Gently

By: Sixth Child

Chapter Four

The wind, the sky, surely

~~***~~***~~***~~***~~***~~

Pretty eyes cracked open ever so slowly at the sound of a voice streaming through the air.

"I waved my hand to your back

As you disappeared into a crowd

Until yesterday

This all seemed so unreal…."

Kouji wiped the moisture from his eyes with the back of his hand and blinked a few times. He realized he was lying in a bed that wasn't his own. He was confused, but then he saw Takuya sitting on a bench by a window, staring off into the distance. Kouji looked around and saw that he in fact wasn't in a hospital, but in an unfamiliar bedroom. Apparently Takuya hadn't noticed that he was awake. 'Wait a minute,' Kouji thought, puzzled. 'I've heard that song before….'

As Takuya began the next verse, Kouji cleared his throat and let his own voice flow from his lips.

"Laughing so hard that we would cry

When we held hands and gazed into each others eyes

As always, your fragrance would ever so faintly

Tug at my heartstrings"

Takuya practically leapt out of his seat when he heard Kouji's smooth voice intertwining with his own. Kouji smiled slightly at the surprised look on Takuya's face. "Kouji… you're finally awake!" Takuya whispered so softly that it was barely audible over the sound of the day. He got up from his window side bench and proceeded over to the bed held Kouji in its eternal grip of sheets.

He sat on the edge of the full-sized bed that Kouji was ever-alone in. "How are you feeling?" Takuya asked, a look of true concern upon his face.

"Fine… except for the fact that it feels like there's a war going on inside my head." Kouji responded.

"Oh… well, hold on." Takuya rose from the bed and walked out of the room, slowly shutting the wooden door behind him.

After Takuya left, Kouji allowed his eyes to wander around the large bedroom. Posters of soccer stars and athletes covered the walls. A small wood dresser sat at one end of the room. An overwhelmingly large stack of compact disks and a large five-disk stereo sat on top of it. The room was very clean. The white walls remained as pure as the day they were as the very day they were painted. A white laundry basket stood empty next to the closed closet doors. There was a book shelf left of the closet, filled with various novels, and a soccer ball stood at the top along with countless soccer trophies.

Kouji was startled as the door opened, Takuya walking in with a glass of water and two white pills in his hands. Kouji sat up in the bed and leaned his back against the headboard of it. "Here." Takuya said simply, kneeling down in front of the bed. "It's aspirin. It'll take care of that headache." He smiled and handed the other boy the pills that were as white as the walls of the room.

"Thanks." Kouji said, accepting the pills and the glass of water. He tipped his head back and swallowed the medicine. After the pills washed down his throat, he looked at Takuya. "So, what happened anyway? I remember fire and…." Kouji held his head as it pounded mercilessly.

"Oh, that…." Takuya said quietly, looking down. "You got hit by a piece of the ceiling… you had a concussion. A minor one, luckily, so you only had to be hospitalized for a week. Then the doctors said you were ready to be released, but no one was home at your house, so I brought you here. You're head should hurt though, from the impact. Luckily there was no brain damage or anything like that." He stopped, his voice cracking slightly as his eyes continued to study the floor.

"What about the school? I mean, how are we going to go to school anymore?" Kouji asked him in a quiet voice, fearing that if he talked louder he would increase the pain in his head.

"It was burnt to the ground. Luckily the fire department got there in time to get both of us out of there."

"Wait…. What about my violin?" Kouji asked franticly. "Was it…?"

"It's fine." Takuya still looked at the floor as if it was the most interesting this in the world.

"Okay, good…. Takuya, are you all right?" Kouji asked, concerned that the other boy hadn't looked him in the eye at all while they were talking.

Takuya finally looked up, the tears that stung his eyes were threatening to fall upon his pink cheeks. The sight made Kouji sick to his stomach. "Takuya…." Before Kouji could finish what he was about to say, Takuya thrust his arms around him, enveloping him in a warm embrace. Takuya laid his teary face upon Kouji's chest.

"I was so worried about you… I thought you were going to die when I saw you get hurt like that. I saw so scared… like, I finally found a real friend and I was going to lose you just like that. I'm so happy you're okay…." Takuya couldn't continue as the sobs that he was suppressing escaped his throat.

Kouji wrapped his arms around the other boy, a wave of deja vu washing over him in like an icy wave. "I'm okay… it's going to be okay." Kouji said soothingly.

"It's just… I care so much about you. I don't want to lose you… I don't want lose you."

Kouji allowed Takuya to sob into his shirt for a moment until he lifted the other boy's chin with his finger. "I care about you too… So much." He placed his hand on Takuya's cheek and wiped his tears away with his thumb. A warm smile was on his face and was echoed by Takuya.

Although Takuya's eyes were now tearless, he did not break the embrace he had to Kouji, and he put his head back to the previous position on Kouji's chest. He smiled, loving the smell of Kouji's hair, which was no longer back in its usual ponytail. He was lucky that the nurses at the hospital had no problem with bathing the boy; otherwise he wouldn't have smelled quite so pleasant. Kouji's voice caught him off guard in his thoughts.

"Even though we've acted selfishly

And we've had our petty quarrels

I never knew the day would come when

We couldn't see each other."

Takuya smiled approvingly. "I still love your voice." He said dreamily.

"Do you now?" Kouji raised an eyebrow.

Takuya chuckled. "Yup!" A grin found its way to his face.

Kouji laughed. "There, don't you feel better now?"

Takuya stood up. "Yeah, thanks." He wiped his eyes one last time.

"I'm chasing after that day

When we could open up all of our feelings to one another

The wind, the sky, still

Wrapped around just the two of us, alone together."

~~***~~***~~One Week Later~~***~~***~~

"Takuya…. Where are you taking me?" Kouji whined, raising an eyebrow at the suspicious look on the other boy's face.

"Oh, you'll see…." Takuya couldn't fight the grin that made its way to his face as he dragged Kouji down the sidewalk.

"This better be a good surprise." Kouji said as he and Takuya walked down the unfamiliar streets of Takuya's town.

"We're almost there." Takuya couldn't suppress the grin as his excitement grew.

They walked for another few blocks. School was officially canceled for at least a month, until the school board could find a place to host classes. The other local middle schools were way too small; they could barely hold their own population of students. So for the last week, Takuya and Kouji have been doing pretty much nothing. The highlights of that week were a trip to the movie theater and ordering pizza. So, wrapped up in the intense boredom, Takuya had dragged Kouji to his town, promising some kind of surprise.

"We're here!" Takuya exclaimed, pointing to the small brick building in front of the pair.

"Ice cream?" Kouji asked awkwardly, raising his eyebrow yet another time.

"Yeah!" Takuya smiled, and Kouji could've sworn he heard a giggle.

"What… have you not had ice cream before?" Kouji asked, curious as to why Takuya was so excited over the frozen treat.

"Yeah, yeah. I've had the stuff that you can buy in stores, like regular vanilla and stuff, but this is the only store that you can get my favorite flavor, cotton candy." Takuya smiled as he opened the door.

"Wow, I didn't know you were so dedicated to ice cream, Takuya." Kouji smiled. They stood in the line for a few moments, waiting for the other costumers to pick their favorite flavors and what kind of cone they wanted.

"So, what flavor are you getting?" Takuya asked.

Kouji thought he was getting a little too excited over this. "Chocolate." He responded nonchalantly.

Takuya sighed. "That's so plain…." He told their order to the cashier who, Takuya couldn't help notice, was wearing a rather ugly striped shirt. The pair walked outside the small ice cream parlor after they got their cones topped with creamy delight.

They walked in silence; the only noise was the sound of them eating the ice cream as the walked down the street. They walked until they reached an empty park, which only consisted of a slide and a small swing set.

Kouji took a seat on a nearby bench and Takuya followed. Kouji was just finishing up his ice cream; Takuya had finished his at least ten minutes ago.

Kouji smiled and looked up at the clear blue sky. The sun played in his eyes, reflecting the deep blue so that they were like skies of their own. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" Kouji asked, still looking at the sky. "The sky is so blue, it's like a dream."

"Just being with you is a dream." Takuya responded, a sad smile on his face.

Kouji turned to look at the other boy, his sun-kissed eyes slightly wider than they usually were. "Takuya…." But then suddenly, he wasn't there anymore, the sun wasn't dancing in his eyes, he was in his own dream. His mouth was pressed against Takuya's, his delicate hands playing with the brunette's hair. His tongue explored Takuya's mouth like it was a happy little boy in a candy shop. But it wasn't in a dream, it was reality.

Realizing the human need for air, Kouji pulled away from Takuya, gasping. He waited for a response from the boy, but Takuya just chuckled. "What is it?" Kouji asked, confused.

"You taste like chocolate."

~~***~~***~~

That day, we held each other
Don't ever forget that happiness
I fell so in love with you
Let's stay as we were back then
 
That day, I had a dream
I will not forget the look in your eyes
The wind, the sky, surely
Will blow away all my pain.

~~***~~***~~***~~

And matie, that's what way too much Diet 7-Up does to you. I'm just happy I got this out. Thanks so much to all you reviewers. I love you guys so much!!! 

Song credits:

Chpt. 1- "Fake Wings" is from .hack//SIGN

Chpt. 2- "Eternal Melody" is from Sailor Moon and is supposed to be the song that Kouji was playing on his violin.

Chpt. 3- "How Soon is Now?" Is on the t.A.T.u. CD and some other people wrote it before them.

Chpt 4- "The Wind, the Sky, Surely" is from Sailor Moon Stars.

So get out there and enjoy your summer! Don't waste it reading this petty fanfiction!! Get out there!! Get some ice cream! XD

Oh and expect pictures of the school, the band room, and the lockers next update. (I have to get my sister to let me use her scanner x_x)

Ciao! ~Sixth Child~ Another mind down the toilet.