Ren: Hey all, Ren here with another chapter and I think you guys will enjoy it so sit back, relax and let's…
Shiho: Start the show!
Persona V: Reversing the Wheel of Fate
Chapter Twenty – Four
Ann stared at her phone long and hard, her heart thumping in her chest.
For the last ten minutes, she sat staring at the message she had sent Ryuji, wondering if she should send it to him. She edited it several times but despite it being perfect, she still was hesitant to send it. "Shiho, tell me if this sounds good," Ann said as she looked at her best friend, who laid beside with her eyes closed.
"Hey Ryuji, sorry for this random ass text but I couldn't keep this from you anymore. The other night, I overheard you and Ren talking and I didn't mean to overhear it! I swear! I was there to let you guys know Haru and Shiho made breakfast. I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I should have tried harder to be your friend instead of letting you go about it all alone. I know we're friends now but I just wanted to let you know that I won't ever let you go again," Ann finished and looked to Shiho and asked "That sound good?"
"Ann-chan," Shiho began in a tone that Ann knew all too well.
She was about to drop some truth on her.
"I don't know what you overheard but if it's serious, it would be better to talk to him personally about it instead of writing a full length letter through text," Shiho told her.
Ann thought about it for a moment then replied sadly "But what if he takes it the wrong way? I don't want to see him hurt because of me. I've already nearly damaged this fragile friendship when we fought in Kamoshida's palace."
"I doubt Ryuji-nii will do that," Shiho replied.
"Ryuji-nii?" Ann repeated with a grin. "You bumped him up to "Big brother" status?" Ann asked with a large smile.
"W-Well yes," Shiho replied with a stammer. "Next to Ren-kun, Ryuji-kun was a massive help and he's been nothing but great to me."
"He is a good guy…Isn't he?" Ann questioned more to herself than to Shiho. "He's blunt, crude and can be a bit of an idiot but he truly has a good heart…" Ann let a tender smile appear on her face, only for Shiho to start giggling.
"W-What?" Ann stuttered out.
"Oh nothing," Shiho replied with an innocent smile.
"Meanwhile, you and Ren have been dancing around each other since the end of the Kamoshida mission. When are you two going to talk about the near kiss?" Ann asked.
Shiho blushed deeply.
Before Shiho could answer, Ann noticed a text on the group text. Ann saved her text as a draft and switched over the group text and saw Ryuji had texted the group.
Ryuji: I just got an excellent idea!
Shiho and Ann glanced at each other before Haru's text came next.
Haru: What's the idea?
Ren: Yeah, clue us in Ryu!
Ryuji: Ryu? You've been playing too much Street Fighter Ren…Wait…Ren…Ken! Dude!
Ren: Awww I just realized it at the same time. We are totally Ryu and Ken!
Ryuji: Shoryuken!
Ren: Hadoken!
"Boys," Ann rolled her eyes while Shiho laughed.
Ann: Before the Bromance continues, what's the idea Ryuji?
Ryuji: Why don't we use the dirty money from Kamoshida's medal and use it to fund a celebration feast on a job well done?
"That's not a bad idea really," Shiho said.
Ann frowned. She was kind of hoping for…
She shook her head, stopping that thought immediately.
But she had to admit, it was a good idea too.
Ren: Morgana says "That sounds like a meow-velous idea.
Haru: *groans*
Ann: Get the fuck out right now!
Ryuji: That was a dirty pun. I love it.
Shiho: Pun aside, I agree. We should celebrate.
Ann: I guess that's fine. There is somewhere I want to go though. It's a place Shiho and I have been wanting to go to for a while
"Oh! Is it?!" Shiho questioned with stars in her eyes.
Ann grinned and nodded.
Shiho squealed and launched herself at Ann, who laughed happily. "Oh I love you so much," Shiho said happily. "This'll be great!"
Ryuji: Awesome! Hey Ren, why don't you stop by and snag the medal so we can get it pawned?
Ren: Cool, I'll be on my way. Hey Haru, when do you get back by the way?
Haru: I'll be back tomorrow.
Ryuji: Sweet! Should we do it tomorrow then?
Ann: Why don't go on the last day of the holidays? I mean, it'll help energize us when school starts.
Ryuji: Then it's settled! Children's date is the day the Phantom Thieves Feast!
Ren: Man, this is great!
Shiho: :)
Ann: Sweet! I'll start checking on prices!
Ren (Morgana): And the meeting concludes!
Haru: Here, here!
Ann then saw another text come in and when she switched to it, she saw that it was Ryuji.
Ryuji: Hey…I know I still owe you so…There's this new alien movie coming out tomorrow. I figure I can start paying that debt by taking you to it?
Ann felt her heart start to beat rapidly as her face began to heat up.
"Ann? Are you okay? Shiho asked with concern.
Ann: Yes. I'd love that.
Ryuji: For Real! Awesome! Should we meet up at the theaters?
Ann: Yeah, that would be cool…I'll see you tomorrow then.
Ryuji: Tomorrow…
Ann: Cool! It's a date!
"Ann. You're face is really red now," Shiho commented as a large smile appeared on Ann's face.
"I…I think I have a date with Ryuji…" Ann said.
Shiho's squealed and hugged a still smiling Ann.
Ryuji: Dude I am freaking out so hard!
Ren stared at his phone while Morgana curled up beside him to take a brief cat nap.
Ren: What's up man?
Ryuji: I may have just asked Ann on a date!
Ren's eyebrows shot up in alarm before a large smirk appeared on his face.
Ren: Well, well, well…Love is in the air for our two resident blondes. I hope you name your kids after me.
Ryuji: Oh you son of a bitch lol. I'm seriously freaking dude.
Ren: I know, I know. Just take a breath and relax. What are you guys doing?
Ryuji: I'm taking her to see that new alien movie. I think it's called "Aliens: The Re-Vengeance" or something like that.
Ren: Aliens: The Re-Vengeance…
Ryuji: I'm sure it'll be trash action movie but I figured Ann would like it.
Ren stared at the name of the movie and let out a sigh of annoyance. That date is going to flop if that's the only thing Ryuji and Ann were doing.
Ren:…You may want to add more to that. Like going to dinner or something else.
Ryuji: Oh! How about the batting cages? Or mini-golf?
Ren: Mini-Golf sounds fun. Make a day of it.
Ryuji: Cool, cool, cool…
Ren: Just try and hide it from Morgana. I think he's starting to get a little crush on Ann.
Ryuji: No problem. I'd hate to hurt the little guy's feelings. He's pretty awesome for a cat. Mom's back with the groceries. Text me when you get here!
Ren: See ya in a bit!
Ren slipped his phone into his pocket smiled. It had been a day since his strange conversation with his mom and while it was on his mind, the text session with his friends really lifted his spirits.
He didn't know why but compared with his past friends, this new group had quickly grown near and dear to his heart.
How had he lived without them in his life?
Ren carefully stood up off the bed to let Morgana sleep and crept downstairs to where Sojiro was handling sweeping the floor. "Hey Sojiro-san…" Ren said with a smile.
"Hey kid, you going somewhere?" Sojiro asked.
"Yeah. I'm going to stop off at a friend's then go to the gym. I've been lazy and feel a little chunky," Ren said with a laugh.
Sojiro chuckled as well and said "It's good to see you keep in shape. Most teenagers would eat junk food all day without burning it off."
"My dad was really hard on me to keep fit so I try to keep fit…Sometimes," Ren replied with a brief laugh before he noticed a pile of dishes in the sink and asked "Need some help?"
Sojiro looked at the dishes and said "You know what? Sure."
Ren smiled and made his way to the sink when he heard the door open and shut. When he turned around, he felt his heart himself blink in surprise.
A rather tall woman with long ashen brown hair asymmetrically parted on her right side and reddish-brown eyes walked into the café. She wore a black business suit with a black turtleneck along with gray heels.
'Whoa…I'm not usually the guy to want someone to step on them but…wow,' Ren thought. "Why is everyone in this city so fucking attractive?!' Ren then took a step back as a sense of Déjà vu overcame him.
He blinked his eyes and suddenly found himself in a dark room, his chest and face hurting, his vision blurry as the woman in front of him punched the steel table beneath her, causing his headache to increase but in another blink, he was back at Le Blanc's.
'What the fuck…' Ren thought.
"Good afternoon gentlemen," The woman said with a brief nod.
"Afternoon," Sojiro replied coolly.
"H-Hello," Ren said with a stammer.
The woman's eyes glanced at him and suddenly, Ren felt like he was in the hot seat and immediately rushed to the sink to start the dishes.
As he did the dishes, Sojiro flipped on the TV, where the newscaster was speaking.
"The cause of the runaway-train incident in the subway the other day still has not been found. Police are hurrying to solve the matter as it may relate to the rise of psychotic breakdown incidents."
"Oh, is that the thing everyone's been talking about?" Sojiro questioned as he crossed his arms.
"Doesn't it make you curious?" The woman asked. "People who were living normal lives suddenly going mad or deranged out of the blue like that?"
Both Sojiro and Ren looked to her curiously.
"Not to mention that it's happening one after another…Could they really be coincidental?" The woman finished thoughtfully.
"Hm…You have a point," Sojiro replied. "Leaving that aside…What'll you have today?"
"The house blend please," The woman said.
Sojiro nodded and began to make her coffee. The woman then turned to Ren, who began to wash the dishes again and asked him "Are you a part-timer? I'm surprised this place can afford one."
"That's right," both Sojiro and Ren said in unison before Sojiro continued with "That's exactly the case."
"Yeah, kinda needed this job to help pay for my schooling," Ren replied as he continued to clean.
"Oh, so you're a high school student. I figured because you look around that age. Where do you attend?" The woman question curiously.
"I attend Shujin Academy. I'm on the student council," Ren replied as he placed three cups on the drying rack beside the sink.
"Shujin Academy…I know someone who goes there," The woman said. "I've heard that things are rough there right now."
"Yeah…" Ren said, trying to keep his voice calm and normal sounding.
"A former Olympic medalist and pride of Japan falling so low…It's honestly surprising. I heard Kamoshida confessed his crimes as if he was a different person. It makes me wonder…Can a person's mental state change so easily?"
'Okay…What the hell does she know?' Ren thought to himself with a suspicious tone.
The woman eyed Ren a little while longer before Sojiro sat her cup of coffee down in front of her. "Thank you…" The woman said before she began to drink.
"Dishes are done Boss," Ren said as he dried his hands off with a towel.
"Thanks kid, you're free to go," Sojiro said.
Ren nodded and unfurled his sleeves and picked up his jacket and began to walk past the woman but as he did, the woman said "I'll be seeing you, Amamiya Ren."
Ren stopped cold in his tracks at the door before he looked back at her with surprise but the woman didn't look at him.
She just merely continued to drink.
Ren quickly left the café.
After snagging the medal from Ryuji, Ren found himself at the alleyway of the Untouchable Airsoft Shop but what immediately made him curious was the two men whispering in front of it. He shrugged and walked into the shop and saw the grumpy attendant again.
"Hey!" Ren said with a grin.
The surly man looked up from his magazine and muttered "Oh, you again. What do you want?"
Ren took out the medal and asked "How much would you be willing to give for this?"
"A gold medal?" The man questioned before he barked out a laugh. "We don't by and fake or stolen goods here kid." The man then took another look at the medal then said "On second thought, let me see that."
Ren handed him the medal and after a few minutes of examining this, he said "I'm not gonna question where you got this but I'll take it. How's thirty-thousand yen sound?"
"Works for me," Ren replied.
"Good deal," The man said as he handed Ren the money. He then glanced at his watch and mumbled "Almost time…" the man then pulled out a brown paper bag and said "Take this with you as thanks for the medal."
Ren eyed the bag but then shrugged and took it. "But it's best not to ope it. Just bring it back with you the next time you come here."
"No worries. I got you covered," Ren replied with a grin.
"Good kid. Glad you're quick to understand," the man said with a nod.
Just then, the door was kicked open and two well dressed man and another in a swat uniform busted into the store, the swat dressed man holding a pistol in his hand. "Munehisa Iwai, there are some matters we'd like to discuss with you today," the man in the tan suit said with a smirk.
"Go kid," Iwai said.
Ren shrugged and walked towards the door and was about to leave when he heard the tan suited man speak again. "Do you know why we're here?"
"Lookin' for evidence? You tell me Detective-san," Iwai replied with a smirk on his face.
"Watch your attitude!" The black suited man said angrily.
"And here I thought only dogs barked," Iwai chuckled out. "Well go ahead and search the place."
"What?!" The black suited man exclaimed.
"I mean, an upstandin' citizen's supposed to cooperate with the cops, right?" Iwai questioned.
The tan suited man looked to his partner and asked "You sure that lead was legit?"
"I'm damn sure," the man said but he sounded less confident than before. Ren immediately opened the door and left before they started questioning him on why he was there in the first place.
Ren was back on the central street of Shibuya and let out a sigh of relief but as he turned around, he collided with someone. With a yell, he fell down onto his ass and grumbled "Man that hurt…"
It was then he heard a gasp and when he looked up, he found himself his blood run cold.
For sitting in front of him was the girl that shattered his heart.
Ren:….
Ryuji: That's rough as hell…
Shiho: Who is she?
Ann: Only one way to find out I guess…