I sat in an empty booth, twiddling my thumbs with a drink in front of me. I had given the waitress a fake ID, since I was a year below the drinking age, but I needed it to steady my nerves. Every few seconds my eyes strayed to the phone in the exact center of the table.

As the exceedingly long seconds continued to tick by I became restless, my anxiety mounting to new heights. My hands began to absentmindedly comb out a section of my long, black hair, dividing it into three perfectly even sections. Seconds later the section I had combed out was a tightly woven braid.

I then moved on to another braid. Then a third. A fourth… Each perfectly separated and woven. The repetitive pattern soothed me more than the drink had. So, taking a breath, I finally picked up my phone and flipped it open.

I scrolled through the very few contacts until I came to the last one.

Zoldyck.

It was the number my mother had given me after years of insistence.

My thumb hovered over the call button. I finally pushed it, bringing the phone to my ear and listening to the rings.

My eyes roved over the whole restaurant. There were two males sitting at the bar, empty plates and full mugs in front of them. Other than the bartender who was absorbed in the latest evening news, no one else was in the room. I had chosen this restaurant because it was out of the way and only dealt with the same clientele; it was rare for someone new to come through. I had been coming here since I was a little girl, mostly with my mom. But tonight it was just me.

Luckily there had been a new waitress. If not for her, I would have left an hour ago in search of someplace where I could purchase liquor. But here I felt safe, sheltered. Nothing bad had ever happened here.

Nothing ever could… or so I believed.

The ringing in my ear ceased and my breath caught. I waited, hoping to hear his voice for the first time in my life. But all I heard was the dial tone.

No one had answered and there was no voice mail.

I felt a twitch in my left eye but suppressed it. Mom always told me how he was a master at keeping his face blank. I had also grown up being told how much I looked like him. How almost everything I did was just like him.

I tried redialing the number, suppressing another eye tick as I continued to think about the cold shoulder I had just gotten.

This time it was picked up after the second ring.

"Hello~" a singsong like greeting came though the earpiece and it gave me pause. The voice was not how mom had described it. Had she given me the wrong number?

"Hello?" I asked, trying to keep all afflictions out of my voice.

"Hello~ Who's calling?" the voice said.

"… Illumi-san?" Silence met my question and I pulled my phone away to ascertain we were still connected. "Is this Illumi-san?"

"No~" he sang and just before I hung up I heard him shout, "Illu~chan! Phone~"

It peaked my interest enough to keep me on the line. However, after a full minute of silence my interest was beginning to wane. That was, until I heard the telltale sounds of the phone changing hands and a monotone,

"Illumi," in my ear.

"Illumi Zoldyck?" I needed to make absolutely sure.

"Yes."

I took a deep breath, another. I swallowed around the lump in my throat. Could I do this? It was my only chance.

"I'm your daughter."

A dial tone was my only response.

This time I did not even try to supress my twitch. Okay, first impression? My dad was an asshole. Mom was wrong. Illumi was not "sweet" and "hard to understand" he was an a-hole!

I bit the inside of my cheek, reigning in my temper. I needed to regain control. I had to regain self-control… I tasted blood, and only then did I unclench my jaw.

With exaggerated slowness I pulled the phone from my ear and, using both hands, gently closed the lid. I replaced it in the exact center of the table and glared at it. My hands once again found their way to my hair and I began to unweave all the braids.

I raked my hands across my scalp, pulling my hair back and away from my eyes. I blew out a breath. Once I was sure my temper was under control I reached for my mobile. This time would yield more results. Either that, or I was seriously going to be pissed.

I hit redial and held my breath as I listened to the first ring.

A/N: So this is my new idea… and I actually have another on the way too. I'm trying to get in the habit of regular updating, so this (and my other idea) will be the experiment for it.

I want to thank Razorblade Mistress for beta-ing this. And I will continue to thank you every chapter because you save my hide time after time so get used to it ;P

As always, reviews are much appreciated because they are what keep me wanting to write and share my (I think) wonderful and kinda cookie ideas ^^ Bye-bye! *waves*