Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Celebrity Is... ❯ Mysterious Ways ( Chapter 8 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Weiss Kreuz nor am I profiting from this, it is for pure reading enjoyment. The wonderful Koyasu Takehito is the creator.

Yohji paced the hospital floors all night in effort to curb his anxiety. He took slow walks to the vending machines and quick ones right back once part of him feared that Ran might awake and find himself all alone. “I’m driving myself mad,” he admitted out loud. The actor finally sat in a chair adjacent to his lover’s hospital bed. That’s where he stayed and fell asleep, still waiting for sleeping beauty to finally wake up.

+++

“This is a dream,” the redhead frowned.

“No such luck.”

“Then how is this possible?”

“I think that since our souls exited our bodies in this building, this is where we stay.”

“Stay? Have you ever tried to leave?”

“Many times,” Kouta nodded. “Whenever I try to step off of the property it all gets really bright and whites out...then, I end up right back in this apartment. I imagine the reason I’m stuck here is because I’ve neglected to learn or acknowledge something in life. It’s funny, I keep searching, I’ve had plenty of time but...I’ve found nothing.”

The bodyguard took a hard look around the room. “Peculiar that nothing resembles what this apartment looks like in the living world.”

“Maybe because this is the way it looked when I lived here.”

“No. If that’s the case I shouldn’t be able to see any of it. So, for me it should still look like Yohji’s apartment but, there isn’t even any common ground,” the red haired man rubbed his forehead in thought. “Unless...perhaps it has less to do with us and more to do with her. Danni’s memories are haunting this place. These are the things that she remembers and now they’ve manifested in the spirit world.”

“That sounds about right. I’m glad I finally have someone to help me figure this out.”

“The girl, have you ever spoken to her since your deaths?”

“Never...” Kouta said flatly. His eyes became a little dull with that word. “She comes here though, clawing at the door. It’s so intense that she sends me into a trance sometimes.” The man silenced himself for a moment. “And she doesn’t look like us, you know. She brought the darkness with her from the life she lived. The first time she came knocking, I looked through the peephole and there was just this dark creature with it’s face hidden in even more darkness. I tried not to let her in but, she always manages to do so somehow.”

“How often does she come by?”

“Usually about twice a week, sometimes less.”

Voices began calling from the hallway and they could clearly be heard through the front door. Ran brought his guard up. “Is that her?”

“No, it’s probably the soul of someone who has fallen asleep and now they are astral projecting. Sometimes, people who have been in nearby car accidents wander into the building. But, no one ever stays, they either wake up or they pass on to the next life without spending much time with me in limbo. That’s pretty much all the company I get. But if it were Danni, trust me, you’d know it. Her voice is ghoulish and bitter,” the man sighed.

“So, where does she reside? She must have some secret place to crawl into when she isn’t disturbing you.”

“The basement, I imagine. It’s where ghosts always lurk,” shrugged Kouta. “Probably because it’s closest to hell. Anyhow, I’m going to the roof in a minute. There’s a garden up there, ya know. Why don’t you come with me.”

“Sorry, I’m still trying to take all of this in. I think I’ll just hang around the apartment, if you don’t mind?”

“Suit yourself, but it gets pretty boring in here being alone all the time. If you change your mind just take the elevator to the top floor, get off and there’s a stairway to your left that leads up to the roof.”

“Sure.”

Ran watched as the other man put his shoes on as if they were still in the land of the living and walk out of the front door. He waited a moment, sitting at the edge of the couch in case Kouta came back. Now was his chance. The redhead was going down to the basement. He was going to confront Danni. On his way out he saw a photo of Kouta, soft brown eyes and hair with his arms wrapped around a pretty blonde who had a look of discontent though she was smiling. [That must have been her at one time,] Ran thought.

Departing from the elevator at the lobby floor, Ran looked around for any other signs of intelligence but, there was no one. He and Kouta were definitely stuck in some sort of time warp. Seeing the basement door in close range, the redhead went for it. Before even touching the handle, a feeling of tension and anxiety pierced through him. His fingertips began to tremble and the shaking slowly took over the rest of his body. He began to hear voices, they crowded his head. Then the voices got quieter and it all just sort of stopped.
+++

“Nurse!” Yohji yelled. A short woman in white ran in.

“What is it?”

“His fingers, they moved when I turned the television on.”

“Did he respond in any other way, open his eyes?”

“No. Is that bad?”

“Well, seeing his fingers move doesn’t necessarily mean he responded to the televison. His muscles might just be spasming in his sleep. He may even be dreaming. So, I wouldn’t get my hopes up just yet.”

“Alright.”

“I’ll be around the corner if you notice anything else.”

The nurse left and Yohji slumped into the chair he’d been sleeping in all night. The vibration of his cell phone going off made him jump a little. The caller ID told him that it was his agent. “Hello.”

“Why haven’t you been picking up your phone?!”

“I’m stressed, I thought I left you a message about everything when I first got to the hospital.”

“Do you know how many other messages I have on my recorder? All asking for the big scoop about a photo of you kissing yet another love interest in a parking lot! And it’s not just anybody either, oh noooo, it just had to be your bodyguard. It had to be someone who no one can resist making a scandal out of! ”

“This is a really bad time, okay.”

“Listen, I’m a top notch agent. I only deal with high end clientele, people who would rather jump in front of a bus than tarnish their star image. If these antics continue I’m going to have to stop representing you. You aren’t going to take me and my reputation down with you.”

“Well fine, ‘cause it looks like you’re gonna get thrown under a bus during my next big interview when I explain how you called to criticize me for kissing the love of my life in public without even bothering to ask if he was okay after suffering an accident.”

“Whose to say you’ll get anymore big interviews?” Shinuki asked smugly.

“I do. Ran was right, the things you don’t like about me, everybody else seems to love. You’ve been so busy trying to change me and make me like all your other clients that you’ve completely ignored the fact that I don’t need any changing. When something isn’t broke, you don’t fix it. If I had listened to you rather than myself all this time, I’d just be another face in the crowd. So again, I say that I’ll get more big interviews and you can take that to the bank.” Yohji hung up the phone. He felt stunned but, in control at the same time. The actor wasn’t worried about finding another agent. They sent him offers through the mail and over the phone all the time. He’d stayed with Brian Shinuki based on reputation and promises of bottomless success. But, it was time to move on and apparently not a moment too soon.

Now, Yohji felt alone. It was a familiar feeling but, he’d nearly forgotten what it was like once Ran’s presence forced him to abandon that life. So, who was he to turn to when the red haired man was unavailable? There was no one, not even his agent. He had no friends. His mind began to wander and he wondered...could his lover stay like this, could he die? Then, the green eyed man would really be alone again.

+++

Feeling dizzy, Ran wobbled a little bit. He looked at his hands. There was no clear answer for the shaking that had gone through him and now it was time to take a shot at opening the basement door again.

The bodyguard traveled down a flight of stairs and it didn’t take long before he saw something glowing in a corner. It turned toward him slowly and it’s misty appearance began to solidify into more of a human shape. “What are you here for?” asked an echoing voice.

Ran found himself speechless. He knew that this was Danni but, her form did not match Kouta’s description at all. “I won’t let you keep me or Kouta trapped here anymore. Set us free.”

“Kouta is free to leave at anytime. I am not in control of him.”

“He’s tried to leave. Each time he steps out of the building, he ends up back in the apartment.”

“You are mistaken. Kouta keeps himself here. The guilt that he feels keeps him from passing on.” Danni’s figure straightened and came slightly forward.

“Stay back,” Ran held out a hand.

“I can’t hurt you.”

The bodyguard led his eyes up and down the girl’s shining figure. “He has no reason to feel guilt.”

“Oh but, he does. He regrets neglecting me, taking credit for my ideas and blaming his failures on me to further his social standing. His infidelity was what finally drove me to madness. That night, just before I killed him...he finally saw the despair in my eyes and he died with it burned into his. He’s guilty of leaving the one person who loved and supported him most behind when fame began to enter his life.”

“If you aren’t keeping him here...than why do you remain in this building yourself? Why do you pester him?”

“Kouta refuses to take responsibility for the wrong he’s done to me. To do so would mean he’d have to accept the fact that he helped sabotage his own life,” the girl explained softly before her tone became more prominent. “I can come and go as I please because I have recognized and owned up to my faults but, I will not leave him,” Danni shook her head. “I believe he can still be redeemed. I try to get his attention sometimes but his denial forces me back to the basement, the farthest place from him.”

“Are you sure it isn’t a form of possessiveness that keeps you around? Isn’t that and your jealousy what made you plot his murder?”

“Never!” protested a loud echo. “There was no plotting. It was a crime of passion. I didn’t expect to see a woman leaving his apartment that night . I caught the front door as it began to close and then, and then–.”

“Where did you dump his body afterward? Not knowing hurt his family.”

“I didn’t dump him. I tried to take him to a hospital but, I became disoriented by the weight of the situation. Everything started to look strange, like a fun house. I couldn’t even read the street signs anymore. So I left his body someplace, I don’t recall where. I just rested it there until I could get my head straight. I just needed to stop, needed to think but...”

“...But, you killed yourself before coming up with a solution.”

“Well, I realized that there really wasn’t any solution to come up with. All this fear and woe and regret bubbled up inside of me. Anger too. But, mostly just regret.”

“So, his troubles keep him here...and he doesn’t even realize it.”

“Yes.”

“But, I’ve heard him crying out, whimpering over a few tape recordings. How do you explain that? How do you explain the strange activity that goes on in his apartment in the living world?”

“I can’t. He goes into a fit sometimes when I visit him but, that’s as much as I can tell you. I don’t know if it directly affects the living world.”

“I need time to think,” Ran said softly. The wheels in his head were turning. [He described her so differently,] the redhead thought to himself. He’d imagined finding a monster down here. And that’s when it hit him, Danni was on to something when she explained that Kouta kept himself in this world due to his lack of personal responsibility. Just like the lies he created about her in life, in death the habit of believing his own reality versus true reality remained. He created the ghost world currently around them and he created a ghoulish appearance for Danni that only he could see. All of the eerie and violent things that took place in Yohji’s apartment had actually been manifestations of Kouta’s own negative energy. It had become a spiritual portal attacking anything that came near and it surrounded the fact that he wanted blame Danni for the things he still refused to own up to. “I have to go now,” Ran told Danni. “Kouta won’t listen to you because he sees you as a threat, but he sees me just the way I am. He’ll have to listen to me.”

+++

Ran went to the garden where he found Kouta at the edge of building gazing far into the distance. His back was partially facing the redhead. “I didn’t even realize this place was up here until shortly before I died,” he began. “I imagine it’s still there in the real world, right?”

“We need to talk”

“About what?” Kouta turned around softly to see a serious look on the redhead’s face. “Is something the matter?”

“Your unfinished business, you need to take care of it. That way you can leave this place and so will I once it disappears.”

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s you Kouta, you’re what’s keeping us here. You invented this world because of the deep seated issues you never set straight before you died and now I’m trapped in it.”

“No, it’s probably all because of Danni. We talked about it earlier, remember?”

“I talked to Danni.”

“What?!”

“She’s nothing like you said she was. It’s your own mind that’s twisted her into some monster. She’s tried to help you, tried to talk to you herself, but the denial that you carry hinders her ability to do so.”

“No.”

“Yes! You need to start seeing things for what they really are. You free yourself and we all get to go home, including Danni.”

“No!” Kouta put his hands over his ears and squeezed his eyes shut tightly. Suddenly, a strong wind started to pick up and all the leaves of the garden bushes shook. A dragging sound led Ran’s gaze to a lawn chair that was beginning to move toward them.

“Oh shit...” the red haired man said under his breath and ran for the roof top door. He went inside just before it shut and from there he could hear debris from the garden slam against it. [This must be one of the tantrums that causes things to move in Yohji’s apartment,] Ran thought to himself. [I can’t hide forever, I need to fix this.] The redhead took a deep breath before re-opening the rooftop door and summoning all the bravery in this body to walk across the wind crippled garden. A large ceramic pot came flying his way and struck him across the arm. The impact made him lose his balance.

+++

Yohji noticed something different about Ran from the corner of his eyes. “A bruise,” he whispered. “Nurse!”

+++

Ran held his arm and rubbed it, applying pressure to take the hurt away. “Stop!” he yelled. “Just stop it!” Kouta was obviously in a trance. “Snap out of it!” Ran kicked the other man. Aiming for his leg, the bodyguard accidentally kicked him in the crotch.

“Ah!” Kouta went down, clutching himself between his legs. The whirlwind stopped and his red haired guest kneeled by his side.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to do that.”

“Liar!”

Ran slapped the other boy. “You’re the only got damn liar around here! Lying to everyone including to yourself about Danni has you stuck in limbo.”

“No!”

“Yes, you will listen!” The redhead made sure to keep Kouta’s hands away from his ears. “You used her! You took her for granted! You made everyone think she was crazy and then you just threw her away! It’s no excuse for murdering you but at least she’s owned up to her crime. Now you need to own up to yours!”

Kouta stayed on the ground crying and mumbling. The mumbles became clear and it started to sound a bit like “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry...”

Something flashy began to appear and Danni materialized. “Kouta,” her voice echoed.

“Stay away!” yelled the girl’s former lover and he tried to crawl in the other direction. “You dreadful thing, stay away!”

“Look at her, Kouta!” Ran warned. “Really look, this is your chance to take responsibility. It’s your chance to face reality. When you do, you’ll see that she’s no monster. It’s all in your head.”

Slowly, the weeping man turned his attention to the glowing woman and his eyes focused as his mouth dropped. “The darkness, it’s fading.”

“It was never there,” Danni interrupted. “You’re finally letting go of the lies you led yourself to believe.”

“I’m sorry.”

“We both are,” the girl nodded her head. “Come with me darling. Take my hand. It’s time for us to move on from this place.” Kouta did as she asked. He too then became shimmery with a spiritual glow. He turned his eyes toward Ran with a look of thanks then suddenly, his expression turned to deep confusion.

Ran held a hand up to his face and saw that it was trembling again. In an instant he could hear the return of several voices in his head.

+++

“When did you notice the bruise?!” a nurse asked quickly.

“Just now,” Yohji answered. “What’s going on?”

“I dunno yet, this is strange.” The woman put her stethoscope to Ran’s chest. “His heart’s beating very fast.”

“He keeps jolting around!” Yohji jumped a little while saying that. “Baby?”

“I’m gonna need you to give us some room, Mr. Kudou. I paged the doctor, she’ll be here shortly.”

Yohji stood outside the tiny room in silence except the sound of his mind at work. He just kept thinking about the short precious time that he’d been able to spend with Ran and wondering if now was the right time to start bargaining with God. He got down on his knees and knelt over a chair. “God, if you’re out there, please...don’t take that man away from me,” he pleaded. His attention was stolen by the sound of more people entering Ran’s room. They closed the door behind themselves with Yohji waiting, red-eyed on the other side.

About ten minutes later the doctor came out to talk with the her patient’s lover. “I don’t know how to explain the bruise you saw. The only logical explanation is that he may have gone into spasms and his arm accidentally hit the edge of the table or something.”

“No, I was with him the whole time. I didn’t see him move a muscle.”

“Well, that brings me to my next point. Mr. Kudou, you never explained how Mr. Fujimiya came to the condition that he’s in and now he’s forming new bruises out of thin air.”

“I told you what happened. I know it’s far fetched but...wait a second.” Yohji narrowed his eyes. “Are you suggesting that I did this to him!”

“This is just standard procedure. I have to be objective, it’s in the best interest of my patients. And I’m sorry but, until further notice I can’t leave you alone with him anymore.” Yohji stood there, staring blankly at the woman in her white lab coat. “I’m sorry Mr. Kudou, but from now a staff member will be regularly staying in Mr. Fujimiya’s hospital room with you.”

“You’ll see how wrong you are when all of this is done,” the actor said in a guttural tone, his eyes dark with anger. “You’ll see.” So once again, his credibility was being questioned. If there was anything he hated in life it was having the credibility of his testimony questioned. Why he constantly had to tell his side of the story before anyone even started to believe him was a mystery.

Forced to wait out in the lobby until his babysitter arrived, Yohji pouted like a child. Soon afterward, he saw someone dressed in powder blue medical scrubs enter his lover’s room. The green eyed man jumped out of his seat and strode to the room. Finally, he would be able to see Ran again who to no one’s knowledge, was becoming more and more coherent as he laid there in his bed.. “Hi, the actor began. My name is Yohji and...You!” The man nearly shouted as he recognized the hospital employee’s face.

“Oh my god,” Ken said just above a whisper. He’d gone totally numb and didn’t know what to do next.

“What is this, some kind of bad joke?!”

“No. And I’m sorry. I mean, for everything. And I promise that I’m not here to sabotage you in anyway. I just work here sometimes.”

“You’re a real jerk, you know that?”

“Yes, I know. I absolutely deserve whatever insults you have to throw at me.” The younger boy became very submissive and he absentmindedly began standing in a sort of bowing manner.”

“I need to sit down,” Yohji said to himself. He took his usual seat and after a moment, Ken made his way to that side of the room to pull up a chair as well. “Hey, what are you doing? Why are you getting so close to me?!” The taller man asked defensively.

“Because I really want to apologize to you the way I should. I need to make eye contact with you.”

“To be perfectly honest, you really don’t deserve to be at the same level as me right now. You should be groveling on the floor for my forgiveness. Do you realize you could have cost me everything? I offered you my friendship and you traded that in for cash.”
“You’re right, you’re right.” Ken slumped down to the floor and stood on his knees bowing his head in shame again.

Meanwhile, the red haired man kept trying to clear his throat to speak. He still wasn’t sure where he was or what was going on and he felt scared. Hardly any of the words he heard spoken in the room made sense to him. It was hard to open his eyes but he managed to do so just a little and focus until he could make out Yohji’s form. He also saw another person there, someone unfamiliar, someone who appeared to be positioning himself at mouth level with Yohji’s private area. In complete shock, Ran let his eyes fall shut. All he could do was reluctantly listen as the other men’s conversation became more understandable.

“So all of you here at the hospital really think that I hurt him don’t you?”

“Now Yohji...”

“The least you can do is be honest with me at this point.”

“Okay, fine. You’re being monitored. I know you to be a nice guy,” admitted Ken as he pulled himself back up to sit in a chair. “But your story doesn’t sound very credible, even to me.”

“Well it happened!” Yohji raised up from his seat to lean against Ran’s bedside and look down at his pale face. “I would never do him harm.” The actor turned his attention back to Ken. “And to be honest, I hate myself for even letting him go back to that damn apartment. He wouldn’t be like this if I weren’t such an idiot. If I lose him...I’ll just, I’ll...” Suddenly, his green eyes became wide and he looked down at his wrist. His lover was softly clutching it. “Ran?” he gasped and turned to see faint tears streaming from one corner of the redhead’s left eye. “Oh my god, Love! Can you hear me?!”

“Doctor, I need your help,” Ken bellowed from the door.

The doctor and a small team of nurses entered Ran’s room. Yohji was pushed out of the way while they began taking notes and trying to evaluate the bodyguard’s condition.

+++

Six weeks later...

“And we’re back on The Good Morning Show. Joining us is Yohji Kudou, who has been in the papers nearly everyday this week.”

“Thank you, Janet,” Yohji grinned.

“Now, there has been some real drama in your life lately. All the way from trouble at Club Orange to trouble in your own apartment. I know that the idea of ghosts is something that most people keep quiet about. Why not you?”

“Well first of all, it was just too bizarre to pretend like none of it happened and once word leaked out, people who lived in my unit previous to me started coming forward. So did my neighbors who would had heard weird stuff going on in my apartment when they knew for a fact that no one was home. Their help has been a very validating experience.”

“A very highly praised author has asked to write a book about all of it, due in February. Am I right?”

“You’re absolutely right,” the actor smiled as an applause began with random whistles.

“One thing though my dear that I have purposely avoided asking you about until just now relates to a more romantic theme.” A big smile with blushing to compliment it took over Yohji’s face. He looked out at the crowd as they all cheered, dying to know the real story behind the bodyguard relationship they’d all read about in the tabloids. “Now we’ve all heard a little about this bodyguard fellow but no one has asked about that boulder weighing down your ring finger. Can we get a close up of that?” the show host asked and cameras zoomed in. Everyone gasped as it showed up on the big screens. Yohji playfully displayed the jewelry on his hand. “Is there a wedding date set up?”

“Not quite yet. We’re taking things slow.”

“So did going through that whole haunted house nightmare make you realize that you were meant for each other?”

“Oh, I knew before then, but now I think he knows.” Yohji stared intently at a single person in the audience. His gaze would not break and noting this, everyone slowly began to see who he was looking at. They whispered among themselves and Ran folded his arms protectively, feeling self-conscious, but proud as his lavender eyes gazed back at the man wearing his ring.

+++

After the show, Ran followed Yohji home. They decided that having a quick shower together would be a romantic way to wash away a little stress. Yohji ran the water and stripped his clothes off. He waited a couple minutes, rolling his eyes. He could hear Ran making business plans on the phone. The long haired man, tip-toed across the living room floor and gently attacked Ran, convincing him to put his phone away. The long haired man led his lover by the hands into the steamy bathroom. He helped the redhead undress and went in for a kiss when the lights flickered a little. They both looked up for a moment and then casually resumed kissing. Suddenly, the bathroom door closed and the lights went off completely. “What the fuck!” Yohji’s heart started beating fast and Ran could feel it through his chest.

The lights came back on and a message was left on the foggy mirror. “Just kidding,” it read, with a happy face underneath. Just then, a second message began to appear, letter by letter. “Thank you for making me see.”

“What’s that about?” Yohji asked in a bewildered tone. “Is it the ghosts? What do they want? Is it about–,” the actor’s face was redircted by his lover’s hands to face away from the mirror and continue kissing. The green eyed man’s questions became less important as they both stepped into the shower and began massaging each other’s body’s with soapy lather. Ran was really taking the lead, kissing frantically and holding Yohji’s body very close to his own, his arms never felt so strong. The red haired man took full grasp of his partner’s buttocks as he squeezed a little. He smacked them slightly and both of the men laughed. “Wait,” Yohji narrowed his eyes. “You’re little pervert ghost friends aren’t gettin’ a free show are they?”

“If so, lucky them,” the bodyguard shrugged. His violet eyes were loving and amused. “And I don’t mind anyone knowing how much I love you. Or how much you love me.”

Yohji was glad to finally hear his lover put into words what they had been struggling over when it came to Ran’s confidence. He could tell now that the other man really did know and believe that the actor was in love with him, that he was worthy of real love.

“Yes honey,” Yohji agreed playfully. “Lucky them.”