Gravitation Fan Fiction ❯ Fleeting Inspiration ❯ Read All About It ( Chapter 19 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Fleeting Inspiration
by Anna Sartin

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Chapter Nineteen: Read All About It

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After breakfast Tatsuha practically danced out of the apartment with his gifts, leaving Eiri alone to enjoy the morning paper. At least that had been the writer's initial plan. Today, however, this part of his morning routine proved to be anything but enjoyable. He found his picture on the front page of the entertainment section.

POPULAR NOVALIST EIRI YUKI JAILED - TWICE!

Eiri quickly retrieved the cigarette that had fallen out of his mouth, before reading the article...

Popular romance author Eiri Yuki appears to be pursuing a new career as a jailbird. During the past week Yuki-sensei has been arrested twice, and could be facing more jail time in the future. The first incident occurred on March 25, when he was taken into police custody for harassing his fellow author Mamoru Eto at his Tokyo home. Yuki-sensei was released on bail the same day. On March 29 he was arrested again, this time for shoplifting in a music store in Osaka. This occurred only moments after being forcefully removed from a bookstore across the street, where he again tried to harass Eto-sensei during a book signing. Also arrested was the author's live-in lover Shuichi Shindo, lead singer of the music group Bad Luck. (see page E2)

Osaka police say that Yuki-sensei's mental state at the time of his arrest was "questionable" and describe the author's time in their custody as "loud and unpleasant". Sources say Yuki-sensei repeatedly demanded that he be given drugs, and was admonished for indecent behavior in his cell with Shindo-san. No drugs or alcohol was found in his system. He was released on bail later that evening, and will appear in court on April 22.


Eiri blinked. He had to go to court? He hadn't known that. How had the media found out his court date before he did? In fact, how had the media found any of this out? He read the whole thing over again, growling at the bits about "shoplifting", "demanding drugs" and his "questionable" mental state. He then turned to page E2, where a separate article had been written on Shuichi. It was accompanied by a black and white picture of the singer fighting with that teenager over the GRUDE CD in Music World. From the store security camera, no doubt.

Shuichi Shindo, lead singer for the popular J-Pop band Bad Luck was taken into police custody on March 29 for assaulting a minor in a music store. Witnesses say that the conflict began when Shindo-san approached an underage customer and attempted to grab a CD out of her hands. Also taken into custody was his lover, novelist Eiri Yuki on separate charges of shoplifting and resisting arrest. Police have not said rather or not they believe this incident was set up to be a distraction to divert security so that Yuki-sensei could escape with the stolen merchandise.

Thoroughly disgusted, Eiri turned the page, not bothering to finish the article. He hated the media. If they were going to report private information to the public about people's personal lives it ought to at least be accurate.

There ought to be a law, Eiri thought, as he flipped to the international section. The first article was about a judge arrested for masturbating in court. Eiri raised an eyebrow. Another one? He'd read about a similar case a few months ago about a judge in Europe. This one was American, and had been caught using a penis pump. What was WRONG with people? The next article was less obscene, but somehow more disturbing.

MAN SHOOTS SHOOTS WIFE, MISTAKING HER FOR A MONKEY

A Malaysian man shot and killed his wife after he mistook her for a monkey picking fruit in a tree behind their house. The man, 70, is being held by police for causing death through recklessness after he fired a shotgun at what he thought was a monkey in a mangosteen tree. His wife, 68, had used a ladder to climb into the tree and was picking the tropical fruit when she was shot. She was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. The couple lived in central Malaysia and had raised 13 children.

He must've either been blind or had a really ugly wife, Eiri thought, wondering if there were any limits to human stupidity. He turned the page, wondering just how you explained to your 13 children that you shot their mother out of a tree because you thought she was a monkey. People did a lot of stupid things, but it was going to take a lot in his book to top THAT one.

DRUNKEN MAN COOKS OWN GENITALS

Eiri turned green and quickly closed the newspaper.

Looks like we have a new winner.

He folded up the newspaper and discarded it in the trash, before heading to his study to work. He'd been planning to go out and buy beer before getting started, but somehow his favorite drink had lost its appeal.

. . .

It's a curious thing how quickly news travels. Bad news tends to travel faster than information of an ordinary sort and things that people want to keep to themselves is often the talk of the town before they know it. It is also a curious truth that when someone is having a string of bad luck, the pattern of misfortune will usually go on for quite a while before their luck starts to change. With these things in mind, it really shouldn't have surprised Eiri when his sister marched into his study that afternoon with a newspaper in one hand and a flat brown package in the other.

"How was your vacation, Eiri?" she asked coldly.

"Fine," he responded emotionlessly, not noticing her tone of voice or the furious expression on her face. In fact, he didn't look at her at all. He'd just gotten a new idea for a story- he'd been trying to think of something all day and only had a short list of mediocre possibilities to show for it- and was hoping that if he ignored his older sibling she would go away.

"Really? Then what is THIS?" Mika demanded, shoving the newspaper in his face.

His photograph stared back at him.

"None of your business," he answered, trying to keep his voice neutral so his sister wouldn't know that she'd caught him off guard. He had no idea where begin with explaining the events of the past week, and he didn't want to get into it at the moment anyway. He pushed the paper away and continued typing.

"Do you know what Father's going to say when he sees this?! Do you know what TOHMA is going to say???"

Shit. If Mika already knew about this then it wouldn't be long before her husband did, too. Seguchi would be at his door in no time trying to "make it all better". Eiri cringed.

"How could you embarrass our family like this?!" Mika yelled, slamming the paper and the package she was holding on Eiri's desk. "And where is Shindo-san? I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!"

"Shuichi isn't here, and I'm too busy for one of your lectures today so why don't you find something useful to do?"

"Eiri Uesugi!!!"

Eiri finally turned to look at her. "Aren't you supposed to be taking Tatsuha home? Why don't you go scold HIM for wrecking his motorcycle? I've got work to do."

"I brought him with me. He's taking his bags to the car now. Why in the world would you be shoplifting? You can afford anything you want! And harassing-"

"I was NOT shoplifting!" Eiri yelled, cutting her off. He was so damn tired of hearing that word he could kill someone.

"This is Shindo's fault, isn't it?" she asked in an accusing tone. "He did something stupid and got you caught in the middle of it! Did he steal something and get you involved, Eiri? Are you covering for him?"

It amazed him how his sister could be right and yet so very, very wrong at the same time. "No! Neither of us stole anything! Now get out of here and let me work!"

"Are you taking your medication?"

Oh great, now she's going to start mothering me...

"Eiri, are you listening to me?" Mika asked, when he didn't answer.

I sure as hell wish I wasn't...

"Eiri!!!"

"WHAT?"

"Have you stopped taking your medication?"

"No."

"Then what the hell is wrong with you?"

"This is my problem, not yours."

"Obviously I haven't been checking up on you enough and I'm sorry for that," Mika replied, sounding genuinely apologetic. "I foolishly gave Shindo more credit than I should have and thought he was competent enough to look after you."

"I don't need anyone to look after me!" Eiri said sharply, glaring at his sibling.

"If that were true, you wouldn't be getting yourself arrested."

Eiri groaned inwardly, knowing he was going to be seeing a lot of his sister and brother-in-law in the future. And he'd just gotten used to not having to deal with one or both of them nagging, worrying and prying into his life on a daily basis. Life just wasn't fair.

"There's a drunken man pissing on one of your tires," Tatsuha told his sister from the doorway.

Mika to flew out of the room faster than Eiri had ever seen her move in his life.

"You owe me," Tatsuha informed his brother. "She's gonna kill me when she gets down there and realizes that I lied to her."

"I'll owe you if you keep her from coming BACK."

"Deal. See you later, Bro. Thanks for letting me stay here."

"Whatever," Eiri waved, before shoving Mika's newspaper in a desk drawer, out of his sight. He was about to do the same to the package she's left on his desk, until he realized that the note attached to it was addressed to him. It was from Tohma.

       Eiri-san,
          & nbsp;  I thought you might enjoy this, it's by that author you're so fond of. Ryuichi gave
              it to me this morning saying it was some kind of religious text. I think he was
           & nbsp; confused. Either way I have no use for it, so please enjoy it with my love.

       Your loving Oni-san,
       Tohma Seguchi


Eiri stared at the package, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach.

Oh no...

His hands trembled as he removed the brown wrapping, feeling as though his brother-in-law had sent him a letter bomb rather than a well-intended gift. He prayed to Buddha it wasn't what he knew it was. What else COULD it be? He laughed insanely as the cover of Four Gay Elves met his sight, mocking him with its reappearance. Then, as even the mightiest of men are apt to do when in the midst of a mental breakdown, he burst into tears.

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~End chapter nineteen~