summer challenge week 7
Title: The Deal
Author: maggie84
Rating: let's say PG-13 just to be safe
Genre: drama, horror
Character(s): You, Gackt, Chacha
Pairing(s): Gackt/You if you choose to read it that way
Length: 1,182 words & 1,765 words
Warning(s): dark/supernatural stuff, one bad word
Summary: What would You give for one last time?
Notes: I might have taken the prompt details a little too literally, but I have no regrets! I did two versions of this fic because I thought some people might like it better with less of the supernatural/dark stuff. My actual submission for the prompt is the longer one though because it goes with the "horror" genre better than the shorter/tamer version.
He’d been gone for a long time. So very long.
“I have to see him,” You said aloud to the empty room. “One last time, that’s all I need.”
He’d been laying on the couch in the living room of the enormous house all day. The house was his now after all, all the other residents had made the wise decision of moving out. But he couldn’t move out, he couldn’t bring himself to leave. As long as You stayed in the house, he could convince himself that he was still there…in the studio or down in his dojo. He couldn’t hear the music echoing through the house, but he could at least choose to believe that he was there somewhere.
You pushed himself up into a seated position. It was way more difficult than it should have been, but he was so weak these days. Chacha had been shocked to see how badly he looked when he’d stopped by the day before.
“Christ, you look like shit,” Chacha said when he found the other man sitting in the study with a large book open on the desk in front of him.
“I’m fine,” You replied.
“No, you’re not,” Chacha moved closer to him. “You’re too skinny and your skin looks all pale and gray. When was the last time you went outside?”
“I checked the mail this afternoon.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Chacha put his hands on his hips. “You need to get out of this house, You. You need to go outside and do something. Go shopping, go to the park. I don’t care what you do, but you need to get out of here.”
“I’m fine,” You said again and looked back down at the book in front of him.
Chacha looked around the room. “You really need to get out of this house,” he said. “Move out. You can come stay at my place until we find you your own. Being here isn’t helping anything.”
“I like it here.”
Chacha sighed and looked at his friend sympathetically. “He’s gone, You. You’ve got to move on. Nothing is going to change what happened. You can’t bring him back.”
You put his hands on the desk in front of him and didn’t say anything.
“Let me at least take you out to dinner,” Chacha offered. “It’ll get you out of the house, get some food in you. You’ll feel a lot better.”
“I’m fine, Cha. Really.” You looked up at his friend. “Thanks, I mean it. But I’m fine.”
Chacha had left after that, knowing from experience that the cause had been lost for the day. He’d be back in a couple days to try again, he always was.
Sitting up on the couch, You folded his hands in front of him. In his mind, he ran through the terms of the deal he’d made and felt a shiver run down his spine involuntarily. “One last time,” he said quietly. “Then I’ll stop.”
He closed his eyes and began to speak the words that he’d said several times before. Words that he’d carefully memorized months ago, words that both comforted and terrified him.
As he spoke, he could feel the temperature in the room drop several degrees. He could feel a light breeze begin to tickle his hair against his face and grow to a wind that swirled around the room. This was it. It was working. He began to speak faster, excitement taking over.
Then as soon as the last words left his mouth, the wind stopped and the room felt warm again. He sat alone in the dimly lit room, surrounded by silence.
“You can’t keep doing this.” The voice came from behind him.
You felt his stomach jump up into his throat and swallowed. “I know,” he said quietly, not turning.
Gackt came around the end of the couch and sat down next to his friend. He sighed and both men sat in silence, not looking at one another.
After awhile, You spoke. “Cha was here yesterday.”
“Ahh,” Gackt nodded. “How’s he doing?”
“He said that I can’t bring you back.”
“You can’t.”
You finally looked at the man next to him. “But I have. You’re here now.”
“And at what cost?” Gackt met the other’s eyes.
“It doesn’t matter.” You looked away.
Gackt’s eyes flashed angry and then looked sad. “Yes it does matter, You. Look at yourself. Have to seen what this is doing to you?”
“It’s worth it.”
“Is it worth your life?” Gackt asked. “Worth your soul? Just to spend a few hours with me?”
You reached over and put his hand on top of Gackt’s, looking anywhere but at the eyes gazing so intently at him.
Gackt sighed and turned his hand over, lacing their fingers together. “I miss you too, You, but this is just how things are. Everything happens for a reason and it’s not our place to try to change that.”
“What if I said that I found a way to bring you back permanently?” You asked suddenly. “For more than just a few hours.”
Gackt’s eyes widened. “You didn’t.”
“I did.”
“You can’t!” Gackt stood up and spun to face the other man. “And just what would be the price of bringing me back?! You have nothing left to give, You! This was the last time you could even do this,” he gestured to himself, “without killing yourself in the process! What would be the good in bringing me back if you’re not here??”
“You have more to give to this world than I do.” You shrugged.
Gackt went to his knees in front of his friend. “Oh, You, don’t say that. You have a lot to give the world if you’d just get out of this house! Move out, sell it, burn it to the ground, I don’t care. Go stay with Cha, learn to have a life again. Enjoy the time you have here.” Gackt swallowed. “Before it’s all gone from you too.”
You felt a tear leak from the corner of his eye without realizing that he even felt like crying. “Don’t you want to come back?”
“I’m happy there,” Gackt shook his head, “and I’m where I’m supposed to be. So no. I don’t want to come back.”
You nodded, tears sliding down his face silently.
There were several long moments of silence before either man spoke again.
“This really is the last time, you know,” Gackt said finally.
“I know.” You met his eyes. “Will you stay with me tonight?”
Gackt squeezed his friend’s hand and managed a smile. “Of course I will.”
They went to the bedroom and laid down without changing their clothes. You felt Gackt scoot closer behind him and his arm slide around his shoulders. He could hear the steady breathing and feel the presence of the other man behind him.
When You fell asleep that night, he had a smile on his tear-stained face. And when Gackt’s presence drifted off for the final time, You was dreaming of tour buses and rehearsals, parties and dinners, smiles and laughter.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
He’d been gone for a long time. So very long.
“I have to see him,” You said aloud to the empty room. “One last time, that’s all I need.”
He’d been laying on the couch in the living room of the enormous house all day. The house was his now after all, all the other residents had made the wise decision of moving out. But he couldn’t move out, he couldn’t bring himself to leave. As long as You stayed in the house, he could convince himself that he was still there…in the studio or down in his dojo. He couldn’t hear the music echoing through the house, but he could at least choose to believe that he was there somewhere.
You pushed himself up into a seated position. It was way more difficult than it should have been, but he was so weak these days. Chacha had been shocked to see how badly he looked when he’d stopped by the day before.
“Christ, you look like shit,” Chacha said when he found the other man sitting in the study with a large book open on the desk in front of him.
“I’m fine,” You replied.
“No, you’re not,” Chacha moved closer to him. “You’re too skinny and your skin looks all pale and gray. When was the last time you went outside?”
“I checked the mail this afternoon.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Chacha put his hands on his hips. “You need to get out of this house, You. You need to go outside and do something. Go shopping, go to the park. I don’t care what you do, but you need to get out of here.”
“I’m fine,” You said again and looked back down at the book in front of him.
Chacha looked around the room. “You really need to get out of this house,” he said. “Move out. You can come stay at my place until we find you your own. Being here isn’t helping anything.”
“I like it here.”
Chacha sighed and looked at his friend sympathetically. “He’s gone, You. You’ve got to move on. Nothing is going to change what happened. You can’t bring him back.”
You put his hands on the desk in front of him and didn’t say anything.
“Let me at least take you out to dinner,” Chacha offered. “It’ll get you out of the house, get some food in you. You’ll feel a lot better.”
“I’m fine, Cha. Really.” You looked up at his friend. “Thanks, I mean it. But I’m fine.”
Chacha had left after that, knowing from experience that the cause had been lost for the day. He’d be back in a couple days to try again, he always was.
"One last time," You said again.
"One last time, you say?" a voice said. "And just what's in it for me?"
"Anything you want," he replied.
"But what if you don't have anything left ?" the voice hissed past his ear and he shivered. "I already have your soul, what more could I want?"
"You tell me," You answered. "Whatever it takes."
Black mist seeped out of the shadows and swirled around the room. It began to come together in front of him until it solidified into a dark figure, human in shape but smaller and with sharper angles. It moved closer to You and he reflexively leaned back to distance himself from it.
"There is...the thing we discussed last time," the figure whispered.
"Last time..."
"You could do things for me. Things in this world that I cannot do."
You swallowed. "Like what?"
The figure moved away and drifted like it was pacing in front of him. "For all my powers of persuasion and the deals that I can offer humans, I cannot kill anyone."
You jumped to his feet. "I won't kill someone for you!"
"Then suit yourself," the figure began to dissolve. "You will have to live the rest of your life knowing that you will never see him again, in this life or the next. I have your soul, you belong to me."
Just as the figure was about to disappear completely, You stuck his hand out towards it. "Wait!" he said.
The mist swirled. "Yes?"
"What's my alternative?" You asked slowly. "Is there any other way?"
The mist moved to swirl around him. "Yes. You can see him one more time, but your life will be mine too."
"But...you said you can't kill anyone."
The voice snorted. "I will not have to. You have given so much of yourself to bring him back all the other times. You are dying anyways. One more time and that will be it for you."
You stumbled backwards, his knees hitting the couch behind him and causing him to fall back onto it. "So those are my options?" he asked. "Either kill someone for you or die myself?"
"Those are the options," the voice said and if it'd had a body, it probably would have shrugged. "All though," it continued, "if you would be willing to come to a more...long-term agreement with me, I could give you a way to bring him back permanently."
You sat up straight. "Permanently? You mean he'd be back forever?"
"Forever," the voice laughed. "If you do whatever I want, whenever I want."
"I won't," You shook his head. "I won't do your dirty work."
"How about this," the voice said conversationally. "I will give you this one time, free of charge. You can change your mind later."
The mist dissolved completely, leaving You sitting alone in the living room once again. Sitting up on the couch, he folded his hands in front of him and felt a shiver run down his spine involuntarily. “This one last time,” he said quietly. “That's all I need. Then I'll stop.”
He closed his eyes and began to speak the words that he’d said several times before. Words that he’d carefully memorized months ago, words that both comforted and terrified him.
As he spoke, he could feel the temperature in the room drop several degrees. He could feel a light breeze begin to tickle his hair against his face and grow to a wind that swirled around the room. This was it. It was working. He began to speak faster, excitement taking over.
Then as soon as the last words left his mouth, the wind stopped and the room felt warm again. He sat alone in the dimly lit room, surrounded by silence.
“You can’t keep doing this.” A familiar voice came from behind him.
You felt his stomach jump up into his throat and swallowed. “I know,” he said quietly, not turning.
Gackt came around the end of the couch and sat down next to his friend. He sighed and both men sat in silence, not looking at one another.
After awhile, You spoke. “Cha was here yesterday.”
“Ahh,” Gackt nodded. “How’s he doing?”
“He said that I can’t bring you back.”
“You can’t.”
You finally looked at the man next to him. “But I have. You’re here now.”
“And at what cost?” Gackt met the other’s eyes.
“It doesn’t matter.” You looked away.
Gackt’s eyes flashed angry and then looked sad. “Yes it does matter, You. Look at yourself. Have to seen what this is doing to you?”
“It’s worth it.”
“Is it worth your life?” Gackt asked. “Worth your soul? Just to spend a few hours with me?”
You reached over and put his hand on top of Gackt’s, looking anywhere but at the eyes gazing so intently at him. They'd had this argument before. Gackt had been furious to find out what You had done to bring him back the first time.
Gackt sighed and turned his hand over, lacing their fingers together. “I miss you too, You, but this is just how things are. Everything happens for a reason and it’s not our place to try to change that. If you’d have simply let things be, we would’ve seen each other again eventually…but not anymore. The deal you made guaranteed that’ll never happen for us. You’re condemned now, You. You’ll never be where I am.”
“What if I said that I found a way to bring you back permanently?” You asked suddenly. “For more than just a few hours.”
Gackt’s eyes widened. “You wouldn't.”
“I would.”
“You can’t!” Gackt stood up and spun to face the other man. “And just what would be the price of bringing me back?! You have nothing left to give, You! This was the last time you could even do this,” he gestured to himself, “without killing yourself in the process! What would be the good in bringing me back if you’re not here??”
"There are things that I could do so that neither of us has to die."
Gackt went to his knees in front of his friend. “Oh, You, don’t say that. You don't have it in you. You have a lot to give the world if you’d just get out of this house! Move out, sell it, burn it to the ground, I don’t care. Go stay with Cha, learn to have a life again. Enjoy the time you have here.” Gackt swallowed. “Before it’s all gone from you too.”
You felt a tear leak from the corner of his eye without realizing that he even felt like crying. “Don’t you want to come back?”
“I’m happy there,” Gackt shook his head, “and I’m where I’m supposed to be. So no. I don’t want to come back.”
You nodded, tears sliding down his face silently.
There were several long moments of silence before either man spoke again.
“This really is the last time, you know,” Gackt said finally.
“I know.” You met his eyes. “Will you stay with me tonight?”
Gackt squeezed his friend’s hand and managed a smile. “Of course I will.”
They went to the bedroom and laid down without changing their clothes. You felt Gackt scoot closer behind him and put his arm around his shoulders. He could hear the steady breathing and feel the presence of the other man behind him.
===
When You awoke the next morning, he was alone. For a few minutes, he could almost believe that Gackt was in the kitchen making breakfast or downstairs doing his morning workout.
But it didn't take long for the reality to sink in and for You to remember what had happened the night before. He sat up in bed and felt the cold sheet next to him. "I'll do it," he said quietly. Then louder, "Do you hear me?? I'll do it!"
Author: maggie84
Rating: let's say PG-13 just to be safe
Genre: drama, horror
Character(s): You, Gackt, Chacha
Pairing(s): Gackt/You if you choose to read it that way
Length: 1,182 words & 1,765 words
Warning(s): dark/supernatural stuff, one bad word
Summary: What would You give for one last time?
Notes: I might have taken the prompt details a little too literally, but I have no regrets! I did two versions of this fic because I thought some people might like it better with less of the supernatural/dark stuff. My actual submission for the prompt is the longer one though because it goes with the "horror" genre better than the shorter/tamer version.
He’d been gone for a long time. So very long.
“I have to see him,” You said aloud to the empty room. “One last time, that’s all I need.”
He’d been laying on the couch in the living room of the enormous house all day. The house was his now after all, all the other residents had made the wise decision of moving out. But he couldn’t move out, he couldn’t bring himself to leave. As long as You stayed in the house, he could convince himself that he was still there…in the studio or down in his dojo. He couldn’t hear the music echoing through the house, but he could at least choose to believe that he was there somewhere.
You pushed himself up into a seated position. It was way more difficult than it should have been, but he was so weak these days. Chacha had been shocked to see how badly he looked when he’d stopped by the day before.
“Christ, you look like shit,” Chacha said when he found the other man sitting in the study with a large book open on the desk in front of him.
“I’m fine,” You replied.
“No, you’re not,” Chacha moved closer to him. “You’re too skinny and your skin looks all pale and gray. When was the last time you went outside?”
“I checked the mail this afternoon.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Chacha put his hands on his hips. “You need to get out of this house, You. You need to go outside and do something. Go shopping, go to the park. I don’t care what you do, but you need to get out of here.”
“I’m fine,” You said again and looked back down at the book in front of him.
Chacha looked around the room. “You really need to get out of this house,” he said. “Move out. You can come stay at my place until we find you your own. Being here isn’t helping anything.”
“I like it here.”
Chacha sighed and looked at his friend sympathetically. “He’s gone, You. You’ve got to move on. Nothing is going to change what happened. You can’t bring him back.”
You put his hands on the desk in front of him and didn’t say anything.
“Let me at least take you out to dinner,” Chacha offered. “It’ll get you out of the house, get some food in you. You’ll feel a lot better.”
“I’m fine, Cha. Really.” You looked up at his friend. “Thanks, I mean it. But I’m fine.”
Chacha had left after that, knowing from experience that the cause had been lost for the day. He’d be back in a couple days to try again, he always was.
Sitting up on the couch, You folded his hands in front of him. In his mind, he ran through the terms of the deal he’d made and felt a shiver run down his spine involuntarily. “One last time,” he said quietly. “Then I’ll stop.”
He closed his eyes and began to speak the words that he’d said several times before. Words that he’d carefully memorized months ago, words that both comforted and terrified him.
As he spoke, he could feel the temperature in the room drop several degrees. He could feel a light breeze begin to tickle his hair against his face and grow to a wind that swirled around the room. This was it. It was working. He began to speak faster, excitement taking over.
Then as soon as the last words left his mouth, the wind stopped and the room felt warm again. He sat alone in the dimly lit room, surrounded by silence.
“You can’t keep doing this.” The voice came from behind him.
You felt his stomach jump up into his throat and swallowed. “I know,” he said quietly, not turning.
Gackt came around the end of the couch and sat down next to his friend. He sighed and both men sat in silence, not looking at one another.
After awhile, You spoke. “Cha was here yesterday.”
“Ahh,” Gackt nodded. “How’s he doing?”
“He said that I can’t bring you back.”
“You can’t.”
You finally looked at the man next to him. “But I have. You’re here now.”
“And at what cost?” Gackt met the other’s eyes.
“It doesn’t matter.” You looked away.
Gackt’s eyes flashed angry and then looked sad. “Yes it does matter, You. Look at yourself. Have to seen what this is doing to you?”
“It’s worth it.”
“Is it worth your life?” Gackt asked. “Worth your soul? Just to spend a few hours with me?”
You reached over and put his hand on top of Gackt’s, looking anywhere but at the eyes gazing so intently at him.
Gackt sighed and turned his hand over, lacing their fingers together. “I miss you too, You, but this is just how things are. Everything happens for a reason and it’s not our place to try to change that.”
“What if I said that I found a way to bring you back permanently?” You asked suddenly. “For more than just a few hours.”
Gackt’s eyes widened. “You didn’t.”
“I did.”
“You can’t!” Gackt stood up and spun to face the other man. “And just what would be the price of bringing me back?! You have nothing left to give, You! This was the last time you could even do this,” he gestured to himself, “without killing yourself in the process! What would be the good in bringing me back if you’re not here??”
“You have more to give to this world than I do.” You shrugged.
Gackt went to his knees in front of his friend. “Oh, You, don’t say that. You have a lot to give the world if you’d just get out of this house! Move out, sell it, burn it to the ground, I don’t care. Go stay with Cha, learn to have a life again. Enjoy the time you have here.” Gackt swallowed. “Before it’s all gone from you too.”
You felt a tear leak from the corner of his eye without realizing that he even felt like crying. “Don’t you want to come back?”
“I’m happy there,” Gackt shook his head, “and I’m where I’m supposed to be. So no. I don’t want to come back.”
You nodded, tears sliding down his face silently.
There were several long moments of silence before either man spoke again.
“This really is the last time, you know,” Gackt said finally.
“I know.” You met his eyes. “Will you stay with me tonight?”
Gackt squeezed his friend’s hand and managed a smile. “Of course I will.”
They went to the bedroom and laid down without changing their clothes. You felt Gackt scoot closer behind him and his arm slide around his shoulders. He could hear the steady breathing and feel the presence of the other man behind him.
When You fell asleep that night, he had a smile on his tear-stained face. And when Gackt’s presence drifted off for the final time, You was dreaming of tour buses and rehearsals, parties and dinners, smiles and laughter.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
He’d been gone for a long time. So very long.
“I have to see him,” You said aloud to the empty room. “One last time, that’s all I need.”
He’d been laying on the couch in the living room of the enormous house all day. The house was his now after all, all the other residents had made the wise decision of moving out. But he couldn’t move out, he couldn’t bring himself to leave. As long as You stayed in the house, he could convince himself that he was still there…in the studio or down in his dojo. He couldn’t hear the music echoing through the house, but he could at least choose to believe that he was there somewhere.
You pushed himself up into a seated position. It was way more difficult than it should have been, but he was so weak these days. Chacha had been shocked to see how badly he looked when he’d stopped by the day before.
“Christ, you look like shit,” Chacha said when he found the other man sitting in the study with a large book open on the desk in front of him.
“I’m fine,” You replied.
“No, you’re not,” Chacha moved closer to him. “You’re too skinny and your skin looks all pale and gray. When was the last time you went outside?”
“I checked the mail this afternoon.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Chacha put his hands on his hips. “You need to get out of this house, You. You need to go outside and do something. Go shopping, go to the park. I don’t care what you do, but you need to get out of here.”
“I’m fine,” You said again and looked back down at the book in front of him.
Chacha looked around the room. “You really need to get out of this house,” he said. “Move out. You can come stay at my place until we find you your own. Being here isn’t helping anything.”
“I like it here.”
Chacha sighed and looked at his friend sympathetically. “He’s gone, You. You’ve got to move on. Nothing is going to change what happened. You can’t bring him back.”
You put his hands on the desk in front of him and didn’t say anything.
“Let me at least take you out to dinner,” Chacha offered. “It’ll get you out of the house, get some food in you. You’ll feel a lot better.”
“I’m fine, Cha. Really.” You looked up at his friend. “Thanks, I mean it. But I’m fine.”
Chacha had left after that, knowing from experience that the cause had been lost for the day. He’d be back in a couple days to try again, he always was.
"One last time," You said again.
"One last time, you say?" a voice said. "And just what's in it for me?"
"Anything you want," he replied.
"But what if you don't have anything left ?" the voice hissed past his ear and he shivered. "I already have your soul, what more could I want?"
"You tell me," You answered. "Whatever it takes."
Black mist seeped out of the shadows and swirled around the room. It began to come together in front of him until it solidified into a dark figure, human in shape but smaller and with sharper angles. It moved closer to You and he reflexively leaned back to distance himself from it.
"There is...the thing we discussed last time," the figure whispered.
"Last time..."
"You could do things for me. Things in this world that I cannot do."
You swallowed. "Like what?"
The figure moved away and drifted like it was pacing in front of him. "For all my powers of persuasion and the deals that I can offer humans, I cannot kill anyone."
You jumped to his feet. "I won't kill someone for you!"
"Then suit yourself," the figure began to dissolve. "You will have to live the rest of your life knowing that you will never see him again, in this life or the next. I have your soul, you belong to me."
Just as the figure was about to disappear completely, You stuck his hand out towards it. "Wait!" he said.
The mist swirled. "Yes?"
"What's my alternative?" You asked slowly. "Is there any other way?"
The mist moved to swirl around him. "Yes. You can see him one more time, but your life will be mine too."
"But...you said you can't kill anyone."
The voice snorted. "I will not have to. You have given so much of yourself to bring him back all the other times. You are dying anyways. One more time and that will be it for you."
You stumbled backwards, his knees hitting the couch behind him and causing him to fall back onto it. "So those are my options?" he asked. "Either kill someone for you or die myself?"
"Those are the options," the voice said and if it'd had a body, it probably would have shrugged. "All though," it continued, "if you would be willing to come to a more...long-term agreement with me, I could give you a way to bring him back permanently."
You sat up straight. "Permanently? You mean he'd be back forever?"
"Forever," the voice laughed. "If you do whatever I want, whenever I want."
"I won't," You shook his head. "I won't do your dirty work."
"How about this," the voice said conversationally. "I will give you this one time, free of charge. You can change your mind later."
The mist dissolved completely, leaving You sitting alone in the living room once again. Sitting up on the couch, he folded his hands in front of him and felt a shiver run down his spine involuntarily. “This one last time,” he said quietly. “That's all I need. Then I'll stop.”
He closed his eyes and began to speak the words that he’d said several times before. Words that he’d carefully memorized months ago, words that both comforted and terrified him.
As he spoke, he could feel the temperature in the room drop several degrees. He could feel a light breeze begin to tickle his hair against his face and grow to a wind that swirled around the room. This was it. It was working. He began to speak faster, excitement taking over.
Then as soon as the last words left his mouth, the wind stopped and the room felt warm again. He sat alone in the dimly lit room, surrounded by silence.
“You can’t keep doing this.” A familiar voice came from behind him.
You felt his stomach jump up into his throat and swallowed. “I know,” he said quietly, not turning.
Gackt came around the end of the couch and sat down next to his friend. He sighed and both men sat in silence, not looking at one another.
After awhile, You spoke. “Cha was here yesterday.”
“Ahh,” Gackt nodded. “How’s he doing?”
“He said that I can’t bring you back.”
“You can’t.”
You finally looked at the man next to him. “But I have. You’re here now.”
“And at what cost?” Gackt met the other’s eyes.
“It doesn’t matter.” You looked away.
Gackt’s eyes flashed angry and then looked sad. “Yes it does matter, You. Look at yourself. Have to seen what this is doing to you?”
“It’s worth it.”
“Is it worth your life?” Gackt asked. “Worth your soul? Just to spend a few hours with me?”
You reached over and put his hand on top of Gackt’s, looking anywhere but at the eyes gazing so intently at him. They'd had this argument before. Gackt had been furious to find out what You had done to bring him back the first time.
Gackt sighed and turned his hand over, lacing their fingers together. “I miss you too, You, but this is just how things are. Everything happens for a reason and it’s not our place to try to change that. If you’d have simply let things be, we would’ve seen each other again eventually…but not anymore. The deal you made guaranteed that’ll never happen for us. You’re condemned now, You. You’ll never be where I am.”
“What if I said that I found a way to bring you back permanently?” You asked suddenly. “For more than just a few hours.”
Gackt’s eyes widened. “You wouldn't.”
“I would.”
“You can’t!” Gackt stood up and spun to face the other man. “And just what would be the price of bringing me back?! You have nothing left to give, You! This was the last time you could even do this,” he gestured to himself, “without killing yourself in the process! What would be the good in bringing me back if you’re not here??”
"There are things that I could do so that neither of us has to die."
Gackt went to his knees in front of his friend. “Oh, You, don’t say that. You don't have it in you. You have a lot to give the world if you’d just get out of this house! Move out, sell it, burn it to the ground, I don’t care. Go stay with Cha, learn to have a life again. Enjoy the time you have here.” Gackt swallowed. “Before it’s all gone from you too.”
You felt a tear leak from the corner of his eye without realizing that he even felt like crying. “Don’t you want to come back?”
“I’m happy there,” Gackt shook his head, “and I’m where I’m supposed to be. So no. I don’t want to come back.”
You nodded, tears sliding down his face silently.
There were several long moments of silence before either man spoke again.
“This really is the last time, you know,” Gackt said finally.
“I know.” You met his eyes. “Will you stay with me tonight?”
Gackt squeezed his friend’s hand and managed a smile. “Of course I will.”
They went to the bedroom and laid down without changing their clothes. You felt Gackt scoot closer behind him and put his arm around his shoulders. He could hear the steady breathing and feel the presence of the other man behind him.
===
When You awoke the next morning, he was alone. For a few minutes, he could almost believe that Gackt was in the kitchen making breakfast or downstairs doing his morning workout.
But it didn't take long for the reality to sink in and for You to remember what had happened the night before. He sat up in bed and felt the cold sheet next to him. "I'll do it," he said quietly. Then louder, "Do you hear me?? I'll do it!"