Stay With Me

[Email sent: tickets to Himeji, Hyogo prefecture, hotel name, dates for reservation]

Tetsu leaned back in his chair at his desk, having just pushed the send button to their email. He instantly received a notification, which meant Tsuki should be receiving one as well. The JVA was sending him to speak at two of the local high schools, and he was staying in a swanky hotel near Himeji castle. Tsuki would love that, and, aside from the speeches, they’d surely have some time to explore said castle…

Off and on during the last couple weeks, Tsuki had checked in with him for short chats. Usually just enough to let him know that he was okay, and that he missed and loved him. With each text, it became obvious that Tsuki was exhausted. The random misspellings and grammar mistakes started off very few and far between, even in code. As time passed, they grew worse, until it was almost like trying to decipher a whole new code in order to decode it from the original two.

Suddenly, a loud buzzing sound came from inside his briefcase; it was the flip phone he’d bought two weeks ago in order to keep in touch with Tsuki. Dropping everything, he grabbed his briefcase and damn near ripped it open, fishing out the phone. Instead of a text, though, it was a call.

“Hello, Moonshine!”
“Hi, Tetsu.” He sounded exhausted.
“Tsuki, are you okay?”
“No. I’m so damn tired. I haven’t been able to stop anywhere long enough to get decent sleep.”
“I know you can’t tell me, and I’m not asking your exact location, but…”
“I got the email. I’ll be there.”
Tetsu sighed with relief. “Great. Do you want me to meet you somewhere first?”
“Himeji train station.”
“Fine. Tsuki, I…”
“I just had to hear your voice, Tetsu. I missed it. I miss you.”
“I miss you too. You sound like you’re on the verge of tears.”
There was a soft chuckle. “Maybe I am. I think I told you I haven’t slept much.”
“You said that, yes.”
“Two days ago? Maybe three?”
“Shit. Tsuki, why…”
“I can’t stop. Not yet. It’s always like this. I have to go, go, go until I can’t anymore, and hope like hell I’ve lost them long enough to crash for a day or two.”
“Well, you’ll have time when we’re in Himeji.”
“But Tetsu…”
“No. As much as I want you right now, you need to sleep. You sound like just talking to me is taking monumental effort. You’re going to sleep for as long as you need to.”
“Yes, dad.”
“Well, at least your snark is still functional.”
“Last to shut off.”

There was a lengthy pause, and for a moment, Tetsu thought Tsuki might’ve actually fallen asleep, but he didn’t. They were quietly enjoying the connection and just hearing the other’s voice.

“Are you sure you’ll last another few days?” he asked, still concerned.
“Yeah. I’ll meet you at the station, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Also, I’ve had to change my appearance.”
“How so?”
“Auburn hair. Grey eyes. Stayed out in the sun long enough to get tanned.”
“I’m actually curious to see you, now.”
“I also need to change my appearance again before we leave.”
“Tsuki, I really wish this wasn’t happening to you.”
“Same. But I’m used to it.”
“You shouldn’t be.”
“I know that! I know it, and I hate it! Just…”
“Look, Tsuki…”
“Tetsu, I need to go. I’ll meet you in a few days. I love you.”
“I love you too.”

And before he could say anything else, he heard the click signaling the connection was gone. He closed the flip phone and put it away, and then resting his elbows on his desk and his face in his hands.

He really hoped this would be over soon.

~*~

{3 days later - Himeji Station}

Kei was no longer certain what day it was as he wandered along the concourse at Himeji station, hoping to see a familiar dark, perpetually messy, head. But he was so, so tired. And he wasn’t feeling well. His vision kept swimming at random intervals, his mind was playing tricks on him through his peripheral vision. He couldn’t think beyond the desire to sleep, and the need to keep going. He felt hot.

Kei also couldn’t stop thinking about Tetsu, wanting to see him, needing to touch him.

After he nearly fell down a small set of stairs, he hazily thanked a passer-by for the help and managed to stumble to the nearest bench. This was as far as he could go, for now. Just a little rest, and a moment to mentally prepare himself to move again.

The insidious thought of being able to stay in one place for longer than a few hours wove its way through his mind. He’d been constantly running for the last month; never staying for more than a few hours before running again. The hostel in Okinawa was a vacation compared to some places.

His phone buzzed, and he fumbled it out of his pocket. Opening it, he squinted at the display: a message from Tetsu. Tapping a button to open the message, he read it twice before comprehending.

[Where are you?]
Easy enough.
[station]
One or two words seemed easier to handle; his fingers were shaky.
[okay, but where?]
[no idea]
He really had no idea. None of the signs made sense anymore.
[can you send me a picture?]
[sure]
Kei struggled to lift the phone high enough to take what he hoped was a decent shot of the nearest signs.
*five minutes later* [jpg sent]
Tetsu could have found him in the time it took to send that.
[on my way]
Oh, good. It made sense to Tetsu.
[okay]

Kei blinked rapidly to clear his vision and fumbled with the phone to put it in his pocket again. He waited what felt like forever before he vaguely recognized the man jogging toward him. As soon as he got close, and knelt down in front of him, Kei’s exhausted brain finally registered the man as Tetsu.

“Hey,” he managed to say, trying to smile.
“Tsuki, please don’t take this the wrong way but, you look like shit.”
Kei chuckled. “Feel like it, too.”

He could barely keep his eyes open. It felt like Tetsu put his hand on his forehead, the side of his face, and the back of his neck. That hand was so cool, he wanted it to stay on him, and moaned when it went away.

“Kei, you’re burning up! We need to get you to my room.”
“Can’t.”
“What?”
“Can’t. Legs don’t work.”
“Goddammit, Kei…. Here, I’ll help you.”
“Gimme a minnit… I c’n walk.”
“No. Absolutely not. You’re obviously in no shape to do anything on your own right now. Put your arm around my neck.” Tetsu did it for him; Kei could barely lift anything. Slowly, Tetsu got him to his feet, but it was a struggle to stand. “Where are your bags?”
“Locker.”
“Here?”
“Dunno.”
“Okay, we’ll figure it out later. Come on.”
“Heavy,” he protested.
“You are, but the cabs aren’t far. We’ll make it just fine.”
“‘Kay.”
“When was the last time you had to run like this?”
“Dunno.”
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to ask out loud.”
“S’ok.”
“Just a little further. Think you can make it?”
“Keep talkin.”
“Right.”

Tetsu kept talking, asking questions that forced Kei to answer. He did it to keep him awake enough to move, with the promise of a large comfortable bed, soft sheets and warm blankets in a cool, dark, quiet, safe place that he could finally slow down enough to sleep the way he needed to. He was promised a banquet; everything he could possibly imagine and an abundance of all his favorite foods, once he woke up.

All of it sounded wonderful. It really did.
But nothing compared to the sound of Tetsu’s voice, of being this close to him again. Kei just wanted to wrap himself around Tetsu and never let go. Tears began to fall like rain, and Kei didn’t have the strength to stop them.

“Oh, Kei. Don’t cry! I’m here. Everything’s going to be just fine.”

Tetsu stopped moving, wrapped his arms around him and held tight, murmuring soft love words non-stop. He knew when they started moving again, but had no recollection of ever being put into the cab, or the short trip to Tetsu’s hotel.

Kei passed out.

~*~

“Auntie, can you come to Himeji?”
“What? Now?”
“Yeah. Like, ASAP.”
“What’s wrong? You’re not hurt, are you?”
“No, I’m fine. I ran into a mutual friend of ours. They’re in real bad shape, and I can’t skip out on my speeches to take care of them like they need.”
“You mean…?”
“Yeah. Can you come?”
“Consider me there! I’ll let our friends know, too, okay?”
“Do you think we should? I mean, they were sent by…”
“I trust them, Tetsuro.”
“Fine. Tell them to keep an eye on things, okay?”
“Will do. I should be there in a few hours at most.”
“Thanks, Auntie.”

Tetsu gave her the name of his hotel and how to get there from the station. He also asked her to bring what she could to help bring down a fever, as he only had washcloths from his bathroom.

Next, he nudged aside one slat of the vertical blinds and looked down. On the ground, he could see the top of Bokuto’s silver and black hair, and a little further away, he saw Tanaka’s buzzcut. He already knew that his aunt would be bringing Eita and Miya (ironically, neither of them minded sticking with her). The others were scattered around the hotel, keeping an eye out for hostiles.

Tetsu found it a little surreal to be a part of this fiasco, even if he was considered a target.

Taking out his phone, he was about to call Bokuto, when there was a soft knock on the door. He glanced at Kei, who was still out cold, and breathed a sigh of relief. As quietly as he could, he crossed the room to the door, and looked out the peephole. Suzumeda stood there, calmly waiting.

“Come on in,” he said after opening the door.
“I came as soon as I could,” she said, just in case anyone was listening.

Once behind a closed and locked door, her expression changed to concern as she approached the bed. Tetsu joined her, and then sat down on the chair he’d put next to the bed. He felt her watching him take the heated washcloth off Kei’s forehead, sink it into a bowl of cool water, wring it out, and replace it. Kei moaned softly, stirring in his sleep.

“I’m right here, Moonshine,” Tetsu said quietly, gently brushing a lock of auburn-colored hair to the side. Kei immediately sighed and settled down. Tetsu sat back in his chair and just watched his love.

“He’s looking a little better,” Suzu whispered. “Maybe sleeping will help.”
“That’s what I’m hoping for,” Tetsu replied. “Too much moving and not enough sleep. I don’t want to think of how many times he’s run himself down this far before.”
“How much has he told you?”
“Enough to form strong opinions on certain members of his family,” Tetsu answered curtly. “But, not a lot, actually.”
“I see.”
“Will you answer some questions for me?”
“I’ll answer what I can. Not even we know everything.”
“Okay. What do you know about Akiteru?”
“Loaded question.”
“I met him once, and there was a moment when I thought…”
“Yeah?”
“It looked like he wanted to be the one to comfort Tsuki. There was this look in his eyes…”
“Look?”
“Remorseful is the best word I can think of.”
“That’s pretty close to accurate.”
“Oh?”
“All I know is that Akiteru was forced into a position where he had to choose who to protect: his mother, or his little brother. He couldn’t choose both. And because he had to keep up his own act, he chose his mother.”
“Shit.”
“Exactly. He wanted to explain, to apologize, to Tsuki, but the damage of his decision had taken its toll.
“What about his mother?”
“Unfortunately, I know little about her.”
“It seems she’s been doing what she can,” Tetsu said. “She’s the one who sent the letter for his escape route. And he gave Akiteru a message to give back to her, so there’s that.”
“Sounds almost like Tsuki misses her.”
Tetsu shrugged. “Probably. I don’t think he trusts her, though.”
“Right.”

Tetsu glanced at her, and leaned forward, repeating the process with the washcloth on Kei’s forehead. He gently caressed his face and neck, and promptly moved the blankets down a bit, dipped another washcloth in the cool water, wrung it out, and used it to rub down Tsuki’s neck, shoulders, and upper chest. During that, Suzu had moved to the window. She was checking her phone.

“What’s going on?”
“Bokuto wants an update on Tsuki.”
“Ah. No change on that score. He’s still burning up, but at least he’s calm.”
“That’s because he knows you’re here.”
“Yeah.”
“Eita told me they bought tickets for the bullet train. They should be here in half the time.”
“Good.”
“Do you think Tsuki will be okay with you leaving?”
“I can’t avoid it. When my aunt gets here, I’ll have her talk around him and see how he reacts to her.”
“Has he ever met her?”
“Once, when she visited his bookshop.” Tetsu smiled fondly. “It was all mostly her idea to get us together.”
“She’s a good woman. I like her.”
“Yeah, well, I love her, but she’s definitely a handful. Your Eita and Miya have already discovered that, I’m sure.”
“They are firmly in her pocket,” Suzu laughed. “Anyway, did you need to know anything else?”

Tetsu thought for a minute. He wanted to know more about Kei’s grandmother, but he knew that would take forever, and he probably wouldn’t have the patience to listen anyway. He already knew he hated the woman. That was enough for now. However, there was one person he was curious about…

“What do you know about Tsuki’s father?”

There was a telling pause, and Tetsu looked over at her. She’d sucked her lower lip between her teeth. She finished typing something on her phone, and then looked back at him.

“I can’t tell you,” she replied.
“Why not?”
“Cliche answer, but it's classified. Sorry.”
Tetsu narrowed his eyes. “Would you be able to tell Tsuki if he asked?”
“No.”
“Will you ever be able to talk about it?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s not improbable. That said, I need to go back. I just needed to check up on you two.”
“We’ll be fine.”

Suzu smiled and made her way to the door. But just before she opened it, she turned back and smiled.

“I can tell how much you care about Tsuki. I think it’s sweet.”
“Thanks. I think.”
“You’re welcome. See you later.” And with that, she swept out the door.

Tetsu shook his head, and then turned his full attention back to Kei. He peeled the sheets down further, to reveal Kei’s flushed torso, and he dunked the washcloth he used earlier into the cool water, and began to wipe his love down. It was all he could think of to help bring the fever down, and he hoped it worked. He made sure the washcloth on Kei’s head was cool, and then sat back again, but this time, held Kei’s hand in his.

“Sleep well, my love,” he murmured, weaving his fingers with Kei’s “Sleep as long as you need to. We’ll do whatever you want when you wake up, okay?”

Tetsu stayed with Kei, leaving only when he had to eat and take care of business. About an hour and a half later, his aunt arrived, and they swapped places. Aunt Yui spoke softly, making sure Kei was comfortable, and Tetsu watched. There was no reaction from Kei, even when he left the room for a few minutes, so bringing in Aunt Yui was a great idea. Now, all they had to do was wait for Kei’s fever to break, and for him to get back in good health.

Three days later, Kei finally woke up, smiling at Tetsu who had fallen asleep beside him.