Dangerous Lines | Yuzuru Hanyu

16. Lesson

Yaeko froze completely at her husband's words.

Did he know anything in detail or was he just going by on intuition?

With a man like that, you could never be sure and the truth was that every second that elapsed without an answer made the whole situation more dangerous for both her and the man in her dreams.

"Don't be ridiculous." Yaeko muttered as soon as the shock wore off, certainly already a bit late for comfort.

"You don't fool me Yae."

"It's just..."

"Who is it? Anyone you met on your morning outings? I knew I should have kept you here."

He was way too close for comfort but if anything, the whole thing only showed her that he didn't know anything in detail. The man might be smart, but she wasn't that dumb either and knew very well how to read him.

"Kiyoshi, I literally just go to a coffee shop. The one person I see is the owner and she's well in her 70's. I can assure you I'm not fantasizing about her."

"Well, it isn't as if I can confirm that when the Oyabun doesn't allow bodyguards around us..."

"I've told you to come multiple times... If you're so suspicious, then just come with me and see for yourself."

Yae knew very well that a simple text could fix Yuzuru's usual presence and if her husband really wanted to assure anything, it was her only chance to challenge the ideas in his head and try to convince him.

"If it isn't anyone from your morning walks, it must be someone else."

"How can you be so certain? Maybe I'm just trying something new."

"Don't try that, not with me. I've known you for 10 years."

"So what if I am thinking of someone?"

It was challenging and dangerous to even assume that as a possibility, but when Kiyoshi was already suspicious, she didn't have many options but to try and play things along to her side.

The way her husband's nostrils flared was more than enough for her to know that he wasn't happy about it but it wasn't as if she hadn't predicted that.

"Who the fuck is it? And where did you meet him?"

"Calm down, it's just a celebrity."

One thing was certain, she wasn't about to lie. Not truly...

"A celebrity?"

"Just a guy I saw on TV and found to be hot..."

None of her words made her husband happier but slowly, she could see his defenses going down and his brain accepting what she was saying.

"Who?"

"It's just a famous athlete. Don't pretend you don't look at models too, everyone does that."

It was a low blow, but one that she knew to be necessary.

As predictable as it was to see him mad about it, Yaeko could have never expected his next actions.

She felt two strong hands wrap around her neck in a possessive motion. She guessed he just wanted to make his point come across but eventually, she felt her airway being constricted and the squeeze of the hands making it impossible for her to breathe.

Kiyoshi wasn't playing and that was the moment she started fearing for her life.

All of that confidence to challenge him came from years of little bickering that he would accept and never react this way.

Seconds seemed to turn into hours and she started feeling faint, all of the oxygen unable to reach her brain.

Eventually, as she felt like that moment was truly the end, he removed his hands from her neck and finally allowed her to breathe.

The heavy intake of air made her cough and her neck was now red and swollen from his actions.

As if she needed anything else to cover up...

"You will look at me and me only, understood?"

At that moment, Yaeko could only nod, too afraid of what could happen if she challenged him any further.

"If I ever think you're imagining someone else, this won't be so nice, Yaeko. I'm your husband and the one you have to serve, anyone else isn't supposed to be in your life, even if just in your head."

"Okay" she answered, voice hoarse from the way he grabbed her neck.

Nothing of this was normal for her. Kiyoshi might have been in the Yakuza but not once did he hit her or threaten her. If it hadn't been painfully obvious before, this was something that disturbed him.

Whether it was due to the constant tension that came with the investigation or the fact that he wasn't exactly the same free bird he used to be, it was more than clear that she couldn't pull off something like that again and expect to get out of it in one piece.

Well, it was certainly a lesson worth learning.

All at the same time, and even if she probably shouldn't, Yaeko wasn't willing to give up what she had with Yuzuru. Their friendship was the best thing that happened in the last months, even years and all she could do about it was doing her very best to keep the thoughts of the handsome skater out of her head, no matter how impossible that seemed.

The whole experience was eye-opening, but it didn't change a thing but made her more wary of everything. Yaeko knew well that enjoying her life was a luxury that seemed mostly impossible for a big part of her life but that didn't mean she would try.

Because some things were worth it.