Collide

Chapter Ten: Getting Closer?

"All right, if you need us, you just call us and we'll come home as soon as possible," said Hatsumi. "So, you have a list of all the numbers you need? You have your grandparents, your aunt, and your uncle."

"Yes, Okaasan," said Hiro in a bored tone. "It's not like I'm going to burn the place down or throw a wild party. Don't you trust me?"

"Of course, we do," said Ryoki. "You're mother is just uncomfortable with leaving you home alone like this for such a long time."

"It's only a week," snorted Hiro. "It's like you don't trust me."

"It's not that at all, Hiro-kun," said his mother with a laugh.

Hiro sighed as he stood up from the couch. His parents were already set to go to on their holiday. He couldn't wait for them to leave because the longer his mother stayed giving instructions, the less likely it seemed that she was leaving.

"We have to go. Our flight to Hokkaido is leaving in less than two hours. I want to get there early to clear the security checks, Hatsumi," said Ryoki. "Masahiro, your uncle and aunt will be checking up on you. Make sure you go to school."

Hiro groaned because his father was starting in on him. "Just go already," he whined. Hatsumi went up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She hugged him. "Okaasan, let go. I can't breathe."

"Sorry," said Hatsumi as she touched his cheek. "You take care. We'll call you when we land."

Ryoki had the luggage already as a knock came from the door. It was the doorman who had come to help his parents with their luggage. It wasn't that much only three suitcases that they could have carried down themselves, but they were the penthouse of the building. So it was important for them to be served.

"Take care, son," said Ryoki one last time as they left the penthouse.

"Bye," said Hatsumi. "We'll be back before you know it."

"Don't hurry back too soon now," said Hiro sincerely.

His parents were gone and he settled back on the sofa. He didn't know why he was putting so much effort into what he was doing. He had a map of Tokyo sprawled out on the dining table. His parents wondered why he was doing it and he said it was a school project. They didn't question him any further.

Hiro was coming up with ideas for problems for Reiko to solve or at least gain a better understanding of Physics. He was putting more effort than he normally would into something like this. He still kept up with his studies as usual and it wasn't like it was extra work for him. It wasn't like he was getting anything really out of it other than the unnamed and undecided favor that Reiko had agreed to.

Truthfully, he had no idea what he wanted from her. He told himself that the quicker he finished his tutoring of her, the sooner he'd be rid of her. He could go back to his normal life as soon as she was gone from him. He sighed as he finished penning a problem. Was this the way life was supposed to be for him?

He had Reiko's phone number and email address. He picked up his video phone and text messaged her. Hiro felt his heart race as he messed up the first try. He erased it and started over. He had a greeting and her name on the first one. He just typed the location, the date, and the time to meet him with a question mark.

Things were very strange for Hiro of late. After sending the message, he stared at the phone expecting an instant answer. He rolled him eyes and turned off the phone. He pushed his glasses up and went back to work. The sooner he finished, the sooner his life would go back to normal.

Reiko was studying in her room when the phone flashed. She opened her phone and read the brief text message from Hiro. He picked Tokyo Tower on the following Saturday at noon. Her eyes widened a bit. It was just for a tutoring session, but she felt a little nervous like butterflies were swirling around in her stomach. She didn't answer the text message as she looked at the books she had on her desk.

Her eyes fell on the Physics book. Normally, she left it for last, dreading it above all the other subjects. She opened it and saw that Hiro had left something in it. It was all of the formulas written down with added notes. He had basically listed all the formulas she needed for her homework. He didn't provide more than that, and Reiko was grateful for it.

She took out a piece of graphing paper and started working on the problems. Slowly, she set to work, not giving up for the next two hours. Reiko ended up falling asleep at her desk when she was done.

By morning, Reiko awoke refreshed. It was early Sunday and she still had homework to finish for other classes. She was starving, so he left her room to go and get something to eat. Sundays in the Doumiyouji Mansion were quiet. Most of the staff was allowed the day off, and Reiko's parents slept in. Reiko was only beginning to appreciated Sunday mornings. About a year ago, it wasn't always the case.

Tetsuya had left for New York two years ago just as their father did. Tsukasa said that it was necessary. Tetsuya was a dutiful son and as the oldest son he took his responsibilities seriously. He was like his father in temperament, but as his mother said he turned out the way that Tsukasa would have turned out if his parents had been more involved in his upbringing.

Ryuichi was a different story. Throughout most of school, up until a year ago, he thought of nothing but the present moment. He gave his parents the hardest time raising him. He was impulsive and reckless without fear of the consequences. It was just before his eighteen birthday that things had changed.

Reiko thought about how peaceful things were in the house. It was during these quiet moments that she allowed herself to think back to that day at school when her father had sent men to come and get her. Ryuichi had almost been killed when a car hit him. On that day, he had gotten into a fight with his friends and had stalked off on his own. A child had ran into a busy street to retrieve a ball. Ryuichi saved the boy, but his leg was almost completely shattered.

It was a dark time for the Doumiyouji family as her uncles, those were her father's closest friends and they were uncles to her as they were brothers to her father, said it was just like how her father was before. Her mother had been so desperate to make Ryuichi feel better as he attempted to regain full use of his leg and heal the emotional scars. She had planned his eighteenth birthday party and it was the worst plan that Tsukushi had ever come up with.

Reiko thought back to the articles about how Ryuichi's temper had completely exploded how he broke down in front of so many people that Tetsuya and their father had to calm him down. He had passed out for most of the night after that, but the extent of the damage was in the morning. Ryuichi woke her up to tell her was leaving. He was gone for six months.

It was only getting harder and harder for Reiko as she got older. She felt herself caught between childhood and adulthood. She wanted to be different from her brothers, yet she was too afraid to venture too far from the safety of her family.

She wandered into the kitchen. The sous chef was there and saw her coming. He gave her some breakfast and she ate it silently as soon as she finished she was gone. She returned to her room and picked up her phone. She typed a message back to Hiro, thanking him for the notes and agreeing to meet with him.

The rest of the week went by rather fast for Reiko. Before she realized it, it was Saturday. She made arrangements with Hikaru to come with her to guide her to Tokyo Tower because she had never been there. She had taken her time getting ready, remembering to bring her notebook, Physics book, and pencils with her.

When she came down for breakfast, he mother was there. "Where's Papa?" asked Reiko.

"He had to go into the office for his weekly conference with Tetsyua," answered Tsukushi as she looked at her daughter. "You dressed up a bit today. Where are you going?"

Reiko's mouth opened in surprise and then she shut it before answering, "I'm meeting Hikaru at Shibu Station."

"Any particular reason?" asked her mother as she poured herself another cup of tea, knowing that it was a good question. Reiko's eye was twitching.

"We're going to Tokyo Tower."

Tsukushi knew that her daughter was hiding something. "I see. Why?"

"For a Physics project," replied Reiko.

"Oh?" asked her mother as she added sugar to her tea. "By the way, it seems that you're improving a bit there. The teacher said to keep up the good work."

Reiko's face brightened up. "I will!" she exclaimed. She glanced at the clock. It was a little after eleven. "I have to go, see you later, Mama."

"Eat something first," ordered Tsukushi.

"No time. Got to go,' said Reiko as she grabbed an apple on the way out.

In hardly any time, Reiko was at Shibu Station where she noticed that Hikaru was also dressed up. "Wow, you look so pretty," she complimented as they met up.

Hikaru grinned, "I'm waiting for my date not far from here."

"You have a date?" asked Reiko.

"Yes, Taka-kun from my class asked me out," she answered with a sigh.

"Oh," said Reiko a little surprised. "I'm sorry to bother then when you had a date. Why didn't you say anything?"

Hikaru waved her hand dismissively. "It's all right. No problem."

"Wait, that means you're leaving me along with Tachibana!" she realized with horro. "You can't do that to me, Hikki-chan!"

"You'll be fine," Hikaru assured her. She glanced at her watch. "I have to go!"

Reiko watched as her so-called best friend practically skipped off, deserting her. Her eyebrow twitched as she muttered, "I'm going to kill her."

"Kill who?" asked Hiro, sneaking up behind her.

"Gah!" exclaimed Reiko as she clutched her chest. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Don't just stand there talking to yourself."

"You know most people would apologize after scaring someone."

"Why would I do that?"

Reiko resisted the urge to smack her forehead. Obviously, the concept of being polite for the sake of being nice was lost on Hiro. "Never mind," said Reiko, shaking her head. "Let's get down to business. Why did you pick Tokyo Tower to meet?"

"This is where the first problem I've devised is going to be," replied Hiro. "You said you needed real world applications, right?" Reiko nodded as she saw that he only had his portable videophone with him. It was the latest model and he opened it up. "Shall we start?" asked Hiro as Reiko nodded.

Even though they had a rocky start, they got along a lot better as the day worn on. Hiro helped Reiko a great deal as he explained things thoroughly without being patronizing or boring. It seemed that they could get along when it came down to business. At around one, Hiro called for a break.

"Where do you want to go?" asked Reiko.

Hiro shrugged. "Wherever you want. I'm not paying."

Reiko rolled her eyes and said, "Of course, not." She looked around. "There's a sushi place nearby that I go with my brother, Ryuichi."

"That's fine," agreed Hiro.

They crossed the street and found the sushi place. It was a little after lunch on a weekend, so it wasn't overly crowded. It had been around ten years. Reiko and Hiro walked in. She immediately recognized the hostess.

"Doumiyouji-sama?" asked Aki.

"Amakusa-san?" asked Reiko as she smiled. "Do you work here?"

Aki replied, "Yes. This is my parents' restaurant. Table for two?"

"Yes, please."

"This way," directed Aki. "So are you on a date?"

Hiro and Reiko answered in unison, "No, we're not."

Aki nervously giggled, "I'm sorry to assume. So are you're friends?"

"No, we're not," they repeated again in unison.

"Stop that!" snapped Reiko, glaring at Hiro.

Hiro fired back, "No, you stop!" He had his arms over his chest, staring down Reiko as she had her hands on her hips.

"You're so childish," she declared, stomping her foot.

Hiro narrowed his eyes at her. "You are the most annoying person I've ever met," he said.

"Only when I'm around you," she muttered.

Neither of them saw who walked in as Aki looked a bit panicked. She still wasn't done yet guiding them to their seats, and there was already another customer waiting at the front. They were locked into a staring contest for supremacy.

"Reiko-chan?" asked a familiar, deep voice, snapping Reiko out of it. "What are you doing here?"

Her eyes widened as she saw who had walked in. "Ojisan?" she asked as she felt her mouth go dry. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm meeting my wife here," answered Rui. His calm gaze fell on Hiro. He couldn't resist teasing, "So, is he your boyfriend?"

"SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!"

"HE'S NOT MY BOYFRIEND!"

Rui had an amused look on his face. This was priceless. Reiko paled a bit as she took Rui's hand. "We're not on a date," she said in a calmer voice. "It's just a study session. We took a break and came here. He's my tutor for Physics."

Rui looked at Hiro who didn't look the least bit fazed. "I remember you from the party," said Rui. "It's nice to see you again, Tachibana-san. Do you remember who I am?"

"You're Hanazawa Rui," said Hiro with a slight shrug.

"I didn't know that you were helping Reiko-chan with her school work," said Rui. "Her parents are my best friends, and I don't have any daughters. Just Rei-chan."

"Has she always been this irritating, Hanazawa-san?" asked Hiro in his pointblank manner.

Reiko fumed as Rui answered, "Sometimes, but she's outgrown it though, but she's always so cute when she's mad." He squeezed her hand fondly, "Just like her mother."

"We were going to have some sushi to go," interrupted Reiko, wanting to leave more than anything. Hiro nodded as he went to Aki to place an order without asking her what she wanted. She turned her attention to Rui, "Ojisan, please don't tell Papa and Mama about this. I don't want anyone knowing that I asked for help, especially from him. Please?"

"I won't tell your father anything," promised Rui. "He'd probably kill the messenger on this one."

"Don't say that," said Reiko with a sigh. "It's nothing. We're just going to get something to eat and go. We're not even really friends. Just a tutor and a student. Nothing else. I swear."

"Understood," agreed Rui as he gazed at her with his marble like eyes.

"What is it, Ojisan?"

Rui shook his head and answered, "Be careful and don't hold back."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked with a puzzled look on her face. Hiro returned and showed that he was carrying some bento boxes to go. "Are we ready?" Hiro nodded and Reiko gave Rui a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later, Ojisan. Thanks."

"Where to now?" asked Reiko.

"My apartment isn't far from here," answered Hiro. "I say we eat there and get back outside when we're done. I just want to rest my feet for a while."

Reiko mutely followed along as she saw Rui take a seat and place an order for a drink. She was sort of numb after that. Unaware of what was going on, especially the cryptic thing that he said. What did he mean by that?

They got on a train towards the Tachibana penthouse. Hiro carried the bento boxes as she stared off into space. "Hanazawa-san wasn't so bad," he said quietly.

Reiko turned and smiled a bit as she said, "I like him the best out of my father's friends." She wasn't paying attention to the people around her. There was an older man who was reaching out his hand to grab her behind.

Hiro's hand darted out, grabbing the pervert's wrist. Reiko turned in surprise. "You try that again and I'll rip out your arm and break it in two," threatened Hiro in a dangerous tone.

"I can't feel my fingers," whimpered the old man as Hiro let him go. He gave Hiro fearful look before letting out the sound that was between a whine and a yip as he bolted out of the car.

"What the Hell is wrong with you?" demanded Hiro angrily to Reiko. "You should pay better attention, you stupid girl."

There she was thinking that Hiro was a good person. Those feeling rescinded as she fired back, "I could have handled it. I don't need anyone to defend me. I can do it myself."

"Yeah, you were doing a great job," said Hiro sarcastically. "You don't pay attention that well. I'm surprised you managed to survive for as long as you have."

Reiko's jaw was clenched as she gripped the pole tightly. Hiro gave her an annoyed look. "You are the bossiest, most infuriating idiot I've ever met. You can't believe that I actually thought for one second that you had any redeeming qualities. I loathe you."

"Hate isn't even the word I'd use, you ingrate," seethed Hiro. They glared at each other.

The train came to a stop and neither said to each other as they stepped off. Hiro led the way to his apartment. The doorman bowed as he held the door open for them. "Thank you," said Reiko hurriedly as she caught up with Hiro. He was just plain rude. He could have at least thank the doorman.

"The private elevator is this way. It's the only one that goes to my place,' said Hiro as he pulled out a pass card, he slid it, then punched in an access code. They stepped onto the elevator.

"So, your family lives on the top floor?"

"My father owns the whole building," answered Hiro in a matter-of-fact tone. "He owns two other buildings for his businesses. Not as much as your father, but he didn't inherit them."

"But why buy this one?" asked Reiko. "Wouldn't have been easier to just get a house?"

Hiro shrugged as he replied, "My parents lived in the same company housing growing up. Other Tachibana Technologies employees live her. My mother runs some of the management, but for the most part people live their lives separate from work. My father had to put in the elevator. He said that he didn't want his employees to feel like they were at work just by seeing him. So hardly anyone ever sees my family around here, even though they know we're here."

"So your father's employees are underfoot all the time," said Reiko The elevator stopped and they stepped off.

"Well, your family has servants, right?" asked Hiro. "We don't. My mother has assigned chores for me to do at home."

"I'm only responsible for my room. I don't like the thought of having other people go through my things, so I do it myself," said Reiko.

Hiro unlocked the door and Reiko saw it was a sleek, modern space. It had probably one of the best views of Tokyo. The ceilings were high and there was a large window that spanned from the ceiling to the floor. "Please take off your shoes," ordered Hiro.

Reiko blinked as she nodded. Hiro had already taken off his shoes and put them on a rack, next to the door. He put the bento boxes on the counter as she took off her shoes and put them in an empty spot. "So, are your parents home?" asked Reiko, realizing how quiet it was.

"No, they've gone off to Hokkaido for a vacation," answered Hiro.

"Eh? You mean they left you all alone?!"

"It's okay. I don't mind. I've waited fifteen years for them to leave me alone. I swear they needed a hobby other than me, especially my mother."

Reiko saw the pictures of Hiro and his parents through different ages. "You were so cute as a baby," she said as she looked at the pictures. "Why did two such happy people end up with such a grumpy child?"

"Do you have to say that?" asked Hiro. "I swear you bring out the worse in me."

"The feeling is mutual," said Reiko as she put her bag down on the table. "Let me get the bento ready. Do you have anything to drink?"

"Yes, let me get the glasses out," said Hiro as went to the kitchen and Reiko went to the counter to get the bento boxes out. She pulled them out and put them on the table. She saw that the chopsticks were the ones that had to be split before they could use them.

"Do you have another kind of chopsticks? Regular ones?" she asked.

Hiro answered, "Of course we do. They're in the drawer over there." He pointed to one near the dishwasher, setting the glasses on the counter.

Reiko helped herself to the drawer, but found only silverware. She opened the one underneath and saw that there were some chopsticks. Hiro went to the refrigerator to get something for them to drink. Reiko started to walk away with the chopsticks, but she ended up slipping on the floor because of her socks.

Hiro acted without thinking, trying to grab her before she could fall on the floor. They fell on the floor as Reiko pulled his arm. They landed with a thud. Reiko's face turned bright red. They were on each other with him on top. "Sorry," mumbled Hiro. "I should have let you fall."

"You're heavy," managed Reiko.

"Sorry," mumbled Hiro again as he tried to get off her. His hand inadvertently fell on something soft, almost instinctively he grabbed it.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHH!" shrieked Reiko at the top of her lungs.

AN: Now what did Hiro grab onto? I won't say anymore than that. Until next time, thanks.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hana Yori Dango and Hot Gimmick. Please use this story with my permission.