Vision of Love - Part 2
By Gini
He could have just ditched him over there, on that dark street where he attacked him. After all, he started it first, not him. But it was his eyes that made him changed his mind.
Those deep red eyes. So full of hatred and bitterness. So determined and full with fire.
He carried him home and healed the wounds for him. He didn't expect him to wake up, but that little youkai woke up within a few hours.
"Are you okay?" He asked with a smile. He smiled because that youkai nearly jumped up with alert.
"Don't worry. It's only me." Somehow this sentence comforted him. But those red eyes still searched him from head to toe.
"I am amazed by how quickly you can recover. Usually youkais hit by my rose whip don't wake up until 24 hours later."
"I don't get hurt by fox that easily." That little youkai finally spoke. Kurama looked amused.
"Oh? I should have guessed you can use your jagan to see my identity."
"Che." The youkai looked away.
"But anyway. Here is some kind of herb that can make you fully recover. Drink this." Kurama handed him a cup of green herb. The youkai looked at him suspiciously.
Kurama laughed. "If I want to kill you, I'd have done it long time ago. Why now?"
He could have sworn that he saw that youkai blushed a little. But he drank the herb.
That was the first time he encountered Hiei. From that moment on, he had been in some kind of trance. He had never been awaken. And he believed, neither had Hiei.
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"Next match! Kurama and Hiei!" Genkai shouted.
They were all practising in the temple. Why did that stupid old woman pick him and Kurama ... he had no clue.
"I don't feel well." Kurama mumbled some excuse.
"Are you a chicken? I thought you were some kind of fox." Hiei said with a cold laugh.
"Hiei. Don't start it."
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Since when had they turned from friends to enemies. Or, were they just merely friends from the beginning? Or was there some other kind of relationship in between? Kurama believes in the second one. He and Hiei are definitely not just friends. The care, thoughts, and love that they have always silently shared.
Maybe too much love is what happened to this relationship - hatred.
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"I think I will leave the two of you alone."
"What the fuck!? Get back here you idiot!"
But Yuusuke had already disappeared.
The two of them stood there, not looking at each other. The silence was killing him. He thought about running away just now, but something made him stop. It was his heart that wouldn't allow him to fled.
Maybe it's time to face the reality.
"You have been avoiding me. Why?" Kurama said softly. A note of sorrow seemed to flow out from that sentence.
"Because you have been avoiding me too."
Kurama nodded, admitting it.
"I heard that you and Mukuro are engaged."
"What?"
Kurama smiled. It was so fake that Hiei wanted to slap him out of it.
"Perhaps I should say 'Congratulations'."
"Hn. Stupid rumour."
"There is always a cause that causes the rumour."
"You know there isn't any."
The cherry trees' petals were flying around because of the mild breeze. It was like snowing. Kurama lifted up his hand to catch a single cherry petal.
"Beautiful isn't it?" He sighed. "You can only see this in this human world. Makai was once my home. Now Ningenkai is my second home. There are just too many things in this world for me to learn from. Beside all these, I have my family who needs me. Hiei - "
"Stop. Say no more." He wanted to turn and leave, but Kurama grabbed his arm.
"No. Let me finish. You think this is easy for me? Every time I see you, I am reminded of Makai. Every now and then I'd think to myself, I will go with you to anywhere. It doesn't matter if it's Makai or where ever. I don't care. As long as I am with you. But I have a human life to live. You can't ask me to give up this life just like I can't ask you to stay in Ningenkai with me. It's just not fair. That's the reason why I have been avoiding you because it hurts me to think that you and I are going separate ways."
"That's enough!" Hiei said sharply, shrug off his hand. "You ...think...," he couldn't help the trembling from his voice, "you think I care but I don't give a damn where you are going!" With that, he left.
He ran as fast as he could; as far as he could.
If Kurama asked him, right on that spot, to stay in Ningenkai with him, he'd say yes.
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"What did you tell him?" Yuusuke came after Hiei had run away.
Kurama looked down. "I told him about my decision."
"You told him ..... you are going to stay ......??"
"Yes."
"Kurama ...I thought...."
"No. I have made up my mind. A bird and a fish might fall in love, but where would they live?" He said it emotionlessly, but Yuusuke knew better.
"You know, both of you are equally stubborn." Yuusuke sighed, shaking his head.
Kurama looked away and then said sadly, "Maybe that's why the feeling didn't last."
"No. It's still there. You both are just too stubborn to see it."
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"I don't give a damn!"
Hiei wished his voice didn't betray him so. Some idiot once said that truth hurts. God, does it ever hurt.
"Kurama... if one day you are forced to choose between Makai and Ningenkai, which one would you choose?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Curiosity."
Kurama thought for a while. "I don't know. I haven't really thought about it."
He didn't need his answer. His hesitation before answering the question had answered him already. Sometimes he wondered, if he didn't foresee the truth, would it still hurt? Or would he be too shocked to feel the hurt inside. Though he was a Koorime, the wound from the knife of truth still cut him through; and the blood didn't stop flooding out just because he had koorime's blood.
But then again, his heart has never stopped bleeding from the very first moment he laid his eyes on Kurama.
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"Don't start what?" Hiei said with fake innocence. Kurama finally stood up. So now they were standing face to face.
Hiei unsheathed his katana. "There is no friend on the battle field. There is only enemy." He said it more to himself than to others.
The next five minutes was intolerable. He had tried to cut Kurama in pieces, but Kurama didn't even get out any of his weapons. He kept avoiding his sword. The fact that Kurama didn't want to fight him made him angry. Finally, he sliced a big cut on Kurama's cloth. Ha, that ought to show him that he's playing a real game.
"Yuusuke! Go!"
Yuusuke immediately jumped between them. He took Hiei's side and fought against Kurama. Kurama took out his rose whip.
"I don't need this idiot's help." Hiei said to Genkai.
Both of them fought hard against Kurama. Suddenly, Kurama let out his whip toward Yuusuke who jumped up high as soon as he saw the whip. Hiei, who was behind Yuusuke all these time, jumped up too, but a little bit too late. The whip hit him on the shoulder.
"Hiei!" Kurama cried out. Just then, Yuusuke jumped down, and ready to give Kurama a big hit on his chest.
"No!" The next moment happened so fast that Kurama didn't even know what happened. He saw Yuusuke came down and ready to hit him. Then he was knocked out by a black blur and then he hit the ground.
"What the?" He lifted up his head and saw Hiei's head lying on his chest. He looked up and saw Yuusuke, Genkai, Kuwabara were all looking down at him.
Hiei groaned and climbed slowly up to his feet.
"You all right Hiei?" Yuusuke asked with worry.
"Of course." Hiei said without looking at anybody.
"That was stupid, Shrimp." Kuwabara said.
Hiei looked right at Kurama, who was still shocked by what had just happened.
"I know."
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"Hn. Stupid human stuff."
Kurama laughed. "Don't tell me you are not affected by human emotions! The way you feel about your sister ... it's one of the human feelings."
He can't believe he possess those kind of emotion right now. Just when he was about to kill that stupid fox, his heart ached. Usually he and his sword only sought for blood. But when it came to Kurama, he seemed to seek for something else. Warmth? Comfort? ........ Love?
But their relationship was over, long time ago. When the first time Kurama had the slightest indication that he was not coming back Makai with him. Especially when he used his ningen family as an excuse, he was so mad that he wanted to kill everybody in that world. Where does he stand in his heart anyway?
He knew he was selfish. But love is all about selfishness and jealousy. Love is about 'to have'. Even he knew that much.
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"Does it hurt?" Kurama asked after he found him.
Kurama always had a way of knowing where he was.
"No." Hiei said coldly. "I have had bigger cuts than this."
"Let me see it." He sounded concerned.
"It's not necessary."
But Kurama grabbed his arm anyway. He pulled him down to the grass. Slowly, he took off his top so he could see the wound better.
A big cut by his rose whip throne was bleeding freely.
"Close your eyes."
What does he want?
"Come on. What... you think I will eat you or something?"
"Hn." But he closed his eyes.
Suddenly, a hot and wet thing covered his wound.
He opened his eyes in shock whole his body was still trembling from the pain.
"What the...??"
Kurama was licking his cut.
"Kurama, stop." But his arms embraced him tightly so that he could not flee.
Kurama lifted up his face to his level. Both of them stared at each other for the longest time.
Why?
Those eyes seemed to tell him something. Something he didn't want to know. Something he was supposed to know. Something he had never known.
Then their lips touched for a brief instant. The brief touch became hungry kisses. So passionate but never enough.
It didn't matter if they were going to be enemies when the final tournament came, they only needed tonight to consume their fire for physical desire.
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It was really late that night. He was embraced from behind by Kurama. Just like that, they laid there and fell asleep after they had spent all their energy. Kurama must had thought that he was asleep. He touched his hair lightly, and then held him tighter than ever. He could feel Kurama's breath behind his ears.
"I love you Hiei. Always have, and always will." That was all Kurama had ever said.
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End of Part 2
<To Be Continued ...>