Chapter 52: The Final Whistle
Wonder Mart
Saturday,
It’s another cold morning,
but it doesn’t stop Jeff and I from sitting at ‘The Island’ to have our
‘lunches’ – odd since it’s still early in the day. However, I sign off at one
today, that way I can get ready to watch Duo’s game tonight. He says his mom
and even Saito will show up to support him. Since it’s going to be his last
game as a high school student, one can hardly blame them for wishing to capture
the memory.
“Episode 11,” Jeff’s saying,
while rearranging several slices of an apple on his Styrofoam plate. “Think
fast, Yuy. What was the name of the mobile suit shot down by the Zen Forces?”
“Dark Spectre,” I reply on
autopilot. An easy question really – the DS was only the most short-lived
mobile suit in the history of Gundam
Forever. What a waste of a perfectly fine meccha. I don’t think I’ll ever
get over the loss. I chew on my sandwich, wondering how much longer Jeff and I
can enjoy our moments out here like this. I plan to quit working once I
graduate. Thoughts of our worldwide trip or adventure (according to Duo) is an
exciting and yet slightly scary feeling. To think that we can go anywhere we
want, with no supervision, no one to tell us what to do…
“Did I mention that there’s
going to be another convention in a few months, Yuy?”
“Oh?” I smile, remembering
the last time I went there and the fiasco albeit exhausting and exhilarating
experience it had been. “When exactly?”
“In July,” Jeff replies and
looks up with a small grin. “The anime group I belong to, we’re starting our
own line of doujinshi – hentai stuff.”
I choke on my sandwich and
cover it up quickly by grabbing my bottle of water to down it as fast as I can.
“…said he wanted to do
tentacle and I said, hell no!”
Tentacles? I
blink and try to imagine aliens with long squiggly…tentacles penetrating every
orifice of a human body. I shudder in mild revulsion but my suffering isn’t
over yet.
“Yaoi seems to be selling a
lot too, so Amy will be making some for our booth. I told her I knew a gay
couple and she wants to meet you and that boyfriend of yours.” Jeff looks at me
again, a brow raised. “You don’t mind, do you?”
Of course I mind! I don’t
want some girl interviewing me for her manga fetish! And besides –
“I’ve got finals,” I mutter,
but Jeff’s laughter silences me and I feel my cheeks grow hot. Damn him.
“She’s not going to take up
your whole day. Just you know…ask a couple of things. I dunno.”
“Just as long as she doesn’t
ask us to make out for her so she can get pointers.”
Jeff makes a face and smirks.
“Now I wouldn’t mind seeing that part too. Although I can tell you that most
guys in the club don’t get the fascination.”
I snicker and polish off the
rest of my meal, rub my hands together and blow some warm air on my cold hands.
“Well, look at it this way, most guys like seeing two girls banging each other,
right?”
Jeff nods with thumbs up,
eyes alight with possible images of naked women in the act dancing within his
mind. I really don’t want to know.
“So, it’s an attractive
prospect…it gets you all hot and bothered. It’s the same for girls. It’s their
fantasy crap. Two hot, pretty guys making out is…a release or something.”
Jeff pauses and sits back, a
contemplative look on his face. “You mean they jack off to that stuff?”
Oh God. My
work is done here. “Since I’m not a girl, you’re asking the wrong person. Come
on, slowpoke.” I nudge him gently. “Break’s over.”
“What’s your answer about the
convention?” he asks, rising to his feet to toss his unfinished meal into the
garbage can. “Think you can make it?”
I shake my head as we walk
into the warm building, the familiar noise of shuffling feet, mumbled voices,
Brenda or Carly yelling on the mike for a price check on some product, of
babies crying, children running around, parents threatening to ground their
offspring…ah, the joys of Wonder Mart.
“Don’t think so,” I finally
reply with a small smile. “By then I’ll be long gone.”
Jeff raises a brow and I
explain. “I’m traveling, leaving the city and all that.”
“Sweet. Where to?”
I wave my hands about. “All
over.”
My companion blinks. “All
over…the country?”
I grin. “The world.”
“Shut up! Dude, that’s
awesome! What? You win the lottery or something? Man, I’d kill to be able to
travel all over the world and do some weird shit. Maybe I could even go to
Japan one of these days. You’re from there, right?”
I try not to stare at him for
too long, wondering if he’s lost his mind. Has he already forgotten that I am Japanese, although on further
inspection, Jeff’s still yapping and has already forgotten his question. I figure
it’s rhetorical anyway.
“Hey, wanna watch a game
tonight?” I finally manage to chime in once he stops talking about all the cool
things he could do in Akihabara or Harajuku or –
“Game? What game?”
“Basketball.” I drag the
ladder towards the food aisle where my job is off load the boxes of fresh fruit
on the topmost shelves and refill the emptying baskets on display. “Duo’s
playing his final game. I’ve got an extra ticket if you want.”
Jeff toys with his price gun
for a minute or two. “I guess. Never actually seen a live game before, but you
should check out the video game version of Basketball ’07..”
And before I can stop him, he
launches into tales of how many hours he stayed up just to finish one level.
It’s moments like these that I wish it wasn’t a Wufei off-day. He would have
rescued me from Jeff’s incessant talking with just one look. But what the hell,
I’m going to enjoy my final months with Jeff. It just might be a long time before I see him
again.
__
The Bus Stop
“Where the hell are you?!”
“Bus stop,” I pant
breathlessly, having run here in hopes of catching the next bus - but I missed it by a hair. If Duo finds
out, he’ll have my head.
“You missed the fucking bus,
didn’t you?”
So much for him not knowing.
“Sorry, okay. I just thought
I’d take a little nap and then…”
His groan says it all and I
kick myself inwardly. He’s been in school since eight this morning, and had
hoped I’d be there in time before the game began.
“What’s it looking like?”
He mumbles something and I
can hear him pushing a door open. The faint but gradually increasing sound of
bass, drums, trumpets and cheers from the cheerleaders and student body alike
makes me feel lonely. As if I’m missing some grand party and I haven’t been
invited.
“Chaos,” Duo replies,
shutting the door and going back to his room of solace.
“Where are you?”
“In the janitor’s closet.”
I blink and try not to laugh.
“Seriously?”
“I’m a nervous wreck, Heero!
I don’t get it. I’m not usually this jittery before a game.”
“Just take deep breaths.”
“Yeah, yeah, Doctor Love.”
I smile, hopping from one
foot to another. It’s still cold and I’m the only one standing out here where
evening has already fallen fast. I lean against the stop sign and caress it
gently, never forgetting that this was the place we first met.
“My mom’s here…and Saito. You
should have seen the photographers going crazy.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah! My mom’s a celebrity
now. She’s marrying the Minister of Education after all. This is her son’s
final game, blah, blah, blah and everyone wants a piece of me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, we’ve been doing
press conferences and interviews half of the time.”
“And the fact that you’re
playing ‘The Morimoto’ high school basketball team.” I whistle. “Those guys are
monsters.”
“Thanks, Heero. I knew I
could always trust you to ease my fears and calm my nerves at a time like this.
That’s why I love you so very much.”
I laugh, ignoring the insult
he hurls at me in the process, but I can hear the faint amusement in his tone
and I’m glad he’s easing up a little. When Duo gets too tight during a game, he
can make costly errors, and those have lost the team games in the past. This is
one night he doesn’t want to fuck up.
“You’ll be fine,” I finally
say quietly. A couple approaches, hands around each other’s waist as they try
to keep warm. They nod toward me and sit on the bench, whispering to each other
and giggling over something so hilariously funny.
“I hope so,” he murmurs and
sighs. “I think I hear the coach bellowing for me. We need to have one more
practice session slash meeting before we go out there. Think you’ll be able to
make it before six?”
“I should.” I eye the nearly
quiet street. No sign of the bus coming, but there is a taxi and I should have
enough change to pay for it. With desperation, I begin to wave frantically,
hoping it wouldn’t be full and I can hitch a ride.
“Yeah, I’ll be there,” I say
with a grin. My prayers have been answered. “I…eh…I love you,” I say quickly,
still unable to stop myself from blushing whenever I say that.
Hopefully, he’s blushing too
as he replies in a husky voice. “Just get here quickly.”
__
Are you fucking kidding me?!
“What do you mean you don’t
know where Fujisaki is?! What have you been doing all this time?!”
“I sorry!” the man blurts out,
his pencil mustache quivering, now pissed off too although I’m not sure why. He’s the one who’s been taking us in
circles. It’s my fault for not paying much attention. I had taken my Chemistry
notebook with me to study and was too focused on that. Luckily I looked up
about five minutes ago to realize we were no where near the school. What part
of the city were we in?!
“I new to thees job!” he
keeps babbling. “I no no any
place too well. You help me!”
“Fucking…! Argh!” I pound the
back of the seat angrily and jump out of the car. I tap his window in
frustration. “Don’t you dare move. I’ll be right back as soon as I find out
where we are, got it?!”
He nods, holding up his hands
as if I’m about to attack him. He should be afraid. I’m so furious, I can’t
think straight. I walk briskly towards the shop across the street and realize
it’s a tattoo parlor. It doesn’t escape me that I’m in a rather seedy
neighborhood, where trash lines the streets and the air is thick with the smell
of week old trash and greasy oil. I hear sirens in the distance and as I push
open the door (which elicits a low chime), the city smell is replaced with that
of booze, heavy ink and antiseptic. The dimmed lights bathe the room in a red
glow, the walls lined with every imaginable artwork possible. There are also
photographs of popular customers and gratuitous shots of naked women – some
with legs splayed wide open. Apparently, you can be pierced here too. But wow,
women being pierced down…there? Jesus
fucking Christ!
“Can I help you?” comes the
raspy voice as a man pushes open the black curtains leading to the backroom.
He’s wiping his hands on a white towel already stained with ink. His dark
glasses hide his eyes, his white hair (at least what’s left of it), on either
side of his head, flank a rather intimidating tattoo of a skull and bones on
his bald scalp. His exposed but skinny arms are also covered with fantastic
body art. The left has what looks like a dragon and a snake intertwined. The
right has a mermaid, two women making out and a bleeding heart. I wonder what’s
hidden beneath the Hawaiian print shirt he’s wearing.
He does look familiar though.
“We are having a special,” he
says, leaning on the counter to point at a folder of tattoo designs. He gives
me a long hard stare. “You look like a Stormcloud Phoenix.”
“What?” I blink in confusion.
Maybe it’s the smoke-filled air or the antiseptics, but my head is beginning to
feel woozy.
He points to a picture of a
stunning looking phoenix in flight. I imagine the design draped all over my
back and think of Duo getting the same thing but –
“Look, I didn’t come here for
a tattoo. I already have one…”
“Do you now?” He smirks.
“Let’s see it.”
“Like hell,” I growl.
“Listen, I need to know where I am and how I can get back to Fujisaki…urgh!
What the fuck..?!”
“Stay still!” the man
commands, his hand still holding my chin tightly as he pulls me closer to stare
into my eyes. With his other hand, he lifts the glasses to his forehead and I
stare into steely gray depths, feeling a chill sear through my spine.
He’s going to kill me! my mind screams in protest. He’s going to…!
“Hm. Tattoo of initials DM
and HY on your lower left hip. The other one got extra words written on his.”
Now, I’m really stunned. How
does he…? And then it hits me. “It’s you,” I manage to gasp. “At the Stoner’s
concert.”
He releases me with a
satisfied smirk. “I know all my customers. I never forget a face.”
“Wow.” I rub my sore chin,
hoping there won’t be a bruise there in the morning. I don’t think the man
knows his own strength. “That’s impressive but, I need to get to a game in…” I
glance at my watch and the panic button hits a high note. “Shit! It’s already
started!”
I run out of the shop and as
a part of me predicted, the lousy taxi-driver has already left, leaving me
stranded in the middle of nowhere. My cell phone rings and I pick it up in
frustration. It’s Wufei.
“Where are you?”
“I don’t know where the fuck
I am,” I all but scream, kicking at a lamppost as the tattoo artist strolls out
with a pipe stuck in his mouth.
“Grady South,” he volunteers
with a light shrug.
I nod to him in appreciation.
“Grady South. I’m stuck. I don’t have a ride. The stupid fucking taxi driver
left me here and -”
“Whoa, slow down,” Wufei says
as he talks to someone who asks him something in the background.
“Wait…Relena…!”
“Heero? Where the hell are
you?! The game’s starting!”
I hold the phone away from my
ear at her screech. I can hear the whistles and announcements being made about
the game about to begin. Fuck. Fuck! Fuck!!
“Grady South!” I yell back.
“Do you know where that is?”
More talking in the
background and then Trowa comes on the line. “Grady South? What are you doing
down there?”
“Oh, just taking a stroll,” I
reply with as much sarcasm as I can muster. “Is there anyone that can pick me
up?!”
“Let me ask Quatre if he
knows the way.” More mumbling in the background as I stoop to my haunches and
try to even my breathing. I can imagine Duo staring at the bleachers, trying to
find me while I’m stuck in the middle of –
“No, sorry,” Trowa says with
concern in his voice. “We don’t know where that is and we don’t want to risk
getting lost. There should be a bus stop around there somewhere, right?”
“I thought his car had some
GPS Navigator bullshit?!” I ask in frustration.
More mumbling and then Quatre
comes on! Does this circus never end?! “Sorry, Heero,” he’s saying, but I
notice tattoo artist guy motioning for me to hang up. “I didn’t take the car
with the navigator…”
“I’ll call you back in a
bit,” I interrupt.
“Heero what…?”
But I cut him off as I get to
my feet and turn to the man.
“You need a ride?” he asks.
“Yes, sir.” Funny how I
resort to being polite when I need help.
He nods and sticks his head
into the shop. “Hey, Tommy! Be right back! Gotta make a quick delivery!”
A muffled voice is overhead
from the back room. “Sure thing, Howie!”
Howie?
“Howard’s the name,” he says
with a smirk as he begins to lead me towards the back of the shop where a brand
new convertible awaits us. Its sides have been streaked with red and yellow
flames and the hood? What else? A wicked looking picture of a skull and bones.
In the words of Jeff…sweet! “And you
are?”
“Heero,” I say in an awe-struck
voice, settling into new leather seats within an interior that looks like
something out of a gang member’s catalogue. “Heero Yuy.”
“Well, Heero my boy, you
better buckle up now. It’s going to be one helluva ride.”
His laughter is loud and
infectious and as I do as I’m told, I brace myself for the trip of my life.
__
He wasn’t kidding.
I have never driven in
anything so fast in my life! It’s a miracle we weren’t stopped by the cops.
“Thank you,” I say as I step
out of the car of slightly shaky legs. “You’re a lifesaver.”
“Pleasure’s all mine, Heero.
Now, where do I park? Might catch me a bit of the game.” He winks and I can’t
help laughing.
“Sure, that’s no problem. I
can get you in. Just…” I glance at the filled parking lot. No room anywhere.
“Parking? Not to worry,”
Howard says with a smirk. “Give me five minutes and I’ll meet you back here.”
“Ah…” But before I can
finish, he’s already driven off to goodness knows where. I hear running
footsteps behind me and turn, all to be nearly pushed to the ground by Relena’s
exuberant hug.
“We thought you wouldn’t make
it! Who brought you here?” she asks, looking behind me.
I try to reply, but Wufei’s
already motioning for me to come in. “You’re lucky they spent the first fifteen
minutes, introducing the players and all that pre-game bullshit. Hurry up
already!”
“No.”
“No?” They all look at me as
if I’ve lost my mind. “There’s someone you have to meet. The guy who brought me
here.”
As if on cue, Howard comes
shuffling towards us, pipe still stuck in his mouth and a smile on his
weathered face. “Well now, if this isn’t a nice group of friends you have
here.”
I grin and make the
introductions, watching my friends’ faces as they shake hands and eye the
eccentric-looking character. An awkward silence descends once I’m through, but
a sudden cheer from the gym area jerks us out of our daze.
“Let’s go! It’s started! ”
Quatre cries out. With whoops of excitement, we all run to towards the thunderous
building, while Hilde does her best to lead Howard (who has absolutely no
intention of running. Who did we think he was? A kid?!) along with us.
With a feeling of incredible
relief and joy, I make our way to waiting seats (Dorothy was nice enough to
keep them for us) and I get a clear view of Duo on the court. I’ve watched him
play several times in the past, but there’s still something so amazing about
seeing him move so effortlessly from one end of the court to the other. The
familiar sight of that long braid whipping back and forth as he runs with those
lean but powerful legs, his jersey already sticking to his back as sweat from
his exertions coat his skin, brings a smile to my face. Memories of when we had
made out after one particular practice session floods my mind, but this is no
time to think of that.
I can see Eleanor and Saito
in the V.I.P section; where Eleanor is on her feet, waving a banner and
shouting ‘DEFENCE!’ at the top of her voice. Saito seems more engaged with a
conversation with Principal Kentaro – the brownnoser. No doubt sucking up to
Saito in the hopes of getting more school funds. Jeff did make it after all,
and with his girlfriend, they are both
waving and stomping their feet like the rest of the students. Kamui and his
freshman class are all in the spirit of the game as our school leads by two
points. For the Morimoto side, I can see Keichiro and his school’s cheering
squad, trying to be as loud as our cheering section. It must be tough being a
visiting team at a time like this, but we still manage to exchange nods of
respect across the gym. He’s a cool guy after all – although intimidating in
person.
Unfortunately, my gaze drifts
to Akira, who has just been given the ball from Duo. The cheerleaders and
female body seem to go even more crazy as he leaps and shoots, scoring a three
pointer from half the court. His teammates high-five him and my stomach
clenches as he and Duo do the same – a shared smile between them.
But I force myself to enjoy
the game and to ignore the fact that Akira is in there. This is about Duo and
his final moments in the sun. His time to shine and boy, is he ever! I do my
best to cheer as loud as I can, groaning in misery at a bad play or when the
other team scores, or whooping in excitement at a fantastic play. Maybe Akira
realizes that he shouldn’t be taking the spotlight and I notice that he keeps
passing to Duo whenever he can.
It’s a nail biter, and the
game-winning shot is scored in the final seconds to Fujisaki’s delirious
delight. It’s the captain of the team, Jason, that ends up getting the glory, for as soon as
the buzzer goes off, he’s hoisted up the shoulders of his teammates just as the
rest of the school decides it’s time to run onto the court. In the midst of
chaos (I swear it’s so loud that I can barely hear myself), someone taps my
shoulder. I spin around, only to be caught in a kiss hard and hot enough to
probably melt steel. I smile into it, wrapping my arms around his neck as Duo’s
familiar scent of sweat and male heat envelopes me like a cocoon. We ignore the
catcalls and whistles eventually pulling, reluctantly, apart to smile
sheepishly at one another.
“Great game,” I mumble
against his swollen lips. “You should hear the story of my evening.”
“I can’t wait,” he says with
a snicker, just as he tugs on someone to join us. “Hey, Akira! Great game!”
“Thanks, senpai,” he gushes,
blushing and grinning as he looks at us. “Heero senpai…”
Damn.
“Good game,” I interrupt with
a small smile. “I think you’ll make a great captain. Keep it up.” His jaw drops
and I turn away, ignoring Duo’s laughter as we make our way to a waiting
Eleanor.
“I think the boy just peed on
himself. He really does look up to you,” Duo says before being engulfed in his
mother’s hug. I hope he can breathe against that well-endowed bosom, but I do
sneak a peek behind me to see Akira still in a daze of sorts even as his throng
of friends gather around him. Our eyes meet again and I sigh inwardly.
At least I can thank my lucky
stars he’s not as crazy as Kamui had once been.
~End Period Fifty-Two~