A/N: It's been a while since I've written anything. I have the most amazing writer's block, so I ended up consulting the 'Kateyo Hitman Reborn Writing Challenges' forum, despite the fact that it's inactive, just to get some ideas. I decided to try the 'Song Shuffle' challenge, where essentially you have to set your music player to shuffle, and keep note of the first ten songs that show up. You have to write one chapter per song. (Yes, this will not be a oneshot! This story will be TEN CHAPTERS long!)
Thus, here's the first chapter for my first GokuHaru/5986 story for the 'Song Shuffle' challenge. Enjoy. This first chapter was inspired by the first song on my list: 'We Found Love' by Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris.
Kateyo Hitman Reborn!, any/all of its characters, and the song 'We Found Love' are most definitely not mine.
Gokudera was a man who sought for life's purpose. Despite the fact that he was supremely intelligent having knowledge that far surpasses the average individual, he viewed life to have little value and virtually felt he had nothing to live for. He was more than willing to sacrifice his life for what he deemed to have enough significance, such as the mafia, the current Vongola boss, and his Family. He was one to have few to no desires, wanting to simply become the best right-hand man for Sawada Tsunayoshi and essentially nothing more. He did not desire to pursue any sort of future as a pianist, despite his amount of potential, as it reminded him of his late mother. Coming from a wealthy family and being a valuable member of the mafia, money was not an issue. A significant other was never something he desired either, he thought of the idea to be pointless, and frankly, a nuisance. He never understood that form of love, and what its 'appeal' was. He could easily solve any other problem or question that stood in his way with his clear mind and logical conclusions, except the concept of love. He felt that being in a romantic relationship clearly gives you more to worry about; things he felt he would prefer not to deal with at any point in time.
Despite his thoughts on the subject, he couldn't help but feel happy for his boss, whom of which was newly married to the tenth-generation Sun Guardian's sister: Sasagawa Kyoko. Despite the uproar of the Kyoko's extremely proud and surprisingly emotional lawn-head of a brother, their wedding continued without any real issues. The smile on Tsuna's face that appeared whenever he looked at his beloved bride was enough to ensure Gokudera that he was genuinely happy. But something felt odd. Was he… jealous? No, that couldn't be it. He felt nothing special for Sasagawa Kyoko; it wasn't that she wasn't attractive, but rather that she had always viewed her somewhat as a 'side character'. She had not done anything that he ever viewed as significant or compulsory. She was one who merely knew about the mafia, but only played a supporting role. But there was something about the way she brought coffee to Tsuna when he spent late nights at the office, and the way he took occasional vacation days to simply spend time with his wife. As much as he refused to admit it to himself, he was envious of his own boss, his happiness, and the kind of relationship he shared with Kyoko. It must be nice hearing someone say 'I love you' to the person you really are, to have someone to hug and hold during those lonely nights, and to know that you had support in what you did and the decisions you made. The Guardian of Storm placed a cigarette in between his lips and hovered his lighter over the opposite end. The bomber exhaled smoke as he took the stick out with two of his fingers. I don't need a significant other. He told himself, in his own way of 'shrugging it off'. He was a lone wolf, and he had grown accustomed to the feeling of loneliness.
He wasn't looking for love. Certainly not. But even if he was, there was no one who knew of that mafia that he could come close to having a unique interest in. If he were to develop feelings in an ordinary person, he would be dragging another ordinary individual into danger, which would further burden his boss. This left him with few 'choices', per say. Turf-top's sister was married; clearly not an option. Chrome Dokuro, although admittedly adorable in Gokudera's perspective, was that and only that. She didn't seem to have any distinct qualities, or anything that made her stand out in any sort of way. Gokudera viewed Lal Mirch simply as a tutor, and well, a woman who must have secretly emerged from hell— absolutely no attraction there; fear, if anything. Besides, it would appear that she had some history and chemistry with Colonello, but Gokudera wouldn't pry into business that wasn't his. Essentially the only woman left who already had knowledge of the mafia was Miura Haru, who he frankly wasn't on the greatest terms with. The two of them bickered constantly over irrelevant things due to their equal tempers, and he somewhat viewed her as an airhead despite the fact that she did attended Midori Middle School and various other elite schools as the years passed by. However, their current relationship and his opinion of her were not issues. If there were any 'issues' when it came to what they could become (of course, he was thinking hypothetically here, because they would never actually become anything more than friends), it was her, and who she felt feelings for. Miura Haru was completely and utterly in love with the tenth generation Vongola boss. But the Storm Guardian ignored this fact… it's not like he held feelings for her anyway; he was simply thinking about the situation if say, he did (but he didn't). And he didn't need a significant other. Significant others held no significance to him.
Gokudera tied his hair up into a ponytail and put on his glasses. He had a desk top full of paperwork that was begging for his completion; he was going to be at the office building that night for a long time. Tsuna entered his office that evening before he left, stating that he could do the paperwork the following day, but naturally his guardian refused so that he wouldn't have anything to worry about the next morning. His boss simply sighed and took his leave. About an three hours later, around eleven in the evening (generally when everyone should have left the Vongola office building), a particular brunette knocked on Gokudera's office door. She received no answer, thus let herself in. And there the Storm Guardian was, concentrated on his work and did not even give any acknowledgement to her presence. Unaffected, she placed a warm mug of coffee on his desk. It's aroma reached his nostrils, and he looked up at her, surprised to see someone at work this late… and in his room.
"What is this for?" The bomber asked in a stern tone.
"Tsuna-kun personally asked Haru to make you coffee. He feels that you'll be here late, and that you could use some company desu." She smiled at him. He blinked once in confusion, but replied with his usual blank facial expression.
"Thank you. You don't have to stay here, it's getting late. I do appreciate the coffee though." It seemed as if they bicker more than actually socialize whenever they see each other. He didn't want to start an argument in every conversation they had.
"It's alright desu. Haru doesn't have any company at her apartment anyway." The suffix of –desu at the end of almost all of her sentences would take some getting used to, but Gokudera didn't want to refuse the offer of company. Those nights of paperwork were actually quite lonely, and having someone else to stay the office with him during late nights was quite delightful. Haru continued to bring coffee to him night after night, as the paperwork began to stack in higher and higher piles. Yamamoto's papers had been pushed onto him because the rain guardian had been taking days off due to a baseball injury, and Ryohei had begged him to do his because they were "extremely boring and complicated". The nights grew longer, and Haru ended up staying with him longer even if it meant sleeping on the red Italian loveseat in his office. Their conversations started out small and generally awkward, but eventually turned into complete discussions, whereas the two of them actually felt comfortable enough to tell each other about their good and bad days, their personal thoughts, and even a few secrets.
Gokudera ended up telling her about his past: about the lady who he didn't even know was his mother until she had passed away, how he ran away from his household at a young age, the reason behind the random sickness he feels whenever he sees his sister, and even explained the strategy behind his very own Sistema C.A.I. Haru, in turn, also told him things that neither of them ever thought she would. She explained her concern for everyone, and how she felt she'd never be able to get used to the usual dangers of the mafia. She told him her opinions on Tsuna's marriage, and how although she was happy for them, she was indeed jealous. Gokudera's turned his office chair in her direction at this statement. He tried to keep his usual serious image in front of her; he tried not to show such evident emotions. For some reason he didn't want to look soft in front of her.
"Haru isn't jealous for the reason you think, desu. Haru doesn't love Tsuna anymore. Haru can't love someone who is in love with someone else, especially if that person is her best friend." There was a seriousness in her tone that he wasn't used to.
"Then why are you jealous?" He then pursed his lips in curiosity.
"I'm jealous of their happiness, desu. I've always wondered what it feels like to be loved." There was something in her tone, and something in the expression on her face that made her feel like another person. He noticed that she didn't refer to herself in third person like she usually did. It was odd. She was odd. The whole situation was odd. Who knew that one day, he could actually have a conversation with Haru that didn't conclude in random bickering. He never really understood why they previously didn't get along very well in the first place. He had always thought of her as a beautiful person, both inside and out, it's just that the third-person thing could get annoying. Regardless, it was in that moment that he felt as though he'd found someone, even though it was Miura Haru, who could somewhat relate to his judgment on love. Knowing that he wasn't the only one who felt somewhat lonely and envious— just a little bit— of those in love, gave him a sense of comfort. The world suddenly didn't feel as empty as it did, and he didn't feel so lonely. He felt oddly warm, in his face for the most part, and an odd sensation fell upon him. He didn't understand what it was, but assumed it was fever from lack of sleep and late nights.
Their eyes connected for the first time, and his heartbeat seemed to pound even louder in his head. What was it about this woman that made him feel so alive?