Forums » General Roleplay » The Rose Affiliation

"It's fine," Yuri sighed once they were outside again. Staring down at the bags in his hands, he wondered why he got so excited about them in the first place. This vacation wouldn't last. He knew that from the start but the newspaper reminded him not to get his hopes up too high. He glanced across the street and spotted a few cafes so he pulled Lemon toward one so they could have some croissants at least. And coffee. Coffee would make everything better.

"Look, I'm not that upset about it. I was mad because those girls said those things, but..." Yuri shook his head. "Anyway. I'm aware that things are complicated between you, me, and Bronx. I can't expect that to change overnight. I'm going to order some coffees. Do you want dessert or a sandwich?" he added as he moved to get in line.

Lemon just nodded at Yuri her words not coming she couldn't make sense of everything she was feeling. She wanted to scream that it didn't matter she only cares about him. However, her forsaking her duties and family would not just put him in danger but the bigger fear she had was that he might not want her back. She stood outside under the Cafe's awning as Yuri ordered them coffee trying to quickly go over the hierarchy of their world and the main players when it finally hit her Yuri may outrank them all even her if he claimed his proper seat as the head of all Russian families but then what. She let out a long sigh of stress as she stared in the window watching him pay. She finally stepped inside as the rain started to get harder taking a seat at a small table as Yuri joined her "Thank you Yuri" her tone was shaky like the first day they met in the club room.

It seemed that no matter how much Yuri thought about it, their relationship drama still had no easy roads. And yet, he found himself calm, this time able to accept it as it was. Even after he ordered the coffees and took them to the table, he still felt a conviction that everything was as it should be. "Lemon, were you outside?" he murmured as he reached out to brush a rain droplet from her shoulder. "You should sit. After you have some coffee in you, we can discuss the newspaper but not before." Biting his lip, he handed Lemon one of the drinks and a sweet apple croissant.

Lemon took a seat as Yuri handed her the coffee and croissant. "I like the way the rain smells in Paris" it was a bit of an abstract statement she thought but Lemon really did feel like the rain in Paris smelt different than anywhere else. As she forced herself to eat the croissant she seemed a bit distant in thought. However, with her free hand, she reached over to hold Yuri's.

Yuri hummed at her comment but didn't question it. Rain was a curious thing. It could symbolize so much, but sometimes, it was just rain. He smiled at the thought and turned Lemon's hand over so he could trace the lines in her palm. "Are you truthfully upset by what people are saying about us? And about Bronx, too? If you're upset for my sake, don't be. But if you have something to share, I'd like to hear. Your true opinion, I'd like to hear it." Yuri bit his lip once again, hoping that his words didn't sound too overwrought or too invasive. Truthfully, he'd been getting much better at talking though.

Lemon watched Yuri trace lines on her hand for a few moments “before we left he proposed on the balcony, even when I said no he shoved the box at me, I still have it in my bag” she looked down at her coffee feeling the weight of her words “I wish I was upset for you but I’m to selfish for that, I’m upset because Bronx knows the real me and I’m scared that you won’t like it,” Lemon closes her hand around Yuri’s fingers “I also thought it didn’t matter how I felt because you never would be an option and now with your family,well now, us being together is an option, now there is finally a way I can have everything I want without letting anyone Down and that scares me” she finally looks up her eyes rimmed in red

Yuri breathed in deep, never once stopping the movement of his fingers. The breath helped keep his words steady, strong like he needed them to be. "Do you intend to give him the ring back? If marrying Bronx is what will make you happy, I won't stop you. If being with me will make you happy, I'll be glad for that as well. Even if I end up as just your right hand. It's fine. But..." He paused, feeling unsure if he should even force this amount of an opinion, not when he said all of these words for Lemon's sake. "I wish you would pick me. I'll become the family member you need, take all of that power if it means I can be with you. Would Bronx do that for you?"

Lemon holds his hand “you know he wouldn’t, I do want you, I would always pick you over anyone” she bit her bottom lip a bit as she ended the sentence. She let the silence hang there as she laced her fingers in his “are you ready to take what is rightfully ours” she squeezed a bit “because if I know I have you then I can take on anyone” she smiles a bit. She waves a girl over walking by and ask for her to take a picture. Lemon smiles wildly and leans into Yuri and her hand still laced in his. The girl hands the phone back and with a few quick taps on the screen Lemon has uploaded the picture to her social media and the dings of likes start to flood in. “No going back now, Bronx will know I picked you any moment”

"Yes," Yuri breathed out. One long breath in, then another that filled his lungs until his entire chest felt full with his answer. "I am ready to take my place, even if I never asked for a bloodline like mine." His lips quirked up into a quick smile and he had to bite back a laugh. "After all, I had picked you from the very first day you walked into my club. Bronx be damned!" He squeezed Lemon's hand as she pulled them both into a picture. He knew his cheeks probably looked a faint bit flushed with passion and excitement, his eyes bright behind his glasses. And maybe that was exactly the look he needed to have. "Can I see it? I'm sure it will only take seconds for people to start commenting. I'm a bit...anxious?" But that implied a bad set of nerves. He felt like this was an entirely different type of anxiousness.

Lemon held out the phone the picture already over 100 likes. The picture is sweet like two real lovers on a vacation and upon second thought Lemon realized that was exactly what the picture was of, something so pure and innocent. “ you’ll get use to the eyes of the public on you all the time” she leaned in and kissed his cheek “but I’m here and we will get you a Bruce.” A small chuckle came out as her phone in Yuri’s hand began to ring. “My father is calling” she pressed the end button “good thing he has no say, we need to go to Russia looks like we won’t be going back to school like planed”

Yuri shook his head. He had his doubts about getting used to the limelight, but he had already gotten used to so many things, including people talking about him and Lemon like their real intentions had nothing to do with their actions. It was strange but he just nodded in response and listened as Lemon took her call, using the time to sip at his own latte. The warm drink seemed to warm something all the way down into his bones. "I didn't expect we would get back to school at this point. Is it wise to go to Russia, though? It seems like all we've been doing is running around the world lately. Shouldn't we go to your family and set things straight there? Make a statement to the people?" It seemed like all the mafia movies pulled moves like that but he found that real life wasn't all that like the movies.

Lemon answered the phone only to hear her dad yelling on the other end of the line. "Father, Father" Her eyes began to glint like that of a devil. Her words were sharp and demanding "Father, I am the head do not forget or you will not be long for this world" She ended the call on the threat of killing her own father.

She quickly smiled at Yuri "Going to Russia is the last thing I want" She drummed her fingers " But the problem is that the Russian mafia is not part of the family board they operate on their own and only do business in person " She looks lost in thought "You need to take your place, normally I would demand it but this time we need to be more tactful" Again she drums her fingers "But you are right we need to make a statement, as for my family if they do anything I have kill orders in place while I'm gone, But there is Bronx" she drums her fingers louder and harder "I have no idea how to handle this, Help me"

Yuri let out a long sigh but didn't question Lemon even when she threatened her own father. "Sometimes you're far too crazy..." With another shake of his head, he considered what she said about Russia. "You know that I will help you in any way that I can. Whatever it is you decide. Even...it's not ideal, but you could talk to your father and make a statement, rally the family back home. Then, I could go to Russia alone and do what's needed..." He held back a grimace at the thought but if both of these things were important, then he wouldn't make them choose. After another second, however, he groaned and dropped his head into his hand. "Ah seriously! It would be best if we could get Bronx on our side again because he could really help us out in situations like this."

She pursed her lips together “I know we are stronger together” she thought for a moment “as for Bronx his single status just might be useful to gain favor with the Russians, we could marry him to one of them to gain a footing and he will be out of our way” she spoke flippantly like if she was exchanging toys and not talking about a person. This a prime example of her true sinister breading showing. “As for your status we should keep it quite for now and let everyone think you are just some school boy” she drummed her fingers “I need to to get dossiers on the most eligible girls in that family, second I need to most recent Financial reports on my uncle Ben and uncle johns businesses those are the two that usually back my Bronx over me and will causes the most trouble, so we need to find something to exploit” she smiled and leaned into whisper in her ear “look it how much fun we are having, and I’m not even killing anyone in this plan” she sipped her coffee as a small crowd gathered outside the coffee shop to look at the couple. When two overly large men appeared at their table and bowed “Bruces, no more talking till we are in the room they tell my father everything, I guess that’s our cue to go” she rang her hands a bit as they walked outside “ there is one more reson why the Bruces showed up” she darted her eyes around “ you ....you have to get a tattoo or cut off your pinky to signify loyalty” she dropped her hands to her side “ it was a non-negotiable with my father and they are making sure it gets done”

Yuri pursed his lips right back. "For someone you once considered marrying, you sure are trying to force Bronx into a new arrangement real quick. Seriously, Lemon." He sighed, shaking his head. It wasn't his place to dictate though--he hardly knew the other boy and couldn't care less. "Besides, you're the only one who's having fun right now."

That feeling only got stronger as the conversation went on, though he had to admit that he felt strangely comfortable. It was only after the Bruces came that he found the mood taking a sharp turn. "Shit. We really should go." He gathered his coffee and croissant but as soon they passed through the door he found his head whipping so fast to the side that it gave him a crick. "I'm sorry, what did you say?!" Yuri grabbed Lemon's arm and pulled her onto a quieter side street with another huff of exasperation. "A tattoo or a pinky? Ah really...I guess I'll have to get a tattoo then."

Lemon’s face twisted a bit as Yuri answered. She tucked her small frame under his arm as the Bruces guided them down the streets. “What you said before about Bronx” she stepped over a puddle “he has no concern for a love match only something that grants power” she glanced up at Yuri’s stone face as the Bruces direct them into a small tattoo shop where a young man who’s arms are covered in tattoos bolts straight up upon seeing them enter and immediately bows.

~Time skip~

Lemon faces her long mirror as she pulls on a gray wool skirt over cream tights that match her cream school sweater. She leans in as she twist her hair into a neat bun. A knock on the door made a small yelp come from Lemon as a maid opened the door and brought in a tray of food, then bowed and left quickly. Lemon walked to her bed and pulled back the covers to see a sleeping Yuri. Her eyes scanned his body seeing the dragon tattoo on his sholder blade that marks him as a member of the family. In the week since they had been home from Paris Yuri was sposed to move into the back house and start training in differnt skills. But it seemed like every night after dinner he would end up in her room and hadnt really moved anything into the back house. "Wake up, its our first day back" Lemon quickly pecked Yuri on the cheek before going to sit at the table to eat some food.

..

Yuri squinted his eyes over at Lemon, having already been awake but unwilling to move. Despite having come home, his life hadn't gotten any less exhausting and every night, he ended up passing out just to start the lessons all over again. He wasn't entirely sure Lemon wasn't enjoying it. "I'm well aware that it is our first day back. Hand me my glasses and the tattoo cream. It's always so itchy," he muttered with one hand held out from the covers. As soon as he received the items, he slid up into a sitting position and started to apply the cream. "It's certainly going to be strange attending school again after all the news that's surely reached everyone's ears. No one used to pay any attention to me but now..." He shook his head. "Are you looking forward to it?"

Lemon say on the bed next to Yuri after handing him what he requested. With a small laugh Lemon kissed Yuri on the cheek “we still have the club room if you need a break,” she stood and made her way back to the tray of food “looks like the maid put tailored uniforms in my closet for you, instead of those old used ones you use to wear” she picked up a piece of melon and popped it in her mouth “ I think the help is starting to wonder what we do every night” she grabbed a bagel and sat at the small table to eat again.

Yuri groaned. "Let them think what they want. It's probably better for everyone to think we're up to something anyway." He said the words with ease, most of his attention on his itching tattoo. It probably didn't help that they did it all in one session because the scabs seemed to be popping up all over his shoulder, not to mention the peeling skin. Finally finished, he stood up to pour himself a coffee and buttered a croissant. "Anyway, I'm not really worried. I just think it will be a strange change of pace. People will be talking to us non-stop." He groaned again. "Do you think the club managed alright in our absence? We haven't really checked in for quite some time."