Gackt sat in a chair, pieces of paper with lyrics and music on it strewn across the table in front of him. He was playing with a cell phone, repeatedly opening and shutting it, lost in thought.
She never called… Did she forget? …or… The soloist’s feet were up on the table as he continued playing with his phone before flipping it up, quickly sending a message. There was a long pause before he received a phone call in return.
“Gaku, I’ve got nothing…” You stated, the guitarist sounding annoyed. “I swear there’s something I’m overlooking at this point. I’d usually have something for you at this point but…”
“I understand… It’s all right…” There was a slight pause.
“What happened?” There was a long pause as the soloist wrote a few things out on a piece of paper.
“…She never called.” He finally stated. “I told her to call when she was finished for the day…”
“Gaku… I’m sure she just forgot…” There was only a slight pause before Gackt filled in the rest of You’s unsaid statement.
“Or she didn’t want me to pick her up.” The soloist twirled his pen across his fingers. “I’ve been thinking…” There was a murmured statement from You, sounding almost like “Oh no.” Gackt ignored it and continued speaking. “Maybe I should leave her alone for a while… a few days? Let her relax away from me and try again?”
“Whatever you think is good… I think she’s in shock still anyways…” Gackt could hear You tapping away at his computer.
“Hm, good point. You’ll be coming by tomorrow to see what I haven’t done, ne?”
“Of course Gaku.” Gackt allowed himself a slight smile at You’s distracted reply. “Although if you want any other work to be done, you should do some work today instead of pining away f-”
“Okay- you were paying attention.” Gackt’s smile had turned into an annoyed look at his guitarist’s almost sarcastic voice- glaring down at the lyrics sheet in front of him. There was a pause.
“Gaku… Maybe you should do something else tonight…”
“I’m fine… these songs aren’t going to write themselves.” The soloist replied before adding, “Besides- I have to run through that SKIN song…” You gave a deep sigh.
“All right… don’t stay up all night… Okay? I don’t want to find you dead from exhaustion during practice tomorrow…”
“I’ll try. Gackt stated in response, beginning to write more.
“Promise me.” The pen stopped mid-word.
“… I’ll try to get some rest…” You gave another sigh.
“Okay… I’ll settle for that. Have a nice night Gaku…”
“You too, You-kun.” The soloist continued writing as he shut his phone and set it to the side. He looked back and forth between sheets, continuing to work late into the night and ignoring all calls, save to check the person they were from.
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You was greeted by a few bars of an unfamiliar melody as he stepped into Gackt’s home, having his key in hand. The guitarist blinked slightly before following this sound, stopping outside of the room Gackt was on. The soloist sang for a short time longer before stopping, writing things down, seeming to be extremely focused.
“Did you rest?” You asked, arms crossed.
“Yes.” Gackt replied. “Not very well or for very long but yes.” The soloist continued working for a while before speaking again. “What time is it? Time for practice?”
“Not yet. I’m still working on what you asked for…”
“Still nothing? How odd.”
“What’s the Kanji for her name? I’ve been just using Hiragana…”
“She’s American You-kun… It’s katakana.” The guitarist paused.
“Miyu… Arikito?”
“Miyu Alkit in katakana.” There was a long pause after Gackt’s spoke in English.
“Her Japanese is really good…” You replied.
“Hai, very good.” Gackt finished writing before giving a soft sigh. “… She never called.” There was a short pause.
“Gaku… I think you’ve been dumped.”
“I’d rather hear that from her than you.” You blinked in surprise at the short-tempered statement from the soloist and there was another silence before Gackt let his pencil drop, rubbing his forehead. “You-kun… I’m sorry… I just feel like there’s something wrong with this whole situation.”
“I know the feeling Gaku. Even with technically messing her name up, I should’ve found something…” You watched the soloist nod in agreement.
“Hai… sou desu… Try looking it up in English.” You blinked more.
“A… All right… Though I doubt I’ll get much of anywhere. There’s probably 30 of her.”
“Try please… Maybe this feeling will go away if I learn more…” You gave a nod.
“I’ll do my best.”
“Arigatou.” Gackt quickly placed some papers together. “Here, take a look.” You blinked and began looking them over, the half-finished lyrics and general melody looking mildly completed. There was a silence as You read.
“Gaku…”
“I know… dark… It’s just what I wrote…” You gave a soft sigh.
“I’m sure the fans will love it.”
“Of course… dark is popular. Do you mind if I hear this melody at practice?”
“No, not at all. I’ll see how well Chacha can do it and I’ll play with him.” Gackt nodded.
“Arigatou… Shall we go?” Gackt got to his feet and You paused, looking the vocalist up and down.
“If you’re leaving wearing what you did yesterday, then yes.” The singer looked down at himself before sighing, leaving the room. You crossed his arms and waited for him to return. The singer was pulling a different shirt on as he reappeared. “Better… Let’s go.” Gackt picked some papers up and followed You to his car, locking up behind himself. You had started his car and Gackt joined him in the car, belting himself in as You began driving. There was silence between the two for a while. “I doubt anything’s happened to her Gaku… I’m almost sure of that… She’s not that unlucky.” The guitarist’s nervous statement was greeted with silence and he raised an eyebrow. At a stop, the guitarist looked over and blinked more. Gackt was asleep, head resting against eh window. “…I told you to sleep Gaku…” You shook his head and let the soloist sleep as he drove.
Gackt started slight as he came to, You’s hand on his shoulder. “I’m fine.” You gave a wry smile.
“I’m sure. We’re here.” You got out of the car and Gackt blinked before almost pouting, quickly getting out and joining You. The guitarist and vocalist quickly made their way away from the car towards the nearby building.
“Don’t let me do that.”
“Uh-huh.”
“You-kun…”
“I can’t promise that. You’re the one who fell asleep in my car.” Gackt gave a deep sigh as they went inside, the practice area set up. Both Ju-ken and his replacement, Chirolyn, for when he couldn’t work with Gackt were onstage, discussing and playing back and forth.
“Gaku!!” Chachamaru was suddenly nearby with a smile, making You and Gackt blink.
“Eto… hello…”
“Hi! I thought of something when I got home~! About that thing yesterday. What if she was a musician? A guitarist? Maybe she wouldn’t want you knowing that cos of your status. If her band didn’t make it, she would be embarrassed of it.” Chachamaru looked proud of himself as Gackt and You paused.
“She hated the idea of being on stage though… I’ve never seen someone turn so white at something like that before…” Gackt stated.
“And I would’ve found something on her honestly.” Chachamaru blinked at Gackt, then You.
“One: she probably had a different name for her band, and two: I’d hate to get onstage if my band fell apart…” Chachamaru began away. “I just tuned that!” Gackt paused before looking at You, the guitarist nodding softly.
“I understand. I’ll keep a better eye on my search now.” Gackt nodded and the two quickly moved to the stage, quickly beginning practice.
You looked around at the end of their break, not seeing Gackt in sight. Where did he go? The guitarist began searching for his vocalist and friend, finding no trace of him. He said he’d leave her alone… You continued searching before finding someone curled in a jacket. Gackt’s now black hair was sticking out the top, You recognizing the pants he was wearing supporting the person in the chair, keeping them upright. You gave a soft sigh as he pulled the jacket back carefully, revealing the sleeping vocalist’s face.
“Didn’t sleep much… ne?” Chachamaru’s voice was quiet and You replaced the jacket over Gackt’s face.
“Hai... though I told him to…”
“It’s Gaku… You can’t tell him to do anything.”
“I can’t help trying… I think she’s really gotten under his skin…” The two guitarists moved back towards the stage as they spoke.
“Hontou? So I’m not I’m only one that’s noticed that he’s head over heels?” Chachamaru asked and You sighed.
“I think it’s hard not to.”
“I agree.” Ju-ken stated, the bassist sitting on the edge of the stage.
“He really is obvious- I’m surprised that she hasn’t figured it out.” Chachamaru stated and You blinked at him.
“You think she doesn’t know?” Ju-ken gave a snort of laughter at You’s question.
“If she knew, she’d obvious be doing something other than blushing and flipping out every time he calls her ‘Mi-chan’.” Chachamaru nearly rolled his eyes as he spoke. “Honestly, she’d either be pulling him closer or pushing him away. As it is, she acts like a fan that got shoved into the van of her favorite band.”
“Well she is a fan of his so technically…” Ju-ken stated and Chachamaru laughed softly.
“Yeah… technically my reference is true when he shoves her in a car with half of SKIN.” There was another soft laugh from the two of them.
“I think Gaku thinks that she knows honestly… I don’t know why though…” You shook his head.
“He’s assuming and honestly… She’s as thick as he is.” Chachamaru stated, beginning further away, back towards his guitar. “I mean… even Miyavi knows that he’s head-over-heels in love.”
“Is it… really that obvious?” Gackt’s soft voice made Chachamaru and You jump, Ju-ken having seen him coming. You turned to look at the sleep-deprived vocalist, seeing the same tuft of hair sticking up, even with the vocalist standing. The jacket was now draped around his shoulders. “And… she doesn’t know?”
“Yeah Boss.” Ju-ken answered honestly, his replacement walking over in confusion. “I mean… Hyde-kun’s pretty thick and he realizes it. But your girl takes the cake, she still doesn’t know.” There was a long pause.
“Why don’t you just tell her?” Chirolyn suddenly chimed in with a smile. Gackt was silent before glancing at You, the guitarist catching his look and pausing before speaking.
“Gaku wants to know more…” You almost winced at the three gazes suddenly focused on him. “He’s got a bad feeling and honestly, so do I.... So I’m attempting to find information on her.” There was a pause.
“And nothing?” Ju-ken ventured.
“Hai sou… nothing.” You nodded.
“Hen… I don’t like it.” Ju-ken shook his head.
“Eto… My good friend’s brother works for a background check company… I can ask if he can discretely look her up…” Chirolyn stated and You blinked before smiling.
“That’d be fantastic Chirolyn-san.”
“How long for it?” Gackt asked, looking curious.
“A week at most if I ask it with a bit of money behind it.” Chirolyn scratched his head. “I had to look an old band member up when he started acting weird… it works…” You gave a nod.
“That’s good… I’ll continue to look online and if you can start that check today or tomorrow, that will be fantastic.” Chirolyn nodded to You’s statement.
“No problem, I can do it tomorrow.” Chirolyn smiled before Gackt spoke.
“Good. Let’s get back to practice.” You blinked as the vocalist put the jacket in a chair and Chachamaru groaned softly. Ju-ken looked worried for a second before shaking his head, starting away with Chirolyn, the two speaking softly.
“Gaku… are you sure?” Gackt nodded as he quickly moved up onto the stage.
“Of course.” You gave a deep sigh before following the vocalist onstage. Practice finally restarted with You keeping a careful eye on Gackt. There was a long pause between songs, the soloist rubbing at his head before the song was restarted. Gackt sang loudly before he swayed and Ju-ken leapt forward to catch him as Gackt passed out, Chirolyn playing at the time. Ju-ken gave a soft groan at holding the suddenly unconscious vocalist upright.
“When’d he eat last? And how much sleep?” Ju-ken demanded as he began moving Gackt offstage.
“Not more than three hours sleep I think… and as for food, lunch yesterday as far as I know.” You stated, guitar being set down onstage and he quickly ran to catch up and help Ju-ken.
“Not good… he’ll be out for a while…”
“As usual.” Chachamaru joined them, throwing a door open and the group disappeared from the other’s sight quickly before reappearing back near the jacket. Chirolyn hopped off the stage after them as Gackt was set on the comfiest chairs, even if they weren’t too comfy. You took a seat beside his good friend, watching him carefully for any signs of anything worse than the unconscious state.
“Does this mean practice has ended?” Chirolyn inquired, looking nervous for asking so. All eyes moved to You.
“Yes- practice is finished for today.” The guitarist stated calmly and Chirolyn nodded, quickly moving around the area. Ju-ken look a seat on a chair backwards as You continued to sit beside Gackt.
“I wonder what he was doing all night…”
“Working… the usual…” You replied and Chachamaru sighed, the older man leaning against a chair.
“I really wish he’d stop doing that…” There was a general murmur of agreement between the three before silence fell. There was an extremely long pause before Chirolyn came back, very subdued and silent as the band sat and stood around their vocalist.
“You can go… If everyone’s still here, he’ll try to insist that practice will continue…”
“Eto… but I told Junji to leave and he did…” Chachamaru laughed softly and shook his head at Chirolyn.
“He’ll play drums and try to sing at the same time then. Didn’t you know that he started off drumming?”
“I think the only thing he can’t play at this point is bass… I doubt it’d take him long to pick it up though…” Ju-ken stated, shaking his head softly.
“Then Ju-ken-san and I should leave…”
“I think just you would be sufficient- you are my replacement…” Ju-ken gave a slight nod and Chirolyn nodded in response.
“All right. I’ll have that information for you all soon. I’ll see you later…” Chirolyn started away, quickly disappearing out the door with his things. A silence fell between the three remaining band members, You quietly beginning to run a hand across Gackt’s hair.
“You really can go, both of you… I’ll deal with him when he wakes up.” You stated and received murmured “no”s from both other band members. Another silence fell before Gackt began to come around, eyes slowly blinking open. “Ah Gaku… welcome back.” Gackt’s eyes managed to focus on You, the soloist’s vision obviously have to get sharper.
“You-kun… what happened?”
“You passed out Boss… You’ve been out for the last 10 or 20 minutes.” Ju-ken stated and Chachamaru nodded. Gackt turned his head to focus on them.
“Ah… well practice can continue now then.” Gackt sat up and swayed slightly while sitting.
“You’re missing a drummer and a bassist to do that.” Chachamaru stated and Gackt looked around, looking slightly dizzy still.
“That’s… that’s all right, Ju-ken can play and I’ll do drums.”
“Iie- my stuff’s already away and besides… it’s not perfect because Chirolyn’s playing for you now.” There was a long silence.
“True…” The vocalist seemed to relax more and there was a pause. “You planned this- didn’t you?” Ju-ken and You gave slight smiles and Chachamaru chuckled softly. “I’ll take that as a yes. Shame on all of you.”
“Ah! I’m very shamed Gaku~…” Ju-ken smiled widely, “Although… Chirolyn is getting Miyu’s background checked this week. He’ll have the results soon.” Gackt blinked before giving a slight nod. The soloist sighed.
“I guess… We’ll find out soon then…” There was a long silence.
“Well- I’ve gotta go~!” Ju-ken began towards the door. “See you tomorrow~!”
“Ja mata~…” Gackt called after him. There was a long pause before the soloist gave a deep sigh. You pulled the soloist to his feet.
“Come on… I’ll take you home- you need some rest Gaku… If I remember correctly, you’ve got that meeting tomorrow.”
“Hai sou…” There was a pause. “Oh! I need my new song… I have to work on it…” Chachamaru waved the papers around. “Ah~ thank you…”
“You’re not getting them anytime soon…” You stated and Chachamaru giggled. Gackt gave a deep sigh.
“Fine- I’ll be a good boy and sleep…”
“Good.” The two led the soloist to the door and Chacha handed You the papers.
“I’ll completely wrap up here… See you all tomorrow~!” Chachamaru disappeared back into the building and You silently sled Gackt to his car. He placed the soloist in the passenger seat, jogged around to the other side and hopped into the driver’s seat. There was another long silence.
“You-kun… when do you think she’ll call?” You was silent for a while.
“You really care for her… ne?” There was a silence.
“If I said yes… is it a problem?”
“Only if it hurts you Gaku…” Another pause.
“Wakatta…”
“…ii desu…” There was a long silence.
“You-kun what if she doesn’t call?”
“Then you should.” You felt mildly disturbed by his best friend’s actions and mannerisms. The soloist was playing with the door lock at this point, seeming deep in thought. “This is your new song… isn’t it?” You questioned.
“Hai… sou…”
“Omoshiroii…” There was a silence as You continued driving.
“You-kun… what if I gave up music to give her a happier time?”
“What?!”
“If… if it does work-out… I don’t want her being attacked by cameras all the time…”
“Gaku… if it made you happy to continue with your music… I doubt she would wish you to stop.” There was a long silence.
“Wakatta…” The lock clinked in and out of place as the soloist listened and spoke. “Maybe I’ll do an American film…” You chuckled and the lock stopped suddenly, “What?”
“I can’t see you in an American film.”
“Then I’ll do one. The first one I can.”
“Ganbatte.”
“Arigatou.” The lock began clicking again and You resisted giving a sigh at the obviously depressed vocalist.
“Gaku…” The lock stopped again. “One day doesn’t mean anything. It’s two or three that does.”
“I… I know.” You could hear the embarrassment in Gackt’s voice.
“Hontou?”
“H-Hai!” You grinned at the now defensive soloist.
“That’s good.” The lock didn’t start again but You hit the lock button anyways, putting it to locked. There was a pause.
‘Click.' You blinked at Gackt unlocking the doors and the guitarist relocked them. Another loud click signified them reopening. You locked them again, ignoring the smirk on Gackt’s face and the doors were unlocked again. There was an extremely long pause.
“Gaku… do you wish for the fangirls to attack and rape you?” There was a short pause.
“Iie~…”
“Then leave the locks alone.” Gackt gave a soft chuckle, not replying as You locked the doors again. There was an extremely long pause before they unlocked again. “Gaku…” The doors locked.
“Hm?” You gave a deep sigh.
“Please don’t.” The doors unlocked.
“Don’t what?” A ‘click’ signified the locks closing again.
“Please stop playing with the locks…”
“Oh~…” There was a long pause. “All right…” There was silence until the soloist chose to speak again. “How obvious will it be tomorrow?” You blinked, feeling lost before Gackt again, “The fact that I’m ‘head-over-heels’?” There was a short pause.
“If you don’t focus on her, not really.” You slowly came to a stop at Gackt’s house finally and quickly moved to help the soloist from the car. Gackt had already gotten out though, swaying slightly on his feet until You supported him.
“You really think so?”
“As of the moment- it’s written all over your face.” There was a slight pause in the conversation.
“Then I’ll wear sunglasses.”
“Sounds good.” You almost laughed, seeming to consider the fact that the soloist usually did wear sunglasses everywhere. The two quickly went inside, You giving a soft sigh as he pulled the soloist to his room, Gackt almost being unwilling.
“I’m worried.”
“About which?”
“Mi-chan. I had… some kind of vision when I was at her place…” The soloist took a seat on the bed, You giving him a serious look.
“A ghost Gaku?” The soloist was silence for a while.
“I’m not sure… Maybe… maybe some sort of cry from Mi-chan herself…”
“What did you see?” There was a pause.
“Both her and I dead with someone I didn’t recognize holding the knife. It was very… dreamlike. I think it’s just extremely strong feelings on both sides… It didn’t feel like anyone there was really dead.” You stared at Gackt, the soloist seeming less burdened suddenly.
“Gaku- why didn’t you say anything earlier?” The soloist was silent.
“Because something like that has never happened before. I thought it might be my imagination… from lack of sleep in the first place…” You shook his head softly.
“It’s all right… it explains why you’re trying to be so close… I’ll tell Chirolyn to hurry, all right?”
“Hai.” There was silence as You began to leave. “It’s not my fault that I’m not sleeping or eating well You-kun… after having multiple nightmares about laying dead by stabbing in a kitchen tends to kill one’s appetite and desire to sleep.” You stopped in the doorway.
“It’s fine… just rest a bit- I don’t care if you sleep or not now that I know.” Gackt’s head moved in a soft nod and You disappeared out the door, quickly leaving as he pulled his phone out.
“Moshi moshi~… Hai sou desu. I know you just got home… I need you to hurry the check as fast as possible. There’s something new that’s come up.” You quickly started his car up. “I promise I’ll repay you everything you pay out.” You fell silent, beginning to drive, listening to Chirolyn. “Understood… So the fastest is three days from tomorrow… Can you get it in three from today?” There was another long pause. “Ah~ ii desu… I promise I’ll buy you a nice dinner for this.” You grinned at Chirolyn’s reply, “Yes- I promise that- you’re doing Gackt and me a huge favor.” You continued driving, making sure to be extremely careful. “All right- arigatou Chirolyn-san~. Ja mata~.” The guitarist hung up and paused for a while. I’ll tell Gackt late tomorrow… Best for everyone so he won’t be champing at the bit tomorrow to see the results…
You was driving back to Gackt’s home the next day to check on the vocalist and to drop some news off. Chirolyn had already gotten some of the information early because of the results, the information he’d given You sitting on the passenger seat, hand-written out from the telephone call. The guitarist tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, almost looking annoyed that he couldn’t go any faster. His eyes darted to the paper multiple times, seeming to review the information even as he dodged through traffic. He quickly stopped at Gackt’s home, nearly leaping from the car with the paper in hand, barely remember to lock it.
“Gaku! Gaku!” You opened the door and closed it behind him. “Gaku!” The soloist staggered from a further back room, looked tired and confused.
“What?” You grabbed his arm and sat the vocalist down.
“Sit. I have information.
“What?” Gackt blinked more as You paced in front of him holding the piece of paper in front of him.
“Name Miyu Alkit is listed as an alias. History for Miyu Alkit is partially falsified before three years ago. Subject of investigation’s real name is listed as Miyuki Malcuit… Marukuito in katakana. Previously lived in California, USA, previous other locations unknown as of the moment.” There was a long pause.
“LA.”
“What?”
“Tell Chirolyn to tell them to look in Los Angles. Her sister lives there, she must’ve been there for a while.” You stared at Gackt before moving and sitting down across from him.
“Sister?” Gackt rubbed his head at You’s prod.
“Hai… not by blood buy by feeling. She’s a video game programmer and plays bass…” The soloist got up and walked over and picked the photo he’d taken from Miyu’s apartment up. “This is her in costume on stage.” You paused at the picture.
“This is a guy.”
“Iie- that’s a girl.” There was a pause before Gackt gave a smile- looking as if he was remembering something fondly. “Trust me, I did the same thing.” You shook his head softly.
“Fine.” You paused before taking a phone picture of the picture and sending it to Chirolyn with a message. “He also said that whoever stuck her in this Witness Protection program did a damn good job and it’ll take an extra day or two because of it.”
“…Wakatta…” Slight pause. “Witness Protection?”
“It’s not an official one because the Americans would be jumping down our throats at looking her up so I’m assuming a group of her friends did it.” There was a long pause as Gackt nodded, staring almost blankly ahead.
“Try… her occupation as a singer… or guitarist…” There was a pause.
“You think Chacha was right?”
“Hai.”
“Interesting… I already gave Chirolyn everything we could think of though, including Chacha’s thoughts but I’ll be sure to tell him that you agreed with Chacha.” There was a long silence between the two friends. “Gaku… What do you think happened?”
“I don’t know…I think it can be related to what I saw…”
“Hontou?”
“Hai… I’m not sure but I get the feeling it has to do with whoever attacked the two of us. There was an extreme feeling of malevolence from the person… maybe they’re really close?” At his own question, Gackt looked fairly alarmed and You shook his head.
“You don’t know that Gaku… She'll be okay…” Gackt gave a soft sigh, seeming reassured. You clapped Gackt on the shoulder. “I’m going to go for today… Ju-ken should drop by to say hello and spread gossip… Do try to get some rest for tomorrow, all right?” Gackt gave a soft nod.
“That’ll be fun… I get more VAMPS information from him than Hyde-kun.” You chuckled softly.
“Souka? Well, I’ll see you later then… if anything happens, call me.” You smiled as he received another nod from Gackt and the guitarist got to his feet, beginning away.
“You-kun… What if she’s not okay?” There was a pause.
“She’s all right… Don’t worry about it…”
“What if she’s not?”
“… then she will be.” You sighed, “Get some rest and don’t worry about it.”
“All right…” You quietly left the soloist alone in his home, Gackt sitting still on the couch before rubbing at his face- looking very tired still. He got to his feet and disappeared away to begin working on more songs.