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It wasn’t often that Majima left the city of Kamurocho now, not liking being away from his hunting ground for long as he was always worried about bullshit happening when he left for extended periods of time. This time, however, Daigo had insisted he take a job outside of the city, in the city of Tsukuba situated in Ibaraki Prefecture to be precise. Of course he had protested, saying that anything could happen without him there like it had before, even suggesting another officer who could do the job in his place. Daigo wasn’t listening, even getting Saejima on his side, noting that Majima looked like he’d needed a break for ages now.
“Fine, I’ll go do yer stupid fuckin’ job in Ibaraki but I ain’t stayin’ for more than a week there,” Majima eventually gave in, Daigo’s smile making him grunt in annoyance.
“Of course. I’ll even pay for your travel. There’s a train leaving tomorrow at one in the afternoon that you can take,” Daigo responded. “Saejima will look after your boys in your place.”
When Majima looked over at his sworn brother, the other man just nodded. His look was gentle, reassuring. It made Majima grateful that he’d finally came back.
Daigo eventually dismissed the two of them and they headed towards the elevator together, the small journey down to the ground floor of the tower quiet until about halfway through when Saejima spoke up.
“You goin’ to see him before you leave?” Saejima asked.
Majima didn’t need to be told who “him” even was anymore. Majima had made it clear he didn’t want to hear the name of his former ally, best friend, rival, whatever he would refer to Kiryu as, until he was ready.
He would never be ready.
It had been about six months since Kazuma Kiryu, the famed Dragon of Dojima, was declared dead. The news had all hit them hard, but it had hit Majima the hardest. He couldn’t even remember the funeral, his brain too muddled with the thought that one of the few men he cared for was suddenly gone like that. It was only thanks to Saejima’s presence that he hadn’t broken that day, but Saejima couldn’t be there for him every day and the moment he’d found himself alone it was like his entire body had gone numb. Nothing mattered, not even his own health, and he’d spent at least three days curled up in bed hardly eating, hardly sleeping. He was just… there. He was existing and he didn’t want to be because suddenly he couldn’t figure out how to exist in the world when Kiryu wasn’t there.
Even the pain he’d endured in the hole had felt like nothing compared to the clawing, aching sensation that had settled in his chest the moment the news of Kiryu’s death had hit his ears. Although he eventually came to terms with the fact that Kiryu was gone, and the pain slowly lessened, it was never gone fully. Sometimes it would come back as painful as before, and all Majima could do was push through because that was what Kiryu would have wanted.
“Been seein’ him every week since the day we built his damn grave, what makes ya think I wanna stop now?” Majima responded, noticing Saejima’s small smirk.
“Yeah, that sounds just like ya bro. Guess that explains why you don’t wanna be out there for more than a week.” It wasn’t a question, Saejima knew his brother well enough by now.
“You and Daigo are the only two other people who’d go see him and I know Daigo’s too busy to do that even though he wants to. I helped pay for it, I’m gonna help with the upkeep and make sure his legacy ain’t forgotten…”
Saejima said nothing, just reached out and clapped him on the shoulder, letting Majima stay silent as they reached the ground floor. When they reached the sliding doors at the front, Saejima spoke up.
“I gotta do some stuff for my boys. Let me know when ya get to Tsukuba safely,” Saejima said, pulling Majima into a hug. Majima appreciated the small bit of contact, grounding him in the moment and not in the past like he so wanted to fall into. “Oh, and try not to get into trouble. I ain’t there to drag yer sorry ass out of trouble.”
“Whaddya take me for? A dumb punk?” Majima snorted, pushing Saejima away and grinning at the look he gave him.
“No, you just get bored and then get reckless ‘cause yer bored,” Saejima responded, heading off with a wave before Majima could punch him in the stomach.
“Cheeky bastard…” Majima muttered as he watched Saejima walk away, waiting until he was out of sight before finally making his way back to his apartment to pack.
***
The graveyard was practically empty when Nishida’s car pulled up outside it, Majima stepping out with a smaller bouquet than the one he’d brought with him a few days prior. He at least wanted to say a small, private goodbye to Kiryu before he left for a few days. It’d be the furthest he’d been away from Kiryu’s final resting spot since his death, and Majima wasn’t entirely sure what to make of it.
Nishida knew this routine by now. He drove away to park nearby as Majima headed towards the small gravestone that marked where Kiryu lay. It was probably one of the most pristine graves in the entire cemetery, its upkeep paid exclusively by Majima and sometimes Daigo. Instead of hiring someone to tend to the incense and flowers surrounding the headstone, Majima himself visited at least once a week to tend to them, sometimes even more than once if he needed to get some feelings out of his system. He’d found that he could talk freely about how he felt to a ghost that may or may not be watching over him. Maybe the thought of a real, human reaction made him shy away from the concept of actually talking about his own feelings.
“Hey Kiryu-chan,” Majima said conversationally, as if he were actually talking to Kiryu and not a metaphorical spirit.
“I’m headin’ out for a few days, Daigo’s made me his errand boy. I think he knows that I really need a break from… from all this,” Majima continued on, gesturing around himself vaguely.
A heavy sigh left his lips as he re-arranged some of the flowers, stalling a little to try and get what he wanted to say out of his system.
“I miss ya, Kiryu-chan. But ya know that by now, I hope. I keep sayin’ it but sayin’ it doesn’t make the pain any more bearable.” He reached out and gently touched the engraving of Kiryu’s name on the stone. “Make sure ya don’t miss me too much, okay?”
Majima wanted to stay for longer, to just tell Kiryu about everything that had happened between the last time he’d visited and now but he had to pack for this sudden trip. Before he got up to leave, however, he pulled the hand that had touched the stone back towards his face, kissing his fingertips and pressing them back against the grave. His eye started to sting, the telltale sign of tears, and he furiously blinked them away. Kiryu didn’t need to see that weakness anytime soon.
“Take care, ya hear me?” Majima said as he got up, reluctantly walking away and back to Nishida’s car. He glanced back at the grave just before he got in, the pain in his chest all too familiar now.
“Where to now, boss?” Nishida asked as Majima climbed into the back seat.
“Take me back to my place.”
***
Tokyo’s train stations were always crowded even after rush hour and Majima hated them. He’d managed to avoid most of the larger crowds through sheer luck but of course he’d get hit with the biggest one whilst trying to wait for his correct train to arrive. The tannoy system announced that the train would be arriving in five minutes, giving Majima some time to recall the journey he would need to take from this specific station.
Daigo had given him enough money for the taxi fare from the train station to his hotel room for the next few days, and had paid for the train journey to and from Tsukuba. From there, however, all he had were the instructions from Daigo on who he needed to meet and when and where he needed to meet them. The free time after that was up to him to decide, and he knew nothing about the city he was going to to really figure out what he could do besides moping about and being bored.
Don’t know why Daigo didn’t make another person do this damn job… There ain’t even fightin’ involved.
As the train pulled into the station and he managed to battle through the crowd to find his designated seat, sighing heavily the moment his small carry case was safely stored away and he could finally sit his ass down, he wondered if this was just an excuse to get him out of Kamurocho. Sure Daigo could be an idiot, he’d somehow picked up some of Kiryu’s dumb “act without thinking” characteristics, but that didn’t mean he was blind to what had been happening to Majima for the past six months. He was growing old, growing tired, still grieving his best friend. Kamurocho was his home, sure, but maybe Daigo had the right idea by taking him away from it all for a few days, to slow down and maybe just finally, properly mourn like any normal person.
He left out a quiet huff and closed his good eye, deciding that he’d at least try and get some sleep for the journey ahead. He hadn’t really been getting enough lately anyway. As the train started to leave the platform, and Majima started to fall asleep, he couldn’t help but notice no one had claimed the empty seat next to him. A smirk graced his lips. No one wanted to sit next to the big scary man with the missing eye, and that suited him perfectly.
***
Arriving in Tsukuba felt like Majima was stepping into an entirely different world. Sure it was busy, it was a city after all, but it was nothing like the bustling streets of Kamurocho or Sotenbori. No constant noise from establishments blaring their music, the neon lights weren’t as ‘in your face’ like they were in Kamurocho. It was a lot more peaceful. Even dressed in his black suit to try and blend in more, Majima still felt like he was standing out too much, and by the looks of a few nearby strangers, they may have started to cotton on to the fact that he was some sort of thug. Usually that wouldn’t upset him in a place like Kamurocho, but here his mission wasn’t to cause mayhem, and for once he didn’t want to.
“I’m gettin’ too old for this crap…” he muttered before hailing a taxi to take to his hotel for the next few days.
The drive itself was quiet, thankfully. Some taxi drivers made small talk, usually when the passenger would initiate it, but this one just focused on the road. A soft ballad was playing on the radio, reminding Majima of the type of songs Kiryu would randomly pick at karaoke during their small moments of time together when they weren’t beating the crap out of one another. His chest ached a little at the thought, remembering the way Kiryu had sang a ballad to him once and just how wonderful that moment felt to Majima. He quickly forced his mind to focus on something else, not wanting to mope just yet. He’d wait until he was alone until he could do that.
When he was finally dropped off at the hotel, Majima realised that he had free time that he didn’t know exactly what to do with. He wouldn’t be meeting the person Daigo had told him about until the next day, and he’d slept so long on the train that he’d forgotten to even do a quick internet search about the damn city. Cursing his stupidity, he went and got his hotel room key, noticing it was one of the fancier establishments in the area as he made his way upstairs. Daigo at least knew his tastes well. The room itself wasn’t too bad either, clean and modern, with a nice view of the city. Majima leant against the nearby wall, looking out towards the mountain that overlooked the city. From his vantage point, he also noticed just how green the city was, another contrast to Kamurocho. In fact, his Kamurocho Hills project had built upon the one bit of greenery left in the city.
“Wouldn’t hurt to try and build a garden or something nearby, could it?” Majima muttered, before wondering why he was so concerned about greenery. He hadn’t been when he’d built upon the damn park, had he? Maybe he was just getting old and sentimental.
A loud grumble from his stomach made Majima realise that he hadn’t eaten for a while and he sighed, grabbing the necessary items he’d need, like wallet and keys, before heading off to go explore the city.
***
During his exploration of the city, Majima had managed to find a quaint little ramen shop and sat down to eat, listening to the idle chatter of the few other patrons there as well as the small TV mounted in the corner. He wasn’t really interested in the news that was playing, something about the locals that didn’t concern him, instead he was more interested in a conversation happening near his table. He wasn’t one to usually eavesdrop, if someone had done that to him he would pommel their face in, but the eager tone the two middle-aged men spoke in made him curious.
“Did you hear about the new bar that opened recently? The one downtown from here?” The first guy asked. Majima always liked a good drink, and it sounded to him like this place was good if the way that guy was speaking gave anything away.
“Oh yeah, New Bacchus right? Weird name for a bar but I heard the owner’s a nice guy. Lends an ear when you need it most.”
Majima perked up a little at that name. New Bacchus? Bacchus was the original name of what was now Bantam in Kamurocho. Could it be that this owner had lived in the city around that time, and thought it was a good name to use? Majima thought it was a little unoriginal to be honest, but then again he hadn’t really taken into consideration the idea of owning a bar to begin with. It was interesting at least. He chewed on his noodles thoughtfully before deciding that it wouldn’t hurt to ask about this bar before he left.
It didn’t take long for him to finish his ramen, slurping the broth somewhat noisily but not giving a damn either way. When he put the bowl down, he gathered his things and made his way over to the table where the two guys were. As they noticed him near, they visibly stiffened, so Majima tried keeping his expression as calm and friendly as possible. He’d done this act before, had lived the life of perfect customer service, he could manage two strangers.
“Excuse me, I couldn’t help but notice you were talkin’ about a bar,” he began, and one of the guys narrowed his eyes at him.
“And? What’s it to you?” he asked, immediately on the defensive. Understandable, it’s not everyday a dude with one eye asked them about a bar.
“I’m visitin’ fer a few days and need some decent drink. Sounds like you think highly of this place, would ya mind tellin’ me where it is?” Majima answered, and he noticed the two men visibly relax.
“Oh sure! Here, I’ll write the address down for you,” the other guy responded as he grabbed a napkin, pulling a pen out of his breast pocket and hastily scribbling down the address. He passed it over to Majima, who immediately typed it onto his phone’s sat-nav.
“Thanks a lot! Hope you enjoy yer meal!” Majima responded, waving them off as he left the establishment.
Well he at least had something to do for the rest of the evening.
***
Majima hadn’t realised how far out the bar actually was until he was about halfway through his walk, and so when he finally found the place all he wanted was a damn drink and a chance to sit down and relax. The walk was at least pleasant, the weather in the city was reasonably warm and the greenery made the place feel less industrial than it was. It also felt good to be able to walk from point A to B without being accosted by either thugs or people wanting him to check out a club’s sexy girls.
Squinting up at the bar, Majima double checked the sign to make sure he was actually in the right place. It had the same aesthetic that Bacchus had had before the ownership change, which could not have been a coincidence, but Majima was too tired to really think about that so pushed open the door. There was a soft jingle of a bell above, and a few other people were already sitting around various tables. Quiet jazz music played from an overhead speaker nearby, and the dim, atmospheric lighting was somewhat comfortable. As he made his way to one of the bar stools, Majima noticed that the barkeep didn’t seem to be there, but there was a small note written near a bell that told him to ding it for service. He frowned at how familiar the writing seemed to be, a strange feeling settling in his stomach before he dinged the bell.
“Coming!” came a voice from a nearby backroom, and that feeling in Majima’s gut only got worse. That voice sounded eerily similar to Kiryu’s, deep and smooth. But Kiryu was dead, he couldn’t be here in this random bar that just happened to be named after a place in Kamurocho.
Majima brushed the feeling away as him simply being tired. Kiryu wasn’t the only Japanese guy with a deep voice anyway, he was just imagining things.
He couldn’t imagine the person that walked out of the backroom though.
Majima’s heart stopped in his chest the moment he looked up at the barkeep. Gone was the iconic grey suit, replaced by a simple shirt and black trousers, with a matching apron over the top. His hair was starting to become speckled with grey and the lines on his face were starting to show but the man that walked out was no doubt Kiryu Kazuma.
Kiryu fucking Kazuma who was meant to be fucking dead was right fucking there!
Their eyes locked and Kiryu stopped in place, his eyes going wide. Majima’s heart had at least started again but this time it was hammering away, sweat beading at the back of his neck. He had to be dreaming. Kiryu had died, he’d been cremated and his ashes were stored in the urn by his gravestone. Sure nobody had seen the body, only one other person, but why the fuck would they lie about someone like Kiryu dying?! Blunt nails dug into Majima’s forearm as he tried so hard to wake up from whatever sick, twisted dream this was, but the sharp sting couldn’t lie.
This was not a dream.
Majima wanted to say something, anything, but the words were clogged up in his throat and instead he opened his mouth looking like an idiot. A second went by, which felt like an eternity, trying to discern what Kiryu was feeling because what Majima felt was so tumultuous that for a second he just wanted to storm out and forget this ever happened. He knew he couldn’t though, the aching in his chest that he’d learnt to deal with would just reopen tenfold knowing that Kiryu was alive and that his death had been an entire lie. He was angry, but also happy, and the feelings warred in body.
“Good evening, what can I get for you?” Kiryu asked, acting like Majima was a normal customer and not the only man in this entire damn bar who knew he was the Dragon of Dojima and he was supposed to be dead.
“Whiskey…” Majima answered, fingers digging into the top of the bar. He wanted to punch Kiryu, he wanted to cry, he wanted to hold onto Kiryu for dear life and beg for him to never leave again because he couldn’t deal with a man so important in his life abandoning him once again.
Instead he just sat there, watching Kiryu move around the bar, so familiar with the place that he must have been at this job for quite some time whilst Kamurocho had been mourning. Of course they eventually stopped, most of the people there were mourning a legend, not a person, but Daigo, Saejima, Haruka, the orphans Kiryu knew and loved, they never stopped mourning. When Kiryu passed him his drink, the two met eyes for a second and Majima could see that Kiryu’s eyes that once held a fire and a passion rivalled by none, were now full of sadness.
The anger that Majima was feeling suddenly melted into pity, into sympathy, heck even into empathy, because he realised that this was probably a worse fate to Kiryu than actually being dead. He had people he wanted to see again that he couldn’t for whatever reason.
“So, what brings you here?” Kiryu asked, cleaning out some glasses. The sleeves of his shirt were pulled up to show off his muscular forearms and if this was any normal situation Majima would take the time to appreciate that Kiryu’s body still looked to be somewhat strong.
“Just work related things K- barkeep…” Majima responded, taking a sip of his whiskey to hide his fuck up. He at least had to give it to Kiryu, he’d picked a good type of whiskey.
“Suzuki. Taichi Suzuki,” Kiryu responded, giving him a small smile that just cut straight to Majima’s core. He’d never heard a more fake name in his life.
“My apologies, Suzuki-san.”
“Ah, no need for formalities here. Just call me Suzuki.”
Majima fell uncharacteristically silent after that, and Kiryu wasn’t dumb enough to figure out that he was the reason. Instead, he turned his back to Majima, doing something the other couldn’t make out from where he was before turning back around and moving away from the bar. Majima watched him with his good eye, grateful he stepped around his non-blind side, watching him subtly slip a piece of paper onto his lap as he made his way to the other patrons of the bar to chat to them and collect their empty glasses. Majima stared down at the paper on his lap, setting his drink down. He hadn’t noticed his hands were shaking until he started to open the note.
“Stay until closing time. I’ll close early tonight.”
An audible sigh left Majima’s lips and he scrunched the paper up, putting it onto the counter whilst he nursed his drink. He couldn’t make out what Kiryu was saying to the people sitting at the table but the laugh from him was both comforting and heart-wrenching at the same time. He remembered a time when he’d made Kiryu laugh like that, cherished in the sound in fact. Those days felt so foreign to him now, like they were fake memories he’d conjured up even though they were very much real.
Nothing made sense anymore.
A few hours passed as Kiryu walked about the place, sometimes refilling Majima's glass, not even asking for payment. Majima didn't know how to feel about that, he was still wrapping his head around the whole concept of Kiryu being alive. Eventually the bar cleared out, and Kiryu locked the front door around six in the evening. No one had commented on Majima not moving since he'd arrived, and he appreciated that. Now, however, it was just him and Kiryu.
"Majima, I-" Kiryu began to say.
Majima didn't want to hear his apologies. Without hesitating he got up and walked over to Kiryu, bringing his hand back before slapping him around the face. It wasn't hard enough to mark but it forced Kiryu's head to jerk to the side. In an odd moment of deja vu, Kiryu didn't react, he just turned to face Majima again.
"Okay I deserved that," Kiryu responded, his tone of voice joking but his eyes still looking so damn sad.
"Fuck you!" Majima spat, his emotions boiling together inside him.
"Listen, I can explain-"
"I don't want no fuckin' explanation, Kiryu-chan! I mourned for you. I'm still mournin' for you!" Majima's voice was rising but he didn't care. "I kept losin' what was most important to me and then you went and died!"
Kiryu, for his part, said nothing and just let Majima's emotions run wild.
"Ten years without ya was more than enough. You don't realise how much ya mean to me… to Daigo, to Haruka…"
"Stop it," Kiryu finally said. "You don't know half of what happened."
"Of course I don't I was in fuckin' prison and when I came out you were dead!"
"To protect Haruka and her child! And to protect the rest of my family!" Kiryu suddenly spat back, eyes ablaze with anger.
That stopped Majima in his tracks before he started to laugh, making Kiryu frown.
"What's so funny?" He asked Majima.
"That's so like ya, Kiryu-chan. You do shit like this 'cause ya wanna protect yer loved ones but deep down it hurts and you wish you could be with them again."
Kiryu's gaze became unreadable and Majima realised that he'd hit a nerve.
"You of all people should know what it's like to sacrifice your own happiness for the ones you love…" Kiryu spoke up, his voice heavy with emotion. It completely floored Majima, made him realise what an idiot he'd been. Kiryu didn't need his scorn and contempt, he needed company. The people he loved.
"Kiryu-chan I…"
"Are you done? Or are you going to leave?" Kiryu asked.
Majima was not having any of that. He couldn’t just let Kiryu push him away like that, and without even thinking about what he was doing, he walked over and wrapped his arms around Kiryu. Kiryu stiffened up, obviously not used to such physical contact, but it seemed Majima’s touch was enough to break the walls that had been around Kiryu since he had taken on this fake persona. Those strong arms that used to grab Majima only to throw him like some sort of used rag were now clinging to him, as if Kiryu was afraid that Majima was going to float away. It broke Majima’s damn heart.
“Can you stay the night?” Kiryu mumbled, head pressed between the juncture of his neck and shoulder.
Majima sighed, wishing he wasn’t so hopeless around Kiryu but being with the man again after all those months thinking he would never see his face… He couldn’t say no.
“I got a hotel room booked for the night but sure. I’ll stay.” It took a second for Majima to process what he’d said, idly stroking Kiryu’s hair. “You live here?”
“There’s an apartment upstairs. Came with the place…”
“Sounds like a good deal,” Majima joked weakly, moving his head a little so he could press a gentle kiss to the top of Kiryu’s head. If Kiryu noticed, he didn’t say a thing, but he did tighten his hold minutely.
Eventually Kiryu calmed down enough to pull away from Majima, although immediately afterwards Majima wanted to drag him back. However they had to act like the adults they were and talk about things. Kiryu had stuff to explain, Majima had a confession he needed to make that he never got the chance to because Kiryu died.
“You’ll explain what happened, right?” Majima asked, watching as Kiryu did the final preparations for closing up, following him towards the back to the bar where a sign that said “No Entry: Employees Only” was hung up. Kiryu pushed that door open to reveal a set of stairs that the two climbed.
“On one condition,” Kiryu responded. “Don’t tell Daigo and Saejima or anybody else that I’m here.”
Majima guessed that Kiryu would soon explain why exactly he didn’t want anybody to know he was there, but he still couldn’t help but feel sorry for the entire orphanage had he’d left behind. All those kids, being supported through not so anonymous funding anymore by Majima.
“I won’t but… Kiryu-chan, they all miss ya.”
“I know. Everyday I know they miss me.” Kiryu’s voice sounded thick with emotion as they reached the top of the stairs and went through another door into a small but somewhat comfortable looking apartment.
A majority of the place was taken up by the joint kitchen and living room type area, various knick-knacks that Kiryu had obviously acquired over the years lining shelving around the room. A small set of drawers got Majima’s attention, and he wandered over to find a set of framed pictures sitting atop the wooden surface. Most of them were of the orphanage children, especially Haruka, but there was one that made Majima’s heart clench as he picked it up.
“You really kept these, huh?” Majima asked, touching his fingers to the glass protection on the frame. The frame consisted of various pictures, all featuring Kiryu and Majima together. Some were stupid selfies that Majima had stolen Kiryu’s phone to take, others were from the photo booth in the arcade. When he looked at the pictures, every memory they were from resurfaced to the front of his mind. He had thought they were of no sentimental value to Kiryu, but obviously he was beginning to realise he didn’t know the former Dragon of Dojima as well as he said he did.
“Of course I kept them. They… They mean a lot to me,” Kiryu answered, so sincerely that Majima wanted to cry.
Majima’s heart clenched as he looked at all the other things Kiryu had collected, drawings the kids had done, or little arcade toys that were started to fray around the edges from old age and wear. Mementos of a life that Kiryu couldn’t go back to.
“Yer gonna have to explain everythin’, Kiryu-chan,” Majima spoke up after a few minutes of awkward, tense silence. He couldn’t keep being in the dark, he had to know why Kiryu suddenly “died”.
So, Kiryu sat Majima down on the couch and told him everything. All that had happened to him whilst Majima had been stuck in prison, unable to help the man that mattered most to him. He felt his hands balling up into fists of rage, anger at the people who drove Kiryu to such lengths, who wanted to kill a damn baby because of some bullshit like bloodlines. But the real icing on the shit cake that was this entire story was the person who drove Kiryu to such lengths, who thought getting Kiryu to comply when all he wanted was to just live a peaceful life was a good thing. The bastards that drove Kiryu to pretending to die just so they could leave his family out it; they all deserved to meet the end of his bat with full force.
“I’m gonna kill ‘em all…” Majima spat when Kiryu finally finished recounting the events of the last few months, venom lacing his words.
“Majima…” Kiryu’s voice warned him, but all Majima could see was red.
“No, Kiryu-chan, I want my bat to meet their faces!”
“Majima, most of them are either dead or in prison. You can’t do anything to change what has already been done,” Kiryu explained, reaching out and placing a hand on his leg.
“But what can I do to help?” Majima asked, his voice breaking as he looked at Kiryu. He couldn’t live knowing that Kiryu was alive but unable to live the life he deserved.
“Nothing. You do nothing and that will be more than enough,” Kiryu answered, his voice calm.
“Kiryu-chan-”
“I mean it, Majima. Don’t tell anyone I’m here, not even Haruka. If they find out I’m here, then I’ll be just drawing danger to them. Haruka deserves to live the life she wants without worry.”
Majima hated that Kiryu was making sense, but still something about the entire story didn’t sit right with Majima.
“You could have told that government guy to just leave you and Haruka in peace. Why did you pick the option to die?”
Kiryu sighed, and in that moment he just looked tired. “I couldn’t risk it. And I didn’t want to be a pawn in their dumb game. Killing a legend was the best course of action, that way my legacy dies with it, and only the people who are important to me remember it,” Kiryu explained and for once he’d thought things through.
And for once, Majima absolutely hated it.
Instead of saying anything, however, Majima just nodded and fell silent, unsure of what to say or do now that he knew everything. He was still burning with rage inside, but Kiryu had made it clear that he didn’t want Majima to meddle with this issue. He’d made his bed and now he would lie in it for the rest of his life.
“I’m tired and it’s getting late… You need to be up early tomorrow, don’t you?” Kiryu suddenly said, getting up and stretching with a groan. He realised he’d still had the apron tied around his waist and flushed as he took it off, hanging it up by the door.
“You're not going to eat?” Majima asked, looking over at Kiryu.
“Not that hungry. I think I’m still shocked over you visiting my bar by complete chance,” Kiryu answered, flashing Majima a small smile. It didn’t reach his eyes.
Majima got up and made his way over to Kiryu, taking one of his hands and squeezing it gently. “Don’t hurt yerself. I won’t let you suffer alone now.”
Kiryu gave Majima a look that he couldn’t fully understand the meaning of before leading him to the one room in the entire apartment. Majima had to hide his shiver of delight at the thought of, hopefully, sharing a bed with Kiryu. He’d missed his warmth a lot more than he’d realised.
“Sorry, it's only the one bed… Otherwise I’d suggest you sleep on the couch but that’s tiny and-”
“Kiryu-chan, it’s okay. We’ve shared a bed before, or have you forgotten that in yer old age?” Majima teased.
Kiryu gave him an unbelievably sincere look that made Majima shudder involuntarily. “I can’t ever forget those moments.”
Majima realised then and there would have been the perfect time to really bring up exactly what the two of them were. They’d slept together more than once, in fact they did it a lot when Kiryu had just come out of prison, but Majima had always felt something more towards Kiryu, something that he couldn’t really explain. It was something akin to love, but he always shied away from the concept of loving anyone. Love just got you hurt, it would have done so if he’d said he loved Kiryu. So he just kept that feeling to himself, chose to ignore it and just pretend that Kiryu was an incredibly close friend instead. Here, in Kiryu’s small bedroom, with the evening light shining through the window making Kiryu’s face look downright breathtaking, Majima could have told Kiryu that he loved him.
Instead he chose not to, like a weak, scared fool. Because that’s exactly what he was. Too weak and too scared to face the damn truth.
“Hey, you okay?” Kiryu asked, breaking him from his thoughts.
“Ah, sorry. Just got distracted…” Majima lied and by the look on his face, Kiryu didn’t believe him. He chose not to respond, however, passing a pair of sweatpants his way.
“I said you can sleep in these for tonight. Since your stuff is at your hotel.”
“Oh, right… Thanks.”
Majima tried not to stare as Kiryu got dressed but it was hard not to, watching his clothing reveal a body that, even pushing on fifty, made Kiryu look downright beautiful. The muscles weren’t as defined, sure, but they were still there, that raw power still hiding underneath. The dragon on Kiryu’s back was fading, the once vibrant colours now dull and muted. Like the man they were tied to. Once such a foreboding figure of the Yakuza, now just a memory.
Majima tore his eye away before he got too distracted, changing out of his suit and into the sweatpants that Kiryu had given him. They were a bit too big and ended up riding low on his hips, but Majima didn’t care as he finally climbed into bed. A soft sigh escaped his lips, the other side of the bed dipping down as Kiryu got in.
“It’s going to be weird waking up with you in the morning,” Kiryu commented as he settled down, moving his arm a little. Majima knew that action, scooting up so his face was pressed into Kiryu’s chest. “You won’t leave in the morning, will you?”
Majima’s heart clenched, remembering a time when that was habit, when waking up with Kiryu was too domestic, and when Kiryu would wake up to an empty hotel room.
“I won’t. I promise,” Majima answered, voice muffled somewhat as he nuzzled against Kiryu’s bare skin. He felt those strong arms wrap around him and slowly run up and down his back, tracing the scars that littered his body. Like this, it didn’t take long for sleep to take him.
***
Majima woke up in the early hours of the morning to quiet, almost muffled sobbing. At first he thought this was a strange case of sleep paralysis, or a nightmare, or something where he was still actually asleep, but it quickly dawned on him that the source of the noise was coming from Kiryu…
Kiryu!
Kiryu’s back was to him, his shoulders shaking from the barely contained sobbing. Majima’s heart lurched as he reached out, wrapping an arm around his middle and pressing his forehead right between Kiryu’s shoulder blades.
“Shh… I’m here Kiryu-chan. I’m here…”
Nightmares were few and far between for Kiryu, unlike Majima. He wasn’t sure if that was a cause of repressed guilt and emotional turmoil, or something else he didn’t know about, but Majima could count the amount of times he’d experienced one of Kiryu’s nightmares on just one hand.
He felt Kiryu turn around and he almost broke himself when he saw Kiryu’s tear streaked face in the low light of the morning. Kiryu immediately clung to him, his entire body shaking, his skin clammy with sweat. The shudders felt more like violent convulsions, coming to him in waves that made him choke on whatever sob he was trying to get out. It hurt to see Kiryu like this, it hurt more to think that he’d been experiencing these often with nobody around to help him. Just like usual, Kiryu was hurting and instead of asking for help, he powered on. Majima was going to change that. He was not allowing Kiryu to suffer alone any longer.
“I got you… I’m here, I’m not gonna leave,” Majima whispered, eventually just saying sweet nothings into Kiryu’s ear to help calm him down. His hands ran up and down Kiryu’s body, giving him that touch, that grounding, he knew Kiryu desperately needed.
Slowly Kiryu started to calm down, his shaking subsiding alongside the sobbing. When he looked up, having thoroughly soaked Majima’s bare skin with his tears (not that Majima cared), the red rimmed eyes felt like a stab to Majima’s heart.
“I’m sorry…” Kiryu spoke out, his voice so small. It felt like a completely different person was talking to Majima, not the once famed and feared Dragon of Dojima.
“Don’t apologise, you ain’t done anythin’ wrong,” Majima answered, stroking Kiryu’s cheek. He could understand why Kiryu was apologising, nobody liked being woken up. He’d hated it when he had woken Kiryu up with his own nightmares, but Kiryu had been nothing but understanding about it. Kiryu deserved that same love and care, and Majima would give it to him.
“It feels weird waking up to one of those nightmares and having help,” Kiryu spoke up again after a while of silence, where Majima had just been rubbing circles into Kiryu’s back.
“You’ve had them often?” Majima asked, feeling Kiryu nod. He sighed heavily, pressing a kiss to Kiryu’s forehead. “Try to get back to sleep. I’ll be here, I promise.”
***
Kiryu slept well afterwards, however Majima found it hard to get back to sleep properly after that sudden awakening and so spent most of the time until his alarm was set to go off just watching Kiryu sleep. His head hadn’t moved from where he’d rested it against Majima’s chest, his breathing deep and even. There was still a tinge of red around his eyes, but for the most part it was as if the nightmare hadn’t even happened. Majima was at least somewhat grateful that Kiryu could get some more rest.
When he finally awoke to the sound of Majima’s alarm, Kiryu looked a little startled and Majima couldn’t help but smile. He reached to turn his alarm off, watching as Kiryu slowly sat up, looking a lot more tired than usual.
“Sorry, I gotta go meet this person for Daigo,” Majima said, explaining why he’d set an alarm. Kiryu just nodded, still slightly waking up.
“Are you okay?” Majima asked after a small moment of silence.
“Hm? O-oh yeah… I’m fine…” Kiryu responded, looking ashamed for what happened last night. Majima just smiled reassuringly, reaching out and squeezing his hand.
“Don’t worry. I wish I could stay around for a bit longer, but I really gotta go back to my hotel room.”
Kiryu looked up and the look took Majima’s breath away. He seemed so hopeful that, for a second, Majima was thinking of just saying fuck it to everything and staying with Kiryu for the rest of his damn life.
“Will you come back afterwards?” Kiryu asked.
“Of course I will,” Majima answered, fighting the urge to lean forward to kiss his lips. Luckily it seemed Kiryu had the exact same idea and made the first move, leaning forward to kiss Majima gently. He smiled when he pulled away, butterflies forming in Majima’s stomach.
“I’ll see you tonight.”
“Y-Yeah… see ya tonight, Kiryu-chan.”
***
Luckily Majima’s meeting with this mysterious person Daigo wanted him to meet up went surprisingly well, leaving Majima feeling somewhat happier than he had been going into the meeting. And this happiness continued on when he made his way back to Kiryu’s bar, this time with his suitcase in tow. He didn’t plan to sleep back at his hotel for the rest of his trip.
The rest of his trip itself was spent mostly with Kiryu, learning the ropes of looking after a bar. During their moments alone, Kiryu explained why he’d opened a bar, to keep himself from both growing bored and as a way to interact with people and learn more about lives outside of the people of Kamurocho. He’d always liked helping people and his time in Onomichi had given him a chance to speak to the local townsfolk, something he’d found himself growing fond of and wishing to continue. He also explained the name of the bar, calling it New Bacchus as Bacchus was the name of the bar where Kiryu had first met Haruka. It was just like him to give it a sentimental name. When other patrons were at the bar, they made up this pretend backstory for how they knew one another and managed to convincingly play it up for the most part, and it seemed that Kiryu enjoyed having Majima there.
Majima realised, when his trip started to get closer to ending, that he didn’t want to leave.
“You’re going back to Kamurocho tomorrow night, aren’t you?” Kiryu asked one evening after the bar had been closed. Majima was wiping down the bar as Kiryu washed and dried glasses.
“Yeah. At first I couldn’t be happier to go back but now… I dunno.”
Kiryu made a confused noise, prompting Majima to continue. He dropped the cloth onto the bar and sighed as he leaned against it.
“I’m almost fifty fuckin’ three years old, Kiryu-chan. When I wake up in the mornin’, I suddenly realise that my body’s getting old. The stuff I could do with ease a few years back takes effort now,” Majima explained, wondering if that was one of the reasons why Kiryu kept going back to Okinawa. The children and the chance to just slow down seemed much more appealing to Majima now than they had back when Kiryu first left.
“You’re growing tired of the lifestyle, aren’t you?” Kiryu asked, oddly perceptive for once. Maybe in his old age he was becoming easier to read, opening up to Kiryu in ways he’d never done before.
“Saejima finally came back, I should be fuckin’ over the moon! But now I just feel tired…”
“Being told your friend died won’t make things any easier, you know. Did you even stop to mourn me properly?” Kiryu asked, reminding Majima of the pain he’d had to deal with and push through for his own stupid pride.
“Alright ya got me there. But… Kiryu-chan, I-” Majima cut himself off, looking up at Kiryu who had an eyebrow raised. Suddenly all those feelings that were unspoken between the two, the loyalty and desire to protect and help Kiryu, the severe heartbreak at his supposed death, they all made a lot more sense now. Spending time with him without worrying about the lifestyle breaking the peace had made him come to terms with how he actually felt.
“Oh fuck,” was all Majima could say.
“Majima? Are you okay?” Kiryu said, coming over to make sure he hadn’t hurt himself. Majima looked into his eyes, those warm, deep brown eyes that were so damn beautiful in that moment, and he realised that he was well and truly fucked.
And for once, Majima was done with hiding away. Because he’d never gotten to tell Kiryu how he’d truly felt before Kiryu had “died” and now Kiryu was back it was like this bar was some sort of bar of fate, designed to bring the two back together so Majima could finally stop running.
“No. No I’m not okay,” Majima answered, and Kiryu’s worried expression only worsened.
“Majima? Are you hurt, do you need me to-”
Kiryu was cut off by Majima dragging him forward by his shirt to press their lips together insistently. He could feel Kiryu stiffen up for a second or so before he relaxed and wrapped his arms around Majima’s waist, practically diving into the kiss the moment he felt Majima was close enough. Majima melted into his embrace, his arms looping around Kiryu’s neck, sighing softly the moment Kiryu opened his mouth enough for him to press his tongue in.
“You still haven’t told me what’s wrong,” Kiryu muttered against Majima’s lips as they stopped for breath.
“Oh I thought the kiss would be enough to explain,” Majima answered, pressing their foreheads together.
“It explained nothing. Stop being cryptic.”
Majima sighed when he realised that he couldn’t escape from telling Kiryu how he felt.
“I think, Kazuma, that I might be in love with you. And that terrifies me,” Majima finally confessed, his voice so small and fragile. He couldn’t look Kiryu in the eye, but he could feel the other man stiffen underneath his touch. He was ready for the rejection, for Kiryu to tell him that he was stupid and that he shouldn’t waste his time because it would only end in heartbreak again. Besides, he couldn’t love a dead man.
None of that came.
Instead, Majima finally got the courage to look up at Kiryu, his eyes wide with shock until their gazes met. Then he smiled, and it was the most beautiful smile Majima had ever seen, which was saying a lot because Kiryu’s smiles always felt like the sun was shining from his teeth. When Kiryu kissed him, he really didn’t know what to feel. He wanted Kiryu to react negatively, not in this loving, understanding way. He could accept negative reactions, he’d been getting used to the concept of Kiryu rejecting him for years now, but this wasn’t rejection.
“How’re you so acceptin’?” Majima asked, not realising he was shaking until Kiryu took his hands between his and held them gently.
“Because, Goro, I think I love you too. Actually I know for a fact that I love you too,” Kiryu responded and Majima definitely didn’t know how to react now.
Kiryu loved him? The feelings he’d realised he’d harboured for years were suddenly being reciprocated?
“How come you're not terrified?” Majima asked, wishing he could get a grip on his emotions but unable to.
“I’ve spent years being terrified, and I’ve spent years running away. But I think it’s finally time I came to terms with these feelings, especially now that you know I’m not a dead man,” Kiryu answered, his tone of voice so sincere that Majima would have been knocked off his feet if Kiryu wasn’t holding onto him.
“But-”
“Majima, what do you want right at this moment?” Kiryu asked him, and Majima had to stifle his gasp.
“I want… I wanna be with you forever.”
“And?”
“And I’m tired of bein’ scared of my feelings. I want to be happy again, with you. Kiryu-chan, these last few days have been some of the best, I don’t think I can go back to Kamurocho and be the same,” Majima confessed, feeling like a weight that had gradually been dragging him down was finally being lifted.
“You’re tired of the Yakuza lifestyle, and you want to retire,” Kiryu responded, always the calm, collected voice of reason for Majima.
“But Saejima and Daigo-”
“I think they’d understand. It’s probably why you were sent here in the first place, to get a break from Kamurocho, from that lifestyle. You’ve done so much for the Tojo Clan, now you deserve a break.”
Majima wanted to cry, having never heard someone say to him that he deserved a break, especially someone with a legacy such as Kiryu’s. But that was because Kiryu understood that tiredness that had seeped into his bones, it was why he hated to be brought back into the mess of the Tojo Clan when all he wanted was a break from it all.
“Yer right, I’m too tired for this bullshit,” Majima muttered, pressing his forehead against Kiryu’s chest.
“Then do you want to live with me? I could use the company,” Kiryu asked.
“I’d love nothin’ more,” Majima responded, lifting his head up to smile at Kiryu.
***
“Hey Majima, could you pass me that bottle of whiskey?” Kiryu asked as the two bustled around behind the bar, taking orders with practised ease and precision. Majima passed the glass, smiling as one of their regulars continued on with his story about how boring work had been. A long time ago it would have bored the fuck out of him to hear this story, but Majima was a changed man, appreciating the “retired” life.
Okay so like Kiryu, Majima wasn’t actually fully retired, but he’d given up his position when he’d gone back to Kamurocho, explaining that the change of scenery had done wonders for his mind and made him realise that he couldn’t live the rest of his life like that. Daigo and Saejima had understood, but Majima had said that if ever they needed some extra man power, he would try his hardest to help. He couldn’t abandon his brother like that, not after everything they had been through together.
Due to Kiryu not telling them he was still alive, Majima couldn’t exactly tell them where he’d retired, but they accepted that and for now hadn’t really bothered him. He could finally fully relax, focusing only on keeping the bar running and not worrying about stupid in fighting in the Tojo Clan.
It had been at least three months since his retirement and working with the bar had grown on him a lot. He’d started out just doing simple jobs, letting Kiryu handle most of the work, but eventually he’d grown bored of leaving everything to Kiryu and together they’d started to share the workload. They worked well with one another, just like they had when Kiryu had been foreman of Majima Construction. Sometimes he thought about the concept of Kiryu having stayed to work with him, but maybe things were better off the way they had gone.
For now though, Majima was happy. He was happy and working alongside a man he loved, and nothing could be better in his life. It just took a random bar that had peaked his interest to change his life for the better.