Almost Had You
Yusuke sighed. He was sitting in the park on a beautiful spring afternoon. The cherry blossoms were everywhere, making the city seem almost magical. But sadly all this was lost on the heartbroken no-longer-teen.
It had been three years since the demon tournament and things were going great from what he'd heard. Kurama was going to university, a course in horticulture. Apparently he'd met a nice girl there and was moving in with her.
Kuwabara had just recently finished up his schooling and had finally managed to make the oblivious Yukina see his feelings for her. Nobody knew how but things must have gone well because the two were happily married and expecting a baby.
Hiei hadn't taken too well to the news but decided that if it was what Yukina wanted then he could bare it. But not without making it perfectly clear to Kuwabara that if he ever stepped out of line he wouldn't live to try it again. Yukina had guessed Hiei was her brother and confronted him about it the night before she got married. She had been ecstatic when Hiei had admitted the truth.
The last time Yusuke had seen Hiei had been at the wedding almost two years ago. He hadn't had much chance to talk to him though because he was called back to the Makai by Mukuro.
Another sigh escaped the raven haired boy's lips. He remembered it all too well. He remembered every moment he had ever spent with the fire demon.
Yep, you guessed it, the world's ex-best spirit detective was in love with Hiei Jaganshi, friend, former teammate, Forbidden Child and Heir to Mukuro's throne.
How did this happen? Yusuke couldn't help but wonder. It hadn't developed over time, though he had taken a while to recognise his feelings. No. When he looked back on it he knew it had been love at first site. Something about the ruby eyed demon had attracted him and Yusuke found himself wanting to know everything about him. Wanting to spend all his time with him. But sadly he never got far. Hiei always hid his emotions so well. And now it was too late. All the times he could have told his friend how he felt. But he was too weak. Ironic, he could take on the world's strongest beings and still he wasn't strong enough to admit his feelings to man he loved. Keiko was the first person he had ever told. She had understood and accepted him for it. Keiko knew Yusuke had never loved her, at least not in the way everyone thought he had. Yusuke looked at Keiko as a sister. And Keiko felt the same.
Not long after he had told Kuwabara, Kurama and everyone else, except Hiei.
A small beeping drew the half breed from his thoughts. He looked down at his watch, which read 5:30pm. Another sigh as Yusuke stood up and made his way towards Kuwabara's house.
Ever since the tournament everybody had gotten on with their separate lives and hardly ever saw each other. So they organised that the three of them would meet up every Friday at 6pm at the house that Kuwabara and Yukina now shared. Then they would go out to clubs or bars, or whatever they felt like that particular night.
Yusuke arrived outside around ten to six and rang the doorbell. After a few moments Yukina opened the door. She smiled when she saw him.
"Hello Yusuke, good to see you. Kuwabara's in the lounge with Kurama waiting for you." She said. Yusuke thanked her and found his way to the living room. There he was greeted warmly by his two companions. After their usual greetings and small talk about how everyone was going with their everyday lives they headed out to the bar.
...
As seven o'clock rolled by, the three of them had downed at least three drinks each. Not that this was anywhere near enough for any of the burly men to be drunk, just a little tipsy.
Yusuke still couldn't get Hiei out of his head. Not that this was any different from any time before.
He sighed, chocolate eyes filled with regret and loneliness. His friends noticed and Kuwabara could not resist asking him what was wrong.
"The same thing as always." Yusuke said with a hint of sarcasm.
"Ah, Hiei." Kuwabara said knowingly. Yusuke nodded and sighed with a small, "Yeah." Kurabara and Kurama shared a worried glance then a nod. But this went unnoticed by our hero.
...
The next day found Kurama and Kuwabara at Kuwabara's house with Yukina, Keiko, Botan and even Koenma. They were spread around the living room discussing Yusuke's love life, or there lack of.
"What are we going to do? Urameshi's been like this for ages!" Complained Kuwabara.
"I've never seen Yusuke so depressed." Stated a concerned Keiko.
"Yeah, he's no fun anymore!" Yelled Kuwabara.
"Well yes, I thought Yusuke would break out of it on his own but it seems he's in deeper than any of us thought." Said Kurama.
"Well what are we going to do about it?" Asked Botan.
"We don't even know if the shrimp's gay or not!" Said Kuwabara.
"For demon's there is no sexual preference." Explained Koenma. "To them it doesn't matter about the gender of their mate, it's either about sexual pleasure, a gain of power, or love. So it doesn't particularly bother them."
"Oh..." Muttered Kuwabara. "But still, what if Hiei doesn't like Yusuke that way?"
"He does!" Interrupted Yukina.
"How do you know?" Asked Keiko, curiously.
"We're twins and have a sort of bond. We can often tell how the other's feeling, when their telling the truth, etc. So one day I asked him about who he liked. He told me no one but I could tell he was lying. So I kept insisting until he told me. When he went on talking about it, there was a certain tenderness in his voice and I just knew...I knew he really loved him..." Said Yukina with a faraway look in her eyes. Kuwabara burst into laughter.
"Yeah, right! The shrimp couldn't pull of anything like that!"
"It's true! He may seem cold but it's just because he doesn't want to be hurt! He still feels things like any other person and I wish you would stop regarding him as a heartless monster!" Yukina cried.
Kuwabara ran over and tried to apologise and everyone else in the room just sweat dropped.
Turning away from the spectacle, Kurama said, "Well at least we've got that obstacle out of our way. Now all we need is to find a way to get one to admit it to the other."
Everyone looked stumped on that one until...
"I've got an idea!" Everyone gathered around Botan to hear her suggestion...
...
Hiei heaved a sigh as he collapsed in a field of blooming multi-coloured flowers. Ever since Yukina's wedding he had been constantly on the go. Always doing something for Mukuro. There were very few times when he actually had times to just sit down and relax. And even those times weren't that relaxing. As soon as he was able to stop and think, thought of a certain ex-spirit detective caught up with his tired mind. When he wasn't thinking about something else Yusuke's beautiful face was there, constant and forever beyond his reach. Always there to remind him of what he would never have. Sometimes the ruby eyed demon lord thought of all the times he had the chance to tell the half breed demon the truth. How many times he had run away. And now all that was left was the empty feeling of loss, regret and unrequited love.
Hiei glared up at the red sky, annoyed with himself. He shouldn't dwell on the past and bunch of "what if's". Sighing he stood up and flitted back to the castle. He walked through the large double gates and was greeted by Mukuro. "You have a visitor." She told him. Hiei frowned as he made his way up to his room. He never had visitors. It couldn't be anyone from the Makai, they would have been downstairs with Mukuro waiting for him. He hardly ever saw any of his old friends. Only one person ever came to visit him...He thought as he opened the door to his room.
"Hello Hiei." Came the soft velvety voice. As soft as the petals of a rose.
"Hello Kurama." Hiei said a smirk gracing his lips. Kurama rose from his spot on the couch and walked over to him.
"How have you been? Busy by the looks of it." Said Kurama. Hiei nodded.
"Like you wouldn't believe. How's everything down your end?" He asked.
"Same old, same old. Yusuke's a little strange though lately." Kurama said casually. And it certainly didn't go unnoticed by Kurama, the slight emotion that flicked through Hiei's eyes and how his body tensed at the name. "Anyway, we were wondering if you'd like a small break. Maybe come join us on Friday. We've all missed you. Especially Yusuke." Kurama continued. Hiei stiffened again but acted casual.
"Hn. Why not? I'm not doing anything then anyway." The fire demon said. Kurama smiled.
"Great! The Shoreline Karaoke Bar at 7pm. See you then!" Kurama said cheerily, disappearing from the room. As soon as Hiei was sure he was gone he banged his head repeatedly on the wall saying, "Stupid! Stupid!"
...
The week flew by quickly for everyone. Kurama had explained to Yusuke that everyone would be joining them this Friday and Yusuke was quite happy except for the small, "Everyone except Hiei."
It wasn't long before it was ten to seven and everyone, minus Hiei, were seated at a table drinking and chatting happily. Kuwabara had just been up on stage singing 'Uptown Girl' and as he lumbered back to the table he plopped himself down next to Yusuke.
"There Urameshi, beat that!"
"Fine!" Yusuke made to get up but Kuwabara stopped him.
"Uh-uh-ah, Urameshi. Don't forget that you have to sing a song about the person you love AND tell the audience who it is you're dedicating the song to." Yusuke paled.
"But-"
"No buts, Urameshi. Besides it not like the shrimp's here to hear it anyway so what have you got to lose?"
"Guess you're right."
Kuwabara gave Kurama a thumbs up. Everything was going exactly to plan.
Hiei stopped outside the Karaoke Bar and took a deep breath.
"Here goes nothing..." He mumbled. The fire demon pushed through the door and into the room. Just in time to see the object of his affections get up on stage.
Yusuke cleared his throat and the entire bar looked at him. He looked around nervously at them all but missed the fire demon who had just entered the room.
"This song is dedicated to the man I love...This one goes out to Hiei...Wherever you are..." Yusuke said into the microphone. Hiei was shocked to say the least. Yusuke loved him! All other thoughts were stifled as Yusuke's lips parted and he began to sing...
"I almost got drunk at school at fourteen
Where I almost made out with the Home Coming Queen
Who almost went on to be Miss Texas
But lost to a slut with much bigger breasts
I almost dropped down to move to LA
Where I was almost famous for almost on day
And I almost had you
But I guess that doesn't cut it
Almost loved you
I almost wished you would've loved me too.
I almost held up a grocery store
Where I almost did five years and them seven more
Cause I almost got popped for a fight with a thug
Cause he almost made off with a bunch of the drugs
That I almost got hooked on cause you run away
And I wish I would've had the nerve to ask you to stay
And I almost had you
But I guess that doesn't cut it
Almost had you
And I didn't even know it
You kept me guessin'
And now I'm destined to spend my time missing you
I almost wish you would've loved me too.
Here i go thinking about all the things
I coud've done
I'm gonna need a forklift,
Cause all the baggage weighs a ton
I know we've had our problems
I can't remember one.
I almost forgot to say something else
And if I can't fit it in, I'll keep it all to myself
I almost wrote a song about you today
But I tore it all up and then
I threw it away
And I almost had you
But I guess that doesn't cut it
Almost had you
And I didn't even know it
You kept me guessin'
And now I'm destined to spend my time missing you
I almost wish you would've loved me too.
And I almost had you
I almost had you
Almost had you
I almost wish you would've loved me too."
Cheers went up and the whole room was alive with applause. Yusuke smiled and looked around at his admirer's. But the smile dropped from his face and everything around him seemed to melt away. His eyes were fixed on one thing...Hiei. Hiei's crimson eyes stared back into Yusuke's, shock evident in his face, along with something else...But Yusuke wasn't staying long enough to find out! Yusuke took off and out the back door. Everyone back at the table stood up looking concerned and shocked. But Hiei looked down at the ground sadly.
"I did Yusuke...And I still do..." He whispered.
...
Yusuke ran and ran. It wasn't long before he found himself in the park. He slowly came to a stop, panting lightly. "God..." He whispered as tears welled up and spilled forth. Why? Why did they do that to me? They planned this...And now Hiei hates me...
Yusuke was so lost in self-pity that he didn't hear Hiei's light, wary footsteps.
"Yusuke?" He asked quietly. Yusuke spun around upon hearing the fire demons deep voice. The voice that had been at the heart of his fantasies for so long. Yusuke looked at Hiei with wide eyes. He didn't register Hiei's almost nervous stance and almost unreadable expression. All he saw was Hiei standing there and his own imaginings of Hiei's resounding mocking laughter. Yusuke turned to run again but was stopped when Hiei grabbed Yusuke's wrist.
"Don't...Don't run away..." Hiei whispered in an almost vulnerable voice. "Don't you dare run away from me! How dare you!" Hiei yelled angrily, looking up at Yusuke with tears in his eyes that were spilling forth as clouded black gems. Yusuke stood there staring at Hiei sadly. Why is he crying? Yusuke wondered. But he saw Hiei getting to speak again and his thoughts quickly changed. Here it comes, he thought. Hiei's going to tell me how stupid I am for that performance earlier.
"You're so stupid, Detective!" Hiei yelled. Yusuke could have smirked. I knew it, he thought.
"You don't just tell someone who's loved you for years that you love them back and then just run off!" Hiei's tears slowed and he became just angry.
What! Yusuke thought.
"Gods, for years I've had to deal with you hanging around in my head and then I have to deal with you doing this! Sheesh, of all the people in the three worlds to fall in love with it had to be you didn't it!" Hiei continued.
"Did you just say that you loved me back?" Yusuke asked, bewildered.
"What I have to spell it out for you! I love you Yusuke!" Hiei yelled.
A large smile crossed Yusuke's face and he pulled Hiei's small form against his own larger one. Hiei was shocked at first but smiled contentedly and settled into the loving embrace.
Then Yusuke pulled away and leant down, pressing his lips firmly against Hiei's. Hiei immediately began kissing him back until the two broke for air.
"God, I love you, I love you so much." Yusuke said pressing his forehead against Hiei's. Hiei smiled.
"I know. I love you too baka..."