Title: Pages of Pathology
Author: denimlace_dream
Pairings:hydeXtetsu with a few minor pairings
Rating: Overall, R
Summary: Is there such things as soulmates? What happens when love fades? Can the path of reincarnation be that important? When Ogawa Tetsuya meets a strange stranger in the rain one night... he suddenly finds these questions becoming something serious to contemplate.

AN: Missing a bunch of days wasn't an impressive start was it?



Chapter 1

Hyde’s house was calm and warm environment. He felt safe in this place. Hyde often played music and while it tended to learn more towards the angry loud side of music, there was still something soothing. Maybe it was the atmosphere. Or maybe it was the fact that he knew he wasn’t going to be beaten. The other served him warm food, smiled at him and thanked him when he helped out around the house. They lived almost like they were married. It was strange but he liked it. He thought that nothing would interfere with the little world they created.

He was wrong.

It had started when Hyde was at work. He had started to feel dark presences near the door. It made him uncomfortable, but it was worse when Hyde wasn’t there. It was as if something was seeking them, seeking him out. But somehow, today seemed worse. And then all of a saddened, that dark feeling was gone. It was like something chased it away. He approached the door and looked through the peephole but he saw nothing.

And then he just felt stupid. Really stupid. He turned to walk away when suddenly someone was there banging on the door. He looked through the peephole carefully, the boy on the other end seemed vaguely normal. He was taller than Tetsuya, he could tell by looking at him. He seemed kind of laid back with dark, shaggy hair that touched his shoulders. There were lots of piercing on him, straight up both ears from what he could tell and one in his nose. It was kind of disarming to see but he seemed strange in that way that Hyde did.

He opened the door and the man’s eyebrows rose up high on his face before a smile crossed his lips. Apparently he was one of the strange figures who knew Tetsuya long before he could ever remember ‘meeting’ him. He stepped backwards nervously but the man just held his hand out.

“It’s good to finally see you again Tetsuya. My name is Teruki. You probably don’t remember me but… Wow, I didn’t even know that Hyde had found you yet.” He sounded a bit in

awe as he looked him over. Tetsuya was surprised at how comfortable he felt around Teruki. Not in the same way that he felt comfortable around Hyde but… as if he was an old friend. Or maybe there was just a calming aura around him.

Teruki on the physical side seemed to be all about the ‘rebelling against my parent’s’ style. He wore ripped to hell jeans and a loose shirt with a sleeveless hoodie over it. He had a garishly bright red bracelet and silver necklaces that caught the light, making them highly noticeable. He walked in almost as if he owned the place and sat down on the couch.

“I hadn’t meant to come by so early… I was going to wait until Hyde had gotten back but I was worried about if you would be here considering the dark presences that Hyde was so concerned about.” Teruki shrugged as he crossed his arms behind his head and stared up at the ceiling. “I know it seems scary now, but the dark presence won’t come back for a while.”

“What? I… I don’t understand.” Tetsuya shook his head. Everything that Teruki said just… it just didn’t make sense.

“We’re brothers in arms. You might not remember right now but you will.” He dragged a hand through his thick hair. “Be patient with Hyde will you? He’s missed you so much. Everything will be explained in time.”

“Could you please explain to me what the hell is going on?!” Tetsuya growled as he stood across from this strange young man, eyes glued to the floor. He just, he knew that something was going on. Something big, it was like this itching in the back of his head, like a word on the tip of his tongue. If only he could remember.

“I think its better that you remember on your own. And I’m sure that Hyde agrees.” Teruki stated as he leaned his head back and looked up at the ceiling again. He looked tired and overwhelming old. Like everything just… hurt.

“BETTER?! HOW?!” He shrieked and Teruki stood up holding his hands out in a surrendering position. Tetsuya paused breathing hard and staring at him with wide eyes. Who the hell were these freaks? And what the fuck did they want with him?

“If you must know… We’re all from the same orphanage.” Teruki finally whispered his voice low and soothing. “Well… you and I are.” He added with a thoughtful expression.

“You mean my… parents? My family?” Tetsuya wasn’t sure that he could even begin to wrap his mind around that. He was sure that his family was ‘his family,’ that is why he put up with their bullshit. And to tell him some crap like this? He wouldn’t… he couldn’t…

“I don’t know… it’s hard sometimes to tell where the lies end.” Teruki looked old all of the sudden, which should have been harder then it was at their age. He scratched idly at the side of his face and then pressed a thumb against his nose ring as if to scratch it as well.

Protest bubbled up within him. “But Hyde—”

“The story that Hyde told you was true. We met when he was trying to run away from home. He’d come and hide in the orphanage when things got bad at home. You and I would hide him in our room and sneak food to him until someone would find out.” He shrugged idly and the light flickered off all those piercings.

“I don’t… I don’t remember any of this!” Tetsuya turned away angrily.

“Do you have dreams of a fire Tetsuya?” Teruki suddenly asked as he scratched anxiously at the underside of his left arm. Tetsuya remembered vaguely having a friend with a nervous tick like that.

“Sometimes.” He shrugged but Teruki nodded as if an affirmation.

“The orphanage burned down. And you and I decided to run away… before we got put into foster care. We were stupid and ‘tried’ to steal a car. There was an accident and you were injured, because of that… they found your father. And me… I went into foster care.”

“How old are you?”

“Fifteen.” He sat down on the couch and shucked off his boots and pulled his feet up under him. “I live here… With Hyde.”

“But—”

“I got caught… and put back into foster care.” He shrugged idly, they won’t catch me this time though… Not now that Hyde lives here in Osaka instead of Wakayama.”

“You’re fifteen!” Tetsuya all but shrieked but Teruki just thumbed his nose at him.

“I’ve got a fairly decent fake id… I’m kidding! I’m eighteen! Like you and Hyde.” Teruki laughed and then smiled brightly. “How long have you been staying here?”

“Only a couple of days.” He shook his head, he felt faintly crazy. He wasn’t really sure of what was going on or why he felt so comfortable suddenly. It was like he’d known Teruki all his life. He sat down on the couch across from him. “How can Hyde afford all this?”

“He gets a pension from his parents. He has a trust fund too… to keep him quiet.” Teruki sighed softly. “His family is rather well to do… They’re afraid of the scandal it would cause.”

Something about that just seemed so… normal. So removed from the thoughts that had been circling his mind. He laughed, he just started to laugh. He couldn’t help it. In a matter of a few days everything had not only gone to hell but, he just couldn’t figure it out. He couldn’t even figure himself out. He closed his eyes as his laughter erred on the side of hysterical. He wanted to ask more but he figured that it would be useless and he let it go. He suddenly just didn’t want anything more to rock the little world that he was slowly building for himself.

***********************

After two weeks Tetsuya had found himself getting use to his two ‘roommates’ and even enjoying their company. Though, he still hadn’t decided whether or not Hyde was a girl or a boy. He hadn’t seen underneath the dresses that the other usually wore to give him a permanent judgment. And the fact that Hyde could switch between his soft feminine voice and his slightly nasally masculine voice on the drop of a dime.

The strange thing was, was that he didn’t mind. He honestly found that he didn’t care whether or not Hyde was a male or a female. Although he did entertain ideas of what was under those dresses he wore. In those two weeks Hyde’s style had changed. From haunting and unfashionable to distinctly avant-garde. He liked lots of long billowy skirts and draping tops. On the rare occasion he wore pants they were always loose, almost like a skirt itself.

He had talked to Ken a few times but he always felt guilty. Ken had applied to a university in Nagoya and he wasn’t sure that he wanted to interfere with his life. He had spent so many years of his life… running to Ken and bothering him with his problems. He wondered idly with a sad smile if that was the reason that Ken was going to Nagoya, to leave him behind. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t hear the door open.

Hyde walked into the room silently and found Tetsuya softly playing guitar as he mused about the turns his life was taking. Tetsuya had long brown-black hair that swung into his face and hid him from the world. He couldn’t see his eyes but he didn’t need to. He could tell by the sad song that he was playing that he was upset. He pulled lightly on the hem of his shift and shifted from foot to foot. He pulled his curly brown hair back into a ponytail and found that he wasn’t sure of what it was that he wanted to do. He walked forward slowly and laid his hand on the guitar.

“If you only play sad songs… you’ll call back the rain.” He whispered amiably as he pressed his fingers onto the strings. Tetsuya looked up at him slowly and Hyde held back his urge to kiss him, maybe the other didn’t know or didn’t understand. But Hyde would always know because his heart would never change. He wouldn’t let it.

“Maybe I like the rain.” Tetsuya replied and Hyde smiled softly and sat on the bed beside him and pulled the guitar off his lap. “Maybe I want the rest of the world to know how sad I’ve felt, to feel the pain I’ve felt.”

“You shouldn’t wish pain on another.” Hyde murmured sagely as he sat the guitar on the floor. “You shouldn’t wish for pain at all.”

“And you would know.” Tetsuya bit his lip to prevent any more petulant words from slipping off his traitorous tongue. He liked it here and he didn’t want to leave, he didn’t want to make Hyde angry enough to kick him out. He looked over at Hyde and asked the question that he’d wanted to ask. “Why me?”

“What do you mean why you?” Hyde turned and sat on the bed with his legs crossed as he tilted his head to the side. He felt warmth and comforted by Tetsuya’s presence. He had really missed him a lot.

“Of all the people… why is this happening to me? Why did you choose me? I—” Fingers pressed to his lips and he looked up as the smaller one stared at him with tender eyes.

“I don’t know why you. I don’t know why people hurt other people Tetsuya… But I didn’t choose you. You choose me and I am eternally grateful for it.” A soft smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as memories of past lives and happier times floated through his mind. “I love you Tetsuya.”

“H-how can you love me?!” Tetsuya stood and backed away from him fearfully, he hated when Hyde got like this. When it seemed he knew so much more than he did or that he was living in some kind of alternate reality. It had never been this bad before, with such a loaded admission. This was one thing he couldn’t just brush off. And it didn’t help that in the time that he’d been panicking the he little woman er… man stood up and approached him. “DON’T TOUCH ME!”

Hyde’s hand stopped in midair and something seemed even more fragile about him. He dropped his hand to grab the hem of his shirt and squeezed it tightly. “I’m not going to hurt you… Don’t you know that Tetsuya?”

“Who are you? Are you insane?” Tetsuya was well and truly on his way to freaking out. It was like waking up from a dream that he realized that he had simply just shacked up with someone he barely knew. And as he stared at Hyde who was talking in his/her ‘feminine’ voice he wondered if maybe he’d made this all up and that if he pinched himself it would be over.

“I’m not insane. I’m not. I… I was born… for seeing you. Please don’t leave me Tetsuya. Please.” He looked so sad and forlorn, he wrung his small hands together roughly and tried to steady himself enough to try and be appealing in some way. “I’ll do anything. Please… don’t go.”

Oddly enough Tetsuya felt himself softening. He walked forward slowly and laid a hand on Hyde’s shoulder. The smaller one looked up at him with a hopeful little look and the younger man felt himself melting. He wrapped his arms around the frail looking being and hugged him tightly. Hyde warily wrapped his arms around Tetsuya in response and when it fully set in that yes, the other was staying. Hyde sighed in almost audible relief.

“You think I’m some crazy freak don’t you?” He whispered sadly and Tetsuya resisted the urge to confirm that. How could he not think he or was it she? Was crazy?

“I’m really not sure of what to think of you Hyde.” Tetsuya smiled softly trying to keep the situation friendly or at the very least neutral. “I think all that I’ve got is that you’re older than me and you smoke.”

Hyde shrugged idly. “I’m going to go and make dinner.” Tetsuya had a feeling that that had ended not the way he had wanted it to.