Title: Autumn's Raine
Chapter 7: Gone?
Disclaimer: I don't own the Gravi characters. I do "own" Raine. o.o She's mine… yes, mine. Mwahahaha ::blinks:: …oh… sorry ^^;
Warnings: Yaoi, a little AU, OC , and probably some OOCness.
Notes: Well, I finished another chapter. ^__^ This chapter was actually a lot harder then the others. ^^ See… I'm not very good with any of the other characters of Gravi… so, Hiro is probably REALLY OOC. But, I'm trying~ God help me when they go to NG and I gotta have the others in there. Well, I will deal with it when I get there. o.o Oh, and at the end of this chapter it gets a little odd, at least I think so, and it will be better explained in the next chapter. ^__^ Promise. Okay, that's all.
-----
Hiro sat silently on the couch. His eyes were following Shuichi as he folded the blanket that had been lying on the couch. Hiro was watching his friend intently. He seemed nervous about something, and Hiro decided to find out what. "Shuichi?"
"Hm?" Shuichi looked up; he had just placed the now folded blanket on top of the others.
"What's up?" He asked, and then clarified, "What happened yesterday? You seemed… off."
"Off?" Shuichi turned towards Hiro and began laughing nervously, rubbing the back of his head with one hand as he did so. "No, I'm fine Hiro! Nothing's up."
"Are you sure?" Hiro leaned forward, looking at Shuichi with almost narrowed eyes.
Shuichi, knowing that if he didn't get Hiro to stop asking soon he would ultimately cave and tell all, leaned forward as well. "I'm sure."
For a long moment the two just stayed in those positions, both leaning forward almost glaring at one another. Finally Hiro leaned back and nodded, "Alright." Shuichi mentally sighed in relief.
"Shuichi?" Shuichi turned around as he heard Raine call his name. He turned around to see her standing in the hallway. She was now in the clothes she had worn the day before, with her long hair up in a ponytail. "I found this hair band on the sink; I hope you don't mind me borrowing it. Do you?"
He shook his head, smiling. "No, that's okay. I actually found it when I was cleaning one of the bathroom drawers. You can keep it."
She bowed, "Thank you."
"No problem." He smiled even more; she was a welcome change in the apartment.
"So…" Hiro looked at Shuichi and then Raine. "Raine, how long were you in America?"
"Um…" Raine mentally frowned as she thought that question over quickly. She was pretending to be Shuichi's cousin, so she had to be around his age. Shuichi had said yesterday that she looked about eighteen. So she would go with that age. So she thought of a quick number, "About five years." She smiled, all of that deductive reasoning only taking a couple seconds. "I arrived the summer before I was to start High School."
"How did you like it out there?" Hiro wasn't entirely convinced that Raine was Shuichi's cousin. They didn't look like family, but cousins didn't have to look the same so he really wasn't sure.
Raine's smile softened and became more reminiscence, "I loved it out there. Maybe one day I will find my way back."
Hiro nodded. "Where did you live?"
"California. A small town there."
Hiro nodded once more. At the same time Shuichi was frowning slightly. "Hiro, are you interrogating my cousin?" Shuichi suddenly pouted and whined, "That's not nice."
"I'm not interrogating her." Hiro leaned back on the couch, "I'm just asking a few questions."
"It's okay Shuichi." Raine smiled, "I don't mind. He is your friend after all." Shuichi frowned.
Glancing out the corner of his eyes Hiro caught the look on Shuichi's face. Sighing softly Hiro stood up. "Well, Shuichi, I guess I'll be going."
"Huh?" Shuichi looked over at Hiro, blinking. "Already?"
"Yeah. I just came to see if everything was okay. And since it seems to be, and you have a guest, I'll be heading out."
"Oh… okay."
"It was nice meeting you Raine." Hiro bowed after he turned towards her. "I hope I get to talk to you again before you leave."
"Shuichi said I could visit him at work on Monday. You work with him don't you?" She cocked her head to the side.
"Yes, I do."
"Then, I'll see you tomorrow." She smiled happily. Hiro noted that her smile was similar to Shuichi's. Maybe she really was his cousin.
"Okay. We can all go to lunch." Hiro smiled, "I'll see you later Shuichi."
"Let me walk you out." Raine nodded and moved over to the couch as Shuichi walked with Hiro to the door. "Thanks for stopping by, Hiro." He smiled at Hiro and he had that spark in his eyes saying he appreciated the concern.
"Sure. I'll see you tomorrow." Hiro waved goodbye as he walked out the front door and into the hallway. Shuichi smiled, waved back before he closed and locked the door.
Upon hearing the lock click in place Shuichi turned and bolted back towards the living room. "He knows!!"
Raine blinked, startled at Shuichi's return. "Who knows what?"
"Hiro! He knows something's up! Otherwise he wouldn't have come over!" Shuichi grabbed his hair, pulling at it. "What are we going to do!?"
"Shuichi, calm down." She smiled softly as she sat down on the couch. "He is a little suspicious. That I could feel. But, before he left he wasn't as much. I think we are doing fine in convincing him."
"You think so? I don't know." He moved over and slouched on the couch next to Raine. "He didn't seem so convinced."
"Don't worry. As long as you keep saying I'm your cousin and we'll be fine." She leaned over and patted Shuichi's back gently. "And since I had to come up with some more details on the spot… I'm now your cousin back from America after five years of schooling."
"I can't do this! Too much pressure!" He leaned forward, placing his face in his hands.
"Aw, Shuichi you can do this. This kinda lie is easy." She laughed.
"EASY!? I have a SPRITE staying in this apartment, and I can't tell anyone. So now you are my cousin!?" Shuichi glanced over at Raine and sighed loudly. "This is not going to work!"
"Well, think of it this way. If you did tell anyone about me, being a Sprite I mean, most --if not all-- wouldn't believe you. So, it's easier to lie and say I am a relative then have people laugh at you or call you crazy." She shrugged, leaning back. "At least that's what I think."
"I suppose." His shoulders slumped.
"It'll be okay. Just let me answer them." Raine smiled fully, winking once. "I can handle it."
"I hope so." Shuichi sighed. "I'm not a very good liar."
"No offense." She chuckled, "But I could tell."
He began rubbing the back of his head, "Let's just hope that Hiro didn't notice it today."
"Well, if he still doesn't believe what is he going to do?"
Shuichi blinked, thinking for a moment. "Well, he could call my mom and ask about you!" His eyes grew wide. "She'll ask what he is talking about and then my mom will be suspicious as well!!" His eyes widened even more, and Raine was sure that it was hurting him.
"Calm down Shuichi." She sighed, "Everything will be fine."
"I hope so." Shuichi matched her sigh, and then fell silent for a few minutes. Finally he let out another sigh, deciding to forget about it for now. He would deal with the others reactions tomorrow. "So, Raine… what do you want to do?"
------
It has been a little over two hours since Hiro had left the apartment. It had taken Shuichi and Raine about twenty minutes to figure out what they wanted to do. Raine wanted to draw and Shuichi decided he should work on a song for the new album. After Shuichi had handed Raine a stack of blank paper and a pencil she had set to work immediately drawing. Shuichi had watched her for a few minutes before he had set to work on brainstorming some ideas for songs. The two sat there in silence --except for a couple of indecisive sounds from Shuichi- for the next two hours, both doing what they had chosen to do.
Finally Raine smiled sitting up, she had been lying on the floor. "I finished it!" Raine crawled over to Shuichi who was sitting on the couch. She held up the one piece of paper she had been drawing on for the past two hours. It was a pencil sketch of Shuichi. She had drawn him while he was working, the picture showed him sitting on the couch, a notepad on his lap, pen in one hand and his other hand at the back of his head as if he was scratching it.
"Wow, Raine! You're good!" Shuichi squealed happily as he took Raine's drawing to look at it more closely. He was amazed; the drawing looked just like him. "This is good!!"
She smiled, "Thank you. It took awhile because you kept moving." Raine laughed.
"Well, it's really good."
"I made it for you." She turned and crawled back over to the rest of the blank papers, ready to draw another picture.
"Thank you! I'm going to put it in the bedroom! I'll put it on the wall so whenever I'm on tour or at work Yuki can see me! Oooooo, maybe I should put it in his office instead! He's in there more then his bedroom. This is so pretty, Raine!"
Raine looked up from the cat drawing she had just started. "I'm glad you like it, Shuichi."
"I love it!" Shuichi was about to squeal in delight again, but then he blinked. "Hey, Raine?"
"Hm?" She didn't look up this time, but he had her attention.
"Do you think you could draw a picture of Yuki for me?"
Raine looked up this time. She smiled and nodded, "I would love to draw a picture of Yuki-san."
"Yeah!" Shuichi bounded off the couch, notebook and pen falling to floor. He ran to Raine hugging her with one arm, the other hand holding the drawing, as she lay on the floor. "Thank you!"
Raine laughed, one hand coming up to pat Shuichi's head, "It's no problem." Shuichi sat back on his heels, looking at the drawing once more. He couldn't wait for Raine to capture Yuki in a drawing, she was very good. She had shaded the entire picture and she had done it beautifully, the drawing almost seeming like a black and white photo. "Shuichi?"
Shuichi blinked, "Hm?" He glanced over at Raine.
"I hate to bother… but do you think we can get something to eat?" She blushed slightly, hating to sound rude.
"Oh! Sure, what time is it?" He glanced over towards the clock that was on the table with the TV. It was a little after eleven. "Lunch time! Let me see what we have." Shuichi jumped to his feet, placing the drawing on the coffee table before he bounced into the kitchen. He quickly looked in the fridge and cupboards and found nothing good to make. He sighed loudly. "Yuki really needs to let me go to the grocery store once in awhile! All he ever gets his beer, cigarettes and instant ramen." He began to grumble, "We were lucky he had stuff to make that stir fry last night."
"What was that, Shuichi?" Raine had gotten up and was now standing in the kitchen entrance.
His shoulders slouched, "There's nothing to eat." He stood there for a moment, and then smiled brightly. "We can go get some take out for the three of us!"
"Take out?" Raine frowned.
"You know, when you go to a restaurant and buy some food to bring home." He smiled a little more.
"Oh… okay." She nodded, that sounded logical.
"Let me go get dressed and tell Yuki we are leaving! Oh… I need to get you some shoes too…" Shuichi had glanced down at Raine's bare feet. He side stepped next to her, comparing their feet. Hers seemed to be a little smaller then his own, but not enough for his shoes not to work. "Wow, we are the same size! Just like the clothes! You can wear a pair of my sandals."
"Okay." Raine smiled nervously, 'I have to wear shoes too?' She sighed mentally.
"I'll be right back! Wait for me in the living room." Raine nodded and moved to go sit on the couch down the hall and into the living room. Shuichi smiled and ran to Yuki's bedroom. He opened the door and rushed inside. He stood at the end of the bed, looking at his lover sleeping. Yuki was lying on his stomach, his right cheek against the pillow as his arms were crossed under it.
Shuichi smiled and crawled onto the bed. He moved to Yuki's side and began nuzzling Yuki's neck. The writer stirred slightly in his sleep, but didn't wake. "Yuuuuuuki." Frowning slightly Shuichi sat back and whined softly. Suddenly there was an evil little smirk across Shuichi's face. Slowly he leaned over his lover's head once more, whispering Yuki's name one last time. When the writer didn't show any sign of waking Shuichi decided to use his last resort and he licked Yuki's ear. In an instant Yuki's eyes shot open and he was sitting up blushing furiously.
"SHUICHI!" Yuki's hand went up to his ear, covering it as a low growl was heard from his throat.
"Yuki!" Ignoring the threatening tone of his lover Shuichi latched onto Yuki's side, cuddling against him. "You're so cute when you just wake up!"
Yuki was pushing at Shuichi's face, but the young singer was holding on tightly. "I should kill you for waking me up like that, brat!"
"Aw, but I needed to tell you something, Yuuuuuuki."
The blonde looked down at Shuichi and sighed loudly, wondering at that moment why he put up with this trouble maker. "What is it?" He finally sighed.
"There's nothing to eat." Shuichi pouted, now returning to nuzzling against Yuki.
"You woke me up for that!?"
"Noooo, I woke you up to tell you Raine and I are going to get some take out and I wanted you up and ready so when we get back you can eat with us!" Shuichi gave his lover a quick hug and kiss on the cheek before he was bouncing off the bed. "I need to get changed first though. What to wear…" He moved over to the closet, opening it wide and taking a long look at the clothes he had hanging there. Yuki had agreed to share the closet, but regretted it when Shuichi's clothes took up more then three-fourths of the space.
"You woke me up for that?" Yuki sighed, watching his lover begin pulling clothes out of the closet.
"Yep! I know you. You'll take your time getting ready. And if I had woken you after we came back with the food your meal would get cold! So, I thought it would be better to wake you now!" Shuichi glanced back and smiled, having found something to wear and he quickly began undressing.
Yuki ran his fingers through his hair, his eyes looking locked on Shuichi while he changed. "I guess that makes sense." He finally growled out, "But next time do it some other way."
Shuichi giggled, having finished dressing. "Awww, but I love seeing you blush! It's so…" He smirked as he turned towards Yuki. "…sexy." He winked.
Yuki's eyes widened slightly and his cheeks got a little pinker. 'Sexy?'
Shuichi giggled even more when he caught Yuki's reaction. "You're so cute, Yuki!" He continued to giggle as he found an old pair of sandals buried in the back of the closet. He held them up triumphantly as he began walking to the door. "We shouldn't be that long, Yuki." He smiled back at his lover, "Get up and ready! Love you!" With that the pink tornado ran out of the room and into the living room, leaving Yuki sighing softly to himself.
"Okay Raine! Are you ready to go?" Shuichi smiled as walked into the living room, Raine was standing there waiting.
"Yep!"
"Okay, I got you some sandals." He held up the thong, flip-flop sandals he had found.
"Oh, okay." She nodded, though not too thrilled with having to wear shoes.
-----
Raine's head was turning one way and then another as she watched all the humans walking along the street. There were so many people and all of them with different feelings running through them. If Raine hadn't gotten all of her strength back then she would have been overwhelmed by the emotions. But having complete control she only probed a few of the people as they passed by her and Shuichi. It was a beautiful day out and Raine was glad to be getting outside, even if it was for just a short period of time.
She was so immersed in her site seeing that she didn't notice Shuichi turning left at the corner and she just continued to follow the crowd as they crossed the street on a green light. It wasn't until a few blocks later that she realized Shuichi was no longer next to her. "Huh?" Raine stopped and let the people continued to walk past her.
-----
Yuki had been sitting in his office for almost a half hour now. He had showered and dressed a little after Shuichi and Raine had left the apartment and now he was just waiting for them to return. Yuki began wondering what was taking so long, they had been gone for almost an hour. It never took that long for Shuichi to get food before. He frowned hoping that it was just because Raine was with him.
Suddenly Yuki was pulled from his thoughts as the phone began to ring. He frowned even more deciding to let the answering machine get it. After the fourth ring the answering machine clicked and the automated woman began speaking.
"No one is home right now. After the beep please leave your name number and message." The machine then let off a short beep.
"YUKI!!!" Yuki blinked as Shuichi's voice was heard from the machine. "She's gone!"
"What?"
===to be continued===
CCT: Oh no Raine is on the loose. o.o Hehehehe, well not really. It's not like she would do anything. ^__^ Hehehe, Shuichi might, but I think right he is gonna have a nervous breakdown. Waaaah, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. ^__^ I've been putting aside all my other stores for this one, cause this one won't leave me alone for a minute! Guess that is good. ^__~ Bye-bye for now!