Chapter Twelve: Plans to Actions
Word had apparently gotten around school by the time I arrived.
"I'm so sorry, Okazaki-kun," Fujibayashi said consolingly. "I can't even imagine what you must be going through right now."
"Or her parents," Kyou added, walking up to our growing group. "Hey, Tomoya."
"Sorry Kyou, I don't have the energy for our traditional back-and-forth today," I said, feeling quite tired-no, depleted.
"Don't worry," she replied, shaking her head. "I'll wait until this is taken care of before I start picking on you again."
"I appreciate it."
Fujibayashi glanced around us before leaning in. "I think the teachers would understand if you missed school today."
"No," I said, "I'd just sit at home feeling miserable. If I'm going to be miserable, I should be here."
"Okazaki-kun…" she giggled.
"What did the police say?" Kyou asked.
"Right now, they're treating it as a kidnapping. There's really no reason for her to run away that I know of…she seems to get along with her parents really well, and…well…"
"Yeah, everyone's heard about you two," the older twin quipped with a catty smile.
I looked down at my desk to try to hide my red face.
"Did the police talk to you?" Fujibayashi asked.
"Yeah," I replied, looking back up. "I told them everything I could remember, but I can't tell you anything other than that."
"We understand," she replied, sharing a nod with her older sister.
Kyou gave me an appraising look. "You don't seem as upset as you should be."
I deliberately avoided her gaze. "I've…been making plans."
I heard a gasp and looked up into Fujibayashi's astonished expression. "You don't mean…? Okazaki-kun, you know that vigilantism is illegal, right?"
I shrugged with my hands. "I know, but I need to at least do something! Sitting on my hands…" A stirring in my gut drove me to my feet. "She's my girl, I was supposed to protect her and I'm going to do something about it!" I fell back into my seat, spent of what little energy I had saved.
I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up into Kyou's sympathetic eyes. "Listen Tomoya; if we can help in any way, you just let us know, okay?"
"Thanks," I said, then realized…Kyou was a marksman with books. "Yeah…I may just take you up on that."
But first…I had to offer an apology and make a request…
"Tomoyo? Can you spare a minute?"
The silver-haired girl turned toward me with a guarded expression. "What do you want?"
I sighed; she had every right to be angry with me. It was bad enough that Sunohara had been a jerk, dragging her out to fight his battles for him, but…what I did was worse; I didn't stand up for her. "I have a request, but first…" I dropped to the floor, touching my forehead to it. "I am so sorry for the way I treated you the last time we were together. I was too much of a coward to tell Sunohara off, and I feel really bad about that."
"You should," she said with a steely voice, and I looked up to see her turning to walk away.
"Wait," I scrambled to my feet and reached for her shoulder. The next thing I knew I was flat on my back, looking at the ceiling.
It didn't register what had happened until Tomoyo's face appeared above mine. "Oh my god, Tomoya!" she cried. "Are you all right?"
"Wh-What happened?" I asked weakly.
"I…I-I-I-I-I kicked you wh-when you grabbed my shoulder." She quickly knelt next to me, and I turned my head to follow her. Strange; it didn't hurt…much. "I am so sorry," she said, tears pooling in her eyes. "I-It was reflex."
I thought it was interesting that she didn't refer to it as 'self-defense' like she had all of the other times, but I had more important things to ask. "Tomoyo…will you forgive me? And…teach me how to fight?"
She gazed down at me with an incredulous expression before chuckling in spite of her tears. "I-I forgive you, Tomoya. You want to save Miyazawa, right? That's why you want to learn to fight?"
I nodded carefully, still flat on my back.
"I-I would love to help you," she replied with a sad smile.
I slowly opened the door to the Reference Room and entered it just as slowly. Part of me still hoped that she would be here, making coffee and apologizing for making me worry or something like that.
But my steps echoed in an empty room.
I eased into my usual spot at the table and looked at the chair across from me, where she would sit while we drank coffee and talked. I could see her sitting there, giggling at something I had said or at one of my 'interactions' with Sunohara. "Get along so well, huh?" I murmured to myself.
I pictured the way she would push her hair back over her ear or how she would smile or how her eyes would close when we kissed.
I wondered what it was like when she was taken; did she call for her mom and dad, or did she…call…for…
I slowly crumpled onto the tabletop and let myself cry…again.
After calling Yukine's parents to let them know where I was, I hung out in the Reference Room after school and, by the time I left, it was dark.
The dark didn't bother me; I'd been out after dark a lot in my 'previous life', so it wasn't like this was anything new. I took out the cell phone that Yukine's parents had loaned me and called them, apologizing for being out too long and letting them know I was on my way home.
As I walked down the last stretch of road before the corner to Yukine's house I noticed a car parked alongside the road. I normally wouldn't have paid much attention except that the car's color was so dark that it startled me when I realized it was there. It appeared to be kind of wedge-shaped but otherwise unremarkable, so I moved on.
As I rounded the last corner before the Miyazawa residence I noticed several people in dark clothing hanging out in front, and it occurred to me that they could have been connected to Yukine's disappearance. As quietly as I could, I crept up closer to the group. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but it was clear that they were trying not to be noticed.
As I moved to hide behind a dustbin, my foot struck a can that hadn't quite made it in.
They immediately tensed up, as did I. "Who's there?" I heard a gruff male voice call out. Then, in a lower voice: "Go check it out."
Crap. If I stayed, I was as good as caught.
I got up and ran as fast as I could. Behind me I could faintly hear "Don't let him get away!" Unfortunately I was still pretty out-of-shape, so as I ran I looked for somewhere to hide.
I rounded the corner and saw that the dark car was still there and, hoping that I could use it to hide, grabbed the handle and pulled.
Surprisingly, the door opened and I dove inside, slamming it shut behind me and, after a quick search, pushing down on the lock.
A few seconds later, three figures rushed by; their clothing looked the same as the ones outside Yukine's house.
I needed to get to a police station, but I didn't dare get back out of the car. So, with an apology to the car's owner, I reached below the steering wheel – it looked more like a airplane's yoke – to see if I could 'hot-wire' the car to start. I then blinked as I realized that the driver's seat was on the wrong side of the car.
"May I ask what you're doing, young man?"
