The Rain Outside
A.N.: This is where the plot should start to appear. Prize of an air guitar if you guessed where this was going. This chapter became rather fun to write, even in spite or rather because of my hate for Mariah.
Thank you for reviewing: Angel Spirit (special thanks - your lovely reviews kicked me into writing), no-name, argh swashswash bucklebuckle, black dragon fang, darksaphire, humanoid-kitten, Lil fighter for good, ketsueki no izou, grEMlin eVil, Mei Kimari, Cathy, animeobsession, neko yoka, Echo in the Dark, Kiko cat, Ashley, MafiaNerd and Aseptic.
My World
By the time they had found a reliable-seeming key cutter, it was already late afternoon.
Rei wondered whether they should return the original to Dickinson that day, or tomorrow. He also wondered where he would be sleeping.
The most obvious place would be his own apartment – now he had a key again. But he had told Mariah he'd be back at her house…
Rei glanced up at Kai, who had his arms crossed with an inscrutable expression on his face.
"Are you bored or just tired?" Rei asked.
Kai turned quickly to face him, as though he had forgotten the other young man was there.
"Just thinking."
Rei nodded but kept an eye on him as he retrieved the keys – they were lucky that it didn't take more than a few minutes – it was nearly closing time and the key cutter refused the person after Rei.
Rei pocketed the keys, telling Kai that he'd be staying at his friend's place and he would come back tomorrow to give Dickinson the key.
Kai grunted an acknowledgement as they headed back towards the train station.
-
When it was nearly their stop, Rei suddenly realised he had no idea where Kai was going or why he was still with him.
"Have you got a place in town, or something?"
Kai shrugged.
"I was at a hotel last night."
Kai's phone rang quietly in his pocket. Once again, it remained ignored.
Rei wondered who it was that kept ringing Kai, and why the person was being avoided.
"Why don't you just turn it off, if you don't ever want to answer it?"
Kai looked at him and frowned, shoving his hand in his pocket.
There was a long silence as Rei looked out of the train window again, observing the shadowing blobs of trees that they streaked past.
Just as Rei was about to start another conversation, Kai replied:
"Because… I have to know that they're still calling."
Kai's frown deepened and he avoided Rei's gaze, continuing:
"Besides, someone might call who actually cares."
Rei opened his mouth to ask another question, but Kai stood just as the train halted at their stop.
"You the one who knows where to go," Kai said neutrally as he followed his black-haired companion out of the station.
-
They had been walking silently together for some time, and Kai was beginning to wonder if Rei had absolutely any sense of direction at all.
"You're lost again, aren't you?" He said with a partially pained tone, noting the look of confusion and introspection on Rei's face.
"What?" Rei whipped around. "Uh, actually, no… Just… Thinking."
Kai raised an eyebrow.
"Well, this friend of mine… Just – she can be a much, yeah? I mean… Don't feel pressured to like her. She can be a bit… intimidating, maybe."
Kai stood a little straighter, as if to signify that no one could ever intimidate him. Rei laughed in response.
"Come on, we're nearly there."
The pair rounded another corner before stopping at the front of a small home with a tangled weed garden. It was nearly dark, and Rei had some trouble navigating which part of the yard was the footpath that led to the front door.
He adjusted his bag on his shoulders, and Kai raised an eyebrow quizzically at the sight of Rei preparing himself. Kai wondered if he should be worried about what he would find inside the house.
Of course, he most certainly should.
Rei hadn't even pressed the doorbell when the front door flung open with a flashing whip of pink as he was suffocated by his old friend.
"I was so worried about you Rei!" Mariah half-screamed, burying her face in his neck and clinging to his shoulders.
"You just left that note and I thought… Well, you weren't home by the afternoon and, and…" She was practically sobbing as Rei patted her awkwardly on the back.
Kai had stepped back, shock apparent on his face.
Rei interpreted the strange, uninhibited expression on the normally masked young man as disgust, and he sent a pained face back, as though there was nothing he could do, but the crying mess attached to him was really 'alright'.
"Uh, Mariah?"
"Oh, right, sorry Rei." Mariah stepped back wiping her face with her hand and sleeve, assessing Rei and deciding he was starving and needed to eat her nourishing food right away, pulling him inside the house. When Rei refused to move at the tugging on his arm, she stopped and turned back around, noticing the blue-haired person for the first time.
Rei stepped in immediately, not liking the twisted look on her face.
"Mariah, this is Kai. Kai, Mariah." He gestured between them both. "Um, is it alright if we bunk here for a little while?"
Mariah studied Kai appraisingly, but noted Rei's hopeful face.
"Sure." She whipped back inside the house and headed towards the kitchen.
"Close the door behind you please, Kai", she added in clipped tones, as though he was an animal that had not yet been house-trained.
Rei frowned and gave the other boy apologising eyes, while Kai shrugged carelessly and did as the pink-haired girl had asked.
They stepped cautiously into the house as Mariah slammed some pans onto the stove, preparing dinner for them all.
She turned around and said "Rei why don't you sit down. I'm sure you've had a long day." Rei complied instantly, not wanting to further her obviously bad mood but Kai remained standing, very close to the front door, so he could make a quick escape if needed.
Mariah addressed him sweetly: "Oh, could you please set the table? The cutlery is in this drawer."
Kai strode forward, deciding that following the deranged pink-haired woman's orders was his safest option. When Rei stood and started shuffling over to help, Mariah shot him a glare that made him feel very small and he sat back down instantly.
Fifteen minutes later, the three of them were settled and seated at the dining table, each served a bowl of fried noodles by Mariah. She had made sure Kai received the smallest portion. He made no comment on the matter. He had decided that was exactly what she wanted.
They ate in silence for some time, Rei's eyes darting between his companions, taking in Kai's bored look and Mariah's menacing glare.
"Rei, you need to eat up, you've been sick. Is my cooking really that awful?" She put a hurt expression on her features.
"No! I was just… thinking." Rei hurriedly ate more; smiling at Mariah as he did so, conveying that he was thoroughly enjoying the meal.
Mariah finished first, placing her cutlery neatly on her empty bowl.
Kai had eaten slowly, despite having the least food, then followed her example and began staring at her with challenging red eyes.
She scoffed and glanced away, but shifting her gaze back to him every so often, appropriating him as a criminal in her mind.
As soon as Rei had finished and sat back in his chair, Mariah leapt up, piled the bowls and moved back into the kitchen. She served them a dessert of chocolate ice cream and jelly, again giving Kai such a miniscule amount she seemed to be wanting him to demand he should be treated differently.
But Kai made no comment and ate without even glancing in Mariah's direction. She fumed even more at this.
"Why don't you watch some TV while I clean this up?" She suggested to Rei and Kai, who moved into the living room. They feared asking to help.
Kai flicked through the channels uninterestedly, watching for Rei's reaction to see if he saw anything he wanted to watch. Rei shrugged and then stood after a few minutes.
"I'm going to the bathroom. We'll talk about sleeping arrangements when I get back, alright?"
Kai nodded and watched him go, then focussed on the screen, which was advertising some kind of shiny spinning top toy for children. But it was not absorbing enough to take his attention away from the entrance of Mariah.
She came in with a sickly smile pasted on her face and sat down on the couch opposite to Kai. She turned off the television when he placed the remote on the coffee table in front of them.
"So."
Kai refrained from looking at her.
She coughed and tried again.
"SO."
Kai purposely ignored her. Anyone else would take the hint that he wasn't much of a conversationalist.
"I don't know what's wrong with you! You are so rude to me and to Rei and you come into our home expected to be fed and housed and – if you weren't obviously such great friends, I would toss you out right now!"
Kai snorted. Did this girl have the wrong impression.
"Look, it's not like that," he tried, leaning over to face her. He blinked. "Your home? As in… you and Rei share this house?"
Mariah could feel her face heating.
Kai tried to process the truth of what she was saying and what her statement implied.
"Oh, alright, Rei normally just lives in his apartment alone! But he comes here every so often, and I've been really worried about him lately – he always looks so exhausted after work and he's been so stressed and lonely and sick!"
Kai wondered if she ever experienced normal symptoms of hysteria.
"His boss told him to go home and get some rest, then there was a problem with his apartment, I don't know! I'm just trying to be a good … friend and care for him however I can! Obviously you're just giving him more reason to stress!"
Kai raised his eyebrows and settled back into the cushions.
"Yes, you! How long have you known each other for, anyway? Five years? I've known Rei since he was born! He clearly didn't want me to meet you because he thought I would see how worried you make him – and he was right!" Mariah looked close to tears as she covered her face with her hands.
Kai's eyes darted around rapidly, hoping Rei would appear.
"We haven't known each other for five years. Nowhere near that long."
Mariah looked at him suspiciously from between her fingers.
"Oh, really? I suppose he just picked you up off the street because you don't have a job and you have nowhere to stay, hm?"
Kai tried not to look away.
"So you're just friends, then?" She glanced at him with less venom than before.
Kai slowly nodded.
Mariah let out a long sigh.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I just worry, you know? …Just friends," she repeated, as though assuring herself. "Alright. I don't want him to get hurt, aga… Wait." Mariah looked him up and down, as though for the first time.
Her eyes widened miraculously.
"Oh my."
Kai attempted to back away. She was scaring him again.
Mariah stood and a hand flung to her mouth.
"You – you're not…"
Rei took that moment to walk in, looking quite absolutely tired and ready for bed.
"Is it okay for Kai to take the spare room, Mariah? And I pulled out some of my old clothes that you kept – hope you don't mind me using them again," he yawned with a smile.
"O-of course not, Rei. Listen, why don't you take the bedroom instead?" Mariah seemed to be still in shock-mode.
Kai nodded in agreement with her, feeling very odd as he did so.
"You need a good night's sleep," his voice came out gruffly and slightly grumpily. Rei was too tired to take in Kai's wary watching of Mariah.
"Oh, um, okay. I'll see you tomorrow morning, then? G'night," Rei yawned again as he headed back down the hallway.
Mariah shot Kai a sharp look before going in the same direction.
"Good night, Kai."
Kai decided that Mariah must have warmed slightly to him as she hadn't told him not to steal anything while they were sleeping.
He laid down on the couch, stretching out, and pulled off his shoes. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and turned it off before closing his eyes.
A.N. It made itself longer due to the many requests for longer chapters! So review – complain and I'll try to explain! Thanks - Munku-JGSPTV