Arc 1: The American Psycho [XI]

Chapter: Without a Reservation at Dorsia

Dorsia was the biggest and best restaurant the White Lotus luxury hotel had to offer and after taking a quick look at his wristwatch, Hikigaya noticed he was just in time to grab a quick lunch. And with some luck, a serial killer while he was at it, he thought to himself.

"What is a cereal killer?"

Crap. He forgot about the kid.

"Anya is a kid." The little girl repeated, nodding her head before she held up her fingers. "Anya is six years old." She informed him with due diligence, like it was an incredibly important detail that he should know and commit to memory.

Kids are weird, he thought.

"Anya is not weird!" The little girl protested vehemently. "Hikki is weird."

Just for the heck of it, he asked. "How am I weird?"

"Hikki is weird because we are in a restaurant and we are not eating food. We are standing in a line and you want to talk to the Matter D." Anya Forger explained impatiently.

"Maître d'." Hikigaya correctly pronounced the word. "And yes, I have to talk to him to see if we can get a reservation. This is not your run of the mill restaurant. So keep your fingers crossed." He eyed the little pink haired girl curiously. "Did you understand anything I just said?"

Anya Forger looked proud as she confessed, "Not a thing. Hikki used really big words. But Anya knows you did it on purpose. You were trying to see if I can -" She abruptly cut herself off and looked around to see if anyone was eavesdropping on their conversation and when she was certain nobody was listening to her, she whispered the next few word. "– read your mind."

"So what's the verdict?" He asked.

"Anya can read your mind." The little girl whispered. "But I can't understand you if you use really big words or phrases that I don't know. I don't know what 'reservation' means, what 'run of the mill' means, what 'keeping your fingers crossed' means, what 'verdict' means. Anya doesn't know these words and phrases."

Hikigaya found it a bit strange. "Are you really six years old?"

Anya was taken aback. But she recovered quickly. "Yes!"

Lies, he thought.

"Anya is not lying!" The little girl stated vehemently. "Anya is really six years old!"

Her voice had carried and now he was getting strange looks from the patrons of the restaurant. His sensitive ears picked up a few hushed whispers as well. Not good. If this kept up, he won't be able to get a table in the restaurant, let alone catch a notorious serial killer. But he forgot on crucial thing – luck was still on his side.

"Hello. Welcome to Dorsia. My name is Sarah Connor." A tall, attractive and well proportioned older woman with blue eyes and auburn long hair greeted him in a professional capacity with all the air of a veteran soldier who had seen a ton of action in the proverbial battlefield they call the hospitality industry and Hikigaya knew she was the Maître d' just from the spread collar and Windsor-knotted Duca Sartoria tie. "How may I help you?"

Hikigaya gave the woman his best smile. "Hi. I was wondering if I could get a table for me and my niece." Play along, he mentally added while glancing down at Anya.

Anya Forger tugged on his hand and proclaimed in a sweet and innocent little voice for the Maître d'. "This is my unkle Hikki. He has been my unkle forever. Unkle Hikki is a good unkle because he promised to buy Anya ice-cream."

Kids were such horrible actors.

"Aw!" A blonde woman cooed from somewhere. "What a sweet little kid."

On second thought, who was he to judge.

But the Maître d' was made of much colder stuff. "Do you have a reservation?"

Hikigaya tried his best not to let the smile falter on his face. "Um no." He went for an awkward laugh to ease the tension and when that didn't seem to work, he tried logic. "Um, we didn't really plan to eat at your -" He cut himself off abruptly, when she raised an eyebrow, realizing what he was about to say and then started again. "I mean, it was an impromptu decision. The kid needed ice-cream and I wanted to grab a quick bite to eat at your famous restaurant. I mean, I have read the reviews online and I couldn't wait to check out the place for myself."

Hikigaya thought flattery would work, but he had severely underestimated the amounts of fucks Sarah Connor didn't give. "Sorry sir. Unless you have a reservation, I can't help you."

Okay. Time for strategy number 2. He tried to lean in and get in her personal space, to whisper in her ears a more personal reason, which was for her ears only, that might garner some sympathy from her and break her cold, emotionless mask and cater to her more feminine side. He couldn't be a hundred percent sure, but Sarah Connor looked old enough to be a mother. A single mother more likely. But she stopped him with a look. Just one look. She didn't say it out loud, but he got the message loud and clear – 'If you move any closer, I will fuck you up.'

Hikigaya took a step back, putting a respectable distance between himself and the Maître d' and tried once more. He wasn't about to give up that easily, that's for sure. "Look ma'am." He spoke politely. "I know it's a bit inconvenient, but this is the first time I am meeting my niece. My sister and I stay abroad. In different countries. And we kinda lost touch and grew apart over the years. But when she gave birth to Anya, she called me for the first time in many years. I promised her, I'll be back and I am a man of my word. I came back to Ikebukuro and I got back in touch with my sister and now we are talking again. She even let me spend time with Anya today, because she said Anya should get to know her uncle better. Now, I don't want to screw this up. I promised Anya that I will take her to Dorsia, the best restaurant in the world and we will have ice-cream for lunch and we will keep it a secret from her mother." He took one step forward, leaned in and whispered. "Is there really nothing you can do?"

The rugged, tough as nails, older woman in excellent physical condition looked him dead in the eye. "Sorry. We are fully booked today. Unless someone cancels at the last minute, I can't help you, sir. Now if you will excuse – What the hell!"

Everyone in the restaurant let out a sharp gasp. But now that he listened more carefully it was mostly the women who made this sound of shock and surprise. The men couldn't be bothered to look interested, but they did try to react accordingly or otherwise they would be labeled as 'cold' and 'heartless' and 'without feelings and emotions' by the women they were with, so they did turn around and look and tried to figure out what the hell was happening in the restaurant where they were trying to enjoy their meal in relative silence.

From the looks of it, a man was down on one knee, holding open a small velvet jewelry box, inside which was kept a diamond ring – he was proposing to the love of his life. And he had to do it in the middle of a restaurant. How original, Hikigaya thought. Think about the people who came here to eat buddy, he mentally added.

"Rachel Karen Greene, will you marry me?"

For some reason Anya gripped his trouser leg and Hikigaya looked down. He was more worried about her. He hadn't dealt with telepaths before, but he figured in a crowded place, with her having access to everyone's thoughts and feelings, it can't be fun. In fact, sometimes it could be a bit too much. "What's wrong, Anya?"

Anya looked him in the eye and whispered. "Rach is gonna leave."

There was another sharp gasp and this time it was even louder and before he knew it, he heard the clicks of heels rushing towards him. Having no idea what the hell was going on, Hikigaya grabbed Anya and stepped out of the way and let the gorgeous woman escape from all the stares and whispers of the restaurant.

"Rachel. Rach!" The man was on his feet and running after the woman, but it was already too late. Rachel Karen Greene had stepped into the elevator, the door had already closed and she was gone.

All of a sudden everything felt really, really loud. Everyone was talking, discussing, adding their own two cents into the conversation about what had taken place right before their very own eyes. Hikigaya tried his best not to catch a stray word or hear bits and pieces of the conversation. Really, it was none of his fucking business. Perhaps he was doing a really good job of blocking out all the white noise, because he almost missed what the Maître d' just said to him.

"Excuse me. Could you repeat that?" He asked.

The Maître d' kept things professional. "I said, you might be able to keep your promise to your niece after all. Take a seat at the table and I'll be back with the menus." For the first time, Sarah Connor looked down and spoke to the little girl. There was a soft smile on her lips. "What is your favourite ice-cream, Anya?"