Title: Pride Comes Before A Fall
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Dee.
Rating: PG
Setting: During the manga.
Summary: Ryo would prefer not to tell Dee about his dumb accident, but it doesn’t look like he has any choice.
Word Count: 528
Content Notes: None needed.
Written For: Challenge 249: Amnesty, using Challenge 55: Bruise.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.



Ryo tried not to wince as he sank into the chair at his desk, gritting his teeth against the stab of pain, but despite his efforts, Dee noticed.

“Hey, you okay there bud?”

“I’m fine.” Ryo knew right away that he shouldn’t have blurted that out so quickly.

“Yeah? ‘Cause you don’t look fine to me, and you don’t sound fine either, so what’s up?”

“It’s nothing, Dee, really.”

“Don’t give me that; you’re practically perched on the edge of your seat.”

“It’s stupid; you’ll laugh.”

“I’d rather be laughin’ than worryin’, so spill.”

Elbows on his desk, Ryo dropped his face into his hands, trying unsuccessfully to hide his blush. “I told Bikky I’d teach him to ice skate. I mean he’s really good on his roller blades so I figured he’d be fine. I used to skate when I was younger, and it’s kinda like riding a bike; you never forget how. I even bought us both skates.”

“And?” Dee said, leaning forward across his desk as if waiting for the punch line.

“And we had a great time; I was right, Bikky took to skating like a duck to water, and I remembered more than I thought I would.”

“None of that explains why you’re so uncomfortable. What happened?”

Ryo shifted awkwardly on his seat, gnawing on his bottom lip, but he couldn’t just brush Dee off, he’d never get away with it. Dee could be like a dog with a bone, he wouldn’t give up until he knew the truth. “When we came out of the ice rink afterwards, I slipped on the steps and sat on my skates,” Ryo mumbled. “Now I have a huge bruise on my ass.”

Predictably Dee burst out laughing.

“See? I knew you’d laugh; it was so stupid!”

“Sorry,” Dee said, still snickering. “Seriously though, are you okay?”

“Fine, aside from being sore and bruised. Where are you going?” Dee had stood up.

“To nab you a cushion from the break room; looks like you’ll need it if you’re gonna get any work done today.”

“But then everyone’s going to know something’s wrong!”

“You seriously think they’re not gonna notice the way you’re sittin’? Face it, bud, you might as well just come clean. You don’t have to tell everyone the whole truth, you can just say you took Bikky ice-skatin’ and you fell over. They’ll buy that; I bet none of them can skate anyway.”

“I suppose I could do that.”

“Think you’ll be takin’ Bikky skatin’ again?”

“Not until this bruise fades. Last thing I need is to fall on it again.” Ryo smiled ruefully.

“I’ll go get you that cushion.”

“Thanks, Dee.”

“Anytime, bud. That’s what friends are for, right?” Still grinning all over his face, Dee headed for the break room.

Ryo sighed and shook his head; he should have known better than to think he could hide his discomfort from his partner. Dee was way too observant not to notice. Like Ryo, he’d been trained to pick up on things most people would miss. Still, in a way he was glad Dee knew. At least now he wouldn’t have to suffer in silence.


The End