Chapter 5

"But Yuki, wait—" Shuichi choked out before having the door slammed in his face. He knelt down and started to cry, looking up hopefully when the door opened again. He smiled briefly before having his backpack thrown on the ground in front of him. The door slammed once again.

Shu sat in the hallway with his back against the wall for some time, willing Yuki to change his mind and walk back through the door. The area was quiet. No one coming or going at that time of night. He slowly removed his head from his knees. It had been in that position for so long that the sensation was painful for his neck. Wiping his eyes with his sleeve, he peeled himself away from the floor.

Shu frantically dialed a number on the payphone outside. "Hello?" said a deep voice.

"I-I'm sorry if you were asleep but please. I need you to come m-meet me at the bar. The usual place. Please, Hiro!" he sobbed.

"I'm on my way."

Hiro walked in to find his friend on presumably his second drink, judging by the empty glass next to his half-full one. At closer glance, there was an empty shot glass there too. "Shuichi, you gotta slow down."

"Sometimes I do slow down, you know? But not on a night like this, oh no! Not this one," the pinkette said, throwing back. He hiccupped and lazily tilted his head in Hiro's direction.

"You know, Hiro… You're kinda cute when you're drunk." He slapped his friend's back pretty hard.

"You're drunk, Shuichi," Hiro rolled his eyes, blushing despite himself.

"Maybe someday," Shuichi said. He lifted his hand to wave the bartender over. Hiro caught it.

"Let's get you home," he said. Shuichi's face twisted.

"No one… wants me. Not there..." he sniffled, clinging to the guitarist's arm.

Hiro's eyebrow furrowed. He pulled his friend in close. "You can stay with me. You can always stay with me. You know that."

A half-asleep Shuichi felt himself carried to a soft surface, laid down, and covered with something warm. Hiro left a bowl on the bedside table for him and took the couch. He lay back, and smiled wryly to himself, knowing that he would have to be the one to wake Shuichi up for work. The guy could really slam them down, especially when he was upset. Hiro sighed. The next morning would be a struggle for both of them.

"Take these," Hiro said, holding out two white pills after unceremoniously dragging Shuichi out of bed.

He swallowed them down carefully, feeling all the more nauseous for it and willing himself not to throw up. Hiro gave him a once-over and said, "Just how much did that bartender let you drink? I thought I got to you pretty fast."

"I think I lost count. I was walking around and taking other people's shots," Shuichi laughed in an effort to make the whole thing sound like one big joke. "I don't think it was the bartender's fault."

"It's a good thing you don't drink beer."

"Oh, why is that, Hiro?"

"Never mind," Hiro said quickly before taking a large swig of orange juice and mentally slapping himself.

"Oh, you mean because Yuki usually keeps beer in the fridge, huh?"

"Yeah… I'm sorry, Shu. I just forgot for a second there."

"It's… still our fridge, isn't it?" Shuichi said sadly, setting his glass back down on the counter.

Hiro grabbed his shoulder. "I'm sure it is. You just need to talk to him."

'The divorce has been finalized. This development not far behind Mr. Seguchi's announcement of Nittle Grasper's return.'

Shuichi could almost hear Tohma's voice, 'If you would kindly…'

"…kindly shut that off," he blurted.

"What?" Hiro said, spitting out juice.

"Oh, uh, nothing. I was just—never mind."

Hiro smirked. "Whatever you say buddy." .

Suguru was at a breaking point, with his pink-haired bandmate to blame. Shuichi had been neglecting his part for nearly an entire hour. Learning of the Yuki situation was not enough to keep the keyboardist from getting angry. Each time he pleaded with Shuichi to participate, the vocalist would only continue to cry and make excuses.

"I'm just going to go talk to Tohma," Suguru said in one final attempt.

"Wait, no! Don't do that!" Shuichi cried out. He frowned a chibi frown. "He'll be mad."

"Are you going to actually help us with these vocals then?" Suguru raised both eyebrows, looking at Shuichi with contempt.

Shuichi thought about that for a moment. "You know, I just don't have it in me today. Nothing I sing will be any good."

"Fine. Have it your way." Suguru stormed out the door. Shuichi slumped down from his stool onto the floor, begging the powers that be to keep the president from murdering him. Or worse, firing him from Bad Luck.

When Suguru returned, he marched up to Shu and grabbed him by the collar. "You're needed in the president's office." When the vocalist stared at him, he added, "Now, Shuichi. It's urgent, of course." Suguru flashed a grin.

Shu scrambled out into the hallway. He knew he would only be in more trouble if he dawdled, however tempting the prospect. He settled for taking the direct route, albeit much more slowly than anyone would deem normal. Railing throughout the hall ran roughly under his hand. The texture seemed to calm him down, although nothing could help him once he reached the door outside of Tohma's office. He hadn't exerted himself, though he stood there trying to catch his breath for a full twenty seconds.

Before he could knock on the door, he heard a clear voice say, "Come in."

He swallowed, trying to keep from making a gulping sound, and entered. Bowing, he picked a spot on the ground on which to focus, letting the hardwood remind him of the railing in the hall.

Tohma sat in his chair, smiling with his eyes closed. "So, Mr. Shindou. I hear that you're rather difficult to work with today."

The sound of a thud on the floor caused his eyes to flutter open. Before him lay a mop of pink hair, sitting at the forefront of Shuichi's balled-up form. He abruptly stood from his desk. His left foot moved forward a step. He willed his right foot not to follow.

"Can you tell me what has caused this sudden change?" Tohma said, unable to maintain his smile. He slowly took the step back.

Head buried in his arms; Shuichi shook it to wipe away tears with his already-stained sleeves. Taking this for a 'no' Tohma said, "And why not?"

Shuichi moved up into a seated position. He hugged his knees to his chest. His chin rested on his wrist.

"Please, it's… well, it's just that it's really embarrassing!" Shuichi stared forlornly at a portrait of a ship in the corner.

Tohma's eyes narrowed. "This wouldn't have anything to do with Eiri-san, would it?"

Reluctantly, Shuichi nodded carefully against his wrist. His nose was irritated. Eyes, red and puffy. This hadn't been a demeanor he had ever dreamed of showing any superior, let alone Tohma Seguchi. Even if he did visit him at 'home'. Whatever that was anymore.

"You should know by now—although, when we're here, I am your…" A short pause. "Even though I told you I'm Eiri's friend, I…" A longer pause. "It's alright, Shindou-san. You can talk to me."

Shuichi chanced a look over at the president. What he saw—there was no smile. The expression was one that he had never seen on that particular face. It was so foreign that he didn't know how to place it. The intrigue softened his resolve. "He made me leave last night. A bunch of my stuff is still there, but I don't want it back. I…" he looked away again. "I just want him to take me back."

"What led up to all that?" said Tohma.

"I…I guess—well, I wanted to go camping this weekend."

"Oh. To my knowledge, Eiri has never been. What made you decide you wanted to do that?"

"I just wanted to do something fun with him." Shuichi's lip pouted. "But he said no and I… oh no! I pushed him. I pushed him too far. So stupid!" Shuichi cried out, covering his face with his hands.

"I see," Tohma said, allowing himself a small frown while Shuichi's eyes were averted. "Please, Mr. Shindou. Get back to the studio. Everything will work out for the best. But you need to work hard today. Understood?"

Shuichi looked back up to see Tohma's plain smile and reflective eyes. In a mixture of both trust and fear, he nodded shakily. Making his way downstairs, he decided to try his best to obey. Nothing had seemed to be resolved. But he felt better.

He marched right in and walked up to Suguru. "Let's do it," he said, smiling intensely.

"Alright! I knew Tohma would be able to talk some sense into you," Suguru returned the smile, although Shuichi's was leaving his face as quickly as it had come.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Come on, Shu." Shuichi looked back at Hiro, who was smirking at him. "Sing."

"Gotcha." The pink-haired vocalist winked and grabbed hold of the microphone.

Minutes to quitting time, a widely-smiling Tohma Seguchi walked into Bad Luck's studio. Noticing his presence, Shuichi directed his attention away from what he was doing. Tohma motioned for him to continue. He watched the vocalist's lips move through soundproof glass, only able to imagine the melody. At least he knew how it could sound, given the nature of Shuichi's voice. His mouth had decided to move in a direction out of his control, taking form in a crooked smile. This appearance was one that would require correcting. But for now, he would let his imagination take hold. The song would be in his grasp soon enough. Tohma would enjoy guessing which one when the album was complete.

Not a word between them, the vocalist followed the president to the parking lot, stopping short of his car. "Are you going to get in?" Tohma said. Shuichi nodded, smiling shakily. He had a good idea where they were headed.

The closer they got to Yuki's door, the more nervous Shuichi became. His heart picked up pace with each step. He watched Tohma's black cloak as it swayed at the back of his legs. It required all self-restraint to keep from grabbing at its rippled edges, latching on for dear life.

Yuki answered the door to see Tohma's annoying smile and a blushing Shuichi cowering behind him. "Hm," he said. His tone was not-at-all inviting.

"So Eiri, what time shall we leave for our trip on Friday?" Tohma said, removing his cloak and hanging it by the door.

"A trip? On Friday?" Shuichi said in a voice so small that the others scarcely heard.

"After the both of you are due back, I would assume." Yuki sounded bored. More than bored.

"Oh. Didn't I mention? Everyone will be off on Friday." The annoying smile remained, and their eyes captured each other.

"You? Cancelling work?" Yuki's tone had taken a subtle shift.

It was a difficult task for Shuichi to decipher the code in Yuki's voice. If there was any code to begin with. Bored, angry, tired, happy. It all sounded so similar. Not unlike Tohma, although he at least sounded pleasant most of the time. Yuki rarely sounded pleasant, if ever.

Tohma clasped both hands together, his eyes locked with Yuki's. "Now, what kind of president would I be if I didn't give out much-deserved time off, now and then?"

Yuki averted his attention to Shuichi, who had shrunk considerably. The vocalist was holding his hands in front of himself, as if to surrender. Sighing, the blonde said, "Fine. We'll do things your way. I'd rather be left out of it, anyway." He walked into his office and pulled the door closed behind him.

Shuichi looked up at Tohma. "What's going on, on Friday?"

Tohma turned to look back at him. "Camping," he said simply.

"Oh," Shuichi said quietly. He spoke a little louder, "Oh! Yuki's going?" He gave a chibi smile.

"Yes. I am as well," Tohma said, his voice returning to a measured tone.

"The three of us? Together?"

"Together," he smiled.