I didn't want to do another chapter, 'cause I thought that it was a good ending, but you know, I wanted to do something Yuki-centric, because usually Yuki's depicted too harsh or too sweet for his character.

He's not gone, and Yuki did not hit him. The brat is merely at a tour, a long tour, a tour that will probably last forever. Bad Luck is doing a world tour, that's why he's going to be gone for so long. The brat's with Nakano and Fujisaki and Sakano and that crazy American. They are in front of millions of fans, entertaining everyone with smooth vocals and hot moves.

But sitting in front of his laptop, typing out words that probably don't make sense, Yuki knows he's denying himself. Every time his cold fingers touch the keys of the keyboard, Yuki can feel the warmth of the brat's cheek, evidence that he did hit his lover--but Yuki never treated the boy as a lover. He treated him as a fuckhole, nothing more than some way to relieve stress. No matter how much Yuki tries to convince himself that he did not treat the J-Pop singer like shit (with reasons like, he let the boy crash at his house and he came to visit the boy when the kid was sick and that he let Riku stay and that he paid for the brat's ticket to New York), Yuki knows that the brat had every right in hell to leave.

But Yuki can't help but wonder, where is the brat staying? Is it Nakano's house like every time? Or is it to spite him, Sakuma's house? Please. Do not say Sakuma's house. It has to Nakano's house. It is Nakano's house, because the brat would not hurt him that way--No. Yuki will not say that it's gonna hurt if he finds out the singer went to Sakuma's house. Even if he has some variation of sadness--which is not sadness--that the brat left, Yuki will not downgrade himself to actually say that he is hurt. That's vulnerability, and that will kill you. Yuki's made sure that nothing like vulnerability will penetrate him. . . .

But the brat did penetrate him! The boy got under his skin and broke him to pieces. Pieces Yuki has tried to fix over the years with therapy and coldness and loveless, frigid sex with stupid annoying women who always wanted more. And when the women wanted more, Yuki hit them hard with snaps that would break a tree. But when Yuki did the same to the brat, the brat would always come back for more.

And with the singer leaving, Yuki's not used to having the boy come back for more. Or going away quietly without a peep. And that scares him, because that means his slap probably broke the cheer that is the singer.

Yuki's fingers curl around the phone and numbly press the one on speed dial, faintly remembering how the brat made such a big deal of having Nakano on one. Yuki dimly smiles. At least he remembers that.

"Yes?" Nakano's drowsy voice asks. It doesn't register in Yuki's mind that's its 2:00 AM and Bad Luck has a concert tomorrow. Why wasn't the brat asleep then? Something about tickets, Yuki doesn't remember.

"Is he there?" Who cares about formal greetings?

"Who? Who's this?'

"Yuki, you idiot. Where is he?"

"You mean, Shuichi? Isn't he at your place? Or did you guys have a fight again? Did you make him cry? Because if you did--"

"Just tell me where he is--! No, is he there?" Where means Yuki's gonna find him. There means he just wants to check up. There's a big difference.

"No, he's not here. Now, you tell me what happened."

"None of your business, asshole. Just find out where he is."

"Why can't you? I mean, I will, but why do I have to do it? You're obviously worried about him; you can do it."

"I'm not worried. . . . It's just . . . Riku, that kid, he's with him."

"You're worried about Riku?" Ha, ha, that's funny.

"I . . . . No."

"Then you're worried about Shuichi?"

"No."

"Who are you worried about then?"

Yuki wishes it was no one.