marbles-chan: Yeah! Another BanXHimiko fan! Woo hoo! Thanks for loving my fic…
animangacraze: Trying to take your word for it. Cheers!
Pinkz88: Keep reading, you'll find out soon enough… XD
Enjoy!
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In minutes' time, they were back in the mansion, silence deafening them and making them feel awkward about it. Before climbing down through the concealed passageway in the backyard, Ban gently put Himiko down. Actually, he was forced into it, but he unwillingly did it for the sake of keeping her complaints to herself.
Throughout their walk home, she insisted that Ban left them, go back to his father's party, and apologize for his unthinkable act. But just as what was expected of him, he was adamant about leaving his father to rot in shame in his own pointless birthday bash. It was pitiful. Even if she felt animosity for Ban's dad, she knew well enough that it was unbearably humiliating to scream at the top of your lungs in front of admirable guests and disown your only son at the same time on your special day.
She frowned at Ban, who looked snootily unperturbed. "Ban, you're the biggest idiot I've ever met."
"By the sound of your tone, I'm picking my choices whether I should punish myself for being a bad boy or let bossy friend tell me what I should do with my life." He undid his coat and tie and made his way along the gloomy hallway. He was seven feet from the elevator. Sensing this, he started walking briskly.
Himiko made a growling sound in her throat and stopped. "Fine, you arrogant snake! See if I care how you're gonna manage your life now that you've been disowned!"
Breathing through clenched teeth, she avoided Yamato massaging her back. Too annoyed, she pushed away his soothing touch and limped to her room. Without turning around, she scolded Yamato. "Why'd you do that? Why'd you let him embarrass his father in front of his guests and friends? Especially on his birthday! That was uncalled for!"
"Oh. So now you care for the man who killed our parents?"
"At this point, yes." She turned to face him, saw he was a few steps away from her, his face hidden in the shadows so she can't see his reaction. She knew he was crackling inside and ready to explode. "Wanna know why I feel bad? Let's see," she took a step closer and jerked a finger at him. "You popped right in front of them, appeared to them like you're some mad guy who incongruously came back from dark memory lane while Ban was trying so hard to control his temper and the brewing situation. But no… you suddenly let your past get to your head—you glared at them—and that was what we were trying to prevent at that time. Because of you, Ban's been disclaimed! We shouldn't have even been there in the first place!" She balled her fists and furiously stared back at his silhouetted face.
"Don't tell me you've forgotten what they've done to you? Wait… Oh, ding! I sense my memory coming back to me. Have you forgotten that as soon as you saw Ban in his handsome suit, you wanted to follow him? You even wore a dress just to make sure that it led to that. You wanted to SPY ON HIM!" His voice boomed at those last words. When he saw her mouth opening, he quickly interrupted her, "You know that it was the bastard's birthday. We both know it. And subconsciously, we know that his party was held just around the corner. You know that if I saw Old Shin, I would smother him right away. But you wanted me to come along. Why? Funny, you're the one who's supposed to know why."
Himiko could feel her heart beating faster, each thundering beat muting all sound except for her rushing breath. She closed her eyes, breathed harder. Oh God. She could feel the walls closing in, choking her. She heard Yamato's panicked whisper, but she held up her hand. Calm yourself, just breathe in, out. In, out. She had the attacks when she was utterly flustered or scared. She felt both emotions clashing together.
She was scared because she wanted to kill Ban's father. She was unnerved because she didn't know to what extent her rage could be regulated. She started to cry. Her brother then held her tightly, pressed her against him. She embraced him, nearly choking him, but Yamato didn't mind. "Shh… I'm here, I'm always here." He still wanted to retort because she accused him of being the reason of Ban's unfortunate disposal from his family, but his sister didn't need that right now.
"Aniki…" And she continued to cry until half of her brother's shirt was soaked.
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She was crying. She pulled out tissue from the box and wept. She was sitting on the toilet seat and was staring at the yellow, tiled wall. Her mascara was unflatteringly smearing her face black, but she didn't give a damn. Hell, she was weeping for joy. She grinned while tears kept flowing. If there were a hidden camera in the bathroom, she would look for it and smile at it. Even stick her tongue out. She laughed. She was too ecstatic that she shot up and exclaimed, "I'm free!"
Giggling, she looked at the mirror and choked back the laughter. Her makeup was ruined, her dress was ruffled at the sides, and she was sweating. She shook her head and smiled. She washed her hands and carelessly dried it on her dress. Her sandy hair was formerly tied back in a ponytail, which was now flowing down her back. Bangs incessantly bugged her eyes and smudged cheeks, but she tirelessly blew it from her face and beamed again.
She splashed her face with warm water, rubbed off her makeup and wiped it later with a towel. She checked herself in the mirror, made sure that it didn't look like a tornado rolled by, and opened the door.
Sakura squealed in surprise when a silver-haired boy stood before her. He was sheepishly looking at her, staring at her with discomfort and tension, his hands twitching at his sides. He opened his mouth, but closed it again.
Slightly disoriented with the event that had just happened a few minutes ago, and immeasurable delight resulting to it, she ran to him and hugged him. Shocked beyond measure, he stood motionless, red creeping up his cheeks.
She bent slightly to be able to fit into him—she was four inches taller than he was—and whispered, "Makubex… I'm glad you're here… With me."
Confident now, he smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "Same here." For now, he didn't care if he was shorter than she was, he didn't care about the discomforting episode that occurred before, he didn't care if she cried because the marriage was called off, he didn't care for anything else… but her.
The couple stood there, basking in each other's warmth. Their bodies merging into one; it was an uplifting sight. Jubei grinned as he watched his sister smiling for the first time since their mother broke the harsh news to them that she was getting engaged to Mido Ban back when they were in New York.
In fact, he forced himself not to hug Ban for doing a wonderful job for his sister. Not that he was gay. That was a weird prospect. Ban practically saved his sister's future and he owed him his life. Okay, that was a tad too bit extreme. Just owe him something.
But he didn't focus much on tonight's unexpected happening. He mostly stared at Kazuki. He knew that she spotted him because their eyes met the instant Ban arrived. He knew that she too didn't pay much attention to his mother's screams and Mido-san's shocking oath because they locked on each other. He felt himself standing up, coming toward her, but he heard Sakura crying.
His daze was soon over when he accompanied Sakura to the bathroom. When they were out of earshot and the spotlight on them was pointed elsewhere, she kissed him on the cheek and started to dance while she cried. And he knew that she too owed Ban for "rescuing" her. She was happy once again. They stopped when they heard footsteps approaching and she rushed to the bathroom. Jubei stood guard.
As two extravagantly dressed guests fleetingly eyed Jubei, he looked elsewhere. He tried to eye the backdoor where Kazuki currently stood, but she was nowhere in sight. When he saw a boy approaching, he, intuitively, stepped aside and hid around a corner, watching as the boy patiently stood in front of the door.
During their entire trip, Sakura was hysterically talking about Makubex. Silver-hair, blue eyes, smart, and my goodness, she was in love with a fourteen year old! Still, she loved him and that was the only picture and distraction that took her mind off the devastating engagement.
He didn't tell her about Kazuki. He sighed wearily. He leaned back on the wall, waited until the couple would leave, and closed his eyes to remember Kazuki's lovely image.
"Mind if I interrupt your pensive time?"
His eyes popped open when he heard the sweetest voice resounding in his ear. His mouth fell open when he observed and absorbed every feature of her. She was like a goddess. He tried to clear his throat but somehow the lump stuck in his throat was as stubborn as his slow head.
"H… hi." His voice was unusually hoarse and he felt a bead of sweat forming on his forehead when she giggled.
"You've ever encountered a beautiful girl before, cutie?" She grinned wider when his eyes broadened in surprise.
She was direct and dignified. Two qualities you would rarely find in a woman. Actually, in the chat room, she has always been direct, but that usually changes when you've met that particular person face to face. Why, that was happening to him at that moment.
"No… Yes! Right now! You… in front of me." Irritated, he ruffled his hair and looked the other way. Damn it, you idiot. Say something normal!
Kazuki knew he felt discomfited and decided to change the subject. "You know, back then, what Ban did… it was a shocker."
Jubei looked at her and understood that she needed a friend now to clear her head, both their heads. "Yeah, it was. You a friend?"
"You can say that." She sneered at him. "He can be a pain in the ass, but he's a good guy."
"I've even planned to meet up with him and thank him. He hasn't realized it, but he's made my sister's most memorable night." Kazuki cocked her head to peek at Makubex and Sakura talking frivolously. At least they're rattling on and on… When she returned her attention to Jubei, she said, "Wonder how's he gonna cope with school now. This kind of news will hit the papers as fast as I'm planning to strip your pants off."
Jubei swiftly straightened, a crack of vertebrae was sounded, and his cheeks flared. Kazuki laughed. "I'm kidding. I'm not like Hevn who does what she says. You're just too tense now that I want you to relax. But I guess I did the exact opposite." She adjusted his tie and turned around. After a few steps, she turned her head to face him, "You coming or gonna brood on my unlikely proposal?"
He puffed out his cheeks and smiled. "Maybe I'll brood over it next time."
Kazuki laughed and linked her arms to his when he escorted her back to the party.
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The sky was gray and it reflected his mood that morning. He had a splitting headache and though his face slightly stung, the bruises were inconspicuous and healing. He swallowed the pills Yamato gave him and said nothing when Himiko barged into the room on her improvised electric wheelchair.
"I feel like an old timer," Himiko said as she poured milk over her bowl of cereal. Ban noticed she still wore her leg brace. In closer inspection, he saw that her left leg was thinner than the other. Almost as if deflated of meat.
"Nah. You're as vibrant as a pup who's escaped its pen after two months of imprisonment." Himiko scoffed at his use of metaphor.
"Or… would you prefer I say, a butterfly who has just flown out of its cocoon?"
"Both are cliché and stupid." Himiko turned to Ban. "You okay?"
"Sure." Ban sipped his coffee. Without looking up, he asked, "You ready for school?"
"Of course. Can't wait to crush those haughty bastards' toes if they dare mess with me." She couldn't hide her excitement, suddenly she let go of her fork and started to test her chair once more in the kitchen. Ban watched her zoom around and smiled.
"Whoa there, my little scholastic speedster, don't go turbo in the kitchen. I won't help you if you ram into the oven." Yamato chuckled when Himiko stuck her tongue out.
It was a nice change to see her in a high school uniform again. Though he was worried that if she did turbo, her skirt would reveal more than what was necessary. As if reading his mind, Ban said aloud, "Don't get overexcited about the turbo unless you want guys to steal a look of your underwear."
Himiko blushed and quickly switched off the yellow switch that was planted at the chair's left handle. She manned the control stick that was fixed on the right handle and maneuvered the chair to the table. "Don't say anything," she retorted when she saw Ban smirking at her.
When uneasy silence dominated, Himiko asked, "Sorry for bringing the topic up, but I was wondering… what're you gonna do about tuition?"
Ban was about to reply when Yamato said, "I'll pay for it."
Both of them looked at him, surprised. Yamato continued, "I'll be in charge. I've thought about it. It was partly my fault that you're in this rough situation, so I want to help you. Don't deny it 'cuz I say I'm gonna handle it and I'm gonna handle it. You ain't gonna stop me. Besides, working for the government has earned me more than enough money that I've sometimes been planning to resign and retire at forty. But now, that's not an option any longer now that I have two younglings to take care of while they're still not ready to fly out of the coop." Yamato returned to his food and didn't entertain their questioning stares.
"I can take care of myself," Ban said.
"Like hell you would." Yamato put his fork down. "You'll need help, Ban. You'll need me, us. In order for you to get into a university, you need cash. Plenty of cash. Working part-time can't support you for the rest of your high school years. How much more college?"
"I'll find a way." Ban stood up but Himiko grabbed his wrist.
"Don't be a mule and listen. You know that aniki's right. You can't survive alone without aniki's help. With or without money, you'll still be walking in circles, not knowing where to head because you don't know where to go. You need guidance, not only money. And aniki can give you that." Ban didn't move but tried to wrench free from her grasp.
When Himiko let him go, he stomped to the door.
"I'm giving you help for free, Ban. Unless… you want to return the favor in some years after." Ban stopped, stared at Yamato's nape.
"What are you saying?"
"You let me help you now, you'll pay me back. That's what you'll most likely agree to. You have too big of a pride to let someone help you out of sheer good intentions with an exception of your parents." When Ban looked down in deep contemplation, Yamato walked to Ban, laid a hand on the younger man's shoulder. "You've been my friend, even until now. This is what friends do. Help out, not taking over your life." When Ban slightly nodded, Yamato said, "So… What do you say… kiddo?"
Ban quickly looked up. Kiddo. And he remembered. Yamato called him that years ago. "Why not.?" Ban smiled. "You oversized ape."
Yamato laughed heartily. "So you still remember."
"For some odd reason, yeah."
"Hate to break up your emotional moment, but we'll be late if we don't make a move in like… one minute!" Himiko was already zooming past them, the door swung behind her.
"And to think that she hated school and vowed never to walk along the obnoxious depths of life-threatening hallways and classrooms."
"A quote?" Ban asked with an amused expression in his face.
"A quote from our very own cynical speedster." Yamato pushed Ban to the door. "Go now before you'll miss the bus."
"The school doesn't endorse picking up students in buses."
"I know. Always wanted to say this though: Kids! The bus would be here in a minute. Hurry up and brush your stinking breath, Ban!"
"Talk about harboring mother complex." Ban rolled his eyes to heaven and grinned as he ran to the bathroom and freshened up.
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Sorry for shortening it… I was in a hurry and I'm still thinking of the next chapter that's gonna happen in school.
More Ginji & Natsumi and Shido & Madoka on the next. Of course, the other couples would make a show, plus, wait till Toshiki finds out about Jubei and Kazuki's developing relationship.
What'll be the reaction of students when they see Himiko? And what would Ban's fan girls have a say on this?
And what's this? Hevn meets someone?
Find out more on the next chapter. Sorry if it's a cliffhanger, but still gotta spice up the next chapter… XD
Review… review… please gimme!