No Money, No Love

By: Witch Baby

A/N: If you were upset with last chapter, this one is even worse. I apologize in advance. Please don't kill me. Lyrics by Sanctus Real.

"Burn away the pride,
Bring me to my weakness
Until everything I hide behind is gone
And when I'm open wide,
With nothing left to cling to
Only you are there to lead me on
Cause honestly, I'm not that strong

I'm not alright
I'm broken inside, broken inside
And all I go through
It leads me to you..."

Chapter 19: I Will Always Be There

Kanou yawned as he got up from the bed, finding his pants and tugging them on so as not to be completely indecent. He knew he was still treading on thin ice with Ayase, and he wanted the younger male to feel comfortable around him. Kanou was, surprisingly, in a good mood, and looked forward to finally getting somewhere with the blond. They still had a long way to go, but if Ayase was willing to give him a chance, Kanou would do everything to prove to Ayase that he only wanted to cherish him, not control him.

He wandered into the kitchen, glancing at the clock, wondering how long Ayase would be. Ten minuets had already passed from when he had gone down to the bakery. Shrugging off his concern, he started going through cupboards, hoping to find something for tea or, preferably, coffee. Ayase had probably got caught up talking with someone downstairs or something. Kanou had promised to trust Ayase, and running after him in a panic after only ten minuets wasn't the best way to prove that trust.

Unfortunately, there was no coffee, so he set some water on to boil to make tea for when Ayase returned. He could never make it as good as Ayase did, but he wasn't completely terrible at it, unlike when he tried to cook. He hoped that Ayase would at least appreciate the gesture.

Kanou's eyes drifted to the clock again and again as the seconds ticked away. After another five minuets had gone by, Kanou found himself tugging on shirt and his shoes. He would go downstairs, just to make sure. If Ayase was fine, then he'd go back upstairs and wait for him.

Leaving the apartment, he made his was to the bakery, frowning in distaste at some garbage that had been carelessly thrown at the foot of the stairs. Ignoring it, he walked inside, noticing the same lady as yesterday working behind the counter.

"Hello again young man," she greeted, "come again I see?"

"Yes," he answered, "Just came to check on Ayase."

"Oh, well he's upstairs if you'd like to see him now. Came down just a little bit ago for breakfast."

Kanou frowned. "Well yes, I know he's here, I've been up there waiting for him. He's not down here in the shop?"

She shook her head in confusion. "No deary, he seemed really eager to head back up. Only stopped to say hello and grab some coffee before taking off again."

His heart began to pound as panic began to creep through the back of his mind. He nodded at the older women before running back outside. His eyes fell to the spilled coffee and discarded pastries at the foot of the stairs, all the pieces falling into place and starting to make sense.

He ran up the stairs, grabbing the phone from his jacket and dialing Homare. "Yes sir?" the twin, thankfully, answered on the first ring.

"Ayase has been taken. Meet me with the car at his apartment."

He hung up without another word, calling Misao. "Hack into every camera feed within a two mile radius," he instructed after telling the Kuba twin the same thing he had told his brother, "I need to know who took him and where. You have 20 minuets."

Homare pulled in just as Kanou hung up. Wordlessly he slipped into the car, his briefcase resting on the backseat next to him. He opened it, humorlessly smiling at the handgun resting right on top.

His phone buzzed into his pocket. "Yes?"

"They headed northeast after he was taken, driving in that direction for 3.5 miles before heading south. They're lost in the camera feed after that, though I sighted them from a downtown streetlight camera a few minuets ago."

"Very good. We'll head in that direction. Call me when you know where they are for sure and meet us there."

He relayed Misao's directions to Homare, the twin efficiently weaving through the crowded Japanese streets. As they drove, Kanou checked his gun, making sure it was clean and fully loaded. He needed to be prepared for when faced whoever thought taking Ayase was a good idea. He would show them, just like he had shown others, that no one messed with what belonged to him.

His phone buzzed again. "Sir," came Misao's voice, "The same men that took Ayase-san were seen later on that morning at an apartment in the Kabuki-cho district. A neighbor filed a complaint about strange noises from upstairs."

"Kabuki-cho? What were they doing there?" Kanou didn't miss the way Homare straightened up, his eyes darting towards the backseat.

"Video surveillance shows them dragging someone into their car. I tracked them to an office building downtown. I believe they might have taken Ayase-san there as well. I will try and find out who owns the building."

"Upload the address to the cars GPS system. Come prepared."

Kanou's dark eyes focused on Homare as he tucked his phone in his pocket. "I never did get a chance to ask why you never answered yesterday." he said casually, clicking the safety off on his gun before slipping that into his jacket as well.

"I apologize sir, it won't happen again." he replied, emotionless as ever, though his hands tightened slightly on the steering wheel.

"I'm sure it won't. Care to tell me why? I have a feeling it will interest me greatly."

Homare knew lying was futile. Even if Kanou didn't know everything, it would be only a matter of time before he did. Homare had a sneaking suspicion too, that the reason why Ayase was taken had to do with the goons from yesterday. Which meant that Ayase, and Skyler too if guessed correctly, could be in a lot of danger.

"I have reason to believe Ginji is involved with this somehow." he said quietly, feeling Kanou's eyes staring at him, waiting for him to continue, "I went over to question Ayase's new friend Skyler yesterday. Both of them were at the apartment and were being threatened by two men who are known to work for him. I took care of them and went back late last night to talk to Skyler alone. I was waiting until I was sure before bringing it to you attention."

He knew he was leaving a lot of stuff out, but he hoped that it would be enough to appease Kanou. He almost jumped when he felt Kanou's breath on his neck, the older man whispering threateningly "Make sure things like this are not kept from me again. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Ayase wasn't sure how long he waited in the room, staring at the wall. He heard noises from behind the door, men talking or laughing, but it had yet to open. He closed his eyes with a sigh, looking up towards the ceiling and praying that his friend was safe, that they would all be safe, and that Kanou would come soon.

He spent his idle time thinking about what he would do once this was over. If nothing else, this was a wake up call that, while he might be able to leave Kanou, that didn't mean he got to leave Kanou's world. He had been so naive to believe that he could walk away and forget everything, that nothing from this dark underground would come for him.

He felt ashamed of himself for thinking he could get by unscathed. He might pray for Kanou to hurry up and come for them, but at the same time he hated that smug look he would have. That 'I told you so' waiting in his eyes when he busted through the door. He wanted to prove to Kanou that he was strong, that he was capable of taking care of himself. However, the more he tried the more he seemed to fail.

He knew he couldn't return to the way he lived before Kanou, but he didn't want to go crawling back to the life that he lived with him. It wasn't much of a life at all, being unable to make his own decisions and pursue his dreams. Being with Kanou had changed the course of his life, and while he wished for a time that he could be completely oblivious to the darker parts of the world, he knew that it could never be this way. That didn't mean though, that he couldn't change again. Take the bits of his pasts, the pieces that had broken from him over the last three years, and make something new.

The click of the door unlocking broke him from his thoughts, and he jumped to his feet as it opened. A young looking man carried a shivering figure in his arms, a dirty sheet obscuring Ayase's view of the persons face. He had a sinking feeling he knew who it was though, if the wisps of blond hair peeking through were anything to go by.

The guard said not a word as he gently set Skyler on the bed before turning around and leaving them alone. "Do you need anything?" he asked quietly.

"There's nothing you can do Daisuke." Skyler sounded weak and pained, his voice barely a whisper.

Ayase didn't want to trust him, he worked for Ginji after all, but he was thankful that not everyone seemed so heartless. Maybe, if they were lucky, he could convince him to let them go. "Can you help us?"

Daisuke looked at Ayase, then back to Skyler, shaking his head. His eyes looked so sad, his shoulders heavy with guilt. "I wish I could... no one... no one deserves what-"

"That's enough Daisuke." Skyler said, "Go before Eito comes."

As Daisuke reluctantly left, Ayase rushed to his friends side, sitting next to him on the bed and embracing him. "Are you okay? What happened? Did he hurt you?"

Skyler didn't reply, just continued to tremble in Ayase's arms. The older blond bit his lip, leaning back slightly and tugging the sheet down a little to asses his friend. Tears welled up in his blue eyes as he caught site of the bruises around his neck, the rope burns around his wrists, and the angry red slashes criss-crossed down his arms and back. He didn't even want to know how far down they went, or ask questions about the red stains on the sheet.

"Skyler..." he whispered, voice breaking as a few stray tears spilled down his cheeks.

There was nothing but emptiness in those blue eyes as they finally lifted to meet Ayase's. "Don't cry for me," he whispered, weakly squeezing his hand, "Don't you dare give them the satisfaction of crying for me."

"But Skyler... he... he h-hurt you..."

Skyler nodded, hunching back in the sheet and leaning tiredly against the older blond. The lack of emotion from the younger male scared Ayase more then the thought of Ginji or Eito coming back and doing to him what they did to Skyler. Ayase thought back on all those close calls, all those times that Kanou had broken down the door and swept him away. He wondered how many times Skyler had stared at the door, asking for someone to save him, only to be disappointed when no one ever came.

Things had never been perfect with Kanou, and there were some things that could not be forgiven very easily, but he could always count on the older man. It wasn't good, but it was something he could live with in the end. Skyler acted like this wasn't the first time, like it wouldn't be the last either. That broke Ayase's heart more then anything else.

The evenness of his breathing singled to Ayase that Skyler must of fallen asleep. Ayase smoothed his hands though the younger blonds hair, feeling like he was seeing him for the first time. He chocked back his tears, holding the younger boy who was now whimpering in his sleep. He looked back at the door, praying that Kanou would hurry.

A/N: I feel... sad... But that's the reality of No Money, No Love. This life, especially the life these characters lead, is dangerous. And while Kanou isn't perfect, I think it could have been a lot worse. I did enjoy writing Kanou as a badass ruthless yukuza boss though.

And I realized that the time sequence might be a little weird to follow or not make sense, but fuck you it's my story. I COMMAND TIME HERE!

Anyway, I hope people are reading my fanfiction blog. Link is up on my profile and I've been posting frequently. Be my friend? Please?

FYI, if I don't get a chapter up within the first two weeks of May, don't expect a chapter until June. My Fiancee is coming home then so I'll busy doing...other...things... *ahem*... then after that its FANIME! :D

Also I'm still doing a gift-fic for the 200th reviewer. Only five away~ And I'm still asking for song suggestions for the NMNL play list.

Review Replies! Finally found time for some! I love all my readers and all my reviews. Please give me lots because it makes me work faster! :D

Percygranger: I was really scared that people would react badly to an OC, but Skyler is exactly what you described him, and that's why I wanted him in the story. He shows Ayase that while being with Kanou was bad, it could have ended a lot worse (pretty much what this whole chapter is about) and that he needs to really think about his relationship with Kanou. I want them to be together and happy, but with their past such a thing can't come about without some serious evaluation. Glad you love Skyler and the story! :)

Onige-a: I feel bad now 'cause I let bad things happen to him. D: Don't hate me?

Kitty In The Box: Hahaha! Maybe you can still win! I'd love to write a story for you, you've been really great and I always love reading your reviews!

Don't Preach: It's really hard to keep in character, especially since Kanou is so damn bi-polar. I really appreciate it though, when readers tell me I'm doing a good job. All I wanted was a really good 'what if' story that showed a little more maturity from Ayase, and maybe a little more softness from Kanou. Plus the storyline is so damn wrought with psychological trauma, I just love taking they're brains apart. :)

Honorable mention to: Luna's Fallen Angel, Damons-hot-as-hell, and Bellaliciousss!