CHAPTER 10
Takuto POV:
There she was, standing in front of me, her long dark hair and porcelain skin just as I remembered them. But everything else had shifted into womanhood. She was looking at me with a sad look in her shinning brown eyes. But then that sadness quickly turned into anger and before I knew what was happening she was slapping the cigarette from my hands and yelling at me,
"YOU JERK!"
"Ouch! Geez, what was that for?!" I yelled back appalled and confused.
"How can you be smoking at an anti-cancer event? Don't you know that smoking can cause lung cancer? Since when do you smoke anyway?!" she scolded me with her hands in fists at her sides now.
"Stupid, I knew that! It's none of your business anyway! I smoke all the time and I'm just fine!" I lied. I actually never smoked. But I was feeling pretty crappy tonight and when some guy saw me looking gloomy he offered me a Cigarette and I took it without thinking. And dang, I didn't think she'd find me in this hallway when I'd specifically come here to hide! I wanted to push her away so she wouldn't see how hurt I was.
"You're the one who's stupid! If you know that, then don't take the risk!" She huffed in annoyance.
"…Fine. I won't smoke anymore, happy?" I said as I stomped the fallen cigarette on the ground.
"Yes! Thank you..." She seemed to wind down, no longer having much to say.
"… This is not at all how I imagined meeting you again, I'm sorry." I said with a sigh.
"Yeah, me either… I'm sorry, too." She said bashful and awkward. I got closer to her, feeling the urge to hug her but held back. Instead I blurted out,
"How is everyone, you know, Wakaoji and all?"
"Oh they're all great! He and Ooshige are having a baby soon and Grandma and Tanaka are fine, too…" She quickly replied as she looked up at me.
"That's great! I'm glad to hear it." I said with a half-smile.
"How is the band?" she asked cautiously.
"Oh, they're great guys. We went on a national tour recently and it went really well!" I said enthused as I slipped my hands in my pockets to keep them from reaching out to her.
"That's wonderful! I really like my group members, too. Everyone is so fun… I'm working on booking a regional tour for now. Hopefully I will get to be as good as Takuto someday!" she said this last part with blushing cheeks and looking me straight in the eye. It made me blush, too. She was so cute and I was surprised she was admiring me that way. I had to look away from her or else I really might show my true feelings. "You'll do just fine, Mitsuki." I said as I gently bonked her on the head and started walking past her to make my escape. Once I was a few strides away she called me,
"Takuto, wait!" I stopped in my tracks and composed my poker face before I turned to look back at her. "Would you like to get a coffee sometime?" she asked. I blinked in puzzlement wondering, Is that really alright? Won't her boyfriend have a problem with this?
"I mean, it's about time us old friends catch up, right?!" she said lightheartedly with her sunny smile. Oh. I've been 'old friend'-zoned.
"Uh, Sure! Let's exchange numbers…" After we entered each other's contact information in our cells she said,
"Great! Then I'll text you sometime!"
"Yeah… I'll see ya around!" I said with a small smile and walked away from her once again.
On the way home from the concert I kept thinking about her, I couldn't get her out of my head. I wanted to have her in my arms and make her mine. I'd missed her smile, her laugh, her smell… I decided I no longer cared that she had a boyfriend. I needed to be with her, and I knew she needed to be with me, too. Maybe that was selfish; maybe I should be a bigger man and let her be happy with that guy she chose. But I couldn't. It pissed me off every time I thought of that kiss she shared with him. I had to try to win her back. I made my resolution; if she reallydoesn't love me at all anymore, I will let her go.
Mitsuki POV:
It had been a few days since the concert and since I'd seen Takuto. I was sitting on my bed in my room at home, staring at my phone in my hands as I selected and un-selected Takuto's number on my caller ID. I said I'd call or text him sometime, but I was too nervous. What if he doesn't pick up cause he's with his girlfriend? What if his girlfriend gets mad and thinks I'm after him? I knew I still loved him, but I had no intention of being "the other woman" or "man stealing". I kept rehearsing in my head and out loud to myself what I would say, "Hey Takuto! What's up?" no, that sounds too casual. "Hello Takuto, how are you today?" ugh, too formal. "Hiii Takutooo!" uh, no, that's too eager and obnoxious… I was definitely over-thinking it. Ok, I'd just be myself!
Hi Takuto! Would you be free to get coffee on Friday after work? I sent the text with a racing heart and holding my breath. I buried my face into my pillow to cool down my hot skin. Suddenly my ringtone went off and I jumped back up startled. Did he text me back already!? But when I looked at the caller ID I saw an unknown number. The phone kept screeching in my hand. I realized it was a phone call. I picked it up tentatively, "Hello?"
"Lady-chan! Say, what are you up tonight?" It was Helios Grey again.
"How did you get my number?!"
"I have my ways. Anyway, you didn't answer my question. What are you up to?" He insisted.
"That's none of your business!" I scolded him.
"Tsk, tsk, Lady-chan! You're being quite rude to a gentleman who only wants to treat you to a good time, how shameful!" he teased.
"I'm gonna hang up now." I said with a sigh.
"No, wait!"
"What is it?" I asked in annoyance.
"…Just, give me a chance to show you… that I am worth your time." He said more sincerely. I stayed silent for a moment, surprised at his sudden seriousness. My instinct would normally be to reject any guy that asked me out because I'd been waiting for Takuto… But then an image of that girl kissing him at the club came to my mind. That's right, our vow doesn't matter any more. And Helios seems to genuinely like me… so why not give him a chance?
"Oh, alright-"
"Really?! Great! Meet me outside the studio at 7pm. See ya then, Lady-chan!" he said before I could say anything more.
I'm gonna regret this… I thought to myself.
Meroko POV:
"Oh no, no, no, no, NO! Mitsuki can't date that Helios guy! Something is definitely fishy around here…" I said to myself as I looked at my little pink Guardian Angel Handbook. I was a keeper of fate and according to my plans for Takuto and Mitsuki, my favorite pair of human soul mates, Helios was a problem. Whenever a person met someone they weren't supposed to, their fate became uncertain. I looked at the list of human names and summoned Mitsuki Koyama and Takuto Kira. Their names, which were previously in gold ink, were now a dull gray color. This was the first time this happened, and according to the handbook it meant their fates were changing from their original settings. That is, they were not following the path God had intended for them. They might not end up together!
"Find Helios Grey" I summoned the name but it was not registered at all! "That's super weird, I know it's his show name but it's supposed to show up anyway…" This Helios guy was not an ordinary human. I looked down at Mitsuki and Helios from above, watching for anything that might reveal who-or what-Helios Grey really might be.