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[GRAVITY]

chapter fifteen: an 'extra' high tea

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As soon as she stepped into the function room, she noted the pink carpet runway was heavily drenched in silver glitter.

Steaming or vacuuming all the glitter away would be a mission. Sora sympathised with the cleaners.

The runway led up to a long, rectangular main table - which Sora assumed was for the celebrant. On the main table was a huge, chocolate fondue fountain. Each side of the fountain was adorned with jars of stick-pierced strawberries, and white and pink marshmallows. Two fruit punch bowls labelled 'non-alcoholic' and 'alcoholic' were on both sides of the fondue fountain.

Circular tables aligned parallel to the runway of glitter. The centrepieces of each table were of sculptured glass mermaids, with each mermaid not being identical, posing in different positions. The event had no specific themes, as the mermaids were the only aquatic thing in the ballroom - yet somehow the mermaids worked. The glass sculptures reflected nicely against the chandelier lighting, sparkling up the venue. Peach cloth napkins were folded origami-style into swans, perched in front of each wooden chair.

There weren't any balloons, but there were a series of fairy lights that dangled vertically on one of the walls, creating an accent and a backdrop to the photobooth. On the right of the photobooth was a designated 'gift' table. The windows on the left of the venue displayed the Tokyo skyline. Even from where she stood, Sora could spot Tokyo Tower. It should have not been a surprise to her, as they were on the highest floor of Hotel Tachikawa. She had to keep herself from gaping at the view.

Sora had thought the occasion was for a birthday. However, this appeared 'wedding-like'.

From the way her client had spoken to her on the phone, the event was thrown last minute. Who would have thought that a last minute High Tea Birthday could be so…extra? She would have described it as extravagant, but 'extra' suited it more. It was beyond what Sora could have even imagined. She knew many people who struggled to make ends meet, kept a simple life - but had never witnessed somebody this rich acting haphazardly with money in real time. She had only seen people act like this on television shows, and partly because her parents often dealt with their richer clientele she had never had the face-first experience with it.

Sora didn't mind it though. Her client was entertaining and wasn't too difficult to work with. As she was setting up, she could hear her talking to caterers, smiling, and even putting food aside for each person who helped out. Albeit scatter-brained, she was lovely and did not let the stress get to her. If Sora had been in her position, she would have been a crying mess. That was why Sora preferred to be organised. This last minute-thing was like osmosis - Sora felt stressed for the celebrant although the celebrant did not appear like she was. It had been a warzone when Sora had initially entered the place, but somehow things were falling into place with her client's natural knack for giving out instructions.

The celebrant had given Sora full reign over the flowers. It was rare, considering how much money she had flung at her, to let her take control over the flower positioning. Sora was used to flower arranging, since she was born into the role. However, this was one of the rare times she had the luxury of creating and improvising the floral pieces and actually enjoying it. Perhaps it was because of how large the venue was, how she had creative reign over what she did, and everything that she improvised - the celebrant would squeal and shout praises at her. It was a much needed change up considering everything she had dealt with lately.

It also made her slightly envious that this woman, who was probably the same age as her, was living a care-free life. If Sora was reincarnated, would she be born into a better life? Would she not be connected to the yakuza? Would she have not met Yamato…

She sighed.

"Have some bubbles."

"Tachikawa-san, I still need to set up the last table-"

"No, I insist," the celebrant shoved a flute of sparkling white wine into Sora's vacant hand. "Please call me Mimi too. It's tiring being called by my last name."

The surname name of a chain of hotels? The surname of her father, a famous politician? Although Sora could not empathise with the woman, she could understand how tiring it would get being associated with the surname that graced many households throughout the country. Perhaps she studied abroad and was used to people addressing her by her first name?

"Mimi," Sora hesitated saying her name, it still felt strange on her tongue, "I'm driving."

"Nonsense," Mimi said. "I imported this wine from Italy. You must try it! I don't usually like Prosecco, but this…is delicious!"

"One sip," Sora gave in. She somehow couldn't stay 'no' when the celebrant was staring at her expectantly with puppy dog eyes. How could she decline her offer?

Mimi was right.

The wine was delicious. Sora had tasted Prosecco before, but it was mostly the cheap kind.

"It's soooo good right?" Mimi beamed, observing Sora's reaction.

"Yes, it is," Sora agreed, letting a laugh slip out. Even if the wine had tasted horrible, Sora would have lied because a sad expression on Mimi's face was something she did not want to see.

She had only met her that morning and it was crazy what kind of hold and impact the celebrant had.

"I'll give you a bottle to take home!"

"No!" Sora waved her hands at her. "You've already spoiled me with the extra catering food!"

"But you've done such a good job!" Mimi exclaimed. "You have a designer flare! Although I didn't give you much to go with, you've adapted to my spontaneity. Your flowers have really lightened up the room - so I want to show my appreciation!"

"Er…"

"If you won't accept my wine, why not stay for the event? I've had a guest cancel and you're around my age…twenty-"

"Twenty-five."

"See? Only one year apart!"

"But I've just met you."

"And I'm not crazy," Mimi grinned. "I can be awfully convincing."

"I'm not denying you that." Sora shook her head. "But I can't-"

"Really?" Mimi pouted at her. "You'll be fun to have around. The crowd gets boring. I know them, but I don't know you."

The longer the conversation went, Sora began to wonder if the celebrant was actually crazy. Or bored? Maybe that's what rich people did when they had nothing to do?

Sora contemplated the offer, but then she remembered that Miyako was holding the fort back at the florist. Although the rest of the afternoon would be mostly free, it didn't sit right with her to take advantage of her client's hospitality. That, and she was still attired in her grubby work apron and looked like an idiot when standing next to the celebrant.

Mimi was beautiful.

There was an aura about her. She was one of those people you would look twice at if you saw her walking down the street. Her shoulders were tucked back in perfect posture, make-up flawless, sequined silver dress hugging at the right parts of her modelesque figure, and her six inch heels were literally on point.

It reminded Sora so much of what a different world she came from.

Sora said, "I'm sorry. I can't."

Mimi gave her a look with the sole purpose of making her guilty. Sora shifted her gaze away from her face because if she did meet her in the eye, she had an inkling that the celebrant would attempt to convince her again.

Sora muttered, "Besides, you've given me food to take home and have paid way more than what was initially agreed. I'm already grateful enough."

The celebrant finally accepted her words.

When Sora was driving back to the florist she decided to hit the closest coffee shop. She was planning to grab a coffee for Miyako, as the coffee would be a perfect combination with the high tea food. Mimi had been more than generous with the food giveaway, that there was no chance that Sora would be able to finish all of the food. She'd force Miyako to share it with her.

Sora rummaged through the glove compartment. Her heart dropped when she couldn't source her handbag. She wanted to kick herself for being so careless. She would have to go back. Turning back the engine on, she redirected her car back the direction she had come from.

The traffic was chaotic. She had missed peak hour because she had arrived at the hotel early, but now that the day had picked up, the streets were presently congested. Driving through peak hour was a pain, but finding a parking place - well, that was another story. She wanted to cry as she desperately circled the hotel for the fifth time, even resorting to stalking pedestrians until she finally found a vacant spot.

As soon as she entered the hotel, the staff let her inside instantly. They had been used to her coming in and out of the hotel with the trolley trips of bouquets earlier. She gave a curt bow to them, heading straight for the private lifts that would take her up to the event hall.

The elevator doors opened. Stepping into the hallway, she saw the venue entrance already had a line of guests hovering around a name board. Next to each guest's name was a table number they were allocated. Sora had propped flowers around the board as per Mimi's extra request that morning, so even if she was far from the guests - she knew what they were looking at. Sora couldn't help but smile in pride when she caught some of the guests snapping photos on their phone of the flowers that she had picked to frame the name board.

Not wanting to mingle with dressed up guests, Sora stepped back and decided to enter the venue through the back rooms that led to the kitchen. Just as she was going to turn into the kitchen, she heard voices from the freezer room.

"-wearing the silver dress."

Because the door was slightly ajar, Sora managed to hear a bit of their conversation. Although she hadn't stopped by to listen, she glimpsed that there were two security guards inside the room. Both middle aged men - one had a jagged scar across his face, the other man wore an eyebrow ring. They weren't the same guards that she had seen that morning. The pair looked much bigger from memory.

Sora shrugged. Perhaps a change of shift?

She shook her head - reminding herself why she was there. Retracing her steps, she guessed that her handbag would most likely be in the dress-up room. She vaguely remembered that Mimi had told her to put it there prior to setting up.

After a few turns, she went inside the room.

Not even a second inside the room, she froze.

She clapped a hand over her mouth, a scream stuck in the back of her throat.

There were two unconscious figures, stripped down to their underwear and tied up. It wasn't hard to connect the dots that the figures were the guards she had seen earlier that morning…which inevitably meant the two men she had just seen seconds ago were intruders.

On instinct, she locked the door. Sora squatted down, observing the men. One man was breathing - he was the one who had held the door when she brought the flowers in, and even offered to assist her to lessen the trips to her vehicle. The other man had been wherever Mimi was, quietly keeping an eye on their surroundings. Sora had felt his eyes as soon as she started working that morning. He couldn't see his chest rising. When Sora reached down to feel for his pulse, she felt nothing.

She exhaled.

Keep your breathing steady.

Tiger's words. He had taught her how to act during these types of situations. "There is no point panicking because when you panic, your reason and logic disappears. You've got to keep level-headed, Sora."

She was trying, really hard. She tried to quickly piece together the little information together. The men were after Mimi. She was their target. For what reason? She did not know - but from how wealthy she was, it would not be a surprise if they were after her money or some ransom. Although she had only met the woman today, Sora knew that she had to protect her. She couldn't let the men hurt her.

Instinctively, Sora grabbed her handbag from the table. She then took her phone out and quickly switched her location on before pressing the speed dial to the first contact.

She breathed, "Code 9."

"Where are you-"

"OH MY GOD!"

Instantly, Sora pocketed the phone.

Mimi was at the door, keys in her hand and kneeling down next to the guards. "Kazu-san! KAZU!" She was trying to shake him awake.

"Keep it down!" Sora hissed. She jumped up, closing and locking the door again. She motioned her chin towards the narrow rectangle window above a set of cabinets. "Where does that window lead to?"

Mimi was tearful as she looked at her then at the security guards. "Did you do this-"

Yelling from the hallway interrupted her question.

"No," Sora replied, trying her best to keep her tone calm. "Mimi, you've got to lower your voice. Those people out there…they're looking for you. I'm not involved in this - if you remember, you're the one who called for my assistance last minute. Our priority is to get out of here. Now…where does that window lead to?"

Mimi brushed her tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. "There's nothing underneath, just cement. But there is a balcony slightly to the right of it…"

Sora was already grabbing a stool and propping herself up the cabinet. The window was sealed. She peered outside and saw there was a little gap between the window and the balcony. They would have to manoeuvre across to the balcony. It was the only option to get away without the men noticing. Unfortunately, if they missed that jump…they would literally be dead. There was nothing to break their fall at the bottom of the skyscraper.

"Are you serious? You can't really be considering-"

Sora ordered, "Pass me that curling iron."

Without objecting, Mimi passed it to her. Sora quickly punched it through the window, and Mimi gasped as the glass shattered. Sora kept going until she created enough space for them to escape through. If the men outside did not know where Mimi was, they would now.

Sora laid out her apron over the broken glass and tested getting out. She had created enough space for them to wriggle out and to, somehow, they were going to leap towards the balcony diagonally below them. She was thin enough to get through the window. Both her and Mimi were - as crazy as the escape route was, at least Sora was confident that the burly men would not be able to squeeze through the gap. It was doable…even if she was eight percent sure it would work.

"Mimi, make sure you exit from the right side of the window. The balcony is roughly thirty centimetres from this window, so we need to worm through the window and latch onto the steel bar that is supporting the mini balcony roof."

"How?"

"Get up here and I'll show you."

The celebrant gave a nod, boosting herself onto the cabinet. The space above the cabinets was enough for them to squat, but to get through the window, they would have to lie down.

In the narrow space, Sora slowly shimmied out of the window. Her left shoulder hung lower than her right side, as she angled her upper body to reach for the bar. Her fingers managed to barely latch onto the bar. She breathed out, tightly holding on as the lower part of her body fell past the window. She swung until her body was above the balcony flooring before letting go and landing onto the surface.

The manoeuvre seemed simple, but Sora hadn't taken account to the gust of wind and how exactly high up they were. If she fell, she would be literally plummeting to her death. She'd be lying to say that she hadn't been scared for that moment her body was swinging in the air.

Mimi's eyes widened so Sora took it as the cue to make her move. She rolled towards the edge of the window, hands already half latching onto the steel bar. She breathed out and let her body fall out. Her hand grasped onto the bar, as she swung herself down onto the balcony. In her mind, Sora thought it was simple at first - but with the gust of wind, how high up they were - she'd be lying to say that hadn't been scared.

Now that she was on the balcony, Sora motioned with her hands, guiding Mimi what she should do and how to place her hands on the steel bar.

"I can't!"

The celebrant looked petrified. Sora knew that Mimi could pull it off, but then she had forgotten that she did not know what to make of her athleticism and physique - maybe she…couldn't? No. Mimi had to jump across. Sora would ensure she'd make it.

Sora had her hand out, lips firm and in a straight line. "Hold onto this pole and-"

"This room is locked!"

Mimi's eyes widened, but it was enough of a signal for her to get moving. She laid down, rolling towards the edge of the window. She replicated the move Sora had done, hands grasping around the steel bar until her hands turned white. She closed her eyes as she allowed her body to dip out of the window. She did not jump with enough force that her body was barely swinging towards the balcony.

Sora leant over, grabbing Mimi's legs, pushing her towards the right angle. "I've got you. Let go, Mimi."

"I can't." Mimi cried.

Sora yanked her down, causing Mimi's wobbly knees to half collapse onto her.

Just as she landed, a voice boomed, "GET BACK HERE!"

"They'll search here next." Sora held her hand out. "We need to go, Mimi."

From her angle, she could see the men trying to climb onto the cabinet, which they couldn't. The men were too big to fit, but their hands had tried to catch Mimi prior to her escaping through the broken window.

Mimi took Sora's hand and stood back on her feet. Together, they hurried across the balcony. The balcony went around the corner, stretching to the other side of the building. The air was frosty from how high up they were and with every second that passed, Sora swore that it was becoming windier. Sora looked further ahead. Towards the end of the balcony was a door. She used her arm to shove it open. It was locked. What other escape route could they use? Her eyes darted around the area. Even if they were to enter through the door, she assumed the men hunting them down would know they would access the lower level.

But where else would they go? They were just too high…

"Pool. Jump."

It was not Mimi who suggested the idea. Sora had forgotten that she had not hung up the phone and that he had been actively listening in. By now, he would have pinpointed their location - and he was the only lead she could rely on in this situation.

Sora took a step forward and peered over the balcony. Her stomach dropped. It was a big dive down. The blue square looked quite distant, but even with the wind, the pool was large enough to break their fall.

Are you serious…

It was her inside voice, but it seemed to be heard when the voice spoke up again. "There is no other choice. Pool is half down the skyscraper, so it shouldn't kill you."

"Well, fuck. Easy for you to say."

Mimi had a dazed look on her face. "We're going to jump?"

"Looks like it," Sora gave her a pained smile. "Are you ready?"

Even behind the thick make-up, Sora could see the celebrant lose colour in her face.

Well, fuck indeed.

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(a/n) surprise! most of this was written a while back, but it was a struggle to get the rest of the chp done due to personal reasons. i hope you are all doing well. xox

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