Light's eyes briefly roam over Shinoska, his expression unreadable.
Shinoska restrains the urge to shift beneath his gaze, instead meeting his eyes. She knows very well that he's not one to much care about fashion or makeup or other such things, but she'd wanted to dress up for their date.
"You look great, Shinoska," Light says as his expression melts into a smile.
"So do you," Shinoska replies smoothly, though on the inside she feels a warmth begin to envelope her.
"Ah, this is nothing special," Light says as he looks down at his clothes, his simple blue jeans, t-shirt, and warm jacket flattering, but nothing unusual for him.
"But, anyways…Shall we go?" He says as he looks up at her, then offers his arm.
"Yes. We shall," Shinoska replies as she slowly wraps her arm around his and the two head toward Space World.
They walk side by side as they board the train to make their way toward Space World. They chat along the way, but are for the most part content to sit in a comfortable, yet close silence.
Once they get off at their stop, they eventually arrive at the shuttle bus stop that's meant to take them to the theme park.
"I'm honestly just surprised you want to go to Space World. I don't think we've been since…junior high? And when we went you didn't seem especially impressed," Shinoska says.
"Well, I just thought it would be a nice change of pace. And I hear they've added new attractions, so I wanted to see them with you," Light replies and Shinoska purses her lips a bit in response, her cheeks reddening ever so slightly.
'There he goes being all smoothe again. What's up with him today?'
Before she can think it over too much, the bus finally pulls up in front of them. They board the bus and swipe their cards, then heading over to the back to take their seats.
A man in a suit takes a seat behind them, though Shinoska doesn't pay him much mind. As they make short stops in a few places, the bus fills up rather quickly. After making all the nearby stops, the bus finally begins its journey toward Space World.
"How's the Student Council going?" Light asks after a moment of pause.
"I'd say it's going well. We're in the middle of planning a festival, so it's a bit busy, but nothing I can't handle," Shinoska answers.
"That sounds about right. You've always been good at being busy," Light replies.
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Shinoska asks with a cocked brow, but Light merely laughs and waves her off.
"It's a good thing. You're a hard worker through and through," Light says and Shinoska merely shakes off his compliments.
Her work ethic is and always has been something that comes naturally to her, so she's always found it a bit odd to be anything but humble about it.
"You could always join a club too, Light. If memory serves, people were literally hounding you to be President of the Student Council," Shinoska says.
"Sure, but I wasn't interested. I wanted to focus on my academics," Light answers.
"Well, that's certainly panning out for you. Didn't you get the top score in all of Japan for the latest practice exam?" Shinoska says.
"Yeah, I did," Light says as he merely nods in response, not at all phased by such an achievement.
"See? You're not even phased. You could definitely join a club in your free time. It'll look really good on your resume," Shinoska says, the last bit coming out with a bit of a sing-songy tone. Light merely chuckles in response, waving her off.
"That may be, but for now, I think I'm fine," he answers.
Shinoska pouts a bit, her attempts to convince him to join a club once again proving fruitless.
"As long as you're sure," she says, though there's a hint of disappointment to her tone. She's for the most part interested because she knows he often talks of being bored—which she can understand, at least somewhat.
After knowing him for so long, Shinoska knows being a genius means he's often so far ahead of his peers that she sometimes worries if he's engaged with them very much. While she knows he has her, she still hopes for him to put his potential to better use.
Noticing the look in her eyes, Light reaches over and encircles his hand over hers. Shinoska tenses up a bit before relaxing as she looks over to see a gentle look on his face.
"You don't have to worry about me, Shinoska," he says with a reassuring tone. "Light…?" Shinoska says with softening eyes.
Whatever has gotten into him has certainly made him rather bold, though she can't exactly say she dislikes it.
After a silent moment together, Light slowly pauses and closes his eyes.
"Light? Are you okay?" Shinoska asks with concern evident in her voice, her grip on his hand tightening a bit.
Light startles a bit at the sound of being addressed, his eyes snapping open as he slowly turns to look at her.
"Yes. I just have a small headache, that's all," he says with a faint smile as he reaches up and rubs his templates with his free hand.
Just then, the bus comes to a halt as a lone man in a bright red jacket stands by a stop. The doors slowly open, letting the man inside.
Shinoska's attention briefly goes toward the man before returning to Light, her concern for his condition momentarily taking priority.
"Maybe you should rest. We can always come back another day," Shinoska says gently. "No, it's okay. I'll be fine," Light replies, internally running over his plan.
'He's finally here! There are around 7 other people on this bus, so this should work out perfectly!'
"I'm taking control of this bus!" The man in the red jacket yells with a leering grin on his face, heavy bags emphasizing the lack of humanity in his beady eyes.
Shinoska feels her blood run cold as she lifts her head up and sees the glint of silver metal, the gleam of the gun reflecting in her eyes. The man has a smug expression on his face as he presses the barrel of the weapon against the bus driver's head.
Screams erupt across the bus as the man clicks his tongue.
"Don't cause a fuss, ya hear?! I'll kill anyone that moves!" He threatens as his fingers ghosts over the trigger, the bus driver whimpering in response.
'DON'T!'
It takes everything in Shinoska's body for her to resist yelling out, her nails digging into the flesh of her lap as she grits her teeth.
'That…that… criminal! How can he be so cruel?!'
The gears in Shinoska's head slowly start to turn as she recognizes the man from a news broadcast.
'He's an escaped robber! If he's on this bus, I highly doubt he's just here to rob us all. He's probably already making plans in his mind to use us all as a bunch of hostages. Seems his last failed crime hurt his ego and now he's feeling bold,' she thinks to herself, all the time she spends looking at crime psychology and the like rushing to the forefront of her mind.
But despite her thoughts having a sense of rationality, her heartbeat thumps with rage and fear. Her eyes slowly drift over to Light, who's been watching her the whole time.
The hand still wrapped around her own squeezes with a gentle tightness, Shinoska nearly feeling tears well up at the sensation.
'Even now, he thinks of comforting me…'
Light keeps his expression tense as he looks between Shinoska and the gun-wielding criminal.
'I hate to show her this, but it is for the sake of my plans; the greater good. Aside from us growing closer, it will give me a chance to eradicate the pest sitting behind us. Perhaps a possible side benefit is she will begin to learn that her peaceful ideals of justice are simply not possible. Not in the world as it is now,' Light thinks to himself while hiding his internal elation at the execution of his plan.
"Driver, you know the phone number for Space Land's offices, don't you? Call them right fuckin' now!" The robber shouts as he shakes the gun in his hand.
"Yes, I'll do it now!" The driver replies quickly as he reaches over and quickly dials a number, his body tense as the phone picks up, "Th-this is Sasaki, the driver of bus number 174!"
"Tell them what's happening," the robber says harshly.
"An armed man has hijacked our bus!" The driver says quickly before the criminal snatches the phone from him.
"You hear that?! Then listen to this: Bring Space Land's profits from yesterday to two bus stops away from there. And have a woman bring it by car alone," the man demands as he turns the gun on the other passengers on the bus.
"If you try anything funny or call the police, I'll start to kill the passengers one by one!" The man threatens before throwing the phone on the ground and smashing it with his foot.
By the look in his eye, he intends to keep his word.
While Shinoska fears for her own safety, she can't help it as he heartbreaks for all the passengers on board quivering in terror.
The injustice of it all makes her sick to her stomach.
Her attention is snapped away when she sees Light slowly digging in his bag, his hands moving around as if in a writing motion. He then pulls out a small piece of paper and slowly moves it over to present it to her.
'Shinoska, don't be scared. I'll look for a chance to grab his hand that's holding the pistol using a move my father taught me.'
While Shinoska is more than familiar with the fact that Light's father has taught him self-defense moves in the event of an emergency, the idea of him putting himself in harm's way is too much for her to bare.
Before she can protest, the two hear a voice coming from behind them.
"Don't do that. It's too dangerous," the suited man says with a firm tone, "If it comes to that, then I'll do it."
Shinoska's expression momentarily contorts in confusion before she turns to get a better look at the man. While he seems rather ordinary, his eyes are hardened with experience and strong will.
She's willing to at least hear him out, but Light doesn't seem as trusting as his lip pulls into a harsh line. He turns to scribble something onto the piece of paper, Shinoska glancing between him and the man behind them.
"We don't have to pass notes. As long as we whisper, he won't hear us over the sound of the bus," the man says assuredly.
Shinoska bites her lip as she looks between the two.
"Light, maybe we should-" She starts, but she's quickly cut off.
"Do you have proof you're not just that criminal's accomplice?" Light says, an undertone of accusation clear in his voice.
Shinoska and the man behind them both go still at the thought.
'Now that he mentions it, it's not as if that's necessarily out of the question. But then again, what does that criminal stand to gain by having an accomplice? He doesn't at all seem like the type to share whatever petty reward he's after nor particularly smart enough to think of needing someone to watch his back. But… I can't be sure. I just don't know enough,' Shinoska thinks to herself, frustration filling her body as she feels more helpless than ever before.
"You should know more than anyone how common it is, Shinoska. He could just be serving as a diversion or an accomplice to watch the man's back," Light says.
Shinoska's silence is telling as she looks back at the man with a far more cautious expression than before.
The man seems to be holding back a sigh as he swallows hard, then resolving to reach into his coat pocket and pull out his ID.
"Here. This should be enough proof," the man whispers as he presents the identification card to prove his innocence.
'The FBI…? What's he doing here?' Shinoska internally wonders, her suspicions of the man fading, but the young woman only has more questions than before.
"I trust you," Light says and the man draws back his ID and tucks it into his coat pocket, "I won't ask why an FBI agent is on board with us, but… Do you have a gun?"
"I do," the man answers.
"So, if something happens, then I can rely on you right?" Light asks.
'If something happens…? Just what is he planning to do?'
Shinoska only feels her unease grow as the man stops in front of the old couple and threatens to beat them to death.
Just then, the paper Light was writing fell to the ground. He bends over to pick it up, but the bus hijacker is quick to turn his gun on him and bark out questions.
"Don't move! The hell's on that paper?!"
Light pauses and slowly moves his hand away from the crumpled piece of paper.
Shinoska feels time slow down as the man slowly approaches and picks it up off the ground.