7
The room was bright with late morning sunshine. Since it was winter, that really said something. It could've been noon for all I knew.
I rolled over to see Naru curled up on his side in his cot, his blanket pulled up to his nose, sound asleep.
I only allowed myself a moment to be fascinated by that before turning my attention to Takigawa, who still sat at the seat of torture before the screens. He definitely looked like the remains of an all nighter.
"Hello," I meeped.
He turned his head to give me a warm smile.
"Good morning, Mai sweet. Get some good sleep?"
I slowly sat up, curling my blankets about my back as I did so. It was flipping cold.
"Better than you," I said, yawning and rubbing sleep crusties out of my eyes. "When did Naru go down?"
"Not too long after you. He watched the video with the strangling floating faces, took some notes, then suddenly just collapsed in bed. I knew he was mostly show."
"Most people usually are."
Still rubbing my eyes, I oozed out of bed, pawed around my bag for some clothes and a toothbrush, and headed out to find a sink and some breakfast. I had asked Takigawa if he wanted me to take over but he said he was nearly done and would be to bed in a few minutes anyways.
Pee, brush teeth, waddle to the kitchen in hopes there would be something—
To find a smiling Father Brown stirring a pot of soup or stew, I couldn't tell. All I knew was that it smelled heavenly. I thought I could smell bread in the oven too.
"Good morning, Miss Mai. You're just in time for brunch."
"You know you don't have to feed us," I said, though I gave him an appreciative smile nonetheless.
"I don't see why I shouldn't," he tapped the soup spoon on the side of the pot and placed it on a folded paper towel. "I'm here anyways for services and, from what I heard of last night, I wouldn't think any of you three would be feeling up to it."
I half laid myself on the counter between the walkway and the rest of the kitchen. "You're so super duper sweet, Father."
A polite smile. "You can just call me John, if you like. We are about the same age, after all. It sounds weird even to me."
"Okay. John Jacob Jingle Himer Smith."
He chuckled, then moved to a cupboard to pull out a white ceramic bowl that could have come from the 70's, with those weird amber patterns around the edges and oddly thin feeling. He scouped some of that good smelling something in to the line of the patterns and carefully walked it over to place in front of me. A tomato and beef broth rose up to me, carrying with it the smell of thyme and rosemary. A spoon appeared, and I carefully blew and took a sip.
"Holy crap. You can cook!"
"Thank you, I guess." He was peeking into the oven at what I had expected: rolls. Fat, beautiful, golden rolls.
"It's almost a shame you're a priest. Any woman you'd married would be set for life, for reals, my gosh, did you just whip this up out of the air?"
"If you mean from scratch, yes." He pulled out a casserole dish of rolls and offered me one, to which I readily agreed. He didn't give me one right away, but first painted their tops with melted butter so they gleamed in the light pouring in from the textured kitchen windows.
Pretty much burnt myself in my eagerness to taste such beautiful rolls. Sweet, fluffy, soft, and divine.
"Such a shame," I muttered through a mouthful, closing my eyes in bliss. Any leftover stress, fear, or cold melted away with the taste and heat of the food. Freaking heaven's food, right here. Wonder if it could exorcise evil spirits, like holy water. Might just make them mad that they can't taste it either.
After he had poured his own bowl, he leaned against the counter next to the sink and slowly sipped at it until his roll had cooled.
"What made you decide to become a priest?" I asked, again with my mouth full of bread.
"I grew up without a father," he said, using our conversation to blow on his soup/stew more. "My mother worked a lot of the time, and so I asked God if he could, you know, be my father, not just in the spiritual sense but an actually dad too, since there are scriptures saying he'd be father to the fatherless." He took a sip of his soup, and his voice quieted. "And…He was. I could feel him when I needed him, a warm, peaceful presence. I…I thought I could even…hear him when I prayed. Or sometimes as a warning voice in my head that kept me out of a lot of trouble."
Yeah, I'd stare at that. I swallowed hard.
"You can hear God?"
He shrugged rather weakly. "I wouldn't think too much on it. Anyone can receive an answer from God after putting forth the proper effort and time."
"Then…do you think He'd be my dad too?"
That caught both me and John off guard. I could feel heat flushing to my face.
"You don't have…" he started, softly.
"I'm an orphan," I said, as cheerily as I could. "Have been since I was fourteen, but my dad died when I was nine. I don't really remember what it's like to have a dad, but I can't say I don't love the idea of having someone, so if it worked for you, do you think it would work for me?"
I couldn't read his expression as he looked at me. Something with wonder, and something else I couldn't place. For a flash of a second, I thought he'd leave his food to stride across the room and hug me.
But, instead, he smiled, and it wasn't the nice, polite smiles he had given up till then, but something utterly tender and warm that made my insides shiver. I…I couldn't remember if anyone had ever looked at me like that before. Like I was…cared for.
"I don't see why not," he said. "As long as you're willing to put forth the effort to be receptive to Him."
"Then how do I do that?"
Whatever John was about to say vanished as Takigawa stumbled through the door, rather noisily, and yawning wide enough to hide a house in there.
"Fee Fi Fo Thumb," he muttered. "I smell the smell of delicious food."
John chuckled, more of a polite chuckle than an amused one. All traces of that tender expression had vanished to be replaced with his usual.
"Over here. Have as much as you want. Though careful, the rolls are still very hot."
"Ah, the heat of freshness," and he was there, shoving said hot roll to his face. He had it half eaten by the time he got a bowl of soup served up.
By the time we finished, Naru had stumbled in, looking particularly gruesome with his bruised neck and blood shot eyes. John exclaimed something under his breath at the sight.
"Ghosts did this to you?"
Naru paid the question no heed. "Can I have some too?"
John stepped aside and gestured, then turned to the sink to start washing dishes, probably to keep himself from staring.
I had no such distraction, and my chest was already aching. Couldn't I put ice on his neck or something? At least his voice had recovered.
Takigawa's hand landed on mine, making me jump.
"He's okay," he told me, giving my hand a squeeze. "See me off to bed?"
"I was actually thinking of sending you off to class," said Naru from across the room. "All I have for the time being is some interviews that I'd rather conduct myself. And since you have no spiritual abilities to gather clues outside of your religion, you might do best getting some sleep. You can come back tonight to help with watch, if you so wish."
Takigawa's face did a weird jump. "Oh? And I guess you want to keep Mai here for yourself?"
Naru gave him his trademark droll stare, thought the scarlet in his eyes just made me wince.
"She has clairvoyance," he said. "I am going to need that in the coming interviews, not to mention she owes me a report for the first half of last night. I have yet to hear it."
Takigawa's nose wrinkled with his deep frown.
"Sure, clairvoyance. That's what it is."
Naru narrowed his eyes over his soup bowl, which he had been drinking out of in turn with his spoon. Once he swallowed, he settled a glare like ice on Takigawa.
"Do you only take my classes to try to get to her?"
Now it was Takigawa's turn to be angry.
"Like I'd need your classes to get close to anyone! I'll have you know, my report was everything you wanted and more—"
"After I walked you through the basic outline like a child."
"At least I have the courage to say I like a girl, have you ever even been on a date?"
I jumped to my feet. "Oy! I'm right here! Can you have this argument somewhere else at least?" Yeah. My face was red. No doubt about that. John's wide eyed look from Naru to Takigawa just fueled my embarrassment even more.
Naru put his soup back to his mouth.
Takigawa snorted and almost stomped out of the kitchen and into the hall.
I followed after, alarmed at this uncharacteristic bad mood from the usually happy-go-lucky music major.
"Takigawa, there's no reason whatsoever to be so worked up. Remember? Professor's like a ten and I'm a—"
"Shut it. Just, shut it." He stopped, shoulders hunched up to his ears. "I know you'd rather date him than me. Just…I thought if you could see how pointless—but if he makes a move…"
He fell quiet, and I noticed he had clenched his hands.
Oh. Oh, this was serious.
Still hot in the face and very much uncomfortable, I reached for his arm. He turned around, reluctantly, looking to the side and ducking down to try and hide the flush to his face. It was like nothing I'd seen in him before.
What do I say? I couldn't lie to him.
"I don't even want to like the Professor," I said in little more than a whisper. "For all I know, he's gay or only likes redheaded super models, and I'm…I'm just plain, sad little me, with no family and no special talents and not particularly pretty—"
"You're adorable!" John exclaimed, much more loudly than I would have wished.
Ugh, face so hot. So hot. I had started to sweat in various places.
"Thank you?" I kind of squeaked.
Without so much as a warning, and before I could do much else, he pulled me into his arms, nearly lifting me off the ground, and bent down to kiss me hard on the lips.
I had never been kissed before. This was hot and squishy, though the squish only helped so much to hide his teeth. The thought that his teeth might hit mine occurred. I tasted the Father's stew and a bit of roll, as well as something nameless. It wasn't a bad taste, but it wasn't good either. Like licking one's finger.
He tried to do something with his mouth, like trying to tuck into my lips and open them wider, but I was too stunned and, frankly, a little frightened, to even get a clue what he was trying to do.
Finally, he pulled back and set me back down.
"Frick, you're tall," I gasped, breathless. Can't really breathe while someone's face is pressed against yours.
He was still flushed. "I'm sorry for freaking out like that, and I'm sorry if that kiss bugged you, I just…I just really like you. And I guess I'm also really tired and stressed out from watch duty. Seeing someone get strangled isn't the most relaxing thing in the world."
"No it isn't," I said, still at a loss for words.
He looked at me a moment longer, biting his lower lip.
"I'll see you tonight, yeah?"
I smiled, even though my lips felt a little bruised. "Course. Don't think I'll be having fun without you. Naru's going to be working me like a horse."
"Why do you call him that?"
"What?"
"Naru."
"Oh, I thought it would be a good nickname for narcissist, since he's always so full of himself. But it was kind of a bad fit—"
"Yeah. Narc would have worked better."
"But then it would sound like I was calling him a narcoleptic or, I don't know, it just stuck. Now it's almost the only thing he'll respond to when I want him to take me seriously."
I realized that was the wrong thing to say the moment it was out of my mouth.
I threw up my hands between us. "This is Professor Ice we're talking about, man. He can't even date students without getting fired anyways, and I may be adorable to you but that doesn't mean I am to the Ice King."
Takigawa nodded, but the look in his eye didn't leave and the smile he gave me was forced.
"Maybe I'll bring you treat tonight. Would you like that?"
I flushed, "Oh gall, you're going to suck me into a treat war huh?"
He chuckled. At least I got that. "Nah. Just me trying to win your heart. But I won't if it would make you uncomfortable."
But I had meant what I said. Liking or loving or whatever it was I had on the professor would only lead to heartbreak. I didn't want to take that road. And I did hurt for Takigawa's sake.
"I like chocolate Twizzlers," I said. "But they're kind of hard to find. If you're able to find them, I'll be super impressed."
He pulled a face. "I've never even heard of chocolate Twizzlers. Sounds nasty, but, it's your parade."
I shrugged with a smirk. "Takes a refined mind to appreciate chocolate Twizzlers."
"Chocolate Twizzlers it is."
And with that, we waved good-bye (Takigawa moved like he was going to hug me instead but must have thought better of it). Once the door had closed behind him, I went back to the kitchen only to be stopped by John on his way out.
"I put the leftovers in the fridge," he cocked his head to the side. "Are you going to be okay?"
I shrugged. "Boys. Couldn't avoid facing them forever." Then I sighed and just headed back to base to write up the oh so important report.
Author's note: this is my second chapter posted today, so go back to 6 if you missed it.
