[+][L-N+][P-UL] ~ SHOUNEN POP - 少年ＰＯＰ ~

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

Chiyou didn't wake up. He didn't move, didn't blink....didn't even breathe.
He did, however, have a heartbeat...but it was irregular, and far too fast.

The force from Naoko's grab had shocked his system, and injured his windpipe. It was as if it were paralyzed, not able to move to take in air.

Blissfully unaware of the danger he was in, Chiyou drifted into a dreamland where he was a little boy again, playing with butterflies in his favorite park.



karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru  

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

Heartbeat... but no breath...

Naoko stood, pacing for a minute, trying to figure out what to do... He stopped, leaning down and quickly beginning to do CPR.

He wasn't the best at it, especially given his panic-stricken state... but he had to try.

Because if Chiyou died...

Two hands pressed down on his diaphragm... one two three... then he moved over to Chiyou's head, tilting it back just a bit and pinching the young man's nose before placing his mouth against Chiyou's own and breathing... one two three...

Then it was back with his hands, pumping. One two three.

His mouth, breathing. One two three.

"Onegai, Chiyou-san... you have to breathe..." Naoko whispered demandingly as he pumped the young vocalist's chest again.

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

A gasp, followed by the intense spasm of the kid's airways from their frozen state.
Drawing in a deep, ragged breath, Chiyou arched his back and began to cough violently.

He wasn't sure what had just happened, but he knew Naoko had been the cause. Naoko was...he was something...somehow...it seemed he was two people in one. Was that possible? Well...he had said that his brother was actually Shou and didn't know it...he assumed it was something similar. Perhaps there was a genetic pre-disposition to that sort of thing?

"Ko...Nao..ko....onegai..." he wheezed, looking up warily at the pianist, his big doe eyes pleading for mercy.

"I'm sorry I made you angry..." Chiyou said softly, bowing his head nervously as if he had been the one to mess up.




karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru  

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

Immediately, as relief flooded every fiber of his being, Naoko helped Chiyou to sit up and cough, rubbing the young man's back as he tried to get the air back into his lungs.

"It wasn't your fault. It's me. Look I... I need to go... before it happens again. If... if you want to, I..." looking away, the blond stood up. "Well, you have my number so... Just, call me later... let me know you're alright..."

He headed toward the door, fully intending to leave Chiyou there alone.
After all... the 'kid' was in more danger with the pianist around than anything.

"Gomen nasai..." Naoko whispered before slipping out the front door.

Once outside, the blond climbed into the taxi that had been waiting for him down the block. He pulled out a change of clothes, knowing he had to get the bloodstained ones off. Naoko used the clothes to wipe his face. There would be tiny scratches... but Naoko would chalk it up to a moment of weakness in himself.

Self inflicted is what he would tell Ryu because... well... in a way they kind of were.

Dressed in jeans with a dark blue long sleeved t-shirt, Naoko just wanted to see his beloved akuma and go get something to eat.

He'd attacked Chiyou... again...
And something told the young man that this wouldn't be the last time his darker side reared it's ugly head.

The only thing that Naoko worried about now however... was how long before it attacked Ryu?

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

"I'll...I'll call..." he said weakly, trying not to burst into tears again. He hadn't been able to do anything. He couldn't save Naoko, it seemed. At least not right now.
He felt like a failure.

"Naoko...please...take care of yourself." he added as the pianist was walking out the door.

Sitting there on the floor in the middle of his freshly-wrecked apartment, Chiyou just stared in the direction of the closed door.
He was alone, and he felt alone.
If only he could change things...but the harsh reality was that he couldn't. he was insignificant, and didn't have any power to help or save anyone. He never did, did he? He hadn't been able to keep Ishi from being hurt. He hadn't been there to help Akihiko. He couldn't even save Naoko from himself.

Silently, Chiyou sat there on the floor, propped up against the couch with blood dripping down his cheeks as he waited for Nakai to come back. He was just too exhausted to get up and fix this on his own.



karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru  

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

Whistling to himself, Nakai ascended the front steps to Chiyou's place. In his arms were a few bags... one from shopping and one from KFC.
He was certain that Chiyou would love dinner... probably love dessert more but the young man needed some cheering up. Even if he had picked a rather unhealthy food in the process.

The blond had knicked Chiyou's keys, just to let himself back in the door... but he found it unlocked which, was strange because he could have sworn that he'd locked it when he left.

"Chiyou-kun, I hope you..." but the bags in Nakai's arms clattered to the floor as he took in the ruined living room... and the young man slumped against the sofa.

'Not again...'

"Chiyou!" Kai shouted, rushing over to the vocalist's side and kneeling there. "Chiyou what happened? Daijoubu ka? You're hurt! Your neck it..." gentle fingers touched the newly forming bruises.

'NO! I promised I'd protect him! I said it was safe here! Never... I should never have left! What if he'd been killed?!'

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

So, so tired.
He was just so tired. So completely drained. He had lost his fight. The fight to help a poor, tortured soul. That had taken...pretty much all the fight from the kid.

Ishi had told him, when he was younger, that the world really wasn't such a bad place...that, overall, people were good. It had been a lie, hadn't it? Ishi had lied to him, trying to protect him from the terrible reality of it all. The world was sick, and twisted. The world was out to destroy everything good and kill everyone innocent. How else could things like this happen? How else could someone as sweet as Naoko be turned into an almost inhuman creature?
It was too much...too painful.
Chiyou simply retreated into himself. How could he face this sort of hell? How could he even begin to explain to Nakai what had happened without saying something that would result in Ishi or Kai being killed in the end?

Better to just be silent. Silent forever, if need be.

Nakai stood over him, touching him, asking him if he were alright....but Chiyou didn't say a thing. He simply looked up at the guitarist with the saddest smile on his face, the smile of the utterly heartbroken.

It was funny...looking at Kai...he could see the man clear as a bell. The only thing he could really see...one man...like a shining angel in the dim void.




karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru  

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

That heartbreaking smile...

"Chiyou... you have to snap out of it..." Nakai spoke softly, sitting himself and Chiyou down on the sofa. He pulled the young man into his arms, just holding him.

"Please, answer me... what happened..." skilled yet slightly calloused fingers drifted through the vocalist's hair as he tried to soothe the storm he felt coming from the 'kid'.

"Come on, Chi-chan..." Kai whispered. "I want to help you... but I can't help if you don't tell me what's wrong... did someone do this? Was it... was it the same person as before? Onegai, Chiyou.... you have to tell me..."

"Tadaima..." Naoko spoke, entering Ryu's place a bit hesitantly.

He had explained to the taxi driver that his friend's cat had attacked his face. Quite convincingly too because Naoko really did hate the small felines.
Only natural that they would hate him back.

But explaining the scratches on his face was going to be a bit harder with his lover.
Self infliction.
Naoko was sticking to that story.
A temporary bout of insanity and he'd tried to claw his own face off. He even bit a couple of his nails to make it look more real.

"Ryu, are you ready to leave?" the pianist asked, peeking into his akuma's bedroom, thinking the other man still getting ready for dinner.

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

No...there would be no "snapping out of it" for Chiyou. The more he was asked to, the further he retreated. It was the only way. To protect everybody else, he would have to silence himself.
He just kept repeating that in his head.
To protect those he loved, he had to go away. Naoko might not mean to...but he knew he would...he would do anything if he lost it.
He couldn't do anything about that.

Like a doll or a puppet, the young vocalist just sat there, limp against Kai's chest.
The chicken in the box on the floor smelled nice. He would like to eat. He would like to rest. Still...he didn't verbalize any of these desires...he simply sat there, broken.


karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

~( Lonely ) Mayotta nara~
~( Try again ) Nando datte~
~Yarinaosu koto dekiru kara~

Ryu had been dressed and ready for a while now, and when Naoko got home, he was sitting on the bed, hands folded together beneath his chin. He looked horribly worried.

"Na-ko! I dunno why, but I've been so worried. I just got this terrible feeling and it almost made me sick. I..." he paused and got up from the bed, walking over to the pianist and lifting his chin, examining his face closely.

"What happened to your face? Did someone hurt you!" his crimson eyes flashed, ready to rain hell down on anyone who even dare.

~( I’m here )~ Soba ni iru wa~
~( Believe me ) Osorenai de~
~Shinjiau koto....~
~FOR YOU~

 

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

"I'm fine, I..." Naoko hesitated, forcing himself to not take a step away from his lover. "I broke... when I went home something in my head just broke and I started clawing at my skin." he spoke softly, averting his eyes from his akuma's red gaze.

"Really, I'm alright now. And it doesn't hurt, just a few little scratches really... even broke a couple nails." the pianist replied with a soft laugh, showing Ryu his fingers. "Can... can we go eat dinner now? Maybe it'll get my mind off of this..."

Fear.
Cold and brutal, slammed into Nakai and he sighed.
It was time for more drastic action. "I swear, Chiyou... if you don't talk to me... I'll walk out the door right now." the blond whispered, his voice serious.

He meant it.
If the kid wouldn't talk to him... if he wouldn't open up.
Well... what could Kai do in the face of that.

"I'll call Izzy back from his vacation. Make Shou-san turn the damn plane around and get his a** back here." the guitarist continued, trying desperately to just get the kid to say something.

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

~( Lonely ) Mayotta nara~
~( Try again ) Nando datte~
~Yarinaosu koto dekiru kara~

"Baby....oh no...." the violinist wrapped his arms around his tenshi and comforted him.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm sorry I wasn't there. I'm...I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself badly. It's ok. We'll go eat, and everything will be just fine."
Turning, he grabbed his wallet from the dresser and took Naoko by the hand, leading him right out the door and to the car, hoping that the sooner they got somewhere, the sooner the pianist would feel better.

"Just tell me where you want to go and we're there..."

~( I’m here )~ Soba ni iru wa~
~( Believe me ) Osorenai de~
~Shinjiau koto....~
~FOR YOU~

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

Nakai...was going to leave him, wasn't he? He was going to be abandoned now....for trying to protect everyone...

Everything was going downhill...everything...

Face scrunching up, Chiyou grabbed Nakai by the shirt collar and held on for dear life as he started to bawl.

"Onegai.....onegai....onegai...o-onegai...." he repeated over and over again.
At least he was saying something...



karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru  

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

Frozen, Nakai wrapped his arms around Chiyou once more. "Hey... shhhhh.... calm down. I just want you to try and talk to me, Chiyou-kun. That's all. I can't help you if you won't talk..." he whispered, gently stroking the vocalist's hair.

He had expected the 'kid' to get angry... not... just break down...

"Maybe I should call Izzy back to Japan, ne?" the guitarist asked, wanting to do what was right for Chiyou.

He hated lying...
Everything... everything his said to his lover was a lie these days.
And it hurt...
Hurt worse than anything.
But if he told the truth, he'd have to explain... and if he explained...
Ryu would probably be killed.
Simple as that.

And so the pianist lied.
A thing that was quickly becoming second nature to the young man.

"I don't care where we go. You pick." Naoko replied with a soft smile, squeezing Ryu's hand in his own as they got in the car.

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

"Can't....can't....iie..." the kid protested, obviously frightened of talking. Anyone would be able to tell just from that that the boy had been threatened, that someone had most definitely come here, and it was beyond a shadow of a doubt the same person who had taken his eyes to begin with.

"Iie! Ishi stays...on vacation. He's...he's...he's safer there."
Another hint...Chiyou had definitely been threatened with Ishi's safety and well-being. Of course he wouldn't talk! How could he?!

Part of him wanted to just cut and run...maybe just dash out into traffic for the sake of the lives of the men he loved...but he knew he couldn't do that. Ruki would be devastated...it would hurt him worse than he imagined Naoko ever could.

karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

~( Lonely ) Mayotta nara~
~( Try again ) Nando datte~
~Yarinaosu koto dekiru kara~

"My pick? Ok then...how about steaks? Something meaty and filling? How's that sound?" Ryuukaze asked as they got in the car and he revved up the engine.

He could go for a steak, definitely. Juicy, red meat...medium rare, just a little bit of blood to it...and maybe some sort of potato and vegetable. A salad, even! Oh...ginger dressing would be lovely.

Pulling out of the driveway, they headed straight for downtown.

~( I’m here )~ Soba ni iru wa~
~( Believe me ) Osorenai de~
~Shinjiau koto....~
~FOR YOU~

 

[Nileregwen DoUrden]

Smiling slightly, Naoko nodded. "I could probably go for a steak... though I think a salad with it would be more to my liking right now." the pianist replied, looking over to his lover.
"Sorry I worried you earlier. I didn't mean to make you wait so long."

Amber eyes narrowed dangerously. "If he threatened you, Chiyou... I'm not asking you to tell me who... only what he said. We can protect Izzy better if I can tell Hiroki the threats... protect myself and you too." Nakai spoke, just letting the young man cling to him. "He's obviously got you scared to death, Chi-chan... But you don't have to be. If we find him and the police get him, he can't hurt you again. He can't hurt me or Izzy or anyone you care about..."

 

[Ryuu Minamoto]

~( Lonely ) Mayotta nara~
~( Try again ) Nando datte~
~Yarinaosu koto dekiru kara~

"Steak, salad...well we'll get you whatever it is you want! I know this nice steakhouse that has all sorts of dishes. Place called Kobe. Plain name, outstanding food. Best steaks in Japan. Best chicken dishes too, if you ask me...and the salads are always cold and crisp." the vocalist went on and on about the restaurant, just making small talk.

"Hm? I know you didn't mean to make me wait, love. Don't worry about it. Not an issue at all, as long as you're happy now."
Pulling up to the restaurant, Ryu parked the car and got out, walking around quickly to open Naoko's door for him.

"Come on babe...I can wait for you, but I can't wait for this food!" he chuckled and made a silly face, taking the blond by the hand and hurrying them along inside where they were sat at a lovely table.

~( I’m here )~ Soba ni iru wa~
~( Believe me ) Osorenai de~
~Shinjiau koto....~
~FOR YOU~

kawaita tsumori ame ga tsuzunaku katari kakeru
namida wa seijaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru

Options...he didn't have to tell who....
Well, that made things a little easier.

"He said...he said he would kill Ishi if I told. Said he might give him poisoned sweets, or...who knows. He also said he might just kill you, or make me choose or something....so I can't tell. I....I shouldn't even be saying this...I don't know if it's too much. I'm scared. He said...he said he was sorry, though...he's very sick...I feel....I feel bad for him, Kai!" the boy just let it all out, everything but a name or a description of Naoko. He just let it all go...the fear, the pain, the sadness...and he cried and cried...more for Naoko than for himself.



karada o tsutau ame ni furueru awai omoi
guren no yuuwaku ni...samayou yoru ga akeru