Was she simply being unreasonable? Kasumi isn"t sure. But she knew one thing for certain, "It"s a good thing I"m alone now," Kasumi thought as she walked through the hallways alone. They decided to split up into three groups. Karas.h.i.+ma and Lila as one, Kiryu and Mikami out on the floor and mingling on the people - and there"s her alone. She was to do one of the most dangerous jobs, actually directly spy on Miyazawa. When they were debating on who would do what, Kasumi noticed how Lila didn"t want to leave Karas.h.i.+ma"s side and how worn down Kiryu looked. So that only left her to do this job.Well, it"s not like she is new to this type of thing. While it had been quite some time since she dealt with the matters regarding the underground world, Kasumi was very good at martial arts. She even has a black belt in everything martial arts related. Contrary to her delicate appearance, she wasn"t a person one could mess with easily.
Still, Miyazawa is really becoming a problem, isn"t she? Kasumi heard that she was involved with the underground worlds most powerful wanted man right now. But even then Kasumi didn"t think that she would have this much power. According to Kiryu, though, the wanted man "Zane," will do anything Rosalia asks him for. Though the man"s goal is to get Lila, if Rosalia asked him to destroy her, then she would. The reason Kiryu broke up with Lila is for her safety. When Kasumi first heard this, she got angry. Why is Kiryu being threatened by that woman?
No matter what happened in the past, Kiryu would never bow down to Rosalia, no matter what threat she used. But it seems like Kiryu understands more about this man named Zane. Kiryu claims to know nothing about him, and yet he reacted that way. Still, "Miyazawsenpai must have seduced that man," Kasumi hardly doubts she coincidentally met with such a dangerous man under normal circ.u.mstances. She doubts they had an ordinary love story.
If Kasumi knew that woman would become such a ma.s.sive threat to Lila and Kiryu, then she would have dealt with the woman a long time ago. Her thoughts broke off when she hears the sound of footsteps approaching her from the back. Kasumi"s gaze darkened, already? It"s not like she was acting suspiciously; any guest is allowed this way. But it seems like they are far sharper than she thought. She supposes this is what she got for underestimating people.
Kasumi pulled out a concealed blade from her dress sash, and the person from behind her hugged her from behind. She jabbed him with her wrist and turned around to point the blade when a familiar face greeted her. It belonged to Mikami, "W—weren"t you supposed to be..." Kasumi said stunned.
"Kiryu-san said it would be better if he dealt with, and if you had someone with you."
"I"m not weak that you need to protect me," Kasumi snapped. Or rather, she"s more worried about those harpy women trying to get close to Kiryu. Lila may be in love with Karas.h.i.+ma Haruka now, but those two still share a connection with each other. It would be unfortunate if something were to happen.
She kept her head down, while that comment made her angry. Kasumi didn"t want to look Mikami in the eye or see his face. She was dealing with her emotions right now and not in the best of state to face him, "I"ll be fine alone," Kasumi turned to leave, but Mikami grabbed hold of her wrist. He dragged her over to the wall and pushed her against the wall, "W--what are you doing?"
"Why are you so worried about Kiryu-san?"
"Isn"t it normal, were friends," Kasumi averted her gaze from him, and focused her attention on her shoes. If she looked at him from this proximity, it would lead to getting rid of the remaining distance between their faces. Honestly speaking, she knew she wouldn"t be able to resist kissing him. Just earlier when she saw him, Kasumi recalled the last time they meet each other. His lips on hers, the sensation brought by the warmth he gave her -- she frantically shook her head. "Get a grip," what use is there thinking these things now?
"Your acting like his girlfriend, with the way things are lately. Didn"t you see how the paparazzi on the other table was tailing you two?"
"Eh?" Kasumi said puzzled.
There are reporters-- of course, there is. There"s plenty of people who want to use this momentum to bring Lila down for good. If word got out that her best friend was spending awfully a lot of time with her former boyfriend, it would tarnish her reputation. This must be the reason why she was people shadowed her earlier, Lila"s enemies are making a move. They are using whatever chance they can get to take Lila down. Why wouldn"t they try? This is a good opportunity.
"I"m sorry..."
Mikami sighed, "No use apologizing to me, pay more attention to your surroundings senpai. As my senior in the entertainment industry, you should know better."
"..."
Kasumi didn"t know what to say. Why is he acting so cold to her? No, she knew the reason why. It"s because she"s "dating" somebody else. She wants to apologize to him; she wants to explain things to him. But with the way things are now, she has no right to do that. This is the person she loves, the person who gave her his whole heart. However, because she acted recklessly with that matter and didn"t consult with him first, she can"t even touch him.
She doesn"t deserve to touch him, let alone speak with him. So she remained quiet, she doesn"t even deserve to look at him, so Kasumi kept her gaze on the ground.
"You"re already crying, silly girl," Mikami"s words surprised her, but it"s his next action that surprised her the most. The kiss came out of absolutely nowhere, but the moment he kissed her, it all came rus.h.i.+ng back. All the emotions she felt whenever he touched her. A kiss that took her breath away, a kiss that made her feel dizzy.
"I know about your circ.u.mstances already, so don"t cry. I"m not angry at you."
"Y—you know?" Kasumi stammered.
"Of course I know, I read your letter and Igaras.h.i.+ told me."
Wataru did?
Mikami sighed, "For a man who still likes you, and a man who is your ex-boyfriend he sure is being considerate. I guess he really is just a good person, he wants to see you happy Kasumi and apparently, I"m the only one who can do that."
That stupid Wataru, what on earth has he been blabbing on about? Kasumi felt her already red stained face, burn more. Her whole face felt very hot, Mikami reached over and brushed his fingers against her lips, tracing them slowly, "If you want more, I"ll give it to you later."
"S--shameless man!"
Mikami laughed, "Yeah, let"s get going Kasumi-chan."
.....
Kasumi felt awkward about holding hands with him after they kissed so pa.s.sionately. But after a few minutes, Kasumi noticed him getting closer, his hands brus.h.i.+ng against hers and him practically urging her on. So that"s why she is currently holding hands with him. She wondered if this was okay. This place maybe empty now, but if somebody were to see it would be bad. She technically has a boyfriend already, while it"s a fake relations.h.i.+p - in the eyes of the general public it is not like that at all.
"But, why did Karas.h.i.+ma bring Lila here for a date?"
Mikami sweat fell, "You see Lilchan"s become very interested in learning how to make bar food," eh, what"s that? Kasumi gave Mikami a funny look, but he simply sighed, "Apparently, she believes that if she learns how to make it, he won"t have to go to these places often."
"that sounds so idiotic," Kasumi thought. But she supposes that"s something Lila would do. Whenever it comes to love, her friend has always done the strangest things, "And Karas.h.i.+ma knows about it?"
"Yeah, he figured it out. He thought it was cute that she was trying to impress him so badly," Mikami shook his head, "If I tell you anymore it will give you a headache, the amount of PDA I have to witness on a daily basis has increased lately."
Mikami probably doesn"t realize that by saying all this, he is only fueling her anger. However, Kasumi slapped her cheeks. "It isn"t his fault," it really isn"t. Karas.h.i.+ma Haruka is Mikami"s senpai; he"s a good friend to him. It"s only natural that he would care about his friend"s happiness. Based on Mikami"s personality, despite the favor, she asked him. He"s most likely tried to remain neutral and did not do as she asked exactly.
"Kasumi-chan. You don"t have to worry though, Lilchan hasn"t forgotten Kiryu-san."
Eh? "She talks about him?"
"It"s more like once in a while we would catch her singing some old songs and the audition song. All her old songs, including that audition song, are for Kiryu-san correct?" Mikami asked, and Kasumi nodded in confirmation, "That"s why I think maybe there is still something there."