Chapter 15 – You're In Trouble

(I don't own JSR, the GGs, Tokyo-to, or anything else like that. I do own the characters of the Love Shockers (lucky me) though obviously I didn't think the gang itself up. I don't own the lyrics for 'A View To A Kill' (which should be in bold), I think they're © Duran Duran. Oh, and once again, please keep complaints about my taste in music to yourself. Let's all keep friendly, huh?)

(break)

It had started to rain.

San leant on the rail in a bus terminal, head slumped. From where we were standing, she looked alive. Which meant she'd look alive to Cube as well, until the GG got up close.

My heart was pounding. I wanted this so badly. Just the freedom to hurt, not to worry about the consequences, just kill.

It was four-ten a.m.

I saw her, skating into the bus terminal, face pale against the rain, and my hands trembled.

"Everyone's in position?" I whispered to Dash. She nodded. We were hiding behind the steps up to the bridge. Babs and Kris were behind a lorry at the other end of the bridge. Shar and someone else had taken up position behind a truck parked next to the road to the square. Two others lurked in a shop doorway next to the half pipe, and two more near the street back to the garage. You get the picture – strategy.

Cube skated over to San. I saw her reach out, lift San's chin – saw her tense. Even from where I was I could pick out the blood.

Cube's hand went to her mouth. I wondered if she'd run. But no – she looked round the bus terminal, and then turned her attention back to San, began to untie her from the rail.

It was deathly quiet. The rain hissed, but apart from that, no sound. We were waiting, and I didn't know what for.

Cube stepped back as San fell to the ground, looked around nervously.

Go on, Dash mouthed. Go get her.

I swallowed, stepped out, and began to skate towards Cube.

I slammed into her, and she fell. I could imagine how cold and hard the ground was. I'd been shoved onto it many times.

Cube looked round, saw me, her face whitened.

"God, you GGs are so predictable," I said. I kicked out at her, and she winced. "You really fell for it! Still, I've never liked a challenge."

"You killed her," Cube retorted, struggling into a sitting position. Rain ran over her skin. "What are you, a psycho? What had she ever done to you?"

"Don't let's get into that sort of conversation," I said. "Because you know what I'm going to do now, don't you?"

"Surprise me." Cube snapped it back.

"I'm going to kill you too." I held out the knife, still coated with San's blood. Cube swallowed. I looked into her eyes, and spoke the truest words I'd ever known.

"It'll be such fun."

She leapt to her feet, showing her agility, and I sliced out at her. The blade caught her arm and beads of blood started to speckle her skin. She ran towards the road back to the garage. I didn't follow. She'd get stopped.

Flickers of pink shone through the rain as the two guarding that route leapt out. Cube turned, dashed to the road to the square, and then turned as she saw Shar and her partner move to stop her. And then to the half pipe. It was like a pattern, pink moving out, black wheeling away like a leaf…

She leapt onto the railings, and I followed suit. I jumped to gain speed, praying I wouldn't slip off. The rain was spitting in my face, making it hard to see. I jumped onto the banisters. She was at the top of the bridge. Now we were one behind the other. I jumped again, saw how close she was.

I pushed her.

She fell, landed crumpled on the ground. The others came to circle her. I ground down the banisters and came to stand in front of her. Her face was damp with rain. Or tears?

Now you know how it feels to hurt, don't you? Now you know how it feels to fall.

"GG, you disappoint me," I said. If I called her by her real name I'd betray the anger I felt, and I didn't want that. Give me a bit more anonymity. "I was hoping for some excitement."

"Yeah, right. Don't pretend you're not loving this."

Did she never stop fighting, never stop throwing back remarks?

"You're right," I said. "This is the best high I've had in years. Honestly, think of the trouble you could've saved yourself if you'd just been a good girl earlier."

"Drop dead." Cube glared up me, face full of hate – and it hurt me. I didn't like it. "You're a sick psycho bitch," she spat out, "and I'd rather kiss Goji Rokkaku than you. No, in fact I'd rather kiss Onishima than you. No – I'd rather have an orgy with both of them than kiss you!"

I decided there was little to be gained by having a slanging match, and said to the others, "Right, get her up. It's party time."

I saw Cube bite her lip as she was hauled to her feet. She wasn't trying to walk, and her skates skidded limply through the puddles. I wondered what we'd done to her, and that other urge, the strange one I didn't like, came into play and I wanted to help her…I bit down on my own lip and forced myself to remember Coin.

They leaned her against the bus shelter railings. Cube closed her eyes a minute. There was blood smeared over her arm. Just looking at her made me feel out of control. I couldn't let that happen.

I leaned close to her. I could see her lips trembling as she fought back tears, tears which I guessed were of pain. Her hair had been soaked into black ink trails, dripping down her face.

"Look," I said, trying to keep my voice cool and calm. "If you want, we can play this the easy way. You do what I say, and I won't cut your throat. You might even enjoy it."

"I don't believe you," Cube said.

I felt slapped.

Cube's dark eyes watched the knife, and glanced at San. Her mouth tightened.

"I'm not making any bargains with you," she said.

"Your loss," I snapped. Bitch. I clicked my fingers, and saw Babs and Shar bind Cube's wrists to the pole she had been propped against. Cube tried to snatch her hand away, but one of the other Love Shockers punched her in the stomach. Her head dropped as she gasped. I felt slightly sick.

"This time we're going to have a fair fight," I said, to cover the feeling. "No running away."

"Oh, sure it's fair." A pained smile dusted Cube's lips. "There's one of me and five of you, I can't walk, and you just tied me up. Sure. Guess you're scared you'll lose again."

A few of the Love Shockers tittered. The sound cut through my soul, and turned, hands shaking with fury. "You looking for the same as her?" I pointed to San. I hoped they couldn't see me trembling. I had to keep my allies. I had to.

"Yeah, your leader's hardly on your side, is she?" Cube said. "She sliced her up real –"

Fury rose behind my eyes and I punched her in the mouth, my breath catching in my lungs. I saw blood start to trickle from her lips. Once again the other urge started to rise. This time I gave some reign to it.

"Right. You know I've always liked the taste of blood…"

I forced her head up, gripping her chin, and kissed her. For one moment it was bliss. Then she bit.

I yelped and moved away, hate moving up my throat like a black wave. "You are dead," I gasped. "And I mean totally."

No love now. I held up the knife. "Ever wondered what would happen if this got stuck in your eye?"

"You wouldn't." What little colour there was in Cube's face left it.

"You bet your sweet life I would. And I will."

I didn't want to scar her. I just wanted to hurt her as badly and as painfully as I could.

I raised the knife. Cube squeezed her eyes shut.

As I brought it down, someone slammed into me. Stumbling off aim, the knife missed her eye and tore down her cheek. I turned, furious, to see who'd attacked me, and that stupid orange-coated GG guy came into my line of vision.

I moved to attack, and he grabbed my wrists, forcing the knife away from him. He was calling Cube's name as he fought. I saw, dimly, that she was looking amazed.

Who was this guy anyway? Why was he bothering?

He was trying to break the hold I had on the knife. I gripped it, hearing my joints click. He would not beat me. He would not.

I kicked out – hit some vulnerable area – he doubled over – I shoved him, and he fell – and I stabbed. Don't you dare stop me – you stupid – ugly – no-good – freak!

I stood there, trying to get my breath, and glanced at Cube as she screamed.

"Oh, dear. Did I kill him?" I said.

Cube rushed towards me. Before I could wonder how she'd got her hands untied, she'd slammed me down onto the ground and was attempting to punch my head in.

I tried to fight back, but even though I still had the knife, she was winning because she was so angry –

Her cold hands gripped my throat. I stared up at her as she gasped for breath.

"Kill me…" I whispered. "Go on…won't…" I gulped air. "It won't bring him back…"

Jackpot. I saw the strength in her eyes crumple like I'd shot it. I saw her glance over at him, lying there bleeding his guts out – and I shoved up and slammed her head into the side of the bus shelter. Before she could move, I stabbed her in the stomach.

Cube put a hand to the wound, and stared at the blood coating her fingertips.

"Let's roll," I called to the others. I turned to look back at Cube. She looked scratched, broken – but not beaten. And if I hadn't beaten her, I'd lost.

I kicked her in the knees, and she screamed.

I'm sorry…

"Listen, can you still hear me?" I said to her. Her eyes were rolling out of focus. "Well, listen good anyway. I think I showed you what happens to people who mess with me. Next time you do what I say. Get it?"

She looked up at me, breath coming in sharp slices.

"I said, get it, GG?"

Her trembling lips formed one word. "Bitch."

Unbeaten. Unbowed. I itched to hurt her more. But we'd done what we'd set out to. "Whatever. See you around, GG."

I straightened up, and we skated away.

No one spoke until we got back to the HQ.

"That was horrible."

Kris glared at me.

"You broke both her legs. You punched her and stabbed her and you murdered her friend."

"And your point is?" I said.

"My point is people don't do things like that!"

"Kris, this is reality. Like you said. You think the GGs would be kind to us? You think they'd let us go safe and sound? Nuh-uh. They'd tag our backs as many times as they could. Then they'd beat us up just for laughs. No one is kind any more, Kris. Oh, and by the way, who untied her?"

"I did," Kris said. She was shaking, but she met my eyes calmly. "You've gone too far, Kell."

"Have I?"

"Yes."

"And what are you proposing to do about it?"

Kris looked at me. "If we're going to treat all the GGs the way you treated that one, maybe I'll just go and tell them what to expect."

Unease leapt up like a snake in my stomach. "Another traitor, Kristine?"

"You can't get me with that shit," Kris said. "It's not treason. You know it isn't."

"No, I don't. Your first loyalty should be to your gang, I believe. Not to someone else's."

"I don't want to be loyal to anyone who's doing stuff like what you just did!" Kris yelled.

I looked round, keeping a contemptuous expression on my face. The other Love Shockers stood in the darkness, moonlight slicing them up. Not on my side. Not on hers. Stunned.

"Well, watch out, sweetie." I gave her a little push, and she stumbled backwards on her skates. "Because I don't play nice any more. I do a lot of 'stuff,' as you so elegantly put it. And some of that 'stuff' might happen to you."

"You don't scare me."

"What happened to you?" I asked. "You helped found the Love Shockers. Who hurt you enough to make you do that, Kristine?"

I'd noticed she tensed every time I used that name.

"Don't change the subject."

"I'm just asking," I said. "Because, you see, that GG hurt me. Hurt me a lot. I was evening the score a little. Now, who hurt you?"

Kris stayed silent, her face mingled with shadow and light.

"It was another gang," Babs said from behind me. "Their gimmick was hurting girls. They caught her, one night, and took turns jumping her bones. She ran away from home."

"Shut up," Kris said.

"You telling me you never wanted to hurt those guys?" I asked her.

She was silent still.

"You telling me you never wanted to show them you were strong? I don't believe that, Kristine."

"I never did anything to them," Kris said.

"But you wanted to, didn't you? Like I wanted to hurt the GGs."

Our eyes met, and then she turned and ran. I heard her feet clatter on the metal walkway, and then an office door slammed.

"Anyone else have a problem with tonight's escapade?" I asked.

They shook their heads.

"Then let's get back to bed for a bit."

(break)

That night I dreamed. I don't remember much about that dream, but it felt like I saw everyone I'd ever known – from Shar to my mum to the lunch lady at school – and they all called to me and I wouldn't answer them. There was Akina, black and white, not moving. I wanted to go to her, but I was swept away like a twig in a waterfall. And Coin, alive, which I knew was wrong, only he wasn't dressed how he normally had, but in the orange jacket and trousers of the guy I'd stabbed that night.

Shiro stood, arms linked with Jin, who was in a cop's uniform, and Chiyo laughed at me, wrapped in a Noise Tank's jacket. The GGs tried to stop me, and I broke through them like they were made of glass, all except one guy, a guy in a blue boiler suit and hat, whom I wanted to smash but couldn't. Alex screamed when she saw me, but the screams turned to laughter. And finally Goji Rokkaku, and Shiro again, standing on either side of me, and Shiro tried to hold onto me, but Goji grabbed my arm, and dragged me down, down, down into the darkness…

I opened my eyes, and the dream faded. Boy, I needed more sleep.

I headed out into the main hall. Everyone else was up. Kris wouldn't look at me.

"Guys," I said. "Any news?"

"Those two GGs were taken to hospital. They're in Shibuya General right now."

"The other GGs are staging distractions in other parts of town," Babs said. "They haven't been back here, so we've been catching up on our own tagging."

An idea spread into my brain. "They're staying out of Shibuya-cho totally?"

"Yep. Either at the hospital or in the other districts. They come back at night, though."

"Then let's give them a surprise when they do come back," I said.

"What?" Shar looked worried.

"Tag everything. Every wall. Every car. Every billboard. Every window. I want Shibuya-cho looking like it's built out of Love Shocker tags."

A slow smile spread over Dash's face. "The GGs are gonna have a heart attack."

"Exactly. And they'll spend a lot more time covering up our tags, and that'll mean they'll be easier to nab themselves."

"Uh – 'nab,' Kell?" one of the old Love Shockers said doubtfully.

"Don't worry. Just tag them ten times if I'm not there. If I am…well, we'll just see what happens." I picked up my paint. "Let's go."

(break)

Babs, I discovered, was a good artist. Especially when it came to painting pictures of injured GGs. This would annoy those dumb freaks for sure.

We painted our socks off for two days. People were complaining in the streets, I heard them, but that was no bother. The GGs would have collective fits.

I wrote to them. Just a quick letter, to tell them who was behind this. In case they hadn't guessed.

And how did I feel, having at last got revenge on the girl who'd hurt me?

Well, pleased, I suppose. But there were two other emotions that dulled that. One was the yearning for more. She still had her friends. She still had her life. And from what I'd heard, she still had her ugly, freaky boyfriend.

And the other emotion was guilt. I didn't like it. I didn't want it. I didn't like Cube, but deep down inside, almost buried, there was the same protectiveness I'd felt for Akina.

But if I gave in to that feeling, I'd be lost. I had to beat the GGs. I had to.

(break)

I still spoke to Alex. If you want to call it that. She didn't fight back now. She just pretended she didn't care.

(break)

It was about a week after we'd tagged up Shibuya when Babs came running in, and hissed, "Guys, one of the GGs is heading up to Park Street. On her own."

"Which one is it?" I asked.

"That blonde girl."

"Right," I said. "Shar, Kris, Dash, Babs, let's go."

"What are we going to do?" Kris asked.

"We're going to give her a makeover." I shook my paint can. "Ten times."

Outside it was very quiet, and even Jet Set Radio didn't make it loud. The streets were empty, and it was getting dark. The air was cold and stung my nose when I breathed in.

Soon we'd reached Park Street. I saw her, up ahead, a tall figure silhouetted against the edge of the playground. She was tagging over one of our tags, one which had been splattered across a billboard.

"Come on," I whispered, and we tiptoed up the steps. The swings creaked as the wind gently swung them. The only other sound was the hiss of Gum's paint, and Jet Set Radio.

I smiled, stepped forward, and tapped Gum on the shoulder.

She turned, quickly, and I saw a flicker of unease in her eyes.

"Quit tagging," I said. "Now."

"Yeah, right." Gum flicked back a strand of hair. "Who do you think I am?"

"I know who you are, GG." That's for damn sure. "And I think you ought to know that Shibuya belongs to the Love Shockers now."

"Like hell it does."

I held up my paint can, heard the other girls hold up theirs. We began to shake, click-clack, as the music leapt high and spread out to engulf my ears.

I saw Gum's eyes glance to each side, take in her position. It wasn't a good one. We had her surrounded.

"Frightened yet?" I asked.

"In your dreams." She turned back to her tag.

The music cracked like a whip, and before I could think of what to do my hand had shot out and I'd tagged her back.

She turned this time, as the music jumped again. Her eyes were wide and horrified. Had she ever been tagged before, I wondered. Probably not.

"Run," I said.

"No way." Terror in her voice now, but she didn't move.

"You know what happens if you're tagged ten times."

"Even your little friends won't support you if you're tagged ten times," I said. The music was rising, like floodwater around the singer's words.

Now she was definitely looking for escape.

"Go on," I hissed. "Go on. Run. Run. Run."

I heard Shar join in.

Then Dash, then Babs.

And Kris.

And the music rose –

She ran as the song leapt out, and Babs tagged her again.

Gum leapt onto the fence bordering the playground, began to grind. I heard the clicks as five pairs of skates followed. Now she was on the banisters of the bridge, and Shar was catching up with her. Tag. I saw the paint spatter Gum's back.

And again. Shar shook her paint can for a third attempt, but…

Gum leapt off as the music juddered and stepped back on course, and dashed towards the gate to the halfpipe.

She was running now, stumbling down the steps…

So were we.

The singer lengthened the last note, and the music quietened. The halfpipe was flooded with shadow, but Gum's minidress picked her out like a ghost. We reached the fork in the halfpipe. Gum made for the left fork, but Dash and Babs cut her off, forcing her round to the right. As she ran, like a sheep driven by dogs, Kris tagged her, then dropped back.

She was fast, but we were faster. And there were more of us.

Gum was skating, head down, not looking ahead, obviously relying on speed to get her out of this. She didn't seem to notice the barred gate cutting off her route a few metres away.

She was trapped. Saw her wrench at the bars, knuckles white in the darkness. My hand shook. This was revenge.

Raise that paint can. The tags looked like scars on her back.

Tag once

Tag twice.

Three

Four

Five…

I let my hand fall to my side.

Gum turned slowly, as the song faded away.

Her eyes were huge, her fists clenched, but no rage in her face, just complete and utter bewilderment.

I dropped my empty paint can, and held up ten fingers. "You're out."

Silence still, from everyone. I carried on speaking, hearing the happiness in my voice, remembering being pushed, falling onto ground damp, rough, dirty.

"We know you're out. We'll make sure everyone else knows it."

Those white-gloved hands gathering up my paint. That sharp mouth calling names in my direction. Broken heart. Baby. Whore.

"And if anyone catches you skating, we'll know you're not only a wimp, you're a cheat."

She still didn't answer me, but I could see her trembling.

"See ya," I said, blowing her a kiss. Then I turned to the other girls and said, "Let's roll."