The rest of the week seemed to drag by. No other incidents had happened the rest of the week, leaving Karina stuck at school, having to actually do her work. On Thursday night, she had decided to escape to the bar where she worked, needing a source of release. Through her texts back and forth to Kotetsu, she had mentioned where she was planning on being for the night.
"What are you up to tonight?" Kotetsu had asked her. "I'm singing at the bar. I need to get out of my house." She sighed, looking at the text. "Sounds like fun. Are we still on for tomorrow night?" Kotetsu's question about the next night had made the hairs on her neck stand up, her body tingling with excitement. "Depends." She giggled, knowing that would bother him. "Depends? Karina-chan...don't be mean. ." She burst out laughing. "Relax. We're still on. I'll see you at my house around 7:30?" Her heart began to beat faster, hoping that she hadn't gotten the time wrong, or had pushed him too far. "7:30. Enjoy your night singing. :-*" She giggled when the kiss emoticon came up on her phone. She didn't bother replying, figuring he wanted to have the last word.
Part of her had hoped that he would show up to watch her sing, but then another part of her hoped he wouldn't show up. To sing without knowing he was there was a lot easier than thinking that he may be there. She put her phone down and began to get ready, wanting to look her best not because of him or the thought of him showing up, but because she enjoyed dressing up.
She walked out and sat at the piano, introducing herself. She had begun to sing a fun, peppy song to warm up the crowd. Turning her head out towards the patrons, she saw that not only was Kotetsu sitting out in the crowd, but his partner was sitting there with him. Catching Barnaby's eye, she felt her heart clench in her chest, but made sure to keep her face as it had been before, turning back to look at the open grand piano.
"Ojii-san, is that...?" Barnaby asked, shaking his head. "No, it couldn't be. She's too young to sing here."
Kotetsu blushed, grateful that the club was dark. "If you're wondering if that's Blue Rose, you'd be correct. And she's been singing here for a couple of years. Obviously they don't care if she's old enough or not."
Karina kept singing, trying to make her nerves calm down. She always hated singing in front of people she knew. It didn't bother her that Barnaby was there. Hell, all the Heroes could be there and she wouldn't care. Except for Kotetsu. It had never bothered her before when he would show up, but now...now that things were a little bit different between the two of them, she became completely self-conscious. She closed her eyes, just allowing the music to flow through her, instead of her racing mind telling her to look back over at the two of them.
"Do you watch her sing often?" Barnaby said, sipping his tonic water. Kotetsu picked up his soju, the ice clinking against the sides of his glass.
Taking a sip of his drink, Kotetsu shrugged. "I've been known to come here with Antonio, if that's what you're asking." He kept his eyes on Karina, listening to the way the words escaped her throat, loving how her soft and pure her voice was.
"So why did you bring me?" Barnaby said, watching her.
Kotetsu turned and looked at him. "You wanted to hang out tonight. She sent out a text to all of us letting us know she was singing here tonight, so I thought it would be nice to go and support her."
"I didn't receive a text." Barnaby reached into his leather jacket and pulled out his phone, flipping it open. "No, I don't see anything at all from her."
Groaning, Kotetsu pulled out his phone. "I swear she sent it to everyone. I don't know why you're not on there, Bunny." He knew that he was lying, but there wasn't anything to stop it. He hoped that if Barnaby brought it up to her, she'd go along with it. He sipped more of his drink before putting his phone back into his pocket, not wanting his partner to see the other texts that he had exchanged with the singer up on the stage. Who, as luck would have it, seemed to be finished with her first set. Setting his drink down on their small table, he began to join the other patrons in applauding her.
She walked off the stage and made her way to the bar, grabbing a glass of ice water from the bar tender. Looking over at the two Heroes, she took a deep breath and wandered over to their table. "Hi boys. Nice to see a couple of familiar faces out there tonight." She sat down in a chair, her back to the stage.
"Thanks for inviting us!" Kotetsu said before Barnaby could say anything. "Sorry that there aren't more of us here." He looked into her eyes, begging her to go along with what he was saying rather than question him. Her eyes widened briefly before going back to their normal size, nodding her head in agreement.
"I figured it would be nice to invite you all out to see me sing, rather than just see 'Blue Rose' sing." Karina blushed, looking at the table. "Have you two been here for long?"
"We watched your whole set," Barnaby said, picking up his tonic water. "I must say, you have a very lovely voice, Miss Lyle."
Blushing, she looked him in the eyes. "You don't have to be so formal. You can call me by my Hero name, or just call me Karina."
"Karina, then." Barnaby said, raising his glass. "To your beautiful voice."
She raised her glass up, clinking it against the blonde's. "Arigato."
Watching the two of them, Kotetsu was silently fuming. What gives? Why does he get to call her that and I can't? He finished his drink and held it up, rattling the ice in his glass to get the waitress' attention. She quickly came over and took the empty glass from him, promising to bring him back another. "Make it a double," he said to her, grumbling softly.
"Are you alright, Ojii-san?" Barnaby asked, looking at him as he pushed his glasses back up on his nose. "You seem to have become...volatile."
"Hah!" Kotetsu shook his head, grinning. "What? Me? Volatile? No, I'm fine, Bunny-chan." He bit his lower lip as he felt Karina's hand suddenly on his thigh. He sat back in his seat and adjusted his newsboy cap. "So, Blue Rose - are you doing another set soon?"
She let her fingers play upon his leg while she thought of her answer. "I am, but I don't have to be back up on the stage for another fifteen minutes. I like that they don't pressure me too much to get back up there. They allow me to rest my voice for a little bit." She gave a gentle squeeze, watching his reaction.
"O-Oh...That's good." Kotetsu groaned, her hand beginning to wander up further. He sat up straight in his chair and scooted closer to the table, not allowing anyone to see what was happening.
Barnaby narrowed his eyes briefly, then looked back at Karina. "Isn't tonight a school night? It's Thursday, yes?"
"It is," Karina nodded her head. "However, our school is only open for a half day tomorrow. I told my parents I was coming here. I just needed to get out of the house. I mean," she lowered her voice, "we haven't been called out for anything since that heist a few days ago." Her fingers had some how found their way between Kotetsu's legs, brushing against the small mound that was there.
The waitress set down Kotetsu's drink, which he quickly grabbed and took a large sip from before embarrassing himself by moaning at what the young vixen next to him was doing to his body. He swallowed the drink, closing his eyes as he let the alcohol burn down his throat. He opened his eyes when she removed her hand from his arousal.
"It is rather odd that it's been quiet," Barnaby nodded his head. "But I'm glad to hear that you have another way of releasing your energy. It would be good if Kotetsu could do that as well."
Kotetsu choked on the ice he was chewing on. "What? What's that supposed to mean, Bunny?"
"That you need to find a way to release your stress. You don't have a girlfriend. You don't have a hobby you actively participate in. You sit at home and reminisce about the golden days. You need to get out more." Barnaby set his tonic water down.
Before Kotetsu or Karina would say anything to defend Kotetsu, a petite woman came over to their table. "Excuse me...but...are you Barnaby Brooks, Jr?" She asked, her voice high pitched and nasally.
"I am," Barnaby said, nodding his head. "Why do you ask?"
The girl started to squeal and bounce up and down. "Ooh! Would you mind signing this for me? You're my favorite hero!"
He took the offered magazine, the newest edition of 'Hero Monthly', which had him in his pink mech suit. "I would not mind at all."
As Barnaby was busy talking to the rabid fan, Karina turned and spoke quietly to Kotetsu. "So, you don't have a girlfriend? Color me surprised."
"Karina-chan," Kotetsu's voice carried the soft whine, even though his voice was barely above a whisper. "I figured I was going to make it official tomorrow night when we go out!"
She glared at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're lying. All we're doing is just going back and forth with dirty texts, and thrilling adventures in vans and elevators this past week."
"I'm not!" Kotetsu said, taking off his cap. "And besides, are you telling me you haven't been enjoying that?"
Feeling a blush creep up onto her face, she pushed her chair back. "I'll come back and see you two after my final set." She finished her glass of water and walked back over to the stage, not bothering to give Kotetsu an answer. They both knew that she had and was thoroughly enjoying what they were doing, even if she was too shy or scared to admit it. She saw that the annoying girl had left Barnaby's side just as she was walking up the stage. Sitting down at the piano, the bartender lowered the music from the jukebox, letting her have everyone's ear, should they want to listen. She began her set with another peppy number, focusing on the keys of the keyboard, rather than on the man she knew was watching her every move.
"She seems a little off," Barnaby said, tilting his head. "I don't know what it is, but she's definitely in a different mood than she was before."
Putting his cap back on his head, Kotetsu shrugged. "I'm sure she's fine. Did you want to stick around until the end of her set?" He finished the double shot of soju, and set his glass back on the table. "It doesn't matter to me, Bunny-chan."
"I would like to stay, if that's alright? I enjoy listening to her sing." Barnaby nodded, watching her. Kotetsu felt his heart twist as he looked at Barnaby watching her. Am I jealous? Is that what this pain is? But...why would I be jealous? She's doing things with me, not him. Wait. Maybe it's because they're closer in age. Maybe she would rather be with him than me. Huh. I always figured he was not into girls, but maybe that's not the case. What if I don't ask her to be my girlfriend tomorrow? Will she go and flock to his arms instead? Will she use her newly discovered sexual prowess and use it on him?
He stood up quickly, almost knocking over his chair in the process. "Ojii-san?" Barnaby asked, an eyebrow raised up in question. He shook his head and dashed to the bathroom, ignoring the looks he knew he was getting from his partner. He walked into the bathroom and checked the stalls. Once he saw that he was alone in there, he locked the door.
Karina kept singing, but was constantly aware of what her lover was doing. She saw him stand up quickly after Barnaby had said something to him. What could he have said? She shook her head with the appropriate lyric, and kept on with her performance. Karina wanted to just jump off the stage and run after him, but after Barnaby's quip about him not having a girlfriend, she knew she was in no place to do just that.
In the bathroom, Kotetsu was becoming more and more agitated at himself, tricking himself into believing that Barnaby was secretly lusting after the girl up on the stage, rather than being in love with someone else. He didn't know why it was bothering him so much. Perhaps because you know what you'd lose if she left you for him? Admit it, you really do like her. He grumbled at his inner monologue, hating that what his head was telling him was exactly what his heart was saying. He hadn't been lying to her when he had said he was going to ask her to be his girlfriend tomorrow. As the week had gone on, he had become used to her flirty texts back and forth with him. She was all he thought about 99% of the day. The other 1% was left for work and other mundane things in his life.
Looking at himself in the mirror, he saw an old, pathetic man. Ojii-san, indeed. How can she even think I'm cute? He ran his right hand over his chin, feeling the short stubble rub against his skin. He sighed, more and more doubts filling his head. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to push all the negative thoughts aside. He walked over to the door and unlocked it, heading back out into the bar. He heard people applauding, signaling that it was the end of Karina's set for the night. Taking off his cap once more, he ran a hand through his hair, unsure of what was about to happen. He watched as she walked off the stage and walked back over to the table they had been sitting at. Now, it was just Barnaby.
"Where'd he go?" Karina asked, sitting back down at the table. "He didn't leave, did he?"
Barnaby shook his head. "No, I don't think so. We rode together on our bikes, so I would assume he is still here." He turned around, his blonde hair flipping over his shoulder. "Ah, there he is."
Kotetsu walked back over to the table. "Sorry I missed your last set, Blue Rose." He plopped his cap back on his head as he sat back down at the table. "I wasn't feeling so well."
"Oh? Are you alright?" Her voice was laced with concern, making his heart hammer louder in his chest. "Did you need some medicine?" She picked up her purse and began to rifle through its contents.
The older man chuckled. "No, it's fine. Are you heading home now? Or did you have another set?"
"No, I'm done for the night. My ride should be here in a few minutes." Karina said, nodding. She looked at Barnaby. "It was nice of you to come tonight. I hope you enjoyed it." She gave him a small smile, Kotetsu's thoughts instantly turning to horrible scenarios in his mind. Scenarios of the two of them in throes of passion, moaning as they moved together. He closed his eyes and shook his head, trying to clear his mind once more. "I guess I'll see you two later?" She looked him in the eye, hoping that that goodbye would be enough for him.
"See you," Kotetsu said, nodding his head. He gave her his own soft smile, hoping that he wasn't acting like too much of ass as he was feeling. He watched her walk to the front door and out of the building. He looked over at Barnaby and saw him staring at him. "What?" The tone of his voice was sharp, making him groan at himself. "Sorry, Bunny-chan."
Barnaby shook his head and stood up. "It's fine. Are you ready to go home now, Ojii-san?"
"I suppose so."
The ride back to her house was a quiet one. Karina's mother was babbling on about the dinner date she had just had with some of her girlfriends. She kept her phone in her hands, wondering when Kotetsu was going to text her. She wanted to send him a text, but didn't want him to be in a situation with Barnaby, and he somehow got into trouble. Karina was always terrified that she was going to say the wrong thing at the wrong time, or interrupt him while he was with his daughter or busy doing some adult thing.
"Are you listening to me, Karina?" Her mother asked her as they pulled into their driveway.
Putting her phone back in her purse, Karina nodded. "Of course, Mother. I'm sorry. I was just thinking about my last set. That's all. Sounds like the night wasn't as fantastic for you either, huh?"
"Are you sure you're okay, sweetie?" Her mother touched her forehead. "Oh, you're a little bit warm. Why don't you go get into bed? I'll bring you up a nice warm glass of milk."
She stepped into her house and gave a small nod. "That sounds nice. Thank you. I think I'm just tired. It's been a long week." A very long week. Hopefully to be followed by a very nice, relaxing weekend. She walked up the small flight of stairs and wandered into her bedroom. She took her phone out of her purse and flopped down on her bed, staring at its blank screen, seeing no flashing light at the top. Still no texts. Why do I even care?
Across town, Barnaby was trying to get Kotetsu to stay at his apartment by luring him with liquor. As much as it sounded wonderful, Kotetsu kept refusing him politely. "Thank you, Bunny-chan, but I'm extremely tired right now. I still don't feel good. Whatever I ate before we went to the club has really upset my stomach. I think I'm just going to head home." He could feel the weight of his phone in his pant pocket, a constant reminder that no one was texting him.
"Fine. But you owe me a night of drinking, Kotetsu." Barnaby's words were a tad slurred, as he had begun to drink the offered beer. Barnaby never liked drinking out in public, said it would 'ruin the image that people have of me'. Kotetsu never bothered to bug him about it. If that was what the man wanted to do, he would respect it. "Go. I can tell you don't want to be here anyway."
Kotetsu walked over to the front door. "It's not that I don't want to drink with you, Bunny. It's just that I'm super tired and don't feel good at all. I'll see you tomorrow at work?"
"Hai," Barnaby was already engrossed in something he was reading on his computer, paying him no more attention. Kotetsu slipped out of the apartment and made his way to the elevator.
He pulled his phone out of his pant pocket and saw that there were no texts still. Grumbling to himself, he slid his phone to be in an unlocked position and brought up the last text he had received from Karina. Five hours ago. Really? Five hours? He sighed, hating that he wasn't being texted by her. He pulled up his keyboard and began to type.
Her mother had just left her room when Karina's phone vibrated. Her heart began to beat faster, her pulse beginning to quicken as she picked up her phone. She let out a loud sigh of relief and sank back into her pillows as she read the text. "Why haven't you texted me yet?" She giggled at how demanding he sounded, even over a text.
"I didn't want to bother you. I don't know what you do, Kotetsu. I just wait for you to text me, that way I know it's safe."
Kotetsu slapped his hand against his forehead, understanding dawning. "That makes perfect sense. Then I apologize for my rudeness. We're still on for tomorrow night, yes?"
"Of course we are. I've been looking forward to it all week. You'll be coming to my house to pick me up, yes?"
He walked out to his bike. "What about your parents? How are you going to introduce me?"
"They won't be home. I'll introduce you after I turn 18."
He barked out a laugh, a simple euphoria racing through his body. "Probably a wise idea. Alright. Then I'll see you at 7:30?"
"7:30. Good night, Kotetsu. Sweet dreams."
Sitting down on his bike, he sent her one last text. "If you're in them, they'll be more than sweet. I'll see you tomorrow. :-*"
She sighed softly as she set her phone down. Turning off her bedside lamp, she closed her eyes. Karina felt a lot better, now that he had finally reached out to her. She hoped that sleep would claim her fast.
…
"You want me to lie again?" Emily asked her after their classed ended for the day. "Karina-chan...are you going to go out with that same man again?"
Karina had never told either of her friends what, or who, she had gone out with earlier in the week, and had only asked them to cover for her. She shook her head as she looked at her friend. "I'm not going out with any guy. I'm just going out and doing things on my own."
"And that's why you need her to lie. Right." Jane said, shaking her head. "Just tell us you're going out with a boy. It makes it sound so much cooler."
She rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'm going out with a boy. And we're going away somewhere tonight, so I need you to cover for me today, as well as most of the day tomorrow. I've told my parents I'll be back home late tomorrow night." She looked at both of her friends. "Please...if I send you a text tomorrow saying I'll be telling my parents I'm staying the night again, just go with it. I'll buy you both something awesome. I promise."
Karina really didn't know what was going to happen this weekend, but she wanted to be ready for anything. She figured if she told her friends that there was a possibility of it extending to more than just one night, she'd rather they be clued in than surprised.
"It's fine," Emily said. "Just be safe, okay? We don't want you getting all pregnant and stuff."
Blushing deeply, Karina shook her head. "No, no. It's not like that. But, thank you for your concern. I'll be sure to be safe." She gave both her friends tight hugs. "You both are the best girlfriends anyone could have. Thank you."
"You better text us and let us know what's going on. We want full details." Jane said, smirking.
She began to walk over to her mother's car. "Of course!" She opened the car door. "See you guys later tonight!" She waved her hand and got into the car.
"How was school, sweetie?" Her mother asked as she drove off into traffic.
Holding her book bag on her lap, Karina shrugged. "I'm glad it's the weekend?"
"Me too. Your father and I will be leaving right when I get you home. You'll be staying at Emily's tonight?" Her mother looked at the road, not bothering to look at her.
She nodded her head. "Hai. And okay. I hope you guys have fun. Hey, mom? If we're having lots of fun, would it be okay if I stayed another night?"
"Sure, honey. That's fine with me. I doubt your father would care." They pulled up into their driveway. Her dad was already waiting out front with two suitcases. Karina got out of the car after giving her mother a kiss on the cheek. She did the same to her dad as he swapped places with her in the car.
"Have fun, kitten!" Her dad said, tossing the bags into the backseat of the car. "Don't do anything wild and crazy, okay?" He sat in the car. "You know where to reach us if anything should come up."
She smiled and gave a small nod of her head. "Yes, dad. Don't worry. You two go and have fun. I'll see you later." She waved goodbye to the both of them and watched as they drove off down the street.
Heading into the house, she set her book bag down on the ground. She didn't feel like dragging it up to her bedroom. She opted for just heading upstairs. Going into her room, she opened her closet and saw the dress that she had bought after school on Wednesday. It was a light pink dress, which accentuated all the right parts of her body. She pulled it out and laid it down on the bed, grabbing her pair of white high-heeled sandals. The weather was warm outside, and wasn't expected to go very low. Over by her door was the overnight bag she had packed, having packed enough clean clothes for two nights away, if necessary. Grabbing her towel, she headed into her bathroom.
After taking a long, hot shower, Karina began to dry her hair. Going through the motions, making sure that every piece of her hair cooperated with her in the way she wanted it to, she set her hair into hot rollers. She began to put on some make-up, making sure to draw attention to her eyes. She loved it when Kotetsu looked her in the eyes. Hell, she loved everything about it.
She finished getting ready, pulling the rollers out of her hair. Her long hair fell into soft waves around her shoulders, framing her face nicely. She took out her new pink lace bra and panty set from the sexy undergarment store and slipped them on her body. Picking up her slip, she pulled it over her head, and then put her dress on last. Smoothing it out, she took a look at herself in her mirror, pleased with the innocence, yet a small degree of sexiness, that the dress seemed to give her. She slipped on her heels and grabbed her overnight bag and purse, and headed by down to her living room.
At precisely 7:29, the doorbell rang in her house. Standing up, she walked over to the door. "Who is it?" She said, just wanting to be safe.
"I hope you know who it is." The timbre of Kotetsu's voice made chills race up her spine. She opened the door and stood to the side.
"Of course I know who you are." She let out a soft, nervous giggle. She gasped as Kotetsu handed her a bouquet of roses. "Flowers?" She squealed, deliriously happy that he had bought flowers for her.
Kotetsu nodded and grinned. "Nothing but the best for you." He looked her over. "My goodness, Karina. You look stunningly radiant in that dress."
"Arigato." She sniffed her flowers and smiled. "Let me go put these in water, and then we can go, alright?"
Kotetsu stepped into the house and closed the door. "Sounds good to me. I hope you like them."
"Oh, I do. These are absolutely perfect. I've never received flowers before!" She giggled and walked into the kitchen. She grabbed a vase and filled it halfway with water, before sticking the bouquet in it. She fluffed the flowers out and left it sitting on the counter. She smiled at Kotetsu. "Thank you so much. Really."
He walked over to her and placed a soft kiss on the side of her face. "Thank you for gracing me with your presence tonight. Are you ready to go?"
"I am," she replied breathlessly. She walked over to the front door and picked up her overnight bag and her purse. "I hope there's a car?"
"There is, indeed." Kotetsu took the overnight bag from her hand. "Let's go." He opened the front door and began to walk to the car that was parked in front of her house.
She took her key and locked up, the butterflies in her stomach beginning to flutter around faster and faster. "Yes, let's." She took a deep breath and made her way to the car.
…
A/N: Karina sure likes to be prepared. Up next - date night. And then some. ^_^ Thanks for reading!
