A/N: Your pleas have been heard and your prayers have been answered! I am back! Look! A new chapter!
I am truly sorry for the wait. The updates will be kinda sporadic from now on. I have sooooooo much going on in my life right now, it's never been so packed! I hope you enjoy the updates when I post them though :D And thanks for reading ❤
CK:*
-Extras-
At the Wedding: Worst Case Scenario
Aika had never looked happier in any other moment than right now, when the words 'you may kiss the bride' were spoken.
Akari was trying not to shed tears, truly she was, but as her best friend and the man she was newly wed to both leaned in underneath an alter that dangled flowers above their heads, with the sounds of a beautiful orchestra playing a quiet love song in the background, she couldn't help but let a few slip over the rims of her eyes and fall upon her cheeks in tiny watery puddles.
The music-loving woman leaned in to kiss Ryuunosuke with so much vigor, it nearly knocked the man off his feet. But he caught her in his arms, drew her close, and kissed her back firmly as he lifted her and swung them in a small, celebratory circle.
When their lips parted and they looked up at each other lovingly, Akari suddenly remembered her wedding day with Tora. Specifically that special, absolutely wonderful moment after the kiss that sealed them together... where time seemed to slow and the simple, yet mind-numbing realization donned on the both of them - they were married. They truly, after that day and from then on, were together. As one. Two people living within the same soul, bearing each other's burdens, taking care of one another, always, always there for forever more.
It was magical.
And re-watching that same moment happen for Aika almost made Akari forget to be angry at Tora.
Almost being the key word, of course.
From where she stood off to the side of the alter with the rest of Aika's bridesmaids (which were just her sisters), she glanced over into the crowd sitting out on the grass in metal chairs, and looked at the blonde in question for a moment. He sat in the front row off to the furthest right side, and was staring at the two newly weds just as everyone else was, though with no tears in his eyes like Akari – but that was a given. It wasn't like she was expecting him to get emotional about this state of events... but he could at the very least put on his usual fake smile and act less bored. He looked incredibly disrespectful, sitting there with his eyes hooded and an unimpressed, disinterested look on his face.
After the bride and groom pulled away from each other, Akari was swept up in a tight hug with Aika and her three sisters. A bottle of champagne that had been on stand by was opened up immediately, Aika laughing as it spewed out of the bottle once the cork popped off and nearly soaked Akari.
Checking that the skirt of her light purple bridesmaid dress wasn't stained, Akari shot a look over at one of the best men, who had opened up the bottle, before turning and walking through the crowd of people getting up to congratulate the bride.
Once she had reached where Tora sat and was standing directly in front of him, she kicked him in the shin so quickly, the movement didn't catch anyone's notice but his own.
A low grunt sounded from him, due to the dull pain he witnessed and the fact that it had startled him slightly, and he immediately looked up at his temperamental wife with narrow eyes. His lips pursed, and then produced a warning; "Your objectionable behavior is getting on my nerves, dearest."
"At least try to look happy." She muttered, looking noticeably cross with him and acting unaffected by his words. "You appear as if you detest this marriage, and we are here to support it."
He ignored her with an arrogant upturn of his nose, and stood up, wincing for a moment before placing a hand at his back. "These chairs are the most uncomfortable thing I've sat in in my entire life." His grumble was low and laced with venom, he was trying to point out to her that he was not happy with having been forced to come here with her, and wouldn't act it either.
Truthfully, she didn't care if he acted happy as much as she cared about seeing him suffering. In her mind, he deserved to suffer. "I have better things to do than listen to you whine about every little detail you come across that's not fit to your high standards." She made a sweeping gesture with one arm. "The food is that way, go eat without me. I'm going to go have a chat with Aika and some of her family members now, and they might want to get some pictures in as well."
As Akari turned on her heel, Tora reached out to grab hold of her arm, and somehow she dodged his grasp. Sneaking a glance over her shoulder as she walked away from him, she saw the fury flash across his eyes for an instant – anger for being cast aside, resentment towards her for being so harsh with him, and annoyance due to being bossed around by her - and then he straightened his back a bit and turned in the opposite direction, his steps quicker than they should be as he made his way past the food and over to the outdoor bar.
Of course he would go straight to the bar. She thought bitterly, clenching her fists as she went. He better not get drunk!
This tension between the two of them had been going on since this morning. Well, more specifically it had all started with last night after the bachelorette party and the talk of fake pregnancies and babies, when he had managed to upset her only by being realistic with her.
But she saw his point then, after sobering up a bit more. They were too young, she could see where he was coming from... even if she wasn't sure if she agreed with it. But anyway, it was what had happened in the morning, though, which started up one of their most impressive arguments they'd ever had.
Akari had gone to bed that night after her bath with a mind filled with confusion. She didn't know whether she actually wanted to wait to have children, or have them sooner than she and Tora had both planned for. She was just conflicted, and because of that fact, she had fallen into a fitful sleep.
She had awoken hoping to be in her husband's warm arms, feeling the comfort of him pressed against her, but he wasn't there. And only after she had dressed and gone to breakfast, had she found him back in their room (having had breakfast much earlier, without her) pacing like a nervous fool. When he saw her, he looked as if he wanted to say something, but instead, he had stayed silent.
Akari had to leave by half past noon in order to help out with the wedding preparations, and she had wanted to clear things up with Tora before they both got busy and then had to attend the wedding together later on in the day; and so, she had been the one to bring up their conversation from the night before. Or at least she had tried to, but he was doing his best to remain silent about it, to act as if it had never even happened.
He cut her off every time she tried to mention it. And then he just started purposely ignoring her. At one point, he even plugged his ears and rolled his eyes at her attempts to bring the topic of babies up again, and it is exactly that immaturity which had made the shouting begin – and that's where the argument really began.
Now she was not proud of herself for this, but she had raised her voice at him. Much like her father before her, she was rather good at verbally abusing people if she actually felt up to it – she knew all too well the tricks of the trade – and she rarely ever did try yelling to have her way, because she knew how awful that sort of thing felt. She loathed herself for doing it, but the level of frustration, hurt, and sincere, blistering anger Tora was reducing her to feeling had driven her past her limits.
He could not just ignore such an important issue! Having a family of their own was obviously a big deal. Actually, it was a HUGE DEAL!
Tora hadn't been much better than her when she was shouting, what with his quick tongue and maddeningly calm manner of speaking. He made her feel so small, as she was yelling at him and he was speaking to her with mocking comebacks and snide remarks, his gold eyes glimmering sadistically as if he were having a bit of fun with her, playing a game of hackey sack with her emotions. Due to her persistence though, he had eventually been forced into talking about children, and their initial issue at hand. Because she was pressuring him, he said many stupid, hurtful things to her, before pissing her off by the end of their argument by saying this:
"Woman, if you continue to act this way, I might not ever want to start a family with you!"
To which she had replied just as harshly:
"Ever? Fine, perhaps I'll just divorce you and find a man who can meet my needs!"
And that had been the absolute worst of it. That was the point where they both just stopped, their own words echoing around them as they realized they'd jabbed each other straight in the heart. Akari had already been crying at that point, and the look on Tora's face after she had said that had been so awful, she nearly took it back, but then his gaze hardened and she bit her tongue before the apology could come out.
And they were both angry all over again. But her anger came more from wanting to defend herself, to look tough, and his anger came from him not wanting her to see just how deeply her words had cut into him - they were each using their anger as a mask, a cover up.
The fight had ended on that terrible note. They didn't speak a word to one another until four hours later, when she had met Tora at the wedding location. She had nervously waited for his car to appear, wondering if he would even come, but he had stayed true to his word and ended up coming even after their awful fight.
They spoke calmly to one another since they were in public, but both of them were still obviously upset even though they'd each had time apart in order to cool off and think. The ugly mix of emotions was still present in their eyes, they could each sense the unpleasant aura hanging over the other, and then there was the sharp way they would occasionally speak or the way they'd each try to stand away from each other that gave it away as well.
Akari groaned inwardly, suddenly feeling miserable. They'd never had a fight like this before, and she had a feeling it was one of the first real tests of their marriage.
"There's my favorite bitch!"
She was jolted out of her reverie by Aika, who slung an arm around her shoulders and laughed in such a contagious way, Akari's lips quirked up into a smile.
"And there's the beautiful bride." She replied, leaning in close as the photographer came out of nowhere and started snapping shots of them together.
"Oh, all I get is a 'beautiful'? Hell, I'm a vision so stunning today that goddesses would bow down to me and worship!" After several photos were taken, the bride pulled away and faced her friend, ignoring the roll of Akari's eyes. "Now that the pictures are taken care of, come with me!"
She suddenly yanked on Akari's arm, and then her husband's arm, (who had been standing nearby chatting with someone) dragging both of them off in some other direction, away from the photographer and the gaggle of people that had been surrounding them. "There is big news to be shared! Big, massive, major news! And so we need to go find Seiji so that I can tell you both at the same time!"
Behind Aika's shoulder, Akari gave Ryuunosuke a puzzled look, lifting both eyebrows at him. He simply smiled at her brightly, and winked, not saying a word about this so-called 'news' to her.
They were pulled by Aika several yards before finding Seiji speaking with a few men that were probably both his and Ryuunosuke's friends, (although strangers to Akari). He turned around when Aika called out to him, and his green-blue eyes sparkled when he saw the three of them.
The first thing he did when they were all standing in a circle together, was clap Ryuunosuke on the shoulder. "Congrats, man. You've tied yourself down to the craziest woman in existence."
Of course, those words were followed by a sharp yelp when Aika stomped on his foot with her heel.
"Shut it." She warned with a lethal growl, as her husband laughed and pulled her to him quickly, in order to keep her from further damaging her poor, bullied friend.
"Now that we've gathered up your friends, instead of starting some sort of brawl at your own wedding, why don't you tell them the news?" He said to her, and it made Akari smile when she noticed the way Aika calmed immediately at Ryuunosuke's words.
And then suddenly, time slowed down. Everything clicked into place before Aika even said a word. It happened, for Akari at least, in slow motion: the music-lover rested a hand on her belly, and made a big show of rejecting a passing waiter who offered them all glasses of champagne.
"Guys," Aika's eyes had never shined brighter. She grabbed hold of Ryuunosuke's hand, placing it over the one resting on her belly. The couple looked at each other for a brief moment before turning both of their gazes back on Seiji and Akari. "We're pregnant."
Seiji was the first to respond.
With his jaw dropping to the ground, and eyes popping out of his head, he exclaimed, "HUUUUH?! You two did it?!"
Aika slapped him upside the head, the fluffy moment and the happy glaze in her eyes gone now. "We've been 'doing it' since high school! What, do you have shit for brains?! BAKA!"
Seiji rubbed his head, laughing a bit. "I'm kidding! Sheesh. Anyway, congratulations to both of you. However, for the sake of that kid's sanity, I hope he or she spends more time with their father than their mother."
Again, he was smacked upside the head. He whined at Aika, complaining that she was too aggressive and could never take a joke, and Aika started bitching at him, simply doing like she does.
And while those two started up with their arguing, Akari stood there, numb and torn between the happiness she felt for her friend and the deep ache she felt inside of her heart.
Ryuunosuke approached her with caution, ever so gently placing his hand on her shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?"
Akari jolted. She hadn't realized it all until everything came back into focus, but she was about to start crying. She glanced at Ryuunosuke, standing beside him rigidly and feeling uncomfortable with his hand on her. They weren't very close, more acquaintances than friends, she only really knew him as Aika's boyfriend, and now husband.
"I'm sorry." She gave him her brightest smile, one she had learned to fake by observing Tora do it all the time around strangers. "I just felt so overwhelmed with the news for a moment that I had no words. Congratulations, really. I am so happy for you both."
He withdrew his touch and gave her a warm, exuberant grin. Obviously he was ready and willing to become a father...
"So!" Aika abruptly ended her pointless argument with Seiji and swung an arm around Akari. "Last night was the last time I can drink for a while. Akari, it's your duty to drink my share of everything! Ya got that? Cuz' if I can't get drunk anymore, then I'd at least like to watch you get wasted. You act so hilarious, it would really entertain me, maybe even more than actually getting drunk myself would." She offered up a wry little smile, and Akari blinked at her slowly before the words registered.
And then her face lit up too, silver-blue eyes attaining a giddy glow to them. "Who am I to go against the bride's wishes?"
Tora plucked a grape off of a nearby fruit tray, tossing it into his mouth carelessly. He smirked as he repeated the action with a second grape – it seemed to bother his wife for some reason, he could tell by the way her jaw clenched as she watched him.
Speaking of Akari, she was on her... let's see, fourth drink of the evening?
"You always drink too fast." He commented, attempting to make light conversation with her for the first time since she had sat down next to him at a table half an hour ago. "And then end up getting the hiccups later on." He raised a brow while popping another grape into his mouth. "Don't you think you should slow down?"
"Actually, no." She took another sip from her flute, gulping it down before ungracefully wiping her lips with the back of her hand. "This champagne is mostly just airy bubbles anyway –" She hiccuped mid-sentence, cheeks reddening slightly as it happened again, and then, again and again.
Tora smirked triumphantly as the hiccuping began. His golden eyes seemed to play with her, teasing silently 'I told you so'.
Growling after another hiccup shook her body, Akari grabbed her champagne flute and downed the rest of the pale ochre liquid. As soon as she had downed that, she looked across their table, seeing that she was all out. However, her eyes landed on Tora's drink on his end of the table, and she eagerly reached over for that.
He cut her off by sliding it just out of her reach.
"Gimme that drink, Igarashi." She muttered in annoyance, reverting to calling him by his last name (even though it was also hers now) like she always did when she was either mad at him, drunk, or both.
"It's mine." Tora said simply, lifting his glass and delicately sipping at the contents. "Get your own."
Not at all eager to start up another fight with her idiotic husband, especially in public at her best friend's wedding, Akari hiccuped again and stood from her seat, face even more red now with anger. She spat her next words at him, "Fine. Don't expect me back at the table anytime soon!"
And without looking back at him, she marched off in a random direction, searching for more alcohol. Tora watched her leave, a little impressed that she managed to walk in a straight line, and even stay upright in her heels –
Her leg suddenly wobbled and she fell down to the floor in an inelegant heap.
Tora smirked at that for a moment. But then, like any concerned spouse, he rose up from his seat, about to walk over and assist her. Before he could leave the table though, Akari stood up quickly, dusted her dress off, and shot a murderous glare over her shoulder at him; as if it was his fault she had fallen down and embarrassed herself like that.
He grit his teeth and sat back in his chair, long fingers curling tightly around the curve of his glass. Forget her, and forget being concerned about her. If she was going to be cold towards him, then he'd be even colder towards her.
Yet, despite wanting to appear like he didn't care, he wouldn't dare take his eyes off of her until he knew exactly which direction she had disappeared to. If she didn't come back in at least an hour, he was going in search of her whether his pride liked it or not.
Tora sighed, taking a long sip of his drink. He couldn't help the way he felt about her. He loved her. He didn't want to fight with her. If this could all just end soon, he would be eternally grateful and then spend the next week ravishing her in bed as an apology for his part in the fight.
He set his now-empty glass down harshly on the table, groaning. Picturing her naked wasn't exactly helping him to stay mad at her.
Akari mumbled curses under her breath as she walked all across the lot, not really in search of any drinks anymore. She had actually passed the bar, and was now aimlessly stumbling around outside, past the alter, past groups of Aika's and Ryuunosuke's friends and extended family. The crowds seemed to part way for her, sensing the dangerous aura billowing in the air around her.
"Baka tiger..." She breathed, continuing to walk through the crowds. She looked over her shoulder at the building where the tables and dance floor was all set up inside, where Tora was still probably sitting, enjoying his stupid pile of grapes. "Hmph."
As she was not looking where she was going, she bumped into someone who hadn't gotten out of the way for her like everyone else.
She was shaken up by the impact, having walked head-on into a strong and sturdy chest. Given her awful mood, she would have yelped at whoever it was for being such a pain in the ass by not giving her room to walk, she might have even taken some of her anger at Tora out on them. But she didn't, or really, she couldn't find the means to.
Because when she looked up, she noticed a pair of big blue eyes, and a shock of dark blue hair.
"You are very flushed, Akari. Also... I think you're scaring off some of the guests." Kanou told her, steadying her with his hands lightly grasping each of her forearms.
She grunted, staring up at him confusedly. He was... even more handsome than when they were in high school together.
His glasses were gone for some reason, maybe he got contacts, but it's not like Akari was objecting to that. After all, he had the most beautiful sapphire blue eyes and she always thought that they shouldn't stay hidden behind frames. He was still like a giant compared to her, still around Tora's height, if not maybe even an inch taller. And he was quite muscular, which came as a surprise to Akari because she never really pictured him working out before. Reading a book, yes, because he had always loved books... but not lifting weights.
Or did he? She didn't really know.
"It's good to see you again after so much time spent apart." His lips lifted slightly and he looked genuinely glad they had bumped into each other.
Akari gawked at him, eyes kept wide as she continued to take all of him in. "I..." She lost the ability to speak for a moment.
"You?"
She huffed, puffing out her cheeks and sighing. He sure had changed. Not just physically but also, it seemed he had become a bit more confident around women. He wasn't stuttering or blushing or acting uncomfortable at all.
"What happened to your glasses?" It was the first thing she could think of saying.
"I got eye surgery a few months back." Kanou shrugged. "I was tired of having to take them off every time I did a rigorous work out. Over time I guess they just turned into a nuisance."
Akari gulped. Kanou... working out? That still didn't make sense to her brain, but he sure had the muscles to prove it. "Training to be a pro wrestler like your dad, are you?" She inquired, while scratching her arm awkwardly as he let go of his grip on her.
His eyes dimmed a little bit at the mention of his father. "No." There was an awkward pause, and then he started to say more. "I simply didn't like girls trying to chase after me and dress me up in bunny accessories all the time. I've started running more often so that I can escape situations like that when necessary." He sighed, looking off into the distance. "I guess it also has to do with my pride as a guy too. Since I hang out with Shoichiro all the time, girls have started calling me cute, like him. Actually, they call us cute together, as if we're... together. Which we're not!" He quickly added in, giving Akari a pointed look. "...Anyway, I suppose I decided to toughen up my image in the end. I can't do anything when it's said I have beautiful eyes, though. My eyes are something I just can't help."
"There's nothing un-manly about having beautiful eyes." Akari jumped in to reassure him. "It's a really attractive trait. Your eyes are something I've always liked about you, since I first met you actually."
Kanou looked taken aback by such news. And the compliment, as compliments always did with him, made him become a bit shy. "Oh..." He gave her a wobbly, uncertain smile of sorts, shifting his eyes around as if he were unsure of where to look. "Thank you..."
Suddenly, someone walked by, bumping into Kanou's back as they shoved their way through the small crowd of people. Kanou was forced to take a step forward, and once again, Akari was met with a face-full of his chest.
He instinctively grabbed her shoulders as she tripped backwards while he stumbled into her, and they both nearly fell over in the process of trying to stay upright.
After an incredibly ridiculous display of flailing limbs, Kanou eventually righted them both and they stood in front of each other again, both blushing red from the close proximity they'd had to endure for a few seconds. Akari hiccuped again, cursing right afterwards.
"They just won't stop..." She murmured to herself in an annoyed tone of voice, but Kanou caught it.
"I heard that drinking a glass of water helps to get rid of the hiccups." He offered, blush fading from his cheeks a bit as he offered her a small smile and his arm. "May I... uh, escort you back inside?"
Akari took his arm immediately, sighing in relief. "Yes, that would be nice, thank you. A glass of water, and a man to steady me in these damn heels, that's exactly the fix I need at the moment." She tugged him forward, throat suddenly feeling parched. "Hurry, before I –"
She hiccuped again, and gurgled out a laugh in spite of herself.
"Yeah." Kanou chuckled, taking the lead as he kept her upright and walked them towards the building. "The hiccups aren't very fun, are they?"
They walked into the building from a different side than where she had exited before, Akari explaining that she didn't want Tora to cause a scene if he saw her with Kanou.
"Jealousy is unbecoming of a man." Akari pointed out, nodding her head smartly at her own words.
Kanou cracked a tiny grin. "It is just as unbecoming on a woman, you know."
"Yes, well." She cleared her dry throat. "Jealousy is unbecoming on everyone, how about that?"
"That is a statement I can agree with."
The two arrived then at a drinking fountain set up in the corner of the room. (The building wasn't like a five star restaurant or a fancy hotel or anything, if that's what you were thinking. This is Aika we're talking about). Not really paying attention, just relieved that she'd finally get something cool and fresh to sooth the itch in her throat, Akari pressed the button on it right as Kanou took note of the positioning of the fountain's faucet and tried to warn her about it.
"Akari, wait!"
Too late. As soon as she pressed the button, water spurted out just like it was supposed to... but it landed all over Akari's front, wetting the fabric of her expensive dress and spattering onto her shoes as well.
Two little boys sitting at a nearby table giggled and high fived, watching in gleeful amusement as Akari turned around and glared at them.
"Hey! HEY YOU KIDS!" She shouted at the pair. "You had better start running, because I have never been in a worse mood than today and I can and will get you for this!"
Both boys looked a bit shell shocked at first, but then when Akari took a menacing step forward, they each scrambled out of their seats and ran in opposite directions, shooting out of the building as fast as their short legs could carry them.
Just as she was debating which one of them she should go after first, Akari felt a hand brush against her own. She didn't have the time to think before Kanou was dragging her away.
"Come on, chasing after them won't do you any good. It's best to just clean yourself up the best that you can now." He told her.
Akari snorted, and hiccuped again. "Always the voice of reason..." She tried flashing him her most innocent grin. "I just wanted to have some fun with them!"
He glanced over his shoulder at her, eyes half-lidded and disbelieving.
"What?" She smirked. "Chasing them down and delivering payback counts as a form of fun."
They reached the community bathroom then, and Kanou released her hand and politely held the door open for her, ushering her inside before she sprinted off in the other direction to go chase down those boys.
A few minutes later, he was leaning against the wall watching her dab at her dress with a handful of paper towels. Since no one else was in there with them, the room was eerily silent as neither of them spoke for several minutes.
"..."
"..."
"...Hey, Akari?"
"Hm?" She looked in the mirror, frowning at the dark spots on her dress where the water was still soaking the fabric.
"You like it when I call you by your first name, so I have tried my best to do that for you. And we are good friends, so I was just wondering why you never refer to me by my first name."
She looked over at him with a blank stare. "What?"
He just shrugged, placing both hands in his pants pockets. "You can call me it, if you're comfortable with it. I just wanted you to know that."
"Oh, everyone else always called you Kanou at school so I guess I just went with calling you that too! Sorry, I never even noticed that. I hope it didn't bother you that I called everyone else by their first names. Well, except Yukimura. I just called him what everyone else did too."
Again, he shrugged in answer. He sure did that a lot. It could have annoyed Akari, but it only made her smile.
She paused conversation with him and went back to wiping at her dress with the paper towels. When it came time to get the water off her shoes, she tried to balance on one foot and take one shoe off at a time to clean, but her leg got all wobbly again just standing on one high heel and she started to tumble forwards, headed face first for the disgusting communal bathroom floor.
For the third time that day, she ended up with her face planted into the center of Kanou's chest.
He had watched her starting to fall and hurried forward, crouching down and catching her. She landed hard on top of him, causing his back to hit the bathroom floor and her body to completely press against him, not really crushing him but causing him to tense up in awkward discomfort.
Akari sighed a breath of relief against his shirt. "You saved me yet again – I told you, you always end up doing that. Thanks... Sotaro."
He opened his mouth, no words coming out and a bright red blush filling his cheeks instantly.
And just then, the bathroom door opened with a loud creak, causing the two to look up and see who had entered.
Akari's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.
Well, this was just the worst case scenario, wasn't it?
There at the door stood her husband. Staring at her, staring back at him. While she was lying on top of another man. Alone, with no one else in the room with them.
"Tora –" Akari choked, knowing how it looked and desperate to reassure him that it was not how it looked. But the pure, raging fury in his eyes cut her off before he even spoke aloud a single word.
Thankfully, Kanou had enough courage to speak.
"I – it's not what it looks like." He stuttered a bit, suddenly looking as nervous as he was back in high school. "I promise you, I would never touch another man's wife."
Tora said not a word. His glaring got worse, though, seeing as Akari was still sprawled over Kanou, one of his legs between both of hers, her arms thrown around him, and their faces only inches apart.
It really did look bad...
Akari pushed herself off of her friend, stumbling quickly to her feet. Her gaze was completely frantic, pleading with Tora silently as he simply stood there, dead silent with his fists clenched and his eyes darkening in a way she hadn't seen them look in a long time. A shadow seemed to be covering his face in anger, disbelief, and even more anger.
Kanou unsteadily got to his feet beside Akari, looking wary of Tora. "Nothing happened." He tried explaining again. "We were just –"
"I think you should leave," Tora interrupted, his voice so low it almost went unheard. "before I do something unsavory to you that I can't take back." His eyes narrowed to slits, zeroing in on Kanou in a dangerous way.
Akari nudged the blue-eyed man with her elbow. "Go. He means it." She warned him, as he looked down at her, seeming afraid of Tora but also worried about leaving her alone with him.
Slowly, uneasily, Kanou walked past Akari, eased his way around Tora, and exited the bathroom, giving the couple their privacy.
Literally two seconds later, Akari was slammed into the nearest wall.
Golden eyes bore into her, scooping into her soul, delving into her gaze as if searching for a lie somewhere hidden in there.
"You and I," he growled at her. "are going to have a little chat."
A/N: Cliffhanger? You betcha XD
Maybe if I get lots and lotsa reviews, I'll think about updating faster... hehe. I know I know, I'm terrible. Such a greedy little tyrant, I am. ^_^
Next chapter: there will be some comedic relief, due to a very funny hat... and you guys will love it! Remember the bet? ;)
CK:*