Chapter 2
Rico's eyes shot open as Blue Swede's Hooked on a Feeling blared out of his smartphone as his morning alarm. He snapped upright and realized he was back in his hotel room. Or maybe he'd never left at all? He looked down at himself and saw that he was once again wearing his pajamas. He looked towards the window and saw the soft glow of sunlight peeking through the curtains. Getting out of bed, we walked over to the window and opened the curtains to the view of Tokyo's Shinjuku district. This part of the city looked a lot different in the morning, the vast ocean of neon lights visibly absent, whereas at night, it felt as if one could be blinded just by glancing at a single sign.
Rico breathed deeply and let out a big sigh as he washed up in the bathroom. That dream he had last night had been the most surreal one he'd experienced in months. And he had had some pretty weird dreams. Like the one where he sat down for tea with Darth Vader and Smaug the Dragon, and dreaming of breaking bread with such characters probably said something unpleasant about his mindset, but that was another story.
"Ah, well. Sometimes a dream is just a dream…" Rico reassured himself. Suddenly, his phone vibrated. Walking over to the nightstand, Rico checked his phone and found a new message from someone named "C. Sasaki".
"Every 1's here. Where R U?"
Checking the time, Rico saw that it was almost noon.
"Aw, shit. I'm gonna be late. Better check out and get moving. Can't forget why I came here just because of one weird-ass dream," Rico said, opening up the closet and pulling out a black suit.
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust…"
Rico hated funerals. He always tried to avoid going to them, even for people he knew. But this was one he couldn't stay away from. The crowd began to disperse as the priest finished his benediction, and the casket was lowered into the ground. At almost every funeral Rico had ever been to, it had been raining, but today was nice and sunny with a cool breeze blowing through.
"Why? Why did you do kill yourself?" Rico asked out loud. "I should have been there for you, Nagi. Forgive me…" Rico said.
"Rico?" a voice called out from behind.
Rico turned around and saw a Japanese woman in a black dress with shoulder-length black hair walking towards him.
"Chiyo Sasaki. Long time-"
"-no see. Glad you could make it. We got worried when you weren't at the church this morning."
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. Didn't sleep so good last night. But come on, you know I wouldn't have missed your sister's funeral."
"No, I suppose not… Have you seen everyone else, yet?"
"No, not yet. Been pretty much hiding in the back of the crowd since I got here late," Rico said, bashfully rubbing the back of his head.
"Of course you were," the woman, Chiyo, sighed. "Follow me, then. We'll take my car. Everyone is really excited to see you again!"
"Really? Even...you-know-who?" Rico asked, shiftily looking around as he got into Chiyo's car.
"Well...okay, maybe not everyone," Chiyo replied.
"So she's not just a prosecutor, but she's the direct subordinate to the head of the Special Investigations Unit?!" Rico asked astonished. "Great, now she really will be able to throw me in jail…"
"Come on, it's been almost ten years since then. You don't think Nijima-san still remembers that, do you?"
"I don't see how she could forget. That woman knows how to hold a grudge."
"Don't worry, I'll protect you. Besides, I'm sure she'd be willing to bury the hatchet for at least one day, considering the occasion," said Chiyo.
"I sure hope you're right, Chiyo," Rico replied. "Where are we going, anyway?"
"That little coffee shop in Yongen-Jaya we used to go to back in the day, remember it?"
"What, Leblanc? Is that little place still there?"
"Believe it or not, yes. It may be a small mom-and-pop type place, but it's surprisingly popular, you know, like a movie that has a cult following," said Chiyo.
As she finished speaking, her car pulled to a stop in front of a small neighborhood block. Rico got out of the care and followed Ciyo down an alley to a coffee shop nestled in between two apartment buildings.
"I don't believe it," Rico said. "All of a sudden, I feel sixteen again."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," replied Chiyo. "This place really has that nostalgic vibe to it, doesn't it? Come on, let's go inside!"
Opening the door, Rico was greeted by the aroma of coffee caressing his nostrils. "Wait, 'caressing'? Well yeah, I guess that's the only suitable word to describe it," Rico thought.
"Wow, I forgot how great this place smells," Rico remarked out loud. "Shame I don't get to come back to Japan more often."
"Indeed," said a voice from the other end of the cafe. "With as famous as you've been getting lately, we were worried you wouldn't have time for small fry like us anymore."
Rico looked across the room towards a young Japanese man with short, neatly trimmed hair in a black suit.
"Saito Tanaka, as I live and breathe," Rico said with a smile.
The two men embraced each other warmly. "It's great to see you again, man! How've you been? Still walking the beat? Chiyo tells me you made detective last year," said Rico.
"Yeah, and I heard you're some big shot journalist now. Moving up in the world, huh?" Saito replied as the trio sate down at a booth.
"Well, I don't know if I'd call myself a 'big shot'. More like a pariah, now."
"Don't sell yourself short, Rico," said Chiyo. "We all read that article you published about the humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. We heard that it was your story in particular that really got people to pay attention."
"If you say so. I'm just glad I wasn't too busy to catch a flight over here,"
"Yeah. Too bad it couldn't be under happier circumstances," Saito said. "Nagi would have loved to see you again. She always liked reading your online articles, no matter how small they were."
"Hm. She used to tell me as much, herself. I can't believe she still followed my pop culture blog after all these years. I just don't understand why she would commit suicide."
"Hey now, what's everybody getting so down for? We're supposed to be celebrating here! Even in death, Nagi brought us all together, just like she always did! Let's get some grub on!" Chiyo piped up.
"Is this all of us? I thought you said Nijima-san was going to be here," said Saito.
"We might as well start without her," Rico said as the door to the cafe chimed open behind him. "If Sae is still the same workaholic tightwad I remember her as, she-" It was then that Rico noticed Saito and Chiyo looking slightly above and to the right of Rico, Saito with a look of abject terror on his face while Chiyo was trying very hard to suppress her laughter.
"Oh no, do go on. Tell me, what do you remember about this 'workaholic tightwad'?"
Rico spun around in his seat and found himself staring up into the burgundy eyes of a tall woman in a black pantsuit with a long mane of dull, silver hair.
"S-S-Sae! Fancy seeing you again!" Rico said, his voice trembling as he broke into a cold sweat.
"That's still 'Nijima-senpai' to you, Verde-kun," Sae said with a cold glance down at Rico. "Now are you going to offer me a seat or what?"
"Oh, er, right! Yes, ma'am! Sorry, Nijima-senpai!" Rico stammered, getting up to allow Sae entry to the booth.
"Hmph. Sure is nice to see that some things never change," said a voice from behind the bar. The quartet looked across the room to see a middle-aged man with glasses and slicked back hair look up from the book he had been reading with a bemused smile. "It's certainly been a long time since I had all four of you in my shop at the same time. I had almost forgotten what it was like to have a regular peanut gallery around...almost," the man went on.
"What can we say, Mr. Sakura? It's not our fault Sae-san has had Rico here whipped since day one," Saito replied with a chuckle.
Sojiro Sakura was the wizened old proprietor of the Leblanc coffee shop. Despite being a relatively minor fixture in the coffee business, Leblanc had carved out a niche for itself as a nice little place for people looking for quality coffee with a casual, nostalgic atmosphere, rather than the pretentious elitism of larger, pricier chain shops. Leblanc was also rather famous for its curry dishes, which Sojiro took immense pride in.
"Screw you, I'm not whipped!" Rico angrily retorted.
"Rico, would you mind grabbing some creamer for me?" Sae said.
"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, sure!" Rico said, scrambling to his feet and getting some creamer from the bar.
"Wh-psssh!" Chiyo said, make a whip-motion with her hand. Rico glared back at her, but said nothing. Sae smiled wryly, content in her victory. Rico instead turned to Sojiro. "I'm surprised you're still here, old man. Thought you would have closed up shop long ago, or at least handed this place off to someone else by now," he said.
"What, did you think the four of you were the only ones who ever came here?" Sojiro asked with an annoyed expression.
"Well, it sure seemed like it back in the day," Rico said. "We were pretty much your only regulars."
"Sakura-san has had a steady increase in regular customers since he started serving curry. Which is funny, because it wasn't always that good," said Chiyo.
"Yeah, it used to be way too spicy," Saito agreed.
"What are you guys talking about? It was always fine to me," Rico said with a confused expression.
"Yes, well, not everyone likes to cropdust their food with spices the way you Texans do," Sae said, as she to a sip of coffee.
"A…friend showed me how to improve the recipe to bring out the flavor of the whole dish rather than relying too much on spice. It made a huge difference, bigger than I could have imagined. Here, why don't you try some?"
And as Sojiro began to whip up a pot of curry, the quartet of young adults began reminiscing about old times and catching up on new ones.
"So what's this I hear about you getting some big article published, Rico? I heard you really turned some heads over in America. You wrote some sort of expose on America's recent presidential election, right?" said Sae.
"Oh, that? Yeah, I had a few choice words to say about the way my country's presidential administration went out of their way to obstruct justice when evidence came to light of collusion with foreign powers to subvert our country's democratic process. I'm pretty sure our orange peel of a president has got my name on a blacklist somewhere now, because now I can't get anything published without going through back channels, and that's if I'm lucky. At this rate, I may have to consider a career change. That's what I get for opening my big mouth," Rico said, rubbing the back of his head. "To be honest, that's part of the reason I was happy I could make it here for this. After the things I wrote, I felt like I needed to stay out of town for a while."
"You always were too outspoken for your own good. Even in high school, you were always stirring up trouble with your weekly newsletters," Sae commented.
"But that's why Nagi liked him so much," said Chiyo. "Once you found something you wanted to talk about, you never shut up about it until somebody listened. My sister always admired that about you."
"And I got my ass chewed out back then, too. Well, I've finally learned my lesson. People will listen until you tell them something they don't want to hear. Then they do everything they can to shut you up," Rico said.
"I don't think it's so much that as it was that you were so indelicate. I believe you referred to your president as a 'deformed lump of moldy carrot cake'?" Saito said, looking up the article on his smartphone.
"Oh god, put that away, will you? That article ruined my career. I just want to forget I ever wrote it."
"Too bad. I think we could use more of that outspokenness. These days, it seems like too many are willing to simply go with the flow, even if that flow leads them over a waterfall. Guys like you who fight the current are what society needs if we're ever gonna get anywhere positive," Saito said with a wistful smile.
"Maybe you can join the Phantom Thieves," Chiyo said. "They seem to be on a crusade for justice in our society. If you can't go through legitimate channels, maybe you can start a Phantom Thieves newsletter!" she said with a laugh.
Sae however, was not amused. "Don't make me laugh. The Phantom Thieves on a 'crusade for justice'? They're nothing more than upstart rabble-rousers lashing out at society because they don't understand that life isn't fair. The world isn't a perfect place, but it's the height of arrogance to think that they can change things by breaking the law," Sae practically spat as she spoke. Rico swore he could see the venom dripping from her words.
"Whoa, whoa, sorry Sae. Forgot how much you hate the Phantom Thieves," Chiyo said, throwing up her hands with a nervous laugh.
"I have no feelings whatsoever about those criminals," Sae insisted. "I just happen to believe that their actions are in the wrong, and as the prosecutor assigned to their case, I am dedicated to bringing them down."
"But you have to admit, the people they've targeted were exposed for doing some pretty awful shit. I was assigned to investigating Junya Kaneshiro and his yakuza ring, and I gotta tell you, if the Phantom Thieves hadn't gone after him, we never would have nailed the bastard for half of the crimes he's committed. Even you have to admit that they did some good work there, Sae," said Saito.
"Great. Even my own detectives are Phan-boys, now," Sae said, rolling her eyes. Then she looked at her watch. "It's late. I better get home, make sure my sister is there," she said.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot you had a sister! How is lil' Mako doing?" Rico asked, remembering the brown haired little girl he occasionally saw following behind Sae when they were teenagers.
"She's doing fine. She's a senior at Shujin Academy now, you know," Sae said, proudly.
"Is she? Well, wish her luck from me. Senior year makes you want to kill everyone you meet, unlike junior year, where you just want to kill yourself," Rico said wryly.
"I'm sure she'll appreciate your…unique brand of wisdom," Sae said, waving goodbye to everyone. It was good to see you all again. I hope we can meet together like this again sometime," she said as she walked out the door.
"We should probably get going too," said Chiyo. "When are you flying back to America, Rico?"
"Not for at least a couple of weeks," he answered. "In the meantime, I'll have to find a place to stay. I was staying at this hotel in Shinjuku, but I felt it was a good idea not to stay there for too long."
"Probably a good call," Saito concurred. "Why don't you stay with me? I've got a folding bed in my couch."
"Thanks Saito, I owe you one," Rico said with a sigh of relief.
"Well, I guess I'll see you guys around, then. It was great to get a chance to spend time with you all today. And thanks…for coming to mourn my sister with me. It really means a lot," said Chiyo with a small smile.
The three friends exchanged goodbyes as they left the café. After a while, Sojiro came out from the back to blean off their table. "And they didn't even leave a tip. It really is nice to see some things never change," he sighed with a chuckle.