Full Focus

Mamoru anxiously paced his living room while staring at the Benefactor's number on his new phone. He needed to call the man to discuss purchasing a vehicle and possibly moving out of Radford Court, but he feared having his propositions shot down right away. Usagi's voice came through to him: 'You won't know until you ask. The worst he can say is no.' Her invisible presence gave him the courage to press the green icon.

"It's nice to hear from you, Mamoru," was the first thing the man said. "How have you been?"

"Well, thank you," he answered.

"I see that you're calling me from a new number."

"Yes, I bought a cell phone the other day."

"I'm not at all upset that you finally decided to communicate with the rest of the world." Most of Mamoru's anxiety dissipated at that. "Are there any other significant life changes you want to tell me about?"

He couldn't have asked for a better opening. "Onjin-san, there are actually a couple of things I wanted to discuss with you. The first is acquiring a vehicle—" The man started to sigh, so he rushed on. "—which I would use to commute to the hospital from a new residence."

"And where exactly are you thinking of moving?"

Good, he sounded curious instead of angry. "I have the opportunity to live off-campus in a quiet neighborhood. I believe I told you about my neighbors during our last conversation?" Hopefully he could garner some sympathy. "This place would be much better for working on my dissertation. The rent is also less than Radford Court by three-hundred dollars."

"Those are all valid points Mamoru-kun, but whatever you save on rent would simply go toward your car payment."

"I could get a job and cover it myself—"

"No, I want you to stay focused on earning your PhD. You don't need any distractions now." The Benefactor sighed again, but he sounded content. "Having a car would be an excellent way to start building your credit, but you need to earn your license first. I'd also like you to do some research and send me a list of vehicles you're interested in. I want you to continue taking good care of yourself, so if moving away from the school is something you deem necessary, I hope it works out. I trust you to handle everything efficiently."

Mamoru could barely contain his giddiness. "Thank you very much, Onjin-san." He let out a whoop as soon as he hung up, and after his excitement ebbed he dug through the papers on his counter for the phone number from Joe.

"Ello?" asked a voice he didn't recognize.

"Uh, hi. Is Joe Levin there?"

"One sec." Mamoru cringed as the man bellowed not far from the receiver. "Joe! Some bloke on the phone fer ya!" He caught the accent, wondering if the man was Irish or Scottish.

"Hello?"

"Hi Joe, it's Mamoru Chiba. You gave me this number just before you moved."

"So I did. What's up?"

"I was hoping you might be free to help me out today."

"With what?" he asked in mild suspicion.

"I need some lessons on car maintenance and driving. You seemed fairly knowledgeable."

Joe made a sound of superiority. "I am– I grew up helping my dad in his auto repair shop. Are you telling me you don't know how to drive?"

"I don't," Mamoru admitted, "I've never even sat behind a steering wheel." This statement elicited some noises of disbelief and despair. "Can you teach me what I need to know to get my license?"

"Of course I can!" he exclaimed. "I'll swing by the apartments to pick you up and we'll go somewhere you can practice. What time is it, ten? I bet it'll only take you a couple hours to get a good handle on my Zuk."

Mamoru glanced at the clock. "I have to meet some girls for lunch at noon so that works perfectly for me."

"Aren't you the player," Joe remarked. There was a pause as the Scottish-or-Irish person said something in the background. "Hey, would it be okay if Kaelan tags along with us? He's a car guy too, he can give you advice about what to shop for."

"That's fine. The more the merrier, they say." Once the call ended, Mamoru went to take a shower and get dressed, pausing when he caught his reflection in the mirror. There was something different about it, a kind of all-over glow he'd never seen before. It must be his aura projecting newfound self-confidence.

Ami glanced at her watch and sighed irritably. "Will you stop that?" Mina chided. "He's only five minutes late."

She pursed her lips; Mina knew punctuality was important to her. Ami assumed Mamoru was also the type who placed a high value on time, but perhaps she had misjudged him during their initial encounter at Amabie. She rested her chin in one hand while browsing the menu, debating between various combinations of soups, salads, and sandwiches. Her attention was diverted outside when a loud vehicle pulled into a space, its raspy exhaust making the windows vibrate. Ami was shocked to see Mamoru exit the driver's side and even more confused as two boys followed him into the bistro, all three of them claiming stools at the table she shared with Mina.

"Hi girls, sorry I kept you waiting. We were across town," Mamoru explained.

"Did you drive here?" Ami inquired. "I thought you didn't have a car. Or is that a truck?"

"Technically it's an SUV, and I suppose some introductions are in order. Ami, Mina, this is Joe Levin. He's from Russia and is in his final year at UW. He's been kind enough to let me drive his rig around today."

Joe smiled warmly as he reached across the table to shake their hands. "Hajimemashite."

"You speak Japanese?" Mina gasped.

"Quite well," he answered. "I hope you weren't thinking of gossiping about us."

"We would never!" To test his claim she turned to Ami and stage-whispered, "He's pretty cute, don't you think?" which made Joe's cheeks turn pink.

Mamoru next indicated the stoic young man one year his senior. "Kaelan Burke is an Irish expatriate who owns the place I'm moving into next month. He's probably the wealthiest person you'll ever meet in person."

"Thanks for that, Mamoru." Kaelan rolled his eyes before nodding politely at the girls, then he looked away as an embarrassed smile quirked his lips.

Mina wondered how rich he really was. Were they talking half-millionaire, millionaire, or even billionaire? Where had the money come from? Kaelan's silence throughout the conversation only continued to intrigue her, curiosity coming to a head when their food arrived. She asked him to pass the pepper, holding his gaze and brushing his hand with her fingertips as it slid her way. "Are you in the Irish mob?" she whispered, but not quietly enough because Ami dropped both her jaw and her fork.

"Minako!" she scolded, "What kind of question is that to ask someone you just met?"

Joe thought it was hilarious and covered his mouth to prevent bits of French fry from falling out while Mamoru peered at them from behind his teacup. Kaelan shook his head in mild amusement. "I can assure you I'm not a member of any criminal organizations. My money was inherited, not acquired by illegal means."

"So how wealthy are you?" Mina pressed, receiving an instant reprimand from her friend. But Kaelan only gave her a prolonged once-over, making her stomach do a little flip-flop as it dawned on her that this mature, sexy man possessed at least one mystery for her to unravel.

"Maybe you'll find out someday," was all he said.

When the waiter arrived to take their empty dishes and asked if they wanted to split the check, Kaelan proffered his card before anyone could say otherwise. "You didn't have to do that," Mamoru said, slightly miffed that his credit card had a daily spending limit.

Kaelan only shrugged. "It's my way of being thankful for meeting you." He looked at Mamoru, Ami, and Mina in turn. "I'm still the new bloke in town so I don't have any friends yet. It would be nice if I could consider you such."

The sentiment made Ami blush. "Sure… I think we'd like that." Mina and Mamoru nodded sincerely. "In that case, why don't we spend the rest of the day together? We could go to the science center or Pike Place…"

"How about the Burke Museum?" Joe suggested. "It was named in honor of Kaelan's great-great-grandfather." Ami was thrilled by this information and began questioning the man about his family history as everyone but Mina piled into the Suzuki Samurai.

"I hope you guys have fun. I have to help out a friend at the theater." Ami gave her a questioning look but she didn't want to admit it was Zach she was blowing them off for. He had been texting her all morning, plying her with flattery before outright begging her to come fill in for a sick actor. In high school Mina dreamed of becoming a teenage idol –a singer, actress, and model– but no agency would hire her. Most called her a "risky asset" even though her tanned skin and coppery locks were from natural exposure, not artificial enhancement. The more polite agencies said she didn't have "the look" they were going for.

She opened the theater's heavy main door and was presented with a lush, dimly lit forest scene. There were three actors on stage and Zach sat in the front row beside a balding older man. "Hey, thanks for coming," he greeted, hazel eyes conveying relief as he handed Mina a script. "Hop on stage, we're about to start the scene." She read that she was standing in for the role of Mommy Fortuna the Witch and would be killed by the Harpy at the end.

The actors quietly introduced themselves as Zach and their professor conferred. "I'm Schmendrick the Magician," said a baby-faced boy. He gave off a class clown vibe that likely made him perfect for the role.

"I'm Amalthea the Unicorn," said a girl with striking features and a melodious voice.

"And I'm Ruhk, your henchman," said a muscular boy who loomed over them all.

Mina had a fair amount of dialogue with each actor and there was a note in her script to gesticulate a lot. Ruhk dutifully followed her around the stage as she presented the Midnight Carnival and its illusory mythological creatures save the Harpy (the prop was currently a stuffed owl) and the Unicorn, who begged for freedom so she could resume her quest to locate her brethren. Schmendrick's spells to save the Unicorn all backfired, providing a comedic element to the otherwise serious scene. People no longer believed in magic and didn't need unicorns in the world, so Amalthea might as well stay with someone who appreciated her. But she and the Harpy were of the same force that couldn't be contained and controlled; Celaeno killed Ruhk and Mommy Fortuna as soon as Amalthea freed her.

Once Zach was satisfied with the scene's progression he dismissed everyone, asking Mina to accompany him to the nearest provider of good coffee. "What happened to the actual Mommy Fortuna?' she inquired as they trekked across campus.

"She caught the flu. I told her to stay home because I didn't want her infecting the rest of the cast, not to mention me or Professor Sinclair. It's a shame because she has a great croaky-old-lady voice. I asked you to take her place since she doesn't have an understudy." Mina hummed with comprehension. "I have the prop department designing puppets for the Harpy and the Red Bull. It's going to be so great at the end of that scene when Mommy Fortuna stands at one end of the stage and it comes swooping down on her as the lights dim and the curtain closes. I held you!" Zach shouted, flinging his arms wide.

She giggled at his exuberance. "When is the presentation date?"

"I'm hoping for January. It might be sooner if I weren't including all the elements of Two Hearts, which is the novella sequel to The Last Unicorn, but I never do anything half-assed. I couldn't just leave out a huge chunk of the story."

"Is that really your decision to make?"

Zach nodded. "This whole thing is my idea. It's not just some little project, it's the entire drama department's winter production and I'm the lead director. I couldn't believe it when Sinclair announced that he'd chosen my script." Mina raised an eyebrow. "High fantasy is really difficult to bring to the stage. It can't be too eccentric or the audience won't be able to empathize with the characters. If you don't have relatability, you don't have a successful play. Art imitates life."

"You said you received overwhelming news the night we went out for sushi…" The realization made her gasp. "Ami was reading The Last Unicorn just before we met up with you!"

"I'm not surprised. She reads a lot." Although Zach sounded blasé he was inwardly preening. According to his source on all things Ami, a fellow sophomore who shared several of her advanced classes, she didn't like the high fantasy genre to which The Last Unicorn belonged. For her to have read it meant she either wanted to critique the accuracy of the play when it came out or she was genuinely interested in his project, which meant she had a modicum of interest in him. The assumption that Zach had finally captured her attention provided a swagger to his step as he and Mina headed west to a tiny café called Lavender. The place served artisanal caffeine creations and baked goods, and the smell of freshly-ground coffee beans permeated the air. "Do you want anything?" he inquired, dangling his debit card in front of the cashier while Mina decided.

What was it with rich boys showing off their wealth today? "Sure… Can I get a medium caramel apple frappuccino and one of those white chocolate cherry galettes?"

"Ooh, I'll take a chocolate hazelnut one," Zach added. Mina pretended not to notice the twenty-dollar charge as she claimed a seat near a window, her phone chiming a minute later.

"Would you be interested in going to Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner?" she relayed. "This guy Ami and I had lunch with is offering. He wants to meet people so I don't think he'd mind if you joined us."

Zach quirked a slim eyebrow. "How do you know him? Did Mamoru ditch you two and a random guy just took his place?"

"It's not like that at all!" Mina tittered. "Mamoru showed up at the deli with these guys Kaelan and Joe. They're roommates now but Joe used to live below Mamoru in the same apartment complex."

"Wow, the lab rat has friends," he dryly remarked. "Who knew?"

She whacked his arm. "Don't call Mamoru a lab rat! He's researching a cure for breast cancer, you know!"

"Of course he is. That's the only hands-on experience he'll have with them."

Mina barked a laugh before mentally apologizing to Mamoru and giving Zach a stern look. "What do you have against him? He's so nice and super smart." The boy muttered something into his latte. "Oh, I get it– you're jealous!"

"Yeah, you're right," he admitted. "Mamoru is the dorkiest guy I've ever met but he was surrounded by hot girls at Amabie. For a moment I honestly thought you were flirting with him when I saw Usagi. And Ami asked him to tutor her." Whoops, he sounded a little resentful just then, earning a confused yet curious look from Mina. Zach waved it off. "You might as well ask Nicholas to tag along, too. The poor guy could use a big meal."

"That's a great idea!" Mina texted him as Zach sipped his bitter beverage.

Usagi leaped off her bed and sprinted to the front door when someone rang the bell, but as usual, Makoto beat her to it since she was working on an elaborate dessert in the kitchen. "Mamo-chan!" Her enthusiasm never failed to put a smile on his face. "How was dinner with everyone last night?"

"I thought it went well, but Joe kept saying he felt bad that you two couldn't join us." After removing his shoes and hanging up his coat he followed Usagi into her room, assuming his gaming position at the foot of her bed while she flopped onto it.

"Did you tell him we were out with Michiru? She took us to a nice place near her school."

"I did, but Kaelan wanted to meet you, too."

"He's that guy you're moving in with?"

Mamoru nodded. "It seems I've started a trend because Nicholas and Zach are claiming the last two rooms he had available. That reminds me…" He went into the living area to look around, Usagi following interestedly. "The mansion is… barren, to put it politely, and none of us really have an eye for interior design. You two managed to bring this place to life with only a few pieces, so I was wondering if you could help Kaelan with his décor."

Makoto paused her frosting rosettes and faced him. "You want us to outfit a mansion? What's the style? What's the budget?"

"I'm pretty sure the budget is infinite," Mamoru answered, earning sounds of awe, "and I think the style is… Edwardian?" He honestly had no clue. "I'll ask him for some pictures of the rooms."

They only had to wait a few minutes for photos to arrive. "Ooh, look at all that space and gorgeous cherry wood! Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Mako-chan?" Usagi asked.

"Yeah, we can definitely work with this," she confirmed. "Are you seeing as much Michael Amini in there as me?"

"Whose that?" Mamoru asked.

"An upscale furniture designer," Usagi answered. "Although, if Kaelan's budget really is unlimited, he could spring for some Bernadette Livingston pieces. That's like estate and palace furniture." She whipped up the website and flicked through a gallery of seating options. Mamoru thought any of them would look good in the mansion, but Kaelan had the final say.

"You know, we could just go shopping together," he suggested. "Joe and I have stuff from our apartments so we only need a few things, but Zach and Nicholas have nothing. There's also a guest room on the third floor Kaelan wants to furnish." The girls agreed that a group shopping trip would be most efficient.

The next day, Saturday, Usagi and Makoto eagerly awaited their clients. "It kind of sucks that we're not getting paid to do this," the latter stated, but she couldn't think of anything else she'd rather be doing.

"At least we get free food out of it," Usagi said, receiving a laugh. It was always a good day in her book when she could hang out with new friends and eat without having to cook something. One would think Makoto's culinary skills had rubbed off on her after several years. One would be sorely mistaken.

Once the five boys arrived they all went to Seattle Lighting so Kaelan could pick out a chandelier for the foyer. Although Mamoru and Joe insisted they didn't need anything and were just tagging along for moral support because Nicholas hated shopping unless it was for groceries, they both ended up with little luxuries including new pillows, quality linens, bachelor's chests which were a step up from ordinary nightstands according to Usagi, and some actual artwork instead of cheap posters to decorate their walls. Zach kept commenting that Kaelan was nouveau riche and didn't know what he was doing, so he finally broke down and asked the girls to take him to a premium distributor. After a two-hour consultation, they'd ordered furniture for every room in the mansion with the help of a virtual design program. "Are you happy now?" Kaelan demanded, waving the invoice in Zach's face. "I just spent two-hundred grand on stuff I've never even heard of, like divans and sconces."

Zach simply nodded his approval. Unlike Kaelan he'd been born into wealth and grew up knowing that one needed to spend their money in order to be respected in society. Otherwise, what was the point of a vast fortune?

A few days later, several trucks arrived at the Burke Mansion to drop off its new furnishings. The boys rolled up their sleeves and began the arduous process of unboxing, assembling, and situating everything starting with the guest bedroom on the third floor. The second floor contained four bedrooms and two bathrooms, plus the master bed and bath in addition to a huge study complete with wall shelving. Since the house had been built by Kaelan's great-grandfather John Matthew Burke before the turn of the 20th century, most of the books were from the Victorian and Edwardian eras and worth a bit of money to collectors. When Kaelan's grandfather John Thomas Burke inherited the mansion in 1955 he had it lightly remodeled to accommodate more modern technologies, but it had been over half a century since then and the house was due for some 21st-century upgrades such as solar power, water recycling, and floor heating which it would receive from Nicholas in lieu of him being able to pay actual rent.

They finished hauling glass tables and lounge chairs to the pool and collapsed into them, draining water bottles as quickly as they were opened. "Everything looks good," Mamoru said to break the long silence that followed. "I'm glad you agreed to let Usagi and Makoto help you."

"Me too," Kaelan replied. "Now it feels like people actually live here." He groaned, got up, and returned to the ballroom, a massive circular space with a marble floor and painted ceiling. At one side was a long, curved bar in which Kaelan had discovered a few very old bottles of whisky. He opened one of them and poured its remains into five crystal glasses, handing them to his housemates. "Welcome home, lads." They drank simultaneously and Mamoru stifled a cough; it was strong stuff so Kaelan couldn't blame him. "Alright, next order of business– what do you think about throwing a Halloween party?"

"Here?" Nicholas asked.

"Right here in this room– I think it'd be perfect. We put up some lights, some fog machines, hire a DJ and someone to cater the food…" He trailed off, hoping they would chime in with ideas.

"Who are you thinking of inviting?" Joe queried next.

Kaelan traced his mustache as he considered it. "I thought it could be just us and the girls… if they want to come, that is."

"You should probably invite them before other people get around to it," Mamoru suggested. "And do we want to do costumes or…?"

Zach nodded vigorously. "Of course we have to wear costumes, that's the best part about Halloween! I've been planning mine since last year. And I know a guy who's a resident DJ at one of the clubs downtown."

"Well alright then," Kaelan chuckled. "It looks like our little soiree is already set up for success!"

Makoto glanced over her shoulder every twenty seconds so she wouldn't miss Rei's arrival. The raven-tressed beauty started frequenting Amabie when she was working so they could have sushi made from leftovers and gab over Ramune and cheesecake, and tonight they potentially had a lot to discuss. Or maybe not; it depended on how Rei regarded her invitation to the party at Kaelan's house.

The bells jingled and Makoto dashed to the lunch counter, barely managing to wait until Rei took off her coat and sat down before proffering the invitation. "What's this?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at the giddy look on her friend's face. Rei peeled the wax seal with its monogram stamp and unfolded the cardstock. Once she had read its contents she lowered her glasses to meet Makoto's anxious gaze. "I'm not sure how I feel about being invited to a party by someone I don't even know. Who is 'KTB'?"

"Kaelan Thomas Burke. He's a pretty interesting guy," Makoto explained. "Please say you'll be there, Rei-chan. Me, Usagi, Mamoru, Ami, and Mina are all going, and it's a costume party! And the house itself is amazing. It has a ballroom and a pool and a conservatory!" She reined in most of her enthusiasm, smiling. "I know you're not very extroverted, but it'll only be the ten of us. That's not too many people, right?"

"I suppose not." Rei sighed and slipped the invite into her purse. "I haven't done anything to celebrate Halloween since grade school, and I have absolutely no idea what kind of costume I'd wear."

Much to her surprise, Makoto laughed. "Isn't it obvious? Witch!" Although Rei went "hmm" the notion of dressing like a modern, classy enchantress greatly resonated with her. Some of her peers already described her aesthetic as witchy, and she'd seen a gorgeous black gown for sale in one of the boutiques downtown. Perhaps with some opera gloves, a mask, and an elegant hairstyle, she could make a grand debut before her ever-expanding friend group.