Chapter 5: The meeting
The cold wind stroke them, making Gokudera and Boris let go of each other. The silver-haired boy looked around him, but could only see the snow falling chaotically.
"Did it work?" Hayato questioned.
"I shouldn't have come too!" Boris was almost screaming in deep anger. "Was this her doing?"
"I'll take that as a yes." The guardian of the storm sighed. I wonder if I'm meeting the Vongola Boss soon.
"I can see something in that direction!" Boris pointed to his right. "I believe it's a mansion."
"I don't see anything in that direction! Do you suggest we should walk in the middle of this storm?" Gokudera wasn't satisfied. Boris closed his eyes and sighed loudly. He put a concentrated expression on his face and extended his arms horizontally.
"AAAAHHHHHH!" He screamed, kneeling on the snow. The snowflakes had stopped falling and the wind stopped blowing.
"Incredible!" Gokudera exclaimed in wonder. Now, he could see the mansion located about 300 meters away.
"This drains too much energy! You better go!" Boris ordered. The silver-haired had mixing feelings about leaving the man behind, but he couldn't waste that opportunity!
"I'll be back soon!"
He ran on the white road, searching for the person he loved. That concept still scared him. Could that actually be true? Was there a person who could be so important to him? What did Sawada Tsunayoshi look like? How was his voice? And his personality?
He stopped running, breathless more due to anxiety than anything else. The porch of the residence was two steps away.
This is too unbelievable. Am I supposed to find him and do what? I don't remember the Tenth Vongola or the feelings I could've had for him. Am I expecting to have a sudden revelation when I put my eyes on him? Am I hoping to remember that I was happily in love with someone? I can't picture that! I must be fooling myself. Everybody misunderstood whatever my relationship with the Boss was… This is so pathetic!"
Back in the mansion, Tsuna saw Catharina lose her balance and almost hit the ground, but he hold her in time. The woman looked pale and weak.
"Catharina, what's wrong?" The young man asked in fear.
"They broke in… nobody should come to this place… they… are going to destroy our world…" The Russian woman was in pain. The invasion had caused an injury to the place where she existed now, and that harmed her in consequence. Tsuna carried Catharina to the nearby room and placed her on a big grey sofa.
"I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you, my love." The boy promised her.
"Don't go… don't meet them…" Catharina begged before she fell unconscious. Tsuna caressed her face tenderly and whispered: "I have to stop the ones who hurt you. I won't take long." He left her in the room and went to the first floor. The Great Sky had just opened the front door of the mansion and stepped outside when he saw the teenage boy in front of the porch. Gokudera looked up to the young man in a white tuxedo.
They shared a long stare, trying to conceive the other's existence.
He is beautiful. Tsunayoshi couldn't hide an expression of pure adoration. I've never seen something so beautiful. Is he real?
Gokudera felt a terrible pain in his chest. His entire body trembled at that vision and he couldn't understand why. That face… I know that face. I don't quite remember… but I know it! It's carved in me! Deep into my soul… I know that face!
"Why are you here?" Tsuna asked a bit coldly. He had realized that the man in his front should be the reason why Catharina had collapsed. Gokudera approached the other carefully and studied his features with deep amazement.
"Are you Sawada Tsunayoshi?" Hayato managed to make that question. He needed that answer as much as he needed air.
"I'm only referred as Great Sky." Tsuna replied. "I exist for Catharina."
"What does that mean?"
"You are the intruder who hurt my love, aren't you?" Tsuna accused, for Gokudera's shock.
His love? That sentence hurt Hayato. "She kidnapped you as much as I know!"
"What do you know about me?" The Sky retorted, angrily.
"I don't know… from my perspective I was supposed to meet you today and test you as a candidate for Vongola-"
"What is Vongola? What are you?" Tsuna was losing his temper. However, he felt his heart breaking in pieces. The young man had believed it was because of Catharina but he was beginning to realize that there could be another reason. The Great Sky could see fear and sadness in the stranger's eyes. Why do I feel bad for him? I just appreciated his beauty, it doesn't mean that I have any real emotion for him! I shouldn't feel like this!
"He must die, my love." Catharina had managed to reach the two men. She was pale and seemed to be weaker. "He can only bring disgrace to us. I'm not strong enough… you must get rid of him now!"
The Sky stared at her, as if he had heard something absurd. "You want me to kill him?"
"Of course!" Catharina stated nervously. "Don't you love me? Don't you want me to be safe? Then you must kill him!"
"Yes." Tsuna replied in low voice. He had to do that. There wasn't a reason not to do it. That silver haired boy was an invader and he had to die. A flame appeared in his forehead and his hands. His gaze gained intensity. However, when he looked at the boy in his front, Tsuna shivered.
"I have to kill you." Sawada spoke apologetically.
"I'm not just going to let you do it!" Gokudera assumed a defensive pose. He didn't understand what was happening but it wasn't the first time he had to fight a Mafioso. No matter how strong that Vongola Decimo could be, he wouldn't give up. But what he felt in regards to that opponent in particular made him uneasy. The boy in flames didn't seem like someone who wanted to hurt others, for him it seemed as if the act of joining a battle was a necessary evil. That idea disturbed Gokudera's thoughts. How could he be a Mafioso if he had such personality? How could he, Gokudera Hayato, be enamored with an almost pacifist Boss? But to wonder about that wouldn't solve any problem. He had to fight.
"Just one question before we begin," Tsuna said, "what is your name?"
"Gokudera Hayato." The other replied without thinking twice. He saw in confusion how his opponent's eyes widened. Tsunayoshi trembled at the mention of that name.
"Gokudera… Hayato…" The shorter young man repeated to himself. It was like he was in a trance. That name meant a lot to him. His brain felt like burning as memories forced their way back. Gokudera Hayato. His Gokudera Hayato. "Gokudera-kun…"
Catharina knew she was losing Tsunayoshi and couldn't accept it. With the little energy she had, the girl materialized a dagger in her right hand and threw it in the direction of the silver haired boy. Gokudera tried to dodge it but couldn't move for some unknown reason. The object was aimed at his heart and the boy feared that he was going to die without discovering the truth. However, Tsuna flew to where Hayato was standing and knocked him down, saving his life. The Boss had fallen above the guardian, having his face hid on the other's chest.
The proximity between the two bodies made Gokudera tremble. He could feel Tsuna's warmth. He could smell his sweet scent. Instinctively he placed one of his hands on the boy's neck and the other on his shoulder. It was when the storm guardian noticed that the white cloth was wet. Tsunayoshi had been stabbed in the shoulder, protecting him.
Why? Gokudera felt tears forming in his orbs. Why did he save me? Wasn't he going to kill me? Why would he let himself get stabbed? The salty liquid fell from his eyes as Hayato understood. Tsunayoshi had risked his life to protect him. That was a thing nobody had ever done for him in his entire life. At least not as far as he remembered.
"I'm sorry, Gokudera-kun." Tsuna rose his head lightly. Although he was visibly in pain, the Tenth tried to comfort the other boy. "I did a terrible and stupid thing. I asked Catharina to make you forget about me but I didn't expect you would forget everything that happened since the day we met. I wanted to protect you… but I messed everything up."
"You made her do this to me?" Hayato felt fury growing in him, battling the space in his heart against the guardian's mixed emotions. "Who gave you the right to-"
"I didn't have any right." Tsuna whispered in a weak voice. He was losing too much blood. Gokudera could see the liquid spreading and painting the tuxedo red. His anger was being replaced by a desperate urge to stop the bleeding.
"So you remembered, my Sky." Catharina had deep sadness in her voice. Tsunayoshi, with difficulty, turned around to look at her. Gokudera now could examine the wound better. An artery must have been cut. This is not good. I have to put pression on it. When the silver-haired boy saw the blood covering his hands as he pressed the wound around the dagger, he had a horrifying déjà-vu. Tsunayoshi was dead over a table, under a sheet soaked in his blood. Gokudera's hands quivered as more memories invaded his mind. Good and terrible memories.
"How could you?" Tsuna asked Catharina in anger. "How could you make me try to kill Gokudera-kun?! This was not the deal! This was not what I wanted!"
"It was hopeless since the beginning." The woman replied, falling to the ground. She was feeling weaker as the seconds passed. A wound appeared in her shoulder in the exact spot where the dagger had entered Tsuna. "I just couldn't win, could I? I'm just fated to die alone… to die feared and hated by everybody…"
"You are not alone, sister." Boris had arrived at the scene. He passed past Tsuna and Gokudera and went straight to the girl. The brother kneeled and caressed Catharina's face. "I no longer hate you or fear you."
"My stupid weak brother…" Catharina laughed sarcastically. "I bet you can't wait for me to die so the three of you can escape."
Boris pressed his right hand on Catharina's forehead. The girl was shocked by that action.
"What are you doing?"
"You are getting weaker along with the Vongola Tenth. If I absorb you into my mind, you'll continue to exist."
"You are trying to save me?" Catharina was beyond confused. "Why?"
"I know I've been a terrible brother… but if there's something I can do to redeem myself a little, I want to do it. You won't be alone anymore, sister. As long as I live, you'll stay with me."
Catharina allowed herself to cry. She could feel what Boris felt and knew he was being sincere. The time for fear had come and gone. She lowered her guard and let herself receive love.
"Thank you, brother."
That world was dissolved in whiteness.
Tsuna opened his eyes and found himself in his bed. There was no sign of the injury in his shoulder.
"I healed you. You should thank me when you find the time." Reborn said with indifference. He was reading the newspaper, sitting against Tsuna's headboard.
"I'm sorry, Reborn." The student apologized. "I've been keeping secrets and I caused so many problems."
Reborn kicked Tsuna in the chin, knocking him off the bed.
"Damn it, Reborn, that hurt!"
"That's the right thing to do."
"Kicking me is the right thing to do?!"
Reborn gazed at Tsuna with severity, making the boy shiver.
"When you are in pain, you should tell people about that. Let them in and let them help you. No matter how strong you get, don't isolate yourself. Otherwise who knows what you would become."
The Vongola Tenth felt guilty. He knew what he could become if he followed that road.
"Where's Boris-san?"
"Back in Russia. You slept for an entire day. He said Catharina wouldn't cause problems anymore."
"She's with her brother. I hope she'll be happier now." Tsuna wished. Reborn smiled briefly.
"You really are no good."
"Huh? Are you mocking me?"
"No." Reborn looked away, pretending to be indifferent. "Tomorrow you'll train under my supervision. For today you are free. Use your time wisely."
Right after hearing that, Tsuna left the house to go to Gokudera's apartment. He felt he needed to properly apologize. However, he found the guardian of the storm on the way.
"I… I was going to visit you." Hayato said, staring at the ground.
"Did you recover your memories completely?"
"Yep. Even things I didn't remember before… or things I believed were nightmares." The silver-haired boy had a pained expression. "Catharina made me believe you were dead… and made me attack you, right?"
Tsuna had hoped he wouldn't need to reply to that. But he knew he had to tell the silver-haired boy the truth.
"Yes." Tsuna confirmed. He felt his eyes getting wetter. "You acted recklessly, as if you wanted to die with me… that scared me so much, Gokudera-kun. I was afraid that… that…"
"I'm sorry for scaring you." Gokudera was now looking at Tsuna's crying face, feeling like his own heart was ripping apart. "But that doesn't make it okay for you to decide on your own what is best for me! Never lie to me again and never try to protect me behind my back!"
"It's good that you're angry at me." Tsuna said in relief. "You are finally seeing me for whom I am. You won't waste your time with me again."
That comment angered Gokudera. He pulled Tsuna by the collar and brought him closer to his face.
"Cut this crap!"
"Eh?" Tsuna blinked in confusion. He could see small tears at the corners of Gokudera's eyes.
"Do you know why I'm so mad at you? It's not just because you lied to me and let a crazy chick erase my memories! It's not just because you decided by yourself what was better for me, without taking my feelings in consideration! Do you know what makes me the angriest?"
"What?" Sawada was afraid of the answer for that question. He saw how Gokudera was agitated and had to prepare for the worst. Let's go then, Gokudera-kun. Tell me how despicable I am and part ways with me. I'm glad I got to know you. And I know you deserve so much better.
"It's that you don't realize how happy you made me! Since the day I met you, Juudaime, I have lived the best part of my life!" Tears streamed down Gokudera's face. He didn't bother to wipe them. "I know I can be passionate and intense, but I'm maturing. Despite all the bad things that happened, despite all the pain and the misery, I would never throw away the times we had together! I'll treasure them for the rest of my life! Don't you dare take them away from me again! Don't you dare think of yourself as anything less than the best thing that has ever happened to me!"
Tsuna cried intensely after hearing those words. At the same time, he smiled.
"I'm so sorry, Gokudera-kun. I'll never do this again. Never! I swear to you! If I could do anything to make you feel better…"
"There's something." Hayato said, letting go of Tsuna. "I have confessed to you twice but none of them were done the right way. I want to do it properly and make it a happy occasion. I want to take you out on the weekend."
"You want to take me on a date?" The Boss asked awkwardly.
"I-it's not a date!" Gokudera denied, blushing. "I-I just want to take you to watch a movie and then maybe eat something… and then… then I'll tell you that I love you… and ask you if you want to be in a relationship with me. B-but it's okay if you reject me, we can still be friends and I'll still be your right-hand man… but if you say yes… w-w-we w-w-ould k-k-kiss."
"If we start to date you know you'll have to call me 'Tsuna,' right?" The bearer of the sky ring asked, laughing slightly.
"I-if I were to call you by anything else, Juudaime…" Hayato's face was becoming more flustered as he spoke. "I-I think I would call you 'Tsunayoshi.' Your full name is beautiful."
This time , Tsuna who blushed furiously.
"'Hayato' is beautiful too… anyway, please don't pick any scary movie." The smaller boy tried to hide his face in his hands.
"Don't worry about it." Gokudera smiled widely. After that, he decided to go home to prepare the plans for the weekend. He said good-bye to Tsuna and turned his back to him, walking away. The wind whispered in his ear and he thought he had heard an "I love you." Hayato didn't look to Tsuna and kept walking. He would still do it the right way. But it didn't change the fact that, in that instant, he felt there couldn't be anyone in the world as happy as he was.
He was probably right.
I am so deeply sorry for taking so long to finish this story. I hope it was a good ending. Thank you for the reviews and the patience.