Chapter 3

"Please, Cye," Rowen begged his friend before everyone had arrived. They were meeting at Mia's like they did every first Thursday of the month. It was mostly a casual sort of gathering.

Cye shook his head auburn head, a small grin was on his lips, and said, "why don't you just take her to a restaurant like all the other blokes if you feel so strongly for her?"

Rowen smiled sweetly at his friend, maybe a compliment would help, "but your cooking is the best."

"There's another reason isn't it?" Cye said as they walked up to the big house, they heard some commotion going on inside but they paid no mind. It was normal for things to not be so quiet when they got together.

"She's uncomfortable in public settings," he replied softly. He grabbed his arm gently to stop him, "don't tell the guys, if they know I went to see someone they might not be so open minded..."

Cye wrinkled his nose suspiciously, "about?"

"Well you know Kento is a loud mouth, Sage is not the most gentle fellow, and Ryo is pretty blunt," he paused to think if he could put it more politely but Cye nodded in agreement. It wasn't anything bad that Rowen had said, it was truth that everyone had accepted about their little group. Rowen had learned long ago to accept being the 'know-it-all' and Cye was said to be a pacifist. Which wasn't true completely, they all exaggerated about each other, but they had learned to admit their bad qualities and accept them amongst each other a long time ago. They were still his best buddies, actually more like brothers, and he would fight or die for them if necessary. "She's...she's been a big accident and is scarred pretty badly."

"Oh," Cye said and paused to consider his answer. "Mia might blab?"

"I don't think so, I don't even think Mia has even met her, just her colleague Leea," Rowen answered, "because she never even mentioned it to me before hand."

Cye smiled and clapped his hand on his buddies arm, "of course I will then, besides, it'll give me a chance to scope her out some before the others do. I have to meet the girl who can keep you blushing while you text."

Rowen laughed, "you noticed that?"

"And so will they!"

Rowen groaned unexcited, "well, they can wait to find out, now can't they?"

Cye chuckled as the door slammed open and a tiger burst out like some sort of demented jack-in-a box. Rowen yelped as the beast pinned him swiftly and started to lick him like an overgrown mastiff. Cye's chuckle turned into laughter as three other men ran out and tugged on the beasts collar.

Rowen yelled, "White Blaze, get off of me!"

A dark haired youth pulled the beast off with the help of a very pretty blonde guy, and larger chinese man. "He missed you Rowen! Sorry about that, he's been unsettled lately! I don't know what about either!"

"It's okay, Ryo," he said to the dark haired youth as he stood up and dusted himself off. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket, he knew it was Hoshi but he knew he would blush if he read her message. He didn't want to make this get together all about his new girlfriend...wait...she was still just a friend. Had he already thought of considering her more than that? He felt a blush starting at the base of his neck.

The blonde, who was his best friend in the world, noticed instantly, "you okay Rowen? You're a bit red?"

Rowen glanced at Cye, who was surprisingly keeping pretty cool, and said, "I'm fine, Sage. Just Blaze hit me pretty hard is all."

"Geeez," the Chinese man laughed, and flexed his arm. "We're all getting to soft if this tiger can whoop us!"

White Blaze roared in agreement and Rowen felt his phone buzz again. He tried to pay no mind to it but Cye noticed as they walked in.

"Kento, you know how Blaze is," he replied solemnly, trying to retain his composure.

Kento just snorted as they went to the living room and sprawled out on a recliner. Sage sat on the couch next to Rowen and Cye, and Ryo leaned against a wall holding onto White Blaze's leash.

Ryo smiled, his blue eyes were always laughing, "Mia should be here in a few minutes with Yulie."

Rowen smiled, it had been a while since he had seen the kid, "he's been doing really good in school, I can't wait to see his grades!"

Kento laughed, "he's picking the movie this time, I hope it's not PG."

Sage just rolled his eyes and Cye laughed, he had picked some Disney movie the previous month. Rowen felt his phone buzz again and Sage glanced at him raising an eyebrow, "are you gonna get that?"

Rowen thought up a quick lie, "it's just an email alert."

"Oh," Sage said shortly and Cye glanced at him.

Kentro groaned , "Is this what we've become? Just a bunch shmucks who meet once a month? I mean geeze, does anyone think its weird how quiet all this is? We used to put smack down on bad guys, now I'm stuck babysitting."

Ryo laughed, "nothing wrong with normality, Kento. Even warriors need a breather now and then, besides I thought you liked your siblings?"

Kento started to complain about something but Sage interrupted, "but too long and we won't be accustomed to fighting at all."

"Except you and Kento, of course," Cye said nonchalantly, pointing out the two who obviously trained. Rowen trained in what little spare time he had, but he wasn't a master of the sword like Sage or great hand to hand combat person like Kento. He was sure Ryo and Cye still trained, although Cye had started pastry school and Ryo was doing jobs here and there. Sage had offered to train with him since the 'peace' had started, but Rowen didn't really feel like learning Kendo.

Kento looked at Sage, "hey, we got something in common for once!"

Sage just rolled his eyes, "please, Kento, hand to hand is different than Kendo!"

Rowen sighed and decided to stay out of this conversation for once. Every time they got together this conversation happened, and it usually ended with Cye upset. He didn't like all the fighting they had been through, but he was not a coward. He started to realize that it was demented to think that any of them could like what they had done. Maybe it was time to move on and start a normal life. He heard the guys bantering, but his mind was on Hoshi. He would like a normal life where he could have a girlfriend who was witty as he was. He wondered if she could accept the crazy stuff he had been through and not call him crazy. Maybe, he would just not tell her about it for a while, even he thought that would be too much for a normal girl.

"Earth to Rowen," Ryo said and he snapped out of his daze about Hoshi, even Blaze was looking at him.

"Are you alright," Sage asked, growing more suspicious of something.

Rowen smiled and tried wave off their sudden concern, "I'm fine. Just a lot of term papers due, not enough sleep."

Kento snorted in disgust, "glad I don't have to deal with that."

"It might do you some good to go to college, Kento," Mia said as she came in with their young friend Yulie who was no longer the boy they knew when they first met. He was almost as tall as Rowen was, still with a mop of brown hair, and twinkling blue eyes. White Blaze sprung loose again and pounced on the boy much the same way he had Rowen. She was smiling at Rowen instantly as she saw him, as if she was proud of herself, and he realized she would blurt about Hoshi but only Cye new she was scarred.

Yulie laughed and wrestled with the tiger as Mia said, "well, how did it go Rowen?"

He felt a blush creep up neck, he didn't know she was going to make a big deal about it in front of everyone. He felt everyone's eyes turn on him, but only Cye was giggling. Sage looked at Mia, then back at Rowen who was progressively getting redder. His eyes narrowed at his friend and he knew, "there's a girl, isn't there?"

Ryo frowned at Mia instantly, she had been doing this stuff for years, "how many times do I have to tell you not try and set us up!"

Mia smiled sweetly, "well, I don't think he's too disappointed, are you, Rowen?"

"She's nice," he said softly. He was afraid if he said more, that his self control would be lost. He didn't like being the center of their conversation. Everyone was looking at him now, including Yulie.

Kento was the first to jump up and say, "well, who is she?"

Rowen gulped, but Mia answered for him, "just a friend of a colleague that used to work Shincha University. I hear she became the department chair Touyama University when she was twenty two. So she's probably just as smart as Rowen is."

Ryo frowned, he hated her games, "you have never met her?"

"Nope," Mia said as she sat down with them. Rowen was still red and was looking at his feet. "I trust Leea though, that girl understands relationships."

Sage started laughing, "so that's who keeps buzzing you!"

Rowen felt like he would be red as an apple before the evening was out. It was not the normal thing for them to have girlfriends, although many of them had been on dates. None had been very interested in any of the girls they were with. Maybe it was their past, maybe it was their anxiety of their future, but Rowen realized he was the only one to ever blush when the blind date was mentioned by Mia.

Cye didn't say anything, considering he understood Rowen's worries.

Yulie smiled mischievously, "Can we meet her?"

Rowen took a gulp of air, "well, she's kind of ...shy... it might take her little while to warm up to having a large group of friends."

Mia sighed, "it's true, despite her notoriety, I have never met her. However, she does make it a point to dispute mine and grandfather's work."

Ryo looked at her, "dispute?"

Mia nodded, "she doesn't care for work on mythologies and such. She claims it should either be included in archeology or religious classes. Not having it's own section. I was concerned she might be too opinionated for you, Rowen."

"Not at all," he paused to consider his next words. He didn't want to take sides, "Mia, you have to think that the average person would have hard time believing in all that we have been through."

She mumbled, "true. No one did remember Talpa after he was gone."

"Exactly," Ryo smiled and then looked at Rowen. "She sounds feisty!"

"Not really, just really intellectual, she's good with words," Rowen blushed. They spent most of their time texting about politics and other boring stuff. He quickly found out, she wasn't too great with math, but she was passionate about world events and history.

"So she's smart, but your opposite," Sage smiled at his assessment. "You're science and math, she's a philosopher!"

"Not quite," Rowen said with a shy grin. She was more into civil liberties than anything.

Kento groaned at the thought, "oh god, another smart one."

Yulie laughed, as he dug in his backpack for a movie, "I hate to bug you guys, but can we watch Frozen now?"

Everyone agreed with a groan, but Rowen was happy the focus was off him and on another horrible PG movie. He heard Kento mumble under his breath, "next time, I pick the movie."