Title: Time Capsule Author: spider Email: pinkspider@pinkspiderweb.net Site: http://www.pinkspiderweb.net Archive: yes please ^_^ Mirror: yes Band/Pairing: Luna Sea (SugizoxRyu) Comments: Just a backgrounder: Time Capsule is a section of Sugizo's site (Sephirot - http://www.sugizo.com) where you get to leave your messages for people in the future. The contents will only be revealed on 2061. Time Capsule =========== "Aki-chan, what's the date today?" the bed-ridden old man asked weakly. He had been asking the same question to Aki and her mother at their every visit to the nursing home, where he'd been staying since senility set in 5 years ago. "It's December 25, 2060, grandfather," Aki answered gently, "we're here to wish you a merry christmas." Her grandfather would nod tiredly and regress into himself whenever Aki answered his single question. But now it seemed to Aki that there was something else in his grandfather's face. Expectation. Mixed with sadness. Pain, and.... hope? "Soon....," Aki thought she heard her grandfather say. She looked questioningly to her mother, but she was staring fixedly out the window. Aki decided not to say anything. *** "By the time he sees this, I'm probably too old to be embarrassed anyway," Ryu said to himself. He had been staring at the computer screen for several minutes, nervously deciding whether to write in Sugizo's Time Capsule or not. Only the fact that the Time Capsule contents would not be opened until 2061, 60 years from now, made him go through with it. But even then, he was having qualms. He started typing. "Dear Sugizo-kun. If you're reading this, then it's 2061, you're 90 years old and still alive. I never had the courage to ask you before, but would you go out with me? For dinner, and maybe dancing. My treat. I will try to stay alive until 2061, just to find out if you'll say yes. Love, Ryu." *** "...Mr. Kawamura's liver and kidneys are failing, and his lungs are starting to give. We are trying to make his remaining days as comfortable as possible...." Aki listened passively as the doctor talked to her mother about her grandfather's weakening state. She watched the old man's face, pained even in sleep. Taking his hand in both of hers, she whispered, "I love you grandfather. Please be happy." And then her mother was calling to her. They had to go. "We'll be back next week," she said with forced cheer, letting go of the sleeping man's hand tenderly. *** Ryuichi walked into his favorite bar, and was surprised to find that all his friends were there. "Hey, Ryu! We've been trying to call you all afternoon! Lucky you decided to come here," his friend Inoran greeted him warmly. "What's going on?" Ryu whispered. "Haven't you heard? Sugizo and Vivian are getting married!" Inoran replied with a silly half-drunk smile. Ryu felt like the whole world just crashed on him. He couldn't move. There was a strange drumming in his ears that blotted out all the sounds from the bar. He blinked, and when he opened his eyes, they came to rest on Sugizo, who was staring at him with an indescribable expression. He plastered a fake smile on his face, and forced himself to walk over to his best friend. "Congratulations, Sugi!" he shouted woodenly to his friend, and then, softer, "I didn't think you were serious this time." He tried punctuate his statement with a playful wink, but all he succeeded in doing was a nervous twitching of his eyelids. Sugizo hugged him. They stood like this for what seemed like an eternity to Ryu. He felt strange, Sugizo was so close, but he felt so far away. "Are you okay?" Sugi asked him. "Of course! Why wouldn't I be? I'm just tired from practice...," Ryu replied, freeing himself from Sugi's stifling embrace. "Come on guys, let's REALLY celebrate!" Ryu shouted into the microphone. Everyone cheered. Ryu wanted to die. *** "Aki-chan, what's the date today?" Aki could barely hear her grandfather say through his labored breathing. "It's January 3, 2061," she replied, choking back tears at the sight of her grandfather's weakened state, "Happy New Year, grandfather." "2061...?" Aki was surprised at her grandfather reaction. The old man frantically reached out his hand, searching for Aki's. "Aki-chan? Aki-chan?" he whispered desperately, his head whipping this way and that, trying to find his granddaughter with his fading vision. "I'm here, grandfather," Aki answered, taking her grandfather's hand to calm him. "Has Sugi called, Aki-chan?" The young woman felt her heart skip. She looked to her mother, hoping for advice. Her mother's bewildered face only stared back at her. Aki shook her head and ran her fingers through her grandfather's hair. Only when her grandfather was finally coaxed into an uneasy sleep did Aki allow herself to bend her head and cry. *** "Sugi, would you be my best man?" Ryu had asked his best friend, excited about his upcoming marriage with his 6-month-long fiancee, Yuki. Sugizo stared at his eyes for the longest time, before mumbling, "You should get someone else." Ryu was bothered by this, but chalked it off to Sugi's current depressed state. He and Vivian hadn't been on the best of terms, and their engagement had stretched out until no one was sure if they would even get married at all. But he never expected his best friend to totally snub his wedding. Ryu was too angry and hurt to call Sugizo and ask for an explanation. And it had hurt him more when Sugizo never called him either. *** "Ding dong." Aki rushed to answer the door of the small house she shared with her mother. "Good morning. I am looking for Mr. Ryuichi Kawamura, or any relative of his," the well-dressed man at the door greeted her. "I am his granddaughter, Aki," she said tentatively, motioning for the man to come into the living room. "No need. I won't be staying long. I am Mr. Sugihara's lawyer, Kazuhiko Endo. I have instructions to give you this," the man said, motioning to the envelope in his hand, "It's a copy of the messages in Mr. Sugihara's Time Capsule." Aki knew about the Time Capsule, her grandfather used to tell her about it. "Th- thank you," Aki said uncertainly, taking the envelope being offered to her. "It's sad," the lawyer said, "the Time Capsule was supposed to have a grand opening on Sephirot this year, but the site has been offline for decades, and hardly anyone ever remembers the Time Capsule anymore...." *** Ryu was shocked at the news from the other end of the line. "Mr. Kawamura? Are you alright, sir? We'll be sending police to escort you here, for questions. And we believe Mr. Sugihara left a note for you, sir." *** Aki found only a single disk inside the envelope. She browsed through the messages randomly, occasionally laughing, amazed at the array of thoughts and feelings which seemed like voices speaking to her from the past. She remembered her grandfather's tales about his days with his band, about all the friends he made, about his best friend. Sugizo. Her grandfather talked a lot about Sugizo. Even without having met him, she could imagine what an amazing person he was. A single message caught her attention. It was a message from Ryu. A message from her grandfather. She read it. And she understood everything. *** Ryu was probably tired, he had spent hours at the morgue, at the police station. But he didn't feel tired. In fact, he couldn't feel anything. He was numb. He felt cold. He stared at the crumpled sheet of stationery in his hand. He could still imagine Sugizo's warmth on it. His heady scent. He stared at it for a long while before opening it, reading the contents again, still disbelieving. "Dear Ryu, Ai shiteru. There. I said it. Finally. I was always so scared of telling you. I was afraid J, Inoran and Shinya would shun me if they ever find out I harbor these feelings for a guy. No. What am I talking about, I don't care what they think.... what I really mean is, I'm afraid YOU would shun me. I always pushed off telling you this before, because I always believed I still had time. But now it's too late. I thought I could be happy without you, I thought I could be happy just seeing you happy. But I can't. You were the only one that kept me going when my life was falling apart. You have been a great friend, Ryu-chan. But I wished for more. I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me. I wish you all the happiness in the world. I love you. Please don't hate me. Sayonara, Sugizo." Ryu wanted to cry, to pour his soul out. Regret and what-ifs piled up on him until he couldn't breathe. Black stars flashed through his vision until he lost consciousness, still gripping Sugizo's suicide letter in his hand. *** Aki knew her mother was wondering why she wanted to visit her grandfather again. They had only been to the nursing home the other day. She walked with quick strides to her grandfather's bedside. 'Good morning, grandfather,' she thought, but couldn't say it aloud. It hurt her to see the suffering old man, she wanted to see his peaceful happy face. His face from her childhood. She touched his face gently, unable to hold back the flow of tears. The old man woke up from her touch. "Aki-chan?" he said feebly. "Hello, grandfather." "Aki-chan, what's the date today?" "January 5, 2061, grandfather," Aki replied, sobbing. She knew what her grandfather would ask her next. "Has Sugi called, Aki-chan?" Aki took a deep breath, holding on to her grandfather's hand tightly. She wanted to hold on to the old man's hand forever. She didn't want to let go. Shivering, Aki answered, "Yes he did, grandfather. He said for me to tell you that he would very much love to have dinner with you. Just make sure it's your treat." Ryu's unfocused gaze stopped at a point a little beyond Aki, and he smiled. The most honest and heart-felt smile Aki has ever seen from her beloved grandfather. "I shouldn't have waited this long to ask you, Sugi...," Ryu said softly, placing his other hand on Aki's. And with a contented sigh, his radiant smile still on his face, he closed his eyes and exhaled his final happy breath. Aki cried, still desperately clinging to her grandfather's hands. She didn't want to let go. But her heart told her it was the right thing to do. Because she finally understood what her grandfather had needed all these years. ==== Sugizo, heart-stoppingly beautiful in a black tuxedo, extended a bouquet of pink roses to Ryu. "You should have asked me sooner, koi, but it's never too late," he said, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Ryuichi smiled at him, "Care to dance?" he asked. Together they moved to the dance floor, steps unwavering, dancing to the beat of a timeless waltz forever. ~owari~ Author's note: I swore not to write another LS fic, but this story just popped in my head while I was taking a shower >_< Obviously, there's no other pairing that would suit the fic, except for SugixRyu. The time capsule letter is real, actually written by me (in a slightly different form) and posted at Sephirot's time capsule ^_^ Some plot ideas are from a short story I read in a magazine a loooong time ago (some of you probably weren't even born yet), it's called Amazing Grace. Thanks for reading.