See Into the Eyes of a Medium

Chapter V “No One Left Behind for Christmas”


Suichi got home at one in the morning. It was the morning before Christmas Eve and he was cold, sore, tired and honestly a little nauseous. He just wanted a beer, a hot shower and a bed. He slipped off his shoes and hung up his coat and he headed for the kitchen, but he stopped at the living room and he blinked when he saw a Christmas tree that was decorated and presents under it. The others were all up, Christmas music was playing and they were wrapping more presents.
He looked confused, “What is this?” he asked walking in.
He scowled when Yataro stood on a chair and kissed his cheek holding mistletoe over his head. He pushed him back on the chair.
“What does it look like genius? It’s a Christmas tree.” Replied Rukia as she slid another present under the tree.
“…There hasn’t been a tree in this condo since I’ve been here. Who bought this?” he asked walking over to the tree with a small smile with his arms folded.
Rukia giggled, “I bought the tree, but I had some one else bring it in. It would be a little conspicuous of me walking in here with a tree.”
“Who brought it in?”
“Who wants cookies?”
Suichi looked back as Eichi walked in with a tray of cookies. Suichi narrowed his eyes and Eichi stopped and he laughed a little unhinged with his eyes wide.
“H…hey Yukimura-san.” Stuttered Eichi trying to keep his face straight.
Suichi walked over to him and he looked at him and then the tray and he picked up a ginger bread man. Eichi swallowed and the tray started to rattle in his hands as he shook.
“Relax Eichi…I’m not gonna hurt you.” Said Suichi calmly.
“Y…You aren’t?” he asked a little hopeful.
He shook his head, “I’m tired, it’s almost Christmas and you’ve been good to Kaito. But uh…had this been any other place and time…”
He bit the head off of the cookie and Eichi went white as milk.
“…You know Eichi?” Kaito asked Suichi.
Suichi chuckled, “Oh yeah Eichi and me go way back. Even back into high school.”
“You told me you were twenty five!” said Kaito indignantly standing up.
“W…well…I…I…”
“He’s twenty nine, mister advanced placement.” Suichi chuckled and looked him up and down, “I better back down before he wets himself.”
Suichi sat down and Eichi sighed.
“How do you know him?” Kaito demanded folding his arms.
Eichi sighed, “I was a royal bastard in high school. Advanced placement, rich family and I was in a public school. And Suichi, well…”
“I was actually very small for my age believe it or not.” Suichi took from there, “Eichi was the big man on campus and I was a poor, rebel, pain in the ass…I didn’t bow before Eichi so he decided to make my life a living hell.”
Kaito laughed incredulously, “Eichi was a bully? Really?”
Eichi nodded grimly, “I was a real piece of work. But…I was the only reason Suichi didn’t graduate from high school.”
“You didn’t?” mused Kyo.
He shook his head, “I had a lot going against me in high school and my teachers hated me. I finally got a chance to humiliate Eichi at this party and I took it to a whole new level, it was epic. Let’s just say he ended up hanging from the roof by his underwear.”
Eichi snorted, “I’ll always remember that day. I swear I could taste fabric softener my underwear was so far up my ass.”
“But he got back at me on Monday at school. He stole money from several people in the school and stuffed it all into my locker. They did a search to find the culprit and when they found the money in my locker…I was expelled three weeks from graduation.” Continued Suichi.
“…That’s a horrible thing to do.” Said Kaito looking at Eichi.
He nodded, “Yeah I know that now. Back then all I could think about was getting back at him. Even after it happened back then I realized I had gone too far. I thought he would get suspended at the most, not expelled. Then after graduation I went to…your house to apologize or at least let you take a swing at me and the only person there was your drunken mother who told me that you were gone and you weren’t coming back and she slammed the door in my face.”
“Well this is where I’ve been? Surprised?” asked Suichi lightly.
“Since you were expelled?” asked Eichi actually surprised, “Why?”
“My mother was a heavy gambler…I’ll be here until I’m dead. It would have been just another…twenty two and a half years, but the old bitch is still gambling.” He replied.
“Wow…” Suichi was bewildered that he seemed so surprised, but then he found out something odd, “…You know I thought the bad ass I had a crush on in high school would have come marching back into that school to at least say fuck you.”
Suichi blinked as few times and he shook his head, “…H…huh!?”
Eichi chuckled behind his hand, “Sorry Kaito, but I kind of had a crush on your friend here in high school.”
“Don’t worry every one does.” Said Kaito with a small smile.
“Excuse me!? But who else has a crush on me!?” he asked indignantly and every hand went up and his jaw dropped.
“Don’t look so surprised Suichi. You were cute back in the day, but now you’re so much hotter…and enormous.” Said Eichi leaning his head against his fist.
Suichi shook his head, “Yeah well what change from then to now?”
Eichi shook his head, “I just got snapped rather roughly from the brat stage. I didn’t get to say it back then, but I am very sorry about what I did.”
Suichi nodded, “…It’s ok I forgive you…I’d hate to disappoint my many fans by being a jack ass.”
They all chuckled. Suichi sat back a little surprised with himself. He had walked into this house in the worst mood and right now it was almost like the Christmas tree was keeping him calm. He couldn’t stand to get mad again with it in the room. He wanted to beam Eichi in the face when he saw him, but he looked him in the eyes and it seemed to fade. He looked up at Eichi and they talked about his unknown high school career. For some reason his eyes…like when Rukia shot at him the first time they met…it completely threw him off.
Eichi looked up at him and Eichi’s face slowly went slack as Suichi looked into his eyes. He was being drawn in as his body set, getting lost in the black of his blue eyes. Once again he heard a horrific screaming in mind as he felt enormous pain on his back and his body. He felt like he was rolling over and being soaked in a cold liquid. An acrid smell reached his nostrils as he looked up into the crazed face of a man with a gas can. He stepped back and struck a match and threw it. Fire blazed up as his entire right side was consumed with pain and he screamed.
Suichi was thrust back into his own mind as a huge pain struck his head. He grabbed his head and blinked hard.
“Uh…”
He fell out of the chair to his knees. The pain was blinding, like an enormous pressure in his head. Every one rose and ran over to him as he collapsed sideways onto the floor bleeding from his nose. His eyes were moving rapidly though he couldn’t see, he couldn’t hear, all it was, was darkness and pain before he knew nothing more.

* * *

Suichi slowly came around. He was looking at a bright light, he almost thought he had died when the light went out and he was looking at the face of a man in a white coat. A doctor of course. He realized he was in the hospital. He blinked hard having a dull head ache now.
“Yukimura-san? Can you hear me?” asked the doctor.
“Yes.” He replied with a wince.
“Good, I’m Dr. Tanaka. You had a mild seizure and you started to hemorrhage in your brain. We’re going to let you come around a bit more and then we’ll send you for a CT of your brain.” Said the doctor.
“But…I don’t have insurance…I can’t pay for this.” He replied blinking hard.
“You leave right now and you could black out and bleed to death.” Replied the doctor as he slipped on his stethoscope and listened to his chest.
He had never felt so lousy in all of his life. He glanced up and he saw Kyo and Shane first. Toya kind of slipped next to them with Eichi and Kaito. He didn’t expect to see Rukia since she was under cover, but he lifted his head and his brow knitted when he saw her…and she was in a bubble gum pink wig, dressed in white Teflon and foe-fur and with a pair of blue sun glasses with a purse at her side. She was chewing a piece of gum and she gave him a small smile he had to laugh. He rolled his head back laughing and the doctor looked at him strangely and he sighed.
“Don’t mind me. Just…thinking of something funny.” Suichi said.
The doctor marked something on his chart and set it at the end of his bed.
“A nurse is going to come prep you for the CT scan. Your friends can come in, but take it easy.” The doctor told him before he left.
Every one came in and gathered around his bed.
“You scared the hell out of us Suichi.” Said Kyo.
“Sorry…I don’t know what the hell happened. I’ve never had something like that before.” He said with a frown.
“Oh God what if you have like a tumor?” said Shane suddenly and Toya smacked his arm.
Rukia shook her head, “He doesn’t have a tumor. He just needs to stop starring at people’s eyes!”
Suichi flinched when she eyed him.
“Huh?” asked Shane confused.
Rukia chuckled and she went to his side and sat on the edge of the bed, “Welcome to the club Suichi you’re a mystic.”
“…A what?” he said bemused.
Rukia slipped off her sunglasses, “A mystic is a type of seer that can see into people’s souls through their eyes. You did it with me and you were infected with my memories. But my memory though traumatizing did me no physical damage when it really happened. Eichi’s on the other hand infected you and did some damage because of the content of his memory. Hints the seizure and the bleeding.”
“…You like read my mind!” said Eichi a little psyched out.
“No that’s a psychic. Psychics can read minds; he read your soul which means…if he saw something destructive or damaged he sustained the same damage. It will fade after a day, but until then he will bare the same marks as the ones in the memories.” She said as she pulled the shoulder of his gown down and he saw he had a huge burn scar there.
Eichi looked a little stricken as Suichi grabbed the front of his gown and yanked it down. His whole right side was burned up.
“…so now I gotta watch out starring at people!?” he sighed and laid back and rubbed his face, “No offence, but I didn’t want to be a freak for Christmas.”
Rukia patted his shoulder.
“Relax, it’s more complicated than just looking some one in the eye because you do that every day and it doesn’t always happen does it?” she reminded him.
He sighed and nodded, “How am I gonna pay for this though? I can’t pay for this and make my quota at the same time.”
“Don’t worry about it, chief I picked up the room and the care.” Said Rukia flicking the vile n his IV.
He looked at her, “You paid my bill?”
“Yep and I’ll pay for the scans and anything else he wants to give you, so don’t worry about it. Just try and relax so you don’t run up the bill. Because there is only so much money I’m willing to let you live down.” She told him and folded her arms popping her gum.
He snorted and he grinned and laid back.
“You’re something else I’ll tell you…and that wig is ridiculous.”
“Oh bite me, big guy.” She said and gave him a cheeky smile.
“…but thanks.”
She pushed his hair the wrong way and he gave her a shrewd look and she chuckled.
“I’m going to the vending machine, who’s in?” she announced and Toya and Shane left with her.
A couple of nurse came in and they lowered his bed and he frowned when he kind of fell back. They lifted the rail and wheeled him out for his CT.
They took him to a big dim room with the tube like machine. The nurses treated him kind of roughly. But he was eventually on the bed that went into the CT scanner. He sighed as they put his head in a brace, but he freaked out when they suddenly started strapping him down.
“Hey, what the hell is this!? I’ve seen enough medical shows…” he froze when one of the male nurses put a gun to his temple.
They finished strapping him down and another male nurse looked down at him.
“We were sent here by Kawakami-san. He has reason to suspect that you know where his daughter is.” Said the fake nurse.
“Look I have no idea where she is, they already searched my place…ah!!!”
They jammed a taser in his side and he gritted his teeth and breathed hard.
“Like we buy that crock. You were already seen with her in this hospital and then she was spotted next to your complex. I suggest you start talking or else things are going to become very painful for you.” He warned.
“I don’t…know where she is. I’m serious.” He replied through his teeth.
The man asking the questions looked up. One of the other fake nurses slipped on a pair of rubber gloves. He started to sweat when he pulled over a tray of instruments and he lifted a scalpel.
“I’ll give you one last chance before you lose something.” Said the fake nurse with a wicked grin.
“I can’t tell you anything, I don’t know where she is!” He persisted, “We dropped her in an ally next to a bar! I don’t know where she is!”
“…Let’s see how long it takes to remove one of his hands with a scalpel and a surgical saw.” Was the fake nurse’s reply.
Suichi’s stomach twisted and he started to panic when the other nurse grabbed one of his wrists and he brought down the scalpel and cut deep into his arm.
“I don’t know anything! I swear I don’t know anything! Ah!!!” he stabbed the scalpel deep into his arm and the nurse tensed up and suddenly dropped on the floor.
Suichi looked to the side as Rukia swung across him and nailed the other one in the face. He hit the ground and she tasered him like she had the other one and they were both unconscious. She yanked the scalpel from his arm and she unstrapped him.
“We need to get the fuck out of here, this place is crawling with goons.” She told him.
“They know I know something. When these two come to, they’ll be banging on my door ready to torture me!” he yelled at her.
“Look relax, I’m gonna erase their minds. As far as they know you were never even in this hospital.” She told him and knelt down next to one and she put her fingers to his temples and a small bolt of electricity surged from her finger tips.
She went to the next one and did the same. She looked around and dragged out some chairs and she grabbed one and put him in the chair and put the other one there too. She grabbed Suichi’s hand and pulled him out of the room. She looked around and pulled him along to a side entrance. They slipped out and the others were waiting.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here now. When you get back if they come to your door and ask you why you left the hospital, you just tell them you couldn’t afford the care. Eichi you paid for his room got it?” she told him as they went through the allies.
“Got it.” He replied.
Kyo handed Suichi his clothes and he put on his shoes as they walked. She looked around and she shoved aside a big dumpster aside that revealed a basement stair case. She went down and they followed her. She unlocked a big red door and they slipped inside. She pulled off the wig and ran her fingers through her hair.
“Ok, here’s the plan. You guys are gonna head back, don’t rush, don’t talk about it in the open, just act normal. When you get there you’re going to leave everything of mine on the fire escape, lock the window, draw the curtains and act natural. I’ll come back and pick it up at five thirty. They have people watching the condo, but there is a twenty minute gap while they are switching guards. I’ll be out of Tokyo by noon tomorrow.” She told them.
“You’re just skipping town?” asked Suichi as he put his clothes back on, “What if they catch up with you?”
“Don’t worry about me; I’m not your problem any more.” She replied bluntly as she pulled a pack of cigarettes from her purse and sat on an old stool.
“Not…news flash princess, they know I know something! This excuse isn’t gonna keep them from making my life a living hell!”
“Look I’m not just going to let them think you know where I went! I’m gonna get caught crossing the boarder of Tokyo either way because they have every single train, plane, bus and taxi watched in this city! When I’m caught, you’re off the hook and completely inconsequential to them!” she shouted back.
“What? You can’t just let yourself get caught!” he replied incredulously.
She stood starring at him in disbelief, “What the hell do you want me to do Suichi!? You almost got your fuckin’ hand cut off! For Christ sakes get rid of me!” she yelled grabbing him by the front of the shirt, “Look it wasn’t supposed to go this far, I wasn’t even supposed to be with you guys for this long, but it happened and now you’re in it deep! I have no choice, but to leave or else they will kill each and every single one of you and they won’t make it easy! The best thing you can do right now is to forget me and leave me behind!”
“We aren’t leaving you behind!”
She looked up because this time it was Kyo who spoke.
“Look we knew what we were getting ourselves into when we let you stay with us, just because things are getting rough doesn’t mean we’re gonna leave you behind.” He finished.
Kaito nodded, “We didn’t dump you when the hospital threw us out and we aren’t gonna dump you now.”
Shane chuckled, “Just face it…you’re stuck with us chick.”
She slowly let go of Suichi’s shirt.
“Yeah they were gonna cut off my hand.” Said Suichi and he lifted his bloody arm, “And you didn’t hear me say anything did you?”
She looked at the all and she backed up and she sank onto the stool and lowered her head her hair falling into her face. Her shoulders shook and they heard her sob as she cried for the first time. She sniffled trying to contain it and she wiped her eyes and looked up.
“…one hell of a Christmas.” She said with a small chuckle, but more tears slipped down her cheeks.
Suichi sighed and he walked over to her and she looked up as he knelt down in front of her.
“…Look…maybe I lied; maybe I do care about you more than just feeling guilty if I let them find you. Now, I’m short on cash so consider this plan you Christmas gift.” He told her.
She knitted her brows, but she smiled when she saw him smiling.

* * *

Suichi had a pocket full of money as he slipped into an ally way behind an ice cream shop. There was a dumpster and he went to the side and knocked on it four times and waited. The top slid open and a rather dirty man slipped out. Suichi held up the money and he took it.
“What do you need done?” he asked.
“I need you to shut down the Tokyo Airline briefly, then I need you to get some one that looks like this and sneak them on a plane out of the country.” He replied and handed the man a picture of Rukia.
“Ah, I see Gensai’s daughter, staging a break out of the country to throw them off. You’re good my friend…I’ll need another 100,000 to pull this off how ever.” He told him looking over.
He sighed and dug out some more money and handed it to him.
“By the end of the night every mobster will think Rukia Kawakami is on her way to England.” Informed the man.
“Thanks man, send word when they’re off the trail.” Said Suichi before he slipped out of the ally and headed back to the condo.
He was stopped of course by three more mob guys before he went in.
“Can I help you?” he asked.
“Look cut the crap, you know who we’re looking for.” Replied one of the thugs, “We’re searching your place.”
“Fine, come on up, flip everything. Dig through crap, I don’t care.” He replied gruffly and led them up.
They went inside as soon as the door was open and they started searching everything again. The others stayed in the living room and glanced at them before he sat down. They eventually came into the living room and searched every corner coming up empty.
“If we see her anywhere near here you’re all dead.” Said the head man.
“Hey boss we found some one!”
They all went ridged and Suichi’s heart dropped. He thought they had hidden her well enough. He gripped his fists and he dug in the cushion of his chair and wrapped his hand around the handle of a gun. They looked up and then they all looked bemused when they pushed in …a teenage boy. He was dressed in a pair of old jeans, a tee-shirt with a long sleeve shirt under it, his hair was brown and in a butt cut and he had green eyes.
“He’s missing a daughter you idiot, not a son!” he yelled at him and smacked him on the head.
“He was tied up under the bed.”
The kid snorted, “And what? It’s my money, I like bondage it’s my business.”
They looked disgusted and gave them a warning look before they left. Every one stood and looked at the kid and they received a familiar giggle as he ripped off a wing and a stocking cap letting black hair spill onto her shoulders.
“Oh man Rukia that was the best disguise yet.” Said Kyo impressed.
She bowed and chuckled, “Thank you, thank you, but let’s give it up for the man with the plan, every body, it’s Suichi Yukimura!”
Suichi chuckled and bowed as well as they cheered.
“Ok I almost died several times today…it’s almost dawn and I have to work…and I am…very light headed.”
Rukia sat him down and lifted his arm and his sleeve was soaked in blood.
“Lost a little too much blood.”
“Go get the first aid kit.” Kyo told Shane and he knelt down next to his chair and rolled up his sleeve and looked at the deep cut.
Kyo took the first aid kit from Shane and set it on the ground. He slipped on a pair of gloves and he cleaned off Suichi’s wound. Suichi looked surprised when he took out a pack of sutures he had stolen from the hospital and he threaded the curved needle and he started to suture the wound with a pair of forceps just like a surgeon.
“You’re really good at that Kyo-kun.” Said Yataro looking over his shoulder.
“Can you grab my reading glasses, I’m having a little trouble seeing?” he asked Yataro offhandedly.
Yataro ran off and he came back and slipped a pair of square framed glasses on his face and he finished suturing him. He tied it off and cut them and then dabbed some antiseptic on the wound and then wrapped it up with some gauze.
“You really are good at that.” Commented Suichi, “where did you learn to do that?”
Kyo sighed and pulled off his gloves, “At the hospital. Before I ended up here I was in my residency at Saint Peter’s hospital. I was like…the master resident. I got perfect marks in school. I got my PhD two years before every one else. And I was chief resident one year after I finished my internship. I worked both the ER and the OR…but medical school is very expensive and I had horrible credit so no bank would give me a loan, so I took out one with the mob. Every paycheck I got from there went straight to them and then they got impatient and now I’m here…I could be saving lives, but they saw me fit to have sex with strangers instead.”
“Well after you get the rest of the money you can go back to the hospital.” Said Yataro brightly.
Kyoshiro sighed and he stood and slipped off his sunglasses.
“Yataro…I lied to you.” He said as he walked over to the couch and sat down.
“…About what?” he asked confused.
Kyoshiro rubbed the back of his head, “It took me 57,000,000 yen to pay for medical school and before I came here I had only paid back 20,000,000 of that. With the million you gave me…I still owe them…28,000,000 yen.”
Yataro looked devastated and he sat down hard.
“Damn...”muttered Suichi, “You’re almost as in debt as I am…you’re gonna be in here…”
“Yeah forever right next to you Suichi…or at least until my father stops being a dick. The man is a billionaire and he refused to help me pay for medical school because I didn’t want to follow family tradition.” He explained.
“Family tradition?” mused Yataro.
He nodded, “Fuck a woman and produce adequate heirs. My brother who is two years younger than me already has five kids and I think his wife isn’t that happy about it. Then my little sister who is a year under him has already had three kids and is expecting her forth.” He replied.
Shane shook his head, “How boorish is that? I mean it’s 2007 and we’re in friggen Japan and he doesn’t want to bust you out of a whore house because you’re gay?”
“No he doesn’t care about that. He arranged a marriage for me to remain in the blue blood family, I told him I was gay…and he just picked out the fuckin’ woman’s brother. I was seventeen so I ran away from home, with my ghetto boyfriend and went to medical school. I tried to keep in touch with him, but he completely cut me off from everything including contact with my family.” He told him.
Toya shook his head, “That’s so trashy, blue blood my ass. What happened to your ghetto boyfriend?”
He took a deep breath and sighed, “He was one of the reasons I went to medical school. When I met him he was very sick…I wanted to be like…one of those doctors who came up with a cure for cancer…or AIDS. But…he died near the end of my internship.”
Yataro shook his head, “That’s a really sad story. And now you’re going to be in here forever.”
He stood and walked out of the room. Kyo sighed and he stood.
“Yataro…”
He went after him and Suichi shook his head.
“I guess none of us would be in here if we had great family.” He said.
Toya looked up, “But you managed to get a story from every one here except Kaito and Shane.”
“As if.” Muttered Shane.
Suichi chuckled, “I’ve been here for thirteen years, fourteen in two months Shane…I’ve seen over a dozen guys come and go in this condo and I eventually got a confession from all of them.}
“Well good luck with us…it’s Christmas eve I’m not going out tomorrow. I’m going to bed.” Sighed Shane and he left and went to bed.
“What about you Kaito? Big secret?” asked Suichi.
“Try looking into my eyes Suichi, I guarantee you, you’ll come out with more scars than you care for.” He said coldly.
“Ok, sorry.”
Kaito looked at Eichi, “You staying the night?”
“I might as well. It is four in the morning.”
They both went to bed and Suichi sighed and he stood, light headed from the blood loss. Rukia stood and he looked down as she took his arm.
“Come one, if you fall down at least you won’t hit your head if you take me down too.” She told him and he snorted.
She escorted him down the hall to his room.
“You make a very convincing boy.” Said Suichi still impressed from before.
“Yeah well if I’m ruled out as a female all together I couldn’t possibly be Rukia in disguise.” She replied and he nodded.
“Too true.”
He sat on his bed and she smiled at him.
“…Thank you for everything Suichi…I really do owe you a lot now. And I promise I will make it up to you.” She told him sincerely and he nodded.
“You’re welcome. Night Rukia.”
“Good night Suichi.”
She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek before she left his room. He lay back on his bed and rubbed his face with a sigh. He turned off his light tired as hell. He just wanted to sleep now.

* * *

The next morning around eleven every one was finally up. Rukia was just coming back in dressed in her drag disguise.
“The drag really works. I actually walked right up to one of my father’s right hand men and he didn’t even take a second glance at me.” She told them, “Plus they all think I’m in England.”
“Hot damn, it worked.” Said Suichi from the couch.
“Yeah so I’ve decided to change my identity out of the condo. Out in the world I’m going as Ryo.” She told them as she sat on the couch.
Yataro shook his head, “It’s so weird. It’s almost like I could have sworn you were in my gym class.”
Rukia chuckled and she pulled off the wig and ran her fingers through her hair.
“I wanna know how you flatten out your boobs so much.” Said Shane turning his head to the side.
She chuckled, “Sports bra, duct tape and an ace bandage. Excuse me.”
She no doubt went to unstrap herself. Kaito walked in from his bedroom looking pissed.
“I miss counted, I still need another 50,000 for my monthly quota…I have to go out today.” He sighed and went to get his coat, but Eichi grabbed him coming from the hall and pulled him down on the couch.
“No chance, buddy it’s Christmas eve.” He told him and wrapped his arms around him.
Kaito snorted, “I can’t stay in just because it’s Christmas eve. Late year we both worked right up until New Years.”
“…well fine if you insist on going out today I’ll just have to give you your Christmas present early.” He said and he pushed him off to the side and he got up.
He grabbed a box from under the tree and gave it to him. Kaito gave a small smile and he unwrapped it and slipped off the top. His face fell and he stood.
“What is it?” asked Suichi.
He pulled out a stack of papers.
“It’s…it’s my contract…”
He turned it around and they were all shocked to see it was stamped [Void].
“…My debt has been paid off…as of yesterday, but…Eichi you…”
He stopped and fell back hard on the couch when he saw Eichi down on one knee. Every one was very still, even Kyo who was standing at the kitchen door.
“Kaito…I know…we haven’t been…going out very long, but…I love you and now that you’re free…I’d be honored if you’d marry me.” He announced and held out a small black box.
Kaito took it with a shaking hand and he opened it and found white gold ring with a diamond band going straight through the middle. His eye lids drooped and he passed out to the side.
“Uh…” Eichi closed the box and he got up, “Kaito?”
Kyo ran back into the kitchen and he came back with a cold towel. Eichi took it and he dabbed his head and his neck. He swallowed and started to come around. He blinked up at Eichi.
“Are you ok?”
He screamed and jumped Eichi throwing him to the ground hugging him.
“Yes! Yes!!!” he yelled and kissed Eichi.
Every one else just applauded as Eichi stood and pulled Kaito to his feet and kissed him again. Yataro looked like he was ready to cry. Kyo chuckled and put his arm around him and kissed the top of his head.

As bad luck would have it…that evening was doomed to be one of Kaito’s bad ones despite the day he had. Or rather…because of the day he had.
“What’s he doing?” asked Eichi looking into the living room next to Suichi.
“He’s…coloring Eichi.” Replied Suichi bluntly, “He did tell you…he has a few mental quirks right?”
“Yeah, he just didn’t go into detail.” He replied.
Suichi shook his head, “He doesn’t know the detail Eichi. He never remembers what happens in these little episodes of his. But he knows when they happen. And they usually happen after something big has happened. He’ll drift out of it by tonight.”
“What does he have exactly?”
“I don’t…”
“Schizophrenia followed by acute regression and automatic behavior.” Said Kyo walking into the living room.
Eichi frowned, “Can I get it in Japanese please?”
Kyo sat down and looked up, “He slips into another personality where he starts acting like a child on impulse. A quiet child, but one none the less. Most of the time all he does it color, sing to himself and stare out the window…think you can handle being married to that every time something overly excites him?”
“Yeah ‘cause if you can’t and you hurt him I’ll take back what I said and hurt you.” Said Suichi looking down at him.
Eichi didn’t even look up at him, he just shook his head, “I love him Suichi…I’ll take him any way he is.”
“Good answer.” He replied and patted him on the shoulder.
Suichi went back into the kitchen as Rukia came in again. She had been gone most of the day and she came back in with a bunch of grocery bags.
“What’s all this for?” he asked.
She chuckled and she set everything on the counter, “You guys don’t seem like you’ve had many good Christmases.”
He snorted and grabbed a beer, “You think?”
“So I’m going to cook every one…especially Shane. An old fashion American Christmas dinner. Turkey, stuffing, dressings, mashed potatoes, you know the whole, spread.” She told him.
“That sounds great, man I haven’t had a good Christmas since my father was alive. It was never the same after that.” He told her leaning against the counter.
“I know what you mean. After my mother was gone Christmas kind of went down hill. I saved it from dying when I was ten and I learned how to cook. Gen-chan kind of helped me out and we seemed to have Christmas with out our father who preferred to work on Christmas and I was just fine with that.” She said as she put away the groceries.
He chuckled, “How long has it been since you’ve seen your brother’s?”
Rukia sighed and she sat on the counter, “The last time we were all together was the day after my mother was killed. After that I had never seen Ryonosuke again. It’s been four years since I’ve seen Ryouta, Ryosei I lived with until my father tried to kill me and Gensai…God I miss Gen-chan so much. I hate to say it, but he was my favorite. I’ve seen him once since he moved out six years ago. He looks the most like my father, but he is the least one like him out of all of my brothers.” She told him with affection in her voice.
“You don’t know what happened to the rest of them?” he asked her curious.
She thought for a second, “Last I heard from Ryonosuke he sent me an invitation to his college graduation. He took the medical route and he’s an intern at Tokyo General. I couldn’t go though…I was still in the whore house; my father just threw it at me to mock me.”
He sat down and looked back, “You really were a hooker for two years?”
She chuckled, “A high rate hooker, but one none the less. I kept all the money I made and put it in my separate account…it’s under my hooker name.”
“You had a hooker name. Ok I gotta hear this.” Said Suichi with a small laugh.
She sighed, “My hooker name was Coco.”
He snorted and then busted out laughing.
“Coco!? Are you serious!?”
“Oh be quiet, why don’t you tell me some of the nick names you’re fetish clients gave you?” she asked cheekily and he was drawn to silence, “Yeah, I thought so.”
She finished putting the groceries away and she looked around and clicked her tongue.
“I forgot to buy butter and cranberries. I’ll be right back.” She told him as she unwillingly put back on the wig and she headed out.
He got up and he looked into the living room. Kaito was lying on the couch and he chuckled because Eichi was reading him a story. Kyo was sitting with Yataro in his lap and drinking a glass of scotch. Toya walked in and he stashed a few presents under the tree and Shane was sitting in a usual spot of his in the window seat. It felt like a beautiful Christmas eve to him, but some where in the back of his mind…he couldn’t help, but feel something was wrong. He tried to ignore it as he went and sat in the living room and he watched an old Christmas special on TV.

It was getting late and Rukia hadn’t come back. Suichi was pacing in front of the door. The others were sitting in the living room worrying as well. He stopped and looked up at the clock.
“…I hope she’s ok.” Muttered Kaito who was back to his old self.
Suichi ran his fingers through his hair and he leaned back against the wall and tapped his foot. His phone went off and he dropped it digging it out of his pocket. He picked it up and opened it.
“Hello? …Oh thank God, where are you!? …Why are you there? …What!? No, we’ll be right there don’t move, are you ok? …Ok…we’ll be right there.” She hung up and yanked on his coat.
”Is she ok? Where is she?” asked Kyo.
Suichi put on his shoes, “She was mugged, she’s in the ally between Yoko’s and the pet shop. She sounded kind of out of it.”
They all got dressed to go outside and they all piled in the truck and headed down town. Suichi parked outside of the pet shop and they jumped out and went for the ally. He looked around not seeing her.
“Over here!”
He ran behind a dumpster and she was leaning up against the wall of the pet shop. She looked pretty roughed up and she looked up.
“Jeez, how did they get you?” he asked her kneeling down.
She took a deep breath, “Butterfly knife…in the lower back.”
He pushed her forward and saw blood soaked through the back of her shirt. He picked her up and she leaned against him.
“Hey, one of you guys get that bag. The only reason I’m out here was for fuckin’ cranberries and butter.” She told them as Suichi carried her to the car.
Shane looked back and he picked up a grocery bag and her gun which was next to it. He laid down the seat and slipped her in it. Shane got into the back seat with Toya and the others got into the back.
“How ya doin’ toots?” asked Shane looking down at her.
“Well I won’t bleed to death, so better than some days.” She replied with a spirited smile.
Kyo slipped into the middle seat of the cab and Suichi after him. He tuned her on her side and lifted up her shirt.
“…Doesn’t look like it hit your kidney, did you black out?” he asked her.
She winced, “Just ‘cause he hit me on the head.”
She sighed and looked out the window while he took care of her. Suichi head for the condo and growled when they stropped at a light. She lifted her head starring out of the window.
“…where’s my gun?”
Shane looked down at her, “Why?”
“That’s the son of a bitch who shanked me.” She said pointing out the window, “Give me my gun I’m gonna shoot that bastard in the foot.”
Shane cocked the gun and opened the window and Suichi looked back, “Souvenir or straight through?” he just asked.
She chuckled, “Leave him something.”
He looked up at the light and he shot just before it turned green. The guy hit the ground holding his foot and Rukia laughed evilly and held out her hand and Shane gave her five.
“You little guinea you’re in the mob.” She said looking up and Suichi swerved and every one looked at him.
“N…no I’m not…” he started and ducked his head.
Rukia rolled onto her stomach and she looked at him, “What’s your surname?”
He swallowed and rubbed the back of his neck, “Goretti.”
She laughed, “You’re father is Gesepi Goretti. Oh my God you are to the American mafia as what I am to the Japanese mafia.”
“You’re the son of the God Father!?” asked Toya incredulously.
“Oh shut up! Ok yes my father is the head of the American mafia and no it is not like God Father mafia it’s like…Soprano’s mafia. And I wouldn’t talk about it to me because I learned enough being a hit man to know how to kill some one in fifty four different painful fashions.” He told them very irritably.
The others looked a little freaked out, Rukia just put her face in her hand, “Don’t be such a puss about it Shane, every one in the circle knows how to kill explicitly and a lot of the ones who quit it, end up getting something torn off of them when they do. So buddy…what’s your story?”
He glanced at her, “Things are different in America. Every one is prejudice against every one. I was trained as the under boss to take control after my father either retired, got killed or was arrested…he walked in on me and my boyfriend. First thing he did was shoot him in the head and then he shipped me to Japan so no one in America would find out about the shame I brought to my family.” He said and folded his arms.
Suichi looked in the mirror to the back, “Because you’re gay he sent you out of the country?”
He nodded, “In America we have pride for the diverse…some of the time. The rest of the time people just hate each other. My father just called me a fagot and threw me on the next plane and made sure I can’t get back to America ever again. And that’s just fuckin’ fine with me. I like Japan better any way.”
“Until you became a hooker.” Said Rukia.
He glared at her and she giggled, “Look I didn’t really know what I was doing ok? I came here with nothing and I needed money. I just did crap like I used to do back home and I told your father I’d make a delivery for him…I got shot and they stole it so now I’m working off what it’s worth.”
She nodded, “A familiar story. My father has at least seventeen guys and chicks working off things they had lost.”
“…are you working for that son of a bitch or not!?” Suichi finally yelled.
“Look at me bitch, do I look like I’m working for the mob any more!? I’m done with that shit ok? It’s over, end of chapter, book closed.” He replied a little hostile.
“Relax; I really doubt he would be here with us if he was working for my dad.”
“Yeah you probably would have killed me by now.” He said with a small grin.
Toya sighed exasperatedly and Kyo shook his head, “Both of ya’ll crazy ok?”
“Damn straight.” Was Rukia’s reply.

When they got back to the condo Rukia was laying on her stomach on the couch in her bra as Kyo cleaned and sutured her wound. She had a patch on her head where she was hit, but she seemed indifferent to it all as she read a magazine while he did her back. Suichi was sitting in a chair starring at her. He was a little pissed off again that she was hurt and she seemed so at ease. But there was also the fact that she was an eighteen year old girl in a push up bra on his couch and more to attract the eye was the scars on her young body.
There was specially one that drew his eyes to her breasts as it curled over her left one and went in between them. It was kind of jagged like the cut wasn’t clean and had healed badly.
“Stop starring at my boobs.” She said with out looking up and he looked at her face.
“Hey I wasn’t…never mind.” Either way he looked at it what he was doing was rude.
She nodded, “Eyeing the battle scar?”
“I’m sorry I shouldn’t…”
“Fuck that.” Said Shane walking in, “I know you’re a guinea, but I was shot and beaten the fuck up and you have more scars than me.”
“…Gee! You’re very subtle Shane!” said Suichi through his teeth.
“Fuck subtlety.” Was his reply as he sat down.
She rolled her eyes, “Well the ever so attractive one over my rack came from a broken beer bottle. I got it dancing in a bar for a little extra cash and the guy touch my ass so I kick him in the jewels and he retaliates with a broken beer bottle.” She explained to him.
“How did you retaliate?” asked Shane.
She laughed, “I shoved the rest of the beer bottle up his ass.”
“Ow.”
“…You two are sadists, that’s all there is to it.” Said Suichi appalled and he shook his head and left the room and they both chuckled.
Kyo sighed, “Well we got a story from every one, but Kaito and he’s leaving us.”
The phone rang and Suichi came back and he picked it up.
“Hello? …What!? Fuck…” he hung up, “Gensai’s here!”
Rukia cursed and she stood as Kyo clipped the suture. She grabbed her and they all froze as there was a knock on the door. Rukia took a deep breath and she looked around. Suichi glared at her and her eyes widened as he went to the door.
“What are you doing…Suichi!?”
“I’m turning your ass in; I’m not taking this any more.” He said and he grabbed the door knob and he opened the door.
She quickly drew her gun as the door opened, but she let it fall and she screamed and ran to the door. There was a man who looked a lot like the great mob boss, but he had long hair and he was a lot younger.
“Hey you couldn’t have dressed for my arrival?”

Gensai Kawakami II
Age: 24
Height: 6’
Build: Average, slightly muscular
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Blue-gray
Sexual Standing: Bisexual

Rukia kissed him on the cheek and then she turned to the grinning Suichi and she punched him in the stomach and he coughed.
“You scared the hell out of me! I thought you were gonna turn me in you bastard!”
Gen chuckled and closed the door behind him as she yanked her shirt on.
“Don’t be too mad at him, he was looking for me for the last twenty four hours.” Said her older brother.
She looked at him as he cleared his throat and straightened out his shirt, “…You did that for me?” she asked quietly.
He nodded, “I can’t afford Christmas presents and I don’t know how every one else did quite frankly.”
She shook her head with a smile and she hugged him.
“Thank you…so much Suichi.” She said with a small sniff.
“Yeah…Merry Christmas Rukia.”
She let him go and turned to her brother. Yeah he looked like his father alright, but this kid was not the sharp man his father was. He had straight, black hair down to his shoulder blades and a goatee. His right brow was pierced like his left ear and he was dressed in a black overcoat over a fleece sweater and a worn pair of jeans. He also had a bag slung on his shoulder.
“I can’t believe you’re here. I haven’t seen you in so long…and you’re so damn handsome…” she said with tears in her eyes.
He chuckled, “I should be the one complimenting you. You’re the spitting image of mom. You ok, you look a little battered there.”
She sighed, “It’s a long story. Come on.”
Kyo folded his arms and looked at Suichi with a shrewd smile as she took Gen into the living room.
“What?” he said trying not to smile.
Kyo shook his head, “You are one soft guy under all that muscle buddy.”
“Yeah right.”
They went into the living room and Rukia lay back on her stomach and Kyo sighed and went to redo the stitches. She told him about what happened between her and their father. He didn’t seem shocked, but he certainly was pissed.
“That mother fucker, I swear to God I won’t be satisfied until I’m looking into his cold lifeless eyes.” He growled angrily.
“I got dibs first Gen-chan.” Said Rukia, “So what have you been up to the last six years?”
He leaned back and folded his arms, “I’m a successful manga artist. I have a pseudonym of course, ‘cause let’s face it no one is gonna buy something signed Gensai Kawakami.”
“What name are you under? What did you write?” she asked him eagerly.
“I wrote Right World, Wrong Dimension and my penname is…”
“Oh my God you’re Reiki Kimura!” yelled Shane excitedly stepping into the conversation.
“You’re a fan?” asked Gen raising an eye brow, “You’re what…thirty?”
He glared at him, “I’m twenty seven, thank you very much.”
“Don’t be mean Gen-chan. This is Shane Goretti and if you ask me if I was born a man or if he was born straight we’d be soul mates.” She told him and Shane chuckled.
“Huh, he might be worth my time then…what do you charge?” he asked Shane and Rukia threw a throw pillow at him and he blocked, “I’m kidding, ok I’ll stop.”
Shane muttered, “Too damn bad.” and he sat down and crossed his legs.
“Keep it to yourself. I’m just used to scorning my fans because they either annoy me or they ask to sleep with me. You learn to hate it when people actually say, ‘Oh my God I love your work!’” he told them and he rubbed his sinuses.
Shane shook his head, “I do have an affinity for anime and manga, but I was most impressed with the articles you write for Jiro’s Journal.”
He frowned and looked at Shane, “You actually read those? All I ever get it people hustling me to sign copies of either my manga or my yaoi.”
Rukia’s jaw dropped, “You write yaoi!? Oh my God…wait…are you gay.”
“Please say yes.” Quipped Shane.
“I’m bisexual if you must know.” He admitted finally.
Shane looked up at the ceiling and mouthed ‘thank you’.
“I think you were right, you two are almost the same person.” Sighed Gen.
“You get used to it.” Said Suichi.
“Look I gotta go, but I’ll be back tomorrow for Christmas.” He said standing.
“You promise? It’s not gonna be another six years is it?” she asked him with a warning look.
He chuckled and he walked over to her and bent over.
“I promise you. And then we’re gonna find a way to get you out of this crap. Love ya, sis.” He said and he kissed her on the cheek.
She smiled, “You too Gen-chan. See ya tomorrow.”
He said good bye to every one else and he left. Kyo put a patch on her back and pulled down her shirt.
“Thanks Kyo.” She told him.
he nodded with a small smile, “No problem. I’m going to bed. You staying the night again Yataro?”
“Yeah might as well. It’s not like I’m gonna go spend Christmas with my brother or something.” Her said and followed him to bed.
Rukia looked at Shane and he grinned and he got up and went to bed as well. She stood and walked over to Suichi and she sat on the arm rest of his chair and he looked up at her.
“That was really sweet, Suichi. I can’t believe you actually found my brother for me…I don’t think I could have asked for anything better for Christmas.” She told him with a small smile.
He grinned, “It’s not big deal. If anything it just says I’m cheap.”
She laughed and she shook her head. She tipped his chin up and looked at him intently.
“…It really is a big deal. No one has ever treated me as good as you do.” She told him.
“Wow…that’s…kind of sad.” He muttered and she nodded.
She sighed quietly, “My life is very sad, but for once I don’t feel like it is. Because of you...I think I might actually survive this whole thing.”
She smiled at him again and she kissed him lightly on the lips surprising him a little. She eyed him as her smile grew coy and she stood and went into the kitchen. Suichi slowly looked ahead and found himself a little hot in the face. He started when all of the guys fell out of the hallway at once and they all talked at once and they scrambled back into the hallway. Suichi leaned back and he shook his head. He had a feeling that tomorrow things were going to get more complicated…especially with himself.

To be continued…
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