Fic: Looking Closer (Ian, Souji)

[libbydango]

Ian limped towards the nearest entrance to the Spirit Base, cursing his own bad timing under his breath. It was one thing to let a Debo Monster get the jump on him, but quite another thing entirely for the injuries it inflicted to make him late for a date. He'd accepted the reconnaissance mission with his usual brand of casual confidence, and he had to admit he was paying for it now. He only hoped the Spirit Base would be empty of his fellow Kyouryuugers, so he could tend to his wounds and make a hasty escape with no one the wiser, and his date hopefully not mad enough to walk out on him.

But when it rained, it poured for Ian Yorkland, so of course the first thing he saw when he entered the Spirit Base was Souji seated at the table doing his homework. True, they had been on more stable ground ever since the Debo Batissier incident, but Ian still didn't relish the idea of appearing at such a disadvantage in front of the boy. Especially not with his ears echoing with his own smirking reassurances that the mission was safe in his capable hands.

Souji looked up from his books. "You're back," he said in a matter-of-fact but not unfriendly way. Ian considered it progress.

"I'm off the clock. King wanted to take a shift watching for the monster, and I have a lovely lady I can't keep waiting. I just came back to get freshened up," he said, smoothing over his expression and forcing himself to walk as naturally as possible into the base. Souji's eyes narrowed slightly, but he had no reply, and returned to his studies.

Ian picked up a mirror from the pile of odds and ends he had started storing in the base, and absently fixed his hair. His leg throbbed, but it could wait until he got home later. He had bandaged it hastily after the monster had fled, and while he would have preferred tending to it properly, Souji's presence and the lack of time before his date began pretty much guaranteed that would have been impossible now. So he primped for enough time that seemed plausible, and turned to go back out the way he had come. He was halfway to the exit of the Spirit Base when Souji rose abruptly and caught hold of his arm.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" he asked with a stony look.

Ian looked around and gave an exaggerated shrug. "Oh my~ If you want help with your homework, boy, you only need to ask, but like I said, I'm in a hurry."

Souji's expression remained unmoved, and though there wasn't anyone else in the Spirit Base with them, he still lowered his voice as if there were.

"Ian," he said like a warning, "you don't think I can tell when you're hurt?"

Genuinely surprised, Ian was at a loss for a moment.

"What makes you say that?" he asked finally, trying to keep his tone light.

"Your leg." Souji glanced down as he said it. "You thought I wouldn't notice you limping."

Ian gave him a wry smile, and he relaxed in Souji's grip.

"You're getting too perceptive, boy. I think you've been spending too much time with King," he said. He couldn't tell what was more embarrassing - that he had slipped up on a simple mission despite his bravado, or that Souji had seen through him so easily. The boy didn't used to catch on to Ian's little fibs this quickly. There was no sense in arguing now, though, so he let Souji lead him back over to the table, and took a seat on one of the stone stools while Souji took out the ever-handy first aid kit.

"Show me," Souji said. With a sigh Ian propped his leg up on another stool and rolled up the cuff of his jeans, revealing his hastily bandaged calf. The blood had already seeped through the cloth, and even Ian had to admit it looked pretty bad. Souji sanitized his hands and gingerly touched Ian's leg, then gave Ian a dark look.

"You were really going to walk out of here without treating it properly?" he asked.

Ian shrugged again. "I have a date. Who will, by the way, be calling any minute to ask where--"

"Take better care of yourself first!" Souji interrupted sharply.

"Boy..." Ian hadn't expected an outburst like that. Not from Souji. The moment seemed to have passed though, and, huffing a sigh, Souji turned his attention to unwinding the poorly wrapped bandage from Ian's calf. He was neither rough nor gentle, but focused and careful. Once the old bandage was off and the rather nasty gash revealed, Ian expected him to say something, but he only wet a cloth in the fountain and began to daub off the dried blood from around the wound.

Ian wasn't too keen on watching his injury be cleaned and tended to, so he watched Souji instead. That frown was still on the boy's face, though whether from concentration or irritation it was hard to tell. Maybe something of both, to Ian's misfortune. He was clearly annoyed, though that wasn't anything new in Ian's experience. Ian had a tendency to annoy the young man, and he was well aware of it. But this wasn't the hotheaded anger from the first few times they butted heads, but something quieter and almost sullen. Ian wasn't too comfortable with that, so he couldn't resist needling him a little.

" 'This is what happens when the goof off bites off more than he can chew.' Is that what you're thinking?" he asked with an arch look.

Souji glanced at his face and then returned his gaze to Ian's injury.

"No. I was wondering if you were really going to go on that date like this," he replied, and though his expression was still serious, he didn't sound nearly as frustrated as Ian had expected. It was enough to draw out an honest answer from the black ranger.

"She's been overwhelmed at work lately. There's not much I can do for her aside from taking her mind off of things, and rule number one for cheering someone up is to never make them wait on you," he said. "I can endure a little pain if it means I can see a sad lady smile."

Souji was silent for a long moment, making Ian wonder if this hadn't been the right time for sincerity. With the wound cleaned up, Souji began applying a soothing ointment with a cotton swab, careful as he poked at the tender cut.

"I don't know what I expected you to say," he said finally, "but if you're going to take care of other people, you ought to take care of yourself first. Or let someone else do it. That's what being teammates is about, isn't it?"

Ian stared at Souji, speechless. Only a few weeks ago he had been serious to the point of humorless, except for quick flashes of irritation when he misunderstood others' intentions. Ian had known where he stood with that Souji, and had been content to direct the boy's anger to himself to keep the team in harmony. He hadn't noticed just how much Souji's attitude had changed after they fought Debo Batissier. This was a new quality in Souji, to poke and pry beneath Ian's careless exterior and tell Ian something he hadn't even considered about himself. And Ian... Ian had opened up even though he came into the Spirit Base with no inclination for sharing his injury, much less his true feelings about his dates. This team - this boy - was starting to get dangerously close to figuring out how to open the last locks on Ian's heart.

"Well," he said, his face flushing with unexpected warmth, "I guess that's not such a bad idea."