(Standard disclaimer: I do not own any of the Sailor Moon characters of which I am writing about. This story is an original that I wrote for fun and without compensation. All characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi.)

Two More Weeks

Chapter 6

Bad Girls

*Motoki*

When the phone rang later that evening and Jed's name popped up, he had second thoughts about answering. The only time he and Jed ever bonded were through habits not approved by Reika and since she was currently standing right next to him, picking up the phone probably wasn't a good idea. But he did anyway and to his surprise it was about something unexpected.

Rei's father was having another one of his fundraisers and Jed was inviting him. He decided to go since Reika had just gotten home and had complained about being tired, canceling their usual evening plans. Also, his earlier frustration about Usagi/Mamoru needed some airing out, so he took the otherwise tedious invitation as a blessing in disguise. He'd do anything to distract himself at the moment, even if that meant socializing in a party full of people he didn't know or care about.

"I called Mamoru, but he said he was busy," Jed told him as they walked up to the house the event was being held. Although he had expected Mamoru to be with them, it was with mixed feelings that he accepted it would only be him and Jed tonight. "He's probably busy crying himself to sleep because you two aren't speaking anymore."

"We're not fighting." Jed's exaggeration was uncalled for. "We just haven't had much time to hang out."

"Right," Jed muttered. "I know you're dating someone, but I think you forgot that you already had a boyfriend."

"You're so funny."

"We all know Mamoru can't do anything without you. He's probably plotting a way to kill Reika as we speak. So you know, be careful. Jealousy is not something to take lightly."

He didn't bother responding to Jed's trolls. He didn't come here to get mocked. Thankfully a transition to the conversation came naturally as they stepped into the ballroom. It was huge and the place was decently packed.

"What do you do here anyway?" he wondered.

"Babysit Rei." It was then that he realized they were walking straight to her. "She doesn't know how to behave around grownups."

"What do you mean?"

"She keeps ignoring her father. And she brushes off all polite chatter. No one can interact with her. I'm telling you," Jed sighed, "girls these days don't know their place."

As soon as they stood in front of Rei, he knew exactly what Jed was talking about. The man Rei was currently speaking with seemed frustrated as every question he asked was given one-word answers. The guest seemed to use their arrival as a reason to give up and excused himself. Immediately after noticing them, Rei pretended to not see Jed. Almost reluctantly, as if she wanted to find a reason to be mad at him as well, she pulled him into a hug.

"Hey, Motoki. It's good to see you."

Before they were able to start a conversation, Jed scolded her.

"Talk to people who want to talk to you. Stop being rude."

Rei didn't bother looking at Jed and instead inspected her hair ends.

"Go fuck yourself."

"You need to grow up," Jed hissed. "You're here to help your father."

"I couldn't give a damn. Everyone here is just pretending to be interested in each other but nobody really gives a shit about any of this. This whole thing is bogus. He has more than enough money to pay for everything himself. Corrupt ass old man."

Jed was forced to apologize to the elderly women to their left that stared at Rei in shock and distaste. They moved away and just as Jed knew, their checkbooks were definitely gone along with them. Rei really didn't give a damn.

Jed at that point was cursing under his breath calling Rei all kinds of names that only they could hear. The only reason the entire room didn't collapse into itself was because the second right before Rei opened her mouth to retort her father showed up.

Takahiro gave him a pleasant greeting before looking straight at Rei. Judging by his criticizing eye he did not approve of her outfit. She was in a lilac chiffon button-up blouse paired with gold tipped flats and was the only person in the entire room wearing jeans. In his opinion it could have been worse. It wasn't the most formal attire, but at least she wasn't in gym wear.

"How nice of you to show up." The contempt was obvious and he was tempted to step back slowly until he was a good distance away from them. This was too awkward to bear. "Are you too good for the dress code?"

"I came straight from school," Rei scowled.

"Then you should have stayed in your uniform." Takahiro put his hand on Jed's shoulder, done with his daughter's antics. "Come. I want you to meet a few people."

When Jed and Takahiro left, Rei visibly relaxed. Although the nasty look didn't budge from her face at least she stopped cursing. Looking over his shoulder, she pointed to the bar behind him.

"My father knows the bartender personally. They won't serve me anything." Her eyes were pleading. "Would you mind? I'm dying here."

He only agreed because he understood how she felt. That little scene with her dad would have made anyone want to start breaking things. He came back with two mixed drinks that looked like fruit juice and handed her the one with the brighter straw. They moved around the huge room, settling by a large window away from the spotlight.

"How was your trip? Did you just get back?"

"No. I've been here a few weeks already."

"Oh, nice."

There was a long silence that neither of them knew how to fill and so for a long time they just stared out the window. It was windy and leaves picked up in tiny twisters and swirled around until they hit the porch. He was mesmerized with the scene until Rei spun her cup, the ice hitting the glass loudly and pulling him out of his thoughts. He took the hint and fetched her another one.

"Thanks." She took another sip. "I don't usually do this, but my dad's an asshole."

He didn't know if she was disclaiming the drinks or her behavior in general, but knew it was probably both, so before the topic went to shitty parenting, he decided to voice his concerns. She hadn't brought up anything about Usagi's visit earlier and he wondered if she knew about it. Though Rei wouldn't normally by any means be a person he confided in, to be honest, lately he didn't have many people to talk to.

"Usagi came to look for me yesterday." He told her about the reasons of her visit and their sour meeting earlier. Rei was not only surprised, but she looked embarrassed.

"Oh, Usagi," Rei sighed as if it was something she'd expected from her. "She can't mind her own business."

"I mean, I know how she is, but…" He didn't really know what to say to defend her. "I feel bad about yelling at her."

"You're too nice, Motoki. She deserved it. As much as we may not agree with the terms you left." He could tell she was very passionate about her distaste yet censored herself for his sake (which he humbly appreciated). "We've known you for years and should have enough respect to leave you alone. Don't listen to Usagi. She's retarded." He was relieved at her words and felt strangely validated.

As the feeling of being watched crept down his spine, he self-consciously looked around for the source of unease. It was Jed and he was pissed. Rei turned too and even from across the room, Jed's dirty looks were obvious and probably had something to do with the drink in her hand. Rei scrunched up her face and gave Jed the finger before turning her attention back to him.

"You don't like him much."

"He still doesn't seem to get that."

"He wants to help," he assured her.

"I might have more respect for him if he didn't have his head shoved so far up my father's ass."

He laughed. Jed's attempt to win over her father only served to push Rei further away, but he probably knew that already. Unless he genuinely enjoyed getting on Rei's bad side, which he wouldn't put past him either, he definitely had other motives because there was no way he was that dumb.

"He's trying to impress you," he insisted, but Rei didn't bat a lash.

"If that was really the goal, he'd know by now what he's doing doesn't work." Rei shook her head. "He doesn't care." Before he was able to defend Jed, she suddenly perked up. "Finally!" He turned to where she was looking and noticed Mako making her way over in a white chef coat and tall hat. "My escape route!" Mako rushed through the crowd, trying to hunch her tall body to somehow be less seen but was that much more obvious. Though by some miracle, not one person was paying attention to her.

"Oh hey, Motoki-san!"

"Not now!" Rei slapped Mako's hand before she was able to give him a friendly pat. "We have to go!"

"But," he looked around to see if anyone had seen the two conspiring teenagers next to him. No one. Not even Jed was looking their way anymore. "Where are you going?" Rei and Mako were talking in hushed whispers.

"Fine! Fine! The cab is waiting for us outside, just calm down." Mako handed her an extra white chef coat. They were not doing what he thought they were doing… "I swear, you better pay me back. The poor guy had to go around the block like fifty times because of the blockade. I had to leave my purse in the car just to make sure he'd stay."

"Okay, I told you I would! Just show me how to put this stupid hat on!" These girls couldn't be serious. "Motoki cover me!" Rei pulled on his arm and forced him to create a wall between her and the other attendees behind them. "Don't let them see me."

"Your father won't be-"

"I don't care!" Rei and Mako looked in every direction to ensure the coast was clear before rushing to the nearest exit. "Jed and my dad can suck it."

"Bye!" Mako waved and in a split second they were out of his sight.

He wasn't sure for how long he was standing there, but he was snapped out of it by a startling strong presence behind him. Jed looked furious but didn't even bother asking where Rei had gone and he felt mildly guilty for passively aiding in her escape. Jed was right, Rei was bad.

*Mamoru*

The conversation he had with Motoki earlier had been frustrating. Clearly Motoki had expected more out of him, but he had nothing to offer. In fact, their talk only served to further confuse him about what was actually going on. How upset would Cass have to be for Usagi to look for Motoki the way she had? The answer was unnerving.

Which made him glad that their prior arrangement had made it so that he was seeing Cass this evening. She sounded perfectly normal on the phone when he'd called her a few minutes ago, friendly even, but he wouldn't make his judgment call until they could talk seriously over dinner. There, he'd try to get her to tell him what was the situation with Motoki and why she'd kept herself so distanced from him as well.

When he arrived at the spa, the front door was locked and he was still holding onto the buzzer when Cass finally opened the door for him. Inside it smelled incredible and something about the atmosphere actually relaxed him. Cass really knew her stuff.

"You don't have to keep buzzing, I was already walking over here!" Cass complained without greeting. He kissed her cheek before she walked away. He didn't like having Cass in a bad mood because it never led to good things and he could already tell things were different between them. They hadn't been face to face in months and she hadn't even bothered with salutations.

He apologized but she simply pursed her lips and returned to the reception desk where she continued working on a stack of papers. He gave her a moment before he realized that she wasn't rushing. "What? No tour?"

"Do it yourself," she replied without looking up. "There's no one here."

"Don't be a bitch." She gave an annoyed sigh before dropping her pen. "I was kidding," he said when he realized that she really wasn't into him being there. He nudged her back into her seat. "I'll take a look around and then we're going to dinner to talk." She didn't reply and went back to work.

He went on his solo tour and had to admit that he was impressed. Cass had some serious technology from whirlpools to skincare machines and all other types of salon-type equipment. If he were a female he might have found this place amazing. Before he had made the full circle back onto the front, he noticed that one of the two large group saunas were still on. The large generator made a loud swooshing noise as he powered it down and it was then that he heard a muffled noise coming from within. Curious, he opened the door to check it out but saw nothing in the steam.

Suddenly an earsplitting shrill had him holding his ears in pain. Did one of the steam tanks blow? He saw a silhouetted figure of a woman and realized that there was someone still inside, probably naked. Embarrassed, he quickly stepped out the sauna and closed the door shut. Cass told him that the spa was closed. There shouldn't still be people in there.

Cass came running a second later and was confused as she looked around for the cause of the commotion. She was about to ask him what had happened when the door to the sauna opened and out came none other than Usagi. A robe was tied tightly around her waist and she looked alarmed as she stepped out. Her features immediately relaxed when she saw Cass, that is, until she saw him.

"Creep! What are you doing here?" she shrieked, staring at him in shock. He couldn't believe that he was bumping into her here. He should have recognized that frightening scream of hers anywhere.

"Why the hell are you screaming like that?" Cass cried, her hand still clutching her heart in panic. "You scared me, Usa!" Instead of answering, Usagi pointed a freshly manicured nail at him.

"That asshole was trying to peep!" she accused him.

Normally he would have been annoyed that she chose to greet him so rudely, but considering how she looked, he couldn't be mad. Her hair was wet and her skin gleamed from the hot steam, plus the robe she was wearing was super short. If only it hadn't been so damn foggy in that room he would've been able to catch quite a lovely glimpse.

"You do know that the spa is supposed to be closed, right?"

"But isn't it like 5'oclock?" she asked Cass confused. "I couldn't have slept for that long." He shook his head. This girl was truly special.

"Only you could actually fall asleep in a sauna," Cass shook her head in disbelief. "Hurry up, Usa. It's past 6:30 and I need to close up." Usagi gasped, but nodded quickly and sprinted off while yelling an apology over her shoulder.

He and Cass looked at each other before slowly following. Inside the changing room, they walked in to find Usagi sitting in a vanity in her bra and panties drying her hair with a blower. She scowled at them and quickly grabbed a towel to throw on her lap.

"You know I'm changing in here!" she complained when he didn't look away. Cass made herself comfortable on one of the lounges.

"Relax," Cass muttered. "It's nothing he hasn't already seen." Usagi's eyes narrowed, cursing under her breath before proceeding to ignore them both.

"I don't have all day," he complained after ten minutes passed. He didn't have the patience for Usagi to get ready. He and Cass had been sitting in silence while she filed her nails and the car he'd called to come get them was already waiting outside. "I'm leaving in five minutes with or without you."

"You hear that, Usa?" Cass yelled at Usagi who was in the back getting dressed. "Hurry up!"

At that, Usagi finally made her way to them and he had to admit he was glad he'd waited. She was wearing a long tan pea coat over a short pink dress and gold flats. Her hair was pinned up sloppily, but still sexy, perfectly messy wisps framing her face and neck. She looked completely different from yesterday; so much more dressed up and glamorous.

"I'm done! I'm done! Sorry!" Usagi rushed.

"Wait! I have the perfect heels for that outfit!" Cass exclaimed and walked out the door before her to get them from her office. At Cass's sudden departure his eyes met with Usagi's, but she looked away quickly and followed Cass out.

"I don't need them, I already have shoes!" she protested, but Cass had already come back with some heels in tow. "I'm not wearing heels to walk home," Usagi told her patiently as if she was already used to this type of behavior. "I'm leaving my shoes on."

"Oh shut up, you're not walking anywhere. You're coming to eat with us," Cass said, glancing at him briefly. He had a feeling her invitation was just an excuse so that they didn't have to be alone at dinner. "Hurry, put these on, the limo is waiting for us out back."

"I'm not hungry!" Usagi complained. "I'm going home!" When Usagi refused, Cass practically tackled her onto a nearby couch, grabbing her leg and trying to yank her shoes off. "You freak!" Usagi cried, but both girls were laughing hard. Usagi finally gave in as Cass had successfully strapped her into 3½-inch heels before tossing her old shoes into her purse.

They finally left the spa and Cass stayed back to grab her coat and turn on the security system. He and Usagi walked to the car in silence. The chauffeur opened the door for them, but he made sure to be the one to help her in. He grabbed her hand and scooted in after her, their hands lingering together briefly before she moved. Cass came in and pushed him out the way.

"Dammit Mamoru! Move!" Cass screeched, sitting in the little space right in between him and Usagi. He groaned (she wasn't going to let him get any moves in, was she?) and decided to sit across from them anyway, hopefully avoiding any confrontations with Cass. He leaned across the chair to pull a chilled bottle of wine and proceeded to serve them.

"To Cass," he toasted as all their glasses clinked. "The spa looks beautiful." Cass couldn't help smiling at the compliment and in that moment he knew he could fix whatever was wrong between them. Cass blew him a kiss, a foolproof indication that she was happy, and he was beyond relieved that they were on the steps to returning to normal.

He held onto Usagi's gaze for a while as their cups lingered close to each other before she nervously looked at Cass, who had noticed their staring, and quickly moved away. Cass cleared her throat.

"So tell me what you think. I need to know everything," Cass implored excitedly, changing the subject. Cass inquired about his every last detailed opinion of the spa and that topic of conversation continued on for the entire car ride.

When they arrived at the restaurant they were ushered in and promptly seated by a large water fountain away from other diners. A waiter informed them that the chef was preparing a special menu, but that they could request anything they'd like in the meantime. They declined and Cass ordered a large bottle of champagne for the table.

"How did you two brats meet up?" he finally asked what he'd been dying to know after their servers left. "Was it to conspire against me?" Usagi rolled her eyes and took a sip of her drink to let Cass tell the story.

"First of all, I'm not a brat," Cass said snippily and even Usagi had to hide her smile. "Secondly, we met in June at your house smarty-pants, or did China Adventure Time wipeout your memory?" He sighed loudly, regretting bringing up the subject. Obviously Cass was still sore about his trip, but she seriously needed to drop it already.

"We bumped into each other at one of her stores and she invited me to the spa's grand opening," Usagi answered.

"Odango was invited to your opening, but I wasn't?" Now he was completely ticked off. Cass was taking his extended absence too personal. "What kind of bullshit is that? You didn't even know her and yet she got priority over me?"

"Oh, right! Because we're," Cass moved her fingers between them, "supposed to be business partners? Don't even get me started on that," Cass hissed between her teeth. "You didn't even bother to call me to find out how everything was going the entire summer. How do you expect me to update you when you didn't even pretend to care about it in the first place?"

"You're still angry about that? You know I was working. Don't act like I was sitting on my ass all day. It was a business trip, not a retreat." She was pissing him off. Of course he cared about what she'd been doing, he'd just had other priorities. "You should take it as a compliment that I didn't call you. It means I trusted you to know what you were doing."

"Both of you just shut up," Usagi grumbled. "You're both wrong so you both have to apologize." He crossed his arms. There was only silence as each refused to say a peep, but even he knew that if Usagi had to be the mediator then there was something wrong with this picture.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Cass suddenly excused herself and briskly left the table. Usagi didn't look too happy with him.

"Look, if she's upset about Motoki, that's not my problem," he explained. "What he does with his life has nothing to do with me." She didn't look convinced, but he decided to change the subject. "What exactly did you tell her about us?" He was curious to know the extent of Cass's knowledge because even though Usagi was exactly the type to kiss-and-tell, it still struck him as odd for her to tell the Blabber Queen what they'd been up to.

"I didn't tell her anything, she just assumes the worst. You know how she is."

"You didn't dispute it either," he stated, knowing why she was avoiding his gaze. She hesitated before speaking.

"Isn't it obvious anyway," Usagi shrugged, "what we did?"

There was silence as the waiters brought out their appetizers and served their drinks. Although the energy wasn't exactly tense, he still had a pressing matter that he wished to ask her about. He hadn't expected to see her so soon, but figured that he could use this opportunity to clear some things up that Motoki had mentioned before Cass came back.

"I talked to Motoki," he started, trying to ease in the fact that he knew what was bothering her about him. "He told me about your concerns." She sat up straighter in her chair and suddenly looked nervous.

"What do you mean?" she asked carefully, probably trying to figure out exactly what Motoki had said to him.

"I wasn't purposely trying to avoid you," he clarified. "And neither was he. I would really rather that there be nothing left unsaid between us, so say what you must. We don't have to be," he couldn't help but smiling at the word, "friends if you don't want to." She placed her cup down on the table.

"We left on good terms," she said simply, their eyes connecting. "And I want to keep it that way." He nodded.

"Sounds like a good plan," he agreed, satisfied that things would go on between them as predicted.

Although they weren't elaborating on where they stood, he was sure that sooner or later they would hookup again. By her saying that she was fine with continuing to act as they had before, she was pretty much admitting to him that their eventual relations would be inevitable. That sounded just peachy to him.

"You're not wearing the bracelet I bought you," he observed after a couple of minutes of them eating in silence. She looked up at him and gave him a frisky little smile.

"I pawned it."

"Don't start with me, Odango."

"Usagi," she clipped. "My name is Usagi."

"I'll call you whatever I want," he reminded her sternly while she sucked her teeth. "Odango." She rolled her eyes at him again just as Cass returned. He stood up to help Cass back into her seat since she still looked angry, but she continued to give him the cold shoulder even as he pulled out her chair. "Did you get over it already?"

"You get over it," she hissed. He covered his smile with his napkin. It was way too easy to get women upset.

"You love being an asshole, don't you?" Usagi wondered, grinning at him like ninny as Cass cursed him under her breath again.

"He's always been like that," Cass muttered, picking up her chopsticks. "I tried disassociating myself from him once I realized it, but he just kept following me like a lost puppy. I don't know if I'll ever be able to get rid of him now." He rolled her eyes.

"Don't even go there." Cass, satisfied at getting back at him, moved on.

"Speaking of assholes, did you hear about what happened with Chad?" Cass asked him and Usagi burst into laughter after hearing his name. Immediately he was intrigued. "Did you know that he and Rei had been dating since the middle of summer?

"I heard something like that."

"Well, it turned out that she wasn't the only one he was seeing," Usagi fumed. "We caught him with someone else and Rei slapped him right there. It was awesome." He raised his brow at the news. Maybe Jed had a chance after all.

"But because that isn't enough," Cass continued, "a slap in the face is never enough for a stab in the back, we decided to take it another step further." Cass got a wicked gleam in her eye and even Usagi's were merry in mischief. "We murdered his car."

"Completely trashed it!" Usagi cackled and Cass followed suit. He was suddenly glad that they were in private because he'd never thought he'd be more embarrassed as he was now.

"We left only a wheel so that he could know that his car was forever gone," Cass concluded after she started breathing normally. "We smashed the windows and ripped parts of the interior out and left it by the sidewalk. We're sure he got the message." His eyes were probably popping out his sockets. What was wrong with these girls?

"I can't believe you would do that." He was in shock. As a car enthusiast, his heart hurt for Chad. Even though what he'd done to Rei was wrong, destroying a man's pride through his car was positively evil.

"We junked it for a thousand yen," Usagi quipped with a shrug. He knew that Chad liked to drive classy cars that were worth a few shiny pieces. What a low blow. "Calm down Mamoru, we're not that bad," Usagi laughed lightly. "We donated the money to charity."

* l * l *

The remainder of the evening continued on with their silly stories of parties and other randomness, but even though it was mostly gossip, he still had a surprisingly good time. They reminded him of Mina's Chinese gossip, but way better because he actually knew the people that they were talking about.

When they were all done with their desserts, they walked over to the coat check and retrieved their belongings before a waiter informed them that their ride was ready. They left out the back after paying and climbed into the waiting car.

As soon as they got in, Cass crawled over the seats to the minibar. Pulling out their previous cups, she filled up two of them and sat to his left. She beckoned Usagi closer and gave her a cup as well.

"To our sexy CEO," Cass saluted, raising her champagne flute. "Even though you're probably the biggest douche on this planet, I missed you anyway."

"Welcome back!" Usagi echoed and both girls gave him perfectly synchronized pecks on the cheek. Usagi lingered momentarily and discreetly planted a second kiss just below his ear. "I'm glad you're here," she whispered before backing away.

He smiled, wishing he could ignore the fact that she'd lightly licked him before pulling away. This girl… Cass may have been buzzed, but she was not blind and although it wasn't smart having her as an audience, he couldn't resist the urge to pull Usagi back and force her submission again.

"What did you say, Odango?" he asked, grabbing her arm and bringing her closer. "I couldn't hear your whispering." Usagi turned red.

"I said," Usagi laughed, completely abashed now that Cass was looking at her. " 'Welcome back', you idiot!"

"I thought I heard something different."

"You wish!" She pulled away from his grasp and he reluctantly released her.

"Didn't you say you missed me, too?"

"You're hysterical." Usagi looked down, but it was obvious that she was mortified. He laughed for her benefit since Cass was now staring between them annoyed.

As much as he wanted to continue to bother her, he knew that they couldn't get into anything too heavy right now so what was the point? Besides, their banter was better suited for when they were in private anyhow, somewhere where he could freely punish her for lying to him. He already had a few places in mind and it was only a matter of time until he got her there.

^.^

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-CattyKitty