The Honey Axiom

Jesse smiles as Yugo comes back, carrying several boxes of chocolates in his arms, not knowing exactly what to buy. He just wanted to buy good gifts for their friends and colleagues who stayed back to cover for them while the two of them left for a well-deserved vacation. Ever since they had tied the knot, they didn't even get to plan their honeymoon — how could they? Their work required them to be there all the time: there were always urgencies to take care of, colleagues in difficulty, higher-ups in demand, customers to satisfy... The business was flourishing but it didn't mean it was easy every day. Sometimes Yugo wanted to give up and leave it behind. He just wanted to run away, and every time he thought of it, Jesse would be here to take him in his arms, to calm him down with a soft voice, and ask him "What do you need?" 

Yugo was lucky to have Jesse, although he was the latest addition to the team that had worked well until now but they were often clashing over small matters — you didn't proofread, you’re late at sending the reports and the customers are waiting for their invoices for weeks already! there's so much backlog after the software's update that it made it impossible to use. —

Jesse came with a brand new mindset and optimism, improving the team's mood in one go. What also Jesse managed to do was break through Yugo's walls that he had kept so well guarded for years. Taiga, who was a friend more than a colleague, noticed immediately that Yugo's affection for this Jesse went beyond work-related matters.  

For weeks, Taiga nudged Shintaro whose desk was next to him to make him look at Yugo. He is starstruck! he would whisper to him, and Shintaro would snicker. Yugo was lost in his thoughts and didn't notice that his gaze naturally wandered on Jesse who was sitting quite far from him.

Taiga then suggested to Yugo that he should just ask him out but Yugo shook his head furiously. “Are you crazy? I'm his superior, don't you think it's harassment? He's younger than me, no, no, Taiga, it's against my work ethic."

Taiga pouted. There was definitely something he could do, he had told Shintaro who looked at him with a big smile, "Invite him out instead! It might exacerbate all kinds of feelings."

Taiga had laughed but thought hard about it for two days — was it overstepping? But then Taiga stopped thinking and went to Jesse's desk before lunch and greeted him:

"Hey, Jesse. There's a new ramen shop that opened down the street, do you want to come with me? For lunch."

Somehow, Jesse gave out a huge smile before accepting. He was happy to become friends with his colleagues, he felt shy when he first arrived, barging into a tight-knit circle.

Because Taiga was a bit of a sadist, he glanced at Yugo who definitely heard him ask Jesse out and Taiga's heart pinched a little when he saw Yugo's downcast eyes, probably trying hard to contain his emotions. Taiga knew him well enough to know that Yugo was feeling down. 

When lunch came, Jesse literally jumped out of his seat and waited after Taiga who chuckled softly at the strange excitement. 

"I'm really happy you're asking me out for lunch. I don't know the area well and you guys always look so busy I just eat onigiri at the closest conbini..." He explained as Taiga was standing up to get his coat. At the same moment, Taiga's eyes accidentally fell on Yugo and their eyes met. He felt really bad, but it was for a good cause!! Yugo didn't say anything and averted his eyes almost immediately after being caught.

"I'll teach you! You don't have a senior taking care of you, right? Shintaro and I will be there for you." Taiga said and Jesse bowed dramatically, thanking him for his generosity.

He patted Jesse's head.

"You're so cute!” Taiga squealed.

Scratching his head, Jesse shyly smiled again before they heard Yugo clear his throat loudly:

"You guys are really noisy, can you please go to lunch, I still have some work to do."

"Oh," Jesse pouted and glanced at the busy Yugo typing furiously on the keyboard of his computer. "We're so sorry, we will be leaving."

And Jesse marched away without waiting for Taiga. The senior looked at Yugo and rolled his eyes at him.

"You really can be an idiot sometimes."

When Taiga scampered after Jesse who was already waiting for the elevator, he said:

"Don't mind him, he is grumpy."

"I really don't like to make him angry," Jesse simply admitted, his eyebrows furrowed and his lips tightened in a straight line that didn't give out more information.

"He'll get better, he's a bit stressed," Taiga answered, not knowing if he should straightforwardly tell him that his superior has a crush on him, he really didn't want to scare their new colleague.

Jesse only nodded.

Their lunch was actually a very nice one, and Taiga really enjoyed Jesse's company. He liked how cheerful, passionate, and ambitious he was, and knowing a bit more about him made Taiga think that he was the perfect fit for Yugo. 

"Kyomoto-senpai, I have a question..."

Jesse's bowl was empty when he finally voiced out a concern of his.

"Call me Taiga."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah sure, I don't really care. Shoot, what's up? Ask me anything. I'm here for that."

"It's not work-related," Jesse added in a low voice. "It's about the chief, Kochi-san.”

"What about him?" Taiga asked but he wanted to smirk. 

Taiga looked at Jesse, he could see how worried he looked. 

"Do you think he hates me? He's often annoyed when I'm here."

"Oh, no, he's stressed, I told you. He has some things on his mind."

“Oh… L-Like… a... wife?"

“A w—…?” Taiga burst into laughter, almost spitting out his drink on him. "Oh, no! Nothing like that. He's not in a relationship right now."

Relief was all over Jesse’s face.

Even after paying for the lunch, Jesse thanked him properly, bowing to his senior and telling him that he ate well and would do his best at work. Taiga's heart wavered for a moment, wondering if he should just steal Jesse away from Yugo if he doesn't make a move on him. After all, Jesse was an attractive young man, he was easily noticed. His arrival did shake the hearts of many and Taiga knew that Yugo's shook too (even if Yugo would harshly deny it).

And Yugo would definitely deny that he looked through the window during lunch, his bento in one hand where he could see Jesse and Taiga walk down the streets when they left.

Yugo was snappy the whole afternoon.

"They definitely like each other," Taiga told Shintaro. "Painful to see, to be honest. Kochi is being particularly rough on Jesse because he likes him."

"He's that kind of guy..." Shintaro laughed.

*

Jesse had been sighing the whole day and Juri ended up throwing a pen at him across the office so he could stop.

"Stop sighing for fuck's sake, it's so annoying, I hear you breathing!!!" Juri bawled, extremely on edge. They were all on edge when they had to work overtime because something urgent came up (again). The chief (aka Yugo) had to urgently take the shinkansen to the headquarters so he could attend a meeting with all of the department chiefs about the latest status of the company. But of course, the short notice took the whole office aback and the report wasn't ready in time.

"He didn’t get to see Kochi for two days, let him be." Taiga defended him but Taiga always defended Jesse on everything and it pissed Yugo even more that he started to give his longtime friend the cold shoulder.

Hokuto had suddenly barged into the office, his face showing obvious signs of exhaustion as he announced:

"Internal network is down. Not only can I not send the report through the company’s mail but Kochi-san just told me that he needs some wet signatures on some documents for tomorrow morning, so I have to head to Tokyo right now to bring those since their next meeting starts super early tomorrow morning… I am… so tired..."

“W—I'm going!" Jesse immediately said as he jumped out of his seat. It was half past seven and everyone just wanted to go home so no one really fought him on that.  

Everyone skimmed through their own parts before printing and handing them out to Jesse, leaving important data to him. 

"Just take the next shinkansen, here's the card company. Keep the receipts, please, or they’ll deduct it from your pay.” Hokuto told him as he was handing him a thick leather folder and a credit card. "I'll text you the address of the hotel Kochi-san is staying at right now." Jesse nodded and Hokuto said: "Now, run."

So Jesse rushed out of the office, making Taiga smile.

He was diligent in his work but Taiga knew that Jesse was actually looking forward to seeing Yugo again. He hadn't seen him for two days and it seemed to have bummed him out.

During the whole ride, Jesse couldn't sleep a wink, he was a bit nervous to meet Yugo in such a different setting.

He took the taxi, then the shinkansen, and again a taxi to Yugo's hotel and he didn't think his heart would beat so badly. It was still work, after all, why was he so nervous?

When he arrived at the lobby and announced himself, they gave him the key and Jesse navigated through the hallways of that fancy hotel. He was so nervous in front of the door that  he stayed in front of it without moving for a few minutes. The door ended up opening itself before he could knock on it.

"You're here! I thought you got lost, I was coming to get you." Yugo said and beamed at him. He seemed to be in a good mood in spite of being sent so far on such short notice. He looked fresh out of the bath and Jesse thought his heart had stopped when he saw his chief wearing nothing else than the hotel's yukata.

"H-Hello, chief."

"Don't chief me, come on in. Did you bring the docs?" Yugo immediately invited Jesse in. Even if he wasn't in corporate wear, Yugo was still in a work mood.

"Y-yeah, h-here." He handed him the folder and stepped swiftly inside, taking off his shoes and looking around the room but it had no personal effects scattered, just Yugo, a bag, and a laptop. Still, he could only smell the faint scent of soap.

"I'm sorry, I just needed to take a bath to relax, I've been so stressed. The whole branch's future in my hands. If I don't prove that we add to the numbers, I'm afraid they'll shut us down. They are planning urgent cost cuts. All regional managers have to shine through their presentations and I— I'm rambling but I don't want us to close... I'm sorry for making you come all the way here."

"It's fine, Kochi-san. I'm glad I can help you. I'm new here, but I’m happy to see that you're working hard for all of us, I'm grateful." Jesse said, making Yugo look up from his laptop sitting on the little desk of the hotel room. He stared at Jesse and repressed the blush that crept into his cheeks.

"I... I'm just doing my job."

"Rather well, I might say. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Get me food,” Yugo ordered as he buried his face in his papers again. Maybe out of shyness or because reason called for him to get back to work.

"Sure, what do you want?"

"Something warm."

That was vague but that was enough for Jesse to go and look for the nearest well-rated restaurant. He didn't want to get some random food from the convenience store, Jesse wanted to get the best for Yugo.

It took him one hour to get some rice, eel and a miso soup but when he came back, Yugo was dozing on the bed. Maybe he thought of taking a short break that became a nap.

It was still warm so Jesse didn't want Yugo to go to bed without eating so he woke him up gently, brushing a few fingers across his cheeks and Yugo jolted at the sensation of cold fingers against his skin.

"I-I'm sorry... I didn't want to startle you, I brought you warm food and you should eat."

"Ah... Yeah..." Yugo sheepishly said as he sat up on his bed, staring at the plastic bags of food on the desk. "Will you eat with me?"

"Sure."

*

Jesse had never seen his chief in such a relaxed, sleepy state. He still had work to do but Yugo was eating so slowly as they both watched TV together. Jesse could even hear his real laughter as some comedians behind the screen worked hard to make people like Yugo laugh. And it worked, and Jesse thought he would love to be the one to make him laugh like that.

When they finished, Yugo politely gave his thanks and cleaned after him before going back to his desk.

“You should go to sleep, you must be sleepy.”

Jesse nodded but then stood up from his seat, realizing that he didn’t book a room: “I— don’t have a room…” he said as he started to look for his phone and credit card, getting ready to run to the lobby so he could ask to book a room.

“Hey, calm down, just sleep there, I’m not using it tonight anyway. I’ll take a nap on the sofa, don’t worry.” Yugo told him, making Jesse blush intensely for no reason at all. “Don’t be shy, it’s fine. I made you come all the way here, it’s my fault for not checking stuff properly.”

“You need to rest though, chief.”

“I will,” Yugo promised but Jesse was secretly overjoyed to spend the night in the same hotel room as Yugo. He didn’t think this could ever happen. “You can use the bathroom, I’ll go work in the lobby.”

“No!” Jesse immediately interjected and knew how weird his loud burst might have sounded. “It’s lonely if you’re leaving.”

Yugo had waited for Jesse to shut the door of the bathroom to let his face redden at the sweetness of Jesse’s words. How could Yugo resist? e wondered as he started to think that it might have been a bad idea to invite him into his room. For a few minutes, he completely forgot about his ethics and his own principles… He felt so relaxed and at peace that everything went out of the window.

What did I just do?!! Yugo screamed internally, he screamed even more when Jesse came out of the shower, his hair wet and no clothes because he forgot to take the pajamas with him in the bathroom. Yugo had a hard time hiding his embarrassment. He was in the middle of work, trying to remember his presentation for tomorrow and Jesse showed up almost naked, almost giving Yugo a heart attack. He knew Jesse was well-built as his suit would sometimes show the outline of his body but he never knew he looked that gorgeous without a shirt and Yugo forgot everything about work.

“Huh, sorry, I forgot my pjs,” Jesse apologized as he walked across the room to get his own pajamas in the closet near the television. Yugo wanted to stare so badly but as usual, he pretended to have his eyes focused on his screen, his fingers pretending to write something but it came out as strings of letters bunched together. 

Jesse was swift but he removed his towel just before closing the door, Yugo could see Jesse’s bare back and was almost losing it as he closed his laptop shut loudly, almost breaking the screen. It was time for him to cool it off somewhere else, Yugo thought as he left the room, laptop under his arm.

After coming out of the bathroom, Jesse found the room empty. He sulked and immediately looked for Yugo downstairs, not forgetting his own room card and when he found Yugo at the bar, his eyes reflecting the blue light of his screen, he wondered if he could be selfish and bother him during a moment as important as this one.

Meanwhile, Yugo lost all focus, he was trying to remember his text and read over and over the same papers he had been through for hours but the only thing he could remember was the shape of Jesse’s body and he felt like a pervert. There was no way he could go back to his own room. Maybe he should book another room — but when he asked the staff at the main counter in the lobby, they apologized, saying there weren’t any vacant rooms at this time.

He was so fucked — maybe he shouldn’t sleep at all.

Yugo accidentally raised his head and glimpsed at Jesse from afar who was walking in his direction before making a U-turn and leaving. Yugo sighed. He had to be braver in life, he had to or he’ll fail his work tomorrow.

Once again closing the poor laptop, he gave his room number and asked for two beers to be sent to his room.

Before the elevator could close on Jesse, Yugo slipped in.

“Hey.”

Jesse nodded, his eyes glinting immediately. “Hey… You disappeared. I thought you might need some space, I’m sorry for invading. I can ask for another room.”

“They’re full, they just told me.”

“Oh, you already asked…” Jesse furrowed his eyebrows, feeling a bit hurt for some reason.

“It’s fine, I was worried you wouldn’t be able to sleep with me working nearby.”

“It’s okay, I don’t mind. I’d rather have you working nearby than be lonely.” Jesse earnestly revealed and Yugo unconsciously smiled.

*

After sharing a quiet beer together, Jesse actually fell asleep as Yugo was working late. He was sporting some glasses that Jesse had never seen him wear before and that made Jesse stare a bit too much, a bit too long as he was on the bed, his half-lidded eyes slowly closing shut but Yugo felt a bit intimidated to have Jesse sleeping while his whole body was on his side, facing him. Yugo thought that Jesse needed to see someone not to feel lonely.

How could he sleep at night then? Did it mean he had someone already? Someone who could watch over him while he slept?

With those final thoughts, Yugo decided to end the work for the day and went to the other side, the empty space of the bed without bothering to get beneath the covers.

It was only in the morning when Yugo noticed that he was covered by the covers, he didn’t remember much though, but perhaps he unconsciously slipped beneath the blanket, feeling too cold. He was surprised to see that Jesse was happily snoozing next to him, his breathing steady and his eyes still closed. Yugo could really take a look at him up close, thing that he had never been able to before and he marveled at the way his features looked even prettier the closer he got. His eyes were admiring every part of his face, the way his hair fell on the side, the way his eyelashes were casting a shadow on his pale cheeks, the moles of his face, the plumpness of his lips when suddenly, Jesse’s eyes opened so slowly that Yugo couldn’t even pretend he had not been staring.

“Hey… morning.” Jesse called softly, a groggy tone that reminded Yugo it was early morning and he had a meeting to attend.

“Ah, I’m going to be late,” he mumbled before rushing to the bathroom, not seeing the happy smile Jesse had on his face.

*

Jesse was the one who cleaned after Yugo’s mess as he was late and rushed to the hotel’s conference room. Jesse joined him as well, albeit a bit late but as an employee of the company, he was allowed to roam free. The higher-ups were sitting at the front anyway, but Jesse, who was at the very back, mouthed a “good luck” and lifted two thumbs up to encourage him, making Yugo smile uncontrollably.

That was the beginning of it all.

Because after Yugo had given his best performance and answered the questions of the higher-ups, he was free to leave and the two of them left with lighter hearts. Yugo was still nervous about the outcome. He didn’t know if their branch would be the one to be shut down but he gave his all and now, he couldn’t do anything more, so he just took Jesse in his arms as soon as they left the hotel’s auditorium.

“Thank you,” Yugo simply said and Jesse accepted the hug, tightening his arm a bit around Yugo, who could feel a comfort and a sort of affection that needn’t words to be understood. “Let me buy you food?”

It was the first of the many, many other lunches and dinners they’d spend together.

It was during a lunch that Jesse finally had the courage to ask Yugo out, two weeks after that day. Yugo didn’t say no but didn’t say yes, he only chuckled and traced the shell of Jesse’s ear, making Jesse shiver. It was his way to say, yeah of course I’ll date you.

It was during a late dinner when Jesse had nearly died after a bad flu that Yugo ended up asking Jesse to marry him, completely in tears but relieved to see that Jesse was feeling better. He was still feverish and Jesse thought he had been joking but when Yugo asked him again the next morning, Jesse was the one smiling at him and said, yeah of course I’ll marry you.

That honeymoon, though, didn’t happen until Juri and Hokuto had to schedule Yugo and Jesse’s days off and had planned the whole trip for them. It was their wedding gift they had said. So Yugo and Jesse had actually a 47-day long honeymoon where they traveled across Japan, visiting every prefecture together, staying at the best hotels together where they had sex every single night.

The day before going back to work, Yugo realized that he had forgotten to buy gifts from the last prefecture and he couldn’t idle the way he had planned to so he dragged Jesse to the nearest gift shops and looked around for chocolate boxes. He wanted to bring something sweet, he said, and when Jesse asked why, Yugo just answered because they were sweet to them during their whole relationship and he would never be grateful enough for everything they had done for them.

And Jesse smiled again like he often did with Yugo.

“Can you help me carry those?” Yugo asks.

“Of course, I’ll carry those for you,” Jesse says.