Scene 9

When the days go by without the sight of Naruse Ryo or Serizawa Naoto, Ariake Koichi knoew for sure that he'd never see them ever again. When he takes the early morning train, more out of habit now, he would not see the detective. Or when he'd unconciously stray to the library or in front of the lawyer's office, he knows he would not see Ryo there. Loneliness tugs at his heart, yanking at it in deep sorrow and loss. Both of the places seemed to have something missing now, it was the certain presences that Koichi has grown to watch out for without his knowing.

On the day Ariake had decided to turn himself in, he had a dream. In it was a blaring white light, shining so vibrantly into the man's eyes. Emotions flickered over him: sadness, rage, guilt, lost, and fear. Just as the darkness looming behind him crept closer, as if to swallow him whole from behind, two hands are outstretched towards him. Gratefulness washed over him as he takes the hands with his own, not once doubting them, because he just knew they could be trusted. As Koichi is pulled into the light two voices whisper to him.

Goodbye.

A final parting and he woke up, tears glistening on his face. It was only natural for him to cry, anyone would if someone close to you just wasn't there anymore. Only after you've cried until no tears come can you begin to move on, things that were unclear before and the magical things that the person had bestowed on you were crystal clear then. There was sadness in this farewell but also an unspoken feeling, the emotion of gratitude. Without knowing so, a person can affect another so deeply.

----

Koichi turns himself in after the incident and is put into jail for a while. The days he spends there were calm as he would sort out his scattered feelings. He had loved Naruse Ryo. That, Ariake had made not of as a fact. He had also loved Serizawa Naoto. And that, was also a fact. All Koichi wanted to do was love others. It was easy to resent, hold a grudge, and hate a person, but it was a different challenge to loving another person. He wanted to find a reason, any at all, for any person that would make him 'love' them. He wanted to be able to help others, to give them hope to a brighter future. He...he wanted to love Shizuna and Taisuke as an older bother should, as a family would. Koichi wanted this for the rest of his life.

When he is released he knows he can start from scratch once more. There's the resteruant now, his along with his siblings, and the smells are just like when they were children. There's the warm atmosphere or being welcomed somewhere and happiness there. He knows that he is alive, watching over everyone, loved and loving.

Naruse Ryo and Serizawa Naoto had saved his life.

They had saved him from ruining himself and his life, taking to dark path that he was trying to run away to. Only now does Koichi realize that back then when the pain gripped his being so harshly, it was just another symbol that showed that he was truly alive. A human being's heart is like a pheonix, when a part of it dies it may seem like you're completely dead inside but only alive on the outside, but as time slowly drifts forward, it begins anew, reborn from the ashes and becoming a whole once more. The process can be slow and painful, some things might happen that you may never forget, but surely someday the wound heals. The overwhelming sorrow simmers and is replaced by something else, hope. You have to move on because no one can live in the past, you must live looking forwards, always.

Koichi wonders if someday he will meet the two once more. Maybe not in this life time or even this world, but the man knows they would meet the two once more. Maybe under the star studded sky as meteors streaked by they would be basking in bliss. Their wounds healed by then and everyone starting from a clean slate, untainted and unmarred, not victims or killers, just...people. They would be happy. Koichi didn't mind if they were to stay like that for eternity. Forever and always, forever and ever. They had been connected by their sorrow, but the unending hope for a new day would bind them together.

Ariake Koichi stares at dusk, the sun slowly going downwards Closing his eyes, he sends the image mentally to the other two, wherever they may be. He bids farewell to them and also to the radiant sun.

The sun would still rise again, shining vibrantly, tomorrow.

The End

Scene 8

Naruse Ryo prays to himself deep in his heart that Ariake Koichi does not continue to stray down this path. The path is dark and thorny, and it destroys at your inard with such malice and unforgiveness. There was nothing the lawyer could do anymore, but to silently hope, only leaving behind the past comfort he had spared to the other man. He hoped that the feeling would linger in the man's heart, serving as a light or at least a spark to ignite hope into the future of him.  As soon as his used-to-be accomplice had stabbed him, Naruse knew that he was going to die even before a single drop of blood had dripped from the wound. His body felt heavy and spasmed with pain with his every sharp intake of air, yet the agony was no match against the sorrow he had felt when his family had died and the regret and guilt when he had murdered the others. His body swayed slightly as lightheadedness claimed him, plopping himself down to the bench that was conviently close. Only then did he vaguely notice that Yamano had scuttered away, driven by shame and misguided anger and hopelessness that was bottled within him. The lawyer's mobile rings and it's Serizawa Naoto, he is not surprised. The man's voice trembles slightly, his breath hitching ever so faintly with every inhale, and Naruse can feel his anger and overpowering sadness. It was the same as when his own brother had died, the hopeless feelings that were almost unexplainable that claimed your being with the harshness of truth and reality. Maybe now Serizawa would understand his feelings on such a scale, yet somewhere deep in Ryo's heart was the same regret Naoto had in his, the remorse for creating a victim and destroying one's life.

Taking a shuddering breath, he buttons up his jacket to conceal his wound, as if by doing so he can also guard his emotions, before pushing himself up to a stand and steps to his destination. With each step it grows more forced and hard, his mask slowly dissolving.

This would be the final act to his plan.

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Scene 7

Ariake Koichi knew that taking revenge for his parents' death would only bring more agony to him. Despite knowing so, he also kne that he couldn't just let it go, it wasn't as simple as that, the consticting and binding overwhelming feeling in his chest would not allow him to do so that easily. The promise his siblings and himself had made almost fifteen years ago still held onto his heart, burned into his memory so intensely it was as if it had left a scar, a permanent mark symbolizing that he would never, could never forget what had happened and all the grief and hatred cause because of it. He had promised Shizuna, he had promised Taisuke, he had promised and swore on his parents' lost souls, and even promised himself that once he found the murderer he would kill them. He had made that promise as a child stripped of his innocence and naivity, heartbroken and lost, and he would avenge that child. Koichi only hoped that when he did Tasuke and Shizuna would not be present so that he could recieve all the blame himself. Unlike him, they had a full life ahead of them, just about to begin. They had hope to live the rest of their lives fulfillingly, not as victims but as sheer human beings. To the oldest of the three, he felt as if he had already died the very second he had laid eyes on the bloodstained corpses of his parents. A sight that he would never forget even past his own death, it flashed vermillion with all the blood around them on the familiar old mats. He had wanted them to just pop up from the ground, smiling and laughing about how it was just a cruel joke that they played on him as punishment for sneaking out. But they did not rise, not even their chests were moving up and down, inhale and exhale, as a sign of breathing. Even though he knew they were dead, he had not wanted to believe. He had not wanted to believe that the two that watched over him so closely for all his life were gone, never to share a fond memory with or a kind or lecturing word with anymore. The cherished memories he felt that he had taken for granted had all turned into broken dreams and nightmares in just one second that he was gone.

Why?

Koichi had felt the pain from both Naruse Ryo and Serizawa Naoto, in the way Naruse had held him tightly to his own body to the passionate kiss he had shared with Serizawa. They had both expressed such guilt and agony that it pained Koichi just seeing them like that. He could feel their hands and hearts trembled, faltering and wavering in shuddering grief. Both had experianced such lost and such sorrow, poignant.

Yet, Ariake Koichi could not stop now. He had spent the last fourteen, almost fifteen now, years searching for the murderer so that he could be the one to kill him with his own hands. If he gave up now, all those years of grieving and planning would've been in vain. All those years of unhappiness grappling at his chest for nothing. It didn't matter how much it hurt to keep progressing forward on this. It didn't matter how much his body was eing wrecked due to the waves of anger and sorrow. As long as the killer would pay in the end, Ariake was willing to do pratically anything.

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Scene 5

Naruse Ryo is slightly amused when he finds Ariake Koichi barging into his office unannounced and seemingly uncaring of the fact. The seated man behind the desk glancing at the clock hung up on the wall, noticing that by this time he should be off from work and at home by now. He turned his gaze back to his visitor, discarding the pile of paperwork that had made him lose track of time to address the other. “Ariake Koichi-san, what brings you to my office today?” The man took a seat across from him, slumping into the chair comfortably. His fingers tapped the armchair in a makeshift beat for several moments before he finally spoke up with a serious expression.

“What does it feel like to kill someone?” Koichi’s eyes are glazed over, shimmering and glassy as his mind drifted far away. His expression becomes unreadable even to the normally observant lawyer. “When you take a person’s life, does it hurt?” his dark eyes are lidded as his head rests back on the head of the furniture, “Does the pain in your heart go away? Does the constriction unwind itself in your chest?” A pale hand rests on top of his chest limply as it slowly tightens into a fist, grasping at the cloth of the front of his shirt. “Or does the agony remain, becoming more unbearable with each day that pasts?” Ariake’s voice falters to a whisper by then and Naruse can see the overwhelming sorrow in each and every one of the man’s features. His own hand tightens at the surface of his rich wood desk, futilely grabbing at the smooth surface. He wants to hold the other man at that very moment, to press encouraging and comforting words that would take away his pain even if momentarily. But he couldn’t do such a thing, to be in the position of risking that the cook could become close to him, straying him off the path of his objective. He must complete the revenge he had started for the sake of his deceased brother, because he now knew that he could not live any other way. If he got close to the boy, he would only hurt him when he left. “Naruse-san…” the lawyer peers up to meet the wavering gaze of Koichi who seems torn and almost wrecked by emotion, “Where and what is justice? Am what I’m doing justice? Because there is a killer, must there be a victim? If I…if I kill the man who killed my parents, will it just create a hurt person who will then in turn come after me? A…a person just like me.” The man seems so small as he pulls his knees to his chest, burying his head into his knees as if scrunched up by the ache of the hole in his chest, as his voice grows softer still, so soft that Ryo almost misses his words. “Is it possible for me to stop being a victim?”

It was that question that broke Naruse’s heart, pulling and jerking on his heartstrings violently. He wanted to ignore the pain by acting naïve, pretending nothing of such had just happened, but he also wished to just embrace the other man, if not able to give an answer than to at least be able to comfort the man. “It hurts…a lot…” Naruse whispers, realizing that fact himself as he says it, and he murmurs his story to the boy. How his brother had been murdered, and how he was killing everyone that was dear to his brother’s murderer for revenge. And by seeing the broken man’s face now, realizing that the two now shared the same pain of loss, a pain that no one should have to suffer. Pushing himself up quietly from the desk, the smooth sound of the wheels of his chair rolling back against the ticking of the clock, Ryo gently sat himself on the armrest of where Koichi sat. With one hand, he slowly placed it at the side of the other man’s head, pulling him closer to him so that Ariake’s head now rested on his lap. Tenderly, Naruse stroked the side of the man’s face, tracing the cheekbone through soft skin in a fluid yet soothing manner. He didn’t want the man to go through such pains. The lawyer knew that he couldn’t take back the agony of becoming and being a victim, but he wanted to spare the man the guilt and pain of becoming and being a killer. “Please don’t…” The two remained like that for a long time, the tick tock of the clock becoming almost like a lullaby to them. When Ryo peered down to the man whose head was rested against his thigh, he saw that Koichi’s eyes had long fluttered shut, lulled to peaceful slumber from the clock that hung on the smooth walls and even breaths that the two took. Careful not to jerk too much or too suddenly in the process, the lawyer removed his jacket gently and draped it lightly on Ariake’s sleeping form. The man grumbled slightly as he rolled his head deeper against Naruse’s thigh, scrunching up his brow. As if Ryo was ironing a shirt, he smoothed out the crease on the man’s brow, almost as if clearing Koichi’s troubles in the process.

Naruse Ryo watched the clock attentively, seeming almost hypnotized by the beat of it. He wanted to protect this victim, not as a lawyer but as a human being, to spare him the pain of being a murderer.

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Scene 4

Silence fell upon the two figures. Ariake Koichi stared at the sitting form of Serizawa Naoto with a mix of curiosity and amusement. The other man was peering downwards at the counter, as if unable to meet his eyes. With a tentative yet sly smirk Koichi leans down close to Naoto and waited. Slowly Serizawa’s head bobbed up, finally meeting the other man’s gaze. At that moment Ariake wriggled his eyebrows suddenly, earning a surprised chuckle from the detective. The wriggler of eyebrows grinned like a lazy feline, proud and mischievous, and remained in that position, clearly invading the personal space of the other. “So we meet again,” Koichi whispers huskily and grins wider now, knowing that the space between their faces was not much which allowed his warm breath to tickle Serizawa’s face. Naoto flushed as Ariake pulled away to stalk over to the door gracefully to close up for the night. All the while he hummed quietly to himself as the seated man stared after him. Koichi glanced at the other with the corner of his eye, feeling the gaze following him, and how the detective looked as if he was in deep thought. He noticed how the man’s shoulders sagged slightly as if a mysterious force weighed him down, just as Shizuna described how he looked when he was looking ‘pitiful’. The man shook himself, letting out a deep troubled sigh as he pushed himself upwards to a stand.

“I should get going if you’re closing.” Naoto spared him a small smile. It was a smile born from politeness, unlike joy was forced and stressed so that no one could see what he was truly feeling underneath.

“No,” Koichi shook his head, “Stay. Stay and have a drink with me.” He didn’t like those smiles; he didn’t like it when a person smiled despite their true emotions. He could see the hurt, the agony it brought to act happy when a person wasn’t happy. It shone in their eyes, bringing as much pain as a bleeding wound or a blotchy bruise. To see the detective like that made his chest ache, knowing that probably in the other man’s heart he was feeling a thousand times that ache. It would tear at his chest, grasping flesh and continuing to grab despite the discomfort.

Serizawa bit his lower lip as if debating it over and it was his turn to shake his head as his gaze drifted downwards to the ground, “I have work tomorrow.”

“So do I.”

In his mind, as if sending out the challenge mentally, Koichi dared him to refuse. If only a little and if only for a while he wanted to soothe and comfort the man as unhappiness grappled at him. The shorter man stalked over to him, raising his hand so that his fingertips were smoothing out the crease in Serizawa’s forehead, as if by doing so his troubles would go away too. Finally with a resigned sigh, Naoto nodded, “Fine, but only for a little while.” A little while was all Koichi wanted, needed, even if it was just a prolonged ten or fifteen minutes he would gladly accept it. Every second he spent with that man, something in his chest would progress and blossom wider, bigger, and more extravagant. So much so that his chest would ache for a totally different reason then from before. Ariake grabbed him by the hand, dragging him along as he shut off the set of lights, picked up a pack of beer, and trekked up the flight of stairs to the roof, all the while noting to himself that the hand in his was warm to his touch. Shizuna was probably with that Togami Yukinari, despite her denial and him acting blind to it as Taisuke probably was roaming freely in a bar of some sort amongst a crowd of females. Koichi felt a twinge of loneliness creep into his heart, as part of him was afraid that his siblings would move on forward and leave him behind. He shook away the emotion as he opened the door to the roof, as soon as he stepped foot outside he let go of his hold on the taller man. His hand felt cold then, as if something was wretched from it and now felt a sense of missing. Slowly and tentatively as he stowed away the insecure feelings deep into his being, he walked out to the fence, observing the sight of late night traffic filled with blazing lights. To him they were so bright it was almost scorching, the artificial beauty so pretty yet contaminated by sin. Ironically they reminded Koichi of stars, but more dirty. More corrupt and plain filthy, they were. Closing his eyes, a cool evening breeze blew over him, leaving his skin slightly chilled yet refreshed. He listened to the low hum of cars littering the streets in masses and the secretive whispery whistle of the wind. Opening his eyes again, he turned around and stalked midway to the detective before sitting himself to face the fence once more. After a few moments Serizawa joined him, and took the can of beer offered to him from Koichi. The smaller man laid down to monitor the twinkling stars against the dark night sky, hearing the snap and fizz coming from the other man opening the can.

“Give me some,” Koichi murmured, reaching his hand up for the can.

“Open your own,” Serizawa tapped the other man’s forehead with a low chuckle and a playful expression on his face as the hand holding the can dodged the outstretched reach.

Koichi growled, equally as playful, “I gave you that.” He intertwines his hand into the detective’s hair, rubbing the man’s scalp relaxingly with his fingertips. The man lets out a satisfied hum deep from his throat. Koichi gently pulls him closer, nudging the man to take initiative to follow or stop him if he disagreed. Naoto allows himself to be pulled downwards into a blissful kiss. They taste the bitterness and burn of beer and sweetness with soft lips. They flavour withheld and kept emotions that are stored deep in their souls, those that are hidden from view, on their tongues, as if tasting the words unsaid there. Serizawa forgets his difficulties momentarily, lost in the instant as Ariake invisibly grasps at his troubles, taking and keeping them to himself so that the weight could be lifted if only for a while. He would gladly carry the weight for him for now, wishing to give the man the break he needed. As the lips part their breathing is irregular and as their breaths even out, Koichi rests his head in the other man’s lap as he closes his eyes. His whisper penetrates the night in a plea, “Please don’t go yet...” His mind continues the broken sentence, feeling somehow that the other man understood it without him saying it aloud.

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Scene 2

Naruse Ryo noted to himself only now was the game beginning. Serizawa Naoto discovered his true identity…no, not true identity. His old identity. The so-called angel lawyer trembled slightly. These days he was becoming uncertain. Uncertain of the revenge he was seeking and has so carefully devised over the years. All because of the girl Shiori’s words, Naoto’s pleads, and even that stranger Ariake Koichi’s gaze filled with unspoken agony was he wavering to go through the plan he had worked on for the last few years of his life. He shook the thoughts out of his head, the over crowding of voices in his brain, not wanting to think about it anymore for now. The lawyer’s mind wandered to the man he had encountered not long ago…

A knock on the hard wood door broke Naruse out of his trance-like state as he called instinctively for the visitor to enter. His secretary informed him of a guest without an appointment and whether to shoo him off or show him in. Remembering that his paperwork was light today and was almost complete, he told his secretary to bring them in. His breath hitched when his eyes lay upon that figure that came in. The man seated himself in the leather armchair across from him; he was the man from the other day.

Ariake Koichi.

As soon as the secretary left, closing the door shut gently, the man spoke up as his dark eyes studied the lawyer’s office, “I was in the neighbourhood. Did I come at a bad time?”  Naruse quickly composed himself in a professional manner. Gathering his loose nerves and the fleeting gnaw in his stomach.

“No, you’re timing is good, is there anything I can be of service of?”

“The Statute of Limitations for murder is fifteen years,” he stated absentmindedly, more talking to himself than to Naruse, “How many years does a person serve for murder?” The man wringed his fingers, his eyes seemed to fall downwards in deep thought.

“It depends and varies upon each case,” Ryo was intrigued.

“How about for swindling?”

“It depends on age and situation.”

“Okay,” and then the man did the most curious thing abruptly. Koichi’s lips leaned to capture the lawyer’s in a soft breathless kiss. Naruse felt a hand creep to cup the back of his neck, pulling and prodding him gently forward, deeper into the kiss. He complied, eyes fluttering shut, the other man’s lips soft against his own, as if the plush red mouth was caressing his own. After Koichi pulled away he stands up, face slightly hidden by his bands, “So that’s what kissing a guy is like.” The still seated man feels no barriers to hid words, knowing that they weren’t meant to be discriminating or hurtful in any way. Ariake was about to twist the doorknob to open the door when Naruse speaks, .

“When will I see you again.” His voice is calm and quiet, in silent confidence assured that he would lay eyes on the other man again.

“Soon, maybe…” a mischievous grin dances on Ariake Koichi’s face as he slinks out the exit as quiet as a shadow.