GOING UNDER.
Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki…
A/N: Sorry for the late update because I was really busy with my driving lessons and I'm at my grandma's house during the day (I wish I have a laptop)…I am so sorry. Thank you very much for those who reviewed my story. Your reviews had brightened up my day.
This Romeo is bleeding
but you can't see his blood
it's nothing but some feelings
that this old dog kicked up
It's been raining since you left me
now I'm drowning in the flood
you see, I've always been a fighter
but without you I give up
~Always by Jon Bon Jovi~
Goku woke up suddenly and looked around. He felt like someone had been watching him sleeping. He saw no one but only his companions and Meira. Which was still sleeping peacefully beside Sanzo. He then tried to recall his dream, something about fire and curses and a demon with piercing navy eyes. He could not remember the rest of the dream. But one thing he knew for sure, it meant something bad is going to happen to him.
Trying to shake off the dream, he decided to refresh his face and perhaps he could catch some fish today for breakfast. He walked quietly to the nearby stream and splashed his face with cold waters. Then, he felt it. Someone was behind him.
Not just one person, but ten to twenty ugly and sticky demons.
"Is it time for my morning exercise already?" he grinned cheekily. He called up his Nyoibou and get ready in his battle stance.
Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain all over his body. He could not even move his body. He coughed noisily and crimson blood spewed out and stained his hands and white shirt. His head was spinning wildly and he could not feel his feet on the ground. He could only hear sinister laughter coming from those hideous demons. He tried to focus but that made hurt him even more.
Sharp claws tore his shirt and scratched his skin. He groaned agonizingly. His head fell back and his eyes went blank. He dropped to the ground clumsily and his Nyoibou disappeared from his grasp. What's happening to me? Why couldn't I fight back? I could even fight a bunch of demon? Why? He forced himself to stand up but the pain was even more excruciating. More blood spattered on the ground.
He just lie down vulnerably and let the demons harmed him. He could not fight back and tears of failure rolled down his cheeks. The pain was horrendous. He could even breathe properly. His white shirt was now bloody and torn. His pants were ragged and tattered. His pride was shattered! He closed his eyes slowly and wished that this had never happened. He wished Sanzo were here, right beside him. He could only wish…
"Where's that stupid monkey?!" Gojyo grumbled out loud.
"Goku, where are you?" Hakkai called the young itan but he received no answers.
"Goku!" Meira called out his name but to no avail. I hope you survive the attack or else it wouldn't be fun, Son Goku. Assured that no one was looking, she grinned evilly.
Sanzo hung his head low and mumbled something inaudible but Hakkai knew that it was not something positive. He knew Sanzo very well but not as well as his pet, Son Goku. They have been together for a very long time. Hakkai was startled from his reverie when he heard Gojyo's voice.
"Over here!" they hurried towards Gojyo who supported Goku's bleeding head in his hands. He lay on the ground motionlessly. The young boy was soaked in blood and had bruises and scratch marks all over his athletic body.
Immediately, Hakkai used his chi power to heal Goku. His hands glowed in bright yellow for a moment but nothing happened. He tried again, focusing all his energy to Goku but his wounds would not seem to heal. "We have to get him to the nearest town. I could not heal them." His did not smile like he always did.
"What do you mean you can heal him?" Gojyo asked worriedly. He carried Goku in his arms and went to the jeep.
"I don't know. My healing power seemed to lost it effects on the wounds," Hakkai started the engine, "it's like the wounds refused to heal."
He drove the car as fast as he could. He glanced at Sanzo. The monk looked like nothing had happened. Typical Sanzo. Then, he looked at Gojyo through his rearview mirror. He was looking at Goku with his red sad eyes. Though Gojyo always picked a fight with Goku, he was actually cared about Goku like his own little brother. Hakkai smiled a little.
He shot a glance at Meira and saw her looking at Goku intensely. Her blue eyes sparkled like a shining star. Was she smiling? He blinked for a second. Then, he looked at Meira once more. She looked sad and there was sympathy in her beautiful azure orbs. My eyes must have been playing trick on me.
We'll see how you get through the pains I've installed for you. This is your first night of hell. I really hope you will survive because there will be more pains designed especially for you. Just for you. Meira quickly hid her wicked smile when she noticed that Hakkai was watching her. She wore her sad face while laughing maliciously in her heart.
On that late evening:
Goku woke up and found himself in a strange place. There was a cupboard, a chipped mirror, a loveseat, a couple of chair and a wooden table. He finally realized that he was in an inn; a cheap musty inn. He tried to move his arms and legs but knives-stabbing pain shot through all of his body. He looked at himself covered in bandages and someone had changed his clothes while he was unconscious.
There were footsteps outside his rooms. He heard it carefully. There were two people in the corridor. Suddenly, the door was side opened and entered Hakkai and Gojyo. He felt relieved.
"You're finally awake. So, how are you feeling now?" Hakkai brought in a tray of foods and set it on the table.
Carrying a box of fresh bandages and iodine bottle, he asked Goku, "What had really happened Goku? You freaked us out!"
Hakkai helped him to sit up straight on the bed. He put a pillow behind Goku's back so that he could rest his bandaged-head. So he told them about what really happened to him this morning.
"What? Are you saying you could not fight a bunch of lowlife youkais?!" Gojyo was clearly astounded when he heard his story. Son Goku, The Great Sage Equal to Heaven failed to defeat a bunch of demons. That was unbelievable.
"I was in pain remember," Goku gulped down a glass of cold water to quench his thirst, " in knives-stabbing pain. When I tried to get up and fight, the pain became worst. They took advantage of my defenseless state."
"Do you know what caused the pain?" Hakkai asked, concerned.
He shook his head slowly, "No, it came suddenly. I don't know where it came from. But I feel like someone was watching me."
Silence filled the air. Goku shifted slightly on his not-so-fluffy mattress. Should I tell them about my suspicion? He decided to tell the about her thoughts on Meira.
"Do you think Meira is telling the truth about his stepfather trying to rape her?" he looked at Hakkai first then to Gojyo to check their expressions.
"Goku, rape is not something people would joke about. Especially women," Gojyo replied sarcastically.
"What makes you think she would lie to us?" Hakkai asked him back.
"First of all, why did the demon scent suddenly disappear when she appeared? You guys should now that my smelling sense could never be wrong. I swear I smelled it there."
"There's always a first time to everything. Maybe your senses were messed up or something," Gojyo lit up a cigarette and smoke it.
"Yes, Gojyo is right," Hakkai touched Goku's hand lightly.
"Okay, didn't you guys feel weird she got no injuries whereas twenty youkais had attacked her," Goku tried again.
"Maybe she just got lucky the demon didn't attack her, Goku."
"Goku, why don't you rest for a while? We'll be in the next room if you need us." Hakkai told him gently. He tucked the blue wool blanket under his chin.
"You don't trust me, do you?" a hurt look plastered on his adorable face.
"Goku, why don't we talk about this later? You still need to rest," Gojyo opened the door and went outside followed by Hakkai.
"Wait," Hakkai halted, "where's Sanzo?"
Gojyo and Hakkai exchanged glances. Finally, Hakkai answered him slowly, "He's downstairs at inn's bar with…"
"With whom?" Goku asked him innocently.
"With Meira," Gojyo replied to him. Then, the two of them walked out of the door, leaving Goku all alone.
He remained silent for quite a moment, trying to control the sudden sadness that rushed to his heart. He's with Meira while I'm here in pain? He went out of the bed and stare blindly outside the window. It looked as if the town had organized a festival or a fiesta. He loved festivals. They sold a lot of yummy foods. Talking about food made his empty stomach rumbled and his mouth watered. He wanted to go to the fiesta. I'll ask Sanzo.
He turned around and nearly collapsed on the floor. Darn, my injuries are pretty bad. Plus, Sanzo is with Meira now. He thought about going straight to bed but at the same time he felt like he should go outside. After a while, he chose to go outside.
At the bar:
"I should go and check up on Goku," he said to Meira tenderly. He finished his tall glass of beer and paid the bills.
She hold his hand, wanting him to stay with her, "Please don't leave me. I'm scared of being alone." She pleaded him with her mesmerizing blue orbs.
"I'll just go for a while. I'll come back. I promise," he soothed her smooth long hair. It fell gracefully behind her shoulder.
"No, please stay with me. I had lost everything. I have no one else in this world except you. If you leave, then I'm left with nothing," she began to sob gently.
She let go of Sanzo's hand and covered her face.
He watched her slumped shoulders and suddenly the urge to hold her became so strong. He sat back on the stool and hold her hands tightly, "I guess Goku will be fine without me."
His heartbeats stopped at once. His lungs were screaming for air. It was getting harder to breathe. His legs were wobbly. His heart… his heart was breaking into tiny particles of dust. Sanzo, how can you this to me? Goku was descending the stairs when he saw Sanzo and Meira drinking down a tall glass of beer. A drink that Sanzo had forbade him from drinking or even touching. It was not because of the beer that they had drink that had make him feeling terribly sad, it was because the intimacy that both of them were sharing that caused his eyes to fill with pearls of tears. Hands in hands, they really looked like a happy loving couple. The thought made his heart ached even more. Silently, he walked out the crowded bar and strolled along the busy road.
A/N: Review and flames are both welcomed!
