Chasing After Me
A Gravitation Fanfiction
Author's Notes: Thanks everyone for reviewing so far. Things are quickly wrapping up, yay! 2 more parts left, thanks for having patience.
Warnings: Will contain some spoilers, shounen ai (duh! Its gravi!)
Disclaimer: All rights to Gravitation belong to Maki Murakami-sama, SPE Visual Works, Sony, and WOWOW.
Part 7: A Gift
*~*~*~*~*~*
Seguchi Tohma sat in front of his desk glaring at the paperwork piled up, waiting for him to go through it. Picking up the first file, he barely read through one page before one of his assistants knocked sharply on the door.
"Come in." He spoke, voice cool and confident. His eyes narrowed a little as his wife strolled in. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, Mika-san?" He inquired politely as his wife sank down in one of the sofas across from his desk.
"Now a poor, loving wife can't miss her husband?" Her simpering look was grossly out of place as she adjusted the lapels on her neat business suit.
Tohma only closed his eyes briefly as he counted to ten. Mika had been acting this way ever since Shindou Shuichi and Eiri had their break up. Before he could question her anymore, another knock sounded on the door.
"Come in." His voice sounded again, this time laced with no small amount of irritation.
Heavy footfalls fell on the carpet as a tall, blonde man walked in.
"Eiri!" Mika coughed out with a shocked look on her face. "You look terrible!"
Yuki Eiri only spared her a glare that held half the vehemence that it usually carried. "What are you doing here?" He growled.
Mika rolled her eyes as she looked between the two men in the room. She wished desperately to knock some sense into both of them. "I'm married to him!" She pointed an accusing finger at the president of NG studios.
Both men gave her a raised eyebrow that clearly meant, 'so'?
Shaking her head, Mika sank down into her seat and fumed silently instead, while the men exchanged knowing looks.
"Eiri-san, what can I do for you today?" Tohma smiled as he folded his hands together.
"I called you a week ago about a package I wanted delivered to Shindou Shuichi.'
"Yes?"
Yuki handed him a manila envelope. "Tell him to consider it a good-bye present from me."
"Good-bye?!" Mika sputtered as she stood up, standing between Yuki and the door, just in case he tried to make a run for the door before she could question him.
"Yes, I am leaving for Los Angeles in two weeks."
"Does father know about this?" Mika felt her heart turn over as she inspected her brother's worn out features.
"He will."
"When?"
"When you tell him."
Mika sputtered in anger again, even though her brother was definitely worse for wear, his bad attitude was still safely intact. "He won't be happy you know, Eiri. Neither will Tatsuha."
"Frankly I just don't care what he thinks." Eiri said coldly, turning to leave. "All Tatsuha needs is that little child from your boy band." Directing the statement towards Tohma.
"Wait! Eiri! Can't you give yourself some more time. He will come around you know. And this time I think there is enough understanding between you two to actually make it work." Mika held her breath and would have crossed her fingers if she thought she could get away with it , as she waited for Yuki's reply. Her heart sank as Yuki turned to gazed at her through half shuttered eyes.
"Don't interfere with my decisions Mika." He warned before stalking out of the office. But before he fully closed the door, Mika thought she heard him speak softly in a defeated tone. "Nothing will change. Its for the better."
Letting out her held breath, she sank towards the floor and leaned her forehead down to the plush carpeting. "Do you think I did the right thing?" She asked softly, almost afraid to hear her husband's answer, hoping that it would be an honest answer instead of the sarcastic comments that he enjoyed making.
"Do you really want to know what I think?" He asked quietly.
She could hear his shoes making soft sounds as they sank into the carpeting.
"Yes." Her answer was an almost inaudible whisper.
He sighed. "No. I think you never should have interfered."
A tear slipped down her cheek as she turned her face to the side. She could detect the faint aroma of Tohma's cologne wafting in the air as he walked closer. "Do you really love him that much?" She shuddered as she waited for the answer that she had been afraid to receive for many years.
"Yes. I love Eiri-san. I love him very much." Tohma's reply was quick and succinct. Effectively tearing his wife's heart into a million little pieces.
Turning her face to meet her husband's, rage burned in her eyes as she lifted a fist and hurtled it into Tohma's pretty face. "Damn you!" She cried when her arm was caught by Tohma's strong hands and she was pulled into a tight grasp.
Tohma felt hot liquid soak through his silk dress shirt as he held the woman in his arms close. Bending his head next to her ear, he whispered to her softly. "You never were a patient girl, Mika-san."
She looked up at him with startled eyes, noting the soft smile gracing his lips.
"I love Eiri-san. But not the way that you believe I love him. I told you when we first met that I would marry only for love, I don't lie." He made his meaning perfectly clear as he captured her mouth in a passionate kiss.
"Promise me, Tohma, promise me." Mika gasped between breaths as Tohma carried her to the large sofa.
"Promise you what?"
"Never call me Mika-san again."
"That's all?" He asked, surprised that she had been disturbed by his politeness. "Alright, Mika, is that better?"
"Much." She smiled, eyes sparkling with traces of her previous tears. "Now," she said softly and whispered into Tohma's ears with a bright blush.
"Oh really?" He muffled his laughter into her neck as he held her closer. "I would be more than happy to oblige."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Shuichi was glumly staring at a piece of white paper as Hiro and Suguru wandered back and forth across the room. They were still waiting for Shuichi's moment of inspiration. Chewing on the cap of a blue ink pen, Shuichi suddenly stood up from his perch, startling both Hiro and Suguru, almost causing them to collide.
"I'm going for a walk." He stated as he stalked out of the room. Leaving behind an increasingly annoyed Hiro and Suguru.
Just as Shuichi slammed the door closed, he walked straight into Seguchi Tohma. Oh for all of the bad luck in this world! Shuichi considered trying to make a run for it before tossing the idea aside. Grimacing, he directed his gaze into the ground until the NG president cleared his throat loudly. Shuichi gave a loud squeak when he looked into the serene, smiling face of the president.
"Sorry! Seguchi-san! The single will be ready as planned!" Shuichi bowed deeply, scared to the bone by the abnormal cheerfulness in the president's eyes.
"Calm down. Shindou-san, I'm perfectly sure that you'll have that single done in time. I just have a package and message for you." Tohma's eyes turned serious as he put a manila envelope into Shuichi's hands. "Eiri-san said to consider this his good-bye present to you." He spoke clearly before turning to walk away.
Shuichi froze as he gripped the envelope tightly within his fists.
"I will never approve of your relationship with Eiri-san." Tohma declared softly into Shuichi's ear as he paused in his exit. "But, he is leaving for Los Angeles in two weeks. Do with that information as you wish."
Nodding at the NG president, Shuichi acknowledged the peace offering. "Thank you Seguchi-san." He looked to the corner of his eye but the blonde was already gone.
Fumbling with the envelope, Shuichi managed to rip it open. All it contained was a short hand written note and one typed page. Scanning the note, Shuichi bit his lip to prevent a sound from escaping from his lips.
Shuichi. Consider this one last thing I can do for you. You must be having writer's block right? You always do under pressure, baka. Please use the lyrics that I have written as you wish, you will find it much better than the elementary school level of your writing. Good-bye Shuichi, I wish you the best of luck with your career and in life.
-Y.
Turning to the next page, Shuichi read through the lyrics, his eyes welled as he read the perfect words. "You are a lousy love song writer, Yuki." He whispered softly. Good-bye? Not after what you told me, I still have a score to settle with you! Anyone who happened to walk by the lead singer of Bad Luck at that moment would have seen a rare sight indeed, a true smile gracing the lips of the young man. Ripping the hand written note into small pieces, Shuichi tossed the offending scraps into the nearest trash bin. This isn't over Yuki. I won't let you take the coward's route. I won't let myself take the coward's route any longer!
With determination suffusing his every movement, Shuichi strode back towards the studio giving a loud whoop that could be heard all the way down the narrow hallways of the building.
Suguru and Hiro both gaped at him as he jumped, hopped, and bounced into the studio. They were equally surprised when Shuichi slapped down a piece of paper.
"It's our single, Hiro, Fujisaki-kun." Shuichi declared proudly.
Hiro and Suguru huddled together, read the lyrics quickly, and then gave Shuichi a suspicious look. Their whispers were easily heard as they shook their heads at the paper and decided that there was no way Shuichi could have written something like this.
"Guys!" Shuichi looked hurt as he grabbed back the sheet. "Of course I didn't write it, my own words would have been better. But we'll make do with this song."
Exchanging an exasperated look, Hiro and Suguru only sighed and went about to tune their instruments. They were sure of who the mysterious author of the lyrics were, however, they did not know what it would mean for the future of Shuichi and Bad Luck. But they did see the new Shuichi, nearly bursting with energy, looking much like his old self, that in itself was enough for them to breath a little more easily. Things were looking up.
*~*~*~*~*~*
"And it's a wrap!" K and Sakano gave a delighted shout as the recording of Bad Luck's new single was over, just in time for the concert.
Shuichi, Hiro, and Suguru posed for a group picture as cameras flashed.
Soon champagne bottles were opened and the first drinks of the night were passed to all of the members of the cramped studio.
Before everyone could trap him into a drink, Shuichi managed to duck out. Grabbing his jacket, Shuichi gave his watch one last worried look before heading out to his last destination of the day before going home. Being that the concert was the next day, he knew he needed a lot of rest and to strengthen his mental resolve. Not for the concert of course, he loved singing and was a natural at it. The resolve was for after, or what he hoped would happen afterwards.
Stopping at a very familiar apartment building, Shuichi pressed the buzzer before he could lose the nerve. As he listened to the dial tone on the intercom, Shuichi hoped for, yet dreaded the familiar voice that would answer. His heart gave a hard leap as a gruff voice sounded through the speakers.
"What?"
"Yuki. I have something to say to you." Shuichi stammered.
Silence ensued for several moments before a solemn reply sounded. "I'll be down in a second."
Shuichi waited patiently as the door was swung open, his knees weakened at the sight of Yuki, rumpled but just as desperately good looking. He noticed the softening to Yuki's eyes as the writer waited for what he had to say. Shuichi breathed deeply and convinced himself once again that he wasn't making a mistake. "Bad Luck is having a concert, tomorrow night, 7pm. Zepp Tokyo." He babbled in one long string of words before thrusting the concert ticket into Yuki's hands. "I'm done with playing this game with you. Be there." He quickly ran off before Yuki could reply, leaving the writer looking blankly at the ticket in his hand.
"But, Shuichi, my flight is tomorrow night." Yuki answered to the empty night sky.
Closing the door to his apartment building, Yuki knew it was time to let it go without any regrets, or to face all that Shuichi had to tell him. The choice was alarmingly easy.
-TBC
Completed 12.26.2002
A/N: The Mika/Tohma loving part of me did a happy little cartwheel, yay!