"Hiiii Motoki!" Usagi called as she bounced into the arcade.
A crash sounded behind the counter and Motoki stood up with a groan, rubbing his forehead. "Hi Usagi," he said with a wry smile. "It's nice to see someone in a good mood."
Usagi blinked at him in confusion and looked around the arcade. "Woooowww this place is empty..."
"Yeah," Motoki winced. "Some idiot put glue in all the coin slots. No one can use any of the games." He sighed. "It's gonna cost me a fortune to fix."
"Ohhh..." murmured Usagi, crestfallen. "That's so UNFAIR!" she whined. "I really wanted to play Sailor Veeeee!"
"It's okay, it's okay!" Motoki said quickly, wanting to forestall the flood of tears he knew was coming. "Here, how about some complementary ice cream?"
She quieted instantly, looking at Motoki with luminous eyes. "Really?!" she sniffled. "Free ice cream?"
"Sure, I'll be right back," he said, glad to make SOMEone happy today.
With a happy giggle, Usagi plopped onto a bar stool. She looked around the quiet arcade again.
"It's so...empty.." she repeated.
"Not QUITE, Meatball Head," A voice drawled a few feet away.
Usagi squealed in surprise, jumping three feet in the air. She turned with an angry glare at the speaker. "DON'T CALL ME MEATBALL HEAD!!" she roared at Mamoru. Mamoru merely raised an eyebrow calmly. "What are you doing in a broken arcade anyway?!"
"Helping a friend," Mamoru said calmly, taking a sip of his drink. "When I heard about the arcade, I thought Motoki might want a hand fixing things."
"Hmph." Usagi resettled herself on the chair, casting mistrustful glares at Mamoru. She bet he'd gotten that drink free. A jerk like him surely would NEVER volunteer to help someone. Mamoru took another drink, a slightly superior smile on his face. Usagi's eyes narrowed.
Motoki returned, looking more tired than he had before. "I'm sorry, Usagi, I can't give you any ice cream. It looks like the prankster also stole all the spoons." He sighed.
"WHAAAAT?!" Usagi wailed. "That..that...TOTAL CREEP!!" She slapped her hand down on the counter, causing even Mamoru to startle. He and Motoki eyed the blonde in surprise. She was...irate.
"MOTOKI!" They winced at the loudness of her voice as she leveled a finger at Motoki. "We must punish this evil! In the name of ice cream lovers everywhere! We must..." She paused dramatically. "...get this place up and running ASAP!" Usagi flashed a peace sign, giggling as the two men exchanged confused glances.
"So..you..want to help us, Meatball Head?" Mamoru asked skeptically, his tone clearly saying he didn't believe a word of it.
Usagi shot him a withering glare. "You!" she said imperiously, "work on the games!" Mamoru blinked. "You!" she pointed at Motoki again, "sit down and relax. Me! Uh...where can I find more spoons?" She paused, momentarily at a loss.
Motoki stepped in helpfully. "I keep extra supplies on the second floor. You could look through there?"
Usagi beamed at him. "Right! Let's get to work!" She skipped off up the stairs. Motoki hid a grin and Mamoru chuckled softly as she vanished.
"Well, the more the merrier, right? C'mon, let's get back to those machines," Motoki said, feeling rejuvenated by the girl's enthusiasm.
"Nah, she's right," Mamoru waved Motoki away. "You take a break. Let US do the work for a while."
"But..."
"Sit! Have a drink! Relax a little."
With a helpless shrug, Motoki complied.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
A few hours later, Usagi still had not returned, though there had been some strange bumps and thumps from the second floor. Motoki had swallowed a whole glass of lemonade before he'd realized it had a strange aftertaste. He peered at the glass curiously.
"I must be pretty dehydrated," he murmured. "Hey, Mamoru! Did you notice a strange taste in your drink?"
Mamoru looked up from the video game he'd been fiddling with. "Not really, why?"
Motoki shrugged. "It's nothing, want another drink? I feel better now, so I think I'll start on that Sailor V game Usagi wanted."
"Yeah sure, thanks," Mamoru replied, his attention already focused on the hardened glue in the coin slot.
Several drinks later, both men were beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol they'd unknowingly consumed.
Mamoru stood dizzily. "Ugh...I think I better take a break, Motoki," he said, swaying a little, his words sounds slightly slurred. He looked over at his friend.
Motoki picked up the screwdriver he'd been using to chip at the glue. Then he dropped it. He frowned and picked it up...and dropped it again. "Hmm," he said.
"Motoki?"
His friend jumped a little and turned to Mamoru sheepishly. "Yeah...uh...why don't you go check on Usagi?"
"Oh right...I forgot she was here..." Mamoru poured himself another drink and headed up the stairs, wondering why it seemed so difficult to walk.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
Usagi wiped her forehead. She'd found the supply room easily enough, but the place was a MESS! From the orderly way Motoki always kept the arcade, she would never have guessed his inventory would be so disorganized.
She'd had to move two boxes of napkins to get the door open all the way, and then knocked over a small table heaped with spare video game parts. THEN she'd been scared half to death by some life-size cardboard stand-ups advertising a war game.
Needless to say, she was hot, tired, and regretting how that jerk Mamoru had tricked her into volunteering for this.
"AAARGH!" She complained loudly. "How HARD would it have been to LABEL these boxes so I wouldn't have to look through EVERY SINGLE ONE!" She sighed, thinking wistfully of the ice cream she had almost received earlier.
At that moment, the door banged open. Usagi's shriek of surprise turned into an angry shout as she realized it was only Mamoru.
"Meeeaaatball Heeaaad? You in here?" Mamoru said in a sing-song voice, squinting in the dim light.
"YES I'm in here, stupid!" Usagi gritted her teeth. "And DON'T call me Meatball Head!"
Mamoru...giggled. "Meeeaatball Heaad," he teased. "But you're so CUTE when you glare at me like that..."
Usagi gaped at him. "WHAT?!"
"So cute..." Mamoru repeated softly, a strange look in his eyes. He grabbed Usagi's arm gently, pulling her out of the storage room and into the stairwell. He leaned closer to her, and Usagi took a step back in confusion.
"M-Mamoru? What are you..." Usagi's eyes widened as Mamoru reached out with one hand to touch her cheek softly.
"You're cute..." he repeated, so close his lips almost brushed hers. His other hand closed possessively on her arm, and then he-
WHAM!!
Usagi socked Mamoru in the stomach for all she was worth and escaped up the stairs. Mamoru groaned, staggering backwards.
"What...HEY! Come back here!" He stumbled up the stairs after her, anger and intoxication clouding his mind in a dangerous combination.
Usagi, for her part, had no idea why she'd hit Mamoru. He'd been about to KISS her, she was sure. And, well..he WAS handsome...but what a JERK! She'd passed two flights of stairs before she realized she wasn't going down.
She turned to look for an alternative exit, but Mamoru was right behind her. She meeped in surprise, almost falling in her rush to get away from him, a flush coloring her cheeks.
"Usagi..." Mamoru said, his voice a mixture of lust, anger, and...drunkeness. Usagi tripped again as she realized it.
"You're DRUNK!" she squealed, rushing up another flight of stairs.
Mamoru paused. A frown creased his face, and for a moment she thought she may have been wrong. But then...
"Yup." Mamoru grinned. "And nope." He climbed up the stairs after her.
Usagi wondered what Motoki had been thinking, letting Mamoru have alcohol. She didn't have time to wonder though; the drunken hottie ("he's NOT hot!" she berated herself) was getting closer.
She turned to flee again, only to realize she'd reached a dead end. The last few stairs led to a door, probably leading to the roof, Usagi realized. But it didn't matter where it led...it was the only exit and it was locked shut with a big black padlock.
AN: This will only have one more part, which I've been meaning to finish forever. ^_^; Hopefully someday soon.
A crash sounded behind the counter and Motoki stood up with a groan, rubbing his forehead. "Hi Usagi," he said with a wry smile. "It's nice to see someone in a good mood."
Usagi blinked at him in confusion and looked around the arcade. "Woooowww this place is empty..."
"Yeah," Motoki winced. "Some idiot put glue in all the coin slots. No one can use any of the games." He sighed. "It's gonna cost me a fortune to fix."
"Ohhh..." murmured Usagi, crestfallen. "That's so UNFAIR!" she whined. "I really wanted to play Sailor Veeeee!"
"It's okay, it's okay!" Motoki said quickly, wanting to forestall the flood of tears he knew was coming. "Here, how about some complementary ice cream?"
She quieted instantly, looking at Motoki with luminous eyes. "Really?!" she sniffled. "Free ice cream?"
"Sure, I'll be right back," he said, glad to make SOMEone happy today.
With a happy giggle, Usagi plopped onto a bar stool. She looked around the quiet arcade again.
"It's so...empty.." she repeated.
"Not QUITE, Meatball Head," A voice drawled a few feet away.
Usagi squealed in surprise, jumping three feet in the air. She turned with an angry glare at the speaker. "DON'T CALL ME MEATBALL HEAD!!" she roared at Mamoru. Mamoru merely raised an eyebrow calmly. "What are you doing in a broken arcade anyway?!"
"Helping a friend," Mamoru said calmly, taking a sip of his drink. "When I heard about the arcade, I thought Motoki might want a hand fixing things."
"Hmph." Usagi resettled herself on the chair, casting mistrustful glares at Mamoru. She bet he'd gotten that drink free. A jerk like him surely would NEVER volunteer to help someone. Mamoru took another drink, a slightly superior smile on his face. Usagi's eyes narrowed.
Motoki returned, looking more tired than he had before. "I'm sorry, Usagi, I can't give you any ice cream. It looks like the prankster also stole all the spoons." He sighed.
"WHAAAAT?!" Usagi wailed. "That..that...TOTAL CREEP!!" She slapped her hand down on the counter, causing even Mamoru to startle. He and Motoki eyed the blonde in surprise. She was...irate.
"MOTOKI!" They winced at the loudness of her voice as she leveled a finger at Motoki. "We must punish this evil! In the name of ice cream lovers everywhere! We must..." She paused dramatically. "...get this place up and running ASAP!" Usagi flashed a peace sign, giggling as the two men exchanged confused glances.
"So..you..want to help us, Meatball Head?" Mamoru asked skeptically, his tone clearly saying he didn't believe a word of it.
Usagi shot him a withering glare. "You!" she said imperiously, "work on the games!" Mamoru blinked. "You!" she pointed at Motoki again, "sit down and relax. Me! Uh...where can I find more spoons?" She paused, momentarily at a loss.
Motoki stepped in helpfully. "I keep extra supplies on the second floor. You could look through there?"
Usagi beamed at him. "Right! Let's get to work!" She skipped off up the stairs. Motoki hid a grin and Mamoru chuckled softly as she vanished.
"Well, the more the merrier, right? C'mon, let's get back to those machines," Motoki said, feeling rejuvenated by the girl's enthusiasm.
"Nah, she's right," Mamoru waved Motoki away. "You take a break. Let US do the work for a while."
"But..."
"Sit! Have a drink! Relax a little."
With a helpless shrug, Motoki complied.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
A few hours later, Usagi still had not returned, though there had been some strange bumps and thumps from the second floor. Motoki had swallowed a whole glass of lemonade before he'd realized it had a strange aftertaste. He peered at the glass curiously.
"I must be pretty dehydrated," he murmured. "Hey, Mamoru! Did you notice a strange taste in your drink?"
Mamoru looked up from the video game he'd been fiddling with. "Not really, why?"
Motoki shrugged. "It's nothing, want another drink? I feel better now, so I think I'll start on that Sailor V game Usagi wanted."
"Yeah sure, thanks," Mamoru replied, his attention already focused on the hardened glue in the coin slot.
Several drinks later, both men were beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol they'd unknowingly consumed.
Mamoru stood dizzily. "Ugh...I think I better take a break, Motoki," he said, swaying a little, his words sounds slightly slurred. He looked over at his friend.
Motoki picked up the screwdriver he'd been using to chip at the glue. Then he dropped it. He frowned and picked it up...and dropped it again. "Hmm," he said.
"Motoki?"
His friend jumped a little and turned to Mamoru sheepishly. "Yeah...uh...why don't you go check on Usagi?"
"Oh right...I forgot she was here..." Mamoru poured himself another drink and headed up the stairs, wondering why it seemed so difficult to walk.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
Usagi wiped her forehead. She'd found the supply room easily enough, but the place was a MESS! From the orderly way Motoki always kept the arcade, she would never have guessed his inventory would be so disorganized.
She'd had to move two boxes of napkins to get the door open all the way, and then knocked over a small table heaped with spare video game parts. THEN she'd been scared half to death by some life-size cardboard stand-ups advertising a war game.
Needless to say, she was hot, tired, and regretting how that jerk Mamoru had tricked her into volunteering for this.
"AAARGH!" She complained loudly. "How HARD would it have been to LABEL these boxes so I wouldn't have to look through EVERY SINGLE ONE!" She sighed, thinking wistfully of the ice cream she had almost received earlier.
At that moment, the door banged open. Usagi's shriek of surprise turned into an angry shout as she realized it was only Mamoru.
"Meeeaaatball Heeaaad? You in here?" Mamoru said in a sing-song voice, squinting in the dim light.
"YES I'm in here, stupid!" Usagi gritted her teeth. "And DON'T call me Meatball Head!"
Mamoru...giggled. "Meeeaatball Heaad," he teased. "But you're so CUTE when you glare at me like that..."
Usagi gaped at him. "WHAT?!"
"So cute..." Mamoru repeated softly, a strange look in his eyes. He grabbed Usagi's arm gently, pulling her out of the storage room and into the stairwell. He leaned closer to her, and Usagi took a step back in confusion.
"M-Mamoru? What are you..." Usagi's eyes widened as Mamoru reached out with one hand to touch her cheek softly.
"You're cute..." he repeated, so close his lips almost brushed hers. His other hand closed possessively on her arm, and then he-
WHAM!!
Usagi socked Mamoru in the stomach for all she was worth and escaped up the stairs. Mamoru groaned, staggering backwards.
"What...HEY! Come back here!" He stumbled up the stairs after her, anger and intoxication clouding his mind in a dangerous combination.
Usagi, for her part, had no idea why she'd hit Mamoru. He'd been about to KISS her, she was sure. And, well..he WAS handsome...but what a JERK! She'd passed two flights of stairs before she realized she wasn't going down.
She turned to look for an alternative exit, but Mamoru was right behind her. She meeped in surprise, almost falling in her rush to get away from him, a flush coloring her cheeks.
"Usagi..." Mamoru said, his voice a mixture of lust, anger, and...drunkeness. Usagi tripped again as she realized it.
"You're DRUNK!" she squealed, rushing up another flight of stairs.
Mamoru paused. A frown creased his face, and for a moment she thought she may have been wrong. But then...
"Yup." Mamoru grinned. "And nope." He climbed up the stairs after her.
Usagi wondered what Motoki had been thinking, letting Mamoru have alcohol. She didn't have time to wonder though; the drunken hottie ("he's NOT hot!" she berated herself) was getting closer.
She turned to flee again, only to realize she'd reached a dead end. The last few stairs led to a door, probably leading to the roof, Usagi realized. But it didn't matter where it led...it was the only exit and it was locked shut with a big black padlock.
AN: This will only have one more part, which I've been meaning to finish forever. ^_^; Hopefully someday soon.