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Coffee Shops and Cameras
Chapter 34
The following days passed by slowly and tediously, my focus set on adjusting back into Hikaru's life and tying up the loose ends between myself and Dad. It was strange being around everyone again, it wasn't like before. Now, rather than fitting in so seamlessly, I felt like I was trying to cram a puzzle piece into a space it didn't belong. I had so many worries hanging over me, so many lasting emotions following me from the last month that still echoed in the corner. I wished it could be as easy as slotting right back in, but everytime I felt myself get comfortable, I thought of Seika and her threats, and what they meant to Hikaru.
I'd told him that even if she followed through I wasn't going anywhere. But something told me that Hikaru wouldn't be so easily swayed. I knew his heart was in the right place and that he wanted to protect me from the onslaught of abuse the media could hurl at me, but I wished he could just understand that having him alongside a tabloid attack was still a better alternative to not having him at all. I wasn't going to sacrifice the man I loved because of some stupid bitter ex.
I love him. Even in my head it still sounded insane.
As well as Hikaru, I also had a relationship to patch up with Dad.
Hikaru had wanted me to move back in, but I knew that wasn't what was best right now. Even though we had reconciled and I'd learned of his reasoning; I still needed my own home, to retain that one sense of normality I got when sitting in my own living room with my father, surrounded by photos of familiar faces and a scent that was entirely Fujioka. I needed the comfort of home, and more than that, I needed to reassure my father.
Hikaru and I would rebuild as we overcame what was happening with Seika. And hopefully once she had been confronted – that rebuild would be all the more easy.
After my abrupt and brief disappearance back to the Hitachiin house Dad had been left dumbfounded and confused. He'd gone from watching me drown my sorrows as I drained bottles of whiskey in record timing, to opening a text that said I'd gone back to the man who had put me in that state.
He had questions. So many goddamn questions. And once again, I'd failed to properly explain myself.
I leaned forwards on my elbows against the bar top, nervously staring at my father as he dried off a cocktail glass with a hot pink towel. He stared right back, his expression both angry and disappointed.
"I'm still not talking to you" he said abruptly the moment I opened my mouth.
I sighed.
"Please Dad"
"No" he pointed at me, rag in hand, "I watched you fall apart for almost a month, I lost sleep worrying about you, then suddenly out of the blue you're back in his bed as if nothing happened"
"I told you. He didn't have a choice"
"He did have a choice. And he chose to make you feel like shit"
I palmed my face roughly and groaned, "Hikaru hasn't done this before. He did it for me. To protect me. You said yourself how much you hate seeing my photos being picked apart in the tabloids, he left so it wouldn't get worse"
"Then he shouldn't have come back" Dad snapped, "If he left to protect you then good. I'm happy he did it. But then he came back and threw you straight back into the firing line with this Seika person"
"And I'm happier this way Dad" I breathed, "I know it's not ideal. Trust me, I don't want what she's threatening either, but I also don't want to lose Hikaru. I love him. So there has to be another way than just giving in to her"
Dad didn't reply. He just stared at me, the glass and towel frozen still in his hand.
I furrowed my brow.
"Dad?"
"Say that again"
"Say what?"
"You know what"
"I'm happier this way?"
"No" he threw down the towel and leaned forwards, "The L word thing"
"Oh" I blinked, "I...love him"
It then occurred to me that I hadn't actually told Dad how I felt. Through all of it I hadn't mentioned once what Hikaru meant to me. I chewed my lip.
"Since when were you in love?" he sounded almost outraged he hadn't found out sooner.
"I...I don't know. For a while maybe, it was all kind of rushed"
"Rushed?" he scoffed, "I've seen race horses move slower than your relationship"
I bit back a chuckle.
"Have you told him?" he asked, some of the resignation melting from his expression.
I nodded.
He breathed a sigh, "And if he's got an ounce of sense then I'm guessing he loves you too..."
He didn't wait for me to answer.
"You do understand that this whole thing is a giant shit show right?" he eyed me knowingly.
I gave a tight smile, "I'm aware"
"You're not moving back over there right?" he asked.
"No Dad" I replied, "You know how much I hate carrying boxes"
"Good. Glad to see your laziness benefits me somehow"
I smiled, "Are we friends again?"
His eyes rolled, "Best friends. You're not replacing me with that boy"
"Never"
"Now. Have a drink" Dad grinned, "And tell me all about this bitch"
HIKARU
"Nervous?" Kaoru asked hesitantly as he fixed a stray hair on his brother's head.
"I just want this over and done with" Hikaru huffed.
"Just follow the plan and get out of there"
Hikaru nodded silently. But inside his mind was playing out every last detail he might fuck up on. What if he said something wrong? What if Seika caught onto it? So many things, so many god damn things.
It took a week for the plan to fully come together, and for Tamaki to obtain the things they needed to get the proof they were driving for. Haruhi had tried her best to play an active role, but Hikaru did his best to keep her away as much as possible. Of course he was happy for her help, but the more he could stop her further involvement with Seika, the better. The last thing he wanted was for Haruhi to lay tossing and turning at night, just waiting for the events of the next day to pass. Not to mention she had started having doubts about the plan, saying it didn't feel right what they were planning, that they were no better than Seika.
He didn't want her to feel that guilt. So she couldn't be involved. He would make sure of that.
Kaoru patted down the front of Hikaru's shirt, smoothing out the wire recording device underneath.
"Can you see it?"
Kaoru shook his head, "No, you should be good"
"Okay" Hikaru nodded, "Let's get this over with then"
HARUHI
"Come on...come on..." I hissed into the phone as my ear was met with the unending dial tone, and trailing out into the familiar sound of Kaoru's voicemail, "God dammit"
I pulled into the Hitachiin driveway, killed the engine and leap out.
No one had told me it was today. Hikaru hadn't told me, Kaoru hadn't told me. The only person who thought to tell me was Tamaki when I had called to ask when he would have the wire. It turned out he'd gotten it days ago, and today was the day everything we had been planning would be put into action. Why hadn't they told me anything? Why hadn't Hikaru told me anything?
I pushed my way into the house using the key Hikaru had given me, and called out for someone, anyone, within ear shot. I was met by one of the maids, who leapt out of an open doorway with wide dumbfounded eyes.
"Is Hikaru here?" I asked.
The man shook his head, "I'm sorry Miss Fujioka. You just missed him"
"What about Kaoru?"
He turned his head to the back of the house, "He's in the yard I think. I only just got here..."
I didn't wait to hear anything else. I strode to the back of the house towards the open glass doors and set my sights on the younger twin, who I saw sitting on the edge of the pool with his feet dangling in the water.
"Where is he?" I blurted.
Kaoru's head snapped towards me, and a sheepish look cloaked his face.
"Kaoru" I demanded.
"He went to meet her" Kaoru uttered apologetically.
"But we hadn't planned a date yet"
"We had"
"And no one told me?"
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "Hika didn't want to involve you anymore than you already were. He knew you'd be mad about it but he was insistent"
"But why? I knew it was coming, I wasn't going to interfere"
"We know that" Kaoru sighed, "But Hika didn't want you losing sleep worrying about it. He wanted to come home with everything sorted so you'd never have to stress about it again"
"But that's not how this works" I groaned, then sank onto the floor beside him, crossing my legs beneath me.
"I know. I'm sorry. I didn't want to hide it, but Hikaru made me promise not to say anything"
"Of course he did" I muttered bitterly.
I stared out into the pool, watching the sun glint of the ripples Kaoru made as he swung his feet in the water. Sure, I could understand Hikaru didn't want to worry me, but we'd agreed to do this together, to act as a team. I'd wanted to comfort him beforehand, to remove any fears or worries he would have. But I didn't have the chance to do that. I wondered if he was with her in that moment, if they were talking, or shouting, or arguing. I wondered how he must have been feeling. I sighed sadly.
"Did he tell you when he would be home?" I asked.
Kaoru shook his head, "He said maybe a couple of hours. But who knows for sure?"
"This doesn't feel right. We should be doing something"
"There's nothing we can do"
"But there has to be. I can't just sit here whilst he's out there doing something he doesn't want to do"
"He's wired up, all he has to do is get her talking. He'll be home soon enough"
I heaved a breath, frustration coursing through me.
I dug my phone from my pocket and went to the internet, typing in Hikaru's name just to see if there was anything useful being reported. I scrolled through articles, but there wasn't a lot. It wasn't like he was top content of the week right now. I found 1 or 2 more short articles with photos of us together, my stomach churning as 1 of them stated that someone I knew had called in with a tip exposing my first name. Aside from that I found nothing of interest, which meant Seika hadn't started releasing her barrage of slanderous lies about me yet. Yet.
"How do you both do it?" I asked.
Kaoru quirked a brow at me, "Do what?"
"Deal with all this? Having your name all over the internet, having people talking and speculating about you?"
Kaoru sighed, running a hand through his hair, "You ignore it mostly" he shrugged, "It was weird at first. When we were kids we were only seen as extensions of our mother, the articles weren't personal. But when we turned 18 everything flipped, and we became a focus on our own, having our own spreads and forum threads. When it was a new thing we were obsessive with reading through them, we'd even compare stories to see who had more articles than the other. But after time it just became consuming. So we stopped checking up on them, we stopped reading them. When Hikaru's reports became mostly negative we distanced ourselves from them even more. The point is that we know what's true and what isn't, and those close to us who matter know the same. It doesn't matter what a world of strangers think, all that matters is you know who you are and anything else is just speculation"
I took a breath, nodding slowly as I took in his words.
I could do that. Right?
I guessed my reaction to all this was natural, I too was obsessively googling our names and seeing what was being written about me. Every morning I'd even wake up with my phone in my hand from scrolling all night. I could distance myself them. I could put down the phone. My stomach clenched. Yes, I can do this...
"Maybe we should call it off" I uttered.
"We can't do that Haru"
"Why not? Yes, having shitty rumours about me all over tabloids will be horrible, but if you two can handle it then so can I"
"That's not the point Haruhi" Kaoru sighed, "Hika would never let it happen. He knows more than anyone what this can do to a person, and he loves you so damn much that he would never in a million years let it happen to you"
"It's not his choice" I grumbled.
"Good luck convincing him. But as we speak he's with Seika following the plan. It'll work and we won't have to worry about it"
"But this is blackmail" I groaned, "How does this make us any better than her?"
"We were all on board with this. You can't change your mind now. We're doing what we have to do, Seika deserves it"
I frowned at Kaoru. I'd never heard such hateful words pass his kind lips. I didn't like it. This whole situation was changing us, it was making us do things we wouldn't usually do. I could practically hear my mother's voice in my head telling me it was wrong. She'd been a lawyer for fuck's sake, she valued honesty, and she'd always instilled her values in me. Yet here I was, complicit in blackmail.
Seika blackmailed us first.
Since when did fighting fire with fire create anything but a bigger fire?
I buried my face in my palms and groaned. It was too late now, we couldn't pull Hikaru out of there without exposing everything. I couldn't even call him.
"It'll be okay" Kaoru wrapped an arm over my shoulders and squeezed me to his side, "When Hika gets home we'll talk about what to do next"
I nodded silently.
"But I can't say Hika will agree to backing off. He's not going to let her sell false stories"
I whooshed out a calming breath, lifting my eyes to the pool in front of us once more. I then kicked off my shoes and dipped my feet into the water with Kaoru; and swirled my feet beside his, letting the cool water soothe the burning uneasiness inside me.
All we could do now was wait for Hikaru to come home. And who knew when that would be.
HIKARU
Hikaru sat anxiously in the booth, his knees bouncing under the table as his eyes swept the room, waiting for the she-devil to walk through the guarded doors of the high-end restaurant.
A month ago he thought he would never be in this position again. To be faced with the only person he ever truly despised. Yet here he was, waiting on her.
He wondered what Haruhi was doing at that time. He hoped she was at home or with her Dad, acting as normal, none the wiser about what he was doing. He'd been sure to switch his phone to silent just in case she called, and planned to turn it off completely once Seika arrived. But he couldn't help glancing down at his lock screen every so often, seeing the photo of he and Haruhi together from the time they had spent at the hotel up north.
Guilt hit him in the chest like a dagger. She would be so mad once she found out he'd done this behind her back. But he had no other choice. This was the right thing to do.
He watched the door for several more minutes, until those minutes added up to 20, then 25, then 30. He glanced at his Rolex. Where the hell was she?
H - Where are you?
He tapped the send button and waited for a reply, staring at the screen as if nothing around him existed.
His phone buzzed 3 minutes later.
S - Change of plans.
He frowned.
H - What do you mean change of plans? I'm waiting where you said.
He waited once more, even longer this time until almost 10 more minutes had passed.
H – Are you coming or not?
Her reply was almost instant.
S – Not.
"Fuck" he hissed under his breath. The whole plan was derailing. Seika had seemed so eager to see him, she'd been harassing him nonstop since she'd stolen his phone number and yet she cancels? It didn't...feel right.
He left the restaurant without ordering anything, cursing Seika under his breath as he made it to his car and drove home. He thought about stopping by Haruhi's place but decided against it. He needed to get this wire off him and talk to Kaoru before anything else. He tried calling his brother during the drive, only to be met by his voicemail every time. By the time Hikaru pulled into the driveway of his home he was well and truly reeling with frustration. He slammed the door and began striding towards the house so fast, he almost missed the unfamiliar car joining the others. He paused, studying it.
He recognized Kaoru's car, and was even surprised to see Haruhi's red mini parked up beside it. But next to the both of them, poorly positioned as if abandoned in the middle of the graveled drive, was a custom baby blue Audi cabriolet he'd never seen before. They must have had a visitor, maybe a business partner of their mothers?
Hikaru shrugged it off as he unlocked the front door and walked inside, now dead set on finding Haruhi since seeing her car parked outside. He felt some of the dread leave him the more he thought of her. All he wanted was to hold her, to kiss her, to hear her voice, nothing sounded better.
He found the doors open leading to the yard and headed straight outside. He could see Kaoru, and he saw Haruhi, stood beside the pool. But they weren't looking over at him as he approached. No. They were looking at someone else.
Hikaru froze in place as he saw the other person stood there in front of them.
A tall slim woman, with long dark hair, dressed in a fine designer red dress with heels that sank into the grass. And a sickly red lipped smile as she crossed her arms over her heaving chest.
She turned, as if sensing his presence, and grinned.
"There you are" Seika beamed, "I was hoping you would show up"
Right...I have some explaining to do!
I'm so sorry about the long wait on this one, probably the longest I've ever made you guys wait, and that's proper shitty of me I know.
As some of you know I had some issues with my laptop earlier in the year and had to buy a new one. The issue was I hadn't backed up any files at all on this laptop so everything I had written was deleted and gone. On my dead laptop I had the rest of CSC written out in it's entirety, which meant when it died I knew I would have to rewrite all these chapters again. The problem I was having was the chapters I had lost were perfect and I was more than happy with them, so being faced with redoing all of them was so daunting that I honestly struggled to write anything I was happy with. Then obviously this pandemic really started hitting the world full force and being at home for so many months and not being allowed outside was so isolating that my mental health also took a heavy hit, which only made writing worse.
It sucks because I really would have loved to bring you more story updates since I had so much free time, and like me, you probably wanted more things to read during isolation and social distancing.
Here in the UK our lockdown is being relaxed so I am now back at work and feeling a lot less isolated since I have my routine back.
I hope you enjoy this update, I will be working on new chapters and my other stories and hope to avoid making you guys wait another 4 months for an update!
I hope you're all looking after yourselves and others, things around the world are a little mental right now but hopefully soon we will be coming out the other side.
Sending you all my love,
- Yuli xx