Here Without You

By: Amako-chan

I fell down to my knees. Tears slipped down and along my cheeks and off my chin. Why had this happened? Why had all of this happened? The tears came from my green eyes in a heavier amount as I began sobbing uncontrollably. All I could think about was what had happened.

(Flashback)

I walked into the house taking off my coat and hat and placing them on the coat rack. I slipped out of my shoes and into my slippers, sighing lightly.

"I'm home!" I call out. No reply.

"Hm? That's not like him at all…Usually he would have come running out here. He's always hyper, I wonder where he went…" I start down the hallway. As I walk, I check all the rooms. The bathroom is empty. The little recording studio is empty, and silent. The kitchen is empty. The living room's t.v is on, but no one is there watching it. My heart starts pounding in my chest. Did he leave? Did he pack up and decide to leave me after that argument from this morning about Eiri-san? What's going on?

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, telling myself to calm down. Maybe he was just on the computer downstairs again, on the internet, or something. With his headset on. I rushed to the basement to see that he wasn't there. I bit into my bottom lip and hurried back to the main floor. I rushed to the staircase that leads to the top floor and stopped dead in my tracks. My heart stopped beating, I stopped breathing. I couldn't move.

"Toh-ma?" His soft voice questioned me. His cotton candy pink hair was a mess. He had bruises and cuts all over his body. His breathing was raspy and uneven. Tear stains marked his cheeks. He was surrounded by his own blood and he was covered in sweat as well. He was wearing a purple long sleeved shirt with 'Gravitation' written on the front of it, as well as down the tops of the arm sleeves. Over that he had a short sleeved green jacket. He was also wearing his blue pants with the black tiger stripes.

"Yes…It—it's me…Shuichi…" I stutter as I try to move towards him. My feet felt like granite shoes, but they finally grew wings and allowed me to run over to him, where he was lying along some steps. I placed myself next to him,

"Who—Who did this to you!"

"…"

"Tell me Shu!"

Shuichi just stared at me with his caring, violet eyes. He reached up with one of his shaking hands and brushed my blonde bangs out of my eyes. When he moved it from my hair at last, I took hold of it in one of my trembling hands.

"Please…Just—Just tell me…" I said pleadingly as I bowed my head and started crying.

"Tohma…I won't say who…It was, because then I'm…Just, being a snitch…What goes around…Comes around…They'll get what they deserve…"

"…Shu…" My tears started to drip past my eyes a little bit faster now.

"Tohma...?"

"Yes Shu? What is it?" I asked as I looked him right in the eyes, he simply smiled,

"I love you, Tohma."

"I love you too…Shu-chan…" I said as I released his hand and wrapped an arm around him. I held him to me and he wrapped one of his arms, weakly, around me in return. I could feel his heartbeat as it slowed more and more every second. I leaned down to his lips and kissed him. He kissed me back lightly before we broke it and just held each other. His heart slowed more, and more. I would have called 9-1-1, but Shuichi didn't want me to go.

"Let me call them, please Shu…"

"No, no Tohma…Don't…Don't call them…Just…Don't…I don't want to die…without you beside me…"

"AND I DON'T WANT YOU TO LEAVE ME SHU-CHAN!" I announced, holding him closer. I sobbed into him.

"I can't live…without you…"

"No matter what Tohma, make me one last promise…"

"Anything for you Shu-chan…"

"Don't kill yourself after I'm gone."

"I…I…I just want…"

"Promise me!"

"I…I promise…" I admit in defeat. I held him close, listening to the slow and fading beat of his heart.

"I love you." He whispers again.

"I love you too…"

The slow beat starts to fade more and more. Until finally, it stops. I lose myself in my tears.

"…Shuichi…"

(End Flashback)

I was still on my hands and knees when I heard a voice talking to me. I recognized it, but it wasn't possible for it to belong to who I thought it belonged to. There was no way.

"Tohma…Why are you crying?"

He crouched before me. I looked up at the pink haired male before me. I stared into the violet eyes.

"…Shu…-chan…?"

He smiled his usual big grin at me,

"Hey, what's with all the tears?"

"I…I…I've missed you…So much…"

He wrapped his arms around me, holding me to him. I knew he would never really come back to me. He couldn't. What I was seeing now, was a mere image of what was once in my life. I wrapped my arms around him in return. Yet, he was a solid figure. As if, he were alive.

"I love you…Shu-chan…"

"I love you too, Tohma…" He said squeezing me tightly before releasing me and letting me go,

"I have to go now though…I'm sorry…"

I stared at the floor as he walked over to the window and out onto the balcony. He leaned his head back a little, as if, looking to the stars, closed his eyes and slowly faded away as his heartbeat had faded away only a week ago.