Simple one shot set in a…AU of sorts. Basically Bad Luck was never formed is the only diff.
You know it's actually been a while since I looked at all the Fan Fics. And it always makes me laugh when I see someone post a idea that hasn't been posted in a while, than all of a sudden everyone else posts the same thing.
I've noticed that with two of my Stories, Bloods River and Broken. (Had actually typed Solitary instead of Broken which I guess is a spoiler cuz it's not finished yet :x). I don't know, maybe I just notice random things and create a relation to them Lol.
But I will say that my big inspiration for this, was that I was re-re-reading Prediction of the Pink here on FF (Great story that needs updates more often e.e), and I was reading the Christmas chapter. I just thought "What if . . ." and went off it as always.
I do not own nor have any claim to Gravitation.
The snow was falling slowly, almost hovering in the sky. The cold blanket on the ground showed the tracks of people walking around; people needing to get home or do last minute holiday shopping.
The kindness of the holiday season was lost to these people. All they cared about was material possessions. No one seemed to even glance at the people who were trying to shield themselves from winter's cold touch. No one wanted to be homeless during the holidays. Even more so during one of the largest snow falls in the last fifty years.
Slowly a small framed person stumbled down the street, trying his best to avoid people. His coat was getting heavy as the snow melted and was absorbed. His body was cold. He couldn't help but shiver as he walked into an unknown location. He just had to find somewhere he could stay warm, and survive the night.
The small teen wasn't paying attention as he walked into a man. Suddenly he fell backwards, hitting his head on something behind him. "Ow," he whispered, short of breath still.
The man looked down, watching as the teens eyes opened and closed slowly, fighting to stay conscious. "You should watch where you're going next time, brat."
"I'm sorry," he whispered as he tried to stand up, only to hold his head. "Ouch," he mumbled as he tried to look behind him.
Rolling his eyes, the man came to eye level with the teen. "Listen here, brat. If you're going to try that 'I'm hurt now pay me' crap, I'll just throw you into the road and let a car hit you."
There was silence for a minute. "I wasn't going to...but my head won't stop spinning and it hurts," he whispered.
The man sighed as he stood up straight. "Come on, I live about a block away. You can come to my place and use my phone to call someone to get you, brat."
"Shuichi. My names Shuichi, not brat," Shuichi said as he tried to stand up only to fall again. "Do you have something that will make my head stop hurting?"
He looked down at Shuichi with a puzzled look. "Probably some pain killers in my apartment. Come on," he said as he helped Shuichi stand. He watched as the soft, empty violet eyes rolled into the back of the teens head. "Hey brat, wake up. Shuichi," he said as he grabbed the teen before he fell into the slushy snow.
...
Shuichi slowly opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. Something seemed off...he felt warm for some reason. Carefully he sat up, realizing he was under some blankets and on a bed. At that, he wasn't in a shelter...this room had too many nice things in it.
"Where am I," he mumbled as his head started to hurt again. He clenched each side, forcing his eyes closed. "Ow," he cried again. "Make it stop...please," he added, calling to no one. Surprise caught him when he felt something on his head. Opening his eyes just a bit, he looked at the blond so was sitting on the edge of the bed. "Who are you?"
"Lay back down, brat. Being out in the snow with that coat made you sick. Just give me a number to call so someone can come get you," the man said as he held up a glass of water and two pain killers.
Shuichi happily took them, swallowing the two pills quickly. Looking down he noticed that he wasn't in his own clothes. "What am I wearing? Where are my clothes?"
"There in the dryer. I wasn't about to put you in my bed with wet clothes on," he said as he stood. Carefully he fixed his blond hair as he headed to the door. "If you don't want to call anyone, you can stay here till morning. But then I want you gone, got it?"
Shuichi nodded slowly. "Thank you for the medicine," he whispered as he lay back down.
"I'm making dinner right now. If you're still awake when it's done, you can have some," the blond said as he headed out of the room.
Sitting up again, Shuichi stared at him. "What's your name?"
Turning his head, he said soft "you can call me Yuki," before closing the door.
'He's gorgeous,' he thought as he lay back down. 'What am I saying? He's a he! Plus he wouldn't want me around...I'm just trouble to everyone,' he thought as he closed his eyes. "This bed smells nice," he mumbled as he laid there.
...
The silence was become too much. Grabbing the lower blanket, he pulled it from the bed and wrapped up in it. Slowly he walked to the door and opened it. Carefully he walked into the hallway, looking around as he headed towards the end of the hall.
He was surprised by how bare the walls were. No picture, no decoration, nothing. Just tan walls.
"If you're healthy enough to be walking around, you're healthy enough to leave," Yuki said from the kitchen.
Shuichi jumped, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from. "I'm sorry. I just...I wanted to thank you again."
Yuki rolled his eyes as he grabbed two plates and carried them to the table. "Sit down," he ordered as he set the plates down.
Smiling Shuichi ran to the table and sat down.
"So why are you wearing my sheet around?"
"I didn't want to walk around in just a shirt. If my clothes are dry I'll change back into them," he whispered.
There was silence as the two ate.
"It's really good," Shuichi said as he finished the food on his plate. "I've never had something so delicious."
Yuki raised an eyebrow at the teen. "It's just food," he said as he picked up the plates. "Now go back to bed."
Shuichi smiled as he stood. "Thank you for everything," he said as he started down the hallway before stopping again. "If you don't mind me asking...if I'm sleeping in your bed, where will you be sleeping?"
"I'm not tonight. I have things I need to get done," he replied as he walked out with a cup of coffee.
Turning, he looked down at the hardwood floor. "If you want I can sleep on the floor so you can have your bed. I'm used to it so it's alright."
Yuki sighed as he pushed past the teen and headed for a different room in the hallway. "Doctor said you need a good night's rest. That means a bed. I have a lot of work to do so I really don't care," he said as he opened the door. "Now shut up and go to bed or I'll throw you out right now."
He was frozen as he looked at the blond. "D-doctor? But I don't…I can't…."
Rolling his eyes, Eiri picked the teen up and carried him to the bed. "The guy next door is a Doctor, moron. I just called in a favor. Now go to sleep or I swear I will toss you out," he said as he walked towards his study.
...
There was something wrong as he walked down the mid morning streets. He wasn't sure what it was, but something hurt.
Silently he ducked into an alley and looked around. This is where he hid most of the time. No one bothered to go down these side streets since they were mainly full of homeless people. And it was the only place he knew he could hide from on lookers.
As the snow fell, he pulled the new coat tighter. It wasn't new; it was one that Yuki had given him before he left. Apparently his coat had degraded in the wash, so Yuki was nice enough to pull out one of his old coats and give it to him.
"Hey it's the kid," someone called from the end of the alley.
Shuichi stopped, looking down.
"So where were you last night? We had no one to get us food...hey, what's with this coat," a different voice asked as three men walked up.
He looked down slowly. "I got hurt and a man helped me out. He gave me this coat too," he whispered, careful not to mention names.
One of the men started to laugh. "Well you're just in time. We found a new house to target and we're going tonight."
'Great, more stealing.'
"And this guy's loaded too! Bet you anything he has money laying around his place," the man added, walking down the alley. "But we're going to need you for it, kid. You aren't as noticeable as us adults."
Shuichi closed his eyes. He hated when these men used him like this, but he had nowhere else to go. Plus he owed his life to them after they saved him from death...only to make him their slave.
...
They stared up at the large apartment building as day turned to night. For some reason it looked familiar to Shuichi, but he wasn't sure why. Probably memory lapses due to the hit to the head.
"The apartment is on the seventh floor. There is a spare key kept under the door, taped to the bottom, got it," one of the men asked, looking at Shuichi. "No one should be home for another few hours, but that doesn't mean you can take your time in there."
Shuichi nodded as he took his coat off and handed it to one of the men. Worse case he would be able to act like he had gotten locked out of his apartment...even more so since his clothes were clean now.
"Do this right, we'll eat nice tonight," one of the other men said as Shuichi started for the building.
It only took him ten minute to scale the stairs and arrive on the seventh floor. "Number nine," he mumbled as he walked down the hallway. The apartment was the last door on the right side, probably meaning it was the biggest.
Kneeling down, he pulled the key from under the door and smiled. He always wondered how they got this information, but it didn't really matter to him.
Standing tall, he unlocked the door and slipped in. Instantly he caught the smell of fresh coffee lingering in the air.
Slipping off his shoes, he walked into the dark apartment. Turning down the hallway, he tried the first door on his left. Once he was inside, he turned on the light to look around. It looked kind of like a home office...but not. On the desk were many books that looked more like dictionaries than anything else.
Taking one last look around, he turned off the light and stepped back into the hallway.
Immediately he felt weight on his body as he was pinned to the floor. "If you were looking for anything of value, you're in the wrong place. I'm not stupid enough to leave that stuff here," the man said softly, directly in Shuichi's right ear.
His body started shacking in fear. "I'm sorry...please don't hurt me," he cried softly.
"Tatsuha, turn on the light so we can see the thief," he called out as another person walked up from behind them.
"Don't see why you can't just get up and do it yourself," Tatsuha mumbled as he flipped the light switch.
Once his eyes adjusted, he looked down at the familiar bandage that sat atop pink hair. Quickly he flipped the teen over; narrowing his eyes once he saw who it was. "This is why I hate brats."
Through tear filled eyes, Shuichi looked up at Yuki and wanted to cry more. "This is your...but...I'm sorry," he cried, covering his face.
Tatsuha was confused. "Know him Bro?"
Carefully Yuki got up, looking down at Shuichi who curled into a ball. "He ran into me last night and hit his head on a light pole. Brought him back here and let him sleep here since he didn't have anyone to call. Didn't know it was all an act."
"It wasn't," Shuichi cried out. "I didn't know...they didn't tell me...I'm so sorry."
"Who didn't tell you," Tatsuha said as he knelt next to Shuichi.
Slowly Shuichi sat up, looking at Tatsuha with soft eyes. "Outside...I kind of stay with them but they just use me to steal things. I'm small so I can go places they can't," he whispered. "They said no one was going to be here...and they didn't say who lived here."
Yuki rolled his eyes as he headed to the living room. "Convenient," he said as he picked up the phone. "Get me the police; I need to report a crime."
Tatsuha stood up quickly. "Wait Eiri; don't call the police on the kid!"
"Yes I need to report a robbery," he said before turning his back to his little brother.
Shuichi sat on his knees and hung his head. "What I did is wrong," he whispered. "I'm prepared for whatever they sentence me to."
Within ten minutes Yuki was done on the phone and walking away. "I'm going to bed. Tatsuha, you deal with all this for me."
"Hey, that's not fair! I was about to go home myself before you made us turn off the damn lights," he yelled as the bedroom door closed. There was silence for a few minutes as he watched the light under the door go out. "He really went to sleep."
Shuichi closed his eyes. "I'm sorry about this," he said as he heard the police arriving.
Scratching the back of his head, Tatsuha walked over to the window and looked out. He was surprised to see that only one officer walked inside the building as three men were put in the back of police cars.
It took about three minutes for the officer to get up and knock on the door.
Tatsuha walked over and opened it slowly.
"Sir, I am officer Mimikoto. Are you Mr. Eiri Uesugi?"
"Yeah," he said as he stepped out of the way.
The officer pulled out his notebook and smiled. "Thank you for helping us to catch these three criminals. There is also a two and a half million yen reward for them."
Both Shuichi and Tatsuha were surprised. "You wouldn't happen to have anything in your notebook about a fourth, would you?"
The man was confused. "No, it's a trio. Why do you ask?"
"No reason. I thought I heard someone say there were four, not three. Probably just a mistake," he said with a laugh. "Anyways, we need to be getting to bed. Lot of stuff to do tomorrow," he said as he closed the door.
Shuichi stood slowly and looked at the other teen. "Why didn't you tell him I was with them?"
Tatsuha sighed softly. "It was Eiri who called and reported them, not me. Go yell at him."
"What happens to me now though? They were the only ones who took me in," he whispered as he looked at the floor.
He started to laugh. "I'm sure Eiri will let you have the reward. I doubt he really needs the money," he said as he kissed Shuichi's head. "As for now, since he didn't turn you in, he must have some reason. So since he left me in charge, I've decided you can stay here tonight and be his problem tomorrow," Tatsuha said as he walked down the hallway and opened a door opposite the Study. "This is a spare bedroom. I normally sleep here when I spend the night."
Shuichi nodded slowly as he walked into the room. "Thanks a lot," he whispered as he walked towards the bed. He froze remembering something. "They have my coat...the one Yuki gave me. It had my ID card in it," he said as he turned around.
Tatsuha sighed as he leaned on the door frame. "You are just one problem after another, aren't you?"
Slowly Shuichi sat on the bed, curling into a ball. "I don't mean to be. Trouble just likes me for some reason."
He couldn't help but laugh. "Bathroom is the next door in the hallway. Eiri likes to sleep late into the day, even more so after not sleeping for a few days. So if he isn't awake when you wake up, go back to sleep."
...
He was scared to move around in the apartment. Yuki didn't actually know that he was still there, even though Tatsuha said it was alright for him to be.
Slowly he snuck out of the bedroom and walked into the bathroom. Hesitantly he pulled his clothes off and stepped into the shower. He was just going to take a quick one in case Yuki was to wake up and catch him.
"What the hell are you doing, brat," Yuki said from the other side of the shower's door. "I don't recall saying you could stay here."
Shuichi slipped and fell to the floor of the shower when he heard the mad blond start talking. Turning off the watch, he slid open the shower door, but hid the best he could. "Tatsuha said I could sleep here. I just came in here to wash my hair, I promise."
Yuki stared down at him with cold eyes. "Just hurry up and get out."
He looked away from Yuki slowly. "I don't know where to go. With those men...though they didn't treat me very good was the only home I knew. Since they were arrested...I don't have anywhere to go."
"Well you aren't staying in my apartment."
"Please? I'll do anything! I'll be your maid if you want," he said as he blushed lightly. "You don't have to pay me, just please let me stay here."
Yuki closed his eyes. Slowly he turned around and exited the bathroom with a naked Shuichi on his heels. "Leave."
Shuichi gripped the back of Yuki's shirt, pressing his body to the man's back. "Please I will do anything you ask. I have nothing to offer you in trade but I'm willing to work for you!"
Turning he pulled the teens head back by his hair. "You want to stay here that bad?" His only reply was a faint "yes" from Shuichi. "I don't need a maid because I never have a mess to clean up. However," he stopped talking as his free left hand made its way to Shuichi's butt. "That doesn't mean that I can't find a different use for you."
He froze when he felt the hand massaging his back side. He wanted to scream when he felt the finger running over his lower hole, but bit his tongue instead.
"You said anything," Yuki whispered as he pushed the single finger in.
Shuichi's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. "S-stop...please."
Pulling away, Yuki watched as Shuichi fell to his knees. "I'm going out. When I get back, I want you gone," he said as he walked towards the door as Shuichi fell to the floor.
...
The sun was starting to set, taking the only light from the apartment.
Shuichi had only moved to get dressed. Once he was wearing clothes, he sat in front of the door, waiting for Yuki to return.
To find out that the only way he could stay here was if he used his body...something about that made his heart hurt.
But if he left, he would probably sell his body to strangers to get money now. Based on that, he might as well let Yuki do as he pleased to his small body if it meant he would have somewhere to go at the end of the day.
Slowly he lifted his head as he saw the door open.
"You're still here," Yuki mumbled as he kicked his shoes off. "Thought I told you to not be here when I got back."
Standing up slowly, Shuichi placed his right hand over his heart. "I'm sorry I rejected you like that. I've been thinking that...my body doesn't mean much to me. It's the only thing I have that is still mine, but whatever I have will be used to help me survive so..."
Yuki started to laugh. "Whoever said that deal was going to be on the table still? You already said "no" to it after all."
"Please, I won't say no ever again. Just please don't throw me out into the cold," he cried as he lowered his head. "I almost died the other night...I don't want to go back out there and die now."
There was silence in the room as Yuki walked up to Shuichi. Carefully he cupped Shuichi's face in his right hand, sliding his thumb into the teen's mouth. "Here is what I will do. I'm not about to force you to have sex with me. Rather than raping you, I'd rather wait until you are ready."
Tears collected in Shuichi's eyes, falling down his face. "Thank you," he whispered.
Walking away from Shuichi, he walked over to the couch and sat down. "You'll work as a maid around here. If you slack off, I'll toss your ass into the snow again."
Shuichi smiled as he walked over to Yuki. "Is there anything I can get for you then?"
"Get me a beer from the fridge," he said as he fell over, lying on the leather couch.
Quickly Shuichi ran to the kitchen and grabbed a can for Yuki.
"Think about it like this. I'll pay you every month since you are technically working for me. Your food and rent will be taken from this, and the rest of the money I will give you. It won't be much, but you should be able to buy clothes or something with it," he mumbled as he sat up to take the beer. "And when you are finally ready, we can just go have sex and that will cover your rent. Let's say five times a month...that should be decent."
His violet eyes went wide. "Five? Why so many times?"
Yuki smiled as he opened the can. "Don't worry; you'll learn to enjoy it really fast."
...
It had been a month since Shuichi started living with Yuki. He soon learned that the man was really a famous novelist. That was a surprise to him, since he could barely read.
But that didn't stop him from staying in the apartment. Every day he still cleaned up and made sure everything was in the proper place.
Once laundry was done, he was able to relax for a while. Soon Eiri would be home and he would probably be told to do something else.
However, that night when Eiri came home, he was different. It was easy to tell the man had been drinking. And not just a little alcohol, a lot of alcohol. "Brat, get me a drink."
"I think you've had enough," Shuichi whispered as he ran over to help Eiri walk.
He narrowed his eyes as they walked to the master bedroom. "I don't need you to tell me when I've had enough," he said as he fell onto the bed, taking Shuichi with him.
"I'm sorry," Shuichi whispered as he tried to get up, but he wasn't able to get out from under Eiri's body. "Can you please get off me?"
A cold expression appeared on Eiri's face as he pulled Shuichi into the middle of the bed and pinned him down. "I really hate how you parade around here. Think I won't touch you just because you aren't ready to have sex? Well you're wrong," he whispered as he started kissing Shuichi neck.
His eyes went wide when he realized what was going on. "No stop," he cried, trying to pull away.
.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=
He had a splitting headache. As he sat up, he could remember the party. Faint memories of it flashed in his head, and in most of them he had a drink in hand.
But he was surprised to realize he was naked. He didn't remember bringing anyone home...that was something he had stopped doing once Shuichi started living there. After all he didn't want the kid to feel weird.
Stifling a yawn, he stood and walked towards his attached bathroom. Once he walked in, he stopped. "What are you doing in my bathroom," Eiri said as he narrowed his eyes at the naked form of Shuichi.
Lifting his head, it was easy to tell he had been crying. "I'm sorry...please, I'll go," he said as he tried to stand.
It was easy for Eiri to see that Shuichi was in pain, but he wasn't sure why. Turning around, he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist before starting towards the teen. "What's wrong? Where are you hurt?"
"Like you care," Shuichi mumbled, hoping the man didn't hear him.
Eiri narrowed his eyes at that one. "I wouldn't ask if I didn't care, brat. Now tell me what's wrong."
"You raped me last night," Shuichi said as he held up his hands, showing cuts on his wrists. "You tied me up and raped me for hours before you fell asleep!"
Stepping back, Eiri was shocked. "I...I did? Shuichi..."
Sitting back down, he hid has face to keep crying. "I hate you, you jerk!"
Eiri looked away for a minute as he thought. Carefully he picked up the teen, not caring that he was kicking and screaming. "I'm not going to hurt you again, idiot," he said as he set Shuichi on the bed. Walking back into the bathroom, he grabbed a medical kit than returned.
"Why do you hate me so much?"
"I don't hate you," he mumbled as he sat on the bed. Hesitantly he wrapped Shuichi's wrists in bandages. "Roll over," he said as he dug out a small tube from the box.
Shuichi didn't move.
Rolling his eyes, he handed Shuichi the tube. "Fine then. Take a little bit of this on your finger, than shove it up your ass."
Taking a second, Shuichi rolled over and raised his butt in the air. "You said that I would like it, but I wanted to die."
"Probably because I didn't prep you," he said as he applied the ointment to the tears in Shuichi's anal. "No, based on these tears I can tell that I didn't."
Shuichi closed his eyes to avoid showing the pain. "I wanted to enjoy my first time," he whispered. "I wanted to only feel embarrassed when you pushed into me...but that's not what happened."
"Go rest in your room. Just...we'll talk later," he said as he stood.
He closed his eyes as he fell onto the bed. "I'm leaving," he mumbled. "You don't want me here, so I'm leaving."
Eiri was surprised by how much those words hurt his chest. "And go where? You have no money...and you aren't about to whore yourself out to strangers!"
Slowly Shuichi sat up and crawled off the bed. "That's not right. I do have money...Tatsuha gave me the reward money from those men's arrest. He told me to hold onto it in case I needed it for anything," he said as he started walking out of the room.
"Wait, Shuichi," Eiri called out as he ran after the teen. Quickly he wrapped his arms around the slender frame and held him close. "Don't go, please. I'm sorry for last night, and I'll find some way to make it up to you. Just please don't leave like this."
Shuichi closed his eyes again as he leaned into Eiri's embrace. "Please let me go," he whispered. "I don't want to be hurt again."
"I won't, I promise," he said as he captured Shuichi's lips. "I won't hurt you like that ever again," he said after a short kiss. "Just don't leave here."
Carefully he pulled away. "I don't want to risk it."
Eiri leaned against the wall. "Go get dressed and let's talk," he said softly, averting his eyes from the site before him.
Shuichi looked down, remembering he was still naked. Suddenly he bolted into the spare bedroom and slammed the door.
He couldn't help but laugh as he walked into his room and put some pants on. Once he had them on, he walked into the hallway and stood across from Shuichi's door. He had no plan of letting it end like this.
It was a good ten minutes before Shuichi opened the door, holding a bag in each hand. "You can't stop me from leaving."
"You're right, and I'm not going to stop you. You know where the door is if you really want to go," he said as he stood straight. "I can't stop you from leaving, but I still want to talk to you about what happened."
Shuichi shook his head as he started walking. "Don't worry, I won't go tell the world you raped and tortured me for a night," he said sarcastically.
Eiri rolled his eyes as he grabbed Shuichi's shoulder to turn him around. "That's not what I meant," he said as he crushed his lips on Shuichi's. He tried not to smile when he heard the bag hit the floor.
Slowly he pulled away, pushing the loose pink stands away from Shuichi's eyes. "You can leave, I won't stop you. But let me do something for you first," he whispered as he kissed Shuichi's lips again.
Shuichi felt his body melting. No matter how hard he tried, his body wouldn't move; his body wouldn't reply. "Eiri," he whispered as the man started kissing his neck.
Carefully he picked the teen up, and carried him towards his bedroom. "Just relax," he whispered as he set the teen on the bed. "I promise I won't hurt you," he said softly.
Nodding, Shuichi closed his eyes. His body was acting against his will now. He wanted to go. He wanted to get away from Eiri and be alone, but his body wouldn't listen to him.
When he felt the hands caressing his body, he lost it. All thoughts were out of his mind as he reached for Eiri's face, and stole a kiss.
...
Eiri was in the kitchen, working on his first cup of coffee for the day. Normally it would be Shuichi's job, but with all that had happened, he wasn't about to say anything to him or wake him up.
Turning, he was surprised to see Shuichi standing in the door way, wrapped in a blanket. "Morning," he said softly. "Still mad?"
Shuichi looked down. "No," he mumbled.
"Did you enjoy it this time," he whispered as he moved around the pink hairs.
He nodded slowly in reply. "Thank you," Shuichi said as he turned. "I'll get out of your way now."
Eiri sighed. "Idiot, don't leave. Stay here as long as you want," he replied as he walked past the teen. "I'm not going to kick you out, even if you don't do anything around here. But since you don't exactly know how to manage what little money you have, just stay here."
Shuichi swallowed hard. "Will I have to pay with my body now?"
He turned around and kissed Shuichi's lips. "No payment. Just try to keep the place clean...but if you want to have sex again, let me know." And with that, he walked into his study and closed the door.
Slowly Shuichi walked over to the office door and sat down. He closed his eyes, and soon fell asleep again.
It was an hour before Eiri opened the door, only to Shuichi fall back. "Idiot," he mumbled as he picked the teen up. Carefully he carried him into the guest bedroom and turned off the lights. "Sleep it off, Shu," he said as he closed the door.
He wasn't going to admit his feelings. He wouldn't admit that he liked the teenager that was living with him. Even more so that he wanted nothing more than to protect him.
They had only just met and he already felt so strong for him. It was strange and foreign. He had only felt this way once, and swore to never feel it again.
Taking a deep breath, he vanished back into his office and continued to work.
And this one is done.
Thoughts?