EncounterIf she had an option to never see another curtain for the rest of her life, she would have taken it in a heartbeat.
Niigaki Risa was normally a patient person. Scratch that, she was patient on her own time, not on other people's time. It was what made her efficient, since her drive to finish everything in the shortest amount of time possible made her more productive than others in the same line.
Detail-oriented and a hundred percent focused on tasks handed to her, she could somehow match the client's expectations to an overall aesthetic level that would satisfy her own exacting standards. Far from being obsequious like so many of her compatriots, Risa would not hesitate to tell a client when something would most definitely
not work. Certain colours were never meant to go together, and if the client insisted...well,
she wasn't the one who had to live with it after it was done. Though she would most definitely volunteer a "I told you so" to anyone who regretted it after the fact.
Currently, she was very seriously contemplating smashing her iPad on the nearest object...preferably over the too-hard head of her client. If she heard just
one more word about the curtains she was going to scream. Literally.
"I really can't decide if I want them to be pink with white trimmings, or white with pink trimmings..."
Risa prudently decided that yelling at the woman to have both sets and alternate them would probably sound a lot better when
not delivered at a screech. Taking deep calming breaths, and carefully removing herself out of range from any sharp objects -- the better to stab her client with, her mind added -- Risa mustered her most professional smile and composed herself to reply.
"You know, curtains are not a permanent fixture, so you
could change your mind about them at a later date." There. She managed to even not sound
too sarcastic.
Way to go Risa, she congratulated herself, and discreetly massaged her temples to quell the building headache.
Indecisive clients were a trial to her, particularly on bad days. Picky clients were comparatively less annoying, provided they knew exactly what they wanted. Put those two qualities together and Risa was about ready to go into ogre mode and tear up furniture. It was a testament to her professionalism that she had held up for as long as she had.
"I suppose that's true." Her client conceded, browsing through a catalogue. They had just started a discussion about lighting fixtures when they were rudely interrupted by a loud banging at the door.
"Oh bother." Her client frowned, before pushing off from her beanbag chair to answer the door. Risa took the opportunity to take a sip from her lukewarm coffee, rubbing at her eyes as she muffled a yawn. Due to the hectic schedules of this particular client, this had been the only open slot that wasn't past midnight or in the wee hours of morning where they could discuss the layout of her new apartment.
Risa was used to irregular hours, but she had been run ragged lately, and would really appreciate having some time to herself that wasn't devoted to crashing into bed for the necessary 8 hours (or less) before having to be up and about again.
"What brings you here?" Risa raised an eyebrow, peering over the rim of her cup. The surprise visitor came into view only a moment later, and a second eyebrow flew up to join the first in its attempt to merge into her hairline.
Rubbing shoulders with celebrities wasn't an everyday occurence, though she had had her fair share of famous clients. She had very quickly gotten over dealing with one Michishige Sayumi over the last couple of weeks, but seeing a scowling Tanaka Reina in the flesh was...probably less impressive than it should have been.
For one thing, Tanaka was
tiny. Risa wasn't very big herself, but the singer was a lot smaller than she looked on TV. Though the sense of her presence certainly justified her celebrity status. An aura of menace seemed to hover around the dimunitive idol as she stalked in, taking in the boxes stacked in a corner.
"Good, I thought you moved already." Reina grated, her eyes sweeping over the stock-still Risa, who suddenly decided that the best course of action would be to blend into the wallpaper for the time being. She dropped her gaze and pretended to be very interested in her iPad. There was something raw and oddly violent in that angry gaze, and Risa was quite keen on maintaining her state of health, thank you very much.
"And you still came?" Sayumi padded in lightly after her partner, arms folded. "What's gotten into you, Reina? You seem out of sorts."
Reina whirled on the taller girl, fists clenched as she gritted out.
"You knew she was back.
You knew and you didn't tell me."
Sayumi seemed briefly taken aback, and her eyes seemed to shift around before settling into a cool mask. She appraised her cousin calmly, as if trying to weigh her response.
"I have no idea what..."
"Oh don't you give me that, Sayu." Reina cut in, folding her arms indignantly. "The way you've implied things whenever you referred to the kid, the way you always follow her around so creepily -- yes I know that was you." Reina threw her hands up in the air, her frustration evident.
"I
know you, Sayu. It just didn't occur to me before without a reason to believe. But now I've actually seen..." Reina sucked in a breath, her shoulders tightening visibly.
"And you expect me to tell you, what?" Sayumi parried back immediately, not waiting for Reina to gather herself for another attack. The self-proclaimed ichiban kawaii idol suddenly seemed less like her normally bubbly self, and a lot more like the serpent she occasionally portrayed on TV. Gaki risked a look, but did not dare move. Some instinct told her to stay as still as possible while those two duked it out.
"You were in pieces after she left. You were the one who said that you never wanted to see her again when she didn't come back. Or did you forget already, dear cousin? How you locked yourself up and
cried..."
"Shut. Up." It came out more like a growl than as real words, but there was no mistaking the intent. Reina trembled with barely controlled rage. "You have
no right..."
Sayumi chucked lowly. "Oh, but I
do." Her eyes glittered in challenge. "
I gave you back your life. I picked you up when you were broken and left for dead, or did you forget? When you lost your pretty little head and decided that you could take on a bunch of gangsters on your own..."
"You go too far, Sayu." Reina said flatly. Her nails were clenched into her fists, and from where Risa was sitting, it seemed like she had already drawn blood. She couldn't tell for sure though.
"But you don't deny it." Sayumi picked daintily at a piece of lint on her sleeve, letting it flutter off with a breath. "I really didn't want to bring the past back to you, seeing how you always react so badly."
Reina twitched visibly, and Risa thought for a moment that she was going to attack Sayu. Her hand slipped discreetly to her phone. In case anything happened she could always call the police...
"I was angry back then." Reina admitted sourly, glaring at her smug cousin. She turned away, facing the opposite wall. "I don't hate her now. If I ever did."
"You've met then." This was not a question. Sayu studied Reina's back for a moment. "I'm surprised you're...intact."
"You sound so disappointed." Reina drawled. Sayu smirked.
"I was half expecting you to kill her actually. Or tear her clothes off. The fact that you're here all tidy-looking is out of my expectations." Blunt as always, Sayu never gave any quarter to anyone, cousin or no.
"Give me a little credit, I'm not a hot-headed brat anymore." Reina said with a half-smile, turning back to face Sayu, who answered with a sardonic smile.
"So says the one who comes barging into my house at such a late hour, demanding explanations." Sayumi tsked, waving a finger disapprovingly. Reina let out a short bark of laughter, her anger apparently fading, though Sayu still sensed a dangerous tension hovering around her cousin.
"Not so late I see, since you still have a guest." Reina finally acknowledged Risa's presence in the corner, and the interior designer gulped reflexively, wondering if she could walk out of the apartment alive.
"I'm sure Gaki-san is tired. Why don't you head on home first? I'm sure we can schedule another appointment." Sayumi's smile seemed almost too good to be true, though if the chill that ran down Risa's spine was anything to go by, it was far from friendly.
"O-of course. I'll forward you my sketches tomorrow, and you can tell me what else you would like changed before we proceed." Risa fell back on work to hide her anxiety, and managed to not fumble too much as she gathered up her things and prepared to leave.
She almost made it past the famous duo when Sayumi caught hold of her arm, leaning in with a too-friendly smile as she whispered.
"I'm sure you saw and heard nothing earlier, yes? It would be such a pity to have to find a more reliable interior designer who can
keep her mouth shut." The taller idol let go of the petrified Risa. She was still smiling.
"Good night, Gaki-san. Have a safe trip home."
Risa all but ran out of the door. Before the door slammed shut, she thought she heard one of them laugh. Suppressing a shiver, Risa held her briefcase close to her chest, wondering just what kind of madhouse she had escaped from.
Celebrities. Not a sane one among them. Risa hoped little Riho was doing fine. She made up her mind to visit her best friend and her daughter. She had been neglecting her friends of late, and felt a stab of guilt at that.
Putting the incident behind her -- because nothing happened, not at all, no siree -- Risa started texting her friends, glad to have something other than batshit crazy idols to focus on.
It would be good to see her more normal friends again.
========================================================
Poor Gaki.
Caught in the crossfire.
I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. I know I had fun with it!
Also, please excuse any irregularities regarding the job of an interior designer. I'm just pulling stuff outta my ass for that one.
If anyone knows better, you are free to tell me what they actually do.
I would appreciate the input lol.
And off to bed I go!
Topic: 私のアホ家族(My Stupid Family)[24/6 - Chapter 25: A Series of Unfortunate Events] (Read 99678 times)