Archive of Our Own ^beta

Kotetsu did a lot of stuff for his job that he didn't like. Interviews, photo shoots, documentaries, even a swimsuit centerfold where Bunny and the director had insisted that they wear the same style of swimsuit, just in different colors, which was why there now existed pictures of Kotetsu wearing only his mask and what could be generously described as a green-striped piece of underwear.

(Agnes had loved it. Kotetsu had hated it. Bunny was indifferent, but had told him that the magazine had sold out within a week and gone on to an extra printing.)

The point was, while Kotetsu loved the core of his job—protecting people—there was a lot of stuff that went along with it that he wasn't crazy about, but he understood the necessity of it, at least. As long as it didn't interfere with the real purpose of their job, he was okay with it.

However, this was where he drew the line.

"You're sending all of us out of the city for the entire weekend?!" Kotetsu burst out.

Lloyds waved away the objection. "It's a resort that's not even two hours outside the city. You're making it sound like we're sending you halfway across the country."

"You can't send all the heroes out of the city at the same time!" Kotetsu protested. "Bad guys are going to go nuts if they know we're leaving the city unprotected."

Lloyds steepled his fingers and rested his elbows on his desk, apparently unmoved by the argument. "It'll be fine. You worry too much. Besides, it's only for two nights."

Ben rubbed the side of his head. "It's not something we're advertising. It's just as a thank-you to the sponsors. Which is why you all have to be there."

Kotetsu couldn't believe neither of them was concerned about this. He'd expected a lot when Lloyds had called them into his office to talk, but he hadn't expected this. "Just because we're not advertising it doesn't mean criminals won't find out. They can't put the whole city in danger like this!"

Bunny set a hand on his shoulder, which felt both like support and like he was reminding Kotestu to calm down. "The Second League will still be here, right? Because Kotetsu's right. It's one thing for one or two of us to leave for a few days. It's another thing for the entire First League to be out of the city."

"You'll all have transportation on hand to get back if you need to," Ben said. "And yes, the Second League will be here and be patrolling while you all are away."

Well, that was something, at least. Kotetsu still didn't like it, though. "Whose crazy idea was this, anyway?"

"Agnes," Ben said. "A couple of the sponsors told her they wanted to do something special for New Year's Eve this year."

Kotetsu gaped. "And this is what she came up with?!"

Lloyds shrugged. "If you don't like it, you can always quit."

"If Kotetsu quits, so do I," Bunny said automatically.

"Nobody's quitting!" Kotetsu said quickly. "But, it's just..." He trailed off and turned to Bunny. "Bunny, what do you think?"

If Bunny agreed with him, there was no way they'd have to go through with this. People didn't always listen to Kotetsu, but they listened to Bunny.

Bunny frowned, like he was considering the question. "On the one hand, I agree that having the entire First League out of the city isn't a good idea. However," he said, with a look at Kotetsu that said he wasn't finished, "it's also important to show the sponsors appreciation for everything they do for us. Because if they didn't, then we wouldn't be able to help people in the first place."

Oh, hell. "But Bunny—" Kotetsu started.

Bunny turned to him. "As much as Agnes cares about ratings, I don't think she'd do anything to put the city in actual danger. As long as there's a plan in place for how we'll get back quickly if we're needed, I'm all right with it." He smiled. "Besides, isn't it good to trust the Second League to handle things while we're away?"

Kotetsu wanted to argue. He didn't want to spend a weekend at a fancy resort, talking to the sponsors, when there was a good chance they would be needed here. But if Bunny was on board with it, then Kotetsu had to be on board with it.

"Fine," he muttered. "I guess we don't really have much of a choice with it, anyway."

"Thank you," Ben said with feeling, and held out a piece of paper. "Here's the hotel information. You need to be at the resort by three o'clock Friday afternoon."

Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck and took the paper. "Are we driving up on our own?"

Bunny snatched the paper from Kotetsu's hand. "I'll drive us. I'll pick you up at noon. Is there anything else, Ben?"

Ben shook his head. "Nope. Just have fun and be nice to the sponsors."

Lloyds jabbed a finger at Kotetsu. "And don't break anything."

"I'm not—" Kotetsu started to protest, but Bunny grabbed him and hauled him out of the office before he could finish.

***

Sure enough, Bunny showed up at Kotetsu's apartment five minutes before noon on Friday. It was still nearly one when they finally left. It was only a little bit Kotetsu's fault; he'd spent longer than he'd thought deciding which suit to take for the New Year's Eve party. Bunny's increasingly annoyed tapping foot ended up making the decision for him.

Despite all their discussions, Kotetsu was still twitchy about leaving the city for as long as they were, and he kept switching the radio over to the news station until Bunny snapped it back over to one of his opera stations with a sharp look that said if Kotetsu touched the dial again, he was going to lose a hand.

"Please promise me you aren't going to spend the entire weekend like this," Bunny said.

"Like what?" Kotetsu asked.

Bunny gestured to the radio. "Like this. Searching for any excuse to go back early."

"I'm not looking for an excuse!" Kotetsu didn't shout, but only by remembering that they were in a small car and Bunny was already irritated with him. "But we've never had the whole First League out of Stern Bild for an entire weekend. Anything could happen. And heroes should be around to protect people."

"Ben said they'd call us immediately if anything happened," Bunny said. "And we'll all have suits and transportation at the resort just in case. But this weekend is about appreciating our sponsors and expressing our gratitude for everything they do for us."

"Yeah." Kotetsu stared out the window, where the buildings outside Stern Bild had changed into rolling hills and tall trees sometime in the last half hour. "The sponsors make it so that we can do our jobs in the first place. I remember."

Bunny sighed. "Just please be nice to them while we're here. I know this isn't your favorite thing to do, but—"

"But it's part of our job," Kotetsu finished, and turned back to look over at Bunny. "I know. Don't worry, Bunny. I'll do my best."

The sharp look on Bunny's face softened, and he glanced quickly at Kotetsu with a brief smile before he turned his eyes back to the road. "Thank you. I know you will."

The smile made something pang just behind Kotetsu's heart, and he idly rubbed his chest. As much as he didn't like leaving the city, he wasn't going to slack off this weekend and leave Bunny twisting on his own. They were partners, and Kotetsu would always step up when Bunny needed him to.

He just wished it were something easier to do than this.

***

They reached the resort right before three, despite the late start, and Kotetsu unloaded the car while Bunny went inside to get checked in. It was a pretty fancy place, he had to say, nestled out here in the woods looking like the world's largest log cabin. It'd be nice to come back sometime when he wasn't working. Maybe bring Kaede.

He wondered if Bunny would want to come, too. That might be a nice vacation.

Kotetsu dug his mask out of his pocket and put it on, and then dragged their things into the lobby. Bunny was still at the front desk, talking to both the clerk and to Agnes, who was holding out something to him. From the look on Bunny's face, he wasn't too happy about it.

Kotetsu adjusted his grip on the bags—he was pretty sure Bunny had brought along half his wardrobe—and hauled them over to the desk. "Hey, Bunny, what's going on?"

Bunny didn't look away from Agnes, his mouth tight. "Apparently we're sharing a room."

"Huh?!" Kotetsu bobbled the bags and had to work fast to keep from dropping them to the ground. "What? Why?"

Agnes rolled her eyes. "All the heroes are sharing rooms. Dragon Kid is with Blue Rose, Origami is with Sky High, Bison is with Fire Emblem, and you're with Barnaby." She shoved a packet into his chest, and Kotetsu had to let go of Bunny's suitcase to grab it. "That's got your keycards and the itinerary for tomorrow. Tonight's cocktail hour is at six and dinner starts at six-thirty. Don't be late."

With that, she turned on her heel and strode across the lobby, stilettos clacking on the tile with each step.

Kotetsu stared at her, and then tried to open the packet one-handed.

Bunny took it from him and grabbed the handle of his suitcase. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize we'd be sharing a room."

Kotetsu adjusted his grip on the other bags and shrugged. "How could you have known? It's fine." He grinned. "Come on, it won't be that bad. I only snore a little."

Bunny rolled his eyes. "I would hope that you don't snore at all, but I suppose I'll deal with it."

Kotetsu followed him to the elevator and up to the third floor, and then down the hall to their room. Bunny swiped the card and opened the door, and held it open with his foot so Kotetsu could make his way in and put the bags down.

If they were going to have to share a room, this was a pretty nice one to share. It wasn't just a hotel room; it was a suite, with a couch and a fireplace and a little kitchenette and a desk and...

And one bed.

Kotetsu stopped short at soon as he rounded the corner and saw the single king-sized bed dominating the bedroom. "Uh, Bunny?" he said, because Bunny was busy with his suitcase and hadn't seemed to notice the bed yet.

"What?"

"There's only one bed."

Bunny dropped his suitcase and came to stand beside Kotetsu. "Agnes didn't mention that," he said after several seconds of silence.

No, Agnes had not mentioned that. The sharing a room, Kotetsu didn't mind. He could share a room with Bunny for the weekend.

He sure as hell minded sharing a bed.

Bunny picked up the room phone. "I'll call the front desk and ask if it was a mistake. Maybe we should be in another room."

"Maybe we're all stuck with one bed?" Kotetsu dug his phone out of his pocket and called Antonio. "Hey, are you at the resort yet?"

"I got here half an hour ago." Antonio sounded tired. "I'd like to use the bathroom at some point."

"Beauty takes time!" Fire Emblem called, voice distant like he was almost too far for the phone to pick up.

"Do you guys have one bed or two?" Kotetsu asked.

"Two." Antonio groaned. "I don't think I could take it if we only had one, because someone wouldn't keep his hands off my ass if we were sharing a bed."

"Oh, but it's so strong!" Fire Emblem's voice was closer this time. "Who are you talking to?"

"Kotetsu," Antonio said. "And hey, why are you asking? Do you and Barnaby have one bed?"

Kotetsu's eyes slid back over to the giant bed. "Uh. Yeah."

"Ooo." There was a scuffle on the other end, and then Fire Emblem said, actually in the microphone, "So you and handsome are going to be sharing all weekend, hm?"

"We're not going to be sharing!" Kotetsu argued, and then remembered to keep his voice down because Bunny was still talking to the front desk, his voice clipped in a way that said he wasn't very happy with the answers he was getting. "It's got to be a mistake. Bunny's talking to the front desk right now. We'll get the right room in a little bit, I'm sure."

"Oh, boo." Fire Emblem sounded like he was pouting. "You're so lucky. I'd love to snuggle up with my handsome for the night."

And that was a mental image that had Kotetsu panicking more than he should. "Nobody's snuggling up with anybody!"

"Kotetsu?" Bunny said. "Who are you talking to?"

Kotetsu hung up the phone and shoved it back in his pocket; Antonio and Fire Emblem would forgive him. "Eh, called Antonio to see if they'd gotten stuck with a one-bed room as well. What did the front desk say? When are we moving?"

"We're not moving," Bunny said. "There aren't any other rooms."

Kotetsu froze. "What?"

"I said, there aren't—"

Kotetsu shook his head. "No, no, I heard you. I just..." His brain was trying to have a breakdown at the thought of sharing a bed with Bunny; it made it hard to get words out. "Are you going to be okay with that? I know you're used to having a bed this big to yourself."

Bunny rolled his eyes and went back to grab his suitcase from where he'd abandoned it. "I think I can handle sharing with you for two nights, Kotetsu. Unless you steal all the covers."

"I don't steal covers!" Kotetsu protested. "Do you?"

"I have no idea," Bunny said. "I've never slept with anyone who might tell me." He pulled a handful of suits out of his suitcase and hung them in the closet. "Is it going to bother you if we share a bed? I can see if the couch pulls out. Or if it doesn't, I can just sleep there."

"No, no!" Kotetsu waved his hands; he didn't want to force Bunny out of the bed, either. "It'll be fine. It's a big bed. And like you said, it's just for two nights."

Bunny shrugged and got out more suits to hang. "Then we should be fine. But if you do steal the covers, you're sleeping on the couch tomorrow night."

"Same goes for you." Kotetsu went to unpack his own things. Not that he had much; his suitcase was half the size of Bunny's. He couldn't see why Bunny had brought so much stuff when they were only going to be here for two days.

He glanced over at the bed and cringed. He'd seen the look on Bunny's face when he'd first noticed it, the same look he'd had when Agnes was telling him they were sharing a room.

No matter what Bunny said, he was not happy about having to share.

Something in Kotetsu's chest hurt, and he frowned and rubbed it. He'd just have to do his best to be a good roommate. It was only for two days, after all. Surely he couldn't mess that up.

Surely.

***

They finished unpacking and then changed for dinner, which was the kind of fancy affair Kotetsu usually avoided. But he'd promised Bunny he'd do his best this weekend, and damn it, he was not going to break a promise to Bunny. Besides, Bunny was right; their sponsors made it possible for them to protect people in the first place. So Kotetsu could put up with this for a weekend.

He only checked his phone twice to see if Ben was trying to reach them. He thought that showed a lot of restraint on his part, and he was pretty sure nobody noticed.

After dinner was finally over, Kotetsu joined Antonio and Fire Emblem in their room for a drink. He invited Bunny, but Bunny declined in favor of going on to bed.

"Did you and Barnaby get your room switched?" Antonio asked as he was pouring a drink.

Kotetsu froze with his drink almost to his mouth. "Uh. No. They didn't have any other rooms."

Fire Emblem's eyes went wide, and he crossed his legs and leaned forward. "Ohhh? So you and handsome will be sharing a bed tonight?"

That tone made his cheeks heat, and Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, yeah. Bunny said he'd take the couch, but I couldn't let him do that. It's just for two nights and it's a big bed."

Fire Emblem sat back and tapped a finger to the corner of his mouth. He was smiling. Kotetsu didn't like that smile; it always made him think that Fire Emblem knew something he didn't. "You'll have to let me know if handsome is a snuggler. I bet he is."

"Hey, I'm not going to tell you anything like that." Kotetsu gestured with his drink. "That's private."

"Too bad." Fire Emblem sighed. "I'm just going to have to imagine it, then."

"Maybe you can imagine cleaning your stuff off the bathroom counter, while you're at it," Antonio said.

Fire Emblem gasped, affronted. "But I need all of those things!"

Kotetsu made a mental note to thank Antonio later for the change in subject. For some reason, it bothered him to talk about this and he was pretty sure Fire Emblem would have kept pushing if Antonio hadn't stopped him.

He stayed for just one drink and then begged off, ignoring the sly look Fire Emblem gave him as he left. Sure enough, Bunny was already in bed when he got back to the room, curled up on one side of the giant bed. At least he'd left a lamp on.

Kotetsu got ready for bed as quietly as he could, and then flicked off the lamp and crawled into bed beside Bunny, being careful not to steal too much of the covers. Okay, it was a pretty big bed and Bunny was all the way on the other side. It would be a little weird, but hey, they'd been through worse. A shared bed was nothing. It was fine. Totally fine.

Kotetsu snuggled into his pillow and dropped off to sleep.

***

He woke up gradually the next morning, with the sunlight pouring in through the east-facing windows. Kotetsu grumbled at the interruption; he was warm and cozy and snuggled up with someone and he didn't want to wake up. He wasn't sure what time it was, but his alarm hadn't gone off yet, so he didn't have to be out of bed anytime soon.

He mentally back-tracked over the sensations. Huh. Snuggled up with someone. That wasn't normal.

Kotetsu half-opened his eyes and found himself staring at a head full of curly blond hair. Bunny. Of course it was Bunny.

He closed his eyes again and snuggled closer, ready to fall back asleep.

Wait.

His brain snapped all the way back online like switching on the lights, dozens of puzzle pieces suddenly clicking into place, and Kotetsu's eyes flew back open.

Oh. Oh.

Crap.

He rolled over and out of the bed as quickly and quietly as he could—Bunny did not wake up, which was a relief—and went immediately into the bathroom so he could take a shower and have a breakdown.

He was in love with Bunny. Holy shit, when had he gone and fallen in love with Bunny?

He leaned against the tile under the spray, turned as hot as he could stand, and scrubbed his hands over his face. He'd been around Bunny for years without anything; why was he suddenly having these feelings? Why did he feel like his heart was going to burst out of his chest just from having Bunny in his arms?

Maybe it was because of the novelty of sharing a bed with someone again. It had been years since the last time. Maybe Kotetsu had just missed that. It was possible, right?

He considered it. Thought about waking up with anybody else, Antonio or Fire Emblem or even Agnes. Those inspired a lot of different feelings, but not one of them was the same as waking up next to Bunny. It was like...like being home again. Like a missing piece had slotted into place.

Kotetsu stared at the silver ring on his left hand, and his heart gave an odd, painful thump. He'd really believed he'd never have feelings for anybody ever again. He wasn't built like that. Tomoe had been his one and only, he was sure.

But when he thought about Bunny...

He closed his eyes and rested his head against the wall. Shit.

He shampooed his hair and went back over their partnership and this new feeling in his chest that he finally recognized, trying to figure out when he'd started having these feelings for Bunny. He knew it hadn't started yesterday.

He got all the way back to their short-lived retirement before he gave up. Apparently this had been going on for a lot longer than he'd thought, and he just hadn't recognized it because he hadn't known what to look for. It was different from the first time, and different enough that Kotetsu had just glossed over what it might mean.

But now...

Now he was going to have to spend the entire weekend in close quarters with Bunny, including another night of sharing a damn bed, while Kotetsu had to pretend everything was normal. Like he hadn't just had the mother of all realizations that was going to affect their entire partnership.

No, that wasn't true. It would only affect things if he let it. As long as Bunny didn't find out, things could stay the same. Kotetsu could live with that. He liked the way things were, and he wasn't deluded enough to think that Bunny would actually reciprocate his feelings. His negative reaction to sharing a room and a bed was proof enough of that.

More importantly that both of those things, Bunny was generally happy with the way things were and Kotetsu would be damned if he said or did anything that would screw up Bunny's happiness. He would continue to support him, just like he always had.

There was a knock on the bathroom door and Kotetsu nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Kotetsu?" Bunny's voice was muffled. "Is everything okay? You've been in there awhile."

"Everything's fine!" Kotetsu said quickly. It was a lie, sure, but Bunny would forgive him that one, he thought.

"Okay." Bunny sounded skeptical. "Will you be in there much longer? I need to use the bathroom."

"Yeah, sorry, I'll be out in just a minute."

Bunny didn't answer, so he'd probably gone to watch TV or make coffee or something.

Kotetsu sank against the tile and sighed, letting the water wash over him, and rubbed at his chest. This was going to be a long, long weekend.

***

He quickly finished up in the shower and got out of the bathroom so Bunny could start getting ready, and nothing could have prepared him for seeing Bunny in boxers and a T-shirt, his curly hair sticking up every which way, sipping a cup of coffee in the little kitchenette with a grimace on his face. Probably because it was terrible coffee.

It was so painfully domestic that Kotetsu was positive if he hadn't already had the realization that he was head over heels for Bunny, that sight alone would've done it.

He checked the packet Agnes had given them while Bunny was getting ready, hoping to find a list of things that would keep him distracted until the New Year's party tonight. What he found was a list of activities that he and Bunny would be doing with a group of bigwigs from the various sponsor companies, which meant they would be together for literally the entire day. Babysitting a handful of their sponsors during a morning hike and then afternoon shopping in the little tourist town wouldn't be much of a distraction if Bunny was there the entire time.

It wasn't like that was much of a surprise; they were partners and Agnes liked to capitalize on it as much as she could, but couldn't she have foreseen that Kotetsu was going to have an earth-shattering realization in the shower this morning? Hell, she knew everything else; he was kind of surprised she hadn't picked up on it.

And there was no way he could fake being sick and bow out; he'd promised Bunny he was going to try this weekend. And he would, even with the extenuating circumstances.

Kotetsu set the packet aside and went to finish getting ready.

They made it downstairs for breakfast and then met up with the group of five sponsors they were escorting, first on a hike through the forest around the resort. It was cold, but not windy, so gloves and a hat were enough to be comfortable, and the forest itself was pretty and peaceful. It would've been a nice walk, Kotetsu thought, if he were alone or just with Bunny, where he could pine in peace, instead of listening to Mr. Wayne from Poseidon Line talk forever about the mating habits of the common sparrow.

Kotetsu made the right noises and caught enough of the explanations that it wouldn't be rude if he was suddenly asked a question, but his attention was entirely on Bunny a few steps ahead, where he was smiling his perfectly polite smile and answering a thousand questions from two of the other sponsors about the trees and birds and animals and other things, and Kotetsu was the only one who knew he was talking out of his ass.

Shopping that afternoon was better, in that everybody wanted to go to different stores, so it was easier to wander and give himself some more time to process everything.

Kotetsu accompanied two of them—Mr. Wayne and a woman named Janet whose last name Kotetsu couldn't recall—into a smaller shop and poked his way through the knick-knacks near the front. He found some outrageously cheesy refrigerator magnets and was debating how many he could sneak onto Bunny's fridge before he noticed when he heard Bunny's voice outside.

Kotetsu looked out the window to see Bunny across the street with one of the women in their group. She was standing very close to him and kept reaching out to touch his arm, and Bunny was smiling.

Something ugly and painful twisted in Kotetsu's chest, and he had to look away.

He knew Bunny was never going to reciprocate his feelings; that much was obvious. Bunny was...well, he was amazing. He had a fan club whose membership numbered in the thousands, filled with people who were just as amazing as he was. Bunny could be with literally any person he wanted. Someone who was just as smart and skilled and kind and beautiful as he was.

With those options, why would he ever choose Kotetsu?

But it was one thing to know it and another thing to see the evidence of it, right out there on the street.

Kotetsu turned away from the rows of cheesy magnets. Maybe he should go look for something for Kaede, instead.

***

The rest of the afternoon passed without incident, and that meant Kotetsu just had to survive dinner, the New Year's Eve party, and one more night sharing a bed. Tomorrow they'd be back home and things would be back to normal. Well, as normal as they ever got.

"Is something wrong?" Bunny asked him halfway through getting ready for dinner.

Kotetsu startled at the question and lost his grip on his tie. "What?! No! Nothing's wrong. Why would you ask something like that?"

Bunny shrugged on a shirt and buttoned it, studying his fingers very closely. "You've been acting distant all day. I just wanted to make sure I hadn't done or said something—"

"No!" Kotetsu cut in quickly. "No, Bunny, there's nothing wrong. And you haven't done anything at all." He tried to think of a way to explain his behavior that didn't involve lying straight out—he really was trying to get better about that—and decided to skip that attempt entirely. "Eh, I'm sorry. I'll do better."

He grinned, and Bunny finally looked up at him and smiled softly, a smile that always made Kotetsu's heart skip a beat. He kind of wanted to hit himself for not noticing his feelings sooner; how had it taken him so long?

"Did you have a good day with Mrs. Watson?" Bunny asked.

Kotetsu blinked. "With who?"

"The woman you were with most of the day." Bunny finished buttoning his shirt and tucked it in. "I believe she's with Blue Rose's sponsor."

Kotetsu racked his brain, trying to think of who Bunny could mean. There was one woman who'd been around him a lot during the shopping; maybe that was who Bunny meant. "Janet? Is that who you're talking about?"

Bunny raised his eyebrows. "Janet?"

Kotetsu turned back to the mirror to finish with his tie. The back of his neck was warm for some reason. "I couldn't remember her last name. And I guess? She helped me find something for Kaede while we were shopping."

All right, she'd given him a very patronizing look when he'd picked up a stuffed animal and assured him there was no way a girl who was nearly thirteen would want something like that, and pointed him toward some jewelry. And then she'd followed him into the next two shops. Kotetsu hadn't been able to figure out why she was hanging around him so much, but he figured since he was supposed to be appreciative to the sponsors, it wasn't a bad thing.

Crap. Had that been wrong? "Should I have been staying with someone else instead?"

"No, not necessarily." Bunny frowned and picked up his own tie. "You just spent a lot of time with her. I was curious."

"I thought that was our job this weekend, huh?" Kotetsu adjusted his tie and grabbed his suit coat and mask. "I didn't want you scolding me when we got back for not spending enough time with the bigwigs."

Bunny's fingers fumbled on his tie. "You spent time with her because you didn't want me to scold you?"

Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck. Now his ears were hot, dammit. "Well, yeah. I know I'm not as good at this part of our job. I didn't want to cause problems for you."

Bunny stared at him, green eyes wide. Kotetsu used to think that was a distortion because of his glasses, but no, Bunny just had really gigantic, beautiful eyes with long eyelashes. It was a little like getting hit in the chest by a brick each time he looked at you.

Kotetsu needed to think about something else.

"The only time you cause problems for me is when you run off without thinking," Bunny said as he tied—or well, attempted to tie—his tie. "Or don't bother to finish your paperwork. Or—"

Kotetsu waved off the well-worn arguments, and something in his chest settled at the normalcy of it. "Yeah, yeah." He pointed at Bunny's tie. "Do, uh, do you need help with that?"

Bunny dropped his hands away from the mess he was making of the knot and sighed. "I suppose I do."

Kotetsu swallowed his sudden nerves—where the hell had those come from?—and flipped up Bunny's collar to handle the tie himself. "I can't believe you don't know how to tie one of these."

Bunny cleared his throat. "I've never cared for them, and there are plenty of other things I can wear around my neck."

"Huh." Kotetsu chewed on the corner of his lip and focused on his hands so he wouldn't be looking at Bunny's...everything right now. He really hadn't thought this through when he'd made the offer. "So why are you wearing one tonight?"

"Because it was what went with the suit," Bunny said.

Kotetsu glanced over the suit. It was light gray and the pink tie did fit with it, but Bunny probably could've worn anything with it and made it look good.

He finished with the tie and pulled the knot almost all the way up to Bunny's collar when he remembered he should probably let Bunny adjust it himself. He dropped his hands to his sides. "There you go. You can adjust it if you want it a little tighter, but—"

He made the mistake of turning his attention from the tie to Bunny's face, which was right there, and Bunny was looking at him in a way that Kotetsu had literally never seen before in his life. It made his heart do a somersault, and any words he was about to say got cut off in his throat because his brain went from "forming words" to "focusing entirely on Bunny's eyes."

They were really pretty eyes, okay. Just like the rest of Bunny.

"Thank you," Bunny said very quietly.

Kotetsu took a quick step backward before he gave into the impulse to go forward instead. "Uh, yeah. Of course. Anytime." He made himself smile and hoped to hell it looked like his normal one, and gestured to the door. "You ready for the dinner, Bunny-chan?"

"Wait." Bunny grabbed his suit coat off the back of the desk chair and headed to the bathroom, shrugging the coat on as he did. When he returned a moment later, he was pinning something to the lapel. "All right, now I'm ready."

"What did you—" Kotetsu trailed off when he recognized the Christmas pin. "You brought yours?"

"Of course I did," Bunny said smoothly. "Yours is in your toiletry bag."

Kotetsu gaped. "Eh?! How do you know that?"

"Because I helped you pack, old man." Bunny gave him a longsuffering look. "Surely you didn't forget that."

"I didn't forget," Kotetsu muttered, and went into the bathroom to check the bag.

Sure enough, the pin was tucked safely into a little pocket in the side he rarely used, which explained why he hadn't seen it. He rubbed his thumb over the pin, and couldn't help smiling a little. His heart was doing somersaults again, knowing that Bunny had thought to pack it for him.

He quickly pinned it to his lapel and grabbed a hat on the way out of the bathroom. "Okay, now are you ready?"

Bunny smiled. "Let's go."

***

The dinner was even fancier than the one the previous night, and everybody was dressed to the nines. The tables had them all split up, two heroes per table, to make small talk with different sponsors. It was mostly the same groups they'd been in earlier today, which meant Kotetsu was at a table with Bunny again.

He tried to focus on talking to the sponsors, really he did, but it was hard when he kept getting distracted by Bunny: Bunny smiling, Bunny talking, Bunny listening intently to everyone around him.

I love you, Kotetsu wanted to say, but there was no way he could utter the words.

He really wished he'd had this realization back in Stern Bild, where he could have worked his way through it alone in his apartment, instead of here in the middle of dozens of people.

After dinner, they were all ushered from the dining room to the ballroom for the New Year's Eve party. There were three bars in different corners of the room, a dance floor, and a stage where Blue Rose would be performing for part of the night.

This wasn't like the usual stuff they had to do, performances for the public and interviews and everything. This was just...showing off for the sponsors because they had enough money to throw around for it, and it still bugged Kotetsu that the First League was all here, instead of back in the city with the people that they protected.

He winced. "Do we really need to stay for this?"

Bunny grabbed his arm. "Yes, we do. You are not going back to the room unless you're physically ill, do you understand?"

"But Bunny—"

Bunny whipped his head around and glared at him. "You are staying, and you are going to be nice to people who help us do our jobs." He lowered his voice. "I know you don't like it, but please try to stay until at least midnight. As soon as the countdown is over, you can leave."

Kotetsu swallowed his next objections. "Okay, okay." He paused. "So if I get sick—"

"Kotetsu."

"I'm staying! Don't give me that look."

Bunny waited a beat before he nodded and let go of his arm, and Kotetsu waited until Bunny wasn't looking at him to rub it.

Yeah, he was going to get a drink. He was going to get several drinks.

He made his way over to the bar with the shortest line and got a whiskey to sip on. It seemed a little more appropriate than beer.

Kotetsu turned and almost immediately ran into someone. It took him a second to recognize Janet, one of the ladies from their group earlier. She'd changed into a plunging red dress for the event and her dark hair was pinned up on her head in a pile of curls, and wore a sparkly necklace that Kotetsu was pretty sure cost more than he made in a year. No wonder she'd pointed him toward getting jewelry for Kaede.

She smiled and raised her glass of wine. "Tiger. Fancy seeing you here again."

Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck. "Not really? We're here until tomorrow." Then he remembered Bunny's very severe look and his promise, and cleared his throat. "Did you find everything you were looking for while we were shopping?"

Janet took a sip of her wine and raised an eyebrow. "Almost. There are just a few more things I'm missing."

"Oh yeah?" Kotetsu scratched the side of his head. "I guess you could get them on your way back to the city tomorrow."

"Well, they're not really things I can pick up in the store." Janet slid a little closer to him. "How long are you planning on staying here?"

What did that have to do with anything? "Bunny and I are leaving around ten tomorrow."

Janet laughed throatily. "I meant how long are you staying here, at the party."

"Until midnight, at least." Kotetsu glanced across the room, where Bunny was talking to another group. "I made a promise to stick around that long."

An arm draped around his shoulder. "Tiger!"

Kotetsu startled; Fire Emblem was right there. "Gah! Where did you come from?"

Fire Emblem rubbed his cheek on Kotetsu's. "I saw you over here and just had to come say hi. Who's your lovely friend?"

Kotetsu looked over to Janet, who'd taken a step back and looked like she'd sucked on a lemon. "Uh, this is...Janet?" He ducked out from under Fire Emblem's arm. "Have you met Fire Emblem? He's the hero for Helios Energy."

Fire Emblem winked at her and held out his hand. "Charmed, I'm sure."

Janet took his hand and shook it delicately. "Indeed. If you'll excuse me."

She was off sauntering across the room before Kotetsu could say anything else.

"Mmm, I could use a drink." Fire Emblem grabbed Kotetsu's arm and pulled him back into the line for the bar, and then lowered his voice. "Was she making you uncomfortable?"

Kotetsu frowned at the question. "Not really? She was in my group this morning and just came over to say hi."

Fire Emblem tapped his chin. "Just to say hi, hm? And what else did she say?"

"Dunno." Kotetsu sipped his whiskey. "Just small talk. How do you know her? From stuff like this?"

Fire Emblem nodded and picked up an astonishingly pink and fizzy cocktail from the bartender. "Janet Watson. She's the COO for Titan and on the board of about, oh, a dozen different charities and nonprofits. I'm usually in my civilian clothes when we see each other." He grinned and stirred his cocktail. "She doesn't like me very much."

"You did interrupt our conversation," Kotetsu pointed out. "Maybe she thought you were being rude."

Fire Emblem shrugged. "Let's just say I don't think rudeness has anything to do with her feelings on the matter." He grabbed Kotetsu's arm. "Come on, let's go find Bison."

Kotetsu let himself be dragged around the party. It would be a lot easier to make nice with people while Fire Emblem was with him; despite Janet's reaction, most people liked him and Fire Emblem was very good at talking to them. And it let Kotetsu keep an eye on Bunny, who was, as always, the center of attention, standing in the middle of five or ten or twelve people and shining as brilliantly as the sun, so much that it kind of hurt to look at him.

Kotetsu looked, anyway.

"You're awfully quiet," Fire Emblem said after they'd navigated a few different conversations and two more trips to the drink line.

Kotetsu flinched guiltily. "I just don't have much to say."

"Mm-hmm." Fire Emblem arched an eyebrow; how he made that obvious behind his mask, Kotetsu would never figure out. "Or are you more interested in watching my handsome?"

Kotetsu's face heated. "That's not—I'm not—"

"I don't blame you, he's very easy on the eyes." Fire Emblem sighed and rested his fingers on his cheek. "I didn't realize you were into men."

"Who I'm into isn't anybody's business," Kotetsu muttered into his drink.

He'd found Tomoe early on and after that, he hadn't been into anybody, regardless of gender. Bunny was a surprise in more ways than one. And this wasn't really a conversation he wanted to have now.

"Fair enough." Fire Emblem sipped his third cocktail of the night. "No wonder you were worried about sharing a bed. Ooh, is handsome a cuddler?"

He remembered waking up with Bunny this morning, and the heat on his face got worse. Kotetsu tried to hide behind his drink. "Hey, I said it wasn't any of your business."

Fire Emblem blinked at him guilelessly. "I'm just curious!"

Thankfully, the lights dimmed just then and Agnes came out to introduce an "exclusive private concert!!" with Blue Rose, and Kotetsu didn't have to answer.

With everybody paying attention to the stage, nobody expected him to carry on a conversation, so Kotetsu stood to the side and smiled encouragingly at Blue Rose whenever she glanced in his direction. She always looked away from him very quickly, probably because it was more important to make eye contact with the sponsors than with him.

Really, he wouldn't be surprised if she did go on to be a big music star after she retired from hero work; she had a fantastic voice and she was pretty good with the piano, too. Kotetsu was kind of sad he hadn't gotten a chance to hear her play again since that night in the bar a few years back.

He searched the crowd as she was singing and once again found Bunny standing not too far away, in the midst of another small group. He was watching the stage, like everybody else, while Blue Rose sang a love song.

He really was beautiful.

Kotetsu was seized with the overwhelming desire to go confess, just lay all his cards on the table and see where they were. But that was a terrible idea, and he'd had some pretty terrible ideas over the years, so he'd at least learned to recognize them. The best he could hope for right now was Bunny letting him down gently, and maybe retaining some semblance of their partnership after, if he was very lucky.

No, the better thing to do was just stay back and let Bunny find someone on his own. And once he did, Kotetsu would do everything in his power to make sure they would make Bunny happy. Yeah, it would be awful on his end, but as long as Bunny was happy—really happy—Kotetsu could deal with it.

After the concert, they brought out a DJ and people crowded the floor to dance. Kotetsu edged away to go find another drink, his whiskey long gone, only to have someone catch his arm. "Eh?"

"Tiger." Janet smiled with bright red lips. "Would you dance with me?"

"Uh, I don't really dance." Kotetsu tried to gently pull his arm away, but she had a pretty good grip. "I was going to get another drink."

"Oh, that's a good idea." Janet didn't let go of his arm, and moved into step beside him. "I'll get one, too. It's not really good music to dance to right now, is it?"

Kotetsu glanced around them. Everybody else seemed to be doing fine dancing to the upbeat song; it just wasn't something he was any good at dancing to. "I guess not."

He escorted her over to the bar again and ordered them both refills on their drinks, and scanned the room again looking for Bunny. Once again, he was in a different group, not too hard to find. Early in their partnership, it had bothered Kotetsu more than he wanted to admit, the way everybody always paid attention to Bunny. Now...hell, Kotetsu understood. He wanted to spend all his time around Bunny, too.

Janet finally let go of his arm to take her drink, but she stayed weirdly close. "So what do you normally do on New Year's Eve, Tiger?"

"Normally?" Kotetsu scratched the back of his head. "Not much, unless I'm working."

Her eyebrows went up. "You work over the holidays?"

He gestured to the other heroes. "Yeah. It's not like criminals keep to a normal schedule. So we've always got to be ready."

"Ah, that's a shame." She raised her wine glass. "This must be a nice break for you, then."

Kotetsu shrugged. "It's all right. I like being able to protect people, though, so I don't mind how much we work." He was getting uncomfortable with talking about himself. "What about you? Do you go to a lot of fancy New Year's parties?"

Janet smiled. "Every year. They've all been good, but I have to admit, this one has definitely been better than most."

"Agnes will be glad to hear that," Kotetsu said.

"I'll be sure to pass on my thoughts." Janet regarded him for a moment. "I don't know about you, but I can barely hear myself think over this music. Would you like to go somewhere quieter with our drinks?" She leaned in closer to him. "I've got a fabulous bottle of wine up in my room."

Kotetsu pulled back. "It's a little loud, but I promised I'd stay until midnight. If you really want someone to share your wine with, you should talk to Bunny. He knows all about that stuff." He grinned. "I prefer beer, myself."

Janet blinked at him for a second, and then took a deep breath. "I know you said you'd stay, but are you sure you can't slip away for just a little bit? I'm sure nobody would notice."

Kotetsu was positive Bunny would notice; he had a sixth sense about these things. But it would be nice to go somewhere quieter, and if he was still making nice with one of their sponsors—well, it was technically Blue Rose's sponsor, but still—surely Bunny couldn't object to that. "Well, I guess I can go ask. Hang on."

Janet gaped at him. "What—"

He turned away and headed straight for Bunny, who was now talking to Blue Rose and Fire Emblem. Well, that was good; Kotetsu wouldn't have to worry about interrupting him with any of the other sponsors. "Hey, Bunny, is it okay if I leave for a little bit?"

Bunny narrowed his eyes. "Absolutely not. We already had this discussion."

Kotetsu hooked his thumb over his shoulder. "Yeah, but one of the sponsors asked me if I wanted to have a drink in her room and I'd kind of like a break from the music."

Bunny and Fire Emblem both lowered their drinks and stared at him, and Blue Rose cursed under her breath and facepalmed.

Kotetsu frowned. "What? What'd I say?"

Bunny's entire demeanor went frosty. "Well, if you want to go have a drink in her room, far be it from me to stop you."

Fire Emblem rested a hand on Bunny's shoulder and looked at Kotetsu. "Tiger. Honey." He lowered his voice. "You know that means she wants to have sex with you, right?"

Kotetsu fumbled his drink, and only sheer luck kept it from spilling all over his coat. "What?!"

Bunny stared at him. "Kotetsu, she's been hanging all over you all day."

"No, she hasn't, it's—" Kotetsu racked his brain for the perfectly normal explanations he'd had for everything up until now, but that new information had him seeing everything in a new light. "Crap. I thought she just wanted to help me find Kaede a decent gift."

Blue Rose facepalmed again. "Why are you always like this?"

Kotetsu turned to her. "Eh?"

Bunny exhaled sharply. "Kotetsu, do you want to have sex with her?"

"No!" Kotetsu exclaimed, and then remembered they were in the middle of a party and he really didn't want to be heard over the music. He lowered his voice and repeated, "No, I don't. That's—it's—"

There's only one person I've wanted to be with since Tomoe and that's you, Bunny.

There were too many things for him to say to that and Kotetsu couldn't say any of them right here. He took a drink instead. He was going to need another whiskey at this rate.

He sighed. "I'm going to go get some air."

He headed for the big French doors at the other end of the ballroom and pushed his way out onto the big deck behind the hotel. It was cold outside and spitting snow, but being outside with a series of doors between him and the music made Kotetsu feel like he could at least think again. Besides, he'd been getting overheated in there. The cold felt kind of nice.

He leaned against the railing and stared off into the woods, layers of dark trees he could only see because of the snow collecting on their branches. It must've just started; there wasn't much accumulation yet.

Kotetsu took a drink and rubbed his forehead. Ugh, what a mess. He didn't want to go back in there because now he'd have to find a way to avoid Janet, because really, what was he going to tell her? "No, I don't want to have sex with you because I'm in love with my partner and apparently have been for years, but I literally just realized it this morning so I'm still kind of working through it"?

He had a feeling that wouldn't go over well with anybody. And Janet didn't seem like the type who got turned down often. He didn't think that was going to result in any problems for Hero TV, but he'd been wrong about that kind of thing before.

But he'd promised Bunny he wouldn't flake out on this, so he really didn't have too much time to figure out what he was going to do.

His temple throbbed, and Kotetsu dug a knuckle into it. This whole weekend was a headache.

The doors opened, and Kotetsu glanced back to see who was joining him out on the deck.

It was Bunny, of course.

His heart thumped painfully at the sight, and Kotetsu turned back to the woods and waited for Bunny to join him at the railing. Normally when they had talks like this, they were looking out over the city. This was a change of pace.

Bunny stood beside him, about an arm's length away. "Are you all right?"

Not really. "I'm fine." Kotetsu waved back at the ballroom. "Just needed to clear my head. It's getting loud in there."

Bunny nodded stiffly. "I wanted to apologize."

Kotetsu straightened and turned to him. "Apologize? For what?"

Bunny was staring very intently at the forest. "I reacted poorly when you said that woman had asked you to come back to her room."

Kotetsu frowned. "You did?"

Bunny exhaled. "You said that you wanted to."

"Yeah, when I thought it was to have a drink and take a break from the music." The music in question currently had a bass beat loud enough that it vibrated through the wood of the deck. "Not for...anything else. I didn't want that."

Bunny finally looked at him again. "You really didn't?"

Kotetsu shook his head. "I've never...wanted casual. I've never liked it." His gaze drifted down to his left hand, to his wedding ring. "I met Tomoe in high school, you know."

"Yes, you've told me," Bunny said quietly.

"Yeah, so..." Kotetsu rubbed his chest. Normally this hurt a lot more. Why didn't it hurt the same way? "We got together early. And then after she died, I just...never felt that way about anybody else for the longest time."

"For the longest time?" Bunny repeated.

Kotetsu froze. Crap. "Uh..."

"Does that mean you have feelings for someone now?" Bunny asked.

"Ah, no, no," Kotetsu said quickly, trying to think of a way out of the admission. "That's not—I didn't—"

Bunny set his hand on the railing. "It's okay if you do, you know, right?"

"I know that, but that's not what I meant!" Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck, trying to find a way to explain that wouldn't involve him confessing feelings that Bunny was sure to reject. "I just...at first it was because it hurt too much, you know? And then I just got used to it, to not feeling like that with anybody."

He wasn't sure if he was explaining well, but Bunny was nodding. Well, that was something, at least.

Kotetsu took a deep breath and continued. "And it's been so long I never really...thought it would change. But it has, I think. It doesn't hurt as much anymore. Or it does, but not in the same way that it used to."

Bunny took a step closer to him. "So it's less that you have feelings for someone, and more that you feel like you could have feelings for someone again at some point?"

Kotetsu swallowed hard. "Something like that."

It wasn't a lie, not exactly. It was just...a little omission. He did feel like he could have feelings for someone again. The problem was, his feelings had apparently already settled on Bunny.

He just needed a couple of days to himself to sort this out, really. Then things could go completely back to normal.

"I think that's a good thing." Bunny turned to look out at the trees. "You're a good man, Kotetsu. Anyone would be lucky to have you."

Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck. "Heh, you're saying that? New Year's must be making you sentimental."

Bunny exhaled sharply. "I mean it. There's a reason I came back to be your partner, you know."

The reminder made Kotetsu look away. Yeah, they'd come a long way since the beginning of their partnership. He couldn't imagine his life without Bunny, now.

"What about you?" he asked, desperate to get the topic of conversation off himself. "Do you have anybody you have feelings for? You were spending a lot of time with that one lady in town today."

Bunny stiffened. "That's ridiculous. Don't mistake me spending time with sponsors as having feelings for someone."

Kotetsu held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay! I was just asking."

Just asking because maybe it would help him get over this faster if he knew Bunny was in love with somebody else. Because he had to be, right?

Bunny looked away, back out to the forest. "There...is someone, though."

Kotetsu's heart sank, and he did his best to shove the feeling into a box to deal with later. He'd known this; he was just having it confirmed. "Oh yeah?"

Bunny smiled, the same small, soft smile he had so rarely, one of his real smiles, not one of his public ones. "Yeah. I'm not sure they feel the same way, though. But that's okay."

Kotetsu blinked. "What?! That's crazy."

Bunny shrugged. "It's all right. I just like being with them. It doesn't matter to me if they ever reciprocate my feelings, as long as I can be a part of their life."

Kotetsu could only stare at him. "But—you can't be serious. They have to reciprocate your feelings. Who wouldn't?"

"Technically, they don't have to do anything," Bunny pointed out. "My feelings are my business and they're not responsible for them."

"That's not what I—" Kotetsu dragged his hand through his hair, which was getting cold and wet from the snow. "You're amazing, Bunny. You're really smart, and kind. You're a great hero, and you have beautiful eyes. There's no way someone wouldn't be in love with you."

Bunny turned to him very slowly, eyes wide. "Do you really believe that?"

"Of course I do!" Kotetsu said earnestly. "Anybody would be lucky to have you. And if they don't reciprocate, they're an idiot. They'd never find anybody better."

Bunny pressed his lips together, like he was fighting a smile. "I doubt that."

"You should tell them." Kotetsu had to turn away at that, because he wasn't sure what his face was doing and he didn't want Bunny to see. "You've got a lot of time. You should spend it with the person you want to be with. You should be happy, Bunny. You deserve to be happy."

And that was the core of it, wasn't it? When he got down through everything. Kotetsu just wanted Bunny to be happy. Whatever form that took. If he had to swallow his pride and set Bunny up with someone himself, he'd do it.

"You really think I should tell them?" Bunny asked.

Kotetsu nodded. "Yeah, I do."

"Then I will on one condition," Bunny said.

"Eh? What's that?"

"That you do the same thing."

Kotetsu spun around to stare at him. "You want me to do what?!"

Bunny was standing there, a few steps closer than he had been before, hands in his pockets and regarding Kotetsu very patiently. "I want you to tell whoever you're in love with that you have feelings for them."

Oh, no. No no no. Kotetsu shook his head. "No, I told you, I don't—"

"I think you do," Bunny said. "And more specifically, I think that you have feelings for someone and you're hiding it."

Shit. Kotetsu winced and looked away again. "Why would you think I'm hiding it?"

"Because you always hide your true feelings," Bunny said. "Because you don't want to worry people or you don't want to burden them, but I think in this case, it's the same reason I haven't said anything. You're afraid they don't reciprocate."

Bunny had gotten a lot better at reading him over the years. Kotetsu's neck was warm again, at odds with the chill in the air.

"And if they don't reciprocate," Bunny continued softly, "then it will mean that you risk losing one of the most important relationships in your life."

Kotetsu inhaled sharply and froze. Had Bunny guessed it was him? But no, that was impossible...wasn't it?

He chanced a glance to his side. Bunny was standing there beside him at the railing, once again looking out at the forest.

"But you also deserve to be happy," Bunny said. "And so I think you should tell them. You may be surprised at their answer."

It was the most terrifying prospect Kotetsu had ever faced, and he regularly jumped into life-threatening situations armed with only his wires. His heart wanted to hope, and he squashed it down. "Nah." He shook his head. "Trust me, I don't think they'd look twice at an old man like me. Not when they have so many better options."

"Better?!" Bunny sounded surprised. "What are you talking about?"

Kotetsu rubbed the back of his neck. "Eh, you know. Younger, smarter, better-looking—"

"Do you really think so little of yourself?" Bunny demanded.

Kotetsu whirled around at that. Bunny was glaring at him, fists clenched, like he was either a minute away from punching him or maybe shaking him. Kotetsu blinked in surprise; he hadn't expected that level of reaction. "Bunny..."

"How can you talk about yourself like that?" Bunny shook his head. "You're the most loyal, tenacious person I've ever met. You throw yourself into dangerous situations without thinking if it means you might protect one other person. There is no one better than you. Not to me."

Kotetsu drew back, not quite able to believe what he was hearing. But Bunny was still looking at him like he was trying to bore the words into his head.

And then Bunny turned and started to walk away.

Panic filled him, and the only thing Kotetsu could think was don't leave. He lunged over and grabbed Bunny's hand, and then was immediately at a loss for what to do next.

There's no one better than you. Not to me.
You should tell them. You may be surprised.

Bunny's words echoed in his head, and the hope Kotetsu had tried to squash was back. It wasn't a guarantee. There was still the chance he was reading it wrong. But...

But if he wasn't...

The music inside stopped, and the DJ's muffled voice shouted, "Thirty seconds!"

"Your hands are cold," Kotetsu said inanely. He couldn't think of anything else.

"We've been standing in the snow for several minutes." Bunny didn't look back at him. "Of course they're cold. We should go back inside before they start the countdown."

No, not yet. Kotetsu didn't want to go back inside just yet. "Wait, Bunny."

At that, Bunny turned to look at him, his green eyes so wide it took Kotetsu's breath away.

Kotetsu plunged forward anyway. "It's you. I...it's you."

And there it was, out in the open. Like jumping off a cliff.

Bunny kept staring at him without any reaction, long enough that Kotetsu wondered if he could just jump over the railing and disappear into the woods for the rest of ever. He'd braced himself for rejection; he hadn't braced himself for silence.

Bunny took a step toward him and cupped his face with freezing hands. Kotetsu yelped. "Hey, what—"

And then Bunny's mouth was on his and Kotetsu forgot all about his hands.

Bunny was kissing him.

Bunny was kissing him.

Kotetsu knew, vaguely, he should be doing something, responding in some way, but his entire body was still paralyzed with the realization, trying to reconcile that yes, really, the person Bunny had feelings for was him. And then it clicked in his brain that Bunny might stop kissing him if he didn't do something and that was enough to have him grab Bunny's waist and pull him closer and kiss him back.

It was still cold outside, and some distant part of Kotetsu recognized that, but the rest of him was too caught up in how warm Bunny was: his mouth, his breath, the small of his back, where Kotetsu had locked his hands. And Bunny's hands, too, were getting warmer; possibly because Kotetsu felt like he was on fire. Not a single part of him had been prepared for Bunny to like him back, and it felt like his body was still trying to get the hang of how to react to that in the middle of dealing with the whole realization of feelings in the first place.

He still hadn't figured it out by the time Bunny pulled back and rested his forehead on Kotetsu's, but at least he was on the right path for it.

There were muffled shouts and cheers coming from inside the ballroom. Kotetsu cleared his throat. "I think we missed the countdown."

"Hardly," Bunny said. "We just got started on the kiss early."

It made Kotetsu's heart flip, and he smiled. "Heh. I guess we did." He pulled back just enough that he could actually look at Bunny in the eyes. "So...you really...?"

Bunny nodded slightly. "Yes. For a very long time."

Kotetsu blinked. "Hey, you never said anything!"

"Because, as I told you, if you didn't reciprocate, I risked ruining the most important relationship in my life." Bunny dropped his hands from Kotetsu's face to his waist. "I couldn't take that risk. Besides, I was happy with how things were. Just having you as part of my life is enough."

It was so close to his own rationalizations that Kotetsu wanted to kick himself. No wonder Bunny had known exactly what to say.

"How long have you...?" Bunny asked.

Kotetsu winced; he knew how this was going to sound. "Uh, since this morning?"

Bunny drew back and gaped at him. "What? This morning?!"

"It's been longer!" Kotetsu protested. "I know it's been longer. When I think about it and try to figure out where it started, I get back to our retirement and I start to get a headache because it was before that. But I just didn't...realize that's what it was, until this morning. When I woke up with you."

When I woke up with you in my arms and realized that's where I want to be every day.

Bunny smiled softly. "Is that why you got out of bed so early?"

Kotetsu froze. "Eh?! You were awake?"

Bunny nodded. "It was nice, waking up with you. I'd like to do it more."

Oh. Kotetsu's heart thudded at the words, and for one moment, it felt almost like he could see into the future: days and days of waking up with Bunny, of being able to hold him and kiss him and tease him and know that Bunny wanted this, too. "Yeah? Heh. Well, I think we can figure that out." He glanced back at the ballroom doors. "So, uh, do you want to go back into the party?"

Bunny slid his arms around Kotetsu's waist and kissed the side of his head. "It's after midnight. I think we made a long enough appearance there, don't you? I'd much rather go back to our room."

Kotetsu turned his head so he could kiss Bunny again. "That's the best idea you've had all night, Bunny-chan."

***

The next morning, Kotetsu woke up the same way he had the previous morning: with the rising sun hitting his eyes and with Bunny in his arms, although that last bit was partly because Bunny had kept stealing all the covers.

The biggest difference was that this time, it wasn't an accident. Kotetsu was holding Bunny because he wanted to be, and more importantly—most importantly—Bunny wanted that, too.

It was warm, and comfortable, and with any luck, they'd be waking up like this for a long, long time to come.

Kotetsu nuzzled Bunny's head and fell back asleep with a smile.