A/N: Don't get confused with the names in the first half of the story, they are Nowaki and Hiroki in a past life. Hiroki is Lord Nobuhiro, the master of the Kamijou family and Nowaki is Naoki, Lord Nobuhiro's personal bodyguard. Yoru is just some random guy who is Nobuhiro's (Hiroki's) other bodyguard.

I believe that sometimes people unknowingly dream of their past lives and it feels so real that they know it cannot be a coincidence. This dream seriously scares Hiroki for a brief second and thinks Nowaki might die on him. Which is why he clings to him so tightly and just cries his eyes out, though it takes a while for Nowaki to calm him down. I just wanted to write it out before I lost interest haha

-Lucicelo

Flash of Red (ONESHOT)

Lord Nobuhiro's eyebrows scrunched up as the sun beamed down at him. He raised up his hand to block the burning sun from hitting him as he felt someone behind him. A shadow cast over him and he recognized the person well enough to not raise his sword against him. His guard's large hands rubbed his shoulders and he tried not to blush at his touch. He could have yelled at him for being so forward but it wouldn't be good to attract attention to themselves. Despite the fact that they were walking on a path with no one else in sight other than his other guard.

Naoki smiled lightly as he brushed some debris from Nobuhiro's shoulders. He bent down next to his ear and whispered something which made the man's face turn a bright red. Nobuhiro huffed as he walked on ahead, leaving Naoki to chuckle under his breath while his hand rested on the handle of his blade. He turned to Yoru and gave him an amused smile because of Nobuhiro's retreat.

Yoru shook his head in amusement, at first he was shocked since Lord Nobuhiro and Naoki's relationship seemed more platonic in his eyes. After he found them kissing in the back of the manor, all of the longing glances Naoki gave Lord Nobuhiro when the man wasn't looking, made absolute sense. It was no wonder Naoki was so protective of Lord Nobuhiro in a way most guards never partook. Most only guarded for a mere paycheck, Naoki's loyalty extended beyond mere protection when adding in the fact that he was Lord Nobuhiro's lover.

Nobuhiro stopped when he heard a twig snap to his left side as he stared at that direction from the corner of his eyes. His hand hovered over the handle of his blade as Yoru noticed his stance and Naoki giving him the signal to stay near Lord Nobuhiro.

Yoru placed his hand over his blade as well as he checked their surroundings. He didn't see anything but he remained near Nobuhiro who saw both of his bodyguards acting out of the ordinary.

A man remained behind a tree, his finger placed carefully on the trigger. His cold eyes remained focused on Lord Nobuhiro, his hatred coming through his face while he tried not to jump out so quickly. He knew the tall bodyguard could subdue him without a problem and he smaller one would disarm him without a second thought.

He needed to find a perfect opportunity before he ran out of the trees to shot the man who ruined his life. Despite the fact that he ruined his own marriage to his wife who left him because the Kamijou's helped her. This was only to regain his shattered pride, he didn't care which of the Kamijou's he killed.

When Naoki took a few steps away from in front of Lord Nobuhiro, the man slowly walked away from the trees and made himself known. "Today you will die you son of a bitch."

Nobuhiro turned to his left, he showed no fear when he said. "Is that so?" Nobuhiro shielded him as he placed his arm in front of him. "And you thought coming after me with my bodyguards was a good idea?"

The man glared at him. "You stole my wife from me."

Nobuhiro let out a deep sigh. "You must be talking how my younger brother, Misao, who helped an abused young woman find peace in another town just recently. So you are the bastard."

They all saw the man visibly twitch at the accusation. "Shut up! I never laid a finger on her."

Nobuhiro's lips quirked up. "Considering the state my brother found her and her testimony, you are deluding yourself. I suggest running along," His eyes landed on the gun. "Because you are never getting her back,"

"Tell me where she is or I will kill you." He exclaimed as he aimed the gun at Nobuhiro.

"You will never lay a finger on my lord." Naoki glared at the older man as he used his whole body to shield him. "Over my dead body."

The man smirked when he said in a haughty tone. "Oh that's what I am planning," He aimed at Naoki's chest as his finger pushed on the trigger.

When he heard the gunshot, Naoki managed to take a few steps back and pushed Nobuhiro into Yoru's arms. Nobuhiro's breath was taken away from the action as Yoru caught him without a problem. They both saw Naoki running forward, they didn't take notice of the blood running down the man's chest since his back was toward them.

Naoki didn't register that he was shot as he unsheathed his sword and slashed the gunman down with ease. The man lay bleeding on the floor as Naoki grabbed the gun and broke it apart before he tossed it aside. Dizziness hit him as he started staggering side to side while he tried to keep himself on his feet. His hand loosened up and his sword fell to the ground in a thud.

Yoru followed right beside Nobuhiro as they ran to Naoki's side when they saw him swaying to the side. They assumed the gun shot grazed Naoki's side and he just had a scratch on him, which meant that it was nothing. When Naoki collapsed onto his knees, Yoru and Nobuhiro crouched down to his side, moving his tattered yukata to the side.

Naoki tried to stand up but a shot of pain went through his body as he fell onto the dirt road. He cried when his injury touched the ground, dirt and pebbles went inside of his wound, he gritted his teeth to prevent himself from crying out in pain.

His teeth chattered, he managed to get on his knees when he managed to say. "L-Lord Nobuhiro? Where is he?"

Yoru frowned when he said. "He's absolutely fine, don't you worry about it Naoki."

Naoki coughed up blood and Nobuhiro's eyes widened when he saw the blood on the ground. "T-That's good..."

Nobuhiro placed his hands on him as he said. "You have to lay back, you can barely stay crouched on your feet."

Naoki denied it. "It's alright..I'm going to be fine." He coughed up more blood as Yoru and Nobuhiro forced him to lay on the ground.

Yoru saw the extent of Naoki's injuries as he silently said a prayer inside of his head. Naoki was not going to make it out of this. The fact that Nobuhiro's attention was to Naoki's face meant that he didn't take notice of the horrendous injury.

Yoru had to break it to Nobuhiro. "My lord," Nobuhiro turned to him. "Naoki is not going to make it."

'W-What are you talking about? He has gotten worse injuries, how is this any different?"

Yoru looked away. "I'm sorry."

Nobuhiro's eyes widened as he turned his attention to Naoki who was breathing quite harshly. "Naoki?"

"Y-Yes?" Naoki said before he coughed up more blood which dirtied Nobuhiro's yukata.

Nobuhiro gripped Naoki's hand as he choked out. "Y-You are not allowed to die Naoki! You swore you would never leave me! You promised me!" He held his lover's large build against his chest, not even caring that his blood further stained his clothing.

Yoru didn't hesitate as he ran to get a doctor while Nobuhiro stayed put with Naoki. Nobuhiro's brown eyes widened when he saw the hole in Naoki's chest and he realized there was nothing he could do. The man that he loved was dying in his arms and it was all because of him.

Nobuhiro denied this was occurring. There was no way that the man he promised to stay with for the rest of his life was dying. Everything was going so perfectly, yesterday they made a life long promise to stay together when they spent the whole night together. They spoke vows in low whispers when they were slowly falling asleep in each other's arms.

For the first time in years, tears streamed down his face. The last time he cried was when his father died of illness and he had to take control of the Kamijou clan. He wiped his tears with his sleeve, even more tears formed in his eyes. He was grateful no one else was around to see him in such a weak state, the master of a clan should never show emotion or his word and leadership would be questioned.

Naoki's once shining blue eyes were dulling as each second passed, he managed to reach out his hand and cup Nobuhiro's cheek. "...Hiro-sama...don't cry...everything will be okay." The pain of his injuries were clouding his vision as he breathed harshly.

Nobuhiro stared down at Naoki while more tears streamed down his cheeks and the droplets landed on Naoki's face. "You can't...you can't leave me all alone...please...no..."

Naoki smiled wistfully when he said. "I am so..happy...that you are alright..." His hand fell from Nobuhiro's cheek and he began gripping his top instead. "You...will never be alone..Hiro-sama."

Dread filled Nobuhiro instantly when he saw Naoki's breathing was slowing down. He managed to take off his kataginu and pressed it on Naoki's injury as he desperately tried to stop the bleeding. He looked up and saw that Yoru had already left to get some help but he didn't know if he would make it back in time.

He desperately hoped that Yoru bumped into someone or at least made it to town quick enough. Although, in his heart, he knew this was the last moment he would spend with his lover in this lifetime.

Naoki told Nobuhiro with a tender smile on his face. "I...love you..."

Nobuhiro nodded his head as he choked out. "I-I love you too, I always will Naoki."

Hiroki woke up and stared into darkness, his body trembled while he felt the tears rolling down his cheeks. He recollected the most realistic dream he had in his entire life as he sat up on his bed. His eyes explored his body, expecting to see the blood stained yukata in his dream but all he saw were his wrinkled striped blue pajamas. He was inside of his room, the shadows of his many bookshelves cast an extra layer of darkness inside of the bedroom but the moonlight cast from the moon only illuminated one section of the room.

Adrenaline filled his body as he covered his mouth and tried not to make so much noise as he sobbed. His eyes wandered to the sleeping body against him and some relief filled him when he saw Nowaki laying right next to him. This was one of the lucky days where Nowaki actually spent the night with him and wasn't called back to the hospital. Nowaki was breathing properly and there was no sign on injury on his chest or any blood splatter anywhere. Hiroki gritted his teeth as he tried to calm himself down but his body was beyond his control.

He shut his eyes as he pulled his knees to his chest and let the tears flow. His whole body trembled, recalling the dream vividly inside of his mind. The kind man with the most beautiful blue eyes died in his arms, his lover died in his arms. The scenario never reached his mind until after having this nightmare, Nowaki was capable of handling himself but in this dream, he was gone with only one gunshot from someone whose intention was to shoot him.

Disregarding the fact that the clothes they wore were not of their current era, he felt he was in that exact moment. The gentle smile of 'Naoki' was the same one Nowaki gave him on a daily basis, the utter despair of losing him still coursed through his body. He lifted his hand to his eye level, he couldn't stop his hand from trembling. Wiping his eyes on his knees, tears still ran down his cheeks.

Nowaki was rustled out of his sleep when he heard someone crying, he could tell the person was trying hard not to give out any loud noises from the slight hiccups and hitched breath. His sweet dreams of a date at a beach with Hiroki dissipated as he opened his eyes. At first, he thought it was the next door neighbor's child who had another nightmare again. Until he realized that a child didn't cry like a full grown adult or was sitting right next to him.

He sat up and looked to his left, through the darkness of the night, he managed to make out his lover. Hiroki was bawling his eyes out while holding his knees to his chest, Nowaki didn't think twice as he grabbed Hiroki and pulled him into his arms. He expected Hiroki to push him away and tell him to leave him in peace but Hiroki wrapped his arms around him. Hiroki's arms tightened around his body as he hiccuped a few times.

"Hiro-san, what's going on?" Nowaki asked as he rubbed his eyes to wake himself up even more. "Did you have a bad dream?" Hiroki nodded his head while he kept on crying in his arms. "Whatever it was, it wasn't real it was only a dream." He said it to make light of the situation but he knew inside of his head that it was indeed serious.

Hiroki never cried over anything minuscule, the man rarely cried in general. The dream must have scared his lover to the brink of hysteria as he kept his tight grip over his torso and wouldn't let go of him.

Nowaki asked him. "Can you tell me what happened in this dream."

Hiroki hid his face with his hands when he cried. "You died okay! You died in my dream Nowaki!"

Nowaki's eyes widened at the answer, he held Hiroki even tighter as he soothingly told him. "It's okay...that was only a dream. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

"You don't understand!" Hiroki trembled as he tried to tell Nowaki about his dream. "Everything felt so real...you died in my arms and...and."

Nowaki gently wiped the tears from Hiroki's cheeks with the blanket that covered them. He placed his lover in his lap as he nuzzled his cheek while rubbing his back tenderly. It took a lot to make Hiroki break down in such a manner, to know that it was because he died in his dream made it worse. He had no idea on how he died in this dream but he was sure it was horrible enough to reduce his lover into this state.

He peppered kisses all over Hiroki's face, while at the same time he wiped away the tears from his face. Hiroki's eyes were tightly shut but tears still rolled down his cheeks. Nowaki felt his lover's whole body trembling against his frame, he never wanted to see this sight again in his life.

"Explain everything from the beginning." Nowaki suggested, Hiroki looked up at him, the moonlight hit his face which showed his tears. "You can start whenever you are ready."

Hiroki remained silent for a few minutes as he relaxed in Nowaki's arms. He burrowed his face into Nowaki's chest while he let out a sigh when Nowaki ran his fingers through his hair. The motion gave him comfort and the images of the dream were not so prominent now that he had Nowaki keeping a good grip on his body.

Nowaki never said a word as he continued on caressing Hiroki's hair, face and body. Yet, he hummed a tune he heard earlier in the day while he felt that Hiroki wasn't shivering as much anymore.

Hiroki took a deep breath before he started. "It seems, we were together in a past life." Nowaki shuffled closer to the wall so his back wouldn't ache after a while. "From the outfit I was wearing and the way I was addressed, I was the master of a house. I had two bodyguards, you and this other guy who I somehow knew was called Yoru."

Nowaki nodded his head, listening intently to Hiroki's story.

Hiroki sniffled as he wiped his face. "Then...some person came of the woods with a gun, claiming that Nobuhi- well that I ruined his life by hiding his wife. The guy was an abuser as far as I could tell." Nowaki interlaced their fingers. "He wanted to shoot me but he shot you instead." Hiroki gripped Nowaki's hand tightly. "I am sure he was going to come after me after you died but you killed him before he tried...And then..you died."

Nowaki frowned. "At least you survived, that's what I would have wanted."

Hiroki shook his head when he exclaimed. "But you left me all alone! How could I have gone through with my life, knowing that you were killed because of me!"

Nowaki lifted Hiroki's hand to his lips and kissed each of his knuckles. "I would have felt the same way if you were taken away from me. I love you so much, Hiro-san."

Hiroki's lips trembled, his free hand clutching Nowaki's shirt. "Nowaki..."

Nowaki connected their lips, a soft tender kiss to reassure Hiroki that everything was safe. Whatever happened in the past wouldn't happen anytime soon, he would make sure of it. He knew this was a white lie, no one knew what the future held but they never put themselves in any immediate danger. They were both safe for the time being in this crazy world.

The kiss ended, both of them stared into each other's eyes. Nowaki wiped away the remainder of the tears with his hand, they never broke eye contact during this exchange.

Hiroki turned away from Nowaki's gaze, his eyes stared directly to one of the bookcases, his vision blurry due to the lack of glasses. The blurriness was worse due to all the crying he had just experienced and he knew his eyes would hurt for the rest of the day if he didn't get any sleep. At least he had two days off at the same time so he wouldn't need to worry about running to class with red shot eyes.

Nowaki checked the time on the clock on their bedside, it was almost time for the sun to rise in the sky. He didn't know when exactly Hiroki woke up in the night, for all he knew, he slept through most of the beginning stages of Hiroki's breakdown. His arms tightened around Hiroki's body, he pressed his nose in Hiroki's hair, he was glad he was there for him at least.

Hiroki stated in a serious tone. "This stays between us, Nowaki."

Nowaki pressed Hiroki closer to his chest. "I know."

Hiroki rubbed his eyes, his eyes ached from all the crying he did for the past hour. After a long time of no tears coming out of his eyes, his stubbornness kept up a strong fight, it was a long time coming.

Seeing the man whose arms embraced him, dying in his arms was too much to bear.

Hiroki jumped when Nowaki pecked his cheek. "Hiro-san." Nowaki held him tighter. "I love you."

Closing his eyes, Hiroki told him, a smile on his face. "I love you too."

The sun rose in the horizon, bringing in light into the room, the darkness left, leaving streaks of oncoming light.

Nowaki felt Hiroki relax in his arms, his breathing evening out, indicating he fell asleep. Relief filled Nowaki's body, Hiroki needed his rest and forget all about that horrible dream. He was certain Hiroki would turn into his old self when he woke up again, he only hoped he didn't gain any repercussions of seeing something so horrific.

"I told you Hiro-san." Nowaki burrowed his nose in Hiroki's hair, for a brief second, his eyes turned a different hue. "You are never going to be alone. I am always by your side."

THE END