Cardfight!! Vanguard: Heiwa

-Part 2

"This is it."

Deep into that same sunday morning, an antique model of a dark red Oldsmobile Toronado car, with a surface so pollished that one could see their own reflection on the doors, stopped in front of an apartment building in Shibuya. The driver flicked a small button on his side and unlocked the doors.

"Is this where Tate lives? I thought he lived closer to us." Ryuuga said, tapping the tip of his cigar on the ashtray inside the car. 

"It doesn't matter who lives here and who doesn't." Izuru deadpanned, opening the door on his side and leaving the car. "I know we had plans for today but something came up. I'll make up to you... Somehow."

"Hey hey, no worries, little bro. A respectable and exemplary big bro like me needs to let his little bro go out into the world and spread his wings like a butterfly. It's the cycle of life, be it human, animal or insect." Ryuuga shrugged.

"Oh damn..." Izuru just stared at his siblings in disbelief. "That was so lame... I hope a deer attacks the temple again, that entire sentence is the same as begging to have the hurt put on you." He said bluntly, quickly drawing his phone and snapping a picture.

"H-hey, we do not talk about the deer incident! The other managers bully me enough but being the guy who had to be saved from a deer by his wife isn't helping out! I'm some how dropped to be more lame than Blade-san and he's the worst of them all! And what's up with the picture?!"

"Oh, that? Me and Mayuri made a deal. If I get proof of you also smoking in the car, I get paid."

"Wha- You traitor!"

"Sounds like a you problem if we're being honest." Izuru shrugged and closed the door. "I'll see you later."

"Hey wait, when do you want me to come pick you up?! Homura's busy with her job, usual teacher shit, so I got the whole day for myself!"

"I'll call you when I'm done. Have fun on your sad lonely husband day."

"Thanks, have fun with whatever you're doing too!" Ryuuga waved with a smile. "Now then, what to do... Welp, Taira said Hinata was out of town the weekend so I'll just go annoy him at his branch. Sucker finna learn why not leaving your weekend paperwork to your assistant isn't a very cash money move! This is a massive poooooog!"

"...do you seriously still talk like a teenager? So this is what a midlife crisis looks like." Izuru said.

"Oh screw you!" Ryuuga said, driving off out of shame. "Have fun, love you!"

"That dumbass brother..." Izuru sighed, waving at the car. Looking up at the building with a stern look, he put his hands on his pockets. 'Even if you tell me to go away... I'll keep trying until you hear me out, Aimi.'

Stepping into the entrance hall of the building, instead of head off to the elevator that would take him to the floor of Aimi's apartment, Izuru walked up to the front counter, where the old doorman Sakamoto sat reading the newspaper.

"E-excuse me, Sakamoto-san." Izuru spoke up.

"What did you do, Sawada?" The old man asked, not steering his eyes away from the newspaper.

"Ah, so she said something." He muttered.

"I was told to not let you in any further than this. I can still kick a kid out of the building if I have to." Sakamoto replied, looking up from his newspaper. "So out with it. What did you do?"

"I... Really screwed up this time."

"I like vagueness as much as the next, get out."

"W-wait, please!" Izuru implored. "The truth is that I spent this entire last year not considering Aimi's feelings on tons of things and acting like she was just a tag along, I kept lying and lying to her because it made things good for me in my stupid dream!"