A/N: Okay, so I lied. Again.

Days 06 and above are not part of the original storyline. Please keep that in mind; they are more like possible insights into the sibling time Ikuto spends with Utau.

And as you can see, this story is AU-ish. Somewhat.

Random Thought: Bananas are a type of herb, not a type of fruit.

Summary: I had to erase my past, ignore my former self, and create a new persona, for her sake. But why did I have to hide from her?

Disclaimer: If I owned Shugo Chara, I wouldn't be writing this.


Day 07: Beloved


I opened my eyes, unsure of the wavering heat source in proximity of my body. I shouldn't be so surprised; Utau, once again, had sneaked into my room during the night. The thought of purchasing a lock came into mind, but that would be too cruel - locking my sister out? Too cruel. Rather, the thought of locking my sister out of my room left me with a sense of guilt. Locking her out of my room would be locking her out of my life... from her perspective, at least.

And once again, I found myself in her embrace, from which I seemed to return. Again. What was happening? Why was I like this? First time, it felt extremely awkward and comforting, but this time, there was only comfort. Where did the awkwardness go? I lied in her arms, the warmth of her breath enticing the base of my neck, arousing me in an uttermost pleasant way. This wasn't supposed to be happening.

I'd been a bit more lenient to her for these intimate contacts, but I had to draw the line somewhere. If this went on for much longer, then...

Her hold on me wasn't as strong as yesterday's, so I was able to slip out of her arms easily. There was still some time before we had to leave for work, so I'd let her sleep until then. Walking out to the front door, I noticed that something had been slipped in: a newspaper. Curious to what the headline was, I picked it up, the horror of this day beginning to peak.

Hoshina Utau Found With Boyfriend

...was on the headline, printed in large, bold letters. Beneath it was a black and white photo of me and Utau in a car, driving down a street.

This... was not good. Not good. Dammit, now what are we going to do!? Mr. Director was sure to get me for this, and then Utau... how would she take this? Knowing her, she would probably take glee to this news, because all she really wanted was my love, my attention... She had them. But what she didn't have was me as a boyfriend, and for that...

The house phone rang, and I could only imagine who could be calling. I didn't want to answer the phone, but Easter knew that we were at home. I didn't have a choice. I picked it up, holding the device to my ear. "Ikuto. Report to my office with Utau IMMEDIATELY." The line went dead after that.

I. Am. Screwed. Period. Placing the paper back where I found it, I went to wake my sister up, only to find that she was already up and about in my room.

"Who called?" She was sitting up in my bed, the covers still draped over her.

"My boss. We have to go."

She nodded, then stepped up, letting the blanket drop down to the floor. To my surprise, she wore almost nothing. She had only the bare essentials, her brassiere and underwear the only things covering her body. What the hell is she trying to do? Thank goodness nothing happened...

Still, I couldn't let this go pass. There was a limit, and she'd broken it. "Utau. At least dress yourself properly if you decide to drop by unannounced."

She merely stood there, a smile lingering in her face. "This is what I wear to bed, big brother." Dammit, she had that flirty tone... and I know she did that on purpose. Technically, she wasn't lying, as she didn't go to sleep nude, but...

Right, right. I highly doubt it. But we were wasting time right now, and if I didn't get there soon, my boss would have my hide. "Just get dressed." Oh, and no way was I showing her the newspaper. The last thing I needed was to have my sister jump all over me.

I watched her walk out, noticing how her right bra strap was about to fall off. I shuddered. I shouldn't be thinking about things like that. This is my sister, for god's sake! No big brother would want to see that, unless if... meh, I'd rather not go there.

I was able to hide the newspaper under my pillow, thank goodness, and we rushed towards the Easter building. Besides from the morning... um, situation, Utau seemed to behaving quite quietly. She didn't make an attempt to flirt with me, and she didn't jump on me without warning.

I entered my stepfather's office, Utau trailing about a few feet behind as I awaited his orders, or whatever he was going to say.

He walked around, throwing his hands up in frustration, the newspaper in one hand... Yeah, I was screwed. From the looks of things, since he didn't kick Utau out of the office, she'd find out about this predicament, too. Though she wouldn't see it as one... that worried me the most.

"Mamoru! Utau!" He threw the paper against the wooden surface of his desk, the same newspaper that held the outrageous headline. Utau stepped forward so that she was at my side, her face in an auspicious grin as she read the title.

"Do you know what this means!? You two have just put out entire company's reputation in the trash! For now, I'm placing both of you on suspension in your home. IMMEDIATELY. Now GET OUT!!!"

We didn't even get a chance to speak, and yet we were already facing a closed door. Mr. Director was really, really mad. And he's throwing his frustrations on us...

So apparently, we were on suspension for some unidentified amount of time, to be confined in the walls of our home. We wouldn't be able to go out, unless somebody from Easter gave the call. I suppose he gave the order to give the public some time to cool down about the ordeal. Lucky for me, I wasn't screwed over. Utau, on the other hand...

"When do you suppose that rumor began?" She looked at me, her facade emotionless to the naked eye.

"Who knows." I tried sounding neutral, but the distress I know my sister would put me through was coming on fast.

When we walked out to the parking lot, we found that our car had been abducted. Hijacked. Stolen. Just our luck. We would have to either request a transport, or walk home... knowing Utau, she was too prideful to ask for help, so I decided on the latter. But just in case...

"Should we ask for a ride home?" I asked, my voice a bit jittery because I was unsure how she would react. Wait... I do know how she'd react. Never mind. Then why was my voice cracking up a bit?

Utau glanced at me with a raised eyebrow, as if she was questioning why I asked that question. With her arms crossed, she walked off, but not too fast so that I would have to run to catch up to her. Well, guess we're walking home.

In our current situation, it would be extremely easy for a person to spot us... meaning we would be surrounded really quickly. Utau didn't seem to care about that, as she was walking her normal speed - not too fast, not too slow; as her brother I can only assume that she's not afraid of being surrounded by a mob.

Feeling a bit tense, I followed her, occasionally looking around to see if anybody spotted us. So far, we were about half way there, that was until I unintentionally ran into a civilian while looking behind. I would have to be extremely careful... "Are you okay, sir?" I extended my hand to him, and he took it, much to my relief. Utau, luckily, had stopped, turned around, and was waiting for me to finish my ordeal.

The boy could not be older than ten; he had the appearance of a young adolescent child. He stared at me with wide emerald eyes, and the realization hit me: he recognized me. He ran off, hopefully he wouldn't tell a random person that he saw Hoshina Utau's "boyfriend" a few minutes ago. Hopefully. Though knowing how a child's mind works, I highly doubt he'll keep quiet.

My sister had been watching the entire ordeal with a small smile. But with her arms crossed, it didn't seem so. "You're good with children."

I could only give her a slight smile in return, but I wondered why she made that comment. I was really good with children... Hmm... I continued to ponder on my thoughts until I heard an announcement somebody made with a speaker phone.

"We've found them! We've found them!"

I made a three hundred and sixty degree turn, seeing my fear come true. There it was, a herd of about a hundred people, running this way towards us. If I didn't do anything, we wound be surrounded within a few seconds... I ran ahead of Utau, taking her hand so I wouldn't lose her in the streets, as she was walking ever so slowly with her eyes focused on the ground.

I didn't want to look back, I didn't want to waste a possible second in which the mob would catch up to us, I didn't want to be surrounded by them. I liked being alone, as being confined in a crowded area was one of my pet peeves. Having one person with me during my alone time was okay, but any more than that... we'd have problems.

Every now and then I would look back to see if I lost them... finally, I was able to pull Utau into a secluded alleyway, thank goodness it wasn't the kind where there was a dead end on the other side. Even so, holding my sister's hand, being in such a place with her... after this morning, I could only imagine what she would do. Yes, all of this was awkward, yet I endured, because my little sister needed her big brother to protect her.

We were safe.. for now. "All right, we need to lay low here for a while until all the commotion calms down." I did my best to stay calm, the last thing I needed was a panic attack. She nodded, confirming that she heard what I said. I tried pulling my hand away, but she wouldn't let go for some reason. Her hands were clammy, and I could feel the sweat in her palm.

"Don't leave me here," she whispered. Her voice sounded frantic and desperate. I looked at her, she was frightened and panicking. It was a long time since I had seen her in such a state. I didn't like seeing her like this, ever, looking so desperate and weak. It was this side of her that reminded me of when I left her, when I put her on the sidelines. I did what came first - I reluctantly pulled her frail frame into my arms, knowing exactly how she would interpret my action.

Immediately the guilt I felt vanished, replaced by it a sense of care and comfort. "I won't," I whispered into her ear. I could feel her arms around my waist, engulfing my self being into hers. I know we couldn't stay like this for long, seeing as if somebody caught us in this position, the rumors would be proved true, so I hesitantly pushed her slightly, as to indicate that I cared, but that we would have to separate. But she didn't let go... she held on, fast.

That was, until her cell phone rang.

I knew we were definitely screwed then.

She pulled back, her gaze fixed on me. She just looked... happy, despite the fact that there was a tear trickling down her pretty face... that I was there supporting her. Utau pulled her cell phone out, flipped it open and answered her call.

Seeing as we were so close, I had no choice but to eavesdrop in her conversation... so the least I could do was turn the other direction.

"Hey, Utau! Why didn't you tell me about this!"

"About what?"

I found it peculiar how she could keep her voice from faltering.

"Your boyfriend! This morning, it was printed on the newspaper-"

"Do you believe everything you read? Anyway, Kuukai, he's a very important person to me."

I heard a click, signifying that she ended the call, then I turned and saw my sister do the most un-Utau-ish thing I ever saw: she freakin' threw her cell phone on the ground and stomped on it with her shoes. When she was done, I saw nothing left of that poor thing.

"Over here! I heard it over here!"

It was quite far off, but I knew they found us. We would have to make a run for it while they were still back there. I didn't have to grab her hand this time; it magically found mine. Well, that saved me the trouble... I hope.

"Let's go." There was a tear tricking down her face, but there was also a smile.

I didn't know where we were... from the looks of it, we were just wandering around aimlessly right now, not until I noticed a familiar building Utau and I both knew. Our home! I turned one last time to see if anybody was following us, seeing none, I quickly escorted Utau inside. I guess the director knew what he was doing, placing us on suspension in our homes. But our car was stolen, and for that... well, he'll replace it. Or maybe he purposely took it away so that we wouldn't be tempted to head outside.

I hit the couch, the pain in my legs refused to go away. Ugh... I was out of shape... for a bodyguard, that is. I'd need to work out one of these days. Utau took the seat next to me... she was still holding my hand. Still. She was tired from that ordeal... her head was leaning against my arm, her eyes somewhat closed, her lips parted. She was breathing softly, her arm entangled with mine. She was sleeping, taking a nap... I think. Utau looked adorable, nothing like the way she looked when she was scared.

I let her lean on me, as she needed somebody to support her, both spiritually and physically. I wasn't tired like her, but I stayed where I was, passing the time silently as I tried playing some scenes through my mind, most of them involving Amu and Tadase. Occasionally, Utau would pop up, and when she did, she was always crying. Hurt. Brokenhearted. The tears trickled down her pretty face, she was kneeling on the ground, and there was nobody around her.

Alone.

She was alone.

...I guess... I'm her world. Her entire world.

All we had growing up was each other, and when I left her... to protect her... I had to hurt her. No big brother wants to see his little sister cry... I was no exception.

She looked peaceful, serene. But I couldn't stay here forever. I wiggled my arm out of her grasp, making sure she didn't wake up, then grabbed a pillow and blanket from her room. I lifted her head slightly, setting the pillow beneath, and pulled the blanket over. I went to shut the blinds, partly because I wanted her to sleep well, and partly to prevent people from looking inside, seeing us, the highlight of the news, in our home.

The thought of carrying her to her bed came up, but I didn't want her to suddenly wake up while she's in my arms and get the wrong idea. Even so, when she woke up, she would piece together what happened... after all, I'm the only other person in the house. But as I looked at her sleeping form, the thought kept on coming forth. Utau's precious. She's my sister. My only sister.

Her lavender eyes were still half way closed, though I doubt she could see anything at the moment. I ran my fingers through her soft blond hair, the realization hitting me like a train wreck. She's my sister! I pulled my hand back, unsure of what I just did. There was no way... It was normal for siblings to do that, but...

I composed myself, making a mental note never to act the way I just did when my sister was conscious. I sat there beside my sister, unsure of what to do. What would a brother do...?

I suppose... this was fine. What I'm doing now is good enough. I took one last look at her before I went to the kitchen to prepare something to eat for lunch. There was some bread and sandwich materials, so I decided to go ahead and make some. They weren't the best, but at least I wouldn't have to wash the dishes tonight.

I was going through the refrigerator to get some meat when I noticed a pack of ramen-flavored bread. That's right, Utau loves ramen. I prepared a sandwich especially for her, one I know she would enjoy. I made myself a plain sandwich with whole grain wheat and some meat...

I took a sip of the water I poured, setting the sandwiches I made on the table near the couch.

We were at home, we were on suspension... I had no reason to wake her up. She stirred a bit, but nothing too much. I guess she wouldn't be eating... What could I do to pass the time...?

I quickly gobbled down the sandwich, then washed it down with the glass of water. I refrigerated her sandwich, then grabbed an interesting manga to read. "Koi Kaze", literally "Love Wind". It was sitting on the desk in my sister's room, the first volume left unopened. A romance... Ugh, I should have never went into her room.

I took a seat nearby where Utau was sleeping, then began reading.

...An hour passed... and I wasn't finished with the first chapter yet. There was just something about this manga that captivated me, like it was relevant to my life. I had to reread certain parts of the chapter several times over, just to confirm that there was a hidden message...

For a romance type, there sure was a lot of humor. Haha. Guess I'll finish reading the entire volume, after all, if the manga was this hilarious.

The thing that stuck me out the most... is the incest. Yeah, that's right. The incest. My sister was reading a manga about incest... though I guess technically I'm the one reading it at the moment. The two characters were... well, a brother and a sister with an age difference of about ten years. They were separated when they were young, and when they reunited, the older brother was about twenty-eight, the younger sister at fifteen. That brother... he acted like me, except he was a bit more fierce and aggravated. And the sister... she acted just like Utau...

...Wow. It's like I'm reading my life story. There were enough similarities to keep it relevant, but enough differences to keep my interest. I was hooked on the stuff. Before I knew it, I ran up to my sister's room to grab the next four volumes. Time... passed quickly. The ending chapter was just so... how do I say it... ugh, it's like the type to bring a smile to you. One of the things that you read, and you just smile at. That type of thing.

Time passed by fast. I ran up to her room to put her manga back where it belonged, so that she wouldn't know I read it. I tried making everything appear untouched, so that she wouldn't have the slightest suspicion... I walked out to the living room, where I found Utau munching on the sandwich I made for her.

It was around six, meaning she'd been asleep for about... well, six hours. Meaning she probably wouldn't sleep during the night... meaning I'd have to stay up and keep her company, 'cause she'll keep on complaining that she's bored... oh wait, she'd have that manga to read...

I mentally smacked myself. For my age, how could I be so stupid to forget things like that...? Her birthday. When was her birthday? ...Dammit, how could I have forgotten her birthday!? Have I really been putting her off that much...!? November... I know it was some time early in November...

Ugh, I'll think about this later... It's only the end of October... wait...

Okay, maybe I should think about it.

...

"Took you long enough." Reference to how long she took to wake up.

She gave me a glare, something altogether mean and cute at the same time. Utau gobbled down that sandwich quickly, nothing like how a proper woman would eat. And somehow, I thought that was special, because that made her stand out from the rest.

But then, she stood up, the blanket still covering her, walking over to me with a small smile. "Thanks."

...We were brother and sister... family, right? We didn't need to say "thanks" and "you're welcome" and things like that, because it was already implied... was it? But hearing her thank me, hearing it from her...

"You're welcome." I smiled warmly, then turned and headed towards my room. No dinner for me tonight, Utau. Don't bother making some for me.

I closed the door as I went in, then lay quietly on my bed, the lights off, the blinds open so I could view the twilight of the sky... and the sunset. I shut my eyes, reminiscing over today's events. Hopefully I wasn't too affectionate... otherwise, Utau will surely be... no, I would be the one to break her heart. In the end, it was always me that did it. My actions, my carelessness...

...Yet, she-

"Big brother, I brought some chocolate cake."

She opened the door without even making a creak; I literally jumped up from my bed.

There she was, standing in the doorway with two plates of chocolate cake in her hands. Chocolate cake... she knew I liked chocolate. I wonder... was this for making her that ramen sandwich?

I gestured for her to take a seat by me... and she did. Utau handed me a plate, then began eating her share of the cake. I did the same, enjoying how sweet the chocolate is.

One of the main reasons why I like chocolate is because it's sweet. And if I eat sweet things, I'll have a sweet life, right?

"My concert is on the ninth of November. Until we're off suspension, I won't be able to do much," she said as she was chewing the cake. Haha. Talking with her mouth full...

But why did the date November 9 seem so... so much more significant?

"Shouldn't you be glad? Now you get to spend every minute of your day with your beloved brother." No sarcasm intended.

"I already do, jackass." She elbowed me in my arm, but there was an air around her that suggested she was playing around.

We finished the cake pretty fast, and Utau offered to take my plate downstairs to wash it. How kind of her... If only she could treat other people besides me like that...

I lied back down, my thoughts wandering as I tried to get an early sleep. November 9... was that... was that her birthday? Was that why it struck me as significant?

I was about to drift off to sleep, my mind and body exhausted when I heard Utau yell.

"Ikuto! Did you go through my room!?"

Crap.


A/N: So yeah, as you can see, the idea for this chapter actually came from Day 05. And with this chapter done, I hope you have some ideas of what content future chapters will hold...

To be continued... if desired.