Sincerely Yours || ScorpionxSub-Zero [MK11]

Smitten

—
The Fire Gardens. Hanzo's favorite place. He'd always admired this place for a long time. He never missed a beat to such a beautiful place. A beautiful place where... he and Kuai Liang... shared a kiss.

He used to come here to meditate, drink tea in the morning, and train. Even more importantly, he used to bring his wife here on nights that he had free time from the clan. They would sit and drink fine wine together and eat lovely treats that they cooked together. He would sometimes even cuddle her under the night sky before they cuddled in bed. They even kissed in this place.

Today? He was sitting here with one man as he slowly figured things out.

It was nighttime and Hanzo had made tea for the both of them to have. Kuai Liang had stayed a bit since he was so kind to heal him of his concussion.

Concussion. When Kuai Liang told him what happened, he was in disbelief. Liu Kang a fire god? Now the keeper of time with Kitana? He crafted time and told them what happened and how they all got there. He put all the pieces into place. But he missed one thing.

How Kuai and Hanzo ended up having feelings for each other. Apparently they had at least been romantically involved for half a year? It was quite the conundrum. It had to be the time anomaly and how they all came back after the fight. How Kuai explained it was that, through time and understanding, he'd come to accept the fact that his feelings DID matter and he was in love with Hanzo.

Hanzo was... rather confused. He had never been in love with anyone besides his wife, let alone a man. He always thought himself heterosexual and a man who liked women. He'd always kept whatever urges he had, pushed aside in his mind. But perhaps he was, what modern Earthrealmers call it, a "bisexual in denial"? He'd never thought of it this way. He just might be.

He looked at Kuai Liang as a friend after their decade long rivalry. Never anything more than that. But as time passed, he became more open-minded to other things, and those urges he'd kept hidden crossed his mind more often.

Nights he'd try to sleep, he'd be up late thinking. He'd be stressed and it would always trace back to Kuai Liang. His cute lips, his coffee-brown eyes, his raven-colored hair, and that deep, mellifluous voice that would captivate any woman, or in Hanzo's case, any man. Some nights he longed to be in his arms when he was having trouble falling asleep. Oftentimes he preferred to hold Kuai Liang.

He would hold his hand casually in public, when he could, or walk by and softly trace his fingers along his arms. He could smooth his hair out of his face and just gaze at this man, how proud he was that Kuai Liang was his. And perhaps when the night fell, when they were alone, they could share the emotions that they could not display in public.

"Thank you for having me this evening." Kuai Liang said. Hanzo had invited Kuai out for the evening. It wasn't really an invite since Kuai had already been staying there for two days. This was mainly due to the heavy losses to his clan. Once again, this time anomaly was far too complicated to explain. But they'd already been outside for hours. They were previously drinking tea and then took a walk by the small lake that ran in the Fire Gardens. Now they were just heading back.

"You're welcome. I thought we could just relax this evening together." He walked Kuai over to a mahogany table with a bench. "Wasn't there another bench here?" Kuai asked, a small smile on his face as he sat down. "Nope," replied quickly the Shirai Ryu as he sat down next to him. "I've been thinking," he started, catching Kuai Liang's attention.

"I think... I think I'm understanding what you told me." Hanzo said as he took a breath. "...You are? The time anomaly is something barely any of us can comprehend and I just—
"About us." Hanzo blurted out. He blinked before almost shrinking back. "I... I didn't mean to interrupt but now I understand what you told me." Hanzo said calmly.

"That over time I've come to understand my emotions and realize I am in love with you?" Kuai Liang asked, his eyes on Hanzo in contentment. "... Yes. I... I never thought I'd love someone besides my wife. It was... quite difficult to understand. But I understand it now. Harumi wanted me to move on and not mope constantly. I just didn't know what to do."

Under the table, Kuai's hand slowly reached for Hanzo's, holding it as he talked about the memories of his wife. 'Memories' meaning she came back to tell him to move on. She would want him to for the best.

"But now I do," and before Kuai Liang could respond, Hanzo quickly leaned in and pressed his lips to Kuai's.

Kuai Liang immediately accepted the affection, giving back just as much as Hanzo put in. It was a short kiss, and Hanzo had more to say. He pulled away and looked into Kuai Liang's eyes. "... I... Your patience with me is appreciated. I honestly had no memory of us before I woke up that day. It's the time anomaly. But I am definitely, without a doubt, in love with you." He stated.

"The time anomaly has everyone thrown off. Who would have known that Liu Kang would be the one to become the Keeper of Time and be with Kitana after how long they had been eyeing each other?" Kuai asked. "But my patience for you is sacred. I randomly became aware after some time, so I keep my patience for you."

"Kuai? One more thing?" Hanzo began. He started to think about his urges once again. It would always cross his mind, at least when Kuai Liang was around. "Yes, Hanzo?"

"Stay with me tonight? Perhaps there are emotions we can share that we cannot display in public." He requested. Hanzo was perhaps a little drunk off that kiss, and maybe he needed something to fulfill it until he was sober. Kuai grabbed his hand and stood up as they began to walk towards the temple where they slept.

"I would love to share my hidden emotions with you. I am sincerely yours."