Notes: Well, this is the end! Yay! Hope you enjoyed it! And by the way… I'll probably be doing some side-stories coming up, just post-Crying Roses, or something like that. I hope the wait was worth it, guys! And if not… you may lynch me ;) lol Thanks so much to all the comments I got from you guys, you're great! Feel free to e-mail me too:D
Crying Roses
By: Emmy
Part Eight
Takimaru looked around with a scowl to his face. His hands were deep into his pockets. "So where is little Aya-chan?" He asked cocking his head lightly to the left.
Sanosuke clenched his fists together and took a walk forward. "You bastard! You fucked with my family, you're going to get your ass beat into the fucking ground!"
He smirked. "Oh, is that so? How do you plan on doing that, Sanosuke? I have to get through you to get Aya. She's the most beautiful little girl I've seen, I want her for my own. Her gorgeous raven hair, her small smile. She'll make the best pet I've ever had. And you won't stand in my way to get to her. I thought that I could get her through other means, for fun, but since that isn't going to work I'll just take her from you like this."
"You thought that we actually wouldn't find out that you were just fucking with us! You thought that I was going to give her up so easily!" Sanosuke spat, words lashing from his swift tongue.
The man in front of him looked amused. "You keep mentioning 'we', Sanosuke. I find it interesting just how much you care about your this little fuck buddy of yours. Do you really think that he's going to keep you around for long? With a kid? All fags are interested is fucking, anyways. Just wait until you're all alone. He won't be with you, and then I'll take Aya away for me."
Sanosuke's teeth gritted together, but then he turned his anger turning into amusement. "You think that some shit like that is going to scare me! Give me a little more credit than that! I know you're trying to get me riled up to file a lawsuit against me, or something, but I'm going to kick your ass even without that! You think I give a shit when you're a fucking killer! You just better pray that I don't cut off your balls and shove them down your throat!"
Takimaru just grinned. "I'd like to see you try."
Before Sanosuke could lunge, something silver and metallic crossed his vision and he felt hot. Or, at least, his stomach did. And he hadn't remembered wearing a red shirt that day... which was even stranger.
And then there was the noise.
A single shot.
Saitou's eyes glanced over a magazine from his home as Aya giggled while watching TV. He flicked his eyes over to the clock and took in a deep breath. He was getting a little worried about Sanosuke, especially because he knew that the other man was quick to jump the gun when things involved what he held dear to him. After a few more minutes, he let out a sigh of relief when he heard the doorbell.
It was about time that the other man had gotten back.
"Daddy!" Aya giggled as she heard the same.
"He must have all your stuff for you." Saitou said quaintly as he twisted the door knob and pulled open the door.
Before he had a chance to react, something hit him. Cold and wet leaked onto him, and when his eyes scanned downward instantly, he saw brown, matted hair.
"Sanosuke?"
There wasn't an answer, but there was ragged breathing. Saitou lowered his arms to Sanosuke's shoulders, and that's when he heard Aya scream.
Her voice was shrill, and soon after the high-pitched frantic, tears burst from her wide eyes.
"Aya? What is it?"
"Daddy!" She ran over to the man and engulfed his tilted chest. As she pulled away for a moment, she was painted red.
It hit Saitou, and he flipped Sanosuke around in the entry way to see the paling youth covered in his own blood, partially dried, partially flowing. "Sanosuke! What happened! Can you hear me?"
He smiled faintly, and then collapsed.
Aya buried herself further into her father's chest, covered in a newly-reddened dress. Saitou quickly ripped Sanosuke's clothes from his body to see where the wound was coming from. His teeth were gritted tightly as Aya began to scream again. Saitou looked over to the hysterical girl and tried to calm her, asking as gently as he could, "Aya, honey? Could you go get the phone for me?"
Sobs erupted from her throat as her eyes remained on Sanosuke.
"Aya, I really need you to do this, for me and your daddy, all right?"
She nodded, and took off running.
Saitou redirected his attention to his bleeding, and now unconscious lover. "Sanosuke? Sanosuke!" He kept trying, hissing in his ear as he found the gaping wound right underneath his ribcage. His eyes narrowed as he grabbed a wad of fabric from the cloth that wasn't already soaked, and pressed it flush against the gash. Aya came back quickly and handed the phone to Saitou, finger-painting evident across the white body of the cordless.
He punched in 9-1-1 quicker than he ever had in his life.
"Daddy... is daddy OK?" She continued to beg, and Saitou tried to calm her as he sat trying to stop the bleeding, as well as attempting to tell 9-1-1 what was going on.
Saitou's eyes followed the trail that Sanosuke had left from the house, down the driveway, and then in the car. Red was everywhere. It was impossible that he could have lost that much blood and still made it here...
"Sanosuke... hang on..."
Aya sat, cuddled in a hospital chair next to her daddy as Saitou stood right outside the room with his partner, Miki Fumihara.
Saitou took in a deep breath as he looked over his lover in the hospital bed, still unconscious with wires and needles sticking out of him like he was a piece of machinery. It pained the man to see Sanosuke like this - and it downright sickened him to think of the man that did this. However, that's what Fumihara was discussing with him right that second.
"Yeah... when we got to the house, there was so much blood. But not all of it was Sanosuke. After being shot, that kid managed to kick the shit out of the fucker, just long enough to escape. Unfortunately, we won't be able to put him away." The fat man drew out, and placed his hands on his hips.
Saitou raised an eyebrow and redirected his gaze. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
There was a moment that passed before Fumihara continued. "He's already dead. While most of the blood inside the house was Sanosuke's, outside was a different story. You know why you first came to that subdivision?"
"The child's murder, what about it?"
"An insane parent of the murdered kid recognized the man and nearly had a nervous breakdown. He was coming home from work, and decided to hit him with the family Nissan. 'Accidentally' ran his ass over seven more times. It was a brutal mess. But the way I see it, he deserved it. I don't know about what's going to happen to the parent yet. Crime of passion, justified or whatever, we still have that dead body." He finished and looked back over into the room, as Aya was climbing up on the bed a little more to cuddle with Sanosuke's shoulder.
"Thank god Sanosuke didn't do anything to that man. Now there isn't anything left to worry about." Saitou took in a deep breath. "But if that sick fuck was still alive, I'd be doing more than running him over with a car."
Fumihara laughed nervously, "Woah, there, boy. Now, aren't you glad that I made you take this case? Ya met the love of your life! See, everything worked out!"
"Don't joke. I'm not in the mood."
Clasping his hands, the chubby officer shook his head, "Everything will be all right. Sanosuke's getting blood right now, and on top of that, there won't be any long-term damage. Just a little gunshot wound. You've had your fair share of those, eh, Saitou?"
"Yeah."
Saitou's answer was gruff and short. He was angry, and felt unfulfilled when it came to Takimaru. Even so, he continued to tell himself that Sanosuke was all right, and everything was going to turn out okay.
"Yeah... this is awkward, so I'm taking off."
"Yeah."
And with that, Fumihara scampered away.
Saitou walked into the room and ruffled his hand through Aya's raven hair. She turned around and looked up to him with a pout sewn onto her face. "When is Daddy gonna be up?"
Saitou picked her up and took the seat she was sitting at, as well setting her on his lap. "As soon and he's no longer tired. He's just taking a nap, honey, don't worry. He'll be fine soon."
She sniffed and looked around. "I don't like 'ospitals."
"Well, your daddy might need to stay here for a little bit. This place is taking care of him, it's a good place."
"Aya hates this place! The smell's weird... it's all weird... too 'any people hurt... too 'any people are cryin'... that's why people bring in flowers to get cheered up... to cover the smell, dat's what daddy 'old me! He said dat when people cry, their tears can be getti' rid of from the roses, why doesn't daddy have roses?"
"I'll get him roses very soon, honey."
With a tear in her eye, she looked around. "Mommy's somewhere in here... I wanna find her. Daddy said that mommy just stayed here at the 'ospital, and it took her away from us. She's lost... I hope there's a lotta roses where she is... I dun want her to cry..."
"Aya, honey, the hospital won't take me away from you like mommy..." A weak voice spoke up.
Two pairs of eyes darted over to where the noise came from.
"Sanosuke? How are you feeling?" Saitou asked immediately. trying not to sound as worried as he was. Needless to say it didn't work.
The bed-ridden man let a small smile come to his face. "Eh, I think I'm doing all right, for being shot and then fucking driving while I was bleeding my guts out. Did I lose my spleen, or anything? Everything's still there?"
Saitou smiled and nodded, "Everything's still there, but you lost blood. Is there anything that I can get for you?"
"Morphine, please."
"You have Demerol, you'll be all right."
He smiled lightly and reached out his hand for Aya. "Hey baby, how ya doing?"
"Daddy! I missed you!"
"I missed you too, but now you don't have to worry about that bad man that wanted to take you away from me. Nothing's going to happen. He hurt daddy, and he's gonna pay." Sanosuke whispered softly, stroking the small hand in his palm.
"He's already paid."
Sanosuke's eyes widened, "What do you mean?"
"He was killed by Mamoru's father when he was trying to escape. You don't have to worry about him either." Saitou stated simply.
"What!" The boy demanded, flabbergasted. "He was a politician! His career is over because of-"
"Sometimes it's insane the things that we find ourselves doing for out loved ones, for our..." Saitou took a pause and cupped his hands around the connection Sanosuke and Aya were already sharing, "family."
A moment of silence passed through the room, but it wasn't an awkward silence. It was a comfortable, happy silence of knowing, and then Aya giggled.
"'Jime? Will you be my mommy?"
Sanosuke burst out laughing. "Aya, you rock my world, little girl. That would mean that we'd have to go dress shopping for him, huh? Maybe you two could even get something to match!"
Saitou even found himself chuckling, "Sanosuke, if you didn't just get a bullet in the gut, I'd punch you."
"Aww, I love you too."
Hours had passed in the off-white rooms, and Misao had already visited to take Aya for the night while Saitou stayed to look over the drugged boy. After a light supper, the two sat in front of the TV for a little bit, until Sanosuke turned over to Saitou.
"Hey, Hajime?"
He raised an eyebrow and nodded the boy ahead.
"Did you mean that? About... family?"
"I meant it, of course."
"And you meant it about moving in together?"
Saitou turned in his chair to face Sanosuke and look the boy in the eyes. "Sanosuke, why would I say something like that and change my mind? Because you got shot? Because you might be accident prone? Because you still have a child? None of that matters to me, Sanosuke. I'm going to take care of you. And I want to do it forever. I love you, and I love Aya just as much. There's nothing to worry about."
Sanosuke took in a deep breath as Saitou kissed him lightly on the lips.
"And that's a promise?"
"That's a promise, Sanosuke."
The boy looked down to his lap and then turned back. "You're amazing, Hajime. Thank you..."
"Is something else bothering you?"
A moment passed before anything was said. "I don't know. Just... all this. It's crazy. There are just so many things I've never thought about since I've had Aya. So many things that just hit me in the past month. So many questions keep bugging me when I'm trying to sleep, I don't know, maybe it's just the medicine. But I just wonder, how long will this work? Will Aya ever become trouble for you? Who is Aya's real father?"
"This is going to work, Aya will never be a chore to me. And it doesn't matter who Aya's father is - don't set out on too many adventures this soon, Sanosuke. We'll look into it in the future, but not right now. Just, for now, rest, and realize that as soon as you get out, everything's going to be great."
"Yeah?"
"I'll kiss away the tears, until you heal and I'll get roses to fill your room, since Aya told me that's the cure-all method."
"Heh, thanks. As long as they're pink."
"Whatever you want."
End of Story