「NATSUKI」
〈Fujiwara Mansion in Kita Ward, Kyoto, Japan〉
"Welcome back, Natsuki-sama."
The butler greeted as soon as one of the Fujiwara family's young ladies stepped out of the car, making all the servants bow in her presence.
Except for the servants who were lined up outside the central building of the house to welcome her, not a single member of her family could be sighted inside the large, traditional yet modern mansion that stretched out in the wide expanse of the forest just a few ways off behind the Kinkakuji Temple.
The house had always felt so empty for Natsuki, even if there are a lot of people living there. The servants, some of the young ones, and her family.
Her father is always out on a trip, and her mother is staying with Natsuki's maternal grandfather nowadays. The only ones left in the house is her and her older sister. Although, her sister is often out as well, carrying out tasks that their father had asked her to do.
Their uncle is preoccupied with the clan's urgent matters. Their aunt, on the other hand, is also busy with her clothing empire since it's already winter and she had just released the latest winter line for her shop. And their son—who is also her cousin—is always busy attending events that will help in boosting their family's image, although he does stay from time to time.
So, when a girl with long, black hair dressed in a pink kimono with dark purple edges and sakura design—who looked a bit older and taller than Natsuki—appeared down the hall to welcome her as well, it took her by surprise. In a good way, of course. She had always been close to her older sister, Miharu, since she was little.
What's she doing here? Not that I mind though—
"How did it go little sis?" Miharu asked, after giving her a hug. Her dark purple eyes—one of the signature traits of someone from the Fujiwara clan, aside from the jet-black hair—gleamed with excitement that is not usually seen.
Miharu is her older sister by a few years. She had always been kind and gentle. A traditional type of lady. The so-called yamato nadeshiko—or at least, that's what other people's impressions of her are. But that's only on the surface. There are things better left untold to outsiders.
She moved back to Kyoto right after graduating from high school in Miyagi, in order to study Business Administration. Currently, she is already in her third year.
A challenge that Natsuki will try to overcome as well after she finishes high school.
Natsuki sighed in dismay when Miharu finally released her hold on her, already giving the older Fujiwara a clue of how the date turned out.
"I don't wanna go on these... dates anymore, neesan." The younger plainly said after a pregnant pause, handing her outer coat to one of the maids nearby.
Her face was stuck in a grimace upon remembering her previous, failed dates with the sons of different association heads. The amount of time she had wasted and will be wasting on them is becoming extremely troublesome. Not to mention the fact that some of the experiences she had with them had been giving her nightmares until now.
"Ah, cheer up Natsu." Miharu patted her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.
Natsuki sometimes envy her older sister's ability to easily shrug off these kinds of matters. It comes very handy when the time to attend these not-so-special occasions arrives.
"I don't get how you could stomach to continuously dine and go on dates with different guys every week, Miharu-nee." Natsuki responded as she began walking through the hallway leading to the inner rooms where her bedroom is located, while Miharu silently followed behind her.
She had been working hard all day visiting different parts of their family's properties, only to have it end with a disaster of a dinner. Goodness, she really needs all the rest she could get during winter break, before their old man decides to ship her off to another place for business purposes.
Actually, she'd rather choose being tasked to attend business meetings any day rather than go to dates with men who are lacking testicles.
"It's easy," Miharu smiled lopsidedly as she finally fell into step with Natsuki.
"You just reject them if you don't like them, then move onto the next one that father would recommend." She replied smoothly, her eyes wandering around the snow-filled vicinity when they passed through the veranda that leads further inside the compound and to the inner rooms.
The winter air made her shiver a little, and the beautiful surroundings such as the half-frozen, shallow moat and snow-covered plum trees did not help in calming down her emotions one bit.
The younger girl grunted in frustration, because her sister is too composed to her liking. How was it that her older sister is only three years older again? It's like Miharu has been around way much longer than she appears to be.
"But it's sooo boring," Natsuki groaned out loud, elongating and emphasizing her words in order to get her point across to her older sister.
"And all of the guys our parents set me up with are all the same. They are already lacking in brains, and they are still lacking balls!" She exclaimed indignantly as the both of them finally arrived in her room and opened the dark, western-style, oaken door.
It is a huge room styled in a mix of traditional yet modern look—like how the rest of the house is—painted in black and white with gold accents. The flooring was made out of smooth, hinoki wood.
A black, velvet chaise lounge with gold accents, and an overstuffed armchair in the same color and style can be found in the front. A modern, wooden, rectangular coffee table in black with a glossy finish and slightly curved edges is placed between the chairs. It has three scented candles in glasses and a few magazines placed on top of it. Underneath the table is a large, shaggy, faux sheepskin rug in black.
Further in, after passing through a moon-gate arch with fusuma made out of cedar and shõji—which Natsuki slid open—is her sleeping quarters. On the very center of the room sat a low, pristine bed with glossy, black, wooden frame. There is also a circular frame above the bed's headboard with a painting black and white, and orange and white koi fish pair that is highlighted by the dim lights behind it. There are also bedside tables and lamps on each side of the bed.
The younger Fujiwara jumped on her bed upon seeing it, but sat up immediately to face her sister who decided to sit on the edge of her bed after sliding the door shut behind her.
"I'm sure they'll learn to be strong with time if you give them the chance?" Miharu said, trying to be helpful but the way her statement ended with an unsure tone hinted at Natsuki that even her older sister was not the least bit convinced of what she said.
"They are all scared of me as well." The younger Fujiwara pouted and lied down on her bed, before adding, "I'm not that scary, am I?"
Her older sister chuckled softly, as she reached out to pat her on the head gently and said, "Believe me, I initially felt the same way as you do now. But you'll learn to cope eventually."
Then, Miharu stood up. When she was about to leave, her observant eyes never failed to notice the sudden change in her younger sister's expression. She knew her sister too well, and it doesn't take her long to figure Natsuki out.
"Natsuki?"
The already-dazed younger Fujiwara snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Miharu calling out her name.
"Is there something else you'd like to talk about?" She heard her older sister ask, while trying to hide the smile that she had earlier.
It seemed like Miharu had already seen how Natsuki had seemed to want to say something but couldn't. However, the latter simply shook her head, but Miharu decided to insist.
"Come on now, Natsuki. You know you can't hide things from me." The older girl said and just watched as Natsuki turned to her side to stare at the wall of her room.
It took her a few seconds before she responded, because she was thinking twice of opening up about something she is not really sure of.
"It's nothing. I just..." Natsuki began, but eventually trailed off.
"Just what?" Miharu's brows furrowed, and Natsuki was not able to see the glint of concern that reflected in her sister's purple irises.
"I..." Natsuki couldn't look at her sister in the eyes as she finally sat up on her bed again, hugging her knees close to her.
"You what?" She heard Miharu ask, her tone beginning to have a trace of impatience and slight frustration.
Natsuki felt her face heating up upon remembering what she was supposed to talk about with her sister.
Was Miharu going to be against it if she asked her that she wanted to meet someone again? Probably not. Miharu would probably even send her off to the date happily.
"I think I'm actually interested in meeting someone..." Natsuki finally revealed after a whole minute of suspense, although her words were a bit jumbled since she talked too fast. It made Miharu sigh in relief though.
"You are?" The elder smiled widely at her. A smile that somehow gave Natsuki comfort and assurance after her confession.
"Yes," she replied shortly, not knowing where to place her gaze.
"That's great then!" Miharu cheered, making Natsuki's cheeks flare up out of embarrassment once more.
"D-Don't get your hopes up! I just said I was interested. It's not like it will go well after we actually meet!" Natsuki hollered, flailing her arms, becoming flustered at her sister's enthusiasm.
"He might even turn out to be the same as the others—or worse..." She quickly added, and whispered the last few words as she trailed off.
The thought of it made her feel anxious. It always happens. Her dates fail every single time, since it's either because the guys were too afraid of her or they were too cocky that they just irritate her to no end.
"Or he might actually turn out to be a wonderful person. Look at the bright side Nacchan," Miharu optimistically told her as she put her hands together in a pleased manner, as her lips curled upwards into a wide smile.
"If he managed to get your attention, he's probably worth the shot." Miharu further said as she left her room completely after being called by Hana-san, her trusted aide, regarding an urgent matter.
Her sister said those words with so much hope and optimism that Natsuki felt like almost believing it as well.
Keyword, almost.
There is still a part of her that doubts the person she has in mind.
People cannot blame her though. After all the failed attempts of finding herself a worthy fiancé, she is slowly turning pessimistic at every failed attempt.
"I'll think about it," Natsuki spoke softly, finally lying back down on her bed before covering her eyes with an arm.
"This family needs men that are capable of handling its affairs. You need partners in creating and ruling such an empire. You both cannot survive by only being by yourselves."
Tch, 'cannot survive'—my ass! We've been able to manage by ourselves just fine without him, and he's a man!
Natsuki internally rolled her eyes at the thought of her father's words that he told her a few years ago. Remembering it again just makes her immensely upset.
She and her sister grew up training physically and mentally for what the world of the Yakuza has to offer.
It is true that danger lurks at every corner. And being the heiress to their family business is an honor and a burden at the same time. It is tough to head a plethora of businesses even alongside her sister, and at the same time, the pressure of finding a guy to marry is also adding up to her life's difficulties.
Sometimes, Natsuki feels envious of how her sister is being put under pressure and stress yet remains composed and unbothered, while still performing her duties excellently.
"What else can I do to prove myself to them?" Natsuki's words came out muffled through her pillows as she laid on the bed on her stomach.
「MIHARU」
"Neh, Tatsuhiko-san," Miharu called out to a tall, light-haired young man on the other side of the corridor who just coincidentally passed by her and was heading towards her younger sister's room.
"Miharu-sama," the said young man responded as soon as he stopped a few steps away from her and bowed respectfully to her.
"Do you know another guy that Natsuki had met when she went out to that dinner-date-gone-wrong with that useless son of Shimoda?" Miharu asked with a smile on her face, her eyes turning into small crescents when she did.
Her tone of voice was sickly sweet in the beginning, yet her tone along with her words turned bitingly cold and harsh when she spoke halfway through with her sentence.
Tatsuhiko immediately straightened his back at the sudden seriousness of one of the family's miladies, thinking of a possible answer to her question.
"The only people that I remember that we had met aside from Natsuki-sama's date was," he paused for a bit and observed the older Fujiwara's expression who remained smiling at him.
"It was the Kuroo Clan's heir, Tetsurou-sama and his aide, Kozume Kenma." Tatsuhiko revealed in a quiet yet firm voice.
Miharu's eyes widened slightly upon hearing the names. Then, she quickly composed herself before dismissing her sister's aide. But before that, she left him with a few words.
"Thank you for your hard-work, Tatsuhiko-san. I know how difficult it could be to keep Nacchan out of trouble."
"It is my pleasure, milady." Tatsuhiko said, and Miharu left him so he could care for his mistress.
Meanwhile, she has to meet with Hana first after hearing that there was an urgent matter that came up.
However, Tatsuhiko's words repeated itself in her mind. About how Natsuki met with Kuroo Tetsurou during her dinner date earlier that day.
"It's funny how the world works. I just actually met his brother a few days ago." Miharu muttered to herself, as she traipsed down the lengthy corridors of their clan house, to head towards her study.
She entered her study with black painted walls except for the white ceiling, carpeted flooring in gray color, and a circular, shaded chandelier overhead. Dark, wooden bookcases pushed against the wall, filled with different kinds of books such as hardbound and paperback, academic and non-academic, as well as documents she needed for work. There is a large black executive, L-shaped table placed in the center with a matching black, high-back chair.
A lone desk lamp, two wide, flat-screen computers, a laptop, and a pile of neatly-stacked documents that were filed in folders are placed on top of the table.
Behind the table is a bay window seat with a few throw pillows and a folded blanket. The window is overlooking the beautiful, winter view outside.
On the side of the room there is a sitting area intended for visitors. Pretty much similar to Natsuki's room, except for the fact that there were two black, leather couches facing each other and a small, rectangular coffee table made out of a combination of obsidian table-top and wooden frame.
Miharu gracefully made her way to her office chair, sat down on it and leaned back. Misaki Hana—her aide and long-time friend as well as, Tatsuhiko's younger cousin—came in instantly after she had knocked thrice and had gotten permission from her to go inside.
"So, what is the urgent matter?" The raven-haired young lady asked as she tapped a slender finger on the metal armrest of the chair.
"One of our target business partners decided not to sign a contract with us," Hana began, a little wary of her mistress's reaction about her failure to seal the deal.
"Have you gotten a reason as to why?" Miharu asked, her eyes narrowing a little at the unexpected trouble that cropped up.
"Yes, ojousama. I asked President Takagi for the reason. However, he only replied that unless it is Akihiro-sama himself who will come to negotiate, then he will not sign the contract." Hana said, fiddling with her fingers behind her back. She could see how her mistress's shoulders were tensed up the whole time.
Finally, after a thick silence that felt so long for Hana, Miharu sighed as she closed her eyes and massaged her temples with her fingers. Once she opened her eyes again, it revealed a pair of purple orbs burning with determination.
"Set an appointment with President Takagi as soon as possible. Do not take 'no' for an answer. Just tell him or his secretary that Father had sent me personally to take care of that deal." Miharu said, as she turned her chair to the side a little to look at the snowy view outside her window.
"Will you not be informing Akihiro-sama?" Hana asked, while Miharu remained staring at the wondrous sight before her.
"I will personally call him and inform him about the failed deal. If worst comes to worst, I have already came up with a plan to make President Takagi give in to our demands," the Fujiwara's eldest daughter claimed, clasping her hands together and looking thoughtful.
[Author's Note]
Ayo everyone~ Haru & Aki are back with another chapter!
(Haru) Hello everyone~ Thank you for the wait and for supporting this story! *bows* Here's the second chapter~ *sends hearts*
(Aki) Omggg hiiii~ Thanks for checking out this story! Here's the second chapter. I hope everyone will like it. Please drop a comment as well. Ehe~ So long! *sends virtual hugs and kisses*