The next day, in the afternoon, Akimi and Amaya agreed to go over to Kurama's house and walked with him toward his home. "I'm sure mother will be happy to see you two again. I think Kokoda especially liked you Akimi," spoke Kurama. Akimi laughed lightly.
"Your younger brother is as kind as you are to me Shuichi," she replied. Amaya began to giggle at this.
When reaching Kurama's house, he unlocked the door and opened it. "Mother, I'm home," he called out.
"Shuichi, some of your friends are in the living room," spoke Shiori, coming out to greet them. She suddenly spotted the two girls. "Oh, hello Akimi dear. You too Amaya. Its good to see you two again."
"Its good to see you too Mrs. Shiori," replied Akimi, smiling gently at the elder woman. Kurama gabe her a quick smile, then escorted them to the living room. There, sat three boys and four girls. Two of the boys were in a wrestling match, whiled one sat quietly in the corner of the room. The girls, on the other hand, chatted cheerfully to each other. They suddenly stopped what they were doing and looked up.
"Akimi, Amaya, these are my friends. You've already met Yusuke. The guy he was fighting with is Kuwabara, and the one in the corner is Hiei," introduced Kurama.
"Yo!" interrupted Yusuke with a fake smile. His orange haired friend with black eyes called Kuwabara, nodded in greeting. The black figure in the corner on the other hand, opened one of his red eyes then turned away. Kurama noticed this and glared at them.
"The girl with green hair and red eyes is Yukina. The one with dark brown hair and eyes is Keiko. Botan is the girl with light blue hair and violet eyes, and the tall one over there is Shizuru," Kurama said referring to the girl with light brown hair and brown eyes.
Akimi smiled and nodded. "I am pleased to meet you all." Amaya gave her friend a quizzical look then nodded as well. Akimi on the other hand, had also noticed the unusual behavior of the other boys, but ignored it. From afar, Botan watched them carefully from the corner of her eye. The other girls greeted Akimi and Amaya with true smiles.
"Its nice to meet you! Oh, and don't mind Yusuke, he can be a big jerk sometimes," stated Keiko. Yusuke suddenly glared at her.
"Hey, that's not funny!" he exclaimed. This sent everyone but Hiei into fits of laughter.
Akimi suddenly stopped laughing with everyone and glanced around the room, her eyes wandering around. 'I know someone in this room has been spying on me. I just know it. I felt it the other day,' she thought. Her eyes suddenly fell on Yusuke. 'It could only be him. He was the only one who knew me out of all Shuichi's friends. But why?'
"Akimi, are you alright?" asked a concerned Kurama. Akimi suddenly snapped out of her thoughts.
"Oh, its nothing! I'm just so happy to meet your friends!" she said, putting on a quick smile. Kurama accepted the answer, but deep down, he knew she was lying.
The next morning, at school, Akimi, Amaya, and Kurama stood at the schools main entrance, talking. Suddenly, a boy with brown eyes and green hair walked up to them. "Hi Shuichi, hi girls! How have you been?" asked the boy.
Kurama smiled at him. "Hi Rokuro, its great to see you again. Back from your trip to Spain?"
"Si mi amigo!" spoke Rokuro with a Spanish accent, bowing to them. His eyes twinkled while looking up at Amaya. She blushed slightly, and giggled. Akimi noticed this and gave her friend a slight smile. "So, are you and Akimi going out?" asked Rokuro.
Kurama blushed, while Akimi turned pink. They both glanced at each other then turned away. Akimi quickly clutched her stone, which had been glowing constantly for the past few weeks. Kurama suddenly replied, "No, we are just frinds."
"Oh, I see." Rokuro put on a knowing smile. "Well, I must go. If I stay any longer, girls will come to me for autographs. (Popular) See you later!" he shouted and ran off.
"I think he likes you Amaya," whispered Akimi. Amaya smiled.
"He is nice," she said quietly.
Akimi suddenly hesitated, thinking about something, then spoke. "I need to tell you something," she whispered urgently. "Please, don't tell Shuichi anything or he'll think I'm crazy. It's about the stone. I'll tell you later," she whispered to her friend and ran off. Kurama glanced at Amaya in confusion.
"Is there something wrong?" he asked. Amaya just said nothing and shook her head.
At Akimi's home, Amaya went up to Akimi's room to find her staring at the stone in her hand. "Where did Shuichi go?" Akimi asked.
"Downstairs," was Amaya's short reply. She then glanced at the stone. "It's glowing," she said in a surprised voice.
"I know. I've been ignoring it, but it won't stop. I think he is nearby," Akimi spoke in a hushed tone.
Outside, the door, Kurama stood, listening. He had just come up the stairs to check on Akimi. He stood there silently. 'A stone, glowing? What did they mean, and who is this person they talk aobut? Is there something they're trying to hide?' he thought.