The Balance of Good and Evil

by Winter Yuy

The Balance of Power chose 6 male warriors and 5 female warriors to protect Earth. But what happens when his time to rule starts running out and the forces of evil attack head on? [Re-written as "Paradigm of Power"]

5. Too Close for Comfort

The New Edition

Chapter Five: Too Close for Comfort

By: Winter Peacecraft-Yuy

With additional help from: Meilin Rae, Trowa'sgal2004, and MiMeQ

Disclaimer: Meilin Rae: "Ronin Warriors and co. are © of Sunrise and Bandai entertainment. Rekino Sanada, Hana Rai-Utano, Ameko Amaya Kazeno, Josephine Rei Faun, and all of the other characters that you do not recognize belong to MiMe, TG, Winter, and myself."

I didn't have to type that over. I can copy and paste. So there!

*~*

Hana was standing in the hallway with the phone dangling beside her. She hung the phone back up and stood there. She could only think of two words to describe this mess. "Oh, shit," Hana muttered. What am I supposed to tell him? Hey, Ryo, your sister is alive after all this time, and that's really why I've been avoiding you. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! I can't do that! Well, shit.

As Hana was standing in the hallway, trying to think of what to say to Ryo the following day, the phone rang again. Hana answered it, still in shock of what was going to happen the next day. "Hello?" Hana asked meekly. "Sage! Hi! I'm so glad that you called!" Hana took a seat in a chair beside the table. She listened closely to Sage's voice, not wanting to miss a thing that he said to her.

"So, Hana, are you going to go out with me tomorrow night, or am I just wasting my time?" Sage asked Hana in a seductive voice.

Hana smiled. This is what she had been waiting for. "Well, I thought that you'd never ask, Sage. I've been waiting patiently. I would love to go out with you. Tomorrow night … I don't know about that." Hana loved to toy with men, but for some reason, she felt a pang of guilt when she toyed with Sage.

"Well, do you have plans tomorrow night or what? I thought that you had been waiting patiently, Hana. I've been waiting all night for you to be there. Where did you disappear to, anyway?" Sage purred.

Hana thought for a moment and decided that now wasn't a good time to be talking about that situation. He would probably pity her, and that was the last reason that she wanted him to date her. "Oh, nothing. I was just out. That's all. Sage, I think that I might be able to fit you into my schedule for tomorrow night. That is, if you still want to …" Hana teased.

Sage laughed lightly on the other end of the line. "Of course I want to, Hana. I'll pick you up at eight. Where exactly do you live?" Sage asked, having realized that he had no clue where she lived.

Hana smiled to herself. She could barely contain her excitement. "Why don't you ask Kento for directions? He's over here now, so he knows where I live." Before he could ask why Kento was there, Hana cut off the conversation. "I have to go, Sage. I'm glad you called," Hana purred, imitating her "sexy" voice from earlier. "I'll talk to you later. I'll see you tomorrow. Goodbye." Hana hung up the phone and smiled. YES! Go Hana! Go Hana! It's not your birthday, but go Hana!

*~*

Rekino sat in the living room with Amaya and Josephine, waiting for Hana to get off of the phone. She sighed impatiently. It was so like Hana to talk on the phone for a long time ... especially if it was with a guy. Rekino finally got up and walked into the hallway. As she entered, the phone rang again.

Hana looked at Rekino apologetically. "Sorry," Hana got out. She picked up the phone and answered in a polite voice, "Hello?" Hana rolled her eyes for a moment. "Hello?"

Mia was on the other end of the line. "Hey, Hana. Sorry about that. I didn't hear you. I was thinking about coming over. Is that okay with you?" Mia asked politely.

Hana smiled to Rekino, letting her know that she would be off of the phone shortly. "Sure, Mia. That's fine. We aren't going anywhere." Hana waited for a moment before continuing. "We'll see you when you get here, okay? Bye."

Hana hung the phone back onto the hook and unplugged the phone line from the wall. Rekino looked at her and raised her eyebrow. "What was that all about?" She laughed as Hana grimaced. "It couldn't have been that bad." Before Rekino got too lost in the humor of Hana's behavior, she remembered why she had been waiting. "Who were all of those people that were calling?"

Hana's mood died down as well. "One of them was Mia, one of them was Sage, and one of them was Ryo! He wants me to meet him tomorrow! What am I supposed to do? He pretty much demanded that I come! He told me that he knows that I've been avoiding him and that he needs to talk to me about it! What am I going to do?!"

Rekino stood in the hallway with the same expression as Hana from before, right after she got off of the phone with Ryo. "Oh, shit." Rekino regained her composure quickly and grabbed Hana's arm roughly. "We definitely need to talk." Rekino pulled Hana into the living room and shoved her down onto the couch. "You had better not ruin this, blondie! I've been hiding for a reason, you know!"

*~*

Ryo looked at Mia as she was getting ready. "Are you going somewhere, sweetheart?" He knew where she was going. He just wanted her to tell him. "I had a few things planned for tonight, if you know what I mean. What's the rush to get away from here?" Ryo looked at Mia seductively.

Mia walked over to him and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I'm sorry to ruin your plans, darling. I told Hana that I would come over tonight. Maybe when I get home, we can pick up where we will be leaving off." Before Mia had a chance to escape, Ryo stopped her again by grabbing her arm. "What is it, Ryo?" Mia asked in a worried voice.

"Oh, nothing. I just wanted to ask you ... who is that friend of yours with the raven hair? The one that was at the Omelet Shoppe?" Ryo studied Mia's eyes, which stared straight into his. He thought that he saw her gaze faulter. Mia wasn't a very good liar. He was hoping that he would get the information that he wanted out of her instead of her friends.

Mia was falling apart inside. What can I say to him? "Oh, yeah. That's your sister, Ryo. Well, see you later!" He would absolutely die. "I don't know who you're talking about, Ryo. I don't have any friends with raven hair, and I sure don't have one that was at the Omelet Shoppe with us. That's ridiculous. Honestly, I don't know where you get these crazy ideas in your head." Mia was about to walk out, when Ryo grabbed her arm again.

"Mia, are you sure that you don't know who she was? I feel like I have a strong connection with her. Maybe I know her from somewhere. Can you tell me anything about her?" Ryo was trying the pity card now. It wasn't really working. Mia shook her head no and removed his grip on her arm. She kissed him again before walking out the door, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

*~*

Hana was in the living room, listening intently to Rekino's coaching, when the doorbell rang. Hana jumped up and ran to answer it, happy that she could escape, even if it was just for a moment. When she got to the door, she looked through the peephole, but didn't see anything, so she hesitated when opening it.

Mia was standing on the balcony, waiting patiently for an answer. She smiled when Hana opened it fully. "Sorry. I didn't know that you were coming right away, so I bent down to tie my shoes." Mia looked down with Hana at her gray New Balance sneakers. "They felt loose."

"Come on in. We're having a 'meeting' you may want to attend," Hana said seriously as she walked back into the room.

Mia raised an eyebrow at her friend's statement, but walked into the well-known apartment, shutting the door behind her. She followed Hana into the living room to see Amaya, Josephine, and Rekino talking quietly. She sat down beside Amaya in the loveseat and smiled at her friends, "So, what's the 'meeting' about?"

"Two things," Josephine said and she leaned farther back into the recliner, "One, Rekino was attacked by a new enemy," Josephine knew by Mia's shocked expression that she wanted to speak.

"When were you attacked? Who were they? Were they powerful? Are you okay?" Mia wasted no time throwing out question after question.

Rekino hung her head low and sighed, hiding her smile, "After I left the Omelet Shoppe. I don't know who they were. They were extraordinarily strong. I'm tellin' ya, these things used my butt as a floor mat," Rekino paused and moved some hair out of her face, "Guys…these things are something we really don't need to mess around with. We can't just sit around and joke about stuff now. It's time to start coming up with battle strategies."

Amaya rubbed her chin, "I cannot confirm or deny anything you just said, Rekino, but what worries me is that man you claimed was God."

"For the last time," Rekino looked at everyone and emphasized her words, "He was not GOD! He had God-like powers!"

Mia frowned, "Is he on our side or what? If he saved you, he seems to be fighting for the force of good. Did he say anything to you after the battle?"

"Yeah. He was all cryptic about it," The amethyst-eyed Guardian sighed in frustration, "'I am the balance, I am the power, I am the justice of this world.' Then he mentioned that, every time we put on the Guardian armors, that he's the God we worship."

There was a dead silence in the room as each of the Lady Ronin Guardians stared at one another. They each knew what this meant: another war. And another war meant risking their lives, yet again, to save the mortal realm. Mia had been through it several times before any of this happened. She had been with the Ronin Warriors for years, and experienced everything they did. Before another word was spoken, a crash was heard in another room.

"Lord have mercy," Josephine muttered, "I should not have let him into the kitchen."

Hana nodded her head in agreement, "Mmm hmm, and you didn't even ask the owners of the residence if he could."

"Your cousin seems to be like you in every way, Josephine," Amaya smiled, "He's very handsome." All eyes in the room immediately diverted to Amaya, who looked confused, "What did I say wrong?"

"Oh…nothing," Josephine shivered at the thought of her cousin being 'handsome'. "'Mya, Kento's never been 'handsome' to anyone. He's just been…Kento…"

Mia noticed Amaya's confusion so she jumped to the other reason behind the meeting, "What other problem do we have?"

Rekino looked straight into Mia's eyes and said the one name everyone worried about, "Ryo."

Yet again, dead silence. Mia and Hana both twiddled their fingers before Mia broke the silence, "He's already been drilling me for information about you. I don't know what I can do! You know how persuasive he is when he wants to know something!"

Hana rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, "Well, I have you know, that I'm not going to be – " A knock at the door cut Hana short, "I wonder who that could be."

"I'll get it!" Kento said as he came out of the kitchen and made a beeline for the door.

Rekino threw her arms in the air, "For the love of God, Kento, this isn't your house! IT'S MY HOUSE!"

"And mine," Hana threw in silently.

Amaya frowned at Rekino's words, "You shouldn't take the Lord's name in vain, Rekino."

"Look," The Rekka Guardian stood up and glared daggers right at Amaya, "I am in no mood to hear about you're Christianity, okay? I'm sorry if I'm coming off a little rude, but the damned fates have something against me right now. If Ryo finds out I'm his little sister, everything we've done up to this point will be FOR NOTHING!"

"So, you really are Ryo's sister. This is going to be interesting," An unidentified voice made all of the girls turn around.

There, standing beside Kento, was Sage Date. The smirk on his face seemed to tell everyone that he found out something very valuable, and he did. He crossed his arms over his Green blazer and shook his head, "It's a shame that Ryo thinks you're dead, Rekina."

"THE NAME'S REKINO! R-E-K-I-N-O! Say it right or don't say it at all!" Fire seemed to be shooting out of Rekino's eyes. She was ready to pound the smirk on Sage's face into the ground, but Hana stopped her.

"Don't you do anything to him, Rekino!" Hana used her telepathy to divert her hot-tempered friend's attention away from Sage.

Rekino's head whipped around to look straight at Hana, "He's testing my patience, Hana."

While Hana and Rekino were having their 'staring contest' Amaya and Josephine announced they had to return to their home, which was across the hall, so they could do their homework. This snapped the two friends out of their trance. Rekino and Hana hugged their two friends and told them to come over later to finish their 'discussion', if they weren't too tired. Kento pulled Josephine into another bear hug.

"I miss you already, cuz!" Kento exclaimed, "At least I know where you live! Now I can come and see you all the time!"

Josephine patted Kento's back and flashed a 'fake' smile full of teeth, "Don't be no stranger. You know I love my family!" Oh God, someone save me. PLEASE! He's about as annoying as Uncle Chin…wait, he's not that annoying yet.

Amaya nodded her head, "Come over all you want, Kento. We would enjoy the company." She smiled at him sweetly, "Besides it gets boring over there sometimes."

Kento dropped Josephine the minute Amaya had started talking to him, "You mean, you want me to come over. For real?"

"Yes. I enjoy your company," Amaya smiled at Kento again.

She has a pretty smile. Amaya's little nods and smiles made Kento weak in the knees. He had never felt this way around a woman before, even one of his old girlfriends. He couldn't believe a woman as beautiful as Amaya wanted him to come and see her.

"Uh, sorry to break up the moment, but I got homework and an interview of the Nascar favorites comes on in an hour," Josephine looked away with stars in her eyes, "Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is so hott."

Everyone laughed at Josephine's antics before the two headed towards the door. Kento decided it was now or never. He walked up to Amaya and tapped her lightly on the shoulders, "Hey Amaya."

The young French woman turned around, "Yes?"

Kento scratched the back of his head nervously. He was the Warrior of Kongo and he couldn't even ask a simple question, "I was wonder…uh, if you'd…uh…like to…ummm…go out with me sometime? You know, dinner and a movie?"

Amaya smiled sweetly and kissed Kento on the cheek, "I'd love to."

As the two girls walked out, Kento sighed to himself. He was definitely head over heels for this girl. There was no doubt in his mind. But ... the thought occurred to him. What are you going to wear? Where are you going to take her out to eat? What movie are you going to see? How could you have asked her out if you didn't know all of these things? Are you a complete fool? What is your problem? Idiot! Idiot! Idiot! It's a surprise that she even said yes to you, you slimy piece of trash. Kento was knocked out of his thoughts by Amaya.

"Kento? When did you want to go out? I was thinking, tomorrow night I am free. Would you like to go then? I know a wonderful restaurant that I know you would just love to go to. I have always liked it. And we could see that new movie that has all of the action in it. I know that you would like that." Amaya didn't wait for a response. She walked over to Kento and kissed him again on the cheek. "I shall see you at six o'clock tomorrow, then?" Kento nodded in agreement. Amaya smiled and then joined her friend at the door. "Goodbye, Kento."

After the two girls had left, Rekino decided that it was time to start back on Sage ... but she couldn't find him. She thought for a moment and realized that Hana was missing as well. Now, where could those two have gone? Before Rekino could start looking for her, Mia interrupted her.

"I need to go, Rekino. Ryo will be wondering where I've gone for so long, and I don't want him to get suspicious of you or me. Tell Hana that I said goodbye … wherever she is." Mia hugged Rekino goodbye before heading for the door.

After Mia had gone, Rekino lingered in the hallway, gathering her thoughts. She was about to begin her search downstairs, when she heard something upstairs. She drooped her head and sighed. "I knew it," she said quietly to herself. She turned around and headed in the opposite direction that she had planned on going, talking to herself quietly on the way up the stairs. "I should have known that they would be up there. I just can't leave that girl alone with a man for two seconds if I want to keep her around for any period of time." When she reached Hana's door, she knocked loudly. At least I'm being nice about this.

Hana didn't come to the door, so Rekino knocked again, but the door opened from her force (which wasn't much), so she walked in. There, on the bed, were Hana and Sage. Only … they weren't exactly looking at her. Rekino didn't have a clear view of Hana. Sage's head was blocking it. Rekino sighed again, only deeper than before. She stood there in Hana's room for a moment and then slammed the door shut.

This brought Hana and Sage out of their … trance. Sage pulled back slowly and looked up at Rekino. Hana peeked her head around Sage's and smiled. She waved as if nothing had happened out of the ordinary. "What's up, Rekino? I didn't hear you knock." Hana looked at Rekino and, when she was sure that Sage couldn't see her, glared.

Rekino shot Hana the same glare. She used her telepathy to talk to Hana now. What in the hell is wrong with you? Did you just decide to fuck him right here and now?! You've only known him for freakin' three or four hours!

Hana's eyes opened wide. I resent that greatly, Rekino, and I don't appreciate the way that you're thinking about me! She looked away from Rekino and back at Sage. Pulling his head close to her mouth, she whispered, "Stay right here. We'll catch up in a minute." After Sage nodded and smiled in agreement, she looked to Rekino. "Rekino, I need to see you in the hallway, please."

Hana got up and walked over to Rekino, grabbing her arm. She pulled her out into the hall. After the door was safely shut, Rekino looked at Hana in disgust. "How could you just do that? What's wrong with you, Hana?"

Hana glared at her. "How could you say those things about me? What is your problem tonight? And look, I wasn't going to let it get any further than what you saw, so get over it," Hana said in a calm voice.

Rekino looked down. When she looked back up at Hana, tears brimmed in her eyes. "It's just that I've been under a lot of stress lately, and it just seemed like you didn't even care when I saw you in there. It was like all that you cared about was yourself. Sorry I snapped at you, Hana. I didn't mean to."

Hana smiled. "All is forgiven. Just a second. We'll be right down." Hana hugged Rekino. "I'm only going to tell him that he needs to go." Hana released her friend, and Rekino headed back down the stairs … reluctantly. Hana walked back into her room and smiled at Sage. "Look, I know that this kind of ruins your mood right now, but I think that you need to go. Rekino and I have a lot to talk about, and I don't think that she wants you to be a part of her … private life." Hana grimaced, hoping that she hadn't pushed him away.

"I understand. And don't worry, Hana. I won't tell Ryo anything. I kind of sensed that you would ask me not to. However, there is a condition." Sage smiled mischievously.

"And what might that be?" Hana asked.

"You have to go to dinner with me tomorrow night. Six o'clock. I'll pick you up right here." Sage stood, walked over to Hana, and took her hand. He pressed his lips to hers gently. "Be ready when I get here. Don't make me wait for something again." After having said that, Sage walked out of Hana's room.

Hana stood in position. She was speechless, motionless, and any other –less that you could think of. She finally nodded her head (which was a little late) and walked out of her room and down to the living room.

*~*

Rekino sat in the living room on the couch with Kento. They were looking over their English paper when Hana came down. Sage had already said his goodbyes and gone. Rekino was about to kill herself from having to deal with Kento, but Hana was her savior. She came down just in the nick of time.

"So, should we start with his birthday and young life and then go to his life as an author?" Kento asked for about the umpteenth time.

"Yes, Kento. That's what we've decided. Look, Hana and I need to talk, so go home and look up his young life. That means from the time that he was born until he became an author. Well, actually, until he was about twenty. Okay? I'll cover from when he was twenty up until he died." Rekino looked at Kento, who was jotting all of this down at the time.

"Okay. I got it. I'll see you tomorrow at six. We'll work on it then." Kento stood up and Rekino followed suit. Kento grabbed her in a bear hug and then turned to Hana. "Your turn!" He walked over to Hana.

"I don't think so, chubby. Maybe next time." Hana pushed him away, and he shrugged and walked out of the living room. When she heard the door shut, she turned to Rekino. "Okay. Let's get down to business."

*~*

Rowen decided to go to Cye and Kento's house to get something to eat. Cye was making his famous vegetable soup, and Kento wasn't there, so Cye had invited Rowen, who gladly accepted. When Rowen got there, the soup wasn't quite ready, so he waited with Cye in the living room.

"So, what's happening?" Rowen asked Cye conversationally. He looked at Cye, who was sipping tea politely. "You know, if you weren't my friend, I'd think that you were gay," Rowen joked.

This caught Cye's attention. "I am not. I resent that. I just feel like a person should have manners. Is something wrong with that?" Rowen shook his head, still chuckling to himself. "I didn't think that you would object to that. Now, what were you saying?"

"I just asked what was goin' on. That's all. I'm tryin' to make some conversation." Rowen looked at Cye, who was chuckling now. "What?" Cye laughed and then covered his mouth. "Man, you really do look like a chick." This stopped Cye, who glared at Rowen. "Now who's laughing?" Rowen watched Cye's mouth move into a smile. "You know what? I was thinkin' about all of those chicks that were at the Omelet Shoppe. Do you remember that chick that was sitting by the blonde one? I don't know who she was, but she was hot."

Cye looked at him curiously. "I don't know who you're talking about." He looked at Rowen and was about to ask him to describe her a little more when the timer rang. "Oh, that will be the soup. We'll finish talking later." Cye jumped up and ran into the kitchen, sitting his teacup down on the counter as he grabbed potholders and removed the soup from the stove. "It's ready. Come and get it, Rowen."

Rowen sighed and muttered to himself, "I never get to finish what I'm saying when he's cooking." He stood and walked into the dining room, where the food and dishes were already waiting for him. He took a seat and smiled. "Looks good, dude. Thanks."

Cye joined him at the table and, after Rowen had gotten some soup, dipped some soup into his own bowl. "Bon appetit, as the French say."

At that moment, Kento came running in. "I smell homemade vegetable soup! Yummy!" Kento dropped his books in the floor and sat at the table. He looked around. "There's no bowl for meeeeeee!" Kento whined. He smiled when Cye got up to get him a bowl and returned with a bowl and a spoon. "Thanks." He spooned some of the soup into his bowl and slurped away. Cye and Rowen just sighed and continued with their meal.

*~*

Ryo stared at Mia, who was sitting in the living room with him. "So, who is she, sweetie?" Ryo moved a little closer to Mia, and smiled at her seductively. "Why don't you tell me? Hmm?"

Mia grimaced. "I … I don't know who you're talking about, darling. Look, if you don't mind, sweetie, I'm going to go to bed. I need to get up early tomorrow, so …" Mia was stopped when Ryo leaned over and kissed her. She gently pushed him away. "I really do have to go to bed." She jumped up and quickly walked upstairs.

Ryo hit the couch. "Dammit. I will find out, Mia, and someone will tell me," he muttered under his breath.

*~*

Rekino sat in the living room with Hana. She was back to talking about how careful everyone should be around all of the guys, especially Ryo. "Now, I don't know all of his friends, but we have to be careful around everybody that he was with at the Omelet Shoppe … and that means Sage, too."

Rekino looked at Hana's face scowl. "That's not fair. You know that Sage wouldn't say anything. He's not like that," she pouted.

Rekino sighed. "That may be true, Hana, but I can't afford to let him tell Ryo, even if it is an accident. You have to understand, Hana. This means a lot to me. I can't let Ryo know yet. He isn't ready to know." Rekino stood and walked from her chair to the couch, where Hana was seated. She hugged her friend and smiled. "I thought that you of all people would understand me."

Hana hugged Rekino back. "I do understand, Rekino. I just ... it's hard to not share everything with someone like Sage. He seems so ... I don't know ... understanding. Like he could be my friend, not just another boyfriend." Hana smiled as Rekino released her. "Do you know what I mean?"

Rekino nodded. "Yeah, I do. I know that this is going to be hard for you, Hana, but please do this for me. Not just for me, but for Ryo, too. Do you know how hurt he would be if he found out that everyone ... well, practically everyone knew about this? He would absolutely go berserk. I don't want that to happen. Now, do we have our game plan ready for action?" Rekino looked at Hana, who pulled out a notepad.

"Yeah. We have notes for each of the girls ... what not to say ... what story to tell whoever asks. That kind of thing. I think that it's best if we go ahead and give these to Amaya and Jo. You know, it would be a lot easier on us if Mia lived across the hall, too." Hana and Rekino laughed at the thought. Mia was dedicated to Ryo, and she wanted to spend as much time with him as possible.

Hana and Rekino walked out of their apartment and across the hall to Josephine and Amaya's. They could smell pizza ... it must have been Josephine's turn to cook. Hana knocked on the door, and it wasn't long before Amaya came. She opened the door without a thought and smiled. "Hello, Hana ... Rekino. You are just in time for some homemade pizza from Josephine." She moved out of their way so that they could come in.

Hana and Rekino were very familiar with the apartment. The girls often had sleepovers in which they would all sit down in the living room, cozy up with some popcorn, and watch a good movie. Those days were all but over now. While Hana was thinking back on the old days, Rekino got straight to business.

"We made a list of things to say and not to say, okay? Hana wrote them in this notebook. You know that her handwriting is neater than mine. Anyways, here is your list, Amaya." Rekino handed the piece of paper to Amaya. "And yours, Jo." She sat Josephine's on the kitchen counter.

"Thanks!" Josephine said from the oven. She was pulling out two pizzas. "Hey! Why don't you two join us? There's plenty to go around. It's just a little midnight snack." She smiled at Hana and Rekino, who sighed, knowing that these "midnight snacks" were common.

"Sure," Rekino said with a smile. "It's been a while since we ate your homemade pizza, Jo. I can still taste the sauce in my mouth. It looks good." Rekino and Hana took a seat at the dining room table with Amaya. Josephine played waitress. She served each one of them a slice of pepperoni and a slice of her own version of meat lovers.

While the girls enjoyed their pizza, something was going on that none of them expected...

*~*

In Hana and Rekino's apartment, a windowpane busted and a hand made it's way through. The lock on the window was unlocked, and the hand returned to the outside of the window in order to raise it.

When the window was up, a man's form climbed into the window.  He shook off what glass was on him and looked around. He was in the living room. Smiling, he pulled something from outside of the window.

He placed the box on the couch where he had seen her before. Carefully, he walked back to the window and climbed out. As he was leaving, he thought of one more thing. He stopped his retreat and went back into the living room. He walked upstairs and into her room, placing another small box on her bed.

"There. That should do it," the man whispered to himself. He was about to linger for a moment when he heard them across the hall. He ran back downstairs, climbing out of the window.  Before he left, he pulled out his wallet. He left fifty dollars under the broken pane. On the bill, he wrote a note. It read:

Sorry about the window. Here's some money for it.

After securing the bill, he ran down the stairs of the apartment complex and jumped into his car. He squealed away quickly.

*~*

The girls where all sitting in the living room, joking about old times when they heard the tires squealing. Hana jumped up and looked out the window. Rekino was right behind her. "Damn punk!" Hana yelled, after opening the window. "God! We can't get a moment's peace around here."

Hana looked at the rest of the room as she closed the window. Rekino was chuckling to herself, Josephine was sitting with her mouth closed, trying not to laugh, and Amaya was scowling. She was the first to speak. "Hana, it isn't nice to curse, but I strictly forbid using the Lord's name in vain in this house."

Hana smiled at Amaya and walked over to her. As she hugged her, Hana said, "I'm sorry, Amaya. I didn't mean to." Hana turned to Rekino. "Let's go home, Rekino. We need our rest." After seeing Rekino nod, Hana took her arm, and they went back across the hall.