"What are you doing?" Natalie inquired while trying to push me away from Kai.
Although Kai already reacted swiftly and spun me around I was still a bit shocked by her sudden appearance.
"Natalie... enough," Kai said.
"Why are you two alone together in Japan?" she asked while crossing her arms.
"Now, Nat... calm down..." Luca leaned forward to touch the top of her shoulders. She shrugged him off immediately.
"We have business to attend to," Kai spoke as a matter of fact.
"This... how could this be?! Kai!" she stomped her foot and glared at me.
"Natalie. I'll have to ask you to stop or I won't tolerate this any longer..." my fingertips pressed into his arms briefly...
Luca then smiled at Kai and tried pulling Natalie away again.
"Now, Kai... let's be nice. You two have a good evening..." Luca then pulled her back a little forcibly and finally Natalie left... I was taken aback by this change in Kai's tone... when I looked up at him he gently moved me away from his body.
"I'm sorry about Natalie. They must be here for a shoot..." I shook my head a little and then we both started walking ahead.
When we got back Jackson seemed to have sobered up.
"Hey! Hazel! Wanna go to the hot springs bath together?" James hit the top of his head after his comment.
"See you all later..." I waved at them before leaving...
*
When I entered the Onsen I could see the heat rising from the hot spring bath. There were large rocks surrounding the area, baskets and bundles of flowers scattered around and a forest surrounding the bath delicately... it was night time so the moonlight shone directly above.
After a few moments of relaxation I heard some laughter in the distance. I covered my body instinctively. When I realized the sound was coming from the other side I exhaled.
"What a relief!" I heard Jackson shout. I sunk back into the water while sighing a little...
I heard James tell him to shut up and I chuckled a little to myself...
Kai, James, Jackson, and Charlie all had Japanese ancestry because of their father. Nathan had told me a little about their family when I first arrived at Ravenwolf. I learned that their parents met when their mother went to a University in Tokyo for a semester.
Their father was half-Japanese and was born in Canada and he had been visiting relatives when they met. The name 'Ravenwolf' originated from his Henry's wife whose family had founded the 'Ravenwolf' empire we know today.
Henry was trusted to carry on the business because his wife had no interest in the industry and instead pursued a different career.
I laid back a little... letting the warm water roll over my shoulders.
Suddenly, I heard a noise... it was so abrupt so when I turned around to see a bird flying behind me I couldn't help but make a loud, distinct scream. I cowered into the water.
"Hazel?! Is that you?! Are you alright?!" Jackson was screaming over the wall and I contemplated sinking into the hot water...
"I'm fine!" I shouted while squeezing my eyes shut...such perfect timing for them to enjoy the only other outdoor hot spring baths on the property... I wanted to sink even further into the water...
"Jackson..." James said and I heard a bit of splashing in the distance.
"Are you enjoying the springs?!" Jackson asked me.
"It's really calming..." I said while swimming over to the other side.
"Should I tell you something interesting, Hazel?" my ears perked up a little and I listened closely.
"Do you want to know our Japanese names?"
"Jackson, it's enough." James sounded like he was about to curse him into oblivion...
"Our parents gave us Japanese names, naturally. Mine is Hikari. James is Haru and Charlie is Yuta..."
"Jackson, it's not that important. Stop bothering her..."
"What? Why not? Kai is the only one of us that decided--" I heard them converse back and forth in Japanese for a bit and my heart suddenly felt a little warmer...
After my dip in the Onsen I went back to my room. I laid down on the futon while waving a fan in front of my face... we all drank a little more sake after our dip in the hot springs and now I was a little light headed...
At this point it still felt a little surreal that I was here. It was almost as though I was dreaming. Like I would wake up from this sweet life that brought me these feelings of finally belonging to a place I could call home... and although the closer I got to this idea of family again, the more uncomfortable I felt subconsciously... after all, that's probably why even though the distance between Kai and I had lessened over time, I was still keeping my guard up even though I love him.
I heard a thud outside my room so I got up to investigate a little, thinking it must be a drunken Jackson flailing around...
But I was surprised to see Natalie being held up by Luca. She appeared to be completely drunk. I looked up at Luca just before attempting to close my door.
"Can you help me out please?" she looked like she weighed like a bundle of feathers... so I scrunched my face a little exaggeratedly.
"Seriously..." I said while I observed Luca trying to hold her up...
"If I drop her she'll sue me. She's also heavier than you think." I sighed and then leaned in to put one of her arms over my shoulders.
"You could have just given her a piggyback."
"She threw up when I tried doing that... hurry, our room is just a minute away..." I rolled my eyes and helped bring Natalie to her room. Her feet were being dragged a little so I tried adjusting her position a little and she groaned. She immediately moved her arm away from Luca and started hugging onto me like a koala bear. I was backed into the wall.
This spoiled little... Luca seemed to be amused by this.
"Hey, help me out here..." I tried releasing her grip from around my neck. Luca leaned in to help release her and we continued onward. When we got to her room we both gently tossed her onto the futon. I leaned forward exhausted.
"Thanks" Luca said while I headed towards the door.
Before I was about to leave Luca stepped forward.
"You probably know what happened in the past, right?" I turned to look at him... we were at a standstill and I simply nodded.
"Why are you always... trying to get closer to Kai despite the fact that you know he doesn't like you?" I said, half-regretting what I said. I suppose I was just a little bitter about having gotten caught up in an awkward situation like this...
But instead of getting upset Luca smiled towards me. This time I could sense there seemed to be something even deeper reflected in his eyes.
I watched him turn to look down at the ground briefly as though he had been thinking about where to begin with a comment like mine...
When Natalie stirred a little in her sleep I looked over at her open Yukata. I walked over to pull the covers over her.
"You should get some rest too..." I said while standing back up. But before I left Luca reached out to touch the top of my hand briefly. I wasn't expecting it so I took a few steps back.
"There's also another reason I'm hanging around."
"What?" I said.
"When we get back home... would you join me for coffee one day?"
"Why would I do that?"
"Maybe you can help me understand... how to take better accountability as a friend..." I scoffed and crossed my arms.
"Am I your therapist? Will I get paid by the hour?" I lifted my hands up as he was about to respond. "Never mind. Forget what I said. You like throwing around money like it's water..." he grinned at me again as I walked towards the front entrance. Before I left, I saw him sitting down on one of the mats inside the room while staring out of the window...
Why was I meeting so many men that looked like they belonged on the cover of GQ?
Before I reached my room I could hear Nathan speaking with someone around the corner. I didn't think much of it so I turned to go back into my room.
"I wish I could have seen your father once more before he passed..." for some reason... I couldn't help but look over my shoulder again.
So, this person knew Nathan's father? Curiosity got the better of me since Nathan was still a bit of a mystery to me... so I found myself stepping towards their direction. They were speaking back and forth in Japanese and English... and then I picked up on a name.
"Henry... was a good man. He must be proud of you..."
I stopped in my tracks... I saw the person he was speaking to. It was the owner that we greeted earlier today... before he spotted me I turned back around and went to my room.
When I went into my room I immediately sat on my futon. I stared out of the window thinking about what had just happened...
Henry Ravenwolf... that old man... had another son?!
And it was none other than Nathan...
Nathan was Henry's son?
I laid my head back and closed my eyes...
It must be the alcohol in my body causing me to hallucinate... there's no way...