Plain: Book 2

Dissertation of a Scientist's Romance

"I sense spirits here. This place isn't empty as your employer supposes."

Naru pulled back from behind the shelf of monitors, a few cables coiled around his forearms. Even Lin looked back at Masako from his laptop in interest.

I tried to ignore the tugging urge to step between the beautiful spring bloom which was Masako and my dark and handsome boyfriend, as well as the painful awareness that I had dressed in my baggiest cargo pants and a pink shirt I had owned since fifth grade. I just hadn't seen the need to dress up for a dirty run down hospital, and regretted it. I could have at least bothered to put on mascara or something, nevermind the fact that even my best try couldn't come close to celebrity Masako.

"How many?" asked Naru.

"I can't tell. They are dormant, as of yet, though Mai and I caught a glimpse of one as we were walking down the hallway. A woman, I think."

Naru glanced in my direction, as though to ask for verification, and I just shrugged. I hadn't even caught that much, but then this was Masako's area of expertise. No point trying to one up her.

"I take it you weren't able to pick up anything else?"

"No." She hesitated. "I apologize."

"Don't. This makes my job more interesting."

"And mine," said Ayako, who had been taking in the brown blotches on the ceiling boards with a wrinkled nose. "Means I didn't bring all my stuff for nothing—hey, you're not going to make us sleep here, are you?"

"I'm not going to make you do anything, though your salary from our client doesn't include hotel fees or the time spent outside of the job area."

"You've got to be joking." On seeing one of the questionably colored stains by her foot, she pulled it back. "I'm still recovering, you know. If I get sick I'm suing him and you for all you're worth."

"Noted." He ducked back behind the shelving unit. "That being said, sleeping quarters are in the room next over. There's a door connecting the rooms in the corner there, I've already had Lin air it out, though our client assures us he's had it thoroughly cleaned for our use."

"If you mean it looks the same as this wreck..."

"I'd like to see you looking as good in sixty years."

Masako snickered behind her sleeve. I just sighed. I couldn't wait until someone told Ayako that there was asbestos from floor to ceiling.

When John and Takigawa got back they were sent back out with bluetooths, since the monitors were up and running, to fine tune the angle of everything, while we girls set up all the cots in the adjoining room, which wasn't much different from the base. We set up the boy's cots along the wall shared with the base room and the girl's on the other side, though there was only two since Masako would be staying in a nearby hotel. Being famous and all, she probably wasn't as concerned as Ayako over pay.

The bathroom connected to this room was what one would usually expect in a hospital room, and looked in far better condition than the rest of the room, give or take a few hard water stains in the sink and toilet. On scaring out one of the fuzzy brown, eight-legged inhabitants of the hospital, however, Ayako let out a shrill shriek.

"That's it! Hotel! Hotel!"

"It's twenty minutes away," said Masako, who had flinched, but otherwise was unperturbed by the spider who was obviously more afraid of Ayako than she was of it.

"Don't care, there is no way I'm taking showers with pests."

"That's only one spider." I said, taking the honor to squash the poor thing with my shoe. "And if that one is going to scare you, you're never going to leave this room."