One for Three

Chapter 7

Seiya wasn't standing at the street corner today as usual; he must already be home. Since Monday, things have taken a turn for the worse in my life, especially the situation with Seiya and Diamond has been troubling me. Diamond will be on the move again, Seiya's length of stay is still unclear, and Mamoru seems to be somewhere in Boston without bothering to contact me.

The conversation with Diamond accompanied me throughout the journey home. Why does his brother frighten him like that? Why did he warn me and advise caution? Maybe I should fly to Osaka after all, if only to get some answers.

As I opened my apartment door, a strange smell hit me, growing stronger with each step. It smelled burnt, and there was a hazy fog in the apartment. The odor seemed to be coming from the kitchen, accompanied by the sound of clattering pots.

Leaning against the door frame, I observed with amusement the scene before me. I had to control myself not to burst out laughing.

Seiya was in my tiny kitchen, clearly attempting to cook. The emphasis here was on "attempting." There was a small pot on the stove, and four more pots on the table, filling up all the pots I owned. Additionally, several bowls were scattered around him, all filled with rice. He was in the process of scooping rice out of the pot on the stove. The kitchen looked like a battlefield, and he was the brave soldier on a lost mission, completely out of control.

When his eyes met mine, they lit up with relief. "Darling, thank goodness you're finally here. I wanted to surprise you with some food, but the rice just won't stop coming out of the pot," he said somewhat panicked.

At this point, I couldn't hold back anymore; laughter just burst out of me. There stood a magnificent singer in my kitchen, struggling with the simple task of cooking rice.

"Stop laughing and help me instead," he pouted, armed with a spoon.

"How long do you plan on eating rice? That's enough to last until the end of next week. How much did you put in the pot?" I asked amused.

"Well, one package per person, as it said on the internet. At first, everything fit in the pot, but then..." he spread his arms and gestured towards his creation.

That explained everything. I didn't have pre-packaged rice, which meant he had actually cooked two kilos of rice, or at least attempted to. When I realized that, I burst into laughter again. I felt sorry for him as he looked at me with his big eyes, seeking help, but it was just too comical.

After calming down a bit, I approached him, took the spoon out of his hand, reached up, and gave him a quick kiss.

"I suggest you go to the living room for now, and I'll try to salvage what I can here," I said before he could raise any objections, pushing him out the door. Now I took another look at the extent of his efforts. Two kilos of rice in different stages of cooking laughed at me; only Seiya could accomplish that. After nearly two hours, my kitchen looked like a kitchen again, and I prepared a rice dish for us.

In the meantime, Seiya had set the dining table. I still looked at him, amused.

"Tomorrow will be a late night; we still have to record the final songs, and in the evening, there's an interview for the new tour. How was your day at work?"

I swallowed and tried to sound normal. "The usual stress. Today involved some purchases that needed to be listed and estimated. It would probably be boring to explain it in more detail. Also, I was invited to an exhibition in Osaka on Saturday, but I'm not sure if I'll go. How long are you staying, by the way?" I patted myself on the back mentally, that was all neatly packaged.

"I think we'll have to leave again next week. How long are you staying in Osaka? We could fly together, you know."

"I'm not even sure if I want to go at all, but if I do, it would only be Saturday night to Sunday." Damn, Seiya had no plans for the weekend.

"You can think about it, and what do you have planned for your day off tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'll do that. Oh, my friend Minako is coming over for breakfast tomorrow, remember? The one who encouraged me to go on our first date, I told you about her."

"Yeah, I still need to thank her," he grinned at me. Seiya still didn't know anyone from my circle of friends, just as I didn't know anyone from his. He was right, we lived here together in our own little bubble.

We snuggled together on the couch and watched a movie, and I must have fallen asleep. When I woke up again, I was in bed. Dazed, I tried to figure out what ringing had woken me up. After a few seconds, I realized it was my phone. Which idiot would call me at 1 a.m.? I blinked sleepily at the screen and instantly became wide awake. I pressed mute, took a glance at Seiya who was still sound asleep. With a pounding heart, I tiptoed out of the bedroom and answered the call. A number from America.

"Tsukino."

"My Bunny, I finally reached you," Mamoru's voice sounded, and instantly my heart warmed up.

"Mamo, what happened? I've been trying to reach you for days. I was worried something had happened to you."

"Stay calm, I'm fine. I just had to go to Boston for a few days, and I lost my phone on the flight. Luckily, the lady at the reception desk had your number written down right away," he laughed somewhat embarrassed. Losing things used to be one of my specialties, and he would often tease me about it, and now he had actually lost something.

"I'm just glad nothing happened to you. Why were you in Boston?"

"I gave some lectures for medical students there and got to learn a new method for heart valve replacement. That's also why I might be back earlier with some luck. I wanted to tell you when it's certain. Bunny, only five more weeks, and I'll finally be back with you," he sounded so happy. I was happy too, in a way, but I suddenly realized that time was still pressing on. Tick tock, tick tock. I wouldn't be able to handle coordinating all three of them for much longer. Especially when Mamoru was back here.

"Bunny? Are you still there?"

"Oh, yes, of course, I was just surprised. You left me speechless. I'm really looking forward to having you back soon."

"And I can't wait either, you can't even imagine. I'm looking forward to holding you in my arms again. Well, I have to get back to work now. I love you, Bunny."

As my guilt slowly crept in, butterflies flooded my stomach when I heard those words from him.

"I love you too, Mamo. Take care," I whispered softly into the phone.

He was the only one I had reciprocated those words to. I called up the image of the two of us again and let it sink in for a moment. Oh, Mamoru, how did I get myself into this situation? If only you hadn't gone to America, things would have been so much easier. But then Seiya would have never entered my life, and with Diamond, I would have surely maintained a purely professional relationship.

The squeaking of the bedroom door made me involuntarily flinch. Slowly, I turned my head, and Seiya blinked at me. Damn. I hope he didn't overhear the phone call.

"Why are you in the living room?" he grumbled sleepily.

"I... I couldn't sleep... Full moon," I muttered softly in response.

He came closer and pulled me up into his arms by my hand. "Come on, let's try again. The bed is so empty without you, and it's the middle of the night."

In bed, I was still pondering. Instead of having 12 weeks, I now only had 5 weeks to find a solution. Only 5 weeks to make a decision.

First, I needed answers from Diamond. I had to find out what was going on with his brother, why he suddenly became so panicked and fearful. I could only get those answers in Osaka.

Seiya and Mamoru would be my biggest challenge. I couldn't imagine what would happen if Seiya was here and Mamoru suddenly showed up at the door, or if both of them came to pick me up from work and I didn't spot one of them right away. I had to face the facts now; it was time to make a decision. If only it weren't so difficult. My head was throbbing with considerations, but of course, I couldn't come to a conclusion. This rumination was also not helpful for falling asleep. Oh, it was driving me crazy.