Hey everyone,
I sure hope everyone's doing well.
First off, I'd like to pay my respects to the victims of horrible natural disasters that have occurred recently. My prayers are with all of you who have been affected by them.
I would also like to say how sorry I am for what has happened in Las Vegas. The victims of this horrific act of terror and their loved ones are in my thoughts and prayers. God bless you all and I hope you can find peace.
I'd like to dedicate this chapter to the Las Vegas shooting victims.
And in respect to their memories, I'll keep this opening short.
I will respond to your reviews in the next chapter's opening.
I hope you enjoy the new chapter.
Cheers
PS: This chapter has been edited by the great BrownB.
It was weird, but it had been a long time since he had thought about his parents; or what was left of them in his memories, any ways.
The first few months of them being gone was the hardest. The doctors kept telling him that he had short time memory loss and that in time everything would come back to him.
There were certain things, however, that Mamoru didn't want to remember.
He didn't want to remember the way his mother had looked at him when the car had flown off of the freeway; that raw desperation and burning fear in her eyes that had spoken volumes of her need to protect her child…he needed that image to be wiped out of his memories for good.
He didn't want to recall his father's frantic shouts to his wife; the way he had called out her name, the way his eyes had looked through the rear-view mirror, how his hands had clutched the steering wheel before realizing that it was too late and his left hand had sought to shield his wife from the impact.
Mamoru wanted to forget the last image he had of his parents; and the fucking therapist wanted to know everything every time they met.
"What do you remember?" she would ask, with her thin glasses on the tip of her nose and hair so slick and unmoving that Mamoru had to restrain himself from reaching out to ruffle that scary looking hair!
"How do you feel right now?" She would look at him with empathy (now that he was older, he could recall those encounters for what they really were. A healing process for him, and now, he could finally appreciate the efforts his therapist had put into it; even though back then, he had acted like a total jerk!).
'I don't know how the hell I fee!,' he had shouted in the brim of tears once and she had allowed him to fall into an abyss of despair; only reaching out when he had shed enough tears for one session.
If short term memory loss meant that he could only hold on to the memories he actually wanted, then Mamoru would gladly embrace the consequences of that accident.
"You're lucky," Hisa had told him once a few months after Daiki had basically forced them to accept the short-tempered girl in their little circle. Mamoru hadn't like the fact that she knew too much about him and his past; he'd never asked about hers after all. And honestly, Daiki was one big loose-lipped bastard!
"I wish I could forget my mom," Hisa had said one night when the three of them were perched in Daiki's living room, listening to an Enka**, one of Daiki's favourites. "Then I would probably accept my dad the way he is; detached and…and…shitty, really." That was the first night Daiki had talked about his parents and how they were "absolutely" normal and how his mother treated him like a little boy, realizing too late that he had subjected himself to a merciless teasing by his best friends!
Beep…Beep…Beep…
He could feel some commotion around him and for some reason, he knew that it was centered on him. But for the life of him, he couldn't open his eyes.
He didn't want to!
A memory had just come to his mind and he wasn't ready to let go.
Was it his mother's birthday or was it their anniversary? He didn't know. But his dad had come home with a bouquet of lavender roses. "It was truly love at first sight," his mother had laughed when putting away the flowers in a small vase. "Yes, and a long lasting one at that," his father had chuckled and squeezed Mamoru's shoulder.
They had been a happy family and Mamoru always wondered if he would've still turned out the same way if his parents had lived.
"Hang in there boy," he heard someone whispering. Or were they shouting and he was just too far away to hear them?
His eyes opened for a split second and then he fell into the darkness once more.
"What kind of a person are you?" Usagi had asked him bitterly, and with a certain level of desire, the very first time he had cornered her near the arcade. Was it before or after he had reached out and played with one of her pigtails? Probably after, because he could vividly remember how her eyes had turned wide (losing their previous malice) when his hand had lingered on her neck.
"This is not who I am." She had squirmed out of his arms with an unexpected force for such a small person, "This is not what I do." She'd wiped her mouth off with a disgusted gesture and Mamoru had dropped his outstretched hand.
He might have been a stoic bastard most of the time, but he'd be damned if he couldn't recognize emotions in other peoples' eyes; Usagi had wanted him as much as he wanted her.
Yes…this was the right memory line he wanted to take!
He preferred to remember the first times they were together. He wanted to recall all the times she had unleashed her adorable anger on him, how she had pushed him away with her hands and kept bringing him closer with her body.
"Do not die…you hear me…do not die." The whispering was getting louder, and Mamoru wanted to flinch at the sound. 'Let me be,' his numb mind shouted, 'Just let me be'.
Tucked away somewhere safe in his mind, he knew that Usagi was his now; both physically and emotionally. He didn't even need to try that hard to remember how she had turned into fire in his arms. But, oh God…the first time he had heard that all too familiar tiny moan in his ear when his hand had roamed up her bare leg; her slim body pressed into the wall in the back alley of the arcade…the way she had bit her lower lip…
Nothing could take that moment away from him. He would make sure to engrave the memory of his first kiss with her in his mind. He wouldn't let any short or long time memory loss erase that.
He would make sure…
"His vitals are dropping…"
Flashback:
"Promise me something,"
Mamoru hadn't even look at him. But he'd gotten to know his black-haired friend by now and he knew that he was listening.
"Don't ever do anything stupid without telling me first." He had lit up two cigarettes then, handing one to Mamoru. "And if you did," he took a long, deep drag before looking back at Mamoru's questioning stare, "Just make sure you live to tell me all about it."
End of flashback.
Daiki stared at his reflection in the mirror. The cold water he had splashed on his face a moment ago was dripping down his forehead, his cheeks and the tip of his nose, damping the front of his shirt.
And he couldn't give a rat's ass!
His green eyes narrowed as he tried to get his head back on track. But his traitorous mind wouldn't let him have a moment of peace.
He had walked out of the main entrance of the hospital after his encounter with Hisa's father. She was still asleep and Daiki knew that she wouldn't wake up anytime soon.
He had paced around for a little bit, finally moving away from the building to find a hidden spot to smoke.
It was the ambulance sirens that had caught his attention first. He had this weird thing with siren sounds. They always exhilarated something in his system. It was one of those things that he couldn't explain.
From the distance, he could see paramedics jumping out of the vehicle and lending a hand to the nurses that had rushed out of the ER.
He sat on the small curb on the side of the street as he took lingering drags of his cigarette. Another car stopped nearby and his eyes strayed away from the white vehicle with red sirens and settled on the newcomer.
A middle-aged man hopped out of the car, and with such panic, that Daiki's heart immediately went out to him. The poor soul in the ambulance was probably someone close to the guy. For a moment, Daiki imagined his old man. His dad would probably have an heart attack if anything happened to him.
His hand went up once more so he could take the final drag when an all too familiar hair style froze his movements.
He stood up quickly and went up to his toes to be able to get a better look.
The tip of his fingers itched and he suddenly felt numb. What the…?
His legs were dragging him towards Usagi before he knew it. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that the middle-aged man was probably her father (and seriously, he'd had enough father drama for one night) but she seemed panicked and distraught and as he neared, he could see her puffy eyes and tear stained face.
When he finally caught up to them he noticed another tall figure and he felt a quick jab in his gut when he recognized the arcade guy. This picture was getting stranger by the second!
"Usagi-chan…" It was odd calling her full name, but regardless of what people believed, Daiki was a compassionate man and he knew this was probably not the time to joke around, "Usagi-chan…are you okay?" He stopped a few steps away from the three who had immediately turned towards him. He didn't look away from Usagi whose eyes were as wide as a saucer and something about those eyes shook his whole body.
He had seen her cry before; the night when Hisa had dragged her to the loft by the hair. But this was no ordinary crying face. He knew a girl's ordinary crying face, and this was not it!
"Wha…"
Everything else from then on was on fast forward.
Usagi's jumbled explanation, "The car came out of nowhere," and her unstoppable weeping, "I don't know what happened," had cut through him like a knife. She had clutched the front of his shirt in a death grip as he'd tried to slow her down.
He had run inside then. Only half hearing the scolding of the nurses and the hurried footsteps of Usagi behind him.
He was dead…he was dead…Daiki was sure he was dead… that much blood…he couldn't be alive if he had lost that much blood!
He had stood there while a group of doctors and nurses had tried to revive his best friend. He hadn't uttered one word when Usagi's broken cries had penetrated his senses.
He heard someone saying, "His vitals are dropping," before a hand landed on his shoulder and pulled him away as soon as a curtain was pulled in front of him.
"Make sure you live to tell me all about it."
Flashback:
She would have slapped him if she was in the right state of mind. But sadly, like every other time he had explored the depths of her mouth, her mind had gone far away.
"Breathe Odango." She could vividly remember his voice; his hot breath against her neck, "You're hyperventilating?" His damn sarcastic and evil chuckle had penetrated her senses, but before she could kick him, or do something, anything, he had pushed her harder into the wall, effectively riding her skirt up to her mid thighs. "Do you feel that?" His hand had clutched her waist harder than before. "Half of that heat is from you, naughty Odango…maybe even more." Her eyes had snapped opened then and before he could bring her leg around his waist, she had pushed him away.
End of flashback.
Usagi opened her eyes.
She looked around the white and unimaginably dull corridor in front of her; and as soon as her father's eyes locked onto hers, she closed them again.
She didn't have the energy to deal with her father right now. She didn't want to talk to him…she didn't want to talk to anyone.
"Get the fuck out of my property!"
The tone of her father's voice penetrated her senses once more and Usagi felt her eyes filled with tears.
"Didn't I tell you to stay away from her? Are you deaf boy?"
Usagi had screamed when Kenji had pushed Mamoru and he had stumbled back.
She had never seen her father act so violently.
"Kenji-papa please, it's not his fault. I snuck out myself. It was my decision…" she had tried to plead with him.
"Not one word from you Usagi. I am so ashamed of you. I don't even know you anymore!" Kenji had howled and for a moment, Usagi had wished that she had never gone back home.
"Tsukino-san, let me…" Mamoru had stayed calm and collected, even though Usagi could feel the turmoil he felt inside.
"I don't want to hear one word out of you Chiba…just…get the hell out of my sight!" Kenji had shouted so hard.
From the corner of her eyes, Usagi could see one of their neighbours picking his head from the window. They were really putting up a great show for the whole street to watch!
"Get inside Usagi…" Ikuko had grabbed Usagi's arm then, trying to pull her inside the house. Shingo was standing at the door frame and his eyes held sympathy for his older sister.
Without thinking twice, Usagi wrenched her arm out of her mother's grasp and took hurried steps towards Mamoru. His eyes had watched her move towards him with confusion.
She had had it!
If her parents didn't want her to be happy, then screw them. If they couldn't understand the extent of her feelings for Mamoru, or his for her, then Usagi wouldn't care about their feelings anymore.
"You can't take me away from him," she had stated, while intertwining her fingers through Mamoru's cold hand. "I won't let you separate us…" She had looked straight into her father's eyes when saying that, and even though she couldn't believe her own ears, but it was only when the words had left her did she realize how she really felt about Mamoru.
The urgent need to protect him didn't even surprise her; even if that meant hurting her parents in the process.
The boy next to her needed someone to be by his side. He'd had enough people standing with him; he had loyal friends; Usagi knew that by now. Rather, he needed someone to shield him from the cruelty of the world; the same cruelty that her parents were inflicting on him right now.
"I decided to climb out of my window. I wanted to go to him. It was my decision to do that…" she cried towards her stunned parents, "I didn't even want to come back home." She dismissed the strike of pain that entered her father's eyes. "He made me come back home. Okay? He said that I have to come home because he didn't want my stupidity to ruin my relationship with you guys…" She took a deep breath and tightened her hold on Mamoru's hand. Something fluttered in her chest when he squeezed her hand back.
"Usagi…" Ikuko's voice reached her ears and she raised her eyes to look at her mother; her best friend and her role-model. She could see the hint of disappointment and sadness in Ikuko's blue eyes and for a moment, she wished that none of these had ever happened; but then again…
She didn't want to think about never meeting Mamoru; meeting him was the best thing that had ever happened to her.
"Ikuko-mama," her voice was low and her eyes were cast down, but with a pang of recognition, Ikuko heard the courage and confidence in her daughter's tone, "I can't be separated from him…" Usagi whispered the words and paused, letting the honesty of her confession to sink in. She'd always had a close relationship with her parents, but she could never declare her love for Mamoru in front of them; she couldn't stare into her parents' eyes and tell them that she had fallen in love; and she was hoping that her parents knew her enough to understand the extent of her feelings. "Please, don't separate me from him." She finally raised her eyes and looked at her mother.
The Tsukinos stared at their once obedient daughter. The naïve, yet compassionate daughter that they'd always deemed needing their protection even when she'd reach her mid-thirties. When did she grow up? Where did all those years go? Ikuko wondered as she stared at Usagi's adamant visage. She looked down at her intertwined hand with the boy standing next to her. When was the last time Usagi had held her hand like that?
Seeing Kenji's slight movement, Ikuko glanced away from the duo in front of her and focused on her husband. His face was void of colour and he had a tense comporser. But Ikuko knew her husband better than that. The thin trim glasses couldn't hide the emotions that were dancing in his eyes. He was looking at Usagi as if she no longer belonged to them. As if the young woman standing in front of them, challenging them to accept her forbidden love, was only a ghost of the girl they used to know. And knowing how he felt about their little girl, Ikuko reached out her hand and grabbed his, caressing the back of his cold hand with her thumb, "Kanojo*," She whispered and tried to get Kenji's attention, "Say something," she said to him when Kenji finally looked at her; encouraging him to say what he wanted to say rather than keeping it all inside and not knowing how to deal with himself later.
Kenji watched her as if in daze, when something suddenly clicked, "You want to be with him?" he asked Usagi as he finally opened his mouth and took a sharp glance at the teenagers, "You want to stay with him?" he asked again.
Usagi's eyes lost their previous courage and she nodded with uncertainty. Her father's question had taken her by surprise; and when Mamoru clutched her hand a little tighter, his palm a little sweaty, she knew he felt the same way.
"Then go and be with him," Kenji whispered, surprising all of them, "I won't stop you," he continued, feeling Ikuko's hand tightening her hold on his wrist. "I won't tell you what to do anymore Usagi," he said while moving his wrist gently away from Ikuko's grasp, "If you're old enough to disobey your parents, then you're probably old enough to be on your own…"
Usagi watched her father with wide eyes, as if for the last few seconds Kenji had been speaking in a foreign language.
"You can go with that boy Usagi, but…" Kenji turned his back on his daughter, "If you do, then you are no longer welcomed in my house."
There was sudden drumming in Usagi's ears and because of that, she failed to hear the slight trembling in her father's voice. She also failed to notice the suffocating desperation in his eyes since he had turned away from her.
She stood there dumbfounded. She kept staring at Kenji's back, alternating her confused glances between him and Ikuko's troubled face.
What was happening?
"Tsukino-san?" Usagi was quick to send a confused glance at Mamoru, whose eyes were glued to Kenji's tense back, "I know you probably don't want to hear this, especially from me, but don't do this," Mamoru said in a rush, as if trying to speak his mind before Kenji could go berserk on him again, "I know what we did was wrong, and I apologize for that, but please…"
"You're right…I don't want to hear this from you," Kenji's voice was back to his harsh tone, "I don't want to hear your voice at all Chiba…" he continued without looking back.
"I know what it feels like to lose a family…" Mamoru didn't back down, as he clutched Usagi's hand tighter and brought her closer to himself, "I know what it's like to be alone. So please, don't do this to her." Usagi's eyes teared up from the pleading sound in Mamoru's voice; and she couldn't understand whether she was crying for her own dejection, or his misery.
"Kenji-papa…" Shingo's voice penetrated Usagi's senses; she had almost forgot that he was also witnessing her sentencing.
"I know you're upset, but…" Shingo stuttered on his words, not knowing whether it was his place to say anything. But Kenji's death glare spoke volumes, "Be quiet Shingo. This has nothing to do with you. This is between me and your sister," Kenji spat and unexpectedly whirled around to face the young couple in front of him once more.
"You've disobeyed me over and over again Usagi. You ran away from home like some troubled teenager. And for what? An unworthy orphan? We weren't bad parents. We gave you whatever you wanted in life," he uttered the words with such force and Usagi felt the weight of those words punching her in the stomach. "We raised you to be a wise young woman. We raised you so you could decide right from wrong and for the life of me, I can't figure out where we went wrong." He ignored his wife's pleading as she tried to calm him down, "Haven't I taught you nothing? Usagi, when did you decide to break me like this?" He almost shouted the last part of his short speech. His heart breaking further upon noticing the frightened look he saw in Usagi's face. As mad as he was, it still didn't go unnoticed to him how Chiba took a hold of Usagi's tiny shoulder and pulled her again his chest. He also didn't miss the determined look that suddenly entered the young man's eyes.
"That's enough…" Ikuko's firm voice silenced any further angry remarks that Kenji was going to spat, "I think we've all had a very emotional and disturbing night," she continued as she gestured her hand towards Mamoru, "I said enough Chiba-san. Like I said, we've all had a rough night and I think we all need to take a break." She then looked towards her daughter with her head ducked down, "Usagi…"
Usagi glanced up at her mother with dull eyes. It was as if all fight had left her and she no longer had the strength to even stand on her own two feet.
"I think it's wise that you stay with one of the girls tonight," she said as she tried to deliver her message to her loud and clear. "And I trust Chiba-san wouldn't mind taking you there." She didn't wait for any further protests from either the father or the daughter, as she grabbed Kenji's elbow and started pulling him inside the house.
She ushered Shingo back inside with her eyes as she successfully managed to push Kenji inside the small corridor and close the door.
"Usagi?"
Usagi opened her eyes and regarded Kenji with a cloudy stare. He held up a hot cup of tea. "Here. Drink this," he said as he watched his daughter's uncharacteristically doleful face.
Usagi took the cup, but didn't bother to utter a word. She held the cup between two small hands and fixed her eyes on the floor.
"He's going to make it," Kenji mumbled while taking a seat beside the silent blonde.
Usagi didn't say anything.
Kenji twirled his own tea, "He will survive this and…"
"You called him an unworthy orphan." Usagi suddenly said without glancing away from the floor. And even though her voice was low and almost nonchalant, Kenji felt something twist in his gut.
"It's not like he asked to be an orphan. It wasn't his choice. He didn't want his parents to die and leave him on his own. It's not his fault. So…" she finally looked at her father who was watching her with wide eyes, "why would you say that?" Her cloudy blue eyes were fixed on his face without a trace of any emotion. "Why would you say something so…so hurtful and awful?"
Kenji kept staring at her eyes as he tried to come up with an answer. The truth of the matter was, that now as he sat beside his young daughter in a waiting room of a hospital, waiting for surgeons to work their magic and pull Chiba out of the abyss of death, he couldn't remember why he held such venom towards the young man.
He'd done a few reports on the rising local gang in Juban and his research linked their activities to the Yakuza.
Chiba's name was brought up a few times in his investigation; and even though there were no solid evidence as to what his link is to any kind of criminal organization, Kenji was still appalled to see his daughter associate with him.
"This may sound cliché Usagi and you probably understand it right now, but…" He took off his glasses and ran a tired hand over his eyes. "When you have children of your own, when you have a daughter, you'd understand why parents are the way they are." He put on his glasses back on and looked at Usagi once more. She was still looking at him with an emotionless face.
"Usagi-chan?" They both looked up at Daiki. Usagi couldn't remember seeing him without his signature smirk. Her heart broke furthermore.
"I need to speak to you," he said as he did a sideway glance at Kenji. "And alone, if that's okay." He was looking at Usagi, but it was clear that his question was directed at Kenji.
"You can talk to her right here…" Kenji said as he stood up and before Usagi could muster a protest, he continued, "I'll be right over there. If you needed me." He squeezed Usagi's shoulder gently and walked to the other side of the corridor.
Daiki followed him with his eyes while Usagi kept her eyes on the blond in front of her. Did he always wear that stud earing in his ear? How come she never noticed it before?
"Are you okay?" Daiki asked as he took Kenji's emptied chair beside her and leaned forward on his knees.
"No…not really…" Her voice was still so raw from all the shouting and crying she'd done and speaking was a little too hard.
"Usagi…I need to know what happened. And I need to know fast, before the police gets involved and question you," He turned his head towards her, "I need to know who did this. That's the only way I can protect him…and you." He saw the flash of acknowledgement in Usagi's eyes and sighed with relief. She understood the situation they were in.
"That car came out of nowhere," she whispered; her eyes glued to the cup in her hands. "One minute we were just talking…I ran away from home, you see." She said it in the most neutral voice and the coolness of her tone surprised Daiki. "And then he took me back home. My parents yelled at him and my otosan…I think he disowned me…somehow, I think." Daiki didn't know what to say. This was not what he wanted to talk about. He wanted to know about Mamoru's accident. He wanted to know about that car. But he kept quiet, letting the petite blonde beside him to retell the story however she wanted.
This girl was someone precious to his best friend and Daiki would do everything in his power to protect her while said best friend was fighting for his life.
"I'm sorry," Usagi said in a choked voice. "You probably don't care about this stuff. I don't know why I'm babbling." Tiny tears were dropping from her eyes and she moved her fingers to wipe them away.
Daiki reached out his hand and took away the cold tea from within her grasp. "Hey…Usagi look at me," he beckoned her to look at him. He gave her a tiny smile, "It's going to be okay. Mamoru's going to be fine." He took her tiny hand in his and squeezed her fingers for good measure. "He's tough. Tougher than you think, he's gonna get through this." He tilted his head lower to be able to look straight into her eyes. "And when he does, you need to be there to greet him with a smile on your face. I don't think he'll take it lightly if he sees your puffy eyes and little red nose." He smirked and flinched the tip of her nose. Usagi wrinkled her nose a little and without even knowing, the tension in her body slowly crept away.
This guy knew Mamoru more than anyone else in the world and if he says that he was going to get through this…. 'I'm going to think positively. He's right. Mamoru is strong,' She kept playing the words in her head.
"What did that car look like? Do you remember?" She snapped out of her reverie when Daiki's voice reached her ears.
She paused a moment, trying to dig deep within her memories of the last few hours.
"It was darker color…maybe, dark blue. But I'm not sure." She put her hand on her eyes and rubbed the sting away.
"Do you know the make? What kind of a car was it?" he asked.
Even though he had a pretty good idea of to whom that car belonged to, but he still wanted to have all the facts. He didn't want to jump into conclusions. If he'd learned one thing from Mamoru, it was patience.
He was going to do this with patience. Damn it! As much patience as he could handle!
"I'm not good with cars…and I really didn't look, I mean…" Her voice broke once more, as if she was ashamed of her shortcoming.
"Was it a small car, or a bigger one?"
"It was bigger…I think."
"I know what car it was."
Both blonds tilted their heads to be able to look at the third blond who was standing in front of them, "and I know whose car it was," Motoki said as he looked down at them.
Daiki had totally forgot about him. He'd seen him with Usagi and her father at the entrance, but he had lost sight of him once he had followed Mamoru inside.
His Daiki style nosiness pricked a little; why was he here anyways? But he didn't have time to do this. His curiosity wouldn't win this time!
"So?" He narrowed his eyes at the blond arcade worker who'd never had said more than two words to him in the entire time they had gone to his establishment. And Daiki knew that as much as he disliked the guy in front of him, the feeling was mutual. But he'd be damned to give a fuck about that right now.
His friends were in the hospital and one was in a critical condition. And he was going to find the person…persons…responsible for that.
"I've seen Saburo driving the same car," Motoki watched as a flash of recognition and rage entered Daiki's eyes.
Usagi was still looking up at Motoki when a warm hand was placed on her shoulder, "Usagi," Daiki said as he looked at her with the most serious expression she'd ever seen on him, "I think it'd be better if you go home." He clasped his hand over her mouth before she could say anything. "No, listen to me." He turned his whole body towards her without pulling away his hand. "I will stay here until he comes out of surgery and I will call you the minute there is any news, ne?" He was about to retreat his hand when her eyebrows were knitted together and he sighed with frustration and kept his hand where it was. "Don't argue with me. I need you to listen to me and trust me on this, okay?" He finally withdrew his hand from her mouth when she looked at him with defeat.
He stood up right beside Motoki and for the first time, Motoki realized that the blond guy was an inch or two shorter than him. It was strange. But their group had been going to his arcade for months, almost every day, and he'd always pay close attention to them. Mainly because of who they were, but after a while, keeping an eye on Chiba had become a habit.
He took note of Daiki's rumpled shirt and disheveled hair. His dark pants were hanging low on his hips and the think black chain around his pocket was almost invisible.
His eyes snapped back up when Daiki pulled Usagi into a loose embrace, "Go home, get some rest," he was telling her, "I want you to have a bright smile on your face when he wakes up," he whispered to her and a pang of heartache went through Motoki.
The moment he had seen Chiba's body lain on the ground, blood bursting out of his nose…right before that exact moment, Motoki had wished Chiba dead!
And now he was too disgusted with himself to even think about that moment!
He had been walking around the streets, trying to figure out whether confronting Usagi would satisfy him in any way when he had heard the roar of the motorcycle and had seen them coming out of her street.
Motoki had frozen mid step, as he watched Chiba looking at the main street.
He had stood immobile to avoid being caught, but they didn't move. Instead, he saw Usagi jumping off and taking a few steps away from Chiba.
He couldn't hear what they were saying, and it really didn't help that Usagi still had her helmet on.
Motoki gripped the wall he was leaning against when he saw how Chiba pulled her closer to him and removed her helmet. And when Usagi's frantic hand gestures suddenly stopped and were instead placed on her face, Motoki knew that she was probably crying.
He felt a flutter of satisfaction deep in his gut. Maybe they were breaking up? Maybe Chiba's true nature was revealed to Usagi? Maybe she could finally understand the heartache she had bestowed on him.
His little musing was short lived as he watched Chiba pulling Usagi into his arms.
Motoki saw red then. The way Usagi clung to him made Motoki blood boil with anger.
She was hugging him tightly, as if her whole life, her whole world, depended on that guy.
Motoki couldn't remember Usagi hugging him like that; not even once.
The hell with being the good guy. Motoki was done standing on the sidelines. He'd wanted to talk to Usagi and put all of this behind them, but seeing her with him was just too much.
He'd never thought about what it would feel like when he actually saw them together. Somewhere in his mind, he'd deemed their relationship a fantasy. A mirage of a teenaged girl who had slept with a guy and suddenly assumed that they were a couple!
He never even fathomed the possibility of their relationship being real!
Motoki was done standing in the shadows.
Chiba had seen him first. His blue eyes had narrowed as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
Motoki didn't know how Usagi had become aware of his presence though, because he sure hadn't made any sound.
But she had tilted her head away from Chiba' embrace and upon seeing him, her watery eyes had stared at him with disbelief.
Chiba had pushed Usagi slightly to the side, stepping in front of her and that little gesture had been Motoki's undoing.
The fucking bastard thought he was going to hurt her? He had opened his mouth to say something nasty, something that would insult Chiba and hurt Usagi at the same time, but no words had come out.
"Not now," Chiba had growled and Motoki's attention was snapped back to his eyes.
"Whatever you want to say, it can wait," he continued as he grabbed Usagi's helmet and handed it to her.
She hadn't stopped looking at Motoki for a second and Chiba had to nudge her with the helmet to get her attention. But she had only looked up at Chiba and hadn't moved to put it on.
With a frustrated sigh, Chiba had reached out to put it on for her.
"You have some nerve ordering me around Chiba," Motoki hissed as he felt his body tense up.
Chiba hadn't even bothered to turn around and face him, he'd continued adjusting the helmet on Usagi's head.
"I'm talking to you," Motoki growled louder. He saw how Usagi's body went stiff and how she gripped Chiba's arm.
But the fucking bastard was as calm as a sculpture!
"I said not now. What part of that don't you understand?" Chiba suddenly turned and faced him, his eyes dark with the shadow of his dark eyebrows. "Now is not a good time," he said calmly and then grabbed his own helmet. "I'll take her to the temple, after that, I can meet you wherever you want."
"This also involves her," Motoki countered back as he took steps forward, "I wouldn't even know of your existence if it wasn't for her." He took another step forward, completely avoiding how Usagi wrenched her helmet off and looked at him with horror. "I wouldn't even waste my breath on you if she hadn't decided to jump into bed with you." The words had come out bitterly, just the way he had intended them to be. So, it didn't surprise him Chiba pushed away his helmet on the bike and turned to face him once more, "Watch it," he warned. But Motoki was on a mission. He had been in anguish for far too long and he'd had enough. He wasn't going to waste one more second of beating himself up about where he had gone wrong, of why Usagi had cheated on him like that; because now he knew this was her wrongdoing; their wrongdoing.
"Or what?" Motoki said in a tense voice. "What're you gonna do?" he challenged Chiba, hoping that by provoking him, he could get a rise out of him. That would give him the reason to kick his ass!
"Get lost apron boy, I don't have time for this." He still looked composed, even though Motoki was able to see the raw anger in his face.
And he liked what he saw!
"Spare me small talk Chiba. I have time now, and I want to do this right now," he spat.
"Mamoru," Usagi's voice drew both men's' attention to her, "Come on. Let's go." She was looking up at Chiba with pleading eyes and when she closed her tiny fingers around his forearm, Motoki felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
He had never thought of the possibility of seeing Usagi looking at Chiba like that…he couldn't quite name what he saw in her eyes. But her stare had a superiority element to it, one that only a person confident in their partner would cast.
The words that flew out of his mouth was a combination of disgust, jealousy and pure anger; "Getting hot, Usa?"
The blinding pain he felt on the side of his face didn't surprise him. He knew what would come after that. He had seen it coming.
He was prepared for it.
Usagi screamed when Motoki's fist connected with Mamoru's abdomen and send him flying on his back.
She threw herself on Mamoru who was quick to pull himself up and ready to strike again. "STOP THIS!" she yelled. "Stop acting like savages!" She stood between them. Her desperation and anger apparent from the way she held herself.
"Get the hell out of my way Usagi," Motoki spat as he touched his jaw.
"Don't fucking talk to her like that," Mamoru growled.
"I'd talk however I want. Fuck you!"
"SHUT UP!- SHUT UP! BOTH OF YOU!" Usagi's high pitched scream made both flinch and glare at her. But the look on her face made Motoki freeze in his spot.
"Stop acting like children. We're not in elementary school anymore. Get a fucking hold of yourselves," she cried and the uncharacteristic usage of foul language surprised both men.
And if it were any other situation, Mamoru would've probably laughed his ass off.
The flames in her eyes and the way she had put emphasis on "f" as if it would add more power to the word was amusing.
"I see that hanging around with him has taught you stuff," Motoki said bitterly with a hint of sarcasm.
But before Mamoru could open his mouth, Usagi beat him to it; "I knew how to say fuck…" she spat; her anger getting the best of her. Her parents' abandonment was suffocating her and Motoki just had to show up there and then! "Fuck…" she said again, louder this time as she stared right into Motoki's green, and undeniably angry eyes. "Fuck fuck fuck…." she sing-songed. "See? Do you want me to show you what else I know, THAT DOESN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH MAMORU?" Her voice got louder as she took steps forward and almost got into Motoki's face, but before she could "show" them what other talents and knowledges she had, Mamoru's hand snaked around her waist and pulled her back. "Alright, we get it," he said with a roll of his eyes, "You are a bad ass." He held her tight against his chest as she struggled to set herself free. "Calm down," he whispered in her ear.
Motoki averted his eyes away from the scene. Seeing them together like this, like a...couple…was just too much too soon!
Chiba was saying something in Usagi's ear, but he couldn't hear him. But whatever he said to her, it visibly calmed her down.
"I'm taking her to her friend's," Chiba's voice turned Motoki's head around. "After that, I will meet you at the park…let's settle this." He had loosened his hold on Usagi and her eyes were fixed on the ground.
Motoki regarded them for a moment and then let out a frustrated sigh, "There's nothing to settle," he hissed, "I don't know if I'm madder at you for going behind my back, or if I'm mad at myself for letting you do it to me." He was clearly addressing Usagi, but his eyes were fixed far away.
"I should've known from the start that there was something going on with this guy…the way he looked at you every time he came into the arcade…the way he undressed you every time with his eyes….I'd just underestimated his charms and seduction techniques. I'd also underestimated your willingness to be seduced…"
"I love him."
Usagi's broken voice cut Motoki's sentence halfway and he finally looked at her with disbelief. Did she…?
"He didn't seduce me, he didn't need to. I have loved him for so long…" she almost sobbed.
Mamoru was also looking at her with a look of surprise. He couldn't believe how easy it was for her to claim her love for him; with this much passion, certainty and easiness! And to her ex-boyfriend of all people!
"I'd never forgive myself for what I've done to you Motoki-kun, but it wasn't his fault. It was my own stupidity to not understand my feelings sooner." She looked at Motoki and her tear stained face wrinkle with more sobs.
Mamoru reached out and put his arm around her shoulder, but as he was about to pull her closer, his eyes caught sight of Motoki's dejected and extremely crushed face.
A bitter taste entered his mouth then. The guy in front of him was a broken man. A man who'd been in love with the girl he had pretty much stolen away. Mamoru was not a mind reader, but it wasn't hard to figure out what Motoki was feeling right then.
After all, he was in love with the same girl; and of all people, he knew what her love could do to a man.
"I'm sorry…" he heard his own voice saying in a tone so foreign and so unlike his usual stoic voice.
"I know I cannot undone what I've done. But if I could go back in time, I would've done everything in a different way." He rose his blue eyes and regarded Motoki's confused stricken face.
From the corner of his eye, he could see that Usagi was also staring at him and he tighten his hold around her shoulder. "I knew how I felt about her and I let her slip away out of my reach. And I knew from the moment she started dating you that I was going to steal her away." He didn't know where those words were coming from, but he knew that now was the time to set out of his comfort zone and do the impossible.
"I wanted to hurt you," Mamoru continued in the same tone of voice and when he turned around to look at Usagi, she recognized the honesty in his deep blue eyes. "I wanted to hurt you because you are probably what is right for her…someone who makes sense for her to be with…" He averted his eyes back to Motoki. "You were never my enemy Furuhata and I'm sorry for the pain that I've caused you." He took a deep breath. "But I won't change having her by my side with anything else in the world. I'm sorry that I hurt you and how I went about approaching her, but…," his thick black eyebrows arched a little, "I'm not sorry for stealing her back. She belonged with me from the start."
Motoki's head was spinning. The pain in his jaw was brutal and he could feel a lump forming in his lower lip and all he wanted to do was to go home, take a shower and bury himself in his bed.
He was done. All fight in him was suddenly drained out of his system the moment Usagi had yelled those three words.
There was nothing left to discuss after that.
They were in love. What could he possibly say to that? He could probably yell at Usagi, curse Mamoru and encourage him to give him a black eye too; but what good would that even do? Would it bring back Usagi by his side? Did he even want Usagi by his side anymore? Motoki tried to reach deep inside, searching and probing his heart for an answer. Usagi had hurt him severely, that much he knew. And it really didn't help that he still had feelings for her. But…they were in love…how the hell could he even compete with that?
Did he even want to compete with that?
He wasn't ready to face the reality!
For long moments, the three of them just stood there, looking at one another as if trying to memorize every nook and cranny of the other person's features.
Motoki heard the car in the distance.
So did Mamoru.
Usagi was still trying to figure out what the hell had happened over the course of an hour.
She noticed the car when it sped up and right at them.
She saw the blinding lights before Mamoru pulled her away.
It was as if suddenly a layer was lifted off her ears and she was able to hear everything loud and clear.
She heard Mamoru's yelling, Motoki's cursing…her own loud scream.
She heard the tire screech but it was before her body was slammed to the floor with Mamoru's force and she was momentarily deaf with the impact.
Her eyes could see though.
They were wide with fear and confusion. But they could see.
So, she saw how the car that had passed them by turned around, sped up once more towards them. Motoki turned around quickly and Mamoru ran to him quickly.
He was quick enough to push Motoki away, much like he did so with Usagi.
But this time, he wasn't quick enough to throw himself away as well.
Motoki closed his eyes; he could still hear Usagi's scream loud and clear. He opened his eyes again and regarded the side of her face that was buried in Daiki's chest.
He could still remember the way her eyes had looked at him when he'd told her to go and get help. To run to her house and get her father. They needed a car fast.
He remembered his frantic pounding on the Tsukino's door. The way Kenji and Ikuko looked at him when they saw his bloodied shirt, "We need to go to the hospital." He hadn't wasted any time.
"She's okay. He's not…" he had explained simply as Kenji had threw on a jacket and had run outside with slippers on.
"Are you a relative of Chiba Mamoru?"
Three heads almost immediately snapped up to look at the tall slim nurse standing before them.
"Yes…" Daiki answered quickly as Usagi moved out of his arms. "Yes…what happened? How is he?" Usagi didn't give him the chance to finish his sentence.
The nurse regarded them with a small frown on her face. "Is there an adult accompanying you?"
Usagi's mind was so far away that she didn't understand what she was saying at first. She looked at Daiki and Motoki with confused eyes.
"I'm this young lady's father," Kenji's voice was heard from behind Motoki.
The nurse looked at him skeptically. "Are any of you a close relative? Where are his parents?"
"They're not here. You can tell us. He's my best friend," Daiki's pleading voice was new to Usagi and she felt her eyes water once more. The nurse was still hesitating.
"Listen ma'am," Usagi said as she reached out and grabbed the taller woman's hands, "his parents are dead. He doesn't have close relatives. We are his family." She looked at Daiki. "We're the only ones he has. So please, just…tell me what happened." She broke down then. No longer able to hide her horror and hopelessness.
She felt warm arms encircling around her body and she inhaled the spicy warm scent that she had known since she could remember.
"Your patient is out of surgery. The injuries to his arm, shoulder and leg are not extreme…however," she took a deep sigh and Daiki's blood froze in his veins, 'He's not dead,' he kept repeating to himself like mantra.
"He was hit pretty hard on his left side and so…" The nurse looked at each person with ponder, "He has a spleen rapture…"
"What does that mean?"
The nurse looked at Usagi with clouded eyes. "We have to wait and see if he makes it through the night. The internal bleeding…"
Four sets of eyes were fixed on her, but nurse Enomoto couldn't look away from the tiny girl's face; her eyes…
"If?"
Her slow hushed voice was the last thing nurse Enomoto heard before her buzzer started beeping.
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or its fabulous characters in any way. I wish I did, but I don't! All the delightful right of this wonderful manga/anime and its characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi.