Paradise between Shadows Chapter 5
Pairing: Akame, Ryoda, Jin/Ryo(friendship) more later on
Rating: PG-15 for now
Genre: AU, Angst, Romance
Disclaimer: I don’t own them.
Summary: Kamenashi Kazuya’s world has been empty and meaningless since he was 16. Because of certain events, he hasn’t seen his family in seven years and was forced into a job he hates. Nothing ever helped his life become easier. When he met Akanishi Jin, it just became messier….
Warning: Language for now.
( Chapter 1 ) ( Chapter 2 ) ( Chapter 3 ) ( Ch. 4 Part 1 ) ( Ch.4 part 2 )
Ch. 5
It was dusk by the time Kazuya finished cleaning the cramped apartment. He was sitting on the balcony; eating instant noodles and watching the day turn into night. There was no turning back now. By tomorrow morning, he could no longer attend school. He tried no to mind it much. School didn’t have anything for him. He was a ghost in class when he attended. Working was more important to him. Attending classes was useless.
The sky was bleeding into a deep blue color. Tiny bright dots began appearing. The silence was too calming for Kazuya. There was someone coming, he could hear their steps. A sigh escaped his lips. It could only be two people. A key was inserted into the door lock and the knob started turning. A brown haired beauty slipped inside the apartment and locked the door. Kazuya watched the woman kick off her shoes at the genkan. She looked up and locked eyes with her young nephew.
“You’re here,” she said in a cold tone. Her eyes travelled the room, “And you cleaned.”
Kazuya said nothing. After six years of living with his aunt, he learned silence was the best. He returned to look outward and eat his noodles.
“Did you hand in the letter?”
With a mere glance towards the woman, Kazuya mumbled a yes.
The street lights were lighting up. Kazuya saw a familiar figure running up to the small apartment building.
“He’s coming up,” Kazuya dryly spoke.
“What? Oh shit!”
Kazuya watched as his aunt run up to the balcony. She leaned on the railing and looked down. The man disappeared under the balcony. Cursing loudly, she ran back to the door and made sure it was tightly locked. Kazuya shook his head in disapprove. He knew what was about to happen. He walked inside and locked the balcony’s doors. There were already footsteps outside the apartment. Loud yelling soon followed.
“Open the door!”
Both Kazuya and Katsumi acted as if the room was completely silent. The yelling continued. The man started pounding on the door as well.
“I know you’re both in there!”
It was like any other day. Their neighbors began yelling at the intruder.
“I saw Kamenashi! Open the fucking door now!”
Katsumi glared at her nephew, “You useless idiot! You can’t just eat inside like any other normal person?!”
Kazuya didn’t say anything back. The pounding, yelling, and swearing continued. The 16 year old boy turned and went to his bedroom. He could hear Katsumi opening the door. More yelling filled the apartment.
“What the hell did you do?!”
“I did nothing wrong!”
“Don’t lie to me, you bitch! You ruined the entire gig!”
“But I-”
“Shut up!”
Kazuya collapsed on his bed. He tried to cover up the noise by putting a pillow over his head. It didn’t help much. He could still hear things getting thrown around and breaking. Katsumi was now sobbing. There was nothing he could do. It would be better to block it out. It wasn’t the first time he had been in this situation, and it wasn’t going to be the last….
****
It was a new day. The sun was up and shining, but it couldn’t help Kazuya’s mood. Nothing could. The events of last night refused to leave his mind. Kazuya couldn’t stand it. He wasn’t surprised though. He and his aunt had been through a lot together. But after everything, why would she stay with Fujiwara?
He sighed and continued walking up the hill. He was walking through the cemetery to visit his grandmother. However, as he was approaching the family’s headstone, he saw a familiar figure.
“I had a feeling you would come.”
“What are you doing here, Katsumi-san?”
“I came to visit mother. And to talk to you.”
If he spoke that moment, he would get involved in something he wouldn’t want. Kazuya knew that. Their relationship as aunt and nephew was very estranging. However, Katsumi (no matter if he liked it or not) was still his aunt. And his only family, to his knowledge.
“What do you want?” he said with a cold gaze.
A faint smile appeared on the woman’s face, “You’ll listen?”
“Just tell me what you want. That doesn’t mean I’ll help you anymore.”
The smiled faded, but she nodded.
Kazuya ended up not going to see the family headstone. His aunt dragged him away from the cemetery and into a nearby café. They sat at the back, in the isolated corners of the café. And after his aunt ordered coffee for herself, she turned to Kazuya.
“Do you want something?”
“No.”
She sighed and the waitress walked away. Katsumi crossed her arms and glared at him, “Why are you giving me negative attitude?”
“Just get to your point. Why are you back?”
“I-”
“No. Actually, start with where the hell did you disappear with my money seven years ago.”
“Takeshi-san and I went to Kyoto. We moved back here because there are more customers here.”
“So you’re still in the same line of business.”
Katsumi nervously chuckled, “What the hell does that mean? What do you know about my business?”
“Do you really think I haven’t figured you out? I’m not 10 anymore, Katsumi-san. I know exactly what you do.”
“Which is?” Katsumi glared at him.
“You’re a con-artist,” he hissed.
He saw her eyes widen, but then she relaxed. Their eyes locked. Tension grew at the small table. The waitress came and quickly left. Katsumi forced herself to smile.
“Ok.”
“I want all the money you took from me, Katsumi-san.”
“You gave it to me, darling.”
“Don’t sweet talk me,” Kazuya glared, “You know very well I didn’t give it to you with the intention of you leaving with Fujiwara.”
“Well, sorry,” She rolled her eyes, “It’s not like I shared it with him. In fact, I gave half to Michiko-nee.”
Kazuya eye’s widened, “W-what?”
She nodded, a smile grew on her face, “Yes, she lives in Kyoto now.”
His mother… The last time he saw her was when he was just seven. He knew that Katsumi was deceitful, but the one thing she would never lie about was her older sister.
Katsumi stood up, “Well, since you know my work, I don’t see the need for explaining anything to you anymore. I’m leaving.”
Kazuya watched her start to walk away, “W-wait!”
She didn’t even look back.
******
By the time he reached the city, he had to head to work. The frustrating morning gave him a painful headache. As he walked towards the host club, he spotted someone. It was Akanishi’s roommate. Kazuya stopped and blinked. He didn’t expect to remember that name. He didn’t even have time to think of a reason. The other saw him as well and began walking towards Kazuya.
“Hey!”
Kazuya bit his lips, not knowing what to say. He didn’t even remember the man’s name. The other smiled, “Hi.”
“….Hi…You’re that...guy’s roommate…” He hesitated.
“Yeah!” he smiled, “Nishikido.”
Something clicked in Kazuya’s head and he nodded, “Right.”
“I’m happy you remember me.”
“…Err…ok?”
“You’re a host, right?”
Kazuya gave him a short nod.
“This might be sudden, but would you let me interview you?”
Kazuya frowned, “What?”
“I wouldn’t use your name or anything like that. Just a few minutes about your work life.”
“I….”
“I wouldn’t mention the club name either. You would really help me out. What do you say?”
What was he supposed to say? Kazuya thought. If he said yes, there was a risk of Nakamaru finding out and firing him. It was an easy choice to just say no, but Kazuya couldn’t for some reason. He ended up saying he would think about it and Nishikido handed him his card and quietly walked away. Kazuya looked at the card and sighed. Why couldn’t he say no?
*****
When he finally got to the club, the new hosts were setting up for the night’s service. Nakamura was speaking to the liquor distributer and his wife was ordering around the waiters. No one seemed to notice him. He walked through with no bother. When he entered the locker room, he saw a familiar face. His hands curled into fists.
“Ishikawa….”
The man turned and looked at Kazuya. A smug smile appeared on his face.
“Ryu-chan! How have you been?” He said in a mocking tone.
“Cut the crap, Ishikawa,” Kazuya hissed, “What the hell happened in the club?”
“Huh?”
“You put something in my drink!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about! Then you and your friends abandoned me in the middle of nowhere!”
“You left on your own accord, Ryu-chan.”
Kazuya frowned, “What?”
“That night, you stayed for half an hour, then disappeared,” Ishikawa explained.
“You still put something in my drink!”
“If I had done that,” Ishikawa smirked and walked closer to Kazuya, “You wouldn’t be able to walk for a week.”
Then, Kazuya felt a hand groping his butt. He quickly pushed Ishikawa away and glared.
“Stay away from me.”
Ishikawa rolled his eyes and smiled, “Call me up the next time you want to party.”
Ishikawa grinned as he walked out. Kazuya continued to glare at the sly host. He was angry with Ishikawa, but he also felt angry with himself. Something was off about that night. However, he had no idea what it could be. A sigh left his lips as he changed into a blue buttoned shirt. The service will begin soon. There was no time to stress about the past now. He had to turn to Ryu.
*****
Jin wasn’t sure what he was doing. One minute, he was wandering around Tokyo. Then, he was at the train station. Next thing he knew, he was standing in the middle of Kabukicho. The events of last night were bugging him. His daily routine was completely flipped upside down. Instead of waking up early and visiting the hospital, he ended up lying in bed thinking for most of the day. He didn’t even bother going to the soccer practice. He couldn’t understand why Mori-san would be connected to….well Kazuya, as she stated. He needed to find out though.
He was walking through the streets of Kabukicho, looking for a certain place. He just hoped Ryo gave him the correct address. After walking for another ten minutes, he found it. Or at least he hoped it was right place. As he walked in, the people around him gave him strange looked. He didn’t care. He came with only one thing in mind. His eyes landed on the hosts’ wall. A smile appeared on his face when he saw the host on top, recognizing the face. It was the right place. On the bottom of the host’s photo was clearly written; Ryu-san. He strolled over to the entrance desk, where two older men were sitting. The man on the right, the younger of the two, gave him one look and crossed his arms.
“You looking for work?” the man asked.
“No,” Jin declined, “Actually-”
“Really? You can make a fortune with that face of yours,” he smiled.
“I’m a customer,” Jin replied, making the older man on the left look at him.
“Sorry, but we only accept female customers at night. I’m sure the clubs a few streets down will take you.”
“I will pay you triple the regular price to have a private chat with Ryu-san.”
“Triple?!” The man on the right jumped out of his seat, his eyes widened in shock.
The older man also stood up, looking at Jin suspicious, “Do you know what you’re say by triple, boy?”
Jin pulled out his credit card and handed it to the older man, “I’ve been to places like this before. You don’t think I know the prices?”
“Very well,” he replied, but before he could charge the card, the other man pulled him aside.
“Are you sure about this? You know how Ryu-san will react,” the man quietly said.
“I’ll deal with him.”
They returned to the desk. While the older man charged Jin’s card, the other nervously smiled. After completing the payment, the two men looked at each other. The older man pushed the other forward towards Jin.
“He’ll take you up to the private rooms. I’ll call Ryu up. He will be with you in a few minutes.”
Jin nodded and followed the other man upstairs.
*****
A/N--- There is chapter five for all of you ^___^ No akame interaction for this chapter, there will be next chapter~ lol XDDD but a little more of Kazuya’s history. Hmmm should he take Ryo’s offer~?
Oh, and just a small warning, the next few chapters might get darker.
Hope all of you liked the chapter!! Let me know what you think~
Rating: PG-15 for now
Genre: AU, Angst, Romance
Disclaimer: I don’t own them.
Summary: Kamenashi Kazuya’s world has been empty and meaningless since he was 16. Because of certain events, he hasn’t seen his family in seven years and was forced into a job he hates. Nothing ever helped his life become easier. When he met Akanishi Jin, it just became messier….
Warning: Language for now.
( Chapter 1 ) ( Chapter 2 ) ( Chapter 3 ) ( Ch. 4 Part 1 ) ( Ch.4 part 2 )
Ch. 5
It was dusk by the time Kazuya finished cleaning the cramped apartment. He was sitting on the balcony; eating instant noodles and watching the day turn into night. There was no turning back now. By tomorrow morning, he could no longer attend school. He tried no to mind it much. School didn’t have anything for him. He was a ghost in class when he attended. Working was more important to him. Attending classes was useless.
The sky was bleeding into a deep blue color. Tiny bright dots began appearing. The silence was too calming for Kazuya. There was someone coming, he could hear their steps. A sigh escaped his lips. It could only be two people. A key was inserted into the door lock and the knob started turning. A brown haired beauty slipped inside the apartment and locked the door. Kazuya watched the woman kick off her shoes at the genkan. She looked up and locked eyes with her young nephew.
“You’re here,” she said in a cold tone. Her eyes travelled the room, “And you cleaned.”
Kazuya said nothing. After six years of living with his aunt, he learned silence was the best. He returned to look outward and eat his noodles.
“Did you hand in the letter?”
With a mere glance towards the woman, Kazuya mumbled a yes.
The street lights were lighting up. Kazuya saw a familiar figure running up to the small apartment building.
“He’s coming up,” Kazuya dryly spoke.
“What? Oh shit!”
Kazuya watched as his aunt run up to the balcony. She leaned on the railing and looked down. The man disappeared under the balcony. Cursing loudly, she ran back to the door and made sure it was tightly locked. Kazuya shook his head in disapprove. He knew what was about to happen. He walked inside and locked the balcony’s doors. There were already footsteps outside the apartment. Loud yelling soon followed.
“Open the door!”
Both Kazuya and Katsumi acted as if the room was completely silent. The yelling continued. The man started pounding on the door as well.
“I know you’re both in there!”
It was like any other day. Their neighbors began yelling at the intruder.
“I saw Kamenashi! Open the fucking door now!”
Katsumi glared at her nephew, “You useless idiot! You can’t just eat inside like any other normal person?!”
Kazuya didn’t say anything back. The pounding, yelling, and swearing continued. The 16 year old boy turned and went to his bedroom. He could hear Katsumi opening the door. More yelling filled the apartment.
“What the hell did you do?!”
“I did nothing wrong!”
“Don’t lie to me, you bitch! You ruined the entire gig!”
“But I-”
“Shut up!”
Kazuya collapsed on his bed. He tried to cover up the noise by putting a pillow over his head. It didn’t help much. He could still hear things getting thrown around and breaking. Katsumi was now sobbing. There was nothing he could do. It would be better to block it out. It wasn’t the first time he had been in this situation, and it wasn’t going to be the last….
****
It was a new day. The sun was up and shining, but it couldn’t help Kazuya’s mood. Nothing could. The events of last night refused to leave his mind. Kazuya couldn’t stand it. He wasn’t surprised though. He and his aunt had been through a lot together. But after everything, why would she stay with Fujiwara?
He sighed and continued walking up the hill. He was walking through the cemetery to visit his grandmother. However, as he was approaching the family’s headstone, he saw a familiar figure.
“I had a feeling you would come.”
“What are you doing here, Katsumi-san?”
“I came to visit mother. And to talk to you.”
If he spoke that moment, he would get involved in something he wouldn’t want. Kazuya knew that. Their relationship as aunt and nephew was very estranging. However, Katsumi (no matter if he liked it or not) was still his aunt. And his only family, to his knowledge.
“What do you want?” he said with a cold gaze.
A faint smile appeared on the woman’s face, “You’ll listen?”
“Just tell me what you want. That doesn’t mean I’ll help you anymore.”
The smiled faded, but she nodded.
Kazuya ended up not going to see the family headstone. His aunt dragged him away from the cemetery and into a nearby café. They sat at the back, in the isolated corners of the café. And after his aunt ordered coffee for herself, she turned to Kazuya.
“Do you want something?”
“No.”
She sighed and the waitress walked away. Katsumi crossed her arms and glared at him, “Why are you giving me negative attitude?”
“Just get to your point. Why are you back?”
“I-”
“No. Actually, start with where the hell did you disappear with my money seven years ago.”
“Takeshi-san and I went to Kyoto. We moved back here because there are more customers here.”
“So you’re still in the same line of business.”
Katsumi nervously chuckled, “What the hell does that mean? What do you know about my business?”
“Do you really think I haven’t figured you out? I’m not 10 anymore, Katsumi-san. I know exactly what you do.”
“Which is?” Katsumi glared at him.
“You’re a con-artist,” he hissed.
He saw her eyes widen, but then she relaxed. Their eyes locked. Tension grew at the small table. The waitress came and quickly left. Katsumi forced herself to smile.
“Ok.”
“I want all the money you took from me, Katsumi-san.”
“You gave it to me, darling.”
“Don’t sweet talk me,” Kazuya glared, “You know very well I didn’t give it to you with the intention of you leaving with Fujiwara.”
“Well, sorry,” She rolled her eyes, “It’s not like I shared it with him. In fact, I gave half to Michiko-nee.”
Kazuya eye’s widened, “W-what?”
She nodded, a smile grew on her face, “Yes, she lives in Kyoto now.”
His mother… The last time he saw her was when he was just seven. He knew that Katsumi was deceitful, but the one thing she would never lie about was her older sister.
Katsumi stood up, “Well, since you know my work, I don’t see the need for explaining anything to you anymore. I’m leaving.”
Kazuya watched her start to walk away, “W-wait!”
She didn’t even look back.
******
By the time he reached the city, he had to head to work. The frustrating morning gave him a painful headache. As he walked towards the host club, he spotted someone. It was Akanishi’s roommate. Kazuya stopped and blinked. He didn’t expect to remember that name. He didn’t even have time to think of a reason. The other saw him as well and began walking towards Kazuya.
“Hey!”
Kazuya bit his lips, not knowing what to say. He didn’t even remember the man’s name. The other smiled, “Hi.”
“….Hi…You’re that...guy’s roommate…” He hesitated.
“Yeah!” he smiled, “Nishikido.”
Something clicked in Kazuya’s head and he nodded, “Right.”
“I’m happy you remember me.”
“…Err…ok?”
“You’re a host, right?”
Kazuya gave him a short nod.
“This might be sudden, but would you let me interview you?”
Kazuya frowned, “What?”
“I wouldn’t use your name or anything like that. Just a few minutes about your work life.”
“I….”
“I wouldn’t mention the club name either. You would really help me out. What do you say?”
What was he supposed to say? Kazuya thought. If he said yes, there was a risk of Nakamaru finding out and firing him. It was an easy choice to just say no, but Kazuya couldn’t for some reason. He ended up saying he would think about it and Nishikido handed him his card and quietly walked away. Kazuya looked at the card and sighed. Why couldn’t he say no?
*****
When he finally got to the club, the new hosts were setting up for the night’s service. Nakamura was speaking to the liquor distributer and his wife was ordering around the waiters. No one seemed to notice him. He walked through with no bother. When he entered the locker room, he saw a familiar face. His hands curled into fists.
“Ishikawa….”
The man turned and looked at Kazuya. A smug smile appeared on his face.
“Ryu-chan! How have you been?” He said in a mocking tone.
“Cut the crap, Ishikawa,” Kazuya hissed, “What the hell happened in the club?”
“Huh?”
“You put something in my drink!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about! Then you and your friends abandoned me in the middle of nowhere!”
“You left on your own accord, Ryu-chan.”
Kazuya frowned, “What?”
“That night, you stayed for half an hour, then disappeared,” Ishikawa explained.
“You still put something in my drink!”
“If I had done that,” Ishikawa smirked and walked closer to Kazuya, “You wouldn’t be able to walk for a week.”
Then, Kazuya felt a hand groping his butt. He quickly pushed Ishikawa away and glared.
“Stay away from me.”
Ishikawa rolled his eyes and smiled, “Call me up the next time you want to party.”
Ishikawa grinned as he walked out. Kazuya continued to glare at the sly host. He was angry with Ishikawa, but he also felt angry with himself. Something was off about that night. However, he had no idea what it could be. A sigh left his lips as he changed into a blue buttoned shirt. The service will begin soon. There was no time to stress about the past now. He had to turn to Ryu.
*****
Jin wasn’t sure what he was doing. One minute, he was wandering around Tokyo. Then, he was at the train station. Next thing he knew, he was standing in the middle of Kabukicho. The events of last night were bugging him. His daily routine was completely flipped upside down. Instead of waking up early and visiting the hospital, he ended up lying in bed thinking for most of the day. He didn’t even bother going to the soccer practice. He couldn’t understand why Mori-san would be connected to….well Kazuya, as she stated. He needed to find out though.
He was walking through the streets of Kabukicho, looking for a certain place. He just hoped Ryo gave him the correct address. After walking for another ten minutes, he found it. Or at least he hoped it was right place. As he walked in, the people around him gave him strange looked. He didn’t care. He came with only one thing in mind. His eyes landed on the hosts’ wall. A smile appeared on his face when he saw the host on top, recognizing the face. It was the right place. On the bottom of the host’s photo was clearly written; Ryu-san. He strolled over to the entrance desk, where two older men were sitting. The man on the right, the younger of the two, gave him one look and crossed his arms.
“You looking for work?” the man asked.
“No,” Jin declined, “Actually-”
“Really? You can make a fortune with that face of yours,” he smiled.
“I’m a customer,” Jin replied, making the older man on the left look at him.
“Sorry, but we only accept female customers at night. I’m sure the clubs a few streets down will take you.”
“I will pay you triple the regular price to have a private chat with Ryu-san.”
“Triple?!” The man on the right jumped out of his seat, his eyes widened in shock.
The older man also stood up, looking at Jin suspicious, “Do you know what you’re say by triple, boy?”
Jin pulled out his credit card and handed it to the older man, “I’ve been to places like this before. You don’t think I know the prices?”
“Very well,” he replied, but before he could charge the card, the other man pulled him aside.
“Are you sure about this? You know how Ryu-san will react,” the man quietly said.
“I’ll deal with him.”
They returned to the desk. While the older man charged Jin’s card, the other nervously smiled. After completing the payment, the two men looked at each other. The older man pushed the other forward towards Jin.
“He’ll take you up to the private rooms. I’ll call Ryu up. He will be with you in a few minutes.”
Jin nodded and followed the other man upstairs.
*****
A/N--- There is chapter five for all of you ^___^ No akame interaction for this chapter, there will be next chapter~ lol XDDD but a little more of Kazuya’s history. Hmmm should he take Ryo’s offer~?
Oh, and just a small warning, the next few chapters might get darker.
Hope all of you liked the chapter!! Let me know what you think~