"Handcuffs"
by: S. Schumaker
Standard Disclaimers Apply
(AN: First of all, I want to sincerely apologize to all my readers out there that have been desperately waiting for an update from me. I was going through some medical issues and financial ones as well. Anyway, here is chapter three of Handcuffs, also be expecting updates in my HP and MB fics as well! Enjoy this chapter!)
Chapter Three
He felt his heart racing as the young beauty holding his hand pulled him through the crowd of reporters toward the front gate of her home. He grabbed a pair of sunglasses from his jacket, shoving them onto his face in order to conceal as much of his identity as he possibly could. His head bowed down, his eyes practically uncontrollable as they roamed over her scantily clad figure. Her skin was glistening with a sweat from her run, her smooth stomach showing. He longed to run his hands over her body, longed for her to embrace him again, almost salivating in the remembrance of how her body felt underneath his fingertips.
They reached the gate, Sana spoke briefly to one of the guards in the guardhouse and the gate quickly swung open, allowing them entrance and blocking out the reporters quick on their tail. They made their way up the long path to the front door as a few guards raced up to them to confirm who had entered the premises. Soon, they had reached the door and entered the mansion, a quick scan of their bodies and they were allowed into the house. Akito thanked his lucky stars that he wasn't currently packing any weapons as he was pulled into the house and embraced tightly once again by the beautiful actress at his side.
Akito was speechless. This wasn't going at all like he had planned.
"What on earth are you doing here, Akito-kun?" Sana nearly yelled at him, standing back to gaze deeply into his eyes. "How long has it been, anyway? Ten, twelve years?"
Akito just nodded his head in response, trying to think up some sort of fabricated lie that she would buy. The truth seemed to be all that ran through his mind. However, 'I came here to kill you,' just didn't seem like a good way to start up a conversation.
"Well, come on in!" Sana ushered him inside, moving off to a room on the right, flinging her tennis shoes off to the left. Akito stood still, watching as the shoes flew off and landed with a thud, nearly knocking over one of the house plants. He soon shook his own off, setting them neatly by the door before following after the young temptress. "We have so much to catch up on." She shouted back to him. "I want to know everything!"
"Um... okay." Akito replied, following her lead and moving into the next room. He watched as she flopped down onto a nearby couch, flipping her legs over one of it's arms.
"Have a seat!" Sana smiled, waving her arm in the direction of a chair. She reached behind her to a small table and pushed a small red button resting on it. In nearly thirty seconds, a young butler came racing into the room, a tray in his grip. Akito stumbled over to a chair, slowly sitting down, feeling extremely nervous.
The young butler rested a glass of lemonade near Sana and turned his head toward Akito, staring at him. Akito looked around briefly, wondering what this guy wanted. "Something to drink, sir?" the butler asked, sounding annoyed.
"Oh. No, I'm fine. Thank you." Akito responded, watching as the butler scuffed under his breath and stalked off in the direction he had come. Akito dropped his gaze to the floor, his hands fidgeting with anxiety in his lap.
"Jeepers, Akito. I haven't seen you this uptight around me since elementary school. It's me. Sana. You don't have to be so rigid. Now, I want to know everything that's happened to you since I last saw you. How is your father? How's Natsumi?"
Akito's face blanched. His jaw clenched. "Oh um...How are you?" Akito choked out, not answering her question.
He successfully changed the subject as Sana jumped in quickly with all the details of her life and her success as an actress. She told Akito about how her mother's newest novels were selling like wildfire and how her own movies were getting numerous awards from around the world. She told him stories from the different sets she had worked at, bragged about the different movies stars she knew like Jensen Ackles, Sarah Michelle Gellar, even Tom Hanks. She discussed the different locations she worked at, how exotic New Zealand was, how beautiful northern Canada was. She even told him all about her home, who had lived there before her, about her numerous servants.
The only thing that she didn't seem to reveal to him was information about her love life. Sure, Akito knew all about that from her file, but he wasn't letting on any of it and neither was she. He wondered if she just hadn't gotten around to the details yet or if she felt uncomfortable discussing them with him. He couldn't imagine the latter was true, but with Sana you just never knew.
After the many details were spilled about herself, Sana took a deep breath in finale. She smiled up at him, tilting her head off to the side slightly. "That's just about all. Now, no more stalling! I want to know what you've been up to! Do anything interesting lately?"
He racked his brain trying to think up something he could tell her. Something that wasn't too personal, too serious, or too honest. But with the circumstances that led his life in the direction they had, well, he couldn't seem to find anything that fit within those criteria. He leaned his head back against the chair, closing his eyes in thought. "What do you want to know exactly?"
Sana shifted on the couch, sitting up in slight alarm. She certainly remembered the standoffish way that Akito could behave, but she hadn't seen it since they were twelve. At the age of 26, she hoped that Akito hadn't returned back into his shell. She wasn't sure if she still had the energy to bring him back out of it.
"All right, how are your dad and sister? I haven't seen them since you three moved to the states."
Akito sighed, there really was no point in hiding it from her. She'd be able to get out all of his darkest secrets within the hour. "They're dead." He replied, his throat nearly choking out the words. It was the first time he had ever said that outloud.
"What?!" Sana jumped up off the couch, rushing over to his side. She kneeled down in front of him, her body easily squeezing in between his legs. She rested her hands on his knees, looking deeply into his eyes. "How? When?"
Akito looked down at her, the hurt of the news evident in her face. "They were shot to death about seven years ago. Wrong place, wrong time type of deal."
Sana just stared up at him, silently begging him to continue. "Once both Natsumi and I had moved out of dad's place, the three of us had arranged to carry out monthly dinners together just to keep in touch. Well, that particular night, I had business to attend to in Sydney. I was working at a bank and was constantly traveling around the world to bring in more international clients. Dad and Natsumi both had agreed to have dinner without me because the account I was working on was extremely important and needed my full attention. At the time, I was extremely grateful to the two of them for allowing me to skip dinner, but now...well, now I don't feel that way."
Akito took a break from his story, noticing a lone tear slide over Sana's cheek below him. His instincts took over and he found himself brushing the tear away with his thumb, his fingers grazing over her features a little longer than was necessary. He recalled the feel of her skin beneath his and was practically thrown back in time with that simple touch.
He noticed how Sana pressed her face against his palm and he instantly broke out of his trance. Dropping his hand back down to his lap and continuing in his memoir. "Anyway, after they had eaten at our favorite sushi restaurant in downtown New York City, they had walked outside and right in the middle of some sort of shootout. I never was given all the details, but apparently they were both shot a couple times by stray bullets. After that I left my work at the bank and well, have been simply searching for more answers since then." Akito slumped back in his chair once he was finished, looking down at his childhood sweetheart.
"How awful," Sana nearly sobbed out, her tears racing down her cheeks quickly. "Why didn't you call me?" Sana jumped up and into his arms, unnerving him easily. She climbed up into his lap, her legs curled around his as her arms wrapped themselves tightly around his neck. She sobbed gently into his shoulder. Akito returned the embrace, his arms tightening around her back. A lone tear slid from his own cheek, dropping gently unto her shoulder.
"How could I have possibly called you, Sana?" Akito asked, slightly angry toward the question. "There was no possible way for me to get your phone number or even your address. You were simply too famous."
Sana pulled back from him quickly. "I'm so sorry, Akito. I always told you that I'd be there for you no matter what, but I guess I failed at that." Sana slumped against his chest, her heart breaking for her old friend.
"It wasn't your fault, Sana. How could you have possibly known. The distance that came between us was inevitable. There was nothing you could have done, believe me. My life would have gone down the same path no matter if you had been there or not. Trust me, Sana." Akito pushed her away to catch her eyes.
Sana lifted her gaze back up to his, her eyes sparkling with tears. They held that gaze for a while, their pain, their memories surfacing inside of them both. Sana began to slowly move closer to him, her lips knew their course and they were headed to his. Akito let himself be lost in the moment, his heart racing. Was she moving in to kiss him? He held as still as stone, not wanting to startle her out of her journey.
Sana stopped a mere inch away from his, her cheeks flushed, her body pressed up and close to his. She glanced down at his lips. They were slightly apart in anticipation. She licked her own lips and continued with her descent.
Just as they were about to touch, the front door slammed open and a pair of hurried footsteps made their way toward the room they were currently occupying. "Sana darling, are you in here? What's with all the paparazzi? They kept asking me about some mystery man." A voice called out, startling Sana completely from her trance on Akito. She jumped off his lap and raced back to her couch just as the speaker entered the room. He was very handsome with dark brown locks that curled around his face. He was dressed in a simple sweater with khaki pants. The stranger halted in the doorway upon spotting Sana and the unknown man in the room.
Akito quickly realized this must be Sana's boyfriend and immediately stood to leave. "I better be going, Sana. It was really nice catching up with you." He instantly turned on his heel and raced from the room, slipping on his shoes and running out of the house. He made his way down the pathway to the gates which opened upon his arrival. He pushed his way through the crowd of reporters and jumped back into his car. Starting it up and driving off quickly.
A while later he had reached his chateau again. He sat in his car for a while in shock and in utter disbelief. He couldn't believe what had happened that afternoon and how honest he had been to her. He hadn't been that honest to anyone about anything in so many years that he almost didn't believe he had done it. He rested his head against the back of his seat, closing his eyes in thought. What on earth was he going to do now?
To Be Continued . . .
(AN: All right, I realize this chapter was a little lame, but I got out a little bit of Akito's history...more to come in the next chapter and revealed a little more about Sana's feelings and what not. Hoped you liked it. Please review!)