Disclaimer: As usual...don't own gravi.
Pairings: None right NOW :P
Warnings: POV, teeange/adult issues, romance, angst - life in general is a warning, may contain SPOILERS if you have not read Gravi book 12
Author's Notes: Alrighty, I've finally go the first chapter up! Yay! Thanks a ton to Aja for betaing, it helps a lot! I do want to make a note, though, that Tatsuha's POV will come in, you'll know the switch because of the "----" lines. It doesn't always mean a time jump, so I'm sorry if that gets confusing. All it's saying is that he's going to be speaking.
I hope you guys enjoy! Feedback is worshiped!
Chapter 1
----------------------------------
Coincidence is the world's biggest fucking understatement. I would like to say fate, but I think that's putting too much faith into the way the universe works. Probably not what you'd expect to hear from a man of the cloth, eh? What can I say? I was sixteen at the time, young and impressionable, to some extent, at least.
The night I left home, I just drove until I reached Osaka. It isn't that far from Kyoto, really, but it's a different city, so it counts. I don't remember why I chose to go that way. All I remember thinking was not to be in Kyoto or Tokyo. As long as I wasn't in either of those places, I would be okay…
No, okay isn't the right word. I knew I would finally be gone.
-----------------
The next morning came like it always did. The warm scent of grease and fried foods was much more welcoming than that of the old wooden park bench Tatsuha had spent the night on. Duffle bags were snuggled in tightly next to him in a booth of one of Osaka's McDonald's restaurants. He nibbled half-heartedly on the Fried Chicken Teriyaki Burger, not feeling in the mood for much else. A small cup of that crappy coffee sat nearby as he stared blankly ahead, chewing the quickly prepared meat.
He let his mind wander, idly wondering what his father had done after Tatsuha had driven off. His first inclination was that his father would have done nothing. The old man had probably made his way back to bed, assuming Tatsuha would return in the morning. He probably would think his son had just gone out late for a fuck or something. Tatsuha would never leave, not deny his family and the responsibilities of the temple.
The teenager really hoped that was exactly what his father thought. He desperately wanted to prove his father and family wrong.
Even though he was not very hungry, Tatsuha finished off the burger, He knew that he did not carry much money to begin with and every meal from this point on would have to be worthwhile. He drank the coffee as well; the caffeine was going to be the only energy boost he would get for the long drive he knew he had ahead of him, wherever that was going.
He received a few strange looks as the morning rush came into the restaurant. Tatsuha attributed it to his duffle bags, and ignored most of it. He smiled in a friendly way to a few pretty girls, watched a mother trying to quiet down her two children, eyed a few attractive older men, and observed an older man argue with the cashier with a hint of amusement. All in all it was rather normal, mundane. Yet he could not shake the feeling that he was being watched.
Dammit, stop having second thoughts…If you're going to let some paranoia get to you then you shouldn't have left in the first place, idiot.
Frustrated with himself, Tatsuha crumpled the paper cup in his hands, gathered up his garbage and bags. He tossed the rubbish into the trash and made like a shot out of the place, glad to see his bike still parked outside in one piece. Within a two-minute period he was turning out of the parking lot and back onto the streets.
He had on headphones and sunglasses, not bothering with a helmet for the moment. It felt more liberating, like in those movies, to feel the wind in your hair rather than the stuffy confines of something to keep your skull safe. He did not really care about the safety of his skull right then, or the legality of it. As long as he was not caught.
At a stoplight, he felt a vibration in his pocket, but the normal merry tune was drowned out by the music of Nittle Grasper blaring in his headset. Casting a quick glance up at the light, Tatsuha fished the vibrating cell phone out of his pocket.
/Mika (home)/
He pushed 'end'.
Looks like the phone tree has started…Hm, earlier than I thought. Looks like the old man does give a bit of a shit after all. It should have made him feel special, he thought, but it did not. When his phone rang a second time, he just shut it off.
-----------------
I ignored my calls for a while. I think it was at least a week or two before I turned my phone on again. The sadistic, angry part of me wanted them to think I had ended up dead in some ditch. The other part just didn't want to talk.
I missed them, though.
I wished they knew that.
-----------------
The highway was more welcoming than the crowded streets of the city. Tatsuha was not sure which direction he was heading, but to him it did not matter. He was going. That was all.
Tatsuha would not let himself think about anything other than the road stretching out ahead of him: not his family, not his friends, not the temple, not school. The only thing keeping that concentration was the constant of Ryuichi Sakuma's voice in the background.
He started thinking about Ryuichi…
-----------------
I hadn't been bothered too much about the television announcement a few months back. Ryuichi was going to be a big movie star or something. I'd follow his career wherever it went, but that didn't mean that I wouldn't miss the music.
My Nittle Grasper CDs were the only music stuffs I took with me from home. Everything else just seemed superfluous or something. I didn't want to waste valuable battery power on anything but Ryuichi. His music was the only thing that kept me sane for a long, long time.
It's ironic that it's the same thing that drove me away again.
But we'll get to that later.
-----------------
Tatsuha switched into the second lane to make room for a speeding truck. He glared at it as it passed, sending a large gush of wind, pushing his bike a little. Someone ahead beat him to it and honked at the truck. Tatsuha felt pleased enough with the other driver's actions to go back to ignoring the rest of the world.
Only a few seconds later did a flash of red catch his eye. The sixteen year-old slightly turned his head to the side to see a snazzy convertible drive by at a speed that almost matched the truck's. The Discman tucked securely to the inside of his jacket traveled back to the beginning of the CD, "Sleepless Beauty" once again filling his ears as he checked out the car. Now that's the prettiest thing I've seen all day… he thought with a little grin.
The car itself was rather empty. There was just the driver looking almost bored, wearing a hat and sunglasses. All in all, it looked quite a bit like his sister's Ferrari. Yet as he studied it, he noted the differences in sleekness and sound. Joggling his mind around, he guessed it was a mid 90s Corvette LT4, or close to it. Tatsuha watched the vehicle drive ahead before turning his attention back to the road.
Then a few seconds later, he saw red again. Now giving a slightly annoyed frown to the hot car, Tatsuha turned his head fully to look. It was the same convertible as before, but now it was keeping pace with him, but the driver did not seem to notice him at all.
Tatsuha eyed the car for a second, and then sped up, pulling ahead of the red car. Not even five seconds later, the car sped to match him. The panic button in his mind went off.
What the fuck is this guy trying to pull…
He sped up again; this time it was enough to cause the vehicles in front of him to become a little wary. Yet, the red Corvette just continued to drive along side Tatsuha and his motorcycle. He felt like he was being challenged to a race and he did not want to be a part of it. Tatsuha's dark eyes narrowed behind tinted lenses as he leaned forward.
All right, fine asshole. If you're gonna play that way…
Eyes glittering with mischief, Tatsuha immediately changed lanes in front of the Corvette, causing it to slow down with a jerk. The teenager smirked as he picked up speed again, zooming away as he weaved through the traffic. The driver of the convertible did not seem phased and he quickly caught up again. Tatsuha thought he had the upper hand because he was able to slip between cars, but the convertible appeared to be just as agile.
The game gave him a rush he had not felt in a long time. People were beginning to honk at both vehicles, but neither Tatsuha nor the other driver seemed to care in the least. Tatsuha made an almost desperate dash between two eighteen-wheeler trucks, only to find the convertible driving along side him once again as it reappeared.
God! Why the hell can't I lose this guy? What the hell does he want from me?
He swerved into the slowest lane, barely avoiding running right into a white sedan, but this time, the convertible did not follow. Instead, the Corvette went much further ahead. Tatsuha's eyes narrowed as he watched the car change lanes then disappear from his sight all together.
Ryuichi's voice still blared at his eardrums.
Well, that was…strange…
Suddenly, red was all he saw.
The bike swerved off of the road into a maze of s curves until Tatsuha was able to slow it down to a reasonable speed. He found himself riding a little ways out from the main highway in a large grass field out in the country. The convertible was parked a ways away onto the field, the shoulder of the highway in the distance.
Growling in frustration and anger, Tatsuha killed the ignition and hopped off his bike, not even bothering to kick the stand up. He ripped the headphones from his ears as he marched over to the car, feeling the rage build up and pulse through his veins. It had been a stressful few days, before and after he left, and the last thing he had needed was something like that.
"Just what the fuck are you trying to get away with, you dumbass?" he shouted before he was near. The driver had stepped out and was leaning against the door, regarding the teenager with anything but interest, but the driver looked up when Tatsuha spoke, tilting their head to the side as if silently questioning the meaning of Tatsuha's own words.
That only served to piss him off further.
"Look," he grated out, finally within feet of the driver. But that person just held up a finger to their own lips, smiling a little to silence him. For some reason Tatsuha found himself doing so, but not without sending more intensified glares.
"I didn't expect to find you here," the driver said, leaning back further against his car.
…What?
"At first I thought it was just a coincidence, but then your motorcycle looked so familiar!"
…You've got to be kidding me…
His head lifted up, smiling with good humor. Taking off the sunglasses, merrily amused blue eyes twinkled back at the teenager.
"…Ryuichi?"