Loud

Chapter 15 - Nobu Hunt and an Internude

"Middle school?" Makiko's sister, Sophia, was almost that age. The idea of it - Rob's mind blanked. "Apologies don't matter."

Fumiko stared at him, elbows pressed against her sides, her face as pale as the wall panels partitioning them off from other cubicles in the manga cafe. "Naoko forgave him," she said. "He's nice now, really nice. It doesn't mean the things you heard are true."

Nobu was in his twenties when Naoko was in middle school. An internet search might dig up something else on him. Rob pressed a button on the computer's keyboard. The screen lit up, but no useful search words came to mind.

Fumiko squeezed his knee. "What are you going to do about Nobu?"

"Stalk him tonight and see what I find out."

"I'll go too."

She knew Shibuya and could predict Nobu's whereabouts, but he had reservations. What if she wanted to protect Nobu? "Okay..."

Her hand stayed on his knee. He pressed his hand over hers, filling the snug grooves between her fingers with his. She leaned into him, and their lips touched. He pulled her closer and deepened the kiss. He wanted her by his side, because she was sexy and smart, but he also wanted her by his side in case her loyalties were skewed. Many people were capable of duplicitous thoughts during a wonderful kiss. If they were together, he could prevent her from making phone calls until after he found Nobu.

When the kiss waned, he grew conscious of her solid warmth in his arms. She did not break free, so he kept his mouth on hers until she rested her head against his chest. Her silky black hair tickled his nose. She nuzzled him for a long moment before rolling her chair away and looking at him with a mischievous grin. She swung the coffee to her lips. After emptying the cup, she clacked the saucer with it. "I have ideas about where to start."

"I'm listening."

"Just make sure I don't get hurt."

"Of course. I'm very old fashioned."

"I've seen Nobu fight, and he's tough," she said.

"Who did he fight?"

"Some jerk who bothered Naoko and me."

"What did Nobu do?"

"Shut the guy up. Knocked him down, bloodied him up, before we could even scream. Later, he said he was tired and should have controlled himself."

"If Nobu sees us and you get a bad feeling, run."

"We'll pretend we're on a date." She leaned over and pecked his cheek. He put his arms around her. Their lips slid together again. The kiss grew hungrier and hungrier.

Afterwards, her face hovered near his, and he breathed in her lovely scent. It distracted him from Nobu. Maybe that was on purpose...

***

Rob and Fumiko left the manga cafe and followed a crowded pedestrian path behind tall buildings. Retailers on the lower floors catered to youth culture: hip clothing, lifestyle consumer electronics, music, fast food. Though exhausted-looking company employees in suits walked the same route, the river of color surrounding them came from young people, between maybe fifteen and twenty-five. The gaudy fashions of a quarter of the women probably originated in the sex trade of other eras: knee-high boots, mini skirts, exposed bellies, G-strings, heels, sparkles, maids costumes, high school uniforms, dangling bracelets and thick makeup.

Bright lights, brash noise, and consumerism had already banished whatever spirits habituated Shibuya in ancient times. The past and perceived tradition enslaved the thinking of millions worldwide, so Rob did not necessarily disapprove, but youth culture's total dominance here, an absolute amnesia about the past, activated a steel rod of conservatism in his core, much to his surprise.