Hotori stood outside the club door bouncing lightly from foot to foot. It was freezing outside, enough so, that she could see puffs of small air forming in front of her face. Her hoodie was hanging slightly in her eyes pushing her hair against her neck keeping it warm. She'd shoved her hands inside the pockets but it wasn't helping much. She was tempted to pull them out and blow a warm breath against them. If a cab didn't get here soon, she'd have to walk. She sighed glancing up and down the street. Cars raced by, ignoring stop lights or signs, horns blaring; nothing good happened this late into the night. A car bumped up on the curb as it sped by and she sucked in a breath. Her feet took a step back quickly trying to make it far enough but she pressed against the brick wall behind her. The car jerked the wheel but not away and towards the street. She froze. Headlight illuminated her face and it was like time stopped.
"OI! KID!" Something sacked into her side throwing her down onto the ground. Her body hit concrete sidewalk knocking the wind out of her as the car slammed into the building face. People scattered here and there screaming as a wheel that was jacked up still spun from impact into the wall. A driver coughed trying to open the door and get out. He stumbled.
"Phey…" the world was swollen around her. It sounded like there was cotton stuffed deep in her ears. A faint tingle spread over her shoulder before she felt a shake. There was another shake. The driver tried to hold himself up against the car but slid laughing onto the ground. He was drunk.
"Hey!" the last shake seemed to explode the world around her. Everything snapped back into focus. She jolted into an upright sitting position bumping her head on the forehead of the guy leaning over her.
"Ow! Gosh…" he breathed out sitting back on his knees. "Are you alright?" he asked rubbing his head.
"I…what…I'm sorry. Thank you." She whispered out rushed. She realized that she felt scraped up and her arm was throbbing.
"You sort of froze there." He told her taking her arm. He started to help her get to her feet.
"There was a car coming at me." Hotori fought the urge to punch the guy who was beginning to let go of her arm.
"Kisame!" A slender man about Hotori's age came jogging over. His long ebony locks were gently tied back just at the nape of his neck, swinging over his shoulder. Her eyes fell on his angled face, a jaw that was somehow feminine but masculine, and eyes that threatened to keep her attention all night.
"Hey! I'm alright. I'm alright. Lay off Itachi." The younger male came to the larger's side glancing over Hotori.
"I called the cops. We should split. The girl ok?" he never spoke directly to her.
"I'm fine." She said agitated.
"She seems to be alright." Kisame nodded in her direction.
"Then let's move." The boy named Itachi said grabbing the other's arm. She noticed that they both were taller than she was but that Kisame most definetly was a full two heads towering over her. He had several tattoos spiraling up his neck, including a shark chasing a small fish, intertwined with tentacles of some kind. His hair was dyed an unearthly shade of cerulean but something about him seemed…stable. Trustworthy. She scrunched her nose up making a face.
"Wait! The cops will want a witness." She snapped as they shoved past her to leave. The male called Itachi turned to face her.
"That's exactly why we have to leave." He smirked. It was an odd sort of smirk, fake, but it slid over his face like he'd done it a million times. He turned again and pulled up his black hoodie before striding in step with the taller male to leave. She stood there. In the spoke coming off the engine block into the cold night air, she stood stark still watching as they left. It was like there was some unknown force hovering over her body. She wanted to follow. They just seemed to know what they wanted. Where they were going. She heard the sirens coming in the distance.
They hadn't let Hotori leave the ER until around two in the morning. It had taken two scans of her arm to confirm that there was not a break but a sprain. She'd almost walked out of the place when they'd threatened to call her boss as a contact because she had no family. She did not need them calling the guy she worked for at two in the morning. Hotori slipped onto her bed throwing the keys at the dresser. They missed and fell to the floor. She groaned burying her face into the purple pillow ignoring the fact that they were laying on the ground. She was exhausted. She had to be at work by eight. She groaned again and curled her legs up towards her chest wishing the blankets would suck up around her magically. An image flashed through her mind. It was that smirk. For some reason she couldn't get it out.
"Well you certainly are noisy." She stiffened. Her eyes snapped open and she started to get up.
"You weren't supposed to say anything idiot." Someone else snapped. Shooting upright, Hotori reached for the nightstand, a loud bang stopped her hand midair. Her fingers shook as she stared at the hole now blasted in the smooth oak.
"Whatever could you be reaching for?" a male asked her. Her eyes refocused and she sucked in a breath. The man standing by the doorframe was taller, slender, and had long blonde hair hanging over his face. The eye that she could see, which was free from bangs, was bright blue. She had been reaching for her handgun. This wasn't good. The other male, who'd fired the shot off, was closer to her bed. He had an unruly mop of tousled auburn hair and caramel eyes. He looked much less pleasant than the boy at the door. Eyes wide, she fought to control her breathing.
"I don't have a lot of money. If that's what you're after…it's in the kitchen cabinet." She looked between the two of them. There was a laugh as the redhead took another step forward. They both wore a covering black set of pants and a hoodie. The one holding the gun had fingerless gloves with studded knuckles. He didn't lower the gun. He came at her slowly. Shifting back, Hotori made to quickly get off the bed.
"We didn't come for the money. We came for you." He whispered.
"NO!" She shouted suddenly jumping to her feet. She darted for the doorway as the blonde lunged for her. There was another loud erupting bang but she kept running. There wasn't time to see where it had gone. She ran for the apartment's main door screaming at the top of her lungs. She knew her neighbor Sai was home.
"CALL THE COPS! SAI!" she flung open her door just as something closed around her arm. It was a hand. She screamed turning around to try and kick or punch at whichever man had grabbed her.
"SAI!" She yelled again. "HELP! CALL THE COPS!" she screamed as a hand clamped over her mouth. She struggled and lunged biting the digits that slid over her lips. The redhead snapped several cuss words pulling his hand back before rearing it forward into her jaw.
"Yell with a broken jaw you little bitch." The blonde gasped behind him.
"Sasori!" he chided. "You weren't supposed to hurt her." He bent closer as Hotori's eyes blurred from the impact. She groaned after her head had snapped sideways. Her mind was a little fuzzy from the sudden hit.
"Get the fuck off her." A voice chilled the room. Sasori, who'd straddled her when knocking her to the ground from the door, stiffened. He glanced up. The blonde rose an eyebrow and got to his feet as well putting his hands up.
"No problems here, yeah?" he said taking a step back.
"Get off her." Sai snapped stepping closer to where they were just inside the doorway.
"We'll be back." Sasori said slowly getting to his feet.
"I called the cops." He said coolly backing the two out of the apartment. Hotori pushed herself up, holding her jaw, to see Sai leveling the men with a sawed off shotgun at close range. He was standing only about a foot away from them with it pointed at the one's chest.
"We'll be on our way now." The blonde sighed smiling lazily. "No need for that, yeah."
"Shut up Deidara. Let's go." The redhead shoved the other down the hallway before they broke into a run for the stairwell. Hotori could still feel her ears ringing.
"You're bleeding." Sai said kneeling down in front of her. She meant to say something but he took her face tilting it up to look at it. He had been a war veteran discharged when an IUD had blown his caravan. He'd never been the same since. Hotori could remember when they'd been children, he'd always been so loving; after the blast, he'd come home detached and emotionless.
"I'm ok." She whispered but her jaw hurt like hell.
"We need to get ice on that. Come on." He said helping her up. "Who were those guys?" he snapped heading towards her freezer.
"I don't know." She groaned sitting at the table. "I just wanted to sleep." She put her head down as Sai watched her.
"Maybe some whiskey would be better?"