Chapter 2

Ok, ok, stay calm. She'll be here soon. In his cramped apartment, Hiro zipped around to various spots and cleaned up. It was a last minute attempt to fix the miniature explosions of untidiness courtesy of Shuichi. He came over three days before to hang out like usual, but he was drunk on Yuki that evening and he stomped around while he declared reason after reason why Yuki was the best boyfriend ever. Unfortunately, Bad Luck's busy schedule as of late didn't leave Hiro much time to clean up as much as he wanted.

Hiro tried not to count the minutes until Ayaka showed up on his doorstep. Promptness was one of her great qualities. She was a great girlfriend and their relationship was finally beginning to settle down after the whole incident involving her engagement with Yuki. Once in a while she would get a little disheartened whenever the topic of her beloved Eiri came up, but she understood that Hiro was her beloved now and she cheered up. Her warm emotions towards Shuichi's boyfriend did grate on Hiro's emotions sometimes, but when Ayaka smiled just for him, he always felt better. Still, something about her and Yuki hung in the back of his mind and wouldn't be forgotten. He didn't know exactly what that thing was, but today was his day off and moody thoughts weren't going to spoil his attitude right in the morning!

He had just finished checking his jeans and t-shirt ensemble in the bathroom mirror when the doorbell rang. He eyed the main room once more before opening the front door. Bright morning sunlight made him squint, but seeing his girlfriend wasn't a problem. Ayaka Usami smiled and her dark blue eyes looked him over. Her auburn hair, long and often worn down, was tied back today. A long sea green skirt fit perfectly with the spring weather. Not to mention her.

"Ayaka, hi! It's so great to see you!" Hiro paved over indecent thoughts with an outward hug.

"It's good to see you too, Nakano- I mean, Hiro," she corrected. She was still getting used to calling him by the familiar name, but he didn't mind. It meant she truly started to care for him.

"Do you want to come in?" Hiro asked, waving a hand at the marvelously tidy apartment.

"Actually, I wanted to go to the new sundae shop you told me about. The sweets sound really delicious."

Hiro deflated just a tad when she didn't notice the result of his hard efforts. "Oh, sure." He grabbed his keys and locked the door.

"I will be coming back later, so I can see your place then," Ayaka explained when they began to walk. She paused and added, "I don't think I've ever seen your place so organized. I'm impressed."

Hiro grinned in triumph. "Well, I try."

They chatted small talk along the way, re-acquainting themselves with each other's daily lives. Ayaka had taken up art lessons and she enjoyed the creativity that went with the skill. She glossed over the topic about her parents. They were disappointed to hear about the cancellation of her marriage and when they turned contemplative, they would broach the subject about how she had let go of such a treasure. Ayaka didn't feel horrible about it, she told Hiro, but she did find herself wondering. Hiro tried to cheer her up by telling stories about rehearsals and how Shuichi constantly kept him on his toes with his crazy antics. Sundaes were ordered and the couple continued their walk to the park where they first met each other. Hiro sighed happily.

Ayaka stirred her caramel-swirled sundae with a plastic spoon before taking a careful bite. "Shindou-san sounds like he's doing well "

"He sure acts that way. He bounces all over the place whenever the topic of Yuki-san comes up."

"Does Eiri seem happier as well?"

Hiro spooned some strawberry goo into his mouth, unsure of how to answer. "I haven't seen him much, but whenever I do he's with Shuichi. He doesn't seem to mind when the spaz latches onto him when they're in public. I'm thinking that's progress on Yuki-san's part."

"So it does." Ayaka smiled.

They walked along in silence, taking in the colorful sights of greenery and playground toys. Hiro veered towards a set of swings and motioned for her to join him. They were tall for the swings, but at least they had comfortable seats. He glanced over and saw Ayaka was in deep thought and her vision gazed down at her dessert. Yuki brooding, perhaps? A couple weeks had passed and neither she or Yuki had spoken to each other. Ayaka had admitted to Hiro at the very start of their relationship that she had given up on the guy. Still, the guitarist knew from his previous girlfriends that sometimes feelings didn't wash down the drain as quickly or clean as he'd wanted. Sometimes, the food bits of lingering emotions stayed behind.

He leaned forward a little. "What 'cha thinking about?" he asked, hoping the E-word wasn't her reply.

Unfortunately, it was. "I'm just wondering about him, that's all."

He didn't understand what the problem was. "I told you he was doing pretty good."

"That's not what I mean." At length, the brunette spoke. "I...wonder if I mean anything to him."

Now it was Hiro's turn to gaze into the mess of his ice cream filled cup. Yuki took up a lot of space in her mind, it seemed.

Ayaka's small hand touched his wrist. "Oh, Hiro, I'm not saying you're not significant to me. I only want to know if I should keep Eiri in my life or not. I do know him a bit. That's a lot more than most people can say. I did speak with him a few times when the engagement had been first arranged. "

"Sounds like you made friends." Did he sound sarcastic?

Ayaka giggled wistfully. "Of course not right away. He was polite, but he had an edge to him. I didn't know if I wanted the challenge of getting past it, to find out what lay beyond. He would have been my future husband after all, so I felt obligated to try being on good terms."

"What happened?"

Sadness made her eyes lower. "We parted ways before I made a real decision. I think I wanted to know him better, but now that he's involved with Shindou-san, I should forget about it. Maybe I'm being silly over nothing."

Despite the simmering goulash of emotions Hiro felt, he found himself saying, "You should talk to him about this. I could ask Shu to invite Yuki-san over to Kyoto. Or you can visit him while you're here in Tokyo." He paused. If she visited Yuki, their time together would be cut short.

She hesitated. "I can't see him. I- I wouldn't know what to say."

"It won't be so bad. It's not like you two have never met. Now that Shu's with him, there won't be any problems finding him like last time." Why was he being so nice about this guy, anyway? Hiro glanced at her face, saw the debate in her eyes. He was being too selfish. She wanted peace of mind. It was worth more than a couple hours apart from each other.

"You're right, it is easier to find him now. I still want to think it over first." Ayaka stopped rocking on the swing and looked down at the dusty cloud that had kicked up below her sandals.

The metal chains on the swing creaked as Hiro pushed lightly on his seat. Nothing was said and he finished his dessert in the quiet. He looked at Ayaka's sad expression. He remembered the struggle she went through when she met with Yuki in Tokyo last time. She had wanted to keep Yuki so badly, Hiro recalled when she interrupted one of Bad Luck's rehearsals and slapped Shuichi who stood right at the mic. Hiro knew she had been headstrong, but seeing the slap still shocked him.

The swing grew silent then when he realized something that evaporated his temporary jealousy. "Ayaka?"

"Yes?"

"You don't like to give up. Is it all right for you to do that?"

Ayaka didn't say anything.

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Eiri leaned back in his rolling chair and slid off his reading glasses. His arm rested it beside his laptop. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to distract himself by sinking into the blackness behind his eyelids. He must have wrote for too long. His head hurt a little. He felt tired, but not as much as did feel unsettled. Shuichi hadn't returned home the night before. The boy was genuinely angry; he never stayed out all night without any word home. Did he seriously take Eiri's words to heart?

It hadn't been the first time Shuichi had been called names, so it was a bit shocking when morning came and the apartment remained empty. Expecting a phone call during the night, Eiri had stayed up. There wasn't anything else to do while midnight crept toward dawn except type out his story. The deadline for his draft was inching closer and he knew if he kept worrying over the brat, his story wouldn't make it. Besides, the blond knew Shuichi's friends and if he would stay with anyone, it would be Hiroshi. Or possibly with the juvenile man-stuck-in-a-child's-body singer that Shuichi idolized, Ryuichi Sakuma. Both of them had grown to be good friends over the past months, if not oddly eccentric ones. Eiri suddenly remembered that Shuichi worked today, so there wouldn't be any call now that it was already morning. They would see each other later in the evening.

Feeling better after figuring all that out, Eiri left the study and stretched his arms as he headed to the kitchen. Leftover noodles from last night's take-out satisfied his hunger. He popped the tab of a cold beer and sipped, idly wondering if he should take a walk or something. No, he wanted to finish another chapter before he went anywhere. The deadline was a pain, but once he finished the draft, relaxation would be his reward for a couple days. He hoped he did make it.

Many, many pages later, -not quite a full chapter finished- evening came. Eiri didn't realize this until he stepped out of the room and passed through the living room. Nighttime life shifted beyond the balcony's glass doors. Dots of city lights shone against the dark sky and he finally looked up at a clock. Shuichi should be arriving home around this time. A tick of excitement teased Eiri's stomach and he allowed himself a ghost of a smile in anticipation.

The phone trilled. Eiri's body lurched towards the study before he knew what he was doing, much to his amazement. The answering machine normally took his calls, but this time felt like an exception. He grabbed the receiver on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Yuki-san?" greeted a calm male voice. It definitely didn't belong to Shuichi.

"Yes?" He hid his disappointment.

Some rustling sounded and seconds passed before it stopped . "Sorry," the person apologized, "is Shuichi there?"

This made Eiri blink. "Who is this?"

"Oh, this is Hiro."

How did he find out the novelist's number? As though Hiroshi had read his mind, he added, "Shuichi gave me your number. Anyway, I wanted to check up on him to see how he was doing."

Eiri didn't find the idea comforting that Shuichi's friend had his phone number. "What do you mean?"

Puzzlement rose in Hiroshi's answer. "Well, he didn't come to work today and I thought he might have gotten sick."

Not go to work? What the hell? "He...never mentioned anything about feeling ill."

"So he's ok? That's good. Can I talk to him?"

"Why didn't you call his cell phone?" questioned Eiri, who got more annoyed as the seconds ticked by.

"Nobody is answering. I thought he must have shut it off when he got back to your place."

This did not look good. The musician was gone and nobody knew his whereabouts. Especially him. Eiri cleared his throat and decided to do a little fishing. "Was Shuichi with you yesterday? In the evening."

"No, I was with- I was busy with other plans."

So much for his hypothesis of overnight buddies the lunatic would stay with. He tried to reel in any additional information. "Did he tell you where he was last night? He didn't tell me."

"Wasn't he planning on being with you? He acted really excited before he left, saying things about seeing you." A hint of suspicion touched Hiroshi's tone.

He grunted an affirmation. Shuichi had wanted to do just that, until Eiri's mouth ran rampant and his lover stomped out the door. "He changed his mind and wanted to go out," he smoothly replied. "I slept in early and by the time I woke, he was gone." As soon as the sentence left his mouth, he silently cursed. Admitting Shuichi's absence and asking his own questions meant Hiroshi would discover that his friend hadn't been at home last night or today.

As anticipated, concern began tiptoeing in. "Are you saying Shu hasn't been home since he left the NG building?"

Eiri sighed. The facade was up. Hiroshi had the intelligence to figure out things like this in a blink of an eye, and there wasn't any point in dawdling over Shuichi's disappearance anymore. "He went out in the evening and never told me where he planned to go."

"Why wouldn't he tell you where he went? That's not like him. Unless he-" Hiroshi briefly fell silent and Eiri understood that he knew that the fairy tale land of happiness between his friend and himself was not quite happy. The silence also meant Hiroshi was considering what next to do. Stay silent or tell his managers, which the news would travel up the ranks to...Tohma.

Eiri recoiled slightly. For some reason, upsetting Tohma didn't seem like something he wanted to do. The image of Shuichi's perky face popped into mind and Eiri rolled his eyes up to the ceiling. All right, so he cared about the silly idiot too and the trouble that would follow for him if Tohma found out about his disappearance. "Hiroshi, I'd appreciate it if you don't mention this to your managers yet." Eiri's tone turned gruff.

"Ah, so you want to help find Shu? Understandable." Hiroshi sounded positively gleeful that the indomitable Eiri would willingly search for his significant other.

Damn that fool, if anything happened to him... Eiri sliced off that train of thought and focused back to the phone. "Will you keep quiet until we find out more? We don't to upset anyone if we don't need to."

Now Hiroshi's glee began climbing down a couple notches. "I'd need a good excuse, but I could only do it for another day. Maybe two, but that's unlikely." Sheepishly, he added, "You know how violent that K can get when he's hunting. I believe he's switched over from his semi-automatic to a sniper rifle. More accuracy, he says. You'd need to be careful."

Eiri nodded, though the man on the other end couldn't see it. "Give me your number and I'll call if I have any news. You will do the same and keep me updated?"

"Of course." The teen recited his cell number and Eiri suggested, "Actually, you would stand a better chance at asking around since you do know more people who know Shuichi. I can stop by a couple places and see if he's there."

"Sounds good. Thanks for searching for Shuichi. I know he's a dolt at times, but everyone cares about him. Um..." There was an awkward silence.

Eiri grew impatient. "What?"

The sound of scuffling met his ears as the mouthpiece of Hiroshi's phone was covered. Eiri couldn't make out anything and just as he planned to rudely hang up, the guitarist came back on. "Sorry about that, Yuki-san. I have a guest over."

Like he cared. "If this is all, I'll go."

When the muffled noise happened a second time, Eiri dropped his receiver on its cradle.

He did not hear the hopeful voice speak on the other end.

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A/N: Worries are sprouting up everywhere. Where on Earth is that pink-haired boy? Please leave a review!