A/N: Greetings and apologies as I know I haven't updated this in a long time but I've been super busy with work and school. Doesn't leave much time for writing. Hope those of you who have been following this so far enjoy this latest installment. As always, R&R please!
Chapter Two – Lightning Crashes
Nephrite whistled all the way home, happier than he'd ever been in his whole life. There was a spring in his step as he entered his building and took the elevator up to the ninth floor then practically skipped to number 912. Keying his way inside, he now saw what a disaster his place had become from the last week and shook his head in disappointment.
'What in the world would my princess think if she saw this?' he thought as he hung his coat next to the door. 'She'd think I was a total slob.' "I'd better do something about this before I leave for the office," and after a quick check of the time on his phone, Nephrite proceeded to move like a whirlwind through his apartment, cleaning everything as he went. He scooped up all of his clothes and towels that were strewn about, and tossed them into the laundry hamper then gathered up all the used dishes so that they could soak in the sink before being washed.
When everything was picked up and organized to his satisfaction, he then went to his room and changed out of his club clothes into a deep green long-sleeve button-down shirt, pressed mahogany brown pants, and his brand new saddle shoes that he'd just bought two weeks before on his last shopping trip with Angela. He paused for a second as that thought occurred to him, causing him to growl in anger as a short rumble of thunder sounded outside as if in precession to a large thunderstorm.
"The hell with her," he said to himself, grabbing his green-and-white pinstripe tie and putting it on. "I've got someone so much better than her now." The thought of Makoto lifted the dark cloud that had settled on his mood and seemed to chase off the incoming thundercloud. 'Hmm….' He thought as he glanced out his window. 'Better take the umbrella today. Weather seems highly unpredictable.' As if in response to that notion, another distant rumble sounded, despite the sun shining.
He tossed the last of his dirty clothes into the laundry to be done after he got home, picked up his scarf and coat, and moved to the kitchen to quickly make himself something for lunch when his phone began to ring with its Who Can It Be Now ringtone. While his automatic response would be to answer it since it usually was one of his clients, he paused as he read the number and notice that it had a plus sign in front of it, indicating an overseas caller.
'Now that's peculiar,' he thought as he continued to let it ring. 'I know the company hasn't gone international yet and won't for at least another five to six years, and I don't know anyone outside of the U.S. Why would I have a number from another country calling me?' He decided to let it go to voicemail just in case it was a wrong number or a scam artist trying the newest fast money con.
Not thinking about it anymore, Nephrite pulled his lunch bag from the cabinet and quickly put together a turkey-and-cheese sandwich, threw in a nectarine and an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter, a small bag of mixed nuts, and a few bottles of water then was on his way out the door to start his workday. As he got in the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor, his phone went off again but this time, it was Kunzite.
"Well, good morning there, friend of mine," Nephrite answered in a cheery tone.
There was a brief silence on the other end then a deep, clear voice replied, "Who are you and what have you done with Nephrite Stanton?"
Nephrite chuckled as he exited the elevator and headed towards the glass doors of his building. "I can assure you, Mr. Burton, that I'm the friend you've known since high school," he paused to put up his umbrella as it had started to rain lightly. "I'm just in the greatest mood I've ever been in my life."
"So, should I ask who she is or are you just going to leave me in suspense and make me wait until you introduce me to her?" Kunzite had been there since the beginning of Nephrite and Angela's relationship and was even asked to be the best man at the wedding but that was before she'd broken his best friend's heart. Now, he sounded as if he were on cloud nine and then some.
"Since I know you won't stop hounding me about it until I do one or the other, I'll just tell you. Her name is Makoto Kino, and she just happens to be the most wonderful woman I've ever met!" he exclaimed, a flash of lightning going off seemingly right over his head. An extremely loud clap of thunder followed quickly and echoed through the clouds.
"Whoa! Kunzite, did you hear that? It sounded like a bomb went off over my head."
"I heard that alright," Kunzite replied. "Sounds like there's a major storm blowing in."
"Major's putting it mildly," Nephrite said as he put his umbrella down to head into the building his office was in. "Listen, I'm about to head into work but I'll call you after I call Makoto and maybe we can go out for a drink or something."
"Great! I'll be sure to tell Minako as I'm sure she'll want to come too."
"Minako? She wouldn't happen to be a blonde with blue eyes and an overly happy attitude, would she?
"Yes, she would," Kunzite was clearly stunned that his friend knew that. "How did you know?"
"I had the unexpected pleasure of meeting her this morning when she dropped by Makoto's apartment," he paused to let that sink in. "She was very… bubbly, to say the least."
"I can't argue with you there, my friend, but she isn't always that way. In fact, she's… well; I won't disclose that over the phone.
"And I'd rather not hear about it anyway. I'll see you tonight."
"Have a good day at the office," and Nephrite hung up.
"Although I'm sure I can guess as to what he's talking about," he said to himself as he strolled through the front lobby, whistling again and waving to the three guards at the security desk. They waved back awkwardly, surprised at the executive's sudden good mood.
'I guess I really spooked them the last few days, but then again, I'd be afraid of me too with the attitude I had.' He started to head over to the row of silver-plated elevators but glanced at the marble staircase just then. Without a second thought, he bounded up the stairs two at a time, like a fresh college graduate who'd just gotten the job deal of a lifetime. Other officers, interns, executives, and even a few of the board members looked at him like he'd gone off the deep end but when he smiled at all of them, they just let him be, silently thanking whatever powers there were that Nephrite Stanton was in a better mood.
"Morning, Jadeite," he grinned while greeting his office mate, who was already there as usual.
The blonde-haired, blue-eyed man stopped typing a report for a moment to turn and stare at his co-worker and long-time friend to make sure he had heard right. "Pardon me, Mr. Stanton, but did you just say good morning to me?"
Nephrite laughed as he set his briefcase on his desk and opened it to find the documents he needed for the day. "As a matter of fact, Mr. Andrews, I did," he found what his was looking for, and put his case under the desk. "Would you prefer it if I didn't say anything to you when I enter the office?"
"No. I just can't believe how peppy you are today, given what happened." Jadeite's tone became slightly cautious just then. "So, did Angela come back or what?"
"Hell no, and even if she did, I wouldn't take that bitch back anyway after what she did to me." The sky grew heavily dark, almost black, and lightning crashed seemingly right outside the window that had a view of the Empire State building. "I've met someone that's more amazing than that girl ever was," he booted up his desktop and typed in his password. "In fact, Kunzite's meeting her tonight with his apparent new girlfriend, Minako."
"Might I inquire as to your new lady's name then?" Jadeite asked with a bit of humor.
"Makoto Kino, since you're so inquisitive," he then looked over at his friend's desk to see a framed picture of a black-haired girl with dark eyes. "It looks as though you have a lady yourself there, my friend."
Jadeite turned pink across his cheeks. "Yes, yes I do. Her name's Rei Hino, and we've only been together for two weeks but I'm already head over heels for her. I just hope that she feels the same way."
"With as handsome and charming as you are, how could she not?"
"Very funny, lover boy."
"You're in the same boast with me, bro, and by the way Kunzite talked about his new girl, I'd say he is too."
"So, what are you doing after work?" the blonde asked, turning back to his work.
"I was going to call Makoto and then we were going to meet up with Kunzite and Minako to have a drink," he opened a few Excel reports and began comparing the numbers to what he had in his documents. "If you and Rei don't have any plans, you're more than welcome to come along too."
"What about Zoisite? Should we ask him too? If he's not in class too late again that is."
"Sure! I haven't see him since he started midterms, and from what I hear, he's chasing some female Einstein that's in his Calculus class."
"Calculus? I didn't think he was smart enough for that!"
Nephrite burst out laughing at his friend's assessment of Zoisite's intelligence when the phone in the corner of his desk rang. Not even bothering to check the ID, he answered, "Nephrite Stanton."
"Nephrite? It's me. It's Angela."
Makoto stayed on the couch for a good hour just watching the crazy weather going on outside as it switched from sunlight to rain to a possible thunderstorm and back again.
'Seems like my emotions right now,' she thought as she finally decided to move off the couch and clean the breakfast dishes, if only to have something to do. 'Although I've never been so sure of anything in my life, even though it is moving a bit faster than any of my previous relationships.' Leaving the dishes to dry in the rack, she plucked a peach from the fruit bowl on the counter then went to her room for her laptop.
"I may have finished my midterms but that doesn't mean I can't keep learning more," she said to herself as she turned on the machine and took a bite out of the peach, the sweet, sticky juice running down her hand and chin. "Damn. I forgot how sticky these fruits are," and she went to grab a paper towel to clean herself up. As she was wiping off her hand, her phone started ringing to the tune of Don't You Forget About Me, and she flipped it open to see who it was.
Smiling, she answered, "Morning Ami."
"Morning Mako," a New Jersey accent replied. "I'm honestly surprised that you're up this early considering that you were out last night celebrating in more ways than one."
The brunette's smile dropped. "How did you know what I was out doing last night?"
"Oh you know how. The grapevine named Minako. She called me as she was on her way to class to gossip about it, even though she knew I was busy studying for my Calculus test."
"Yeah, that's Mina for you. Always has to be gossiping about something or somebody." A light seemed to go on in Makoto's head all of a sudden. "Say, if you're studying, why'd you call me? You never allow interruptions when you're focused. Hell, you even turn your phone off."
There was silence on the other end for a few moments and the brunette almost thought the call had been dropped. "Actually, I need you advice on something," Ami began but she seemed to be having trouble getting out what she wanted to say. "I figured I'd call you as opposed to Minako or Usagi since you know firsthand how much they like to talk, especially about things like this."
"Things like what? Spit it out already, girl! Stop leaving me in suspense!" A loud crack of thunder let loose outside and a pounding rain started to come down. As smart as she was, Ami had a really habit of beating around the bush when she wasn't sure about something.
"Alright! Alright! I need advice on how to go on a date! There, I said it!"
Makoto was speechless for about a minute the replied, "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that! When did this happen?" A flash of lightning seemed to answer before Ami could.
The stressed girl sighed like she'd just run a marathon then went into it, "It happened in my Calculus class, of all places. It was at the end of the session yesterday and I was packing up to leave when Zoisite Clark, who sits three rows behind me, approached. He did it almost as if he was scared out of his wits and I almost didn't hear what he was asking, but he wanted to know if I wanted to go out with him tonight. I was so shocked that I don't remember what I said but it must've been yes because he left the lecture hall very happy, and now I don't know what to do! Help me, Mako!"
"Okay, okay. Just settle down, Ami," she tossed the peach pit in the trash and sat down at the breakfast bar where her laptop was now in screen saver mode. "First of all, what time do you get out of class tonight?"
"Um, about nine o' clock. Why?"
"Because tonight, not only are you going to meet my reason for partying late last night but you're also going to bring your date with you. That way, you won't have to worry about anything in case he turns out to be a creepy weirdo that you never want to see again."
"But are you sure that'll be okay? I don't want to ruin whatever plans you have and I have to-"
"If you were going to say study, forget it. I've known you my whole life and I'm pretty sure you're smart enough to put it off for one night. Besides, after you get out of class, you've got the holiday break anyway, so don't worry about it!"
"But-but-but-but-but," Ami began.
"No buts, young lady," Makoto said sternly while trying not to laugh at her friend's discomfort. "Now, you worry about acing your Calculus midterm, and when you get done, call me so I can tell you where we're at then you tell Zoisite to meet you there so that I can get a read on him. Sound good?"
"Sounds great," Ami sounded like she was smiling now. "Thanks Makoto. I seriously owe you one."
"Don't worry about it. I'll see you tonight. Later."
"Bye." And both girls hung up. Outside, the rain had lightened up but not much. It still seemed to be coming down hard while lightning danced through the dark clouds.
"Awfully strange weather we've been having lately," the tall brunette said, getting back on her computer. "I may have to break out the rain boots for tonight."