Bad Luck, along with its mangier and producer, was greeted by hordes of fans and reporters in the airport, but Shuichi's violet eyes searched the crowd for one face and one face alone.

"Come on, Shuichi," muttered Hiro trying to pretend he didn't see the devastation in his friend's eyes. "They're gunna get our bags for us. All we have to do is smile for the fangirls and get in the car." He placed a hand on Shuichi's shoulder and steered him through the crowd smiling and waving to their fans, occasionally glancing back to make sure they still had Suguru in tow.

Once they were safely inside the large, black care N-G had sent to pick them up, both Hiro and Shuichi's forced smiles feel. Suguru seemed to have genuinely enjoyed the wave of Japanese fandom and still looked absently mindedly happy.

"He didn't come," Shuichi whispered.

"There were a lot of people there, Shuichi," said Hiro gently.

"I would have seen him!"

"That's not what I'm saying. I mean that he would have had a hard time getting to you with all those girls in the way and he's famous too. It would have only made the mob scene worse if he'd be there." He squeezed Shuichi's shoulder in a comforting way. Hiro knew his words were utterly wasted, but he had to try.

"Are we going back to N-G now?" Shuichi asked in a dead voice.

"You can go wherever you want," said K in an uncharacteristically serious voice, shooting Hiro a worried glance. "Seguchi-san said you guys don't have to go until day after tomorrow 'cause he can't stand jet-lagged people." K forced a laugh.

"Can I go home, I mean, to Yuki's apartment?" Shuichi blushed.

"Of course," said Hiro.

They rode in silence until the car pulled up in front of Eiri Yuki's apartment building. Suguru didn't even complain when they drove right past the road to his apartment.

Shuichi quickly bid the other goodnight and jumped out of the car.

"Do you want stuff?" called Hiro.

"I'll get it later," he called back.

Shuichi swallowed as he walked slowly up to the keypad by the door. He stopped in front of it and glanced up to see the car was still there. He waved at his friends and the car pulled away. He looked back at the buttons and took a deep breath. He bit his lip and pushed the key that was call up to his lover's apartment.

He waited.

"Hello?" said a very sexy and feminine voice that was certainly not Eiri Yuki's.

Shuichi's head reeled and it took him a moment to comprehend the word.

"Hello?" asked the voice again.

"Uh, hello?" Shuichi croaked, his throat too dry to make much sound. He gulped. "Is Yuki there?"

"He's a bit busy at the moment. Could you maybe come back later?"

Please let it be a deadline, Shuichi thought.

"Uh, could I talk to him?"

"I'll ask." She didn't sound very enthusiastic. "Eiri?" Shuichi heard her call. "Eiri? There's some kid out there that wants to talk to you!"

Some kid?

"He's coming," she said in a voice that did not approve of Yuki's decision.

Shuichi's heart leapt.

"What?" came Yuki's cold, annoyed, and oh so beautiful voice.

"Yuki!" gasped Shuichi, too elated to even shout the word.

"Shuichi?" asked Yuki, totally taken aback.

"Yeah! I just got back like an hour ago!"

"Oh."

"Can I come up?"

Yuki sighed. "Damn brat."

Same old Yuki, he thought. He'd missed hearing his "pet name."

"I guess."

Shuichi waited impatiently for the door to open and he practically flew up the stairs, far too eager to wait for the elevator. He burst through the apartment door, ready to fling himself at Yuki, and stopped dead.

Everything was more or less the same as far as the apartment was concerned. It was the people that had frozen the singer.

Eiri Yuki was still standing by the buzzer looking like someone had run over his dog. His laptop sat abandoned on the sofa beside a woman who had to be the owner of the first voice Shuichi had heard. She was tall and thin with jet-black hair that fell to her waist in one, straight sheet and she was drop-dead gorgeous. She stood up as Shuichi banged the door open and he saw that she was wearing nothing but blood red, extremely lacy lingerie. She stared at Shuichi and he stared at her and then he slowly swiveled his gaze back to the blond man whose face was composed once more and show no sign of the momentary devastation.

"Yuki," Shuichi breathed as he felt his heart shatter into a million, bleeding pieces.