Disclaimer: All characters mentioned in this fic are not mine... yup yup! oh, except for Mr. Misaki, Sakamoto, Miraku (who is about ¼ mine :s ..you'll see!) and Hoshi... I forgot to say that in the last chapter. My bad!

Chapter 2: Coincidence

Shuichi woke up to the sounds of chimes and a guitar. He sat up, and saw Hiro playing his guitar, as he usually did-- eyes closed, and as if he were in a trance. The tune made Shuichi want to sing along, if only he knew the words.

Hiro noticed the awakened Shuichi; he stopped playing and rested the guitar on his lap, "Ooops!" He smiled, "Did I wake you?"

"Nah, Hiro kun!!" Shuichi smiled reassuringly, "I had the weirdest dream though..."

"Really? Do you mind telling me more about it?"

Shuichi shook his head, and blinked, "It's just... I thought I saw Yuki and he was... urgh.. I can't recall anymore! All I know is that it was a really weird dream.." Shuichi shook his head once more, then got up and fixed his bed.

"Oh, okay..." HIro slightly frowned, "and I thought I would get to hear all about it, haha.."

"Don't worry, Hiro kun, it's nothing!" Shuichi smiled as he got his towel and made his way to the bathroom. He locked the door and got into the shower.

"Yuki would never cry like that..." Shuichi thought to himself as the sound of water made him recall the dream.

K sat down, his legs crossed, arms folded across his chest as he waited impatiently for Shuichi. Hiro walked into the room and noticed his impatience.

"What's up, K?" Hiro greeted.

"Is Shuichi awake yet?" K asked, "This is the only time he can call Yuki, as agreed upon..."

A screeching sound startled the two, and the turned around and saw Shuichi, panting and at the same time, smiling widely.

"Good morning K-sannnn!!!" He greeted melodiously.

K handed over Shuichi's cellphone, then closed his eyes as he folded his arms once more. "Fine fine, you have an hour to talk to him."

Shuichi quickly dialed, his fingers almost slipping at every number. He placed the phone to his ear, and listened anxiously for the ringing to end.

"Hello?" A weary voice answered.

"Yuki!!!" Shuichi greeted, "how are you?!?!"

"It's only been a day, Shuichi" Yuki replied.

"I know I know!!!" Shuichi whined, "I can't believe how long it's been! Anything happen to you? What are you having for breakfast? What time did you sleep last night? Have you taken a bath yet? What did you do yesterday..." Shuichi went on as Yuki stayed silent at the other end; and though Shuichi couldn't see his face, he knew Yuki was smiling.

"What question am I supposed to answer first?" Yuki sarcastically replied when Shuichi was done with his myriad of questions.

"Uhm... what about..." Shuichi giggled, "how was your sleep last night?"

Yuki paused for a moment.

"Yuki, you still there?" Shuichi asked, and walked to the privacy of an empty room.

"Yeah... Last night..." Yuki paused a moment, unsure whether he should say anything.

Shuichi gasped, "Why are you acting funny Yuki?!... Don't tell me you.." He gasped even more, and let out a little scream.

"IDIOT!!! What are you thinking?!" Yuki screamed back at him.

"Oh, hehe, okay..." Shuichi sniffed. "I thought..."

"What about you, anything interesting happen over there?" Yuki asked.

"Oh! Yeah, it's really nice and chilly over here," Shuichi replied, then the thought of the man in white replayed in his thoughts.

"And..?" Yuki awakened Shuichi from his daydream.

"Oh! And uh... I thought I saw Ryu at the airport, but it wasn't him, hahahahaa! Isn't that silly??" Shuichi laughed.

"Shu... that's not going to work" Yuki replied, "Your fake laugh needs a little work."

Shuichi frowned, "I knowwwwww..." He annoyingly answered.

"What else has happened, anything funny?" Yuki asked, not realizing that he was scaring Shuichi.

"What do you mean, Yuki?" Shuichi asked, feeling nervous as he recalled the dream.

"Just asking," Yuki thought of a good excuse, "I mean, you could have let another mob chase you or something.."

"YEAHHH!!! How did you know that, Yuki?" Shuichi gasped.

Yuki paused. Shuichi imagined the sarcastic expression on Yuki's face.

"Hahahaaaa, we've been together that long, huh? Shuichi smiled dreamily.

"Yeah, it seems so..." Yuki answered back, unconsciously smiling as well.

"I miss you already..." Shuichi said softly.

"Hey, don't go mushy on me," Yuki smirked as he replied. Shuichi giggled back

"It's the truth!"

K knocked and walked into the room, "Shu-san, I'm sorry but the Mr. Misaki just called. We have to go." He saw Shuichi's bright face fade into gloom. "You have 15 minutes... I'm so sorry Shu, I'll let you call him up later." K reassured as he saw Shuichi smile a bit.

Yuki heard the interruption, "Mr. Misaki?" he asked.

"Yeah," Shuichi replied sadly, "K says he's the one who wants us to come out for an anti depressant commercial or something..."

"Anti depressant???" Yuki asked.

"Or was it jam??? I forgot, hehe."

"Sounds fun." Yuki replied, it must have been the first time he encouraged Shuichi.

"Yeah, I'm sure it is, but it's not the same without you..."

"I told you, don't go mushy on me!"

Shuichi giggled, "I thought you'd have missed me by now..."

"Yeah... I do... but." Yuki paused.

"Huh? What is it Yuki?" Shuichi noticed the sudden interruption.

"Shuichi..." Yuki thought hard, he decided that despite how ridiculous it may have sounded, it was still better to tell Shuichi at least a bit, "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"Huh? Of course, Yuki!" Shuichi noticed the Yuki's serious tone, "What's wrong?"

Yuki paused a bit, thinking hard about the dream he had.

"The dream I told you about... It sounds silly but... watch out for someone in—"

A beep interrupted the conversation.

"Hello?? Hello??" Shuichi said in alarm "Yuki??"

The beep continued, and left Shuichi in a mix of surprise, anger and disappointment.

"Yuki..." Shuichi put his phone in front of him; he stared at it and sadly meditated on Yuki's statement-cut-short...

"A man in... what? What could he have meant?" Shuichi thought, and at the same time, wondered why the call was suddenly broken.

K knocked and opened the door, and noticed the disappointment on Shuichi's face.

"What's the matter? Is Yuki all right?" he asked.

"Yeah..." Shuichi nodded, but remained melancholic.

Shuichi stood and gave his phone to K, who patted him on the back, "Not to worry, Shuichi kun, you'll call him back as soon as we get back. And I'll let you stay up for the whole night, if you want to." He smiled.

Shuichi's face lit up as K added in his rough accent,

"Don't worry, be happy!!!"

"Hello??? Shuichi? Shuichi!!"

Yuki heard the endless beep, pulled the phone from his ear and stared at it.

Just when he was about to tell Shuichi about the man in his dream...

Yuki placed replaced the phone on the table, and sat back on his chair. He stared at the paragraphs on his computer; he wondered whether the interruption was simply coincidence or a fault in the phone company's system.

He stared at the phone again. He reached it, lifted it from the receiver once more and heard the monotone beep, showing that the line was functional. He replaced it on its cradle.

He shook his head as he put on his glasses and continued to type on his laptop, a melody of tapping filling the room.

Shuichi stared out of the car's window as the sound of paper filled the car. Shuichi turned to glance at what everyone was doing.

Sakano patted his handkerchief all over his face as he went through a thick compilation of papers. Hiro nodded off to sleep as he sat beside Shuichi. K was silently driving, and occasionally lifting a finger to other drivers; Fujisaki patted K, and often reminded K not to use the magnum.

Shuichi looked stared out of the window once more; he was praying that K would get them to the place...safely... and that they would get to the destination soon.

It was almost autumn, and the chilly weather was evident; Shuichi noticed everyone in their warmer apparel, others often rubbing their hands together as they strolled down the streets. He wondered what Hokkaido would have looked like in the winter, but he hoped he didn't have to stay that long. The snow he would see would be nothing compared to the snow he always had with him.

Shuichi's thought dreamily about Yuki. The car came to a stop at an intersection. Shuichi's attention was caught by two men arguing at the sidewalk. The other one looked laid-back, his hair in a messy-yet-stylish fashion and his clothes complimenting his character even more. He pushed his shades with his index and middle finger as he continued walking... as if no one was pulling him back.

The other held tightly onto the first man's leg. His spiky hair and soft eyes caught Shuichi's attention, not to mention how he could shift into a smaller form. It reminded him of Ryuichi, although seeing the two men together reminded him more of himself and Yuki when they argued.

Shuichi smiled, and decided to wish the two the best of luck, as they continued to drive by.

The car came to a stop. K turned around and smiled widely as he announced in his deep voice, "We're here!!!"

Hiro awakened from his slumber as Shuichi tapped him. Everyone got down and walked casually into the building. K told them to wait for him and Sakano at the lounge as they would go and finally meet Mr. Misaki.

Fujisaki, Hiro and Shuichi sat silently, still hung-over from the road trip. Hiro broke the silence by complimenting how it would have been nice to see Hokkaido in the winter.

"They say it gets very cold over here, and tourists come for the skiing." He added.

Shuichi smiled back, "Maybe I can invite Yuki to come by then."

Fujisaki smiled as well, "Don't worry Shuichi, I'm sure these three weeks will pass you by real fast, as if they didn't even happen."

The three paused as they heard K's voice, Sakano's nervous laughter, and an unfamiliar voice.

They stood as K introduced them one-by-one to a middle-aged-looking man, who looked very serious and strict his receding hairline made him look even older. He made them think whether K would look like that in the future.

"Mr. Hoshi, here is Bad Luck, Shuichi, Hiroshi, and Fujisaki." He smiled as he gestured towards them.

"Pleased to meet you!" Shuichi smiled as he shook the man's hand. Hiro and Fujisaki followed.

"I'm very sorry, I've just been assigned as a replacement." He answered, his thick eyebrows showing his disappointment.

"May I ask what happened to Mr. Misaki?" Sakano asked politely.

"Misaki?" Mr Hoshi looked at them, puzzled.

"Yes, the one who called and proposed about the commercial..." K sounded unsure.

Mr. Hoshi looked at them in question then paused for a while.

"I haven't heard of the name, but... I know I've been assigned as a replacement for Mr. Sakamoto, he's the advertising director. However, he was suddenly called for an important meeting. Don't worry though, he told me all about your arrival."

"Sakamoto?" K asked himself, assuring himself. He knew the man who called had identified himself as Mr. Misaki. He simply shrugged off the thought.

"Well then, shall we proceed to the conference room?" Mr. Hoshi offered.

They all smiled and nodded.

The discussion took almost two hours, and Shuichi found himself tired... even though he was just listening to Mr. Hoshi, K and Sakano talk most of the time. He couldn't help but excuse himself for a bathroom break.

He thought about how the commercial was going to be presented. He imagined it; Spicy Marmalade playing in the background as he, Hiro, and Fujisaki ran wildly through the terrain, searching for something, then at last, they find a voluptuous woman holding the jar of jam and inviting them to have some... He then forgot what Mr. Hoshi said would happen after that.

He splashed some water on his face and dried it with tissue.

Shuichi stretched, and found himself awake again. He looked at his watch and thought how long it would be until he could talk to Yuki. He softly slapped his face, and uttered a few words of encouragement to his reflection, "Just a little more time, Shuichi kun!"

He walked out the restroom, but because of his daydreaming, he accidentally bumped into someone headed to the restroom.

"Oooof!" Shuichi breathed, then looked up at the person he bumped. He smiled and was about to apologize when he found himself frozen in place.

"I'm sorry," The stranger said, smiling softly at him.

"U-uh.. p-pardon me!" Shuichi bowed his head. He realized he had been staring at the stranger.

The two smiled at each other, then went on their way. Shuichi looked back, as he saw the stranger walk into the bathroom.

Shuichi thought for a moment then shook his head. He tried shrugging off the thought, but he knew that he wasn't wrong; a sense of de ja vu overcame him... and tried to think hard where he saw the man before.

Shuichi walked back into the conference room, excusing himself for the interruption, and took his seat.

Hiro looked at him and whispered, "What's wrong? You look like you saw a ghost."

Shuichi shook his head and replied, "It's nothing. I just thought I saw someone familiar..."

Mr. Hoshi continued discussing the schedule, the requirements and the other reminders before the filming of the commercial would start, until a knock on the door interrupted the conversation.

Mr. Hoshi stood from his seat, "That must be him already," He said as he opened the door.

"Oh! Finally you're here!" Mr. Hoshi said in relief, as he let the man into the room. Shuichi stared at the man. He couldn't believe his eyes.

"Let me introduce Mr.Miraku, who is going to supervise the whole filming. He is also going to take Mr. Sakamoto's place every once in a while as director."

Mr. Miraku smiled and bowed, "Nice to meet you all, it's a pleasure." His melodic tone echoed.

Hiro nudged Shuichi, "Shuichi, what's wrong? You're all pale... hey, introduce yourself."

Shuichi broke out of his trance, finally realizing that he was the only one who had not introduced himself yet. He thought his brain must have shut off from the moment the man came into the room.

Shuichi stood up, reaching out his hand to shake Mr. Miraku's.

"Hmmm, why so nervous, Mr. Shindou?" Mr. Miraku smiled, "Don't worry, I don't bite..." He smirked.

Shuichi forced a smile. His fear got worse after hearing the last statement. He couldn't take his eyes off the man in white.

"Actually, I think we bumped into each other earlier," Miraku smiled and chuckled as he turned to the others.

Shuichi felt him slowly let go of his hand. It took him a tap from Hiro to realize that he should take his seat, as Mr. Miraku already did.

The discussion continued, and Shuichi was petrified the whole time, though he had no idea why. Was it the coincidence or was it because of Yuki's words...

"What does this have to do with Yuki's warning anyway?" Shuichi thought to himself. His mind was debating against itself, and as the discussion continued, nothing made sense anymore. And all the more did his thoughts go haywire when he'd see Mr. Miraku staring at him.

Yuki shivered. He felt goosebumps all over. He looked up from his laptop and saw that the airconditioner was only at 20 degrees. Yuki squinted, removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

He stood up, rubbing his arms to ease the tension. He decided that a walk would perhaps help him.

Yuki turned off his laptop, closed it, and noticed the picture frame that was concealed by the laptop's screen. He stared a moment at Shuichi's photo, his face showing concern. He blinked, as if awakened from the day dream and looked at the clock. It was only 4 PM...

He took his pack of cigarettes then walked out, shutting the door behind him.

Shuichi ran into the room as soon as K opened the door of the apartment. The others watched Shuichi in doubt as he hastily ran into his room.

K glanced at Hiro, and Hiro knew what K meant.

"I'll talk to him..."

Hiro knocked on the door of his and Shuichi's room. Not hearing an answer, he opened the door slowly and found Shuichi buried under the covers.

"Shu? What's going on?" Hiro stood beside the bed.

Shuichi peeked from under the pillows, fear written all over his face. He curled up, as if it was freezing cold, only exposing his face and a bit of his hands, which were clenching the sheets

"What's the matter with you? You've been acting funny since Mr. Miraku came..." Hiro paused then realized the fear on Shuichi's face growing worse when he mentioned the name.

"H-he... I don't kn-know..." Shuichi stuttered.

"Mr. Miraku?" Hiro asked, his face growing stern as he couldn't understand why Shuichi was acting that way. He sat beside Shuichi and lay his hand on Shuichi's back.

"I don't know... it's just... h-he... he scares me... h-his stare... he kept staring at me.." Shuichi shivered.

"Maybe it was just your imagination, Shu?" Hiro tried to comfort Shu.

"No... no... Hiro..." Shuichi shook his head, and paused a moment, "Do you remember yesterday? At the airport?"

"Yeah, I think so... The one about Ryu?"

"Yeah... it was him... I saw him..."

"Mr. Miraku or Ryuichi?" Hiro asked once more.

"M-Miraku.. him!... but after you tapped me on the shoulder... he was gone..." Shuichi shivered even more. "There's something about him Hiro... I don't know..."

"Shuichi..." Hiro paused for a moment. "do you think that Yuki would help you?"

Shuichi looked at Hiro with pleading eyes. It didn't take long for Hiro to reach into his pocket and hand his phone to his weary friend.

Shuichi sat up, still wrapped up in the blanket. He looked at Hiro for a moment, with a look that showed his thanks... but at the same time, asking for a little privacy.

"Okay, I'll go and take a shower first..." Hiro understood Shuichi.

Shuichi trembled as he dialed Yuki's phone number, and heard the endless ringing...

He prayed that Yuki would answer it...

The phone endlessly rang, echoing throughout Yuki's room. It wasn't long until it was answered. The sound os Yuki's voice deceived Shuichi for a moment.

"This is the home of Eiri... leave a message after the beep"

a high-pitched beep followed, and there was only breathing.. the sound echoed throughout Yuki's room.

A deep breath, and Shuichi spoke softly..

"Hi Yuki, it's Shuichi..." He paused a moment, "I... I-uh... just wanted to say hi... I miss you..."

Another beep ended the message, and Shuichi could hear nothing but the repetition of beeps. He sighed, and ended the call... he felt the heat of his tears as they rolled down his cheek.

"Yuki..." He sighed once more, then lay down and cried himself to sleep.

Author's little note: Hi!!! Thank you thank you thank you (bows like Sakano) to those who reviewed the first chapter, I didn't think I'd expect that many reviews at once. So sorry for the first update, I didn't realize how many errors there were!!! (Shrinks in shame) Still thinking out the whole plot... oh my... I hope at least the "name" gave you a hint on who the man in white is, hehe. Don't worry, the other series has been mentioned already, but I'm gonna introduce them officially a little later. :3 Ahahahahaaa! Thankies again to those who reviewed, you really inspire me to continue writing!