Special Property (BxB)

Chapter 55. TLC, Part 2

There was a one-month temporary substitute for the music theory class after Father Jacobs left. She was an old nun named Sister Margaret. She was tone deaf and hard of hearing. To this day, nobody knows why she was asked to substitute.

—Anonymous

Day 13

Kato woke again sometime in the morning. He was drenched in sweat. He was still feeling awful, but he was very warm, almost too warm in fact. He assessed his situation. He remembered a little of last night. He realized that he was sleeping in bed with Takahashi, with nothing but very thin boxers between them as Takahashi was still spooned up against Kato's back. He felt Takahashi's breath on the back of his neck. It tickled a little but in an indescribably pleasant way, which embarrassed Kato a little. Takahashi's arm was wrapped around Kato's abdomen with his hand on Kato's chest, embracing him. It was very intimate.

Kato sat there for a long while wondering why he was embarrassed at the situation and yet didn't want to do anything about it. He had never been held before in such a way. He had never been cared for in such a personal way before. And he didn't want it to end. He didn't know it could feel so good to have someone care about him enough to do this.

He awoke again to someone gently rubbing his chest. He grabbed Takahashi's hand and said, "That tickles."

Takahashi snickered, his breath on the back of Kato's neck sent goose bumps throughout Kato's body.

"Feeling better?"

Kato wasn't cold anymore but still felt rough. He was also covered in sweat and he could feel the sticky sweat between his back and Takahashi's front. "I'm warm now."

"Good. You shook so badly last night. I was really worried."

"Thanks for keeping me warm," Kato said.

"Do you want breakfast?" Takahashi asked.

"Not yet," Kato replied. "I just wanna lie here a little longer."

Takahashi hugged Kato. "Fine, take your time."

"I'm sorry to have troubled you," Kato lamely apologized.

"Don't worry about it."

The more Kato thought about it, the more he wished he could stay like this, embraced in someone's caring and warm arms. It was a wholly new experience.

"Gotta pee," Takahashi said as he let go of Kato and got up. He tucked Kato back into bed and donned his bath robe and left.

Kato immediately noticed Takahashi's absence, as if it were a piece of him had been torn away, leaving an empty void. He secretly hoped Takahashi wouldn't be gone too long.

-----

Takahashi returned with a bowl and a wash cloth. "Sit up, Ren-san."

"Why?" Kato asked.

"Well, you didn't shower last night, and we were drenched in your sweat all night, so you need to be cleaned up a bit."

"What?" Kato asked incredulously.

"Just do it and stop asking questions. I've already seen you naked a bunch of times. We slept last night next to each other, practically naked. I mean what's left?"

Kato didn't really know "what's left," but he wasn't sure he wanted to find out.

"So just sit up and let me take care of you. It's not hard. You don't even have to do anything." Takahashi reasoned.

Kato begrudgingly acquiesced. He sat up and moved the blankets away. Takahashi dipped a wash cloth into the bowl of hot water and started to rub Kato down. He started by gently wiping Kato's face, then his neck, then his back. He rubbed down Kato's chest and stomach, but he didn't go inside of his boxers, to Kato's relief. He then had him lift his arms to clean. He felt a little shy when Takahashi pushed up Kato's boxers up to his groin, as he started there and worked his way down Kato's legs and to his feet. Nobody had ever touched him so close to his groin, ever. Kato was sure that the only valid reason to submit to this invasion of his privacy was that he was sick and Takahashi was taking care of him.