No, I didn't forget about this story. I thought you peoples forgot about since no one has been reviewing ::hint hint:: but here's the next part anyway.
Love Conquers All: Recovery
It was well past midnight and the streets of Shibuya-Cho were, for the most part, silent. Every now and then, a car would drive by or a group of people would walk down the dark streets, talking loudly amongst themselves. A few neon signs lit up the night along with the street lights, but other than that, the only light was provided by the full yellow moon.
It was this very moon light that lit up the back alley where the GG garage stood. That and one lone stoop light, which was in desperate need of repair. The garage was dark that night. Everything was silent. Tab, Cube and Combo had gone to bed earlier that night and Potts was sleeping peacefully in his kennel. Everyone was asleep. Everyone, but Gum.
She sat silently and tall, resting her hands in her lap. The entire time, she never took her eyes off of Beat. Aside from the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, he hadn't moved at all. Not one bit. This concerned Gum. Beat was not exactly a still sleeper. Even when he was injured, Beat would always squirm a bit in his sleep. Of course, he wasn't exactly asleep.
Gum scooted her chair closer to the bed and placed her hand on Beat's arm. No reaction. Not that she expected him to react, but it would've eased her mind a bit. Fatigue was nipping at the back of her brain, but she refused to give in. She wanted to be there when Beat woke up. If he woke up. 'Stop thinking like that!' Gum told herself firmly. 'He'll be okay.' Gum told herself that several times, but now she wasn't so sure she believed it. After all, he had lost a lot of blood. 'Stop worrying Gum! Beat's tough, he can make it.' She forced all negative thought out of her head and focused on Beat, but even as the thought of him dying during the night left her brain, the sleep demons crept in, and she found herself nodding off. She rubbed her face with her hand and tried to stay awake, but she could tell she was losing. 'I suppose if I go to sleep now, I'll wake up before he does.' She slowly slipped out of her chair and kneeled by Beat's bed. She leaned forward and put her arms on the bed, then leaned her head down being careful not to injure Beat's shoulder any further. She rested her head on her arms and closed her eyes, listening to Beat's steady breathing. She lifted her left hand and placed in on Beat's arm. Still no reaction, but she just wanted to be close to him. Finally, ready to give into fatigue, she fell asleep.
The sun was shining over Shibuya as usual. The city was back to it's busy, day-time self and people crowded the streets. Birds chirped from the trees and filled the air with a some what natural feeling. "I hate birds," Tab mumbled grouchily. He was not a morning person. "Oh, cry me a river!" Cube said as she walked out of her room, running her fingers through her hair and yawning. "But they're so annoying! Singing their stupid little songs!"
"Get over it! They're birds! That's what birds do!"
"Christ! Do y'all need to start bickering already?" Combo said.
There was an uneasy silence that followed. The only sounds in the garage came from outside. The three of them looked at each other. The second their eyes met each other, the quickly glanced away. "I wonder how Beat's doing," Cube whispered suddenly. The other two looked at her, then at the ground. "I wonder if he's even still alive," Tab muttered.
"Of course he's still alive!" Cube said suddenly. Her gaze fell back to the floor. "Why wouldn't he be?" she asked quietly. They each wanted to check on Beat, but no one wanted to disturb Gum. They felt as though the two of them deserved their privacy, and no one wanted to intrude.
Through the uneasy silence, the sounds of the birds chirping made it to the back of the garage. That was the first thing Beat heard when he slowly opened his eyes. He moaned slightly as he blinked. He was feeling pretty light headed and his shoulder ached. He allowed his eyes to close as he took steady breathes. The air felt unusually clean in his lungs as he readied his body to take in his surroundings. The dizzy feeling reduced a little, even as he reopened his eyes. Everything seemed normal. He was still in his room in the garage, the only difference being that it was morning. The soft blankets ruffled a bit as he leaned his weight on his left arm, trying to sit up. He supported himself on his elbow and radius* when he noticed there was a strange warmth on the right side of his bed.
*The radius is one of the bones in your arm below the elbow. I'm not sure if I got the correct bone though. It's been over a year since I took Biology 1-2!
It was also then when he discovered the soft sound of someone breathing. He grinned and relaxed his body a bit when his gaze wandered to the source of the sound. Sleeping peacefully, with her hand on his arm and her head resting on the bed, was Gum. 'How like her,' Beat thought, as he repositioned himself. When he had balanced himself on his left arm, he slowly nudged the sleeping girl. She slowly began to stir and Beat nudged her again to make sure she was waking up. Her eyes blinked open and she yawned a bit in response. She placed her left elbow on the bed and rested her forehead in her palm. She ran her hand over her eyes and lifted her gaze. Her eyes softened the second they came into contact with Beat. Her face took on a relieved manner as she sighed silently. He was okay. He made it through the night.
Gum slowly rose to her feet, her eyes never leaving Beat. She didn't need to say anything. He didn't need to say anything. The only words that needed to be said already hung in the air between the two. "I'll be right back," Gum said softly as she turned to leave the room. She took one quick glance back at him over her shoulder as he smiled and slowly lowered himself down into his bed. He closed his eyes and took a few more deep breathes as he heard Gum leave the room. He could hear her talking to the others from the main area, but his brain was just to worn out to make out what she was saying. A few seconds later, he heard someone enter his room. He was expecting it to be Gum, but he was just too lazy to open his eyes at the moment. However, he felt obligated to do so when his visitor lightly shook him on his left shoulder.
"Hey man, how ya feelin'?" Tab said when Beat opened his eyes. Beat smiled lightly to match Tab's expression. Being the only males when the GGs were first born, Beat and Tab had become best friends. No matter what, they were always there for each other. Whether it was covering the other's back in a street fight, or creating diversions to throw off the cops. They had developed a deep bound in their previous battles, it was almost like they were brothers. "Not bad. Just a little tired, and hungry." Beat's stomach grumbled to add emphasis to his claim. He groaned inwardly; he hated it when his stomach growled. It was embarrassing. "Cube's already got somethin' cookin'. I'll go see if it's ready." Tab said as he stood up to leave. "Thanks," Beat said with a sheepish grin. He was in desperate need of fuel anyway and he was sure to feel better after he ate. "I'm just amazed our sorry ass excuse for an oven still works." Tab added as he exited.
Just as soon as Tab left, his presence was replaced by Gum. She glided over to her chair, carrying pillows in each hand, and sat down. She set them on the floor and began to help Beat into a sitting position, placing the pillows behind his back to support him. "Does your shoulder still hurt?" Beat gingerly rubbed the muscle below his wound, which had started to ache from stiffness, and massaged it a bit. "It doesn't hurt as much now. It should be fine in a few days. I think…" Beat's thoughts were interrupted when Gum carefully linked her arm around his neck and gently hugged him, which she topped off with a kiss on the cheek. Beat was taken a bit, but he wasn't really all that surprised. He grinned and slowly turned towards her. "And that would be our first kiss?" Gum chuckled and leaned in closer to him. "No," she rested her forehead against his. "This would." Gum closed her eyes and prepared her lips to make contact with Beat's. He did the same as Gum placed her hand upon his cheek and tilted his chin up slightly. Their lips had just brushed up against each other when, "Soup's on!"
Letting out a startled gasp, Beat and Gum quickly turned away from each other as Cube, Combo, and Tab entered the room, carrying a tray of food. Looking between the two, Tab could've guessed what they had been doing, but he decided that it would be best not to say anything at the moment. "Sorry I couldn't come up with something a bit heartier than oatmeal, but I figured you'd be really hungry." Cube said as she set up the tray by Beat's bed. "Don't worry about it," Beat replied immediately. By silent cue, he ushered the others out of his room and they left without hesitation, once again leaving Gum and Beat alone. "You need help with that?" Gum asked as Beat cringed a bit as he reached for the food. "No, I'm fine," he replied, even as his right hand shook trying to support the bowl. Gum rolled her eyes a bit and took the bowl from his grasp, as well as the spoon he held in his left hand. "No way! I am not going to be spoon fed!" Beat stated in a dominate, yet at the same time humorously childish manner. Gum sighed and shook her head. "Oh come on! You're acting like a two-year old! You need to eat." She said in an equally forceful manner. "Now open your mouth."
Beat growled as Gum tried to spoon feed him. He hated feeling helpless and patronized, but he soon gave in. The concerned look in her eyes had really gotten to him and he was just too hungry to put up much resistance. He just hoped that someone wouldn't walk in and see him being spoon fed by his new girlfriend. Too much humiliation to deal with in his condition. But that concern seemed to just fade away as he became a bit more relaxed. Gum scraped as much food out of the bowl as she could and held the spoon out.. Normally, Beat would've just taken the spoon from her and fed himself, but now, he just didn't seem to care as he licked the spoon clean. He was feeling much better and the reasons why he had fallen in love with Gum refreshed his memory bank. When the bowl was all clean, Gum handed Beat a glass of orange juice which he greedily gulped down. He sighed contently and laid back, ready to fall back to sleep. Gum removed the extra pillows supporting him and helped him lay back down. She kissed him on the forehead and made sure he had enough blankets to keep him warm. "You gonna be all right?"
"You worry too much, Gum." Beat mumbled sleepily as he clutched the blanket with his left hand and pulled it over his chest.
"Need I remind you that you've been shot? Why shouldn't I be a little concerned?"
Beat grinned at her slyly. "You spoon fed me, Gum." He said quietly.
"Well then," Gum said as she crossed her arms "remind me to let you starve next time!"
Gum shut her eyes tightly and turned away, her arms still crossed in a mockingly offended manner. She sat up straight and tried to block out the snickering from behind her. She fought to keep a straight face, and slowly turned around to see Beat, snickering through his teeth. A smile forced it's way onto Gum's mouth and she dropped her arms. "There's no win with you, is there?"
"Not that I know of!" Beat laughed. He gritted his teeth to try to silence the laughter and Gum sighed. Finally deciding to take matters into her own hands, Gum leaned over and quickly kissed Beat on the lips. Beat's laughter quickly died down and a more serious expression replaced his grin. "We never got to finish that." Beat mumbled, but was once again silenced when Gum sealed his lips with her own. He gently kissed her back and Gum tightened the seal around their mouths. The kiss slowly became more and more passionate. Beat sat up, leaning against his left arm, and ran his right hand behind her head, despite the pain in his shoulder. Gum placed her hands on the bed and allowed Beat to pull her closer to him. Beat had been asking himself if he should slip his tongue into her mouth and Gum's kissing technique was as though he was daring him to do so. He cautiously slipped his tongue in between her lips, ready to pull back if necessary, but Gum welcomed the warm feeling in her mouth and responded by doing the same. In that moment, the world seemed to shut off around them. Nothing mattered. Whether the garage had suddenly caught on fire, or the others had walked in and were secretly video taping the whole thing. None of that mattered. They had each other, that was all that mattered.
Beat and Gum slowly pulled away from each other. Beat exhaled lightly as he laid back down and Gum gently ran her fingers over her lips. "Think we should tell the others?" Gum asked, still holding her hand to her face. Beat closed his eyes and rested his left hand on his stomach. "About us, you mean?" he said without even facing her. Even though his eyes were still closed, he could sense Gum nodding her head. He reopened his eyes and turned his head towards her. "They're bound to find out sooner or later. Might as well get it over with. But first, I need some sleep."
Gum skated through the bus terminal and jumped on the hand rail of the catwalk. She glided over the rails and leapt into the air. Landing on one of the metal roofs above the buses, Gum sat down and scooted over to the edge, hanging her legs over the side. She left the garage so that Beat could get some sleep and decided to catch some fresh air while she was out. She needed to do a little thinking anyway. Her head was a mess.
She stretched her arms out over her head and leaned back. She gently rolled her back against the roof and placed her hands behind her head. The sky was clear that after noon, save a few clouds. A normal day, that wasn't really normal at all. She listened to the sounds of people talking below her. Today probably didn't seem much different from yesterday to them. The didn't know about how much had happened in the past few days. They didn't know about how close Gum came to losing someone she loved last night. They didn't know, and they didn't care. If Beat had died, they wouldn't have cared. No one outside the GGs would even think to morn his death or any other GG's death. Hell, they'd probably celebrate it. Who needs worthless street punks in the world? Gum narrowed her eyes. "And they wonder why we tag all over their precious material possessions. If only they knew." Gum sighed. All those new expensive cars always looked much more appealing with a GG tag. It was a rudies last cry for recognition, but at least they got it that time around. "Those sons of bitches don't know how lucky they are."
Gum sat up suddenly and stretched her body. She would've been more than happy to go on a tagging spree that day to release some pent up tension, but now was not a good time to cause trouble. "Maybe next week," Gum said, grinning evilly after spying some prep's new sports car. The look on the faces of spoiled preps was just one of the perks to being a rudie. She stood up and looked at the sky. It was still early in the afternoon, probably around two or three. "Couldn't hurt to skate around a bit more before heading back," she mumbled to herself as she headed towards Center Street. The record store had just gotten a shipment of the latest CDs from one of those boy bands and the area was sure to be swamped with shallow preppy girls screaming their heads off over a stupid CD, and tormenting the likes of them was just the kind of cruel fun that Gum longed for at the moment. She wished she had someone to video tape it.
Beat's eyes blinked open and he yawned unconsciously. He scanned the room for his crappy, but trusty digital clock. "Geez, no wonder I feel like I've slept for days," he mumbled as she shifted in his bed. It was already four in the afternoon, but Beat was feeling a lot better than he was that morning. His right arm was still a bit stiff, but the pain had gone down a bit. Supporting his weight on his left elbow, Beat pulled himself into a sitting position. He moved his right arm a bit to ease the stiffness and get some blood flowing back in. His shoulder still hurt a lot, but it was mainly just stiffness that caused such discomfort. "You're up." The familiar voice made Beat jump a bit. He looked up to see Tab standing in the door way. "Tab, where is everyone?"
"Well, Combo and Cube are still here," Tab pushed himself off of the door frame and over towards Beat's bed. "the others are off somewhere, probably at home, and Gum went skating a few hours ago. She really needed to get out."
"I know. Could you get everyone here? I need to make an announcement. And find Gum for me."
"No prob bro! I'm on it!"
Tab pushed himself across the floor and ripped towards the door in record time. "Wait a sec!" He placed his hand on the door frame to stop himself an turned towards his friend who had called him back. Beat chuckled nervously and wore his sheepish grin from that morning, as he gently rubbed his stomach. "Could you get me something to eat first? I'm starved."
Gum slid over the pavement on her trusty skates, satisfied with the terror she had caused earlier. Nothing like a bit of trouble making to set your mind free. She slowly made her way back to the garage, stopping herself before reaching the alley. She glanced around a bit and casually made her way between the bagel shop and the photo center. The clack of her skates echoed through the alley as she made her way towards the garage. As she drew closer, she heard what sounded like a discussion among her fellow GGs. Curious and some what concerned, she dashed towards the entrance.
"There you are," Piranha said as Gum stepped into the GG HQ. "We've been looking everywhere for you. Beat says he has to make an announcement and he wants you there." Gum felt an alarmed sensation hit her stomach. She knew what this meant and she wasn't sure she was prepared for it, but Beat was right. It's better to get it over with and let everyone know of their love for each other rather than having them find out. She nodded at Piranha and made her way to Beat's room. A trail of GGs followed her as if they were dogs and she had the scent of meat about her. This bothered her, but they were going to his room anyway. She tried to brush the feeling off of her as she walked into Beat's room.
He was sitting up in bed, talking to Tab about something, when he noticed Gum. A small smirk spread across his face and he motioned her to join him at his side. "I've been looking for you for like an hour!" Tab said in an annoyed tone. "Sorry. Didn't know you were looking for me." Gum mumbled. Tab sighed inwardly and got up from his seat to make room for Gum. By this time, all of the GGs had made it into Beat's room, making Gum a little uncomfortable as she sat down. She shook a little when she felt something warm run along her left wrist. Looking down, she saw Beat's hand upon hers as he was leaning closer to her. "Show them your ring." He whispered. Gum shot him a quick glance with her eyes and found herself struggling for words. "Show them your ring." He repeated.
Gum closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. 'It's now or never. Let's just get it over with.' She held the back of her right hand out to her friends, and she slowly began to remove the glove. Cube and Combo gave each other a sideways glance as they could pretty much guess what was on her finger and who it was from. Gum felt the cold air hit the fingers as she yanked her glove off. After hearing the surprised gasps from the others in the room, she opened her eyes to see them all fixed on her hand. "Who gave that to you?" Mew said in wonder, her eyes shimmering. Gum opened her mouth to speak, but was stuck on what she should say, if she should say anything at all. That's when she felt the pressure on her left hand. Beat held it snuggly and reassuringly. "I did." He said quietly, just loud enough for everyone to hear. But before the others had a chance to react, Beat continued. "She will be leading the GGs by my side. After all, she is an original GG. We were together from the beginning. She may seem a little arrogant and even a bit harsh on the outside, but inside she is loyal and I wouldn't trade her friendship for anything in the world. I love her."
Gum looked at Beat some what surprised, but then relaxed after what he had just said totally registered with her. Her eyes softened by his words, she sighed contently, not knowing or caring about the other's reaction. Needless to say, they were shocked, but in no way displeased with the current turn of events. Gum could've sworn she even heard them applaud a bit as she drifted into her world of oblivion. She had a lot of thinking to do. She and Beat had a lot of thinking to do about the future.
To be continued…..
Hah! Bet you thought that was the end, didn't you? Not quite! Beat doesn't have a lot of money on him, so just where did he get that ring? Did he steal it? Was it passed down to him? Did he just happen to find it? Or did he just convince an old friend of his to buy it for him? Find out next time! Please review!