Shortass chapter today xD I'll write you all a nice big long one after if you're dissatisfied xD
Chapter 14: My Weakness is You
Everything you say…She never felt so conflicted in her life. Rika did not even bother returning to the hotel room. Instead, she wanted to get out of the building. Just to get away from them. Just to get away from anything.
Why?Rika asked herself that one word with every step she took, walking out of the building.
It’s Miki…
She was the one who probably forced herself on her…The woman ignored the bustling people around her; she was the one who didn’t belong among them with her state of thought.
Her thoughts were consuming her…
Why couldn’t she see?
All the evidence pointed out that it was all Miki’s fault…
Why was she angry at Hitomi as well?
Angry that she did not push Miki away?
Angry that she was suddenly there?
There was absolutely no reason to blame her…
Or was there?
Before she knew it, Rika ended up at the backyard of the hotel. Backyard seemed more like baby talk however. There were two pools on the hotel property. One of the pools was a simply kiddie pool, surrounded by white tiles. The other pool was the one that was the most… eye-catching so to speak.
It was like walking into a magnificent hidden spring within a jungle. There was a small replica of the Kegon falls at the northernmost end of the small body of water surrounded by realistic plaster rocks. To add more to the already spiritual atmosphere, there were fake plants scattered among the premises in a very beautiful fashion, making the viewer feel like they really were in a breath-taking jungle.
Rika took in a breath of air and exhaled. Somehow, she felt herself relax under the atmosphere of the beautiful backyard pool. It must have been the natural atmosphere that calmed her. Though, because it was the beginning of the third month of the year, there was no one in the pool; Rika was all alone.
But there was something that made her thought otherwise.
There was something among the natural architecture that seemed a bit…off?
Rika cautiously walked over to the pool with the huge rocky edges, the particularly huge rocks which held up the fake waterfall. She had her eyes on the mysterious thing which seemed to stick out of the environment, someone that did not belong.
Or
someone, rather.
“Do my eyes lie to me, or is there a girl wedged in between those rocks?” Rika wondered aloud, standing in front of this person sort of caught between two large rocks.
“Yes, they are lying,” the girl in between the rocks said almost inaudibly.
Is she blushing? Rika raised a brow. By common reasoning, the cursed woman deduced that this certain girl was incredibly shy.
“So if I blink, you will disappear?”
“……………….Yes.”
Rika could not help but giggle at this shy, yet adorable girl. In fact, she wasn’t sure whether she would even be considered a girl. The other seemed to be around Rika’s height, perhaps even taller than her. Also, she had maple colored tresses that rested on her shoulders. As the older (it was obvious that the other was younger) scanned the other, she noticed that the taller woman’s thighs seemed to fit the ‘thighs of thunder’ description…
“So why are you here?” Rika walked closer.
“I’m sorry, but I um…like the feeling of being pressed…” the girl said the last part of her sentence almost inaudibly.
“Really?” Rika blinked a few times. Finding a smaller rock next to the girl, the shorter decided to sit on it.
“I um…” the girl began again, “Um… Sorry… I’m really shy…”
“That’s okay,” a smile found itself on the older’s lips.
“R-really?”
“I used to be like you too,” Rika leaned on the big rock which was next to the rock she used as a chair.
“N-no… I don’t think so…” the girl tilted her head lower, resting her forehead against the rock.
“No really, I do think so,” Rika stood up, walked over and leaned against the edge of the crevice, watching the other. “I was really negative when I was younger. I didn’t like to talk to anyone because I was afraid that I might do something wrong. I never took my chances.”
“What changed you?”
“You see… I met someone.”
The girl shifted.
She slowly slid out before eventually getting in Rika’s view. She dusted the dirt which caught onto her denim jacket and her matching denim jeans. Underneath was a black spaghetti strapped shirt which proved her simplicity with a lack of illustration. Like her maple-colored hair, she had matching eyes.
She looked like the epitome of autumn.
“Who is that person? A lover?”
Rika could not help but laugh a bit. It was too weird to think of her as a lover.
“Nah, Ayumi isn’t a lover. She’s the closest friend I could ever ask for,” Rika kept a smile on her face.
“Ah…” the other girl mouthed. Then she lowered herself to sit, but misjudged the distance between her rear and the rock and winded up falling onto the ground with a soft thump.
This girl is SO cute…! Rika thought to herself, chuckling quietly.
“It hurts!” the woman whined, rubbing her sore bottom. When she looked up, she found Rika towering over her, lending out a hand. Hesitating slightly, she grabbed onto that hand and lifted herself up with the aid of the other.
“I’m Ishikawa Rika.”
“…”
“Well…” Rika sat down again, “I met Ayumi in high school. We were in futsal and she taught me a lot. I guess we became really close because of that.”
The other remained silent as she sat down (and made sure that she didn’t fall).
“She showed me that nothing will do well if I look at everything in a negative view. I have to be optimistic for anything good to happen. Slowly but surely, I became a positive person because of her.”
“Where is she right now?”
Now it was Rika’s turn to be silent.
She looked downward as her smile lowered.
Then she lifted her head, smiling again.
“She’s… at home at the moment. I can’t see her now. But I know I will see her later.”
“Ah, that’s good,” the taller tilted her head in a smile.
“Yeah…” Rika looked up at the sky.
I was negative after Maki attacked you…
…But what you taught me isn’t in vain…
Guess I should be positive for you again, huh?
Yeah… You’d smack me silly if you saw me like this, huh?“Oh um…”
“Hmm?” Rika looked at the other.
“I’m Kamei Eri. Please treat me well,” the other said, bowing her head as she did so.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kamei-san,” Rika bowed her head in a smile. “So what brings you here?”
“I was stressed out at home, so I came here alone for some peace,” Eri’s eyes were on the floor, still being shy.
“I guess we are similar, huh?” the older’s smile lowered slightly.
“What happened? Well um… If you don’t mind me asking…” the younger fiddled with her thumbs nervously.
“Well… There’s two people I know…”
Eri nodded to show that she was listening.
“I like one, but I’m not fond of the other. Just earlier, I just saw the one I dislike kissing the one I like… It’s in her character to go around making out with anyone hot she meets, so it’s typical of her… But the one I like had kissed me long before that… So I’m not sure if I should be angry with the one I like or the one I dislike…”
“Uh….” Eri blinked a few times, “I think you used too many ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’ there, Ishikawa-san…”
“I like A-san. I want to beat up B-san. B-san is a player (‘In the horny sense,’ Rika quickly added.) and I walked in on her making out with A-san. And A-san was the one who kissed me long before that… So I’m not sure if I should be angry with A-san or B-san.”
“Oh…” the taller simply said. “I’m sorry I can’t really help much. I can’t say I’ve had something like that happen before.”
“That’s okay,” Rika sighed. “You know…”
“Hmm?”
“A-san is a really mysterious person…I don’t know what A-san is thinking most of the time. I’m not even sure if my feelings are requited by that person. I keep thinking about B-san kissing her, and it’s not doing me any good at all because I’m led to the fact that A-san might be a player like B-san… I just don’t want to think about that at all, but I still do…”
“Ah… Maybe you should talk to him about it. If he’s mysterious, that means he has a cool aura to him, right?”
Rika wanted to make some expression—any expression—at the thought of Hitomi having something extra, but decided not to. Nor did she stop Eri from calling her a man.
“Hmm… He is like that…” Rika decided to play along to Eri’s word choice of switching Hitomi’s gender.
“Then yeah, maybe you should talk to him. I think he should be able to understand since you said he’s cool.”
“What about him being cool?” the cursed one raised a brow.
“Well… If we’re talking about Bishounen stereotypes… He should be the kind of person to listen to you, I think…”
Would Hitomi listen to me? Rika thought as she looked at the maple-haired woman.
She’s such an enigma though…I’m not sure if she might even listen to me…“What about you? What made you stressful?”
Eri’s mood dropped when the other said that.
“…That….” The taller said in a very low and uneasy voice, “…Sorry… I can’t open the lid… Not now…”
“I see… Sorry…”
“Ah! No need to apologize!”
“Thank you for the advice anyway,” Rika bowed her head.
“N-no problem!” Eri waved her hand dismissively.
She blushes so easily… it’s adorable!Then Rika decided to play along too…
“Do you have a fever?” Rika stepped forward, pressing her forehead to the other’s.
“I-I-I’M F-FINE! THANKS!” Eri’s voice was clearly filled with panick. Also, her eyes seemed to be in the form of @ signs, trying to comprehend the situation.
“You’re really burning…”
“N-NO I’M NOT!” Eri moved her head backwards, and slamming the top of it against the rock behind her.
Rika reached for the back of Eri’s head and pulled it towards her. She wanted to laugh as she pressed the other’s head into her bosom. She could hear Eri being slight muffled by her cleavage, but paid no attention to it as she kissed the bump on top of the taller’s head.
Being the seme is fun! Rika giggled internally as she pulled back, seeing that Eri’s face was redder than a tomato.
Deciding that she would go back out into the Kegon falls area, Rika notified Eri of it and then exchanged e-mails and cell-phone numbers. After that was complete, they waved goodbye and went their separate ways.
Everything you do…A heavy condensation of sweat filled the room.
“Nacchi…” a voice murmured, growing frustrated with each syllable.
“Now now…” the older smirked, “You like it like that, don’t you…?”
“Of course not…”
“Don’t be like that, Ayu-chan~” the scientist whined. “I’m the one on top, remember?”
“Just you wait… I will take you over…”
“Oh really?”
“Yes… Eventually…” Ayumi’s breathing became haggard.
“You know I’ll just punish you if you do…” Natsumi licked her lips.
“Then punish me,” Ayumi grinned naughtily as she managed to overtake Nacchi.
“Well, that’s out of the ordinary,” the smiling woman chuckled.
“You know it’s coming…”
“It is coming, but I think I’ll take my rightful spot now~!”
And thus, the positions are flipped again.
And then….
“WOO! I WIN!” Natsumi stood up with the playstation controller in her hand, excited over her victory.
“I told you I sucked at racing games! Why can’t we play good ol’ Mortal Kombat?!” Ayumi leaned back in the sofa, fingers tired from button mashing.
“You’re just used to the old racing games!” Nacchi moved her finger like a pendulum. “This age is all about the violence! This is like, my 57th victory at Full Auto! Learn to use your machine guns while you race me!”
“Oh God,” Ayumi slapped a palm to her face.
Every time you look at me…She changed her mind.
Rika did not feel like walking outside. Instead, she just wandered around the hallways of the hotel, taking in the intricate designs within her mind and making observations for the future, just in case something happened.
It has always been a habit of her’s, really: simply observing her surroundings while she was doing something else. She would always catch the blatant mistakes from her internal recordings and be wary of such. It was like the time she had found Miyabi and Miki’s shoes at her dorm room… It was different from the norm, so she was cautious…
But now, Hitomi is somewhere in the building…
So she was to be cautious…
“What is she doing here anyway…?” Rika wondered aloud, now wandering in the busy lounge. “Is she watching me…?” she looked around her shoulder to make sure, “or is she here on some other business…?”
Sayumi-chan said that there were people gathering the seven descendants here…
Is Hitomi one of the gatherers?
If she’s on her job, then she’s dangerous…The woman was wandering the hallways again.
Miki’s wounds from that time looked bad… All those bruises… I wouldn’t have known a thing if she didn’t show me…
Hitomi… Really is a two-faced person, isn’t she? Sweet and cute when she’s not on the job, but serious and merciless on her job? Does she realize that she is doing this…?
Or was she doing it on purpose?Rika’s thoughts were interrupted when she ran into someone as she turned the corner.
Ew.
Fate sucks.
“…You seem to be well…” the enigma said solemnly, looking down on the other.
Rika became overwhelmed by the feelings she suppressed when she spoke with Eri. However, she promised Eri that she would talk to her, so she would.
“Yeah…” the shorter lowered her head, “I guess I am…”
“…You’re not angry?”
“I guess I shouldn’t be. Miki’s always like that…” the cursed woman lifted her head in a light smile.
“Ah…” came the stoic reply from the guard.
“Thank you for asking…”
Awkward silence.
“Um… Ayumi told me a long time ago… That disasters would come running away from me because I’m the Mistress of all disasters. It’s pretty true actually…”
“Hm?”
“Last week, I transformed into Maki attacked you right?” dark eyes met the taller, “And Ayumi too? I bet I’ve even killed people trying to go for Ayumi… But that’s the way it’s going to be from now on. It’s the only way I could fight back. So when I change into Maki, I will be hard to stop. It’s just like you, right?”
“Like me?” Hitomi raised a brow.
“When you’re not on duty, you’re always ‘normal’ and crack a few jokes or so, like a real friend would do. But when you’re working, you become a whole other person, willing to kill anyone… And you almost killed Miki if it weren’t for the fact that Maki was able to save her too…”
The guard remained silent.
“You are always so confusing, Hitomi. I never get anything
definite from you. Those weeks ago, you practically knew that I fell in love with you, but what do you do? You don’t say words, you just French-kiss me and leave… Just… Just say something… Anything… Bind me with words… Make me believe you…”
“I…”
Rika looked up.
“I don’t know the words for that,” Hitomi gave a rather forlorn look at the other.
“Then… Just do something…” Rika walked into the other’s chest, clenching her hands into fists that rested on the other’s chest. “If you don’t have words, then show me proof with actions… Just do anything… If you love me, then you would hug me and comfort me right now…”
She felt arms slide around her.
“Physical action isn’t going to accomplish anything, Rika. Just because I move doesn’t mean my heart is in it. It can’t be considered a
definite thing, for it’s just an action.”
“So mechanical sounding…” Rika rested her head on the other’s chest as well, “You don’t have to treat me like a kid, you know.”
“My apologies.”
The hug become stronger, for Rika felt the taller’s head rest on her own.
“I… Just don’t know anything yet. I’ve been trying to figure out this bond we have. I never realized it until someone pointed it out to me. If that’s the case, then how can I express what I hardly understand?”
“What do you mean…?”
“The words you want to hear from me… I can’t say them. They don’t feel ‘right’ to me. But all I know…” Hitomi backed her head away, allowing the shorter to look up, “Is that there’s something between us…”
The gap between their lips closed.
Every time you touch me…Eri walked alone amongst the crowd.
She thought about her meeting with that woman, Ishikawa Rika.
Ishikawa-san…Eri stood in place like a rock in a stream.
You’re so lucky…The maple-haired woman lowered her head onto the ground, tears forming in her eyes.
“At least Ishikawa-san still has her best friend…”
Dreadful thoughts began to overwhelm her.
Unwanted memories began to consume her.
I’ve…
I’ve killed mine…I feel like I fall apart…Ohhhh what now?

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