How to deal with a runaway girl

Chapter 11

 She noticed Midari waiting in the hall, looking through some documents. She walked up to him and leaned casually against the wall.

"So what now?" She asked, clasping her hands behind her head and looking significantly at the tall Japanese. "Are we going to find another job?"

Midari nodded, folded the documents and they went on a new search. As they passed by the garden, Aki heard the whir of a lawnmower. She looked outside and saw another member of the household, whom she recognized from shared meals, trying to deal with the large lawn. She looked at Midari with puppy dog ​​eyes

"Caaaan IIIIII?" She asked pouting.

"You want to mow the lawn?" He asked in disbelief.

The girl nodded vigorously, Midari just shrugged, turned to the man mowing and called out to him something in Japanese. He immediately ran up to them, bowed to Midari and Aki in turn, and demonstrated how to operate the machine. After a while, Aki, humming something to herself, was happily pushing the mower and stealthily looking around.

(One guard at the entrance... Distracting one is not a problem... But there were also a few people patrolling along the fence... Or maybe I don't need to distract them...) The girl allowed herself a quick, triumphant flash of her teeth. (Well, I can't let poor Midari get bored with me... And if by any chance I manage to escape... well... That's our fate, Takano...)

That day, the sun seemed to be trying to prove something to someone... It was extremely hot, and Aki felt beads of sweat beading on her forehead and sliding down her spine. There's not much left for her to finish. (Yes, the conditions are almost perfect... Just one more...) Midari was sitting on the steps at the side entrance, when he saw that Aki was trotting towards him, breathing heavily.

"Hey, handsome!" The girl wiped the sweat from her face with the edge of her own T-shirt, flashing her belly, glistening with sweat. "What does a girl have to do in this house to get a glass of water?"

"I'll bring it now" He replied through clenched teeth and stood up without looking at her. As soon as he disappeared behind the door, Aki boldly moved towards the gate.

The guard began to look at her closely, but she just nodded at him and continued forward without hesitation.

"W-wait a minute!" Exclaimed the guard, clearly confused.

(Oh come on, I was counting on him not knowing English...)

"Yeees?" She asked, her whole attitude expressing surprise.

"Where are you going, miss? The boss..." The poor guy clearly couldn't understand the situation.

"Oh, don't worry" She laughed and waved her hand as if the guard's doubts were a simple matter. "I need to go buy something" She said confidently.

"Do you have permission, miss?" He asked, confused.

"Of course! I was talking to Midari a second ago and he let me. Five minutes and I'm back" She was in the middle of explaining when she noticed the guard looking at someone behind her back. Someone clearly superior to both her and himself.

(Caught red-handed...)

She turned around with a bright smile and saw Midari with a glass of water in her hand.

"You were gone for a while, so I had a little chat with the guard. Thank you for the water" She said, taking the glass and drinking it all at once.

"Aaah... Much better! That's it... I'm going to finish mowing" She pointed towards the lawnmower and ran away from the gate like a scared rabbit.

"Yes. You better go" The man, with his usual serious face, watched her go, shaking his head in disbelief.

Aki took care of finishing the lawn, and Midari took care of warning the guard against the girl. After a few minutes of reprimand, he returned to his place in the building and started reading more papers. The sun was beating down more and more. The glass of delicious, cool water she drank did not affect the temperature felt by the girl in any way. Suddenly, small black dots began to fly before her eyes. She stopped for a moment, rubbed her eyes, and wavered, feeling weakness wash over her like storm waves.

"Midari!...." She exclaimed, swaying on her feet.

She sank hard onto the grass, gasping for breath. She wasn't sure if she had been heard. The man was at the entrance and she was working a little further away.

"What happened?" She heard above her and immediately felt relieved.

"I think I overdid it a bit" She replied, propping herself up with her hand. Midari quickly took her into his arms. (That's something new...) He carried her to Takano's room and placed her on the bed. He brought her a cold compress and water to drink.

"Sorry I didn't notice earlier" He apologized as he left the bedroom.

"Sorry to bother you" She whispered to the closing door, closing her eyes.

The pleasant coolness of the compress made her feel a little better. When she stopped feeling dizzy, she sat down to have a drink. Suddenly Takano burst into the room. He looked at the surprised girl and ran to the bed.

"How do you feel?" He asked worriedly.

"I'm better now. I'm sorry for the trouble" She mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

"Midari was supposed to keep an eye on you" He growled angrily.

"It's not his fault! He was watching me all the time. It's just that it happened so suddenly. But he helped me right away! Please don't be angry with him" She said with a sad face. Takano looked at the red-face girl and placed his hand on her cheek.

"I'll pour you some lukewarm water into the bathtub to cool down. Take off these clothes and go into the bathroom" He ordered, getting up from the bed.

"With you here?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yes, with me. Next time you will learn to take care of your body!" He shouted back, filling the bathtub.

Aki slowly got out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She noticed towels on the shelf, so she took one of them and took off her clothes, hiding from the man. She stood next to the bathtub, tightly wrapped in a towel, her face incredibly red. Takano smiled at how embarrassed she was.

"Are you coming in or should I help you?" He asked aggressively.

"Ha, ha. Very funny" She frowned and carefully stepped into the bathtub. The water was pleasantly cool and Aki felt great relief. Her body slowly cooled down and the weakness disappeared. Takano was sitting by the bathtub, tracing the girl's hand with his fingers. She, however, lay still with her eyes closed.

"All right. I'm going out because I'm getting cold" She said to the man.

"Shall I help you?" He asked hopefully.

"You can help by leaving the bathroom"

"Maybe I'll wipe your back...?"

"Why don't you check if you're not behind the door?" Aki's face was getting more and more dangerous. The man laughed and left. She took the opportunity to dry herself off as best she could and quickly put on new clothes. She went out and looked around the bedroom, but she didn't find anyone there. After a while, Midari entered the room.

"Dinner will be ready soon" He announced.

"Midari... I don't feel well yet. Please let me skip this meal. I need a nap" She said, making a tired face.

"Then I'll bring you some food..." The tone of his voice was slightly different from his usual one (Oh please... Does someone feel guilty...?).

"No, please... I'm not hungry. I'm tired and that's it. Go to dinner. I won't come up with anything stupid in this state (Maybe except for some brilliant escape plan...) She replied, pressing the pillow to herself.