Flip The Script

Toshi hurried to the bathroom.

 

 

 

 

 

Toshi had put it off as long as he could, but he had to go at some point. He tried not to make it obvious, but he ensured Meiko watched over Ruri while he was gone, even if it was for a few minutes. Just as he was finishing up and coming out of the stall, Kenko showed up, "Hey, Toshi? You okay?"

 

Toshi blinked as he came face to face with his friend. Toshi's impulse was to bolt around him, but for the moment, he didn't have that itching feeling of impending fate, so instead, he tried to keep it cool. His only response to the question was a head nod as he turned to wash his hands.

 

Kenko frowned, "Is something going on between you and Ruri?"

 

Toshi stopped. He peered in the mirror, trying to determine what brought that on. He glanced over his shoulder at Kenko, "Between? No." He turned away to reach for the paper towels when Kenko got in the way.

 

"Toshi? You are the worst liar. Now spill it. You're skittish. Well.... more skittish than usual." Kenko's expression was resolute in expecting an answer.

 

~Well, crap. I'm not getting out of here without some sort of confession am I?~ Toshi glanced at the door, then turned back to Kenko, "It's..." Toshi weighed the different ways he could spin this, then settled on a version of the truth, "It's complicated."

 

Kenko folded his arms and just stared at Toshi with a raised eyebrow, "So explain."

 

Toshi closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then glanced away as he spoke, "I asked Ruri out and she shot me down. Hard. We're still friends, but it's changed a few things. I thought everything would work itself out, then..." He looked up at Kenko, "The anniversary of her dad's death was today."

 

Kenko frowned, "Oh?" he relaxed his stance and unfolded his arms.

 

"Yeah." Toshi nodded slowly, "She said some things that... terrified. Like... I'm expecting her to be dead before the end of the night." He jogged his chin towards the door, "She said she wouldn't do anything, but she's in a bad place and everything today keeps raising a death flag." He took a step towards the door, "Sorry if I'm less than fun, but just being in here for this long is scaring the crap out of me."

 

"I... okay. I get it." He paused and squinted in thought as he started for the exit, "Hold it. You asked her out and she turned YOU down?"

 

With a rueful smirk, Toshi nodded, "She's smart. I'm high maintenance. Unlike every other girl in this school, she knows what a mess I am. She's got my back, but she's not stupid enough to want to marry me."

 

Kenko raised his eyebrows, "Seriously? You're-"

 

Toshi cut him off, "High maintenance with BRAIN DAMAGE. I got great looks and that's it. Otherwise, I'm a project and a half."

 

"Yeah, but..." He opened the door to leave, "Well, I suppose it's for the best. You should marry someone with a good family who's rich."

 

Toshi, feeling defensive for his friend, snorted, "Ruri comes from a good family AND she's rich." He pushed past Kenko to head down the hallway to rejoin the group.

 

"HOLD IT." Kenko grabbed him from behind and spun him around, "What did you say?"

 

Toshi winced, "Uhh... damn it. Look, can you forget I said that? She's trying to keep that quiet."

 

"How... much?"

 

Toshi glanced towards the party, then back toward Kenko, "You repeat this to anyone, I'll personally kill you. Swear?" Kenko nodded, so with a sigh, Toshi said, "About... two hundred..." He let his voice trail off.

 

"Two hundred? What... thousand?"

 

Toshi shook his head.

 

Kenko's eyes bugged out, "MILLION?"

 

Toshi stepped closer to put his hand over Kenko's mouth and push him back into the shadows, "Keep Your Voice Down!" Toshi looked around paranoid, then lowered his hand, "Yes. Last I checked. It's her money, not her parents. So SHE is rich, but regardless I don't think that's any way to judge her family."

 

Kenko made a dismissive hand gesture, "I'm not talking about her family being BAD. I'm talking about prestige. My family is a bunch of nobodies. Most families are nobodies, Toshi. I'm talking about a family with clout." He scratched his chin, "But... Ruri's loaded? She doesn't dress like it."

 

"She's trying to keep it real. She's saving up for college and she's very smart. She doesn't waste the money on crap she doesn't need." Toshi pointed a finger at Kenko's face, "Are you going to keep your mouth shut?"

 

Kenko held up his hands in a gesture of surrender, "Of course! A promise is a promise. I just wanted to know why you seem glued to her, that's all." He paused then gently and slowly gave Toshi a pat on the shoulder, "You're a good friend. I just... was worried you were being taken advantage of or something."

 

Toshi shrugged and gave Kenko a pat on the shoulder in return as he let out a bark of laughter, "Ruri? Me? No. If anything, I'm taking advantage of her. I need her far more than she needs me. I think..." he sighed, "Honestly? Sometimes I feel like I don't deserve her. She's stood by me and watched out for me more than anyone. I'd take a bullet for her."

 

Kenko laughed, "Well, let's not do THAT again, shall we? I don't want you making a habit of catching bullets for people." He smiled then jogged his head down the hallway, "Let's get back."

 

Abruptly Toshi hugged Kenko, then just as quickly let go and turned to walk away. Kenko was so surprised that he just stood there in shock, staring in slack-jawed surprise at the back of Toshi's retreating head.

 

It wasn't until Toshi reached the end of the hallway and was halfway back to the table that it occurred to him just what he had done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

~Why the Hell did I do THAT?~

 

 

---

 

 

Far above the partygoers was an office.

 

 

 

This office was normally occupied by the manager. There was a one-way mirrored window that looked out onto the floor. He'd sit up here and watch just to make sure things stayed under control. The reason was that sometimes people got drinking and where there was alcohol and people gathered, trouble would erupt.

 

The manager wasn't in his office.

 

Instead, it was currently occupied by Toshi's Uncle.

 

He steepled his fingers as he watched the group of kids, tapping his fingertips against one another in annoyance, "When are they going to start singing?"

 

Sebas stood nearby, "Soon, I imagine. I have a splitter set up to convey everything from their speakers up to this room. I am sorry about the acoustics, but it is-"

 

Oh Ichiro waved dismissively, "I can compensate. Just make sure the kill switch is working so I can turn it off when the others start singing. I want to suffer as little as possible. I already can hear too much from the floor already." He paused, "And then I want you to find the manager. Have him offer some sort of... contest. Something. Offer cash, not too much, but enough that a kid wouldn't turn it down." He waved his hand in the air, "Make the condition whatever it takes to get Toshi to sing. I don't care what excuse he comes up with, just make sure Toshi sings."

 

Sebas nodded, "And if for whatever reason he can't get Toshi to participate?"

 

He turned to look at Sebas, "Tell the manager if that happens, I will burn his business to the ground with him tied up in the basement... or something like that." He turned back to the window to watch Toshi returning from the bathroom, "Don't worry about how much it costs for the 'Contest', whatever the price I'll reimburse him double."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sebas bowed from the waist, then turned to leave.