[Complete] Invisible Chains- Chapter 16
Chapter 16
I took a bite of my sushi before I quickly popped in another one. I wanted to have a peaceful and quiet meal but I could tell that it wasn’t going to happen. “So, how do you know this restaurant if you don’t mind me asking you?” Ninomiya-san asked with an intrigued and curious look in his eyes. Then I could feel that Aiba-san, Haruhi and even Genta tensed up a bit. I turned my head towards him and smiled to him, which he quickly gave back to me. “I found it one day by chance and I’ve been coming here since.” Then I raised an eyebrow at him. “What about you? Did Aiba-san introduce this restaurant to you?”
Ninomiya-san chuckled and rested his folded arms on the counter in front of him. As he looked at Genta making another sushi for me, he replied. “Aiba-chan didn’t find this restaurant, I had introduced it to him.” I looked at Aiba-san and he quickly looked away from my eyes. I was surprised since it felt like he was the one who found this place on his own. Then I looked back at Ninomiya-san who was still talking. “I also found this place by chance.” He smirked as he continued. “Like you I wanted to find a place that I could visit without anyone noticing who I am especially during my private and personal time.” I slowly nodded my head and totally agreed with his words, but that doesn’t mean I still like him.
I found this sushi restaurant in hopes that I would be able to temporary cut myself from the outside world and feel safe in a warm and small environment in which I can become myself. I don’t need to worry about the eyes that were always constantly on me at the company building. However, only on this occasion, I felt being stared at from both Aiba-san and Ninomiya-san.
“I’ll take another beer.” Aiba-san said as he looked at Haruhi. She smiled at him and quickly poured another glass for him. “I’ll take another glass of cider.” I added, which made both Aiba-san and Ninomiya-san look at me. It felt uncomfortable at first when they looked at me, but I quickly got used to it.
Suddenly a phone rang and I checked my cell phone in my purse to see it wasn’t my phone. Then I looked over and saw that it was Aiba-san’s phone. He quickly scrambled to retrieve it from his pocket, as I noticed Haruhi placing his beer on another coaster at his seat. While my eyes trailed towards Ninomiya-san whom was drinking and eating on edamame quietly. I thought that it was unusual for his friend to be so calm but then I suspected that he was used to it.
I looked over at to where Aiba-san, whom had gotten off from his seat, to speak in a quiet corner of the shop. It wasn’t too far from us so we still could somewhat overhear his conversation. “Daijoubu Mariko?” He asked, which his tone had immediately changed from a cheerful tone to a worried one. I furrowed my eyebrows and started to wonder whom this person was that made Aiba-san so worried. “Oh, we ran out of yogurt and instant ramen cups?” He asked, his voice had still not wavered but his body composure started to slowly shift. He placed his left hand on his head as he listened to the call. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it when I get home. Just sit tight and I’ll be home soon.” As soon as he finished speaking, he let out a loud sigh, which I found to be unusual especially coming from him.
As I noticed that Aiba-san was about to turn his head back to return to his seat, I quickly took my eyes off from him and continued to eat my sushi. I didn’t want to let him know that I was nosy and wanted to listen to his private conversation. “I’ve got to get some stuff for Mariko-chan.” Aiba-san announced and then quickly slapped a few bills on the counter beside his new glass of beer. “Chotto, you just ordered another beer. Isn’t that rude to leave it untouched?” Ninomiya-san asked, which caught me surprise. Why would he worry about that? And who is this Mariko person? Why haven’t I heard of her name before?
“I can’t. You know how Mariko-chan is. It was nice seeing you, Genta-san, Haruhi-san, and…” I slowly looked up, and for the first time out of the entire time we were here, we made eye contact. “Bye bye Asuka-chan.” He forced a smile upon his face, trying to hide whatever his worries that he wanted to express. I waved goodbye as all four of us saw him walking out of the door. I went back to what I was doing before, when I noticed from the corner of my eye that Ninomiya-san was looking at me.
I slowly turned my head and then he smiled at me. “Are you curious who he was talking with?” He asked and finished his question with a smirk. I blinked my eyes and looked at him blankly. Of course I was curious of whom he was talking with but that wasn’t his business to know what I thought about it. Who gave him permission to know my thoughts are? With my unchanged expression, I shook my head and replied. “Aiba-san is just an employee at Nakashima Industries, just like you. Since we have a business relationship, I have no reason or any obligations to pry into my employee’s personal life.”
Ninomiya-san pulled back his head back a bit and looked a bit surprised. Then he returned back to his previous expression. “So you’re not curious at all about this Mariko person?” He asked again, making me a bit more upset and frustrated. I clenched my jaw tightly and wondered why he was asking me these questions when I keep trying to push those questions off of me. I folded my arms as I said. “Ninomiya-san, I don’t know why you keep asking me questions about Aiba-san but I beg you to stop. I don’t want to know Aiba-san, and I think he doesn’t want to know me. We just happen to be at the same places at the same time. Maybe you think this is called ‘fate’, ‘destiny’, or whatever. Before I seek legal action from my legal team about you harassing me with all these questions, I will kindly ask you to stop.” I stared at him with focused eyes and wanted to make sure he understood what I was saying. I could also sense that I had drastically changed the atmosphere in the room. Even Genta and Haruhi kept their mouths closed tightly.
Ninomiya-san blinked his eyes and held up his hands up in the air. “I think both of us wouldn’t want that but…” He trailed off. I raised my eyebrow at him; almost anticipating what he was going to say next was going to piss me off even more. “When people easily put up a wall in front of them then that means they are hiding something even if they don’t realize it.” My mouth gaped open. I was shocked and angry that he would call me a defensive person. I was only stating the truth and nothing else. Also why is it his business to know whom I like or have feelings for?
“I don’t think…” I heard Haruhi muttered. But before she could say anything, Genta placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, her eyes were full of worriedness and concerned. However she got the message that Genta was silently telling her. She quickly scurried into the back room.
Meanwhile I stared at him in awe. “How… How rude to tell me that I’m hiding something.” I stuttered making my cheeks flushed. Then I began to grab my wallet from my purse to pay for my meal. I couldn’t stand him. He was starting to get on my nerves, not to mention that he was completely disrespectful to me when he asked me that question. Ninomiya-san chuckled and muttered. “Fine, just get up and leave. I guess that's what you’re good at. You even did that at lunch with Aiba-chan and your father.”
Heat rose from my cheeks and I was at a point that I was furious. Was he making fun of me or was it something else? I slammed the money down on the counter and collected my stuff before I headed towards the door. However before I exited the restaurant I wanted to have the last remark. “Ninomiya-san, I don’t know why you are doing this to me but my relationship between Aiba-san is none of your concern. As for being defensive, I do admit that I distance myself from others sometimes but it does not mean I’m hiding something. I’m like this because of my childhood and my upbringing. Before you claim you know how I feel or what my life is, you should first understand my past.” I turned around and bowed to everyone before I quietly walked out of the restaurant.
As soon as I entered in my car, I don’t know if Aiba-san had telepathic abilities or Ninomiya-san contacted him but I received a text message from him.
Hey, are you okay? Did Nino-chan upset you? Do you want to talk about it? -Aiba
“Yeah, right.” I scoffed. I didn’t want to see or talk to him again. I felt like he was going to irritate me more than help me calm down. I ignored his text and dropped my phone back into my purse. I started up my car and drove into the late and bright Tokyo night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Woo~ This chapter was intense, wasn't it? I had fun writing this chapter and the interaction between Asuka and Nino. I just wanted to remind you that although Asuka and Nino argue like cats and dogs, they will not develop feelings whatsoever. It's not the situation where the boy teases the girl because he likes her. Sorry to disappoint, so please don't keep your hopes up for that. (o_ _)o Thanks for reading and we're halfway through this fanfic!!
I took a bite of my sushi before I quickly popped in another one. I wanted to have a peaceful and quiet meal but I could tell that it wasn’t going to happen. “So, how do you know this restaurant if you don’t mind me asking you?” Ninomiya-san asked with an intrigued and curious look in his eyes. Then I could feel that Aiba-san, Haruhi and even Genta tensed up a bit. I turned my head towards him and smiled to him, which he quickly gave back to me. “I found it one day by chance and I’ve been coming here since.” Then I raised an eyebrow at him. “What about you? Did Aiba-san introduce this restaurant to you?”
Ninomiya-san chuckled and rested his folded arms on the counter in front of him. As he looked at Genta making another sushi for me, he replied. “Aiba-chan didn’t find this restaurant, I had introduced it to him.” I looked at Aiba-san and he quickly looked away from my eyes. I was surprised since it felt like he was the one who found this place on his own. Then I looked back at Ninomiya-san who was still talking. “I also found this place by chance.” He smirked as he continued. “Like you I wanted to find a place that I could visit without anyone noticing who I am especially during my private and personal time.” I slowly nodded my head and totally agreed with his words, but that doesn’t mean I still like him.
I found this sushi restaurant in hopes that I would be able to temporary cut myself from the outside world and feel safe in a warm and small environment in which I can become myself. I don’t need to worry about the eyes that were always constantly on me at the company building. However, only on this occasion, I felt being stared at from both Aiba-san and Ninomiya-san.
“I’ll take another beer.” Aiba-san said as he looked at Haruhi. She smiled at him and quickly poured another glass for him. “I’ll take another glass of cider.” I added, which made both Aiba-san and Ninomiya-san look at me. It felt uncomfortable at first when they looked at me, but I quickly got used to it.
Suddenly a phone rang and I checked my cell phone in my purse to see it wasn’t my phone. Then I looked over and saw that it was Aiba-san’s phone. He quickly scrambled to retrieve it from his pocket, as I noticed Haruhi placing his beer on another coaster at his seat. While my eyes trailed towards Ninomiya-san whom was drinking and eating on edamame quietly. I thought that it was unusual for his friend to be so calm but then I suspected that he was used to it.
I looked over at to where Aiba-san, whom had gotten off from his seat, to speak in a quiet corner of the shop. It wasn’t too far from us so we still could somewhat overhear his conversation. “Daijoubu Mariko?” He asked, which his tone had immediately changed from a cheerful tone to a worried one. I furrowed my eyebrows and started to wonder whom this person was that made Aiba-san so worried. “Oh, we ran out of yogurt and instant ramen cups?” He asked, his voice had still not wavered but his body composure started to slowly shift. He placed his left hand on his head as he listened to the call. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it when I get home. Just sit tight and I’ll be home soon.” As soon as he finished speaking, he let out a loud sigh, which I found to be unusual especially coming from him.
As I noticed that Aiba-san was about to turn his head back to return to his seat, I quickly took my eyes off from him and continued to eat my sushi. I didn’t want to let him know that I was nosy and wanted to listen to his private conversation. “I’ve got to get some stuff for Mariko-chan.” Aiba-san announced and then quickly slapped a few bills on the counter beside his new glass of beer. “Chotto, you just ordered another beer. Isn’t that rude to leave it untouched?” Ninomiya-san asked, which caught me surprise. Why would he worry about that? And who is this Mariko person? Why haven’t I heard of her name before?
“I can’t. You know how Mariko-chan is. It was nice seeing you, Genta-san, Haruhi-san, and…” I slowly looked up, and for the first time out of the entire time we were here, we made eye contact. “Bye bye Asuka-chan.” He forced a smile upon his face, trying to hide whatever his worries that he wanted to express. I waved goodbye as all four of us saw him walking out of the door. I went back to what I was doing before, when I noticed from the corner of my eye that Ninomiya-san was looking at me.
I slowly turned my head and then he smiled at me. “Are you curious who he was talking with?” He asked and finished his question with a smirk. I blinked my eyes and looked at him blankly. Of course I was curious of whom he was talking with but that wasn’t his business to know what I thought about it. Who gave him permission to know my thoughts are? With my unchanged expression, I shook my head and replied. “Aiba-san is just an employee at Nakashima Industries, just like you. Since we have a business relationship, I have no reason or any obligations to pry into my employee’s personal life.”
Ninomiya-san pulled back his head back a bit and looked a bit surprised. Then he returned back to his previous expression. “So you’re not curious at all about this Mariko person?” He asked again, making me a bit more upset and frustrated. I clenched my jaw tightly and wondered why he was asking me these questions when I keep trying to push those questions off of me. I folded my arms as I said. “Ninomiya-san, I don’t know why you keep asking me questions about Aiba-san but I beg you to stop. I don’t want to know Aiba-san, and I think he doesn’t want to know me. We just happen to be at the same places at the same time. Maybe you think this is called ‘fate’, ‘destiny’, or whatever. Before I seek legal action from my legal team about you harassing me with all these questions, I will kindly ask you to stop.” I stared at him with focused eyes and wanted to make sure he understood what I was saying. I could also sense that I had drastically changed the atmosphere in the room. Even Genta and Haruhi kept their mouths closed tightly.
Ninomiya-san blinked his eyes and held up his hands up in the air. “I think both of us wouldn’t want that but…” He trailed off. I raised my eyebrow at him; almost anticipating what he was going to say next was going to piss me off even more. “When people easily put up a wall in front of them then that means they are hiding something even if they don’t realize it.” My mouth gaped open. I was shocked and angry that he would call me a defensive person. I was only stating the truth and nothing else. Also why is it his business to know whom I like or have feelings for?
“I don’t think…” I heard Haruhi muttered. But before she could say anything, Genta placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, her eyes were full of worriedness and concerned. However she got the message that Genta was silently telling her. She quickly scurried into the back room.
Meanwhile I stared at him in awe. “How… How rude to tell me that I’m hiding something.” I stuttered making my cheeks flushed. Then I began to grab my wallet from my purse to pay for my meal. I couldn’t stand him. He was starting to get on my nerves, not to mention that he was completely disrespectful to me when he asked me that question. Ninomiya-san chuckled and muttered. “Fine, just get up and leave. I guess that's what you’re good at. You even did that at lunch with Aiba-chan and your father.”
Heat rose from my cheeks and I was at a point that I was furious. Was he making fun of me or was it something else? I slammed the money down on the counter and collected my stuff before I headed towards the door. However before I exited the restaurant I wanted to have the last remark. “Ninomiya-san, I don’t know why you are doing this to me but my relationship between Aiba-san is none of your concern. As for being defensive, I do admit that I distance myself from others sometimes but it does not mean I’m hiding something. I’m like this because of my childhood and my upbringing. Before you claim you know how I feel or what my life is, you should first understand my past.” I turned around and bowed to everyone before I quietly walked out of the restaurant.
As soon as I entered in my car, I don’t know if Aiba-san had telepathic abilities or Ninomiya-san contacted him but I received a text message from him.
Hey, are you okay? Did Nino-chan upset you? Do you want to talk about it? -Aiba
“Yeah, right.” I scoffed. I didn’t want to see or talk to him again. I felt like he was going to irritate me more than help me calm down. I ignored his text and dropped my phone back into my purse. I started up my car and drove into the late and bright Tokyo night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Woo~ This chapter was intense, wasn't it? I had fun writing this chapter and the interaction between Asuka and Nino. I just wanted to remind you that although Asuka and Nino argue like cats and dogs, they will not develop feelings whatsoever. It's not the situation where the boy teases the girl because he likes her. Sorry to disappoint, so please don't keep your hopes up for that. (o_ _)o Thanks for reading and we're halfway through this fanfic!!