Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Out in the Fog ❯ End ( Chapter 8 )

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

out in the fog: Ending 1

Youji froze, Ran's gun pointed at his chest. He held up his hands automatically in a gesture of surrender, the end of his wire snapping back into his watch. They stared at each other for a long moment, a heavy silence filling the office.

"This is what you were hiding from me," Ran said finally, breaking the thrall. The barrel of his gun never wavered and Youji didn't move. All he could do was watch helplessly as Ran's face betrayed no emotion. "That's why you left. I was getting to close to the truth."

"I didn't want to hurt you," Youji said softly, knowing it was too late. He was done. His life was forfeit the moment Ran had found him. "I'm sorry. But this is why I couldn't tell you what you wanted to know," he continued. He had nothing to lose and nothing to gain; he knew he might as well get the truth out while he had a chance to speak freely to the man who had been his lover. "I couldn't trust myself to not tell you everything. And that would only have put us both in situations we couldn't handle, that I didn't want to even think about. I was going to explain, just as soon as this was over."

The barrel of the gun lowered a fraction. Something sparked in Ran's eyes. No, Youji thought, no false hopes. Just let him end it. "I'm sorry," he said again, knowing the words were meaningless but saying them anyway.

"Youji I --" Ran stopped, glancing down at his belt. Youji followed his gaze, landing on the cell phone attached to his belt, the LED panel lit up with an incoming call.

Youji watched with his heart in his throat as Ran's attention appeared to turn away from the situation at hand. He wished he knew what the redhead was thinking, but Ran's expression had closed as he went withdrawn. He could only guess that Ran was hurt, angry, betrayed. But some bit of hope lingered within Youji. Ran was hesitating, for whatever reason. Youji hadn't tried to run. If Ran was going to arrest him, he wouldn't resist. Youji watched his lover for a long moment, wondering what was going on in Ran's head. "Ran - " Youji prompted softly.

Ran interrupted him. "Go, Youji," he breathed, gun lowering completely. "Go, now. Out the back before my backup arrives."

"Ran ?" Youji couldn't believe it was happening. Ran was letting him go? It was supposed to happen that way. He wasn't ready for that possibility. It hadn't occurred to him that it even /was/ a possibility. Did Ran really love him that much? Enough to forgive him even this and let him go? Did he know what he was doing, letting Youji escape? Did he realize that by letting Youji go he would probably never see him again? Why? Youji wanted to yell the question, demand an answer. He didn't want to leave this way.

"Go!" Ran shouted, bringing his gun up again.

Youji crossed the room in a few long strides. He paused in front of Ran, reaching out with a gloved hand to cup his cheek. The redhead leaned into his touch and Youji bent and kissed him deeply, chest tightening at the sadness in the purple eyes he saw when he pulled away. He lingered a moment longer, until Ran's phone vibrated again.

"Go, Youji," Ran whispered.

With one last look, Youji did, trusting his memory to find him safely out the back exit while his thoughts were in chaos.

He had no idea how things had gone so wrong. The job, Ran letting him go; nothing had turned out the way he'd expected. He made his way out of the building without incident, crossing the far side of the empty lot at an easy jog as the first squad cars poured into the front lot with sirens wailing.

Youji knew he had to leave. His attorney had the paperwork to transfer the store to the ladies, free and clear. They could lease the apartment if they wanted to. Youji parked carelessly behind his building; he wouldn't be long.

He had a pile of cash at the ready - all that he really needed to do was to gather the few things he couldn't live without and throw them into a bag with the cash. He could leave the car at the airport; if he left it in long term parking long enough, pieces would start to disappear long before it was impounded. It was a familiar routine, one he had sincerely hoped he'd left behind.

He was leaving Ran behind.

Youji shook the thought off. He didn't have time for that; when he was on the plane on the way to somewhere, he would let himself think about that. But not yet. He went down to his small office and opened the safe, withdrawing the pre-typed letter to his lawyer. It said he would call when he had a chance, but to put in motion plans they had previously discussed. Youji dug out an envelope and scribbled the address of the attorney on it and shoved the letter inside. Then he carefully disconnected his laptop and stuffed it into its case, making sure he had all the various attachments before heading back up the stairs.

He retrieved his bag from under the bed, checking to make sure he had the necessary toiletries on top, and opening the hidden compartment to hide his cash. Youji was crossing the room toward the secret cubby where the money was when his phone rang. He moved toward it automatically before processing the ring tone.

Ran.

"Yeah?" he answered.

"Hey." Ran's voice was tinny and Youji could hear noise in the background. "I'm going to be late," he continued, not giving away who he was talking to. "If you haven't left yet, why don't you come by here in a couple of hours and we can go out."

Youji's heart skipped several beats. Ran couldn't mean what Youji thought he'd just implied. "Ran -" his voice was rough to his own ears. "Are you sure?"

"We'll talk about it later," Ran answered, but Youji could hear the conviction in his voice. "I have to go. I love you," he said quickly.

"I love you too, babe. I'll take care of everything." Youji disconnected the call before either of them changed their minds. He felt a million times lighter, a weight he hadn't taken the time to examine lifted from his shoulders. Ran wanted him, wanted to go with him.

Youji finished filling his bag. Did Ran know what he was getting into? Youji was prepared to drop of the face of the earth; other than Ran, and the ladies who ran his shop, Youji had no ties, and the ladies would believe whatever story he asked his lawyer to tell them. But Ran didn't have any connections either, not really.

They could figure it out later, Youji decided as he flew down the stairs, throwing his bag into the car.

Youji drove carefully to Ran's, frequently checking his mirrors for any sign of a tail. Not that he didn't trust Ran not to turn on him - Youji was just being paranoid. Being paranoid had saved him before.

Ran's house was dark as he approached, not even the porch light left on for guidance. Maybe the idiot had intended to come home early, Youji thought as he made his way up the familiar path. As he fit his key into the lock, a siren in the area startled him and he missed the hole, instinct after a job gone wrong demanding he flee, but rational thought telling him to calm down.

Ronin was waiting just inside the door. Youji scooped him up and shut the door, not even switching on lights as he moved to the closer where Ran kept Ronin's carrier. They'd had to take the creature to the vet a few months before.

The cat went easily into the carrier once Youji placed a dish of food at the back . After struggling with the animal, he realized Ronin probably hadn't been fed yet, not if Ran had left early that morning and not come back. While Ronin crunched happily away, Youji made his way around the house, pulling the pictures from the bookshelf gathering Ran's toiletries and some clothes. He took the time to empty the refrigerator of perishable food and took it out to the trashcan outside.

He wasn't sure what to do about the fish, so he dumped some flakes into the water and hoped for the best. Youji didn't know what would happen to Ran's place, if Ran stayed with him. Probably, he thought s he located a small suitcase, Ran would call a lawyer and have everything transferred to Yuushi's name .In one of his exhausted rambles, Ran had once told Youji that Yuushi was his beneficiary - because he hadn't had a chance to talk with Youji about the long term future. Youji had been touched, but gently urged Ran to leave it for the being. Because the assassin never knew when he was going to have to disappear.

Youji wandered into the dojo, searching out the cds Ran always practiced to. His eyes fell on the katana mounted on the wall. He knew they couldn't take it; security was too tight to even consider putting it in luggage, and it would draw way too much attention to themselves. But Youji had a box of things he would need shipped to him, when they got settled; he could put the katana with those things. His apartment was on the way to the station anyway. He could call his lawyer when they got somewhere and make the arrangements. He lifted it off the pegs, impressed with its weight, and carried it with him as he gathered the cds he wanted.

Youji double checked the contents of the suitcase to make sure he had everything before zipping it closed. He hefted it in one hand and padded down the hallway and picked up the cat carrier in the other. He didn't see Ran's laptop, so he figured the redhead had taken it with him to work that morning.

He locked the door behind him, dropping Ran's suitcase in his trunk and setting Ronin's carrier on the back seat. The katana he slid in against the back of the seat. He drove just as carefully back to his place, leaving the car running as he dashed up the back stairs and set the ancestral sword on the table with the rest of his things.

Ronin was quiet on the way to the station, almost as if the animal sensed the tension and anxiety Youji felt. The soon to be former assassin pulled up in front of the stationhouse and waited. He was nervous, being parked right in front of the police department, knowing he was ready to flee but also knowing that Ran was inside at that very moment, likely covering his ass - both of their asses. There was a niggling thought at the back of his brain, that little what if that he was trying very hard to ignore. What if Ran wasn't covering his tracks?

He ignored the thought as time crept by. Youji sat in silence, not daring to turn the radio on. He just sat and watched the light street traffic flow by, his window cracked just enough to let the smoke from his cigarette out. A light mist was settling over the city, promising fog when night began to creep toward morning. Youji caught himself checking his watch every few minutes, and made himself stop. It wouldn't make the time go by any faster, and it only made him more frustrated.

Ran eventually emerged from the building, coat draped over his arm and his satchel slung over a shoulder. There was a look on his face that Youji had seen before, but usually in the bedroom, just before the thin determined man fell asleep; peaceful contentment. Youji allowed himself a smile as he watched Ran move toward his car.

"Hey babe," Youji drawled as Ran slid into the passenger seat. "Are you sure about this?" He wanted Ran to be sure. He had to be sure. Because there was no going back for Youji.

"No," Ran answered. "I'm too pissed off to be sure about anything right now."

"You don't have to do this, Ran," Youji said, serious. "You have to know that I can't come back."

"I know," Ran said, turning to look at Youji. "But I love you."