~Standard disclaimers apply~
Chapter 1
Omi whistled cheerfully, carrying a load of laundry upstairs. He stopped by Ken's door, and opened it a crack, "Ken-kun! We'll be having Chinese take-out for dinner!!!" Omi blinked; no answer. He put down the basket of clothes, then looked inside. No Ken, no stuff, just an empty room. The Weiß boy's eyes grew wide, and he quickly ran down the stairs forgetting all about the laundry. "Aya-kun! Yohji-kun! Ken-kun's gone! He's not in his room! I think he might have heard you guys talking and left!" Omi shouted, very worried. "What!?" A pang of guilt shot through Yohji's chest.
"Oi, Jyo!" Ken called gaily to his companion, "Can you get the shears for me?" "Sure!" The blonde replied, disappearing into the stock room. He had found another flower shop to work in, a good distance from the Koneko no Sumu Li. He was happy working there, where he didn't really have to give of the impression of a clumsy oaf. CRASH!!! "Watch it, Miya! We don't wanna loose all our money on buying pots!" He shouted to the redhead. She laughed, it sounded so much like Omi's, sweet and cheerful. He sighed, "At least Omi cared. He was nice, and friendly and never really insulted anybody. Except when he got into one of those arguments with Yo-tan." He smiled, remembering the times he had with them. "I wonder if they even miss me…" Ken thought bitterly, afterwards, as he started arranging a few roses.
"Damn! Its all my fault!" Yohji said, guilt-ridden about the incident. Aya was silent as usual, but accusations towards himself raced around his head. "I'll be up in my room", Omi stated, making his way up the stairs. Aya nodded, as he watched a small, almost unnoticeable tear roll from Yohji's eye. The redhead went to his room, and left the playboy to mourn by himself.
Ken sighed; he was lying on his bed, tired from the day's work. There were only three of them now so it was a bit harder. He closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep, but to no avail. He was wide awake, "Why did they have to say that?" he thought, quietly, "If they only knew…"
***flashback***
Aya was raging, "Of all the people to get, we had to get HIM! All he does is botch up our missions!!" "Yeah!" Yohji agreed, "And everyday all he does in the flower shop is break this, break that, break this, and break that!!!" "Demo, you guys", Omi cut in, "At least Ken TRIES!" "That's all he ever does! He tries, but doesn't succeed!!!" Aya yelled. "He should just get a job at a circus as a clown! That's what he is anyway! But at least clown's are more graceful than he is!" Yohji practically screamed. "You guys! Be nice! He works hard to do his best!" Omi interjected. "His best isn't good enough." Aya stated and walked back to his room. Yohji followed suit. Leaving, they didn't notice Ken peeping from the kitchen, hot tears streaming down his already red eyes. Checking to see if they all had entered their room, the devastated soccer-player ran up to his own room. He packed everything he could, take this and that, pack this, pack that. The tears were uncontrollable and his thought were whirling with bitter hate. "Break this and that, eh? Join a circus, huh? If that's what they think, then FINE! Let them have their way! No more clumsy clown to bother them!" He slammed his suitcase shut and raced down the stairs and out, slamming the door noisily behind him.
***end flashback***
Ken tried to blink back a few tears, then pulled the covers over him. Resting his head on a pillow, he cried himself to sleep.
Omi punched a few buttons on the keyboard. Click. Click. He had been searching for an hour and a half, but couldn't find any trace of Ken.
"Ken-kun… Where are you?" He asked himself, then pushed another button. Suddenly his computer started to beep loudly, as a red circle on its screen blinked in time to the bleeps. Omi smiled, "Found him!" He took note of the address, a small flower shop seven blocks away from the Koneko no Sumu Li. He made plans to visit the shop the next day, as he scribbled down the location on a piece of paper. Then after shutting down his computer, he went to sleep.
Soft voices echoing from nowhere…
"All he does is botch up our missions!!!"
"Break this and that and this and that…"
"At least clowns are more graceful than he is…"
Sneering faces appeared all around, laughing, insulting, screaming, yelling, hating, damning, cursing, killing... Cold and clammy…
Death…?
Ken screamed. Eyes wide open, he woke up. Drenched with sweat… breathing heavily. He wiped the perspiration off his forehead, "What the hell what that!?"
What the hell was that…?
Footsteps. Coming closer, closer, closer, sounding louder, louder, louder. A pair of feet stopped in front of him. Yohji raised his head slightly, his aching body preventing him from doing anything else. His eyes scanned, yet… there was nothing. And then he saw Ken, pale white with a dejected look on his face. Almost invisible ashen tears were rolling down his pallid features. Fingers reached out to touch the ghostly figure, but they only went through it. The white silhouette wavered. It mouthed one word, then started to vanish in the surrounding abyss.
"Why…?"
Yohji jerked awake, and sat up quickly, taking in air with short, quick gasps. Cupping his face in his hands, he felt his sweat roll down his body as he started to cry out Ken's name.
"We didn't mean it… Ken… Come back… Damn it!"
Yohji called out to no one, sadness pouring out from his voice.
"Please… where are you? Where are you…? WHERE ARE YOU????"
He choked, voice breaking down into loud sobs, "Please… Ken-kun…"
Ken fixed all the things in the flower shop to get ready for opening time. He placed a few things on the shelves, and rearranged some pots. He heard a click from the back door, and heard Jyo's cheery greeting of "Ohayo!" Ken smiled at the other boy, as the blonde started to help him prepare.
Five minutes after the shop had opened, the door clicked again, and Miya ran through apologizing furiously for being late. Ken grinned at her, "S'okay". The got busy doing their own stuff, fixing this, moving that, displaying this, and removing that.
~**I have a liking to "this, that, this, that", OK!? Geez…**~
Omi woke up early and had already eaten and brushed his teeth before anyone else had. He was about to go visit Ken, when suddenly Yohji called his name. "Where ya going?" He asked, rubbing his eyes drearily. "Gonna visit someone", Omi said, careful not to mention Ken's name. "Who?" Yohji questioned. "A classmate." Omi replied, inching towards the door. The other boy looked at him suspiciously, but let him go without prying.
"1775… 1775…" Omi hurried along the sidewalk, keeping an eye out for 'Designer Blooms', the place where Ken now worked. It took a few moments for him to find it; it was very crowded, the day being a Saturday morning. Many people were already roaming the streets, ready to scare their wallets and kill their credit cards.
Omi came to a halt before a stall, which was painted an eye-catching (or straining) shade of yellow. Through the lightly fogged window (for it was a chilly day), he could see somebody who appeared to be Ken. Taking a deep breath, he grasped the door handle, and pushed. Tinkle, tinkle. The soft jingle of the bells hanging from the 'OPEN' sign on the glass echoed in the almost empty shop. Looks like it was too early for most people to buy flowers— or at least nobody wanted to.
"Ken-kun…?"
The brunette whirled around to face whoever had addressed him. The voice was very familiar.
"Omi!?"
"Ohayo, Ken-kun! I'm glad I was able to find you!" the blonde exclaimed, blue eyes shining brightly. "What are you doing here!?" was the bewildered reply. "I came to get you. Yohji's suffering from a severe guilt trip," he giggled, very much like one of those schoolgirls that hung around the Koneko. "Serves him right…" the older man muttered, scornfully; his friends' (or so he used to think they were) words were still stinging. "Awww… You *know* you don't mean that! Ne, Ken-kun???" the other boy said, a grin plastered on his baby-cute face.
The 19-year-old sighed, then turned around to continue his work.
There was an indignant 'hmph' followed by a complaint.
"You're so rude."
Ken grinned, unnoticed; same old Omi…
Then there was a whine, "KEN-KUN!" "I can't!" the brown-haired boy answered. "Why not!?" Omi protested. "Because." He retorted, almost fiercely.
"Fine." L
The dark-haired boy chuckled, and then gave his comrade a smile. The sandy-haired blonde heaved a sigh, then took a glance at his watch then looked up, "Look, I gotta go now. Shop's gonna open in a few minutes, and this place is so far that I don't think I'll get back on time! I only got to spend a few minutes with you, but I don't want Aya-kun to kill me! See ya!"
And with that (and a final wave of his hand), he raced out the door.
Chapter 1
Omi whistled cheerfully, carrying a load of laundry upstairs. He stopped by Ken's door, and opened it a crack, "Ken-kun! We'll be having Chinese take-out for dinner!!!" Omi blinked; no answer. He put down the basket of clothes, then looked inside. No Ken, no stuff, just an empty room. The Weiß boy's eyes grew wide, and he quickly ran down the stairs forgetting all about the laundry. "Aya-kun! Yohji-kun! Ken-kun's gone! He's not in his room! I think he might have heard you guys talking and left!" Omi shouted, very worried. "What!?" A pang of guilt shot through Yohji's chest.
"Oi, Jyo!" Ken called gaily to his companion, "Can you get the shears for me?" "Sure!" The blonde replied, disappearing into the stock room. He had found another flower shop to work in, a good distance from the Koneko no Sumu Li. He was happy working there, where he didn't really have to give of the impression of a clumsy oaf. CRASH!!! "Watch it, Miya! We don't wanna loose all our money on buying pots!" He shouted to the redhead. She laughed, it sounded so much like Omi's, sweet and cheerful. He sighed, "At least Omi cared. He was nice, and friendly and never really insulted anybody. Except when he got into one of those arguments with Yo-tan." He smiled, remembering the times he had with them. "I wonder if they even miss me…" Ken thought bitterly, afterwards, as he started arranging a few roses.
"Damn! Its all my fault!" Yohji said, guilt-ridden about the incident. Aya was silent as usual, but accusations towards himself raced around his head. "I'll be up in my room", Omi stated, making his way up the stairs. Aya nodded, as he watched a small, almost unnoticeable tear roll from Yohji's eye. The redhead went to his room, and left the playboy to mourn by himself.
Ken sighed; he was lying on his bed, tired from the day's work. There were only three of them now so it was a bit harder. He closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep, but to no avail. He was wide awake, "Why did they have to say that?" he thought, quietly, "If they only knew…"
***flashback***
Aya was raging, "Of all the people to get, we had to get HIM! All he does is botch up our missions!!" "Yeah!" Yohji agreed, "And everyday all he does in the flower shop is break this, break that, break this, and break that!!!" "Demo, you guys", Omi cut in, "At least Ken TRIES!" "That's all he ever does! He tries, but doesn't succeed!!!" Aya yelled. "He should just get a job at a circus as a clown! That's what he is anyway! But at least clown's are more graceful than he is!" Yohji practically screamed. "You guys! Be nice! He works hard to do his best!" Omi interjected. "His best isn't good enough." Aya stated and walked back to his room. Yohji followed suit. Leaving, they didn't notice Ken peeping from the kitchen, hot tears streaming down his already red eyes. Checking to see if they all had entered their room, the devastated soccer-player ran up to his own room. He packed everything he could, take this and that, pack this, pack that. The tears were uncontrollable and his thought were whirling with bitter hate. "Break this and that, eh? Join a circus, huh? If that's what they think, then FINE! Let them have their way! No more clumsy clown to bother them!" He slammed his suitcase shut and raced down the stairs and out, slamming the door noisily behind him.
***end flashback***
Ken tried to blink back a few tears, then pulled the covers over him. Resting his head on a pillow, he cried himself to sleep.
Omi punched a few buttons on the keyboard. Click. Click. He had been searching for an hour and a half, but couldn't find any trace of Ken.
"Ken-kun… Where are you?" He asked himself, then pushed another button. Suddenly his computer started to beep loudly, as a red circle on its screen blinked in time to the bleeps. Omi smiled, "Found him!" He took note of the address, a small flower shop seven blocks away from the Koneko no Sumu Li. He made plans to visit the shop the next day, as he scribbled down the location on a piece of paper. Then after shutting down his computer, he went to sleep.
Soft voices echoing from nowhere…
"All he does is botch up our missions!!!"
"Break this and that and this and that…"
"At least clowns are more graceful than he is…"
Sneering faces appeared all around, laughing, insulting, screaming, yelling, hating, damning, cursing, killing... Cold and clammy…
Death…?
Ken screamed. Eyes wide open, he woke up. Drenched with sweat… breathing heavily. He wiped the perspiration off his forehead, "What the hell what that!?"
What the hell was that…?
Footsteps. Coming closer, closer, closer, sounding louder, louder, louder. A pair of feet stopped in front of him. Yohji raised his head slightly, his aching body preventing him from doing anything else. His eyes scanned, yet… there was nothing. And then he saw Ken, pale white with a dejected look on his face. Almost invisible ashen tears were rolling down his pallid features. Fingers reached out to touch the ghostly figure, but they only went through it. The white silhouette wavered. It mouthed one word, then started to vanish in the surrounding abyss.
"Why…?"
Yohji jerked awake, and sat up quickly, taking in air with short, quick gasps. Cupping his face in his hands, he felt his sweat roll down his body as he started to cry out Ken's name.
"We didn't mean it… Ken… Come back… Damn it!"
Yohji called out to no one, sadness pouring out from his voice.
"Please… where are you? Where are you…? WHERE ARE YOU????"
He choked, voice breaking down into loud sobs, "Please… Ken-kun…"
Ken fixed all the things in the flower shop to get ready for opening time. He placed a few things on the shelves, and rearranged some pots. He heard a click from the back door, and heard Jyo's cheery greeting of "Ohayo!" Ken smiled at the other boy, as the blonde started to help him prepare.
Five minutes after the shop had opened, the door clicked again, and Miya ran through apologizing furiously for being late. Ken grinned at her, "S'okay". The got busy doing their own stuff, fixing this, moving that, displaying this, and removing that.
~**I have a liking to "this, that, this, that", OK!? Geez…**~
Omi woke up early and had already eaten and brushed his teeth before anyone else had. He was about to go visit Ken, when suddenly Yohji called his name. "Where ya going?" He asked, rubbing his eyes drearily. "Gonna visit someone", Omi said, careful not to mention Ken's name. "Who?" Yohji questioned. "A classmate." Omi replied, inching towards the door. The other boy looked at him suspiciously, but let him go without prying.
"1775… 1775…" Omi hurried along the sidewalk, keeping an eye out for 'Designer Blooms', the place where Ken now worked. It took a few moments for him to find it; it was very crowded, the day being a Saturday morning. Many people were already roaming the streets, ready to scare their wallets and kill their credit cards.
Omi came to a halt before a stall, which was painted an eye-catching (or straining) shade of yellow. Through the lightly fogged window (for it was a chilly day), he could see somebody who appeared to be Ken. Taking a deep breath, he grasped the door handle, and pushed. Tinkle, tinkle. The soft jingle of the bells hanging from the 'OPEN' sign on the glass echoed in the almost empty shop. Looks like it was too early for most people to buy flowers— or at least nobody wanted to.
"Ken-kun…?"
The brunette whirled around to face whoever had addressed him. The voice was very familiar.
"Omi!?"
"Ohayo, Ken-kun! I'm glad I was able to find you!" the blonde exclaimed, blue eyes shining brightly. "What are you doing here!?" was the bewildered reply. "I came to get you. Yohji's suffering from a severe guilt trip," he giggled, very much like one of those schoolgirls that hung around the Koneko. "Serves him right…" the older man muttered, scornfully; his friends' (or so he used to think they were) words were still stinging. "Awww… You *know* you don't mean that! Ne, Ken-kun???" the other boy said, a grin plastered on his baby-cute face.
The 19-year-old sighed, then turned around to continue his work.
There was an indignant 'hmph' followed by a complaint.
"You're so rude."
Ken grinned, unnoticed; same old Omi…
Then there was a whine, "KEN-KUN!" "I can't!" the brown-haired boy answered. "Why not!?" Omi protested. "Because." He retorted, almost fiercely.
"Fine." L
The dark-haired boy chuckled, and then gave his comrade a smile. The sandy-haired blonde heaved a sigh, then took a glance at his watch then looked up, "Look, I gotta go now. Shop's gonna open in a few minutes, and this place is so far that I don't think I'll get back on time! I only got to spend a few minutes with you, but I don't want Aya-kun to kill me! See ya!"
And with that (and a final wave of his hand), he raced out the door.