Eventually Tristan did manage to fall asleep in the very early hours of the morning. He slept deeper than he usually did, too emotionally exhausted to have any dreams – or if he had, he couldn’t remember them when he woke up. A few rays of sunshine pierced past the heavy curtains, refracting off of his white shirt and lighting up the room. With a soft groan he rolled the other way, trying to trick his mind into believing he’d never been awake in the first place and to sneak back into the comfort of sleep.

Yet he hadn’t accounted for alternate forces that decided to want attention. The mattress shifted from a sudden addition of weight, and he felt a poke on his cheek. Without even bothering to open his eyes, he instead threw the heavy blanket over his head. A loud huff told him that Hibiki didn't take very kindly to that. He felt the weight shift over him, and preemptively kept the blanket down so Hibiki couldn't mess with it.

A phone slid under the blankets, invading the safe space he'd made for himself.

'Kazuo is on his way here'

That message by itself was enough to wake him up – and then he saw it was a quarter past noon. Realising he'd overslept, he threw the blanket off of him, and saw Hibiki sitting on the bed already dressed.

"I'm sorry." It was said more out of habit than anything, as he struggled his way out of the blankets and crawled to the other end of the bed. Only to feel two hands grab him and pull him back. For a long, slightly disorienting second he was kissed, and he didn't have the mental strength to deal with panic and pleasure at the same time – so he just went with whatever Hibiki gave to him.

As the kiss broke, he let out a slightly trembling breath and opened his eyes to see Hibiki smirk at him as if his infatuation was amusing. Only for all the other thoughts to flood back, and with it the fear of not being presentable by the time Kazuo would arrive.

"I still need to shave."

Hibiki smiled at him, but didn't let him go. Instead Tristan spotted a familiar, dangerous spark of mischief in his look. With one hand, Hibiki wrote on his phone, while with the other he held him firmly in place.

'I want to help'

"Help? But I know how to…" His sentence faded away, as he realised that it wouldn't matter since Hibiki had already made up his mind. Part of him was afraid he would be pranked, or messed with, but he was also curious as to what it would be like. It didn't sound so bad to have someone do it for him. So he nodded, and felt slightly more frightened when an overexcited grin spread on the face of the person who was about to drag sharp blades over his neck.

Tristan stood in front of Hibiki, who has sat down on the bathroom countertop to get a better vantage point. Everything needed was stalled out; some things like the razor were his own, while the aftershave and scent had been picked by Hibiki. Now all that was left was the actual shaving part, and as Hibiki gestured for him to come a bit closer, the nerves set in but he still did so, until he was practically standing between Hibiki's legs against the counter.

A hand firmly took his cheek, and he swallowed anxiously as he felt Hibiki's thumb run over the short hairs. Noticing his trepidation, Hibiki made a slow gesture with his free hand, as if he was pushing something down towards the ground and at the same time exhaling exaggeratedly to tell him to calm down. He followed the lead, and after a few breaths nodded that he was okay. Once more the thumb ran over his cheek, continuing down to his chin, where his head was pushed sideways both to the left and right while Hibiki inspected him.

A bit of shaving cream later, the razor was carefully brought down following the contours of his face. The sensation was equal parts strange, and satisfying – but most of all he felt rather vulnerable. Somehow he didn't really know how to respond to it; he couldn't look at Hibiki, since he was focussing, so he stared at a cupboard; he didn't know where to place his hands; and he was too nervous about getting nicked, to even consider small talk. Yet somehow it was still a comfortable thought that he was being cared for.

About a quarter of the way in, he realised that Hibiki was rather good at it as well: he was meticulous, and had a keen sense for the right amount of pressure. It was enough for him to ease up and trust that Hibiki would do it right. Despite trying his best to keep a straight face and make it as easy as possible, he couldn't help but smile a little. Instead of staring, he closed his eyes and accepted that he enjoyed it.

Little by little, every bit of hair on his jaw and his neck was shaven away cleanly. Each motion Hibiki made rid him of another bit of unkemptness, feeling less and less grimy each time. Until finally the other side of his face was reached, and with a last inspection of all angles, Hibiki decided it was acceptable. Any shaving cream left was quickly wiped away with a towel, and then he could finally talk again without fear.

"Thank you."

Hibiki smiled and gave him a nod, while taking the bottle of aftershave. As he put some on his hands, the scent of warm citrus filled the air – before promptly being put on his face. It stung slightly.

"It smells rather good." He confessed, as the intensity of it wore off into a pleasant, present but not overwhelming hint of citrus.

The words emboldened Hibiki to grab the bottle of actual cologne, and spray some on both of his wrists and then his neck. Opportunistic as he was, Hibiki took full advantage of the moment to lean in towards his neck. A deep, warm exhale hit the skin, followed by a heavy breathe in of his scent and a single kiss – which felt a bit like a signature, as if he was being claimed somehow. It made him blush, and realise that being in his underwear wasn't exactly a benefit to him.

"I should get dressed." He mumbled, which only spurred Hibiki to glance down and take an even closer look. Embarrassed, he looked up as if not seeing himself would hide everything, but even then he saw Hibiki grin with an unsettling amount of delight for his shame.

Two hands were placed right below his ribcage, holding him firmly as Hibiki moved closer until their bodies met. Although the embrace was tight, their uneven degrees of being dressed made Tristan feel like he was open and exposed – especially now Hibiki was holding him. But despite that he decided to just subject himself to it, perhaps a little too eager to be loved regardless of circumstances.

Hibiki had figured that out about him as well, and he felt two hands slowly drift up over his chest, to his neck, before resting under his jaw. The touch was light, little more than fingertips guiding him, but the force of attraction Hibiki wielded had a strong grip on his mind. Even just the suggestion of coming closer he couldn't resist, having been rewarded with a kiss whenever he went along with it. It was no different this time, and the bliss washed away all of the shame he had felt.

A loud ring, albeit dampened by virtue of being in the bathroom, filled the apartment. It caused Tristan to pull away from the kiss and take a step back. Hibiki didn't stop him, instead taking one of his hands and giving it a kiss to say it was fine. The initial fright settled somewhat, but he still felt uneasy.

'Just put on your clothes, I'll deal with Kazuo'

Hibiki hopped off of the counter and smiled at him. He nodded in response, trying his best to meet some of the enthusiasm.

'Don't worry babe, today will be awesome'

A quick kiss was planted on his cheek while he read, and his flustered response made Hibiki grin from ear to ear.

"Okay." He nodded, smiling as wide as he could.

A buzz on Hibiki's phone finally pulled him away in full, causing him to take a few steps backwards towards the door while making a heart gesture, before leaving the room entirely.