SOLITAIRE || AIB || OC

Akira Mitsumi - sweet fruits

As it turns out, the Beach wasn’t all that bad. Great, even. It truly was a utopia, filled with everything anyone could desire, and Akira was content. She could revel in the lap of luxury, clad in her swimsuit, indulging in whatever she wanted- sex, drugs, booze. Fruit, sometimes. She’d discovered quite early on that the men here were keen for any drop of female attention they could receive, and their little vying gifts to her often included neatly prepared fruits, or delicate glasses of alcohol.  Akira could pretty easily kid herself that she wasn’t taking advantage of these men - they were doing it willingly, after all. Plus, they were total creeps. Atleast Akira dated guys in her age range. Mostly. 

She’d been most keen on meeting Lijuan again. She’d spent three days at the Beach, keeping her eyes peeled for her.  But, the beach was packed - it seemed to get more members every day. They either weren’t very good at keeping the place a secret, or she was terrible at remembering faces. Both seemed equally likely, given the way everyone she’d met so far had instantly started running their mouths about the place the second she showed any curiosity. But, Akira had yet to see any sign of them, and had yet to make any real connections. Shinya had tried to talk to her a few times, lazily slinging his arm over her shoulder as he pulled her closer to his grossly damp body, but she’d shut him down quick. Sometimes, a little too quick, as he’d look at her with this hurt sort of puppy-dog gaze, before sulking off. That didn’t deter him from trying again, though. She’d also seen Sachihiro around, but he was always, always hanging around Hatter, like a lanky shadow, so it wasn’t particularly hard to find him. 

The only caveat to the Beach was that she was forced to play in games. Every. Single. Night. There was never any time to rest, no time to recover after an injury. And Akira had been exposed to death. So, so much death. The stench of death always seemed to hang low over the Beach, muddying the blaring music, dampening the flashing lights. Not that anyone cared, this was their escape, their paradise. But it was there. Always permeating through the cracks, always threatening to collapse and bring this place down. Though, Just as the games had gotten more frequent, Akira had gotten wiser. The way she carried herself, the fleeting connections she’d tried to make- slowly, surely, they’d been earning her an advantage. And sometimes, in a sick, twisted way, she’d found herself enjoying the games. The rush of adrenaline in the thick heat of early summer, the on-the-fly thinking, it was an outlet. 

“Hey.. do you want some fruit?” A voice suddenly spoke to her, softly, hesitantly.

Akira snapped out of her haze, adjusting herself in the lounge chair, as she went to raise her hand, denying the gift. But she hesitated, squinting in the sun. The black hair, the red cardigan-
“Lijuan?” She asked, tilting her head.
“Oh!” Lijuan grinned, still holding out the fruit “You do remember me. And my name” 
Akira nodded, reaching out to take the fruit from Lijuan, sitting up straighter to adjust her swimsuit.
“Yeah, ‘course. It’s a memorable name, right?”
“...Sometimes. But, you got here fast. Most people..they don’t bother with the tips, i don’t think. Or..they die.”
“A bit of both?”
“Mmm-mm” Lijuan shook her head “Dying, mostly. People would be curious, I think.”
“Ya’ reckon?”
“You were.”
“Right…But I only really got here because some smug-faced ass dragged me here.”
“Shinya?”
“Shinya.”
“Yeah, he does that..” Lijuan laughed, taking a seat on the chair next to Akira. “I think he’s responsible for…70% of the girls on the beach being here.”
“So, he’s a major creep?”
“Mmm,” Lijuan hummed thoughtfully. “Minor creep. I think he means well.”
Akira let out a huff of amusement, turning to face Lijuan fully. 
“I’ve been looking for you, anyway. Where have you been hiding?”
“Gas runs. Car repairs. There’s a sort of..garage thing, just behind the main building. I’m usually there.”
“You never leave, huh?”
“Well, I do. I saw you around..a few times, i think.”

Akira scoffed, leaning forwards in mock horror, hand clasped tightly against her chest. Lijuan must be pretty observant, then. Or, Akira stuck out like a sore thumb. As much as she liked the idea of the latter, she dearly hoped that that was not the case. It was pretty sweet to know Lijuan had been looking for her, but Akira didn’t really want to show that. Not yet. She’d have a little fun with it, first. 

“And ignored me?”
“No! No. No.” Lijuan protested, eyes widening as the slight flush of embarrassment crept across her cheeks. Akira grinned at that.
“You were.” Akira rolled her eyes  “You so were” 
“No! It’s-” Lijuan turned her head to the side,mumbling something Akira couldn’t quite make out.
“Louder, please.”
“You’re sort of..intimidating, i think?”
“Intimidating?” Akira’s chest swelled with pride. That was a compliment if she’d ever heard one. 
“Not in a scary way!” Lijuan squeaked, “Uh, you just seem very..self assured. If you know what I mean.”
Akira shrugged, leaning back in the chair, picking idly at the fruit, the sweet-sticky juices glistening as they  dripped down her fingers. Gross. Where did people keep getting these fruits from, anyway? She’d yet to see any specific place to get them. Not that it really mattered, in the long haul. She’d just keep being given things, anyway. It was kind of funny. Just a few days ago, she’d been scraping the bottom of her bag, and raiding shops for food. Now, it was literally being handed to her on a silver platter. She could have anything she wanted, anytime she wanted, providing she kept providing the number one with cards. Akira didn’t really mind -  asides from the whole ‘risking your life’ thing, the thrill of giving cards to her leader, the rush that came with the simple ‘Good job’, or ‘thank you’ from him, the ever-nearing promise that she too, could be an executive, it wasn’t just thrilling, it was addicting.