Ironies of life

Chapter 16: Prideful.

Dante had already prepared the breakfast when Naoki went downstairs.

“Look who decided to show up.” Dante said before Naoki could even sit at the table. “Aren’t you getting your breakfast?”

“Get it for me.” Naoki answered biting his tongue.

Dante left the cereal and the milk in front of Naoki with a smile.

“You really love swimming, don’t you?” He seemed so proud of his blackmail; Naoki’s face twitched as his composure wavered.

“Shut up.”

They both had breakfast in completely awkward silence and at the end Dante put the dishes in the dishwasher before voicing his intention to continue his training.

“How many times…” Naoki started his question but was interrupted by Dante’s response.

“Three a day.”

“You don’t even know what I’m going to ask!” Naoki protested.

“How many times do you have to use the lotion? Three times.”

Naoki clenched his jaw tightly. ‘Why does he always act so smart? He bothers me so much.’

“Tell me if you need more, I’ll go and buy it.”

Naoki went upstairs grumbling and brought the cream tube to the kitchen, mentally preparing to suffer three times a day under Dante’s hands. But he waited in the kitchen and Dante didn’t show up, so after waiting for fifteen whole minutes Naoki got up and stomped into the living room.

‘Where is this jerk?’

Dante strode into the living room dressed in his training clothes and carrying all his training equipment with him. He set his stuff down and began warming up.

“So it has to be once in the morning, once at lunch and then once before dinner?”

“It sounds like the best option. I think it’s a flexible schedule though.” He didn’t stop his warm up to speak. He swung his right arm to the left and locked it in place, flexing his biceps and shoulder blades to stretch out the muscles, his form incredibly visible through his muscle shirt.

Naoki stared at him for a while.

‘No way is he that stupid, he has to have noticed that I’m asking him to do it.’

But Dante didn’t seem to be getting it.

“So… how long are you going to be doing that exercise?” Naoki didn’t know how to phrase his request.

“I have the whole day. Why are you rushing me?”

“I’m not rushing you, but if doing it in the morning is the best option then I think we should just get it done now…”

Dante stopped dead for a second and then turned his face towards the kitchen.

“Are you trying to ask me something, Naoki?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Naoki answered defensively. Dante was teasing him again, he certainly seemed to be having fun.

“Is it?”

“So you can guess my questions during breakfast, but you lose your ability when it doesn’t benefit you?” His blunt rudeness wasn’t exactly fun, but Naoki had no reason to be polite with Dante.

“Maybe.”

“And I’m the childish one.” Naoki rolled his eyes.

“I thought we had a deal that’s why I’m confused.” Dante was laughing at the situation. He stopped warming up and stepped towards the kitchen. “I won’t do anything unless you ask me for it, which means you give me your consent and that the deal is not broken.”

“Since when do you speak like a lawyer?”

‘I can’t believe he is going to make me say it. Why is he so cruel? I’m going to die of embarrassment and I have pride, too. A great pride, I can say. There is no way I’m going to ask for it.’

“Since I have to deal with someone that accuses me of touching him improperly after catching him before letting him crack his head against the floor.” Even if he was saying such a thing, he was smiling.

‘Why are you so happy, you jerk. I hate you.’

“Okay, fine. Can you help me with the lotion? It won’t count as breaking the deal.”

Dante went around the corner and entered in the kitchen with a bad dissimulate smile playing on his lips.

“I hate you, Dante Hartell.” Naoki pointed one more time before pulling his shirt off.

“Has anyone ever tell you how friendly and grateful you are?”

“No.” He was trying to cut Dante’s happiness momentum.

“No wonder.”

“Hey quit using the sarcasm, that’s mine” Naoki hanged the shirt from the chair and half sat on the table “Oh and don’t you dare hurting me” He pointed at the lotion tube on Dante’s hands.

“You mean more?” He laughed, the blonde dude seemed to be in a particular good mood. A mood that scared the hell out of Naoki.

“So you recognize you DID hurt me.”

“Let’s call it a collaborative work.”

Naoki squint. He was definitely going to learn how to apply the lotion to himself. The pain and self control would be worth it if he didn’t have to see Dante’s creepy smile anymore. Not to mention avoid his stupid comments and his inexplicable good mood.

Dante began unrolling the bandage around Naoki’s shoulder. He would have love to complain about something just to bother the blond guy but he barely even touched Naoki’s skin and he did the whole thing smooth and slow.

“Does it hurts when you are not touching it?” He asked putting the bandage aside.

“Like you care.”

Dante rolled his eyes and took the lotion tube that was already opened, he brought it closer to Naoki’s skin before pressing it, letting the transparent cream create a really big cold tear on Naoki’s shoulder.

“Don’t hurt me.” He insisted.

“Like I care.”

Naoki jumped from the table when heard that and stepped away from his enemy.

“WHAT!?”

“That should be my reaction, Naoki. Because I just repeated what you said three second ago. Now could you please stop that? I’m not going to purposely hurt you.”

“You mean more?”

“Oh come on! That was not on purpose” He was still smiling a bit”And that was my sentence.”

“You know what? Forget about it. I don’t want someone with such a ghoulish smile to take care of my injured shoulder.”

Dante completely ignored the comment and approached Naoki focus on his shoulder. He sigh and placed his hands on the injured part.

“Hey, haven’t you hear me? Forget about… AH!” He stopped to breathe because otherwise he would have punch Dante for that.

“Hey, do you want to keep swimming or not?” The blond dude seemed really focus on his job. He was rubbing gently with his thumbs in circles, just as April said.

But all Naoki could think in when he looked aside to desist was that his enemy was awfully close. Yes, maybe he was being more gentle than the therapist and maybe his concentration face was cute and maybe the serious way he was taking the whole thing, trying to pass over all the muscles and make the lotion absorb made it seem like he really wanted to help. But Naoki knew that was not true. It couldn’t be true because Dante was a demon.

“Breathe” Dante suggested, even if he wasn’t paying attention to Naoki’s face he felt that the other guy was staring at him.

“I’m breathing.” Lied Naoki defensiveness.

“Are you?” He passed his hand all over the shoulder until he got to Naoki’s back.

Meanwhile Hiro was having real problems to breathe regularly after containing so much air. But every time we would take a breath his heart will start beating really fast and he absolutely didn’t want that to happen.

“Are you okay? Is it hurting?” Dante looked at Naoki concern “You are going pale. Naoki?”

Dante remove his hands from the shoulder and Naoki finally breathe deeply. His heart was beating faster than he would have like it to, but at least Dante wasn’t touching him. When they bold guy had the hands on his shoulder he was scared that somehow Hartell was going to notice it.

“You know, you don’t have to be so prideful. I’ve being injured too a million times and I know it hu…” Dante started lecturing him.

“S-shut up… I have no idea why are you being so nice, I’ve no idea why you decided to come here and suddenly act like you care about me but I don’t buy it and I’m really not interested at all in the answer so just shut up. I know what I’m doing with my life, thanks.”

“Oh for crying out loud” Dante dragged him to a chair and made him seat before finishing his job.

He was taking a bit longer than April because he was trying it to absorb without being rough and that second time was even worse. Because of Naoki’s position sitting on the chair the blond dude placed his right leg between Naoki’s and lean a bit toward him, letting the blond bang stroke Naoki’s cheek. Who just gave up and let his heart beat at a highly crazy speed for no reason.

Dante leaned even a fit further to reach the bandage over the table and then began surrounding Naoki’s shoulder with it. He was wrapping it tight but his movements were still meticulously calculated to be less hurtful. He finally finished and add two pieces of sticking plaster before stepping back.

“Done, If you need to have a shower I think you can keep it on and then I will use a new one. You don’t want to move it during that time.”

Naoki murmured something.

“What?”

“You heard me.”

“No I didn’t” Dante assured.

“I said thank you.”

“On my, you are so prideful it hurts even hearing at you.”

“Look how is going to talk” Naoki chugged, took his shirt from the chair and headed upstairs.

‘What is wrong with me? Why was my heart beating so fast?'.