Disclaimer: I, of course, do not own Gravitation, Murakami Maki has that honor.
AU My take on what might have happened if Shuichi had not managed to get there in time to save Reiji from Yuki. Manga Vol. 9.\
Chapter 13
The ringing of the phone startled K out of his near doze. The call was coming in on the cell phone of Detective McClean. After a very brief conversation he put the phone away. "They have the warrant."
He and the two detectives immediately got ready to leave when Nakano came back out of his room.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"After Shindou and Sakuma, where do you think?" K called over his shoulder.
"No! You can't! If you have found him and go after him, he is only going to try to run again. He was going to come back on his own."
All three of them stopped at Nakano's words, "What do you know Nakano?" He took a step back towards the guitarist and noted the sudden panic in the red-head's eyes.
"K I promised that I wouldn't tell. I met a man downstairs. He said that he was sent by a friend to find out what was going on here. I told him everything. I also told him that it was safe."
"Who was this man?" Laytner fired the question quickly.
"I didn't ask his name, I don't think he would have told me anyways."
McClean dug in one of his pockets and pulled out a picture, "Is this the man?"
Nakano only gave the photo the briefest of glances, "That's him."
The two detectives gave each other a glance. "Call the officers on the scene and have them back off." K tried to sound calm but he could hear the panic in his own voice. "I'm going to stay here. You two go and handle this. If he's going to come back on his own, let him. Besides, it will look better if the place is searched and you guys leave empty-handed."
"I can't keep running, can I?" Mika had just finished getting Anna ready for their trip.
"No Mika, I think that you should go back, go to the trial, face your husband." It might only be selfishness talking but this was what Alex wanted more than anything. He wanted Mika free. If they just ran off together there would always be the shadow of her marriage hanging over them and they would never be free. He wasn't really thrilled with idea of sharing custody of Anna but he could handle it if he had to.
"Is it really that important Alex?"
Walking slowly to really pull Mika into his arms for the first time he whispered softly into her ear, "It is to me."
Mika's lips tasted of spice, just like he knew they would. At the first touch of his lips she stiffened in his arms, but it didn't take long until her body was melded against his. A shiver passed down his spine when she raised her hand to caress the back of his neck. He took it as an invitation when her lips parted. When he finally pulled away he could see wonder in her dark eyes.
"I want you free Mika."
Within the hour they were all three heading back to New York. There were no promises make, but at least Mika seemed willing to try.
The receptionist at the hospital refused to give him Eiri's room number. At least it was a different woman from this morning when he had tried to catch Mika. Tohma was forced to go searching the floors. It wasn't really that hard and he knew he had found the correct room when he spotted a pair of guards outside of a door.
The men had stubbornly refused to let him in, stating that he needed permission to enter. Permission from whom they also refused to say. Taking a seat in a waiting room across the hall, he sat to think of what he could do. An idea hit as soon as he saw a doctor exiting Eiri's room. He followed the man to his office.
"Excuse me!" he called to the man before he could get the office door closed. The doctor gave him an impatient look and waved him inside.
Tohma followed him in closing the door behind them. "I am a relative of Eiri Yuki's. I flew all the way here from Japan for his trial, only to have my cousin tell me that he is here. Now the guards won't let me in to see him."
There was some doubt on the man's face, "So you are a…cousin?"
"Yes, a first cousin actually. Mika called me and told me he was here, Mika is Eiri's sister. We all grew up together in our family's temple. I came here with Eiri's brother Tatsuha, he had to stay at the hotel with jet lag. I promised I would bring him back a report."
The doctor continued to examine him for a few seconds and then motioned for him to take a seat. "Mr. Yuki was rather seriously injured in an attack at the jail."
Tohma felt his heart leap into his throat, "What are his injuries?"
The doctor gave a grimace before speaking, "Fractured leg, multiple fractured ribs, severe rectal tearing."
"He…he was raped?" Flashbacks of years ago filled his head and he couldn't breathe.
"Your cousin didn't tell you? I'm sorry Mister….?"
"Uesugi." It was the only thing he think to say, the only name he could come up with while trying to choke back the tears. 'Not again' kept running through his head.
"Mr. Uesugi," he took the tissue the doctor was handing him, "I can get you in to see him if you would like, but only for a few moments."
He accepted the offer quickly but the doctor allowed him to take some time to pull himself together. The doctor led he back to Eiri's room, he had never even bothered to ask the man's name. After a brief discussion the guards did finally step back. When he poked his head through the doorway their eyes locked. The author looked pale and frail. "Eiri-san, what happened?"
"I remembered Seguchi, everything." The look of hatred set him back on his heels.
Quickly entering the rest of the way into the room, he pulled a chair to the bedside. "Eiri-san everything is going to be all right. I will take care of it."
"Like you took care of Kitazawa?" He wasn't really shocked. He had expected that he would remember at some point in time. What he didn't expect was the open hatred. "That is what I have remembered," Eiri continued, "You shooting him and those other men, you putting the gun into my hands, you all those years making me believe that I had done it."
"Eiri-san, I am sure…"
"Just shut up and get out. I never want to see your lying, manipulative face again." He had never seen Eiri so angry before. "Please Eiri, you need to understand…"
"GUARDS! GUARDS!"
Tohma stumbled to his feet as the door burst open, "Eiri I…"
"Remove this trash!" Eiri yelled to the two men who had been standing at the door. His arms were roughly grabbed and he was being pulled out of the room.
"Seguchi," Eiri gave one last shout, "if you do anything to hurt Shuichi, I will kill you."
"They're pulling back Ryu," Shu whispered over his shoulder. It was true, many of the officers were returning to their cars. The sound of the back door opening and closing softly had him scrambling back to their hiding spot and into Ryuichi's arms.
"Can we get out of here Shu? Is there any way?" He knew he was trembling and could feel the older singer shaking too.
Footsteps could be heard running up the stairs and Ryu pushed him behind his body.
"Shuichi?" a voice called softly.
"That's my friend Michael," he whispered into Ryu's ear, "you stay here."
Shu stepped out from behind the stack of boxes, "Michael you scare me. What going on?"
"I'm not sure. I spoke with your friend, he said that those men were detectives K hired to protect you. He said it was safe to come back."
"What about all of those police outside, didn't you see them?" Ryu chose that moment to step out and stand by his side, lacing their fingers together. Michael's eyes only widened slightly.
"I don't really know. They did seem to be leaving when I got here. I was able to sneak in the back."
Another knock at the front door had him once again scrambling to peek out the window. There were only two men out there now, one was russet haired the other had black.
"I think those are the men from the hotel, at least the dark haired one is." Shu turned to look at Ryuichi.
"Let me see Shu, I got a pretty good look at the dark haired one." He scooted back to let Ryu have a look. "That's him."
"Follow you Michael?" Shu turned to give his friend an accusing look.
"I don't think so. Do you want me to answer it?"
"Yes Michael, let in. Find out what want."
The American quickly darted down the stairs, both he and Ryu edged close enough to the door to at least hear part of the conversation. The men really were NYPD Detectives and they had a warrant to search the premises.
"Mr. Rain we know that you met with one Hiroshi Nakano today because he told us. I will repeat the exact message if you need proof. You can trust us."
Ryuichi took a couple of steps down the stairs and motioned for him to stay. "Send them up Michael." After darting back up the stairs the older singer took a seat in the middle of the floor. With a sigh,Shu went to sit next to him.
It took less than a minute for the three men to make it up the stairs. All three stopped to stare at them sitting on the floor. The russet-haired detective was the first to speak.
"My name is detective McClean, are both of you all right?"
"We're fine McClean," Ryu was the first to speak up, "the deal was that we would return on our own."
"Things had moved beyond that Mr. Sakuma." It was the dark haired detective that spoke and stepped forward. "There had already been a search warrant issued for this place by the time Mr. Rain had spoken with Mr. Nakano. We managed to get here in time to defuse the situation."
"Defuse?" Cursing his lack of English skills and the need for clarification Shu blushed. "What mean defuse?"
"Kanwa suru Shu, it means to calm a situation."
"Hiro tell you?" Shu decided that he wouldn't get angry until he knew the entire story.
"Only after he found out about the warrant." The dark haired detective seemed to be the only one doing any talking.
"What name you?"
"My name is Detective Laytner, Mr. Shindou. We really are here to help you. But, we think you need to know that a Mr. Tohma Seguchi has taken a room in the same hotel."
"I'm not letting Shu go back there then." Ryuichi didn't sound panicked, only angry.
Placing a hand over the other singer's he gave him a smile, "Hide in plain sight, yes? You," he waved a finger between the two detectives, "go back hotel. Help K. I go trial, you protect. We return two hours. You take away army outside."
As soon as the area the area seemed to be completely cleared of police, Shu took a short period of time to thank Michael again while Ryu watched the windows for another half an hour. No one seemed to be moving; no one seemed to be watching. Cautiously they slipped out the back and into the night.
It was a beautiful night warm for spring and every star in the sky seemed to be shining. As they walked, Ryu slipped an arm around his waist and he couldn't hold back his smile. They were in public and someone was holding him, touching him. People were looking at them and the older singer didn't seem to care at all. He realized this was what he wanted, what he had always wanted, someone he loved and could love him back without feeling shame for what they were.
'I'm sorry Yuki,' he thought, 'somewhere deep inside you may have loved me, I will never stop loving you, but this is what I want.' The thought only caused him a slight pang of sadness. He was over Yuki and probably had been for a while.
"Ryu-chan," he let the endearment slip out of his lips, "I am not going to go back to Yuki. If you want me, I want to be with you." It was no surprise when Ryu stopped in the middle of the street to kiss him senseless.
Tatsuha awoke still clinging to the pink bunny. Hiro was sitting quietly on the other bed watching television with the volume turned nearly off. Stretching and wiping the sleep out of his eyes, he looked over to see the guitarist looking at him. "Are they back yet?"
"Not yet but we know where they are. Those detectives went to pick them up."
Still trying to stretch muscles sore from tension he got up and went to have a seat next to Hiro. "So, what are going to do now, go back to Ayaka?"
"I don't think that I can now, not to her or to any other woman. I've done a lot of thinking since being with Shuichi. It made me realize that it is men in general I'm attracted to. I'm just as gay as my friend."
Tatsuha leaned back and gave him a look Hiro refused to meet his eyes.
"I know that we don't always see eye to eye and that we fight a lot, but I hope you still consider me to be a friend?" Hiro actually sounded sincere.
"Always Nakano, why?"
"Nothing yet." During the last part of the conversation Hiro never once let his eyes leave the television screen. Slightly disgusted with the sudden loss of interest Tatsuha got up stating that he was going to go talk to K. Before he could leave the room his cell phone started to ring. With irritation he grabbed it from his jacket pocket.
"Moshi Moshi." He answered in Japanese because he really didn't know anyone here. The voice on the other end was very familiar. "Mika!"
"Tatsuha where are you? I called father and he said you were her in New York with Ryuichi. He's very angry."
"You can tell him not to worry. I had to come, I was subpoenaed. Besides, Ryuichi and I broke up. No matter how mad he is I am staying for Aniki's trial."
"Listen Tatsuha, I'm here too. Where are you staying?"
"Is Tohma with you?"
The phone went silent for a moment before his sister spoke again. "I left him. I'm here…with someone else."
He gave out the hotel and the room number praying this wasn't some sort of trap.
"Who was on the phone?" K asked poking his head through the door.
Before he answered he motioned for K to leave the room leaving Hiro alone with his thoughts. He doubted the guitarist had heard a word of the conversation.
"That was Mika," he spoke at a near whisper, "she's coming here."
"Are you fucking crazy Uesugi!" K's shout certainly made up for him trying to be quiet.
"Calm down K. She says she has left Tohma and is here with someone else. My sister is many things, mainly a bitch, but she is not a liar. Besides she needs somewhere to hide and she needs protection as much as Shindou does."
He went to sit in a chair with K glaring at him the entire time. It only seemed like a few minutes until his phone rang again. Without out a word he left the room and went down to meet his sister in the lobby. He kept a careful eye out for Tohma. Luckily Mika was standing in the alcove by the pay phones.
"Tatsuha!" He couldn't keep his body from stiffening as he was pulled into a hug. The radiant smile and the happy tone of voice didn't seem like his sister at all. "I've missed you little brother," she whispered into his ear, "and I was worried about you."
Fearing to get caught he grabbed her arm and started pulling her into the elevator.
"Wait." Leave it to his stubborn sister to fight him at a time like this and she was actually able to pull her arm free, "There's someone I want you to meet first."
Mika held out her hand and a dark-haired American he hadn't noticed before stepped forward, the man was carrying a baby.
"Tatsuha this is my friend Alex and this," Mika pulled the blanket back to reveal a small beautiful face, "is your niece Anna."
His arms automatically went out and the man, Alex, quickly handed him the baby. He felt a sense of wonder staring down at the small bundle but he nearly dropped the child when the sudden thought struck him. "Mika, Tohma's staying here, in this hotel. We need to get up to the suite now."
He managed to get everyone in the elevator and as the doors started to close everyone jumped at a familiar shout. A platinum blonde was running towards the car, but was cut off by the doors closing.
"Don't worry Aneki," he reassured his terrified looking sister. "He won't be able to get into the suite. The place is too well protected."
I would like to thank all of my reviewers: Jen-Tao07, Bloody Dead Rose, Eien Kisaki, Minchew, animegirl12182, Aki Kotasho, and Summoner of Suzaku.
Please continue to read and review.