Chapter five

Why Do I Want This?

Kaza couldn't stand to be in bed any longer. It was driving him crazy, and worrying the others. So, he did the only sensible thing to do. He got out of bed with a fever and took a shower, nearly falling asleep while standing up.

He had a hard time trying to pass himself off as "okay" with Rikuo, but he slipped out of the apartment while he was reading his newspaper. As he made his way downstairs, he felt an odd sensation sweeping over his body.

He didn't know if it was from his sickness or his powers, which seemed to be even more perceptive when he was sick. Either way, he felt… strange.

The feeling stayed with him all day, at times getting stronger and stronger. It felt familiar, yet different at the same time. He didn't understand it. That is until he saw what it was coming from. Better yet, whom it was coming from.

His breath got caught in his throat as he stared at the image of the one person he had ever loved. Even if it had been wrong. But he had soon gotten over his petty feelings, realizing that they were immoral and juvenile.

"Kazahaya..." The voice whispered quietly.

Everything in the shop seemed to stop moving. Rikuo and Kakei-San were both there, just staring at him and the newly arrived girl.

"Kazahaya!" The girl screamed through tears as she threw herself at him. Her arms encircled around his neck, her head burying itself in his shoulder.

"Kei?" He said her name out loud, realizing that it was really she and not an illusion.

She kept on whispering his name again and again into his shoulder as she cried. She had been searching for him for so long that it was hard to believe that she had finally found him. She just… couldn't believe that he was right here in front of her. Where she could see him, smell him, and touch him. It was too much to handle at once.

"Why did you leave me?" She questioned him through her tears that seemed to flow from a dam. They just wouldn't stop coming.

"I… I… Kei? How did you find me?"

She pulled back from him, her arms still around his neck, and stared him in the eyes.

"Does it matter? I wanted to find you and… here you are." She gave him a wide smile that sent chills down his spine.

Something was… different about her.

"Are… Mom and Dad with you?" He asked, his eyes automatically scanning the area around him.

Kei shook her head.

"No. It's just me."

A cold sensation swept through Kaza's veins, turning his blood cold as he watched his sister. She smiled so warmly at him, yet he felt something dark and sinister hanging back in her eyes as he stared into them. He didn't know what it was, but it gave him goose bumps along his arms.

He let go of her, but she still clung to him like he was a life raft. He just stood there, silence raining over the store. There were no customers, for some reason, only Kakei, Rikuo, and the two siblings.

Someone cleared his or her throat behind Kaza, and he turned around.

"Hello, I'm Kakei. Little Kazahaya works here for me. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss…"

"Kei. I'm Kaza's older sister." (Don't really remember or if they say if she's older, younger, or if they're twins… but whatever. My story, I'll screw around with it anyway I please! Hahaha… I need to get some sleep) She said as she took his offered hand and shook it.

Rikuo was still standing there, his eyes completely blank as he stood in the background. He looked towards Kaza and caught his eye. They stared at each other for a few minutes, both of them with a blank expression on their face.

Kei watched them as Kakei talked to her. She could feel something between the two of them, and she didn't like it. Her eyes started to narrow as she looked at the taller man. As if on cue, Rikuo broke his gaze from Kaza and stared at his sister as he felt her eyes on him.

She didn't smile at him, like she had with Kakei. She merely stared at him, her eyes growing a darker brown. He noticed how the two siblings were the exact opposite from each other in looks, probably in personality as well.

Where Kaza had his amber eyes, his sister had her dark chocolate ones. Where her hair was as fair as his eyes, his was a lighter shade of her eye color. They could have been twins, had it not been for the age difference, which didn't seem to be that much.

"Uh… Kei? Where are Mom and Dad, anyway?"

The fair-haired beauty turned towards him and smiled brightly, momentarily forgetting about the dark haired boy behind her.

"They're stuck in the house, like always. You know how they are." She told him smartly.

Something about the way she arranged her words made him raise an eyebrow in question. He knew that his family had always liked their… privacy. But they had gone through great lengths to keep their children isolated over the years, whereas their parents had often left them at the house by themselves while they went away to various places.

Kazahaya had never really figured out where his parents had gone during their long absences, but he didn't really care. He had never been close to his parents, nor had his sister.

The bell on the door rang, breaking the awkward tension running through the air. Kakei turned towards Kaza as the customer walked up to Rikuo and asked for his help.

"Kudo, you may take the day off. I believe you are still a bit sick and I know you want to catch up with your sister. But that means you will have to take a double shift this weekend. All right?" Kakei gave him a creepy, knowing smile.

Kaza groaned but nodded his head. He started to pull off his apron when he saw his sister staring daggers at Rikuo. He put his hand on her shoulder and felt a jolt go through his body. Dark lights swam over his closed eyelids before they stopped at one scene.

His house.

It was almost the exact same as he saw it in his dream. Except for it wasn't cloudy outside and the tree stood upright like it had for years. But the house was still on fire. He could hear screams coming in from the house, but there were two of them.

He looked down at his hands and saw that they were small and pale. But also covered in dry blood.

Kaza was snapped back out of the memory as his sister stepped back quickly. He looked down at her face and saw her lips pulled into a grim line. Whatever she had been hiding in the back of her eyes earlier had just come out and was now swimming at the surface of those coffee brown eyes.

Kei straightened up and smiled at him, but she couldn't keep that look out of her eyes. Though she tried to hide it.

"So, where should we go on your day off?"

XXXXX

Two hours later and the Kudo siblings were at the movie theater. Kaza snuck away during the film to use the restroom. When he got out into the lit hallway, he went straight to a payphone.

It had been such a long time since he used this number, but he dialed it just the same. The phone rang once, twice, six times before someone picked up. But it wasn't someone that lived there.

"I'm sorry, but this line has been temporarily disconnected. If-"

Kaza slammed the receiver down and rested his forehead against the wall. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach.

What in the hell had he seen? Where were his parents? What did Kei do to them?

All these questions and more ran through his foggy brain, not stopping until a voice next to him caught his attention.

"Kazahaya, what are you doing?"

Kaza turned around to stare down at his older sister. That sick feeling was getting stronger now.

"Nothing, I just don't feel well. I think I should get back to the apartment." He told her as he held onto his stomach.

"All right. But I need to stay with you."

Kaza's eyes doubled in size.

"What? Why? Don't you have a hotel room or something?"

"Well… yeah, but I thought that when I found you that I could come stay with you." She frowned slightly at him.

"If my apartment were bigger, than I would. But it only has enough room for Rikuo and I."

"You live with him?" Kei asked accusingly.

"Y-yeah. He's the one that found me and…" He stopped trying to explain when he saw the look on her face. She looked angry.

"Look, I'm sorry Kei, but there's no room. If there-"

"Then you can come and stay with me." She interrupted him.

"What?"

"You can come stay with me, silly. There's only one room and a bed, but that's all right. We've had similar arrangements before. So, it shouldn't be a problem now."

Kaza shook his head. He was starting to get a headache.

"Kei, I need to stay at my place. It's right upstairs from the store anyway. It's just more convenient and has more room. I can walk you to your hotel if you'd like, though."

His sister looked down at the floor, her long hair making a curtain around her face. She shook her head and turned around.

"I'll get a cab." She told him as she walked out of the theatre.

Kaza let out a sigh as he looked after her. Once she was out the door, he turned around and bolted out one of the side exits. He ran all the way to the Drug store and didn't stop until he knew he was in the comfort of his and Rikuo's apartment.

He slid down the closed door and tried to catch his breath. Sweat ran down the side of his face as he tilted it back against the door. He closed his eyes.

A sound came from somewhere in the room, and Kaza snapped his eyes open. He was halfway off the floor when he saw that it was just Rikuo. He sighed out of relief as he fell back down on the ground.

"What are you doing here? And where's your sister?"

"I… didn't feel good, so I came back early. She decided to go back to her hotel."

Rikuo was in front of him a few seconds after he said he wasn't feeling well. He brushed the back of his hand over the shorter boy's forehead and started asking him questions about how he was feeling.

"I'm fine. I just felt sick because…" He didn't finish his sentence. He was very aware of how close Rikuo was to him, and it didn't bother him in the least. Instead, it made him feel relaxed and slightly aroused. He didn't understand how he could still think of him like that at a time like this. It just didn't seem right. It made him feel guilty and dirty at the same time.

He turned his head away from him and looked at the carpet by Rikuo's bed. Then he started to eye the bed, a few images coming to mind on what could happen on it with just the two of them living alone in the apartment, with no disruptions.

Kaza shook his head again. He wasn't thinking those things. Well, he was, but he didn't need to be.

As if sensing the smaller boy's unease, Rikuo dropped his hand from his forehead. He was going to pull back and help the boy up, but his hand seemed to think that its rightful place was on Kudo's chin.

He turned the other boy's face towards him and leaned forward. Their lips met and Rikuo closed his eyes. Kaza let out a small gasp as his heartbeat quickened its pace. He didn't push him away, like he knew he should.

Why did he want this? It was wrong, right? Or was he wrong, and this was right?

His arms instinctively wrapped around Rikuo's neck, brining them closer together.

The kiss started out slow as both participants were hesitant. Then it grew hot and wanting. Rikuo removed his hand from his chin and ran it through the boy's soft hair. He let his other hand trail down his arm, leaving chill bumps along his skin.

Kazahaya let his hands wander down his back and then over to his chest. His back pressed harder up against the back of the door as Rikuo broke away to kiss along his neck. Kaza whimpered slightly as Rikuo sucked on the skin just below his earlobe.

Both boys jumped as a knock came at the door. Kaza jumped up, still panting lightly as he straightened up and went to open the door. Rikuo was already lying down on his bed, looking as if he had been asleep all this time, when Kakei-San smiled in on them from the open doorway.

"There you are Kazahaya. I was wondering-oh, are you all right? You look out of breath?"

XXXXX

Hahaha, take that! I did it, I wrote them doing something… kind of crappy, but I did it! And what'cha think of Kei coming? Weird, huh? We'll see what happens. Anyway, review lots and tell me what you think!

Love you all and thanks for putting up with my lateness,

Robin