Chapter 4

The prospect of food sounded mighty appealing to Eiri after his brother left, so he decided to try out the Zenny's restaurant that Shuichi mentioned on occasion. The singer wanted to date there because they hadn't before, but Eiri always declined. Fast food restaurants disgusted him, he remembered saying, but Shuichi responded with much lung that the place wasn't a fast food joint but a respected establishment for the hungry. Eiri never believed it. Of course now that he was next to starving, his appetite was taking charge of moving his body. He would risk eating lousy take-out food if it meant his stomach would stop that awful rumbling. Maybe his forehead would thump less too if he got some food into his system. About halfway to Zenny's, his cell phone rang. His stomach dipped when he realized it could be Shuichi. "Hello?" he answered quickly.

"Hello. Eiri-san, is that you?"

Shuichi did not have a female voice. Eiri's mild disappointment faded into curiosity. This female he hadn't heard from in some time. "Ayaka? Why are you calling me from Kyoto?"

"I am in Tokyo, actually. I'm visiting someone."

"How did you find out my number?"

"It doesn't matter."

It mattered to him. He felt irked that she considered otherwise. She might have been his ex-fiancée, but she was still the same. Ayaka barreled on, "Are you busy? I'd like to talk with you and I'm free at the moment. It's important."

Making demands like before, Eiri thought with amusement. Why am I not surprised? He didn't exactly feel like meeting with her, but the fact that she called him by getting his number must have meant what she told him was true. He knew from her previous visit from Kyoto how stubborn she could be. Plus he'd never focus on finding Shuichi if she kept ringing him up all day. "I'm on my way to eat at Zenny's. You can stop by there. Do you know where that is?"

"Yes, that's fine. I'll be there in about 15 minutes."

Upon arrival, the hungry author gave the restaurant two glances around before he concluded that it wasn't as shabby a spot as he initially made it out to be. The chilly air-conditioning merited big points. Perhaps the place could be date worthy like Shuichi insisted. A sharp feeling lodged in his throat at the thought and he coughed hard to rid it. His headache had blessedly faded to "minimal writer's hangover" proportions. Those were the headaches that nagged enough to not become a hassle, but they usually resulted in him writing great chapters for his novels. He never understood how headaches did that sort of thing.

Eiri took a table and ordered. As he waited for his meal, he lit a cigarette. Soon, Ayaka walked by his window and entered through the front door. She spotted him at his booth and greeted as she sat across from him. Dressed pretty conventional like he remembered, she wore a short-sleeved top and a long skirt. She declined Eiri's offer of a meal. He said, "So how did you call me at such a perfect moment? Psychic? Or perhaps fate brought you to me?"

Ayaka's small mouth pursed. "Luck, I suppose."

The author acted disappointed. "Fate just isn't what is used to be. Unless you count the relationship between that loon Shuichi and me. God only knows how that ever happened in the first place . I hate to say it, but just this once...it could be fate." He nodded when his meal arrived. He hadn't tried any American food lately, so the plate full of spaghetti made his stomach growl when it was set in front of him. Ayaka's eyes flitted to the slab of chocolate cake he ordered as dessert, but her gaze remained glued on him. Silence and the rise of dusty smoke from his ashtray consisted of their conversation when she didn't speak. Eiri had no intention of talking unless he knew what her reason was for joining him. The clink of his metal fork as he ate was the only noise between the two.

"Is that really fate?" Ayaka said abruptly.

Eyebrows raised, his fork in his mouth. She took his comment seriously?

She went on, "How can your relationship be based on fate? That's ridiculous."

The fork came out. His eyebrows dropped slightly at the quick touch of hostility. "Fate is fate. There's no rules it has to follow. Events happens and circumstances brought that fool Shuichi to me. I can't think of a better word than fate at the moment."

"Fate chose me." Ayaka's voice grew solemn and hushed. "I was to be with you, Eiri. Then...then that singer came along."

Eiri's pensive expression watched her while he considered his next words. He felt a big rush of annoyance, but he couldn't tell where it stemmed from and why it was directed at her. "Are you jealous of Shuichi? It really isn't going to do you any good." A tiny sadistic pleasure pulsed at the idea of causing jealousy to someone, but the feeling died off too fast before he could hitchhike for the ride.

"I know that jealousy is pointless. I did give up on the engagement and I agreed to your terms. But..."

"You haven't gotten over it as fast as you wanted?" White smoke from his cigarette curled in the air.

"I want to be with you." Red immediately burned her cheeks, but her sapphire gaze remained steady.

Her forwardness impressed Eiri. Her familiar statement had been uttered many times in his life by women who cared only about getting a hold on the enigmatic novelist just because he refused to be obtained like a piece of jewelry at the store. Ayaka's words meant more than a passing one night stand, Eiri could tell. "What do you mean?"

Ayaka spoke slowly. "I wasn't sure before, but I thought about this and I know now for certain. I'd like...I'd like you in my life. Not as a couple, naturally. Just...in my life."

Eiri said nothing. Bright sunlight from outside the window warmed his hand which rested beside his plate. His attention focused on the white glow briefly. "That may not be easy. I have a busy life. I know you do too."

"That doesn't mean I can't try." The gleam of passion in her eyes dulled and she stared at a spot on the table. The sun on his hand continued to heat pleasantly despite the thin veil of smoke that rose from the ashtray. Shuichi's touch felt like this sometimes; a burning sensation that was intense. Yet Eiri never grew tired of it. While he watched Ayaka, empathy crept along his spine and up to his chest. At sixteen, he had wanted to be in Kitazawa's life and despite all the attention and kindness he gave his tutor, Eiri received the opposite. Coldness, indifference to his feelings. He hated Kitazawa for making him so gullible, hated himself for being so needy. Seeing Ayaka falling into the familiar pattern of reliance as he did many years ago was not an uplifting reminder. "We can remain friends. If you wish to visit me, as long as I'm not busy I'm fine with it. That is good enough, isn't it?" Eiri said this in a more light voice than he felt.

She nodded a little. "I think so."

Eiri's sun-bleached fingers opened and closed as though catching the warmth. The lingering cloud from his cigarette was not remotely thick enough to block out the strong rays. This oddly comforted him. A question came to mind and although he knew the answer, he wanted to see her reaction. "Are you seeing anyone, Ayaka?"

Ayaka's head jerked up a bit, but she didn't look up. "Yes. Hiro Nakano."

Somehow, knowing that Hiro guy was still Ayaka's girlfriend made Eiri crack a smile. "Are you the guest he has staying over?"

Ayaka blushed in response, but she still kept her head lowered. Eiri leaned forward and his handful of sun tipped her chin up. "You don't need to have me in your life as much as you think. You do have someone who is more important. Focus on him, not me. He'll appreciate it."

Ayaka smiled slightly, but she didn't brighten up as much as he anticipated. In a spurt of inspiration he considered to be a gentleman's act, he pushed his plate of cake and a fork in her direction. One thing he knew about women with absolutely clarity was that they couldn't resist chocolate. Even if they did, they would ultimately give in. He had seen it plenty of times. Chocolate made a charming tool when it came to persuading uncooperative women in the past, in or out of the bedroom. Ayaka's mouth opened to object, but the blond's mane of short hair shook. "I saw you eying it earlier. Don't argue... Ayaka-chan."

Ayaka picked up her fork and smiled confidently. "Looks like Hiroshi will need convincing that you're a nice person. Thank you for everything, Eiri."

Eiri felt a pang of nostalgia. Shuichi had said the same to him once, that Hiro needed persuasion to believe that the cold Eiri was indeed someone with a beating heart. Sometimes the writer didn't believe that having a live heart was possible, but as he sat in a seat inside a shabby restaurant which he never considered stepping foot in before, he thought about his lover and knew at least half a heart existed.

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A/N: Hmm, maybe a slab of cake will lure back Shuichi to Yuki. He is a food glutton after all! The final chapter is ahead...