Sorry I've been MIA dudes and dudettes, school is a bitch. So is lack of motivation. Huhh. Also, today is my Birthday! I turned seventeen, I am the dancing queen! Also sorry for cursing so much in this chapter, I have begun cursing like a sailor in everyday life, and that has seeped into my writing, so sorry my little babies. I welcome you back! Read, review, and enjoy my loves.

It was warm, and it was bright.

Kaoru couldn't help but smile.

Hikaru was beside him, holding his hand, the two of them sitting side by side in their too big sweaters Mommy had made for them. Hikaru's hand was sweaty. Kaoru didn't like that. But he didn't dare let go. He didn't want to let go. He was scared to.

"Kao." Hikaru said, and he turned his big amber eyes and chubby cheeks toward his brother. "What do you want to do today?"

Kaoru thought hard, confused. What would they do that day?

Kaoru already had something planned. Something with a friend.

"I have to go see a boy I met, I think. It's important." Kaoru said. Hikaru wrinkled his nose.

"What do you mean? What boy? We don't know anyone else. Just stay here with me."

"But I have to go."

Hikaru wrapped a short arm around his little brother and pulled him closer.

"Just stay here. We can play on the playground together." He said. Kaoru shut his eyes slowly. They were hot orbs begging for rest.

"M'kay."

Kaoru woke up in a gasp.

He sat up straight, suddenly awake and horrified by his surroundings.

How did I get here?

A dream, I was dreaming. Kaoru clenched and unclenched his hand, missing the pudgy five year old hand of his brother Hikaru. The dream had been a slice of a memory, from a distant summer. It had been Hikaru's favorite summer. Kaoru was happy if Hikaru was.

Kaoru shivered.

Rain was pouring steadily onto the asphalt, which Kaoru could hardly see. The sky was dark, yet still light enough to show green gray clouds pushing through the air high above. A cluster of lightening cracked and traced through the heavens.

The pounding growl of thunder followed quickly after.

Kaoru took his eyes from the sky and realized that he wasn't wet. Then he realized why.

He was sitting beside the broken doorway of some concrete building, maybe the entrance to a warehouse or industrial building of some sort. There was no door, just an open hole leading into the pouring rain and terrifying night. Kaoru looked to his left and saw that the innards of the building were even more overwhelmingly black than the rainy alleyway beside him.

"Fish." Kaoru whispered. And he remembered in a flash what was happening. His shoulder was throbbing because a bullet had nicked him. He was probably drowsy for the same reason. Fish had left him there, and now Kaoru was in this place.

But where is this place?

"You awake?" A voice whispered from the darkness. Kaoru choked on a scream and scrambled backwards, twisting up and up and onto his feet.

The voice chuckled. "Calm down you scared little mouse. It's me."

Fish then stepped forward from the heavy darkness.

"You-you shot me asshole!" Kaoru yelled. The smile on Fish's face fell.

"I have perfect aim. It's not my fault."

"You could've told me to duck instead of scaring the crap out of me." Kaoru grumbled as he leaned against a sheetrock wall. His heart was pounding. As was his head. His eyes were burning with heat.

"Again, not my fault that you don't trust me."

"You're an insane outlaw. Do you expect me to?"

"Insane isn't a word to be used lightly, mouse."

"Don't call me that."

"How's the shoulder?"

Kaoru looked down at the wound. It wasn't large, but it sure hurt like hell. It looked like Fish had tried to clean it up. Kaoru felt a pang of guilt.

"Yeah, sorry for messing up back there. I should have listened to you." Kaoru said, sliding to the cement floor. It was hard and uncomfortable, but it felt good to rest.

"Yeah."

Kaoru shut his eyes and breathed steadily. He listened to the rain pattering over the roof. He heard Fish sigh and sit down.

Without opening his eyes, Kaoru asked, "Where are we?"

There was a pause, and then Fish answered. "You know, I have no fucking clue. I just dragged you in here from a few alleys down, you were passed out cold and bleeding. You looked dead, I almost had a heart attack. I thought we would be better off inside."

"It's creepy in this place."

"Yeah." Fish began before letting out a big yawn. "But it's better than being out there. I wonder if they're still out there looking. I don't hear any sirens."

"You're right." Kaoru said, furrowing his brows. He didn't hear sirens either. "Isn't it weird though? I mean, if they found Dean- I mean Dennis, I feel like they would be freaking out right now, like running around searching for the gunman on the loose."

Fish sat forward. "You know what, you're right. It's probably Officer Hakujo Lee, sorry, Detective, as if that means anything. He likes to regroup and strategize or some shit like that. I've had quite a few run ins with him. Though I can't really complain, I'd probably be in jail if it weren't for him. He's saved me from a long sentence a few times. He watches out for me."

Kaoru opened his eyes fully so he could see Fish. The kid looked exhausted. Kaoru still wasn't sure of the man's age.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru asked, his voice soft and slightly hoarse.

Fish dragged a hand across his scruff and over his eyes, rubbing them harshly.

"I was friends with Hakujo's little brother when I was younger, younger than you even. We were best friends, really, like brothers. Lee would play us both in chess all the time. I always lost. His little brother would win sometimes, though. He wanted to be a detective. Read all those mystery novels, you know? Loved that shit. "

Kaoru stared.

"Hachiro. We called him Hachi. He hated that nickname. He thought it didn't suit his cool detective style." Fish barked a laugh. "As if that mattered, the kid was ninety pounds soaking wet and spoke with a stutter, there was nothing cool about him."

The rain began to pound harder against the roof. Kaoru could smell it.

"We were both losers, to be honest, I guess that's why we gravitated to each other. But I protected the kid, for the most part. I was the bigger of us two, though he was a few months older. And Hakujo protected us both. There were these assholes who liked to beat the shit out of us, insult us, the works. One times this rich kid spit on me, called me dirt poor trash. Lee knocked his front teeth out."

"You're kidding."

"No." Fish laughed. "It was amazing." His smile fell. His eyes seemed fixated on some distant memory.

"Yeah, amazing. Then we went into sixth grade. All was good. I hit a growth spurt, grew four inches, and Hachi stared to lose his stutter, though he always had trouble with hard consonants, it drove me nuts. He would stand there for minutes, repeating the same two letters, for minutes. Ca-ca-ca-ca-ca-can. For minutes. It got him so frustrated. It got other people frustrated too. Really frustrated, apparently. A week before summer break he was found dead in a ditch."

Kaoru froze, eyes wide.

"Fucking crazy man, crazy. It was so psychotic, I mean we were kids, and some asshole upper class teenager killed him. And for what? Fun? It's insane. That was insane, Kaoru. That was insane."

"I-I don't know what to say." Kaoru whispered. Fish looked directly into his eyes.

"Rin Akamatsu. You know why Lee seems to hate you so much, Kaoru? You look just like him. Just fucking like him, just like Rin, that rich bastard that killed my best friend and got away with it."

Sorry that wasn't very long or varied, as in I only kept with two characters, but I had a whole lot of fun writing that last bit. Seriously, like way too much fun. I hope you like my storytelling, or Fish's storytelling rather. If you guys catch any typos feel free to tell me so I can fix them! Gosh darnit it's late. Sorry again for all the F bombs, I felt they were necessary given Fish's emotion. Goodnight my dolls.