Disclaimer: I do not own Gravitation or any of the characters. I also do not own any part of the song "'Til a Tear Becomes a Rose," which was the sole property of the late, great Keith Whitley. May he rest in peace.
Seguchi Touma had suspected that something was wrong with his wife Mika for the past several weeks now. She had been distant, distracted, and downcast. He couldn't help but feel that it was something that he was doing, but he couldn't get close enough to her to find out what it was and how he could fix it.
There was a dark cloud that had been hovering over her for a while now, and he'd tried time and time again to get it to leave her presence by spending more time with her, showing her more affection, and continuing to love her in general. However, nothing seemed to work. He was finally resigned to talking to the one person he knew would understand, the one person he knew who had managed to keep a perfect relationship with his wife.
Darling I can see the clouds around you
And in your heart I know a sorrow grows.
But if you weep I'll be right here to hold you
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose
"K-san," Touma said as the manager wandered around his office. "Is your wife happy? I mean, has she ever just suddenly become cold and distant toward you for no apparent reason?"
He smiled and replied, "I assume that this has something to do with Miss Mika?"
He nodded saying, "I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong here. Just all of a sudden it seems like she doesn't love me anymore. I've tried everything I know of, but she just doesn't seem to want to be with me anymore. Why do you think that is?"
Remembering his previous conversation with Mika herself, K decided to be discreet as he said, "Well, has it ever occurred to you that, in her eyes, you seem to pay much more attention to her little brother than you do to her? No offense, of course, Mr. President. It just seems to me that you should show her more often that you love her and not what you were able to gain in Yuki Eiri from your marriage."
"Eiri?" he said, pretending to be befuddled by the very idea. Of course, when it came right down to it, he couldn't lie to himself and say that he had never had feelings for the young writer. Of course he loved his wife far more, but how was he supposed to make her believe that? Surely there was something he could do to show her how much he wanted her and not her brother.
Dearest love I know your heart is shattered
And all my words can offer no relief
But my love will heal the pain you've suffered
And I'll be here if you should turn to me
Later that evening, Touma crawled into bed beside Mika, remembering what K had told him earlier. Oddly enough, however, he didn't even have to move before she turned to him and whispered his name as she slid closer. He smiled as he put his arms around her, but before he could kiss her, she stopped him and said, "Wait…Don't close your eyes."
While they were lying in each other's arms after they had made love, she said gently, "This is all I wanted from you, Touma. All I wanted was for you to prove to me that you loved me."
He kissed her head and replied, "I wish you had just told me. I've spent weeks trying to figure out where I'd gone wrong, and now that I know, I can start fixing it." He lifted her head to his and added, "From this point on, I'm going to right all those wrongs. I promise not to make you cry again…ever."
She smiled back saying, "Tell me that you love me, Touma."
"I love you, Mika," he said.
Darling I can see the clouds around you
And in your heart I know a sorrow grows
But if you weep I'll be right here to hold you
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose
The next couple of months proved to Mika that Touma had meant what he said when he promised to prove to her that he really did still love her and not Yuki. He'd been more attentive and loving than ever, and he'd even gone so far as to suggest that Yuki take Shuuichi away for a weekend to get his priorities together before their next tour began.
He said "I love you" much more often and decided to plan something huge for their anniversary coming up. He had Ryuichi record a song that they had written together, which he played for her while giving her a dozen red roses.
As she stood marveling at the beautiful roses, he said, "These are just a start, Mika. Before it's over, I'll give you a rose for every tear you cried because of me. I promise that I will make it all up to you, starting with this."
She just shook her head with a smile as she replied, "As long as you promise that you meant it when you said "'til death do us part", that's more than enough for me."
In deepest night when memories tend to gather
Lay with me and put your fears to sleep
'Cause there's no pain no dream can put asunder
All the love that binds you and me
As Mika sat on her bed, looking around the room at the many roses Touma had given her in the past few months, she couldn't help but give a little chuckle. She'd told him that he didn't have to do that, but it was very important to him to prove to her that he was serious.
Interrupting her thoughts, he walked into the room with his hands behind his back and smug grin on his face. She raised an eyebrow saying, "What? You have a look about you that says you've done something wrong."
"I think it's you who is wrong this time, Mika," he replied, sitting down beside her. "For once, I believe I've finally done something right." He then pulled out a single red rose from behind his back and handed it to her. "The last one for your collection," he added. "I have now achieved giving you a rose for every tear I made you cry."
She took it in her hands and smelled its enchanting scent deeply. There were several moments of silence that passed between them before she hugged him tightly and said, "Thank you, Touma. I really do love you."
He nodded and said, "And don't you worry, Mika. I'll always love you, and if I ever just happen to make you cry again, know that I'll hold you until each tear becomes a rose."
Darling I can see the clouds around you
And in your heart I know a sorrow grows
But if you weep I'll be right here to hold you
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose
Not my best, I know, but this is a continuation fic in response to the requests I received to continue the story from my fic "Don't Close Your Eyes", which was also a terrific song owned only by Keith Whitley. Thanks to everyone for their comments on "Don't Close Your Eyes", and I hope that you like this one just as much!