For These Scars
~Chapter 22~
Written by: RinoaDestiny
King of Fighters, Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, Saisyu Kusanagi, and Benimaru Nikaido belong to SNK
"Yuki, this is Kyo. I need to talk to you. Please give me a call when you have time."
Kyo left the message, disconnected, pocketed his phone, and sat down on his bed. Yuki was at work and therefore was unable to respond, let alone hold a conversation. Kyo never expected to have the upcoming discussion over the phone anyway. Only a coward hid behind the line and device; he wasn't that, no matter how difficult breaking the news to her would be. Benimaru had stressed doing right by her and Kyo knew he owed her that much and more. The only way to do this properly was to tell it to her in person, face to face.
It was going to be hard. She was going to be upset. He dreaded it but it was his responsibility. He was the one who wronged her, after all.
Aoi dropped him home yesterday after they finished eating – giving him enough sake to relax but not make him drunk – and Kyo spent the rest of the evening in his room. He needed time to think, to process what he'd seen and heard while at Iori's place. Not only had he come to a decision while there – he'd left Iori yesterday; yet, intended on returning and staying for good – but also needed space to grapple with the reality that faced him.
Iori was sixty-two kilos and unable to maintain weight. At this rate…
The other fighter didn't have much time left, as Iori had stated. If time was generous with him, maybe a little over a week. If his situation continued to deteriorate, then a week or less. Even if he continued fighting it – Iori sounded on the verge of giving up – it wouldn't prolong his life by many days. Kyo wondered if his permanent presence would help but realized Iori already considered himself past the point of no return. With that mentality – the stark reality of Iori's emaciated appearance in mind – there was no going back, no rewinding of the clock.
Iori's instincts were rarely wrong, especially when it came to himself.
Kyo wished it wasn't so, but he wasn't the other man.
No wonder Iori told him to go back. To return to his clan, to what awaited him as heir. When Iori died – Kyo shied from the thought – their joined future would end. Iori had nothing to offer him past that, and the other man knew it. But for Kyo, if he bowed his head and acquiesced to his clan, he had his future laid out before him. Yuki as his wife, the next generation of Kusanagi shortly after, and his ascension as the head patriarch once his father stepped down.
Only…he'd decided while talking to Iori and Kyo wasn't looking back.
Sure, that was one of his possible futures. The easy way. The way everyone expected. But it didn't have to be his only future. With as little time they had left, they could still live through it together. Once they reunited for good, Kyo was going to be by his side until the end. Yagami wasn't going to suffer alone and should he die, he wasn't going to die unloved and forgotten. After…well, after was something Kyo needed to consider once they crossed that fateful bridge.
His third possible future. After.
That, however, was for later. Way later.
For now, his current dilemma was Yuki. Telling her the news, knowing it'd break her heart.
You should've told her from the start.
But if he had, he wouldn't have been circumspect about his and Iori's relationship. Keeping it secret was a critical requirement they'd both agreed on, guessing as to possible consequences if the news got out. None of them, though, had expected the fallout to be this dire or potentially fatal. He certainly hadn't expected his father to incapacitate Yagami to the brink of death. He also hadn't expected his freedoms to be curtailed with guardians hovering as though he was an unruly child. The most Iori and he expected was the ripple effect of their sundered rivalry affecting their official standing as fighters, the possibility of Kyo being disowned by his clan, and the disapproval of the general public which still frowned upon same sex relationships such as theirs. It was the reason why Yagami hadn't worn the ring (until now) and the reason why Kyo kept his schedule and thoughts to himself.
Now, with what they both faced, Kyo knew it was time to tell Yuki the truth.
He wasn't expecting forgiveness. None at all.
Guess I can forget about that date coming up.
There was no way in hell Yuki would want to attend afterwards. He couldn't blame her if that turned out to be the case – finding out she was relegated to second place would be a tremendous blow – since it'd feel like a sham. He wasn't going to cancel the tickets, though. Not yet. Not until after they talked.
If Yuki left his life, then…
The future his father wanted for him was over. There'd be no marriage talks and plans or future heirs in the Kusanagi line – at least none linked with Yuki's family. Kyo could only imagine how outraged his father would be, but as he told Uncle Hajime, he made his own choices. He'd have to live with those choices. He was willing to, since he knew what was at stake.
Iori's life and the little of it that remained.
His promise to Yagami – one he would not break.
His own future, trapped behind walls and familial expectations.
You've made your choice, Kyo. Now see it through.
He would, no matter how painful it'd be, seeing Yuki's happiness crumble. He would, even as his heart broke telling her the actuality of his circumstances. He would, because he wasn't the kind of person to double back and second-guess a decision he'd made.
He'd made his choice and he was going to follow through with it.
Wait for me, Yagami. Don't let go yet.