Title: Mall Encounter
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Dee, OFC.
Rating: PG
Setting: After Vol. 7.
Summary: Ryo catches Dee doing some unusual shopping.
Word Count: 596
Content Notes: None needed.
Written For: Challenge 351: Amnesty, using Challenge 269: Yarn.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.



Dee and Ryo had the day off, but Dee had claimed he was going to be busy helping Mother, so Ryo was a little surprised to spot his lover striding purposely through the mall. On the other hand, maybe Mother had him running errands, and since Ryo had finished his own, having picked up a few things Bikky needed for school, he decided to see if Dee could use another pair of hands. Maybe there’d even be time for them to have a coffee together before Dee headed back to the orphanage.

His partner was quite a way ahead, and while dodging the crowds of shoppers Ryo lost sight of him. Thinking he’d lost Dee completely, he started to turn back, when he spotted the distinctive tall figure from the corner of his eye, slipping into a shop. Smiling, he followed, but paused outside the door. Surely Dee couldn’t have come in here!

The sign read ‘Knitter’s Haven’, and stacks of brightly colored skeins and balls of yarn were arrayed in the window. Ryo frowned; maybe he was mistaken and Dee had gone into the shop next door. But no, there he was at the counter, tall, broad-shouldered, black-haired… Even viewed from behind Ryo would have recognised him anywhere. He crept quietly into the shop, driven by curiosity, and approached the counter himself, getting close enough to hear Dee asking about yarn.

“It needs to be hardwearin’ and machine washable. Budget-priced would be good too.”

“How about this one?” The woman behind the counter indicated a display cabinet stuffed with balls of yarn in every color of the rainbow, and then some. “One hundred percent acrylic, colorfast, and comes in twenty-five shades. It’s not the cheapest we stock, but it’s on the lower end of the scale and if you want something that will withstand wear and tear, it’s the best quality there is for the price.” She told him how much it was per ball.

“Sounds reasonable.” Dee squeezed one of the balls, evaluating the texture. “Yeah, I think this should do just fine. D’you sell it in packs? Great, I’ll take ten balls of this blue, and ten of the bright red.”

Coming alongside Dee, Ryo commented, “I didn’t know you could knit.”

Dee almost jumped out of his skin. “Argh!” Then he saw who it was. “Dammit, Ryo, don’t go sneakin’ up on me like that!”

“Sorry. I just figured you were running errands and since I already got everything I came for I thought I’d see if you needed a hand. Didn’t expect you to come in here though.”

“Thought you were stayin’ home today, catchin’ up on chores.”

“Did that this morning, then decided to get a head start on the back-to-school shopping. Sometimes it’s easier if Bikky isn’t with me.”

“Oh. Well, for your information, yeah, I can knit a bit, Mother taught me the basics when I was a kid, but the yarn’s not for me, it’s for her. She likes makin’ warm winter sweaters for the kids, but yarn’s expensive so she usually has to make do with the oddments people donate. Thought I’d get her somethin’ nicer as a birthday surprise.”

Ryo smiled. “In that case, pick out a couple more colors and I’ll get her some too. Maybe I’ll even ask her to teach me to knit; it’s supposed to be very relaxing.”

Dee grinned. “I can see it now; we’re on a stakeout and you’re busily knittin’ a scarf.”

“Now there’s an idea, it would certainly pass the time. Who knows, maybe it’ll catch on!”


The End