Gravitation
Disclaimer: I don't own Gravitation. Maki Murakami does.
Eiri made sure to set his alarm clock at seven o'clock. As soon as the alarm went off, he jumped out of bed. Normally, he would sleep until noon, but today he was going to see his lover. Eiri hadn't been able to get near him in two months. This was his chance.
Tatsuha was still sleeping on the couch when Eiri entered the kitchen. He would have his coffee first then brush his teeth and take a bath. The younger Uesugi's eyes fluttered open when he heard someone set a mug down on the coffee table. He looked over to see his brother sitting on the couch across from him with a distant look on his face.
"Bro," Tatsuha called to him. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Eiri replied taking a deep breath. "I just can't believe I'm actually going to get to see him again."
Tatsuha pulled his covers off and sat upright on the couch. "I know. Whatever you didn't get to say to him last time, you'll get the chance to say today."
"Yeah," Eiri replied, "but I'm not sure I'm ready to say it all at once though."
"Yeah, but you know there's not a lot of t-"
"I know." Eiri said cutting him off.
There was a long moment of silence. Eiri continued to drink his coffee. Tatsuha got up and made himself breakfast. Before long, it was eight o'clock. Hiroshi had said he'd drop by at eight-thirty to go with them to the hospital. As soon as he finished his coffee, Eiri went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and take a shower. As soon as he stepped out of the shower, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Tatsuha yelled from the living room.
Eiri heard Hiroshi's voice coming from the living room. He quickly hurried off to his room to get dressed for he didn't want to waste any more time.
"Hey Tatuha," Eiri yelled from the bedroom, "you better get ready now. I don't want to waste time."
"Yeah, yeah," Tatsuha replied, "alright. Have a seat."
Hiroshi sat down on the couch with a distant look on his face. "Thanks." He said to the younger Uesugi as he walked off.
Last night, he couldn't sleep. He kept waking up with his heart racing. Not a good sign. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
"Hey." came Eiri's voice from behind the red head.
"Hey." Hiroshi replied. "You ready to go?"
"Yeah," Eiri told him, "we just have to wait for Tatsuha. He wanted to come with us."
"Speaking of which," Hiroshi said, "how're things going with him and Mr. Sakuma?"
"I don't think those two have spoken in a while." Eiri replied pulling out a cigarette from his shirt pocket.
"Huh? Why not," Hiroshi asked. "Did they get into a fight?"
"Not quite." Eiri responded. "You'd be better off talking to him about it?"
"Oh. Well does Mr. Seguchi know that those two are together?" Hiroshi decided to ask.
"No." Eiri said narrowing his eyes at the red head. "And neither does my sister."
"Oh, I see." Hiroshi snickered.
Eiri pulled out his lighter from the same pocket. When he ignited the flame, his heart beat increased. Talking to Hiroshi about it would have been pointless. He'd think the blonde had gone crazy. So Eiri decided to keep that quiet.
Tatsuha stepped into the living room ten minutes later; fully dressed and ready to go. Eiri put his cigarette out in the ashtray on the coffee table. The three of them got up and left the house. Tatsuha rode with his brother while Hiroshi followed along side them on his motor cycle. Like before it took twenty minutes to get to the hospital. But Eiri couldn't just go in like before. Shuichi's family didn't want him going near him. So they told the front desk that if Eiri Yuki came by to keep him out of Shuichi's room. Luckily, Hiroshi had a plan and they both came prepared. Both Eiri and Tatsuha put on their hats and sunglasses and entered through the front door. Hiroshi stood outside and pulled out his cell phone.
"Here goes nothing." Hiroshi said to himself.
Hiroshi pushed the speed dial button on his cell phone and held it to his ear. The receptionist at the front desk picked up the phone. Eiri turned his head to see Hiroshi's mouth moving from outside. He looked back at the receptionist. Whatever Hiroshi said to her made her turn away and face her computer. That was when Eiri and Tatsuha quietly walked passed her desk. Luckily for them, the desk was too high for her to see over and the swinging doors didn't make a sound. Eiri wasn't one for sneaking in and out of places. But at this point, he was desperate to see Shuichi.
They made it to room 204 without any problems. There wasn't a single security guard in sight. Eiri opened the door and entered the room. The room looked different. Shuichi's side was decorated with posters and wall paper. There was a corner table with a small radio on it. Eiri made his way over to Shuichi's bedside; his heart hammering like crazy.
The old bandage that was wrapped around his head was gone. His hair had grown longer in the past two months. His eyes remained open and would only blink every five minutes. Eiri pulled up a chair and sat beside him. He gently took Shuichi's right hand into his own and pressed his lips against the back of the boy's hand.
"Hey, Shu," Eiri whispered softly, "it's me, Yuki."
There was instant movement. Shuichi's fingers twitched twice. Eiri's eyes went wide at the sudden movement. Tatsuha came over and stood next to his brother.
"Tatsuha," Eiri whispered, "he moved."
"I saw that." Tatsuha replied with a toothy grin.
"Hey," Eiri whispered softly, "can you hear me?"
Just then, Hiroshi came tiptoeing in which startled the siblings. He pulled up another chair and sat on the opposite side of Shuichi's bed facing the blonde. Tatsuha moved to the foot of the bed. Hiroshi gently took Shuichi's left hand into his own. He kissed the back of his best friend's hand. A single tear fell from his eye.
"Hey, buddy." The red head whispered. "I'm back. I brought Yuki and Tatsuha to see you."
The comatose boy closed his fingers around Hiroshi's own fingers. The three men in the room looked utterly baffled. Hiroshi looked over at Eiri who was now scowling at him. Tatsuha saw this and went over to his brother's side. No one said anything for a long time. They only sat there in silence; staring at one another.
MEANWHILE~
Shuichi stood in front of the ocean with his eyes closed. He took deep, slow breaths; inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth. He was learning how to keep his mind and body calm. He needed to do this so he could help save the boy in the water. However, his thoughts were interrupted by light pressure on both of his hands.
"Now what," he said feeling rather annoyed.
"Don't ignore that touch, son." The man on the other side told him. "They're trying to tell you something. Listen. Feel the emotions through the touch.
Shuichi did as he was told. He focused on his right hand first. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and concentrated. A rush of relief ran through him briefly. Then came surprise. This caused the boy's right hand to twitch not once, but twice. He nearly choked on his own saliva as a wave of bafflement came over him. Without realizing it, he began rocking back and forth on the ball and heel of his feet. Then another wave of emotion came over him. He scowled; jealousy. He stopped rocking. He slowly opened his eyes. He saw the face of his right hand in the water. It was the blonde; the tortured soul.
"I wonder why he's jealous." Shuichi said out loud to himself.
"Jealous is he?" The woman asked. "Why?"
"I don't know," Shuichi replied, "but I'll find out."
He closed his eyes again and focused on his left hand this time. A gentle wind blew. The first emotion was a mixture of sympathy, happiness, and sadness. Something soft and mushy pressed itself to the back of his left hand. He smiled softly at the contact. His fingers closed around the invisible fingers clutching his left hand. The boy opened his eyes and saw the face of his left hand in the water. It was the red head; his best friend. A rush of bafflement swept through him followed by a slight sense of pride.
"So that's what happened!" Shuichi blurted out loud to himself with eyes open wide.
The couple laughed at this sudden outburst. Shuichi couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. The realization that the blonde and the red head were butting heads because of him was just amusing to him. But a sudden thought struck him as the images disappeared.
"What's the matter, son?" The man asked him.
"He's trying so hard." Shuichi said with a distant look.
"Who is?" The woman asked.
"The one who betrayed me," Shuichi replied, "he's trying so hard to regain my trust."
"And do you think you can ever learn to trust him again?"
"I don't know," Shuichi replied, "maybe. I mean I did agree to help him didn't I?"
"Just because you chose to help him, doesn't mean you agreed to trust him, son." The man explained to him. "Agreement and trust are two very different things. There are those that make agreements with people they don't trust. And then there are those that do trust people but don't always agree with them. Do you see what I'm saying?"
"Yes." Shuichi nodded.
"Earning someone's trust can take a long time." He continued. "Regaining someone's trust that has been broken can take longer."
"It depends on the type of person that you are." The woman told the boy. "Do you know what kind of person you are, Shuichi?"
The pink haired boy closed his eyes. He tried to focus on his own emotions, but he was interrupted by the woman in front of him.
"No, no." She said to him. "This isn't something that you can focus on. It is something that you should already know."
"I-I…"
"You really don't know?" The woman asked.
"N-no," he replied with his head down.
"Here, why don't we make this easier." The man said. "Take a look at the water."
Shuichi did as he was told. A face he didn't recognize appeared before him; a man with dark blue hair and brown eyes. The water flashed to a full body image. In the image, the man was hanging onto something. There was terror in his eyes as he held on for dear life. Shuichi was horror stricken. He closed his eyes tight and imagined himself standing in front of the place the man was hanging from. A wind blew and when he opened his eyes again, he found himself standing on a cliff. He saw a pair of fingers hanging off of the cliff. Shuichi quickly ran and knelt down, grabbing the man's hands before he slipped to his death.
"Hang on!" Shuichi grimaced as he struggled to pull him up. "I got you! Use your feet and climb up!"
The man did as Shuichi had instructed. Together, they worked to pull the man up on top of the cliff. They both backed away from the edge.
"Are you okay?" Shuichi asked the man who was now brushing himself off. As he stood up straight, Shuichi saw the look on his face. The man scowled at him with such malice and hate. Shuichi was utterly shocked. He just saved this guy's life and here he was glaring at him.
Without a word the man turned and walked away. Shuichi gritted his teeth and turned away from him. He found himself standing in front of the ocean once again. There was no more sign of the ingrate that he just saved.
"What was that?" Shuichi asked in an exasperated voice. "I just saved that guy's life and he doesn't even say thank you!"
"Well at least you know what kind of person you are." The woman said calmly.
"Um…what kind of person is that exactly?" The boy asked scratching his head.
"The kind of person who would risk his own life even to save his enemy," the man answered for him.
"Enemy," Shuichi replied dumbly.
"Yes," the woman told him, "that boy was one of your rivals. He would have done everything in his power to hurt you."
"Wow. I had no idea." Shuichi said.
"And if you did know," the man asked, "would you have still helped him?"
"He may be my worst enemy," Shuichi stated, "but not even my worst enemy deserves to die like that."
"At it, boy," the man said raising both hands in the air.
"See, that's the kind of person you are!" The woman added.
"I guess so." Shuichi laughed rubbing the back of his head.
~At the hospital~
Hiroshi and the Uesugi siblings sat in silence. Eiri still had a hold of Shuichi's hand, hoping that somehow his lover would squeeze his hand instead of giving him the usual twitch. Eiri knew that his words had deeply hurt Shuichi; in more ways than one. He had to apologize. However, his pride kept him from saying it in front of the red head. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it alone.
"Hey, Tatsuha," Hiroshi said breaking the silence.
"Huh?" The boy replied staring off into space.
"Um…I've been meaning to ask you…"
"What?" Tatsuha asked looking confused.
"Why do you think Seguchi has anything to do with this?" He asked.
Tatsuha's eyes went wide. Eiri dropped Shuichi's hand and turned to give his brother the look. The younger male was at a loss for words. He started backing away from his older brother. Eiri gave him another look that told him to get the hell out of here before I kill you. Knowing what that look meant, Tatsuha got up and left the room.
"Okay…" Hiroshi said scratching his head. "What was that for? He didn't even answer my question."
"And he's not going to." Eiri said scowling at the red head.
"Why not," Hiroshi asked glaring at the blonde.
"Look, just forget about what Ayaka told you." Eiri said.
"You're hiding something." Hiroshi shot back.
"So what if I am?" Eiri replied coldly. "It has nothing to do with you."
"Actually, it does if it involves my best friend." Hiroshi protested.
Eiri went quiet. He knew Hiroshi had a point. Tatsuha had some serious explaining to do.
"Forget it." Eiri said. He got up from his chair and left the room. He was done for today. "Let's go." He said to Tatsuha.
Hiroshi remained by his best friend's bed side. Shuichi's eyes blinked once and his fingers loosened on Hiroshi's hand.
"I know he's hiding something, Shu." Hiroshi said to his comatose friend. "I'm going to find out what it is."
~The Horizon~
"Uh-oh," Shuichi said while concentrating.
"What is it dear?" The woman asked worried.
"There was some serious tension just a moment ago." He told her. He shook his right hand which had been released. He could no longer feel the blonde's presence.
"Oh, I almost forgot." the woman said interrupting the boy, "do you have a sea shell, dear?"
"They're over by those big boulders where Sanyo and Jessica liked to play." Shuichi told her.
"Go and get them." She told him. "You'll need them both."
"Okay." He said as he ran off to retrieve the shells.
"He's making very good progress." The man said to the woman next to him.
"Yes," she agreed, "it won't be too long now."
Shuichi reached the spot where he had left the sea shells. Curiously, he put the sea shell up to his left ear and listened closely.
"He's up to something, Shu," said the voice of the red head. "I'm going to find out what it is."
"Oh, boy," Shuichi said with wide eyes, "that does not sound good." He put the other sea shell to his right ear.
"So what if I am? It has nothing to do with you."
"This is bad." Shuichi said to himself. He quickly returned to the line and told the couple about what he had heard.
"Just as we suspected," the man replied.
"What do you mean?" Shuichi asked him.
"Do you remember what I told you about that blonde haired boy?" The man asked. "I said he had been betrayed and used. He ran away from his problems instead of facing them."
"Yes, I remember." Shuichi replied softly. "You said it was called…post-traumatic stress?"
"That's right." He replied. "They're not willing to open up and talk about their problems with just anyone. Their family members try to shield them from anyone or anything that reminds them of that horrific event. They don't realize that they're only making the problem worse by doing so."
"The trauma victim themself will avoid people or places that remind them of the event." The woman chimed in.
Shuichi thought really hard about this, but something just didn't add up to him. Something just didn't make sense.
"I must have reminded him of his past then." Shuichi said.
"Yes." The woman replied.
"But if I reminded him of his past," Shuichi went on, "then why didn't he just avoid me? Why didn't he tell me to leave him alone from the get go?"
"There could be a number of possibilities, sweetie." The woman told him. "He could have felt a strong connection."
"Or he was taking his first steps to getting over his past and he himself didn't even realize it." The man added.
"Is that possible?" Shuichi asked.
"Of course," the woman replied. "As a doctor, I've seen this kind of thing happen before. There are professionals who know everything about pot-traumatic stress and can help the victim take steps to leaving their past behind."
"They can even point out to the victim the different ways that they've helped themselves with their stress." The man added.
"Really," Shuichi asked surprised.
"Really," the man replied.
"But in this case, dear," the woman went on, "it has to be you."
"Help him," the man added, "and things could be better for you both."
Shuichi said nothing. He looked at the sea shells in his hands. More than anything, he wanted things to get better. He wanted to go home to his best friend; to his family. At the same time, he would miss the Horizon. It was probably the most peaceful place he had ever been. There was no crime, no violence, no hate, and no regrets. Shuichi knew that once he left the Horizon, he would never return. He wouldn't return until the end of his existence.
"May I have a moment?" He asked the couple.
"Of course, dear," the woman said softly.
Shuichi left one last time and returned to the jagged boulders. He sat beneath them and looked out at the ocean. The water glistened with breath taking beauty. The color changed constantly with each wave. The ever- lasting sunset cast distant mountains into shadows. He would miss this. He would miss everything.
A rock sat next to him in the sand. It was just a plane white rock; the kind you use to scrape chalky white powder onto concrete. He turned to face the boulder he was sitting against. With the rock in hand, he started scraping letters onto the large gray stone. He finished off by tracing a shape around the words. That was that. Tears began to spill from his eyes. This time he let them run freely. He placed the white rock under the boulder, took one last look at his playground, and left. This time it was for good.
On the boulder, Shuichi had written:
Sanyo, Jessica and Shuichi
Friends of the Horizon forever
He drew a heart around the words to seal their friendship. Even if he never saw them again in life, he would always remember them.
Owari~
Angel Eyes Kiyone: Hey guys! I'm sorry this took so long. I haven't forgotten about this story. I've just been so preoccupied with other stuff. Plus, I've also been really lazy. LOL But no, I have not forgotten about this story. I do plan on ending it. So don't worry, I will continue. I'm really happy with the way the next chapter was written. It revolves more around the case in New York, so stick around. I would like to thank all of my reviewers:
Manga Ren, damons-hot-as-hell, and white pedal.
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Kickassclumsy, Miyuki1393, omichiri1683, gothpandaotaku and Manga Ren
And special thanks to Shadowfox13. Because of your comment, I found enough energy to get off my lazy ass and start typing this chapter. LOL. So thank you for that. Thank you to everyone reading this story. Ja ne.