Of all the hidden pleasures you find in what you're looking for
I hope that you remember that pride comes before a fall.
But I can barely see up and down and back again
Despite what you believe, I keep away from trouble
If who I am today's a sign of where I'm going
I'm ready to embrace.
"Up and Down and Back Again" by Powderfinger
Alright. Breath in and breath out. That's what I keep telling myself since I heard something shuffle in my kitchen. I really should get up and hit them with something, or call the police, but I don't know what to do.
Okay, there's a phone by my nightstand. I just have to reach out and grab it, dial three numbers and wait it out. I can do it.
I reached out and grabbed it, pulling it under the covers painfully slow so as not to make a sound, ducked my head under the covers with it and dialled the number, pushing the phone next to my ear. I peaked up over the fringe of my covers and stared into darkness.
Reception clicked and I heard a voice "Emergency, how can I help you?"
I whispered. "There's a man in my apartment. Wait, not a man I guess it could be a woman. I sure hope it's a woman I could beat her to hell. In fact, why the hell aren't I out there, I could beat any who dared come in here up!"
It was dead on the other end for a second. I think I made the woman speechless. "Ma'am, do not beat the intruder. You don't know how strong they are. They could have a gun or knife."
She was right. I highly doubt my roundhouse kick could defend against a bullet.
"Okay." I gave. "When will you guys be here?"
I could hear clicking on the other end and then the phone line went dead. That was the moment I realized I hadn't checked above my sheets for a little while. I clicked off the phone and silently, breathlessly peeked up.
There was nothing there except darkness. The in a flash I felt something heavy on the end of my bed.
Its voice was gravely. "Don't scream. There's no use I don't want to hurt you, just warn you. If I were you I would quit my job."
Okay, now I highly doubt anyone else could take the amount of crap I have in the last 24 hours. First, I have to deal with the dress code at my work, being called a skank by old people, watching a disgusting kiss, meeting my ex-fiancé who stood me up on prom night and not punching him in the face, and now getting broken in to and threatened, sort of, by them. I'm fed up with all this crap happening at once.
"Don't think I work there by choice. It's crap to work there, you got a better job for me or do you just stalk?" I spat. I squeezed the phone in my hand, ready to poke the guy in the eyes.
"I wouldn't talk back if I were you, Miss Tendo. Wouldn't want your other friend to die too, now would you?"
How the hell did he know about Sayuri? She had died three years before. One day she was fine and another, she was gone. She showed up a week later, water logged and shot three times in the chest.
"Get the fuck out of my house." I yelled, jumping up and ravaging at him.
He was stunned I had tried and as I wailed and punched he fought back, stronger than me but less skilled. As the lights in the room, and the rest of the place for that matter, shot on we both cringed. He recovered faster and body slammed me into the wall. The last thing I saw were two men in plain clothes cuffing him.
I didn't even see his face.
As I opened my eyes I felt for my shoulder. It was bruised and a few ribs might be broken. I must've fallen on something hard and pointy like my nightstand. Crap. That thing was expensive; I must have shattered it.
All the lights were on in the room and everything was white. Ever since Tofu got married Kasumi has been prepping herself as a nurse, going through the schooling, learning from the best there was in his field and eventually began helping out. I was so proud the first day she bandaged my foot after a bad fall.
The door was slightly ajar and a man's front half was talking out the other side of the door, giving me a great view of his cute butt and broad shoulders. I regretted him finishing his conversation and turning into the room only to be surprised to see Hiroshi staring back. I knew he had become a cop but I really hadn't thought he would ever want to see me again. We had a slight fling that ended up with him breaking an arm and dangling from a tree and me with a lost job.
"Hi." I mustered. Damn, he looked great. "How's life on the beat?"
He tipped up the corners of his mouth and shrugged, "Someone's gotta do it. How're the ribs? Talk about breaking in boats, not furniture."
Oh, he thought he was so funny.
"That's hilarious; I bet you make all the fem-cops squeal." I said.
Sarcasm was my baby.
He grinned. "I do, but that's not all that makes 'em love me, you should remember that."
I was in a sheet under this bed and my ribs hurt, killing him would have to wait.
"So, why are you here; broken some bones, hopefully?" I innocently asked. Ha, take that!
He pulled up a chair, making sure it dragged and made that horrendous sound. I was sensitive, but pretended not to notice.
"You suck at pretending." He told me.
"You suck in general. Go fall from a tree."
"Ah yes, you still owe me for that." He said.
He slumped down in the chair, next to my bed. The chair was lower than the bed which helped because if the chair was higher he'd try to look down my shirt. Hiroshi was very hot. Girls told me that all the time. He got to know many a girl, I told them, one day he'd run out of energy and keel over and then I'd laugh. They'd laugh then, hope I'm not serious, and gush some more.
"So why are you stalking me?" I asked.
He wanted to know about the break in. I knew that, but I wanted to hear him say it; hear him say at least one thing that I knew, for sure, was true.
"I was walking by and saw you in here."
I eyed him. "Liar."
"Who broke in?"
"If I knew then I probably wouldn't be in this position, now would I?"
He slipped and smiled a bit. "I hear you belted him in the eye with your phone. He's real pissed."
"Good! He told me to quit my job and said he wouldn't hurt me. He had a gravely voice."
Hiroshi nodded like a cop. "He's been questioned. You okay?"
I nodded. When would he leave? I kept staring at his tight blue shirt. I shouldn't have, damn those biceps.
"I want some cake."
"You always want cake."
"Ranma's back in town."
This got him speechless. Finally, I won! Excellent, now I got to watch him think of what to say next.
He finally spoke. "Did he get fat?"
I rolled my eyes. "You can find out at the reunion. You're going right?"
"Well, lots of women are gonna be there." He raised his eyebrows and smiled. "You wanna come with me?"
"Nope." I breathed out. Did he just ask me out? "I'm flying solo."
He raised an eyebrow again. "Would've thought you'd be going with Ranma?"
I rolled my eyes. "Nope. Oddly enough, when a guy comes around ten yards of me I don't automatically fall in love."
He got up. "You just haven't been tempted the right way yet."
And he left. That was harder than I thought it would be. I wondered if I should even go, I'd just have to watch the women brag about their conversations with Ranma and Hiroshi.
They'd better have a full bar.
I couldn't go back to my apartment. My purse and a change of clothes, with the clothes I had been wearing missing, were mysteriously at my hospital bed side. I let it slide because I really didn't want to think. So after I got out of the hospital, I went for a little walk downtown. I really did not want to go home. This just didn't happen to me. I was supposed to lead a normal life now. My teenage years had been enough insanity and hurt emotions and egos.
I suppose our hurts and problems mature with us; get bigger and stronger with time. They turn into something else, something that is not even close to what we used to be.
I was mulling this over as I stopped to get ice cream without even thinking about it. Okay, I didn't really need the ice cream, I had been getting a bit bigger these days but my constant working out helped a lot and I had just been hurt so I thought I deserved this. As I walked out of the store, and walked down the sunny sidewalk, a black figure joined me. I thought it was a shadow but it turned out to be Ranma, decked out in full black attire. He looked great in black jeans. He probably looked even better in no jeans. My mind wandered. No, bad Akane!
I was scolding myself when he laughed slightly through his nose. "How're your ribs?"
I looked to him, pulling up my hand and shielding myself from the sun. "Simply fabulous."
He smirked. "Sarcasm is your baby."
"Good, I'll have less crazies after me; they never go for the single mothers."
Finally, a perk.
"You're so weird. No wonder you don't have a boyfriend. Have you even had one since we last saw each other?"
Excuse me? Did he actually just say that? Oh that bastard was going down. Okay, show him up Akane, you know what to do.
"Actually, I hooked up with a guy the night of prom. We did it on the principal's desk."
I thought I was pretty convincing.
"How many times?"
He was testing me.
"Seventeen."
He smirked and eyed me.
"Liar."
"Captain Mysterio."
"Usually the girls go for that." He said.
We had reached the end of the street and were now crossing the small bridge we had crossed so many times before. We stopped half way and slouched against one side, staring at the river. It seemed appropriatetime for a saxophone to belt out old tunes.
"Nice day." I said, trying to drum up conversation.
He let out a sound that was low and would be the equivalent of a nod.
Jeez, Ranma the Handsome Robot was terribly mysterious.
"Say something." I said "Say anything. You're not even talking."
He kept staring at the water. "It's my thing. Nothing worth sayin', what do ya wanna know?"
I knew of course. Where the freakin' hell did you go? Why were you back? Did you ever love me? Are you wearing underwear?
All that came out was, "Are you going to the reunion?"
Akane, you wuss.
His smile was the equivalent of that. He was a bastard with great facial expressions.
"You invitin' me?"
Okay, no! I am not inviting you, you cocky bastard that left me last time I was there and made me cry. You left and now you just want to pick up where you left off! You come back all secure and sure of yourself when I don't even know you! Now you're really gonna hear it, you selfish jerk!
"Nope."
Wuss.
He changed the subject with utmost subtlety. "Shouldn't you be at work?"
I stared. What the hell, I had been broken into and threatened. I think that warranted a sick day. I had taken days off with much less. Once, while working at an Ice Cream Palace, I took a whole week off because my then "boyfriend", a certain cop, had the libido of a cat in heat and told me we were over. He told every other girl that too of course, but still.
"Uh no, what the hell, I got attacked! Besides, I've had enough of Creepy Marv's dress code. He told me that if I wanted to keep my job I had to dress lively because there were enough non-lively things in the place already."
"I take it ya stay for love of the job, then?" He took far too long inspecting me from head-to-toe. "Ya don't got more than a few hurt ribs."
What the heck was he talking about? I got owned! Well, not owned because that would be embarrassing, but the guy caught me off guard.
"They are bro-ken. There's also tons of psychological stuff."
He raised an eye brow. "You're psychologically scarred?"
"Yes. It's terrible."
His eyes stared me down.
"Shut up, Ranma."
"Didn't say a word, babe."
He whipped around and started walking off the bridge. I watched him for a while because really, what straight woman wouldn't stare? There were a few women walking past that were upstanding and conservative, not the type to hoot and holler, but even they stopped and watched. His lips were curling into a smirk. I knew it.
Because I knew him.
I sighed, ate the rest of my ice cream in one fell swoop, and cringed when I realized brain freeze can happen to anyone, strike anywhere. They should have help groups for ice cream-aholics. They'd better have coffee and donuts . . . and ice cream.
I should go home, but the feeling that I might not be alone warranted some tense feelings from me. I could phone someone with a gun to come inspect with me. Ranma probably had a gun, but I didn't have his number. If I did, I probably wouldn't phone him anyway out of lame embarrassment and anger that I'd side swipe him.
The only other person was Hiroshi. Crap.
After fishing my phone out of my gorgeous seafoam green beaded purse, I dialled his home number from when he was younger, it was the only one I had. I stood there resting on my hip.
His mother picked up. "Hello?"
I froze. For some reason mothers frightened me unbelievably.
"Hi, it's Akane Tendo." I breathed out. "Is Hiroshi possibly there?"
She answered with spite that I thought was much unfounded. "Hiroshi is a grown man, he doesn't live at home. He's a cop, you know! Why, you after him for his money? You aren't married, why?"
The barrage of questions continued and I really tried to be kind. "Do you have his cell, please?"
She stopped for a second. "Why do you want it?"
I sighed. Lying to an old person was mean, but she had asked me if I was married.
"It's for a police matter."
"Are you addicted to drugs?"
"No!"
"555-4598."
She was totally gonna phone my dad and tell him I was a crack whore.
"I don't do drugs, Mrs. Miyako."
"That's what they all say! No wonder you're not married!" She scoffed.
Okay, I will never volunteer at an old folks home if they were all like the older people I knew.
"Your son's not married either!" I practically yelled into the phone.
People around me started to stare as they walked by over the bridge. So I jumped up and decided to start walking into town. Basically, off the bridge and right onto the side walk.
She hung up on me and I sighed. Good thing I wasn't planning on going to my dad's anytime soon.
I punched in Hiroshi's number and waited for it to click.
I heard a crackly sound then a cop sounding voice.
"Miyako here."
I snorted at how military-like his voice was and I heard him sigh over the phone.
"Miss Tendo it's not lady-like to say such things over the phone. I'm at work, maybe later."
I heard hoots and hollers from the other end. That bastard!
"Tell them I wasn't!" I screeched, causing more stares.
"Please Miss Tendo; the undergarments that you're wearing, or lack of therefore, can't be helped at the moment."
"Fine! You know what you jerk; I don't need your help!"
He paused for a second and then muttered. "I'll be there in fifteen."
The place erupted on the other end and I was royally pissed. I would get him back. Not in a small way, but in a larger, maniacal way. That could be done later, though.
I needed to get ready for my date tonight. I was excited. To be truthful, I hadn't gone on a good date for a while and the guy that set us up was so sweet about it. Especially saying the guy I was going out with had only been in town for a day or so.
That meant that tonight, in front of this stranger, I could be anything.
Hiroshi had said he'd be at my apartment. He obviously couldn't have known I would ask for that, so I really didn't think he'd be there. That was okay, I'd brave it alone. I could do this, I really could.
Once I got to my apartment building I immediately spotted Hiroshi, next to his red Subaru Legacy. He was leaning against it with incredibly well fit jeans and that damn blue shirt. I waved a stocky wave and he responded by leaning off the car and coming closer to stand beside me.
We stood face to face and he stared back at me with a serious look in his eyes. This was not very Hiroshi-like. I tried to move, but couldn't.
"Sweets." He said.
I gulped.
"You ready?"
I almost jumped out of my skin. It was telling me to touch his face, his lips, and his back. It was the way he said things that got me all flustered and made me remember the time we spent together; rather short day-wise, but amazingly nice to remember.
I nodded and waited for him to reach in closer and kiss me. Okay, so I was kind of giving into urges. I had been scared and he was here at the moment.
He moved towards the door and away from me then, leaving me standing there with the most confused look on my face.
"It's really fine, nobody's gonna be there." He assured, smirking, still walking ahead of me.
I let out my breath in a sort of huff and started catching up to him.
"Right." I said airily. "Well, let's make it quick I've got a date tonight that I just have to get ready for."
Hah! Take that for leading me on with your sultry expressions and cute butt!
"Lucky you." He said. "Sure you don't want a police escort? It's a dangerous world."
I smirked. There was nothing like a plan going through. "Nope, let's just get this over with."
I opened the door to the apartment building.
I really hoped the mystery guy looked that good in jeans.
A/N: So yes, I did Akane's PoV again and next chapter will most likely be Ranma. Then probably will be Jin. That's all though, only three. So yes, I'm trying to write adequate chapters if not just a little shorter than my usual these days, but updating frequently. How are they so far?
Sodalicious: Thanks so much! This is my first real first-person story. I suppose my story Aftermath could be first-person, but it's all diary entries so I didn't know if that counted. Oh yes, making people want more is excellent and evil. Muahaha
White Tigress666: Yeah, I kind of was waiting for this chapter to explain the dress code thing so I'm sorry for the confusion! Yes, it's kind of based off of Grosse Pointe Blank and somewhat off the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich (which everyone who likes humour-mystery-romances should, and everyone else for good measure) but don't worry, I only use the two as bases.
Icy: Thank you oh so much and yes, I agree that many stories are fabulous, but there can never be enough.
Vaniah: Yeah, read above if you didn't catch it this chapter and thank you for pointing it out. I was wearing these ankle boots and onle hel completely broke of so I had to break off the other one (they were kind of crappy yet mildly expensive) and it turned them into elf shoes, they flipped up at the toe now, right around St, Patrick's Day so that was the good part of that. Him be her date? What an outlandish idea. . .
Ryoko Blue: What did you think it was? Did you think Grosse Pointe Blank and this chapter really didn't make sense with that theory?
FoolyJooly: Thanks so much, can't wait to hear from you again!
Erie Maxwell: Your reviewing grave is empty now, good. They do make cute drunks, as long as they don't throw up.
Review please!