Hi all.
I hope everyone's enjoying their Sunday afternoon (morning? Wherever on the map you are!)
It's a beautiful sunny day in Vancouver and I feel that it's a great day to upload a new chapter. So, voila! Here's chapter 23.
You might be interested to know that I'm almost finished with the next chapter and with BrownB's thumbs up and help, it'll probably be published in the next week or so. (I'm not making any promises, because her opinion matters a lot, and unless she likes the flow of the new chapter, then we won't have anything to publish any time soon:D:D)
Thank you as always to everyone who's still showing interest in this story and follows it. Special thank you for those who take the time to leave me a review and give me the energy to continue. I love you so much!
Guardians34: I sure hope you like this chapter. It gives a little background to how Usagi and Mamoru met (more of that in chapter 24 too). I'm actually quite impressed myself of how the girls turned into such masterminds with a little devilish twist. Enjoy.
TropicalRemix: To be quite honest, I'm not so happy myself that Motoki had to go through the heartache, but unfortunately, life can be difficult that way sometimes. You know? Enjoy the next chapter.
Jessielee14: I'm so glad you're still following the story. And just by seeing your review, I was like, "I am going to finish this story if that's the last thing I do!" I mean, you know, metaphorically Enjoy and let me know what you think.
Rei0ki: You gave me a great idea. With the timeline and all. So, thank you so much. I'm really trying to be more productive and set a timeline for myself, but you know, sometimes it gets hard with life! Let me know what you think of the new chapter. Enjoy.
Oloferne: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR ENCOURAGING WORDS. Yes, I guess it's not a simple love story anymore. Initially, I was just trying to set up a different concept for their love. You know, the kind that is more real, that happens in reality. People cheat and get cheated on all the time, we don't exactly live in a fairy-tale world (unfortunately!) but I guess I just got over myself at some point. But, I'm back on track now and I know exactly how this story is going to end. And I can't wait to share it with you. Enjoy and let me know what you think.
Karinori: Where were you all this time? I thought you totally abandoned me I was so happy when I saw your reviews. Thank you so much for leaving a few btw I know, there's a whole mess that needs to be dealt with. But don't worry, now I have the perfect plan for how to finish this story and how to give each character the ending they deserve Let me know what you think. Enjoy.
Latebuttruefan: I've told you how much I love your nickname, right? Because I LOVE IT:D There is going to be more Usagi/Mamoru moments in this chapter and the following chapter, so don't worry Let me know what you think. Enjoy.
As usual, a big thank you to the amazing BrownB, for her continuous support, both mentally and intellectually. She's a super busy woman, but hey, she still finds time to listen to my nagging and inspire me.
Enjoy everyone.
"I did not sign up for this."
"It's too late to back out now…"
"Welllll…no one actually invited you guys, so-"
"Can it blondie! We're all in this together and-"
"We're here!"
Motoki's none too happy tone washed over Usagi as she opened her eyes.
She hadn't been too eager to settle on the front seat, but Rei had convinced her that if she were to play the part of Motoki's "girlfriend", then it was only natural for her to be seating on the passenger seat. "It'll look suspicious if you don't," Rei had commented. "To who?" Usagi had asked. "To whom…" They'd all looked at Minako with raised eyebrows. "What?" the blonde had inquired with a pout, "Ami's rubbing off on me."
"Any…ways…" Rei had rolled her eyes. "You have to seat at the front and you have to act all mad in love at the restaurant too…no, listen Usagi… we've all done our share in this whole "thing". And now it's your turn. And honestly, it's not too bad to be acting like Motoki's girlfriend…you've lived it before, remember? It shouldn't be that hard!" she had added with a wink; Usagi really wanted to smack that sly smile off her face!
So even though Usagi had voiced her unwillingness, none of the girls had paid it any heed and eventually, she had got on board. She'd even let Minako dress her in her yellow, maxi dress for the night.
The silence during the car ride had been brutal. Motoki was obviously as uncomfortable as she was. He hadn't even looked at her as she had settled on her seat; all rigid muscles and tight face.
He had been quiet for the whole ride; he'd even answered Minako's continuous and repeated questions with a nod of his head or a shrug.
He was obviously a non-too-willing participant as well.
"Okay, now listen," Minako said as soon as she got out of the car. "Try to act cool. We don't want anyone, anyone, especially the target to know that we know what they've done."
"The target?" Makoto asked with uncertainty.
"Subaru-kun...san! Baka…" Minako stuttered, her face flushing red, "I think I might be a little too much into this character thing!"
"You think?" Rei rolled her eyes, "Come on, let's go inside."
Usagi stood rooted on her spot. Her eyes were focused on the restaurant's fancy sign as her mind raced through the images of that awful night. She could still vividly remember the sound of the screams, Minako's panicked eyes, the horror she had felt for the few seconds before Mamoru had burst through the women's bathroom.
Mamoru…
"You okay Usa-chan?" Minako's voice lured her out of her reverie.
"I'm…just, I was just thinking about that night," Usagi said with a sigh.
Minako nodded her head, "You and me both girlie." She put an arm around her friend and smiled, "We've got your back, you know that, right?"
Usagi forced herself to smile, because even though her heart was in her throat, she was not going to devalue her friends' efforts. She was going to put on her brave mask and, damn it, she was going to be strong.
As soon as they walked into the restaurant, with Minako and Usagi following everyone else, a cheerful voice called out to Motoki.
"What's up Motoki-kun, I didn't know you were coming too," a chubby guy approached the group and slapped Motoki on the back.
Usagi averted her eyes away from the duo and instead, took in the interior of the restaurant.
It was strange, but it was like she was seeing the place in a whole new light. Where the interior had once seemed luxurious and tasteful, it all looked dull and maybe a little mysterious now.
She remembered how she had fallen in love with the modern art work on the walls; they just seemed disturbing now.
"Jeez, I didn't think they'd be here too…" Motoki's comment, probably to himself, brought Usagi back to reality.
"Who?" Rei asked.
"Um, no one. I mean, some of my classmates," Motoki replied without meeting any of their gazes.
"Should we go sit somewhere?"
They all muttered their approvals and walked their way towards one of the corners.
"Motoki-kun, you made it!"
Usagi turned her head in the direction of the voice and her legs automatically stopped their venture. Because within a few meters of her, was Tanaka Subaru, who was walking towards them with a ghost of a smile on his face.
Her hand went up unconsciously to grab a hold of Minako's, or Rei's, who were within reach.
But instead, she felt a bigger and familiar hand grabbing hers, squeezing it as if to say, "Don't…"
She looked up at Motoki, who was giving Subaru a polite smile; she knew that smile, it was the same one he'd given his customers now and then, the one that said: "if you hadn't notice, this smile is fake!" She used to tease him about it a lot.
She felt a knot tied in her stomach.
"Subaru-san, thank you for inviting us," Motoki said, his eyes glancing at Usagi. "You remember my girlfriend Usagi?" He pointed with his free hand towards the others, "and her friends?"
"I always remember a realm of beauty," the other man replied. He bowed towards the girls with politeness of a royal and then his eyes landed on Minako. "Aino-san, it's nice to see you again," he took the blonde's hand and left a gentle kiss on its back.
"Subaru-kun, it's really nice to see you too," Minako beamed up at him. Her enthusiasm was so genuine that for a moment, Rei doubted how they had decided to exercise the plan. What if Minako really liked the guy now?
"Your hair looks amazing!"
And just like that, Rei knew for sure that Minako's fascination with the man in front of them was all an act.
For one thing, the man had short, dark hair. And Rei, even though she didn't know how she knew it, but she knew for a fact that Minako only went for men with longer, straighter and probably fairer hair.
"Please," Subaru "shit" (at least that's how Rei decided to call the bastard from then on) gestured towards the middle of the restaurant and made room for all of them to pass him.
Minako stayed behind, of course, "Did you miss me?" Rei heard the blonde's flirtatious voice followed by a deep chuckle from the Subaru shit, "Isn't it obvious?"
It wasn't what he said, but how he said it that sent chills down Rei's spine. She looked back at him.
His eyes were fixed on Minako. Rei looked harder.
His eyes were on the blonde, but Rei could swear that he wasn't looking at her!
The radio was making a scratchy sound, pausing altogether sometimes, and then picking up where it left off, and yet, Daiki's ears were deaf to it all.
His eyes were transfixed on the entrance of the restaurant. His mind was sending him images of the last time he had entered the same door.
"You think they might recognize you?" Usagi had asked with wide eyes. "Probably, but…"
"So, you shouldn't go with us," she had demanded, "You'll stay out and make sure no one sees you."
"I'll be fine."
"You'll stay out and be our back up…or something."
As it turned out, Usagi's idea was quickly agreed by everyone else. Well, everyone except Hisa who had rolled her eyes for the billionth time during their whole "planning".
"Oh, shut up!"
Hisa's sudden and violent punch on the radio button pulled Daiki out of his haze.
"When will you fix this old shit?" Her tone was annoyed and she didn't meet Daiki's stare when she spat out the words, which meant that she was really, really pissed; so, he kept his mouth shut.
And honestly, he had been walking on eggshells around her lately, so keeping quiet was becoming a habit!
It's not like he was afraid of her, at least not entirely. But she hadn't been able to completely forgive him and he knew she had every right, well…that, and the fact that Hisa could be very irrational when she didn't want to hear a person out.
"What are you looking at?"
A layer of blur was lifted from Daiki's eyes and he was pulled back to reality once more and he noticed that he was staring straight into the brunette's annoyed eyes.
"Nothing," he said, averting his eyes back on the restaurant he was supposed to be watching carefully.
"If you have something to say, just say it," Hisa hissed. Her hair had grown longer than Daiki remembered ever seeing her sporting, and if it were any other time, he would tease her about it and secretly admire the long, slightly disheveled locks.
"I really don't."
"But I think you do."
"I don't."
"You always have something to say!"
"Well, I don't this time."
"Don't raise your voice at me dumbass!"
He let out a deep sigh and fisted his hand on the steering wheel, but remained silent, which pissed her off even more.
"Screw this, I'm out of here."
She had barely touched the door handle when Daiki's hand grabbed her forearm in an iron grip.
"Let me go you son of a-"
"Shut up!"
The words itself didn't surprise Hisa that much since the foundation of their relationship was based on annoyance, foul language, and eye rolls!
But there was a certain quality in his tone that made her falter in her attempt to full-on strike him in the face.
His grip got tighter. "I've taken your bullshit for the past few weeks because I know you feel betrayed and used. But you know what, the hell with all of that…"
He took a deep breath and pulled her towards himself, "I made a mistake involving you guys in this shit and I'm doing whatever I can to make up for it. But, damn it Hisa, you make everything so fucking hard…"
She was looking at him with wide eyes and for the first time in forever, she didn't know how to reply.
It was funny, but since the first time they've met, Hisa had seen Daiki almost every day (and sometimes too closely, mind you. Damn, but she'd even seen him naked in the shower) and yet, she had never noticed the slight bulge on his upper eyelids, and was it just her imagination, or were his eyeballs really white, especially against the green of his irises?
"This is not a game anymore," he was telling her. "So quit acting like a spoiled little child, because I'm done hearing your fucking complaints!"
Somehow, he had pulled her so close that she could feel his breath against her face. She could visibly see the tightness of his forehead as he frowned deeply.
They watched one another for long seconds. Later that night, Hisa would scold herself for just staring at him instead of kicking his ass for the way he yelled at her. But in those intense moments, she could only stare.
She didn't notice herself, but her eyes kept switching between his eyes and his lips; but ever the observant, Daiki was aware of this little fact.
"Are you fantasizing about my lips?"
His sly comment violently pulled Hisa out of her slumber and she quickly pushed herself away from him, "YOU LITTLE MOTHER FU-!"
"I'm fantasizing about so much more," he said with the same tone, his eyes doing a slow once over on her and Hisa felt a shiver running down her spine despite herself.
"But not now," Daiki chuckled, taking in the way her eyes were throwing flames at him, "when this shit is done and dealt with, I'll show you who the real boss is…babe," he let out a loud laugh when Hisa's face turned red with anger and her breathing came out in small, angered puffs.
He averted his eyes back to the restaurant, leaving her to fume all she wanted.
He would make it up to her later.
"Whoever told that girl she has a nice voice was clearly not her friend."
"Amen to that!"
"Rei-chan, you should go up there."
"Yeah Rei, you really should…hey…over here."
"MINAKO!"
Rei's arm shot forward to grab Minako's raised hand. "I don't want to sing," she hissed at the excited blonde who was trying to free her hand from Rei's death grip.
"Why not? Surprisingly, you have a great voice and I think you should try!"
"But I don't want to sing right now. Minako, what is wrong with you? We're not here for fun!"
"Oh Rei-chan, live a little. We can do action stuff and still have fun."
The other four occupants of the table just looked at one another and rolled their eyes. Leave it to Minako and she would make everything a Disney Land trip.
"Ten o'clock…"
Everyone looked at Makoto with raised eyebrows as she tried to point to something with her eyes.
Usagi looked at her with confusion, checked her wristwatch and got even more confused. "But it's only 8:20 Mako-chan…"
"No," Makoto sighed, "I meant 'look out for your 10 o'clock."
Usagi tilted her head to the left, "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"She's trying to point out to a location, or someone's location," Ami explained calmly and then looked behind her. "I don't see-"
"For heaven's…there's that Subaru dude," Makoto finally snapped and everyone's attention was averted to the said man who was standing a few tables away from them and speaking to a tall, older man.
"That's barely a 6 o'clock Mako-chan," Ami said with amusement and smiled at her friend.
"Try a 5:30 ish." Rei continued.
"Oh, sue me."
"He's coming over here," Motoki hissed and straightened his back.
"How's everyone doing?" Subaru asked and looked at their rather empty table. "You're not hungry or is the food not to your liking?"
They all looked at one another, waiting for the other person to respond, but Subaru wasn't looking for an answer. "Motoki-kun, as I recall, your girlfriend had an interesting appetite, why haven't you ordered anything for her?"
Motoki's eyes jumped to the lone and sad looking green tea in front of Usagi. "Um, I forgot," He let out an uncomfortable laugh. "What do you want?" he then asked the blonde who was eyeing Subaru too visibly.
Usagi looked at him, noticing that this was the first time during the night that he was directing a question at her, "Umm, I don't know…I'm…"
"You should try the curry, it's delicious," Subaru interrupted and before Usagi was able to voice her opinion, he gestured towards a waiter and asked him over. "Take a good care of this table, will you?" he said to the young boy who had his pen and little notepad in hand. "Aino-san, won't you try the karaoke?" he looked at Minako with a soft (albeit evil, Rei thought to herself) eyes!
Minako beamed up at him. "I would love to," she declared, sending a "told you so" glance Rei's way and standing up, "Can I choose a song too?"
"Of course, you can. Follow me."
Five sets of eyes followed the duo as they made their way towards the little stage in the middle of the restaurant. Makoto raised her brows at how Minako tried to sway her hips, 'scandalous', she thought to herself. She focused on Subaru then, the way he was talking to Minako, the way he seemed aware of his surroundings while at the same time, giving his seemingly full attention to the girl beside him. She narrowed her eyes, had she really found him "attractive" the first time they had come to this restaurant? The thought made her sick!
"Do you think he's on to us?" she asked without thinking. There was just something about the way that guy kept his attention on them; something wasn't adding up.
"He is," Motoki said as if he was talking to himself, not noticing that he had said it out loud.
"I think we need to do…well, whatever it is we want to do quickly," Rei said and then paused as she looked at the rest of them, "what are we going to do by the way?"
"I thought you had a plan?" Makoto asked and smiled at the tall waiter who had just appeared at their table with a tray of food.
"I thought Motoki had one," Rei said and raised her brows at the blond who wasn't paying attention to them at all. His eyes jumped to Rei as soon as he heard his name, "Me?" he gestured towards himself, "why in the world would I have a plan?"
"Well, for one thing, you were the one who suggested coming to this hell hole in the first place," Rei retorted and immediately tried to calm herself.
"I never did that! It was Makoto's idea-"
"My idea?"
"Yes! Who said, 'the karaoke night is the best time to show Tanaka that, and I'm not paraphrasing, these are your actual words, a) that we're not afraid of him, and b) Usagi's not with Mamoru and so he would back the fuck up!"
"I resent that, I said 'back the hell off'!"
"Whatever," Motoki snapped, "bottom line is that this was all your idea. I didn't even want to come!"
"I resent that too! You were the one that came up with the clever idea of telling him Usagi was your girlfriend so he would-"
"ENOUGH!"
Usagi's harsh tone worked like a splash of water on the table. They all held their next words and looked at the petite blonde with confusion.
Motoki had gone through an ugly break up with her, but even he hadn't remembered seeing this look on Usagi's face!
"I have a plan…" she declared, her eyes focused on Subaru who was watching Minako's pretty performance with a shadow of a smile.
Makoto looked at Ami, Ami looked at Motoki, Motoki looked at Rei.
But Rei's eyes never strained away from Usagi's determined face.
She had a plan, and Rei was adamant to see it through!
"You awake?"
Mamoru's ears sharpened, but he didn't move a muscle. Of course, he was awake. It was only 9:30 and he was a night owl! He couldn't remember the last time he slept any time before 1:00 in the morning!
But the shitty lights out policy in this shitty place was at 9:00 pm sharp; though Mamoru still found himself wide awake at night, just staring into the dark and thinking and thinking; his mind would never stop!
"Chiba?"
He rolled his eyes, even though the other boy couldn't possibly see him. "I'm awake," he said in defeat, knowing well that the boy slumped on the other bed would not give up.
"I was thinking…" there was a shuffling sound on the bed, "when we're both out of here, we should go and see Kaiou-san's concert," he sighed and Mamoru could almost picture the dreamy smile on his face, "she's truly an angle, with a talent like a God…"
"How you managed to give your step-brother a broken rib is beyond me," Mamoru said sarcastically.
Sora let out a frustrated sigh. "He's a fucking jerk and he deserved it."
Mamoru chuckled despite himself; having Sora as a roommate (inmate?! Whatever he was supposed to call him) was a curse and a blessing. The boy had too much energy, hatred and too much romance in him. It was a paradox Mamoru was willing to deal with.
"I don't doubt it," he simply said.
"Do you think Kaiou-san could fall for me?"
Mamoru's head turned towards the other boy, and even though Sora couldn't possibly see his facial expression, Mamoru raised an eye-brow nonetheless! "Isn't she with that racer? I don't remember he-"
"Yea, I guess. But it's not like their married or anything, right? I can be charming!"
Mamoru raised both brows this time. Sora was okay, slightly annoying, but he was easy to be around. Still, Mamoru doubt his lanky figure, shabby tangled up hair and think cheekbones could score anyone as famous as the violinist! And besides, wasn't Michiru Kaiou a…
"You know that racer is a girl, right?"
The old bed spring was almost broken under Sora's violent jolt, "WHAT?"
Mamoru laid on his back and rested both arms under his head, "The racer is a girl."
"You mean…Kaiou-san…"
"Yup."
There was a moment of silence in which Mamoru assumed his "inmate" was probably grieving his lost, one-sided, never happening love!
It was probably half an hour later when Mamoru felt a movement in their room.
"What are you doing?" he asked the other boy.
"The moon looks hunted tonight," Sora's voice was only above a whisper, "it looks almost…lost!"
Mamoru rolled his eyes once more. For all his isolated and intimidating persona, Mamoru was a bit surprised how easy Sora had gotten him to loosen up a little. He found himself more times than none, listening to the boy's stories of his childhood, his mother's remarriage and the ordeal he had gone through with his new family. He had found himself caring for the boy like an older brother!
"How can the moon be lost baka?"
"It's hidden behind the clouds, but it still wants to be seen and…protecting the sky? I don't know!"
"Don't start spouting poetry at me."
"No, seriously!"
"I'm going to sleep now."
Mamoru closed his eyes and really aimed at turning off his mind and getting some rest.
"It means 'rabbit of the moon'," he could still hear her giggling in his head. "So that explains the odangos," he remembered saying before she pouted and gave him an annoyed stare!
He opened his eyes again, turned around and looked outside.
The moon was shining through the window, no clouds blocking it anymore! Instead,keeping it company.
She splashed cold water on her face once more, clasping her face with both hands and massaging her eyes. She felt a headache coming, but for the life of her, she didn't care!
She looked at her reflection in the mirror. The blue eyes she was staring at didn't have the courage they did ten minutes ago, when she had declared, with faux confidence, that she "had a plan"! What the hell was she thinking? Why would she say that when she didn't have a clue how to fight evil? Well, not evil, gangsters…but let's face it, Tanaka's were evil!
She brought her face closer to the mirror, trying to smooth out her eyebrows and not caring about the droplets of water on her cheeks.
"You have got to trust me…"
His eyes were so determined and honest. She remembered the tiny smile he'd given her, right before she had left him in the awful place he was in right now; he was counting on them, on her, to bring him home.
The haze that had clouded the blue orbs she was staring at was slowly lifted, and Usagi was able to see, truly see, the girl in the mirror.
This girl was no longer a crybaby.
She had grown so much. Since the day she had met Mamoru in the arcade, from the moment he had called her "odango atama" something in her had changed. Maybe it was the sudden realization that a boy was hitting on her, (although she was ignorant to that little fact until much, much later; so, not too sudden!) or the fact that a boy like Mamoru, indifferent, confident and mysterious, was giving her the attention she had never received from anyone else before.
Unbeknown to her, Mamoru had changed her little by little. Giving her the strength and the confidence she'd never mustered; an assertiveness that had enabled her to face Motoki and later, facing the fact that she had broken his heart.
She was not a crybaby. Not anymore.
She continued looking at her reflection. A light going on in her head and the girl inside the mirror smiled back!
"Why are they taking so long?" Hisa hissed and straightened the back of her seat.
Daiki had pleaded with her to take a "nap"! Knowing well that Hisa could only sit still in one place for 10 minutes, tops! And when she couldn't move around physically, she always managed to blow off her pent-up energy in other ways…mainly, by starting a tantrum!
"It hasn't been that long," Daiki replied as he tried to conceal his yawn.
Hisa raised an eyebrow and looked out the window, "What's the plan again? Are they gonna do ninja stuff in there, get those bastards to confess, while killing us with boredom here in the process?"
She was half expecting him to smile at what she said, but Daiki's eyes were as serious as before, "I don't know."
She turned towards him, "You don't know? What do you mean, 'you don't know'?" She straightened the back of her sit further up and glared at him, "I thought you said you had a plan?"
"I do."
"So?"
"But they don't know what that plan is."
Hisa looked at him with wide eyes and the expression on Daiki's face threw her back to so many memories of him having the exact same look on his face.
She clearly didn't like his guts right now, but she knew how his brain worked.
A tiny and knowing smile appeared on her face.
Usagi was about to exit the washroom, when someone pushed the door from the other side and walked inside, straight into her!
"OW, Mina-chan, what the hell!" the smaller blonde whined.
"Wow, I see that rude boyfriend of yours has rubbed off on you!" Minako declared and went up to the mirror.
"He's not rude," Usagi glared and immediately thought about it. "Well, I mean… maybe, a little!"
"Usa-chan, what is your plan? Rei told me you have a plan, and I need you to do it, like, right now! Or I might have to go home with that guy!"
Usagi's face twisted with disgust, "EWW, Mina-chan, don't even say that!"
Minako did a bored gesture with her hand, "Yea, yea! I mean, you must admit, he is hot! I don't mind doing a little "humping humping" with him..."
"He's a criminal Mina!" Usagi declared with horror.
"I know. But that's what makes him even hotter!"
"I think I'm going to vomit."
"Wait…"
Minako suddenly went still and quiet, her eyes plastered on the entrance door.
"What?" Usagi whispered, trying to figure out what was happening.
Minako's eyes turned into slits as she took a tentative and measured step towards the door, while at the same time, putting her finger on her nose and gesturing Usagi to be quiet.
She brought her head up against the door, as quiet as a mouse, and then looked back at Usagi.
"Someone's eavesdropping" she mouthed to Usagi and the smaller blonde's eyes widened. She overcame her shock quickly and moved to stand beside her friend. She mimicked Minako and sure enough, as she leaned her ears against the door, she could hear a faint, barely-even-there movement. Someone who was standing too close to the door!
"What should we do?" Usagi mouthed. Minako shrugged unsurely, even though Usagi could tell she was trying to come up with a plan; She had that certain 'what the hell should we do?' kind of look on her face.
"Have faith in us…" Usagi remembered her own words to Mamoru. "You'll be back home soon," she'd told him.
She felt a strange kick of adrenaline in her veins, it was as if she had suddenly touched a magical crystal and the power was surging through her body.
She felt alive!
Minako gasped as she was abruptly pushed aside. She watched with horror as her small friend dived for the handle and wrenched the door open with a mad bawl.
She inhaled sharply.
The door gave an unpalatable creak sound.
The guy standing on the other side didn't even flinch. He stared right into their eyes with a calm expression. His eyes left them to do a quick survey on the bathroom, before taking two quick steps; walking forward, pushing them in as he did so and locking the three of them inside.
"Are there thorns on your seat?" Daiki asked with annoyance.
Hisa was still fidgeting around as she glared at him. "I'm stretching my muscles. Did you bring me here to kill me slowly in this fucking car?"
"Unbelievable."
"What? We've been sitting here for hours!"
"Two hou-"
"I don't fucking CARE…I want to walk around, my legs are tense…"
Daiki was beyond frustrated. He hadn't had a decent sleep for the past, God knows how many days, and when he wasn't sleeping well, he wasn't eating well either.
Add to that the pressure he was under from his superiors, from Wada-san and most of all, his conscience!
But…she was looking rather funny with her anger painted eyes and cheeks. Her hair, that was longer than her usual style, was pulled back in a tiny, tiny ponytail and wisps of short hair were sticking out from every angle!
A devilish, yet, a brilliant idea popped into his head. And even though there was a 50% chance of him losing his eyeball or nether balls, he thought with a shiver, he decided to take that chance. Because the other 50% could promptly shut Hisa up and give him the quiet and peace he needed!
"When we're done with this, I'll help loosen up your muscles babe."
Just then, he saw a car driving up the street. One headlight was on. The other one was probably broken!
He let out a prepared, albeit relieved exhale.
It was time.
And what do you know, his luck played out well for once.
Hisa was looking at him with large eyes. Quiet as a mouse!
"What is taking them so long?" Rei asked as she tried to look over where the washrooms were.
"Usagi's small bladder…" Makoto mumbled and took a small sip of her green tea.
Motoki sat up straight and tried to look around. "I don't see Subar… oh no, there he is. But Minako-chan is not with him."
"She went after Usagi."
"Déjà vu," Ami said calmly.
Rei was only ounces away from jumping from her seat and marching to the washrooms.
"Hey, who's that?" Makoto said as she gestured towards someone with her head.
They all followed her lead and looked at the three men who were entering the main hall.
They were all wearing dark casual suits and the one leading the way, had a serious expression on his face.
"Since Mina-chan isn't here… YUM," Makoto declared as she did a once over on the guy.
"Makoto…"
The brunette did a dismissive hand gesture and took another sip of her tea.
"Where the hell are they?" Rei said again.
"If I can have everyone's attention please!"
They watched in confusion as one of the "yummy" man's companions started to speak out loud, "I apologize for cutting your night short; but we need everyone to exit the premises at once," he said in a calm and confident voice. Subaru-san was now standing beside him; his demeanor was indifferent and unbothered.
Motoki didn't know how he could have the same expression all the time!
"I'm sorry to announce, but this establishment is no longer able to provide service to its customers for the night. We kindly ask everyone to leave the premises at once. I'm sorry for the inconvenience." He turned to face the "yummy" guy who was showing a piece of paper and a badge (Rei wasn't sure!) to Subaru-san.
Motoki's eyes were glued to Subaro's face, who was listening to the man with indifference and a polite smile!
How the fuck did he do it? How was he able to smile and act like nothing was wrong when everything was wrong?
"Well, that was a twist…" Makoto said looking around the table to get approval from the others.
Rei stood up to follow the crowd who were being instructed to leave the restaurant. "I'll go get the blondes," she said and moved to walk towards the washrooms.
"Miss, please follow this path," a uniform-clad officer approached their table and motioned for them to move.
"Our friends are in the ladies' room," Ami explained while pulling the strap of her purse around her shoulder.
"We will make sure to escort them out…now please, make a line behind everyone else," the officer replied and waited patiently for them to gather themselves up.
"But-" Rei began.
"This is not a request miss," he was clearly trying to keep his voice calm.
"They tend to get into trouble," Rei sighed as she pulled on the cravat around her neck.
Motoki noticed a shadow of a smile on the officer's face, "I'll personally make sure to keep them out of harm's way."
They stood behind the long line of customers who were sending confused stares at one another, and weird frightened looks around the restaurant and the staff. Within seconds, the place had packed with police officers!
"Isn't this weird though?" Ami whispered, "they just had to start their 'thing' the same night we wanted to execute our plan?"
"Well, we really didn't have a plan, so…"
"Usagi-chan had a plan!"
"Did she though?"
"She did, I'm sure," Rei declared as she looked at Makoto with confidence. "I'm sure she didn't have one right up until we were talking about having 'a plan'; but I know her, she can be spontaneous."
"True," Makoto nodded and looked around. "She also has a tiny bladder!"
"What the fuck…not this again!" Minako exclaimed as she pushed the intruder who'd basically throw himself inside the modern, seductively lit washroom.
What happened next, Minako couldn't explain for a long time. When retelling the story later, she would falter, her eyes would narrow, nose scrunched up and she would try to find words to best describe what she had witnessed.
The gist of it was that one minute, the cute waiter turned gangster was trying to do something "weird" and the next, Usagi had kicked him right in the gut!
The full version of it, or at least how Minako would prefer to explain it, was that the cute waiter had rushed inside the washroom, locked the three of them inside, threaten them with his eyes and body language! And then, Minako would swear, he had tried to unbuckle his slacks!
She didn't care if no one believed her, she didn't even care that after he was bent down with a grunt and a loud hiss, he'd managed to pull out his badge from the side of his "apron" and toss it their way.
She would also describe Usagi's assault in a very detailed, almost slow-motion manner.
"…and then she whirled around, her hair was flying everywhere…that reminds me Usa-chan, you really need a good trim…where was I, oh yeah, and then it was as if she was flying…no seriously, she was flying and then she did this weird, awesome, sidekick…" She would cast a dreamy look at her blonde friend, "she looked like a senshi…"
"Usa-chan, WOW!" Minako cried and went to stand beside her friend who was apparently just noticing what she had done.
The poor sap had managed to explain to them that he's with the undercover police, a friend of Daiki actually and that he was instructed by Daiki to watch over Tsukino-san. "I've been working here for a while…," he'd said, coughing and trying to pull air into his rapidly panting lungs.
They had waited inside the washroom for him to regain his composure. "You really laid it on me, lady," he'd grunted amid Usagi's sincere apologies.
"Serves you right for scaring us like that!" Minako had hissed.
"We need to leave right now," he'd said, once he was on his feet, his apron discarded on the floor.
"Heard that one before!"
"Let's go!"
They had barely entered the corridor outside of the washroom when Usagi faltered in her steps. "Wait…" she said, looking around for something.
"Lady, we need to leave, now," the waiter turned ninja officer hissed.
"Usa-chan…" Minako started, but then she recognized the look on Usagi's face, "…what you thinkin?" she continued.
"That night, with Mamoru, do you remember the room he took us to? It looked like a storage or something…"
"Yea."
"Kenji-papa always says that criminals always leave something somewhere; if we look closely!" Usagi exclaimed, taking hurried steps in the opposite direction.
"Wait, lady, where you goin?" the man asked, as he tried to outgo Usagi and prevent her from going any further.
"Listen, I was scared out of my mind that night, but I remember seeing boxes of stuff in that room!"
The man lifted one eyebrow, "So?"
Usagi rolled her eyes and tried to sidestep him, "There can be something worth looking at in those boxes!"
He blocked her escape once more. "What do you think this is, lady? A Higashino novel? Let's go!"
"HEY!" Minako's high pitched growl was full of frustration. "If my friend says that there's something in that room, then there is something in that room, got it?" She thrust her slim finger into the man's chest. "Now…you either do what you were told to do… 'look after Tsukino-san', or you can just wait here and nurse your injury…" she glanced down at the guy's crotch.
"Listen…" Usagi started, but then immediately remembered that she doesn't know his name, "pal…" she rolled her eyes at her choice of words, "this might just be a job for you, but it is way more than that for me. So, you can either help us, or wait here until we're done."
The young man gaped at the tiny blonde who was staring up at him with a determination he'd never seen in a teenager before. He glanced between the two set of blue eyes. In a near distance, he could hear other officers asking people to "move along" towards the exit "faster".
"Have you ever loved someone?" He glanced down at Usagi again. "Have you ever loved them to the point that it hurts?" She took a step closer to him. "Have you?"
He gulped down visibly and nodded, "Well, I…"
"Fantastic!" Usagi suddenly shrieked and then immediately dropped her voice. "Then you're not a total robot…" she side-stepped him and took a hold of his sleeve. "Now, come on!"
"There must be a misunderstanding."
"There's none, sir, now please, step aside."
Subaru smiled politely and nodded. "Remember, never let anyone see you fretting. Once they know your weakness, you're done…" his brother's voice was in his head.
"Do you need to see the warrant again sir?" the man in the dark suite asked, his eyes not losing their cool and nonchalant exposure.
Subaru shook his head. "It's alright, Reo?" he called out to a small, older man who was standing a few feet away. "See that officer-" he looked at the investigator with narrowed eyes, "Inspector Morita?"
Subaru smiled politely, "…see that officer Morita and his team have access to whatever they need…"
He excused himself, leaving the investigator with his right-hand man; trusting that he'd know what needed to be done.
Now, he had one important phone call to make.
"This is getting us nowhere!"
"If you only put some backbone into it!"
"What is this?" Usagi hissed and brought up the stack of papers she'd found in a box.
Akari-san (it only seemed fair to ask him his name, since he was helping them snoop around this place and all!) took the papers from Usagi's grip and glanced at them. "Nothing much." He went to another page. "Just a few business agreements." He looked at Usagi and shrugged. "Listen, Tsukino-san, I know you think we can find something here, but I doubt it. So please, be a good girl…" he gestured towards Minako with his eyes, "grab your friend's hand and let's go!"
Just then, they heard distant voices that didn't seem that distant anymore!
Akari-san shook his head in annoyance, "I'm gonna rip his head off…" he mumbled.
"Who?"
"We really need to leave!"
"Okay," Usagi muttered as she quickly went through the papers in her hand. "Let's go…"
"What're you doing?" the annoyance on his face was getting stronger with each passing second, "put those back."
Usagi clutched the papers closer to her chest and glared at him, "Are you crazy? These could be evidence!"
"Put…them…down," he glared back at her. He was quickly losing his cool and it really didn't help to remember Daiki's words, "watch them closely. Don't let them out of your sight, especially the little blonde with the pigtails," he'd said and then, "anything happens to her, and I'll have you castrated!"
"No…" Usagi's chin pointed up and her eyes challenged him.
"What are those doors?"
The distant voice, which wasn't that distant anymore, rooted all three of them on their spots.
"Storage and maintenance," a man's voice replied and Akari felt his heart drop.
He recognized that voice, he'd been working closely with that voice for the past couple of months.
If these little girls thought they knew the Tanaka brothers and knew how dangerous they are (it turned out, girls can really multitask! While looking for "evidence", the blondes had managed to tell him details about their interactions with the Tanakas!) they clearly didn't know Reo Onishi! Saburo Tanaka was a wuss in front of that guy!
"Let's go…" Akari muttered under his breath and grabbed Usagi's elbow. He quickly walked towards the door to-
"We have a warrant to search the whole building."
"Shit," he spat before retrieving his hand from the handle, "shit," he muttered again, looking around the small, dark room to find an escape.
"Come on," suddenly, both blondes had spring to action. Akari stared with wonder as the taller one started jumping up towards the ceiling, grabbing at something. Usagi was guarding the papers over her chest. Her eyes were glued to the ceiling.
"Help me out, will ya?" she hissed at him.
His eyebrows shot up once the little opening was revealed!
"What do you mean 'they're not with you'," Daiki hissed, doing another eye count to make sure that he'd sent one guy and five girls into that restaurant; he did another count; what had returned was one fucking guy and three un-blonde, confused girls.
"Usagi-chan went to the washroom and I think Minako-chan went after her. But then these people showed up and-"
"So, they're still in there?" Daiki asked with wide eyes. Hisa huffed with irritation.
"What is all this? Are they cops?" Makoto asked, looking around the cars that were parked in every direction, men and women in uniforms walking around and trying to get people out of their way.
"It was his plan," Hisa said nonchalantly and ignored Daiki's glare.
"You did this?" Rei shrieked, "why didn't you tell us? You sent us in there for what then?"
Daiki's attention was elsewhere. He started looking around as if he was searching for something.
"Hey, I'm talking to you!"
He walked toward the restaurant. His head was reeling with different thoughts.
Where the hell were they?
"You have some explaining to do!"
His head whipped around and he stared into a set of annoyed, baby blue eyes.
"Thank God…" he said with a loud sigh, before doing a once over on Usagi, ignoring the clutter of papers she was clutching against her chest, "where the hell have you been?"
"You mister, have a lot of nerve to be angry with me…" she hissed, one slim finger was pushed against Daiki's chest, hard!
"What do you…"
"I told you I can be very persuasive…" Minako suddenly appeared beside Usagi and pointed another finger at him, "I can make anyone talk…it was easier with Akari-san, cause he's pissed at you like fuck…"
He stared at them with narrowed eyes, before his mind and ears started working in sync again and Minako's statement suddenly made perfect sense.
His lips twitched with anxiety and a shimmer of apology entered his eyes, "Yeah, so…Usagi-chan, I have a plan…"
"Save it yobette, we have some reading to do!"
His eyebrows went up again.
Where had he heard that word before?!
"There's got to be something in there…"
Daiki nodded his head with irritation and pushed away from the papers on the little desk. "There's nothing." He stretched out his arms and turned his head to the sides. His shoulders were tense and he could feel a slight headache starting in his temples. "We've been looking at them for two days now…I'm telling you, they're all legit. Some legal and corporate documents." He stood up and walked to the sliding door and pushed it open. The light breeze felt nice on his face.
Usagi had kept him prisoner in Rei's temple for the past 48 hours, making him read every single line of those papers she had taken from the restaurant twice. "You owe me…" she'd said, her face scrunched up with anger. "But I have no clue what they are!" he'd tried to reason with her; but it really didn't help that he was just one guy, against six, loud girls. He rolled his eyes mentally. Hisa was obviously taking her revenge. She'd chipped in, rather enthusiastically and very un-Hisa like, when Usagi was counting on her fingers exactly how many "friend" codes Daiki had broken with his little stunt, "and you lied to us and…"
"After he promised not to lie anymore," Hisa had said, meeting his deadly glare with a look that screamed, "suck it, bitch!"
"Didn't you say all they do is illegal?" Usagi's voice lured him out of his haze and he nodded his head. "I did say that. But there's just nothing in these papers…"
"So why the bust at the restaurant then? They probably have some other places, safe houses and…"
"Safe houses? Wow, Rei-chan, you sound like a detective."
Rei rolled her eyes and ignored Makoto's comment, "I just don't understand why you had to call the police on them there!"
Daiki sighed and walked outside, while secretly trying to think if he could just pick up and run that instance!
"They run an underground gambling operation at the restaurant. It's the only solid proof of "crime" we have on them for now…" He ran an irritated hand through his hair and sat on the stairs.
Usagi huffed from where she was sitting on Rei's bed and threw Makoto a helpless look; the taller girl sat beside her and wrapped a comforting arm around her small shoulders.
Ami was looking at the papers Daiki had left scattered on the small table. Her observant blue eyes were skimming each paper carefully.
They all sat there, silent for a long time. None of them had anything to say. Makoto's arm was still wrapped around Usagi. Minako was lying on her back beside them.
"Daiki-san," Ami called, her eyes still focused on the papers she had in her hand, "did you say illegal gambling?"
Daiki nodded his head, but when Ami didn't say anything he looked back at her, rolling his eyes when he noticed she wasn't looking at him, "yeah…"
She turned another paper around and continued reading. "And money laundering is a crime, right?" she asked, never lifting her eyes towards the blond.
"Aha…" Daiki was confused. What was she seeing in there?
She finally looked up at him. She went to say something but then stopped. Turning her attention toward the occupants of the bed, she started organizing the papers. "Usagi-chan, is your father still working as an investigative journalist?"
Usagi looked at Makoto, then Daiki, who stared back at her with confusion, and nodded, "He does…"
Ami stood up with a gentle grace, "Ikuko-mama wouldn't mind a few guests, right?"
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or its fabulous characters. I wish I did, but I don't! All the rights of this wonderful manga/anime and its characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi. I am only responsible for the characters I invent and the storyline.