Disclaimer: **sticks fingers in ears** LALALALALALALALALALA…
Warnings: Potentially R-rated language in a PG-13-rated story. ^_^() Long explanations, lots of staring, bad puns, all that fun stuff. --;;
Notes: ^^;;;; Umm…I had trouble writing this chapter because it's so close to the end. So it took me longer than expected. I hope it's okay, and not a total let-down for you guys. **siiiiiigh**
ANOTHER STORY
Chapter 25:
Found
I jumped to my feet with eyes as big as Monster Truck tires, unable to speak, bounced around on my toes for a sec, and then plowed past Genrou and Saihitei and out the door. The only thing I could think of was that I had to get over there, I had to get across the street and snag Houjun before he disappeared again. Somehow, the fact that there was a street full of cars between me and my long-lost companion didn't appear to register, and before I had time to think, there was a loud, obnoxious honking/screeching sound, and suddenly…I was flying.
Next thing I knew, I was on the other side of the street. And Genrou was…carrying me, holding me under my knees and shoulders and gasping for breath.
"FUCKIN CRAZY MORON!!! NEVER do that again!!!!" he yelled in my ear, his face bright red. "You do that again, I'll fuckin kill you myself!! Ya hear??!!" He proceeded to chew me out like nobody's business, using curse words I didn't even know existed.
Normally, it would have made me flinch. But I squawked and squirmed free—Gotta get him now, gotta get him now, what if he leaves before I get there?—and darted into The River.
What a stupid name for a restaurant. What a stupid, stupid…
…He was staring at me when I burst through the rotating doors, and as I stood there, panting and pale, our eyes locked.
For the longest time…there was silence.
Why did you run away? What the hell were you thinking? I wanted to scream. Why didn't you call me, or write me, like I said? Why did you have to scare us like this, WHY?? I'm so glad you're all right, I'm so glad you're all right…
Something in his eyes said to go to him, so I did, as soon as I could move. I placed a hand on the corner of the little table, fingers brushing against the white linen of the cloth covering it, still too numb to say anything, or to bend my legs to sit down.
"You almost got killed," he remarked calmly, breaking the silence between us.
That was it. The dam had broken. "Chichiri," I whispered. "Why did you come here? Why didn't you tell us?"
He lowered his eyes to his water glass. "I did."
"That email you sent Miaka barely counts," I said crossly, but weakly. "It sounded like you'd gone insane."
A slight pause, and he looked me in the eye again, his deep brown irises tinged with regret. "I'm…not so sure I hadn't."
"Ya coulda fuckin called," Genrou growled at my shoulder, and I gave a little start, not having noticed him approach.
"I needed to do this alone, that's all," said Houjun quietly, almost bitterly. He sighed and glanced out the window, where I saw the rest of the Warrior Guys and Miaka hurrying over the crosswalk. "I suppose it was silly to think you'd leave me be. I knew you'd come after me, even if I told you not to. The only hope I had was that if I didn't call, you wouldn't know where to go to find me."
"Why did you want to be alone? We're star brothers," I said, firmly, inwardly wincing because I sounded like a stubborn kid. "If anyone could help you, don't you think it'd be us?"
"Fuckin' A," Genrou contributed hotly, and I felt a sharp stab of guilt. Houjun hadn't known I'd spilled about his memories; now, it was fairly obvious.
But if he was surprised and angry and disappointed, he didn't show it.
"Not with this." Houjun shook his head, sipping from his wine goblet. "Not with this."
"With what?" I asked, still torn between hugging him to death, begging his forgiveness for blabbing, and punching him through the pretty painted window. Right now, the hugging thing was dominant in my mind.
"Hmm. Here comes the crowd," he said, putting his napkin on the table and standing.
"HOUJUN!!!" Miaka cried, wasting no time before barreling into him like one magnet into another. "You're all right! We were so worried about you!" He hugged her back, then recoiled with a surprised grunt when she kicked him in the knee. "Why didn't you call us??"
"Ahem…" coughed Someone, who turned out to be the Maitre D' of the place. We turned to look at him, sheepish, and he gave us the evil eye. Didn't say anything. Just…stood…and glared…
"Hello," said Houjun with a slight grin, rubbing his leg. "A table for eight, please?"
~*~
"What was so important?" Taka demanded, trying valiantly to keep his voice down. We had moved to an extra-large booth near the center of the restaurant; Taka, Miaka, Genrou, and Doukun were on one side, and Saihitei and Myojuan and I had Houjun sandwiched in the middle. With Taka almost leaning on the table in the intensity of his question, it reminded me of the Spanish Inquisition, or something. "What was so important that you left us all behind to worry?? Didn't you stop to think about how we'd feel? About how selfish it was, just to run off like that with barely a word??!!"
"Takaaaa," Miaka said under her breath, setting a hand on his arm.
"I didn't mean to make you worry," Houjun sighed. "I wasn't…I wasn't thinking clearly. I'm sorry. My head was spinning faster than I could handle."
"Why did you come here?" Saihitei said gently, cutting Taka off before he could reply. "What were you looking for?"
With a sad smile, our blue-haired friend bowed his head. "I came to see Kouran," he said. "I had to come to see Kouran."
We gazed around at each other.
"Who the fuck is Kouran?" Genrou huffed.
"The girl you loved." All heads—except Houjun's—swiveled in Myojuan's direction. The big med student was focused completely on the defeated man next to him, taking him in with calm, blue-violet eyes.
Girl? Chichiri loved a girl? …Wasn't he a MONK?
Stupid. Ya think just cuz he's a monk, he didn't have a heart? And besides…
…And besides…
That's why he became a monk in the first place. Isn't it.
"When I met her in this life," Houjun began, eyes practically closed, "I knew who she was. I knew all too well, and I tried to stop myself from falling in love with her. But…you can't choose whom you love. It would be too easy if that were the case. So it happened anyway. Though I never told her, I fell in love with her." He sighed. "And…he was the same, too. Hikou."
Miaka shoved her water glass across the table at him.
He blinked at her.
Taka swatted her. "That's his name, remember? Chichiri's friend's name??!"
"Please, continue," Doukun entreated, doing his best to ignore the girl sitting next to him.
"HIKOU…and I," Houjun said pointedly, though his tone betrayed some amusement, "were best friends. That's just…the way it was. We met during one of my lapses…one of those periods where I'd managed to completely block the past from my memory. I don't know how much Nuriko told you about what I went through…"
I couldn't tell if he was secretly mad at me or not, and my heart started panicking a little. My big mouth refused to stay shut any longer. "Houjun, I'm so sorry! When Sai said he'd heard you call Gen-chan Tasuki, too, I…"
"Nuriko." He cocked his head in my direction, soft eyes shifting over to me. "It's all right; I don't blame you. You were right to have told them. I should have told everyone a long time ago." I nodded, but I still must've looked pretty uncertain, because he gave me a smile, reached down and gave my hand a squeeze before continuing. "Even when I started remembering again, I couldn't abandon Hikou. He was a good friend. And… when he told me he was in love with Kouran, too…I couldn't hurt him. I couldn't hurt him like that."
"Well, if ya didn't wanna fuckin hurt him, why'd ya fuckin come here?!" Guess who.
"Because Kouran didn't love Hikou," Houjun sighed. "She loved me."
"Well, what the fuck was the problem then??!!"
"Dammit, Gen-chan!" I snapped. "Haven't you been listening? His best friend was in love with her! Someone he loved like a brother! Even if she didn't love him, he couldn't do that to his friend!" Briefly, my eyes met Taka's, and I jerked a little, my voice and my gaze both dropping. "Besides, friendship is more important than love… To some extent! To some extent!" I amended hastily, straightening when I remembered exactly who was sitting next to me. "Ehehehehehehhe…love ya, Sai."
"Mm hmm." He looped an elbow around my neck.
"But what the fuck is…"
"Tasuki," came Myojuan's deep voice. "Please. Do us all a favor. Shut up and let Chichiri explain."
Astoundingly enough, that did the trick. Gen-chan's eyes widened alarmingly, and he drew his shoulders in like a little boy, chastened.
"There's not really that much more to tell," said Houjun. "I tried to forget. I tried to forget everything. Kouran moved out here, and I thought I would finally be free…but then I met you, Miaka. I wasn't expecting that. No, don't be upset. I'm not unhappy that I met you all again. I think…my life will be better because of it, actually." He turned to me. "When I talked to you that night…despite the things I said, it really made me see things more clearly than I ever had before. I saw you and Hotohori together and happy at last, and I loved that. You two…you've found a happiness that could never have been yours in the past. And I started thinking…if you two could be happy, then why not me? …Why not me?"
My heart ached for him. It wasn't fair; he was right, everyone should be happy. Why were Saihitei and I allowed to regain the past, and not poor Houjun? Even Blond Police Guy didn't seem to be particularly evil anymore. He'd seemed happy enough, and he'd been our enemy!
"The more I considered this, the more…insane…I became," Houjun was saying. "The more I thought about Kouran, and what we'd meant to each other, the more I kept telling myself to go after her. Even if she didn't love me anymore, even if Hikou was my best friend, I had to tell her how I felt. I had to rid myself of those demons. So I came here. I knew she'd moved here, and we'd been keeping in touch until about six months ago. Apparently, she's just moved into a different apartment, so I didn't have the right home address…but I knew she was working here. And they won't tell me where she lives now. I suppose that's smart, though. They don't know who I am, after all."
"Well…how long've you been here?" Miaka asked, excited. "Did you see her yet? Where is she?"
"She's…been sick, they say," he explained. "This is the fourth day I've been here, and she has the flu." An ironic chuckle. "Gods, I'm so nervous…might've known it would be dragged out like this."
"And where's Hikou?" I inquired softly.
He shrugged. "We lost touch. Never should've let that happen, but it did. I don't know if he's here, or…or what."
"Well, ya could fuckin ask," Gen-chan grumbled, still slumped. When Houjun returned the comment with a blank expression, he cleared his throat loudly and straightened up.
Oh, nooooooooo!! Someone stop him before it's…
"Hey, you!! Fuckin waiter dude!"
As a pale kid with a water pitcher froze under Genrou's glare, staring in horror at my friend's beckoning hand, I groaned quietly and dropped my head into my hands.
Yyyyup. Gotta keep up the tradition of Scaring The Wait Staff…
"Hey, kid! Yeah, I'm talkin ta you! You know a chick named Kouran, works here with ya?"
Keeping his distance, the kid nodded; Houjun brought a hand up to his face in exasperation.
"Tasuki," Taka hissed, and naturally, he was ignored.
"She have a fuckin boyfriend named Hiccup? Or…just a friend?"
"HIKOU!!" the rest of us exclaimed, a good percentage of us muffled by our hands.
"Urrmmm…water?" said the waiter, lifting his pitcher slightly, like a peace offering.
"Look," growled Genrou, "we don't have the fuckin hiccups. All we wanna know is if Kourin has a boyfriend named Hiccup…"
"Kourin's my sister, ya dork," I exclaimed, head snapping up.
"Then what's Chiri's fuckin chick's name?!"
"KOURAN!! And his best friend's name is HIKOU!!!"
"And we are not 'chicks,'" Miaka added, crossing her arms. "We are 'ladies.'"
The water boy, meanwhile, had taken a step backward. "I…I don't know nothin! You're askin the wrong guy…I'm…I'm just the guy with the water! Ya wanna see Kouran? I'll get her! Just…just don't hurt me!"
"Shit, kid!" Gen-chan exclaimed. "I ain't gonna fuckin hurt ya!! I just asked a fuckin question, no need ta get all blubbery and shit!…"
"Kouran's here?" Houjun's voice cut through his ranting. "She's…she's here?"
That's what he said! I heard it, too; he said he'd get her! That mean's she's here, doesn't it? Doesn't it?
We all fell silent, and the kid nodded frantically. "She just got here! You're the guy that's been hanging around waitin for her, ain't ya?"
A quick glance at Houjun showed suddenly pale features and large eyes; his mouth had dropped open a bit, his hands lay limp on the table.
And then…
"Houjun?…"
There, in the door of the kitchen, stood a young woman with long, lavender hair, paused as if in the middle of tying it up into a ponytail. Her delicate features mirrored those of Houjun; her blue-gray eyes sparkled in the cheap electric light, and she looked like an angel, surrounded by the relative brightness coming from the room behind her.
Houjun stood up quickly, without a word; not knowing what else to do, I did, too, until Saihitei's gentle hand on my shoulder pushed me back to my seat. For the longest time, the two of them just stood there, joined by nothing more than a gaze.
"Wh…what are you doing here?!" Kouran exclaimed finally, taking a few steps forward and breaking out into a brilliant smile. The ethereal look that had surrounded her disappeared as she moved, and she suddenly turned from an angel to a young woman who would never be what society would call exceptionally pretty.
But society is dumb, and often gets its priorities muddled up. For Houjun—and for me, living the moment almost vicariously through him—she was the most beautiful thing in the world.
"I came to find you," Houjun breathed.
Her eyes widened, her mouth twisting into a surprised grin. "Find me?"
"Ryuuen," Saihitei whispered, his arm around my shoulders, dragging me out of the booth so that Houjun could get out without having to climb over us. I let him move me, still fixed on Kouran, heart growing bigger and bigger in my chest. I wanted to jump up and down because we'd found Houjun, and he'd found Kouran, and things might actually turn out well between them. It was like watching a movie. I felt kinda displaced, like an invisible observer, watching a movie and waiting for the happy ending.
A happy ending! Will we have a happy ending? We've waited for one for so long…Miaka and Tama-chan had theirs, Mitsukake found Shouka again, Chiriko got a chance to grow up, Tasuki…has his friends, whole and well. And Hotohori and I… Hotohori and I…are like something out of a fairy tale. I don't think "happy" quite sums it up for us. Dude. This much of a perfect relationship can't be normal.
I watched Houjun move over to where his old friend was standing, heard him ask her to talk with him ever so softly, saw her smile and nod, a question bright in her eyes.
Saihitei's arms had gone around my shoulders, holding me loosely, my back against his chest. Reaching up, I placed my hands on his, hooking my fingers around his much larger, much warmer palms.
Please. We're so happy; everyone is so happy.
Let Chichiri have his happy ending, too.
TBC…
Notes: AHHHHH!!!! Only one chapter left!!!! **bursts into tears** Ummmm…sorry about the long explanation in this part. ^^;;; And the awful Hikou pun. **wince** And I'm sorry to all the Tasuki/Chichiri folks out there…**sniff** I've had this planned for a while, though. Don't hate me. ^^;; Anyhoo, thanks for reading, you guys! **hugs**
Red-chan's Note: Red-chan would like everyone to know that "Hikou" actually means "Nostril" in Japanese. O.O Ahem. How cruel of his parents.
ANOTHER STORY AKUGI!!!Houjun: I came to find you.
Kouran: Ahahahaha!! No you don't!! **runs and hides** You have to count to ten first!
Everyone Else: **scrambles and goes to hide, too**
Houjun: **alone** Damn.
ANOTHER STORY AKUGI!!! Take Two:Ryuuen: This much of a perfect relationship can't be normal.
Saihitei: Of course…it…caaaaannnnn….
Ryuuen: O.o;;; What the hell???!!
Mouse-chan: Oh! Sorry…his batteries must've worn out.
Ryuuen: WHAAAT??
Mouse-chan: **goes to wind Sai up** Well, you're always commenting about how he's a robot, and stuff. Seriously, d'ya think guys like this actually exist??
Ryuuen: I HATE YOU!!! **runs away crying**
^_^
…ANOTHER STORY AKUGI!! Take Two: Three Seconds Later
Saihitei: Awww, that was really kinda mean, ending it like that.
Mouse-chan: g.g I know, gomen.
Saihitei: I want my Ryuuen back.
Mouse-chan: Very well.
Ryuuen: Heyyy!! How'd I get here??
Mouse-chan: **shrug** I'm the author. Ya do what I want.
Ryuuen: ~.~() That doesn't bode well for human agency.
Mouse-chan: You haven't got any, anyway. Remember the whole Destiny thing?
Ryuuen: Awww…
Saihitei: This Akugi is leading nowhere.
Mouse-chan: You're right. So kiss, already.
Ryuuen: Sai?…Are you really a robot?
Saihitei: Of course not.
Ryuuen: Woohoo!! **kissy**
Random Quotes of the Day:Ryuen: I have done something that I have never done before.
Mouse-chan: Sneezed on a hamster?
Ryuen: …
^_^()