06.14.99

Dear Silver,

Congratulations! Twenty-five thousand hits on your site is extremely well deserved! As is this fic. Inspired by your kindness, gentle spirit, and warm friendship, I humbly bring you the offering of "Beautiful Dream", chapter two. Thank you for everything you have ever done for me in the past, for the present, and looking towards the future!

~hugs~

-S.Kou

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Ken's sleepless night was starting to get to him. His head felt as if something had sucked his brains out, and replaced the cranial cavity with marshmallow fluff. His bloodshot eyes registered only the equally-red digital numbers on the beside clock's LCD display of 6:45 AM. Two, no, one hour before both Ken and his lover, Ryu, were to depart for Sunday brunch at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel with Mr. and Mrs. Masters. Ken had wanted to stay there the night before, but Ryu was so jet-lagged from his flight from Kyoto to California, that he badly needed the sleep.

"Lucky bastard," thought the young, longhaired man as he crawled deeper into the recesses of Ryu's protective embrace which unconsciously tightened around his smaller, more undefined frame. The bigger Shotokan master of the two breathed rhythmically, as if enjoying the feel of Ken's body pressed tightly against his own. "How come you can get to sleep and I'm the one who's so scared of this vision I keep having?" Ken whispered the question into Ryu's ear, receiving only a murmur for a response. So as not to disturb his lover's slumber, he leaned over and placed his lips, feather-light, upon his friend's before slinking his own arm around the man's muscular waist. Securing himself thus to Ryu, Ken eased his head onto the man's thick shoulder before closing his eyes.

It was there he remained for all of fifteen minutes before Ryu's morning sounds woke him. Wanting nothing more than fifty extra hours in the sack, Ken resisted Ryu's gentle poking at his ribs; his most ticklish spot.

"Wakey-wakey, Ken," whispered Ryu as he continued his vile assault on his best friend's ribs. "I can do this forever, but how much longer until youstart cracking up?" He teased as he ran his soft fingers over the surface of Ken's chest.

"Uhhnnn...? R...ryu? C'mon...I wanna sleep some more....," pleaded the flaxen haired sleepyhead. "Pleeeease?"

"No can do, Ken. If we miss the flight, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Masters won't be very happy, will they?"

"Who cares? I need sleep."

"I care, my love, and quite frankly, the opinions of your parents are molded by your actions."

"You're starting to sound like the butler!"

"That reminds me!" Throwing off the covers which anchored his best friend into the nightmarish sleep he had become used to, Ryu gently scooped Ken up into his arms, and with a devious grin, sprinted into the bathroom before lowering his lover into the steaming waters of the large, marble bathtub.

"You're....you're heartless," sobbed Ken as he resurfaced from the hot water which had been kindly drawn and scented for him by Ryu.

"I know of a way I can make it up to you. Let me scrub your back!" Ryu exclaimed jubilantly as he produced a soft bath sponge and a bottle of green bath gel. "Come on, Ken, I can make it worth your while!" His large grin caught his best friend completely off guard as he ducked back underwater in order to pull his hair behind his neck in a very long, wet wave of red-blond strands.

"Why is he so bright eyed?" Thought Ken as he remained submerged in the silence of the warm, lavender scented waters. "It's gotta be at least 4:00 AM! Yeah, that's it, Ken: Ryu's gone completely bonkers."

Surfacing, he was surprised and delighted to catch his lover stripping off his own clothes, almost as if it were an art; slowly and seductively the white gi came tumbling down and landing on the floor with a soft "fwup". Ken felt his own eyes widen with anticipation when the vest was removed and Ryu's large hands began to tug at the waistband of his pants. The man only looked up, gave a wickedly devilish smile, then removed that last annoying article of clothing before stepping into the tub in back of his lover.

"Lean forward, my love," sighed Ryu as he soaked the sponge and worked the gel into it, forming a soft lather.

"Yes, my dearest masseuse."

"Is that what I am to you, some kind of employee?" The larger of the two joked as he gently moved Ken's long hair over his left shoulder, baring his slightly muscled back.

"Well, of all the guys in my harem, you're my favorite," Ken retorted, enjoying the feeling of Ryu's hand sliding gently down his back, feather-light as if testing the skin for flaws. There were none, and the hand was replaced with the warm feel of the sponge, the water it contained, and the thick lather covering it. "Ahh, Ryu....that feels really good...please don't stop!" He begged as his best friend's sponge gently caressed a sensitive spot on his back.

"Ken, you're all tensed up. Let me relax those cramps. Just turn around for a sec, okay?" Ken complied, and found himself clasped in Ryu's thick arms and pressed tightly to his chiseled chest. "Before I take care of your back, I want you to know one thing, okay?" Ryu hooked a finger underneath Ken's chin and, after gently tilting his lover's face towards his own, proceeded to gaze into the caramel-brown eyes which regarded him with unconditional devotion. "I promise I'm never ever going to leave you, you mean that much to me and so much more that I can't even begin to...," Ryu was silenced when Ken craned his neck over and quietly pressed his lips against his own.

"Shh...nothing more be said, dearest Ryu. For I feel the same about you, and I always will remain by your side," the longhaired man whispered softly as he pressed his head against Ryu's chest, listening for his friend's steady heartbeat. "I can stay like this forever," he thought as he began to fall asleep to the soft rhythm.

The sleeping Ken didn't even feel Ryu's protective, healing hands glide over his spine, kneading deep into the tissue and bringing the cramped muscles into a further state of relaxation. His keen hearing enabled him to discern his lover's deep, unconscious breathing and the soft purring noise that was emanating from his throat.

"I'm never going to leave you, Ken," thought Ryu contentedly as he continued to massage his best friend's neck and shoulder muscles. "I'll always be by your side, always be here for you. And I will never take advantage of your heart. I promise you all this," he whispered aloud into Ken's ear before kissing the earlobe gently.

"Ryu! Just when I was falling asleep, you had to try something, didn't you?"

"Of course, just like I am going to do this!" With finishing his sentence, he jabbed two sets of fingers into Ken's sides, causing his lover to squirm with laughter.

"You wouldn't!"

"Oh, wouldn't I? His finger tips continued their rude assault on Ken's stomach, causing him to shake uncontrollably; his giggling echoed throughout the room as water splashed everywhere. In fact, the only thing Ken could do was squirm, since Ryu's powerful forearms kept his body pinned between his legs.

"Aiiiee!! Ryu!! Stopit!! I can't take anymore!! Ohhh, no!!!" Ken wiggled as best he could from the hand that slowly crept up under one of his armpits before foraging there. Ceasing momentarily, Ryu's head snaked around and kissed Ken on the cheek.

"Only if you say you love me...then I'll stop."

"I love you....oh God!!!" He resumed the tickling, and watched with glee as his lover's face turned bright read from laughing so hard.

"You didn't sound like you meant it," Ryu teased, his mouth plastered in a wide grin at his best friend's happiness. "Maybe if you said it again...."

"Fine! Though I always have to do everything." Disentangling himself from Ryu's grasp, Ken slowly turned around to face him. Settling on top of his best friend's chiseled torso, he snaked his arms around his lover's neck before bringing his own face closer. "I do love you, Ryu. More than you will ever know...," Ken whispered before softly kissing him on the lips. "I'm never going to let you go, Ryu, in this lifetime or the next. We were separated for too long a time when Sensei Gouken was murdered by his brother....and that's never going to happen again. You will always have a place in my heart."

"Ken...." he fell silent as Ken placed his head on his chest and listened to his steady heartbeat. Ryu couldn't help but wind his arms around his lover's waist and hug him tightly. "I've decided to always stay here with you, and I mean it. Next weekend, I have no intention on returning to Japan."
"But what about Sakura?"

"She told me she was going to go to college here."

"Rinko?"

"I told her it wasn't going to work....then I explained to her about you," sighed Ryu as he caressed Ken's shoulders with his fingertips. "I always seem to have trouble with breaking things off with my past girlfriends."

At that, Ken threw back his head and laughed heartily. "What did you have back in Japan, a harem?"

"Nope, just Sakura and Rinko!" Chuckled his friend in response. "In Japan I could look forward to getting up at five o'clock every morning and throwing fireballs across the lake in back of the old dojo. Of course, on Wednesdays or Thursdays, Sakura would come by on her way to school, squeal a little bit, then dash off with an embarrassed grin on her face, but that was pretty much it."

"I guess I'll have to explain to mom and dad that you're moving in, then. Since the estate has so many empty rooms, I know they won't mind! Besides, they are quite fond of you....but not much more then I am!" Shouted the longhaired martial artist as he glanced at the clock on the wall. "Shit! We gotta get moving....it's so late!" Hauling the normally docile Ryu out of the water, Ken pulled him into the bedroom and starting dressing the man. After he finished, he stepped back a space and admired his work: he had attired his best friend in a black turtleneck with a pair of khaki pants.

"Do I get to play 'dress-up' with you too, Ken?" He asked his partner, watching intently as his lover as he pulled on a pair of briefs before tugging on his own pants.

"Not now, Ryu. We gotta get to the airport!" After finishing with himself, Ken grasped Ryu's hand and tugged him out the door to the waiting taxi. "The airport," he shouted at the driver.

"You got it, pal."

They arrived at the airport in record time, thanks to the countless traffic laws broken by their irresponsible, intoxicated driver.

"That'll be fifty three dollars and seventy cents, mac."

"Whaa?" Ken's eyes flickered with anger. "You cheap bastard! You played with the meter!"

"Whaddaya talking about, bub?" The cabbie pulled out a hip flask and took a large swig. "I dunno what yer talkin' 'bout."

"Well, let me see... aside from the fact that I see your greasy hand on the controls right now and, when you had told me the rate, I had seen you pushing buttons. Unfortunately, for you 'bub', I got your cabbie I.D. number....you're in the shit house now, pal!" Slamming the door, he stormed with his lover into the terminal gate.

"Good morning, passengers, and welcome to American Airlines flight number twelve from Miami Beach to Palm Springs, Florida. Our estimated time of arrival is ten-thirty, so please enjoy your flight," came the chirpy, stewardess voice from over the loudspeaker.

Ryu sat down and looked at his friend expectantly. "Ken, you know you don't have to shower me with luxuries to gain my love."

"I know," Ken replied as he slid his hands around to the front of his lover's waist, before buckling the seat belt across it. Kissing him quickly, he smiled. "But I wouldn't have it any other way."

Five minutes later, the plane was in the air and traveling steadily towards Palm Springs. The sunlight reflected from the clouds and shone brightly into the windows of the aircraft, waking the sleepy Ryu and causing him cover his eyes with moderate pain.

"Anything wrong?" Asked his friend as he glanced over from his magazine with concern.

"Too bright......I haven't been in an airplane for the longest time."

"Here," said Ken as he closed the shade and blocked the light from hurting Ryu's keen eyes any longer. "I can't have you getting hurt, now can I?" Lacing his fingers between his lover's digits, he squeezed the larger man's hand affectionately.

A young, chesty stewardess strolled out with her cart just then and practically sat in Ken's lap as she took his order for some flash-heated airline food.

"What will you have, my gorgeous passenger," she drawled in her southern accent as she licked her heavily rouged lips and pressed her over inflated chest into his shoulder. "Coffee, tea, or me?"

"None of the above, but the chicken is fine."

"And for you, my lovely muscle-bound hunk, will you take me up on that offer?"

"Young girl, you flatter yourself, and your implants. Besides, I already have someone. I think the chicken looks fine too, by the way," Ryu coldly replied.

The stewardess, after being quite put out, threw two, foil-wrapped trays and pushed her cart off, mumbling obscenities about losing her virginity and the fact that her "good" physical attributes weren't worth the enormous amounts of money she had put into them.

"This is disgusting, even for airline food. You want to eat it?"

"Sure!" Said Ryu as he grabbed Ken's tray and swallowed everything on it with one mighty bite. "Though they better feed us again really soon...the pack of peanuts was just not enough." He pouted as his stomach growled even more.

Perking up suddenly, Ken looked over, brushed his hair out of his eyes, and flashed a wicked grin. "Say Ryu, in all your travels by air, have you ever heard of 'the mile-high club'?"

Ryu's eyes shimmered in the re-circulated cabin's atmosphere. "What is that? Is it some sort of fraternity?"

"Not quite. I show you..but you'll have to come to the bathroom with me first."

"Okay."

Ken reached over and unbuckled his lover's seat belt before grasping his hand and leading Ryu towards the small, cubical-like bathroom and squeezing his large, muscular body inside before following with his own. Slamming the door, he made sure it was locked before seeking to initiate his best friend into the club to which only a select few belonged.