LOGINI sighted an empty booth in a corner near the window and made my way there. A waiter came over the instant my butt made contact with the seat. What shocked me was the fact that I recognized the waiter.
The guy raised a perfect brow, his face blank. "Yes. Me. Is there a problem?"
I gazed at the new guy with interest. His voice was deep, like the rumbling that comes before an avalanche. His dark hair was full and wavy, cold dark eyes staring down at me, thin lips pulled in a tight line. He was wearing a pair of black jeans, a red shirt that accentuated his firm muscles with an apron tied to his waist, and a red face cap that had the restaurant logo on it. He looked... good.
"Nope. No problem at all. Lighten up man" I said, feeling a bit uncomfortable. No one had ever spoken to me with such a tone before.
The guy scoffed. "Lighten up? You're that jerk who bullied that girl yesterday along with your friends. I don't like people like you"
I frowned at the word jerk but then smiled as I recalled Hina’s face. "Yeah right. It was fun" I relaxed a bit in the chair.
"Fun?" The guy spat. "You call ruining her reputation fun?"
"Woah cool down man. It's no big deal" I chuckled. The guy had no idea why I was doing those things. And it seemed fun toying with him like this.
His face scrunched even more. Cold eyes glaring at me. For the first time in my life, I felt a bit of fear but it quickly left. This guy can't touch me. I'm Yamamoto Aito. I'm invincible.
"No big deal?"
I rolled my eyes. "What's with you and repeating my words?" He was getting on my nerves.
"You're an asshole Aito"
Okay. I was slowly getting mad. "Dude there's no need for name calling. What happened yesterday was none of your business. If you're so bothered about Hina, go console her or agree to be the father of her child or something. I'm here to eat. Will you take my order or not?"
He glared at me for a while then handed me a menu. Satisfied, I let out a small smile. I skimmed through the list of food and then pointed at a line.
"Pancakes with a cup of coffee. Black"
The guy took back the menu. I glanced at his name tag on the shirt. Ryu. His name's Ryu. The dragon huh.
Ryu quickly scribbled down the order and then left. I took out my phone to reply to the texts.
Yua
Hey. I’m still mad at you. We're still going shopping later.
Hey. Suck it up. Be there later.
Haruto
Yo Aito, party at 8 tonight. Sara’s again. Wanna go? We could gather some dirt on her next.
Sure man. Pick me up
Toshiro
Hey man! Wanna hang out today?
We’re going shopping with the girls
Sakura
Aito-kun. Yua said shopping by 12 pm
See you then.
Sara
Hey, sexy;) Party tonight. Bring booze.
Sure thing;)
Mum
Hey baby. How are you? I know we said we’ll be back by Sunday which is tomorrow but some problems came up in our branch in Africa. We’ll be gone for two weeks. I’ve sent more money to your account. If you need anything, call me. Love you.
Alright. Love you too.
A plate of steaming hot pancakes was placed in front of me and a cup of black coffee. I gazed up at Ryu, flashing him a smirk. Now that’s better than sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong.
The next thing I felt was wet heat all over my lap. I shot up from the chair, hissing in pain. Ryu had poured the hot coffee all over me. "What the hell!"
"Oops," he said, acting as if it was an accident. "Ever heard of karma, Aito-kun?". His voice was sickly sweet and a corner of his lips was turned up making my smirk dissipate like smoke. He bent low, only stopping when our faces were a few inches apart. I could feel his hot minty breath tickling the tip of my nose.
"What you consider fun and no big deal will come back to bite you in the ass one day and it'll be so bad you'll wish you were dead. After all, your heart is already as black as your coffee. Enjoy your meal".
He winked then walked away.
What th-
I was stunned. I looked down at the meal before me and I suddenly didn't feel hungry anymore.
So bad I'll wish I was dead?
Huh.
It's too late for that now. I'm already constantly wishing for death.
********
Shopping is one of the things I actually enjoy. It helps keep my mind off things and I like walking around malls, seeing new styles and new faces.
"How does this look?" Yua asked. She walked out of the changing room wearing a white crop top and high-waisted jeans. They looked quite good on her but...
"Too much skin," I said, frowning. "Your entire arms are exposed and the neckline is too low. Why do you like wearing such revealing clothes?"
Yua rolled her eyes and Sakura facepalmed. "We should have never invited him"
"Don't listen to him Yua-chan. You look sexy" Toshiro said, wiggling his brows.
I scoffed. "You should get a jacket to go with that. You can have mine if you want"
Yua suddenly beamed. "Really?"
Weird but "Sure...". I took off my denim jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She was smiling throughout the process and even winked at Sakura. I had no idea what was going on but whatever. I didn't care. Yua is like a sister to me. Even though I hate her for what she did to Aera, I had to keep acting normal around her.
"Okay next is lingerie" Sakura announced.
Toshiro brightened like a lightbulb and I blanched.
"We uh, we're gonna go check out the video games section. Text us when you're done then we'll go grab lunch" I said, feeling uncomfortable as the image of Sakura and Yua in sexy lingerie blossomed in my mind. I shuddered. Gross. I don't see them in any way sexual.
"You and who? Talk for yourself man" Toshiro said to me. He turned to the girls with a wide smile on his face. I could see him almost getting a nosebleed. "Now let's go pick you girls some nice sexy lingerie. Sakura will look good in pink or white. Yua, you'll look better in black. Or maybe red"
Sakura shook her head. "Ugh Aito-kun please take him away before he pops a boner here"
"Pervert" Lisa snapped. "Why can't you be a gentleman like Aito-kun?"
"Pftttt!!! Aito? A gentleman?"
I whacked him on the head. "What's that supposed to mean baka!" I grabbed his collar and yanked him away. "See you two later!"
"Noooo! Wait! Wait! I wanna see them in lingerie!!!"
Kento was dressed the same way and he followed Kenji in together with Aito who was pushing him on the wheelchair. The instant Haruto caught sight of Aito, his heart leaped in his chest. Though he had already seen the outfit during their trip to the mall and knew how striking it was, seeing it on Aito revealed its full glory. Aito was utterly captivating, making it impossible for Haruto to look anywhere else. For one instinctive moment, Haruto wanted to cross the room and go straight to him, maybe hug him or get a kiss but he knew he couldn’t do that without drawing attention to himself. His fingers tightened against the wall as he willed himself to remain standing. There would be time to get close to Aito later. He would make sure of it. And there was no way he was leaving the hotel today without Aito. The rest of the family members walked in, including Mrs Yamamoto. Her smile was graceful and her posture impeccable. She carried herself with high dignity, as if she wasn’t the wom
The Yamaguchis had not held an event in Tokyo in years and judging by the spectacle unfolding before Haruto, they had apparently decided that when they finally returned to the social scene, they would make certain no one forgot it.The Fuuji Hotel hall had been transformed in a way Haruto hadn't seen in years. The massive hall glowed beneath hundreds of crystal chandeliers, their light scattering across polished marble floors. Black and silver decorations stretched from the ceiling in elaborate arrangements, intertwined with deep crimson roses and delicate strands of crystal that shimmered whenever someone walked beneath them.Everywhere Haruto looked, there was wealth and he sneered in annoyance. Blood surely was thick. They had decorated the hall the same way Aito's mother liked to decorate. Too loud and lavish. He hated all those flashy decors. In the past, when he attended such events with Aito, he usually left some minutes after but today, he wasn't going to leave. Not without
Aito was dressed in an ice-blue suit that looked almost too beautiful to be called a suit. The fabric had a delicate, shimmering quality to it, catching the light with every slight movement. It reminded Ryu of the crystalline gowns Elsa wore in Frozen but this one was made into a masculine suit that fitted Aito perfectly. It was like it was made for him alone. The jacket was perfectly tailored, following the natural lines of his frame without looking restrictive and the trousers matched perfectly, falling neatly over his white shoes, while a pristine white shirt underneath softened the cool shade of the suit.His platinum-blond hair, dusted with tiny sparkly flecks that looked like freshly fallen snow, fell in soft waves around his face. Against the cool blue of his clothes, his hair made him look like someone who had stepped out of a winter fairytale and accidentally wandered into their living room.Fuck, Aito looked unreal. Kaito was a mad genius when it came to clothes though he wo
Meanwhile…After some minutes of heavy persuasion from Kenji and Yasu, Mrs. Yamamoto finally placed the lamp on a nearby table. She smoothed down her stunning peach-coloured dinner dress, fixed her shiny chestnut hair, then took a seat though her expression remained murderous as she kept glaring at Mr. Igarashi.“The next time he calls my son a whore, I won't let it slide.” she seethed.Mr. Igarashi immediately opened his mouth to retort but Yasu slapped a hand over his mouth and made him sit down. “Sir, you don't have to reply to everything she says. Please, let's end this now. We still have a lot to discuss.”Mr. Igarashi glared at him, clearly not satisfied but after a moment, he simply huffed and remained silent. It was better not to argue with a mad woman.Seeing that Mr Yoongi wasn’t going to say anything else, Yasu sighed in relief and retracted his hand. Damn. They were behaving like kids, bickering every chance they got. No. He shook his head. They were worse than kids becaus
He made a move to leave but Kenji blocked his path with his body, stopping him from leaving. They had almost the same build and height so Ryu couldn't just pass the narrow way."You're blocking the hallway." he said, his voice low. He didn't want Aito to know he was peeping but it seemed like Kenji didn't care because he even raised his voice."What?""I said move." Ryu growled.Kenji's eyebrows rose. For a second, neither of them moved, then Kenji stepped forward instead. "I asked you a question.""I heard you." Ryu replied, not moving an inch."And?""I don't remember asking you for relationship advice." Ryu said, staring Kenji straight in the eyes. He knew Kenji didn't like him one bit and wanted Aito to break up with him but he wasn't going to let that happen. He wasn't going to let Kenji intimidate him as well. The guy kept ridiculing their relationship and he was hardly in one himself."What Aito and I do is up to us," Ryu continued, his voice low and firm. "Just be rest assured
Just moments ago, Aito had been annoyed by what Ryu wanted them to do but now, that irritation dissolved completely. It melted away beneath the sight of the man he loved falling apart right in front of him.Aito hadn't realised that Ryu had been carrying this much fear in him. This much guilt and self-loathing. His heart clenched painfully. Without hesitation, he scooted closer until their knees brushed."Ryu..." he whispered, his voice impossibly gentle. He lifted both hands and carefully cupped Ryu's face.Ryu instinctively leaned into the warmth of his palms, closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath for Aito's closeness seemed to calm him down. He snaked his arms around Aito's waist and brought them closer. The erratic beating of his heart slowed and the trembling of his body eased.Aito's thumbs brushed over his cheeks, catching the tears as they fell. He wiped them away one by one even as his own eyes began to sting. "I can't believe you've been carrying all of this by yourse
"Poor Ryuho..." Aito mumbled. "He must have suffered a lot these five years..." Aito now realised why Ryu had cried and hugged him like that. He felt even worse.Kaito's brow twitched. 'Poor Ryuho?' he thought, giving Aito a complicated look. 'The person you should pity is yourself!'But Aito felt
After that, I found myself at Ryu’s doorstep. I don't know why but instead of going back home, I went the opposite way. Besides, no one was at home. Mum left two days after the case was over. She said they'll be back soon. They just need to wrap up some work.The small house was quiet and it looked p
Aito's heart dropped down to the pit of his stomach and his breath seized as he imagined the whole scene. The kinds of things his friends had done to drive a girl to end her own life. The mental and physical torture she must have gone through. He couldn't stop the tears that flowed down his cheeks.
Toshiro had just finished arguing with a couple of his workers for breaking some very important equipment they needed to use today. He was exhausted, irritated and furious as he'd have to buy them all over again, with his own money. But that wasn't what annoyed him the most. It was actually the fac







