Chapter Two: Love At Second Sight
"Riku, Riku, RIKU!" Risa shouted, obviously irritated by her sister's reaction when she told her who her boyfriend was. It was reasonable actually, for her sister to be stunned but really, she didn't need to be speechless.
She went upstairs to tell Riku her boyfriend's name to reduce the inevitable awkwardness between the two exes. Risa wanted to make sure her sister was aware of what was possibly going to happen.
The younger Harada knew that she'd have a mental breakdown if her sister disapproved of her relationship with Daisuke. He still had feelings for her when he was dating Riku and she was worried that that might get him kicked out altogether. She was driving herself crazy with all the questions in her mind—not once did she even think that her sister didn't care more about her happiness than a failed relationship. She knew her sister was great, but what would happen if she didn't want her to go out with him? Risa could never stand Riku being mad or disappointed at her.
'Why, oh why, did I not tell her that Daisuke is my boyfriend?! Did I really think that she'd be one hundred percent okay with it?! Risa, what were you thinking?' Risa scolded herself and stifled a frustrated groan.
Risa knew that her sister was shocked—Daisuke Niwa was her old best friend and she turned him down years ago so that she could go out with Dark when she was still in love with the mysterious thief.
"Okay, so you want me to believe that your new boyfriend is the best friend of Dark Mousy and the very one you dumped when we were younger? Are you sure this isn't some kind of plot to get Dark to notice you again?" Riku asked with a raised eyebrow. She made it clear that she wasn't going to give up without a fight and an explanation.
'Risa's boyfriend is Daisuke Niwa…God, how I want to laugh!' Riku's voice echoed in her mind. She was doing her best to not laugh but it was hard in a situation as hilarious as this.
She knew that her sister was on the verge of begging her to give Daisuke a chance; that he never really meant to hurt her—which she knew only too well. Thankfully, Daisuke hasn't seemed to have told his girlfriend about the times they've talked in the past year and that it was her who encouraged him to make a move on her sister. She already gave him her full support and consent. Now there was only Risa left to tease.
Just as Risa was about to open her mouth, Riku couldn't take it anymore and laughed. It caught her sister by surprise since she seldom laughed nowadays. Risa looked at Riku if she turned into a monkey—that only made the elder Harada laugh harder.
Risa sighed. Surely she could talk some sense into her; she had to find a way. Truthfully, she was ready for an angry lecture from her sister about Daisuke not being right for her, not a laughing fit. She didn't even know why Riku was laughing—maybe it was out of amusement or maybe she was so stressed that she would have laughed at anything ironic (or she finally snapped). That's right, her relationship with Daisuke is ironic, but not amusing enough to laugh at like a maniac…right?
"No, I'm as sure as I'm standing here that I am not using Daisuke to be noticed by Dark."
"You win, you win! Let it be known—you could write this down, you know—that I, Riku Harada, yet once again surrender to your eternal innocence." She raised both her hands as a sign of surrender before trying to take a deep breath to calm herself.
Daisuke and Dark's POV
"So, kid, how does it feel to finally be able to get the girl of your dreams after what, twelve-thirteen years?" Dark asked with a smirk while he and his best friend, Daisuke, were sitting down on the living room couch of the Harada twins' New York home.
Dark was now a successful engineer and living in a mansion not too far from the city, he transferred right after he finished college. He was still the same—mischievous, handsome (if the girls around him were any bases), a body to die for and quick-witted as ever, shocking as it may seem. He actually used his common sense once in a while, getting himself out of trouble without wasting his money.
Daisuke was a corporate lawyer and, though it shocked even his own best friend, won every one of his cases. He was now stable enough to start his own family and he wanted to do so more than anything else. He was still meek and quiet but he knew how to start, last and win a good argument—just never with Dark.
"It feels great! But you could try to be a little bit more sincere about it. It isn't as if your past and present relationships are being admired." Daisuke threw a pillow from the couch at Dark.
"I am sincere, I swear. But unfortunately your only serious relationship before was with Riku Harada—the twin sister of your new girlfriend. How do you think she'll take it?" He threw the pillow back, hitting Daisuke squarely in the face.
"She'll probably take it pretty well. If you haven't lost your mind yet, you should remember that Riku and I left each other on good terms. We also talked a few months ago and she didn't kill me, does that help?" he asked sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the older violet-haired guy beside him.
"If you say so, it's just that—"
"You dumped Risa on your fifth date, what else do you want me to say?"
"Fine, you win, but you have to consider the fact that you were and are in a relationship with Riku and Risa and if my memory serves me right, you only really loved Risa. I think you're being a little bit unfair."
"I am not unfair just because I had relationships with both of them. I liked Riku as more than a friend, I'm proud to say that, but through it all I guess you're right, my heart only belonged to Risa."
"See, I can be right about a few things on your love life. Okay, I won't fight you but just keep what I told you in your stubborn head." He laughed lightly.
"You can bet on that. Hey, are you excited to see Riku after all these years? I mean, you must miss having someone insult you and not falling over herself for you to notice her," He commented with a small smile on his lips.
"Not really, but I'd like to see what that know-it-all looks like. Bet she's gone from immature to—"
"You'll be surprised, Dark. I'm not lying. Just wait and see for yourself, okay? Keep your mouth shut for now."
Normal POV
After leaving the room of Riku, Risa went downstairs to tell the guys that her sister would be down soon. When she arrived, the two 'men' were laughing on one of the living room couches. When Daisuke saw her, he immediately stood up and walked to Risa while Dark stayed where he was. He was still uncomfortable knowing that Risa had 'loved' him before…but if it made Daisuke happy, then he'd have to stay out of it.
The couple was now sitting across from Dark with Risa looking quite pale.
"Come on, Dark, if you're here to make sure of Daisuke's safety, you still have to face my sister and earn her approval," Risa stated with a sigh. She just knew this night would blow up in her face—especially since she hadn't told Riku about their other guest.
"Which won't be easy in your case because if my memory serves me right, you and Riku never talked when you left much less reconciled since you've last seen her seven years ago," Daisuke remarked with a light chuckle while Risa was just looking around the living room, as if looking for something.
"Win her approval? Doesn't she like Daisuke already? And don't be such a wiseass Dai because from where you're standing in this situation, you're just as helpless." Dark put his hands behind his head.
"Yes, but there's still a lot of tension between you and my sister, maybe that could—" Risa couldn't finish her sentence in fear of breaking down—which was not the proper thing to be done right now.
She started getting nervous when her sister started laughing when she told her who her new boyfriend was. She almost forgot that Daisuke and Riku was a couple before. Ugh, why in the world was she laughing?
"Don't worry about it. I'll make sure she doesn't get carried away by her emotions enough to separate the two of you apart. She couldn't be that cruel."
"Of course I'm not, Mousy. Do you people know that it's rude to talk about someone behind their back when they're just upstairs? It can be really insulting," another female voice interrupted.
They all turned to the voice. There, on the last step of the staircase, Riku stood, hands on her hips with a smirk on her face and happiness evident in her eyes.
The moment Dark saw Riku, it was as if he was at home. She looked angelic to him after years of not seeing her. He had just proven to himself, right now, that he really did miss Riku Harada. Her eyes seemed to sparkle in the late afternoon light. Her auburn hair had almost the same style as years ago but it now seemed so new and exotic to him. And her body, even through the loose shirt and somewhat baggy shorts, he could see that she had curves at all the right places. To him, she was glowing—but he was biased.
He really couldn't take it anymore. Just hearing her voice made something deep inside him stir a little. If he was going to survive the night without doing every trick in the book to seduce her to sleep with him, he needed her to be mad, extremely so, at him because without that factor…he didn't even want to think about what he could do to her, with all the time he'll have for the holidays. He noticed every single thing about her in a millisecond, a new record for observing someone he had always teased and insulted before.
Looking at her but not being able to call her his, now that was cruel.
On Riku's part, when her eyes spotted Dark Mousy, she was absolutely furious. Her blood seemed to boil and she had to resist the urge to fist her hands. It was a miracle that he was the first person she laid her eyes upon on in the first place.
But God, he was handsome. She mentally shook herself. Where had that come from?
She had to hand it to him, though he was sitting down, she could see his flat abs, broad shoulders and the lean muscles that must have made up his whole body. His hair was a little messy but she could see that he actually used a comb some time before. His eyes were full of unreadable emotions and a sort of mystery radiated from him. She just saw Dark again now after seven years and they left on bad terms, she couldn't possibly be feeling something for him! No, no, no, it's just…some type of…hate, that's right.
She hated him with every fiber of her body. It was their first encounter in a long time, they were sworn enemies and one look couldn't have changed anything between them.
