A/N: Hi there. Thx for sticking with me esp. Tokichan (Thank you!!!), Nyoko (OMG, I have a plot???!! You're scaring me. ;), brokenAngelYue (Hugs u back, got better already!!!Thx!), batman (Cool, didn't know a guy like you liked Gravi. But I was always wondering why batman choose those sexy tights for his costume…), Ranger (Good idea. A really very good idea and less painful than another bumb to the head…), Eiri Izz (Oh thx, gotta go look that up. Know what I got my best friend here hooked up with anime music. She didn't even know it before & now she loves it.), Kaorou (Woohoo, hi gal. I have to say Yuki stays in this chapter much calmer than I'd ever be.), AISH (Mind shortcutting your pen name? I mean I know you and u know you, at least I hope so, so it doesn't is a big deal, isn't it???! Ranger gave me an idea so Yuki might take Shu home one day…), Yamato Ishida (Since I don't have anything planned for the next chapter I might as well do that. Thx for the suggestion! I try my best.) Chapter 9 : What don't we do all for the ones we love…

Yuki groaned in dismay. It was just like he had feared it would be. Loud, bustling, flashy and the certain awful odor you smell when there is food mixed who better shouldn't.

The local supermarket.

The gate to hell for every normal man and the gate of heaven for every shopp'a'holic female. Just a few glances around told him his species was totaly outnumbered by the chatty women around him. Yuki sighed. If he wanted Shu then he needed to go through with the picnic. If he wanted a picnic, he needed food. And if he wanted food there was just no way around it. He needed to go in there. Swim with masses and fight for survival.

Not that the blonde was totally inexperienced with shopping but there's a small but important difference between the comfy grocery shop around the corner and the local supermarket half the size of a village. Not to mention the pains of deciding what to buy if there was everything available from fluffy socks to expensive caviar. Not that he needed socks mind you he prefered walking barefoot at home. Shu always said it was sexy. But that's not important right now. Frankly Yuki thought he wasn't a shopping person, rather one of the I-prefer-to-eat-out-person which he and Shu had done very often since Yuki himself drank and smoke and Shu was a walking disaster in the kitchen.

But anyway, finally pulling himself together Yuki faced the unvoidable by fishing as inconspiciously as possible his shades out of his jacket pocket, settled them on his nose, stuffed his hands casually in his pockets, squared his shoulders and marched into the supermarket as if he owned the place.

Yuki didn't came very far though just passing the entrance barriers as a fat employer came rushing up to him. Flushed red in his face the guy looked as if this had been his first exercise in years. After being a nice guy and giving the man a couple of seconds to compose himself Yuki slowly but gracefully raised one well shaped eyebrow demanding silently just what the man's problem was.

"Sir." Panting. "Sir, if you'd like to shop here you are required to take one of the grocery carts or a basket out of security reasons. Yuki stared at the man as if he'd grown another head. 'Did he really thought he'd steal their puny salads and apples and whatsoever? Did he looked that poor to him?' The blonde frowned.

The employer looked more and more flustered especially with Yuki's cool attitude turned on full force but he stood his place and obviously didn't think about backing down.

Grudgingly Yuki turned to where the man had pointed. He eyed the huge iron clad monster of a grocery cart suspiciously. Nope, absolutely out of question. He won't be seen pushing that thing around. Feeding a loudmouthed baka was indeed a difficult task but it's not like he had to feed a whole army. Eying the cheery red basket he mentally shrugged and pointing with his thumb at it he said to the waiting man. "That will do."

After staring the employer down for several seconds he finally seemed to have transmitted his wish "to be given the goddamn basket if that puny employer wished so" in the stubborn brain in mentioned puny employer. Grumbling something about shopping weirdos and have a nice day the fat guy pushed the red basket in Yuki's arms and stomped off.

With the man out of eyesight he grinned satisfied sauntering of to the many shelfs loaden with all kinds of things. "So far, so good."

One and a half hour later Yuki was non the wiser as when he had entered the market. Having seen life fish to dead fish, fluffy socks to dead sexy underwear over peppermint-chocolate icecream to lavender flavoured icecream he was back at the beginning with nothing but a bottle of juice he had grabbed since he figured alcohol was out of the question since Shu already got tipsy from certain pralines. Having Shu getting drunk in a public park was a big "no no" with both their careers they didn't need to give the press a reason to barricade themselves in their apartment for a year. Not that he couldn't think of any entertaining scenarios with his pink haired baka but him not remembering their relationship – well let's say it could be a bit hindering things...

Okay, Yuki had to admit he got a bit sidetracked in the department for writing utensils, paper, books, etc. but that's beside the point. Fact is that this shopping thing is one big maze with no apparent logical order to him. You see, what has whipped cream to do with champignons? Probably the guy who was responsible for this was French. He remembered a friend of him who liked to eat this kind of liver paste with fruit marmalade on top. No thanks, then he rather sticked to raw fish. The combination whipped cream and marmelade wasn't any better. But he had heard the French were good with the ladies what brought him to the next best topic: sex. But since it was unlikely that some French guy was working for a Japanese supermarket who asorted the food after sexual activities… Yuki shook his head, he most definitely needed to get laid. 'The baka better get his memory back soon otherwise I'll go nuts. Sexual asorted supermarkets…Geez, Eiri, get a grip.'

The blonde turned around the next corner and promptly wished he had sticked to his whipped cream & champignons. Now it was too late a lady and her daughter had spotted him and he had the distinct feeling they knew exactly who he was. 'Great, just what I needed.'

"Yuki Eiri? Can it be? What a surprise? My Yumiko, now we can ask a real man."

The blonde, feeling very uncomfortable, had only nodded so far wondering what the woman was getting at. Looking everywhere but at her, she was currently talking about one of his books -he figured and it's not like she could see where he was looking anywhere behind his shades-, the words he read began to register in his brain. 'Pads, Always ultra, tampons,…'

'Uh oh. Shit, what the fuck does she want from me?' Turning his attention on the woman he barely caught the last of her babbling.

"- it would be very interesting to hear you opinion since in your books the heroine is sooo feminine but otherwise so strong. So what do you think would she rather use tampons or a pad? For my part I go for pads but my daughter here thought tampons are so much more modern and practical. The youth of nowadays…"

Said daughter was blushing up to the roots of her black shiny hair and staring embaressed at her shoes. Yuki gratefully thanked whomever he owed the genes for not blushing easily. Now he just had to manoever himself smoothly out of here without embaressing himself.

"Well, it depends entirely on the situation. In "Ruins" the heroine Aya needed to do a lot of physical work so a tampon might be the better choice but Tomoko from "Snow" would have chosen a pad, I'm sure, she was very sophisticated and entirely devoted to her music. If that would help you and your daughter…" Yuki nodded a bit to indicate his goodbye but the lady beat him to it.

"Oh, what a great solution. We will take one of each. Yuki-san you would have made a great salesman." The woman said with utmost admiration.

"Thank you. I need to leave the ladies now. Have a good day." Not waiting for their answers he stormed down the shelves out of reach and before anyone could see his blush. 'God damn woman and I thought Shu was good at embaressing himself. Poor girl.' Shaking his head he followed the lines of healthy food hoping of being lead to some fruits.

In the end Yuki was successful and he managed to find some bananas, apples, grapes, tomatoes etc. and that without being embaressed while having enticing pictures in his mind involving his lover, cherries and whipped cream. 'Damn, I really should go and get that stuff. If I'd ever find it again.'

After spending another half an hour of avoiding the female population, getting lost, finding the most important things namely cookies, some ham and butter, he had also discovered why Shu always went to shop here "for a few things" and not in the grocery store. Yuki had discovered that the supermarket also had a big section for music and it was just to easy to imagine Shu getting hold up there listening to this and that.

In the end Yuki had even found some fresh bread from the bakery before strolling relieved that it was to be over soon to the cashiers. One look though made him want to scream in frustration, drop his groceries and storm out of there. It was 11.30 in the morning, a Saturday and of course only a handful cash registers open. 'Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I hate shopping. You better appreciate my efforts Shu.' Yuki groaned and got in line.

Unfortunately or more fortunately for Yuki disaster striked again. In his favor this time. Ever heard of those "modern" mothers who let their kids do whatever they want just to not ruin their "free spirit"? Well, this was what happened.

Right in front of Yuki was a resolute looking lady in her maybe late forties waiting to pay. In front of her was a young mother maybe in her twenties -Yuki figured by her looks- with a small boy who had his own small grocery cart. Now certain boy thought it extremely entertaining to push his cart constantly against the older ladies legs. Of course at first the lady smiled a bit at the kid telling him to stop. The kid smiled back and promptly ignored her continuing to bump his cart into her.

Yuki watched with increasing interest the enfolding scene. By now the older woman had demanded the young mother to tell the boy to stop this behavior. Until suddenly, Yuki had anticipated this moment, the older lady lost her nerve.

"Excuse me." She prompted the young mother. "Your son is crashing his cart into my legs for a quarter of an hour already and you don't seem it necessary to put him into his place. I don't see where your problem lies."

The younger woman answered unfaced. "My son should be able to grow up in a free environment, with no restricting rules who would limit his expression of free will. This is a free world after all."

Yuki grinned inwardly seeing the older lady seething. No way that she would swallow that. If he prouded himself in something it was knowing people and anticipating their moves, he was writing over it after all.

Of course he was right. Without thinking long the older lady grabbed a random yoghurt from the waiting nutrition, opened it, and without blinking an eyelash she dumped its content over the young mothers head. Heaving she sniped back: "It's a free world after all." Before grabbing her bag and storming out of the super market.

Yuki was shuckling like mad inwardly. That was exactly what he had needed. The people around him were snickering at the young woman who left in a huff the place as well dragging the boy behind her. So Yuki had no further problems getting his groceries paid since there were no more people before him. Grabbing his bags he left the super market with an unbelievable successful feeling having survived this difficult morning. Now he just needed get Shu apart from that maniac Ryuichi. That shouldn't be too hard. I mean whenever could Shuichi withstand him?

***

Hi guys. This chapter is flowing a bit different than the others. I have a lot on my mind and this chapter has also a lot of real life episodes in it. What's true? The guy at the beginning demanding to take a basket, the maze of a supermarket, the "logical order", getting sidetracked, the French food combi (I ate it and it tasted okay.), the situation with the old lady- could have been my grandma- she's good at stuff like that, only a few cashiers are open & working – I hate that on a Saturday morning. In Germany the supermarket usually closes at noon and Sunday it's closed too, the story with the modern mother is also true my mother saw it.