A/N: Hi, friends! Look. I know. I'm about to be asshole of the year. I'm apologizing in advance. I'm sorry for being such a dick. But this is going to be a really heavy chapter. The next couple will be. Just…Hang in there. Know that I love you. And that this has plot relevance. Don't you worry your pretty little heads about it, K? Love you x.
I don't remember Ritsu proposing to me. Other than our preproposal in the music room to get the host club off our asses. If that's the case, then why the fuck would Ryoichi talk about Ritsu's fiancée? It couldn't be anyone other than me…Right? RIGHT? Is that mother fucker cheating on me? He fucking better not be or there will be hell to pay. And not just from me. That asshole would get dragged to the fucking Narrows and beaten around the block a time or six. And he fucking knows it.
But we couldn't think about that right now. Because his fucking girlfriend needs to go up and dance onstage for a little while for the sake of keeping an eye on his cheating ass! Normally, I'm not the type for country. Then again, I'm also not the type for subtlety either. What's the point in being subtle when sometimes, the point a bitch is trying to make needs to be slammed over someone's head like a steel fucking chair? So, tonight's selection would be…Well, my levels of subtlety. How about Before He Cheats? That seems about the right level of subtle.
The only difference is that my Louisville Slugger doesn't go to the headlights. It goes to the head. It goes to the fucking kneecaps. It makes sure that asshole doesn't fucking walk again. I wouldn't have the heart to key up his bike. She's too beautiful. She didn't hurt me. But I never thought he would either…Still, I wouldn't hurt his bike like that. But I would make damn sure he knew. I'm fucking pissed. And the only way to vent would be the highest energy routine I've done to date. If that prick was cheating on me, then I'd have no reason to stay here.
When my routine was done and over with, I headed back upstairs. Sure enough, guess who was standing right next to his dad, no doubt waiting for me? Don't hit him, Rei. Not here. Not now. You wait until you're alone and then, beat the ever living shit out of him. No…If I wanted to hurt him, I knew just the way to do it. I slinked into Ryoichi's lap and cuddled into his shoulder. I'd hate myself for what I was about to do, but it's going to be worth it, "How was that…Daddy?"
"Beautiful as always, bluebird," Ryoichi ran his fingers down my back while I reveled in the confused as fuck look on Ritsu's face, "If I didn't know any better, I'd think someone did you wrong."
"Someone did do me wrong," I growled, only to soften my tone in my next breath, "But I'll be alright. I've always been the resilient type. Why get mad when you can get even?"
"That's my girl," Ryoichi gushed, "You're awfully cuddly tonight, too. I like it."
"I'm glad you like it," I got even closer, draping my arms around his neck…and watching Ritsu squirm out of the corner of my eye. Good.
"Hey, Ritsu," Ryoichi played with my hair some more, "Have you heard from Sayori since you've been back? She's probably worried sick about you."
Ritsu jumped at the name and guilt washed over his face, "No. I haven't."
So, the bitch's name is Sayori, is it? I wonder if I could find out her last name. I continued to casually flirt with Ryoichi in the name of making Ritsu incredibly uncomfortable. Not to mention, he was in a position where he couldn't do a damn thing about it. Good. Let him fucking suffer. Let him be miserable. Let him know what he fucking did to me. After all the shit he and I have been through together, he throws it away for someone else? She must really be fucking special to do that to me.
When that final whistle blew, I gave Ryoichi a kiss on the cheek and started heading out. And to nobody's surprise, Ritsu came after me. It's his funeral, "Rei, wait…!"
"No!" I pulled my knife out of my bag, "No…Unless you want to come up missing a testicle, you stay the fuck away from me and leave me alone."
"Rei, listen…" he begged, but I still wasn't having it.
"If you come near me," I glared a hole through him, "I will kill you without hesitation."
Before he could say anything else, I threw my leg over my bike and headed straight home. I wasn't going to stop off at the diner on the corner. I wasn't going to go say hi to Ranka down the street. I needed to go home. And once I got there, I threw myself in bed and bawled my eyes out in a safe place where no one would ever know. After all we've been through…He fucking does this shit? No. I don't want to think he's capable of it, but…
Fuck, why does this hurt so much? And why did he do this to me? What did I ever do to him? I understood him better than anyone else on the face of the earth. I knew who he was and what he was about. At least I thought I did. Did none of it matter? Did our week in Spain not matter? Did our entire summer in New York not matter? Did me bringing him home to practically my entire family saying this is the best damn thing that ever happened to me not matter? If it did, then why is he throwing it away like this? What did I do?
All I knew was that after an hour of crying, I was too exhausted to do it anymore. If that's how he was going to be, then fuck him. I still had shit I needed to do. After maybe three hours of solid sleep, I pushed myself out of bed and took myself to school. Because I sure as fuck wasn't going to wait around for him to show up and try to fix this. Not when he made sure there was nothing there to fix anymore. Before I tackled going to my homeroom, I needed coffee. And lots of it. And more espresso than God knew what to do with. Especially because I know I'm going to have to deal with the twins and their million and one questions. And I'm not dealing with it today. Fuck that.
I walked into class with four shots of espresso in my latte and a fuck you glare in my eyes. At this point, everyone could fuck off and I'd be…Well, I wouldn't be happy, but it'd make life a hell of a lot easier. I sat down and threw my bag on my desk, burying my face in it. I wasn't going to start crying. Not in the middle of class. But I'll be damned if anyone needed to see my face today. It almost made me wish for kendo, so I'd have an excuse to beat the absolute fuck out of him. He needed it. And God knows I could use it, too. Nothing like a little physical release to set my body back to its factory settings.
"Good mor…!"
"Fuck off," I snapped, barely peeking over my bag, "Both of you."
"Ouch…" Hikaru sat down.
"What did we do?" Kaoru joined him.
"Not today," I demanded, my voice cracking a bit, "I don't want to talk about it."
"Guys…" Haruhi stepped in, "Leave her alone."
"Be careful, Haruhi," Hikaru warned her, "Rei's in a mood."
"I think I could…" Even the sound of his voice…What once brought me such comfort, such serenity, now infuriated me. Every fiber of my being said to knock this asshole six feet in the fucking ground.
"You stay the fuck away from me," I growled. If looks could kill, he would've just disintegrated, "We had this discussion."
"Rei…?" Haruhi was gentle. Haruhi was sweet. As much as I loved her, Haruhi had no power over me today, "Do you need to talk?"
"I'd rather sit here and seethe," I spoke flatly.
"Alright." And God bless her, she didn't push me. Good. Because if someone pushed me just the right way today, it'd be their funeral, "You know…If you ever need to…"
"Thanks, Haruhi," I relaxed a little. It's good to know I have friends I can trust. It's unfortunate that I had an asshole boyfriend that was fucking around on me.
"Wow, Kasanoda," Hikaru gasped.
"What did you do?" Kaoru wondered.
"Not…One…Fucking…Word…" I stepped in. I knew Hikaru and Kaoru were good for that kind of shit, for digging around in business that wasn't theirs. And today was not the day for them to go digging.
"Yes, ma'am." They both shut up. Good.
"Reila Mendoza," one of the student advisors stood in the doorway.
Oh, God, what now? I lifted my head up, "Yeah?"
"Could you come with me, please?"
"Sure," I left my bag on the desk and followed her out. What the fuck would they want with me? The two of us stood outside the office near the phone, "What is it?"
"You have a phone call," she told me, "Pick up the receiver and press the pound key."
"Ok." Who the hell would be calling me like this? Anyone important knows to call my phone, but I'm also in class. What would be so important? I picked up the phone and answered my call, "Hello?"
"Hi, Rei…" a deep, shaky voice greeted me on the other end. And my stomach turned into a knot. Even worse than what it already was.
"Uncle César?" I wondered, "Hi…What are you calling me here for?"
"I didn't pull you out of class or nothing, did I?" he hoped.
"No," I started getting nervous, "It's homeroom. No big deal. Uncle César, what's going on?"
"I wish I had better news for you, kid," Uncle César began, "But…It's your dad."
Oh, God…I sat down on the nearby bench, "What happened?"
"He went to the Bronx," he explained, "He said he was going to try and extend and olive branch, you know? Trying to make peace with the families, so everything else runs smoother. You know how your dad is."
"Yeah," my shaking only got worse. And the knot in my stomach got tighter, "What happened?"
"You need to get home, Reila," Uncle César ordered, "You need to get home now…"
"Tell me he's alive," I begged. I didn't want to say it. Hell, I didn't even want to fucking think it. But it's always been said what my biggest weak spot was. And the quiet on the other end wasn't exactly instilling confidence either, "Uncle César, tell me he's alive…"
"Rei…"
"TELL ME HE'S FUCKING ALIVE!" I screeched into the phone.
"He's in ICU," Uncle César's voice shook even worse, "He got shot, Rei. It wasn't pretty…"
I took a minute to gather myself. I'm not going to cry. Not right now. But dammit, it's hard to hold this shit back, "I'm on my way. I'll be on the next flight to New York."
"Ok," Uncle César let me go, "See you soon, kariña."
"See you soon."
Click.
Fuck…I hung the phone up and headed back to my homeroom, fighting tears the whole way down the hall. No. Daddy's going to be ok. He's going to be fine. But this was bad. This was flashbacks to Mama all over again and I fucking hated this. He's going to be ok. He has to be. I can't be an orphan this young. No fucking way. I made sure not to make eye contact with anyone and grabbed my bag off my desk, throwing it around my shoulders. But of course, because no one can get called out of a classroom without being asked any questions.
"Rei…?" Haruhi was a brave soul, "Is everything ok?"
That was a loaded question. And that poor baby didn't need me unloading on her. Not like this. But I knew damn well he was listening. And as much as I hated him right now…I could really use him. But I didn't want to come out and say it. But I knew something that would click in his head, "It's quiet uptown…"
With those few words, I walked out of class with zero regard for anything or anyone else. I needed to get to the airport as soon as I could. But I had one last loose end to tie up before I left town. As much as I didn't want to, I headed into Shinjuku. I could do this. It's not the first time I've gone into the Viper Pit alone. Likely not the last. I gave a nod to Shiro behind the bar and headed straight upstairs. Sure enough, there he was.
"Reina!" Ryoichi chimed, "You're here awfully early. What are you doing here?"
"I have to go out of town for a while," I told him, "Just thought I'd let you know before I left."
"Who said you could leave?" he asked, a growl in his voice.
"I did," I wasn't in the mood to deal with him today. It's bad enough I had to deal with his son. It's even worse I have to deal with him. I am not in the place right now and I will not hesitate to cut a mother fucker right now, "It's a family thing, boss. I have to go."
"Alright," Ryoichi dropped it, "Go on. I hope everything turns out ok."
"So do I," I mustered up a smile and turned on my heel. The sooner I can get to the airport, the better. I booked the first flight to New York I could find. Fortunately, there was a direct flight to JFK from Tokyo International. Good. I needed to get home. And I needed to get home now.
He'll be ok. He has to be ok. Daddy can't…He won't…Daddy can't die. Not like this.
