"Order's up!"

Nanao walked over and picked up the plate as she turned around and placed it in front of her customer. Once the woman was satisfied, she turned and walked over to her next table. She had just finished taking the man's order and went to walk to the back when a familiar voice called out from behind.

"Hey Nanao, how's my favorite waitress?"

Nanao smiled as she walked up to the dark-haired man that sat at one of her tables.

"Hey, Taichi. I'm doing okay," she answered with a cheeky smile. "You want the usual?"

Taichi smiled back before nodding his head. "Yep. Thanks, babe," he replied while winking at the waitress.

Nanao blushed as she laughed nervously. "Uh yeah, sure," she shuddered as she turned and started walking away. She stopped when she felt him grab onto her apron. Her blush deepening, she cleared her throat as she looked back over at him, "Yes?"

"Can I get a beer," he asked simply as he smiled and let go of the apron.

Nanao nodded her head once again. "Sure thing," she told him as she walked away.

"Thanks, babe," she heard him call out after her as she walked into the back and put his order in.

Once the order was in, she walked around and started folding the silverware. As she was busy working, she didn't notice the younger brunette waitress leaning against the table.

"How's Romeo?"

Nanao glanced up, a frown on her face. "He's not Romeo, Sora," she stated matter of factly.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Sora grinned as she stood up straight. "So, did he ask you out yet?" She questioned as she began tying the napkins into a bun.

Nanao rolled her eyes but said nothing.

"Oh, c'mon, you know that it'd be cute-"

Nanao shook her head violently, cutting her off. "He doesn't like me like that," Nanao stated quietly.

Sora frowned as she placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking her back and forth. "Nanao, you don't mean that, right?"

"What are you talking about?" Nanao asked as Sora released her shoulder.

"Girl, are you really that blind?" Sora questioned as Nanao glared at her.

"What are you talking about?" Nanao repeated, crossing her arms in annoyance.

"He likes you."

"No, he doesn't," Nanao stated with furrowed eyebrows.

"Then why does he come here and ask to sit in your section and flirt with you? Not to mentch the huge tip he gives you," Sora stated with a smirk. "You're so oblivious. What is wrong with you?" Sora sighed as she rubbed her forehead.

"I am not oblivious," Nanao huffed.

Sora rolled her eyes as she cocked her hips, placing her hands on them. "So you're telling me that if he came up to you and asked you out, you'd say yes?" Sora asked as Nanao's cheeks burned brightly, and a light blush appeared across her face. Nanao looked around nervously, making sure no one was around her before quickly nodding her head.

"Good to know," she smiled widely before walking back out to the front.

Nanao watched as Sora left before sighing deeply. Would she really be able to go on a date right now, though? Was she ready for that kind of experience? She wasn't sure. Sora wasn't the only one that was making comments about her dating life. Emma had mentioned it a few times recently, telling her to take a chance and go on an actual date. So maybe she should. But she still wasn't sure. Apart of her wanted to. The other part of her didn't know if she was ready yet.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Nanao."

Nanao sighed as she turned around, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Come on, Tai. It's the third-" She cut herself off as she looked up at the kid in front of her.

Tai's blonde hair was pushed in all sorts of directions as his uniform was torn and dirty. His shirt was unbuttoned, sleeves torn with road rash on his arms, and dry blood on his face. Nanao immediately dropped everything and rushed over to him. She gently took him by the arm and pulled him into the office, shutting the door and pulling out a first aid kit.

"Sit," she directed as she placed him on the chair and got him settled before going back over and setting things up.

"Are you hurt?" Nanao inquired as she went through the supplies.

"Not seriously," Tai replied as he ran his fingers across his cheek.

"What happened?" Nanao questioned as she went through the various items trying to find the alcohol pads and bandages.

"I got into a fight," Tai stated as he leaned back.

Nanao looked up and narrowed her brows as she handed him a bottle of disinfectant and some gauze pads.

"Here, use this on your cuts first, then apply these," she told him as she pointed to different pieces of cloth and gauze.

Tai nodded his head as he did as he was told. He winced slightly as he applied the alcohol pads to his cheek. He kept quiet, though, and stayed seated as Nanao finished wrapping all his cuts up. After applying the bandages, she went through to make sure there weren't any more injuries on Tai's body.

"If you're going to get into a fight, at least do it on your day off," Nanao muttered as she threw away bloodstain wipes in the trash and washed her hands off.

"Sorry," Tai muttered. "I told them that I had to go to work, but they grabbed me and told me it was my turn to fight," he explained.

"What do you mean it was your turn to fight?" Nanao questioned.

"There's this fight club, and a bunch of the upper-class guys force the younger class into fighting," he explained with a frown.

Nanao raised a brow as she tilted her head. "They force you to fight?" She questioned carefully as she slowly approached the chair to try and see if his bandages were holding up.

"Yeah, there's this club that meets at the ground stadium, and the group places bets on who wins," Tai explained.

"Sounds shady as fuck," Nanao mumbled as she put an ice pack on his knee. "Who the fuck do those punks think they are?" She spat.

"It's a bunch of guys from Toman. It's this motorcycle gang," He explained as he let her take off his ripped-up school shirt and gave him one of their work shirts.

Nanao grinned her teeth as she watched Tai change shirts. What the hell is wrong with them? Baji lied to her, saying that they don't start fights. Hell, they're the ones hosting them. She was about to lose it but then remembered that Tai was in front of her, and she didn't want him to see her aggressive behavior.

"Why don't you take the day off?" Nanao suggested. "They'll be fine tonight."

"Really?" Tai asked, surprised. "But it's a Thursday. We get pretty busy," he stated as he stood up from the chair and looked over at himself in the mirror.

"Everyone will just have to bus their own tables tonight. They'll be fine. And if someone has something to say about it, then they can talk to me," she assured him, smiling.

"Okay," he stated hesitantly as he nodded his head. "But only if you're sure it's fine," he insisted.

"Yes, I promise," Nanao nodded. "Besides, it'd look wrong if my busboy walked around with a busted-up face," she reasoned with a smirk.

He chuckled softly, "True."

"Hey, how about I walk with you. Make sure no asshole tries to gang up on you," she offered.

Tai embarrassingly rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know, Nanao. Those guys are pretty tough," he replied nervously.

She stared blankly for a second, trying to picture the situation before giving him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I'm not afraid of some high school punks," she stated as she wrapped her arms around his shoulder, causing him to tense slightly and blush.

"Okay," he breathed out nervously. "Only if you want to, though."

"Of course," Nanao answered without hesitation as she grabbed her bag and pulled him to the exit.

As they walked out into the diner, she walked over to Sora and helped her deliver her table's meals. "I'm going to take Tai home," Nanao explained as Sora looked over at Tai and nodded her head.

"Okay, we'll be fine. Here," Sora handed her ¥2000. "Loverboy left this for you," she stated as she gave Nanao a wink.

Nanao blushed as she thanked her and headed out, making sure Tai was following behind her. Once outside, she let Tai lead her to his house. As they walked, she watched Tai tense up every time a boy walked past them. Nanao frowned at the action. No 14-year-old boy should be afraid to walk down the street. It pissed her off knowing that he wasn't the only boy that felt like this. She wished some punk would come out and try to beat him up with her next to him.

"You okay?" Tai asked as he noticed her frown.

"Yeah, I just hate seeing you scared," she whispered.

He smiled lightly as he glanced sideways at her. "It's okay, really," he reassured her.

Nanao hummed in response and shook her head. "No, it's not alright," she argued.

"Stop worrying. You're starting to sound like my mom," he teased as he nudged her side and smirked lightly.

Nanao rolled her eyes playfully and pushed his shoulder, causing him to chuckle softly. She couldn't help but crack a smile too. They walked around the corner when Nanao grabbed Tai's hand, turning them back around, trying to get them to walk in a different direction as she saw Mikey and Draken turning down the street.

"Let's go," she demanded, quickly dragging him with her.

"Hey, Princess!" She heard Mikey shout at her.

She stopped and sighed as she turned around and glared daggers at him. She felt Tai tense up as he quickly moved behind her, using her as a barrier between him and the President of Toman.

"Shit, why is he here?" Tai asked himself. His heart started beating faster when he saw Mikey walking towards them.

Nanao clenched her jaw and tried to hold in her anger. "What do you want, Mikey?" She questioned sternly.

Draken looked over at her and raised a brow in confusion, "You okay, Nanao?" He questioned as he walked over to her.

Nanao ignored him and continued glaring at Mikey as she crossed her arms and narrowed her eyebrows. Mikey stopped walking as he nervously looked over at Nanao, noticing she was clearly upset with someone and that someone was him.

"Hey Princess..." he trailed as he scratched the back of his neck and shifted his weight back and forth from foot to foot awkwardly.

"Go away, Mikey. I'm pissed off at you right now," Nanao spat out as she tried to hold back her anger.

Tai quickly grabbed her as he tried to pull her back. "Nanao, stop. Do you know who this is?" He begged, shaking her slightly, trying to get her attention away from Mikey.

Nanao ignored him and focused her glare on Mikey instead. Mikey sighed as he rubbed the back of his head, looking up at Draken, telepathically asking him if he knew what he did wrong, but Draken just shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, also not understanding what was going on. Sighing, Mikey looked back over at Nanao and started walking back to her.

Tai gripped tighter onto Nanao's arm as he franticly tried to pull her away. "Nanao, we got to go now. That's Mikey, the President of Toman!" He exclaimed in panic and fear.

Nanao pulled her arm away from him, cocking her hips to the side as she placed her hands on them. "I know who he is, Tai," she told him, annoyed at how Mikey wasn't listening to her about leaving them alone.

Mikey walked over to them, placing his hand on her shoulder. "Hi Princess, long time no see," he greeted as he gave Nanao a fake smile. "How've you been?" He asked her ignoring the pissed-off look on her face.

"Can't say that I've been great, Mikey," Nanao replied with a sarcastic voice while rolling her eyes pushing him off of her. "I had to leave work early to escort my busboy home because he was forced to participate in Toman's stupid little fight club," she explained angrily as she crossed her arms.

"What?" Mikey asked as Draken walked over and stood next to him, looking at the boy behind Nanao.

"What do you mean he was forced to fight?" Draken questioned seriously as his eyes locked onto Tai's.

Nanao scoffed. "Your little groupies have been harassing Tai and his friends to fight in your little fight club so they can make money when he gets his ass kicked," Nanao snapped as she shoved her finger into his chest.

Tai cried as he ran in front of her, trying to put himself in between Draken and her. "Are you trying to get us killed, Nanao? Because this is how you get us killed!" He pleaded desperately, tears welling up in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry for her, Mr. Draken, Sir!" He bowed. "She's got a few screws loose up there. I think she was dropped on her head as a baby. Please don't kill us!" Tai cried desperately, trying to get them out of the mess Nanao had just put them in.

"Get out of the way, Tai, you idiot," Nanao spat as she stepped in front of him.

Draken ignored the boy's pleading as he walked over and grabbed him by his arm, bringing Tai in front of him. "What the hell happened to you, kid?" He demanded as he looked at his black eye and the bandages on his face and arms.

"Um, nothing, sir," he muttered as Nanao scoffed.

"Tell them what the hell happened, Tai," Nanao ordered with a serious tone.

His body tensed up immediately as he refused to speak. Draken leaned over him, glaring at him intensely, "Well, I'm waiting."

Tai hesitated as he nodded to him. "Um, well, I was in a fight in the Toman fight club," he stuttered nervously.

"No," Nanao cut him off. "You got your ass beat because you were forced by Toman members to fight in their stupid club," she snapped.

Mikey looked over at the boy before up at Draken. "We have a fight club?" He questioned confusingly.

"Oh, don't act stupid, Mikey," Nanao stated, irritated. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"We have a fight club? Why didn't anyone tell me?" Mikey questioned again with a confused frown ignoring Nanao's comments.

Draken sighed as he rolled his head back. "Because it's obvious someone's using Toman's name to draw attention," he stated flatly.

Mikey paused for a moment before nodding. "Oh," he mumbled.

He looked over at Nanao and then at the boy. While Mikey's face looked calm and flat, he was mad. Not only was someone using Toman's name to promote some stupid fight club, but they've been forcing kids to fight in it. And to make matters worse, Nanao was now mad at him.

Mikey sighed as he turned his attention back to Draken. "Come on, Kenchin," he called out as he turned away from the group.

"Where are you going?" Nanao shouted after him.

"To deal with the problem," he childishly told her, not turning around. "Take the boy home. I'll find you when I'm done. Let me know if anyone gives you a hard time," Mikey added as Draken walked over next to him.

"See you later, Princess," Draken called out as he nonchalantly held his hand in the air, following right behind Mikey.

Nanao huffed angrily as she watched the boys leave. She whipped around and looked at the boy behind her. "Come on, Tai," she grumbled as she grabbed Tai and dragged him to his house.

Mikey hummed to himself as he strolled down the road, hands comfortably resting on the back of his head with Draken right beside him. Draken soon took a wrapped up dorayaki out of his pocket and handed it to Mikey.

Mikey grinned and eagerly opened the package taking a big bite out of it. "Thanks, Kenchin!" He thanked, chewing the pastry happily.

He then looked over at Draken, wiping his mouth. "Yum!" He exclaimed excitedly before continuing, "I hope you're ready to beat the shit out of someone," Mikey added cockily.

Draken smirked lightly, nodding his head as he put his hands back in his pockets. "I always am. I can't wait to find out what asshole is fucking up Toman's name," he stated seriously.

Mikey laughed. "Yep! Not only are they using Toman, but now Nanao's upset with me," he pouted a bit as he thought about how angry Nanao was. "Kenchin, why is Nanao so angry at me!" He whined loudly as he stomped his foot like a child.

Draken chuckled lightly. "Because you're the President of Toman stupid," he explained as he gave a playful shove to Mikey's shoulder, making him laugh.

"This is stupid," Mikey complained, taking another large bite of the dorayaki. Mikey ate some more before speaking. "When I find the bastard, I'm going to beat the shit out of him," he growled through his teeth.

Draken snickered lightly. "That's the plan," he agreed as they continued their walk for a bit until they arrived at the ground stadium.

Mikey took a look around as he checked out the scene before him. There was a huge group of guys standing around yelling and cheering at the field below them. They must have gone straight from school as they were all wearing their school uniforms.

Draken walked up behind him, looking over at the crowd. "Is that fucking Kiyomasa?" He asked himself as he saw the guy standing in the middle of the arena screaming for a bat so he could destroy the boy in front of him. Realizing it was, in fact, Kiyomasa, Draken sighed and started walking in front of Mikey.

Mikey stopped walking as he looked over at the boy who was standing in front of Kiyomasa. The kid was a scrawny blonde who looked like he couldn't even hold his own against an elementary kid. He looked like the type of guy that would cry when he got caught doing something wrong. Mikey snorted quietly, looking at the scene in front of him. He really liked the way this kid looked. While he was busted up from head to toe with two black eyes and a broken nose, he was still standing. Not backing down to Kiyomasa. The kid was either stupid or wanted to die or maybe even both. Either way, he wasn't backing down. His face was filled with determination and anger as he shouted that he wasn't going to give up. Mikey smiled slightly at him and shook his head a little, chuckling softly, taking another bite of his snack.

"Oi, Kiyomasa."

Mikey watched as Draken walked over to the crowd ending the fight. "You've drawn up quite a crowd," Draken announced unamused.

Kiyomasa turned around quickly, surprised at the sudden arrival of Draken. He looked over at Draken, confused for a moment but quickly regained his composure.

"You should calm down, though, dumbass you're scaring your little groupies," Draken added. The crowd immediately became silent, looking at Draken as he slowly walked over to the guys.

Mikey sighed as he finished off his dorayaki before walking over to Draken. "Hey, Kenchin!" He shouted cheerfully.

Draken felt his eye twitch as he looked at Mikey from over his shoulder. "Damnit, Mikey. How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that in public?" He complained.

Mikey giggled lightly. "But I'm all out of dorayaki," he pouted.

Draken rolled his eyes as Mikey walked in front of the group. Everyone around the stadium froze as they threw their bodies down, bowing to Mikey.

"WELCOME, SIR!"

Mikey just ignored them as he walked straight ahead into the center of the stadium, where the boy was. He was interested in finding out more about him. While Mikey ignored the half-ass bow Kiyomasa gave him when he walked past him, Draken didn't, kicking Kiyomasa in the gut calling him out for his behavior. Mikey didn't look back, though; instead, he kept walking straight for the boy.

As Mikey approached the boy, he couldn't help but realize the kid looked worse up close. His lip was bleeding, and there were cuts and bruises all over his body. His eye sockets sunken in, and there were dark circles underneath them. He had blood dripping down his chin and onto his chest. It made him look sick. Mikey frowned as he crouched down to the kid's level. He could now understand Nanao's frustration about the situation, and she had every right to be upset.

"What's your name?" He demanded softly. The boy didn't answer him. Instead, he sat there and stared at Mikey with fear. Mikey's frown deepened. "Do you have a name?" He repeated a bit louder.

The boy finally spoke after staring at Mikey intently for a few seconds, "Takemichi."

"Takemitchy," Mikey muttered, looking up from where he kneeled.

"Huh?" Takemichi questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Are you deaf?" Draken called as he walked closer to the two of them. "That's what Mikey said, so that's what it is. Right, Takemitchy?" He challenged

"Uh yeah..." Takemichi replied shakily, "Right," he added.

Mikey smiled widely as he dropped himself down in front of the boy gripping onto his head. "Are you really a high schooler?" He asked curiously as he brought Takemichi's face closer to his.

"Yeah," Takemichi replied nervously as he shrunk under the boy's touch as much as he could without moving.

"Ohh!" Mikey exclaimed in excitement, "Takemitchy from this day forward. You're my friend."

"What?!" Takemichi squeaked.

Mikey smiled gently at him as he nodded. "Yeah! You're gonna be my best buddy forever now!" He cheered.

Mikey let go of Takemichi's head and stood up as he turned around to finish what he came here to do as he walked back over to Kiyomasa.

"Are you the one who organized this little fight club?" He asked, annoyed as Kiyomasa bowed to him.

Kiyomasa nodded softly, "Yes."

Mikey hummed to himself before he lifted his leg up and kicked Kiyomasa in the face knocking him to the ground. Mikey then picked up his head by his hair, ignoring the blood dripping off his face.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?" Mikey growled. "You know you got me in a lot of trouble with your bullshit," he added before punching Kiyomasa in the face, throwing him on the ground.

Kiyomasa grunted in pain. He held onto his head while trying to get up, but he soon fell back down and groaned loudly.

Mikey smiled as he saw Kiyomasa lay still on the ground before turning over and looking up at Draken. "Okay, Kenchin, let's go find Princess," he perked up.

Draken nodded as he followed Mikey before stopping in front of Kiyomasa. "Next time you put Toman's name on something as trashy as this, I'll fucking kill you," Draken promised before kicking Kiyomasa in the gut.

"Fight clubs are stupid," Mikey announced.

He then stopped as he looked over at Takemichi, "See you later, Takemitchy!" Mikey chirped happily. He then turned back around, walking away as Draken told everyone to leave.

Nanao looked up as she heard someone knocking on her door. She stood up and walked to the door, opening it slightly as she peeked through the crack.

"Hey, Princess!"

She opened the door all the way to see Mikey and Draken standing on the other side of it. She sighed as she leaned against the door frame, annoyed that they had shown up at her apartment. "What do you want? I'm kinda busy."

Mikey took a look at her and noticed that she had changed into her comfy clothes and then peeked over to see her TV on with a bowl of popcorn on the coffee table. "Busy doing what? Having a movie night?" He asked with a smirk as he crossed his arms.

"It's none of your business," Nanao mumbled, crossing her own arms, "What are you even doing here?"

Draken gave a slight shrug as he lifted up a plastic bag, "We brought dinner."

Nanao glanced down at the bag, then back up at them and raised an eyebrow. "No thanks," she turned around, ready to shut the door.

Before she could close it, though, Mikey stepped forward and shoved his foot in between the door and the wall. "C'mon, Princess...I know you're mad, but we got ramen." He sang to her.

Nanao stood there for a moment as she rolled her eyes before sighing again, "Fine."

She moved out of the way for them and opened the door wider, letting them through. Mikey let out a slight squeal before dashing past her and towards the kitchen, Draken following behind him, while Nanao just closed the door quietly. She stepped into the living room as she watched Draken pull out three bowls from the bag. She grabbed her bowl and sat down on the floor, inviting the boys to sit next to her.

The three of them were silent for the first couple minutes of them eating when Draken spoke up, "How's the kid?"

Nanao shrugged her shoulders. "Alright, I guess..." She took another bite, "I took him home and gave him some painkillers, so hopefully, he'll feel better tomorrow." She paused as she swallowed the food in her mouth, "But that doesn't really help if tomorrow he gets beat up again."

Draken nodded as he went back to eating, "Well, he won't have to worry about that anymore."

Nanao looked at him, confused as she swallowed again before asking, "What do you mean?"

Draken set the bowl he was holding on the floor next to him and faced Nanao, "Mikey put a stop to the fight club today."

Nanao blinked once before turning to Mikey, confused, "Really?"

Mikey simply looked over at her and nodded his head, taking another bite out of his meal.

Draken smirked a little. He didn't know if he was amused by Mikey's nonchalant attitude or the look on Nanao's surprised face. "Yep," he told her.

Nanao hummed a bit before shrugging, "Okay...I suppose."

Nanao continued to eat until she decided she couldn't eat anymore and set her bowl on the ground beside her, along with everyone else's. She wiped her mouth on the sleeve of her shirt as she stared down at her hands. "Why'd you do it?" She asked out loud.

Mikey smiled softly as he looked up to see Nanao looking at him, "It seemed like the right thing to do."

Nanao looked at him for a moment nodding slowly before looking away again, "Well, I'm sure the boys really appreciate it." She paused for a second before turning to him again, "Thank you."

Mikey nodded and gave another soft smile as he rocked himself, "Toman was created to protect people, not hurt them."

Nanao nodded a little but stayed quiet after that. After a couple of minutes, Mikey finished his food, and Draken got up and cleaned up the area. Nanao stayed still sitting on the floor as she watched the boys clean up while thinking.

The boys were really something. She really enjoyed Mikey and Draken's relationship. They were a couple of gang-leading delinquents, but outside of that, they were a couple of idiots that had childish ambitions and dreams that they both shared. They were the type of idiots that would go to great lengths for those that mattered to them. Not because they felt obligated but because it was what made them happy. They both wanted the best for the ones that were closest to their hearts. And that makes these two idiots perfect.

Her head shot up as she felt someone gently tap her with their foot. It wasn't long before she realized that Draken was standing above her.

"Well, I guess we'll be out of your way now. Thanks for eating dinner with us, Princess," Draken gave a small smile at her before offering his hand to help her up.

Nanao took his hand and let him lift her from her place on the floor. She smiled weakly at him before looking towards Mikey, who was already walking away towards the front door. "Umm, thanks for dinner, but you don't have to leave," she whispered as she turned and pointed at the TV, "I was just starting a movie before you guys came. Um, y'all can stay and watch it with me if y'all want." She told them nervously as she looked away from them, awkwardly playing with her hair.

Mikey looked over at Draken before nodding his head. "Okay, sounds good," he smiled at her as he followed her back into the living room.

Nanao propped herself In between the two boys. She looked up at them and smiled weakly as she rested her head on Mikey's shoulder, who gave her a small smile in return and ruffled her hair lightly. Nanao's cheeks flared red at that before she settled herself back.

"Alright," Draken announced as he picked up the remote, "Let's get this started."

Nanao and Mikey both nodded silently as she focused her attention on the screen. Nanao looked over at Mikey, whose eyes were glued to the screen, completely engrossed by it. She smiled before resting her head against his shoulder. She was soon also absorbed into the movie.