Makoto arrived at her apartment by 9:30 p.m. She was dead tired after writing up her arrest report on her previous case - a homicide down at Shibuya. It took everything out of her, tracking down leads and getting updates from the forensic labs, but it paid off in the end. Her suspect put up a fight when Makoto and her partner Minato Akai came to arrest him. He pulled out a switchblade on both of them, almost slashing out one of Makoto's red eyes. But her aikido was enough to put the crook down on his face hard before Akai placed the cuffs on him.
She didn't care about taking a relaxing bath or a warm dinner. She needed to sleep. During the case, she was driven by her strong will and cups of black coffee. Now she wanted shut-eye in her own bed in an instant, even if it means stripping down to her undies, coming under the covers, and sleeping in the next day.
That is until Akira Kurusu noticed her.
He was reading a book in bed when he saw her stripping off her blouse, leaving her blue bra exposed. Akira read the look on Makoto's face - eye bags forming, greasy hair, and a frown that spelled out "Please no sass".
"Tired," he asked her. She shut her eyes, yet nodded in response.
"Hmph." He pulled out her side of the covers and patted the mattress loudly. He was sure his Queen would get the message. Makoto continued to strip off her clothing, going for her slacks last. She climbed into the covers, lying face first into her pillows. Akira came up to her side and held her close. He gently rubbed her arms and kissed the top of her head, stroking her brown hair seductively.
"You smell like coffee. That's not helping. Makes me think I'm back at work," she said.
"That's harsh."
"Shut up," she said through the pillow. Turning her face to him, Makoto smiled faintly and flicked at his temple.
"That's harassment, detective."
She continued to flicked at him.
"I'm off-duty, and you're my husband. I can do this to you whenever I want to. And you asked for it." She flicked once more, this time going for Akira's locks of black, messy hair.
" Then I'm calling this self-defense then." He suddenly kissed her neck, reached under the covers and cupped Makoto's breast. His kisses were Cupid's arrows laced with lust and ecstasy. Makoto wanted to sleep. That was all she wanted in the first place. But now, she wanted him more. She loved that side of him, the side where he knew which one of her buttons to press. She knew she wouldn't regret loving him.
They spent a romantic evening with each other. They moved in rhythm. They sighed and moaned out of pleasure. They held on, looked each other in the eye, relishing each and every moment of bliss as the night went on. They finally slept deeply in each other's arms, having their needs fulfilled. That is, until the next night. And they were looking forward to it.
Makoto dreamed that she was in her sister's apartment. Sae, Akira, and she were eating Sojiro's famous curry on the dinner room table. She stared at her sister and husband, making small talk about work - criminal defense cases mixed in with Leblanc stories of coffee and curry. And in that moment, Makoto felt happiness out of it, from the peace of it all. It reminded her when she and Sae were younger, when their mom and dad were alive. Their dad asked them about friends and school, and the sisters would ask him about any exciting arrests he made, with mom looking over smiling at her family at the table. Makoto felt that familial feeling when she saw Sae and Akira talking, as if time healed the wounds left when mom and dad were gone like the passing trains of the Tokyo metro.
She was happy that Sae revived her sense of justice, after stealing her Treasure. She was glad that Akira helped her remember her own justice, one that was once buried under vain promises of success. She was elated, she loved the fact that she fought for what's right. Not for fame and money, but for what was right.
She heard a gruff voice call behind her. The sound of conversation became muted, and time slowed into a tense scene from a John Woo movie. As she turned around, Makoto saw an endless void coming from the corner, and from that void, a silhouette with glowing, red eyes that stared from the darkness.
"Makoto," he whispered. He reached out to her. He touched her cheek. She felt tears forming from her eyes, and her heart filled up with regret, loss, and sadness. The shadow moved in closer to the light, ready to reveal its face in the lost light. Before then . . .
The ringing phone brought her back to reality. She opened her eyes, half startled from the dream. Makoto looked to her side and saw Akira sleeping peacefully next to her. She breathed a sigh of relief and reached for her phone from her nightstand. The digital clock next to her phone read 12:39 a.m. She got her phone and held its screen to her face to check the ID. It was Akai.
"Minato, what's up," she asked her partner.
"Sorry to wake you, boss, but we got a hot one."
"Really?" She was already annoyed by the thought of being called to a crime scene, especially after finishing up her last case. "Ugh, what have we got?"
"Botched bar robbery down by Shinjuku. The Crossroads Bar. This one's a doozy."
"Shit," she moaned. She turned towards Akira, feeling regret as to leave him so soon. "Alright, I'm coming. I'm gonna need some coffee."
"You're in luck. Inspector Bryant brought a fresh batch of grounds from LeBlanc yesterday. Consider it my peace offering, Makoto."
Makoto got up from her bed and fetched new clothes from her drawers. She put on a white blouse and blue slacks. Once she got everything, she went to the bathroom, adjacent to the bedroom, to splash water on her face. When she came back to her bed, she looked down to Akira and leaned in to kiss him on the cheek.
"New case?" Akira stirred, yet he kept his eyes shut.
"Yeah. I'm sorry, honey. But I'll be back soon, I promise." She gave him another kiss, on the lips. Her Joker smiled at her.
"I know, Queen."
The smile jolted her tired body to action. She was now ready, prepared for another case. She smiled back at Akira before grabbing her blue trench coat and motorcycle keys, and headed out the door.
