Title: "People Like Us"
Summary: They all came from different pasts, from different backgrounds. They were broken, shattered, or close to it. And when everyone, even those they had loved, had given up on their existences; he came into their lives with an outstretched hand. "After all, people like us have to stick together."
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the amazing characters of Katekyo Hitman Reborn! I own the plot of this story, though, but I do not own the original KHR!
Chapter Title: "A Brief Discussion"
Gokudera really wished that he were able to say no to his Boss. While most of the time he had no problem with whatever request it was, this time he did. Being in a room with the stupid to-be Rain Guardian was something that was agonizingly painful to the silver-head. For one, the baseball idiot kept changing personalities.
The pianist swore that the person named Yamamoto Takeshi had split personality syndrome, because one minute he was smiling and had that happy-go-lucky vibe around him, and the next he was frowning and almost acting depressed. What was up with this guy?
"Will you cut that out," the Storm Guardian finally hissed out in annoyance, his fingers twitching. Oh, how he wished that he could smoke. But his Boss had told him countless times that it wasn't good for him, and that even if he wouldn't quit, he couldn't smoke indoors. No matter what. The pianist shivered at the image of the intense glare that had been pointed at him by the person that had saved him.
"Quit what," Yamamoto asked, turning to look at the silver-head with bright amber eyes. And that ever annoying smiled plastered on his tan face. Yet again, the air around the oblivious idiot turned from a solemn one to an irritating bright and cheerful one.
"Quit switching your damn personality," Gokudera yelled quietly, not wanting to disrupt his Boss and Reborn's conversation downstairs. "One minute you're smiling like a complete imbecile and the next you have that serious gaze! Quit it! It's creepy! And irritating!"
The baseball fanatic blinked at the silver-haired pianist, looking surprised at the outburst. A soft and nearly sad smile fell onto his face, while his amber eyes narrowed slightly. His expression that had been torn between two different emotions turned to a perfect mix of seriousness with a light tone. "Sorry. I'm just… not good with showing my emotions."
Gokudera looked at him with his silver-green eyes pointed, his glare showing that he didn't buy it. "Yeah right," he scuffed, crossing his arms and sitting at the wooden chair near the desk. The to-be Rain Guardian's room had the bed pushed to a wall, the dresser in the closet, and a desk for him to do homework on under the window. Baseball posters littered the walls, and a few manga were on the desk. There was a hand-held game system on the desk as well, a light layer of dust on it.
Silence enveloped them. Gokudera busied himself with looking around the room over and over, trying to guess where certain things were hidden. His gaze landed on Yamamoto's back as he looked around for the fifth time. It stuck there, seeing baseball fanatic's shoulders and back tense. Was he… nervous? But why? What was there to be nervous about?
There were many things that the pianist didn't like, but if there was one that irritated him like no other, it was not knowing something. Seeing how the to-be Rain Guardian, the one that had peeked his precious Boss's curiosity, was staring at the door as though he was dreading the moment it would open made Gokudera's mind wonder. Yet not matter how much he tried to come up with an answer, he couldn't.
"Oi," the Storm Guardian called over quietly, "What's the matter? And don't try to say it's nothing. I can tell that something's up."
A few moments of silence followed the question, and just as Gokudera was about to ask again, the baseball star let out a heavy sigh. He didn't turn around to face the silver-head, but he answered anyways.
"I'm nervous about what's about to happen."
The pianist raised one of his eyebrows in question, though forgot that the to-be Rain Guardian wasn't looking at him. With a click of his tongue, he muttered, "Why?"
Yamamoto's tense shoulder rose in a shrug, and a bitter laugh followed. "Don't know. I guess, I'm scared of what they're deciding. What's gonna happen? Do you know?" The baseball fanatic shifted around on the end of the bed where he was seated, turning to look at the guest in his room.
The hotheaded Storm Guardian also shrugged, shaking his head at the same time. "I don't know either. All I know is that you," Gokudera pointed one of his fingers at the student, the rings on it shining in the light coming in through the window, "Are another piece of the puzzle."
"What puzzle?"
"A puzzle to help the Boss. He needs to save everyone in that puzzle to over-come the demons that the previous Boss's before him passed down to him."
"What do you mean by save?"
"You asked a lot of damn questions," Gokudera huffed, unknowingly putting a cigarette between his lips. When he noticed it, he shrugged. As long as he didn't light it, there was no harm done, right? "The Boss saves people with his flame. Since Sky flames have the harmony factor, and his flame is amazingly strong, he's able to harmonize one's soul."
The pianist sighed, and glared lightly at the baseball star across from him. "Why he would want, or need, to save you is beyond me."
Yamamoto heard the insult in the sentence, though chose to ignore it. "What happens after he saves someone?"
"Tch. Quit asking me all of this. Ask the Boss."
"But I want to know now. He's downstairs talking to my dad at the moment. I don't want to bother them."
"…You're lucky that I can respect that," Gokudera sighed, running one of his hands through his silver hair, "After the Boss saves someone…well, in my experience, the burdens that are on your shoulders just seem to drift away. You realize that it was hard breathing because you're actually able to breath afterwards. You're soul feels lighter, as though the shattered pieces are put back together."
"…Wow… That's really deep."
"Shut up, will yah'?"
Yamamoto didn't reply to that. Instead, he asked his other question. "After he, the Boss, saves someone, does he expect anything in return?"
All thoughts in the Storm Guardian's head to strike an insult were thrown away at the question. A smile formed on his face, and he took out the unlit cigarette from his lips. "That's what's awesome about the Boss. He does it out of the goodness of his heart. Even though he needs to save every piece of the puzzle, he doesn't expect them to just join him willingly. He gives them a choice; to stay or to go with him."
The baseball star turned away from the silver-head after that, turning back to the door. Gokudera didn't protest. He didn't want to answer any more questions. And with a smirk on his face, he turned to look out the window and at the dark night sky. He noted, unknowingly, that the person named Yamamoto Takeshi didn't seem as nervous anymore.