Disclaimer: Hasn't changed. ;D
Author's Note: Again, I'm very grateful for the reviews. ;D They really mean a lot. ;D
Calliope: ;D Mari's a pseudo-villain here or in other words a villain by degrees. She doesn't really touch the plot as much a big villain would, but yes, she and the other characters won't get along. ;D Her manner (especially in terms of Ella's nationality) will definitely have her popping up here and there. ;D I'm glad you liked it. ;D Your work inspired me to mix more nationalistic elements into this story. ;D
KoinoTenshi: Thankiesh! ;D Your review is indeed very good to read and I'll strive to make the coming chapters worthy of further reading in return. ;D There's some activity in this chapter that I hope you and the other readers will find interesting. ;D
Here it is… ;D
Chapter 3
Not quite sure about what Ayako meant, Ella looked over Ryota's shoulder.
And felt her heart skip a beat.
Walking towards them was one of the most excellent specimens of the male species that she had ever laid eyes on. She swallowed audibly as she took in his features in a flash before meeting the cool blue eyes that now focused pointedly on her.
He stared her down for one long second…before looking away dismissively. He brushed right past her and she felt the icy, unwelcoming aura around him pierce her skin just as the sleeve of his uniform breezed over her arm. Despite the fact that he had barely touched her (she considered clothing contact as touching) she stepped back as though she had been bumped and she felt an immediate dislike for him spring up.
Her mouth fell open slightly and she quickly erased/crossed-out/got rid of the "God's Gift To Women" label she had placed on him in her mind.
"His name is Kaede Rukawa," Ayako said in an undertone. "One of the great players who have remained on our team. He's being trained for the All-Japan Team, you know."
"And he's one of the many reasons why your assistant is so…committed to the team?" Ella asked, regretting the mocking tone in her voice instantly.
Thankfully, Ayako found it amusing and she laughed, grinning at Ella.
"Can you blame her?" she asked incredulously.
Despite how he'd looked at her earlier, Ella shook her head—albeit begrudgingly.
"No," she replied honestly. "He is something to look at."
"I'd tag that as an understatement, but then maybe he just isn't your type."
"And he's yours?" Ryota demanded, casting a dirty look over his shoulder at Rukawa.
"What do you think?" Ayako asked, throwing an arm around her boyfriend's neck.
He blushed furiously and grinned sheepishly at her, shuffling his feet. Ayako gave him a quick peck on the cheek that Ella was certain made his insides kick before she turned back to Ella.
"Where are you off to after this?" she inquired. "Practice is over for today and Ryota and I were planning to catch a movie."
Despite the fact that she was certain she adored Ayako (and was adored in return) she knew her bounds and she shook her head.
"No," she said, truly regretful at the loss of bonding time with her new friend. "I've got to catch up on unpacking all my stuff. My foster parents are probably going wild as we speak."
"Akira-kun!"
One dreamy blue eye opened drowsily before closing again, one hand coming up to shade it from the heavy stream of bright afternoon sunlight. Turning on his side the tall young man threw his arm over his head and groaned when something poked him in the side.
"Akira," his mother scolded, pushing the broom handle further into her son's side. "Mrs. Kano is calling for you. Why don't you respond?"
"Because I'm sleeping," he replied pleadingly. "Please, Mom, can't you just tell her that?"
"No," she replied, but her voice lightened with amusement. "Come on, you lazy boy. If you're going to stay home today you'll have to pull your weight around here."
"I'm supposed to have a cold."
"Oh, do you want me to fetch the cold water and make that a reality?"
Sighing deeply Sendoh pulled himself up. "Mothers these days," he said regretfully. "They don't make them like they used to."
Laughing, she hit him playfully on the head with the broom.
"Come on," she prodded. "Get going now."
"Okay, Mom," he said dusting his hair off and pulling out one of the broom hairs that had managed to entangle itself in his spiky locks.
Mr. and Mrs. Kano had been their neighbors for more than the eighteen years of his life. He'd known and grown up with their three children and had been treated like a son himself. In fact, Mr. and Mrs. Kano treated his parents like their children and they had always looked to them for help and advice. Now that their three children were away at university, the elderly couple had all the more spoiled him.
Until recently.
For the past month, the two little old people were raising hell in their comfortable traditional Japanese home. Mrs. Kano was buying several cleaning utensils at a time while Mr. Kano was attacking the yard and gardens as though his life depended on it. Sendoh was getting used to seeing large bundles of overused rags and empty disinfectant bottles in the trash each time he dropped off their own garbage in the morning. He was also adjusting to the fact that whenever they called him over it was to do some particular chore for them—from getting rid of the yard cuttings and fixing the fountain to replacing the screens and tatami mats inside the house.
What is it this time? he asked himself, dreading the extra-cheerful note in Mrs. Kano's voice when she called for him again.
"I'm here, Mrs. Kano," he called as he clambered up the seven-foot stone wall that divided their homes.
"Ah, Akira-kun!" the small old lady exclaimed delightedly. "There you are!"
Despite his chagrin as the prospect of the task she was infinitely going to ask him to do loomed over him, he felt himself smile at her genuinely happy-to-see-you greeting.
"I'm not exactly very easy to miss, Mrs. Kano," he said lightly, approaching her.
"What?" she asked distractedly. "I'm sorry, but I can't think straight right now."
"What's the problem?" Sendoh asked, worry creasing his brow at the old lady's distress.
"You do remember the exchange student we've decided to take in, right?" she asked, not bothering to wait for his reply. "She's loaded her things into her room but hasn't been able to unpack completely because she went to school at once today. I was going to surprise her by placing everything in order for her but then everything's piled over everything else and I just can't do this alone."
Sendoh groaned inwardly.
"Where do we start?" he asked, already wishing he'd gone to school.
"Mrs. Kano, I'm home!"
Ella hastily stepped off the freshly-polished floor and slipped her shoes off at the main entrance to the house, still getting used to the Japanese custom of doing so. She craned her neck over from left to right, trying to spot the incredibly kind old lady who (along with her equally kind husband) had agreed to take her in for her six-week stay.
"Mrs. Kano!" she called again, taking into consideration that Mrs. Kano's hearing might not be as good as it used to be now that she was getting along in years. Ella slipped off her socks as well, deciding not to risk another bruise on her tender backside. Mrs. Kano probably couldn't hear as well, but she did know how to polish floors.
Feet firmly anchored, she got up and began walking around the house.
"Mrs. Kano! I'm back from school! Do you need help with dinner?"
When there was still no reply she paused and frowned, walking back to the main entrance. Peering at the space around where she'd dumped her shoes she smiled exasperatedly at her stupidity and slapped the flat of her palm against her forehead.
You dummy, she thought, seeing the absence of Mrs. Kano's delicate little slippers. She's probably still out getting dinner.
Just as she was about to move, however, her ears caught on a sound that made her blood run cold.
Was that a thud she'd just heard?
Several long seconds passed as she stood stock-still, her limbs tensing as she prepared to make a run for it. Images from movies like The Grudge and Bahay ni Lola popped into her mind and it seemed that the warm, comfortable air around her had become sinister and thick with foreboding. She barely dared to breathe as she anguished at desperately wanting to run but being too afraid to move and do so.
What if it pounces at me when I move? she thought wildly. Like in those horror films they make back home...
Stop it! another part of her mind screamed at her. Nothing is going to attack you, you dumb ass! It's just your imagination playing tricks on you again!
At this she paused, remembering when she'd fallen twenty feet during an early morning hike in the Cordilleras. It had been before dawn and there hadn't been a star in the sky. She'd thought she'd seen a ghoul crouching behind the tall grass to her left and in her state of catatonic terror she hadn't noticed the ground giving way beneath the edge.
Right, she thought grimly, straightening up as she remembered the injuries she'd gotten from that little indulgence of her imagination. Can't have that ever happening again.
Just as she was about to move from the spot, the pain in her limbs after the tense strain becoming evident when she relaxed, she heard it again.
The dull thud was more solid now, and she swallowed hard, her heart beginning to race. When the sound was followed by a man's steady stream of cursing she was certain that she wasn't alone in the house.
She considered her options.
If she ran for help, there was a big chance that when she got back with whoever would be with her (considering the fact that she didn't know anybody else in the neighborhood yet) the person inside the house would have already left. She was certain it wasn't Mr. Kano—the voice was far too solid and deep to be the cracked, whispery thing she heard whenever she spoke with her foster father.
But if she stayed…she swallowed hard again.
He was probably a thief.
And when she thought of the kind of person who would sneak into a kind old couple's home she felt a stab of anger that tipped her towards her decision.
Keeping her steps light she followed the sounds that she heard much more clearly now that all of her senses were at a cat's level. Her heart seemed to be making too much noise and at every squeak or scrunch produced by her feet against the tatami she winced.
The noises were coming from the back portions of the house—sure signs that the intruder was rifling through the couple's personal belongings. Feeling her anger build up as she pictured the scumbag in the room, ransacking Mrs. Kano's precious mementos, she edged towards the kitchen, her breath held and her nerves as sensitive as collapsible bomb circuits.
Thankfully the slide to the kitchen was already open. The lousy bastard had probably fed himself off the Kanos' food as well. She tiptoed in and walked over to the cupboard, deliberating over what to do. Mrs. Kano always kept the knives in the drawer, and although Ella was sure she'd be much more comfortable with the big butcher's knife in hand, she was familiar with the kitchen enough to know that the drawer often stuck and made a lot of noise during opening. She scanned the counter and inspiration struck the moment her eyes alighted on Mrs. Kano's favorite frying pan.
Bingo.
Although to her own mind bludgeoning someone made a lot more mess than stabbing or severing she picked up the frying pan grimly. She knew that from the kitchen she could move out of the house and go around, entering the couple's room from where it faced the gardens and the backyard. He wouldn't be expecting her from there and she'd be blocking off the easier exit.
Get ready, you son of a bitch, she thought as the open slide door came into view. You'd better start praying for mercy.
Sendoh looked up from the evil box of horrors he had been brave enough to peek into, frowning when he thought he heard something. Britney's latest single was just hitting the chorus, however, and he simply shook his head and continued his dissection of the mysteries from the abyss.
Further Notes: While I'm certain you're all familiar with the original version of The Grudge, Bahay ni Lola is one film that really gave me the creeps. Asian horror movies give me more chills somehow. ;D