This took me about 2 weeks to write. I wanted to get this chapter out of the way, so enjoy! I put my personal touch to this. This took me a while to think…
*crack* here we go! -Jo-Ryan
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The Platform Surfers
Chapter 2
Invitation
"Invitation?" questioned Ran to Miyu as they were eating breakfast. Normally, a conversation at 5:00 in the morning was unusual, but apparently, the two had loss of sleep, for some unspecified reason…
"Uh-huh. We get to see Mami's mansion today, and there's a party, too!"
"Mami…rin? In…Ikebukoro?"
"Of course, Ran-chan! Don't you want to see it?"
"Miyu, as much as I want to be wealthy and be free of my parents, my gut is telling me that I don't want to live really wealthy. I don't know why…(and I still have a bit of a grudge against her, only because she gets so obnoxious at time…)"
"Conscience, conscience, conscience. It's all in you. (Well, you're obnoxious as well!)"
"Yeah."
She paused for a moment, then said, "Hey, Miyu, wanna see something cool?"
"Like what?"
"It's over in my bedroom. Let's go."
"Sure!"
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"Whoa. A bit of a mess here, Ran-chan."
"Here…it…" Straining, she pulled out the case. "…is!"
"Chou cute! What is it?"
Ran, exasperated as usual, said, "Nani!!? You haven't seen a guitar before?"
"…oh. Why did you want to show me that?"
"Cause this sucker here…is a family heirloom!" she proclaimed, striking one of those heroic poses. (author: Oy…)
"…heirloom? You mean…"
"Actually, this was bought from an auction some years ago, and it still looks fresh. Mom and dad sure know how to keep these antiques new, y'know."
"But…Ran-chan…what is the real reason why you want to show me this? I've seen guitars before…"
"I'm going to try play Walk-Don't Run on this baby."
"Walk...-Don't Run? Ran…"
"And I'm gonna make big bucks with it. I'm gonna be a GAL that can not only sing, but play music! Hee, hee! The next shining star in Japan!" Saying this put a smile on her face, maybe even an evil smile…
"I thought your parents told you that you were going to join the police."
"Huh!!?" Sweat drops were coming down her forehead. "Oh, yeah, I forgot that. But-"
"And don't you even now how to play the guitar?"
"Wha…" Now she was getting a bit exasperated again…eruption alert, eruption alert…
"And you need a manager, sign with a record company, have a band to back you up, and…"
"Won't you just SHUT UUUUUUUP!!? No one's gonna stop me from being the next star in Japan! WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Her laugh became a chuckle, which eventually became a sigh of despair. "Oh crap, I don't know how to play music that well. I'm doomed," she said, her brutal honesty ripping her a bit.
"It's okay, I can help you. I have a synthesizer at home, which I rarely use, and-"
A flower popped out of Ran's head. "Really??? You'll help me?"
"What are friends for? I can't leave you alone. Next to Yamato-kun, you're my most favorite companion that can't be replaced!" She said this while hugging Ran tightly.
"Okay, then, but…what about…"
"Aya? I'm gonna ask her if one of the courses she studied involved music. I think…it could be, she could play, too…"
"A POSSIBILITY? Yes, yes, yes! Me, Miyu, and Aya. A trio! Yay!" Ran celebrated like crazy (think: bouncing off the walls, tears forming in her big, jiggly eyes, you get the picture).
"She still hasn't changed," Miyu said to herself, shaking her head, as she took out her cell phone.
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"Yuuya…why are we driving up and down Tokyo?" an exasperated Rei Otohata said to his comrade-in-arms. "And how come it's on MY motorcycle? You're only wasting gas."
"Oh, lighten up for once, will ya," came the reply. "I'm telling ya, life after Meishou Daiichi is…um…what's that word?"
"A blast?"
"Yeah! Yeah, that's it! A blast!"
"Far from it, though…"
"Ne, what do you mean?"
"I mean, Yuuya, think about it. Ran's gonna be a police officer in a few years after she goes to college (author: I assumed that Ran-chan passed the juken and ended up at some school downtown), Miyu's gonna be marrying Yamato soon, and you've got Mami as your significant other…think about it."
"About what?"
"GODDDAMIT, WHY DON'T YOU LISTEN!" shouted Rei. "Ignorant…"
"I'm not ignorant, I'm just innocent."
"Nani!!?"
"…"
Before you knew it, Rei's cell phone beeped. "Moshi-moshi?"
"Sup Rei."
"Sup. Who is this?"
"Grrr…don't you know? Yuuya's girlfriend…?"
A pause, then…"oh. Yuuya, it's Mami."
"Geez! Doesn't she know she can call from my cell phone?"
"Didn't you say it was broken?"
"Oh, yeah, it's broken." A wave of red blush swept Yuuya's face. "Moshi-moshi, Mami-chan?"
"YUUUUUUYAAAAA!!! I'm inviting you and your friend to a tour of my house…"
"Okay…"
"And I've got something cooking for you…" Her voice suggested something good for dinner, or maybe it was…? "It's very tasty.."
"…Tasty?" He was feeling his temperature and pulse rising.
"It's specially created by me and it's so good, you'll feel like you've died and gone to-"
"WAAAAAAAIIIIII!!! I give up!!!"
"It's not about giving up, it's about giving in."
"Whatever, whatever!! Okay, Mami-chan! I'm coming with Rei-kun! Ja ne!"
"Ja ne, Yuuuuuuuya!"
"So, what was that all about," said Rei, still with a straight face. He even added a small chuckle.
"I heard you chuckling, Rei. We're heading to Mami's house immediately! LET'S GO!!!"
"Wait, hold on, Yuuya, you're going too fast-" The love drive was pushing Yuuya out of control. Off they went. "Why did Mami have to come around. I don't get it."
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"Um, Ran-chan…what is this?" Miyu pointed to the pink case.
"This?" She opened the case, revealing the guitar/koto. "This is my Fender Kotocaster! I thought it was a Stratocaster (author: I thought it was too…), but the Fender company several years ago decided to try some far-fetched creation, and this is the result."
"So…this is the only one of its kind?"
"As far as I know…mm-hmm."
"WOW! How do you play this…Kotocaster whatchamacallit?"
"It's basically a guitar, which, with the push of this button…will turn it into a koto!"
"Ohhhh…but this doesn't look like a koto. It looks like half koto and half guitar."
"Shut up! It too is a koto," said Ran in a dreamlike state, tears welling up in her eyes hysterically, with stars, "and I'm going to make money with it! Me, Ran Kotobuki, the Kotocaster idol, ready to rock your world! Oh, I am so smart! (heart)"
"But, what I'm trying to say is…how do you play it?"
"Watch me play Walk-Don't Run!" She turned it back to a guitar and strummed. "It goes like, AAA, then GGG, then FFF, then E, then…" She continued to strum it to herself, saying, "then C, Am, F, E, Am, and back to AAA, GGG, FFF, E, AAA, GGG, F, C, G, C, G, C, EEE…"
Miyu clapped in amazement. "Wow, Ran-chan, you're good! How'd you do that?"
"I don't know. It just popped out of my head while I was sleeping, and it stuck. I can only strum it, I've yet to pluck the notes. And that's the only song I can play well…" She was in deep thought, when suddenly…"Wait a minute! What the heck did I just play!!?"
"Walk-Don't Run, right?"
"Oh, and I thought I didn't know how to play this stupid thing! Geez!"
"Ran…you're confusing yourself."
"…"
"I think you will not only make a good singer, but a good guitar player too!"
"I will?…I WILL!!! Hahahahaha!!! That shows you what I can do, huh?"
"Of course, but only due to a good night of oversleeping!"
"Shut up!" she yelled, with a laugh. "Miyu…do you play an instrument?"
"Um…my parents have a synthesizer in the basement, but it's kept clear away. I haven't even touched it yet."
"Really! Then the time is now for you to take that synthesizer out of your crummy basement and bring it here! You're now a member of my band!" Her eyes were wide, filled with crosses.
"All right Ran! But my basement is not crummy!" she said with a giggle.
"Gomen nasai."
"Oh, have you seen Aya? Is she outside?"
"Hmmm…" She looked out the window for any girl wearing long shaggy hair and low eyes. "No, not yet."
"Shoots. We're supposed to see her so that we can take the bullet train to Ikebukoro. Hmmm…" Her impatience was starting to get the best of her for a bit.
"Oh, here she is! And she's running! Let's go! I'm taking my Kotomaster!"
"But…Ran, isn't that heavy?"
"No…it's…not!" She was strong, all right, but Miyu could see she was (actually) straining. "Oh, why did kaa-san have to give me such a heavy thing, stupid kaa-san…dammit." Eventually, she had to carry it with both hands.
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"Sup, you guys!" said Aya as she came inside.
"Sup!" Ran and Miyu replied in unison.
"Hey, um, Ran…what's that you have…carrying?"
"It's a Kotocaster."
"Kotocaster?"
"Yeah. The only one of its kind."
"The only one…?"
"I guess you're not yourself today."
"Huh? I'm not myself? For your information, I just came here to meet up with you so that we can head over to Mami's house. I heard it looks very wonderful there, with all those spoiled folks…I wish I was like them…"
"You can, but I fear you may have to do that stupid escort thing again."
"It was only a thought!"
"Ran-chan, easy on her," said Miyu.
"Listen, Aya," instructed Ran, "we are only there to see her house, to eat lunch there, and then we leave. That's it."
"But, Ran, they have so much cho cool stuff to look at. Some even cost a million yen to purchase. (Mami's such a spoiled brat…I wish my parents were like that…humph.)"
"I already told you, it's going to be quick. I don't want to spend a whole day in the house of my rival."
"Oh, just put a sock in that grudge. Don't your relations with her ever come together?"
She thought of saying, "Just a little bit," but instead, Ran said, "You think they've improved." Aya, however, could see through Ran's eyes, like Miyu, and she drew a "I know what you really want to say, now be honest" stares. Finally, Ran put the cat out of the bag again. "Okay, maybe we can stay there a bit longer."
"YAAAAAY!!!" said Miyu and Aya, fists in the air.
"But don't expect me to even draw a stare at Mami-rin. I want money, but not to be spoiled like her."
"…"
"Understood?"
They both sighed in return, "Understood."
"Good." Back to her genki state again… "Let's go…Aya, can you help me bring this thing?"
"Sure. But why do you have to bring this Kotocaster whatchamacallit? It's too heavy for me."
"I'll tell you later. Come on, help me out here. (dang, you have to echo Miyu's words too? Geh…)"
"Okay." She carried part of the case, along with Ran, and the three of them headed for the station.
"By the way, Miyu," asked Ran, "how come you accepted the invitation? Don't you hate her too?"
"No, that's Harue. Mami's fine. I just wanted to see what she has. But if Harue comes, I'm going to…" She clenched her fists at the thought of her name. That bitch is going to get an ass-whooping from me if I see her, she thought.
"Miyu…"
"Oh, gomen nasai. Let's just go."
**********************************************
"Okay, where are they?" She was growing impatient, dressed in a gold miniskirt and pink halter top. She looked at her watch once, twice, thrice, four, five, six, seven times before yelling, "Goddammit, where the hell are my friends…and that Kotobuki bitch!? Grrr…I've been waiting a long-ass time, and…oooooh! Yuuya's worrying me too." Her eyes were watering hysterically, not unlike Ran.
"You looking for me?" Yuuya arrived, with Rei feeling a bit dizzy.
"Oh, Yuuya! I was hoping you'd be here!"
"Uhhh…what happened? Did I win that stupid Grand Prix again?" said Rei, still dizzy. "Oh, it's only you, Mami. So, this your house?"
"Yep," she said with glee.
"Boring."
"Are you calling my 50-million yen mansion boring? Grrr…why you…"
She was about to lay a bit of a punch towards Rei, when Yuuya stepped in the middle. "Okay, you guys, heh, heh, I don't want you folks to be fighting." A big sweat drop was running down his forehead while he was flailing his arms. (author: dayum! I love to use the word "flail!")
"Sweetie, please step back, or else I will punch you instead!"
"O-o-okay, punch away."
It was very frequent for Yuuya to digress/concede to his girl. It seemed very apparent that he was her "slave." But he didn't mind. Even though she acted a bit obnoxious, he still like her, primarily because she treated him as "number one" instead of "two." Sometimes that comment wanted to make him want to forget Ran-chan. He was still attracted to her, but he had to concede to Tatsuki, who would end up being Ran's soul mate. Or at least he thought. No matter how hard you try, you still don't know Ran-chan, he thought to himself. Her psyche is a bit of a hit-and-miss, like Tatsuki. Genki one day, steaming mad another, in a dreamlike state the next, the next day grim-faced, the next day sad (although she rarely let it out, that didn't mean that he didn't see her actually crying), and then the cycle would repeat again, with some minor periodical tweaks here and there, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle. Just a hit-and-miss.
Mami was about to punch Rei, when she saw Yuuya in deep thought. "Yuuya, what are you thinking about?" she said, dropping her fist. Rei let out a little "phew" to himself.
"Um, nothing in particular."
She knew better. She knew Yuuya too well. "Are you thinking about that bastard Kotobuki again? If you are, I'm going to kick you in the…"
"No, honestly, I am not! I'm just looking at your house, how beautiful it is…"
"YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT KOTOBUKI-SAN! I KNOW IT!!" She repeatedly kicked him anyway, but in a semi-half-playful manner.
"Itai," Yuuya whined. "Please, Mami-chan, stop. (let's do this in your bedroom instead? With the lights off? And no one to see us? [author: hint of ecchi. Lawd, I just felt like adding that.])"
"…" came Rei's response. Sigh.
"We're here!" came a trio of voices. One happy, another normal, another grim-sounding.
"What took you guys so long?" came the response in unison.
"Well…" said Ran quizzically, "…it was Miyu's idea."
"HEY!" said Miyu, a bit winded. "You didn't need to come, if you didn't want to."
"Well, you guys, we're all here," said Mami. "Let's go visit…the Honda estate!"
"oh boy, here we go again…" an oh-so-flibberty (author: I couldn't find a fitting alternete to "exasperated") Ran digressed, as they stepped inside.
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"Aw, dayum, Mom! We're going to Shibuya again?" A 18-year old boy gleamed in delight when he heard the news, as the Tsukino family drove out of the garage from their 2-story complex in the Juuban section of Minato-ku. Obviously he didn't know how to drive yet.
"Uh-huh, Shingo. Now, you and Usagi had better behave when we head to that 109 department store, or we're leaving immediately," Ikuko replied. Obviously her daughter didn't know either.
"And don't get lost, either," added her husband Kenji.
"We won't," came the (not-so-)innocent response.
Usagi's heart felt a bit uneasy after that. Three years, and he still didn't come back home. "Mamo-chan…" she whispered. "Where are you…"
"It's so cool to head over there, with all those para-para dancers there, and the games there, and the gals there, and…oooooohhhh!" His head was swelling with ecchi thoughts (author: oh, I used that word again) that Usagi playfully punched him. Suddenly, he saw a poster of a girl, it was large and on the billboard, next to the 109 building. A girl with brown-orange hair, and a red mesh.
"Ran Kotobuki," Shingo read on the poster. "Shibuya's number-one kogal. The only unattainable queen. Accept no substitutes." He just shook his head. "How conventional. What are kogals anyway," he thought. "All I know is that they are prey for sexual abuse, even rape." Still, there was something about this person that made her…different. He then began to sink into a comatose fit of semi-unconsciousness as the white family van entered the parking lot of the 109 Department Store building, then into sleep.
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END OF CHAPTER 2
Many people I'd like to thank…
Mihona Fujii-sama, of course.
www.fanfiction.net for their generous accomodation.
Ribon Magazine.
Chiaki Nozomi for inspiring me to create something thoughtful, check out his series, "Forever," it is really good. It is under the GALS category!
The Hachiko statue for being a meditative platform.
Megumi Toyoguchi for giving me a feel for how a silly kogal sounds like.
Dicot, Jungle Smile, Marou Mabura, Haruna Ikezawa…they sing so cool…
Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, www.anime-fansubs.net, and many other people have made this possible as well. You all know who you are, domo arigato gozaimashita…
*crack* here we go! -Jo-Ryan
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The Platform Surfers
Chapter 2
Invitation
"Invitation?" questioned Ran to Miyu as they were eating breakfast. Normally, a conversation at 5:00 in the morning was unusual, but apparently, the two had loss of sleep, for some unspecified reason…
"Uh-huh. We get to see Mami's mansion today, and there's a party, too!"
"Mami…rin? In…Ikebukoro?"
"Of course, Ran-chan! Don't you want to see it?"
"Miyu, as much as I want to be wealthy and be free of my parents, my gut is telling me that I don't want to live really wealthy. I don't know why…(and I still have a bit of a grudge against her, only because she gets so obnoxious at time…)"
"Conscience, conscience, conscience. It's all in you. (Well, you're obnoxious as well!)"
"Yeah."
She paused for a moment, then said, "Hey, Miyu, wanna see something cool?"
"Like what?"
"It's over in my bedroom. Let's go."
"Sure!"
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"Whoa. A bit of a mess here, Ran-chan."
"Here…it…" Straining, she pulled out the case. "…is!"
"Chou cute! What is it?"
Ran, exasperated as usual, said, "Nani!!? You haven't seen a guitar before?"
"…oh. Why did you want to show me that?"
"Cause this sucker here…is a family heirloom!" she proclaimed, striking one of those heroic poses. (author: Oy…)
"…heirloom? You mean…"
"Actually, this was bought from an auction some years ago, and it still looks fresh. Mom and dad sure know how to keep these antiques new, y'know."
"But…Ran-chan…what is the real reason why you want to show me this? I've seen guitars before…"
"I'm going to try play Walk-Don't Run on this baby."
"Walk...-Don't Run? Ran…"
"And I'm gonna make big bucks with it. I'm gonna be a GAL that can not only sing, but play music! Hee, hee! The next shining star in Japan!" Saying this put a smile on her face, maybe even an evil smile…
"I thought your parents told you that you were going to join the police."
"Huh!!?" Sweat drops were coming down her forehead. "Oh, yeah, I forgot that. But-"
"And don't you even now how to play the guitar?"
"Wha…" Now she was getting a bit exasperated again…eruption alert, eruption alert…
"And you need a manager, sign with a record company, have a band to back you up, and…"
"Won't you just SHUT UUUUUUUP!!? No one's gonna stop me from being the next star in Japan! WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Her laugh became a chuckle, which eventually became a sigh of despair. "Oh crap, I don't know how to play music that well. I'm doomed," she said, her brutal honesty ripping her a bit.
"It's okay, I can help you. I have a synthesizer at home, which I rarely use, and-"
A flower popped out of Ran's head. "Really??? You'll help me?"
"What are friends for? I can't leave you alone. Next to Yamato-kun, you're my most favorite companion that can't be replaced!" She said this while hugging Ran tightly.
"Okay, then, but…what about…"
"Aya? I'm gonna ask her if one of the courses she studied involved music. I think…it could be, she could play, too…"
"A POSSIBILITY? Yes, yes, yes! Me, Miyu, and Aya. A trio! Yay!" Ran celebrated like crazy (think: bouncing off the walls, tears forming in her big, jiggly eyes, you get the picture).
"She still hasn't changed," Miyu said to herself, shaking her head, as she took out her cell phone.
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"Yuuya…why are we driving up and down Tokyo?" an exasperated Rei Otohata said to his comrade-in-arms. "And how come it's on MY motorcycle? You're only wasting gas."
"Oh, lighten up for once, will ya," came the reply. "I'm telling ya, life after Meishou Daiichi is…um…what's that word?"
"A blast?"
"Yeah! Yeah, that's it! A blast!"
"Far from it, though…"
"Ne, what do you mean?"
"I mean, Yuuya, think about it. Ran's gonna be a police officer in a few years after she goes to college (author: I assumed that Ran-chan passed the juken and ended up at some school downtown), Miyu's gonna be marrying Yamato soon, and you've got Mami as your significant other…think about it."
"About what?"
"GODDDAMIT, WHY DON'T YOU LISTEN!" shouted Rei. "Ignorant…"
"I'm not ignorant, I'm just innocent."
"Nani!!?"
"…"
Before you knew it, Rei's cell phone beeped. "Moshi-moshi?"
"Sup Rei."
"Sup. Who is this?"
"Grrr…don't you know? Yuuya's girlfriend…?"
A pause, then…"oh. Yuuya, it's Mami."
"Geez! Doesn't she know she can call from my cell phone?"
"Didn't you say it was broken?"
"Oh, yeah, it's broken." A wave of red blush swept Yuuya's face. "Moshi-moshi, Mami-chan?"
"YUUUUUUYAAAAA!!! I'm inviting you and your friend to a tour of my house…"
"Okay…"
"And I've got something cooking for you…" Her voice suggested something good for dinner, or maybe it was…? "It's very tasty.."
"…Tasty?" He was feeling his temperature and pulse rising.
"It's specially created by me and it's so good, you'll feel like you've died and gone to-"
"WAAAAAAAIIIIII!!! I give up!!!"
"It's not about giving up, it's about giving in."
"Whatever, whatever!! Okay, Mami-chan! I'm coming with Rei-kun! Ja ne!"
"Ja ne, Yuuuuuuuya!"
"So, what was that all about," said Rei, still with a straight face. He even added a small chuckle.
"I heard you chuckling, Rei. We're heading to Mami's house immediately! LET'S GO!!!"
"Wait, hold on, Yuuya, you're going too fast-" The love drive was pushing Yuuya out of control. Off they went. "Why did Mami have to come around. I don't get it."
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"Um, Ran-chan…what is this?" Miyu pointed to the pink case.
"This?" She opened the case, revealing the guitar/koto. "This is my Fender Kotocaster! I thought it was a Stratocaster (author: I thought it was too…), but the Fender company several years ago decided to try some far-fetched creation, and this is the result."
"So…this is the only one of its kind?"
"As far as I know…mm-hmm."
"WOW! How do you play this…Kotocaster whatchamacallit?"
"It's basically a guitar, which, with the push of this button…will turn it into a koto!"
"Ohhhh…but this doesn't look like a koto. It looks like half koto and half guitar."
"Shut up! It too is a koto," said Ran in a dreamlike state, tears welling up in her eyes hysterically, with stars, "and I'm going to make money with it! Me, Ran Kotobuki, the Kotocaster idol, ready to rock your world! Oh, I am so smart! (heart)"
"But, what I'm trying to say is…how do you play it?"
"Watch me play Walk-Don't Run!" She turned it back to a guitar and strummed. "It goes like, AAA, then GGG, then FFF, then E, then…" She continued to strum it to herself, saying, "then C, Am, F, E, Am, and back to AAA, GGG, FFF, E, AAA, GGG, F, C, G, C, G, C, EEE…"
Miyu clapped in amazement. "Wow, Ran-chan, you're good! How'd you do that?"
"I don't know. It just popped out of my head while I was sleeping, and it stuck. I can only strum it, I've yet to pluck the notes. And that's the only song I can play well…" She was in deep thought, when suddenly…"Wait a minute! What the heck did I just play!!?"
"Walk-Don't Run, right?"
"Oh, and I thought I didn't know how to play this stupid thing! Geez!"
"Ran…you're confusing yourself."
"…"
"I think you will not only make a good singer, but a good guitar player too!"
"I will?…I WILL!!! Hahahahaha!!! That shows you what I can do, huh?"
"Of course, but only due to a good night of oversleeping!"
"Shut up!" she yelled, with a laugh. "Miyu…do you play an instrument?"
"Um…my parents have a synthesizer in the basement, but it's kept clear away. I haven't even touched it yet."
"Really! Then the time is now for you to take that synthesizer out of your crummy basement and bring it here! You're now a member of my band!" Her eyes were wide, filled with crosses.
"All right Ran! But my basement is not crummy!" she said with a giggle.
"Gomen nasai."
"Oh, have you seen Aya? Is she outside?"
"Hmmm…" She looked out the window for any girl wearing long shaggy hair and low eyes. "No, not yet."
"Shoots. We're supposed to see her so that we can take the bullet train to Ikebukoro. Hmmm…" Her impatience was starting to get the best of her for a bit.
"Oh, here she is! And she's running! Let's go! I'm taking my Kotomaster!"
"But…Ran, isn't that heavy?"
"No…it's…not!" She was strong, all right, but Miyu could see she was (actually) straining. "Oh, why did kaa-san have to give me such a heavy thing, stupid kaa-san…dammit." Eventually, she had to carry it with both hands.
**************************************************
"Sup, you guys!" said Aya as she came inside.
"Sup!" Ran and Miyu replied in unison.
"Hey, um, Ran…what's that you have…carrying?"
"It's a Kotocaster."
"Kotocaster?"
"Yeah. The only one of its kind."
"The only one…?"
"I guess you're not yourself today."
"Huh? I'm not myself? For your information, I just came here to meet up with you so that we can head over to Mami's house. I heard it looks very wonderful there, with all those spoiled folks…I wish I was like them…"
"You can, but I fear you may have to do that stupid escort thing again."
"It was only a thought!"
"Ran-chan, easy on her," said Miyu.
"Listen, Aya," instructed Ran, "we are only there to see her house, to eat lunch there, and then we leave. That's it."
"But, Ran, they have so much cho cool stuff to look at. Some even cost a million yen to purchase. (Mami's such a spoiled brat…I wish my parents were like that…humph.)"
"I already told you, it's going to be quick. I don't want to spend a whole day in the house of my rival."
"Oh, just put a sock in that grudge. Don't your relations with her ever come together?"
She thought of saying, "Just a little bit," but instead, Ran said, "You think they've improved." Aya, however, could see through Ran's eyes, like Miyu, and she drew a "I know what you really want to say, now be honest" stares. Finally, Ran put the cat out of the bag again. "Okay, maybe we can stay there a bit longer."
"YAAAAAY!!!" said Miyu and Aya, fists in the air.
"But don't expect me to even draw a stare at Mami-rin. I want money, but not to be spoiled like her."
"…"
"Understood?"
They both sighed in return, "Understood."
"Good." Back to her genki state again… "Let's go…Aya, can you help me bring this thing?"
"Sure. But why do you have to bring this Kotocaster whatchamacallit? It's too heavy for me."
"I'll tell you later. Come on, help me out here. (dang, you have to echo Miyu's words too? Geh…)"
"Okay." She carried part of the case, along with Ran, and the three of them headed for the station.
"By the way, Miyu," asked Ran, "how come you accepted the invitation? Don't you hate her too?"
"No, that's Harue. Mami's fine. I just wanted to see what she has. But if Harue comes, I'm going to…" She clenched her fists at the thought of her name. That bitch is going to get an ass-whooping from me if I see her, she thought.
"Miyu…"
"Oh, gomen nasai. Let's just go."
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"Okay, where are they?" She was growing impatient, dressed in a gold miniskirt and pink halter top. She looked at her watch once, twice, thrice, four, five, six, seven times before yelling, "Goddammit, where the hell are my friends…and that Kotobuki bitch!? Grrr…I've been waiting a long-ass time, and…oooooh! Yuuya's worrying me too." Her eyes were watering hysterically, not unlike Ran.
"You looking for me?" Yuuya arrived, with Rei feeling a bit dizzy.
"Oh, Yuuya! I was hoping you'd be here!"
"Uhhh…what happened? Did I win that stupid Grand Prix again?" said Rei, still dizzy. "Oh, it's only you, Mami. So, this your house?"
"Yep," she said with glee.
"Boring."
"Are you calling my 50-million yen mansion boring? Grrr…why you…"
She was about to lay a bit of a punch towards Rei, when Yuuya stepped in the middle. "Okay, you guys, heh, heh, I don't want you folks to be fighting." A big sweat drop was running down his forehead while he was flailing his arms. (author: dayum! I love to use the word "flail!")
"Sweetie, please step back, or else I will punch you instead!"
"O-o-okay, punch away."
It was very frequent for Yuuya to digress/concede to his girl. It seemed very apparent that he was her "slave." But he didn't mind. Even though she acted a bit obnoxious, he still like her, primarily because she treated him as "number one" instead of "two." Sometimes that comment wanted to make him want to forget Ran-chan. He was still attracted to her, but he had to concede to Tatsuki, who would end up being Ran's soul mate. Or at least he thought. No matter how hard you try, you still don't know Ran-chan, he thought to himself. Her psyche is a bit of a hit-and-miss, like Tatsuki. Genki one day, steaming mad another, in a dreamlike state the next, the next day grim-faced, the next day sad (although she rarely let it out, that didn't mean that he didn't see her actually crying), and then the cycle would repeat again, with some minor periodical tweaks here and there, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle. Just a hit-and-miss.
Mami was about to punch Rei, when she saw Yuuya in deep thought. "Yuuya, what are you thinking about?" she said, dropping her fist. Rei let out a little "phew" to himself.
"Um, nothing in particular."
She knew better. She knew Yuuya too well. "Are you thinking about that bastard Kotobuki again? If you are, I'm going to kick you in the…"
"No, honestly, I am not! I'm just looking at your house, how beautiful it is…"
"YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT KOTOBUKI-SAN! I KNOW IT!!" She repeatedly kicked him anyway, but in a semi-half-playful manner.
"Itai," Yuuya whined. "Please, Mami-chan, stop. (let's do this in your bedroom instead? With the lights off? And no one to see us? [author: hint of ecchi. Lawd, I just felt like adding that.])"
"…" came Rei's response. Sigh.
"We're here!" came a trio of voices. One happy, another normal, another grim-sounding.
"What took you guys so long?" came the response in unison.
"Well…" said Ran quizzically, "…it was Miyu's idea."
"HEY!" said Miyu, a bit winded. "You didn't need to come, if you didn't want to."
"Well, you guys, we're all here," said Mami. "Let's go visit…the Honda estate!"
"oh boy, here we go again…" an oh-so-flibberty (author: I couldn't find a fitting alternete to "exasperated") Ran digressed, as they stepped inside.
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"Aw, dayum, Mom! We're going to Shibuya again?" A 18-year old boy gleamed in delight when he heard the news, as the Tsukino family drove out of the garage from their 2-story complex in the Juuban section of Minato-ku. Obviously he didn't know how to drive yet.
"Uh-huh, Shingo. Now, you and Usagi had better behave when we head to that 109 department store, or we're leaving immediately," Ikuko replied. Obviously her daughter didn't know either.
"And don't get lost, either," added her husband Kenji.
"We won't," came the (not-so-)innocent response.
Usagi's heart felt a bit uneasy after that. Three years, and he still didn't come back home. "Mamo-chan…" she whispered. "Where are you…"
"It's so cool to head over there, with all those para-para dancers there, and the games there, and the gals there, and…oooooohhhh!" His head was swelling with ecchi thoughts (author: oh, I used that word again) that Usagi playfully punched him. Suddenly, he saw a poster of a girl, it was large and on the billboard, next to the 109 building. A girl with brown-orange hair, and a red mesh.
"Ran Kotobuki," Shingo read on the poster. "Shibuya's number-one kogal. The only unattainable queen. Accept no substitutes." He just shook his head. "How conventional. What are kogals anyway," he thought. "All I know is that they are prey for sexual abuse, even rape." Still, there was something about this person that made her…different. He then began to sink into a comatose fit of semi-unconsciousness as the white family van entered the parking lot of the 109 Department Store building, then into sleep.
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END OF CHAPTER 2
Many people I'd like to thank…
Mihona Fujii-sama, of course.
www.fanfiction.net for their generous accomodation.
Ribon Magazine.
Chiaki Nozomi for inspiring me to create something thoughtful, check out his series, "Forever," it is really good. It is under the GALS category!
The Hachiko statue for being a meditative platform.
Megumi Toyoguchi for giving me a feel for how a silly kogal sounds like.
Dicot, Jungle Smile, Marou Mabura, Haruna Ikezawa…they sing so cool…
Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, www.anime-fansubs.net, and many other people have made this possible as well. You all know who you are, domo arigato gozaimashita…