Chapter 25

READY ! !

"This is where you were."

Jordan turns back from his workbench and sees Iori standing in the doorway, arms crossed like she was angry. In this dimly lit room filled with drawers and baskets full of electronic components, computer parts, and other various technological equipment, the tall man is hunched over a camera like a doctor preforming surgery. With a tool in each hand he's doing something with the recording device's intestines. After acknowledging his young female companion he turns back to his work.

"Yeah, have to pay for your favor somehow."

Trying to make herself mad because he missed her segments, Iori realizes it's an impossible task. For a moment she was genuinely upset, but after finding him all those negative emotions washed away like scum off the tide. Actually, it was kind of sad. After going through all the trouble of setting up this appearance he didn't get to watch.

"I wish you could have seen us on TV," morosely spoken.

"I did," and without turning back he points above Iori's head.

Following his aim the young girl sees a currently muted television adjacent to the doorway. In her blind spot, there was no way Iori could have seen that before making her mistake. It made her previous emotions of concern feel like a lie. Frustration at embarrassing herself almost made her lash out at him, but after taking a breath she let her temper cool. This too was a part of how Iori wanted to improve herself. She couldn't just say those things in front of Ami and Azusa. Most of the effort had to be made when they weren't present.

"They want you to fix that camera?"

"Yeah. This is a $40,000 HD camera, and there's not one single person in Nevada certified to repair it."

Then why was he digging around like a child who's just taken apart his father's watch?

"I said certified. That means you work for a company and they say you can do it. There might not be anyone certified, but there's one person qualified. See, if this Network wanted to have it repaired, they'd have to call for a service tech, pay his wage, pay his mileage, plus put up a room if it takes more than a day. It could cost them from $1,000 to $3,000 to repair the camera. Our deal was that they do me a favor, and I repair this camera for free. It all works out."

"Wait," Iori found an immediate problem with his explanation, "that's a complete rip-off! Any way you look at it they're just exploiting you! You don't have miss out on $1,000 to $3,000 just because you wanted us to appear on TV!"

To her concerns, Jordan sighs, "Of course I wouldn't miss out on that much money, but I wouldn't have been paid anywhere near that. I don't work for a company, and I'm not a business owner. I can't even call myself a contractor. If they would have called me without my stipulation of putting you girls on-air, they wouldn't offer me anything more than a couple hundred bucks to repair the camera. When you work under the table like this, you make far less than the professionals, even if you have even greater skill than their engineers."

It's completely unfair, "Can't you do anything?"

"My discharge is my stigma. If there's someone who'll hire me with this mark on my record, I haven't met them yet. But lately I've been thinking that maybe a person like that doesn't exist."

"No!" Iori yells in protest. "I'm sure-"

"'So maybe', I thought, 'I should hire myself.'" Jordan's words confuse Iori. "If nobody wants to pay me to work for them, maybe I should start my own business and work for myself."

For a moment Iori's reminded of her father, who in his youth built the Minase name from scratch.

"That's a great idea!"

"Yeah, not a bad one I say. But do you know how much it costs to start a business? I have to pay for a business license, permits, tools, advertising, not to mention I still don't have a car. I'll be in my 30s before I save up enough to get all those things done."

There was a solution to this problem, and it was in Iori's purse, but how to make Jordan take the bait?

"What about a loan?"

Jordan laughs, "Who would give me a loan? I have no collateral, assets, and my portfolio only contains my checking account. I don't even have a savings account. No bank would give me the time of day."

"You don't have to go to a bank. What about looking for an investor? Or even a partner?"

"Yeah, go up to all the people I know and start asking for money. I'd have an easier time getting hired at a kick-butt job."

Stubbornly disagreeing with everything she's saying, it seems Iori must flat out say it, "What if I gave you the money?"

Unlike all the times before, Jordan isn't ready with an immediate response. It even sounds as if he's even stopped working. Iori's being serious, and she wants him to really consider her offer.

"I didn't know you were 15," he confesses, "I thought you could have been anywhere between 12 and 20." Iori knew she was petite, but that broad an estimate kinda hurt. "It'd be like stealing from a kid. It wouldn't feel right."

Instinctively these words fly out of her mouth, "That kind of money means nothing to me!"

"Which makes it even more wrong to take it. If you care so little about your money, how am I supposed to care for it? Taking money from someone who so frivolously throws it around only makes me the hallow one. My idea will fail if I partner with someone who isn't as serious or more so than I. Your money holds little value."

Iori didn't mean it like that! Completely serious was she in her proposition, but she spoke without thinking and was careless. By being with and understanding the other idols, her grip on reality had become more centered. A conflicted feeling filled her chest when she received her first paycheck. It was less than her allowance. Iori had no use for so little a check, so she framed it on her wall as in memorial of her hard work. At the time it seemed like a good idea, but then she learned some of the other idols had to live off such meager wages. Yayoi needed the money to support her family and Chihaya Kisaragi lived alone. At one time Iori was so detached to not understand this, but no longer. Nearly unlimited funds were at her disposal, more so than what she could ever want to spend on herself. Her's was a sincere desire to help others, but she'd dug a hole and was now trapped within. Was there any way for her to convince Jordan to accept her aid?

"Thanks for the offer," capitalizing on Iori's prolonged pause, "but I'll do this on my own."

Shutting the door in her face, Iori's truest desire was denied. To be of help to this man, in return for everything he's done for her, she now knew what he needs, but not how to get it for him. Being direct only backfired. Some other path must exist somewhere.

Iori wants to shout, wants to scream out, "I understand! I didn't mean what I said!" but she knew her honesty wouldn't be conveyed. All because of a slip of the tongue he would stubbornly refuse any additional offer. Because they've been through so much together, she knew him well enough to correctly assume his intentions. Any continued effort would be futile.

"Done," Jordan announces. Gloating, "It'd take a professional hours just to figure out what was wrong, and I got it working in 30 minutes! Once they told me there was a lag between video and audio I knew exactly what to do."

Jordan was quite happy with himself and Iori knew it was best to let him be. His skill and expertise should be compensated handsomely, but instead he's elated even though he isn't making a dime. Maybe in this way they were the same. Iori wasn't an idol because of the money. Maybe Iori was acting as how she always hated. What she'd just done was equivalent to her father purchasing fame with his influence. With as far as Iori has gotten as an idol, she can be proud in the fact that she gotten there under her own power. She'd have hated her father if he'd swooped in and solved all her problems, and that's what Iori was trying to do with Jordan. But saying that Iori was alone wouldn't be completely accurate, as she was teamed with Ami, Azusa, and Ritsuko as Ryuuguu Komachi. That scenario differed then the one with her father. Iori, Ami, Azusa, and Ritsuko were partners, companions. Amongst all four they were equals, and they combined their efforts into one. Iori couldn't do the same with Jordan. Their positions were simply too different. That's the reason why Jordan rejected her. To truly be his partner, Iori would have to sink herself pretty low. Of that was she capable?

"The others must be waiting," cracking his back. "Let's get going."

Actually, that presents another problem.

"You didn't see?" Iori asks him.

His brow arches, "See what?"

"During our song, Azusa tripped. They told us it didn't air, and if you didn't see it I guess it didn't. She's in a pretty crummy mood. We were trying to talk to her, but she's pent up in the dressing room."

"Really?" his voice is devilishly amused. "The big girl gets like that, huh."

Navigating without the aid of Iori or the posted maps here and there, he'd gone from the tech cage to the dressing room without any trouble. It's clear he's been here enough to become familiar with the layout. Likely he's been paid a "couple hundred bucks" to fix equipment numerous times.

Unceremoniously he enters, spotting quickly Ami and Ritsuko by the side of the downtrodden Azusa. Those in support turn and notice Jordan, but the idol who couldn't find the effort to even change from her costume remains unresponsive.

Upon his entrance, Ritsuko tells them something.

Iori translates, "She says-"

Jordan skirts passed them and kneels by Azusa's side. The eldest woman weakly turns towards the man, only to find he's hoisting her onto his shoulder. She starts to yell.

"Okay," he somehow finds a way to raise his voice above Azusa's, "let's go. I'm sure we got some place to be."

Without effort he carries the full-grown woman as if she were a piece of lumber. Kicking, hitting, and screaming, Jordan cares absolutely none about the scene he's making. Those who see them are too amazed to move.

"She's telling you to-" Richie tries to translate.

"I know what she's saying," this was a very safe assumption. "Tell her this: I know a thing or two about falling on your face. You can't spend all day laying in the street. You have to pick yourself up and keep going. And you're lucky, if you're struggling you have people whose shoulder you can lean on, and even someone who'll take all your weight and carry you."

As she listens to the translation Azusa gradually calms down. For a moment Iori was worried that his actions were likely Azusa two least favorite things. Being suddenly apprehended against her will, let alone simply being touched, and riding on an unsteady vehicle. Bobbing up and down from his walking was going to make her sick.

"(You can put me down now,)" Azusa tells him after she's calmed.

"She said-"

"I know what she said," but despite his claim he doesn't put her down.

The expression so quickly changes over Azusa's face those following behind retreat in recoil.

"I seriously think you should put her down now!" Richie tries to warn Jordan.

"Naw, it's alright."

Azusa's gone from surrendering to a dead fish. Color's drained from her face and she hasn't the strength to raise objection. All her flailing around while he was moving likely contributed to the speed of this development. Each passing second was an intense moment.

By some miracle they made it to the familiar SUV without incident. Jordan place her down on the ground (she's in no state to stand) and turns to find the others following an extended distance behind. After raising considerable complaint and objections, they gather together and travel outward. Ritsuko drives.

"(Did you really mean what you said?)" Azusa asks after recovering enough to worry about other things, as translated by Richie. "(Did you really mean you could carry all my weight?)"

After taking a moment to think, Jordan responds, "While I can physically lift you, I wasn't talking about myself."

In a way, at the time, the man's words almost felt like some confession of hidden feelings. Azusa didn't know that for certain, thus she had to ask. But if he wasn't implying himself, then who was he?

"(Who were you talking about?)"

Jordan cracks a grin but doesn't respond. Someone who could support all her weight? If he wasn't talking about himself, then there was only one other person he could be implying. Ami was out of the question. Richie wasn't even a consideration. Ritsuko was a good manager, but in her position she was incapable of handling the things that were truly bothering the troubled idol. By process of elimination, that left only one person.

Those who overheard the conversation turn to Iori, while the girl herself uncovered his implications faster than anyone.

"You don't mean me, do you?"

"You're maturing by leaps and bounds, kid." And then, as if to tease her, "You're going to be something when you grow up."

What Jordan saw in her, has been seeing in her, and likely noticed by Azusa, Ami, and Ritsuko even if they wouldn't admit it, was potential. Everyone has potential, but being able to fulfill it is another matter. According to Jordan, Iori wasn't only walking down her correct path in life, but sprinting. Iori could only try to hide herself in embarrassment.

"So, where are we headed?" he asks the driver.

Translated, "We're going to the venue. We've taken our last stop."

A nice short chapter for a change, but this respite will be short-lived. I've finally settled on the conclusion to the story (though I was pretty dead-set from the start, I just didn't know how to get there). As we can see, the Live is mere hours away. So I can say with absolute certainty, there are only 3 chapters remaining. I hope it's been as much an adventure reading my story as it was for me writing, but I'm being premature, so let me save all that mushy crap for the end. These last 3 are likely to be long. Like, long long, so they might be delayed somewhat. So save me being hit by a bus, as long as you wait you'll see the final chapter. Here's to me not suffering a horrible horrible fate before the conclusion.

~Kyle Castorena

(I didn't just raise the Bad End flag, did I?)