Is it bad that I want to see this blow up in Danielle's face? Like, maybe I'm just a jerk but yeah. I wanna see where this goes, regardless of how it ends though.
Peace's Pieces
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I loved the joke at the beginning of this chapter, because after reading it twice, it doesn't get old. I got a good laugh out of it. What amuses me further is Danielle. Way too confident in trying to catch the killer. There's no way she's going to run into the murderer on her first night. When she needs to sleuth and gather more information about what the targets have in common, or the motive behind it. Anyways, I'm really excited to see this progress even further. I do happen to wonder if Danielle and Daichi are a couple or a pair of friends, who share a same class? Otherwise, well worth the wait and a great chapter!
(r i p p l e) Chapter 5 - The Midnight Streets
//September 5
I cannot believe I am doing this, Daichi grumbled in his head. He is in his room getting ready to meet up with Danielle against his better judgment. Sheathed on a harness on his torso are the same knives he used this morning. He covered his holsters with a raincoat.
As soon as his parents got home, they went straight to bed.
He shoved a sleeping bag underneath his covers to prevent suspicion if his parents woke up before he got home. It was about eleven when he headed out. Which was about fifteen minutes before the meeting time Danielle texted him and Franklin at around nine o'clock.
He arrived at the meeting place around five minutes before the agreed time but saw that Danielle and Franklin were arriving as well. The former with a baseball bag hung over her shoulder, the latter with a metal staff.
"Yo," the former greeted with a wave.
"Hey," Franklin replied with his hands in the pockets of his hoodie.
Daichi only replied with a nod.
Looking at the two, the blonde asked, "So you ready to do this?"
"As ready as I will ever be," Daichi sighed as he adjusted his coat a little. He then asked "So how are we doing this?"
"We'll stick together for now, better safe than sorry," Danielle answered before she and the others started walking.
Daichi sighed in relief as he thought, At least she's using her head a little.
She directed her attention to Franklin and admitted, "To be honest, I was actually expecting you'd bring your hunting rifle."
"Right. There would be nothing wrong with that picture," Franklin snarked.
The next hour and a half passed of wandering through the town and idle conversation. Until...
"Where the hell is this asshole!?"
"To be fair," Daichi started while looking at the source of the exclamation. This being Danielle. "The murderer doesn't have a set pattern. One time, he was killing once every couple of days. Another, a month and a half went by with nothing."
"And that's so damn annoying," Danielle almost screamed while she messed up her hair.
"What if we tried splitting up? We can cover more ground that way," Franklin suggested.
Danielle and Daichi thought about this for a second before the former said "Alright, but be careful. If you see him do not confront him. Text us."
"Got it, boss," Franklin replied with a mock salute before going down a street.
Danielle went the opposite way for a bit preceding noticing Daichi behind her. "I thought we agreed to split up," she said.
"Technically you and Franklin agreed to do that. Besides, someone has to watch your back," Daichi responded.
"Thanks, Dai," she replied with a smile.
An hour passed of them strolling through town and carefully checking around every corner in silence. When they were nearing the Market Street Plaza, they faintly heard the sounds of metal clashing against something. Their eyes bugged out as they hastened their pace. As they did this, Daichi shot a text to Franklin to get there.
When they were within sight of the source of the noise, they only saw two people. One was dressed in their pajamas laying down on the ground. The other was standing and panting near the former wearing a navy blue hoodie and pants. On their head is a matching winter cap. In their gloved hand is a silver war scythe shining under the light of the full moon. With one look at this situation, one would assume that the former was killed by the latter and they would be correct.
The pair of club members hugged a wall of one of the stores edging the plaza. Daichi could see his friend struggling to restrain herself. Her hand repeatedly gripped her bat and her jaw clenched. Each time she did the former, her knuckles turned white.
"Danielle, don't," Daichi warned with traces of fear in his warning tone.
She ran out anyway. Her bat was gripped as hard as she could as she swung at the killer's head. They heard the footsteps coming and blocked it with the shaft of their weapon right under its guard. She looked at their face and saw it was completely covered. Tinted ski goggles hid their eyes while a black mask veiled the lower half of their face. She didn't have anymore time to analyze anything else as the butt of the weapon she struck was coming for her face. Luckily, she blocked it with her arm. The murderer jumped back from the conflict they made a motion to get something from their pocket, but the blonde wouldn't allow it. This was made clear by her rushing them again.
Each time she made an attack, it was blocked by their weapon. Daichi soon joined in with a pair of knives. The gaps of her slow, yet powerful strikes were filled by Daichi's quicker slashes. After about a minute, the killer kicked Daichi away. They brought their polearm up to strike back at Danielle, causing the latter to flinch. When they saw this, the scythe wielder stopped their attempted attack. Instead, they used this opportunity to jump back and grab something from their pocket. They threw it at the ground releasing a loud bang and a large puff of white smoke.
After coughing a bunch from inhaling some of the smoke, Danielle yelled, "What the hell?! Did he seriously use a smoke bomb?!"
"That seems to be the case," Daichi responded, just as baffled. He then called 911 to report the body. Danielle quickly ditched her bat before the police arrived.
They told the cops that there just walking around town when they heard some odd noises. The killer noticed them when Daichi's stubbed his foot on a trash can. Danielle told them everything she could gather about his appearance. Daichi also added that the crook stood at about five and a half feet tall since he was between his and Danielle's height.
After giving their statements, they were ordered to go home. Which to them sounded like a fantastic idea. On the way back, the pair were quiet until Franklin came their way.
"Yo. Sorry for being late. I came as soon as I could, then the cops showed up," Franklin apologized.
"It's alright," Danielle struggled to say as she was still processing what had just happened. Daichi took the reins of the conversation to tell him what went on.
"Geez, you guys had all the fun," Franklin commented. When he got no response except a supremely thick tension in the air, he suggested, "So how about we call this a night? We aren't gonna catch the guy like this."
"You're right," Danielle agreed after a pause. "Yeah. Let's do that," she declared as she turned to the direction of her place.
Daichi's eyes went to the ground. It was then he noticed the navy blue sweatshirt tied around Franklin's waist. Also the weapon he was carrying matched what the culprit was carrying but with the blade missing. These details caused him throw a doubtful eye at their fellow club member.
They bid each other good night and headed home with disappointment hanging over most of their heads.
Sorry for the wait on this.
//September 5
I cannot believe I am doing this, Daichi grumbled in his head. He is in his room getting ready to meet up with Danielle against his better judgment. Sheathed on a harness on his torso are the same knives he used this morning. He covered his holsters with a raincoat.
As soon as his parents got home, they went straight to bed.
He shoved a sleeping bag underneath his covers to prevent suspicion if his parents woke up before he got home. It was about eleven when he headed out. Which was about fifteen minutes before the meeting time Danielle texted him and Franklin at around nine o'clock.
He arrived at the meeting place around five minutes before the agreed time but saw that Danielle and Franklin were arriving as well. The former with a baseball bag hung over her shoulder, the latter with a metal staff.
"Yo," the former greeted with a wave.
"Hey," Franklin replied with his hands in the pockets of his hoodie.
Daichi only replied with a nod.
Looking at the two, the blonde asked, "So you ready to do this?"
"As ready as I will ever be," Daichi sighed as he adjusted his coat a little. He then asked "So how are we doing this?"
"We'll stick together for now, better safe than sorry," Danielle answered before she and the others started walking.
Daichi sighed in relief as he thought, At least she's using her head a little.
She directed her attention to Franklin and admitted, "To be honest, I was actually expecting you'd bring your hunting rifle."
"Right. There would be nothing wrong with that picture," Franklin snarked.
The next hour and a half passed of wandering through the town and idle conversation. Until...
"Where the hell is this asshole!?"
"To be fair," Daichi started while looking at the source of the exclamation. This being Danielle. "The murderer doesn't have a set pattern. One time, he was killing once every couple of days. Another, a month and a half went by with nothing."
"And that's so damn annoying," Danielle almost screamed while she messed up her hair.
"What if we tried splitting up? We can cover more ground that way," Franklin suggested.
Danielle and Daichi thought about this for a second before the former said "Alright, but be careful. If you see him do not confront him. Text us."
"Got it, boss," Franklin replied with a mock salute before going down a street.
Danielle went the opposite way for a bit preceding noticing Daichi behind her. "I thought we agreed to split up," she said.
"Technically you and Franklin agreed to do that. Besides, someone has to watch your back," Daichi responded.
"Thanks, Dai," she replied with a smile.
An hour passed of them strolling through town and carefully checking around every corner in silence. When they were nearing the Market Street Plaza, they faintly heard the sounds of metal clashing against something. Their eyes bugged out as they hastened their pace. As they did this, Daichi shot a text to Franklin to get there.
When they were within sight of the source of the noise, they only saw two people. One was dressed in their pajamas laying down on the ground. The other was standing and panting near the former wearing a navy blue hoodie and pants. On their head is a matching winter cap. In their gloved hand is a silver war scythe shining under the light of the full moon. With one look at this situation, one would assume that the former was killed by the latter and they would be correct.
The pair of club members hugged a wall of one of the stores edging the plaza. Daichi could see his friend struggling to restrain herself. Her hand repeatedly gripped her bat and her jaw clenched. Each time she did the former, her knuckles turned white.
"Danielle, don't," Daichi warned with traces of fear in his warning tone.
She ran out anyway. Her bat was gripped as hard as she could as she swung at the killer's head. They heard the footsteps coming and blocked it with the shaft of their weapon right under its guard. She looked at their face and saw it was completely covered. Tinted ski goggles hid their eyes while a black mask veiled the lower half of their face. She didn't have anymore time to analyze anything else as the butt of the weapon she struck was coming for her face. Luckily, she blocked it with her arm. The murderer jumped back from the conflict they made a motion to get something from their pocket, but the blonde wouldn't allow it. This was made clear by her rushing them again.
Each time she made an attack, it was blocked by their weapon. Daichi soon joined in with a pair of knives. The gaps of her slow, yet powerful strikes were filled by Daichi's quicker slashes. After about a minute, the killer kicked Daichi away. They brought their polearm up to strike back at Danielle, causing the latter to flinch. When they saw this, the scythe wielder stopped their attempted attack. Instead, they used this opportunity to jump back and grab something from their pocket. They threw it at the ground releasing a loud bang and a large puff of white smoke.
After coughing a bunch from inhaling some of the smoke, Danielle yelled, "What the hell?! Did he seriously use a smoke bomb?!"
"That seems to be the case," Daichi responded, just as baffled. He then called 911 to report the body. Danielle quickly ditched her bat before the police arrived.
They told the cops that there just walking around town when they heard some odd noises. The killer noticed them when Daichi's stubbed his foot on a trash can. Danielle told them everything she could gather about his appearance. Daichi also added that the crook stood at about five and a half feet tall since he was between his and Danielle's height.
After giving their statements, they were ordered to go home. Which to them sounded like a fantastic idea. On the way back, the pair were quiet until Franklin came their way.
"Yo. Sorry for being late. I came as soon as I could, then the cops showed up," Franklin apologized.
"It's alright," Danielle struggled to say as she was still processing what had just happened. Daichi took the reins of the conversation to tell him what went on.
"Geez, you guys had all the fun," Franklin commented. When he got no response except a supremely thick tension in the air, he suggested, "So how about we call this a night? We aren't gonna catch the guy like this."
"You're right," Danielle agreed after a pause. "Yeah. Let's do that," she declared as she turned to the direction of her place.
Daichi's eyes went to the ground. It was then he noticed the navy blue sweatshirt tied around Franklin's waist. Also the weapon he was carrying matched what the culprit was carrying but with the blade missing. These details caused him throw a doubtful eye at their fellow club member.
They bid each other good night and headed home with disappointment hanging over most of their heads.
Sorry for the wait on this.
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Yeah, this seems too good to be true. Daichi and Danielle have been going to say the same classes. I don't quite remember Franklin entering the picture until much, much later. So alarm bells went off in my head at this because all signs seem to be pointing at him right now. It'd make a load of sense if Franklin was the killer. He suggested to split up, and usually, you never split up against someone who's out murdering others. Especially when you need each others backs. Furthermore, I like that Daichi noticed that about Franklin. So I wonder if this will be a red herring or proven later? I do wonder why the killer is killing people in particular. Be it a pattern or something else more personal. Either way, I was quite entertained and on the edge of my seat, InnerPeace. C: Well worth the wait!
It reminds me a lot of old horror movies where there'd be an obvious clue but at then end it was just a herring. This was a good read though, keep at it when you can! But don't worry about taking time to do so, it's not easy to churn out writing after writing so just take it as you go.
(r i p p l e) Chapter 6 - Papermoon
//September 6
There Danielle and Daichi were on the Market Street Plaza, fighting for their lives. Every time they made an attack, it was parried or countered seemingly effortlessly by their masked foe. The killer suddenly kicked Daichi away preceding slashing open Danielle's neck. After that, they knocked her onto the ground by hitting her across the face with the butt of the weapon. Now she is on her back slowly bleeding out, barely able to process what is going on.
Danielle then heard the most sickening noise she has ever heard. The sound of metal penetrating and scraping against bones and organs. She turned her head to the source to see Daichi laying there motionless with a bloody wound on his chest. The culprit slowly walked toward her, their weapon and her friend's blood glistening in the moonlight.
"No. Please don't," she wanted to beg, but could only think and mouth off the words. Communication fell on deaf ears as told by the killer standing over her body and his war scythe held high. It pierced her chest in a flash, replicating the same sound as before. The shock of this made everything flash white.
Danielle shot straight up from her mattress. Her heart felt like it was beating a mile a minute as she breathed heavily. She was also sweating profusely. She rubbed her neck and checked her chest to make sure she wasn't hurt. She breathed a sigh of relief when she discovered she was unharmed. Well, mostly, as proven by a bruise on the arm that blocked the weapon the previous night.
Shortly after that, someone knocked on her door, practically making her jump out of her skin.
"Dani, you up?" her uncle asked from the other side.
What day is it? she asked herself while she wiped the sweat off. She turned on her phone and was reminded. Oh right, Saturday... Crap! I have to open up!
Another set of knocks came and she responded, "Yeah, I'm up!" She rushed out of bed. She opened her door to a stocky man half a foot shorter than her. His short brown hair covered his head and chin. "Yeah. I know. Store," she said shortly continuing her fast pace throughout her home that sits on top of the music store.
She was able to get a shower, change her clothes, and feed her snake right before the store opened at ten o'clock. Today, she opted for a goldenrod long-sleeved shirt that hid her injury and a pair of red jeans. As always to keep her bangs out of her eyes, she wore a black and white hairband. Out of breath, she plopped her coffee and a bowl of Reese's Puffs on the counter.
She passed the next couple of hours catching up on her schoolwork and fixing instruments while it was dead. All this with the local rock station playing overhead. Through the day, images from last night and her dream kept cropping up.
Dammit. We finally found the guy and all we could do was get knocked around like we were nothing.
Anger bubbled up from inside while she twisted a tuning peg. With each turn, the nylon and metal cord became more and more taut, reflecting her mood. The string became so tight that with one more turn, it split in two and flew back across the tip of her nose. She yelped in surprise as she covered it to prevent further harm. When she realized what she had done, she muttered, "Shit," before she went back to the workshop to get another string and a bandage.
What am I even doing? she thought as she rummaged through the drawers. I mean... I could've DIED last night, she added. Following a few more seconds of reflecting on last night's actions, she chided as she leaned her head on a drawer, What was I thinking rushing out like that? In fact, what was I thinking in the first place?
When she found the string she needed and got back behind the counter, the front door chimed.
"Hello. Welcome to Pallière Music. Is there anything I can help you with?" she routinely greeted, masking her dour mood with a chipper tone. Upon actually looking at him, it was Saito dressed in a sleeveless shirt, shorts, and goggles hanging around his neck. Going across his left arm a couple of inches below his shoulder is a scar. He was panting with sweat on his brow. Crap. This guy.
Crap, this girl. I thought it was the old guy's day, Saito groaned in his head. "Em, no. Just lookin'," Saito replied before he went to the CD rack. This left Dani to tool around with the guitar. When she was finished, she started strumming the chords to "Redemption Song." Seventeen seconds into it, the pull of the music made Saito start singing lowly the lyrics as he went through the collection of discs.
When the song was done, they both smiled. "That was good," Saito complimented. "How long have you been playin'?"
"Since I was a kid," Danielle responded as she put the instrument in its case in the workshop. "But you're pretty good yourself," she added before she made a phone call to tell the owner of the guitar that its repairs are done. Saito then walked up to the counter with a pair of CDs. The first one she scanned was a collection of Brahms' works covered by Berliner Philharmoniker and Herbert von Karajan. Didn't take him for a classic music type, she commented in her head. Then when she scanned the All American Rejects' When the World Comes Down album, she said, "Oh, man. It's been forever since I listened to these guys."
"Same here until yesterday," he responded. "I was just walkin' around the other day when those Bionicle commercials that used to play all the time popped up in my head."
"Oh, I remember those! That's what got me into them," the blonde recalled excitedly. She looked at the case again and said, "But if you want 'Move Along,' you got the wrong album."
"I already have that one," he told her. After that, he sighed, "Then from looking around on their YouTube channel, I got 'Gives You Hell' stuck in my head."
"Ah," Danielle said in understanding as she logged the items into the computer turned cash register. This guy's actually kinda alright when he's not acting like a cynical prick, she additionally thought. "So, uh, sorry for hitting you the other day," Danielle apologized as they exchanged the payment.
"Don't worry about it," the red-eyed lad replied, brushing off her apology. He then reasoned, "It's not the first time I've been hit and it certainly won't be the last. Besides, I probably did something in a past life to deserve it."
"You seem to be taking this well," she commented.
The coal-haired one only hummed in response as he took the bag she provided. He turned to leave with his purchase in hand when the bell chimed again. Which by reflex made Danielle lean to the side and repeat the aforementioned greeting.
It was the familiar pair of Zoey and Crystal. The former is wearing a lime green shirt with blue jeans. Her long brown hair was a messy as ever. On the other hand, the latter is wearing a light purple shirt, black shorts, and a pendant around her neck with a star and crescent moon on it.
"Hey, Dani," the former responded.
When the freckled girl besides the purple-eyed one noticed the other customer, she greeted with a wave, "Hey, waiter guy."
Saito replied with a smaller wave, "Hey, Freckles and Stalker Girl."
Crystal retorted with a smirk, "Pot calling the kettle black."
"Wait, 'Stalker Girl?'" Zoey questioned.
"It's just a joke between us," Crystal clarified. Before Zoey could flex a muscle on her face, the purple-eyed girl told her with a warning tone, "Don't."
"Whaaat? I wasn't going to say anything," Zoey said with a smile.
"You were thinking it," Crystal retorted with a suspicious tone.
As the three of them chatted away, well two of them talked while Saito looked for a way to get past them, Danielle leaned back on her chair. How can they talk like this knowing that their lives can end any moment with this asshole on the loose? she thought as she wrung her hands together.
"You okay, Dani?" Zoey asked, now across from the blonde. "You seem a bit off."
"Huh?" she asked, surprised at how she managed to sneak up on her. "I'm fine. Just tired, I guess," she lied.
"O... Kay," Zoey half-accepted and chose not to press the issue.
"Are you two looking for anything in particular?" the green-eyed girl asked.
"We're just looking for something different to play at the café," Crystal replied. She then followed up by asking, "Got anything like that?"
"Hmm," Danielle hummed as she pondered the inquiry. She and Zoey then went to the CD racks to search for something they could play.
While they looked, Saito asked Crystal, "Which one?"
"Do you know where Ned's is?" the purple-eyed girl asked.
Saito thought for a bit and said, "Can't say. Cafés and coffee aren't really my things."
"It's on the corner of East Eighth and Main," she answered. "It's a cool place. It has stuff other than coffee like smoothies, hot chocolate, and stuff. You should check it out," she advertised. With a smile, she teased, "It's better than creeping around the arts building."
He took a second to mull it over in his head before he responded, "Hmm. Maybe I will." He turned towards the door and said, "Well, see ya."
"Bye," the pianist said before he headed out the door.
After a couple of seconds, Saito jogged past one of the windows with earbuds blasting some form of music into his head.
The day passed as normal before Danielle closed the shop at eight o'clock. What a day, Danielle thought as she put her dinner consisting of a couple of cheeseburgers and fries on her desk. She removed her hairband that kept her bangs out of her eyes and tossed it in the general direction of her bed.
When she was about halfway done with her meal, her phone started buzzing and ringing. She picked it up and answered "Hey, Dai. What's up?"
"First, I am sorry for not calling earlier. I had work in the morning," Daichi apologized.
"Dude, I'm sorry. Had I known you did, I wouldn't've-"
"It is alright. How are you feeling?" he interrupted.
Feeling no need to lie to him, especially after the experiences from last night, she told him, "Honestly, I'm still a little shaken up. Especially after a dream I had this morning."
"What happened in it?" the blue-eyed boy inquired.
"What could've happened," she told him, her tone turning downcast. To take the subject off her, she asked, "So how'd your parents react? I'm sure they must've heard."
"I managed to sneak into my room without waking them. But, like you said, their colleagues told them about it. So I got an earful when I got back from work," he recalled.
"Damn, dude."
Daichi hummed in response before he asked, "What about your uncle?"
"Barry didn't suspect a thing," she replied. "What about you? Are you okay?"
"I am a bit shaken up too. Which almost led to a few mishaps at work," he admitted. Following saying that, there was a silence between them. After a brief bit of hesitation, Daichi asked "So where do we go from here?"
This made, Danielle sigh and reply, "I don't know."
Disclaimer:
*This chapter is not sponsored by General Mills.*
//September 6
There Danielle and Daichi were on the Market Street Plaza, fighting for their lives. Every time they made an attack, it was parried or countered seemingly effortlessly by their masked foe. The killer suddenly kicked Daichi away preceding slashing open Danielle's neck. After that, they knocked her onto the ground by hitting her across the face with the butt of the weapon. Now she is on her back slowly bleeding out, barely able to process what is going on.
Danielle then heard the most sickening noise she has ever heard. The sound of metal penetrating and scraping against bones and organs. She turned her head to the source to see Daichi laying there motionless with a bloody wound on his chest. The culprit slowly walked toward her, their weapon and her friend's blood glistening in the moonlight.
"No. Please don't," she wanted to beg, but could only think and mouth off the words. Communication fell on deaf ears as told by the killer standing over her body and his war scythe held high. It pierced her chest in a flash, replicating the same sound as before. The shock of this made everything flash white.
Danielle shot straight up from her mattress. Her heart felt like it was beating a mile a minute as she breathed heavily. She was also sweating profusely. She rubbed her neck and checked her chest to make sure she wasn't hurt. She breathed a sigh of relief when she discovered she was unharmed. Well, mostly, as proven by a bruise on the arm that blocked the weapon the previous night.
Shortly after that, someone knocked on her door, practically making her jump out of her skin.
"Dani, you up?" her uncle asked from the other side.
What day is it? she asked herself while she wiped the sweat off. She turned on her phone and was reminded. Oh right, Saturday... Crap! I have to open up!
Another set of knocks came and she responded, "Yeah, I'm up!" She rushed out of bed. She opened her door to a stocky man half a foot shorter than her. His short brown hair covered his head and chin. "Yeah. I know. Store," she said shortly continuing her fast pace throughout her home that sits on top of the music store.
She was able to get a shower, change her clothes, and feed her snake right before the store opened at ten o'clock. Today, she opted for a goldenrod long-sleeved shirt that hid her injury and a pair of red jeans. As always to keep her bangs out of her eyes, she wore a black and white hairband. Out of breath, she plopped her coffee and a bowl of Reese's Puffs on the counter.
She passed the next couple of hours catching up on her schoolwork and fixing instruments while it was dead. All this with the local rock station playing overhead. Through the day, images from last night and her dream kept cropping up.
Dammit. We finally found the guy and all we could do was get knocked around like we were nothing.
Anger bubbled up from inside while she twisted a tuning peg. With each turn, the nylon and metal cord became more and more taut, reflecting her mood. The string became so tight that with one more turn, it split in two and flew back across the tip of her nose. She yelped in surprise as she covered it to prevent further harm. When she realized what she had done, she muttered, "Shit," before she went back to the workshop to get another string and a bandage.
What am I even doing? she thought as she rummaged through the drawers. I mean... I could've DIED last night, she added. Following a few more seconds of reflecting on last night's actions, she chided as she leaned her head on a drawer, What was I thinking rushing out like that? In fact, what was I thinking in the first place?
When she found the string she needed and got back behind the counter, the front door chimed.
"Hello. Welcome to Pallière Music. Is there anything I can help you with?" she routinely greeted, masking her dour mood with a chipper tone. Upon actually looking at him, it was Saito dressed in a sleeveless shirt, shorts, and goggles hanging around his neck. Going across his left arm a couple of inches below his shoulder is a scar. He was panting with sweat on his brow. Crap. This guy.
Crap, this girl. I thought it was the old guy's day, Saito groaned in his head. "Em, no. Just lookin'," Saito replied before he went to the CD rack. This left Dani to tool around with the guitar. When she was finished, she started strumming the chords to "Redemption Song." Seventeen seconds into it, the pull of the music made Saito start singing lowly the lyrics as he went through the collection of discs.
When the song was done, they both smiled. "That was good," Saito complimented. "How long have you been playin'?"
"Since I was a kid," Danielle responded as she put the instrument in its case in the workshop. "But you're pretty good yourself," she added before she made a phone call to tell the owner of the guitar that its repairs are done. Saito then walked up to the counter with a pair of CDs. The first one she scanned was a collection of Brahms' works covered by Berliner Philharmoniker and Herbert von Karajan. Didn't take him for a classic music type, she commented in her head. Then when she scanned the All American Rejects' When the World Comes Down album, she said, "Oh, man. It's been forever since I listened to these guys."
"Same here until yesterday," he responded. "I was just walkin' around the other day when those Bionicle commercials that used to play all the time popped up in my head."
"Oh, I remember those! That's what got me into them," the blonde recalled excitedly. She looked at the case again and said, "But if you want 'Move Along,' you got the wrong album."
"I already have that one," he told her. After that, he sighed, "Then from looking around on their YouTube channel, I got 'Gives You Hell' stuck in my head."
"Ah," Danielle said in understanding as she logged the items into the computer turned cash register. This guy's actually kinda alright when he's not acting like a cynical prick, she additionally thought. "So, uh, sorry for hitting you the other day," Danielle apologized as they exchanged the payment.
"Don't worry about it," the red-eyed lad replied, brushing off her apology. He then reasoned, "It's not the first time I've been hit and it certainly won't be the last. Besides, I probably did something in a past life to deserve it."
"You seem to be taking this well," she commented.
The coal-haired one only hummed in response as he took the bag she provided. He turned to leave with his purchase in hand when the bell chimed again. Which by reflex made Danielle lean to the side and repeat the aforementioned greeting.
It was the familiar pair of Zoey and Crystal. The former is wearing a lime green shirt with blue jeans. Her long brown hair was a messy as ever. On the other hand, the latter is wearing a light purple shirt, black shorts, and a pendant around her neck with a star and crescent moon on it.
"Hey, Dani," the former responded.
When the freckled girl besides the purple-eyed one noticed the other customer, she greeted with a wave, "Hey, waiter guy."
Saito replied with a smaller wave, "Hey, Freckles and Stalker Girl."
Crystal retorted with a smirk, "Pot calling the kettle black."
"Wait, 'Stalker Girl?'" Zoey questioned.
"It's just a joke between us," Crystal clarified. Before Zoey could flex a muscle on her face, the purple-eyed girl told her with a warning tone, "Don't."
"Whaaat? I wasn't going to say anything," Zoey said with a smile.
"You were thinking it," Crystal retorted with a suspicious tone.
As the three of them chatted away, well two of them talked while Saito looked for a way to get past them, Danielle leaned back on her chair. How can they talk like this knowing that their lives can end any moment with this asshole on the loose? she thought as she wrung her hands together.
"You okay, Dani?" Zoey asked, now across from the blonde. "You seem a bit off."
"Huh?" she asked, surprised at how she managed to sneak up on her. "I'm fine. Just tired, I guess," she lied.
"O... Kay," Zoey half-accepted and chose not to press the issue.
"Are you two looking for anything in particular?" the green-eyed girl asked.
"We're just looking for something different to play at the café," Crystal replied. She then followed up by asking, "Got anything like that?"
"Hmm," Danielle hummed as she pondered the inquiry. She and Zoey then went to the CD racks to search for something they could play.
While they looked, Saito asked Crystal, "Which one?"
"Do you know where Ned's is?" the purple-eyed girl asked.
Saito thought for a bit and said, "Can't say. Cafés and coffee aren't really my things."
"It's on the corner of East Eighth and Main," she answered. "It's a cool place. It has stuff other than coffee like smoothies, hot chocolate, and stuff. You should check it out," she advertised. With a smile, she teased, "It's better than creeping around the arts building."
He took a second to mull it over in his head before he responded, "Hmm. Maybe I will." He turned towards the door and said, "Well, see ya."
"Bye," the pianist said before he headed out the door.
After a couple of seconds, Saito jogged past one of the windows with earbuds blasting some form of music into his head.
( ( ( ) ) )
The day passed as normal before Danielle closed the shop at eight o'clock. What a day, Danielle thought as she put her dinner consisting of a couple of cheeseburgers and fries on her desk. She removed her hairband that kept her bangs out of her eyes and tossed it in the general direction of her bed.
When she was about halfway done with her meal, her phone started buzzing and ringing. She picked it up and answered "Hey, Dai. What's up?"
"First, I am sorry for not calling earlier. I had work in the morning," Daichi apologized.
"Dude, I'm sorry. Had I known you did, I wouldn't've-"
"It is alright. How are you feeling?" he interrupted.
Feeling no need to lie to him, especially after the experiences from last night, she told him, "Honestly, I'm still a little shaken up. Especially after a dream I had this morning."
"What happened in it?" the blue-eyed boy inquired.
"What could've happened," she told him, her tone turning downcast. To take the subject off her, she asked, "So how'd your parents react? I'm sure they must've heard."
"I managed to sneak into my room without waking them. But, like you said, their colleagues told them about it. So I got an earful when I got back from work," he recalled.
"Damn, dude."
Daichi hummed in response before he asked, "What about your uncle?"
"Barry didn't suspect a thing," she replied. "What about you? Are you okay?"
"I am a bit shaken up too. Which almost led to a few mishaps at work," he admitted. Following saying that, there was a silence between them. After a brief bit of hesitation, Daichi asked "So where do we go from here?"
This made, Danielle sigh and reply, "I don't know."
Disclaimer:
*This chapter is not sponsored by General Mills.*
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I agree. They're lucky they escaped with their lives the other night instead of things getting ugly super fast. It's probably a good reality check, except I feel like the killer will most likely target them now. I mean, they came into contact with whoever it was. Any chance of a slipup of who it could possibly be would start stalking them both. Or at least, that's what I got in my head right now. And Saito, you're so fine. <3 You and Crystal, man. <3 I really enjoyed the conversations between everyone. It was a fantastic chapter and well worth the wait. 
Yeah man, it was great to see this come back! I liked how this is playing out so far, keep it going whenever you can.
Appreciate the Tunes
We all have our vices and pregame rituals to either relax or get ourselves fired up. Some squeeze a stress ball. Some meditate. Saito? He just listens to music with his eyes closed. Though you can't exactly relax when you know someone is pacing in front of you.
"You know if you keep pacing like that, you're gonna wear yourself and the floor out," Saito said to the pacing young woman following opening an eye and taking his red earphones off.
"Sorry. I'm just nervous," Crystal, the one that was treading, said after stopping as if she just noticed she was doing it. She then followed that up with a complaint of, "Ugh. I feel like I'm gonna puke."
Saito smiled internally as he recalled himself thinking that before they first played together in front of an audience. "You'll do fine," he assured her. "You trained under me who trained under my mom. And we know how much of a monster she is. Besides, this kickboxing thing is for fun. So it's no biggie."
Crystal saw what her boyfriend was trying to do and it was working as proven by a smile rising on her face. She then saw that he was patting the seat next to him. She took this cue and sat next to him.
"I still kinda can't believe Casper was okay with this," Saito said.
"Yep. He said as long as were not brawling the streets then it's all good," she confirmed. A second passed before she inquired, "You haven't been street fighting, right?"
"Who do you take me for?" Saito asked, faking an offended tone. This only got a stern look from the purple-eyed girl. This caused him to proclaim, "I swear with whatever hand to whatever deity you like, I haven't."
"Good," she said with a smile still looking a bit uneasy.
This caused Saito pull her closer by the shoulder. "What are you-?"
"You need to chill," he said in a zen-like manner. Holding an earphone up in the corner of her vision, he asked, "What are you in the mood for?"
It took a second for her to process what he said before her shoulders relaxed and she asked, "Do you have any Eluvium?"
He only nodded before she took the listening device then slipped it onto her ear.
For a little over ten minutes they listened to the aforementioned artist's Copia album. Crystal did as Saito always did and closed her eyes. Crystal felt herself steadily decompress. Without the sight of their current surroundings, the tunes of the songs whisked her away. She could imagine the tall unkempt hills depicted on the album's cover. The overgrown vegetation swayed as a gentle breeze caressed their tops. The reddish-brown rabbits hopping along the inclines. The critters would often appear above the tips of the grass to better see where they are going before sinking into the green sea. The sky is mostly dyed with the yellows, oranges, and reds of sunset. A frail, decrepit skeleton looks on as if it is satisfied that this view was their last.
Crystal was so relaxed, she thought she was about to go to sleep.
Unfortunately, their peace had to end.
"The first match of the Tristate Kickboxing Tournament begins in two minutes. Will the first round participants please proceed to the ring?" a loudspeaker called.
"Well, that's my cue," Crystal said as gave the earphone back. She stood up then walked toward the door. After a few steps, she felt someone was staring at her. She turned to her boyfriend and said, "What?"
He was looking up and down at her. She wasn't wearing anything revealing. Just a purple sleeveless shirt and black shorts with her hair put in a ponytail. A pair of blue gloves tied together are held in her left hand. All he could reply was simply, "Hot."
Crystal bumped her knuckles against his head and said with a laugh, "Dork."
"And you're dating this dork," he retorted with a smirk.
As they walked out to her fight, Crystal thought with a smile, Yeah. I am and I'm glad.
First off, sorry for the long wait on content. Second, this was inspired by CD's Underappreciated Excerpt #3.
I started this story more than a year ago and just got around to finishing it.
We all have our vices and pregame rituals to either relax or get ourselves fired up. Some squeeze a stress ball. Some meditate. Saito? He just listens to music with his eyes closed. Though you can't exactly relax when you know someone is pacing in front of you.
"You know if you keep pacing like that, you're gonna wear yourself and the floor out," Saito said to the pacing young woman following opening an eye and taking his red earphones off.
"Sorry. I'm just nervous," Crystal, the one that was treading, said after stopping as if she just noticed she was doing it. She then followed that up with a complaint of, "Ugh. I feel like I'm gonna puke."
Saito smiled internally as he recalled himself thinking that before they first played together in front of an audience. "You'll do fine," he assured her. "You trained under me who trained under my mom. And we know how much of a monster she is. Besides, this kickboxing thing is for fun. So it's no biggie."
Crystal saw what her boyfriend was trying to do and it was working as proven by a smile rising on her face. She then saw that he was patting the seat next to him. She took this cue and sat next to him.
"I still kinda can't believe Casper was okay with this," Saito said.
"Yep. He said as long as were not brawling the streets then it's all good," she confirmed. A second passed before she inquired, "You haven't been street fighting, right?"
"Who do you take me for?" Saito asked, faking an offended tone. This only got a stern look from the purple-eyed girl. This caused him to proclaim, "I swear with whatever hand to whatever deity you like, I haven't."
"Good," she said with a smile still looking a bit uneasy.
This caused Saito pull her closer by the shoulder. "What are you-?"
"You need to chill," he said in a zen-like manner. Holding an earphone up in the corner of her vision, he asked, "What are you in the mood for?"
It took a second for her to process what he said before her shoulders relaxed and she asked, "Do you have any Eluvium?"
He only nodded before she took the listening device then slipped it onto her ear.
For a little over ten minutes they listened to the aforementioned artist's Copia album. Crystal did as Saito always did and closed her eyes. Crystal felt herself steadily decompress. Without the sight of their current surroundings, the tunes of the songs whisked her away. She could imagine the tall unkempt hills depicted on the album's cover. The overgrown vegetation swayed as a gentle breeze caressed their tops. The reddish-brown rabbits hopping along the inclines. The critters would often appear above the tips of the grass to better see where they are going before sinking into the green sea. The sky is mostly dyed with the yellows, oranges, and reds of sunset. A frail, decrepit skeleton looks on as if it is satisfied that this view was their last.
Crystal was so relaxed, she thought she was about to go to sleep.
Unfortunately, their peace had to end.
"The first match of the Tristate Kickboxing Tournament begins in two minutes. Will the first round participants please proceed to the ring?" a loudspeaker called.
"Well, that's my cue," Crystal said as gave the earphone back. She stood up then walked toward the door. After a few steps, she felt someone was staring at her. She turned to her boyfriend and said, "What?"
He was looking up and down at her. She wasn't wearing anything revealing. Just a purple sleeveless shirt and black shorts with her hair put in a ponytail. A pair of blue gloves tied together are held in her left hand. All he could reply was simply, "Hot."
Crystal bumped her knuckles against his head and said with a laugh, "Dork."
"And you're dating this dork," he retorted with a smirk.
As they walked out to her fight, Crystal thought with a smile, Yeah. I am and I'm glad.
First off, sorry for the long wait on content. Second, this was inspired by CD's Underappreciated Excerpt #3.
I started this story more than a year ago and just got around to finishing it.
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YOOOOOOOOOoooo that was awesome! Like, for real man. I always love reading and writing about those two knuckleheads so seeing this was cool as hell. I also love that this tied to that piece I had written way back when, as well as you referencing Eluvium and even going so far as to describe the artwork for the album. This was a good read, dude!
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Re: Appreciate the Tunes
Crystal and Saito is one of my favorite pairings on earth. You officially made my day upon reading this. And these two really suit and compliment each other in the best way imaginable. And oh my god, Crystal is my hero for kick boxing. <3 I really like the way Saito helps her calm down before her first match begins. I love these dorks. I love the chemistry between them, including the humor, and the way they support each other. This was a really great surprise to see you update with this story, Peace! <3
Crystal and Saito is one of my favorite pairings on earth. You officially made my day upon reading this. And these two really suit and compliment each other in the best way imaginable. And oh my god, Crystal is my hero for kick boxing. <3 I really like the way Saito helps her calm down before her first match begins. I love these dorks. I love the chemistry between them, including the humor, and the way they support each other. This was a really great surprise to see you update with this story, Peace! <3
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