Tara Yuki-Uesugi here. Im BAAAAAAACK! How is everyone? I do hope you're well. You should have seen me in the studio. In between takes, I would write more to this chapter and then get up and sing again. Can we say devoted? lol During the day i wrote songs and at night i wrote fics(in the studio. yes i'm pathetic). I even started 2 other one shots to go along with this series lol They should be up soon. Well i'm back in NY for the time being ( too bad. it's snowing here while it's 70 degrees in GA) and Here is chapter 8! Do Enjoy!

Random Thoughts: I actually dont have any lol...uh...I bought Samurai Deeper Kyo on dvd. It's kool...Random thoughts...Complete.

Disclaimer: Yes people, we know I don't own Gravitation. i'd rather not write this but now it's out of habit and i liketo lol i'll think of a clever one next time.

And now...on with the show...


"Guys, I don't think this is gonna work."

"Relax Keisuke, we'll get in"

"But Naoya, you don't know K"

"Nothing to worry about. We can't give up now.This is our birthday gift"

"Soshi ! I thought you were the voice of reason?"

"Sorry Keisuke"

"Maybe Keisuke is right. I mean,the place is surrounded"

"Kei, you are such a punk"

"Shut up Ichi!"

"Look guys, K is a psycho gun toting american. And most likely he's recruited more of his psycho gun toting american friends."

"Like I said. I can take them out"

"You keep thinking that, Shin"

The boys were now across the street hiding out in Ichi's car trying to come up with an idea to sneak in.By now Keisuke knew that the family had told K that he had run away so going up to him and just saying" Hilemme in" wasnt going to work without him having to go back to his family. They needed to sneak in unseen. This was not going to be easy.

"Well whatever, we're here now so if we're gonna go, lets go. But be careful. They shoot at will" Keisuke said

"Yeah,yeah lets just get going already" Shin said opening the passenger side door and climbing out. Naoya followed suit. Keisuke shook his head and climbed out behind Naoya. They all walked up to the hospital and hid behind the high stone wall. Keisuke peeked around the corner." Alright, they're a bit pre-occupied, let's go" He led the way as they began walking swiftly towards the front doors.

"Hey ! "

Ichi turned around to see one of the men jogging up to them "RUN!" he yelled.

"No, wait ! " Keisuke yelled but it was too late. The boys began to run, each of them trying to make it to the front door. Keisuke ran after them trying to tell them that if they ran it would be suspicious." I'll stop them, Ark!" Keisuke heard a man yell. "Ark?" he muttered to himself as he stopped running. "Oh yeah. Ark !" he remembered. He spun around " Hey Ark! Hey, wait don't shoot!" Keisuke had noticed a man with short blonde hair ready to pull out his gun .

"Bill wait. BILL I SAID WAIT!" Ark yelled to the blonde man to his left.Soshi and Keiichi stopped running and looked back at Keisuke. They noticed he had stoped running and saw the man named Bill ready to shoot. They both ran in front of Keisuke to block him from the line of fire." Bill put that away" Ark said annoyed. Keisuke stepped from behind his human shields and smiled at the man that took his sister to school just a few days earlier. "Keisuke, I thought you were inside with your family." Ark said " Uh...yeah... I uh had to go get my friends so they can come visit Kaoru too" He lied. The rest of the boys had stopped running and walked back to join Keisuke. Ark smiled.He noticed Keisuke looking at the man to his left. " Oh this is Bill. Sorry for scaring you all. He's a bit trigger happy" Ark turned to Bill "This is Seguchi-san's nephew and Shindou-san's son." He explained. Bill nodded " Nice to meet you. Sorry I almost shot you" Keisuke smiled. " I swear Bill, you're just like K " Ark said shaking his head "Well Claude is my predecessor" Bill smiled wth pride. Ark rolled his eyes. "We'd better get going" Keisuke cut in "Nice seeing you again Ark" "Bye Keisuke"

Keisuke led his friends into the hospital.

"What the fuck was that!" Naoya asked outraged.

"I told you, when my uncle says ' the place is secure' , the place is secure" Keisuke answered with a smile. The rest of the guys just sighed, still happy that they were alive. Keisuke began to walk to the elevators when they were stopped by the nurse at the receptionist desk.

"Uh sir, visiting hours are over. You'll have to come back tomorrow any time after 8am"

"My family is here. I'm pretty sure they paid to have the private waiting room for as long as my brother is here."

"What's your last name?" she asked turning to face her computer.

"Shindou-Uesugi"

"And who are you coming to see?"

"Kaoru Shindou-Uesugi" The nurse typed the name into the computer . "Yes, I see. Do you have any form of i.d?"

"Shit" Keisuke muttered. He searched his pockets and found the credit card he hadrecieved for his birthday. " I have my credit card. Will this do?" He asked showing her the name on the card. " No I'm sorry. It has to be aphoto i.d. Anyone can show us a credit card." Keisuke cursed. He turned to his friends who shrugged. He turned back to the woman "Come on . I just want to see my brother. Can't you just let me up?" The nurse shook her head. "No it's the law. Look, why dont you just wait until tomorrow, ok?" She smiled a fake smile and then turned her back on them and began to file her nails. Keisuke got insulted. " Look lady, can't you tell who I am by my last name. Do you have any idea who my father's are!" He hated using the "who my father's are" line but at the moment he was desperate. Anyone from the family could come down at any moment and see him.He couldnt risk it.

The woman spun back around, looked Keisuke over once and began to speak. " No I'm not entirely sure I know who your father's are. You don't have to be who you say you are, ya know" she had an attitude at this point. " Look at me! I look just like my father.You know, Shuichi SHINDOU!" Keisuke emphasized his last name so she could make the connection. "Do you want a PRIZE?" the woman said sarcastically. Emphasizing the last word too. Keisuke sighed. He turned to the guys again, who once again shrugged. They didn't know what to do . They didn't have any famous parents names to throw around . Keisuke looked out the glass door and had an idea. He walked over to the automatic doors and steped outside. The woman halted her nail filing for a second to see what he was doing.

' Who would get the job done?' Keisuke thought to himself "Hey Bill! Yeah, can you come here a sec!" he called. Bill rushed to his side."Yes sir, boss" Keisuke chose to ignore the fact that he had called him boss. But also thought that it was a good thing, maybe now that woman would understand. "This woman wont let us in" he explained jerking his head to the woman's direction. "Can you help us?" Bill nodded and walked up to the desk.

-Click- He pulled out his gun and pointed it right in between the receptionist's eyes. "Ma'am do you have any idea who this boy is ?" he asked her. She shook her head, her eyes wide with fright. "This here is Tohma Seguchi's nephew and Shuichi Shindou's son. Now let me ask you this,... is there a problem here?" The woman shook her head again. "Glad to hear it" Bill said smiling and placing his gun back in the holster. "There ya go Keisuke" he said and began to walk back outside. With his back still facing the woman he said "Oh and lady dont press the little red button please. It's my job to protect and serve the Shindou-Uesugi family. Orders from Tohma Seguchi" and he left. Keisuke noticed that the woman retrived her shaky hand from under the table and placed it back on the desk. He smiled at her and led his friends to the elevators.

" Your uncle has got some crazy ass employees" Shin said as they were taking the elevator to the twelfth floor. Keisuke remembered where to go since he had just been there the night before." Yeah my uncle hires some serious nutjobs, but they do get the job done" the boys nodded in agreement, their eyes wide.

They arrived at the twefth floor. Naoya and Soshi stuck their heads out of the elevator and looked around" The coast is clear." They filed out of the elevator and quietly walked down the empty hall way. Keisuke smiled at the nurse sitting at one of the receptionist desks. His friends still looking around for pink or blonde hair that they might have to hide from. They walked down the hall until they were near the private waiting room. The door was closed. "I'll check" Ichi said walking up to the small window on the door. " Oh shit!" he said in a hurried whisper. "What!' Keisuke asked worried. "I can see Shindou-san sleeping. This is fucking awesome!" Naoya walked up to him and slapped him upside his head. "Idiot" he checked the window himself "They're all sleeping" he said to Keisuke. Keisuke decided to walk up to the window and checked himself.

His heart felt like it had stoped momentarily. There his whole family sat asleep. Meiko and Kanai were curled up on the floor, Mika had her head resting on Tohma's shoulder, Ryuichi had his head resting on Tatsuha's lap, Grandpa Uesugi sat on the floor and slept up against the wall, Maiko and yosuke were on he floor curled up next to each other Sakano was in the corner and there were his parents. Shuichi curled up on Yuki's lap nuzzling his neck as Yuki's head rested in his hair. Keisuke couldn't help but smile. His parents were so adorable when they wanted to be. "You've got a really big family" Keisuke looked to his left to see Keiichi looking through the glass also "I'd like to meet them someday" he smiled at Keisuke. " Alright let's go before one of them decide to take a bathroom break" Naoya said "Keisuke, whats the room number?" " 12-24H" " Alright, let's go"

With one last glace through the window, Keisuke led the way to his brother's room. Within seconds they were outside his door. "Alright dude, we're going to stay out here and keep watch, you guys go in" Keisuke nodded and opened the door. His heart felt as though it was beating loud enough to hear. He looked back at Keiichi . Keiichi nodded. Keisuke took a deep breath and pushed the door in .

Once inside Keisuke gasped. He had never seen his brother look so...terrible before. He heard three other gasps behind him. Keiichi, Ichi and Soshi walked in also . Keisuke looked back at his new friends and then back to his brother. "Oh Kaoru" he muttered. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes. He finally realized that his legs worked and walked up to his brother's bedside. "Oh Kaoru" he said again running his fingers through his hair. "What have they done?" A sinlge tear rolled down his cheek as he looked around at all the machines his brother was hooked up to. " Dude...you look like shit" Keisuke laughed out loud at this. He didn't know why, but he just thought his usually cocky brother would never look like this. Let alone with other people in the room. "I've made some new friends. Keiichi, Soshi and Ichi are in the room and Shin and Naoya are watching guard outside." Keisuke turned to his friends " Kaoru would NEVER let himself look like this in front of people he'd just met" Keiichi smiled a sweet smile and Keisuke smiled back. Kaoru heaved a heavy sigh as though acknowledging his brother. This made Keisuke laugh. "Ha-ha you look like shit and you can't do anything about it" he teased. Kaoru sighed again. Silence fell. "Look, I'm not gonna be home for awhile. Some stuff happened in the waiting room as the doctors worked on you and I think dad and pop might be mad at me.I'm sorry our birthday had to end like this, but I did leave your present on your bed for you. I hope you like it. It cost me a pretty penny" Keisuke chuckled. " I love you more than anything, you know that and I hope one day I can come home" Tears leaked from his eyes ." Please dont be angry at me. Tell Kenji, Miwa and Travis I said hi. " He ran his fingers through his hair once more then bent down to kiss his cheek. " I love you" he whispered in his ear and turned on his heel and quickly left the room before the others could even notice.

Keisuke walked as fast as he could to the elevators. It took a while before the others caught up to him because he walked so fast. He didn't want the guys to see him crying. They entered the elevator and stood in silence. Keiichi walked up to him and pulled him into a hug. Keisuke couldn't take it any more. As the elevator decended he cried his eyes out onto Keiichi's shoulder, soaking his shirt. Once on ground level he felt much better.He pulled out of their hug " A good cry has never hurt anyone" Keiichi said smiling softly. Keisuke smiled back and nodded ' Keiichi's a great friend' he thought to himself .

They walked past the receptionist again(she looked terrified) and back outside. "Leaving so soon!" Keisuke heard Ark call. "Yeah, I'm just taking the guys home" Keisuke lied with a phony smile. "Ok" Ark said "See you around" Keisuke smiled and they all walked back to the car.

They rode home in silence. Soshi threw Keisuke worried glances through the rear view mirror. The others occasionally took quick glances at him too. No one knew what to say. They knew Kaoru had neary died but they didn't expect...well, actually, they didn't know what to expect. They didn't think Kaoru would look so beat up and they certainly didn't think Keisuke would break down the way he had. It was just so...unexpected. Now they were all really worried about him. They all may have just met but it felt like Keisuke was a little brother to them and they wanted to protect him and see him happy.

Keisuke continued to look out the window. He didn't notice they arrived at Keiichi's until he was tapped on the shoulder. They all walked Keiichi and Keisuke to the door.

"Thanks for the gift you guys. I really appreciate it" Keisuke said with a smile. He really was glad that he had gotten a chance to see his brother .

" No prob man," Shin said ruffling Keisuke's hair.

"Yeah, happy birthday " Naoya said

"Well, we'd better get going" Shoshi said looking down at his watch. " My first class tomorow is at 7:45"

"Alright" Keiichi said.

"Bye Keisuke" Ichi called "See you soon" The boys made their way to the elevator.

"Wait!" Keisuke called out to them. The boys turned around. "Let me make you dinner tomorrow night.It's the least I can do after tonight"

"Nonsense, that was our gift" Naoya protested.

"No, please, I insist. I'm truly grateful for tonight. I have to pay you back "

The boys sighed.

"And how do you plan on paying for this? Especially with this ones appetite" Naoya nodded his head towards Shin.

Keisuke dug into his right pocket. "This" he said pulling out his credit card." My parents gave me and my brother one for our birthday. I think they said the limit was like four grand or something like that, so I have more than enough" He smiled. The guys gaped at him .

"Well, I'm not one to turn down a home cooked meal" Shin said. Keisuke smiled "Ok. 6:30 then?" They boys looked at each other and nodded in agreement. "6:30's fine " Soshi smiled. "See ya then" the boys disappeared into the elevator.

Once back in the house, Keiichi and Keisuke floped down on the couch.

"I hope you dont mind my inviting them over tomorrow. It's just that..."

"No, I don't mind at all. I think it's a great idea " Keiichi reassured. "I don't mind"

Keisuke smiled and silence fell between them.

"Keisuke?"

"Huh?"

"W-what exactly did you say to your parents to make them possibly mad at you?"

Keisuke sighed. "I-I told them what I thought about them" He pulled his legs up to his chest. "I told them I blame them for Kaoru being in the hospital. And that it's because they're gay that the media follows us everywhere. I wish they never had me. If they never had me I wouldn't have to deal with any of this "

"Don't you think think that's a little harsh? I mean you've said it yourself, your parents love you more than anything. Your family is like any other family. Does it really matter that they're gay?"

Keisuke shrugged and Keiichi pulled his gaze from him and looked at the floor.

"Well...I'm glad you were born. Otherwise I would've never met you. " Keiichi turned to Keisuke and smiled. Keisuke smiled back.


Shuichi was at the hospital asleep in one of the extra chairs in Kaoru's room. Since they knew their son would be ok, Yuki and Shuichi had decided to stay at the hospital in shifts. Yuki had taken the night shift last night so Shuichi was there from the morning until now, the afternoon. It has been a week since the accident. The family has moved on to a semi-normal life. Tohma was at work making sure the magazines kept their word. Mika went back to doing whatever it is she actually does but was constantly at the hospital to check on her nephew. Maiko decided to take her maternity leave so she could stay in Tokyo until her nephew woke up, Yosuke worked from the hotel. Ryuichi, Hiro, Suguru, K and Sakano went back to work but Shuichi knew that they werent actually working. Not since they too were always at the hospital. Grandpa Uesugi decided to go back to Kyoto . He realized it wasnt a good time to propose his proposition, so back to the temple he went. He called everyday to see how his grandson was doing though. Tatsuha said he refused to go back to Kyoto until both Kaoru woke up and Keisuke returned. Shuichi appreciated how great an uncle Tatsuha was.He was at the hospital just as much as Eiri and Shuichi.Maybe more since he would let them take breaks to go home and stayed by Kaoru's side. At the moment he was downstairs in the cafeteria getting Shuichi and himself some coffee and snacks.

Meiko still hadn't returned to school. She said she didn't want to go until one of her brothers could go with her. Yuki and Shuichi decided not to argue with her. They knew this was hard on her and they didn't want to make things worse. So far she was handling the situaiton well...on the outside atleast. Although she didn't go to school, she would get her work done thanks to her cousin. Kanai would gather Meiko's homework and class handouts everyday and bring them to the hospital when she and her mom would visit. Yuki and Shuichi would help her to the best of their abilties.

Shuichi's eyes fluttered open. He yawned and turned to his son. Kaoru was still unconcious and still hooked up to many machines, but the bruising on his face and body were slowly fading. As each day passed he looked more and more like the Kaoru they were used to .

"I see you're awake" Tatsuha said as he walked into the room holding two cups of coffee. Shuichi stretched, not bothering to stifle his yawn. "Y-y-yeah" Tatsuha chuckled. He was glad his family had somewhat returned to normal. He handed Shuichi his cup of coffee and sat in another empty chair.

"He's looking alot better" Tatsuha said as he took a sip of his hot drink.

"Um-hm" Shuichi nodded as he drank his own. "I can't wait until he wakes up. I want to take him home already"

"Soon Shu-chan, soon"

They sat in silence for a good 30 minutes just drinking their coffee. The silence was broken when there was a knock at the door and it was opened.

"Mr. Shindou-Uesugi? You have visitors"

The nurse opened the door to let in the visitors.

"Shuichi" A female voice called.

"Mom,Dad! " Shuichi ran to greet his parents.

"Tatsuha"

"Hi ma-ma! I see you're well. You look lovely as ever" Tatsuha always called Shuichi's mom ma-ma. He had a habit of making nick names for people. He gave Shuichi's mom a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Tatsuha"

"Hello Shindou-san. Good to see you again" Tatsuha shook Shuichi's father's hand and bowed.

"Where's my grandson?" Shuichi's mom asked looking around Tatsuha and her husband greeting each other. She walked up to Kaoru's bed and kissed his forehead. "Hi hun" she whispered as she raked his hair. "We wanted to get here earlier but every flight was booked until last night" Mr. Shindou explained.He took a seat in the corner. "I'm glad he's doing well" Shuichi nodded and sat next to his father." We're all relieved"

Mrs. Shindou kissed Kaoru again and then sat down. "So have you heard anything from Keisuke?" she asked. Shuichi pulled his legs to his chest and buried his face in his knees.

"No. We havn't heard anything from or about him." Tatsuha answered. He knew Shuichi didn't want to talk about it. "Tohma said it's been long enough and he's now searching for him."

"I hope he returns soon. I dont want him hurt" Mrs. Shindou said.

"Dont worry. I'm pretty sure Keisuke's alright. And I'm positive Tohma will do all he can to find him"

Mrs. Shindou nodded and turned to face Kaoru.

"So...Where's Eiri and Meiko?" Mr. Shindou asked trying to change the topic. Shuichi looked up, appreciating his fathers efforts.

"They should be here soon" he said looking at his watch.

"Grandma, Grandpa!"

"Speak of the devil..." Tatsuha smirked.

Meiko and Eiri were standing in the doorway of Kaoru's room.

"Meiko! How's my little grand-daughter!" Mrs. Shindou stood and embraced Meiko.

"Eiri" Mr.Shindou stood and shook his son-in-laws hand.

"Pop, how are you?"

"Very well. The trip has been great"

"Why did you guys return to Japan?" Shuichi asked " Your trip isnt over. You didn't have to come back. Kaoru's alright."

"Nonsense!" Mrs. Shindou said. "Our trip can wait. We've put eveything on hold. We're not leaving Japn until Kaoru wakes up and Keisuke comes home. Now Eiri, come here and give me my kiss"

Eiri smirked and walked over to his mother-in-law and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek."Hey mom, how are you?" Shuichi's parents insisted Yuki called them "mom" and "Pop".

"Fine. I'm fine.

Eiri walked over to Shuichi. Shuichi stood and Yuki sat in his seat as Shuichi sat in his lap.

"So where are you guys staying while you're here?"

"A hotel in lower Tokyo"

"What! No you're not! You're staying with us" Shuichi said

"No we're not" Mrs Shindou argued "We are not going to impose ourselves"

"You know you're not imposing, mom"

"We dont..."

"C'mon grandma. Please stay with us ! It'll be great. You can tell me all about your travels."

"Yeah mom, please?" Shuichi whined along with his daughter.

"You know we have more than enough room" Eiri added

"Pleeeeeeeeease, Mom?"

"Pleeeeeeeeeease grandma?"

Mrs.Shindou looked at her husband and smiled."Fine,fine, we'll stay" "Yay!" Shu and Meiko cried in unison. Mr. Shindou chuckled." But only until Kaoru comes home. After that we'll stay in a hotel so you can return to your normal routine"

"Hey aniki, you never ask me to stay over" Tatsuha whined.

"And I never will" Yuki snapped " Not that it matters. Whether I invite you or not, you always invite yourself" Tatsuha laughed. He was glad his brother was acting somewhat normal again. The family sat and talked animatedly to each other for an hour before the room door opened again.

"Hello everyone"

"Kenji!" Meiko ran up to her crush and hugged him " Hey pretty girl" Kenji said hugging her back. Miwa and Travis entered also. "Hey guys" Shuichi greeted. He walked over to the boys and gave them each a hug. "I'm so glad you came to visit .Kaoru, Miwa, Kenji and Travis are here" he said to his unconcious son. He turned back to the boys. " You can talk to him. He can hear you. He'll respond with little movements and such but not much more."

Once Meiko let Kenji go, he walked to the edge of the bed " Hey man" he said to the unconcious form " It's so boring without you around. Everyone at school misses you. Hey, you wanna hear something funny? Akemi, you know, that hot chick in your math class? Well she said Yoshi is feeling horrible about the accident. He's making the class make you get well cranes. Isn't that crazy?"

"Apparently he feels bad for being mean to you and then you getting hurt" Miwa cut in.

"That and he doesnt want Yuki-san to come up to the school again" Travis chuckled. Yuki "hmphed" "Why did you go up to their school Eiri?" Mrs. Shindou asked. "We'll tell you later, mom" Shuichi answered. As Shuichi said "mom" Kenji whipped his head around to look at the woman in the chair next to Kaoru's bed.

"Are you the woman who bore Shuichi?" he asked enthused. Mrs. Shindou was taknen aback. She blinked a few times, looked at Shuichi then back to Kenji and nodded. Two second later she found herself in a hug. "Shindou-sama, thank you, thank you for giving the world a musical genius like Shuichi-sama. I am eternally grateful!"

"I helped" Mr. Shindou smirked .

Mrs. Shindou laughed and hugged Kenji back. " I don't think Shuichi got his musical genius from me or his father.And please, call me Grandma "

"Ok...Grandma!"

"Stop drooling on my mother-in-law, freak" Yuki snapped,.

"Aw Yuki-san, I didn't see you over there. I'm sorry I left you out" Kenji walked over to Yuki and hugged him. Everyone laughed.

"If you dont let go of me right now, I'll kill you"

"Alright,Alright" Kenji pulled out of their hug . Miwa,Kenji and Travis sat on the floor and they all engaged in conversations about school, how Kenji teases Yuki and (what travis brought up) Ryuichi. Kaoru heard everything they were saying and felt at peace with his family and friends all around. He couldn't wait to wake up and be able to see them.


N-G Studios

"We're here Seguchi, whats up?" K said as he entered Tohma's office with Ark and Bill close in tow.

"Please come and take a seat" Tohma said gesturing for them to sit down. Which they did. " I want to talk about our progress. What has happened with the magazines? I know I called the companies and printing has ceased, but I want to know if anyone is trying to sell them undercover." he said turning to K.

"There aren't that many in circulation" K answered as he helped himself to the tea on the desk "I've checked some auction websites and i've purchased them all. There were a few in some stores trying to sell them but I promtly took care of that matter" he sipped his tea and patted the gun in the holster.

"Good to hear" Tohma nodded " N-G will certainly reimburse you for the purchases off the internet" K shook his head" It's ok Tohma, It's all a part of the job" Tohma smiled and nodded.

" And what about the hospital?" he asked turning to Bill and Ark.

"We've had a few that tried to sneak in but they quickly changed their tune when they noticed Bill" Ark answered nodding his head to the right at Bill. Tohma smiled. He knew Bill was nothing but a younger K.

"Sorry Seguchi-san for almost shooting your nephew" Bill apologized as he scratched the back of his head with embarassment" I didn't know who he was and he and his friends were running into the..."

"What do you mean you almost shot my nephew? Kaoru is on the 12th floor"

"Not Kaoru,Keisuke" Ark answered.

" But I did help him into the hospital. The nurse wouldn't let him up so i..." Bill was cut short by K's sputtering

"Keisuke was at the hospital?" K said. Tea falling down his front."Yeah about a week ago" Ark answered. " He said he was bringing some friends to see Kaoru"

"But his friends from school only visited the hospital for the first time yesterday and they have no clue where he is" Tohma said furrowing his brow.

"These guys didn't look like high school students. They were definetly older than him. Maybe in their first year of college or so. About 19 or 20" Ark said thoughtfully. "Is there a problem?" Tohma was lost in thought so K answered for him .

"Keisuke ran away from home the night of the accident. We have no idea where he is and we havnt seen him for over a week. Did these guys look as though they were forcing him to go to the hospital? Did they look as though they had something over him that would make him stay away from home? " Ark thought for a moment " No. They really did look like his friends . Like they were really nice guys.They didn't seem to look as though they would harm him . They actually protected him from Bill. I'm sure Keisuke would have told us if they held him against his will"

Tohma nodded. " I'm not surprised that Keisuke would want to sneak into the hospital to see his brother. They are extremely close. I'm sure he was worried."

"I'm sorry Seguchi-san, if we would have known that he was misisng, we would have certainly called you and told you" Ark apologized. Tohma shook his head and replaced his usual smile. " It's ok . It's in no way your fault. How were you to know Keisuke had been missing? No, I dont blame you at all . But I do want to find out who these guys are that he's with. Apparently they arent hurting him but maybe they know where we can find him. Do you two remember what they look like?" Ark and Bill shook their heads 'no'. Seguchi sighed. " I guess we'll start from square one then"


"Yeah I'm going out shopping now.I should be back in about a half an hour. Is there anything special you want?...You know I don't mind, stop acting like that...Ok...Is there anything we especially need?...Ok...They said they'll be here by seven...(chuckle) Yes I have it...What time?...Ok. See you when you get home. Bye"

Keisuke hung up the phone with Keiichi.He grabbed his coat, one of his hats,the spare key Keiichi had made for him and left for the grocery store.It's been two weeks since Keisuke invited the guys over to dinner. They had so much fun that they decided to do it every weekend. It was an excuse for all of them to get together and enjoy each others company.

Keisukes cooking skills have gotten better and better. Keiichi didn't mind Keisuke staying and doing nothing, but Keisuke insisted on earning his keep . He couldn't get a job because he knew that his uncle would be looking for him . So he earned his keep by cooking, cleaning and other things around the house. It took a few days for him to get used to doing these things. He never had to do it at home. That was Megumi's job. Although Keiichi still teases him about the first time he did the laundry.

Flashback

"Where're you going with all those clothes?"

"I'm gonna go do the laundry" Keisuke said as he walked pass Keiichi. Keiichi was on the couch doing his homework.

"Uh...have you ever done laundry before?"

"No, but I've got the general idea. I mean it can't be that hard, right?"

Keiichi shrugged and went back to his book . Keisuke smiled." I'll be back " He opened the door and headed downstairs to the laundry room. The room was empty. Keisuke set to work.

15 min. later

Knock Knock Knock Knock " Keiichi! Kei open up!" Keiichi rushed to the door his face full of worry. " What happened!"

" Uh...uh.." Keisuke grabbed his arm " Just come" He dragged Keiichi downstairs to the laundry room. Once they arrived and Keiichi opened the door, he burst out laughing. Keisuke turned bright red. " Keisuke, exactly how much soap did you put in?" Keisuke shrugged. " About 10 or 12 cups" Keiichi smiled and shook his head. "Well, it was alot of clothes!" Keisuke said trying to defend himself. "Keisuke, thats way too much soap. All you need is about one cup per load." Keiichi also noticed that the suds(that covered the entire floor) were red and the machine was shaking out of control. "Uh, Keisuke, you did sepreate the clothes right?"

"Well, no. I thought it would be quicker if I just put them all in at once" Keiichi started to laugh again. He grabbed Keisuke's arm and pulled him into the suds. Making his way to the machine. " Come. Let me show you why you have to seperate the clothes when you wash them" They climbed over the suds. By the time they made it to the machine they were soaked.Keiichi opened the door to the machine and it immediatly stoped shaking violently"Number one, if you add too many clothes to the machine it can break" Keisuke nodded. Keiichi rummaged through the clothes and pulled out one of his ' white' boxers. "And number two, if you wash all the clothes together, the colors will run " he held up the boxers. They looked ty-dyed. They were red and blue and purple. Keisuke lowered his head and pulled a soapy hand to his face to scratch his cheek.

" I'm sorry" he said. Keiichi laughed" It's quite alright. I kinda like them this way, dontcha think?" Keisuke looked at the boxers and then at Keiichi. They laughed." I'll fix it. I'm really sorry." He made a grab for the boxers in Keiichi's hand. Keiichi chuckled. "No, No " he said . " But I..."

"Shhhh..." Keiichi cut him short. He lifted his hand and wiped off the suds on Keisuke's cheek, making the youger male blush." Let's make a deal. I know you're totally obsessed with 'earning your keep' for some reason so how about this. You cook and whatever else you want to do in the house and I'll do the laundry from now on? Ok?" Keisuke thought it over and realized he really didn't have a choice. He nodded" Ok" Keiichi smiled. " Good. Now you go upstairs and let me finish cleaning up here." " But..." Keisuke tried to argue. " But I made this mess" he walked over to the broom and dust pan in the corner. " It wouldn't be fair to let you...Whoa!" Keisuke didn't have a chance to finsh his sentence. Keiichi had walked over behind him, picked him up and was now carrying him out of the laundry. "What are you doing?" Keisuke asked. He was completely flushed. He was glad Keiichi couldn't see him at the moment. " I'm taking you out of here. I know if I ask you wont listen so i'm using force" Keiichi opened the door to the laundry room and set Keisuke down. He reached his hand into his pocket." Here. Take the key and go upstairs. Go clean yourself up, i'll be there when im done" " But..." Keiichi turned around, walked back into the laundry room, locked the door and waved from the little window. Then he began to clean up . Admiting defeat, Keisuke sighed and headed back to their apartment. He couldn't help but smile. Keiichi was such a good person.

End of Flashback

Keisuke smiled at himself as he thought about that day.The elevator door opened . Keisuke pulled his hat lower to be sure to cover all of his hair and walked out waving hi to the security guard at the front desk. Once outside he smiled.It was a really nice day. With one last tug at his hat he began walking to the grocery store.

He arrived at his destination in 5 min. time. He grabbed a cart and began pulling the needed items off the shelves. After twenty minutes he had finished ' Really I dunno why it takes daddy so long to go food shopping' he thought to himself. Then he smiled ' Probably because he always adds things at the last minute that werent on the list' he smirked at the thought of his father shopping.

"Yeah there's a rumor that he's missing"

"Really? I wonder what happened. Where did you hear this?"

" My cousin works at N-G and she said Tohma Seguchi is doing all he can to find him but he doesnt want the media to find out"

At the mention of his uncle, Keisuke strained his ears to better hear the two teenage girls that were behind him in line talking.

" I wonder why he would run away? I mean he has two famous parents with lots of money. You have to be a moron to leave that behind"

"I agree but his brother was hurt in that accident a few weeks ago. I wonder if that has something to do with it."

"Hmmm maybe. What does he look like?"

" My cousin said she has seen him once in passing when he came to see his dad. She said he is a replica of Shuichi Shindou."

"Wow. He must be cute then." The girls giggled. Keisuke tugged on his hat again. The last thing he needed was to be seen and taken back to his parents. Once his groceries were rung up, he paid and quickly left.

Back at the house Keisuke began putting the food away. He looked at the clock: 5:43pm. Keiichi would be home in about 20 min. He decided it would be a good time to start cooking since they were expecting the guys over at seven.


"I'm home" Keiichi cried as he walked through the front door. "I swear I hate my job" He ploped down on the couch and closed his eyes. "Why do you say that? I thought you were happy about the promostion" Keisuke called from the kitchen. Keiichi had just been promoted from waiter to manager . He worked at the Italian restaurant near by." I am happy. It just, the people are so rude. No matter how nice you are to them they just constantly have an attidude." Keisuke walked into the living room and joined his roomate on the couch. Keiichi didn't even make an effort to move as he felt the extra weight on the couch. "You need to relax and go take a shower" Keisuke said with a smile. "Besides, you smell like fetticine" Keiichi opened his left eye and glared at Keisuke, which made him laugh. Keisuke stood up and grabed Keiichi's arm, attempting to yank him off the couch. "Come on. The guys'll be over here in less than an hour." Keisuke continued to tug. "Alright,alright. Im going" Keiichi said aiding Keisuke in his attempts to move him. Once he was on his feet he stretched and stalked off to the bathroom.Keisuke watched Keiichi with a smile as he saw the door to the bathroom slam shut. He really did enjoy living with Keiichi. It just felt like his second home. They were so comfortable together and they got along really well. Things just couldnt get any better. As he thought this Keisuke walked back to the kitchen to resume his cooking.

"Damn, I am so full. Keisuke you should seriously become a chef or something. " Shin said leaning back in his seat and rubbing his belly. "Thanks for the complement but i'll stick with writing." "Whatever you say man "

They had just finished dinner and sat around the table talking like they did every weekend now like a ritual. Keiichi had just finished telling the laundry story. "...so wait a minute, the whole laundry room was covered in suds? Aw man Keisuke you are a rich brat" Naoya said laughing. "Shut up!" Keisuke said laughing." I can't help it if at home I don't have to do laundry. Usually the maid does it. It's not my fault." The guys laughed harder. "Leave him alone" Keiichi said smiling as he put an arm around Keisuke's shouders." He can be a spoiled brat if he wants to " "Keiichi! " Keisuke yelled swatting the older males arm off of him. They all laughed harder. "I'm clearing the table" Keisuke said red with embarassment. He grabbed a couple of plates and stalked off to the kitchen. Keiichi's eyes following him the whole way. Shin and Ichi were still hysterical but Naoya and Soshi watched Keiichi and followed his eyes to see what had captured his attention . Once they realized what he had been lookiong at , they looked at each other and smirked. "Kei" Soshi said trying to get Keiichi's attention . " Kei !" This time Keiichi heard "Oh, huh?" he said shifting his gaze to Soshi. Soshi smiled " What have you got for dessert?" Keiichi seemed to regain himself. "Oh, um chocolate cake, I'll go get it" he quickly stood up. "I'll help you" Soshi said and they both walked to the kitchen.

Keisuke looked up from the sink at his two friends entering the kitchen. "What's up?" he asked. "We just came for the dessert" Soshi answered with a smile. "Oh ok. " He dried his hands. "It's over there on the counter. I'll go get the rest of the plates off the table" Keisuke walked back out the room to the table. Keiichi grabed the box with the chocolate cake and began opening it as Soshi retrieved a knife from the utencil drawer. "What was that all about?" he asked making his way to Keiichi. "What do you mean?" Kei asked pulling plates from the cabinet. "You were totally checking out Keisuke just a minute ago" ' Damn, was I really? ' "No I wasn't" Keichi began slicing the cake. He blushed a little. He hoped Soshi didn't see. "Yes you did. Your eyes totally followed him out the room with this dreamy look.You didn't even know me and Naoya were calling you" Keiichi began putting slices on the plates " I was thinking" "Ummm hmm" Soshi said completely unconvinced. He took two plates with cake on them. Keiichi glared and grabed the remaining four plates, balancing them on his arms. Keisuke entered the kitchen with dirty dishes in his hand. "I'll help you" he said and put the dishes in the sink. He walked up to Keiichi and took two of the plates out of his hand with a smile."You're not a waiter anymore" he smiled again and walked past Soshi out of the kitchen. Keiichi blushed. Soshi smirked at him. "Shut up, Soshi!"


Tatsuha volenteered to drive Shuichi's parents back to the house today. Kenji, Miwa and Travis left about an hour ago. They came to visit everyday after school especially since Kenji knew Shuichi's mom would most likely be there. He loved hearing stories about when Shuichi was younger. Eiri, Shuichi and Meiko sat and chatted for awhile. "I'm hungry" Shuichi declared." Me too" Eiri agreed."Do you want to get something from the cafeteria?" Shuichi nodded and began walking to the door. "Meiko are you coming?" he asked. "No, I think imma stay here with Kaoru" Eiri joined Shuichi."Ok. We'll bring you a muffin or something anyway" and they left.

Meiko looked at her brother. She climbed into the bed with him, careful of all the monitors he was hooked up to. She laid on his stomach and closed her eyes. She missed sleeping with her brother. They havnt slept together since they were little. She smiled to herself. She opened her eyes, looked at Kaoru's face and gasped.

Kaoru's eyes were open . They just looked at each other for a few seconds."Kaoru? Are you awake?" she asked softly. Kaoru's eyes darted from side to side. Then he made some weird noises. He realized he had a tube down is throat and proceeded to pull it out. "Kaoru, dont! Not till the doctor..." She said as she climbed from the bed. But it was too late Kaoru now had the tube in his hand. "How do you...expect me ...to...answer you...if this is...down my throat" he said . His voice was low and raspy from under use and it sounded as though it pained him to talk. The tube irritated his throat.. Meiko smiled and hugged her brother. "I'm so glad your awake. I missed you so much. We were all so worried." Kaoru smiled. "Meiko...I can't...breathe" Meiko pulled away from her brother and blushed. She opted to kiss him on the cheek instead. She pulled up a seat at sat near the bed. "So...where is ...everyone?" Kaoru asked. "I could hear...you all talking" "Uncle Tatsu took Grandma and Grandpa back to our house. Travis, Miwa and Kenji went home, and Dad and daddy are downstairs getting some food." They sat and looked at each other in silence.

"Where's ...Keisuke? Is...he ok?" Kaoru asked worried. He realized he never heard his brother's voice everytime he would slip in and out of conciousness. Except that one night. He did hear him that one time. Meiko looked at the floor.

"W-we don't know where Keisuke is. He ...he ran away" Kaou's eyes went wide. "What?...why...would he runaway?" Meiko sighed. "The night of the accident he said some really mean things to dad and daddy and then he said he hated that they were gay and that it was their fault that you had gotten hurt and that it's their fault that the media follows us everywhere and that it's their fault that we dont know where we come from and that he hates them and will never forgive them for what they did" If possible, Kaoru's eyes went even wider. "W-what? How is it dad and daddys fault? Why would he... say something like that ? How...could he ? " Kaoru and Meiko sat in silence for awhile. "We havent seen him for two weeks" Meiko said breaking the silence."I miss him"

"What...do you mean...two weeks?" Kaoru asked confused. "I heard him...he came to talk to me.He ...had some friends with him." Meiko looked at her brother confused. "That's not possible.The whole hospital is secure with guards. He wouldnt have been able to..." " He did. He...came to see me." Kaoru said defiantly and Meiko knew she shouldn't push any farther.Silence fell and the door opened.

"Meiko I didn't know if you wanted blueberry or..." Shuichi froze as he looked at his son wide awake. He droped the muffins and ran to Kaoru's side hugging his son like crazy. "Oh my Gods Kaoru, what are you doing up? I'm so happy? Why did you take the tube out? Yuki get the doctor to make sure he's ok" Shuichi squeezed his son tightly " Daddy...I can't...breathe" Yuki smirked and walked over to his husband . "Shu your going to make him fall unconcious again" He said as he pried Shuichi's arms off of Kaoru.

"Hello son. Glad to see you awake" he smirked at Kaoru. Kaoru smiled. "I'm glad to be...awake. Hearing everyone talking...and...not being able to speak...was driving me...crazy" "Sweetie dont talk so much" Shuichi said worried. He didn't like the way Kaoru strained his voice. " Daddy...I'm fine . You...worry too much" Shuichi smiled "Ok" .

The family sat and chatted carefully avoiding the topic of Keisuke.The doctor stoped by and told them that Kaoru was making a quick recovery and should be out of the hospial in a week. They wanted to keep him for observation. Later on Tatsuha came by. He gave Kaoru the biggest hug ever and promised him a noogie once he was sure he wouldn't be causing more damage than what was already done. K and Sakano stoped by also. K began to tell Shuichi how none of this would have happened if he had just let the boys keep their guns with Kaoru's help. Shuichi rolled his eyes and still refused to let his children own any firearms.Later that night Shuichi's parents visited and then Tohma Mika and Kanai.

"Well I'm quite glad you're awake. You gave us quite the scare" Tohma said as he looked at his nephew. Kaoru smiled. Mika and Kanai nearly smothered him. They kept hugging an kissing him. Once they regained their composure, they took a seat in the room. They began to talk about what was being taken care of outside of the hospital.

"Uncle Tohma, have you sent people to search for Keisuke?" Kaoru asked with worry and sadness in his eyes.His voice had gotten better. Tohma looked at his nephew confused. "How did you know about Keisuke?" Meiko lowered her head "I told him. He asked and I told. " "She didn't really have to tell me though. Keisuke had told me already that he would be leaving for awhile but I wasnt sure if it had been a dream or not." Everyone looked at Kaoru in amazement. "Honey, how could you know your brother had been missing? What do you mean he told you?" Shuichi asked. "Well Keisuke came to visit me. I think he said that you guys might be mad at him for something he said and that he was sorry but he had to leave for awhile. I think he had some friends with him too " Everyone except Tohma looked at Kaoru a little worried. Maybe that hit to the head did more damage than they had thought.

"Kaoru, Keisuke never ..." Shuichi began but was cut off by his brother-in-law. "Actually Shu-chan, Keisuke was here." Everyones head shot in Tohma's direction . Their mouths hanging open. "But how?" Eiri asked "Wouldnt we have seen him? " Tohma shook his head." He came well after visiting hours. Ark told me " he said answering the questions that had been on everyones minds. " He said Keisuke came by to see Kaoru with some friends. Apparently we were sleeping. He said he didn't stay long but he did indeed visit"

"Who are these friends?" Eiri asked. "We don't really know" Tohma answered" Ark said it didn't look as tough they were forcing him or making him do something he didn't want to do. Hell, they didn't look as though they would harm him in any way. If anything Ark said they were kinda protective of him. We don't know how long he's known them. It can't be that long since we don't know them but we are trying to look them up now". Kaoru shook his head. "No. They wouldn't hurt him. When he introduced them to me he said they were his friends that he'd be with them for awhile. They didn't seem as though they'd hurt him in any way"

Shuichi lowered his head.' So Keisuke had been here. Why didn't he come home?' "Well we should be off. I have work early and Kanai has school" Tohma said standing and putting on his hat. "And what exactly do you do?" Eiri asked his sister with a smirk. She just glared. " We're glad you're ok Kaoru. We'll be back tomorrow to see you" Tohma his wife and daughter all gave him a hug before leaving.

Silence fell when the Seguchi's left. Everyone had their head lowered. It just felt so weird having Kaoru finally awake and not having Keisuke around to share the experience. "Dad,Daddy?" Kaoru broke the silence. "Where do we come from?" Yuki and Shuichi looked up and looked at each other.They knew this question would come up eventually. They took a deep breath and sighed. Better now than never...


The guys had left and Keisuke and Keiichi had just finished cleaning up. They sat on the couch completely wiped out. "Man, I am so full. I had way too much cake" Keisuke said rubbing his stomach. "Me too" Keiichi reached for the remote and turned on the tv.. The channel just so happened to have on "Entertainment Tonight" The pretty woman hosting began to speak.

"Today one of our sources said that Kaoru Shindou-Uesugi, son of Shuichi Shindou and Eiri Yuki, has woken up out of his coma after the fatal accident the Shindou-Uesugi family had been involved in just two weeks ago.."

Keisuke jumped up and ran to the tv. He stared at the picture of his family on the screen(Kaoru's face had been highlighted).

"They say that he is fine and should make a full recovery . The doctors have said that he should be home in a week"

Keisuke couldnt believe his ears. His brother was ok and would be going home in a week. He had the biggest grin on his face.

"In related news, another one of our sources has told us that Keisuke Shindou-Uesugi , twin brother of Kaoru, has been missing since the accident"

Keisuke's face fell when he saw his face highlighted in the picture next. .

"Supposedly he ran away the night of the accident. No one knows why but our sources say that his uncle, Tohma Seguchi, has people searching for him." " I wonder why he ran away?" asked the very attractive male standing next to her." Maybe it has something to do with his parents" " I do wonder what it's like to be raised by gay parents " said the female. She shrugged "Well thats our show" " See you..."

Keisuke cut off the tv and sat back down on the couch. He pulled his knees to his chest. "How did they find out?" he asked aloud not really speaking to anyone. ' Probably that dumb bitch from N-G' he thought as he remembered the girls from the grocery store.Keiichi looked at Keisuke with worried eyes. He didn't know what to do so he just lowered his head and looked at his hands. He hated seeing Keisuke upset. It made him feel so helpless. They were quiet for awhile." Why does everyone ask that ?" Keisuke said aloud from his knees. "Ask what?" Keiichi wondered. "What it's like to have gay parents. Why does everyone ask that? Is it really that big of a deal?" Keiichi looked at the younger male to his left. 'He always curls up into a ball when he's upset' he thought to himself and smiled. 'How cute' his smile faded. ' Ok ewww. That was an odd thought. Cute?' He shook his head . "Why don't you just answer them then " he said matter-of-factly. Keisuke raised his head and looked at Keiichi confused. "Huh?" " Why don't you answer them. Everyone wonders what it's like growing up with gay parents. Let alone gay famous parents. If you dont want them to ask anymore, why don't you just tell them?" Keisuke thought for a moment. " And exactly how do I do that?" Keiichi shrugged.Keisuke answered his room matesarcastically " You're a big help, you know..." then it clicked " Tell them" he whispered to himself . "That's it!" Keisuke jumped off the couch and sat at Keiichi's computer. He wrote the the first sentence of his first book...

My name is Keisuke Shindou-Uesugi and I was raised by two gay parents.

End of Chapter


It's done! It's done! Yay! I totally worked my ass off this chapter. Couldnt think up a damn thing.So do you like? I do hope I didn't disappoint too badly. I like Keisuke in this chapter. He's happier and nicer. This is the REAL Keisuke minus stress and anger. I wonder who has caused this change in him . hmmmm lol So lets recap...Tohma has people looking for Keisuke, Kaoru has woken up (Yay!), I think Keiichi has a little thing for Keisuke (hahaha im so evil) and Keisuke is now writing his FIRST book! How exciting...Oh yeah, how could i forget, Meiko and Kaoru find out how they were born. Very very kool. Imma tell you now it's odd how they were born but interesting none the less. I love my warped yet logical mind lol

Ok...

Bill is from book 10. He's like K. I like him he amuses me. I think thats all the notes in this chapter.

Now dont shoot me but ur NOT gonna see how they were born in the next chappie lol :ducking from bullets: Please cease fire! Alright alright if it makes you feel better you'll know a little bit but not all. Not yet, ok: (Thinks to self: I need to ask Hakkai how to make a chi barrier) Ive already written the chapter telling how they were born. It's typed and everything, saved on my computer. So...yeah... (still attempting to a Chi barrier)

Now in chapter 9 (that is what we're up to right?) Kaoru goes home and he and Meiko are certainly not themselves. Eiri is out of it and Shuichi is trying to keep the family together in Keisuke's absence. Keiichi is trying to understand his new "feelings" toward his new roomate. And Keisuke is writing that book at rapid speed and trying to understand why Keiichi is always looking at him.

So stay tuned kiddies. Chapter 9 should be out soon. (Damn Qi barrier still wont work. Hakkai! A little help over here!)

Until next time

Zaijian