Umm... ok. Chapter Two of Sweet Insanity. Right here. Sorry it took so long.
Disclaimer: I don't own anybody in this fic except for Faith. She's all mine!
To Lady-Azura- I'm glad you were my first reviewer, too. You certainly are enthustiastic lol. I had to pair Mimiru with someone. Since their personalities will clash, it'll be funny.
To TheWall267- Yes, I usually make my chapters average about ten pages. It's a habit lol.
To lexyV105- That actually is a good idea. Definitely a consideration.
To Master White Fox- Thanks! I used to think that Tsukasa belonged with Subaru... but for some reason I can't stand her now. And plus, I have more in common with Mimiru anyway.
To InuKagNoMoreDreams- Naw, Subaru is going to keep it a secret for now.
To kaitou angel- Madame capitan is happy that I'm added to your list lol.
To Lonely Athrun Zala- No, I don't mind the language. Personally, I think it shows energy.
CHAPTER TWO:
ASSURED RESOLUTION
The first thing Mimiru saw when she woke up was Tsukasa. He was kneeling down next to her with a curious expression on his face. "Your parents are really worried about you." He said softly. "Bear came downstairs to get his midnight snack and found you sleeping on the couch. He told your parents where you were, but he kept your secret. That was irresponsible, Mimiru."
"Yeah, so what?" Mimiru quickly sat up, ignoring the fact that her hair must've looked ridiculous. She had always wanted to wake up near Tsukasa, but not if he acted like that. "I'll deal with it later."
"Your Mother wants you to come home right away. Your father took Motoki to his soccer game so you'll be alone with her." Tsukasa gave Mimiru a sympathetic smile. They both knew what that meant.
"Just great! I wonder what Motoki told her I was doing…" Mimiru stretched and stood up. Bear came downstairs, frowning at her. What now?
"He told them you were going to the mall and then to the movies. He even showed your parents your homework and told them you'd be back late." Bear sat down in his chair. "Mimiru, I didn't know you planned on staying out that late."
"I didn't… I just didn't have any way of getting home. So one of the judges offered me a ride. I had to wait until all the other singers were done." Mimiru shrugged, glaring at Tsukasa.
"She's right… at first I told Mimiru I would go with her… but then I found out it was the same day of my anniversary with Subaru." Tsukasa sighed. "I was worried last night, though. You had to ride a public bus all by yourself and-"
"Don't you dare pretend to be concerned!" Mimiru shouted angrily. "If you really cared, you would have been there!"
"Mimiru… I said I was sorry." Tsukasa really did look sorry, but that made Mimiru even angrier. Bear sighed and shook his head.
"Mimiru, just how far was this audition of yours?" Bear frowned.
"Ten bus stops away, near the outskirts." Mimiru looked up at Bear. A look of shock covered his face. "What now?"
"Mimiru!" Bear walked forward and grabbed Mimiru by the shoulders. "The outskirts are dangerous, you know that! All kinds of things go on at night there! You know the outskirts are known for-"
"Well, if Tsukasa wasn't with Subaru all the time, maybe I wouldn't have had to go alone!" Mimiru broke away from Bear and ran out of the house. She could feel tears forming in her eyes as she sunk to the front steps of Tsukasa's house. Why did this have to happen to her?
Bear's right… if I had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, I could've been raped or kidnapped or killed… Does Tsukasa want me to die or something? Am I that worthless? Maybe I should just die… So that way… I won't have to cry anymore. Tsukasa won't have to "worry" about me anymore… And Motoki won't have to keep lying for me… I'm destroying my own little brother.
Mimiru stared curiously at her left arm. Her fingers slowly trailed over the cuts. Hearing a door open, she quickly turned around. Tsukasa. He sat down next to her and neither of them said anything for a while.
"Do you have any plans for today?" Tsukasa asked tentatively.
"What do you think?" Mimiru shot back.
"Then spend the day with me." Tsukasa was obviously used to her snappy replies by now. "We'll go wherever you want, okay?"
"Why should I? Don't you have anything better to do?" Mimiru snapped.
"Well, Bear is talking on the phone with your mother right now. I have a feeling you're going to get off easier than you think." Tsukasa smiled at her gently. "Bear told your mother that you got back late, so you were too tired to go home and you came here instead."
"He knows me too well…" Mimiru rolled her eyes, but she was appreciative of Bear's efforts to keep her out of trouble.
"MIMIRU!" A loud, annoyed voice came from not too far. "GET IN HERE NOW!" Mimiru stood up and stomped off to her house reluctantly.
As soon as Mimiru stepped in the door, she was greeted with shouting. "Do you have any idea how worried I was about you? You couldn't wait for me to come home? And what on Earth are you wearing? Get out of those clothes right now! You look like a devil-worshipping prostitute!" Her mother shouted, slamming the door behind Mimiru.
Mimiru's face burned, but she ignored her mother as she climbed up the steps and went into her room. She quickly changed out of her new clothes, but kept the necklace on. "Where did you get them anyway? And who were you with yesterday?" Her mother had stormed up the stairs and was now standing in the middle of Mimiru's room.
"Tsukasa bought them for me." Mimiru said exhaustedly. Judging by the look on her mother's face, she believed her. "Some girls invited me to go to the movies with them. And the movie theatre's inside the mall; you know that. So we shopped around for a bit."
"And what did you buy?" Her mother obviously didn't believe her now.
"I left them… at my friend's house. Because I knew you wouldn't like what I bought." Mimiru refused to meet her mother's eyes.
"I can't believe you have Motoi lying for you." Her mother shook her head. "You're corrupting your little brother, Mimiru. I hope you're proud of yourself. I don't think I want to know what the truth is… Just stay away from me until I can figure out how to punish you." And with that, her mother left. Mimiru rolled her eyes, but then her stomach growled. She looked at her clock. It was a bit after noon. Hopefully her mother wasn't in the kitchen…
About two hours later, Mimiru was still inside her house and she was completely bored. Then the phone rang. "IT'S TSUKASA!" Her mother bellowed from across the hall.
Mimiru halfheartedly picked up the phone. "Yeah?" She said in a bored tone. He's not going to leave me alone about this is he… I'm sure Mother Dearest won't mind if I spend some time with prudent Tsukasa. Why does he seem to be so interested in spending time with me now? Did Subaru tell him… Oh no!
"Did you change your mind?" Tsukasa asked softly.
"Yeah, sure. Whatever. We're doing whatever I want, right?" Mimiru rolled her eyes. But she was happy to finally get some alone time with Tsukasa. But wait… what if she was… "Is Subaru coming, too?"
"No. Her uncle just adopted a child and she went to visit him. She won't be back until late Sunday afternoon." Tsukasa sighed on the other end. "She only went because I told her I had plans with you."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Mimiru snapped.
"Well… Subaru didn't want me to be alone this weekend." Tsukasa said carefully. "She worries about me a lot."
Great… make me sound like the defective "best friend" who doesn't worry about Tsukasa night and day! "That's ridiculous! You're not a baby!" Mimiru snarled.
"I know, I know. But she doesn't want me to start cutting myself again for stupid reasons." Tsukasa spoke silently.
"Why would you? I'm the one that helped you in the first place!" Mimiru was so mad, she almost hung the phone up.
"I told her that, but she still worries about me…" Tsukasa trailed off. "Well, whenever you're ready, come to my place, alright? See you later."
Subaru… I can't stand her! Who does she think she is? Does she think I'm not capable of helping Tsukasa? And why would he feel lonely anyway? I wouldn't be surprised if he had her uncle's cell number! He probably even gave Subaru my number! I can't stand this! I really… I really hope I made it into that band. Because I need to get away from all this…
Mimiru was fuming mad. But she knew she had to put on a calm face, in order to see her mother. She crept into her mother's room and saw her mother sitting on her bed, staring at a picture of the family.
"I was just wondering… how wonderful everything used to be…" Her mother looked up at Mimiru and she had tears in her eyes. "Your father and I had a beautiful marriage and beautiful, innocent children. Now your father… he's growing distant… and you… now you're going places and not telling me… Is Motoki going to start on me, too?" Mimiru was surprised.
"Mom… I promise I'll tell you when the time is right." Mimiru smiled softly, putting her arms around her mother. "I'm sorry I worried you. And Dad… he's probably just has extra stress on him. More people get sick when it's cold, Ma. We're here for each other and that's what matters."
"Oh, thank you, love." Her mother kissed Mimiru on the head. "And yes, you may go with Tsukasa. It's been such a long time since you spent time together. I'm sure you're looking forward to it. But be careful!"
Mimiru gratefully kissed her mother and ran back to her room. She grabbed her backpack and put her new clothes in it, along with her wallet, and a pack of gummy bears. She ran out the door, almost running over Motoki and her father.
"Just wait a minute!" Her father grabbed her arm. "Where are you going?"
"I'm spending the rest of the day with Tsukasa. Mom already said it was okay." Mimiru's eyes widened in astonishment. Her mother probably wanted to talk to her father alone. That's why she let me go so easily… "Hey, Motoki? Why don't you head to a friend's house to play video games?"
"I am…" Motoki gave her an odd look. Mimiru gave Motoki a quick hug and spun out the door, racing to Tsukasa's house. The door opened even before she got there. Tsukasa had to move out of the way as Mimiru sprinted inside and headed to the downstairs bathroom.
Moments later, Mimiru came out wearing her new outfit. "There!" She announced herself as she strolled into the living room. "Where's Bear?"
"A whole block, including the school where Bear works had an odd blackout last night. He went with other adults to investigate." Tsukasa grabbed his house keys off the couch in the living room. "So… where are we going first?"
"How about the mall? And then the movies?" Mimiru smirked. Tsukasa gave her a knowing smile and they left his house. The duo walked to the same bus stop Mimiru was at the previous night.
Mimiru and Tsukasa stayed on the bus for four stops and then got off. The mall was about two blocks away. "If we're going to do everything I want, then you're paying for everything, got it?" Mimiru said as they entered the mall.
"Of course." Tsukasa smiled softly at Mimiru and her heart melted.
Tsukasa and Mimiru spent four hours at the mall. The first two hours were spent shopping, eating, playing at the arcade, and reading in the bookstore. The last two hours were spent watching a hilarious movie about robots and eating all kinds of junk food. Mimiru smiled all the way back on the bus ride.
By this time, it was already pitch-black dark outside. Why can't we spend time like this together forever? Mimiru smiled sadly as the bus passed a school.
"Mimiru…" Tsukasa seemed to notice her change in mood. "I hope you can forgive me. I know I've been a bad friend lately…"
"That's just it, Tsukasa! You're supposed to be my best friend! But you don't even know how to balance your time so you can spend time with the both of us!" Mimiru snapped out, her good mood down the tubes. "And it took you two years to realize it…" Oh great. Now I'm going to start crying again. I'm such a weakling…
Tsukasa did something Mimiru would never expect him to do, he put his arms around her waist and pulled her close. Mimiru's heart began to beat faster. He slowly rubbed her back and Mimiru felt as if his hand took all her problems away. She actually felt quite drowsy. She let her head fall on Tsukasa's chest and she closed her eyes. This feels… kind of nice… I wish Subaru were gone all the time… But she'll probably never leave again… She loves him too much…
"Mimiru, I'm a failure as a best friend. I failed to set my priorities straight. I should have been able to make time for you and Subaru." Tsukasa sighed and ran his fingers through his silver hair. "Mimiru… up until I went out with Subaru, you were the only girl in my life. I suppose I thought of you as my best friend and my girlfriend without even realizing it.
"After I went out with Subaru, I guess I just… felt it was right to spend all my time with her. I really am sorry, Mimiru. I never thought I would hurt you so much. You're still my best friend. Subaru can never be my best friend." Tsukasa finished and drew away from Mimiru to stare into her aqua-colored eyes.
I can't believe I'm hearing this! Mimiru almost cried with joy. He called me his girlfriend! Indirectly, I suppose… but it's still there! Oh, I can't believe it! Tsukasa and Mimiru! Tsukasa and Mimiru!
"I… I forgive you." Mimiru was unable to hold his silent, intense gaze.
"Thank you, Mimiru." Tsukasa smiled down on her and patted her brown spiky head affectionately. Mimiru immediately pulled away, pretending to be annoyed at this. But in reality, she loved it. The two sat in silence as the bus drove on. "Umm… Mimiru… I believe during my emotional confession, the bus passed our stop." Mimiru gave him a confused glance and looked out the window.
"TSUKASA!" Mimiru shouted, pointing at the boy. "This is all YOUR fault! If you hadn't spent so much time talking…" She continued ranting on and on.
Apparently Tsukasa was used to being Mimiru's scapegoat, because he waited until Mimiru stopped yelling. "Mimiru, you told me that you saw Miss BT in the outskirts. Well, why don't we just get off here and see if we can find her?"
As if to agree with him, the bus promptly stopped. Mimiru and Tsukasa dashed off the bus. Unlike yesterday night, the outskirts were now bustling with all kinds of people. Druggies, prostitutes, witches, gang members… you name it, they were here. Mimiru was fascinated by the group of small children who were dressed as ninjas. But… were they really acting?
Mimiru stared at the departing bus. "Ts-Tsukasa? Are you sure this is a good idea?" She clutched his arm, apprehensive for a moment. But then she caught sight of Faith. She was running around, carrying a huge ice cream.
"FAITH! FAITH!" Mimiru shouted at the top of her lungs. The black-haired girl whirled around until she found Mimiru. She ran over excitedly and dropped her ice cream. Tsukasa expertly seized it and handed it back to the hyper girl, who was now even more excited.
"Hi-hi!" Faith took a big lick of her ice cream, causing many of the men passing by to stare hard at her. "What are you two doing here? And thank you so much for getting my ice cream! Is your name Tsukasa?"
"Uh… yes, it is." Tsukasa blushed slightly. "Nice to meet you…"
"Faith! My name is Faith!" Faith's gray eyes twinkled eagerly. "Mimiru, do you want to go shopping with me? Balmung was mean and he didn't want to watch me, so I left the warehouse. Big Cousin Crim is going to be mad once he finds out I was outside by myself!" Faith grinned mischievously.
"Crim is your cousin?" Mimiru raised an eyebrow.
"Yup, yup! I live with Big Cousin Crim because my Daddy didn't want me and my Mommy is in a coma!" Faith's eyes showed some sadness. Tsukasa's eyes widened in shock and Mimiru gazed sympathetically at the both of them.
"My father used to abuse me. He didn't want me either." Tsukasa admitted softly and Faith gave him a big hug. Mimiru was in shock now.
I can't believe he told a complete stranger that! He barely talks about it to anyone! Faith… she's special somehow. She has this… light in her… A light that other might not be able to see. But to people like Tsukasa, that light is empathy. Mimiru smiled fondly at Tsukasa and Faith hugging.
"So… are you going to take me shopping? I need new clothes and colored pencils so I can draw and paper so I can use my new colored pencils and I'm hungry, too!" Faith grinned up hopefully at Tsukasa and Mimiru.
"Faith… how old are you?" Tsukasa raised an eyebrow as Faith began leading them throughout the outskirts, deeper inside the darkness of their city. The warehouse seemed to be far away in a distant world.
"I'm going to be sixteen in less than two months!" Faith took one last lick of her ice cream and then shoved the entire cone in her mouth. "Let's go shopping for clothes first! I have loads of money, so if you see anything you want, I'll get it for you!" And so the trio stopped in the first clothes store Faith saw.
All the clothes on the inside were just as dark, dreary, and depressing as the people who were wearing them. Faith bought about five outfits for herself and then two for Tsukasa and three for Mimiru.
"Faith… thank you so much!" Mimiru hugged the younger girl gratefully. "Tsukasa, you're the smartest boy on the planet!"
"Mimiru… it's getting dark. We should probably find Miss BT and head back home. I'm sure my Dad is worried." Tsukasa smiled warmly, but it was obvious that he was anxious.
"Aw! But we just got started!" Faith looked at the bags Mimiru and Tsukasa were already holding, due to their earlier trip to the mall. "Why don't we drop off those bags in BT's car and then you can call your father and tell him that Miss BT will drop you off later!" And so, the trio began walking back to the warehouse.
Oooh, oooh. Chapter Two is done! Please review! Next up... Helba shows her enigmatic face. ((Creepy evil music)) dum-Dum-DUM