"Yea, I already called the news channels and told them what you told me to...gave them the address and everything and then got rid of the phone too. I'll be waiting in the garage...No, won't take long at all. Probably be there in about five minutes.......I know. I'm not stupid. You just deal with your shit because my stuff is taken care of," Haku growled through the phone. He didn't bother to wait for a reply and instead pressed the end button before the person on the other end could say anything else and piss him off even more.
"Who was that? Where are you taking me? You'll let Kuroo go, right? Please don't hurt him anymore...He won't tell a soul anything! I promise he won't," an annoying voice from the passenger seat immediately filled his ears after he put the phone down. This bitch.
"You're not in any position to make pleas. If you keep buggin' the shit out of me, lil ole Tetsu's not gonna like what he ends up getting," he snarled, tired of the constant bullshit the woman in the passenger seat had brought into his life. Nori Sawamura had managed to singlehandedly turn his peace into a living nightmare after she had tricked Yue into going against him.
From when he first laid eyes on Yue, Haku had known she was the one. She was beautiful, and every man who saw her wanted her. It came at no surprise that she had chosen to be with Haku out of all her suiters...He was the best, after all. When they first got married, things were perfect. Yue was a good, obedient wife in every way, but slowly....she began to change. Looking back, maybe it had been a cry for attention because he had been spending more time out of the house than in, but she couldn't hold that against him. Being stuck at home all day was not something he enjoyed doing. It was boring, and yes, it was true she wasn't a fan of when he met other women at the bars and clubs he often visited, but at the end of the day, he came home to her. What more could she ask of him? He provided money, a roof over her head, and protection from the lewd dangers of the world. She had a secure and stable environment, the least she could do was make sure the house was clean, dinner was ready, and simply listen to him. She always had a sheltered life so she didn't know how the world worked. Even with how good she had it, it hadn't stopped her from acting out against him.
When she would make him angry, he often blacked out with frustration. Even so, he always came home the next day with flowers or her favorite chocolates. He didn't have to do any of that. It had always been her fault to begin with, but he still did those things because he loved her. Even so, her acts of rebellion began to grow more and more bold by the day. He had caught her trying to call her old friends on more than one occasion which had brought police officers to their door twice. Luckily, she had regained her senses and told the officers nothing was wrong. This had prompted him to immediately cut the internet and the land line to their house. He even took the iPad he had bought for her birthday away from her. He hadn't wanted to do any of those things, but she had shown him that she was vulnerable to being easily manipulated by outsiders who didn't even have any idea of what their relationship was like. They had no idea how much Haku loved her. They only focused on the bad things and tried to convince her of that. They were just jealous because they couldn't have what he and Yue had. However, when Yue became pregnant, that's when she really changed.
--
"I can...do this...No need...to take me to the door," Haku slurred to the man who was helping him walk to the front door of his house, his arm pulled around the man's shoulders as he carried Haku's weight.
"I got you, man. You overdid it again. If I leave you, you'll probably fall asleep in your front yard, and that'll just be more trouble for your wife," the man chuckled as he knocked on the door.
After a few moments, the door opened to reveal a startled Yue dressed in her pajamas as she took in the scene in front of her.
"Hello, Mrs. Hoshi! I'm so sorry to be meeting you for the first time like this, but this guy right here had just a little bit too much tonight so I had to see him home."
"Oh, no...no problem. Tha-thank you," Haku narrowed his eyes as he heard Yue stutter.
"Haku! I didn't know you were having a baby! Congratulations!"
Haku turned to face his coworker and saw how his eyes fell on Yue's very visible baby bump.
"Thanks for the ride. I'll see you tomorrow," he mumbled as he stumbled into his house and slammed the door shut behind him. Yue immediately came to support him as she began to guide him to go upstairs to their bedroom.
"Did you like talking to him?"
"Huh?" she turned to him with a confused expression on her face. The look she was giving him was innocent, but he could read past all of that. Who was she trying to fool?
"You were so nervous talking to him that you stuttered. Don't think for a second that I didn't catch that," he scowled as he began to sloppily bring one foot in front of the other as they began to ascend the stairs.
"I was just surprised. I didn't know you were going out drinking, so I didn't expect you to be in this state," she mumbled.
"I can do whatever the hell I want. I work all day for us. This is my only way of blowing off steam! I don't have to tell you everything that I do!"
Yue stayed quiet, concentrating her focus on keeping him steady while he used the railing to support his weight as he climbed the steps in front of him.
"And why the hell did you answer the door dressed like this! He was ogling at you! Were you trying to show off or something?" he angrily stated as the image of his coworker's eyes gazing down on his wife's stomach flashed through his mind. His face was beginning to feel hot. Yue knew she was beautiful. She always tried to get attention from other men.
"How was I showing off? I'm just wearing long sleeves and pants, and I'm pregnant with your child," she had whispered under her breath.
--
All Haku remembered after that was anger coursing through his body and him turning around on the steps. He heard a scream and crying, but then he was waking up the next day in his bed, head feeling like it could split open from the hangover he had. Apparently, he had pushed Yue down the stairs, and she had run off and found Nori somewhere before landing herself in the hospital. That's where all his troubles began. This woman, Nori, watched over Yue like a hawk. If Haku had been given the chance to just see Yue, he knew things would have been fine between them, but Nori made sure that didn't happen. She had pushed Yue to divorce him and to charge him for hurting her which was ridiculous because he only did the things he did to properly teach her. Certain things were expected from her as his wife, and he had been simply training her. If she didn't mess up, he wouldn't have to get angry. It was as simple as that.
Nori was the reason he lost Yue. She was the reason he went to jail. And she was also the reason why he never got to meet his child. Nori had acted so big and powerful when she threw accusations at him in court but look at her now. Haku smirked as he turned towards the broken figure in the seat next to him. On top of the clothes she was already wearing, he had given her a sweatshirt and ordered her to keep the hood on so that her hair was completely covered and most of her face shielded. She was nothing but pathetic.
"You probably think I'm a bad person, don't you?" he grinned at her.
"You murdered an innocent man, and you murdered Yue."
The smile on his face was wiped off as a scowl quickly replaced it.
"She was making things difficult. I loved Yue! You convinced her I didn't, and that's why she left me," he snarled. "You think I wanted to do that? After I found out where she was on Thursday, before I even went to speak with her, I booked a room in the hotel we're going to right now. I wanted to show her that we could be a family again by having a getaway. If I didn't love her, tell me...why would I have done all of this? You're even wearing some of the clothes I had specially bought for her! Even after all these years, I was ready to forgive her for what she did, but the bitch just wouldn't budge! Even though there was a plan, I put my neck on the line and rushed to her the second I saw her. If that's not love then tell me what is!?"
--
Two Months Ago
Haku sat in his car as he watched that lawyer, Nori, make her way to the front door of her friend's house. Even though he had been randomly following her for the past month, she still managed to make his blood boil. He was still angry at her for sending him to jail, and even angrier that he couldn't approach her to even things out. He had been given the chance to get out of jail early even after the altercation he had with his cell mate a month before his parole, and so he had to oblige by certain rules in their deal. Not confronting or hurting Nori Sawamura was one of them. Once out, he had been contacted and presented with a plan on how to find his wife and child as well as causing the lawyer who started all of this some suffering. He had jumped at the opportunity, but now he hated it. The process was slow and painful. The plan involved him constantly following Nori around and piecing together all kinds of information about her. They would use this information to kidnap her and make it look like it was politically related to her father. After kidnapping her, they would force her to tell them about Yue's whereabouts, and Haku would get what he wanted. What happened to Nori afterwards was not his business nor his concern. The only thing he knew was that she wouldn't be found in Tokyo ever again.
Haku watched as the light blonde haired pregnant woman in the doorway burst out in tears. Nori calmed her down before heading back to her car and leaving. Haku gave it a minute before starting his own car and following her. Sure enough, Nori drove straight home. He parked his car in a nearby public park and took out the folding chair he kept in his trunk. From there, he entered the woods that lined the back of the Sawamuras' street. He went to his usual spot behind their house and set up his folding chair before making himself comfortable. This spot provided him with the perfect vantage point to observe the house, but it also kept him well hidden behind some densely spread out trees. The routine had become bleak. He took his binoculars out and peered in through the windows. He could see Nori walking around in the kitchen, nothing particularly different or interesting going on so he put the binoculars away.
An hour later, her husband, the police officer, came home as well. Haku didn't even bother taking the binoculars out. However, another hour after that, a car pulled into the driveway. He watched as a tall figure with messy black hair walked to the side door of their house. Haku had seen this man plenty of times, his name was Kuroo. Haku pulled out his binoculars and observed as Kuroo pulled out a single key and used it to open the door. Before he could even pull the key out of the lock, Kuroo froze in the doorway and swiftly turned around. Through the binoculars, Haku could see he was flushing a bright red as he uncontrollably laughed before flinching when something hit him on the back of the head. Still turned around, Kuroo said a few more words before blindly reaching backwards for the doorknob to pull the door closed. Haku's heart began to pump faster. Kuroo was making his way back to his car, but Haku's focus was still on the doorknob. Having pulled the door shut without a second glance, Kuroo had forgotten the key in the lock. Haku grinned to himself as he watched the metal glimmer in the setting sun.
--
Thursday
Whether it was a coincidence or good fortune was shining down on him, Haku watched as the woman he had been searching for all these months strolled into the grocery store he was currently in. He hid himself behind a shelf as he watched her walk directly towards the clerk at the front and simply ask for two steamed buns and a soda. After paying for her things, she quickly left the store. Haku followed her as she walked down the street, making sure to leave a good amount of distance between them so she couldn't spot him. She made her way into an elementary school. It was after school hours, and there weren't many students in sight so he was able to slip in without being noticed. He continued to follow her and observed her walk into a classroom. He quickly walked past it to see that she had settled down at a desk and appeared to be grading papers while nibbling on one of the buns she had just purchased. This was his chance. He could win her back. He quickly ducked into the boys bathroom that was on that hallway so not to be seen by anyone. He then pulled out his phone and looked for a room in one of Tokyo's nicest hotels. They could spend the weekend getting comfortable with each other again and then on Monday, they would go and stay at the hotel. It would be their getaway. Everything would go back to normal, just him, Yue, and their kid.
Once booked, he looked at his appearance in the mirror and fixed up his hair before making his way back to the classroom. She was still sitting at the same desk, so lost in the papers she was grading that it took her a few seconds to even realize someone else was in the room. Haku watched as her eyes grew wide, and she abruptly stood up. She looked scared, but Haku would show her he wasn't mad. He would forgive her. They could start over, and everything would be fine.
"Wh-what are you doing here!?" she stammered as she began to slowly back away.
"Why do you look so scared? I'm your husband. What's there to be afraid of?"
"You're not my husband! We're divorced! You're not supposed to come anywhere near me!"
She was already beginning to get on Haku's nerves, but he tried his best to keep the smile on his face and to keep his voice from getting louder. The last thing he wanted was to yell at her.
"Baby, I know you made some mistakes, but I'm willing to forgive you. You, me, and our child, we'll start over."
"Our...our child?"
"Of course. We're a family."
"MY child. I raised my child on my own!"
"And that's because of your mistakes, Yue. You got me arrested, otherwise I would have been here the whole time. What's done is done. My mom died, and she left me the cabin and the farmhouse. I know how much you always loved the cabin. Well, we can live there now and start fresh. How's that sound, hmm?" he smiled as he reached his hand out to caress Yue's cheek, but he was shocked when she slapped his hand away.
"Stay away from me! I'm not going anywhere with you!"
The smile on Haku's face disappeared, and his eyes turned dark.
"Yue...maybe you're forgetting who you're talking to since it's been so long, but don't you dare forget what I'm capable of. Either you come with me right now, or I'll drag you out by any means necessary," he coldly stated as he pulled out his pocket knife and flipped the blade out.
"Ms. Yue! Oh sorry, am I interrupting something?"
Haku turned to see a brown haired teenager standing in the doorway. Next to him was another brown haired little kid playing some hand held video game, too occupied to even bother looking up. Haku quickly brought the pocket knife down to his side so that they couldn't see it, but still holding it out so Yue knew he was serious.
"No, not at all," Haku spoke up with a smile.
"Oh, uh okay. I just wanted to let you know Akio forgot his homework in here. Just needed to grab it," the teenager explained.
"Yes, he did do that. I put it to the side for him," Yue calmly replied to the boy as she picked up a few papers on her desk and handed them to the teen.
"Tonight, should I just--"
"I'll have to speak with you at a later time. I'm in the middle of an important meeting right now, so if you wouldn't mind, please," Yue brightly spoke as she flashed the two kids a smile and quickly ushered them out of the room. Haku always loved that smile of hers.
Once they left, Yue closed the door.
"Who are those kids?"
"The younger one is my student, and the teenager is his brother."
"Touching...hmmm....well if you'd like them to have a safe journey home, I suggest you come with me, Yue. Wouldn't want something to happen to your precious students because their teacher couldn't simply take the time to talk to her husband now would you?
...
Haku stared at the mess the bitch had caused him to make. He had tied Yue's hands together with his belt once they were in the car and brought her back to the farmhouse. He wanted to talk to her and make her understand that they should be a family again, so he carried her into the shed with him while he worked on hammering in some bars on the open window. If she continued being a brat, he would just make her sleep out here. There had been no reasoning with her though. She had continued screaming until he finally lost it.
"I JUST WANT MY CHILD! Go to hell if you don't want to be with me, but I'll be damned if you keep my kid from me for another second! There's nothing you can do to stop me!" he had finally screamed at her.
"That child almost died because of you! You pushed me down the stairs! You didn't even turn around to see if I was okay! Your drunk ass just kept going up the steps. Y-you went to the room and went to sleep! I was crying and in so much pain! I called out for you to help me. I...I couldn't even get up! Somehow I made it out, and THAT is why MY child is alive. You have NO rights!" she had hysterically screamed back.
One minute Haku had been hammering a nail into the window's wooden frame and the next, he was standing over a bloody mess. He wiped at the crimson red streaks that had splattered onto his face as he continued to stare at Yue's lifeless body.
"You've always been stupid....DAMN IT!" he angrily screamed, dropping the tainted hammer from his hand. He began to sob and fell to his knees as he pulled her into his arms. "All you had to do was listen to me."
...
Haku was standing in his usual spot as he observed the Sawamuras' house. He hadn't bothered to bring his chair. He wasn't here to just watch today. After cleaning up most of the mess from earlier, he had hidden Yue's body in the closed off closet space in the shed. Someone would probably realize she was missing eventually. If Haku didn't want to get caught, he would have to find his child and disappear before the police put anything together. He knew there was a plan, but he couldn't wait for it anymore. He would take Nori tonight, and he would force her to talk.
The sound of a roaring motorcycle caught Haku's attention. He watched as Daichi Sawamura pulled into the driveway on his bike. Within seconds he was inside the house. Fifteen minutes later, Haku watched as the lights to the kitchen were turned off and then a light upstairs flicked on. Haku looked at his watch. They didn't usually go to bed at this time, but maybe they had decided to eat dinner in their room tonight instead of downstairs. Haku quickly left the coverage of the trees and made his way to the side door of their house. Pulling out the key he had acquired two months ago, he placed it in the lock and carefully opened the door. No one was downstairs. This would be the perfect opportunity for him to sneak in. He patted his waistband knowing full well his gun was still there and then held his backpack, which contained a bottle of chloroform, a cheap mask he had purchased, gloves, and a rag, close to his chest so it didn't make any unnecessary sounds. He didn't want to create much of a fuss, so his plan was to lay low in the house until he got an opportunity to grab Nori. She always came downstairs right before bed to do a sweep of all the doors to make sure everything was locked and all the lights off. That would be the perfect time.
He quietly closed the door behind him and stealthily moved into the house. He knew they had a guest room on the ground floor. After months of observation, he also knew they never set foot in that room except once every few weeks to dust unless someone had come to stay over. He passed the stairs as he made his way towards the hallway where he expected the room's entrance to be. Sensually erotic moans could be faintly heard coming from a room upstairs. Haku couldn't help but chuckle. If only he could hear these sounds, maybe he'd realize all of this wasn't worth it after all. Whatever, it was none of Haku's business. All Haku was focused about was getting his kid. He would lose his shit on Haku for doing this without telling him, but it didn't matter.
After making his way into the guest bedroom and locking the door behind him, he carefully placed his backpack and the key on top of the dresser so he would have easy access to whatever he needed. He made his way to the bed and laid down in it. The day had been an exhausting one. He was ready for it to be over.
...
An hour later, a small commotion could be heard from the ground floor. Haku quickly made his way down the hallway and peered into the kitchen. It was Daichi. His bare back faced Haku, and he was wearing nothing but pajama bottoms. The sound of a knife hitting the cutting board reached Haku's ears. He was finishing up the dinner Nori had started. How weak to be doing a woman's job even when he has a wife. That's when Haku noticed the cellphone on the counter. It was laying face down, and from the case, he knew it was Nori's. Once Daichi would go upstairs, he would come back and take the phone. Maybe he'd find information about his kid through some emails or something. Until then, he would wait back in the room.
...
Eventually, the sounds of Daichi's footsteps climbing up the stairs finally signaled to Haku that it was safe to go grab the cellphone from the kitchen counter. He safely made it back into the guest room before he swiped at the screen to get into the phone. It was password protected. Damn it. Of course it was. Haku attempted a few random passcodes, but nothing worked and he was eventually locked out. He sighed and angrily turned the phone completely off before tossing it on the bed next to him. That would have been too easy.
...
Haku was harshly woken up by the sound of an annoying beeping that came from somewhere in the house. He must have dozed off, but he quickly jumped to his feet and snuck his way out of the room towards the sound. It was Nori. She was pressing the buttons on the microwave to start it. He watched as she turned her back to it to gaze at a shelf full of picture frames. This was his opportunity.
--
Haku pulled into the garage that provided designated parking for the hotel they were going to check into. Once parked, he grabbed his backpack from the back seat.
"Here, put this on. Don't you even dare of doing anything funny when we go into the hotel," he stated as he threw a medical mask at Nori. Once put on, the only things visible were her eyes. There was no way anyone would recognize her even with her picture being blasted on every news station in the city. "Stay in here, and like I said, be quiet. I have something to do. You won't be able to unlock the car anyways, but try to catch some passerby's attention, and both, you and Kuroo are dead shit."
Haku got out of the car and opened the trunk. After taking out his mother's old wheelchair, he popped it open before pulling out the bottle of chloroform from his backpack and dumping the clear liquid onto a rag. Then he waited. After a few minutes passed, he heard the elevator doors ding as they opened. Out stepped a familiar light grey haired individual. Right on time.
Haku pulled the hood of his sweatshirt up and began to push the empty wheelchair towards Koshi Sugawara, keeping his face down so as not to be recognized.
Once he was right next to Sugawara, Haku glanced around. There was no one else in the parking garage. He grabbed the man from the back and slammed the rag over his nose and mouth. After the initial shock wore off, he put up a fight, but Haku was bigger. The scrawny teacher didn't stand a chance. Once unconscious, Haku placed him in the wheelchair and casually rolled him back to his car. He saw Nori's eyes go wide as she recognized her unconscious friend. Haku smirked as she began to struggle at the door handle, begging to be let out. She began pounding on the glass, leaving disgusting smudges on the freshly cleaned windows. He furrowed his eyebrows together as a scowl crossed his face. He pulled his gun out from its holster and held it to the back of Sugawara's slumped over head.
"Cut that out, or he gets it!"
Immediately, she stopped. Haku smirked as he pushed the wheelchair towards the still open trunk. After putting his gun back in its holster, he hoisted Sugawara's limp body into the back of his trunk. He duct taped his hands and legs together, as well as duct taped his mouth shut. Haku then patted down Sugawara's pockets and took his room key, phone, and some money that he found in his wallet before stepping back to look at his unconscious figure. This plan seemed to be going even better than what could have been expected from the original plan. Haku grinned. Someone has to be the fall guy. Daichi clearly doesn't buy into the Kuroo and Nori running away together idea, so this will be the next best thing. Haku slammed the trunk shut before opening the door to the passenger seat.
"What did you do to him! Why are you even involving him in this!"
"He's alive. Keep talking, and he won't be. Just climb into the wheelchair and keep your mouth shut. The hotel reservations are under Haku and Yue Hoshi. So if I call you Yue, you better answer," Haku boringly commanded.
"But—"
"Enough! Get in the damn chair and keep your mouth shut! Just because I need you alive doesn't mean I need any of your friends to be alive, got it?!"
That did the trick. She quickly shut her pestering and got into the wheelchair. Haku pulled out a blanket and threw it over her legs to hide her injured foot. After making sure she was well covered by the hood and mask and wouldn't be recognized, they made their way into the hotel lobby.
"Good morning, I know I'm not suppose to be checking in until later this afternoon, but my wife is feeling unwell. I was hoping we could work something out," Haku turned his charm on as he spoke to the receptionist at the front desk.
"Of course, Sir! We're sorry to hear you're not feeling well, Ma'am. My name is Aki Suzuki, and I can get you checked in right away. What's the last name for the reservation?"
"Hoshi."
Haku watched as Aki quickly worked on the computer. She had long blonde hair and dark brown eyes. She was really pretty. Maybe once all of this blew over, and he was living in another part of the country, away from where anyone could recognize him, he could give dating another shot. His kid would definitely need a maternal figure. As he was considering the possibilities, another young girl with short, dark brown hair and round eyes joined Aki behind the reception desk as she too began doing something on a second computer. A sudden fit of coughing from next to him grabbed his attention.
"Ma'am? Are you okay? Does your wife want some water?" Aki asked with concern on her face.
"Yue—"
"Yes sir, how can I help you?" the girl with short brown hair brightly asked as she looked up from behind the computer she was working on.
"I'm talking to my wife," Haku let out, his voice giving away his annoyance.
"I apologize! I thought you said Yui, which is my name," she explained with small smile.
"Can I get some water?" Nori's voice interrupted. Haku turned to look at her, trying to warn her with his eyes that she better not remove her mask to drink anything, but Nori was too busy looking at Yui.
"Right away, Ma'am. I'll be right back," Yui had chirped out before walking away.
Haku took that opportunity to bend down and whisper his warning about not taking her mask off. Nori simply nodded. He then turned his attention back to Aki who was finished with checking them in and was waiting to explain all the amenities the hotel had to offer.
"Here you go, Ma'am!" he heard Yui's perky voice say to Nori as she handed her a bottle of water.
"Thank you, Michimiya," he heard Nori mumble as Aki handed him the two room keys and pointed him in the direction the elevators were located.
Haku turned to see Yui had already returned behind the desk, but her eyes were still smiling brightly at both, him and Nori.
"Thank you again for the water," Haku nodded, returning the smile, as he began pushing Nori's wheelchair towards the elevators.
Instead of pressing the button to go to the floor where his room was located, Haku pulled out the key he took from Sugawara and read the number written on the card before pressing the button for the corresponding floor. Once outside of the room, he turned to Nori once again.
"You better behave, got it?"
He then opened the door and pushed Nori's wheelchair inside. The suite was roomy. It had a kitchen area, two desks, a couch, and two spacious beds. On one of the beds sat a familiar kid playing a handheld video game. He looked up when he realized someone had entered the room.
"No, no, no! How did—"
"Shut up!" Haku angrily snapped at Nori as he pushed her wheelchair to the side and walked around her towards the brown haired kid who continued to stare at him with wide gray eyes. Those eyes, they were Haku's eyes. It was the same kid he had seen a few days ago in the classroom.
A mechanical click at the room's door caught his attention, and he watched as it casually swung open.
"They didn't have chocolate milk in the vending machine so I just got strawberry. I hope that's—" but the brown haired teenage boy Haku had also seen a few days ago froze as he took in the two new, unexpected figures in the room.
Haku's immediate thought was to grab the teenager and drag him in, but Nori seemed to have guessed that because before he had even moved, Nori had stood onto her good leg and smashed the back of the wheelchair into his abdomen with all her might before throwing herself on him to keep him from moving.
"Haru, RUN! The stairs!" she had screamed out as she pulled her mask off. The kid's eyes grew big in recognition, and he quickly nodded his head before taking off in the opposite direction from the elevators. Haku pushed the wheelchair out of his way and tried to get Nori off, but she wouldn't budge. He slammed her back against the wall and heard her let out a gasp as her arms loosened from around him. He slammed her into the wall again before finally feeling her slide down his back and crumple to the floor, coughing from pain. He didn't have time to reprimand her. If the kid disappeared, everything was in jeopardy. He ran into the hallway and turned towards the direction the kid had taken off in. He was long gone. The door to the stairwell at the end of the hallway was slowly closing shut behind him. Shit!
There was no way Haku could catch up to him now. They had to get out of here before the kid brought back up. He stormed back inside, and the scene that was unfolding before him made him even angrier.
"Mrs. Nori, are you okay?" the young, brown haired kid asked as he ran to her, tears flowing from his eyes. "Wh-what's going on?"
"It's okay, Akio. Don't be afraid," she groaned out as she pushed herself up and put her shaking arms around the weeping boy.
This was his child. He had a son.
This was his son, and his name was Akio.
He was the same boy Haku had seen on that first day. Yue had purposely lied about him.
She had lied. This was his son, and she had lied.
Haku's fists clenched, and he gritted his teeth. He glared at Nori, and his vision began to go red. He could feel his own pulse in his ears as his face began to get hot.
"You knew I had a son and who he was this entire time?" he threateningly asked as he stepped forward. "You made me run around looking for meaningless files, when you knew exactly who he was!?"
He watched as Nori pushed Akio behind her before trying to protectively sit up in front of him. If Haku wasn't so furious, he would have laughed. Though she tried not to show the pain, it was more than obvious. Forget trying to look intimidating, she couldn't even muster to convincingly breathe without looking like she was dying.
"Of course I knew! You think I'd ever lead you to him? You're a monster! You were a monster then, and you're a monster now!" she spit the words out through a clenched jaw. Her voice was ice cold as she glared at Haku. Haku glared right back. Silence filled the air where only Akio's small sniffles could be heard.
"I'll deal with you later," Haku finally stated. "We're leaving. Create a scene, and you know what happens," he threatened.
He pulled the wheelchair up to Nori and roughly grabbed her under the arms to pick her up and place her into it.
"Stop crying," he ordered the kid, trying to make his voice as steady as possible but not being successful at it as his anger seeped out.
"Shhh...Akio, come here. You're okay, don't cry. Just listen to what I tell you, and you'll be fine, okay? Now come on, sit on my lap," Nori gently said as she pulled him up and gingerly placed him on her legs. She then wiped at his tears and wrapped her arms around him to hug him protectively as she glared up at Haku.
As Haku had stated earlier, he would deal with her later. His first priority was getting out of this hotel. He grabbed the back of the wheelchair and urgently walked down the hallway towards the elevators. He repeatedly kept pressing the button until the doors finally dinged open. Thankfully it was empty. Haku pressed the button for the garage level his car was parked in, and the elevator began to quickly descend. It had barely made it five floors when it came to a stop again. The doors opened to let an elderly couple walk in. They pressed the level for the lobby and luckily were too engulfed in a conversation about where to go for breakfast that they barely paid any attention to the elevator's three other occupants. Haku looked down at Akio and saw he had put his head down on Nori's shoulder. She was silently stroking his hair with one hand while the other continued to be wrapped around him. The sight made him angry.
When the elevator doors opened on the lobby floor, Haku's eyes grew wide as he noticed bright blue lights flashing outside of the hotel in front of their main entrance.
"Oh my...why are there so many cops?" Haku heard the elderly lady who had just stepped out of the elevator question her equally confused husband. Haku pushed the wheelchair as much to the side as he could and threatened Nori with a glare, stating with just a look that she better not dare to do anything. He then squeezed himself into the corner of the elevator where the buttons were placed as he repeatedly pressed for the elevator doors to close. Haku watched as a few police offers began to walk towards their direction, but he let out a sigh of relief as the doors closed before they had gotten any closer. Luckily, the elevator did not stop on any more floors before reaching their parking level.
He quickly grabbed the wheelchair and took off at a sprint towards where his car was parked. Haku felt a cold chill go down his spine. Something didn't feel right, but he convinced himself it was only because cops were currently flooding the hotel. The more distance he put between them and this place, the better he would feel. He looked down to see Nori was tightly holding onto Akio, hunching over him as if trying to shield him. And then, as if in slow motion, he watched as she took one arm from around him and reached towards the emergency break on the side of the wheelchair. It had, in reality, happened so fast that Haku hadn't even had a chance to slow down. The next thing he knew, the wheelchair had completely overturned and sent Haku flipping through the air. He landed with a thud on his back as a ringing filled his ears. Instantly, there were figures moving around them. Haku instinctively reached for the gun in his holster. His head was spinning as he staggered to his feet. The figures had now moved out from behind the parked cars and were surrounding them. They started to move closer. He heard one of them speak, but Haku couldn't comprehend anything. His palms were beginning to sweat and his heart was pounding. He glanced from face to face as he turned in a circle, pointing his gun at them, trying to find any means of escape, any opening that would give him a chance. He was suffocating.
"Run to one of them, Akio! Go!"
Haku turned around to see Nori unwrapping herself from around Akio and watching him take off towards an officer who had his black hair in a slicked back low ponytail. The same officer nodded at the others, and they began to move forward, inching closer and closer towards Haku. After Akio had safely reached the officer, Nori, still sitting on the ground where she had landed after tumbling out of the wheelchair, turned back around and faced Haku. She was staring at him.
She was taunting him...
...looking down on him.
He knew she was laughing...
She thought he was pathetic.
His eyes wildly darted around the circle once more. He wasn't getting out of this. He raised the gun in his hand and pointed it at Nori. Who's laughing now? Where's all that fire you had before? Haku felt hot, and yet, he smiled.
He was able to pull the trigger three times before a rain of bullets pierced through his body from every direction. He swayed forward and landed on his chest. He felt like he was laying in a puddle of thick water. He coughed and blood spluttered out. His vision began to go hazy, and he started to feel cold. People were shouting all around him. He gathered all of the energy he had left to lift his head just once more. He wanted to make sure he got her. She had taken everything from him. He needed to see her dead. His eyes widened when instead of being welcomed by the sight of Nori's pathetic body crumpled on the garage floor, he was met with the sight of Daichi Sawamura lying in front of her as she wept over him.
That had been his only chance.
No.