Author's Note: I have been sitting on these ideas for quite some time. Part of it comes from Dorian and Ethan in Penny Dreadful, a little from the UK version of Mistresses (What is this American version that you speak of? It does not exist), and a bit from The Bisexual. I had a blast writing this. It just kept coming out. I think you are going to enjoy this. Speaking up, I am almost done with Christmas special Dark Alice. Just need to finish two more scenes. Then, there's going to be one more halo in 2022. I have an idea of what I want to do. For now, enjoy this week's halo.
Halo Twenty-One: Mikado:
-Mikado-
I stared at my phone.
Ren.
He wants me to come out with him tonight. More memories started coming back to me. Yes. I had… a relationship with him. It was that kind of relationship. I did sleep with him. I shivered as I pictured what he could want from me. Ren isn't the type to take no for an answer. I don't know what he sees in me. Ren's just like the other girls.
I sighed and shook my head. I didn't need this right now. Yokubo already had her hold on me. Lilith kept trying to have sex with me. Anri might be pregnant now. But I already knew what was going to happen next. Still, I had no idea how I was going to deal with this.
Suddenly, I got another text from him. I narrowed my eyes for a read.
"I'm outside your door."
I sat up straight. Oh…
I got up and walked over to the door. Sure enough, Ren was waiting outside for me. My heart started racing. He looked just as beautiful as I remembered. His red eyes and pale complex seemed to glow in the dark. He had on his black kimono.
"Good evening," Ren said in a husky, seductive voice. I gulped as I tried to maintain control.
"What are you doing here?" I asked. He held out his hand. He has his nails painted black tonight.
"I came to get you," Ren said. "We're going out tonight." Some of his short black hair fell over her right eye. He pushed it out of his face.
"Why?" I asked. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. Why did he have that much of a hold over me? Most of the girls couldn't make me feel so small under their gaze.
"You need this," Ren said. "Come with me." His words. Oh, I couldn't hold back anymore. One minute, you are saying no. The next…
"I'll go get my jacket," I said. I sounded like I was under a trance. Ren gave me a foxlike smile.
"Don't keep me waiting," he said. He winked and blew a kiss at me. I slowly backed into my apartment. I didn't even bother to close the door. Looks like I was going out tonight after all.
Masaomi knows that he should stop. But he couldn't get rid of that empty feeling in his heart. Everyone else was starting to notice his habits.
"Are you feeling okay?" Kadota asked him at Russia Sushi. Masaomi broke into a huge grin.
"Of course I am," he said. "Why wouldn't I be?" Kadota had his eyes on the hickeys on the boy's neck.
"When did you get those?" he asked. Masaomi reached up and touched his neck.
"Oh," he said. "Last night." The boy noticed the look on Kadota's face.
"What?" Masaomi asked.
"Look, I'm going to be blunt with you here," the man said. "You've been doing this for days now."
"What are you talking about? I'm fine," Masaomi insisted. Kadota didn't look like he believed him. The boy sighed.
"You don't have to worry about me," he said. Kadota sighed. Clearly, he wasn't going to get through to him.
"Just… be careful, okay?" the gangster said.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Masaomi said. He put another piece of sushi in his mouth. Kadota had a disapproving look on his face.
-Mikado-
Ren and I walked further into the crowd in the night. I didn't try to ask where we were going. All I could do was follow his lead. Meanwhile, Ren smirked to himself.
"I am going to take you on a little tour of the underbelly tonight," he said in my ear. He's said this before. I have a guess of what to expect tonight. At least Ren wasn't hitting on me—yet.
We walked up to a closed-down department store. There wasn't anyone around on the street. I could see inside the glass doors and windows. Ren walked forward and started to draw on the door.
"8-6-4-4-7-0-0-2-2-8-3-1-6-3," he said with each number. They started to glow a light purple. A portal opened up in the glass.
"After you," Ren said with a bow.
"Thank you so much," I said, smiling. I walked past him and he followed behind. The portal closed up behind us.
Ren led the way. I kept my eyes on his back.
"So where are we going?" I asked. He chuckled at me in response. I felt my stomach turn.
I looked up when I heard low thumping in the distance. Hm? Are we going to a club of some sort?
"Not quite," Ren said over his shoulder. "But it's really exclusive."
"And what did I do to deserve such a treat?" I asked. He just kind of chuckled at me. We trailed the sound of the music to a gate made of black iron. A woman in a black kimono and long pink pigtails stood at the entry. Her skin looked painted white while she wore heavy black and red makeup. She looked up at me from filing her black claws.
"I don't think so," she said, smiling. Ren stood by my side and took me by the arm. He pulled me along as the gate opens behind her. His touch gave me goosebumps.
I couldn't see much around me because it was so dark. All I knew was that the path was starting to get narrow. I stayed close behind Ren. I should turn back but I want to see how far we are going with this tonight. Where was he taking me?
We stopped at a pair of old-style sliding doors. Ren turned and looked at me.
"You're going to be in for a really good treat tonight," he said. I tried to look unimpressed. He's said this many times. He's managed to surprise me though. Rem turned and slid the door open. He held his hand out to me.
"Come," he said. I walked up to him without a word.
"You look so cute with that little smile on your face," Ren whispered in my ear. Why does he do that? If this was anyone else, I wouldn't be willing to follow them so easily. Not even Masaomi could drag me into something like this. Ren smiled that foxlike smile of his before he pulled me along. Did he have to be so annoyingly beautiful?
A man in a brown kimono and a horse mask was waiting for us in front of thick black curtains. He held out his hand to us. Ren smiled and reached his gi for what looked like two small red tickets. The man with the horse mask took them and looked them over. He handed them back and moved aside. He drew open the curtain.
"Thank you so much," Ren said, bowing his head. I followed behind after I bowed to the man with the horse mask.
I shivered as the cold air hit my skin. My eyes adjusted to the darkness. We were what looked like some sort of an abandoned theatre. So many empty chairs faced a small stage. There were stairs that led down toward the bottom. I turned to Ren.
"What is this place?" I asked. He turned to me with a smile on his face.
"Good, we're here just in time," he said. I was about to ask what he meant when he tugged me along down the stairs.
"Don't ask questions," Ren said. "We have to get the best seats for the show." We hurried down the stairs to the row in front of the stage. Ren and I sat down in two front seats. I had to admit that this theatre was rather roomy. There were even balconies looking down at the stage. I sat up when I heard the doors opening. I turned to see people walking into the theatre. They all took their seats. I felt underdressed with my jeans, shirt, jacket, and sneakers compared to everyone in their kimono. I had no idea this was going to be a fancy occasion.
I looked up when I felt Ren squeeze my hand. I turned to see him smiling at me.
"You look great enough," he said. Something about his words put me at ease. I don't know how to explain it but sometimes he can make me feel like we're the only two people in a crowded room. Suddenly, the lights went out. Ren looked up at the ceiling.
"It's starting," he whispered. The whole theatre got quiet. All lights focused on the stage in front of us. The deep black curtains slowly drew up. A single light showed on a woman with curly black hair and a short white dress and stockings. She walked up to the microphone.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," the woman said. "I welcome you to a curious night. We've got quite a show for you tonight." The audience politely clapped. The woman on stage held up her hand. They all got quiet.
"Thank you for coming out here tonight," the woman added. "Now, on with the show! I give you… The Sins of Man!" She backed away to the back of the stage. The theatre went quiet as another figure walked out on stage. I could tell by the body type that this was a woman. From her long blonde curly hair to the half of the bridge of her nose was visible against the black backdrop. The rest of her body was painted black latex. I could see her piercing blue eyes from where I was sitting. She was looking up at the high ceiling overhead.
Stagehands wheeled forward a table of various tools to her side. The woman walked up over to the table and picked up a nail gun. She held the point against her left forearm and pulled the trigger. I about jumped out of my seat. Ren held my wrist. The woman didn't scream. She pulled the trigger six more times into her arms. Trails of blood ran down her painted skin. Then the woman repeated the same motion with her right arm. She stood with her arms out with blood running down to the stage. Each nail dug into her flesh. Even if she didn't have her mouth painted over, she wouldn't scream.
She set down the nail gun and moved on to a staple gun. The woman moved it to the right side of her ribcage and pulled the trigger. Still, she would not scream. I sat frozen as she repeated the process eight more times. She moved to the left side and repeated the same thing. The woman wouldn't even show an ounce of pain. She set down the staple gun.
The woman then sank to her knees. A tall man dressed in black with muscles walked up behind her. He held a giant cat o' nine tails in his hand. He raised it above his head and struck the woman in the back. She still wouldn't scream.
I couldn't take my eyes off of this woman. She stared at the audience as the man kept flogging her. She didn't make a sound. That woman just took the repeated lashes. She held her arms out the whole time. She didn't scream. How was she able to just take all of this pain like that?
That's when I noticed something else about the woman.
A single tear ran down her right cheek. That was all that she could manage. I too felt a tear rolling down my cheek. I reached up and touched it. I couldn't explain what I was feeling as this art piece went on.
The man lowered his wish. I couldn't picture how torn up the woman's back looked. He walked over to the table and picked up a crown of metal thorns. The man placed it on the woman's head. Blood trailed down her face, but she would not scream. Still, she wouldn't scream. She had to be at her breaking point by now. If she was, the woman didn't show it.
Two more stagehands wheeled in what looked like a cross laying on its back. The woman rose to her feet and walked over to the giant wooden structure. She looked like she was losing strength and fading fast, but she was still going through with the show.
She laid down on the cross. She placed her arms on the arms of the cross. The two stagehands dressed in black picked up metal spikes and mallets. The spikes were aimed at her wrists. The stagehands began to hammer them into her wrists. Still, the woman didn't scream. How much more of this could she take? Was it even possible for a human to take so much pain and torture with no breaks? No one rushed in to stop her. The whole audience had been quiet the whole time. One of the stagehands moved down to the woman's feet and angled another metal spike. The woman still wouldn't scream. I couldn't move as my eyes stayed fixed on her.
The man and the stagehands pulled the cross into a standing position. The lights were now focused on the woman as blood flowed down the cross. She seemed to glow in the darkness. She kept her head raised to the ceiling. I saw more tears running down her cheeks. But she wouldn't scream. Even through all of the pain and suffering, the woman wouldn't scream.
The stagehands and the man turned to the audience and bowed. The curtains dropped.
"That was amazing!" I said once Ren and I were outside again. "Does she do that every night?" We were back in the living world again. It felt strange to be around so many living people again.
"Sometimes," Ren said. "She has to rest at times."
"Why does she do it?" I asked.
"Who knows?" he asked. "But she is a rare treat to us all." I didn't know how to respond at first.
"I… I don't think I've ever seen something so beautiful before in my life," I said. My cheeks were flushed red like I had been drinking. Ren rested his head on my shoulder.
"Huh?" I asked. He looked up at me with a dreamy look in his eyes.
"Take me back to your place," he said. Here we go again. I could see where this was going.
"There's nothing I could say that could dissuade you, is there?" I asked. Ren chuckled as he stared at me. Of course, he wouldn't.
Masaomi had a system with his "dates". No names. They meet up, go back to his place, keep the lights off, make out on the couch, go to his rooms, take out their clothes, have sex, and wait for them to leave before the cycle starts again. It was all simple, really. There was no point in making things complicated. This way nobody got hurt.
At least that's what he told himself.
The boy signed up for a dating app called Cupid Kiss. Some people on the Dollars site were talking about it. Curious, Masaomi decided to try it out. Since then, he's gotten plenty of dates faster. Everything should be right as rain, yes?
But he still felt so empty. The usual high of sex was getting harder to keep lately. But Masaomi couldn't stop. He didn't know what else to do. Maybe he did have a problem. However, he was not ready to admit that to himself yet. For now, Masaomi didn't want to feel empty anymore.
-Mikado-
Ren and I made it back to my apartment. I unlocked the door and pushed it open.
"Thank you so much, my emperor," he said with a bow. I felt myself shiver at those words. I followed behind. He sat down on my futon with that annoying foxlike smile on his face. We stared at each other for a moment.
"What now?" I asked. Ren smiled and shrugged at me. He reached into his kimono and pulled out a small flask. Ren popped it open and took a drink. I stood by the door, my eyes shifting away from him for a moment. He held out his flask to me. I put up my hand. Ren raised an eyebrow at me.
"You know I can't," I said. "I'm underaged." Ren all but laughed at me.
"Oh come on," he said. "It's not like you can get drunk or anything. Come on. Just one little sip." He tried to hide that little mischievous smile on his face. I tried to look away as I bit on my lower lip. I clenched my fists by my sides.
"Alright, fine," I said. I took the flask and took a drink. I shivered as the liquid washed over my tongue.
"Ack! This is strong!" I said. "This tastes awful!" Ren threw back his head and burst into laughter. I glared at him.
"Not funny," I forced out. Ren stopped laughing and smiled up at me. He patted the spot next to him. I walked over while I was still frowning at him. My contempt doesn't stay too long before I realize that I am so close to him. I gulped as I shifted into place. Why does he make me feel so uneasy?
It doesn't help that he is staring at me now.
"What?" I asked. Ren was smirking at me again. I felt so small under his gaze. He's toying with me again. He's not going to come out and say what he wants. Why doesn't this beautiful bastard get on with it?
Damn it, I can't stand it anymore!
I leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. Ren didn't even try to push me off. His fingers dug into my hair as he shoved his tongue into my mouth. My own tongue started to play with his. It's always the same feeling. We shouldn't be doing this but it feels too good to stop.
As his hand goes for my jacket, I could already see where the rest of this night is going to go. I fell back onto my futon. All I can do is give in. This isn't going to be the last night that he's going to draw me in.
-December 15th, 2015-
"Uh-huh, so you are in then?" Kitano asked on the phone. "Excellent. This is going to make things go so much easier for us. We look to hearing from you again." The therapist hung up. Okay, that was covered. Now all he had to do was wait. Speaking of which…
Kitano brought up the news on his computer. He had one guess as to what the top story was today. The question was who was going to figure it out first.