My Future

A Pure Resolve

"So where are we going?" I turned to him with a grin on my face. "Here! What do you think about this shop?" He looked at it and his eyes glistened. "This is pretty sweet! There's even a garage? This space would be perfect for my shop someday." His eyes then drifted to the sold sign. "Looks like it's already sold though." I dug in my bag and pulled the keys out, dangling them in front of him. "It is! I signed the papers this morning." I placed the keys in his hands. "It's yours! Consider it a late birthday/early Christmas present? Whatever you wanna call it." He looked at me in utter shock before picking me up and swinging me around. "Your kidding me?" He sat me down on the ground. "Nope! This is the first official D&D Motors location! You said yourself it was perfect!" He walked to the door and unlocked it. We walked inside and he did a quick run over of the place. "It's perfect Adriana." He pulled me into a sweet kiss, wrapping his arms around my waist.

He looked into my eyes and I knew he saw the anxiety there. "Your scared aren't you? You know that all this means you'll have to confront Mikey." I nodded and turned in his arms. "I am. Do you know what he said to me the day he left? He said if I ever came around again he would kill me. Typically those words wouldn't scare me but that day he had so much bloodlust in his eyes. It paralyzed me. But I can't be afraid. He's a part of me that I have to confront head on. I can't run from him. I just worry though. What if nobody wants this? What if nobody will follow me." Draken walked to stand in front of me and took my hands in his. "They will. Do you remember the day Pah got arrested? That day you knew exactly what was going through Mikey's head when he stopped Takemitchy from interfering and you asserted his point without him even speaking. And that day that you took out Hanma when he got rid of Kisaki. Your an excellent leader and you've showed that time and time again."

I smiled and realized he was right. I could do this. I just had to conquer my fears. I looked at my image in the window and got a bright idea. "Hey. What would you think if I died my hair?" I turned to him. "I don't see a problem with it? Hell I have for years." I giggled. "I knew you weren't a natural blonde!" I walked to the door of the shop. "I'm gonna run real quick. I'll meet you at the shrine okay?" I waved goodbye to him and walked to the nearest salon. I enjoyed the pampering and loved the end result. I couldn't help but stare at myself as I walked down the sidewalk. I made my way to the oh so familiar shrine I saw Mitsuya and Draken had already arrived.

I walked up to them and Draken immediately noticed my hair. "I like it! It looks good!" Mitsuya agreed and we waited. "Do you think anyone will show?" I said. Mitsuya grinned. "Oh yeah. That wont be a problem. Listen." The sound of bike engines filled the air and I had hope. One after one they all started pouring in. Many of them I recognized. "Wait a minute. These are all..." Mitsuya nodded. "Yup! The biggest bulk of these guys are former Toman members. We're all willing to follow you Adriana. Every single one of these guys are here for you." I looked at it all in awe. The engines died down leaving me wondering exactly what I could say. All in all there were at least 120 guys here. Not counting Mitsuya, Draken, Pah, and Chifuyu. Every single one of them looked at me with a smile on their faces. Draken put his hand on the small of my back. "You okay?"

I nodded before stepping forward. "Hello everyone! It's so nice to see familiar faces again!" Cheers filled the air and tears brimmed my eyes. "It's been nearly seven months! Seven months since Toman disbanded!" Just then the image of Baji and Emma passed through my mind. "There is a simple but unfortunate truth that we all must face. Mikey's not coming back!" I scanned the crowd and noticed many downcast glances. "However, despite our reluctance and recollection of the truth, life doesn't stop. The carousel doesn't stop turning while we mourn what was or what could have been. So we're left with one question. What now? Tokyo is in disarray. And without the proper guidance it will fall! So do we rekindle was has been lost and take back everything Toman worked so hard to build? Or do we let Tokyo fall into less deserving hands? I don't know about the lot of you but I've made my choice. I refuse to let things stand as they are. With every fiber of my being I WILL FIGHT!!!!" I could barely hear myself think as roars erupted. I felt as if my heart was going to beat out of my chest and I could barely breathe.

"We as The Black Moon will lead Tokyo into an era it has never seen before! Are you with us?"Draken roars from next to me. The cheering intensified and the tears I had been holding back finally spilled. I stepped forward and tried to speak. "Nahoya and Souya Kawata! Step forward!" Both Smiley and Angry come in front of me. "I'm putting you two in charge of the 4th and 5th squad. Welcome back!" For the first time I seen a smile on Souya's face. Nahoya looked in disbelief as I turned to Chifuyu, Mitsuya, and Pah. "Can I leave the five of you to sort out the orderlies?" Mitsuya gave me a thumbs up. "You got it! Let's go guys." I turned to Draken and took a deep breath. "My adrenaline is going! I feel like I'm gonna faint." He wrapped his arm around my waist and we began to walk. "Well let's not let that happen here."

We quickly took my things to the new house and got me settled in. "That should be the last of it." I took mental inventory and nodded my head. "Yup! So...umm there's a hot tub out back. Would you maybe wanna join me?" For some reason I was feeling extra confident and I didn't have any trouble in letting it show. Draken looked at me concerned. "Are you sure?" I nodded. "Yup sure am!" I ran in my room and threw on my bikini and went outside. I turned on the jets and climbed in. Shortly after I heard the door open and out walked Draken in just a pair of shorts. I couldn't help but look him over as he climbed in. "This feels great!" I threw my hands up in the air. "I know right?? There's only one thing that could make a night like this any better." I pointed I my finger in a come here motion causing him to grin real big. He walked over to me and quickly claimed my lips with his. My arms wrapped around his neck and he pulled me flush against him. He sat down on the bench and pulled me into his lap. He pulled away from me and I sat there in his lap just enjoying his presence. And for the second time. I fell asleep in his arms.