A/N: I'm back cuties!
Although this story hasn't gained lot of traction, I don't mind, I intend to finish it anyway. This is number two, I think two more should do it. To those who reviewed, you always make my day, so thank you.
Hope you like the next chapter lovelies.
Title: Laws of Attraction
Genre: Humour, Romance, Slice of Life
Alternative Universe: Modern Day AU, Lawyer-Cop AU, Buddy-cop AU
"Why am I here, Takagi?"
She was paying little attention to him, nose almost touching the laptop screen; she pushed her glasses up her nose. "Because you had little time to spare and better come pick me up and go directly to my place than drive around in circles."
He looked closely at her. There was no work for him to do here; seeing she was occupying the only desk in her office, he had little to do other than watch her do something while he did absolutely nothing. Being idle bothered him. And she was exactly the same; why would she force him into this? He looked closer. And then it hit him.
"You didn't drive to work today, did you?"
Her eyes momentarily focused on him; a second later, they slid away, guilty and as telling as ever. He scoffed. "You used me for a free ride."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she countered, purposefully unconvincing, because, let's be real, there was no way he would leave and go home at this point, especially without her. "But since you mentioned it, if you do have your car with you and since I happened to forget about it what's better than you coming to pick me up and save a lot of precious time?"
"Didn't peg you for the cheap type."
She took off her glasses just to press at her eyes, tired by looking at the screen but not before she snorted. "I think you've made it clear enough you're never wrong; nothing wrong with keeping this planet a little healthier."
Just as he was about to share what he really thought about her being environmental friendly, the door to her office was swung open without even one knock. Both people jolted and looked at the door.
"Hey there beautiful," a man in his thirties saluted, grin easy on his face as he held on to the knob "boss wants to see you for a minute." He had a very...punchable expression on his face right that moment, Saitou mused, as he raised an eyebrow trying to look suave. "Mind hopping over for him?"
"Why the fuck are you under the impression I won't file for sexual harassment for talking to me like that, pig?"
"Because deep down you know you like it."
The wink was what sealed the deal for him; this man was a moron. A predatory moron. "That was the most rapey line I heard all week and keep in mind I'm a detective," Saitou commented, sizing him up at the same time.
"And the week is almost at an end," Tokio added.
The man pretended to be sorry for his poor language, hands raised in a placating manner, in front of him. "I meant no offense, officer." He turned to Tokio. "Just go talk to him."
The moment he closed the door behind him, she huffed. Taking a bunch of papers in her hand, she put them in order by banging them against the wood. "I'll only be a minute; we can leave once I return."
"What's that guy's deal?"
"He saw me leaving a guy's apartment one morning six damn months ago and assumed for whatever reason, he had a chance with me, too." She snorted, as she put those papers in her briefcase but grabbed some other. "I told him and tried to explain to him several times that if I had the choice of having sex either with him or a woman, I'd choose the woman; and I'm straight."
Saitou laughed. "You had a one night stand and someone from work saw you? That's what I call luck."
She rolled her eyes. "I don't care it was someone from work," she clarified, hand on her door "but that it was him in particular." She shrugged. "Just give me a moment; I'll be right back."
While she was gone, he kept himself occupied by taking a real look around her office: opening drawers, looking at pictures on shelves closer, examining the books she kept at hand. Three months, and he never took the time. Well, when did he have said time before? They were always working.
Heh, she finally replaced the stock photos with some of her own, he noticed, as the frames all held pictures of her with family or friends. Hm, she looked a lot like her mother; and brother; her sister was tall, wow. Ah, there is the father; he looked too friendly and approachable for such a big shot lawyer. In his experience, most people like him were too stuck up and distant. Then again, this was a photo of him with his family—he wasn't even wearing a suit.
Just as he was about to sit in her chair, the door opened and back in walked Tokio, looking quite pleased with herself. "It went well, I presume?"
"That it did; and if you're done snooping around, let's go. Grab my stuff first!"
He shook his head but complied. She held the door open for him as he collected her briefcase, their coats and her handbag, handing it to her a little indelicately once they were out of the room. "I've parked a block away," he informed as they walked to the elevator "hope you don't mind walking in those heels."
She slapped his arm. "No, I don't, ass."
"Have fun you two," the guy from before emerged from his office, a shit-eating grin on his face "and once you're done with her, pass her to me, will you."
"He's not worth it," he advised as he caught her hand to hold her back, just as she was about to pivot on her feet and go give him a piece of her mind. She tried to break free, but his hold was strong. "Trust me, he isn't."
She deflated, but never lost the edge. Damn, she'd be unbearable if she didn't calm down. He needed to distract her, or at least get her talking, or, even better, get her to vent; that would help. "I thought you said no men for two years though; what up with that?"
She rolled her eyes; did they have to be in an enclosed space together where she couldn't avoid his questions? She hated having this conversation with men. "Sex is just another physical need; relationships are different, more complicated." She considered. "That being said, I don't have sex with random people; certain standards have to be met, even if it's brief."
"But sex without the commitment seems a little pointless."
She shrugged.
"But what if you're in a long distance relationship where your physical needs can't be met as easily?"
She smacked him for the second time. "If you are committed to the other person, you make sacrifices, obviously. Though sex isn't the biggest problem—general lack of intimacy is. You can't hug the other person, can't sleep next to them, can't hold their hand...and humans need intimacy, it's hardwired into us. Personally, I discourage them for that very reason; few last. But, those who do, sure are devoted."
He gave her a shrewd look. "So is casual sex worth the trouble or not?"
"You don't have it with someone you know you might get attached to! You choose someone you haven't made an emotional connection with and then it's attachments' free and then it's worth it."
The familiar sound of reaching their destination was heard and finally the doors drew open, freeing her from this interrogation. She immediately walked out of the elevator and quickened her pace to the exit. His legs were long though and despite not hurrying after her, he easily reached her with his big strides. "That's a hell lot of stipulations just for casual sex."
"Yes, obviously, you disapprove."
"I don't," he said thoughtfully "I just don't get why you think it's preferable."
She chuckled. "Because when it comes to relationships, I'm very picky; but sex, meh, is sex. It's whatever. I won't bring them home to meet my family, I don't have to live with them. It's just one night of harmless fun."
"You have to be careful, though; and it's all that more dangerous for women. If it's a man, at worse they'll have to report a stalker; some women may end up dead, though."
"Wow, there; chill."
"There are a lot of perverts and criminals praying on women who want to live independently." A look. "I am a detective after all; I've seen lots of them."
He walked in front of her then, to lead the way to his car; she remained unmoving for a second, eyes unfocused and blank, but then she rushed to reach him. Once they entered the vehicle, she turned to glare at him.
"I hate you right now," she hissed. "I never thought of that; but now it's all I'll ever think about."
"I'm only saying, be careful; and don't do it for too long."
"It's only happened six times in the span of a year! But even if I did it all the time, damn it! Now I really can't think of anything else. You're an asshole."
He tried not to glare. "It's my fault for trying to offer my advice."
She clicked her tongue. "Just drive."
"Mind if I call Okita over?" He said it almost through greeted teeth, trying desperately to change the subject.
"Ah, no; we need to give him his assignment." She took to looking out of her window, just as he started driving. "How is your case going, by the way? The murder of that man?"
"It's...going. We've hit a wall for now, but we'll find a way around it."
"What type of wall?"
"All of his medical files are protected."
"The vic's?" He nodded. "Oh, that's easy! I can help you unseal them, if you really think them critical to the outcome of this case."
An eyebrow raised. "Seriously?"
"Uh huh, just tell me his full name and I'll file what you need; you'll have access in a week—two at most."
"That's really helpful; please do." She smiled, turning to him for a second and then went back to looking out of her window. "Hey, you've eaten anything?"
"No, come to think of it."
"Feel like ethnic?"
"Why not?"
Saitou pressed a couple of buttons on his radio and the Bluetooth that was connected with his cellphone, started dialing. They waited until the line was picked up.
"What do you want, you lucky bastard?"
He couldn't help the smirk that seeped into his words at his friend's permanent dejection. "To ask if you wanna eat; we're on our way to her apartment to work on the case. You come, too."
"Hell yeah!"
She tried not t laugh out loud, because she could be heard. "I'll be there, get something for me, too—I'm starving. See you in an hour."
Just as Saitou was about to hang up, he was heard shouting "send me her address!"
"I will," Tokio volunteered, just as the line died "you keep driving."
"Order, too; they won't take less than fifteen minutes and we'll be there in ten."
"Yessir."
.
.
"Tokio-chaaaaan!"
The moment she opened the door, Okita wrapped his hands around her middle, crying in her neck, nearly knocking her down from the force. "What happened?" she asked, trying not to laugh or hit him...or both.
"My girlfriend dumped me ten minutes ago!"
Saitou snorted, for some reason unsatisfied his friend was being so forward with her. So, he felt a little petty. "What girlfriend? Wasn't she a friend you occasionally had sex with?"
Okita's head snapped up and away from her hair in a split second, expression turning from pathetic to glaring. "Don't be like that in front of Tokio-chan, you bastard!"
"I'm not being anything if it's the truth," he answered smug but nodded to her. "Though I don't think she'll think less of you for it."
"What? Really Tokio-chan?"
"Of course I won't; but I'll express disappointment. Friends with benefits? Really? That's stupid, Souji."
Saitou raised a very critical eyebrow. "Weren't you the one all pro casual sex half an hour ago?"
"Yes, but in case you missed it I said casual sex with people you've formed an emotional attachment to, no matter the kind, is stupid; and that's exactly what he did." She pointed at Souji, still holding her; she came to the conclusion he wouldn't let go if he didn't receive some sort of sympathy, so she patted his back.
"You wound me Tokio-chan." Okita complained, finally letting go.
"You know I'm right; now you lost both a friend and a good shag."
While an argument broke out between the two of them, each listing the prons of their side, while emphasizing the cons of the other, Saitou rolled his eyes, "you're both idiots," he decided and sat on the armchair, grabbing some files.
"You have no right to speak," Okita snubbed "last time you had sex you were still married."
"I'm sorry I feel the need to establish a deep emotional connection with another person before I share one of the most intimate aspects of myself with them."
"Then start dating and leave us alone," Tokio corroborated.
"Go back to arguing, idiots."
In the end, for one reason or the other, they made little progress. Whether it was because of their arguing or their slow start, or their snack breaks, even after they ate just as soon as Okita arrived, they got no real work done.
"This is why I don't want Souji coming over too often," Tokio complained once she realised it, just as soon as he had left, calling it a night. "He sidetracks me."
"Ever since we assigned him to keep an eye on colleagues, he hasn't been feeling well; bet you that's why he broke it off with Hana."
She chuckled. "You're gunning for internal affairs though; that's all he'll be doing."
"Well, there are plenty of things to do there but sure, that's the core." He shook his head. "It's just that those he doesn't like aren't directly or at least obviously involved with the case and the immediate suspects are all people he likes; he has a hard time accepting his, as he calls it, people radar can be so off."
"Then let him keep an eye on everyone."
"That's not efficient."
"True...poor Souji." Saitou shook his head. "Did you get any work done at least?"
"Of course I did; I'm immune to his tomfoolery."
She did laugh this once. "Perfect; I finished none of my self-appointed tasks...but one." Her defeated tone turned upside down. "I promised you an injunction and I shall deliver. The paperwork is done; I'm filling it tomorrow, first thing in the morning."
"You're a life-saver."
"Oh, I know..."
"Humility must be your biggest virtue after all." He dodged the slipper this once and decided enough was enough; it was time to go. He stood, cracking his neck. "Mine is knowing my limits; I'm tired." Picking up his coat and keys, he put on his shoes. As always, she escorted him to the door. "See you tomorrow?"
"No, the day after; I have an important meeting with the boss's boss tomorrow evening and I need to prep." Her smile was bright, leaning on to the frame with one hand and holding the knob with the other. "If all goes well, I might get another promotion. We'll see!"
"Good luck," he seemed impressed "text me how it went."
"You bet! Goodnight Hajime, drive safe."
.
.
"Hijikata, this is serious. We need his medical records."
Standing in front of his superior resolute, he fought his case unflinchingly. The man he went up against, quite the formidable opponent, sat in his chair like he owned him, looking at him with a stern brow, fingers interlaced in front of his face.
"I don't like how you're becoming increasingly dependent on this lawyer," he simply said "I never contested you need those records."
"I'm not dependent on her," he refused "but if I'm given an easier option, why not take it?"
"Because the public prosecutor doesn't like our precinct and this Tokio won't be here forever." They both continued their stubborn staring match while he was still talking. "Just make sure not to grow too accustomed to it."
"I'm not an idiot."
"I know but lately, I've been hearing her name a lot; be careful."
Saitou chuckled with disapproval. "Not my fault Okita is an idiot."
Hijikata's lips curled themselves in a small, amused grin as he regarded his detective. "Funny how you think it was him I've been hearing it from and not you; in every other report...or conversation."
"We do work together a lot," he tried to defend himself but why he felt that way, he did not know; it wasn't shameful he spent a lot of time with her due to their case, but something in his superior's expression forced him to feel that way. "It's only natural."
"Whatever you say, Saitou. Close the door behind you."
Just as he was in the process of forgetting this conversation ever happened, his phone vibrated. He fished it out of his pocket at his own pace, knowing it wasn't a call and opened it. It read:
Not exactly a promotion, but great news all the sane; tomorrow, food's on me! By the way, I filed your injunction, too. We'll see how it goes.
An involuntary smile came over his face.
"Good news, Saitou-san?"
He looked to the right, to see a smiling Nagakura Shinpachi, glasses always falling off the bridge of his nose. "Hm, yes." He put the phone back in his pocket. "I have an hour worth the break," he said then, knowing Nagakura always took his break around this time, too "wanna go have a bowl of soba?"
The man looked at him in a faux-suspicious way. "You rarely ask people to eat with you, Saitou-san. Should I be worried?"
"What?" He rolled his eyes. "This is what I get after everyone hounding me about being more friendly at the workplace?"
Nagakura laughed, curls dancing with him. "Alright, I'm coming." As Saitou shook his head, wearing his coat – and scarf, now that the weather had gotten colder and Tokio kept scolding him about not having one – a ghost of a smile remained. Nagakura elbowed him. "Must be some really good news then, Saitou-san."
He said nothing; simply nodded. But inside, he was unsettled again. Had...his mood really improved just because of that? This really wasn't like him. He didn't like this at all. But at the same time, he couldn't help it. She rubbed off on him, it seems. Shrugging to himself, he went on to his lunch with his friend and colleague.
.
"Hajime, stop that."
"Stop what?"
"Stop making some sort of noise every time I start speaking."
"I do no such thing."
"There, you just did it again." He pretended to be innocent while still tapping his foot under the table, making that terrible, irritating repeating noise. She fumed. "Stop. Now."
"Make me."
"Don't tempt me, Hajime."
"Ah, I forgot. We are in a public place," referring to the fact they had actually met at a cafe after a very long time, for a quick drink to brief each other and set up a date for later. "You can't throw anything at me lest people think you're crazy."
"Don't challenge me, either."
Despite being really cold outside now, nearing December, they still sat outside. It was easier for both, as well as safer; they were the only ones sitting there, so no one could eavesdrop. Plus, if anyone approached, they could easily spot them. And they were too far away from the narrow streets and turns of the sidewalk, thus no one could hide and listen in.
Save for the mounting cold, it was perfect.
"Only you would take that as a challenge," he lamented, shaking his head. "You're lucky your injunction came through, Takagi or else I'd have reported you for abuse."
But his words were only a pretext to let her know of the fact it worked. "Really?You received the files?"
"Sent to us this very morning and it hasn't been two weeks yet."
She crossed her arms and sat back comfortable, relishing in her abilities. "See?"
"I never doubted your skills; only your state of mind."
"Not my fault when you're being intentionally annoying."
He smirked. "Tell you what: you'll stop abusing me in private spaces and I'll be wholly less galvanizing." She seemed interested. "Please say yes because I have three bruises, Tokio; three. One of them on my neck no less. What am I supposed to tell people?"
"Alright, first of all, I didn't inflict that one—"
"I only got it when I tried to dodge yet another slipper."
"—Secondly, if you wore a damn scarf like I've told you only a thousand times, maybe they wouldn't see it; and thirdly," she snorted with laughter "tell them it's a hickey or something, no one will care."
The disapproval was almost palpable. "Why does everything have to be sexual with you?"
"How? I only said one thing." But she couldn't keep a straight face and started chuckling; he imitated her, struggling to keep the smile off his own face. "Today, at least."
"There you go."
"Hajime?"
A female voice stopped their banter, coming from somewhere higher; meaning, the woman was standing. It wasn't too close, at least two metres away from them, but her voice still reached them. She watched as Saitou's entire nervous system went on high alert then and stopped speaking; Tokio, curious, turned to the person who talked to him and he rudely didn't even look up.
"Is that you?"
She came close now and Tokio could clearly see this woman: she was tall, red dyed hair that suited her very nicely cut in an angled, long bob; her face told you she was thirty; her clothes, forty, despite being expensive and, for a forty year old, fashionable. Her nails were manicured to perfection, her clutch the exact same grey as her heels. Her make up not heavy, but her lips, curling into a self-satisfied smirk now, a vibrant red.
Saitou still said nothing, didn't even look up at her; Tokio simply alternated looking between the two, trying to ascertain if her suspicions were correct.
"Are you out on a date?"
"Hello," Tokio decided to spare him, seeing he had zero intentions of speaking "my name is—"
"I don't care for your name," she waved her away, chuckle supposedly polite – and made Tokio seethe all over – "only for your taste. You look cute and sweet; what in earth are you doing with him? You can do so much better, I just know it..."
Her patronizing tone helped none with Tokio's temper; that look of superiority and pity cast on the both of them made her blood pressure go up! Saitou noticed, seeing it was Tokio he was stubbornly staring at, and decided to avoid the bloodshed; finally, he opened his mouth and spoke.
"Can you leave? I'm sure you've better things to do with your time."
"Not at all..."
"Yaso, leave; I won't say it again."
Even without speaking the name, Tokio knew it was her, for Hajime to act like this; the fact she kept being there, standing with that smug look on her face and talking down on both gave her a general idea to what their relationship devolved...and why she, too, decided she disliked this person. Sometimes, after all, things are instinctive.
"Yaso-san, Hajime-san and I don't have much time to spare and there are plenty of things we need to go through. I too will kindly ask you to leave."
"Oh?" Her words caused Yaso to look at her closer and that lofty expression never changed. "Do you need a girl speaking for you now Hajime?"
She never stopped looking at Tokio; Tokio snapped. Without warning, she stood, banging her fists on the small table! This served two purposes: scare Yaso off and get the buzzing energy out of her system...but only the first was achieved, as the woman took a slight step back, squeezing the clutch a little and jumping back altogether when she realised Tokio's actions caused the coffee and tea to spill.
"Listen here, madam, we are on a very tight schedule; you might not work thus only serve to be a burden to society, but we do, and have no time for your nonsense. The reason it is I who spoke and not him is because he has nothing left to tell you. He asked you to leave and he clearly said he wouldn't ask again. It's not his fault if you can't understand basic Japanese—or only hear whatever suits you. Now, you'll either leave this general vicinity and go back to whatever tea party you came from or I'm going to ask Hajime if he needs anyone to issue him a restraining order against you."
Visibly upset, offended even, Yaso looked all around her, as if to find support from someone or verification this impertinent woman really spoke to her like that, only to be met with deafening silence and no interest, as Saitou was already looking away, uncaring.
"Do we understand each other?"
Her final's words caused Yaso to turn her eyes back at her, her anger clear. "I see my replacement is feisty," was all she said, setting her jaw high "how cute," she venomously commented.
"Restraining order against you; do we understand each other?"
Yaso snorted, furious. "What's your name girl?"
"If you didn't care for it before, you don't care for it now. Leave."
"That's alright, I'll have my husband find out what it is; and then, one hell of a lawsuit awaits you."
Now it was her turn to snort, only hers was amused and derogatory. "For what? Telling you you need to leave us alone and that you should stop harassing your ex husband? Or do you think I believe even for a moment you're telling your current husband that while you're stalking your ex-husband some replacement of you told you to get lost and you got your panties in a twist?"
This was the first time Yaso actually remained silent; brooding, but silent. "Leave; I won't say it again either."
"Fine; have it your way...for now. See you around, girlfriend."
Tokio made sure to get her message of how little she was putting up with her antics across by continuing to glare at her even while she made her retreat – yet kept looking back – and not even blinking until she was far away; only once she had crossed the street and went her way did Tokio sit back down, collapsing on her chair. But she wasn't relieved, far from it; she was upset and angry and restless.
"Your ex wife is infuriating."
He nodded, morose. "I know."
"What did you see in her?"
"Well," finally, he cracked a smile "she wasn't always like that and rarely to me; the change was slow but certain." She chuckled, some tension finally leaving her; she failed to notice how his eyes stayed on her though, for a very long moment. "You do realise she now thinks we are attached, right?"
"Obviously; she called me her replacement; and then girlfriend, in a way." Tokio snorted. "As if I'd be her replacement; I'm ten times the person she is."
"As impressive your self-confidence may be, she can easily make your life a living hell; her husband is annoyingly rich and does all her whims."
"I'd like to see her try," was her direct, defiant challenge and Saitou couldn't help but...well, quite honestly, be a little attracted to her.
It wasn't solely because she defended him, nor because she actually managed to make Yaso go, a feat all on its own, but she was so confident; as if it was natural to her that Yaso needed to leave and not them. Him? He doesn't like dealing with his ex-wife. He'd have left the moment he saw her, if he had paid for his coffee. Tokio stood her ground admirably though and not only did she not give in, she even got what she wanted.
And she hadn't even cared about the implications. He...he really liked her attitude, he wouldn't lie; he had started getting used to it already but now, yeah, he liked it. She was a little fearless. He liked that, too. Then again, they were about to tackle a serious case of corruption, she should be at least a little fearless, otherwise they wouldn't go far.
He suppressed the smile. "I know she basically ruined our briefing, but let's agree to meet again at eight; my place. Bring comfortable clothes."
She seemed excited at the prospect. "Am I gonna sleep over again?"
"Please don't; we both work tomorrow."
"But I'm sure Rai has missed me...!"
"How can I possibly know that? He's a dog."
"You'll see when he sees me tonight; I'm staying over and that's final." She deposited a couple of notes on the little table, a little over the price of her tea and stood. "Stay till the waitress comes. Bye for now."
As she walked away from an exasperated Saitou, she had time to reflect on this peculiar turn of events. She had no idea why Yaso pissed her off to this extent but damn that woman, she was insufferable. How could one person be that uncivilized? To think she came to gloat over her ex husband for no other reason than pettiness even when she was the one in the wrong and he was, as far as she knew, on a date. To come over just to talk shit about him—how cruel. How unforgiving; Yaso was holding a grudge, it seemed.
Resolute not to allow this woman toy with her colleague's feelings ever again, she began thinking of the best way to rid of her once and for all. People like her are the worst; and she needs to be made aware of the fact, too and hopefully stop harassing Hajime. No, not hopefully: urgently. Heh; Tokio would definitely show her...if it ever came down to it at least. They had far more serious issues to deal with that Yaso, sadly.
.
.
"Wake up, you lucky bastard~! Open your eyes and see the bright new sun!"
Uuuuugh, why was Okita's voice in his ear first thing in the morning? His alarm clock hadn't even gone off yet...!
"Wake up you lucky bastard! I won't repeat myself."
"You just did, idiot."
Okita snorted with laughter. "Not even fully awake yet and you're already being an ass; a lovely day awaits us."
"Get out, you moron."
Saitou smacked him with his pillow for good measure but he still didn't falter; he just caught it and threw it aside. "Tokio made pancakes; get up before they get cold."
"Pancakes...? Do I even have the ingredients for that?"
"Apparently you do, because they smell divinely; now be grateful I came to wake you and move."
"Why are you even here?"
Okita blinked. "Do you have lapses in memory? You texted me to show up bright and early yesterday at an ungodly hour; I did."
"Huh."
So, he did; he thought he never went through with it.
"Whatever, you're still groggy; I'll leave you to get dressed. Don't be late, or we're eating without you."
As Okita closed the door to allow him privacy, Saitou tried very hard to look back on the previous night; Tokio had come over, changed into her pajamas – some ridiculous pink and white teddy bear themed pajamas, as loose as her sister's clothes – and then made herself comfortable with his dog. She petted him, gave him commands and that little traitor followed them. He never listened to anyone that wasn't him or Okita before—Rai barely listened to his walker.
Then, she took the list of police suspects and started asking all sorts of questions about them while jotting down things she wanted to do to get more information about them. Then she proceeded to ask him about his own opinion about these people and which people were missing from this list, or according to him, had the biggest chances of being the mole.
That was when both came to a terrifying conclusion: it didn't have to be one. And those who seemed too far fetched to be corrupt, could very well be innocent, who were only implicated by some indirect way without their knowledge. After all, they realised, if someone or someones had managed to steer everyone's suspicions away from them or even cause no suspicion at all, it only meant one thing: they were masterful in not getting their own hands dirty. They had others to do their bidding, knowingly or unknowingly.
That was the point where everything turned on its head.
New theories were born, new assumptions made. Hajime felt all the more confident spouting names and ranks and personal information. And, to top it all off, he knew exactly who to target. After all, it couldn't be such a big coincidence that the moment a certain someone found out Tokio had filed an injunction for Okita and him went straight to Hijikata to report it as a bad thing. He just feared that if she had the ability to do that then maybe she had more hiding up her sleeve; after all, everyone but Okita, all they knew about her was that she was some young lawyer with little experience that posed as an expert – some of his first, less savory comments about her – and drove him mad; now she did this. Someone got scared.
Now if only he could be sure who it was, he'd be very happy.
But time slipped past them without their notice and before either one knew it, the clock read half past twelve. It was time to put their work aside.
"Can I make a personal question now?"
He turned to look at her, almost melding with the couch; she sounded tired, too but she still had energy to ask the question. Might as well answer it, right? He gave a curt nod as the okay.
"How long has she been calling you?"
An eyebrow rose. "Yaso?" She nodded. "It started a couple of months before I met you."
"So almost half a year now." She considered; "when was the last time she called?"
"Half a week ago."
Her eyes darted to him. "Has she ever propositioned you?"
He drew a blank.
"Has she ever propositioned you?" she repeated. "You do know what that means, right?"
A disbelieving laugh escaped him. "Yes, I know and the answer is of course not! She's married. Besides, Tokio, did you see how she acted today?"
"Yes, because she saw you with another woman that she immediately assumed was your new girlfriend; that's when she became hostile."
"What are you saying?"
"What does she tell you when she calls?"
"I never ask; I just tell her to leave me alone and hang up on her."
She smirked. "Have you ever asked her?"
"No." He was absolute. "And I'm not going to."
"How did you know it wasn't life-threatening?"
"First time she ever called I was dumbfounded; I asked are you in trouble? She said no. is your husband? Said no; so I hung up."
She chuckled. "To the point, as always...Hajime, I'm telling you; she wants to sleep with you."
"No, she doesn't; she's married. She didn't even cheat on me before we got divorced. Why would she cheat on him?"
"Hajime, she's a taker; the only reason she didn't sleep with the guy was because then the divorce would definitely come out against her. But now, maybe he cheated on her; maybe the sex isn't that good. Whatever it is, I'm telling you, she wants to sleep with you."
"She doesn't."
"Why are you so against the notion? What if she does?"
"I don't want to be around her, or deal with her; at all. And she knows, even if what you're saying is true, I'd never actually sleep with her. I wrote her out of my life a long time ago; and she's married. I'd never."
"Then, next time she calls, ask her why she's calling. Be curt—leave me alone, what do you want from me damn it? Say something; I bet she'll be honest for no other reason than you're always hanging up on her—she'll want to make her pitch fast. I promise you, she'll—"
His phone started ringing; they both went silent. As he brought it close, they could see the number displayed on the screen, but not a name. She snorted!
"I summoned her, it seems; answer it."
"No."
"Oh come on, aren't you curious? Answer it, but put it on speaker."
"How do you even know it's her?"
"Because there's no way you haven't blocked her and her husband's number; so, she bought another just to call you."
"Show off." But with that, he finally decided to do as she asked. "This is detective Saitou and whoever it is, you better have a damn good reason for calling at this hour."
"It's me."
Tokio smirked in triumph; Saitou massaged his forehead. The small voice on the phone belonged to none other than his ex wife.
A heavy sigh escaped him then and he almost shooed Tokio away with that look she was giving him. "Yaso, that's enough; I don't want you calling me, running into me or having anything to do with me." Tokio urged him to ask; he rolled his eyes. "Why won't you leave me alone?"
There was an entire second of complete and utter silence. And then...
"Because I miss you."
"Uh huh!" Tokio mouthed and gestured, trying to make no sound. He glared both at her and the phone.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"I miss you, Hajime," how amazing, she sounded nothing like this morning; Tokio crossed her hands, satisfied, as if that alone proved her entire point. "I really do."
"I don't care; stop calling, go to sleep, it's late."
"Don't you miss me, t—?"
But, once more, he hung up. A heavier sigh escaped him this once as a hand ran through his hair.
"What did I tell you?" She jutted her chin at the phone. "She's trying to get you...back? Whatever. That. And the moment she saw you with another woman, she calls? Shady."
He was at a loss for words while being as weary as he'd ever been. "How?"
"Did I figure it out? It's simple; people like her attack the other person's confidence, before deciding to swoop in and pretend that despite all the flaws and shortcomings, they are, for some reason, still interested in you; that's called manipulation. Sadly, too many people deploy such methods."
"Why are you telling me all this? Why did you make me ask her?"
"So you know; and now that you do know finally do something about it."
"Like what?",
"Get. A damn. Restraining order against her!" The last part she almost shouted, causing Rai to become agitated; Hajime had to calm him down. "Sorry Rai; but make it legal, put it in writing. There is not one single judge in the whole wide city of Kyoto who wouldn't grant you one. And if she ever tries to contact you again, boom, she gets a fine. She doesn't work though. How will she pay for it? Boom, husband knows, shenanigans stop; you win. The end."
"I don't want to ruin her marriage or I fear she'll come after me with a chainsaw. Look, in general, I don't want to take it to court; I just want to put this behind me."
"She won't stop if you don't take it there." He looked away; she became petulant. "Then maybe I have it all wrong; maybe you do want her around, hoping to reconnect at some later time." He turned to her in a split second, glare deadly. "Then get the restraining order and be done with it."
He sighed; she sighed; the dog got confused. "Or don't; what do I know? I'm just a lawyer. But if you don't stop her, she won't stop on her own."
"Tokio," he began, exhausted "why do you care?"
"Because I care about you and I can see, she's poison. Don't let her treat you like that. You deserve better."
She took his hand into hers and squeezed. She let it go, what felt like it was, too soon; there was a sense of loneliness when she withdrew her hand. He remained looking at his own hand for maybe two minutes after.
Ah, right; that's when he texted. Saitou had started doubting his own good sense and judgment and basically called Okita over just to make sure he wouldn't do anything he might regret. For whatever reason, he could no longer deny he found her attractive to some degree. And after today's events, it only worsened. No wonder he texted. He worked with her almost every day.
After that, he easily recollected how he excused himself, claiming to be too tired to keep his frown in place; that earned him a laugh and a goodnight and he retreated to his bedroom, leaving Rai behind to keep their guest company, who too seemed to be ready to fall asleep at any moment. Thankfully, this once he had made sure she had grabbed the pillow and the blanket long before they needed to turn in for the night and there would be no accidental nightly encounters.
"Good morning Hajime," came her cheery voice from the kitchen, the moment he was spotted "come sit; let's eat. We're all starving."
He hated her good mood. Where did she even find it? His alarm clock hadn't even gone off yet. "Coffee," was all he said, staggering to the seat opposite hers.
"Just brewed some; I'll get you a cup. Sou-chan, any for you?"
"I'd like a tea; Saitou has a green blend somewhere in there."
"Oh, I know; I made some for myself yesterday. Perfect! Two orders coming right up. Anything for you Rai?" The dog looked at her curious; she chuckled. "Just water then."
He watched her with the edge of his eyes fly about his kitchen and only one thing went through his mind: contrary to her belief, her good mood was not in fact infectious and she needed to stop humming like an idiot.
"Are you going to walk Rai now?" she asked, once he had finished most of his breakfast. He nodded. "Can I come, too? I'll leave after that anyway."
He shrugged. "You walked him without asking me lat time you were here; suddenly you care about my opinion?"
She smacked his arm. "Don't be like that before the day even starts, come on...! Okita, are you coming?"
"Nope; two people walking a dog is more than enough. You can have the honours, Tokio-chan."
"Alright; go get dressed Hajime."
"Everyone orders me around this morning, what the hell," he complained as he did what they told him anyway; he still snatched his smokes and lighter on his way out.
When he returned home, after she was gone, he made Okita witness him swear to never do it again. At least half the neighborhood saw them; not one of them took his "this is my coworker Tokio-san" at face-value and now the entire block thought they were dating. It would only be a matter of time before his mother called him to ask him about it; his landlady had a big mouth on her after all.
Okita simply laughed at his plight and wistfully complained "I want to have problems like these, too...!"
Bastard.
.
.
"Why aren't you answering your phone, detective? I called three times, detective."
"Hello to you, too, Tokio; what do you nee—d..."
Finally he looked up from his desk, only to be met with a most unexpected image: it was the Tokio he knew, yes, but what she was wearing had nothing to do with whatever she ever wore till now; one could even call it...risque? His neutral expression slowly changed into a smirk. "Maybe sit on my lap."
She snorted. "You can't afford me, detective" She chose to sit on said desk and crossed her legs.
Despite him not having his own office like her, Hijikata had given him a prime spot for his cubicle, which was far more removed from the rest, almost isolated. One could argue only the teacher's pet took it—Hajime in this case and right next to it, Okita's. But Okita had gone home for the day already.
"So you already have a rate."
She saw through his tactics and didn't budge. "Anything I'm wearing, if you ruin it, you buy it; and if it's a unique item, you owe me a favour, too. Seeing the pantyhose are a unique item, be careful, officer. I had to order it from the internet all the way from Italy. Cost me 40 euros—that's approximately 5000 yen."
"Just for these?" He clicked his tongue. "I'd say they are worth it," they were quite fun to look at "if you were nineteen; but you're twenty eight. Grow up, Takagi."
He had stopped whatever he was doing, just to cross his arms, smirk at her and sit back in his chair. She did not appreciate it. "These are my favourite and they just so happen to make me look great, so save it."
Well, they did, but he wouldn't admit that to her; they were black but low on the thigh they changed to skin colour, making it look like she was wearing thigh-high socks—if it weren't for that rose, stitched to the front in red thread. And the fact she was wearing red, over-the-knee boots to highlight it, did not go unnoticed. Combined with the fact she wore shorts, too – jeans in particular – it painted a...complicated picture.
"What if you sit in my lap and nothing gets ruined?"
She shrugged. "Then I just sat in your lap for free. Though," she snorted "good luck with that; too many buckles and zippers."
He shook his head amused. "Why are you here, Tokio? And why are you wearing stripper clothes?"
She flicked him on the chest but never got off his desk. "You aren't as funny as you think you are; and I'm here because you won't answer your phone; so, I decided to pay you a visit. Told you I hate being ignored."
"But what's up with the clothes?"
She sighed. "These are my normal clothes; when I'm not at work anyway."
Although he did want to laugh in her face, he realised "you weren't working today? Why?"
She soured. "They forced me to take a leave; a paid leave, but still a leave."
His face relayed he needed more answers. She gave them. "Remember that pig from work?" Oh no. "He grabbed me by the waist and fondled my ass; I slapped him and then kicked him in the balls."
He started laughing.
"I'm glad you're happy."
"Don't get me wrong; you did the right thing; stripper or not, no one has the right to touch someone without their consent."
He tried, but being so close, he couldn't avoid the pen, eraser, and bundle of papers she threw at him. "You promised to be less galvanizing!"
"But look at you; you and your stripper boots don't make it easy." She glared. "Alright, I'm stopping, but no one here knows what you look like; they'll think you are an informant, not a lawyer."
That captured her interest. "If I am to make your life harder, I will sit in your lap right now."
"Okay, you win," he stopped her from moving "why were you calling?"
"Why didn't you answer?"
"I was in a briefing with my superior; I haven't checked my phone for two hours. Your turn."
"I had just returned from visiting my parents and needed the documents you have with you or I'd go crazy. But you didn't answer."
"That's not a real emergency."
"Which is why I'm not pitching a fit; I just came here to get you."
"You mean you want me to leave now just to get you the papers?" She nodded. "No way," he made it crystal clear "I have a ton of paperwork to get through here."
"I'll go insane Hajime!" she complained and actually grabbed him by the arm and shook him. "Let's go to my place already; give me something to read or I'll die—I've already finished my cases," she clarified before he snapped something in those lines at her.
"Not only are you trying to force me to leave earlier, you wanna drag me to your apartment? You don't work; drive a little."
She clicked her tongue. "Come on Hajime, don't be like that." He didn't give in. "Pretty please?" He shook his head. Just then, an idea occurred to her. "I'll cook! You come over to my place and I'll cook."
"...sounds fair. It's decided then; we'll go to your place once I'm done with—"
"Nooooo!"
"—the paperwork. Yes."
"Come on, let's go now."
"Look, I have a lot of things to write."
"You write it tomorrow."
"Tokio...!"
"I'll really go crazy if I just sit here while you type." He shrugged. "You don't want me being restless later, do you?" He shrugged again.
"You're always like that. Give me something better."
Her eyes shone with mischief; she smirked. "Tell you what; we leave now, and I will actually sit in your lap, once we get home."
He put his forehead in his hand at the sound of that, shaking his head but smirking. "Why does everything have to be sexual with you?"
"Take it or leave it Hajime-san; and it doesn't have to be—it's your mind that's thinking dirty."
"Fine," he relented, "it looks like you really don't want to be here."
"But we're leaving now."
"Yes, yes," he condescended, gathering his files and putting his desk in order.
"Now, detective," she tugged on his tie twice and let it go with flourish.
She stood up and, no coat or bag to retrieve seeing she came without them, started walking away. He rushed to grab the cigarette resting next to his keyboard; once that was securely between his lips, he flung his coat over his shoulder casually as he walked in slightly bigger strides to catch up. He didn't fail to notice everyone talking about it, like the gossiping children they were, but he didn't linger on them; he chose those who said nothing, but still looked, or those who had an incredibly suspicious look in their eyes, such as a certain Takeda...did he take out his phone, too? Damn, they were too far away, he couldn't see.
"One thing is for sure," Saitou commented once they were out of the building "you made a lasting impression."
"I can't care less; I parked right there." He spotted her car across the street. "Meet you back at my place. What do you feel like eating?"
A/N: End of chapter two; wrote it out pretty fast though, gotta say. Please leave a review on your way out~!
Love you all very much; many kisses,
FAI~