
From the corner of his eye, Vanya caught some movement. He looked over to see Haruka coming out, looking around, then, at spotting him at the restaurant, heading to him. Motioning for her
to indeed come sit with him, he said to his lover, “Ah, she’s coming out, I think she found something.”
“Okay,” Tatsuya said, “I’ll see you back at my place.”
“Love you,” Vanya said in turn, then hung up. He waited until Haruka had settled across from him, looking expectantly.
“I came across a patch,” she explained, bringing up her camera to flip through to the appropriate picture. “Here, see? This pattern, you only see it with accelerant. Means the fire was intentional.” Noticing Vanya’s look of delight, she added, “Does not mean yet that it’s Higa-san’s doing. But don’t worry, I’ve found some things I’ve bagged for evidence. I will examine them thoroughly for you both.” She smiled.
Vanya’s smile had quickly faded at the added words, but he was confident that if this wasn’t an accident, then it had to be Higa’s doing. Now he just hoped she could find something within the evidence she’d bagged that would point to Higa, or at least, to JUBA.
“How come the police didn’t notice this?” Vanya ended up asking. He couldn’t help giving the waitress an exasperated look when she came to see if Haruka wanted anything to drink or eat, but motioned for the woman to order whatever she wanted.
When the waitress would be gone, Haruka finally replied. “It’s possible they did notice. If that man is truly behind this, he could have paid off a few people. I have contacts, we’ll follow that route as well. Don’t worry,” she offered him a first, rather bright smile, “We’ll catch the guilty party.”
11
As it turned out, Tatsuya’s friend was quite good at what she did. Within the week she’d gone through the evidence she’d found, having given it the utmost priority, making sure to tie every last thread to a culprit. Of course, the evidence did not lead directly to Higa, but it lead to a cowardly enough goon that, when faced with the choice between his head and the one who’d hired him, gave the man away at once in exchange for a lighter sentence. And that man had been paid handsomely in turn to do the hiring. The crime scene expert had also been paid handsomely by the same man for overlooking the evidence. While she worked to follow the money trail to the real culprit, and while Tatsuya busied himself with the deals concerning the purchase of the buildings, Vanya occupied himself with rebuilding his coffee shop. He’d been convinced by his sister and his friend not to sell, but he’d accepted Tatsuya’s offer to invest his own money on the place. Faced with the choice between trying to get it back to what he remembered it as, and doing something new with it, Vanya finally chose to modernize it. The memories would still be there, he knew, whether the shop looked exactly like it had or not.
The confidence he’d placed in Tatsuya paid off. Haruka found the proof they needed to send Higa to jail for orchestrating the whole thing. There’d be a proper trial, surely, and Higa was likely to appeal, but for the time being having the man away in jail was good enough for them. The board behind JUBA attempted to contact Tatsuya to bring him back into the company, but he’d refused. With the influence he had on his new workplace, Tatsuya could ensure no one would be bothering his lover again... and would also be able to help him expand the café.
It was just over two months from the time they began rebuilding it to the moment Café Lov officially opened its doors again, and the first day was a success. A lot of people had come by for the re-opening, the shop had been almost at full capacity, and both Sasha and Vanya were waiting tables most of the day while Sally and Tom manned the counter. By the time they were closing up, things were looking great.
The girls waved goodbye, and after double checking everything was in order and clean at the counter, Tom also bid Vanya goodnight.
Tatsuya’s new job had kept him from being there since opening time, but he had arrived an hour before closing time and was now smiling warmly at Ivan.
Vanya squinted his eyes playfully at him, unable to hide a little smile despite trying to keep a serious face. “What’s with that creepy grin?”
Tatsuya only smiled more, arms wrapping around his waist to bring him close. “I’m not allowed to be happy?”
“You’re very much allowed to be happy, so long as I am too,” Vanya smirked, fingers caressing the back of his boyfriend’s neck. His smile sobered a little and he whispered softly “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For everything,” Vanya said softly. “For being there for me.”
Tatsuya smiled and leaned in to press their lips together, first into a chaste kiss, then pushing his tongue past them to deepen it. They were panting a little by the time they pulled back, Vanya’s hand still gently caressing the back of his neck.
“Let’s go home.”
Vanya smiled widely and kissed him one last time before pulling back, taking hold of Tatsuya’s hand and pulling him along as he turned off the lights.
“Home. I like the sound of that.”
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Also by Samantha Lau
Sinait
Love Symptoms
Standalone
Touch Starved
Café Lov
Demon Ties
Naga's Touch
Watch for more at Samantha Lau’s site.
About the Author
Samantha Lau describes herself as an “Author in Progress”. She is by no means new to writing; she has been putting pen to paper since she was a little girl, but only recently has she decided to turn her writing towards M/M romance. She lives with her three dogs in a lost town in South America and spends her free time trying to learn new languages and cultures.
Read more at Samantha Lau’s site.
