Rainy Weather (Kazurei)

Gentle Rain Showers

"Is this place closed?" I notice there's no one else here as we pull into the parking lot. "Their website says they're open till 21:30, maybe it's just a slow day for them." I don't trust this at all, everything in me is saying that this is very wrong. If this dinner goes south, I have my gun and knife on me for such a scenario that I would need to protect us. Kazuki also tends to carry some means of defence as well.
"What did you grab?" Kazuki had reached for something in the backseat and shoved it into the pocket of his jacket. "Nothing important, let's go inside." I didn't care enough to prod further, so I got out of the car instead. "The rain feels nice tonight, doesn't it? Chilly, but rather comforting." he let's out a random thought. "I don't have much of an opinion on how it feels. I think the rain is okay."
Inside the restaurant, We find that the outside matches the inside. Colourful as hell. "Welcome, take a seat anywhere you'd like!" Hayano pokes out from presumably the kitchen. "Thanks for having us!" Kazuki waves. "Let's sit here." he's looking at a booth located next to a window. I take a seat across from him and he smiles at me. "Our first dinner date." "That's right. This is our first time properly out." The empty restaurant is eerie. It's dead silent besides the buzzing of an ac unit. "Hello, I actually made you two something already." Hayano comes out holding a few platters on a tray. "My special Carbonara with house made garlic bread. and for dessert...our specialty chocolate cake. It's my great-grandmother's recipe." she says enthusiastically. "Why is there no one else here?" I couldn't help but ask. "My parents needed to close early tonight because they weren't feeling well. Right about now on a normal day, we're quite busy with customers. But for tonight, I get to give a special treat to my new friends." "You're too kind."
Hayano sets down the food and bows. "I'll be back in a few minutes with your drinks." she hurried back into the kitchen. I don't have an appetite, my nerves are too shot to have any hunger. Kazuki on the other hand wasted no time digging in. "Rei, you should try it. It tastes really good." he says with his mouth full of pasta. Don't eat. Get out of here. My paranoia is getting the best of me. "...I'm not hungry." "Hmm, I wonder if she'll let you take it out with us then." Restaurants that offer containers to take your meals home with you are rare in Japan, I doubt it. "Maybe..." "Are you okay?" Kazuki reaches out to my hand I had rested on the table. His touch calms me down a little bit. I take a deep breath in attempt to regain my composure. Trusting my instincts has saved my life quite a few times in the past, staying here is betraying myself. I won't leave if Kazuki wants to stay, I have to stay with him no matter what. "I'm alright. Walking around all day drained away my energy."
"By the way, Rei. Close your eyes." "Why?" "Just do it, trust me." What is this man doing? "Fine." I close my eyes being suspicious of his intentions. I hear him dig around in his pockets in search of something. "Give me your left hand." he says. "What are you up to?" "You'll see here in a second." Kazuki grabs my hand. Is he...? "You can open up your eyes now." I look my hand and see a golden band encrusted in diamonds with a small moon engraved into it. "We're a pair." he shows me another ring that's like mine but with a sun instead. "Do you like it?" he has a hopeful look on his face. "It's pretty." I stare at the ring on my finger wide-eyed. "How adorable!" Hayano snuck up on us, or we didn't notice her come back out. "I hope you don't mind, but I got a picture of the moment. I'll send it to you right now." Kazuki's phone receives a notification. "That's a great picture, thanks Hayano-chan!" he shows me the photo which is when Kazuki was sliding the ring onto me. "What's your phone background?" Hayano asks Kazuki." "You saw it? It's a picture I took of him earlier today. He looks cute in it doesn't he?" he gushes. god he's so embarrassing. "Takashi-san could be a model with his looks. You both could actually, you two are a very attractive couple." "I think you're exaggerating about me, buuuuuuuut you might be spot for Takashi. All my girl friends tell me they love his dark and mysterious vibes. I guess that's a trait women love." Kazuki has not once mentioned he talks about me to the daycare moms. I knew he got involved with their inner circle, but to discuss me is just...I don't know. "I could totally see you being in a magazine. You have one of those faces I bet would drive the ladies wild. All I'm saying is, you guys have amazing faces." Hayano brings us two glasses of red wine. "This wine is a personal favourite. The flavour goes particularly well with this dish." The more time Hayano spends talking to us, the more she reminds me of someone I know. I can't exactly put my finger on it, but she definitely has a face that is vaguely familiar. I end up biting into the garlic bread finally letting myself settle into the atmosphere. "Please excuse me, I need to go check on my parents." Hayano leaves the scene again. "This wine is very smooth. You don't drink much do you?" Kazuki sips away at his wine. "Not really, I drank with you a few times in the past when you offered me your expensive beer, but I just don't like the taste of alcohol." I explain. "I don't think anyone likes the taste of it, they drink it for the sole purpose of intoxication. Usually any way. The alcohol taste isn't as strong in this one, give it a try." he scoots my glass closer to me. Drinking for me is already rare, to get drunk is extremely rare. Is now an acceptable moment to have a drink? Reluctant as I was, I put the glass against my lips and had a sip of the chilled red wine. While the alcoholic taste still lingers, it's surprisingly pleasant. "It's good." I admit. "Right? Let's not overindulge, We still gotta get back to base here soon." I didn't plan on having anymore than the sip. Although I've calmed down, I still don't trust Hayano and whatever her intentions may be. At least one of us should stay alert at all times. "Kazuki, what's wrong?" His eyes appear glazed over and unfocused. No way is he drunk after less than one serving of wine. "We need to go, I'll drive us back." I stand up and rush to get him on his feet. "Hey there Rei. Been awhile." A barrel of a gun is pressed against the back of my head. "What are you doing, Isaka-san?" Isaka Yuri is a wildcard who plays her own game unless she sees benefits of going by the book. "I'm genuinely shocked you guys fell right into my hands so easy. My sister played her part so well that your boyfriend here hadn't suspected a thing. You on the other hand, clever as always." That's why Hayano looked familiar. Everything is clicking into place. "I need you to listen to what I have to say. I'm not here to kill either of you, but I have some information you might find interesting." Kazuki had lost consciousness and body lay limp in his seat. "What did you do to him?" I ask her angrily. "Nothing much, I just had my dear little sister slip a little something into your food. You were too cautious so I had to do this. He'll wake up soon." "Why can't you ever reach out by normal means? You're way too extreme in your methods." "Because I know you won't listen unless I make you." she giggles deviously. "What I'm here for is to give information in exchange for a favour." "What favour?" There's no telling what she could possibly want from me. "I know your plans to shut down that trafficking operation, I want you to take me with you. There's some important files that I need. You promise to help me get them, I give you my information. Deal?" Isaka-san must have some kind of plan if she's stealing files, I might want to see that through as well. "Fine. Now talk." I spun around to face her with the gun still pointing at me. "You remember Ogino? Well...he's still alive. You messed him up pretty good though, the man lost his ability to speak because of the damage the knife caused." How can someone live through that? "Pretty ironic how the guy who's obsessed with collecting final words can't talk anymore." Ogino is surely to be out for blood after what we did. "One more thing. That little girl you had with you. I may have overheard a conversation that she and her mother are targets. They tracked down their address and sent someone to finish them." Isaka-san likes to leave dramatic pauses for sake of watching people squirm, but am all too aware of her tricks, there's more to this story. "I made contact with Unasaka Misaki directly and they're both stored away in one of my hideouts the organisation doesn't know about. And if you'd believe it, the kid very enthusiastically addressed me as Aunt Yuri." "It's not like you to help people out of the kindness of your heart. What's your angle?" "There is none, I simply hate your father and will do anything in my power to piss him off. Besides. I can't stand by and let another child be killed senselessly." Isaka-san puts her gun away and her smile fades. Isaka-san used to be a mother when she first got roped into the organisation. she had two young boys that were eight and three years of age with her now deceased husband. The three were killed after Shigeki determined her family was too big of a distraction, so he had them executed and forced her to watch. The pain she experiences daily must be excruciating, I pity her for that reason. "It's settled then, but you better keep up then. I'm not slowing down for you." "I coulda say the same thing to you, Suwa." she smirks. "Kyu-chan is also going to arrive shortly. He's going to be our eyes and ears once we're inside." "What about Wazihora-san?" those two are normally always together, it's weird seeing them apart. "He stayed back in Fukuoka to keep an eye on things including our two stowaways. He made it a point that monitoring the situation from inside could give valuable intel while we're here." Kyutaro-san is turning his back on the organisation for us even though he's the one who warned us about betrayal to begin with. "I take it that Kyutaro-san is the one who told you what Kazuki and I were doing?" "Correct. Hayano, stop hiding. Clear the tables." Isaka-san orders. Hayano timidly reappears in the dining room avoiding eye contact. "She says you and Kurusu went to an adult store. I almost didn't believe her till she sent me a picture." "You made a mistake sending your sister. We spotted her very fast." "Stealth isn't her strong suit, but she's a gifted actress. Came up with a great excuse right off the bat." "Great isn't how I'd describe it..." "Jeez, what happened? Did I pass out?" A very confused Kazuki came to. "Sorry about that, Kurusu. Rei's need for cause is why you were out." "Don't pin your nonsense on me." I retort. "Are you feeling decent? Sick or anything?" I go his aide to check on him. "Just woozy is all, Need a few minutes to get back into gear." he says groggily. "It's you." Kazuki saw her and instantly tensed up. "It is me. Did you have a nice nap?" she teases. "Hayano is her little sister. You were drugged." They don't get along well, but considering how they met is understandable. Could have gone worse, but I had hopes that she would have discussed the plan with Kazuki instead of leaving him to believe that he and Miri were about to face death. The part I think he's most upset about is how Miri was drugged. It upset me too and let her know when we came collect Miri from her. Nothing that can be done to change what happened now, we just need to move forward and get this done and over with. Four people might make this easier, but that means we need to update the plan a bit. Three inside and one watching the cameras could very well work in our favour. Now it's only a matter of getting in there and grabbing what we can. I think it's time for us to head back so we can decide our plan.