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Chapter 25
"God bless females." Mamoru looked at me with faint amusement, "And why is that?"
"Because they plan parties for us males to go to." I sipped at my glass and lifted a cigarette to my lips. He gave me a dirty look and then snatched it out of my mouth.
"No smoke. Bad for corporate leader."
I sighed, "You too?"
Mamoru looked at me with visible amusement. He took a drawn out drink, "God bless females. They taught this poor doctor how to smile."
I glared at him, "So when are you starting your internship?"
"A month and a half. I'll be an ER internist for a little while, then transfer to my specialty."
"Cardiology, right? Study of the heart."
"Ironic isn't it?"
I shrugged, "Just a little bit."
A glint of amusment played over his midnight blue eyes and he gazed out the window for a moment. The party was being held in the house of Kenji Tsukino. He had generously donated the use of his backyard and living room for his daughter's graduation party.
Kenji worked his way into room, wearing the biggest smile I've ever seen on a man. I put my drink down and bowed to him, "Tsukino-san, thank you for the use of your house."
He smiled at me, "I don't believe we've met before."
"Ryan Kaitou. A friend of Mamoru's and Usagi's."
Mamoru piped in softly, "And Rei's date."
I elbowed him fiercely in the gut and he bent over wheezing. I repeated with a smile, "A friend."
Kenji, the typical Japanese salaryman, smiled and reached over to shake my hand, "I believe I have heard of you. You are the talk of Tokyo these days."
I coughed and looked at my shoes, "Hardly my intention at all. I just sometimes lose my temper and make the news."
He looked me straight in the eye, "What Fukui-san did was...dishonorable. I am not sure that I could have stood up to him like you did. But I am glad that you did. These girls...they are like my daughters. I will not have some lecherous old man try to corrupt them."
"It is always good to have allies, Tsukino-san."
"Kenji, please. We are friends after all." Kenji shook my hand again and then wove his way to the kitchen, where I lost sight of him.
"How do you do that?"
I turned back to Mamoru, "Do what?"
"Do you know how long it took me to get to a stage of ceasefire? Let alone calling him by his first name?"
I took another sip of my wine, "Well, I'm not trying to date his daughter."
"Point taken. Speaking of which, where are those girls? They're late."
I glanced at my watch then scanned the room, "You're right. I wonder what could be keeping them..."
Shrugging, I returned to conversation. I shook a few hands, received a couple of congratulations, and gave out a few business cards. Parties are as much networking events as they are times to have fun. It was a hard learned lesson at university, where I had forged some of my most treasured relationships while drinking morosely at 1 AM in the morning.
Somehow, for me, it always revolved around alcohol. Not the healthiest of past times by any criteria. But I reflected with a grim smile, one takes what one can.
I was deeply entrenched in my thoughts, that I didn't even notice Mamoru being pulled from my side by an insistent fiance.
I felt a nudging in my ribs and turned to see Rei. She was wearing a red cocktail dress, and high heels. I whistled softly and she gave me a dirty look, "Men."
"See, if you didn't want me to comment, you could have easily worn something more much more modest. Then I wouldn't have said anything, or possibly even recoiled from you. But you decided to wear something cut all high and low. Scandalous , if I might use the parlance. Thus, you must have wanted me to objectify you in some sense. Hence the whistle."
She looked at me for a moment, "Hentai, baka."
I chuckled, "So how have you been Rei?"
"About the same as I was a couple of hours ago. Maybe except without the high. I'm glad you came. It made my day. I usually don't have many people coming to things for me."
"No parents, no admirers, no lovestruck teenagers completely smitten with the fiery personality that is Rei Hino? I'm shocked, appalled, surprised."
"Be quiet. No, not too many admirers. Think of how I treat you. I would treat anybody who had a crush on me worse." her voice turned a little cold, "As for my father, he's far too busy to take time out of his life for me."
"The politician, right?" I shook my head, "I reserve my special hatred for those who don't have time for their children. Which is why I'm not going to have any children."
Rei shrugged, "I bear no malice towards my father. He's just a limited man." Her smile turned evil, "You better not have children. They might turn out like you."
"You and Dana both. I can't win."
Rei grabbed my arm and grinned up at me, "Of course not. You merely need to acknowledge our inherent female superiority."
Unbeknownst to the two, three pairs of eyes were spying on them. Minako tapped a finger to her cheek, "Are you seeing what I am seeing?"
Mamoru nodded slightly, "I am."
He grinned, almost idiotically, "They'd make an interesting match."
Usagi shrugged, "It was inevitable. You've heard how she talks about him. But sometimes, it seems a little like he treats her as if he were a father or an older brother."
Minako shook her head, "He's fond of her. And I sense a very strong connection between them."
"Soul mate type stuff?"
The senshi of love shook her head, "No, nothing that concrete yet. They're kindred spirits. Similar experiences, somewhat similar counterbalancing personalities."
Mamoru cocked his head questioningly, "What do you mean?"
Minako folded her hands in front of her, "Well, I don't know him as well as you might, Mamoru. But I can see he's a very cold thinker, much like you. He's passionate but, rational, couching his decisions in carefully contemplative logic.
"As we all know, Rei's passion tends to interfere with her rationality. When he hired her, it is likely that he sensed in her the counterbalancing forces which makes them such a good business team. Conveniently enough, it also is an almost surefire match made in heaven."
Usagi thought about that for a second, then seemed to awake with a goofy smile on her face, "How did you manage to know this sort of stuff?"
The blonde senshi chuckled, "Love sense and all. Never failed me yet."
Mamoru grinned, "Well, you guys were talking about how Rei was feeling a little lonely in past weeks. I think that he might be good for her."
Usagi smiled, "Shall we set something up?"
Minako rubbed her hands together, "It'll be my pet project. I don't have anything to do for the next month or so anyway."
"Are you sure you can handle it?"
"Why wouldn't I be able to?"
"Well, because you've never had any real experience getting people together who didn't hate each other before."
Minako glared at the joyously smiling couple, "Just because they're more mature than you guys were, doesn't mean that I'm going to have trouble figuring things out."
"You never told me about your parents, Kaitou-san."
I replied easily, "You never told me about yours either."
She sat, head on his shoulder. "I guess the topic just never came up."
Shrugging with my one available shoulder, "There are some topics which should not be breached. Too many sensitive spots to deal with responsibly."
"Too true."
We sat in comfortable silence for a few more minutes, before she brought up another subject, "What do you do in your spare time, Kaitou-san? I mean, what little of it you have."
Chuckling, "Why, I read, Rei-chan. As widely and as fully as I can."
Her head came up, "Right, I remember Dana telling me to get you into a conversation about Locke or something else. I didn't believe, at the time, that a businessman would make such an effort to be well read."
"Learn something new each day. But your impressions are overall pretty correct. CEOs are a bunch of the most boring people on earth. But I occasionally like to feel smart."
She tapped my forehead, "Yes, well sometimes the gears in there don't work as well as they should."
"Which is why I hired you as my secretary."
Rei smiled at me, "You know, when you try you can be very flattering." "Yes, when I don't put up too much of a fight."
"That too. I suppose.....whatever girl gets you will be very very lucky." she sounded a little resigned, almost sad. Then she perked up considerably, "But I have you for the interim. I can live with that."
Chapter 25
"God bless females." Mamoru looked at me with faint amusement, "And why is that?"
"Because they plan parties for us males to go to." I sipped at my glass and lifted a cigarette to my lips. He gave me a dirty look and then snatched it out of my mouth.
"No smoke. Bad for corporate leader."
I sighed, "You too?"
Mamoru looked at me with visible amusement. He took a drawn out drink, "God bless females. They taught this poor doctor how to smile."
I glared at him, "So when are you starting your internship?"
"A month and a half. I'll be an ER internist for a little while, then transfer to my specialty."
"Cardiology, right? Study of the heart."
"Ironic isn't it?"
I shrugged, "Just a little bit."
A glint of amusment played over his midnight blue eyes and he gazed out the window for a moment. The party was being held in the house of Kenji Tsukino. He had generously donated the use of his backyard and living room for his daughter's graduation party.
Kenji worked his way into room, wearing the biggest smile I've ever seen on a man. I put my drink down and bowed to him, "Tsukino-san, thank you for the use of your house."
He smiled at me, "I don't believe we've met before."
"Ryan Kaitou. A friend of Mamoru's and Usagi's."
Mamoru piped in softly, "And Rei's date."
I elbowed him fiercely in the gut and he bent over wheezing. I repeated with a smile, "A friend."
Kenji, the typical Japanese salaryman, smiled and reached over to shake my hand, "I believe I have heard of you. You are the talk of Tokyo these days."
I coughed and looked at my shoes, "Hardly my intention at all. I just sometimes lose my temper and make the news."
He looked me straight in the eye, "What Fukui-san did was...dishonorable. I am not sure that I could have stood up to him like you did. But I am glad that you did. These girls...they are like my daughters. I will not have some lecherous old man try to corrupt them."
"It is always good to have allies, Tsukino-san."
"Kenji, please. We are friends after all." Kenji shook my hand again and then wove his way to the kitchen, where I lost sight of him.
"How do you do that?"
I turned back to Mamoru, "Do what?"
"Do you know how long it took me to get to a stage of ceasefire? Let alone calling him by his first name?"
I took another sip of my wine, "Well, I'm not trying to date his daughter."
"Point taken. Speaking of which, where are those girls? They're late."
I glanced at my watch then scanned the room, "You're right. I wonder what could be keeping them..."
Shrugging, I returned to conversation. I shook a few hands, received a couple of congratulations, and gave out a few business cards. Parties are as much networking events as they are times to have fun. It was a hard learned lesson at university, where I had forged some of my most treasured relationships while drinking morosely at 1 AM in the morning.
Somehow, for me, it always revolved around alcohol. Not the healthiest of past times by any criteria. But I reflected with a grim smile, one takes what one can.
I was deeply entrenched in my thoughts, that I didn't even notice Mamoru being pulled from my side by an insistent fiance.
I felt a nudging in my ribs and turned to see Rei. She was wearing a red cocktail dress, and high heels. I whistled softly and she gave me a dirty look, "Men."
"See, if you didn't want me to comment, you could have easily worn something more much more modest. Then I wouldn't have said anything, or possibly even recoiled from you. But you decided to wear something cut all high and low. Scandalous , if I might use the parlance. Thus, you must have wanted me to objectify you in some sense. Hence the whistle."
She looked at me for a moment, "Hentai, baka."
I chuckled, "So how have you been Rei?"
"About the same as I was a couple of hours ago. Maybe except without the high. I'm glad you came. It made my day. I usually don't have many people coming to things for me."
"No parents, no admirers, no lovestruck teenagers completely smitten with the fiery personality that is Rei Hino? I'm shocked, appalled, surprised."
"Be quiet. No, not too many admirers. Think of how I treat you. I would treat anybody who had a crush on me worse." her voice turned a little cold, "As for my father, he's far too busy to take time out of his life for me."
"The politician, right?" I shook my head, "I reserve my special hatred for those who don't have time for their children. Which is why I'm not going to have any children."
Rei shrugged, "I bear no malice towards my father. He's just a limited man." Her smile turned evil, "You better not have children. They might turn out like you."
"You and Dana both. I can't win."
Rei grabbed my arm and grinned up at me, "Of course not. You merely need to acknowledge our inherent female superiority."
Unbeknownst to the two, three pairs of eyes were spying on them. Minako tapped a finger to her cheek, "Are you seeing what I am seeing?"
Mamoru nodded slightly, "I am."
He grinned, almost idiotically, "They'd make an interesting match."
Usagi shrugged, "It was inevitable. You've heard how she talks about him. But sometimes, it seems a little like he treats her as if he were a father or an older brother."
Minako shook her head, "He's fond of her. And I sense a very strong connection between them."
"Soul mate type stuff?"
The senshi of love shook her head, "No, nothing that concrete yet. They're kindred spirits. Similar experiences, somewhat similar counterbalancing personalities."
Mamoru cocked his head questioningly, "What do you mean?"
Minako folded her hands in front of her, "Well, I don't know him as well as you might, Mamoru. But I can see he's a very cold thinker, much like you. He's passionate but, rational, couching his decisions in carefully contemplative logic.
"As we all know, Rei's passion tends to interfere with her rationality. When he hired her, it is likely that he sensed in her the counterbalancing forces which makes them such a good business team. Conveniently enough, it also is an almost surefire match made in heaven."
Usagi thought about that for a second, then seemed to awake with a goofy smile on her face, "How did you manage to know this sort of stuff?"
The blonde senshi chuckled, "Love sense and all. Never failed me yet."
Mamoru grinned, "Well, you guys were talking about how Rei was feeling a little lonely in past weeks. I think that he might be good for her."
Usagi smiled, "Shall we set something up?"
Minako rubbed her hands together, "It'll be my pet project. I don't have anything to do for the next month or so anyway."
"Are you sure you can handle it?"
"Why wouldn't I be able to?"
"Well, because you've never had any real experience getting people together who didn't hate each other before."
Minako glared at the joyously smiling couple, "Just because they're more mature than you guys were, doesn't mean that I'm going to have trouble figuring things out."
"You never told me about your parents, Kaitou-san."
I replied easily, "You never told me about yours either."
She sat, head on his shoulder. "I guess the topic just never came up."
Shrugging with my one available shoulder, "There are some topics which should not be breached. Too many sensitive spots to deal with responsibly."
"Too true."
We sat in comfortable silence for a few more minutes, before she brought up another subject, "What do you do in your spare time, Kaitou-san? I mean, what little of it you have."
Chuckling, "Why, I read, Rei-chan. As widely and as fully as I can."
Her head came up, "Right, I remember Dana telling me to get you into a conversation about Locke or something else. I didn't believe, at the time, that a businessman would make such an effort to be well read."
"Learn something new each day. But your impressions are overall pretty correct. CEOs are a bunch of the most boring people on earth. But I occasionally like to feel smart."
She tapped my forehead, "Yes, well sometimes the gears in there don't work as well as they should."
"Which is why I hired you as my secretary."
Rei smiled at me, "You know, when you try you can be very flattering." "Yes, when I don't put up too much of a fight."
"That too. I suppose.....whatever girl gets you will be very very lucky." she sounded a little resigned, almost sad. Then she perked up considerably, "But I have you for the interim. I can live with that."