Disclaimer: I don't own Shugo Chara
Chapter Ten
"Amu, wake up," a low voice whispered in my ears.
Slowly prying my eyes open, I came face to face with Ikuto. I yelped in surprise. Ikuto snickered as I glared at him. Annoyed, I stood up and continued to glare at the boy sitting on my blankets.
"Ikuto, what are you doing?!" I exclaimed hotly.
"Just waking you up Amu," he said and smirked.
"Couldn't you have shaken me or something?" I asked with a light blush coating my cheeks.
Ikuto just merely yawned in response and laid down on my pillows. Sighing, I walked away from the perverted cat and headed to the bathroom. While showering, I thought about Karin and her brother. It seemed that Ren hated me now for some odd reason while Karin is getting friendlier. Dismissing the thoughts, I turned off the water and stepped out into the soft carpet of the bathroom. I tied my hair into a pony tail and went downstairs to get breakfast.
"Good morning onee-chan!" Ami smiled brightly.
"Morning Ami," I replied with a smile of my own.
Mom had an errand today so she wasn't home. Dad was out taking some more pictures for his job so that left me to make breakfast. I quickly made toast and scrambled eggs. It tasted a little bit too salty but at least it was edible. After breakfast, I told Ami I was going somewhere and that she shouldn't open doors for strangers.
"Alright onee-chan," Ami said.
"Okay, I'm going now, bye Ami," I waved and closed the front door.
After making sure the door was safely locked, I made my way to the train station. It was going to take a while before I'm at the S. Hall so might as well find somewhere to sit. Finding myself a comfy seat, I sat down next to a sleeping guy. I sat there for about five minutes before a felt a soft tap on my shoulder.
"Excuse me, that seat is taken," a girl said.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" I exclaimed and stood up.
The girl smiled sheepishly and sat down next to the sleeping guy. She had dark brown hair and pretty blue eyes. She reminded me of somebody but I couldn't pinpoint it. I sighed in embarrassment and walked towards the train doors. Deciding to stand instead, I grabbed hold of the railing and watched the city go by. After about twenty minutes or so, the train finally stopped at Mikaya Ayukiba, the central city of music.
"Arriving at Mikaya Ayukiba, please exit safely," the train conductor announced through the loudspeakers.
As I got off the train, I noticed a guy standing by a limo. He had on a black suit and was looking around a lot. As soon as he noticed me, the guy bowed and waved me over. Hesitantly, I began to approach the limo. He bowed once more and opened the passenger door for me. Surprised, I didn't move a muscle. The man must have noticed my discomfort and confusion because he smiled at me.
"Miss Hoshina had requested that you be brought to the Starlight Hall of Recording by car," the man said politely.
"Um...can't I just walked?" I asked.
"I'm afraid not Miss Hinamori, this is a direct order from Miss Hoshina," the man answered.
"Can't you tell me your name at least?" I inquired, I didn't want to get into a car with a stranger.
"My name is Eric, I will be your chauffeur today Miss Hinamori," the man introduced himself and smiled once more.
"O-okay," I blushed a bit and got slid into the black leather seating.
Eric closed the door quietly and walked to the driver's door. He quickly started the engine and we drove away from the bustling train station. As we were on the streets, I realized why Utau had sent me a chauffeur. Mikaya Ayukiba was like a maze. It was also crowded with people walking from one place to another. I would've gotten lost within the crowd and never made it to the S. Hall in time. It was a while before we stopped in front of a skyscraper. It was made of plexiglass and elegantly painted in the front was the words "Starlight Recording Industries".
"Miss Hinamori, we're here," Eric said and opened the door.
"T-thank you," I replied and stepped out into the sunny streets.
It was hotter than expected, probably because of all the body heat compressed into the city. I was amazed. Even though I had seen the S. Hall through pictures before, seeing it in real life was stunning. Eric escorted me to the front desk and left to park the giant limo.
"Good morning, how may I help you?" A receptionist asked.
"I'm Amu Hinamori," I said to her.
The receptionist smiled and typed something on her computer. After a few moments, she nodded and looked up at me again.
"Miss Hoshina is on the 23rd floor in the Starlight Hall of Recording," the receptionist smiled brightly.
"Thank you," I replied and walked towards the elevators.
As I waited, the girl I saw on the train came up next to me. I looked at her through the corners of my eyes. With closer inspection, I noticed she had a birthmark on the side of her neck. It was in the shape of a smudged star. I didn't get to observe anymore because the elevator had already arrived. Both of boarded and I pressed the button leading to the 23rd floor. I noticed the girl had pressed the button for the 22nd floor.
"Um, excuse me, are you a guitarist?" I asked with a hint of wonderment, I remembered Utau telling me the 22nd floor was dedicated to guitar practices.
The girl seemed surprised that I spoke to her. She nodded her head timidly and refused to say anything more. I shrugged and waited until the elevator stopped. The girl got out first and it was just me alone in the small elevator. When the door slid open to reveal the 23rd floor, I saw a recording room. It was really professional too, it was filled with music equipments and cameramen running about.
"Hey Utau," I smiled as I came to greet the blond sitting by the dressing rooms.
"You barely made it on time Amu, 7:59," Utau tapped her wristwatch.
"Sorry," I smiled sheepishly.
"Whatever, we have to stretch before getting into our costumes, c'mon," Utau dragged me by the arm.
We crossed the studio and entered the small gym in the back. It was just like a regular room except for the mirrors lining the walls and the floor painted to look like wood. The word "GYM" was plastered by the door as Utau slammed it shut.
"Alright, this is your first music video so you must be psyched, but don't be making trouble either!" Utau warned.
Utau lectured me on the importance of acting like a professional while I stretched. She went over the basic like "don't complain" and "follow instructions". I kept saying okay's to the things Utau was teaching me, it was like being in kindergarden again where they taught you manners.
"Alright, let's get changed," Utau clapped her hands.
I stood up and did my final stretch. We walked put of the gym back to the dressing studio. Utau knocked once but nobody came out to unlock the door. Utau knocked again, louder this time. When nobody came to answer, Utau pounded her fist against the gray door.
"People these days," Utau grumbled and tried to turn the knob which was usually locked.
The golden doorknob twisted easily in Utau's grasp. Surprised, Utau pushed open the door to find a pitch black room. That's weird, don't people usually leave the lights on even if they're taking a five minute break? Seemingly suspicious, Utau flicked on the lights and was meet with an impossible sight.
"Oh my god...," she trailed off at the sight before her.
I was too speechless to say anything. Lying in front of us was chaos. The floor was littered with make up products, the chairs all broken, the wall mirrors cracked, clothes were ripped, and the walls graffitied with the words "LOSERS!" In bold red letters. With a horrified glance, I noticed my dress lying in the corner, stuffed in a trash bin and scorched black. The backstage dressing room was trashed.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Utau demanded angrily.
I was still shocked over what I just saw. Was this even legal? Utau would say this was vandalism at the least. Utau yelled for the person in charge of the dressing room. A woman in her mid twenties came rushing towards us, one hand carrying an envelope. The woman seemed out of breath, of course, she just ran here.
"Angela, what is the meaning of this mess?!" Utau exclaimed.
"I-I don't know Miss Hoshina, I was called to the lobby to receive something," the woman named Angela said, a horrified look struck her as she noticed the room.
"What was so important that you would leave the dressing room?" Utau said hotly.
"The receptionist told me the letter was for you and...," Angela stopped speaking to catch her breath.
"What letter?" Utau asked skeptically with a hint io anger still lingering in her voice.
"I don't know, I was just told to come retrieve it," Angela explained.
"Hand it over," Utau extended her arm.
Angela quickly placed the stark white envelope into Utau's waiting hand. She had began to breath normally again. Utau ripped open the side and pulled out a piece of paper. Anger seemed to overtake her again as she crumpled up the paper and the envelope. Utau then smushed it into a tight ball and threw it in the nearby garbage can.
"Shooting is canceled for today, all of you, go home!" Utau yelled to everyone in the studio.
Everyone else stared at Utau like she was crazy. She had made them woke up early and went halfway through town just so they could be dismissed thirty minutes after they arrived. I also looked at Utau like she was nuts, what was going on? The look on Utau's angry face sent everyone packing. I was dazed and confused, what was written in that letter?
"Amu, go home for now, we'll talk about the next shooting later, and don't come after school for dance practices until I tell you to come," Utau said to me calmly.
"Why?" I asked in surprise.
"Just go home for now, I'm going to change back in one of the other dressing rooms," Utau sighed and walked down the hall.
"I'm sorry Miss Hinamori," Angela apologized.
"It's fine," I smiled and waved away the unneeded apology, it wasn't her that trashed the dressing room so she had nothing to apologize for.
Angela smiled gratefully and dashed off after Utau. It was just me alone in the studio. I walked to the trash bin Utau had thrown the letter into. It was filled with a paper, probably from the scripts everyone was suppose to follow for the music video. I saw the letter right away because it was marked with a bright pink stamp. Unfolding the crumpled letter, I saw multiple colors. It was magazine articles taped to a white piece of construction paper. It wasn't articles exactly, just random letters cut out. I was shocked to see what those letters formed. On the paper were four letters that could make either your heart run hot with anger or cold with dread.
"Die you stupid bitch!" It read in pink, white, blue, and yellow letters.
"Utau...," I murmured worriedly.
I was afraid whoever wrote this was going to face hell. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, messes with Utau and gets away with it. War was going to break loose soon. The question was, who was going to die at Utau's wrath?