Chapter 6 is here and we are going to find out about Kaede's plan! I was originally going to make this chapter really funny, but as I was sitting up in bed at midnight writing this, it turned into this super depressing cry-fest! And beware of the fluff!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gravitation… unless you count the fact that I finally got my hands on the first DVD this week! however, they poem that is mentioned in this chapter and in chapter 4, i think it was, belongs to me.


Missing Amethyst Eyes

Chapter 6

"Do you think this plan of hers is going to work?" Suguru asked Hiro when they pulled up at Shuichi's parents' house.

"I don't know, but who cares, its going to be funny to watch!" Hiro chuckled.

The two came to the front door and knocked on it lightly. It was pretty early in the morning. They'd planned to go over last night, but when they got back to Kaede's house they'd realised it was past midnight and thought the better of it.

Maiko answered the door, still in her pyjamas. "Hiro? What are you doing here this early in the morning?" she demanded sleepily.

"Sorry Maiko, but we haven't been to bed yet so we're a little bit hyper. Not that that's got anything to do with us being here early or anything." Hiro informed his best friend's sister cheerfully.

"Whatever, just tell me what you want so I can go back to bed." Maiko muttered.

"We need photos. You see…" Hiro told Maiko about the situation and about Kaede's plan.

A slow smile spread across the girl's face. "You are positively evil! I like it! Well, I'm awake now anyway, so I might as well help you." She replied.

On the way inside, Hiro introduced her to Suguru. And Maiko lead them to a bookshelf in the study. "All the photo albums are in the bottom shelf. Take your pick." She said.

The three of them sat down and began to sift through the piles of photographs.

"Oh my God, look at this!" Hiro chuckled, holding up a photo of Shuichi in Junior High. It was a picture of their first band practice.

"Oh yeah, I remember that, I think I took that picture!" Maiko answered with a soft laugh.

"What about this one?" Suguru said with a lopsided grin, passing Hiro a photo of a three year old Shuichi grinning up into the camera, his fingers held up in a peace sign.

"Excellent!" Hiro replied.

And thus it continued. They were there for most of the morning, until they came up with a decent stash of pictures to use for Kaede's plan.


Meanwhile, Tatsuha and Kaede where on their way to Eiri's apartment. "Do you think this is a good idea? He's going to catch on to us if we ask him for photos."

"Nah, my guess is that he drank more when he got home and last night, and is currently passed out on his bed." Tatsuha said as he parked the motorbike outside the apartment. Kaede got gingerly off from behind him. "Remind not to ride with you again for a long time!" she groaned.

Tatsuha grinned and the two made their way up to Eiri's apartment. Tatsuha used his spare key to let them in, and they tiptoed silently inside. Eiri was nowhere to be seen.

"I'll bet you he's got a secret stash of photos around here somewhere, Eiri's more sentimental than he lets on." Tatsuha said softly.

Kaede nodded and checked the bedroom. Sure enough, there was Eiri, asleep on the bed, still wearing his clothes from last night. There was about twelve empty beer cans scattered around the room.

"I told you." Tatsuha said, "An atomic bomb couldn't wake him now!"

Kaede went silently into the room and pulled the dishevelled covers over her 'big brother'. She then gathered up the beer cans and threw them in the bin.

"You're such a softy." Tatsuha said with disgust.

"Maybe." Kaede replied with a soft smile. Eiri turned in his sleep and murmured what sounded suspiciously like "Shuichi!"

They left Eiri in the bedroom and went into the office. The laptop was on and blinking. The two friends began to search through the bookshelves for photo albums of any description, and found nothing. They searched for at least two hours all over the apartment and came up with a consistent zero.

"Maybe I was wrong." Tatsuha said finally. "Maybe he really is a cold hearted bastard!"

Kaede shook her head. "No, I don't think so. We're missing something." She replied. She was staring in the direction of the laptop.

Suddenly it hit her. The laptop! Could Eiri have saved any photos onto his laptop? Immediately she sat down and began to trawl through the hundreds of word files that housed Eiri's novels. Finding nothing, she began to search through the folders he'd created.

First she tried 'My Pictures' and drew a blank, so she kept searching until she finally came across a folder marked 'The brat and me'.

"Bingo!" she said triumphantly. Tatsuha came to look. She clicked on the folder and it asked for a password. "Damn. I think he's paranoid about Shuichi finding these." She noted dryly.

She tried a number of different passwords that had something to do with Eiri, Shuichi or both. She was about to give up when Tatsuha reached across her and typed "Bad Luck" into the password space. It worked and lo and behold, there were about twenty photos sitting in there.

"It's better than nothing, bring them all up and print a colour copy of them, we better motor before he wakes up!" Tatsuha said. Kaede nodded and began to call up the photos one by one and hitting the print button.

When she finished the photos and came to the end of the scroll bar, she found a word document as the last item in the folder.

She clicked on it, immediately interested. She read it with interest.

I thought I was in control of our relationship; the dominant one, for it has always looked that way. But now it seems that you were pulling all the strings, and now that you're not here, I feel completely lost. Perhaps I really am the weaker link in our relationship, for you seem to be doing a lot better without me that I am without you... I don't understand why.

Kaede drew in a sharp breath. This whole thing with Ryuichi was tearing him up inside, and there was nothing he could do about it. What was he going to do when he realised that it was all a trick? "So Eiri is more vulnerable about their relationship that everybody thinks!" she mused.

As she kept reading, she realised that the rest of the document was a poem.

It's late at night, I close my eyes and I'm alone again.

But still I see, enclosed in darkness you and me,

A vision dancing in my sight.

No matter what I do, no matter what I say,

I just can't shake that feeling of wishing you were here…

"Methinks the inspiration's gone." Kaede murmured wickedly to herself. She swiftly printed out a copy, she didn't need to read any further to understand what was going on, or what she had to do.


When Eiri woke later that afternoon, he found a note on his kitchen bench from Tatsuha and Kaede.

Hey Eiri nii-chan!

We came by to see if you were okay and you were asleep so we tidied up a bit and left again. Talk to you soon,

Tatsuha and Kaede.

P.S swing by the studio later today and listen to us record our new single. The gang and I would love it if you did!

Love Kaede-chan!

Eiri smiled slightly that the 'big brother' honorific at the top of the note. That was definitely Kaede and not Tatsuha. The little brat hadn't changed that much really; she was still the annoying, bossy, klutzy troublemaker he had known since he was seven.

He decided that he'd go down and listen to Ancient Curse's recording session, just to take his mind off Shuichi for a while.

He didn't realise what a bad idea that was. Naturally, if he knew Kaede was a troublemaker, wouldn't you think that he'd realise that she had something up her sleeve?

Apparently not.

Maybe Eiri Yuki's not as bright as everybody gives him credit for, because he really didn't see this one coming…


After they got back from Eiri's apartment, Kaede and Tatsuha made their way back to NG to begin setting up for Kaede's plan. She now wasn't so sure, after reading Eiri's note at the top of that poem, that this was a good idea. 'But,' she thought to herself, 'this might help him open up a little, if he can admit his feelings openly to himself, he might make it through. Besides, I doubt his psyche could get any more damaged than it is no matter how hard anybody tried.'

Still, she couldn't help but worry about it a little. So she sought out Tohma to tell him of her concerns.

Quietly she told him about her reservations and showed him the note and the poem. He read it, eyebrows raised and a slightly surprised look in his eyes.

"Kasey, this is either going to work, or it's not. But I still think we should give it a try." He said gently. "It might help him to admit his feelings for Shindou once and for all." He added, repeating her own thoughts. "Eiri's strong; he'll come out of this just fine. Pissed off, screaming and ranting… probably at you and me, but just fine."

Kaede nodded, but she couldn't help but be a little apprehensive.

You seem to be doing a lot better without me that I am without you…

Would this make him or break him? She didn't know.


Eiri swept into the studio an hour later, just as they finished setting up the plan. He had the famous Eiri Yuki 'I don't give a shit' ™ look on his face as he walked through the building.

He wondered briefly why Ancient Curse were recording at the NG building, then he remembered Tohma saying something about Iceberg Records being associated with NG… in other words, Tohma owned them both.

He found out what studio they were in from the receptionist and made his was up via the elevator, the same elevator he and Shuichi had occupied last time he was here. He beat his head against the wall of the elevator as the memories of that meeting came rushing back.

Being away from his brat was almost killing him, he wanted him back, but didn't have the faintest idea of where to start.

"Why do I care so much anyway? It's not like I really love the little brat, I just got used to having him around all the time" he thought to himself.

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Eiri stepped out into a silent, empty studio.

"Humph, maybe they've finished already. Good, that means I can go home!" he said to himself.

There was a giggle from behind him. He turned, expecting to see Kaede, but instead, Saki was standing behind him. "No, you can't go home yet, Kaede's held everybody up again is all. C'mon, they'll be here soon."

Saki took his hand and led him into the studio. She let him go in before her and waited by the door until he registered what he was seeing…

"Shu – Shuichi?" he stammered.

Plastered across every square inch of the walls inside the recording booth, were the pictures of Shuichi that Hiro and Suguru had collected from Maiko, and the photos of Eiri and Shuichi together that Tatsuha and Kaede had filched from Eiri's laptop that morning.

Confused, Eiri swung around to face the smiling Saki.

"I'm sorry Eiri-kun. This is probably going to hurt like hell, but I hope it'll help you understand your feelings for Shuichi." She slammed the door in his face and locked it, before entering the sound area to join the others.

Kaede waved to him through the glass. "I'm sorry too Eiri, but we have to do this." She said. "It's for your own good." She nodded to Akito and he began to roll the songs.

The three of them left the sound area and went upstairs to the surveillance room to observe with the rest of the band, Tohma and the Bad Luck team. Ryuichi had been deployed to keep Shuichi busy for the day, so they could do this without him knowing.

Eiri pretty much flew into a rage and began bang his fists against the doors. The music playing through the booth was all romantic cry, cry, cry broken heart kind of stuff… the stuff that usually made him want to throw up. But when he realised that there was no way he was going to get out of there until Kaede said so, he sat himself in the corner of the booth and stared up at the walls, and the never ending smiles of happy memories.

"I hope he'll forgive me for this." Kaede said sadly, and Haru put his arm around his friend to comfort her. She leaned against him with a sigh and prayed to any God or Goddess who was going to listen that her plan worked.


"Oooohhh! Look at that Shu-chan! And that! And that!" Ryuichi shrieked excitedly. The uber-cute Nittle Grasper star was running happily all over the mall looking at various things, pulling his pink-haired friend with him.

"Yeah, cool!" Shuichi said half-heartedly.

Ryuichi stopped in his tracks and faced him. "Now look Shu-chan! You have the day off, so enjoy it okay! No thinking about work or Eiri Yuki. Got it!" he reprimanded him gently.

Shuichi smiled. It would be nice to not have to worry about anything, especially Yuki, just for a while. "Okay, let's go have some fun!" he replied.

"YAAAAAAYYYY!" Ryuichi yelled happily and Shuichi again felt himself being pulled along by his hand.

Ryu-chan's hyperness was catching, and Shuichi found himself genuinely grinning for the first time in ages as his friend dragged him along.

Ryuichi turned out to be a real shop-a-holic. The bemused Shuichi found himself being towed into nearly every shop they passed, and the older boy rarely left a store without buying something. "Which explains why there's so much junk in his apartment.' Shuichi thought wryly.

The two singers sat down a few hours later to have lunch together in the corner of a small restaurant so as not to be seen, or more to the point recognised by anybody.

"So how are you holding up Shuichi?" Ryuichi asked him as their meals arrived.

"As well as can be expected I guess." Shuichi replied. "I've run into him a few times since… since we broke up. Other than the concert that is." He said. He told Ryuichi about the elevator incident, but in a lot less detail. It made Ryuichi laugh.

"Speaking of the concert, what do you think about Kaede and Suguru?" Ryuichi queried.

"What about them?" Shuichi asked, glad that the talk had turned from him and Yuki.

"What about them? Dude, I thought everybody knew they liked each other!" Ryuichi exclaimed.

"Well, I knew that Suguru liked Kaede, but that's the only thing I do know!" Shuichi said, intrigued now.

"Well, Akito told me that Suguru kissed her at the party the other night!" Ryuichi said excitedly.

"Really? How come nobody told me?" Shuichi pouted cutely.

"I'm sorry, I guess there was just a lot of other stuff going on?" Ryuichi apologised.

"What other stuff?" Shuichi asked immediately.

"Opps, better be careful! Don't wanna let anything slip!" Ryuichi berated himself. "Nothing much. Nittles stuff." He said vaguely and changed the subject.


"Dammit Kaede! Let me outta here!" Eiri ranted, but to no avail. All he heard in reply was the echo of his own voice, and the lyrics of a song playing through the small area.

He'd soon gotten tired of staring at the walls, and he'd been pacing up and down ever since.

I guess it all went wrong, and I'm the one to blame,

Takin' you for granted in so many ways.

And when I look back now, how could I ever forget,

You made me so happy the day we met!

AAAARRRGGHH! Damn lyrics were driving him insane, every word reminded him of Shuichi, and it hurt, like hell. Just like Saki said it would.

A loose photo drifted away from the wall. Eiri picked up the small picture and realised with a jolt that it was the print club photo that he had lost the night before. As he studied the photo he became suspicious. He studied the photos around the room more carefully, and he recognised some of them as the ones in his laptop.

Suddenly he understood why Kaede and Tatsuha had been at his apartment that morning. They'd come to get photos and hacked into his laptop to get them. "Ooohhh, they are sooooo frickin' dead when I get out of this fucking room!" he thought to himself.

"We came to check on you huh? What a load of bullshit that was Kaede!" he said sarcastically.

"I think he figured out why we were at his place this morning." Kaede said dryly up in the surveillance office.

How could something so magic, magic

Become something so tragic, tragic?

Right before my eyes, two separate lives.

Every second was a precious moment,

Now I'm thinking 'bout the path I've chosen.

Wish I could unmake my big mistake…

I guess it all went wrong, and I'm the one to blame,

But what I wouldn't give to have you back again!

Eiri groaned and steeled himself for what was going to be a long stay in the recording booth.

Finally getting sick of pacing the room, he sat down in the corner again and looked down at the tiny photo he held in his hands, a thought suddenly occurring to him. Maybe Kaede wasn't simply trying to make his life miserable by shutting him in here, maybe she was trying to get a point across.

Saki's words suddenly rang in his mind. "I hope it'll help you understand your feelings for Shuichi."

Was that what this was about? He had to admire their courage; by forcing him to face up to his feelings for Shuichi, there was no way he could lose him. Right?

He looked back over the last few weeks, since Shuichi had begun to date Ryuichi. He thought about how quite the house was without the hyper teen bouncing off the walls each night, about how nothing he'd written since Shuichi had left had been any good, if he'd felt like writing at all. And about whenever he'd thought about his lover, he'd always thought of him as his brat or, his Shuichi or, his Shu-chan. The boy belonged to him. That was just the way it was meant to be.

'It's not like I really love the little brat.' Eiri's words came back to haunt him. Was that really true? Did he really care so little for the one person who had made an effort for him… without wanting anything in return?

He thought about all the times he'd pushed the boy away, verbally abused him, hurt him. No matter how many times he did something cruel like that, the teen still came back, nothing different; nothing changed. Nobody deserved that.

Did anyone deserve to be treated that way? Of course not… but then why did the kid stick around for as long as he did? It was a mystery… he was a mystery.

'It's not like I really love the little brat.' The words echoed again.

"Maybe I do love him. Yes, I think I do! Why else would I be sitting here thinking about him, wishing he was here with every fibre of my being? Damn that's clichéd!"

Out loud he said; "I love you, Shuichi."

The music stopped and the door to the recording booth swung open, revealing a happy Kaede on the other side of the door. "I'm sorry we did that to you Eiri-kun, but I think you understand why we did it."

"Yeah, I do. Thanks kiddo." He said, and ruffled her hair. "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to get you back for locking me in there for hours on end!" he added wickedly. Kaede gulped and changed the subject. "So what are you going to do now? About Shuichi I mean." She asked.

She didn't like the bleak look on his face. And she liked it even less when he said simply; "I'm going to let him go. I'm going to stop trying to apologise and stop trying to get him to come back to me. While I was stuck in there I realised something; how could anyone hang around when they're getting shit like I gave him? It's just not fair on him!" he said.

Kaede turned around until she was standing in front of him. "Don't be a moron Eiri! You love him, and now you know it! Now you have a chance to go and win him back! You have to tell him what he means to you!"

"It's too late now. I should've done it months ago!" Eiri shook his head in defeat.

"Then you really are an idiot." Kaede said sadly. "You really have no idea what's going on do you? Are you trying to make it hard on both of you?" she demanded.

"No, I'm making it easier on Shuichi." Eiri answered softly. He reached across Kaede and pressed the elevator button.

""Believe me Eiri; if you give up, you're going to kill him!" Kaede said heatedly, in a last effort to get him to change his mind.

"I doubt that. After all, he's got Ryuichi." Eiri said, and walked slowly into the open elevator.

With a defeated sigh, Kaede made her way back into the surveillance room. She looked around at the sombre faces of her friends.

"Who's going to tell Shuichi?" Tohma asked softly.

"I will." Hiro said; his voice equally as quietly.

"So will I. It was my plan, it's my fault. I should be there." Kaede added.

Tohma rested his hand on her shoulder. "No one blames you Kasey. No one expected Eiri to react that way." He told her comfortingly.

But Kaede couldn't stop the tears from running down her face.


It was raining out. Shuichi ran crying through the park. "It can't be true! It just CAN'T!" his mind screamed.

Hiro and Kaede had told him about what Eiri had said. At first, when they'd told him that Eiri had admitted that he loved him, Shuichi's heart had soared with hope. But that hope was dashed a moment later when Hiro had given him the shocking news that Eiri had decided to let him go.

He threw himself on a bench and cried his heart out. It felt like his heart was literally shattering into a thousand tiny, unrepairable pieces. Nothing would heal him now. Nothing but to feel Yuki's arms around him, and to hear him tell him that it would all be just fine…

But he knew now that it would never happen.

It hurt… it felt like daggers and glass shards were being pierced through every part of his body. He felt dizzy; the world was spinning in a haze of mismatched colours. His vision was clouding and everything was changing from the confused mass of colour to a welcoming black…

"Hiro! Saki! I found him! He's over here!" he thought he heard Akito's voice above him. Seconds later he felt a warm but wet hand resting against his forehead. "He has a fever, we'd better get him back to NG, Kaede will never forgive herself if something happens to him now… she's blaming herself for this y'know." Saki's soft voice murmured.

He felt a pair of arms lift him up as he slipped into unconsciousness. "Hiro, is that you?" he managed to mumble.

"Shhh, it's all right buddy, you're safe with us." Hiro said soothingly.

And he knew no more.

When they got Shuichi back to the NG building, they immediately decided to take him back to Ryuichi's place so that they could get him out of his wet clothes and into bed. He was running a high fever. The only thing higher than his fever was the tense emotions amongst the others.

They got him there in one piece and Hiro managed to get him into his pyjamas and into bed. While they waited for his fever to break, Kaede paced up and down in the living room of the house.

"This is all my fault!" she said tearfully. "I didn't mean for it to happen like this!" she sobbed.

"Because once again, you didn't think Kaede!" Kai snapped. "Did you really think you were helping them?" he demanded.

Kaede burst into tears and ran from the room, knowing deep down that Kai was right.

Saki, usually shy around Kai because of her crush on him, turned around and slapped him across the face. "Don't you dare try and pin this on Kasey! You know damn well that she was trying to help! I didn't see you complaining when we got the result we wanted."

Kai ignored his stinging cheek to retort. "Oh, really? Funny, because I don't remember this being the result we wanted!" he replied coldly.

"Don't be stupid Kai! You know what I mean!" she yelled, tears threatening to spill from her own eyes. Saki was a person of gentle nature, and she hated arguing like this.

"I'm being stupid? Well if that's the case then what's with the rest of you?" he asked.

That was the last straw; Saki left the room in the opposite direction to Kaede. Kai noticed the tears in her eyes with a guilty heart as she swept past him.

Akito rounded on him. "Oh nice one Kai! Look, just because you don't love her like she loves you doesn't mean you have to be so cruel to her all the time! And Kaede too! And I'm not just talking about tonight either, asshole!"

Haru grabbed Kai around the chest as he attempted to throw a punch at Akito, holding him back, while Sano ran to restrain Akito.

"This is stupid guys! Look what's become of us! We have to stop this now. Don't you see that it was Eiri's choice and not anyone's fault!" Haru shouted.

After a few minutes of silence, Sano called over his shoulder; "Suguru, Kaede's sitting on the front step on the veranda, go and see if she's okay." Suguru needed no further bidding. He left to go and search her out.

Slowly, Haru and Sano let go of their two friends. Akito and Kai were silent for a moment, then Kai said softly. "I never said I didn't love her."

Akito looked at him and, after a minute, smiled. "I know. I'm sorry." He replied.

"I do love her." Kai murmured. "Since I first saw her."

"I know." Akito said. They were silent for a minute before he said. "I think she's in the kitchen."

Kai couldn't help but ever so slightly return the smile. "Thanks." He answered, and followed Saki's path out of the room.


Sure enough, Suguru found Kaede outside on the porch, crying into her hands. He hesitantly sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders. She looked up; startled at the sudden contact, but soon he had both arms around her in a hug and his lips against her hair as she cried into his shirt.

"Hey, hey, hey. Don't cry now. It's all right, no one thinks it's your fault." He murmured over and over, rocking her back and forth. His heart ached for her, wishing he could do more.

"Kai thinks so." She said through her tears.

"He doesn't really," Suguru told her gently, "emotions are running high in there; after you left; Saki slapped him across the face!"

"She didn't!" Kaede said, shocked despite herself.

"See what I mean. Actually, after that she went off crying too and Akito and Kai almost got into a fist fight."

"Wow, Kai must've really pissed Akii off if they got into a fist fight!" Kaede sniffed.

"Yeah, now Kai's on his way to tell Saki how he feels about her." Suguru answered. He hadn't quite got out of earshot when Kai had admitted that he loved the other girl.

That got a weak smile out of her.

"So no one really blames you… Kasey." He murmured.

She looked up at him in surprise at his use of her nickname and he blushed. He slowly reached up and brushed away her tears with his fingers, then pushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

Slowly, so as not to scare her, he leaned down and brushed his lips against hers. She responded just as gently.

When it became apparent to Suguru that she wasn't going to back away, he deepened the kiss, and Kaede matched his warmth with her own.

Suddenly, his mind caught up with him and he pulled away. "I'm sorry, I did it again." He said, horrified at his audacity. "I really am an idiot."

Kaede rested a finger against his lips and smiled. "Yeah, but you're my idiot." She replied, and reaching up, she twined her fingers in his hair and kissed him… just to prove her point.


"Saki?"

"Go away Kai, I'm really not in the mood to talk to you right now." Saki snapped, averting her eyes so that she wouldn't go weak at the knees at the very sight of him.

She took a sharp intake of breath when he came close to her. "Saki, look at me." He commanded.

She didn't say anything, and continued to stare at the floor. He sighed and put his fingers under her chin, forcing her to look up at him.
"I'm sorry about what I said, I guess I deserved that slap." He said softly.

Saki noticed the red mark her hand had left on his face. Pulling away from his grip she crossed to the freezer and pulled out a packet of frozen peas. She wrapped them in a nearby tea towel and held them gently to his face. She smiled at the surprised look that flitted briefly across his features. "I'll bet that stings a bit." She murmured softly, and he nodded slightly in agreement.

"You sure can pack a decent punch… or slap in this case." He replied, and he smiled at her, something she'd rarely seen in all the years she'd known him.

They were silent for a minute. "I'm sorry too, I never should've gone off like that." She said.

"No, I had no right to go off at Kaede like that… she really was trying to help for a change instead of being a nuisance for the sake it." He answered, startling a giggle out of Saki.

She felt so nervous, being alone with the guy she'd been in love with for over two years. No matter how long she'd known him for, she'd always feel this way around him as long as her feelings were unrequited. She suddenly found the floor very interesting again.

Kai tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. He really had no idea what to say; he hadn't ever expected this moment to arrive. Emotions weren't exactly his strong point.

"Y'know," he said, once again he made her look up at him. "That dress you wore on stage last night looked really good on you."

Her eyes widened in surprise at that, it was unusual for Kai to give compliments to anyone, least of all her. "Um, thanks." She replied nervously.

He looked away from her, swearing under his breath. "Dammit! I'm not making this any easier am I?" he muttered.

"Making what any easier?" Saki asked, unsure of what he meant.

Kai looked down into her eyes, and smiled softly at the sound of the question in her innocent, naïve voice.

"This." He answered, and he leant down and kissed her gently.

At first Saki was so surprised that she didn't respond. Kai was about to pull away when she finally responded with an amount of passion that surprised the blonde.

He pulled away and traced his fingers along her face before capturing her lips in another, rougher kiss.

From the kitchen door, Akito smiled, happy for his sister. He knocked on the door and cleared his throat to let them know he was there.

The couple jumped apart and turned to face him. Saki was blushing scarlet, and was thankful that her big brother didn't mention what he'd seen.

"Shuichi's awake." Was all he said.

Kai nodded. "How's Kaede?" he asked his friend.

"She'll be fine." Akito said with a wry grin. When Kaede had come back inside, he'd noticed that she was holding Suguru's hand.

"Well, we'd better go and see how Shu-chan is doing." Saki said softly, smiling up at Kai and lacing her fingers into his. He gave the faintest of smiles back.

As they left the kitchen, Akito winked at his little sister and she blushed.


It took Shuichi a few minutes to work out where he was. He felt disorientated and confused. When he realised that he was in his room at Ryuichi's he relaxed a little, until he remembered what had happened.

Tears stung his eyes as he remembered what Kaede and Hiro had told him about Yuki. His shoulders shook as the tears turned into racking sobs.

Kaede's heart wrenched at the sight of him. She released Suguru's hand to run to the bed and wrap the older boy in a hug.

"I'm sorry Shuichi! This is my fault." She whispered in his ear.

Shuichi brought his arms up weakly around her. "No Kaede. It's not; you were just trying to help." He whispered back.

Hearing it from Shuichi finally made her feel better. "Don't worry Shu-chan, I'm going to fix this!" she said determinedly.

"Nothing can be done to fix it now." Shuichi replied sadly.

"Now is that the Shuichi we all know and love?" Saki asked from the other side of the bed. "The Shuichi I know would never give up like that!"

"We tried. We failed. Let's leave it at that." Shuichi said dully.

"That's what you think. I still have one more trick up my sleeve." Kaede informed him.

"Uh, Kasey…" Suguru began.

"C'mon everyone! Shu-chan needs to get his rest before the benefit concert next week." Ryuichi reprimanded everyone happily and began to usher everyone out of the room.

"So what exactly did you have in mind?" Akito asked Kaede as they left the room.

Kaede pulled Eiri's poem out of her pocket.

"Do think you could turn this into a song?" she asked him.

He read it through, eyebrows raised. "I suppose so. Why do you ask?"

Kaede's face darkened. "Because this is Shuichi's last hope." She said grimly.