"Here?" Ren's question comes out as soft as always. She shifts her weight just a bit but doesn't ask anything else, content with letting Ryuji fill in the silence around them.
She's always been a quiet sort of person, but these days words seem to be twice as hard for her.
Luckily for her Ryuji never seems to care either way. He might be younger than she is and they might be in the same year only because of her ... less than fortunate circumstances but, for all his brashness, he's always been surprisingly mature and understanding about her quieter ways.
It's one of the many things she likes and appreciates about him.
"Yep," Ryuji nods, hands shoved deep into his pockets as they both stare up at the neon green sign. "Owner's kinda terrifying though, just so you know."
"Hm," Ren just hums low in the back of her throat. Terrifying is, in her opinion, an overused term these days.
Or maybe it's just her.
There's not much that really scares Ren these days, not after what she's seen. What she's lived through. Not even Palaces and the Metaverse upset her all that much.
Maybe especially not the Metaverse.
Ren learned about real life monsters the hard way, the painful way after all.
So after that?
Shadows and distorted cognitions barely compare.
Ren nods her head in the direction of the door and then steps forward, knowing that Ryuji will follow behind her. It just goes to show how much she already trusts him, Morgana and Ann too, that she allows him at her back so easily.
The bell ringing above the door automatically makes her stiffen just a bit and she knows that, if this place ends up being worth it, that'll be the first thing she does. Learn the door well enough to no longer set that damn thing to ringing.
She's never liked things that call too much in the way of attention in her direction, nowadays more so than ever.
Behind the safety of her glasses, Ren's eyes track over the shop quickly, taking in the glass cases, the stacked boxes, and the wall displays. Even from a distance she can tell that a lot of the equipment is impressively detailed for a hobby shop.
But then her head turns and her attention is instantly caught.
The man behind the counter is tall, she can tell it even though he's sitting down. His shoulders are broad beneath the fall of his jacket and his jaw is covered in a thin layer of stubble.
But what gets the majority of her attention are the eyes that stare out at her from underneath the brim of his hat. Well that and the sucker stick hanging out of the side of his mouth.
Still, candy aside, his stare is intense. Watchful and sharp.
All of that coupled with the tattoo she spies peeking out of the collar of his turtleneck, and Ren can see why Ryuji, so sweet for all of his tactlessness and occasional temper issues, would find him nerve wracking.
Ren just stares right back at him, brow arched, unconcerned and unintimidated.
He is, after all, just a man.
Men don't scare Ren anymore.
A small, barely there smile curls at the corner of his mouth as he flicks a look over her before his attention almost prowls its way to Ryuji who's stumbled through the door directly behind her.
"See," Ryuji tells her, voice loud in the small shop as he steps around her and closer towards the counter display, "told you this place had a ton of shit. You should pick for me though, you're hella smart so you'll be better at this kind of thing."
"Don't get many brats in here," the man drawls as he tosses his magazine aside and sits up just a bit straighter in his chair. "This ain't a toy store you know so you two might want to turn around."
"Hey," Ryuji scowls, already offended enough to side step some of his caution about the man. "We ain't kids, old man. We're customers, show some respect."
"Well then, customer-san," the man says, something like amusement flitting across his expression, "you know what you want yet or you lookin' for recommendations? Cause I'd say you should just buy whatever looks interesting to you. Can't have casuals just hanging around in here, it's bad for business."
"Wow," Ryuji sneers just a bit, eyes narrowed, "some fucking customer servi-."
Ren steps forward then, cutting Ryuji off instantly as she slants a look up at him.
"Tch," Ryuji huffs, arms crossing over his chest as he backs down, moving to the side to lean a hip against the counter moodily.
Ren stifles the slight smile she can feel itching at the corner of her mouth and turns her attention back towards the man behind the counter.
"You lookin' for something specific then?" the man asks after a brief pause.
"Something … realistic," Ren answers softly.
"You two robbing a bank or something?" He asks, obviously only partially joking if Ren's reading him right. Which, at this moment, she's sure she is.
"Or something," Ren cuts back. "Just consider us … enthusiasts."
"Well then," he smiles just a bit, more a smirk than anything as he rolls the stick of his sucker from one side of his mouth to the other, "I'm Iwai Munehisa and I guess you came to the right place after all."
~~~
Ren ends up seeing a lot of Iwai Munehisa after that.
All equipment and arms procurement for the gang falls firmly into her lap since the others are all firmly uninterested in going to visit and do business at Untouchable. Even Morgana, who normally insists on accompanying Ren everywhere in the larger bag she bought just for him, doesn't seem all that enthusiastic about spending much time in the shop.
It is, they all seem to agree, not a place they really enjoy being.
But, by the time Ren slinks past two detectives and out of the shop with a paper bag tucked beneath her arm, she's ready to admit that she likes the place a lot more than she thought she would.
Likes the shop with its cramped shelves and cluttered displays. Likes the collection of replica weapons, surprisingly detailed model guns, and the odds and ends of charms and armor that have helped save her and the others lives more than once.
But Ren finds that she, somehow, likes Iwai himself most of all.
Likes his gruff words and intent eyes. Likes the look of his broad shoulders and the stubble on his jaw. The stark ink of the gecko on his neck and the way he watches her from beneath the brim of his ever present hat. The way the stick from his candy presses against his lower lip and the way he absently plays with it when he's thinking.
She likes his voice too. Likes the way it goes rough and husky when he's serious about something. Or the way it's low, even toned, and filled with a wry sort of humor whenever she brings him something new and strange but still absolutely interesting.
But, most of all, Ren likes the way his hands, so much bigger than her own with long, thick fingers and scarred knuckles, handle the guns and equipment she gets from him or the oddities she brings in to sell.
In the privacy of her room, late at night when Morgana is fast asleep in the little corner she'd rigged up for him so they'd both have some privacy, Ren can't help the way her mind turns towards Iwai.
Hands slipping stealthily down beneath the waistband of her sleep shorts, Ren can't help but think about the fact that she'd like to see those hands of his handle other things too.
~~~
With everything that's going on it takes Ren a while to find the time to confront Iwai about the bag and the gun it had been hiding.
But after the weeks drag on and she only has time to dip into the shop and resupply before she has to leave again, Ren gets more than a bit frustrated.
So she finally carves out a block of time and goes to handle the situation that's been itching at the back of her head for a while now.
"Was wondering when you'd bring that back up," Iwai huffs just a bit. "You're my accomplice now though, don't forget that. You helped me smuggle that gun out of here right under those detective's noses. Snitch and you're going down with me."
"I'd like to see more," Ren shrugs lightly, one hand coming up to adjust her glasses even as she shifts to send her braid falling down her back instead of coiling over her shoulder like a thick rope.
"Guess I could let you look at the special menu," Iwai relents after a bit. "But it won't be for free."
Ren nods in acceptance because she wouldn't expect anything less. Very few things in life are any true version of free.
"Could always use a minion," Iwair hums lightly, one hand coming up to scratch idly at his jaw. But, all the while, he never looks away from her. "Someone to do a few odds and ends around the place for me. Might even give you a discount if you do good work. Sound like a fair trade off to you?"
Ren pauses for a moment to actually think everything over.
One more job won't hurt her and, well, there's no one waiting at Leblanc for her in the evenings anyways. No one besides Morgana, who'd doubtlessly be delighted to roam around Shibuya or maybe spend more time with Ann on the nights Ren has to work for Iwai. Sojiro, for all that he's begun to warm to her just a bit, doesn't actually give a shit when it comes to Ren's comings and goings.
Which isn't really anything new to Ren in the long run. She's never really had anyone keeping track of her anyways.
So her nod of agreement is quick and shallow but firm.
Iwai doesn't quite smile but it's a close thing.
~~~
Working at Untouchable is unexpectedly … comfortable.
Or, at least, Ren feels more at ease in Iwai's cramped shop than she does at the convenience store or the flower shop or anywhere else for that matter. The only other place that comes close is working at Crossroads with Lala-chan who's always kind to her.
A part of her even feels more comfortable in Iwai's shop than she does back behind the counter at Leblanc.
Which, given how fond she is of Morgana and how fond she's beginning to grow of Sojiro, is really saying something.
She thinks that, maybe, it's because Iwai doesn't judge.
With Iwai, sometimes working almost shoulder to shoulder with him in so little space, there are no expectations resting on Ren.
She isn't a disappointing and now disowned daughter. She isn't the juvenile delinquent transfer student who got held back a year. She isn't an unwanted boarder or a criminal or Joker or anything of the like.
With Iwai, tucked away inside his shop and hidden safely out of sight whenever there's a customer, she's just Ren.
And all Ren's really expected to do is whatever Iwai orders her to.
In a strange sort of way, it feels almost ... liberating.
~~~
"You wanna learn some more about these things?" Iwai asks her one evening right around the time the shop's scheduled to close, jerking a thumb towards the backroom. There is, Ren knows, a half finished gun model set up on the worktable back there that Iwai's been assembling and detailing for the past day or so.
It's Saturday, Morgana's staying with Futaba, and for all that spending the evening in Untouchable has helped relax her, Ren still feels jittery in a way she can't quite put her finger on.
Going back to the empty attic of Leblanc right now sounds like a special sort of torture.
"Show me," Ren answers, flipping the lock on the shop's door.
Iwai grins, small and pleased, and heads into the backroom ahead of her.
By the time Ren makes her way around the counter Iwai's already settled in front of the worktable.
"Sit down," Iwai tells her, reaching out a long leg to hook his ankle around the leg of the small stool that sits in the corner and dragging it closer.
Ren stays there for the longest time, settled on that stool by his knee as he walks her through the modification process for his newest show piece.
It takes a while but, by the time Iwai sets his tools aside, the tension she'd felt but hadn't been able to really identify has finally melted off of Ren's shoulders bit by bit.
"Fuck," Iwai grunts as he takes a moment to stretch and then look at his watch. "Trains have stopped. You good getting home?"
Ren blinks, surprised that so much time has already passed, but then gives Iwai a fluid sort of shrug.
Her last walk home after missing the last train hadn't exactly ended well for her but, well, it's not like Ren has much in the way of choice.
Besides, she's not the same girl anymore.
"I'll walk," Ren tells him quietly, pushing her way up from the stool. "Or call a taxi."
For a long moment she stands there, hovering over Iwai who's still sitting in his chair.
"Where do you live anyways?" Iwai asks, a slight frown creasing his brows as he moves his chair around, his knees shifting apart just a bit as he moves until she's standing between them.
"Yongen-Jaya," Ren answers quietly.
"Hmm," Iwai hums before he huffs roughly. "Fuck that."
Iwai moves then, pushing himself up and out of his chair without really moving it back. He's standing so close to Ren then that she can practically feel his body heat, can feel the brush of the hem of his ever present coat against her fingers.
"Can't let my minion wander around Tokyo in the middle of the night," Iwai says, voice low, as he finally moves around her and towards the door. "Come on, I'll take you home."
Ren blinks, just a bit startled, before she moves to gather her bag and follow after him.
Iwai unlocks the shop door, ushers her out, and then relocks it behind them. Ren follows along on his heels when he moves down towards the small side alley on the opposite end of the shop.
"Ever rode before?" Iwai asks when they're standing beside the motorcycle Ren's always seen but never paid much mind to beside the shop.
"No," Ren shakes her head. "You don't have to bother though. I'll be fine on my own."
"How about no?" Iwai says as he shrugs out of his jacket. Ren's eyes are instantly drawn to the small flashes of ink she can see peeking out from the sleeveless shirt. Hints of rich reds and brilliant golds that she'd love to see more of.
Ren's breath catches in her throat as he steps towards her and reaches out to drape the jacket around her shoulders.
"Besides," Iwai says, a slight smirk turning up the corner of his mouth, as he guides first one of her arms and then the other into the sleeve of the coat that absolutely bags on her, "you're my minion remember? Got used to having you around and I always take care of what's mine."
There's no stopping the shudder that ripples down Ren's spine then, or the way her heart suddenly seems ready to beat right out of her chest.
"Now," Iwai says as he gently lifts her braid out from beneath the coat, fingers lingering on her hair for a long moment, "let's get going."
~~~
The ride seems to pass by in a blink and yet last forever all at the same time.
Iwai drives the bike with the same kind of easy competence that he uses to detail his models.
Moving through the Tokyo night, chest pressed against Iwai's back with her braid flying in the wind behind them and the bike rumbling between her thighs, is unlike anything Ren's ever felt.
It's a syrupy kind of high, thick and sweet against her senses.
Ren thinks it feels a lot like bliss.
~~~
"This it?" Iwai asks as they come to a stop across from Leblanc.
"Yeah," Ren nods, face still pressed against the warmth of his back for a minute longer before she forces herself to move away.
"It's a cafe," Iwai notes as he turns the ignition, puts down the stand and then dismounts. "A closed cafe. The hell you stay at?"
"Attic," Ren tells him even as he turns to help her off of the bike. "I've got a key."
It's help they both know she doesn't need but, once again, Ren doesn't argue.
"Parents aren't worried about you?" Iwai asks.
"No," Ren bites back the sneer she can feel itching to crawl across her face.
"They dead then?" Iwai's question is blunt and straightforward. It's yet another thing Ren likes about him, the way he doesn't feel the need to beat around the bush.
It makes talking to him easier.
"No." Ren denies again. "Got disowned then shipped here to get rid of me."
"Just bastards then," Iwai notes calmly. "Know how that feels. You safe here?"
"Yes," Ren smiles just a bit as she looks down for a moment to dig her keys out of her bag. "Sojiro's a good guy."
A large, hot hand coming down to wrap around her wrist startles Ren just a bit but she bites back the urge to lash out just fast enough to keep herself from taking a swipe at his face.
When Iwai tugs her forwards just a bit, Ren doesn't fight it. Instead she steps forward further into his space until her nose is practically pressed against the soft black fabric of his turtleneck.
"You know where to come if that ever changes," Iwai tells her, head bent far enough that his nose is pressed against her temple.
It's an unexpectedly sweet and thoughtful offer that Ren hadn't expected to receive.
But then, as she's been slowly learning, Iwai might be blunt and upfront but that doesn't mean he's not his own brand of complicated.
More than a bit breathless, Ren slowly nods her agreement.
"Good girl," Iwai murmurs, lingering in her space for a moment longer before he steps back and away. "Now go on and get inside."
Ren's hand doesn't shake around her key ring as she unlocks the cafe's door but it's a close thing.
When she turns in the doorway to look back Iwai's already back at his bike, straddling the seat and leaning forwards with his arms resting on the handlebars as he stares at her.
"Jacket?" Ren calls out to him, already shifting to take it off.
"Keep it," Iwai calls even as he restarts the bike. "You can bring it back to me later."
Lip caught between her teeth Ren watches as Iwai tosses a small, two fingered wave in her direction and then drives off.
She stands there on the doorstep, wrapped up in his coat, senses swimming in the warm musk and sweet candy scent of him, for the longest time.
~~~
Later, when she's alone in her attic room, Ren stretches out on her bed. She's freshly showered and wearing just an over-sized tee and a pair of panties since Morgana's gone for the night.
Iwai's jacket is laid out on the bed beside her.
Laid out on her stomach with her face pressed into the pillow beside one of the trailing sleeves, Ren breathes deeply and resists the urge to roll around in Iwai's jacket.
She feels a bit ridiculous, being so stuck on something like this after everything she's done and been through.
But feeling ridiculous doesn't mean that Ren can help the way her mind keeps going back to earlier that evening.
She's had crushes before, even one major one her final year of middle school. She'd never said anything to Narukami-senpai of course but she'd still liked him so much.
But nothing Ren's ever felt compares to this, to the way she feels so hypersensitive to everything about Iwai.
To the way it had felt to sit, so attentive, at Iwai's knee and watch his hands work.
The way it had felt to be wrapped up in his coat, surrounded by the warm musk and sweet candy scent of him.
The way it had felt to wrap herself around him, her arms around his trim waist, hands splayed across his abs and her breast pressed against his back.
The way it had felt to have her face buried in the nape of his neck while their bodies moved and swayed together as he navigated the streets from Shibuya to Yongen-Jaya.
The feel of his hand, hot and strong around her wrist.
The memory of him calling her his.
The way his voice had gone low and rough for a split second over the words 'good girl'.
It had all felt so ...
Ren whines just a bit in the back of her throat before she bites it down.
So, with her hips canting upwards and a hand slipping down between herself and the mattress, Ren sets her teeth to her pillow to muffle her cries as her quick, clever fingers set to work.
There's some things Futaba's various bugs really don't need to hear.
~~~
When Morgana bounces up the stairs a few hours later, he gives her a long, searching look when he catches sight of Iwai's jacket hanging from the edge of the shelving unit.
But, wonderful friend that he is, he doesn't actually say anything.
~~~
Ren brings Iwai his jacket back the next night but instead of putting it back on he drapes it across the back of his chair.
Ren spends the rest of the evening casting furtive glances at the tight, long sleeve shirt he's wearing, slightly disappointed not to get a chance to see the ink she'd spied last night in better light.
~~~
Ren spends more time at the shop after that. Spends long evenings at Iwai's knee watching him assemble models.
When she comes into the back room one afternoon and sees a smaller table and chair shoved into place beside his worktable she freezes.
"Figured it was time to see how good you might do on one of your own," Iwai tells her, shoulder leaned against the frame of the door. "Be useful, having someone else doing some of the simpler jobs."
Ren can't help the way she smiles.
~~~
"You should wear your hair loose sometime," Iwai says out of nowhere one day, weeks of her working at the shop and months of them knowing each other behind them.
Ren, hands occupied by one of the simple models she's been assembling for him, goes abruptly still at the thought.
There's a reason she keeps her hair braided back and out of her way all of the time these days. A reason why she doesn't wear it loose like she used to that has little to do with battle.
It used to hang loose and free all of the time, pushed back out of her face with hair bands or clips. All the way up to that night that she still can't completely remember.
That night and the hellish year that had followed it.
When she looks up Iwai's just watching her, something sharp but patient in his eyes.
Ren leaves the shop that evening with her hair still braided and Iwai's words echoing in her ears.
~~~
Those words, that order or request or whatever it was, lingers in the back of Ren's mind.
It's obviously a touchy subject for Ren, the braids and ponytails and buns she always wears now, but, well, Iwai's never said anything like that to her before.
Has never commented on her hair or her looks or her clothes before.
So of course that statement or request or whatever is hard for her to shake.
And besides, there's no denying that a part of Ren …
A part of Ren just wants to give Iwai whatever he wants.
~~~
Finally, a week or two after Iwai's … statement, Ren can't press the urge down and away any longer.
It's been making her antsy, the way those words of his have been playing on a loop in the back of her head this entire time. They ring in her head every time she does her hair before going to school or meeting up with the others.
Not doing it, not being able to see his reaction to her following his request has been eating her alive.
So the next time she goes into work Ren tosses a wave in Iwai's direction and then makes a straight line for the back room before he can say anything else.
She drops her bag by what's become her worktable and then, with a deep bracing breath, reaches up to tug the ties from her hair.
It tumbles down in a wavy mess to fall right above her breasts.
A quick finger combing has the last of the braid falling away and her hair feeling somewhat more orderly than before.
Then, refusing to second guess herself on this, Ren finally moves back towards the front of the shop.
Pulling the back room's door closed behind her, Ren picks up her duster and gets to work.
She very carefully doesn't look in Iwai's direction.
Instead Ren does her best to lose herself in the now familiar rhythm of shifting boxes, dusting, and tidying shelves.
She's back in the back room organizing a crate of shipping boxes that need to go to the trash later when she feels the air in the room change.
As comfortable as Ren feels in Untouchable, she's also far too used to the dangers of being ambushed and is still on edge from her last trip into Mementos.
So she doesn't waste time on thinking her automatic reaction through.
Instead she whips around, hands coming up automatically curled around the butt of a gun and the hilt of a dagger that aren't actually there.
Iwai, hat still in place and head tilted just a bit to the side, stares down at her.
"You've got good reflexes," Iwai notes, idly rolling his latest candy stick in his mouth. "Good situational awareness too. Ain't seen either of those that good in a while, even with training. And 'specially not in a civilian."
"Not yakuza," Ren murmurs as she relaxes again. She's smart enough to know what he means by civilian. And he's definitely not talking about his military aligned customer base.
For all that he doesn't talk about it that much, Iwai's never tried to hide his not so distant past from her. Plus she's done enough leg work, eavesdropping, and general gophering for him over the months that it's all pretty much out in the open anyways.
"Knew that already," Iwai cocks a little grin in her direction. "Pretty little kitten like you? No decent Clan would let you fight. And that's only if somebody hadn't snapped you up and laid claim right from the start."
"I could kick your ass," Ren tells him, only partially joking. The Metaverse might augment their abilities but Ren's noticed more than a bit of spill over into her day to day life.
She's a lot faster and stronger than she looks and is miles stronger than she used to be.
"Not saying you couldn't," Iwai agrees easily enough. "Just the way things have always been, even with the times changing. You'd have all the brothers in a Clan sniffing at your heels either way."
Ren's face scrunches up a bit at the thought.
Nothing about that sounds in any way appealing to her.
"It's one of the reasons I keep you tucked away in the back when there's customers," Iwai admits then. "Idiots like I get in here most of the time? Hate to have to let you put one of them through the counter. Clean-up would be a bitch."
Ren doesn't bother to argue because he's not exactly wrong.
Some of the customers she's heard from the backroom are … less than appealing.
But, again, Ren's not the same girl she was over a year ago. Nowadays she can more than defend herself, and others, if necessary.
Still, being on the receiving end of Iwai's round about way of protecting her is a novel experience for Ren.
"I don't mind the backroom," Ren tells him. "Would rather just deal with you."
"Good," Iwai grins just a bit, something almost wicked tucked in the corner of his mouth. "Kind of like keeping you to myself anyways."
Iwai takes a half step forward then, moving even further into her space as he hums out a low, pleased, sort of sound. One of his hands comes up to grab a thick, unruly loc between his calloused fingers.
"You finally took it down," Iwai notes as his fingers tangle themselves just a bit deeper in the fall of her hair.
Ren, unable to fight the urge, just tilts her head back a bit. Baring her throat and settling herself further into his grasp.
Trust and a daring sort of test all rolled into one.
For a split second, eyes dark and intense, Iwai stares down at her his fingers abruptly clenching around her hair like he's fighting the sudden urge to pull.
Ren knows that she'd let him.
Knows that she wants him to.
"Good girl," Iwai finally murmurs a long moment later as he lets her hair slip out of his grasp. His fingertips trace the sharp line of her jaw down to linger for a beat on the vulnerable skin of her throat.
Then he turns to head out of the room and, undoubtedly, back to his seat behind the counter.
Ren, one hand coming up to brace herself on the table behind her, sucks in a ragged breath.
Her knees are shaking and her panties are wet.
She might, Ren truly realizes for the first time, be in a very special kind of trouble.
~~~
But then, well, Ren's not the wildcard for nothing.Iwai touches her more often after that evening at the shop.
Nothing inappropriate or even overtly sexual, nothing that ever makes Ren feel threatened. Instead it's just small but pointed touches that never fail to light up her senses.
A hand on her shoulder or knuckles pressed gently against the point between her shoulders when he's passing behind her. Quick fingers toying with the hair she leaves loose in the shop more often than not now. A hand around her wrist to get her attention.
Subtle things done openly, like he's trying to get her used to his hands on her, like he's gentling her step by step.
Ren, who doesn't normally accept anyone outside of Morgana or Futaba touching her all that often these days, lets him.
Having his hands on her, even in an innocent way, makes Ren ache.
Iwai's not the only one to shift his behavior though. Ren, feeling emboldened and with her not-so-inner Joker peeking through more than ever, starts to touch him back in turn.
Gentle, almost teasing fingertips trailing over his shoulders as she ghosts around the shop. Small touches to the back of his hands to get him to look at her. Once or twice she snaps out a hand and steals his sucker right out of his mouth right before she whirls her way out of the shop door and into the night.
Ren even goes so far as to deliberately miss the train more than once. And, without fail, Iwai always drives her home, a small grin lurking at the corners of his mouth like he knows.
Which he very well might, but since Iwai never says anything one way or the other, Ren doesn't actually care.
Instead Ren just wraps herself around him with less hesitation than before, her hands splaying wide across the plane of his stomach as she tucks herself even tighter against his back.
Again Iwai doesn't seem to mind. If the way he takes the longest route possible back to Leblanc each time is anything to go by he seems to more than approve.
Plus whenever they ride together now one of Iwai's hands always comes up to rest against the back of hers. He always presses her palm more firmly against the ridge of his abs or even slides her hand down just a bit so that her fingers can curl around the line of his belt.
A silent invitation to touch and feel.
It always leaves Ren feeling some kind of breathless.
~~~
It keeps escalating from there, because of course it does.
Ren's a wildcard at heart and Iwai is, in his own way, just as unpredictable.
They're alike in a lot of ways despite the age difference and their histories. Or even their current situations.
Both of them can't help but push boundaries just a bit, poke and prod around each other's edges.
The tension between them becomes even more tangible as they both up the stakes bit by bit, becoming bolder and bolder with each other's personal space in turn.
Ren feels like she's playing a game of sorts with Iwai, a hand of cards with some of the highest personal stakes she's yet faced.
And, for once, Ren's not sure if this is a hand she wants to win or lose.
Either way it's sure to be one hell of a game.
~~~
Ren's up on her tiptoes, attempting to grab a box off of one of the higher shelves when a line of heat presses itself against her back.
"Careful now," Iwai murmurs as he shifts just a bit closer, his arms caging her in, his chest pressed firmly against her back, and his hips fitted snugly against the curve of her ass. She can feel the scratch of his jeans against the backs of her thighs, right below the hem of the skirt she'd borrowed from Ann and just above her high socks.
Ren shudders just a bit and resists the urge to get closer. To press back against him in a silent sort of plea.
Iwai grabs the box for her and then backs away. He puts the box on the counter and then practically saunters back towards the front, a rough sort of chuckle echoing in the room behind him.
'Oh,' Ren thinks with a low, shuddering breath, 'game on.'
~~~
Ren slides between Iwai and one of the shelving units, pressing her breasts against his chest as she shimmies through the small space so she can reach the box of pins settled on the other side of him.
There's plenty of space for her to reach the box from a different angle.
Iwai, eyes dark, doesn't bother to shift back, just stares down at her.
One of his hands comes up to pull the sucker from his mouth while the other rises up to tangle in the thick fall of her hair as his head dips just a bit closer to her own.
For a split second Ren's sure he's going to kiss her.
She wants him to kiss her.
Lips parted, Ren's already pressing up onto her toes just a bit in anticipation, when the shop's bell rings and the tension around them shatters.
Iwai steps back and turns to head up front to deal with the customer.
Ren's left behind, stomach clenching, fully flushed, and knees just a bit weak.
~~~
Need you. Iwai's text comes in right after Ren's parted ways with Yusuke.
It's their weekly meetup, one she never misses if possible since the exchange they've worked out is too important to her.
Ren lets Yusuke sketch her in various poses without any complaints and in return he promises to eat whatever meal she brings with her and to not argue about the money she always slips into his bag.
Besides it's about more than just trying to take care of her friend in a sideways kind of way. Yusuke might be a bit of an oddball even by their groups standards, but Ren enjoys their time together a great deal anyways. He's relaxing to be around for Ren. He lets her just be for hours at a time while he loses himself in his sketches, providing an often silent but still welcoming sort of company for her.
For Ren, Yusuke is just ...
Safe.
And feeling safe with someone else isn't something Ren will likely ever take for granted ever again.
So knowing that their weekly private meetups means that Yusuke's getting at least one solid meal and has enough money for something besides convenience store bento is just a bonus in her opinion.
10 minutes. Ren sends back, conscious of the way Morgana's reading her text over her shoulder.
"You're going to the shop again. That means you'll be out late again right?" Morgana asks lowly, more cautious now of drawing too much attention to them with what others would hear only as loud meowing.
"Want me to take you home first?" Ren asks, cutting a look over towards him. She'd told Iwai ten minutes but she's willing to make him wait a bit if Morgana wants her to. He's one of her closest friends and, besides, she owes Morgana on more than one front.
He's kept quiet around the others about her tendency to stay out later than normal on a regular basis or about how she sometimes comes home on the back of a motorcycle. Ren's sure that, by now, Futaba at least probably knows but she's still grateful for his discretion. The inevitable flood of questions when her night time activities finally get out aren't something she's looking forward to.
"It's okay. You go ahead, I'll go stay with Futaba again," Morgana leans forward and headbutts her lightly, one of his many signs of affection that he seems much more comfortable with these days. Especially when it's just the two of them. "Be safe though. Can't have the Phantom Thieves without our Joker."
"Can't have them without our Mona either," Ren reminds him.
Morgana doesn't answer but he does look rather pleased when he hops down off of her shoulder and, with another nod, turns and trots away in the direction of Leblanc and the Sakura household.
Ren just watches him go with a curl of warm affection smoldering in her chest.
~~~
The last thing Ren's expecting to happen when she walks through the door of Untouchable is for Iwai to shove his way up out of his chair and abruptly round the counter to crowd into her space.
Ren lets him herd her, lets him move her body without putting up a fight, more than a bit curious as to where this is going.
"Just hit me if you want me to stop," Iwai tells her apropos of nothing when he has her crowded back against the glass of the shop's door.
And then he swoops down and abruptly kisses her.
For a split second, confusion warring with shock inside of her, Ren stands there frozen.
And then Iwai nips at her bottom lip sharply and Ren absolutely melts.
Her hands come up to press against his shoulders, fingers sliding up over his shirt to press against the gecko on his neck like she's always wanted to.
Iwai groans against her mouth and Ren can't help but open to him, letting him take the kiss deeper.
He licks into her mouth, a hand sliding around her waist and up her back to wrap itself in the length of her braid until he can tug her hair and force her to angle her head just right.
Ren's hands follow his lead even as she leans into the kiss, to the feel of him pressed against her and the faint taste of peach candy on her tongue. She pushes the ever present hat from his head, sending it and the ear protectors clattering to the floor behind him without a care.
She sinks her fingers into surprisingly thick silverish hair, short nails scraping against his scalp in a move that makes him groan against her mouth.
Iwai lets her hair go, hands sliding back down until they can clamp down on her hips. He lifts her just a bit, pressing her back against the cool glass door, and Ren can't help the way her head lolls back and her thighs fall open just a bit wider at the show of strength.
His thigh, thick with a surprising level of muscle, presses up between her own as he pulls her down and closer to him.
"Come on," Iwai practically growls out as he grinds his thigh up beneath her skirt, pressing it right up against the hot ache of her pussy, "wanna make you cum for me."
Ren, hands finally letting his hair go, just takes a moment to claw and push at his jacket until he finally helps her work it off of him one arm at a time. It falls to the floor behind him and is promptly forgotten.
Iwai laughs, a low, rough sound of amusement, as he dips his head back down to nose at the length of her throat. His mouth roams across the sensitive skin there, doling out sharp little nips or brief sucks, before he moves just a bit further down to nose at the top few buttons of her blouse.
Ren just moans, hips bucking as fire races down her spine, pooling lava hot in the pit of her stomach.
"That's it," Iwai murmurs into the side of her neck, wide palmed hands clamping down tightly on her hips as he guides her in a rough, steady rhythm against the length of his thigh. "Good girl, real good girl."
Ren shudders, the heat building quick and steady beneath her skin as she grinds down against his thigh. The scratch of jeans against the tender insides of her thighs, the feel of his hands clamped down on her hips hard enough to leave bruises, the way he's biting lightly at the arch of her throat.
All of it just makes her head spin, makes the fire in her stomach grow hotter, spread faster, like an Agi spell lit directly beneath her skin.
"Just like that," Iwai groans into the shell of her ear, hands pulling and pushing her faster even as he pushes even closer to her, the line of his cock pressing thick and heavy against her hip through his jeans. "Come on now, you're doing so good for me, being so good, now give me what I want."
Ren wants to. She really does. She wants to cum, wants to be good for him. She can feel it building higher and higher beneath her skin, can feel the coil tightening bit by bit in her stomach.
It's the chiming of Iwai's rarely used cell phone that punches directly through the hot haze that's fallen around them, reality shattering the little world they'd built up.
"Fuck," Iwai groans again, hips bucking forwards and thigh shifting upwards to press up against her again, like he can't help himself. "Fuck, we gotta stop."
Ren whines, high and unhappy in the back of her throat, hips shifting and hands clenching in the thick of his hair as she starts to slowly come down from the edge he'd been steadily driving her towards.
Which is the last thing she wants.
"I know," Iwai murmurs, mouth moving against her skin and teeth scraping down the length of her throat again even as his hands force her hips back and away from his. "Fuck, I know, come on kitten, help me stop."
It's hard to pull back. Hard to un-clench her hands from Iwai's hair and accept the distance between them again now that she's had a taste of what she's been aching for. But, even with his hands rubbing less than soothing circles on her sides, Ren manages after a few more moments of almost clinging.
For a long heated moment they both just stand there, panting and staring at each other.
"Much as I wanna bend you over the counter and fuck you raw right here and now we got other shit to talk about," Iwai finally says, voice rough and hair messy, a flush riding the line of his cheeks, and his lips kiss swollen. "Wouldn't stop if it wasn't important but I got an outside job I need you to do for me, kitten."
Ren, body humming, heart still pounding, and face feeling sensitive from his stubble, slants a look up at him, a brow arched high in question as she tries to get her breathing back under control.
It's difficult but the undeniable urgency in his voice and expression, the slight return of tension she can read in the line of his shoulders, helps her come down just that much faster.
His jobs outside the shop are always interesting and, all things considered, undeniably important. So even if she'd much rather go back to what they were doing just a few minutes ago she knows he's right.
Plus, the idea of Iwai fucking her raw may or may not be what she's had hidden in the back of her mind for months now anyways.
It's not like it won't keep for a while longer.
"Tsuda's fucked up bad," Iwai says once it seems like they can both breath evenly again, a hand coming up to trail a fingertip down the side of her face. "He's on the other side of the deal with Hong Kong we've been hearing about."
Both brows arching high, Ren listens intently as Iwai lays out what he's found out and all of the ways Tsuda has managed to misstep.
"Might not be a part of the Clan these days," Iwai finally says once he's run through all the new information he's gathered, "but there's a code that has to be followed. Gonna meet up with him somewhere neutral, give him one last chance before I take this to the Clan. That's where you come in."
Iwai reaches his free hand into his pants pocket and pulls out a flash drive and a slightly crumpled piece of paper.
"Don't use a computer much," he repeats for the millionth time, "but sometimes it's useful. Something happens and I don't come back, you take this drive to this address. Tell them I sent you. That should buy you safe passage in and what's on the drive will buy you a clear out."
Iwai brings his hand up then and tucks the drive and the paper into her shirt through the top few buttons of her blouse that he'd worked free earlier. His fingers just skim her chest and leave goosebumps in their wake as he presses the two items down and into the cup of her bra.
Then he pulls his hand away and redoes her button with surprising care.
"Wouldn't have you do this at all but, well, Tsuda knows about you," Iwai murmurs softly. "Something happens to me and they'll be the only ones who'll step in to make sure he leaves you alone."
For a moment they just stand there staring at each other.
Iwai looks at her like he's trying to memorize her, like this is going to be the last time he gets to see her and he wants to make sure he doesn't forget a single detail.
It might have been flattering, except in that moment Ren realizes why, exactly, after weeks and months of give and take and playing a teasing sort of game with each other, he'd finally broken and kissed her.
It was a goodbye of sorts, one of those 'just in case' kind of things.
Iwai must honestly think there's at least a semi-decent chance he might not come back from this meeting.
That Tsuda is, one way or another, going to get him killed.
And Ren just ...
"I'm going with you," Ren finally says and it's less of a request and more of a statement of fact. She's been with him on and off through this entire thing after all. She knows the names if not all the faces, knows the details.
Plus she's far from helpless so it actually makes perfect sense to Ren.
Besides, there's the fact that she'll be damned if she lets Iwai waltz alone into what could very well be a trap of some sort.
Especially not after he'd kissed her like that.
Even if he doesn't agree to her going she'll just follow along behind him because he is not going alone. There's absolutely nothing that's going to change her mind on the subject.
Ren's lost enough in her life already through bullshit and other people's arrogance.
She's not going to lose this, him, too.
"Ren ..." Iwai sighs, the use of her first name more than a bit startling even after what they'd just been doing. It just goes to show her how serious he is.
"Munehisa," Ren presses back forcefully, hands resting against his chest and sliding slowly down as she holds direct eye contact with him, "I'm going."
Maybe it's the steel in her voice or the use of his first name or something else running through his mind unbeknownst to her but after a long moment of silence Iwai finally seems to soften.
"I do trust you to have my back," Iwai eventually agrees, that wry grin of his curling up the corner of his mouth as he finally submits to the idea. "Plus you're technically a civilian and a woman. He won't try to start any shit with you there to act as a witness. Maybe I can finally talk him down before he forces me to take this to the next level."
"Let's go then," Ren says, bringing a hand up and dangling the keys she'd slipped out of his pocket up between them.
"Sneaky," Iwai huffs lights before he reaches up and takes his keys back.
But then he leans forwards and presses another hard, demanding kiss against her lips.
"I'm gonna do my best to keep you safe," Iwai tells her after he pulls back, face set in deep, serious lines. "You just gotta stay smart too. Keep quiet and stay behind me. You're just gonna be there to witness."
"Can take care of myself," Ren reminds him softly as she straightens out her glasses despite the fact that she doesn't actually need them to see.
"Already told you," Iwai pushes back, "I take care of what's mine. Besides, I like the way you say my name. Got plans to hear you scream it sometime. Can't do that if either of us are dead."
He bends down, picks his hat, ear protectors, and jacket up off of the floor. He tugs the hat back on, but the jacket he shakes out with a quick sharp movement before he swings it around to rest on her shoulders in a now familiar gesture.
"Looks better on you anyways," Iwai sighs just a bit, tossing the ear protectors onto the counter-top beside him for once. "Come on kitten, let's get this shit over with."
~~~
The underpass Iwai takes them to is quiet and out of the way, the walls covered with graffiti and the ground with bits of glass a litter. It's obviously an out-of-sight, out-of-mind sort of place.
Perfect for clandestine meetings and shady deals.
Ren gives Iwai back his jacket for appearances sake only, and then they both settle in to wait.
They're there for almost ten minute before Tsuda finally makes his appearance.
Ren, tucked into the slight shadows near the wall, keeps a careful eye on him as Iwai lays out all of his evidence and his ultimatum.
"So," Tsuda almost sighs, suit clad shoulders slumping just a bit in defeat, "you know everything?"
Ren shifts her weight, moves just a bit closer to Iwai's back. She's seen enough to know that, sometimes, the ones who look defeated are the most dangerous of all. She's done her fair share of negotiations and hostage situations in the Metaverse or in Palaces to know that well enough.
Unfortunately her movement automatically draws Tsuda's attention in her direction.
"Wait," Tsuda squints suddenly, "that's the little bitch from your shop isn't it? The one you keep tucked away in the back like we all don't know she's there? I should've fucking known she was working for you."
"Watch your fucking mouth," Iwai spits, shoulders squaring aggressively as he suddenly tenses. "She's acting as my witness. Besides that you don't need to worry about her. I'll keep my mouth shut about your failed deal and you stay away from me and mine. And that absolutely includes her. Sound fair?"
"God," Tsuda scoffs, "haven't been in retirement more than a few years and you're still sticking to the code like an old man. Unbelievable."
"Some rules ain't meant to be broken," Iwai answers. "You used to agree with that."
"Guess it's nice to see you haven't gone completely soft in your absence," Tsuda half laughs. "You're still as sharp as always, Mune. Probably wouldn't have gotten fucked over by those bastards from Hong Kong if you hadn't decided to leave. Instead now all I've got are idiots like Masa to work with."
Tsuda lets out another humorless laugh but this time when he talks his words are directed towards Ren.
"You're a pretty little thing," Tsuda muses. "Can see why Mune keeps you so close. He always was a jealous, protective bastard. Sorry to get someone like you tangled up in our bullshit feud. Hope all this yakuza bullshit wasn't too much for you."
"I did it all for Iwai," Ren answers honestly with a small shrug, eyes carefully still locked on Tsuda.
In front of her Ren feels the way Iwai sucks in a short, shallow breath.
"Loyal too huh?" Tsuda huffs out another laugh, this one slightly more genuine.
"Look," Iwai speaks up before anyone can say anything else, "this whole thing's been a goddamn pain in the ass for all of us. But it's over. You're finished."
"I don't think you understand Mune," Tsuda's face hardens then.
The gun he pulls from inside of his suit jacket almost isn't a surprise.
Ren moves without thinking, body acting only on her now finely honed instincts.
She slips around Iwai's shoulder in one fluid move, swinging around to plant herself firmly between him and Tsuda's gun.
She's honestly not sure which of the two men the move surprises.
Tsuda, whose gun wavers for a moment before he manages to hold it steady again.
Or Iwai himself who curses, low and vicious, and attempts to pull her behind him again.
"Just a witness huh?" Tsuda scoffs, his gun shifting to point more firmly at Ren in a move that makes Iwai to practically snarl but go still behind her. "Seems like she's a bit more attached than that. You really found the whole package didn't you, Mune? Guess you can't beat that."
"The hell're you doin'?" Iwai barks the question out from behind her, one arm coming up to wrap around her waist.
"I'm done playing nice with you," Tsuda sneers. "You're gonna make me those guns one way or another, Iwai. And if you don't it won't just be you and the shop I come after. It'll be your little sweet piece there too."
"Fucking Christ, Tsuda, you're supposed to be better than this kind of shit," Iwai's rage is practically dripping from every word.
"Yeah well, unlike you, I don't live off a bunch of bullshit pride and honor," Tsuda replies. "Codes of honor are dying and I've got real money to make and real things to accomplish."
"Bastard," Iwai growls.
Ren just stands firm, eyes locked on Tsuda and ready to move at a moment's notice.
"Guns, Iwai," Tsuda reminds him even as he backs away, the gun still raised in their direction. "And fast. Or else."
And then he's gone, ducking around the corner and out of sight.
"What the fuck was that?!" Iwai erupts a moment later. The arm around her waist tightening as he shifts, swinging her around and pressing her up against the wall beside them, crowding into her space until he's looming over her. But even in his obvious anger she doesn't hit the wall hard at all. "What the fuck do you think you were doing?"
Ren doesn't answer, just stares up at him silent and unrepentant.
"Told you not to do anything stupid," Iwai hisses, tone low and just a bit ragged, his eyes just a bit wild. "It's bad enough I gotta worry about you when you're out Phantom Thieving or whatever the fuck you call it. No way in hell do I want you stepping between my dumbass and guns, no matter how much of a badass vigilante you are."
Ren's eyes go abruptly wide.
"You know?" Ren doesn't bother to deny it, too caught up with the idea that Iwai knows the truth. That this is one less thing she'll have to be careful about around him.
"I'm a dumbass, not stupid," Iwai huffs before he blows out a harsh breath and then slumps just a bit. He reaches up and pulls his hat off with one hand and then leans forward until their foreheads are pressed together.
"The medal you sold me," Iwai starts softly. "All the model guns and other weapons, the armor and charms you buy. All the other odd shit you bring in to sell. Not sure how, exactly, you're using my stuff since it's not real, but I'm smart enough to put two and two together."
Iwai sighs, shoulders jerking in what looks like amusement.
Ren just stares up at him, heart pounding like a drum in her chest and something almost soft welling up inside of her.
"Can't stop you from doing that kind of stuff. Wouldn't even if I could." Iwai admits wryly. "It's your choice, your fight. Don't got a right to try and take that away from you. All I can do is help when and wherever you need me to. Even if it's just ordering in better models and giving you custom mods. But that doesn't mean I want you taking risks like you just did for me."
Iwai takes in a short, shuddering breath.
"Watching Tsuda point that gun at you," Iwai bares his teeth in a slight snarl. "Wanted to rip his fucking head off. Haven't wanted to do that kind of violence in … a while now."
Staring up at him and finally realizing just how deeply her instinctive attempt to protect him has shaken Iwai, Ren does the only thing she can think of at the moment.
She presses up onto her tip toes and kisses him.
It's softer than the kiss in the shop. Less panting, desperate heat and more a slow, syrupy kind of sweetness.
But it's no less addicting.
Iwai wastes no time in taking it deeper, tongue sliding against her own as he presses her further back against the wall.
The warm arm around her waist tightens even as he drops his hat and brings his free hand around to gather both of her wrists together.
Then he lifts them up and pins them to the wall above her head.
Ren tugs just a bit against his hold, testing his grip just a bit. He holds firm, tight enough that she can feel it but not tight enough to do any harm.
Ren can't help the way she shudders against him, just a bit overwhelmed by the idea of him holding her into place. Of being safe but helpless to do anything but just take whatever he gives her.
"Look at you," Iwai murmurs when he finally breaks the kiss, the hand around her wrists flexing just a bit. "You like that don't you, kitten? Like it when I make you stay. Too bad you didn't stay where I put you last time."
"Please," Ren whines, a breathy almost whimper.
She doesn't regret stepping in front of him and they both know she'll do it again if necessary but this is ...
"Maybe I should turn that pretty little ass of yours cherry red too," Iwai tells her even as the arm around her waist shifts, his hand sliding down to firmly cup her ass in one wide palm. He squeezes. "Make sure that next time you'll listen when I tell you to be safe. Get you all pinked up like a peach so every time you sit in that desk of yours you'll think about me, think about how you need to be good."
Ren just rocks against him, pressing her hips further against the rapidly hardening line of his cock and then her ass back into the wide palm of his hand in turn.
Being hit has never been something she'd thought she'd like, something that'd make her wet just thinking about, but Ren knows that this is different. The idea of Iwai spanking her, bringing that wide, calloused palm coming down on the curve of her ass …
It would hurt but only in the best of ways.
And what's more is the fact that she'd let him do it.
"Or maybe I should fuck you right here instead," his hand slides down the line of her thigh and then back up again until it's beneath her skirt, fingertips pressing firmly against the absolutely soaked panel of her panties. "Spread you open and go balls deep right out here in the open where anyone walking by can see you all blissed out and messy for me. Get you all wet and wound up and then cum right in that pretty little cunt and leave you wantin'. Make you ride home all creamed up and frustrated. That what I should do? Think that'd be a good punishment?"
Arms held into place above her head, body trembling and rational thought slipping further and further away, all Ren can think to do is turn her head and set her teeth against the line of his jaw.
Iwai hisses out a breath that turns into a low, rough laugh about halfway through.
"Keep it up," he tells her, leaning down to kiss her again, deep and claiming, before he pulls back once more. "Maybe I'll do all of it if you can't be good. Or maybe I'll just take you back to that cafe instead. Send you to bed all by yourself."
The fingertips still pressed against her panties shift then, toying with the elastic of her sensible boy-shorts for a moment before pressing them aside.
They both hiss when he touches her skin to skin for the first time.
"Bet you'd go up to that lonely little attic room of yours and put those quick little hands of yours to work," Iwai leans down enough to murmur in her ear, teeth nipping at her lobe as the tip of one finger sinks into her just a bit. "Bet you'd bury those fingers in your hungry little cunt, make yourself cum right there thinking about me."
Ren shudders, hips bucking forwards sharply against his hand.
His finger sinks in just a bit deeper, curling to brush against that spot deep inside of her that makes Ren's toes curl as lightning licks down her spine.
"Bet you've done that before haven't you?" Iwai asks as he pumps into her, finger moving in a slow but deep rhythm, hitting that spot with each outward pull. "Fucked yourself on those pretty little fingers thinking about how much you wish it was me. Huh? You done that, kitten?"
Ren wines, hips working as best they can, desperate for more of what he's giving her. Desperate to have him deeper, harder.
And then, abruptly, cruelly, he stops.
For the second time tonight he stops, leaving her hanging on the edge.
"Gonna answer me?" Iwai practically taunts, hand pulling back until he's just touching her. "You gonna tell me if you've been cumming for me even when I ain't there?"
"Yes," Ren pants, seeing no sense in lying or pretending like she hasn't spent more than one night with her hand buried between her thighs and his face in her mind. "Yes, Munehisa. Yes."
"Thought so," Iwai hums, obviously pleased as he abruptly sinks two fingers knuckle deep inside of her. "Should make you do it again tonight. Get you so hot and wet you can't help it. But it won't be as good as it used to be will it? Cause all you're gonna be able to think about is how you could've had my cock instead if you'd just been a good girl."
Iwai presses the pads of his fingers against that spot inside of her and rubs, his thumb pressing down abruptly on her clit with almost punishing force.
And Ren abruptly shatters.
Pleasure, white hot and molten, blazes down her spine, sparking off of every nerve.
Her cry, loud and unrestrained, gets captured by Iwai's mouth as his fingers keep moving, working her through her orgasm, driving the pleasure higher and sharper.
"That's it," Iwai groans when he breaks away, moving to press his mouth against the line of her throat and finally letting her hands go. "Goddamn, you feel so good."
Ren shudders, mind fuzzy, as she finally starts to come down, body tingling with aftershocks. Her arms come down, hands burying themselves in his hair again as she pants.
She feels the wet trail of his fingers against her inner thigh as he pulls out of her, the sudden emptiness making her moan just a bit in the back of her throat.
She misses it already, the feeling of having something inside of her.
"Gonna give you something better if you let me," Iwai murmurs, nuzzling just a bit at the side of her jaw as his hips shift forward just a bit.
Ren can feel the line of his cock against her hip again just like back at the shop and it's like having a fresh line of fire poured into her veins.
She wants it.
Ren snakes one hand down between them and cups him in her palm in a move that makes Iwai hiss, low and sharp, into her ear.
She rubs him, fingers exploring the thick line of his cock as best she can with his jeans in the way. But when her fingers find his zipper and go to tug it down Iwai stops her.
"Not yet," Iwai tells her even as he presses her palm more firmly against him. "Not here."
"You said …" Ren starts to protest.
"Oh I'll fuck you in a back alley sometime if you want me to," Iwai interrupts. "But I wanna make you scream this time. That means going somewhere the cops ain't gonna get called on us."
Feeling more than a bit impatient, Ren abruptly tightens her grip on the line of Iwai's cock as she stares up at him, eyes narrowed.
"Hurry up," Ren grits out.
For a long moment Iwai just stares down at her and then he grins.
~~~
Iwai takes the roads far faster than he normally does, sending his jacket billowing out behind Ren as they weave through the traffic.
It's not too long before they're practically screeching to a halt in the alley beside Untouchable.
Iwai herds her up the rickety staircase beside the shop and barely pauses long enough to get the door unlocked and open before he's pulling her inside and kicking it shut behind them.
They both kick their shoes off in a haphazard pile just inside the door and then he's on her in the next second. His hands wrap themselves around her waist as he lifts her up and presses her against the wall, head coming down so he can steal another toe curling kiss from her.
Dazed, her hands still tangled in his hair, Ren wraps her legs around his waist and kisses him back with all the ferocity and want she can muster. The weeks and months of frustration that he's only made worse tonight with his words and wicked hands.
They're both panting when he pulls away, lips moist and eyes bright with lust.
"Bedroom?" Ren asks before he can say anything else, something just a bit taunting, just a bit challenging in her voice. "Or are you finally gonna fuck me right here?"
"Mouthy," Iwai chides just a bit as he uses the hands on her hips to press her down against him, hips bucking upwards to rub the line of his cock against the thin lace of her panties.
He's moving in the next moment, not bothering to turn on any lights as he moves down the short hall and takes an abrupt left into an open doorway.
The low glow of a single lamp in the corner shows her that it's obviously his bedroom.
Ren doesn't have time to focus on anything else though.
Iwai steps up to the side of the bed and reaches back to unhook her ankles from around his waist. When he sets her on her feet he wastes no time in stripping his jacket off of her and throwing it to the side, the hat he'd just barely remembered to grab before they left that underpass flying to join it in the corner with a sharp jerk of his wrist.
Ren tosses her glasses in the direction of his nightstand, eager to be ride of the useless things for once. Her shirt follows quickly after that and she reaches back to undo the hook on her skirt and then her bra herself. She's left in only her panties and her high socks in front of Iwai who's still fully dressed and staring down at her like he could eat her.
Ren honestly hopes that he will.
In the meantime though her hands reach out, fingers quick to snake beneath the hem of his shirt and tug, eager to get it off of him at last.
He helps her, tugging it up and over his head and then tossing it to the side.
Ren can't help the way she bites down on her lower lip as a surge of fresh heat rushes through her at the sight of his tattoos. The brilliant gold and rich reds of the koi fish that circles his heart, the breathtaking lines of the blue waters.
She steps forward, mouth finding his skin as she runs her tongue across the gorgeous ink in a move that has his hands coming up to clench around her braid again, fingers already working to let her hair loose from it's ties.
Ren explores him just a bit. Hands running across his stomach, nails scratching at the faint line of his abs as she bites down just a bit meanly on his nipple and then soothes it with her tongue.
Iwai, hand buried in the now loose fall of her hair, finally tugs her away as she goes to move further down.
He kisses her again, deep and hard, and then tugs her back firmly. Her knees hit the side of the bed but Ren doesn't bother to try and catch herself.
Instead Ren lets herself fall. Lets herself go sprawling across the thick black and gold of his comforter and the grey silk of his messy sheets. She catches herself on her elbows, thighs splayed wide in an open sort of invitation.
Iwai stares down at her as he works his belt free from his pants and then drops it on the floor. He kicks his pants off too before he follows her down. His hands slide up and then down the lines of her legs and taking her high socks with them as they go, tossing them somewhere into the depths of his room.
Ren's mind goes a bit hazy again when Iwai finally lowers himself onto the bed, resting on his knees between her splayed legs, and then bends down to kiss her.
Instead her mind focuses on the feel of his mouth on hers again, on the heat of his body hovering over her own, and the hand that is slowly trailing its way up her thigh again.
She moves with him when he works her panties down and off of her and then her entire world narrows down to the palm he fits over her wet and needy pussy.
"Look at you," Iwai groans as he stares down at her, eyes riveted on where his hands are working over her slick pussy. "All pretty and pink and slick. Just like that mouth of yours. Knew you would be."
Iwai wastes no time in thrusting two fingers deep inside of her again. Still hot and wet from earlier Ren takes him in easily.
"Small," Iwai murmurs as he pumps his fingers as deep as he can go, sinking in until the last knuckle.
Ren just splays her thighs open just a bit further in answer, eager for more of that sensation, more of him inside of her just like he'd promised earlier.
"You're gonna squeeze my cock real tight ain't you kitten?" He says as he strokes her again, his fingers working inside of her, caressing her inner walls and tapping at that spot inside of her as he stretches her just a bit further by squeezing another finger inside. It burns just a bit and Ren feels fuller than she ever has before in the past but it feels so good. "Look at that hungry little pussy. Already tryin' to pull me right in. Gonna wreck your little cunt."
Iwai pulls his hand away then but this time Ren doesn't have a chance to protest because he's on her in the next instant. He pushes her thighs even farther apart and moves until he hovers over her in full, rubbing the jut of his cock against her. Ren gasps and shivers just a bit in response, her hands clutching at his biceps, trying to pull him closer to her.
He moves against her again and Ren feels him there again, his cock pressing up against her just shy of where she really wants him. Needs him.
"Gonna get my mouth on you later," Iwai promises her even as he reaches down between them to wrap a hand around the base of his cock. "Put my tongue in that pretty pink cunt, see if you taste as good as you look. Suck on those little nipples till they're red. Gonna fuck that sweet mouth of yours too."
Ren feels him press a bit closer, feels the head of his cock press further in, and can't help the way she stiffens just a bit.
"Relax," Iwai tells her even as he abruptly stops moving. "Remember how good I made you feel earlier? This is gonna be better. And you're gonna look so pretty on my dick. Gonna look perfect taking my cock like you took my fingers. Just gotta let me show you."
Ren sucks in a shuddering breath, hands sliding up to grip his shoulders, and then nods.
"Good girl," Iwai praises as he pushes forwards just a bit more. "You're so good for me. Been wanting to bend you over and fuck that pretty little cunt since day one. Wanted to push that little skirt up and make you cry as soon as I saw you. Wanted to make you beg for it right there against the counter."
Ren shudders at the mental image because it's one of her personal favorites to think about.
"Wanted you too," Ren confesses breathlessly, a hand trailing up to press against the side of his neck. "Wanted to bite your gecko."
"Fuck," Iwai groans, hips abruptly jolting forwards and burying his cock deep inside of her.
Iwai stills, chest heaving, as if he's trying to give her a chance to adjust but after a few seconds Ren shifts underneath him, her hips seeking his movement, and his control seems to abruptly vanish.
Iwai growls low in his throat and grinds down against her in a hard, tight circle before he pulls back and starts to thrust. Ren, hands moving to claw at his shoulders, just wraps her legs around his waist, pulling him deeper as his body slams against hers in response.
He rides her hard, hips pumping lightning fast as he works his way deeper inside of her with every thrust. Ren's muscles clench around him inside and out, pussy clamping down on his cock and legs tightening around his waist as her body tenses against the waves of pleasure he's sending through her every nerve.
Iwai doesn't slow, just reaches down between them and finds her clit with deft fingers. He flicks it sharply and then works it with his fingertips until she is shuddering around and beneath him. The pleasure builds up faster and sharper this time, almost violent as it batters her senses.
"Come on Ren," Iwai groans against her temple. "Come on, be a good girl now. Give it to me."
Head thrashing against the sheets, Ren claws at Iwai's shoulders as he speeds up, his movements determined and hungry as her body begins to convulse.
Ren moans out his name when a fresh wave of pleasure ripples through her, and he answers her with a sharp curse and a snarl that sounds almost feral. He slows for an instant, pulling out long enough to flip her over onto her knees, he's back above her, chest pressed against her back before she even has a chance to miss the feel of him inside of her.
Kneeling behind her, Iwai grips her hips tight as he rubs his cock against her.
"Mine." He growls and thrusts back inside of her with a single well-aimed move.
Ren cries out as her hips helplessly push back against him, his cock so deep inside of her all she can do is squirm and take it.
Iwai ruts into her with a series of hard, ruthless thrusts that tear gasps of almost pained pleasure from her lips. She twists beneath him but his hands are there then, slapping down and pinning her wrists beside her, keeping her where he wants her while he rides her hard.
Ren's knees slide out from underneath her, but Iwai follows her down, covering her completely, not even missing a stroke as he forces her legs further apart.
She's close, so close, pleasure eating at her senses and lighting up her nerves.
Ren can't help but lift her hips again as best she can, silently begging him to help her. He takes the hint and, releasing one of her hands, reaches down and finds her clit with a demanding finger. Heat gathers again in that burning electric ball, deep within her womb. Her orgasm builds, closer to exploding with each stroke he makes.
"Mine." He snarls at her again, the depth and harshness of his thrust demanding an answer. "Say it."
"Mune, yours!" Ren practically sobs the words out as lights burst behind her eyelids and her world whites out around the edge, pussy clamping down around him as her orgasm rips through her.
"Fuck," Iwai hisses as he thrusts into her hard and deep for a half dozen times more before he cums too, mouth clamping down on the back of her neck in a move that just makes Ren whine weakly.
They're both panting when Iwai finally moves off of her, collapsing onto the bed beside her before reaching out to wrap an arm around her waist and pull her over to rest on top of him.
"Perfect," Iwai breathes out and the kiss he presses against her forehead is sweet.
Ren smiles, wider and happier than she can remember being in ages.
But then, her not so inner Joker rearing her head just a bit, Ren turns and bites down meanly on his nipple once again.
"Vicious," Iwai hisses, the hand buried in her hair tugging firmly. "Give me a few before you start being bad again."
"Old man," Ren teases just a bit.
"Oh, I'll show you old," Iwai huffs even as he rolls the both of them over once again. "Just remember, you asked for it."
Pressed down into the mattress by his weight Ren just looks up at him and grins.
~~~
Later, sprawled out across the length of Iwai's body, head pillowed on his chest and thighs still wet with the evidence of what they've been doing, Ren can't help but take a moment and think about things.
Ren isn't sure what, exactly, the future holds for her.
Not with the things she sees in her dreams, not with Akechi sniffing around the Phantom Thieves, not with the issue with Tsuda still not completely resolved or with the way she's set to infiltrate Okumura's Palace soon.
She honestly isn't sure about much of anything these days.
But a part of her thinks that, out of everything and everyone, she feels more than a bit sure about this.
About Iwai, about Munehisa, and what they've stumbled upon together.
About the things he makes her feel.
So, maybe the only thing Ren really needs to do now is play the game through till the end and hope that the prize includes a future in this little slice of comfort and warmth she's managed to carve out.
And if it doesn't?
Well, she's not a wildcard and Phantom Thief for nothing.
Joker is her code name for a reason.
Beating the odds and stealing the unstealable is practically her calling these days.
A future with this man can't be all that different from a heart.
Either way Ren is more than willing to do what needs to be done to stack the deck in her favor.
Notes: