Disclaimer: I don't own jack!
Crossing Stars
Chapter Fourteen: Mob
Kagome pulled her freshly made ID from the machine.
The girl behind it simply stared at her blankly, as if undisturbed.
She hadn't spoke a word at all since she'd arrived. So she'd half expected the woman to be mute.
"Thanks again," Kagome offered her a polite bow.
Kanna nodded in return, just as silent as before.
Quickly, she left the third floor and headed down to the first. It was lunch time and Touya had given her an advancement on her pay so that she could get anything she needed to make it to her next check. She'd tried to tell him that she had plenty in savings to survive for a little while but he wouldn't hear of it.
Kagome attached her ID to a lanyard and tucked it into her purpose. She didn't want her name, face and occupation visible for just anyone to see.
The glass doors of the building slid open and Kagome made her way outside. The thick crowd of fan girls were still present across the street. Their excited cheers suddenly turned to angry hisses when they caught sight of her.
"Hussy!" One of the leaders yelled at her.
Kagome kept her eyes forward, refusing to pay them any mind.
She couldn't imagine how difficult it had to be for Touya. If he wanted to have an honest relationship with someone, then whoever he'd dated would have to put up with the vicious sneers from his rabid fan base.
Heroes were like celebrity idols in their superhuman society. They were the icons of what every person with a quirk aspired to be. They were strong and had earned the respect of the public with the services they'd provided. The downside to that was the fact that there were no current laws on the books about how much of a hero's personal life could be broadcasted. Paparazzi and fans alike would commonly stalk their favorite heroes and try to capture them in some of their most intimate moments of their lives.
If she had to compare it to anything, then it was like watching tigers being filmed from behind glass cages in zoos.
Heroes might have chosen their careers, but that didn't mean that they weren't human. They needed their privacy too.
Kagome stopped at a small convenience store two blocks down the road. She grabbed two bentos, two drinks and checked out. When she'd returned to the Agency's building, she'd noticed that the crowd had moved across the street and was piling their way inside. Originally she wanted to wait until the girls got kicked out by security but one at the back pointed at her and hissed.
"There she is!" The woman snapped again, "It's that hussy!"
She didn't have the chance to move before she'd become surrounded by the feral women.
Ohagi growled from her shoulder, taking angry swipes at any of the women who came too close to her. The cat's presence seemed to deter them some as they did not shove her like they had last time.
Kagome sighed, "I'm a new employee." She held up her hands in a placating manner, "I'm just here to do my job."
"Does that include servicing Dabi too, you harlot?" The ring leader zeroed in on her.
Why, yes, she could 'service' him if she so wanted to and she was certain he would enjoy it. However thirty against two weren't good odds for her at the moment. So she kept her cool.
"Let me make something clear," Kagome's voice sharpened as she addressed the group as a whole. "It's fine to appreciate a hero but when you harass their employees and anyone close to them, then you've ceased to be a fan. You've become a stalker instead."
It was a harsh reality they needed to hear.
"What you're doing to that man is nothing short of sexual harassment. You're even breaking into his agency right now. He works as a public servant to protect to city. How dare you use that as an excuse to act as if he's your personal possession." Her voice rose as she took a step forward, "Heroes are obligated to protect innocent civilians but in cases where the civilians are harassing the heroes, what recourse do they have to protect themselves? If I were Touya then I'd have sued you all for this invasion of privacy."
Kagome paused as she realized that she'd screwed up.
She'd called him by name.
"Did she just say 'Touya'?" One girl whispered venomously.
"That she did, that she did!" Another nodded along in fury.
Great, just great.
She should've just stayed in the building and starved for lunch. Now head going to end up in the hospital on her first day of work if this mob kept up.
"The fuck are you doing in my agency?" Touya's angry tone cut through the crowd. "Get out before I have you all arrested for impeding emergency services."
He came to stand beside her, a wave of angry flames billowing around him. He carefully extended the flames so that she was protected by its ring of blue fire.
The women scuttled back.
"Dabi!" Their cries grew excited.
He simply ignored them and wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders.
"I said leave." He threw the fans a fierce glare. "You're all getting trespassed. Don't show your faces around here again."
She had no idea if he could legally trespass someone from his agency but the threat seemed to work. The women grew deflated and skulked back across the street. However she could feel several pairs of eyes glaring at her with no small amount of jealousy and fury.
Kagome leaned against Touya's side.
She had to admit that seeing him swoop in and deal with the situation did make her heart race. That and he still hadn't moved his arm from her shoulder.
He'd tugged her against his side in an act that she could only describe as possessive.
"Did something happen?" Kagome tipped her chin up towards him.
An indecipherable look crossed his features.
"We'll talk upstairs. It's not a conversation for anyone to hear." The strain in his tone told her that whatever had happened, it'd been serious.
She'd only known him for a short time, but she could tell by the sharp furrowing of his brow and thinly pressed lips that he was upset.
Kagome pressed her hand against his forearm and gradually traced her fingers down the length of his arm. Once she'd reached his hand, she gently laced their fingers together one by one.
Touya leaned against her as he took a low, calming breath.
Ohagi had jumped from her to Touya's shoulders. Now the cat was mewling happily as they'd made their way into the elevator. Once they'd made it inside and the doors closed, she felt Touya wrap both of his arms around her.
"Sorry," The man apologized. "I'm sorry."
Kagome leaned against him.
She wasn't sure if he was apologizing because of what'd happened out front or because of whatever happened on his patrol today. Regardless, she didn't want him to feel responsible.
"It's fine." She lifted her bag still packed with the two bentos she'd bought. "I'd grabbed myself lunch and dinner but I don't mind splitting it with you."
Her smile softened, "Plus it'd be nice to enjoy some of that soba again for dinner tonight."
She heard Touya laugh at that, "So you're asking for a Netflix and Chill date tonight?"
She shrugged her shoulders, "Well I figured that a movie night sounded fun at least."
The elevator continued to ascend to the tenth floor.
"I'll need some clothes," Touya smiled when the chime finally rang and the doors opened to reveal their office floor.
She opened the bag and allowed him to choose the bento that he wanted first. She was perfectly fine with either of them.
"Who says you're staying all night?" Kagome laughed.
"Am I?" He teased her in return.
They'd made it inside his office by now and Touya had pulled a chair up to his desk so that they could eat together.
"I don't know yet, I guess we'll see." She answered simply. She still wasn't quite sure what to call her relationship with Touya. They weren't dating yet but they were both at least interested in each other. She supposed that she'd call it the 'talking' phase most couples went through.
Her gaze leveled with Touya's. Could she have a semi normal relationship with a man who was the number three hero in all of Japan? Once all the lights, glitz and glamor was stripped away, Touya became just a charismatic young man. He was attractive and knew it. He was also confident in himself that it'd bordered on arrogance. However his pride was only matched by his strength, so he could at least back up his promises with action.
He was the complete opposite of her ex and she found that, that prospect excited her.
Even if this ended up becoming a short term fling, there wouldn't be any harm in at least giving it a shot.
"I think I've changed my mind." Kagome smiled when he threw her a confused look. "Why don't you stay over tonight?"
She was curious and she wanted to see where this would lead. It didn't help that seeing all those fangirls hissing earlier made her want to explore her connection to Touya more. Perhaps being accused of being harlot was making her feel vindictive.
She watched as his lips curled up into a confident smirk, "Don't regret that later. I'll be keeping you up tonight."
The wave of heat that rushed through her caused her to shift in her seat.
"I was hoping you'd say that."
