Connections

To love a lifetime

Kojiro POV
Life was different over the next month and a half. Miya and I moved out of the hotel. We were living with Kaoru in his little apartment over his business. Miya worked on his painting, often getting pointers from the calligrapher. I hired a moving company to get Miya and my things from the last place we had a home. Currently I placed them in storage here.
As I healed, I got the restaurant ready. Langa and Reki were a huge help, as was their friend Shadow. It seemed we couldn't get away from them. Reki reminded me of Kaoru. Always on the go, never sitting still for long. He loved skateboarding, and everything to do with it. Listening to the teen talk was amazing. I heard around town, how people became annoyed with his loud mouth or hyper ways. I took it just to be the kid.
He was a great kid, a fantastic older brother to Miya. If Reki wasn't working his job at Dope Sketch or building a board for someone, he was at the restaurant. He didn't mind cleaning, or moving large things for me. If he wasn't doing that, he was with Miya or Langa. I often watched as he looked on to some trick Miya was doing. I would see the redhead try to copy it. A few times I gave him pointers.
Then there was Langa. A quiet kid in love with his boyfriend, whom I found out had been his best friend first. He did what Reki asked. He was happy as long as the red-haired teen was near him. The way he acted reminded me of myself. He wasn't afraid of hard work. I would often make him food to take home for his mother, or pay him what I could. I had heard about his father and how he was trying to help his mom with finances.
One day we were all sitting together eating lunch with Reki staring into space, or so I thought. Miya was showing Langa something on his phone. Kaoru was looking up his invoice payments. I just enjoyed watching over them.
"Joe..." Reki asked. He refused to call me anything but my S name. It didn't bother me.
"Yeah?" I asked him.
"What do you plan on naming this place?" He asked looking up above the kitchen area. I had picked out a name for my restaurant a long time ago. Now that he asked, I saw Langa look over to me. Miya snorted, Kaoru glanced up, he put his phone away.
"Sia La Luce." I told the teen "It means ...."
"Let there be light." Pinky whispered. I smiled at him.
"Yes. There should always be light in the world." I looked to Miya. He didn't know I picked the name the day I met him. This kid had been so full of light, laughter and love even after such tragedies in his young life. He deserved light.
Before I could stop him, Kaoru hopped up on the counter. Where he got the brush and paint from so swiftly, I didn't know. Maybe he hid it in his clothing? I smirked as I watched him use his phenomenal skill in his chosen field to paint the name of the restaurant, in gold, above us all.
As he sat back down, hanging his head, hiding behind his fan. "You are all my light." He whispered. Yet, we all heard him. He was swiftly mobbed by us all hugging him. His laugh was music to my soul.
That night as I laid in bed, on my back, with his head on my shoulder, I drew my fingers through his hair. "We should buy a house." I stated.
"Why we have a place above each of our businesses?" He stated.
"I want to give Miya a proper home. I want you to have a proper home. Since I didn't need to use the money to actually buy a building for the restaurant, I have some left. I want us to be a family." I kissed the top of his head.
"We should stick the little kitten on it tomorrow, then." Kaoru responded. I smiled. Yeah, we should.
When we told Miya he was thrilled. He wanted a backyard but then couldn't decided if it should have a skate half pipe or a swimming pool in it. As we ate breakfast, Miya created a list. We each told him what we wanted in a home. One thing I was adamant about, Kaoru nor I would bring our work home.
"So, your not going to cook for us?" Miya asked. I laughed.
"That's not what I mean. I not going to have receipts or accounting or inventory crap strewn around." I told him. "I still want a big kitchen to cook in." He looked relieved. I ruffled his hair. Kaoru came over to kiss me.
"Don't worry us like that, gorilla." He muttered as he took care of his dishes.
"Um, I uh, was wondering..." Miya had sat back in his chair. He was fiddling with the pen in his hand. Head down he looked so small.
"What is it, Kitten?" Kaoru asked. I saw a tiny smirk on the boy's lips.
"When you get married, are you going to have more kids?" He mumbled. I smirked.
"I don't know about Kaoru, but I think three is plenty." I stated. Miya looked up.
"You want two more?" He looked hurt.
"No, we have three already." Kaoru stated. Miya looked confused.
"You, and Renga!" I told him. Miya just about fell off of his seat laughing when I said the ship name, I had been calling them for some time now, mind you it was only in my own head.
"Dad! That's too funny. I gotta tell them." He chuckled snatching his phone.
"We should have an extra room for them." I said to Kaoru.
"Let's get a place with a basement. We could renovate that into an apartment for them." He suggested. I loved the idea. We added it to Miya's list.
Miya started school, an event that was always difficult for him. This time, it wasn't so bad. Reki came by to pick him up in the morning. They met Langa on the way. With those two looking out for him, my little boy was doing wonderfully. He was a bright child. It was nice watching him come out of his shell.
The days passed. The nights grew amazing. Making love to my best friend, my soul was the best thing to ever happen. The first time was when Reki decided to take Miya camping. They would be gone all weekend. Langa was coming as well. Shadow surprised us all by stating he would supervise.
That night I waited until Kaoru put his project away. I brought him tea. Kissing the back of his neck, I slipped my arm around his waist.
"All alone, whatever shall we do?" I teased as I kissed his neck and collar bone. Nipping at the tender flesh, I moved my hand lower. I wasn't sure which one of us was more surprised. Him at having me be so forward and touch him like this. Or me, for realizing he was fully erect. I was still on crutches and couldn't carry him to the bedroom as I hoped, yet we still got there. Wrapped in each other's arms, our clothing flying off. The heated touch of his body turning me on.
The feel of him as he engulfed me in the wet dark chasm of his mouth. How tight he was as I finally, got to enter him. The way he arched, moaned and cried my name over and over again, had me nearly rampaging with greed for how much I wanted him.
He rode on top of me to protect my ankle. There were many ways this could happen. That weekend we explored every single one of them. It was heavenly. I was a little sad when we were resting, he asked if that had been my first time.
"With a man, yes. I did have sex with a few women." I told him. He propped his head up on his hands, they were over my heart, he looked down at me.
"Do you see yourself as bisexual, then?" He asked. I smiled.
"Yes, but I have only truly loved you." I stroked his face. We kissed, then he lowered his head. Laying it on my chest, he ran his fingers in patterns over my stomach.
"I want to be honest with you, but I don't want you to hate me." He whispered.
"I have known you my entire life. There is nothing you can say or do to make me hate you." I told him.
"Adam was my first." He whispered. I kissed the top of his head, then brought his face up to look into his warm golden eyes.
"Thank you for telling me, but I figured that out a long time ago." I told him. "Yeah, it hurt a bit, but life has a way of making us do stupid things. I hold nothing against you for it." He cried then, bending to kiss me. I held him, stroking his hair as he cried himself to sleep beside me. My love, now my lover, why would you think it mattered.
Opening night of Sia La Luce came. We did a soft opening for only our friends and family. I wanted to cook for everyone. Langa and Reki were our hosts. Miya danced around talking to people at each table. Making them laugh and showering them with happy smiles. Kaoru sat near the bar. He watched me as I worked.
As the night came to a close, I served my helpers last. The wait staff and busboys came over to eat as well. I moved to stand before everyone. I was off of the crutches, had been for a few weeks. The restaurant didn't look much like it had in the time that the Shindo family had it.
Gone was the white and golden theme. This looked to elegant and majestic for what I wanted. I made the restaurant warmer, cozier. This was a place for families. Langa's mother sat beside him smiling happily at us all. Her date looked thrilled to be there as well. Langa said the guy was an old high school flame.
Reki sat with his mother and siblings. The twins climbing over their older brother as if he were a jungle gym. It was obvious the boy loved it. He held them firmly and gently. Shadow sat with his date, the manager of his flower shop. They had donated the flowers for tonight. Miya was beside Kaoru as I came out of the kitchen to address them all.
"Tonight, was a special event for me. I have always dreamed of having my own restaurant. I want to thank you all in sharing that dream with me." I reached into my pants pocket. My fingers curling around the gift there.
"I have had another dream. One that I had much, much longer than my desire for a restaurant. I have always dreamed of a family of my own. My son Miya has helped fulfill that dream. He is the greatest thing to have entered my life while I was away. I love him as if he were my own flesh and blood. He makes me proud whenever he calls me dad." The boy was blushing. I smiled.
"Yet, my dream of a family cannot be completed with out the most important person in my life. It took me far too long to do this." I walked over to Kaoru. Kneeling before him, I pulled the box from my pocket.
"Without you, I don't have a life. You have been there for it all, even when we were apart. I love you with all my heart and soul, will you honor me and become my husband?" I opened the box. "Please, Marry me Kaoru Sakurayashiki." I whispered.
He fanned at his face, but the tears still seeped down his glowing cheeks.
"Yes, you stupid gorilla!" He cried swatting me lightly on the head with his fan, before falling into my arms. We kissed as our family cheered for us. I slipped the silver and blue band onto his ring finger, while we kissed over and over again. Until Miya demanded the cake, that is.