Chasing Shadows: An Alice In Borderlands Fanfic (Completed)

Chapter 11: No Hearts

I was certain I'd never get my two of hearts card from the Hatter, so I decided to play a game that night, searching for a heart one. Niragi pulled guard duty and couldn't go with me, which upset him immensely. Arisu and Usagi joined me in the car on the way to the night's games.

Somehow the couple got separated, and I ended up with Arisu in a club game along with four other people. There were no heart games that night. Although disappointed, I did have fun with Arisu playing the five of clubs game. These were games of balance, and teamwork was important to win. Arisu and I worked well together, deciphering clues that led us through a large labyrinth in a warehouse. At each corner, you had to choose the correct direction, or else you'd die by laser. Clues told you which way to go. It kind of reminded me of the game Niragi and I had played our first time together.

Afterward, Arisu and I sat side by side on a curb, waiting for Usagi to return.

"What was your Karube like?" I asked him, curious.

"My best friend," he said. "He and Chota both. I couldn't have asked for better friends. Karube was the glue that kept us together. He was a bartender and in love with the girl he worked with. He wanted to marry her."

My heart twisted at that. Could it be...?

Arisu noticed. "She wasn't like you...I mean, she wasn't a foreigner. She was Japanese."

Why was I disappointed? "Did he treat her well?"

"The best. Always taking her out, buying her little things. Very, umm, what is the word?"

"Attentive?"

"Yes! Very attentive."

"My Karube was the same. I couldn't have asked for a better man."

"How long were you together?"

"Five years. Three married." I smiled at the thought of the night he proposed.

***

We had just bought the bar. I still worked at the hostess club but spent every spare moment getting my business ready to open. The night he proposed, I was on my hands and knees, scrubbing dirt from the floor around the stove. Not a very romantic position.

Karube came up behind me and tickled me until I rolled over and faced him, my back leaning against the stove. He cupped my jaw and gave me the most mind-numbing kiss. God, I loved his kisses. Soft and so full of love. Yet there was a desperation to them, like he was afraid each one might be our last. And he was always smiling. Always genuine.

(Fuck. Just thinking of him made my heart hurt so bad I thought I might die.)

"Jennie-chan," he said, pulling away. He reached into his pocket as he hovered over me. "I have a question for you."

"Oh?" I asked, seriously not even getting what was coming. Like I should have, but I had no clue until the ring popped up between us.

"Will you marry me?" His eyes sparkled.

I stared at the ring in disbelief, then at him, my mouth agape, my own eyes wide. "Are you sure you want to marry a whore like me?"

He gave a little half smile. "I don't want to marry a whore like you. I want to marry you. And, for the record, you are definitely not a whore." He kissed me again, slipping the ring on my finger. It wasn't much, just a simple blue stone on a silver band, but to me it was everything. "Marry me, Jennie Goodwin."

***

I smiled again at the memory.

"You okay?" Arisu asked.

I realized my cheeks were wet with tears. "Yeah. Just remembering."

"Here." He handed me something like paper. "I want you to have this."

I looked at my palm. Resting on it was the photograph of Arisu, Chota, and Karube. "Oh...oh, Arisu-san, I couldn't." I thrust it back at him.

"Please, I insist."

"No. This is your Karube. Your memory. I couldn't take that from you. But thank you."

"I could..." He moved to tear it, but I stopped him.

"I'm fine. Really. You keep it. I really appreciate it, though."

With a sad smile, he placed the photo back in his pocket.

Usagi walked up, breathless. "Wow! What a game!"

As we rode back together, she questioned me about Niragi. I could tell she didn't like him. Not at all.

"How in the world did you end up with someone like him?" She was forward with her questioning.

I laughed. "He broke into my room...twice."

She gasped. "Did he...did he rape you?"

I remembered that first encounter.

Almost. "No. I think that was his plan the first night, but he got called away. The second night, though...he saved my life. He stopped me from killing myself."

"You were going to commit suicide?"

I gazed out the window. "I missed Karube so much I couldn't function. My visa was up that night, and I was going to let the laser take me. I even barricaded my door with a chair. But Niragi busted it open and forced me to come with him. We won our game that night and bonded, I guess." I didn't mention what had come afterward, but, damn, I sure remembered it. The mind blowing kiss. The explosive sex. "We've been together ever since."

"You're just such an odd couple."

"Usagi!" Arisu reprimanded her. "Don't be rude."

I laughed. "It's okay. I'm not offended."

***

Niragi was waiting as the cars pulled up to the Beach. He had his rifle resting on his shoulder as he leaned against the fence surrounding the street-side of the resort.

"Did you get one?" he asked, straightening.

"No. There weren't any heart games tonight."

"Damn. That sucks." He threw an arm around me. "Let's go back to my room."

As soon as the door to his room closed, he was on me, shoving me against the wall and kissing me. I barely had the chance to breath before his hand encircled my neck.

"Niragi, don't." I pulled at his hand, but he refused to budge. He wasn't choking me, just holding me in place.

"You need to get that card," he said, his lips brushing my earlobe. "It's the only way out." His voice was low and dangerous.

"I can't," I whispered, swallowing beneath his hand. "Niragi, please..."

"That's not the answer I'm looking for."

"M-maybe there'll be a hearts game tomorrow. Hatter and I can play it--" I choked as his hand tightened.

"No, kitten. Not if Hatter will die before the games begin." He trailed his tongue along my earlobe and down the side of my face. "You have to keep him alive."

He allowed me the tiniest breath to answer him. "I can't betray Aguni."

He tightened his grip again and growled, tossing me toward the bed. I fell to the floor in a heap and scrambled to regain my footing before he got to me. "Fuck Aguni," he cried. "Fuck him and fuck the Hatter, too. Just get me that goddamned card!"

He grabbed a handgun from the bedside table and thrust it under my chin. I closed my eyes, wishing he would pull the trigger. His breath came hot and heavy on my face.

"Kill me or fuck me. Just don't make me wait," I said. The pressure of the gun disappeared and he sucked my lower lip into his mouth before devouring me.

"I will take all of you. Then you will get me that card."