Hello! This is my first fic and I thank you for taking your time to read it. (: I hope it isn't too draggy or dry or boring :/ Do give me your comments after you've read it :DD Thanks and enjoy the story!

Chapter 1 : It Sucks To Be Me

My fingers slid gracefully over the keys. It was a calm and romantic piece, Chopin's Etude in E major. The lighting was dim and I was playing at a corner of a large party hall. Guests were talking loudly amongst themselves, oblivious to my presence. More like they were ignoring my existence, treating me like some music entertainer. Calm down, don't blow your top again, you need this job, I told myself.

The notes flowed into the air as I approached the climax. It became more emotional, it yearned to sing, yearned for people to stop and listen to its melody. But no one did because they were all too busy boasting about their houses, cars and whatnot.

A lady giggled and a couple of men burst out into hearty laughter. People were toasting amongst themselves and cracking jokes. Breathing in and out slowly, I tried to keep my temper down. Don't pay much heed to these people, they can't appreciate music, but I can. I can hear how the piano is crying, how this music is on an endless search for love. As long as I alone enjoy the music, it is enough.

Just when I had finally calmed down, a woman burst into a high pitched laughter.

BANGG!

That's the last straw! I banged my fists on the piano, sending a loud discord echoing through the hall. The chair behind me fell over when I stood up. Fuming, I glared at the woman and muttered a curse under my breath, then I stomped out of the hall.

Damn those rich snobs! They think that with a couple of billion dollars and a fat ring on the finger, they can do anything they like? Well I'm not playing for people like that. They're not worthy to hear my music. I gritted my teeth and punched the elevator button.

"Ryoutaro!" My boss shouted as he ran towards me. The elevator door opened when he reached and I stepped inside without even acknowledging at him.

"This is the third time in a month you've lost your temper already!" chided my boss. I pressed for the lobby and ignored him.

"Dammit Ryoutaro!" He stopped the elevator door just before it closed.

"YOU'RE FIRED!" He yelled.

"About time," I said coolly. He glared at me as the doors closed and stuck out his middle finger.

Inside the lift, I banged my fist against the elevator walls. DAMMIT! SHIT THESE BASTARDS! I wanted to yell out my frustration. This crappy job was all I had to pay my rent and meals, and now I've lost it. Shit! I hate this place! I hate my job! I hate my life! The elevator door opened and I pushed past the people.

Outside, the night air was chilly and stale. But I took in a few deep breaths nonetheless, trying my best to subside my temper. I sucked in the cold air and exhaled a couple more times. Try to look on the bright side, now I don't have to play for anymore rich snobs. I can get a better job, get a better pay and find a place where my playing will be appreciated. Then I remembered that I hadn't collected my salary at all, and I was already three months behind rent. Arghh! What now?

"Tsuchiura?"

I turned around and came face to face with a man I had not seen for 5 years. He had light cyan hair and bangs that hid his amber eyes.

"It really is you." He said.

"T-Tsukimori?" My eyes widened. "My God, how long has it been?"

Tsukimori shrugged, "A couple of years since graduation, I guess."

Golly, he hasn't changed much at all. Except for a couple of feet taller and finer features, his build was still slender and his skin pale white.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was at the party you walked out of."

"And you followed me?" I gulped.

"Yeah," he replied immediately. Oh God, he must have seen my boss fire me. "Why did you leave so abruptly? You didn't even finish playing."

"Cause I can't stand playing for people who don't know how to shut up and listen."

He chuckled. "I see you're still the same. By the way, how are you these days?"

"Need you ask? You just saw me lost my job." I replied, frustrated.

"When?" He asked in surprise. Was this guy really that oblivious?

"Forget it, just do me a favour and pretend you never saw that." I shoved my hands into my pockets and walked towards my motorcycle.

"Where are you going?"

"To drown my sorrows."

"I'll come with you," he said, hurrying after me.

I eyed him. "Don't you have to go back to the party?"

"It's not like they'll notice if I'm gone or anything. Besides, my parents are there and they're all the guests care about."

"Suit yourself." I said, kick-starting my engine. Tossing him a helmet, I told him to get on. But he just stood there with the helmet in his hands, looking awkwardly at my bike.

"What? You've never ridden on a motorbike before?"

He shook his head. "Isn't it dangerous?"

"Oh for crying out loud. Just get on already."

He clambered on behind me and strapped his helmet down.

"Hold on tight." I pressed the accelerator and zoomed off onto the road. Tsukimori gasped and wrapped his arms tightly around my waist when he felt himself falling backwards. My cheeks blushed slightly at the sudden embrace. Wait! He's a guy! What am I doing! I shook the feeling away and roared into the night.

We were already at our fifth round but Tsukimori refused to stop. He continued gulping down the alcohol one after another.

"Hey, stop it already. You're drunk."

"No, I'm not. I'm still sober." He stubbornly insisted. Even though his face was flushed and his eyes had become hazy.

That night, we talked about our lives after we left school. Len told me that he went on to study abroad for four years after leaving school and had only come back to Japan recently. Since then, he gave little concerts every now and then to earn some money for his living expenses. Once, he had the opportunity to stand on the same stage as his parents and perform in Japan's National Arts Theatre. But he complained that nobody really paid any attention to him as all the audience cared about was his parents. I'm like a shadow to them, existent yet insignificant, he added.

"Your life ain't so bad," I said.

"Oh yeah?"

"Try being jobless and three months behind rent."

"Hmm, we could trade lives," he laughed. "It could be fun." He reached out for another glass but I stopped him.

"Enough is enough. Look at you," I clicked my tongue. His eyes were half closed and his face was burning red now. He had even started to slur his words.

"One more…" he pleaded. I ignored him and placed a couple of notes on the counter. "My treat, let's go."

Tsukimori whined and refused to get up. He was drunk alright, I had never seen him behave like this. Pulling his arm around my shoulder, I dragged him out of the pub. Luckily for me, my apartment was just a few blocks away. If Tsukimori were to ride my bike in his current state, he wouldn't be able to stay on it for 10 seconds.

With one hand supporting him, and the other pushing my bike along, I walked on. The streets were mostly deserted but night life had started at the little corners and cranks of the neighbourhood. I disliked where I lived, I mean, it wasn't bad during the day, but when night fell, it instantly became a shady place and it always gave me the feeling that something was lurking in the shadows of the alleys.I shivered at the thought of it and quickened my pace.

Finally, I reached my apartment. I parked my bike at its usual spot and locked the wheel. Tsukimori was still dead drunk. He was mumbling something inaudible to himself when he suddenly put a hand over his mouth. Oh no, please don't. But it was too late, he vomited all over my clothes. I scrunched my nose in disgust. His knees started to go weak and I had to support him with both hands. As I held him with both arms, our clothes touched and some of his vomit stained his own. Dragging him up the stairs, I prayed that the landlady would not get up. The last thing I wanted was for her to find this revolting mess on the front steps.

Opening my door, I gently lowered Tsukimori onto the couch. What a mess. I quickly filled the bath tub with hot water and dumped my foul smelling clothes in it. I walked out in my boxers to where Tsukimori was sprawled on the couch. Heaving a sigh, I took out his clothes, careful not to stain my hands. His torso was lean and his waist was much curvier. I never realized this before, but that was probably because I never saw Len in his underpants before. I felt a blush creep up my cheeks again. Dammit, it's the second time already. What's wrong with me, stop getting so aroused from seeing a naked guy!

Dumping his clothes into the tub as well, I opened my cabinet for clean clothes. To my dismay, I only had one set. That landlady must have forgotten to wash the laundry again. Carrying Tsukimori to my bed, I helped dress him in my long sleeves and my pants. Then I lay him in my bed and covered him with my blanket. I guess it's the couch for me tonight. Dang I'm too nice for my own good.

Grabbing an extra sheet, I covered my body and tried my best to snuggle into the narrow couch. So much for comfort. Yawning, I gave one last look at Tsukimori sleeping soundly on my bed. You'd better not throw up again, I silently warned. Before I knew it, I had fallen into a deep slumber.

The next morning, I was awoken by a loud rapping on the door.

"Tsuchiura-kun!" It was my landlady.

Rubbing my face with my hands, I opened the door and came face to face with a very angry woman. She took one look at me and next thing I knew, she was screaming at the top of her lungs.

"You pervert!" she hollered. "Why are you in your underpants?"

I glanced down at my boxers, and memories of last night's incident gradually resurfaced in my mind. Oh yeah, I forgot, I gave my only set of clean clothes to Tsukimori.

"Tsuchiura?" Tsukimori asked sleepily, he dragged his feet to the door and I wished he hadn't done so, because now the landlady looked very very horrified.

"OHMYGOD YOU'RE A PERVERTIC HOMO YOU KNOW THAT!" she shrieked. "YOU GET OUT! GRAB YOUR BOYFRIEND AND GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!"

"Boyfriend?" Tsukimori asked, confused. He was still half asleep.

I tried to calm her down but other tenants were starting to open their doors, wondering what the commotion was about. I quickly pushed Tsukimori back into the room and slammed the door shut.

"You have a boyfriend? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Just shut up for a moment." Oh crap oh crap. Now she thinks I'm gay. It couldn't get any better than this.

I quickly grabbed my luggage and started stuffing my belongings in them. Best to quickly make a run for it before it gets more complicated. Tsukimori was still in a daze, well, he wasn't a morning person to start with anyway.

"Tsukimori, can you do me a favour? Go to that shrieking lady outside and ask her for my laundry."

"Sure," he shrugged and dragged his feet out of the door.

When he returned, I was already zipping up my bag. I gave the room one last glance to make sure I hadn't left out anything. Grabbing the clothes from Tsukimori's hands, I hastily threw them on, my body was shivering. I tossed a jacket at Len and told him to wear it, then packed the rest into a sack and slung it over my shoulder.

"Come on, let's get outta here." I grabbed him by the wrist. The foul clothes were still in the tub but I couldn't be bothered to clear them. They were gone case after all, let the lady get it herself. Best to disappear before she finds them.

The other tenants were eyeing me suspiciously as I made my way to the front door. The vomit stains from the night before were still on the steps. Carefully avoiding them, I made a bolt for the exit. I strapped my luggage onto my bike and got on. Tsukimori obediently got on after me. As I drove onto the main road, I heard my landlady screaming swear words from behind.

We drove on for a couple more minutes, then I made a turn into an alley and gradually slowed my bike down.

"Where are we?" Tsukimori asked drowsily. He's still not awake? Annoyed, I opened my bottle and splashed some water into his face. He instantly became alert. Staring at his surroundings for a while, he stuttered as he tried to ask everything at once.

"What? Where- Last night? My clothes…" he pulled at the jacket he was wearing. I sighed and explained everything to him from the top. From the part about getting drunk to the part where my landlady accused me of being a homo and chased me out. He stared at me for a few moments, his brain still processing the story.

"Umm, so now you're homeless?"

"And jobless," I added.

"Oh, I'm so sorry… I caused you so much trouble. I can go back there and talk to your landlady, clear things up," he offered.

"Nah, I was already three months behind rent, she was gonna kick me out anyway."

"So where are you going to go now?"

"Beats me." I breathed. "I'll drop you home first, your parents must be worried." I had no idea what I was going to do from now on. The first thing I should probably do is to find a place to live. Then I'll go worry about a job, and paying rent, and meals. I sighed.

We got on the bike again and Tsukimori directed me to his house. On the road Tsukimori kept apologizing for having caused me so much trouble. He even offered to let me stay at his place until I found a job. But I declined his offer, I would manage. Somehow…

As I pulled up in front of his house, I couldn't stop staring at it. It was huuuuuuge. Wow… I breathed. Len got off with his helmet still strapped on.

"I'll return these clothes to you, wait for me." He said, turning to the gate when an old man came running towards him.

"You!" he cried. "Oh thank God you're safe!"

"Tamaka-san? What's wrong?" Tsukimori asked.

The old man looked really frantic, he kept glancing around, as if afraid that someone was watching him.

"You must run away this instant!" he ordered.

"What? I don't understand!"

"Listen to me! Your parents were killed last night when they left the party. Whoever the murderers were, they intended to wipe out the entire Tsukimori family. But you weren't with your parents last night. And now, now they're searching for you. Please get out of here! You must live! For the sake of your parents. Escape now and don't ever come back!" He took out a wad of money and shoved it into his hands.

"GO! NOW!"

Before Tsukimori could reply, a gunshot echoed in the air. The old man collapsed to the ground and his head started to bleed. His eyes were lifeless.

OhmyGod! Tsukimori just stood there, too shocked and too afraid to move. I quickly pulled him back to the seat behind me and pressed hard on the accelerator. Another gunshot resonated in the air as I sped away from the scene. Tsukimori trembled behind me, everything was happening so fast. We drove on for hours on the road, but I never stopped. I went as far away as I could, who knows, they could be chasing us down right now. Tsukimori still hadn't spoken a single word since we left the place.

Eventually, my bike started to run out of gas and we had to stop by a petrol station. Tsukimori got off the bike, his eyes still wide with fear and disbelief. As I filled up my tank, I kept a watchful eye on him. He just sat there on the pavement with his head in his hands. When the tank was full, I took a note from the wad of money Tsukimori clenched in his fist and handed it to the cashier. He gave me back the change and I stuffed it into my pocket.

"Come on, let's go. It's getting late, we should find a place to sleep." I took his arm gently. He flinched when I touched him but gradually relaxed when he realized it was me. I took the stack of money from his hand and stuffed it into my sack.

We drove on for a little longer, until a motel came into view. Parking my bike in the lot, I grabbed my luggage and went to the counter to book a room. Tsukimori was still in a state of shock and I had to lead him to the room by tugging at his arm gently.

Closing the door behind me, I poured a glass of water and passed it to him. He took the glass from me and sat on the edge of bed. He still hadn't uttered a single word.

"I'm going to take a shower," I said. As I stepped inside the toilet, I couldn't help but give a worried glance at Tsukimori. He wasn't looking good. He was probably still having difficulties accepting reality. Turning on the water tap, I poured the liquid soap onto my hands and scrubbed my hair.

When I was done, Tsukimori was still sitting on the bed and the glass of water in his hands was still full. Sighing, I took a sit beside him.

"Hey," I started. "Who was that man?"

Tsukimori didn't say anything for a long time. We just sat there, his eyes casted downwards and hands clutching the glass.

"Tsukimori…" I placed a hand on his shoulder. He jolted and dropped the glass. Luckily, the floor was carpeted so the glass didn't break. Looking up at me, he stared at me with eyes full of terror, and the next thing I knew, they started to well up.

"Tell me why! Why is this happening!" he cried, throwing his arms around my neck. I hushed him and placed my hands on his back. Patting him, I tried to console him, but my mind drew a blank on what to say. What can I say, really? When someone had just lost his family and had to see his butler die before his eyes. It's okay? That would be a lie. For a long time we stayed in that position. His hands wrapped around my neck and his face was buried in my shoulder while my hands held him close to my body.

"Hey, stop crying already. You're a grown man." I finally said.

"What am I going to do now?"

"You're gonna do what that man told you."

"My butler? What did he say?"

"He said 'live', Tsukimori, and that's what you're gonna do." I consoled him.

"But how? My house, my job, my future. I've been robbed of it."

"I'm still here, aren't I? I don't know how, but we'll manage." I placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Tsuchiura, I just realized, that you saved my life."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Last night, if you hadn't let me tag along, I would've been dead already." He laughed in disbelief.

I pulled him close for another embrace. "That means you owe your life to me," I said.

"Y-Yeah…" he said as a blush creeped up his cheeks.

"Then I want you to promise me one thing."

"What?"

"Promise me you'll continue living and that you'll find a new purpose in life."

"Tsuchiura…" He huddled closer. "I'm so scared."

"It's okay. I'm here." I said reassuringly. "I'm not going anywhere."

That's it. I thought I could have done a better job. But my English is so crappy and all D: please do send in your reviews ((: I look forward to reading them!

For some reason, it just irks me whenever I read about fanfics on how Len is so in love with Kahoko but her heart beats only for Aoi ): It's just so sad T_T It's not that I dislike Aoi or anything, in fact, I actually like him a lot :D, but I just don't like to see Len getting hurt DD: I wish someone would write a story about how Aoi and Len can have a happy ending, whoever Kahoko chooses. Haha. Oh man maybe I should just take things into my own accord and try it out, see how it turns out. What do you say? :DD