Hello, everyone! Welcome to the first arc's final chapter. I apologize for the wait!
Thank you for your kind reviews, and a big thanks to Salty Peanuts!
Disclaimer: Hetalia does not belong to me.
Some things happen very quickly, don't they?
They always seem painfully slow at the start, but then when it's all over, one realizes how fast time had gone by.
Yong Soo pondered this in a flash as a bullet soared past his ear by an inch, tearing through the curtain behind him.
He saw the adoring fans, first wide-eyed with adoration-now wide-eyed with horror.
He saw some arching above their seats, almost standing, but not quite as they pointed fingers and looked behind them hesitantly.
He saw Natalya, and her blue eyes becoming sharp as the edge of a knife.
His mouth hung in the middle of singing a long note, and the electric guitar that hung from his neck suddenly weighed like a block of lead.
A scream pierced through his ears, and soon the sounds of worried mumbling became loud shrieks of terror, some even heading towards the exit.
His drummers stopped their beating. Now that the music had completely come to a halt, the Korean singer squinted his eyes in concentration as he searched for the owner of the bullet.
Yong Soo's wandering gaze finally came to a halt when a white flash of teeth shone in the darkness of the seemingly empty corner.
It was a cop. A cop, wearing a normal uniform, with an officer's cap tilted downwards, almost as if he was trying to keep his eyes from being seen-
Wait.
He leapt off the stage, and started towards the police officer. While most of the girls already left in terror, a few stayed behind with a sparkle in their eyes and a notebook and pen in their hands.
"Yong-Soo-Sama, if you could-"
"Yong-Soo, please-"
"Hang on." He drew his hand gently against the two girls. Usually he would stop whatever he was doing and sign whatever they wished, but this time was different.
The cop tilted his head slightly upwards, in recognition of the teen's presence. But he didn't say a word.
Yong Soo took a step closer, lowering his head to search for any sign of familiarity. Then, with his lips slightly parted, he spoke his guess.
"Kiku...?"
The last thing Yong Soo saw was a flash of red eyes peeking up from the shadow of dark bangs.
And the last thing he heard was loud bang.
Yao's heart thudded with terror as she attempted to pull away from Natalya's strong grasp.
"Who was that?! He's in there, I know it! How could I not-how could I-" She choked. Yong Soo. The bullet had almost struck Yong Soo!
Who in the world was she, having the role of an agent if she couldn't even save someone she knew all her life?!
Cold sweat ran in the back of her neck as she fondled the pistol in her pocket.
"I have to go after him...I have to go-" Sakura gasped, darting behind Natalya at the sound of something hitting steel inside the stadium.
Only stimulating her panic, Yao grounded her teeth in desperation as she yanked herself finally free from the Belorussian woman.
"Miss Yao-!" Sakura gasped, her small hand reaching out, only to be caught by Natalya's.
"Sakura. Don't." The child watched in terror as the Chinese woman darted into the entrance, her ponytail flying in the wind.
"But, Miss Natalya, isn't she important to you? Isn't..." Sakura swallowed.
"Isn't Yong Soo-San important to you?!" The girl took her hand away from the woman's hold, clutched tightly at her side as she stared into blue eyes with confusion.
Natalya closed her mouth, her lips pressing into a thin line.
"He will be alright."
"What? But someone almost tried to hurt him! I don't understand, Miss Natalya. Please, tell me-"
"I trust him." She whispered, her voice hardly audible.
Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but then she closed it again.
"Even if you trust him, Miss Natalya, how do you know that he won't die?" The woman forced back a choke in her throat as she turned away quickly, liquid orbs of blue turning into the ice that everyone saw, but no one knew what they held.
I don't.
"Yong Soo-!" Yao saw the teen crouched on the floor, no scent or sign of blood but a familiar form standing over him with an annoyed scowl.
"Kiku...? What in the world are you doing here? Wearing an officer's clothing-" She stopped short of her sentence, eyes narrowed as she recalled a news report and photo from her phone sent by Xiang:
"Yoshihara Ryo, officer of the Tokyo Police Department was found dead floating in Tokyo Bay at eleven o'clock this morning. Stay tuned for more information regarding the investigation."
The badge on the uniform was none other than that of the deceased police officer.
"Kiku-"
"NO!" A feminine scream interrupted Yao's sentence, causing her to turn back.
There, at the entrance, stood Mei with her mouth wide open-and Xiang staring with eyes of stone and aiming a small black gun towards the Japanese man.
Kiku's scowl suddenly widened into a bright grin as he saw the amount of people in the stadium.
"You're all here! Yong Soo, Yao, Mei, and Xiang!" He waved his arm, and a man dressed in black suit stepped out from the curtains, holding an unconscious young girl with blond hair pulled into two red pigtails. Her round glasses were crooked and bent to the side, and bundle of fur that peeked out of her red sweater looked limp.
"Arthur-San doesn't seem to know which bodyguards are the most reliable," Kiku tsked.
"Those two lasted a mere two minutes-maybe even less! Strange, isn't it?" He asked his assistant. The man simply lowered his chin in agreement.
Yao stood in the center of the room, eyes locked onto his in weary confusion.
"Kiku, what is all this...? This isn't some sort of strange game, people are at risk! Why am I telling you this? You're far beyond the age of reasoning what's right and what's wrong." Xiang raised an eyebrow.
"Are you, Kiku? Or are you, like, just stupid?" He froze, smile disappearing.
The Chinese woman drew closer.
"Kiku, what's wrong with your eyes? They're-" He growled, slamming his fist into her cheek and landing her onto the hard floor.
Mei and Yong Soo tensed, eyes wide as they darted towards their fallen older sister. Xiang stayed put, gritting his teeth in frustration as his finger locked on the trigger.
"Don't!" Kiku yelled. The two still knelt on the floor beside Yao, helping her stand.
"Yao is incorrect. This is indeed a game! From the day you all came here! From the day Yao, Natalya, and Xiang arrived at the airport. From the day I told Mei that I loved her!" Mei winced.
"From the day I told you, what kind of fun I was preparing." He walked towards the Korean, a sly smile appearing on his face.
"You've always known what kind of fun I had in store, right Yong Soo?" Yong Soo looked up at him, chocolate brown eyes fierce.
"Oh, don't give me that look! You were my first hand assistant. A role more important, that not even the highest of my men could accomplish. You should be proud of yourself, for letting it all fall into place this far! But then, a pretty little flower caught your eye, didn't it?" He pressed, eagerly awaiting a word of protest from the Korean.
"A pretty little flower called Mei."
A sudden burst of wind blew through his ears, red eyes becoming dark as the bullet pierced through his back muscle.
Xiang tossed the gun to the floor, marching towards the Japanese man in hard strides until a different voice broke the silence.
"The one in the officer uniform."
And an army of bullets came towards Kiku, some colliding into skin, some passing and hitting the floor of the stadium like raindrops.
The man holding Madeline was also knocked out cold, the girl in the arms of another figure.
Yao, now standing with reddened cheek, gasped in horror as his lifeless, bloodied body fell to the floor.
"Kiku. Kiku, can you hear me?" She shook his still form. Mei hurried to his other side, kneeling on the floor, regardless of the growing pool of blood that emanated from his body.
Xiang, who halted in his steps, looked around for the owner of the voice.
Yong Soo stood still where he was, eyes closed, and laughed without humor.
"So you actually found me, Hyung Soo."
Sakura kicked her legs up and down as she sat on the plastic chair.
They were in the General Hospital again, but this time she wasn't the one in the room.
No, it was Kiku.
Who, by the way, was going to be sent 'somewhere far away'. Or at least that was what Miss Natalya had told her.
The little girl found herself beaming from the bottom of her heart.
At least they were all alright. Yong Soo-San, Miss Natalya, Miss Yao, and the two others who introduced themselves as Xiang and Mei.
Trusting in people really brought a lot of good, didn't it?
The suite was silent as none of the two would speak.
Or, was it that neither knew what to say first?
Hyung Soo crossed his legs, leaning against the soundproof window that showcased traffic several stories higher. Yong Soo sat on the sofa, hands clasped and head bowed down, staring at the red carpet.
Easy questions like 'how's it been?' and 'you seem like you're doing well' were ridiculous, because Yong Soo knew that his own answer could only be one of two things.
1. A quick and easy cover-up lie that would distance Hyung from asking any questions further.
2. The complete, utter truth that would shatter everything that ever stood between the both of them, and/or cause some emotional from-the-heart drama.
Like he calculated, Hyung was the first to speak.
"You've changed."
Wow.
That was so much more stupid than anything else he could've possibly thought of.
Now, getting Hyung angry took quite a skill. Others only saw his even-tempered, polite older brother who posed as a gentleman.
They didn't know how easy it was to light a fire.
And option two was exactly the match.
"On the contrary, you haven't changed at all! Oh, right. Dad and Mom don't like change, especially in you."
Hyung unfolded his arms, sending a dark glare towards his brother.
Yong Soo didn't look up, but he was smirking. Oh, let's light the whole forest!
"So they wanted me to change, right? I went and changed for them! See? No more money spent, no more hopes created! I'm the dead cause, remember? I'm the one who Dad always kept from showing up at parties, the one he always kept from mentioning too much about. Don't you remember? You were the one they showered everything on like snow, right? So don't you go around wondering if I've changed or not! If I hadn't changed, I'd probably still be in that prison you call Korea!"
Forest fire alert.
Hyung picked up his younger brother by the collar, forcing him to meet eye contact. His face was hard, his voice harsh as sandpaper.
"Admit it, if you hadn't changed, you wouldn't be in the place you are now!"
.
..
...
What was he like?
All his life, he only ever dreamed of living away from the political spotlight.
All he ever saw himself doing was making it into stardom, where people saw the real Yong Soo, the one who didn't have anything holding him back.
All he ever strived for was freedom.
All he ever wanted was to have a nice dinner at some buffet with Yao, Mei, Xiang, Sakura, and Kiku bickering about which food was theirs and that no one else could claim it.
And for a certain blue-eyed beauty to be free of her troubles.
Oh, right.
Something else he had tossed away into oblivion long ago:
Sitting in front of a TV with Hyung, one of them pumping a fist in the air at the latest video game victory. Pounding his head on the desk while Hyung scolded him for procrastinating. Chasing a kite that got blown away by the wind in the wide, open field, with Hyung urging him to run faster.
And because he changed, some of it actually became true.
Some being the key word.
And then when everything gets cleared up, more things would become true.
And it was all because he didn't change.
"So you're wrong, then, Hyung. I didn't change."
But did you?
Hyung swallowed, before finally releasing his younger brother. He looked tense, fists at his sides shaking.
"I'm not going to lie, Yong Soo. I never stopped thinking about you, even though I was endlessly doing work for the government. It may have seemed like it, but everything I've done wasn't just to prove my worth to our parents...later I decided that, I would prove my own worth, with their approval or not. And I hated...I hated the fact that you were always free to do what you wanted, without worrying whatever everyone else thought of you. I was never like that, Yong Soo. I'm not the kind of person who can roam about free-there's always something holding me back. That's why I thought politics would be good-there's always something keeping you down to earth."
He took a deep breath, and looked back and his brother.
"I don't even know why I came here, actually thinking that you would somehow agree to come back to Korea."
Silence fell on the two once more.
Only the shuffling of feet, the rolling of wheels, and the giggles of children outside the room and going down the hall served as the background noise.
Then, Yong Soo bit his lip, unsuccessfully holding back a laugh.
Hyung raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
"What?" Yong Soo broke into full laughter, walking unsteadily towards his confused older brother.
In the back of his head, Hyung remembered how stupid he thought his brother looked when he laughed.
And at that a chuckle-and another-broke through his lips.
Soon he was laughing along his brother.
Laughing, for how stupid the other was.
No, laughing for how stupid they had both been.
To think that they actually could never get along again.
Yao took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she placed everything that had happened before into sync with the truth that Natalya had just revealed.
The Honda were a Yakuza clan. For years, they had been as quiet as the others, but when Kiku became head, he decided to do things a different way. Kiku decided to take control of more things. Using the weapons of a fellow crime ally, he had used Yong Soo's concert as an ideal timing to invite Madeline Kirkland-the young daughter of Arthur Kirkland, owner of a world famous international corporation. Using the weapon to kill Madeline, he would've started a worldwide terror on the real intentions of the crime ally's weapon industry, allowing that company to shut down and for him to claim everything that had been once part of it.
But what had stunned Yao so much more was another story.
How Kiku used Yong Soo to rid them all.
She wondered, of course, why he wanted to do that in the first place. He had been a quiet, innocent boy who didn't meddle too much with anything. He had been a poor, lost child, whose mother fell into sickness as a toddler, whose mental illness tormented him since birth.
Had his illness done so much to who he truly was?
And to what he truly wanted?
Or was he hiding more...?
The answer was clear, as shown by his act in the stadium the day before.
Natalya and Sakura already took their leave about an hour ago. Now. Yao was the only one in the waiting room.
The time was nine o' six A.M. So it had been more than twelve hours...
She felt the pocket of her sweater vibrate.
Her cellphone...she looked on at the several messages that Vanya had left her.
And the strange part was?
Ivan would always be left in the dark when it came to this.
Daisuke sat at the head of the table, hands folded and eyes averted from the Belorussian's gaze.
Swallowing, he found the courage to speak.
"The Honda...is retreating from the illegal world until a new head is decided. Honda Kiku's condition is no longer containable-Vash Zwingli of Zwingli Corp has willingly offered a place at a health resort in the Alps." It was perfect, somewhere far off, somewhere where he won't have to worry.
"And we express our apology." He stood, and gave her a long bow.
"Really, I am." He added more softly, still not meeting her gaze.
Natalya looked at the Japanese man for a few moments before she opened her mouth to speak.
"Sakura won't have to worry about him anymore." Daisuke raised his head.
"She'll be able to stay here with you?" She asked bluntly.
He suddenly smiled.
"Yes. I don't think that a little girl should have to...live in a world where there's nothing but control." Natalya stood.
"Neither do I." He turned around, facing the window that showcased the vast area of buildings and metropolis of Tokyo. There was a clear blue sky today.
"I think that Kiku was like that as a child. You know, his mother couldn't take care of him because she was too ill. The leader of the family-Akira-saw him as a perfect tool, because he didn't have much of a childhood to begin with that would get in the way of everything, for when he would become the next head.
I guess what he didn't know was that Kiku knew all the others since he was a child. I think that...Kiku really does care about them, but then when he saw all of them going on ahead of him, starting with Yong Soo-he got envious, and even though he probably could've been able to control it...his mental illness got in the way, you know?"
She folded her arms, staring at the floor of the meeting room.
At least Yao wasn't the only person who believed that person was not the Kiku she knew.
"I should be going." Natalya spoke.
"Good luck on your company. Take care of Sakura." Daisuke turned back, and nodded.
"Yes. It was a pleasure to meet you." With a genuine smile, he bowed once more.
"Please go on knowing that she'll be alright."
"I'm going to New York with Miss Yao!" Mei announced brightly.
The two of them were in a Western restaurant, having pancakes for a late breakfast.
Xiang pushed his glass of water to the side.
"Right. I'm going too." She almost choked on her lemonade.
"Huh? Y-you don't have to follow me!" He looked at her blankly.
"I said I would follow you no matter what, 'cause I love you, remember? And...there's something I wanted to ask that girl." She looked at him curiously.
"The girl...?"
"Madeline Kirkland. It's just that...you know, how Mom said that Dad was the son of the famous Earl Kirkland..." She gasped, and nodded excitedly.
"You think that they could be the same person?"
"Probably."
She sipped the rest of the lemonade, and pushed it to the side, standing up.
"Well then, I think we should get going, right?" She held out her hand, beaming at him.
Xiang smiled, and took her hand.
Sakura stood with her hands folded onto her stomach.
She was wearing a sailor uniform for the new school she would be attending, colors of red and white with a matching cap.
She was talking for the last time with Miss Natalya.
Miss Natalya was going back to America in a few hours. She was already wearing her business suit, and her luggage already stood at her side. She looked more beautiful than ever, and today she was kneeling at her height, talking about things that a little girl should do and shouldn't do.
Talking about how getting good grades was important.
Talking about how saying and doing bad things was wrong.
Talking just like a...
Mother.
"Miss Natalya," She spoke suddenly, stopping the Belorussian short of her conversation.
"What was your mother like?"
On the other mind, there was a pause.
Mother?
Natalya closed her eyes, trying her best to remember.
"She was...kind. And she...loved me."
At this, Sakura decided to ask her the question that had always been pondering in her own mind, although she never knew it.
"Do you love me, Miss Natalya?"
Honda International's main building was unusually silent, even for seven in the morning.
Or was it because the two of them couldn't hear anything?
Then, they heard something.
The sound of a beating heart.
Natalya held her close against her chest, not saying a word.
Because really, words weren't even needed.
They both understood.
Natalya swore she heard soft hiccups.
Then she swore she felt her white button-up blouse feeling damp.
And all she could do was hold her tight.
Yong Soo ducked behind the corner, a small smile coming on as he took in the sight.
An hour and thirty minutes before the plane would leave for New York.
Yao could already picture Vanya, craning his head, searching for her and Natalya as he sat on one of those plastic chairs in the JFK Airport.
But there was one thing left that Yao still had to fix.
And she was fixing it right now.
Sitting on a chair next to a hospital bed, with a silent sleeping Japanese man.
"Kiku," She spoke. Who cared if he heard her?
Just saying it like this would just...just make something better.
"Hopefully, when you wake up, you'll be in the Alps. Those mountains, they say, are quite a sight! It's nice and quiet, too. No noise pollution like Tokyo. You can relax, and eat chocolate-by the way, they're delicious!-and feel at ease. Don't you dare think about us!" She laughed, patting his bandaged hand.
"We'll be alright. Xiang and Mei, they're together now, you know? And Yong Soo! It's a pity, he's decided to quit his singing career, but now he's aiming for acting! It suits him perfectly, right? And I...I'm married to the love of my life, and even though my job isn't the world's greatest position, my life is still wonderful."
She laughed, dimples showing, eyes closed tightly.
Her hand was around his now.
Taking a deep breath, she bent her head closer.
"When you wake up, your life will be wonderful. It will...take time, and it won't be easy at first..." Her chest hurt at the thought of his past.
"But you'll make it."
Oh no.
Here comes the waterworks.
Yao sniffed, using her other hand to brush away the tears from her face. A few sobs escaped her throat, before she spoke again.
"I-I know you haven't had a good past...and I know that you-you never meant to hurt us...everything that had happened was because of something no one could control, and it isn't y-your fault...even anyone was k-killed-it wasn't YOU! It would never be you...so, please, forget..." She choked, eyes becoming red.
Please, forget that yesterday existed.
Please, forget that the past ten years never existed.
When the tears finally subsided in a few minutes, Yao spread her lips the best she could in a smile, one knee on the blankets as she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. All this time he hadn't moved, and his eyes were tightly closed in a dreamless sleep.
"Little brother...I'm sorry...I'll see you again."
At the speed of lightning, she stood again, hand on the handle of her roller luggage and hurried to the door.
But not without one last smile.
Yong Soo uncrossed his arms at the sight of her walking into the terminal.
"Hey, Natalya!"
She jolted her head up, making eye contact.
He grinned, striding towards her. She gave him a small scowl.
"You're making yourself look ridiculous." He finally stopped right in front of her.
And then, right in the terminal, fifteen minutes from the plane's departure, he said:
"Heeeeeeeeeeeey, sexy lady-"
A bash on the head was all that he got in return.
Yao, who had been behind Natalya all along, grimaced in embarrassment as a few people turned with dumbfounded stares.
"Yong Soo, did you see Xiang and Mei?" He was still on the floor, rubbing his head.
"Oh, Xiang and Mei? They're coming, da-ze!"
The Chinese woman blinked.
"Xiang...? I thought Xiang's mother was-"
"He called her, and he said that he had business to do in New York. Obviously Mei's coming along too, da-ze!"
She placed a hand on her forehead.
Not one, not two, but three.
"Oh, and Yao!" Yong Soo stated, taking the Belorussian woman's arm into his.
"We're together now, da-ze~~"
Bash.
"Really, Yong Soo-" Natalya turned away.
"But it's true! Tell her it's true, Nata~" Once more on the floor, he looked up at her with the eyes of a child pleading for ice cream.
Natalya rolled her eyes, and walked towards the gate at the sound of the speaker announcing the flight in ten minutes.
"Nat~!"
"We are." She said, as if it was something that everyone knew.
Both were silent as they watched her disappear past the corner of the gate.
"...What?" Yong Soo leapt from the floor, fist pumped into the air.
"Alright! See, I told you, da-ze!"
With a cheshire cat grin, he hauled the backpack behind his shoulder and dashed towards the gate.
Yao stood, mouth hung agape.
What was this world coming to...?
She was torn away from her thoughts at the speaker's announcement of the flight's leave in five minutes, and a vibration in her pocket.
Yao-Yao! I'm already at the airport!
She sighed, rolling her eyes as she responded to his text.
Vanya I'm still in Tokyo.
Knowing that he would send another text in a few seconds, she tugged at her luggage, and pulled it along as she entered the gate.
"Hey." Natalya was leaning against the window, the white clouds becoming thicker and thicker as the plane ascended into the sky.
"Hm?" He was flipping through the songs in his ipod as he looked at her.
She was quicker than ever as her lips crashed into his.
He smiled against the kiss, bringing her head closer.
When she let go for air, he smiled, hand still on the back of her head.
"I was right when I asked you to trust me."
For a little while, she felt like a long weight had left her.
But at the same time, she had returned to the double life she had always known.
I'll never be able to tell him.
But...for now, things will be alright.
I hope.
As long as you love me, as long as I love you,...
And as long as you never know.
Disclaimer 2: Hyung Soo aka North Korea belongs to Lo-wah on deviantart. 'Gangnam Style' does not belong to me.
End of Arc 1! Thank you so much for your support so far! Please review!
Have a good night, everyone!