"Fine Line"
"Certainty is the mother of quiet and repose, and uncertainty the cause of variance and contentions" –Edward Cokes
Chapter 27: Uncertainties
~***~
"Ahn? You still have her phone?"
"….yes?"
"And why is that?"
"She wasn't home when I went there the other day."
"Ore-sama demands you go and return it right now."
I, Marui Bunta, will flip if she isn't home again today.
Atobe had cancelled all my appointments for today and moved them to another date (much to the despair of my customers of course), and made me drive all the way to Kumiko's house again just to return her cell phone.
I didn't really mind, since I was allowed to get off work 4 hours early due to this. He said I didn't need to go back after returning it, since it'll be redundant due to the little time left, and not much can be profited from my being there.
Tch. It's like he's saying I wasn't worth much to the Club Prism or something. Well, he and I both knew I'm one of the top 10 most demanded hosts, so it's needless to say that I am valuable to Club Prism.
Well, I really do hope Kumiko is home this time. I don't really feel like driving down all the way here again just to find she isn't home, and then forced to drive down here again just to return a damn cell phone.
Parking my car, I made my way up the apartment till I arrived at her door.
The moment of truth; I rang the bell again.
……….
………….
……………..
…………………
…………………….
Is it just me, or is there a feeling of déjà vu here?
I groaned in frustration. "Great, she isn't ho-" The door opened right at that moment, and wide- Confused? Angry? Hateful? Shocked?- eyes stared at me.
"Yo-" She slammed the door in my face.
…….What the hell?
~***~
Why in Michelangelo's name is he here?!
Its been two days since that Ruriko-Marui incident. And for two days I was feeling fine since my return home and breakdown.
I actually forgot about the incident and everything.
And then I answered the door seconds ago, just to find his deceiving –beautiful- eyes staring at me and then that unexplainable anguish and anger towards him which gave me a sense of déjà vu just flooded back into me and—!!! ………oh my god…did I slam the door in his face?
I squeaked and jumped in my spot when the bell rang again, more fervently this time. It just kept ranging and ranging and I just knew that the person doing it wasn't too happy.
I wouldn't be happy too if I got a door slammed into my face when visiting someone else's home; speaking of which, why is he here?
Steeling myself, I turned around to open the door, preparing myself to apologize for my rude behavior (I can't help it. I was taught to be polite…My mum spanked me when I was a kid if I wasn't) and have him off as quickly as possible.
Slowly, I pulled the door open an inch and peered out. Angry lavender focused on me.
~***~
Despite myself, I could not help but snap when doe-brown eyes made themselves visible from behind the door. "What the hell was that for?!!"
She seemed to winced from the tone of my voice, and with great reluctance, and because of my status as a host, I forced myself to calm down and to be more…gentlemanly. If Atobe found out I was being rude, immature, and basically everything that a well-trained host isn't supposed to be, he'd have my head for sure. And although I know Kumiko to be a nice girl, she might tell Aya or Asuka about me (girls gossip, right?) and I wont count on those two to keep their mouths shut and not tattle to Atobe, or worse, Yukimura…
Kumiko refused to look me in the eye for some reason; I can't tell if it's because she was embarrassed or ashamed of what she just did. But she apologized nonetheless, in a very soft voice. "Sorry..."
I crossed my arm and frowned. "I came all the way here today to return your cell phone which you left at Atobe's house the other day, and even came two days ago as well but you weren't home, and I get the door slammed into my face! You had better be sorry." I grounded out, still miffed.
She retreated back behind the door more, and still refused to look me into the eye. "Sorry…I was just…"
"Just?" I tapped my foot impatiently against the ground. I wanted a good reason as to why I deserved that.
"…..nothing."
"……………" I stared blankly at her.
"….can I have my cell phone back…?" She asked meekly, eyes still refusing to meet mine.
I reached into my pant pocket and extracted the cell, reaching it out to her. But as soon as her hand emerged from behind the door to get her phone, I pulled it back to myself.
"Not until you tell me what's wrong."
"…I said nothing was wro-"
"I dare you to look me in the eye and say it."
She didn't.
Right now, she was probably thinking I was some sort of evil pseudo-host. But I didn't exactly appreciate how my efforts to return her cell were rewarded. I was lucky to be an inch away from the door or that thing would have flattened my nose! Just because I was to be charming and sweet towards female doesn't mean I couldn't take a stand. If that was the case, chivalry would be dead because women would kill it, seeing as men are not fighting back.
It's a case of defending the male chauvinism!
….well, sort of. Not really.
~***~
By the heavens, he is such a---!!!
I wanted to curse his name so bad, but I don't really curse…
Agh!! Come on Kumiko!
You need that phone! You had searched for it the past two days to no avail, and here it is again! You need it back, or mum and dad will have your head for sure!!
So just…do what he says and take it back! It's not like you're hiding anything from him or guilty of anything, so you had no need to be afraid of looking him straight in the eye!!
Maybe you can just straight out take it instead? Who says you need to listen to what men say?
A little voice somewhere whispered to me, creeping myself out effectively.
Putting that aside though…I do need that phone. My parents will call me through that, and it was one of my only other options of making calls when not home.
With much effort, I willed my eyeballs to move to look at him. As soon as brilliant lavender made themselves known to my irises, they are turned back onto the grey floor instead.
It repeated several times.
I tried to look, but I would quickly look away again.
What happened to those times that I could actually speak whilst looking at him directly in the eye?
What happened?
Right now, I'm back to square one. The moment I first met these people, these hosts. When I first met Marui Bunta. I could hardly keep eye contact for 1 second back then.
And then, I grew (slightly?) more confident. I came to know them a bit more and interacted with them a bit more. I wasn't so much of a social mess as I was before them.
But now…
Why can't I just look him in the eye and tell him what I want to say? [1]
~***~
It was getting slightly annoying. Her constant shifting eyes, from me to the floor and back to me then the floor again.
What is wrong with her? Did she do something wrong? Or rather, did I do something wrong?
Why couldn't she just look at me and speak? She had no problems of doing that before- not counting our first few meetings.
Frowning, I gave her a long hard glance, bending to try and peer at her face. But she turned further away.
….did she look thinner since two days ago?
No she wasn't thinner…
My eyes trailed down her length, from top to toe, and although I confirmed she wasn't any skinnier, but she did look paler than usual.
"Hey…you alright?"
"H-huh? Yea…I'm fine." Again she did not look at me, though she was close to it, having been startled out of her own silence.
"……..Alright then." I reached her phone out to her again. "Here's your phone."
"Huh?"
"If you don't want it, I'll gladly take it-"
"No I want it." Hastily, she took it back and pocketed it. "…thank you."
"Right. No problem."
"………"
"………"
Jeez. This was awkward for some reason. This Kumiko was much more reclusive than usual. Usually, even if she didn't look at us when speaking, at least she spoke. This one seemed reluctant to speak.
"Hey….you hungry?" I asked suddenly.
"Hun..gry?"
"Yea, you know, when your stomach growls and you feel lethargic because you don't have anything in there-"
"I know what hungry is." She snapped softly at me instantly, brow eyes glaring at mine.
Well hey, she finally looked—scratch that. She's away again.
"Uh huh. And remember when you paid for my sweets last time?" She nodded. "Well, I still owe you. So I'll treat you."
"….w-what?"
"I said I'll treat you." I repeated with a roll of my eyes.
"I-I know what you said!" Slowly but surely, she was going back to her old stuttering mess of a chatter box.
"Get dressed and let's get going then!!" I crossed my arm, giving her a small smirk.
"………"
I blinked when light pink suddenly dusted her cheeks. Then I blinked again when I realized why.
"I-it's not a date-!" I huffed, waving my hand in the air airily.
"…Yea, of course n-not." She stuttered, pink growing more prominent.
"Right-o~" I whistled, trying to ease the suddenly tense atmosphere. It was thoroughly awkward just now. It sounded as if I was telling her that she was a terrible girl and I would never date her, ever, or something.
"I'll….go get changed...then?" She said, not even sure herself whether it was a statement or a question.
"Alright. I'll wait here."
She closed the door again, softly this time, and I could lightly hear her feet thudding away behind on the floor.
I turned away from her door and leaned against the cement railing of her apartment floor instead. The sun was just starting to set, heading into liminality and then letting into play a new night.
Speaking with Kumiko just now, almost felt as if I was getting to know her from square one again.
No…in fact, almost every time I see her, it's like…getting to know her anew again. Just like how a new day and a new night begins again every single day.
It was just like that with Kumiko.
It's as if overnight, she'd have forgotten or packed away whatever she did the previous day, and all her relationships and affinities with people will be reset to zero again.
It's like that girl in that one show…what was it?…that American movie…Oh yea! 50 First Dates! Yea…it was just like that. The heroine in there would just forget all her memories from the day before.
I could hardly understand how her friends, especially Aya, maintained a relationship with her.
With a personality like that, it's not a surprise that she's such a hermit.
Probably the reason why she doesn't have a boyfriend either…
Wait a minute, does she have one?
I never asked or thought about that before. She always just came off as a closed person, so the idea that she wouldn't have a boyfriend just kind of…set itself in. But that's not to say it was not possible for her to have a boyfriend.
I heard the door open behind me, and as I turned around to face her, the question that was in my head just fired itself from my mouth subconsciously. "Do you have a boyfriend?"
She stared at me, in complete shock, surprise and confusion.
"Ummm….no?"
"Oh..okay. I thought you did." I actually wanted to say "thought so", but that was wholly rude.
But the confirmed knowledge that she doesn't have a boyfriend, for some reason, just made me a teeny weensy itty bitty bit happy.
I related that to having another one of my great hunches and theories being right, and nothing else.
1. Hmmm double meaning here, perhaps? =D
Lol I just love to make all the small little details between everything. And here we kinda broached the subject of men and women, feminism and male chauvinism XD I didn't wanna use patriarchy… lol the term Men and Women in my summary sorta making sense now? Yes? X-x The others probably will come into play as well if they haven't already… kufufufuf -bricked-
ANYWAAAAAAAAAAYS! NEXT CHAPTER!! IT'S A DATE- I mean..- IT'S A (NOT) DATE WITH MARUI BUNTA FOR KUMIKOOOOOOO~!!!
Hhmhmhm…what should happen? What should they do? Where should they go? Any requests or desires you want to be fulfilled? Tell me in a review and I shall see if I can implement it…of course, taking into account that it is wholly reasonable within the context of the story and such. Like…you cant possibly ask for sex….cause they aren't going to do that (what with their current standing with each other…), and Kumiko will just think of it as raepe, and Marui is much too nice to do that at this point in time, and I don't think I can write smut. Period.
….Did I turn any of you guys off with the prospect of not having any of those smutty things in here? D; Cause I can go read some to learn if you guys wish it…x-x -OH MY VIRGIN EYES-!!THEY BUUUUURN—bricked-
Maybe. Maybe not. We'll see…….I'll shut up now.
…Reviews? x_X;
Oh-oh!! –shot for not shutting up- Do you guys actually read the quotes I put at the beginning of each chapter? =0 Just curious…usually they have something to do with the chapter they are assigned to, and if you can actually figured out what it has to do with the chapter, it'll actually bring to light more of things about Kumiko, Marui, the story in general, which I don't put into words XD I like to leave some parts of my stories a bit free end, to allow for readers to interpret =D like the little actions they do, a certain stray glance etc Some of the quotes came from myself, some from others (which then I usually put their names after.)
Well, I'll shut up for real now.
kuro30-fyre- lol it certainly didnt come out right XD; Sushi's actually the name of my dog...x-x
Skull Rider- =D *pats* there's not much to cry over ^_^; things will get better soon...I think.
Kouyan- lool too bad XD
LadyLadington- Dx I'm so sorry D: I understand that my story gets annoying sometimes, especially with the lack of interactions x_X; (I wouldnt read my own story, shiz lol X_X) Well, there's the NOT-date next chapter, so request something (reasonable pls?) for me to make up to you ^^;
Emy- =D thank you xD
PhoenixRage92- lol I used Sushi, her cat, just to show how much a cat's death did to if it was from a loved one D: I like Shiraishi a lot too, but I cant decide it ifs more than Marui D; And Kajimoto too...well, seeing as I play Kajimoto in the Tenipuri Dream family on DA lol xD; Well, at least those fics where they fall in love actually HAVE some sort of fluff and action in it...mine's so bland lulz XD;