Songs of the day:
Part 1: Move Along by All American Rejects. Part 2: You Must Follow by Stratus
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from The Fast and Furious movies, just the liberty to manipulate them to my will. MUAHAHA
Chapter 9
Yuri found Koji studying the engine layout of the Fairlady, listening and nodding as Koto, who went to the same school as she did, briefed him about what he planned to do with this Fairlady, his first ever car. "Hey Koji," she said, interrupting Koto. "Sorry, Koto, can I borrow him for a sec?"
Koto smiled, "Sure, anything for D.K.'s girl."
She raised her eyebrows. "I beg your pardon?"
"Okay, okay, I'm coming," said Koji hurriedly and he waved to Koto as he drew Yuri to one side, far out of Koto's earshot. "What is it?"
"Imiga called me," she said quietly.
His eyes widened. "What? But – how?"
"He always has a way," she replied, sighing. "There's no escape from him this time, Koji. He wants to meet us at some neighbourhood octopus ramen shop."
"Ooo-kay. So we're going now?"
"Yep, let's get crackalacking and see what we can do."
"But what if this is a trap?" he grabbed her arm before she could take two steps towards her Supra.
"Do we have a choice?" she shot back at him. He let go of her upon grim comprehension and acceptance. She was just about to open the door of her ride when she thought about Ming. "Wait a sec," she told Koji.
She ran to where Ming was tinkering with a set of titanium valve springs, with Koto and a girl called Shizu observing him, and drew him away from his work.
"What's up, baby?" he said with a smile.
"Koji and I are going out to grab something to… eat."
He laughed. "Why so serious? I don't get jealous if you go out with your best friend for food." He kissed her cheek. "Loosen up, Yuri."
Unexpectedly, she found herself so touched by his simple gesture that she returned his kiss, only on his lips, ever so gently and teasingly. It ended as soon as it began. "Thanks," she whispered, breathless.
"No problem," he breathed into her ear, and the tingling thrill lingered over her lips and neck even when she and Koji had buckled themselves in her Supra and went on their way to meet the pillar of Hokkaido's junior yakuza.
The octopus ramen shop was a tiny establishment with traditional bamboo screen doors and stained windows. Outside the shop, five silver Skyline R32s were parked, each with individual black pinstripes. At the front of the line of R32s was an R34, and it stood out from the rest. Yuri recognized it as Imiga's: his Skyline had the trademark fang-like body kit at the front bumper and a glossy black claw on its body. She parked her Supra in front of the shop beside the rendezvous and she and Koji got out, each sweating with anxiety. Yuri removed her school badge, tie and coat and stowed them away in the dashboard.
She slid the door open to the little ramen shop and a cockroach scuttled across the grubby tiled floor. A Japanese nori's high-pitched voice wailed out from an old radio by the counter. The only customers in the shop that afternoon were an old man chewing at the leg of a squid; and a troop of six men wearing black bandannas around their forehead occupying the inmost row of tables. All except Imiga.
Yuri and Koji exchanged nervous glances and went up to them. Halfway there, Imiga, who sat one head of the row of tables, grinned and stood. "Yuri," he said loudly, and she cringed upon hearing his voice up close again. It brought back awful memories and broken promises and hatred, as well as a small degree of fear. She kept silent.
"Why the long face, old friend?" he said again, his wolfish grin never leaving his face. "Sit, Yuri, sit. And Koji, you may stand." Koji only grunted. Yuri stood opposite him, but she didn't take the chair vacated for her.
After seeing her refusal, Imiga's grin became fixed. "I said sit, Yuri. It's not polite for a guest to deny her host's kind offer."
"I don't plan on staying long here," she said coldly, "We get the gory details settled and I'm outta here."
Imiga laughed. "Oh, Yuri, you are a fool, but a lovable fool. You knew full well, didn't you, that once with us is like going to jail for life? Mothers always advise their daughters that… but no, I don't think your mother quite got the job done, did she?"
Yuri gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. "How much do I owe you now?"
He laughed once again. "Yuri, let's not think in terms of that, shall we? If I were to tell you, you would faint; yes, even with my reasonable interest rate. But I have a solution; no, actually two choices. If you sit on that chair and consent to playing the exemplary guest then I will tell it to you."
Yuri didn't like the sound of it one bit, but she sat anyway. She had to get this done and over with.
"Me coming to Tokyo isn't just for you alone, mind you, eh, Yuri?" Imiga began, with his slimy grin, "I'm here on business – for my Uncle Kamata – you remember him don't you, Yuri? He gave us his blessings and even offered to sponsor us a full traditional ceremony – "
"Can you please get to the point?" she said bluntly.
Imiga chuckled. "Patience, Yuri, patience! Anyway, I will be in town for a few months – and if I do exceedingly well Uncle Kamata will put me in my cousin Takashi's place… which is a great honour for me. But to do that, I must recover all the money that has been lost when Takashi had to leave town after a damning race with some… gaijin," at that Imiga's face scrunched up, "and left his turf unguarded."
"Oh I get it," said Yuri monotonously, "you're looking for a promotion."
He grinned. "Smart girl. But that's a lot of money I have to get back – two years worth of debts, you know. I have to claim the money back... collect more modal," he smiled sweetly at her. "You know, the works. And I have a strategy. I don't know what you'll think of it but – I need a racer, someone to represent me, someone who's really competent and knows what she's doing…" he looked directly at her, his grin growing bigger and more crooked, "and who better than you?"
"You're crazy," she blurted out instantly, "I'm a schoolgirl. I've half the experience of other racers in Tokyo." She stood so quickly and forcefully that her chair fell to the floor with a crash. "Get yourself a – a D.K. or something like that. Here I'm still a newbie, so you'll likely see your reputation go down the drain than making some real money."
"You want to know why, Yuri?" he said. "Because I saw you win in your first ever race in Boshi with your Supra – against an R32. Your car's a mere Supra – other drivers don't race like you, Yuri. With you, you can bring any car to victory." He paused. "That's why. And besides," he added, grinning again, "I need a girl to make me look and feel good."
She shook her head in disgust, but she realised that there was not much of another solution left. Even if she kept on racing and winning cash, her debt to him would never lessen. The debt started by her coke-crazy mother.
"Come on, Yuri," said Imiga in a cajoling and cooing tone, "make your decision."
She looked despairingly at Koji. "I say you just walk away from this, Yuri," that was all he could say.
"Walk away?" echoed Imiga. "Oh no, Koji, I've thought about that a lot sooner than any of you did."
"What do you mean?" asked Yuri.
"You know what I'm capable of doing when I mean to do it," he answered with a smirk, taking his cell phone out of his coat pocket and flipping it open. He activated the video call function and showed it to her. She narrowed her eyes and her jaw dropped ever so slightly. Displayed on the screen was her mother, tied and gagged, her eyes wild and screaming with terror.
Her hands shook. At last, she tore her eyes away from the screen and fought back tears forming at the corners of her eyes.
"She was very glad to come with us, just so you should know," said Imiga, his wolfish grin returning to his smug face, "Thinking we'd give her more stuff, just like we'd used to – and she even told us to put it all under your tab. But of course that whole scene – the tying and all – I just set it up to push you in the right direction. But if you slip," his voice turned steel cold and deadly dangerous, and Yuri could feel her blood run cold, "slip just a little bit – and she's dead. You got that?"
Her breath shivered, but she plucked the courage and strength to nod. As much as she hated her mother for 'loaning' coke from Imiga and his troops, she was her mother. She couldn't just stand there and let her mother die, just because she hated his guts.
"I'm sorry, Yuri, I didn't hear anything from you?"
"Okay," she said at last. "Done."
"So easily?"
"But if you ever, ever hurt her – "
"I won't, honey," he assured her, but with his smirk, she didn't believe him, but what choice did she have? "I call, you show up; I call you to race, you race; I wanna grab you anywhere I like, you shut up; if you lose your car in a pink-slip race, no car in the next race, your mother goes; understand?"
Yuri swallowed the bile with as little expression as she could display, and forced herself to nod, her vision already started to blur.
"Good!" he exclaimed and clapped his hands once. "So we begin tomorrow?" He did a gesture. "I'll call you with the details. Okay, you can go and enjoy your last day of freedom." He laughed, and his obnoxious crew hooted and snickered as well. Yuri stormed out of the shop, holding back the tears until she was safely in her Supra, where she wept in utter despair on Koji's shoulder.
Author's note: Whew! Pretty dramatic chapter for me… I hope it was all right and Imiga's characterization struck the fine balance between being nasty and reasonable. Thanks for your kind reviews and your suggestions! I will try to incorporate all of them in the following chapters. Until the next chapter; ciao and enjoy!