Here's Chapter 6. It's going to be a while before 7 comes up…at least a week or two. Thanks for all reviews!
Rev
Ch. 6
Lupin paced back and forth while Goemon sat and watched him. It was 3 A.M. and Jigen was nowhere to be found. Lupin walked back to the door, cracked it open and looked out. He walked across the room and looked around the curtain and out of the window.
"Damn it, man. Where the hell is he?" Lupin asked.
"Lupin, there is nothing we can do except walk the streets of San Francisco looking for him, or waiting on him to come back. You might as well just wait," Goemon told him.
"Yeah, well what if something happens to him?" Lupin asked. "It's all Michelle's fault, I swear!" he yelled, throwing his arms up.
"First of all, Lupin, Jigen is an adult and is responsible for his own actions. Second off, I think he can take care of himself as long as he took his magnum with him. Finally, it is not Michelle's fault. Until we find out what actually happened with her, we cannot blame her."
"Goemon…Are you sticking up for her?"
"After all the bad-mouthing you've done about her, yes." Goemon stood up. "I've talked to Michelle several times. She is a kind girl who genuinely cares about Jigen and would do anything to look out for him. Having also had a certain discussion with her, I know that she never planned on leaving Jigen and that her biggest concern was trying to keep both you and Jigen happy, which I now realize is impossible. You will not be happy until she is gone for good and he will not be happy until it is certain that she will be with him from here on out."
"You mean he wants to…" Lupin started.
"He never said definitely, but he has mentioned that he thinks she could be the one for him." Lupin felt a pit grow in his stomach and he lost a little color in his face. "Lupin? Are you ok?"
"Yeah…Fine…" he answered, weakly. He sat down on the couch and sighed. He didn't know what he was going to do if they couldn't find Jigen. He couldn't blame Michelle anymore; Goemon was right. It was his fault.
"Lupin, do you know anything about why Michelle left?"
"Huh?" Lupin asked, looking up at the samurai.
"Your reaction just now seemed to be one of guilt. You know where Michelle is, don't you?" Goemon asked, getting angry.
"Well…I did. I don't know now, necessarily."
"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL JIGEN?" Goemon roared. Lupin felt a rush of panic.
"Because…I was trying to separate them. I didn't want to see Jigen hurt, and I told Michelle to leave him alone. So I took matters into my own hands and got her out!"
"I think you've done more damage to Jigen than Michelle ever could have done to him. When you told her to leave him alone, she tried. She faked an illness so that he wouldn't stay too close to her. He ended up fighting even harder to be with her."
"Look, I had no idea he…" Lupin started.
"Well, if you weren't being so self-centered, you would have known. If you would have done what fate brought the two of you together to do, everything would have been fine," Goemon answered. An awkward silence filled the room. Goemon crossed his arms and watched his friend.
"I'm sorry I did all this. I…I'm…a douche bag," Lupin said.
"I'd have to agree with you, but it's not in my power to forgive you. That is up to Jigen and Michelle, and why should they forgive you, when you can't forgive her?"
"Alright. You were right before, there is nothing else we can do tonight. Let's get some sleep, and we'll go looking for him tomorrow if he doesn't come back by noon."
"And you'll stop blaming Michelle?"
"And I'll stop blaming Michelle…" Lupin said as he went to his room.
)(
"Dreams last so long, even after they're gone. I know that you love me and soon you will see, you were meant for me, and I was meant for you."
The next morning, Jigen awoke with a migraine. He slowly sat up and looked around the room. He tried to remember the events of the previous evening, but it was all a bit blurry. He remembered the bar and the annoying blonde chick. Then he remembered the bay, and Michelle, and then kissing Michelle. Then he remembered the ground. Jigen took another look around. He was still fully dressed and he knew he desperately needed a shower, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. He made the assumption that he was in Michelle's hotel room only he couldn't find Michelle anywhere. He yawned and then decided that if her absence meant that he could clean up before she saw him in his current state, it was well worth it. He moved his feet off of the bed and pushed himself up.
"ACCCK!" Michelle gasped. Jigen quickly sat back down on the bed and his hand flew to his head. His mind was not ready for loud noises yet.
"Michelle?" he asked. "What are you doing down there?"
"You kind of took up the whole bed. I had to make do with what I had. Anyways, I think I can cancel any chiropractic appointments after having you step on my back," Michelle remarked. Her voice was still scratchy from having just woken up. She sat up and moved a little farther from the bed.
"I'm going to clean up a bit, if that's ok. I feel disgusting," Jigen said as he stood up and began to head to the shower.
"Well if I drank as much as you did last night, I'd feel pretty disgusting too." Jigen paused and looked at her from the bathroom door.
"I was that bad?"
"You fell face first on the ground."
"That's it?"
"And you made a remark about my ass." Jigen stared blankly at her.
"…And?"
Michelle flung her pillow at his face.
"Be glad that was all I had within reach." Jigen nodded.
"Right…I'm getting in the shower before I cause death," he said as he shut the door.
Michelle sighed and cradled her head in her hands. She had no idea what she was going to do. She couldn't forget the fact that he had abandoned her when she was captured, but she also couldn't forget how she couldn't stop thinking about him when he was gone. It didn't help things that his display the night before proved that he could very easily be an alcoholic and an irritating drunk. She heard the water turn off in the bathroom. Michelle realized she would probably have to go with him back to Lupin, which was something she was not looking forward to. She stood up and picked up the pillow that had landed in front of the bathroom and placed it back on the bed. Then she grabbed some clothes for the day and waited on Jigen to finish up in the bathroom. Finally, he walked out.
"Took you long enough," Michelle said with a smile. "I hope there is some hot water left for me."
"Yeah, and I'm sure you'll take longer regardless of the water temperature."
Once Michelle finished getting ready, she walked out of the bathroom to find Jigen lying on his back on the bed and staring at the ceiling. She walked over and sat on the edge next to him.
"Anything interesting going on up there?" she asked, referring to whatever he was staring at.
"Not really. I'm just thinking."
"Oh? About what?"
"What I'm going to do," he replied.
"Ah…About what?"
"You," he said, sitting up.
"Oh." Michelle pulled her legs up onto the bed and wrapped her arms around them. She sat quietly and didn't say another word to him.
"I didn't mean that in a mean way. I'm just not sure what should happen, you know?" Jigen asked her.
"I know," she said quietly. "I don't know what to do either."
"Michelle, I'm not incriminating you of anything, I'm just rationalizing. I came back that night and you had disappeared. There was no note, no message; no goodbye at all. I mean, that was the night after you said how much you loved me and all that."
"Well…That night you told me that Lupin had told you of a job you had to go on to keep an eye out for a boat. When I said goodbye to you that night, I assumed that I would see you in the morning. I fell asleep that night, and when I woke up, I was chained to a wall and saw two henchmen trying to hack into my laptop. Once I finally got out of there, it was almost night time. I returned to the house and you, Goemon, and Lupin were all gone. I find it hard for you to chide me for not leaving a note when you didn't leave me one either," Michelle told him without looking at him.
"I thought you were gone for good," he said. Jigen stood up and stretched. "Listen, Michelle, I don't see how arguing about this is going to make things any better. It happened, and now we just need to get over it."
"Jigen…Is it worth it?" Michelle asked. "If we get back together, Lupin will want us apart again. Then there will come a time when your group is going to want to go your own way, I'm going to want to go mine. We're always going to hit these roadblocks again and again. Is it really worth it Jigen?"
"I'd like to think so," he said. Jigen grabbed her hands and helped her off of the bed. "C'mon. I need to get back to Lupin and Goemon. They're probably freaking out right about now."
"Maybe I shouldn't show my face around Lupin right now," Michelle said. "If you don't understand all that happened, there's no way that he possibly could."
"I don't care what Lupin thinks. We're all going to have a talk and work this out once and for all…"
)(
Lupin sat in a chair while Goemon sat on the couch and they awaited the arrival of their friend. Fujiko appeared shortly after they woke up, having noticed that a large chunk of the jewelry collection she was eyeing was missing and that they probably had it. She sat on the couch with Goemon, but she sat closer to Lupin's chair.
"Lupin, why are you so upset? You got all the jewelry you were after," she asked.
"I'm just worried about Jigen. Michelle disappeared while we were still in France and Jigen didn't take it too well. He went out last night, supposedly to a bar or somewhere and he never came back," Lupin told her, trying to give her a look so that she would drop the subject. Her eyes sparkled.
"What a bitch…" Fujiko stated. Goemon gave Lupin a glare.
"We might have to go look for him if he doesn't get back soon," Lupin said. Goemon took a deep breath.
"I will go search for him if he does not return within the hour," Goemon said in a firm voice. "I believe it would be best if you stayed here Lupin, in case he comes back."
"If you say so," Lupin said meekly. The time passed slowly, and nobody wanted to talk. Finally, Goemon stood up.
"I'll search around town. If I don't find him by sunset, I'll come back," he stated, not really caring if anyone heard him. He went to open the door and found Jigen and Michelle at the door, with Jigen about to knock.
"Surprise, surprise," Jigen said with a smirk as he walked in.
"Welcome back," Goemon said to both of them, letting them enter and then shutting the door.
"So the bitch is back, huh?" Fujiko asked.
"You're one to talk," Michelle remarked under her breath.
"Funny, I don't remember ever leaving Lupin in the blue like you left Jigen."
"No, you just screw him over daily and he takes it without complaining," Jigen said. "Keep your mouth shut for awhile, alright, Fujiko?" Fujiko gasped.
"Geez, man, are you alright?" Lupin asked.
"Better than ever. We just have a few things to talk about," Jigen said with authority.
"I'll say," Goemon commented, breaking Jigen's thunder.
"What?" Jigen asked, as he turned to the samurai.
"I think Lupin has some explaining to do." Everybody turned to Lupin who clenched his teeth.
"Well, what is it Lupin?" Jigen asked. Lupin took a deep breath.
"I…I knew where Michelle was when she disappeared." Michelle's eyes grew wide.
"You knew Estin had me locked up there?!" she yelled. Goemon gasped in shock.
"She was being held captive and you didn't help her?" he demanded.
"Yes! Yes! I knew! I was the one who sold her out to him…" Lupin said. Michelle was speechless.
"WHAT THE HELL, LUPIN?" Jigen roared.
"There was no other way of getting her away from you short of handing her over to someone else," Lupin explained.
"So that whole scouting trip was just a ruse to keep me and Goemon out of the house while you sent her off to some mob guy?" Jigen asked.
"Yes, it was."
"Lupin, this is far worse than the way you talked about it last night," Goemon stated.
"I know, alright! Michelle, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it. I didn't realize you two had gotten as close as you did in the VERY short amount of time you two had known each other," Lupin said. "Is there any way you can forgive me?" he added, quietly.
"Only one," Michelle replied.
"What?" he asked.
"If you'll listen to my side of the story about the night I shot you," she stated. A look of pain crossed Lupin's face. He growled slightly under his breath.
"I really don't…" Lupin started. Goemon cleared his throat.
"Fate will repeat itself until you do what is expected," he said as he sat down on the couch. Lupin sighed.
"Fine. Let's hear it…" Michelle stood before where Lupin was sitting and Jigen leaned against the wall to listen.
"As you know, I have accepted job offers as an assassin based on who the target was and the amount that I was paid. On one of the jobs that I accepted, another assassin was hired to work with me. His name was Rex Berof. Though the mission itself seemed impossible on paper, with the two of us together, it took us no time at all to achieve our goal. We worked so well together and seemed to almost read each other's mind. When we finished the mission, he asked me to join him on a few other hits, and I accepted. Unfortunately, I allowed myself to fall in love with him. Before I realized it, he was declaring his love for me and we were engaged," Michelle said quietly and she noticed Jigen fidget where he was standing.
"We never seemed to have the opportunity to get married though. We both wanted an extravagant wedding, and we had gotten to where we were excepting missions on our own that pulled us apart. Finally, one evening while I was in Venice, Rex appeared at my hotel room. He looked panicked, which was odd for him. He told me that he was forced into a mission that he couldn't back out of. It was a mission that if he didn't succeed, he would be assassinated, and more than likely, I would be as well." Lupin adjusted in his seat.
"This is all very interesting, Michelle, but I don't see what this has to do with me being shot," he said, coldly. Goemon shot him a look.
"I'm getting there Lupin!" Michelle said, irritated. "He was given the job of assassinating you. Now, I never allowed anyone to know my real last name whenever I could get away with it. I tried not to show any emotion when he told me the news, but what he told me next frightened me even more. He said he already knew that you were my brother and that he didn't want to take the mission in the first place. I tried to convince him to ignore the job and to keep an eye out for any danger, but he wouldn't listen, especially after an attempt was made on my life. We figured the only way for Rex to even get a chance to look you in the face was if I was involved. That was when I sent you the letter asking if we could spend the evening together there at the same house you were just staying at in France. Soon we were sitting on the porch that connected our rooms, having wine and talking about what all we had been up to."
"Yeah, Michelle, I think I know what happened after that. I still don't see why I should forgive you," Lupin said with a sneer.
"But you don't know my thoughts during the evening. As you recall, it was a night with a full moon. You saw it fitting to arrange the evening for that night, so I didn't argue. While we were sitting and talking, I was able to see an outline of a man holding a rifle aimed right where Rex was hiding. Of course, that had to be the time when you decided you wanted to walk to the rail of the porch and stare at the moon. When I got up to join you, I saw the man getting ready shoot and I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't wait for Rex to make his move, or else he would have been dead. I instinctively pulled out my gun and shot. I didn't aim, and I didn't watch what I was doing. I felt the recoil of the gun and then I bolted out the door. I ran all the way back to the hotel and locked the door. Rex came back a short while later and told me that he was fine and you were dead. I didn't speak to him for weeks." Michelle messed with a strand of hair and eventually pushed it behind her ear. Lupin noticed how shaky her voice and hands were as she spoke.
"We were separated for a few months. We would occasionally send a message back and forth to each other and we decided the wedding would still be on when we got the chance. He told me he still loved me, and I knew I was still in love with him. I went one week without hearing from him 5 months after I thought you had died, and suddenly, while I was in Amsterdam, he appeared in my apartment once more. When I saw him standing there, I dropped what I was holding and was about to run to him, but he motioned for me to wait. He walked up to me and held on to me and said he had another mission that was out of his league. He kissed me passionately on the lips and once I could step back, I asked him if I could help. All he said was 'Hold still,' and I realized he had his gun pointed at me. I managed to kick the gun out of his hand before he could shoot me, but he was quick to go after it again. It turned into a huge shoot out, and before I had wrapped my mind around the situation, he was dead. It was another instinctive shot. I did some research and found out that the employer that had put us together so long ago had hired Rex originally to kill me and you, Rex had just come up with the ruse to seduce me to get to you and then kill me," Michelle said as she continued to look into Lupin's eyes.
"Sonofabitch!" Jigen exclaimed. "No wonder you didn't want to admit that you had fallen in love with me." Michelle walked closer to her brother.
"Will you forgive me now?" she asked, kneeling on her knees to be on level to where he was sitting.
"I guess I can't hold a grudge against my baby sister forever. I forgive you," he said with a smile as he leaned forward and hugged her.
"And I forgive you, too" Michelle replied. After the sentimental moment ended, Lupin leaned back, furrowed his brow and looked to Michelle.
"Did you ever figure out who hired Rex in the first place?"
"I was hoping you would ask me that," she commented with a mischievous grin. "One of the reason's I was in France when I met you was to pay a visit to him and perhaps to steal some valuable information on the secrets of his hideout. I believe you've had an encounter with Mr. Eson as well?"
"That no good filthy bastard! Now do you understand what I was telling you guys before?" Lupin asked Goemon and Jigen. Fujiko stood up.
"So what are we going to do now?" she asked. Michelle gave her a look.
"We?"
"Yeah, you can let a guy like Eson get away with this!" Fujiko stated.
"I think I get what you're saying Michelle. I think this will have to be a family affair," Lupin said. "How about we show Mr. Eson why people don't screw with the Lupins."
"Is it because you guys attract so much trouble? I mean, I wouldn't want to screw with someone who's in trouble all the time, just think what nasty stuff you could get from doing that," Jigen said with a snicker. Michelle threw her lighter at him.
"Sure, Lupin! Let's give him a screwin' he'll never forget!" Michelle exclaimed.
Songs:
"You Were Meant For Me" by Jewel