Wow, the story made it to ten chapters. The credit goes to the readers that made this possible. Thanks for supporting me.
Early gift for the holiday season. =]
She watched his body crashed to the ground. It happened at lightning speed, yet Kuuga slumped in slow motion. There was a collective gasp from the spectators that crowded the room, but it was deaf to Misaki's ears. As she delivered the blow to Kuuga, time seemed to halt.
Her surrounding area was silent. It was peaceful in an ironic matter.
Suddenly, time began when a hand shifted her shoulder and a shrill cry of her name agitated the silence.
"MISAKI-CHAN!"
Golden eyes focused on her surroundings. There was chaos in the hallway as some were retelling Misaki's plight with Kuuga. Others were trying to revive the dormant Kuuga, and there was Erika trying to get Misaki's attention.
"Misaki-chan!" Erika desperately cried out. She needed her friend to evacuate the hallway and into their office. The situation would be easier to deal with if Misaki left the scene.
Suddenly, Misaki snapped back to reality as her eyes furrowed with confusion. She looked at her friend for questions. The latter sighed in relief and led Misaki down the hallway, leaving the chaos brewing behind.
"So tell me what happen," Erika inquired in firm manner when she got Misaki to settle in the office. She wasn't angry at Misaki; instead she was glad Kuuga got his ass kicked. Sadly, she was worried for the repercussions. Kuuga, no doubt, will go through the trouble to get Misaki fired and leave a permanent record on her transcripts and resume.
In other words, Misaki would be professionally ruined. That would devastate her due to the hard work she did all her life would go to waste.
That was why it was Erika's job to elicit the truth from Misaki so she may have a fair fight against Kuuga. It was inevitable that she would face severe repercussions, but Erika was going to make sure Kuuga was going down.
"He called me a bitch and that's when I lost it," Misaki concluded calmly. To her, it felt ugly to retell the tale, but it was Erika she was telling this to, so she didn't mind as much. Erika wrote Misaki's words on paper. "Let me get this straight. Kuuga provoked you to the limit and then you completely lost it?"
"Yes."
"All right. I think I can use this along with the verbal abuses recorded," Erika stood up from her chair as she gathered here notes in her hand. "This may be enough to get him resign from his position. Unfortunately you punch him, so there will be repercussions from you too."
"I understand. I let my anger get to me, therefore I should be prepared for my consequences," Misaki said sadly.
Erika gave her a rueful smile, "I'm sorry that things have to turn out this way."
"Me too."
"Go home Misaki-chan. I'll cover for you."
"Thanks Erika-chan."
The subway ride back was uneventful; Misaki was numbed by her actions and felt a swell of shame plunging down on her. She felt so stupid to succumb to her anger. It was so foolish that she could lose her internship and chances to apply for grad school.
Furthermore, job interviews would be difficult in the future.
Who would want to hire an employee that had anger issues whenever someone called her a bitch?
Hardly anyone, she mused.
It wasn't her education and job reputation that would be ruined, it was also finances. For a while, Misaki has been the breadwinner for the family. It was her contribution that supported her family, whether it was her job or the business proposition. It wasn't her pride that she was hurt about, it was the disappointment that she would see in her mother and sister.
The salary Misaki earned from the internship enabled her and Suzuna to go to college and allowed Minako to replenish their savings. The family was better off under Misaki's employment than the times when her estrange father was around. It was clear that she, the eldest daughter, made a difference more than any favored son would.
However, there was one thing that remains a mystery: she didn't know how to break the news to her family.
It frightened her to no end. As the subway reached closer to her neighborhood, the anxiety made a pit in her stomach. That pit grew gradually as she walked towards her apartment.
As she closed the door, the neutral mask that covered her emotions disintegrated. She could feel water breaching from her eyes. Misaki quickly locked the door and stowed her stuff away. Then, she changed from her clothes to pajamas and slipped into bed.
She curled in a ball underneath her sheets and broke down in tears.
Misaki didn't know how long she fell woke up to the loud beep from her phone, alerting her a text message. There was dry tear stains on her face and she gently wiped it off with the blanket. She groggily sat up in her bed and reached over for her cell on the nightstand.
She squinted as the illuminating light shined on her face. Once her eyes adjusted to the light, she opened the text message.
To: Misaki-chan
From: Erika-chan
Got Kuuga in trouble. Don't come to work 2morrow. Meeting w/CEO in 3 days 10.
Stay well.
Erika's succinct message hardly calmed her. Misaki wonder how would she would stay composed if she has to meet the CEO of all people? She never met the CEO of Kaga Enterprise, but she heard stories of the no nonsense, down-to-earth president. Meeting the Kaga Shizuko intimidated her; some miraculous, divine force better give her strength to go through this.
Misaki woke up later than usual the following morning. Since she had no work to go today, she allowed herself to indulge in her sleep for a while longer before she decided she slept in too much. Although she was well rested, it wasn't enough to assuage her worries. She didn't what to prepare for the CEO or her family. The heavy atmosphere of uncertainty made her sick to her stomach.
As the day dragged on, the suspense was killing her. She waited for another text from Erika, a phone call or email from the company informing she was fired. Feeling agitated from all this waiting made Misaki have to urge to go for a run.
Eagerness became her new source of energy as she changed into workout gear. She brushed her hair into a ponytail and slipped her ipod to an armband. She donned earbuds and grabbed her keys, ready for physical activity. She abruptly opened the door, only surprised to see Suzuna standing outside her door.
Suzuna had her right hand raised for a knock, while she carried a cooler in her left. In contrast to her older sister's incredulity, Suzuna retained her passive expression. "Onee-chan, are you going to keep doing that face or will I have to do a body slam my way in so I can put this cooler in your fridge?"
Misaki dropped her previous expression and did a quick glare at Suzuna as her rebuttal for her sister's smart aleck responses. "What brings you here?" she asked as Suzuna placed the contents in her fridge. She knew she should be used to her sister's unannounced visits, but Misaki wasn't, hence she always ask her sister why.
"I won two crates of peaches and my dorm mates organized a cook off for the peaches. There was plenty of extras, so I decided to give some to my onee-chan," she answered.
"That's wonderful."
"Yes, I left some peach pie, peach cobbler, and a peach shortcake," Suzuna continued calmly, while Misaki was amazed and perplexed at the same time.
Trust Suzuna to do the unexpected.
"By the way onee-chan, why are you home early? I thought you would be back an hour later?" she inquired.
On second thought, curse Suzuna to do the unexpected.
"We were allowed to leave early, so I decided to go out for a run. You know, get into shape," Misaki said hastily. She really wanted her sister to leave, but the younger sibling had a habit to linger at Misaki's place, fishing out information from the older sister. Fortunately, Suzuna accepted Misaki's answer, then she asked for a follow up of the Gerard incident.
It was not a pleasant memory Misaki would liked to tell, however it was important for her sister to know. She gave a summary version of the story, leaving out key details such as the Igarashi confrontation, the switchblade and the gruesome culinary action she witnessed first hand. She was starting to get annoyed with the questions that came after the tale. Among her many pet peeves was times when she has to over explain herself; remembering the irksome recollection and the dire situation in her mind made her impatient as she tolerated Suzuna's presence.
She was hoping Suzuna would leave soon, unfortunately, her sister lingered her apartment, telling stories of her new friends. Little by little, Misaki felt good mood slipped away.
It was only a matter of seconds she would snapped again.
Suzuna shifted the conversation from her college to Misaki's. It started off as neutral, however when Suzuna mentioned her work, that was when Misaki lost it.
"Why are you being so nosy at my work?" Misaki raised her voice with anger. The internship was considered as a taboo for Misaki due to her agonizing concern for her job and future. She didn't have the opportunity to use her frustration in a useful manner, therefore, her outburst served as an outlet.
Suzuna raised an eyebrow, then narrowed her eyes, "I'm just asking. Am I not allowed to be concern for my sister?"
"You're just being nosy and it's pissing me off!"
"You don't need to be rude about it!" Suzuna protested.
"I'm not being rude, you're just making me mad with your stupid questions!" Misaki countered back. "Why can't you just shut up and leave me alone Suzuna?"
That made Suzuna speechless. She didn't expect her sister to say those words again. The last time it happened was three years ago. "Are the Walkers giving you a hard time?" she asked tentatively.
"No, but you are. Get out Suzuna," Misaki stated flatly.
"But-"
"Get out."
"But onee-chan-"
"I SAID GET OUT SUZUNA!" Misaki shouted.
Suzuna shut her mouth and it turned to a grim expression. She narrowed her eyes at her sister, giving Misaki one last glare. Then she walked to the door, put her shoes on and let herself out. She slammed the door, expressing her growing frustration with her sister.
Misaki heaved a sigh once the apartment was in silence. She knew she mistreated Suzuna, but it didn't matter. The point was Suzuna provoked Misaki when she hadn't have the chance to get it out of her system in a productively. She knew she had to apologize to her sister later, but that can wait for a few days.
Both needed time to cool down. Also, the thought of a peach pie sounds appealing. Misaki made a beeline to her fridge to try some of that pie; all the shouting drained her energy and motivation to run outside.
The next few days passed quickly. Before she knew it, tomorrow was the day she would have to meet the CEO Kaga. Fortunately, Erika emailed her pointers and information Misaki could use when she talks to the president. She reviewed the information and made preparations for tomorrow.
Although she went to bed early, she couldn't any sleep. Misaki woke up fifteen minutes before her alarm clock went off. She got herself ready and headed off to Kaga Enterprise.
When she reached the elevator, she clicked for the fourteenth floor, the top floor of the building and office of President Kaga. It was a long way up from the lobby and her anxiety grew as the elevator passed each floor one by one. There were others that come and go on the elevator and each pause did little to quell her troubles.
The last passenger left at the twelfth floor, leaving her as the only occupant riding to the fourteenth floor.
BING!
At last, the elevator reached the fourteenth floor. Misaki took a deep breath to compose herself as the elevator doors unfastened.
Let's do this.
We're on our way to 100 reviews, think we can break it? Kudos and a possible kiriban for the 100th reviewer.
Anyways, review!