Slam Dunk Fan Fiction ❯ Run From Him ❯ 1720 ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Run From Him

Author: Yoshi

Mail: angelwings@mindless.com

Genre: Yaoi/AU/Romance

Chapter: 1/?

Disclaimers: Slam Dunk is a creation of Takehiko Inoue, and it will never be mine. No profit was made upon doing this fiction for I am merely borrowing the characters for fun.

AN: I took a long break from writing, so please forgive any plot holes or errors you'll encounter. I did this out of fun, so I hope you'll find some too while reading this. Please be informed that I'll constantly use their names for all the time frames to prevent confusion. Also, there are some OOC instances in this fic so hold your breaths.

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"Don't worry about it...I'll meet you there..."

"Don't you dare go die happy on me, Hanamichi. You hear?"

------

May 26, 1720

Mom,

Heavens must have favoured our side; it is by luck's grant that I'm able to send this letter to you. For five days, we have been camping out on the wilderness- the grassy earth as our bed and the moonlit skies as our roof. One would probably feel as if peacetime has already dawned.

Peacetime- I can already imagine what it's like back there after this war.

It is by this reason why we cannot yet stop, as peace is still an inch far within our grasps. Soon, when this war is over, I'll come back home with victory in my hands.

Your son,
Hanamichi

----

In the night of May, leaves fell from the towering trees and rustled as the wind blew softly. At midnight, the sound of the crickets filled the silence as the moon cast its glow over the soft green expanse that was the ground.

His face, alert or at rest, was solemn. It is indeed a solemn time and a solemn night for a young man who just turned 17 in the heart of the fields. He was part man, part child, yet among those who aspired for the romantic dreams of battles yet to come- among the thirty thousand men lying askew in their uniforms.

"I'm coming home..." The redhead murmured huskily, raising a silver locket with his palms and watching as it caught a glimmer of the moonlight. Kept in the locket was a picture of his mother he held dear the most; his only family to come home to once peace finally shows its face.

He knew he was lying when he told her in the letter that he will come home soon. People die in war, and it is by no surprise if ever he'll not make it before the crack of dawn.

But still, he had to keep on hoping...

A trickle flowed past his cheeks unguarded, startling and forcing him to brush them away furiously. Never did he once shed tears even when he knew what was at stake in this battle- his very own life.

"You're crying," said a voice, bland and unemotional all at the same time.

"I'm not," Hanamichi retorted, tucking the silver locket deep into the confines of his pocket. He then turned to his side, facing the owner of the voice who spoke to him. "And if I am, it's not your business to meddle with, fox." He stared at him directly in the eyes- the deepest of blue meeting the richest of brown.

A stretch of silence.

Kaede merely shrugged, lying on his back as well, while placing his arm beneath his head to serve as leverage and a makeshift pillow. He softly began to close his eyes, feeling himself lulled by the stillness of the night.

The other young man with eyes as blue as the seas, was no older than Hanamichi himself. In fact, the two have known each other in a brief two months before the war started. It is but just a mere twist of fate that brought the two as friends in the middle of a war.

"...Kaede?" Hanamichi asked, testing if his companion is already asleep.

"...Hn,"

"A-Are you ready for the next day?"

"....."

"Stupid question," the redhead muttered to himself as he toyed with the hem of his wool comforter.

"You want to cry some more, go on ahead. I did the same last night." Kaede said with his eyes still closed.

"W-What?" Hanamichi began, his voice raising a few volumes due to anger. "Are you mocking me? 'Cause if you are...," he drawled with a dangerous tinge of his voice, "I'll knock the daylights out of you."

The raven-haired man opened his eyes, and at that instant, their eyes met once again. "It's the truth, idiot."

"Bastard." He grumbled, finally averting his eyes. The redhead briefly wondered the cause why his cheeks heat up at that mere eye contact. The raven-haired boy's stare has this weird ability to pin him, enough to make him feel vulnerable.

A stretch of uncomfortable silence enveloped the two save for the small puffs from their breathing. In that small span of time, Kaede must have taken out a cigar now, for the dark was suddenly filled with the smell of tobacco unlit as yet, but chewed as he thought what next to say.

"I..." Both young men started at the same time. After the awkwardness, Hanamichi took the liberty to say what he had in mind first.

"I was actually thinking of everything ahead. Perhaps both sides will figure out that the other side will just give up, and soon, the war will end in a few days, and all of us will be home." The redhead said the last word with unconscious longing. "Well, things might not be that way. And maybe that's why I cried."

"....."

He was pouring his very own self to the young man in front of him; for some reason, he can't find the reigns of his tongue and the words kept on flowing endlessly. Perhaps it's because unconsciously, he knew that this might be the last time he'll ever experience such moment. He had nothing to lose- the same that goes with Kaede.

Sure, the other boy has the conversational skills that could rival a rock's, but still, a friend is a friend. He could settle for a simple companionship at the least even though the times seemed unlikely to grant it.

"Do you..." Hanamichi continued, twiddling with a blade of grass between his fingers. "...ever regret that you became a soldier?"

"...do you?"

For a brief moment, the redhead considered the question back. "No," he answered truthfully. "Though I can't help but wonder if things would turn out differently if I hadn't. You have a family to return to, right?"

"No."

"You're alone?"

A shrug.

"A lover?" he nearly bit his tongue at such question. But somehow, deep inside him, he hoped that the answer is negative.

Silence. It is the kind of silence that warned the redhead to not delve some more.

"I see," Hanamichi breathed softly, almost in a dreamy manner. He then allowed his eyes to close. "As much as this may sound pathetic, I don't have one either. Never been kissed either."

No response.

"Sure it's lonely to be alone, you know."

For a brief instant, something brushed in his lips like the fluttering of a butterfly's wings. Hanamichi opened his eyes, wondering at the warm feeling that suddenly rushed to him. Did he imagine it? Was it some kind of trickery?

He turned to his side, looking at the lying figure beside him. The question was left hanging on his lips as he saw the even breathing of his companion.

'Did he just...?'

...Maybe he'll never know. Hanamichi returned back to his position and surrendered to the clutches of sleep.

Beside him, Kaede laid silently, a small flicker of a smile grazing his lips.

------

Hanamichi stumbled towards him through the grassy field, his uniform torn and bloodied. Smoke filled the surroundings, the smell of gunpowder wafting too much in the air. Here he is, standing on the same spot the night before, with victory finally at hand.

The price for his dreams was great, but it was worth it.

'Now, I can settle things at last...'

Kaede reached for him just as he had collapsed. He was unable to restrain the horror he felt at seeing Hanamichi's state. There was blood, and far too much of it. He frantically looked around for help, but found none.

Hanamichi's gloveless hand grasped his own, forcing the raven-haired man to look at him. The redhead shook his head slowly.

"Don't worry about it...I'll meet you there..." he drew another ragged breath.

Kaede blinked rapidly, hot tears of denial trickling gently on his cheeks, clouding his vision. It was too late; he kept himself from holding the redhead to him, for he feared that such gesture would bring only pain.

"Please," the raven-haired man head his own voice pleading. "Just...don't die, okay?"

The redhead smiled, before a sent to a coughing fit. More blood spilled from his lips. He sighed, resting himself on his companion's embrace.

"Hanamichi!" he urged, shaking him a bit. "Don't go to sleep!...just... please..." He stared at the calm brown depths of Hanamichi's eyes.

"Don't you dare go and die happy on me, Hanamichi. You hear?" he gritted his teeth, tears of frustration freely flowing on his eyes. "Damn it, just don't die! You promised! You said you'd return home. Please...not when you've come this far."

Silence. It almost felt like his heart stopped beating, and that everything stilled.

And waited.

"I can't just let you leave like this...please. You have to know..."

'This is it...'

"I-I love you."

Kaede's eyes grew wide as the redhead drew him near and kissed his softly on the lips- lips that tasted the coppery tinge of blood. And then he looked at Hanamichi's eyes. Such brown orbs spoke to him with unknown volumes till they fluttered and closed for the last time.

And then everything kept silent.

On his hand, the same hand that the redhead grasped before he died, shone the silver locket. More tears bled from his eyes as he read the small inscription on the small case.

'You're not alone anymore...'

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AN: At last! I didn't thought it will turn out to be so dramatic... Now, for the next part...