Disclaimer: Gravitation does not belong to me. Ne, I doubt Gravitation would be as good if I owned it anyway. I'm not making any money out of this either and am just borrowing its characters….
A/N: First off, let's begin with a big, bold… GOMEN! I feel so bad, but this chapter took forever. I think the summer holidays really got to me – that and the fact that I was off writing for a month and caught a bad writer's block in the middle of a Tamashii no Rufuran side-fic. Once again, I'm so very, very sorry… and here we thought the wait for fourteen had been long… I don't really have much to say, not right now… But But! So happy this was finally beta-ed! XD I've had this finished for a while now, but Beta-san was busy with work (and now I have work X.x) so this was further delayed. XD Special thanks go to Pato-chan (funny how nicknames evolve…), Boogie-chan (and all the lovely Phantoms…), Bunny-chan, for lotsa support and help along the chapter and all those plot goodness and then anime-earth – my golden, 160th reviewer. snickers I do have something for my faithful readers… sort of. I've recently gotten myself a tabby, I mean, tablet so I've been drawing and coloring like mad. Hopefully, in my absence, my drawing skills have improved enough to appease my.. faithful readers… (are there any left? ;;) I'll leave the links to the pics at the end of this chapter but for now, I'll write down the results to the.. gasp Who do you think (a.) should die/ (b.) will die/ c.) shouldn't die poll! Come on people, input is fun :D
So far:
a.) Tohma 2 votes, Juni 1 vote
b.) Tohma 2 votes, random ASK member 1 vote
c.) Yukito 1 vote, Juni 1 vote, Ruka 1 vote, Eiri 2 votes, Hiro 1 vote
Oh, the fun. And, I'm feeling like uh… rewarding the….. the 170th reviewer (I'm a hopeless dreamer) a pic :D So.. review ; huggles her beta-reader Pato-chan! I wuv you! You're the bestest! Any more errors in this chappie is mine, because I did the final editting. X.x Oh and another poll for everyone :D! This time for our OCs. So… who's the most-liked and most-hated OC? Winners will get drawn, probably, in their.. uh.. element. (Ai looking evil? XP)
So, finally, we come to the fic :D I hope everyone likes it. From now on, I am back to hard-working mode. XD I'm sorry if this one is all the more out of touch with the other chapters, I'm still trying to get the same grip of the ever-evolving plot as I did before. Enjoyness :D!
Fifteen: Lost Complex (1)
Takumi 'hmph'ed, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the evidence held in his left hand. The maintenance team had decided to use sturdy metal wires for the system of suspended platforms across the ceiling, as opposed to the more traditional ropes. They were meant to withstand tons of weight without snapping, to carry people through the wooden platforms above the ceiling without as much as swaying, but they certainly weren't made to withstand sabotage. The wire he held in his hand was no exception. With several of its metallic strings curled in a loop, looking very much like human hair when exposed to fire, and then the rest cut neatly, their edges perfectly flat as the wire shone in the dim light, Takumi didn't have to see any more to know what had been done. They had been lucky nothing of great value had been on that platform - just junk, broken lights, a few paint tins and other working materials. But then, all of those would have been enough to smash Kyoko's body beyond recognition, considering the height the platform had been suspended from and the added weight of everything on it.
He sighed and gave the evidence one last look of disgust before flinging it aside and standing up. It was too easy. He really should have taken matters into his own hands. If he had, then it wouldn't have led to this, but it was now too late for him to stop what had trespassed and all that was left for him to do was to make do with the situation.
"Taking matters into your own hands again. Aren't we, Takumi?" The mock clear in the voice of its speaker made Takumi snap his head to its source instantly, his dark eyes narrowing dangerously upon instinct knowing who the speaker was. He regarded the coffee-haired young man standing behind him indifferently and returned the condescending smile on the man's lips with one of his own.
"Setsuna, what are you doing here?" Takumi asked slowly, almost pensively. The other teen shrugged and the smile on his lips widened a notch as he began walking towards the raven-haired vocalist with easy strides.
"I just heard about what happened here and decided to see things for myself," Setsuna answered conversationally, his eyes wandering all over the scene as if to display his apparent curiosity. He stopped right beside his rival and began nonchalantly surveying the area from this standpoint, seeming to take in the negative emotions radiating from his rival, before taking a small step forward and crouching down on the floor. He picked up the wire in one hand with false curiosity before letting a shrewd smile spread on his lips.
"I thought my rival would be here so… 'Why not—?'" He continued suddenly, the statement coming off detached as if he'd been saying something in his mind and only decided to say it out loud towards the end.
"What do you want, Setsuna?" Takumi all but hissed and refrained from turning around and openly glaring at the man. He would not debase himself like this and give the man the satisfaction of seeing his usually calm face marred with an open display of anger. He refused to do so. Setsuna chuckled at his reaction, making him all the more uneasy.
"You hate me that much to think I have an ulterior motive behind everything. Don't you, Taku?" Setsuna questioned back in a dangerously calm tone. Takumi did not answer him and Setsuna threw the evidence on the floor then stood up. The fact that Setsuna was and would always be taller than him intimidated Takumi a bit and he knew the other vocalist took that tiny detail to his advantage. As if to answer Takumi's current train of thought, Setsuna and turned to Takumi with a predatory smile, absentmindedly brushing the invisible dirt on his pants.
"I'm just here to see how an old friend's holding up," Setsuna told his rival. "We're both vocalists and I hope you haven't forgotten about the competition."
Takumi twisted his head slightly and saw the other boy pocketing his hands in his jeans at the edge of his sight. There was a smirk on the other's face, and that he knew because of the voice with which he spoke afterwards.
"Even if you insist on forgetting about it or telling everyone else that you're not joining," Setsuna sneered, "and you're playing just for the sake of it… I know you are…"
The sound that Setsuna's expensive shoes made as he twisted and turned on his heels and took several steps forward carried to Takumi's ears, filling the tension-filled air when he failed to produce a witty comeback against his rival's words. Moments later, he found his shoulder connected with the other singer's and he turned his head sharply to meet his brown eyes defiantly.
"Because that's how you are and I won't let you win." A smile flitted across his face, and then the connection was gone, leaving Takumi blinking in sudden disorientation.
Takumi watched as the coffee-haired boy began walking away, his dark eyes fixing on his back questioningly though he wasn't quite sure what he was questioning. When Setsuna stopped after gaining a few feet's distance from him and locked gazes with him once more, Takumi was taken by surprise.
"So, how did the investigation go, Detective Takahashi?" Setsuna inquired with mock curiosity. Takumi smiled at him coldly and folded his arms across his chest.
"It was an accident. The maintenance team must have missed this one after last month's accident…" Takumi paused and his smile softened, though it did not reach the dark pits of his eyes. "But I'm calling the maintenance team again this afternoon so there won't be any chances of this happening ever again in the near future, Mitsusawa-san."
Setsuna mirrored the smile on Takumi's face, giving a false sense of camaraderie between the perpetual rivals. He made no attempt, however, at disguising the truth his eyes displayed otherwise. "The school will be glad to know you're doing your job so well," he remarked before adding, "You've taken after your uncle after all, Detective-san. It must run in the family." He allowed a small dose of sarcasm in his voice before directing an icy smile at Takumi and turning away from him. Setsuna waved his hand in dismissal as he walked away and Takumi followed his retreating form until he disappeared from his field of sight, a mixture of emotions he wouldn't have been able to explain or bothered to care about pooling within him. Finally, he stalked out of the place, meaning to search for assistance before Takagi-sensei came to check out for his progress.
"Yes, Aniki! You look handsommuuuu!"
Eiri rolled his eyes at his younger brother's poor display of English skills, or his lack thereof. He knew there had to be a catch for his apparent gift when it came to learning languages. It was Karma. The older brother got the brains and the younger brother got the brains in his pants. He stepped out of the bathroom finally, ignoring the less-than comfortable look his brother was giving him and walked towards the bed where a brown leather jacket was spread. He put it on, glad to have something to cover the pieces of indecent clothing on his back and heaved a long-suffering sigh when Tatsuha made a whimpering sound.
"What?" He snapped irritatingly at his brother who was, by now, giving him a pitiful, puppy-eyed look.
"I took all night picking out clothes for you! And… and you're going to cover my masterpiece just like that!?" Tatsuha protested; his voice laced with mock disbelief as he pointed accusingly at his elder brother, who smirked deviously.
"I don't think anyone should call your clothes a masterpiece," Eiri told him and eyed the clothing underneath the jacket with disgust. "Especially if they make you look like a two-bit whore."
"Hey! That hurt!" Tatsuha complained.
"Oh, I forget," Eiri drawled, sneering as he shook his head slightly. "You wear this type of clothes whenever you go out with your 'Honey bunny'." Tatsuha opened his mouth and the teenager gaped wordlessly at his older brother who just laughed.
"Tha—that's not fair." Tatsuha said finally, at length, while Eiri leisurely sat himself on the bedside table and lit himself a cigarette. The older Uesugi craned his head up and grinned at his younger brother innocently. "Huh? What? What's not fair?"
Tatsuha stared at him incredulously and sighed. He walked towards the bed dejectedly and plopped down beside his brother. "You do that and then nobody has a say anymore," Tatsuha grumbled before letting out a loud groan. Eiri regarded him with a 'hmph' and took a long drag off his cigarette.
"So, what are you planning on doing?" Eiri asked after a while, idly puffing smoke and watching it dissipate into the air. He was sure his lecherous and cunning little brother had something planned. He almost always did whenever he put effort into something. He knew his brother wasn't the type to pour his efforts into a fruitless cause, and getting Yuki Eiri in leather halter-top that showed more of his chest than it covered, a fishnet shirt beneath it, and matching leather pants complete with a number of all-leather belts was no easy feat. It took a lot of effort… and weariness from his part. He knew, normally, he wouldn't have let Tatsuha even talk about getting him into something like the number he was wearing now, but he had been tired and weary, not to mention in a state that wasn't normally him. Everything the night before had been simply unreal, like it had never happened, even. He wondered briefly, with a tiny smirk, just how unreal things could get from this point on – he looked forward to reacting justly to whatever else fate had in store for him. He hadn't even given much thought about what he'd do then and now he was virtually locked out of his apartment. He had some serious thinking to do later, that much, he knew.
Tatsuha lifted his left arm and pulled his jacket sleeve up to take a glance at his watch. He smirked at his elder brother. "Well, nothing now though Mika told me to drag your sorry ass down to N-G where she could talk to you about the current situation…." He waited for the quizzical expression on his brother's face then continued, "Then we still have to wait for Ryu-chan. And after that we'll hit the bars and do whatever Ryu-chan wants us to do—"
"You seem to be getting along very well with that Sakuma-san, hn?"
"Huh, Aniki?" The older Uesugi got up and put off his cigarette on the nearest ashtray before turning to his younger brother.
"Might as well go for a walk," he said simply. Tatsuha gaped. "You might as well call your "Honey-bunny" to go look for us around the block. I need some fresh air."
"Fre—sh…air?" Tatsuha arched an eyebrow and continued staring ahead blankly with a puzzled expression until the sound of the door opening caught his attention. "Oi! Aniki! Aren't you even slightly worried about the fangirls… the media… and… Oi!"
Eiri stopped by the doorway and gave his brother a tiny, smug smirk before slipping a pair of sunglasses on. "Seriously, how many girls do you think expect to see their favorite novelist dressed like a man-whore in the streets of Tokyo, in broad daylight, for fresh air?"
His eyes darted from the road to the rearview mirror to get a better look at the fidgeting girl in the back seat. He made a small, reassuring smile before turning to the road once more. Fukuyama Kyoko was every bit the simple nineteen year old girl she had introduced herself to be as she sat at the back of his car, long slender, manicured fingers clutching at the hem of her leather skirt as her eyes wandered from her lap to the front occasionally. It was hard to imagine the very same girl was bent on unearthing the mystery surrounding some famous pop star, but Yukito was sure she had her own reasons. Reasons he did not mind hearing about though he knew she probably wouldn't tell him anyway….
"I think… if you think it's absolutely worth it then… Fukuyama-san shouldn't just give up," he said finally, hesitatingly though with all honesty, in response to the question he knew had been bothering Kyoko for a while now. Kyoko looked up and from the view the rearview mirror offered, he knew he had said the right thing when her face lit up, literally, turning a few shades redder. Yukito thought that was rather odd, though he suspected it was one of those things girls naturally did. He didn't hang around that many girls, but he knew, at least, they were a lot more sensitive than men.
"I agree with Fujiwara-san here," Nanae added quietly from her seat beside Yukito. She shifted slightly in her seat and turned to the flustered girl, giving her a gentle smile. "If you think it's worth it, then you should go for it."
"I…" Kyoko whispered before trailing away. "I think it's worth it," she said after a brief pause with more confidence. Nanae eyed her closely, her dark eyes imploring her to examine the matter deeper, and she frowned and sighed before lowering her eyes to her lap again. She balled her hands into fists and clenched them tightly until her knuckles turned white. "I still don't think it's an accident. Somebody…somebody was out to kill me…."
Yukito pursed his lips. "Well, accident or not… I guess you would have come to this choice anyway –to continue or not to continue, Fukuyama-san," he paused and sighed. Takumi had said it was purely an accident and there was nothing intentional about a few cables snapping due to negligence and a few extra tons of junk, but even he found himself doubting the outcome of the analysis. He trusted Takumi's credibility and if anything had escaped a sharp person like their vocalist, then the person responsible for the so-called accident was cunning, indeed. "If you think it's worth it then… there's no choice but to go ahead, ne?"
Kyoko was silent as she digested what Yukito had said and the brunette hoped she trusted him enough – enough to understand he was offering nothing but the truth… as he saw it. The keyboardist watched her closely, his attention darting back and forth between the road and the distressed girl as he waited for her response patiently.
"What…" Kyoko began hesitantly. "What would Kasumi-san do?" She blurted out suddenly causing the older woman's eyebrows to furrow a bit with mild surprise. Yukito blinked at the girl before focusing on driving again, leaving only a part of his brain attentive for any more progress in the conversation.
Nanae laughed softly. "Excuse me?"
Kyoko smiled sheepishly before leaning forward. "I mean, if you were in my situation…" Her tone of speech turned inquisitive. It was the kind of tone she used when she questioned anyone connected to the case.. "…with risks like this, would you…" she trailed away and frowned slightly, "would you… still continue?"
The red light came up and Yukito tuned the whole of his attention back to the two young women. He watched Nanae curiously and waited for the older woman's reply with anticipation.
"I probably would…" Nanae began quietly before breaking into a smile and meeting Kyoko's deep blue eyes with her dark eyes, "….quit," she finished quietly before turning away. She turned her gaze to the window beside her and looked out before breaking a simple explanation to her choice. "I'm not one to take risks, to be honest, Fukuyama-san. There are things you absolutely have to fight for, and things you should learn to let go…. And for me, I think my career and my life," she paused and smiled, "comfortable as it is now, are more important."
Kyoko stared at her and she laughed softly. "That wasn't very helpful now, was it, Fukuyama-san?"
"N-no…. I… I think that was very helpful." Kyoko broke into a smile and she sat back on her seat before turning to Yukito, whose unreadable eyes were still fixed on the older woman.
"Oi, Yuki-chan. The green light just went on," Kyoko said suddenly, pointing at the traffic light overhead. "Or do you think we should wait for a honk and then some police on patrol to pull up beside us?"
The brunette blinked once and then shook his head before placing disorientated hands back on the steering wheel. Kyoko laughed amusedly and Yukito hung his head, a light blush reddening his cheeks. "Gomen, gomen… I was just… taken aback…."
"I'm sorry. I can be very honest sometimes," Nanae confessed and Yukito caught her bowing apologetically at Kyoko from the edge of his sight. He shook his head with a slight smile.
"N-no, no, not that way. I meant…." He began an explanation and then paused, searching for the right words to say exactly what he thought about it. "I thought it was extremely… honest... to say that. Because I probably would too, but… I would have said I'd continue anyway…". His eyes wandered to the rearview mirror again, to watch Kyoko, whose eyes were fixed on his very own reflection on the mirror. The College student was watching him with wide, interested eyes. "…even if I wouldn't have, just to make Fukuyama-san feel better. Because, for me, that's the right thing to do, I suppose. But Nanae-san was honest and I think she's right. It depends on the person…"
Yukito smiled. "You can choose to stop now, you lose nothing. But you can continue against all odds and….. see what happens. It's your choice, ne? Fukuyama-san?"
"I won't lose nothing…" Kyoko mumbled quietly, almost in protest, with her eyebrows drawn before quickly turning to Nanae for her own two cents.
"Like Fujiwara-san said, it matters to you," Nanae said simply. "If this man was out to scare you and to warn you… then you can choose to give in to him…." She smiled, "or you can challenge him. It's all up to you. This is your choice."
Yukito grinned, agreeing with the older woman fully, while Kyoko, who seemed completely inspired by Nanae's words, nodded eagerly.
"That was…" Kyoko frowned and then grinned impishly. "Thank You," she said in English before breaking into a hearty laugh. "That was very helpful, you know?" She remarked. "And…. I think I'll give it some thought."
"I think you'll have to give it more than just some thought, Fukuyama-san!" Yukito pointed out jokingly which made Kyoko laugh.
"Yuki-chan…. That was sweet." Yukito blinked, sure there was something wrong about what Kyoko had just said until she spoke again, at which point all thoughts of that were erased. "Isn't that the Es-NA building?" The black-haired, College student was pointing outside the window to her right innocently and the building in question slowly rolled out of sight. Yukito laughed nervously.
"I think we just passed it…" Kyoko suggested solemnly and noted with amusement how Yukito began looking left and right for the next U turn in near-panic while Nanae broke into quiet laughter.
"It's okay, Fujiwara-san. There's no need to panic…" Nanae assured the boy and when he turned to her she shook her head. "You can let me down here. I'll walk to the building. It won't take more than five minutes."
"Are you sure? …I mean, Nanae-san …I can…. Drive around and—"
"No, it's okay. I'm sure of it." She paused to take a look at the watch on her right hand and looked up, smiling, once more. "And I have a lot of time for some exercise. I'll be perfectly fine if you let me go down here."
"Are you sure?" The keyboardist pulled up at the curb and turned to look at the raven-haired woman with concern. "I mean, it won't take long if I dri—"
"It's fine," ASK's manager said, cutting him off effectively by placing a hand on his shoulder and then leaning forward to plant a chaste kiss on his cheek. Yukito spluttered and Kyoko's eyes bulged. "I thank you, Fujiwara-san… for your concern." The older woman pulled away and then briefly turned to Kyoko, who looked surprised and flustered for a few moments at… something. Yukito wasn't quite sure what had happened.
"Uh…" Yukito said after recovering from the shock of the sudden kiss. A healthy blush spread across the keyboardist cheeks and he shook his head. "It was… it was nothing….." He paused and swallowed nervously. "Nanae-san…"
Nanae smiled at him again and stepped out of the car. The ASK Manager was just about to close the door after her when Kyoko leaned forward from the backseat and held a pen and a small black notebook out to her. Nanae blinked at the items held out to her and gave the younger woman a questioning look. "Fukuyama-san?"
Kyoko smiled at the older woman and held the notebook and the pen closer to the woman. "I like you, Kasumi-san! And I make it a habit to make sure the people who can be my friends becomes my friends so—" She gave the pen a tiny playful wave for emphasis while she opened the notebook with one hand to an empty page. "You go write down your telephone number and email address, if you have one, right here…!"
Nanae took the notebook and then the pen with a gracious nod and then proceeded to writing her contact information on the notebook. She then handed the notebook back to Kyoko, whose eyes lit up at the Manager's neat and elegant penmanship.
"Thank you, Kasumi-san!" Kyoko put the notebook and the pen back into her bag and grinned. "I'll call you sometime. Let's eat lunch together!"
"I look forward to that, then," the Manager said with a smile and turned to Yukito again. "Thank you again, Fujiwara-san. I look forward to seeing you again," she said. After saying that, she closed the door after her and waved one last time through the window before walking away. Yukito watched her for a few moments before beginning to drive again. Kyoko, who had been watching Yukito for a while, smiled impishly before leaning against the driver's seat.
"You like her," she said in a singsong voice before laughing when the blush on Yukito's cheeks intensified. The keyboardist unconsciously lifted a hand to push the glasses up his nose nervously.
"Uh….well…"
"Ne, Yuki-chan, do you have a girlfriend?" The girl craned her head slightly to get a better view of the brunette, who avoided her gaze but kept on smiling nevertheless "Do you like older women?"
Yukito was silent. "I'm engaged," he said simply, and that statement seemed to lift his confidence. "You… you can say I like older women." He smiled and then turned to her. "Ai… my fiancée… she's older than me."
Kyoko blinked once and then her eyebrow twitched. She stared at Yukito in disbelief. "You're… engaged?!"
"Uh… yes." The brunette laughed nervously and turned away. "Is it… surprising--?"
"YES!" The girl yelled and Yukito began laughing nervously again. Kyoko shook her head then when she realized she'd just yelled and quickly added, "I mean, girlfriend is fine.. I mean, you're all nice-looking and… boyfriend material but... engaged?! That's just unbelievable, Yukito! You're seventeen… and… and.. that's not the right age for engagements…"
Yukito stared and she clamped her mouth shut and smiled apologetically.
"If it helps then, Fukuyama-san—"
"You can call me Kat. 'Fukuyama-san' is too formal anyway…" Kyoko interrupted and Yukito nodded.
"I mean.. uh… Kat…" He sighed, "Kyoko-san,… it was arranged." He waited for the girl's response and smiled pitifully. When had the situation become suddenly… uncomfortable?
"So you don't love her?" She deadpanned and his eyes widened. He laughed nervously and ran a hand into his hair.
"N-no, I do love her. It was just arranged…" He stopped and suddenly pointed ahead. "That's the place right? Your Campus?"
Kyoko quickly averted her gaze to the direction Yukito was pointing at and smiled brightly, momentarily forgetting their less-than comfortable conversation. "Yeah, that's it…" She wrapped her arms around Yukito and grinned. "Thanks for driving me, ne, Yuki-chan?" She took out her notebook and pen again then handed it to him as he stopped the car right beside the gate.
The brunette stared at the items and then made a small sigh before accepting them.
The Nittle Grasper vocalist grinned as he watched the familiar blond and raven-haired men walking up to him underneath his tinted glasses, his mind already jumping to what he had planned for them, or more specifically, him. When the two were close enough, he held out the small paper bag he carried to the raven-haired Uesugu.
"Your clothes, Ta-chan," he said confidently before turning to the blond and smirking. "Are you ready, Yuki-san?"
The romance novelist sneered and took a drag off his cigarette before finally responding sarcastically. "I can hardly wait."
"I'm sure you'll like it, Yuki-san." Ryuichi told him before walking to his lover's side and linking an arm with him. "I think you'll find it interesting." He paused and continued in a heavy drawl, "Very… very.. interesting…"
"Ne, Ryu-chan, are we going back to the hotel so I can change to this?" Tatsuha questioned innocently and grinned when Ryuichi leaned forward and whispered in his ears, "You can change in the next club we go to… with me. Na.. no.. da…"A small frown marred Tohma's face and he looked over his shoulder warily at the sound of the wooden doors opening and footsteps on the carpeted floor. A flash of gold caught his sight and he turned away, continuing to watch the sunset, or what could be seen of it from his glass window, sure of who his unannounced visitor was.
"Ryuichi's gone out now. Hasn't he, K-san?" He asked softly, his eyes narrowing very slightly with the knowledge that Ryuichi was up to something. He didn't need to see Ryuichi to know for sure he was up to something and the recent events just proved his instincts right.
The American smiled and again the NG President didn't need to see him to know he did. "Yeah, he just did."
Tohma smiled. "Thank You, K-san." He paused and then placed a hand on the window. "How did today go?"
There was a pause, K seemed to be hesitating. "Ryuichi agreed and they're performing on the twenty-fifth. We may get two slots in the show, depending on the outcome of a competition they're holding." Another pause, "You knew that though. Didn't you, Seguchi?"
His lips curved into a wide smile and he spoke in an amused tone. "K-san, why are you here?"
He heard the American's low laughter and continued smiling, if not smiling wider. "I'm here to know whether you'll interfere, Mr. Seguchi."
"And what makes you think I'll interfere with that? I gave you permission, didn't I?"
K laughed again, "Well, a Seguchi Tohma who doesn't pull strings can't be normal, right? I like to be sure you won't."
It was Tohma who laughed this time and he spun around and placed his gloved hands into his coat pockets before smiling innocently at the American Manager. "But you wouldn't even know if and when I pull strings and cover things up a bit, K-san. Don't you agree my connections are rather vast?"
"You're right about that." K grinned and took a step forward. "But I'd like to hear you say it still. Give me peace of mind, Seguchi."
Amber eyes narrowed slightly as they assessed the American Manager who smiled smugly. The silence between them stretched for a few long minutes before a sharp ringing sound cut through it. Tohma automatically walked back to his desk and picked up his cell phone.
K eyed him suspiciously from where he stood across the office and he smiled and turned to him. "Give me just a few moments, K-san. We'll settle things afterwards." He waved towards the sofas and said, "Please, take a seat, K-san, while you wait. I won't take long."
He answered the call then and silently listened to the voice on the other line. K watched the NG President closely when he finally spoke. Tohma's voice was calm, soothing as it always was. "Ah… you're calling about that…" K's eyebrows shot up in curiosity, but continued listening on in silence while Tohma continued. "No. I'm busy now. I can't go now. We'll do something about it later, though. I'll arrange a time…." A small smile broke on his lips. "I'll see you then….Take care, too…"
"You were listening. Weren't you, K-san?" Tohma said finally when he hung up. He placed the phone back on his desk and walked towards the American Manager with an amused smile. "That's very unbecoming of you," he added.
K grinned. "As a Manager, I make it my business to know what my band… and everyone else around it… are doing." He paused and the grin on his lips widened. "You didn't even bother to go out either, Seguchi. I assumed you didn't mind."
"Who was that on the phone, Seguchi?" K asked finally. The smile on the President's lips wavered slightly, an action that had lasted only a mere split second, but the American's expert eyes picked it up anyway.
"Mika," Tohma answered him. "She was asking whether I'll be coming home early tonight." His smile turned cruel. "Or are you interested in what we're having for dinner tonight, too, K-san?"
"I'm more interested in why you can't make it tonight," K countered, standing up from the sofa. He placed his hands on his hips and grinned. "So, do I have your word about not interfering, Mr. Seguchi?"
The cunning NG President was silent for a long while, his lips pressed into a thin line. And then his lips moved, slowly, carefully forming the words he had thought of saying.
"You have my word, K-san."
The look on his eyes told K 'But that does not matter in this game, does it?' but he smiled anyway and gave a mock nod before spinning around and heading back to the door.
"Thank you, Mr. Seguchi. That's all I wanted," he said in English and then stepped out the door, ignoring the unreadable look in the NG President's eyes.
And now…. Uh.. the response to the uber cool, awesome, amazing people who reviewed my fic will be… in another site ; Because, it's… long and being gone for.. oh, around five months really does give you quite a lot of… response. coughs
The link is here: http : www . angelfire . com/anime5/bitterxsaccharine/Fifteen-responses.htm but I think I'll post up the linkie in my user profile anyway ;
And, as promised, the links to my random sketches and other things: http : img . photobucket . com/albums/v207/miraiaria/ The pics are in folders to feel free to explore. For the more polished drawings and whatnot, visit my deviantART account. As mentioned before, I'm white-crescent over at deviantART. :D
I can't believe I was dancing about crossing the 100th review line then. Now I have more reason to dance about! :D I am so completely, utterly, behind my Gravitation fanfic-reading… but but… as have become usual, I am faithfully following Aja/imayb1's ABC series and reading any random lemonfic along. Looking to catching up with The Opposite of Gravity, Magnetism, Kanashi i Nikki no Mahoutsukai and a loot more fanfics. ; See, Naruto really ate my brain this time, that and FullMetal Alchemist and Kyou Kara Maou – which is evil, evil evil. Maybe I'm watching too many animes… and fandoms. Chapter sixteen is in the works now, fear not, it shall be done soon… and so shall this series. I'm really, really looking forward to finishing Yuki because it's.. so… so… close. Then, after this, I can tend more openly to my… other… pet…fics…. Wait... is this chapter… too short? ;; I feel like I've lost my touch some more… ;;
:D (because my other smiley won't work...T-T kicks FFNet.. I give up. Ffnet must die T-T)