Wednesday 1.4

[pichi.livejournal.com]

As Aya left his room, Omi had to wonder why, exactly, she had decided to thank him.

He closed his door and put away his mission gear. Carefully he emptied and cleaned his darts, returning them to their storage compartment in a desk drawer he kept locked. He removed both disks from his pockets, storing the official one in a disk case and in the drawer with the darts and the phony back into his collection of blank disks. The headgear went on its hook in the closet. The jackets and gloves he brought with him to the furo, along with a robe and clean pajamas.

Shower water didn’t usually sting just from hitting the skin. The next few days weren’t going to be pleasant.

The bath felt nice after he’d found the right temperature-- one far cooler than usual. He spent his time sorting out what he was going to say in the mission report. In the end, he decided simplicity was probably best.

He redressed, started the washing machine with his load of mission gear, and headed down to the mission room for a brief report:

Mission report. Bombay 2200.

Problem with Siberian. Balinese on hiatus until further notice.

Success: 100%

With that sent, Omi quietly went back upstairs and checked Aya-chan’s room.

Comments

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Feeling agitated, Aya-Chan found herself pacing in her room, reflecting on what she'd accidentally overheard in Yohji's room a few moments ago. She found it oddly ironic that she could converse easier to Omi, a boy she'd only known for a few days, than to Ran, whom she'd known her entire lifetime.

A noise behind her pulled her out of her thoughts, and she turned around to see Omi at the door. "Hey~," now that the worst of it was over and she was sure everyone else was okay, it became easier to act cheerful.

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An awkward smile came to Omi's face. She was there, and had greeted him, but how, exactly, was he to proceed from there?

Oh, why, why why did it feel so wrong to even consider allowing this?

Logic marched through his mind.

Aya was a friend.
Aya already knew their secret.
Aya wanted to help with the injuries.
It wouldn't require any less decency than he'd have in swim trunks.

Everything added up and rationally made sense, yet he couldn't stop feeling unsettled over the idea of her hands on him.

"Ah... Hi." He lamely replied.

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Completely oblivious to the underlying weirdness of the situation, and trying her best to seem cheerful, Aya-Chan completely missed Omi's awkwardness. "Is the first aid kit still in your room?" After all, she was only trying to help; and there was no harm in that.

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"Y... Yes. It is."

Omi supposed that was all the lead-in he was going to get. He hesitated in the doorway for a moment before turning and walking back to his room, feeling more like he was walking into a deathtrap than he ever had on a mission.

The real debate and red flag came as they reached the door, and Omi realized he really wished he could close the door behind him, terrified of the idea that someone might see this happening. Why such a need to hide this? It wasn't anything wrong.

It wasn't anything wrong.

Leave the door open.

Swallowing, he left it open and moved into the room, then took a deep breath to try to relax.

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

It took a while, but Aya-Chan finally noticed the anxiety that Omi seemed to have been going through. She followed him into the door and headed automatically for the first aid kit. "Is something wrong?" she glanced at him, cocking her head in concern. Did something happen while she was in her room...?

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi smiled. "No, nothing is wrong."

Ok, really time to snap out of it. It was starting to make her wonder. And all the same, his cheeks felt hot as he shed the robe and bared his upper body, chiseled with battle scars and furiously red in the back.

He sat down backwards in his chair with his hands gripping the back.

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Aya-Chan found herself blushing furiously as Omi took off his robe. She quickly moved behind Omi so he wouldn't see her bright pink face. It took a few minutes to suppress the awkwardness she felt. Next, came the impact of the scars. Without thinking, she gently ran her finger along one of the more prominent ones, and then caught herself. "Sorry," she mumbled, feeling the awkward embarrassment coming back again.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi had been expecting, eventually, to feel touch on his back and shoulders. That was the point after all. What he hadn't been expecting was for that touch to be a single finger concentrating on the scar tissue on his left shoulder, where a bullet had once seared a three-and-a-half-inch graze across, marking its full exit with a small chunk of missing flesh. Long healed over, but undeniably there.

That reminding line of touch, however delicate, was perhaps one of the most invasive sensations Omi could recall in recent history. He sucked in a breath and clutched the back of the chair tighter, wishing very much that there were somewhere to escape to.

This was a mistake.

He heard the apology but could find no reassurances for it, nor did he have the heart to tell her touch like that was far, far more intimate and personal than he was comfortable with.

And that really made him wonder why she, apparently, had not felt the same discomfort with such an intimate gesture.

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

The silence that followed was so thick that Aya-Chan was starting to feel as if she couldn't breath normally. She felt a little more than awkward at the prospect of having to touch Omi's back again, but she'd promised - rather, she'd pushed - to help. Carefully, she took a little bit of cream onto her fingertips, took a deep breath to calm her nerves, and went to work. She searched for something to say, to break the silence, but could not find anything at all.

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Eventually, that more anticipated touch came. His back stung, but it was most certainly a more calming and comfortable touch than the finger tracing his scar. Dare he think it, it was even sort of pleasant.

His body gradually relaxed; Omi's mind drifted into deep introspection, the sort of boldness and lack of regard for personal boundaries that Aya had just demonstrated. It was just the sort of thing Ouka might have done, wasn't it?

Well of course it was. If Aya didn't have that same domineering persistence she wouldn't be helping in the first place. Omi shut his eyes and took in the sensation of her hand gliding over his skin. Feather-light touch painting down, the air cool on his blistering skin as the ointment dried.

It was different, a distinctly different touch from Ken's larger hands so full of muscle and power, callused from gardening and wielding bugnucks. Ever gentle when tending to injuries, but they still seemed rough in comparison. Even if he'd started blindfolded, Omi would have confidently guessed the hand on his back now to be a female's.

He was ashamed of what a difference it made between simply taking comfort from the soothing effects of the cream and taking dangerous levels of pleasure from the touch itself. Pleasurable enough to make him ache inside; it was a touch he wished he could feel again, but didn’t dare consider as a possibility.

“Thank you for the help,” he quietly said.

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Relief washed over Aya as Omi broke the silence. Relief, and a little bit of guilt. Her actions and words tonight were rash and inconsiderate. She wanted so desperately to understand Omi's scars, but she didn't dare ask. But what she wanted more was perhaps to be accepted and liked by the boy in front of her. She let her hand slowly and gently travel against Omi's back, careful now to avoid the scars. She let another silence linger, though this time not as awkward as before. Aya realized during this second silence that part - if not most - of her willingness to help Omi stemmed from her own selfishness of wanting someone around and her fears of being left alone.

"I'm sorry..." she said finally. "For imposing myself on you tonight." She searched for words to describe her thoughts, but failed miserably. "And... thank you."

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi felt confused on a number of levels when she spoke. He wrinkled his eyebrows, frowned lightly, and looked over his shoulder with a small shake of his head.

"You haven't been an imposition. I'm sorry if that was the impression I gave. I..." Feeling awkward once more, Omi shifted his eyes back to the floor in front of him. "I don't know why you're thanking me. You've been the helpful one here."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

"Oh, no," Aya shook her head in surprise. "You didn't give any impressions." She couldn't help but smile a little at the awkwardness of the situation. "I just feel..." again, it seemed so strange, but she couldn't help but want to open up to Omi. "... so out of place. I guess I just tried too hard to be liked today. And I just felt like I was imposing, I guess." It was one thing to have had these thoughts, but an entirely different feeling when she actually voiced them out loud. Blushing a little, she honed her attention onto Omi's back.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi contemplated Aya's words in silence for a long time. It was not his nature to open up, not even to those he considered good friends. Not his nature for the sake of sharing, but if it would visibly serve a goal, a concession could be made to his natural preference.

"Isolation is one of the most painful feelings in the world, isn't it? I'd hoped you would never have to feel that here."

The way I did... And still do, in a way.

"I'm sorry to have not been able to help that more. I think you don't have to try at all. You're very likeable, just the way you are."

He paused. "And if trying too hard is part of who you are too, then I wouldn't call it a divergence or a flaw. Such passionate dedication to reaching your goals has to be an admirable quality... Doesn't it?"

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Isolation is one of the most painful feelings in the world, isn't it? Aya pondered those words for a few seconds. It sounded as if he'd felt it at one time, but she didn't question it. There were still a lot of things she didn't know about the men she lived with, and she wasn't really sure if she would ever know them, or if she ever really even wanted to know...

She smiled at his compliment. "I suppose it could be..." For the first time that night, she let out a small, honest laugh. "Ran-niisan, I'm sure could argue otherwise. When we were little..." she trailed off; Omi didn't want to hear these sorts of childish stories, did he? "Well, I guess I was rather demanding back then..." and wasn't she still a little? Even now?

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi was just a little disappointed that Aya didn't continue with her anecdote. Oh, what he'd have given for a glimpse into Ran's childhood. It sounded like enough from what little Aya did give, though. She was a demanding sister, and if Omi's observations meant anything, her brother hadn't minded it a bit.

The idea brought simultaneously fond and painful memories to the forefront of his mind. If his own experiences meant anything either, of course her brother hadn't minded a demanding sister. Sisters were treasures that deserved everything.

He pushed back the reminders of loss and tipped a smile in Aya's direction. "Demanding? Mmmh. I prefer to think of it as fearlessly ambitious."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

The atmosphere had changed drastically, and Aya intended on keeping it that way. "Fearlessly ambitious? I like the sound of that." Mentioning her childhood before somehow caused a flood of memories. Pleasant memories... she toyed for a moment with asking Omi to share a few of his, but decided in the end that if he wanted to, he would. In the mean time, it was best to keep the conversation light.

"I must have had an incredible ambition though... I remember, when I was very little, my parents bought me a new tea set to play with." The memory caused a small giggle to escape Aya's lips. "Oh, how beautiful Ran-niisan looked with a large bow tied in his hair, sitting in a little chair and pretending to drink tea. And the look on his face! If you thought the looks he gives his fangirls now are bad... He must've really loved me to have agreed to go through that much torture." She smiled fondly, continuing to lightly apply cream to Omi's back. "I guess some things never change..."

[pichi.livejournal.com]

The instant Aya said, 'tea set,' Omi politely turned forward again and covered his smile with his hand. The need to resist bursting into giggles only grew stronger as her tale continued. That gem, he knew, he would have to take with him to the grave, but he felt privileged enough to have it for his own amusement that he didn't mind.

It was one of the latter lines that took the smile from his face and reminded him once more just what life was like now for all of them. It was a depressing return to reality after such a heartwarming divulgence of nostalgia.

Yes, Aya, he really loved you and still does. He endures torture all the time for you, in the form of this life you were never supposed to find out about.

Some things, indeed, never changed.

"It's good that you have such precious memories; I appreciate the chance to hear them. I..." No. Not going to say that.

I often wonder how the other three of them were before they came here.

"I'm not sure Aya-kun would be as appreciative, but I don't plan on reminding him of it."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Aya was a little disappointed that Omi had trailed off, but she refrained from questioning. She made up her mind then and there that she wasn't going to push for answers. If they were ready and willing, they'd give her the full story. If not... well, she didn't really mind living in a world of ignorance.

The words 'Aya-Kun' darkened Aya's mood a little, but she pushed that away quickly with a bright smile. "I could tell you a bit about his past," she offered. From what she'd experienced in the house, the New Ran wanted nothing to do with his past self. But in a way, retelling these memories felt comforting. Aya was sure that, somewhere - perhaps incredibly deep inside - the past Ran still existed. "Not now, of course... I'd have to think up some more interesting stories." She paused, questioning the words she was about to say, but unable to contain them. "And... you could tell me about him now?"

[pichi.livejournal.com]

The temptation was there, but Omi didn't feel it would be right to go from listening to volunteered stories to inviting more of them. This was his teammate's childhood, and it was interesting but somewhat invasive of his privacy. Omi felt out of respect for him, he couldn't possibly take any initiative in calling forth more memories from Aya.

He opted to drop the topic for now and concentrate on her last statement. "Tell you about him now? Ah... I'm not sure what I can tell you that you don't already know. I'm not sure I even know him that well myself. He's very mysterious, but I think we're friends. What I know is... he has a lot of inner strength, and I think everything he does is fueled by how much he cares about you."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

After working together for so long, Aya found it incredible that Omi didn't know more about Ran. His last comment bugged her. It bugged her that anyone would do these kinds of things - and again, she found her eyes traveling to Omi's scars - because of her. Was it her fault then...? Would it have turned out differently if she hadn't existed, or hadn't fallen into a coma?

She nodded a little - though, almost automatically - at Omi's comment, but fell silent, wrapped up in her thoughts.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Completely unaware that he'd said anything upsetting, Omi found the silence somewhat curious, but figured Aya was simply reflecting.

"I'm sorry if it's disappointing I can't tell you more but... I don't know what he was like before. It's hard for me to explain how he might be different with no basis for comparison."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Aya nodded, "Oh, no, I understand." And what about you? she wanted to ask. How did you end up doing this...? How did any of them? She'd run out of things that she could ask and talk about, so she decided to just keep silent.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

And Omi had nothing more to offer either-- certainly nothing about himself.

"...How much is left?"

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

The question startled her, and Aya suddenly realized that she'd been done a while ago and had been spending the past few minutes absentmindedly rubbing Omi's back. She withdrew her hand abruptly. Perhaps it was because she was afraid of this ending and having to go back to her room alone. Or maybe, she'd just been so engrossed in the conversation that she hadn't known what she was doing. Or maybe... she just didn't want to lose the contact.

That last thought made Aya turn a little pink. "I...'m just about done," she stammered the lie, and just to prove that it not a lie, she quickly rubbed a small bit of cream on his shoulder. "Done~" she said, feigning brightness as best as she could.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

The abrupt removal of her hand jarred him, and it left him slightly regretting his asking. He waited for an answer, only more confused when it came in the form of coating an area he was sure she'd already covered.

She must have simply forgotten.

"Thank you," he kindly said, pivoting and scooting away courtesy of the chair's wheels, so that he spun and rested a conversational distance from her.

"I should let this have a couple of minutes to dry. You're welcome to sit on the couch; just fold the seats down. You might want to wash your hands first, though. That cream probably feels greasy."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Aya was glad that Omi was allowing her to stay a little longer. She washed her hands in the small washroom connected to his room and walked out again, finding a spot on the couch. Now that she had the opportunity, she took look a around and took in the room. It was... clean. Not what she'd have expected from a teenage boy. But it's not like Omi was any normal teenage boy.

She tried to find a topic to talk about, and ended up blurting out the first thing that came to mind: "were those men at the grocery store...? One of them said he knew me?"

[pichi.livejournal.com]

The peaceful and more relaxed atmosphere evaporated as soon as Aya mentioned the men at the grocery store. Omi's expression darkened.

"Schwarz. They're part of another group, and evil to the core. They'll kill someone like you for sheer sport. Stay away from them."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

His words didn't register at first. Killing? For sports...? Aya never thought people like that existed. "But... how would they know me?" How on earth did she manage to get involved in this whole mess just by falling into a coma...? "And he said... to ask questions. Did he mean... about... tonight?" Again, she found that she couldn't quite verbalize what she wanted to convey.

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Omi paused and sighed. "It's a long story. He probably encouraged you to ask questions because he wanted to rattle your trust in us. Schwarz have abducted you in the past. I think I mentioned it at the store. They wanted to use your body as a host for a demon-summoning ritual. We don't know what's going on with them, but any association with them can't be good news."

He furrowed his eyebrows and lowered his gaze to the floor. "It worries me that they approached you."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Demon-summoning ritual...? What was this, some really badly-done horror movie?

It worries me that they approached you.

Aya couldn't help but feel a bit elated at that statement. To calm herself down, she told herself that he was only worried because he was friends with Ran, and obviously enemies with these other people. Still... he had been worried.

"This all sounds like some sort of fantasy story..."

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Fantasy. Omi supposed that was a fittingly cute brand of naivety for an innocent like her.

"In any case, it would be best if you avoided them as much as possible. Okay?"

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It wasn't as if she wanted that encounter in the grocery store to occur. Or even that she was looking for all these problems herself... but Aya kept the sarcastic thoughts to herself. Instead, she gave Omi a serious nod. "I will."

It was funny how little information they gave. She could understand the minimal information from Ran before she found out... but even now that she knew, they were still trying to say as little as possible.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi flashed her a warm smile, seemingly reassured by her promise. "Yoshi."

Of course if they were after her, they would come one way or another, but the less willing Aya was to go along with it the better. At least now she understood they were dangerous.

(Rather, at least in Omi's mind she did.)

"Is there anything else that's been confusing or upsetting you? I... I know, it's probably unsettling to be here now, but I'd like you be as at-ease as possible."

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

There was something oddly calming about Omi's smile. Aya liked it, and wished he would smile at her more often. "Everything at this point is rather confusing..." she returned him a smile of her own. "But there's still time to sort that out. Thank you for helping at least untangling some of it for me."

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi wished there was a better way to untangle all of it, but some things truly did have to be kept secret, and other things were too difficult to say. He nodded to her thanks, never losing his smile. "Un. Come see me if you feel lonely again. My schedule is usually busy but I'll give you as much time as I can spare."

He had meant what he'd told her, after all. The last thing he'd wanted was for someone else to fall victim to the chilling isolation of residency at Koneko no Sumu Ie.

Especially a sweet girl like her.

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Aya wanted so desperately to ask if she could just stay on this couch all night. The prospect of having to go back to her room and sleep alone was daunting. But she knew she couldn't keep clinging onto his company.

"Thank you," she said lamely, not wanting to lose Omi's company, but also not wanting to overstay her welcome.

[pichi.livejournal.com]

Omi stood from the chair and pulled his pajama top back on. "I should sleep a little before school. Will you be okay?"

[7bladed.livejournal.com]

Despite herself, Aya nodded and got up. She stopped at the door and looked back into the room. "I'm sorry I kept you up so late, but I'm glad I got to talk to you." This was a nice feeling, and despite the fact that she wasn't looking forward to going back to her room alone, she couldn't help but feel her spirits raised a little. "Goodnight!" Good morning, more like... Aya hadn't realized how late it was getting.