The sleek, chrome monorail blew pass the groups of people waiting at the Mitakihara train station, its shining surface reflecting the yellow light of the setting sun in the horizon. Inside it, Homura and the five boys rode in the middle of the large transport with their bags at their feet and the sun shining through the glass windows. Takuya and Mamoru chatted sat side-by-side as Tomura sat in his wheelchair, quietly reading a book in his hands.
Hideki and Tateyama were sitting on the opposite side of the train with Homura in-between them. While the three sat in silence, Tateyama had dozed off during the long ride and was even leaning a bit on Homura, who shyly let him as she did not want to disturb him from his sleep. Hideki though, was thinking for a while if Narita's uneasiness had any relevance to that black substance from yesterday. His contemplating look was easily noticed by Tomura when he turned his attention from his book.
"I wonder what was troubling her?" Tomura spoke up, "Miss Narita rarely ever acts like this."
"Maybe it was something about work?" his older brother speculated, "She has been pretty busy these days."
"No. You could see it in her eyes," Hideki cryptically muttered, leaning forward in his seat, "She looked scared, and worried. I don't think I've ever seen her like this before. This is much more different."
"I think Narita was just frustrated with her work," Homura cut in, raising a finger, "I have been making her busy lately, so I think that's just it. Maybe?" she slumped her shoulders, unsure of her own answer.
Hideki was going to say otherwise until Mamoru righteously interjected into the conversation, "Whatever it was about, she told us to not interfere. It is most likely adult business. Let her be. She would not want us to worry about her, correct?"
Homura nodded with a smile and so did the Fujimaki brothers. Hideki shrugged off the thought of yesterday, trying clearing to his head on the matter. From their conversation, Tateyama had woken up and opened his eye, letting out a drawn out yawn that he hid behind a hand at the last second. He didn't even seem to realize that he had been leaning on Homura while he had slept and she would preferred that he didn't. Merely out of shyness as she giggled amusingly at his half-asleep expression.
"She most likely has it under control. And while she takes care of her own personal business..." Mamoru looked out the window as the train finally came to a slow stop and the double-doors slid open with a low hiss. They waited for the other passengers to get off before coming out of the train and as they got out, Homura was left in awe from the scenery in front of her, "... Why don't we have fun in the city, like she told us to?"
Homura cupped her mouth as towering buildings and skyscrapers reached for the skies, thousands of decorated shops and restaurants were aligned by the busy streets below the train station and hundreds of people, including many of students from their school, crowded the sidewalks as Hideki whistled in amazement. Homura had never been to the main city that much and was amazed by the scenery. At this point, the sun had already set, and the streetlights popped open one by one to illuminate the city square with cones of white light as billboards could be seen on almost every building.
"That's a lot of people," Hideki dryly commented. Takuya wheeled Tomura out of the train and a few birds flew over their heads. Tateyama held onto his laptop bag securely and Hideki spoke up after another try at clearing his mind, "So, where are we headin' to?"
Mamoru pointed to an enormous glass dome that stuck out between a few buildings, the lights from the other buildings bouncing off its surface as it cast a wide shadow on the ground. There was a small bridge that connected it to a towering skyscraper that dwarfed the already giant dome-shaped shopping mall, "One of Mitakihara's most popular shopping centers," he answered, "A popular place for tourists, students and locals."
Rubbing his hands together excitedly, Hideki was the first to step down the stairs, "Well then, what are we waiting for, Christmas? Come on!"
"Time to have some fun!" Takuya chirped as the group headed down to the streets and walked among the crowds of people below the train station.
The inside of the dome was enormous, being 4 floors high and with a huge variety of stores, markets, and shops on each level. From beauty salons, to arcades, bars, hobby stores, shoe-stores and DVD shops, the place had everything a boy and girl, adult, kid and senior would love to be at. Literally hundreds of people filled the place as announcements were regularly made over the intercoms, security diligently patrolling the place for any suspicious behavior or people.
At the main lobby of the large, bustling shopping center, the boys were reading a square, flat map of the place. Plenty of unrecognizable people walked by Homura and the sound of many voices filled the air. She began to feel a bit uncomfortable from this and shifted closer to the group. Homura never liked being in overly-crowded areas since you could be easily separated from your friends and the multitudes of strangers also added to that. Without him noticing, Homura held onto Hideki by the edge of his shirt.
Mamoru pointed to a few areas on the map, asking, "Well, where shall we go to?"
"Toy section!" Takuya and Tomura shouted in unison.
Hideki couldn't pick a place on the map and rested his cheek on one hand while Tateyama scanned the list of shops on the side, "Electronics shop," Tateyama bluntly added, "Hideki?" he nudged him in the arm, "What about you?"
"Eh, I think I'll just walk around," Hideki shrugged, "See what might catch my eye."
Mamoru smiled amusingly at his friend's nonchalance and suggested, "Then, shall we separate? In an hour and a half, we all meet up at the food court. In that time, all of you can do anything you want. Call up if you want to join up somewhere else and please don't do anything dangerous," he leaned on the map and tapped his finger on it, ending his line of orders, "Is that alright with you all?"
"Okay!" Takuya chirped and practically dashed away with Tomura to the toy section in a blink of an eye, his long hair flickering in the wind while Tomura held onto his wheelchair tightly. Mamoru and Hideki had a understandable feeling that he was going to crash into somebody or something. To their surprise, he didn't. He must be used to driving a wheelchair around.
Tateyama left the group, saying he'll meet up with Hideki when he's done with his own work. With those three gone, Mamoru saw Homura standing next to lone Hideki. Still remembering about their responsibility over the memory-ridden girl, he inquired them about where will they be heading, "And where shall you go, Akemi?"
Homura played with her fingers, looking at the map. She gave a small shrug and shyly scratched her cheek, "I guess I'll follow Hakamichi..."
"Most wise," Mamoru replied, smiling at the small blush that appeared on Hideki's cheeks from Homura's words, "Although I do feel the need to watch over those 2 brothers, I have my own business to attend to. Hideki, I hope you don't cause any trouble wherever you go, as this place isn't very lenient when it comes to trouble-makers. Please don't cause any trouble with Akemi."
Folding his arms, Hideki joked in return, "Shouldn't you be telling that to Takuya and Tomura?"
"I would have if they did not run off like that," Mamoru chuckled, his hand cupping his cheek, "Now, if you two will excuse me. I have a person to meet," he slung his bag over his shoulder and left with a his smug smile on his face, leaving the two alone by themselves. From the corner of Homura's eye, she could see Hideki still being a little bit uneasy. Either from being alone with her or Narita's attitude a few hours ago.
"Are you alright," Homura asked with a tug on his sleeve, "You seem a bit troubled ever since we got on the train."
"Eh, really? I just... I was just thinking of maybe having another round with Takehito tomorrow. Might have to bring some bandages this time," Hideki joked, sounding not so believable to Homura as he stretched his arms, "Well, it's just you and me. Tateyama and the others will meet up with us later. So... let's go? I don't really hang out here, so let's just walk around and see what's interesting."
Homura quietly nodded and the two went to wherever they felt like going to. From what they saw on the map, they had plenty of places to kill their time.
'Hermit Purple', a small, cozy bar in one of the corners of the mall, classic 80s rock music rang in the air as delicately-carved wooden pieces of art were displayed around the bar. The place reeked of alcohol and sweat, something you wouldn't easily find in this city nowadays. In one corner, customers were playing the game of 'Hatchet Toss', where they would throw small, dull tomahawks at a circular target that hung on the brick walls and try to get the blade as deep into the wood as possible. At the counter, the bartender was a half-British, half-Japanes old man with grey hair and a thick beard. Despite the wrinkles, his broad arms were thick enough to stretch his sleeves wide.
The old man was whistling a catchy tune and wiping a mug clean with a rug when he noticed Mamoru entering through the sliding doors, strolling into the bar with his usual smug smile and his chin high. The bartender smiled at the boy and settled down the mug on the counter, "Mamoru! Hah, good to see you!" his Japanese was rough due to his British accent, but in the boy's presence, the bartender spoke in fluent English, "Your Dad still kicking around like the old fella' he is?"
"Of course, Joseph. My father's not one to give up so easily in his line of work," Mamoru boasted as he placed his bag on the counter and zipped it open. Sitting on the stool, he took out some of the woodwork he carved out in school and showed them to Joseph, "As always, I've got another piece for you to display here. Took me a bit more longer than usual."
"Of course you do. It's like you never take a break from this stuff. You know, sometimes you got to take a chance at the ladies once in a while. Find a girl to be with," Joseph joked as Mamoru waved his hand in front of his face. Mamoru was never the type to be so interested in pursuing woman, rather preferring to relax with his friends and family instead.
"Romantic relationships do not interest me in the slightest," Mamoru shrugged, smoothly pulling out a wad of cash from his breast pocket and tossing them to Joseph for a drink, "This is just a sample, by the way. The rest will come later. Oh, and no Heineken for the night, please, it's a school night."
"Right, right. Here you go," Joseph slid him a can of Coca Cola and continued cleaning his thick mugs with a rag, "So, did you get into trouble in school today again?"
"Yes, I did," Mamoru said, almost boasting, opening the can and drinking his beverage to cool his dry throat.
"And let me guess, you used leverage to lower the punishment?"
"Yes, I did," he said again, almost boasting, and added this time, "But, yesterday-" Mamoru coughed into his fist, his tone becoming less joking and more serious, "We caused a bit of an accident. Quite a horrible one, really."
Joseph raised a brow and leaned on the counter to listen in closely, "Never thought I'd ever hear you say that," he put down his mug and took out another dirty one to clean it, " What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Slightly, Mamoru shifted in his seat and shook his glass gently, "We're in quite a complicated matter at the moment, and now we're watching over a girl by the name of 'Akemi Homura'," Mamoru sighed and placed down the mug, shaking his head ruefully, "We ended up injuring Akemi, so of course, I took my share of responsibility for it. Especially since Hideki and Takuya are enthusiastic about helping her."
"Well, accidents happen, kid," Joseph said, slid a mug of beer across the wooden counter to another calling customer without looking. Putting down the mug he was cleaning, he patted Mamoru on the back and said, "How about a game of Hatchet Toss to cheer you up? We're applying the street rules here, of course. That always cheers you up."
"Perhaps," Mamoru brightened up a bit, "I do miss the feeling of throwing hatchets. I am the number one thrower in this bar, am I not?" he raised his glass in the air and smiled proudly of himself.
"And she did it again!" one of the customers at the other side of the bar exclaimed, "Hot damn, this girl is on a roll!"
"She's even better than that Mamoru kid!"
Mamoru did a spit-take from what his ears had just heard and Joseph passed him a napkin. He wiped his mouth clean, looking at where the noise had come from and doing a double-take, "Did I just hear that right?" Mamoru blinked, as he saw a crowd of customers and onlookers gathering where the Hatchet Toss area should be, "Joseph, please tell me that my ears heard that right."
"Why don't you go over there and check it out?"
The boy nodded and quickly finished his mug before going over to the games section where Mamoru squeezed between the crowd. Managing to find his way pass them, he dusted himself off and standing in front of Mamoru was a thickly-clothed person who looked around Mamoru's age. She had a feminine figure as she chugged down a can of light beer and loosely held a hatchet in her other hand. The thick, wooden target she stood a few meters away from had deep, wide marks in it. Most likely caused by the girl's previous throws. She looked at Mamoru behind her, her hood covering most of her face as she let out a vulgar belch.
"Hmph. Who are you?" Mamoru questioned, folding his arms as he looked at Joseph who had followed the boy out of curiosity, "I'm guessing she's new here?"
Joseph gave a cheeky laugh, "Yup. She's been here since a few hours ago, chugging down the light stuff. She looks pretty tipsy right now, but in case you didn't notice, she's been beating your score in this game ever since she got here," he placed a large hand on the boy beside him and gave another loud laugh as Mamoru groaned at what he had just heard.
"Come on, Tezuka, challenge her!" one of the customers cheered.
More cheers and prompts followed as Mamoru shot a deep glare at the girl, rolling up his sleeves and unbuttoning his collar while grinning. Of course he felt challenged by this. He had never met someone that had rivaled him in any of his two personal hobbies. On the inside, he quivered at the sight of someone possibly beating him, but he gave a proud grin on the outside, "Alright. A challenge it is," he pointed at the girl, stating, "Woman, face me if you have what it takes."
The girl's following silent gestures implied she accepted his challenge. The crowd cheered and watched as Mamoru and the girl stood side-by-side, facing their own respective targets with a rack of 10 hatchets at their disposal. Joseph chuckled again at this little event that rarely happened in a niche bar like the Hermit Purple. Mamoru took up his first hatchet and prepared to throw, not after looking at his opponent to trash-talk her, "Facing me was unwise. Perhaps a surrender would save my time?"
The girl took up her own hatchet in defiance and ignored him.
Mamoru felt offended from being ignored. Gripping his hatchet tightly and pulling back his throwing arm, he narrowed his eyes on his target. Drawing in a sharp breath, Mamoru lobbed his hatchet at his target and the weapon spun in the air before cutting deep into the wooden target with a loud 'thwack'. While Mamoru didn't have pin-point accuracy, brute strength, or accurate analyzing skills, he was a jack-of-all-trades and had been playing this game ever since he knew how to throw, giving him his own advantage.
"So," Mamoru folded his arms, acting smug, "Do you surrender now?"
A quick throw came and the girl's hatchet was suddenly deep in the target next to Mamoru's. The hatchet was around the same, if not deeper than his from the results, as told by one of the on-lookers who stood closest to the targets. The girl chugged another light beer and crushed the tin can in her palm.
"Oh, so you want to continue?" Mamoru's eye twitched, rubbing his brow, "Very well. Try and entertain me," Mamoru kept up his proud facade and grabbed another hatchet.
In the 'Star Platinum' arcade, the beeping noises and the dazzling lights of the place flashed in Homura's eyes and ears as Hideki paid for a few tokens at the counter. While the two weren't exactly sure what to pick and what they were planning on doing here, Hideki took a blind pick and settled on a on-rails shooter game a few meters to their left. Hideki popped in a few tokens and picked up the plastic gun controller, handing it to Homura, "Why don't you get first try? Since, you know, we're watching over you."
"S-Sure," Homura smiled and took the colorful gun replica in her hand. Holding it carefully as the screen came to life in an array of flashy icons, the title, "The Emperor and the Hanged Man" flashed on screen and Homura had to pick between a few levels, all of them having a bizarre and disturbing style in terms of looks and enemies; it seemed familiar to Homura as she picked one which looked like a clear-white area with demonic shadows for enemies.
Almost in an instant, shadow-like figures began to fill the screen and Homura gripped her weapon tight before aiming, making Hideki think she needed some assistance. He raised a hand, saying, "If you need any help, I couldteach you."
Homura scored a perfect shot on an enemy, and another, and another, and another, and another. It wasn't long until there were spectators around the duo that watched as Homura trampled and shot whatever was in her way underneath her booth. Carefully reloading the digital ammunition and taking shots in each enemy's head and body, Hideki and even Homura herself wasn't sure of how she was doing it so well, as it felt like her arms were moving by themselves in perfect rhythm. Reload, aim, shoot. Reload, aim and shoot. Like counting the first few letters of the alphabet.
In a few minutes, Homura cleared her first level and Hideki clapped his hands with a few of the spectators doing the same, "W-Woah, that was... that was pretty damn good! Nice job there, Akemi."
"T-Thanks," Homura smiled shyly and twirled the gun in her hands by the trigger guard. She looked at the entrance of the arcade and saw that Tateyama was coming in with a plastic bag in his hands.
He noticed them from the crowd around them and walked up to the pair, a hand in his pocket, "I'm back," Tateyama bluntly stated the obvious and saw the small crowd of spectators that surrounded them. He peered at them suspiciously, as if they were going to attack them for no reason whatsoever. The cold gaze Tateyama sent them slowly made the crowd wither until most of them had left for their own business, "What's with all these people?"
"Well, Akemi here seems to pretty damn good at this game over here," Hideki jerked a thumb to the arcade game behind him, "Should've seen her just now. I bet she could make Clint Eastwood eat his heart out," his expression got a look of disgust and confusion from Tateyama, who seemed to have taken it literally.
"Ew."
"I-It's a figure of speech," Homura pointed out, waving off the confusion. Looking at the plastic bag Tateyama was carrying, she curiously pointed at it, asking "What's inside?"
"Tools to fix Tomura's prosthetic legs," Tateyama answered straightforwardly. His gaze was fixed on the plastic gun Homura was carrying and she noticed him staring wordlessly at it, almost distastefully. Wordlessly, Tateyama changed the topic again and said, "I'll be at the supermarket downstairs. Takuya and Tomura are buying groceries, and I'm joining them. Call me if you need me," Tateyama waved them goodbye and walked out of the colorful arcade center, passing by a couple of teenagers from their school without acknowledging them.
The gaze Tateyama had just now was somewhat unusual of him, Homura thought, looking at Hideki with a confused expression, "Is there something wrong with Ikezawa?"
"Well," Hideki scratched the back of his head, knowing the answer to this but choosing not to give it, "It's complicated. You know, why don't we just finish up and go somewhere else after this?" he took up the player-2 gun controller and twirled it in his hand. He failed and it ended up falling to the floor before he picked it up, still trying to act cool, "I don't really play shooters, so watch my six, will ya'?"
Homura nodded, bringing up the controller to her chest, "S-Sure."
Smiling, Hideki then noticed something catch as his eye as he looked pass Homura's shoulder. He saw a promotional poster of the international competition that was coming soon and overheard a few students of their school beside it chatting excitedly about joining it. Being reminded about how there were some free spots in Makoto's team due to the disappearance, he quickly noticed the game in front of him starting and proceeded to join Homura in a game to get the highest score. At the back of his head, he couldn't get the thought of the competition out of his mind.
Another spinning hatchet flew through the air and dug into the circular block of wood as Mamoru panted, beginning to weaken due to his relatively-limited stamina and endurance. He gripped the collar of his uniform, loosened it and wiped the sweat off his brow, trying to keep his proud facade up between breaths, "My victory... is inevitable..."
The girl began to tire as well, chugging down another can before picking up another tomahawk. The match had been going on for quite a while now, and some of the watchers had already left the bar due to how late its getting or lost interest in watching. Joseph was speculating them from behind his counter, his chin on his palm as he playfully blew a few bubbles out of a soap bubble-coated object in his hand, "Mamoru. Miss. How long will it be 'till one of you croaks? I'm gonna close the bar sometime tonight, you know."
Mamoru smirked and the two readied another throw. He watched her from the corner of his eye, trying to take a good look at the girl's full face. But the girl would always look away before he could try and take a peek, frustrating the boy even more. After a few more throws, the two finally reached their last hatchet. This had been the 4th rematch, the previous third all being tied and even.
The two were on equal ground, both were panting, and both were tired. It was Mamoru's last chance to prove himself. He couldn't lose to a girl out of all things when it came to hatchet toss. Pulling back his arm, he was about to throw when suddenly, two black-suited men with shades came into the bar and made their way through the few remaining customers watching the two as Joseph eyed them closely. The suited men walked up to the pair and they looked at Mamoru's opponent behind their shades.
The tense atmosphere surrounding them got a few looks and glances from the other customers of the bar. One stepped forward with a hand extended towards Mamoru's hooded opponent, "Miss, your guardian calls for you."
"Eh?" Mamoru was dumbfounded by this sudden course of events and watched as the shady girl reluctantly dropped the blunt weapon on the ground and left with the two suited men without ending the game, "Hey! We're not done here!"
Joseph had gone past the counter and held him back, "Kid, I don't think it's a good idea to get angry right now. Stay calm."
"Tezuka Mamoru, was it? Son of Kenji Tezuka?" one of the men asked, pulling down his shades to examine the 14-year old teenager, "I apologize for this 'disturbance', but I do hope the Takamatsu family can remain on good relations with the the Tezuka family. Send your father our regards."
"Takamatsu?" Mamoru muttered and glared at the shady girl. He knew that name as the family name of Makoto, back in their school. Takamatsu Makoto, the captain of the Gym club. As Mamoru never really bothered with understanding how his father worked and remembered the people he worked with, it was surprising to see Makoto being part of a big-name family like Mamoru himself. But he never remembered him having a sister.
"Again, we are sorry for the disturbance. We hope you have a good night," the man pulled up his shades and muttered to the girl, "Shall we leave, Miss?"
The girl nodded and left the small bar with the men, her walking abilities visibly affected by the light alcohol as her steps were wobbly.
As Mamoru was left both confused and unsatisfied, the boy threw his hatchet onto the floor and turned to Joseph, who rubbed his bearded chin with a gloved hand, "Who- Who the Hell were they?! Bloody Hell!" he groaned, then attempted to recollect himself as he sat on one of the bar stools, grumbling like a child.
Feeling the tense atmosphere disappear, Joseph sighed and gestured to the other customers to relax, "I guess you forgot who runs Mitakihara and Kazamino, huh? Remember, both cities have a big company running the place to keep the goods flowing. Your father works at the one in Kazamino with the Takamatsu family," the old man went behind the counter and set some stuff aside, "I'm sure you met their son in your school? "
Mamoru rubbed his chin, "Yes, Makoto Takamatsu. I know him. I didn't think his family runs Kazamino with father," Mamoru sipped the drink that was poured for him and continued, shaking his glass gently, "But, who was that girl? I couldn't hear her name, but she felt awfully familiar."
"Beats me," Joseph shrugged, "I don't remember the family having a daughter. Anyway, it's getting late, I gotta close the bar and you have friends to take care of, right?"
Mamoru slung his bag over his shoulder, "Hmph. Of course I do. But, that match just now has left me... unsatisfied..."
"Ah, don't worry," he smacked the boy lightly on the back, "Just get on with your business. Maaaybe she'll come again. Now, why don't you head on, now? Like I always say: Just calm down, have a beer, and-" he coughed loudly, "-get a girl."
Smirking, Mamoru tipped off the old man and made his way to the door, "I'll see you in another day, Joseph. Take care."
"See you next time, kid. Don't get into any more trouble now."
An hour later, the Fujimaki brothers, Homura, Hideki, and Tateyama sat near the large, clean windows of the near-empty food court. The moon hid behind the clouds in the sky as the brothers were playing a game of tick-tack-toe, Tateyama was examining the tools he had bought, checking their quality in comparison to their high price and Hideki was having a small chat with Homura. They all waited for Mamoru who had yet to appear.
Suddenly, Hideki's phone rang and he quickly answered it with a cheerful greeting. But, his tone slowly turned dull when he realized who was on the other end of the line. Watching Hideki speak into his phone, Homura wondered who was he talking to. Upon finishing the call, Hideki closed the phone and pocketed it with a frustrated sigh.
"Who was that?" Homura asked with a tilt of her head.
"It's my dad. He said he's on the way to pick me up. Told me to wait downstairs at the parking lot," he answered in a near-upset tone and got up from his chair, picking up his bag, "Looks like I gotta go. 'Teyama, tell the Mamoru I said 'bye', okay? And Takuya, Tomura, try to not get into an accident again tomorrow," he said in his usual joking manner as a jest.
Tateyama nodded in reply, advising, "Try not to argue with your Dad this time."
"I'll try."
The brothers waved at him goodbye and Hideki gave a small two-finger salute as he left. Heading towards the nearby elevators, Homura couldn't help but feel worried for him as the boy entered one of the elevators. Homura waved at Hideki one last time before the doors finally closed after he went in. Holding her hands tight, she pondered about what Hideki was going through and sat back in her seat. Takuya and Tomura saw that down look on her face again and went to her table to give her some company.
In a few more minutes, Mamoru finally came back, looking exhausted and frustrated. After a few more farewells, Tateyama, Homura and the Fujimaki brothers went their separate paths with Mamoru as they were picked up by Tsukuyo's car outside. The woman had just finished her shift at the Shanghai and Narita had asked her send Homura and the brothers back to her house for her like she said earlier.
In the car, Homura watched the things the car drove by and then looked back at Tateyama in front. Sitting at the back seat with Takuya and Tomura, there was nothing but silence at the front between Tateyama and Tsukuyo as the two brothers chatted. It was odd how the two never really talked to each other, from what Homura mostly saw today and yesterday. Like Hideki, Homura wondered if Tateyama had the same parental problems and hesitantly spoke up about this.
"Umm... if I may ask," Homura fidgeted in her seat, "Are you Ikezawa's mother?"
Tsukuyo oddly laughed at the innocent question,"Oh my, you're mistaken, dear. I'm not his mother," Tsukuyo replied with her in her usual cheerful attitude that never seemed to wither. Homura had never really seen the woman lose her smile at all from all the times she had seen her, "I'm the sister of Tateyama's mother. I've been watching over Tateyama here ever since he was a little kid, right?"
Tateyama nodded silently, clearly uncomfortable with talking about this.
Homura felt a bit guilt for prying into their private life, "I see. So-"
Suddenly, the car came to a harsh stop and nearly threw everyone inside from the ensuing force. Homura bumped her head on the head of Tsukuyo's seat and groaned. Takuya had held onto Tomura so that he wouldn't get hurt and the two in front luckily had their seat-belts on as honking could be heard from behind them. It went on for minutes as everyone aside tried to recollect themselves.
"Is everyone all right?" Tsukuyo looked around and saw a slight bump on Tateyama's forehead. She tried to tend to him with a bandage picked up from the car's storage compartment, but Tateyama shoved her hand away when she tried to place it on him.
He wiped his forehead with a tissue from his pocket, dismissively saying, "I'm all right."
Tsukuyo frowned and tossed the bandages to Takuya and Tomura behind when they had called for some. She saw the man from the car behind her coming out of his vehicle as he tapped on Tsukuyo's window. Hesitantly, she reeled it down and the orange-haired, middle-aged man, who reeked of alcohol, immediately barked at Tsukuyo the moment the window completely went down.
"What the hell were you doing?! Are you trying to get me killed?!"
"I'm sorry, I was just..."
"Next time, learn to drive or don't drive at all!" he slammed the car door with his fist, visibly frightening Tsukuyo.
Homura looked aside and noticed Tateyama's fist beginning to shake with anger, but Tsukuyo placed her hand on his and gave Tateyama a small gesture to calm down. Tateyama was clearly against not doing anything, but he complied instead and let out a low growl as Tsukuyo gave the man an apology, "I- Okay, I'm sorry for the trouble. It will not happen again."
"Hmph. It better not," the man left with a stern - albeit, drunk look and went back into his car before driving off and passing by their car.
Tsukuyo closed the window and asked again if everyone was alright. Meanwhile, Homura saw the look on Tateyama's face and again, he didn't like how that had just went. Tateyama didn't reply to Tsukuyo's question, which she seemed to ignore before she continued driving again. Whatever it was, Homura could see the visible wedge between the two, but it would be intrusive to ask any further questions. Choosing to lie back in her seat again, Homura rubbed the scar that ran down on the side of her head and looked out the window to see the moon up in the night sky.