A/N: Mmm… Tsuki comes in this chapter, an original character of mine who plays a big role. Both Yuki and Shuichi's emotions are starting to fall into synch, I think…. Maybe not… I'm trying to make it happen in the amount of chapters that I planned, but… Doing that is hard. I have to find songs and transcribe the lyrics, and such, because I just don't want to write fifty-bazillion songs from scratch (terribly lazy, aren't I?) And I have several stories to keep up with… Oh well, ENJOY PLEASE!
The song in this chapter is "Until the End" by Breaking Benjamin. I have re-arranged and tweaked lyrics for literary purposes.
PS: By the way, Shuichi's not doing covers of these songs. In this universe, he has written them and such. I was talking to a friend and she brought the fact that I hadn't said so to attention. Oooops.
Chapter Three: Lonely Melody
Hiro stared, very much concerned, at Shuichi.
Shuichi sat beside him in the cab, staring blankly ahead. The boy was in shock; it was the only thing it could be.
"Mister, I know you're rock stars an' all, but shouldn't you take your friend to the hospital? He's pretty scratched up. I won't charge you, or nothin'."
Hiro smiled at the kind cabbie. "Thanks. But just to the XMR building, please. Our manager will know what to do," he said softly.
The driver nodded, and began to weave through traffic.
Hiro was deeply worried about Shuichi now.
He hadn't said a word since Yuki had left the store, and he was staring blankly ahead. Hiro had seen that look before; it was the look Shuichi wore every time he got dumped by Yuki. It was the look Shuichi had when he realized Yuki wasn't coming to get him back. It wasn't a good look.
Reiji tapped her fingers irritably against the laminate countertops. "Where the hell are they?" She grumbled. "They're late! When they get here, they're going to get hell!"
Suguru sighed. "Knowing Shuichi, he probably got mobbed by fans," he said, looking up from his book. "They'll be here."
The door burst open and Hiro walked in, followed by a blank-faced Shuichi. "Uh, Rage, K… you're going to have to do some press cover ups," he mumbled, leading the boy into a chair. "He had a break down in the Starbucks on 3rd street."
Reiji stood, suddenly taking charge. "Claude, go gag the press. I'm going to take Shuichi to the hospital. Nakano, Fujisaki, you stay here; greet the newcomer. I'll call you later to tell you where we are," she said gravely. She stood and strode purposely over to Shuichi as K left the room, shouldering his gun.
"Shuichi, get up, we're going to the hospital."
"No." Shuichi frowned, his eyes focusing. "No. We need to practice… we have a concert next week. No."
Reiji shook her head. "Shuichi, you're hurt. You need to go—"
Suguru and Hiro watched the two argue, shaking their heads. "What happened?" the pianist asked softly.
Hiro only had to say one word, and the teen understood: "Yuki".
Reiji whirled around, staring down the guitarist. "Nakano, did you just say who I think you said?" Hiro nodded. "What's he doing here?" she hissed. They all knew that Yuki was a no-touch subject with Bad Luck. Even mentioning the name Eiri Yuki and the city New York in the same paragraph was a felony worse than murder in the recording room.
"I don't know, but that's why we needed a gag on the press. It was a really big scene."
"What did he do to Shuichi?"
"Nothing. I picked a fight with him, Shuichi noticed, and he came and blew up."
Reiji sighed. "Figures. Shuichi, you need to be seen about those cuts."
"They're not deep, really. We've gotta stay…"
"Excuse me, am I interrupting something? I'm looking for Reiji-chan," a boy asked softly, stepping into the room.
"Ah! You must me Tsuki-chan!" Reiji exclaimed. "Well, there's been an incident, and practice has been canceled."
"No!" Shuichi exclaimed, standing. He seemed to have recovered. "Rage, just go get me some coffee and bandages, I'll be fine! Everyone else! We start practice!"
Reiji watched Shuichi sing, sadly sighing. This boy was a wonderful talent, but he was too caught up in his music to be healthy. There was something off about the way he acted.
"So clever,
Whatever,
I'm done with these endeavors,
Alone I walk the winding way
Here I stay;
Surround me
It's easy
To fall apart completely,
I feel you creeping up again
In my head…
It's over!
No longer!
I feel it growing colder,
I knew this day would come to end
So let this life begin!
Why give up?
Why give in?
It's not enough
It never is;
So I will go on until the end
We've become
Desolate…
Living is
Hard enough,
With out you fucking (it) up!
He was safe; blissfully and ignorantly safe. He opened his mouth and let his cocoon of his world flow out of his throat and swathe himself with the safety of his world. It lulled him back to calm, and he began to meticulously repair his burned down world.
It was burning again.
Who knew one man could torch down an entire world in mere hours… minutes… seconds?
He knew—it had happened far too many times before. Even with few words spoken, Eiri Yuki still had the power to rip out the entire world from under Shuichi Shindou; he just had that kind of power over him.
'Not this time! I refuse to let that man destroy my world again! I've… I've worked too hard to forget him,' Shuichi thought as he screamed the last line into his mic.
Panting, he motioned for the band to stop. "Really good," he said. "We continue tomorrow! Now leave and have a fun night!" Grinning, Shuichi plopped onto the floor, guzzling his water.
A purple-haired boy stepped up, looking at Shuichi.
"You must be Tsuki!" Shuichi said, hopping up. "I'm Shuichi! You were really good on the drums today!"
Tsuki smiled and shook Shuichi's small hand. "I'm Tsukito Minomori. Everybody calls me Tsuki. I'm really flattered that I can be in Bad Luck."
"Fan, huh?" Shuichi asked, smiling as he stood. "But, you're really good; we're flattered to have you!"
Tsuki grinned. "You're as nice as everyone says, Shindou-san," he stated, "I was rather worried when I came into the room this morning. May I ask…?"
Shuichi blinked, then looked down at his arms. "I had a bit of an incident," he whispered. He looked like he was about to cry.
Tsuki blinked. "Um, do you want to have dinner and become acquainted?" he asked, blushing slightly.
Shuichi's expression softened. This boy liked him… how odd. "Sure. I don't see the harm in that," he said, smiling kindly at the newest addition to the band.
Yuki took a long drag from his cigarette as he leaned against the large glass window in his hotel room. He stared down at the city below, loathing everything he saw.
Damp hair brushed against his skin, annoying him even further.
"Dammit," he growled, turning his focus to his reflection in the mirror. A bruise adorned his cheek, leaving evidence that even Shuichi could do damage.
Yuki rubbed his temples, Shuichi's pained expression floating in front of his tired and bloodshot eyes.
Yuki groaned. Just what he needed on top of his headache, remembering that brat.
He collapsed onto his bed, staring at the white plaster ceiling.
"Why did he have to sound so goddamn lonely?" the man muttered, covering his eyes with his arm.
"I've been a fan since you guys came out in Japan," Tsuki said, twirling his fork into the spaghetti he had ordered. "I was on a trip to visit my dad, and I heard one of your songs. I was hooked really."
Shuichi smiled, swallowing a bite of chicken. "That's… wow…" he mumbled. "Were you already playing the drums?"
"Oh, yeah. I was an amateur hoping to hit it big time. I entered XMR a year later. Much to my surprise, the same time you guys did! I was ecstatic. I wanted to see if you were as energetic as your songs."
"I generally am," Shuichi admitted. "I've been called an airhead a lot."
Tsuki smiled. "I waited for your new album to come out, and when I listened to it, I was surprised."
"The new sound? It surprised everyone, really."
"No, not that… it… your voice… it sounded lonely. It still does. Except now your voice is angry; it was different from the already recorded songs…"
Shuichi felt his blood drain from his face as Tsuki spoke. "N-no! I have… I'm not…"
Tsuki eyed the paling Shuichi. "Your incident… did it have to do with that person you sing for? The one you dedicate all your CDs to? …That Eiri Yuki person you sing for, did you run into them?"
"Wh-wha?" Shuichi felt his chest tighten and his breath grew fast. His heart raced against his lungs, pulling all the air from them. "I-I… Ho-how di-did…?"
"I can read kanji, you know," Tsuki said softly. "I knew because he has a book signing here in New York… it's hosted by XMR… Is he the reason your songs are so lonely? Because he hates you?"
Shuichi stared in horror, then he did what he normally did when faced when problems caused by Yuki: Cried and ran away.
