A/N:
Thanks for the reviews! First update of the week. Please don't mind the grammar and spelling errors.
Anyway, go on.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Lambo blinked his eyes, moisting his eyeballs from staring too long at the ceiling. He can't sleep. It's almost two weeks since he slept like a baby. He can't get this small gnawing feeling that tingles every cells of his body. And whenever he searches the source, his mind goes back to Tsuna's closed eyes and small smile when they were talking in the hospital during their visit to Doctor Shamal.
The smile felt so... Sad and full of guilt.
He sighed and sat up from laying. He combed his curly hair with both of his hands before swinging his legs off the bed and stood up. When he opened his door, he came to see Tsuna signing some papers. Instinctively, he looked at the clock. Two am.
"Tsuna-nii?" He called. The brunet looked up, surprised. "Why are still awake?"
"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that, Lambo?" Tsuna questioned back as he blinks away the surprise in his features.
"I couldn't sleep." Lambo answered with honesty.
Thw brunet gave him a smile. "Me neither. Couldn't sleep. Want to drink some milk then?"
Lambo crinkled his nose in mock distaste. "If I drink milk, I'll get even taller than you."
He laughed when his adoptive brother scowled at him. Regardless, he followed. Tsuna went for the fridge while he settled for the dining table. He watched his brother buzz around the kitchen, observing him and taking notes of things. Getting things here and there and came up with mugs of hot milk and some small food just to fill their stomachs.
"Drink up." Tsuna urged with a small smile.
He took one of the mug and stared at the white liquid inside. "Tsuna-nii."
"Hmm?"
"New bandages?"
Tsuna looked at his arms and nodded. "Yeah. Don't wanna see them dirty so I changed them every two days."
"You don't like seeing them?"
Understanding what he mean, the brunet nodded. "Yeah. But a little. I just don't want to see them cause they also mean that I do self-harm."
"It's a good thing you're not doing it anymore." He commented as he took a biscuit.
"I won't dare." The brunet answered, putting a stress on the word 'dare'. "Hayato will scold me again. Kyouya will beat me up. Mukuro won't stop teasing me. And Takeshi..." He laughed when his brother winced. "I didn't know he can be very dangerous with or without his sword. Have you seen his eyes glint so dangerously when the Vongola got attacked?"
"And all he did was throw some rocks at them." He added on.
"Headshots." Tsuna mumbled.
He laughed. "It's okay, Tsuna-nii."
They talked a little more. After finishing their drinks, Tsuna invited him to bed. When he saw the brunet's bed, he felt really sleepy. He heard his brother chuckled when he yawned, before guiding him to bed. Like any other nights they slept together on the same bed, he latched like a koala on the brunet and snuggled on his chest. He can hear the heart beat of his brother, rhythmic pattern that lulls him to sleep.
"Good night, Lambo." He heard him bid.
"Tsuna-nii."
"Hmm?"
"Happy birthday."
"Hmm... Yeah. Thank you."
"Good night, Nii-san."
It was unfortunate for Lambo not to see the sad look on Tsuna's face.
"Hayato." Tsuna voiced out, a little breathless as he takes on all the decoration in the living room. "You overworked yourself."
Takeshi chuckled as he slung an arm on the brunet's shoulder. "Well, Hayato did say that Vongola do extravagant birthday party. Just think of this as a small grand party."
"Takeshi..."
"Relax. All you have to do is enjoy."
Tsuna nodded, still astonished with the decorations. The whole living room brightened up with the shiny papers pasted on the ceiling, reflecting the light everywhere. There's a banner too with tiny swirls of art here and there. The food looks tasty and was made by Hayato, Kyouya and Takeshi. He didn't know how they managed to do this with the help of Mukuro's mist since the brunet was out with Ryohei, Lambo and Chrome to get some cakes and drinks.
He touched one of the decors and smiled as he felt the texture of the material. He felt so loved, yet conflicted at the same time. Because at three in the early morning, he's flying for Italy. He'll be leaving his whole heart in Japan while carrying a heavy burden of anger, resentment and sadness from his friends.
He clenched his hands as dark thoughts swirled his head. He shook his head in attempt to get rid of those way of thinking, took deep breaths as he tells motivating things to himself. Once okay, he put on a smile and took one glass to pour OJ on it.
The party was small, but okay. Hana and Kyoko are on video chat, having the same meal as they have since Hayato was kind enough to send them some through Vongola delivery. Shamal also came and made a ruckus with the others, almost started a fight between Hayato and Mukuro. Good thing Takeshi was able to stop them. The doctor went out of the building with a paper bag of take outs from them and a bottle of alcohol. But before he went on his way, he stared at Tsuna with sympathy and sadness. The brunet only smiled in assurance. Shamal did say he will come to the inheritance and will pledge his loyalty at Tsuna's doctor.
When the clock struck ten-fourteen in the late evening, Tsuna was ushered to the table, in front of the two girls watching them by the Tv while the others are on his side. Lambo and Chrome opened the box of cake and Ryohei took the initiative to lit the candles. The brunet stared at the cake his three friends picked for him.
It's an two layered chocolate cake with a written message of 'Happy Twenty-third Birthday Tsunayoshi Sawada!' on top. Tsuna looked up and blinked several times to stop the tears that wants to fall.
"We're very sorry about the cake, Tenth. We can get a bigger one if you want." Hayato offered.
"No. It's okay." Tsuna replied as he looked at the cake again and smiled. "I'd rather have this small cake than those gigantic ones that Vongola makes. Those cakes don't make me special, unlike this one."
"Don't worry, Boss. We'll bake you a home made next year." Chrome assured.
Tsuna can't help the tears that streamed down his cheeks. His heart shattered for the unreachable promise. How will they celebrate his birthday next year if their friendship is gone because of his selfishness? He can't help the sobs and hiccups that racked his body. He put a hand on his chest, tapping repeatedly to keep it beating.
Seeing the distress, Takeshi hugged the brunet. Tsuna hugged back, clutching so tight on the man's shirt while crying on his chest. All of them crowded around Tsuna, patting him and reassuring him. Hana and Kyoko only smiled at the scene, except the former has a mix of sadness in her expression.
Tsuna told her the plan. Although he was passive about it, Hana could hear the unspoken sadness, guilt and self-hate. She can see his heart crumble to pieces as he talks about his plan. And she knew why he told her. He wants her to look after them. To be honest, she wants to punch the brunet, shout at his stupidity and selflessness. She knew about the mafia, the things he has done and the things he is planning to do. It's dangerous. The occupation is dangerous as hell. But it is also the reason why she can't argue with him. So she accepted the task and promised to keep in touch with him. And now, the only thing that's bothering her is the question 'Will he cut himself?'.
"I'm sorry." Tsuna apologized as he took Mukuro's handkerchief and dabbed it to his cheeks. "I got emotional. It's been years since I celebrated my birthday with people who knows me well."
"It's understandable." Hana nonchalantly assured. "We couldn't celebrate when there's the two of us. So I thank these monkeys for celebrating it for you."
"The praise was almost acceptable if only you didn't call us monkeys." Hayato grumbled. Hana smirked.
"Heh. You should be thankful, it's a mixed compliment and insult." The lady waved off.
Hayato puffed some breath that Takeshi and Lambo laughed at. "Shut up, you two."
"Let's sing Boss a happy birthday song." Chrome chimed in.
"Okay." Hayato signaled as they readied themselves. "One, two, three..."
"Happy birthday to you." Tsuna watched his friends look at him with fascination. "Happy birthday to you." He looked at the cake in front of him. "Happy birthday-"
"-Omnivore."
"-Tenth."
"-Tsuna-nii."
"-Tsunayoshi."
"-Tsuna."
"-Boss."
"-Tsuna!"
"Happy birthday to you." They all sang together.
He felt hands on his shoulders, so he looked up to see Lambo beaming at him. "Make a wish, Nii-san!"
Tsuna stared at the candles before closing his eyes and solemnly thought of what he wants. After seconds of silence, the brunet opened his eyes and blew the fires off the candles. Everyone clapped their hands. Takeshi and Lambo ushered Tsuna to the couch again, with Kyouya in steps behind. Mukuro came to them with small plates of cakes, except for Kyouya who was Ryohei that handed him his. The girls on the other side of the TV have their own kind of cake, celebrating Tsuna's birthday.
"Ah! What did you wish?" Lambo asked excitedly.
"No way of telling that to you." Tsuna answered secretively.
"Eh!" Lambo whined that Tsuna only smiled at.
'I really wish we can still be friends and they'll forgive me of what I'm going to do. God. Please. Look after them and take care of them.'
Tsuna opened his eyes. He looked around his room before he stared at the clock. One-fifty-nine. He stared and watched until the minute went zero, indicating it's two in the early morning. He rose up and out of the bed. Sluggishly, he went for the bathroom, fixed himself and quietly did his bed before taking his only luggage, a bag pack with his clothes and necessities inside.
He has been slowly transferring his things to Italy since the day they came back to Japan. His plan was to celebrate his birthday that night and vanish without a trace, like Tsunayoshi Sawada didn't live in the apartment with the seven other occupants. It was a mystery how Kyouya didn't question, or Hayato didn't know about it. Or even Mukuro snooping. Maybe he was that cautious for them not to notice anything.
He shakily let out a breath before placing a paper on the bed and shuffled out of his room with minimal noise. Closing the door, he roamed his eyes around the now arranged living room. After the party, they all cleaned the room so no one will be bothered to clean up anything the next day. It was his last moments with them. He'll surely miss the laughter, the smiles, the taunts, jokes, mocking, pre-fights and shouting.
Gripping the handle of his luggage, he silently crossed the room to get to the other door. He put a hand on the doorknob, looked back and said something in a small voice before he briskly went out with a click as the door closed behind him.
"Goodbye, Everyone."
The apartment was silent. Hayato was by the door of one specific room, staring at empty made up bed and cabinet. A hand gripping the doorknob so tight, with the other clenched into a fist to the point that his knuckles turned white.
Lambo is inside his room, crying his heart out. Takeshi went out to who knows where. Same with Kyouya. Mukuro is missing with the use of his mist while Chrome is by the dining room, quietly crying. Ryohei is out too, doing something God knows. While him... He's just standing there, lamenting how the heck did he not noticed the absence of the source of the lingering sky flames in the apartment.
"Fuck." He cussed as he brushed his hair with his hands. "Fucking shit. Why Tenth?" A tear cascaded down his cheeks, until more flowed. "Why did you leave us here?"
Teary midnight blue eyes opened. The owner of said eyes blinked them to stop the tears before getting up from bed. Just when the owner was about to get out of it, someone knocked on the door and opened it quickly. A woman with shoulder length dark green hair with the same midnight blue eyes entered the room.
"Mom."
The lady smiled sadly. "Hello, Yuni-chan."
Yuni's eyes swelled up. "Tsu-chan."
The lady, known as Aria, walked towards her daughter and kneeled in front of her. "Tsuna will be okay."
The child looked at her Mom with a new light. "Really?"
Aria smiled and nodded, the orange pacifier around her neck dangled with the movement. "Yes. Mom saw it and we'll help Tsuna be happy again."
Yuni beamed and hugged her Mom with a happy squeal. "Tsu-chan!"
Aria hugged her daughter back and looked at the curtainless window, staring at the vast dark blue sky. She promised, and she'll try her best to fulfill this, as long as she can with the help of her will, her daughter's and her friends'.
Somewhere in Italy...
A white haired man popped a marshmallow to his mouth and smiled as he patted a maiden's sky blue hair who was sitting by the side of his throne. He popped another of the sweet inside his mouth before looking at his right where a man is standing, eating a lollipop given by him.
"Eh. Kikyo-chan. Ready the jet please." He said.
"Why Byakuran-sama?" Kikyo questioned politely.
Byakuran opened his purple colored eyes to look out the window. "The sky is grieving, Kikyo. I need to be there to at least provide solace and balance to him."
"Understood, Byakuran-sama." Kikyo said in a small voice.
"Ah. And contact the Giglio Neros. I missed Aria-chan and Yuni-chan. Then tell En-kun and Sho-kun that we're going to visit Tsu-chan. Inform Xanxan and Dino-chan too." The purpled-eye man smiled at him.
Kikyo chuckled. "Yes, Byakuran-sama."
A glass with red wine met the the wall and shattered to piece due to impact. The one who threw it away glared at the men in front him. Those who were directed to the glare didn't mind it except for one. A white head glared back, a blond laughed weirdly, and another giggled. A person with a frog head wear stood lazily, a cloaked person sighed and a tall man only kneeled.
Xanxus de Vongola, the leader of Varia assassination squad, averted his eyes and looked at the new filled up glass in his hand. He took a sip as Squalo, the white head and the current sword emperor, shouted 'voi' and argued about something to Belphegor, the blond who had a weird laugh.
"Boss-chan~" Lussuria, the man who giggled, chimed in with his phone in hand. "Baby boss is in the house!"
The whole group stopped what they were doing.
"Bya-kun said the baby boss is sad cause he left his guardians somewhere around the world. So he's out of balance again." He added before he looked at his boss pointedly. "We all know what happens when he feels too overwhelmed right?"
Everyone stared.
"Trash. Ready the fucking car." Xanxus stood up and walked down the platform where his throne chair was placed. "We're going home."
The others could only smile at the word 'home' as they followed their leader out of the room.
Compass-like red eyes looked around the scenery in front of him. Taking notes of all the things he can see before he looked at the sky and sighed.
"What are you thinking now, Tsuna?"
"Ready the car, Romario. My little brother needs me." A blond man with shoulder length shaggy hair ordered.
"Yes Sir." A man in his mid-forties responded as he went out.
The blond followed. 'Wait for us, Tsuna. We're coming."
"Decimo."
"Hmm...?"
The butler, Frances, stared at the young man in front of him. "You haven't eaten anything yet since morning."
Tsuna stopped from writing his signature and looked at his subject with genuine surprise. "I... Didn't? I thought I ate breakfast?"
"You ate breakfast yesterday. And that was your last meal until today."
Tsuna blinked. "Oh."
Both looked towards the door when a knock resounded from within before it opened. A man wearing a black suit and has a slicked back hair entered and smiled.
"Tsunayoshi! Let's eat! The others are already gathered at the garden! They want you to eat with us!" The man announced.
Tsuna beamed at the invitation before writing the rest of his signature, placed the paper on the table with the pen and stood up. "Come on Frances, let eat with Klaus and the others."
As the brunet went out, men swarmed around him. Frances and now known as Klaus strayed behind them and watched Tsuna talk and listen to others.
"It's a waste. I really thought they were his guardians." Klaus commented.
Frances sighed. "They were, Klaus. They were already harmonized. It was Decimo who didn't know about this and left them behind for their safety. If they were ever rational enough to think that Decimo did what he was thought was right, they'll understand."
"And probably come here!" Klaus applauded. "Man. We need to help Tsunayoshi. Look at him. He's so lifeless even though he's smiling."
Frances gave out a shiver. "Don't remind me of what happened three days ago."
"Oh yeah. He went home here, crying."
"No. This is not his home, Klaus. His home is still in Japan. As of now, our Decimo is heartless."
Klaus looked at Tsuna, who was laughing his heart out, with sadness. "I wish they come already."
"Ameen, Klaus." Frances seconded.