Disclaimer: I own nothing.

*Sheepish* My first fanfiction. And probably the only one I'll ever write coz I'm not really good at this.

Well. Enjoy!

He sat at the corner of his room with knees pressed against his chest. His small, fragile hands were pressed hard against his ears as if they were enough for him not to hear the thunder. Outside, the rain falls heavily accompanied by claps of thunder and flashes of lightning. The cold air stubbornly sifted through the fibers of his clothes and into his skin.

If he had known that there will be a thunderstorm that night, would he have asked his lover Usami Akihiko to stay beside him? No. It would be against Misaki's pride to do such thing. Besides, this was not the first time that I had experienced this. He reasoned to himself. Often times, he would just lock himself in his room to hide, not letting anyone to be worried about him.

But, this time it was a bit different than the other days with thunderstorms. Today is the death anniversary of his parents, which made his pain and fear double. Somehow, he regretted ever convincing Akihiko to go to that two-day conference with Aikawa. With that, he was left alone in that big apartment.

He shuddered when another clasp of thunder came booming followed by a lightning. The whole room was filled with light in a flash and then it went dark again. Slowly, tears began forming at the corner of his eyes and the sobs that he tried hard to suppress came rushing along with the memories of that ill-fated night eleven years ago. It came rushing like a floodwater when the dam holding it breaks.

"Mom… Dad…" he mumbled in between sobs, words spoken as if he was about to choke. "Usagi-san…" he wanted to call him badly, to ask him to return soon. But just as he was about to dial Akihiko's number, another boom of thunder came, the loudest he had heard that night, and he remembered why he never wanted to be a burden to anyone. It was this same time of the year, right? He thought. It was also raining hard. He was so scared at the booming sound of thunders that he called his mother and father to hurry back home. Then, accident befell them. The pain and guilt resurfaced, he felt as if a knife was stabbing him on his chest. He was being selfish again.

Call him, huh? Call him and he'll come rushing to you. He buried his face on his arms that are now resting at the top of his knees. He tried hard to muffle his sobs. He had thought of calling Akihiko so many times. But the fear of having his lover rush to him, repeating that same incident that happened to his parents stops him every time.

"Misaki…" He heard the familiar cool and gentle voice of his lover. I'm starting to hallucinate… He told himself. And he felt like he was dreaming… that Akihiko's cold hand was stroking his hair gently as if ushering him to open his eyes and look up. But, he did not move. He was afraid to look up and find that he really was dreaming. "Misaki…" He called out again, this time louder with a hint of concern.

"Misaki, are you alright?"

Misaki slowly look up and his green eyes met with Akihiko's violet ones. He felt the older man touch his tear-stained cheeks; worry sprawled across his handsome face. "U… sa… gi…san? " He said, almost choking every syllable. He could not believe at first so he blinked his eyes several times, expecting that the vision of his lover kneeling in front of him would disappear each time. But he didn't. He really was there.

He smiled forcefully on instinct to relieve his partner. But the smile did not quite convince Akihiko. In an instant, he felt himself being pulled and his face landed on Akihiko's chest. Strong, warm arms wrapped around his lithe body. And he felt as if the world fell silent. No rain tapping on the roof. No thunder booming. There was only the heartbeat and soft breathing of his beloved man. They stayed like that for a moment.

"Why didn't you call me?" It was Akihiko who broke the silence first.

"Wha-what are you doing here, Usagi-san? He answered with a question. "You were supposed to be at the conference."

Akihiko heaved a sigh. "I'm worried about you."

He pushed his lover gently. "Idiot! Why would you be worried about me? I'm perfectly fine." He crossed his arm across his chest defensively.

Akihiko smiled warmly. "You're such a bad liar. Do you think I don't notice your behavior every time there's a thunderstorm? You flinch every time you hear a thunder. I worried you'd be really scared being alone tonight."

His eyes widened in shock. He thought he had masked his emotions totally. He tried to act as normal as possible whenever there is a thunderstorm and his lover is around. He was clueless then that his lover has noticed how disturbed he was every time the weather gets as rough as today's. Is that the reason why he's doing all those perverted things to me every time? He blushed at the thought. No way… He just found another reason to do "that" to me.

"Idiot! You could have gotten into an accident rushing your way in this heavy rain!" He snapped. Fear was evident in his emerald orbs.

Akihiko placed a chaste kiss on his lips before pulling him into another tight hug. "Misaki, don't worry. It won't happen again. Call me whenever you're scared. I feel like you don't need me at all whenever you try to face things by yourself."

"Usagi-san…"

"You love me, right?"

Misaki answered with a low "hmh."

"I love you, too. We're lovers so let me share your pain and your fears. Promise me."

"Usagi-san…" Tears began flowing from his eyes again.

"Promise me you'll call whenever you need me. You have to promise."

"That's… not really… nece-"

"It is necessary." Akihiko let him go only to look at him straight in the eyes. He felt like he would drown just staring at the older man's eyes. "Promise me." His words were spoken more like a plea than a command so Misaki ended up nodding, muttering a low, almost inaudible "I promise."

With that, Akihiko gave another genuinely warm smile. He felt himself being lifted from the floor and brought into his bed.

"Let's replace those bad memories with sweet ones." Akihiko whispered teasingly then started raining kisses all over his face. They were gentle, comforting kisses and Misaki felt like those kisses were ushering him to sleep. Probably tired from crying all night, he felt his eyes grow heavy.

"Don't go… taking advantage… of the situation… stupid bunny…" he muttered before falling deeply asleep. For the first time since his parents' accident, Misaki had a peaceful sleep amidst a stormy night.