Chapter 35: First Love's Reprise
"The magic of first love is our ignorance that it can ever end." - Benjamin Disraeli
"…Are you crazy?"
Tyki sighed patiently, giving Rei a somewhat condescending look, as if saying "Do I really need to explain myself?"
"You want me and Kanda to stay in a room together," said Rei disbelievingly.
"Yes."
"That…that makes no sense, Tyki. Are you not…aware of…um…" She could not find a way to phrase it delicately.
"Yes, Rei," said Tyki patiently, "I'm well aware of how Kanda still has silly feelings for you, and I'm also well aware of the potential problems that might arise in our own relationship should something between you and Kanda happen, because, you know, things do happen when a male and a female who were or are in love remain in the same room together overnight. Please don't challenge my intelligence in that aspect, all right? Because I'm well aware of all these things, you should therefore realize what kind of situation I think you're in for me to even be suggesting this."
"I really don't see why I can't just stay in the same room with you, Tyki," said Rei. "Surely you're more…er, protection than Kanda is?"
"I am not going to be with you for most of the time, I suspect," he answered. "From the way Lulu and the twins…reacted, I think I'll be engaging in Noah family meetings many times in the middle of the night, which would prove to be not-so-good for you, in case something should happen. Therefore, it is much better for you to be far away from here under other bodyguard surveillance, since I'm sure Kanda will have a fleet of men to be guarding him here."
It was rather obvious that Tyki was also not feeling extremely comfortable with his proposal. His eyes kept looking past Rei's face, and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed.
"If you're not comfortable with it," said Rei gently, "there are other options I can take, Tyki. We could also stop being so paranoid—I really don't think your family will actually try to hurt me."
"I'd rather not take that risk," he said, tousling her hair lightly. "Listen to me for once, would you?" He bent down slightly, his lips gracing her forehead. "And please stay out of trouble."
The hotel Allen had reserved a room for Kanda in was one of those places that only the truly wealthy could afford to stay at. Rei let out a little breath as she stood in the lobby, a enormous room with a wonderfully high ceiling and excellent fresh air ventilation, as the temperature was not too cold but not too warm. The doors were magnificent—towering glass panes separated by gold bars that wove around the entire expanse, intricately designed with mosaic patterns. A waterfall was in the lobby, sporting various species of rare fish and crystal clear water, while golden-caged indigenous birds frolicked in their elegant prisons.
Rei stood awkwardly in front of the main desk as a translator notified the receptionist about her arrival. She was surrounded by her bags and a few suitcases. Most of her clothes had been shipped off to that ridiculous rural villa in Italy, but her essential belongings were still at hand.
Including a few guns with spare barrels. Tyki had furtively handed them to her before she left, his eyes gleaming in amusement at her somewhat ecstatic expression when she'd seen the glint of the metal. It had been a while since she'd actually gotten to play around with a few weapons—which was always rather fascinating to do.
Kate and Lavi had accompanied Rei and Kanda to the hotel in place of Tyki, who had been held back by Cyril for some sort of meeting. Unsurprising.
"Nice…" whistled Lavi, looking around. "Kate, do you want to stay here instead?"
"Nah," said Kate after a few minutes of lobby inspection, "nice as it is here, the palace is still a palace, and there are servants and whatnot. Can't beat living the life of a princess after all."
"You like being pampered?" grinned Lavi. "Don't worry, princess, I'll pamper you all you want."
Kate rolled her eyes as Lavi wrapped an arm around her waist and pecked her on the cheek.
"As if you don't spoil me enough, Lavi," she smiled.
"You shouldn't complain!"
"Guys, please," said Rei weakly as the two of them grew cuddly. "Why are you even here?"
"Just to see where you were going to be living," said Kate brightly. "You know, in case you get too bored with Kanda and all…he's like the kind of person who would fly halfway across the world and not even tour."
"Exactly," said Kanda's wry voice from the right. The rest of them turned to him as he approached; he held up two plastic cards between his index and middle fingers, sliding them so that they both showed a streak of gold that cut through the lower part of the card.
"Please do not tell me that is real gold," deadpanned Rei.
"It might be," admitted Kanda, inspecting the cards. "For security purposes."
"They might as well have retina scans," grumbled Rei, snatching a card from Kanda's hand with some effort due to his height. "Are we in a suite?"
"Of course," he said. "You expect me to stay in a tiny room with you? Highly unlikely—you'll probably take up all the space with all your stuff."
"No, you'd take up all the space with your gigantic ego."
"You're so mature, Rei."
"Kanda, you can stop being a—"
"Aren't they so sweet?" said Kate fondly to Lavi. "They're like bickering siblings."
"Siblings?" said Rei, scandalized. "I would die if he were my brother—"
"The feeling is completely mutual," said Kanda sourly. "I can't stand kids."
Rei glared at him, unwilling to muster up the energy to continue the ridiculously childish argument. Was Tyki really sane? He thought she could actually stay in the same room with Kanda without getting into an asinine argument sooner or later? Fat chance.
"Kate, why don't you and Bookman stay here too?" suggested Rei as the four of them entered a hotel with a few valets who were taking care of their luggage.
"Nope," said Kate with an apologetic smile. "I loved rooming with you, but I mean…you're just not Lavi…meaning we can't, you know…"
"Mm-hm," said Rei dryly. "Such a wonderful friend you are, Kate."
Kate simply laughed and teasingly ruffled Rei's hair. (Really, why was she the only short one? Everyone was always tousling her hair—the only person she was taller than was Allen.)
Kate's cell phone rang the moment they stepped out onto the green carpeted floor of the ninth story.
"Hm?" said the German model, taking out the phone and examining the screen. "Oh…how weird, it's Victoria's Secret…"
Lavi peered over her shoulder, reading the caller I.D.
"English headquarters? What do they want you for?"
"No idea," mused Kate, clicking the "Call" button and putting it to her ear. "Hello? Yes, this is Kate…"
Her voice trailed off as she stepped away from the group, wandering down the hallway with a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Wonder what that's about…" said Lavi.
"Probably business," said Kanda, finding the designated room (Room 763) and sliding the card in the keyhole. The light above the lock buzzed green and a solid click resounded down the hallway, notifying them of their access.
"After you," said Kanda with sarcastic chivalry as he opened the door for Rei and beckoned for her to enter.
"Thanks," said Rei primly, walking inside the suite. She was greeted by a large expanse, decorated with pastel paintings on the rose-colored walls and fluffed white carpet covering the floor. Two queen-sized beds, already made with silken maroon sheets and blankets, sat a few feet away from each other across from a huge flat-screen T.V., which was accompanied with a computer and stereo system. Half of one wall was a window that overlooked the luscious garden surrounding the hotel. Rei glanced inside the mirror, spotting a black marble counter with stylish lanterns adorning the ends of the mirror above it. The room clearly…cost a lot.
Lavi whistled. "Not bad, guys, not bad at all. So…you two gonna have fun by yourselves? Alone?" The Brit grinned widely at Rei's ugly expression. "C'mon, Rei, you never know. Sure, Mikk is hot and all, but with you and Kanda's—"
"Seriously, Bookman," said Rei with a grimace, "do you really have to bring up the obvious? You're just making things even more awkward by saying it aloud…"
"I just can't see why the hell Mikk wanted you to stay with Kanda—overnight," said Lavi, looking around the room. "And why you agreed? Unless you wanted something to happen."
"Bookman," said Rei sharply.
Lavi raised an eyebrow and looked at Kanda, who was engrossed in close inspection of the room but was most likely listening keenly to the conversation.
"What, Kanda? You agree, right?"
Kanda scoffed and turned to face the two of them, a customary smugness noticeable in his expression. His answer, though, was unbearably stoic and cryptic.
"We'll see."
Which caused Lavi to look even more skeptical.
"Man, Mikk just shot himself in the foot this time, didn't he…" the British model sighed. "Well, Rei, all I can believe in is your hopeful faith in your first boyfriend and that you don't succumb to the physical needs of an eighteen year old teenager—"
"Bookman!" said Rei indignantly. "What are you trying to accomplish?"
"Nothing," Lavi grinned, patting Rei's head lightly. "Don't get so angry easily—you're way too on edge today. I just wanted to lighten your mood up a bit."
"Wrong way to approach it," sighed Rei, pushing his hand off, "but thanks. Being here just makes me slightly pissy."
"Ah," said Lavi understandingly, "it's that time of month, isn't it?"
"Lavi," said Kate disapprovingly from the doorway, "that is an inappropriate question to be asking anyone other than your girlfriend…"
"Ah, she doesn't mind, do you, Rei?" asked Lavi. Without waiting for a reply, he turned back to Kate. "So what did Vicky Secret call you about?"
"They want me to do a shoot for them," said Kate musingly. "And a runway show, while I'm there. It's apparently a big gig and will pay tremendously well…I'll also be the one in all their stores next season. Which is quite a feat…"
"They want you to go now?" said Lavi dubiously. "You're in the middle of work for Marian though."
"He's not doing anything though," said Kate somewhat coolly as she thought of the photographer. "That man is so ridiculous—always asking us to fly across the world on a whim and getting nothing done in the meantime. At least I know something will get done in London."
"How long would you stay?" said Rei, sitting down on her bed.
"Couple of weeks," said Kate airily. "Visit my family, maybe…"
"Your family lives in London?" said Lavi, surprise. "I didn't know that."
"I…I don't really talk about them that much," said Kate offhandedly. "I'm not on the best of terms with my family."
"Funny," chuckled Lavi, "me neither. Well, really, it's just me and my gramps, but he hates my being a model and all, so it's not downright pleasant being around him. I'd like to meet your family though. At some point or another, you know?"
"Maybe," said Kate, looking somewhat uncomfortable with the prospect. She pushed her long silky hair aside and turned to Rei. "Though I was thinking…Rei, you know, it might be good for you to come with me. You'll learn a lot through a Victoria Secret shoot…"
"Kate, I am far from…endowed in that aspect," laughed Rei. "It'd never work."
"Actually, the woman in charge of the shoot—I was just talking to her—she wants someone from Asia to work with her. It doesn't matter if you're flat or not—most Asians are, well, pretty flat anyway," said Kate with a slight grin.
"Thanks for rubbing that in," sighed Rei. "I dunno—Lenalee's probably a better option, Kate. She's more famous and popular and prettier and everything else…"
"But this is a great opportunity," said Kate emphatically. "And besides, we'd get to room together and everything—and I mean, I like Lenalee and all, but we're not that close…"
"Eh…"
"And it'll make you a lot more famous," the German model continued, "which is really important because these pictures will probably come out before Marian's, and will therefore amplify the effect on Marian's shoot, you know? It'd be a lot of fun. And…if you came to see my family, it would be nice. It's always a little less…uncomfortable around them when I have a friend around," she added somewhat nervously.
"Eh? What about me?" said Lavi.
"Um…" Kate was visibly agitated. "It might just be…you know, weird if you came back with me. My parents are…kind of conservative. I imagine that they're not happy we're dating—you know, with you being so much younger than me and all."
"It's what, four years? It's not a big deal," said Lavi exasperatedly. "If you're worried about me being offended, don't. I won't care."
"How long do you guys plan on hanging around?" said Kanda deprecatingly, stopping the flow of the conversation. Rei shot him a look that he unduly ignored.
"He's right, Lavi," said Kate. "We better go—no funny business with Rei, Kanda. I hate Mikk, but I'm not terribly fond of cheating—"
"Says you," retorted Kanda.
There was a slight pause as everyone took in what Kanda was insinuating.
Kate flushed to a deep red and her scarlet-painted nails dug into the sides of her arms as she shifted nervously on her feet. Hardly ever was Kate fazed by verbal insults; it was therefore painfully clear that Kanda had struck a sensitive nerve.
"I'll walk you guys to the elevator," said Rei sharply, breaking the silence and ushering the two European models out of the room.
"Geez, overreacting," she heard Kanda mutter under his breath.
Rei turned around just as she was about to shut the door and sent him a hateful glare.
"You know," she said frostily, "if you actually learned to control that mouth of yours, maybe you'd actually have friends."
"I don't need—"
Rei slammed the door behind her and joined Kate and Lavi down the hallway as they waited for the elevator. It was an awkward atmosphere, as no one made a move to say anything. Each stood rigidly as they waited for the electronic transporter to come all too slowly, and remained in individual brooding thoughts.
"Rei," started Kate.
"I'm not angry with you," she said shortly. "It's just Kanda."
"Oh…" Kate still looked restless; she brushed her hair back uneasily even though there were no strands bothering her face. "I…Lavi, I—"
The elevator dinged, and its golden-cased doors slid open effortlessly. Lavi grabbed Kate's hand and dragged her inside the elevator and, without another word, began to kiss her frenziedly. The doors slid closed in silence, leaving Rei alone in the hallway as the light above the elevator indicated its descent.
She gave a little sigh and crossed her arms, staring at the doors in front of her with an expression of mixed annoyance and amusement. With Rei staying with Kanda and Tyki staying near Lulu, it seemed that the only stable couple was Kate and Lavi. The realization was comforting, for some reason.
As if it were an indication for confidence in a relationship that was like a rickety bridge, prone to collapse under the slightest pressure.
"Well, let's commence," said Cyril as he sat down in a cushioned seat at a long, stately table.
The rest of the Noah situated themselves around the table as well. The room was dimly lit by a chandelier hanging from the ceiling; there were no windows, causing the blood-red wallpaper to gleam in the muted light menacingly.
Tyki sat between Debitto and Lulubell. His fingers unconsciously drummed the arm of his chair, relishing the feeling of the smooth wood under his touch. He dropped his hand to the side of the chair, stroking the edges of the seat like he would the skin of a woman—it was clear that wherever his mind was, it wasn't far from inappropriate things. He noticed Lulu's golden irises dart down in his hand's direction, apparently amused with his preoccupation as Cyril began to speak.
"Well, now that we're all here—"
"First of all," said Tyki dryly, "I have a question." He turned to the two twins, who were in the process of carving out of place pictures on the surface of the table with Swiss knives. "Why the hell are you two here?"
"Oh, right," said Debitto suddenly, "Tyki doesn't know that we—"
"—joined these meetings right when he left," finished Jasdero, scraping the tip of his knife in a smooth downward motion, letting the woodchips sprinkle next to the clear cut on the surface of the table. "We had to come to fill ya in, Tyki!"
"Both of you had to fill in for one of me?" smirked Tyki. "That shows something about your intellect—"
"Hey! It's because Jasdebi can't be separated!" said Jasdero hotly. "You can't just say that—we're way better than you, Tyki!"
"Besides, at least we got stuff done in the meantime," grinned Debitto. "While you were off flirting with your…girlfriend. Cheeky little girl, ain't she?"
"Debitto…" said Tyki with narrowed eyes.
"Man, you are smitten!" laughed the black-haired twin, waving his knife around dangerously close to Tyki's face. "What's the Earl ever gonna do with you, eh?"
Tyki let out a breath and turned his attention to Lulu, who still looked humored by his behavior.
"They've met the Earl now, have they?" he said lightly.
"Oh, Tyki," she said chidingly, "it's to be expected, you know. Sooner or later, Road will—"
"No," he said firmly.
"Tyki, she's thirteen. Four or five years, and she'll be ready too. Every royal member affiliates themselves with the Mafia head, whether they like it or not. Grow up. Rei will have to meet him too—"
"No."
Lulu raised her eyebrows.
"Debitto's right," she said tetchily, "you are smitten. Seriously? It hasn't even been half a year, Tyki Mikk. This is slightly pathetic."
"And you got engaged with my girlfriend's dad in less than a month?" he hissed in a lowered voice. "You don't have room to talk, Lulu."
She glared at him in return, causing a satisfied smirk to creep to his lips. Lulu let out a huffy breath and turned the other way, fixating her gaze on a large pine door at the other end of the room. Tyki followed her stare. They all knew who to expect out of the door.
"Is Eiji sleeping?" said Cyril to Lulu.
She nodded.
"He's a bit tired—it seems like Satsuma can be rather demanding. She's also sleeping—I think being a silly little stupid-head tired her out as well."
Tyki chuckled unconsciously, thinking how well the childish insult of "stupid-head" fit his fiancée; Lulu glanced at him at the sound of his laughter, but when he looked at her to meet her eyes, the stare disappeared as quickly as it came
"Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall," started Debitto in a sing-songy voice as he continued to doodle.
"Oh, please," said Cyril exasperatedly, "not that awful song again. At least sing something different!"
The twins looked at each other for a split second before bursting out in,
"I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts, diddly-dee!"
"Kill me now," groaned Tyki, leaning his head on the table. "How the hell are you guys singers if all you can sing are kids' songs?"
"Because we need mikes to sing the songs we normally sing," said Jasdero poutily. "And a bass guitar, because we like to scream a lot—"
"I hope you two never, ever become popular," said Tyki feverishly. "Ever. I would not be able to stand listening to you on the radio—"
His voice cut short as he felt something brush by his fingers. He looked down, surprised to see Lulu's fingers entwined with his own loosely. She was still looking the other way, but Tyki could easily imagine the smug look on her face…
"You're just jealous, Tyki," said Debitto, bored. "Hey, Jas, let's sing that Titanic song, it's depressing and great."
The incredibly depressing song started, but Tyki hardly listened to it, too preoccupied by what was going on with his hand.
He tugged his fingers the other way, somewhat startled with her change in attitude. But Lulu had always been emotionally fickle, like a cat, and he could never read her thoughts…she was much more contained, more sporadic than Rei, whose mood he could read like an open book.
Lulu made no movement to continue holding hands, much to his relief. Tyki didn't have much time to ponder the action, for the pinewood door opened with a bang, and in walked a fat, grinning man with spectacles and a black top hat that was as long as he was round. The Noah stood up simultaneously, the mood in the room quieter and denser than it had been seconds before. The twins had stopped their singing, their faces now set with utter seriousness.
The Earl approached the head of the table, at the seat right next to Cyril, and looked out the room.
"Aw, why so serious?" he said with a broad smile.
A unanimous sigh could be heard in the room, a relaxation in every limb. The twins high-fived each other and said loudly, "Yes! He's in a good mood!" before pouncing up onto the Earl to embrace him in a hug.
"Aw, twins!" said the rotund man, hugging them back. "How cute! Were you that scared of me?"
"Yeah, Earl," laughed Jasdero. "Last meeting, you were hella angry—"
"That's just because things weren't going my way in Japan, you know! I wasn't mad at you!"
"But still! It was scary!"
"Good to see you, Earl," said Cyril with a smile. "I'm guessing things are better now?"
"Somewhat," he answered, brushing off the twins and letting them return to their seat. "We just need a man for the job—oh, Tyki! How delightful to see you back!"
Tyki inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment, sitting back down in his seat as the Earl also sat.
"Excellent, excellent," said the Earl jubilantly. "Just the man I needed—so, how was your trip to Japan? Find Eiji's daughter?"
"He did, but botched up the mission wonderfully," sighed Cyril.
"Eh? How did you… 'botch' it up? She's in Portugal, I hear?"
"Yes, she is, but he's dating the girl now, and is ridiculously overprotective," explained Lulu. "He doesn't want her affiliated with the Mafia."
"Why would I?" said Tyki sourly. "She's just a teenager—you can't expect her to be waving guns around and killing people."
"And that's exactly what Eiji says she likes to do," muttered Lulu.
It was Tyki's turn to glare. Lulu rolled her eyes at his immaturity and turned her attention back to the Earl, who was looking at Tyki with his smile turned upside-down.
"Our Tyki-pon's gotten soft…" he whined.
Tyki mimicked Lulu's earlier action and rolled his eyes.
"I haven't gotten 'soft.' Sorry for finding someone who isn't out there just to use me."
His acerbic words garnered an inscrutable look from Lulu. He deliberately looked past her at the Earl, whose frown was becoming more pronounced.
"We're not here to use you, Tyki, how could you think that?" the Earl pouted. "We're simply concerned for your…wellbeing! For example…I have a very important job for you."
"Earl…no offense or anything," said Tyki as smoothly as he could without narrowing his eyes, "I'm not a Mafia goon anymore. In case you haven't heard, I'm famous. If I do something…covertly illegal, it'll be ten times easier to catch me doing it than one of the twins."
"Tyki, Tyki, Tyki," sighed the Earl. "All royalty members are still Mafia members. And this is something that I know only you can do. The twins always do things together, so it's harder for me to have them remained…undiscovered."
"Meaning that I'm better," muttered Tyki under his breath.
"Hey!" said Debitto, looking up from his wooden carvings. "We're better than you, Tyki!"
"Yeah, much better!" said Jas indignantly.
"Ask anyone else in here if you two combined can beat me alone, and they'll say no. Stop whining, kids, and face life."
Jas scowled and threw his knife at Tyki's face. He caught it lazily between his index and middle fingers, shaking his head all the while.
"Practice makes perfect," he murmured with a sly smile, turning his attention back to the Earl, who simply shook his head.
"Tyki, maybe you don't want to do the mission because you've rusted?"
Tyki raised an eyebrow and sent the knife in his fingers flying past the Earl's ear; it barely skinned him and hit the door behind him precisely.
"I don't rust, Earl," said Tyki pleasantly. "I assure you that that's not my concern."
The Earl seemed relieved with his display of skill and began to speak with renewed enthusiasm.
"This job is important, Tyki. Members from the yakuza have invaded our territory. They're here in Portugal as we speak."
"What for?" queried Cyril.
"Precisely," said the Earl triumphantly.
"…Precisely what?" said Cyril skeptically.
"Precisely. I don't know."
There was a slight pause, as if no one knew whether they could laugh or not. It was sometimes fine to laugh in such scenarios when the Earl was making no sense—the man simply laughed with them. If he didn't, well, he pulled out his gun and started shooting people. Things were pretty volatile most of the time.
"So…" said Tyki slowly, "you want us to kill some kids because they're here in Portugal and you don't know why."
"I know they're not just tourists," explained the Earl. "I also know that they're here to kill someone."
"How do you know?" said Lulu.
As the Earl began to explain why—something about gun orders and sniper gear—Tyki felt the familiar warmth of Lulu's skin slip into his hand again. He refrained from jerkily moving his hand away as his natural instincts dictated, but instead firmly drew his hand away. This time, however, Lulu's hand traced after his, always allowing some skin contact, before wrapping her digits tightly around his and drawing it back to her.
It was like his sensitivity to everything in the room amplified instantly. It became warmer, the colors became vibrant as their fingers unconsciously rolled over each other's. It was an electric sort of contact, where he could feel his own heartbeat accelerate with an intensity that he wished it didn't possess in this kind of situation, and by the command of some overarching force, Tyki could not bring himself to take his hand away.
Lulu seemed impassive as she always did. As she answered the Earl's inquisitions easily, her middle finger slid consistently up and down the middle of his palm, sending shivers that were very hard to repress down his spine.
"So I think this job would be good for you, eh, Tyki?" said the Earl.
Tyki blinked. "Sorry?"
The Earl sighed. "You know, I've always thought you were such a wonderful Mafia member—the only complaint I had was that you were too stupid. Why can't you pay attention for five minutes?"
"Sorry. What did you say?" He tugged his hand firmly away from Lulu and wrapped it tightly around the armrest of his chair.
"I want you to follow these…assassins. See who they're after," the Mafia head said smoothly. "And once you do, take them out. Let it be known that we don't tolerate trespassers."
"This is silly, Earl."
"Are you too scared to do it, Tyki?"
"Goading me isn't going to work. I'll do it under one condition."
The Earl was no longer smiling. "What is it?"
"As long as she's here, don't involve Rei with the Mafia. It's none of her business, and her business is none of yours." Tyki leaned his head back on the top of his seat as he waited for an answer.
The inhabitants of the room waited in apprehension; again, Tyki didn't know if the Earl was in a good enough mood to take his demands.
Fortunately, Lady Luck favored him for the day.
The Earl nodded. "Very well. Find out the motive and take the snipers out. If you do, we'll leave the girl alone."
Excellent. He was just slipping back to his old life.
"What are you thinking?" hissed Lulu as they left the meeting room.
Tyki frowned at her exclamation and ignored her, heading up the stairs to his room. Unfortunately, Lulu followed him with renewed vehemence in the face of his rudeness.
"Tyki, we have dillydallied with your ridiculous relationship for more than long enough—when are you going to see that your loyalty should lie not with a girl you've only met for half a year but with the family?"
"Sorry, Lulu," he said coolly, aiming for his room, "I don't really feel like whoring myself out just for the family."
Lulu's eyes flashed with fury and her hand connected with Tyki's left cheek in an instantaneous second. The slap stung, obviously, but he knew better than to retaliate—he decided to settle on a cold glare in return, but had barely mustered it before Lulu grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him forward. Her lips met his roughly as her hand reached out for the doorknob to his room. Tyki heard the door click open and the cold air of his room welcomed him in; Lulu pushed him in and slammed the door shut behind her with a kick, all the while keeping the kisses constant and ardent. Stunned more than anything, Tyki didn't even think of protesting as Lulu pushed him against the wall and began to kiss him more fully, her tongue brushing his lips as her hands darted up to the collar of his shirt and began to unbutton it.
Great. First a mission to kill, now an old flame.
Really, he had to welcome back his old life.
Rei was remaining very cold towards Kanda. She could not understand his lack of tact. His stupidity. She liked Kate very much and saw her as her best female friend, while Kanda himself was, well, less of a friend than anything. His insulting her was uncalled for, given that they were hardly close and that Kate had never been disagreeable to Kanda in any regard. He was just an ungrateful little cretin. End of story.
Their conversation was minimal, which was actually easy to maintain because Kanda was antisocial and never said much to begin with. And Rei, when faced with a grudge, could keep up the cold shoulder for a long time when she wanted to. She was very proud of that ability.
There was not much to do in their hotel room; the afternoon whittled away into evening, and Rei had disassembled and reassembled the guns that Tyki had given to her more than a few times already. The hobby was getting boring, even when she'd decided to time herself and beat an old record—she had gotten nowhere close, and the degree of rusting had upset her slightly.
She was trying not to think of anything that would upset her any further. Like Lulu and Eiji. Or Aiko, now that she was in Portugal. Or Kanda, because thinking about him just wanted to make her cock the gun she held in her hand and shoot him in the face.
She thought instead of the potential trip to England with Kate, which would be fascinating and fun. It would be an escape from the drama that the modeling crew she was with now represented. But Rei knew she would not be stress-free, no matter how far she ran from Portugal; she would always worry about Tyki and Lulu while she was gone, she'd always worry about Kanda's safety, and like it or not, she'd always worry about her father.
Rei heaved a sigh and buried her head on her arm at the desk that she was sitting at. Kanda was watching Portuguese television, seemingly bored by whatever was on in the language that neither of them understood. The coffeemaker in the kitchen was currently boiling milk tea, causing a pleasant Asian aroma to linger in the air.
A beep resounded through the room, indicating that the time on the coffeemaker had expired; Rei heard some rustling behind her and knew that Kanda was getting up to get the tea. A few minutes later, she felt him approach her and place a steaming cup on her desk. She looked up at it and then him slowly, mystified by his atypical kindness.
"Tea?" he said with high eyebrows.
"…Yeah," she said, sliding the cup in front of her and taking in the wonderfully familiar scents that reminded her of the home she hadn't been in or thought of in so long. "…It's been a while since I've had tea."
"I know," was his blunt response.
"…Where'd you get it?" she said, taking a slow sip of the tea.
"Brought it with me."
She nodded and focused on not scalding herself. It relaxed her, blunting her antagonism at Kanda for the moment. They remained quiet; Kanda seemed to be letting her drink her fill as she wished without his pestering.
"Good?" he asked once she finished and set her empty cup down.
"Yeah," she said appreciatively as he took the mug. "Thanks."
"Mm."
Another awkward silence.
"Do you want to go out and find something to eat?" he said nonchalantly.
Rei abruptly remembered that Kanda had eaten nothing at the luncheon hosted by the Noah. She gave him a little wry smile, which he immediately frowned upon seeing.
"What?" he said defiantly. "I'm hungry."
"Words that I'd never expect you to admit," she said with a small laugh, standing up. "Well, let's go then. Let's just hope no one thinks we're two idiots who can't speak an ounce of this damn language."
The sky was already a velvety black by the time the two of them embarked on the streets of Lisbon. The street lights did not contribute much to illuminate the city at night; it was more like the shop lights and extensive activeness lit the city up into a beautiful area of electronic life. The amount of people added to the crowded and homelike atmosphere; for the first time since she'd arrived in Portugal, Rei felt a bit at peace.
"Where are we going?" asked Kanda.
"No idea," replied Rei pleasantly. "Where do you want to go?"
"…Somewhere to eat."
"…You don't expect me to guide you anywhere, do you? I don't know any more Portuguese than you do."
They continued walking; Rei was occasionally shoved to the side by a random passerby who was much taller and possessed a sense of urgency that she obviously didn't have. The third time she apologized for being colliding Kanda, the Japanese male heaved an aggravated sigh and took her hand into his.
"Just stick with me—you keep running into me and it's annoying."
His hand was cool and smooth, large enough that it completely enveloped hers. They weren't holding hands the lovers' way—it was the family or friend hand-holding, but Rei was less than okay with it.
"I'm fine," she muttered, pulling her hand out.
Rei could detect a glint in his eyes and looked firmly away before she could decipher the emotion behind it. There was no need to make herself feel guilty.
They lapsed into silence again, but Rei was unable to keep a good distance between them. Their shoulders were always touching, and the slight finger brushes could not be avoided. She was growing more and more aware of Kanda's every physical aspect—his long eyelashes and his piercing blue eyes, his silky black hair that contrasted so starkly yet perfectly with his flawlessly pale face. She had been around Tyki so long, she'd forgotten what it'd been like to be intimidated by Kanda's beauty, and it brought back emotional sensations that she'd long left behind.
Upset with herself, she turned as far away from him as she could.
"Rei," said Kanda. "I'm hungry. Find me a place to eat."
He must've really been hungry to stow his pride and instigate the conversation. She was not so cruel as to blow him off.
"…A café?" she suggested, pointing to the nearest place. It was a small coffee shop with rather pleasantly dim lighting and an overall golden-brownish color scheme. Classy and welcoming, it had to be better than anything else Kanda would think she'd suggest to sabotage him.
He gave a grudging nod and followed her in the small shop, where a waitress greeted them with a smile.
"Como posso ajudá-lo?" she said.
"I…I'm sorry," said Rei, embarrassed, hoping that the waitress at least knew some degree English. "We don't speak Portuguese…"
The waitress, though not fully comprehending, at least seemed to understand that they spoke English. She held up her index finger, indicating that they should wait, and disappeared to the back of the café.
"It seems that they don't recognize you, Kanda," commented Rei. "You're not too famous here?"
Kanda shrugged. "It's nice to be able to walk into the streets without being stampeded to death. I'm more surprised they don't recognize you, considering your and Mikk's ads, but I suppose that just shows how different you look without makeup on?"
She rolled her eyes at his smirk.
"Jeez, Kanda. We all know I look awful without makeup—you don't have to rub it in."
He seemed to think differently for a second.
"…I—"
"Hi, I hear you're English tourists?" said a young Portuguese woman who'd suddenly appeared in front of them. "I'm Maria. I studied English for a bit overseas, so I'll be your server tonight. Will it just be you two?"
"Y-yeah, it is," said Rei.
Maria nodded, her eyes lingering on both of them for a little longer than Rei would've expected, causing her to shift a little uncomfortably under the scrutiny. The server didn't say anything else though, and instead smiled widely.
"Sure, just follow me," she said brightly.
Maria led them to a booth in the corner of the café and handed them menus.
"And we're giving out free tickets to the amusement park that just opened down the street the other day," said Maria, placing a pack of tickets at the edge of the table. "It's pretty fun and I recommend it if you're bored and not up to touring the natural sites around here! So, on to your orders. Do you guys have any idea what you'd like?" she questioned as the two Japanese people settled down on the tan-colored seats.
"I'll just have some chocolate cake," said Rei, ignoring Kanda's disapproving scowl.
"It's nine o'clock—you can't have cake," he said critically.
"Do I care, Kanda?" said Rei scathingly. "If I want cake, I'll have cake."
"That's it!" said Maria suddenly. "Kanda Yuu! You're a Japanese model, aren't you?"
Kanda exchanged looks with Rei, as if asking her whether he should answer. She shrugged and at the same time made a small inclination with her head; chances were that Maria already knew who he was, and was just asking out of politeness.
"Yeah, I am," he said.
"Wow," said Maria breathlessly. "I've never met a celebrity before…that's really awesome. So is this your girlfriend?" She turned to look at Rei.
This was an awful, awful question to be expected to answer. Kanda just stared at his menu indifferently.
"No," said Rei, "I'm not."
"Oh…you look familiar too," said Maria thoughtfully. It took a few seconds for realization to dawn on her. "Wait, you're the one working with Tyki right now, aren't you?"
The frenzied look in the server's eyes scared Rei slightly—she remembered back to her first meeting with Tyki's fans the first day she'd landed in Spain. These girls, who were willing to buy golden contacts just to imitate their favorite star, were insane and quite prone to killing her. Denying was therefore a lie she needed to protect herself.
"No, I'm not," she said again.
"…Really?" said Maria skeptically.
"…Can we just get our orders?" said Rei somewhat coolly.
"Fine," said Maria with a sigh. "What would you like?"
"Cake," said Rei sullenly.
"I'll have the…sandwich in third picture," said Kanda, handing the menu back to Maria. "And tea, if you have it."
"Sure. Jasmine okay?"
Kanda nodded. Maria smiled at the two of them, noticing their unwillingness to have been discovered.
"Don't worry, guys," she said brilliantly, "it's not like I'm going to tell anyone. You're free to stay as long as you like if no one else recognizes you, which I don't think will happen."
"Thanks," said Rei. "We'd appreciate that."
Maria beamed and waltzed away, her black pumps clicking on the brown tiled floor. Rei let out an exhausted breath and laid her head on her arms against the surface of the table, not caring if Kanda judged her. It was not too comforting to be recognized by a stranger, and to always have to face the questions that were associated with Tyki or Kanda or anyone else who was ten times more famous than she was. Rei much preferred it when she could have just entered a café and gotten her chocolate cake promptly without any inquiries of her identity.
Maybe Kanda had eaten a "nice" pill, for he didn't making any scathing remarks. His hand came up to her head and massaged the back of it gently, letting her neck relax from the tension that had so suddenly obliterated her temporary state of peace.
"I don't want to be famous," she said to the table.
"…Too late," was his answer.
"…I know."
"Kanda," said Rei as they walked back to the hotel together.
The streets were clearer, now, but the two of them remained rather close in proximity. Their shoulders still touched, and their fingers still brushed each other.
And Rei felt at peace.
"What?"
"Why are the…" Rei's sentence trailed off. She had been wanting to ask for more details about Kanda's position with the yakuza and Spanish Mafia, but suddenly realized that she didn't want the morbidity of the discussion to disrupt her rare moment of solace.
"Why are what?" he said blandly.
"Never mind," she said, shaking her head. "Do you want to go to the amusement park tomorrow?"
He looked at her curiously.
"Just us two?" he asked.
"…I was thinking with everybody," said Rei. "We have enough tickets."
"Oh. No, I don't want to go."
Their steps matched perfectly. Though she had to strain a bit to keep up with his longer stride, they were relatively in synch. Their shoes clipped the sidewalk consistently, one rhythmic beat after another, with Rei's sometimes an echo of his.
They got back to their hotel in silence, through the lobby and up the golden elevator that played soothing café music, down the carpeted still hallway and to Room 763. The door shut softly behind them, and they were engulfed in the dark. The window that spanned the wall in front of them displayed the twinkling lights below.
It was quiet.
And it was peaceful.
His arms abruptly slipped around her waist, embracing her from behind, and as Rei turned her face around to give a response that she didn't know would consist of, Kanda kissed her on the cheek softly, gently.
The kind of atmosphere had to have been expected.
Doused lights and only the scenery of Lisbon's nighttime down below, silence so apparent that only slight breaths could be heard, so apparent that a traitorously beating heart could accelerate and both of them would know.
Because it was very clear that Kanda did want something to happen, and for some reason, Rei didn't know how to react.
The serenity shattered.
Free Talk:
Thank you so much for the overwhelming response last chapter. I am sorry for being bitchy about it, haha, but the degree of response did make me very happy.
I therefore apologize for the delayed update. I didn't think work was going to be this busy, but working eight hours a day in summer really drains me and so I don't really get much typing done when I get home. I think what I'll do is make the chapters longer but the updating frequency will decrease. Sorry. :( I will do my best to update as much as I can.
Most of the time, I'm ambivalent about a chapter, but I can say that I don't like this one very much. I feel bad for making both Tyki and Rei waver, but there's a theme of "first loves don't die" in this fic, and so I believed it was appropriate to introduce it when both of them are isolated with their first loves respectively.
I think Kanda may be too nice and gentle to Rei in this chapter. Um...sorry? I'm just sentimentally thinking of Kanda right now, haha.
Well, LJ discussion later hopefully. I've been doing a horrid job keeping up with it.
Thanks for your support! Please leave a review on your way out. :)
Until next time,
xoxo,
m.n