Work Text:
Follow Me
“Bye honey, have a good day at work!” the blond accountant turned to wave at his new wife.
“Bye Asuka. Love you.”
Asuka Tohma giggled as her husband left. Her Eichi was happy. She was glad she could fill the void left by his missing past. He coped well but it must be hard, not knowing if the lady at the grocery store might be your mother or perhaps the high school student at the bus stop could be your brother.
“Good morning, Miss. Might I ask who that man was?”
Asuka turned to look at the stranger addressing her, “Oh!” She was surprised to see a man with hair like fire.
“He’s my husband, Eichi Tohma,” she announced proudly.
“Hn. He looks like someone I knew,” said the man as he turned to walk away.
“Wait! You think you know Eichi?”
“Mm, no. His name wasn’t Eichi. It’s just he’s been missing for over a year. I guess I just miss him is all.”
“A… year?” she murmured, clutching a hand to her chest.
“Anyway, sorry to ruin your morning with my tales of pity. I should go.”
“He was in an accident last year! He doesn’t remember anything. The doctors don’t think he’ll ever regain them,” Asuka blurted to the stranger.
“I know,” the flame-haired man said as he walked off down the street.
“Hey! What’s your name?” She called after him, running down the path to the sidewalk. But he was already gone.
--
“Mr. Takatori would like a review of his investments for the past year.”
“And you are…?” Eichi asked, peering up at the elegant young man posed before him.
“Naoe Nagi. Mamoru’s bodyguard.”
Eichi wasn’t sure about this guy. He had an uneasy feeling about him, but no reason to justify it.
“Okay, shall I send it by email or to his office?”
“Neither. Too unreliable. You are to send them with me.”
Eichi nodded, vowing to call Takatori himself, as soon as Naoe left. “Very well, Mr. Naoe. Give me, say, an hour to prepare them.”
Naoe left without another word. Eichi leaned back in his chair, pondering the oddity that was Takatori’s bodyguard.
“Some bodyguard. How the hell can you protect a body from across town?” he snapped back to work, calling Takatori’s office. He was informed he was out of the office and to please hold while his call was transferred to Takatori’s cell. As it turned out, Naoe had already returned to Takatori’s side.
“I am sorry, sir. For not trusting your bodyguard.”
“It’s no problem, Mr. Tohma. We have many opportunistic enemies. I appreciate your caution.”
After finishing the reports, Eichi planned on nipping out for lunch but was captured just before he could reach the main doors.
“Oh, Mr. Tohma! Please hold a moment, sir. We have a client who absolutely insists on talking to you,” the harried older secretary pleaded.
With a last longing glance at the door to freedom, Eichi turned back to the lobby. A man was slouched elegantly against the wall near his private office. The man had the most beautiful flame-colored hair he’d ever seen. “May I help you?”
Blue eyes spared a glance at his face before focusing on Eichi’s arm, extended in greeting.
“So, it’s really you, Yohji.”
“No, I’m sorry. I’m Eichi Tohma.”
“The watch.”
“Huh?” Eichi responded in confusion. Who was this man? Hard blue eyes met his. “Do you know where you got it?”
“No, I’ve had it for as long as I remember.”
“Which is how long, Yohji? A year or so?”
Eichi frowned, “Who are you?”
“You don’t remember me. I’m hurt. Can we take this to your office?”
Eichi gestured to the door, following the man into his office and shutting the door.
“Well?” Eichi asked, cocking an eyebrow.
“My name’s Schuldig.”
“And what do you want?”
“I want to help you remember your past, Yohji.”
--
“It’s no use. The doctors said I’d never regain them. I’ve accepted that.”
Suddenly it was dark; he was bloody and bruised. No, bruised wasn’t the word, broken. Pain radiated from every fiber, every cell in his body. His leg was shattered and he could barely hold on to consciousness.
Explosions rattled the building, growing closer with every thunderous roar. Three men stood on the balcony above him, screaming his name.
He locked gazes with the tallest of the three and with a single nod and weak smile asked for forgiveness, indicated he should get himself out with the other two, and showed he was done, the journey was over for him. The final explosion triggered, throwing up chunks of floor, walls, and high tech machinery and everything went black.
Eichi returned to his body with a scream caught in his throat and fell to his knees, clutching his head.
“Yohji! Are you okay? What happened?”
“I… I think I just saw my accident.”
“Come on, you’ve had a shock. I’ll treat you to lunch. Nagi can find the reports himself,” Schuldig replied, extending his hand to help Eichi to his feet.
Eichi shuffled after the redhead in a daze as Schuldig informed his secretary that he was taking Mr. Tohma to lunch since he had so rudely intruded on his lunch hour.
--
“Who are you?” Eichi asked again as the two sat down at a small corner café near his office.
“I’ve already told you who I am.”
“No, who are you to me? Or who were you to Yohji?”
Schuldig murmured something unintelligible, “We ran into each other at work occasionally,” he eventually replied.
“Where was that?”
“Work? Oh, we traveled all over. In separate circles of course.”
Eichi offered up an unsatisfied grunt, “What did I do?”
“Curious little kitten, aren’t you? We’ll save that for another time though. I want to help you regain your memories for yourself, not just fill you in on everything. What time do you get off work today?”
“Seven. But I promised Asuka I’d be home for dinner,” Eichi replied, fiddling with his watch.