5
The need for sustenance finally forced Rei and Minako to extract themselves from the hotel bed and go out into the world to find something to eat. When they got up, Rei pointed out that she needed to take a shower, given that she had not taken one since before leaving Japan.
Minako decided to join her.
As a result, it was fairly late in the morning by the time they made it to the small cafe that Minako had found during her previous day's excursion.
"Okay. Reiko, you have to try this stuff. Just so you'll know how truly awful it is." Minako waved a vegemite-slathered piece of toast in Rei's face.
"Ugh. Can't I just take your word for it? Why would I want to try it if it's so gross?" The substance looked rather vile.
Minako gazed levelly at Rei. "I am still traumatized by my first experience with it. How can you possibly support me in my time of need if you don't understand my pain?"
Rei sighed, knowing the outcome was inevitable. "Give it here." Preparing herself for the worst, she took a bite.
"So, how is it?" Minako asked angelically.
Rei glared, and forced herself to swallow the offending lump of food. "Remember how I joked about getting the others to try that stuff? I take it back. We'll get charged with attempted murder."
Minako laughed as Rei pushed the piece of toast aside and took an enormous swig of her orange juice.
"Now you understand?"
"All too well." Rei made a face and drank more juice.
Smirking, Minako sipped her coffee. "I'll make it up to you."
"Better clear your schedule then."
"I'll have my people contact yours—"
Minako's cell phone chose that moment to go off. She growled in frustration and checked the display.
"Sorry, Rei."
"Duty calls?"
"We may be getting our food to go." She flipped open the cell. "Hi, Shacho."
~O~O~O~O~
Rei reclined in the comfortable theatre seat as she and Shacho watched Minako and her dancers rehearse. Most of them had met Rei in the past but had not known the extent of her relationship with Minako until the airport story broke. Regardless, they were all quite surprised and delighted to see Rei, especially when she and Minako arrived with several coffees and a large bag of cookies in tow.
Shacho inspected his own coffee very carefully before taking a sip.
"She never plays the same prank twice, Shacho, you know that," Rei commented, brushing cookie crumbs from her t-shirt and helping herself to another.
"Not on the same person, no. But she could be trying to get one of the others. Or you."
Rei halted the cookie she held in mid-air, narrowing her eyes at it in suspicion. Shacho snorted with amusement.
"Your timing of this visit was absolutely perfect. She's been working too hard."
Rei quirked an eyebrow at Minako's manager. "Says the man who called her here today."
"Actually, I was just reminding her about the rehearsal. She'd have been here hours before anyone else if you weren't here." He took another sip of coffee. "She's missed you."
Feeling herself blush, Rei looked down at her lap. "I've missed her too."
"I haven't seen her looking so rested in ages. Surprising, really, since you probably kept each other up for half the night."
"Shacho!" Rei turned even redder and swatted the manager on the arm. "You're terrible!"
They both burst out laughing.
"Hey! Do we need to separate the two of you?" Minako stood poised at the front of the stage, glaring at the pair of them.
Assuming an expression of feigned innocence, Rei pointed at Shacho. "He started it."
At the exact same time, Shacho pointed at Rei. "She started it."
They both collapsed into another fit of giggles.
Minako's eyes narrowed further. "No hijinks unless I get to be part of them. Behave yourselves!" She wagged her finger at them and spun around. "Let's take that one from the top, guys," she said to her dancers.
Rei and Shacho fought to get their laughter under control so they wouldn't disrupt the rehearsal any further.
"I still say you started it," Rei muttered, swatting Shacho again.
~O~O~O~O~
Eventually, Rei decided she wanted to do some exploring of her own. After asking Shacho to let Minako know where she'd gone, Rei stepped from the theatre into the bright sunlight, trying to choose which direction to go.
Melbourne was really a beautiful city, Rei thought, taking in the numerous tall buildings and the bright blue skyline as she walked. She'd been far too excited when she'd first arrived to notice very many details.
A young man playing his guitar on the busy street corner winked cheekily at her when she tossed a coin into his open case. As she moved on, she noticed that the tune sounded very familiar.
"C'est la vie?" She glanced back at the musician. He was wearing an Aino Minako concert t-shirt. Laughing to herself, Rei made a mental note to tell Minako about it later. At least he hadn't recognized Rei and kicked up a fuss. It was nice to be able to walk around without that fear. She hoped that the hype might finally have died down by the time she returned home.
After wandering in and out of a few shops, she remembered that she had spotted a lively riverfront during the drive in from the airport, and decided to try and find it. Her task turned out to be relatively easy since the river wended its way through much of the city, and before long, Rei found the pier she had spotted the night before.
Noisy flocks of gulls hovered in the air, trying to find their way to the water through the clusters of sailboats. Rei chuckled when a few of them landed on the pier and began strolling along casually, as though they too were just tourists. In the distance, Rei saw a number of brightly-coloured kites dancing in the strong breeze. There was a bit of a chill in the wind too, Rei noticed, wrapping her arms around herself. She wished she'd brought her jacket with her from the theatre.
"Cold, Reiko?"
Rei would have toppled into the water if not for the sturdy railing she leaned on. The idol was standing just behind her, smiling delightedly. "Minako! How do you do that?"
"I'm just that good." She moved forward and leaned on the railing next to Rei. "We're finished for the day. Shacho told me you left to go exploring."
Rei took her hand. "How'd you know where to find me?"
Minako gazed out at the river. "I guessed. You've always loved the water, Reiko."
"Mars, you mean?"
"Well, more that you were pretty reluctant to leave the shower earlier..."
Rei's burst of laughter caused a few nearby gulls to take flight. Minako grinned and pulled Rei's arms around her waist. She leaned back against her lover, making a sound of utter contentment when soft lips kissed her cheek.
They stayed that way until the sky began to darken, just holding each other as they listened to the sound of the rolling waves.
~O~O~O~O~
"He was really playing C'est la Vie? Ooh. He'll feel that one in the morning!"
They were curled up on the sizeable couch of Minako's hotel suite, munching popcorn and watching more rugby. Minako was enjoying the match far more than she had been the previous evening. Rei was greatly amused by the suggestion of what to watch. She didn't much care for the sport herself, but watching it with Minako was always very entertaining. Rei usually paid more attention to the idol than to the games, as her reactions were nothing short of priceless.
"I'd wager he's feeling that right now. And yes, he was playing your song. Did I mention the t-shirt?"
Minako flung a piece of popcorn at the TV. "C'mon! What kind of a call was that? No, you mentioned no t-shirt. What about the t-shirt?"
Rei took a small handful of the snack. "It was an Aino Minako t-shirt. From one of your Asian tours. Oh! Man, how does no one die when they play this game?" An orange-clad player was writhing on the field after being hit with a particularly vicious tackle. Rei grimaced as the team medics hurriedly gathered around him.
"You think this is bad, you should watch Canadians play hockey."
"Isn't that just rugby on ice? I'll pass, thanks. I don't care for the cold."
"Aww, I'd keep you warm, Reiko," Minako purred, running her hand along Rei's leg.
"Um, d-does it have to be Canadians? M-maybe there's a team here—we could go sooner."
Minako picked up the remote and switched off the TV. "I'd much rather stay in tonight, if that's all right with you."
Her smile turned inviting.
O~O~O
Author Notes:
I couldn't resist the hockey jab. Normally we Canadians are a calm, peaceful folk-but then stick us in an arena and watch us go ballistic, on or off the ice.
...I bet Minako's one of few people who could get Leafs tickets.
Anyway, see you next week, and thanks again for the reads and reviews!