Chapter 3: Stone Roses

Whoa! Compared to some of my other updates to the chapters in this story, this has taken the longest time yet...I apologize to you guys for that much. I also hope you can forgive me, since I put a lot of thought into this one chapter. Thanks to YaoiFangirl15, goku-the-saru, clari chan, virenta, Ochako107, (JAKUKIE-SAN! Lol), i love athrun, panatlantic, meme234, WildfireWing, and mischakitsune, (you're going to be a freshman, too?! Sugoi desu ne...good luck to you, too, then!), for reviewing this story thus far. You all deserve so much more than my mundane chapter updates, but if you ask nicely, I don't mind doing a favor for people already doing a favor for me...

...Just a thought.

Anyways, hugs to all of you, folks! [Hugs all the readers and reviewers] Whenever the end of this fic comes around, I'll have a special dedication ready for you all guys!

Disclaimer: I do not own Gravitation, because I'm not Murakami-san. And that's the end result, really.

More characters are being introduced slowly, as you may have realized from chapter 1...watch out for these guys. Hiro, Tohma, Ryuichi, and Tatsuha will all be very important to Shuichi's life as the story progresses...and even MORE side characters may emerge as the plot thickens. So watch out for those, too.

Hito wa minna bara no hana...

People are like roses...

Kokoro ni himeta iwa de

Kudaite wa akai;

Akai namida wo nagashiteiru no deshou?

Itsuwatte...

On the stone hidden in my heart,

What breaks is redness;

Red tears are flowing, aren't they?

But they are deceiving...

-- From the Weiss Kruez "Gluhen" Ending Theme, Stone Roses. (Lyrical Source: Anime )

"Just what the hell are you doing here...Tatsuha?"

The rude inquiry, though expected, nearly caught the dark-haired brother of Japan's famous romance novelist off-guard. "What else does it look like, Aniki? I came to see my favorite brother here in Tokyo, that's all."

Yuki Eiri sighed harshly, muttering an expletive under his breath. "First of all, I'm your only brother, dumbass. And for another, you're one shitty liar. Obviously, you have some other ulterior motive here, and I'm guessing that it has something to do with that pop star you're so obsessed with."

"That's Sakuma-san, Aniki!" Tatsuha huffed, correcting his brother's apparent, 'blunder.' "The most gorgeous, adorable, sweet, sexy being on this PLANET, for your information...!"

The author rolled his eyes as the teen went into, 'raving fan-boy mode.'

"Whatever. Get out of my face for the meanwhile. I'm way too exhausted for your crap this late in the night." Eiri crossly attempted to shut the door on his visitor; but Tatsuha was enraged—and much faster than the sleep-deprived blonde.

"Hey, don't you DARE, 'whatever,' my Sakuma-san, Aniki!" He promptly shoved the wooden object right back in the direction he wanted it to lean, and Eiri was so tired that he let the young man come in. "And it's only midnight! Surely you've got a book that requires an all-nighter or else you wouldn't be staying up this late!"

"Like you fucking care." Eiri shot back carelessly, as Tatsuha rolled his luggage down the studio apartment's corridor and headed towards the guest room.

Instead of trying to add to the argument, Tatsuha turned around and grinned. "I do so care. You just don't seem to think so. Guess that makes you the dumbass, ne?"

"At least if you're going to stay here, then put your stuff down, go sleep on the couch for tonight, and shut the hell up. I can't stand an idiot's voice when I'm tired."

Tatsuha gave his older sibling a strange look. "Whatddya mean, 'sleep on the couch?' I thought that you had some guy living with you? That's what Nee-chan said, anyway..."

Flinching, though the prideful blonde would have refused to admit it, the image of a certain pink-haired lover flashed through his mind, reminding him of the obvious absence of the, 'some guy.'

"There is...he's just not here right now."

Eiri walked away from the living room without another word. And, of course, once Tatsuha realized that there would be no further elaboration on the subject, he flopped down on the couch tiredly, grateful that he at least had a place to crash for the night.

Somewhere behind the door he just shut, the faint sound of someone sobbing reached Nakano Hiroshi's ears.

Silently, Hiro was cursing himself—not just for being curt and downright rude to Shuichi, but for his own inability to go into that room and comfort his best friend. However, that would mean dealing with his own internal guilt of not being able to prevent the singer's sorrow in the first place.

Despite the impulsive way he had just behaved, Hiro was no idiot—something truly terrible had happened to Shuichi, and he knew exactly why the male was in no condition to tell what. While Shuichi was in the shower, he had checked his friend's clothing--which had been conveniently discarded at the foot of the bathroom door—and found the remnants of dried blood in the boy's undergarments. It didn't take scientific deduction to figure out what had happened, obviously.

Although, for the record, Hiro thought, I don't exactly enjoy the thought of Shuichi being--

--No, even thinking about something like that makes me sick to my stomach...but, then again...who could have possibly done this to Shuichi...? And, while we're on the subject, why?

For a moment, Hiro began to silently question who could possibly have a reason to hurt his best friend. Either there was an abusive relationship going on between Yuki and Shuichi—which, quietly, Hiro flinched at the mere thought of it; but quickly decided that any personal feelings could get in the way of proper judgment, and tossed the idea aside—or someone had a serious distaste for the rising star and was trying to take him out. They were the only two logical clues Hiro had—and he would be damned if he didn't at least try to do something to help Shuichi.

Shuichi...if you don't mind me playing detective for a little while, and prying into your personal affairs...I'm gonna try and get you out of this. Instinctively, Hiro clenched his fists, nearly breaking the flesh of his palms with tight fingernails.

And whoever did this to you, I promise that I'll kick that sorry bastard's ass so hard he won't know what hit him.