Chapter 77

October 8th (Con)

When Ryuzaki asked for my help, this is not what I had in mind!

I cringe as I look in the mirror, this ridiculous outfit; a turtleneck tube top, with a heart cut out where my cleavage is supposed to be, and it's open in the back showing my bare shoulders. I feel so exposed and that's only the shirt! The skirt feels like I'll flash someone if I bend over too far, and I have to wear these thigh high black socks…I feel like a stripper…At least it's black and not pink like Misa's…I sigh and take a look in the mirror to adjust my earpiece.

There's a knock on the bathroom door. "C'mon Suzuki, let's see how it looks!"

Fucking Misa! She's part of the reason I'm in this get up in the first place. I couldn't just wear a butler uniform, and serve the Yotsuba heads drinks, I had to put on a bra and a goddamn tutu…

I sigh and push my fingers through my bangs, preparing myself. I take one last look at the outfit from hell before opening the door. Misa and the other agency girls squeal with delight as I step out and I cringe internally.

I feel really exposed…and like a stripper…

"Oh my gosh Suzuki, you look so hot!" Misa gushes over me and the other agency girls nod or give approving remarks.

No, I look like a stripper…

"Quick we have to get into place, they're bringing those Yotsuba guys up here right now." Misa and the girls shuffle toward the door and I look up at one of the cameras we hid around Misa's apartment, knowing damn well Ryuzaki can see me. I can talk to him through the earpiece but it's only for emergencies.

Instead of being up in my room trying to pick out a name for the kitten and playing with him, I'm stuck here, undercover as a stripper-I mean model, pandering to these high ranking Yotsuba guys, one of which is likely Kira…Maybe I'll see Rem…she wouldn't miss the opportunity to see Misa, would she? This better be worth it Ryuzaki…hope you're fucking enjoying this…

I sigh and look away from the camera to join the girls in the living room.

. . .

The door opens and Matsuda steps through. We all say "Good evening! We're very pleased to meet you!" Just as we practiced. Misa walks toward the men as she is the head of the agency this evening.

"Tonight, we'll be entertaining you as our special guests." We all bow on cue and try to puff out our chests and I try desperately not to throw up as I'm forced to pretend to be a bimbo.

A man with a bowl cut is the first to speak. I recognize him from the photos of the heads, but I can't remember his name. "Is it just me, or is this getting weird?"

It's not just you.

Another man with a bowl like cut and glasses turns. "Hmm, well, can't be helped." Matsuda laughs nervously. "We shouldn't leave Misa's manager alone for a second."

A man with medium length blonde hair and facial hair sighs. "Let's just go with it. I'm gonna enjoy myself." A shiver runs down my spine as he's the first to walk toward us. The rest of the men mumble but follow. I catch one of them mumble 'Can't go wrong with this' but I'm not sure who. While each girl takes a man to entertain, I inch away from the crowd and over to Matsuda's side grabbing a serving tray. He laughs nervously again, and I wish I could say something comforting, but I don't want to blow my cover.

For the next few hours, I watch as Misa and the other girls entertain the men. I stick mostly to serving and Matsuda's side. The thought of any of those men having their hands all over me makes me wanna hurl. You'd think that if one was Kira that Rem would be here, but so far there's been no sign of her. It's possible that Kira told her to stay away, but what reason would he have to do that? Is it possible that Kira isn't one of these guys, but someone close to them? Could Kira even be someone who is listening in on them like we're going to?

I stand with my round metal serving plate at my chest, like a shield, next to Matsuda. This outfit makes me feel ridiculous and exposed, but at least I only had my ass slapped once. If Misa hadn't stepped in and taken the attention off me and spun some BS about me being new, I probably would have killed the bastard. Matsuda finishes his drink and sets it down on the table beside us. He puts something in his pocket and starts to walk away. "I'll be right back, I gotta go to the bathroom." He slurs his words as he walks away, pretending to be drunk. I've seen Matsuda drunk; this is far from it. He might be a smaller guy, but he can sure hold his liquor.

A few minutes go by, and I wonder if I should go check on him, maybe I was wrong, maybe he wasn't pretending. I take a step and the bathroom door flies open as if he kicked it, it scares the shit out of me and everyone else. Seconds later Matsuda bumbles through pretending to be piss drunk.

"Wow! I am so drunk!"

No, you're not, you're just an idiot.

He groans and walks around the room. "Oh…Hi everyone! Everyone having fun? Good. That's great!" We watch his drunken display in horror and concern. He walks over and opens the sliding glass door to the balcony. My heart pounds, I know what's about to happen, it was all part of the plan, but I'm not ready to watch it… "Now everyone, the moment you've been waiting for." He turns in the doorway and spreads his arms in flair. "The Taro Matsui show!" He laughs, turns and climbs on the balcony's ledge. Everyone watches confused and horrified. I hear one or two men shout things like 'what are you doing' as concern rises.

Misa, pretending to be drunk or stupid, cheers him on. She also knows about the plan, but I don't think the other girls do, they're gonna need therapy after this. "Yay! You can do it! Go Matsui!"

I set the metal serving tray down and walk toward Matsuda, playing my part as the sober concerned model. "Please get down from there Matsui, you'll fall."

The dark-haired bowl cut man comes over to try and help me. "Hey, you're drunk! That's way too dangerous!" Matsuda takes another drunken step, pretending the balcony is a tightrope.

"Don't worry. I'm just fine. I do this all the time." He reaches down and suddenly is doing a handstand. My heart is pounding at how dangerous this is. I know it's fake but one wrong move and all of this could end tragically. I guess part of the plan was to make it believable but if this goes on any longer, I'm gonna have a heart attack.

Everyone finally realizes how serious this is and I hear mixed exclamations. 'The hell is he doing?!' 'Get in here c'mon!' 'Are you crazy, you idiot?!'

I put my hands to my chest and act scared, which isn't really hard considering I am. "Please, someone pull him down, he's gonna fall."

"It's alright! No prob…" Suddenly his hand slips and he falls, screaming. I run onto the balcony and peer over the ledge to make sure he hit the mattress below. I just see the Chief pull it inside and throw a sandbag out the window. It makes a loud thud on the ground, and I see Aiber run out and lay face down on the concrete. Just as Ryuzaki planned.

My silence is mistaken for shock as the other men run to the balcony to join me in looking at the horror below. I watch a woman run out and scream, I think it's Wedy, but I'm too high to make out any details, or any words. I turn and walk back into the room feigning shock. Misa stands and takes charge. "Look everyone, I think you should just leave this for us to take care of and go home."

"But what-"

"Don't worry, we'll handle it. Just don't forget about me for your next campaign, okay?"

Kinda weird thing to say after your manager just fell to his death but okay, priorities, I guess.

The men turn to leave and pick up their jackets one by one. "Let's go, if the press sees us, we're in big trouble."

I watch them leave, a siren wails in the distance, I hear it because the balcony door is still open. I look between it and the other girls who are still freaking out. I walk over and am about to shut the door but then decide to peer over the edge again. As I do I see Light and Ryuzaki pretending to be paramedics, lifting Aiber into an ambulance.

I vaguely see all eight businessmen down there too, and a white figure floating above them. My heart stills as I realize it's Rem. She glances up, but I'm so high I doubt she realizes it's me. She looks away and I go back inside, shutting the door behind me. The girls have all shuffled out…it's just Misa and I now.

"Wow, that was intense." She sighs and flops down on the couch. I head for the bedroom where I left my hoodie and Docs. I leave the door open, and I slide my arms through and carry my boots out, zipping the hoodie up halfway over the scrap of fabric pretending to be a tube top as I walk.

"Yeah, no kidding. I'm gonna go check on Matsuda, you need anything?" She shakes her head 'no' and sighs.

"No, I'm okay, I'm gonna start cleaning up in a second." I look at her stupefied.

Misa? Clean up?

"Uh, do you need any help?"

I just kinda planned to run down there and check on him then come back.

"Nope, I got it covered, besides I'm sure after all this, Ryuzaki will want to see you." She wiggles her eyebrows at me, but I don't get it, so I ignore it.

"Well, okay, whatever." I head toward the door, kick off the slippers, slide my docs over the ridiculous thigh highs and head down to Matsuda.

. . .

I walk into the room and see the Chief kneeling beside Matsuda on the mattress they used to catch him; and so is Wedy. "Hey…" My voice is but a whisper, but they all turn to me as I make my way across the room.

"Suzuki, hey…" Matsuda seems tired, and I don't blame him. The Chief puts a hand on my shoulder and steps away. I stop beside Matsuda and there's a brief moment where I don't know what emotion to feel. Anger, worry, sadness? This wasn't his plan, but this was his fault…well, maybe it was all our faults. If we had made him feel more part of the team then maybe he wouldn't have done something so stupid and gone out on his own. My hands ball into fists, then they unclench; in a flash I reach out and swat him in the back of the head. "Suzuki! Hey!"

Anger and concern and other emotions churn inside me and boil over and I can't control myself anymore. "YOU ABSOLUTE MORON! What were you thinking going inside Yotsuba by yourself? You could have been killed!" I realize that technically we just killed him, so I backtrack. "And I mean for real, like the Second Kira; killed with just a face, dead, dead."

He sulks and looks out the balcony. "I know, I'm sorry…" I can hear the repentance and the fear in his voice, he understands how bad this could have turned out. I sigh and gently kneel beside him, putting my hand on his shoulder.

"But I'm really glad you weren't." He turns to me, and I wrap him in an embrace, fueled by anger, fear, concern and the general feeling that I can't stand to lose any more teammates. He returns the hug tighter, adrenaline finally wearing off and the totality of the situation hitting him hard.

"Yeah…me too."

I pull away and he wipes his eyes before looking me up and down. "Now Suzuki, how did they get you to wear that getup?" I glare at him, and stand sharply, shoving him as I do. He falls back onto the mattress in a fit of laughter. I shove my hands in my hoodie pockets glaring down at him.

"You're alive, not dead or injured, you're good. I'm going back up to my apartment to change into something that doesn't make me feel like a stripper. If you need me, you'll know where I'll be." I take a few steps, stop, and turn around. "DON'T need me." I stomp away to the sound of his idiot laughter as I head toward the door.

Hello everyone, I'm not dead, and neither is this story. I'm gonna finish it! I have it all planned out. I've been going through a lot IRL, so much so that there's too much to say, but I wanted to let you know that I haven't abandoned you or this story. I was stuck on a chapter a few chapters ahead but I think I figured it out, it didn't really pan out the way I wanted necessarily but it'll do. I never thought writing a game of twister would be so difficult without a reference. :)

I'm thinking about doing a meet the writer on tiktok, or instagram, both users are Silverlight013 if you want to come support me 3 In the meantime enjoy this chapter and the other chapters to come.