Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Makoto walked across the cobbled street looking for the café on the poster he was holding. He was on the tram when this little piece of paper caught his eye. He might have hated everything about the last job they pulled, except for helping those kids, but the money definitely helped with the whole ‘no one giving him a chance at an honest job’ part of the problem. Well, it did also help with mending his relationship with his dad, or the bare beginnings of understanding at least; Oh, and Abby, she begrudgingly agreed that they are friends now and that she cares for him, which he knew more than anyone meant a lot coming from her. So many things did work out, but it had taxed him emotionally and took a lot of effort from all sides. He didn’t know what Cynthia and Laurent were doing, and Abby had been considerate enough to avoid any work-related affairs with him. He shook his head stopping that train of thought. Here he was in Paris on his quest to taste coffee around the world and he was not gonna ruin it.

His phone pinged in his pocket. Abby? Speak of the devil. He opened the message and only read the words ‘heads up’ and ‘Laurent’ before the screen blinked to black. If that wasn’t enough to pique his interest. Speak of the devils. What is the blonde bastard up to now? The thought alone was enough for him to let out an exasperated sigh. Anything involving that man was bound to be exhausting. Of course, his phone had to die out on him now. His fault honestly, he was too tired to notice that the phone wasn’t plugged in at his inn the previous night. But if Abby had texted him, and as a heads up about Laurent… there was no way this wasn’t important. He shoved the café pamphlet into his bag and walked into the building he was standing next to. It seemed to be some kind of office, so they must have a charger.

“Hi,” he said walking up to the front desk hoping the man there would understand English. “Do you have a charger?” he asked meekly lifting up his phone. The man stared at him blankly. ‘Charger’ is a common enough word, right? He tried repeating himself slower, and this time the man nodded. Makoto smiled in relief as he handed Makoto the chord.

“You can go up to the second floor, it has empty sockets in the waiting area,” the man said with a heavy accent.

“Merci,” Makoto smiled and went up the stairs fidgeting with his sleeve waiting for the phone to turn back on.

After what felt like an eternity and his brain racketing up all sorts of hypotheticals the screen finally blinked back to life. He quickly tapped into his messaging app.

Abby: Heads up, Laurent is trying to get hold of you for this new con, so if you run into him and punch him, take a video for me.

Huh? Wait, what? Did they know he was in Paris? Wasn’t Laurent on some political scam in the US? His brain fumbled thinking about the various exit plans for if they found him when he heard a familiar voice.

“Oh, there you are Edamame, I thought we were going to meet at the café.” Makoto’s eyes widened. His fight-or-flight response kicked in. He quickly stood on his leg. His hand fisted up before he realised the public setting and settled on grinding his teeth.

“No.”

“But you were headed there, weren’t you?”

“Not that. Whatever you want me to do, I’m not doing it.”

“Oh, why ever would you think I was going to want something from you Edamame?”

Makoto simply cocked his eyebrow, “Do you want me to start the examples based on timeline or severity?”

Laurent laughed, which only made Makoto angrier. He took a deep calming breath ready for the wrath that had been brewing in him for the past year when a head popped through the glass window.

“Mr. Thierry,” said the woman, “ nous sommes prêts pour vous maintenant .” (We are ready for you now)

“ Oh merveilleux, merci ” (Oh wonderful, thank you)

Makoto’s French was awful. But he knew enough to understand what was going on. “We are already in it aren’t we,” he sighed willing himself to not break his head against the cream walls of the office. The blood would be a pain to remove.

The Frenchman only smirked in reply. “Let’s go Edamame. Doctor’s waiting.”

Whatever con he was going to play along with now, one Laurent Thierry is going to have his ears blown off the minute they are somewhere alone.

“So, let’s see, one of you doesn’t speak French so I hope English is okay?” Doctor Farrow, as she had introduced herself a minute ago said. He nodded, still trying to piece together what was going on. Laurent on the other hand was lounging on their shared couch like he owned the place. He’d put together as soon as they entered that this was likely a therapist’s office. But why were they here together? The one answer that made sense, made no sense. It couldn’t be. Right! Laurent wasn’t stupid enough to not take into account Makoto’s unpreparedness.

“Okay, so let’s start with what you think is wrong with your marriage.”

Makoto nearly yelled as Laurent’s hand rested on his shoulder, he felt himself freeze. He swallowed his words till he heard his name. Ah right.

“How about the fact that I didn’t realise we were getting couple’s counselling-” he looked straight at the tall man sitting next to him, “Till right about this minute.”

“Now now Edamame, you probably wouldn’t have come if you’d known.”

“And that makes it okay to just not tell me? Just like with LA, and Singapore and Tokyo. Do you ever just think maybe telling me would solve problems?”

“Oh, I’m sorry your inability to stick to plans is on me,” Laurent replied throwing up his hands. He was a good actor. 

“Yeah Laurent, that was very obvious with Tokyo, my inability, not your distrust.” He tried avoiding context very aware of the third person in the room. Parallelly his mind was trying to conceive a believable story for this therapist to believe before the inevitable question came.

“What exactly happened?” Dr Farrow interrupted.

“Oh, my husband is overreacting. I had business to take care of and had to leave and he wanted to extend the trip to Tokyo, which wouldn’t have been a problem if he’d just followed the schedule. But my work needs me to be flexible and there isn’t much I could have done about it,” Laurent covered for him. Makoto cringed at the word ‘husband’, but he had to keep up the act.

“Yeah flying to a different country and leaving me alone with no one I knew around was an amazing idea,” He smiled mockingly. 

“That’s our time today gentlemen. I’ll see you again next week I hope.”

Laurent looked at Makoto and answered “We’ll think about it. I’ll make sure Makoto is okay with it first.” The man in question still had his arms folded as they thanked her and walked out. They got into a car that he assumed was Laurent’s and pulled on the seat belt.

“Wow Edamame, you really sold that,” the older man grinned. “I would have-”

He stops as Makoto held his hand up. “Don’t talk to me.”

“Edamame,” Laurent cooed.

“No. Take me to where the rest of the team is and if I hear one word out of you the whole ride I’m going to jump out of the car.” When no reply came he mumbled a “good” and put his feet on the dash. He kept his word. It was a quiet ride till they arrived at a villa.

“We’re here,” the man said, Makoto didn’t reply, he simply went up to the door and waited. He saw Abby first, then Cynthia and his dad came out of the kitchen with a flute of champagne. Abby was the first to react.

“Ha! See, you owe me 20$,” she said to Cynthia who rolled her eyes.

He sighed, because why o’ why did he ever think he could get out of this life? He saw his luggage placed in the living room and finally lost it.

“Are you kidding me?” He turned on his heel to where the blond man was standing and grabbed his collar. “I hate you. All of you. I’m leaving.”

“Oh, and where to Edamame, do you know where we are?” He, in fact, didn’t. He groaned and went into the closest room and locked the door. If he was going to sulk, he was going to sulk alone.

This team be damned. He came in looking for some good coffee, of course, he’d get dragged into one of this dastardly idiot’s schemes. He heard a muffled ‘ he’ll come around’ from the outside that he ignored. 

Their last case took so much of him emotionally. And no one, not even his father, had bothered to apologise. He’d meant every word he’d said when they were in that pretend tower hoping the anger would leave him there. It didn’t. But there wasn’t much he could do. Even on the boat back he tried to maintain civility. Abby was the only one who’d even thought about if he was alright. He did not want to feel that way ever again, and yet here there were.

A knock on the door dragged him out of his thoughts. He unlocked the door and saw his father smiling on the other side.

“Thought you might be hungry,” he said holding out a plate of food. Makoto opened the door wider letting him in as he grabbed the slice of pizza. “You alright kid?”

Makoto snorted a laugh. “It’s okay dad, I’m not mad at you, just that bastard.”

It wasn’t as hard as he thought it was going to be to understand why Oz did what he did. Dorothy was family too, and he tried to be understanding. But that didn’t change the fact that he had to survive all alone never knowing he was also loved. Oz gave him that space, and he appreciated that. It has taken nearly a year and a half of slow conversations to get to the point they were now. Forgiveness isn’t that easy. But he understood.

“Do you know what the con is?” Makoto asked.

“I think Laurent wants to explain it himself whenever you are ready to come out.”

“Dad?” he hesitated a little bit unsure how to phrase what he wanted to say.

“ I promise if any of us are planning to fake die or there are changes in the plans I will tell you beforehand irrespective of what anyone else wants, okay? ” he said in Japanese and Makoto was all the more grateful for the relationship they’d formed over the past year.

“ Thank you.” He replied taking another bite from his slice.

“So, we are conning a jewel collector who targets expensive family heirlooms and pays people to steal them from the target. Great! This all makes sense, except, oh, why am I pretending to be your husband again?” He leaned forward for another slice of pizza. He was apparently hungrier than he expected.

“Because, Edamame, Dr Farrow is his middleman. She handles all his deals and scouts all his marks, and we are trying to be a mark. Rich couples tend to be her targets, with her being a high profile couples counsellor, if that wasn’t obvious.”

“Couldn’t you have asked Abby or Cynthia,” he asked with his mouth full, “or for that matter asked me instead of coercing me into it.” He mumbled that last bit and Abby, who was sitting next to him chortled a laugh.

“Abby is working as Farrow’s authenticator and Cynthia is with Andre.”

“You could have literally asked anyone in your team of million,”

“Oh, but none of them are the best con man in Japan.”

“This is France asshole. And- ughh you know what, fine. I’ll do it, not like I have much of a choice anyway.” He walked away into the deck that was dimly lit next to the room, everyone mumbled their goodnights and went off to prepare for the next day, but Laurent stayed behind.

“Hey.” He said softly leaning against the doorframe with a glass of wine.

“What do you want now, I already said yes.” The silence stretched on for a while longer till Laurent approached him with a glass of wine handing it to Makoto.

“Okay, I can see this time is different though.”

“Oh god, Laurent. We always do this dance, I say no, you find a way to rope me into the plan anyway, then pretend to give me in out only to pull me back in one more time, but by then it’s too late for me to back out and you get the inevitable yes and win. I just cut the middle bits. You win alright.”

“Edamame,” his voice sounded softer. “What’s wrong my soybean? You know you can talk to me right?”

“Yeah, but you can’t talk to me. You keep me out of all the details of the con because you expect me to screw up, which fine, maybe I do. But when you do shit like let me think my dad killed my best friends, that I killed my dad , and then left me with a goddamn child trafficker when I didn’t even know the con was still on. You know what it did to me when he got arrested and what I thought it did to my mom? And you still left me. With her .” He thought he would be screaming by now. But his voice was cold. “That was my hell. To think that I was becoming who I thought my dad was. You told me I could opt out Laurent. But you’ve never once trusted me with anything you have done and probably never will. So, I’m tired. I’ll do whatever you need. Don’t tell me anything at all for all I care. Just don’t leave me alone without any warning this time. And after this is done, just leave me alone.”

“Makoto,” he didn’t want an apology right now, especially one that wouldn’t mean shit. But he turned to look at the speaking man’s face anyway. That was an expression he’d never seen before. He schooled his own to look neutral.

“I’m gonna go sleep now. Good night.”

Chapter Text

Laurent was left standing alone on his deck. He really didn’t think their previous case had affected Edamura this badly. He’d even won for the first time in their little competition, and he was fine on the yacht when they were done too. It was normal for them to go weeks without talking after that.

“You can come out now Abby,” he called out halting his spiral.

“You screwed up bad this time.”

“You probably could have just walked in you know.”

“And not let Edamame give you a piece of his mind. Nah, I think not. Not gonna lie, I was really hoping he’d punch you in the morning. You would have deserved it.”

“Did you know?”

She “hmm”- ed in answer taking a swig from the wine bottle, “honestly I don’t think I would have blamed him if he’d betrayed us that day. I knew he wouldn’t coz he’s a fucking coward. But it would have been justified.”

He didn’t know what to say, but he knew she was right.

“But you know, it wasn’t me that convinced him otherwise? And don’t pretend like you didn’t know I went to visit him.”

“Well, if you wanted to shake your tail I’m sure you could have,” she rolled her eyes in agreement. “But give yourself credit, those were some wise words and good advice.”

“I don’t need your approval to know I’m right. But he would have done it for you anyway. For you and Dorothy. He just had a little fun doing it.”

“Why did you and Cynthia do it?”

“Because you would have done the same thing for any of us,” she shrugged in answer. “He was right when he said that your whole lone wolf thing was an act. I’d still abandon any of you if something goes wrong though.”

Laurent laughed. He knew she wouldn’t. But she was right. It hurt more because of what Dorothy meant to him to lose her, but Oz and Shi-Won gave up a lot for her too, and him for that matter. They were his family. “Is that why you think he did it?”

“Who, Edamura?” She snorted, “No, he did it because he’s a goddamn coward who wants to impress you.”

“Not anymore.” He observed.

“Not anymore,” she agreed. “Too bad you couldn’t get him to sleep with you before this huh.”

“What? You don’t think he wants to sleep with me anymore?”

“Oh no, he most certainly does,” she leaned on the railing watching the flickering lights of the city, “I just think he’s more pissed than horny.”

“Hm, I still think I can find a way to do it. We are married you know.”

She gave him an obscene look and turned back to the view in front. The quiet lasted a few moments before she said, “You should apologise to him.”

“I know.”

Makoto blinked his eyes open as the light poured into the room he was apparently sharing with Laurent. He didn’t remember when the older man had slept but the crumpled sheets next to him meant he was awake now anyway. He yawned lazily getting out of the warmth of the bed. He brushed and quickly took a shower when Laurent walked in.

“Oh good, you’re ready. Let’s go.” He announced grabbing a few things from his nightstand and turning around.

“Oi wait! Where?” He only received an answering smile. He grabbed his phone and wallet and followed the bastard. They didn’t take the car, so the place must be close, he jogged a little to catch up to him. “Where the hell are we going?” he panted.

That blue-eyed bugger had the audacity to wink and continue walking. They arrived at a small café and took a seat in the corner booth and Laurent told something in French to the waiter who smiled. He handed Makoto a file and finally said “There are the details of our marriage and the con.”

“Couldn’t we have done this at the loft?”

“Yeah but I owed you a coffee.” He had a small smile on his face, “And an apology.” He added.

The waiter came in with two cups of coffee and a croissant. Makoto stared at the plates, and then at the man in front of him.

“Trust me this is the best coffee in France.”

He tentatively lifted the cup and gently blew on it to take a sip. The coffee enveloped him with a warmth inside he contently sighed.

He realised in London what his feelings for Laurent really were buried underneath all that annoyance, and all he wanted to do was run away. He couldn’t though, but it didn’t take long to realise that Laurent Thierry was not looking for a relationship. He did not want to pile that on top of his crisis of sexuality. So, he’d left, for what for the first time felt like a proper goodbye. Only it was not. Hearing about Dorothy explained a lot. When his dad told him the story he wanted to be there for Laurent, but he doubted the guy needed him. He only had his sights on revenge, so he gave it to him. And who was he to blame Laurent for it when his entire act was a version of the same thing? It was cathartic to finally be able to tell him, but that didn’t change things between them. Laurent was still in love with a dead girl, and love didn’t come easy, he figured. But Laurent was also the only one who never reached out to him after the con. He didn’t know if he was madder that he left him alone again, or that he stopped caring the minute he was no longer useful, again.

There was a reason that he’d not brought it up on the boat though, and it was the same reason he started talking.

“Laurent, about yesterday-”

“You were right, and I am sorry. I know we already roped you in, but if you really want we will find another way to get this done. You are free to leave. I promise.”

“Right,” Makoto rolled his eyes, “I wonder why I don’t believe you,” he mused. Laurent smirked, but it wasn’t as smug as he was used to seeing it. When he didn’t say anything, Makoto continued. “Why are you still doing this Laurent? You got to say your piece for Dorothy, why continue?”

“Hmm,” the older man paused for a second then rested his cheek on the palm of his hand, “Well there are still bad people with something we can take, and honestly, this lifestyle is hard to leave behind once you’re hooked.”

Makoto stared at him in confusion. This was never a life he chose. He always wanted to be an honest man, and he tried multiple times. Only to be dragged back into it because of this 6-foot nuisance, his brain supplied annoyingly. He bit down on the irritation.

“It’s amusing that you still haven’t after all these years.” Makoto shrugged.

“Don’t think this will be the one where I will either. I don’t want to be a confidence man.” He’d realised this a while ago but showing up Laurent had been one thing he hadn’t wanted to give up, because apparently despite everything, he was attracted to this idiot.

Laurent hummed softly as if not believing him, but he expected no different, so he snorted.

“I’ll do this one, Laurent. But that is it,” he declared and opened the case file, because he still cared, and no one was more annoyed about it than him.

“I’m so glad you chose to continue Makoto,” Dr Farrow said as they took their seats on the couch, a few inches between them. Laurent had made him practice the behaviour of a couple that was falling apart like it wasn’t how they already behaved. He had never been a touchy person, to begin with, but he knew Laurent was. He looked at the man next to him before turning back to the doctor.

“I think I realised we needed this more than I thought we did,” he replied with a small smile that Laurent returned.

Makoto knew they had a few more sessions till the trap was fully set, but they were already dangling the bait, and it seemed Farrow had taken notice.

 “Is that a new ring Makoto? You didn’t have it the last time I saw you.” Makoto feigned surprise and looked at his finger. He thought it would take her a while, but he supposed she couldn’t be Andre’s most trusted if she wasn’t observant.

“Oh, this is my family’s engagement ring,” he chuckled remembering a fake fond memory, “I just got it back. I'd given it for polishing. It's an heirloom so that's a process, you know," the lie came out with practised ease.

“Well, it is beautiful.” Makoto beamed.

“Yeah, my great great grandpa gave it to my grandma when they got engaged, and it’s been passed down in the family since then. It was supposed to be my ring to give, but my parents knew I was never going to propose so they gave it to Laurent instead and asked him to just do it already, ” he smiled again.

“God that was stressful, I was expecting to ask for their approval, but they shoved it on me and said we are waiting. Imagine having in-laws that eager,” Laurent continued

“And it was what, the second time you’d met them. Japanese parents, I tell you,” he smiled shyly.

“Oh yeah, and then they told me it was made from the same piece as the Kohinoor and I think I almost broke up with you because of the pressure,” and there it was. Makoto turned tentatively towards the shrink whose eyes were now fixed on his hands. And voila!

Chapter Text

It had been 3 weeks since then with 3 more sessions. Makoto had to give it to Farrow though, she was a charming actor. If he wasn’t already aware of her motives, he would have never suspected her to be anything but a therapist. But he assumed that psychology was the reason she was able to do any of that. It was such an easy cover too; it would be impressive if it weren’t also frustrating.

“So far so good,” Laurent claimed with the rest of the crew around. “I think we can introduce the next step of the plan now, right Oz?”

The man in question looked up, “We have the party first, but yep. It’s time we find someone. Do you have anyone in mind?” Laurent rubbed his stubble in thought, and Makoto needed a break.

He turned to Abby who looked as disinterested as ever and said, “I think I’m gonna take a walk, want to join?”

She growled in answer but reached for her coat anyway, so Makoto made his way to his and strolled out. “Are you doing okay?” he asked her.

She looked at him with the ridicule he was used to, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Just wanted to make sure,” Makoto shrugged, “feel like we don’t ask each other the simple questions you know?”

Abby snorted a laugh, “Coz they are boring, but if you want to be so mundane, how’s your marriage?”

He looked at Abby sideways and glared, but a smile etched its way into his face, “I heard my husband is going to cheat on me. Kinda looking forward to him being away.”

“You and I both know that’s a lie.”

“Well, just because I’m attracted to him doesn’t mean I have no sense of self-preservation, Abby. That asshole isn’t cut for relationships, and I am not that destructive.”

“I’m actually surprised you are that self-aware,” she said dryly, and Makoto gently shoved her with his shoulder. She gave the Abby-equivalent of a smile when he saw the capsule toy machine.

“Hey Abby, got any change?” She followed his eye-line and shook her head. Her hands shuffled in the pockets for a bit before she took out a few coins. “Come on, do it with me, let’s see what our fortune is like?”

“Nerd,” she muttered but followed him anyway.

Makoto stared at the various collection options contemplating. He had left his collection at home, but he always carried his mum’s favourites with him. Having finally made a decision he approached the superhero collection, ducked down and put his coin in. After a few moments of shuffling plastic, a green capsule came out.

“Done getting yours,” he asked. She didn’t reply. “Let’s open it then.” He unscrewed the sphere to find a masked figure inside, the slip that accompanied it read ‘Winter Soldier’.

“Watched any superhero movies recently?” She asked, her own capsule toy in the palm of her hand.

“Hello Kitty, cute, doesn’t suit you at all,” he mocked and only got a finger in return. “And nah, I’m not one for action movies. I think the last superhero movie I watched was Big Hero 6.”

“I’m not even surprised. Any idea who he is?”

“Isn’t he like the villain or something?”

“Misunderstood dude, not a villain. Died in the first movie, came back in the second one as a brainwashed villain and then regained his memory and joined the hero again or something. We’ll watch the movie sometime,” she says with the same bored tone.

“Okay, we can do it while that stupid party is going on. Don’t think I have anything better to do than pretend to hate that bastard in counselling which is way too easy, and I don’t do posh gatherings.”

“Virgin,” she commented again and walked away.

The preparations for the party kept them all busy. Makoto had done what he needed to with the setup managing to avoid Laurent. They’d gotten a mansion all set up and everything. The day had finally arrived, and Cynthia had confirmed that Andre was indeed coming as Farrow’s plus-one to check the mark for himself. Though they weren’t hosting (because of ethics or something about socialising out of work) the only reason the two were attending was Cynthia’s promise that the two men would show up. That meant things had to be perfect, and he, unfortunately, couldn’t be off with Abby watching a movie after all. And plus, Abby couldn’t be seen anywhere near the team in case Farrow spots her, so that wasn’t going to pan out anyway.

When he walked into the house Laurent grabbed his hand without warning and showed him into their room.  “What the-,” a squeal unwittingly escaped him.

“You’re late Edamame, everyone is already in the mansion. Get out of those clothes.” He commanded as he started unbuttoning his own shirt. Makoto let out another strangled screech. “Come on,” he said ever the portrait of calmness, hands not stopping.

Makoto turned around hoping the blush wasn’t obvious, till he realized something and peeked back. The older man’s shirt was completely off, and he was sure his face was red. He managed to find his voice though, “Hey,” he called. “What happened to the ring?”

“Huh? Oh, it’s in the bottom of the ocean somewhere.” Makoto was still confused.

“Why?” He asked.

“Oh my god Edamame, can you change first,” he asked exasperated, then moving towards him to start unbuttoning his shirt for him too. And he shrieked a third time, “Get away from me!” Laurent smirked.

“Then get changed,” he declared pointing towards the closet and picking up his suit to put on.

Makoto did his best to avoid the other man in the room and dressed up. He fumbled around looking for a tie but couldn’t find one when Laurent stood in front of him, tie in hand. Makoto bit his lip as Laurent put the tie around him and started fixing it.

“It’s at the bottom of the ocean because I didn’t need it anymore.”

“But-” his voice was a whisper, “Dorothy.” He tried helplessly.

Laurent tightened the tie and smoothed out Makoto’s shirt, “As I said,” he looked straight into Makoto’s eyes, “I don’t need it anymore.” His breath hitched at the proximity, at the words, at the situation. But he said nothing, just swallowed. He didn’t know what Laurent meant.

The blond man however moved away and took his wrists, fixing his cufflinks, “Is that another tracker?” He asked jokingly, anything to break the tension. When Laurent didn’t reply, he could feel that rage again he was oh so familiar with, “You have gotta be kidding me.”

The crew was ready by the time they arrived, a few of them finishing minor touches, others already socialising. It looked more expensive than anything he could have imagined and it.

“Clarke!” Makoto noticed the pilot first. “Wait,” he turned to Laurent, “are you bringing him into the con? Is he the-” he didn’t know what the right word was, “-you know,” he finished lamely.

“Edamura, fancy seeing you here.” Clarke Ibrahim smiled genuinely. Makoto was meek to return it, but he did.

“No,” Laurent answered waving to the prince.

“Just here to enjoy the booze,” Clarke replied. “But the set-up looks great,” the smile didn’t leave his face. Makoto felt himself relax.

“Hey, you two,” a voice greeted them from behind, and Laurent threw his arm over Makoto’s waist lazily as they turned around. He felt himself being pulled closer and leaned into the taller man’s warmth.

“Hey doc,” Laurent replied. Makoto smiled a little wider.

“Wow, I didn’t expect to see you here,” he added eyes flitting to the man standing next to her. He recognised that face from the files he’d gotten, and they had enough information to probably write an autobiography on the man, “how do you know Oz?”

“Oh, he’s my boyfriend’s business partner of sorts,” she smiled grabbing Andre’s arm. “And I would use any excuse to dress up.”

Makoto laughed politely and placed his jewelled arm on Lauren's chest hoping he was being subtle enough, “Well, we’ll leave you to it then, see you around, we got people to greet apparently.”

But here’s the thing, Makoto didn’t know anyone here. Kudo wasn’t here either, so he found himself sticking to Laurent as he chatted with his crewmates about things he wasn’t listening to. His mind was too busy juggling too many things for him to keep track. Laurent’s hand guided him to the next person and he mindlessly followed. He really was starting to see the point of using him in this con less and less. Then started another conversation he ignored, then another, and yet another, until he realised that he didn’t hear conversations anymore. He blinked taking in the trimmed topiaries, oh .

“You seem lost in thought Edamame.”

“I, uh…”

“Are you worried about something? You seem to be awfully clingy today,” His eyes were fixed on his arm that Makoto was apparently holding onto for dear life. He quickly went to remove it suddenly feeling a jolt of electricity when Laurent stopped him, “Didn’t say I mind it.” He didn’t know how to react when Laurent’s thumb remained on his palm rubbing small circles. When Makoto didn’t make a move to answer Laurent sighed. “Is this about the ring?”

“Sort of,” he seemed to have found his voice, “It’s just I don’t get it. I don’t get you.”

“Huh, the best conman in Japan can’t read a measly tourist, how disappointing.”

He rolled his eyes. This he was familiar with, “Hardy har harr,” he deadpanned, “It’s nothing, I just didn’t think you’d give the ring up for any reason,” Give Dorothy up , he didn’t add. “According to what dad tells me that’s the last thing you have of hers.”

“Who says? We are staying at her apartment now.”

Makoto couldn’t explain the fire that lit up in his gut that he had no right to feel that way. But he couldn’t help himself, so he huffed. “Right.”

“Aw, Edamame, are you jealous,” Laurent cooed.

“Over you, you wish,” he grumbled looking away, pushing the Frenchman from his grasp.

“Mhm,” came the unconvinced cooing again, “So you don’t find me attractive,” he said walking closer. “And you definitely aren’t reacting to this,” a finger trailed up his arm and Makoto bit his lip doing everything in his power not to whimper. He was gonna spit back something snarky only to swallow his words when he realised how close Laurent was. His hands tucked a stray strand behind his ears and didn’t move away. Don’t rest your face on his hand, don’t do it. Don’t effin lean in Makoto. “And-” Laurent’s voice dipped down to a husky whisper, “you most certainly don’t want to kiss me senseless right now,” his hands moved gently to his chin angling his face upwards. Makoto stilled; Laurent’s smirk grew into a grin.

Shit shit shit shit shit. He isn’t gonna kiss me now, is he? He won’t. He can’t. God, he has to be dreaming. His eyes fluttered close in anticipation till it hit him. Wait, no, what the hell. Ugh, this idiot was baiting him, and he was falling for it.

“In your dreams, asshole,” he said through his teeth pushing him away.

A chortle escaped Laurent, “You are so easy to tease,” he managed between laughs holding his stomach, “I bet you have never even kissed someone before. So, Abby was right, huh.”

And that ignited his competitive side, and Makoto was never one to back down from a challenge. He was going to show this douchebag how to eat his own words. He stomped forward. Grabbed the older man’s tie. Tugged it forward, and connected their lips interrupting his next words. The kiss was rough, unplanned, and didn’t last long. As soon as Makoto felt Laurent’s tongue tease his lower lip and himself tempted he pulled back, grip still tight on the tie.

“Don’t assume you know me, Thierry,” he whispered to a stunned Laurent. “Finally got you speechless huh?” he smirked at the stretched silence.

“Oh, there you two are,” he heard his dad, but he didn’t make a move to increase the distance between them. He was having the time of his life staring Laurent down, but he figured he’d throw the man a bone.

“Yeah,” he said turning, aware of Laurent’s gaze on him.

“You should come back inside before those two get going, seal the deal and all.”

“Yep, coming.”

He dragged Laurent in cherishing the victory.

Chapter Text

After a longer still night of fires to put out and people to deal with, they were all finally back in the house, Dorothy’s house apparently. They sorted a few more things extremely tired and got ready for bed. Makoto went in and plopped face-first into the bed no longer stifling a yawn. Laurent followed not long after.

“So, want to talk about what happened at the party?”

“What’s to talk about,” Makoto glared.

“Edamame.”

“You challenged me, I proved you wrong. You want a rematch, go find someone else.”

“Really?” Laurent provoked. “Didn’t feel like it to me. Definitely, some passion involved.”

“For a guy who thinks with the brain between his legs it would seem like that I suppose.” He heard the door close softly in the background.

“I don’t believe that for a second.”

“That seems like a you problem.”

“Are you afraid you’ll catch feelings if you talk about it?” Oh, if only he knew that boat sailed a long time ago.

“Wouldn’t you like that,” he huffed in response.

“Ahh, so it is like that.”

He scoffed, “No.”

“Well then, prove it.”

“What?!” He cringed at the changed pitch in his own voice.

“Prove it, kiss me again.”

He squinted his eyes “What are you playing at Laurent?”

“Too scared?”

His only reply was a snort.

“Then come here, prove it.” This guy was really pushing all his buttons today.

Gaaaaah . He pushed aside the blanket and angrily marched forward and grabbed Laurent’s lapel. “Look here, you bastard. If you think you can get your way with me only by provoking me then you are abso-freaking-lutely wrong, so with that in mind, kindly fuck off.”

“It’s not like there’s anything to lose.” And boy did Makoto want to kiss that smug smile off his face. Or punch- he wasn’t picky. “And you’d get to show me up again, like you oh so desperately want.”

“Shut up.”

“You’re so cute, Edamame,” he said leaning in closer.

“I’m not.” Asshole , he thought and lunged forward. This time he let Laurent take the reins almost immediately. It was similar to the first one; Fast. Rushed. Like there was a dam of things that he wanted to do that broke open (which wasn’t very far from the truth if he was being honest). They kissed like they swindled, Makoto rushing in with all he got, and Laurent dragging him back, pacing them out, making up for everything Makoto lacked. He almost didn’t want it to stop. But he had to. “There, anything else you want?” he huffed, breathless.

“Yes,” Laurent whispered and claimed his lips again. And Makoto, to his own surprise, let him. “God, Edamame, you drive me insane, you know that?”

“Me?” He asked wrapping his free hand around Laurent’s neck and pulling him back in, “You get on my nerves like nobody else.”

Laurent’s hand gently roamed on his chest lips locked the whole time. Then he pushed Makoto onto the bed and climbed on top of him. And suddenly Makoto was aware of every inch of his body that the other man was touching. He panicked.

“Uh, Laurent, I-”

“Don’t worry, I promise we won’t do anything you don’t feel comfortable doing.” A soft kiss pressed against his cheek. “So, what are you okay with.” The softness in his voice took him by surprise. His impulse was to snap and push him off again, but the tenderness and care Laurent was showing right now made him think again.

“Can we… uh, stop for now. I-”

Laurent swiftly swung his legs off the side of the bed and smiled, “Sure, can I sleep here?” he asked, and Makoto couldn’t help but gape at him.

“Whatever, I don’t care.”

He was slightly panting, his cheeks were hot, he was almost sure he looked like they were set on fire. He didn’t know what he was expecting Laurent to do, but that definitely wasn’t it. It made his heart race like he’d just run a marathon. Shit. I’m screwed. He felt the mattress dip next to him. Makoto turned around to face the blonde man who was already smiling back at him. He moved forward testing the waters. It wasn’t like he was any less mad at him than before. But he was starting to think maybe this wasn’t a lost cause after all. An arm wrapped around his torso and he closed his eyes.

“Good night my lil’ soybean.” He whispered tucking him in closer.

Makoto’s eyes blinked open as the first light entered the room. He was facing the French windows where the light was currently flooding from, and an idle arm around his waist was keeping him from moving. He thought back to last night and the slight hope that bubbled in him, but reality came crashing now. None of the problems they had was magically going to disappear. Hell, he felt like the Laurent he saw during the yakuza can was not the same one he’d known before. Not that he knew much of the man to begin with, which was a problem of its own. He doubted Laurent was the kind of man to let someone else see him. Really see him.

A warm breath tickled his neck, followed by a soft “Good morning,” Makoto didn’t move.

“Laurent, we need to talk.”

A huff of laughter was all he heard, but after a moment the arm curled around him tighter and Laurent moved closer. Makoto let him, “So serious so early in the morning Edamame, let us at least have coffee first.”

“I’m not joking,” he said shuffling to turn and face the other man, “I don’t know what you want Laurent. What do you expect out of this? Is this going anywhere or is it more like an ‘I’m horny, you’re here’ situation? Tell me what I’m signing up for.”

Makoto was starting to doubt that his face had any more than two expressions, and it was pilling him off. “It's obviously the sex thing, what were you expecting some sort of romance expedition?”

“You bastard,” he kicked the blanket and roughly threw Laurent’s arm. “Why did I bother.” He dangled his leg off the bed. “I should have known you wouldn’t take this seriously, because why would you?” his hands bunched up the blanket. “You know what? Screw you!” He exclaimed.

“Well, I tried yesterday, but you refused.”

That! Does he-? Ugghhhh . His feet planted firmly on the ground and just as he was about to stalk off Laurent pulled him back on the mattress. “Let go of me!” he screamed struggling to escape.

“Edamamee, I was teasing. I’m sorry. Just come back to bed, and we’ll talk about this, I promise.”

“Like your promises mean anything,” he huffs.

“Okay, how about this, let’s skip breakfast, we’ll go early to Farrow’s today. Instead of taking the car let's walk. You know I can’t run away ‘coz we have to be there together, and we’ll have more time to ourselves, sounds good?”

“Yeah, right? Because you running away would be the only way you can’t answer questions.”

“Well, then I guess you just have to believe me when I say I will try not to. And as a peace offering, no. I don’t really just want sex from you. Though, that is a factor I intend to take complete advantage of eventually.” He moved in closer to place a kiss on Makoto’s cheek who immediately pulled back.

“Do not try that with me when I’m angry. I swear to god, I will annihilate you.” He muttered angrily.

Laurent settled back on his side of the bed facing the younger man as soon as the protest came, “I don’t doubt that for a second.”

Laurent watched patiently as Makoto sipped coffee from his go-to cup. He was so innocent and beautiful, and Laurent didn’t know what to do with that. He felt sheepish for roping Edamura into all his schemes, but he couldn’t help it. The first time they met Laurent was fascinated. He wanted to see what the great Oz’s son was capable of, and Makoto, to his credit, was not what he expected. When, by the end of their time in LA, he said he wanted to take some time to himself, Laurent was shocked. He had his men in Japan keep tabs on him (obviously) and when they told him he’d given away all the money they got to everyone he robbed and turned himself in he couldn’t help but laugh. How could this earnest man claim himself a conman at all? Which was a part of the reason he called him the second time. He’d started laying the traps as soon as he’d heard back, and not to mention, they did have a bet Laurent won. 

When they were all in London was when he realised that Makoto didn’t choose this life. He suspected that stood true for most people in his line of work, but Makoto more than the rest. He simply wanted to survive, and no one gave him the chance, but the minute someone did, he was willing to leave this all behind. He figured it was just a matter of time till he realised there was no other way for the likes of them. 

Laurent was wrong though. What he did in the end for Thomas, that kind of thoughtfulness wouldn’t have come from anyone else. Empathy- that was why Makoto wasn’t a conman. Most people, himself included, lost that part of them once they dove into this career. They only con bad people. Those who don’t need or deserve any sympathy. That is all the validation they needed to keep going. They don’t think about the collateral damage. Sometimes, Laurent thinks it’s all Makoto cares about. Laurent realised Makoto was their moral compass. He made sure that people mattered more than the con even when the others in Team Confidence didn’t care.

“So, what did you want to ask?” He asks as he takes another sip.

“Before I do, I’m going to punch you for every answer that you deflect.”

He chortled, “Understood.”

“Good. Because I am gonna make sure it hurts.”

“Yessir.”

He took another sip of his coffee before he spoke again. “Why did you kiss me yesterday?”

“Actually, Edamame, you kissed me- ” he felt the jab harder than he expected, “Ow ow ow! Okay I’m sorry,” he replied at the pointed look, “Why do you think, Edamame? I wanted to, and you seemed to want it too, and I took the opportunity.”

“Do you…” Makoto hesitated, “uh- stillwanttokissme?” He finished in a murmur.

“Only if you want it too,” Laurent replied casually.

“I don’t want a fling, Laurent.”

“Okay, good to know you’re a man who knows what he wants.” The glare painted Makoto’s face again. When Laurent didn’t move to make any more comments or answer the implied question, Makoto sighed and continued.

“Have you been in relationships befo- actually never mind. Of course, you have. How many relationships have you been in before?”

“Too many to count off the top of my head, that’s for sure. What about you?”

Makoto cradled the coffee cup in both his hands, “none” he answered meekly.

“Wait? Really? Was I your first kiss? Edamame my my-” another punch landed on his chest.

“Shut up! I’m the one asking the questions here, you don’t get any.”

Laurent raised his hand up in submission, “Okay.” He was worried over nothing, this was actually kinda fun. He smiled into his scarf.

“So, you’re too many to count relationships, how many of them were serious?”

He had jinxed himself. He could see where this line of questioning was going to lead, he wasn’t sure he wanted to go there, and as he opened his mouth to come up with a non-answer, Makoto spoke again.

“I know about Dorothy, and I understand if you don’t want to talk about her, but I need to understand what she meant to you for you to have chosen her over all of us. But if you don’t want to talk Laurent, I will drop it.”

And there it was, the empathy he so clearly lacked. His shoulders relaxed, “Just the one.”

“Why was she so special?”

Laurent sighed. Where could he start about why Dorothy was special? The wicked smarts, the cunning eyes,the light up everyone’s day smile, but none of that was enough. So, he went with the reason he fell in love with her, “She gave me a reason to live when I was okay with just surviving.”

He glanced up to see Makoto smiling softly. “Do you still love her?”

“Yeah. I don’t think I know how not to. She was my lifeline.”

“I’m glad you had that Laurent. Do you think you’d still pick her over anyone else?”

Laurent paused briefly. “In a heartbeat,” he replied, “But I think she is more than capable, and wouldn’t need anyone to pick her, let alone me.”

“She sounds like the type, yeah.”

“Not to mention, I don’t ever have to make that choice now, do I?” a dry laugh escaped him.

“But you did, didn’t you? In Shanghai. That was you picking her.”

Laurent stumbled a little, but quickly schooled his face back to its usual expression. “Oh, was it?” he asked cocking a brow.

“You cannot possibly expect me to believe that was ‘ just another con’ .”

“So, what if I did? It doesn’t matter because we got our big payday.”

“We barely broke even.”

“Is there a question here Edamame?” his voice still a calm lull.

Makoto stopped and grabbed Laurent’s wrist halting their movement. “Would you do it again if you had the choice?”

Laurent turned around and moved in closer. His free hand rested on Makoto’s cheek. He leaned in waiting for permission, but Makoto closed the gap. Laurent didn’t want to answer that question, because yes. He would have, irrespective of the consequences. He does not second-guess himself. No good conman would, and he was the best. “We’re almost here. Get back in the role okay?” Makoto sighed but nodded.

Chapter Text

The session went on without a hitch, and since they didn’t come by car, they were walking back too. Makoto wasn’t oblivious. He knew Laurent avoided that last question, but he hadn’t expected a no. He did offer the other questions. He was still unsure where Laurent stood in terms of a ‘relationship’. His hands tentatively brushed against Laurent’s as they were walking side by side. Makoto’s little finger hooked into his.

“Something you want Edamame?” the blond man smirked.

“What? No of course not, I don’t want anything from you,” he grumbled and folded his arms. Idiot

He heard a laugh and Laurent’s hand moved up to grab his forcefully. “You’re not particularly good at being coy. Just ask next time.” And warmth suddenly flooded in him.

“I have another question,” he announces. “And I expect your promise to answer to still stand.”

“Go on then.”

“Do you think you’ll ever be able to fall in love with anyone else?” He refused to look up. He continued walking a little ahead of Laurent.

“Love is just a word for a chemical reaction in your brain. Will someone make those reactions replicate? Who’s to say?”

“Right, of course, you’re one of those people,” Makoto mumbles.

“Edamame, look at me.”

“Just answer the question normally you bastard.”

“Edamame,” he tutted and gently pulled his hand gently.

“What!?” he asked sounding annoyed.

“Are you in love with me?” He had the audacity to sound amused which left Makoto reeling. 

“I- Uh- What? Shut up, I am-” his stuttering was interrupted by a car screeching to a stop right beside them. Makoto jumped back a little to see his dad on the driver’s side.

“Get in. Both of you. Now.” Oz looked like he’d seen a ghost. The urgency in his voice for palpable, so the two men wordlessly got into the car.

“Dad, is everything-”

“Makoto, I- let’s just get home. I don’t think you’d believe me if I told you.”

“But dad-”

“We’ll get there any minute,” Laurent chimed in casually, “Oz just likes to keep his suspense to himself. Don’t you wiz?”

His dad didn’t reply, just continued driving. Makoto took that as his cue to shut up, but he didn’t miss the way Laurent’s hand settled on top of his own and never left its place there. If his cheeks dusted pink he was sure it was unrelated. The comforting weight didn’t last long though, because soon enough they were in front of the house. Oz didn’t even bother turning off the ignition before opening the door on Laurent’s side and dragging him out. He didn’t know what was going on, but he sure as hell would not leave a fully functioning car out on the road to get wrecked. So, he dutifully parked it, turned off the ignition and the keys tossing it around as he walked in.

“So, what was so important that you-” he couldn’t finish the sentence. The deafening silence was uncomfortable. His eyes darted to find Laurent who looked shocked, and his fight or flight response kicked in and he needed someone to physically stop him from running away.

As if reading his mind, she walked up beside him, “Close your mouth before something flies in,” she grumble.

“Oh, my goodness Oz, is this little Makoto? He’s so cute Oz. This is a pleasant surprise!” the owner of the voice got up from her seat to stand in front of him, “Hi Makoto, it’s nice to finally meet you, I’m Dorothy,” and moved on to pull him into a hug. Makoto couldn’t do anything except stand still.

“Man, it has been a while since I’ve seen you all together huh? And look at you Laurie, really embraced the scruffiness didn’t you? You two, though-” she turned to Abby and Cynthia, “seem like an absolute delight! I cannot wait to hear the stories of all the cons you pulled, and-” Dorothy was cheerily talking scanning the house- her house- but Laurent’s gaze was trailing her. Dorothy- his Dorothy- was here. She was alive. He had imagined her around him so many times that he was convinced this was another one of his hallucinations. How could it not be?

“I missed you guys,” she finally said pulling Oz and Shi-won for a hug and that is when he noticed the ring. Not around a necklace like he was used to but around her finger. “But tell me! What are you guys doing here? Oooh, is it a con? I want in. It’s been so long my fingers are itching for a good grab.”

 How was she so calm? She disappeared for over half a decade with no trace of information or contact. He saw her die. He had so many questions, but Oz beat him to the punch.

“As happy as I am to see you Dorothy, where the hell have you been? We thought you were dead.”

Dorothy, who was standing until this point seemed to have finally decided to rest her legs. She looked at Laurent, winked coyly and settled on the armrest with her arms draped around him. “Long story,” she replied casually, “but in summary, I hit my head, had amnesia for a while, this old fishing couple found me and took me in, and I got my memories back, so here I am.”

“I uh,” Makoto’s voice surprised him. For the hour or so since they got back, he had done everything in his power to hide away in the corner. “Are you okay now? I mean- uh- your memory, is it all back?”

Dorothy cooed, “Awwww oh my god, Makoto you are so precious.” His expression, as expected turned sour and defensive. Laurent smiled. Edamura Makoto was nothing if not predictable.

“I’m not cute,” he retorted which only made Dorothy aww louder.

“You are. But thank you Makoto. I am fine. Oz you were holding out on us for so long. What is this precious baby doing here anyway? Not that I’m complaining.”

“What do you mean what am I doing here,” he complained, anger more evident now, “I’m a part of the con. Obviously.”

“Laurent,” the accusatory tone was something he missed. Oh god, he missed her so much his heart was about to beat out of his chest, “What did you do to trick him into this?”

“What makes you think he had to trick me? I’m one of the best confidence men in Japan, I could have very easily tricked him into it.”

“Did you?” Abby was observing the interaction silently from next to Makoto. Close enough to let him know she was there but not touching. For Abby, he knew that was about as protective as she got. He has rarely seen that from her. But he understood the urge to protect Edamame. He wore his heart on his sleeve after all.

“Like he has any agency,” Abby chided emotionlessly only for Makoto to punch her arm, “Loser.”

He still wasn’t sure how to react. He wasn’t sure he’s said anything at all since he got back. He didn’t dare to move, blink, or breathe in case she would disappear into thin air the same way she seemed to appear. Any quips he would have had died before they bubbled to the surface. And just as he was questioning his sanity again Dorothy swung an arm around him.

“Can’t believe you are the mastermind now Laurie- you sure have grown up since I last left you huh?” It took everything in him to not let the tears fall, but he did what he wanted to since the moment he walked in. He whipped her up into the tightest hug he could muster as she let out a shocked laugh.

His Dorothy was here. He would never lose her again. Ever.

Makoto had slipped out midway through their reunion once the attention shifted from him. He figured that it was better to move out of the room he was temporarily residing in and spare everyone the awkwardness of figuring out how to ask him. Despite the reputation the rest of the group gave him, he knew to read people.

In the years he’d known Laurent, he’d never seen him cry. He didn’t think he’s seen the day either. But if the love of your life you thought was dead came back to life, how would you react? His hand stopped midway, and he sat down suddenly exhausted by the situation. He wasn’t sure how he felt. Honestly, he wasn’t sure if he was allowed to feel anything.

He was happy for them, he really was. She was the person all of them voluntarily gave up their life for- the person they gave him up for, in several isolated instances , his brain supplied unhelpfully. But he was still happy. He couldn’t get himself to resent Dorothy for any of it. She didn’t ask any of them for any of it, and she loved them. She found her way back to her family after god knows what she’s been through. He could resent other things though, but right now he didn’t have the energy to. He sighed but got up to throw things into the open suitcase.

“Why are you packing? Running away already,” Abby sniped closing the door behind her.

“Just out of the room,” he replied. “Can I room with you?”

She rolled her eyes but walked over to help him pack. “Why did you assume you’d just have to move out?”

“Think about it, her house, her room, I’m the stranger. I just want to be gone before they have to ask me for it.”

“Eh, makes sense I guess. But there’s something more isn’t there?”

He sighed, “I don’t know Abby. I guess I just don’t want to be told again that I’m just collateral. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m nobody’s first choice of anything but I’m still tired of being told that.”

“Wow, mopey aren’t we?” He sighed in response. “Listen, I’m not about this cheesy nonsense, but stop being sulky. If nothing else I’ll be there.”

Something about that broke every resolve he had. “Abby,” his voice cracked, “I don’t know why I’m so scared. I feel like I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop and get left behind again.”

“Do you want to leave,” she asked seriously. 

“The con? Of course not. It's just a few more weeks.” 

“Did something happen yesterday,” she started tentatively, “Between you and Laurent?”

“You saw something, didn’t you?” she tilted her head in reply, “yeah, it’s just-” before he could explain further Dorothy walked in chirping happily about something Laurent close behind. 

“Oh hi again,” she smiled. 

Makoto offered a small smile of his own before closing his suitcase, “We were just leaving.”

Abby knew Makoto could be overbearing and loud. But unfortunately, she had decided to make him her burden. So here she was sitting with an unusually quiet version of this overexcited overgrown child. Even more, unfortunately, she actually wanted to make him feel better. It was exhausting making friends, she decided. Never making this mistake again. 

“So,” she prompted. 

“I kissed him.” She knew this much, she spotted them in the garden.

“Guess I can no longer call you virgin huh?” 

Makoto glared at her but she could see his fire still didn’t burn over whatever it is that he was overthinking. “We didn’t have sex.”

“Oh thank god, I was just mourning a million jokes that were going to be lost to time.” Makoto’s gaze stayed on the floor. So obviously there was more. She sat down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. 

“I thought we were making progress,” she bit down her retort knowing it would stop him from talking, “I know it was only a day- I just. I was starting to hope that maybe he would get over her. You know, after the case and everything. I saw he didn’t have her ring and I thought-” he sighed and looked visibly more forlorn. “I am happy she’s alive. I just feel like I’m mourning something that never existed in the first place. Honestly, I was stupid to have hope over a kiss. This one is on me.” He rubbed his face forcing himself to sit up straighter. 

“You are stupid,” she chimed in earning a snort, “But it's okay that you wanted something. Honestly, I’m still judging your taste in men.”

“Gah- I wish this man was not my sexual awakening.”

“Do you want to watch a movie?” he nodded. She let the movie fill their silence for a while unsure of what to say to help. 

She knew that Makoto didn't imagine Laurent's interest in him but she still didn't trust what that interest would lead to. She was hoping that whatever happened at least Makoto would get an answer and either have his first relationship or move on and put them all out of their misery. Who would have guessed the surprise guest appearance of the undead? Caring was exhausting. 

"You know, I have an idea," she chimed in as the movie started to lull, "finish this con chin up and we'll get you a much better boyfriend somewhere around." 

Makoto bumped her shoulder, "if you find any of those lying around sure," he laughed. 

"You can do much better than this bastard for sure."

Makoto turned to face her, "awwwww Abby? You care," he cooed

She pulled the switchblade from her back pocket, "say that again. I dare you."

Chapter Text

Makoto woke up yet again before his alarm to the loud chatter just outside for the fifth day in a row. He’d almost gotten used to it. But he had also gotten into a habit of not going out unless he had to. Since Abby and Cynthia had to still do their day-to-day to keep the con running it was only Dorothy and Laurent outside Abby’s door, occasionally joined by Oz on days he didn’t have fires to put out as well. 

The old crew was back together, and as the only person here who had nothing better to do, he’d started taking any excuse to get out of the house as early as possible and come back home only after everyone was asleep bar their daily meetings. He had always been a wanderer though, so it didn't raise a lot of eyebrows. He felt more out of place than usual, but he didn’t want to make that obvious. But interactions with them were inevitable. 

“Edamame,” Laurent cooed as soon as he stepped out of the room, “I was just telling Dorothy she must try your coffee.”

“You call him soybean?” she asked, raising an eyebrow, “That’s cute.”

He smiled tightly, “I was just leaving. But I’ll make you a coffee.” 

Laurent leaned against the breakfast counter assessing him. This was another gesture he had started getting used to. It still made him uncomfortable, being watched like that. He wanted to ask so many things. He wanted to know what this meant. To Laurent, to him, to whatever the heck it was that both of them almost had. They hadn’t spoken since their last session with Farrow, and now it was almost time for the next. Which is why the next words out of Laurent didn’t surprise him.

“Okay, remember we still have to discuss what to do tomorrow, so come back by 7.” Because asking if he was okay was not Laurent’s thing. It didn’t matter to him. Because Laurent never knew how to deal with him when he was not fighting back. He only knew how to make Makoto dance to his tune. Makoto wanted to believe he still had the fight in him. Maybe he’d eventually get it back and this was just a short lull in his system. Maybe he’d gather the courage to ask the bastard if he’s happy now that Dorothy is back. Maybe he’d actually move on and discover himself on his own terms. But for now, he nodded. 

“Actually, I was thinking about going out today too,” Dorothy chirped, “Mind if I join you?” 

That suggestion blared alarms in his head. As if the internal struggle of having her back wasn’t enough. His gut was already coiled with the look Laurent was giving her. He needed to come up with an excuse quickly. 

“No!” He said ultimately. Helpful, brain. Thank you. “Uh, what I meant is I’m probably going to be doing something extremely boring. Plus, I don’t know the city all that well. And-”

Makoto continued rambling, much to Laurent’s delight. The last week has been an adjustment, to say the least, but Laurent was starting to think it was a little different for Edamura than the rest. He couldn’t put his finger on why though. Yes, Oz, ShiWon and he slipped back to their old dynamic. Cynthia and Abby were essentially the same as they always were. Makoto had been acting fishy though. Usually quick to fire back and bite, he had become a lot more docile. He wasn’t bickering, fighting, pushing back, or gloating. Maybe he was planning something? 

“Did he forget I’m from here or does he really hate the idea of hanging out with me?” Dorothy whispered, eyes not leaving the talking man. 

“He is just an over-talker,” he replied. 

“-okay, maybe I should make coffee first,” Makoto took a heavy breath, finally catching himself.

“It’s fine Edamame. I’ll go with her. You can do whatever it is you were planning to do,” he made a mental note to have someone follow him, “But be back for the meeting.”

He didn’t get a reply. Laurent could figure out what was bothering Edamame some other time. If the pattern he’d come to expect out of him had taught him anything, it was that he’d snap out of it eventually. 

“What? The great mastermind of this con has nothing more important to do than take me around the city?” Dorothy rested her arms on the breakfast counter eying him.

“Nothing is more important than you,” he said, mirroring her.

She scoffed, “Ever the sweet talker.”

Before he could reply, two coffee mugs were placed in front of them, and their maker promptly disappeared. 

“So, where did you want to go today?”

Nothing is more important than you . That’s what Laurent had said. He hated himself for letting some cheesy-ass line put him through such agony. He hated more that he wished he was on the receiving end of it. So, Laurent was capable of- he didn't know what label to give that relationship- but he was capable of it. Softness, longing… love? He would just never consider Makoto as enough of an equal to see that as a possibility between them. 

He really needed to snap out of this and get his head back in the game for tomorrow. Farrow was good at what she does. And he wasn’t a good enough actor to be able to evade that, though he’s been managing to do so with the rest of the crew (mostly by avoiding them, but the means don’t matter). 

More importantly, he needed to stop thinking about what Laurent and Dorothy were doing. He knew his catastrophising tendencies. At least enough that if he was not feeling as exhausted and obsolescent, he might have done something worse about it. But he had a plan now for whenever this was over. 

He doesn’t know why, but he trusts that Laurent will actually let him leave after this con ends. Dorothy returning just short of wrote that in stone. He was no longer needed with the crew. He no longer wanted to be part of it either. Not this way. But for team Confidence, it was this way or nothing. He was ready to accept that. That took time too.

So, maybe with time, he will accept to let go of Laurent too. He wanted the other man to be happy. With Dorothy, maybe he could be. They all deserved happiness. They’d find their way to it, he believed. For now, though, he needed some good coffee and French pastries. 

Dorothy missed city life. She missed the con life. The hustle, the people, the language. She missed her friends too. But she needed the break. The circumstances of said break may not have been ideal, but she wasn’t complaining. 

“It’s so nice to be back here,” she said to Laurie who was sitting opposite her.

“It’s nice to have you back. None of us thought this was a possibility, you know?”

She laughed. He’d really grown up since the last time. “Did you have to go this hard on the revenge though?” She heard the story on her first night back from Cynthia and Oz mostly. Abby, the other new face, was about as sociable as a brick wall, but Dorothy couldn’t help but feel amused by all the strings that had formed. 

“I don’t think we did anything too extreme,” he smirked, “ Just returned the favour for all that they’d given us.” 

“Guess our code got thrown out the window then, huh?”

“Dorothy-” he paused, voice softening, eyes filled with concern, Dorothy felt the urge to look away, but she didn’t- “We were engaged. That code was thrown out long before we were, but you cannot have expected me to simply let them be after they-” he gulped, “after they shot you.” 

This. This was why Dorthy needed a break, “You did plunge a knife into me once too,” she pointed out, hoping to change the topic. Thankfully, it worked. 

“How things have changed,” he chuckled. 

“So what’s going on with you and the kitten?” A raised brow was her reply, till she clarified, “You know, Oz’s little one.”

“Oh. Kitten?” he laughed. She shrugged.

“So?” she pushed, because she knew whatever it was that kept Makoto from warming up to her, even more than Abby, had something to do with the blond. She did not miss the way his eyes always wandered to the man in front of her. The kid really was too much of an open book to be here. 

“Nothing that matters anymore,” Laurent replied casually. 

Dorothy leaned forward and rested her chin on her hand. “Why not?”

“The situation is different now,” he stated like it was obvious. 

“So are we though, Laurie,” she pointed out; because despite how much Laurie had grown, he still had his blind spots, “I certainly am different.”

“Hmm,” he said thoughtfully. She could only hope he picked up on what she actually meant. “I guess that’s true too.” 

“So I was thinking we could do something a little different today,” Farrow said once the two men took their seats. “We’ve had a few sessions now, and I feel like it might help me understand your relationship better if I could talk to you both separately. Of course, only if that is okay with the both of you,” she smiled pushing up her glasses. 

Makoto looked at Laurent feeling a little helpless, but mostly surprised. Neither of them had expected this. They had a goal for today which just got thwarted. But Laurent looked less than phased. 

“That’s okay with me? What about you mon chéri ?” Makoto could do nothing but nod. 

“Great, so which one of you wants to go first?” 

“I’ll wait outside,” the blond volunteered, probably assuming if there was anything he had to fix because of him, it’d be better to retcon. Smart. As always. Mokoto nodded again.

Farrow waited for a while after Laurent left to start talking again. He shifted uncomfortably, feeling more on edge than before, “You seem more nervous than usual today, Makoto. Do you want to talk about that?”

He laughed, if he can’t hide it, might as well lean into it. “I don’t know. Just woke up on the wrong side of the bed, I think? One of those days where you feel like everything is too much, you know?”

She smiled well meaningly, “How have you been doing since we last met?” 

“Alright, nothing noteworthy.”

“Hmm,” she scribbled something on her notepad, “I am going to ask you something which might make you uncomfortable. We can skip answering it, of course. But it might help you to put this question out there, so may I?”

Makoto swallowed uncomfortably. He didn’t realise how used to Laurent’s presence he’d gotten. Farrow felt a lot more daunting without him here. But he could do this. He was a professional. Damn right, he could do this. “Yes, that is fine.”

“Do you trust Laurent?”

Oh . He scoffed. This was an easy question, because, “Yes, was that ever in doubt?” 

“Right, it wasn’t. Allow me to phrase that differently. You trust Laurent with your life. I can see that. But from what I see, you don’t seem to trust him to show him your vulnerabilities. Your weaknesses, if I must. So what I’m asking is, do you trust Laurent with your heart.”

“I-” He always hated how Farrow could see right through him. Usually, Laurent was there to divert. You know what? Fuck him and his overconfidence. He is a conman too, despite what will happen after this case, “I married him, didn’t I? I should have trusted him with some amount of my heart for that to happen.” he smiled shaking off some of the tension from before, “I love him. I trust him.” he said with conviction. 

“Hmm,” she said ominously. “How long did you say you two knew each other before you got married?” 

He pulled out the information from his memory. The file was thankfully very thorough, “Just shy of half a year.”

“Why didn’t you wait longer?”

“I didn’t feel the need to,” he leaned back getting more comfortable, “I knew I loved him. He proposed. I didn’t have a reason to say no.”

“Not having a reason to say no isn’t the same as saying yes though, is it?”

“I guess not, but love seldom makes sense right?” he sighed. He really wished there was more logic involved with, as Theirry called it, a chemical reaction in your brain. It involved a lot less brain than it should. 

“Then what is it that you are scared of?” she asked.

The answer for this wasn’t in a file that he could repeat. He played with the hem of his sweater. He supposed a little bit of well-timed honesty wasn’t going to hurt anyone. “I guess,” he started hesitantly, “I am scared he’ll get bored of me. He is a lot of my firsts. I am none of his,” he smiled pathetically, “there are days where I can’t tell why I caught his eye in the first place.” 

“And you’re scared he’ll move on and break your heart? And you won’t be able to recover?” 

He picked at his sleeve again, not answering the question. 

“We’ll move on for now then.”

Laurent touched Edamame’s shoulder before going in. Not that they would have gotten any time to talk anyways, but he hoped the gesture conveyed the unsaid, I’ll make sure whatever you did is fixed.

But he did not expect what he had coming. None of it was apparently credited to the young Japanese. 

“So,” Farrow leaned back dropping her notepad on the coffee table, “How long are you planning to trick the poor bastard?”

“I’m sorry?” Laurent shot back. 

“Please, I know a con when I see one.” 

He needed more information before he could start problem-solving, “I don’t know what you are implying,” he said coldly.

Farrow rolled her eyes, “A rich naive boy who has never been in love before. A charming Frenchman who wanted to get married so quickly. You’re fooling no one. Well, you’re clearly fooling a lot of people, I’m just not one of them. I’m assuming this has something to do with the family heirlooms, so if you drop the act, we can talk business.”

He could work with this. He brushed his fingers through his hair, “What gave it away?”

“You need to be better at hiding your other lovers if you want to keep up your act,” she replied examining her nails, “The pink-haired one is very pretty though.” 

“You were going to talk business,” he asked instead.

“You will need a fence. I know a buyer who might be interested.”

Chapter Text

Makoto was somehow quieter in the car than he had been all week, which was already raising flags. Laurent had asked about what happened in their session, and only gotten a half-hearted reply. 

“Is there something we need to talk about Edamame?” he asked, finally breaching a topic he’d been avoiding. Laurent didn’t want to have a mushy conversation about feelings, but if he wanted Makoto to get back to some semblance of normalcy, he at least needed to address it.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” 

Laurent wasn’t nervous, exactly, but something akin to it. “Your face says otherwise.”

“Laurent, I don’t expect any of what we had before Dorothy came to be valid.”

“What we had?” 

“Fine, what we didn't have then,” he snapped. “The point is I don’t care. I just need to know how much longer we need to do this so we can all go back to our own lives again.”

Laurent focused on the road. He wanted to say something comforting. Lies were easy to him. Half-truths were a better option if given the choice. He was struggling with picking one that would help him with Makoto in the present moment. He let the silence settle a bit more comfortably and said, “I did like it, you know?” he paused again, “whatever we had.”

Makoto scoffed, “I don’t know what misconception you have about- I can’t even call it a one-night stand, can I? We didn't even sleep together. We kissed. Lapse in judgment on my side, I’m sure. It does not need to be a thing.” 

Makoto had been preparing for this conversation for perpetuity. At least it felt like it. He might not be the best liar, but he could be convincing when he needed to. It did help that Laurent seemed to have a difficult time reading him after their last case together. The conversation with Farrow had given him a resolve. Laurent Theirry didn’t deserve to know what he felt. “I’m not some damsel in distress in need of you. So, get over it.” 

Laurent idly shifted the gear. “You know better than anyone that none of our damsels need saving Edamame. And I don’t think Dorothy would mind if you wanted to change your virgin status. She’s never been big on monogamy,” he added with a smirk. 

He sighed and looked out the window. No, he wasn’t thinking about how Laurent’s first thought was still about whether Dorothy would care or not, thank you very much. Maybe it was good that Dorothy came back. He saved himself from any tangible heartbreak. It would be useless to keep pining like a love-sick teenager. He’s managed to keep the blond bastard out of his head successfully before, he knew he could do it again. Though it might take a bit more effort considering he didn’t have to look at him every waking hour the first time it happened. 

“What did you talk about in your session? It was weird she asked us separately,” Makoto couldn’t shake the feeling that she behaved differently. Nothing explicitly noticeable that he could point out, but there was something off. He thought he’d imagined it after his session, but when she did her usual see-you-in-the-next-session routine, that itch returned. 

“She asked me if I was cheating on you. Things are still on track, Edamame. Nothing interesting, if that’s what you worried about.”

He didn't buy it, but, “Any strategy shifts now that we are separated?” Something was off. But he tried not to care.

“We’ll see.” 

“We have some interesting developments,” Laurent told Cynthia the minute Makoto left their sight. The poor boy looked exhausted, and every instinct in her was screaming to check on him. However, she really wasn’t sure if she’d be of any help. 

“Go on.”

“Farrow has agreed to be our fence,” he said with all the suave he usually carried, “And we’re getting ten times more than what we had estimated. Things just got fun.”

“And why did you wait till Edamura left to let me know?” 

“It might be better for him to not know,” he shrugged. Cynthia resisted the urge to sigh in disappointment, “He plays the forlorn lover better that way. You know our soybean.”

This time she did sigh, “Laurent, come on. You’re not serious.”

“Tell me he will be able to resist doing something if he found out Farrow already knows.”

Cynthia couldn’t. Which was the problem. Makoto was very driven by his feelings. She didn’t know how he would react most of the time. But she knew the same to be true if he found this out later. She had to believe Laurent did too before making this decision. 

“Oh and tell Oz we don’t need someone else. We have our person.” 

Cynthia wondered if there would ever be a day when this man ever said anything clearly. “What?” 

“Dorothy can do it,” Laurent announced to the group the next day which was followed by a very confused set of sounds (sans one person) and an amused look from the hot topic of the day. 

It was Abby who finally spoke up after the noise had settled down, “It makes sense. We know she can pull it off. You two have history.” 

“And doing the whole madly in love routine will be easy,” Makoto chided apathetically. “Abby is right. It does make sense.” 

Laurent didn’t know why that of all things rubbed him the wrong way. What happened yesterday that suddenly made Edamura Makoto go from ardently avoidant to completely devoid of care? 

“Ooo, count me in! I’ve read all the files and it seems like a juicy catch,” Oz’s questioning side eye prompted an, “I was bored at home all alone.”

“Perfect. All settled then. We need a few adjustments for the counselling sessions, I’ll discuss that with Oz and Cynthia later. Dorothy, you seem to know what’s going on, but I’ll let Edamame catch you up on the details,” hmm , so he was trying to avoid her. It was nice to see life back in his face though, even if it was in the form of scorn. He didn’t leave space for a protest though, “And Abby, I need you with me today.” 

Makoto stilled. He noticed Dorothy making a beeline for him from the corner of his eye and tried to remember how to look normal. She fell gracefully onto the seat next to him with a dazzling smile and said, “Hi, kitten.” He scrunched his face at the nickname. “Been looking forward to spending time with you. How do you feel about coffee?”

He ignored the pointed look Abby was sending his way and shrugged, “I could use a cup.” 

“I know just the place.” She forced him up and slung an arm around his shoulder, “Au revoir, loves. We’ll see you later.”

He really wasn’t sure how they got to where they did in a corner booth of a quaint cafe listening to a story about a toppled fishing boat, but here they were. “It was nice though- being able to just take in the ocean air and not worry about what came before or what comes next.”

“Almost perfect escapist fantasy,” Makoto smiled into the warm cup of coffee. 

“Almost,” she returned the smile. She had a very inviting smile. One that made you feel like you could put your guard down. Mokoto could see himself doing the same, but he knew more than he should. “You wanna know something though?” he nodded, “Even when I regained my memory I didn’t want to come back.” 

He was used to hearing her teasing, yet confident tone, never faltering in composure or poise. But, for the first time since they’d met, she sounded like someone he could relate to. Someone beyond the perfect picture Team Confidence had painted her to be. Someone human. It was unnerving. His chair made a screeching sound as he moved with discomfort. “Why?” he managed to ask.

She shrugged. “It feels nice to not be tethered to promises you were pushed to a corner to make. Despite how much you love them, some promises are more for other people than yourself. Making them happy can only provide so much solace till you can’t take it anymore.” 

Makoto took a second to consider that. Clearly, he didn't have enough context for what she was talking about. He didn’t want to pry, but Dorothy beat him to the punch by placing a very familiar ring on the table. His eyes widened as he made eye contact with the woman opposite him for probably the first time ever. 

“Sometimes,” she continued, “you need to be reminded that the easy way out isn’t always the right one. So, I knew I had to come back. I really thought I’d have more time before meeting the old crew though,” she mused, “and the new.” She winked at him, but he couldn’t move. Instead, he was staring at her and the ring Laurent had promised him was in the bottom of the ocean somewhere. 

Her fingers were idly playing with the ring the metal of which was clunking pleasantly against the wooden table. “Did he,” he stopped wondering if he even had the right to ask the question anymore. 

“Oh god, no. I found it when I was butchering a fish. It's the reason I came back.” he nodded solemnly. But a second later she laughed, “No, kitten. Not at all for the reasons you’re imagining. Quite the opposite actually.”

He adjusted himself on the chair again. “First of all, you don’t know what I’m imagining,” he said defensively, “and secondly, why are you telling me all this?” She raised a brow. 

Her elegant fingers rested on her cheek as she leaned forward on the table. “Because I want to clear the air between us. You clearly seem to have some gripe with me that I don’t know about. Plus, I like you enough to give this a try. You seem like a reasonable guy.”

He crossed his arms and schooled his face to not give away anything, which only prompted another smile from her. “I have no gripe with you,” he stated with as much certainty as he could muster. 

“Maybe not personally. But I’ll let you tell me that when you’re ready, kitten.” He rolled his eyes at the nickname that was apparently staying. “You could always tell me what it is you were imagining I meant. Since I clearly am blindsided.” 

“I wasn’t imagining anything.”

She smirked at him as if to say, I’ll let you have this one , and said, “Okay, then allow me to clarify. I have no romantic interest. In Laurent or anyone. Sex is great, love it. But I don’t like the idea of being tied down to one person forever. Honestly, it's too much to demand of someone to meet all of my needs. So, I might have agreed to marry Laurent, but it's not a promise either of us expects to hold up anymore. Do with that as you will.”

“Authentication already? In a few days? That’s a bit too ahead of schedule, isn’t it?” Abby had always been sharp, so it only took a look to prompt a “Farrow found you out, didn’t she?”

“Only in ways beneficial for the con,” Laurent grinned.

“And Edamame doesn’t know.”

“Because he doesn’t need to.” 

Her face didn't change, but her posture did. “Why?” 

It wasn’t the question itself that was baffling but the implication. “I just said why,” he stood his ground. 

Abby didn’t push, yet the conviction remained painted on her face. “I am not going to stop you, but I feel the need to tell you this. You are making this choice again. After all that’s happened and all he’s told you, it's your choice to do this. The longer you keep it from him, the harder it's going to be to undo. And I am going to enjoy watching it blow up in your face.” She sneered a bit pretentious, “I’ll get my equipment ready.”

He knew he’d made the right choice for the con. He was never one to question that. But right now, something uneasy was stirring in his heart that he didn’t like. Cold hard logic dictated what it did. Edamura Makoto did not need to know.  He ignored that uncomfortable feeling. Right then the door opened carrying the conversation and laughter in before the people. 

Despite his resolve, his shoulders relaxed when he saw a glimpse of Edamame looking more like his normal self. Dorothy did have that presence about her. He should have expected it. He waved at the pair and only got a reply from one. She walked right over to him, placed an arm on his shoulder leaned in close and whispered, “He’s quite shy. If you want to make a move on him, you really got to woo him, Laurie. He deserves it,” tapped his cheek gently and walked away. As she did the uneasy feeling came back.

Chapter Text

Makoto took in a shaky breath outside of his mother's hospital room. It was a struggle to hustle the money to keep the room for the month but with the extension for due payment and a stroke of luck at the cost of a naive tourist, he’d managed to pay it. Sleep was becoming more of a stranger to him. The bags under his eyes did very little to hide his exhaustion. He took in another steadying breath and put on a smile clutching tightly onto the little cat figurine. 

“I found the cat you wanted,” he said opening the door. The nurse had already told him his mom was awake. He kissed her on the forehead and handed her the brown and white sphinx cat. “The vendor lady let me rummage through her warehouse to find it. It was the last one in stock.”

His mom’s eyes lit up gently, but her smile was still weak. Chemo had taken a toll on her and he didn’t know how to make her feel better. “You look tired sweety.” 

On instinct, he laughed. “Pfft, no. Just been staring at the screen too much,” he shrugged off.

She carefully positioned the new sphinx figurine next to the others on the table. She’d gotten new ones he didn’t recognise. He figured some of the hospital staff were gifting some to her after noticing the collection. It was a common conversational topic for whoever came to do routine checkups on her. “You’re just like your dad,” he failed to school the grimace, “He always lied more when he was worried or anxious. Would toss around the bed all night and wouldn’t even let me sleep. He would-” 

“Stop! Please. God.” He couldn’t take it anymore. He was out here day and night struggling to make ends meet, barely eating two meals a day, unable to hold a single stable job because of what his father did and his mother still couldn’t get beyond the mirage that this man created. “When will you accept that he left us? That he never cared about us?”

She, much to his annoyance, still revealed nothing more than an understanding smile. “It’s not that simple, Makoto.”

“How?! How can you still believe he was a good person?”

“People are rarely as simple as good or bad. They are just a result of their circumstances. You can never know the full story of anyone's life but your own. So, isn’t it unfair to judge?”

“I don’t care if it's unfair. He left me. He left you. How can you still love him?”

She intentionally let the silence stretch as she silently commanded him to take calming breaths. “You have every right to be angry, sweetheart. But, being angry is easy only because there is love and trust. I’m just focusing on looking at all the moments he was there for us instead of the ones he wasn’t able to.”

He scoffed. “If that’s love, I don’t want it.”

“You are so full of light and love Makoto, you already chose it.” He wanted to scream that the illusion she had was a lie, but she shook her head as if hearing the unspoken thought. “You choose it every day when you visit me. When you give the nurse’s daughter candy because she has to stay here. I know you won’t understand it, but your father doesn’t need to earn my love. He simply has it,” she smiled at the new figurines, pushing them closer with the movement of a finger, “Someday, maybe you’ll feel it too.”

The sphinx cat was smooth in his hold despite the scratches and nail marks that it had gathered over the years. It was ironic that his brain went back to that memory of all, and he remained rattled, alone in the room, trying to shake the sleep off.

“You visited her, didn’t you?” He asked walking to his father’s office, the light still alight at 3 a.m., “When she was sick? You came to visit her. She knew where you were, the entire time.” He didn’t put any effort into withholding the accusation. “She knew,” his voice broke slightly. His father finally dropped the pen and turned to look at him. He didn’t notice Cynthia there till she touched his shoulder and left the room. 

“ Are you okay kid,” he asked in Japanese. 

“I’m right, aren’t I?” Oz guided him to sit and took the spot next to him. “ Both of you just decided that I didn’t deserve to know.”

“ It’s not that simple Makoto. You were a child when it happened, we didn’t know how to-”

“ So I had to grow up fatherless because you made that decision for me. I had to claw through life because of your mistakes and you both didn’t bother to explain why.” He stood up feeling his flight instinct take over. “Actually, i t doesn’t make a difference. At least you two had each other. Who cares about what I had to deal with anyway,” and he took off. Somewhere in the back of his mind he felt unreasonable, childish even. A small part of him understood, but a bigger part of him was angry at his parents, both of them. His father was getting the shorter end of the stick now, but he was so much angrier at his mother. Whatever answer he gave, Makoto decided, would not be good enough, least of all now when he could barely think straight. 

He clenched his hand and took in a deep breath. He needed something to ground him right now before he felt like a pinprick away from bursting. Anything. But he couldn’t think of anything. Then a firm hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him out to the open air. He shivered slightly. The temperature was only a part of it. The breath he took stung his nose, but it also made him realise who the hand that had yet to let go belonged to.

“What do you want now?” he asked one Laurent Thierry. 

“For you to calm down,” he replied colder than the wind blowing. Against all odds, that had Makoto’s attention.

“Oh, wow, okay? Do you want to explain to me my fucked up trust issues that just got way worse and how to feel? Please tell me why I’m worth leaving behind. I’m sure you of all people have a thought-out reason for it.” It only hit Makoto how close to the wall he was when the taller man’s hand pushed his against it. Firm, but gentle. 

“Your heart is beating really fast, Edamame. I need you to take a breath.” He didn’t want to, but he did as was told noticing no indication of Laurent’s hand leaving his chest, “That’s good. Once more.” He closed his eyes this time. Breathe in, hold, out. “There we go,” His voice should not have been calming. Despite everything he knew to be true, here he was. 

During his time with the yakuza, there were moments when he imagined they would come back for him. He would come back for him. He knew better than to have hope, but his fool of a mind would still let some in through the cracks of his broken heart. He’d imagined ways in which his dad would apologise; Laurent would apologise, tell him everything would be okay. He’d imagined that when they did finally see each other again they could finally start seeing eye to eye. The more time he spent in that mansion, though, the more that hope fizzled out. And yet, in the dead of the night when he would lay awake staring at the ceiling in an echoey room, he felt too small, he’d hear a voice calling him soybean and asking him to close his eyes. He was almost angry now to see something he’d prayed would never happen (or always hoped would) was manifesting. He hated it. He hated the power this man held over him even now. 

“I should go,” he murmured. 

He wouldn't let go though. His hand snaked to the back of Makoto's neck. "No. You should tell me what is going on."

“It doesn’t matter. Why do you care anyway? Let me go.”

Laurent immediately removed his hand but took a step forward. The space between them reduced but, surprising even Makoto, it didn’t feel suffocating. “Of course, it matters. It matters and we do care, Edamame. Oz cares. Despite what you think, he’s spent his life caring for you-”

“Don’t speak for my father. If he wants to tell me something he can do it himself. He doesn't need you to be his spokesman.”

The blond raised his hands as if to say, okay, I’ll back off. “Fine, then let me speak for myself. I care about you,” Makoto rolled his eyes. Oh, how he wished he believed that. But Laurent didn’t seem to notice. Rather he seemed to ignore it. “I want to know what happened,” he continued, “So talk to me, please.” He tentatively reached for Makoto’s cheek waiting for permission. He didn’t pull away, and that was enough for Laurent to… oh . He didn’t realise he’d been crying. 

It felt accidental to meet his eyes for the first time in a while. The crystal blue eyes that met him were filled with what looked like genuine concern. And they were a lot closer than he had expected. But, he didn’t want to talk. He didn’t trust himself to talk any more than he trusted Laurent to actually understand. He wanted to believe the concern, but he’d been burnt too many times by exactly that. He wanted to believe in the man hidden in layers, but he was giving up on the ‘deep down’ of anyone, even in his own apparent goodness that he wanted to believe did exist deep down . So, he did the next best thing he could. He leaned forward till their lips were almost touching and looked up. Laurent catching onto his intention closed the distance. 

Unlike their first kiss, this felt more tender. Like something meant more to put him at ease than to imply something more. He let himself sink into the kiss. Let the sensation take over the feelings that were weighing him down and guide Laurent into his room. 

When Makoto opened his eyes again, the bed beside him was empty. He hadn’t expected any differently. He groaned slightly at the pain that shot through his body but dressed himself. He ignored Cynthia whose attention seemed to be glued to him. He mumbled a greeting to anyone who gave him one. He made two cups of coffee.

He felt like he’d actively turned his brain off. He needed it off for now. It was for the best. He knocked on a door with his elbows before going in. 

“Makoto.” 

“Dad, coffee?”

He accepted the cup offered to him and nodded for his son to sit. “Makoto, about yesterday-”

“I’m sorry,” he interrupted. “ I got emotional. I understand why you did it, but I think Mom lying to me hit a nerve. I feel like I have no right to be mad at her but I am.”

“No son. I’m sorry we both hid it from you. She wanted you to be safe. That’s all .”

“Seemed to have worked out as well as it could,” he hoped his smile didn’t look as stiff as it felt, “I have to go now. Enjoy your coffee.”  

He took a sip of his own coffee. It felt like something snapped into place after yesterday. A sense of clarity he’d tried so hard to ignore. The benefit of the doubt seemed to be for the weak. If no one else was going to look out for him, he was going to have to start looking out for himself. He had to start looking out for himself beyond just self-preservation. He never wanted to be selfish and put himself first. But, he had no other choice. That included knowing which fights were worth picking. With this group the answer was none. 

Once this case was done, he really was going to be done with all of them. He’s have to start the preparations for that. He’s had enough experience with Laurent and his network. Avoiding them was difficult but not impossible.

Chapter Text

It was too late in the night to be awake, but here Laurent was anyway. There were still things Oz, Cynthia and he had to figure out, especially this close to the end. He absentmindedly made his way to the office till he was stopped mid-step. 

“Makoto is inside. I don’t think we should interrupt,” Cynthia warned and guided them to the kitchen island. 

Laurent had a pretty good grasp on Japanese but Makoto’s accent was a lot stronger than he had heard before. He could feel Cynthia ignoring his not-so-subtle attempt at eavesdropping and minding her own business. 

“I think we should do whatever you want to do tomorrow. This might not end anytime soon.” 

He nodded absentmindedly, “You should go catch some sleep then,” and his attention went back to the muffled noise behind the closed door. He registered Cynthia’s door click in the back of his mind and then the talking stopped. 

Laurent prided himself on reading people. That was his job. He had to be good at reading people to turn on them. Play to their weakness, and exploit their blind spots. If he were a better person he would have mourned the part of him that could simply exist around people. If he were a better person, he’d wish he could have used that same skill to comfort someone without knowing he could just as easily make them fall into his trap. 

But when he saw how utterly broken Edamura looked when he walked out of the room, he almost acted on that silly thought. “I care about you,” he’d said, and meant it for the first time in a long time. In ways, he didn’t want to unpack yet. In ways he didn’t think he could ever feel again. Yet, he could see the damage he had done wasn’t so easily reversible. Makoto’s sneer spoke a million words, loudest of all, it screamed liar . He honestly felt relieved that his weakness bore no witness. Then a tear slipped from the younger’s eyes and he wished that wasn’t true. 

So, when he kissed him, he wished he were a better person. Someone Makoto could trust. Someone he could be vulnerable with. Someone who could make him feel better- tear him apart and put him back together. He wished… and he wished… and he wished. With every kiss, every touch, every breath, he wished. 

But when the morning came, the wishes remained with the stars, because who he was was never going to change. He looked at the other boy tangled in the sheets, still keeping his distance from Laurent, even in his sleep. As the sun streamed through the curtains, he forced himself to get his head back in the game and left the sincerity he accidentally let slip the previous night with someone who he knew deserved it and wouldn’t trust it.

Laurent felt like his footing was unsteady for the rest of the day. He hated feeling out of his element, but he knew it would go away. It always did. With his stride, confident as ever, he walked into Farrow’s office. Not the one they usually go to, but the one set up in a hidden warehouse just outskirts of Paris. 

He smiled a lazy smirk as he was let into the compound. “Well well, fancy seeing you here Mr Andre Allard. Don’t think we’ve formally met.” He extended his hand ignoring Abby as she set up her equipment. 

“Likewise Mr Thierry,” he smiled unaware that the upper hand he presumed to have is not his, “I hope you don’t mind if we give you a quick pat down.” 

Laurent almost pitied the poor bastard but retracted his hand anyway. It never failed to amuse him that what bad guys were scared of was getting caught by the presumably ‘good’ ones, and not being outdone by someone more cunning. Laurent wasn’t complaining. The arrogance is exactly what made his job easier.

“And the ring,” Andre asked.

“ Both you and I know better than to show all our cards to the first meeting,” he spoke in French knowing it was likely to wind him up. Laurent was trying to play his hand carefully. There is a tight line to walk when conning a conman, and Laurent thrived in that liminal space.

“ And soon you’ll know better than to disappoint me, Mr Thierry, ” he replied curtly. 

Laurent smiled coyly, and whipped the ring box from under his sleeve, “I wouldn’t dare to.” Sitting snug on the red velvet inside was probably the best counterfeit diamond ring he’d ever laid eyes on. He’d personally handled its production and had Cynthia take it around the globe to garner attention months before the con had even sprouted a cohesive sprig. 

It was as close to perfect as it could be, and he made sure of it. He also made sure that both Farrow and Andre were eager to get their sticky fingers on it and came searching for him instead. 

Andre’s laughter filled the room, “Funny man you are, Laurent Thierry.” 

He recognised the sinister undertones to the statement and obliged and dropped his smile, “My apologies.”

“Funny man indeed,” he sneered as Farrow nodded an acknowledgement. She took the ring from his hand with such poise and confidence, that he almost believed she had nothing to lose if this deal didn't go well. She was walking the same tight line and that's what made this game fun. 

“Hello beautiful,” he said to Abby, who didn't bother to reply. She took the ring carefully with her gloved hand from Farrow. Laurent was buzzing with excitement now that the final boss of the game was in front of them. And yet, something felt different. 

“What are you moping about?” 

Makoto registered Cynthia’s voice but he had a lot more going on his mind than he was willing to let on. He shrugged.

“Do you want to talk about last night,” she asked again, voice much softer than before.

But he kept typing away on the laptop, which wasn’t even his. But that was the point. He wanted to leave as many false trails as he could, and considering he had been kidnapped into this heist, he had the advantage of access to all of their devices. His phone, the only device he had carried with him, would have to wait for last. He couldn’t focus on what she was saying, let alone actually answer. So he shrugged again. 

“Listen, Edamura, I know it's hard with this life to feel like any relationship is sincere. It's harder still to maintain a relationship as loving as the one your parents had. You should give him a chance to explain himself. If I know anything about Oz-”

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, “Cynthia, while I appreciate it, it's fine. It’s just a lot to wrap my head around. I know dad loved my mom. It is not about that though. But, thank you.” Makoto knew she cared about him. But he also didn’t want one more person to tell him how to feel about the situation at hand. He was tired. He wanted to get away. 

She nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. A long while passed as they sat there in silence doing their own thing. The silence, however, was just as much a curse for him right now, because eventually the same thoughts he’s been trying to keep at bay crept in. 

Nothing. You are nothing. A nobody. Nobody wants you.

That’s fine. He didn’t want anybody either.

Ha. Liar.

Focus, he told himself. Just focus . He could spiral all he wanted when he was out of here. 

He saw the concerned looks from his dad and Dorothy, but he ignored them, just as he did Cynthia. Just as he has been doing about Laurent and last night. He needed to focus now. Everything else could wait. Everyone else seemed to think that about Makoto and his feelings, and only felt right to do the same right now. 

Laurent felt drained. It wasn’t a particularly long day, but it felt like one. His gut churned with something noxious he couldn’t get to stop. He hated it. He hated having to deal with it. All that, and he still didn’t want to go home. 

Standing in front of the door his hand wavered. But he took comfort in the fact that the person he wanted to avoid would probably be running away at the sight of him anyway. The thought, however set out a fresh set of noxious feelings that he’d barely managed to curb. 

He breathed in slowly and intentionally and contemplated taking another round around the block when the door opened. 

“Oh, uh,” Edamura’s eyes widened as he froze in place. 

“Hello to you too,” Laurent replied, “a little late in the night to be taking a walk, don’t you think?” He ignored the emotions that were bubbling up. 

“Uh,” his hands fidgeted for a moment and then they stopped, “I think it’s none of your business what I do,” and walked past him. 

“Ah yes,” he had his hands in his pockets “But today it unfortunately is.” Makoto ground his teeth beside Laurent, refusing to meet his eye, but Laurent refused to look away. “You can take your walk later Edamame, we have things to discuss today.” 

They didn’t. 

He could have easily done this tomorrow. Or the day after. And despite all his inhibitions about meeting those amber eyes again, he didn’t want them out of sight for too long. Not today. Especially not today. 

He wrapped his arm around the other’s waist and spun him so they faced each other. Makoto was startled and tried to pull away. His grip stayed strong, “I’m sorry I didn’t say goodbye before leaving,” he whispered.

Makoto’s gaze wavered, still resolutely avoiding his, but the red on the tip of his ears gave him away. “You never do.” 

“So you’re upset for a different reason then?”

“I told you that I don’t expect anything from you.” 

“What if I wanted you to?” 

At that he looked directly at him for the first time all day, eyes cold as the air outside, “I don’t want to, Laurent.”

Laurent felt like the air was punched out of his lungs as he pushed him away. He smirked; the coy mask made him feel safer. Makoto stood there for a while longer waiting for Laurent to say something. When he didn’t, Makoto sighed and walked in. 

Abby removed the gloves she was wearing and put them neatly in a corner as Farrow walked in. 

“Anything else you need to be done for the night?” So close to the end is when they need to be most vigilant. If her past experiences are anything to go by, Murphy's law applied to the penultimate chapter of every con she's been a part of. It's always about how creatively you can make it work in your favour. As much as she hated it, that's where Laurent's expertise lay and that's why she will happily be a part of his little team when he asks for it. 

“Just one thing,” Farrow said, “Edamura Makoto. I need you to find him and let him know his precious family ring is about to be sold.” 

Abby didn’t attempt to hide her confusion because even to Petra the authenticator, this request didn’t make sense. “You want me to tell the husband? Doesn’t Andre want to purchase the ring?”

“And he will. You’ll learn soon enough, darling, that when you’re working with people in the business of lying, you have to keep them on their toes if you want to get your way. It’s the job.”

“But, what if he doesn’t-”

“Trust me. I know his kind. He’ll want to get rid of the merchandise sooner which means he’ll be more pliable to our bargain,” she slipped her a piece of paper. “This is his number and where you can find him. I’m sure you’ll charm your way into his mind.” Abby nodded. “Get it done by tomorrow. Call me if you need any more details. He’s a naive one, won’t take you too much time to convince,” Farrow said with the confidence of someone who’d kept detailed notes on him for months. 

“Consider it done.” 

Why did she have to be the one to break Makoto’s heart again? The bastard who calls himself the ‘mastermind’ of this operation should. She almost considered letting Laurent know before going to Makoto, but fuck that bastard. If fate had its plans set, who was she to deny it? Laurent will get to know… eventually. For right now, she needed to go do some plotting with one Edamura Makoto. She’d be damned if she let that fool be broken over a con again.