Dear My Love, Haven't You Wanted To Be With Me?

“Bi-Han! Bi-Han look at this!”

Kuai ran over to Bi-Han as best he could, trying his hardest to not trip. He was 5 years old, and his so called soulmate tattoo had just come through. He wasn’t really sure what that meant, just that this name was someone who’d be really special to him.

Bi-Han turned in the hallway to look at him with an eyebrow raised and Kuai triumphantly waved his wrist at him.

“Look! I have a name on my wrist now,” he said proudly, feeling triumphant when his elder brother smiled at him and reached down to ruffle his hair.

“That’s great, Dìdì,” Bi-Han replied, glancing around before getting to Kuai’s level. “What’s her name?”

“Han. Zo. Ha. Sa. Shi?” Kuai tried to read out, at least, that’s how the name was spelt. Kuai had never come across a name like it.

“What did you say?” A voice across the corridor snarled. Kuai and Bi-Han turned their heads in unison to see one of the Elders, Master Fang, standing and glaring at Kuai with murder in his eyes. He stormed over to them, roughly grabbing Kuai’s wrist to read it for himself. “Hasashi. I knew you’d be a trouble maker.”

Kuai felt himself still, he had no idea why Master Fang hated him so much, but clearly this was now yet another reason on his list. He wanted to pull away, only for Master Fang to roughly yank his arm and begin dragging him off.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Bi-Han called, rushing to keep up. “Where are you taking him?”

Master Fang didn’t answer just continued to tug at Kuai’s arm and force him through the corridors. They were eventually in the throne room. Where the Grandmaster was sat having a discussion with Master Hydro and Kuai Liang’s Grandfather. All three men turned to watch as Master Fang threw Kuai to the ground at the Grandmaster’s feet.

“What has he done this time, Master Fang?” The Grandmaster said in a bored tone. Probably fed up of Master Fang bringing Kuai before him for every perceived slight. But I didn’t do anything!

“Look at his wrist.”

The simple request was met with the Grandmaster raising an eyebrow. He did get off the throne however, Grandfather and Master Hydro joining him. He took Kuai’s hand and flipped to see his wrist. The Grandmaster took a deep breath, as his Grandfather grimaced and Master Hydro rubbed his mouth with his hand.

“That’s not good,” he heard Master Hydro whisper under his breath.

“I say we be rid of the child already, he’s already been far more trouble than he’s worth,” Master Fang suggested flippantly, waving his hand like it was no big deal. Kuai watched as his Grandfather’s head snapped over to him.

“I beg your pardon?” Grandfather snarled, mist escaping from his mouth. Despite his fear, Kuai wanted nothing more than for his Grandfather to punch Master Fang’s stupid mean face!

“Calm yourselves, both of you,” the Grandmaster ordered, and both men immediately backed down. “Regardless of your opinion Master Fang, Kuai Liang is still of the Sub Zero bloodline, and he is far too invaluable to get rid of.”

Kuai resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at Master Fang, the last time he’d done that he got punished real bad. The backs of his hands stung just thinking about it.

“Kuai Liang,” Grandfather started, and Kuai turned his attention squarely on his caretaker. “Do you understand why this name concerns us?”

“No, Master Sub Zero,” he said softly. He had thought it was just Master Fang being a butt again, but with everyone else’s reaction he was starting to second guess himself. Maybe this time Master Fang actually had a good reason to be nasty to him.

“Well, you know how we are the Sub Zero bloodline, that has belonged to the Lin Kuei for centuries?” He asked, and Kuai nodded his head. “The Hasashi blood line is similar, but for the Shirai Ryu. Do you understand what that means?”

“The Shirai Ryu are our enemy,” Kuai parroted from what he’d been told for as long as he remembered. It was weird, no one had ever given a reason for the Shirai Ryu being the bad guys, but the last time he’d asked he’d been told off for being difficult. He frowned though, as it really sunk in what his Grandfather was getting at. “My soulmate is my enemy?”

“I’m afraid so, little one,” his Grandfather’s sorrowful tone hurt. The name on his wrist was his enemy. How was he supposed to spend his life with an enemy? “Kuai Liang, this isn’t your fault, okay? It is just unfortunate that this is the soulmate you have been given.”

“Yes well,” Master Fang interrupted while crossing his arms. He was staring down at Kuai with such hatred. If this wasn’t his fault, then why was he still enduring the Elder’s hate? “What exactly are we meant to do about this little traitor?”

Before Grandfather could snap back at him, the Grandmaster held up a hand and sagely said “isolation.”

“Isolation?” Master Hydro asked, his face scrunching up. “What happened to him being invaluable?”

“We still train him,” the Grandmaster claimed, his eyes never leaving Kuai. “But he is kept away from the outside world and majority of people, only elders and family can interact with him.” Kuai didn’t like the sound of that. He didn’t exactly get along with most of the other students anyway, but not being able to be around them at all just sounded lonely. “He will be as he always was meant to be, a backup should the true heir to the Sub Zero title ever fall. He’s just a spare, this way we ensure he is safe should we need to utilise him.”

“But-“ Master Fang was cut off by the Grandmaster finally tearing his gaze From Kuai to him.

“I have made my decision, Master Fang.” The Grandmaster turned away to go and sit back down. “Now, if you have nothing else to bring to my attention, I suggest you take the child and get preparations underway to keep him secluded.”

Master Fang looked like he wanted to argue, but a cough from Grandfather made him reconsider, as he finally bowed to the Grandmaster. Kuai followed suit, as did Bi-Han. Kuai had almost forgotten his elder brother was here, he’d been eerily quiet since they’d come into the room. I hope he’s not mad at me for this too! He was used to Master Fang’s hate, and to an extent the Grandmaster’s, but he didn’t know what he’d do if Bi-Han hated him too.

Not really wanting to outstay his welcome, Kuai turned around to leave the throne room, feeling Bi-Han gently grab his arm and walk him out. He could hear Master Fang following after them. They didn’t stop walking, but allowed Master Fang to usher them towards their room.

Master Fang stared down at Kuai, his mouth curled up in disgust.

“You truly are one lucky little bastard, aren’t you?” Master Fang lowly growled. Kuai had no idea what a bastard was, but it seemed to be Master Fang’s favourite word for him. Kuai gripped his elder brother a little tighter. “Your Grandfather isn’t going to be around forever.”

And with that he was storming off.

Kuai turned to Bi-Han, he could see the anger in his brothers eyes, but also knew he’d never say anything to any of the elders. He was much too interested in keeping his high standing to do so.

“Bi-Han? Did I do something wrong?” He asked, and Bi-Han’s anger immediately dispersed.

He looked down at Kuai, sorrowful expression on his face. “No Dìdì, you didn’t.” Bi-Han bent down again, getting to his level again. “But you need to understand that while this seems scary and like a punishment, it’s for your own good.” Bi-Han put his hand on top of Kuai’s head. “That person on your wrist, if he’s a Shirai Ryu then he’s a bad person. If he ever get’s his hands on you, he’s probably going to hurt you. We need to keep you safe from him. Do you understand?”

“I do,” Kuai said sadly, closing his eyes and trying not to cry.

“Don’t cry, Dìdì.” Bi-Han stood back up and took Kuai’s hand. It was nice, but what Kuai really wanted was a hug. His big brother hadn’t hug him since he was 3 and he missed it so much. “C’mon, why don’t we go and I can make some ice sculptures to cheer you up.”

“Can you make a big bear?” Kuai sniffed and Bi-Han smiled down at him.

“Anything you want.”

He followed his brother into their room, allowing his brother to try and distract him from his true thoughts.

What did I do to deserve a soulmate who hates me?

It was amazing how things had changed in the many years since then.

The Lin Kuei as it used to be was no more, and now Kuai Liang was it’s Grandmaster. Bi-Han, his Grandfather, Grandmaster Oniro, Master Hydro and Master Fang were long gone, as well as the other Lin Kuei like Tomas, Cyrax and Sektor. He was no longer condemned to isolation, he could leave the temple for as long as he liked and wherever he liked. He had friends, Johnny, Sonya, Jax and Kenshi, who listened to his problems and he could rely on for any help or support he needed.

And most importantly, he’d finally met Hanzo Hasashi.

It was true, that at first they had been enemies, but that was due to lies and manipulation. Kuai had put aside his own hurt over his brother’s death to offer an olive branch to Hanzo. What were once enemies were now allies, dare he even say friends.

Master Fang would be rolling in his grave, but that was okay because Kuai would be dancing on it anyway.

The awkward thing was, Kuai never told Hanzo about his tattoo. In fairness, Hanzo never mentioned his either. It made Kuai wonder if his name was even on Hanzo’s wrist, or if Harumi would be the only one to ever be in Hanzo’s heart. He didn’t have the courage to ask either. If it truly was still her name on his wrist, Kuai didn’t have the heart to take that away from him. If his name was on Hanzo’s wrist? Well… he had absolutely no idea what to do about that.

Turns out, keeping someone secluded for so many years does not lead to healthy socialisation habits.

Who knew?

Except probably every psychiatrist ever.

He had enough trouble keeping up with his platonic relationships, what the hell was he meant to do in a romantic one? He’d studied his friends relationships a little in the years since. There seemed to be a lot of kissing and while that seemed quite nice, it was the general physical intimacy that Kuai seemed to really crave. The quick touches, putting a hand to someones cheek, holding hands. God after so long alone that last one sounded so scandalous.

Johnny had seen it fit at some point to have “the talk” with him and it went about as well as one could imagine.

It was weird, to realise he actually had sexual urges and that was why certain body parts acted like they did. No one had ever talked to him about this. As much as Johnny’s teachings embarrassed him, he was grateful for them. At least now he better understood how these things worked.

All that was neither here or there however.

What really mattered was his dilemma with if he should say anything to Hanzo.

He looked down at his latest correspondence from the man in question, asking to host him at the Fire Garden’s for a few days. It felt like a good opportunity to bring it up, but he was also terrified. Because despite everything, Bi-Han had been right, Hanzo had hurt him in the past. What was to say he wouldn’t again?

He put the letter in his pocket, and went to find his council to give orders for while he was away.

He’d figure out how to deal with the tattoo situation later.

The Fire Garden’s were as beautiful as ever. Kuai had been here a few times already, but only on very brief visits that usually lasted a day. He’d always been invited on business before, but this time, he’d been invited for leisure. He’d never really had chance to sit down with a cup of tea and just admire how beautiful it looked.

“I am glad that you could come, Grandmaster Sub Zero,” Hanzo softly said as he took the cup of tea that he had just poured for himself.

“And I am glad you invited me, Grandmaster Hasashi,” Kuai replied, accepting his own cup of tea. He forgot what Hanzo had said it was, but it wasn’t one he was familiar with.

“Well, I thought maybe you would appreciate the break from work,” Hanzo claimed, watching Kuai intently as he took a sip of his tea. Kuai still wasn’t sure what flavour it was, it wasn’t something he’d ever tried, but it was light and fruity, very pleasant. “According to Takeda, Frost is always texting him saying you need a vacation.”

“To be honest, I think Frost just wants me out of her hair for a few days so I stop nagging her,” Kuai laughed. “I am glad to hear she is still in contact with Takeda though, I believe it has helped her reservations over the peace pact.”

“Admittedly I was a little skeptical, but Takeda seems to enjoy talking with her,” Hanzo admitted, his eyes flicked over Kuai’s shoulder. Kuai took a look behind him, spotting a certain Special Forces team approaching. “I suppose you can ask him yourself,” Hanzo added, before waiting for the team to get close enough, and greeting them with “good afternoon”.

“Good afternoon, Grandmaster,” Takeda replied with a bow, “I hope we’re not interrupting, but as we came in, some of the guards were asking if I could ask you to go and talk to them about a minor problem they’ve come across.”

“Ah, I see.” Hanzo turned his attention to Kuai, “do you mind if I go and check what they need?”

“Of course not,” Kuai replied with a confident nod.

“Very well,” Hanzo push himself to stand, but before he went, “Takeda maybe you and your friends can keep Grandmaster Sub Zero company.”

“We’d love to,” Takeda replied, a little too readily if Kuai was being honest, and looking at all of them, they all had strangely impish looks on their faces. They were definitely up to something, and it seemed to involve Kuai Liang.

“Excellent, hopefully I won’t be too long,” Hanzo announced, patting Kuai’s shoulder before he went off to find his guards. Kuai felt his breath hitch at the contact, that was the first time Hanzo had really touched him outside of combat. Why did this make his heart race so much? It was just his shoulder.

As he left, the four went to sit around the table with him, and despite Kuai being a little suspicious of them, he decided it was a good time to ask Takeda how he and Frost were getting on.

“So, Grandmaster Hasashi tells me you are still in contact with Frost?” He asked, outright ignoring the look on Cassie’s face. He may not be good a reading social situations, but he’d seen the same look in Frost’s eyes enough to know she was craving chaos and about to cause mischief to get it.

“Oh yeah, it was rough at first but I think I’ve won her over.” Takeda looked around briefly before leaning in and lowering his voice. “Between us, I’m also having a lot of fun teasing her about how we’re going to be step-siblings soon.” Takeda had a huge grin on his face, and Kuai suddenly realised that suspicious feeling had not been misplaced.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Kuai claimed, trying to look away and putting his hand on his cheek.

“Oh well, we just couldn’t help but notice you and Grandmaster Hasashi have been getting a bit closer lately,” Jacqui replied in a sing song voice. Kuai felt himself going a bit hot, he wasn’t aware their growing friendship was that obvious to those on the outside.

“Yeah, I mean, we can’t help but wonder if Grandmaster Hasashi is your soulmate or something,” Cassie provided, leaning forward and placing her head on her hands. She was looking at Kuai knowingly. She had never seen his tattoo, he was sure of that, but she was related to the one person who had and knew the name on it.

“Jonathan told you?” He asked in a horrified tone, not wanting to really convey how betrayed that idea made him feel.

“Nope,” Jin cut in, “but you just did.”

Kuai felt his jaw fall open as he realised what they’d just done. He cursed himself for falling into such an obvious trap. He was mad at himself for that, but at least he knew Johnny had not betrayed his confidence. He really should have known, for as much a gossip as the man was, when it came to the important things, he was surprisingly tight lipped.

“That was mean,” Kuai just about managed to get out, despite how childish it made him feel.

“I knew it,” Cassie claimed, giddily looking at him with big eyes. “How long have you guys been together?”

“We’re not-“ Kuai felt himself getting flustered. Oh god, what if Hanzo comes back and hears this? He did plan to bring it up while he was here, he really did, but not like this. “Please, he doesn’t know.”

“What?” Cassie exclaimed, far too loudly for Kuai’s liking. “How have you not told him?” She hissed before her face morphed into a confused look. “How has he never said anything to you?”

“That is part of why I’ve been reluctant to bring it up,” Kuai admitted, running his knuckles with his thumb. “I’m not even sure if my name is on his wrist or if it’s Harumi’s.”

Everyone looked at Takeda, who immediately realised everyone thought he’d know the answer, just shook his head at them all.

“He’s always wearing arm guards or long sleeves, I’ve never managed to look at it.” He rubbed the back of his head. “To be honest, I figured it wasn’t any of my business, because he’d tell me if it was.”

“But mine is?” Kuai dryly pointed out.

Takeda gave a sheepish grin, “I blame Cassie.”

“I also blame Cassie,” Jacqui added, holding her hands up in defeat.

“I blame me too,” Cassie agreed, before glancing over at Kung Jin.

“Eh, I didn’t really care who your soulmate was, I just wanted to know if my gaydar was on point.” He lent backwards looking triumphant that he’d somehow correctly guessed Kuai’s sexuality. “Although, I do hope you know how to keep yourself safe, because one gay man to another, I wish someone had told me some of the shit I learnt through trial and error.”

“I-“ Kuai hesitated slightly, not sure if Kung Jin was going where he thought he was, “are you trying to have the safe sex talk with me?”

“Well someone has to,” Kung Jin said with a shrug. “Now, condoms and lube are essentials-“

“Kung Jin, please do not go any further, I am already aware of safe sex practises,” Kuai interrupted in what felt like one long breath, waving his hands a little in front of his face. Jin had a shit eating grin on his face over how flustered Kuai seemed to be. “I hate to tell you, but Jonathan beat you to that talk several years ago.”

“Ah, you got to see the powerpoint presentation too?” Cassie quipped and Kuai gave her a pleading look to move the conversation away from that particular topic. He still remembered the embarrassment when Johnny loaded it up, and judging from Cassie’s sympathetic look she had a similar experience. “Anyway, this is off topic, regardless of what name is on his wrist, you really need to tell him what name is on yours.”

“I know,” Kuai said quietly, glad that the topic had moved on from his potential sex life. Not that his soulmate tattoo was an easier topic to talk about. “I want to, I just don’t know how.”

“Maybe ask him about his first?” Jacqui suggested, “then you can sort of tell him without saying it yourself if he shows you it’s your name?”

“That… is a good idea.” Kuai thoughts about it, it did feel a little less scary. “Thank you, Specialist Briggs.”

“No problem but uh-“ Jacqui was looking behind Kuai as she finish with “we should probably shut up about it for now cause he’s coming back.”

Indeed seconds after Jacqui said that, Hanzo had indeed come back up to the table, taking a seat next to Kuai. As he sat down, he rested his hand on Kuai’s shoulder again, and Kuai only just about managed to hold in the strangled whine stuck in his throat. After the discussion they’d just had, somehow this second touch stood out even more than the first.

“I apologise for that, but hopefully everything is sorted,” Hanzo stated with a smile. His face dropped a little when he saw Kuai’s face. “Is everything okay?”

No! Your hand is on my shoulder and I’m about to cry because of it!

“Yes, everything is fine,” Kuai answered, not realising how quick and desperate he sounded. Hanzo didn’t look convinced, but seemed to choose not to question it.

He also didn’t remove his hand from Kuai’s shoulder, and Kuai wasn’t sure why but he hoped Hanzo wouldn’t stop.

“So,” Kung Jin said in a drawn out tone, “what’s this about Mr Cage and a powerpoint presentation?”

Both Kuai and Cassie groaned in union.

“Powerpoint presentation?” Hanzo questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“Apparently Mr Cage has a sex ed powerpoint presentation,” Takeda informed him and Kuai almost wanted to die from how casually it had come out. “Apparently Cassie and Grandmaster Sub Zero have been his victims on this.”

Hanzo was looking at Kuai with a mix of concern, pity and amusement and Kuai wasn’t sure which one of those was worse.

As Cassie scrambled to change the subject, Kuai could tell he was possibly in for a lengthy explanation.

As if he didn’t have enough he needed to talk to Hanzo about.

“So Cage really made you sit down and listen to a presentation on sex?”

Kuai threw his head into his hands. He really didn’t want to talk about this, least of all with Hanzo. Even if they now were in Hanzo’s private quarters and no one else would hear them.

“I was sheltered,” Kuai explained with a whine, really wanting this torture to end. “In his defence he had my best interests in mind.”

“I can imagine the Lin Kuei’s education on such things was lacking,” Hanzo agreed, and Kuai had to stop from laughing bitterly. Lacking was an understatement, non-existent was more like it. “He did go over things like consent as well, didn’t he?”

“Yes,” Kuai said in a high pitched and exasperated tone. “He went over that quite throughly actually.”

“Good, good.” Hanzo nodded and sat down opposite Kuai. “Are you okay? You’ve seemed distant since this morning, and I don’t think the reason is related to Johnny’s teaching methods.”

Kuai paused, he hadn’t realised that he’d been acting different, he’d tried to not let on how turbulent his thoughts were. He knew this was his chance to ask Hanzo about his soulmate tattoo, yet somehow those words just wouldn’t come out. He wasn’t sure which of the two possible answers scared him more.

“Kuai Liang,” Hanzo softly prompted, and Kuai realised it was the first time he’d ever heard Hanzo refer to him by his real name. Seconds later, it was accompanied by Hanzo reaching over and placing his hand over Kuai’s. “Whatever is bothering you, you do not need to deal with it alone.”

His understanding and kind tone was not helping Kuai’s internal struggle. Would he be the same if he knew the truth? Or was all this a way to get Kuai to lower his walls before he struck? No. Hanzo won’t hurt me. He had to remind himself that Hanzo was not the monster the Lin Kuei painted him to be. He had proven repeatedly that he wasn’t. So why did those words stick with him so much?

“I have just been thinking a lot about my soulmate tattoo lately,” Kuai admitted, not sure how to continue the conversation.

Hanzo softly sighed, “I see.” He pulled his hand back, and it took everything in Kuai to not just beg Hanzo to put it back. “Is it the mark itself that perplexes you or the person who’s name is on your wrist?”

Kuai tried to study Hanzo’s face, looking for clues of if he knew that it was his name that was causing the problems. His face was impassive as ever though, Johnny called it a resting bitch face. It was always so hard to tell how much he knew or what he was thinking about the situation at hand, now so more than ever.

“If I am honest, it is both.” Maybe he could wrap his enquires about Hanzo’s tattoo by questioning how they work. “I’ve had mine since I was young, but, I have reason to believe that the person on my wrist doesn’t have my name on his. Is that normal?”

“Why do you think he doesn’t have your name on his wrist?” Hanzo asked, his face remaining impassive, but his voice had an edge to it that made Kuai pause. He knows. He knows it’s him, shit I said too much?

“We have known each other for some time and he has never mentioned it.” Kuai was trying so hard to keep eye contact with Hanzo, but he hated every second of it.

“Have you told him?” Hanzo asked, and despite Kuai’s best efforts he winced at the question.

“No. Because he has never brought it up, I am afraid of what he’ll say,” Kuai admitted, finally giving in to his urge to look anywhere except Hanzo by looking at the floor instead. “I can’t tell how he’ll react, and like I said, I’m not even sure if I’m his soulmate, even if he’s mine.”

“If his name is on your wrist, yours is on his,” Hanzo sagely told him. “What is his name? Maybe I can help you.”

It’s you, you moron!

Kuai felt his brain ordering him to just tell Hanzo, to let him know that it was his stupid name on Kuai’s stupid wrist. Yet that just would not make it’s way to Kuai’s voice. It would be so easy to just lift his sleeve slightly and show him the name, yet he couldn’t even bring himself to do that. How did I become this pathetic?

“W-What about your tattoo?” Kuai suddenly managed to completely deflect. “I mean, I assume that Harumi’s name is on your wrist.”

“It was,” Hanzo confirmed quietly, and Kuai couldn’t help but notice the deliberate use of past tense. He finally looked back up in time for Hanzo to say, “her name faded and disappeared some time ago, however.”

He said nothing more on the subject. Nothing about if he’d gained a new tattoo, nothing that even so much as hinted he knew he was Kuai’s soulmate. He knew it. Hanzo didn’t have his name on his wrist.

How fucking cruel was the universe to give him a soulmate who would never love him back?

“I see,” Kuai choked out, trying desperately not to just burst into tears in front of Hanzo. If he already didn’t look completely pathetic, he would if he just started bawling. “Thank you, this has been helpful.”

“Kuai Liang-“

“Please excuse me, I need to get some fresh air,” Kuai managed to force out as he all but jumped to his feet, and made for the door.

“Kuai Liang!”

He didn’t look back as he half jogged down the corridor. He needed to get out of here before he completely lost control of himself. He heard Hanzo calling after him a couple more times, until Kuai made it to the outside world and make a break for the trees.

Once he was far enough and could no longer hear Hanzo calling for him, he lent back against a tree. Slowly his legs gave out and he slid down to the floor. Hot tears rolled down his cheeks, as he failed to contain the floodgates as began to sob uncontrollably.

Why was he reacting like this? He already thought this was the answer. He was a warrior who had been through hell and back, so why was he crying like a spoilt child who hadn’t gotten his way?

Why did this hurt so much?

He didn’t know, he just placed his head on his knees, trying to mute his own cries.

Kuai carefully walked on top of the wall, placing one foot in front of the other. The walls along the edges of the Fire Gardens were far more sturdy than the ones around the Lin Kuei temple, more lovingly cared for and kept rather than being allowed to crumble to rubble. It made it easier to traverse, but it wasn’t quite as fun as the challenge of jumping over gaps in the walls.

Still, it was enough to just help empty his head. If he was concentrating on keeping his balance, he wasn’t thinking about his heartbreak.

From the distance, he heard crunching leaves and footsteps approaching him. He looked up to see Hanzo making his way through the trees. He stood still on the wall, watching apprehensively as Hanzo walked over to him.

“Kuai Liang,” Hanzo greeted, keeping his voice low. They were far enough away that they wouldn’t interrupt any sleeping Shirai Ryu, so he wasn’t entirely sure why Hanzo was speaking so quietly. “I have been looking for you. My guard’s said they saw you around the perimeter, and were concerned for your well being.”

“I’m fine,” Kuai assured, turning his attention back to traversing the wall. “When I was a child, I used to sneak out at night and walk on top on the wall around the temple. Now I just use it as a way to clear my head.”

Hanzo made an affirmative sound, and Kuai realised he had begun walking alongside him, although on the floor rather than the wall.

“I am sorry if I said something earlier that upset you,” Hanzo continued. His eyes were trained out Kuai, almost looking like he was waiting to catch Kuai if he fell. “It was not my intention to do so.”

“You didn’t upset me,” Kuai lied. He knew he was lying, no doubt Hanzo knew he was lying. He couldn’t admit that he was however, because it would lead to having to explain why Hanzo’s words had hurt him. “I just have a lot on my mind.”

“About your soulmate?” Hanzo questioned, and Kuai nodded. “Maybe I am just old and ignorant, but, why can you not just talk to them?”

Kuai stopped on the wall. He’d never really talked about his treatment within the Lin Kuei with anyone other than Johnny. Everyone knew he was sheltered, and it had left him being very socially awkward, but they didn’t really know the extent of it.

“Hanzo,” Kuai started, the name feeling odd and foreign coming from his mouth. Given Hanzo had been calling him by his first name however, he figured that meant it was okay for him to do the same. “You know how I’ve always said that I was sheltered?”

“You have, yes,” Hanzo agreed.

“That actually rather downplays how I was treated,” Kuai admitted, looking towards his feet and starting to walk again. “I was almost completely isolated. I wasn’t allowed to interact with the majority of people within the clan, most of the time, I wasn’t even allowed outside of my room, let alone the temple. The only person I was ever supposed to really interact with were the elders, my Grandfather and Bi-Han.”

“What?” Hanzo hissed in a horrified tone. “You mean, you were basically a prisoner with them?”

“In a way I guess.” Kuai had never really thought about it like that. But aside from when he’d sneak out, when had he ever been able to see the wider world? The very first time he’d left was to attend the Mortal Kombat tournament in Outworld and avenge his brother, and even then he was never supposed to have done that.

“Why would they do that?” Hanzo questioned. Another glance at his face, and finally that impassive mask had cracked, and his eyes were wide and his teeth bared.

“My soulmate. They recognised his surname, and knew he was an enemy of the clan.” Kuai reached to rub at his wrist. Sometimes he cursed this damned mark. He was sure his life wouldn’t be that much better if he didn’t have it, but he might not have been separated from everyone. “In an attempt to stop me from ever meeting him, they decided to hide me away from the world.”

“That… Is awful,” Hanzo whispered in disbelief, tints of anger coming through as well. “I mean, don’t take this the wrong way, it explains a lot, but it just makes it even worse.”

“The stuff with me not knowing what to do about my soulmate and having to have the sex talk with Johnny?” Kuai questioned and Hanzo gave a affirmative grunt. “I think they also disliked the fact the name was masculine, so they didn’t want me finding out about sex.” Hanzo gave him a questioning look. “Some of the elder’s used to call me names, that I am loathe to repeat. I used to hate them calling me them, but I didn’t understand why until I asked Johnny about them, and he told me they were derogatory terms for homosexuals.”

Hanzo inhaled sharply, “so they isolated you, and then shamed you for simply being yourself?”

“Yes, pretty much.” Kuai rubbed the back of his neck. “I know now that there is nothing wrong with being homosexual, but sometimes those words and that fear of judgement and hatred comes back to me.”

“What about Tomas? You were friends with him weren’t you?”

“Yes, but we were not suppose to be.” There was a leaf on the wall, that Kuai gently kicked off. “Both he and Cyrax used to sneak into my room to help me. They were the only contact I had with anyone within the walls. I think Bi-Han asked it from them, to stop me from being completely shut off.”

“I would ask why you never tried to run away, but I know what the Lin Kuei did to deserters.” It was well known that no one left the Lin Kuei alive back then. Kuai had no chance of ever escaping, because even if he did, his unfamiliarity with the wider world made it difficult. He only made it to Outworld with Tomas’ help. “Did you ever think about running to try and find your soulmate.”

“I was scared of him,” Kuai admitted, quickly looking to see Hanzo’s reaction. It was blink and you miss it, but Hanzo recoiled, like that hurt him personally to know. It made Kuai reconsider once more if Hanzo knew or not. “Everyone I ever interacted with told me that if we ever met, that he’d hurt me, and I had no choice but to believe them.”

“Do you still believe that?”

Hanzo sounded desperate, like he was scared of the answer to that question himself.

Do you know? Do you know it’s your name written on my body?

He kept looking Hanzo in the eye as he sadly admitted, “I don’t know.”

There was a cold and awkward silence, and now Hanzo looked like he was going to be the one to cry. Kuai wanted to comfort him, but he didn’t know what he was sad about. That Kuai could be afraid of his soulmate or that Kuai was still afraid of him?

“Maybe, we should call it a night,” Hanzo finally stated, before holding his hand out to Kuai Liang. “It’s late, and you look like you need sleep.” Kuai nodded, although he hesitated about taking Hanzo’s hand. He closed his eyes and took the chance, letting Hanzo help him off the wall. “Thank you for trusting me with your past. While I wish none of that ever happened to you, I am honoured that you feel safe enough to have shared it with me.”

“Thank you for listening,” Kuai replied, smiling softly. Despite the lingering fear, and the voice in his head that sounded like Bi-Han screaming at him to run, he really had felt safe enough to talk about these things with Hanzo.

As they made their way back to the main cabins, Kuai wondered if maybe it would be safe to confess the truth after all.

It was amazing how much better you could feel after a good sleep.

The late night walk along the wall and getting so much of his past and fears off his chest helped Kuai fall asleep fairly quickly. He was thankful for that, as it meant he now had a lot clearer head facing the issue still at hand.

He had joined Hanzo for breakfast, where he hadn’t mentioned their encounter last night, but it was clear it was still also on his mind. The small talk had lead to them deciding to do some light stretches, just to keep them both on their toes should an emergency happened.

Hanzo’s stretches were a little different than Kuai’s, not having the flexibility Kuai did, so when he brought a leg up it stopped around his hip. Kuai’s leg on the other hand, went up and beyond, until it was perpendicular with his body. He didn’t think anything of it until he heard Hanzo make a strange gasping sound. A glance over revealed him looking rather flustered.

“Is something wrong?” Kuai asked, wrapping an arm around his calf to really help stretch the muscles of his leg.

“I- uh- Had no idea you were quite that flexible,” Hanzo admitted, his eyes locked on Kuai’s leg like it had unlocked some deep secret within himself. “That’s quite impressive.”

“Well, there’s not really much need to lift my leg this high on the battlefield.” He had a few high kicks in his arsenal, but they were quick and often people missed it. “And we’ve never trained together like this before.”

“I suppose that is true,” Hanzo agreed. Kuai kept his leg up, feeling strangely flattered from the way Hanzo’s eyes were trained solely on him. “How do you even go about learning how to do that?”

“I had a lot of time where I was left completely alone, had to find a way to entertain myself somehow,” Kuai admitted, finally letting his leg down. No point showing off. “Discovered I was naturally kind of flexible, so just kept pushing myself bit by bit until I could get it all the way up.”

Hanzo hummed, looking strangely disappointed that Kuai was no longer doing it. “So are both legs that flexible?”

“Yes.” To prove the point, Kuai repeated the action with his other leg. He did briefly wonder if Hanzo was just trying to prompt him to do it again. He did seem to enjoy it a little too much the first time.

Unfortunately he’d been a little less careful this second time around, and for the first time in years, he felt himself wobble and lose his balance. Even as he let his leg down to try and regain control, he began to fall. He put his arms in front like that would shield him. Only instead of falling flat on his face, he found himself cushioned by something soft.

It took him a little too long to realise said soft thing was Hanzo’s chest, and the other man had in fact caught him.

Hanzo was warm, and his arms were wrapped around Kuai’s torso like if he let go, Kuai would just keep falling. It was the most physical contact Kuai had in years, or at least gentle contact outside of the battlefield. He felt himself begin to shake, overwhelmed by just how cozy it felt to be held by Hanzo like this.

“Are you okay?” Hanzo asked, and Kuai looked up enough to see the way Hanzo gazed down at him. Soft and gentle. All Kuai could do was make a soft whining sound. Hanzo chuckled and said. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Kuai didn’t want to move, this entire situation was incredibly embarrassing but just having Hanzo hold him like this was so very nice. He was surprised that Hanzo hadn’t tried to pull away himself yet, or otherwise push him away. Instead he felt Hanzo run a hand down his spine, and it only made him shudder harder.

“Kuai Liang, have you- have you never been hugged before?” Hanzo asked in a serious tone as he very slightly readjusted their positions so Kuai was standing slightly straighter.

“My brother used to,” he admitted, letting Hanzo guide his head to rest on his shoulder. How had this situation gotten even more intimate with that action he has no idea. “But that was when I was very little.”

Something about that made Hanzo’s grip tighten ever so slightly. Kuai had a feeling it was to try and still the tremors a little, and indeed the longer they stood like this, the less all consuming Kuai began to find it. He was still shaking, but not as bad as it had been. Kuai was so glad no one was around to see him being so weak.

He tried to stifle the whimper when Hanzo finally moved back. Kuai wanted so badly to follow his body, but his brain wouldn’t let him. Hanzo didn’t take his hands off, though one did come to rest against Kuai’s cheek. Without thinking of what he was doing, he nuzzled into the touch. Realisation hit him like a ton of bricks, and his wide eyes looked over at Hanzo with horror. Hanzo on the other hand, was just smiling softly like he was pleased that Kuai had done that.

“You know, there is something I’ve been meaning to show you,” Hanzo claimed softly, and Kuai’s brain went into overdrive of what it could be. “Come with me.”

He didn’t really get to compute the order before Hanzo was taking him by the hand and guiding him along to their new destination.

Whatever Kuai was expecting Hanzo to show him, it certainly wasn’t an entire bathhouse.

Kuai knew that they were a normal thing in Japan, but for some reason he hadn’t expected there to be one within the Fire Gardens. There were natural hot springs around somewhere, Hanzo had already told him about those, but an actual bathhouse?

“I had it built because the hot springs are off limits for the majority of the clan as their temperature can’t be regulated,” Hanzo explained as he began to strip off his clothes in the changing rooms. Kuai knew to follow suit, but trying to remove his belt while his hands were shaking was so much was harder than you’d think. “It gives my students somewhere to relax and bond.”

Kuai hummed in agreement, although internally he was wondering why his stupid belt buckle was suddenly the most complicated piece of kit he’d ever worked with. He felt Hanzo’s hand touch his shoulder and he jumped and looked at him.

“Relax, I have requested that no one else be let in. It will just be us.” If he was being completely honest, Kuai wasn’t sure if that made it better or worse.

Still he steadied himself and finally managed to undo his belt. Happy that Kuai was okay, Hanzo let go and continued to remove his own clothes. The second Kuai removed his underwear he grabbed the towel and wrapped it around his waist. He glanced over at Hanzo to see he was also in a towel. Kuai looked down at himself, and realised that like this, his soulmate tattoo was on full display. He awkwardly put his arm behind his back to try and hide it.

He followed Hanzo through into the main baths. It was roomy, and really nicely decorated, and Kuai had to admit he could definitely see how this would be a beneficial addition to the Fire Gardens.

He did feel himself falter when Hanzo removed his towel and began to enter the water. Kuai took a deep breath, let his own towel fall away and entered the water as quickly as he could. He knew this was normal to Hanzo, but Kuai hadn’t been naked around anyone else since he was a child. Part of the reason he liked to walk around shirtless was because suddenly he had nothing restricting him from doing so, but this was a step he hadn’t really made it to yet.

Hanzo settled down in the water, and Kuai awkwardly sat next to him. He tried to ignore the steam rising off him, but it was very noticeable. Hanzo was smiling at him, looking rather amused by it all.

“Sorry,” Kuai said feeling ashamed.

“Don’t be, it’s cute.”

Ah. Cute? Kuai didn’t think anyone had ever described him as cute before. He laughed nervously, worried that his awkwardness was off putting but Hanzo didn’t look phased at all.

Kuai decided it was best if he just tried to relax, leaning back against the edge of the pool and trying to concentrate on how nice the warmth felt on his muscles. Next to him, Hanzo also relaxed, although a lot more splayed out that Kuai was. It actually made Kuai realise he wasn’t relaxed at all and despite leaning back he was still completely rigid.

Kuai glanced over to Hanzo. His eyes were closed, and the smile on his face was one of pure bliss. It was actually nice to see the normally strict Shirai Ryu Grandmaster so at peace. Given the things he had been through, he deserved these moments of respite.

Kuai’s eyes trailed along Hanzo’s arm, although his gaze stopped on his wrist. His left wrist had black text scrawled on in the inside. A soulmate tattoo! So, if Harumi’s name faded, he really did get a new one? Kuai felt hurt that Hanzo hadn’t told him that bit, but maybe he was a hypocrite when he wouldn’t even tell Hanzo about his own.

He squinted, trying to see if he could read the name.

And there, plain as day, was “Song Kuai Liang”.

He looked away quickly, so fast that the water splashed around him. He put his hands over his mouth, and tried so hard to not hyperventilate. Why was his body reacting like this? Practically driving him to a panic attack. Wasn’t this what he wanted?

“Kuai Liang, are you okay?” Hanzo suddenly asked, and Kuai yet again felt a hand on his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

This was it. The moment of truth, and yet Kuai could not bring himself to say it.

He just about managed to squeak out the words “your tattoo.”

“Ah,” he heard Hanzo softly say.

That hand on Kuai’s shoulder moved down, looping the arm around Kuai’s waist. He once again resisted the urge to lean into Hanzo’s touch. Hanzo’s free hand reached for Kuai’s left hand, gently pulling it down, and turning it so he could read the name written there. When he saw his own name, Hanzo sighed, and gently pulled Kuai closer.

“I’m sorry,” Kuai whispered, feeling devastated that everything came out in such a cowardly way. “I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“You did nothing wrong, and I’m sorry.” Hanzo rested his forehead against the side of Kuai’s head. “When your name came up on my wrist, it was while we were still fighting. I did not want to believe it then. But you reached out to me, and helped me to heal, even when you didn’t need to. I always thought you were going to bring the soulmate thing up at some point, I figured since you were the one who made that first step to mend our relationship, that you would be the one to make the first move.” Hanzo’s thumb traced the letters on Kuai’s wrist. “It wasn’t until our talk yesterday, that I truly realised why that wouldn’t happen. If I had known all that, I would have said something a long time ago.”

“It’s not your fault, I shouldn’t have been such a coward.”

“You aren’t a coward,” Hanzo assured him. “You are the bravest man I know. This was a sorry situation, but in a way, a part of me is glad things happened like this.” Kuai frowned, unsure how this situation could in anyway be good. Soon he found Hanzo’s hand on his chin tilting his head until they were face to face. “I got to know you first, rather than rushing in because of destiny.” Hanzo lent in closer. “I got to see the beautiful man you are, and I got to fall in love with you because you’re you, not because a name on my wrist told me to.”

Kuai’s heart was racing as he took in what Hanzo had just said. I got to fall in love with you. He wanted to cry, after so many years fearing that he could never be loved, here was Hanzo, baring his heart, and admitting to loving him.

Kuai lent forward, pressing his lips against Hanzo’s. He knew there was more to kissing that just this but he didn’t know what it was. He just knew in that moment, he had the overwhelming urge to do it. He finally pulled away, realising he may haver overstepped a boundary somewhere along the lines. However, the way Hanzo was looking at Kuai, like he was something to be in awe of, it let Kuai know he had done nothing wrong.

“The Lin Kuei treated you so terribly because of me,” Hanzo said in a regretful tone. “Please, allow me to make up for all those years you were neglected.”

Kuai nodded enthusiastically, before letting Hanzo kiss him once more. He twisted his body to be more comfortable, fully facing Hanzo. Hanzo’s hands never left his body, as they trailed up and down, feeling every curve, every muscle and every scar on his body. It was amazing how tender those hands could be, even after a lifetime of battle. Kuai never wanted this touch to stop.

Hanzo pulled away from the kiss, only to dip low enough to press him lips against Kuai’s neck. Kuai’s breathing hitched. He wasn’t sure what to do with his own hands, except to wrap his arms around Hanzo’s shoulders. In this position, Hanzo was able to lift him up and out of the water, placing him on the edge of the bath.

It was around then that Hanzo’s hand trailed up the inside of Kuai’s thigh, clearly aiming for somewhere far more intimate.

“May I?” Hanzo asked, his hand hovered just below, not wanting to continue without Kuai’s express permission.

“Yes, please,” Kuai gasped, finally realising how hard he had gotten. He’d had this reaction to things before, but never quite this intense. He wasn’t quite sure what Hanzo would do, but as long as those hands stayed on him, he could do whatever he wanted and Kuai would lie back and accept it.

He whimpered when Hanzo’s hand wrapped around his cock. He began to caress it, careful not to put too much pressure. He was firm but delicate, his movements slow and purposeful. It felt so much better than any time Kuai tried to relieve himself. Hanzo just seemed to know exactly what to do to send shockwaves up Kuai’s body, leaving him trembling.

“It’s okay, don’t hold back,” Hanzo encouraged, Kuai hadn’t been aware he was holding back. Until Hanzo twisted his hand and Kuai let out a very loud moan. Kuai bucked his hips upward, and Hanzo softly chuckled at his sudden eagerness. “What else do you need?”

Kuai wasn’t sure. He realised he could be selfish in this moment, just request Hanzo to lavish him in adoration, but he didn’t feel right doing that. When he looked down, he saw that Hanzo was as erect as Kuai was. He knew what he wanted then.

“Can I- Ah-“ He wasn’t sure how to word his request. “Touch you too?”

He very briefly winced at the request, realising he was already touching Hanzo with his hands still around his neck. Thankfully it seemed Hanzo understood what he meant, as he reached for one of Kuai’s hands, and helped guide it down to his own cock. He closed Kuai’s hand around it, and begun to stroke up and down, showing Kuai the technique.

Kuai had not been the fastest learner as a child, but with age he began to realise that was more poor teaching than anything he himself did. Case and point, Hanzo didn’t have to guide him through it long before he let go and let Kuai go at it himself.

He lent forward to kiss Hanzo again, the other man welcoming his kiss. Kuai tried to not let himself get distracted and keep up his hand movements. He knew his efforts were appreciated when Hanzo moaned against his lips while thrusting into Kuai’s hand.

But Kuai could feel himself nearing a climax. With every stroke of Hanzo’s hand, he could feel himself starting to loose control. He wasn’t sure whether he should warn Hanzo, or if he should try to keep himself under control.

“It’s okay Kuai Liang,” Hanzo whispered against his lips. “Like I said, don’t hold back.”

It was like those words were a command he had to follow no matter what, because seconds later, he was cumming all over his own stomach. Even as he tried to chase the aftershocks by thrusting up into Hanzo’s hand, he tried to keep going with his own movements on Hanzo’s cock. It was when Kuai had nothing left to give that Hanzo also came, his cum also pooling over Kuai’s stomach, as well as his hand.

Hanzo kissed Kuai’s forehead and whispered “do you need anything else, my love?”

Kuai almost got hard again from just being referred to so sweetly.

“Just, hold me, please,” he begged, earning another kiss and Hanzo crawling up onto the edge to pull Kuai close to his chest.

“I will never let you go.”

Kuai practically purred. He couldn’t believe how foolish he’d been, to think Hanzo would reject or hurt him. With his head on Hanzo’s chest, he could hear his steady breath and heartbeat. For the first time in his life, he thought maybe the soulmate thing hadn’t been a curse after all.

“Jonathan is going to be so disappointed that we didn’t use a condom,” Kuai absentmindedly pointed out, loving the way he could feel Hanzo’s chest heave as he let out a rumbling laugh.

“I think he’ll let us get away with it this one time,” Hanzo assured him.

Kuai smiled and allowed himself to truly bask in the knowledge that Hanzo Hasashi loved him.

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