A/N: I have been receiving many alerts on my 'Awkwaaard' fic and that is surprising. I didn't expect it to have so many hits so I thank you all. Weird and awkward things are fun, right? lol And to show my gratitude, here is another one–on Illumi and Killua still; a tiny bit of KiruGon, sure, as I couldn't help it. Ha! Yes. The case in here completely differs from the first Awkwaaard; just thought I should give a head start. ^^
DISCLAIMER: Togashi owns Hunter X Hunter. I made everything up after Greed Island in here.
AWKWAAARD
(Strike Two)
It was a rather chilly night in the streets of York Shin one August evening. The rain was pouring in drizzles every now and then and the sun never appeared bright beyond the gray clouds in the morning and afternoon. There were no stars in the sky and the brilliance of the moon was covered by thick clouds that hovered when the night fell. The atmosphere was dim, melancholy, and filled with nostalgic solitude. And despite the whole auction fiasco going on all over the city in preparation and celebration for the biggest annual auctions for the rich, at that certain night, people just looked… introvert. Yet a certain 14-year old silver haired boy walked with a fresh air surrounding him, a small cool smile on his pale face, through the sea of people in the middle of the shops street. He was on his way towards the nearby hotel, one hand inside a pocket of his beige pants and one hand grasping tightly a fat white plastic bag full of food. His white hair and pale skin seemed to be glowing with his spirit as he took silent steps on the wet bricked road.
It has been a year since the he and Gon last came to York Shin, meeting with Kurapika and Leorio, kicking (sort of) Spiders' butts, working on their Nen, with hopes of finding clues on Ging's whereabouts through Greed Island. And now they're back, chasing off Ging again. Apparently the 'Accompany Card' Gon won from Greed Island led to Kaito, who told them that Ging might somewhere be in the outskirts of York Shin, since he met him there while they were flying to and fro countries for the Chimera Ant Queen's investigation. He had told them he didn't know why or if he's still there, though, but Gon and Killua still took the chance of coming back.
Killua knew he should be feeling somehow sympathetic towards Gon; he knew he should want to punch Ging's face in for hiding from his son who's been looking for him since, but although he was, deep inside him he was dead glad. He was happy. It will be another fun and heck of a bumpy experience he should once again share with his best friend. He wanted to stay with Gon a little longer. Killua winced a smile and shook his head a little at the thought. Damn, that was cheesy. But it was true. He couldn't ask for more. And he was determined to help his best friend find his father.
Not a single event could shun him away from his mindset even for a split second.
But first he needed to get his sweets fixed, since they were to read some scriptures all night a middle-aged man gave them later that evening when they asked about Ging. He bought chocolates for his own, of course, and plenty. He also bought Gon some crackers shaped like animals. He laughed at the thought at first, but he was so sure Gon would beam, especially when he sees the cracker shaped like a foxbear.
Killua walked in the hotel and took a quick glance at the huge grandfather clock by the reception desk. It was half past 12 o'clock in the middle of the night. He then walked swiftly towards the elevator, tossing the bag in the air and grabbing it again with his fist as he pressed button number 17. He leaned back on the golden wall and closed his eyes for a while, waiting for the lift to stop. Not much people were up in the hotel at that time, however there were still some checking in, but they were few. Killua could count them all just by taking a quick glance over the perimeter of the lobby.
A distinct ding filled his hearing and without opening his eyes Killua got out and started in the long hallway with a sigh. It was eerily quiet in the floor their room was in, not a soul could be seen nor felt, and only the dim yellow bulbs that each hovered ten feet apart on the ceiling were the only things that lit the path. A normal child their age would probably freak and chicken out the moment the elevator revealed the strange hallway, but no, he was Killua. He just hated the fact that their hotel room was so far from the elevator.
He passed by room 1712. Killua sighed and placed his hands crossed behind his head, the plastic bag hanging by his fingers. Their hotel room was at 1730. It's not their fault they couldn't book a decent room number beforehand. Luckily they have Hunter licenses. Killua snorted. Since every hotel here's a suck up to all the rich mafia guys in the world, pfft. He passed by rooms 1721, 1722, 1723, and eventually got in front of room 1730. Killua turned the knob, but it was surprisingly locked. His eyebrows furrowed, then he remembered locking the door and taking key-card with him–because Gon refused to be left alone and wanted to tag along.
Killua searched his right pocket–he didn't want to bother his friend by knocking–and just as he was about to hoist the card from his pants, he felt someone watching him. Someone made his presence known just now. He paused and instantly shot a deadly gaze towards his right. And his guard went up immediately.
"Oh? Killu?"
The familiar voice came out like recorded sound from that statue face of the person standing before him, one hotel door away–his black eyes staring back at the blue ones of Killua without any signs of emotion; his long silky black hair that stretched to his hips fell behind his back.
"It is you. How are you doing, Killu? It's been a long time."
Killua's jaws flexed.
It was Illumi.
The ex-assassin immediately sent his aura fuming, but Illumi was surprisingly calm and normal. It was strange. Killua wondered why his brother's aura wasn't of the defensive mode, but he decided to throw away the thought. Illumi could only be luring him in.
But Illumi just stood there, unmoving.
Killua took the chance of asking his brother a rather offensive question. "What are you doing here?" he asked silently, careful not to let the super-ears of Gon hear their conversation.
There was a moment of tensed silence in the air. It was cold. But after a few seconds, Illumi finally retorted; "This is a coincidence. I didn't know you are going to be here." His voice was calm and silent as well, confusing his little brother.
The silver haired kid wanted to lunge at him, to take a chance of his brother's eerily relaxed aura, but his curiosity sprung from his mind even more. He needed to know what his brother was doing there, even if their meeting was highly coincidental. "Why are you here?" he stressed in a sharp whisper. No, his brother popping out of nowhere could never be coincidental. He knew he was hiding something.
The tensed silence came back. Both just stared in each other's eyes, waiting for someone to give up the game. It was then when he heard a hotel door open that Killua drifted his eyes from his brother and towards the person who slightly stepped out of the room parallel to where Illumi was standing. His eyes instantly shot wide.
It was a woman.
And she stepped out of the door with a surprised but creepy smile on her face, wearing nothing but a white loose robe on her.
What the…?
"Illumi-sama, I didn't realize you're here. Why didn't you come in?" the woman spoke with a low but sharp voice, addressing the person standing by her doorway.
Killua felt his jaws dropping. What the f…? He gazed the woman down from head to foot before slowly turning his head–joints in his neck felt like rusted metal–to stare at his brother with utter surprise written all over his face. He felt the air growing even more tensed, and suffocating. The sudden appearance of the woman just wouldn't register in his brain.
Illumi however didn't nudge. He retained that look on his face without averting his gaze from his 14-year old little brother who was currently witnessing something he didn't plan for him to witness.
The woman smiled and brushed her long fingers against Illumi's shoulders. "I've been waiting."
Killua's jaws fell again.
Silence enveloped the whole world. Cold gushes of wind filled the entire hallway for seconds.
The woman's presence seemed so distant from their hearing at that moment. No one moved, not a single breath was emitted aloud. Thoughts were mashing up and rolling around inside Killua's mind. He couldn't believe his eyes. His brother… It's unthinkable. It was absolutely and incredibly unthinkable.
Killua opened his lips but not a sound came out. He seemed sincerely speechless. Seeing his highly insipid brother Illumi being lured in by a woman who talks like a seducer to come inside a hotel room with her in the middle of the night is not the most natural thing in the world.
After the awkward silence, the woman spoke. "Oh, who's this?"
Illumi then moved–he blinked, and exhaled as if he was holding his breath. He walked towards the door and entered–together with the woman–his blank stare never leaving his little brother's.
Killua followed him with his wide eyes.
Before the door was closed, Illumi stood by the doorframe ajar from inside the room, still looking into the eyes of Killua with that same emotionless expression on his face. Again he stared at his brother, while slowly closing the door before him, as if telling him something. It was all like slow motion. When it was only half of Illumi's one eye that was what within Killua's sight, the door seized moving, and there he stared again, for seconds–which felt like minutes for the silver haired kid–and continued to stare, and stare, as if he was telling him something, and he stared more, and more, before he slowly shut the door close.
Killua almost jumped when he heard the lock being turned from inside of that room. He couldn't believe it. Illu-nii… Cold chills ran down his spine when pictures of his brother being with a woman wearing nothing but a bathrobe inside a hotel room ran fast laps in his mind. What was that…? What was that!? Killua couldn't believe his eyes. That was highly unexpected and very uncharacteristic of his brother–at least that was what in his mind all this time. But now it felt like the crust of the earth shifted and twisted in a weird way. Why would he…? A goofy smile subconsciously escaped his lips, but he immediately shook his head hard. No, he didn't want to think about it.
A sound from their room door finally woke him up from his twisted reverie. He turned, only to find Gon standing by the doorway, hair dripping wet, wearing nothing but a freaking loose robe.
"Killua, I heard voices. I didn't realize it was you."
His eyes grew wide again, staring Gon down from head to foot.
"Why didn't you come in? I've been waiting, you know!"
Killua could've sworn he almost fainted.
FIN
Oh my glob. If Illumi were real, I would have been dead by now. *snickers* I don't know about you but I was laughing my butt off while writing. XD Review! Review! Please! Review! Review! *reveals all HxH characters wearing nothing but a loose robe* Ha! Review…