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Double Time

ten

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You find friends in unexpected places

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It wasn't long before you and Megumi had caught up with everyone else drink-wise and you were having a blast dancing the week's frustrations away. The night had been off to a relatively good start and it appeared to only get better from this point on. It has been around two hours since you arrived and at this point of the evening, some of the group had split up and a few had elected to head to the next venue while the rest stayed behind. Yuuji and some of his guy friends had gone ahead but a majority of the group were still here, including Megumi, Nobara and yourself. You were having such a great time here that you were almost disappointed that you were going to move on.

Although you have been drinking quite a bit, you tried to match each drink with your water intake which gave you a decent balance of alcohol-fuelled giggly high without ever tipping over the edge. At the beginning of the evening, you promised yourself not to get blackout drunk again and so far that has been going well, in fact your entire night is looking to be a success… but of course with most of your evenings out, there will always be a certain point where things went downhill and this happened when you went to the ladies room.

Megumi had disappeared a few minutes ago leaving you to dance with Nobara, so you let her know that you'll be back and slipped through the crowd and headed to the restrooms.

The club was packed at this point, and you were literally elbow-to-elbow with people, trying to wade through the crowd and doing your best to avoid people who had drinks in hand. The ladies room was full of people when you got inside but not many were actually in the queue, many in the room were actually only in there to take selfies using the opulent full length mirror near the sinks.

It was kind of insane how decked out this restroom was. The room was already big enough as it was but on the far side was a sitting area equipped with vanity mirrors for touch-ups, and as exuberant it may have been you decided to make the most of the high end facilities and headed over after washing your hands.

The vanities were also taken up by young women taking pictures and you ducked around them to find an open one in a dark corner. You were about to pull out your lipstick when you realised your bag wasn't on you, thinking back you remembered you left it and your coat at the table along with everyone else's things. Shoot, you must have been tipsier than you thought if you had forgotten that.

Looking into the mirror, you grabbed a paper towel and blotted your uneven lipstick for a more cohesive blurred look. The best you can do to freshen yourself up until you get your hands on your bag. Giving yourself one last look over, you noticed a little smudge outside of your lip-line and you leaned forward to clean it up with the tip of your nail when a voice appeared by your side.

"Need some lipstick?"

The voice came beside you but she was cut off from the mirror so you couldn't immediately see who was beside you. You looked around and your eyes widened when you came face to face with the last person you expected to see tonight, but perhaps it should not have been too unexpected given that these were the types of places she would usually hang out anyway and you were the one out of place here.

"Ieiri-san!" you exclaimed, your gaze shifted very slightly off the beautiful brunette as you glanced around for any other familiar faces. "No uh- I'm fine… It's been so long, how are you?"

"Good, thank you," she smiled at you in that Ieiri way you still couldn't quite get used to. She had this way of looking at you that made you uneasy and it felt like she always knew exactly what you were thinking. "Looking for someone?"

"No… Uh, I just wasn't expecting to see you."

"Me neither. Are you here with Satoru?"

"No, I'm not here with him tonight… or anymore at all for that matter," you added uncoolly and you wished you hadn't done that. Not only did it sound lame but Ieiri quirked an eyebrow at this, this was news to her and her expression was one you couldn't read. "… I was actually kind of worried he was here with you."

"Nope, I'm here with Suguru and Mei," she smiled again when she saw the relief on your face. "Don't worry, as far as I'm aware Satoru won't be joining us… and neither will Utahime for that matter."

"Oh sure, that's a big relief. Don't tease me like that, Ieiri-san," you grumbled when she had to bring up someone you didn't dare show your face around. She chuckled at that, you knew she didn't mean any harm but it still made you squirm a bit. "Anyways, I should get back to my friends."

"You sure you won't join us for a drink?" she asked as you two exited the ladies room. "Don't mind Suguru. He's only mad at Satoru, not you."

"Maybe…" you didn't want to flat out reject her yet but it'll be easier to say no once you were around other people. You trudged through the crowd and headed towards your table. "Where are you sitting? Maybe I'll-"

Your train of thought left you finally reached your table and was met with the sight of it empty. There wasn't a single person at the booth and the pile of coats and bags has disappeared. Slightly panicked, you climbed onto the seat and looked through the area meticulously and when you couldn't find anything, you turned back around and looked over the dance-floor.

"… Your friends… is this where they were sat?"

"Yes, this was where I last saw them," your brow furrowed. There wasn't a single familiar face in the room meaning they must have moved on, but how could something like this happen? You remember telling Nobara you would be back so she would have said something if the group had tried to leave without you. Then there was your belongings. Surely they would have noticed that they were still there… but did someone pick your things up? "Shit."

It was hard to speculate what happened but what you did know was that you were stranded without your phone and wallet. The frown on your face deepened when you remembered who had still been around, wondering if this was someone's idea of a joke, but you decided not to think more of who did it. What was important now was how you were going to get through this predicament.

"I'm sorry to bother you like this Ieiri-san, but can I please borrow your phone?"

"Yes, of course. My bag's upstairs though," she had put two and two together herself when she noticed that you weren't carrying your bag. Despite the brave face you were putting on, she knew you must have been panicking on the inside, so she hooked her arm with yours and led you towards the stairs. "Come on. We'll also ask if anything's been turned in on the way."

The panic did not quite set in until the manager informed you that nothing of the like had been turned in tonight. The anxiety in your chest began to grow and your thoughts fizzled out when he apologised and thank god Ieiri was there because she kindly took over the situation for you. Ieiri gave her table number and also provided her phone number so that they knew how to contact you if there was any updates on the situation.

In the meantime, she invited you to come sit at her table while you used the phone so you followed after her pathetically and tried to put on a polite smile when you came face to face with Mei and Geto. You weren't exactly close with Satoru's friends to begin with and it only felt more awkward now to meet them here like this.

Ieiri immediately dug out her phone, unlocked it and passed it over to you. You thanked her with a small bow of your head and began to type in your phone number. Thankfully the top floor of the building was the quietest of them all, made up of mostly VIP tables, some private rooms, and conveniently no dance-floor so making a phone call here wasn't impossible.

Whilst the line ringed, Ieiri explained the situation to her friends and while Mei appeared to show genuine concern (or as much as the stoic woman could produce), Geto only hummed in acknowledgement as he continued to watch you; something he's been doing the moment you unfortunately sat down right in front of him.

The line dialled for a moment and you bit your lip as you nervously waited as the infuriating tone continued to chime on for a couple more seconds before it went to voicemail.

"Shit."

"No luck?"

"No."

"Why don't you try one of your friends?"

"I don't remember any of their numbers," you sighed as you glanced over at each of them. "I'm so sorry for taking up your time."

"That's okay. Just sit with us for a bit and you can try again in a few minutes," Mei reassured you with one of her killer smiles. She was another beauty for sure and all the other times you had met her, you had been too intimidated to really speak to her but this time you nodded back and thanked her. The stress of the entire situation trumping your nerves around the woman.

A server arrived at the table with what looked like a bottle of Dom and set three glasses down, looking perplexed at you whilst he poured the champagne and you didn't blame him. Not only were you a sudden new addition at their table, but you looked very out of place sat amongst this sophisticated group of beautiful people.

"Could we have an extra glass for our friend?" Mei spoke to the server before turning to you. "Would you care for anything else, [y/n]?"

"Just some water please," you croaked and the server nodded. "Thank you."

It wasn't a nice thing to think considering how kind they were being to you, but you were a little surprised by the lengths they were going to make you feel included. Like you were a part of their group and not just some lost little lamb that stumbled upon them. They had never been this nice to you before, but then again you had always met them with Satoru and the man was always easy to offend others. Or maybe they just felt bad that your friends ditched you and your stuff was potentially stolen.

Whatever the reason, you couldn't afford to be suspicious of the kindness offered to you, but with that said, the person you were the most nervous about has yet to speak to you.

"Why aren't you calling Satoru?" Geto asked, his tone wasn't cold but neither was it friendly. Not too surprising given how he and Satoru had a huge falling out a while back and even though the guilt laid with Satoru, at the time you were sided with Satoru by association and the situation hasn't improved since so you were stuck in this weird place where neither you nor Geto felt exactly comfortable around one another.

"… We broke up."

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

The server returned with the ordered items and set them down in front of you. He was about to pour you a glass when you stopped him and told him you would handle it yourself as you had no intention of having any more alcohol tonight. After he left, you picked up the glass of ice water and drank half its contents in one gulp. You hadn't realised how dry your mouth was.

"So why did you break up?" Geto asked before you had the chance to ask for Ieiri's phone again. It was obvious he had asked what was on all their minds but that didn't stop the women from shooting him warning looks. "I'm sure you understand my curiosity, after all you've been the topic of far too many of Satoru's drunken rants the past two years."

That caught you off guard.

Sure, you knew about how he had a tendency to run to Nanami to complain and whine about your relationship, but you hadn't been aware that it extended to rest of his friend group. In some ways you felt kind of guilty and you couldn't help but wonder if you were that one sob story Satoru always brought up when he was drunk with his friends. That would also explain why they were so invested in yours and Satoru's relationship (or apparent sudden lack of it).

"Well whatever the reason, I have to admit I'm surprised…" Geto continued when you didn't respond. "Though I suppose, even someone like you would get sick of seeing him parading around with a different woman on his arm each week."

"Well probably not as annoyed as you are. Did that girl ever call you back?" you didn't like what he was trying to insinuate but you shouldn't have brought up what had happened. Maybe you were still feeling a little catty from speaking to Yamazaki earlier. "I-I'm sorry-"

"You know [y/n], for someone supposedly not sleeping with Satoru anymore, you sure defend him like one of his whores-"

"Hey, enough of that," Ieiri interjected immediately. "Apologise right now, Suguru."

"That was out of line," Mei added.

"… I apologise," he sighed eventually as he rubbed the back of his neck, looking somewhat abashed . For what it was worth, you were sorry too and you had instantly regretted what you said earlier, but you didn't expect him to actually apologise. Geto poured you a glass of champagne and gave you cordial nod. A peace offering. "It's not you I have an issue with so I shouldn't have taken my anger out on you."

"I'm sorry as well. It was incredibly unkind of me to bring that up," you nodded, wanting nothing more than to vanish from this spot. "… Would it be okay if I tried my phone again, Ieiri-san?"

"Please do."

What little faith you had was dwindling and you knew that if your phone wasn't being picked up now then it was very unlikely that it was going to be found. It has been around thirty minutes since you last saw it and if someone from your group had picked it up then they would surely be looking for you and pick up your calls. Or if a good Samaritan had picked it up then it would have been turned in right away.

The call yielded the same results as last time and your anxiety was really beginning to creep on you when you realised how vulnerable you were. Your bag held all your valuables including your phone, cards and keys. There was no way for you to get home.

Around you, the table had gone quiet as they watched you make your fruitless calls and you knew that you were intruding on their evening and you hated how you were ruining their evening like this.

"… Maybe we should ring Satoru-"

"No way am I ringing him. Have you got Nanami-san's number?" you asked stubbornly and she nodded back. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all."

Ieiri leaned over your shoulder and tapped away, pulling up her contacts and she set the phone to dial Nanami's. You quietly thanked her as you pressed the phone back onto your ear once again. The guilt of troubling Ieiri, Mei and even Geto had you already feeling terrible, and now you were going to have to drag Nanami into it.

"Hello?" the line finally connected and his calm voice appeared. You wanted to jump up into the air. Thank goodness for Nanami. "Ieiri-san?"

"Uh, actually it's [y/n], Nanami-san," you could imagine his surprised expression on the other end by the way he said your name back in shock and you heard some rustling on his end. It sounded as if he was moving about. "Hello? Can you hear me?"

"Yes. Are you alright? What happened?" he asked and your face warmed instantly. The concern in his voice was unmistakeable. He was always so kind. "How come you're with Ieiri-san?"

"Yes, I'm alright. I've just lost my purse but it had all my money and phone in it," way to sound like a cliché but you couldn't hold onto your pride right now. "Luckily, Ieiri-san was in the same club. I was hoping you could organise a ride home for me."

"Where are you?"

"N Club."

"Okay, I'll come pick you up."

"No, no. It's fine, please. You can send Ijichi-san or Nitta-san-"

"No, I'm still at the office so it'll be quicker for me," he said. "Hang on tight. Could you pass the phone to Ieiri-san."

"Yes, one sec."

Ieiri took the phone back when you held out to her and you waited as she listened for a few moments. She glanced at you briefly before giving him your table number and explaining where to find you, she then got on her feet and pulled the phone from her ear. "… I'm going to check with the manager again."

Again, you felt a crushing wave of guilt when she headed towards the bar where you last spoke to the manager with her. The only consolation you had was that this nightmare was near its end and you would soon be out of everyone's way.

"Are you screwing Nanami now?"

"… Of course not," you gave Geto a dirty look. It must have been a joke because he was smiling as he looked you over now, gaze roguish and you were getting worried. "Why are you concerned about who I'm screwing anyway?"

"Why because I just had a genius idea," his dark eyes twinkled, he was now smirking and you braced yourself for whatever he was about to say. "Why don't you screw me to get back at Satoru?"

"Great plan and all but there's a slight problem," you said before the Mei had the chance to reprimand him. "Unfortunately, there's just no way I'll be able to get anywhere near your crotch without being physically sick."

What sounded like a quiet chuckle escaped Mei and you weren't quite sure you actually heard it but sure enough when you looked over, she had her mouth hidden behind her hand and she was still smiling a little. This was probably the only time you've actually seen her laugh and it didn't surprise you that she looked just as elegant smiling as she did sitting there like a porcelain doll. Feeling a little pleased with yourself, you felt a better knowing that not only have you stood your ground against Geto Suguru but someone had been there to witness it.

Even he smiled a little when he scoffed and shrugged his shoulders, giving you the win as he raised his glass towards you and you clinked it back with yours before giving it a small sip. Fuck it, it's just a glass of wine (a super expensive glass at that) and you'll take what small victories you can get from this terrible night.

Time passed more easily after that.

As the minutes ticked by, there were still no updates from the club on any lost property handed in and you must have tried your phone at least another three times with no success these times either. Ieiri returned not long after and let you know that Nanami should be around another fifteen or twenty minutes. When you thanked her, she noticed that you were a little more chipper than you were earlier but she put that down to the fact that you thought your rescue was now imminent.

"Nanami-san!" you jumped to your feet the moment you saw him but your relief was short-lived when you saw who he had with him. "What the hell is he doing here?"

"He has a name and don't speak as if he can't hear," Satoru looked less than pleased when he approached you, his mouth was in a fine line and it appeared as if he was holding back a frown. Without so much as another look at you, glanced over to the people sat at the table. If seeing Geto bothered him, he did not show it as he simply ignored the man. "Hey Shoko, Mei-san. Thanks for taking care of her."

"Nanami-san, what is he doing here?"

Your voice came out a little calmer this time as you did your utmost to supress your anger. It was no time to get emotional now, it wouldn't do you any good at this point and you would only come off as ungrateful; after all, this situation was no one's fault but your own and he had been kind enough to come help. You knew all this and yet seeing Satoru's face ignited something in you, a spark threatening to light the wick to a bomb within you.

"Gojo-san is going to take you home while I go look for your belongings."

"Come on, [y/n]," Satoru peered down at you and held his hand out to you. "We're going home."

That did it. The wick was lit.

Whether he had intended to or not, he sounded like a master calling his pet back and the feeling that coursed through you was abhorrent. It was the way he sometimes made you feel when you were with him but especially when you were around his peers; he treated you like a petulant child or pet, and even worse something that belonged to him.

And the amused look on Geto's face rubbed salt into the wound.

"I'm not going with you," you seethed, looking near feral as you recoiled from his outstretched hand. "Leave me alone."

"Yes, you are," he looked you straight in the eye. Even under his dark sunglasses, you could see his piercing gaze fixated on you. His eyes almost appeared to glow superhumanly and it would have frightened most into submission, but you would not budge. "How else are you going to get inside your flat without my spare key?"

"Give me the fucking key then."

"It's not on me. We'll have to pick it up from my place first," he said matter-of-factly and as annoyed you were at his unexpected appearance and his arrogance, you knew deep down what he said made sense. There was no way you would have been able to enter your flat even if Nanami had driven you home, that was a problem you were going to address once you were in the car. From every angle right now, you did look like a spoilt child throwing a fuss. "Look, I'll level with you. Nanami's more concerned about tracking down your bag right now so whether you like it or not, you are stuck with me as your only option. Unless you still think you can somehow find your so called friends?"

"How did you-"

"Gojo-san…" Nanami warned, the disapproval evident in his voice before he turned to you with an apologetic look. "I filled him in on the situation. Let him take you home and I'll be over shortly once I've found your things, alright?"

The warmth in his voice took you by surprise. Just like that you were diffused and the anger melted into shame. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. Not only have you caused trouble to every person before you tonight but you made yourself look like a stupid ungrateful bitch.

"… Okay, yeah. I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused," you sniffled when you felt your nose start to sting slightly. God damn it all. You were not going to cry. "Thanks for your help everyone."

"… That's alright," Ieiri said eventually. "Take care okay, [y/n]?"

Mei and Geto both waved back at you, and there was a collective sigh of relief once Satoru finally dragged you away from the table.

After what they've seen, they were frankly surprised there wasn't more kicking and screaming given how unusually hostile you were with the white-haired man. A far cry from how you two were normally were around each other, sure you two have had your moments and little arguments like this weren't too rare when it came to you and Satoru, but this was probably the first time any of them have seen you so angry.

One thing was painfully obvious to everyone that just witnessed your little lovers spat though and that was your relationship with him probably hasn't ended with as much finality as you had described it to be. This, of course, was hilarious to Geto Suguru.

"How much do you bet she'll end up in his bed again tonight?"