Chapter 7: "Surprise"

It was still taking some time for her to get used to the frequent praise she got from her professors for the second term of that school year. She wasn't sure if her professors were praising her because of her performance in their classes or if they were just using her to urge her less academically-inclined classmates to follow her example. Either way, she was uncomfortable with the praise despite the constant teasing and assurance she got from her classmate Haru. More than month after her trip with the Houkago girls and Sawako, Terry couldn't help but miss the sea. She had spent the remaining days of the trip surfing as much as she could. Sawako and the college students were surprised whenever they woke up because Terry was long gone and already hitting the waves. She was sad when they had to leave and go back to Nagoya since she honestly had no idea when she would visit a beach and surf again.

"I can't believe you still have that tan you got from your beach trip!" Haru enviously looked at his seatmate as they waited for their last class to end for that day. Like most students, Mondays were his most hated days of the week and he was eager to get out of school. "If I do get a tan, it only lasts for a week at most then it disappears! How can your tan last for almost a month?"

Terry laughed as she took down some notes their professor wrote on the board. "I'm just one of those people who could keep a tan for a long time," she told the younger man. "What did you do anyway over the summer break?"

Haru smiled sheepishly. "I worked part time at my dad's restaurant. I did mostly dishwashing and delivery duties though," he replied. "I needed the extra money to buy the books required for our new subjects for this term."

"Hardly a vacation though," Terry pointed out.

"I did go out on the weekends," Haru explained. "So I did have some vacation." He jotted down some notes in his notebook then stowed it back into his bag just as the bell signaled the end of the class. "Want to get a cool drink?" he asked the tall redhead as they got out of their seats.

"Sure! Are you treating?"

Haru groaned and patted his pockets. "I wish I could!"

Terry laughed. "I was just joking!"

"I know, but it still reminded me that I need to find a part time job to help me pay for my expenses," Haru replied depressingly. "My parents are having a hard enough time paying for my younger siblings' education."

Terry rubbed her jaw as she thought about Haru's predicament. "What kind of work are you looking for anyway? Anything specific?"

Haru shrugged his shoulders. "Anything offered to me, I'll do it! Even if it's just menial tasks!" While they walked out of the building and headed to a nearby juice stand, Terry made a sudden call to Shannon.

"Hey Terry! What's up?"

"Hey Shannon," Terry greeted her friend, ignoring the strange look Haru was giving her since she was talking to the live house owner in English. "I was wondering if you have any job openings at the live house?"

"Job openings? I thought you didn't want to do any part time jobs!"

Terry laughed. "It's not for me, idiot!" Before Shannon could say something to counter her, she said, "It's for a friend of mine. He's trying to find a part time job to support himself while he's studying."

"It depends though," Shannon replied. "Is he looking for a specific job?"

"Nope. He said he doesn't mind doing menial tasks."

"Hmmm… well, Maki has been complaining about how hassling it is to handle the bar on his own," Shannon said. "Is he alright with working at night until say two in the morning?"

"Hold on and I'll ask," Terry told her friend then turned to speak to Haru. "My friend owns a live house and says she needs someone to help man the bar. Is that alright with you?"

Haru looked wide-eyed at Terry. "But I don't know how to mix drinks!"

Shannon overheard the reply. "Tell him that Maki will train him. He won't be doing any complicated mixing until he's ready. While he's still new, he'll most likely be doing inventory, restocking and do gopher duties."

Terry explained all this to Haru who still looked bewildered. "It sounds like a good offer. Why don't you consider it? You did say that you need the money and if you'll be working at night, Shannon will give you night pay." She clarified this with Shannon.

"Yeah, I'll give him night pay. That's a fifteen percent differential that would be given to him if he decides to give it a try. Still, I'd like to meet him in person and interview him a little bit."

"Are you at the live house now?" Terry asked.

"Yeah. Come around if you have time!"

Terry hung up with her friend. "Let's skip on the cold drink. I'm sure we could wheedle some free drinks from Shannon who wants to meet you."

"Now?" Haru asked, looking surprised.

"Now," Terry repeated, pushing Haru towards the train station. "She's probably going to give you the job anyway, but she'd like to see and interview you for a bit. It's standard protocol after all." For the rest of the short trip to The Cobalt Loft, Terry kept assuring the black-haired and browned-eyed Haru that Shannon was a nice person and that he was a shoo-in for the job. She had to push Haru into the popular live house when they arrived. "Shannon! I'm here!" she announced, smiling as her spiky-haired friend bounded down the stairs to meet them.

"I wasn't expecting you to come at all!" Shannon hugged Terry then stepped aside to get a good look at her would-be employee. "You are Haru?"

"Nakajima Haru," the young man clarified in a polite voice. He gave a deep bow to the American woman before him.

"How old are you exactly?"

Haru gulped, realizing that his age would matter since he was applying for a job at a live house. "Nineteen," he honestly answered. "I'm a freshman at Sora College of Music."

Shannon sighed and looked over at Terry. "He's not of legal age yet and you know what kind of trouble I'll get into if he gets caught drinking."

Terry shrugged. "He just doesn't have to drink then. All he has to do is drink mixing, gopher duties, and inventory, right?"

"You're giving me a hard time," Shannon murmured then let out a sigh. "I'd rather hire a part-timer than hire someone for a full-time job though. There are only certain days of the week where Maki really needs the extra help." She smiled at the very nervous Haru. "I'll take you on," she told him. "We need to discuss a few things before you officially start though."

"When do I start?" Haru asked.

"Tomorrow night," Shannon replied. "Actually, I can already tell you that I'll need you to work on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Those are our busiest days of the week. Of course, I know you might need a day off for school-related purposes. We can work our way around that if it happens." She towed the young man upstairs to her office. "Oh and Terry, go ask Maki for a drink if you want! I'll be back in a few minutes!"

Terry shook her head in amusement and sat herself at the bar. "No alcohol for me, Maki," she told the bartender when he approached. "Orange juice will do." She nodded her thanks to him when he slid a cold glass of the juice on the table in front of her. "Is the business doing well?" She watched as the bartender used a clean cloth to wipe a variety of glasses.

"Doing really well," Maki replied, looking at one particular glass for smudges. "Gray-san is starting to tap into another market."

"Which is?"

"The tourists."

Terry was surprised at the answer. "Why would tourists come to a live house?"

"Because the owner happens to be an American who's also very knowledgeable about places and things tourists would like to go to while they're here in the country," Maki explained with a small laugh. "Last week, we had a group of Americans who just happened to come here since they were curious about the music scene. Shannon entertained them and they left quite happy and with a possible itinerary to follow for the duration of their stay."

"She's always been the enterprising one," Terry remarked.

"And what she did is starting to work wonders actually," Maki pointed out. "We're assuming that it's through word of mouth, but we've had a fair number of tourists trickling into our establishment. Aside from the comfort they get from dealing with someone who could speak English, they're enjoying the music scene as well." He started to put away the clean glasses. "It's a good thing Gray-san is going to hire that young man. Things are getting so busy that it's difficult to keep up with my work."

Terry grinned. "Haru's a good kid. A little shy, but he'll work hard. Just show him the ropes and treat him well."

"I'll be sure to do that," Maki told the redhead just as Shannon and her newest employee joined them at the bar. "So is he going to be my new assistant?" he asked his boss.

Shannon grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. "He sure is! He'll be starting tomorrow, but he says he's free for the rest of the afternoon so maybe you could start teaching him." She pushed the college freshman behind the bar and let Maki take over. Sitting next to Terry, she rested her elbows against the bar's surface. "How have you been doing?"

Terry shrugged. "School's fine."

"And work?"

"Doing pretty well too," Terry replied. "We pulled in a hefty profit from that deal we made with the music college. They initially ordered four hundred-fifty copies of the latest Crimson Score program and are set to order double that amount in the following year for their incoming freshmen."

"How much money are we talking about?"

Terry calculated a quick estimate. "Well, since they ordered in bulk, we did give them a discount. Typically, we sell the program at around two hundred-twelve dollars, but we gave it to them at a hundred ninety. So for their initial purchase, we're getting eighty-five thousand five hundred more or less."

Shannon whistled. "And you're doubling that amount in the following school year," she added. "That's a lot of money!"

"It is and it's a big deal for us since it's the first major deal we ever made and hopefully it'll be long term," Terry replied happily. "I guess it's an advantage that our selling price is relatively lower compared to other programs, but the features we offer are at par with those more famous ones. Also, Miles and I decided that music students who avail of our product can avail of a ten percent discount when they upgrade to better versions."

"You're certainly making sure that your deal is going to be long term," Shannon teased, feeling happy for the success of her friend. "I'm sure other music schools will be coming to your doorstep soon!"

Terry laughed. "Hopefully! I'm trying to get the exact numbers, but I've been having trouble contacting Miles."

"Oh? Why don't you just ask your accountant?"

"Well, Miles is usually the one I ask when it comes to our income and expenses. He's been making most of the big decisions in my stead since I'm here in Japan." Terry frowned suddenly. "He hasn't been returning any of my calls or emails for the past week and I'm not sure whether I should feel annoyed about it."

Shannon laughed. "Maybe he's just busy! After all, he's doing twice the amount of work!"

Still frowning, Terry shrugged her shoulders in reply. "Maybe, but he should still try to return my calls and messages. We are business partners after all!" She glanced at her wristwatch then got to her feet. "I should get going. I have school work to do." She looked over at Haru who was learning where to find certain alcoholic beverages.

"I'll teach you how to make the simple cocktails next time around," Maki told his student. "I'll let you handle the beers for tomorrow night."

Haru nodded seriously and paid close attention to his teacher.

Terry decided not to interrupt the lesson and turned to bid goodbye to Shannon. "Take care of him alright?"

"I always take care of my employees!" Shannon hugged the taller woman.

"Not if they're like your previous bartenders," Terry teased, flinching when Shannon punched her on the arm. "I'll see you around!" She waved and headed for the exit.

"Oh Terry!" Shannon called, making the software engineer stop in her tracks. "You should come over this Saturday!"

"Why?" Terry asked, unsure if she wanted to spend her Saturday night at Shannon's live house.

"Well, the Houkago girls are playing and we've got a special band coming over!"

"Special band?" Terry murmured, not really finding the prospect attractive enough. "I think I'll pass, Shannon."

"Awww! Come on, Terry! You haven't been here for nearly two months now and I'm expecting a number of foreign tourists to drop by! I need the extra help!"

"I doubt I'm going to be paid for helping you entertain," Terry retorted.

"Please Terry! Please?" Shannon batted her eyelashes at Terry and did her best in giving a puppy-dog stare. "All your drinks will be on me!"

Terry grimaced. "I don't want to drink."

Shannon sighed. "I'll give you thirty bucks."

"Fifty," Terry interjected.

"Thirty-five!"

"Fifty or I'm going to spend Saturday night relaxing in my condo," Terry firmly told her friend.

"Fine!" Shannon huffed. "Be here on Saturday!" She turned around to supervise the training of her newest employee.


Saturday night – 8:30 pm


Terry stopped several feet away from the crowded entrance of The Cobalt Loft. From a block away, she could already tell that the establishment was going to be very loud for that night. One thing she didn't like about going out was the need to dress up. It was hassling for her, but she had to do it for this particular night since Shannon insisted that she help out if any foreign tourists arrive. Despite her relative comfort in her outfit, it was still rather stylish. She wore a sleeveless black vest that exposed just enough of her cleavage and showed the wiry muscles of her shoulders and arms. She also wore matching black skinny jeans and comfortable flats on her feet. A long silver chain hung from one belt strap and connected to her wallet inside her pocket. Aside from the chain, the only other accessory Terry wore were her prescription glasses since her eyes were too sore to wear contacts that night.

The bouncer nodded to her when he saw her and let her in, much to the dismay of the people who were lining up outside. Terry just ignored the heated argument one of the queuing customers brought up to the bouncer and entered the crowded establishment. Seeing a spot vacated at the bar, the redhead strode over and settled herself in, knowing that it would be another half hour or so before the Houkago girls took the stage.

"Did you see Gray-san yet?" Maki pushed over a full glass of orange juice, smiling knowingly at her.

Terry smiled back at the bartender who pretty much knew about her aversion towards alcohol. "I'm trying to put off meeting her," she told Maki.

"She's been riled up since early this evening and she's been waiting for you to arrive." Maki refilled a tall glass of draft beer and served it to a nearby customer.

"Her fault for not specifying what time I should be here," Terry answered with an evil grin. "What's the big deal anyway? Did those tourists she's expecting arrive yet?"

Maki nodded and pointed upstairs. "There are three of them."

"That's certainly enough for her to handle so why does she need my help?"

Maki shrugged his shoulders and went to service the rest of the customers lined up along his bar.

Someone tapped Terry on the shoulder and made her turn around. Her emerald green eyes brightened upon seeing who it was. "Sawako! It's good to see you!" She and the teacher quickly embraced.

Sawako smiled at the seated Terry. "It's good to see you too! It's been weeks since we last saw each other! It's obvious that both you and I have been busy with school!" She nodded her thanks to Maki who brought over a glass of cold beer. Careful not to drip on her black tube dress, she drank half of her beer and set it back on the bar. "The last few times I've been here, you weren't around."

Terry smirked. "Shannon is just going to give me trouble if I come here more often," she told the older woman before her. "So why are you here?"

"The girls are going to be performing a couple of their individual songs and I'd like to be on hand to see them perform," Sawako explained. "They didn't tell me which songs they'll be performing though so I'll just have to be surprised." She downed the rest of her beer and thanked Maki. "Want to head up or maybe you're trying to avoid Shannon?"

Terry laughed and slipped off the stool. "I'll come along. Shannon owes me fifty bucks anyway and she won't give it to me if I don't show up." She let Sawako lead the way up the stairs. She and Sawako waved to the Houkago girls who were setting up on stage and looked around for seats.

"Terry! There you are!" Shannon loped over to the tall redhead and grabbed her arm. "Where were you? I was expecting you hours ago!" She started to drag Terry towards the corner of the room closest to the stage.

Rolling her eyes, Terry tried to free her arm from Shannon's grasp. "You didn't tell me what time I should be here and Maki said you only have three foreign tourists to entertain! You don't need my help for that!" She threw a frustrated look at Sawako who hid a grin and followed the two Americans. "Stop dragging me!"

Shannon merely smirked at the software engineer. "The guests want to meet you!"

Terry was exasperated. There was no reason for a bunch of foreign tourists to want to meet her not unless they knew of her past life in a band. They were probably trying to get an autograph from her. "Why would they want to-" Terry choked and felt the wind get knocked out from her as she was suddenly tackled by two large bodies and enveloped in a crushing embrace. Her glasses were knocked askew on her face, but her emerald green eyes were bulging out in shock at the woman sitting on the couch in front of her. "What the fuck!" Terry swore, twisting her head in difficulty to make sure that the two who were hugging her were really who she thought they were.

"Hey flame hair! Did you miss me?"

Terry scowled and tried to extricate herself from the crushing hug. Only one person called her that and if he was here, it meant the others were there as well. "What the hell are you guys doing here?" she demanded, glaring first at the grinning Miles then at the ash blond-haired Kelly. "You freaking idiot!" She managed to get an arm free and punched Miles hard. "I've been trying to contact you for the past week and this is the reason why you haven't returned any of my calls?"

Justine chuckled then got to her feet, easily towering over most of the people around them. Her raven black hair was pulled back in a simple bun and her blue-gray eyes danced with joy. Pushing the buff Kelly and slightly injured Miles off, she fiercely hugged Terry and smiled at her. "Surprised?" she asked.

Terry grumbled. "Surprised, but I'm not sure if I can call it a good or bad one."

"It should be good!" Kelly remarked, playfully tousling Terry's auburn hair. "Aren't you glad to see us, flame hair?" He grinned when Terry frowned at the mention of his personal nickname for her. "It's been more than a year since we last got together!"

"Focus on the reunion and not on Miles' gaffe of not contacting you," Justine told her friend. "Weren't you the least bit suspicious? Shannon was obviously in on the surprise and since you mentioned Miles not contacting you at all, I figured you'd be suspicious."

Terry shook her head and pressed her fingers against her temples. "I didn't suspect anything at all." She looked over both of the guys in her group and saw that they were dressed simply in collared polo shirts, jeans and loafers. Justine on the hand had gone more stylish by wearing a flowing crimson-colored halter top, tight jeans and her heels. "Did you just fly in today?" Terry asked incredulously.

Miles nodded his head, obviously forgetting the punch Terry inflicted on him earlier. "Four hours ago to be exact!"

Terry glared at Miles. "And you just left the company to fend for itself?"

"Remember, I promoted Rick to manager and both you and I know that he's capable enough to keep an eye on things," Miles gently explained to his business partner.

Groaning, Terry looked at each of her former band mates. "Why are all of you here anyway?"

Kelly and Miles looked at each other and grinned. "Vacation," they chorused.

"Who said you could go on vacation?" Terry demanded from Miles. She then focused her gaze on Kelly. "I thought you were going to start your own clinic."

"I will, but I figured a little vacation would do me some good," Kelly replied, crossing his chiseled arms over his chest. He also ignored the frequent looks of admiration he was getting from the women around them.

"And you?" Terry looked over at Justine, feeling suddenly tired.

"Work and vacation as well," Justine explained. "I jumped on a short-term contract to do some modeling work here in Japan. I needed a change of environment and knowing that you and Shannon are here will give me some ease." She jerked her head at their two male friends. "These two decided to tag along when they heard about it."

"Justine! I can't believe you said that!" Miles dramatically proclaimed. "We planned this so that we could have a mini-reunion of sorts!"

Justine shrugged her elegant shoulders. "Call it what you want." Her blue-gray eyes flitted from one friend to another before settling on a bewildered brunette in a black tube dress. "Terry," she called her friend's attention. "I believe you owe me that introduction you promised me."

Terry blinked. "Huh?" She turned to see what Justine was looking at and realized that her model friend wanted an introduction. "Ah… I remember." Terry shot a warning look at Justine and urged Sawako to come closer. "Sorry about the fuss," she told the teacher. "I wasn't expecting them to all be here." Taking over the necessary introductions, she first introduced Justine. "You've heard about Justine," she told Sawako who was shaking hands with the model. "Justine, this is Sawako."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Justine told Sawako with a warm smile.

"This idiot here is Miles," Terry continued, jerking her thumb at her business partner who stepped up to exchange handshakes. "And the buff blond guy is Kelly." She took a deep breath and let it all out in a huff. "To put it simply, they're my former band mates."

"It's a pleasure and an honor to meet all of you," Sawako sincerely told the Americans in fluent but accented English. "Terry has told me a lot about all of you."

"Good things I hope?" Kelly's amber eyes twinkled in mischief.

"Good things about you and Justine, but not much on Miles," Sawako joked, feeling at ease with Terry's friends.

Miles looked glumly at them. "She never says good things about me," he complained.

Shannon clapped her hands to get their attention. "Why don't we all sit down?" She gestured at the couches. "Sawako's former students are going to perform now and I'm sure we could continue this reunion while sitting and having a few drinks."

"No drinks for Terry though!" Justine and Kelly said together.

Terry scowled. "Of course! That's why I try to avoid coming here too often! Shannon keeps forcing me to drink!" She laughed along with her friends and settled themselves on the couches with her seated between Sawako and Justine. Her former band mates were asking her a variety of questions about her stay in Japan and her studies when Yui's girlish voice rang across the room.

"Hello! We're Houkago Tea Time!" The short-haired brunette grinned at her enthusiastic audience and flashed them a peace sign. "We'll be singing a couple of new songs tonight and we hope you'll enjoy them!" She fixed her hold on her guitar and just as Ritsu was about to strike her drum sticks together, she suddenly added, "Oh! Hi Sawa-chan! Hi Terry-san!" She waved happily at their former club supervisor and their surfer friend.

"Yui-senpai!" Azusa scolded the older woman and reminded her that they were supposed to start their performance.

"Ah… sorry! Our first song for tonight is 'Guitar ni Kubittake'!"

Ritsu grinned. "One, two, three, go!"

Kelly nodded his head in appreciation as he listened to the enthusiastic guitar solo. "She's a pretty good guitarist," he remarked, lightly elbowing Miles to get his attention. "Don't you think so, Miles?"

The raven-haired man nodded in agreement. "She has good control. The pigtailed one has marvelous skill too!" He looked over at Justine who was already scouting out the playing field. "Oh no… Justine has that look in her eyes."

Justine raised her eyebrows at Miles. "It's free to look, you know." Her blue-gray eyes settled on one particular long-haired blonde playing on her keyboard.

Terry chuckled and placed a hand over Justine's eyes. "Are you going to make headlines here in Japan too?"

"I don't believe that this country would be bold enough to put up taboo related topics as their headlines," Justine replied, pushing away Terry's hand. "Besides, I can't help it if I find Japanese women attractive. I've had enough of Caucasians." Her eyes were still settled on the keyboardist.

"Mugi is part European though," Terry informed her friend.

"Mixed bloods can be attractive as well." Justine slyly smiled at the redhead, noticing the astonished look Sawako was giving her. "What? I assume Terry has told you about my sexual preference."

Sawako blushed and tore her gaze away in embarrassment. "She did, but I didn't expect you to be so blunt about it."

Kelly laughed to ease away the awkwardness. "Most people are unprepared when they meet Justine. Don't worry though. She won't pull any moves unless she's given permission."

"That depends on the situation," Justine clarified. While she continued to talk to Miles, Kelly and Shannon, Terry stood up and accompanied Sawako downstairs to the bar.

Terry grimaced. "More alcohol?"

"I need it," Sawako simply replied and sat herself at the bar.

"Whatever for?"

"To drown my sorrows away." Sawako ordered a shot of tequila and gulped it down. She saw Terry looking at her questioningly so she decided to just be out with it. "This boy I was seeing for the past month decided to cut things off between us." She sighed and downed another shot. "He didn't do it in the nicest way though."

Terry sat next to the teacher and gazed at her. "What did he do?"

"Oh he told me at the beginning of our date," Sawako dispassionately said. "He said the usual 'it's me and not you' type of reason and then his new date showed up."

"Did you beat him up?"

Sawako laughed. "I wish I did, but then again that wouldn't be the right thing to do in public." They stayed in relative silence as she gulped down a few more shots. "Phew! That mellowed me down a lot!" She shakily got out of her seat only to be caught in Terry's arms. She smiled up at the worried redhead. "I'm fine. It'll take twice more the number of shots I just had to really get me drunk." She allowed Terry to help her go back upstairs. "I'm just a little bit woozy. Nothing for you to worry about!"

Terry shook her head disapprovingly as she helped Sawako stagger across the floor and sat her down on the couch. "She's had a number of shots," she informed her band mates when they all looked at her questioningly.

"It's not enough," Sawako interjected with a grin. She raised her hand in the air and waved a passing waiter over. "More shots please!"

Leaning over so that she could whisper into Justine's ear, she said, "She's coming from a break-up."

Justine's elegant eyebrows arched up in interest. "It's easy to see why she's going along the path of drinking until there's no tomorrow," she replied. She jerked her head over at Kelly who was in deep conversation with Miles and Shannon. "Why don't you introduce her to Kelly?"

"You mean set her up?"

Justine smiled. "Well, if her previous boys have been asses, she'll be pleasantly surprised with Kelly. You and I both know that even though he's dreadfully shy around women, he's a perfect gentleman." She snagged herself a shot of tequila from the tray held by the waiter. "Besides, it's a better and safer way to distract her from her boyfriend troubles." She raised her shot glass in the air in a toast then downed it in one gulp. "You might as well do it before Sawako goes overboard with her drinking or Kelly's attention gets claimed by the other women milling around."

Terry smirked as she got out of her seat and headed towards Miles and Kelly. She politely interrupted the conversation and pulled Kelly a few feet away from the couches.

"What's up?" Kelly asked.

"I need a favor," Terry told her tall friend. Her eyes flitted back to the still drinking Sawako then at the DJ setting up on the stage. She didn't even realize that the Houkago girls were already done with their set and were probably freshening up in the back room. "I was wondering if you could… distract Sawako a bit."

"Distract?" Ash blond hair fell over his amber colored eyes. "I'm not sure I understand."

Terry looked a little bit guilty at what she was about to do, but she realized that it would do both Kelly and Sawako some good if the latter agreed. "Well, to put it simply, could you flirt with Sawako?"

"Flirt?" Kelly repeated in straight voice.

"Yes, flirt," Terry clarified with a small grin. "She's reeling from a recent break-up and I'd rather not have her drink her sorrows away. Having another guy give her attention would be a better option."

Kelly sighed and seemed uneasy with the favor being asked from him. "Terry, I barely know her and you know… how awkward I can get with women."

"You're hardly awkward when you're around me, Justine and Shannon."

Kelly shook his head. "That's different," he argued, running his fingers through his hair. "Besides, won't she get other ideas if I do it?"

"Looking and flirting is free and alright. Just don't get ahead of yourself, if you know what I mean." Terry hardly suspected Kelly of taking Sawako to bed after all the one-night stands and the consequences attached to it back in their band days.

"Oh okay," Kelly finally agreed. "I just have to flirt and distract her, right?" He rubbed his jaw in thought. "How exactly do you want me to go about it?"

Terry gestured at the dance floor. "Ask her to dance. I'm sure that will keep her preoccupied." It was helping that the DJ was already mixing up dance beats.

Kelly sighed. "Here I go then."

Watching her friend amble towards the still drinking Sawako, she could only smile as when the teacher started smiling at the attention she was getting. She couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she was certain that Kelly was successful in catching her attention. A few minutes later, Kelly was leading Sawako to the dance floor. She was just about to sit down when the Houkago girls trooped out of the backroom and looked wide-eyed at the two new foreigners.

"C-Crimson Skies?" Mio stuttered, being the first among her band mates to recognize the group.

"Ehhh?" Yui leaned over and scrutinized the three Americans. "Terry-san's band mates? Hmmm… they're as cool-looking as Terry-san!" She furrowed her eyebrows and gave both Miles and Justine a closer look. "Aren't there supposed to be three of them?"

Azusa sighed and jerked her head at the crowded dance floor. "I think I saw their other band mate with Sawa-chan on the dance floor."

Miles smiled impishly and nudged Justine. "Did you get any of that, Justine?"

Justine frowned. "Unlike Shannon and Terry, I don't understand Japanese," she told him. "I did understand the 'Crimson Skies' and caught one of them saying Terry's name."

Shannon laughed and motioned for the Houkago girls to sit down. "If it's alright with you girls, could you speak in English? Unlike Terry, her band mates aren't proficient at all in your language and it would be rather difficult to carry a conversation if we need to translate."

Ritsu grinned and stuck her hand out for a handshake. "I'm Ritsu," she introduced herself and shook hands with first Miles then Justine. Among her friends with the exclusion of Mugi, she was proficient enough with the English language having taken up English language classes throughout her college education.

"You can call me Yui," the lead guitarist followed. Her English was accented, but like the rest of her friends, she also took up English language classes because Ritsu had convinced them. She backed away to let her other three band mates introduce themselves to the former award-winning band.

Justine shook her head in amusement once the introductions were done. "It didn't occur to me that all of you could speak English fairly well. Is English part of the education curriculum?"

Mugi smiled. "We start learning in junior high school," she explained to the foreigners. "Truthfully, most Japanese don't comprehend the language even after going through these courses. In our case," she was referring to herself and her band mates. "Ritsu convinced us to take additional English courses to improve our use of your language."

"You mean forced, Mugi-senpai," Azusa corrected, ignoring the glare she got from the drummer. "Ritsu-senpai has always had this dream that we'll be needing the proficiency in speaking English when we go to America."

Miles laughed at how sarcastic the pigtailed girl sounded. "That doesn't sound like such a bad idea. It won't just help you when you decide to go to America. Majority of other countries also speak English or at least know some of it so it would be considerably easier for you to travel around." He sighed. "At least you're bilingual," he told them. "I can only speak in one language."

"Which is gibberish," Terry drawled, drawing laughter from their group.

"Why are you all here in Japan?" Yui curiously asked. "Are you visiting Terry-san?"

Miles grinned. "Sort of," he replied. "Kelly and I are mostly here for vacation while Justine here is going to do some modeling work and do a little vacation time as well." He kept smiling at the college students. "But enough about us, we'd like to hear more about you girls! It was a great performance by the way! I thoroughly enjoyed it even though I couldn't understand the lyrics."

Justine also took the time to compliment the Houkago girls' performance. "I enjoyed it as well," she told them with a smile, showcasing her perfectly lined and white teeth. "Terry here wasn't kidding that you girls are a very talented bunch."

Terry let out a huff. "I'm hardly the type to lie," she muttered.

"How much has Terry-san told you about us?" Mugi wondered.

The raven-haired man gave them a bright smile. "It's enough to give us a good idea about who you girls are and your skill when it comes to making and playing music." He gave a sheepish look at his best friend. "Well, Terry gave us basic ideas about all of you and we had to pry other details from her."

"It was needed to lengthen the few conversations we had with Terry while we were on different sides of the world," Justine added with a chuckle. "It's hard to keep Terry talking over the phone when she loses interest fast. Take it from us! You have to keep asking her questions to keep her talking."

"Guys please," Terry pleaded, feeling her cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

Miles laughed and slapped Terry on her back. "Did we ever mention that it's very fun to embarrass her as well?" He watched as the Houkago girls chuckled and looked at Terry in amusement.

"Sawa-chan likes to embarrass Terry-san as well," Yui pointed out with a grin. "When we went to the beach over the summer, Sawa-chan forced her to join us in the common bathroom. She actually stripped Terry-san-"

Terry lunged forward and clapped a hand over Yui's mouth to prevent her from finishing. "Enough!" she said, shooting a glare at a laughing Miles and Justine who pretty much understood what had happened. "God… I've been trying my best to forget that, but you just had to remind me about it!"

Justine smirked. "I don't really understand why you're so shy about your body. There's absolutely nothing to be shy about with that body of yours." She saw the college students give nods of agreement, knowing that they had a good look at the very fit body of her friend. "Besides, you're practically almost naked whenever you surf."

Terry looked appalled. "I do not!" she shouted. "I wear a rash guard for crying out loud!"

"There were those times that you surfed just in a bikini," Justine reminded her friend, her blue-gray eyes twinkling in mischief.

Terry let out a huff. "That's different. I was still covered… enough."

Justine shrugged her shoulders and turned to grin at the Houkago girls. "Did she make a fuss when she was bathing with you?"

Ritsu returned the grin. "She did put up a fight when Sawa-chan was stripping her. She gave up in the end and stayed in one corner of the pool."

"You've got to flaunt your body sometimes, you know," Justine murmured, gazing sidelong at the deeply red-faced Terry.

"I doubt you'd be comfortable if you were put in the same situation, Justine," Terry hissed at the model.

"Your doubt is useless then," Justine calmly replied, taking her glass in her hand and bringing it to her lips. "You forget that in my career, I'm frequently exposed to the buck nakedness of my peers." She raised a knowing eyebrow at the Japanese women who sat around her. "Both men and women if you must know," she told them with a sweet smile.

"So you're comfortable with your body then, Justine-san?" Mugi asked.

The raven-haired model chuckled. "More than comfortable," she replied, setting her empty glass on the table. "If I'm ramping, all of us models have to change in a hurry and we usually do that in a common dressing room that's packed with stylists, designers and assistants. You learn to get comfortable with your nakedness and the nakedness of others fast in that situation."

"Good thing you're not like those anorexic-looking models," Miles pointed out. "You're certainly healthier looking than most models you work with."

Justine shrugged. "Why would I want to look like a stick?" she asked, smiling when Mugi and her friends chuckled at her dry remark. "Besides, those stick models tend to be weakly and prone to sickness. I certainly am not interested in putting myself in that situation." She looked up and grinned at a slightly sweaty Kelly who was leading Sawako back to their table. "Had enough of dancing?" she asked him.

Kelly gave them a weak smile and rubbed his bristled chin. "It was getting difficult to keep catching her whenever she lost her balance."

Terry eyed the grinning brunette whose eyeglasses were just about to slip off the tip of her nose. "Sawako… you've been drinking more haven't you?" She looked at the blond-haired Kelly who nodded his head in confirmation. "Just how many more drinks have you had anyway?"

Sawako hiccupped and began to count on her fingers. "Hmmm… I'm pretty sure I've had more than five shots while I was still on the dance floor."

Terry smacked her forehead. "How the hell are you going to get home in that state?" She raised her eyebrows at the older woman. "Did you drive?"

"Yup!"

Justine chuckled at the amusing conversation. It was rather entertaining to watch Terry patiently berate a woman who was older than she was. "Obviously, she won't be able to drive home," she remarked, covering a yawn and glancing at her watch. "God… all that traveling is catching up to me."

Kelly and Miles exchanged looks and nodded to each other. They both got to their feet and turned to address Shannon and the all-girl band. "We should get going. Justine isn't the only one tired from the traveling," Miles said with a kind smile.

Terry also got to her feet and allowed the college students to hug her goodbye. "It was a good show despite the unpleasant surprise I got afterwards," she told them and shot a glare at her former band mates. Turning her attention to her friends, she said, "Shall I call a taxi for the three of you?" She furrowed her eyebrows at the strange looks she received from them. "What? It was an honest question!"

Shannon suddenly cut in. "They didn't tell you?" she demanded.

"Tell me what?" Terry asked, feeling a headache developing. She could pretty much tell that another unpleasant surprise was unraveling.

The live house owner shook her head and half-seriously frowned at the newly arrived tourists. "I would have expected Justine to at least have enough sense to inform you," Shannon remarked with a rueful sigh. "Well I'm certainly not the one who's going to give her the news." She looked expectantly at Miles, Kelly and Justine. While Justine was simply smiling, Kelly was trying hard to look indifferent and Miles was giving off a shaky smile.

"Well?" Terry looked pointedly at her friends.

Miles coughed and cleared his throat. "Actually…" he nervously began. "We figured that we'd keep you company at your place." He held his breath as he watched Terry first blink once then twice. The redhead's eyebrows furrowed when the statement finally registered in her head.

"You're going to stay with me," Terry flatly said. It was more of a statement than a question.

Kelly jumped in to attempt to ease the situation. "You always told us that you were lonely and that if we did come around to visiting, we should stay with you at your condo," he quickly told the bassist. "It would be a fun reunion!"

"Not to mention, we'd be saving a great deal of money since we'll be living with her," Miles added, flinching at the icy glare Terry shot at him.

Shannon jumped in as well to soothe things over. "It'll only be for a couple of months and I doubt they'll be complete freeloaders," she said, glancing at Justine for some help. "Justine will be working of course and I know Miles will be working as well with your business even if he's here in Japan. As for Kelly…" she paused and tried to think of something.

Kelly grinned. "I'll do your housework for you, Terry," he announced, smiling when that at least brought a small smile to Terry's lips. He also turned and smiled at the chuckling Japanese women around him. "What?" he demanded. "Just because I'm a hulking guy doesn't mean I don't know how to do housework! I'm pretty good at it too and this way, I can be sure that Terry is eating properly." He eyed his redheaded friend. "Knowing you, you've been living on takeout and instant food."

Terry shoulders drooped in defeat. "Alright," she decided. "You can stay with me." She rubbed her tired eyes. "Where are your things anyway? We can just grab a taxi or two to take us and your luggage back to my condo."

"They're all in Shannon's office," Justine replied, grabbing both Miles and Kelly by the arm and tugging them towards the office. "We'll go get them."

"Now what am I supposed to do with you?" Terry remarked, looking over at an almost wasted Sawako who was leaning back against the couch and had her eyes closed. "Can any of you take her home?" she asked the Houkago girls who could only shake their heads.

"We commuted here today so we don't have a car or driver to take us back to our apartment," Mio informed both Terry and Shannon. "And we do live in different sides of the city," she added. "We could take her with us, but we decided we'd do the thirty minute walk back to our apartment."

"It would be hard for us to take Sawa-chan," Ritsu admitted.

Terry sighed and looked at Shannon. "How about you? Could you take her home?"

Shannon shook her head. "We're going to stay open for a couple more hours and I have to be here. Besides, I don't drive here, remember?"

It looked like it was up to her to take charge. "I guess I'll have to be the one to take her home then." She looked over at her former band mates when they came over with the luggage. "Let's get a taxi for the three of you."

"Just the three of us?" Justine questioned.

"I have to take Sawako home," Terry told them wearily. She bid quick goodbyes to the Houkago girls and to Shannon then led her friends out of the live house, toting a half passed out Sawako on her shoulder. She flagged down a minivan taxi and helped her friends load their luggage. She then gave her address to the driver and handed her keys to Miles. "Just tell the concierge that you're my friends," she told him then sent them off.

Seating Sawako on a roadside bench, she shuffled through Sawako's handbag and found her car keys. Nudging the teacher to some sense of wakefulness, she asked, "Where did you park your car?" She merely shook her head when Sawako pointed to a black Mazda AZ-Wagon parked across the street then passed out once more. Hauling the teacher to her feet, she wrapped an arm around Sawako's waist and set the teacher's limp arm on her shoulders. She half-dragged and half-carried Sawako across the street and loaded the teacher into the box-type car. After strapping the teacher into the passenger seat, Terry hesitantly got into the driver's seat. She had not tried driving at all in Japan and she wasn't used to the different set-up and rules. Back in America, the steering wheel was on the left side of the car, but here it was on the right side. There was also the fact that the Japanese drove on the opposite side of the road, which made Terry all the more nervous.

She poked the open-mouthed teacher to wake her up once more. "Where do you live?" she asked, rolling her eyes in exasperation when Sawako opened her eyes for a second then closed them again. "So much for that," Terry remarked then noticed that there was a built-in GPS on the dashboard. "Let's see if she has her home as a favorite." She tapped on the screen for a few moments and realized that Sawako had indeed programmed her home address into the system. While the map and directions loaded, Terry looked over shoulder to see if there was any oncoming traffic then eased the car out onto the road. Since it was the early hours of morning, there was relatively no traffic, which made driving easier for her. Still, she didn't get too comfortable behind the wheel, which made the trip longer. Thankfully enough, the GPS led her to the apartment complex Sawako lived in. After parking in the basement, Terry hauled Sawako to the elevator and managed to wake her up long enough to find out what floor and apartment she lived in.

"Sawako… please make things easier for me!" Terry groaned as she lugged the teacher out of the elevator and onto the hall of the fourth floor. Knowing that her lament was unheard, she made her way down the hall and stopped at the door of Sawako's abode. Leaning the teacher against the wall, she once again looked through her friend's handbag and found the keys. Staggering into the dark apartment, Terry fumbled along the wall for the light switch and found it. She blinked her tired eyes as the lights came on, illuminating the simple and somewhat messy abode. Several empty cans of beer littered the low table top and the floor beneath it and books and papers were scattered in the main living area, working its way towards Sawako's small bedroom. "This looks like the apartment of a college student," Terry mused, picking her way through the mess and seating Sawako on the edge of her bed. "Sawako… Sawako!" Terry called out to her friend. "You should change your clothes," she told slightly conscious teacher.

Sawako's lips parted, but no sound came out. She opened her bloodshot hazel eyes and slowly realized that she was in her bedroom. "How did I get here?" she groaned, pressing a hand against her aching head. "My head is killing me."

Terry scowled. "That's what happens when you drink too much," she berated the drunk woman before her. "To answer your question, I brought you home. I drove your car and carried you up here." Terry looked around the room and spotted the closet. "I should leave you to sleep, but I need to make sure you'll be fine." She walked over to the closet and pulled out an oversized shirt she assumed was used for sleeping. "Here," she said, handing the shirt to the teacher. "Change into that and I'll go get you a glass of water." She went into the small kitchen and opened the refrigerator, scowling at the cans of beer inside then pulled out a fresh bottle of water. When she walked back into the bedroom, she could only sigh wearily at Sawako who was trying in vain to reach behind her back to unzip her dress. Putting the bottle on the bedside table, she sat on the bed behind Sawako and took over. "Here! Take your hands away," she ordered in a firm voice. Briskly, she unzipped the dress, hesitating momentarily when the exposed skin of Sawako's back made her realize that the older woman wasn't wearing a bra. Once the dress slipped down to pool around her waist, Terry took the shirt and put it on Sawako. After she disposed the dress in a nearby laundry basket, she then helped Sawako rehydrate herself with the water she brought from the kitchen.

"Good thing there's no school tomorrow," Sawako moaned, allowing Terry to lay her down on her bed and tucking her blankets around her body.

"You mean later," Terry corrected. "It's Sunday already, remember?" She couldn't help but grin when she received a groan in reply. Reaching out with her hand, she gently moved Sawako's hair off her face and let her hand linger on the teacher's cheek. "You're burning up, but I doubt it's because you're getting a fever," she told her. "You should really control your liquor intake. I might not be here the next time around you get this drunk." Impulsively, she leaned in and gently kissed Sawako on her forehead.

Hazel eyes fluttering open, Sawako softly smiled up at Terry as she pulled away. "You're really sweet, you know." She struggled to sit up by pushing herself up with her arms, but she could barely do it due to her tiredness and because Terry was pushing her onto her back. "What would I do without you?" she asked, her hazel eyes clouded. Before Terry could reply, she surged upward and let her lips press against the corner of Terry's lips. Once her head hit the pillow, she passed out once and for all.

Terry was shocked at the sudden act of affection and didn't know what to make of it until she firmly told herself that Sawako was just drunk and probably did it on alcohol-fueled impulse. Still, she was unnerved with what just happened. Finding no more reason to stay longer, she pulled the blankets up to cover Sawako's body then showed herself out. In the humid darkness, Terry flagged down a passing taxi, her mind already set on dealing with her former band mates who were going to live with her for the next few months.