Chapter Twenty Three: Confessions
Around 8:30 P.M. Some bar in Naha
"Everyone!" Arai's voice boomed throughout the small bar, which was crammed with men and girls. She was standing on top of the counter, several beers in her hands. "Tonight you will eat and drink until you puke it all out! Then you will repeat this procedure until morning! This is an order!" She shouted, and the whole room burst into loud cheering and hooting. She looked down and saw the pale faces of the bartender and staff. She slipped her fingers into her pocket and took out a golden card. She waved it in front of the old men. "You won't have to work a single day after tonight." She whispered, grinning wildly. The old men looked at each other, and scurried away to their positions.
"Kampai!" Several large beer mugs clanged against each other. Maho furrowed her brow after taking several long gulps of beer. "Phew, this is some good stuff." She said.
Arai nodded. "Yup, this is one of the best places for a drink. And don't worry if you are underage. We're in the army, so we're all adults here," She said. Maho looked around the room. Her friends from Kuromorimine and Blue Division were drinking and talking merrily with the male army troops.
"You know I can drink more than anyone here! I know, I'm Italian!" Lasagna shouted.
Nishi stood up. "Shut up! You're a stupid Plebian!" She exclaimed as she grabbed a sake bottle. "I've got the strongest liver out of all of you."
Lasagna stood up as well, setting down several shot glasses on the table. "You're on!" He hissed. Soldiers began crowding the two as they began pouring sake into the glasses.
Once they were done, Lasagna bowed in an exaggerated manner. "Ladies first," He said sarcastically.
Nishi grunted and swiped the shot glass closest to her. With one swift move of her arm, she brought the glass to her mouth, swallowed the sake, and slammed the tiny glass on the table. "Your turn," She jeered.
Lasagna glared at her with anger. "Fine!" He grabbed a shot glass and downed it in one second. He smirked at Nishi. "Come on," Another shot glass was empty as she threw it down.
The crowd hollered as the two drank dozens, if not hundreds of shot glasses. Sake, Gin, Vodka and Vermouth was consumed in this ungodly contest. By the end of the third Whisky bottle both were stumbling around.
"C-c-c'mon!" Hiroi slurred. "That's th-the best you can do?" He asked.
Nishi stood straight up. "Look at you, you-you're a mess!" She loudly shouted, "I am the master!" She proclaimed.
"No way! One more-" Lasagna protested as he grabbed for another bottle. He found one and tried to pour the contents out into the shot glass, but nothing came out. "Huh?" He looked into the bottle, and found it completely empty. Lasagna turned around and saw Tanya alone, drinking a Vodka bottle with a pile of empty bottles behind her. "How many?" Lasagna demanded, his drunkenness currently supplanted by his curiosity and surprise.
Tanya glanced over her shoulder. "Around 50?" She guessed. Nishi and Lasagna gaped at her while the crowd erupted into an ear splitting cheer.
…..
"What are those barbarians doing now?" Earl Grey asked from across the bar, waving a whiskey in her hand.
"Who knows?" Naoki shrugged his shoulders as he brought a bottle of Schnapps to his lips. "Just them doing their thing."
Earl Grey looked at him, her face slightly red. "You aren't like the others," She said. "You seem normal."
Naoki smiled. "That makes me the unusual one here," He replied.
Earl Grey grabbed his shoulders. "What? Are you saying I'm weird?" She demanded.
Naoki scooted back. "Well, um...You are certainly eccentric in your own way!" He told her quickly. "Say, I thought you only drank tea." He noticed.
Earl Grey let out a little laugh. "Oh, I'll party once in awhile," She said. She took a swig from her Whiskey, and slammed it against the counter. "Hey bartender, more!" She demanded. The bartender sighed as he gave her a bottle of Scotch Whiskey and Bourbon. Earl Grey drained the entire bottle of Whiskey in a minute, with Naoki watching from the side.
"You do like your drinks." He said.
Earl Grey leaned on him. "Don't be silly, you're just fun to drink with!" She giggled, and Naoki blushed.
….
"A toast to the Bermuda Trio!" Azumi yelled at the top of her lungs, and three glasses clinked together.
"A victory that will last throughout the ages!" Megumi exclaimed.
Rumi adjusted her glasses. "And we were a major part of it, no doubt about it," They all leaned back in their chairs. "What now?" She said.
Megumi and Azumi looked at her with a puzzled expression. "What do you mean?" They both asked.
Rumi thought for a minute. "Well, the fighting all over, so does that we'll just go home and that will be it? Or are we going to go fight somewhere else too? I mean, we are now part of a big war after all,"
"You have a point." Azumi said after a while.
"Does that mean we're going to be separated? I don't want that!" Megumi wailed.
"No, we're not. Hopefully," Rumi told her, "The next battlefield is Malaysia."
"I've heard bad stories about that," Azumi added. "The Chinese burn down entire towns down and leave nobody alive."
"They aren't kind to prisoners either," Rumi chipped in.
Megumi looked at them with fearful eyes. "Then what about youthful beauties like us?" She asked in a quivering voice.
Rumi sighed. "They'll have their way with us, no doubt," She replied somewhat somberly.
Megumi cried. "Noo! I don't want that!"
Rumi slapped her. "It's not going to happen to us, idiot! Stop crying!" She shouted.
Megumi grabbed onto Azumi's jacket. "She's hurting me!" She wailed, and Azumi stroked her long black hair.
"Don't worry about a thing." She whispered. "We're just going to go home and be with Commander Alice."
Megumi shot up. "You're right! We're going back to Alice-chan!" She exclaimed. "I wonder if she misses us." She whimpered.
Rumi slapped her on the back. "Of course she does! We are her sempai, after all!" She said hopefully.
Azumi leaned forwards. "Well, technically, she is our superior," She reminded them.
Rumi groaned. "Oh, yeah. I completely forgot with all the fighting and stuff," She sighed. "We're the old ones. Why are we stuck as the subordinates. With Alice-chan and Commander Kaito." She grumbled. "Not that I have a problem with it!" She added seconds later.
Azumi let out a soft groan. "I guess that's how we're going to live," She muttered. They all slumped down and began drinking.
…...
Hiroi strutted towards the edge of the counter, where Arai was silently drinking some Awamori. "Yo." He waved his hand, and Arai looked up at him.
"Oh, it's you." She mumbled.
Hiroi sat down next to her. "Aw, don't say it like that," He cheerfully said.
Arai shook her head. "It's not like that," She said. "I'm just super tired, that's all." She looked around the room, where several people set up a karaoke machine and was now singing loudly while a huge throng of people surrounded them. Men and girls staggered around like zombies, with areas of the floor becoming toxic wastes from puke. "I would like a quiet drink, but I can't even do that." She said.
"Oh, I'm sure it'll be all fine!" Hiroi exclaimed. "We're just blowing off some steam."
Arai grunted as she grabbed a bottle of Rum. "I guess it is fun," She agreed somewhat hesitantly.
Hiroi beamed. "See, there we go! That's the spirit."
…..
Maho put down the bottle of Vodka. "Man, that is good." She said.
Kaito grinned. "It sure is. It's better now that Tanya isn't hounding me," He stated, before looking around. "That saying, where is Tanya?" He asked, not seeing her anywhere.
Erika shrugged. "Does that matter right now?" She had not drunk anything as of yet.
Kaito stared at her. "Why aren't you drinking?" He asked.
Erika looked down, somewhat embarrassed. "There's so many people. I don't want to make a fool out of myself," She whispered.
Kaito sighed. "Okay, fine. Whatever," He groaned. He got up and took Erika's hand.
"What are you doing?" Erika demanded as he pulled her up.
"We'll go somewhere private." Kaito replied.
"What?" Erika was taken aback.
Kaito smiled. "Maho," He said. Maho gave him a duffle bag filled with liquor.
"Commander?" Erika stared at Maho wide-eyed.
Maho winked at her. "You two have fun together," She told them.
Kaito grabbed Erika's waist. "Shall we go then?" He gave her a devilish smile as they proceeded to walk to the back of the bar.
They had to step over puddles of vomit and unconscious human beings. Erika clung to Kaito as they slowly inched to their destination.
"Vice~commander~" Erika turned to her left and saw Kanagawa crash into her. "What are you doing?" Erika shouted at her. Kanagawa gave her a glassy-eyed stare. "Don't hog him for yourself." She slurred as her hand slid across Kaito's chest. "You should share~" She sang. Erika was about to shout something again when Kaito interjected. "Sorry, sweetie, but I'm taken." He told her.
"Aw, really? Can't you spread some joy?" Kanagawa slurred.
"No, no. I can't," Kaito replied, "I'm a bit busy with your commander." Kanagawa stared at him for a minute, before sadly shuffling away.
Kaito looked at Erika. "Shall we continue?" He asked.
They slipped through the crowd and ended up at the back of the bar. There was a small wooden door, and Kaito opened it. "Come on, no one's going to be out here," He beckoned Erika to follow him.
The door led to a large garden, with trimmed bushes lining up by the edge of the stone pathway. They walked under an archway made out of woven leaves and branches and beautiful flower gardens. They continued to follow the cobblestone footpath until all the flowers and shrubbery disappeared, and was replaced by the clear view of the ocean, the moon reflecting off the water like a mirror. She gazed at the dark blue horizon; she could not differentiate between the night sky and the water. Stars sprinkled across the unending atmosphere.
"This is amazing!" Erika shouted.
Kaito smiled. "I know. Let's go there," He pointed, where there was a small bridge that connected to a tiny island, where a gazebo was built.
They ran across the bridge, and they collapsed on top of each other when they reached the gazebo. The bag of liquor rolled across the gazebo floor.
"Um, can you get off?" Kaito asked Erika, who was on top of Kaito, their legs intertwined. Erika tried to get up, but their legs bumped together and she fell back down.
She looked at Kaito, who was blushing furiously. "How do we get out of this?" She cried. Kaito, with his strength, tried to push her off, but they ended up rolling onto Erika's back. Erika looked up at Kaito's brown eyes, and could feel her heart thumping harder and faster. She blushed, and turned her head towards the floor.
"I think I have an idea," Kaito mumbled.
"What?" Erika questioned.
Kaito looked to the side. "I'm so sorry about this," He apologized.
"Eh?" Erika was puzzled by his words. Without warning Kaito slunk down, his head disappearing from Erika's sight. She could feel him weaving down her body. "What are you doing?" She shouted, not comfortable with what he's doing. "Ah, don't touch there!" She exclaimed.
Kaito's head had reached her chest; Kaito closed his eyes as he passed through her cleavage. Dear God, I hope I don't go to Hell after this, he thought. He was oddly comfortable as Erika was getting warmer. He wiggled past and was now on her stomach. Erika moaned as he went down further; he had reached the top of her skirt. "Please close your eyes!" He heard Erika beg. Kaito tightly closed his eyes and mouth as he dove down through her skirt. He felt the material feeling of the skirt end and now was surrounded by the warm skin of Erika's thigh.
By accident Kaito opened his eyes; his vision was dominated by white. Somehow Erika knew, and she reacted swiftly. With a cry of "No!" She jerked her right leg to the side, her knee hitting his chest. He flew to the side and crashed into the wall of the gazebo. Pain shot through Kaito's head and body and for a minute he couldn't breathe.
"Oh my god!" He heard Erika scream and the footsteps that thundered across the gazebo. "I'm so sorry! Are you ok?" She asked with a extremely distraught face.
"I'm fine. I should really apologize to you," Kaito rubbed his head as he got back up. He clasped his hands together. "Please forgive me." He got down on his knees in front of Erika.
Erika looked slightly relieved nodded her head. "It's ok. Really."
They sat on the bench of the gazebo, avoiding eye contact. Both their faces were completely red.
"You know what, you gotta drink this off!" Kaito said, digging out a vodka bottle out of the bag. He popped the cap open and took a swig. He passed it to Erika, who took it tentatively. She took a hard gulp, and started coughing.
Kaito had to stifle a laugh. "Take it easy," He told her. He scooted next to her, and took the bottle. He guided the bottle to her lips, and tipped the mouth of the bottle forwards. He held Erika by the back of her head, who didn't resist his actions. After around thirty seconds she tapped his hand, and he released the bottle from her lips. She exhaled.
Kaito smiled. "How was it?" He questioned.
Erika was silent for a few seconds. "It was good," She answered.
Kaito grinned. "Okay, let's get this party started."
Around thirty minutes later, they had finished two bottles of liquor.
"What's aunt Shiho like? You know her right?" Kaito asked, drinking out of a Gin bottle.
Erika groaned. "She's a tough woman, like you probably know. She pushed us all to become the best Seshadou team,"
"Yet Miho still beat you guys." Kaito jeered.
Erika glared at him. "That was a fluke!" She explained. Kaito shrugged. "You really believe that?" He asked.
Erika looked down. "I, no," She admitted. "I was angry at her for leaving Kuromorimine, you know? I couldn't believe it when she was chosen for the position of vice-commander." She grumbled, "I felt like I was ignored. Everything I did I was wasted." She banged her hand against the wall. "What was I supposed to do?" She cried. "I felt like I wasn't worth anything!"
Kaito scooted next to her. "No, you are worth something. I know it," He said.
Erika sniffled after she took a gulp of Rum. "Even after that match, I felt ignored by my peers,"
"I know that feeling," Kaito said.
Erika looked at him. "Really?"
"Yeah, I've been feeling like that for God knows how long. I never had people who I could call friends," Kaito chugged down the rest of his Gin and took out a Tequila. "I didn't care that much though. I like being alone."
"But you have everyone in the regiment."
"I've only known them for around a year. Before that I was usually stuck in my house with my dad,"
"What about your mom?" Erika asked.
Kaito sighed. "She and my younger brother live in a different place. You could call it a separation if you like. So I really don't have much of a mother figure," He answered. "Well...that's not entirely true."
Erika gave him a puzzled expression. "What do you mean?" She asked.
Kaito laughed a little. "Tanya's always been taking care of me," He replied.
Erika almost dropped her bottle. "What?" she exclaimed.
….
In the bar everything was quiet. Either everybody had passed out or had gone out. Girls and men left in pairs as they wandered across the town. Vomit and spilled liquor stained the floor.
Tanya sat alone at the table, sipping a glass of shochu, not saying a word. The bartender was reading a book by the counter, trying to avoid the mess before his eyes. Tanya glanced at the title of the book. A romance novel...she thought.
"Heyo, Tanya-san!" Lasagna slipped in next to her. Tanya didn't even give him a look.
"Could I ask you a question?" Nishi popped out from nowhere, sitting next to Lasagna.
"It's about the commander," Earl Grey's elegant voice drifted from across the table, where she and Naoki were sitting with glasses of Vodka in their hands.
"What's your relationship with him?" The Bermuda trio plopped themselves down in between Naoki and Nishi.
"How far back do you two go?" Hiroi sat down next to Earl Grey, followed by Arai. "We want to know."
Tanya sighed as she gulped down the glass and poured another glass, this time from from a bottle of Brandy.
"If you don't want to, then it's fine," Maho hobbled over to the table, setting herself down next to Tanya.
"Come on, tell us!" Rumi said.
Arai glared at her. "If she's not comfortable with it, let's not force her," She scolded Rumi.
Tanya shook her head. "No, it's fine. I'll tell you guys. You should hear this,"
She took out several more bottles of liquor. Everyone around the table leaned in as
she took a heavy breath. "Well, it all started seven years ago. It was me, my sister, my dad and mom. My family was always a poor one, we never managed to really have a proper life. And it wasn't even like we were poor because of unfortunate circumstances. My parents were always terrible at managing money, and always spent on extravagant things like dresses and TVs. That's why our house was filled with extremely expensive stuff, but we were always badly off financially. My sister and I were always forced to do hard work for little pay. And what little pay we scrounged up were taken by our parents.
That lasted until I was around 15. It was then when our parents abandoned us. They left the house and took all the money with them. Luckily, my sister was taken by a good friend of hers, and they both go to Pravda right now. But I didn't have friends, because I didn't go to school. I was left on the streets, forced to wander around begging for food.
Now, most of my jobs were of that of serving and helping people. I was good at it, so there were rumors of me floating around. Eventually I was found by Kaito-sama's, and-" She looked over at Maho. "Maho's dad, Nishizumi Kijiro. He needed help with raising his oldest son, who is Kaito-sama, as his wife and younger son were not with him. He hired me to basically become his maid." She swallowed a whole bottle of Rum.
"I remember the first day at the job. The Nishizumi mansion was enormous. There were four floors, with a sprawling basement with pool tables, TVs and a large ping pong table. I myself had a room all to myself that was probably bigger than my old house. I was to be living next to Kaito-sama's room for convenience's sake. I thought the old man was nice, but I was wrong.
He was sweet at first, but after ten minutes showing me around the house, his temper changed. He became cold and commanding, ordering me to do stuff even before he brought Kaito-sama down. Eventually though, he went upstairs to bring Kaito-sama down.
When I first met Kaito-sama, he was just like his father. He was younger than me by three years, but he was still cold towards me, or just plain ignored me. He would sometimes tell me he hated me. He would even hit me at times," Tanya touched her cheeks as if remembering those times.
"That bastard!" Nishi slammed her fist against the table, forcing all the glasses to shake.
Lasagna held her hand up. "Jeez, what is with you?" He demanded.
Arai waved her hand. "Carry on,"
Tanya nodded. "Even though he treated me badly, every night I would swear to myself that I would make him accept me. And I worked really hard to achieve that. I had to listen to all of his commands and whims, I would listen to all his complaints. I would become his shoulder to lean on. When he would wake up from a nightmare, I would always be there for him," She smiled faintly, "It took almost a year, but I did it. He slowly warmed up to me. He would ask me to come and play games with him, he would come over to my room at night, and we would tell each other stories until we fell asleep. We would even sometimes-" Tanya blushed, "-even takes bath together."
Everyone collectively spat their drinks out.
"What?" Lasagna shouted.
Nishi looked at her with an amused expression. "Aren't you the one that's into younger ones, not the commander?" She asked with a sly smile.
"I knew it! I knew it! Our Tanya is a man killer!" Rumi laughed.
Tanya shook her head. "No, no!" She cried, her hands over her face. "It was nothing romantic! We were kids! Honest!"
Hiroi smirked. "Are you sure about that? Maybe you two-" Arai smacked him over the head with a karate chop.
Tanya calmed down. "But it was two years ago when we really connected. It was when Kaito-sama's dad came back from his mahjong outings. He goes out a lot, leaving Kaito-sama and I alone together. This time, he was already drunk when he came home. When he entered the house, he came towards me. He grabbed me and tossed me to the couch," She whimpered. "I was already scared of that man. He was big and burly, and was really strong. When he was about to do God knows what, Kaito-sama came in and saved me."
"Like a prince saving a princess?" Nishi cooed.
Tanya blushed again. "Well, sort of. He hit his own dad right in the face. Then he said something I would never forget; he said 'Don't you dare touch her!'. The old man didn't take that well, obviously. He beat Kaito-sama with a fury I didn't know he had.
That beating lasted over thirty minutes. Kaito-sama got a black eye and bruises all over his body. After the beating he came over to me. I was forced to watch the whole ordeal. Even after he was beaten, even after he got physically hurt-" Tanya stopped, tears forming at the edge of her eyes. "-he asked me if I was alright. He didn't care for himself at all. At the end we cried together in my room.
We grew more close after that. We would visit libraries and shops together. He would buy me clothes and other stuff," She said sweetly, "He turned into the nicest boy I ever met. "We would also play sports together. We would play tennis often, most likely because Kaito-sama liked what I would wear when we played." She said, chuckling.
Lasagna grinned. "That kid was always a pervert, wasn't he?"
Tanya nodded. "Yeah, he was,"
Tanya continued. "We would also throw a frisbee out in the front lawn. One day, around three years ago, Kaito-sama accidentally threw the black disc too high. I went to go get it, and ran into the driveway. I got in front of the old man's car, who was coming back from work,"
"You got hit by the car?" Megumi shouted.
Tanya nodded. "That was the only time I saw the old man panic. I saw him and kaito-sama run up to me with a horrified face before I blacked out.
When I woke up in the hospital bed with Kaito bawling over me and the old man watching over me with a worried expression. When they realized I woke they were so relieved. Kaito cried, apologizing to me for almost getting me killed. The old man also apologized, and offered to take me, along with Kaito-sama, to an amusement park. I didn't care; I was happy that Kaito-sama cared for me.
I broke both my legs, and my hip bone fractured. I had to be in a wheelchair for four months. All that time it was Kaito-sama who took care of me. He fed me, helped me get to my bed, spent all day with me. He even helped me when I took my baths," She stopped. "Nothing sexual, of course." She added, before anyone could react. "But that was when I realized, that I loved him." She said, her eyes once again brimming with tears.
…..
Kaito and Erika sat at the bench, several bottles rolling across the floor.
Erika groaned. "How, how much di-did we drink?" She asked.
Kaito glanced at the ground, and counted eight. "Alot," He answered. He looked at Erika. "I don't think I've ever felt this happy before." He said. "It's so fun being with you." He whispered.
Erika blushed. "I like being with you too," She replied. Her heart began increasing its beat as it got louder and faster as she stared at him. She turned her head away and looked down at the floor. "You treat me like nobody ever did before." She told Kaito. "I've never felt any happier. I-I love you!" She shouted, and Kaito jumped back in surprise.
Seeing his reaction, she began to tear up. "I'm, I'm sorry," She whimpered, turning away.
Kaito walked up to her and hugged her in a warm embrace to Erika's surprise. "I love you too, Erika. I love you too," He pulled her head in close as their lips touched.
Erika flustered for the twenty seconds they made contact. She pulled her head back, and began hyperventilating. She turned away, her face a dark shade of red. "Wha-I-I-Why-" She stumbled on her words, both from embarrassment and from the liquor.
Kaito smiled. "Let this happen," He whispered, taking Erika's chin and pulling her in for another kiss. This lasted for a minute before they parted.
Erika blushed. "This was the first time," She mumbled, "I can't believe it."
Kaito grabbed her by the shoulders. "We're perfect for each other!" He exclaimed. "I've never been so close to another person!"
"Me too. I feel like most people try to avoid me," Erika mumbled. She leaned into Kaito's chest. "I always feel like a burden. But not when I'm around you." She said.
Kaito raised Erika's chin up with his hand. "You're a special girl to me. I saw through you when we first met. I always held an interest in you from the start,"
Erika beamed. "Me too," She leaned up and kissed him on the lips. They leaned backwards and fell onto the bench.
Erika took her lips off of Kaito. "It feels so good coming out," She said, laying on top of him.
Kaito sighed. "Yeah, I guess," He agreed. His head rolled back, and he felt unconsciousness take over.
….
"You what?" Nishi threw the glass against the wall, where it shattered.
"Nishi!" Arai shouted. "What is wrong with you?"
Naoki stared at Tanya. "You, love the commander?" He questioned. Tanya nodded vigorously.
"And have you told him?" Earl Grey asked.
"No, I haven't. I didn't want to ruin whatever we have right now." Tanya replied, "But I don't know what to do anymore!" She choked out, tears streaming down her face. "I don't know if I should tell him my feelings, or if I should keep my emotions to myself for the sake of work!" She put her head down. "I want to tell him, but I don't want feelings to get in the way of my work." She sobbed, "I don't know what to do anymore."
Everybody looked down in silence. Rumi, Azumi and Megumi looked away with a guilty look in their eyes. Nishi had begun crying as well.
Maho patted Tanya on the back. "I support whatever choice you will make," She said. "Do what thinks is best for yourself and Kaito."
Tanya looked up at Maho, tears staining her face. "Really?" She whimpered.
Arai stood up. "Don't worry. Whatever you do, we'll have your back," She said.
Earl Grey smiled. "Do what you think is right,"
Tanya stood up. "I'm going to go look for Kaito-sama," She announced.
Maho stood up as well. "I'll be looking for Erika," She said, chasing after Tanya.
….
Tanya jogged through the garden, while Tanya wobbled from behind. Eventually Maho found Tanya standing in front of the gazebo. Both Erika and Kaito were sleeping, surrounded by empty bottles.
Maho realized Tanya was quivering. "Are you alright?" She asked, waving her crutch.
Tanya nodded. "I'm just happy Kaito-sama found somebody for himself," She replied. She walked over and picked Kaito up, carrying him like a baby. She kissed him on the forehead. "I'll just watch from the sidelines." She said sadly, leaving Maho alone with a sleeping Erika.
How the hell am I supposed to bring her back? Maho thought, staring at Erika.
Hoozah! A new chapter, with drinking, new character and backstories with love! As an emotionless robot myself, I hope it wasn't too sappy for anybody's tastes. I've never written anything like this before, so I really didn't know what to write. But I figured something out, so all is well I guess. If there are things I could improve on, just review or PM me.