Ripples in Red Water
Chapter 7: Flowers in the Garden
Part 1
Winter and Spring
By: Empathic Soul
Disclaimer: Gravitation is a wonderful anime. It is sadly not mine.
PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN RISK
Thank you once again to those who reviewed! I really love the reviews! Hehe! Helps me and makes me inspired to write the story again!
Thank you once again! Please read and review and as Ruruouni Sesshouhen remarked: Read with you heart!
Thank you! And please do try and read Education by Professor Tohma and One single action. It was meant to be a refresher for this story!
BE FOREWARNED: This chapter includes angst, drama, and a LOT as in a LOT of violence! Please do read this with care and understanding. Absorb it so that you would get some of the subtle hints for the plot and do so understand the characters as well. Thank you so much!
Shuichi opened his eyes with a grunt, feeling really dizzy. Everything in his vision seemed to be spinning faster every moment that he had to close his eyes to clear his vision. It was very disorienting, as if it were his first time to actually be out of his mother's womb, no pun intended.
He barely had any idea of what transpired for the past few hour or rather days that he had been unconscious. As far as he could remember, he was at the office and the next thing he knew he's been having these dreams. He barely recounted the fact that he was already in Yuki's place and how he got there.
It seems important, but of course, he just could not remember.
He was certainly in a haze and things are yet to be clearer. Everything is a huge maze and a difficult puzzle. He needs more time to actually recover from his so-called illness, not to mention regain the lost weight.
He eyed his wrist. He always wondered the scar that was there. His "parents" told him that it was merely a slight wound that was infected and caused a scar. Rather than asking, he simply bought it. It would spare him the difficulty asking and the difficulty making himself believe them.
As a matter of fact, Shuichi never believed them. It was because he somehow felt he was different. That they were not capable of actually understanding him. He called himself selfish at first. It even went to the point that the reason he moved out of the house and went to "live-in" with Yuki was the idea that his parents would not accept his sexual orientation.
He felt too distanced with them. It was not like they lacked the understanding or there was conflict in the family. It's just that there were too many differences that he could not fathom. The first was the mere biological features. How come he was too different? How come he was the only one with NATURAL or to them permanently dyed pink hair and amethyst eyes? How come he was actually smaller than his sister? How come he had such a frail looking body?
There were too many questions. He did not bother to ask, because in the deepest recess of his mind, he knew the answer. So somehow, he did not find any reason to ask at all.
He suddenly heard a soft growl barely audible if it were not too silent in the entire room, he would not have heard it. He looked down to his stomach and a blush formed on his cheeks—he was hungry and his stomach is ordering him to eat. He slowly stood up only to see that he was not alone in the room.
He saw Yuki by the bed. He's sitting on a chair, head tilted to the side and he seems pretty tired. Dark circles are visible underneath his eyes and his hand lay limply on the side of the chair. The other one is on top of the bed, he supposed the one he used to hold his hand. His blonde hair lay recklessly down his face, and it also did not have the usual fix with it. Even before when Yuki slept, it did not appear disheveled as it appeared now. Shuichi actually believed that his hair would be beyond repair. Of course, Yuki should hope not. As a matter of fact, Yuki's hair appeared almost near curly.
Shuichi shook his head. He would not go that far as to make Yuki Eiri's hair curly. That would ruin the image, and perhaps his face too, after Yuki beat him to the pulp.
Yuki noticed the laptop placed on the other table near Yuki. It was turned off and Shuichi had to sigh. Yuki and his laptop are almost near inseparable. And that was not something that Shuichi valued. He was not jealous of the thing, he knew that it was YUKI's job and for that he would not intervene. The problem there lies, Yuki's too into his job that he neglects himself.
Shuichi argues for that insight. And Yuki counter-argues for the other.
And there starts the conflict.
Shuichi looked at the digital clock near the table and saw that it was barely morning. It's actually 4:00 in the morning only. It was pretty early but he feels really hungry. Shuichi decided to stand up without making too much noise. He picked up one of the blankets in the closet and placed it on the sleeping novelist. The novelist barely noticed and Shuichi thought that it was probably because he was pretty tired. It was pretty obvious with the distraught features of the novelist, which Yuki rarely puts off into fixing. Shuichi simply smiled and then opened the door without a sound. He slipped out closing it carefully as well.
Shuichi yawned from too much sleeping. He noticed that there are a lot of shoes outside showing him there are a lot of people inside the house. He recognized a pair and it seems to belong to none other than his best buddy, Hiro. He shrugged at the thought that Hiro would actually spend the night in Yuki's apartment. It would be outrageous. Yuki was definitely not one in Hiro's mort favorite person list.
Then again, at the rate unusual things seem to happen, who knows?
He walked over the wooden hallway and thought of something edible to eat when he was suddenly stopped in shock of what he saw in the living room. He thought there were many people in the house but he did not expect that there were THAT many. He did not think that Yuki would allow almost everyone in NG to stay in the apartment—no matter how big it is.
On the couch sat Hiro who had his arms around the waist of his wife-to-be. His head is nestled on top of her head as she leaned on his chest for comfort and for warmth. They both shared only one blanket and appeared to feel really coy with each other. Hiro had a soft smile plastered on his face with another smile on the face of Ayaka to compliment his. They look more like a happily married couple rather than a simple unmarried couple. Shuichi smiled at the thought. It was barely a month away; his best friend would finally be settling down and would soon have his own family.
"I wonder how many children…" Shuichi snickered to himself. "Better not get any ideas…"
On the other side of the couch lay a messed up Suguru. It never occurred to Shuichi that he would actually find Suguru with a messy set of hair, which Shuichi doubt he combed for a couple of days, a worn out shirt and a pair of faded pants. His face had dark areas revealing that he barely had any sleep at all. Shuichi wondered how much make-up would be needed to cover the sour areas of his face
"Unhealthy! Who told them to stay up late anyway?" Shuichi grumbled. Of course he knew the answer, he was just frustrated that he did those for him.
K on the other hand, leaned on his M16 as if he was on-guard or something. Shuichi, of course, knew that the M16 is fully loaded and he doubted that the gunman would actually miss a target. Shuichi simply shuddered at the thought that K might someday kill him for his irresponsibility.
Shuichi looked beside K to see the disheveled Sakano, their producer. The producer seems to have not changed his suit for days. Stains masked the suit with a lot of wrinkles in it. His usually fixed and gelled hair is also in disarray, making Shuichi wonder how he would react if the man actually saw a mirror.
"I wonder what they would do if I publish a magazine entitled: popular people and how they look like without make-up?" Shuichi rubbed his chin. "Interesting…"
Shuichi somehow felt like this man is obsessed with his features, especially when he suddenly needed to face Seguchi Tohma, Mr. Always Dressed himself. Sakano suddenly get the cramps, the nervous wrecks, and then starts to panic by dancing a certain voodoo dance that was never ever created. Imagine him being like a mini-tornado and then dancing in a way no one could, not even him that is. A very freaky thought…
And of course, last but not the least, Sakuma Ryuichi. He sat there on the floor, hugging Kumagoro tightly in his arms, probably even afraid to let go. Shuichi still could not comprehend it though. Ryuichi Sakuma seems to be a very different person when it came to singing and when he's onto something extremely serious. But usually, one could see him jumping around and around the studios, playing with the vending machines, and possibly making a fuss out of everything. One person could even play a tireless game of tag with this person…
But…
Ryuichi Sakuma was not a kid. He pretended to be. Shuichi could sympathize with him. It must have been difficult to cope with the stress of being a god in music. It must have been difficult to find friends that would be there not because of your fame. It must have been difficult to find someone who would not want him because of his abilities, fame and wealth. And probably…
There lies the explanation to Kumagoro.
Kumagoro is the one thing that would not question him. It would not judge his actions. It would not comment on him. It was simply Ryuichi's way of projecting his need for a companion. Probably not just a lover, but also someone who would be willing to listen to him and simply just be there, no questions asked.
And Shuichi had to smack himself for asking why in the first place. Shuichi knew this…because…
He was like this. Even with Yuki Eiri…
Even…
Shuichi sighed seeing that the blanket was out of place around the body of the older man. Shuichi knelt down and pulled the blanket closer and then placed it over to cover the body of the older singer. Shuichi feared that the man would suddenly catch a cold. Ryuichi immediately tugged the blanket closer and smiled in his sleep. Shuichi smiled back.
Just like tucking a baby…Shuichi thought as he stood up only to feel slightly dizzy.
Far in the recess of his mind, he could vaguely remember the words whispered to him. It sounded so much like Ryuichi but he could not remember what he said. It was comforting. He stared at the sleeping form of his idol only to be surprised to see him muttering something as the man embraced the pink bunny tighter.
"You are not alone…" Ryuichi grumbled and tucked his head to embrace the stuffed animal.
Shuichi sighed. And he moved towards the kitchen to prepare himself something to eat. He was hungry and he needed something to eat.
He walked towards the hallway to the new kitchen. It was a pretty big apartment having three rooms, one for him, one for Yuki, and a guestroom. There are also two other rooms that were not bedrooms. They were the study room and a storage room, where they placed some of the extra stuff that they had in their previous apartment, also some of the things that Yuki called "junk" meaning items with sentimental value.
He stopped by his room and opened it to reveal Mika and Tohma sleeping soundly on the bed. Shuichi smiled. According to Yuki, it was so rare to see the couple being sweet. It was actually rumored that they were getting a divorce. And also they were not exactly the most loving couple in the world. But this time, Shuichi felt privileged to actually see them in such a position. They looked so happy as a married couple. Shuichi silently closed the door and yet leaned on the wall for support feeling a headache getting stronger.
Shuichi opened the door of his parents room only to find them sleeping on separate beds. Shuichi always wondered why this was the set-up. Before it was not like that but it ended up when he turned 5 that they bought another bed and placed it on the room. It was awkward to see them sleep in that set-up.
Shuichi was surprised to see Shun place a hand over his shoulder. Shuichi looked up and Shun smiled.
"Hey, let's get something to eat. Mom and dad seem to be a bit tired today that they slept longer." Shun suggested knowing for a fact that the two had another blasting argument last night.
"Go where? Can't we just cook?" Shuichi asked closing the door with a last glance.
"The cook is on a day-off and well, I can't really cook. It just annoys me to know that fact." Shun's brows creased and saw Shuichi snicker. "I can really read the cookbook and the instructions well. But the food just does not come out right."
"Probably because you simply were careless, ni-chan!" Shuichi laughed.
"Oh right, and you could do better?" Shun raised his brow in a challenge.
"When I get older!" Shuichi laughed and Shun nodded.
"Okay I'll be waiting squirt. So now, let's get Suzu and ask her if she wants to come with us to eat." Shun inquired and Shuichi followed suit.
They stopped at another room and Shun knocked to check on Suzu. The door opened and Suzu was dressed in her pajamas holding a scary looking toy, Shuichi called it the Chucky doll.
"What is it?" Suzu asked, her tone a little bit annoyed.
"Well, we're wondering if you want to eat out with us…" Shun smiled and Shuichi nodded. "Mom and dad are still asleep and we…"
"I don't want to." Suzu slammed the door and the two was left looking at the door and feeling specks of wood fly out of the door.
"Okay…she just had to say no." Shuichi pouted. He felt sad not really spending time with his sister. But it's not as if he did not try. AS a matter of fact, he tried too many times and all he received were a couple of no's and several ignoring remarks. Oh well…
"So, it seems we have the morning." Shun smiled towards Shuichi feeling a bit disappointed but placing a smile on his face.
Shuichi merely nodded.
Shuichi was overwhelmed. He was getting a lot of really good memories of his brother. It was not that he was scared, rather he was It was like his memories itself were contradicting. At one moment Shun was trying to kill him the next he was carrying him on a piggyback. It was plain...
Weird...
Well, who said that getting their memories back was such an easy task?
Shuichi placed a hand on the wall as support and headed for the kitchen. He needed to eat, he's particularly hungry and he did not want to disturb any of them to actually get him some food. They all look comfortably settled in their positions and it appeared to him that none of them had a good night's rest for quite a while now.
He was definitely glad that he finally made it to the kitchen. He saw that the dishes were clean and that there are no pots on the counter. He presumed that means there are not leftovers. Either that or no one ate. He presumed the other.
"Oh well, I guess I have to whip something up for myself…" Shuichi smiled as he glided himself to the refrigerator to get a few things that he could make for a dish. A simple dish…
He took out a can of Cream of Mushroom from the cabinet along with bits of shredded chicken and carrots. He placed the chicken onto boil and boiled the cream of mushroom in another pot. He closed the door and the windows of the room to be sure that the smell would be less if ever it traveled to the other rooms. He did not want to disturb them so early in the morning.
He pulled out the carrots and then started to chop them, but the dizzy spells took its toll. He slid the knife slightly, luckily not strong enough to produce a cut in his hand. He winced as he pulled his finger up. He saw a nasty cut at the edge of his finger and saw the blood dripping out of it.
Memories of the past started to flood in and it especially registered when a certain pain in his wrist occurred. He let go of the knife as it dropped on the chopping board. The blood remained on the tip only reminding him more of the knife that slit his wrist, or rather cut his skin. Shuichi was too stunned that he let the blood ooze out of his new cut. His mind showed him pictures of the murder and images raced in his mind. But something was new. Amidst all the horror, which he finally got used to seeing in his dreams, he saw his brother…
His brother leaning to him…
There was something that he said. Shuichi winced at both the pain from the cut and the pain from remembering his forgotten past. He looked at the wound more when a statement suddenly flew to his mind, so quickly that he was almost not able to grasp it. He placed his non-bloody hand on his forehead and let the other hand lean on the counter as he heard the words mentioned by his brother flood his mind.
"I'm sorry…"He could not believe it. Did his brother actually say sorry to him during that incident? He wanted to think that it was a mere illusion to his mind that a murderer like him would apologize at that moment…but…
Is he really a murderer?
His sweet brother?
A murderer?
Shuichi started to think about that incident. He never asked his brother if he really did those things. He never asked his brother why he looked so sad when he was actually trying to kill him. And why he kept on looking at Suzu during the entire crime. He did not give his brother the benefit of the doubt.
His head started to hurt as he leaned more to the cupboard for support. He felt like fainting but he needs to eat. If he stays longer without eating, he's gonna die of hunger instead of sickness. He wanted to eat and nothing's gonna stop Shindou Shuichi from actually getting his food.
But then again, his dizzy spells because of his memory retrieval are causing him to feel nauseous. Not to mention, there was also a fever adding to his already chart topping sickness list.
How can he possibly cook like this without burning the entire apartment? And besides…
"Yuki would kill me if I burn the apartment down…" Shuichi shivered at the thought when he was interrupted form his thoughts by a voice from a person leaning on the frame of the door of the kitchen. He appeared to be really threatening with his arms crossed over his chest.
"You bet brat. I'll kill you if you burn my kitchen." Yuki answered the unspoken question, or rather the rhetorical question as he watched the vocalist give him a faint smile.
"Hey! Pretty early today! You usually wake up at 9:00!" Shuichi smiled at the new comer and hid his finger behind him. But of course, unsuccessful to the keen eyes of the amber eyed hawk.
"If you wanted to eat, all you had to do was tap and then tell me or are you actually stupid enough to cook in this kind of disposition that you are in?" Yuki took a step forward with a scowl on his face as he saw Shuichi took a step back in response to his advance.
"Shindou Shuichi what are you hiding behind your back?" Yuki glared at the boy. If looks could kill, Shuichi would be long dead.
"Uh…nothing…" Shuichi lied and Yuki glared at him even more.
"Lame, brat." Yuki looked at the boy carefully as he noticed Shuichi take another step back.
"Really, its nothing!" Shuichi insisted looking at the author nervously.
"Try again." Yuki took two large steps forward and compared to Shuichi's steps, the smaller boy would have to take four more steps backward which would be extremely awkward. Not to mention it would piss the already pissed off author.
"Uh let's see…I'm hiding a picture of you when you were ten years old singing karaoke." Shuichi smiled at the author who kept on advancing.
Yuki paused for a moment upon hearing that. He raised his eyebrow and glared at the boy, who seemed more alarmed because of the glare.
"Have you been going through my stuff, because if you are, I'm killing you this instant!" Yuki threatened as he took another step forward.
"Okay, I haven't! It was just a wild guess. Well, anyway is it true?" Shuichi asked trying to skip the topic and for a while there, he thought he already did.
"None of your business brat. Now tell me what are you hiding!" Yuki glared harder and the boy winced at his glare actually feeling it pierce through him this time.
Shuichi knew that the time to annoy is over and its time to play the waltz. He sighed, finally giving up and showing the blonde novelist his cut.
"Yuki, it's a cut…a really small cut! See nothing to it…" Shuichi took out his finger and showed it to Yuki. What shocked him more was the look on the wound. His entire finger is drenched in blood. He actually saw Yuki's eyes widen and Shuichi had to smile sheepishly.
"Well, it was small a while ago…I never thought that I'd actually have more blood to spill after the incidents a couple of days ago…" Shuichi laughed trying to add a zest of humor but he started to laugh nervously at the dangerous gleam in Yuki's eyes.
I swear, sometimes Yuki scares me when he looks like that. Shuichi shuddered looking at the possibly gleaming amber eyes of the blonde novelist in front of him. He looks like a vampire…not that he isn't with his sleeping habits and all…Oh no! Shuichi this is not that time to think of that! Think of a reason!!
Shuichi gulped nervously as Yuki took a step forward grabbing his left hand eyeing the cut slightly then to Shuichi with a glare.
"Uh, it's blood from the chicken?" Shuichi smiled sheepishly knowing that Yuki would not buy that even a little bit. Okay that was lame, a catsup excuse would have been better.
"Shuichi., do you know how much all the people in this house worried about you during the past few days?" Yuki took the dangerous tone, meaning no "brat", "kid", "idiot" or any bad word in the statement. It mean, a serious-talk time and those were the times that irked Shuichi more. It was hard to pretend during those times.
"I have a clue…" Shuichi answered, afraid to look up to the novelist in fear of meeting the glare of the author.
"Then please stop making us worry some more. You collapsed three times this week. You bled more than three times this week. Actually it was even not simply a week, it was a matter of days." Yuki pulled the boy to the sink and washed the wound with the water flowing out of the faucet.
"And now this! What do you want to do? Are you really trying to make us al worry?" Yuki asked, a frantic note on his voice.
"Sorry…" Shuichi muttered looking a bit speechless at the sudden change in demeanor of the person in front of him.
"Shuichi for many times this week I thought I lost you!" Yuki mumbled as he washed the wound on the finger of the vocalist, careful not to irritate it.
Shuichi stood beside Yuki with a soft smile gracing his features. He never heard Yuki actually say those words to him. It meant a lot to him. He let his right hand go to the stove and clicked it off so that there would not be any sign of burnt food in the house at all. He returned to find the faucet off. His hand lay on the sink counter and Yuki stood there, still facing the sink with his head bent down. His hair falling down covering his eyes and Shuichi had to tap him back to reality.
"Yuki?" Shuichi tapped the man in front of him only to be surprised when Yuki embraced him tightly.
"Shuichi, please…please don't do those things again…please…don't leave me again…" Yuki muttered in between ragged breaths. Shuichi could feel the touch of warm tears sliding down his neck and to his collarbone. The man seems to be trembling in his arms.
Shuichi pulled up his hands seeing that his wound was bandaged that quickly. He relaxed his hand on the back of the novelist and slowly rubbed his back for comfort. The other man simply reclined more to lean over the smaller boy's head. Yuki inhaled the sweet fragrance of spring in the hair of the younger boy. Even after a few days, it was still nice to smell. It was one of the things that fascinated him most about the young vocalist. Shuichi manages to have that sweet natural scene of spring that no one he knew ever has.
He noticed that Shuichi looked up to him with a smile and then gently pushed himself away.
"Yuki, normally I would really love this situation, you being sweet and all." Shuichi looked at Yuki sneakily and then smirked. "But I am very hungry. My stomach wants to eat, and I'm sure that I would like to be fed. So unless you move out there so I can chop the carrots, or you make it yourself, I won't be able to eat."
Yuki looked at the boy, rather stared at him. That was the longest most sensible thing that Shuichi ever said in the span of their relationship.
"So what now?" Shuichi asked smirking at the man in front of him.
Yuki turned around and resumed to chop the carrots silently without even trying to reply. Shuichi got the answer and smiled as he went straight to the fridge to get something to drink. This happened to start a whole lot better. Probably things would get better as well.
Shuichi hoped so. Yuki who suddenly glared at him interrupted his thoughts.
"You owe me big time for this. And you're paying me back with interest!" Yuki smirked and Shuichi gulped.
"Uh sure…I think…" Shuichi smiled nervously as he heard Yuki actually make a low laugh. Yep, this would prove to be a better day…
TBC
Please Read and Review!
tangerine-asuka: yeah, it's been Suzu all this time. Thanks for reviewing hope to see you next time!
clari-chan: haha! yeah, I did leave a lot of clues right? Well those would be the same clues that may explain why Suzu's a bit off her rocker...okay WAAAAY off her rocker. Shinji and Risa were really not that off with each other, they're merely having problems. And having a Shindou family means a very emotional family. so simple things may have dire effects.
deppfan1016: so you hate her too? I've been receiving a lot of comments on that. hehe, but surely, with the way my fic is going, its too soon to conclude...(slam--Ryuichi pounds author and puts tape over her mouth.-- OUCH!!!) Spoiler....grrr...slipped right out of my mouth... Anyhow, thank you for reviewing my story! I'll see you soon again!
Ancient Legend: hey new reviewer!! Hi there! well, let's see, maybe a part of your review is right, but I'm not going to say anything about which part, it's gonna spoil everything. Hehehe, so let's leave it at that. About Shun, he's coming out soon with my last OC. So just continue to read. And with that I thank you!!!!
Yakari Taito: (blush) thank you...
i love athrun: thank you once again!!!
Mistress of Anime: heh, reviewed as you read huh? SO you really got surprised with my twist! your reactions were wonderful hahah! truly an epitome of a good reviewer! hehe! Suzu scared you now too! haha! Another one of my reviewers who suddenly hated her because of the chapter! Well, thank you, that was an extremely long review coming from you and I adore everything written in it. It's like seeing you in person and watching your reactions! funny and humbling too! and this chapter: Shu-chan wakes up! Ciao!!!!
Silver on the tree: yes, I will explain it on the climax of this story, which is still tooooooo far from now. Please be patient though! hehe, and well about Suzu, you're another one who hates her now! hahaha! It really amazes me so much! Thank you gor reviewing, hope that you review next time too!
kanilla: hehe thanks again for the compliments, I am glad you liked it! And of course, please continue to review! I'll give you Ryuichi this time as my thank you gift...!!
Reiannah: wheeee! another terrific review coming from you!!! Thank you so much! I was wondering if you're gonna like my other OCs other than Sakuya, and now I'm happy that you like my other two OCs. I think you got a bit of my plot there in your review, but not saying what part...hahahahaha (evil laugh). But then again, only a bit of my plot! heheh, so lets continue on reading and writing and then reviewing. You're one of the people that inspires me to continue writing this!!! thank you so much (bows) And thank you for naming the previous chapter your favorite!
ddz008: it was different neh? hehe the twist realyl surprised everyone! It even surprised me when I read this again! Sakuya would be coming out in a while as for the explanations, it would take about three to four more chapters before the real TRUTH comes out (Slams head on the wall---geez another spoiler)
Paddy Marauder: Another new reviewer! (glomps!) and also the name of my favorite harry potter character!!! padfooot! Well, thanks for reviewing and I'm glad I surprised you with my twist!!!
Author's Comment:
I'm happy that you were surprised by my twist! Hehe, that's wonderful! It means it was effective. Sorry for the late update. It'll take me another two weeks to update the next part since I'm getting through the end of my semester and my workload is getting heavier! So I'll see you guys in the review and hope you also like this simple chapter!