The Reckless & The Brave Book 1: Hold Me Tight Or Don't [Kurotsuki]

Chapter 8

Kei adjusts his cuffs and looks at himself in the mirror. He hates wearing suits and the tux is a thousand times worse. His hair is slicked back with a gross amount of gel to control his curls. Kei hates how it feels. He's traded his glasses for contacts and his eyes itch. He really just wants to go home but the only way to do that is to get through this fiasco quickly and efficiently.

"How do I look!?" Chibi-chan yells as he spins around. He's wearing the uniform of the catering company, he's been working with them for a few weeks now to prepare for tonight. His hair is the same mess as always and Kei doesn't understand why he had to do anything to his own.

"Like an idiot," King mutters, shoving Chibi-chan away from the mirror to straighten his bowtie.

"No fighting children," Mr. Refreshing scolds. It's not often that they get a job like this. Instead of destroying or stealing or hunting, they're protecting. The whole team is being used for this except for Samurai, The Guardian Deity, and the director who have been undercover for about two weeks now.

Kodzuken slips into the room as quietly as he can and stands next to their communication equipment. Beauty will be going into the field this time so they've borrowed Kodzuken to run things from behind the scenes. Kei moves around Chibi-chan and the King's bickering to collect his equipment.

"Is your team this loud?" He asks as he picks up a pair of cufflinks and puts them on. Kodzuken raises his eyes and looks around the room.

"Sometimes. Mohawk and Titan can be annoying." Kodzuken sighs in annoyance and ties his hair back as he makes adjustments to one of the watches.

"How do your team leaders handle it?"

"Pita is good at keeping the peace. Yokai-senpai just beats them up," he can feel Kodzuken's eyes on him.

"So it must be more peaceful now, right? You said that Pita had returned."

"He's not back to work yet. He's still recovering... I thought you'd know that" Kodzuken's golden eyes are studying him. It makes him a bit uncomfortable. "Oh, I see."

"You see what?"

"Nothing," he grabs Kei's sleeve and puts one of the watches on him then makes sure it works.

"Why did you think I'd know?"

"I thought you were smart."

"You're annoying."

"Yeah, probably," Kodzuken grabs a few pieces of equipment and shuffles off to try and get Chibi-chan and the King ready.

Kei leans against a wall and resists the urge to touch his hair. Most of the team will be arriving at the site early to blend with the event staff. The captain is the only one who will be with the target. It'd be suspicious if it had no visible security. Kei, Mr. Refreshing, and Beauty will be arriving later on posing as party guests. Mr. Refreshing's hair has been dyed brown to hide his usual distinctive silver and he wears a perfectly tailored grey tux. Beauty wears a sleek gold dress cut low in the back. Her tattoo has been covered with makeup.

The party is ridiculously elaborate. There's a full orchestra and food Kei can barely pronounce. He speaks with a perfect British accent and Beauty holds his arm as they move through the crowds, mingling, and dancing. Pretending they belong in this place, that they're a normal couple. Kei carries himself with confidence and a sense of calm that he does not feel.

"Megane-kun, Beauty move to the southwest corner on the dance floor," Captain's voice comes through their earpieces. Kei smiles at Beauty.

"Darling, would you like to dance?" he asks as he offers her his hand. Beauty smiles back at him as she takes his hand. They weave through the crowd to the side of the building. Kei keeps his face towards Beauty as they dance but his eyes scan the building, watching for any sign of a threat to the target. He knows that Beauty does the same.