| "Happy"; [Open--people who know Akari encouraged] | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jun 27 2016, 10:09 AM (583 Views) | |
| Miharu Yoshikuni | Jul 25 2016, 05:52 PM Post #21 |
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"Save it, kid," Tsukuru said with a hand raised towards Bart. Akari frowned. "It's alright, Bart," Akari said softly. She managed a small smile. "I guess I was going to be found sooner or later. I wanted it to be later, but I guess sooner had to happen." "Come on, we have to go," Tsukuru said as he started to guide Akari out. "Hey! What's going on over here?" the overweight man who had been playing alongside Akari said as he jogged over. Akari sighed sadly as Tsukuru began explaining the situation. As the scene played, people started to glance as the detective talked and the manager arrived as did several other people. Waiters stopped what they were doing and even bassist currently singing had stopped as well. It was a headache and everything was making Akari's head spin. She almost felt like she was going to go into another panic attack, but she didn't. Rather, she was looking at Bart apologetically. After several conversations and many apologies from Akari, she was going to be escorted to the station in Tsukuru's car. "Now, personally, I'd just leave you here, Mr. Mason, but I can understand if you'd want to come along and act as support for your friend. It's not going to be pleasant, though, I can tell you that much." |
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| Smile Junky | Jul 25 2016, 09:04 PM Post #22 |
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Yes… I’d sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it’d get us a happy ending.
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Well if the good officer wanted Bart to be quiet, he certainly got that. And as Tsukuru raised his hand towards him, Bart also lowered his head to accept whatever punishment the older man saw fit for him to dispense. That was what they did, after all. But nothing came of it as the officer started to lead Akari towards the exit of the cafe. It seemed that he didn't pay any mind to Bart's totally true fact that he wasn't talking to 'Akari' and trying to drag her off. It was 'Euterpe'! A fact that Detective Tsukuru didn't want to pay any mind to. Well, I thought it was a good plan! The other patrons of the cafe seemed like they wanted to know what was going on too, to Bart's relief. Of course they would care about a fellow staff member! And he was sure that Akari would appreciate it too. After all these were the people that she worked side-by-side with for who knew how long, even if it was under an assumed name. Still, while Tsukuru explained the situation to the other patrons, Bart stayed by his friend's side. "You're right, it's all going to be fine" Bart said. He smiled brightly at her as he placed a reassuring hand on Akari's shoulder and nodded. "You know if we wanted, I could take us out of here while Detective Tsukuru is talking to your coworkers" he added with a chuckle. But it seemed that she was insistent on staying and being taken in by the police officer. It was a decision he would stand by, even if he felt like there was a way to end the day without his friend being taken to a police station. But eventually the good Detective explained the situation to everyone, and returned to Akari's side to finally take her away. "Oh but of course, I'll stay by Euterpe's side through this whole thing. She needs a good friend to be with her while we get through this bit of a mistake going on. I'm sure that she'll be back here singing for the crowds in no-time!" In reality, Bart wasn't sure how it was going to work with whatever this man was taking Akari in, but he still had his boundless hope and optimism to get them through! "Not to worry though, I'll be here to make it as pleasant as it needs to be!" He flashed Akari one more bright smile to cap it all off. |
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| Miharu Yoshikuni | Aug 1 2016, 07:10 PM Post #23 |
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You really don't deserve a friend like him, Akari's shadow said scornfully. Look at how he's willing to do anything to make you better. All you care about is your horrible self. Her shadow's voice no longer surprised her. In fact, it mingled very well with her own thoughts at the moment. She merely bobbed her head. The two were escorted outside and into Tsukuru's vehicle. They would drive for a considerable amount of time. Akari kept her mouth shut the entire time. She felt too ashamed to speak. She felt like apologizing would just make her look even more pitiful. Tsukuru looked through the rearview mirror. "I've contacted your parents," he said. "They're going to be at the station as soon as they can." Akari nodded. "By the way," he added. "Your friend Chisato Misaki is coming along as well." Akari's eyes widened in surprise. "What?" Tsukuru nodded even if he knew she couldn't see him do that. "She was with your parents and she asked them if she could come along. So now she is." "I see..." she murmured. She couldn't handle the idea of facing her parents. But facing Chisato after all of this was unfathomable. Unlike her parents who would probably coddle her, she couldn't understand how her best friend would have thought about all of this. She wasn't the kind who would be scared of being angry at someone. Then again, it was about time someone yelled at Akari. Akari sighed. "I'm sorry about all this, Bart," she said again. "I...I don't know what else to say. I forced you to keep a secret about where I was and now I'm dragging you into this mess again. It was the last thing I wanted to do." |
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| Smile Junky | Aug 2 2016, 02:40 PM Post #24 |
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Yes… I’d sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it’d get us a happy ending.
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The two of them left the café and entered Detective Tsukuru’s car, and for the first time in a while, Bart was driven somewhere in the city. He had been in cars before, but for someone who vastly preferred getting somewhere with their own two feet, it was definitely a change. Not necessarily a bad one though! Akari was sitting next to him, after all. But as their trip carried on for a while, Bart’s friend didn’t seem keen to talking all that much. Hrmm, this whole set of events sure seemed to catch her by surprise… I just hope that Akari is going to be fine after all of this blows over. No wait, of course she’ll be fine! She’s still going to have her friends here to cheer her on and keep her company no matter what! I know that I certainly will, for sure! Bart thought as he nodded happily in the back of the car as he sat next to Akari. Whenever she felt well enough to talk to him about any of this, he would be willing to listen. Times like these weren’t the best to try and press for details, after all. But it seemed that the silence in the car was broken as the good detective mentioned that Chisato was going to be present at the station to meet them as well as Akari’s parents. “Oh! Well I’m sure that she’ll be relieved as well!” Bart added, despite not being addressed with that particular response. “Misaki-san will definitely be able to breathe easier knowing that you’re safe, Euterpe!” He was still sticking with her alias if only for the sheer hope alone that it’d be able to ease their situation a tiny bit. Of course everything was going to work out alright, he was going to help to make it so! Tsukuru’s announcement seemed to get Akari into the talking mood though, and Bart soon heard his friend attempt to… apologize to him? “Hmm?” Bart asked as he tilted his head quizzically “I don’t know what you mean. You certainly didn’t force me into anything I wouldn’t have done anyway!” He smiled reassuringly at Akari as he placed a hand on her shoulder. “And you surely didn’t get either of us into any mess at all! The two of us are certainly going to find a way to make this all work out for the best, so you don’t have to worry about it at all!” |
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| Miharu Yoshikuni | Aug 3 2016, 07:34 PM Post #25 |
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Akari managed to smile gratefully at Bart, but that was all she could manage to muster. The car eventually arrived at the police station. Tsukuru escorted the two adolescents through the hallway and into a room with several desks including his own. In front of it were two chairs occupied by none other than Silvia and Hajime while Chisato was standing with her arms crossed. Upon hearing them enter, Silvia frantically turned around. No make-up on, her dark lines under eyes and her blonde hair a frizzy mess, she shot up from the chair and ran towards Akari and wrapped her arms around her. "Akari!" she exclaimed. "We were so worried!" Akari's eyes widened and she stiffened in place as her mother hugged her tightly and clutched her hair. "Where have you been? What on earth happened? What's with your hair and eyes and...who cares!? I'm just glad you're okay..." Akari remained quiet. She didn't react a single bit to this and merely seemed to be keeping her head low. "Young lady, do you have any idea how scared we were?" Hajime said next, but unlike Silvia his tone was full of anger and disappointment. "What were you thinking!? You could have gotten hurt or into an accident or mugged or...I don't even want to think about what else!" Hajime's yelling actually made Akari flinch, but even Hajime couldn't stay mad. He sighed and he quickly held Akari, too. Chisato was merely looking to the side and shifting her weight from one leg to the other alternatively. Silvia and Hajime eventually noticed Bart. "Oh, Bart," she said. "I haven't seen you in ages. I...well, I'm not sure why you're here this late at night with Akari, but were you the one who found her?" "He was with her when I found your daughter," Tsukuru answered for Bart. "Yes, but he had nothing to do with me running away," Akari finally spoke up, her voice seemingly void of emotion. "I...well, I asked him to meet me. That's all. I did everything else alone." "I see..." Hajime said. "I still don't understand most of what's going on. However, what's important now is that you're safe." Akari didn't respond to this. The detective started talking, explaining most of what had happened. Stuff that sort of just droned in Akari's ears while her parents listened and clutched her arms like she could disappear again any moment. Meanwhile, Chisato quietly walked over to Bart's side. Her face showed no real expression of course and her scowl was more or less in the same position it was always in. "I take it you didn't know where she was when she ran away, did you?" she asked him quietly. "Or unlike with me, did she confide in you about this whole thing?" |
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| Smile Junky | Aug 4 2016, 10:23 AM Post #26 |
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Yes… I’d sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it’d get us a happy ending.
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He at least got her to smile. Bart definitely counted that as a victory. It also helped when the two of them resumed the car ride in total silence until finally reaching the police station. If Akari didn’t want to talk, then that was fine, Bart wasn’t going to press her for information of any sort. She could just tell him anything she wanted him to know whenever she felt like it, after all! There were other important things to worry about already than getting the full story about the situation from his friend right this moment. And nothing made that more apparent than when they entered the station and Akari was immediately met by her worried mother! Bart quickly stepped to the side to allow her parents to express their relief at finding their daughter after all this time, and he couldn’t really blame them! Even if Akari’s father seemed a little harsh himself. Still, I’m glad they’re able to be reunited! I can’t imagine how worried her parents must have been after everything had been said and done, but at least now they can rest much, much easier knowing that their daughter is safe! he thought happily as he watched the Asakuras celebrate being united again. In reality, seeing families so happy to see one another always put a smile on Bart’s face when he saw it. That’s what families were supposed to be like, after all! Add on the fact that it was a good friend’s family, and it was the wonderful icing on the cake for sure. Then why oh why can’t we seem to make it work for us, hmm Mason? The harsh voice of his Shadows echoed in Bart’s mind, which he tried to dissuade with a shake of his head before he noticed Akari’s parents had addressed him. “It’s a pleasure meeting you again, Silvia-san, Hajime-san! It really has been too long since we last met, but I understand the wait if you were worried about your daughter. I’m just glad you’re able to see her again!” Bart said, smiling softly at the two adults. Tsukuru already explained the reason he was there, and Akari tried to absolve him of any blame as well, to which Bart simply nodded to confirm. “Believe me; I’m just as glad that my friend is safe as well. I never doubted it for a second, but it’s good that she’s back together with her folks!” Her mother and father went back to paying attention to their daughter, which was understandable, all while Tsukuru explained the situation to them. The situation was quickly moving out of Bart’s jurisdiction, but he was more than happy to stand aside and let the Asakuras try and patch everything up again. What was also nice though, was Chisato sidling up next to him as the good detective carried on his own conversation with Hajime and Silvia. “Ah, Misaki-san! Pleasure to meet you here too!” Bart said brightly as Akari’s long-time friend spoke up. True to herself though, Chisato soon got to the point of the conversation regarding Akari’s disappearance. “Ah, well you see I had only recently found Akari again after her disappearance when she showed up briefly at my party. She told me about the café she had been working at, so after things had calmed down I decided to pay her a visit! I wasn’t expecting this sort of turnout for the end of the day, but I suppose these things have a way of working themselves out, huh?” he chuckled slightly as he put his hands into his pants pockets. “How have you been, by the way? It’s been awhile since we last talked!” |
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| Miharu Yoshikuni | Aug 5 2016, 08:42 AM Post #27 |
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Chisato didn't speak or look at Bart, but she gave a brief nod to show she heard him. "I'm fine," she said. "I'm just glad she's alright. You seem to be doing alright as well, I take it?" Chisato spoke absently. Her eyes were trained on Akari and her parents. There was a lot of talking, and Chisato wanted to be part of it, too, but she couldn't muster to step near the person in front of her. Was this really Akari? For one, she had put an effort to change almost every aspect of her look. Her prim brown bob had been replaced with long, straight pink messy hair. She wore lip gloss and eyeliner and mascara when Chisato had never witnessed Akari put anything even relatively considered make-up. And the dress...the Akari she knew would have never worn such a skin-revealing, spaghetti-strapped ensemble. Granted, how she looked was not the problem. The problem was Akari had run away and Chisato had been none the wiser. She didn't even have a clue as to where Akari could have been and to make matters worse, Akari had chosen to confide in Bart her newest best bud as to where she was over Chisato, who she had known for years. Forget the fact Bart was a blundering idiot that would never tell a word to anyone, Akari should have told her! And the fact that Chisato discovered of Akari's location because Satoru finally snapped and admitted he had been the one helping her hide...Chisato just felt plain hurt. So, no, Chisato could not bring herself to talk to the girl in front of her, no matter how relieved she was that she was safe. She had come here for literally nothing but to get a wake-up call that "hello!" she had mattered so little to Akari or had been someone she could not trust with pulling a stunt like this. Chisato yawned, sounding bored. The grown-ups had finished talking and Silvia was now facing Bart and her. She offered a smile. It was wan, but game. "Bart, Chisato, we're so sorry for having you all the way here this late at night," she said. "We're taking Akari home once we've sorted everything out with the police. Would you care for us to escort you two home?" Akari's eyes widened at the mention of Chisato's name, but she only ducked her head. Chisato meanwhile crossed her arms and glanced sideways. "If that would be alright, Aunt Silvia," Chisato said. "Father planned to pick me up, but I don't want to tear him away from work." Hajime scratched his head. "Ah, right, he's still back at the mansion handling a few things. Don't worry we can take you home." Hajime beamed at Bart. "How about you, Bart-o? Care for a lift? It's the least we can do after all this trouble." |
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| Smile Junky | Aug 5 2016, 12:35 PM Post #28 |
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Yes… I’d sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it’d get us a happy ending.
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“Well that’s good! I’m glad to hear that you’ve been well since we last met, Misaki-san! Believe me, I’m also glad that Akari’s been able to meet up with her parents again. I’m sure they’ll both be very relieved.” Bart nodded confidently as he once more looked at the group of parents and child coming to terms with their situation. “Oh, but I’ve been good as well! Can’t really complain about anything, actually! We did miss you at the party however. I bet you would have had a blast mingling around with all of our school friends and everything!” His cheery and bright demeanor once more contrasted with Chisato’s more stoic self, but he didn’t let that deter him any. What did affect him a bit more though was the sight of Akari’s parents hugging onto her and their concern of her wellbeing after she had been missing. It was a wonderful sight, a natural one at that! Of course parents would be concerned about a missing child. Especially with the history that the Asakuras had, they’d most definitely try not to lose another child. But the more Bart happily watched a family reunited again, the more it slowly dawned on him that he’d never experienced anything like that. He’d been lost plenty of times, of course. But each return back to his family with the help of the police or a concerned villager usually just ended up with him back in his room, closet or cupboard. But that wasn’t anything worth worrying about… right? His family had to have been happy to see him back again too! They just… showed it in different ways, that was it! Really it was just my fault for getting lost in the woods or city and whatnot. I definitely should have been paying more attention to my surroundings. he thought with another sage nod. Soon, the Asakuras finished talking to Detective Tsukuru and turned back towards the two younger people. “Oh there’s no need to worry, I don’t mind being out this late at all! It’s really all worth it just to make sure that you’re all going to be fine being reunited and all!” Bart said with a bright smile. Akari still looked a little down from how Bart saw her, but she had been having a very stressful day as of late, there was no denying that. He was sure that she’d be back to her happy self in no time at all! “It’s really no issue at all, but I suppose that I can’t turn down a ride if it was offered, right?” he added happily. “I’d be more than happy to join you.” |
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| Miharu Yoshikuni | Aug 6 2016, 06:28 PM Post #29 |
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"I'm sure people wouldn't have missed me that much during your party," Chisato said dryly. "Regardless, I'm glad you all had fun." Of course, Chisato didn't care about a stupid party. The few parties she'd been to were headaches and the concept of typical teenage parties were headaches in themselves as well. The ride home was a quiet one. No one really did any talking in the back of the seat. The little chatter they heard was from Silvia and Hajime in the front of the car with a body guard. Chisato and Akari were silent in their seats. Neither felt like speaking to each other (or they feared doing so). "We're almost at your place, Barty," Hajime called out to the young man at the back. Akari smiled sadly. "Looks like I'll be seeing you at school, I guess," Akari remarked to Bart. "Thanks again for everything today. It was nice to see you. But now we'll get to see each other often again, eh? What class are you in now, by the way?" Chisato let out a sharp exhale and turned away from the conversation. She definitely didn't seem happy. |
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| Smile Junky | Aug 7 2016, 05:47 PM Post #30 |
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Yes… I’d sell the souls of all humanity to the devil if I thought it’d get us a happy ending.
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"Oh come now, everyone likes to see a friend having a good time!" Bart said happily. "Still, I appreciate you being glad we had a fun time! Y'know, Akemi-chan and I are planning on having a little get together picnic near one of the shrines one day, maybe you could come to that!" His smile grew wide as he extended his invitation to Chisato, unaware that being at a party was pretty much the furthest thing in her mind at the moment. He just wanted to see his friends having a good time was all! His invitation was won forgotten as the small group then poured into the Asakura's car, however. And it was a very quiet ride indeed! Clearly the science of contentment of a family being reunited and ready to resume their lives, of course. But Bart still found it a bid odd that none of them wanted to talk about Akari's return to them, even if her parents seemed to be fine talking about whatever it was. Hrmm... Well, if they don't wish to talk about anything, I wouldn't want to upset them! It's perfectly fine to have a good quiet car ride sometimes, after all! Bart thought happily to himself as he watched the street lights pass them by. The silence was broken however when Hajime called out to inform the young Brit that his destination was coming up. "Ah, thank you Hajime-san! I really do appreciate the car ride!" He nodded at Akari's father and then turned his attention to Akari herself as she finally broke her silence. "Yeah! I look forward to running into you back during school too! And really, you're welcome, Akari! Just don't think that you've ruined my day or anything of the sort, I still managed to have a good time!" he told her reassuringly. Once she brought up the question about his room assignment, Bart scratched his chin as he tried to recall. "Hmm, let's see... I believe I'm headed for class 3-5! It's really fantastic odds that I'm going to have the same homeroom as Akemi, actually!" |
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