Hey everyone sorry for the delay! lots of things have gotten in the way but i have not forgotten about this story! first of i wanted to say that i apologize for the bad grammar from my previous chapters. i read through it and it didnt sound too great. i'mm gonna go back and fix that. in the mean time, here is chapter 4!
Chapter 4
After reading the home address Akio had written down for her that day, Mion was easily able to make her way to his house. It was a nice little house with a small garden in front. Mion was impressed.
She knocked on the front door, and in seconds, an unfamiliar middle-aged door opened it. "Hi," Mion greeted with a smile, "I'm Mion Sonozaki. I'm Akio's classmate."
"Ah hello, Mion," the man replied. "I'm Ken, Akio's father. I've heard all about you from my son."
Mion's cheeks began to turn red as she stared at the ground. "Is Akio home?" She knew that was a dumb question since Akio invited her over anyways. Of course, he was home.
"Yes, he is, come on in." Ken lead the girl and told her that Akio's bedroom was just down the hall.
Mion made her way there and knocked on the closed door.
"Come in," a distant voice said.
Mion slid the door open, and there she saw Akio on his bed.
"Ah, hello Mion. I'm glad you found my house okay."
"Oh, it was easy." She let herself in and grinned at the boy. "So, I brought my homework. Ready to start working?"
Akio smiled as he closed a padded book. "Yes."
"Oh, were you drawing something?"
"Yes." Akio opened the book to an unfinished sketch. "I like to draw."
Mion placed herself next to the boy and glanced at the drawing, which looked like to be a picture of a river. "That's great! You are an awesome artist."
"Wanna see more?"
"Yeah! I mean, of course if you want." Be cool.
Akio shared all his finished sketches in his book, as well as the ones he placed on his bedroom walls. They were all pictures of different landmarks and people. Mion had never seen such great art.
The two then worked on their homework, and they were able to get it done in one hour. "I never would have gotten it done without you," Akio said as he closed his textbook. "You're a smart girl, Mion."
"Ahaha!" Mion laughed nervously and placed her hand behind her head. "It's nothing really, I'm glad to help." The girl put her books away in her bag and stood up to leave.
"Say Mion."
"Yeah?"
There was an awkward silence before Akio continued. "I was wondering if you wanted to go out for lunch this weekend."
Mion's heart started pounding and her skin felt clammy. She was speechless. "Lunch? Just the two of us?"
"Yeah." Akio smiled.
Mion knew whether she accepted or not, Shion would still be on her case about it. Accepting him would mean she would cheer her on. Rejecting him meant that Shion would badger her. But either way, it would be nice to go on a date with Akio. Afterall, he was starting to grow on the girl. "Sure, that sounds like fun."
Rika and Satoko walked through the market so they could restock on their groceries. It was something they often did together while Hanyuu rested at home. "Last thing we need is bread," said Rika as she gazed down at the grocery list.
Satoko hurried down to the bread section as Rika folded up the piece of paper. A couple people stepped by and gave an odd look in the direction they came from as a voice echoed in the distance.
Rika slowly made her way toward the voice, and in seconds hoping to find its source. Passing a crowd, the girl finally saw him. A man in a black suit with matching shades on the pay phone. He didn't look at all familiar to her, but his features were enough to send Rika chills. Who was this guy?
Whoever he was, the man seemed angry as he spoke on the phone. "You must be patient sir," he said, "the process works in time."
Rika remained still with an ear full of the man's conversation with whoever was on the phone. She watched him intently. There was a seven second pause.
"You're not paying me to research the village! I'm your bodyguard not your spy!"
Those words made Rika's stomach flip. Usually when strange people were there to learn about the village and spy on people, meant trouble was bound to happen. People, especially adults, could be cruel and did anything to get what they wanted. What this guy wanted was beyond Rika.
There was another pause. "Yes sir, Mr. Endo, I'll keep a close eye out." With that he hung up the phone.
Endo? Rika thought as her eyes widened, that's Akio's last name. It didn't sound good at all. She stared nervously, not even noticing that Satoko had returned with the bread and appeared by her side. "I found the wheat and the white. Then the cinnamon for Hanyuu," her friend said.
Rika didn't answer and watched as the strange man left the pay phone. Her view was blocked as Satoko stepped in front of her and gave her a curious look. "Rika?"
The blue-haired girl blinked twice, finally noticing her friend reading her face. She smiled. "It's alright, Satoko. I just spaced out for a minute."
Satoko's eyes didn't leave her friend's.
"Come on, let's get these groceries home." Rika turned around and started away with the grocery bags.
It took a few seconds for Satoko to stop staring and follow her friend home. Something about the look Rika was giving alarmed her. Also, she knew that whenever Rika was "spacing out" meant that something was up. Although Satoko was concerned, the subject was not brought up that night.
The next morning, Rika was quiet during the walk to school as Satoko chattered about her next trap attempt on Keiichi. Hanyuu whimpered an objection to that, while Satoko ignored her and laughed. "That boy won't stand a chance!"
She started to walk backwards as she spoke, and when she was finished with her sentence, she noticed the glum look on Rika's face. She remembered that ever since their grocery shopping last night, Rika had been unusually quiet.
After Ms. Chie greeted the class that morning and took attendance, Satoko finally brought the subject up to her friend. "Rika, what's going on?"
"Something wrong?" Keiichi asked as he glanced over at the girls. Hanyuu, who was on Rika's right, was already staring at her.
"Nothing is wrong, everything is fine," Rika replied, although this time she couldn't force a smile.
"Rika, why do you do this?" Satoko said. "Every time something is bothering you, you hide it from your friends."
Rika was staring at her desk, looking more down then she had in weeks. Keeping things to herself meant her friends didn't have to worry. Although they were already on to her.
"Rika-Chan," Kaiichi started, "whatever is bothering you, you know us your friends can help."
"That's right, Rika," Hanyuu said as she gave her a suspsious look.
Rika glanced over at the three. Rena and the twins were on the other side in their own conversation, so she couldn't tell them all at once. But she could see the eager look in Satoko, Hanyuu, and Keiichis' eyes. She nodded.
"Okay, I will tell you." And Rika told them about her discovery of the strange man who spoke on the phone yesterday evening, and how she heard Akio's name in the conversation and feared something was wrong.
"You think Akio is up to no good?" Satoko asked queerly.
Rika stared down at her desktop again. "I didn't say that exactly. But he or someone from his family knows this man and is putting him up to something." She spoke in a somber voice, in one of those rare occasions in which her cuteness had faded.
"How do you know it's something bad?" Hanyuu asked. Usually she was just as cautious as Rika, but lately she was convinced that all the bad days had disappeared, and their life was turning out peaceful.
"It's just a feeling," she answered.
That was the end of the conversation, because Ms. Chie started on the lessons. Hanyuu watched Rika intently as Satoko and Keiichi stared down at their desks full of concern.
The morning was quiet as the class worked on their studies, and just an hour before lunch, Ms. Chie stepped outside to talk to the principal. That gave everyone a chance to take a break from their schoolwork and talk among themselves.
"I can't believe you are going on a date with Akio!" Rena exclaimed excitedly.
"Shhh!" Mion hissed and pointed at Akio, who was focused on his schoolwork.
"I knew you would go for him," Shion said with her hands rested under her chin. "You guys will make a great couple."
"Ahah, it's just a date," Mion said.
"But you two will get closer, and then it will become serious."
Keiichi listened in on the girls' conversation, and after what he heard, he couldn't help but feel worried. After what Rika had explained to them, it didn't sound like a very good idea for Mion to be spending time with this guy. It stayed on Keiichi's mind for a long time and he couldn't concentrate on his schoolwork.
Things started to ease up once lunch started, that was until Mion invited Akio to sit with her and her friends. Although Rika, Hanyuu, Satoko, and Keiichi stayed cautious, it didn't seem at all that Akio was the type to harm anyone. From there, Hanyuu and Satoko were convinced that Rika hearing his name from that strange man could have been a coincidence. That, or it was someone who was related to the new kid. Either way, Akio seemed like a nice guy.
After lunch, Shion started to tease her sister. "You like him a lot don't you."
Mion blushed, a perfect answer.
Just before school ended, Mion decided to invite Akio to their club once more. This time, he accepted, and the group of friends were thrilled.
Akio's first club activity went well, for he was very good at the games they played. "He's a lot better than Keiichi," Shion said, picking on her brown-haired friend.
The boy argued with Shion, and everyone else laughed.
"He seems harmless," Hanyuu said to Rika quietly.
"Maybe he isn't dangerous," Rika replied, "but that means we still need to figure out who is spying on our village."
