Welcome to a short fanfic revolving around Mimi and involving a male character. I hope you enjoy it!
An Unexpected Day
Everything that happened tonight was so unexpected. It's as if it couldn't possibly have happened any other way, like some sort of God-destined series of events.
I mean, how often do I leave school at 7:00? And what a coincidence that I would run into an old friend – visiting from university, no less, on the subway to Odaiba? And that surprising events would line up for me to see him differently?
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The day was long, overbearingly long. After all, school was coming to a close, and that meant exams were here. Three tests in one day, and then two club meetings after school! I'm not complaining about heading up so many clubs – it was my choice, after all – but this was just one of those days when all I wanted to do was to forget my duties and go home.
But of course, I couldn't. Because after the clubs, I had trash duty. My partner, Nana, was sick. So, in addition to staying late, I had to do twice the work. And then, I had to stop by the little market near my prep school, because, like mom said, "their green onion are freshly picked – nothing like the stores in Odabia!"
Like I said, this was an extremely long day.
As I finally boarded the train to cross the bay and get home, I touched the bloody scratch that I had received from my epic struggle with a stuck trash compactor. 'What a waste,' I thought, feeling the slight wound through the hole that pierced my uniform. Oh well, at least school was almost over, and then I'd never have to wear a uniform again.
Snicker, Snicker.
I turned around to see three guys, a little older than me, staring at me touching my leg and laughing. One of them made some sort of kissing gesture at me.
'Perverts,' I screamed in my head as I quickly turned my head in the opposite direction. 'Why do guys have to be such pervs?'
As I got off at my stop, ready to finally make my way home, I realized that I had forgotten the green onions. Dangit!
I stood for a second, unsure of what should I do – go home and forget about it, or dutifully head back.
I turned toward home, and as I was about to step in that direction, I saw those three men again. Somehow, they seemed older than they did on the train. Maybe it was because I hadn't noticed their facial hair. They looked unclean, and somehow sinister.
As the train back to Tokyo pulled up to the stop, my mind was made up. On the train, away from home and away from those three weirdos. And so I stepped on, took a seat in the back and closed my eyes, breathing deeply in exhaustion.
But as I slowly opened them, my eyes wrapped around three shadowy figures getting on the train and sitting several seats away from me.
Now, what had been a bit of annoyance earlier, was turning into something else. I felt a little tingle of fear.
'There are still people on the train at this time,' I said to calm myself. 'And there are a couple of guys here,' I said, looking around at a few men who seemed big enough to defend a helpless girl.
But still, I felt uncomfortable the whole way as the men took turns looking behind their seats at me and smiling. As soon as my stop came up, I rushed out and hurried the two blocks to the market, not looking back. After I quickly purchased the onions (which to me, looked the same as in any place else), I looked out of the store from side to side, searching for the strange men.
No where to be found.
With a bit of relief (but still biting my lip some – why am I scared?), I scurried back to the train station. I looked up at the station clock, which blinked 8:15.
'8:15 already? Oh, it's so late!' I thought. The next train should be here in five minutes, and then I can finally get to the apartment and relax.
As I waited, I started to feel a little spooked. Those creepy guys had certainly done a job on me. And it didn't help that I was all alone at my stop.
But soon, I realized, I wasn't alone at all.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed three men walking toward my stop. They were coming closer and becoming clearer in the subdued light.
I think I can hear the train coming. Where is it?
They were now just meters from me. Ten meters? Eight?
Now, I could see the light from the train. It was getting closer. Why is it taking so long?
I looked almost straight ahead, just barely detecting their movement. They were approaching me.
Swoosh!
The doors of the train opened and I slid into the train.
I rushed out of the first car, noticing its emptiness. The train began to roll on. As I bounded into the second car, I looked behind me for a second.
THUMP!
My eyes suddenly saw the ceiling above me as my bottom crashed to the floor. I looked up and through the blinding lights of the train car, saw a hand reaching out to me.
I took the man's hand and he easily lifted me up.
"I'm sorry," I remarked as I bowed.
"No need to be sorry, Mimi."
I paused for a split-second before lifting my head and looking the passenger in the eye.
"Jyou!" I exclaimed. "What are you doing here?" I quickly asked, momentarily forgetting my fear.
"Well, semester is over. I'm heading back home to Odaiba for a few weeks. Didn't you get my text?"
I nodded politely, as I remembered seeing a message from Jyou. But busy ol' me, I didn't bother to read the text. Some friend, right?
Before we could continue, I heard the train door behind me slide open, with footsteps following. I turned and saw the three men again.
The men brought my heart to a stop. I now saw that they were quite big – bigger than me or Jyou at least. Facial hair covered lines and scars that seemed to tell of battles fought. Beady eyes accompanied their lips, whose sneers and jests had turned to snarls and menacing growls.
The first of the three walked up to me. He was shorter than the others, with sharp sideburns and a dark cap. Grabbing my wrist, he slithered, "Why are you avoiding us, beautiful?" The man behind him shoved Jyou, who was just behind me.
And for a moment, I really thought, "Why couldn't I have bumped into Matt? Or Tai? Or anyone but Jyou?"
But suddenly, I had been thrown to a seat. Jyou had pushed the man holding me! But there was no hope, as the other two pushed him down and started punching his face and body.
It was so quick that I didn't know what to do. I was paralyzed. I never thought of myself as a "damsel in distress." I always thought I was a tough girl, like Sora, who would fight back in a situation like this.
But with my friend getting hurt by these thugs, I couldn't do a thing. Or could I?
I turned and quickly grasped the emergency stop. The men jerked forward and Jyou kicked the first guy in the chin.
As the men regained their balance and began to wail on Jyou again, the conducter opened the door, exclaiming, "What's happening here?"
"Nothing old man," replied one of three. He rose from his kneeling position, and the other two followed him as they walked through the door to another car, presumably, to exit at the stop just 50 meters down.
I rushed to Jyou's side. "Are you okay, Jyou?" I asked, with lumps in my throat. As Jyou lifted his head and I could see his face in the light, I started bawling. His face was red and swollen, his glasses broken and collar torn and bloody.
"Mimi, I'm okay. Don't cry," he said, standing up and cupping his hands in mine, lifting me up as well.
After the commotion ended, Jyou and I sat, almost silently, the rest of the ride to Odaiba. I had stopped crying, but I was too ashamed to look Jyou in the face – ashamed because I felt that I brought this whole mess on myself, and ashamed that I wasn't a better friend.
"You really saved me there," Jyou said to me.
"How could you say that?" I almost yelled at him. "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be such a mess!" I exclaimed, looking up to a face that now changing color and was even more swollen that before.
Jyou grabbed my hand. It was warm against my cold fingers. Then he said, "Mimi, have you forgotten the adventures we had?"
I looked at him glassy-eyed and confused.
"Sometimes, you've got to take a little beating to protect those you care about," he said, almost in a whisper.
And almost dismissively, he quietly said, "besides, I think that I'll always want to be your protector – now, and as long I can."
And that was enough. That was all I needed. All it took was a couple of sentences. And a fight in a train. And eight or nine years to figure it out.
If you really care for someone, you'll take those bruises and bumps. You'll sacrifice what's important to you. And you'll put that person above yourself, not matter how much it hurts.
It's nice to see someone who has done that for me since we were kids. And I think its time, now, that I do the same for him.