Author's Note: Hello~ Long time no see! I've been busy these days and my school term just ended last week. School is starting next month on the second week again and I dunno what to feel haha. Anyway, ta-dah! An update~ I'm so sorry if updates aren't coming out often or any faster huhu please forgive me. I will continue to do my best and provide more! Don't worry. This story will definitely not be abandoned! It will continue on until the end~ Just be patient with me hehe (;u;)/
CHAPTER 10: Duo
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!"
"Stop moving so much!"
"I can't help it! You're just not gentle at all! It hurts when you put them!"
"Just endure a little longer! I'm almost done applying the ointments!"
"But you have to help me put on the bandages after! That's going to hurt too!"
"Then put the bandages on by yourself if you don't like the way I do it!"
"I would do just that if I could, ya know?!"
"There, I've put the ointments on. Time to bandage you up next."
Madoka starts putting the bandage around my torso and I flinch in pain each time she wraps the bandage around me. This is so much torture. Experiencing this every single day is just…torture! I'm really holding hope to doc's word about getting better within a week!
"Finished. I'll bring some of the bandage with me in case these get ruined while we're out and I'll also bring the other ointment in case you feel some unbearable pain."
"Urgh. I hope that the bandages will hold; I don't want to go thru that again today."
"Well, we're right on schedule. Go and get changed; we're leaving in ten minutes."
Madoka stands up and pats me on the back with some force.
"OW! BE GENTLE!" I shout as I stand up to head to my room.
Since I'm still sore everywhere, I didn't dare try to wear too much accessories or put on my usually layers of clothing. A simple black shirt with a design of white wings on the back and a pair of faded jeans is good to go. Oh! It won't be complete without my black leather ankle high boots! Lookin' good, Koemi.
"Madokaaa."
"What?"
"Is there going to be food?"
"Yes."
"Is Shiba Park Hotel's food tasty?"
"For what I know, yes."
My eyes sparkle as we leave the apartment.
There's goin' to be food!
As I slowly get inside Madoka's car, I notice a man leaving the apartment building; he's wearing a cap and a black sweatshirt. He looks sketchy.
I ignore the guy and fasten my seatbelt.
"Oh. I'll be right back, Koemi. Just stay put here in the car."
"Eh? Why?"
Madoka suddenly gets out of the car and approaches the man wearing a cap and black sweatshirt. She seems to be talking to him about something.
Is he a friend of Madoka's? That'd be weird. It's hard enough to believe she has time to make friends with her schedule and, well, her personality I guess.
Madoka and the man then walk towards the car.
"We're set to go." Madoka says as she fastens her seatbelt.
The man then gets inside the car and sits at the back.
"Wait, hold on a minute. Who's the dude?" I point at the guy.
"He's with us, Eika."
The guy takes his hood and hat off and an annoying silver haired guy appears. "Thanks for the ride, Madoka. My ride couldn't make it on time; thought I was gonna have to take the train or taxi."
"You'd be late if you did, Kurosaki." Madoka then drives away.
"Why is he here?! You should have let him take the public transportation!"
"Like I said, he's with us. He's the person you're going to work with, Eika."
"WHAT?!"
Kurosaki suddenly grabs hold of the side of the front passenger's seat and looks at Madoka. "You're telling me that she's the one I'm going to work with?! You've got to be kiddin' me!"
"Hey, I'm not happy about this either." I say.
"You two are going to be working together whether you like it or not since the president himself decided this. You two better play nice or else."
"Can't we persuade him to change his mind?!" I say desperately.
"We can't. Everything has been set up already including the advertisements and contracts."
Kurosaki and I groan.
"Sigh. You better not get in the way of things." Kurosaki says.
"Me? You must be referring to yourself, half wit." I cross my arms.
"You pickin' a fight with me?" Kurosaki says angrily.
"You're the one picking a fight, not me."
"Annoying brat!"
"Fake heterochromia!"
"Useless brat!"
"Fake silver hair!"
"Midget!"
"Monkey!"
Unwilling to back down, we continue throwing insults at each other with no discretion.
"Talentless kid!"
"Tactless geezer!"
"Ugly woman!"
"Banana brain!"
"Would you two stop arguing like children already?!" Madoka shouts. "You two are giving me a headache!"
"But he started it, Madoka! He was picking on me!"
"Can't help it if the kid is a failure."
"See! He's picking on me again!"
"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU! OR ELSE I'M GOING TO DROP YOU OFF NOW AND MAKE YOU WALK TO THE HOTEL!"
Kurosaki and I shut our traps and sit still like good little…uh…puppies.
"Kurosaki, did you bring a change of clothes?" Madoka asks.
"Yeah, I did." He lifts the gym bag he had with him.
"Good. Change immediately once we reach the venue; look presentable as always."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Presentable monkey." I say quietly.
*meow*
"Eh? Nao?" I look towards the back seats where Kurosaki is sitting and see Nao coming out from the bottom of the chairs.
"Where did lil' fella come from?" Kurosaki scratches Nao's head as it lies down on his lap.
"Nao?! How did that thing get inside the car?!"
"He's not a thing!" I say angrily back automatically. "He could have gotten inside the car when Kurosaki was getting in; he's a sly cat ya know."
"This the cat from before?" Kurosaki asks.
"Yeah, he's the one that snuck into your bag."
"You're a good lil' guy, aren't ya? Way better than your owner over there."
"What did you say?!"
*meooow*
Nao sits happily on Kurosaki's lap and enjoys the rubs that he's receiving.
"Hnghhhh, Madoka! The monkey's tryin' to get Nao! He's gonna steal my Nao!"
"Let him. He can take the cat any time, any day." Madoka says flatly.
"NO! I WON'T LET THAT HAPPEN! NAO IS MINE!"
*meow*
Kurosaki lifts Nao into the air. Nao's tail sways left and right and tries to reach for Kurosaki's face.
"Heh, playfully guy. You're really cute."
*meoooowwwww*
Nao finally reaches Kurosaki's nose and pokes it. His tail swings even faster side to side and he starts flailing his legs and arms around in the air, showing his joy.
Kurosaki smiles at Nao and puts him back down.
"WHA! HE'S WINNING OVER MY CAT! THE DEVIL SMILED! MADOKA!"
I look at Madoka sharply but she's just humming happily as she drives. Traitor!
I decide to just quietly sit on my chair and leer at Kurosaki the whole time.
Shiba Park Hotel comes into view. It looks like a nice hotel and it's pretty big.
When Madoka makes a turn, a crowd of reporters and cameramen can be seen all gathered at a designated area. Man, there're a lot of media trucks. They really just here for the collaboration announcement? Saotome sure got too much media for it, I think.
"Hey Madoka, why're there this many reporters and cameramen just for a collaboration announcement? Isn't this too much?"
Kurosaki looks around too. "The kid has a point. Saotome better not be pulling something behind the doors."
"You two don't need to concern yourselves with anything; I assure you that Saotome isn't doing anything that would go beyond or against the contract for this project." Madoka heads straight towards the parking lot.
Something's fishy about this. It isn't impossible that Saotome would pull something off without telling Madoka or everyone else.
Madoka parks the car and turns off the engine. "Kurosaki." she hands him a key with a room label attached to it. "Go ahead to the 9th floor to room 903; get changed and refresh yourself."
"Got it." He takes the key from Madoka and gets out of the car with his bag and Nao.
"Wait a minute, don't take Nao with you!" I say loudly as I unbuckle my seatbelt.
"I ain't leaving the cat in the car."
"Of course! Neither would I! Give him back to me!"
"I will later."
I get out of the car and go after Kurosaki. "Get back here, you monke—"
"And where do you think you're going? Our room is at the other wing so we have to take that elevator over there."
"Madoka, let me go! I have to get Nao back from the evil monkey king!"
"Nao can wait, the press cannot."
Nao goes up to Kurosaki's shoulder and looks at Eika happily.
*meeeoooow*
"Huhu. My babyyyyyy!"
"Just let him take the cat for now. Come on."
I got into the elevator with Madoka and she presses the 9th floor button. Turns out our rooms are all on the 9th floor but Kurosaki's is found at the other wing; we're at the east wing while he's at the west wing.
*ping*
"Our room is this way; it's number 915."
The moment we entered the hotel room, my mouth was left open.
"This room is so cool! It's big and clean and it just looks really good!"
I head over to the bed closest to the window and jump onto it.
"The bed is so soft and comfy, Madoka!...OUCH MY BODY!"
"Yes, it is. You can have a bed like that one day if you save enough money and move to a more spacious apartment. Was the bed so tempting to make you forget about your injuries? I'm going to check on the bandages and add more ointment before we head downstairs."
"Okay. Oh! The television is big too!"
"Koemi, now's not the time to gawk at everything. Refresh yourself then we'll make our way to the function hall."
"Okay. Are we gonna be staying here overnight?"
"We'll be staying here for two days because of some meetings with the agency about this collaboration project. Don't worry about clothes; I packed some for us."
"Now you're just feeding my suspicion that this isn't just going to be an album in the making." I sit up on the bed and sit with my legs crossed. "Madoka, are we really just going to have a press conference and a meeting for two days just for a collaboration album?"
"It's bothering you, isn't it? You're not going to stop talking about it?"
"I'll keep asking about it and bother you till you tell me."
Madoka sighs as she sits down on the side of her bed just across me.
"In all honesty, I don't know what Saotome is up to but after working for him for years, I just know he was going to do something but it's always impossible to predict what he'd do. The best I can come up with is probably that you two will have a concert together but I'm pretty sure there's more than that in Saotome's head."
"A concert with Kurosaki? That's actually gonna be rad!"
"Oh my god, you actually used that old word."
"What? It just suddenly came outta my mouth."
"Surprising though; I thought you were gonna complain about having to perform with him live. You don't like him, right?"
"I don't like him but I ain't gonna be ignorant and not acknowledge his skills. Whether I like it or not, he's a good rock musician and I respect that. It's not easy to be a rock musician, ya know."
"Hm. Surprising. You two may actually get along then in this project."
"Work related, yeah probably."
"Well, do your best and your popularity will surely increase and that means you'll have more work and income."
"That means we can have some sushi!"
"If you do well, I'll treat you to yakiniku. Deal?"
"Deal!"
Madoka chuckles. "Enough chit chat, let's put your ointment on and fix your bandages so we won't be late."
"Please be gentle. Huhuhu."
At the function hall, reporters and cameramen eagerly wait for the press conference to start. An elevated stage is found at one corner of the function hall and a long table and chairs rest on top of it. The function hall was fairly quiet with just the whispers of the media filling the air.
However, they suddenly became quiet at the sound of a familiar laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The curtains suddenly close on their own and colorful lights suddenly turn on, waving everywhere in all directions. Some kind of rock music starts playing in the hall loudly.
"Weeeeeellllllllllllccccccccoooooooooooommmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeee, everyone! It's great to have you all today for this exciting announcement!"
Smoke suddenly appears and fills the floor of the hall. Four pillars of fire suddenly shoot up from the sides of the elevated stage, two on each side. And at the same exact moment that those pillars of fire shot up, Saotome pops out from beneath the elevated stage; he must have used a trap door mechanism with a jumping platform.
"Good morning to you all!" He strikes a pose and the media shoots away their cameras. "Thank you for coming despite your busy schedules hehehehe."
"You made them come in the first place." I say to myself at the backstage.
"Be quiet." Madoka elbows me from the left.
"Ow! That hurt!"
"Saotome sir, so what was the big announcement that you were going to reveal to us today?" One reporter asks.
"We're really curious about what you said over the phone! You said that you had an 'explosive' project coming up. What is this so-called project, sir?" Another reporter asks.
"Now, now, don't be too excited! First, let's have the two stars come up the stage and be personally part of my explosive announcement! Saotome stands over to the left side of the stage. "Please come up on stage, Msssss. Eika and Mr. Kurrrrrosaki Ranmaru!"
At his cue, a representative from Shining Agency, Kurosaki, Madoka, and I enter the stage from the left side. I thought I'd fall of the stage or bump into people because the flashes from the cameras of the media were everywhere and were so strong! I could barely see anything or anyone properly from the crowd!
Kurosaki and I were both given microphones by the staff.
"Good morning!" I say energetically.
"Uh. Mornin'." Kurosaki says as he covers his eyes a little. "Could you turn down your flashes? We're gonna go blind within the day this way."
The media listens to Kurosaki's request and now we can actually see them from the stage.
"I'd like to announce that these two will be working together as a unit called 'Rose and Thorn!' Bwahahahaha! Rose and Thorn's works will be licensed and published by Shining Productions, Cauliflower Inc., and Mantis Company Limited."
Oh my god…what a lame name to give us, Saotome. How I wish I could strangle you right now with my bare hands.
"As a new unit is born, a door opens to more possibilities!"
Suddenly, a tarpaulin rolls down from above after the sound of a party popper popping with confetti.
"Thus, I'd like to announce that the Rose and Thorn duo will be releasing their first single within the next month! Their second single will then be released the month after and so forth!"
Are you kidding me? He expects us to come up with a single every month aside from our works as individual idols?! I can see my weekends and holidays flying away into the air already.
More party poppers pop from the sides of the stage all of a sudden, shocking all of us. An even bigger tarpaulin comes rolling down from above; it ends up hitting and covers all four of us at the center stage.
"Whaaa!" I get pushed a little backwards.
"The hell?! Are you tryin' to push us off of the stage, old man?!" Kurosaki says as he gets pushed back too by the big heavy tarpaulin.
The representative of Shining Agency disappeared; he must have been hit hard and fell off at the back of the stage. Madoka's glasses were hit right off of her face; she looks really mad and ready to take down Saotome in a second.
"Taaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-daaaaaaaahhhhhhh! After the duo's 8th single is released, they will have their first concert together as Rose and Thorn! Details on the merchandise that would be sold will be announced five months before the concert day and pre-orders will start two weeks after announcement of goods."
The press conference continues on with Saotome mainly talking and answering questions. Kurosaki and I barely said anything the whole time and just stood there on stage like a display. I dunno how much time has passed but I feel like we've been standing here for hours and hours.
I want to go eat fried chicken right now.
Time passes on and the press conference finally ends. Mother father gentleman, that was a complete waste of energy! We. Just. Stood. There. Doing. Nothing. Urgh.
"Madoka, can we go eat now? I feel like eating fried chicken."
"Not yet, Eika. The brief meeting with Saotome and starts now."
"Hnghhh."
"I think it won't take too long; he practically has said every important detail during the press conference. The most he could do is just to mention all those details again and perhaps add a little more information that's about the legal and process schedule aspects of the project."
"But it sucks that I have to work with Kurosaki for more than a year based on what he said. Huhu."
"Same here. Sucks to work with you for a lame named unit."
"Wha! Don't sneak up on people like that!"
"What are you talkin' about?! I've been walking behind you two this whole time!"
"What for?!"
"We're all going to the meeting, right?! So duh I'm goin' the same way."
"You are so annoying."
"Not as annoying and incapable as you."
"WOULD YOU TWO JUST BE TAMED UNTIL WE GET THE MEETING DONE AND OVER WITH?!"
Kurosaki and I shut up at Madoka's angry tone.
"Wellllcome, Ms. Eika and Mr. Kurosaki!"
Kurosaki and I kept a straight face towards Saotome; we're not pleased with this old man.
"What's with those faces, my dear idolllllls?"
"You know what's up." Kurosaki says as he crosses his arms angrily. "It was bad enough when you suddenly ordered me to work in a duo and then it turns out to be her? Now you go on announcing a continuous schedule of single releases and then a concert? You're pullin' my strings too hard, old man."
"Mr. Kurosakiii, weren't you the one who requested for more work since you had time in your hands all of a suuuudden?"
"I did but this is too much."
"Nonsense! There is no such thing as too much in the entertainment industry! Hahahaha! Besides, there's no turning back now since everything has been settled."
"Without prior notice."
Saotome just smiles at Kurosaki.
"Hey. I'm here too ya know." I say out of nowhere while raising my left hand into the air. "Don't I have a say in this too?"
"What is it, Ms. Eikaaa? Is something bothering you?"
"Well aside from the complaints this monkey's been saying,"
Everyone listens intently to me.
"I was wondering when do we get to eat."
Everyone stayed silent for a moment.
"…Ms. Eika, are you—"
I nod. "Yeah, I'm serious as hell. You practically said everything already at the press conference so what more can you say to us now? We haven't eaten so I was wondering if we can go eat now, pres."
"…"
"…"
"…"
Saotome's stomach suddenly growls so loud that it echoes all throughout the room.
"…You all may go and fill your stomachs! I will update you all if any changes happen! Good luck to you both and may you create a new starrrrrr in the vast skyyyyy! Bwahahahahaha!"
Saotome does some back flips until he shoots out of a window.
"So food time it is." I say happily all of a sudden. Kurosaki and Madoka look at me blankly. "What? I'm hungry. Aren't you guys hungry too?"
"Kind of." Kurosaki suddenly says.
"See? Let's go eat first before all this stress from the pres! What should we eat?"
"Meat. It has to be meat."
"Hmm, I dunno any place nearby. You?"
"A few. Around two near here and another two a little far but we can get there on foot."
"Awesome. Let's go. Let's go. Lead the way monkey!"
"Monkey my butt! You gonna pay part of my food for this."
"Eh? No way!"
"Then I ain't taking you."
"That's not fair either! Fine! I'll pay for dessert!"
"Fine by me."
"Are we headin' to a yakiniku joint?"
"Nah, something better but for a slightly cheaper price."
"Ohhhh sounds good! You any place good for fish?"
"There's one near our apartment building."
"Eh?! There is?! No way!"
"It opened two months ago. Kinda hidden so you won't really notice it unless you see it's small sign by a fence."
"I wanna go there. Teach me the directions later! I'll give ya a code for a music shop I know; I'm close to the owner so if ya give him the code, you get discounts for all sorts of stuff there."
"The discount applies to the guitars?"
"Yeah! It applies to all the merch except the limited edition stuff and new arrivals. It's best to use the code for the basic needs like strings and stuff; it's a big help with the budget."
"'kay. By the way, you allergic to anything?"
"Nah. I got no allergies."
"You should try the special steak at the meat joint we're goin' to; it has a lot of flavours 'cause of the spices they use."
"Sounds good!"
"I guess food is the answer to making these two get along." Madoka watches the two leave her in search for food. "I guess I'm off for sushi and udon; some beer sounds good too. Maybe I'll invite a friend; I hope he isn't too busy back at the agency. Having beer at day…it's been a long time since I went drinking while the sun's up."
"THIS TASTES SO GOOD! IT MELTS IN THE MOUTH!"
"See? Told ya it's good."
"You some kind of food hunter or something? How do you find places like these?"
"I wander around sometimes when I got time."
"Ah, okay." I eat another piece of the steak and my face just glows with happiness.
"You know, ya eat like a kid."
"Shut up! I just know how to enjoy food unlike some people."
"Heh, guess you can put it that way."
We continue to eat but we stop talking to each other. Not long after, we finish our meals.
"That hit the spot." Kurosaki says.
"It sure did! Hey, I don't want to ruin the happy mood but what're we gonna do about the Rose and Thorn thing? We have to come up with at least two or three songs for a single by next month."
The usual scowl reflects on his face. "Whether I like this or not, I'm stuck with you, kid. And there's no point arguing with the old man."
The bill arrives at our table and we pay for our meals.
"So what's the plan, monkey?"
"We make songs for the singles. Hell, we can just make all the songs we'll need so that we won't have to rush deadlines."
"Okay. Let's start making songs! So where are we—"
Kurosaki stands up and leaves the restaurant.
"Hey! Where are you going?!" I get up and go after him.
"Back to the hotel."
"We'll work at the hotel?"
"No."
"Then we'll work somewhere else?"
"No."
"Are we gonna work at all?"
"We will."
"When? Where?"
Kurosaki stops walking and I bump onto his back.
"Ow! My nose." I mumble to myself as I rub the tip of my nose.
"Listen up. I got no intention to work with ya so don't follow me around. Even if Saotome put us into a unit together it doesn't mean we actually have to work together aside from the live performances. You go make your songs and I'll make mine and all we have to do is to just submit 'em and put them together in the same CD, right? The only time we'll actually work in the same space is during practices for live shows and when we get on stage but for the rest, we just go our separate ways."
"But that's—"
"That's how it's gonna play. Now leave me alone, kid." He turns his back against me and starts walking away.
Without hesitation, I angrily grab his arm and make him face me.
"Don't turn your back on me! I don't care or like working with you either but I'm not doing this just for the pay check or the fame. I dunno about you but I'm doing this for the art of music and for the people who have been supporting me all this time in my passion and in my career!"
Kurosaki becomes surprised at my remark. I angrily grab him by the collar and pull him down to my height.
"You can treat me badly, you can be half assed with me, but don't you dare be half assed with an attitude towards music or towards those who've been backing us up since day one of our careers! That makes you a TRAITOR!"
I spoke too loudly that people started staring at us. I immediately release Kurosaki and lower my voice.
"I meant what I said so if you want to go ahead and be such an ass, go! I won't go down to your level!"
I angrily walk away leaving him there speechless. The next thing I knew was that I reached around two or three blocks away from the restaurant.
"…..HRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" I shout out loud out of nowhere.
Okay. That let out some steam…a lot of steam but I can't help but still feel frustrated and angry! That man is just! URGGHHHHH! I want to punch him but then I'd get in trouble for it!
I breathe heavily, trying to catch my breath and to calm down.
"That's it! I'll just go and enjoy myself at Carnival World! Riding the rollercoaster and other rides will definitely help me blow some steam away! It's not like I have anything better to do since I don't think we'll get any work done today thanks to an uncooperative monkey. Let's go, me!"
This is good—being at a nice bar, wearing casual clothes, away from the desk, and just enjoying some alcohol.
"Sorry I'm late, Madoka."
"You're late, four eyes."
"You're one to speak."
"You're lucky to have some free time too. Not too busy at the office, Kumagai?"
He suddenly stiffens and a rain of sweat pours down from his head.
"Let me guess, you escaped from the office?"
He drinks some of the beer I ordered ahead for him. "Ever since I got promoted, I feel like the pile of work I had before turned into a mountain! Saotome has been raining down projects left and right; I have no idea how is he able to carry on so many projects at a time!"
"That's the old man for you. He likes to start things but he's not going to be the one to handle it." I drink some of my beer. "But we do have to give him some credit since he does all the scheduling of events and he does do majority of the planning of projects and then he has the academy to take care of. Makes you wonder if he's just like us—little time to spare."
"Yeah, he's capable in his own way."
"So how's your idol? Is she doing well?"
Kumagai nods. "She and her partner are doing really well."
"Oh yeah. Mikaze has been doing really well; he surprised everyone with beating Saotome's record in sales. Those two have been going nowhere but up; I'm happy for them."
"So am I. I've seen how those two have grown and I'd say it was magical to watch them bloom."
"You sound like a dork, Kumagai. Hahaha."
"Bully. What about you? How's Nakahara?"
"A pain in the butt without a doubt; she and her cat are just troublesome."
Kumagai laughs.
"But you know, she may be troublesome but she's got talent. Her sales have been going up and her fan base has increased dramatically. I'd say she's going to be a very good idol in the near future; I bet my job on that."
"That's rare; you're actually praising someone that much. I wish you'd praise me like that too."
"Who knows? Work harder."
"I see. So you'll praise me at my funeral. Haha."
"I just remembered, Yamashita and Mikaze will get married soon right?"
"Yes. Believe it or not, their wedding is going to be sponsored by Marriage Contract."
"That's incredibly impressive but not as impressive as that time you peed in your pants in high school."
He suddenly spits out a little of his beer. "That was—! Urgh. I knew I shouldn't have gone to that test of courage thing."
"Hahahaha! I was laughing so hard when you were hugging our classmate out of terror the whole time and then when the guy dressed up as a zombie came out from one of the classrooms, you screamed so loud and peed in your pants! Hahahaha! That was such a funny sight!"
"Oh please, stop reminding me the tragic points of my high school life hahaha…ha…ha."
Kumagai and I continue to leisurely talk while enjoying our alcohol and some side dishes.
"Hm? Madoka, isn't that Kurosaki Ranmaru of Quartet Night?"
"Eh? Where?"
"Over there by the table at the window."
He points at a table and the moment I set my eyes at the direction, I see Kurosaki drinking a cup of coffee while staring outside the window.
"Wait a minute. Why is he alone? He's supposed to be with Nakahara!"
"You mentioned to me that he and Nakahara don't get along. Maybe they fought?"
"That's a problem."
I get out of my seat and sit down on the chair across Kurosaki.
"What are you doing here?"
"Just drinking a little."
"Coffee at a bar. You have to be kidding me."
"I got tired from walking, okay? I ended up here."
"And why did you get tired from walking?"
"Are you some kind of detective?"
"Well?" I cross my arms and give him a cold stare.
"We had a disagreement."
I stare at him longer.
"Sigh. I had a disagreement with the kid. There, happy?"
"So where is she now?"
"Dunno."
"You don't know?" I ask in an angry tone.
"I really don't. Look, I tried callin' her after some time but she doesn't answer her phone."
"So you started walking around because you felt she's been too quiet and missing for too long."
"…"
"I'm going to try to contact her."
I take out my cell phone from my pocket and dial Koemi's number.
"…"
Her phone keeps ringing but she doesn't pick up. I dial her number again...and again.
"She's not answering her phone." I stop calling her after several attempts.
"You don't have to worry much. It's probably just a tantrum."
"Says the man who feels guilty after the disagreement. What did you two argue about this time anyway? Was it about work?"
"Urgh, you could say that."
"So what will you do now?"
"Me?"
"I have a friend with me today who came all the way here so I can't leave him now so the only person who can go look for her is you."
"You seem calm for a manager whose idol is missing."
"It's not the first time she's gone missing so I've gotten numb towards it and besides, if anything happens to her, it's going to be on your head and not mine this time."
He leans back on his chair with a disgruntled expression. "I get it. I get it. I get it. I'll find her." He then drinks his coffee in one go. "Where does she usually disappear to?"
"I have no idea."
"What?!"
"She usually returns within the day on her own and every time I ask her where she went, she would always avoid the question."
"Can't we wait for her to return to the hotel then?"
"We could but the thing is that this time she doesn't know how to get back to the hotel on her own."
"…What?"
"She doesn't know the way back to Shiba Park Hotel and I bet she'll end up spending the pocket money I gave her on food or something she likes; she might not have enough to take the taxi or train wherever she is going to come from."
He scowls at my comment and stands up.
"Sigh. I'm heading out. I'll update you thru messages."
"Good luck. You need all the luck that you can get today."
He exits the store without saying anything nor looking back. I return to my original seat where Kumagai sat waiting.
"Welcome back to vacation mode. I'm guessing you said something like having a friend over so you can't go so you made him look for Nakahara."
"That's right." I return to my beer. "I'm not going to give up this leisure time to go look for Nakahara; let him suffer for me."
"Hahahaha! You haven't changed at all over the years."
"Just like what my dad used to say—If others can do it, let them do it."
"Cheers to that! I wish we could use that line of thinking at work."
"If we did, we'd lose our jobs and Shining Agency would close down hahaha."
"Sigh. Cheers to the busy bodies of Shining Agency!"
"Cheers!"
Kumagai and I clink our glasses of beer and drink them down in one go.
"By the way Kumagai, I have a question."
"What is it, Madoka?"
"Have you ever had the chance to handle stalkers?"
"You mean those creeps who follow you around and all?"
"Yeah."
"Well first of all, you have to confirm first if you have a stalker. You have to check…"
"Where the hell am I gonna find the kid? I ain't willing to roam around for nothin'. Sigh."
*meowww*
I turn around to find Nao standing behind me.
"What are you doing here? How'd you even get out of the hotel room? I told ya to wait there."
I squat down to pat his head.
"Hey, would you know where your troublesome owner went to? I'm gonna be in deep shit if I don't find her."
*meeeow*
He circles around me once and then suddenly heads off to one direction.
*meow*
He stops for a moment and looks back at me.
"I'll take that as a yes. You better not be pulling my leg, Nao; I trust you."
*meow*
I start following him around town. This may be a long shot but I got more chances with this rather than wandering around with no basis. I'm impressed that Nao knows the subway system; he must be an outgoing cat that goes around with the kid.
*meeeooow*
He leads me into one of the subway stations and he stands in front of one of the ticket machines.
"So where are we headin' to? Which ticket am I gonna get?"
*meow*
I take my wallet out and show him two hundred yen.
*…* He doesn't respond.
I look at the map and train fares again and decide to take out a fifty yen coin and show him a total of two hundred fifty yen.
*meow*
I insert the coins and then Nao suddenly presses the train fair button for two hundred twenty yen. I had no idea the touch screen accepts cat paws; this is something really interesting if ya ask me.
I take my ticket and change.
"Two hundred twenty yen, huh. Hey Nao, give me a sec."
I take one of the train station map brochures and lay it on the floor at one corner.
"So which of these stations over here are we getting off?"
He moves towards one section of the map and places his paw on a specific station.
"Okay, got it. We gonna get out from that station or are we gonna ride another train?"
*meow*
He places another paw to another station.
"We're going there?"
*meow*
"You sure?"
*meooooow*
"Mommy, that man is talking to that cat over there."
"Don't look at him or talk about him, dear. Come on, we're going to miss our train."
*meow*
"If we're getting off there…Wait a minute, you telling me she went to Carnival World?!"
*meow*
"What the hell?! What's she doin' all the way there?! Havin' a day out or something while worrying everyone? Sigh. Let's just go get her already. Sigh"
*meow*
"Why'd you choose a human like her to be your owner? Tch. Hold on, you can't get on the train. What are you gonna do about it?"
*meooow*
He leads me to a convenience store and somehow signals to me to buy a drink and a snack. Once I got the stuff, he hops into the plastic bag and lies still inside.
"I see what you were thinking. Alright, we're set to go."
We pass thru the ticket gates and make our way to the platform to wait for the train. I sit down at one of the waiting chairs.
Don't turn your back on me! I don't care or like working with you either but I'm not doing this just for the pay check or the fame. I dunno about you but I'm doing this for the art of music and for the people who have been supporting me all this time in my passion and in my career!
She was really angry, that kid.
You can treat me badly, you can be half assed with me, but don't you dare be half assed with an attitude towards music or towards those who've been backing us up since day one of our careers! That makes you a TRAITOR!
A traitor, huh? The way she put it made it sound like I'm like not that different from those guys back then—my old "pals" who left me hanging because of their women and loss of interest. I've always been into rock and it's been a part of my life since forever. Hell, I even decided to dye my hair since I was a kid till now and wear this freakin' contact lens for aesthetic purposes just for the love of rock. I enjoy nothing more than playing my guitar and let out some rock songs; I live and breathe rock music all of my life.
The train arrives and I get up to line up on front of one of the doors.
I'm not taking my career lightly either and I'm not ungrateful for the support of the fans either; in fact, I'm grateful that there are people out there who can still care about rock as much as I do. I don't think my love for rock has changed.
…Maybe I have changed?
The intercom of the train suddenly speaks, "The next station is…"
This is our stop.
Today's crowd is manageable. It'll be an advantage in finding the kid.
We finally arrive at Carnival World after taking the connecting train going to it. Nao hops outta the plastic bag from the convenience store and gets past the front gate entrance. I catch up to him after buying my entrance ticket.
"We're here. So which direction are we goin' to?"
Nao looks around the area for a moment.
*…meoooooow*
"You're not sure where to go?" I look around for a moment. "This place may be big but if you're sure she's here then most likely we'll find her. You think she'll be here the whole day?"
*meow*
We start walking around the park, going to whatever direction we feel like going to.
"Fwaaa! I feel great after riding the rollercoaster eight times! So what ride will I go to next?! Exciting! But I'm wanna buy a drink first; all that shouting made my throat dry."
I buy a 16oz drink from one of the food stands at the side and sit at a bench.
"Refreshing! Hmm, what to ride next…"
I've already rode the Merry Go Round, the Flying Chairs, the Lightning Mountain Road, the Waterfleet, the Mystic Carousel, the Flying Elephants, the Star Clash Ships, the Ride and Go Seek, the Spinning Tops, and the Galactic Mountain Rollercoaster…Hahahaha! I've been here for a long time! Going back to the hotel and staying there all day would have been boring and it's not like I'll be able to work either. Oh! That reminds me! My album will be released next week! I can't wait for it! I'm confident in the quality of my album and I'm pretty sure it's gonna sell a lot! But most importantly, I'm sure a lot of people will like the songs.
From my pocket, I take out a copy of a brochure of the theme park from my pocket.
"Hmm…Rode that, finished that, done that…Eh? There's a haunted house attraction?!"
I suddenly stand up, still drinking my drink.
"To the haunted house I go!"
While walking, I spot a family of three. The little girl was walking happily between her dad and mom, holding their hands tightly. The sight reminded me of my own parents; I loved holding their hands as we took our weekly walk around the park near our house back then. I should visit dad and mom when I go visit auntie; they'll be surprised about what I've become now hehe.
After a few minutes, I find an old-looking and semi dirty three story house. My mouth opens in amazement.
"Ohhhh. This haunted house looks so cool! The line's a little long but I don't mind waiting. A long line means it's good! The haunted house must be sound proof since we can't hear anything from the inside; I bet people are screaming their lungs out inside hehehe."
After an hour, I was finally able to get inside the haunted house.
Ohhhhh! This place looks amazing! It's so cold and quiet and dark! The blood on the wall looks so real! Oh! The furniture are moving on their own!
I happily stroll forward and pass thru the creepy looking halls and rooms. One of the rooms I went into had dead babies hung upside down from the ceiling and then there were many empty and dirty cribs in the room; some of them are broken or are turned to its side. The walls were made to look old and the wallpaper was torn as if they were scrapped by a person's hands; the trail of blood they left looks cool.
The next room looked like a Victorian style bedroom. Once I closed the door, the silence inside the room becomes deafening; I can literally just hear my own heart beat and breathing. I decide to walk towards the big bed placed at one corner of the room. The lights suddenly turn off for ten seconds and when the lights came back, a dead body was suddenly standing on the bed, looking at me.
I immediately take out my phone and take a selfie with it; the make up and costume looks amazing!
At the right corner of the room, a full length mirror is placed. I decide to approach it and the moment I was on front of the mirror, the girl who was playing as the dead body at the bed suddenly surprises me from behind and pushes me towards the mirror. The mirror in turn rotates and reveals a hidden door leading to another room.
I fall to the floor from losing my balance. "Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow." I hit the side of my back and it hurts. Man, it'll hurt later when Madoka puts the ointment again.
I get up and look around the room. The place looks like a butchery—there's blood everywhere on the walls and equipment in the room; the tables are bloody too with some meat-looking props on top. There's an examination table at one side and there's a severed arm stuck in one of the straps. The sound of blood dripping down to the tiles of the floor can be heard.
A small television on one of the tables turns on on its own. It shows a black screen with words in white that says, "Hurry and hide."
The words disappear after a minute and the television turns off. A loud creepy moan suddenly echoes in the room and is followed by the sound of chains.
"It sounds like someone is coming into the room. Where should I hide?"
There're tall lockers in the room but I'll be found easily inside them. I can fit under the tables but I'll be easily found too if whoever is coming would lift the table cloth. Hmm…
The loud moaning gets louder and sounds like it's coming from the other side of the door at the left corner; that's where he'll probably come in from.
"Ah! That's a good place to hide in!"
I open the doors of the tall glass cabinet filled with boxes and bottles and quickly take the some of the items out. I get inside and start putting everything back inside too; I stack the boxes and bottles on front of me so that they can cover me.
I finish after a few minutes and I can see the room thru a gap between the boxes. Suddenly, a scary looking man with a giant knife enters the room and his dreadful moan echoes loudly.
Wow. I wish I could take his picture too. His costume is a winner!
I stay quiet and still in the cabinet until he exits the room thru the wall were I came from; he probably went into the bedroom I was in a while ago.
Once I couldn't hear the creepy loud moans anymore, I gently open the cabinet and take out the boxes and bottles that were covering me.
"Yay, I was found! Now let's see where this door leads me to."
I open the door where the scary man came from and it turns out that it leads into a very narrow and dark hallway. I decide to go thru it and another door greets me at the end.
I grab hold of the doorknob.
"What the hell?"
The doorknob won't turn—it's a fake doorknob. I think for a moment and look at the door. There's light underneath so it has to be the way out.
"Hmm…maybe it's something like that door back in Kyoto, the ninja house place."
I grab the doorknob again but this time I try pulling it to the left.
Nothing happens.
"Let's try to the right then."
I try pushing the doorknob to the right and the whole door suddenly slides to the right.
"Knew it! It's a sliding door!"
I go thru the door and find myself back to the main hallway. The sliding door suddenly slides back into place on its own.
"Hm, so the sliding door is a painting from this side. Cool."
While walking further down, I stumble upon a part of the hallway that has hands coming out from its walls. I immediately take a picture of it and a short video clip that records the hands moving around and in and out of the wall.
"This is so cool. This haunted house is so cool."
I go thru the hands that turn out to only stretch out until an inch away from you; they can't touch you. I guess it would be too much for other people if they get touched by these hands; they might really freak out or cry.
As I walk father, the hallway gets narrower and narrower and at the end of the hall—
"Whaaaaaaaaaaa!"
The floor beneath me suddenly opens and I fall into the dark hole.
*meow*
"Hm? What's up, Nao?"
*meow*
He starts walking towards one of the attractions in the park.
*meeooowwww*
He keeps meowing at the haunted house attraction.
"You think she's in there?"
*mmmmeeeeoooowwwww*
His meowing becomes more aggressive; he sounds mad.
"Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong with you? You're actin' like an angry dog, Nao."
*meeeeeeeooooooooowwwwwww*
"You're acting really strange—Hey! Wait!"
He suddenly runs towards the haunted house and gets inside thru the front entrance.
I run up to the front entrance and one of the staff stops me from getting inside.
"Excuse me sir, you have to fall in line in order to get inside the haunted house."
"I'm not here for the attraction, there's someone I need to talk to and that person is already inside."
"Sir, we can't just let you inside."
"Listen to me, if I don't get the idiot I'm looking for out and back, my head and ass is gonna be served on a silver plate. You hear me?!"
"Y-Yes s-sir! U-Um, you may go ahead but please d-don't cause any t-trouble i-inside!"
"Yeah, yeah."
I quickly get inside, irritated as hell.
"Eika! Nao! Where are you two?!"
Damn it. It's pretty dark inside. What else would I expect from a haunted house? Tch.
"Eika! Nao!"
*…m…eow*
"Nao? That you?" Seems like he's further in.
I further head down the hallway, ignoring all the doors and stuff that come out of nowhere that are meant to scare people. The most annoying part is when the staff dressed up as monsters and ghosts come out to try to surprise me—I just end up hitting them because of reflex.
*me…ow*
"Nao, where are ya? I can hear you but I don't see you."
*meowww*
A familiar voice suddenly speaks. "Ow…Don't touch...my back…Nao…ouch…"
"Eika, that you?! Where are you?!"
*meow*
"Nao? Eika?"
"…N…ao?"
Huh? She sounded like she's coming from underneath the floor.
"Eika, is that you?"
*meooow*
Sounds like I'm directly above Nao. If he's with Eika, then they have to be under the floor. How'd they get underneath?
I look around but there're no buttons or switches or anything in the hall.
"How the hell am I supposed to get—"
"BOOOO!" A staff member dressed up like a mummy or something pops out from the corner of the hall.
Perfect. "Hey you, I need your help over here."
"BOOoooOOOoooOOO!"
"Cut the crap and get over here; you got a customer who needs help. You want me to go to the manager instead?
"U-Uh no need, sir! What is the matter, sir?" The mummy staff guy asks as he comes towards me.
"There's a cat and probably his owner down here. I can't get to them without opening a door or something that leads under the floors."
"Oh my. Why hasn't the person continued walking on then?"
"What do ya mean?"
"When you end up falling because of the trap door, you're supposed to go thru the long hall underneath that leads you to the next area."
*meow*
"Well if the cat's right here then it means she didn't move which means something happened. You better get the door to the floor open."
"Yes, you're right sir. Please give me a minute."
The mummy staff guy takes out a handheld transceiver and talks to another staff member.
"Roger that." He puts away the device into his pocket. "Sir, please step away from this spot over here; this is where the trap door is."
We wait for a few seconds and the trap door suddenly opens.
*meow meow meow*
"Oh my! There is a cat down there!"
"Hey, how deep is this hole?"
"About fifteen feet, if my memory serves right sir. Fear not! There's a safety cushion at the very bottom for every trap door sections of this haunted house, sir."
*meow*
"But since the cat and your friend might be at the bottom of this trap door, we can take the emergency ladder camouflaged here at the side of the hole, sir."
"Let's go."
The mummy guy starts getting down using a ladder painted as black as the hole attached at the side. I didn't notice the ladder at all before he mentioned it.
We climb down the ladder in darkness until we reach the bottom where there's light.
*meeeooow*
We immediately see Nao sitting beside Eika who's lying on the floor facing down.
"Oh my! Ma'am, are you okay?!" The staff guy takes out his transceiver and starts asking for medical assistance.
*meow*
"Hey kid, you okay?" I turn her to the side and pick up the upper half of her body, levelling her.
"Are you alright, ma'am?!"
"…hngh. Am I dead? I can hear the monkey's voice; I must be in hell."
*meow meow*
Nao starts pushing my hands like he's trying to make me let go.
"That…hurts...Put me down…slowly."
The mummy staff guy looks around. "That's odd. There's no safety cushion placed here! That would mean she fell down all the way to the concrete floor! She could have died if she fell badly! What's the meaning of this?! This is unacceptable!" He starts contacting his fellow staff guys thru his transceiver; seems like he's reporting and complaining about the missing safety cushion.
"Kurosaki, take my phone from my pocket…use it to call Madoka."
"Okay but you okay? You seems like you're in a lotta pain."
"I'm alive. Just…hngh…call Madoka using my phone so she…doesn't worry and to come get me."
I do as she says and take her phone from her pocket.
"Kid, what's the password to your phone?"
"Can you bring it close to me?"
I squat down and position her phone near her face. She moves her left arm slowly to her phone and types her passcode; she's a little shakey.
"There, it's unlocked. You can call her now."
"You sure you're really okay?"
"As long as I won't move, I'll be okay."
I start dialling Madoka's number and the moment it rings twice, she answers.
"You! Why have you not been answering my calls?! Where are you?!"
"Chill down a little, Rukawa."
"Kurosaki? What are you doing with Eika's phone?"
"She can't move at the moment."
"What do you mean?"
"Turns out she came all the way here to Carnival World. Nao and I found her here at the haunted house attraction; she fell fifteen feet down to the concrete floor of one of the trap doors. I'm with her now and I got one of the staff with me; we're waiting for help to come in a few minutes."
"Fifteen feet?! How is she?! Is she okay?! Isn't there supposed to be a net or a cushion or something for safety?!"
"Apparently, there wasn't one here at the trap door where Eika fell in. The staff guy has been apologizing over and over again for it and is surprised himself that there isn't one here."
"Sigh. Kumagai and I will go to Carnival World right now. You stay with Eika at all times. Update me on whatever happens."
"Sure. They'll probably take her to a nearby clinic or hospital; I'll keep you posted."
I end the call and get back to Eika.
"Kid, I called her and she's gonna come. She asked me to stay with you and I'll be updating her on whatever happens."
"Okay. Thanks, monkey. Urgh…!"
"Hey, take it easy. It's surprising you're still alive."
"Ha, ha, ha, you wish I wasn't."
"Good thing you didn't fall head first."
"I didn't fall straight down…I noticed the ladder at the side while I was falling…so I quickly tried…grabbing on to it as I fell. I got to grab it somehow but I didn't hold on tight enough…so…I fell again when…I lost my grip. At least I didn't fall down…all the way. Urgh…it really hurts…"
"T-That's amazing ma'am! It's amazing that you noticed the ladder but it's really amazing that you were able to grab hold of the ladder itself! Help is almost here, please endure a little longer. I'm terribly sorry for what happened to you. I assure you that management will take responsibility."
"…Thanks a lot…mister...mummy."
*meow*
Nao starts rubbing his face against Eika's.
"I'm not dead, Nao…Not yet. Stop worrying."
*meow meow meow*
"I said stop worrying. Hehe."
She unsteadily moves her arm to pat Nao's head.
"Tch." I suddenly pick up Nao and move him over to Eika's hand. "The kid just said it hurts to move, right? You gotta be a good cat and move for her."
*meow*
Close to Eika's hand, Nao starts rubbing his head against her hand as I hold him up.
"Hehe. Good boy." Eika says in pain.
"Ma'am, sir, help has arrived!"
A medical team comes in and they check on Eika. Since she kept saying that it hurt to move her body, they placed some braces on her neck and back just in case she broke or fractured any of those parts. They then put her on a stretcher which they carry her back up. We all exit the haunted house thru an emergency exit that leads to the back of the house. We then make our way to the park's clinic where a doctor checks up on Eika.
I end up on a bed at the clinic. I refused to be put on the bed in a lying down position since it hurts my back more so I asked them to help me sit upright on the bed. I like the pillows they placed for my back; they're so soft and fluffy hehe.
A female doctor enters the room they put me in. She goes over to my bed and spreads the curtains hanging around my bed to close us off from everything and everyone else.
"Please correct me if I am wrong. According to your medical data sent by your manager thru email, you are Nakahara Koemi-san. Born on April 21, Blood type…"
"Yes, all of that info is right doc."
"Now, tell me what happened to you in the haunted house."
"Well, I was happily strolling around and enjoying the place until I ended up walking thru one of the hallways and suddenly the trap door on the floor opens up and I fell. I didn't fall straight down since I was able to grab hold of the ladder at the side but then I lost my grip on it and eventually hit the concrete ground."
"That is quite unusual because there are supposed to be safety cushions there."
"Yeah, everyone's been saying that. Even the staff guy who helped me was surprised that there wasn't one."
"How did you fall? What I mean is if you fell on your back, your side, on your knees, head, and such."
"I fell on my right side."
"Nakahara-san, I will now remove your shirt okay?"
"Please do so slowly and gently."
She removes my shirt and becomes surprised by the sight of my bandages.
"What on earth are these?! What happened to you?"
"I got into a fight with some people on the street."
"Okay. Have you had a check up regarding those previous injuries of yours?"
"Yes, no bones were broken or anything; all I got were bruises and some cuts."
"Are you currently taking any medicines?"
"I have pain killers but I haven't really used them yet. I was also given ointments to put on to ease the pain and to help in recovery."
"Do you have your ointments with you at the moment? I can help you apply them and fix your bandages."
"They're with my manager. The two ointments are only applied twice a day—in the morning and at night; the third one is only for when I'm in pain."
"Since we don't have your ointments, the best I can do is apply something else that is to ease some of the pain and swelling and then fix your bandages. Is that okay with you?"
"Yeah."
She removes my bandages and applies a cream that feels cold. She then puts on new bandages on me and helps me put my shirt back on.
"Okay. I'm going to write you a request slip for an x-ray examination; I didn't feel anything off as I examined you while putting on the cream but this is to be on the safe side. Please get one done immediately when your manager comes to pick you up so that we can assess whether you broke or injured anything in your body; we must be sure that you are really okay internally."
"Noted, doc."
"I'll leave you to rest for now. All we can do is to wait for your manager."
She writes down some notes and opens the curtains on my right. She sure left my side quietly; I couldn't even hear if she left the room; I didn't hear the door open or close.
"Sigh. This sucks."
"Seems like it." A voice coming from the other side of the curtain on my left says.
"What the?! Monkey, is that you?"
"Stop calling me a monkey, kid!"
I swipe open the curtain. "Stop calling me kid! What're you doing here anyway?!"
"I told you already, your manager told me to stay with you."
"Wow, such an obedient dog."
"I'm not a dog!"
He angrily puts a plastic bag on my lap.
"What's this?" I ask him.
"It's for you."
I open the plastic bag—I find a drink and a salmon onigiri inside.
"So the angry dog can be nice too once in a while."
"I said stop calling me a d—"
"Thanks, Kurosaki."
I open the bottle of green tea and drink it happily.
"How'd you know I like this?"
"Uh what was that show again? UtaOn?"
"You watched the interview?"
"We were at Reiji's place and Ai and the count decided to watch the show."
"You guys were having a party or something?"
"We were practicing over at Reiji's."
"But it's kinda funny. This is my favorite brand of tea."
*meow*
"He told me to buy it." He points to his shoulder where Nao clings on to.
"No wonder! Nao!"
*meow*
He hops into my arms and I give him a tight hug.
"That little guy is the one who found ya; I've been following him around all day. How'd you teach him to use the subway? That surprised the hell outta me."
"That's a secret."
*meow*
I happily pat Nao's head.
"Uh, I didn't mean to eavesdrop but I heard you got some nasty bruises there. What happened to ya? You've been mixed in trouble again?"
"What do you by 'again'?"
"Just thought you might be a troublemaker. Heh."
"Well, that not exactly right. It's more like trouble keeps following me everywhere!"
*meow*
"So what happened?"
"I'll tell ya if you promise me one thing."
"What?"
"Don't tell Madoka about it."
"Why?"
"I'll tell ya the truth in exchange for helping me. The version I told Madoka was only half true."
"You sure about trusting me? What if I rat you out to your manager?"
"You could do that and expect me goin' after you but I trust you because Nao trusts you; he doesn't just trust people out of the blue and he's never been wrong."
"And I've never gone back on my words. I won't tell Rukawa."
"Thanks, grouchy shiba inu."
"Shiba inu?! What the hell, man?!"
"You remind me of a grouchy shiba inu back in my old neighborhood when I was a kid."
*meoooow*
"Anyway, where do I start? I went visit an old couple; they were the parents of my best friend who—"
"Who died of cancer, right? Junko told me about it when you left her room to go to the children back at the hospital. About that, sorry for asking about her when we were at the train; I didn't know or maybe it slipped my mind that this Yasuko person was the same person that Junko was tellin' me about."
"It's okay."
*meowww*
Nao rubs himself against my arms and then lies down in a curl.
"Back to your story."
"Oh right. So the thing is back when Yasuko was hospitalized for a long time until she died, her parents were short in money and ended up borrowing money from a group of yakuza. When Yasuko died, they used the left over money for her funeral and then they started saving the money they were earning from work to pay off the yakuza. Technically they were capable of paying back the amount they borrowed but the interest was making things hard for them so I helped them out paying off their debt by taking up some part time jobs and doing more gigs at that time; they covered the basic amount while I helped in covering the amount that came from the interest. I also had a hard time because the interest was really high; it came to the point I had to skip meals sometimes haha. In the end, we were able to pay the whole amount back with the interest."
"So things didn't end smoothly?"
"Things did end smoothly! But the yakuza got greedy and started coming back to ask for more money; they start claiming that there was an error in computation or in accounting meaning that the couple didn't pay off everything. Of course it was a lie; I knew from the bottom of my guts that they were making stuff up. So I ended up fighting them when they went to harass the old couple."
"Hold up! You tellin' me you picked a fight with the yakuza?! Are you crazy?!"
"If I didn't then they could have harmed or killed the couple! There's no way that I'd let Yasuko's parents get harmed or killed! I didn't fight them alone though. I had help back then."
"From?"
"I can't tell you that yet."
"Alright then."
"So we were able to fight them off and things were peaceful from then on but then when I went to visit the couple just recently, turns out that the yakuza thugs were at it again and coincidentally the day I went for a visit was when they came over to the couple's house to threaten them again."
"So you ended up fighting them again?"
"Yup! But lucky enough, it wasn't the whole group so I lived. If the whole group was there, I'm not really sure if I would have been able to hold out; I was just lucky that the old couple were able to call the police."
"You're a nut job! You should have just called the cops from the start!"
"Hey, hey, like I said, they were a small group at first! How would I know that they had back up coming?!"
"Look, you shouldn't be messin' with the yakuza! They're just scum that don't care about people's lives; I should know."
"You have experience with the yakuza too?"
*meooooowww!*
Nao suddenly gets up and starts becoming aggressive.
"Whoa! What's wrong with you, Nao?! Hey! Calm down!"
*mmmeeeeooooooowwwwwww!*
He continuously becomes aggressive. He suddenly rushes over to the window and jumps out.
"Hey! Nao!"
Kurosaki goes after him towards the window but he loses sight of Nao the moment he got out the window.
"What's with him? He was acting like that too when we passed by the haunted house." Kurosaki keeps looking around outside the window.
"That's strange. He'll come back; I'm sure he'll come back on his own so let him be for now."
"Do you know why he's acting like that?"
"I have no idea. I don't remember him being like that before. Just give him some time."
Kurosaki looks around outside the window one last time before coming back to the side of the bed. I open the salmon onigiri and start eating it.
"Kid."
"What?" I look up at him with my mouth full.
He suddenly puts his hand on my head. "Get well soon so we can start working already."
I quickly swallow the food in my mouth. "What's up with you?!"
"I thought about the things you said this morning. I love rock music more than anything; it's my way of life. I'm not that happy having you as a partner either but you were right; I shouldn't let such a petty thing like that get in the way of my passion."
"That's the spirit."
I put up my fist and offer it to him. A small smile forms on his face as he taps my fist with his.
"You better not slack off, kid."
"Same to you…shiba inu." I laugh as my last two words leave my mouth.
"Would you cut that out?!"
"Not unless you cut out that 'kid' for me first."
"Annoying kid."
"Obedient shiba inu." I say in a happy teasing tone.
"Troublemaker."
"Banana brain."
"Shorty."
"What—That's over the line! I'm not that short!"
"You're shorter than me so I can definitely call ya shorty."
"Grrr. I'm gonna dye your hair pink one day!"
"That's insane! Don't you dare do that crazy idea!"
"Your silver haired days are numbered!"
"No kidding!"
"I'm pretty good at dying hair; I dye my own hair you know."
"Hell no. Don't come near me."
"Hehe. You better be careful when you sleep at night. You might get a visit from the hair dying fairy!"
"An idiot fiary!"
"An idiot fairy visiting an idiotic dog."
"Two idiots, huh."
We both smile and end up laughing a little.
