Chapter 11
Gift
Ryo starts his morning by jogging towards the city as usual, slowing down the pace when he adventures into the more crowded streets. His hoodie is always up as a cover, despite that, some people get a glimpse of his face and the rebellious blue hair strands sticking out, recognizing him.
As an answer to the bemused glances, he stares back at them with his inexpressive face, they immediately avert their gazes, sweating even, uncomfortable like they'd done something wrong. He scoffs at their fear, maybe they're hearing some really nasty rumors or whatnot, but what does it matter?
The automatic glass door opens and rings an electronic bell as he walks into a small convenience store. Just a quick check to grab some stuff. He's been checking different establishments around the stretch he jogs while going on his way back home, to try out new things.
A few giggles soar as he walks past the thin metal-plate shelves delimiting the corridors, his feet halting abruptly, reeling back a step, looking down the aisle. There's a person squatting, he didn't believe his eyes at first, blinking aplenty, but that dainty, pink ponytail swaying left and right as she restocked the lower shelf was a giveaway.
No way, here?
He scans the surroundings, just to make sure it's not a mistake, the short aisles packed with a variety of goods cleanly ordered in the tiny space the store had at disposal. He didn't guess this is the type of work she's doing besides that bakery she mentioned. To think he passed by the front of this very place so many times, unknowing to him she was right here. Life can be a funny thing.
Braving a few steps ahead, his shadow startles her, who promptly stands up in such a tense posture like she was in the hotel, her jaw dropping. The apron with the store's brand looked cute on her.
From the end of the corridor, two highschoolers pass by, bumping into Rie while distracted by their gabbing, she staggers a step onward, Ryo's hand coming in front, helping her regain balance.
"Oops, sorry, girl!" one of them scratches his face, looking her form up to down. "Do you know where the snacks are?"
"Idiot, she can't speak," his friend glove-slaps him. "Sorry for his stupidity!"
He drags his friend away, Rie follows them with a gaze, their chattering loud enough to still be heard.
"How do you know about her?"
"I come here often, she's the mute lass working here, don't bother her."
Rolling her eyes, she goes back to Ryo, a feeble smile on his lips, his arm relaxing down.
That he went out home dressed in this dark-grey set of jogging clothes, that's new. He'd always been clad in that pitch-black professional attire whenever she met him. It brought up a whole new image she couldn't have guessed. Was he exercising?
"Can you tell me where the batteries are?" he spouts, his smile enlarging, he didn't intend to mock her, but it did seem he found the whole setup comic.
The sound of objects tingling and toppling down the shelves disrupts the moment, some cackling echoing, one of the students from before shouts stepping aside and rushing away.
"My bad!"
Rie gasps exasperated, a hand landing on her shoulder, startling her, a colleague standing behind her. A drop of sweat rolling down his cheek as he gleans over the tall, menacingly hooded figure standing in front of the girl, his glance becoming cautious when Ryo stares back at him with his apathetic demeanor.
"What did we agree with?" he gave a light shake on her shoulder, stepping in front of her. "I take care of the clients, you go clean that mess on the aisle."
Her mouth curves in a subtle disagreement, about to whirl around until Ryo's voice soars, in a foul mood:
"I asked a question to her, not to you."
His brow twitched in annoyance. It's not just her brother. This guy, everyone underestimates Rie's capacity, although unconscious for some of them, all he's heard people tell her so far is how she can't do anything, no wonder she believes he'd think of her as a bother if people keep feeding her this crap on a daily basis.
Density swells in the air, the employee gulps, the instruction is not to cause problems to clients, but what's with this guy and his narrowed eyes full of contempt? Why is he insisting that she answers it? Is he trying to bully Rie or what? By the non-amicable shade the hood makes on half his face, he's very suspicious.
"Ah, I think there's a misunderstanding here, sir. She's mute so, I'm answering it in her stead."
"Do you know where the batteries are or not?"
He prods his head towards the girl, her lips splitting apart confused as both of them look at her in expectation of her answer. Tilting her head, she calls him, turning around and going to the intersection connecting all the aisles of the store, her slim finger pointing straight ahead to a shelf with hangers where many packets of different battery types are displayed.
"See? It wasn't that hard, was it?" he tugs his hoodie down as if tipping his hat to her politely, his eyes flashing away from hers as he walks past.
The perplexed twirl on her brows just accentuated her colleague's worries, he nudged his elbow on her arm.
"You alright?"
Confirming with a brief move of her head, Rie's stare remains on Ryo's silhouette awhile, enthralled by it.
He had this mysterious way of saying things at times, creating a puzzle she should solve on her own, expecting some effort on her part unlike all those other times he was brutally honest.
Awakening from that daydreaming, she collects the small packs of bubblegum the students dropped before. Her colleague spoke from the side while helping her:
"Hey, Rie, that guy… Does he also remind you of someone?" he puts a hand to his chin. "Some celebrity of sorts… Wait, I think he was…" his mouth gapes open a second, reconsidering his words. "No, it's not possible… Right?"
Shaking her head in a "no", she hunches her shoulders, smiling wryly, not admitting she knows exactly what he means, he shrugs off and resumes his job.
And now Ryo found out where I work… Does he live nearby or what?
Her eyes hook onto the duelist's broad back once more. The shards of memory playing in her mind like a movie, how he ridiculed his attackers and at the same time, defended her, in the duel at the venue too, this pride of his was overflowing, unshakable.
What exactly is he doing in the underground? And what does he intend to achieve by being there? Sighing deeply, plagued by those doubts and queries, she continues her tasks.
Unbeknown to her, his gaze was cast on her too. He scoffed at himself for even allowing the distraction, holding the batteries in his hand, a foolish idea crossed his mind, but he didn't shun it. Maybe, that'll be a good thing to do.
At the duel academy,
The heels of the girl's blue boot make a symphony of clacking at her speedy footsteps through the unwelcoming forest, she halts upon finding herself at the door of the Osiris red dorm, in front of the many doors of the building, there are three boys making a campfire under the starry sky.
Their familiar faces gaping in awe at her presence, Judai greets with a wide grin, beckoning at her; Shou exchanges a glance with Edo who promptly stands up, striding her way.
"Asuka! What are you doing here at this hour?" his hands wound up on her shoulders, her body shaken a tad under his sudden grip.
"I…"
She hesitates, a hefty thud following as the bag strapped halfway down her arm falls completely, at this point, Judai peeks from behind Edo, asking confused:
"Huh? Are you staying overnight?"
"I'm not going back to the Obelisk dorm!" she says, taking a deep breathe, Edo takes a step back, startled at her statement.
The last of their conversation about her not going out alone at night seems to not have helped, however, the fact she's here is worrisome. Why in the world would she escape the Obelisk dorm this late? With furrowed brows, he folds his arms.
Fasting forward, now, the three boys sit around the fireplace counting on the company of the girl. She grips her knees so strong Edo could swear he saw her hands trembling.
"Hmm, so," Shou tries to break the ice, scratching his head clumsily. "Did you have a fight with your girlfriends?"
"It's not about the girls' dorm…"
"Then what upset you so much you'd come here packed?"
The silver-haired duelist has such a demanding tone she had to crook her brows at him for the impatience.
"What are you doing here? You're not a red either," she had to rebuke.
"Calm down, you two," Judai swayed both hands, seeing the sparks of rivalry fly between them both. "He's right in one thing Asuka, you don't crash here this late."
"Ugh, you boys," she mumbles some complaints, her cheeks blushing a bit. "Listen, people in the Obelisk dorm have been acting strange lately. Even Manjoume-kun has joined the weird bunch."
"Wasn't he always a weirdo, though?" Shou conjectures.
"Maybe you're right, anyways, people have been weird all around and I even heard talks about the directors wanting to demolish the red dorm, plus… That Fubuki," a vein snaps on her forehead.
"Ah," they all say in unison, predicting the tornado to come.
"What about your brother?"
Edo is the fastest one to ask while Judai and Shou just fling their hands and heads hectically in a "no", like he's putting his arm on the snake's nest.
"I can't take his stupid idol-duo fantasy anymore! Not when other important matters are at hand!" she snaps, the branches in the fireplace belching ashes in agreement with her irritation.
"I'm not sure if I understand what you mean by acting 'strange'…"
Shou rewinds to the topic, a long, weary sigh breaks out of her lips. Judai's smile disappears as the whole mood shifts to a darker one.
As she tells them the story, from behind a tree trunk nearby, thin strands of pink hair flutter, blown by the chilly wind. Haru's eyes squint, paying full attention to the surroundings and the tale about the recent, uncommon occurrences at the Obelisk dorm of people dreaming of a light and painting the walls white.
I followed Asuka-san here because she stormed past the yellow dorm so late… So she was running away?
He's always left out of the fun, but not this time, if he can find out what's going on with the crew and what they intend to do, he'll take action too.
After a long explanation, they were so absorbed into crafting a strategy to find out more, Edo's gaze looked into the bushes for a moment, his senses alerting him something was there.
"What is it? Did you see someone?"
Shou nibbles his nails nervously, switching glances between the forest and the duelist. Last time they saw someone loitering around this late at night, it was a duel monster spirit trying to take away souls of students, not the best memory.
"No, it was just my impression. I doubt someone's out here this late besides our little runaway princess," he casts a scolding glance at Asuka who mutters some light insults biting her lips.
A drop of sweat rolls down Haru's chin, dripping onto the leaves near his feet, his posture so stiff he could as well be made of wood like the trees.
Impressive, senpai! Edo Phoenix is really something else…
Sighing in relief after he overhears their voices blabbing about unimportant things, he moves quietly, but incisively, his fists clenching on their own.
Maybe I should investigate it myself, what those Obelisk students are so crazy about.
At the 51st floor of the hotel,
Ryo stares into the nothingness outside, the dark, starry sky. He whirls around when Rie enters the room, eliciting a shudder that binds her in place, greeting him back with a gaze, asking herself what was amiss. Maybe she asked too many questions last time? Or was it something regarding his visit to the convenience store?
Their conversation was mostly about the pro-leagues and about that man who attacked him before which he didn't give too many details about. Why was he so willing to speak up? She can't fathom, but it wasn't so bad that he was honest and kind, for once. She had this fuzzy feeling in her chest that they've gotten closer.
Averting his gaze to the side, he walks to the couch, grabbing his papers, she resumes her routine, but she's stunned again after coming out of that bathroom.
"Rie, would you come here for a moment?" he asks, not taking his eyes off the stapled stash of papers he reads.
With the two knots on her forehead, she plods to the couch, sitting down at the edge of it again, gripping the brims of her striped blue and white skirt.
"You don't need to be so tense," he says in a low, calm tone, sliding a hand-sized, rectangular lidded white box closer to her with the back of his hand. "My treat today."
He pages through the documents so uninterested she wonders what this is about. As soon as her gaze lands on it, she flinches astounded at the printed emblem on the top of the lid, it's a last generation smartphone from a known brand. This can't be it, right?
Taking it to her lap, she confirms it with a quick inspection. It is really a new cellphone. But why? Just what happened? It's only been a few days since her blunder at the duel stadium. Yanking it out of the new-smelling Styrofoam, she flaunts it, tugging the sleeve around his elbow, asking what's going on.
"You said you don't have one, and it's a hindrance that I need to lend my phone every time you want to speak, so I got you a new one," he briefs her as if there was no problem in it, running his eyes to the side, concentrating on his documents. "I've got no better use for that money from the pro leagues, anyway," he mumbles to himself.
Tugging at his sleeve again so he looks her in the eyes, she swings her head violently, refusing it dumbfounded. Tucking it back into the box and shoving it onto his chest, but he expertly blocks it single handedly before the blow.
How many months of income would she need to save for one of those? She can't accept it. With the most standoff expression, he presses it back her way.
"The staff complained they always must park and wait at your home or at one of your jobs. They won't be harassing you at your jobs anymore. Don't worry, I won't subtract it from the contract money."
T-that's not the problem.
She thinks while losing strength, the box slightly moved her way. He has good arguments, but…
Seeing how unbent she is, he continues. "Besides, it's complicated to communicate with you without this, this will make things simpler, but don't sell this one to pay your bills again."
Her eyes are transfixed on it, wavering and glimmering, wateriness filling the brims. Clutching the device in her hands, a recollection crossing her mind, when her father talked to her in one of his rare sobriety moments:
"Little hun, we can't all have everything we want. You don't even need it. It's not like people are talking to you if you hold onto it anyways. But your family cares and we're the ones you should be caring about."
"Your family cares?" her eyes narrow in angst and scorn at the statement. What a dependable father, who tossed his own daughter to the wolves at the first opportunity because he's too busy drinking away his mind to cope with problems.
"If you don't sell it, we won't have money to pay the bills. They might kick us out and you and me, we'll be on the streets, all the stuff your brother left, will be thrown away. How terrible will he feel if he finds that out, hm?"
She could've said no, clinging to her old cellphone and telling him off. But what good would that do? He won't be moved by words, she tried and failed before, countless times.
"You're his big sister, he'll be proud you are so reliable. I know I haven't found a job and haven't contributed to the house yet, but that will change, I promise! So just this time, would you take care of this, Rie?"
Just this time? He keeps reusing those words like a broken record. But she's grown weary of it, of those lies. He can't even deceive himself with it.
Ryo observed as she stood there quietly, her mouth sealed in a line, a tear could drop at any moment from the corners of her eyes.
A memory lit inside him, during his first duel in the underground, when his opponent fell to the ground, a cardiac arrest, they had to reanimate him with a defibrillator, and even now, he's still recovering from it. When he saw that man on the ground, faced with the possibility he could've died there, he felt… Nothing.
Because that man had tortured him and broken him in as many ways possible, twisted his mind and dueling beyond limits. He didn't feel sorry or bad for that man either, but back then, he knew he'd lost sight of something important, consumed by his ire. Something he shouldn't have forgotten.
Why is he being so mellow anyways? Remembering those things and pretending as if he hadn't gone to the hospital plenty of times too because of those duels.
Hasn't he already done enough good for this girl? Being nice won't cover up for his bad deeds or the people he hurt, this isn't any redemption.
Maybe this was an overkill?
Suddenly, she wipes her tears with an arm, capturing his gaze with hers in an instant, her palm coating his hand warmly. Her lips finally opened to muster a sentence, along with a tender smile, her eyes squinting gently.
"Ryo, thank you."
There wasn't a single sound word, and he could barely do the lipreading, but having his name called like that, just Ryo and not the Hell Kaiser as in those matches, it made his heartbeat race, thumping loudly inside his chest, his eyes widening, thunderstruck as she opens her lips to speak yet another inaudible sentence.
His own cellphone buzzes, disrupting the moment, a call from his manager, he lets out a hefty, bothered sigh, growling a low insult and standing up promptly.
"I'm sure you can set it up on your own, now if you excuse me," going to the other end of the room, he speaks collected.
She follows his silhouette with eyes, then turns the device onto her hands, her thumb caressing it, the borders of her eyes wet.
"Saruyama?"
[Oh, I'm profoundly sorry for interrupting your free time, but I bring good news.]
"Which news?"
[I've got you a duel in the major league! Isn't that great?! We should celebrate it!]
It has begun, his rise into the major leagues. Now, all he needs to make sure is that he won't fall again and no matter the opponent, he will trounce them, snatching victory away from their hands.
Daytime,
Rie hums a catchy commercial song in her head while wiping the table from the bakery, her enthusiastic moves swing her hair gently around. One of her colleagues raises a brow, pointing his thumb at her from her back and looking at another worker, the man shrugs off and they scoff at her sudden good mood.
With that same energy, the scene changes to Rie standing at the convenience store, her coworker looking at her from all angles as her eyes follow his movements warily.
"There's something different about you today, but I can't pinpoint what. Did something good happen?"
Giving him a proud, satisfied smile, she takes out her newly acquired phone, showing it off.
"Hmm, it's quite new, and isn't this one of those expensive models?" he takes a step back in distrust. "You can't afford this, where did you get it from?"
Raising her nose a bit, she maintains the smile, covering her soundless giggle with a hand, showing him a text message on the screen:
[It's a secret.]
Said that, she resumes her work, tucking the phone back into her pocket, her colleague stays away, a tad scared of wherever she got it from.
On the train home, Rie happily types a message, sniggering to herself as she sends it.
[Hello, Haru! :D It's me, Rie! I got a new phone and this is my new number!]
Inside the Ra yellow room, Haru sits straight on the top bed of the bunk in a hurry, the student below him rambling about the bed frame shaking.
Blinking aplenty, amazed at the lighted screen of his PDA, Haru disregards the annoyed student. He brings the device closer, squinting his eyes to make sure this isn't a mistake.
I thought she sold her phone, but suddenly she got a new phone and a new number?
[Proof.]
He retorts, pouting his lips crankily, hopefully this isn't any bad prank, almost as immediate as he sends it, another message pops up on his display, this time, it's a photo of Rie smiling, the background looks like a train. He supports himself on the mattress as if to fall onto reality.
Where did she get a phone and new number from? I thought we were still recovering from the red.
Puzzled, he scowls to himself, not grasping even an ounce of his sister's happiness from the brief exchange. Meanwhile, Rie flings her legs in the train seat, looking at the outside through the window. Even though it was the dark underground tunnels, it wasn't nearly as dim as before, like a breath of fresh air was slipped into her.
Her smile dwindles slowly as she meditates. Why did Ryo even give her such an expensive gift? He said it was so they can communicate better, but it's not like they're supposed to even exchange a word to each other, and he isn't the most talkative either. Did he have underlying reasons for this or is she imagining too much?
His blank face flashes in her mind, with that expression it was hard to tell what he's thinking about and when he's just teasing or being extremely serious about a subject. But it couldn't be, could it…? She looks at her own reflection on the dark display of the phone.
Nah. He's too focused on enhancing his dueling skills to be thinking of anything else, right?
Tapping the edge of her phone on her chin, she dwells a bit more in that subject. Ryo is a nice guy after all.
I guess even for a person like him, it's still fun to have someone to talk to occasionally.
Somewhen,
On the corridors of the underground,
Saruyama walks carrying a stash of papers, paging it with a thumb as the sheets splashes noisily, his grin enlarging at the statistics shown there and the rising graphs coloring the pages abound. More numbers meant more money and with the Hell Kaiser's popularity on the rise, he'd have his coffers full for a long while.
On his way to the elevator, he oversees the moment as Rie greets the guards and enters the lift after they nod to her giving permission, typing on her brand new phone.
Saruyama waits, smirking to himself, where did she get that? For someone indebted, she's quite rich and healthy looking, almost as if she's not coming here to meet a terrible fate. There's also the unresolved doubt of whatever a strand of pink hair was doing in Ryo's jacket back at the exit of the stadium… It's time for him to dig in all the dirt Ryo is swiping under the rug.
At the top floor of the hotel,
There's already a pair of sandals when Ryo enters room 5103, his glance instinctively roaming to the padded chair already positioned behind the couch. Rie sits there, enticed by a book.
Lately, even when she's reading, she's beaming in happiness, like glittery particles are emanating from her. Will she puke rainbows next? He raises a brow, undressing his overcoat and tossing it onto the couch along with his briefcase.
"What is this book about?" he supports both hands onto the back of the couch, a knee sinking into the cushioned seat, his silhouette lightly leaning on behind her, his arms dangerously cornering her sides, the lemony scent of his cologne traveling into the air.
Bowing up her head, she greets him first with a smile. Ever since that day he gifted her the phone, he's been talking to her a lot more often, even though it's mostly idle chat and they still spend the night apart with their respective activities, it's like a small crack appeared in that unapproachable armor of his.
The strands of hair slide down so fluidly, folding on her shoulder bone, delineating it gently over her composed set of long sleeved shirt and plaid dress, he's seen her in this before not long ago, it makes him wonder if she even has a full selection of a wardrobe; her pink lashes bend subtly as she closes her eyes, the tip of her wagging ponytail tickling his chest.
He has a privileged sight from above, of her silhouette and generous curves, he sure can tell where all the sweets are going, but it's improper to keep staring, he's past the thirsty age already. In an attempt to avert his gaze, he finds himself entranced by that radiating smile on her face.
The fact she's been smiling so often lately is intriguing, a bit saccharine too. Did the gift make her that much happier? Had she not been disabled and in such big trouble with the underworld, he wonders how many suitors would be interested. Not that it matters to him, he reckons mentally.
She shows the cover of the book, closing it while holding a finger onto the page she was at to keep it marked.
"An overview in the History of Dueling? Sounds very technical, why are you reading this?"
Standing up, he sits down properly at the comfy and fluffy cushions, the screen of her phone flashing on the side, as she sits on her knees onto the padded chair, her elbows lodged onto the backrest near his seat. Her device is layered with a light-blue gummy cover. He'd not have guessed this is her favorite color.
[I'm studying for a job selection exam.]
"I thought you had plenty of jobs."
[I can't do part-time jobs forever. I want to enter the Industrial Illusions.]
"That's a very big dream," he trails off, opening his briefcase and taking a DVD out of it. "The Industrial Illusions offer a great pay, but you must excel in what you do to work for them. Moreover, will they even accept you? Because," he hesitates, as if saying the word would be inconsiderate. "Of your disability."
She's completely unfazed by his remark. [It's not a requirement to speak, but I'll have to go through an interview. I can communicate just fine with this and via other means.] she nibbles her lower lips. [Do you think they'll reject me?]
"Whether you can speak or not shouldn't matter as long as you give them results," he assures in a confident voice. "From all I know, you could even be a duelist and you'd just have to let your manager take care of all the speaking for you."
[That's true.]
"Just know that Pegasus can be a very demanding man, and he's also tricky to converse with."
[You know Mr. Pegasus in person?] her eyes almost bulged out.
"I met him a few times, but only in social events for duelists, he barely talked to me, though."
[That's splendid!] she types frantically. [I'm not sure how long it'll take to meet him in person, but people said he likes to personally oversee the tests. Once I can get in, I'll be working with office tasks, but the job is stable and they said you may even travel if they require it.]
"You seem hyped about it," he replies vaguely, setting up the DVD player under the TV rack, coming back and tuning on the monitor. "Is this why you've been in such a good mood lately?"
[It's not only that, now that I have this I can freely speak to people! It's so much easier now. I'm so grateful for this gift, Ryo!]
He flinches as if caught off guard by those words, turning his face away to the TV and clicking around buttons on the remote until he gets to the recorded match. His cheeks heated a bit there.
[What are you doing tonight?]
"Homework. I have to watch an opponent's recorded match."
[So this is what duelists do,] she ponders for a moment, Haru's face coming to mind. [I won't bother you then.]
Waving her hand briefly, she's about to turn around, but halts midway, jumping up and coming his way, plopping onto the couch, beside him, making him raise a brow as she pushes a paper envelope onto his chest.
Grabbing it clumsily, he opens it quickly, an inner shiver as it reminds him too much of the envelope where those pictures were. His eyes widening at the chunk of money bills in there.
"What is this?"
[It's part of the payment for this,] she points at the cellphone.
"And why are you trying to pay for it?"
[I don't feel well accepting it like that,] she admits. [I can't pay it all at once, but I'll cover the whole price eventually.]
"You're a hard one to please, aren't you?" he mutters to himself, sighing wearily.
Cupping her hand above his and placing the envelope back, and guiding it her way, she flinches, her heart skipping a beat there.
"If you keep being a goody-shoes, people will end up trampling on you."
Her lips blabber unknowable words, her cheeks colored the same shade as her hair.
"If I were a bad person, you'd be in trouble," he smirks, letting go of her hand, realizing the boldness of his gesture as she shudders. "Just accept a gift when you're given one, don't be stubborn, there's no need for something as useless as pride, I told you it's troublesome if I can't understand you either."
He ends with a snort, seizing the remote and playing the match, signaling that conversation is over. Does she have such a low opinion of him? That he'd extort money from a person who was already indebted? Or is she being cautious? Pride will lead nowhere at this rate, he understands that all too well.
Sometimes, you just have to get rid of your old views, smash them into smithereens, then rebuild it from scratch.
Clutching the envelope onto her hands, she leaves him be, a thoughtful semblance, her brows curling up conflicted. Despite the uncaring and apathetic look, Ryo was a very grounded person and had those strong sentences ready on the tip of his tongue. She could learn from him.
Their ears ring at the buzz of the interphone inside the room. Their glances encountering each other confusedly as Ryo stands up in a rush, pausing the match, certainly none of them were expecting visits. At impatient footsteps that mash the carpet, he gapes subtly, answering to the intercom, only his voice coming out the other side.
"Saruyama?! What are you doing here?"
Rie has a bad feeling about this all and so does he is the mutual understanding they achieve by glancing at each other worriedly. What is his manager doing here at this hour?