Chapter 5

Three weeks later, I found myself going out more and more with Nikki. I had fun with her, but there was something about her that I couldn't figure out. First of all, she said that she liked me, but most of the time I found her talking about Hiro. I didn't mind it at all, because I learned more about him from her babbling.

I learned that his birthday was on August 4th and he turned 25 this year. This meant that he was three years older than me. His favorite color was red and I guessed that was kind of obvious. He was basically categorized 'straight' and preferred women with long hair.

Nikki said that during high school, he was one of the most popular guys in school. He was known for his good look and amazing talent in bed, but he wouldn't go out with just any girl. She met him in her first year of high school and right away she knew that he was the guy for her at the time. After he graduated, they continued to see each other for the next year and a half. She moved to America in the middle of her senior year and it had been four years since then.

I assumed that after they broke up, Hiro met up with Ayaka. They went out for probably a year and then he broke up with her, too. Speaking of Ayaka, she kinda resembled Nikki in a way. They both had long dark brown hair and blue eyes, but Nikki was more fun and spunky while Ayaka was calm and more ladylike. Talking about personality, I would say that they were complete opposite. I wondered what attracted Hiro to them in the first place. I could understand how he was attracted to Nikki per she was a hotty with much leverage. But, with Ayaka, the girl was like a surfboard with no sense of humor. Maybe Ayaka was just a stepping stone for him to forget about Nikki, but then why didn't he make up with Nikki, if he was still in love with her? None of this was making any sense to me.

Hiro you jerk!

The more I thought about him, the more I got ticked off. It was obvious that he liked me, but why was he holding back? Was it really because of my playing around? Or was it something else? Talking about playing around, from what I learned from Nikki, his records were in comparison as mine. This made me wondered if I were to let him take the lead and be the seme, then what extraordinary experience would I get from it.

I sighed.

Damn it Hiro! I could never find out how it would feel, now.

As I lay in bed by my lonesome, my phone started to rang. I picked up the phone and gosh, I wouldn't be surprise that it was Nikki at the other end of the line.

"You got me."

"Tatsu?"

"Yeah, I'm kinda tired tonight. Can we talk tomorrow?" I replied to her.

"You're not working tonight, right? And, I haven't seen you for a week now, so who's draining your ass?"

"Must you be so bold all the time?"

"Didn't you say that you did some racing during high school? I thought that you would like to join me tonight. There is a race around the outskirt of Tokyo. Wanna come?"

"Nah, I'll pass tonight."

"What's wrong with you men? Hiro said the same thing."

"So is he coming?"

"I managed to pull his strings."

"Then you don't need me."

"But, I'm racing tonight. It's been a while since my last race, but I haven't lost my touch. I've been practicing all this week, so come and see me ride."

"Well, I don't know if I should, you see… um…"

"I don't care what pathetic excuse you're going to give me, but you're not talking yourself out of it, you hear me! I'm coming over there to pull your ass out of bed in an hour." At that, she hanged up the phone.

It wouldn't be so bad to see Nikki race again. Actually, it would be a good opportunity for me to see her racing spirit and maybe I could also ask her about the race in Kyoto four years ago.

Nikki didn't bothering me anymore. I got used to her. That night after I learned that Hiro was in love, stress took over me and she somehow managed to pull me in bed with her. I had Hiro to thanks for that. If he hadn't refused me and let me told him how I felt, then I wouldn't come as low as fucking his ex-lover.

I hadn't seen him since that night, the night that I learned that he was in love. I wondered whom was it that he was in love with. If it wasn't Nikki, then could it be another woman? Or was it a man? Obviously, it couldn't be me? I knew that he liked me to some extend due to the brief moments that we shared together, but was that enough for him to love me? If he did, then why would he end the little spark that we had before it had a chance to develop. Like, I said over and over again, I didn't get him at all. That jerk was giving me a headache.

Nikki was on her way to my apartment. Should I go with her to see the race? If I were to go with her, then I would meet Hiro again. Was I ready to see him again? How would I feel if I were to see him again? I wanted to see him, but I felt as if I had betrayed him for I had been sleeping with another person. Why did I sleep with her? I admitted that she was fun and all, but if I was serious about him then I shouldn't be fooling around her.

After that day, when Hiro broke up with me, I wasn't myself anymore. Somehow, Hiro managed to turn my world upside down and I needed some comfort. She was there with me, pestering me, and provoking me, but at the same time, she gave me the comfort that I needed. How could I resist a bait so ripe and full of energy?

What should I do? Maybe, I should just forget about him and stick with her.

As I got off my bed and washed up, I heard someone knocking on my door.

"I'm coming!" I yelled, but the knocking wouldn't stop. Was she going to break down my door or something? As I opened the door, I was about to give her a beating, "What the hell…?" I paused when I caught a lock of pink hair, "Shuichi?"

"Hi there, Tatsu! Are you ready to see some racing?"

"What are you doing here? I thought that Nikki was coming for me?"

"She called me. She said that she needed to get ready for the race, so she sent me here instead."

"What about…?" I was going to ask about Hiro, but I paused in the middle of my sentence.

"About what?" He asked me.

I switched the subject, "Why did she send you? Do you bike?"

"No, but I like to watch them race."

"Them? Who are you talking about?"

"Hiro and Nikki."

"Hiro raced? He'd never told me that."

"Enough with this talk. We need to go or we're going to miss the race."

"Okay, let me get a jacket. It could be very cold later in the evening."

888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

Apparently, Yuki dropped his lover at my place and took off. I guessed that sounded about right, because my brother wasn't into these kinda stuffs. I drove Shuichi to the outskirt of Tokyo where there were long roads with miles and miles of straightaway, sharp curves and rough edges. It was perfect for racing. I found a parking and mounted my bike to the side of the road. Shuichi and I managed to swim through the pool of people who were also there to see the race. As we approached the front line, I spotted Hiro waving at us.

"Hiro!" Shuichi called to his friend as I paced along calmly. Shuichi caught up to Hiro and squeezed the red haired in his arms. Somehow, I wished that I could have done that too.

"Tatsu!" I heard Nikki's voice calling my name as I turned my head around to find her. Instead of finding her, I found myself paused when I met Hiro's eyes. He stared at me for a second before Nikki came from behind and wrapped her arms around my neck. She swung around from the back to my front and pressed her lips against mine, "Baby! You've came!"

"Aren't you a lucky guy?" Shuichi smirked.

I chuckled tensely, "I guess."

"Hiro, you don't have your gear! Aren't you racing too?" Shuichi asked his friend.

"No, I'm not racing tonight. Nikki is, so let's enjoy her race." Hiro replied.

"But, why?" Shuichi cried.

"Like you've said, I don't have me gear, so let's drop the subject and root for her." Hiro turned his attention to Nikki. As he walked up to her, I could feel my body burning; I still had feelings for him. "Nikki," he said, "go out and win that race."

"Sure am! I had never lost a race before, did I? And this one should be a piece a cake." She replied to Hiro then she gave me another kiss. "Tatsu, wait here for me honey. I'll be right back."

"Yeah." I replied, feeling a little feverish.

As Nikki and the other racers got ready for the race, I stood with Shuichi and Hiro. Shuichi was in the middle, between Hiro and me.

"I still can't believe that you're not racing, Hiro!" Shuichi whined once again.

"What's not to believe? I haven't race for years and I don't think that I'm up for it anymore." Hiro replied.

"But, why? You're the best there is and don't give me any lame excuses. If wanted to quit racing completely, then why do you still ride a cycle? Couldn't you just forget about the past? It's been four years now. I know that you quit because of Nikki, but now she's back, so you should reconsider it."

Silence. Hiro didn't response.

What happened between those two? I wondered.

"Hiro!"

"Shuichi quit it! The past is done and over, there is nothing that I can do to change what has happened. I don't want to race tonight, not because of what happened with Nikki. It's something else."

"What is it?" Shuichi sounded very curious and so was I.

A pair of distressing eyes looked at his shorter friend. They also caught me for a second before they turned away and looked at Nikki.

"Okay, fine! Have it your way!" Shuichi pouted.

I'd known Shuichi longer than Hiro and for as long as I knew him, he had never changed. I could remember that I was once like him, obnoxious and arrogant. I used to love how he resembled so much like Ryuichi when I first met him. Ryuichi Sakuma was my god for the longest time, but ever since that day, the day which I lost the battle against that ghost rider, it had changed me completely.

This reminded me of Nikki. After four years, I found her. She was gone to America during my endless search. This explained why I wasn't able to find her before. Somehow I wished that I had found her a bit earlier then I wouldn't run into this Hiro's complex.

The bikes were rumbling; exhaustion filled the night air with clouds of gas.

"Okay, in your mark. Get set. Go!" Someone initiated the race and all the cycles began their run.

"Wow! Look at she goes." I was staring at her tail light as she dashed off to the front. She was fast; she put the rest of the street racers in the dust. Yet, there was something different about the way she raced. The tail light didn't flash and blind me like it did before when I raced her. But, it had been four years and from what I understood, she hadn't been racing during all these time. Plus, how could I really tell by standing behind the guardrail and watched her. If there was a chance, maybe I should race her again someday.

"Isn't she amazing?" Shuichi agreed, "But, you should see Hiro. He's even better." As he mentioned how good Hiro was, I turned around and saw Hiro staring at his best friend. "Okay, shutting up." Shuichi quickly responded to the same pair of eyes that caught my attention.

Something was definitely bothering Hiro.

"Say, Tatsu. I heard that you're into racing too, right?" Shuichi asked me.

"Yeah, it's been a while for me too. I haven't raced since high school. I lost a race to a girl and I felt so pathetic that I didn't want to race ever again."

"Why? What's up with you and Hiro, giving up racing over a girl?"

"Shuichi!" Hiro groaned.

"Opps, I'm sorry. I've forgot." Shuichi apologized.

"It's okay." Hiro said as he shifted his weight and was about to walk away.

"Where are you going?"

"I need a walk. I'll be back before the race is over."

"Hiro, you've been very weird lately. Is it because of Nikki?"

"No." He replied to his friend and again his eyes met mine. What was up with that?

"Tatsu?" Shuichi quickly turned around to me, "What with you and Nikki? You guys are seeing each other right?"

"Well…," I started my response. It was true that I was seeing Nikki, but I didn't exactly have much feeling for her, other than admiration of what a fine rider she was. "…I guess you can say that."

"See, Hiro. You've lost your chance to get Nikki back, so suck it up like a man and get a life already. Our concert is next week and I don't want to see you moping like this."

"Yeah, don't worry about me. I'll be fine." He said and left Shuichi and I standing behind watching him leaving us.

"Damn that Hiro! I don't understand him anymore!" Shuichi cried.

"I don't understand him either." I agreed.

"Huh? So you do see the differences in his attitudes recently too, right?"

"Yeah, I've thought that you would know what's bothering since you're his best friend. From what I've heard, he's in love."

"In love? Who told you that?"

"Nikki."

"Nikki? I mean the only person that I could think of is her, but if she says that, then that could only means that there is someone else. Who could it be? It couldn't be anyone at work, because if was then I would have noticed it. I wonder if he has met someone else recently and hasn't told me about it."

"So you don't know who it is?"

"No, and if I did then I would urge him to get together with whomever it is. I mean he's been alone all these time after he broke up with Nikki and Ayaka."

"Why did he break up with them?"

Shuichi looked at me as if I was sticking my nose into places that I shouldn't have. "Since you're practically family… um… I guess… it's okay, it wouldn't do any harm in telling you. And, damn that Hiro for shutting me up earlier, I need to cool off this freaking hot steam that is bubbling inside my stomach! I don't know if you've known this, but Hiro was pretty popular in high school."

"Really? I've would never guess that." I would never guess it if Nikki hadn't told me already.

"Well, yah. He was what you described to be the perfect guy. He was a straight A's student with good looks and girls would hang around him like they couldn't get enough of him. He was so cool. He even managed to race in his spare time. I didn't know how he managed it: studying schoolwork, practicing his guitar and racing. And, I don't know if Hiro told you this, but there were times that I had tried to seduce him for myself, even though I knew that he wasn't gay."

"You were trying to seduce him?"

"Yeah, I was kinda stupid, but I just couldn't help myself, you know. There were many times that I found Hiro very attractive, but he wasn't into guys and I had to respect that. Nothing ever happen between us and I'm glad that it didn't, because it wouldn't work out. I was just stupid and he wasn't interested."

"That's good to know. If you and he were sexually involved, I don't know what to think anymore."

"Why is that?"

I chucked. "Nothing. It's just weird that's all."

"Yeah. Well anyways, during our third year of high school, Nikki came on board as a first year student and flames sparkled between them like instantly. They were like two magnets, negative and positive, which attracted each other. They found that they shared the same interest in racing and they started to go out and stayed steady. They continued to see each other until…"

"Until what?" I asked, demanding that Shuichi to continued. He sounded as if he didn't want to say it.

"She got pregnant."

"Pregnant?" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, she was still in high school. I think it was her last year, too. Her parents found out and didn't accept it, so they sent her to America. The baby was aborted from her body and that was the last that I've heard of her. Poor Hiro, he didn't even know that she was pregnant until she was gone and he found a letter in his apartment explaining the reason why she left him. I think since then, he's been very careful when it comes to be involved with someone else. He also quitted racing soon after that, when Nikki left him."

"I see, so that's why he dislikes my playing around and not taking things seriously."

"What are you talking about?"

"Uh, nothing." I quickly lied and Shuichi didn't even notice it. "Then what about Ayaka? She seemed to be a fine girl for him if he was looking into a more serious relationship." I curiously asked.

"With Ayaka, she was too serious. Plus, she was still in love with Yuki. I'm sorry for her, but I couldn't help myself for loving Yuki, too. After going out for about a year, Hiro decided that he didn't want a relationship that wouldn't take him anywhere, so he broke up with her."

I started to understand how Hiro felt through all of this.

"Poor guy," Shuichi sighed. "I wonder who it is."

"Who is what?" I asked.

"Who is it that he's in love with? I mean he wouldn't go and just pick up anyone. My best guess was Nikki because you know…, how their relationship ended so suddenly. But, then I found out that she was interested in you. That caught me by a big surprise."

"Yeah, me too. I'm not very comfortable with that just yet."

"So, are you saying that you don't like her?"

"No, I like her, but I also…" I paused and completed my thought silently, 'I also like him.'

Shuichi gave me a funny face and then continued on with his babbling. The guy really likes to talk. "Back to Hiro, I don't think that he has been involved with anyone for over three years. We would go to bars and sometimes pretty, I mean hot babes would try to seduce him, but he has never considered them. For god sake, I don't know how he manages it. He needs to release sometimes! Sometimes, K and I would get together and drown him in alcohol. He would have round after round of liquors and then we would introduce a knock-out babe to him, but he remained calm through all the commotion that we made. That cock of his must be dead or something."

"So…, he's a hard drinker then?" I asked with a deeper tone of voice as I felt my breathing got hastier and my throat in pain as the words came out of my mouth.

"Hell, yeah! He drinks alcohol as if it was water. He normally wouldn't drink much though, but if he had too… None of us, not even K could keep up him."

"So, if he says that he's drunk after four rounds of whisky, then I assumed that he's lying."

"That's an understatement. Four rounds? Give him four bottles and maybe he'll see stars, but four rounds, you must be kidding me?" Shuichi replied lively.

"Hrgh!" I was getting frustrated. Damn Hiro! He lied! He wasn't drunk at all. That night with me, he was fully alert! I stood there in front of Shuichi, clinching my fists together as if I was about to hit someone.

"Tatsu, you okay? You look scary, dude."

I immediately put a dent into the guardrail. The impact ripped the patch of skins above my knuckles and left me with a sore hand.

"Man! Get a hold of yourself. Did I say something to upset you? Why are you so ticked off?" Shuichi asked bluntly.

"Nikki! God, I fucked her!" I spoke to my trembling hand.

"Yeah, so…? I mean it's natural to…"

"You don't understand. Fuck! This is so mess up! I… I wanted…, but he… damn him! It's all his fault!"

"What are you talking about? Are you sick or something? You're acting weird."

"I… hgh," I groaned. "I have to go."

"You can't leave me here. Who's going to drive me home?"

"Tell Nikki 'sorry' for me. Something important came up and I have to leave. You can ask either her or Hiro to give you a ride home."

"What? The race is almost over. You can't leave me here by myself! What if I got picked up by some stranger? Tatsu!" Shuichi cried, but I ignored him and left.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

End of Chapter

Smile: I didn't write much about the race. I mainly want to get the two guys together. That's it for now.