Gravitation Fan Fiction ❯ This I Promise You ❯ I Want to Spend my Life that Way (Part 2) ( Chapter 7 )

This I Promise You

Prequel to: Because of You

Written by: Chocho

Disclaimer: I do not own Gravitation

Story summary: Everybody assured him Rinjin Yasashii was just another obsessed fan with a crush and that there was nothing to worry about. Little did they know how wrong they all were.

Chapter summary: This is the happiest day of my life! I can't believe that I'm going to be tied to the love of my life forever!...What? Hiro! What's he doing here?...Goddamn him! He ruined everything! I hate him!

Songs: There are snippets of various Bad Luck songs. I took the translated versions from animelyrics.com, so if they're not right, it's not my fault.

Warnings: M-preg, explicit sex, language, violence, angst

Key: Blah blah blah: flashback/dream

Blah: stressed words

*: change in POV or time

 

***

 

Chapter 7: I Want to Spend my Life that Way- Part 2

 

 

The couple made their way towards the glass balcony doors, passing the coffee table overflowing with bouquets of flowers. Their fragrant scent wafted up and enveloped them. Shuichi closed his eyes and breathed the sweet aroma with a smile. When he opened his eyes, he gasped. Sitting in front of the doors that lead out to the porch was a shrine with a statue of Shakyamuni, Buddha's first incarnation. He is seated in the Lotus position, which he has been told is best for deep meditation, on a double Lotus pedestal.

 

“The Lotus symbolizes purity, perfection and divine birth,” Eiri's deep voice informed him, following his boyfriends gaze to the altar.

 

Buddha's hands were held in the mudra of meditation. Surrounding the large image of the developer and teacher of what became known as Buddhism were candles, flowers and incense.

 

Shuichi felt a fine trembling all over his body and the nervousness returned a thousand-fold. Swallowing, his breathing became rapid. He had to fight the urge to race back upstairs and lock himself in the bedroom.

 

Turning to his long time partner, Shuichi stared deeply into those golden hazel eyes he knew oh, so well. “Eiri,” he whispered. “Please tell me I'm dreaming; that this is some sort of joke.”

 

This whole thing seemed so surreal. For the longest time, this was what Shuichi has wanted, to be tied forever to this “main man” in his life, the person forever and always number one on his charts. Now that that dream was finally coming true, the last thing he wanted was to wake up and find out it was a dream. He expected at any moment a camera crew to come bursting out from wherever it was they were hiding and shout, “Surprise! Just kidding!” That would be worse then anything else he had ever endured. No, if this was a dream, he did not want to ever wake up.

 

Understanding his baka all too well, Eiri smiled softly and cupped the singer's cheek with his free hand. “No, Shu-chan. It's not a dream and I've never be so cruel as to joke around about something so sacred.”

 

Tears once again blurred Shuichi's vision and rolled down his face. “Ai ni natte…” he whispered, his voice cracking. With a sob, he shifted and wiped futilely at the waterfall of tears streaming down his face. “I'm falling in love with you all over again,” he cried.

 

The blond man smiled and brushed his lover's tears away with his thumb. “So am I.” Leaning down, he lightly pressed their lips together, eliciting a tingle through their bodies. Pulling away, he gently led Shuichi to the shrine.

 

Together they knelt before the Buddha figure and clasped their hands together. Eiri knew the readings and chants they both had to recite by heart but he was not to sure about his intended, so he did a search on line earlier and printed them out, just in case. The sheets of paper were lying on the floor in front of the shrine, but strangely enough Shuichi did not use them. As both men started reciting the Vandana, Tisarana and the Pancasila in loud clear voices, Shuichi kept his eyes glued to the statue of Buddha's first incarnation. He was curious how his lithe god came to know these particular chants. Shuichi had had no reason to memorize them. Unless…

 

After the couple was finished delivering the chants, they stood up. Eiri produced his neglected lighter, which had been collecting dust in a draw in the kitchen, from the sleeve of his haori. Using one hand to hold back the long, billowing sleeve, he lit one of the candles. He handed the lighter to Shuichi and using that one lit candle, proceeded to light the remaining ones. The candle light flickered softly against the white marble statue. They then used the flames of the candles to light the incense. Soon, the living room was filled with the strong, sweet smell of the incense. It mingled with the fragrance of the dozens of flowers that carpeted the shrine. It was almost an overpowering combination. Eiri walked to the coffee table and picked up the flowers. He handed half of them to Shuichi and together they offered them to Buddha. Then they turned towards one another.

 

Eiri stared into Shuichi's eyes and grabbed hold of his small hands, holding them gently but firmly within his. Taking a deep breath, he prepared to bare his soul to the person who had captured his heart, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, till death do they part, Uesugi Eiri was ready to make this commitment.

 

“Buddhists believe that all humans are imperfect and that people don't marry other people but instead choose to make a dual pledge to the greater Truth, which is perfect.” Eiri lowered his head, gathering his thoughts. “You know me better than anyone, Shu-chan,” he continued, staring deeply into the violet-blue eyes of his lover, soon to be husband. “I'm not the most devout Buddhist.”

 

Shuichi snorted. That was an understatement.

 

With an answering smirk, Eiri continued. “Truth be told, I've pretty much thrown religion out the window. It's not who I am. What I am, though, is completely…utterly…and inexplicably in love with you. You infatuated me the moment our eyes locked over that drivel you called a love song.”

 

Shuichi had to smile at that. Eiri had not actually believed his song was that bad, but the famous romance writer had a reputation to uphold.

 

“Right here, right now, I'm making a pledge, a solemn vow to love, honor, and respect and cherish you till the end of time. I promise to be forever faithful, to always place your needs, wants, wishes and desires first. This I promise you.”

 

Fresh tears rolled down Shuichi's face. Silent ones traveled down Eiri's face. With the heel of his hand, Shu laughed and wiped the tears that flowed continuously down his face. “You have me at a disadvantage, Eiri,” he told the writer. “You've known and have been planning this for Kami-sama knows how long! So you were able to write the perfect marriage vows.” He laughed, sniffing and again wiping his wet face. “I could always recite my `expected undertakings'.”

 

Eiri chuckled. “You could, but which part? Groom? Or…bride,” he teased.

 

Pretending to be hurt, Shu pouted and playfully punched Eiri's arm. “Meanie!” His face becoming neutral, the singer thought back over their long and complicated relationship, all the hurtles, hardships and close calls they went through. He remembered seeing him that night so long ago, thinking he was a foreigner who had lost his way. As the past ten years replayed in his head, he knew what he wanted to say. “'You are already a part of my continuing dreams'. `I'm tangled up in something' that I can't explain.”

 

Eiri recognized the lines from one of Bad Lucks songs. Seeing as most, if not all were written about their relationship, Eiri was not surprised that Shuichi would decide to include some of the lyrics with his marriage vows.

 

“All I've ever wanted was to be close to you. Ever since I saw you at the park that night, reading my lyrics…I was totally, utterly and completely taken in by you. It was love at first sight; but I didn't realize it at the time. All I knew was that I could not get you out of my head! I wanted… no, had to see you! I became a junkie and you were my drug of choice! Just to be in the same room with you was more than enough. You were `a temptation I certainly hadn't expected'. `I always want to be with you, there's no other place where the sun will rise for me'. `I want to go falling in love with you, even a furious brake won't stop this, no matter who tries to stop me now. Since it gets stronger every time I hit and am hit by the borders of common sense. I'll climb over the wall and speed up, I can't stop lovin' you'. I won't stop lovin' you. This I promise you.”

 

They stared into one another's eyes, seeing their past, their present and their future.

 

Smiling, Eiri squeezed Shu's hand and produced a small black velvet box from inside his haori. Opening it, he took out a gold ring and set the ring box on the floor. Shuichi nearly had a heart attack when his beloved produced the ring. Wearing the traditional Japanese Buddhist wedding attire, kneeling before the shrine, reciting the chants and exchanging marriage vows was one thing. Everything up till this point was still so dream like, it did not seem real. He was still expecting to wake up and find himself in bed. But a ring! An honest to goodness ring that symbolized everything said and everything left unsaid, a circular piece of gold that said once and for all, for all to hear, that he was Eiri's and Eiri was his. This made it real.

 

Eiri lifted Shuichi's left hand and staring into his eyes, slipped the ring onto his finger. Large crocodile tears slipped down Shuichi's face. His tiny body was shaking with silent sobs. Eiri raised Shuichi's hand and kissed the ring lightly. “Ashiteru,” he whispered. “I love you.”

 

Shuichi raised a trembling hand and his right hand flew to his mouth as he gasped in shock. With wide eyes, the singer stared at the ring on his finger. It was the most beautiful and exquisite piece of jewelry he had ever seen in his entire life! Jewelers and sponsors had given him jewelry over the years for one thing or another, but this…this made everything he ever received look a little girl's collection of colored plastic. “Oh, Eiri,” he whispered, fresh tears rolling down his cheeks. He glanced up at the writer then back down at the ring. He wiggled his spread fingers. The light streaming in through the glass balcony doors hit the ring and a prism of color danced before his eyes.

 

The wide gold band had a sunken square section on the top in which sat nine .03 carat gems. The eight on the outside were black star black opals that reflected a mysterious brown star when held in the light, hence the name “black star”. The ninth gem, in the center, was a dazzling Princess cut deep rich rose pink Sri Lanka spinel with a stunning fire burning inside when the light hit it just right.

 

“It's beautiful, Eiri,” he whispered in awe.

 

Eiri sniffed. Half was due to the damned cold he woke up with this morning and the other fifty percent fingered the look on the smaller man's face. It was an expression the writer could not fully explain. It was kind of ironic, but this writer was at a loss for words. With his little baka staring at him like that, he felt as if everything was right with the world. It felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders that he had forgotten was there, making him lighter and happier than he has been in a very long time. The tears that flowed down Shuichi's face made that look even more angelic. It made him even more beautiful.

 

“This ring has been in my family for generations,” he explained. “It originally belonged to my great grandfather who passed it on to his oldest son who did the same thing when his son became of age. My father gave it to me when I became a full fledged monk.” He took Shuichi's hand and massaged it gently, staring at the play of light.

 

Shuichi blinked in surprise. He glanced from the ring to his husband- Shuichi paused. Husband? He suddenly felt giddy. He could never fully understand what it meant to be `on cloud nine', but he was filled with such a feeling of euphoria and rapture that it felt as if he had died and gone to Heaven. But the fact that he and Eiri were bound together as close as any two people could get, did not mean that the man had to give him a ring that has been in the Uesugi family for over a century! It was just too much! He shook his head. “Eiri, I can't accept this!”

 

Eiri's face fell.

 

“It's too much! It should-“

 

“-stay in the family,” Eiri finished for him with a smirk. He shook his head. Pulling his new husband into the circle of his arms, he hugged him tight. “Shu, Shu, Shu! You are my family. Don't you know that? Pulling away so that he could stay into his vivacious violet eyes, Eiri smiled. “I love you more than anything in this world and I'll do whatever it takes to get you to stay at my side forever and to let the whole world know that you are mine, now and forever.”

 

Shuichi had always heard that the eyes were the window into a person's soul. Everything was laid out in the open. There were no secrets. As he stared in those deep amber eyes, Shuichi felt himself melting. The large, thickly muscled arms wrapped around him made things low in his body tighten. These were the arms he wanted around him always. This was the face he wanted to see whenever he turned around. This was the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

 

With a sob, he flung himself at his husband, hugging him tightly. Eiri hugged him back and felt something hard jabbing into his side. “Shu-chan, baby. Is there something in your kimono or are you just happy to see me?” The last was said in a low, lust filled voice.

 

Shuichi blushed and stepped out of the warm, comforting arms of his husband. He suddenly felt cold without them, but knew that he would soon be back in them. Those large hands would be all over his body, probing, poking and thrusting. Shuichi shuddered violently and had to fight to keep himself from moaning at the images his thought produced. He reached inside his under kimono and grabbed a small velvet box. To Eiri he suddenly looked Napoleon with his hand stuck under the haori like that. “Actually…I, um…”

 

“What,” Eiri prodded with a raised eyebrow.

 

Pulling his hand out, he laid it flat, revealing a black ring box similar to the one Eiri had kept Shu's wedding ring in. He avoided the man's curious and penetrating gaze.

 

“Shu? What…”

 

“This weekend is our anniversary.”

 

Eiri nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

 

“It'll be ten years.”

 

“I know,” Eiri said, nodding slowly. “That's why I decided to organize this. I wanted this year to be special.”

 

Shuichi nodded. “So did I,” he whispered. He opened the ring box.

 

Eiri stared wide eyed at the contents of the small black box. “Shuichi…”

 

“I had it all planned out. I made reservations at this restaurant in Yokohama and then…”

 

“Then what?”

 

Once again, Shuichi's face grew warm as a hot blush spread across his entire body.

 

Eiri looked down at the ring again. Shuichi had planned on asking for his hand in marriage. He could not hit the shocked expression on his face. “Oh, Shuichi.”

 

Shuichi plucked the ring out of its box and gently tossed it next to the other one on the floor. He grabbed Eiri's left hand and carefully slipped the gold ring onto what was known as the heart finger, the one finger that had a vein that went all the way to the heart. He was not sure if the one shaking was him or Eiri. He was not sure if he cared.

 

Eiri lifted his hand and studied the ring. The wide band was made of gold with an inset 3 carat elongated oval Australia Tiger's Iron. It was a stunning rich, vivid chocolate brown black with blood red and metallic deep gold yellow veins. “It's beautiful, Shu.”

 

“Seguchi helped me pick it out,” Shuichi confessed, blushing.

 

“Tohma did?” Eiri asked in surprise.

 

Shuichi nodded, his blush deepening.

 

“He knows?” The writer groaned inwardly. Tohma was never going to let him live this down. It will not matter that Eiri had beat his lithe baka to it.

 

Again, Shuichi nodded. “He helped me with the planning.”

 

Chuckling, Eiri drew Shuichi into a tight embrace. He smiled, breathing in his sweet strawberry scent. He used to believe it was the shampoo Shuichi used, but he has grown to realize that it was just Shuichi's own natural scent. At first, Eiri thought it was a little strange, right along with his bright pink hair, girlish frame, his non-stop insistent chatter and annoying clinging, but now all those idiotic characteristics was what made Eiri love the singer.

 

Eiri pulled back just enough so he could look deeply into those unnaturally, natural eyes. He wrapped his arms tightly around Shuichi's tiny waist as the singer ran his small hands up and down Eiri's spine. They stared deeply into each other's eyes. “I may not say it every five seconds like someone else…”

 

Shuichi's face grew warm.

 

“But I love you, more than anything.”

 

Shu rose up on his tip-toes while Eiri leaned down. It was just a light brush of lips but it sent shivers through their bodies. They pulled back in unison and opened eyes neither one could remember closing. As they gazed into one another's eyes, their eyes fluttered closed as they once again leaned towards each other.

 

A sudden angry shout caused them to jump apart like guilty lovers.

 

Eiri groaned with a curse. He told the guard earlier to make sure they were not interrupted. “Stay here,” he told Shuichi.

 

Shuichi did not argue. The yelling was getting louder and it sounded like there was a little scuffle going on. He was curious about what was going on, but fear glued his feet to the floor.

 

Eiri meanwhile stormed towards the apartment door and yanked it open with enough force to rip it off the hinges. “What the hell's going on,” he demanded angrily. The sight before him stilled him momentarily. The bodybuilder bodyguard had a red-headed guy on his knees, his hands trapped behind his back. Eiri smirked with a snort. Crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned against the doorframe. “Nakano. What do you think you're doing?”

 

Hiro struggled against the iron grip. “Where is he?” he demanded.

 

Eiri raised an eyebrow.

 

“I'm sorry, sir,” the bodyguard apologized. “He insisted that he see Mr. Shindou but you said-“

 

“Let him up,” he said, waving the guys explanation aside.

 

“Sir?”

 

“It's okay.”

 

The man in black let go of the guitar player and stood back. Hiro slowly stood up, wincing. “Where's Shuichi,” he repeated.

 

“Inside,” Eiri answered with `where else would he be' tone.

 

Fuming, Hiro pushed past the writer and strode inside the apartment.

 

“Hey! What the fuck do you think you're doing?”

 

“Sir? Do you-“

 

Eiri waved the man off. “I'll handle it.” He stalked into the living room, slamming the door behind him; an angry remark ready on his lips but it died a quiet death as he saw the co-founder of Bad Luck pull his hand back. The silence was shattered as the sharp sound of flesh on flesh resounded through the room. The writer was shocked to a standstill.

 

The writer was not the only one shocked by the tall red haired guy's actions. Shuichi was holding his newly jeweled left hand over his reddened, stinging cheek, his eyes wide in shock and dismay. Slowly, he turned back to his best friend. A tear rolled down his face. “Hiro,” he breathed, still not believing what just happened. “What-“

 

“I can't believe you! I thought you were better than this!”

 

Shuichi could only blink.

 

“You skip work to hang out with your boyfriend? When you knew our deadline is fast approaching?”

 

Shuichi's eyes widened in understanding. He almost laughed. So, that was what this was all about? Him not showing up at the studio? But, wait. His smile faltered. Eiri's note claimed that he called him in, right? If his husband was telling the truth, then why was Hiro so angry? Why was he claiming he had skipped worked? Had there been some sort of mix up? Some misunderstanding? Shuichi glanced at Eiri briefly who was standing on the other side of the room. He gave him blank eyes, just as confused as he was. He wanted to explain to Hiro that there must have been some sort of mis-communication, but when he opened his mouth to inform the man just that, Hiro cut him off with an angry yell.

 

“No! I don't want to hear any excuses! Do you have any idea how worried we were?” He counted on his hand. “You don't show up, call or pick up the phone when I call! All these thoughts kept going through my head, Shuichi! I tried to tell myself that we were just missing one another, that you were sick and couldn't pick up the phone! Maybe you were fucking your boyfriend and couldn't hear the phone.” He shook his head. “Then what do I see?!” He pointed a finger at the apartment door. “I step out of the elevator to see your bodyguard! And do you know what he tells me?”

 

Shuichi wanted to say something, but found himself unable to form one coherent thought. His best friend's angry words shocked him into silence. Never before had he yelled at him like this, never before had he been this angry with him. He wanted to defend himself and his decisions, but could not do a damn thing, but stand there like an idiot and let him continue with his rant.

 

“He has the gull to tell me that you aren't to be disturbed!”

 

“Hiro,” Shuichi finally managed to say, “I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you worried, but you see, Eiri and I-“

 

“Just drop it!”

 

“But-“

 

“No!” Hiro's hand snapped out and grabbed Shu's haori, jerking the smaller man to him so they were nose to nose. “Dammit, Shuichi-“

 

Before Hiro could finish that thought, he found himself lying flat on his back staring into the contorted face of one outraged romance writer, trying to catch his breath. Eiri twisted the collar of the guitarist white shirt, not caring if in the process he choked the man to death. Nobody touches his Shu-chan, nobody but him and God himself. He pressed his face into Hiro's, steam pouring out of his ears and nose. He glowered hostilely at the red head. His fingers itched to pummel this man into the wooden floor until even his own mother could not recognize him, but for the sake of his Shu-chan, he had to try and sustain himself, but it was hard. “How dare you lay a hand on what belongs to me,” he hissed, his voice barely above a whisper. Eiri knew that if he spoke any louder, what little restraint he had would snap, he was that close to losing it. “I should beat you into a bloody pulp!”

 

Hiro could feel the writer's weight compressing his chest, making it difficult to breath. The collar of his shirt was now a noose, tightening centimeter by centimeter. “But you won't.”

 

Eiri pushed his face into Hiro's so they were nose to nose. “What makes you say that?”

 

Seeing the love of his life this close to killing his best friend snapped Shuichi out of his shock induced haze. He knew Hiro hated him because he had not shown up for work today and for making him worry unnecessarily. He knew that and he could not blame him. He could also understand why Eiri was so angry. The writer was very over-protective when it came to Shuichi. If anyone laid a hand on the singer, Eiri went berserk, but Hiro hating him and alive was one thing, but hating him and dead was something he could not handle. At least with him alive, they had the opportunity to work things out, but if Eiri were to kill him...

 

The thought of his best friend in the whole wide world never flashing those pearly whites at him, or hugging him, or going out with him after work sent a cold chill down his spine. He wanted to walk into the studio and see Hiro on that stool of his, plucking at his guitar. Shuichi wanted to be able to go to him whenever he and Eiri had a fight. He wanted his best friend's strong arms to comfort him when he cried. He wanted what they always had but if he did not snap his husband out of it, all that was going to be over.

 

Shuichi rushed forward and slid to his knees besides his lover. Grabbing a fist full of his haori with each hand, Shuichi buried his face in the man's shoulder and sobbed. If Eiri did this, then not only would he lose his best friend, but he would lose Eiri as well. The police would arrest him for murder and that would be the end of their fairly tale romance.

 

The thought of never seeing his new husband again froze his blood and stopped his heart. As much as he hated to admit it, losing his husband was more painful than losing his best friend. Friends drift apart. They come and go, but losing your soul mate was one of the most painful things a person could go through.

 

“Please, Eiri! Please! I don't want to lose you! Please!”

 

Eiri slowly blinked as Shuichi's words filtered through the wall of anger that had built up around him. His grip on the man underneath him, loosened. Sitting back, he turned towards the small singer and suddenly found himself flying onto his back. He hit the floor with a painful thud. He gritted his teeth and hissed.

 

Coughing and rubbed his sore neck, Hiro stood glaring at the downed writer.

 

“Eiri!”

 

Blinking, Hiro watched as his beat friend crawled towards his lover, tears racing down his face, his eyes a mask of concern. The anger he felt towards Eiri diminished, replaced by a weird sense of lose. Shuichi was more worried about the slim possibility of losing his boyfriend than in the very real fact that that man had been this close to choking him to death. Chuckling, Hiro shook his head. He had never really liked the writer. The man, first off, had taken the most important person away from him. Then the famous womanizer had been a complete and utter asshole towards Shuichi; kicking him out and breaking up with him time and again. Because of him, Shuichi had been gang raped by Aizawa ten years ago. That last time Eiri had broken up with Shuichi, it had sent the young singer fleeing to the States. Hiro had almost lost him! Nothing good had ever come out of that relationship.

 

“-hate you.”

 

Hiro shook himself loose from his thoughts and turned towards his best friend. “Huh?”

 

“I hate you!” Shuichi looked up from where he was glued to his lover's side, his face as wet as if he splashed it with water. Sniffing, he wiped his nose on the sleeve of his haori, his eyes glaring with something Hiro had never thought to see directed at him. Hatred. “You ruined everything! Everything!”

 

“Shu-“

 

Shuichi sobbed violently, his body shaking uncontrollably. “This's supposed to be the happiest day of my life and you ruined it!” He unsteadily got to his feet. “You come bursting in here with your fucking accusations without a thought. You didn't even give me a chance to explain myself!”

 

Hiro realized the singer was right. He had not let Shuichi tell his side of things. He felt like such a heel.

 

Eiri got to his feet and laid his hands on Shuichi's shoulders, trying to calm him down. He had never seen him this angry before. It kind of unsettled him. “Shu-“

 

Shuichi brushed his husband's hands off and stalked towards his so-called best friend. “I hate you, Hiro! You totally ruined everything! I'm never going to forgive you for this! Ever!” He turned on his heels and stormed up the staircase, disappearing into the master bedroom, slamming the door behind him hard enough to shake the apartment.

 

For the first time in who knows how long, Hiro felt like crying. His chest and throat tightened with the effort of trying to keep the tears locked away.

 

“I want you out of here, Nakano. Now! If I ever see your face again...”

 

“Yuki-san-“

 

“Forget it! There's nothing I want to hear that'll come out of your mouth. Jacob,” Eiri called.

 

Immediately, the front door opened and the tall, broad American appeared. “Mr. Uesugi?

 

“Nakano-san is leaving. Make sure he gets to the elevator in one piece.”

 

Jacob nodded. “Certainly, Sir.” He stepped aside and waited patiently for the red-haired guitarist to proceed.

 

Just as Hiro stepped out of the apartment, his cell phone rang. Pausing, he unclipped it from his belt. The number on the face plate startled him. “What is it Kai? I'm really not-“

 

“I forgot!”

 

“Forgot what?” Hiro asked with a sigh. He really was not in any mood for this.

 

“I was supposed to tell you something when I got into the studio this morning, but with the accident and Kei...”

 

“What're you trying to get at, Kai?” Hiro was really tired. All he wanted to do was go back to his place and sleep. Hiro glanced over his shoulder at the writer who had not moved an inch from his position in front of the shrine. Shrine? He had not seen that earlier. When had Shuichi and Yuki-san set up a shrine? They were not the most devout Buddhists. He glanced back at the writer, his face a mask of confusion. He noticed that the man had a carefully blank expression on his face.

 

“Did you hear me, Hiro?”

 

“Huh? I'm sorry, Kai. What did you say?”

 

“I said Eiri called me this morning to let me know that Shu wasn't coming in today.” The second guitarist shook his head. “I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but I forgot. What with the accident and Kei...” He sighed. “I don't remember the reason, but-“

 

“What!? You forgot?”

 

Kai cringed at the angry tone. “I said I was sorry, Hiro. I had-“

 

Hiro growled and paced several steps in an angry whirlwind, dragging his fingers through his hair. “Dammit, Kai! Do you have any idea what the hell you just did?”

 

“Me? I didn't do a damn thing. You were the one who left in a huff.” A sudden thought hit him. “Don't tell me you-“

 

“Thanks for nothing, Kai.” He flipped his phone closed and clipped it back onto his belt. He growled angrily. Damn Shiro Kai to hell and back! How could he have forgotten something like this? Did he have any idea what he just did? A disgusted snort from behind him had Hiro twirling around to face a smug looking writer.

 

“Nice, going, kid,” Eiri said from the other side of the doorway. “You alienate not only one, but two members of your band.” He snorted and shook his head. “Maybe next time you should think before you act, huh?”

 

Hiro stepped forward. “Look, Yuki-san-“

 

“Save it, Nakano. I don't think either one of us want to see your face for a while.” Stepping back, he slammed and locked the door on the stunned guitarist.

 

What the hell had he just done?

 

***

 

A/N: I have never been to a traditional Buddhist wedding before, so I looked up everything on line. I edited out the expected undertaking part that the bride and groom are supposed to say, because: one, they're a little outdated and two, both Eiri and Shuichi are guys. If I got anything wrong, I apologize. This's supposed to be a private ceremony between the two of them.