Notes:
Hello everyone, Vera here.
Well, after several months here I come to leave you one more chapter of this fic, which, I hope you like it❤.
An apology if it's been a few months since I last uploaded a chapter to this story, just remember that this fic is slow to update.
Now without further ado, I leave you with the reading ❤ because there is an interesting conversation coming up.
09. Family
"Mai?"
"Megumi?"
Those two relatives met at the door of that gymnasium.
That meeting did not seem to be a coincidence at all. Since it was quite complicated for their times to coincide due to the workloads of both of them.
But that afternoon, they coincided thanks to Maki.
"What are you doing here?" asked Mai with confusion.
"Maki sent me a message telling me that she had to talk to me about something urgent," replied Megumi looking at his relative, "And you? What are you doing here, Mai?"
"The same as you, Maki told me there was something urgent she wanted to consult with me!" she took out her cell phone and looked at the message her twin had sent her.
They both looked at each other with confusion. They sensed that something strange was happening for the same person to suddenly call them both, at the same place and at the same time.
"This is very strange..." answered Megumi looking towards the gym.
The curtain on the windows was down and the sign "closed" hung on the main door.
"Too strange coming from her" Mai replied with a grimace.
"Do you think something happened to her?" Megumi asked intrigued.
"I don't know. And now that you mention it, I have a strange feeling" the twin commented as she tried to look inside the store.
The lights were off and they couldn't see Maki in there.
"Oh, how good of you to arrive. Just in time!" they heard the voice of the aforementioned woman coming from behind those two.
Quickly they both turned around, watched as Maki brought a pizza box and some bags with drinks and Chinese food.
"Where were you?" questioned Mai with her arms crossed.
"I had gone out to buy eat. Can't you see the bags?" She raised her hands a little, which were busy.
"Is everything all right, Maki san?" asked Megumi.
"It is. Now, help me while I reopen the premises and once inside I'll tell you what's going on"
Mai took the pizza box and Megumi took the bags while Maki took the keys out of her pocket.
That place was really empty, not what it had been months ago when it had opened and that was the feeling, full of customers for that time of day.
"Maki, what's going on?" asked Mai as her sister closed the door holding the closed sign in place.
"Something very serious must be going on for you to call us both" Megumi answered very seriously.
Maki lowered her shoulders.
"Before we move on to the topic I want to talk to you about," she passed the pizza box, as well as the bags of Chinese food and drinks to the center of the ring, "Let's eat!" she climbed up those ropes to get into the ring.
Mai and Megumi were surprised to see Maki's behavior.
"This is very suspicious" Mai crossed her arms again, "Why don't you tell us once and for all what is happening to you?" she asked annoyed.
"Because we'd better have a full stomach before they listen to what I have to tell them and help me make a decision" Maki leaned on the ropes and looked down at them from above, "Now come on up. Let's do this like old times, eating like it was a sleepover!"
Mai and Megumi looked at each other again. Truly, Maki was acting very strange in her eyes, even that advice to eat before delivering the bad news was not typical of her.
So those two had no choice but to go up and eat on top of the ring.
"YOU MUST BE KIDDING WITH THIS CONTRACT!" shouted Mai while holding those sheets in her hands.
Maki gave them the news once they finished eating. The three of them were sitting in the center of the ring, forming a circle with the food and drinks in the middle.
It was there that Maki decided to tell them the whole truth about why she had called them.
"It's no joke Mai" commented Maki as she slurped some noodles from the Chinese food box, "This contract is very serious.
"Yet the clauses are very!" -Mai was trying to find the right word. "VERY EXCLUSIVE AND RESTRICTIVE!"
"I know. But the pay doesn't sound bad at all, don't you think? I'd get paid more than if I worked somewhere else" Maki replied, eating some more, "And more for someone like me, who just bought all this food with the little money I had left in my account. I'm literally broke" She picked up her bottle of soda and gulped it down.
"Even if the pay is tempting, don't you think it would be too restrictive and heavy a job?" reproached her sister "Besides, we are talking about something very serious. Being an artist's bodyguard is a delicate matter"
"I know. Yet everything they offer is something I need in one way or another. The pay would help me save this business as much as it would help me support myself, let alone the health insurance, I need it one way or another" she sighed and slightly tilted her head back, she was annoyed.
Mai rudely moved those sheets of paper "TELL ME YOU HAVEN'T ACCEPTED THIS JOB YET! HAVE YOU ALREADY SIGNED THIS CONTRACT?"
"I haven't signed anything yet and that's why I called them to ask their opinions about this" Maki stared at them, while leaning her hands on the canvas of the ring.
"Well, my opinion is that it's a very serious and dangerous job and even more so because you're going to protect that idiot Okkotsu!" Mai reproached, "So in my opinion this is a lousy idea. And more so that it seems that this is your karma!"
Maki sighed, "I know. Sounds like fate is making me pay for the dishes I broke as a teenager"
"I REMEMBER THAT DAYS AGO YOU HAD SAID THAT YOU NEVER WANTED TO HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THAT IDIOT AGAIN AND NOW, OVERNIGHT HIS REPRESENTATIVES WANT YOU TO BE HIS BODYGUARD. WHY WOULD THEY OFFER YOU SUCH A JOB IN THE FIRST PLACE? WHAT WAS IT THAT HAPPENED FOR THEM TO WANT YOU SO SUDDENLY?" asked Mai leaving those sheets on the canvas. She was waiting for an explanation to everything that was going on.
Maki again slightly tilted her head back and looked at the ceiling.
"That was because I ran into him again the other day and..." She was rudely interrupted by her sister.
"WAIT! WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU MET HIM AGAIN? WHAT WAS OKKOTSU DOING TO MAKE YOU TWO MEET AGAIN?" questioned Mai with too much pressure.
"BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ANY OF THIS?!"
"Could you let me explain first?" Maki gave her an annoyed look.
"Ok" Mai sighed, "What happened? When did you see each other again?"
Maki straightened her back.
"I found him almost a week ago" Maki stared at her sister "Let's say that, as fate would have it, that idiot ended up coming in here because some crazy fans were chasing him and I had no choice but to hide him from those crazy bitches!" she paused, a slight smile of pride appeared on her lips before she finished explaining "If it hadn't been for me, those crazy bitches would have eaten him alive!"
"So now you've become his savior?" asked Mai in surprise, "How ironic of you, first you were his bully and now you're about to be his bodyguard! What kind of karma are you paying for?"
Maki let out the air in fury.
"I don't know what kind of Karma I'll be paying!"
She stood up and leaned her back against the ropes "I just know that right now I'm between a rock and a hard place! And more than…" She paused "I need to make a decision soon with this whole issue. Especially because as I said, I need money"
"And how long did they give you to think about it?" asked Mai, raising an eyebrow.
Maki sighed with resignation, "I have until tomorrow to give they an answer..."
"SERIOUSLY, THIS IS WORSE THAN I THOUGHT!" Mai whipped her arms at her sides and looked at Megumi, who was sitting next to her "MEGUMI, SAY SOMETHING TO HER!"
The man sighed, he was finishing reading that contract carefully. He was trying to find some legal gap, but nothing. That contract was really quite specific.
"This time I'm on Mai's side, this is very serious Maki san" Megumi also moved the leaves she was holding in his hand.
"Agh!" she reproached, "You don't have to tell me again, Megumi!"
"I know you don't want me to sound repetitive, but on this occasion Mai is right. It is not an easy job at all because you are practically selling your soul to the devil in exchange for working practically 24/7 for him!" he explained seriously when using that metaphor.
"And by the way, there are several very specific clauses that if you break them it is more than obvious that you will be greatly harmed since they are very specific demands where there is a lot of money involved" Megumi hit the sheet he was holding with his right hand with his left hand. "Seriously, this is not just any job you can take lightly!"
Maki crossed her arms over her chest "Wow! I've never seen them so worried about me before!" she said sarcastically. "I know I'm about to sell my soul to the devil, you don't have to say it again! And believe me, I'm taking this as seriously as I can!"
"WE ARE WORRIED BECAUSE THIS IS A DELICATE MATTER! IF YOU ACCEPT THIS JOB! WHAT WILL YOU TELL OUR MOTHER? WHEN WILL BE THE NEXT TIME MEGUMI AND I WILL SEE YOU AGAIN? WHAT IF A TRAGEDY HAPPENS LIKE A CRAZY FAN TRIES TO ATTACK YOU AND HE AGAIN? WHAT IF YOU GET SERIOUSLY INJURED OR DIE?" questioned Mai very upset "THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS YOU HAVE TO CONSIDER!"
"And not only will your integrity be at stake, but you will also have to protect the life of an artist worth thousands of dollars over your life..." commented Megumi with too much seriousness.
Maki lowered her shoulders.
"I know and I've been thinking about everything you both say, and believe me I'm not taking this lightly, I've been thinking all night about everything you two just said" she sighed with too much frustration.
"And about Mom" Maki waved her arms from side to side, "I don't know. I was thinking of lying to her. I'm thinking of telling her that I got a new job but in a company which will consume all my time, but in which I will earn very well and I will even be able to send her some money for her business" She stared at them as she returned to the middle of the ring –"And well about seeing you two, I will do my best to keep in touch with both of you, and on my days off, I will try to meet with you so we can be updated"
Megumi and Mai looked at each other. That answer made them uneasy.
Mai stood up "Don't tell me you're seriously considering working for that idiot Yuta Okkotsu!" she said, crossing her arms, "especially with what happened between the two of you in high school, do you really want to be close to him?"
"I'll be fine!" Maki shrugged, "I'll know how to handle it"
"Of course! Have you already forgotten what happened between you two and how it all ended?" Mai pointed at her with an accusing tone, "Don't give me that stupid story that you are now the good girl who never made life impossible for that por idiot!" she reproached, "DON'T MAKE ME LAUGH!"
"But you also bullied he in high school!" said Maki to her sister.
"I admit it!" Mai raised her hands a little as a time-out sign, "I also annoyed Okkotsu, but my thing wasn't more than a simple joke!" she raised an eyebrow while she kept looking accusingly at her twin, "Besides, are you going to be able to resist the temptation being by his side? Because it's more than obvious that you still like him"
Maki pursed her lips. She hated that her sister was right and incidentally, she hated that Mai knew all about her past.
"Excuse me for butting in, but..." interrupted Megumi raising his hand a little as if asking for the floor while he was still sitting down.
"What else happened between Okkotsu senpai and Maki san in high school for them to Mai say all that?" he asked looking at those two. He was not aware of everything that happened in those years because he was a year younger and they were in different classrooms.
Maki opened her mouth, but could not say anything as Mai was quicker than her to answer that question.
"YUTA WAS MAKI'S ALMOST BOYFRIEND AND SHE LOST HER VIRGINITY TO HIM!"
"MAI!" the older twin mumbled, clenching her hands into fists, wanting to lash out at her sister for revealing that intimate secret.
"Ok... I guess I should never have asked..." Megumi muttered shame. He was again in crossfire at that moment as between the two of them they exchanged more words.
"And they didn't do it just once" Mai continued answering, putting a finger to her cheek "I remember hearing that it was several times!" she smiled mischievously "And more because it was you who told me about it"
"I SHOULD NEVER HAVE TOLD YOU ANYTHING!" Maki shouted in annoyance, "AND THE FACT THAT I DID IT MORE THAN ONCE, IT WAS ONLY BECAUSE HE AND I WERE JUST EXPERIMENTING..." her face was all red.
"Ha!, And the experiment went wrong, didn't it? Because I clearly remember that you started to bother him after that girl wanted to be his girlfriend, and that happened right after you rejected him!" explained Mai without looking away "As I said, I bothered him at the time for being a nerd, but yours was more out of jealousy or am I wrong? I mean because your way of showing love is horrendous!"
Maki kept silent, she was cornered. There was a lot of truth in what Mai had said about everything Maki had done with Yuta.
Especially because in addition to having bothered him out of jealousy, it had been a personal and emotional discharge due to the family problems they had in those years.
Megumi scratched the back of his neck at such uncomfortable answers, "Well, now I understand why you seemed uncomfortable with this whole issue of having to work with him" he replied seriously, "At the same time we can assume that it won't be easy for Okkotsu senpai to work with you at his side either" he now seemed to be on Yuta's side.
"And now I understand why there was that clause about the use of a contraceptive method in the contract!" Mai pointed to her sister "That's why I'm asking you Maki, did something else happen between the two of you this last time you saw each other? Because it is more than obvious that you are also taking this job for a reason beyond money and I can see it in your eyes!"
Maki relaxed her hands. She remembered what days ago, she and Yuta were about to do on that canvas. She remembered those kisses and caresses, as well as how it had given her some pleasure. A pleasure she wanted to experience again.
"No. Nothing happened that day between him and me" she lied "because that day his manager and his driver came quickly for him"
Mai sighed.
"So what's stopping you from saying no to this job offer?" she asked without taking her eyes off her.
"Maybe what is preventing me from saying no to this offer is the fact that I just ran out of money in my account" replied Maki looking at her workplace, "Besides, if I don't get money soon, everything I invested in this business will go down the drain and all my years of effort won't be worth it anymore"
Mai and Megumi looked at each other once again. They both let the air out despondently, they knew that Maki's situation was very discouraging.
"And if you accept it, what will happen to this place?" asked Megumi.
Maki sat back down. She put her hands on the canvas and leaned slightly on her arms looking up at the ceiling.
"I don't know... - she sighed "Although Yuta's representative told me that they will cover the rent of the place... it is more than obvious that I won't have time to attend this business... so I will have no other option but to close this place temporarily"
Maki dropped onto her back, with her hands on the sides of her head. "Seriously, I don't know what to do...and time...is running out"
Mai sighed and still standing, she stood next to her sister, to look down on her.
"Seriously Maki, you're on the ropes!"
"Thanks for reminding me Mai" commented the older twin in a big grimace.
"Anyway!" Mai sighed as she took a seat next to her, "We will have no choice but to support you in whatever decision you make"
"Are you really my twin?" said Maki with surprise as she sat back down.
"Idiot, could you take this seriously?!" replied Mai sitting on her sister's right side, "In the end, me and Megumi could tell you a thousand reasons why we think this is the worst idea in the world. Plus I could tell you more reasons why I think this is a karma you deserve"
Maki grunted at those words.
"Even so, we both know clearly that you will take this stupid job. Especially because you'll have the job you've always dreamed of and the one you're best at, right? And that's beating people up!" commented Mai, looking at her sister with a soft smile "I mean because that's what you're really good at!"
Megumi got into the conversation.
"And as Mai said, anyway, we will both support you in the last thing you decide Maki san" He looked at her seriously, "The only thing I ask in return, is that you try to give us continuous news about how you are and where you are, okay?"
"Although I guess we'll be seeing you in the media and on social media soon, won't we?" Mai commented curiously.
Maki sighed.
"I hope I don't get on any social media or in any gossip magazines. I don't want to be the focus of attention. That's something I'll leave exclusively to Nobara" her voice was tinged with annoyance.
"And what does Nobara have to do with all this?" asked Megumi curiously.
Quickly Mai pulled out her cell phone, opened Instagram and showed him those pictures that were on the various gossip accounts about the mysterious girl who seemed to be dating the singer Okkotsu.
"Because Nobara is this mysterious girl who was in this photo with that idiot. And she's the one they've been talking about in all the media" Mai answered, bringing him up to speed on the situation. "She is the news of the momento"
Megumi looked at those photographs, he was not very attentive to those things, but after that he would be more attentive to such gossip.
"Besides, it seems that she is also currently involved in all this, since Yuta's manager told me that she had just signed a contract with them as well" replied Maki with a pout.
That news came as a surprise to both Zenin and that was noticed by Maki.
"Why would she sign such a contract? Why didn't he tell us about it before?" asked Mai with a touch of annoyance.
"Because according to what that representative explained to me, they are forbidden to talk about this," said Maki, observing how surprised her relatives were, "WAIT!, SHE HASN'T TALKED TO YOU TWO EITHER?!" she raised an eyebrow, she was quite surprised.
Megumi shook his head, "No. Actually, we haven't heard from her in days"
"And now I understand why!" commented Mai, putting a hand to her chin. "I hope he doesn't go to his head with fame!"
Maki sighed. She didn't really know how she should feel about that issue and even more so if Nobara had signed a contract as well.
Maki felt that being around Yuta and possibly Nobara would make her uncomfortable and more so that there seemed to be chemistry between those two.
"I definitely have to think this through with a cool head... maybe I should sleep on it..."
"Even so, if you get on any entertainment news, I want the exclusive, OK?" commented Mai, looking at her with a smile, "Maybe this is also your moment to make your way with the stars"
Maki smiled at those words.
"I promise you. You'll be the first to get the exclusive in case my life goes to shit after this"
"Even if we can't be with you, you know that we'll try to be there for you in any case" Megumi commented, looking at the two of them.
"And if in the end you decide to accept this job, take care of yourself, okay? And I'm talking in all aspects!" answered Mai with a soft smile "Mostly because I do NOT want to find out that something bad happened to you and much less do I want you to make me an aunt so soon, understood?"
Maki got down on her knees and hugged them both. She put her arms around their necks.
"Thank you both so much..." Said Maki trying not to cry "I don't know what I would do without you!"
That embrace came as too much of a surprise to both of them. After exchanging a glance, they smiled and hugged Maki.
"Even so, just promise us that you will return home safe and sound, but above all, promise that you will come back soon, I don't want to have to lie to Mom for so long about your absence" commented Mai without letting go of her. She was the one who was hugging her tightly the most.
"I promise" Maki replied without letting them go, "Even so, as I said, I will sleep on it one last time before I make my final decision and if I don't accept this job, I will also tell you"
And so, that afternoon those three continued talking, eating and drinking some more. Especially because Maki did not know if that would be the last time she would see those two for a long time if she accepted that job.
Even so, Maki would review the proposal one last time. And she would make the final decision guided by pleasure.
Notes:
I hope you liked it and more spicy stuff is coming between those two 🔥
We keep reading❤
Again, sorry if there are errors in the translation