Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story and ideas.
Beauty's Brooch
Chapter 1: Dress
"What do you mean you broke up with him, Sumire? He was supposed to be your date to Mikan's wedding and a bridesmaid cannot be without a partner, you know. It's like, breaking tradition and honor," Nonoko chided, sliding open the curtain to her dressing stall to twist and turn, modeling her dark blue bridesmaid's dress.
"What is this, the nineteenth century or something? She doesn't have to have a partner, you know. She's a perfectly capable and independent woman," Anna, Nonoko's twin, countered as she too came out of her dressing stall, pulling up her baby pink dress.
"She can be as forever alone as she wants, after the wedding," Hotaru dully stated, coming out of her dressing room in a smoky grey dress, not bothering with poses or such.
"Can we just drop this already? And stop talking about me like I'm not right here already!" Sumire snapped, pushing her curtain aside to show off her green bridesmaid's dress, a scowl etched on her smooth features. Aoi, the groom-to-be's little sister, came out after Sumire in a baby blue dress, smiling at the girls.
"She probably broke up with him for a good, logical reason. Let's not gang up on her," Aoi exclaimed, trying to be polite, but comfortable around the group of girls she's come to know and care about the few years she's gotten to know them and her soon-to-be sister-in-law.
"So why did you break up with Reo?" Anna asked, fluffing her thick pink wavy hair that cascaded over her shoulders, before turning to her perm haired friend.
"I haven't seen him in a while, since he's on tour and all. So when I asked him to choose between his job and me, he chose his job. Apparently, he's such a big shot idol, that he can have any girl in the world that he wanted if he tried," Sumire quoted Reo in a mocking tone, clicking her tongue in annoyance. "Like any girl can put up with his sissy antics. He can't even sit through a full horror movie by himself without wetting the bed afterwards."
"You couldn't put up with it for at least two more weeks?" Nonoko asked, groaning to herself as she rubbed her temples to stop the throbbing headache that suddenly arose.
"I barely put up with him for three months, it's a miracle we lasted that long! There's no way I was going to go out with him for an extra second after that!" Sumire huffed, waving the topic away before she turned to a still closed curtain. "Hey, idiot, how much longer are you going to take? Did you fatten up on howalon and can't fit in your dress or something?"
"Mou, Permy you're such a meanie! I was just making sure everything was all right before coming out! Be patient!" Mikan replied in a whining tone, before pushing back the curtains revealing her wedding dress. It was simple, but stunning at the same time. It had a see-through lace for the upper half of her chest to support the dress, holding it around the neck, and sleeveless. Like a second skin, it was fitting around her bosom, down till her hips where a lace was tied around, before it flowed out into a bundle of silk and lace. Sumire's mind was already racing with ideas on how to do Mikan's hair and make-up to compliment the dress perfectly. Even when she wasn't in her salon working, her mind wouldn't rest from her natural sense of womanly beauty.
"It's perfect!" Anna squealed, bending down to feel the texture of the silk, slipping through her fingers like liquid.
"Onii-chan is going to love it," Aoi said, her hand over her heart as she marveled at the woman before her, already picturing her happy life soon to come.
"You think so?" Mikan asked, a light blush crawling it's way over her cheeks, as she twiddled with her fingers.
"Hey, it's your special day, not his. Who cares what he thinks, the dress has to be perfect for you, not him!" Nonoko exclaimed, but was just as well awed by how well the dress fit on Mikan, as if it were made especially for her.
"It's missing something…" Hotaru suddenly broke in, narrowing her eyes slightly in concentration. Sumire also had that type of feeling tossing in her, and she tilted her head, before smiling smugly.
"I got it," she said, before pulling out her brooch from her purse and pinning it on the dress, over the lace tied around Mikan's hip. The brooch was in the shape of a flower, a single rhinestone in the middle, five pearls surrounding it, as the silver base curved inward delicately. Sumire smiled to herself proudly as she took a step back to let the others inspect her masterpiece approvingly. "I'll get you a bigger one that would actually match your dress, but that's the missing piece."
"It's beautiful, Permy! You're a genius!" Mikan joyfully announced, practically bouncing in excitement.
"You still carry that brooch around with you everywhere? Why?" Nonoko asked, tilting her head in a questioning manner. Sumire's eyes clouded over, but only for a split second, before shrugging noncommittally.
"It's pretty, looks expensive, and was a gift. I don't see why not," the feline-like girl replied, taking back the brooch and stuffing it in her purse.
"Seems pretty important though," Anna interjected, pushing the subject more.
"Why is everyone invading over me today again? I broke up with my boyfriend, so what? I like wearing a brooch, so what? Can we let it go already?" Sumire snapped at the twins, who just giggled in turn at her.
"Defensive~!" they sang back as a reply, ticking her off even more.
"Leave it already," Hotaru concluded, and they sighed in defeat.
"You know, I'm sure Natsume has some friends that are single that wouldn't mind being your partner for the wedding," Mikan informed, her eyes not leaving the mirror as she and Aoi tried to look for anything that needed adjusting on the dress before making their final decision.
"A pity date? I don't need one of those. Give me a few days, no man can resist the amazing Sumire Shouda," Sumire boasted, only to get a confused look back from Mikan.
"Didn't you say your beauty salon is expanding recently, so you've been extra busy lately? Do you really have time to go around and pick up a guy?" Mikan asked, which was obviously true, considering the troubled frown carved over Sumire's face. "Come on, it won't be so bad. Plus, it'll be like a blind date. I've met Natsume's friends, and they're not so bad. You'll be introduced to them at tonight's dinner celebration at the restaurant, you do remember that, right?"
"Of course," they all replied simultaneously, which got Mikan smiling giddily.
"You guys are the best, and we'll pick the perfect date for Permy there also! It'll be like a mission for Charles Angels!"
"More like Mission Impossible, with how picky this girl is," Nonoko remarked, earning a glare from the said girl.
"I'll go with the blind date already, if it'll get you guys off my back already, ok? Happy now? But if he can't put up with me, then it's beyond my control," Sumire said in a controlled tone, inspecting her nails, as her mind concocted a variety of different ways to get the guy to despise her. Usually her princess act does the trick, but it doesn't hurt to formulate a few backup plans.
Aoi and Mikan glanced at each other, before an evil smirk formed over their lips, already knowing who'd be the perfect guy for Sumire's pretend-date. "You'll absolutely love him!"
"Did you kill this man?" Kokoro asked, his smile never leaving his lips, as his eyes inspected the man on the other side of the interrogation desk from him. The man, beaten up and tied to the chair, groaned as he glanced at the picture on the table, before scowling back up at Kokoro.
"Never seen the fucker before," the guy replied, spitting some of his blood out at the picture. Kokoro didn't even flinch, but his smile did certainly grow.
"You're lying."
"Like hell I am!"
"Why are you yelling? No need to get defensive."
"That's before you're getting on my nerves, asshole!"
"No need to swear."
"Why don't you shut up, before I make you!"
"How can you, you're tied up and half alive."
"Are you making fun of me, you piece of shit? You're nothing, you hear me! Once my boys find out that you police shits took me, they'll come after you! They'll get you!" Having enough of this, Kokoro suddenly pulled out his gun, aiming it at the perpetrator. The man ceased his actions, staring at the head of the gun, his mouth still open, but no words could form out of it.
"I'll ask you again, one more time. Did you kill this guy, or not?" Kokoro asked, slowly standing up and leaning over the table, shoving the head of the gun on the guy's forehead. The man looked up at the haunting smile caressing over Kokoro's face, shadows sharpening his expression. Though his mouth was curved in a smile, his eyes obviously weren't. Slightly intimidated, the man shook in his seat, fumbling over his words. "Look, I already know you did it, but I can't book you unless you give a confession. You're already looking at a couple of years in jail for violence against an officer of the law, so if you cooperate with me now, I can try and lessen your sentence. Now, answer my question."
"I… I… I… d-did… it…" the man said dejectedly, hanging his head low when Kokoro finally pulled his gun back.
"Thank you for your cooperation," Kokoro said, turning to make his way out of the interrogation room.
"Hey…" the man called, making Kokoro stop and turn back at him, a curious smile now in place. "Isn't your actions against the law, some shit about cruel and unusual punishments or whatever. I can tell my lawyer to use that against you in the court, this confession will get voided then."
"Who said I was using any cruel or unusual punishments?" Kokoro asked, pulling his gun up and suddenly shot it at the man. The man cringed back and shut his eyes tightly to brace for the pain, but it never came. When he opened his eyes, he saw a couple of bubbles floating around and about the gun, and Kokoro winked at the criminal before leaving the room, smiling at the trail of curses the man shouted behind him as he was hauled away by uniforms.
"That was amazing, you managed to make another criminal confess. How are you so certain they are the ones who did the deed anyways, Mr. Yome? You're like a mind reader or something!" the rooky complimented, and Kokoro just patted the boy's back in encouragement.
"I'm a detective, it's my job. It's no big deal," Kokoro replied modestly as he made his way to desk, slouching on his head with a sigh, smiling up at the ceiling. His moment of peace was suddenly shattered; however, when he felt his cellphone sudden vibrate in his pocket.
"Hello?" Kokoro greeted after accepting the call.
"Just wanted to make sure your idiot mind remembers about the dinner celebration tonight," the man on the other line suddenly said in a bored tone.
"Aw, Natty, calling to check in on me at work. Hearing your voice all worried about me is making me blush, of course I remember our date tonight," Kokoro replied in a girlish tone, but his co-workers around him ignored him, already used to his odd behavior.
"Call me that again and I'll burn your house down."
"Alright, you pyromaniac, no need to pull out the fire threats. Of course I didn't forget, I'll definitely be there."
"Still don't have a date for the wedding?"
"I'm happily single, unlike some people."
"Whatever, see you tonight."
"Bye honey," Kokoro cooed out, but realized Natsume had already hung up on him on the other end of the line. Chuckling to himself, he put his cellphone away, anticipating seeing his friends again, since he'd be buried under work for so long, unaware what the night would bring for him as well.
To be continued...
A/N: I know I wrote chapter one on the top, but this was a spur of the moment type of story. Should I continue it, or not? R&R, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter guys, let me know if I should go on with this idea or not.