Secret Admirer Chapter 17 4/15/12

[kuro808]

@oddy she will try to concentrate on her match

@sakura I followed through on the promise as I will hold on the other fic

[8]

Maasa followed Momo after the fight back to her house.  Maasa was hesitant to speak to the peach but Momo tended to look back quickly.  Maasa inched up but Momo pulled forward until she stopped in front of her.  She looked up and was impressed by the mansion in the middle of the city.

“Do you want to have a snack?”  Momo asked as Maasa took off her shoes in the front.

The peach wrapped the apron over her school uniform and chopped up apples for both of them.  Maasa was still in shock that the house was spacious and still felt warm for any guest. Then, she offered the pieces to her classmate and smiled at her.

“Is there something wrong?”  Maasa asked as she took the first bite into the fresh apple.

“No, just wondering if you would do something for me.”  Maasa placed the half-eaten piece onto the plate.

“What is it?”

“Would you mind being my bodyguard?  I intend to pay you nicely.”  Maasa gave her a quizzical look.

“Well… I helped you because…”  Momo held out her hand.

“Don’t tell me you are only doing this one time.”  Maasa shook her head quickly.

“I wanted you not to get hurt; people don’t understand that people are people.”  Maasa paused as she tried to back track her words which made Momo giggle.

“I guess you are a protector but not a personal protector.  I guess you deserve this.”  Momo kissed her on the forehead and saw her chest land on Maasa’s plate.

Maasa pushed her back on her side of the counter and walked around to meet up with the peach.  She lowered herself down to her height to give her kiss.  Momo wrapped her arms around the girl’s neck and looked into her eyes.  Momo pressed her face onto hers and Maasa fell onto the floor.

“I guess I am heavier than I thought.”  Momo said out aloud and caused Maasa to scramble off the ground.

“No you are not.”  Maasa was red with embarrassment and bowed to the peach.

Momo patted the younger girl on the head and realized her parents were coming home soon.  She wrapped up the apple pieces and was run out as soon as possible.  Maasa waved goodbye before turning her back to the house then her phone rang.

“Moshi moshi.”

“Ah, Maa-chan.  I would like to thank you again for helping me.  You are a true friend.  Maybe we can hang out but still in private.”  Momo took a deep breath giving Maasa time to talk.

“It’ll be fine but I like you.”  Maasa waited patiently for an answer.

“I wish others are like you.”  Momo admitted.

“I mean I have feelings for you.”  Momo let out a laugh.

“If you confessed to me, I might as well say that it is mutual.”  Maasa’s heart beat faster until she felt her body grown weak.

“Really?  I mean can we become a couple?”  Momo let out a sigh.

“I want to but we need to keep it hidden.  However, I miss your lips already.”  Maasa snickered.

Maasa blew a kiss to the phone and hung up without noticing the streetlight.  A car came inched from her and she jumped back onto the corner.  She flipped her phone again and saw a picture of Momo blowing a kiss to her.  She giggled and lay on the ground as her body was recovering from the near accident.

Momo anxiously looked at the mirror and pondered over her weight as she remembered Maasa’s face from dropping her.  She took a bite of her apple piece and closed her eyes as she began to think about Maasa.  She never felt the feeling before but she didn’t want to show her vulnerability like the last time.

She had grown accustomed to boys asking her to go on group dates by her parents choosing but one stood out.  He was gentle to her and as she began to build up her feelings, he disappeared from her.  She waited a weekend for him to come back only to realize that he was gay and had a boyfriend who was as cute as he was.  Momo was devastated that she fell in love with him and began a tirade in her room.  Throughout her frustrations, she had seen the light that boys were no good and she kept silent about her preferences.

Momo was close to certain ones but they showed no interest beyond a simple greeting until Maasa came into her life.  She was glad that someone was looking out for her but the feelings grew to the cautionary tale of the romance before and she hid her smile while looking at herself.  However, it grew like a flower that Maasa maybe is the one for her and she had to let everything lay out before jumping into another relationship.

[sakura_drop_]

Thank you! 

[oddball]

Aww Momo and Massa, really sweet how they ended up getting their feelings across too, hopefully they will become more open about it too....

[kuro808]

@sakura you're welcome and I notice you got perv access, enjoy there too

@oddy the dynamic of MaasaMomo always had me intrigued and always pondered if I used a fragile Momo to break down Maasa silent strength

[9]

Miya had the eerie feeling about the crony hanging outside and if she had her way, someone would be by her side but when she defected she took the problem upon her to be the lone wolf.  For three years, she had fun cutting from school and doing petty things for her boss.  But, the event that changed her views was the day they decided to pick on Rii.

She had been hanging outside of school as always and Risako popped out from the entrance approached by two guys.  She knew it was her but they wouldn’t do anything rash to make her distraught, however she heard teasing coming from their mouths and came to the rescue.  She stood in front of the younger girl and held her arms out, Risako ran away from them, and Miya was only left with two guys in front of her.  Her boss saw what she had been doing and let her do what she pleased.

Hours later after work, the two blindsided her with baseball bats.  She felt the pain of a bat hitting her body but never to the extent of being violated.  Her fear brought on the boss to stop it but they were insistent and discovered the boss’ guards destroying their bodies with kicks and punches.  The boss escorted her out of the alleyway and apologized for her involvement.

At that moment, she decided to step away to protect her friend.  Despise the boss understanding her feelings; she was against Miya leaving without a beat down to appreciate her help.  Miya was confident that she could find a way out of it and offered dirty money for exchange of the beat down but that ran dry soon enough leading to the observers around the school.

She left class early with the hope of escaping but the crony stopped her and escorted her to the playground where the boss had been sitting on the bench with her legs cross.  Miya saw the bats in their hands knowing she was going to suffer without saying a word.  She went on her knees and put her arms up and hands behind her head.  The boss pause the start and looked into her eyes.

“I love that you don’t whine when you are about to receive punishment but it makes it boring so how about tying you up and fifty hits to your knees.”  Miya lowered her arms and offered her wrists.

“You are not making this fun for anyone you know kid.  Unless, we can find a way to torture you even more like the one you are protecting.”  Miya stood up and stared at her.

“I am taking this because I wanted to run away.  No one else should be responsible except for me.  If you don’t think I can take this dutifully than you don’t respect me enough.”  Miya said with determination to withstand everything coming at her.

“I don’t respect you because you are leaving but you don’t want to sacrifice the one thing that is precious to you.”  Miya shook her head.

“You have a secret too.  The source of your power and money.”  She slapped Miya across the face in disgust.

“I get it, you won’t live down anything to protect her.  I guess we can call it the ultimate sacrifice.”  Miya agreed and resisted any force against them.  They lifted their bats and one by one they landed on her body.  The pain was less effective after the first few blows but every place was hit until they stopped in exhaustion.

Risako came running out of the crowd and saw her neighbor bloodied from head to toe.  She called an ambulance as they watched over her slowly losing consciousness.  The gang left without one word to their former member but Miya smiled at them for the work.  The medical workers carried her off the bench and took her to the hospital to check out her injuries.  Rii couldn’t watch as Miya smiled towards her.

The younger girl’s mind started to run with crazy thoughts about Miya and why she would take such a beating for something idiotic for the gang.  As she waited in the room outside of surgery, a woman in a black sat by her, and began to think about her.

“You must be the one Miya’s protecting right?”  She asked as Rii looked at her and was shocked.

“Yes, I am the one who saw everything , I was her gang leader.  She suffered to every blow to her body without whimpering.  No one has ever done that, not even I admit would ever do for a friend.  She has someone special like you to watch over her.”  The boss rubbed Rii’s head.

“I just want to know why.”  Rii said under her voice as the boss grinned.

“Tradition, she knew tradition when anyone was going to leave for any reason.  I’m sorry that you had to see her that way but Miya understood the rules.”  She explained as she lent her a card.

“Anyways, she will be here for life as a true member.  We will help her through everything and when she comes out give us the bill and we will pay for it as the last gift we give to her.”  She winked and left the room.

Rii read through the messy card and read aloud the name Tanaka Reina.  She knew the identity of the boss and she wanted to cap off the day with an arrest but hearing her words again, she knew that she didn’t want to trouble Miya anymore.  Risako waited for a few more hours until a doctor came out with a half grin.  She feared the worst news but the doctor confirmed a few broken bones but nothing more major.

However, she was sent home without having a chance to see her but she felt confident that she could survive this pain.  Then, a voice entered her mind about Miya’s dedication to her and she welled up to thank her for accepting her as a friend.

[sakura_drop_]

Poor Miya 

And oh, Reina is here! 

Rii is my fav from Berryz, so I hope you won't make her suffer... 


EDIT: thanks, hehe. Maybe there is a chance of me writing something pervy...someday..

[kuro808]

Poor Miya 

And oh, Reina is here! 

Rii is my fav from Berryz, so I hope you won't make her suffer... 


EDIT: thanks, hehe. Maybe there is a chance of me writing something pervy...someday..

Rii is one of those who intends to face suffering from time to time like this one

Well it shouldn't be too bad if you do write one but I'll try to comment, I will post in 22 days

[sakura_drop_]

I want to read it, but my list 'Yet To Be Read' is really long... When I do find time, I'll read it. Yakusoku 

[oddball]

Wow Miya took sych a beating for Rii, I hope she will be ok, Miya is pretty tough though doing it without wimpering....

Seems as though Rii does fully understand the scarafice that Miya made for her!

[kuro808]

@oddy: Miya is much stronger than anyone and imagine if Maimi had to take it for her friend

[10]

Sayu took a seat on the bench in the park next to Koha as she held out her phone to look for her friend’s phone number.  It was an experience usually that would take a few second but with Koha she had hesitated for five minutes until she could hit the dial button.  She held the phone to her ear and the loud voice slammed her hearing and moved it away so she could hear the message clearly.

Koha kept her attention away from the bunny but it seemed she was suffering from listening and scooted in near her to hear what it was about.  Sayu closed the phone and smiled at her as she sneaked her hand next to hers.  A few minutes later, two women approached the couple and waved towards Sayu as they gazed toward them.

“Is this your new friend?  She looks cuter than the usual man you bring around.”  The light colored hair woman joked.

“Hi, my name is Kamei Eri.  Sayu must be hiding us from you.”  The turtle looked toward the other woman while realizing the introduction embarrassed the bunny.

“Anyways, you want to drink tonight?”  Sayu looked at Koha before shaking her head.

“C’mon Sayu we would like for you to hang with us.  You make us look good at the bar.”  Eri begged toward the bunny and she still refused.

The two looked dissatisfied at the bunny and left her with Koha as they head toward the city.  Sayu glanced back at Koha and felt the grip feel tighter on her hand.

“I will only do this a few times but if you want to go through this without any problems, you will expect them to visit me.  I will warn you that they will test you to the fullest extent and don’t let Eri’s aho personality fool you.” Koha nodded as Sayu led her out of the park.

The bunny guided Koha into the packing district before spinning back around and gave her a kiss on her lips.  Koha grabbed onto her hands and let Sayu control the action.  They pushed themselves onto a chain-linked fence feeling the light rain fall upon them.  Sayu pulled back to Koha’s eyes were as wide as melons only to see a man with a knife in his hands.

Sayu stood in front of Koha as the guy lunged towards them.  The male was about middle aged and his eyes were concentrating on Sayu as the edge was close enough to slice.  The man stepped back and slipped as he stepped off the curve.  The knife flew ten feet away from him and was broken by a passing car.  The bunny stared at him wondering why he would attack her and began to notice who he was.

The man ran as fast as he could but didn’t notice the car coming around the corner.  They closed their eyes as they walked away from the scene.  Sayu was distraught that the street where she lived had been blocked off with the accident.  The bunny looked at her limited resources and walked toward the love hotel but Koha chipped in enough to get them a room at a motel for the night.

Then, her phone rang as Eri and her friend were drunk from their trip to the bar and asked if they would stay at her place but Sayu explained that there was an accident and let them stay at the room.  Koha hid her displeasure but welcomed them to stay.  Sayu rented the room out to her name and had Koha stay in the room as the bunny waited for them.

The girl jumped onto the bed and closed her eyes after a long day of unusual circumstances.  Then, the thought of Sayu entered into her mind and it began to stew to why Sayu had been unlucky in relationships.  On the surface, it was great that she had a natural shield for strangers but she thought it had to be something that deters people from her.  Koha was filled with crazy explanations and then she stepped out of the room to see the three women walking towards her.

“Koha, can you get a bucket of ice for us?”  Sayu asked as the three entered the room.

The girl grabbed an empty aluminum bucket and filled it up from the machine.  Eri blocked the door and stared at her as she grabbed the ice from her.  She didn’t say anything and walked back to the room quietly.  Koha shuffled back and heard loud noises from the room.  She pressed her head onto the door and heard two voices controlling the conversation and opened the door to see Sayu sitting there silently.

“Girl… Sayu is not the person you believe her to be.  She talks to the mirror and will disregard you because you are not as pretty as her.”  The light-colored hair woman shouted towards her.

“Reina-chan, you are drunk and you are scaring her.”  Sayu complained as Reina smiled at her.

“Why do you care?”  Sayu’s eyes burned with rage and slapped the kitty across her face.

Koha stood near the door as Reina held her face over the bruise.  Reina screamed at the bunny before leaving the room with Eri.  Sayu ran towards Koha with tears running down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry you had to see this.  If you solve my flaws, I would be happy.”  Koha moved her toward the mirror.

“Say it.”  Koha said happily as Sayu wiped the tears away.

“I’m cute.”

“Say it louder and be genki.”

“I’M CUTE!”  Koha smirked as Sayu faced the mirror again.

“NO ONE IS CUTER THAN ME!!!!”  She yelled out to the pleasure of Koha.

“Okay, I need to sleep.  Thank you for letting me stay with you.”  Koha said her final words before landing on the soft bed.

[sakura_drop_]

This...drinking thing... Somehow for me it was too cute, especially the ending  Maybe my sleepy head is showing things, dunno... But AWWWW... 

[oddball]

Yikes scary Reina was, well scary! 

still Koha and Sayu at the end of this chapter were pretty darn sweet! 

[kuro808]

@sakura: it was a conflict to let Koha cheer up Sayu but to force her was a very interesting topic

@oddy: I kinda wish I knew how she would react, either explosive or reserved

[11]

Mano took a detour to a yakisoba shop to have something to eat but noticed she had forgotten her wallet at home and looked at the window.

“Don’t look sad, you can come here to eat.”  The woman invited her in and sat down when she saw Yuu delivering a dish of hot noodles.

“Arigatou!”  She yelled out and broke her chopsticks to dig into the food.

Erina paused as she looked at Yuu and offered the extra pair of chopsticks.  Yuu refused and went to the occupied table to get them more noodles.  The woman who invited her in took a seat next to the hungry girl and smiled at her.

“Is it good?”  Mano-chan nodded.

“Oishiiii!”  The woman put her hand on top of the girl’s.

“I must say Yuu-chan had been happy since she came home talking about a new girl she had met.  I assume it was you because I never expected her to hand anyone the biggest, most expensive plate.”  Mano choked up and dropped her chopsticks.

“Don’t worry.  It is on me, because you became her first friend in a long while, I will trust you to keep her on a straight line.”  Mano-chan nodded as she picked up her utensil to dig into the food again.

“I like her choice of friends.  Unfortunately, we move often because of my husband’s job and she never can fully give up on them but I promise she will stay here until the end of the year.  Her uncle and father used to work here as kids and ever since her uncle took over and made the noodles the same way, so I am surprised not too many come here.  Maybe its old-fashioned but homemade noodles are much better than the ones at a convenient store.”  Mano-chan nodded.

“I agree.  If you don’t mind, I can invite people for parties.”  She bowed towards her.

“Oh thank you.”  Mano-chan lowered her chopsticks and bend lower than her mother.

“I just moved here not that long ago but I feel it might make a great atmosphere for a senior party.”  Mano-chan looked around the restaurant and counted the spaces and confirmed her statement.

Yuu-chan observed the conversation and felt her heart drop as she did before and resisted to halt any progress by her mother.  She removed her apron and hung it on the hook to end her shift.  She walked to the front of the restaurant and flipped the sign over to close without looking at Mano-chan.

“Yuu-chan, your friend suggested they might have a party here, don’t you think it is nice?”  She nodded slowly and looked back at Mano-chan.

She stood up and bowed out of the restaurant without making eye contact.  Yuu followed her out and wrapped her from behind.  Mano froze as she felt tears penetrate from the back of her uniform.  Mano-chan pried the arms from her body and hugged her.

“If you think I don’t understand, you are wrong.  I will keep you here as long as possible, your mother is nice and she is willing to sacrifice her time here to make you happy.”  Yuu looked up with the tears shining in the moonlight.

“Thank you.”  Yuu-chan waved goodbye as she headed back to the restaurant to clean up as Mano-chan headed home.

She walked under the street lights with the rain lightly falling against her face and closed her eyes.  She took a few steps forward into a girl walking the other way.  She opened her eyes to a fist a few centimeters from her face.

“I met you earlier.”  She nodded.

“You are Maimi’s friend, correct?”  Mano nodded.

“I… feel that you are a rival but why won’t you fight for her?”  Mano smirked as she looked down on the pavement.

“Maimi-chan always has a place for people, she maybe a scatterbrain but she concentrates on the goal all the time.  She wants to find love but she cannot admit to who she wants.  However, if anyone does fall in love with her, I fear for heartbreak.”  Chinami felt her stomach turn and breathed deeply.

“Is that why you gave up?”  Mano shook her head.

“I gave up because Maimi will never realize how much I still love her and when she does recognize the effort I had put into it, she will regret it.  My fear is that I will never see her happy with anyone, I wish she can have a person truly look into her personality.”  Chii relinquished her frown.

“If I pursue her, will you stop me?”  Mano-chan winked at her.

“Of course.  She is still my friend and I will protect her from anybody until she says that she is okay but until then, we are rivals for her.  As for the match, stay away from her sight, once she sees someone, she will lose all her concentration, and she will get exposed.”  Chinami understood the warning and nodded her head.

“It’s getting late so we shall meet again.”  Both waved goodbye as they went their separate ways but one only let out her tears as she took a confident look at her opponent and she hoped she can win… again.

[oddball]

Ohh, interesting, Mano and Chii meeting, seems as though they came to a little bit of an understanding though....

Yuu and Mano were kinda sweet to, it,s nice they are getting closer to each other....

[kuro808]

@oddy: The Mano and Yuu thing was actually out of the blue but it was something that would match well in the story as they are the outsiders looking in and Yuu being a waitress was a nice addition to the story

@sakura: thnx for the support, I wish you can keep reading this despite the thing and for the other story, it will come around but conflict > fluff

[12]

The day of her match had arrived and she was restless over the concerns from her personal life.  Her father watched intently as his daughter was losing sleep and let her rest on the trip to the arena.  He wasn’t sure on how to approach the situation and had asked his wife for advice.  He woke Maimi up and let her go to a private place to let her explain.

After a few minutes, Maimi felt refreshed and threw a punch at him to wake him from his daydream.

“I’m ready to go.”  She informed him and he stopped her before entering the locker room.

“I need to know what is with the girl I hired to clean the gym.”  Maimi gritted her teeth and walked back to the truck.

I guess I should tell him the truth.

“She is someone who likes me; she started to write to me anonymously at school.  She is a good natured girl but I couldn’t let her train under you.”  Her father smiled.

“You didn’t want a rival who was in love with you because if you beat her, it would hurt your chances right?”  Maimi nodded. 

Chinami will never win but what if she has potential, I cannot be thinking this.

She started to walk away before her father stopped her again.

“I think you should have considered how she is feeling now.  I know that you are good but if she could produce a sparring partner that could benefit you, wouldn’t that help you in the long run?”  Maimi nodded again.

“I guess so but…”  He held up his finger.

“I know this will be the tail end of your career so accept her as an open invitation.”  Maimi gave him a hug and carried her bag into the locker room.

The people were settling down in their seats.  The school sat in the student section above the entrance of the champion.  Momo dragged Maasa to the front where they had a view of the mat and gathered attention with her quirky dance to energize the crowd. 

Mano-chan and Yuu were two rows above them as they observed the crowd with signs that were anti-Maimi but she acknowledged that she wouldn’t be bothered by the signs. 

Captain sat on the outer edge of the section and started to lead a yell to encourage the section to cheer for their favorite student.

Rii sat at the top with her phone in hand getting updates from Miya while she returned with updates from the match.

The one who feared Maimi the most was outside with a dilemma and the ticket to enter was crumbled in her hand.  She closed her eyes and held the ticket in her hand as Koha walked by her wondering what she was doing.

“Koha, do you know her?”  Koha nodded.

“Chii, you should come inside and watch the fight, Maimi would appreciate if you join us.”  Chinami’s throat felt dry, trying to find an excuse to not go in, but she just can’t be seen by her again.

“I will come in soon.”  Her soft voice barely audible with the crowd noise amped up to the highest level cancelled out what she was saying.

She felt it was the last chance to finally give her support and she barged into the arena.  The people were pumped for the match and took a seat next to Rii.  Miya’s voice was loud and she started to cheer through the phone and the announcement popped up that her match was next.

Maimi got her wrists and ankles wrapped up and slipped on her gloves before shadowing the wall.  Her opponent scoffed at her abilities and walked out of the room leaving father and daughter alone.

“I want to say good luck.”  Her father said in a less confident voice.

“I don’t need luck, I have skills to win.  I want to prove that I am worth defending my title.”  He tried to smile but the nerves finally hit him and put on the sparring equipment.

He instructed her on what the opponent will be doing and she concentrated on getting the jabs down before coming in with kicks.  Her first roundhouse almost caught him off guard and the pain struck him down to the floor as he let out a laugh.

“I think you have this in the bag.”  The last confident words she needed to hear before the introductions.

The chance to win

Maimi anticipated the crowd noise.  She could hear her classmates cheering.  Her opponent’s fans booing.  Then, the image of Chinami popped into her mind.  She knew whatever the result was going to be, she had a supporter by her side.  The letters were fuel to her fire to she is fighting for, it wasn’t only a school but one person who knew that she could be proud of.

The introductions were quick and their protective gear was in place as she stared into her eyes.  She saw the fear as usual but she wasn’t intimidated by the stare down.  They both approached the referee and touched gloves before leaving to their sides.  The bell rung quickly and they both came at each other like hunters in the wild, slowly opening up their opponents.

Chinami felt a lump in her throat as Maimi started with a jab and a low kick to her shin.  Rii started her report as the noise slowly died.

Momo yelled out Maimi’s name hundred times before Maasa pulled her in before she goes over the railing.

Mano and Yuu yelled out her name, getting the students pumped around them.

Koha and Sayu cheered but were also figuring who was who and took them a minute to determine which side Maimi was on.

Captain cupped her hands as she cheered on too and then the first blow by her opponent silent the crowd.

Maimi knew the right hook was coming towards her but the blind opportunity opened up her guard.  She felt the punishment as soon as it contacted her but kept her stance as she countered with a combination.  Then, an opening came and an uppercut put the crowd back into the match.

Her opponent took a step back and feigned to her left with the right high kick approaching barely missing her head.  Maimi took a step back and calculated a punch to her ribs causing her to pause her breathing.  She had no idea of the time in her head but the crowd indicated it was close to the end and as the bell rung a solid kick to the hip finished up her strikes.
Darn, I wish I had a little more time to finish.

The crowd went to a dead silence as the fighters took their breaks seriously and listened to their trainers for advice.  Maimi heard the few words from his mouth before standing back up to start up the match again.

The bell rang for the second round and her opponent came with a left and contacted her squarely on the ear.  She knew she was in trouble as the irritation started to get to her and she came with a complementary right which is avoided.  Maimi threw a right straight but missed by inches and then in desperation she delivered a wild leg kick connecting with her shoulder.

Her opponent stepped to the side and winced at the blow but kept her hands up in defense.  Maimi hit with another right to her ribs causing her to go onto one knee.  Her opponent took two seconds to breathe and walked up to Maimi again but the surprising back fist landed and Maimi went down to one knee in a daze.

The crowd cranked up the noise and Maimi looked at the section where the students were.  She could see blurry items but then her mind cancelled out the noise and saw Chinami at the top.  She was hesitant but when she locked eyes, Chinami nodded and pointed towards her right hand.

I see it

Maimi got herself back up and lowered her head before tilting it to the right and hearing a mind-numbing crack from her neck and continued the fight.

She began to think what that message was as she avoided the major blows to her face and the opening presented itself.  Maimi connected with a kick to her right side and took a step back to load up her leg.  She stepped onto the mat slipping forward and the foot caught her chin.

Bingo!

Her opponent’s eyes rolled up and fell quickly to the floor.  The referee blocked her way to view the fallen girl and within seconds she was declared the winner.

The section exploded with cheers but Maimi only looked at Chinami and gave her a wink.  Chinami closed her eyes and broke down in tears.

Maimi was given the medal again for defending the title and looked at her father as she offered the medal to him for training her.  She bowed towards him as she was given a pair of scissors.  The crowd became silent as she faced her fallen opponent.  Maimi bowed sharply to her as she nodded towards her father.

He placed a stool in the middle of the mat and was presented a scissors.  She lowered the rubber band to give enough length to cut her hair and carefully placed the blade on her black hair before hearing the crunch.  Her father finished the job and held up the pony tail in his hand.

The words were swirling around the arena.  Maimi waved to her fans as she left the mat and looked at Chinami for the last time before entering the locker rooms.

I can finally be in peace

Chinami looked back at her and she knew it was over.  Yajima Maimi had retired as champion.

[sakura_drop_]

Retired... Oh well.. What matters is what is best for Maimi, right? I loved this chapter!  And I'll be waiting for conflict>fluff 

[oddball]

Wow what a fight!!! and Maimi retires, going out in style is good I suppose, wonder where this will lead Maimi now however....

[kuro808]

@sakura: What is best for her might not be what she thinks in the end

@oddy: we'll see

[13]

Momo and Maasa were as shocked as everyone to see Maimi step down in front of the crowd.  The short-haired ex-champion bowed to everyone as the crowd was mixed with claps and crying.  However, Momo had been at the top of the stairs and refused to watch Maimi walk away.

“Momo-chan, where are you going?”  Maasa asked with a hint of concern in her voice.

“Dinner.  I need to get back home for dinner, I will see you later.”  Momo waived goodbye as Maasa looked back as the crowd slowly filtered out through the exits.

Maasa typed out a text to Momo as she looked around to her next destination.  Her body was feeling the chill that was coming over during the early evening.  She jogged over to the station to look for the next train back to the town and felt the vibration in her pocket.

Maa-chan,

We can meet tomorrow after breakfast.

Momochi <3

Maasa hid her smile from the crowd and her train came soon after.  She saved the message in her inbox and closed her eyes.  The ride was short but enough time to nap but the train came to a halt as she looked at the station and heard that there was a delay.  She pouted that she would have to get off and get on another train but something caught her ear.

She ventured into the station and saw a woman struggling against a purse robber.  She walked up to them and the robber drew his knife against both of them.  Maasa held her hands up but saw her opportunity to help out the woman and knocked the weapon out of her hand.  The robber took a step back and attempted a punch but was blocked immediately and countered with a palm to his chest.

“I give up.  You win.”  He ran away from the females and Maasa handed over her bag.

“Ouch, we need to send you to the hospital.”  The woman responded as she saw the fresh cut on her shin.

She called an ambulance over to the train station as she relaxed on the bench while she wrapped a cloth over the wound.  The woman sat down on the bench to rise up her leg and apply pressure on the wound.

“Thank you for helping me out.  I was wondering why you were helping me though.”  Maasa looked away and smiled.

“I just saw you in trouble, so I was willing to help, lucky for the train stopping at this station.”  Both laughed as the woman applied more pressure than usual.

“What is your name?”  The woman asked.

“Maasa.”  She hesitated before the woman smiled.

“I am a registered nurse, the name is Niigaki Risa.  I am sorry I don’t have a kit on me.”  Maasa neglected her apology and a person came to clean up the wound.

She sat there with the man as Risa looked around for her ride on the street.  Minutes later, she left with her friend and he was wrapping up a bandage on her lower leg.  Her phone rang and heard her father yelling at her, she looked at the paramedic, and offered her phone to him.  He had explained that she was in an accident mentioning Risa’s name a few time before hanging up.

“I will take you home.  Your father has been informed so I think he understands but please don’t do anything rash again.”  He warned as she climbed into the car and instructed the driver to her house.

Maasa sat quietly as the flashing lights of the city pass by her.  She glanced at her bandage every other second as the pain was shooting from her legs and looked at the driver.

“I can give painkillers but you cannot walk on it for a while.  So, if you have plans in the near future, the best thing is to bear the pain for now.”  He warned as she sat deeper into her seat.

He approached the driveway with her father waiting outside; Maasa slowly walked out of the vehicle, and felt her father’s hug.

“I was scared when you didn’t come home and you didn’t answer your phone, so I began panicking until I heard you helped a woman from a robber.  I thought you were seriously injured…”  Maasa grinned.

“I’m okay.  I’ll explain what happened and I ‘m sorry for worrying you.”  Maasa and her father thanked the driver before entering the house.

Maasa didn’t leave out a detail of her adventure.  Unfortunately, the trail back did leave her exhausted and laid her head on the couch and instantly knocked out.

The next morning she woke up to the realization it was 10:00 A.M. and rushed out to her house but looked around to see she wasn’t home.  She flipped her phone and noticed new texts from her friend and limped back towards home until Momo had passed her in the family car.  Maasa wanted to wave hi but noticed she wasn’t in the mood to do so and decided to go back home a rest.

In the afternoon, Maasa’s boredom was growing at such a high level that she closed her eyes for a while only to wake up that a few minutes had passed by.  Then, she heard the doorbell and ran to see Momo with a small gift in her hands.

“Gomen ne.  I was busy in the morning and I couldn’t get out of my obligations until now, I hope you forgive me.”  Momo bowed towards her and Maasa brought her into the house.

Momo noticed the bandage and asked about it.  Maasa was first hesitant but explained the situation which caused her to breakdown unexpectedly.  She held her as it wasn’t serious but Momo started to blame herself for leaving her alone after the match but Maasa soon apologize for making her cry.

Since they were alone in the living room, they sat down to watch some television.  Momo turned into Maasa and laid her head on her lap as she closed her eyes.  Maasa looked at the adorable girl and woke her up to give her a kiss before walking away to use the bathroom.  Momo looked at the TV and recognized the time but she didn’t want to leave Maasa again and waited for Maasa to come back from the bathroom.

However, when she did come back, Momo felt her feet weighing down by cement, and held her ground for ten minutes before unexpectedly blurting out her exit.  Maasa tried to analyze the peach as she left but quickly removed it from her mind to keep her at peace.

[oddball]

Man Massa playing the hero, kinda cool but well done her, she is paying for it though!

Hmm, whats up with Momo though?

[kuro808]

@oddy Momo is... scared.  As the obvious running away happens in every chapter she is in    maybe she'll get the nerves to face what is troubling her.

[14]

Risako couldn’t hold her excitement as she headed back to the hospital where Miya was currently healing up.  She turned the corner and saw a gang outside the entrance.

Miya… I have to get in there quickly

She looked around the area and hid behind the ambulances as she ran toward the entrance and managed to avoid any contact with them but as she looked up a woman stared at her.

“There is no way she would fall for a girl.  Her boyfriends treated her nicely yet she has feelings over a girl.  Can you believe that?”  Risako nervously smiled and walked toward the East wing where she was staying.

She was steps away from the room as her breathing became harder and she stood by the door as she heard singing.  The soft singing was calming down her anxiety and she turned to Miya staring at the window with her eyes fixed on the bright moon.

Why can’t I just be in the same room as her?  She has done a lot for me despite her own problems; I need to do something for her.

“Rii-chan, it’s not nice to make the patient wait.”  Miya snared her attention and let her sit on the bed.

“Gomen ne, how are you feeling?”  Rii asked without looking towards her direction.

“Still stings but at least I feel better out of the gang.”  Miya grinned as she grabbed her and gave her a hug.

Miya let her tears run down hitting Risako’s shirt, the younger girl rested her head, and suddenly felt a jolt from her side.  Miya released her embrace and watched her hold her side as she winced from the sharp pain.

“Let me call the doctor.”  Miya grabbed her button but Risako knocked it out of her hand.  She wanted to scream but something in her wanted to show her strength.

“It is just stress.  I am really excited that Maimi-chan won.”  Risako smiled as her face was showing the immense pain in her body and succumbed to her stress as she fell to the floor.

“RII!  I will call them right now.”  Miya panicked and mashed the button as manay time as she could until a nurse came.

The nurse looked down at Risako and called for a stretcher as Miya saw her flailing on the floor.  Risako tried to smile but the pain became unbearable and closed her eyes for a bit.

“Rii-chan…”  They placed her on the stretcher and carted her off as she saw her eyes open again.

She watched in fear as the younger girl was being sent to the observation room for abdominal pain.  Risako managed to gesture an okay sign before leaving the room.  Then, the woman popped in again with a smile on her face as she sat by the bedside facing away from her.

“Is she the one you are in love with?”  Miya nodded.

“I guess it can be helped.  When you were in the gang, the boys loved to be with you.  Now, you looked to the same as your savior, how can you feel the masculine urge in her?”  Miya bit down on her lower lip and placed her hands in front of her.

“She protected me from the gang when I decided to leave.  Once I stated my intention, everyone was urging me not to leave but she stood by me to leave before I got injured.  She has seen the wounds from the gun fights.”  She paused as the woman scoffed at her.

“I guess no man could keep you entertained so you decided to break away because no other woman would want to escape with you either.”  Miya’s blood boiled as she let out a deep breath.

“That’s true.  While you were taking men, I sat outside being horrible.  They wanted to drag me off but I stayed outside and left once you were satisfied.”  The woman gave her a smirk.

“I guess you never wanted to be like me despite your alliance years ago.  Everything fell into your hands and yet you let it go for your happiness.  I understand why you looked exhausted after the long sessions but you will never be fully free from us.”  Miya gave her a smile.

“Masa-kun~” She called as the man in a suit walked in with his badge exposed.

Her eyes were as big as baseballs as he shows his cuffs and slapped it onto her as Miya looked away from her.  She was smiling inside and not a hint of remorse made her feel wonderful yet she wanted to know Risako’s condition.  Miya called the nurse and asked about her but there was no definite answer.  The nurse turned off the lights and closed the curtain around her as she slowly closed her eyes without thoughts of her friend.

The next morning she woke to the sound of crunching and turned over to see someone next to her munching on carrots.  She rubbed her eyes and saw the girl smiling across of her.

“Rii!”  She shouted.

“Miya, don’t yell.  It is too early to wake up the other people.”  Risako warned as Miya placed her face into her palms.

“Mou, Miya.  I am still here, I just had an appendectomy.”  Miya whimpered as she tried to force a smile.

“I was worried about you.  You are so strong compared to me, I’m jealous that you avoided me the first time in getting help.”  Rii smiled as she tied her hair into a pony tail.

“You are the strength for me.  You were the one to protect me from everything and even when I was developing, you told me it was natural for my body to form as it should.  I should be jealous that you are thin.”  Miya stuck out her tongue and giggled at the compliment.

“I guess we are bonded by our past.  We lived next to each other for so long that we forget that we walked together to school and days when it rained we sat in the back of the car playing games.  That was so long ago, now we sit here just remembering our days being so close, what changed?”  They glanced at each other for a bit before turning away.

“I don’t know…”  Risako answered.  “We were two different people once you began to be a gang member.”

Miya shut her eyes and closed her hands into fists.  She slowly shook her body before opening them up and staring at the younger girl again.

“I cannot forgive myself for doing that.  It hurts when you greeted me from your window and I ignored you.  The gang was the wall between us.  These three years reminded me that forgiveness is time-driven.  Your wounds haven’t healed since I became this person.”  Rii threw her fork to gain her attention.

“You are still the same person I remembered from the past.  Nothing has changed.  You grew into what was given to you.  I always wanted to have a big sister who went through the obstacles to teach me life.  You were the sister I wanted, the friend I needed, and now a person I cherished.”  Miya hid her face into the sheets and punched the bed.

“I hate you.”  Miya smiled.  “You waited for me despite pushing you away, no one should go through that, and that makes me happy that there is still one person in my corner.”

Miya looked at Risako sleeping peacefully as she looked up at the clock and began to daydream about the first day out of the hospital.

A picnic would be nice.

[oddball]

Well I'm glad that Miya, ans Rii too are both ok, and that Miya got some of her own back on that person!