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ロンパ！ Actual colleague: Kirigiri Kyouko~
Monthly Archives: August 2013
[There was no signal to its arrival, but at some point in the day, a (not exactly wrapped) package seemed to appear on the ground beside the front door. A tidy folder with several papers inside rest beneath a box of assorted chocolates; both carefully placed so they were out of the way but wouldn’t go completely unnoticed. On the folder was a sticky note with careful (probably too careful; a bit nervous) handwriting:
“I decided I didn’t want anything to do with this case,
and I wasn’t sure what to give you for the
occasion. It turned out to be rather interesting – maybe
you can make use of it.
Do what you’d like with these. My apologies.
Happy birthday.”]
–
“An interesting case from my beautiful colleague, Kirigiri-san? How curious… and so sweet that she remembered my birthday."
”…goodness, it… Hm. I… I think I shall tread lightly. I am curious, but caution is prudent. Not so much for my safety, but rather, the potentially personal perspective present in these papers…“
“No, I didn’t know. But I can’t really say that I’m surprised by it,” she answered to his first question. “You’ve displayed quite a few self-destructive tendencies already.”
She paused not really sure how to continue. On one hand she wanted to cause him strenuous discomfort but on the other hand… she really just wanted to lie and sugar coat it. Obviously, neither one of those things were going to be helpful.
“I’m not going to lie to you. My original goal was to make Kuroba-kun jealous, or at the very least, notice me. No matter what I did, he completely ignored my advances. You were a rival, the perfect opportunity to make him upset.” It was the truth, no matter how painful. Lying wouldn’t get her anywhere. “It didn’t work of course. It never does…
"But even knowing that, I hesitated to end our fabricated relationship.” She bit her lip painfully, trying to keep herself grounded in the present. “You were loyal, kind, a good listener… and completely genuine… that terrified me. It scared me to think that you weren’t there because of my spell. So I tried to end it before you got too attached. Strike two, right?
"I used you to get to him even though it’s completely hopeless. I know that and I think I’ve always known that… even before. I don’t expect you to forgive me but I need you to understand that it wasn’t all make-believe. I’m not that heartless.”
“Hah…"
Hakuba stood for a moment, watching Akako as he processed what she’d said, giving that cold, sort of heart-broken laugh.
"Please, allow me to reiterate. You cast a spell, used me to try to attract Kuroba-san, and when you found out that I had fallen for you, dumped me and pushed me away. Because it scared you… that you were getting attached?”
He shrugged, helplessly. “And now, you don’t want me because I’m worthless, soiled, and self-destructive. Too dirty and common for your tastes. And you wonder why I’m self-destructive."
City Jaunt! || harajukuharuspex
Acid in the back of her throat. A throbbing headache; billions of words disappearing on unfathomable currents and others bold in their concern for her well-being. Hakuba-kun. Saguru. She swallowed iron and grit and acid.
[Hakuba-kun. I’m okay.] Akira pushed the thought on him, though her throat bulged and her tea and eggs and toast ejected from her stomach. Her head ached and vision swam with pink butterflies which landed on her bloodied fingertips only to be eaten by turquoise sharks and seaweed wrapped around her ankles except not seaweed jellyfish tendrils stinging burning her ankles and legs. She turned to catch Hakuba’s eyes, her own stinging with dust. When had she started crying? [Don’t worry. We’re gonna get out of this. I promise.]
Everything hurt, but the paramedics yelled platitudes at her and vibration shook the wreck of a vehicle as a chainsaw sliced through a door to release her and honestly she just wanted to sleep.
The voice confused him. Shook his already burning head. Hakuba stared helplessly, time passing in a mix of sights and sounds that he couldn’t understand. Foreign hands unbuckled his seat belt. Pulled him from the vehicle. He stared at the sky, vaguely aware that Akira wasn’t there anymore. She was already gone; loaded into the back of some vehicle.
They checked vitals. Hakuba recounted the steps, attempted to instruct them, was given a squeeze of his hand instead. Voices… voices.. Something about his father? Closing his eyes was harder and harder to undo.
…
Hakuba opened his eyes to a doctor touching his head with one hand, his wrist with the other. Confusion flickered and he grimaced. It was too bright – oh, a flash light.
“Two concussions in two weeks… Saguru-kun, you are one lucky kid. I wasn’t expecting to see you again so soon."
Concussion. Again. The hospital.. car accident. Hakuba swallowed against the sudden lump in his throat. "How’s… Akira-kun?"
Midnight Tea || phantom-thief-kid
Kaito fiddled about with the kettle, filling it up with water and putting it on the stove. “Anyway, I wonder what brings you here. Not that I’m complaining, but there is sometimes the chance that I am… indisposed. Lions aren’t known for their skills in opening doors.”
“That’s… that’s true,” Hakuba said after a moment, coming to lean against the counter while he watched Kaito and the tea. “I, ah, actually hadn’t thought about that."
His smile faded a touch and then he shook his head, brightening again.
"I just… really did miss you. I, ah, had been thinking about dropping by for days and then just… up and left. And here I am.”
“You’re missing the part where I actually did like you, enjoyed your company, and allowed you to be closer to me than anyone has in a long time.” She gritted her teeth and her volume raised significantly for the following part. “I even let you see me in sweat pants for crying out loud! Do you know how many people have seen me in sweat pants!?”
It might seem silly to anyone else, but allowing someone to see her in that less-than-flawless state meant quite a lot to her because it meant trust.
“It was just as silly of me to go along with it longer than necessary just because of pointless infatuation. Do you want me to apologize? Because I won’t. There isn’t any point in it. What’s done is done and your incessant need to wallow in the past isn’t healthy.”
“I know it isn’t healthy. Neither is the alcohol, or the cigarettes – were you aware of those? Or the double, triple workloads that I take on? The one night stands.. Hah! None of it is. I know that. You know that. More than anyone else, possibly. I’m not proud of what I do. In fact, Koizumi-san, I…"
He shook his head.
"I appreciate what you’ve tried to do. I… I just.. I don’t understand. If you liked me so much, why did you…? Why did you use me like that? Surely you know… Surely you… with…”
The detective’s words trailed off as his gaze lowered to the floor, at a loss for how to describe what he felt.. mostly because he didn’t know how to decipher it, himself.
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City Jaunt! || harajukuharuspex
Akira laughed, head thrown back against the seat and hands up in the air. She lowered her arms and opened her eyes (closed momentarily against the bright sun) to ask Hakuba a question.
Or she would have.
Adrenaline floods her system, opening the channels of her mind to a man in Nashville, Tennessee, wondering if he just met the girl of his dreams because he’s never felt like this before and he’s never believed in love at first sight and a woman (also in Nashville) who dares to believe in it and a woman in Washington (somehow connected to the woman in Nashville) who cries with joy and a touch of sadness and relief but mostly joy and Akira reels with emotion. A child cries for his mother; an elderly man cries for his on his deathbed; a girl attends senior prom; a boy shuffles in the corner of the prom alone.
She heard the thoughts of millions.
And then she heard nothing, because the hood crumpled and Hakuba cried out and she felt removed from the scream that had to have come from her but she cannot remember screaming she cannot remember and the world goes black.
.
. .
…
Sirens. Voices.
Oh God, pain.
Hakuba lifted his head, aware of the ragged sound of his gasping breaths and the sunlight that was much too bright. He shuddered, staring at the blood on the steering wheel, feeling the blood in his mouth and nose as it poured. Numbly, he wiped at it with his sleeve, groaning in pain while his other hand searched for the handkerchief in his pocket. There wasn’t enough room to move adequately; which might have been because the car was now entirely the wrong shape.
With a sputtering cough, he turned toward the girl in the seat next to him, mind flooded with words, though none of them made enough sense to form coherent thought. Something was wrong, he knew that. Handkerchief, now on his lap, was forgotten in favor for searching for his phone, despite that paramedics were there, on the scene.
“Stay calm, Hakuba-kun.” The voice belonged to someone that he didn’t immediately recognize. “Paramedics just arrived; just hang on a few more moments while we get you out…"
His vision doubled. Akira sat between the seats and against the door, leaning too much to be enjoying the view. The detective dialed 119 and lifted his phone to his ear. "Akira…” he shuddered again. "Akira-kun, st-stay.. calm…“
“When will it cross your mind that I don’t want you to say anything at all? You’re wasting your own time and breath. If I wanted to listen to you drown in your own self-pity, I would’ve…”
She paused, realizing her own rising blood pressure and quickened heartbeat, forcing herself to take a deep breath and calm down. The last thing she wanted to do was to fan the flames of discord. Her gift had been intended as an olive branch in the first place and the fire was doing quick work of her peace offering without assistance.
“For a detective, you certainly like to assume quite a lot that has never been spoken. You seem to think that our relationship was nothing but one-sided interest. Well, you’re wrong. So whatever vindication you have that you think justifies your claims might need a second look. I’m not going to stand here and argue something that you have never even had the courage to ask about.
"So if all you want is to take out your frustrations then you should find someone who knows even less about the situation than you do.”
She didn’t want him to speak. She didn’t care about what he was feeling, or why. Each word lashed at him, dug at those scars, reaffirmed what he’d been afraid of all along. Worse, she was right about everything, and he knew it. The detective took a step back and shook his head.
“Why don’t you tell me then, Koizumi-san? Why don’t you explain to me what it is that I’m missing? Tell me the answer to what I was too terrified to ask. Please clarify. Tell me, once and for all, what it was that I meant to you. If you wanted to clear the air, here’s your chance."
…Why’re ya coverin’ up fer me, mmn? What use does a detective have in helpin’ out th’ criminals they put behind bars?
“I know that you’re not the biggest fan of Sherlock Holmes, but I think you might find the answer by reading my favorite of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s works – the The Boscombe Valley Mystery.
“If you have further questions after reading, assuming you’ll oblige, I would be happy to discuss it with you, mon cher baron. Or, if you prefer, the essay that I’m writing on that very same story will be published relatively soon on the subject.”